Veterans' Day 10k

Happy Veterans' Day!

I actually celebrated Veterans' Day a little early and ran the Veterans' Day 10k in DC yesterday. I only signed up for the race a few weeks ago because of my job offered a fall fitness challenge to encourage people to eat more veggies, walk more throughout the day, or train for a 10k. Since I was planning on doing a fall race anyway, signing up for the 10k was a no brainer (especially since participating in the fall fitness challenge helps me towards earning my $300 wellness bonus!). It was also useful because I have been trying to wake up earlier in order to go running. Having to send in my running log each week definitely kept me on track for this race.

In addition to this being my 10k race week, this was also the first week of the Pile on the Miles Challenge hosted by Monica over at Run Eat Repeat. My goals for the month of November are to run 50 miles total, so that ends up being 12.5 miles a week. It's only the 11th and I've already run 20 miles so I'm feeling pretty good about the challenge!

Here's a little run down of how the race went:

I woke up at 6:00am on Sunday and had some coffee and ate a little breakfast (some toast and peanut butter). I made sure I drank a big glass of water as well before heading out to the metro at 6:45am.

I look way too happy for 6:45am on a weekend.

The downside of this race was that it started and ended near the Lincoln Memorial. Now, don't get me wrong, it's a very pretty spot along the mall, but it's a mile from the closest metro stop (Foggy Bottom). I tried to see if there were any buses that could get me closer, but no dice. So, I walked. It actually wasn't that bad and it was surprisingly warm out. It was still 40 degrees, but that's pretty warm for a morning run at this time of year!

I got to the race start and had just enough time to drop off my jacket at the bag check and use the facilities before heading to the start. I was actually cutting it a bit close because they were singing the national anthem as I was still in line for the bathroom. I had wanted to grab one last sip of water before the race, but I didn't have time. There weren't really pace signs, at least not any that I saw, so I just headed over to sort of the middle section of the crowd and as soon as I got there the race started. I hadn't really had any time to collect my thoughts and this wasn't a huge race so it wasn't like there were scores of people to clog up the starting line and give me a grace period. So I just started MapMyRun as soon as I could and got my SPIbelt situated as I was half jogging over the start. Oh well.

The race is along the most boring route in all of DC: Hains Point. For whatever reason, every race in DC takes you around Hains Point. Actually, the most likely reason is that there is not a lot of traffic so it's probably really easy to get road closures there; however, what Hains Point lacks in cars it makes up for in really monotonous scenery and lack of spectators. It's mind numbing to run because there isn't much to look at.

The first mile was fine because that was the portion that ran by the tidal basin and the Jefferson Memorial. I went out feeling strong but knew I was going to need to let up a little if I was going to keep feeling good the whole race.

For whatever reason, mile two is always hard for me. I mean, not as hard as mile 10 or 20, but mile two is right when I start feeling the burn but still haven't quite warmed up enough yet. It's when the doubts about whether or not I am going to be able to finish/do well/not throw up start. This race was no different and mile two was no fun this time either, but I powered through to the water station.

This course was an out and back so around mile three was when I started seeing the pros looping back around on their way to the finish line. I don't know how the heck they do it. They run so freaking fast. It is inspiring to see them though and put a little spring in my step as I watched them whizz past and thought about how much I really do like running and racing. Plus, seeing them was the biggest highlight of this otherwise boring course.

I sort of struggled near mile four and slowed down a little. As I mentioned before, it was a lot warmer than I was anticipating so I was a little hot in my long sleeves and pants. But this was the point in the race where I finally started recognizing the same people around me. I'm sure this happens to everyone, but when I run races I notice that the same people are around me for most of the end of the race. They are probably pacing pretty close to me, so it's nice to sort of make a game out of it and see if I can beat red-shirt-guy to the next tree or aim to overtake blue-pants-lady by mile five. Focusing on those little victories helps take your mind off how much longer you have to go.

Mile five I started picking up speed and mile six went well too. I finally felt like it was safe to loosen up and start really aiming for my goal time of 1:04:00. The last half mile or so of the race was the hardest because it was a long straightaway. You feel like you should just be able to sprint your way to the end, but it's actually pretty far. Still, I ended up being able to sprint the last 100 yards are so and made it across with a gun time of 1:05:28 and a chip time of 1:04:13. Not too shabby!

I was pretty happy with my results, especially considering that I only missed my goal by 13 seconds. Plus I had negative splits for the last part of the race. I think all the early morning runs really paid off and helped me get faster and I'm looking forward to my turkey trot at Thanksgiving to see how my 10k training pays off in a 5k race.

Post race glamour shot.

After crossing the finish line I sat down on the grass to the side and caught my breath and drank some water. I didn't want to sit for too long for fear of tightening up so I only sat for a few minutes before heading to pick up my jacket and head back to the metro. I was feeling a little queasy (I have the weakest stomach ever, so this is typical for me after a race) so I did not partake in the bananas or granola bars and decided to start walking my mile to the metro with the goal to stop by the Whole Foods on my way home to grab a post-race snack.

I was practically falling asleep on my walk back to the metro. I literally kept closing my eyes and wishing myself home a la Dorothy in Wizard of Oz. It didn't work though and by the time I got to the metro I was starving and popped across the street to the Whole Foods to grab some of their fantastic hot bar offerings.

Eggs, grits, sweet potatoes with kale, a plantain that looks like a giant slug (note: it tasted delicious), and grapefruit. Yum!

After scarfing down some food I finally made it to the metro and then finally made it home for a bath and a nap (okay, maybe two naps...).