Chelsea Bridges Getting ready for the 2012 Olympics in London?

Posted Nov 17, 2009 by Al Mccray

Updated Nov 18, 2009 at 08:24 AM

I am not a sport person or for that matter an athlete. I could never ever image myself running in any type of race or working out on any basis. The most exercise I get is walking to and from my car. But I have great respect for people who do participate in sporting events and who work out regularly.

One such person is Ms. Chelsea Bridges, a rehabilitation instructor. This is her account of a recent event that she was a participant.

If anyone had of told me that I, Chelsea Bridges, would enter a 5K run and complete it, I would have thought they were crazy. My record for a continuous run had never been more than 1.5 miles; not the 3.3 miles required for a 5K. I am known for walking great distances and doing it quickly. So a 5K RUN sounded definitely “do-able”.

This run idea all started several months ago when I joined a new fitness center in Carroll Wood.

There were many reasons why I joined this particular fitness center. Some of them were; the closeness to my home, I had read many good things about this center, the facility was very clean, their equipment looked new, and the price of the membership seemed fair and very reasonable. Another reason was that they offered a variety of classes and workouts at different times. They offered individual personal trainers. This was about my fourth or fifth fitness center that I have joined in recent memory. My two personal trainers were Anthony Holland (strength training) and Michelle Curtis (strength training and running).  I became a regular at the center.

(pictures above -  Chelsea working out with Michelle Curtis in preparing for 5K Run)
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Today I still continue work out multiple times per week.

While working out one day with Michelle, she suggested that I enter a 5K / 3.3 miles race. With her help and guidance I started preparing for the “RUN”. It would be my first 5K. Michelle thought that the Picnic Island Adventure Run would be the perfect place to start with because of the running surface, lower impact running on sand than concrete.

The race was held on Friday, June 12th at 6:45 p.m. on course off Tampa Bay. When Michelle said that I could run and ‘walk’ I felt that I could successfully complete this event. I had been paying closes attention when she said I could walk too.

I arrived about an hour early, got in line for registration among the hundreds of other runners. As I looked around, the ages of the other people ranged from teens to grand parents.

Michelle joined me after I had completed the registration; gotten a number to wear on my chest and a bottle of cold iced water.

Before the race started I worked out for about 15-20 minutes by running through rows of tires on the ground the same way NFL foot ball players work out. I also stretch my legs and arms.

Then it was race time. The race started off running along the beach, and then across the park, through heavily wooded trails, and a mini-obstacle course (crawling under a cargo net, jumping over a hurdle, and running through tires).

I began and ended the race running, cognizant of whom and where I was, and upright. My goals (along with not being last) were accomplished. There was a point during the race when I was wondering “what the heck I thought I was doing” and whether or not I should stop and walk back to the parking lot and go back home.

During the run, I alternated between running and walking. I finished the race in 45 minutes.

I felt proud of myself for finishing this run. I started thinking about and planning to enter another run event next month. I hope I can finish sooner the next time. The next race is a few weeks away. I am going to start training for it next. If I complete the next one, this could be complete a regular event for me.

Chelsea Bridges
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John Jerome, a long time co worker, has been running for decades. He gave Chelsea valued advise on preparing for a run and running tips.

John started running 8/8/77 at age 29.
Ran his first race in 1978 or 1979 – a 5 miler on July 4th in Temple Terrace. Since then, he has competed in distances ranging from 1 mile to the marathon (26.2 miles).Steadily improved to where he began winning or placing in his age group regularly by his mid-to-late 30’s.

Best running years for him were between the ages of 40 – 49 when he achieved his fastest times.  His best 5K runs averaged 17:45; best 10K runs averaged 37:15; and best 15K runs averaged 55:48 – 56:15.  Average pace per mile ranged from 5:50 in the 5K to 6:00 in the 10K and 15K.
In 2001, he placed 2nd in the Grandmasters category for the Hops Marathon.  Time:  3:10:56.

For a number of years, He was the fastest runner in the over-50 category (Grandmasters) in the Times Turkey Trot Thanksgiving 10K race.
Fastest run over the age of 60 so far is 20:01, a 6:27 per mile pace.

John is a member of Tampa Bay Runners where he volunteers for various club projects such as race finish lines and our ladies’ training program.  He also serve as a mentor for beginning runners and anyone who can benefit from his experiences, dealing with injuries, etc.
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More power to Chelsea and John. I am not known to work out at all. Maybe in time I might join a gym. But forget about me running even a 1/2 K run.