I’ve been running distances consistently for such a long time that it seemed strange to be a little “concerned” about covering the distance in a 5K. But since I hadn’t run at all since last week’s 10K due to the muscle strain in my glute and considering the pain was still present, I suppose a little concern was to be expected.
Sunday morning I ran in the Running for Hope 5K. The race was a charity event (for Boys Town Nevada) and a bunch of my friends were involved as a support to our friend Molly. Molly is an ultra-runner who is definitely worthy of her own post, I’ll get that later this week. But Molly is a big supporter of Boys Town and we were all going to participate to support her AND support the cause.
When I signed up for this race, I had big plans. The race start was just 3 miles from my house. So I had thought I would run to the race, run the 5K and then run back home, getting about 9.5 miles overall. But then as the pain developed, I thought… well, maybe I’ll just walk there, run the race, then walk home. The reality was that I had my husband drive me there in the morning and then caught a ride home with a friend after running the race.
I told myself that I was just going to take it easy, walking if the need arose. I wasn’t out there to “RACE”, just to go out and have a nice morning with my friends.
And it was a nice morning…. no winds, it was probably about 55° when the race started. Sun was up, sky was clear… really a beautiful day. And as the race started, I began to run… telling myself I would stop and walk if the pain got out of control.
But the pain wasn’t that intense during the run. Yes, it was definitely there the whole time and it was worse as we went through the section of the run that was on dirt as opposed to paved roads. But it wasn’t searing pain, so I kept running.
And while it wasn’t a huge race, there is still that little undercurrent of a race environment. The energy and excitement that helps propel you forward. I think it comes with pinning on a number.
But the moment I stopped running, that’s when the pain decided to “cuss me out”. My glute was screaming at me, so painful. I even had an uncomfortable hobble/limp for the remainder of the day.
So I may have just earned myself even more days off from running in order to heal. It was kind of dumb to run when I was still injured, but I had fun too.
Now I promise to let myself heal before I hurt myself worse. Promise…. PROMISE!
Jill Will Run 
Aw, that stinks. You’re not the first one to run thru the pain. I’ve done it, and so have a zillion other runners. We’re all a little crazy!
Taking time off to recovery isn’t easy…hang in there, you’ll be back in no time!!
Karin: You’re so right… we’re a crazy crew. Gotta be a runner to understand that NEED to keep going, despite the pain!
Sounds like you pulled that muscle pretty good! I hope your doc is right with her diagnosis and treatment. I know when I pulled my hamstring, they said not to massage it and not to stretch it. Which seems crazy but when I stopped doing those things, that’s when it got better. Hang in there!
Alissa: I forgot your doc said to not do those things… I hope my problem doesn’t get worse from those things! Yikes…
Hi Jill: Bethany sent me your way… I look forward to catching up on your run reviews and maybe getting a little motivation for my half coming up in 10 weeks.
Hope you heal quickly and are back on the pavement soon.
– Mike
Mike: Welcome to my site! I look forward to checking out your site and I hope I provide some motivation! Thanks for the well-wishes!
Sounds like what I did at Carlsbad last month…(getting carried away with the race-energy and all). Sorry about the sore glutes. I’d recommend my PT, but it’s a pretty long commute.
Hey is there a race in Vegas next weekend? I’d love to do one when I’m there.
The weekend of March 7 there is the Red Rock Canyon full and half marathon.
The weekend of March 14 there is a half marathon called Six Tunnels and there is a “Catch the Leprechaun” 5K.
I can point you in the direction of more info on those races if you need it!
March 7: Just learned about the Defeat IT 5K.
Race details
March 14: There is a 5K in conjunction with the Six Tunnels race as well. Plus a 2-person relay for the half marathon.
😦 sorry to hear it flared up even more after the race! i’m glad you scaled back on your plans of running/walking to the race site. it’s hard to run easy sometimes, especially in a race environment, and it is definitely hard to sideline yourself! hope it heals quickly so you can get back out there.
Thanks Lindsay! The good thing is that I know I can whine about how hard it is to stop running on here and know that people will commiserate with me. Anyone who doesn’t run, they just think, “Cool, you don’t HAVE to run anymore.”
I admire the time and effort you put into your blog. I wish I had the same drive 🙂