Vero said she would start training for a 5k next month, and I eagerly said I would help out a bit. So last night after work we both suited up and left from the office.
The weather was perfect. Sunny, gentle breeze, and temps in the high sixties. Simply perfect.
Knowing Vero does not run a lot, I was planning on taking it out slow, warming up, and then picking up the pace after the first mile.
But being the head strong woman that Vero is, she started pacing ahead of me.
"Are you sure you want to go out at a 8:45 min mile?"
"Yeah, yeah, it feels good," Vero responded.
"Well, just let me know and we can pull back a bit," to be honest I was looking forward to easing into the workout, and here she was kicking my rear into pace. I told myself to just take it like a champ and continue on.
When we hit the one mile mark, we were hit by a slight distraction.
"That looks like my niece up there," I pointed to a lean pre-teen with bright clothes on ahead.
"That's because it is your niece, Clarkie."
We veered off the path and crossed over to my nieceie, who happened to be holding a couple of packets in her hands. I saw the surprise in her face to actually see me out running, and then joy. At first I thought that jubilation she was exerting came from seeing her favorite auntie.
But then I caught sight of the packets in her hand and remembered she is my brother's child.
"Want to buy some wrapping paper or cookies?" She said with a grin on her face. Yeah, all she really wanted was my money. I stopped the watch while Vero and I did the obligatory peruse through the catalog's for her choir's fund raiser. We placed our orders and continued on our way.
"So, do you find it ironic that out of everything in the catalog, both of us decided to buy cookie dough while we are out for a run?" I asked Vero.
"Hmm--" Vero grunted and I took that as a signal to ignore the obvious and pick up my slack to start moving again.
On the running graph there is a drop at mile two.
The weather was perfect. Sunny, gentle breeze, and temps in the high sixties. Simply perfect.
Knowing Vero does not run a lot, I was planning on taking it out slow, warming up, and then picking up the pace after the first mile.
But being the head strong woman that Vero is, she started pacing ahead of me.
"Are you sure you want to go out at a 8:45 min mile?"
"Yeah, yeah, it feels good," Vero responded.
"Well, just let me know and we can pull back a bit," to be honest I was looking forward to easing into the workout, and here she was kicking my rear into pace. I told myself to just take it like a champ and continue on.
When we hit the one mile mark, we were hit by a slight distraction.
"That looks like my niece up there," I pointed to a lean pre-teen with bright clothes on ahead.
"That's because it is your niece, Clarkie."
We veered off the path and crossed over to my nieceie, who happened to be holding a couple of packets in her hands. I saw the surprise in her face to actually see me out running, and then joy. At first I thought that jubilation she was exerting came from seeing her favorite auntie.
But then I caught sight of the packets in her hand and remembered she is my brother's child.
"Want to buy some wrapping paper or cookies?" She said with a grin on her face. Yeah, all she really wanted was my money. I stopped the watch while Vero and I did the obligatory peruse through the catalog's for her choir's fund raiser. We placed our orders and continued on our way.
"So, do you find it ironic that out of everything in the catalog, both of us decided to buy cookie dough while we are out for a run?" I asked Vero.
"Hmm--" Vero grunted and I took that as a signal to ignore the obvious and pick up my slack to start moving again.
On the running graph there is a drop at mile two.
That is when I was told we would start going slower. Vero is very demanding.
It did not bother me though, I felt good, and the slower pace was okay. I think I started to annoy Vero though when I started doing donuts around her and veering around the path. I swear I was not showing off.
Okay, maybe just a little bit.
But we finished just over 30 minutes. I figure that not being a regular runner, that was a great place for someone in Vero's shape to be at. She does cardio at her gym several times a week, including strength training. She has run before, just generally not as far or fast. If we put together the right training program for her, she should be able to vastly improve her time for the 5k.
So I really did not break my friend. We finished in a respectable time, did not even have to walk (other than our distraction at mile 1). And if she says anything to the contrary, I will remind her again that I tried to pull her back, but she pushed the pace.
And if all else fails, I will blackmail her with the cookie dough.
It did not bother me though, I felt good, and the slower pace was okay. I think I started to annoy Vero though when I started doing donuts around her and veering around the path. I swear I was not showing off.
Okay, maybe just a little bit.
But we finished just over 30 minutes. I figure that not being a regular runner, that was a great place for someone in Vero's shape to be at. She does cardio at her gym several times a week, including strength training. She has run before, just generally not as far or fast. If we put together the right training program for her, she should be able to vastly improve her time for the 5k.
So I really did not break my friend. We finished in a respectable time, did not even have to walk (other than our distraction at mile 1). And if she says anything to the contrary, I will remind her again that I tried to pull her back, but she pushed the pace.
And if all else fails, I will blackmail her with the cookie dough.
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