Edinburgh Men’s 10k
Finished it!
I hadn’t run 10 kilometres since around 2009. The only measured 10k I’d previously run was the Spiggie Loch 10k in Shetland, although I also ran a half marathon in Glasgow in 2009. That was until 9 July this year when I pushed one of my weekend long runs out to 10k and managed it in 1hr 11 minutes and 23 seconds. I ran the same distance or longer 10 more times over the summer then last Sunday ran the Edinburgh Men’s 10k.
I ran it in a personal best recent time of 58 minutes and 4 seconds, beating my 2023 PB by a minute, though not quite as quick as my 49-year-old self managed it. I was so pleased that I didn’t even begrudge those additional 4 seconds – my stretch target for the year was 58 minutes.
It was a cold morning, especially waiting around for the start, but fine once we got going. The fast start down the Mound then round Jeffries Street and down the Royal Mile was balanced by running back up the Royal Mile, after which we followed a relatively flat route to finish inside Murrayfield Stadium.
Shiny Things
It was a good way to round out the year. As we move into late autumn and early winter with dark days and slippery streets, I aim to turn my attention back to swimming rather than running, although I’m happy to pound the pavements on fine days.
I need to keep up the fitness for several reasons – one is simply that I enjoy it. The main reason, though, is that I am entered for a couple of runs in spring 2024: the Kilomathon in April, which also finishes in Murrayfield, and the Edinburgh Half Marathon in May. I’m not especially worried about the Kilomathon, I’ve run that distance on weekends a few times this year; the half marathon is more of a challenge.
I am under no illusions that I’ll trouble the leader boards but it doesn’t matter: I’m not running against anyone else, my main competitor is myself.
I’ve also entered for next year’s Edinburgh Men’s 10k because it was so enjoyable to complete.
Swimming works as both good general fitness training and also good cross-training for running. It’s more expensive though: aside from good running shoes, most of my ‘technical’ gear came from charity shops and the runs themselves carry a marginal cost of zero. Entry to the pool for a half-hour swim costs real ££
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