The fall is usually my racing season to hit a few 5ks, a 10k and a half. Last year at this time I was having Micah (haha!) and getting back to my post partum racing schedule has taken much longer this time around.
This past weekend was an epic one on many fronts! I ran a 5k and got 1st female! I knew the course well (it’s a local park I run at) so I knew what to expect and when I could push myself. I started out a little too fast – 7:30 mile pace – but finished with splits around 7:50! Felt good to actually feel good in my legs and lungs.
Liam even joined me for a Fun Run portion of the race. He loved it and getting a medal!
Next, we celebrated Micah’s 1st Birthday with a Micah Moo party. I loved seeing friends we haven’t been able to see in forever and family members. We had a great time and our small house was packed!
Then came the BIG event of the weekend (okay, Micah’s party was a big deal but I haven’t run this far since way before he was born and I was nervous!) Plus, they were calling for rain and storms that morning.
We made the decision that my mom would keep the boys at home rather than fight through nasty rain and a double stroller.
So drove down myself, found a parking garage and made sure to pin it so I didn’t get lost looking for my car like that one time downtown I walked around for an hour trying to find my car!
So far, rain had moved through and it was just super windy. I met up with my #bizbestie and awesome running coach, Kristen to run the race together.
I was nervous because she agreed to run with me and we settled on a 8:30-9:00 pace per mile but I didn’t want to start too fast and then have to walk. By the time the race started, it had started to rain a bit but wasn’t a hard downpour. I cannot stand wet shoes but when you’re running, you can’t really tell!
Our first mile was around 8:20 which we thought was too fast but we felt good, carrying on a convo about running, her trip to Boston and Micah’s birthday party. I knew that if at any point I couldn’t talk, I’d have to slow down.
Mile 2 came and went and we were down to around 8:09 and mile 3 was between the two. I still felt good amidst a few up and down levels of raceway. Mile 4 I could feel my piriformis heat up and I just felt tight all over. The rain stopped which helped and I could pick it up a bit more.
I walked through a water station after we saw walking zombies (it was a Halloween race after all!) And then came a gradual hill that was awful. It seriously never stopped! But I was able to run up it without stopping and only dropped to a 8:37 ish pace. Then I knew we were close, but isn’t just the last 1/2 mile the worst?
I told her to go ahead if she wanted to sprint across the finish line and I picked it up a bit too and by the time we crossed, we were at 52 min! I was hoping for under 1 hour!
We got to see our other favorite person, Kristin at the finish line. She’s been our VA for a few months and fellow runner and it was great to connect afterwards! We went to get our beer, our gear and a special medal for completing this race and a 7k in April! So 2 medals! That never happens for me!
Kristen and I chatted some more and got coffee together before I headed home. Here were my takeaways from racing:
- It takes a lot longer to get back to your post-partum running times or even workouts, and that’s okay! It has been a full year for me and I FINALLY feel like myself! Give yourself grace and time to come back after an injury. It will fine. You will get there or learn to adapt.
- Sometimes we need someone to push us, other times, we can push ourselves. Know when you need accountability, encouragement, or to just go it alone.
- This last year, going through post partum depression and a bunch of other stuff was 100% survival mode in our house. My fitness took a back seat a lot when I really needed it for self care. I also chose the oddest season to start a new business! But having Kristen as a business partner and now best friend has been a shining light in my world when I otherwise would have given up. Thank God for how he specifically places people in your life for rough seasons.
- When you feel like you are “back” from whatever setback you’ve had, set a goal for yourself! Have something to look forward too! I have my eyes set on another half marathon in the fall and a 15k this December.
Thanks for reading and what are your goals for your next season of life?
