While the knee isn’t 100%, I have to say it does feel a lot better and gets stronger every day.  I finished my rehab and have been getting out in the morning and walking.  I also hop on the bike from time to time, but there aren’t any really good paths around and too many young, distracted drivers out so mainly I stick to walking.

I had one run slated prior to my surgery that I had already paid for which was the Nashvillle Fourth of July 5K/10K.  I was signed up for the 10K and wasn’t sure if I was going to just do the 5K and be done or do the full 10K.  When I checked in I asked what the course time limit was for the 10K and they told me 90 minutes.  OK I thought, that’s a 15 minute a mile pace, I should be able to walk that.

The weather was nice and cool this 4th of July and my knee was feeling good.  The race started and it really sucked “walking” while I was seeing everyone else running.  I logged the first mile just around 15 minutes so I figured I might be able to pull off a 90 minute 10K.

Prior to the surgery I was hoping to be around 55 minutes for this race, now I was praying to finish within the course time limit.  I hit the 5K mark at 47 minutes and figured what the heck, I kept going and tried to pick up my pace.  For the majority of the race I was in last place, but at the 5 mile mark I caught up with the group ahead of me and for a bit wasn’t actually in last place.  Then in the final stretch those “walkers” jogged it in and passed me up…all but one.  That made me the 2nd to last finisher!

Finishing a 10K in 1 hour and 34 minutes wasn’t what I had in mind but it did feel good knowing I didn’t quit at 5K and actually finished the entire course!  Now looking ahead to next year’s Country Music Marathon, the course limit for the 1/2 marathon is 4 hours…hmmmmmm.  I have a lot of walking to do until then and I’ll have to see how things go this fall with the walking.  I plan on getting back to the group at Main Street Strength and Conditioning this upcoming week so hopefully that will strengthen up the knee even more.

While I could probably start running again, I really am not looking for my next knee surgery which is a full replacement.  The knee feels good now and there’s no reason to “rush” any unnecessary wear.  There are few other races this month that I’m going to consider going out for as there still is nothing like lining up with a bunch of other runners and hitting the pavement.  I doubt I’ll ever get a mud run in, but that 4 hour 1/2 marathon sounds tempting!

Oh, I’ve still been able to maintain the weight loss and have actually met my final weight goal of 220!  I’m at 215 and down to a size 38 pants.  That’s a weight loss of 135 pounds, 5 pants sizes, 4 shirt sizes, 1 shoe size and two ring sizes!  At my lowest in high school, the smallest waist I ever had was 40!  I just spent a week up in Ohio for work and it was interesting seeing how many “hellos” it took some of my co-workers to realize who I was.  I also got to get out to Cedar Point for the first time in about 10 years and I was able to ride some rides that I had never been able to because I was too big.  Let me say, Top Thrill Dragster is a rush!

Today I ran my 3rd race of 2014, the Run4Missions 5K supporting the Community Church of Hendersonville, TN.  The race took place at the Streets of Indian Lake and this is a fairly flat area so I went into it expecting to have a fast finish time.

I’ve been running at the 29-30 minute 5K mark so I was hoping to do a bit better, and a bit better I did.  The high for the day was expected to be in the low 60’s.  The temperature at race time though was only going to be in the upper 30’s, so it wasn’t going to be a warm race.

The race started at 8 AM and the weather was partly cloudy skies and 39 degrees.  I started off feeling really good and was hoping to get the first mile in around 9 minutes.  When my running app read off my first mile stats I was surprised to hear an 8:05 pace.  Wow!

When I hit the 1.5 mile mark I was at an elapsed time of 12:11 and I was thinking maybe I could get a 26-27 minute time!  The last mile though was a bit rough.  I could feel myself slowing down but at the 2.5 mile mark I did my best to keep going at my current pace.

My second mile pace was 8:49 and my third mile pace was 8:52.  I was a little more consistent those last two miles but that last half-plus mile was tough.  My overall time (unofficially) was 27:16 and my fastest time yet.  I was please with my time and afterwards I felt good.

I recovered pretty quickly once I was done but I need to work on my finishing pace.  I recently signed up as a member of a local running group, Nashville Striders, so I’ll be sure to reach out to the members there and see what I can do to get myself finishing races a bit stronger (and maybe even a bit faster).  Next up is the St. Patrick’s Day Kegs & Eggs 5K/10K Supporting Special Olympics Nashville a week from tomorrow.  I’m signed up for the 10K and the race course is in the Gulch area of West Nashville and that means hills!

On Saturday I took part in the first annual Hill YEAH! 5K.  This event was put on to support a local charity, Room In The Inn.  This is a great charity that helps the homeless and the fact that the organizers decided to have this in the winter time was perfect.  What a better way to get a feel for living out on the streets than actually running in the streets when it’s cold outside!

The course was definitely full of hills and while I wasn’t expecting a fast time due to the terrain, I actually turned in my best 5K time ever at 29:19.  This is definitely one I will be running again!  Up next is the Nashville Hot Chocolate 15K which is going to be a good run to help me with my mileage as I continue to prepare for the upcoming Nashville 1/2 Marathon which is only a few months away!

The Nashville Striders, a local running club, helped with the race and look to be a good group to get involved with.  I think I’ll be checking them out a bit more and probably signing up to be a member.  I’ve found it’s always better to run in groups and this looks to be a good group of runners from all walks and expertise!

Info on the race:  http://www.hillyeah5k.com/#

Pictures from the race:  http://www.nashvillestriders.com/gallery-2014/hill-yeah-5k/

Nashville Striders:  http://www.nashvillestriders.com