1 of 14

Today marked my first race of the new year and I have to say, I picked an excellent race to start off my year of 14 races!! My running partner K.J actually told me about this race and I am sooo glad that she did. It is part of the Louisiana Marathon series but it was a 5K that was mainly sponsored by The Advocate, the local newspaper in Baton Rouge. Before I tell you about how great the race was let me back track to the day before when we (K.J and I) went to pick up our racing packets!

The Drive

Normally I wouldn't blog about the drive to or from a race but this drive was exceptionally painful mainly because I have road rage and traffic was horrible. Our 45 minute drive to B.R turned into a two hour drive because a lovely semi truck somehow managed to veer off the interstate and crash into a tree. Now normally this would cause a slight back up but this particular semi was apparently carrying paint of some sort which resulted in the haz mat team being called in. When we finally passed the sight of the crash there were at least 4 cop cars, and 5 other vehicles which we assumed were the haz mat vehicles but who knows. (I am not sure of the condition of the driver of the semi but I truly hope he is ok because the truck looked awful) Luckily I have Netflix on my phone and I was able to introduce K.J to the oh so cheesy Disney Channel original movie, Teen Beach Movie. She watched about 30-40 minutes of it before we were able to inch our way out of traffic and to the expo. It made for an interesting drive there for sure. K.J. and I always have some fun adventures when it comes to Expo trips.

The Expo

I am not sure how many of you are familiar with racing Expos so let me give you the skinny on them. Running Expos are generally where you pick up your race packet with your bib, shirt, and any extras they might throw in your bag. In addition they usually have tons of booths that represent the many different races going on in and around the area (probably my favorite part of the expo) and they have booths where people are trying to sell you running merchandise from headbands to shoes and everything in between.  I hate to say it but K.J and I have yet to attend an expo where we didn't find something we loved and bought. For example, this trip I bought two headbands, one for the summer races/looks and one for the winter races (like today's). We also each bought a car decal for our cars. Luckily, K.J. and I are bargain shoppers and we didn't spend over $13 combined! It was pretty great! This particular expo got us both pretty fired up about some upcoming races that we plan to do together. Before the expo we had I believe 6 races on our list so far and now we have 9 or 10. (She has done and is doing more races than I have committed to thus far.) One particular race we really want to do is a 1/2 marathon relay race in MS. We are both pretty stoked about this one and we really hope we can pull it off.  I'll keep ya'll updated.  I wasn't incredibly excited for my race the next day but after going to the expo and being around all the other runners, not to mention how excited K.J. was for me to be running again, my excitement level increased drastically as we drove home to prepare for our upcoming race! Long story short, if you ever get the chance to go to a running Expo before a race, I highly recommend it :)  

The Preparation

K.J and I made a pact to get everything ready the night before so that we would be ready to go as soon as we all woke up. I met them at their place at 6am! I took a picture of the main essentials I knew I would need for this race. 

Advocate 5k

I actually wore a red long sleeve shirt over my race shirt because it was 38 degrees when the race began at 8am! The polka dot fabric you see is the fancy new headband I bought at the expo, I used it to cover my bright yellow headband used for the warmth factor, also bought at the expo. I needed extra protection. I am a baby when it comes to the cold weather! It's hard to tell but those are power energy gummies! A MUST have for any race I do. I usually take 2 for a 5K. They give me extra energy when my body thinks it can't possibly run any further :) I also NEVER run a race without my arm band, iPhone (not pictured) and my head phones. I was fortunate enough to be able to run with a  new arm band that fit my iPhone better than my previous one! Not to mention it matches my headphones and we all know I love to match!! I also decided to wear my sparkly leggings under my sofie shorts because like I mentioned before it was freaking cold! Last but not least no race is complete without my bib!! (I save all of these bibs on my cool display that my cousin B made for me!) After my preparation I went to sleep like an old lady at 8:30pm. It was the best night sleep I have had in a very long time though :) 

The Race

The Advocate 5k was incredible!!! We (K.J, Joshy and I) all got up and began our drive at 6:15am! We left a little early in case there was ANOTHER back up due to the same accident the day before. Luckily for us the haz mat team wasn't out that early but there was definitely a back up for everyone going towards BR later that morning. Anywho I digress... We arrived at the race 55 mins early but we found free parking!! You know it's the little things that count. K.J.'s husband was our lovely driver so that we could rest before and after the race. When we got to where the actual race was I began getting a little nervous because it was cold, I was worried my legs would lock up, I really want to do the race in under 40 mins etc. The thoughts just starting racing through my mind. Luckily K.J. is an excellent friend, running partner, and motivator. She just kept saying how excited she was for me to be racing with her again and how great I was going to do etc. We also met up with another fellow runner that was running her first race back after having a baby in November. It was nice to have somebody in the same boat as far as not being able to run a lot prior to the race. We gathered in the choral to begin the race. The race began and I just started running. I was doing really well too. The music was good and the air was energized! I actually kept a steady pace throughout the entire race. We even had to go up a hill (overpass) and back down and back up and back down. I took the hill slowly, walked briskly once at the top and then allowed myself to run/coast down the hill each time. I picked up my pace the last 1/2 mile once I could see the finish line. I wanted to throw up once I started running faster but I managed not to :)  It felt so freaking great to cross the finish line!! I did it in under 40 mins too. My official time according to my print out was 34:25! I was so stoked that I did it under 40 mins. Everyone also received a finisher medal after crossing the finish line! It's not about the medals but it is a nice motivator :)  This race is exactly what I needed to keep my spirits high as I continue to work my way back into running!   I highly highly recommend this race for any beginner or seasoned runner!

My Splits

A little collage from the race today! 

Post Race

On the drive home there was another back up due to an accident but luckily Josh got off and was able to avoid the very long wait. The interstate was literally at a stand still. No cars were moving :/ Semi-trucks really like to wreck on I-12! While driving home I was able to reflect on my year thus far and my recent race. While my year believe it or not has not gone like I thought it would, it still has been a great start to 2014!! I felt so great about this race. I wasn't incredibly exhausted afterwards or discouraged. I actually rode the stationary bike for about 5 miles once I got home to work my hip flexors a little so they wouldn't hurt tomorrow. In addition to that I made sure to do a good amount of stretching to avoid the pain the following day. Not to mention my adorable 2 year old niece thought my medal was so cool. She had me run down the hallway towards her so that she could place the medal around my neck and said, "Congratulations Nanny! You won!" (We did this several times.)  haha I love that little girl so much! 

Life is good folks! Count your blessings no matter how big or small! And just keep running!!!