On Friday, July 17th I made my second attempt at the same 5k (Hit the Trails XC Race) that I finished (barely) back in June. Only this time around I was alone. Just as I was thankful that my husband ran alongside me for my first 5K, I was thrilled to accomplish my second one alone. It felt good to head out to the race alone, get my number, and warm up solo. There is something empowering about being responsible for only yourself and at a time like this when my confidence in myself is a bit shaky…having only myself to answer to…well, it was nice.
I completed my first mile about a minute faster this time around completing it in 10:08 (this gave me such confidence) and my second mile came in around the same time. But it was my third mile that gave me trouble. About a minute or so into my third mile the heat was getting to me. I believe it was about 93 degrees or so and my head felt like it was on fire. I wanted so badly to not stop running.
I knew if I stopped running and walked it would be hard to start running again and I wanted so badly to finish with a time well under my first 5K time of 39:43 lame ass seconds. I gave in and stopped running…I only walked for about 3 minutes and even though I didn’t want to run again, I did. I ended up finishing the race in 33:26, which was 6 minutes faster than my first 5K. When I crossed the finish line my husband and son were there to cheer me on and to tell me how well I did.
After completing this 5K alone and setting a new personal record, I have the confidence to take on the next challenge, which will be another 5K (street race) in cooler weather and I am confident that I can improve my time.
Pingback: 5K Part 3 – A Means to an End « I'm the Loud One