Utah Valley 10k Recap.. A New PR!

It might seem like I’m racing a lot this year and that’s because I am:).  I’m enjoying running more than ever before and have some big goals for the fall.  Building up our speed in the shorter distances is going to really help us to turn over into a fast marathon later on this year.  Added bonus: the more races I do, the less nervous I feel about them which I love.  Going into the 10k I felt nervous about 15 minute before the race started but that’s it.  Andrew and the kids won’t be able to be at every race this summer but I loved having them there so much on Saturday.

PS I get blue lips after every race lately.

I woke up at 5:30 (slept for 8 hours), ate a bagel with jam and got ready for the race.  I listened to ROAR by Katy Perry in the car to get pumped up.  I met my friends at the starting line at about 6:15.  We went out for a 2.5 mile warm-up (8:47 average).  When we did our warm-up it was really windy, raining a bit and cold.

We went back to our cars, changed our shoes (warmed up in the Ricochet and raced in the Hyperion), took a gel and my nanohydr8, took off some layers and headed over to the porta potties.

It was the craziest thing but right as the race was about to start, the wind/rain/everything stopped completely.  The air was calm (but pretty humid for us Utah runners:) and the sun stayed behind the clouds for almost the entire race.  It was so nice to get perfect weather for the race.

The race started right at 7 and Andrew and the girls were right there.   We started off all together and then Amber took off!  Emilee and I ran together for the first 1.5 miles and then she went ahead too.

I don’t remember a ton from the 6.2 miles but here is what I do remember in bullet points:

*I didn’t run with my music OR my phone (which is another first for me) and it was magical.  I won’t be taking my phone with me anymore for races because I really enjoyed not carrying anything (for longer distances I will just take my gels with me… and maybe my lipgloss;).

*I had the songs from the new Aladdin stuck in my head throughout the race because that is all we’ve been listening to over here after seeing the movie ha.

*You start with a slight uphill and then go downhill and at about .75 miles into the race you make a 175 degree turn to merge in with the half-marathoners for the rest of the race.  At this point we hit the 1:45 half-marathon group so there was a bit of weaving for about a mile but after that we weren’t weaving.  The turn was a bit tricky (lots of gravel there) but other than that the course is a straight shot on the road I’ve been running on for years and years.

*I’m pretty sure I counted every single step of mile 5 to get me through that mile when I was feeling really tired but I wasn’t close enough to see the finish to have that be my motivation.

*My breathing was way more labored than my legs during this race.  I think the ultra gave me some strength in the legs but I need to build up my cardio to get faster!

*When I was getting tired and wanting to slow down I would repeat over and over to myself, ‘I feel good, I feel great.’   Our bodies believe whatever we tell them.

*I felt A LOT better during this race than I did during my 5k three weeks ago which proves to me that some days are just really off because I don’t think I have built a ton of fitness in just three weeks.   Those off races are very normal… it’s all part of the process.

*I saw Andrew and the girls right at about mile 6.1 which was the best…

The final stretch.  I remember thinking during this final stretch how thankful I am to be injury free… I think taking my easy days truly easy, taking random days off when I feel tired and eating quickly after finishing each run are what are helping me to get there (along with some more strength training at Burn too).

My average pace was 6:10 and all of my miles were about the same pace as each other give or take a few seconds… it was a pretty even split race.  I planned on starting slower and working towards getting faster with each mile but that didn’t end up happening… I wanted to not look at my watch and race off of effort and that’s what it ended up looking like which I’m happy about.  Just trying to be like Tina:).

Another race finishing with 14 seconds (so far my marathon PR ends with 14 seconds and Boston this last year was 3:28:14).  It’s my lucky number.  My training partners Amber and Emily took 1st and 2nd!  Amber finished in 35:00 and Emilee finished in 37:58.  I feel very lucky to be able to run with them and learn from them!

Edited to add… I thought there were only 94 runners (bc that is what my paper said) but there were actually 500+ runners.

Runner’s Corner team… everyone did incredible and we have many more races together up ahead.

Race spectating and donut hole eating can be quite exhausting.

How gorgeous is the temple in the background?  You can see the temple from about a mile away so having that sight to run towards is very motivating.

A few fun facts about the race course….  I have now officially done their marathon (twice), 1/2 marathon (4 times) and 10k (once) and I absolutely love it for many reasons but especially because of the scenery.  For the marathon and 1/2 you are running through the canyon for the majority of the race which is gorgeous.

*They have little shower stations along the course that have been extremely helpful to me in previous years when it was warmer.  Even running on the side of one during the 10k felt really refreshing at mile 5.

*I think this was the first year that they offered nuun rather than Gatorade or Powerade.  It surprised me when I took one before the 10k because I thought it was water but it tasted really good.

*They hook the kids up with fun things for them to do at the finish line.

*They hook everyone up with delicious food at the end… they had Cinnabon, Creamies, Jamba Juice, chocolate milk and more.

*I shared this on Saturday but they give you shorts (with a nice thick waistband + pockets) and a shirt.  I love their medals each year too.

*Ummmm a rapid reboot booth ready for runners to come and recover!  I love that they do this.  Every year that I do this race it is so incredibly organized, starts on time and they make it very easy for runners to just go out and do their thing without having to worry about anything else.

After the race we cooled down and finished up with 15.5 miles for the day.  We are doing the American Fork 1/2 marathon in 19 days so we need to get recovered now.

I’m glad we were able to turn the race into a long run so we can be ready for the 1/2!

As far as Sunday goes, it was just a normal Sunday for us.

The highlight of the day was that my mom brought over her lasagna and it has never tasted as good as it tasted last night.

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Question from a reader= Allison broke her big toe and cannot put any pressure on it for at least 4-6 weeks.  “I’m wondering if anyone has suggestions for workouts I can do while recovering.  I don’t currently have access to a pool, but I will in 3 weeks.  Any other suggestions would be SO appreciated!”

What was the last distance that you PRed in?

Ever had years that you’ve raced way more than others?

Who has a June birthday or anniversary or anything really exciting this month?