PB

For most of you , “PB” means personal best and something to always strive for.  It may mean that we hit our fastest pace or maybe our quickest time in a distance run . I am proud when I have a PB and like to share my accomplishment with others .

 

Except , for me ,”PB” has another meaning ....

 

When I read about the Tele10 predictions last year , someone said that 10 PRC members would have a PB at the tele10.  I thought this meant they would stop for a “pee break” so as I was running the tele10 , I passed a port a potty and saw a PRC t-shirt and though “there’s one” . Why someone would tell everyone if they had to pee puzzled me? I soon realized my mistake but every time I see PB, I chuckle . But the more I thought about it, what does one do for the OTHER “PB” ?

I found myself on a LTR run one evening last fall up at PBD Park and I really had to have a “PB” .  We were only about 2K into a 5K run and I wasn’t going to make it the whole way . ( I know some of you can all relate to this? ) It was very dark and we were on the long stretch by the pond so I hung in the back and scoped out the bushes along the road . I waited until I saw my chance and then ducked into the woods. Well it only took  seconds for someone to notice me missing . I heard my name being called out and saw the headlamps turn around and start running back towards me.  It was dark and I could see those dozen tiny lights bobbing in the dark- getting closer by the second!  Panic set in...this was NOT GOOD !  I managed to pop back out onto the road in time before the search lights descended on me in all my squatted glory but it was a close call. 

 

Runners guide to having a “PB- pee break”  (Guys don’t seem to have these same challenges, so this is geared mostly for the ladies )

 

 1.   Pee before you leave the house. (I know this may seem like a given but if you are rushing , it can be forgotten )

        2.    Don’t drink too much before you run.
        3.    IF you have to pee, it’s OK but tell your buddy .
       

 

Best of luck to you all achieving ALL your "PB's" this year !

 

Robyn

Your First Time

You always remember your first time…

Some of us thought about our first time for years- planning and thinking about how “it “would feel. For some of us, it just happened quickly without a lot of thought or prep.

You probably discussed it at great lengths with your friends- especially the ones that had already done it. Everyone had advice to give – all the different ways to do it- I had no idea? When the day came, you were excited and probably a bit nervous not truly knowing what to expect.

For some it was so quick, you barely stopped to breathe …but for some, you took your time and went slow- savouring every minute. Some of you bragged after it was all over and some of us just kept it to ourselves, quietly basking in the afterglow.

MY first time was special. I remember the music pumping around me and I could barely hear my partner next to me.  They looked at me and smiled and our hearts raced with excitement. THIS WAS IT! WE were really going to do IT! We had been talking about it and planning it for a few months and that moment was finally here. We had taken all the precautions to be safe.  They had more experience and had done it before, but for me- it was all new. I knew in my heart it was MY time.

We started off slow and my pulse began to quicken and my breathing became heavy.  I felt my body resist at first as I tried to keep up.  It wasn’t long before I was hot and sweaty and wanted to peel off the clothes already sticking to my body. We took our time and enjoyed the moment- we had to pace ourselves but there was no going back once we started.

When it was all over, we were so happy and that experience bonded us! I knew we would do it again someday and I couldn’t wait!

That was how I felt when I ran my first Tele10 race last year!! J

I remember standing behind the starting line in a sea of 4000 + people. The opening riff to Guns’& Roses “Welcome to the Jungle” was booming through the loud speakers and you could feel the excitement in the crowd. Everyone was ready to go. An air gun sounded and we were off!!  The large crowd all moving together, some running fast out of the gate and some swiftly walking behind the runners.

I ran it with my LTR buddy (she had walked it the year before) and we had trained for a few months with the LTR. I really didn’t know what to expect – the weather was sunny, then flash rain and then sunny again but that didn’t matter to us.

 Along the route we spoke to many people. There was an older lady whose family was pushing her in a wheelchair. There was a firefighter running with an oxygen tank on his back. There was a newly married couple running their first race together. EVERYONE had a story and I was blessed to hear some of them. On the sides of the road there was tremendous support- strangers cheering us all on! Signs of positive encouragement everywhere! The sense of community was overwhelming! Topsail road,the road that I drove down every single day to get to work was transformed - everything had a different perspective and I felt that tele10 wonder. PRC had a table set up along the route like a VIP lounge and someone passed me a small baggy of candy. I can tell you that nothing ever tasted as sweet as those few gummy bears and I greedily gobbled them in seconds!!

We did walk / run intervals and it took us over 2 hours. Not record breaking times but definitely proud to finish it! Crossing the finish line, we held hands and jumped like 2 fools! We had both worked so very hard, to lose almost 300 lbs between us-and learn to run… this was our victory lap!!

So as you start to think about goals for 2017, think about training and signing up for the 90^th anniversary race of the Tele10  (July 23, 2017) If it will be your first time, I promise it will be special!  For most of you that have run it multiple times over the years, you are rock stars and are really “GOOD AT IT “by now so smile to yourself as you look back and remember your “first time.”

I will be “doing it “again this year J

-Robyn

***Now if you thought I was talking about something else in the beginning, go back and read it againJ

The Power of "I CAN"

       

I wasn’t always a runner- in fact I am fairly new to running. When someone asked me last year what my “pace” was, I learned that “slow” was not the appropriate answer :)

We all run for different reasons. Some people run to lose weight- I actually started running because I lost weight and I felt I had something to prove to myself.

Someone told me a long time ago that I couldn’t run. I was told I was too big and my legs were too short (and my big boobs didn’t help either) I took those words to heart and didn't run!

Weighing in at +300 lbs, I decided that I needed to make a change. In Feb 2013, I signed up for weight watchers and headed to a water fitness class that same night and my journey to a healthier life began. I learned how to eat healthy and exercised 3x per week.  I lost 65 lbs in 10 months and then had weight loss surgery in Dec 2013. Over the next year, I lost another 100 lbs and continued to stay active.  With my new body and my increased fitness level, I saw my confidence increase so I tried many activities and then I thought – what about running?? What have I got to lose?

I remember the first time I ran- I was literally walking down my street and I thought,” I am just going to run for as long as I can and time myself “-so I started my timer and set off like a flash down the street! I pushed myself until my legs were burning and my lungs were going to burst! When I stopped and looked at my timer, it said 30 SECONDS!  Seriously!?! I realized 2 things that day.  #1- I totally sucked at running and #2 – it was OK that I sucked at running because I could actually RUN! There was no reason why I couldn’t try to learn to run!  I would finally prove that girl wrong from years ago!

I downloaded the C25K running app and did that for a while but felt if I needed more accountability, so when a good friend and PRC member posted last Spring that the LTR program was starting up, I signed up right away and have been running ever since! I am still not at a “let’s do an easy 15K ” kind of a runner  but I am a runner all the same and have come a long way from my sprint down my street! I have hit quite a few PB’s (personal bests- NOT pee breaks as I mistakenly once thought) and am still learning the ropes but slow and steady wins the race!!

So for the record- the girl that said I couldn’t run years ago…that was ME and I proved myself wrong! Never tell yourself that you cannot do something!  Today, I have multiple 5K’s under my belt plus my first Tele10 last year with my best LTR buddy. Our proudest moments aren't always the medals we achieve - sometimes our proudest moments are when no one is looking. 

 I plan do many more including a half marathon someday because I tell myself now that I CAN!

Much thanks for reading my story 

- Robyn Schwerdtfeger 

“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great”-Zig Zagler