I went on my first organized run on January 1st – the Running Room’s annual Resolution Run. It was a 5 km easy run around Stanley Park. The rain wasn’t the most wonderful way to enjoy the first day of the new year, but the run went well and I learned quite a bit about myself and other runners. Things like:
- Running alone in a big group kind of sucks.
- Being rather competitive, it really spurred me on when a woman passed me and was talking about her current pregnancy; that really stuck in my not-pregnant craw let me tell you. In fact, I now know I push myself quite a bit faster when running in a group; something about not wanting so many people passing me dammit! Now, I have to figure out how to push myself more when I'm running alone.
- The definition of the word “hill” is different for everyone – the two women behind me were worried about The Big Hill and I was wondering where this mystery hill could possibly be. Turns out, I was on it. It was a gradual rise and a slow descent; a bump really. My trainer would have scowled at me if I had dared to call that a hill!
- Few people stretch after a run. Having learned my lesson after my first 10 km run about the necessity of stretching (my back went kaplooey the next day after not stretching), I always stretch. Some days, I enjoy the feeling of stretching after my run more than the run itself usually.
So these are a few of the things I learned about myself and others as I ran January 1st. I think that group runs may very well be seeing more of me in the future.
# posted by Michelle @ 6:49 PM
I went on my first organized run on January 1st – the Running Room’s annual Resolution Run. It was a 5 km easy run around Stanley Park. The rain wasn’t the most wonderful way to enjoy the first day of the new year, but the run went well and I learned quite a bit about myself and other runners. Things like: