Hot Chocolate 15k

I just finished my first 15k run yesterday, the Hot Chocolate 15k, which officially marks the furthest I have ever run.  For those of you not familiar with running (or the metric system), that is 9.3 miles of grueling pounding on the concreted streets of downtown Dallas, TX.  There was a point in the race when I hit “the wall,” and I didn’t think I was going to make it.  In training, I had not been able to run more than 6.25 miles, and on that day I got a nosebleed and lost feeling in one of my feet.  So, I was pretty sure I was going to have to take a break for this race. 

But what was unexpected is that I hit “the wall” when we passed the Mile 1 marker.  I knew instantly that that could not be a good sign.  But I just kept putting one foot in front of the other, watching as the pacer’s sign moved further and further ahead of me.  As long as I could still see it, I had hope, no matter how far it seemed in front of me.  I didn’t look around.  I didn’t notice my surroundings.  I just tried to focus on the music coming through my headphones, and not on the burning in my legs and my lungs.

The music helped to distract me, but I think I might have brought along the wrong playlist.  Since I was trying to concentrate on the music, I was more focused on the actual words in the lyrics than ever before.  Song after song seemed to be reminding me that there was no way I was going to finish this race.

The Man Who Can’t be Moved by The Script

“There are no holes in his shoes but a big hole in his world / Maybe I’ll get famous as the man who can’t be moved / Maybe you won’t mean to but you’ll see me on the new / And you’ll come running to the corner / ‘Cause you’ll know it’s just for you / I’m the man who can’t be moved”

Hope and Prayer by Savannah Outen

“I die just a little / Each day I see the pain that they must live / I cry just a little / And I wonder if there’s more that I can give”

God of Our Salvation by Phil Wickham

“Come you tired and weary / Come just as you are / Come and let His mercy heal your heart”

Just Like a Pill by Pink

“Run just as fast as I can / To the middle of nowhere / To the middle of my frustrated fears”

The Distance by Hot Chelle Rae

“And just so you know / The distance is what’s killing me / Time and space have become the enemy / And what I need is so far away / And so it goes / The distance makes it hard to breathe / My heart won’t let go easily / I don’t want to be this far away”

But I did finish and with a pace of 10 minutes and 39 seconds per mile, which was well ahead of the 11 minute pace the pacer was supposed to be setting.  In fact, at around Mile 8, I actually passed the pacer, and I crossed the finish line before her.  I went from barely able to see the pacer’s sign to leaving her in the dust! 

It was by far one of the most intensive physical activities I have ever done.  Not because the activity was hard, but because it spanned such a long time of continuous effort.  Which I found gives you a lot of time to think about what you’re doing, how your body feels, and whether you’re going to make it.  It’s too much time for evaluation and doubt.  I may never do it again, but I’m extremely proud of myself for making it the entire way.  However, I have a feeling that once the euphoric high wears off, that I probably won’t be able to walk for the next week.