So after last week’s horrible back pain I figured I’d definitely be out for Sunday’s Historic 10k race. I was pretty bummed about that, but hopeful that my back just might shape up in time to run. My mom and sister thought I was crazy, but you have to have hope, right?
I’ve found in the past few years that when I ‘hurt my back’ like I did last week, it is kind of a nervy-pinch kind of thing and sometimes it goes away very quickly, overnight. This time it hurt really bad for Wednesday and Thursday and by Friday night I was starting to feel better. This may have been due to the fact that I a) had people looking after my heavy kids for me or b) went to the doctor for some painkillers, but nonetheless, I was starting to feel better. Saturday I woke up feeling really good and made the call that if I felt good when I woke up on Sunday, I’d go ahead and run. It's amazing to me how I can be in such excruciating pain for a few days only to wake up feeling pretty darn good the next day.
Sunday morning I woke up and indeed was feeling fine. I couldn’t believe it. So, into the shower I went and got myself suited up for the race. The weather was pretty chilly, –3 degrees with a high of 5 degrees later in the morning. I added a few layers before heading downstairs to have some PB toast. The last race I did was in July 2009 so I was excited to go to an event again after so long.
The morning was beautiful. Super cold, but nice and crisp and clear. It was seriously a great day for a race. The race is held in Fort Langley (yes, we actually started and ended inside the fort) and I knew parking would suck. I made my out there and took the first available spot I came to. The few blocks I had to walk helped warm me up a little and it was cool seeing the half marathoners run by as their start time was earlier than the 10k.
Once I got inside the fort walls I headed over to the potty lineup as this is going to have to be a regular part of my pre-race routine from now on. They had a bonfire going to keep people warm and there was a group warmup going on. I had just enough time to pee and then get into the corral to get ready to start. Here is a totally lame picture of me, but I guess that’s the risk you take when you race in cold weather and ask strangers to take your picture!
Anyhow, the race started and I felt okay. Just okay. Almost right away I felt a weird twinge in my hip that really kind of hurt. My back felt great but my freakin’ hip hurt? No fair. Funnily enough once we hit the first hill the pain kind of went away and it was smooth sailing for awhile. I don’t like to start a race with a hill right away, but it was kind of good to get the juices flowing and warm up. And, the hill didn’t feel nearly as tough as when I did this race a couple years ago.
Before I knew it, we were a few kms in and things were going well. It felt really good to be out racing again, even though I could tell I wasn't going too fast. I had no expectations for this race and just wanted to give a good effort and finish upright. The music sounded good, people were smiling, I was having fun. About halfway through I was smokin’ hot and had to stop in order to peel off all my layers. It felt great until we turned the corner, got out of the sun and my bare arms started to freeze. Oops, bad decision on my part.
I eventually hit the great big downhill at the end of the course and it felt good to know I was close. By this point my body was feeling pretty heavy and I was ready to finish. I skipped through the playlist to find a suitable finishing song and gave it a final sprint as we entered the fort to the finish line. Just as I crossed, one of my original clinic leaders was welcoming finishers so I got a great big hi-five and a hug. What a great way to finish my first race back.
I don’t have a Garmin time since I had to stop and re-start my timer shortly after starting, but my official time was 1:12. Certainly no record (last time I did this race I was 4 mos pregnant and my time was 1:04!) but I was so happy to have done the race and to feel good at the end. My back felt great but I was super pooped. So after a quick swoop through the food lineup I grabbed my loot and bee-lined for the car and a hot shower at home.
So after last week’s horrible back pain I figured I’d definitely be out for Sunday’s Historic 10k race. I was pretty bummed about that, but hopeful that my back just might shape up in time to run. My mom and sister thought I was crazy, but you have to have hope, right?
I’ve found in the past few years that when I ‘hurt my back’ like I did last week, it is kind of a nervy-pinch kind of thing and sometimes it goes away very quickly, overnight. This time it hurt really bad for Wednesday and Thursday and by Friday night I was starting to feel better. This may have been due to the fact that I a) had people looking after my heavy kids for me or b) went to the doctor for some painkillers, but nonetheless, I was starting to feel better. Saturday I woke up feeling really good and made the call that if I felt good when I woke up on Sunday, I’d go ahead and run. It's amazing to me how I can be in such excruciating pain for a few days only to wake up feeling pretty darn good the next day.
Sunday morning I woke up and indeed was feeling fine. I couldn’t believe it. So, into the shower I went and got myself suited up for the race. The weather was pretty chilly, –3 degrees with a high of 5 degrees later in the morning. I added a few layers before heading downstairs to have some PB toast. The last race I did was in July 2009 so I was excited to go to an event again after so long.
The morning was beautiful. Super cold, but nice and crisp and clear. It was seriously a great day for a race. The race is held in Fort Langley (yes, we actually started and ended inside the fort) and I knew parking would suck. I made my out there and took the first available spot I came to. The few blocks I had to walk helped warm me up a little and it was cool seeing the half marathoners run by as their start time was earlier than the 10k.
Once I got inside the fort walls I headed over to the potty lineup as this is going to have to be a regular part of my pre-race routine from now on. They had a bonfire going to keep people warm and there was a group warmup going on. I had just enough time to pee and then get into the corral to get ready to start. Here is a totally lame picture of me, but I guess that’s the risk you take when you race in cold weather and ask strangers to take your picture!
Anyhow, the race started and I felt okay. Just okay. Almost right away I felt a weird twinge in my hip that really kind of hurt. My back felt great but my freakin’ hip hurt? No fair. Funnily enough once we hit the first hill the pain kind of went away and it was smooth sailing for awhile. I don’t like to start a race with a hill right away, but it was kind of good to get the juices flowing and warm up. And, the hill didn’t feel nearly as tough as when I did this race a couple years ago.
Before I knew it, we were a few kms in and things were going well. It felt really good to be out racing again, even though I could tell I wasn't going too fast. I had no expectations for this race and just wanted to give a good effort and finish upright. The music sounded good, people were smiling, I was having fun. About halfway through I was smokin’ hot and had to stop in order to peel off all my layers. It felt great until we turned the corner, got out of the sun and my bare arms started to freeze. Oops, bad decision on my part.
I eventually hit the great big downhill at the end of the course and it felt good to know I was close. By this point my body was feeling pretty heavy and I was ready to finish. I skipped through the playlist to find a suitable finishing song and gave it a final sprint as we entered the fort to the finish line. Just as I crossed, one of my original clinic leaders was welcoming finishers so I got a great big hi-five and a hug. What a great way to finish my first race back.
I don’t have a Garmin time since I had to stop and re-start my timer shortly after starting, but my official time was 1:12. Certainly no record (last time I did this race I was 4 mos pregnant and my time was 1:04!) but I was so happy to have done the race and to feel good at the end. My back felt great but I was super pooped. So after a quick swoop through the food lineup I grabbed my loot and bee-lined for the car and a hot shower at home.