Intervals and Race Results

I am very motivated by goals. Since my 10K is over, I needed to find something to work towards to keep myself going. After reading my 10K race results, I decided speed is my next thing to work on. After running for a little over a year, I have gained perspective. In the beginning, finishing a race was good for me-I was competing against myself only. I still feel that way, but after seeing that only 11 people out of 450 finished behind me in the 10K, I have decided to try to increase my pace rather than my distance. I think I will eventually try a 1/2 marathon, but for now, I want to just get better, faster and stronger.

To begin this, I started doing intervals this morning. I was nervous (as usual when I get ready to run) mainly because my feet have ridiculous blisters on them that have been hurting really bad after the 10K. I have the same shoes, so I am not sure why, but they are really bad. I found a pyramid interval workout that goes like this:

	5 minutes - walk/slow jog
	1 minute at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 1 minute.
	2 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	3 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	4 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	5 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	4 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	3 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	2 minutes at 5K race pace
	Recover (easy pace) for 2 minutes.
	1 minute at 5K race pace
	Slowly jog for 5 minutes.

Since I ran the first half of the 10K at an 11 minute pace, I decided to run the "race pace" intervals at a 10:30/mile pace. I know this is slow for a lot of runners, but for some reason it is my pace at which I feel like I am pushing myself. I followed the plan using a treadmill, and it was great. I don't even know how many miles I went because it was all about the time. I think it was a bit over 3 miles. I am glad it didn't end up being a super long distance because my feet are still recovering from the 10K, and I did not want to make them worse with another longer run. I think I will make interval running a normal part of my routine, and possibly sign up for a 5K that I will race to see how fast I can go. I can't believe that a 5K seems like a short distance! My goal is to be able to comfortably run a 10 minute mile, and race around a 9 minute mile. Then maybe I will look to increasing my distance again...

So, my photos from the 10K were available online a couple of days ago. I died laughing when I saw them. First of all, I wore black compression shorts and a black top, which is comfortable for me. However, it looked like I was wearing a unitard to run in. Second, my habit of wearing my headband over my ears to keep my headphones in resulted in me looking like I was wearing a shower cap. Lastly, they took most of the pictures at the top of the huge hill, when I was walking and breathing hard, making me look like a wuss. I had a good laugh, and then showed Warren. He started laughing, which set me off. We were both in tears. I haven't shown anyone but him, and we laugh every time we look at them. I have since tried new headphones, which allow me to keep my headband in a normal spot on my head. I thought of this photo when I saw my photos: