Goals! You've got to have goals!

I ran in my third 5k on Thanksgiving Day. 

My official chip time was 30:21 which is slightly better than the other two I've completed.  I guess I'm a little annoyed that I'm not getting any fast but at the same time, I'm not training to get faster.  And there were hills on this course.  Lots of hills.

So I've got something to work on before my next 5k...or dare I say it 10k.  I think Jennifer and I have decided we would like to try something a little longer next time.

You've got to have goals  - and a great friend to run with doesn't hurt either.

 Here we are before the race...and the hills.

Here is the official photo of me taken at the finish line.  I could see the photographer and was attempting a smile. (And if anyone from Carolina Snapshot is reading, please don't get mad that I've posted this picture here. I've actually ordered a copy from you.  www.carolinasnapshot.com)

And here is the picture Dan took of me after crossing the finish line.  I didn't see him, so no smile.  Plus I'm gasping for air. This is pretty much what I looked like throughout the entire race.  Did I mention there were hills?  Lots of hills.

What do Lao-tzu and Dairy Queen have in common?

I guess you could say I'm hooked.  I never thought I would be a runner but I guess it really is official now. 

This weekend Jennifer and I competed in our second 5k with Jamie and Beth R. (a couple of the other ladies we ran the Race for the Cure with!)  We ran the Beat the Heat which was held at 7:00pm on Saturday night.

Unlike the Race for the Cure, this race was sponsored by a running club and there were only 659 runners.

And ample parking and Port-A-Potties.

There were lots of serious runners at this race.  You know the kind.  The ones that are supper thin and super fast.  But we didn't let that stop us.  Because you have to start somewhere.

They didn't use timing chips at this race so even though my finish time was 5 seconds slower than the first race, I am subtracting at least 30 seconds (or maybe more) to account for the fact that I didn't cross the start line when the gun sounded. 

So there was a little tiny bit of  improvement in my time.  (Good!)  And I haven't been crazy sore like last time.  (Better!)  And I was able to run three miles this morning unlike after the last race when I wasn't able to run three miles again for over a week. (Best!)

So, yes.  I guess I'm hooked!  And I'm still marveling at the fact that 6 months ago I had never even run 1 mile - much less three - consecutively - and in 30 minutes! 

So I guess Lao-tzu was right.  A journey of a million miles really does begin with one step!

Oh, and going to Dairy Queen for Blizzards after the race is a great incentive too!

Here we are before the race getting rained on.  The rain stopped before the race started and left things nice and humid and muggy.  Oh, and aren't we cute in our matching shirts??  Our motto - If you can't be fast, be cute!

Here we are approaching the finishing line.  And yes, that's Jennifer ahead of me.  What can I say, I'm older than she is!

And here I am crossing the finish line.  Jennifer has already crossed and some other person trying to be cute by wearing pink has zoomed in front of me.  (The nerve!)

I probably should have just gotten a treadmill.

It was 58 degrees here yesterday.  That's slightly above the average normal February temperatures and way above what we've been having this winter.  And although it was cloudy, it wasn't raining or snowing, so I had no excuse.

I got home from work and even though I wanted to relax (chasing after 12 preschoolers can be very hard work and why, oh why, did I ever think I would enjoy it?) I put on my brand new New Balance running shoes and I went for a run. Because it's going to be May 1st before I know it and I'm going to be running a 5k.  And I actually want to be able to run it.

I ran a mile and a half before stopping.  It was a slow mile and a half but at least I was running.  I felt pretty good about it. 

My legs weren't killing me this morning so I thought that perhaps after I got home from volunteering with the kindergartners, I would try it again.  But low and behold it was snowing and raining when I walked outside of the school.  So, no running outside for me today. 

With all of this cold, wet, snowy, windy weather we've been having, I'm never going to be ready for this 5k.

Hmmm...I wonder how many laps around my kitchen I would need to do to get to 3.2 miles? 

I think I can. I think I can. I think I can.

In November, Jennifer and I decided we were going to run a 5k with some friends.

The 5k isn't until May 1st which seemed like years away back November.  And I guess technically it was a year away.

I had every intention of starting my "training" as soon as we got back from Christmas vacation but I wasn't expecting it to feel like Canada outside my door every day.

I know people in Canada probably run in the winter but I'm from North Carolina and I like it warm...hot even.  So I sat snuggled on my couch in front of the fire place munching Toasted Pepper Jack Pimento Cheese Baguettes thinking that May was years and years away and I would have plenty of time to "train".

Until Jennifer started talking about how she had run two miles on her treadmill and then how she was doing interval training and ugh, it hit me.  I guess I really am going to have to get off the couch and start doing some preparation for this 5k.

And then today it reached 61 degrees and actually felt like North Carolina instead of North Dakota.  So Jennifer and I took the kids to the track at the elementary school and I walked half a mile and ran half a mile before Sarah declared that she need to use the bathroom.

Since Sarah has had this stomach bug that's been going around and since there were no facilities available we left.  Darn.  I'm pretty sure I could have run another half of a mile.  Maybe.

I prepared for a 5k back in 2001.  And I was ready.

But the 5k was the day after we moved and I had  spent the previous12 hours moving boxes and unpacking boxes and moving furniture and lifting furniture.  So on the morning of the 5k, I could barely lift my big toe much less my entire leg.  And I backed out of that 5k.

But this time, I've got Jennifer hounding me.  And if Jennifer sets her mind on something, she does it.  And with a vengeance.  So I've got a feeling I better be ready for May 1st because come hell or high water I am going to be running a 5k.

How many years is it again until May 1st?