Runner's High...

Runner's high...where are you? My husband and our friend Jess had a bet about who could beat their personal best time in a 5K. They have been bantering back and forth for weeks now. Well, today was the day of reckoning and...Ryan won. He only beat Jess by a little but I think she was the one who actually had a runner's high because she is a runner and in shape. Ryan has only "trained" for about a month.

Jess's husband and I decided to tag along so we could get a free breakfast out of the deal. Then after 5 beers last night I decided...I am going to do the race too. I figured I would walk most of it since I haven't done any physical activity in about a month. I did run a mile twice since August but that is about it. Once we got to the park where the race was at, I decided I had to run most of the race because it was full of "real" runners and I didn't see them promoting much walking. You will have to check Jess's or Ryan's blog for the highlights of humor (crazy announcer, the beautiful sunrise that gave him a tickle in his shorts, the horse riding lady, the hotty with hardly enough fabric to cover her crack, the fact that we were literally up at the crack of dawn and then saw Dawn's crack...etc.)

The low down of the race once it finally started (20 minutes later which in Florida means the damn sun was coming up and the humidity was rising) was this. Ryan took off like a bullet, Jess was a good ways ahead of me but I could see her for the first mile or so, and then me and the other out of shape people trudging along. I ran my first mile in about 10 minutes which was an improvement from when I ran the corporate run 2 years ago. Then I started thinking my head was going to explode (I think this is where the hydration they speak so highly of set in...beer-even miller lite, doesn't count as water). I kept telling myself I could make it two miles but at about the 1.5 I took a good 1/4 mile stroll. Once the feeling came back in my legs and my head didn't pound so bad, I started running again. I ran past the 2 mile mark (saw Ryan and Jess doubling back already which was the last I would see them until I finished) and decided at about 2 1/4 it was time for another breather. That walk was much shorter and then I ran the rest of the way. I finished in 38 minutes and 10 seconds. I must say, for not having run in a while I did pretty good.

The difference between this run and the corporate run was this-no preparation = blister on toe, shorts that rode up and chaffed my thighs, and very stiff/sore hips. Surprisingly my shins and knees held up. When I finished the race, Ryan and Jess already had cooled down quite a bit so I felt a little woozy compared to them. I drank my water and we headed out for breakfast.

It has been 3 hours and I am still waiting for my runner's high...will it come this afternoon, tomorrow, next race? I plan on doing the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving but before then, it is time to get training a little, a new bra, some shorts, and decent socks. With those essentials, I should be able to run the whole thing. Yeah, it was the faulty clothing that held me back this time.