1 Year (+) Later!!!

In my previous blog I talked about the 2 5k's I ran in ONE day! I didn't have any pictures to share at the time so here they are!

But first I want to show you something that I think is so AHHHMAZING!
I began running because I found out about the Disney Princess 1/2 Marathon, and knew that was it, I had to do it! I was never much for running, but thought "how freakin fun will this be!?" I also thought that this was the greatest way to get healthier, eat healthier and lose some weight. But weight loss was never my #1 goal, but more of a secondary benefit!

So I started running short distance on my street and found my first 5k! Boy was it rough, but I made it through! Well, a year has passed and that same 5k came around again, and it felt really important to me to participate again in what started the ball rolling in my running journey....
Seven 5k's, Two 10k's and one 1/2 Marathon later!

 And as you can see...I have made many improvements!
My first 5k time was 46:08
My 6th (1st of 2 of the day) was 37:00...almost 10 minutes difference!!

So here is the start of my day at the LUK, Inc Run, Walk, Stroll 5k with two friends!

Below is after the start of the race with two small hills ahead of us!

Here is my sister and I  at race #2 of the day. The Central Mass Housing Alliance 5k for the Homeless. My two friends from the 1st race came along as well with their 2 dogs and walked. The Dogs were awesome, one of which did her 5k as well!







All in All an Awesome day!
-Stephanie

Running a double!

Today was my day for doubles!
Two 5ks in one day!

It started with a rough morning...after a fun night out to celebrate a friends graduation with her Masters degree!

I toughened up, got dressed and took a ride out with a couple friends to the first of two 5k's.
We got there, registered and got our "swag" which was pretty lame aside from the shirt.
This 5k was for LUK, Inc which is a non-profit for youth and families.

This was the first 5k ever last year, and thought there couldn't be a better way to "celebrate" a year of running that by doing it again! So it was at the same place with the same route. Although, the thing that was different this year was the crowd. It was a lot smaller this year. It was one of those races that when you pre-register, the first 100 get a tech shirt, and everyone else normally will get a cotton tee like I did last year. This time, my friends and I arrived and got bib # 69, 70 and 71 as well as a tech shirt each!

My mom and sister even came for support, the hubs was in CT for a golf tournament.
It was nice to have someone to run with. My friend Ben was going for a good time and he runs a bit faster, so he went ahead. His girlfriend and I kind of played tag. We started out side my side, which was great! Then I was ready for my first walk break, she kept running on which was fine. But once I started up again I would catch up to her and pass her. Eventually I would walk, she would pass me and would start the dosey doe all over again.
I was pleasantly pleased to hear my first mile to have been ran in roughly 11minutes and so many seconds. My pace did slow as expected, but I don't think I ever paced over 12 minutes, or maybe I did in my last, but still came out with an average pace under 12!! I was stoked, and I keep saying it and I believe it, that it was a PR!! (at a race)
http://www.coolrunning.com/results/13/ma/May19_LUK5K_set1.shtml

Then it was time to relax, eat something then move to the next race! My friend and his gf wanted to go home and get their dogs for the second one, which was awesome! So they had their dogs and just walked the second one.
The second was for the Central Mass Housing Alliance at Elm Park. It was such a great day for all of this running!
My sister ran this one with me. It started off with a feeling of nausea, then a cramp. So there was a lot more walking, but still ended in good time. Thanks to multiple water stops, the cramp went away, which made things a lot easier and the run more enjoyable.

When we finished, I just wanted to drop to the ground and take a nap! But I kept moving, stretching and waited for my friends to finish! They did and awesome job and had a great story. Apparently their dog Lilly felt the need to take a poop while they were walking.....in the middle of the rotary that we all had to pass through/around for the course. So we all had a good laugh about it!

We gathered ourselves and went home. I took a shower, put on comfy clothes then snuggled up in bed with a little snack and tv. I ended up napping for maybe 1/2 hour.

I am still pretty tired, and hope to update you with some photos my mother took, but I will have to wait until those are uploaded and shared! So come back soon and look for them!

-Stephanie
"you've got a friend in me."

Race Calendar.....including 1/2 #2

I have been itching for some races, mostly 5k's but I wouldn't mind a 10k just to keep me going...but I also have been wanting to participate in another 1/2 marathon!

A week ago a couple girls from work and I participated in a 5k for Autism Awareness! One used to run 3 miles a day a few years back, so she was just getting back into it, and the other had been getting to the gym but has been struggling with running. So I figured this is something we are doing together, and it isn't about time it is about raising Awareness for Autism!

So we met up at the site of the road "race" and met up with a couple of friends of one of my friends...are you following that? We all waited around and then lined up together around at the start...well in the back of the start group. Then we started off strong, but tried to keep a comfortable pace for the three of us. My friend S ended up having some trouble with Shin Splints....her shoes didn't help, but we tried our best and she pushed.

Eventually S was slowing down a little, my friend K and I did our best to try to stay with her. K and I eventually pushed on, but still at a slow and steady pace with walk breaks in between. We felt bad leaving S behind, but we knew she could do it. K and I reached the finish line and 2 minutes later S followed!
All in all it was a successful day for all, and a 1st for S and K who completed their first official 5k! It was great being able to do something like this together!

In two weeks, 5/19 I am pulling double duty!
Two 5k's in one day! I know...its really just a 10k...haha, but split into two races! So I guess I get a 10k in, with a break in between!
The very first 5k I did was a year ago, and I figured what a great way to celebrate a year of running by running it again! Then I found out that the youth at my church is participating in a walk/run for Homeless on the same day!
I thought hmm, I wonder what time it is at! The first one, Luk Inc is at 11am and the Homeless 5k (CMHA) is at 2! What perfect timing!

In June there is a 5k walk/run, the Southie5k in Boston for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. The date is undetermined right now. It originally was Sunday, April 28th but it was postponed due to the overwhelming response of sign ups (which then led me to the autism resource 5k with my friends instead). So I just received an email stating that it will be either June 2 or 9th, which is good because I don't have any other conflicts those dates...at least none that I am aware of!

Then comes the biggie....#2...no not that #2.....but my 2nd Half Marathon! I feel a little crazy. Not because it will be my 2nd, but because it is in the middle of July, in Maine with very little shade. And from what I have been reading the weather is pretty warm. I mean I live in Massachusetts so I know how the weather can be. But I need to get in gear and train in the heat! I avoided that as much as I could last summer when training for Princess by joining a gym...but then it was tough training in the cold!

It is the Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon in Portland, ME. I am very excited about it! I have a very busy weekend though. The day before is my mom's bday, and then I am going to have to drive up to Maine with the hubby, and meet a few friends up there as well who are participating in the 1/2 or 5k.

All I know is that I keep studying the course map, reminding myself how close together water stops are, asking questions on their facebook page about different things and just trying to get myself prepared. One way is to actually go running, which I have been failing to do as often as I should.

I think I have mentioned in a post about having a running friend, and I have one at work. One of the other girls I work with is trying to get into running since she has a running Husband and wants to build on that. So it is nice to be able to get a run in with her, even if its a 1 mile or 2 miles.

So let the training begin, again!

-Stephanie
"If your heart is in your dream, no request is no extreme"