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| Ready for the race! |
Nine months....the last race I actually walked/ran was 9 months ago, exactly one week before my devastating foot/ankle injury. The past 9 months has been a tough time. So one day I decided I was tired of "resting" my foot (technically that means I was only allowed to be a slug...not healthy physically or mentally) and began walking again at the lake trails. Solid surfaces....I know the route and how many miles I've gone and how long it normally should take me. Its been slow going but felt so good...well other than the pain still in my foot and ankle ha. But I decided it was worth it. I also began volunteering for all kinds of races, working long, hard hours and a lot of manual labor, but it felt great to be doing something, even if I couldn't "run". Then I did it. I was offered a free registration entry of $50 to the Color Me Rad 5K and all kinds of cool swag if I would work their packet pick up. I jumped on it. I thought, I can do this. I tested being able to run while on my walks. Painful. Foot strike was all wrong because of not being able to come down right. ugh. I thought....its ok...this is not a timed race...I can still do this even though everyone thinks I'm crazy for trying. Whatever. That to me is a dare/challenge/whatever you want to call it. No way was I quitting now. Day of the race.....among 8,000 racers and hundreds of onlookers, I found myself there all alone. No one to cheer me on. No one to take pictures proving I was there. This was going to be a strictly personal endeavor. No problem. No one else can do this for me anyway. I pulled my shoe laces tight and the race began....no problem! It felt great....I even ran for awhile....then the wall hit. I could barely walk and it felt like I was going at a snail's pace with everyone flying past. The route didn't stay on pavement...it was hills and gravel and dirt and grass and uneven ground. The pain in my foot was almost unbearable and I just wanted to stop and cry. But I wouldn't dare let myself. I had determined that no matter what, I was going to finish and I was NOT going to let myself finish last either!! haha. In the 2nd mile, it got better, or I got better at ignoring the pain...not sure which. My pace picked back up and I was not going to stop even when I saw others taking a break under the shade of trees....yes it was hot out there....remember, I was not going to be last no matter what. I got more excited as I saw the finish line and I looked back to see that there were still a couple thousand people behind me. :) I finished. I was not last. My own personal victory. Was it a good time? no, it was slow. So what. I did it and I'm proud that I did. Was I in pain afterwards? I don't remember pain until the day after..... but its ok. It was so worth it. :) On to the next one!
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