Cap City 2012

In the days and weeks leading up to the Cap City Half Marathon, I felt everything from excitement to dread to nerves.  But, overwhelmingly, I felt that I had not trained nearly hard enough to hit my goal of finishing in three hours.  I worried that adding lifting to my training schedule and completely changing my diet had compromised my running.  I still hadn't completed a run longer than 10 miles in the last month and even that was a run/walk combo.  I had a race plan: 9:00 running/1:00 walking for the race.  Mike made me a great spreadsheet that even helped figure out what pace I needed to run and walk to be able to hit my goal with that combo.  But, that didn't stop the nerves.

Race weekend officially started Thursday afternoon when Cecilia and I headed over to the expo to pick up our race packets.  I was excited about all the shopping opportunities and definitely wanted to pick up a new tank to run in and maybe a new Half Marathoner shirt.  I was fortunate to have gotten there early while one of my favorite vendors still had some stuff on clearance!  I picked up two fun tanks to wear, a Cap City Half shirt, and a new tank for the race.  Combined with my free technical shirt and a free t-shirt from one of the other vendors, I felt I made out well!  My only disappointment was that my favorite running store didn't have a booth.  Goal for Thursday night: get a good night's rest so that I would be fresh the next day.  (That would be Friday night's goal as well.)

Friday dawned well.  I had the fabulous opportunity to speak at Mike's school for career day and then headed to work.  My co-worker, Sam, was also running on Saturday and we spent most of the day being nervous together.  A weird confluence of events had me leaving work almost an hour late and frustrated.  I walked outside and saw that it was pouring down rain.  I grinned, hoping that the rain would cool the weather off for the next morning.  Better yet, I slipped off my sandals and ran to my car in the rain.  THAT was fun!!  :)

I spent Friday evening getting all of my stuff ready: a pace band, a playlist, race gear ready to go.  Pace band was found online: covered in tape to be worn on my wrist.  Race gear (pack for my phone and Gatorade chews) and my bib on the counter.  Post-race bag ready for Mike to take with him.  And the playlist...originally, it was 7 1/2 hours long.  I cut it down to four hours and was happy.  I finally got to bed.  My last thought before I went to sleep: this is just like a long run with lots more people!  And, with that thought, I had absolute confidence that I could complete this race.

Race day itself dawned early and cloudy.  I opted for my normal breakfast and added a banana to it for good measure.  We left the house at 6:30, hoping to park in my favorite downtown parking garage.  After meandering through the street closures, we were able to get into that garage and have a great spot for after the race and a beautiful view of the finish line and post-race area.

We used the portapotties before heading out to our corrals.  I looked around, made sure I was at the front of my corral and smiled.  Finally excited by all the people and the great weather, I was ready to go!  I saw Amy in her curly pigtails -- she was the one I walked the half with in October and was super happy to see her again!  But, I headed out for the beginning of the race with Sarah -- someone new who had the same goal time that I did.  I figured that we could pace together for the race.

Once we took off, Sarah and I stayed together for the first three miles.  The first three miles were easy.  We spent the time talking about training.  I was surprised by how easy it was.  I was under pace by about 2:30 through the first half of the race.  I was using a run/walk combo and doing really well.  I made sure to stop and get water at every water stop after the first one.  I could feel myself starting to dehydrate at one point and really didn't want that to happen again.  By about the halfway point, I was also dipping into my supply of Gatorade chews.  (Those things are like candy!)  More than anything, I wanted to make sure my nutrition supply stayed up throughout the race.  And it did.

I stopped just before the six mile mark because I just couldn't hold it anymore.  I know I am supposed to use the restroom before the race and I did....but I definitely need a better strategy for that next time!  That took about 2:30 off my time and put me almost dead on pace to hit three hours.  I passed my fabulous family on High Street, waving signs and giving everybody high fives!!!  It was awesome to have such support to come to see me!

I kept myself just on pace through Mile 9.  Somewhere in the tenth mile, I started having pain in my hip.  The interesting thing was that it only hurt when I walked, so I tried to run more than I walked.  My Mile 10 time wasn't great but Mile 11 was faster because I was focusing on running more.  But, somewhere in Mile 12...the hip pain got enough that I couldn't run.  I stopped a couple of times to stretch that and my tightening calves out.  I promised myself I wouldn't cry but couldn't quite manage it.  At one point, the guy next to me asked if I was ok.  I responded that I was in a lot of pain but I was NOT stopping that close to the finish.  He helped to keep me distracted from the pain through the end of Mile 12 and part of Mile 13.  Once we crested High Street (the other direction) and could see the finish line, I decided to try running again.  And while it hurt slightly, it was definitely doable.  A great song came on and I took off for the finish line smiling!  I ran across the finish line BY MYSELF (which coolly enough, meant that they announced my name over the loudspeaker as I crossed...but I didn't hear it)!  Two minutes later, my mp3 battery promptly died.  So...great timing on my part!

I finished in 3:10:18.  I did not hit my goal of 3:00:00.  But, I did set PRs at 11 miles, 12 miles, and for the Half itself, taking 36 minutes off my previous time.  Had I not stopped to go to the bathroom, I was also on pace for PRs at 6 miles, 7 miles, and 8 miles.  In my book, a good race and I'm happy with it.

I learned about perseverance and fun during my last race.  This race was about goals and community. I set a goal...I didn't hit it.  Life goes on.  And, somewhere during that race, I realized that the only thing that mattered was having fun and enjoying myself.  As for fun, definitely a good time!  I love the camaraderie that is the running community.  Having the A corral people cheer me on as I ran towards the finish lines says so much about how supportive the community can be.

I ran this race, but there were tons of people that supported me throughout both the race and the training leading up to the race.  I couldn't have done it without their support: my husband Mike, my daughters Cecilia, Samantha, and Alexa, and my friends Josh, Maurice, Eric, and Rich (that's you SS). Aside from them, the community at fitocracy became a wellspring of support throughout my training.  The number of people that rallied around frustration over bad runs and chimed in with messages of good luck before the race are amazing.  So, thanks to them too (Maurice, Eric, Rich...you are above): Argyle, Debz, Ebilwabbit, MearCat, lokkju, ShortyStylee, Cadenza, and Roryn.  You are all amazing.

Do I think I would have completed my goal had I trained "harder" and focused more on running?  I have no idea...I know that the strength I gained from lifting helped me get through this run as much as running intervals and steady states.  Perhaps sticking solely with running would have gotten me to that three hour goal.  But, I never did have just one goal.  That said, in the six months between races, I am definitely a new me!

More Race Pics: http://imgur.com/a/jjZ6r#0

Level UP!

Did you just see a little green mushroom go by?  Me too....

A couple of months ago, I read an article about a new website created by some self-proclaimed geek gamers.  Evidently, the gamers had both had switched their obsessions from online gaming to bodybuilding.  They realized that trying to improve by leveling and continuing to best yourself worked as well with exercise as it did with online gaming.  It seemed really cool and I tried to join.  Unfortunately, I had to sign up for an invite since the site is still in beta testing.

Well, two days ago, I got to totally GEEK out at work because I FINALLY got my invite!!!  I waited about thirty seconds before signing on to the computer (yes...at work) to join.  While the site doesn't work well at work (it's not super compatible with IE), I was able to play a little with it.  I waited until I got home and checked it out in it's full glory on my netbook.  And, what I found?  A super amazing website that mixes exercise, gaming, and a social FB like atmosphere.

The site features challenges, ways to "level up", achievement badges, quests, and groups to join to meet others.  I immediately joined the running and long distance running groups.  I was amazed at how friendly everyone was.  I am following and am being followed by a few different people.  One of my awesome friends who is training for an Olympic distance tri in April with Team in Training joined too!  She promptly challenged me to a point total race for next week!  2000 points in one week!!!  :)  I'm so going to kick your butt, Tracy!

My favorite part of the site is the social aspect...there is a FB like wall where you can post to your groups and get a newsfeed from them as well.  You can see others' workouts and provide moral support to others.  It's pretty darn cool.

I am currently Level 5.  Only 663 points to LEVEL UP!!  :)  Wanna join?  Email me....you still need an invite!

Things Bree Hates about Running that Will Make Her a Better Runner

This blog post is dedicated to Josh, who threatened me with it if I didn't stop whining.  :)

1.  Running Outside
I like my hamster wheel.  I like the regularity of the track.  I like that I can run at sunrise, sunset, after dark, in the rain, in the snow, in the heat...and it all feels about the same.  Just the scenery changes (kind of).  I like that there is eye candy.  I like that I can tell myself that I am doing more laps than I can count.  I like playing math games with my lap times.  Heck, I like that I can pace myself with those lap times.  Outside I lose all of those things...but, I gain a harder workout, crunchy leaves, and a change of scenery every few minutes.  I get to think about Pop-Up talking to squirrels (since I don't do those things) and wave at people.  I get to have dogs bark at me and cars roar past.  I get to wonder why my town doesn't feel the need for sidewalks.  So...do I prefer my hamster wheel?  Yes.  Will I get to be a better racer by going outside and dealing with the elements?  Absolutely.  I'm not whining about this one (much) anymore...

2.  Pacing my Laps
For the first month or so of running on the hamster wheel, I had my heart rate monitor set to display total time instead of lap time while I ran.  Every time I would hit the lap time button, it would stop briefly to display the total time at the end of the lap before the total time came back to the display.  Since I was having difficulty with pacing my laps consistently, suggestions were made that I should view the lap time so that I could monitor at the half lap spot to see where I was at with my pacing.  I resisted this suggestion for awhile, but gave it a shot one day and haven't moved back since.  Has it made me a more consistent runner?  Yes.  Does it make it difficult for me to know my total time yes?  Has it made me a faster runner already?  Absolutely.  I'm not whining about this one (at all) anymore either....

3.  Jogging my Recovery Laps during Intervals
This is the one that inspired this blog post.  I have been walking the recovery laps during my interval sessions whether they are short, medium, or long.  It is easier to walk these laps because typically by the time I'm done running the interval distance, I'm tired and out of breath.  This week, for the first time, I aimed to jog the interval laps.  Was it fun?  No.  Was I more tired and out of breath?  Yes.  Did I whine about it when I got home?  Yes.  And threats were made by my friend Josh that inspired this blog post.  (*grin*)  Will doing this make me a better runner?  That's what I'm told...the jury is still out on this one.  (But, probably, I shouldn't be whining about this one anymore either......)

The First Mile..

One of the things that I have learned over the past two months...I hate the first mile.  After having achieved a running distance of FOUR MILES this week, I can honestly say that the first mile is always the hardest.

I'm not saying that the end of a hard run is easy.  It's not.  Physically, that's the hardest part of my run (or is supposed to be).  But, mentally....that first mile is the hardest.  I have noticed that on my steady runs (2.5 miles) and my long runs (60 minutes), I am always slower and mentally just struggling through that first mile.  Once I turn the corner (haha) on my second mile, my speeds increase, my heart rate slows slightly, and I can relax into the music and enjoy (?!?!?) my run.  I'm still focusing on lap times and breathing and heart rate, but it gets easier and more enjoyable after that first mile.

This thought led to another question the other day...does that make me a distance runner?  It's hard to think of four miles as a DISTANCE when I have friends who run marathons and ultras.  But, could I see myself doing that distance in the future?  I'm not sure....maybe.  But, that's such a different answer than I would have given six months ago.  And, more importantly, does it really matter?  I'm a runner...that's the only label that matters.