Run for Retina recap #running #pregnancy #fitmom

This past Sunday, against the threat of rain and at 7 months pregnant, I ran the Run for Retina in London, Ontario. 5km...most of which was surprisingly uphill, but I did it...and I didn't finish last!

My first km went by really quickly, and my tracker dinged at about 8minutes. I was surprised that I was going so fast, and then slowed down a bit to walk some.

This is when it got a little silly. In my brain, when I am running, I am not pregnant. I push myself, and tell my legs "you're not tired, your brain is...keep going" When you're 7 months pregnant, this is really dumb, but there's something that happens when you're at a race...there's something in the air. People are super jazzed to be there; for some, it's their first race and you can see the mix of excitement and nerves written on their face. For others, they're seasoned pros and complete the course in no time.

Then there was me. Pregnant and determined.

Around the 2km mark, my belly started to cramp. I walked a little more, and knew that it was my body telling me that it didn't necessarily need to slow down...it needed water like whoa. Thankfully, I could see the water station in my sights, so walked to it, and chugged a couple of glasses. Once the cramp went away, I walked quicker and worked my way up to a run.

This course was supposed to be a 5km, but when my tracker dinged that I had run 3km at the half way turnaround, I had a feeling that alot of the way back would be walking.

Grabbed some more water at the station, then just kept going. There was only one way back, and I would get there when I got there.

When I could see Blackfriars Bridge, I knew that the end was near, and that it was primarily downhill. I started running...and kept running. I actually ran right past my husband and son, and didn't realize that they were there! I ran past a few of the other racers and over the finish line.

I wanted to cry...but I really really needed to pee! So I collected my medal, grabbed two more glasses of water and ran right to the bathrooms. Once I had some much needed relief, took a moment to smile at myself in the mirror, pat my belly and be proud...all by myself.

When I found my husband and son, my kiddo ran up to me with the biggest smile and was SO proud. Then my husband said I I had of told you four years ago that you would become a runner would you have believed me? I laughed, and said no.

Then he said Would you have believed me if I said that you would run a 5km, while pregnant with our second son?

Absolutely not...but I did, and that's pretty awesome!

I'm SO looking forward to my next race in just a couple of weeks, the Le Chocolat 5K Run/Walk. It's actually a full on girls weekend away with my bests, and I can't wait!

If all else fails, I can have a firefighter carry me to the finish!