brave rifles 5k.

Oh man.  Where do I even start?

I have run many, many, many 5ks, but I have never taken part in one that was so disorganized!!!!  It was terrible.  I'll start from the beginning.

This was both a 5k and a 10k race.  The 10kers were scheduled to start right before the 5kers were.  All of us were gathered at the start, and out of no where, several people up front just started running.  My friend was running the 10k, so she took off.  There was no gun, no megaphone yelling start, nothing.  Several runners didn't realize the race had even began.  Us 5kers moved up toward the front, and I just started running when everyone else did.  Again, there was nothing to let us know when to start, so we just did on our own.

The weather was nasty.  The humidity was awful, and it was hot!!  I told myself to just keep going.  At .6 miles I came across the first water station.  So soon?!  I don't ever take water, so it made no difference to me, but I know many people were really unhappy about that.  All their water stations were very poorly placed.  I kept on running and tried to keep a steady pace.  The heat, humidity and hills were getting to me, but I just kept trying my best.  Salado is a very hilly area, and the heat and humidity didn't help at all.  Before I knew it, I was at 1 mile.  At that point, a girl from my gym ran up to me and told me what a hard time she was having.  We both agreed that we felt very drained, but that we would do our best to finish strong.  She stopped to walk, and I continued to jog.

While I run 5ks, I play mental games with myself, especially towards the end.  When I finally saw 2.8 miles on my watch, I told myself to pick up the pace because I was almost done.

I jogged a bit harder.  I got to 3 miles and wondered why I couldn't see the finish.  I got to 3.1 with no end in site.  At this point, I was getting pissed.  I was hot, drained, and completely worn out.  I was ready to be done.  I understand Garmins aren't always exact, so I told myself to keep going.  Once I hit 3.35 miles with no finish line in site, I stopped to walk, and I was fuming.  What the hell was going on?!  Another girl ran up to me cussing up a storm.  She explained to me that the volunteers on the course that had been guiding us gave us the wrong directions.  When we were told to turn left, we should have turned right.  At this point, I had no clue how much longer until the finish!  I know it shouldn't have been a big deal, but in that moment, it was.  I was extremely hot and uncomfortable due to the heat and humidity, the hills just kept coming, and at this point I had no clue when we'd finish.  After what felt like forever, we came across another volunteer that guided us to the finish line, and it was finally done.  Four miles later.

Initially I thought maybe it was just me, but it was absolute chaos at the end with furious runners.  One teenager's mom was cursing at the race director, because her son was being recruited for the Air Force Academy, and he was running this race as part of his recruitment process.  He normally runs a 17 minute 5k, but because of all the wrong directions, he finished in 40 minutes!  They said they'd delete him from the race entirely as to not ruin his record.

Our local races are always won by a guy that finishes them in 16/17 minutes.  You know there's a problem when the overall winner finishes in 29 minutes!!!  Over 10 minutes slower than the norm.  Finishing in 29 minutes won't even earn you an age division place, much less the overall winner!

Once I was done, I got a bottle of hot water they provided.  Yes, hot.  They had no coolers or anything.  However, I should consider myself lucky, because they ran out of water for the 10kers that were coming in!  Now mind you, they screwed up the 10k course as well, so they actually ran over 8 miles.  8 miles in heat, hills and humidity with no water at the finish.

I ended up finishing in around 46 minutes, but I couldn't have cared less.  Once I hit 3.35 miles, I walked the entire rest of the way until I saw the finish.  Like I said, at that point I was pissed, and I had no idea when I'd finally finish.  I could have been out there for 10 miles for all I knew at that point, and my attitude was terrible.  Finishing 4 miles in 46 minutes with all my walking was too bad!

My friend always places in her age division, so we went to check out the posted times.  As it turns out, they weren't even broken into age groups, so you had to sit there and calculate what place you were in. It was beyond ridiculous.  The whole thing was.

While I'm glad I went out and got in some cardio, I still can't believe how awful this race was.  The sad part is that while the course was hilly, it was actually really pretty.  Maybe they'll get to together for next year, although I'm not sure I'll be there to see for myself.

jackrabbit run 4 hope 5k.

Since I started running the local races back in 2008, there was one that I consistently avoided.  The Jackrabbit Run 4 Hope came with a million warnings from friends about the never-ending uphill, and the super steep and long downhill.  Every single year I opted out of this race until this year.  I decided it was time to put on my big girl pants and go for it.

The first I noticed was how nice and organized it was.  It was both a 5k and a 10k, and there were large mile markers in the shape of rabbits set out.  The snack selection was nice, and there were some great prizes being given away as well!  Another nice touch was a chip timing mat at both the start and finish! The other local races usually just pay to have it at the finish, so it was nice to have it in both areas.

I went into this race anticipating to take 45 minutes or so after all the horrible warnings I received about the course.  I decided to wear my compression socks, because my left leg has been giving me a few problems lately.  I have very obvious vericose veins in only that leg, and sometimes they hurt.  I am absolutely convinced I have superficial vein thrombosis, and about once a year I'll have a couple small clots in the veins.  Sexy, right?  Right now is that time of year, so my left leg is achy and sensitive to the touch.  I was hoping the socks would help with the circulation as I ran.  The leg bothered me during the race, so I consider that a win!  :)

After we started, I wondered at the start of each rolling hill, "Is this it??  Is this the hill I was warned out??", but then I'd reach the top and think that surely wasn't it.  Not after all the warnings I'd received.  And then... I arrived, and there was no question about it... this was it.  I made peace with myself to walk the entire hill before the race ever started, and I'm so glad I did.  That stupid thing went on forever and ever and ever.  Every time you thought you were through... nope!  We took a curve, and I thought surely after the curve that would be it.. nope.  It went on and on some more!  It pretty much started at 1.5 miles and ended at 2.5 miles.

I promise it was worse than the chart shows.

Finally after the forever hill, it flattened out a bit.  I was happy with how I was doing at that point.  I wasn't my usual, "WHEN WILL THIS BE OVER??!?!?!?" self, even after the monster hill.  I focused on my music and let myself walk for 1 minute after every 5 minutes of running.

Soon after, I reached the downhill.  Oh, boy.  I've never run down such a steep hill before, and it went on for quite a while as well.  Not as long as the uphill, but it definitely went on for quite a bit.  If you look at the above elevation chart, you can see how it started at about 2.5 miles and didn't finish until 3.  A half-mile, super steep downhill!!  I didn't want to let myself get out of control and fall, so I focused on taking short, small steps.  Had I tried to run my normal way, I definitely would have went rolling down!

After the downhill, it was only a short bit until the finish.  I was actually pleased to see 38:10 as my official finish time.  Normally I would be upset with that time, but this course was no joke.  It was definitely as challenging as everyone said it would be, but I still really enjoyed the race.  I'll definitely be back next year to beat my time!

Not sure why most of the pictures are dark and blurry, but they're the best I've got.  Sorry!  Trust me, you aren't missing much.  I'm a hot mess while running!

You'll notice the lady with her two dogs in a couple of the pictures.  I wanted to push her off the side of the hill.  Anyone that knows me knows how much I love dogs, but she had NO control of them whatsoever.  See how they are on two separate leashes around her waist?  For most of the race they were on opposite sides of her, and she'd continue to get tangled up in them.  I would have felt bad for her, but they were bothering the other runners as well.  They were all over the place the entire time, and at one point I nearly fell because of them.  I kept trying to get away, but she kept catching up to me!  I've seen many dogs do very well at races, but those doggies weren't ready to be out there just yet.  I actually felt bad for the dogs.  They clearly had never been trained to run in a race like that, so it wasn't fair to them when she was mad and jerking them around.  They were just trying to have fun!  My two crazies would have acted the same way, but that's also why they were at home!

Looking sexy after the finish.

Ha!  That's awful.

Another one in the books!  Until next weekend!

the color run 5k.

Today the boyfriend and a group of our friends and I walked The Color Run 5k in Austin, and we had a blast!

The day started with me a teeeeny bit peeved at the boyfriend, because he is not quite as punctual as I am.  I hate, hate, hate running late and having to rush anywhere, but that's how the day began.  After about an hour of me driving like a maniac stunt driver, we arrived where we were supposed to be.  We had to park a pretty decent distance from the start and ended up walking about 2 miles to get there.  A nice little warm up!  Our friends were already there waiting for us with our bibs, so we got them on and headed to the start line.

They started a new group every 5 minutes, so we had a while to wait at the starting line before we actually began.  While there, we decided to break out a few of our color packets and attacked each other with them.  Before we did, we were sure to snap a few before pictures, then we took a few more after attacking each other.

It only took about 5 of these before we were able to get a decent one...

Finally!  No tongue.

After a bit, we were off!  This will be picture heavy, because it's the best way to explain all that went on.  It was a lot of fun, and we made sure to dive into every color as much as possible.  I am really pleased with how many good pictures I got, because I had no idea what I was taking them of!  I got my phone, raised it, and snapped away.  I couldn't see a single thing while I was taking them, because my sunglasses were covered in colored powder (which you'll later see), as was my phone.  I aimlessly snapped them during the race and was lucky enough to catch some good ones.  I won't include all 55 pictures.  You're welcome.  :)

The boyfriend was very excited to get pinked!

I was next!

All done!

See the powder covered glasses?!  Good thing they were only 50 cents on Amazon!

first vixen muscle weigh in and measurement results.

Last you heard from me (last night!), I was disappointed in the amount of food I ate during my cheat meal.  I know cheat meals are to indulge, but I overdid it, and it was the night before my very first Vixen Muscle weigh in!  I was worried it would negatively impact my measurements and weight, because I was really excited to see some progress.  I stepped on the scale this morning, and sure enough, I was exactly 2 pounds heavier than I was the day before.  I know I didn't actually gain 2 pounds, but I still had a lot of food and bloating sitting in my belly.  And before you lecture me on weight not being all that important, I know, trust me, I do.  I don't obsess over my weight at all, but I do know that while I am building my muscle, I'd like to see some of my weight in fat go away.

I headed to class after school to workout and see how I did.  She called me into the room, and it was time!

First thing was the scale, and I showed a loss of 7.6 pounds!  Not too bad in a month!  She was super proud of me and said I was actually the highest loss of the month so far!

She uses a caliper to measure body fat in 9 different areas all over my body, and I went down in all 9!

My fat mass went down 5.4 pounds (I guess the other 2.2 pounds were water weight?), and my body fat  percentage went down 2.23%!  I asked if that was a good amount for a month, and she seemed very happy with me and said that was a great amount!  Hooray!

She talked to me and let me know she was very proud.  Because she has personally trained me before, she knows what I am capable of.  She made sure to tell me that once my head is in the right place, I am unstoppable.  Not to sound vain, but I actually agree.  Slip ups (like last night) happen, small sweet treats happen, and planned cheat meals happen, but overall, when my mind is set to it, I can really accomplish a lot.  Once I'm in the determined, my will power is pretty iron-clad.  I have been in great shape before, and I am finally starting to feel like maybe, just maybe, I can get there again one day.

the guilt sets in.

Today was the last session of my second grad class, and the tradition has become that we eat on the last day.

Today's feast was pizza and sweets.

Ugh.

The slices were the gigantic ones that are each worth two slices of normal pizza.  I was full after one, but of course I had another.  Then, on top of it, I had a lot of sweets.  Damn.

It was my first real cheat meal since I started my Vixen class, so I won't beat myself up about it too much, but the timing was horrible.

We got measured and weighed in at the first class, and tomorrow, one month later, we are getting reweighed and measured to see our progress.  THE DAY AFTER MY GIANT CHEAT MEAL.  Ugh.

I feel super heavy and bloated, and I'm sure a ton of this will still be sitting in my belly as I step on the scale.

I'm most disappointed in the fact that I didn't make better choices for myself.  I didn't need that second slice of pizza, and I could have held it to 2 cookies rather than 5.  I hate that I may not see true results tomorrow, because I've been looking forward to my new measurements and weigh in all month.  Ugh.  I don't feel good right now, and I hate knowing that I've set myself back.  I'm all for an occasional cheat meal, but I overdid it this time.

Boo.

celebrate killeen 5k.

On Saturday I ran another 5k race that is part of the CenTex Race Series.  So far I've only missed one, and that was due to our kickball tournament, so I'm still on track to make it to the banquet.  This one was the Celebrate Killeen 5k.  The all-day festival starts in the morning with the 5k race, then they have carnival rides set up, a petting zoo, games, etc. all for free.  It's a really nice event the city puts on, but I'm only ever there for the race portion of it.

I was less than thrilled when I woke up and saw this:

Yes, it was nearly 70* and over 90% humidity.  Awesome.  It felt swampy from the moment I stepped outside.  Then, I get in my car and get to drive in this:

I promise that is with no filter or editing.  It was that foggy and humid out.

My hands were clammy, and I was sweating before it even started!

The boyfriend arrived a little after I did, he wished me luck, and I was off!

I started out fairly strong, but I got more and more uncomfortable as the race when on.  My shirt felt like it weighed 100 pounds, and I was pouring sweat.  Sweat is a good thing, of course, but the humidity just made everything nasty.

I have a couple friends that run all the local races with me, and the male actually beat me last time.  Normally I beat him fairly easily, but he beat me by a few minutes at the last race.  He does a walk/run combo while racing, so he and I were leapfrogging the entire way.  Towards the end he gave me his last Clif chew, which I appreciated, and we stuck together for a bit.  One chew probably didn't do much, but it helped mentally!  As we approached the finish, he was a pretty decent distance ahead of me, more than the pictures show, and I forced myself to sprint to catch up to him.  I started my sprint a bit before the we caught up to the boyfriend for pictures, so it's hard to tell, but he was quite a bit ahead.  He wasn't going to beat me by several minutes this time!

The boyfriend says my sprinting blurred the picture!  Haha!  I was rather impressed with myself, because Brett was quite a bit ahead of me when I kicked it into gear, and according to the official results, he crossed the mat only 1 second before I did.  I made up some serious ground with my sprinting!

That face is awful, but it shows how much I pushed it!  My face is a purplish red from all the humidity and sweating!  You can see the ground is wet, but there was no rain in sight.  So gross and swampy!

I finished this race in 35:00.  It was better than last week's, but I still have a lot of work to do!

As we were headed back to the car, we got to see them setting up some of the miniature zoo.  So neat!  There were camels, zebras, and other animals in the trailer, but they had already let out the kangaroo and the giant turtle/tortoise(?).

The next "race" is the Color Run in Austin!  It's this weekend, and I'm so excited.  A group of friends (including the boyfriend!!!) will be doing it with me.  I put race in quotations, because we have no intentions of running it.  We will be out there to have a great time!

get in my belly.

Oh, Wal Mart.  You evil temptress.  Don't you know I'm trying to get skinny fit again?!

Don't you know how much I love trying new foods?!  More specifically, sweet, delicious foods?!  If so, then why must you bombard me with things like this?!

So much deliciousness that I would love to inhale.  Instead, my cart was filled with this.

In an effort to be better about sodium, I have purchased just about every single Mrs. Dash ever created.  I loooooove salt, but it really does help me do without.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to dream fatty dreams about the first pictures I posted!