If you’ve been reading my previous articles, you will know that I am a runner. I recently signed up for the Joshua Norman 5k fun run. So much has happened since my last article, so I broke it down into sections, Hero’s Journey fashion.

Call to Adventure – I had just finished my 1 mile fun run and was feeling amazing. I felt as though I would be able to go a bit further. I told my mom about this and she signed me up for a 5k. This was huge because I had never run a 5k before and my training routine had me at 1.5 miles a day. If you don’t know, a 5k is 3.1 miles. I had a lot of work to do.

Crossing the Threshold – The day that I got signed up I got to work. I wrote on my personal calendar a training schedule for me. About every 10 days, I would bump up how much I was running by half a mile. My training was going fantastic, and I was improving quickly. It was perfect! Too perfect…

Tests, Allies, Enemies – It started in the middle of my 2.5 mile run. A tiny throbbing in my ankle. I didn’t pay too much attention to it. The next morning, the pain quadrupled when I started to run. I went inside and took a rest day. The next day, it happened again. And the next. And the next.

     We didn’t know exactly what was wrong. It might have been a small sprain (I don’t have much spatial awareness, so things get hit all the time. This would be magnified twofold outside while running.) or shin splints. All we could really do was to wrap up my leg and rest it. Eventually, it did get better, but I was way behind on my training. I had 6 days left before the race.

The Reward – It was the day of the race. I still felt the tension in my body that I wished dearly would go away. I met up with Henry Pasieka and we warmed up together. The chatting between us calmed my nerves.

     It seemed like seconds later when we were at the starting line, hearing the lady with a megaphone shout, “Ready, set, go!”  Everyone took off like horses just released from the gate. Even though you are allowed to walk, I had my heart set on running the entire time. I found my pace and just tried to count my breaths. It was hard, but I knew I had to keep going.

     Unlike during the 1 mile race, Henry and I didn’t run together. Henry’s strategy was to run really fast, then walk. This proved to be a great plan.

Return with the Elixir – This was it. Only a lap around the track and I was done. I heard my mom and friends cheering for me. I heard the heavy breathing of the person behind me. I couldn’t let another person beat me. Even though I was destroyed physically, I upped my pacing around the last curve. Then I broke into my sprint. 

      Henry had already finished and congratulated me at the finish line. We did some laps so the lactic acid wouldn’t build up in our legs (Hope you’re proud, Mrs. Decker) and waited for the times to be put out. 

     As soon as we saw the papers coming out, we swarmed the lady putting them up. Henry got 7th in his category and a time of 27.11. He came in 31st overall. This was his first 5k too, and I was SO proud of him! A little below his name was mine: Nelson, Ailey. 38th overall. Time of 29.44. 2nd in my category!

     Both of us did so well and I’m extremely proud of us! I will absolutely be doing another 5k again soon (hopefully with less injuries during training this time!)