Week 23

My goal was to keep a pace better than 8 minutes per mile during my 10k, otherwise I'd have been a failure.  I did much better than my goal.  I finished in the top 7% of participants.  I also learned something very important at the race.  There was a guy there that was an acquaintance of a friend that ran the 10k also.  He was tall, probably 6'4".  Thinner than me.  Every external sign indicated that he was in much better shape.  His pace over the 6.2 miles was a little worse than 10 mins per mile.  Honestly, it was a pace I think I could have matched when I started my comeback back in January.  I think what that tells me is that my weight is different than a lot of other folks' weight.  I was a mildly in shape dude, that used to be an athlete underneath 50 lbs of fat.  That is a much, much different thing than someone who is just 50 lbs overweight and has never been active or even someone who doesn't have a weight problem but isn't in shape.

My point is this ain't a exercise in vanity.  I'm doing this because I want to recapture some former athleticism.  The highlight of the race for me was the last stretch.  I was in a dead sprint for the last 50 yards.  Because 6 people were going to beat me and I wasn't having it.  I cam around the corner closing in like freight train and left them looking at the back of the biggest son of a gun they ever saw run that fast.  Next year I want to get down to 7:15/mile.

Week 23 - My First 10k

Basketball Events: 1
Strength Training: 2
Softball Games: 2 (Game 1: 3-5, Double; Game 2: 1-3; Double)
Running Events: 2
Race Events: 1

Best Time:

• Distance: 3.5 miles
• Time: 26:16 
• Minutes per mile: 7:30 (Second week in a row at 7:30/mile pace)

Race Results:

• 10k or 6.2137 miles
• Mile 1 - 7:25.48
• Mile 2 - 7:25.76
• Mile 3 - 7:45.92
• Mile 4 - 8:01.15
• Mile 5 - 8:02.75
• Mile 6 - 8:07.3
• Last Stretch - 1:18.59
• Finish - 48:06.95  (It is very likely I had the fastest time among those 230lbs and over.)
• Pace - 7:44.61/mile *15 seconds better than my goal of 8min/mile!*

Weight: 247 - No weight lost, but my belt keeps getting tighter!