Color Run!

A couple months back my friend and I heard about the Color Run. Neither of us had done it before so we decided to signup. The Color Run is a 5K so a little over 3 miles. I've mentioned before that I have never been a runner. In high school I definitely walked the mile (and maybe even skipped a lap altogether) so the idea of doing a 5K was kind of a stretch. But I really wanted to do it and be able to run the whole thing. So I downloaded this app called"Couch to 5K" or "C25K." The app has you start with a walk-run and then gradually increases your running time each day. "The lady" on the app as we call her is very helpful with her "begin running" and "you are halfway there" encouragements. One morning several weeks in I started up the app ready to go for the morning and saw that it had me running 20 minutes straight, the longest yet by far. I had a mini panic attack and just stared at the screen in shock thinking, you've got to be kidding me. But it wasn't so I went for it. It wasn't pretty but I managed and I kept at it.

This past Saturday was the day. My husband and I carpooled with our friends out to the Portland International Raceway and got ready to go. T-shirts, sweatbands, tattoos, and we were set. These Color Run people definitely know how to plan a run. The place was super high energy and we were pumped!

I really didn't know what to expect other then the fact that at some point we would end up covered in powdery paint. So we started running and we hit our first paint station. There are people on either side of the track with paint bottles, spraying you as you run through. There were four throughout the run, each a different color. Coming up to to the orange station, I got so excited I ran through with my mouth open. Bad idea. I ended up with a mouthful of orange powdery paint. Gross. We made it to the end and turned around to see our friends a few minutes behind and I was just so excited! I had run the whole thing! Silly I know, but I was just so happy!

We got some snacks and waited in line at a Speck cell phone case booth where we got free cases that we splattered with paint! Super fun! Then we headed over to the paint party! We opened our pant packets and starting throwing paint. Craziness!

So. Much. Fun. The whole thing was a total blast and I'm so glad I did it. It was definitely a great first 5K. Not going to lie, I was totally sore on Sunday and felt like an old woman. But that's all part of the fun I guess. Seriously though, that app is gold and if you're wanting to gear up to try the whole running thing, check it out. Totally works. Not sure if running is really for me, but its been fun while its lasted, and who knows how long that will be. At least I tried right?