This week saw a huge step forward in one of the my four targeted running distances – the 10k race.
I’ve always thought that I’m not really built for running 10k as it’s a tough old distance. You have a difficult choice to make as to whether you batter it from the start and risk running out of steam at the end or alternatively you pace yourself, start more easily and grow into the run.
The second option sounds better on paper, but as it’s such a comparatively short distance, you leave yourself no time to make up lost ground if you start behind the pace.
My experience so far in running has lead me to believe that I’m a slow starter; it usually takes me a good 2-3 miles to get up to speed and get cracking, which why I enjoy running marathons so much.
Yes, they do hurt like hell when you get the finish, but so long as you train correctly, give yourself the best possible preparation and manage yourself properly on the day, you have every chance of achieving your goal.
Shorter races feel a bit different – the conditions can play a bigger part in your success, as can the route with hilly sections at key times leaving you either drained at the wrong time or unable to benefit from the descent.
And those sentiments could well have been the backdrop to my most recent 10k effort – held in the picturesque village of Winslow in Buckinghamshire. A testing, undulating route (including a killer climb at the finish), and some suitably nasty February weather providing crosswinds, headwinds and a dash of rain.
The perfect ingredients for a bad day at the office, then.
Well, actually, on this occasion, that proved not to be the case. Despite feeling a bit leggy on the start line and relatively lacking in confidence of breaking my 41.17 personal best, I found myself right at the front end of the race at the start and managed to find a good rhythm from the off.
A good start developed into a comfortable-feeling first half, which in turn found me at the base of the finishing climb with just enough energy in the tank to give it a good go.
Disappointingly, I still allowed one runner to edge past me at the 9km point, although he was breathing as if they were his final breaths, so I’ll give him that one.
Imagine my surprise when I crested the climb, turned the corner into the school-yard finish and bibbed my Garmin as I crossed the line.
39:55 – a massive PB and under the huge psychological barrier of the 40-minute 10k. My first major goal of the year achieved and barely six weeks into 2014. Suffice to say, I chowed down on my post-race cake with extra joy that chilly Sunday morning.
So, why is this post called the Balancing Act? Well, because taking in part in races while training for a marathon leaves you with a tricky juggling act.
On the one hand, you want to succeed and enjoy all events you take part in and do the best you can to collect PBs. On the flip side, there’s the bigger picture to think of – this particular Sunday morning stride left me without the standard ever-increasing long weekend run.
The solution, for me at least, was a longer midweek run at a steady pace ahead of the race and substitution of the normal Monday recovery run for a 10-mile-plus slow run.
Only time will tell how this kind of manipulation of the programme works out, but in the short term my overall wellbeing seems good and I have the psychological benefit of a very tasty PB in a challenging distance.
I’d say that it seems good to break the potential monotony of a long training programme and enjoy the buzz of racing.
But be careful when planning events that detour your journey – a bump in the road can be hard to recovery from.