Fired Up 5k 2013

A week ago I ran the Town North YMCA Fired Up 5k with a couple of friends. I stayed out late the night before for a Halloween party, so a personal best was not even in mind.

Left to Right: Antonio, me, Monica and Joel. 

It was a small race, 295 runners to be exact. The 5k started at 8 AM. It was cloudy with temperatures in the low 60's.

The course took us through a nice quiet neighborhood, one a kid from my hood only dreams of living on some day. I spend the first few minutes trying to get the right tunes on my iPod. After ten minutes, I took of my headphones and decided to enjoy the scenery. Just be in the moment.

The majority of the course was flat, until I hit mile 2. I knew I didn't want to walk so I slowed down a lot. I kept telling myself, "your legs are giving up, your body is giving up. Time to run with your heart!" 

My friends were all done. They were waiting for me at the finish line. So I was surprised when it was announced I came in 3rd place in my age group! First time I win an award of any kind for a race. 

Monica came in 2nd under the same division and our friend Joel also placed in his age group. 

My official time was 32:14. A new personal best, even though I felt like I could of done better. Either way I have come a long way! In February at the Texas Half 5k, I finished in 38:55. In May at the Heel and Hills 5k, I finished in 38:39. I know with better preparation, proper rest AKA not partying the night before I can do much better.

This definitely has me excited for my next race! I just know my hard work is paying off!

Halloween Weekend Parites

In honor of Halloween, take a look at my costumes from parties I attended over the weekend.

Friday night, Jarrah and I went to a friend's party. I dressed up like a pirate and she went as a pimp. The music was great, the people were dressed up really cool and we had a great time.

Saturday night, Isabel and her roommates hosted their Halloween/House Warming Party. I went as a fortune teller, although somebody confused me for a princess. I laughed and said "Thank you."

All the girls looked great! They had plenty of drinks and snacks to get you through the night. After posing for pictures, we were off to the dance floor. We danced for the rest of the night until we said "no mas."

Happy Halloween!!!

First Time Carving a Pumpkin

At age 24, I finally carved my first pumpkin. Like where have I been? Probably having a sad childhood.

My awesome friend, Isabel, invited me to a small pumpkin carving party, hosted by her and her roommates. It was nice to see some familiar faces and catch up on life while carving these things. Oh and the pizza was good too!

I had not problem carving the hole on the top. But once opened, it got really messy AND THE FUN PART STARTED. I felt like a zombie from The Walking Dead digging with my bare hands inside my pumpkin. I was taking all the "guts" out, feeling like "grrrr, how you like that Mr. Walmart Pumpkin?!?"

As for my design, well my imagination is pretty limited. I went with something EXTRA easy, mainly because I didn't want to chop my fingers off.

MY MASTERPIECE 

Everybody else actually put some effort! This was my first time but definitely not my last.

It's Going to Be Okay

I've been avoiding this post for days.

About a month ago, I made the hard decision to stop training for a full marathon. It was hard to admit it to you but especially to myself. A marathon finish was a big goal of mine for 2013. 

Since then I've adjusted my training and will take on a half-marathon. This will be my second half-marathon. And although it's a "half," training will still require  full dedication. I haven't felt this satisfied about running in a while. My body is just loving it because it's not under a lot of pressure and my running spirit is slowly being restored. 

I neglect my blog for long periods, mainly because I have nothing awesome to update you about. But you can stay in touch with me here:

Twitter: carlaontherun

Instagram: carlaontherun

Nike Running (which I just started using): Carla_Leyva