My First 5K Race

So I told you several posts ago that I had started running ... Originally, my friends Robyn and Dallas tried to convince us to run a race in May. I said no way. But as I watched Steve prep for a later race, I realized I needed to do something to get healthier and back in shape. I wasn't going to go to the gym, so I thought I'd give it a shot. I signed me and the girls up for the CougarRun Homecoming 5K at BYU. A first for me and for Jess and Tay.

While we waited for races to start, Jess and Tay had tons of fun running around the bleachers at the track and field complex at BYU.

First time racers ... me and my little two (Alyssa was off playing).
The goal for the day ... no walking. Jessica at the starting line. She ran with 5-7 year olds and she met the goal... no walking for her entire 400M (1/4 mile). So proud of her.
Here she is finishing. :) She finished 14th and did it in 2:24 which is a 9:40 min/mile pace. Not bad. And she had a ton of fun.
Taylor ran with the 7-9 year olds so she was tiny compared to almost everyone. Here she is at the start of her race with our friend Kylie. Taylor also met the goal - no walking and she ran her entire 800m (1/2 mile). She finished 13th with a time of 4:24 which is a 8:51 min/mile pace. She was pretty nervous but was fine once Kylie lined up behind her. Her little legs just ran and ran .... pink socks over top of her black leggings and all. :)



Alyssa realized her race was longer this time - last race she ran 800m, this time she was up for a whole mile! She raced against kids 10-12. She also met the goal of no walking ... so proud of her! She got cold mid-race and asked for her sweatshirt back ... she ran with her arms inside the body of the sweatshirt and then took it off again just before she finished. She finished 8th in her age group with a time of 9:40 for her mile. Way to go Alyssa.

Steve ran the 5K with me to cheer me on. I really appreciated it. As we got to the field, he took off ahead of me - and really ran the last 1/4 mile. Thanks Steve - not sure I could have done nearly as well without you.
This race was really fun- a lot of energy from the crowd. Our route was basically the Homecoming Parade route. We started at 9:30 and the parade started at 10 so there were a lot of people along the route that cheered us on and little kids wanting to give us a high five as we ran by. It was fun to draw on their energy ... Steve ran the whole race with me and really pushed my tempo. There were times I wanted to stop, but I wasn't about to give in. My goal was to not walk and to finish in under 40 min. When I ran my practice 5K on Monday before the race, my time was a little over 41. As I came toward the finish line, I saw the clock. It said about 36:20. I know my whole face probably lit up, I was so excited to have beat my time by so much. I pushed hard the last little bit and finished in 36:52 (11:51 min/mile). It felt so good to achieve the goal to run the entire thing and to beat my goal was really fun. Oh ... what a feeling! Finished! Thanks Karianna for watching the girls while we ran and for being my photographer at the finish line. Thanks Steve for running with me and believing in me. Your support for this goal has been huge!
I was glad to not finish too close to the end ... there were about 165 entries in the women's 5K ... of course, being on campus there were a ton of college runners and local high school girls too so the top times were really impressive.
Our little family of runners - who would have ever thought we'd be taking this picture! So, goal was met - no walking from anyone in our family during the races! Wahoo!

Until the next one!