my first 5k run - mission accomplished
Monday, September 24, 2012
i've always hated running. i tried running in the morning once when i was in toronto and my skin would itch and break out in hives. my endurance was horrible. i remember running with sluggyb and i barely made it out of the parking lot of the ibm lab before i felt exhausted. i was convinced that running was not for me.
that was many years ago.
since then, i've taken up cardio sports like badminton and ultimate frisbee to improve my endurance. but i never went back to running. it took several years before some friends decided that i needed to add 'run a marathon' to my to-do list. and it was decided (not by me!) that the Army Run would be my first race. the Army Run is a race that raises money for our soldiers, war veterans, and their families. the race has become very popular over the last few years and it's a pretty good cause. so four of us signed up for the 5k run at the beginning of summer. i had 4 months to train for this and i had no clue where to begin. so i consulted the oracle - phil. phil gave me some great advice about getting started. i followed his advice and slowly began training. running has improved my badminton game as well.
this past sunday, was race day. when i registered for the race, i didn't think of how cold it would be on race day morning. oh my goggles, was it ever chilly! i didn't back out of it though. i was determined to do it. i have to say .. it was an amazing feeling to get your first run under your belt. as soon as the gun went off, i crossed the starting line and immediately started to run at a slow pace and built it up as i went. my goal was to complete the 5km without having to stop and walk portions of it. i wanted to run the entire race so pace was not a concern of mine. seeing the injured soldiers participate was very inspiring. their spirit was not broken despite their disability.
in the end, i completed the run in 36:13 minutes. i also got an awesome dog tag for finishing. :)
we may have been bitten by the running bug now. my friends and i are thinking of taking part in the CIBC run for the cure race next weekend, and the Ottawa Race Weekend 10k run in May 2013.
i really never thought i would ever run in a race or even like running. but i guess you don't knock it until you've tried it. it's not that bad. phil was right - "it is an amazing test to see what you are made of when the going gets tough. when your brain is telling you to stop, when your body is beyond fatigued, when your feet hurt. it would be so easy just to stop. but you can dig deeper and punch that pain in the groin. tell yourself that you didn't run all this way to settle for average results."
it may sound very cliche but it's quite true.
running definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone. and sometimes that's what we all need to do. to get out of our comfort zone and try something different that challenges you physically, mentally, or emotionally. that's how we grow as an individual.
as always, i encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and do something different.
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that was many years ago.
since then, i've taken up cardio sports like badminton and ultimate frisbee to improve my endurance. but i never went back to running. it took several years before some friends decided that i needed to add 'run a marathon' to my to-do list. and it was decided (not by me!) that the Army Run would be my first race. the Army Run is a race that raises money for our soldiers, war veterans, and their families. the race has become very popular over the last few years and it's a pretty good cause. so four of us signed up for the 5k run at the beginning of summer. i had 4 months to train for this and i had no clue where to begin. so i consulted the oracle - phil. phil gave me some great advice about getting started. i followed his advice and slowly began training. running has improved my badminton game as well.
this past sunday, was race day. when i registered for the race, i didn't think of how cold it would be on race day morning. oh my goggles, was it ever chilly! i didn't back out of it though. i was determined to do it. i have to say .. it was an amazing feeling to get your first run under your belt. as soon as the gun went off, i crossed the starting line and immediately started to run at a slow pace and built it up as i went. my goal was to complete the 5km without having to stop and walk portions of it. i wanted to run the entire race so pace was not a concern of mine. seeing the injured soldiers participate was very inspiring. their spirit was not broken despite their disability.
in the end, i completed the run in 36:13 minutes. i also got an awesome dog tag for finishing. :)
we may have been bitten by the running bug now. my friends and i are thinking of taking part in the CIBC run for the cure race next weekend, and the Ottawa Race Weekend 10k run in May 2013.
i really never thought i would ever run in a race or even like running. but i guess you don't knock it until you've tried it. it's not that bad. phil was right - "it is an amazing test to see what you are made of when the going gets tough. when your brain is telling you to stop, when your body is beyond fatigued, when your feet hurt. it would be so easy just to stop. but you can dig deeper and punch that pain in the groin. tell yourself that you didn't run all this way to settle for average results."
it may sound very cliche but it's quite true.
running definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone. and sometimes that's what we all need to do. to get out of our comfort zone and try something different that challenges you physically, mentally, or emotionally. that's how we grow as an individual.
as always, i encourage you to get out of your comfort zone and do something different.
