I promised I would update my readers on my progress in the No Fear 5K training. On Friday morning, we gathered for our weekly run at Rock Run Trail. Even though it was 7 a.m., it was already hot and humid. After our warm up, we got on the trail and started moving. I am still fairly slow, but I have only one real goal; I will not finish the Sundowner 5K dead last.
Once on the trail, I was employing the walk, run, walk technique, but it became obvious fairly quickly that the pace I am used to on an indoor, air-conditioned track was not going to work out here in the real world. But, I thought, I got up and dragged myself out here, I need to somehow make it worthwhile.
So, to give myself a pace, I pulled out my phone, which also had streaming music. I forgot my headphones in the car, but I was not near any of the other runners (most were ahead of me), so I knew I could play music without the headphones. So I did.
And, it was worth it.
We are at the 2 mile mark now and I finished in 31 minutes. Now, that might not sound like much to you all, but I was fast walking. And, last year, when I finished the Sundowner dead last, I clocked in at 54:16 for 3.1 miles. That is a 17.5 minute mile. On Friday, it averages out to a 15.5 minute mile.
Whether I can keep up that pace for another 1.1 miles is yet to be seen. But I know this much. This week, I will get up just a little earlier to put in my contacts. Steamed-up glasses that were slipping off my face could have done nothing to improve my time. And, I am going back to the trusty bandana...I might look like a fruitcake, but it keeps the sweat out of my eyes.
Want to get in an extra workout? You can join us at 7 a.m. Saturday mornings. You don't have to be part of the training program to run with us, just show up.
So, walkers, runners, what do you do to make your walks in the heat more pleasant? And what do you do to get faster?
Dawn Aulet is a woman, a writer, a wife and a mother. Often, the lens
through which she sees the world is colored by these roles, but not
always. Sometimes, her experiences have less to do with her roles and
more with the frustration of being a consumer, the need to put gas in
her car or the realization that the world does not have any obligation
to deliver what she expects.
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