Chico 10 {2011} Race Recap

HI! Goodness, it’s been a while. Coconut-Crusted Almond Butter {Stuffed} French Toast is old news. I have so much to share with you all… but instead of cramming the past two weeks of my life into one novel of a post, I’ll try to update you in an organized fashion.

First things first… Chico Ten 2011 Race Recap!

This morning I got up bright dark ‘n’ early to run the 3rd annual Chico Ten race in beautiful Bidwell Park. I ran the race last year and thought I might as well do it again to see if I could improve my time. I haven’t been running a ton these days, so I wasn’t feeling 100% prepared last night as I was throwing together my race essentials. I had no formal training plan whatsoever, but I know my body can handle 10 miles most days, so I had a casual outlook on the event and went to bed with little anticipation.

This morning I fueled up with my traditional pre-race breakfast of toasted (Alvarado St. 50-calorie) flax bread, creamy PB, banana, and honey.

Iced espresso roast coffee with a splash of 1% milk – time to wake up!

Late last night, I quickly complied a playlist and tattooed my arm, per usual, with splits a la CoolRunning pace calculator.

new tracks added:

• Beautiful People – Chris Brown
• In the Dark – Dev
• Lights (Bassnectar Remix) – Ellie Goulding

 

Miles 3, 5, and 8 respectively.

The weather was ideal for a run at 8:30am – cool, with September sunshine beaming through the tall trees.

The run was no different than last year, a very flat course with no unexpected changes. I ran nearly the entire race without anyone within passing distance (a very small race*). I kept a steady pace, and just enjoyed being outside doing something I love, thankful that I have a strong body to keep up with me.

• Mile 1: 7:18ish
• Mile 2: 14:28ish
• Mile 3: 22:30ish
• Mile 4: 30ish
• Mile 5: 37ish
• Mile 6/Mile 7: ?

Mile 7-8 was the toughest. I wanted the run to be over and my GI was singing to me =/

• Mile 8: 60ish
• Mile 9: 68ish
• Mile 10: 1:16:15 – a new PR! *Place: 28th/95 (men + women)

Chico Ten 2010: 1:18:49

Running by yourself for 76 minutes is tough. It is so simple slow down, or just stop whenever and wherever. A had a light side ache before Mile 4, but with the power of positive thinking, I was able to get it to go away.

“Running is mental activity with physical benefits.” 

Post-race, I refueled my depleted glycogen stores with a hot bowl of creamy buckwheat – my new favorite breakfast cereal!

Blueberry Buckwheat Bowl

• 1/2 c. unsweetened vanilla almond milk + 1/2 c. water
• 1/4 c. organic creamy buckwheat cereal
• 2 T blueberries + 3 dried apricots
• 1/2 T ground flax, cinnamon, vanilla
• topped with:1 T roasted almonds + a small spoonful of sunflower seed butter

  

This afternoon I headed back to the park for a picnic with the nutrition club. Running, sunshine, cucumber shooters, healthy finger food, friends, playing with a happy Labrador, local mocha chip ice cream… it’s been a lovely Saturday.

Now I’m due for a disco nap ;)