Run (verb): An attempt to look and feel better while huffing and puffing

Last Saturday, I completed my first 5km run with my husband atThe Midsummer Night's Run on Toronto Island. "With" in the sense that we started the race together, otherwise he finished a good 10 minutes before I did. But finishing it was my main goal, and that's what counts.

I consider myself a short distance sprinter (I placed 4th in the 100m race in grade 8, so I'm kind of a big deal), so the idea of running around a track more than once was daunting. Luckily, my husband's sister and her husband are avid runners and they gave us some great tips for training. We trained for about 3 weeks before the race, increasing our running intervals by a minute every week. By the last week, I was comfortable running for 5 minutes with a minute off walking.

Things I learned from the race:
- Runners for the most part are very supportive of each other.
- If I needed to slow down, I held my hand up to indicate I was moving off to the side.
- You should not mess with an 80-year old running veteran. He means business and you should get out of his way.
- There are, albeit a few, non-supporters who will actually go out of their way to create an obstacle. I'm talking directly to the 3 hippy teens that stood right in the middle of a path and refused to move. The 80-year old was NOT happy.
 - Always finish in style. Even if you've been running at a slow and steady pace for the whole race, speed up for the last 50 meters so you look like a rock star when you cross the finish line. I did, and I felt amazing.
- All these races support charities, but the best ones give out finisher medals. Yup, even though I didn't place in the top 3, I still got a medal just for FINISHING the race!

I was on such a high after the race and felt amazing for the rest of the weekend. We ended the night with some beer and pulled pork sandwiches on Olympic Island, while cheering on the 30km runners. A huge shout out goes to my husband for all his support and my sis-in-law and her hubbie for all their tips and encouraging words!