10k Goals

So, my first ever 10k is coming up on Saturday. I know, a 10k is not even half of a half marathon (a quarter marathon?) so it's not so exciting for you. But its two 5ks, which is my previous longest race, and that makes it a big deal for me. So bear with me while I talk about it some more...

Training:
We started out pretty well with the training plan, but the last month or so has been a real mess. Between night shifts and travel there was definitely some slacking off.

Last Sunday we ran our second 6 mile run... the original plan had us running an 8 miler a few weeks before the race, but that didn't happen. 6 miles was tough enough. But having just run 6 miles last weekend and a fast finish 5 miles this weekend, I feel confident we can make it through this race. Just don't expect it to be speedy.


Goals:
Baseline Goal: Finish.
I know that's probably selling myself short, but this being my first 10k, I want to have a goal I can achieve.

Better Goal: Run the whole thing.
My plan going into this is to walk the water stops and otherwise run the whole thing. A walking break wouldn't be the end of the world, but I'm hoping not to need one. Also I know that I would probably finish faster if I took walking breaks, because the rest breaks enable me to run faster otherwise. But I would like to run the whole thing, if possible.

Totally Awesome Goal: Finish in under 1 hour, 14 minutes.
That's the predicted finish time based on our last 5k race. It would require us to run a little faster than our long runs, an 11:56 pace. Our 6.1 miler was 1 hr 15 mins, so I would say this goal is still possible, but everything has to go exactly right.

Gameplan:

• Run the first 3 miles at a comfortable pace. We mimicked this during Saturday's 5 mile run, and averaged a 12:30 pace for the first 3 miles. 
• Run the next 2 miles at a comfortably difficult pace. We again mimicked on Saturday and ran about 11:30 for the next two miles.
• Run the last 1.2 miles as fast as we can. This is a high 10 to low 11 pace, usually.
• I'm actually going to program this stuff into my Garmin as a workout. The first 3 miles at a desired pace of under 12:40, the next 2 miles at a desired pace of under 11:40, and the last 1.2 with no target because I don't want it beeping at me to speed up or slow down. I just want to give it my best shot. 

Whatever happens, I'm gonna earn my beer Saturday! Yes I already know where and what I'm eating for dinner. Feast your eyes on HayMerchant.