Virtual Running Shorts - August 5k

Last weekend I completed my final 5k out of the three 5k virtual races I signed up for this year as part of runDisney's Virtual Running Shorts series. For those just joining, a virtual race is one that the participant can run at any time and in any location. Disney gave a month long window for each race and I chose Saturday, August 26 for my August 5k. You can read about my June 5k here, and my July 5k here.

My next runDisney post will be a review of the Virtual Running Shorts series, including things like the nature of a virtual race, what I thought about the cost and registration process, the medals and how they were delivered, etc., but this blog post covers my experience running the August 5k.

I had a month between running the July 5k and the August 5k to give myself the maximum amount of time to train. I had been preparing for these races since the last week of May, but before that it had been over 6 months since I ran on a consistent basis. I needed all the training I could get! I ran on the same trail I had used for my two previous 5ks, which has a 1 mile and a 1.1 mile trail, so I used the 1 mile trail, followed by the 1.1 mile trail, then back to the 1 mile trail to complete my 3.1 miles. I started my race at 8am, and it was partly cloudy, 70 degrees and 83% humidity. A pretty decent temperature.

I was aiming for 16 minute miles or less as an average, which would mean if this were a real Disney race, I wouldn't get swept. I wanted to complete the 1 mile trails in 15 minutes or less, and the 1.1 mile trail in 16 minutes or less. I started with 3 minutes of brisk walking to warm up and then got into running at a steady pace. I feel like I ran for a pretty long time, making it somewhere between half a mile and three quarters of a mile before taking a walk break, which I didn't feel like I needed, but took because I didn't want to burn out with 2.1 more miles to go. I finished strong and was really happy with my time - 14:17 for the first mile!

Bridge over the creek

The second lap was my 1.1 mile and I started to wonder if I ran too quickly during the first mile because I noticed my run time was a lot slower. I was running about a minute and a half before needing to take a 1 minute walk break. I wasn't timing myself but that's about what it felt like. I finished the 1.1 mile in 17:47 which was thoroughly disappointing. While that was quicker than the 19 minutes this trail took during my July 5k, I was hoping to finish in 16 minutes or less, so I was almost 2 minutes over my goal. At the end of 2.1 miles I was so done and wondered how I would finish (again). I guess after running two 5k races in the past two months, it still wasn't getting easier.

For my final mile I felt like I was only able to run for about 30 seconds before needing a walk break of at least a minute. So I tried to sprint a little and then walk until I'd recovered. I kept trying to focus on a target "Just make it to that tree" then when I got there "You made it! Now keep going to that bench" I was determined to finish with a good time! I kept up with the sprints and walk breaks and finished the final mile in 14:53 which I absolutely couldn't believe because I felt so slow! I had reached my target of being under 15 minutes!

August 5k Medal

I finished in a total time of 46:57 which was around the time I had hoped to complete my first 5k back in June - haha. My August race was 3:10 quicker than my July race, and 6:13 quicker than my June 5k. If you read my July 5k post, you may remember that a 45 minute finish time was my goal for this last race and I was pretty darn close. I'm happy to see that I've made continuous improvement, even if it didn't feel like it while I was running. Luckily there were nowhere near as many dogs or people out this time as there were on my last race which helped a lot.

Strangely enough, as much as I seem to hate life in the moment, I'm going to miss these races. They have really helped to hold me accountable for running and I felt so proud of myself each time I completed a race, despite not really enjoying myself at the time haha. It was also great to coordinate two of these three races with a pal of mine. I'm going to need to find something else to help keep me accountable because I'm already slacking. With the holiday weekend I've only gotten out there twice this week instead of three times and I haven't done my long run like I said I would. Sigh.

My Virtual Running Shorts Series Finisher Medal

Depending on my running ability next year, I may or may not sign up again if they run the Virtual Running Shorts next summer. If 3.1 miles is still a challenge for me, I would do it again for sure because it really has helped motivate me and keep me accountable, and the medals have been a nice reward after repeatedly feeling like I was going to keel over and die.

But if by some miracle, running 3 miles is just another training run that I'm able to do frequently, there wouldn't be much point in paying for what would essentially be just medals at that point. We'll see. And I'll go into that more in my next post where I'll review the Virtual Running Shorts series as a whole. I hope you'll join me for that.

Thanks for reading!