The Army 10-Miler took place in Washington D.C. this past weekend with record high numbers, as the event is America’s largest 10 miler. With close to 20,000 participants at the starting line outside the Pentagon, the runners passed through the historic city as the route went by the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and the Capitol.
The women’s race looked like an easy win for Meseret Kotu. Leading the race through mile 8, Kotu was passed by Veena Reddy in the last two miles. Kotu started out fast and ran with the men. She planned to create a far enough gap between her and the rest of the women runners to seal her win. Despite her valiant efforts, she was unable to keep her strong pace. First place winner Reddy finished in 58:08 and Kotu in 58:45.
Not too far behind Kotu was her other Foot Solutions teammate Gabriela Trana. Third place finisher Trana finished in 59:08. For Trana, this is her first major race following her Marathon Olympic Debut in Beijing. Last year's champion Firaya Sultanova-Zhadanova, who is recovering from a recent car accident, finished in 10th place with a time of 1:01:22.
On the men’s side, Birhanu Wukaw finished in the top 10. Following Wukaw’s first place win last weekend at the Akron Marathon in 2:23:13, he was still able to come in 7th with a time of 50:47.
Although Meseret Kotu was unable to win, her second place finish was exceptional considering the fact that she had ran the Quad Cities Marathon the previous weekend in 2:45:10 for third place.
As Kotu’s legs were not back up to speed, her fast recovery and ability to race one week later is contributed to her recovery program. After a marathon, taking certain precautions and allowing the body necessary downtime is very important. For Kotu when her mileage is down, she incorporates Balance Walking.
Balance Walking is a low impact exercise that takes the walking movement and adds walking poles. With the use of the poles, Kotu can get a better cardiovascular workout, while taking the stress off of her back, hip, and knees. Along with the exercise Kotu wears the negative heel shoe, Chung Shi, which engages larger muscles in the back of the leg to help circulate blood flow and speed recovery. For Kotu, Balance Walking is an essential component in her training.
To wrap up the exciting weekend for Team Foot Solutions, Elza Kireeva of Russia placed third at the Twin Cities Marathon in 2:39:49. This year’s race was drastically different with cooler weather and drizzling ran, in comparison to last years sweltering heat.
Foot Solutions has helped millions overcome a myriad of biomechanical conditions since its inception in 2000. With more than 250 franchise locations worldwide, the company provides a unique service to its clients focusing on sports, improving balance, performance, running without pain, injury prevention and, improving the healing process.
For more information on the Foot Solutions Elite Team and the Balance Walking program you can visit www.balancewalking.com and runwithfootsolutions.com.
Know someone else who's interested in running and triathlon?
