Sports have always played a major role in Beatrix’s life: a former professional long jump athlete and tennis player for several years, she has always placed sports at the heart of her concerns. Three years ago, in search of new challenges, she decided to start running. The reasons? To maintain her fitness and build good endurance for tennis. Today, she returns to RunMotion Coach on the 10km du Bois de Boulogne. Story.
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How did your 10km du Bois de Boulogne go?
I registered for the 10km du Bois de Boulogne aiming for a very challenging time goal. It was about 1 and a half years ago when I managed to run 10km in less than an hour for the first time. For this race, my goal was to do it in 49 minutes. So compared to the “old me,” about 10 minutes less, around 4:51 per km instead of 6:00 per km. I was stressed, scared, I didn’t feel capable of reaching my goal, but I still wanted to try.
I knew that to achieve it, I had to give everything I had. My performance was much better than I expected, and as a result, I succeeded! It was very tough, but I was the happiest person in the world after crossing the finish line of the 10km du Bois de Boulogne.
How did you manage the preparation of the 10km du Bois de Boulogne?
To prepare for the 10km du Bois de Boulogne, I followed a 14-week training program, with 3 sessions per week. During my preparation, I did not think about my goal. I just wanted to do all my workouts rigorously and never give up. The preparation was not always easy. Throughout this time, the weather did not make life easy with rain and wind all the time. I remember a threshold session where the rain arrived 5 minutes after I started, so I still had over an hour to complete.
I said to myself, alright, let’s continue, and if the storm is too violent, I’ll go back. I didn’t go back. And I was so wet like never before. Motorists looked at me with a surprised look, they didn’t understand why I put so much effort into running when there was a storm outside. The only time I doubted myself was during the test race a month before the scheduled race. In the end, I managed to do the test at the planned level, but it was already very close to my limits. That’s why I still had doubts until the last moment.
What motivates you to run?
I am competitive, but I want to surpass myself rather than others. To push my limits, I always aim for a next goal or challenge, and I try to do everything necessary to achieve it. At the same time, with endurance runs, I try to enjoy myself. Running helps me a lot in managing daily stress.
How did you find the RunMotion Coach app?
I am on social media and on Strava, both showed me posts from RunMotion Coach. I opened the associated link and I knew from the very first moment that I would become a member of this team.
What encouraged you to download and test the app?
There are hundreds of articles published on the RunMotion Coach site about running, preparation, injuries, everything you need to know about running. I found them very useful, and I thought it was worth signing up and getting a specialized training program for my goal.
What do you prefer in the app?
I think the structure of the training plan is very well done. I understand very easily what I am supposed to do this week or next week. In addition, you can add test races at any time and the plan can be adjusted if needed.
After the 10km du Bois de Boulogne, what is your next sporting challenge?
After the 10km du Bois de Boulogne, I would like to run a half-marathon in the fall, so I have already started my new preparation. I want to do it in less than 2 hours. After setting my next goal, I learned that I won a race bib for another 10km in June, so in the end, the next challenge will be more to maintain my fitness until June.
Congratulations Beatrix, good luck with your future goals 💪