Cold Turkey Run

I've finally joined the world my family has been modeling for years. The fitness nuts who think running is fun. I made an early foray into the sport; however, wrong shoes and pushing myself too fast in cross country my sophomore year in high school and I walked for a month with taped legs and pain from shin splints. I'm better prepared this time. I bought the right shoes ($$$$ ouch) and the right orthopedic inserts because my left and right arch need different support ($$$$$ ouch again). I borrowed some old running clothes from my mother after all the previous spending. When push came to shove, it was only a week before the run. Luckily, my father had registered me for the walk since there was limited time to prepare.

My husband registered for the run. He LIKES running. He likes pushing himself. He ran the St. George Marathon a couple of years ago. He didn't train for this 5k. He said he'd be my support team. My father registered for the run. He LOVES running. He loves is so much that he continues to do it even after a sudden cardiac death episode during his Top of Utah Half Marathon in August of 2009. He got a defibrillator out of the deal and wears a heart monitor and keeps on running. Two of my brothers registered for run. They are young, in shape and half marathon runners as well.

So, this Thanksgiving was extra cold. While driving to the run, the temperature signs were saying 9 to 12 degrees. And there was snow. LOTS OF SNOW. I'm thinking to myself, "Why did it want to do this?" My husband didn't have fancy winter running gear like myself (thanks to my mom again). My dad looked at him and thought two things--Staypuff Marshmallow Man and Randy from The Christmas Story movie. He had a lot of layers on. My husband was also fighting off the beginning of Influenza that had been running rampant through our two oldest kids. Even with all this, he was still excited to have me participating with him.

My father and brothers take off in the beginning. Yes, they were prepared to run it. My husband and I start at a nice jog. My lack of training and bitter deep cold air soon slowed us down. It hurt to breath. When the air is that cold and you try to take a deep breath, it burns. So, my husband cheerfully set goals: walk to that sign, jog to that light, stay ahead of this group of people. When we finally reached the finish line 39 minutes later, he pushes me up the incline to the finish line and makes sure I finish first.

My fastest brother did the run in 24:22.68. My father (26:01.56) and other brother (26:03.86) were a couple minutes behind. My brother ended up placing 3rd in his age division. Both of my brothers said they were in the top 3 runners for the beginning of the race until the bitter air just forced them to slow down. They were prepared to run but not for the cold. My brother thought he could do the 5K in 18 minutes but the air was killer to his time.

So, how did I rank? Yes, thanks to my hero of a husband (40:50.10 finishing 2nd to last in the Run in his age division), I ranked highest in the family in mine. You know, the Walk division. 2nd PLACE at 39:54.61 ! I kind of feel robbed on one score. The first place walker did not walk it. She finished in 25 minutes, just a minute after my fastest brother. If you are a runner, don't rain on the parade of those of us trying to get ourselves into the game. If you can run it, register for the run.

We all hope to make this a new family tradition--I just want it to be warmer next year. Maybe with some training and extra support of my husband, I'll be registering for the run next year. If you've run in the morning, you can have a guilt-free Thanksgiving feast eating spree. My brothers want to do more cold weather training and win the turkey they gave the 1st place runner.

I proudly matched my husband the day after as we both wore our Cold Turky Run shirts. We got a lot of "Oh you're so cute" comments. Didn't faze me. My husband helped me get going and I know he'll keep me going on this new path. We'll be healthier, and hopefully thinner in my case, and doing something together. Life is good.