Mission Accomplished! YAY!

Back in June, right before my first 5k, I set two goals for myself:

1. Run the entire race without walking.
2. Finish in 40 minutes or less.

Now, if you've read my blog you already know that I didn't meet both of those goals.  I finished without walking, but my time was 41 minutes and something seconds.  I couldn't let myself feel bad, so I just told myself that I'd meet that goal next time.

TODAY, my next time came.  I ran the HEY 5k this morning.  Check out my lovely flat mama...minus the hot pink compression socks that were in the dryer.  Cute, right?

 

The course promised to be flat and fast, and oh boy did it deliver!  Well either that, or something magical got into my shoes, because it was an awesome race for me!  My first mile was the fastest mile that I've run to date - 11:24.  Miles 2 and 3 were 12:10 and 12:13 respectively.  I felt great and it was a fantastic run.  As far as I am concerned, I blew that 40 minute goal out of the water with my finishing time of 37:15!

I have to admit, when I was heading toward the finish line and I saw the time on that clock, I could have danced with joy.  I was just so happy and proud of myself!  Today, I feel like all of my hard work these past few months has paid off at least a little, because this 5k was almost 4 minutes faster than the one on 6/22.  That is a huge improvement!  So, I'm patting myself on the back today. 

After finishing the 5k, I set out with a running buddy, Teri, and we did 3 more miles since we both had more mileage to get in today.  After the quick drive home, and something to drink, I ran my last mile for today in the neighborhood with my son.  In total, I got in 7.3 miles today and it took me 1:33:09....not too bad I think!

Once I got home, I ate a boiled egg and some cottage cheese (gotta get in the protein!), drank some water, and chilled for a little bit...and then I prepared for my new torture.

You see, I read a few articles and have had recommendations from several people about foam rolling, and I think I blogged a bit about it at some point.  I am a wimp and holding myself up to roll is HARD...so I've come up with a new method.  It is called, "Jen lays on the floor and the husband does the rolling instead." It works fabulously!  Except, you see, my husband is not a wimp and when he rolls out the knots in my muscles it hurts!  Looking at it, you wouldn't think that a foam log like this:

would cause me to writhe around on the ground and scream like a little girl.  But, it does....and it also gets rid of any muscle tightness and knots, so I sort of consider it a necessary evil at this point.  It is helping me to prevent injuries, so we'll keep on rolling!  Plus, when there aren't any knots it sort of feels like a deep tissue massage, and that isn't so bad at all!

Now, I've been rolled.  I showered and at a yummy lunch of leftover lasagna...so I think its time for a little nap.  I'm in a great mood today.  Perhaps is the afterglow of the runners high or something.  Either way, I dig it.  :-)  Success feels good!