Ten Quick Miles
I had anticpated slogging through the 10-mile race I ran yesterday AM. Instead, I surprised myself. I expected to run at about an 8:30 pace, instead, the results put me at 7:40. How and why did I misjudge?
I hadn't done much long training. Without that, stamina will likely be less than ideal. Second, I had been having some trouble with plantar fasciitis. I didn't really expect this to be a serious problem during the race, but knew if I beat my feet up excessively, it would flare up after the race. Third (and this had impacted the second), I have been trying to execute a form change, changing from a hell striker to a forefoot striker. I was unsure of the abilities of my feet and calves to function well as shock absorbers for a race of this length.
I ran the race by feel, relying on my body to provide me with feedback on my effort level. This is something that can work well for experienced athletes, but if you are new to sport, you're probably better off relying on a heart rate monitor. After the first, slightly quick mile, most seemed to tick off in about 7:45's. Around 8 miles, I found my right foot was getting sloppy with a heel strike, so I worked a bit on my foot posture.
Much of the second half of the race was spent chasing down and then, trying to keep ahead of one guy. I passed him around the 7-mile mark. He closed much of the 100 foot gap I'd opened by about 9. Somewhere near 9 1/2 (maybe 9 3/4), he came up beside me, and I couldn't answer the challenge. He went by. After the race, we thanked each other, each of us had pushed the other past what we could have done solo. (I wonder if I'd have beaten him if I'd been doing more long runs.) All in all, it was a good day.
I hadn't done much long training. Without that, stamina will likely be less than ideal. Second, I had been having some trouble with plantar fasciitis. I didn't really expect this to be a serious problem during the race, but knew if I beat my feet up excessively, it would flare up after the race. Third (and this had impacted the second), I have been trying to execute a form change, changing from a hell striker to a forefoot striker. I was unsure of the abilities of my feet and calves to function well as shock absorbers for a race of this length.
I ran the race by feel, relying on my body to provide me with feedback on my effort level. This is something that can work well for experienced athletes, but if you are new to sport, you're probably better off relying on a heart rate monitor. After the first, slightly quick mile, most seemed to tick off in about 7:45's. Around 8 miles, I found my right foot was getting sloppy with a heel strike, so I worked a bit on my foot posture.
Much of the second half of the race was spent chasing down and then, trying to keep ahead of one guy. I passed him around the 7-mile mark. He closed much of the 100 foot gap I'd opened by about 9. Somewhere near 9 1/2 (maybe 9 3/4), he came up beside me, and I couldn't answer the challenge. He went by. After the race, we thanked each other, each of us had pushed the other past what we could have done solo. (I wonder if I'd have beaten him if I'd been doing more long runs.) All in all, it was a good day.
posted by Scooter at 7:43 AM
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