Painter's 5k in St. George. I am not in good shape. But all things considered, this race was not a total disaster. I have been training somewhat consistently for the past 6 weeks or so after missing a lot of time with injuries and life. My goal was to run an 8:00 mile, a 7:50 mile, and a 7:45 mile with a strong finish. My Garmin wouldn't turn on, so I'm not sure what I ended up doing, but I finished with an average pace of 7:55. This is slower than my goal, but at least I was in the neighborhood. The conditions were wet and "puddley", but it wasn't raining during the race. I warmed up by running about two miles and did some strides. I felt sufficiently warmed up and had a good sweat going at the start line. The crowd at the start line dispersed fairly quickly and I was able to get into a good, steady pace. I started conservatively and picked it up at the one mile mark. I felt like I was able to hold that pace for the last two miles. It was a challenging pace, but not so challenging that I couldn't hold it. The goal of this race was to get a running series credit and to see where I am fitness wise so I can set my training pace. I'm on my way and I'm hopeful to get back in 2010 shape and beyond.
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