I heard about the Commitment Day 5k a few months ago, but didn’t end up registering until late December, just because I wasn’t sure where we would be for New Year’s Eve and of be able to make it into the city for the run. Luckily we stayed local and the run was on. I wanted to run this 5k because of the great message behind it. “Commitment Day is a way to get people moving and excited about starting 2013 with a renewed commitment to living a healthy and active life, instead of simply making resolutions.”There were races in 30 cities around the country being run simultaneously, and it felt good to think that I was the part of something bigger than just a 5k in NYC.

Since I’m on the east coast, the NYC Commitment Day Run started at 11am. Since we went to bed around three, the late start time was a god send. I don’t know how all the west coasters did it at 8am! It was also nice to see that despite the freezing cold temps, people still came, bundled up and ready to run. The run itself took place along the West Side Highway and was an out and back loop. The start and finish lines were right along the Intrepid, so we had a sweet view of the ship and of the shuttle on our way to the finish line.

The run itself went well. I was tired from only sleeping 5 hours, I was cold, but I quickly warmed up. I struggled a bit, I walked a bit, but once I crossed the finish line I felt great. I could have stayed in my nice warm bed, but I got up and got it done. Since the race wasn’t officially timed with chips, I’m not sure of what my exact time was, but it was somewhere around 36 minutes. Not my fastest 5k, but I have a whole year to work on getting faster.

Overall the inaugural Commitment Day 5k was a great experience. I hope this race sticks around so that I can make this a New Year’s Day tradition.

I also have to thank Tommy for being super supportive and going to the race with me and freezing his butt off to cheer me on and get some pictures. With support like that, how can I not succeed?

 Did you workout on New Year’s Day?

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The first thing that really struck me was that running is the only sport in which technique is not taught. As a former high school track runner, I can vouch for that. We were encouraged to run our hearts out, but no one ever mentioned the proper form or anything about form at all. This is the reason that runners are very prone to injury.

Golden shared four steps to better running:

1. Posture. You should run with a straight body, slightly leaning forward, with your head up, shoulders back and relaxed. You shouldn’t be bending at the waist. Golden told us that his father, who is also a running legend, would watch marathons with him when he was younger and be able to predict the winners and who would fall away from the pack when they lost their core and bent at the waist. You can make sure that you have the proper posture by raising your hands “to the moon” while you run.

2. Foot Strike. Your midfoot should make contact with the ground and not your heel. You should also land under a bent knee in order to be able to absorb the pressure that your body creates when hitting the ground. Traditional running shoes have a heel that is at least two times the thickness of the toe. Due to this difference in height your foot doesn’t hit the ground at a natural stride and not under a bent knee. Golden also went on to say that there is no such thing as a magical running shoe. A shoe will never make you a better runner, but the wrong shoe can hurt you.

3. Arm movement. Your arms should be high and relaxed. Your elbows should stay behind your waist and your arms shouldn’t cross your body. If you have trouble keeping your arms in the efficient position, it is helpful to carry a water bottle or small weight to keep your arms up.

4. Cadence. No mater what speed you are running at, you should aim for an average of 180 steps per minute. An easy way to check you cadence is to count how many times your right leg hits the ground over 20 seconds. If you’re around 30 steps in 20 seconds, you’re looking good.

After the clinic, we were all outfitted with Altra shoes see the drop zero difference for ourselves. Since my gait analysis earlier this summer showed that I overpronate, I went with the stability shoe, the Altra Provisioness.

I’ve only been able to use them twice, and I am following Golden’s advice to slowly rotate these into your running routine. So far, so good. They honestly feel like no other running shoe I’ve ever had and they completely change the way your foot hits the ground and how your foot is spaced inside the shoe. It is remarkable what a difference a shoe can make.

What kind of shoes do you run in?

FTC: Altra Drop Zero provided me with a free pair of Altra Provisioness.

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On race day, I woke up around 5:30 on Saturday morning, put on my white t-shirt that I laid out the night before and headed out the door to get my Color Run on. The traffic started a few miles outside of the race site, and when I saw cars full of white shirted people, I started to get really excited. We took our before photos and made out way to the start line.

At the start line, I learned that 25,000 people were doing to do the Color Run over two days and that I was one of 12,500 who would be leaving that day covered from head to toe in colored dust. The pre-race entertainment did a good job of hyping everyone up. We did the wave a few times and danced a lot. When our wave finally made its way to the start line, I was super pumped to get running.

I’m not sure how much time elapsed between the first and second waves, but the first finisher passed us before we hit the first color zone. I wasn’t sure how the whole colorification process would work, but it was a lot of fun. The volunteers did a good job of covering us with the various colors and we ran, walked, jumped and danced through the color points.

Oh yea, and did color angels, in blue, which in hindsight was a good idea for me, since I had a baby shower to attend just two hours after the run, in a sleeveless dress.

When we got the the finish line, we took the mandatory jump pic and walked around and got some snacks and drinks from the different tents that were set up. We had just missed the first Color Explosion by just a few seconds, but we were super excited for the next one

to happen in 10 minutes.

The Color Explosion countdown began and we scurried to get near the stage for maximum color reach. The DJ started to count down and we ripped open our color packets and got ready to throw. The Color Explosion was slightly suffocating due to the incredible amount of powder in the air, but it looked amazing from both inside and out.

I left the race with a huge smile on my face, but not before getting dusted off with a leaf blower.

Overall, I think my first 5k was an awesome experience, and even though it wasn’t a real timed race, I had a blast. I’ve also already recruited some people to do it again next year. Can’t wait!

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