you know how you see yourself differently than the camera sees you?

I had no idea that's what I look like running.

This is why I hate candid photos.

"Oh, but they're so fun! They capture the moment as it was meant to be seen" blah blah blah.

Seriously guys, I look like I'm in pain.

So, of the two photos I found on the race website, this is the better of the two. I'm sharing it because ya know, this is my blog and I'm supposed to share things and whatever.

Last Sunday was the Rockville 10k/5k and I ran the 5k. It was an 8:30 start, which meant I had to be up at the butt crack of dawn (seriously. 6:45 is right about when the sun's coming up.). I got ready, grabbed a banana and some water, and the boyfriend and I headed up to the race. I was pretty nervous, but I always have that feeling when I'm woken up so friggin' early and expected to function pretty much right away. That, and I was freezing. Running outside when it's about 37* is not my idea of a good time. But I wanted that free t-shirt! Actually, I already had the free t-shirt. But I would have been a sap if I had picked up my race packet for the shirt and not run the race. Although who am I kidding, I actually wanted to run it. I did. I swear. It was just cold.

Overall the race wasn't so bad. I didn't look at the course map before heading over so I didn't know what to expect. I figured it would be a nice flat run, so I had run on flat roads leading up to the race. Race day? 3 hills. Awesomesauce. So I ended up walking about half of each hill, but other than that I ran the whole thing. Not too shabby, though I would have loved to run the entire thing. All in all, I was pretty happy with my time (41:14), given I walked part of the course.

Now I have a time to beat for the Santa Shuffle 5k, coming up on December 4, which I signed up for the day after the Rockville race. Because I'm hardcore like that.