This weekend marked a fun new pregnancy milestone – my very first race!  I haven’t written a race recap here in almost a year!  I didn’t run during my first pregnancy, and I was really hoping that I’d be able to give it a try the second time around.  I haven’t really been running all that much up until now – I did one five mile run on vacation with a handful of shorter runs sprinkled in at home, but nothing very impressive.  Instead, I’ve been doing my Barre3 classes consistently a few times each week, which has really helped increase my strength and has kept me in good shape.

So even though I hadn’t been running all that regularly up to this point, I still felt like my activity and fitness level was good enough to take on the challenge of racing.  After the tragedies in Boston a few weeks ago, I felt really motivated and compelled to jump back into the running community – not to be competitive, but just to participate.  I looked at the local race calendar and signed up for the Top Pot Doughnut Dash 5K – and that is where we headed early Sunday morning! 

The race started at 8:30am, and I had to pick up my packet first, so it was an early morning for the whole family.  It was also cool and drizzling rain, so I was very grateful for my fabulous support crew.  (And yes! We got a new stroller – I’ll be writing about it soon!)

The last 5K I ran was last year on Mother’s Day, and that was a much smaller race.  This race was big compared to many of the 5K’s I’ve done in the past – almost 2,000 runners!  I guess a lot of people are as motivated by finish line doughnuts as I am.  :) 

I had originally been planning to run with a friend and her jogging stroller, but her little guy got sick the morning of the race.  I was so sad for them!  This also changed my race quite a bit.  I had planned to talk with Katie and distract myself with conversation, and now I found myself running alone with nothing but the sound of my breath (wasn’t planning to use headphones, so I didn’t take any!). 

I didn’t really have much of a plan, and it was funny at how unprepared I felt compared to prior races.  I had no music, no Garmin, and no idea what to expect.  I decided early on that my only goal was to try to run the whole thing without walking.  I know myself, and I know that if I allowed myself one walking break, it would turn into ten more.  I kissed my cheerleaders goodbye and took off!

I assumed I’d be running somewhere between a 10:00 and 11:00 minute mile, so I positioned myself pretty far back.

Casey and Cullen found a great spot right at the first curve, and were able to watch all the runners take off. 

I saw them as I went back, and smiled and waved.  So speedy I am nothing but a blur.  :)

This race was at Greenlake, which is one of my favorite running and walking spots, and it’s a loop I’ve done hundreds of times before.  So it was nice to know what to expect, and to have a good sense of the course – particularly since I had no Garmin telling me how much further I had to run.  My strategy was to just pick a comfortable pace and try to hold onto it – I knew it was slow, but I also knew it needed to be if I expected my legs to run three miles without stopping.  I spent pretty much the entire race being passed by other runners – very humbling!

It’s a weird thing to run while pregnant.  My instincts wanted me to try to push it – to give a little more, to pick up the speed a bit, but I also knew that I needed to keep my heart rate down and really pay attention to the cues my body was giving.  I’m not gonna lie – even though it was only three miles, it was tough.  My body hurt, and I had to constantly ask myself if it was normal “running hurt” or if it was pregnancy related (meaning I should stop).  All the aches and pains were in my legs and chest though, so I knew I was fine to keep going.

I spent most of the run just focused on my breath, and listening to the conversations around me (creeper alert!).  I willed myself to keep running even if that meant slowing down.  Once I passed the second mile marker, I knew I could push it for one more.  I came down the finishing chute and saw Casey and Cullen waiting and waving!

My official finish time was 31:51 (10:15 average pace) – my second slowest 5K ever, but my first ever pregnant, and one I will definitely remember.  I think (or at least I hope!) that jumping back into running at 16.5 weeks pregnant was just early enough to get going before I get too big or too tired.  Last time I tried to pick it up again around 22 weeks, and it was way too late.  I felt really proud to be a pregnant, running mama!

The 5K was sponsored by Top Pot Doughnuts – a famous Seattle spot.  But they only had one small doughnut truck in the finishers’ area, and the line was at least 500 people deep by the time I finished.  We decided to jump in the car and head to my personal favorite (vegan!) doughnut spot – Mighty O. 

We all enjoyed some post-race treats.  Cullen wolfed down the mini cake doughnuts I got for him, and I had delicious chocolate top and chocolate cream-filled.  Mmmmmmm.

It was a really fun way to spend the morning, and I spent the rest of the afternoon with a runner’s high.  During what should have been nap time (that turned out not to be – no naps all weekend – grrrrr), I looked online for other upcoming races that work with our schedule.

I absolutely loved running the race, and while I know I’m not in a place to set any big goals or plan too far ahead, I’m hoping to keep running and taking advantage of summer racing season as long as I can.  And I won’t feel quite so bad about being passed so much once I have a bigger, more noticeable belly!  :)

One pregnant race down, and hopefully several more to come!

Many moons ago when I was just getting back into my running shoes after having Cullen, I set goals and signed up for a bunch of races.  The furthest out on my schedule was the Rock N Roll Seattle Half Marathon.  I signed up for it back in January, and assumed that with six months to get back into running shape, I’d be more than ready to tackle 13.1 miles.

As it turns out, getting back into distance running shape while raising an infant is much harder than I anticipated.  And so when Sunday morning rolled around, I was feeling more nervous than confident.

The forecast called for pouring rain, so I tried to prepare for the worst.  Casey has been in Hong Kong all week, and couldn’t get back in time for the race.  When my alarm went off at 4:30am Sunday morning, it felt really strange to be getting ready all by myself.  At 5am I woke up Cullen so that I could feed him before I left.  My sister came down and took over babysitting duty, while I got ready to head toward downtown.  Finally, at 5:30am, I grabbed a PB&J sandwich, had Sarah snap a picture of me looking nervous, and I headed out into the rain.

The rain poured down the whole time I was driving in, but as I got closer and closer I could tell it was lightening up.  There were 50,000 runners all converging on downtown, so I made sure to leave with plenty of time to park and get to the starting line.

By 6:30 the rain had stopped, and I had made it into my corral.  I had gone back and forth all morning trying to decide if I should wear my jacket or not.  Of course as soon as I got there I regretted having it.  Rookie mistake.

Mistake number two came when I turned on my watch.  For whatever reason, I decided to take Casey’s new Nike Sport watch instead of my Garmin.  I had gone through the effort of charging it the night before, but when I turned it on minutes before the race, the watch flashed “memory full.”  You have got to be kidding me. 

I pushed every sequence of buttons I could imagine, but it quickly became clear that the watch would not work until it was cleared through a computer.  And so at that moment, my race strategy changed.

It’s funny how different running and racing are now that I’m a mom.  I used to be highly organized with lists of things I needed, everything prepped days in advance, race strategies outlined in my head, training schedules meticulously followed and taped to the wall.  Now?  I often run with just a few minutes notice – whenever I get the chance and it works with Cullen and Casey’s schedules.  I’m hardly ever prepared, I don’t have an iPod, and I haven’t looked at a training schedule in eight months.

My running has changed, just as life in general has changed.  Things aren’t predictable anymore.  I used to be a pretty obnoxious control freak, and while I certainly still have my moments, being a mom has forced me to mellow out significantly, and I’ve learned to quickly accept that things rarely go according to plan. 

So I turned my watch off and decided to just run based on how I felt.  My body knows a lot more about me than my Garmin anyway.  The gun went off and I waited for he 15 corrals in front of me to start.  

Finally, it was my turn.  I wanted this race to be different than Indianapolis – no being negative or getting down on myself when things got tough.  I started running and tried to just settle into a groove.

Within a half mile, I spotted my friend Carly on the sidelines.  I ran over to her and tossed her my jacket and watch – it was a HUGE relief to not have those things weighing me down for 13 miles.

I don’t have any mile splits or photos to share – it was just me and my thoughts out there trucking along.  I knew I had gone into the race significantly under-trained, so I didn’t have big expectations.  When I turned the corner at mile five and saw a GIGANTIC hill in front of me, I decided right then that I was going to walk the hills.  I knew my legs were going to be hurting enough from the mileage, and so I saw no point in burning them out on hills.

I saw my friend Julianna’s parents and I gave them high fives.  There was a beautiful portion of the course that weaved along the waterfront, and I tried to just focus on my surroundings and all the other runners, and to not think about how much I wanted to stop.

With each giant hill and each water stop, I gave myself a walking break.  I had watched the course preview video, and I knew the hills were going to be bad.  Even so, I was stunned at how brutal they were – definitely the hilliest course I’ve run to date. 

The middle of the race was sort of a blur.  I ran, I walked, I drank, I listed to Pandora on my phone.  I thought about Cullen and wondered if he’d drank his bottle and napped for Sarah.  I thought about Casey flying 15 hours home, and how I couldn’t wait to wrap my arms around him.  I thought about how far I’ve come in eight life changing months.

Miles ten and eleven felt like they were entirely uphill, and I transitioned to more of a run/walk.  When I passed the 11 mile marker, I looked at the clock.  I had guessed that it took me about 20 minutes to cross the starting line, and I tried to estimate my current pace based on the mile clock.  I thought if I ran two more 10:00 minute miles I could maybe finished in 2:15.

And then I saw the next huge hill.  I dug deep and forced myself to keep running, and decided I was going to do my best to finish under 2:20 after one more walk break.  The finish line felt like it would never come.

Finally I was back in downtown, cruising down a wonderful final downhill stretch, and digging for a push from the crowds and energy.  It took everything I had to keep on running.  I crossed the finish line and saw the clock tick 2:38, but since I started so late I had no idea what that meant for my finishing time.

I texted Casey (who had just landed) and Sarah, and let them know I had finished and was still alive.  I told them I guessed I had finished around 2:22 or 2:23.  Sarah responded that Cullen drank his whole bottle and was napping like a champ.  And then Casey texted back that I had finished in 2:19.  I was proud. 

It felt really surreal and strange to wander through tens of thousands of people, knowing I was on my own out there.  I sat on the steps for a little bit resting and recovering, before slowly making the very long 2 mile trek back to my car.  I headed home to meet my cheering squad.

I mentioned earlier that I think I want to focus on shorter distances and speed for a while, and take a little break from distance running.  Being out there on Sunday morning confirmed that for me.  This is sort of an awkward thing to write about, but I think it’s worth addressing since there are likely other women going through something similar.

I still have a surprising amount of postpartum pelvic pain.  Every time I run, and much more significantly after I run, I feel intense throbbing and aching in my pelvic floor.  Four hours of pushing during childbirth did me no favors, and I honestly feel like my body is still going through the healing process.  I bring this up only because it’s something I didn’t anticipate, and it’s just another example of some of the surprises and challenges that come with motherhood.

I walked in my front door feeling very very sore, but also really proud.  I was proud of myself for getting out there and doing the race all by myself, despite my lack of confidence.  I was proud of Sarah for being an awesome babysitter and taking great care of Cullen.  I was proud of Cullen for being a big boy and learning that he and mom can spend some time apart sometimes.

I think I’ve come a long way in 8 months.  I’ve done two half marathons and a handful of shorter races.  I’m not fast.  I’m not very consistent with my training.  I’m not doing anything extraordinary.

But I’m doing it.  And for me, it’s significant.  I have learned to relax.  I’ve let go of a lot of control.  And I know now to appreciate each run for what it is – watch or no watch, rain or shine.  It feels great to be an active, running mama.  I’m excited to see how my running continues to change and develop as parenthood progresses and new challenges arise.

Another race in the books – eleven minutes faster than my last one.  I’ll take it.