Run Like John, the other disciple.

John 20

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Routine

I spent the first three weeks of January working on speed drills. No I am incorporating some hill work into my routine. This morning’s workout consisted of:
1 mile at 5 mph (12 min mile) at an incline of 5
1 mile at 6 mph (1o min mile) at an incline of 1.5
1 mile at 7 mph (8.3 min mile) at an incline of 1.5
and then a repeat of the first two miles.

I've been averaging 30-40 miles a week. Mostly inside on the treadmill but once in a while I'm able to get outside -- that's a real delight!

January 21, 2006 Peachtree City 10K

I ran this race in order to be seeded for the Peachtree Road Race on July 4th. This course is a USTF certified course.

It was not an ideal situation because I had just run a 10K (my first) on the Monday prior to this, but that's another story.

The weather was WONDERFUL -- temperature wise anyway. However, it was raining. I had never run a race in the rain. We were warned prior to the start to be careful that the course was slippery. Much of the course was run on golf cart trails and there were clumps of leaves and pine straw as well as puddles to dodge. I believe that slowed me down a bit. I read a story though about this race 2 years ago and it was so cold that the water in the cups provided along the way was frozen. I ran in tights, shorts, a tank and a long sleeved dri-fit shirt (which I removed after the first mile).

This race was tougher than the one I ran the Monday before. Maybe because I was still recovering from that run, although I did take most of the week off. I had hoped to qualify for Time Group 1A which meant I would have to finish in under 50 minutes but my time was 54:06. So, I qualified for Time Group 1B which is better then being stuck in the back with the other 55,000 runners on the 4th of July!

I came in 4th but that's really pretty good. This was an ATC (Atlanta Track Club) event so the competition was much stiffer. It was free to race since I am a ATC member. I would like to have finished first and won one of those cool ATC mugs. I wondered as they were handing out awards how many of those people had a cabinet full of the mugs already.

Something I've observed about running 10Ks, and this is only my second, when it is coupled with a 5K, which is usually the case, there's not much food left for the 10Kers when they're done ;~( HEY, you 5Kers, save us a bagel!

January 16, 2006 Freedom Run

The Freedom Run on MONDAY, January 16, 2006 (MLK Day) was my FIRST 10K.

It was a walk in the park. I really FELT GOOD and enjoyed the run. I had been working on speed drills for 3 weeks prior.

I didn't push myself at all because after I had entered this race I found out that to be seeded for the Peachtree Road Race on July 4th I would have to run another 10K on the Saturday following this race. Not an ideal situation.

I carb loaded the night before on pecan pancakes and ate a Body by Jake bar (mint) the morning of, drank a liter of water prior to the race so as not to stop for fluid during. I will be playing with different scenarios this year as to what to eat and when prior to a race. I've read a good bit about carb loading and will be trying that for a few months to see if it really makes any difference.

The weather was nice, temp 40-50 and sunny. I ran in tights, shorts and tank. I was freezing before but quite comfortable during.

My goal for this 10K was to finish in under 55 minutes - not a lofty goal at all. I finished at 54:26.

GOAL ACHIEVED!

Oh yeah, I got a plaque for finishing 3rd in my age group (the determination of winners and awards ceremony were chaotic), I won a door prize (a pretty nice mid-size black shoulder pack), and Waffle House was there making waffles after the race. You can't get much better than that although they ran out of coffee before I got there!