Boston Marathon training. Oh dear lord...it's here. 15 weeks from today, I'll be toeing the line in Hopkinton...right now, that's a somewhat terrifying thought. Like really? I want to put myself through marathon training again? And in the middle of winter? WTF? But armed with some superfly new winter running gear and a training plan - which I have written out on a calender and am holding myself to as closely as possible - well...I'm gonna do this. Again.
The plan started inconspicuously enough today with an easy 6 miles. I procrastinated the crap out of it, sitting around playing video games with the BF [don't judge] and eating pistachios and enjoying the warmth of my brand new Snuggie [a gift from my sister and it's Wisconsin themed too, I would judge myself but it's just too damn comfy]. Then BF left for a tax preparation class...aaaand I procrastinated some more. At least this was productive procrastination though - I set up my training calender for the next month on an excel spreadsheet and a calendar I printed out and color coded [yellow for easy, orange for long, there are even separate colors for tempo workouts and inteveral workouts! annnd I'm a loser]. The picture I put on the calendar is from the Pearl Izumi website and says "If you ever want to see who the true runners are, take a peek outside during Mother Nature's next hissy fit". We seem to get a lot of hissy fits here in Boston...I think I'm going to need to keep this phrase in mind haha. But anyway, putting it down on a calendar makes me feel much more accountable for putting in the miles I'm supposed to each day.
So finally, after figuring out exactly what I was going to be doing for the next 4 weeks, I headed out for my 6 miles. I was COLD when I first stepped out the door [always the worst part of a run], but I fought through it and warmed up pretty fast. One thing I love about living in the city, and especially a city like Boston where it seems like just about everyone is a runner, is that you see SO many people running at night - after work or whatever, I suppose - it's just nice not to feel so alone on dark, cold, winter nights. And of course, it's fun to ogle everyone's fancy winter tech apparel too. :) For my part, I am absolutely LOVING my Brooks Nightlife half-zip...it's got neon yellow accents and lots of reflective areas for running at night, and its waaaarm. The 6.3 miles @ 8:05 pace went by fast and felt pretty easy, and my knee showed no sign of getting cranky which is...amazing. I can't even express how glorious it's been as I've eased back into running, not constantly freaking out about my knee.
My basic plan for training looks something like this: I'm basing my plan off Brad Hudson's level 2 marathon program, with various tweaks that I'm making to compensate for a) the fact that as I'm coming back after this IT band crap, I'm only going to be running 5 days a week and b) the fact that my mileage hasn't quite been where I want it to be in the lead-up, so I don't want to pound out 45 miles the first week and kill myself. I'm bascially going with 2 easy runs, one usually 5-6 and one 7-8, which will increase as I get further along. My long run I'm going to try to start at 12 miles - not 100% sure on that, but at the least it will be 10 this week. Then 2 days of cross training a week, at least for this first month, and 2 "workouts" - right now they involve some HM pace work, hill repetitions at around 10K effort, and at the end of the month, mile repeats [my faaavorite]. I think I'm just going to take it day by day, but assuming I make it through the next 3 weeks or so without any issues, I may add another 5-6 day to replace the easy day. The long run is going to be interesting since, uh, I haven't done a lot of those lately..but I figure if I just slow the hell down, take it easy, and get through it, it'll come back.
I walk past the Boston Marathon finish line every day on my way to work. Every day, I'm going to look at that line and it will remind me what I'm doing this for. It's going to be hard, but it's going to be good...I know it.
Plus, I'm from Wisconsin after all. What true Wisconsinite doesn't love the cold? :P
Showing posts with label marathon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label marathon. Show all posts
Monday, January 04, 2010
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
AG awards for a half marathon walk?
So today I got my official confirmation of acceptance into the Boston Marathon! [And they said verification would take 3-5 weeks? That sure was fast! Maybe you get extra credit for running a race in MA? Haha :)] A little bit exciting...got a little giddy when I saw my name on the "official entrants" list.
But anyway, since [*sigh*] I still have nothing new to report on the running front, I had a couple of random things that I was thinking about commenting on for awhile. I found it kind of funny that right around the time of my first marathon, that NY Times article came out questioning whether slower runners have a place in marathons. There's been quite a crazy debate and I guess I thought I would just share my opinions on the subject since...well...I want to!
In general, I really disagree with the article. Honestly, if you trained for the race, worked hard, and work as hard as you can during the race itself, you deserve to be there, whether you're running for 2 hours or 8. Are there certain cutoff times that I would consider reasonable? Yeah...I mean, the story of the people who stopped at a restaurant to eat lunch in the Honolulu Marathon...ok that might be a bit much. But basically - if you're giving it your all, I couldn't care less how fast you're going. Does it really affect any of the people who are going to run a faster time what the person who comes in last runs? Not really, unless they try to start at the front of the elite corrall or something dumb like that. Frankly, I think it's pretty cool to see people trying to push their limits regardless of what those limits may be.
But the one thing I do have to say is this: fundamentally, a marathon or half marathon is something that you should have trained for, and it should be an accomplishment for you regardless of what level you're at....and this brings me to the actual point of my rambling. I've never really seen this happen in a marathon, but a half marathon that I raced in last year has decided to institute a specific half marathon WALK. Not only that, but the walk division includes age group awards. Ummm...yeah...not so sure how I feel about that one.
I'm totally cool with the walk division in a 5K or 10K, because there are people who walk for fitness and it's awesome that they're able to participate in races/fundraisers and enjoy themselves that way. But I feel like a half marathon is kind of on a whole different level from that...it's a pretty major endurance event that people train hard and put in a lot of miles for. The thing that just confuses me is that, its not like the race was ever EXCLUDING walkers...there is something like a 16:00/mile pace cutoff that's not terribly strictly enforced and I'm sure if anyone just wanted to walk the majority of the race that would be just fine. But age group awards for a walk? I feel like that just kind of undermines the achievement of the people who ran, walk/ran, jogged, or, basically, really worked hard to complete that 13.1 miles. I'm not saying that walking 13.1 miles would be easy [although, I can't imagine why anyone would want to!] but I don't know...a race just doesn't seem like the right setting for it. IF they really wanted to have a "fun walk", I doubt the people who would sign up for such a thing would want the competition of awards...because if they did, they would be signed up for the actual race. This race also has a 1/4 marathon event, which it seems to me would make a lot more sensible distance to add a specific walk event to...it's not like the half marathon was their shortest race, and the directors felt they needed to cater to walkers somehow.
I guess what it comes down to for me is this: a race is a race. If you want to go for a leisurely walk, or even a walk that is some kind of test of endurance [ie, walkathons, multi-day charity walks, etc]...that is AWESOME. I'm all for physical activity of any sort. I just don't think that creating a separate division in a race scenario, especially in a distance like 13.1, is really where that kind of thing belongs.
Hmm...well I hope this doesn't come off as incredibly elitist or anything - because really, I'm not that kind of person at all. I guess I just don't like to see people half-assing things just to check something off a list or say they did it. I don't care how fast or slow you're going, as long as you're giving it 110%...and that's what I feel like any race, especially a long-distance one, should really represent.
Annnnd rambling over. :) I ventured to the library today despite the crazy crowds of people with political signs and picked up a new book to read while "resting" [Ken Follett...World Without End...I liked Pillars of the Earth, so hopefully this will be equally good!] I have been stretching and Sticking out of control, which seems to be the thing that is helping my questionable IT band the most - after some combination of those two, my leg feels much less tight and achy. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that with this combination + a couple more days of rest, I'll be able to kick this stupid problem! I'm totally blaming the weather on marathon day for this...I think the cold + rain made my muscles much tighter than they would have been, and that combined with the stress of, ya know, running a marathon, just kind of took its toll.
Finally, belated shoutout to lindsay for rocking it out in NYC this past weekend! Oh yeah, and Meb Keflezighi...you know, for being the first American to win the thing in something like forever. Awesome!
But anyway, since [*sigh*] I still have nothing new to report on the running front, I had a couple of random things that I was thinking about commenting on for awhile. I found it kind of funny that right around the time of my first marathon, that NY Times article came out questioning whether slower runners have a place in marathons. There's been quite a crazy debate and I guess I thought I would just share my opinions on the subject since...well...I want to!
In general, I really disagree with the article. Honestly, if you trained for the race, worked hard, and work as hard as you can during the race itself, you deserve to be there, whether you're running for 2 hours or 8. Are there certain cutoff times that I would consider reasonable? Yeah...I mean, the story of the people who stopped at a restaurant to eat lunch in the Honolulu Marathon...ok that might be a bit much. But basically - if you're giving it your all, I couldn't care less how fast you're going. Does it really affect any of the people who are going to run a faster time what the person who comes in last runs? Not really, unless they try to start at the front of the elite corrall or something dumb like that. Frankly, I think it's pretty cool to see people trying to push their limits regardless of what those limits may be.
But the one thing I do have to say is this: fundamentally, a marathon or half marathon is something that you should have trained for, and it should be an accomplishment for you regardless of what level you're at....and this brings me to the actual point of my rambling. I've never really seen this happen in a marathon, but a half marathon that I raced in last year has decided to institute a specific half marathon WALK. Not only that, but the walk division includes age group awards. Ummm...yeah...not so sure how I feel about that one.
I'm totally cool with the walk division in a 5K or 10K, because there are people who walk for fitness and it's awesome that they're able to participate in races/fundraisers and enjoy themselves that way. But I feel like a half marathon is kind of on a whole different level from that...it's a pretty major endurance event that people train hard and put in a lot of miles for. The thing that just confuses me is that, its not like the race was ever EXCLUDING walkers...there is something like a 16:00/mile pace cutoff that's not terribly strictly enforced and I'm sure if anyone just wanted to walk the majority of the race that would be just fine. But age group awards for a walk? I feel like that just kind of undermines the achievement of the people who ran, walk/ran, jogged, or, basically, really worked hard to complete that 13.1 miles. I'm not saying that walking 13.1 miles would be easy [although, I can't imagine why anyone would want to!] but I don't know...a race just doesn't seem like the right setting for it. IF they really wanted to have a "fun walk", I doubt the people who would sign up for such a thing would want the competition of awards...because if they did, they would be signed up for the actual race. This race also has a 1/4 marathon event, which it seems to me would make a lot more sensible distance to add a specific walk event to...it's not like the half marathon was their shortest race, and the directors felt they needed to cater to walkers somehow.
I guess what it comes down to for me is this: a race is a race. If you want to go for a leisurely walk, or even a walk that is some kind of test of endurance [ie, walkathons, multi-day charity walks, etc]...that is AWESOME. I'm all for physical activity of any sort. I just don't think that creating a separate division in a race scenario, especially in a distance like 13.1, is really where that kind of thing belongs.
Hmm...well I hope this doesn't come off as incredibly elitist or anything - because really, I'm not that kind of person at all. I guess I just don't like to see people half-assing things just to check something off a list or say they did it. I don't care how fast or slow you're going, as long as you're giving it 110%...and that's what I feel like any race, especially a long-distance one, should really represent.
Annnnd rambling over. :) I ventured to the library today despite the crazy crowds of people with political signs and picked up a new book to read while "resting" [Ken Follett...World Without End...I liked Pillars of the Earth, so hopefully this will be equally good!] I have been stretching and Sticking out of control, which seems to be the thing that is helping my questionable IT band the most - after some combination of those two, my leg feels much less tight and achy. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that with this combination + a couple more days of rest, I'll be able to kick this stupid problem! I'm totally blaming the weather on marathon day for this...I think the cold + rain made my muscles much tighter than they would have been, and that combined with the stress of, ya know, running a marathon, just kind of took its toll.
Finally, belated shoutout to lindsay for rocking it out in NYC this past weekend! Oh yeah, and Meb Keflezighi...you know, for being the first American to win the thing in something like forever. Awesome!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
A picture is worth 1000 words...
I swear, I actually have a huge smile on my face in this picture. I'm pretty sure you just can't tell because it was so ridiculously cold that my mouth was frozen...also, I enjoy the fact that you can SEE THE BLOOD dripping down my leg. One thing I didn't mention in my race report was the fact that apparently my calves were rubbing together during the race [and my legs were also apparently numb, because I felt nothing] and I ended up chafing so much I was bleeding for who knows how long. I had no idea until I finished the race and looked down and was like...wtf? Why am I bleeding? Battle wounds - kinda badass.
That singlet is so freaking short. Damn you, women's cut. But this is my favorite of the "close up" finish line pictures
I think this one pretty much says it all. Throwing up the W! I also love how you can that a) it's raining and b) it's freezing by the miserable, bundled up spectators in the background. I also like that you can kind of see the clock. :)Thanks Capstone Photo! I will definitely be ordering these pictures. :)
Today it was 68 AND HUMID...so, so weird. Last time I checked it was the end of October? I'm still waiting on fall. I was thinking about it though, and honestly, if the weather had been like this for the race, I don't think it would have gone as well at all. I think for me, crappy weather is more of an advantage than anything else, I seem to deal well with it. Not that I'm opposed at all to 55 and sunny and dry with no wind and puffy clouds, but I would take what we had on Sunday any day over something that in any way resembles warm or humid.
I went for my longest run since the marathon because I just got so ansty I couldn't stand it anymore. It felt great to get out for a run of more than 20 minutes, but my left knee is still a little jacked up - I think it's something with the IT band stuff that I was feeling before the race, that just got escalated by running for 3.5+ hours in the freezing rain. Aside from that though, my legs are feeling pretty much normal. Muscularly, I think things are good. I did two reaaaaally easy 3 mile runs yesterday and the day before and I wasn't feeling so great during those, but I think everything is finally starting to calm down.
And finally, a shoutout to my beloved WTC XC ladies for WINNING NIRCA REGIONALS!!! For as long as I can remember the women's team has been kind of overshadowed by the guys, so it's SO awesome to hear that they finally brought home a plaque! [The guys team won the meet as well but I mean...that's no surprise :)]
Today it was 68 AND HUMID...so, so weird. Last time I checked it was the end of October? I'm still waiting on fall. I was thinking about it though, and honestly, if the weather had been like this for the race, I don't think it would have gone as well at all. I think for me, crappy weather is more of an advantage than anything else, I seem to deal well with it. Not that I'm opposed at all to 55 and sunny and dry with no wind and puffy clouds, but I would take what we had on Sunday any day over something that in any way resembles warm or humid.
I went for my longest run since the marathon because I just got so ansty I couldn't stand it anymore. It felt great to get out for a run of more than 20 minutes, but my left knee is still a little jacked up - I think it's something with the IT band stuff that I was feeling before the race, that just got escalated by running for 3.5+ hours in the freezing rain. Aside from that though, my legs are feeling pretty much normal. Muscularly, I think things are good. I did two reaaaaally easy 3 mile runs yesterday and the day before and I wasn't feeling so great during those, but I think everything is finally starting to calm down.
And finally, a shoutout to my beloved WTC XC ladies for WINNING NIRCA REGIONALS!!! For as long as I can remember the women's team has been kind of overshadowed by the guys, so it's SO awesome to hear that they finally brought home a plaque! [The guys team won the meet as well but I mean...that's no surprise :)]
Monday, October 19, 2009
Three hours, thirty nine minutes, and fifteen seconds of joy: Baystate Marathon Race Report
OK, well, since we all know that I write some of the longest race reports around, I would suggest grabbing some food or a tasty beverage to enjoy while reading what I'm sure is going to be an absolutely epic post...but you know, it was my first marathon [so...longest race ever, which probably means longest race report ever :)], and it was absolutely amazing, and I don't want to forget a single instant of it!
Day before the race - 10/17
I got a great night of sleep Friday night and took myself for a little mile jog to shake out my legs a bit that morning. Pretty much all I could think to myself was the next time I put on these shoes, I'm going to be running a marathon which was enough to send my heart rate shooting through the roof. I kept busy packing/freaking out the rest of the morning, almost had a heart attack when I thought I lost my one and only pair of tech socks [Thought process: I will NOT run in the rain in cotton socks!!] but eventually seemed to have my crap together. As I was waiting around, watching the Badgers play a pathetic second half against Iowa, Claire called to tell me she had finished her marathon and that it was awesome! She said it didn't really feel any harder than her 20 miler even though she was going faster, and she had a huge negative split so that made me feel good about my race strategy. She apologized for stealing all the nice weather...of course the forecast was still looking grim for Sunday but I tried not to think about it.
Kelly and her husband picked the BF and I up at around 2:30 and we headed to Lowell for the expo. It was held at the high school which was kind of hilarious...picture a whole bunch of runners milling around in a cafeteria with signs for "Vote for Diamond for Homecoming Queen!" hung up everywhere. We got our packets and bib numbers, and that's kind of when I knew it was real...tomorrow I would be wearing this number...tomorrow I would be running a marathon. There wasn't much to the expo, but we browsed around a bit and then decided to take advantage of the free pasta dinner, even though it was only like 4:45...we figured we could eat now, then continue to snack once we got back to their place. We got to go through what was essentially the high school lunch line which was kind of hilarious [though the guy working promised us it wasn't cafeteria food, haha], got the standard spaghetti with meat sauce, bread, and water [the BF enjoyed the soda option "for the non-runners" haha]
By the time we [when I say we, I mean my running buddy Kelly, her husband, and the BF] left the, the wind had already started to pick up in an extremely foreboding way. We decided to drive the course before heading back to Waltham and I just could not wrap my mind around the fact that I would be RUNNING this tomorrow. It all kept becoming more and more real, seeing the porta potties set up for water stops, lines on the ground for mile marks, and finally, the chute leading into the stadium where the finish would be...I got chills just looking at it. Tomorrow, I will be here, finishing a marathon...
We headed back to Waltham to eat, drink, and attempt to relax. After some Gatorade and pretzels, we all settled in to watch Running On The Sun, a documentary about the Badwater 135 mile ultramarathon. I felt slightly better about having to run a marathon in a frigging Nor'easter after watching these nut jobs run approximately 5 marathons back to back in Death Valley....dear lord. We turned on the weather channel, as if somehow watching the scrolling forecast of doom would change it, but to no avail...it was still looking like a cold, rainy, windy forecast for marathon day. But this song had come on my iPod on one of my last training runs..."Everytime it rains...I know it's good to be alive..."
I somehow fell asleep at 9:30...I have no idea how I did it. I only woke up like twice throughout the night, it was by far the best night of sleep I've ever had before a big race. Now, this might have something to do with the fact that I was sleeping on a comfy sofa-bed in a quiet Massachusetts suburb, as opposed to a too-short couch in a 90 degree apartment [CDC 07] or a Murphy bed without pillows on a loud, major street [MMM 09], but either way, I woke up 3 minutes before my 5 am alarm feeling awake, and ready to go.
Race Day - 10/18/09
This is it. It's Marathon Day.
I woke up before my alarm and sat in bed for a few moments, stretching easily and just savoring the last few moments of quiet before I began the pre-race ritual that would culminate in me putting my body and mind through quite possibly the hardest thing I had ever done. Just a few moments to remember all the work that had brought me to this day...and now, here it was. It was time.
And then it was up and walking around, eating breakfast, drinking Gatorade, making sure everything was right with the race outfit. I had a banana and my standard "deconstructed peanut butter sandwich" [two pieces of toast, one with peanut butter...I realize I could just put them together as a sandwich but for some reason I like the peanut butter one followed by just a piece of dry toast...also, I'm a weirdo.]. I started getting race-ready...on with the race outfit, the singlet and arm warmers, hair up in a messy bun [a style I rock for races and only for races], prewrap headband and orange ribbon in the hair, D-tag on the shoe, number crumpled and pinned on the singlet...the next 45 minutes were a blur, just going through the motions of pre-race ritual that I've done so many times before, only this time everything seemed more deliberate, like it would somehow change the outcome of my race if the bow in my hair wasn't tied just right or my bracelet was on the wrong side of my watch [God forbid!! haha]. Anyway. Just the standard weird crap that seems extremely important when you're about to go run 26.2 miles.
We left the apartment at 5:45, by which point it had started to mist, but the outside temperature was apparently around 45 and didn't seem too awful. It could only get warmer, right? [Hint: wrong.]
We arrived in Lowell fairly early which meant we didn't have to deal with much traffic - I realized how amazing this was later when we were headed to the starting line and there were still cars lined up trying to park...um yeah I'm pretty sure that that would be my WORST nightmare! There was plenty of space to relax and stretch in the blissfully heated arena that was acting as the staging area for the race, and once we arrived there, I started to get into racing mode. I munched on some strawberry Gu Chomps since my stomach was starting to feel a little empty, threw on my iPod with the mix I made specifically for this purpose, and tried to get in the zone. The enormous, indoor bathrooms were pretty phenomenal...about 8 million times better than the standard porta potties, and the lines weren't terrible either which was somewhat mind-blowing haha. I honestly felt extremely calm...there was none of the intense anxiety that I've felt in cross country in track races...it was like the calm before a big, big storm. Relax...breathe...stretch...I cued up my power songs [Swim - Jack's Mannequin, Don't Stop Believin' - both the Journey and Glee versions, Poker Face - Lady Gaga, My Weakness - Moby (because it makes me think of this YouTube video which almost made me cry in the week leading up to the race) and How Far We've Come - Matchbox 20], tried to figure out how to deal with shoving 3 Gus into my racing attire [one in the bra, one in the shorts pocket, and one safety pinned to the tag turned out to be the winning combo], more random pre-race self pumping-up...and soon, it was time to head to the start line.
The street leading from the Tsongas Arena to the start line was a sea of adrenaline and humanity with more than one nervous comment being made about the weather. There was a waterfall-type fountain outside the arena and I heard one woman behind me gasp "Oh my God! I thought that was rain!" Little did we know... We reached the bag drop and it was time to strip down to racing gear...maybe it was the adrenaline rushing through my body, maybe it was the fact that the wind and rain hadn't really kicked up yet, but as I stood there wearing clothes that most people would think appropriate for a day in summer, maybe spring, I didn't really feel cold.
Race ready! Wearing that hat = best decision of my life
8:27, 8:25, 8:27 [HM split ~1:49:50], 8:23, 8:20
Miles 11 and 12 passed very similarly to the previous 10. I was cruising along, feeling great. I remember thinking "wow, I remember when I ran 10 miles and thought I was the coolest person in the world...and I was probably running way slower than this!" Mile 13 was a big bridge that marked the turnaround, where we would go into our second loop. The atmosphere on the bridge was electric - there were pretty much the most spectators I had seen all day, and everyone was yelling and banging cowbells and just generally being rowdy. I was absolutely thrilled [and perhaps even a little surprised] to be feeling as good as I was, and being on the bridge knowing I was halfway there definitely pumped me up. I saw the BF, which made me SO happy - what a frickin' trooper, standing out in the rain and cold for all those hours to see me run by!! I yelled "I love you!!!" and grinned and blew him a kiss, and he actually yelled "Go Audrey!" [which is impressive, because he's not big on cheering haha] And then it was onward into the second lap...and now it was time to race.
As soon as I crossed the half marathon mark it was like my mind was like "now time to pick it up!" I think this was part of why mile 14 was one of the hardest for me, because I just got a little worried mentally since when I tried to pick up just a little bit, my legs felt it. But I mean, hello, I had already run over 13 miles! I took my second Gu [Tri-berry] at the water stop near the 14 mile mark, and did my same eating on the run act. That definitely gave me a little boost heading into the "hilly" portion of the course. There were definitely a few rollers between miles 14-17, and boy, did I ever feel them the second time around! Holy crap! It was like wait...I don't remember there being a hill here? And somehow, my crazy marathon mind followed this thought process: meh, these hills aren't that big...they're just like little humps! My humps my humps...my lovely little lumps...check it out...oh god, no, what have you done...my humps my humps...and thus, I trucked on to the tune of "My Humps" for the next couple of miles. Of all the possible songs...dear lord.
I also noticed at this point that the mile markers didn't seem so close together anymore. In fact, I often found myself wondering where in the hell the next mile marker was. But I was becoming encouraged because amazingly, I was starting to pass people. Chug chug chug...I just kept chugging along. Between miles 14 and 15 was the only point in the race where I ever really had a conversation with anyone. I had been running with a woman for awhile, and she asked me if I had done this race before. I told her I hadn't, and that this was actually my first marathon and I had just moved from Wisconsin. She was like "oh, you're used to this weather then!" Damn straight, lady! Then she tried to strike up a conversation about what I was doing here, and while I'd love to detail all the finer points of my PT school application process, in the midst of a marathon was not the time to do it. She told me she was a nurse, and I said something along the lines of "yeah, it seems like most runners I know are really smart people! Although, anyone watching us running in this weather would probably think otherwise..." After a couple more minutes, she dropped back and that was that. I was happy in a way, since I just don't like feeling like I need to "pace" off anyone.
So things were getting harder, but I was still feeling really good, despite the increasingly ridiculous onslaught of rain and wind. I also started dropping the pace just a little bit, so little that I hardly even noticed, but each time I looked at my watch at a mile mark and saw something faster than 8:24, it just gave me a little shot of adrenaline...like maybe, just maybe, somehow, I could BQ today.
Miles 16-20: Fish hats and cruise control
8:21, 8:20, 8:15, 8:23, 8:25
I continued on through what I was thinking of as the "backstretch", and surprisingly [to me anyway], I was constantly passing people. Not really consciously, it just kind of...happened! This was also where I kind of started to notice the wind. And the fact that it was kind of cold. And the fact that my feet were starting to get wet. And then, out of nowhere, here is the song that popped into my head [note: NOT the original song, but this version, ridiculous lyrics and all]:
Most particularly, the part involving the "fish hat" and "Angola". Seriously brain? WHY? When I told the BF about it later, he said it was probably because I was cold and I wanted to be warm haha. So anyway, that lovely little ditty was playing in my head for the next couple of miles, but at least it had a nice beat!
I noticed I had pretty consistently started picking up the pace just a little bit, and I was continuing to pass people, which was making me really happy. I kept trying to tell myself that there was still a ways to go, but I couldn't stop myself from grinning when I hit mile 17 and thought to myself, less than 10 miles! And if miles 16 and 17 were good, I couldn't have even prepared myself for mile 18 when suddenly, up ahead in the distance, I saw a familiar neon yellow shirt. Could it be? Was this going to happen?
Yes, yes it was. Shortly before mile 18, I passed the 3:40 pacer. That was seriously the defining moment in the race for me. I was keeping my pace, keeping steady, my legs still feeling reasonably good, and here it was: I PASSED the 3:40 pacer! It was just like...at that moment, I knew. I knew come hell or high water, I was going to do this. I had it in me. It was mine.
Just after this glorious realization, along with the fact that I had somehow thrown down an 8:15 18th mile, we crossed the bridge that represented the turn toward home. 8 more miles, all headed in this direction....it was going to happen. Cruise control, I kept telling myself, just put yourself on cruise control and your legs will keep this up. You're cruising. And cruise I did. I did slow down slightly after the crazy bridge mile, and miles 19 and 20 were definitely where things started to get a little hard. I think that had a lot to do with the fact that I was getting COLD! It was getting harder to push my watch for a split with each passing mile because my fingers weren't really enjoying attempting to move anymore. I realized that there was no way I was going to be able to unpin my last Gu from my shorts, so I grabbed one from the Gu stop [Orange Burst, almost getting run over in the process, but you do what you gotta do] and took it right around mile 20. At mile 19, I thought to myself - 7 miles to go! This is the Arb loop - that's it - how many times have you run the Arb loop? And this is way less hilly! No big deal! Let's rock!
The clock at the 20 mile read 2:47:27. I had calculated [based on what, I don't even know] that if I could get to 22 miles by 3:05, I could qualify. So the new mind game was: Can I run 2 miles in 18 minutes? Well yes, I can do that! And I just kept on keeping on, putting my legs into cruise control, still passing people basically nonstop, and thinking - holy crap...6 miles to go. I'm really, seriously going to do this.
Miles 21-26.2: Don't stop believin'
8:22, 8:17, 8:26, 8:26, 8:08, 1:43 [last.2]
Six miles to go.
And I think to myself, this is where you find out. This is where it happens. This is where you really find out what you've got inside you. And a familiar tune started to pulse through my brain, the beat in time with my footsteps: Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. These 8 words became my mantra for the rest of the race.
I hit mile 21 and saw another familiar neon yellow shirt. There was another 3:40 pacer, WTF? In a kind of hilarious twist, I ended up running in a pack near her for about a mile. It made me laugh. Earlier in this race, though it seemed like approximately an eternity ago, I had told Kelly that "I don't run with pacers because I don't really like running even splits"...and here I was, unknowingly doing both of those things. She later pulled ahead [so once again clearly running faster than 3:40 pace] but I was unconcerned. My heart gave a little jump as I came through mile 22 [where did I pull that 8:17 out of??]. We were in no-man's land now...the distance of my furthest long run was behind me. My legs and training had taken me this far. Now it was time for my heart to take me the rest of the way.
Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'.
4 miles...4 miles...why, that's shorter than even your easiest days! But the mile markers seemed to be getting further and further apart, and the wind was going insane, and dear god was it cold. And this was where the carnage was starting to pile up...lots and lots of people walking, people pulled off to the side stretching, and no more of the chatter that had been everywhere through the first part of the race. People are paying for too-fast starts, or the cold is getting to them, or they are cramping up...and somehow, I am still moving forward. Things are starting to tighten, and God I would LOVE to stop, but I can't. I know walking at this point for me would be a death wish. And so I truck on.
The last 3 miles, hands down, were the most challenging 3 miles I have ever run in my life. I was absolutely freezing, and my legs were starting to shut down. We passed the bridge where we had turned around on the previous lap and headed into an extremely open area near the river where the wind just kicked up another 5 notches from where it had been the rest of the race. I had given up trying to avoid puddles a long time ago since my shoes were already soaked, and I just kept my eyes on the white line stretching out endlessly in front of me [it's like a lane on the track!] It seemed like the closer we got to the finish line the more people were slowing down, or walking, and oh how much I wanted to stop, but inside I just kept screaming at myself those lyrics from "Swim"...I'M NOT GIVING IN!!! I had not come this far, to come this close to qualifying for Boston to give up and slow down and give in with two miles to go. It just wasn't happening. Today was MY day, and I was going to keep on believin' until I had crossed that freaking finish line.
I came to the 24 mile mark and it was just like....OH MY LORD 2 MILES TO GO! 2 miles. 2 miles is nothing! I can do this...I am GOING to do this...is this seriously happening?? It's happening. Oh my gosh. This is about where I started getting a little emotional. I was in so much pain but with two miles to go I knew, with all my heart and soul, that not only was I going to finish this race, I was going to BQ. And I literally thought I was going to start crying...but now was not the time to get emotional. But I did allow myself to think about all of the people and events that had brought me to this place. Of the miles, and miles, and miles, and miles, and running when I didn't want to, and getting up early, and runs in the heat of the summer when I thought I might die, and of Kelly who got me through some of the longest runs in the training cycle and convinced me to do this in the first place, and of all my WTC girls who had made me love running - I've never been so proud to be wearing that club jersey. And just everything - this was me, someone who had never been thought of as much of an athletic person and who was one of the 10% of people in elementary and middle school who didn't play soccer and who finished last in conference in the 300 hurdles twice in a row and who never could have dreamed of accomplishing something like this ever in my life....this was happening for me. I was going to do this, this thing that such a small, small percentage of people can ever say they did. Those were my thoughts during mile 25 - just awe and wonder and so much joy that I was doing this...I was really, truly doing this. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'.
I don't know if there is any sight so glorious in this world as the mile 26 marker during a marathon. A LITTLE OVER A MILE TO GO! Doing some quick mental math, I figured I had about 12 minutes to run 1.2 miles. Oh my God. I was going to do it. For real and for true. There was a "one mile to go" sign located directly across from, of all the possible things, A TRACK. What an absolutely beautiful coincidence. Where it all began for me, and sure enough, there it is, with one mile left to go in my first, amazing, wonderful marathon. Once again, I almost felt like crying, but my emotional mood was quickly changed by one of my favorite things that happened to me the entire race. There was this one, lonely guy standing by the "one mile to go" sign, and when I ran by I happened to be kind of by myself. So as I go by this dude starts absolutely SCREAMING: "THERE IS ONLY ONE MILE LEFT! YOU CAN DO IT! YOU ARE AMAZING! GO GO GO!!" It was absolutely incredible, I have no idea who this man was out there cheering for but there he was, standing alone in the pouring rain and giving so much motivation to every single person going by.
One mile to go. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. Just one more mile. This is happening. You're doing this...you're really, really doing this! In that last mile, the pain and the cold and the fact that I'd been running for 3 and a half hours...it was all gone. None of it mattered. The only feeling I experienced that last mile was 100% pure joy. I could not stop myself from smiling as I cruised down this last road, towards the last bridge which I knew was coming. One more mile. One more mile. This is it. This is happening!!!
I was so tired, so, so tired, but it didn't matter. I turned onto the last bridge, the bridge that I had said about the night before "I'm totally going to freak out when I hit this bridge...it's like a speed tunnel!". I sped up and I could see it, the stadium, there was the finish. 706 miles, and this is what it comes down to, one last push over a bridge with a huge smile on my face, the rain pouring down but I can't even feel it, the wind whipping but who cares, strong and powerful and everything I've ever dreamed of being I am, here at this moment.
Across the bridge, turning a corner, and into the "chute" that led into the stadium. I saw the BF once more, overcome with everything in the moment I couldn't say anything but knowing he was there meant everything. The corrall leading into the stadium was lined with people, cheering and screaming and banging cowbells and holding signs...everything you imagine the finish of a marathon to be. Right before actually turning into the stadium, there it was, the 26 mile mark. Oh my God. 0.2 miles. This is real, this is happening...THIS IS YOUR VICTORY LAP!!!
I turned onto the warning track of this Lowell Spinners baseball stadium, and I don't think I've ever felt so much emotion in my entire life. I wanted to laugh, cry, yell, throw my arms in the air, and grin uncontrollably, all while attempting to run as fast as my legs would go. There was a photographer somewhere on that warning track and I have the feeling that's going to be a ridiculous, yet awesome picture. I passed one last person and there I was, into the home straight. I could see it...the finish line, and the clock with those incredible numbers of 3:39. It was happening. It was really truly happening. As I crossed the line, I threw up my arms into the "W" sign that was such a thing with our club last year. It was a W for Wisconsin...for WTC...and for Win. Because I had defeated every running demon I had ever had, every voice that ever told me I could never truly be great, and most importantly, my thoughts that I couldn't execute in a race when it really counted...it did not matter in the least what place I had actually come in in this race...I had won.
Mile 26.3 and onward: Post race
The instant I stopped running was the instant the cold and the pain hit. I was so overcome with emotion that I had done it, that it was over, and most of all, that I had actually qualified for Boston, that I was somewhere between hyperventilating, laughing, and crying. I got my mylar blanket and promptly almost fell over, my legs were shaking so hard. A girl put a medal around my neck and asked how I was...when I responded "AMAZING!" she laughed and was like..."wow, that's the first time I've heard THAT one today!". But how could I not feel amazing? I had just finished my first marathon AND qualified for Boston!
With my newly gained shiny objects, I slowly, painfully made my way towards the bleachers, still in my awkward laugh/cry/hyperventilate stage, although now I had added "shivering uncontrollably" and "hoping legs don't collapse" into the mix. Then, the cruelest of all tortures: we had to CLIMB THE STAIRS to get to food, friends, and bathrooms. TORTURE! Most painful stair climb of my life, hands down, although I'm sure it was quite entertaining to spectators to watch thousands of gimpy runners struggle up the steps of the bleachers. I finally reached the BF and basically fell into his arms. "I did it!!! I qualified!" "I know!" I still didn't really know what to do with myself so we decided to try and make our way up the rest of the stairs to locate the post-race food. On the way I ran into Kelly's husband, who had finished 11th overall and PRed - pretty awesome, and he is one speedy guy! I decided I wanted some food and struggled my way over to the tent...honestly, I can't even think of anything to compare the pain in my legs after that race to. It didn't help that I was shaking uncontrollably, so my muscles which were already in pain were spasming...causing them to be in more pain...and it was just generally awful. This so occupied my mind when I got to the food table that I really wasn't even sure what to do, and ended up with some chicken noodle soup [which I eventually managed to eat] and a peanut butter sandwich [which I essentially stared at for 20 minutes before realizing that it didn't look even remotely appetizing]. Oh, and a Diet Pepsi. Because apparently these race organizers read my mind and know about how much I adore diet soda after a hard run.
I found my way to the bathroom to put on some dry clothes and discovered just how difficult it is to put on pants when your hands are frozen and you can hardly move your legs. I was moving like a granny, that was for sure. Right as I came out of the bathroom Kelly came in, and we were all pretty anxious to hightail it back to the car...alas...it was like half a mile away. A painful half mile, let me tell you. The BF was practically carrying me. Once we got back to the car and warmed up everyone started to feel a bit better and we all swapped race stories and talked about the ridiculousness of the weather and whatnot. I think I was still kind of in shock and amazement over the whole thing, to be honest!! I obviously had to call the fam, and the cutest thing was my sister [who had called Saturday and asked if I was running THE Boston Marathon, which I told her you had to qualify for] who called and was so incredibly excited and proud and was like "and you said it was really hard to qualify for!! You are so amazing!!" Hearing from her actually made me tear up a little bit too to be honest, since it was kind of incredible to see just how huge this is even to someone who isn't at all involved in running.
We finally made it home, and by now it was snowing. I was just in a world of pain, but I wanted one thing and one thing only: an enormous burger. So the BF and I trekked on the train to Joshua Tree and I ate possible the most incredible meal of my life: an appetizer of calamari, waffle fries, and a burger STUFFED WITH CHEESE, and topped with cheese, bacon, bbq sauce [BQ sauce??!!] and the usual veggie fixings. And of course, a Magic Hat #9, because beer was kind of a requirement in my life at that point. We got home and attempted to watch a movie/have a couple more beers. but my legs hurt so badly that all I could really do was whine about it. I went to bed at 9:30 and it was amazing. And there it was...it seriously happened...my marathon day.
So I have all sorts of other random ramblings to ramble about this race being the culmination of my running life so far and things...but I think I'll at least put that post under a different heading because I'm sure anyone who has made it this far is probably really sick of scrolling down this page. I've also been writing this on and off for almost 2 hours so...yeah...my brain is a little fried, especially with re-living the race in my head. But I will end this post with 3 post-race thoughts:
1. I am so, so, so proud of the way I ran this race. Honestly, I would say it's one of the best races I've ever run in my life. I excecuted exactly how I wanted to [my second half was only 25 seconds slower than my first. Despite the fact that I went out faster than planned. That is almost even splits, people! Remember when I said I don't do even splits??!!], when things got tough I refused to give in and back off the pace, and I pushed myself as hard as I knew how for 26.2 miles, ran my own raced, and finished feeling strong, powerful, and incredible.
2. Today I was riding the T to a job interview, and I looked out the window at this random hotel on Beacon Street. And I suddenly thought to myself: I have run past that hotel so many times in the past month and a half. On short runs, on long runs, good days, and bad. And an even funnier thought crossed my mind: I realized that the first run I went on when I arrived in Boston was the last 4 miles of the Boston Marathon course. And then I thought: Wow. I am going to be running down this street to the finish of the Boston Marathon in 6 months. And I almost started crying right there on the train, and at the same time just grinned. I think that was the moment when I realized that I am going to run THE Boston Marathon. And that is pretty much the coolest thing I can think of.
3. Yesterday, for the first time in my entire life, I finally realized that I am a good runner. And I've been able to come that realization through the training and the miles that have led up to this one, amazing moment, this one race. And now that I know what I'm capable of...well..the possibilities are endless.
Well, I just copied and pasted this entry into Microsoft Word and discovered that it is 11 PAGES LONG...so to anyone who has reached the end, I salute you.
3:39:15
52/185 AG
572/1561 OA
Day before the race - 10/17
I got a great night of sleep Friday night and took myself for a little mile jog to shake out my legs a bit that morning. Pretty much all I could think to myself was the next time I put on these shoes, I'm going to be running a marathon which was enough to send my heart rate shooting through the roof. I kept busy packing/freaking out the rest of the morning, almost had a heart attack when I thought I lost my one and only pair of tech socks [Thought process: I will NOT run in the rain in cotton socks!!] but eventually seemed to have my crap together. As I was waiting around, watching the Badgers play a pathetic second half against Iowa, Claire called to tell me she had finished her marathon and that it was awesome! She said it didn't really feel any harder than her 20 miler even though she was going faster, and she had a huge negative split so that made me feel good about my race strategy. She apologized for stealing all the nice weather...of course the forecast was still looking grim for Sunday but I tried not to think about it.
Kelly and her husband picked the BF and I up at around 2:30 and we headed to Lowell for the expo. It was held at the high school which was kind of hilarious...picture a whole bunch of runners milling around in a cafeteria with signs for "Vote for Diamond for Homecoming Queen!" hung up everywhere. We got our packets and bib numbers, and that's kind of when I knew it was real...tomorrow I would be wearing this number...tomorrow I would be running a marathon. There wasn't much to the expo, but we browsed around a bit and then decided to take advantage of the free pasta dinner, even though it was only like 4:45...we figured we could eat now, then continue to snack once we got back to their place. We got to go through what was essentially the high school lunch line which was kind of hilarious [though the guy working promised us it wasn't cafeteria food, haha], got the standard spaghetti with meat sauce, bread, and water [the BF enjoyed the soda option "for the non-runners" haha]
By the time we [when I say we, I mean my running buddy Kelly, her husband, and the BF] left the, the wind had already started to pick up in an extremely foreboding way. We decided to drive the course before heading back to Waltham and I just could not wrap my mind around the fact that I would be RUNNING this tomorrow. It all kept becoming more and more real, seeing the porta potties set up for water stops, lines on the ground for mile marks, and finally, the chute leading into the stadium where the finish would be...I got chills just looking at it. Tomorrow, I will be here, finishing a marathon...
We headed back to Waltham to eat, drink, and attempt to relax. After some Gatorade and pretzels, we all settled in to watch Running On The Sun, a documentary about the Badwater 135 mile ultramarathon. I felt slightly better about having to run a marathon in a frigging Nor'easter after watching these nut jobs run approximately 5 marathons back to back in Death Valley....dear lord. We turned on the weather channel, as if somehow watching the scrolling forecast of doom would change it, but to no avail...it was still looking like a cold, rainy, windy forecast for marathon day. But this song had come on my iPod on one of my last training runs..."Everytime it rains...I know it's good to be alive..."
I somehow fell asleep at 9:30...I have no idea how I did it. I only woke up like twice throughout the night, it was by far the best night of sleep I've ever had before a big race. Now, this might have something to do with the fact that I was sleeping on a comfy sofa-bed in a quiet Massachusetts suburb, as opposed to a too-short couch in a 90 degree apartment [CDC 07] or a Murphy bed without pillows on a loud, major street [MMM 09], but either way, I woke up 3 minutes before my 5 am alarm feeling awake, and ready to go.
Race Day - 10/18/09
This is it. It's Marathon Day.
I woke up before my alarm and sat in bed for a few moments, stretching easily and just savoring the last few moments of quiet before I began the pre-race ritual that would culminate in me putting my body and mind through quite possibly the hardest thing I had ever done. Just a few moments to remember all the work that had brought me to this day...and now, here it was. It was time.
And then it was up and walking around, eating breakfast, drinking Gatorade, making sure everything was right with the race outfit. I had a banana and my standard "deconstructed peanut butter sandwich" [two pieces of toast, one with peanut butter...I realize I could just put them together as a sandwich but for some reason I like the peanut butter one followed by just a piece of dry toast...also, I'm a weirdo.]. I started getting race-ready...on with the race outfit, the singlet and arm warmers, hair up in a messy bun [a style I rock for races and only for races], prewrap headband and orange ribbon in the hair, D-tag on the shoe, number crumpled and pinned on the singlet...the next 45 minutes were a blur, just going through the motions of pre-race ritual that I've done so many times before, only this time everything seemed more deliberate, like it would somehow change the outcome of my race if the bow in my hair wasn't tied just right or my bracelet was on the wrong side of my watch [God forbid!! haha]. Anyway. Just the standard weird crap that seems extremely important when you're about to go run 26.2 miles.
We left the apartment at 5:45, by which point it had started to mist, but the outside temperature was apparently around 45 and didn't seem too awful. It could only get warmer, right? [Hint: wrong.]
We arrived in Lowell fairly early which meant we didn't have to deal with much traffic - I realized how amazing this was later when we were headed to the starting line and there were still cars lined up trying to park...um yeah I'm pretty sure that that would be my WORST nightmare! There was plenty of space to relax and stretch in the blissfully heated arena that was acting as the staging area for the race, and once we arrived there, I started to get into racing mode. I munched on some strawberry Gu Chomps since my stomach was starting to feel a little empty, threw on my iPod with the mix I made specifically for this purpose, and tried to get in the zone. The enormous, indoor bathrooms were pretty phenomenal...about 8 million times better than the standard porta potties, and the lines weren't terrible either which was somewhat mind-blowing haha. I honestly felt extremely calm...there was none of the intense anxiety that I've felt in cross country in track races...it was like the calm before a big, big storm. Relax...breathe...stretch...I cued up my power songs [Swim - Jack's Mannequin, Don't Stop Believin' - both the Journey and Glee versions, Poker Face - Lady Gaga, My Weakness - Moby (because it makes me think of this YouTube video which almost made me cry in the week leading up to the race) and How Far We've Come - Matchbox 20], tried to figure out how to deal with shoving 3 Gus into my racing attire [one in the bra, one in the shorts pocket, and one safety pinned to the tag turned out to be the winning combo], more random pre-race self pumping-up...and soon, it was time to head to the start line.
The street leading from the Tsongas Arena to the start line was a sea of adrenaline and humanity with more than one nervous comment being made about the weather. There was a waterfall-type fountain outside the arena and I heard one woman behind me gasp "Oh my God! I thought that was rain!" Little did we know... We reached the bag drop and it was time to strip down to racing gear...maybe it was the adrenaline rushing through my body, maybe it was the fact that the wind and rain hadn't really kicked up yet, but as I stood there wearing clothes that most people would think appropriate for a day in summer, maybe spring, I didn't really feel cold.
Race ready! Wearing that hat = best decision of my lifeA couple quick sips from my Nalgene, one last kiss to the BF, and we were off to the starting line. Which was, for lack of a better word, a clusterfuck. The half marathon and the marathon started on opposite sides of the same street, and the only access to the corral was through the front and back, no side gates at all. This isn't some gigantic race, but there were still 1500 marathoners to contend with and trying to squeeze your way through the sausage casing of the corral gates with 5 minutes until race time just wasn't going to end well. Kelly and I decided to try to get in through the front and hope that people would let us move back, as opposed to starting out near the back and risk getting caught up in the slower runners. So...in the end, we were about 5 rows back from the start...yes, definitely much further up than we probably sould have been, but there was literally no way out. People were smashed together like sardines left and right, back and front, so all we could do was own our place in line and wait for the start.
I was so incredibly giddy right before the start of the race - I just couldn't believe I was actually doing it, actually here, that I was really, truly going to run a marathon. I honestly got a little teary eyed during the national anthem...all of the emotion of everything that had brought me to this day and to this place just kind of welled up in me. Then the mayor of Lowell came on the mike and here it was...three...two...one...GO!
Miles 1-5: Easy peasy
8:08, 8:16, 8:12, 8:33, 8:13
Remember my plan of going out really slow and easy? Funny how that didn't work out so well, huh? Not that I'm terribly surprised that most of my splits for this section were fast, but I had to kind of laugh when we went through the first mile in 8:08...whoops. :) As we crossed the starting line, I literally got chills, and once again, that sheer excitement and disbelief welled up in me - it's actually starting, I'm ACTUALLY DOING THIS!! I tucked in beside Kelly and just tried to relax, relax, relax. With the awkwardness of the start corral and the fact that the half was starting at the same time, there were people speeding by at various levels of craziness, and it was really difficult not to get caught up in it all, but I just kept telling myself, either a) they're running HALF the distance you are, or b) they are crazy-looking men, obviously they're going to be running faster than you!
I remember thinking that I felt like I was pushing just a little bit too hard for this point in the race, but everytime I tried to dial it back nothing really happened. Kelly and I talked a bit but for the most part we were kind of in our own little bubbles just focusing on moving forward and staying calm and relaxed. At the 4 mile mark I thought to myself "woo hoo, only 22 miles to go! You've run 22 miles before. Just forget that you ran the last 4 miles and just rock it like a long run!" Mind games, how I love thee. Also around that point was when the supposed 3:40 pacer passed me. Now, since I'm pretty sure I was in the middle of my 8:13 mile at that point, I'm not sure what kind of pace those girls were running, and so I decided to put them out of my mind together. Bye bye, neon yellow shirt! [Little did I know I would be seeing them again later...]
We hit up the water stop that was right around 5 miles, and I decided I didn't want to pull off for a drink that point. Kelly did, and she must have gotten caught up behind me because before I knew it, she was gone. I was on my own now, with 21 miles left to go.
Miles 6-10: Let it rain
8:25, 8:30 [10K split: 51:41], 8:24, 8:25, 8:23
And the rain rain rain came down down down, and Audrey kept on running.
So around mile 6, it started drizzling. And then the drizzle became more than a drizzle, and then the wind started kicking up, and soon enough it was just a ridiculous, pouring, mess out there. But for some reason, now that the race was actually in progress, it didn't bother me that it was raining. I actually thought it was kind of awesome. Like, I'm pretty sure this is actually how my thought process went during the race: Wow, it's raining. God I'm glad I'm wearing this hat. These arm warmers are the best. thing. ever. God I love running in the rain. THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!!! The sad part is, I'm actually not even kidding.
So my main recollection about these miles is just how steady, calm, and relaxed I felt. Like I could literally go on like this forever and ever. I got all snazzy with my Gu #1 [Chocolate Outrage] at about mile 7, pulling it out of my sports bra and ripping it open with my teeth before I got to the water stop, taking it down, and then grabbing Gatorade on the run as I ran through. Side note: I LEARNED HOW TO DRINK WHILE RUNNING!! Don't ask me how. It's like something that miraculously came to me during this race. Did I get a little bit of Gatorade on my face? Yeah, but I did not stop running, at any point in time, for any reason. OK, so that was pretty amazing. The water stops were all manned by high school XC teams which was pretty amazing, they were all really upbeat despite the weather and my whacked out mind found it hilarious hearing them yelling things that you would totally hear in a cross country race [my personal favorite: "Look at this pack! Keep working together guys, stay with this pack, you're looking awesome! Cross country all the way :)]
Mile 8 was the bridge that we got to run over twice, basically representing the turn back towards home. The first time I ran over it I was kind of taken by surprise because it was one of those suspension bridges that like...bounces...when you run on it? Now multiply that by a whole bunch of people running on it and yeah...it was kind of weird. There were a bunch of spectators right near it though, so that was cool...such troopers. At this point in the race, the mile markers seemed to come SO quickly...I would be like...wait...is that a mile marker up there? OMG it is! How has it seriously been another mile? I also dealt with some interesting characters running near me over this stretch. I had two different women and one man who were possibly the LOUDEST breathers I have ever encountered. I mean...whatever floats your boat I guess, but just being near these people was making me feel like I was getting more tired! As for myself, my breathing was about as calm as could be. There was also a dude whose friends me up with him to give him Gatorade and then ran with him for a ways. I really couldn't care one way or another about the "outside help" thing, but what bothered me is that they were running 3 across, kind of blocking my way. The roads were open on a lot of the course and we didn't have a very wide lane to run in, so it was just kind of like....hello? Can these people who are not actually racing get out of my way??!! Not to mention this man was also the hyperventilator so...double whammy of irritation haha. But it was really no big deal. I was feeling cool as a cucumber and my legs felt great. I knew after the halfway point things would probably get tougher, so I was just focusing on the fact that for now, I felt great, and just savoring every step. I was running a marathon, and it was feeling AWESOME!
Miles 11-15: My humps, my lovely lady lumps
I was so incredibly giddy right before the start of the race - I just couldn't believe I was actually doing it, actually here, that I was really, truly going to run a marathon. I honestly got a little teary eyed during the national anthem...all of the emotion of everything that had brought me to this day and to this place just kind of welled up in me. Then the mayor of Lowell came on the mike and here it was...three...two...one...GO!
Miles 1-5: Easy peasy
8:08, 8:16, 8:12, 8:33, 8:13
Remember my plan of going out really slow and easy? Funny how that didn't work out so well, huh? Not that I'm terribly surprised that most of my splits for this section were fast, but I had to kind of laugh when we went through the first mile in 8:08...whoops. :) As we crossed the starting line, I literally got chills, and once again, that sheer excitement and disbelief welled up in me - it's actually starting, I'm ACTUALLY DOING THIS!! I tucked in beside Kelly and just tried to relax, relax, relax. With the awkwardness of the start corral and the fact that the half was starting at the same time, there were people speeding by at various levels of craziness, and it was really difficult not to get caught up in it all, but I just kept telling myself, either a) they're running HALF the distance you are, or b) they are crazy-looking men, obviously they're going to be running faster than you!
I remember thinking that I felt like I was pushing just a little bit too hard for this point in the race, but everytime I tried to dial it back nothing really happened. Kelly and I talked a bit but for the most part we were kind of in our own little bubbles just focusing on moving forward and staying calm and relaxed. At the 4 mile mark I thought to myself "woo hoo, only 22 miles to go! You've run 22 miles before. Just forget that you ran the last 4 miles and just rock it like a long run!" Mind games, how I love thee. Also around that point was when the supposed 3:40 pacer passed me. Now, since I'm pretty sure I was in the middle of my 8:13 mile at that point, I'm not sure what kind of pace those girls were running, and so I decided to put them out of my mind together. Bye bye, neon yellow shirt! [Little did I know I would be seeing them again later...]
We hit up the water stop that was right around 5 miles, and I decided I didn't want to pull off for a drink that point. Kelly did, and she must have gotten caught up behind me because before I knew it, she was gone. I was on my own now, with 21 miles left to go.
Miles 6-10: Let it rain
8:25, 8:30 [10K split: 51:41], 8:24, 8:25, 8:23
And the rain rain rain came down down down, and Audrey kept on running.
So around mile 6, it started drizzling. And then the drizzle became more than a drizzle, and then the wind started kicking up, and soon enough it was just a ridiculous, pouring, mess out there. But for some reason, now that the race was actually in progress, it didn't bother me that it was raining. I actually thought it was kind of awesome. Like, I'm pretty sure this is actually how my thought process went during the race: Wow, it's raining. God I'm glad I'm wearing this hat. These arm warmers are the best. thing. ever. God I love running in the rain. THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!!! The sad part is, I'm actually not even kidding.
So my main recollection about these miles is just how steady, calm, and relaxed I felt. Like I could literally go on like this forever and ever. I got all snazzy with my Gu #1 [Chocolate Outrage] at about mile 7, pulling it out of my sports bra and ripping it open with my teeth before I got to the water stop, taking it down, and then grabbing Gatorade on the run as I ran through. Side note: I LEARNED HOW TO DRINK WHILE RUNNING!! Don't ask me how. It's like something that miraculously came to me during this race. Did I get a little bit of Gatorade on my face? Yeah, but I did not stop running, at any point in time, for any reason. OK, so that was pretty amazing. The water stops were all manned by high school XC teams which was pretty amazing, they were all really upbeat despite the weather and my whacked out mind found it hilarious hearing them yelling things that you would totally hear in a cross country race [my personal favorite: "Look at this pack! Keep working together guys, stay with this pack, you're looking awesome! Cross country all the way :)]
Mile 8 was the bridge that we got to run over twice, basically representing the turn back towards home. The first time I ran over it I was kind of taken by surprise because it was one of those suspension bridges that like...bounces...when you run on it? Now multiply that by a whole bunch of people running on it and yeah...it was kind of weird. There were a bunch of spectators right near it though, so that was cool...such troopers. At this point in the race, the mile markers seemed to come SO quickly...I would be like...wait...is that a mile marker up there? OMG it is! How has it seriously been another mile? I also dealt with some interesting characters running near me over this stretch. I had two different women and one man who were possibly the LOUDEST breathers I have ever encountered. I mean...whatever floats your boat I guess, but just being near these people was making me feel like I was getting more tired! As for myself, my breathing was about as calm as could be. There was also a dude whose friends me up with him to give him Gatorade and then ran with him for a ways. I really couldn't care one way or another about the "outside help" thing, but what bothered me is that they were running 3 across, kind of blocking my way. The roads were open on a lot of the course and we didn't have a very wide lane to run in, so it was just kind of like....hello? Can these people who are not actually racing get out of my way??!! Not to mention this man was also the hyperventilator so...double whammy of irritation haha. But it was really no big deal. I was feeling cool as a cucumber and my legs felt great. I knew after the halfway point things would probably get tougher, so I was just focusing on the fact that for now, I felt great, and just savoring every step. I was running a marathon, and it was feeling AWESOME!
Miles 11-15: My humps, my lovely lady lumps
Miles 11 and 12 passed very similarly to the previous 10. I was cruising along, feeling great. I remember thinking "wow, I remember when I ran 10 miles and thought I was the coolest person in the world...and I was probably running way slower than this!" Mile 13 was a big bridge that marked the turnaround, where we would go into our second loop. The atmosphere on the bridge was electric - there were pretty much the most spectators I had seen all day, and everyone was yelling and banging cowbells and just generally being rowdy. I was absolutely thrilled [and perhaps even a little surprised] to be feeling as good as I was, and being on the bridge knowing I was halfway there definitely pumped me up. I saw the BF, which made me SO happy - what a frickin' trooper, standing out in the rain and cold for all those hours to see me run by!! I yelled "I love you!!!" and grinned and blew him a kiss, and he actually yelled "Go Audrey!" [which is impressive, because he's not big on cheering haha] And then it was onward into the second lap...and now it was time to race.
As soon as I crossed the half marathon mark it was like my mind was like "now time to pick it up!" I think this was part of why mile 14 was one of the hardest for me, because I just got a little worried mentally since when I tried to pick up just a little bit, my legs felt it. But I mean, hello, I had already run over 13 miles! I took my second Gu [Tri-berry] at the water stop near the 14 mile mark, and did my same eating on the run act. That definitely gave me a little boost heading into the "hilly" portion of the course. There were definitely a few rollers between miles 14-17, and boy, did I ever feel them the second time around! Holy crap! It was like wait...I don't remember there being a hill here? And somehow, my crazy marathon mind followed this thought process: meh, these hills aren't that big...they're just like little humps! My humps my humps...my lovely little lumps...check it out...oh god, no, what have you done...my humps my humps...and thus, I trucked on to the tune of "My Humps" for the next couple of miles. Of all the possible songs...dear lord.
I also noticed at this point that the mile markers didn't seem so close together anymore. In fact, I often found myself wondering where in the hell the next mile marker was. But I was becoming encouraged because amazingly, I was starting to pass people. Chug chug chug...I just kept chugging along. Between miles 14 and 15 was the only point in the race where I ever really had a conversation with anyone. I had been running with a woman for awhile, and she asked me if I had done this race before. I told her I hadn't, and that this was actually my first marathon and I had just moved from Wisconsin. She was like "oh, you're used to this weather then!" Damn straight, lady! Then she tried to strike up a conversation about what I was doing here, and while I'd love to detail all the finer points of my PT school application process, in the midst of a marathon was not the time to do it. She told me she was a nurse, and I said something along the lines of "yeah, it seems like most runners I know are really smart people! Although, anyone watching us running in this weather would probably think otherwise..." After a couple more minutes, she dropped back and that was that. I was happy in a way, since I just don't like feeling like I need to "pace" off anyone.
So things were getting harder, but I was still feeling really good, despite the increasingly ridiculous onslaught of rain and wind. I also started dropping the pace just a little bit, so little that I hardly even noticed, but each time I looked at my watch at a mile mark and saw something faster than 8:24, it just gave me a little shot of adrenaline...like maybe, just maybe, somehow, I could BQ today.
Miles 16-20: Fish hats and cruise control
8:21, 8:20, 8:15, 8:23, 8:25
I continued on through what I was thinking of as the "backstretch", and surprisingly [to me anyway], I was constantly passing people. Not really consciously, it just kind of...happened! This was also where I kind of started to notice the wind. And the fact that it was kind of cold. And the fact that my feet were starting to get wet. And then, out of nowhere, here is the song that popped into my head [note: NOT the original song, but this version, ridiculous lyrics and all]:
Most particularly, the part involving the "fish hat" and "Angola". Seriously brain? WHY? When I told the BF about it later, he said it was probably because I was cold and I wanted to be warm haha. So anyway, that lovely little ditty was playing in my head for the next couple of miles, but at least it had a nice beat!
I noticed I had pretty consistently started picking up the pace just a little bit, and I was continuing to pass people, which was making me really happy. I kept trying to tell myself that there was still a ways to go, but I couldn't stop myself from grinning when I hit mile 17 and thought to myself, less than 10 miles! And if miles 16 and 17 were good, I couldn't have even prepared myself for mile 18 when suddenly, up ahead in the distance, I saw a familiar neon yellow shirt. Could it be? Was this going to happen?
Yes, yes it was. Shortly before mile 18, I passed the 3:40 pacer. That was seriously the defining moment in the race for me. I was keeping my pace, keeping steady, my legs still feeling reasonably good, and here it was: I PASSED the 3:40 pacer! It was just like...at that moment, I knew. I knew come hell or high water, I was going to do this. I had it in me. It was mine.
Just after this glorious realization, along with the fact that I had somehow thrown down an 8:15 18th mile, we crossed the bridge that represented the turn toward home. 8 more miles, all headed in this direction....it was going to happen. Cruise control, I kept telling myself, just put yourself on cruise control and your legs will keep this up. You're cruising. And cruise I did. I did slow down slightly after the crazy bridge mile, and miles 19 and 20 were definitely where things started to get a little hard. I think that had a lot to do with the fact that I was getting COLD! It was getting harder to push my watch for a split with each passing mile because my fingers weren't really enjoying attempting to move anymore. I realized that there was no way I was going to be able to unpin my last Gu from my shorts, so I grabbed one from the Gu stop [Orange Burst, almost getting run over in the process, but you do what you gotta do] and took it right around mile 20. At mile 19, I thought to myself - 7 miles to go! This is the Arb loop - that's it - how many times have you run the Arb loop? And this is way less hilly! No big deal! Let's rock!
The clock at the 20 mile read 2:47:27. I had calculated [based on what, I don't even know] that if I could get to 22 miles by 3:05, I could qualify. So the new mind game was: Can I run 2 miles in 18 minutes? Well yes, I can do that! And I just kept on keeping on, putting my legs into cruise control, still passing people basically nonstop, and thinking - holy crap...6 miles to go. I'm really, seriously going to do this.
Miles 21-26.2: Don't stop believin'
8:22, 8:17, 8:26, 8:26, 8:08, 1:43 [last.2]
Six miles to go.
And I think to myself, this is where you find out. This is where it happens. This is where you really find out what you've got inside you. And a familiar tune started to pulse through my brain, the beat in time with my footsteps: Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. These 8 words became my mantra for the rest of the race.
I hit mile 21 and saw another familiar neon yellow shirt. There was another 3:40 pacer, WTF? In a kind of hilarious twist, I ended up running in a pack near her for about a mile. It made me laugh. Earlier in this race, though it seemed like approximately an eternity ago, I had told Kelly that "I don't run with pacers because I don't really like running even splits"...and here I was, unknowingly doing both of those things. She later pulled ahead [so once again clearly running faster than 3:40 pace] but I was unconcerned. My heart gave a little jump as I came through mile 22 [where did I pull that 8:17 out of??]. We were in no-man's land now...the distance of my furthest long run was behind me. My legs and training had taken me this far. Now it was time for my heart to take me the rest of the way.
Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'.
4 miles...4 miles...why, that's shorter than even your easiest days! But the mile markers seemed to be getting further and further apart, and the wind was going insane, and dear god was it cold. And this was where the carnage was starting to pile up...lots and lots of people walking, people pulled off to the side stretching, and no more of the chatter that had been everywhere through the first part of the race. People are paying for too-fast starts, or the cold is getting to them, or they are cramping up...and somehow, I am still moving forward. Things are starting to tighten, and God I would LOVE to stop, but I can't. I know walking at this point for me would be a death wish. And so I truck on.
The last 3 miles, hands down, were the most challenging 3 miles I have ever run in my life. I was absolutely freezing, and my legs were starting to shut down. We passed the bridge where we had turned around on the previous lap and headed into an extremely open area near the river where the wind just kicked up another 5 notches from where it had been the rest of the race. I had given up trying to avoid puddles a long time ago since my shoes were already soaked, and I just kept my eyes on the white line stretching out endlessly in front of me [it's like a lane on the track!] It seemed like the closer we got to the finish line the more people were slowing down, or walking, and oh how much I wanted to stop, but inside I just kept screaming at myself those lyrics from "Swim"...I'M NOT GIVING IN!!! I had not come this far, to come this close to qualifying for Boston to give up and slow down and give in with two miles to go. It just wasn't happening. Today was MY day, and I was going to keep on believin' until I had crossed that freaking finish line.
I came to the 24 mile mark and it was just like....OH MY LORD 2 MILES TO GO! 2 miles. 2 miles is nothing! I can do this...I am GOING to do this...is this seriously happening?? It's happening. Oh my gosh. This is about where I started getting a little emotional. I was in so much pain but with two miles to go I knew, with all my heart and soul, that not only was I going to finish this race, I was going to BQ. And I literally thought I was going to start crying...but now was not the time to get emotional. But I did allow myself to think about all of the people and events that had brought me to this place. Of the miles, and miles, and miles, and miles, and running when I didn't want to, and getting up early, and runs in the heat of the summer when I thought I might die, and of Kelly who got me through some of the longest runs in the training cycle and convinced me to do this in the first place, and of all my WTC girls who had made me love running - I've never been so proud to be wearing that club jersey. And just everything - this was me, someone who had never been thought of as much of an athletic person and who was one of the 10% of people in elementary and middle school who didn't play soccer and who finished last in conference in the 300 hurdles twice in a row and who never could have dreamed of accomplishing something like this ever in my life....this was happening for me. I was going to do this, this thing that such a small, small percentage of people can ever say they did. Those were my thoughts during mile 25 - just awe and wonder and so much joy that I was doing this...I was really, truly doing this. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'.
I don't know if there is any sight so glorious in this world as the mile 26 marker during a marathon. A LITTLE OVER A MILE TO GO! Doing some quick mental math, I figured I had about 12 minutes to run 1.2 miles. Oh my God. I was going to do it. For real and for true. There was a "one mile to go" sign located directly across from, of all the possible things, A TRACK. What an absolutely beautiful coincidence. Where it all began for me, and sure enough, there it is, with one mile left to go in my first, amazing, wonderful marathon. Once again, I almost felt like crying, but my emotional mood was quickly changed by one of my favorite things that happened to me the entire race. There was this one, lonely guy standing by the "one mile to go" sign, and when I ran by I happened to be kind of by myself. So as I go by this dude starts absolutely SCREAMING: "THERE IS ONLY ONE MILE LEFT! YOU CAN DO IT! YOU ARE AMAZING! GO GO GO!!" It was absolutely incredible, I have no idea who this man was out there cheering for but there he was, standing alone in the pouring rain and giving so much motivation to every single person going by.
One mile to go. Don't stop believin'. Hold on to that feelin'. Just one more mile. This is happening. You're doing this...you're really, really doing this! In that last mile, the pain and the cold and the fact that I'd been running for 3 and a half hours...it was all gone. None of it mattered. The only feeling I experienced that last mile was 100% pure joy. I could not stop myself from smiling as I cruised down this last road, towards the last bridge which I knew was coming. One more mile. One more mile. This is it. This is happening!!!
I was so tired, so, so tired, but it didn't matter. I turned onto the last bridge, the bridge that I had said about the night before "I'm totally going to freak out when I hit this bridge...it's like a speed tunnel!". I sped up and I could see it, the stadium, there was the finish. 706 miles, and this is what it comes down to, one last push over a bridge with a huge smile on my face, the rain pouring down but I can't even feel it, the wind whipping but who cares, strong and powerful and everything I've ever dreamed of being I am, here at this moment.
Across the bridge, turning a corner, and into the "chute" that led into the stadium. I saw the BF once more, overcome with everything in the moment I couldn't say anything but knowing he was there meant everything. The corrall leading into the stadium was lined with people, cheering and screaming and banging cowbells and holding signs...everything you imagine the finish of a marathon to be. Right before actually turning into the stadium, there it was, the 26 mile mark. Oh my God. 0.2 miles. This is real, this is happening...THIS IS YOUR VICTORY LAP!!!
I turned onto the warning track of this Lowell Spinners baseball stadium, and I don't think I've ever felt so much emotion in my entire life. I wanted to laugh, cry, yell, throw my arms in the air, and grin uncontrollably, all while attempting to run as fast as my legs would go. There was a photographer somewhere on that warning track and I have the feeling that's going to be a ridiculous, yet awesome picture. I passed one last person and there I was, into the home straight. I could see it...the finish line, and the clock with those incredible numbers of 3:39. It was happening. It was really truly happening. As I crossed the line, I threw up my arms into the "W" sign that was such a thing with our club last year. It was a W for Wisconsin...for WTC...and for Win. Because I had defeated every running demon I had ever had, every voice that ever told me I could never truly be great, and most importantly, my thoughts that I couldn't execute in a race when it really counted...it did not matter in the least what place I had actually come in in this race...I had won.
Mile 26.3 and onward: Post race
The instant I stopped running was the instant the cold and the pain hit. I was so overcome with emotion that I had done it, that it was over, and most of all, that I had actually qualified for Boston, that I was somewhere between hyperventilating, laughing, and crying. I got my mylar blanket and promptly almost fell over, my legs were shaking so hard. A girl put a medal around my neck and asked how I was...when I responded "AMAZING!" she laughed and was like..."wow, that's the first time I've heard THAT one today!". But how could I not feel amazing? I had just finished my first marathon AND qualified for Boston!
With my newly gained shiny objects, I slowly, painfully made my way towards the bleachers, still in my awkward laugh/cry/hyperventilate stage, although now I had added "shivering uncontrollably" and "hoping legs don't collapse" into the mix. Then, the cruelest of all tortures: we had to CLIMB THE STAIRS to get to food, friends, and bathrooms. TORTURE! Most painful stair climb of my life, hands down, although I'm sure it was quite entertaining to spectators to watch thousands of gimpy runners struggle up the steps of the bleachers. I finally reached the BF and basically fell into his arms. "I did it!!! I qualified!" "I know!" I still didn't really know what to do with myself so we decided to try and make our way up the rest of the stairs to locate the post-race food. On the way I ran into Kelly's husband, who had finished 11th overall and PRed - pretty awesome, and he is one speedy guy! I decided I wanted some food and struggled my way over to the tent...honestly, I can't even think of anything to compare the pain in my legs after that race to. It didn't help that I was shaking uncontrollably, so my muscles which were already in pain were spasming...causing them to be in more pain...and it was just generally awful. This so occupied my mind when I got to the food table that I really wasn't even sure what to do, and ended up with some chicken noodle soup [which I eventually managed to eat] and a peanut butter sandwich [which I essentially stared at for 20 minutes before realizing that it didn't look even remotely appetizing]. Oh, and a Diet Pepsi. Because apparently these race organizers read my mind and know about how much I adore diet soda after a hard run.
I found my way to the bathroom to put on some dry clothes and discovered just how difficult it is to put on pants when your hands are frozen and you can hardly move your legs. I was moving like a granny, that was for sure. Right as I came out of the bathroom Kelly came in, and we were all pretty anxious to hightail it back to the car...alas...it was like half a mile away. A painful half mile, let me tell you. The BF was practically carrying me. Once we got back to the car and warmed up everyone started to feel a bit better and we all swapped race stories and talked about the ridiculousness of the weather and whatnot. I think I was still kind of in shock and amazement over the whole thing, to be honest!! I obviously had to call the fam, and the cutest thing was my sister [who had called Saturday and asked if I was running THE Boston Marathon, which I told her you had to qualify for] who called and was so incredibly excited and proud and was like "and you said it was really hard to qualify for!! You are so amazing!!" Hearing from her actually made me tear up a little bit too to be honest, since it was kind of incredible to see just how huge this is even to someone who isn't at all involved in running.
We finally made it home, and by now it was snowing. I was just in a world of pain, but I wanted one thing and one thing only: an enormous burger. So the BF and I trekked on the train to Joshua Tree and I ate possible the most incredible meal of my life: an appetizer of calamari, waffle fries, and a burger STUFFED WITH CHEESE, and topped with cheese, bacon, bbq sauce [BQ sauce??!!] and the usual veggie fixings. And of course, a Magic Hat #9, because beer was kind of a requirement in my life at that point. We got home and attempted to watch a movie/have a couple more beers. but my legs hurt so badly that all I could really do was whine about it. I went to bed at 9:30 and it was amazing. And there it was...it seriously happened...my marathon day.
So I have all sorts of other random ramblings to ramble about this race being the culmination of my running life so far and things...but I think I'll at least put that post under a different heading because I'm sure anyone who has made it this far is probably really sick of scrolling down this page. I've also been writing this on and off for almost 2 hours so...yeah...my brain is a little fried, especially with re-living the race in my head. But I will end this post with 3 post-race thoughts:
1. I am so, so, so proud of the way I ran this race. Honestly, I would say it's one of the best races I've ever run in my life. I excecuted exactly how I wanted to [my second half was only 25 seconds slower than my first. Despite the fact that I went out faster than planned. That is almost even splits, people! Remember when I said I don't do even splits??!!], when things got tough I refused to give in and back off the pace, and I pushed myself as hard as I knew how for 26.2 miles, ran my own raced, and finished feeling strong, powerful, and incredible.
2. Today I was riding the T to a job interview, and I looked out the window at this random hotel on Beacon Street. And I suddenly thought to myself: I have run past that hotel so many times in the past month and a half. On short runs, on long runs, good days, and bad. And an even funnier thought crossed my mind: I realized that the first run I went on when I arrived in Boston was the last 4 miles of the Boston Marathon course. And then I thought: Wow. I am going to be running down this street to the finish of the Boston Marathon in 6 months. And I almost started crying right there on the train, and at the same time just grinned. I think that was the moment when I realized that I am going to run THE Boston Marathon. And that is pretty much the coolest thing I can think of.
3. Yesterday, for the first time in my entire life, I finally realized that I am a good runner. And I've been able to come that realization through the training and the miles that have led up to this one, amazing moment, this one race. And now that I know what I'm capable of...well..the possibilities are endless.
Well, I just copied and pasted this entry into Microsoft Word and discovered that it is 11 PAGES LONG...so to anyone who has reached the end, I salute you.
3:39:15
52/185 AG
572/1561 OA
Sunday, October 18, 2009
BQ!!!!!!!!
I DID IT!!
3:39:28, give or take a few seconds....
Quick stats: 40 degree temperatures, 20 mph winds, steady rain starting at about mile 8, almost even splits, and an absolutely incredible day. Full race report to come, for now I am just kind of basking in the glow of being a Boston Marathon qualifier....oh and hoping my legs don't fall off.
AHHH!!!!
3:39:28, give or take a few seconds....
Quick stats: 40 degree temperatures, 20 mph winds, steady rain starting at about mile 8, almost even splits, and an absolutely incredible day. Full race report to come, for now I am just kind of basking in the glow of being a Boston Marathon qualifier....oh and hoping my legs don't fall off.
AHHH!!!!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
The race plan is, there is no plan
I woke up this morning and literally, my first thought was - "what day is it? It's Thursday...Thursday Friday Saturday....omg, 3 days left until the marathon. Holy crap." I'm getting nervous. My legs are antsy and I feel like I need to be constantly stretching or moving or rubbing or rolling them to stay halfway sane. I told the BF we couldn't have split pea soup for dinner because it wasn't carbo-licious enough [we compromised and I'm just planning on eating a lot of bread along with it. A lot. :)]
So yeah. Nerves. Wow. Anyway, I'll try to spew some nonsense out on this blog and maybe that will help me calm down haha. Yesterday I went out for a "dress rehearsal" run with Kelly. We did 6 miles at 8 am [race time], wearing the clothes/shoes we planned on wearing for the race. What's that you say? You want to know what I'm wearing? OK, I'll tell you. :) My basic outfit is my electric blue Nike tempo shorts with my WTC singlet. I sort of wanted to wear the tiger shorts, but they tend to ride up and I just don't feel like dealing with that for that long of a race. The singlet is pretty much a no brainer since there is no way I would be running a marathon right now without my past 4 years with the WTC, so I will be proudly representing the club. I will also be rocking my ONE pair of technical socks [they were part of a goody bag from a 100K relay that I did last year, along with a long sleeve tech shirt, dartboard (??), and CHEESE & SAUSAGE BOX! Totally worth running the 6 am shift 10K after a night out :)] and my beautiful Mizuno Wave Inspire 5's.
So then there's the cold weather issue. Seriously, the weather forecast for race day keeps getting WORSE! We are now looking at a high of 46, wind (~20 mph), and rain (70% chance). Which is pretty much, the most god-awful thing I can imagine. Because I REALLY needed something else to add to my nerves! Anyway, I will be getting my arm warmers in the mail today and if things are really bad, I'll be wearing gloves as well, at least for awhile. It's really, REALLY going to suck if it's that windy and raining, but I guess there's no point in adding layers if it's raining since they're just going to get wet.
OK - digression over. Anyway, the run went well yesterday, and it was actually around 40 when we started so it was good running in that for temperature. We ended up running quite a bit faster than goal pace (right around 8 flat) and again, it felt really easy, so dear god, I am going to need to rein it in especially the first few miles when everyone is excited and is just shooting out of the start corral like cheetahs on crack.
Which leads me to my race "plan"! And my plan pretty much boils down to this: Have fun the first half, race the second. My goal is to come through the halfway fresh and awesome and feeling like "hell YES I can run another half marathon, but faster!" The first loop is going to be all about enjoying the course, enjoying the moment, relaxing, staying calm, and just letting it flow. But once I hit that 13.1, that's when I'm going to really get my head in the game. That doesn't mean I'm going to suddenly take off, but I'm going to actually kind of start paying attention to my splits and if I'm feeling good, start picking it up a bit. Really...that's about it. I'm going to try to run by feel more than by the watch and yeah...I guess we'll just see what happens!
I guess that's really all I've got. The butterflies in my stomach are already unstoppable...
3 DAYS UNTIL BAYSTATE!!
So yeah. Nerves. Wow. Anyway, I'll try to spew some nonsense out on this blog and maybe that will help me calm down haha. Yesterday I went out for a "dress rehearsal" run with Kelly. We did 6 miles at 8 am [race time], wearing the clothes/shoes we planned on wearing for the race. What's that you say? You want to know what I'm wearing? OK, I'll tell you. :) My basic outfit is my electric blue Nike tempo shorts with my WTC singlet. I sort of wanted to wear the tiger shorts, but they tend to ride up and I just don't feel like dealing with that for that long of a race. The singlet is pretty much a no brainer since there is no way I would be running a marathon right now without my past 4 years with the WTC, so I will be proudly representing the club. I will also be rocking my ONE pair of technical socks [they were part of a goody bag from a 100K relay that I did last year, along with a long sleeve tech shirt, dartboard (??), and CHEESE & SAUSAGE BOX! Totally worth running the 6 am shift 10K after a night out :)] and my beautiful Mizuno Wave Inspire 5's.
So then there's the cold weather issue. Seriously, the weather forecast for race day keeps getting WORSE! We are now looking at a high of 46, wind (~20 mph), and rain (70% chance). Which is pretty much, the most god-awful thing I can imagine. Because I REALLY needed something else to add to my nerves! Anyway, I will be getting my arm warmers in the mail today and if things are really bad, I'll be wearing gloves as well, at least for awhile. It's really, REALLY going to suck if it's that windy and raining, but I guess there's no point in adding layers if it's raining since they're just going to get wet.
OK - digression over. Anyway, the run went well yesterday, and it was actually around 40 when we started so it was good running in that for temperature. We ended up running quite a bit faster than goal pace (right around 8 flat) and again, it felt really easy, so dear god, I am going to need to rein it in especially the first few miles when everyone is excited and is just shooting out of the start corral like cheetahs on crack.
Which leads me to my race "plan"! And my plan pretty much boils down to this: Have fun the first half, race the second. My goal is to come through the halfway fresh and awesome and feeling like "hell YES I can run another half marathon, but faster!" The first loop is going to be all about enjoying the course, enjoying the moment, relaxing, staying calm, and just letting it flow. But once I hit that 13.1, that's when I'm going to really get my head in the game. That doesn't mean I'm going to suddenly take off, but I'm going to actually kind of start paying attention to my splits and if I'm feeling good, start picking it up a bit. Really...that's about it. I'm going to try to run by feel more than by the watch and yeah...I guess we'll just see what happens!
I guess that's really all I've got. The butterflies in my stomach are already unstoppable...
3 DAYS UNTIL BAYSTATE!!
Monday, October 05, 2009
The hay is in the barn
All the hard work is done, the long runs have been completed, the workouts finished. All that's left to do now is taper and get my legs ready to run 26.2 miles in a little less than 2 weeks!
Last hard week summary:
Monday: off
Tuesday: track workout - warmup, 5 x 1000 @ ~4:18 w/ 400 recovery, cooldown [9.8 miles total]
Wednesday: 5.8 easy [7:49 pace]
Thursday: easy/fartlek 9.1 miles [7:38 pace]
Friday: 8.75 easy [7:39 pace]
Saturday: 5.8 easy [7:42 pace]
Sunday: 21-22 long [8:30-8:18 pace]
Total miles: 61.4
Unfortunately I'm not 100% sure what the distance was for my long run on Sunday, since I ran with my running buddy Kelly out in an area by her house that I don't know well, and we ran on some trails which made it pretty much impossible to map out, but my guess is since we ran for 3+ hours and weren't running terribly slow, I would guess the absolute minimum was 21 and the max was probably around 22. It was a GREAT run though...as usual, I woke up at 7 completely dreading the fact that I had to go run for 3 hours...just one more time. I wanted to test out my breakfast plan for the actual race, so I had what basically amounted to a peanut butter sandwich [two pieces of toast, one with peanut butter on it] and a glass of Gatorade. The combo seemed to work really well for me - I wasn't hungry during the run, and I didn't have digestive issues...so basically, I call that a WIN!
Once again, what a difference running with someone else made. I'm happy I did a couple of long runs alone just to get some of that mental toughness, but in this case it was utterly fantastic having someone to talk to. My legs didn't feel that great when I woke up but once I started running everything loosened up fast. We ran on a trail along the Charles River which was gorgeous, then turned out onto some more residential roads. Stopped at about 1:20 for Gu and Gatorade [I tried the tri-berry Gu which was pretty tasty...it kind of reminded me of raspberry pie filling or something?]. It was amazingly warm and humid for the beginning of October...like 65? The humidity didn't bother me too much and I was loving my new Nike tech shirt that I got for $9 when I bought my new shoes from runningwarehouse.com [I have to put in a plug for this site because seriously, it is amazing. The shoes are generally 15-25% cheaper than what you'll find in stores, and they always have some kind of perks like the cheap tech shirt, free cloth shopping bags, $10 sweatshirts, etc. And 2 day FREE shipping!]. After awhile we turned onto some trails in the woods which led up a STEEP hill...it was kind of crazy...but then downhill into what was basically a long, slight uphill grade for the rest of the way out.
We turned around at 1:31 and had to run up this crazy steep hill that we had run down on the way out...ouuuuch, it hurt after running for like 2 hours. Kelly was like "Heartbreak!" and if Heartbreak Hill really is as steep as this one was...well, I can see how it got its name. We ran back through the woods, this time on a downhill, and I was loving just scampering down the slope dodging rocks and stumps and stuff. At one point I leaped over a dead tree and thought to myself "seriously...you've been running for over 2 hours, and you still have the energy to hurdle a tree. This is a little ridiculous". On the way back we stopped at a college to grab a drink and had not one, but two people in cars ask us directions to various places...apparently we look like we know where we're going! After that I hardly even realized how much I was picking it up until I noticed that I had kind of lost sight of Kelly behind me. We caught up at a stoplight and she told me to just go for it...so the last half hour, I basically hammered it home. I'm terrible at judging pace but if I had to guess, I wouldn't be surprised if I was right around, or maybe even under, 8 minute miles. I felt like I was flying. My legs had none of the heaviness and cramping that I experienced in my other two 20+ mile runs...this was just glorious. I got done and I thought, could I run 4-5 more miles like this? Yes, yes, and yes.
So mostly I think this long run proved to me that a) my training is working and b) I am ready to run this marathon. The way it played out got me thinking about marathon strategy. I don't think obsessing over it during the race is going to be a good idea - honestly, this is my first marathon, I want to soak it in, enjoy every single second, and just have that feeling of "hell yeah, I am running a marathon!" But...let's be serious. This is me we're talking about here and I'm not the kind of person who runs races just to run them, not even something crazy like this. And I've had all sorts of A, B, C goals floating around in my head, but as my training has been going really, really, like...absurdly well the past month [seriously, is there something in the water in Boston?] those little letters "BQ" seem to be coming into my mind more and more. And I'm thinking, based on my long runs, that the best way to maybe make that happen in this race is to rock a negative split.
This is not a strategy I have EVER tried to employ before, honestly because it freaks me out...how can you count on going FASTER in the second half of a ridiculously long race? But when I look back at my long runs, I realize that if I run for 2 hours at a lower effort, I start gradually picking it up until I'm running full force for the last half hour and finishing really, really strong. Kelly was saying to me "you are really strong at the end of these runs...that's really good". So just based on that, I feel like negative splitting would be the way to go. I don't want to put myself in an extreme time defecit by going out TOO slow, but I think if I could get to the halfway point and feel like I really hadn't had to work for it yet, I could pick it up the second half and still finish really well. I also think going in with a plan of negative splitting MIGHT help to temper my usual kamikaze first couple of miles...which is definitely another key, key, aspect to my strategy for this race. I am not, under any circumstances, allowed to get caught up in the excitement and go out in under 8 minutes, or, if I'm really being smart here, under 8:30. This is a 2 loop race, so in a perfect world I would do the first lap at ~8:30 and the second lap at 8:15 or better. Obviously the world is not perfect and you never know what's going to happen on race day, but I am just feeling like based on my training, and my long runs in particular, that I am really ready to run a better race than I ever could have dreamed of 2 months ago, and negative splitting just might be the way to do it.
Hmm...can you tell I'm starting to get a little nervous? I keep alternating back and forth between excitement, nervousness, and "omg, I can't believe I am basically DONE with training?!". Tapering is going to be so weird. I have some 800s planned for Wednesday for a little tune up, 13 miles on Sunday [what? less that 2 hours for a long run??]...and everything else is pretty much just easy peasy. I just can't believe it's almost here...and I'm starting to feel the confidence that I CAN do this!
The hay is in the barn...welcome to taperville. 13 days.
Last hard week summary:
Monday: off
Tuesday: track workout - warmup, 5 x 1000 @ ~4:18 w/ 400 recovery, cooldown [9.8 miles total]
Wednesday: 5.8 easy [7:49 pace]
Thursday: easy/fartlek 9.1 miles [7:38 pace]
Friday: 8.75 easy [7:39 pace]
Saturday: 5.8 easy [7:42 pace]
Sunday: 21-22 long [8:30-8:18 pace]
Total miles: 61.4
Unfortunately I'm not 100% sure what the distance was for my long run on Sunday, since I ran with my running buddy Kelly out in an area by her house that I don't know well, and we ran on some trails which made it pretty much impossible to map out, but my guess is since we ran for 3+ hours and weren't running terribly slow, I would guess the absolute minimum was 21 and the max was probably around 22. It was a GREAT run though...as usual, I woke up at 7 completely dreading the fact that I had to go run for 3 hours...just one more time. I wanted to test out my breakfast plan for the actual race, so I had what basically amounted to a peanut butter sandwich [two pieces of toast, one with peanut butter on it] and a glass of Gatorade. The combo seemed to work really well for me - I wasn't hungry during the run, and I didn't have digestive issues...so basically, I call that a WIN!
Once again, what a difference running with someone else made. I'm happy I did a couple of long runs alone just to get some of that mental toughness, but in this case it was utterly fantastic having someone to talk to. My legs didn't feel that great when I woke up but once I started running everything loosened up fast. We ran on a trail along the Charles River which was gorgeous, then turned out onto some more residential roads. Stopped at about 1:20 for Gu and Gatorade [I tried the tri-berry Gu which was pretty tasty...it kind of reminded me of raspberry pie filling or something?]. It was amazingly warm and humid for the beginning of October...like 65? The humidity didn't bother me too much and I was loving my new Nike tech shirt that I got for $9 when I bought my new shoes from runningwarehouse.com [I have to put in a plug for this site because seriously, it is amazing. The shoes are generally 15-25% cheaper than what you'll find in stores, and they always have some kind of perks like the cheap tech shirt, free cloth shopping bags, $10 sweatshirts, etc. And 2 day FREE shipping!]. After awhile we turned onto some trails in the woods which led up a STEEP hill...it was kind of crazy...but then downhill into what was basically a long, slight uphill grade for the rest of the way out.
We turned around at 1:31 and had to run up this crazy steep hill that we had run down on the way out...ouuuuch, it hurt after running for like 2 hours. Kelly was like "Heartbreak!" and if Heartbreak Hill really is as steep as this one was...well, I can see how it got its name. We ran back through the woods, this time on a downhill, and I was loving just scampering down the slope dodging rocks and stumps and stuff. At one point I leaped over a dead tree and thought to myself "seriously...you've been running for over 2 hours, and you still have the energy to hurdle a tree. This is a little ridiculous". On the way back we stopped at a college to grab a drink and had not one, but two people in cars ask us directions to various places...apparently we look like we know where we're going! After that I hardly even realized how much I was picking it up until I noticed that I had kind of lost sight of Kelly behind me. We caught up at a stoplight and she told me to just go for it...so the last half hour, I basically hammered it home. I'm terrible at judging pace but if I had to guess, I wouldn't be surprised if I was right around, or maybe even under, 8 minute miles. I felt like I was flying. My legs had none of the heaviness and cramping that I experienced in my other two 20+ mile runs...this was just glorious. I got done and I thought, could I run 4-5 more miles like this? Yes, yes, and yes.
So mostly I think this long run proved to me that a) my training is working and b) I am ready to run this marathon. The way it played out got me thinking about marathon strategy. I don't think obsessing over it during the race is going to be a good idea - honestly, this is my first marathon, I want to soak it in, enjoy every single second, and just have that feeling of "hell yeah, I am running a marathon!" But...let's be serious. This is me we're talking about here and I'm not the kind of person who runs races just to run them, not even something crazy like this. And I've had all sorts of A, B, C goals floating around in my head, but as my training has been going really, really, like...absurdly well the past month [seriously, is there something in the water in Boston?] those little letters "BQ" seem to be coming into my mind more and more. And I'm thinking, based on my long runs, that the best way to maybe make that happen in this race is to rock a negative split.
This is not a strategy I have EVER tried to employ before, honestly because it freaks me out...how can you count on going FASTER in the second half of a ridiculously long race? But when I look back at my long runs, I realize that if I run for 2 hours at a lower effort, I start gradually picking it up until I'm running full force for the last half hour and finishing really, really strong. Kelly was saying to me "you are really strong at the end of these runs...that's really good". So just based on that, I feel like negative splitting would be the way to go. I don't want to put myself in an extreme time defecit by going out TOO slow, but I think if I could get to the halfway point and feel like I really hadn't had to work for it yet, I could pick it up the second half and still finish really well. I also think going in with a plan of negative splitting MIGHT help to temper my usual kamikaze first couple of miles...which is definitely another key, key, aspect to my strategy for this race. I am not, under any circumstances, allowed to get caught up in the excitement and go out in under 8 minutes, or, if I'm really being smart here, under 8:30. This is a 2 loop race, so in a perfect world I would do the first lap at ~8:30 and the second lap at 8:15 or better. Obviously the world is not perfect and you never know what's going to happen on race day, but I am just feeling like based on my training, and my long runs in particular, that I am really ready to run a better race than I ever could have dreamed of 2 months ago, and negative splitting just might be the way to do it.
Hmm...can you tell I'm starting to get a little nervous? I keep alternating back and forth between excitement, nervousness, and "omg, I can't believe I am basically DONE with training?!". Tapering is going to be so weird. I have some 800s planned for Wednesday for a little tune up, 13 miles on Sunday [what? less that 2 hours for a long run??]...and everything else is pretty much just easy peasy. I just can't believe it's almost here...and I'm starting to feel the confidence that I CAN do this!
The hay is in the barn...welcome to taperville. 13 days.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Whoa, we're (a lot more than) halfway there!
One more week to go before taper, hell yes! Has it really been 3 months since I signed up for this ridiculous thing? Did I really set a huge weekly mileage PR and am on my way to a huge monthly mileage PR? Do I really only have to do ONE MORE god-forsaken long run before the real thing? The answer, thankfully [I think?] is YES.
Really, training for this marathon at this point in my life was one of the smartest things I could have done. As I'm randomly throwing myself around this new city hoping that a job will come my way while I bide my time before this whole 'grad school' business starts in May, running, and more specifically, having this insane 26.2 distance to shoot for, has given me a focus and kept me sane. While I really have no clue what's going on in the rest of my life, I know how many miles I'll be running on Sunday. Running has given me a reason to step out my door and explore the city as opposed to wallowing in self pity at the fact that no one has picked up my glorious resume and decided I was ideal for whatever position they were hiring for. It's like that Nike quote: there are schools you can't get into, neighborhoods you can't live in, clubs you can't be a part of...but the roads are always open. And as I basically picked up the life I've known for the past 4 years and turned it upside down, running has been the one thing that has been the center. The people and places I'm running with may have changed, but no matter where you are, 10 miles is 10 miles.
And so now here I am, standing on the edge of the end of this training cycle that more than anything else has been an exercise in me seeing what I could do. I didn't really follow a specific plan, other than "run more miles than usual during the week, and build your long run up to 20 or so". I had weeks that didn't go great, long runs that went horribly, days when I wondered what in the name of God was I doing trying to train for this stupid race. And yet, somehow, in one more week, the work will be done. I think I wrote a few weeks ago that I didn't feel like I got the whole mind blowing, "holy crap, I'm doing a MARATHON!" mindset, like in the moment I didn't feel like I was doing anything special. But as I approach the end of this journey, feeling in basically all ways the strongest I've felt in my life, I DO feel it. I can't even imagine how much I'm going to feel it when I cross the finish line of that marathon. Not only in my legs, but in my mind, and in my heart...I just feel strong, and badass, and proud of everything that I've done over the past few months.
[Apologies for the random ramblings/tangents...I tend to go off on them sometimes. It's why I have a blog, right? :)]
So one more week of hard training...one more week to get the miles in, harden up my legs and my mind for the task I'm putting onto them in 18 days. After this past week of training, I'm confident that one more week is really all I need to give myself that confidence that, come race day, I am going to kick some ass.
Monday: 22 miles [makeup for Sunday] [8:15 pace]
Tuesday: 10.2 miles total [warmup, cooldown, 4 x 1000 @ ~7:00 pace, strides]
Wednesday: 5.8 easy [7:48 pace]
Thursday: off [planned]
Friday: 10.8 progression [7:56 pace overall]
Saturday: off [unplanned...had a couple beers while watching the Badger game downtown and then came home and fell asleep...oops! I was sore anyway...we'll chalk it up to that ;)]
Sunday: 18.25 long [8:01 pace...I am SO happy about this run!]
Total miles: 66.8...mileage PR!! :)
So even though I slacked on Saturday, I wound up with a mileage PR which was pretty great. I guess having to do 2 long runs in a week will do that though...oops. Naughty naughty...oh well. I was really pleased with my 18 miler on Sunday. It was actually not supposed to be that long...I planned on a 2:20 run to step back a bit from Monday's epic event...so apparently I decided to run faster and make up for the lost time. WTF?! It was raining and like 60 which was pretty much perfect and I only stopped twice for bathroom breaks [random porta potties mysteriously placed along the Charles River definitely saved my life] and once for a gel. I was just amazed at how speedy my legs felt and I honestly wasn't surprised when I got back and saw that I ended up with around an 8 minute pace. Imagine if I could do THAT for the marathon...geez. But I'm definitely going to be more conservative than that since I don't feel like blowing up at 20 miles...but we'll save my pacing musings for another day.
One final thought: I got honked at SO many times while I was running Sunday...is it because it was raining? At one stoplight this guy seriously continuously kept honking at me and looking at me like I was insane. I was on the sidewalk, so it's not like I was in his way...so strange! And he was definitely not the only one...one car scared the crap out of me as I turned a corner onto a bridge (once again, on the sidewalk) and he just laid on his horn! I like to think of it as a compliment to my amazing blazing speed that people just honk because they're in awe. ;) But really, if you think my running's sexy, do you really think honking at me is going to make me stop, jump in your car, and drive away with you? If you're looking to impress me, get out of your car and run baby run! Haha, actually, I sort of doubt the majority of people doing the honking could keep up with me for more than a block. :) I'm totally used to it by now especially since during the summer I spend the majority of my time running in just a sports bra, but it still perplexes me and makes me laugh a little bit. Then again, I guess the majority of the population thinks that doing anything, let alone running, in a downpour is c-r-a-z-y, so they've got to express themselves somehow!
AND, I finally ordered my new shoes! RIP Etonics...you served me amazingly well, especially for $0.00 per mile. I think I'm going to take them out for one last victory lap tomorrow and then I should the the new Mizunos by Wednesday. Yippee! I always feel a little bittersweet about getting new shoes because of all the time and miles I've spent with those old worn out ones on my feet...but I guess when there is literally a hole in the bottom [I seriously should post a picture of that, haha] you know its time for a change!
Really, training for this marathon at this point in my life was one of the smartest things I could have done. As I'm randomly throwing myself around this new city hoping that a job will come my way while I bide my time before this whole 'grad school' business starts in May, running, and more specifically, having this insane 26.2 distance to shoot for, has given me a focus and kept me sane. While I really have no clue what's going on in the rest of my life, I know how many miles I'll be running on Sunday. Running has given me a reason to step out my door and explore the city as opposed to wallowing in self pity at the fact that no one has picked up my glorious resume and decided I was ideal for whatever position they were hiring for. It's like that Nike quote: there are schools you can't get into, neighborhoods you can't live in, clubs you can't be a part of...but the roads are always open. And as I basically picked up the life I've known for the past 4 years and turned it upside down, running has been the one thing that has been the center. The people and places I'm running with may have changed, but no matter where you are, 10 miles is 10 miles.
And so now here I am, standing on the edge of the end of this training cycle that more than anything else has been an exercise in me seeing what I could do. I didn't really follow a specific plan, other than "run more miles than usual during the week, and build your long run up to 20 or so". I had weeks that didn't go great, long runs that went horribly, days when I wondered what in the name of God was I doing trying to train for this stupid race. And yet, somehow, in one more week, the work will be done. I think I wrote a few weeks ago that I didn't feel like I got the whole mind blowing, "holy crap, I'm doing a MARATHON!" mindset, like in the moment I didn't feel like I was doing anything special. But as I approach the end of this journey, feeling in basically all ways the strongest I've felt in my life, I DO feel it. I can't even imagine how much I'm going to feel it when I cross the finish line of that marathon. Not only in my legs, but in my mind, and in my heart...I just feel strong, and badass, and proud of everything that I've done over the past few months.
[Apologies for the random ramblings/tangents...I tend to go off on them sometimes. It's why I have a blog, right? :)]
So one more week of hard training...one more week to get the miles in, harden up my legs and my mind for the task I'm putting onto them in 18 days. After this past week of training, I'm confident that one more week is really all I need to give myself that confidence that, come race day, I am going to kick some ass.
Monday: 22 miles [makeup for Sunday] [8:15 pace]
Tuesday: 10.2 miles total [warmup, cooldown, 4 x 1000 @ ~7:00 pace, strides]
Wednesday: 5.8 easy [7:48 pace]
Thursday: off [planned]
Friday: 10.8 progression [7:56 pace overall]
Saturday: off [unplanned...had a couple beers while watching the Badger game downtown and then came home and fell asleep...oops! I was sore anyway...we'll chalk it up to that ;)]
Sunday: 18.25 long [8:01 pace...I am SO happy about this run!]
Total miles: 66.8...mileage PR!! :)
So even though I slacked on Saturday, I wound up with a mileage PR which was pretty great. I guess having to do 2 long runs in a week will do that though...oops. Naughty naughty...oh well. I was really pleased with my 18 miler on Sunday. It was actually not supposed to be that long...I planned on a 2:20 run to step back a bit from Monday's epic event...so apparently I decided to run faster and make up for the lost time. WTF?! It was raining and like 60 which was pretty much perfect and I only stopped twice for bathroom breaks [random porta potties mysteriously placed along the Charles River definitely saved my life] and once for a gel. I was just amazed at how speedy my legs felt and I honestly wasn't surprised when I got back and saw that I ended up with around an 8 minute pace. Imagine if I could do THAT for the marathon...geez. But I'm definitely going to be more conservative than that since I don't feel like blowing up at 20 miles...but we'll save my pacing musings for another day.
One final thought: I got honked at SO many times while I was running Sunday...is it because it was raining? At one stoplight this guy seriously continuously kept honking at me and looking at me like I was insane. I was on the sidewalk, so it's not like I was in his way...so strange! And he was definitely not the only one...one car scared the crap out of me as I turned a corner onto a bridge (once again, on the sidewalk) and he just laid on his horn! I like to think of it as a compliment to my amazing blazing speed that people just honk because they're in awe. ;) But really, if you think my running's sexy, do you really think honking at me is going to make me stop, jump in your car, and drive away with you? If you're looking to impress me, get out of your car and run baby run! Haha, actually, I sort of doubt the majority of people doing the honking could keep up with me for more than a block. :) I'm totally used to it by now especially since during the summer I spend the majority of my time running in just a sports bra, but it still perplexes me and makes me laugh a little bit. Then again, I guess the majority of the population thinks that doing anything, let alone running, in a downpour is c-r-a-z-y, so they've got to express themselves somehow!
AND, I finally ordered my new shoes! RIP Etonics...you served me amazingly well, especially for $0.00 per mile. I think I'm going to take them out for one last victory lap tomorrow and then I should the the new Mizunos by Wednesday. Yippee! I always feel a little bittersweet about getting new shoes because of all the time and miles I've spent with those old worn out ones on my feet...but I guess when there is literally a hole in the bottom [I seriously should post a picture of that, haha] you know its time for a change!
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Workin' hard to get my fill
I woke up on Sunday feeling like crap...lightheaded, sick to my stomach, exhausted...UGH. I wasn't feverish or anything, but a 20 mile run just wasn't in the cards. So after essentially sleeping the entire day, I woke up on Monday feeling a million times better and ready to conquer my 20 miler...solo.
I wasn't very excited about going it alone - after how amazing my run went last week, it was just like...ahhh...3 hours running by myself...this is going to suck. I mapped out a route and was really excited about it - it was going to go through the arboretum and Franklin Park, two places I've wanted to check out but haven't been yet. I threw some Dane Cook on my ipod [hey, it's LIKE someone's talking to me!] but that lasted about 20 minutes before I realized that jokes about shitting on the coats just weren't the motivation I needed for 20 miles. So I cued up my long run mix, starting off with the version of "Don't Stop Believin'" from Glee [love, love, LOVE that show!] which immediately got me feeling better. And things were going great...until about 6 miles in when I realized...something didn't seem right. I was supposed to be near the arboretum, or so I thought, and I seemed to be running through downtown Jamaica Plain...damn. Lost...AGAIN. I swear, I am the worst at looking up a route on mapmyrun and somehow managing to screw it up. [When I got home, I figured out what I did wrong - this road called the Arborway turns into Centre Street...well I got confused when I saw a Centre Street and turned there instead...thus going back in the opposite direction...because I'm a genius].
Anyway, I eventually found my way back to the Jamaicaway, which is like a 4 mile loop around a few parks/ponds and I was like....you know what? I'm just going to run around this loop a few times, because I already messed up my route and I don't feel like getting lost again, and I know I need to run for about 3 hours, so that's what I'll do. I had stopped at a 7-11 and bought a Gatorade, which I stashed in some bushes so I could grab some on each loop - AMAZING idea, it was really motivational to be like "only 10 more minutes, then you get Gatorade! Oooh...Gatorade.." After my first loop after finding my way back to this area, I was at about 1:25 so I took my gel...Expresso Love Gu...seriously...I LOVE GU. The expresso one tasted like I was eating a frappuchino. I seriously will never go back to the Powerbar Gel...which I literally had to throw in the back of my mouth and wash down with water to even get it down. Plus, the Gu packet is really conveniently shaped and small enough to fit in my shorts pocket, which is amazing, because gel + sports bra = chafage...ouch!
On and on and on...I kept on truckin'. I really wouldn't say the run ever felt easy/good...and I discovered why later when I looked at my average pace. One side of the loop was mostly uphill while the other side was mostly downhill, so I definitely found myself picking it up on that side. As far as places to run several loops around, this was really nice -mostly shaded, running by a big pond and through some woods, lots of interesting people/dog watching...it was pleasant....well, as pleasant as life can be when you've been running for that long. I saw some swans and some turtles and got hissed at by some geese [actually at one point I had to run through a large pack of geese which was a little frightening haha]. I had a woman who was standing in the middle of the path literally SPRINT off to the side when she saw me coming which kind of made me laugh...as if I was just going to mow her down haha. Saw some speedy looking shirtless guys who, for a split second, looked like 3 WTC guys [seriously, that sort of thing always happens to me when I move to a new place!]. Watching the sights kept me entertained, my playlist kept me in good spirits...overall, things were feeling pretty good...and then came the 2:30 mark.
And suddenly, the thought that came to my mind was "I am in an abyss of pain". It was just like...waaaah all systems are shutting down! I think if I my legs and my mind could have had a conversation at that point, it would have gone something like this:
Legs: Mayday! Mayday! We canNOT do this anymore!
Mind: But...come on guys...seriously? You only have a half hour left. That is REALLY not far. That is like, a really short run. We're even done running that loop you've been running for the past 2 hours. You don't have to worry about stepping in goose poop anymore. Come on!
Legs: Yeah you do realize this has been going on for 2.5 hours, right? And that the rest of the way home is UPHILL? Are you insane?
Mind: No, seriously. I am not letting you stop. I really don't even care about how much pain you're in. You can sit down when we get home. I'll even put on Don't Stop Believin' on repeat for the rest of the way.
Legs: Ugggh, fine. Just don't blame us for how crappy you're going to feel tomorrow.
And so, with Don't Stop Believin' at full blast, I continued on. I stopped a couple of times just to stretch/regroup a little bit, but for the most part I kept going, even up the HUGE hill that leads up to my apartment. Arms pumping, legs churning, headphones screaming "DON'T STOP BELIEVIN'....HOLD ON TO THAT FEELIN'" [it's my theme song...of running, of marathon training, and of life :)]...I finally slammed my watch at 3:01:24. I was doooone!
So I figured that 3 hours would be ~20 miles, right? Uh, wrong. Try 22 miles. OK, well, THAT explains a lot. I just averaged 30 seconds per mile faster than my long run last week. This is what happens when I run by myself! I have no concept of how fast I'm going, ever. So, run stats? 22.0 miles on the dot, 30:24, 8:15 pace!! What what! It's funny because during this run, I was not feeling the confidence that things were going well at all. In retrospect however, that's pretty effing ridiculous, and I'm really pleased that I was able to knock it out, especially by myself.
For some reason I am still going to put myself through the torture of a track workout tonight. Really, I can't even explain why I would ever do this. I'm sure it's going to be terribly unpleasant and I once again won't even come close to finishing the whole workout [10 x 1000 at current 5K pace...that might be the funniest thing I've ever heard. I will be one of the "slow" runners sticking to 800s, thankyouverymuch] But whatever. After yesterday's run/this past week of running, I'm really feeling excited, as opposed to terrified, about this marathon for the first time. And with less than a month to go, I definitely think that's a good thing!
I wasn't very excited about going it alone - after how amazing my run went last week, it was just like...ahhh...3 hours running by myself...this is going to suck. I mapped out a route and was really excited about it - it was going to go through the arboretum and Franklin Park, two places I've wanted to check out but haven't been yet. I threw some Dane Cook on my ipod [hey, it's LIKE someone's talking to me!] but that lasted about 20 minutes before I realized that jokes about shitting on the coats just weren't the motivation I needed for 20 miles. So I cued up my long run mix, starting off with the version of "Don't Stop Believin'" from Glee [love, love, LOVE that show!] which immediately got me feeling better. And things were going great...until about 6 miles in when I realized...something didn't seem right. I was supposed to be near the arboretum, or so I thought, and I seemed to be running through downtown Jamaica Plain...damn. Lost...AGAIN. I swear, I am the worst at looking up a route on mapmyrun and somehow managing to screw it up. [When I got home, I figured out what I did wrong - this road called the Arborway turns into Centre Street...well I got confused when I saw a Centre Street and turned there instead...thus going back in the opposite direction...because I'm a genius].
Anyway, I eventually found my way back to the Jamaicaway, which is like a 4 mile loop around a few parks/ponds and I was like....you know what? I'm just going to run around this loop a few times, because I already messed up my route and I don't feel like getting lost again, and I know I need to run for about 3 hours, so that's what I'll do. I had stopped at a 7-11 and bought a Gatorade, which I stashed in some bushes so I could grab some on each loop - AMAZING idea, it was really motivational to be like "only 10 more minutes, then you get Gatorade! Oooh...Gatorade.." After my first loop after finding my way back to this area, I was at about 1:25 so I took my gel...Expresso Love Gu...seriously...I LOVE GU. The expresso one tasted like I was eating a frappuchino. I seriously will never go back to the Powerbar Gel...which I literally had to throw in the back of my mouth and wash down with water to even get it down. Plus, the Gu packet is really conveniently shaped and small enough to fit in my shorts pocket, which is amazing, because gel + sports bra = chafage...ouch!
On and on and on...I kept on truckin'. I really wouldn't say the run ever felt easy/good...and I discovered why later when I looked at my average pace. One side of the loop was mostly uphill while the other side was mostly downhill, so I definitely found myself picking it up on that side. As far as places to run several loops around, this was really nice -mostly shaded, running by a big pond and through some woods, lots of interesting people/dog watching...it was pleasant....well, as pleasant as life can be when you've been running for that long. I saw some swans and some turtles and got hissed at by some geese [actually at one point I had to run through a large pack of geese which was a little frightening haha]. I had a woman who was standing in the middle of the path literally SPRINT off to the side when she saw me coming which kind of made me laugh...as if I was just going to mow her down haha. Saw some speedy looking shirtless guys who, for a split second, looked like 3 WTC guys [seriously, that sort of thing always happens to me when I move to a new place!]. Watching the sights kept me entertained, my playlist kept me in good spirits...overall, things were feeling pretty good...and then came the 2:30 mark.
And suddenly, the thought that came to my mind was "I am in an abyss of pain". It was just like...waaaah all systems are shutting down! I think if I my legs and my mind could have had a conversation at that point, it would have gone something like this:
Legs: Mayday! Mayday! We canNOT do this anymore!
Mind: But...come on guys...seriously? You only have a half hour left. That is REALLY not far. That is like, a really short run. We're even done running that loop you've been running for the past 2 hours. You don't have to worry about stepping in goose poop anymore. Come on!
Legs: Yeah you do realize this has been going on for 2.5 hours, right? And that the rest of the way home is UPHILL? Are you insane?
Mind: No, seriously. I am not letting you stop. I really don't even care about how much pain you're in. You can sit down when we get home. I'll even put on Don't Stop Believin' on repeat for the rest of the way.
Legs: Ugggh, fine. Just don't blame us for how crappy you're going to feel tomorrow.
And so, with Don't Stop Believin' at full blast, I continued on. I stopped a couple of times just to stretch/regroup a little bit, but for the most part I kept going, even up the HUGE hill that leads up to my apartment. Arms pumping, legs churning, headphones screaming "DON'T STOP BELIEVIN'....HOLD ON TO THAT FEELIN'" [it's my theme song...of running, of marathon training, and of life :)]...I finally slammed my watch at 3:01:24. I was doooone!
So I figured that 3 hours would be ~20 miles, right? Uh, wrong. Try 22 miles. OK, well, THAT explains a lot. I just averaged 30 seconds per mile faster than my long run last week. This is what happens when I run by myself! I have no concept of how fast I'm going, ever. So, run stats? 22.0 miles on the dot, 30:24, 8:15 pace!! What what! It's funny because during this run, I was not feeling the confidence that things were going well at all. In retrospect however, that's pretty effing ridiculous, and I'm really pleased that I was able to knock it out, especially by myself.
For some reason I am still going to put myself through the torture of a track workout tonight. Really, I can't even explain why I would ever do this. I'm sure it's going to be terribly unpleasant and I once again won't even come close to finishing the whole workout [10 x 1000 at current 5K pace...that might be the funniest thing I've ever heard. I will be one of the "slow" runners sticking to 800s, thankyouverymuch] But whatever. After yesterday's run/this past week of running, I'm really feeling excited, as opposed to terrified, about this marathon for the first time. And with less than a month to go, I definitely think that's a good thing!
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Longest. run. ever.
So today back in Madison was IM WI, which I was sad to not be volunteering at/watching this year. But here in Boston, I was experiencing my own personal challenge: an 18, possibly 20 mile run. I won't leave you in suspense...I did it!! Actually, 21.2 miles, to be exact...happiness! Joy! Fabulousness! And to be honest...it was absolutely awesome.
I was honestly really, really nervous about this run - maybe because my last 18 miler was so crappy, or because that was like 3 weeks ago...but I kept waking up hours before my alarm this morning like I was freaking out about racing or something. I finally just got up at 7:30 before my alarm and had a Special K bar with some peanut butter and a Hammer Gel...because that was literally the only running-acceptable food in my apartment [yeah, I miiight need to go grocery shopping] and met up with my running buddy at 8:30. And...we were off! We took off at a nice easy pace which I think made all the difference, and being with someone just took my mind off the distance I still had to go and made me just focus on getting there. We looped around by Boston College, went downtown, then crossed the bridge into Cambridge where we ran into some sort of charity walk...going in the opposite direction, obviously. After a little over an hour, we stopped for some Gatorade and Gu [Chocolate Gu tastes like frosting...wow. Best gel I have come across so far, by far] and then...just kept going! Really there isn't much exciting to say about the majority of the run...running...talking...eventually the sun came out and burned off some humidity which was nice...and there really wasn't any point in the first couple hours where I ever really felt tired. Weirdly, I even kind of felt myself picking up the pace a bit around mile 13 or 14. After about 16 miles, we stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts where we asked the guy behind the counter for some water...he never actually said yes, just walked away and returned with 2 big cups of not just water, but ICE water...amazing!
So then...we just kept going! By the time we got back to my house, ~17 miles, I had put a pretty good distance on my running buddy, and so we just kind of went our separate ways at that point. At the time, I thought I had to run 4 more miles to make it 20, and it was just kind of like...huh...why not...feelin' pretty good....let's do this! Of course, the last half hour of the run was like...HARD. As in, I definitely started regretting my decision to pound out the extra 4 miles, especially when I realized that after I turned around, my last mile was going to be up a giant hill...rockin'. But I just kept going. And eventually, there I was at the top of the hill. I had been running for a little over 3 hours. And there it was - I did it! I ran over 20 miles.
I hurt. I bought a Slurpee and ate some leftover gumbo, which was possibly the most delicious thing I've ever eaten. I've been totally ravenous the rest of the day [though I guess that's not much of a change from ordinary me haha] But I still kind of couldn't believe it when I mapped the distance and it was not 20+ miles, but 21+ miles! All along I kind of thought that was what it might end up as, based on my estimate of the pace...but still. Only 5 more miles, and that's a MARATHON! And it's like suddenly, my entire outlook on everything has changed.
The reason I don't have a super long-winded summary of this run is because...well...honestly, it wasn't that thrilling! I really never was particularly tired, besides the last 15 minutes. Legs, lungs, everything felt good throughout, but I think the most important thing I found is that despite getting psyched out before starting the run, once I was out there I didn't even give a second thought to how long/far I was running...I just...went. And now it's like...wow, I CAN do this. And I can do it reasonably well. I averaged 8:45 pace, which in my eyes is damn good if my super-crazy-insane-unlikely-best case scenario race pace is only 20 sec/mile slower. While the run didn't seem that mind blowing while I was in it, the aftermath is that now I really feel confident, 5 weeks out from this marathon, that when I start to doubt myself and the question bubbles up in my mind of "Can really I do this?" the answer should undoubtably be yes, yes, and yes.
And, related to the longest run of my life...I HIT 60 MILES THIS WEEK!! Did I ever think this would happen, like, in my life? Not at all. Then again, I guess until pretty recently running a marathon wasn't under consideration so...yeah. But I guess Boston is having a positive effect on me, since I've run more in my first week here than in any other week of my life...rock on.
Monday: off [planned]
Tuesday: 10.9 easy [7:53 pace]
Wednesday: 7.85 easy [7:43 pace]
Thursday: 6.5 easy [7:31 pace]
Friday: 9.75 w/ 4.75 fartlek - 5 minutes 10K pace/5 minutes easy [forgot my watch, because I fail]
Saturday: 4.2 easy [7:40 pace]
Sunday: 21.2 long [8:45 pace]
Total miles: 60.4 [ding ding ding ding!!! we have a winner!!]
Days off: 1
I don't even know...I'm so pumped about this week. I'm also very, very, VERY pumped for my planned day off tomorrow. :)
I was honestly really, really nervous about this run - maybe because my last 18 miler was so crappy, or because that was like 3 weeks ago...but I kept waking up hours before my alarm this morning like I was freaking out about racing or something. I finally just got up at 7:30 before my alarm and had a Special K bar with some peanut butter and a Hammer Gel...because that was literally the only running-acceptable food in my apartment [yeah, I miiight need to go grocery shopping] and met up with my running buddy at 8:30. And...we were off! We took off at a nice easy pace which I think made all the difference, and being with someone just took my mind off the distance I still had to go and made me just focus on getting there. We looped around by Boston College, went downtown, then crossed the bridge into Cambridge where we ran into some sort of charity walk...going in the opposite direction, obviously. After a little over an hour, we stopped for some Gatorade and Gu [Chocolate Gu tastes like frosting...wow. Best gel I have come across so far, by far] and then...just kept going! Really there isn't much exciting to say about the majority of the run...running...talking...eventually the sun came out and burned off some humidity which was nice...and there really wasn't any point in the first couple hours where I ever really felt tired. Weirdly, I even kind of felt myself picking up the pace a bit around mile 13 or 14. After about 16 miles, we stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts where we asked the guy behind the counter for some water...he never actually said yes, just walked away and returned with 2 big cups of not just water, but ICE water...amazing!
So then...we just kept going! By the time we got back to my house, ~17 miles, I had put a pretty good distance on my running buddy, and so we just kind of went our separate ways at that point. At the time, I thought I had to run 4 more miles to make it 20, and it was just kind of like...huh...why not...feelin' pretty good....let's do this! Of course, the last half hour of the run was like...HARD. As in, I definitely started regretting my decision to pound out the extra 4 miles, especially when I realized that after I turned around, my last mile was going to be up a giant hill...rockin'. But I just kept going. And eventually, there I was at the top of the hill. I had been running for a little over 3 hours. And there it was - I did it! I ran over 20 miles.
I hurt. I bought a Slurpee and ate some leftover gumbo, which was possibly the most delicious thing I've ever eaten. I've been totally ravenous the rest of the day [though I guess that's not much of a change from ordinary me haha] But I still kind of couldn't believe it when I mapped the distance and it was not 20+ miles, but 21+ miles! All along I kind of thought that was what it might end up as, based on my estimate of the pace...but still. Only 5 more miles, and that's a MARATHON! And it's like suddenly, my entire outlook on everything has changed.
The reason I don't have a super long-winded summary of this run is because...well...honestly, it wasn't that thrilling! I really never was particularly tired, besides the last 15 minutes. Legs, lungs, everything felt good throughout, but I think the most important thing I found is that despite getting psyched out before starting the run, once I was out there I didn't even give a second thought to how long/far I was running...I just...went. And now it's like...wow, I CAN do this. And I can do it reasonably well. I averaged 8:45 pace, which in my eyes is damn good if my super-crazy-insane-unlikely-best case scenario race pace is only 20 sec/mile slower. While the run didn't seem that mind blowing while I was in it, the aftermath is that now I really feel confident, 5 weeks out from this marathon, that when I start to doubt myself and the question bubbles up in my mind of "Can really I do this?" the answer should undoubtably be yes, yes, and yes.
And, related to the longest run of my life...I HIT 60 MILES THIS WEEK!! Did I ever think this would happen, like, in my life? Not at all. Then again, I guess until pretty recently running a marathon wasn't under consideration so...yeah. But I guess Boston is having a positive effect on me, since I've run more in my first week here than in any other week of my life...rock on.
Monday: off [planned]
Tuesday: 10.9 easy [7:53 pace]
Wednesday: 7.85 easy [7:43 pace]
Thursday: 6.5 easy [7:31 pace]
Friday: 9.75 w/ 4.75 fartlek - 5 minutes 10K pace/5 minutes easy [forgot my watch, because I fail]
Saturday: 4.2 easy [7:40 pace]
Sunday: 21.2 long [8:45 pace]
Total miles: 60.4 [ding ding ding ding!!! we have a winner!!]
Days off: 1
I don't even know...I'm so pumped about this week. I'm also very, very, VERY pumped for my planned day off tomorrow. :)
Friday, September 11, 2009
Marathon on my radar
I'm running a marathon in 5 weeks, didn't you hear?
I put up that stupid little countdown box on the side of this today, and all of a sudden it was like...crap, am I ACTUALLY running a marathon in 1 month and 6 days? That isn't possible! I'm not ready! I won't be ready! I haven't really been training for a marathon...have I?
Oh, wait...
I guess when I started off on this marathon training business, I thought it would somehow be fundamentally different from all the other training I've done in my life. But really, it hasn't been. I mean, yes, I've been doing more mileage and longer runs and not racing as much and keeping the easy peasy short runs to a minimum...but essentially, I don't feel like I'm doing much different than I would have done in any summer of base training...a little higher mileage obviously, but the basic fact of just throwing myself out the door 6 days a week and getting my run in remains the same. So I guess maybe this is why I'm feeling kind of apprehensive with only 5 weeks to go...it's like, I KNOW I've put in the training, but I don't feel like I have? Does that make any sense? I just don't feel like I've done anything earth-shattering and in a way I feel like I should have, as I'm trying to conquer this ridiculous distance. Or maybe I just feel this way since I haven't done a LONG long run in awhile thanks to moving...perhaps 18+ miles on Sunday will change my mind...:) Either way, the marathon is now officially on my radar [and I've also had the Britney Spears song of the same name in my head for some reason today, hence the title of this post].
Speaking of which, I MIGHT hit 60 miles this week!! If not, something very close like 58. And it's ridiculous, because that will be my highest mileage ever and my legs are feeling freaking awesome this week...so I really don't know what's going on there. Training finally starting to pay off? Who knows. I also had a really great run today with an old WTC friend/coach at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, which I think is at the top of my list for favorite places to run here so far. It's a 1.5 mile loop around the reservoir on a dirt path [yay for not running on cement] and it's pretty and I loooove it! We did a fartlek sort of thing, doing 5 minutes at around 10K pace, 5 minutes easy, and for the first time in I don't even know how long, I felt fast! And strong! It was like...uh...excuse me? Where has this been the past few weeks? Maybe it's the cooler weather, or maybe it's running at 8 am [yes, I dragged myself out of bed...impressive I know] but I was feeling good! So that was nice, who doesn't need a little confidence boost once in awhile? It was also just fantastic to see a familiar face and have someone to run with...I'm doing my long run on Sunday with her and another woman and I can't WAIT to actually have people to run with [and talk to, and keep me from running at suicidal paces] on a long run!
And finally, on a non running related note, the BF and I discovered a bar here that has 112 beers on tap, and 380 bottles. No, you didn't read that wrong. Over 500 different types of beer. Plus amazing pizza, and lots of specials. I was pretty much speechless when I walked in...you would think with Wisconsin being a state known for its beer that they would have created a place like that by now...but nope, here in Boston is where it exists. Sadly, the only 3 Wisco beers featured were Leine's Sunset Wheat, Leine's Berry Weiss, and Miller Lite - not a very good representation, I would say. :P But there are more than enough amazing looking options to keep this bar as my new #1 place to go for...uh..."recovery" drinks. :)
Well, I may or may not be doing another early run tomorrow morning, because I need to get my 5-7 miles in before noon...Badger game kickoff! Thanks to the glory of the UW Alumni Association, we have a bar to meet at and a place to watch the game!! GAMEDAY: still the best thing ever, even when you're 1000 miles away from Madison. :)
I put up that stupid little countdown box on the side of this today, and all of a sudden it was like...crap, am I ACTUALLY running a marathon in 1 month and 6 days? That isn't possible! I'm not ready! I won't be ready! I haven't really been training for a marathon...have I?
Oh, wait...
I guess when I started off on this marathon training business, I thought it would somehow be fundamentally different from all the other training I've done in my life. But really, it hasn't been. I mean, yes, I've been doing more mileage and longer runs and not racing as much and keeping the easy peasy short runs to a minimum...but essentially, I don't feel like I'm doing much different than I would have done in any summer of base training...a little higher mileage obviously, but the basic fact of just throwing myself out the door 6 days a week and getting my run in remains the same. So I guess maybe this is why I'm feeling kind of apprehensive with only 5 weeks to go...it's like, I KNOW I've put in the training, but I don't feel like I have? Does that make any sense? I just don't feel like I've done anything earth-shattering and in a way I feel like I should have, as I'm trying to conquer this ridiculous distance. Or maybe I just feel this way since I haven't done a LONG long run in awhile thanks to moving...perhaps 18+ miles on Sunday will change my mind...:) Either way, the marathon is now officially on my radar [and I've also had the Britney Spears song of the same name in my head for some reason today, hence the title of this post].
Speaking of which, I MIGHT hit 60 miles this week!! If not, something very close like 58. And it's ridiculous, because that will be my highest mileage ever and my legs are feeling freaking awesome this week...so I really don't know what's going on there. Training finally starting to pay off? Who knows. I also had a really great run today with an old WTC friend/coach at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, which I think is at the top of my list for favorite places to run here so far. It's a 1.5 mile loop around the reservoir on a dirt path [yay for not running on cement] and it's pretty and I loooove it! We did a fartlek sort of thing, doing 5 minutes at around 10K pace, 5 minutes easy, and for the first time in I don't even know how long, I felt fast! And strong! It was like...uh...excuse me? Where has this been the past few weeks? Maybe it's the cooler weather, or maybe it's running at 8 am [yes, I dragged myself out of bed...impressive I know] but I was feeling good! So that was nice, who doesn't need a little confidence boost once in awhile? It was also just fantastic to see a familiar face and have someone to run with...I'm doing my long run on Sunday with her and another woman and I can't WAIT to actually have people to run with [and talk to, and keep me from running at suicidal paces] on a long run!
And finally, on a non running related note, the BF and I discovered a bar here that has 112 beers on tap, and 380 bottles. No, you didn't read that wrong. Over 500 different types of beer. Plus amazing pizza, and lots of specials. I was pretty much speechless when I walked in...you would think with Wisconsin being a state known for its beer that they would have created a place like that by now...but nope, here in Boston is where it exists. Sadly, the only 3 Wisco beers featured were Leine's Sunset Wheat, Leine's Berry Weiss, and Miller Lite - not a very good representation, I would say. :P But there are more than enough amazing looking options to keep this bar as my new #1 place to go for...uh..."recovery" drinks. :)
Well, I may or may not be doing another early run tomorrow morning, because I need to get my 5-7 miles in before noon...Badger game kickoff! Thanks to the glory of the UW Alumni Association, we have a bar to meet at and a place to watch the game!! GAMEDAY: still the best thing ever, even when you're 1000 miles away from Madison. :)
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Eighteen
While out having a couple drinks with some friends the other night:
"What did you do today?"
"Oh, I ran 18 miles...that's why I'm kind of out of it"
Cue general astonishment and the general "18 miles, I could hardly run 18 feet!" comments.
Yes, I ran 18 miles...but unlike my first 16 miler, this was not all sunshine and rainbows and ponies and runners high fun. This was a struggle, every step of the way, a fight between my mind and my legs who were firmly rooted in the idea that no, we would not be running another step today. I was "lucky" enough to have this run on my schedule on a lovely 82 degree day with 85% humidity. If you know me at all, you know that type of weather pretty much spells doom in my opinion, and from the second I stepped out my door, I was worried. Normally on longer runs, the first few miles feel super easy because I'm running slower than usual, but that was not the case this time. From the outset, my legs felt heavy, and I was hot. I couldn't stop the doubts in my mind, even as I finished the first mile, of "how the HELL am I going to finish this?"
And so I struggled onward. Legs just not feeling into it, sweat dripping all over the place, I'm sure I looked utterly attractive as I trudged along. Through the parkway where I did my first "long" run as a high school XC runner - I remember being proud that I went 6 miles instead of the 5 prescribed for the newbies that day. I kept thinking to myself that my legs were going to shake off the lead one of these miles, surely I couldn't do a full 18 feeling as bad as I was. I was at mile 4.
Into the woods I continued, hardly noticing the wildflowers and random animals nearby. The parkway I was running on is actually fantastic for running, and under any other circumstances I probably would be happy to have found such an oasis from the ugly suburban streets of Tosa...but not today. I felt like I was running in a sauna. As I came out of the parkway, I saw a really sketchy looking van sitting a little ways up the road. I'm not normally one to get really nervous about strange people/things lurking when I run [it would be kind of impossible to run in Madison otherwise] but this road was deserted and it creeped me out. Sooo that meant turning around and running back to where another trail split off, probably adding a quarter mile or so to the run. Whatever...that meant I could skip my lap around the track that would have been coming around mile 16. I trudged onward into the Greenfield golf course...finally, like a mirage...a bubbler! I could have stood there and drank the cold, amazing water all day, but alas. Like 13 more miles to go. Ugh.
Soooo I kept going. I ran into Greenfield Park and began my lap around the outer edge. There was actually a really nice trail through the woods that I enjoyed, and finally I was starting to feel just a tiny bit better. As I turned a corner I suddenly saw a familiar sight - white dashes on the grass...CROSS COUNTRY! I felt a little nostalgic as I decided to run along the course until I got back to my turn around point. Back through the golf course, back to the miracle bubbler, time for my gel! The caffiene and sugar got me feeling a bit better for the next few miles, although a giant hill at about mile 10 almost destroyed me. I had now run through parts of West Allis, Greenfield, and Brookfield, and was heading into my 4th city of the day, Elm Grove. I ran into the park, which was the site of many silly rendezvous with my high school boyfriend, and around the pond they have there...there's a really nice path that goes all the way around - I can't appreciate enough the nice things that parks do for runners/walkers! There was another bubbler which was once again my salvation, and I would have liked to have stopped right there...but oh wait, I still had 6 miles to go.
And those were, hands down, the worst 6 miles of my life. Almost immediately on leaving the park, my legs basically started rejecting the idea of running. Cramps in my calves, my knees starting to hurt...everything was just going haywire as I just attempted to keep moving forward. Frustration...hating my life...why the hell am I doing a marathon...this is the WORST...ohhh why is there a hill here...good thing there aren't any people around to witness this....is this ever going to end? Those were basically my train of thought...with the one underlying thread of - just get it done. Just do it. Just finish.
I trudged up another huge hill towards my former high school - how am I even still running? I had to stop a few times to try to stretch out my legs, but they seemed to pretty much be beyond help at this point. The bubbler inside the school was another glorious, glorious thing...water has never tasted so good in my life. And then I was headed back up the hill..2.5 miles to go...let's do it.
It was a LONG 2.5 miles. When I finally arrived back at my driveway, I felt like I had been severely beaten. I walked into my house, grabbed a water bottle, and lay down on my floor - disgusting as I was, there was nothing else I was really capable of doing at the moment. I really was too tired and sore to even be excited about what I had just accomplished. Pretty much my only thought was: I have to do this, or something similar, for the next 2 months, all leading up to running this + 8.2 miles....WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE???
Run stats: 18.1 miles, 2:32:40 (8:27 pace)
Really, I think the stats make it look a little more successful than it was, since I had to stop a bunch of times for water, stoplights, and just a few general "I'm about to die, if I don't stop in the next 3 seconds my legs just might collapse underneath me" stops. Wimpy, but with the heat they were really the only way I was going to make it through. I am pretty pleased with my average pace when I WAS running though. I swear, I try and try to slow down, but it seems I hover between 815 and 845 no matter what.
So what's next? Well, I am headed up into the Wisconsin wilderness for 5 days with the BF, so all of my running distances will probably be approximate, and I'm taking a "down" week and making my long run ~10 miles, partially just because I feel bad leaving the BF alone, and partially because I don't want to get lost in the woods. Hopefully I'll get in at least a decent tempo or fartlek or something, but we'll see. Week after next is the MMM, so that will be a solid hard 13.1 miles. It's a challenge getting the miles in with all this moving and traveling and business, but I'm trying to get it done.
And for those interested, my weekly training rundown...
Monday - off [though I did swim 2000 meters without stopping, which I'm fairly proud of]
Tuesday - 9 miles easy [733 pace]
Wednesday - 2 miles easy + 8 miles moderate [731 pace]
Thursday - 3.9 miles easy [w/ sister, no watch]
Friday - 6 miles tempo [718 pace] awesome, awesome run!
Saturday - 4 miles easy [cut short by a blister that made it impossible to run without a limp for the second half...thank you blister band-aids for saving the day on Sunday!]
Sunday - 18.1 miles long [827 pace]
Rock the house. I will likely be on a blogging hiatus for the next week or so at least, but I mean, this post is long enough to make up for a few days I think...hopefully I'll be back after the long weekend with tales of running in the north woods and all sorts of other fun stuff!
"What did you do today?"
"Oh, I ran 18 miles...that's why I'm kind of out of it"
Cue general astonishment and the general "18 miles, I could hardly run 18 feet!" comments.
Yes, I ran 18 miles...but unlike my first 16 miler, this was not all sunshine and rainbows and ponies and runners high fun. This was a struggle, every step of the way, a fight between my mind and my legs who were firmly rooted in the idea that no, we would not be running another step today. I was "lucky" enough to have this run on my schedule on a lovely 82 degree day with 85% humidity. If you know me at all, you know that type of weather pretty much spells doom in my opinion, and from the second I stepped out my door, I was worried. Normally on longer runs, the first few miles feel super easy because I'm running slower than usual, but that was not the case this time. From the outset, my legs felt heavy, and I was hot. I couldn't stop the doubts in my mind, even as I finished the first mile, of "how the HELL am I going to finish this?"
And so I struggled onward. Legs just not feeling into it, sweat dripping all over the place, I'm sure I looked utterly attractive as I trudged along. Through the parkway where I did my first "long" run as a high school XC runner - I remember being proud that I went 6 miles instead of the 5 prescribed for the newbies that day. I kept thinking to myself that my legs were going to shake off the lead one of these miles, surely I couldn't do a full 18 feeling as bad as I was. I was at mile 4.
Into the woods I continued, hardly noticing the wildflowers and random animals nearby. The parkway I was running on is actually fantastic for running, and under any other circumstances I probably would be happy to have found such an oasis from the ugly suburban streets of Tosa...but not today. I felt like I was running in a sauna. As I came out of the parkway, I saw a really sketchy looking van sitting a little ways up the road. I'm not normally one to get really nervous about strange people/things lurking when I run [it would be kind of impossible to run in Madison otherwise] but this road was deserted and it creeped me out. Sooo that meant turning around and running back to where another trail split off, probably adding a quarter mile or so to the run. Whatever...that meant I could skip my lap around the track that would have been coming around mile 16. I trudged onward into the Greenfield golf course...finally, like a mirage...a bubbler! I could have stood there and drank the cold, amazing water all day, but alas. Like 13 more miles to go. Ugh.
Soooo I kept going. I ran into Greenfield Park and began my lap around the outer edge. There was actually a really nice trail through the woods that I enjoyed, and finally I was starting to feel just a tiny bit better. As I turned a corner I suddenly saw a familiar sight - white dashes on the grass...CROSS COUNTRY! I felt a little nostalgic as I decided to run along the course until I got back to my turn around point. Back through the golf course, back to the miracle bubbler, time for my gel! The caffiene and sugar got me feeling a bit better for the next few miles, although a giant hill at about mile 10 almost destroyed me. I had now run through parts of West Allis, Greenfield, and Brookfield, and was heading into my 4th city of the day, Elm Grove. I ran into the park, which was the site of many silly rendezvous with my high school boyfriend, and around the pond they have there...there's a really nice path that goes all the way around - I can't appreciate enough the nice things that parks do for runners/walkers! There was another bubbler which was once again my salvation, and I would have liked to have stopped right there...but oh wait, I still had 6 miles to go.
And those were, hands down, the worst 6 miles of my life. Almost immediately on leaving the park, my legs basically started rejecting the idea of running. Cramps in my calves, my knees starting to hurt...everything was just going haywire as I just attempted to keep moving forward. Frustration...hating my life...why the hell am I doing a marathon...this is the WORST...ohhh why is there a hill here...good thing there aren't any people around to witness this....is this ever going to end? Those were basically my train of thought...with the one underlying thread of - just get it done. Just do it. Just finish.
I trudged up another huge hill towards my former high school - how am I even still running? I had to stop a few times to try to stretch out my legs, but they seemed to pretty much be beyond help at this point. The bubbler inside the school was another glorious, glorious thing...water has never tasted so good in my life. And then I was headed back up the hill..2.5 miles to go...let's do it.
It was a LONG 2.5 miles. When I finally arrived back at my driveway, I felt like I had been severely beaten. I walked into my house, grabbed a water bottle, and lay down on my floor - disgusting as I was, there was nothing else I was really capable of doing at the moment. I really was too tired and sore to even be excited about what I had just accomplished. Pretty much my only thought was: I have to do this, or something similar, for the next 2 months, all leading up to running this + 8.2 miles....WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE???
Run stats: 18.1 miles, 2:32:40 (8:27 pace)
Really, I think the stats make it look a little more successful than it was, since I had to stop a bunch of times for water, stoplights, and just a few general "I'm about to die, if I don't stop in the next 3 seconds my legs just might collapse underneath me" stops. Wimpy, but with the heat they were really the only way I was going to make it through. I am pretty pleased with my average pace when I WAS running though. I swear, I try and try to slow down, but it seems I hover between 815 and 845 no matter what.
So what's next? Well, I am headed up into the Wisconsin wilderness for 5 days with the BF, so all of my running distances will probably be approximate, and I'm taking a "down" week and making my long run ~10 miles, partially just because I feel bad leaving the BF alone, and partially because I don't want to get lost in the woods. Hopefully I'll get in at least a decent tempo or fartlek or something, but we'll see. Week after next is the MMM, so that will be a solid hard 13.1 miles. It's a challenge getting the miles in with all this moving and traveling and business, but I'm trying to get it done.
And for those interested, my weekly training rundown...
Monday - off [though I did swim 2000 meters without stopping, which I'm fairly proud of]
Tuesday - 9 miles easy [733 pace]
Wednesday - 2 miles easy + 8 miles moderate [731 pace]
Thursday - 3.9 miles easy [w/ sister, no watch]
Friday - 6 miles tempo [718 pace] awesome, awesome run!
Saturday - 4 miles easy [cut short by a blister that made it impossible to run without a limp for the second half...thank you blister band-aids for saving the day on Sunday!]
Sunday - 18.1 miles long [827 pace]
Rock the house. I will likely be on a blogging hiatus for the next week or so at least, but I mean, this post is long enough to make up for a few days I think...hopefully I'll be back after the long weekend with tales of running in the north woods and all sorts of other fun stuff!
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