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K 10 2.6

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How appropriate that for my birthday (10.26) I ran a 10K that’s 6.2!! I think this is my new favorite race distance!!

26s everywhere!

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I actually slept horribly last night Sad smile I couldn’t fall asleep and was restless. Luckily, I did not feel tired when I woke up this morning. Whew!

Meghann and I enjoyed a pre-race ritual of toast with PB and coffee (tea for her)

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Dakota with Nuttzo PF and pumpkin butter. I skipped the half banana today – just wasn’t feelin’ it and didn’t want to overeat. I always tend to overeat before races and then don’t have enough time to digest and can feel the slosh in my stomach. So I copied racing expert Meghann and was very happy with the results.

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I did add a cup of coffee, which I think enhances my performance!

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Application of the race bib. Ah the perks of marriage!

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We biked the 2.2 miles to the race start – who wants to worry about parking, and while the bike ride was FRIGID, it was a fantastic warmup. LOVED the fact that we could wait out of the cold and in Charlottesville Running Company before the race start. The race was pretty small – maybe 350 people? (We think the bibs were alphabetical and as a Younger I was #334!)

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Chomped down on a date with about 10 minutes to go. Who knows if it helped, but I like to think it did because we had an awesome race!!

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Ready

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Set

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Go!

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Meghann and I decided to run the race together because we’re pretty much identical when it comes to our paces and goals. We really had no clue how fast we could comfortably run this race, but turns out we smashed our goal of "let’s just run sub-9:00 miles."

I thought the course was awesome. It was mostly rolling hills and flat, except for one killer half mile climb at mile 4 and a few steep but short hills interspersed throughout the rest of the course. I took water at mile 2 (was on the wrong side for Gatorade!) and a Gatorade right before mile 4. I swear I can feel Gatorade kicking in about 5 minutes after I drink it. I swear by sports drinks! The fuel is no joke. Metabolism in action.

I also LOVED running with a partner!! It made the race so much more fun. Meghann and I did a great job of motivating one another and were right in step the entire race. We actually were right behind Jess and Mike, right next to Sarah and right in front of Faith for the whole run!

Splits (which totally caught us by surprise!)

  • 7:46 (rolling hills)
  • 7:57 (rolling hills)
  • 8:06 (flat)
  • 8:30 (flat)
  • 8:57 ( <– the killer half mile steep hill!)
  • 8:09 (rolling hills)
  • and the .2

Total time: 50:53

The end was a nice downhill right down the mall:

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Josh whizzed by

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Followed by a smiling Jess!

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Juuuuuuust above 50 minutes!! I had hoped mid-race that we could make it. In fact, I looked down at my Garmin when it hit 49:00 and knew we just had the downtown mall to sprint. And sprint we did!!

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Sarah!

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And crazy Faith!

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This was actually my first 10K race!! Loved the distance so much more than the 5K (which basically means you have to kill yourself sprinting the whole time). This distance was perfect because you could challenge yourself with fast, but not too fast that you weren’t enjoying it. We loved every minute!

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I think I was describing the hill right about here ; )

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Lani’s first race!!! She did awesome!

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Jess + Mike. Woot.

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I think the race really warped Faith she ran so fast Winking smile 

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After a few cups of Gatorade, we headed to the farmer’s market for entertainment and food.

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And coffee!

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Shenandoah Joe’s !

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I’ve been wanting to get a scone from the market all summer/fall but I always eat breakfast before we go! Today was the perfect day!! I got an Oatmeal, Cinnamon, Currant scone. It was tasty, but Meghann‘s was better!

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So I supplemented with a Honey Bunch from Cville Coffee. This was still warm and full of coconut and oats – amazing!

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Last but not least, we had a freshly made doughnut. I’ve been smelling these for months and waiting for a day when the craving hit to eat one. Today was the day! Tasted amazing – it was CAKEY which I loved (not airy). Definitely going to have to try the glazed next time!

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On that note, we have friends over, and more coming, and a lunch date to go to and pumpkins to carve!!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  5. Krista (kristastes) says

    Wahooo, nice job lady – awesome splits!! I have never done a 10k, only higher distance races, but I think it would be the perfect distance for me. Your treats look like scrumptious race rewards…cakey doughnuts are the best kind 😉

    Reply

  6. Mom says

    Gosh. This one brought tears to my eyes. When I think of you on the couch the day after your foot surgery…

    Congrats to your friends too, and Kanz looks mighty fine with that camera.

    Mom

    Reply

  8. Alina @ Duty Free Foodie says

    That looks like such a fun morning! I also love coffee before endurance workouts, and Gatorade makes a HUGE difference. I ran my first 10-K this May after actually having a migraine all morning (complete with throwing up until 2 pm). I could finally eat about an hour before the race, and I chugged an entire Gatorade and made good time (for me). Without it, I could not have run at all!

    Reply

  28. Lisa says

    Happy early Birthday Kath!!!! Congratulations on the great race, you have inspired me to give running another attempt. Have a wonderful birthday weekend. That donut looks so good.

    Reply

  30. holly @ couchpotatoathlete says

    Great race! Most of the time I like to run alone, but it is fun with a partner once in a while. I love that Matt is photographer during the race — how nice to have some action shots!

    Have a fun day Kath — I can’t wait to see your pumpkins!

    Reply

  32. Amy says

    That’s aweesome! I had a good run today too, but (my own non-race) 3.1, not 6.2.

    (And is that a Carpe Donut? Did you know they’re getting a storefront near Cville Coffee??)

    Reply

  36. Ann says

    Congrats and happy birthday.
    Curious, what is a weekly workout schedule like for Matt? He seems to be in good shape too.

    Reply

  37. Kori says

    Awesome race!!! I hope you have a fabulous pre-birthday celebration this weekend! Wish I could’ve come, but I look forward to reading your updates! 🙂

    Reply

  38. Ashley says

    Congrats Kath + Meghann. I loved this post. It looks like such a fun fall morning, especially with a trip the market afterwards. 10k does seem like an awesome race distance. 🙂

    Reply

  39. Mary @ Bites and Bliss says

    Woohoo!!! Congrats on your 1st 10K! And I like how you said you prefer 10Ks over 5Ks…I’ve run a few 5Ks and hate it while running it but love it at the end, of course. And now I realize it because yes, we’re sprinting the entire time..and it’s killer!! I’ll have to find a 10K to try out 🙂

    Love the sweater on that bear, too. They’re my school colors! 😀

    Reply

  43. Kandra says

    Congrats on your race! I’m doing the couch to 5k program and hope to complete my first 5k(jog) in February. 🙂 Can’t imagine a 10k! 😀

    Reply

  48. Meg says

    Congrats to both of you BEAUTIFUL ladies, seriously – no one should look that gorgeous in race gear 😉 Love the “describing the hill” photo – haha 😀

    Enjoy the company and PUMPKIN CARVING!!

    Reply

  49. Kelly says

    I love 10Ks too! I know you’re not exactly close to Richmond, but if you’re looking for a race in March, Brad and I usually do the Ukrops 10K in Richmond (although I think it has a different sponsor this year so it won’t be Ukrops). It’s such a fun race! Tons of people cheer you on and I have seen some of the wackiest costumes there.

    Reply

  52. Marci says

    Y’all are so speedy! I did a 5K race today, and then added on a few miles, but no frigid air here! It was in the 80s. 🙁 Too hot. Happy early birthday and have fun celebrating! That froyo looks great too!

    Reply

  53. jen says

    kath! this is not related to your post but i hope you will help me with a quick overnight oats question:

    somtimes i make overnight oats then in the morning am in the mood for something else. how many nights do you think is ok to leave them in the fridge (just oats and soymilk) and still be safe to eat?

    also a nerdy question that you don’t have to answer if you don’t want: why would the combo go bad? like is there some chemistry of what happenes to the soaked oats over time?

    thanks!

    Reply

  55. Sarah (Running to Slow Things Down) says

    CONGRATS on having a wonderfully enjoyable race! I agree, that the 10k is a perfect running distance. I think it’s where I’m at my happiest, although I *would* like to complete a half marathon someday. 😀

    Love the pic of you and Matt in the third to last photo. 😀

    Reply

  64. Hannah says

    I was scouring through the photos to see if I recognised anyone from UVA, but I guess msot of them have graduated by now! That donut looks amazing, and most of all, CONGRATULATIONS!

    Reply

  70. Anne P says

    Just catching up on your posts and your birthday weekend looked like a blast! I’m sorry I wasn’t able to make it to celebrate with you, but it looks like you had great company anyway 🙂

    xo

    Reply

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