I’m so happy to be back writing a race recap! This was a particularly fun and meaningful one, and not just because it was my first race and by far my fastest run post-injury. J and my mom and dad and I all ran the Needham Great Bear 5k, which has raised over $100k for prostate cancer research. It’s organized by a friend of my dad’s from college. And, it was my dad’s first organized 5k since the 80s!!
This morning we all piled into the car for a quick and easy ride to the start. The race started and ended at a local middle school, and bib pickup and bathroom stops were a breeze. We took a half mile jog up and down the street, and then easily lined up in the corrals, which were informally marked out by pace. J and I started together between the 7 and 8 minute corrals, figuring we’d see how we were feeling (he ran 10 miles yesterday!)
Once the race started, the first mile was relatively quick, coming in at 6:58. I was feeling good despite the heavy, humid air, so I kept it up for a 7:01 in the second mile. I then turned a corner into a solid uphill climb for the third mile, and I held the effort steady and managed to pass a few folks at a 7:33 pace. Turning into the finishing chute I gave it my all but didn’t have too much in me, so I let the other woman nearby kick it ahead of my across the finish line. I was breathing hard and heavy by the end, but ran the .1 at a 5:44 pace. It felt so amazing to run hard again, and I’m so proud of my 22:20 on basically no speed training!
After I finished J and my dad finished pretty soon after. My dad ran just over 30 minutes, and placed a strong second in his age group! My mom power walked it in and then we stopped by the awards table–I was pretty shocked to have taken home 1st in my age group! Pre-injury I was hoping to crack top 3 women at the race, and I ended up 7th, which I’m more than happy with. After some post-race snacks (lots of fresh fruit and gf options!) and photo ops, of course, we were on our way.
This was such a fun and rewarding morning, and the details were seamless. The course was easy to follow and 3.1 miles on the nose, the volunteers were helpful and friendly, and the trophies were a super nice touch. Plus, there were tons of kids and parents running together, which is the cutest! Does anyone else love small local races??
See below for the recap of the rest of my week! I don’t have a ton to say other than I’m feeling much better and stronger, and trying to ramp up carefully with lots of cross training. Onwards and upwards!
Weekly totals: 15.2 miles
- Monday: PT (lots of hips)
- Tuesday: 3 minute run/1 minute walk intervals for 4.2 miles
- Wednesday:AM-3 minute run/1 minute walk intervals for 3.8 miles, PM-75 minute hot yoga class
- Thursday: 25 minutes on the elliptical + lifting, core, and PT exercises
- Friday: Trial 5k with no stops! 3.5 miles total
- Saturday: 75 minute hot yoga class
- Sunday: Great Bear 5k! 3.6 miles total
Linking up with The Weekly Wrap (hosted by Hoho Runs and Taking the Long Way Home).
Shorter and Faster 
Congrats on a fab race and for a wonderful cause as well!
Awesome job on the race for you and your family! How fun!
That’s a pretty stellar finish for no speed training! Great job! It’s great your family could all participate.
Great job at the 5k, so glad you’re feeling so much better post- physical therapy! A wonderful success story 🙂
Congrats on your race! Sounds like a great race! I love doing races when my family does them as well, so much more fun to celebrate with!
I just read your post about Boston. I’m so sorry the day didn’t play out as intended. But, it takes a lot of strength to stop and you should be proud of knowing when to listen to your body and make that call. Congrats on the speedy 5k and your age group win! Thanks for linking.