5k cancellation = 10k training!

tjmist

I've been training for the last 2 months to run my first 5k on November 3, 2012 in NYC. I am not a runner. Running 1 mile without walking was a good day for me before I started training. My goal was to run the entire 5k without walking and to try and finish under 30 minutes. I paid my registration fee and diligently trained each week working my way up to the full 3.1 miles.

I finally felt ready and excited for my very first race so I could "officially" become a runner. I even trained outside on Monday in the hurricane weather so I wouldn't lose all my hard work. Then, only 2 days before the race, I got the bad news that the 5k was cancelled due to the hurricane.

I do not mean to minimize anyone's loss this past week. I understand the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy, that lives were lost, and that they cancelled the NYC marathon (which is a lot longer and requires a lot more training than my measly 5k). Still, after all the hard work I put in yea... it did suck to have the race cancelled. The entire ordeal left me with a sour taste in my mouth. 2 months of work gone, $55 in registration fees out, and still no race under my belt.

After a week off the wagon not really running, (and not particularly eating well either) I finally decided to forget Hurricane Sandy and to forget that stupid 5k. So starting today I'm training for a 10k!

I'm posting this since I've seen all these other people celebrating completing their first 5ks, and I thought that would be me this week. Instead, I'm going to turn this negative into a positive and hopefully sharing this with everyone will shame me into sticking with it!

Congratulations to everyone who ran their first 5k this weekend! And to everyone else like me who had their first race cancelled, keep on trucking and find a better longer race to train for over the coming weeks!