Thursday, May 29, 2014

Training Thursday : Running 10km again

Today it is holiday in Belgium and since the gym was closed, I took advantage of the nice weather to go for a run. The idea was doing it in the morning, right after breakfast, but I assume that I overslept, so I changed my plans to 3PM in the afternoon.

Last week, I did 9km indoors, on a treadmill without inclination. So this week I could not escape it. The time has arrived to go for a 10km again. And that is what I did!

Training Thursday : Running 10km again


Earlier this morning, I got so excited with Mackenzie's blog on a virtual race, that I decided to join the fun too. I am a lonely runner. I prefer it this way. Chatting makes me lose focus in my posture and breathing. Even though I train with headset on, I love observing the environment around me. People, animals, plants, everything interests me. However, I am a competitive person, so being able to compare my time with others is always fun.

Besides, Jost Running organizes race fundraising. So you have fun at your own pace and time, join people all over the globe and support good causes. Now tell me if it is not fantastic?!?

Going for only 5km was spoiling the glamour. I have been doing more than that consistently in the past weeks, therefore I chose 10km. I was prepared to do it in 1h20 or 1h30. I picked a hard route to really test my legs, so timing was less important this time.

My day started with me having 3 meals and grabbing a protein shake before leaving. I also drank almost 2 liters water to make sure I did not dehydrate in the warm weather (if you want to know more about hydration, do check my blog Tip Tuesday : Hydrate ).

I am a Sweat Pink Ambassador
I put on #sweatpink Fit Approach swag and my McDavid compression socks on and I was ready to go. Earlier in the morning, I changed my shoelaces to my pink ones. I incorporated being a Sweat Pink Ambassador in its full!

Every week, I try to learn something about running, improving performance and post training. I cannot reinforce how thankful I am for discovering compression socks. And just in case you are wondering, I am (unfortunately!!) not sponsored or an Ambassador for McDavid. I simply love their running socks! Before, my legs were beat right after the first miles and afterwards, the pain and swelling were inevitable. This is all past now! I will probably be getting another pair very soon. If you have not worn compression socks yet, no matter what distance you run, I highly recommend you giving them a try. You will not regret it!

Left: still looking fresh before leaving home. / Right: starting the cooldown.

Things went so smooth that I was caught by surprise when Nike+ app announced I was half way. Then, I realized that I had planned a much longer route (no, I did not check the distance in advance => lesson learned), so I was saving myself by running way too slow.

Well, of course I had to catch up afterwards. The last 2km were uphill and it was really hard to sprint. I had to talk to myself (out loud) to stay motivated. I simply could not let me down when I was I close to the finish. And it paid off!

When I heard that I had finished the 10km with an average of 7'03"/km I had to hide the tears. Of course that it is not a pro time, but I made it and I am getting better. I feel accomplished and this feeling no one can take away from me. And I am looking forward improving every single week.

Distance, time and average pace of today's run. And a closer look at my McDavid running socks.

Tomorrow it is leg day and next Saturday, there is another weight-in of the Summer Shape-Up program of the Flex Holland. Fingers crossed!


How was your training today? Have you ever joined a virtual race? How was your experience? Feel free to add DebbieInShape to your Nike+ friends. I would love to run with you!


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