Coronado Independence Day 15K

San Diego is America's most patriotic city. So it was no surprise to see Captain America at the starting line on July 4th at the 40th Annual Coronado Independence Day 15K.

There were stars and stripes all around the race course . . .

Now that's committing to a look! Well, he looks pink there, but at the beginning of the race, he was red and white striped!

Of course, I never thought about dressing up for the race . . . until I showed up in lavender. Fail!

I'm foreshadowing here. This is after the race, and look how red and sweaty I am. It was hot! By the time the race started at 7 a.m., the marine layer had burned off, and it was full sun - UV index 10+. I'm unlikely to get a lot of sympathy from the ROA (rest of America) but it was HOT...for SoCal! By the time I finished it was 73 degrees with 80% humidity.

My plan was to run 6:55 for the first half and 6:50 for the second half, if I could. I knew the course was perfectly flat, and there was no wind that morning. The race is on out-and-back course, starting in Coronado Tidelands Park (under the Coronado Bridge), along the bike path that goes to the Silver Strand, and through the Navy's Amphibious Base, then back.

The Naval base sounds more interesting than it actually was...the most interesting part was that there was an on-base McDonald's. And the french fries smelled delicious!

Each mile was really the same experience - flat and hot. I quickly revised my plan and just tried to maintain a 6:55-7:00 pace. The one mile that stands out was the last one...I suffered from a stomach stitch in the last half mile. Dehydration. (I was dumping water on my head at water stations instead of drinking it.) Here I am in the final stretch...hunched over, breathing as shallowly as possible, and trying as hard as I could to look good in the last 200 m. It was not a strong finish.

But at least it was over! (And I didn't get passed.)

Still, it was a good effort. I stayed focused, and passed a lot of people in the second half. I was 12th female at the turn around point, and finished 8th female and first in my age group. Even splits.

Mile 1 - 6:38
2 - 6:52
3 - 6:58
4 - 6:51
5 - 6:58
6 - 6:55
7 - 6:58
8 - 6:54
9 - 6:57
last part (0.49 by my watch) - 6:55 pace.

Official time = 1:05:28.
Official average pace = 7:02.

Oh, and its a PR!

Another race, another 7:00ish average pace, which is about the same average pace as last month's San Diego Rock N Roll Half Marathon. I'm getting frustrated with not being able to break into the 6:5X range in races. But I can attribute this race's 7:00ish average pace entirely to weather. I have the stomach stitch to prove it!

Two Little Runners ~Kristen

San Diego Rock N Roll Half Marathon

The start. Ryan Hall on very far left in orange.

Off to a slow start . . . My strategy was to run at 6:55 and see how I felt at the 10K split. And hopefully feel great and speed up after that. Mile 1 was according to plan. I was up pretty close to the front of Wave 1, so I didn’t have to waste much time weaving (6:56). Mile 2 had one of the few sustained hills, and I pressed my effort a little here. Only to be delayed by a crossing fire truck! (7:03). Mile 3 was perfectly flat, and I was in the groove (6:52). Mile 4 had a 47 foot climb – which shouldn’t have slowed me down as much as it did. I became aware of my legs this mile. They were not feeling fresh (7:06). (I noted to myself that I need to taper for longer than 7 days when running the faster paces I am training for now.)

The Meb miles . . . Then the plan went out the window. Meb Keflezighi was the 1:30 pacer, and the Meb group caught up with me in mile 5. I got swept into the Meb pack, and it was a blast. The crowds were cheering for Meb, and when there weren’t crowds around runners were asking Meb about his training and life. I felt inspired and decided I could hang with Meb (6:50). Mile 6 I was still in Meb-party mode (6:42). When I saw 6:42 display on my watch, I panicked and decided not to look at my watch any more. I was still determined to hang with the Meb pack. I felt good in mile 7 (6:48), but by mile 8, I had fallen behind into the Meb-chaser pack (6:49).

Losing focus . . . Then there was mile 9. I lost sight of the Meb pack, fell out of the Meb-chaser pack at a water station, and momentarily lost my inspiration. The mile was a net 50 feet downhill but I clocked my worst mile of the race. I had started looking at my watch again and did not like what I saw (7:07).

And regaining focus, briefly . . . Mile 10 was more downhill, which allowed me to pick myself back up (6:53). I took focus off of the letdown of losing the Meb pack (later, I found out they finished at 1:29) and focused on getting the 1:30:XX. I did some quick math, and it was going to be close. I honestly don’t know what happened in mile 11, another starting in '7' (7:03).

A big push for the 1:30:XX . . . Mile 12 was my fastest mile of the race and also the biggest downhill. I was making up time for those 7:XX miles (6:37). The last mile was slightly downhill, but felt like I was running uphill. I was trying to will myself into another 6:40 mile . . . but I didn’t have anything left (6:57).

The final stretch.

The elusive 1:30:XX . . . I crossed the finish in 1:31:24. Off by just 25 seconds! But still a 2 minute PR, and I’m really happy with my race. I would have loved crossing the finish line with the Meb pack. Or with a 1:30:XX. I’m just not quite there yet.

But I have come a long way in a pretty short time. My first race back after a 6 month break from spraining my ankle was a 3 mile Turkey Trot in November 2013, where my average pace was 6:50. By design, I didn’t run very many miles this training cycle (averaged 26.5 miles a week), as I needed to build a base and some durability.

But now, it’s on. Next time,  the 1:30:XX is mine!

Split	Time
1	06:56.0
2	07:03.9
3	06:52.8	5K	22:04	(7:07)
4	07:06.6
5	06:50.0
6	06:42.0	10K	43:26	(7:00)
7	06:48.7
8	06:49.1
9	07:07.7
10	06:53.8	10 mi	1:10:01	(7:00)
11	07:03.1
12	06:37.9
13	06:57.1
0.1	01:38.6	(6:00)
	1:31:24	(6:59)

Two Little Runners
Kristen

Navy’s Coronado Bay Bridge Run (4 miles)

This race starts on the Embarcadero by the Convention Center and goes over the Coronado Bridge, finishing over in Coronado’s Tidelands Park. It’s the only time the bridge is open to foot traffic all year. So it’s a must do for any San Diegan! (It would also be a fantastic destination race.) Over 10,000 people showed up to run (or walk) and raised money for wounded warriors and other worthy causes.

The race lends itself to a fun run, and I wanted to run this race as a fun run, but I just don’t have that in me. I raced it – but I didn’t race it too hard, after a pretty intense week of running. Plus one more intense week to go before I start tapering for the San Diego Rock N Roll Half Marathon on June 1.

This was a tough race from the start. Maybe it was my fatigued legs, but I struggled with the baby hills in the first mile (6:30). And then, the big climb up the bridge (complete with headwind)  was in mile 2 (7:30, no Garmin data on elevation on the bridge – shows a flat line). By the time I crested the bridge, I could barely be bothered to enjoy the 360 degree views of the Silver Strand, Pacific Ocean, San Diego Harbor, Coronado, and downtown. My legs were burning on the hill, and I felt pukey. So I coasted downhill on the bridge in mile 3 (6:42). (I could have pushed a lot harder here, but eh…) I was well recovered for the 4th mile, which was totally flat (6:13).

My average pace was 6:47 – which, on paper, is a bit troubling because I am going for 6:50-6:55 pace in my half. But I feel really positive about the 6:13 in the final mile. It felt almost effortless after several very tough miles that I recovered from pretty quickly.

This earned me 3rd place female overall, so I stayed to enjoy the post-race party and collect my rewards! I took advantage of a free massage, enjoyed the band, and collected a record amount of freebies, which thank god I had to munch on because I decided to spend the extra time to wait to take the free race ferry back to downtown.

Splits

1 – 6:30

2 – 7:30

3 – 6:42

7 – 6:13

27:07 (6:47)

3rd female of 2548 / 54th overall of 4840 runners (over 10,000 runners and walkers!)

Two Little Runners ~ Kristen

La Jolla Half Marathon

I loved this race – one of my all-time favorites! It’s a challenging course that starts at the Del Mar race track and heads south along the 101 to La Jolla cove – climbing up and down The Torrey Pines Hill. Not a course for PR-ing, with an elevation gain of 951 and elevation loss of 933. But I’m glad I didn’t let that keep me away! This is the first time in a major race that I’ve ever placed in the top of my age group. Second in F30-34!

A point-to-point course means shuttle buses. I was spooked by the very strongly worded final race instructions about timing and road closures, arrived early, and ended up catching one of the first shuttles. So I arrived at the start at 5:45 a.m. – 1 hour and 45 minutes before the start! Oh, that was a long wait. Although weather was great for racing, 57 and mostly cloudy, it was cold waiting around! I made a new friend on the shuttle bus and spent the time chatting, going to the bathroom, stretching, eating, drinking, going to the bathroom, warming up, going to the bathroom. You know, the things you do to pass the time!

I know this course well, as this was my training ground for lots of years! So my plan was to go out at 7:30 for the first few miles – which were flat. Needed to save some energy for those hills! I knew I’d have to slow down some for the hill starting around Del Mar Heights Road, but then I could pick up some speed on the first big downhill. Which I perfectly executed.

1 – 7:29

2 – 7:23 (73+, 80-)

3 – 7:31 (72+)

4 – 7:53 (110+)

5 – 6:50 (23+, 193-)

Then it was big hill time! I felt pretty comfortable running up The Torrey Pines Hill. Just went by effort. Passed a lot of people, which always produces that extra boost and spring in the step.

6 – 8:41 (259+)

7 – 7:55 (234+, 89-)

Then came a couple of flat miles. I wanted to speed up these flat miles to more in the range of my current half marathon pace. Passed tons of people in these miles.

8 – 7:15 (31+, 24-)

9 – 7:00 (19+, 69-)

10 – 7:13 (21+, 19-)

Then the big downhill. This was steep. But because I have been religious about leg workouts in the gym for the last year, and especially tough workouts in the last 3 months, I was able to keep my form under control. And I fleeeeew down the hill. Well, more like tromped.

11 – 6:12 (341-)

The course flattened out for one mile, and I continued to pass a lot of runners.  Then there was the cruel and unusual punishment of a very tough hill in first half of the last mile. I got passed back by about a handful of guys. I thought I ran the last hill pretty well (faster than the first smaller hill of the same size), but these guys powered up! I couldn't match. 

12 – 7:01 (-14)

13 – 7:48 (+109, -66)

And a downhill sprint to the finish for 1:37:31 (7:27 average pace). 2nd of 550 in F30-34. 24th woman of 3085. And 165 overall of 5891.          

And that's the finish line: 

         

Two Little Runners

Kristen 

Xterra Black Mountain Trail Race 16k (April 13, 2014)

I was contemplating where to run on Sunday for a long run of between 10 and 13 miles. I decided to check out the local race calendars. A race sounded like much more fun than a lonely long run, and there is always a race going on this time of year.

I saw a 16k trail race by Xterra at Black Mountain in San Diego – the 6th race in a 7 race series throughout SoCal. The course was described as the flattest and fastest in this series, so I was in for promises of a spring trail run that wouldn’t totally destroy me . . . right.

Black Mountain

My strategy in trail races has generally been to run fast at the beginning to get ahead of slower runners before the trail narrows. Then when I can, I run fast – on flat, comfortable downhill, and non-technical surfaces.  I “recover” on uphills, steep downhills, and technical terrain (rocky, slippery, narrow, or otherwise scary). Trail races for me are like speed workouts, except the recoveries are on hills!

Looking at the elevation profile of the route and talking to runners before the race, I decided to employ the usual strategy, and it would be very important to start out fast because the trail narrowed quickly to single track for quite a long ways. Then I planned to run the early and middle miles as fast as the course permitted. I wasn’t planning on saving much for the late miles because the hills were so steep for so long. It wouldn’t matter how tired I was – those hills would bring the pain either way.

This is the elevation profile on the race website. Not too bad, right?

Actual elevation profile from my Garmin - no hill smoothing!

So I lined up near the front and got off to a very fast start. This first mile of the race was the best mile I’ve ever run. I got a good position before the trail narrowed to single track. It was downhill and rocky, but there was no slowing down given the train of runners behind me. I concentrated on foot placement, freaked out about my ankle a little bit (sprained about a year ago, finally healed about 6 months ago), and kept up with the runner in front of me so that no one tried to pass me. It was awesome!

In the second mile I realized that I was going to run much slower than I anticipated. Although the general trend of the first half of the course is downhill, there were a ton of steep up and downs not depicted on the race website's elevation profile – and I felt them for the first time in the second mile. Miles 2 and 3 were just under 7:00.

Miles 4 and 5 had a lot of rollers, but I kept a good pace. Both were just under 7:30.

Mile 6 was 9:44, which is explained by (1) water station (walked and stood to drink - never done that before!), (2) lots of very steep downhills where I had to apply the brakes, and (3) walking up a hill that was too steep to run. As I was hiking up it, my hand were almost hitting the ground it was such a steep slope! Legs were JELLO at the end of this mile. I couldn’t take downhills as fast after this because I lost control and stability on the big downhills in this mile.

Mile 7 had a creek crossing, which was a first for me. I stopped, and said, “Oh shit,” while the guys running around me just blasted right through . . . It had about 18 inches of water in it! It took me 3 or 4 steps to get across it. My shoes were so heavy after that! Decent mile at 7:30ish.

Mile 8 marked the start of the massive hill until the end of the race (9.66 miles by my watch). Mile 8 started at 250 feet, and we climbed to 720 feet by the end. Really really really steep from mile 9 to the end. I walked for a second time. The finish line was perched at the very top of this hill. I have never seen so many people walking in the last paces before the finish line. What a tough finish! My quads are complaining today!!

Is it over yet?

Splits (elevation loss (-) and elevation gain (+) in feet)

1 – 6:36 (-247/+5)

2 – 6:56 (-171/+81)

3 – 6:55 (-115)

4 – 7:27 (-65/+85)

5 – 7:25 (-133/+147)

6 – 9:44 (-136/+194)

7 – 7:29 (-187/+32)                                                                 

8 – 8:13 (+65)

9 – 10:02 (+263)

9.66 (16k) – 7:54 (10:30 pace) (+184)

TOTALS: 1:17:07 (8:03 pace) (-1059/+1055) – 4th female and 46th of 326 overall.

Two Little Runners

Kristen

San Diego 5K "Downhill into Downtown"

Daylight savings time makes race morning particularly brutal! 5:00 a.m. felt much much earlier! It was a 7:14 a.m. start.

This race started less than a mile from my house, so I jogged up to the start and lined up just a few minutes before the race began.

Mile 1 - 6:14: Right on target. I planned on the first mile at 6:15, which I think is more or less my "5K pace."

Mile 2 - 6:05: I knew the downhill started toward the end of mile 2, so I picked up the pace.

Mile 3 - 5:42: This race is advertised as "Downhill into Downtown." It's fast. I didn't realize exactly how downhill this course was. In comparison to other 5Ks I've run, the last mile ran itself! So the challenge was to keep my effort level at a 5K effort - rather than just cruising down the hill at 5K pace.

There's 5K effort.

The last 0.1 - 5:25 pace: At the end of mile 3 and in the last stretch, I was trying to catch the 3rd and 4th place women. But they were playing cat and mouse with each other and picked up the pace too.

3rd and 4th place finishers with me (orange shorts) trying to catch them

But I was able to keep the 6th place finisher from passing me in the final stretch. It was a pretty competitive race. I guess every one had some gas left in the tank at the end.

6th place finisher on my tail!

18:47 (6:03 average pace)

2nd of 112 in division F30-34, and 5th female of 663. 27th of 1054 overall.

Two Little Runners

Kristen

Carlsbad Half Marathon 2014 Race Recap

1:33:42 (7:09) – a new PR by 30 seconds!

I decided to target 7:15 for the first half of the race, and I was more or less spot on. My plan for the second half was to go faster and to define what that pace would be on the fly during the race. The second half of the race went better than I expected. I sunk into a 7:00 pace and found the zone, taking it to 6:39 in the last mile, and then down to 6:24 to the finish – with lots of energy to spare.

This is the second time I’ve run the Carlsbad Half, and I’ll definitely do it again. The race is well organized, tons of volunteers and water stations, lots of spectators, live bands, nice finisher metals, and the course is scenic.  Miles 2 through 11 are along the Pacific Coast Highway with ocean views the entire way. The course is rolling hills, but nothing significant. And this time of year, you are almost guaranteed perfect running weather. It was about 55 at the start at 7:45 a.m. – a little warmer than usual but gorgeous.

The scenery. And big surf! 4-6 footers with occasional 8s that day.

I tried something new this race that I will definitely not do again. I read in a running book the suggestion of taking a sleeping pill the night before a race. I take a sleeping pill when I travel to the east cost for work. I need it to fall asleep early, and I wanted to go to bed early for this race. I thought I would be okay under race conditions, which is sort of getting up on east coast time = 3 hours earlier than I'm used to. But I was quite drowsy all morning, even during the race. I didn't get the cobwebs out until well into the second half of the race. I don't think it affected my athletic performance, but it probably affected my concentration. 

The Splits

Split	Time
1	0:07:30
2	0:07:01
3	0:07:15
4	0:07:10
5	0:07:20
6	0:07:05
6.7		48:53 (7:18)
7	0:07:15
8	0:06:54
9	0:06:56
10	0:06:59
11	0:07:08
12	0:06:59
13	0:06:39
6.4	0:01:33	44:49 (7:00)
Total		1:33:42 (7:09)

I massively negative split this race. I ran the first 6.7 miles at an average pace of 7:18. And the last 6.4 miles at an average pace of 7:00. So my plan was a little bit too conservative in the first half. But that just leaves another PR opportunity in the near future. I look forward to shaving 30 to 60 seconds off of my next half marathon. Perhaps racing more often and targeting incremental PRs are the way to go?

The Stats

Overall: 206 of 7256 (1st place was 1:02:13)
Women overall: 45 of 4303 (1st place was 1:14:17)
Division F30-34: 12 of 795 (1st place was 1:21:31)

The Details

Mile 1 – 7:30
I was assigned to Wave 1. It’s a small pleasure in life to start a race in the first wave! This was my slowest mile, due to traffic at the start and a hill. This course has rolling hills throughout, and Mile 1 has the biggest climb. I tried to run the rolling hills by trying to keep the same effort level whether I was running up or downhill. I always seemed to pass people on the downhills.

Mile 2 – 7:01
This was a flat mile and because I ran the first mile a bit slow and because this mile featured a heavy metal band, I think I ran it fast. I also got a snot misting from a guy in front of me when he blew out his nose. Disgusting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mile 3 – 7:15
I remember thinking about how I should fuel at water stations for the first time during this mile. Luckily, this race has water stations at almost every mile, so I didn’t need to plan ahead. And at one of the later miles, they give out orange slices, which was so refreshing!

Mile 4 – 7:10
Grabbed a Gu this mile, I think. I was wearing arm warmers again (love them!) and discovered that I could easily hold the Gu in the arm warmer without having to grip them in my hand (love them more now!).

Mile 5 – 7:20
Ate about half the Gu during this mile. Got water.

Mile 6 – 7:05
The turn around and the halfway mark happened this mile. Began considering how fast to go in the second half.

Mile 7 – 7:15
This mile had an uphill and a downhill. Also grabbed some Gatorade. When I saw 7:15 for my split, I got motivated to speed up.

Mile 8 – 6:54 / Mile 9 – 6:56
Nice downhill miles. Got an orange slice and ate another half of a Gu. Pulled away from the 1:35 pace group, which made me happy. It was a very chatty group. It's sort of annoying when you aren't part of the chat.

Mile 10 – 6:59
This mile was flat, which allowed me to think about how I was feeling. With some visualization and mantras, I convinced myself I felt relaxed and in control of my breath at this pace.

Mile 11 – 7:08
This was a downhill mile, but I ran it slow. I started running with a group here but realized they were slowing down.

Mile 12 – 6:59
Broke away from the group. This mile was uphill, so it was a pretty solid effort to run it at this pace.

Mile 13 – 6:39 / Last bit 1:33 (6:24 pace)
This mile began with a nice downhill, allowing me to pick up my pace without feeling the effort of that. I kept up the speedier pace once the course leveled out. I got into the zone (first time ever in a race) and felt relaxed and strong. My breathing was under control, and I felt like a running machine. I was having so much fun passing every one in sight - men, women, half marathoners, marathoners.

The running machine.

Sped up a little bit more in the last 0.1. It's just not right If I don't feel disoriented and pukey when I cross the finish line.

Disoriented...crossing the marathon side of the finish line, oops!
I wonder how many people were telling me to move over...

two little runners
Kristen

San Diego Resolution Run 15K

On Saturday, January 04, 2014, I ran the Resolution Run 15K in San Diego.This was my second time running this race. I ran over 3 minutes faster than I did in 2012, which was good enough for a new 15K PR of 1:06:55. I was the 11th female overall and 4th in my division, F30-39.  

My plan for this race was to use it as a fitness test and break through workout for my spring half marathon training.  With the help of a flat course and absolutely perfect weather conditions – no wind, 54 degrees, and overcast courtesy of a coastal eddy – I accomplished both!

Going into the race, I had in mind an average pace of 7:20. I ran the first 6 miles of the race at 7:15-7:20. This felt "comfortably hard," which is how it's supposed to feel, I guess. My breathing was relaxed and my legs felt great at these paces.

Mile 1 – 7:19:

The start was relaxed, and I easily got around some of the crowd and settled into the 7:20 pace.

Where's Kristen?

Zooooooommmmmm!

Mile 2 – 7:15:

I settled into this pace with 2 other runners.

Mile 3 – 7:14:

But I soon lost my running buddies, one to a untied shoe lace (never saw him again). And the other picked up the pace to around 6:50, so I let her go. But I kept her pink shirt in my sights.

Mile 4 – 7:19:

I passed four female runners this mile around Fiesta Island.

Course Map

 Mile 5 – 7:16:

A race of 500 runners, and I was alone on the course this mile. So check out the outfit. I wore arm warmers for the first time. They seem like a silly and completely unnecessary item of clothing. And they probably are. But I was exactly the right temperature in them.

Note sure what this finish line was doing here in mile 5. 

Mile 6 – 7:14:

Miles 5 to the end were on an out and back straight away. I like courses designed like this so I can see the fast runners and be inspired. And, most importantly, count what place female I am. I was 15th. I decided to try to push the pace in the last 5K of the race to 7:00 minute miles.

Mile 7 – 7:01:

Passed 2 female runners in this mile and was slowly closing in on the pink shirt runner that I had let go of in mile 3.

Mile 8 – 6:58:

Passed 1 more female runner. Still closing on pink shirt runner, but she had picked up the pace too. I still had a lot of energy left, and breathing was pretty good. Just a little choppy, so I ran the rest of the race fast.

Mile 9 – 6:50:

Starting to breath heavy at this pace and point in the race. Still behind pink shirt runner.

And to the finish (~0.4 miles) – 2:28 (6:24 av pace):

I caught up to pink shirt runner after mile 9.  She was listening to head phones, so she couldn't hear my heavy breathing.  I stayed behind her, and then I surged by in the last quarter mile or so, beating her by 5 seconds.  I felt sort of petty for doing this. Thinking back, 24 hours later, with the competitive instinct worn off, I wish I would have said to her, “Come on, let’s sprint to the finish!”

Oh well… 

But I was proud of myself for keeping the idea of staying with her in my mind the entire race and being tough enough to catch her in the last 3 miles. She was about 100 meters ahead of me most of the way.

It was also great to negative split and be able to pass a lot of people in the final miles and feel strong (recommended) instead of going out faster, trying to hang on, and feeling like death (not recommended). In this race, the two approaches might have resulted in the same time, but I strongly prefer being the passer not the passed!

two little runners
Kristen

2013 Philadelphia RnR Half Marathon Recap

On Sunday I ran the Philadelphia RnR Half marathon. This is my second time at this race; I ran it as my goal half marathon last year, and loved it. Its a beautiful course, the spectators are wonderful and the weather is usually great. This year was no exception.

A couple of weeks ago, I was aiming for a 1:30:xx goal in this race. After a couple of great key workouts, my fitness seemed to indicate I could pretty comfortably aim for a sub 1:30 this time around, so that became my "A-goal". Long story short, I didn't quite make this goal, but came bloody close, and didn't kill myself doing so.

The day before I took a bus down to Philly from NYC. I ate a granola bar on the bus, oatmeal at Starbucks when I arrived, then met with a friend for my traditional french toast lunch at the Black Sheep.

 Sorry, it kinda looks gross all half-eaten like that. It looked much prettier when there was double that toast, with a big pile of fresh fruit. Ate it all except the banana sauce stuff (didn't like) and only a little bit of the maple syrup.

The rest of the afternoon, I chowed down on the ridiculous number of freebies I scored at the expo (all "payment" for how aggravated I was that, after picking up your race packet, you have to walk through several labrynthian miles of expo in order to find the meagerly sign-posted exit...).

After my snack attack, I went for a short 2 mile shake-out jog, feeling pretty good, though knowing that my hip flexor was tight and my groin a tiny bit ouchy.

I then went out to grab some dinner, and caught this pretty little snap of the main strip and capitol building (?) in Philly:

For dinner I ate steamed shrimp, a little broccoli and about 1 cup of steamed white rice... followed by some peanut butter cups. All in all, I think I had more junk food that day than I have consumed in the last six months combined. Sometimes junk is what the bod wants.

Next morning, up at 5am, with a 1/2 cup of oatmeal, a banana, a gatorade and a couple of cups of coffee. Did the bathroom thang, and felt surprising good and not weighed down by all my junk-loading the day prior.

Also took a couple of selfies for blog.

Hey Self!

Not sure what I was going for with the side shot here. Look at my shoes? Legs ready to run?

Got to the race around 7am, and got in a queue for the porta-potties. After waiting 40 minutes, it became apparent that the line was not moving, so I jogged around and found a gas station where a few runners were waiting in line to use the bathroom. Perfect!

Except the very next girl to finish up in the bathroom, locked the keys inside. And the gas station manager didn't have any other keys. To the bathroom. Outside of which, about 10 very anxious and pee-needy runners were waiting.

By this stage it was about 7:45 and I was nervous about getting into my corral on time. So I went up to two speedy looking ladies in front of me and said something like: "Are you ladies interested in a tripartite-public-peeing-cover-up situation?" A resounding "yes" followed. So the three of us sidled up to some parked cars in the lot, and ducked behind them, keeping watch for each other. Of course, it wasn't until I stood up that I realized the gas station manager was able to see me the entire time. And was presently yelling at us for peeing behind the cars at his gas station.

Not my finest hour, I must admit, but a runners gotta do what a runners gotta do.

After Gas-Station-Bathroom-gate-2013, I did another brief jog and some strides. Hip flexor still not feeling 100% but I thought it would be fine. Jumped into Corral 1 with the sweet Megan and some of the other Central Park Track Team girls who were also aiming for a sub-90 half.

And off we went. My childhood friend Rory, had advised me to pace in the 6:50s for the first half, perhaps a little below that in the second and then to push the pace in the final 5k. For the first time ever, I actually followed my pacing plan.

Miles 1-5: 6:57, 6:37, 6:59, 6:51, 6:52. These miles clicked along easily.  It was difficult to gauge how fast I was going because (a) it felt so easy! and (b) in the city center the GPS gets all wacky. But I was happy with these splits. And my pictures tell the tale of feeling pretty comfortable.

 Miles: 6-10: 7:00, 6:46, 6:53, 6:47, 6:47.  I think the 7:00 was when I was telling myself to go easy on the pace and also when I was trying to choke down my Gu. The rest of these miles I just focused on keeping an even cadence. I know what my turnover should feel like at around 6:50 pace, so I just concentrated on that, and my breathing, to pace myself. I was very conscious of not pushing it too hard, as every other of my half-marathons I've really conked out in the last 2-3 miles.

Still feeling pretty comfy.

Miles: 11-13: 6:36, 6:40, 6:39 and 6:18 for the last 0.32. Here is where I turned on a bit of music, and concentrated on dialing up the speed. I wanted to start to feel uncomfortable, but not red-line - a very difficult thing to gauge in those final miles. At any moment I was expecting to hit the wall... but thankfully didn't.

Well, until I began running at my 5K pace for that last half mile, on the only significant uphill of the race. Which is also where my pain-place-face came to the party.

Look away! Look away!

I won't even show you the finish line photos. Suffice to say I looked like I reeeally wanted to be at the finish line.

So the end results:

Garmin times: 1:30:24, for 13.32 miles,  6:47 avg pace.


Gun times:

As you can see from the pace discrepancy between Garmin and gun, I ran 0.22 miles over the course, which represents probably a minute over time (typically I run about 0.1 over in a HM). Obviously running the tangents is part of any race, but on a course with a lot of turns, and a lot of people, this wasn't easy to do. That said, everything else about the race was perfect (weather, nutrition etc.) and there is always at least one thing about any race that you could blame those 23 seconds on!

Anyway, yes I'm a little bit disappointed that I didn't quite make the sub 1:30. But my real wins for the day were (1) finally mastering a pacing strategy; and (2) breaking through a mental barrier by running 13 miles at a 6:47 pace. I theoretically knew it was possible from my workouts, but never quiiiite believed it. Here's proof!

Finally, (3) I didn't want push myself to the absolute limit in this race as I'm still training for my ultimate marathon goal.  I'm pretty sure I met that goal; in the two days post-race, (and apart from an almost expected strained hip flexor, which I hope will clear up in a week or two) my legs and feet feel like I barely even ran a tempo on Sunday.

So for now, I'm resting up, hoping to get back into marathon training, prepping for the ING Hartford HM in four weeks, and Philly in nine!

~ Penny

P.S. I really have to give a shout-out to Jake and Andrea, who I met through the fastrunningblog and their own blog, Wasatch and Beyond. They are some amazing runners, but even nicer people. They are incredibly encouraging, and have provided some great insight and wisdom on running, both to me and tons of other novice runners. Go read them!

New Jersey Marathon Recap - The 3.45 Mile Race

I don't really know how to start this post, so perhaps I'll begin with the ending. Then you can stop reading as soon as you get bored.

Result: a lifetime PR in quad/glute/hip/calf/foot pain, one giant blister running in between my big and second toes, and an inability to get down or up stairways without looking like a frighteningly decrepid geriatric. Seriously, HOW DO YOU PEOPLE RUN MULTIPLE MARATHONS IN A ROW.

Ok, no, actual results now, for reals.

Time Goals: 3:17:13, 7:32 avg pace for 26.2 miles (chip); 7:26 avg pace for 26.45 miles (garmin). 3rd place age-group (153), 14th woman (of 927), 160th overall (of 2267).

Non-Time Goals: Did not puke at finish line or die on course. Did not walk. Chafing was minimal and did not draw blood. Possible OD on gatorade. Finished with smile on face. Did not hate running, all runners and/or any and all running-related things.

Ok, now back to the start. Leading up to this race, I had a few taper-crazies... including a phantom injury that popped up after my last tempo. So the last week before the marathon, looked like this:

April 28th - May 4th:
Sunday: rest, Monday: 7easy miles, Tuesday: rest, Wednesday: 40 mins easy elliptical, Thursday: easy 4 miles (still feeling pain), Fri-Sat: rest.

Coming off 50+ mile weeks, by Saturday I was about to jump outta my skin. Or kill someone.

The weekend was, however, somewhat brightened by carb-loading fun. On Saturday I had my usual oatmeal brekkie, then pounded some homemade french toast for lunch:

Nom nom nom.

Saturday night I stuck to plain white rice and some steamed shrimp and broccoli from the angry lady at our local dodgy Chinese joint.

Sunday morning we woke up at 4:00am...My dad had flown ALL the way from Australia to watch me run the race, and despite his horrible jet lag, he and the hubs got up and out the door like champs. We took the 5 a.m. train from Penn Station, NY out to Long Branch, NJ.

Sleepy eyes...how does my dad look more awake than me? Go Dad!

I ate my breakfast on the train: 1 banana, 2/3 cup of cooked oats, with 1tsp of peanut butter and 1 gatorade. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

We got off the train, and I picked up my bib (race-day pickup, yeah!) then headed straight to the portaloos to do my thing. The half marathoners were starting at 6:45am (ouch) so the queues greatly diminished after that time. Around 7:45 I headed up to the start line, then ditched all my clothes. It was a little windy and 49 degrees, so I was pretty cold but I knew I'd warm up once we got going. I located the 3:15 pacers, and introduced myself, and said I was going to try to stay with them for the first half, then see if I could push up the pace a bit in the later miles. HAHA. Silly girl.

They sung the national anthem... then we were off!

Im in the yellow and blue!

Oh wait. Thats pretty much everyone.

Mile 1-3: 7:38, 7:31, 7:33
I IMMEDIATELY lost the 3:15 group as we started to run. Not only was everyone else going out fast-ish, I was going out even slower than I meant to. During mile 2, I actually panicked a bit because my body felt so cold and stiff from not having run in so many days. My foot was slapping the ground, my leg was locking up and I was like... shiiiiiiit, how am I going to go through 26 miles of this?? I told myself to chill out until mile 4, because I always take about 4 miles to warm up.

I wish I'd been able to enjoy these first miles a little more; we were running through pretty tree-lined streets with tons of people having parties and playing music outside of their houses, watching the race. It was a great atmosphere, and those people were so lovely for all the inconvenience the race must have caused them!

Miles 4-8: 7:31, 7:25, 7:26, 7:30, 7:21

Lo and behold, I warmed up. I chided myself for being paranoid. I fell in with a crazy dude who was yammering away about this and that. He was really nice, actually and he would ask me questions requiring a yes or no response, so I didn't tire out. He had run a marathon only two weeks prior, and was just running for fun. We started running with another guy, Jeff from Boston, and the three of us stayed together until around mile 15.

Took my first gu, and ditched the hand-held water-bottle I was carrying (more on that later).

Mile 9: 7:18
I got to see the father and the hubs! Yay! At this point I was getting into a real groove and starting to enjoy the crowds. They were yelling somewhat embarrassingly loudly, but hey. I was pretty happy to have the best fans out there.

Yo fans! This marathon shiz is nothin. I'm straight chillin.

Jeff and I were matching! Boston strong!

Miles: 10-13: 7:20, 7:20, 7:18, 7:15
Chatter-box, Jeff and I stuck together through the halfway point, when I told Jeff that I was going to try to catch up to the 3:15 pacers a little. He was going to come along. Took my second gu, and was drinking gatorade at every water station. I fell into a great groove and running just felt good. The weather was perfect (this was before we hit the slightly windy shoreline). We were running through suburban streets and then the town area. The spectators were fantastic.

Miles: 14-18: 7:15, 7:16, 7:15, 7:05, 7:10

At mile 15, I discovered my dad and hubs again! I later learned they had hired a taxi to take them to about four separate points along the course to cheer me on. How great is that?!

 

The course took us along the shoreline, with little loops back through suburban streets, to make up the distance.

This is probably where I should have focused on keeping my pace a little conservative. Instead, I caught up to the 3:15 pacers, passed them, and dropped 2 miles well below my marathon goal pace. REALLY SMART THING TO DO PENNY. But at the time I actually had no idea I had done that, as I hadn't looked at my garmin for a while. AND THE SMARTS CONTINUE.

I'm like, whaaaaat, Im at mile 18 of a marathon. I got this.

Miles 19-23: 7:24, 7:24, 7:21, 7:28, 7:22
Mile 19 was the turnaround to head back up the coast to the finish line. At this point I had lost chatter-box, and I think Jeff was perhaps a little bit behind me. My quads were feeling really sore at this point, but I was still feeling energetic and determined to not let them slow me down. However, the slight (only slight) up-hill gradient of the road back up the coast, coupled with a south-easterly wind coming from the sea started to take a small toll. I had plugged in my ear-phones a bit earlier, so I turned on some music.

Ah Eminem. Your angry and abusive lyrics provide such great company through the lonely miles of a marathon.

Miles 24-26: 7:51, 8:04, 8:12 and then some...
My dad, who has run several marathons, told me once that the marathon is actually a 6-mile race. You just have to run 20 miles to get the start-line. 

That was kind of true, except for me, the race began at Mile 24. For me, the New Jersey Marathon was a 3.45 mile race.

And I'm not gunna lie. Those last three miles were a slog. I pulled out a motivating mantra or two.... Relax...Calm...Strong. They worked a bit.

Slightly more effective was the mental bitch-slap I gave myself about what a pussy I would feel like if I saw a 9 min/mile in my splits because I had decided that walking was an option. Ah, self-bullying and degradation. Thats the spirit!

At Mile 21, I saw dad and the hubs again. I was happy to see them, but getting a little too tired to respond.

If you start walking, I'll take away your crayons and you'll go into time-out.

While I wasn't walking, I was getting a little slower, and the 3:15 group eventually caught me. By that stage, Jeff had caught them and me, as well. I focused on staying with them as long as I could, and just maintaining an even cadence.

The last "0.2" miles was somewhat extended. The course had a lot of turns, and even more so since they had to re-route it due to Hurricane Sandy damage. I knew that my garmin was about a quarter-mile off at this point, so I tried not to let it crush my spirit when my watch hit 26.2. By this stage, I was looking at my garmin every 15 seconds wondering when this race would be over.

I finally hit the shoreline and the finishing chute. The spectators were cheering so loudly. Apparently my dad, the hubs, a coworker from my office and his girlfriend were all there cheering me on, but I couldn't see or here anyone. I could only see that. bloody. finish line.

The last 0.05 mile or so, I could see the time ticking away at 3:16:xx, and I tried to kick it in to get under the 3:17 mark, but couldn't quite make it. I was so happy to be done though, that I didn't give a flying hell what the time was. I crossed the finish line and stumbled and wavered a little...

... then thought the best option was to stand still with my hands on my hips, grinning.  An older race official came up and asked me if I was ok. I didn't understand that he was asking if I was physically ok, because I wasn't moving. I told him that was my first marathon, and I had so much fun! He laughed, and asked if I was ok again. I told him I was fine, but I just didn't know if I'd ever be able to walk again. Thats all. He saw that I wasn't in any immediate danger of passing out or dying, so left me to check on some others.

I finally hobbled up to the ladies handing out medals, and proudly posed for Dad and the hubs who had caught up to me.

Medal up close:

I dragged my very very sore feet to pick up my post-race food, and then quickly realized that I was not going to be able to walk back to the train station in Long Branch to go back to New York. My heroic husband piggy-backed me until we got a cab to the train and headed back to the City.

We got home around 2 p.m., and I managed to pull my completely trashed legs into the shower.  We then rested and napped a little. I ate some oatmeal, which was the only thing I could stomach for some time.  Later we went out for dinner where I celebrated/rehydrated with some quality carbs:

 And refueled on barbeque chicken salad and a bowl of fries...

 Roserunner is totally gunna spank me for eating salad after a marathon.

Unpictured: three large pieces of buttery garlic bread, a large brownie and apple crisp with ice-cream and several more glasses of delicious bubbly.

And then I went home and stared at my race goodies for a while, in complete and utter disbelief that I had finally run a marathon.

Did I make the time goal I had set? Not quite. I was aiming for closer to 3:15, and better yet, well below it (missing the tangents cost me about 2 minutes).

But frankly, to have a happy, smiling and OMGICANTWAITTODOTHATAGAIN-crossing of the finish line, was so much more important for my first marathon, than going for an aggressive time goal with the very distinct possibility of wall-hitting and utter misery.

And now I know what its like? Now I have the inside scoop on what happens to my body after running 20+ straight miles? Now that I know what I need to do and where I need to go mentally, when my body is fading?

I'm gunna get after this distance. You just wait, marathon. You're mine.

~ Penny