Fat Ass Training

I'm on week 3 of Couch to 5k Training.  This is my second go round, but the 1st time I've done it outside.

As I mentioned in my post with a bit of Tulsa history... I run at the former home of Ma-Hu Mansion.

I was really excited and proud of myself last week when I bundled up after work and went for my run despite the cold temps and the rain.   I was feeling pretty cocky as I rounded the track for the 2nd time.  My hoodie was soaked, I had a baseball hat and hood on, my pants were wet and dragging on the ground... but I was plugging along.  The only runner on this gray and dreary evening. 

Then... out of nowhere this motherfucker in short shorts and a t-shirt passed me without a care in the world.  He was dressed like it was 80 degrees outside and I was dressed for a snow storm.  And he was breezing past me.  Asshole.

Other than that training is going well.  My IT band is on fire most of the time but I'm working on stretching it out and spreading out my runs.  I'm hoping a deep stretch class at Inner Peace Yoga this week will also help me walk less like a gimp.

5k A Month?

So I've been toying with this idea in my head... of doing a 5k a month.

I'm already signed up for the St. Pat's run in March.... so I'm thinking from March on doing one per month.

My ultimate goal is to do a 10k this year.  Probably for the Route 66, we'll see how the training goes.

Right now I'm still on intervals (run 3 walk 2) and I'm going for 45 minute runs about 3 times a week.

My ultimate goal is to get a 5k in under 45 minutes.  I'm a slow runner,  I blame my boobs.

Right now I'm up to 2.7 miles in the 45 minutes... I have one more week of the 3/2 intervals... then it's 3.30/90.

We'll see how long it takes me to get there.

Calling all runners...

So I've signed up for my next 5k and I'm plugging away in my training.

Then I started telling people I was running and putting a group together... well not so much a group but just a bunch of other people running the 5k with me.

I'm a slow runner and my goal is just to finish in 45 minutes or less... so my faster friends are going to run on their own pace. 

If you guys want to run one here's the info: St. Patty's Run

Let me know if you plan on running... we can do a Fat Ass group photo before hand.

I plan on wearing my green running tights and a sparkly green headband. 

You know I'll rock it.

My First 5k

In honor of the St. Patrick's Day 5k coming up soon, I thought I'd go back to a blog I wrote many moons ago. Namely 3 years ago when I ran my first 5k, you guessed it the St. Patrick's Day 5k.

Here's a blog rescued from my long abandoned Myspace page.

My First 5k
So I did it. I bit the bullet and ran my first 5k. I've been training a month or so... not technically time for the 5k but I went for it anyway.

I got up bright and early to meet my running buddy and get warmed up... only to get a lovely phone call telling me his foot was swollen from hives and I'd be hoofing it alone. Thanks, Barak.

Undaunted I loaded up my mp3 player with new music downloads and headed off to the race.

I kick myself for not bringing my camera when I hear the bagpipes as I'm walking from my car to the starting line... then I wonder where the hell I'd put it for the run.. so no pictures.

I sign up and get my number attached. Yay for 38! Then it's a bunch of standing around waiting to start. I'm scoping out the crowd and there's a ton of little kids, that gives me hope that I won't come in last in my first race. This will be shortlived.

There's a program at elementary schools that get bonuses for every student that trains for a race so these little kids are all better runners than me. I rock.

Anyway it's time for the race so I stretch and warm up and set the mp3 to shuffle and hear Lily Allen start singing about her pothead brother as the gun goes off and I start my slow but steady pace and I'm good.

I look around and I'm passing people that are slower and I'm working on my breathing and all that jazz... I'm doing okay.

This lasts a little over a mile, which is the most I've run so far in my training anyway. Then I have to slow down and walk a bit... I figured I'd have to at some point just because I'm not conditioned yet.

So I slow down and the people I passed pass me now and I'm working off a calf cramp but I keep going and perfect a half jog half walk stance.

By now I've noticed that I selected the wrong music for this run. My normal gym mp3 mix has fast paced schlock like Ashlee Simpson and Britney Spears to keep the tempo up... I'm currently listening to Yo La Tengo and Bright Eyes... who are great but not that up tempo.

So as Rachel Yamagata starts to play I start to hit the wall I've read about... at this point there are people along brookside cheering for the runners and watching us as we loop around. I came undeniably close to offering one of them my first born if they'd just carry me to my car.

But I didn't. I high fived the leperachaun in the road and kept going. I hope I didn't hallucinate him in my runner's fog.

I pushed through and kept going... although my left foot did go numb, so that hampered my thoughts of running the last leg.

I can tell I'm getting closer cause I can hear the master of ceremony using his bullhorn to cheer on the returning runners. Soon I'm there and he's talking about my red sox hat as I cross the line and make a beeline for the water tent.

So I finished my first 5k. My goal was to finish in an hour... and I ended up finishing faster at a whopping 45 minutes. I know it's not a great time, but it worked for me... since I'm still training.

I grabbed some juice and skipped the beer tent... it was too early for that and headed home.

Now I'm laying in bed with throbbing shins and the knowledge that I finished my first 5k... now I can keep at it and hopefully beat this time with the next one.

I wonder if there's one in April.

I read that and marvel at how far I've come. I would never skip the beer tent this time... and I'd probably offer sexual favors instead of my first born for a ride to the finish line.

We'll find out when I do the Aquarium run in May.