Bolder Boulder 10k today! The race was huge this year, over 50,000 people and probably the deepest field in Bolder Boulder history. Prior to the race, my coach and I set up a plan; he would pace me out to two miles and let me take it from there. When we went to the start, the initial line was packed with people, so we ended up a few rows back. There was a $250 prize for the first runner through the mile, so when the gun went off it was like a mad dash. Some guy finished the mile in 4:18 and dropped off the course directly after). My coach and I hit the first mile in 5:27. Seeing this, I wanted to really pick it up get moving, but my coach told me to wait and be patient. The second mile was 5:26, which again was not too fast. After this mile, however, my coach pulled back and let me take the reins, telling me told me to catch as many people as I could. Being in no better than 70-75th place, I knew that I would need to run strong to even make the top 50. So slowly but surely I began to take people down. I hit the 5k in 16:52ish (not too blazing fast, but it set me up to run weel the second half). From here on out, I took on the "hunting" mentality. Within the last three miles I caught about 20 people, and finished the race with barely negative splits in 33:43. I definitely know that I could have gone a bit faster in this race, but I think the mental lesson is just as important as the physical one. By hanging back at the start, I could really finish strong. By being patient and not over agressive in the beginning, I had some juice (maybe a bit too much) at the end to catch some people. After some post race analyzation, my coach and I concluded that I probably had the ability to go faster, but played it conservative and ran a smart race. All things considered, I did run about five minutes faster than the previous Bolder Boulder, and my time is based off a single year of running. Knowing this, my biggest hole is still aerobic ability. I am definitely much stronger at the 5000 than the 10000 solely because less aerobic ability is involved. Once I can double my current 5k time, I will be a much stronger 10k runner. My also told me to take a week off of running. He said that typically after a goal race, motivation and will power are lost. By taking a bit of time off, you will feel refreshed and "hungry" for the next session of training. Without this type of break, athletes can burn out or not train to their full potential because of mental barriers. As hard as it may be to not run, I do agree with this strategy. I am already looking forward to taking a "fresh" start to a new training cycle. Heres an example: After Bob Kennedy (the American record holder in the 5k) finished a goal race, his coach would tell him to take time off and come back to see him when he felt ready to train again. Sometimes he would come back in two weeks, sometime in six. Regardless, the down time allowed him to take a mental break, and make him really want to power through the next training session. The amount of physical ability that is lost is far outweighed by the amount of mental ability gained. Knowing this, I will begin training again at around the beginning to middle of next week. I am already excited to see what results may come from my next training period... | 