What I Did Differently
After taking several running breaks in 2020, I started back with a base building plan. [Thanks to Instagram for introducing me to the concept (Sugar Runs and Elizabeth’s Healthy Life)]. This got me running four or more days a week, which took a little getting used to, but I think it built stronger running muscles. I used Lea Gender’s 6 week 10K training plan, which made for a shorter buildup, and fewer weeks running more miles, which may have left my legs fresher and reduced likelihood of over training. For the first time, I actually did the prehab warm-up exercises before running each day. I also reduced my Tuesday/Thursday miles and did 15-20 minutes of strength training instead. I read that strength training for runners should include single leg exercises since running is a one leg at a time exercise. Lea Gender’s plan had some of those exercises, which made runner specific strength training easier. Since I had the opportunity to run at altitude before the race at altitude, I did. I took the two days before the race off running (per the plan and per my tired legs.) Nutritionally, I focused on getting in a lot of carbs the evening before the race (four to six servings at nighttime snack, plus carbs from the other things I ate alongside.) I also sipped eight ounces or so of water before running (new for me). I think that’s all I did differently before the race.
The Race
I ran in the 9/11/21 Patriot Run, a race to remember the lives lost, and to support the local fire district’s honor guard. I have run the 5K race three previous years, but wanted to up the challenge this time, and I did. The course is pretty much completely flat, and is a loop course, which helps with pacing. The race is also small. I would guess 50 or less people ran the 10K.
The race started at 7 am, a blessing for my used to early running body. This meant I would be under 12 hours of fasting, which is supposed to be about the most you should go without eating before a run. I had not trained to do that, and since I had not, I tried not to do anything new on race day. The temperature was around 70 degrees, cool compared to the 80 plus degrees I had been running in. I hoped my heat training would make up for the altitude difference. I was that runner and did go for a five minute shakeout jog before the race, for a total of 0.44 miles.
My Strategy
My Strategy
I had A, B, and C goals, but I wanted to focus on my B goal of finishing in an hour. Even this seemed like a challenge, as I had run slower than that in my altitude run. With these goals, having run the 5K race in the past, and having studied some 10K pacing strategies, I decided to start off slow. I know that I normally get faster as I go, and I was banking on that.
I ran miles one and two around a 9:30/mile pace. I was happy with that, as I knew that would get me to my B goal. I tried not to go too fast, as I wanted to leave something in the tank for the last two to three miles. I kept an eye on the women in front of me, but was not sprinting to catch up.
I started feeling the effort around mile four, but gave myself a Steph Bruce pep talk and told myself to grit my teeth and grind it out. I saw the lady in front of me pass someone between miles four and five. I thought about adding in a goal to medal, but told myself to stick with the plan. I would rather race myself than other people. Around mile five, though, I also passed the same lady as the front runner. This lady had led the whole race up until this point, but was so encouraging and yelled, “Get it, girl” as I passed. The other lady was still ahead, by at least 100 meters or so. I, however, was starting to feel nauseous. I had some left in that tank, so when I saw myself getting to 5.8 and 6 miles, I tried to speed up. I hit 6.13 miles at the finish line and tried to run through to get to 6.2, but they stopped me with an official time of 54:23. (My Runkeeper said 54:26 and 6:14.) I grabbed some water and settled in to wait for results. I thought I might be second or third in my age range, and I wanted to see.
The Results
I ran miles one and two around a 9:30/mile pace. I was happy with that, as I knew that would get me to my B goal. I tried not to go too fast, as I wanted to leave something in the tank for the last two to three miles. I kept an eye on the women in front of me, but was not sprinting to catch up.
I started feeling the effort around mile four, but gave myself a Steph Bruce pep talk and told myself to grit my teeth and grind it out. I saw the lady in front of me pass someone between miles four and five. I thought about adding in a goal to medal, but told myself to stick with the plan. I would rather race myself than other people. Around mile five, though, I also passed the same lady as the front runner. This lady had led the whole race up until this point, but was so encouraging and yelled, “Get it, girl” as I passed. The other lady was still ahead, by at least 100 meters or so. I, however, was starting to feel nauseous. I had some left in that tank, so when I saw myself getting to 5.8 and 6 miles, I tried to speed up. I hit 6.13 miles at the finish line and tried to run through to get to 6.2, but they stopped me with an official time of 54:23. (My Runkeeper said 54:26 and 6:14.) I grabbed some water and settled in to wait for results. I thought I might be second or third in my age range, and I wanted to see.
The Results
Racing during COVID has many unique challenges. A challenge of this race was that the timer got COVID before the event and could not make it, meaning the race organizers had to scramble. They ended up giving everyone wristbands and timing the runners with stopwatches. Understandably, this made tallying results very time-consuming. I think we waited one to two hours in total. We all wanted to get home to eat breakfast, but we also wanted to see results. We chatted with a few other runners, and the time actually went by fairly quickly. It’s the first time in forever that I have had “nothing” to do, and it actually felt good!
Thankfully, the awards ceremony started with the 10K. I don’t remember how fast the male winner ran, but he was in the 21-30 group and fast! The they called the 31-40 group and said I was the winner. I was pretty dumbstruck and just went up on stage to get my medal. They gave me a flag kit, 50 dollar Visa card, and 50% off next year’s race, too. (All are blessings, but I am a big fan of that last prize, as racing is expensive these days!) Mt family was like, “Let’s go!” and so we left directly afterward. By the time it registered that they said I won the race, we were already in the car and driving home. I started asking, “But what about the lady in front of me? I hope I didn’t steal her win!” It was too late to find out, though. My parents thought came in first, and the race organizers took their time to tally, so I told myself to thank the Lord and trust him with justice and fairness.
The Memories
This race was special for many reasons. This was my first race to run after COVID shut down in person racing. I ran in my hometown. It was the 20th anniversary of 9/11. My husband and my parents came to watch (only the second time this has ever happened). The nature of the loop course and the low crowd volume let me see my family at least four times. My husband even gave me a high five as I hit the hard part of the second loop. My parents talked about leaving to make breakfast, but they stayed, so all three of them got to see me medal, a first! My dad and mom texted my siblings about the race, and I received sweet (and silly!) messages of congratulations. I found out a friend from college ran a sprint triathlon the same day as well. These “people factors” meant a lot to me. In fact, I think they meant the most to me. A race win is super special, but without people to celebrate with, it does not mean much. Having a family that supports me in everything I do, even running is the greatest win. This race reminded me of that.
The Memories
This race was special for many reasons. This was my first race to run after COVID shut down in person racing. I ran in my hometown. It was the 20th anniversary of 9/11. My husband and my parents came to watch (only the second time this has ever happened). The nature of the loop course and the low crowd volume let me see my family at least four times. My husband even gave me a high five as I hit the hard part of the second loop. My parents talked about leaving to make breakfast, but they stayed, so all three of them got to see me medal, a first! My dad and mom texted my siblings about the race, and I received sweet (and silly!) messages of congratulations. I found out a friend from college ran a sprint triathlon the same day as well. These “people factors” meant a lot to me. In fact, I think they meant the most to me. A race win is super special, but without people to celebrate with, it does not mean much. Having a family that supports me in everything I do, even running is the greatest win. This race reminded me of that.
Way to go Sarah! That's super exciting you won! :)
ReplyDelete-Emily S