Race Report - Purple Stride 5k

Last Saturday I ran the Purple Stride 5k. Not only has it taken me a week to post a race report on here, but I didn't get any running in this past week either (hanging head in shame). Excuses were abundant in all shapes, sizes, and colors of course; gym day on Monday (gotta cross-train afterall), late day at the office and then dinner with co-workers visiting from all over the country on Tuesday AND Wednesday, dinner with family on Thursday AND Friday, and finally meal planning and placating my OCD by organizing closets on Saturday (it's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it - I'm feeling much better, thanks for asking).

All of the aforementioned reasons excuses are valid, but another week like that and I feel like I'll be starting over at square one! This coming week will be better or my name is not Super Mom/Wife/Daughter/Sister/Friend/Employee/AAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!

Anyway, so I totally crushed my previous 5k time with this race. Let's take a quick trip down memory lane, shall we? Purple Stride 2013 (October 12th) was a PR (personal record) for me on the running front with a time of 43 minutes 2 seconds and an average pace of 13'40". I thought I was really something coming in under 15 minutes per mile with that race.

Fast forward to last Saturday (that's sort of confusing, sorry) and Purple Stride 2014:

• August 23rd, 2014 (yes, this means it was MUCH hotter than the previous race last October - 98 degrees to be exact)
• The course was hillier (don't think that's a word; too bad, I got nothing else)
• Race started at 8:05 in the morning; I was at the very front
• Walked briefly through the water stop at the turnaround (not because I needed to walk, but because they handed out water bottles with twist caps and I wanted to drink more water than I wanted to wear for the rest of the race with a white tank top on)
• Felt like I was crawling on the way back to the finish line (I purposefully turned off the audio voice feedback on Nike lady because I didn't want to know what my pace was until I finished).
• Some dude kept passing me while running and then he would walk so I'd pass him and so it went for the last mile of the race. He passed me at one point and starting walking about 5 feet in front of me, then turned around and said "sorry, I'm doing the whole run/walk thing and I'm like the hare while you are keeping a steady pace" - I assured him that all was well, but thought to myself "did he just call me a tortoise?"
• I thought the race was never going to end, and then I saw the finish line and my peeps. The look on my husbands face scared me a little bit. He knew that I was hoping to come in under 40 minutes and he had this look on his face like "really?" - I took that as "really,, you are so slow and I cannot believe you missed the mark on this race". What his look actually was portraying was "really?" - "I've been watching the race clock and didn't expect to see you for a few more minutes but here you are."
• I looked from my husbands face to the race clock and saw this:  35:04
• I was surprised and IMMEDIATELY mad at myself because had I pushed a little bit harder here or there I could've come in under 35 minutes (dumb I know - but that would've been EPIC).
• My final time was 35:19 with an average pace of 11'24" (finished 16 out of 28 in my division, although they show my age online as 30, so I'm not sure how accurate that little stat is)
• I ran my fastest mile EVER at 11'09" (mile 1 of course - nothing like start line adrenaline)
• Time for this race was over 7-1/2 minutes faster than my previous PR! (I am truly awesome)

Seriuosly though, I could not have asked for a better race. Coming in just over 35 minutes just gives me something to reach for in my next 5k, which will likely be very soon.

I am still in training for the Route 66 half marathon this November (except for this past week - clearly I was in training for NOTHING).

I am super proud to be a part of Purple Stride each year and I know the next one will be even bigger and better. A big thank you to everyone who came out to support this great cause. And congratulations to the 15 year old who "won" and ran the race in under 26 minutes, although I secretly hate your guts!

MIND OVER MATTER

Statistically Speaking (Purple Power)

So I ran 2 miles tonight and it was just okay. I hate when I come off of a really epic run only to have an average outing the next time (wah wah wah). It was dark, it was hot (90 degrees at 9 PM), and it smelled like skunk! I swear I spent half the time out there on that sidewalk squinting down the way looking for that damn skunk (ain't nobody got time for that)!!! I did alright, averaged 13'59", but it was HARD! I ran uphill the whole time (not really) and I had a hundred pound weight vest on (totally lying about that).

We should move on to some different statistics.........ones that piss me off WAY more than my snails pace on my run tonight.

My Mom was taken from this life 3 days after her 49th birthday by pancreatic cancer 3 years ago. You're probably thinking "that's total BS and its not fair!"............and you're right!

Recently published research states that pancreatic cancer will surpass breast and colon cancer to become the second leading cause of cancer death around the year 2020, bested only by lung cancer. That's only 6 years from now people (I'm really good with numbers). This expectation is due to the fact that pancreatic cancer deaths and incident rates have continued to rise while the same statistics for other leading types of cancer deaths continue to decrease. Why do you think that is? I'll tell because I know the reason......funding and awareness (or lack thereof for pancreatic cancer). This disease has historically been underfunded and that has resulted in a lack of research capability. The study states that "the societal burden of this particularly deadly cancer will become greater in the coming years, and now is the time to allocate the resources and effort necessary to alleviate the suffering caused by this disease".

Part of the problem is that pancreatic cancer receives only 2 percent of the federal dollars distributed by the National Cancer Institute, while lung/colon/breast/and prostate cancer receive 2.8-6.3 times more funding. That is a major problem and it pisses me off!

This is why the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network strives to pull in private donations from events like Purple Stride to help fund research for this killer among us. I am so glad to be a part of Purple Stride Oklahoma each year and proudly represent Team Patti as co-captain with my sister. This Saturday we will gather for a 1 mile fun run and 5k run to raise funding and awareness for pancreatic cancer. Until more federal funding starts pouring in, this is all we've got in the arsenal. Participation in this year's event is overwhelmingly greater than the previous two years and we are so pleased and grateful for that.

Thank you to all who have supported us to by joining Team Patti or donating to this cause! It is so appreciated that I cannot put it into words.

Looking forward to running on Saturday to honor my Mom's memory and hope that one day someone else's life will be saved due to the strides we've made. It all starts somewhere, why not us?

Like a Boss (everything is relative)

I ran like a woman possessed tonight! I'm talking 'hair on fire' POSSESSED!!! I run on the sidewalk alongside a 4 lane road just outside my neighborhood, so there's lots of traffic. At one point I swear the driver of a passing truck had this look on his face like "why is that fat girl running so fast? Are there clowns with bloody knives chasing her?" (okay so that's not true, but you get my point). I ran LIKE A BOSS! I taught that sidewalk a thing or two.

Let's get down to the nitty gritty details:

Distance = 2 miles / Avg Pace = 13 min 03 sec per mile

This is where the 'everything is relative' part comes into play for those of you not keeping up.

For some runners, this pace may seem slower than a 1 legged dog on tranquilizers, but for me, this is lightning fast! Especially when you consider the fact that I walked the first quarter of each mile (and I know you will take that into consideration because IT MATTERS)! I felt weightless (clearly not the case) and it was as if my legs were not connected to my body at all. I wasn't thinking, I was just running.

If 'Nike lady' hadn't automatically let me know what my time was after the first mile I wouldn't have worried too much about my time. After all, it's just a 2 mile training run, who cares? Hmmmm, pick me, I care! During my 3/4 mile running segment I decided to take a little peek at my Nike app and see what my instantaneous pace was. This is something I never do, it's too depressing and I usually can't stand it. But this time I'm glad I looked. I was clipping along at 11'32"..........WOOT! Again, everything is relative, so all you fast people out there quit rolling your eyes and shut it! I am fast fat girl, hear me roar (or something like that).

In all seriousness though, I am in so much better shape than I was in this time last year. I can't wait for Saturday (Purple Stride Oklahoma) to see how much I will beat my previous time by. Yes, I like to end sentences in prepositions, deal with it!

I shall leave you with the following non-running related, although hilarious, story:

8 year old son:  "Mom, I'm happy and sad that school starts tomorrow. Should I go to school? Should I not go to school?

Me:  "The state has already made that decision for you, it's against the law for you not to go to school."

8 year old son:  "What about college?"

Me:  "That's different, you need to go to college so you can get a good job after you graduate."

8 year old son:  "But you went to college and you hate your job. You're always telling Dad what a horrible job it is."

Me: CRICKETS (making mental note to refrain from bitching about my job in front of the children). "You're going to college!"


MIND OVER MATTER

Back in the saddle again........

So I took a little teeny tiny break from blogging. Nine months to be exact. The last time I posted an update was after I completed the Route 66 Half Marathon last November (shame on me).

I just signed up for the 2014 Route 66 Half Marathon! I need to do this! I need to beat my time from last year. I need to run more of the route this time. I am in better shape this year and I refuse to let running get the best of me (easier said than done).

I took a long time off from running after the half marathon. Phrases like "never again" and "what was I thinking" were freely flowing from my mouth in the days after the race. I have only been that exhausted and in that much pain two other times in my life (I have two kids, so I don't really feel the need to explain any further). My knees were aching, my shins were sore, my quads and hamstrings were tight, and I could never imagine myself doing that again. Yet I just signed up to do it again.

Running is an addictive little thing. It's hard and it hurts and I cannot seem to make it through a single run without stopping to take a quick walking break. But I love it! I'm not sure why, but I do. It's like this thing that I cannot seem to conquer. I'm getting stronger and better at it, but I cannot seem to become the runner that I think I should be. That's so dumb, I know, but it's how I feel. I'm still fat and slow, but I'm running. I may take a break and walk for a quarter mile now and then, but I'm still running.

After the half marathon, I didn't run again for 7 months! That's a long "break" from running. It was more like quitting than a break. I just wasn't into it, especially through the winter. But in June I started thinking about Purple Stride coming up and how I really wanted to beat my 5k time from last year. And I knew that if I didn't start running again there was no way I would be able to complete a 5k by August 23rd without walking. This is important to me, I want to do my best, and this event holds a special place in my heart (miss you every day Mom). So I starting running again on July 8th, and I ran 18.6 miles in the month of July. I started out slow, only running a quarter mile and walking a quarter mile at a time. Now I'm running three quarters of a mile and walking a quarter mile. Progress is progress. I have 14.3 miles under my belt for the month of August. Purple Stride is next Saturday and I'm hoping to beat last years time (42 min 32 sec). I'm on track to beat that time, but I have yet to run that far without stopping to walk. It will be a true test once again. It is amazing how quickly the body falls out of running shape compared to how long it takes to build it up (so unfair)!

I was scheduled to do 3 miles today, but I only completed 2.25 miles. It was hot and I wasn't feeling well. It sucks to quit with only .75 miles to go, but I was D-O-N-E! But then again, 2.25 miles is better than 0 miles any day of the week (at least that's what I tell myself to feel better about being a big fat quitter). Now that I will be blogging again, all 5 of you who actually read this will help to hold me accountable to myself. =)

Quick shoutout to my friend Allen who is running today in his second Pikes Peak Marathon. You da man, albeit a crazy man!

Mind Over Matter