It was that 10k on Sunday last week. You know… the one I’ve been tapering for six months for… laying down the adipose tissue for added insulation from the cold.
I wasn’t feeling all that great beforehand as you might know if you read my last post. Basically I’d managed to do something to my back in the process of getting out of a car last week. I really wasn’t sure if it would be possible so on Saturday night, I managed a little 3k run/walk to ‘test it out’ and I figured – ‘if I can get out of bed in the morning then I’ll do the run’.
Well, I could get out of bed in the morning and so I did indeed head off for the run.
It was busy. Well over 600 runners and the usual mad scramble at the start with people trying to beat their 400m record in the first minute of a 10k race. Silly.
At least one person took a dive in those initial stages. I didn’t see it but I heard a ‘…*slip*…*splat*…’ and then a collective… ‘OooOoooooo’ from somewhere behind me and to my left.
It soon thinned out and I got into a nice rhythm. The back wasn’t giving me any pain but I was aware that I am heavier now than I have been in a long while.
This was one of those races that I entered about six months ago as an incentive to lose some weight… and then did absolutely nothing about it.
Not wanting to be too negative here, I shall say that it’s a new training method…
THE THEORY: My access to altitude training is somewhat limited, so if I run whilst overweight, the additional stresses placed on my heart and lungs will simulate the increased oxygen requirement achieved by the much more expensive option of running in the Andes… or Nepal… or wherever it is that altitude training is done (can you tell I’ve really researched the science?!).
To be honest I don’t know why more athletes don’t use this method. Oh wait…maybe they do… Cue Steve Redgrave and a packet of Crunchy Nut…
Sorry Steve. But I do notice you have 5 gold medals there.
(Not sure if he used this training method at the time of winning those. Perhaps not.)
THE OUTCOME: A slightly chubby bloke, making it look like very hard work sprinting for the line to get sub 50 minutes for this 10k… but missing out by 9 seconds.
If only I’d ran that first 400m a bit quicker! 😉
notmuchofarunner 
Very fetching catching flies running photo!
Dam those 90 seconds! I think it would be rude not to carry some extra weight on a “pudding” run in fact I think it’s imperative-where can I sign up?
You win a Christmas pudding at the end to help you! 🙂
Also b it should just say, 9 seconds. I’ll go back and check now.
Oops sorry!
Those 81 seconds mean soooooo much don’t ya know
😉
Oh I do know!