is three races in one week too much?
sunday november 22 - race to deliver 4m in central park
thursday november 26 - pptc turkey trot 5m in prospect park
saturday november 28 - abvm turkey trot 5k in havertown, pa
race to deliver 4 miler:
- annoying start (wasn't allowed into my designated corral and had to start further back in the field)
- awesome to run with a fellow pptc teammate (a surprise, and quite motivating)
- banished negative thinking (like, "okay, we're halfway through") with positive affirmations (such as, "you LOVE running and you LOVE racing - this is what you love to do - enjoy it!" and "a five mile run is nothing, you do this all the time, you know exactly how to do this") -- and felt totally rejuvenated!
- weird splits, but i felt great at the end and rocked the last mile at a 6:55 pace
- distracted, as usual, by dry mouth. i used to run with my mouth closed, but now, in the interest of deep breathing and oxygen circulation, i often run with my mouth open. the dryness i experience reminds me of riding in the backseat of my father' car as a child, head hanging out of the window, eyes closed, mouth open -- and really really dry. so yeah, it's distracting.
- (29:02, pace 7:15/mile)
pptc turkey trot 5 miler:
- decided to take it easy during this run
- 1/2 mile in, my legs felt so tired and heavy...
- found a second wind around mile 3
- pleased to run negative splits (according to my watch. the splits on the course were weird...)
- i really felt that i wasn't pushing myself, but i still ran the same average pace per mile as in sunday's race
- (36:15, pace 7:15/mile)
turkey trot 5k in pa:
- ran this small community fundraiser with some non-running friends and really had it in mind to take it easy, again...
- about 1/2 mile in, the course turned onto a steep and long downhill
- then, at about the 1.25 mile mark, we turned around and came back uphill....
- ugh, that hill felt brutal for such a family-friendly event...
- not to mention the headwinds...
- i had no steam left for the last 1/4 mile. heard a woman behind me, breathing down my neck, and had to let her pass.
- finished 1st in my age group, 4th overall
- (21:44, pace 7:00/mile)
a lovely week of running, three fun races.
