Tonight I raced in the last race of the Take the First Step Summer 5K Series at Al Lopez Park. It was about 90 degrees and sunny. I had done everything wrong today. Well, wrong for someone planning to race at 6:30p.m. in pursuit of a new PR.
I was on my feet all day, cooking a birthday dinner for my dad. First I baked a cake, from scratch. Then I made his favorite chicken enchilada casserole and Mexican rice, then my mom's favorite cole slaw. Finally, I made two batches of chocolate frosting for the cake. By that time it was 5:50p.m. I jumped in the car, arrived just in time for a .7mi. warmup, and jogged up to the start line about a minute before the start.
I ran as fast I felt like I was able, all the while watching my Garmin. I was running at the maximum effort I thought I could sustain the whole time. In this case, the Garmin was giving me positive feedback because it was showing times that suggested I might have an excellent time. My first mile was under 8 minutes, and then I just tried to hang on, knowing that I could definitely do a PR (personal record).
Well, I finished at 25:23, a PR by 35 seconds and my fastest 5k in 30 years of running. I STILL cannot believe it! I also had a PR in my last 5K in early June at the Spring Into Summer 5K. That time I dropped 13 seconds, the first PR I had had in two years.
The point is that today was anything but an ideal race day. Not only was I on my feet all day, but I had planned an easy 2 mile warmup run earlier in the day which never happened. And I certainly had no business baking a cake because, for me, that involves eating several spoons of batter and icing in the process. I was definitely on a serious sugar high when I did that race.
So why did I have an outstanding race? Because I have been training hard and, I think, training smart. Part of that was that I had a planned easy week last week and avoided my usual long run last weekend to be more rested for today.
Besides that, I would say, there are three reasons why I am running well:
1. I have lost 11 pounds in the last couple of months. No getting around it; that's a lot less weight to carry over any distance.
2. I participated in the Tour de Y Challenge at Bob Sierra YMCA, which meant I had to take two spinning classes a week during the month of July. Without question, that increased my leg turnover.
3. I stepped up my weight training, increasing to three sets, and adding a wider variety of exercises.
There is one more thing: If you believe you are ready for a race, if you want to do it, then go for it. Your mindset is just as important as anything else. I had been thinking for weeks that I would be able to run a faster 5K, and I was anxious to find out. But life often gets in the way of personal plans. I stuck to my training as well as I could. Then yesterday I said to myself, "I'm going to do it; I'll dash out and be back in time for dinner at 8 o'clock. If my race is a disaster, or if I just do an okay time, so what? It's still a great speed workout. Still better than not running."
Many - probably every - coach has explained that what happens on race day is not nearly as important as what happened the last few days prior to the race. Well, tonight was proof of that very fact.
You just never know when you'll have that breakout race . . . but one thing is for sure, you won't have it if you don't race.
P.S. Dinner was a huge success. More than it would have been because Dad has spent most of the last month in the hospital, but you'd never know it now. He's back to his old self and Mom is relieved and happy about that. We ate on time thanks to David finishing up the casserole for me and putting it in the oven. Dad and Mom were thrilled that I had a PR. They may be 81, and I may be 55, but they are just as proud of anything I do as when I was a little girl. I understand that because that's how I feel about Wendy, Ben, and Zack. It was all good, real good.
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