The Nashville Race

Do you ever think that training for an athletic event is just plain overrated? Well, I did.And I'm here to say that It really does work.

Last year I trekked down to Nashville to run a 1/2 marathon (13.1 miles) for fun. I had only taken one class that semester so I had time to prepare by running every other day for 8 weeks prior.

Last year's race was great. I had made my time goal and was so excited about the accomplishment and the fact that my knees didn't crumble after reaching the finish line.
This year, I decided to sign up again. But this year, I was taking more credit hours at school and never had (or made) time to train. I guess I got a little cocky because of how easy it came off for me the first time. Well, the weeks went by and I think I ran 3 times- and never over 6 miles. Knowing full well that this race was more than double, I still went down to Nashville and ran it.
I guess I needed to teach myself a lesson.
The lesson learned is that: TRAINING WORKS!!!
Last year I had great expectations. This year my goal was to just FINISH.
The first three miles were TOUGH. Mile 3 to mile 8 were AWESOME. I felt great, the people cheering us on were great, and running through a sprinkler felt great too. Then mile 8 hit. HUGE blister on my right foot. I wanted to stop at the medical station but I thought, "no it will take too much time." I started running funny for the next 5 miles and finally finished.
Now 5 days later, my foot is finally recovering from the funky injury it incurred. Surprisingly enough, the most comfortable shoes that made my foot hurt the least were high heels. Go figure!
This girl in the pink shirt made me go faster in the end. I thought, "maybe she's in my age range. Am I going to let her beat me?" I believe a little competitive spirit is good for a person. It is usually what I need to get motivated at the end of a race.

I'm humbled, my ego is deflated, and I will now begin REALLY training for a more reasonably-lengthed race. A 10K is coming up at the end of the month and this time, I'll train.