Yesterday's 5K was basically the same route as my first one in October. I wasn't sure how it would go with the foot pain that keeps creeping back, but I decided to go for it anyway. I wrapped my foot, dressed for cold with sun, and made my way to the race.
Got there and got my number. Suddenly realized that I hadn't had any water that morning, just coffee. Luckily there was free water available so I grabbed a bottle and drank it down fast so it would have time to cycle through and started stretching. My foot wrap wasn't comfortable at all so I pulled it off. I should have known better than to do something new on a race day. I figured my foot would probably hurt by the end anyway so it was more about being comfortable until the pain started.
I've finally learned to line up to the front and side of the pack so I can get around the slow folks who line up at the front. As usual there was a group of middle school age kids out at the front, which always troubles me. More often than not they've gotten in my way weaving through the crowd or goofing around with their friends instead of running. I should probably start going to the very front of the pack, but I worry that I'll get in someone's way.
We had a mini parade to the actual starting line and Santa got us started. I got to my pace and focused on keeping my speed up. Knowing the course helped with that. I got to the first mile mark and realized that, unlike the last time I ran that course, there was more of a pack than the last time. I assume that's because I was moving faster than the last time I ran it. That and the fact people were starting to walk the hills helped me keep my pace up.
Somewhere near the end of the second mile, my foot started to hurt. It happened in the middle of an incline as well so I was not happy about that. I contemplated walking the hill to rest my foot, but I realized all that would do was slow me down and make it harder to start running later, so I kept running. I tried to maintain pace, but I'm not sure if I did. I made a mistake around the two mile mark as well, I grabbed water from the water station. It was a mistake because I've never done that before. First attempt to sip at speed went down wrong. I guess I'm just not coordinated enough to drink from a cup while running so in the future water during runs will be in sport bottle form. The only reason I grabbed it was the lack of water before the run. What I did manage to drink gave me a slight cramp so I'll have to work on that for the longer runs.
One of the great things about this course is that it's all downhill after the second mile. At least in my head, that was going to be easier on my foot than a flat or uphill. At least I kept telling myself that and it helped me hold my pace. I sped up around 3 miles and soon after that I could see the clock and realized that I could beat 27:30 clock time if pushed it, so I dug down and found some more speed.
That last mile was more about finishing and holding pace through pain than anything else. I was really happy I managed to gut through it, especially since my foot doesn't hurt at all today so there's no permanent damage.
Congrats!
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