Two Goals Accomplished…My Journey to A Half Marathon

On February 25, I accomplished my goal of completing a 10K (6.2 miles) race. I completed the Cowtown 10K in Fort Worth. I was truly surprised by my official time, 1:11:00, an average pace of 11:26 minutes per mile. My pace is decreasing, I haven’t done any speed work, I just want to finish. The stats for this race:

Ø  19 out of 39 for age group 49

Ø  106 out of 199 for age group 45-49

Ø  1377 out of 2360 females

Ø  2807 out of 4173 overall

The bottom line, I finished among a large group of people. We ran several hills, so glad we have hills to train on. I baby stepped the hills, while I saw others either walk them or ran them full force, more power to them.

My other goal I accomplished occurred on March 10, The Leaping Leprechaun 15K (9.3 miles) in McKinney. My official time was 1:44:41, an average pace of 11:15 per mile. After viewing the posted results, I received the 3^rd place medal by default, the ladies that came in before me left before the official results were posted. So the medals were given to the people that stayed around. The stats for this race:

Ø  2 out of 3 for age group 49

Ø  7 out of 9 for age group 45-49

Ø  85 out of 98 females

Ø  173 out of 190 overall

This morning didn’t start off to well, Friday night menstrual cramps kicked in. I woke up Saturday morning in so much pain. I asked God to please allow me to complete this race without vomiting. He granted my request, He allowed me to make it home.

This race had a lot of hills, I mean a lot. More hills than the Cowtown, I stopped counting. It didn’t rain as forecasted, another prayer answered. My GPS distance was inaccurate because it officially indicates I ran 11 miles.

Things I have learned from these two races, don’t try to run with a partner because your individual paces are different. Don’t plan races around your menstrual cycle; check your calendar before paying for a race. Get a better GPS. Have your own after race snacks, just in case the food is either gone or everyone is allowed to pick through the food, yuck. I need to continue to practice running with my fuel belt, the water bottles irritate my back after mile 5. And most importantly I need to get pass the 4 mile “what the heck am I thinking” wall. This thought pops in my head every time I run pass 4 miles.

My next race, The Big D Texas Half Marathon, on April 15, 13.1 miles. No more races under 6 miles for me.

2012 Leaping Leprechaun 15K

2012 Cowtown 10K

1/29/12-2/12/12 My Journey to A Half Marathon

I started training for my half on January 30. Needless to say I'm not enjoying it but I like it, if that makes sense. I'm not used to running 4 days a week, it's totally different from working out 5 days a week. My legs muscles are really forming.
I definitely need another pair of running shoes, well two pairs. After 3 miles, my feet start feeling numb. Tingly like when a body part goes to sleep. I hope it's only because my feet are getting use to running.
Saturday, the ladies of BGR volunteered at a 5K/15K race, the Hot Chocolate Run. I learned a very valuable lesson, don't drink the water from the cups. We were instructed to use the water from the fire hydrates. Yes, the fire hydrate. They used unlined trash cans until the race official directed them to line the cans with plastic bags. The 10 gallon jugs they were using were dirty. We were not given gloves to wear. I truly hope no one gets sick.
After my experience of volunteering my next investment will be a hydration belt. I know my water comes from a filter source.
Sunday, became my default long day. God sent me a messenger named Bridgette. She gave me some knowledge and great tips about running. Especially my eating. I now know not to ever eat Chinese takeout for I run, talk about ready to puke. I also learned not to run while I'm cramping, it increased the pain. I having serious trouble walking, every part of my lower body hurts.
I also need to increase my water intake on a daily basis. And add water while running. I thought drinking before running was good but it isn't. I need to sip water during my runs.
After each mile I add on each week, I ask myself do I really want to do this. I must because each week I plan my runs. And every Monday and Wednesday night, I pack my running bag.
P.S. When training with Bridgette, wear an adult diaper because she will have you laughing so hard you just might pee your pants.

12/17/11 Journey to A Half Marathon

Today I was able to thank God for allowing me to grow up in Omaha, Nebraska because the temperature was 36 degrees. I remember that would the high temp in Omaha all day, at moments. So when some of the ladies complained about it being cold outside, I said to myself, at least I'm not waking up to zero below, with a wind chill factor temps. I bundled up and got to moving. I really need to invest in some Under Armour sports clothes, highly recommended for cold temperatures.
Today, also I'm proud of myself because I've dropped my mile per minute down to 11.5 and I made it up to 4 miles. We had a mini celebration on our Facebook group page because one of the ladies was able to walk 2 miles. One of the things I like about Black Girls Run, the women are so positive. Every accomplishment is celebrated.

I didn't make my goal of being injury free. I have so much stress built up that I can't move my neck or left shoulder every well. The stress is from stepping out of God's way and letting Him handle business, which means He still isn't allowing me to respond to things the way I use too. One of the other joys of running, I really get to hear God talking to me. I'm learning to listen to Him, follow His direction. I've learn to be silent through some personal attacks. Like the one from my co-worker last Thursday. She tried her best to get me terminated or suspended, but it backed fired on her and I ended up preventing her from being suspended or terminated. By right, I should have punched her in the face. And I think I was headed in that position when my supervisor intervened, that's when I heard God say sit back, close your mouth, allow her to bury herself. Another reason I was hurt by her attack, I've have been defending her to my other coworkers.

Back to running. I learned a valuable lesson yesterday, don't eat a banana before a run, it doesn't sit well on the stomach, at least not mine. I'll stick with the yogurt and peanut butter toast. Oh by the way, if you haven't, you need to try the all natural peanut butter, talk about delicious.

With one week completed using B210K, I'm feeling pretty good about myself. Both my daughters are focusing on me and my lifestyle changes. My role as mother has switched to Life Coach. Another benefit of running, I don't get upset with my daughters the way I used too. I can see the Holy Spirit transforming them.

Also, since running, I don't care too much for fast foods anymore. My focus is slowly shifting back to cooking. I'm going to need those skills back in full function come June.

Monday I'm making an appointment with a chiropractor. All the serious runners recommend seeing one regularly. I'm going to the foot to make sure I haven't permanently loss two of my toenails, one of the disadvantages of running. I'm also going to get my feet measured for the proper running shoes. I'm seriously thinking about starting to train Skye and Payton for track. They are at the age where nothing is impossible to them. I'll teach them the open air is all about time with God.

1/1 - 1/28/2012 My Journey to A Half Marathon

So my journey to the half was temporary interrupted by College Algebra, but I passed the class with a B. Yay Me! I finally passed the 5 mile mark and I was so proud of myself. I had to call my long distance coach, Warren, so he could get me through my last two miles. Another reason to love him, because I had been really angry with him and saying some really mean stuff, but when I needed him to wake up and encourage me, he didn't hestitate. Sign of a good man. I accomplished 5.28 miles that Saturday morning.

Today, I didn't fare too well. My leg muscles were a little sore because I added a day of weight training and an extra day of running. I was only able to accomplish 4.80 miles; my legs just wouldn't go any further. After the run today I was hit by positive peer pressure by our other neighborhood leader, whom we call the Motivator. I will be participating in my first half marathon (13.1 miles) on April 15. Since this will be my first half, I'm going to do the jog/walk method. Training starts January 30. I'm a little nervous, but I'm also excited. But since the Motivator made the effort to get us a group discount, I might as well take advantage of it.

The good thing about the training schedule, it works well with my work and school schedule. I had already planned to start doing two a day workouts, three time a week, so I'll be easing into this training. And by the time I'm schedule to run my 10K on February 25, I will already be up to 6 miles. Another great thing about Black Girls RUN!, we have groups almost every where. All you have to do is put in a city, and a group that is close by will pop up. Which is a good thing for my trips to Omaha, because there's a start up group there as well.

And just in case you want to know, running is not a cheap sport. I need to invest in two more pairs of running shoes, my first pair I caught on sale with a BGR discount, $100. I need more clothes to run in because I'm losing inches, therefore the running pants are falling off. I need running socks, the cheapest I found started at $13 for three pairs. I need a running watch and GPS, because running with my phone is getting cumbersome. Then there's the entry fees for the races. Even though I get a discount on races through BGR and Dallas Running Club, I still have to shell out some money.

The upside about running, accomplishing goals I've set for myself. I've always challenged myself to do better, and this has been one of the best challenges thus far. I feel so good after running, I no longer rush home to take a nap because I am so full of energy. My body is slowly toning and I can see the muscles developing in my body. I sleep better at night, no more tossing and turning, straight to sleep. I just feel all around healthy and I know my internal organs are loving it. My stress level has dropped tremendously.

I am living the BGR slogan "Preserving the Sexy" because sexy is healthy. I'm in this MOVEment, no longer part of the WATCHment.

12/24-31/11- My Journey to A Half Marathon

I bought my first pair of official, fitted running shoes and socks. I was going to try them out on the treadmill Tuesday evening, but Monday morning, I still couldn't move my neck or left shoulder. By Monday afternoon, I was in the chiropractor office. By the time I left the office, I could fully turn my head from left to right and back again without pain. I could stretch my left arm straight in the air and touch the middle of my back. I still couldn't touch my chin to my chest, but I could look down. Unfortunately, by bedtime the stiffness was back. Good thing I had another appointment in the morning.

During my visits it was determined that my backpack was too heavy and I wasn't viewing my laptop at a proper angle. So my decision to drop down to a part-time school was actually in the best interest of my health, mentally and physically. My X-ray revealed that I have a compacted disc between the C5 and C6 vertebrae. It was also discovered that my left leg is slightly shorter than my right leg, something I have suspected for years. The body alignments are magnificent, noticed the difference when I walked. After several therapy sessions, I'm back to running. YAY, I get to try out my new running schools. Did I mention the massages? OMG!

Last night I began week 2 of B210K. Silly me forgot to view my running schedule before I started. So I'm just running along on the treadmill (my new shoes come with a 30 day money back guarantee, so they request you run on a treadmill versus pavement), and since my body knows when 10 minutes is up, I get a little concern. So I did something I should have done before I started running, I checked the schedule. Three intervals of 15:1, aww man, but I complete it. My speed on the treadmill has increased from 3.5 to 4.6. Treadmill training is nice but it does not compare to running outside. I'll be so glad when the time changes again, more daylight in the evenings.
I found out I work within walking distance of Katy Trail, one the major trails in Dallas. So I'm seriously considering getting my running in right after work versus going home changing then heading to the rec center. I need the utilize my time wisely.

Black Girls RUN! is about to go international next year. To think BGR started as a running blog between two friends that wanted to improve their health. But with growth also comes the negativity. A lot of people are offended by the name, mostly women. BGR is not exclusive, it's inclusive. The organization targeted a group that was overlooked, black women that have a high instance of health issues related to diet and/or lack of exercise. We target neighborhoods other running groups overlook. Membership doesn't reguire a fee to belong, just a desire to become healthy. I think people need to focus on the positive results: more women of color are becoming physically active, some have lost weight, some are no longer taking prescription medicine, and at the races we participate in, we are making friends across racial lines. With that in mind, I'll sport my BGR gear just as I do my Black Women Do Workout.

Tomorrow I get to run with the Omaha group. I hope the temps don't keep me indoors like last weekend.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!