My First 5K!

You may remember a while ago I mentioned that I'd started using the Zombies, Run! 5K training app to try to bring a little fitness into my otherwise very sedentary life. I really enjoy the Zombies, Run! story but unfortunately, after a really busy March full of conventions and associated prep, the weekly training kind of petered out. Once I'd lost the rhythm for it, I found it really hard to get back into - there was always an excuse, some dumb reason why I couldn't start training again. You know how it is... why do today what you can put off until tomorrow? Only, for this lazy broad, tomorrow never came.

But, I had my heart set on entering the Zombies, Run! Virtual Race, and even though my training had taken a complete nosedive after week four, I still had the virtual run in the back of my mind. So I signed up and paid, which forced my hand in actually taking part and completing the run - otherwise, it would be a complete waste of money, right? And I'd own a medal for no good reason, because what on Earth is the point in lying to yourself?

Well, I'm so proud to say I achieved it! I actually ran the race twice, but I had my step counter and pacing off the first time, so the app finished before I'd actually completed the 5K according to the treadmill. On my second attempt, I used the treadmill's settings to run a session that was exactly 5K long. I'm not going to lie, it was a real slog. My time ended up being 50:14, which I know is incredibly slow for a measly 3.1 miles. But y'know what? I'm still really proud of myself! I didn't stop, even though I experienced a stitch for the first time since P.E lessons at school!, and even though my calves were really unhappy about the whole affair. I came off the treadmill sweaty and out of breath and feeling so accomplished! In all the training  I'd done, I never felt so absolutely exhausted, but I did it! And now I have a bar set for improvement!

Now that I can say I've actually completed a 5K, I'm going to ditch the training app and dive straight into the regular Zombies, Run! story, which I am so excited about listening to. I'm going to work on improving my time, with a final goal of being able to achieve 5K in 30 minutes! Wish me luck!