This morning I got up early and once again headed out to Boulware Springs Park off 15th Street in southeast Gainesville to run in yet another Hawthorne Trail race...this one the Tom Walker Memorial Half-Marathon, hosted by the Florida Track Club, of which I am a member. It's my fifth Tom Walker Race...I ran it in 2010, 2011, 2019, and 2022. Last year's race took place under unusually warm and humid conditions...I didn't properly prepare myself for that and had to walk the final three miles (yet still won my age group). Today the weather was much more conducive to running, being 61-62 degrees although the humidity was still high...and the cloud cover made things better as well. This time around I employed the Jeff Galloway run-walk strategy, with me running five minutes and then fast-walking one minute, repeating the cycle throughout the race. It worked better than I could have imagined, and I had no shortage of energy as I finished strong at 2:18:06 chip time, once again winning my age division. It was also my fastest half-marathon since 2015...I didn't expect that to happen! Recovery after the race seems to be going well, and I appreciate all the encouragement and support from my loved ones, especially Melissa. You can view the race results by clicking the link HERE...
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What a fantastic result. It appears that your methodology for improving your running technique is working. Back when my joints would still tolerate it I would use that run/walk method also with good results. I'm here in Alachua at the moment and it certainly looked like a good morning for a race, although the high humidity must have taken a bit of a toll on you.
ReplyDeleteAccording to Channel 20 local evening news, the temperature stayed in the sixties all day. I would have preferred it to be lower, though. I'm thinking of extending this Galloway mix of running and fast walking in a modified form to my Depot Parkrun 5Ks on Saturdays to see how it affects my final time there, too. Enjoy your stay!
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