The 10K

Back in 1989, I was a novice runner.  I had run several 5K races and was starting to really enjoy running.  After one of the races, I found a flyer on my windshield for a 10K race that would run partly through the Miami Zoo.  I think it was called the Miami Zoo Run.  While I hadn't run any further than 3.1 miles at the time, the race sounded like fun.  So on a whim, I signed up for the race.  Shortly after mailing my registration in (yes, I am that old), I started to think about what running 6.2 miles might be like.  Since this was pre-internet days, I created a very novice running schedule to help me build up to running 6 miles.

Fast forward 28 years and I have now run more 10Ks than I can count.  What is interesting is that back in the 90s 10Ks were run almost as often as the 5K.  Today it seems almost hard to find a 10K race.  What a shame or maybe I need to look harder.  I have always enjoyed the 10K distance.  I have always found that the 10K will challenge you while giving your body a break from the seemingly all consuming pursuit of those more difficult training routines to get ready for a half or full marathon.  Sometimes during my marathon training have run a 10K to check in on my comfortable race pace.

When I am talking with friends who have just started running and completed a few 5K races, I tell them that they should try running a 10K because I believe it is the perfect next step in anyone's racing career.  It seems that all runners think about running a half or full marathon because it seems so epically challenging.   It is.  But for a novice runner, the 10K is the perfect distance to teach good training techniques and how to race longer distances.  It is a good stepping stone distance if you are contemplating running a half or full marathon.

As I am sure you know, the 10K is simply twice as long as a 5K.  It covers 6.2 miles.  The good news is that if you have already been using a training regimen for a 5K your new training routine is simply a gradual build up of your weekly long run.   Most people follow the 10% rule.  The 10% Rule simply is to not increase your weekly mileage by more than 10%.   When I decided to step up and try the 10K the first time, I just added half a mile per week to my long run until I reached 6 miles.  Once I knew that I could complete 6 miles comfortably, I felt prepared to run the race.

Like the 5K, you can run a 10K race every few weeks without much toll on your body.  One of the benefits of being able to race more often is that it allows you to train your body and brain on racing strategy.  The 10K involves a bit more strategy than a 5k.  So you have to race in a more controlled manner so that you can finish strong and not crash and burn before you reach the finish line.  To successfully race the 10K you have to have a plan which will force you to stay focused for the entire race.

I must admit here that I have not run a 10K race in several years.  I have run the distance as part of the many adventure relays I have participated in recently.  But as I sat down to write this, I started to think about finding a 10K race to run in this year.  I know that the 10K is a challenging distance but not as challenging as a half or full marathon.  Plus it allows me to have a great race experience without "hitting the wall" or  running out of gas.  And best of all, it will motivate me and help me avoid the burn out I have been feeling by all the long runs and heavy mileage in my training.  Maybe I will see you out there once I choose my race.

July 3 – 5.20 miles (55:38, 10:42 pace) - Hill Repeats
July 4 – 7.60 miles (1:07:48, 8:55 pace) - Mile Repeats
July 6 – 8.20 miles (1:13:15, 8:56 pace) - Tempo Run
July 7 – 5.10 miles (47:02, 9:13 pace)
July 8 – 7.50 miles (1:10:33, 9:24 pace)
July 13 – 5.10 miles (47:21, 9:17 pace)
July 14 – 4.20 miles (39:03, 9:18 pace)
July 15 – 10.10 miles (1:39:08, 9:49 pace)
July 16 – 8.30 miles (1:17:58, 9:23 pace)
July 17 – 4.20 miles (38:31, 9:10 pace) - Hill Repeats
July 18 – 3.10 miles (25:07, 8:06 pace) - Speed Work
July 20 – 4.20 miles (35:36, 8:28 pace) - Tempo Run
July 21 – 5.10 miles (46:21, 9:07 pace)
July 22 – 10.10 miles (1:36:41, 9:34 pace)
July 23 – 9.50 miles (1:09:25, 11:31 pace)

Total Miles:  97.5 miles
2017 Total Miles:  1,031.8 miles

A Runner's Dilemma

Sometimes I really feel like I am losing it.  I have so much going on in my life that I am finding it hard to keep it all straight.  The worst part of it is that I have scheduled races and then later agree to do something else with friends or family.  When I realize the conflict I feel terribly embarrassed that I didn't keep my calendar straight. This is especially problematic when it comes to the Jewish Holidays because they are based on the lunar calendar.  And I should know to check the Jewish calendar before scheduling anything because the holidays move around on the secular calendar.

For the second time in my life, I have agreed to do something without double checking all of the calendars.  I will be running the Ragnar Michigan Relay this September on Yom Kippur.  Doh!  The last time I did something stupid like this was when I with two of my friends put our names in Mount Whitney trail-permit lottery.  We were lucky enough to have our names picked.  The unfortunate thing was that the 2 days we were allowed to hike to the summit fell on Kol Nidre and Yom Kippur.  What unfortunate luck.

I couldn't decided what to do.  I really wanted to hike to the top of Mt. Whitney (a bucket list item) but I had never missed being in temple on Yom Kippur which is probably the most important holiday of the Jewish year.  If I did go on the hike, I wondered if I should I fast which is a traditional Yom Kippur observance.  I kept going back and forth for about a week.  Then I decided I should just go and speak with my Rabbi and see what he would say.  Maybe he would make the decision for me.

I went to the temple and met with my Rabbi and explained the predicament I was in.  I figured that I would get a lecture about the importance of the holiday and that I should be in temple on the holiest  day of the year asking for forgiveness from G-d.   Instead I had an extremely open and honest discussion around the meaning of the holiday and how hiking to the top the highest summit in the contiguous United States could actually bring me closer to Him. As the Rabbi said, "You'll be at 14,505 ft which is that much closer to Heaven." I never imagined that I would basically be given permission to go by my Rabbi.

As I look back on that conversation, I realized that what the Rabbi was telling me is that G-d does not require me to connect with Him only in the temple.  Sure we Jews have ensconced ourselves in our traditions including attending services to protect us from contemplating Torah's true contemporary relevance.  My wife and I enjoy going to services at our temple.  But the truth is that we don't have to affiliate with a temple in order to live Jewish lives.  G-d is all in things and ever present.  So my hike on Yom Kippur actually placed me squarely into His creation.  During those two days, I meditated and read from the High Holiday Siddur finding G-d through my observation of nature.  As King David said in Psalms 8:4, God is can be found in nature: "When I see Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, I am inspired to realize my insignificance in relationship to God, Who is overwhelming."

Here I was again faced with a dilemma - run with my relay team or stay home and go to temple.  In the end there was really no choice.  I was going to run.  You see running is very spiritual for me.  It is my time to feel alive and connected to the world around me.  Connection with my physical senses allows me to learn more about myself and just what gifts G-d has given me.  As a runner, I am more affected by what I see, hear, touch, smell, and taste than by what I have learned these past 55 years.  Therefore G-d becomes more real and intense for me through my running. If you had asked me back when I came to Judaism if I believed in G-d, I would have said I don't know.  But today, I would say yes without a doubt.

I know that I will still spiritually connect with G-d on Yom Kippur this year.  As I run each of the legs of the relay, I will be thinking about the list of final judgment questions that we Jews contemplate on the Day of Atonement.  I will review the transgressions I committed this year (including skipping Yom Kippur services) and find ways to change myself to do a better job of living my life with  purpose, goodness, and worth and hopefully achieve a sense of peace within myself.  And that is what the High Holidays are really about.  I have learned that Judaism is not simply a shopping list of do’s and don’ts.   I choose to live my Jewish life as a way to constantly improve my character to ultimately attain the inner peace of becoming my best and truest self.

 June 19 – 5.50 miles (56:50, 10:20 pace) - Hill Repeats
June 20 – 6.30 miles (55:37, 8:50 pace) - Speed Work
June 22 – 8.40 miles (1:14:29, 8:52 pace) - Tempo Run
June 23 – 5.20 miles (45:53, 8:50 pace)
June 24 – 7.50 miles (1:10:10, 9:21 pace)
June 26 – 7.20 miles (1:03:49, 8:52 pace) - Mile Repeats
June 29 – 4.10 miles (40:32, 9:53 pace)
June 30 – 5.20 miles (46:50, 9:01 pace)
July 1 – 8.20 miles (1:16:39, 9:21 pace)
July 2 – 8.20 miles (01:17:25, 9:26 pace)

Total Miles:  65.8 miles
2017 Total Miles:  934.3 miles