30 miles for my 30th & race recap

I kind of took a blogging break this week. I just wasn't feeling it. I had a super horrible 11 mile run Monday that I wish I could rewind and start again. Pretty much ignored the fact that that's the type of thing I write about, so I ignored the blog all together :)

Wednesday, I did have a good 3 mile run, first one under 30 minutes in weeks. That felt nice. It also felt nice that I was holding myself back, trying to stay on pace so i could get a feel for what pace I wanted for the 10k race this morning. Stats were: 3 miles in 28:43: 8:44, 9:38, 10:21; 9:34 average per mile.

Lydia had her 1 year well check on Wednesday afternoon and the shots that go with it made her sick: fever, not sleeping (even worse than normal), whiny, grouchy, you name it- she was it. So Wednesday night and Thursday night were low on sleep hours, so I skipped the alarm and slept until I needed to get the kids up for school. Extra rest before a race is ok right?!

Saturday, I took the kids on a big walk, 2 miles around the neighborhood. I planned to jog some to get my legs moving, but Noah flipped out! So later in the evening I ran a 9:30 mile, just around the park.

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As you may know, I'm turning 30 on Wednesday. Hard to believe, I know! But it's true.


I'm not feeling all that great about it. Chad says to embrace it. Elizabeth says I'm entering my most productive years. Maybe.

Anyway, back when I started figuring out my half marathon training plan for the Cincinnati Half Marathon, my final training run was due to be run tomorrow. So I set the goal of running 30 miles the week of my 30th. Maybe next year I can run 31 miles on my birthday. Yeah, no. Since I ran a 10k early this morning, I have moved the run to Saturday to get it in this week.

This is my plan on getting the miles in:

Sunday: 6.2 miles

Monday: rest

Tuesday: 3 miles

Wednesday: 3 miles

Thursday: 3 miles

Friday: 2.8 miles

Saturday: 12 miles (which has turned out not to be my final because I ran the Little Miami 10k) who wants to join me?

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This morning I ran the Catch Me If You Can 10k with my dad.

There was also a 5k and 10 mile race. 122 total participants.

They started all the women first, and then tapered the 5k, 10k and 10 mile men. Fun!

Did I mention it was freezing? Yeah, 46 degrees. Brr! My feet didn't fully defrost until mile 3!

I finished with a time of 60:08. So close to my goal of a sub 60, close enough I should have made it today. And I could have, but I rely on my gps too much I guess, or my gps decided to throw my race. Within the first half mile it jumped, and I was .2 off by the end. As in, she was telling me 6 miles as I was crossing the finish line. Clearly not lady! What I'm saying is, I wasn't sure what my time was really. It wasn't until I saw the mile 5 flag that it registered I had a chance to make it in under an hour, so I turned it up, and almost got it. Either way, I'm pleased with my progress from 61:17 just under a month ago. I have no idea what my splits were other than the first 5k was 29:33.

My rankings came in at 20th out of 52 over all, 12th out of 34 women. And I first place out of 5 in ages 25-29. Take that 20s.

My dad rocked it, finishing in 54:10! It was a good set up though, with the tapering, because he was 7 minutes behind me, so I still finished first :)

Oh, and did I mention it was freezing?! I know it was horrible for Chad the kids, but they'll never know how much I appreciate their support. Or that Chad has let me go on and on about those stinking 8 seconds. Love him!

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As I reflect on what my 30s will be, there are so many uncertainties. I'll have raised 2 into their teenage years, one on the cusp of being a teenager. Madison will have finished her first year of college. It's going to be a big 10 years for our family. I pray that we, as parents, approach each situation with wisdom. But I also pray that our children receive our instruction and guidance with open and trusting hearts.

One thing is for sure though, I will be starting the next decade of my life healthier and more in shape than any other decade. I look forward to continuing the journey in the years to come.