Pushing the Pace

Whew! I survived the weekend with minimal stress, lots of work and a few humid runs. 

Saturday after work, I called the manfriend (who had just finished a 60+ mile bike race) to ask if he wanted anything specific for dinner. He had already eaten mac 'n cheese, but requested ice cream and beer from the store. Gotta love an appetite like that. 

I came home and threw together a quick dinner as it was past 8pm and I was staaarving! 

Corn tortillas with leftover brown rice, black beans, spinach, mushroom, mozzarella, avocado and salsa


This morning I was up and at 'em to head to my first 8K! I thought I'd show you my socks because they're from the last time the Olympic Trials came to Eugene and I love them. 

Can you see the Olympic rings below "EUGENE?" I'm already excited for the Nike tent this year. My wallet is not. 

Is anyone else as obsessed with their workout clothes as I am?

Anyway, the Prost8K raises funds for a free mens prostate screening clinic each year. I got to the race about 7:30, grabbed my packet and did an easy mile warm up. 

Because it was a smaller, local race, I made my way to the front before the gun went off. 



As planned, I started off at tempo pace and held a 7:46 for quite a while. After a mile or so we went up and over a pedestrian bridge across the freeway and into neighborhoods. 


From miles 1-4, I slowly pushed the pace as the legs got warm and was cruising at a 7:30 by mile 4, when it was time to kick it up another notch. 

I may have left a bit too much in the legs - found myself sprinting hard the last 100m. Guess I could have pushed a bit harder that last mile. 


Anyway, with an official time of 37:40, it was enough to take 1st in my age group (out of 6) and 2nd female overall (out of 67). 


 Medal winner!

It's been a while since I've done a fast, local race so it was a nice change, but I realize I get more satisfaction from those longer sustained efforts (half and full marathons) than the short, fast stuff. Plus, I don't really push my pace regularly and running fast HURTS.

I've felt like my pace has slowed quite a bit in the last month, but it could be simply because I'm not pushing myself. It was nice to be reminded that my legs have a little speed somewhere inside. Maybe someday I'll actually train specifically for one of these short, fast races...

What was your best moment of the weekend? 

Comments

Tasha Malcolm said…
Congrats speedster!!!! I think that I am almost too obsessed with my workout clothes. It is bad when you have more workout clothes than normal clothes.... :-)
Unknown said…
Way to go! Running a short race is always a good refresher and mental booster for the longer stuff! Especially when you feel like you didn't totally deplete yourself like in a marathon! I finished a marathon on my birthday yesterday - that was a pretty good moment! Congrats on 2nd woman overall.. that rocks!
Leigh said…
Congratulations Lauren! That is an awesome time. Best moment of the weekend? Working on a DIY project and enjoying the sunshine!
Unknown said…
Wow Lauren, good job! And I can relate to Pete's beer and ice cream craving. Those tacos look good, too.
WOW! I am totally impressed! I just did my first 5K Warrior Dash this weekend...my best moment was passing the finish line with my family :)
Nice work! Winning your age group and placing 2nd overall for women is fantastic! Way to go!

It's tough to pick a favorite part of the weekend... Maybe playing cribbage with my dad or making my nephew Charlie giggle!
J said…
Congrats! Awesome job on the race. I love how everyone likes different race distances, it keeps things fun and interesting. I like the shorter races but they do hurt. And dinner looks good - might have to make that tomorrow!
Jess said…
Those tacos look so good. I love black beans. And I'm definitely obsessed with workout clothes too.
Raquelita said…
Congrats on the AG 1st! The short, fast distances really challenge me, as I'm not at all a speedster.

My favorite part of the weekend was probably having dinner over at the home of one of my new colleagues. My spouse and I were able to relax because our househunting trip had been successful.
Jen Feeny said…
Well done out there girl! Running fast is hard, I am so with you on that! I much prefer my concentrated endurance events thankyouverymuch. (But I'll always accept a PR!) :)

I'm loving those socks!!!
Lisa Eirene said…
Those tacos look delicious!

Congrats on the run. I like the sound of those smaller events. I need to try one!

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