Thursday, November 25, 2010

Turkey Trot 10k

I ran my first 10k this morning...in the rain! My pre-race traditions seem to continue and I couldn't sleep last night because I started doubting myself even though I know I've been training for weeks for this and knew I was more than capable to be running this morning. I set the alarm for 6:30 this morning so I could get up and eat before the race and once again, like the last three, I couldn't eat because my nerves were just too worked up. This comes back to kill me about halfway through a race because I lose all of my energy. I'm going to have to get over that for the Pig because I can't run 13.1 miles without eating anything the morning of.

Megan and I left the house around 7:10 and began our drive downtown. Of course it was pouring down rain and I knew this was how it was going to continue. However, we lucked out and by 9 a.m. when the race started, it was just a slow drizzle that really wasn't too bad. I think we got poured on once during the entire race but at that point, it felt good because we were hot from running.

We finished the full 6.2 miles in 1:39:22, which means I was able to maintain a 16 minute mile, even when walking. We walked a good chunk of it, especially the hills, but I did push myself when I was running so I feel like I'm making progress. I'm very pleased with how well we did and running in the rain this morning was a good training experience for the half-marathon because it almost always seems to rain on that day. I think I strained something in my leg though when I went sliding on the painted lines in the road and tried to keep my balance without wiping out. I took three ibuprofen when I got home from dinner which seems to have helped but I'm still limping a bit.

Thanksgiving was pretty uneventful. My aunt, my cousin, and I had all run today so by the time I got to dinner (lunch I guess since we ate at 1) I was ready to sleep. It was fun spending time with the extended family and talking about school, work, and running with them. Of course the new guy came up because my cousin Kim saw my facebook status so I shared some of what I know about him with my cousin Vicki. They're all excited for me but my uncle Gary told me if I keep him away from the family too long that when I finally do bring him around, they'll make sure they embarrass me! Oh how I love my family! :-P

Speaking of the boy, we're having brunch tomorrow! We've been chatting for the last hour through text messages and I was telling him how I want hot chocolate but don't want to go to Starbucks alone and he told me not to waste my time or energy and to make Swiss Miss instead. I told him I don't like hot chocolate from a box because it doesn't taste right or I just don't make it right. He told me he'd invite me over for a cup tonight but he doesn't want me driving in this nasty weather. How sweet is he?!? I'm looking forward to spending time with him tomorrow. :-)

Alright, half time is over. Back to yelling at my poor pitiful Bengals team. *sigh* Is it baseball season yet??

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