In 2016, I did a race every month (and a few bonus ones). It was fun but also kind of expensive. This year, I've cut back on the number of race entries, but I really miss running with a group of people. Races helped me push myself and continue with my training.
Thankfully, the Des Moines Corporate Games came along. I did the 5K road race for that event, which gave me a free race! A co-worker also asked if I would do the running portion of the triathalon for the corporate games. She wanted to do the bike and swim. I advised her I wasn't fast and she said that was fine. Well ... then she left the company. Two other people were chosen to fill the triathalon team. I immediately emailed both men (one of whom is a VP at the company) and advised them of my running pace. Both said that was just fine and they were doing it more for the accomplishment than a first place finish.
The triathalon was on a Sunday morning. I got out of bed at 5:30 so I could have a light breakfast and Sean and I could get on the road by 6. It took us a while (and some arguing with my GPS) to find the race location. When I got there, I immediately found the swimmer for our team (the VP). Perfect. Now we just needed our cyclist so we could check in and get situated. We waited. And waited. And waited. The VP swimmer called the cyclist. No answer. We hoped he was on his way and just one of those people who doesn't answer his phone when he's driving. He might be. But I don't think that was the case on this morning. By 7 a.m. (one hour before race time), we began to lose hope he would show up. And when 7:30 arrived without him, we had to scratch. Sigh.
I was so disappointed. Even though I was nervous about running (especially on a course where no headphones or earbuds were allowed), I was also excited to see how a triathalon worked. And I was all ready to run.
So, when we got home, Sean joined me for a 5K. It was humid and we were slow, but we did it.
I guess sometimes you have to improvise when plans fall through.
Six days later, on the following Saturday, I headed downtown for my second Diva Dash 5K. I really enjoyed the race last year. It raises funds and awareness for Girls on the Run, a fantastic organization that teaches girls life skills, decision-making, and goal-setting through running. I love it. Also, I was part of a team this year through my office. There were about 20 of us in all, and it was nice to have a cheering section all along the way.
The route starts kind of rough -- with a steep incline up and around the state capitol. The climb took a lot out of me and I ended up walking much of the first mile. Not like me at all. And I have problems when I'm running -- if I stop to walk, it's hard to get going again. Fortunately for me, one of my teammates came along and said, "run with me for a little while." I was able to pick it up and jog with her for a while and when she was ready to walk, I felt good enough to keep running. I ran the rest of the route and felt really good when I crossed the finish line.
My time wasn't too bad considering how much walking I did. I'm pretty proud of it. Although I do have one goal for next year -- finish in the top 10 of my age division instead of only 14th out of 15.
+++++
Last week's workouts
Sunday - Off
Monday - Britt's Boot Camp (30 mins)
Tuesday - Off
Wednesday - Strength, cardio, and core workout with my workout buddy (30 mins) + Fit Fusion (60 mins)
Thursday - Tabata (30 mins)
Friday - Off
Saturday - Strength, cardio, and core workout with my workout buddy (45 mins)
As always, be sure to check out Sunday Sweats posts from Holly and Christy.
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