Too Cold To Hold Results are in!

Today was a fantastic day for a run! We were up bright and early and ready to go by the time Cotton arrived about 6:15. We got to the park where the start line was to be set up in plenty of time to get a good parking spot, so we sat in the car to keep warm, we didn't even need to do a bag check. Nice!

We went down to the runner's area for our "porta" break, and we each picked up about a half a cup of coffee to warm up with...then went back to the car for a few minutes. About 15 minutes before the start we walked on down to the start line.

As we were waiting I told Rick that as much as I love running with him, I thought that if he really ran this one he could finish it in under 1:30 - instead of running with me and going for my goal of under 1:37! I told him I really wanted him to go for it! The gun sounded and we took off at our normal snail-dodge-the walkers-and-slower-runners pace. Rick passed me fairly quickly and I had to smile that he took my challenge and was going for it! YEAH RICK!!!

Even with a slower than normal start I completed the first mile of the race in 10:00 flat. (This included slowing down to take off the jacket and tie it around my waist - I hate being so wimpy at the start when it is cold!) That was OK with me - it kept me on pace for my goal. I kept running at the pace I was comfortable at by then and finished mile 2 with a 9:57 pace....still looking good - although I had a feeling I wasn't going to be able to repeat my "Frigid" performance of a 1:03 pace for the 10K mark. All I could do was keep going and give it my best for the day....

My mile 3 pace was 9:47 and gave me a 3 mile time of 29:55 - close to my pace at the DRC race a couple of weeks ago. However - the "official" 5K mark was a little further down the trail....and they clocked me at 31:32:57, slightly slower than the last race. I kept going and trying to keep my pace fairly steady...Mile 4 was a 10:37....shoot...I had slowed down, but I was still under the 10:45 that I was trying so hard to beat this race. It seems like that has been my overall pace for about a year now and I'm really wanting to pick it up a bit. On and on and on I ran....mile 5 pace was 10:46....NOOOOOOOO! That would NOT do! I needed to pick it up if I could! Mile 6 - 10:25....better....whew! Now if I could just keep it there. For the 2nd 5K I had posted a time of 33:31:36. A couple of minutes lost, but a 6 mile time of 1:01:44 by Garmin time put me just slightly slower than the DRC...still pushing along!

Then I hit it...the infamous WALL!!! I was much bummed at 6.5 miles in...my legs were churning away - I felt like I was still running at the 10:30 or so pace, but Garmin was telling me differently....I hit mile 7 with 10:51 pace. I tried to give myself a little pep talk and pick it up, but my legs simply were not cooperating at ALL! For me, mile 7 and 8 are always the hardest, slowest of my races. I don't know why - when I'm running the pace feels the same, but I'll look at my watch and be shocked to see how much I've slowed. Even when I'm conciously monitoring and pushing-pushing-pushing it seems like this section of the run just will NOT cooporate! Mile 8 was my slowest mile of the race, per my norm....an 11:06 pace. Normally I would be very disappointed here and perhaps THINK about walking, but I had a goal that I really wanted to make...with Garmin telling me that my 8 mile time was 1:23:42 - and with only 1.3 miles to go I thought I just might get there, if I could just pick it up a little bit!

I ran the last mile the best I could - I worked at smoothing out my run, picking up the pace slightly, and breathing with the cadence of my steps...I also tried to stand a little taller....SOMETHING must have worked at least a little bit because my pace for this section was back down to 10:54 and Garmin told me I had done the 9 miles in 1:34:37. Since I use my Garmin as my official timer for our normal Sunday morning runs, I KNEW I was doing one of my best runs in a long time. I also knew I was getting close to the finish line. I could hear the loud speakers and some music. I tried to pick it up a little, run a little taller, look a little stronger since I knew Rick and Cotton would be there cheering for me. I did the last part of the race (Garmin shows it as .48 miles at a 10:41 pace in 5:09 for a total Garmin time of 1:39:47. The official results show my last 5K time at 34:41:43 and my overall time at 1:39:46 - pretty close to Garmin, huh? Officially, I finished 242 out of 719 runners overall, and 8th out of 17 in my age group - right about the middle, which is where I normally am ....

I didn't make my goal of the full 15K in 1:35 - but I got close...and I was fairly happy with the first 6 miles and my 10K time of 1:05:04. I was hoping for a little better after doing so well at the DRC, but it is a different race, and a different day - I was VERY happy to see that my overall pace ended up being 10:31...almost 15 seconds a mile faster than what my "normal" pace has been....it appears that some of the work is beginning to pay off!

Rick and Cotton both had AMAZING races.

Rick's splits were:

29:31:23

29:35:45

29:22:6

for an overall time of 1:28:30. I KNEW HE COULD DO IT!!!!!! The full 15K in UNDER 1:30!!! Congratulations RICK!!!! His overall place was 197 - top 200!!!!

Cotton's splits were:

22:38:66

21:56:29

21:29:27

for an overall time of 1:06:05 and 3rd place in his age group - and 29th overall! Congratualtions to you too, COTTON!!

Our next race is the Tal Morrison 5K. My goal for this one is to finish in under 30 minutes. I am getting so close even in these long races that I honestly believe if I can convince myself to RUN it I can do it!!!! Wish me luck!

Tomorrow

One of the things about choosing "goal" as my word is that I really need to make public each goal I set. I have a couple that I'm going to begin working on tomorrow.

First, today while we were at Costco I found a book, showed it to Rick and we decided that we would go on a new adventure this year. The name of the book is The Love Dare. It is a year of devotions for couples. So my first BIG goal this year is to set aside time each day with my husband for devotion, prayer, and our Love Dare challenge of the week. I'm sure you'll be hearing about it as we make our way through this process. One of the things the authors say to do is to "journal" your journey. This allows you to look back and actually see your growth and progress. Some of my journal will, of course, be private...but there are other parts I'm sure I will want to share.

The second goal I'm working on is *gasp* cooking a little more.

I have subscribed to an online menu planner and I've been using it for a couple of weeks now = since I've been "off", and I really like it. The menus are simple and quick - don't use a lot of exotic ingredients - are the right size - and they taste great. Not only that, but they also provide a shopping list made up for you that is easy to modify if you don't want to cook a specific day's meal plan. I've already shopped for next week and have two main dishes, as well as several of the side dishes packed and ready to go for next week. Tomorrow's plan is to complete the other 2-3 main dishes and then I'm set for the week. I'm hoping to be able to continue this more often than not. By prepping most of the meals on the weekend it leaves me free for my workouts and work during the week....we'll see how this one goes.

So, there you have it. My two biggest goals so far. I will certainly try to keep you updated as we continue on the journey!

DRC 10K today!

***** Update *****

We got the official results. Cotton finished 7th in his age group with a clock time of 44:10:53 (a 7:06 pace). Rick finished 9th in his age group with a clock time of 59:03:36 a 9:30 pace). I finished 3rd in my age group with a clock time of 1:04:10 (a 10:19 pace) ... I was totally shocked to learn that I placed in the top 3! Another big WHOO-HOO!

****************

Well, we made it. Last night I set my goal to do better than my average 10K time of 1:06 - 1:07. I even discussed it (made it public) with Rick beforehand so he would know what I was attempting.

We got up about 5:00 AM and got ready - we drove by and picked up Cotton and we were on our way to the race. After a little confusion (the notes on where to park referenced a "new clubhouse") we determined that it was the same clubhouse we have been using for the entire year we have been members of the DRC. No problem - we got there, got our bibs and completed our pre-race "stuff" in plenty of time to relax before the start.

They called us to the start line at 7:45 and we all walked down the hill and gathered for the moment of silence, the national anthem and the start of the race. It was pretty cold - I hate standing in the cold, but I always run better in it! Once they said go we were off in no time!

The first mile felt really good - even if it WAS cold...I ran that in 9:42, and couldn't believe I had a sub 10:00 mile under my belt and could still breathe! Mile 2 was still feeling good - although when I hit the turn around for the 5K I was sure wishing I could turn around too! Finished that mile at a 9:40 pace...all I could think was whoo-hoo!!! Now I was REALLY wishing for a 5K - I think I could have broken my 30 minute barrier today!!! Oh well, there is always next time. Mile 3 is where you hit the long uphill...I still ran that one in 10:16 for a 3 mile time of 29:39, needless to say I was already happy with this run!

Now we were on the back side of the 10K...almost 1/2 way and still running uphill. I completed mile 4 with a 10:24 pace, I wasn't unhappy with this because of all the uphill running and it put me a 40:03 for 4 miles which is right at a 10:00 pace - better than I have done since the Human Race in October!

Mile 5 included the uphill of the spillway. This is a fairly steep grade and I ALMOST made it to the top...my legs gave out about 3/4 of the way to the top, so I went ahead and walked to the top and then started running again. I completed mile 5 at a 10:35 pace...wish I could say I didn't have to walk, but it is what it is....

Mile 6 I was really feeling it. I was tired, my thighs were on fire, and I wanted to just stop and walk soooooo bad! I knew I could finish this thing though - and I wasn't going to walk on a flat! So....mile 6 pace: 10:37...my slowest mile - but I ran every step!

Cotton and Rick caught me just after the 6 mile mark when I had less than 1/4 of a mile to go...it was so good to see them cheering me on! I finished the last .28 miles in 2:40 (9:39 pace) for an overall Garmin time of 1:03:58. Not a PR, but my second best time ever! (My best was the Human Race with a 1:02:21 - another unofficial Garmin time!) I feel pretty good about that time since it hasn't even been a month since our marathon. Not a bad "recovery race" at all!

We are still waiting for our official results to be posted - I will update when we know something. The main thing for me for this race was that I set the goal to beat the 1:06 - 1:07 average I have been running - and even with a slower clock time (which will be the official time) I managed to do that!

Day one, goal one - DONE!

OK...I bit!

In case you are wondering about the title, my daughter has her own blog - I read it every day - sometimes even when she doesn't update it! She posted today about her "One Little Word" for the next year. You can read her post here. After reading that post I got to thinking about what word I would choose for this year...I thought about how many - many years ago I stopped making "New Year Resolutions". They were nearly always a failure anyway - and who wants to set themselves up for failure at the beginning of every year? So instead I determined I would set goals for myself every year. This would be goals that were obtainable IF I WORKED ON THEM...of course the same could probably be said for resolutions - but for me it made all the difference in the world.

So as I searched for a goal for this year - and then read Little Wonders - I thought, "why not make goal my word for 2010?" And that is what I have done!

I looked to find out what the word actually meant before I chose it and was surprised to see that the first two definitions really fit what I mean exactly!

1. the result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim; end.

2. the terminal result in a race.

How fitting! So my One Little Word for 2010 is goal. I hope to set many and achieve as many of them as I can. Not only in the races that I run, but it my life as I live it. There are so many ways I can see working this word into my daily life - even the smallest thing like setting one daily small goal that I can work toward.

In my own small, little way of thinking - setting the goal and working toward it is what counts...if you do that and do your best then you are a winner - reaching the goal is just the icing on the cake (or the bling at the end of the race!)

My "goal" is to post about this word a little more often here - not only my race goals, but some of my "daily" goals as well....and to look back at the end of the year on how this "One Little Word" that I have chosen today may have had an effect on my life this year.

This is an experiment for me - I am excited to be able to start this on day one of the new year! May you reach ALL your goals this year as well!