I knew when I signed up for this that today would be a cold day. I just knew it. Probably because I thought about doing it already last year but didn’t and when the day came it was cold as well and I remember thinking that I was glad I didn’t “waste the money”.

I have honestly never understood the love for doing 5K’s, 10K’s or any race like this. Until I started doing virtual races last year. I did it mostly for the swag in the beginning if I should be entirely honest, but also to push myself. Compare myself to previous challenges. I have always been a person who likes challenges and competitions. I grew up showing dressage for I don’t know how many years and loved it.

So today was the day. This year I have challenged myself to do one live 5K a month. In that way I have something to work for, something that official when it comes to results. Virtual races ain’t really official in the same way. And of course, a cold front entered last night so it was going to be super cold. 39F and 27mph winds. Great! And with my weird body just that was a challenge. I had no clue how to dress. But I decided that I would do ski pants, warm jacket, beanie and my warm turtleneck. For sure I would be the only one to do that but boy was I glad I did but I almost felt like a criminal about to robb someone!

I thought I had remembered everything. I had my headphones, I had a playlist I thought would work, I had my app ready, my bib. In the car was my hot tea for afterwards when my blood pressure would drop and I have had my morning shake. My body felt pretty good when I woke up. My hip was sore but not painful really. I had put bandaids on my heels just in case. And I had studied the map so I knew somewhat how the course was laid out. I felt I had control over the situation, surprisingly.

I got there and I bumped in to my friend Clint. This guy… he started running last year and what an inspiration he is for me! He was doing the 10K today!

10K and Half Marathon left before us in 5K. I was surprised they only did 10 minutes difference but what do I know… I saw some of them in shorts and tank top… and here I was bundled up. Of course they were running and I was walking which was a huge difference. My goal was just to survive this ordeal that I had signed up for!

And then we were off. Of course everyone is excited and start running/jogging. And I was like swept with the wave and started jogging as well the first couple of minutes. Dumb… very dumb. I can’t run. My lungs starts to burn like hell when I run. And in this cold weather… why girl? I know better! But thankfully I slowed down before it got too bad. And it actually didn’t take long to “recover” from my stupid start. Well, it is a learners thing I guess… But it was also good because I came in to a pace that was a little faster than I have done lately and it felt comfortable. Until 1 mile. Then was a looooong uphill. It wasn’t really steep but that’s when I felt that hm… I am not in shape for this. But as soon as it was done and it was flat again I got back to the nice pace and could keep on going. The second mile went good. I was surprised that it felt that fast. Probably because I had studied the map and I knew the town so I knew how far I was and it was getting close to the end. I was also almost alone, had a couple of people behind me that never passed me and it was just like when I walk by myself. It was a good feeling.
I was glad that my body felt really good. I had no pain in my hip, it wasn’t even sore. The shoes was fine. Everything was simply good and I could enjoy my walk! A cool feeling!
Suddenly I could see the finish line. That’s when my legs turned into bricks. The last half mile was rough. Oh Lord. I felt like a snail! But I knew that there was people behind me. And those who passed me were runners in the 10K so I wasn’t bothered about them. And that was it. I crossed the finish line!!! I freaking did it. They handed me my finisher medal and at that point I understood why people go up early in the morning in freezing temperatures to do this. I realized that I had a lot of fun despite being quite tired!

It was fun. It was a challenge! First and foremost this was the first time I did it, once I’ve done a couple of races I’ll get more familiar with it. The change of scenery was awesome. That really encouraged me. I didn’t know what was coming next. Here at home I walk the same route over and over again, I know every hole in the ground, and I knew the easy and hard parts. Here I had no clue. I had looked at the elevation map but that said me nothing. So that was a lot of fun! And rewarding!

I am actually very pleased with my walk today! I don’t think I could have done much more or better. This is what I timed on my watch and this is what I found as my final official results.

Next challenge is the Hot Chocolate 5K in Dallas on February 12th. That is a much bigger race with over thousand participants. But it will be fun. I certainly understand why people loves running and/or walking!