The view from my handlebars...

The Riverside Raincross 5K Run/Walk was exhilarating!!! I was lucky enough to be able to run the whole time and finish right at 37:00 minutes:seconds. The course was dynamic, somewhat hilly, and very scenic. It has been so long (~Jan 2008) since I've run for any straight distance, I forgot how exciting it can be to run 5K. It's like the perfect distance to be a bit aggressive throughout. I was pacing myself until about the last 1/2 mile and people who had already finished the race began turning around and walking the course backwards, telling those of us who were unfamiliar with the layout that we should start sprinting. As soon as I knew there was only one uphill, one downhill and a turn left, I started kicking it into gear. I think that's how I got the real runner's high when I was done. Putting one foot in front of another isn't so different from pushing down on pedals one after the other, right?

After picking up my free orange slices donated by Gless Ranch, http://www.glessranch.com/, (incidentally that's where Mike and I got the oranges for table decorations at our wedding reception) and free "Dasani plus Vitamin Enhanced Flavored Water Beverage," I started walking the course backwards like the others had done, giving encouragement/direction to those who were still in the race. It was definitely a positive environment. In all the confusion, I had a hard time finding my dear husband Mike and our dear friend Homero. I did get to talk to some of the ladies who I saw running at a very fast pace toward the beginning of the race. One of the young (high school age) ones finished the entire race in 24 minutes! The older (mom age) ones finished in 30 minutes. I thanked them for their inspiring pace and enthusiasm and complimented them on their cute matching team outfits! They recommended I try some of the other 5K races down by the beach, since I seemed so enthusiastic about this one.

My friend and training teammate Andrew told me about a tool called Map My Ride. It seems like a great place to post your routes for the purposes of sharing good (and bad) routes for everyone's safety and enjoyment. Also there is an iPhone app so cyclists can download routes directly to their portable devices to prevent wrong turns. So I started inputting data from some of our recent adventures into the program and it puts out all kinds of encouraging stats like these (http://www.mapmyride.com/user/464890608312/) to keep me motivated.
Total Workouts in 2009: 11
Total Distance: 91.70 mi.
Total Burned: 4,128 (kcal)
Gas Saved: 5.09 gallons
Money Saved: $17.73
Carbon Offset: 98.6 lbs. of CO2

But it also forced me to confront some discouraging stats like...
Highest Education: Masters Degree
Occupation: Student
Employment Status: Full-Time
Income: $20,000 to $30,000
Have Kids: No Kids
Like if I'm not going to be able to work out now when I'm still in school and have no kids, how am I going to do it later on? And why am I still in school? And how come I make so little money? And when am I going to have those kids? And will I be able to reach my next level of education successfully? The balance between work/play has been difficult for me to regulate and I am still learning how to manage these aspects of my life in order to maximize my productivity and satisfaction both at work and at home. C'est la vie!

And these downright depressing facts...
Weight: 175
Waistline: 24"
Resting Heart Rate: 66 beats per minute
Body Mass Index: 32
I mean it is easy to get caught up in these numbers, right? If you spend your life striving for a target weight, aren't you wasting your life doing nothing but counting things? When is a person able to enjoy life? So usually I aim to be happy and not to worry about numbers like these. Sometimes though, I allow myself to not think of them at all. Perhaps I needed to be reminded of the true situation, not filtered through the lens of my genetic background excuses and not in the context of the people I see around me who are also obese, but from a quantitative medical perspective, I am currently doing damage to my internal organs by carrying this much extra weight around.

For some reason, I just don't like telling people my weight. But I decided that in the interests of being a real athlete here I have to be honest about the facts. I am considered obese right now with a body mass index of 32. Even if I lose 12 pounds, I'm still overweight. For me to get my BMI down into the vicinity of the high end of "normal weight," I would have to get down to my old welterweight of 135. I only remembering weighing this for a very short time when I was running 5K's several times per week with my then-boyfriend who was in Cross Country, and dancing 6 days per week both ballet and my high school dance team. I thought of this XCxboyf on my run today after I passed the 1 mile mark and realized I was holding a bunch of tension in my neck and arms and poorly regulating my breathing. Once I smiled and remembered what he showed me over 12 years ago, I felt my lungs open up and my stride improve. Incidentally, to become "underweight" I would have to drop down to a weight of 100 pounds. That's crazy!