Extra Push, Plus Race Concern

I woke up this morning feeling a little better, thanks goodness, so I was thinking I'd be feeling okay for this afternoon's race. I got on the internet for a few minutes for my habitual early-morning-quick-check of news/email/Facebook/Twitter. On Yahoo, one of the featured stories was called "4 Reasons We Regain Weight." Since I've regained a few of the pounds I lost on the Rice Diet and am eager to get them back off (see my progress pictures here), I pulled up this article to read it. One of the things the article said that people do to maintain weight loss is to exercise an hour or more daily. I used to do at least an hour daily while I was on the Rice Diet, but I don't do that as much any more. I do at least 30 minutes every day, but usually 40-45 minutes, and on Saturdays, I usually exercise 2-3 hours (when I do my long runs, except for yesterday--blasted cold!).

So, eventhough I'm still sniffling a bit from this cold, I decided to pick things up a bit at the gym this morning, eventhough I have a 1-mile race scheduled this afternoon. I did 30 minutes on the treadmill (2.24 miles, a slower pace with occasional .5% incline), and 15 minutes (2.67 miles) on the recumbent bike. Since I knew I'd probably make it to the race this afternoon, I stopped there. Now I wish I'd stopped a little sooner, because now my legs are tired! But, a mile's a mile, and I definitely have another mile in me. (Just wish the temps were going to be a little cooler; it's supposed to be over 90 degrees this afternoon! Ick!)

Speaking of the Magnificent Mile, I went to Raleigh to pick up my race packet at the Athlete's Foot in Cameron Village. The North Carolina Roadrunners Club had two tables set up outside, with one with race numbers and the other with t-shirts. (I can't remember where the goodie bags fell into the flow.) When I took my race number to Table #2 for my t-shirt, an older man standing at the table looked at my race number, looked at me, and said, "So, you're running in the competitive mile?" Okay, so I was already a little sensitive about my slow running, but I still took his comment a little personally. I doubt he meant a thing by it, but I felt a little self conscious! Silly, huh? But I nodded, and replied, "Yes!" Since then, I've been trying to remind myself that 1) I have as much right to be a participant as anyone; 2) the website didn't mention a time limit; 3) I paid the entry fee for a worthy cause, the Spastic Paraplegia Foundation.

Now, I did check the times from last year's race, and based on those times, I probably will be one of the last ones to finish. Do I want to set myself up for that? Hmmm, I think I just need to get over that, though there is the whole pride thing. What I should be proud of is showing up and doing my best. Now, this 1-miler is a USTAF State Championship, as well as a RRCA Southern Region Championship, so I may be a little out of my league. But, since I aspire to be a faster runner, I want to go out there and practice running faster this afternoon. Perhaps I need to remember to smile and have a good time (even with the remnents of this icky cold), to try my best without taking myself so seriously that I forget about the joys and benefits of running.