In The Long Run

TNT on the Pipeline Trail.  This was just one of those runs that felt great.  I don't think I have ever run that section of Pipeline (from Church Fork to Elbow Fork and back) as fast as I did today.  Our group hooked up with a group called the Waddlers and they really pushed me (and eventually dropped me) on the way back.  Despite the name, they definitely move much faster than a waddle!

SLCTC group run starting from the Capitol.  We ran an out and back on Bonneville and 11th Ave.  It was my first time running there and the views from 11th were amazing.  Beautiful night for running. 

Easy Liberty Park run with Nate and Bourbon.  Perfect night for running, felt good.

Usual Liberty Park run with Bourbon.  The smell of charcoal was in the air. I'm running the Provo 5k tomorrow.  Major goal is sub 24, but 23:30 would be really nice.  

AM: Provo City 5k. Went down to the race with Stacy. We ran about a half mile warmup then decided to hit the bathrooms before heading out for more. Well, the line was so long that by the time we were done, it was time to head to the start line. A short warmup was going to have to do.

The start was pretty chaotic where we were. Some little girl clipped me and she almost fell. There was a lot of weaving and bumping for the first  1/4 to 1/2 mile, but then everything settled out. I haven't run a 5k in awhile (nor have I done a lot of 5k pace training) so I was just focused on running hard. 

I really wish I had my garmin today. We are a one garmin household and my husband requested it today. I figured I'd be fine with a normal running watch, but there weren't any markers for the 5k. I assumed that the half marathon miles 11, 12, 13 would correspond to our 1,2, 3, but the splits did not make any sense. I then figured that the course would be short, but in the end I think it was okay.  

I think that I ran a pretty consistent pace and I seemed to be moving up throughout the race. I finished in 23:35 and I am happy with that. At the end of January I ran 25:27 at the Winter Series 5k, so I have improved. I felt good until the last 1/4 mile or so when I got that pukey feeling that happens in a 5k. Afterwards, I ran a 15 minute cooldown with Stacy before taking the bus back to the car. In hindsight, we should have just run back, it would have been faster. 

Also finally met Allie and James from the blog. Didn't run into any else, but it sounds like there was some awesome running today! 

This was just awful.  I felt terrible and sluggish. So glad this one is over. Now on to yoga for some much needed relaxation.

Easy Liberty Park run with Nate. Felt much better than yesterday.  Now I must summon my willpower to resist eating mass quantities of chocolate and caramel. The neighbor kids were selling candy bars and Nate bought 10. 

Core work with the TRX. Want to do more of this once Ogden is over.

SLCTC group run on the JRP.  Ran 6 miles at goal marathon pace.  It didn't feel as easy as I had hoped, but I haven't tapered much yet.  Everything from here on out is pretty short though. I have one final "long run" (10-12) on Saturday, a short dress rehearsal (2 X 1 mile at goal pace) next week and the rest will be easy 3-5 mile runs.  At this point, I guess the hay is in the barn. 

AM: Core work with TRX.  I'm not always good about blogging my lifting and core work, but I try to fit in in 1-2 times/week. No more lifting until after Ogden, though. 

PM: Easy Liberty Park run with the pup.  Had 2 cat sightings tonight which is always an adventure when you have a hound dog attached to your waist!

Signed up for the North Face Endurance Challenge 50K in San Francisco in December.  I absolutely love these trails (even though they kick my butt) and I really look forward to a weekend in the Bay Area.   

Had a really nice run with the SLCTC this morning. Gorgeous weather and great company. Met a bunch of bloggers for brunch at Ruth's Diner. Good food and great company. Capped it all off with a tough yoga class followed by fro yo at Top It.  Great day! 

Easy Liberty Park run with the pup.  Felt sluggish at first, but really good by the end. 

I got into St. George! I entered the lottery not really expecting to get in and I'm pretty excited about running SGM! It's been on my list for a long time.   

Easy run at Liberty Park with 2 X 1 mile at goal marathon pace.  Thankful for the breeze and overcast sky or it would have been a miserable run.  

I love this post from Run the Edge: Five Things Every Runner Should Quit Doing. I'm certainly guilty of some of these, but I'm working on quitting!

PM: Easy 4 mile run with Nate.  I didn't feel so great on this one, but I'm blaming it on the taper! Even though I feel fat and sluggish today, I have to trust that on Saturday I will feel lean and ready. 

Super easy loop on the wood chips at Liberty.  Wanted to shake the legs out, but not get tired.  Now on to planning for tomorrow.  I believe that I can run just under 4, but it is realistically at the very edge of my fitness and will require a perfect race/day for it to happen. I want to try, though.  If it's not my day tomorrow, I hope to at least hold it together enough for a PR (sub 4:25).

I went into this hoping finally to get under 4:00.  Most of the predictors had me right around 4 flat, but I hoped to find a few seconds somewhere and squeak out a 3:59.59.  I knew it would take a perfect race on a perfect day for it to happen, though. 

My previous road marathons had been disasters.  I trained inconsistently and went into each race without a plan, and the results showed that.  At Hartford in 2001, I went through the half in 1:59 before finishing in 4:25.  At Colorado in 2010, I went through the half in 2:02 before finishing in 4:27.  Ouch.  This time my training was pretty consistent and I had a plan. 

On Friday night, I made a pace band that accounted for the course profile to wear for the race.  I set it with my garmin, gels, and other race day necessities so that I wouldn’t forget it.  In my 3:30a.m. stupor, I somehow left with everything but the pace bracelet.

I made it to Ogden around 4:45 and got on a bus. I forgot how much I hate bus rides to a race start.  It was so hot on my bus that I had peeled all my layers off.  I also get motion sickness so I could not wait to get off that bus. After a few minutes of being outside in the crisp air, the queasiness went away. It looked like it was going to be a perfect day to run. After several stops in the bathroom line, it was go time. 

These are all Garmin splits (different from the race mile markers.)  I knew that it would read long, so I tried to be mindful of that while running.

Miles 1-6:  8:41, 8:53, 8:51, 8:47, 8:58, 9:00

I knew these downhill miles should be faster than 9:09, but I couldn’t remember how much faster.  I shed my gloves and long sleeves by mile 3.  At this point, everything felt good and I was super confident. Took a clif shot at mile 5.

7-13: 9:06, 9:14, 9:05, 9:06, 9:10, 9:07, 9:17

I was still feeling good.  Took another clif shot at mile 10. Reached halfway at 1:59:38 (this was according to the race markers.  My garmin was at 13.2 something at that point).  The 4 hour pacer passed me right around this point. 

14-20: 9:19, 9:41, 9:24, 9:17, 9:05, 9:41, 9:22

Things were getting harder now.  I was chatting with another runner and realized that I was slowing down.  I increased the effort, but now I was at the hill.  I caught back up with the 4 hour pace group going up the hill and tried to stick with them. They pulled away on the downhill, but I tried to keep her balloons in sight.  I was feeling a little discouraged, but then we turned down the canyon.  Took a third clif shot at mile 18. A quicker mile 18 increased my confidence.  I was certain I could pick it up again.  But then almost instantly, my quads started aching.  I just couldn’t stay in the low 9s anymore.  I started to shuffle.  The balloons disappeared in the distance and sub 4 slipped away. The new focus would have to be sub 4:05.

21-Finish: 9:43, 10:17, 10:15, 11:02, 10:59, 10:20, 9:12 pace for final .45 (Garmin read 26.45)

I was really hurting now.  Sharp pains were shooting up both of my legs. Just keep each mile below 10 I told myself, but that slipped away, too.  The blow up was on. I had shifted into survival mode. It was all I could do to keep my legs shuffling.  I walked through the aid station at 23 to take a clif shot, and starting to run again was so painful.  I knew that I couldn’t let myself walk again until the finish.  I just kept plugging along.  This stretch was very hard mentally.  There was a lot of carnage, and it was so tempting to join in and walk.  But I kept shuffling and when I realized that I could break 4:10, I picked it up to the finish. I think my time was 4:09:42.  A PR by over 15 minutes. 

As I worked my way through the finish area, I saw Nate along the barricades.  I went over to him and just started crying. I don’t know if I was crying because I missed my goal or because everything hurt and I was just so glad it was over.  He was so happy because I had set a big PR, but I was just so disappointed.

I was in so much pain after the race.  I sat down in the shade and could not get up without assistance.  But after I got some food and water down, I started to feel much better, both physically and about the race. 

Things that went well:

• My stomach and breathing felt fine.
• Except for walking through two of the later aid stations, I ran the entire thing.
• I made it to 20 feeling better than I ever had at that point before. While I still blew up, it was much better than previous blowups.
• Mentally, I believed that I could do it for most of the race.  While it didn’t quite work out, I did run 15+ minute PR. 

 Things that need improvement:

•        I clearly went out too fast for my goal/fitness level.  If I had dialed those first few miles back, could I have prevented the later blowup?
•       More long runs.  I only fit in 2 20 milers this cycle.  A few more would have helped a lot.
•         More downhill running in training.  My quads were not prepared for the late downhills of this race. I knew this was a weakness as I’ve had quad problems at downhill races before.

Restore Yoga.  Really didn't want to go, but Nate insisted it would be good for me.  He was right; some good stretching for the hips, quads, and hamstrings was just what I needed. My upper quads and hip flexors are so sore, but except for walking down stairs, I'm not feeling too bad.   Looking to cross train for a few days and start running again mid-week.  

Lunchtime spin class. Took it pretty easy, didn't put much nearly as much resistance as I normally use.  At one point, I was afraid the instructor was going to call me out for slacking! But my legs feel so much better now.  I wish I could make this particular class more often. The instructor is really good, he actually cycles outdoors so he doesn't do anything stupid (i.e. "pushups" on the bike, hovers, and other things that you would NEVER do on the road) that a lot of others instructors do.  

AM: Spin class.  It's amazing how much better my legs feel after two days of spinning.  I can walk down stairs normally! I'm definitely a believer in cross training for marathon recovery.  In the past I just sat on my butt for a week, but I feel so much better this way. I think I'm ready for a short, easy run tomorrow. 

Super easy run on the woodchips at Liberty.  Legs felt heavy, but not sore. Had a dull stabbing pain in my stomach that still hasn't gone away.   Beautiful evening for a run, though. 

TRX class at 9th and 9th Pilates.  Planks with your feet in a suspension trainer should be considered a form of torture! 

I went back to Laramie on Friday for a meeting and was really excited to get a chance to run on my favorite trails east of town.  I had plans to run Friday night too, but the 60+ mph wind gusts caused me to change my mind.  On Saturday morning, I met a friend and we did a shorter version of the Silent Trails course (Side note: if you ever find yourself in Laramie, WY on the second Saturday in October, do this race. It's one of my favorites. It's run in memory of 8 UW runners who were killed by a drunk driver in 2001).  The trails are at an average elevation of 8500 ft so this was really tough coming from SLC. Climbs that I used to be able to run reduced me to a wheezing walk! But it was nice to catch up with friends and revisit the old stomping grounds.   

Usual 5 mile Liberty Park run.  Legs feel good, it's time to get back to the grind.  I'd like to get up to 50+ miles per week this summer.  

Restore Yoga in the evening.  Lots of hip openers.  

Also enjoyed brunch at Ruth's with my hubby.  Such a gorgeous day.   

PM: TRX class.  Even more torturous planks today.

This also turned into an unplanned day off of running.  I woke up with a weird pain in my right hip/glute.  I'm not sure exactly what it is or what I did, but I'm guessing that I did it in yoga yesterday.  I tried jogging a little and it hurt to push off.  Since I don't have any big goal races any time soon, I decided to rest it.  

Lunch time spin class.  Wanted to get some cardio done just in case my hip/glute thing prevents me from running tonight.  This was a great class and I pushed pretty hard because it did not bother my hip/glute at all.  It actually feels a little better now so I will attempt an easy run later.  

PM: Gotta love when your planned 5.5 miles run turns into 8 :) Ran from my house to meet up with the SLCTC group run at Liberty Park. For some reason thought this run started at 5:30, so I left a little after 5 to head to the park. I was almost there when I realized that it actually started at 6pm. So I added a few loops of the park and ended up with a little bit longer run than intended. No hip pain when running, so I think that was just a fluke thing. It does hurt if I push on it really hard, so I'm just not going to push on it!  It was a little too warm for me tonight.  Don't know how I'm going to survive running at the beach next week.

TRX class.  The torturous planks are slowly getting easier :) Went for a run after class and it was not a good run.  I was tired, overheating, and my head was pounding (no coffee today). Did my usual Liberty Park run, but actually had to stop and walk a few times. Ugh.  On the bright side, vacation starts tomorrow!