Memphis Hungry Turkey 5K Run Walk 2021 recap

Race Recap:

I enjoy exercising when I’m out of town. I looked for a race in north Mississippi and the Memphis Hungry Turkey 5K Run Walk was the nearest. This year, they supported the Mid-South Food Bank. The registration experience online was easy. 

The website gave me all the information I needed. I thought about registering my kids because they offer a kids race option. I ended up only registering myself. I was really interested in the race swag: a grey long sleeve shirt with the race logo. I picked up my packet the day before at Academy. The race organizers sent several emails ahead of time to be sure we were ready for race day. They get an A+ for communication. I picked up my bib and my shirt. I’m looking forward to wearing it for cold runs this winter! 

 The weather on the day of the race called for a 100% chance of rain. Another interesting thing was that I thought the location was around 1-hour drive but it was closer to 1 hour and a half. Still, I was determined to get to this 5K on Thanksgiving morning. I drank a cup of coffee, and off I went. It rained during most of the drive. I occasionally train in the rain. It is not my favorite thing to do but I know I need to know how to run in the rain in case it rains during race day.

The race started and ended at the Memphis Pyramid. There’s a Bass Pro Shop there now. I parked for free on the other side and walked to the start. I used my umbrella and wondered if I needed to park closer. The rain stopped 15 minutes before the race started. I took a photo with Hank the turkey, did my usual stretches and off we went. There was a huge incline at the beginning of the race. I decided to pace myself and run the entire thing. 

I kept telling myself “everything that goes up must go down.” Once we went down, the course was pretty flat. I had never been to Mud Island before and it is lovely. We had a great view of Harbor Town to our right and the Mississippi River to our left. We even saw some pretty big vessels transporting cargo during the race. The course was out and back so before I knew it, I was on my way back to that incline. Again, I thought about how I wanted to pace myself and not stop. I usually run intervals but I decided to run the entire thing for fun. 

My goal was to pace myself and enjoy my first live race experience since before the pandemic (I need to do a better job recapping my races as you can see and I will!). I encouraged the offegating runners around me. A lot were walking up and I don’t blame them. I encouraged them to go on as I was breathing hard and focusing on finishing strong. 

My official time was 32:38. My goal was to run the whole thing and enjoy it, which I did! You can see a video of me finishing here. 

 I went to get my medal, which came in a small cutesy plastic bag. There was a place where you could get your official time but I did it online. They also had donuts for the finishers but donuts are not my things so I passed. I took a few more photos and went on happily on my way. Check out this nice medal! One of the best 5K medals I've ever received.

I really enjoyed my race experience and I wholeheartedly recommend you to sign up if you are in the Memphis area. 

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Como começar a Correr

Eu comecei a correr uns meses antes de ficar grávida pela primeira vez. No dia que descobri que estava grávida, eu corri 5 kilômetros sem parar. Eu estava tão orgulhosa! 

Daí começou aquele ritmo: corre, fica grávida, caminha durante a gravidez, para de fazer exercícios e começa tudo de novo. Eu fiz isso umas três vezes. 

Quando a minha filha mais nova fez uns 8 meses, eu decidi que estava na hora de correr a tão sonhada maratona. Depois que me recuperei da cesária, eu comecei a correr devagarzinho. Depois de um tempo eu me inscrevi pra uma corrida de 10 Kilômetros. Eu gostei demais da experiência porque eu só tinha corrido até 5K. 

Eu entrei num grupo de corrida e treinei bem com eles. Essa é uma foto da minha primeira maratona. 

Valeu apena treinar bem e persistir, apesar dos obstáculos. Hoje eu já completei 6 maratonas e estou treinando pra minha sétima em Dezembro. 

Muita gente quer correr pra emagrecer. O emagrecimento veio mas com muito esforço. Eu escrevia tudo o que comia num caderninho. Eu tinha feito Vigilantes no passado mas naquela época eu não tinha dinheiro então resolvi emagrecer sozinha mesmo.

Do mesmo jeito que se emagrece correndo, você também pode engordar. Gente, eu já engordei treinando pra maratona! O bom foi que aprendi com meus erros. Uma das maiores lições que aprendi foi que eu não preciso comer tanto quanto penso que preciso.

Consulte o seu médico para saber quais são as regras nutricionais que você deve seguir. 

Então, como começar a correr? Aqui vão as minhas dicas:

• Compre um bom tênis de corrida. Aqui nos EUA tênis de corrida é caro mas na internet você acha modelos antigos por um bom desconto. A minha dica é de ir na loja e provar várias marcas. Quando você achar uma marca que te dá bastante apoio, procure ela por um preço bom. O tênis é importante porque o seu corpo todo precisa de apoio durante a corrida. Eu não gosto de indicar marcas porque todo mundo corre de forma diferente e cada marca é diferente. Quando você achar uma marca boa, lembre-se que tênis é igual a pneu de carro: você tem que trocá-lo de 500-800 Km. 

• Siga uma planilha de treinamento. Eu recomendo o plano do "Sofá para o 5K". Vários aplicativos tem esse plano (couch to 5k no Inglês) e ele também já foi traduzido pro Português. Essa planilha vai te ajudar a criar o hábito de correr com o objetivo de correr 5 kilômetros no final. Muita gente começa a seguir o plano e para. Meu conselho é pra você não desistir. Tente encontrar uma pessoa pra te animar. Eu sei que com o COVID, se encontrar em grupos é difícil. Você pode mandar uma foto sua pra uma amiga como prova de que completou o treinamento do dia. O importante é não desistir. 

• Inscreva-se em um grupo de corrida. Quando as coisas melhorarem, encontre um grupo de corrida. Você vai aprender muito com as pessoas do grupo. Você vai ficar bem mais animada, vai fazer amizades e você vai ter sempre alguém esperando por você na hora de correr. Grupos de corrida são ótimos pra quem desiste fácil de correr sozinha.

• Inscreva-se em uma corrida de rua. As competições de rua são muito animadas. Se inscrever também é um incentivo pra ser fiel ao treino. Quando as coisas voltarem ao normal, inscreva-se em uma corrida de rua. 

• Fortaleça os seus músculos. Não sei se você reparou que o treino de corrida são só 3 dias. É muito importante fortalecer os músculos pelo menos duas vezes por semana. Esses exercícios vão te ajudar a evitar lesões e fortificar os seus músculos para que a corrida seja bem eficaz.

• Descanse bem. Muito corredor corre demais e não descansa. É muito importante descansar para evitar lesões e para que o seu corpo possa se fortalecer para a próxima série de exercícios. Eu descanso duas vezes por semana.

• Beba bastante água. Estar bem hidratado por dentro é importante. Beba o suficiente todos os dias e não esqueça de beber durante a corrida quando você estiver correndo por mais de 1 hora ou se o dia estiver muito quente. 

• Divirta-se! Se não for divertido, não conte comigo. Eu gosto de correr porque é um tempo de diversão e de alegria. A vida é muito séria mas a corrida não precisa ser. Sorria por dentro e por fora quando você correr. 

Tem muito mais sobre esse assunto mas essas são as minhas dicas principais. 

Um bom dia pra você e vamos correr?

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Chevron Houston Marathon Week 7

I have learned not to forsake God given gifts while preparing for a marathon. We have 155 days to go and today I want to encourage you and I to focus on what we have instead of what we lack. Here's a little bit of my story. I started running in 2008 after years of walking.

I found out I was expecting shortly after I signed up for my first 5K. I didn't have the speed and experience my peers had. I didn't have the proper attire (I wore cotton for years before I learned there were better material out there) or the proper shoes. What I did have was Persistence to finish what I started.

My first 5K. I was 10 weeks pregnant and 28 years young.

My first 42K. 3 kids and 34 years young.

6 years and 3 kids later, I ran my first Chevron Houston Marathon. I added 37 kilometers to the 5 I was familiar with. I had Faith that God was going to help me reach the dream of being a marathoner.

Faith and Persistence are things you can't buy in the running store. You can't buy Confidence either. Every time someone reminds me of what I don't have (incredible speed, the latest gear, the practice of the latest cross training fad, etc) I remind myself of what I do have.

You and I have all the motivation we need to finish the Marathon with confidence. We all have the discipline to get up, day after day and train. We all have the Persistence to get through difficult runs. We all have the Patience to trust the training and stick with the plan laid in front of us.

I'm proof that the longer you stick with focusing on what you have, the easier the process will be. Comparison is lethal to marathon training. It takes away your peace and it paralyzes your ability to know how valuable you really are. My challenge is to focus on where I am today and press forward to my goal of running a strong Houston Marathon in January.

I wonder if you too can change your perspective and focus on the Faith, Persistence, Patience, Confidence and Discipline you already have. Let me know if it works for you!

• Register for the Chevron Houston Marathon here

In other news:
• Watch my latest Periscope here, I'm reviewing the book "Spiritual Leadership" by J. Oswald Sanders

Previously in this Series:
• Weeks 1 - 6

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Freedom 5K Recap

Our before the race photo

I'm so excited to tell you about our first race as a family! The Freedom 5K is part of our marathon training with our running group. The kids had been excited about having the t-shirt they got during our group's kick-off party. They told me as they held their t-shirts "now our whole family can run." We woke up early, put on our Fort Bend Fit shirts and off we went. If you follow me on Periscope you can saw our running group pre-race ritual, which is a prayer, our "hooyah," then we walk to the start line. I decided to hang in the back because I was going to be pushing a stroller. After we ran half a mile my husband asked me if I wanted to give him the stroller and run with my son. I said yes. My son runs very well. He asked to walk a bit and was excited about reaching the water stop till we saw this:

guess who? my beautiful people!

My husband Zeke told me that our middle daughter was tired and had enough of the race. As a runner I was thinking: "are you serious?!?" but as a mother, I told him to go ahead with our son and I'd hang back with the girls. After a quick assessment I agreed that the girl was done. Much like my own personality, she went into her bad mood. Thank God one of our sweet running club buddies hung with us and sweetly talked to my daughter for close to a mile. I thanked her for her help and told her she could go on and finish. I proceeded to walk back to our car and get the double stroller out of it. When I reached the start line (again) the Family 1.5 Walk/Run was starting. To make matters more interesting, the girls kept asking me to run faster. Mind you: I was pushing a good 70 lbs of beauty on a double stroller!!! I think that my confession for this race was "we finish what we start." I kept saying that to myself because I also got some "I want to go home" from my youngest. I thought that it was important to physically teach my kids that no matter how difficult, we finish what we start. When we passed the second water stop they were out of water but they did have ice and super mom here had enough water in the stroller to hydrate half dozen runners. Ha! By the time i saw that we were on mile 2, I thought the last mile was going to be my longest one yet.

By this time I was thinking: forget my time!

This 5k started and ended at a local park so as soon as I re-entered the park I saw my friend Mary Bell running. I haven't seen her in a while so I started asking about her training. This friend of mine is a Boston runner and she's training for Chicago so she was asking all kinds of questions about my experience last year. Talking to her made that last bit of the race seem quicker. When I was really close to the finish line, my husband and some came back to meet us. My son had a bunch of goodies in hand and he screamed "Dada and I won the race!" That was the sweetest thing ever to hear. My husband took on the stroller duty and I ran solo to the finish line. Our head coach was there cheering me on. I finished in 48:07.6, which I believe it's my slowest time ever. I've ran a 5K when I was 10 weeks pregnant and I've finished faster than that. All things considered, I reached my goal: I finished what I started. My husband made sure we got this photo for our records.

We did it Listenbees!

No matter how long it took and how difficult it was, everyone had a great time. I felt that this race taught me what Luke 22:27 really means. Jesus was explaining that He came not to be served but to serve. I will forever remember this race as my "serving" race. I got to do whatever it took to be sure that my family had a great time and finished the race well. It is more blessed to give than to receive. I have ran many races by myself but I am overjoyed to  have experienced this incredible race with my entire family.

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Chicago Marathon Training Week 11 (em Português)

* Hoje escrevi em Português e Inglês. Today I wrote in Portuguese and English.

O dia que descobri que fui aceita pra correr a Maratona de
Chicago. Minha torcida estava presente :)

Olá queridos amigos que falam Português! Estou treinando para a Maratona de Chicago fazem 11 semanas. Na verdade faz muito mais tempo porque depois que terminei a maratona de Houston em Janeiro não parei de treinar. Hoje faltam 26 dias pra maratona, estou animada e com a ajuda de Deus vai ser uma experiência ótima. 

O meu treino não tem sido fácil. Ouvi dizer que nada que vale apena é fácil, então a medalha que se ganha tem um alto valor! O exercício físico é bom, e as populares corridas são boas pra saúde. O meu desafio é de conciliar a vida com o treino. O treino em si é um prazer, o desafio é chegar na linha de partida. Graças a Deus e com a ajuda do meu esposo e amigos tenho conseguido treinar bem. 

Semana passada corri 29 kilômetros durante minha corrida longa. Geralmente eu começo a corrida com umas amigas e termino sozinha, mas semana passada corri tudo sozinha mesmo. Ter flexibilidade é bom nesse caso. Aprendi a não ser dependente de ninguém pra correr e ao mesmo tempo aprecio a compania das amigas e do meu querido grupo de corrida. 

Um bairro aqui perto de casa. Gosto muito de correr lá.

Ainda estamos no verão, e como moramos no sul do Texas o verão é eterno. Aprendi a me hidratar bem tanto com água quanto com o Gatorade. 

Desse vez eu estou prestando atenção em como me sinto no final da corrida. Se me sinto bem é porque tomei a quantidade certa de líquidos e de gel (tenho tomado de 2 a 3) e não tentei quebrar nenhum record de velocidade.

Falando em record, de umas 2 semanas pra cá venho pesando em como o desenvolvimento do maratonista deve ser lento. Ouvi minha coach dizer que geralmente as pessoas que se machucam são aqueles que treinam demais ou de menos. O negócio é seguir o plano do grupo e esperar pelo dia da maratona. 

Outra coisa que muita gente não fala, é que pra maioria dos espectadores, o que importa é a medalha e não o tempo que levou pra terminar a maratona. 

Tenho aprendido que o treino da mente é importante demais. Penso nos Kenianos, que vivem vidas simples e treinam a mente pra ganhar corridas. Tenho treinado muito a minha mente através da oração, da paz e da visualização da linha de chegada. Se Deus quiser vou me divertir muito no meio disso tudo. 

Obrigada por ler o blog! Preciso saber quais são os tópicos que mais interessam a vocês. Me deixem um comentário por favor? Um abraço! 

I finished my last long run with 30 days til go time!

26 days to go! We're counting days and no longer months til Marathon Day. I am so very thankful to God for the opportunity as well as to my husband and friends who have made it possible for me to register, train, rest, etc. I pray that God will bless you for helping me! 

Last week's training wasn't easy but it was worth it. For the first time in a long time I ran 18.3 miles solo. I often start with friends from my running group and finish by myself but last week my schedule just didn't coincide with my friends' training. I enjoy running with others but I find it valuable to be flexible in a way that I know what it feels to motivate myself for miles and miles.

"Mosquito city" didn't bother me. I bet you could also smell my repellent for miles and miles. I find that mosquitos are another motivation not to stop when I'm running. Last year I remember mosquito season being bad but not for long.

I am watching the weather in Chicago and I tell you what, it's lovely right now. I believe that whether we're in the cooler or warmer side, I'll be ready for it. 

This past week, my favorite running Podcast Marathon Training Academy, announced that they are having a Meet Up at the Chicago Marathon. I am so excited about meeting Angie and Trevor and personally thanking them for being the first ones to motivate me to run a marathon. I have a few friends from my running group running the Chicago marathon as well so that will be awesome. 

The Chicago Marathon has given us our starting corrals, which is a sign that there's no turning back. I am still praying about a few logistics but I am eager to get in my corral and see Chicago through a fun and rewarding way. I believe that the best way to get to know a city is to run it. 

In other exciting news, I've been sponsored to run a local 5K in November. I am honored and thankful for the opportunity. The last time I was sponsored to run my first Texas 5K I won 2nd place overall. Yep, I put a lot of pressure on myself to make my sponsors proud :) I believe that in 2 months I will be back with my running group full time, training for the Houston Marathon and we have a 15-miler that same weekend. I've had the experience of running a 13-miler and still doing decent at that 5K, so I hope that my legs remember that. While I am focused on marathon training, I respect every distance. I love to compete, the joyful atmosphere of every competition and the free fruit at the end.

Next week I will be running my last long run (20 miles) before the marathon. After that it's tapper time. I appreciate your prayers and encouragement as I tackle the end of one more marathon training season and jump right back into training for Houston. Have an amazing week!

Previously in this Series:
• Week 1
• Week 2
• Week 3
• Week 4
• Week 5
• Week 6
• Week 7
• Week 8
• Week 9
• Week 10
• Week 11

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NaBloPoMo: My Own Pace

I've been trying to get in the race scene in Houston for a while. Shortly after I arrived here I was expecting so I decided to postpone. Mind you that I was 10 weeks pregnant when I finished my first 5K, so pregnancy is usually not an issue when it comes to my running. 

Now that I am holding my beautiful third child and ready to race, I have given up twice on racing. The first time I gave up on a race it was because my running partner couldn't make it. She got injured and stopped training. It was also a busy weekend for us at the church. Today's race was supposed to be my debut in Texas running. I was going to do this and even had lined up a sitter to keep my kids. It was also going to be the first time I ran solo, meaning, no family or friends to cheer me on. This week I decided to cancel with the sitter (thus saving money) and made up my mind not to run. 

Running in Texas has been more of a challenge because I miss the running community I had in NC. I had friends in every race I ran. I had friends encouraging me weekly to keep running. I had friends who had been to Boston and back and were serious runners who kept encouraging me to go on. Here I have pursued several people to join me but I haven't found the same support. 

I do have a friend who ran in the park with me and is an amazing source of encouragement. She lives a little far and is currently training to finish another half. 

I am saying all of this to say that I could not replicate the same conditions I had in NC: I tried to encourage a buddy to sign up with me and that didn't work. I tried to look for encouragement from others who see me weekly and that didn't work. I also took a good look at my life in general. I am not back to "normal." Racing would be a treat - I love the bagels at the finish line - but it would also put more pressure into my life. 

I will keep running and creating a good running base (3 - 5 miles three times a week) so that I can seriously pursue training for the Chicago Marathon. Maybe my season to do 5Ks is over. It is difficult to hear it ain't if the person speaking is not out there training hard and with sweat marks in their t-shirt to prove it. I decided that putting a hold on racing doesn't mean that I gave up on finishing the Chicago Marathon. I will continue to do that which brings me joy: running. What I cannot do is to add unnecessary pressure to my life right now. My husband and kids need me to be relaxed and not horrified all the time for not making one day of training. They also need me healthy, that's why I will keep working on my running basis and adding strength training to it. 

God has a nice way to bless me. My friend girl who came to visit me training with me one day and really encouraged me to pursue strength training again. She showed me some new things that will help me as a runner (she's an amazing runner herself). So today, instead of celebrating another finish line crossed, I celebrate the fact that I have not given up on my dream. I have chosen to do it on my own pace. 

QUESTION • What are the dreams you have put on hold? 

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FOCUSED

"...And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith." Hebrews 12:1-2

My husband recently started wearing eye glasses. He had been experiencing awful headaches day after day. Meds were not helping any more, so we decided to fix the root of the problem. Zeke had indeed lost his (eye) focus, which was impeding him to live a great life. The headaches are not literally gone now that he regained his focus.
We all need to refocus our vision from time to time and this is what Hebrews 12:1-2 talks about. As we focus our eyes on Jesus, it is easy to run with endurance the race that God has set before us.
I know all about races, mostly when I'm not pregnant (I completed my first race at 10 weeks of pregnancy). As I am crossing this particular finish line, all I could focus on was my goal. I run with my eyes focused on my goal and my mind set on it. I do it every time and I finish well every time. As I think of my life and the things I have accomplished, I realized that the big finish is due to the right focus. When I lose my focus discouragement settles in my mind and it paralyses my legs. Hebrews 12 is offering us a solution for our sometimes lost of focus: Jesus.
• My encouragement for you today is that you keep running but be sure you fix the root of your problems by having the right focus. Have a great race my friend!

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Three 5Ks by July: Check!

3 just seemed like a good number, so I went for it. My goal was to run 3 5K races by the end of July. I figured that one race per month would be doable and affordable. I also realized it would be challenging enough for someone who was known to run one per year. As I come closer to reaching this goal, I am so thankful to God for the ability to simply put one foot in front of the other and running.

I was never known as the best athlete. I was not the fastest or fittest but an adverse situation taught me that I could run if I really wanted to. A desire was planted in my heart and persistence got me there.

I don’t think I am better than anyone else, as a matter of fact, I bet I have more excuses than the regular person. I have learned the value of knowing my minimum and knowing what I will not tolerate:

I won’t tolerate excuses;

I won’t tolerate self-pity;

I won’t tolerate self-defeat.

I will entertain positive and Godly thoughts such as ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me’ and ‘I will reap a harvest of blessings if I faint not.’ Meditation leads me to action which pushed me to three finish lines.

Barney Butter Giveaway Winner: Congratulations Rachel of Twin Tough! You must respond within 3 days of this notification or forfeit the prize, in which case an alternate 
winner will be selected. Thank you Barney Butter for sponsoring the Giveaway!
Related Videos: • Journey to the Finish Line (first 5K) series • The Human Race (second 5K)

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Reaching Fitness Goals

Notes from Vlog: Journey to the Finish Line (complete video series)


Coming Tuesday, July 5: The 5 Easiest Ways to Lose Friends on Facebook - a post for Business Owners trying to navigate through online marketing.

Barney Butter Giveaway ends July 5th, submit your entry now (low entries = more chances to win)

• Do you have a question for a Professional Counselor? I am working on a Podcast titled: "Counseling Demystified: Benefits for Individuals and Families" and I would love to ask your questions! E-mail me at simplycintia@gmail.com and your question may be answered in the Podcast!

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The Human Race 2011

This weekend I had the joy of finishing "The Human Race," a local event hosted by the Haywood/Jackson Volunteer Center. My goal for 2011 is to finish three 5K races by July, so this was the second one.  

My family was there to support me which made a whole world of difference. The more I participate in races, the more fun I have. I am also learning that although the mileage is the same, every course is different. That feeling I get when I cross the finish line never changes tough. Today I am thankful to God for allowing me to train and finish my second 5K of 2011. When I thought about where I came from, how I never saw myself as a runner, I was overjoyed. Running had three different phases in my life:

1. Impossible 

2. Dream

3. Reality 

This is what Phase 3 looks like:

This is my favorite photo of the day. Being healthy for my Family is the reason why I keep pressing on:

The sun was bothering someone :)

Beat my previous record by 1 minute!

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Desafio: Minha Corrida

Sábado passado eu realizei o meu objetivo de participar da minha terceira corrida de 5Km. Aqui vai um vídeo com os acontecimentos daquele dia maravilhoso e uma pergunta pra você.

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Journey to the Finish Line

Official Finish time:

I'm very thankful!

Here's my previous Finish time, which means I shoved 9:32 from my second 5K and here's the Finish Time for my first 5K, I shoved 4:12 from my first 5K.

Watch my entire Journey to the Finish Line series:
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

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Journey to the Finish Line

I cross my finish line this Saturday. Here's the end of the series and everything that happened last week. See you at the finish line! I'll give you a race day wrap up next Monday, so please come back for videos and photos of my first 5K of the season.

Watch my entire Journey to the Finish Line series:

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

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Journey to the Finish Line

Watch my entire Journey to the Finish Line series:

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6

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