Race Recap: NECC 5K a New PR!!!!!!!!!!!!

Super excited to be writing this post.

I went back and read my first 5K recap tonight just so I could remember exactly how big of a deal this race was to me. I began the couch to 5K program weighing over 200 pounds and barely able to jog a mile a year ago.....

Saturday morning I got up early went to Weight Watchers to weigh in and then headed out to Southborough for a 5K race to benefit autism. The weather was beautiful and I knew it would be a great day for a race. I joined some co workers who were there as well and started warming up.

Last week I ran and PR'd at 23:05 at the YMCA 5K so honestly I was just hoping my knee and body could carry me fast enough to do that again. At my Weight Watchers meeting Stacy was all pumped up and she demanded I come in first place! She put some pressure on me and I felt I could do it until we reached the race site. There were almost 1300 people registered to walk or run! That is a much bigger race than the past few 200-400 people races I have been participating in. My nerves began to come in and I suddenly felt a sense of defeat. I started looking around and felt there was no way I would be placing in this race.

We got lined up and I decided to head to the front and at least try to stay towards the front of the pack. It was a chip race so I was excited that I would have the most accurate time as possible and suddenly thought maybe I could have an official new PR if I could just keep my eyes on the prize. I thought at least 23 minutes flat would be nice. I ran without music again like last week;s race. I have decided for smaller races this is how I will run. It is so nice to be free of head phones, wires and an mp3 player no matter how small it may seem, I do not miss them when running. Also it gives me a chance to talk to people running around me and just think clearly.

So the gun went off and away we raced. I immediately started to feel winded as I fought hard to stay at the front of the pack. Huffing and puffing it took me about 3 solid minutes to settle in at a nice pace. I checked my HRM and it said 178, I knew I could push a little more at mile 2 so I held on to my pace. There were people ahead of me who were of course super fast and people behind me so I felt like I was in a good spot.

There was a girl running about 5 seconds ahead of me her name was written on her shirt Brooke, and a woman with us Stacy, we were all together about the same pace and cheering each other along it was a nice feeling. At the last mile I broke away from them a little bit and pushed my legs as hard as they would move. I was really huffing and puffing and checking my HRM and seeing it hit 201 I knew I was at peak speed! As we rounded into the finish line Brooke came up from behind me and dashed in to over take me. I pushed forward and she ended up finishing half of a second before me. After we finished I congratulated her and Stacy and felt good about the race. ( More coming tomorrow about this)...

My coworker managed to get a good shot of me trying to dash in to the finish:

I felt even better when my coworker said she clocked my time coming in with her camera phone!

22:07 I did not believe it!!!! Did I really hit a new PR by a whole freaking minute???? I eagerly awaited the posting of the official times so I could see what the chip said.

22:04 I was stunned!!! And happy, and excited and yes all of the above. I felt like a champion right then and there. It did not matter if I placed at that point in my mind I was a winner!!!!!!

I did end up placing I was the 4th female over all to finish the race and 28th out of all those people. That felt pretty freaking awesome! And I got a plaque for being first in my age group :)

An amazing race and an amazing day. My coworkers did great as well. One placed first in his age group finishing the race around 19 minutes!! He is super fast! And my boss even finished his first 5K only 4 weeks into his couch to 5K program! It is nice to see people around you get inspired and back into running!

Looking back at how far I have come I really feel like the sky is the limit for me. I want to keep working hard and keep working on my speed and endurance. I am looking forward to the Fitbloggin' 5K in 2 weeks!!! Then my Half Marathon on May 29th!!!

Who knows what the future holds? ;)