Race Date

Yesterday, Jeff and I went on one of our favorite kinds of date: a race date! I guess races are one of “our things” to do together because we met on the track team back at SVU. We both ran the 10k and they usually did the 25-lap men’s and women’s races together to save time, so Jeff would lap me 7 or 8 times throughout the 6.2 miles. That’s a lot of quality time, and it doesn’t even account for all the hours we rode in the school vans traveling to and from meets together. We spent more time at track/cross country practices and meets together than we ever spent going on dates.

[from the archives: the Washington and Lee Invitational 10k, spring of 2006. Jeff is about to lap me here, but I like this picture because it looks like I’m whooping him]

So it’s naturally FUN for us to run the same race, even if Jeff finishes 10 minutes before me. On Saturday morning, we got up at 5am, got ready, handed the kids off to their loving grandparents at 5:45am, and drove 40 minutes to Howard Amon Park in the Tri Cities for the Shoreline 10k. We sprinted in and registered 10 minutes before the 7am start time. Nothing says romance like a lung-clenching sweltering 6.2 mile run before breakfast.

I love this race because it’s all along a peaceful paved pathway next to the shining Columbia river. This was my 3rd year running it, and Jeff’s 2nd. Jeff got 6th overall with a time 38:03. I was further back in the field—not quite sure what my place was exactly—15th or 16th woman finisher I think. My time was 48:05. There was the best field of runners yet this year—I actually ran with women, not 40 year old men like usual. Too bad I wasn’t quite as speedy this time around either (ahem, last year I found out I was pregnant two days after this race, and I still ran it 10 seconds faster pregnant last year than I did un-prego this year).

Ever since my recovery last October, I’ve been running 4 days each week, a total of about 18-20 miles per week. That’s my maintenance running, with no training/speed mixed in. It gives me a strong base and it keeps my lungs and legs in good condition so I can jump into a training plan or enjoy long [muddy] hikes or other physical ventures any time I want.

I know what I need to do to get into better shape (run more miles and do speed workouts), but I’ve decided that this is SO not the time of life to do it. Since my future still holds at least one other attempt at pregnancy, it’s honestly not worth my energy to work up to that kind of shape, only to lose it all and more on my prego-sickbed. Once I take the time and effort to get into that higher level of fitness, I’m pretty good at maintaining it. So I want to be able to enjoy the fruits of my labor instead of squandering it all in the starvation-atrophy zone of pregnancy.

Also, I need my energy for REAL LIFE: like being a patient, spunky mom and taking care of our home. Running used to be my only energy outlet back when I had two babies and a tiny apartment to take care of. But now with a 2 year old and a 4 year old (along with various other kids to babysit) and a big house with a weedy yard, all of my everyday work requires more energy and I have to find it somewhere! I will never stop running, but I will wait for another season of life to feel fast again.

Great plan! Now I just need to convince the rest of my brain that it’s OK to run the 10k 4 minutes slower than I used to. It’s ok to be way slower than I even was when Rose was 5 months old. It’s ok to jog instead of sprint.

Ahh, is it really ok?

IT IS REALLY OK. Yes. It is.