Father's Day 5K recap

I went to the north shore again for another race on Sunday.  It was sponsored by the Obediah Cole foundation, which promotes prostate cancer education, awareness, and testing.

This was the same location as my very first race on April 16, the Genesis 5K.  This was a really flat race, so my goal was to be under 30 minutes.  I got really close in the Penn Hills Romp, and there was a hill there, so I was determined to do it this time, and actually run the entire way.

This race was really crowded.  They had both a 10K and a 5K, and this time I was all by myself.  So I was really disappointed when I realized that the 10K started at 8 and the 5K didn't start until 8:30.  It made sense, but I was by myself and found that out around 7:15, so I had over an hour to sit there.  I ended up just people watching and a coworker saw me and we ended up hanging out before the race.  He was meeting some friends there, so I hung out with that group both before and after the race.

This is me before the race, standing next to the map that shows where the races go (both the 5K and the 10K).

So 8:30 finally arrived and we lined up at the start.  I couldn't believe how many people there were.  I was going to try to stay with my coworker and his friends, but they took off so fast at the start, weaving through people, that I didn't really bother.  I'm fine running by myself anyways, so I just chugged along.

I got to the first mile marked in 9:10 according to my watch.  Which made me really happy.  BUT, I knew I had done that already at the Penn Hills Romp and tanked in the 3rd mile, so I just said to myself that I could do this and kept going. 

At some point, I noticed the person in the Penn Hills Romp who beat me to come in 3rd place in our age category- she beat me out to win a prize which really disappointed me at the Penn Hills Romp.  She was in front of me, so I made it a point to pass her.  And she must have recognized me, as well (I think).  Because she kept trying to pass me, so I would pass her.  That really motivated me and kept my mind on that instead of how far I was going.

Somewhere around mile marker 2 (which wasn't actually marked), I pushed ahead and passed her, and moved around some people.  It was kind of hard in this race, too, because it was so crowded.  The first half was in the street but after the turnaround you were on the trail next to the river, which was smaller.  So I figured if I got around some groups of people, maybe that would slow her down.

I didn't see her again after that, although knowing she was back there helped me push.  And when I got to PNC Park, I knew there still was some race left, but I started to speed up.  And push harder.  By the time I got to the finish- the other 3 times I put on a burst of speed, but I had no more burst in me.  I maintained the pace I had started at PNC Park, which is good in itself, but wasn't able to speed up much more than that.

Also, because I had been trying to stay ahead of the other woman, I hadn't really been paying attention to my watch.  When I got done, I stopped it, and it said 28:31, which was just unbelievable!  I was in shock.  My official time came in at 28:30 (it always takes me a little bit to actually stop my watch) and I was 16th in my age group, out of 52.  I also finished in the first half of runners overall.  I was 351 out of 765.  So I have definitely improved, a lot.  (My fastest time before this was the Penn Hills Romp, and it was 30:48.  So I improved my time by over 2 minutes, which is a lot for a 5K.)

My next race is on Saturday.  I don't expect to have that kind of time, because the race is going to be at least somewhat hilly.  And I know I did push really hard to get the time I did at this race.  I think it's going to take some work to improve on this time, but that's why we always have goals!

Challenge Nation Recap

Five of us "competed" in Challenge Nation on Saturday this past weekend.  It was pretty fun; and I say competed, and yes, it was a race, but we were doing it just for fun so we took our time and enjoyed wandering around downtown Pittsburgh.  (I have to admit, I get competitive really easily and I probably pushed a little more than I should have- and screwed up a clue because I read it too quickly and tried to complete it really fast.  But that slowed me down and made me remember we were there to have fun, not to compete.  And it was a lot of fun.)

Challenge Nation is described on their web site as:

"The Challenge is a ridiculously fun “Amazing Race” style competition packed into one incredible day. Teams of two or more will dash around the city, racing against other Challengers for immortal glory (and cash prizes!) as they solve tricky clues, strategize the best route, and explore undiscovered corners of the city.


Think of it like a 5K that tests your brains as much as your legs, with bigger prizes and a whole lot more fun--we guarantee you’ll have a blast!"

However, although it said 5K, it wasn't a running race.  Although the teams who did win probably ran, with the times that they got.

We were given 12 clues to various buildings in the city.  When we figured out the clue, we had to head to that place and get a picture with the entire team at that location.  The clue also generally gave us instructions on how to pose for each photo.

For example, clue #9 was:

"Clue #9 Sing the entirety of the song that includes "I'll wear those shoes and you will wear that dress" to a stranger. Just kidding! However, identify the band that sings that song - then slice about 75% of its name away, double a letter that remains, and you'll find a restaurant at an intersection downtown: any of the four corners there is your stage: act out any famous movie scene with your team AND a stranger. Be creative!"

That song is Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer.  So we took away most of the name of the band to have Sixpen, added an "N" and got Six Penn Restaurant.  When we got there, we found a family and asked one of them to take our picture and the others to pose with us.  We chose Rocky as our movie to act out, and here is the result:

So we did end up running around quite a bit of the city, having fun, posing for pictures, and had a beer at the end of the race.

Our team name was "That's What She Said" so there was also a lot of responding to things with that quote.  We ended up coming in at 75th place out of 119; not too shabby! ;)  It took us 2 hours 13 minutes, and 45 seconds to take the pictures and get back to the start.  We also only had to do 11 of the 12 clues, but we did them all before we headed back.

Here are a few more pictures:

Weight loss progress!

In February, some coworkers and I had a "Biggest Loser" competition.  I was the only female, but it was based on percentage of weight lost instead of actual pounds lost, to make it more fair.

I know most people look at me and say that I don't need to lose weight (or didn't) but I weigh more than I look; probably partly because of my height.  My ideal weight is where I was when Dave and I got married, more than three years ago.  And I gained about 10 pounds after the wedding, and then was dealing with some issues late last year that added on another 12 pounds or so (which was really hard to watch on the scale).  My work pants were actually tight, so I really needed to do something for motivation.

The Biggest Loser Competition lasted 13 weeks, and out of 10 people, I came in 4th place with around 9.6% percent weight loss!  Which was amazing for me, especially considering in the middle of that competition, Dave and I went to San Francisco and CA wine country.

A few of us decided to continue the "competition" but really we're just reporting how much we gain or lose each week, because accountability in itself can be good motivation.

So.. my original goal was to lose 22 pounds and as of this morning I have lost 15 pounds.  It's taken me awhile to do, and I know the last 6 is probably going to be pretty hard, because I'm now in a healthy BMI range.  But I'm still working at it!  Just had to talk about how much I've lost so far.  I've gotten a lot of compliments and my pants feel comfortable again.

Riverview Park 5K

Ok, I swear I'm not turning this into a running blog, but I do want to recap races I run.  I ran a 5K last Friday, and I'm running another one on Sunday, so I want to recap the last one before I run the next one.

Last Friday, I ran the Riverview Park 5K with two friends, Mandy and Jen.  It was SO NICE to have someone else there, running.  Thanks so much to Dave for going to my first 2 with me so I wasn't all alone, I'm not sure if he understands how much it has meant to me that he was there for me.

I have never been to Riverview Park, and all I heard was that it ended in a hill.  No idea how big the hill was, but I did want to run the whole thing.

One thing kind of non-race- they had a local kid (14ish I think) sing the Star Spangled Banner and he had an amazing voice.

The course started at the park entrance, and went out and back on part of one street (which they closed off for the start of the race).  It was pretty crowded, I was surprised.  Then it looped up a hill to the observatory, and came back down the same way (so uphill then downhill).  Mandy, Jen, and I kept pace with each other.  I really like running with them, because they were both talking and it helps distract me.  I'm one of those people who can't talk and run, though, so I just listened and maybe grunted every once in awhile to acknowledge that I was listening.  Haha.

There were water stops at the mile markes (so at the 1 mile point and the 2 mile point) and I didn't get water at either one, although both Mandy and Jen did so we slowed down both times.  Oh, and I forgot to mention that it was fairly warm, but thank goodness it wasn't as humid or hot as it had been earlier in the week.

After the 2nd mile mark, it was entirely uphill the rest of the way.  And not only that, but it curved around and stuff so you couldn't tell when the end was going to be.  I had no idea how our pace was because the application (Runkeeper) on my phone pooped out on me and didn't even record anything.  I've gotten to depend on hearing at 5 minute intervals how far I've gone and what my average pace is.

So mentally I checked out, between not knowing how far from the end we were, and continuing to turn corners and see the hill continue to go up, up, up.  I'm not sure how far, but I'd guess at about 2.5 miles I just had to walk for a few seconds.   Mandy and Jen went on ahead, still running, and that first walk I was still pretty much right behind them.  But then we rounded another corner and I have to admit I walked a 2nd time.  I was very disappointed in myself for doing that.  BUT I'm not used to running hills at all, have been practicing on flat places for the most part, or the treadmill with the incline set at 2 (not a hill).  The 2nd walk wasn't very far, either, but still...

Mandy and Jen ended up finishing in 32:51 and 32:52 and I finished behind them at 33:07.  This was the hardest course I've done, though, so I shouldn't kick myself over the time.  AND although I walked twice, I only lost about 15 seconds for that.

I will say, though, that this pushed me in training this week.  I have a 1.5 mile loop in my neighborhood that I like to run, but I always walk the steepest hill and run the rest.  For the first time this week, I ran that entire loop and added onto it just a bit to make it 1.8 miles (and will be adding on more).  And on Wednesday, I ran 4.4 miles around Oakmont (yes it's flat) which is the furthest I've run yet, and I did it by myself.  (I did walk part of the last mile, it was really hot, I was thirsty, my throat was dry, etc.  But even there I didn't walk a LOT, just where I had to cross streets and go up stairs).

I signed up for a 5K on the north shore on Sunday, and my goal there is to try to come in under 30 minutes.  I'm not sure I've set a doable goal for myself but I'm going to try anyways.  I also want to actually run the entire thing.  I know I can do it.  No walking this time!!!

And I'm planning on signing up for a 5K on Saturday, June 25th.  It's in memory of a woman who was killed by a driver under the influence while she was running (with a jogging stroller, her kids ended up being ok).

Yes, I know I look like a dork.  Sometimes I hate pictures.  But this is my first racing bib!

Jen and Mandy before the race.