Monday, March 22, 2010

2010 Irish Jig

I loved this race. Michigan weather was bipolar again on Saturday and we woke up to snow. Man it was cold. I was decked out in a green bandanna, Nike knickers and running coat. Good to go. Again it was COLD. I did all of the pre-race rituals. Hydrated, carb loaded, stretched, tapered ect. I will post the delicious alfredo recipe from runners world at the bottom.

We arrived to EGR HS and it was packed. We still had to pick up out packets so we made our way into the gym. Everything was so well organized and they had the cutest irish band playing for everyone. We got our packets and wandered around finding people we knew would be there. Men were running at 9am and Woman at 9:35am so Jeramy headed out to warm up and I stayed inside were it was, well, WARM.

I had found my friend Jessica (check out her blog Real Food for Real Life ) and we headed out together. She is a much stronger runner than me so headed towards the back and she headed towards the front. This was a mistake on my part. I underestimated myself and should of headed towards the middle more but oh well, live and learn. The snow was falling and it was freezing out but I was ready to go. Right on time the race started and I crossed the line about 2 minutes after the start. That's how many people there were. WOW. Right away I found out that I was behind some people that didn't run the same pace as me. We were headed downhill at the start and alot of them were trying to fight gravity and take short choppy steps. Right then and there I knew this would be a learning experience for me. From .5 miles to around mile 2 we were working slightly uphill with a few little downhill rollers in there. I am not a fast runner but I am consistent so when I would come upon a row of 4 women talking and jogging I would have to slow until I figured out how to get around them. Now I know why some races have pace markers in lineup. It didn't bother me that much.. I was there to finish. This happened a few more times especially after mile 2 when we started working downhill. One time it was with a husband, baby and stroller that had decided to join his wife for the last mile. I have never had the ability before to pass people so I really learned some lessons that morning. After the last corner I visualized my line and started to kick coming in at 37:54.  That is 10 minutes faster than my 1st 5k. It is not lightening speed but I have greatly improved.

Crossing that line I ran directly to Jeramy who finished with a strong 20:22. A little slow for him but the silly man was horribly under dressed for our 1st day of spring snow. By  the time we got back into the gym they were serving cake and the band was playing again. They started handing out door prizes, trophies and everyone was swapping stories. My cousins husband slid out in the first corner and had a nasty case of road rash on his leg but still finished 21:24...he is over 50, amazing!!! My friend Jessica, mentioned above, came in at 27:22 and another friend Joelle ran it in 36:xx and it was her first one :o)

Overall it was wonderful. Well organized, great course and FUN. It is definitely a must do if you are in the area.

Rocco's Healthy Alfredo:
8 ounces whole-wheat fettuccine
1 tablespoon butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons cornstarch
Pinch of ground nutmeg
3/4 cup low-fat, low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3/4 cup 5 percent Greek yogurt
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add fettuccine; cook according to package directions.

While pasta cooks, melt butter in a large nonstick saute pan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook two minutes.

Combine cornstarch and nutmeg in a small bowl; whisk in chicken broth until smooth. Pour into saute pan, raise the heat, and bring sauce to a simmer, whisking occasionally.

Whisk in 1/2 cup of the cheese until melted. Remove pan from heat.
Whisk in yogurt until smooth.

Toss fettuccine with Alfredo sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Top pasta with remaining cheese. Serves four.
CALORIES PER SERVING: 336
CARBS: 47 G
PROTEIN: 18 G
FAT: 10 G

2 comments:

Cyclin' Missy said...

Congrats on cutting 10 minutes off your time. That's awesome! Sounds like a fun race - I didn't even remember that it was happening this weekend.

Jenny said...

Great job on the run!

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