Miracle Match 5k

On January 24-25th, I slipped on my running shoes, threw on some lipstick and hit the pavement for not one, but two, races. 

Wearing lipstick on race day is totally legit, right? #miraclematch #5k #beeftip #teambeef #txbeefteam

A photo posted by Tamara Lehmann (@tamara0827) on Jan 24, 2015 at 6:50am PST

I know what you’re thinking and the answer is yes.

Yes, I am totally on fleek.
(Shout out to Kate for keeping us aware of what all the cool kids are saying these days!)

The race weekend includes a 5k on Saturday and a half-marathon on Sunday. Well, for me it does, you can pick and choose anything from a 1 mile, 5k, 10k, half, a full, or an ultra. You can even participate in a fire-truck pull.

I ran the 5k & half last year (recap here!) as part of my marathon training but this year I had three entirely different reasons to sign up: 

1. This would be my first opportunity as a Beef Team member to race.
   
2. Amanda, from The Lady Okie, was running the half.
   
3. And probably most importantly, I’d get an extra medal for running both.

Clearly I couldn’t say no.

My training for the 5k went really well (half-training? Uh, we’ll go there in the next post but short answer: I suck.) I made it a point to have at least one run where I focus on speed training. Because I’m no professional and had no idea how to do that safely, I downloaded the Jeff Galloway 5k app and utilized it for my speed sessions. Based on my performance for this 5k, I would say it’s doing the trick.

I finished in 35:43 with an average pace of 11:31.

My first mile was 10:36.

I have never ran even close to a 10 minute mile. I am not exaggerating when I say I started crying upon realizing it. While I have always wanted to be faster, I have never really put in the work for it. I always just kind of hoped it would happen naturally but after 3 solid years of running, it hadn’t so I just resigned myself to being a slower runner. No big deal. Still love the sport, I just love it a little longer than most people do out on the race course, right? Getting my money worth, that’s all.

I made a video (a little reminiscent of my first running vlog!) right after the race. I meant to post it Saturday after the race but you know, life happened. So it references tomorrow (being Sunday for the half with Amanda).

Eventually, I’ll write up my resolutions for the year (I have them, I just haven’t posted anything about them because I’m a terrible blogger) but one of my running goals this year is to focus on quality and not quantity. I really want to improve my pace so that when I decide I’m ready to run another marathon, I won’t have to question if that damn course will close on me because of ‘bad weather’.

(Please reference face below when reading ‘bad weather’ as I may still be slightly bitter concerning how Texas weather did me last year during my marathon.)

The 5k itself was great and the running team I’m now a part of (Team Beef) ran the water station at the halfway point. They snapped this super happy picture of me. I have more to say about Team Beef in a later post but the picture they took pretty much sums up how I feel about it.

Overall, the race didn’t disappoint. In the past 5 years I’ve ran it, it’s always gone off without a hitch, incredibly well organized and easily accessible. (Your parking is like 100 feet away from the start line!) It’s always great to start the year off with happy feet & Miracle Match certainly does that for me.

I mean, if my finish line photo looks this freaking happy – it’s got to be a testament to something, right? (Also, pictures were free this year!)

 

More tomorrow in regards to the half that I (spoiler alert) hardly trained for!

Until we run again!