Beating Beethoven

I ran in my first 5K race on Sept. 12th. My friend Amber asked if I wanted to run it with her and I decided it was a good way to get me back in shape after having a baby. I started out struggling to run a few blocks and after about a month I was running 1 1/2 miles. Still it wasn't 3.1 miles, so I was nervous. Tim and Amber were very supportive and encouraging though.

The race was called Beat Beethoven because Beethoven's 5th symphony is about 32 min. in length. If you could finish the race before the last note played, you got a pin the said, "I beat Beethoven." The race was to benefit the arts council in our city, so I thought it was appropriate. My personal goal was to finish in 45 min. and only walk about 4 blocks. I accomplished both the goals and finished the race in about 35 min. I came in 96th of about 250 runners and was 35th in my age category. I'm proud of myself. Running is hard for me, but I am starting to enjoy it. It was good for me to have such a specific goal. I knew I needed to be able to run about 3 miles by Sept. 12th.

Now I'm going to run in the Turkey Trot 5K with Amber on Thanksgiving. That is helping me continue to run. My route is now about 2 miles in length. I like that my kids see me running as I really am trying to set a good example of a healthy lifestyle for them. My mom did that for me, I'd like to pass that on. I didn't beat Beethoven, but I still won my race!