I did it!!!

So, yesterday morning I woke up bright and early for the Jonesborough Parks and Recreation 5K in Jonesborough, TN. This is a historic city town in TN, actually it is labeled the "oldest town in Tennessee". It is VERY old...and VERY cute :)

The race was through the historic downtown area, so I thought that it would be a fun race.

I usually don't set goals when I race small races, because I really do them more for fun and scenery, than anything else. However, I had been noticing a downward slip to my 5K times, and I was a little disappointed in myself. I knew that I could do better!

So, I set my goal for a sub 25 minute time. I knew that if this was going to be possible I would have to maintain a faster than 8 minute mile pace the whole time.

It was tough because the course was a little hilly. There were ALOT of uphills...but with every uphill, there seemed to be a pretty good downhill as well. So, that helped me keep up with my pace throughout the race.

Another thing about the race was that it cost $20, which I thought was a little steep for such a small casual race. It paid off in the end though ;)

Here were the final results:

Mile One: 8:14

Mile Two: 7:54

Mile Three: 8:07

FINAL TIME: 24:16

Thats right kiddos...I BEAT MY GOAL TIME!!!

And even better, I got first place in my age group! and won this....

 

oh yeah...and THIS

A MIO Motiva Petite Pink Heart Rate Watch. Pretty cool huh?! I guess I ended up getting my $20 worth!

I looked up some info on the watch for those of you who are interested. And I will be doing a review of this product, after I have used it a little bit.

The MIO Motiva Petite Pink features:

• On demand, ECG accurate heart rate, without a chest strap
• Patented calorie management system that allows users to track calorie intake throughout the day and calories burned during exercise, against a daily calorie target.
• Visual indicator of exertion level
• Percentage of maximum heart rate display
• Can be used with the MIO 3500 Calorie Club program.
• Heart rate recovery timer.
• Five (5) exercise timers: Count up, Count down, Count up with warm-up, Walk/Run, and Repeat.
• User accessible battery hatch.
• Interchangeable watch band with colors to fit your every mood (BONUS band included).
• BONUS: MioSense Guide to healthy living

Also the watch itself can display SO MUCH:

• Display time, date, weekday and your name or initials on the screen.
• You can set a daily alarm.
• You can enter your calorie intake and it will also display your net calorie intake.
• The watch also features an exercise timer for workouts and other activities, 5 timer modes including counting up from zero, counting down from zero, count down to zero and then count up, walk and run timer, and count down to zero then repeat.
• Measure your Heart Rate Recovery – a good indicator of fitness level.
• Measure and display your Resting Heart Rate.
• You can set your personal data and weight managment goals.

PLUS it came with this cute little bonus strap, that I just LOVE

I already own a Garmin, that I use ALL THE TIME when I run outside. But, I think that this watch will be better for the gym. Its smaller and works better for indoors workouts that aren't limited to just running. I'll be sure to let you guys know what I think about it!

So, overall I think it was a pretty successful race. Cute area and good scenery, I PRed, won a trophy, AND won a mio pink motiva petite.

RACE SUCCESS! :)

2nd Half Marathon!!

Hey everybody! So, its been awhile again. But, to be honest there has not been much to write about lately.

Since the last time I updated, I have just been training to run my second half marathon. Honestly, I was kind of dreading it. I hadn't really trained as hard as I did for the first marathon that I ran (6 months ago) because with grad school and two part time jobs, I didn't really have the time.

However, it was the very first half marathon that my home town had put on, so I felt like I had to represent!!

I woke up on the morning of the race and it was POURING the rain. I would have backed out if it hadn't of been for my AMAZING boyfriend. He got up at 6AM with me (even though he was just spectating and not running) and really motivated me to get up and go for it!

Once we got there it was still raining. And I'm not just talking a little rain. I'm talking DOWNPOUR! I was still dreading the race, because it was cold and wet, so Mike and I were standing under an awning by the start line while we waited, so I could stay dry for a little while. I was trying to stay dry for too long, thought, because as we were standing there just talking the gun went off!!!

That's right...I was the VERY last one to cross the start line, because I was putting it off for so long! haha.

I sprinted to get to the start...and the race began.

My little sports photographer got some pretty good pictures...

Here I am standing under the awning, trying to stay warm

Mike standing at the three mile mark...notice the rain!

He spotted me coming up on the three mile mark

He told me that he would be waiting at the three mile mark, so I could get rid of my hoodie if I wanted. YES I DID! It was about 10 pounds because it was soaked with water!

This is at about the 6 mile mark...almost half way done!!

This is after about 8 miles and still going good!!

Here I come about the cross the finish line!!!

FINISHED!!! 13.1 miles. I DID IT!!!!

He said "give me your race pose". haha.

I ended up doing a lot better than I thought! I ran the whole thing without having to stop and was hardly even tired when it was over! I never really hit a wall and the rain was FUN! Even thought I did not PR at this race, I was still soooo happy with how I did.

I ended up finishing in 2:03, which I was kind of disappointed with because I didn't break 2 hours. However, I did get a late start and I was worried about burning out, so I didn't really push myself too hard.

Here are the splits:

Mile One: 9:09

Mile Two: 9:29

Mile Three: 9:17

Mile Four: 9:35

Mile Five: 9:00

Mile Six: 9:09

Mile Seven: 9:01

Mile Eight: 9:15

Mile Nine: 9:37

Mile Ten: 9:31

Mile Eleven: 8:57

Mile Twelve: 9:15

Mile Thirteen: 8:50

A little slower than usual, but like I said I was still pretty happy with it considering that I hadn't really trained  that much for it. The course was really well laid out for the first year, and the rain just made it even more fun, splashing around in the puddles and mud.

Well, until next time...I hope everyone has a great week!

<3 Ems.