Well it kind of worked and I did get a Town & Gown PB!
Inspired by advice from my club coach as a way of cramming in extra miles each week into a tight schedule, as a way to prepare for Marathons, I thought an easy run into town before the race would be a good idea.
An added incentive was lunch offered by our friend who lives a stones throw from the start/finish line - so wouldn’t have to worry too much what state I would be in at the end of the race!
The easy run turned out to be 5.3miles - and was a bit tiring. However after some stretching and a quick coffee I was feeling pretty confident I could do well in the 10k, setting myself up in the pens just in front of the 55minute pacer. From the off my thighs felt tight and sore, and I really had to focus hard on my form & posture. By halfway I was ready for a little boost so took an electrolyte gel at the water station, which helped a bit. Then the worst part - running out along the river with the faster runners on the loop back coming at us - for some reason I find that really depressing and demotivating. Eventually I got to the turn and it was then I found another gear. The last 3km went successively quicker and I overtook quite a few runners, crossing the line at a pace of 4:50 per km - not bad after 11.5 miles!
Needless to say I really appreciated the lunch afterwards!
Written by
MadDave
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Whoop whoop! Well done, I don’t know how you did that with a 5 mile warm up! I came away with my best 10k time to date and got a course PB knocking 2 mins off last years time.
OH sneaked in a couple of seconds in front of you.........🏃♂️
Perfect conditions though, I know what you mean about that part where others are on the way back, but it’s not for too long......
Congratulations on completing the Cambridge Town and Gown 10K, you almost ran 2/10Ks in the same day regarding your '.'5 mile warm up run" to get to the start, another medal for your collection, well done. 😊 🏃🏾
Well done Dave! I've a friend at my club who absolutely swears by long warm ups - I've yet to try it for fear of tiring myself out.
Interesting that you find seeing the faster runners demotivating. I'm the complete opposite as I love the chance to watch them in action and find it really inspiring.
Great that you finished so strongly after the extra miles. Which marathon are you training for? x
I don’t mind seeing the fastest runners finishing in about half the time, but seeing people who’ve overtaken me and realising there’s little chance I can catch them doesn’t lift my spirits!
I’m definitely going for the Cambridge HM but really need to get comfortable at HM distance before going the full monty. Yesterday was a good test as I was near HM distance and managed to speed up at the end, although I did have a bit of a rest between the two sessions.
Cambridge HM or the Cambridge Boundary run (full marathon) are the earliest ones on my radar, both in March 2020.
If they go well then the Snowdonia trail marathon would be my next target - I do like a bit of elevation & that’s hard to find around Cambridge!
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