My first 5k! Recap

My first 5k was yesterday, October 9th. It was Race for the Cure. I was running in honor of my grandma who died at 36 in 1980 of breast cancer. I was also running in celebration of my best friend's mom, Patrece, who has been battling breast cancer for years.

My goal was to run the entire 5k, without walking. Even if I was running really slowly, I wanted to run. I paced myself in the beginning. Many people told me how easy it would be to bolt out of the starting line and lose momentum about halfway through. I kept my pace really well. It was fun because there were lots of little bands set up along the run and people cheering as we ran by.

As I neared the finish line, I was exhausted. I was fighting a mental battle with myself. I kept telling myself my legs weren't tired, to regulate my breathing and think of something other than what I was doing. My body was physically able to run... but mentally I was tired! I couldn't believe I had been running for so long without stopping! I had to remind myself I could finish this race without walking.

I passed the "4k" sign and knew I was almost finished. My chest started burning, but I was trying to ignore it. The air was cold and I was breathing in very deep breaths. Right when I wanted to start walking, I passed a group of cheerleaders (literally, they had pom poms) and a huge group of people cheering and clapping. So I tackled the mental battle and kept running. Then I topped a hill and saw the finish line. I saw all the balloons and started hearing people cheering as they crossed the finish line. I knew I would see my family and they could NOT see me walking. I tackled that mental battle and kept running. As I got closer to the finish line I started running faster.... and faster... tackling those mental battles telling me I was tired and needed to walk. I crossed the finish line at 37 minutes. I finished the entire 5k without walking! I overcame that battle!

I can't wait for my next race!