Beginning runner using C25k

Program:  Jingle Bell Run 2014
Date: 12/20/2014
Start time:  8:00 am

I haven’t posted since December 12th, so 10 days, but this is the season where my wife plans my life out and I run out of time for anything other than work and holiday activities.  I ran on the 11th (my last post) and then unfortunately I didn’t run again until the 18th.  That run on the 18th was brutal, I don’t know if it was because I hadn’t run for a week or if the cold was just too much for me, but it was rough.

I did do my first organized run on December 20th.  I have never done one of these and it was a good experience, I will absolutely do another one.  I signed up for this run back at the beginning of October when I started the C25k program.  I did it to give myself some extra motivation and it did work. 

On Friday we went to the run sponsor and picked up our race packets.  My wife and I ran the 5k and our two kids did a ½ mile sprint.  We all got t-shirts and originally our kids wanted to do the 5k with us (they are 7 & 8) but after seeing us run, they realized that they would not have been able to keep up with us.  However, an additional good thing that came from the run is that the kids want to start training with us.  I told them that they can do my warm up with me for a while (I do a mile to warm-up) and once they are able to keep up with that we will work on them doing the 5k with me.

We ended up getting a late start on the day of the race and unfortunately we didn’t get to the race until 5 minutes before it started so I was not able to warm up at all.  I also forgot my gloves and hand warmers and my hands were so cold they felt like they were burning.  The cold was a distraction to me and I do feel that I may have been able to do better if I hadn’t reacted so negatively to my fingers being cold.  There were a few new experiences for me during this race. 

The first was that we ran on dirt (I run on sidewalk).  I actually liked running this dirt course better than running the neighborhood, the wife and I may go out there a few times a month to run it again.  I really liked running on the dirt, it was pretty well packed, not loose.  There were quite a few hills and I would slow a bit for climbing up and then relax and let gravity help me go down the other side.  That is something I had been working on in the last month (letting gravity help instead of fighting it).  I noticed many people putting on the brakes going down the hills and fighting gravity.  My wife did this, but she is a klutz and she said (rightly so) that if she tried to go down them faster she would have fallen on her face (I’ve seen her trip walking over a smooth floor).

The second new experience was of course running with people.  There were 729 participants in the race.  I have to tell you that I got a bit of motivation when the woman pushing a double stroller ran past me.  Another ‘you gotta be kidding me’ moment happened when the 60+ year old lady speed walked past me dressed as an elf (the lady in the stroller beat me but the speed walking lady did not).  There were a few very cool moments.  There were families out there running and at one point a lady let her two year old out of the stroller and the 2-year old started running.  She was giggling and trundling along saying ‘look mommy, I’m running.’  It was very cute and heartwarming (just not hand warming).

I am still going to try to run three times a week (Tues, Thurs, Sat) although I know that until after the New Year I will just get out when I can.  This Thursday is Christmas and I am making the main dish for dinner, so no time for running.  I lift weights on Mon, Wed, and Fri and I don’t run on those days.

So now for my results (drum roll):


 
It was my fastest time to date.  I beat my original 5k by 14:00.  So that is a reduction of 14:00 in 11 weeks.  I also beat my fastest time by 01:10.  My goal is to do this same race in 2015 and to get below 30 minutes.  As I have said before, I do not like running, but I enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes from doing better and meeting my goals.

In the end, I don’t just want to be thin, I want to be fit.  I want to be strong, that is why I lift weights.  I know that if I watch what I eat and lift, I will lose weight and be fit, but in all honestly I also want to be able to run three miles in less than 30 minutes.  We all have our own views on fitness and what that means, I guess this is mine.  I will post again, I don’t know how often.  I have a long way to go still, I am not close to being done with this.

If I don’t post again before the new year;  happy New Year everyone, I hope your 2015 is everything you want it to be!