I Did It

Here I am, off to my first Fun Run, and .... I did it!
Unfortunately it was hard, very hard but I did the 4 kms in 25:50 - with no stops. This equates to 9 point something kms/hr, so overall I am very happy. My goal was just to run the entire distance, no matter how slowly which I achieved, but the speed is a bit of a bonus as I normally run at 8.5 kms/hr.

Treadmill to Road Run?
Having only run on the treadmill before, this was my biggest concern. So was it worse/harder??? Actually surprisingly I didn't think it was any harder, as long as I kept concentrating on slowing down. In fact in someways it was easier. The running outside was more distracting (a good thing, I need to be distracted from the pain of the effort!) because there was constantly a change in scenary, and I had to watch my footing as I ran down a walking trail that was a winding dirt track with a few dips and rises. This was good because it helped to stretch the legs and reduce the monotony. I also wore a headband because I was worried about the sweat running into my eyes as it does in the gym. But of course I have a towel handy there.... It was no problem at all. Either the sweat band did the job, or actually moving rather than being stationary on a treadmill created some air flow.

The Mental Race
I decided after this that running really does require mental fitness and strength. I spent most of the time fighting with myself, particularly the last km, refusing to let myself stop and walk. Kept saying things like "just one foot in front of the other" "don't you dare give in" "picture your goals - what you'll look like when you are thin, how good you'll feel when you run the last leg of the City-Bay", and I really think that if I wasn't such a fiercely stubborn, and doggedly determined person, I would never have run the whole race. Mmmm perhaps my vices have some usefulness after all!

My Picture
I have to say that I don't think my photos do justice to my new leaner body. I asked my hubby re this, as I tend to see a thinner person than what appears in the piccy's. He gave it some thought, looked at my image in the mirror, (that I see), looked at the photos, and agreed. He seems to think that the whole 2D image doesn't present a true picture. Do other's find that? (or maybe he's just being nice!)

Weigh In Tomorrow
Well I would like to hit 64.9 tomorrow, but I think the chances are slim as it would require a full 1.0kg loss for the week, and I have had fairly good losses the last few weeks, and at this stage of my journey, I really can no longer expect 1kg losses. However Saturdays weight was 65.0 and Sunday 65.3, so you never know - the weigh in could be good on Monday. Time will tell, and then I will let you know!

Cheers for now