Three Miles, a Sick Computer and a 5k

A few weeks ago my personal computer got infected with a virus. One day I was reading my email and just surfing the net when suddenly I got a pop up Windows Security Alert from a yellow shield that mysteriously appeared in the system tray. It said my computer was infected. Then a bunch of alerts keep popping up giving different warning signs.

Anyway, it took a long time and help from volunteer professionals at bleepingcomputer.com to clean up my computer. I found out it was a rogue security program that got downloaded to my computer somehow.

During this time I used my work laptop to read some of my favorite blogs and even commented on a few. But I really don't like to use it for my personal stuff much so I didn't post anything on my blog. Now that my computer is feeling much better I can try to catch up on the last few weeks.

For week nine of my training the intervals were 9/1, which I managed to do, at least for some of the intervals. That week another runner in the group brought her four month old baby in his stroller. She was struggling to push the stroller up a hill while holding him (because he was fussing) so I stopped to help. She asked if I would push the stroller as I ran. I now have complete admiration for women that run while pushing a stroller! That thing wasn't easy to push empty. It has to be a challenge to push with a baby or larger child in it.

Week 10 is when we began running for 30 minutes without walking. I have to admit I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do it. During the group run, my lungs and legs actually felt pretty good. I noticed that I was running a bit faster than I usually do. Quite a few of the other runners noticed and commented on how much I had improved. But for some reason, when I reached 15 minutes I decided I should stop and walk! I don't know why. I actually felt as though I could have kept going but just stopped.

Another beginning runner (F) was running with me and I noticed she seemed to be struggling and had stopped when I did. She was keeping track of our distance with her Nike Plus and said we had run 3/4 of a mile. We walked for about five minutes then ran another 3/4 mile. By then my legs were feeling pretty tired and I found myself struggling and couldn't keep going. I was a bit upset with myself for stopping when I was feeling good.

I ran once more between weeks 10 and 11 at the lake. I had such a difficult time with my lungs but managed to run for over 16 minutes before walking. After getting home I realized I had forgotten to use my inhaler before going running. No wonder I felt like I couldn't catch my breath!

Week 11, which was last Wednesday, we were scheduled for another 30 minutes non-stop. Since it was the first Wednesday of September, it was potluck night. We gathered at a member's house, got all the great food together, and then took off for our run. I ran with the F from week 10.

This time we were both feeling good. My lungs had never felt better (I remembered to use my inhaler about 40 minutes before the run) and my legs didn't feel tired at all. When I announced that we had less than a minute left before the five minute cool down walk, she said that we had run for 2 1/4 miles and asked if I felt good enough to go an additional 3/4 mile for a total of 3 miles! I just wish we would have thought to run the additional .1 to make it a 5k.

Let me tell you - that last 1/4 mile, we were huffing and puffing but didn't stop. We ran 3 miles without stopping! When we did stop my legs felt like jello. I had a bit of a wobble in my walk for a while as we walked back to the house, but man did I feel great!

I can't believe I ran 3 miles! Compared to most of you, 3 miles isn't much. But I also know that all of you had to start at the beginning. I'm sure you all felt just as elated the first time you ran a significant milestone without stopping. And I'm sure you're all celebrating the success of my milestone with me.

Yesterday I ran at the lake hoping I could run the 3 miles again, but wasn't able to. My right thigh started hurting. The pain ran down my thigh to the outside of the knee. Since tomorrow I run my first 5k, I made sure to take it easy and took a few ibuprofen. Now I'm a little afraid it might start hurting during the run.

Today (my 55th birthday) I picked up my race packet. I'm excited and a bit scared (don't know why) at the same time. No matter what happens or what my time is, even if I come in dead last, I'll be successful just for the fact that I did it!