When I first decided to take part in a sponsored run for charity, my original plan was to run the Walsall 10K.
10K, I thought then, was far enough. Plenty far enough. Any further than that was just being silly...
In the end, however, I abandoned that plan. The Walsall 10K is, I learned, run for the most part by 'serious' runners and people who have joined running clubs: in short, the sort of running people who are the exact opposite of me.
I wanted to challenge myself and set myself a goal that would push me but, at the same time, I didn't want to put myself into a situation that would leave me feeling humiliated. And finishing way behind everyone else in a race would, in all probability, leave me feeling humiliated.
So Mark, in his infinite wisdom, suggested entering the Great Midlands Fun Run. True, this is actually further than the 10K race but the 'fun run' aspect takes the pressure off a little. There are likely to be people who are dressed up, people who want to walk a lot of the way and the chances of me finishing absolutely last are (I hope!) relatively slim.
So the plan may have changed... but that didn't make me feel any less proud yesterday when I finally ran a full 10K. It still feels like a landmark, a milestone: proof to myself that I can achieve something, even if at first it's a challenge that seems insurmountable.
This time last year, I would have told you that there was no way I could ever run 10K. To be honest, I would have been sceptical that I could even run 5K.
And now, in 20 days time, I'm going to be running over 13K.
Mad...
Stats for this run:
Distance: 10.27K
Time: 1 hour 33 minutes and 1 second
Average K pace: 9 minutes and 3 seconds
2 comments:
That's great Hayley. Congratulations!!
It's a great feeling, isn't it? I recently managed to get past 10k again for the first time since I did the MK 10k in March. It was good timing because I'm running the BUPA London 10000 on May 30 and I was beginning to doubt if I'd make it after my minor injury setbacks. I'm reinvigorated now and looking forward to it. So much of running is in the mind, isn't it?
Good luck for your Fun Run. Now you've broken the 10k barrier, I'm sure you'll get to 13k without a problem.
Thanks Steve!
I totally agree with you about so much of running being in the mind - more often than not, my mind is saying 'this is too hard, I can't go on' but my actual legs are just fine. I think my mind is just looking for any excuse to get me back on the sofa reading a book!!
Thanks for the good luck wishes :-).
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