It was PR Week! First the 5K!

I have been following a faster 5k training plan for awhile now and while some of my training was derailed by surprise vacations (more on that later) I still seemed to PR in both my races this week!

First up: The National Police Week 5k in DC.

It has been while since I have ran a 5k for time, the last 5k I was planning on running for time my daughter signed up at the last minute and I was so happy that she wanted to run with me I didn't care if we ran, walked,  or crawled!

Let me back up a bit...my fasted 5k was 2 years ago in Kansas at the Garmin race and I clocked in at 31.14. I was actually just out there having a good time and I didn't even pay attention to time until I heard the announcer say we have (insert someone's name) at 29.30...WTH...so I ran my hardest and PR'ed that race.  I thought it was a fluke or the course was short, but I had never ran that fast and was super excited.

Now..2 years later....I finally beat that time! Whew!!! It took awhile! I picked the National Police Week 5k because a friend of mine from the gym has done it for a couple of years and recommended it.

The Good: Packet pickup was a breeze and it a neat location. I was also very please with the race shirt. It is dri-fit and cut for a woman. I have already worn it a couple of times! As for the race it's self I loved it. I enjoy the energy of the police officers coming together to support families of the fallen. The police officers ran in groups and sang cadences while they ran. The course was mostly flat and they had plenty of food and water after.

Perfect morning for Packet Pickup! 

2 Mile run, followed by Packet pick up, 

followed by Arsenal of Democracy Flyover

(WW11 Victory Capitol Flyover)

The only down side to this race was the heat and the humidity! Whew!!!! But there is nothing you can do about that except deal with it!!

My plan to PR this race was to run as fast as I could for as long as I could. Ha...my first mile was 8:54, never, ever have I ran a mile that fast!!! Mile 2 was 9:57 and Mile 3 was 10:13..over all my average pace was 9:37! I was so happy! So my Garmin time was 30:10 and official net time was 30:08. I was kicking myself a little because 9 seconds faster and I would have been under 30.

Unofficial Garmin time!! 

My family came out to support me while I ran and I was so happy to see them there towards the end it really did give me a bit of a boost! And they are so sweet they brought me a donut from my favorite donut place in Alexandria! Sugar Shack!! :) 

Mmmmmm!!!!

My friend Melissa was also able to run with me (ha...I mean ahead of me)!! This was her first official 5k and she rocked it! Clocking in somewhere around 27 minutes! She used to say I don't want to pay for a 5k but I have her convinced to sign up for another one in the fall! One I have been trying to do for about 2 years now! 

So fun to run with friends!

Do you see the blue dog? 

Blue Dog for Band of Blue!