Well, I did it folks! 10K has been completed and totally dominated. Yesterday morning I ran my very first 10K in the Sunshine Run 10K here in Springfield, and I had a blast!

The day started out rainy and stormy, so I was definitely awake early and worrying about the weather. My race was at 8:30 am, so I was sure to wake up by around 6:30 to get some food in my belly and be sure I had everything ready to go. I had some Cheerios and an apple to keep it light on my tummy. And of course I had my typical morning coffee – just not quite as much as normal.

I was dressed and ready to head out with Nick by my side around 8 am. The race started at Hammon’s Field, home of the Springfield Cardinals, which isn’t too far from my house. It was also absolutely POURING rain at this point, so I was in no rush to get there early and stand in the rain. 🙂

See all the water on the field? It was intense. Luckily right as we arrived the rain started to lighten up, and it was totally done by the time I got to the starting line.

The rain definitely kept the numbers down. I went to the starting line probably 5 minutes before race time, and I was still way up in front. I was getting extra nervous at this point!

This was also my first timed race, so I was worried about my chip the whole time. Silly, I know. It stayed right in place the whole 6 miles.

We took off quickly, and I settled into my normal groove of running and breathing. I don’t listen to music when I run outside, so I tend to focus on my breathing a lot. It paid off too! I found a good set of people to help me pace easily, and the 6.2 miles flew by. It was a ‘down and back’ course, which isn’t my fave. The course seemed to be uphill the whole return trip though, which kept my mind off the course itself and more on me picking up my feet and not passing out. 🙂

Nick caught these photos of me right outside the stadium which is where the race ended. I was so happy to see him cheering me on and to know that I was almost done! The race ended after one lap around the outskirts of the field. This is where I got completely muddy and gross! But with the finish line in site, I didn’t mind too much.

Woo!! I ended up running a little more than 6.2 miles (I was not hugging the inside of the track enough!) in 50:54 officially. My pace was 8:10 per mile which is my fastest yet!

And with those numbers, I was super happy but completely pooped.

I’m exhausted and sweaty in this photo. Can you tell?? HA! And look at this fancy pose…

I’m super cool, I know. 😛

And here is just a taste of all the mud that got slung up on my legs during my final lap in the stadium. Yuck!

They handed out bananas, Greek yogurt, and protein bars along with lots of water after the race, but nothing sounded good to me for a bit. So we headed on home where I finally stomached some yogurt and showered off. It was such a fun time!

This was way different from the other races I had been in though. I showed up just on time to run, and then I headed home as soon as I caught my breath and had some water. It wasn’t the most fun race as far as activities and huge crowds, but I still loved it, especially since I was so happy with my time. 🙂 Plus I placed 61st overall, and 2nd in my age group. Woot! And for the record, I really don’t care about all the numbers and stuff. I just set out on this run with a goal of finishing strong without any walk breaks. And that I did with ease! So it’s a win in my book.

The rest of the day consisted of relaxing and lots of eating to fuel my running tummy! I got on my comfiest outfit and we headed out to lunch at TGIFridays.

Ha. Once again, I’m super cool. I had a grilled chicken salad with lots of blue cheese, avocado, and a balsamic vinaigrette.

I had one happy tummy. It was the perfect post race meal. It just took me a while to gain my appetite, but no worries, it showed up and hasn’t quite gone away yet!

Overall, I’m really proud that I completed my 10K without any issues, and I’m hoping that I have many more races ahead of me. Running is tough, but it’s extremely addictive. I love it!

Have a great night everyone. I have something yummy cooking in my Crockpot for our dinner on this nice cool, Fall evening. Recipe to come asap! See you then!