I did it.
I set my goal of a sub 45:00 10k AND I DID IT!!!
The alarm went off with my carefully chosen wake up tune (Flower Parts - Bob Schneider) and I was rested and ready. For this being a 10k race, it sure felt a lot like the usual big race morning. I am sure it comes from me building up this race with a pretty big goal and setting my season up to start with this race. Hell of a way to start it off...
Went for a walk listening to my usual pre-race pump up tunes (a few samples 1-2-3-4) , and got to the race with plenty of time to warm up. The day was gorgeous. Blue skies. Cool but not cold. Pefect. My stomach was doing circles and I was laughing at myself because this felt like the build up to a half iron. I lined up near the front with the "fast" runners hoping that the quick folks at the start would get me off to a good pace and also clear the road a bit so it wasn't "full contact running". It gets pretty ugly with 13,000 people lined up.
I started fast and finished the first kilometre in about 4:40. Slower than I would need to run, but a good warm up. 2nd K was in about 4:20. 3rd was even faster. By the halfway point I was rocking and my watch said I was at 18:30! That was 3 minutes faster than my goal time!!! I figured at this pace I could cruise to the finish and beat my goal. This was amazing!
I have a friend who runs the 10k every year and I am in awe of him. My joke is that he could show up hung-over, possibly still drunk, maybe high, having not slept for two days or even trained for the race since the previous year and he could still run a 42:00 10k. He just makes it happen year after year. He chalks it up to being active for most of his life and having a solid base. I give him that but I think he has a truckload of mental strength in there too. Truly impressive. As I ran today, I secretly kept an eye out for him. If there is any year I could beat him, this is the one. Sure enough at about 6.5k here he comes! We run a bit together then, a moment later one of my grade seven alto sax players suddenly appears next to me. So now I have a team to run with. I go from one to the other, riding their shoulders and picking up the pace to match theirs. Still, at this pace, I am going to be flying!
With about 2k to go, I look at my watch and see 32:05. SERIOUSLY! I could break 40 minutes!!!!! I start to slow up a bit, knowing my goal of 45 minutes is well in hand. I run a bit taller, prouder. Just as I "down shift", here comes my awe inspiring friend burning past me and my student cruising close behind. Well that's just not going to happen, not today at least! I pick it up and jump back on their sides and we are running three abreast (probably the most random running trio out there!). With 300 metres to go and the finish line in sight, I drop the hammer. Long strides, fast feet, suck it up, go go go! I stretch it out and push across the finish line at... 45:06! What!? Wait a minute, 45:08? What happened to 39:57? What happened here?
Sure enough at about the 4k mark I bumped my stopwatch to a different setting that was FIVE minutes off my race time! AHHHHHH! Here I am cruising along all impressed with myself and I had foolishly bumped my watch to the wrong time! Thankfully my two running "partners" unknowingly pushed me to up my pace fast enough to still reach my goal and get a time of 44:48! The race clock at the finish was about 20 seconds off my official time and so I still pulled of my goal! Not the way I planned on it but the end result still starts my season off right!
10k 44:48 4:29/k 7:13/mile
Ironman Goal #1... Accomplished
Bring on the Oliver Half Ironman!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
Pushing the reset button...
Things I learned THIS week...
1. The quote "Continue to do what you are doing and you will continue to get what you are getting." is keeping me on track. Have had a hell of a week or so dealing with allergies, work busyness, and the joys of ordering out for dinner many many times (regardless of the appropriate athletic nutrition I should be getting). I have been grumpy, frustrated and unmotivated. Imagine that. Bad food equals no energy. Rocket science, I know! Continue to do what you are doing and you will.... yeah, I got the message. Time for some change.
2. I think I am going to puke. Long story. Only 3 of you will get it.
3. Nothing is funnier than a pool full of 70+ women doing their aqua-fit class to the song "It's Raining Men".
4. My season is starting sooner than I realized. One week to my first "A" race (TC 10k), just over a month to my first tri (Shawnigan), and a month and a half to my first HIM, my second "A" race in Oliver. I have set some pretty lofty goals for this year and they make come back to bite me in the butt. In past years, I was pretty cautious in my goal setting, raising the bar a bit, but making sure that it was attainable with a reasonable amount of effort. I know. I was a chicken. But it worked for me and reaching the goals pushed me on ahead. This year...it's not going to be so easy. My goals:
A. Sub 45 minute 10k - TC 10k, April26th
B. 5:45:00 Half Iron - Oliver HIM
C. Complete Ironman
Funny how completing Ironman is the goal I feel the most confident I can reach. No time goal, just completion. I truly think I can pull off these other goals...I just now have to believe I can do it instead of just think it! What an amazing start to the season to pull off this sub 45 minute 10k though! I just ran a 46:36 10k on Friday and doing that solo without the adrenaline of a race number on my chest is pretty impressive. We will see what I can pull off this weekend!
5. I am looking better and better in spandex.
6. I have figured out how to make home movies with my phone! The tri geek combined with my techy geek and a little of my now blogging geek are all combining. Check it out!
With the week starting out here with a great day, some sun, and spring in the air, I give you a little dance music for you and your spandex. Congrats to Nora for her first Tri of the season. Who else has something coming up? Get out there and enjoy the spring, training or otherwise!
1. The quote "Continue to do what you are doing and you will continue to get what you are getting." is keeping me on track. Have had a hell of a week or so dealing with allergies, work busyness, and the joys of ordering out for dinner many many times (regardless of the appropriate athletic nutrition I should be getting). I have been grumpy, frustrated and unmotivated. Imagine that. Bad food equals no energy. Rocket science, I know! Continue to do what you are doing and you will.... yeah, I got the message. Time for some change.
2. I think I am going to puke. Long story. Only 3 of you will get it.
3. Nothing is funnier than a pool full of 70+ women doing their aqua-fit class to the song "It's Raining Men".
4. My season is starting sooner than I realized. One week to my first "A" race (TC 10k), just over a month to my first tri (Shawnigan), and a month and a half to my first HIM, my second "A" race in Oliver. I have set some pretty lofty goals for this year and they make come back to bite me in the butt. In past years, I was pretty cautious in my goal setting, raising the bar a bit, but making sure that it was attainable with a reasonable amount of effort. I know. I was a chicken. But it worked for me and reaching the goals pushed me on ahead. This year...it's not going to be so easy. My goals:
A. Sub 45 minute 10k - TC 10k, April26th
B. 5:45:00 Half Iron - Oliver HIM
C. Complete Ironman
Funny how completing Ironman is the goal I feel the most confident I can reach. No time goal, just completion. I truly think I can pull off these other goals...I just now have to believe I can do it instead of just think it! What an amazing start to the season to pull off this sub 45 minute 10k though! I just ran a 46:36 10k on Friday and doing that solo without the adrenaline of a race number on my chest is pretty impressive. We will see what I can pull off this weekend!
5. I am looking better and better in spandex.
6. I have figured out how to make home movies with my phone! The tri geek combined with my techy geek and a little of my now blogging geek are all combining. Check it out!
With the week starting out here with a great day, some sun, and spring in the air, I give you a little dance music for you and your spandex. Congrats to Nora for her first Tri of the season. Who else has something coming up? Get out there and enjoy the spring, training or otherwise!
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Ponchfit
So I got my butt kicked!
Someone I work with has been training with a group of friends who have coined their group as "Ponchfit". "You should come and train with us! It would be good cross training for you." she said with a smile and a hint of encouragement. "Check out the webiste!"
I click open their site and peruse the workouts. Looks like a fun group of people... same goals of having fun and working hard... but what the hell is this!? The Filthy Fifty!?
50 box jumps @ 24"
50 jumping pull-ups
50 kettlebell swings (1 pood)
50 walking lunges
50 knees to elbows
50 push press (barbell or dumbbell) @ 45 lb
50 back extensions
50 wall balls
50 burpees
50 double unders
Long story short I made my way to work out with the Ponchfit crew and met up with David, James, and Mel. Thankfully the Filthy Fifty was last week and I only had to do "Da Ponch". Gotta love 60 yards of foward jump burpees. Great group of people and it was great to have a group to train with for a change. All of my training has been solo thus far and it was a good kick in the pants to have someone else out there pushing me, and by "pushing me" I might also mean "shreading my pecs and lats in a way I know I am going to be feeling for days". Thankfully they planned on a bike ride after so I scraped up some of my ego and had a strong ride after our cross training. Good group. I will be back!
On top of that, I just had the first ride averaging 30/kph for over 2 hours! Yes, after my session this morning, I did my long ride this evening and cranked out 60k in just under 2 hours! I have been working to jump that barrier for months! I want that speed and this was the first glimpse of it! Good ride. I will be back!
And now to rest the bod a bit!
Someone I work with has been training with a group of friends who have coined their group as "Ponchfit". "You should come and train with us! It would be good cross training for you." she said with a smile and a hint of encouragement. "Check out the webiste!"
I click open their site and peruse the workouts. Looks like a fun group of people... same goals of having fun and working hard... but what the hell is this!? The Filthy Fifty!?
50 box jumps @ 24"
50 jumping pull-ups
50 kettlebell swings (1 pood)
50 walking lunges
50 knees to elbows
50 push press (barbell or dumbbell) @ 45 lb
50 back extensions
50 wall balls
50 burpees
50 double unders
Long story short I made my way to work out with the Ponchfit crew and met up with David, James, and Mel. Thankfully the Filthy Fifty was last week and I only had to do "Da Ponch". Gotta love 60 yards of foward jump burpees. Great group of people and it was great to have a group to train with for a change. All of my training has been solo thus far and it was a good kick in the pants to have someone else out there pushing me, and by "pushing me" I might also mean "shreading my pecs and lats in a way I know I am going to be feeling for days". Thankfully they planned on a bike ride after so I scraped up some of my ego and had a strong ride after our cross training. Good group. I will be back!
On top of that, I just had the first ride averaging 30/kph for over 2 hours! Yes, after my session this morning, I did my long ride this evening and cranked out 60k in just under 2 hours! I have been working to jump that barrier for months! I want that speed and this was the first glimpse of it! Good ride. I will be back!And now to rest the bod a bit!
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