bittersweet

This 10K was bittersweet.

Sweet:
1. I was healthy and able to race.
2. I showed my RW friends my before pictures after the race, and had a great sense of just how far I've come.
3. I gave it my all and held nothing back.
4. My brother was there cheering me on all the way, and got LOTS of great photos (I will post them later; if you want higher resolution just comment w/the photo #).
5. It was so wonderful to be out there with over 70 other RWers from around the country, and to be inspired by the 70 and 80-year-old athletes still doing it. I want to be like all of them when I grow up!
6. The weather was perfect. About 60F and sunny, with lots of shade on the nice, flat, fast course.
7. I was legal, with just one caution on lifting from the same judge that was at the track Friday. I guess he just doesn't like my form! However, he gave Vicki P. some super nice compliments at the end, and so he's clearly a very nice guy :).
8. Breakfast at IHOP after the race with my RW friends was the greatest! I got the chocolate chip pancakes w/a side of fruit, and only ate 2 of the pancakes, just like I planned (300 cal for the pancakes). They were delicious!
9. Nothing hurts now that I am done. I am just as healthy after as I was going in.
10. The first 6k was pretty good, and it was my best 10K of the season (though that's not saying much!).

Bitter:
1. The last 4k was not so good; I just ran out of gas.
2. I was hoping for a 58:30 and got a 60:02; did not even finish under 60 despite giving it my all on the last 2K loop.
3. I was 1:19 slower than my PR, despite perfect conditions.
4. I will confess I feel a bit sad that I couldn't do any better, and will admit that part of me wonders if I'm deluding myself that I'm any good at this. Of course I'm no elite, but am I even really above average? At 40, I was definitely one of the youngest out there (the youngest woman, I'm sure), and I did get beaten by a woman 20 yr older than me (Maryann M., who had a very fine race) as well as by Katie, who did a very fast 58:12.

But looking over these lists, I'm struck by the fact that the sweet list is much longer. I have much to be thankful for, and really, there are good reasons I was slow today. Please note that these are not excuses or what-ifs, just reasons that I should not beat myself up over this. My ferritin is undoubtedly still quite low, and that has a huge impact on the oxygen-carrying capacity of my blood. Couple that with a hard 5K two days ago, and with my recoveries being very sluggish this spring, and you have a recipe for a slower race. In addition, because of my lousy recoveries this spring, I was unable to do enough longer harder workouts to really be ready enough for a fast 10K. In my heart of hearts I knew this going in, but chose to be positive and think that I might be able to do 58:30 or 58:45, and so did set myself up for a little disappointment.

***
A little about the race: I started strong and felt very good. I tried to focus on allowing my hips to rotate a little more freely and using my glutes a bit more, as my coach thought the 5K videos showed a lack of that, especially on my right side. I did feel good and free and pretty fast for the first 2K. I felt I settled into a good pace and was able to keep it for a reasonable time, before I ran out of gas. I actually really enjoyed the first 5-6K, and then it got progressively more painful. I kept thinking I'd be able to pass Yoko E. and Marianne M., but it just didn't happen; I did finally pass Yoko in the last 500m and finished 20 sec ahead of her. However, she's 20 yr older than me so that's not saying much! I never did pass Marianne, and Katie was way too far out of reach. I admired her fine technique and great fitness from behind. She was so encouraging to me, calling out to me each time we passed on the 2K loop course.

Speaking of the course, it was quite nice - shaded, only one gentle curve, and then 2 tight U-turns on each end. There were a TON of judges out there, and quite a few people got DQ'd, including my friend John M. That really put things in perspective for me - I was legal and finished the race, and that is something to be thankful for. The other thing I liked about the course was that I could see the other walkers all the time, and it was easy to tell exactly where the competition was. It was also so fabulous to see my friends so many times during the race and call out to them as I was able. Walking with 70+ other RWers is a beautiful thing! I wish I could do it more often.

The last 4K was hard. I knew I was slowing, but just didn't have the lungs to go any faster, and the legs were tired, too. Still, I am proud to say that I gave it my all and finished as hard as I could. The last 500m seemed like an eternity, as I sped toward the finish. I thought I'd make under 60 min, but I just missed it. My watch said 1:00 exactly, but the unofficial times posted right after had me at 60:02. We'll see what comes out on the website (it's not up yet, or I'd have posted that).

I don't know what else to say. Am I happy with the race? Yes and no. I did learn a lot, though, and it has made me even more determined to get my iron up, train my rear end off, and do really well next summer at World Masters. I'm glad my coach is coming to the States in December so that he can give me and Erin & Dave (2 of his other RWers) some personal help. Actually, he's coming to go to a wedding not just to train us, but while he's here he has graciously consented to visit with us for a few days in NY to kick our butts into shape :). I'm going to train hard, eat well, take my iron supplements, and be much more ready for worlds next summer.

Splits: The 1K splits are not at all accurate; the course wasn't symmetrical. The 2K splits are good though, and here they are: 11:52, 11:50, 12:07, 12:03, 12:06. Hmmm, that adds up to 59:58; well, rounding errors? Anyway, looking at these for the first time now, they are more consistent than I thought they'd be; I thought I did the 3rd 2K faster and the last one slower. Still, they aren't bad. They just show that I didn't have the stamina today to keep the pace. I went out like my coach said to (more or less; he said 11:45 for 5:53/k) but just couldn't hold it. I'm still proud of my effort.

Garmin connect data here.

There are a TON of photos of every walker in the race; I will upload them later. Please pass them on to your friends if you were in the race, and I have higher resolution ones if you want. Just comment on that post to get the ones you want, FREE of course :).