First Group Training

Yesterday was the first group training, and I was terrified! I was really excited to meet everyone and see what everything was about, but I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Could I really do this thing? Can I keep up with everyone? I don't care if I'm the last one to cross the finish line, as long as I do, but am I going to embarrass myself throughout the entire training?

So, of course, I started waking up at 2 in the morning, afraid that I had overslept.

It was finally morning, and I got ready. I had gotten an e-mail that we shouldn't wear anything cotton next to our skin (to prevent chafing - everyone keeps talking about chafing - I'm nervous) and should dress in layers, so I had that all ready to go. I layered up and was out the door. After getting lost (despite having GPS - I can get lost anywhere!) I found where I was supposed to be. We had breakfast and got some time to mingle before our workshops started. Everyone was extremely nice, and I calmed down faster than I usually do. Some of the coaches gave classes on injury prevention, nutrition, safety, and stretching.

Then, it was time for the group run/walk. It started with a talk from someone who was training with us whose father had died from cancer last year, so he was uniquely touched by the team and the cause. It really put things in perspective and helped to fire everyone up. The beginner walk was 2 miles, and the intermediate walk was 3. My plan was to see how I was doing after 1 mile, then decide where to go from there. If I was getting tired, I could turn around with the 2 milers, or if I was feeling good, keep going with the intermediate group. I started off strong, and was going in the middle of the group! That was a huge boost for my confidence. There was a huge hill about a half mile into the walk, and I managed to do that without dying. My coach was able to assess my posture and make a few suggestions on things to change to help my joints, which made a huge difference.

At the one mile mark, I was feeling great, so I decided to go ahead and walk the 3 miles. Most people had turned around, but there was a small group that decided to go ahead with me. We kept going, and suddenly realized that we were the only ones. Luckily there was a coach with us who knew the way, so we kept going. Around 2 1/2 miles it started to get frustrating. I had gotten hot, and by this point, we were seeing a lot of people who had finished driving past us. It was inspiring to have them all honking and waving, and I just kept reminding myself that I was doing the intermediate walk! That gave me the energy that I needed to finish strong.

When I was done, I felt great! My ankles were sore, but not terrible, and the rest of me felt great. By the time I had gotten home, the blisters set in. Apparently when I was thinking about "no cotton next to your skin" and "chafing", I didn't think about my socks. That is a mistake that I will NEVER make again!

Sara and I stopped by Walgreens before going to the craft fair, and I wrapped the balls of my feet and toes in gauze. That helped a lot, and I was able to stand and walk through the entire fair. I guess I was putting too much weight on my heels though, because this morning I've been horribly stuff.

So, lessons learned:
No cotton socks
I'm supposed to eat 74g of protein a day

Does anyone have any protein suggestions?
Or any good songs to listen to? I've got a lot of walking to do this week...