After reaching a major goal, there is always a little bit of a let down period. It's kind of like a "now what?" phase.
I finished a 10k race this weekend, which for me, was a major accomplishment. I was never a runner. Never "liked" to run. I was the fat girl in gym class that walked the 12 minute run. This weekend I ran for over an hour. If only my high school gym teachers could see me now...
So, now what?
Well, it's been working for me. Having a race on my horizon has kept me focused. It keeps me from skipping runs because I know I need to do them to get ready. It keeps my nutrition in check because when I eat poorly it screws with my runs.
Next is a 5k for New Year's Eve, the resolution run. That's right, while everyone else is dressing up for a swanky party, I'm going to be sweating it out and setting a personal best for the 5k distance. Maybe breaking the 30 minute mark...
Then, I'm pretty sure another 10k is on the table. There's one for St. Patrick's day. It's a longer break between races then I'd prefer, but there's not a lot to sign up for in January or February. I'm thinking it may be realistic to break the one hour mark.
One thing that's pretty cool about my running is I have lots of room and potential for improvement. My times are respectable enough for a beginning runner, but pretty darn good for an overweight one. Weight has a huge effect on running, so between further training and more weight loss, I have a lot of potential to get faster.
Now the next question: Do I sign up for a half marathon in the spring? Or, do I shift my focus to triathlons and wait until the fall to do a half marathon?
Your times are FANTASTIC for a beginner runner!! You will rock the 5km - I'm so excited for this race!!
ReplyDeleteI think the "what next" question really depends on what distance tri's you're planning to do. Honestly, I think you're going to be disappointed if you only do a sprint tri this year. You're definitely capable of more - I found the run the hardest part of the Olympic and you've already knocked that out of the park!!
I wish I had trained for a half marathon last spring prior to the Olympic tri - I think it would have been beneficial to learn to keep going on such tired legs and maintain a decent pace.
Anyway, I think you should go with what your gut is telling you - are you feeling a pull to a half marathon? Or is the triathlon really calling you? I also think its reasonable to do both!!
I agree with what Jen said- you are doing amazing for a beginner runner or any runner for that matter!!
ReplyDeleteI see your dilemma. I actually found it harder to train for a HM when also training for triathlon because I could only get 3 runs in a week. I know that is the minimum but I preferred to run at least 4-5times a week while training for a HM. I think you could train for both HM and triathlon it just depends on what sort of goal you want for yourself. You could also train for tris this summer and then start training for a HM in the winter (Feb) in the tri off season. Or even fall like you said since most local tris are done in the middle of August so an October HM would be realistic.
I think you could even do an Oly this year...
I third the comment about your time - that 10k time is something I'd love to be able achieve about this time next year, assuming I keep on running 3 days a week until then. Right now, I'll be satisfied with a time for my first 10k that's simply less than what I can walk it in (so we're looking at pretty much anything under 1:30 being a major success for me!)
ReplyDeleteWhichever you decide to go on to from here: tri or HM, I wish you all the best and look forward to reading about your training :-)