My First 10K!

On August 29th, I ran in my first 10K.

I ran this 10K after only running 5.5 miles in the 7 weeks prior.

But, I had signed up for it, so I decided to run it.

All I can say is... I finished. I didn't run fast. And I met another not-fast friend with whom I ran most of it with.

I finished #407 out of #427 people at an 11:57/mile pace. I told you I didn't run fast. I'm terrible at pacing myself and I didn't want to start out too fast and not be able to finish. Who knew I was running at a walking pace??

So I went from running almost a 9-minute mile to this. Guess it serves me right for not training anymore.

But, you know what? I still finished! Next up... a half-marathon.

Sea Dog 5K Run/Walk - Race Report

I decided to run the 5K this morning despite not having any running buddies or a cheering section, despite the gloom and despite the few sprinkles that fell on my head before the race started. Here's my report:


The horn sounds, it's the start of the race! I positioned myself in the middle of the pack, hoping to plant myself around the 9 or 10 minute per mile runners. And we're off!


Mile 1:
(Two minutes in...) Wow, I'm really out of breath. What is going on?? Maybe I need to slow down a bit. Wow, a lot of people are passing me now. This is what I get for not running for a month. I'm running so slowly, I'm probably going about 11 minutes per mile now. More people are passing me. This is great. I knew I should have stayed home. We're going downhill, and I still can't pick up more speed. Oh look -- that lady is walking now... and so is that man... maybe I should just call it a day and walk the rest. I'm still so out of breath. This doesn't feel comfortable at all. The last race, mile 1 was a breeze. I'm so upset with myself. There's the mile marker!! There's a guy with a stop watch shouting numbers... Did he just say 8??? Okay, he just shouted 8:40 at me! That's why I feel like crap, I've never run this fast before! Time to slow down...


Mile 2:
Okay, if I don't slow down, I probably won't be able to finish. Steady wins the race. Just try to stay with the folks in front of you, Ty. Okay, they're leaving you in the dust. That's fine. Just keep moving. Breathe. Breathe. Why haven't I caught my breath yet? Thank God my legs aren't tired though. Slowing down more... Where is that second mile marker?? More people are walking -- man, I'm so jealous. What I would give to just walk right now. Ok, there it is! Another guy in neon green shouting numbers... 17:47. So my second mile was 9:07, I can live with that. I've finally caught my breath. But, I don't think I can go faster than this. I'm gonna have to stay at this pace.


Mile 3 and 3.1:
Just take nice, long strides. Breathe. Stay with that guy in the grey shirt. Doh! The gap between us is widening. More people are passing me. Geez, how slowly am I running NOW? That old guy behind me is moaning with every breath, HUSH! He sounds like he's gonna pass out, but you know what? He's been on my tail the whole race, so maybe I should hush. His AHHHRGHHs must be working for him. It's 25 minutes according to my watch, time to kick it for the last 4 or 5 minutes. Oh no! Another uphill? Kicking it will have to wait until the top of this hill. People are cheering, "You're almost there!" Am I really? We're back on the main road now, the finish line has to be close. I think we're there, time to speed up. I'm starting to pass someone (for the first time today). Wait, where's the finish line? Did she just say, "Turn the corner, you're almost there!"? There's more? Ugh. Not again! I made this mistake last race. It's on a slight incline too? Push. Push. Finish line! The clock reads 28:24 as I run through. That means mile 3 and 3.1 was 10:37 (9:36/mile). Not as good as I started out with, but I still beat last race's time by 12 seconds.

Okay, why is there a line to get away from the finish line? I need to walk people, my heart is pounding out of my chest! Oh, we have to hand in the little strips on the bottom of our race bibs. Fine. I don't think I can walk anyway. Oh look -- a nice grassy hill. Looks like the perfect place to lay on my back... and just rest a while. :-)

Race Results

F 20-29, 17 out of 34

Overall: 217 out of 519 (some of those were walkers)

Yes, they listed me as a male (a common mistake with the first name, TYEESE). I placed better as a guy than in my own category. I should be #17 among the females 20-29, but apparently with my gender change, I placed 9.

Race Report: Essential 2 Life 5K

This photo says it all. 

This was me with the finish line in sight... lungs burning from the 45-degree wind coming up off of the Hudson River... legs feeling heavy... and me chanting in my head (left... right... left... right...) to keep my legs going.

I ran my second 5K this past Saturday with my girlfriend Rashonda and my Uncle Haasim. My mom and girlfriend Nina both did the 3K walk. The kiddo did the kid's sprints. And my dad and girlfriend/blogger StyleScrybe of ShoesNBooze fame came out to support and snap photos. It was a family affair!

Mile 1

Uncle and I started out strong, darting between runners who were running way too slowly in the middle of the pack. The wind blew his hat off, but thankfully it got caught on the railing and another runner caught it and handed it to him. It was so close to flying into the River. We passed the first mile clock still talking to each other: 09:39, but it took about 10 seconds to pass the start line, so it was probably more like 09:29. I was shocked. That was faster than my first mile in Phoenix. 

Mile 2

Uncle and I stopped talking. 'Nuff said. He then told me that if I wanted to go on ahead to do so. So, I pushed it to the point of just being uncomfortable and tried to hold that pace for the whole second mile. I never really warmed up. The freezing wind was blowing against me for most of mile 2 then at my back for the last part. My fingers froze into fist position. Ugh. Second mile clock: 18:40.

Mile 3

I initially felt somewhat rested after cruising at a steady pace for the second mile, so I tried to kick it up a bit and started passing runners again. But, at every sprint, I felt myself getting winded more than the first mile. So I alternated between passing and cruising. The course was an out-and-back, but I seemed to miscount the turns. After going around one turn, I thought I saw the finish line tape (no contact lenses!), so I started sprinting. I'm sure you can see where this is going. No, it was NOT the finish line. Exhausted, I slowed down around the last turn then tried to hold steady toward the real finish line, about the time that picture was snapped. Lord. I still can't believe I made that mistake.

My official chip time was 28:36.6, 2 minutes and 20 seconds faster than Phoenix!! I placed 10th in my age/gender group.

Race Results

25-29 F group: 10 out of 53

All females: 62 out of 222

Overall: 250 out of 516

A Run Like Nun Other: Race & Trip Report (day 1)

So I did it! I had my first 5K. Zia, Rashonda and I landed in Phoenix Friday night. That's me waiting for Zia's flight to land...

We dined at the hotel and got up early early this morning to run in the 1st Annual Nun Run in Glendale, AZ.

I ran the 5K in 30:56, placing 15 out of 63 in the 20-29 female age group and 103 out of 490 overall.

It was so crazy... my adrenaline was pumping, and I just kept focusing on not going too fast so I didn't burn myself out.

Mile 1 felt good. We started in the middle of the pack, and I slowly passed a few people, but in general, I stayed steady. When I saw the folks in orange with the water cups, they were shouting, "You're at mile 1. Great job!" I looked at my watch and was shocked. It said 9:49. Are you kidding me? I've never run more than 10:42 on the treadmill and that wasn't on trail, nor the uneven rocks we were running on. Not to mention, 10 weeks ago, I could barely do my 1 minute run, 1 minute walk intervals without getting out of breath.

Mile 2 was okay. The first half, I was still buzzing off the fact that I ran under 10 minutes for the first mile. About halfway through, I started to feel a little winded, so I slowed down a bit and just focused on maintaining that speed. I got to the mile 2 water cup holders feeling just slightly winded. My watch read 20:13.

Mile 3 was rough. My left thigh started to ache, and I started to feel more winded. I made a deal with myself that I could run slow until 26 minutes, then I had to pick it up. I actually ended up picking up the speed once I could see the finish line, just before 3 miles. The next thing I knew, I was running through the finish line, and people were telling me where the food was and asking me for my chip.

My watch said 30:45, but my chip time was 30:56. Still not bad for my first race. It means I ran 9:59/mile.

We finished up the day with a nice brunch complete with unlimited mimosas and 4 hours of spa services.