a new chapter

I've been thinking about trying to run more seriously again for awhile now. My new year's resolution, if you can call it that, was to find a way into the NYC marathon again. I didn't try for 2007, didn't get into 2008, and am not in shape enough to run in 2009. But I did join NYRR in January after resisting for ages, partially because of the way I felt they mistreated Coach Adam back in 2006. But resistance is futile--they're the only game in town if you want guaranteed entry, so I gave in. A few weeks ago, I ran my first NYRR race, the gridiron classic. Superbowl Sunday morning in Central Park, 4 miles in the freezing cold. I couldn't feel my toes for the first mile and a half, but it was great. I was proud and happy to finish and I had my cheering section of one meet me at the finish line.

Fast forward to this morning. The Al Gordon Snowflake 5k in Prospect Park. I don't usually do 5ks because I prefer distance. (It's not as embarrassing to run slowly during longer races, but during a 5k, everyone goes quite fast). I was really excited, though, because it was so close to my house. But something just didn't feel right. I was tired, it was FREEZING, and each mile felt longer than the last. (Seriously, it might have been the longest 5k I've ever done). I couldn't feel my toes for most of the race, which made it quite a challenge. (I don't think I realized how important toes really are!) Maybe it was that I went in thinking it would be no big deal, over in half an hour etc that got me in trouble. I guess the lesson here is that I need to take each race as seriously as the last. The whole time I was running, I kept reminding myself that I just need to do this, to get back out there, to put one foot in front of the other, if I really want to run another marathon. What's a marathon but a whole bunch of short races strung together, right?

Now that I'm home in my warm apartment, I'm happy I did it. Of course, I'm going to have good days and bad days, but each race will bring me closer to fall 2010. Here's to proving 2006 wasn't a fluke!