I ran around the square!

It took me almost four years to run in a 5k race (and about 11 months since I started running again), but I finally did it. Yeah, me!

Here are my thoughts:

• I was pretty nervous last night, and I did not sleep well as a result.
• When I arrived in Regent Square this morning, I had a lot of trouble finding a parking space. In 2002, there were 865 runners. This year, there were almost 1,600 runners plus 372 runners who ran the 1.5-mile race (which did not exist in '02). Quite a difference.
• When I walked from my car to the start (a few blocks), my ankle hurt. Fortunately, that went away.
• It was a beautiful day for a race. Probably around 60 degrees with low humidity when it started.
• It was weird not to have someone to start off a race with; when I used to run 5Ks, I almost always had my friend Zuri and/or MBB to begin a race with.
• For the first time in a race, I waited until almost everyone else had started running before I crossed the starting line, which took almost three minutes. Back in the day, I would try to stand/start with the eight-mile pace crowd.
• I liked waiting around to start (well, except that it meant I had to dodge the walkers). Less pressure and fanfare.
• Along with a smile, I am pretty sure I got a tear in my eye as I began the race. It felt good to be doing this again.
• I was glad to see the people cheering, singing, playing instruments (love me some steel drums), and passing out beer and champagne along the way. Great motivators.
• I actually took advantage of the downhills, more so at the end.
• Having run this 5k only once and eight years ago at that, I had forgotten how the course went, so I really could not "plan" for my best pacing.
• Now having just run it, I can say it was probably a good layout--you start off mostly flat and slightly downhill, then you move to a tough mile 2, which is mostly uphill. The last approximately half mile is downhill, which gives you a chance to kick it in.
• I am so glad I did not trip; between the cobblestone in the first mile and the rocky trail for another 1.5 miles, I came close at least once.
• A few times during the second mile, I contemplated running very slowly. In fact, at one point the thought of walking crossed my mind; the uphill climb, although not steep, seemed never-ending. But I just went with a slower-than-usual pace to get through it.
• And that meant I had the energy to pretty much sprint down the final hill.
• When I finished the race, I had a smile on my face (and, I am pretty sure, another tear in my eye).

The most notable thing about this race compared to what I remember from previous ones was that I did not push myself super hard. As I mentioned in another post, I used to be very competitive, so I would give it my absolute all, more so than a regular run. But this time, as evidenced by my waiting so long to start and taking it easy up the hills, I just wanted to prove to myself I could do it and do it with a little grace.

Yes, in the back of my mind, I wanted to finish in about 30 minutes. But last week, when I realized I finished the Run in 28:14 when I was in the best running shape of my life eight years ago, I was pretty sure 30 minutes was not going to happen, and I was just going to have to be okay with that.

Ultimately, I finished it in 30:08. I am really proud of myself, though, honestly the tiniest bit disappointed that I did not finish in under 30 when I clearly could have. Because I ran no harder than I do when I run regularly (and probably even less hard), I could have sprinted another quarter of a mile for sure at the end. Had I known where the finish line was, I would have run even harder/faster those last few tenths.

But the good news is that because I did well and yet did not quite achieve that under-30 time, I want to run in another 5k to prove to myself I can do.

Oh, I plan on it.