HP Blast Run #7 - Kicks for Kids 5k Run

Training run #7 was a charity 5k (3.2 mile run) that raised money to benefit the Kicks for Kids foundation. This event also happen to take place over Memorial Day weekend, when my college roomies were visiting for our friend's baby shower. Sometime last fall, the idea came up about some of us participating in the Flying Pig marathon relay run - which is set up for 4 people to run about 6 miles each to make up for the marathon distance of 26.2 miles. Though we had good intentions, this plan never really took off for many reasons, but once we nailed down the date of our buddy's baby shower, I checked out what smaller distance runs were available for us to participate in. Turned out the Kicks for Kids 5k run was taking place and this was also our Saturday morning group run for my training group with the Bob Roncker's Running Spot in preparation for the Hyde Park Blast run at the end of June.

After a night that pretty much consisted of the wrong kind of hydration (i.e.-beer and not water), JJ, Alina and I laced up our shoes and headed out for the 3 mile run. It was a beautiful day in Cincinnati and this race started over in Northern KY, travelled down along the river for a short bit, then hit 2 of the different bridges that cross back and forth between Ohio and KY. Here's a picture of me and Alina on the "purple people" pedestrian before the run started.

The three of us started the run together and it was really great to see all the people participating. There were around 1,200 people taking part in the event. I was able to run for about 12 minutes straight and then finished out the course with a combination of running & walking. Catching my breath at times was challenging and is one areas I've found where I need to improve. I need to start listening to my body - taking deeper breaths more often, and responding when I feel I'm starting to go into panting mode. I know that I let my mind wonder and end up feeling down on myself when I can't keep up with other people's pace. What I'm really trying to work on is not letting that happen - it's my new goal to not let those negative thoughts creep in and take away from the positive things that are happening when I'm out there giving this running thing a try!

Here's how I finished: #439 out of 527 female runners, my total time was 44:10, which breaks down to 14:15 per mile. All in all, it was a wonderful day spent with a dear friend and my husband. Alina encourage me the whole way throughout the run, pushing me when I could run it out a bit and recognizing when I need a walk break. As we finished jogging across the purple people bridge together towards the finish line, I heard JJ cheer out "Way to go Lenna" and that just simply made me smile with joy!

And what's the best way to celebrate completing a 5k run? Breakfast, of course! Pancakes with chocolate chips, scrambled eggs, potatoes, ham and mushrooms, engligh muffins, juice, fruit, & coffee - you name it, we had just about all of it from First Watch.