Moving on, but first race photos

OK, so not the best pictures but good reminders of how hard I had to work for this PR.

This one is very close to the finish. I know that because I ditched my fuel belt once I got to 26 miles.



















These is taken probably around mile 24.5, when we go over the last bridge.



















And this, a bit after, I think.





















#Recovery is going well. Physically I am almost there. All the soreness is gone now. I ran about 16 miles total this week, only trails, some with Chris, and it has been nice. Chris and I are going away this weekend to celebrate his birthday and do a little hiking/walking in New Hampshire. I am so excited about this.

#I am enjoying not having a schedule, but truth be told, I am much less productive in other aspects of my life, as a result. This is fine for now but come November 1st I am going back to probably 50 miles/week running until January when I start training for Boston.

#And what am I mostly looking forward to now? Reading everything running, analyzing my training log, looking up races and creating my training plan for Boston. This will be vicarious serious running for me for the next couple of months, ha!

#In other news I learned that I can't trust Chris with Petru's school projects - one of the pics he sent in for the "me and my family project" was taken right after my bike accident in 1999, and I was sporting a huge bloody bump on my forehead; I was grateful when the teacher sent that picture back. Kinda made me laugh bc this is so typical of Chris, ha!

#This is old news for now and don't hate me, but I am really excited about the new qualifications for New York. I am not really interested in running this race - I heard it is a nightmare in terms of logistics, and also very crowded - but I am very interested in qualifying. What seems weird to me is that a 1:27 is equated to a 3:00 marathon. I know plenty of people who ran a 1:27 but could not run a 3:00 marathon. Even McMillan says that a 1:27 half equates to a 3:03 marathon. So what's the logic, New York?

Baystate Marathon 2011 RR aka You do not need to feel good to run well

Driving back from the race Petru asked me if I liked the marathon. I answered that I did not. Not this time. In fact, I am honestly not sure that I ever liked marathons. What I like about the marathon is being able to say that I did it, PR-ing (when that happens), and maybe the last 100 yards.

Today it was one of those days where I felt bad from the first mile. This was new to me. Typically in the marathon I feel good up to mile 20. Then I have to do work. Today I had to do work for 26.2+ miles. That can make one not like the marathon:)

Lets back up for a bit though.

My plan for going into the race was to run even splits. I wanted to run the first few miles slower than pace, and settle into pace (7:20) by mile 5 or so. This is a good time to mention that I do not believe in running negative splits in the marathon. I think this is a good strategy for beginner, but I think for more competitive runners (I am no elite, but I consider myself fast:) if you can run a negative split, you could have gone faster. If you look at the splits of the first few people in any marathon, you will see that they slowed down toward the end. I did not plan on slowing down, but I also knew that I did not want to have anything left in my tank at the finish. I was prepared to suffer and to fight. Two dear friends, two solid, strong, no nonsense women that I was lucky enough to have met through this blog sent me some pretty inspiring notes which I used a lot during the race. Which brings me to another issue that has been on my mind lately (this is getting long, just scroll down to see my results if that is what you are here for). Running IS NOT 90% mental and 10% physical. I am not sure what the percentage truly is, but if running was 90% mental, then anyone could run a sub 3 marathon, ha! Sure, the mental part of the game is important, but you need to do the work and you need to gain the fitness in order to run well. ANd it gets harder and harder the faster you get. Going into the race, I knew I had that. I always toe the line having done the hard work. That is who I am.

Now back to the race...

There is something about starting a marathon race and feeling pain in your legs. Maybe some of you can relate, but until today, I could have not. I did not panic, as I knew that often in training I need a few miles to get my legs, so I plugged along.

Mile 1: 7:27

Mile 2: 7:22

Mile 3: 7:22

The pain did not go away, even after eating a Gu at mile 2.

So my mantra for the day became: "You do not have to feel good to run well".

And off I went

Mile 4: 7:15

Mile 5: 7:20

Mile 6: 7:22

Mile 7: 7:17

The splits are uneven because this marathon has rollers and more rollers.

Something else this marathon had this year? Wind. Strong headwind. I did not feel it much at the beginning, but it became an issue toward the end.

So I was plugging along, unsuccessful at making friends on the course (I typically try to listen to conversations, or find a couple of buddies to help pass the time). By mile 7 I passed the 3:15 pacer, a very sweet and young lad, who later on I heard that dropped out around mile 10 or so.

Also around this time I started to run shoulder to shoulder with this young woman. I worked hard at running tangents and several times I apologized for moving from one end of the street toward the center, but she did not say anything. I think she really wanted to be in front of me.

Mile 8: 7:20

Mile 9: 7:18

Mile 10: 7:20

So that girl and I kept running in front of each other for a while. I did not like this a bit, because I would have preferred to feel a kinship here (I was not racing for a place here and neither was she!) but she did not give me the friendly vibe. OK then. She eventually went in front of me.

Mile 11: 7:18

Mile 12: 7:13

Mile 13: 7:20

Half time: 1: 36:XX

Chris met me at the half point and gave me some GU and some water bottles for my fuel belt. It was great to see him and I made sure to have a smile on my face for him.

The wind really picked up after the half, as we turned to do the miles 3-13 again. I started slowing down a bit, my legs really heavy now, and I knew I needed to focus on the pace, or I'd lose it.

Mile 14: 7:23

Mile 15: 7:14

At this point, I started thinking about mile 20. Get to mile 20 @ 7:20 average, and then you can slow down and you will still PR.

Mile 16: 7:22

Mile 17: 7:17

Mile 18: 7:22

Mile 19: 7:18

Mile 20: 7:20

Once I got to mile 20 I had a 7:18, and I felt happy. The wind was really picking up, and I literally started to feel like it was pushing me back. But whatever, everyone races in the same conditions, so suck it up (I am usually nicer to myself, but sometimes I need a little tough love). Then I started thinking about this great friend who ran a recent race and ran well up to mile 19, but then she got sick and had to slow down. I was not puking and did not feel sick. So I decided to run the last miles for both of us. Which meant I could not slow down.

Mile 21: 7:26

Except that I did.

So I set a range of paces goal with 7:30 as the high margin.

Mile 22: 7:34

Oops, I guess that did not work.

Lets try again

Mile 23: 7:33

A little better, but man, my legs are like jello. I don't have a "push". Every god damn part of my body hurts. But I am a container, and I can contain all the pain. The more pain, the bigger the container.

Mile 24: 7:24

Better. This container metaphor works well. Will use that again. Nice when work and marathoning can merge successfully. Ha!

Mile 25: 7:24

Here I passed the young chick. I asked her to come with me, because really I though we could push each other, but she did not.

With the new course, after mile 25 you go uphill and around all these little streets. At this point I noticed that my upper lip was completely numb. OK, just don't think about it and just run. (I never like to say you are almost there, because really, you are not; here is the point where I break the mile into quarters or shorter, just can't think of running a mile - too long).

Mile 26: 7:34 BOO

As I rounded toward the end I switched my watch to time and saw that I could come in below 3:14. Hell yes, I ran hard with a grimace on my face (early on in a race I fake-smile, bc it really makes me feel better, but when I actually push at the end, I look like I am about to either kills someone or...something)

.39 7:21 pace - this is the brain letting go in action, but also clearly shows that I had no legs..usually this is a 6:XX end of marathon for me:)

Garmin stats: 26.39, 7:20 pace, 3:13:59

Official results: 26.2, 7:25 pace, 3:14:29

(Me thinks I pressed start too late, or my Garmin was acting up, or something.Whatever, I always go with official results).

Stats: 7th woman out of...I have no idea. There were 1000 people in the marathon, so who knows.

Interestingly, the times for this year were slower than last year (female winner last year went 2:46, this year winner was 2:55), which makes me think that the wind made everyone slower.

2nd AG (30-39).

I am super happy with this race. It is in fact the race I am most happy and proud about. It is nice to know that I can push and work hard even when I feel like crap from the beginning of a LONG race. I have no doubt that I can get a 3:10 next time (probably today in better conditions, but no regrets and I was not even trying for that. I did not train for a 3:10, I trained for a 3:15, and I am the nerd who believes in doing the work). This will be hard to accomplish at Boston, but I know what I need to work on. It is clear to me that aerobically I am very strong (I was never out of breath in this race, OK, maybe toward the end). But, my neuromuscular system needs more work, and this will be my focus moving forward. Also, I think I need a longer taper. Or not running the biggest mileage week 2 weeks before the marathon. I don't like to over think things as I always believe that the decisions we make are the best decisions we can make given the information we have available at the time, but I have lots to think about moving forward. What is important is that I feel confident that I can design a plan that will make me feel stronger before Boston. And I can taste the sub 3:00 marathon sometime in 2013:)

As far as liking marathons? I will probably always like saying I have done them more than actually doing them, but I hope that my next marathon will give me at least 13.1 miles of feeling good. If not, well, I know I don't need to feel good to run well:)

****

Thank you thank you thank you thank you infinite + 1 as Petru says to Jenn and Raina (you've made this training cycle really special and exciting), Chris (for shedding a tear when I crossed the finish line AND confessing that you did that!...and other stuff, too), Katie (for running those long runs with me and pulling me along every single time), and to my little imp of a Petru (for making me feel that I can do anything when I think about you)! And thank YOU for reading:)

****

A day in the life -just for fun!

Saw this somewhere and decided to play along. Tapering is in full here...

6:00 UP

6:45-3:00 Work-clinic all day; some grant drama which thankfully got solved quickly.

4:00 run 7 easy miles on trails w/ 4x10sec hill sprints.

5ish say a long "hi" to the lovely neighborhood twins on my way back.

5:30 get Petru from after school

Play game he made up yesterday, over and over.

6:30 Chris comes home, warm up dinner.

7:00 run upstairs for a couple of short work calls.

7:15 Chris leaves for drumming.

Watch Wheel of Fortune with Petru.

Draw with Petru.

8:00 Stories with Petru (Alvin Ho, if you care!)

8:30 Finish notes from morning.

Respond to a good friend's email.

Make lunch for tomorrow.

Pick up around the house.

Watch TV while foam rolling/stretching.

Marathon prep

Write note to Chris to be quiet and not wake me up!

10:00 Bedtime

Good night!

P.S. This is really my hardest day of the week, so don't think I am super woman over here, k? I know how to sit and do nothing, in fact I am very good at that, OK, not really but I am trying:)

Tapering

Oh, taper! I am really enjoying it! This week I am cutting down my mileage to 58-60. Every run is shorter than its counterpart from last week. This cut will represent a 30% decrease from my highest mileage week. Next week I am cutting down 60%. So far, my legs are pissed. I think they are not really getting what is going on, they are not used to not running double digits every single day. Ha!

And along with taper came hunger! I am starving. My stomach wakes me up in the morning with the noises it makes. Weird and interesting and scary (not really!).

We are finally getting some cold weather which means that I can wear compression socks under my pants at work, which is awesome! Unfortunately, we are also getting a ton of wind and rain. I feel prepared for any kind of weather on marathon day. My last 4 runs have been in pouring rain, last one in rain and wind, and the entire summer I ran in humidity and heat. So, bring it! Whatever that might be!

So what have I/will I be doing with the extra time? Lets see...I purchased a mac (birthday present from my mom and my MIL - yes, I am loved!) on Saturday and have transferred and organized all my files. I caught up on work somewhat (I have learned a long time ago that I will never be caught up on work). I slept in. I am planning on going through all my clothes and finally bringing at least 50% of them, which I have not worn in over 3 years, to Salvation Army. I've made a behavioral chart for Petru with his schedule written down in bullet points with a time attached to it for every school day (so that he can keep track of what he needs to do before school and before bed; he can read clocks so this works well for him). If he does everything including a few things that are a bit hard for him (e.g., sitting at the dinner table for at least 15 minutes) he gets to go to bed 30 min later, gets to watch Wheel of Fortune (he got into it when my mom visited), etc. Works like a charm. Those behaviorists know what they are talking about:)

So, about that marathon...legs say they are going 7:20s. The rest of us are still working on buying into that idea, but let me tell you, those legs are very persuasive...See ya on the other side!

Taper

...is here after my biggest training week ever: 80 miles with about 37 at or sub MP, including a 20 miler with 14@MP. I feel good!

This morning my thoughts are "elsewhere", so you'll have to deal with bullet point

#My legs feel fairly good, too. I had a massage on Thursday and it was encouraging to know that there are not trouble areas; she was able to release all the knots (small!). This was my first sports/deep tissue massage and loved it. It was amazing to see how she would find a knot, press on it hard, and then I would go from excruciating pain to relaxation as the knot got released. I am a believer!

#I decided to trust my plan and follow it without last minute modification. A 2 week taper worked for me in the past, and this is what I am doing. I tend to lose fitness quickly (and gain it quickly) so a longer taper would most likely not be good for me. There has also been some talk on competitor.com about shorter tapers being the "new trend" which reinforced my decision (coz I like to be part of the trend, ha!). On the other hand Paula Radcliff takes 3 days off before her marathons, so really this is all individual.

# I figured out my nutrition for the race: Pineapple Roctane and Vanilla, my stomach approved choices. Now I need to figure out my outfit!

# My big grant is in! Now, the waiting! Grr!

# I am feeling a bit sad to start the taper. Sure, it will be great to be able to go do a run that is shorter than 10 miles, but there is a discipline that training hard gives me, and a sense of accomplishment, which I am going to miss.

# Time to work on my mental game, catch up on old work and home projects, and plan my post marathon get away with Chris!

Almost there!

...to the TAPER, that is!

Another 74 mile week and I can feel my legs starting to rebel a bit. It's like they are screaming at me to rest them a bit. I will, I will, just one more week!

I recovered pretty well after my 24 miler, and Monday ran a 10 miler with 6 miles progression from MP to HM to 10K (7 average). Felt great! But then on Thursday when I had my next quality run, my legs were toast. It was very hot and humid (while Monday it was cool) and I had a hard time doing 4X10 @ HM pace (OK, I did them all at sub HM pace, mostly bc I like to push the pace at the end of each interval). My Garmin would not locate satellites, so I got tired of waiting and ran the first interval by feel. I had no idea what pace I was going. I am clueless without the Garmin (something to work on, I suppose). I am pretty sure the first 10 min where more like 10K pace, bc in the second interval (with Garmin), my legs turned over a little slower for a HM pace.

Saturday I ran again with Katie. Running with her has been so good for me. It is fun to chat and the miles go by quickly. Also, Katie is an awesome runner who has been pulling me along in the last 3 long runs. We were blessed with another hot and humid day (100% humidity at 7am, don't you love it?). The first 13 miles were great (7:40 average), but then my legs were done; I had no power, I could not push and my toes where just dropping onto the ground. I knew I would slow down, so I told Katie to run, that I will have to stop and stretch. She did not. Finally, at mile 17 she did for a bit (but then she came back!), and I put my headphones on. I realized that one problem with running with someone is that when things get hard, talking messes up with my breathing. Katie had no problem with this however, which again speaks to how great of a shape she is in (are you reading this Katie????). Also, I realized how much music helps me and also how when things get hard, I need to concentrate and go into my "special place" to deal with it. I ended up putting my headphones on, and dialing in toward the end, and managed to make it to the finish (taking advantage of all the red lights for short rests..what, they don't have those at the marathon?). I gave it my all, which was not much, for the last mile (7:20), for a 7:43 average. Happy with it. Thanks Katie!

So I am tired. I realized that I can be fairly inconsistent with my long runs. I've had some excellent ones and I had some hard ones (put pushed through and got them done, that's what matters, right, right???? My legs will get some rest (and pampering) soon. Now I have to decide if I am going to run 80 miles this last week before the 2 week taper, or cut back some of the mileage for a 3 week taper. Will let you know what I decide. Need to look over my old training logs and figure this out, as well as the type of taper that works for me!

Happy running!

Feeling confident!

Another marathon week in the books and I feel great. These past 2 weeks have done wonders for my confidence. Between my race last week and this Saturday's 24 miler....I am READY to kill it on October 16th!

Lets back off...

I was in rough shape after Sunday's race and honestly a bit worried. So I ran easy around and around this 1 mile loop close to my house, 8 miles on Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday I planned on running 12 with last 6 moderate progression. My Garmin died, legs did not feel good, so I decided to just run moderate by feel and finish strong, with no pressure for pace. On Thursday I had 13.5 miles with 10X1K @ 10k/HM pace. It was hot and these were hard. I ran them on the road because doing so many repeats on the track is annoying to me right now; I allowed myself to quit several times, and, of course, I did not. I managed to run sub HM pace, but I was toast after. I swam on Friday and it felt so good. Our town beach closed late August and my body misses my daily swims.

Saturday I had 24 miles easy on the schedule. I decided to set my Garmin to show only distance, and run the first 20 by feel, pushing the pace toward the end. Then, I planned to do 16X400m repeats at sub MP, with 30 sec recovery (Ryan Hall/Matt Dixon inspiration here). I started a little before 7am in 36 degree weather. I loved it. I started slow and comfortable and my legs felt good. I listen to music and really enjoyed myself. I looked at the pace (changed screens) @ 10 mile and saw 7:58, great (with an 8:38 first mile!). I kept running and ended up with 7:48 average for the 20 miles, last 4 miles sub MP, last mile 6:49. And feeling great! I started my 400ms and immediately my pace went down to low 6s. I immediately decided mile repeats sounded better, and ended up running 4X1mile with 1 min RI, at 6:55, 6:50, 6:50, 6:45 (last one on slight uphill and I won't lie, it was all out). Wow! Total average for the 24 7:37. Very happy! The rest of the day was spent driving to Storyland and running around with Petru (Chris went for a hike) for a few hours (surely ran at least 2.2 miles, to bring my total to 26.2 for the day). Nothing like going on rides for 2 days (we stayed overnight)...Petru is not 49 inches yet and he had to have an adult with him. Still, we had a ball! Sunday I ran 6 easy before the family got up, for a total of 71.5 miles for the week! Two more hard weeks before my 2 week taper. One more week before I turn my big work project in to Research Management. I don't know what am I going to do with myself when all is said and done:)