Couch to JiggleButt 5K

I can now say "Couch to 5K worked for me."  I took a brief stab at the program in 2009, but didn't make it past Week 3.  I'm not sure what possessed me to start up again back in August, but I became determined to make it through.  Ideally with this plan, you should be ready to run a 5K in 9 weeks.  Ahem.  I've done most weeks twice, so it has actually taken me right at 20.  But I had a goal in sight--the Jiggle Butt Run, January 8.

So last night, after "carb-loading" with yummy spaghetti and homemade sauce at Paige's, I hurried home to get a good night's rest.  It felt very much like getting ready for the first day of school.  I laid out my clothes, packed my backpack and even had dreams where I didn't hear the starter's gun so I just stood around and missed the race.
  

The event was a little over an hour's drive from Hometown, so we had to get up extremely early for a Saturday morning.  This was NOT my favorite part of the day...but it got better.

Our team:  Paige, Elizabeth, HannahKate and myself. 

Our cheerleaders (not pictured):  Mr. G, BigJoel and Hallie.

I haven't heard the final count on how many participants there were, but my estimate would be "A LOT".   Joel took this picture at the start of the race.  That's my hand sticking up waving in the middle of the crowd.

The weather was perfect, sunny and not too cold.  The course was beautiful, relatively flat and meandering through a nice residential area. 

I now know that it is much harder to run/concentrate/keep a steady pace when you are trying to maneuver around a bajillion other ladies. 

Also, I kept telling them I was slow, but I don't think anyone believed me.  Even though I had "trained" longer, I was still the last of our group to finish...not by much...and I did FINISH...which was really my ultimate goal.

So my official time was a little slower than I'd hoped and I wound up walking a little more than I'd planned, but all in all it was so much fun that we are already looking forward to our next race.

Here I am about to cross the finish line.  Notice how I've just overtaken a "granny".

After the race--not too much worse for the wear and all feeling extremely accomplished.

We opted not to stay for the awards ceremony since none of us placed. Instead, we "collected" our prize at Fuzzy's Taco Shop.  Chilaquiles with Latin roasted potatoes are way better than a medal, if you ask me.