Not the first you might expect though, I'm talking about my first official entry in my running journal, not the first place you gain by winning a race but still a great achievement, especially for me. What this isn't though is my first run, over the last few weeks I've slowly tried to get back into running but this is the first time at recording it.
Anyway, enough rambling, onto my run! I decided to enter one of the Maverick running series events at the beginning of September, to try and give me something to aim for, always good to have a goal! So it was a good time to up my mileage slighty and attempt a 5k. I had an apple a couple of hours beforehand but by the time I started my run I was feeling slightly peckish but I felt fresh and ready to go. It was a pleasant evening, but warmer than I had anticipated and by the 2km mark I was already sweating. The early part of my run was on pavement as I headed towards the park but as always at the start of my runs my right calf felt a bit stiff. Not quite sure what that's about but it eases the more I run. I made it in to the park, at this time of the year it is quite beautiful and with the sun slowly beginning to dip in the sky, long shadows were starting to appear and I started to relax into my run a bit more, until I popped out from under the trees and instantly got blinded! That took a moment to get used to. The path at this point had turned to patches of hard packed earth and loose gravel and as I swept past a herd of deers grazing on the green grass I began to feel a hotspot on the ball of my right foot. Now this isn't something new, it happens but I'm going to have to look into it, maybe switching to a better pair of socks!? and taping it for my next run might help, it's just in a really awkward spot! The hardest part of my run came just at the 4km point, it was a fairly shallow but long climb up and out of the park, my right hip tightened up slightly and my mouth became a bit sticky as I exerted myself to reach the top. From there it was back on to the pavement and only a short bust to the end. By the time I had finished I was breathing quite deeply but I was feeling good about myself, pleased that I had completed the 5k. It wasn't the fastest time (obviously!), I did it in a 41:16, that was quicker than I expected. I do feel that I started off too quick though and struggled through the last 2km, something to work on! A short walk later and I was home finishing off a glass of water and an Eat Natural protein filled fruit and nut bar with salted caramel and peanuts to help with recovery. An early night followed and I awoke after a solid 7 1/2 hours sleep, my legs felt a little heavy but that's to be expected, right!? Other than that everything felt normal.
Well, there you have it. My first entry in the journal. It's longer than I expected, not sure whether that's a good thing or not, I guess as the weeks go by we'll find out.
On to the next one.