Sri Chimnoy - 10km Race Report

After a shaky week, I actually made it on the starting line of the Sri Chimnoy event this morning. Pretty much the day after I posted about getting stronger and previewing the 10km Sri Chimnoy event, I came down with a bit of a cold on Tuesday and from that day on, my body went into shut down including throbbing migraines which cemented me in bed all day on Friday.

Throughout the week, I completed my 2 strength sessions and a spin on Thursday morning, no swim sessions were completed during the week. So a goal for the next week is to attend at least 2 sessions of swimming. I did a long flat ride on Saturday with a friend who hadn't been out on the bike for 2 months so the speed was doable - we were able to talk throughout the ride. As I was sick on Tuesday and Thursday, I didn't end up doing any interval run sessions which I was disappointed about.

With all that mid week body-fail occurrences, I bit the bullet and drove to Parkville at 7am this morning so I could pick up my race number and run the 10km at 8:10am. This morning was the coldest morning in 18 years. It was below zero at Cheltenham and by the time I drove into Parkville, the temperature didn't really change much. For the first time ever, I did the run in a long sleeve, vest, beanie and gloves. I have never ran in a vest before but I was glad I prepared for it.

When I arrived I saw the 30km runners go off at 7:30am and the 21km runners at 8am. Shortly after, it was the 10km and 5km runners' turn. Within the first 2km of the run, I felt good. I was running past a dozen or so runners but I am guessing they were not "placed" properly at the start rather than me being a better runner.

For years now, whenever I run pass a drink station, I feel like I have to stop and hydrate. I feel like if I don't take the opportunity, I would dehydrate and regret it. I don't know if I need to stop and take a cup of water but as I am training to not carry a hydration belt, I feel like I need to always drink at the aid stations. I need to gauge the distance of the aid stations at Sandy Point and train for it.

Like the event in April, I had a gel 15min before the start and that was it. I was planning on a PB for this distance so I knew that I would finish under 60min. I forgot about my "auto pause" function on my garmin watch so the final time might be a bit off as I stopped for drink stations and the watch "paused" whenever I would run under the overpass. But I am happy to report that I finished under 58min. I will wait for the official result during the week. In April, I finished the 10km in 59:30 and I was pushing it that day as I really wanted to finish under an hour.

This morning, there were several factors which may have contributed to my run time:

• The morning temperature being so cold, it took me about 4km to properly warm up. 
• I might have put too much intensity into the first 5km as by the 7km mark, I was fatigued
• My legs were still fatigued from the strength work I had been doing during the week (it is the last 2 weeks which means the weights are going up) and from the ride the day before. 
• My body shutting down during the week meant that I wasn't able to do any runs during the week.
• I am still battling the mental war of pushing beyond my comfort zone. Although I wanted to push myself beyond my comfort zone, at some points around the course, without realising it, I slowed down as I was hurting. 

In the next few weeks before the Sandy Point event in August, I will work on the following:

• Pacing myself closer to 5:20-5:30 pace so I can complete the 21.1km under 2 hours. 
• Attend run sessions with the club
• Learn how to use my Garmin better with pacing
• Continue the core and strength work

I have 35 more days until this event. It is not going to be an easy ride but I will work towards that goal.

OFFICIAL TIME (update):
10km - 57:39 85/129 - 65%
Females - 33/70 - 47% (fastest 40:53)
Females 18 - 39 - 17/37 - 46% (fastest 44:15)