I Ran a 15k and Lived to Tell the Tale

I have a habit of getting into things because I want to prove to myself that I can do them. Hence, running a 15k without training. To be honest, it was a decision mostly made around the fact that it was a HOT CHOCOLATE 15k and chocolate was involved. And it totally was! There was a chocolate chip station (they were super delicious, btw), strawberry marshmallow station (also delicious), chocolate marshmallow (it was at mile 6ish so I no longer cared, no review for these), and an M&M station (at mile 8, seriously did not care about food by this point). I also went to the Hot Chocolate race to run with my best friend, whom I’m fairly confident would have smoked this race in half the time it took me.

Enjoying my new treat.

But sometimes you do things not because you’re super excited about the specific thing, but for the people you get to share the experience with. And the people that Anthony and I were able to spend the weekend with were all my favorites, so it was totally worth while.

In addition to chocolate, there was some pretty sweet swag, including a golden chocolate medal and a nice zip up. I can’t say I’ll ever do a 15k again – it is not a distance to play with and my body spent the next 5 days reminding me of such, but it was super fun to finish the race, arm in arm with my best friend, and a huge smile on my face (Runner’s high is no joke).

The human body never ceases to amaze me. That I was able to move my body for 9.3 miles without exploding is something I’ll never quite understand. That’s not to say I wasn’t tired or sore immediately after. I definitely reached the maximum number of rebound cycles that my calves and Achilles can handle.

Now, it wasn’t just flowers and rainbows after the race – being seriously sore was not fun and does not put me in the best of moods (just ask my husband), but I knew that I had all the tools and techniques needed to help create an environment of healing in my body.

I did not use any ice (Nope, not a single second and read why here), but instead turned to my mobility tools. Therapy balls help to improve the flow of fluids through tissues, which will help flush waste products out and bring in fresh blood and hydration to bathe your cells in all they need to repair. I’ve been testing out a few other mobility products that I’ll share with you in a video review soon, but I can tell you with confidence that hands down, the grippy pliable YTU balls are the best. Harder tools that can bruise are not more effective!

Another realization I had during my long run is that I don’t enjoy repetitive activities. Running, for example, requires the exact same movement again and again. And you know what? It’s ok to not like running! It’s ok to not like a certain activity that everyone tells you that you must do. Find something you enjoy because then you’ll actually stick with it.

I love the variability of Yoga Tune Up® and strength training, so I’ll stick to those. That’s not to say that there won’t be running involved during a workout, but at least there will be some other movements mixed in.

So what’s your deal? What type of movement practice makes you happy? What type of movement practice do you want to try (and what’s keeping you from doing it)? Let me know in the comment section below!