Accomplishment feels good

So all the anxiety from last week that was building from that silly little run was...well...silly. I accomplished something on Saturday that I have never done before in my life. I know it probably seems silly (and possibly crazy) to some people but I was THRILLED when my friendly ipod told me that I had completed 5.01 miles in 53 minutes!

Our good friend Erin came in to town on Friday for the 4th of July holiday and I knew it was going to be a great weekend. But I also knew that I needed to get this 5 mile run done and out of the way on Saturday. Friday night we grilled out and the boys had a few ice cold beverages, while I longingly stared at the ice cold beers on the deck. I indulged in one but definitely knew I wouldn't be able to run the next morning if I had a few more.

Saturday morning rolled around and I knew I needed to get up at a decent time to beat the heat. Instead of setting my alarm Friday night I decided to let myself wake up and if it was too hot oh well, I probably wouldn't run. Somehow I had some motivation coming from somewhere though and woke up, jumped out of bed, and put on the running shoes. I always do a short warm up walk before the run and the entire time I kept telling my running partner (Oliver) to please be good, not run me in to a tree, and help me get through this run.

I set out telling myself that I didn't care how quickly I ran the 5 miles, I just wanted to make it through. It was a beautiful morning for a run and I quickly got lost in the scenery (Oliver and I ran right past a deer) and the awesome play list that my cousin Mark made for me. At about the 4 mile point I started to get tired and wanted to stop. I tried to keep pushing through thinking that if I stopped I probably wouldn't get going on but finally at about 4.4 miles I had to stop. I stretched out quick, took a swig of water, and set back out. The last .6 miles was the fastest that I ran the entire time so maybe that little break was worth it.

At the end of the run Oliver and I found some sprinklers to run through and celebrate in. I still can't believe I did it! The rest of the weekend was action packed but laid back at the same time. After finishing up my run we watched the Germany vs. Argentina soccer game cheering on the Deutschland and then headed to the beaches of South Haven.

Sunday was a little BBQ at the house with my parents and siblings and alas Monday did come and here I am at work!

So after 5 miles why am I so nervous about the measly old 4 miles I have to run tomorrow? Oh wait, I'm not!!

This weeks runs:

Tuesday- 4 miles
Thursday- 4 miles
Saturday- 5 miles

8 miles down....

5 more to go for the week! Woke up this morning and had a gorgeous run! 3 miles in and it felt great. There were definitely some highs and lows to it this morning though but overall it felt nice. The puppy even cooperated and had a nice little jog. He does a good job of distracting me on most runs, as long as he doesn't distract me right into a tree!

Saturday is going to be a big hurdle more me. My 10k training has me scheduled for 5 miles. I know I can do it, I just have to not psych myself out. I need to keep telling myself that I don't need to run it fast, I just need to run it. I'm not sure why I am so intimidated by upping the mileage so hopefully all goes well. We are spending the day at the beach on Saturday so maybe by running 5 miles before the beach I will feel a little bit better in a bathing suit!

Any motivational speeches would be greatly appreciated :)