My 2nd Race - Shamrock 5K 3/19/11

Ok, so here we go again. I just signed up for the Suwanee Kiwanis Shamrock 5K Run on March 19th. Am I nuts or what? Actually I think I can do this one better than the Run the Reagan race. At least I am going to try. So now I want to start training. I will post how each day goes. I am about to go online for some guidance so I can start right away. Be back with updates.

OH and since today is my 59th birthday I feel I am moving on to a long life. :-)

I LOVE this. I think I am going to do my training this way. I found this on some site, and I am sorry I don't recall who wrote this, but it makes sense since I am trying to run in three weeks. So this is how it will go:

1) Run 3x/week. If you are shooting for a specific time then do some sprints/hill work but if you're just going to have fun, then just run easy. Make sure that you can run at least 2.5 miles if not the full 3.1 miles prior to the race.
2) If you are trying to post a PR, then do 1 sprint workout a week (1 min walk, 2 min easy jog, 30 sec sprint - repeat for 3 miles). Then do 1 hill or tempo work out. Tempo = running slightly harder than you think you can run but you have to be able to maintain that pace. And, do 1 "long run" which, for a 5k, would probably be 4 miles.
2) Wear good shoes. I've not done the minimalist thing although I find it intriguing.
3) Have fun. Walk if you need to. There's no "run-police" on the course that's going to issue you a ticket if you walk. Again, unless you're trying to win your age group or post a new PR, then just go have fun.

My First 5k - Run the Reagan 2/19/11

What an experience this race was. This was my first ever 5k and I was a nervous wreck. I thought I trained properly for it, but didn't. I ended up walking most of the way, but ended in under an hour (58 minutes). Problem is that now I have the bug and want to do more. Who would have thought that I would want to run races? Especialy when you consider that I am currently 60 pounds overweight?

Well, that is the story of my life. I lost 35 lbs as the winner of Atlanta's Biggest Loser last year and now am in a competition called "Gwinnett's Losing It." Sandi, our trainer entered each of us in the Run the Reagan 5k so we didn't have much of a choice but to attempt it. Her goal was for us to finish. It was a struggle, and I was near the back of the race, but I did finish. Problem is that when I got done I wanted more! Only next race I will better my time.

It was a great experience and one I will never forget.