2014 started as most New Years do, with promise and lofty goals. The year ended with many of those goals accomplished and some important lessons and learning as most do.
This time last year, if I am truly honest with myself and go back to my blog I was recovering from foot surgery and I was ITCHING to do something, I hadn't really learned to swim yet, hadn't been on the new bike I had bought and frankly wasn't so confident about my running post surgery. I had a long way to go before my first half iron in June but I was feeling excited mixed with the anxious feeling of needing to get off the couch.
Swimming proved to be an arch nemesis and I switched exclusively to swimming a 50 meter pool that was much further from my house in order to push myself. That worked wonders until I had a complete and utter meltdown at my very first ever open water swim in May, ok well maybe not complete because I didn't cry but let's face it I contemplated giving up MANY times. People always say to me, "Oh I wish I could do what you do but...(insert reason here, I'm scared, I can't swim, I freak out, I want to quit, I don't have time)." Well I have news for you and if you read my blog you know this, but I want to quit many days, I have meltdowns where I cry on the floor over something stupid because I have been training for weeks and I'm sleepy and sore and I've reached my limit, I get overwhelmed with my dreams and goals, BUT I don't give up, I don't quit, I stay the course. That is the important lesson to learn and that I hope I have conveyed in the last year. I was never a natural athlete, this does not come easily for me and this journey has taxed me more mentally than physically.
Looking back on 2014 I'm disappointed in myself for getting hurt and therefore not meeting the very high goals I had set for myself at the start of the year. I'm frustrated and tired of the injections, the physical therapy, the constant doctors appointment, and most importantly the lack of a training schedule presenting me with solid base and improvements as I head into an even bigger 2015. The injury has taught me valuable lessons and I need to focus on those lessons in my periods of frustration and self doubt. I know that if push comes to shove mentally I can make my body work through pain, not of course broken bone pain again but in the instance of a grueling race I can have mental toughness. I will never forget the words said to me by someone who has known me from the awkward first days of college, "You are way stronger than anyone has ever given you credit for". Those words have stuck with me since they were uttered in June and they have powered me through.
When I think to all the physical pain I have endured I remember Packy and the fact he suffered far worse and he never gave up and he never complained. I'm sure he had internal complaints and some hidden meltdowns but to the outer world he portrayed his strength and that is important. As far as me, I am going to endeavor this year to be more honest via the blog as far as feelings of doubt, being scared, etc so that you can see that I'm not Teflon, this process is hard and anyone going through it or thinking about it should have a real picture not puppies and kittens. I want people to say, "I decided to try it because after reading you try it I think I can do it."
Triathlons are hard, learning new sports is hard and sometimes demoralizing, long course events require extreme commitment and sacrifice. The benefits to me far out way the sacrifices, amazing friends, inspiring and teaching others, the feeling of crossing the finish line and let's face it looking pretty good in skinny jeans is a plus :-)
So 2014, I must say you were pretty positive. I'm so lucky to have the best parents/cheering squad in the business who followed me even to another country to support an endeavor that I am not sure they always understand. I have not had one major race without them and that means the world to me. I set a new half marathon PR and I set a new 5K PR during a sprint tri relay that my team won. I accomplished my goal of a half ironman race, I didn't get the time I wanted but I learned so much about race nutrition and myself, especially when I learned I did it with a stress fracture. I had my first DNF, I struggled with my feelings of being pulled for not making the bike cut off but realizing that everything in life holds a lesson and that was an important lesson for me. The understanding that you can only push yourself so far before you need to listen to your body and understand that rest is necessary. The understanding that a DNF is not a failure, it is not a negative but a positive message of a new goal and what I needed to work on. I accomplished the goal of learning how to take care of myself, rest according to orders and heal.
2015 is the year of the Ironman...more on that tomorrow.
Showing posts with label #halfmarathon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #halfmarathon. Show all posts
Saturday, January 3, 2015
Monday, May 26, 2014
No Sleep Til BROOKLYN
Leading up to the Brooklyn half was a tough week, my wedding anniversary, or I guess old wedding anniversary was that week. The anniversary of Packy's death had been the week before along with the one month count down to Eagleman and I think it was pretty safe to say my emotions and nerves were pretty shot. I wore a Captain America under armor shirt in honor of Packy and the crowded loved it, I got so many cheers! I love the Brooklyn half though, the energy is fun but the trek down Ocean Parkway does leave something to be desired.
This was my test run of Generation UCAN and I must say it went pretty well. The only real issue I had was mixing it pre-race as I had a 20 ounce bottle and I tried to dump the packet in but I learned rather quickly that it does not sink, it floats. I kept tipping the bottle over hoping to have it mix up but it was not very effective, perhaps next time I should drink a little water out first as the powder was seeping out the top at this point. I also had white powder ALL over me and looked like I had just done crack prior to coming to the race! After getting it pretty well into the bottle I drank it and boy was it chunky which I am not sure was do to the actual product or my lack of mixing skills. The one issue is the proximity to activity you must drink it lead me to have to pee at mile 1.5. I also did one bag of sports beans pre-race because I was nervous about it not working.
The first two miles were pretty smooth other than the bathroom break, in fact I was going way faster than intended but it felt very good. I kept my new plan of walking at the water stops which is proving very effective. Nelly Hill killed whatever good speed and motivation I had for the race but luckily not to long after the hill I saw Stephanie from my tri group and we ran together for several miles all the way onto Ocean Parkway. We kept a nice conversational pace which was perfect as this was more a training run for me than a race although in the back of my mind I was hoping for a new PR.
Once Stephanie decided to drop back I was back to being alone with my thoughts which mostly centered on how warm it felt and Eagleman. I misunderstood and thought my friends would be at the mile 9 water stop and I spent a while looking forward to that and was very disappointed when I arrived there and saw no one. Ocean Parkway is BORING with little shade. Luckily they were at the mile 10 water stop so I stopped for hugs, pictures and smiling faces which were the perfect boost because I was feeling blah. Physically the Generation UCAN was doing it's thing and I felt I had energy but mentally I was not into it.
Mile 12 I had to stop and walk because of shooting pain in my surgery foot that had tears in my eyes. It came on suddenly, without warning and was pretty intense. A cop yelled at me, "You are in shape, you are almost there get back to running" and I almost screamed at him but politely "Are YOU running?"
Once I got into Coney Island I knew that finish line was near and I got back to a run but the course was changed a little from last year and I misjudged slightly. I did try and sprint on the boardwalk which I had done very successfully last year but this year there was a lot of sand on the boardwalk. I felt my foot start to slip and said to myself "You have eagleman in less than a month you better not get hurt sprinting for a stupid finish" so I backed off.
I did still manage to take a minute off my PR from April and finish with a strong 2:13:11. It was not the best race but it was a a great training run in warm weather. The foot felt better as soon as I got the sock and shoe off but didn't seem very swollen. The post race festival was MUCH more fun this year and I spent a long time stretching and laying in the outfield at the stadium.
This was my test run of Generation UCAN and I must say it went pretty well. The only real issue I had was mixing it pre-race as I had a 20 ounce bottle and I tried to dump the packet in but I learned rather quickly that it does not sink, it floats. I kept tipping the bottle over hoping to have it mix up but it was not very effective, perhaps next time I should drink a little water out first as the powder was seeping out the top at this point. I also had white powder ALL over me and looked like I had just done crack prior to coming to the race! After getting it pretty well into the bottle I drank it and boy was it chunky which I am not sure was do to the actual product or my lack of mixing skills. The one issue is the proximity to activity you must drink it lead me to have to pee at mile 1.5. I also did one bag of sports beans pre-race because I was nervous about it not working.
The first two miles were pretty smooth other than the bathroom break, in fact I was going way faster than intended but it felt very good. I kept my new plan of walking at the water stops which is proving very effective. Nelly Hill killed whatever good speed and motivation I had for the race but luckily not to long after the hill I saw Stephanie from my tri group and we ran together for several miles all the way onto Ocean Parkway. We kept a nice conversational pace which was perfect as this was more a training run for me than a race although in the back of my mind I was hoping for a new PR.
Once Stephanie decided to drop back I was back to being alone with my thoughts which mostly centered on how warm it felt and Eagleman. I misunderstood and thought my friends would be at the mile 9 water stop and I spent a while looking forward to that and was very disappointed when I arrived there and saw no one. Ocean Parkway is BORING with little shade. Luckily they were at the mile 10 water stop so I stopped for hugs, pictures and smiling faces which were the perfect boost because I was feeling blah. Physically the Generation UCAN was doing it's thing and I felt I had energy but mentally I was not into it.
Mile 12 I had to stop and walk because of shooting pain in my surgery foot that had tears in my eyes. It came on suddenly, without warning and was pretty intense. A cop yelled at me, "You are in shape, you are almost there get back to running" and I almost screamed at him but politely "Are YOU running?"
Once I got into Coney Island I knew that finish line was near and I got back to a run but the course was changed a little from last year and I misjudged slightly. I did try and sprint on the boardwalk which I had done very successfully last year but this year there was a lot of sand on the boardwalk. I felt my foot start to slip and said to myself "You have eagleman in less than a month you better not get hurt sprinting for a stupid finish" so I backed off.
I did still manage to take a minute off my PR from April and finish with a strong 2:13:11. It was not the best race but it was a a great training run in warm weather. The foot felt better as soon as I got the sock and shoe off but didn't seem very swollen. The post race festival was MUCH more fun this year and I spent a long time stretching and laying in the outfield at the stadium.
My number even had a 26 for Packy!
Done running, sun streaming...my kind of day!
Have to get a picture with the medal of course!
Monday, April 28, 2014
Anatomy of a Half Marathon PR
I would LOVE to tell you all the details and pre-planning and huge amounts of training and prep work that went into my half marathon PR at the MORE half marathon on April 13th. The real truth is I had been so focused on my triathlon and not ticking off my hurt foot I hadn't been running much at all. The triathlon the day before only needed a two mile run so I was running three miles at most and doing a lot of interval training. The night before I did not do my normal routine, I barely ate because I had a late lunch, I didn't hydrate enough, about the only thing I did right was go to bed SUPER early because I was completely exhausted.
That morning I woke up feeling terribly dehydrated and started sucking down major amounts of water, something I NEVER do the morning of a race after having to pee my second half marathon and wasting 10 minutes in the bathroom line. Jamie arrived and I was a MESS. I hadn't picked up what I was going to wear, I was sucking down water and chowing down on cream of wheat. This is NOT the way I normally do race mornings AT ALL. I threw on a brand new pair of shorts, I literally ripped off the tag and said yep these are brand new oh well. It is pretty funny how comfortable you get once you have run a certain number of races.
We wandered over to Central Park and it was pretty crowded. I ate my chews and I had brought a whole bottle of water with me. Jamie and I chatted and we were each going to run our own race. She was going to try and break 2 hours and I had no expectations just wanted to cross the finish line. We were in the same corral and then I said bye as she ran off at the start. I settled into an easy pace but then felt oh no I have to pee. The line at the first porta potties was LONG so I said ok suck it up. As I rounded towards Cat Hill I was never so happy to see the boathouse. No line, I was in and out QUICKLY and I was so happy. Got back into the groove of things and found myself catching up to the 2:10 pacer. I looked at my watch saw my pace was 9:15, realized I felt great and then said oh well guess we will see how long this lasts.
That first lap of the park, the whole 6 almost 7 miles felt like a walk in the park. I was going at an easy pace keeping up with the 2:10 pacer with no issues. I was stopping at every water stop to drink a little water and then would run and catch back up to the pacer. That little difference of stopping and drinking my water really settled my stomach. At mile 6 I opened my chews, now if you follow my blog you know I like to throw up, or well I don't like to throw up but my stomach always feels the need to puke. So this time I had two chews at mile 6, drank my water and walked a little. At mile 7 I had two more chews and walked a little drinking my water. Mile 8 I did the same thing. Wow I felt amazing, I was keeping with that pacer and feeling great. THEN came the second trip up Harlem Hill. Now at this point I was really running at percieved effort. I have been training with a heart rate monitor in my zones but I wanted to race more free form. It was working extremely well and about half way up harlem hill where you curve around and then see the hill continues my body said, "Stop and walk so you can finish strong". As I let that pacer go I was frustrated and kicking myself but I knew it was the right choice, my heart rate had gone too high. I didn't even know what my rate was but I knew my effort was too much. At the top of the hill I ran to the next water stop, walked with my water and regrouped.
Those rolling hills of the park post Harlem Hill are decieving because they are no where near as large as Harlem hill but they are still difficult. I never caught back up to that 2:10 pacer but I just kept telling myself as long as you don't see that 2:30 pacer you are fine. Coming around towards the finish I walked a little bit but I felt good. I was walking with a purpose, bring down my heart rate so I could sprint it out at the end. I know that course pretty well as I spent most of my marathon training in the park so I knew exactly where I could start sprinting. Oh my did I sprint, my face was so determined some guy yelled "Now THAT is a game face". 2:14:24. Holy crap. If someone I knew had been right there I would have jumped on them in a hug. I got my medal, my heart was racing not from running but sheer excitement.
Finally I found Jamie and all I could do was show her my watch. She screamed, I screamed, she said she made it under 2 hours, I screamed, she screamed. We were SO excited! 13 minutes off my old PR, a whole minute for EVERY mile of the race. My multisport training is paying off. I honestly think that also my more laid back approach and lowered expectations really helped. Also I think my new method of walking to really drink that water, let it settle and also get my heart rate to drop was the difference. My legs were definitely sore the next several days so I need to improve my lactic acid recovery but that will come with more longer runs.
That morning I woke up feeling terribly dehydrated and started sucking down major amounts of water, something I NEVER do the morning of a race after having to pee my second half marathon and wasting 10 minutes in the bathroom line. Jamie arrived and I was a MESS. I hadn't picked up what I was going to wear, I was sucking down water and chowing down on cream of wheat. This is NOT the way I normally do race mornings AT ALL. I threw on a brand new pair of shorts, I literally ripped off the tag and said yep these are brand new oh well. It is pretty funny how comfortable you get once you have run a certain number of races.
We wandered over to Central Park and it was pretty crowded. I ate my chews and I had brought a whole bottle of water with me. Jamie and I chatted and we were each going to run our own race. She was going to try and break 2 hours and I had no expectations just wanted to cross the finish line. We were in the same corral and then I said bye as she ran off at the start. I settled into an easy pace but then felt oh no I have to pee. The line at the first porta potties was LONG so I said ok suck it up. As I rounded towards Cat Hill I was never so happy to see the boathouse. No line, I was in and out QUICKLY and I was so happy. Got back into the groove of things and found myself catching up to the 2:10 pacer. I looked at my watch saw my pace was 9:15, realized I felt great and then said oh well guess we will see how long this lasts.
That first lap of the park, the whole 6 almost 7 miles felt like a walk in the park. I was going at an easy pace keeping up with the 2:10 pacer with no issues. I was stopping at every water stop to drink a little water and then would run and catch back up to the pacer. That little difference of stopping and drinking my water really settled my stomach. At mile 6 I opened my chews, now if you follow my blog you know I like to throw up, or well I don't like to throw up but my stomach always feels the need to puke. So this time I had two chews at mile 6, drank my water and walked a little. At mile 7 I had two more chews and walked a little drinking my water. Mile 8 I did the same thing. Wow I felt amazing, I was keeping with that pacer and feeling great. THEN came the second trip up Harlem Hill. Now at this point I was really running at percieved effort. I have been training with a heart rate monitor in my zones but I wanted to race more free form. It was working extremely well and about half way up harlem hill where you curve around and then see the hill continues my body said, "Stop and walk so you can finish strong". As I let that pacer go I was frustrated and kicking myself but I knew it was the right choice, my heart rate had gone too high. I didn't even know what my rate was but I knew my effort was too much. At the top of the hill I ran to the next water stop, walked with my water and regrouped.
Those rolling hills of the park post Harlem Hill are decieving because they are no where near as large as Harlem hill but they are still difficult. I never caught back up to that 2:10 pacer but I just kept telling myself as long as you don't see that 2:30 pacer you are fine. Coming around towards the finish I walked a little bit but I felt good. I was walking with a purpose, bring down my heart rate so I could sprint it out at the end. I know that course pretty well as I spent most of my marathon training in the park so I knew exactly where I could start sprinting. Oh my did I sprint, my face was so determined some guy yelled "Now THAT is a game face". 2:14:24. Holy crap. If someone I knew had been right there I would have jumped on them in a hug. I got my medal, my heart was racing not from running but sheer excitement.
Finally I found Jamie and all I could do was show her my watch. She screamed, I screamed, she said she made it under 2 hours, I screamed, she screamed. We were SO excited! 13 minutes off my old PR, a whole minute for EVERY mile of the race. My multisport training is paying off. I honestly think that also my more laid back approach and lowered expectations really helped. Also I think my new method of walking to really drink that water, let it settle and also get my heart rate to drop was the difference. My legs were definitely sore the next several days so I need to improve my lactic acid recovery but that will come with more longer runs.
Feeling STRONG!
Two DESTROYED PRS
Did I mention I was EXCITED
Friday, April 11, 2014
Not a creature was stirring not even a Triathlete
Nerves are the name of the game today. Soon I will pack my stuff into a backpack and take my bike onto the subway to Brooklyn. Tomorrow morning I will wake up before the sun, gather my things and wearing my brand new team tri kit I will head to conquer my newest challenge. By tomorrow afternoon, midmorning if I am lucky I will be an official triathlete. Months of training coming down to one small race which is really just a short dress rehearsal for the much larger race in June, less than TWO MONTHS away. Cue the freak out.
I am feeling fairly confident going into tomorrow's race. I'm looking at it as a training race, it is a chance to see how to transition. A chance to see how I do in the pool with many other swimmers and how my swim anxiety does in a race situation. Biking, oh the biking, I have a pretty good idea of what to expect here post duathlon but it is always good to get practice with no drafting and passing. This time I will be more in the thick of things as opposed to the duathlon where everyone was WAY ahead! The run is only 2 miles and will hopefully be the easiest part of the day but the bike to run transition was extremely hard in all my bricks as well as the duathlon so we shall see how my foot manages it.
All in all I am feeling excited for this step on the journey. I'm proud of how far I have come but fully aware of how far I have to go in such a short time until Eagleman (still freaking out).
Sunday, oh right then Sunday on to a half marathon in Central park because well why not? I wouldn't be me unless I overscheduled myself :) The goal for the half marathon is strictly to finish not a single time goal at all. I haven't been putting in the training miles running wise and I owe it to myself not to push like crazy.
Hopefully there will be a nice update Sunday night about my race fun :)
Saturday, February 1, 2014
Patience is a virtue....
that I definitely do NOT possess. Is being stubborn a virtue? I have that in spades!
Foot surgery Dec 6th, half marathon January 26th...does that sound like a good idea to ANYONE?!?! I went to the podiatrist on the 23rd for my last post op check up and I said, "soooo can I run a race this weekend?" My doctor who is on to my sneaky ways said, "How far is it?" We played a little cat and mouse briefly until I finally muttered under my breath, "a half marathon" and he looked at me as though I had 4 heads. After a lecture about scar tissue, not pushing too hard and patience I was told under no circumstances was I to run the race.
I was pretty devastated. Not being able to run has not only been frustrating for me but also depressing. Running is my release, it channels all my frustrations, stresses and helps me think through problems. I'm addicted, I need it and when I don't have it I just feel off balance. I guess if I was going to be addicted to something it is a good thing, but still really an addiction and this forced break has been very difficult for me. I was crushed at the prospect of not running that race because I felt I NEEDED it. I am doing the 9 plus 1, for those not in NYC that means run 9 New York Road Runner Races and volunteer once to qualify for the NYC 2015 marathon. So I needed the race for my 9, I also had signed up with the intention of getting redemption from last year.
Saturday before I met up with J and after our sushi dinner we had some drinks, I had red wine and I must say all my great ideas come over a couple glasses of Pinot Noir these days. We did the math and figured out exactly how fast I needed to walk to finish the race by the cut off and I can not even explain the high I got from deciding to do the race. It was going to be freezing cold and I had the perfect excuse to sit home in my nice warm bed and here I was scheming ways to get out there and do 13.1 miles in 18 degree weather. Who am I? I'm not sure most people I grew up with would recognize me these days, I definitely do not look much different but athlete was never a word to describe me, more like scrawny :) I think I may have even impressed my own little brother which let me tell you means more to me than most of my race medals (not the marathon medal I mean let's be real here!).
Sunday morning I got up, gave my foot a pep talk and then put on compression socks covered by wool socks and my running shoes. I feel calm just putting on the shoes, relief washes over me and I feel as though I can conquer the world. Several layers of under armour later I bounced out the door to Central Park. It was cold but I swear I didn't even feel it at first I was just too excited and happy to be out there, adrenaline is a beautiful thing when used properly! I gave J a fist bump and told her to kill it and then set out to "run" my race. I lightly jogged the first mile, walked the second and kept that pattern for the first 8 miles. This was an exercise in self discipline, keeping to a plan and not running myself into the ground. I did not take any pain medicine pre-run because I wanted to feel the foot and know if I should stop. About 8.5 miles in I ran into a woman who was limping and after talking to her it turned out she had hurt her IT band during the race. We walked and talked, she called me an angel and said she was debating just quitting until she saw me. In reality she was likely MY angel because I needed someone to slow me down a little and bring me back to my situation. We ran across that finish line at 3 hours and 5 minutes. Definitely not my best time, not my goal for that race at all but a powerful learning lesson, I felt so proud of myself and instantly more centered. My foot was not impressed and required icing and elevation the rest of the day but I still didn't take any pain medicine so a win in my book!
Running: 20 miles
Biking: 2 hours
Swimming: 2400 m
Strength Training: 6 sessions
Foot surgery Dec 6th, half marathon January 26th...does that sound like a good idea to ANYONE?!?! I went to the podiatrist on the 23rd for my last post op check up and I said, "soooo can I run a race this weekend?" My doctor who is on to my sneaky ways said, "How far is it?" We played a little cat and mouse briefly until I finally muttered under my breath, "a half marathon" and he looked at me as though I had 4 heads. After a lecture about scar tissue, not pushing too hard and patience I was told under no circumstances was I to run the race.
I was pretty devastated. Not being able to run has not only been frustrating for me but also depressing. Running is my release, it channels all my frustrations, stresses and helps me think through problems. I'm addicted, I need it and when I don't have it I just feel off balance. I guess if I was going to be addicted to something it is a good thing, but still really an addiction and this forced break has been very difficult for me. I was crushed at the prospect of not running that race because I felt I NEEDED it. I am doing the 9 plus 1, for those not in NYC that means run 9 New York Road Runner Races and volunteer once to qualify for the NYC 2015 marathon. So I needed the race for my 9, I also had signed up with the intention of getting redemption from last year.
Saturday before I met up with J and after our sushi dinner we had some drinks, I had red wine and I must say all my great ideas come over a couple glasses of Pinot Noir these days. We did the math and figured out exactly how fast I needed to walk to finish the race by the cut off and I can not even explain the high I got from deciding to do the race. It was going to be freezing cold and I had the perfect excuse to sit home in my nice warm bed and here I was scheming ways to get out there and do 13.1 miles in 18 degree weather. Who am I? I'm not sure most people I grew up with would recognize me these days, I definitely do not look much different but athlete was never a word to describe me, more like scrawny :) I think I may have even impressed my own little brother which let me tell you means more to me than most of my race medals (not the marathon medal I mean let's be real here!).
Sunday morning I got up, gave my foot a pep talk and then put on compression socks covered by wool socks and my running shoes. I feel calm just putting on the shoes, relief washes over me and I feel as though I can conquer the world. Several layers of under armour later I bounced out the door to Central Park. It was cold but I swear I didn't even feel it at first I was just too excited and happy to be out there, adrenaline is a beautiful thing when used properly! I gave J a fist bump and told her to kill it and then set out to "run" my race. I lightly jogged the first mile, walked the second and kept that pattern for the first 8 miles. This was an exercise in self discipline, keeping to a plan and not running myself into the ground. I did not take any pain medicine pre-run because I wanted to feel the foot and know if I should stop. About 8.5 miles in I ran into a woman who was limping and after talking to her it turned out she had hurt her IT band during the race. We walked and talked, she called me an angel and said she was debating just quitting until she saw me. In reality she was likely MY angel because I needed someone to slow me down a little and bring me back to my situation. We ran across that finish line at 3 hours and 5 minutes. Definitely not my best time, not my goal for that race at all but a powerful learning lesson, I felt so proud of myself and instantly more centered. My foot was not impressed and required icing and elevation the rest of the day but I still didn't take any pain medicine so a win in my book!
Running: 20 miles
Biking: 2 hours
Swimming: 2400 m
Strength Training: 6 sessions
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
West Coast, beautiful scenery, wine and a race...A september 2013 Race review
Once we signed up for the Virginia Wine Country we got emails from the Race Coordinators, Destination Races. On the exact same day J and I got an email from Destination Races about a wine country race for Labor Day, we emailed each other at the exact same time saying we should sign up! A Labor day vacation trip was born!
This was my first ever trip to the West Coast and I was hoping to extend the trip to drive down the Pacific coast highway but real life got in the way and I needed to come back to NY to move into my new apartment. We flew out Friday night after work and arrived about midnight local time to drive to our hotel. As with most of our running adventure travel the GPS hates us and we took a roundabout way to arrive at our hotel but once we got there a good nights sleep was had by all!
Saturday was spent a race packet pick up and then exploring Portland as well as seeing the Pacific Ocean for the first time, it was FREEZING!
It was absolutely beautiful that morning, the sun rising over the mountains. The race started off pretty well, I kept up with crazy J for a while but at one point I just lost it. Her training in Denver beat my training at sea level when it came to lung endurance. Plus if I'm being really honest with myself my training had not been the most consistent leading up to the race with all my packing and moving stress.
The course while extremely beautiful had some areas of gravel that were terrible, not small gravel like the reservoir where I run often but big huge rocks. I had some trouble on the rocks and managed to roll my ankle a little, which coincidentally was my left one and the foot where my cyst appeared about a month later. No idea if it is related.
J smoked that course something terrible. I did my usual time, sometimes it is extremely frustrating to me that I feel no matter how much effort and time I put into training I always finish somewhere in the 2:30 ball park. I guess I should be happy I'm consistent but part of my always wonders why I can't break through that barrier.
We did a wine tour afterwards and I learned of my extreme love for Oregon Pino Noir, YUM! Another wonderful family trip.
This was my first ever trip to the West Coast and I was hoping to extend the trip to drive down the Pacific coast highway but real life got in the way and I needed to come back to NY to move into my new apartment. We flew out Friday night after work and arrived about midnight local time to drive to our hotel. As with most of our running adventure travel the GPS hates us and we took a roundabout way to arrive at our hotel but once we got there a good nights sleep was had by all!
Saturday was spent a race packet pick up and then exploring Portland as well as seeing the Pacific Ocean for the first time, it was FREEZING!
The course while extremely beautiful had some areas of gravel that were terrible, not small gravel like the reservoir where I run often but big huge rocks. I had some trouble on the rocks and managed to roll my ankle a little, which coincidentally was my left one and the foot where my cyst appeared about a month later. No idea if it is related.
J smoked that course something terrible. I did my usual time, sometimes it is extremely frustrating to me that I feel no matter how much effort and time I put into training I always finish somewhere in the 2:30 ball park. I guess I should be happy I'm consistent but part of my always wonders why I can't break through that barrier.
We did a wine tour afterwards and I learned of my extreme love for Oregon Pino Noir, YUM! Another wonderful family trip.
Saturday, December 7, 2013
5B, Wine and a half marathon....A June 2013 race review
What happens to peer pressure when you grow up? It definitely still exists in my opinion but it becomes more about being healthy than doing stupid things, well and drinking wine obviously. My college girlfriends who I will refer to all the time as 5B decided it would be great fun to get together and do a half marathon. Lauren is the only one who did not participate as she was going to give birth a few short weeks later and Robyn of course was in Paris.
It was HOT and HUMID for this race in the lovely winery region of Virginia. To set the scene, a lot had happened in the two weeks between this race and the Brooklyn half. I had traveled to London for work making a stop in Paris to visit Robyn and come home with quite a cough. I wasn't going to let it stop me from running. We had quite a group, 5B, Jamie and her sister in law, Lulu. Debbie and Lulu were running their first ever half marathons!
I started off with Jamie and Lulu and things were going well until mile 3 and my first coughing fit. Lulu and I sent Jamie ahead but shortly after I sent Lulu ahead of me. I coughed up a lung and decided hmm perhaps this wasn't just a cold. By mile 6 I was in some major pain breathing wise but I wasn't going to stop. I got some gauze at the aid station at mile 6 because they had no tissues. After hearing my cough the one paramedic said you should probably stop by the other one knew I wouldn't and said go finish! I ran/walked/coughed the rest of the race eventually finding a girl who was doing her first ever half marathon. I encouraged her and she kept me from dying and we ran across that finish line. It was my worst finish ever but I was still under three hours. After a short time at the finish festival and a few sips of wine we went to lunch. At that point I was still in a ton of pain breathing wise so after changing I went to the urgent care near Siobhan's house where I discovered I had pneumonia. Yep, one lung half filled with fluid, one a quarter filled...perfect way to run a half marathon.
It was HOT and HUMID for this race in the lovely winery region of Virginia. To set the scene, a lot had happened in the two weeks between this race and the Brooklyn half. I had traveled to London for work making a stop in Paris to visit Robyn and come home with quite a cough. I wasn't going to let it stop me from running. We had quite a group, 5B, Jamie and her sister in law, Lulu. Debbie and Lulu were running their first ever half marathons!
I started off with Jamie and Lulu and things were going well until mile 3 and my first coughing fit. Lulu and I sent Jamie ahead but shortly after I sent Lulu ahead of me. I coughed up a lung and decided hmm perhaps this wasn't just a cold. By mile 6 I was in some major pain breathing wise but I wasn't going to stop. I got some gauze at the aid station at mile 6 because they had no tissues. After hearing my cough the one paramedic said you should probably stop by the other one knew I wouldn't and said go finish! I ran/walked/coughed the rest of the race eventually finding a girl who was doing her first ever half marathon. I encouraged her and she kept me from dying and we ran across that finish line. It was my worst finish ever but I was still under three hours. After a short time at the finish festival and a few sips of wine we went to lunch. At that point I was still in a ton of pain breathing wise so after changing I went to the urgent care near Siobhan's house where I discovered I had pneumonia. Yep, one lung half filled with fluid, one a quarter filled...perfect way to run a half marathon.
The group before hand with our sparkle skirts.
5B with the lovely Owen, best spectator ever
After, you can't even tell that I can't breath
Yay ladies!!
No Sleep til BROOKLYN A May 2013 Race Review
My current half marathon race PR comes courtesy of the Brooklyn half marathon in May. It came right after Packy's death and I swear that part way through I felt Packy there pushing me along. It was my first race with my never give up bracelet and it had a very powerful effect on me when I finished it faster than any other race.
This race started in Prospect Park and ended down in Coney Island which was still recovering from Superstorm Sandy. Jamie and I started off together as we always do but with the exception of the first race we hadn't finished one together. We both had really high hopes for this race. It was an awkward temp and in the park was actually rather humid. About mile 6 I learned something very important about myself after taking a glass of Gatorade at a water stop. I can NOT drink anything other than water during a race. I made Jamie leave me behind because it was clear she was kicking my butt! At mile 9 along the Ocean Parkway stretch I threw up the Gatorade and after that I felt so much better. It wasn't until I got up to the closer to the board walk that I realized I could be under 2:30 and I sprinted the heck out of it. I realized that I had a lot left in the tank, I should have put more effort into the whole race and finished even faster. We are re-doing this race in 2014 as well looking to blow our previous best times out of the water!
This race started in Prospect Park and ended down in Coney Island which was still recovering from Superstorm Sandy. Jamie and I started off together as we always do but with the exception of the first race we hadn't finished one together. We both had really high hopes for this race. It was an awkward temp and in the park was actually rather humid. About mile 6 I learned something very important about myself after taking a glass of Gatorade at a water stop. I can NOT drink anything other than water during a race. I made Jamie leave me behind because it was clear she was kicking my butt! At mile 9 along the Ocean Parkway stretch I threw up the Gatorade and after that I felt so much better. It wasn't until I got up to the closer to the board walk that I realized I could be under 2:30 and I sprinted the heck out of it. I realized that I had a lot left in the tank, I should have put more effort into the whole race and finished even faster. We are re-doing this race in 2014 as well looking to blow our previous best times out of the water!
A new PR!
We aspire to always have fun during races.
NEVER give up!!
So happy with our times but realizing the weather has gotten COLD!
Pretty Princess A February 2013 Race Review
The Princess half marathon in Disney world...why not?! By this time it is important to note that my best friend had convinced me to sign up for a full marathon. That's right, never say never!
After our freezing January race we decided that a month later why not run in humid, hot Florida weather. As I said we are always up for a challenge! We bought our Tutus, got fun socks and Mickey and Minnie and we set out to Florida bringing along our always needed Sherpa Mike!
We had to wake up SO early before 3AM to take a bus over to the runner area. It was pitch black and chilly at that point but they had music and there was quite a crowd as the run draws about 35,000 runners. There were some CRAZY costumes and everyone was pretty pumped for that early in the morning. We started off strong but got separated due to an unfortunate bathroom break a little before mile 3. This race ended up being a tough race for me as I had no music, no Jamie and no gu (she had the gu). About mile 6 I got in my own head and it was not a nice place to be as I was feeling pretty down on myself.
It started with a meltdown about what an awful runner I was and then spiraled to how much I sucked at training, how out of shape I was, how there was no possible way I would EVER be able to do a full 26 miles, how my life was out of control. Basically in the span of a mile, so probably about 11 minutes based off my normal pace I had a complete meltdown and self deprecating attitude. At that point I took off my hat to let out some heat and then I noticed someone being attended to for heat stroke. It hit me, wait you have been training in freeing weather and now it is hot and humid, of course you feel crappy and of course your body is confused. Just keep going and don't give up. Luckily I ran into some wonderful runners with extra GU and they shared with me. The running community is something that I love!
At the end I was only slightly slower than my original goal time of under 2:30. In retrospect this wasn't a great race to decide to PR on because it was crowded, they had picture taking stations throughout, I wasn't prepared for the weather and with so many inexperienced people running it was a lot of weaving about.
After our freezing January race we decided that a month later why not run in humid, hot Florida weather. As I said we are always up for a challenge! We bought our Tutus, got fun socks and Mickey and Minnie and we set out to Florida bringing along our always needed Sherpa Mike!
We had to wake up SO early before 3AM to take a bus over to the runner area. It was pitch black and chilly at that point but they had music and there was quite a crowd as the run draws about 35,000 runners. There were some CRAZY costumes and everyone was pretty pumped for that early in the morning. We started off strong but got separated due to an unfortunate bathroom break a little before mile 3. This race ended up being a tough race for me as I had no music, no Jamie and no gu (she had the gu). About mile 6 I got in my own head and it was not a nice place to be as I was feeling pretty down on myself.
It started with a meltdown about what an awful runner I was and then spiraled to how much I sucked at training, how out of shape I was, how there was no possible way I would EVER be able to do a full 26 miles, how my life was out of control. Basically in the span of a mile, so probably about 11 minutes based off my normal pace I had a complete meltdown and self deprecating attitude. At that point I took off my hat to let out some heat and then I noticed someone being attended to for heat stroke. It hit me, wait you have been training in freeing weather and now it is hot and humid, of course you feel crappy and of course your body is confused. Just keep going and don't give up. Luckily I ran into some wonderful runners with extra GU and they shared with me. The running community is something that I love!
At the end I was only slightly slower than my original goal time of under 2:30. In retrospect this wasn't a great race to decide to PR on because it was crowded, they had picture taking stations throughout, I wasn't prepared for the weather and with so many inexperienced people running it was a lot of weaving about.
A Marathon? No way! Never! A January 2013 Race Review
In October 2012 those were the exact words out of my mouth to my good friend Chris from work. I had just run my first half marathon and gotten bitten by the running bug or that so called runner's high. I ended up signing up for a half marathon in Central Park, in JANUARY and of course I dragged along Jamie because she is always a willing participant in my crazy schemes as I am in hers.
January 2013 Half Marathon- Central Park
It was 19 degrees out and we set out in MANY layers to do two loops of central park with our ever loyal Sherpa Mike carrying extra layers. It was FREEZING cold yet that didn't phase some of the people running with no shirts on or in only sports bras. I am pretty sure that I couldn't feel my toes until mile 3. I was running in a pair of Nikes that were the same style as my first half marathon but not the same shoes. About mile 8 I started getting pain in my left IT band. Coming up to mile nine was HARLEM hill, the devil. I was struggling but I looked to the side and saw a person out in the freezing cold cheering for us. It turned out to be my friend Shawna who even ran up Harlem hill with us in her uggs while holding coffee, have I mentioned how awesome she is.
I had just started actual strength training instead of just running training and it felt pretty obvious to me in my recovery post race if it was not shown in my time. Our times were not great due to a bathroom break in the middle. I learned the importance of foam rolling and then graduated to some sweet Asics for running.
We will be doing this race again in 2014 to beat our times.
January 2013 Half Marathon- Central Park
It was 19 degrees out and we set out in MANY layers to do two loops of central park with our ever loyal Sherpa Mike carrying extra layers. It was FREEZING cold yet that didn't phase some of the people running with no shirts on or in only sports bras. I am pretty sure that I couldn't feel my toes until mile 3. I was running in a pair of Nikes that were the same style as my first half marathon but not the same shoes. About mile 8 I started getting pain in my left IT band. Coming up to mile nine was HARLEM hill, the devil. I was struggling but I looked to the side and saw a person out in the freezing cold cheering for us. It turned out to be my friend Shawna who even ran up Harlem hill with us in her uggs while holding coffee, have I mentioned how awesome she is.
I had just started actual strength training instead of just running training and it felt pretty obvious to me in my recovery post race if it was not shown in my time. Our times were not great due to a bathroom break in the middle. I learned the importance of foam rolling and then graduated to some sweet Asics for running.
We will be doing this race again in 2014 to beat our times.
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