Joe Kleinerman 10K Race Recap

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Kelly

I usually run a race the first weekend in January – it has been the Fred Lebow 5 miler for a the past couple years, but this year NYRR changed it up and held the Joe Kleinerman 10K on Saturday.

It’s always freezing cold during January races (maybe that’s part of the fun?), but this year? Not so much. It was 47 degrees when I woke up – i.e., pretty perfect running weather – and I was beyond excited to get outside and not risk my fingers freezing off.

But first, pre-race fuel: banana and some Cinnamon Raisin Swirl peanut butter.

Shorts in January – hooray, global warming?

After a three mile warm up around the bridle path I headed to to the corrals and ran into Ali, Emily and Lauren, who were decked out in bright pink and green to celebrate Lauren’s engagement. Only runners celebrate things by racing a 10K at 8:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning :)

It’s a marathon, not a sprint
Not gonna lie, when the gun went off and I saw a sub-8:00 minute mile pace creep up on my Garmin, I began to think that, hey, maybe I can eek out a PR after all.

And those thoughts were squashed around mile 0.75, when I settled in to a pace more around 8:30. And it was kind of hard. But I was on track with my strategy, which was to stay around goal marathon pace and not push it too much. But, umm, did I mention it felt kind of hard?

This is when negative thoughts can take over my brain – You are so not in 10K racing shape. Also, why is marathon pace so feeling so hard? It was super easy two months ago! I was in great shape then. Have I lost all my fitness? I should just give up now…

But those thoughts never actually materialized. I know I have some work ahead of me to get some speed back and build my base before getting into marathon training, but I enjoyed the race yesterday. It was a beautiful day for running, and I was so happy to be out there with the masses. Sure, it was harder than it should have been and I was a good 4-5 minutes off my PR, but that’s ok.

11 miles for the day with warm up and cooldown – the race is miles 4-9-ish.

That saying, “It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” is pretty relevant when it comes to training. I can’t expect to PR every race, regain fitness at warp speed and run effortlessly every day, especially when coming back from an injury. Some days suck. Some races are slow. And it may take years for me to reach my marathon goals. But good things come to those who wait (and do lots of speedwork in the meantime)!

Post-race cinnamon raisin bagel with cream cheese and berries = perfection. Thanks, NYRR.

As I cooled down on the bridle path and headed home after the race, Mary Wittenberg (NYRR CEO) was running the opposite way. She had already finished the race and always turns around and cheers on runners afterwards. She looked at me and said, “Nice job!”

I (excitedly) replied with, “Thanks, Mary!” and felt pretty awesome the rest of the way home.

Question: Did you race this weekend? How long does it take you to get back into racing shape after some time off?

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  • http://thethinksicanthink.wordpress.com/ Meggie

    I’ll let you know how long it takes me after I get over this injury thing. But, I won’t be running with a Garmin until I’ve run at least a month solid. It will be depressing otherwise!

  • RunTheLongRoad

    i would have felt pretty awesome too if mary said “nice job” to me!
    i think you did a great job, especially after being injured! your splits are consistent and you sped up during the last mile. it won’t take you long to get your speed back. focus on getting your base back safely and i promise, the speed will come! your muscles remember speed and they will bounce back.

    • Kelly

      She is so awesome. Thanks, Kristy! I am excited for when my muscles remember speed :)

  • Carina Chairez

    You got a shout-out from Mary? Holy moly!

  • http://www.runforyourlifeblog.com/ Emilia @ Run for Your Life

    Nice job! If it ends up being that warm for those of you racing the Manhattan Half, I will be jealous.
    I only took a week off after NYCM before starting back up again in training for Houston. Even so, it took me longer than expected to recover and I still haven’t regained the same speed. But if I PR/break four hours next weekend, I’ll be happy.

    • Kelly

      I wonder if all of January will be so warm! Weird. Yay, so excited for your race!

  • http://lizzyj1305.wordpress.com/ Lizzy

    There are so may aspects that go into racing, I think it was an awesome idea for you to do this race even though you knew it wouldn’t be at 10k race pace…because you got to work on the mental aspect of racing!! now you know which thoughts you will have to face when you are physically-ready to race, you will be there soon, just keep at it! :)
    xoxo!

  • Christine @ these happy miles

    cinnamon raisin from PBC is the best. so is mary wittenberg. love her!

    congrats on a great race and long run!

  • http://www.onemoretime-withfeeling.com/ Kristy

    I was at the 10K as well. I’m not in the shape I was in two years ago and have been struggling with getting back. I’m slowly but surely doing so now as I have faster racing goal times I would like to achieve this year. I’m looking forward rather than backward now. Yesterday was a beautiful day for the race and I immediately had spring fever.

    • Kelly

      Congrats!! It was a perfect morning for a race – and we have all winter/spring to get faster, right?

  • Anonymous

    Sooo I ended up doing the 10k as the first part of my long run before I headed over to the Bridle Path to finish up. I was keeping an eye out for people I knew but must have missed you! boo!

    Nice job on the 10k and long run! Even if it was not your fastest 10k you still got in some quality long run miles! In terms of bouncing back, I guess a lot depends on how long I have been off and if I have been injured or just not running as much. I think you are doing really well in terms of bouncing back especially because you didn’t run at all for some time!

    • Kelly

      ooh man! I’m sorry I missed you! Was such a fun morning :)

  • http://lessonsontherun.wordpress.com/ Gabriella @ Lessons on the Run

    No races for me right now, but I had a personal best run. It was my first week of marathon training (for my first marathon) and my goal was to run without stopping. I’m pretty bad about pacing myself, I can run a 1:55 half but I take walking breaks like its my job because I can’t seem to find that comfortable pace. All week on my short runs, I was really aware of my breathing and settling into that sustainable pace and then yesterday I ran 8.25 miles in 70 minutes without ever needing to stop (except at red lights and once to tie my shoe). It was definitely a personal best run and I’m feeling so much more confident now that maybe walking breaks were just in my head and I’m in better running shape than I thought.

  • http://twitter.com/traceyleffler Tracey Leffler

    I didn’t race this weekend, but I got a non runner to run with me! That was a plus!

  • http://collegegirlontherun.wordpress.com/ Sarah

    That’s so awesome that you saw Mary Wittenberg! How exciting!
    It sounds like your race/run went well. It’s funny, the director of the camp that I worked at this summer always told us that the summer “is a marathon, not a sprint,” and that in the end we’ll do a better job if we take things slower and try to enjoy each moment. It’s definitely the same for running and training!

  • http://findingblissforme.wordpress.com/ Emily

    Nice job with the run! Also nice job recognizing that, at least momentarily, running a race doesn’t mean fast. I had that realization before the last half marathon I did. I was way undertrained! I was scared I would want to push myself so I even left my watch at home!

  • http://amandarunsny.com/ AmandaRunsNY

    Nice job on the run. You are recovering amazingly. 11 miles is nothing to sneeze at.

    I didn’t race this weekend but I did run 8 miles on Saturday. Amazing weather this weekend!

  • http://www.healthontherun.net Lauren

    Nice job!! Sometimes I think it can be harder to hold yourself to a specific pace than to go all out at the beginning and then see what happens. It sounds like your training is off to a great start and you definitely have the right attitude about it. You’ll get back into racing shape soon, don’t worry!!

    Glad I got to see you for about .2 seconds before the race. Next time I come to NYC, we’ll have to actually hang out!

    • Kelly

      come back to NYC soon!! :)

  • Anonymous

    Congrats on your first race back in 2012! When I was injured back in 2009, I remember racing a half marathon about 2:00/mile slower than usual…I was frustrated that I wasn’t where I wanted to be pace wise, but also so thankful to be running pain-free. I would say that it took me a good 3-4 months for me to regain top fitness, but “getting back into shape” can be fun. Every day you’re getting stronger and faster and that’s a good feeling :)

    • Kelly

      ahh the voice of reason. I like this advice :)

  • http://aliontherunblog.com/ Ali

    Dude, those are pretty nice splits for a comeback race! Remember, you’re JUST coming back from an injury. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to be wildly speedy right away. You’re a naturally fast runner. All that speed will come back to you very soon.

    And I obviously loved seeing you before the race.

  • http://betsyagogo.wordpress.com/ Betsy

    Aren’t those races where you really enjoy yourself the best?? I’ve had a few, and they are my favorite ever. No pressure, just fun.

    BTW, I am so cheap, but I love Cinnamon Raisin Swirl PB from PB Co. So, I decided to make it on my own. I got a jar of pb–TJs was the best, dumped it in a bowl, added a bunch of raisins, and a shitload of cinnamon, and mixed mixed mixed, until it was just like the PB Co. stuff! And so much cheaper! Hmmm..that stuff is so good.

    • Kelly

      hahaha, I was just thinking how expensive it was and that I wouldn’t be buying it again any time soon. This idea is amazing and I am so trying it!

  • http://www.susanruns.com/ Susan- Nurse on the Run

    Welcome back to racing! Not every race is a PR race, some races are just a “see where I’m at race.” Putting in a good effort still shows you where you’re at and what improvements you can make, which you definitely will once the mileage adds up and speed gets thrown in.

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