Hoka One One Columbus 10k

Hoka One One Columbus 10k

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I ran this race 4 years ago...a few months after having James. Since having James, I only had a handful of runs without the stroller. I remember coming home from work every afternoon, putting James in the jogging stroller, and setting off for my daily mileage. Every Saturday, Jackie and I would do a long run with our boys on the Olentangy Trail. Jackie had never raced before, and I somehow convinced her that it was a good idea for us to do this 10k. For me, it would be a way to gauge where I was postpartum.

One of our longest stroller runs...14 miles pushing those boys!

At this point in my running life, I was very much a casual, inconsistent runner. I hadn't yet tapped into my potential. I was perfectly content with going for that sub 2 hour half and, if I'm lucky one day, a sub 4 marathon! HA!!! I laugh because of what I've accomplished since then.

I remember going into this race four years ago having no clue what I could run. Because of all of the stroller training, I couldn't really make a goal. I ended up just trying to chase Jackie the whole time (which has been the story of my life every time we run the same race!). I ran a 56:34 10k that day (average 9:06/mile). HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! I remember finishing that race feeling so proud! [side note: I took more than 10 minutes off of that time the following year!]. Don't you just love hindsight?!

That 10k I was so proud of! LOL. I still had milk boobs.

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Leading up to this year's race, I was full of anxiety (to say the least). Normal Lisa races ALL THE TIME. In the midst of marathon training, I'm always doing smaller races. When training for Carmel, Coach Z encouraged me to lay off of the racing a bit and focus on the training. I did just that. I didn't run any other races from the Indy Monumental at the beginning of November until I ran Carmel at the end of March. Completely unheard of for me. Although this helped me to my goal of a BQ, it took a toll on my confidence to survive a solid short race. After running Flying Pig, I had four weeks to focus on marathon recovery and speed. I had a lofty goal of a PR in the 10k (which was 46:20 at the time...another race in which I chased Jackie!).  It seemed impossible to me because I hadn't done a solid speed workout in a long time. Training had been focused a lot on marathon and half marathon pace (except for my strides).

Flashback to Indy Monumental.

So, in freakout mode for 4 weeks, I practiced negative self talk while my friends countered that with the positive stuff. Although very thankful for the words of affirmation, I still felt like they were full of shit! LOL. My goal for this race was to average 7:20/mile. That would give me sub 45:30 and a PR. [B goal: sub 46, C goal: any PR].

I might be smiling on the outside, but I was dying on the inside after this speed workout.

Race day weather was ok. I suppose it's what you would expect this time of year..70 degrees, humid as hell. At least it wasn't 80+ degrees. I got there an hour early to gear check with my CRC Advanced Training group and do a little warm up. I was looking for anyone I might know to help calm my nerves. UGH. I just didn't know how my legs felt.

The beautiful city of Columbus.

Ok...I'm starting to ramble...ready, set, go...




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I knew my fellow CRCer, Jamie, was pacing the 7:30 group (while pushing his daughter in a stroller!). I decided to get in front of him and make it my goal to never see him again. If I did, I sucked ass...and I didn't want to suck ass.

Just after the start.

As we started, I knew I was going too fast. Isn't that how it always happens in these short races? I just rolled with it. I just decided to listen to my legs and body rather than my watch. At this point, I decided not to even look at my watch for the rest of the race. I tried to keep the pace consistent the first 5k (which was all downtown). Looking back, I did a decent job! Only 2 seconds difference between the miles!!


One of the things I LOVED about this course was the amount of shade! It was quite sunny that morning, but we were well covered by shade through downtown and on the trail. There was the occasional incline, but nothing to fuss about. I actually enjoy the change.

Look at all of those boys thinking they can beat me. LOL.

The second 5k of the race was on the bike trail. I've run many races and training runs on this trail so it was very familiar to me. This allowed me to try to stay in the zone and focus on how I was feeling. Unfortunately, I started feeling icky in the second half. I'm not sure what my deal was. My legs felt good, but my belly did not. Every time I tried pushing the pace, I felt like I wanted to barf. Maybe it was the heat and humidity. Either way, it wasn't going to be my excuse. I decided to push as hard as I could while staying just below the throw up range. I stuck with my consistency theme for the next two miles. Although slower than the first half, miles 4 and 5 were the exact same pace!


With only 1.2 miles to go, I started doing the math in my head. I knew what my 5k split was, and I knew I slowed down in the second half. I would have to get my ass going if I wanted to PR. I was good with speeding up until the last half mile. I wanted to freaking pass out. Again, my legs were superb, but I was on the verge of vomiting. We were about a quarter mile from the finish when my belly started cramping! WTF. So stupid. Nothing worse than needing to poop while running up an incline at the finish of a short race you were stupid enough to run.


I kept repeating "Relax, stay calm, keep moving." I just needed to get to the top of the incline, round the corner, and dash to the finish. Unfortunately, temptations stood in my way that last quarter mile. I saw my kids at the top of the hill...be still my heart! I didn't even know they'd be there! I just wanted to snatch them up and barf in their wagon. After turning the corner, I could see it...not the finish line, but the line of port-o-potties. Oh what I would give for a toilet right now.

Focus. Focus.

Muscles.

Although I temporarily lost focus, I finally saw the finish. I gave all that I had in the moment to get there. Along the way, I saw my sweet friend, Erin, cheering me towards what would be a new PR for me.  I crossed the finish line with an official time of:


45:38!

 

I must have been in some kind of 'I feel like crap' zone because two of my friends were handing out medals, and I had no clue they were there. I was just happy to be finished.

My biggest fan and coffee.

In hindsight, I'm happy for a PR, but slightly annoyed because I know I can do better. My old PR wasn't all that impressive. I'm not gonna lie, I'm slightly looking forward to stepping away from the marathon for a season or two and focusing on these shorter races. They are a different kind of challenging that I like almost as much as the slow, painful marathon pain.

Post old 10k PR.