Mother’s Day Race Report

After Saturday morning’s successful 9-mile run and then a very busy Saturday afternoon, when I went to bed Saturday night, I was really debating the wisdom of running 9 miles the day before a 5k. 😉

However, despite that, I still managed to get up before my alarm went off Sunday morning.  I was actually pretty excited about the race.  Not only did it mark my one-year anniversary of running races (the first race I ever ran was this one in 2012), it also gave me a chance to run a special race with my son.  Back in the summer, when he first started running, he told me he wanted to run the Mother’s Day 5k with me the following spring.  I was impressed that he had such a long-term goal, and I’m so happy I was able to help him fulfill it!

When we woke up, it was fuh-reezing outside!  And windy, too!  Like, 37° and winds sustained at 20 mph—gusting higher!  That’s pretty rough for the middle of May here in Southeast Michigan!  The race didn’t start until 9am, but it hadn’t improved much by the time we got there.  We were among the first to arrive, and we just hung out for a while and I took a couple of pictures of the kids.

My kids are so typical…in this shot, DS#1 is in the process of knocking DS#2’s hat off. He did it THREE times before I threatened him with great bodily harm!

We were able to get a family photo in our bright green shirts, lol! 

After that, I was able to get a shot with my friend Renee. Renee is my running inspiration and mentor—not to mention she is a great coach and friend. Her whole family—including her husband and three boys—ran in the race.  Her youngest (same age as my youngest) came in first place in the kids mile!  Her other two boys came in 2^nd and third overall for the under 14 age group.  Her husband was second in his age group and fourth overall in the whole race, and as for Renee—well, she finished as the top female!  And you wonder how I became a runner, with friends like that? 😉 

Meanwhile, toward the back of the pack, were DS#1 and I. 😛  He actually started out quite fast, as he usually does.  So fast, in fact, that my knee really hurt when we started.  I even told him to go ahead of me for a while.  It was so cold, and the wind was coming off the lake, and I just felt like I wanted to be anywhere but there!  But as we kept going, my knee began to hurt a little less, and he began to tire and thus slowed down.

Eventually, we found a common pace and just went with the flow for about 3 miles.  His second mile was really slow, and I think the combination of cold and wind was really getting to him, coupled with the fact that he’d been at science camp this week and had walked about 5 miles on Friday before coming home. He sped up a little at the third mile, though it wasn’t as fast as I know he’s capable of.

On that third mile, we were surprised to run into a teacher from his school!  She was going along at a moderate pace and eventually passed us.  I was half-tempted to tap into DS#1’s competitive side by egging him on with, “Are you going to let yourself get beat by your second grade teacher?” 😉 But I knew he was doing the best he could, so I figured I’d leave him alone. 🙂

As we neared the end, he pushed himself a little bit, and I slowed down to get this picture:

Even though he wasn’t super-fast, I was still proud of him for running the whole race in the cold wind, and especially after a long week at science camp.  He ended up finishing 9^th out of  20 boys under 14, and he was quite happy with that!  He kept telling me, “Mom, I finished in the top ten!”  😀

 Afterwards, the kids enjoyed the pancake and sausage breakfast (I let DS#2 eat my share—I didn’t need breakfast because I knew I had a big food day ahead of me), then we did some post-race pictures. I was also excited to run into two hockey mom friends from our old hockey association.  Debbie is a hockey mom I’ve been friends with for several years; she actually taught me a lot about managing a hockey team!  Yesterday’s race was her second where she ran the entire thing—she did great!!  She actually finished just behind DS#1 and I, and I was so happy I was able to hurry back and cheer on her as she rounded the last turn.  I’ve been following her running progress for a while now, and it was so great to be there with her for a race!  Her friend Vonna (a hockey mom I got to know through Debbie) had a big accomplishment as well—yesterday’s race was the first one where she ran the whole way.  Such a great feat!!

 Here’s a picture of all three of us post-race. I think we hockey mom runners are pretty awesome! 😉

Despite the wind and cold, it was a great race, and I’m so glad we did it.  I’m hopeful that I’ll get DS#2 to at try the mile next year.  Knowing that his friend not only ran it but finished first this year, I wouldn’t be surprised if he decided to give it a try next year. 😉

Once I got home, I spent the entire day cooking, baking, and cleaning to host my in-laws for both Mother’s Day and my husband’s birthday (later this week).  I made the entire meal myself, and I tell you what, it was damn good. 🙂  I’ll save the menu for another post, because I’m that proud of it that I want to really showcase what I did.  But suffice it to say, I ate a lot yesterday. 😛 I tracked it all, and I had earned enough activity points over the weekend to not only cover it but still have a few left over, but despite all that, the scale was not my friend this morning.

For those keeping track at home, I am now five pounds above my goal weight.  Argh!!  This is really starting to frustrate me.  🙁  At the same time, though, I’m damn sick and tired of being in “weight loss” mode.  So, I’ve decided to go back to my normal daily point total (30) instead of the “losing weight” total I’ve been doing the last three weeks (28).  Lowering my points hasn’t done me any good, so I figure I’ll shake it up and see if eating more and returning to vigorous exercise helps.  After all, you know what they say about the definition of insanity…!

I did take today off running, though.  After running 12 miles in two days and hosting a get-together…I was ready for a break! 😉  I managed to still get in my strength training though…in the cold barn!! Brrrr…we need summer to come to Michigan, ASAP!

I’ve got a ton going on, so I may not be around much for a bit.  I always seem to have projects to finish–ha ha, but I wouldn’t take them on if I didn’t enjoy them. 🙂  I’ll be back as soon as I can.  Thanks so much for reading…I really appreciate the support!