out to pasture

i've wondered before if the disney half marathon of '09 was the peak of my running "career". i ran the green valley 10-mile race this past saturday at furman university, home of the "first" training plan some of you follow. i was hoping for a solid threshold run and at 'worst' a gmp (goal marathon pace) run. either way, it was my first time racing the distance so a pr was in the bag. i definitely thought i could at least hold previously-proven hmp (half marathon pace) since 10 is less than 13.1, but in reality i ended up too slow for threshold, too fast for gmp, and slower than hmp. what the crap. as with thursday's mile repeats, i'm fairly satisfied knowing i was pushing myself and running hard. it was a hilly course, and even more so when i remind myself i've been stuck on the treadmill/not-as-hilly outdoor runs for the past few months. (maybe it was also the mcdonald's pre-race breakfast?) it did leave me a little disheartened, but at least i'm not beating myself up about my race expectations vs. results like i used to.

saturday (2/20) am race: 10 miles, 1:13:20 (avg pace 7:20), 45*
11th place female, 1st place ag

on a brighter note i was able to go home to sunny, 63* south carolina for the weekend. i was spoiled by the weather and a showering of gifts. it was like my birthday, except not.

not long ago i won a giveaway from my dear friend b.o.b at discombobulated running - i think it's safe to say i am well stocked up on m&m's for march 1st. so close i can almost taste them! anyway i was the lucky recipient of her secret bump-free hair removal product as well as a turbo snake. b.o.b has some hair issues, but i love her all the same. josh wasted no time helping himself to the peanut m&m's, and the dum-dum's have been magical at keeping me awake during those dull afternoon hours at work. thanks girl, and good luck at the "gorilla" marathon! :)

new running shoes! (ok, these were a gift to myself)

some "fruit" from josh - a total surprise!

and some "vegetables" from josh - not so much a surprise :)

after saturday's race i came down with a cold, and didn't get to actually enjoy much of the beautiful weather. i was too busy being half-asleep on the couch, watching movies and stuffing a tissue box up my nose. i took sunday off (resulting in craptacular mileage for the week) and felt 100% again by monday. does anyone else get a cold after racing/running hard?