First race: finished!

Despite predictions of rain, this morning ended up being just the right mix of overcast and breezy. Which is good, because I was worried my mid-length capris wouldn't cut it, and my three frantic trips last night to various stores to try and find running pants proved utterly fruitless.

I learned a few things today. Some of them, I already knew, but one of them was a complete surprise.

I was dead lame this morning. As in, I got out of my car at the race site (about an hour and a half from home) and had a prominent, painful limp. I've had a suspicion recently that I may have plantar fasciitis in my left foot, it's been aching in just the wrong way for a couple weeks, and this morning sealed the deal. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to run, but in the time it took me to register and bring my things back to my car, the pain had subsided.

So I ran.

The route for this particular 5K was twice around beautiful Lake Como in St. Paul. I found myself enjoying the first lap around the lake, running in the company of other people, surrounded by the loveliest blooming trees I've seen this year. The slightly uneven terrain made the fronts of my feet a little crampy, but that's what you get for training on treadmills. Muscles don't have a chance to acclimate to real-world conditions.

I crossed the finish line the first time in a little over 18 minutes. Firmly on-course to meet my goal of 40:00 for the whole thing.

The second lap, however, was another story. The sun came out, filtering through the clouds, which was wonderful and all, but made things just warm enough that I started becoming uncomfortable in all my layers. Despite the sun, the air was still cold, and my chest and throat were starting to ache. A headwind picked up as I ran down the long side of the lake.

Then, slowly, a cramp started between my shoulder blades. I realized I'd unconsciously been hiking my shoulders halfway up to my ears, but too late. My comfortable intervals became twice as much walking as running.

As I crossed the 3-mile marker, I picked up my run again. I was going to run this thing home, damn it. Then I heard someone shouting my name.

It was a woman I met just before the race. She had seen me, standing alone, and came over to give me some tips. "After the race," she said, "come find me."

There she was, waiting for me before the finish line, cheering me on, waving me home.

There are precious few times in life - too few - when we can look around ourselves and know we're not alone in what we're doing. This moment, with this stranger, is something I'll always remember.

I briefly registered my time as I came in: 40 minutes and change. The details flew out of my brain when I saw my next surprise, one of my sisters waiting at the finish. As I gave her a hug, another sister jogged up. They live near the lake, though in opposite directions, and when I mentioned the race on my Facebook, they made impromptu plans to come see me.

I love my family. So much.

Here I am, back at home, icing my foot and waiting patiently for the results (and photos!) to hit the website. I'm anxious to see what my actual finishing time was, so I can log it on RunKeeper.

Today was a fantastic experience, and I think it was the perfect 5K for my race debut. The bib numbers we were assigned designated weight loss, with the greatest amount of weight lost having the smallest bib number. This was voluntary, of course, but it was so heartening to be running with people who've been here, where I am now. This journey continues to be a huge challenge for me, and these shared experiences remind me it's possible.

And now, I'll be off of running a while. I've caught this foot condition early enough that it doesn't seem severe, so I'll follow a little common sense and interwebby doctor advice, until I see a doctor of my own. Plantar fasciitis is a sprain of a ligament in the bottom of the foot, and I'll treat it like I would any other sprain. Ice, rest, compression, anti-inflammatories. I may break out the crutches this week if the compression doesn't do enough good.

Good thing I have lots of weights to lift while I wait for this to heal. Come on foot, get better! I need to run!

Update: The times are posted! The time rolled over as I approached the line, and I finished in 41:06.4. I now have a road-race time to beat!