Today I ran 10-k in 1:01:41(chip time) in Silicon Valley Turkey Trot – that is about 9:56 minutes/mi on average(RunKeeper recorded 09:26 minutes/mi).
It was a flat course – Beginning at junction of Market street and W. Santa Clara Street, coursing through downtown San Jose before finishing at one end of Guadalupe Park. I think this was very well arranged event even though at 25000 participants it was easily the largest of it’s kind around. The volunteers (who had come as early as 5:45AM!) were excellent – cheering on/guiding the runners, distributing water, bananas, collecting food donations and in general being very helpful through out the run. I had added bonus at the end – our CEO had turned up for a 5K and I managed a take quick snap with him.
The past couple of months have been lot of fun training for this – the cross training sessions, weight trainings, rest days and above all running on Steven’s creek trail at all hours of the day 🙂 I learned lot about my own body during the training. Setting the goal helped a lot in pushing it further. The principle of gradual overload was something new as well and helped me during those long runs (long for me that is). Running in clear, crisp air was fun too. Before this, I never did appreciate something as constant as change of seasons, but this time I noticed the gradual change from sultry summer afternoons to very refreshing, quiet afternoons in fall where the turning leaves would leave you breathless!
I have followed Hal Higdon’s 10-K Novice program which I loved for gradual increase in mileage for an new runner like me. In that one page of program description, there is a wealth of his knowledge concentrated and if followed to the letter, the program will work -regardless of your age, nationality etc. e.g. adding cross training to the mix and a rest day/week made me actually enjoy the running – without it becoming a bore. Of course, some runs were more enjoyable than others. For example, the early morning runs left me full of energy but I often struggled through those done in the evening at the end of a hectic work day. I also realized (unfortunately not until I was half way through the program) that if, after being caught in number-games of pace, I would run harder in my long run, the subsequent recovery would be slower and then I would invariably end up suffering through my next run after the recovery-day. Overall, the program is such a well designed program that once I started following it, the complete lifestyle – including diet, sleeping habits, energy level all changed for me noticeably.
Beyond the solid running program such as Hal’s described above, I also used some truly amazing yet very affordable technology during these days. For instance, during the runs, I used sweat-wikcing polyester T-shirt and shorts and realized that they very effective in keeping me dry even during the long runs, avoid painful inconveniences such as runner’s nipple . I also used free version of RunKeeper application on my phone to track my runs and analyze the data later. The shoes were neutral running with a “gel” in the heels – you could literally run in those shoes for hours and not feel anything. Even on the race day, the bib was made out of tear-resistant, light weight Tyvek, had disposable, passive RFID chips accurately measuring the time – the list goes on and on.
All in all, it has been very fun and enjoyable experience and I hope this commitment to beginning of a healthy lifestyle lasts without an injury. On this note, I am planning to participate in a half marathon early next year. Let us see how that works out.
Ah and before I forget, here are my splits (as recorded by RunKeeper on my phone):
Mile 1 – 09:11
Mie 2 – 9:28
Mile 3 – 9:03
Mile 4 – 9:25
Mile 5 – 9:16
Mile 6 – 9:53
cheers!