On Sunday 15th March, I tackled my first ever 10k!
I had been hit with congested sinuses that week so I played it by-ear and luckily I was alright on the day! I have to admit, training for this event has been inconsistent as I have been lacking motivation for my running recently, but this ended up being just the thing to get me back on track.
I was concerned that I wouldn’t be able to participate in the race during the week’s lead-up, so I was religiously taking Sunitab 4 times daily, drinking lemon and honey in boiled water and making myself smell by eating chopped garlic and honey that was recommended to me by a client (Admittedly only twice as I couldn’t stand the smell and lingering taste).
We didn’t have the nicest weather for race day, which was disappointing considering we had had beautiful sunshine in the weeks prior. I think I was the most overdressed racer with my scarf and headband but this girl was taking no chances!
The course took place in Sevenoaks’ beautiful Knole Park (they have wild deer!) and looped twice (which I was sceptical about – I need as little repetition as poss!). It consisted of a long incline of about 2k with a really short but steep hill to kill your legs before gradually declining to complete the lap. Although we had taken family walks through the park (my elder sister lives in Sevenoaks with her family – her husband runs the race every year), I was unaware of the running ground. Upon arrival, my brother in-law told us he wishes he wore his trail shoes as the ground is usually pretty muddy – so Charlie and I changed into our own trail shoes.
At the start line we all decided to run our own races and Charlie headed off into the distance whilst my younger sister and I battled our way through the waves of runners from the start line until we hit the 1km mark at a slow pace of 6minutes. Lesson learnt: don’t sit back at the start line; if you are after a fast time don’t be afraid to work your way through the crowds to avoid so much over-taking at the beginning. At the 2km mark, my sister gradually began to run faster and instead of trying to catch her up, I told myself to focus on what I can do.
The decision to change into trail shoes proved to be a big mistake! It turned out that most of the course was run along a concrete footpath and considering there had been very little rainfall prior, we covered zero muddy ground. This isn’t necessarily a set-back, as our trail shoes are obviously geared towards running, but our adidas terrex boost are very supportive and stable, however not very cushioned (I need cushioning!) therefore, running along concrete was a painful experience for my feet. I did find the run a bit of a struggle, particularly with the unfamiliar shoes on my feet and I was SO pleased to see the 9km marker, and then the 400m and then, at long last, the finish line. I was so pleased I managed to partake in the race as my nikerunning app notified me I ran a km at 4:40, a PB!
Here are our official times:
Charlie: 49:47
My sister, Kate: 51:26
My time: 53:08
My brother-in-law, Matt: 58:52
One of the benefits to coming in after my sister- she was there at the finish line to take photos of my sprint finish!
We then drove over to my elder sister’s house to meet my parents and nieces for some Sunday lunch followed by an array of deserts. All-in-all, a good way to spend Mothering Sunday!
All-smiles at the start line (from left to right: Kate, Charlie, Matt and me)