5K practice run

After yesterday, I hold have probably taken another few days of rest. I had made plans with friends, who I am running the 5K with in two weeks, to go out and run the course today to get a feel for it. Even though yesterday was rough, I decided to try the run. I planned to do extra stretches before, and take it easy and walk when needed to see if I could run the full 3 miles. Not helping my nerves was the weather and the part of town the course is in. It is really chilly and windy in my part of Michigan today, and the part of town we were running in is not that familiar to me. It is a lot of busier roads without sidewalks, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

Although I had reservations, it was a good run. I warned up quickly, wasn't too cold, and there wasn't much traffic out to dodge on the road. My leg began hurting just before mile 1, but it was not as bad as yesterday, and I was able to push through it. I stopped around 1.75 miles to give it another stretch and it was fine afterwards. I remembered about 5 minutes into the run that I forgot to use my asthma inhaler before hand, something I always do. I had no problems though. I have been getting allergy shots for almost 3 months now (which is SUPER fun), which are supposed to alleviate both my allergy and asthma symptoms, and I think this is my first sign of them starting to work! Yay!

So I think I might not be as injured as I thought yesterday. My leg feels a bit sore, but not too bad. We were even in good enough spirits after the run to snap a picture! Running with company is nice, even if you don't talk the entire time. I usually run alone, so I forget this!

Rosa and me. Her BF Brandon opted to take the pic instead of join us :)  

Lastly, I saw this on Pinterest a while back, and it has remained a motivational tool for me. It's weird how something small like this can keep you motivated, but it works for me. If I am dreading going out for a run (which is a lot of the time) I think of this. It reminds of how great I feel about mentally and physically after I finish running. I have never regretted a run, even the ones that make me frustrated. I learn from each one. Tomorrow is my one year anniversary of beginning to run! I can't believe it!