Green Bay 5K Run/Marathon

Wow, was yesterday awesome. When we got to Lambeau Field yesterday it was pretty quiet, but that didn't last for long. Hubby ran in the 5K race (which had like 3600 entries). It's kinda like Where's Waldo...there he is in the red/black hat. (It was in the mid-30s when the race started.) Our friend was running the 1/2 marathon so I stayed with him because his wife and sister-in-law were also doing the 5K run. We walked up the road a little to see some of the 5K runners go through. Then he started warming up for his run, and I ran to get into the stadium to watch hubby run around the football field.

The runners come in and out through the tunnel where the football players come out for the games. I just made it in (zigzagging through the mobs of people) to see hubby running near the end zone. There was no way I'd get closer so I took a picture from where I was. He saw me (yellow may not be my favorite color, but it's bright) and waved. He's also wearing yellow which was easy to see.

I wasn't fast enough to see him cross the finish. He ran the race in 22 minutes and 22 seconds. (He was hoping for 24 minutes so he did GREAT! I'm very proud of him.) Since we've never been to this run, I then had to figure out how to meet up with him. Once I found him, we watched for our friend's wife and sister-in-law to cheer them on the last stretch of the race. I always get choked up to see complete strangers cheering on other strangers to keep going, especially when they look like they can't go another step. On a side note, this was my first time in Lambeau Field. My first impression (after I caught my breath) was how small it looked. It was difficult to believe how many people get squished in here for the football games. I'll continue to watch it on the TV thank you.

Once the girls were done, we figured out a spot where the 1/2 marathoners would be coming through so we could cheer on our friend. It was so loud, he didn't even hear us when he went through. It also didn't help he was on the opposite side of the road. Here is a picture of what it looked like when the 1/2 marathoners were coming to the finish line. There are so many people you can't even see the runners. To the left of the picture is the finish line. The far right side is where they come out of the tunnel.

Our friend finished the 1/2 marathon in 1 hour and 45 minutes. I applaud everyone who ran yesterday....regardless of their time.

This run came at a great time. I was starting to feel discouraged about my weight loss (or lack of) progress this week. Although I do think pre-Aunt Flo time may have something to do with it....hopefully it's just weight gain. Hubby wants me to run next year so I can "run on Lambeau Field". My motivation has been re-ignited and last night I ended up walking/jogging 2.55 miles. I tried jogging (sorry I can't call what I do running LOL) 1 minute and walking 1 minute but I got shin splints. Hubby said I should start out just jogging 30 seconds and walking 2-3 minutes....and gradually build up to jogging longer and walking less. We'll see how it goes.