Today, Columbus Day, I participated in the Boston 10k Tufts Plan for Women.    The race celebrates health, and fitness for women.

Around 10:30 am, I headed to Boston.  It was an easy drive into Boston. I parked at the Hyatt Hotel in Boston – very convenient, plus very few people know about the garage, so parking was a breeze.  I picked up my number, long sleeve shirt and then walked   around checking out the sponsor booths until the start of the race which was noon time.

Then it was time to run. There were approximately 5,000 runners at the start.

My original plan was to run very slow and easy because I recently had inflammation of the ears caused by a cold or allergies.   Anyways, I feel better now. My race goal was just to get some exercise and finish.  This race was the first time I’ve ran more than 6 miles in three weeks. I was going to take regular walk breaks, and try to finish around 75- 90 minutes.

The weather was 75 degrees and humid with a few showers.

The race was so much  fun and I enjoyed running around the City of  Boston.  The course was relatively flat. The route starts in the Boston Public Gardens, heads West on Beacon street to the Mass Ave Bridge and then up and down the Charles River on the Cambridge side and back to the Boston Public Garden.   Throughout the six miles, I ran slow and steady and took walking breaks to allow me to finish strong. I enjoyed seeing the runners in front of me and behind me, thanks to the course design. It was so pleasant to be surrounded by 5,000 women getting out there on a holiday Monday to run 6.2 miles. It was so amazing. There were plenty of water stops on the course and the volunteer staff were so friendly and kind to the runners.  I loved the whole race!

I am pleased with my race, even though it was so humid.   My finish time was about 1 1/2 hours.

Shortly after the race I went home.

I left Boston Common feeling completely motivated for more upcoming fall races. My running was in a bit of a slump last month but now I feel refreshed and healthy.  Running the Tufts 10k, was exactly what I needed.