Doooooooooooooone

I had visions of crafting a witty clever blog about the marathon to post on my other blog...But I don't know if I can do that. As with any race, you think about the things that were "off"...that may have contributed to an off performance. Whereas in reality it may be as simple as the fact that 26.2 kicked my ass.

My last runs before the race were not good runs. I was tired. The day before the race? Tired. The morning of the race? Tired. Mind and body. And maybe just "thinking" that, was enough to throw me off. Sore throat. Stuffy nose. And reading that taking a NAISD before running might be a death sentence. I always took Excedrin before I ran. The caffeine boost and pain relief always helped me. But I decided the I didn't want to mess with the medical warnings that were part of the race packet...

I also know that not training with Russ and then attempting to run together didn't help matters. Russ has a completely different running style than me...he surges as needed to keep his overall pace. I am pretty good at being consistent with my pace. It all felt wrong. I also couldn't get into my zone. I never did. I was distracted by the runners surrounding me. I didn't enter a zone at any point in the race.

And it was warm. Not HOT. But it was very sunny. And by the end it was 78. Too hot for me to run 26.2....

I knew at around 5 or 6 miles my mind was very off as compared to other long runs.

I settled in a little bit shortly after that.

But at mile 9ish there was a 3/4mile climb. And it drained me. I gasped to Russ that I did NOT want to try to "make up" that time. Because that is how he was running---pushing us to a 9 minute mile to make up for the start time...way too fast for me when I had been hoping to keep a 9:45 pace (for a 4:15 finish).  Another thing I realized is that while most of my long runs came in at a 9:45-9:50 pace (my 18 miler was a 9:30 pace)...all of my miles were between 9:50 and 10. I would often lower my overall pace just through speeding up for my last 2 miles. So those surges really may have affected me more than I thought. Or not. Again, who knows.

Either way, by 10 miles I was draining. To the point that around the time I turned to Russ and said "I have to walk"...Now I get that many people use walking as part of the training, but I never ever walk. I just don't. Because of fear of never starting again. So at that point it became clear that this race was NOT happening. We started running again but by 13.1, I needed to walk again. And I told Russ to move it along. I was done. Out. And I really didn't want or need anyone to be with me. I wasn't angry. Or frustrated. Disappointed? Sure. And mildly concerned with how the hell I was going to "end this". I walked. And then ran again. And realized that walk/running actually does make sense. I drilled it up Battery Street...the worst part of the course but the best part because it was the most incredible crowd support I ever experienced.

I continued a 2 mile run/quarter mile walk (which was too far to walk for the record) for a bit...and then at some point everything just started unraveling. The running became less, the walking more. It was hot. I was tired. But I knew I was going to finish that mother fucker. I thought of Greta. I thought of Kyle. I thought of the kids at school. I had to finish.

The crowd support throughout the race was so amazing. Without the spectators handing out water and ice pops (best treat EVER when running on a hot day)...I really don't know if I would finish.

By the end I was barely moving. Apparently there was one mile in there that I basically walked the whole mile (viewing the mile by mile break down on my garmin was amusing).

I finished. I didn't even f'ng care about the time. I just knew that my marathon experienced was OVER. And that was good enough.

For a moment.

Then I realized I HAD to do another one.

To see what I can do.

So that is what I am doing.

Starting training Monday for the Maine Full.

Goal: to PR of course...Sub 4:30 would make me ok. Sub 4:15 may be enough for me to never run another marathon again.

But probably not.

Maybe I am a marathoner?

Giving myself a full week off from exercise.

Can't wait until Monday...

Well...

19 was rough for me. But I plan to slaughter 20 in 2 weeks.

Avoiding Pre-Race Jitters

Visualization
Each day spend 15 minutes visualizing your race. Close your eyes before you get out of bed in the morning and play out the race in your mind. See yourself on race morning. You are calm and organized, your emotions are controlled. See yourself on race day, from the moment you wake up to the moment you cross the finish line.

Visualize your success
See the clock. See your goal time. If you visualize success over and over again, chances are you can will it to happen on race day!

Organization
Make sure you are organized the day before the race. Race morning is not the time to decide what to eat or wear. Have everything set out the night before and perform your morning automatically like you do every day in training. Nothing new!

Focus
Focus internally on performance rather than outcome. All energy and focus should be on yourself, taking care of your body so that it can perform the way you want it to. Focus on what you are doing at that very moment. Live in the here and now. Don’t think too much, just simply do what you have trained your body to do day in and day out.

Mental Cues
Have some emotional and biomechanical cues or mantras that you will say to yourself throughout the race to help you remain focused. Mental cues include: “I feel strong”, “I am confident”, “I will succeed.” Anything that keeps your emotions in check and triggers internal confidence and a positive attitude are good mental clues. Biomechanical cues are also very important throughout the second half of the race. Many runners look at the elites and wonder how they make it look so easy. It is not easy for them. They have just practiced running efficiently when they are exhausted. This makes them more efficient and eliminates wasted energy and pace declines. Some biomechanical cues include: high cadence, run from hips, efficient stride, no wasted energy, smooth and light, relax the face… Never ever say to yourself, ”I am so tired, my knees hurt, I have to slow down.” Instead say, “Stay strong, I have worked so hard, I will be done soon, keep pushing, I will take it one mile at a time, etc.”

Remember the goal of the taper is to reach a state of physical AND mental preparation that leads to optimal performance. Now go have the race of your life!

Kim Loeffler, MS Exercise Physiology, Pro Triathlete and Coach
Kelly Liljeblad, Elite 2:32 Marathon Runner and Coach

***KBVCM website

Cannot believe there are only two monster runs left in the training. 19 next weekend, 20 two weeks after that.

Kind of looking  forward to a nice 13 tomorrow. Will be warm, which I do not like running in warm temps at all. But a little sun does the body good.

Shoe still bothers my bone for first 1/2 mile of any run and hurts to the point that I can't walk really well but for whatever reason, once I am in that 1/2 mile--the pain vanishes. So I guess I am fine with the Mizunos. I will say that this week I felt that they had broken in...I know "they" insist that there should be no real break in period with new shoes, but I say that is BS. The shoes feel more comfortable now.

The other foot issue is toes that rub together forming blisters in between my toes--I highly doubt this is a shoe issue and is just a mileage issue.

Yesterday was a 5 mile easy run and I just felt full of energy. I love runs like that.

18 done

And it was great. So great that I pushed out an 8:06 for my last mile. My overall pace was 9:30...way too fast. I've got to ask Hal if I am screwing myself by doing this. In my mind it is just building cushion to hit the 9:45 target pace for the marathon.

Oh and I will never, ever use cliff blocks again. Ew. I am so over them.

Still going...

Just finished Week10 of training...with 8 left to go. Two weeks ago did 15--which was fantastic--enough so to do the last mile at 8:30. Last week was a step back week calling for a half marathon race--I ran 13.1 on my own. Or something close to it. Because there was a major issues. Called I had no garmin--but whatever. Today was 17. Again, a good run. Ran the last 3 miles at 9. Overall still running those long runs too fast....Russ and Erin tell me that 18 was "the one" for them. The one that made them doubt it all. I look forward to attacking it next weekend. BRING IT.

14 Done

And it felt great.

It was a really good run. Since my marathon target is 9:45s (for now--may slow down by the time the marathon approaches)--I "should" be keeping a 10:15-even an 11:00 pace according to Hal. But I can't do that. I wanted to target 10-10:15.  My overall pace was 9:41, but for the most part I hovered around 9:50. My last mile was 8:20. It felt that good that I could easily speed up at the end.

I fueled with 2 cliff blocks at 6 miles, one block at 9 and one at 11.5. Energy was great throughout. Legs started feeling a little weaker by mile 11.

Next week is 15 I think. (and will be a tougher training week due to a busy schedule)

Ew

Runs have been fine. 12 last weekend was good (knee pain at mile 8 or 9 but I attribute that to needing new shoes...plus it subsided after a mile or so. Overall pace was 9:53--which is closer to what I should be running them at.). I missed my second 3 miler this week. Like last week. I had my reasons. I figure missing a couple of easy runs isn't the end of the world.

And I was set to do my 9 this morning but woke up extremely nauseous. I am certain of one of two things. 1. I have the virus that Greta had--and am just not puking. or 2. I need to stop eating raw cookie dough.

Either way, my stomach has settled a bit (as long as I don't eat or drink anything). So I have to find the energy and strength to muscle through my 9. I am not looking forward to it but this week the mileage ramps up 4, 7, 4, 14--and I feel as though missing this 9 would be a set back.

Yay.