Well, this is a little overdue. I ran the St. Patrick's Day 5k on Sunday, March 20th. It was the first 5k of the 2011 season and a great one at that! Advertisements for this race emphasized that it was a flat and fast course. My goal: hit it in the 24's!
The day before Matt and I drove the course, and I'm glad that we did. Definitely flat, with a little incline, but nothing to cry over.
The race started at 12:15pm, which was a little different for me because I'm used to racing in the morning. I was awake by 9am. I was able to get in a good breakfast and relaxed on the couch for awhile. 10:30am we made our way to the race.
The morning flew by. Next thing I knew, we were lined up waiting for the start. I started 3 or 4 rows behind the start. I always start close to the front, especially on races that aren't chipped timing. I want to get over that start line as quickly as possible!
12:15pm, horn sounded the start and we're off. My ipod goes through the first song, always "Thunderstruck" by ACDC. Next song on the race list was supposed to be "Diamond Eyes" by Shinedown. It wasn't. I'm quickly approaching mile 1 when I realized that I forgot to turn my ipod to the "race mix," rather then just playing through the list of songs. So I'm running and trying to switch my ipod to my race mix. I specifically had set up my ipod the night before so that each song was arranged to play at a certain time during the race. It was very sunny that day and in the 50's. I could barely see the options on the ipod screen. Mypace slowed alot, but I knew I wasn't going to run to just any random song! I was eventually able to change it, and get back on pace. Mile 1: 7:50 pace.
In this race, runners pass by the start after mile 1. I thought this was an energy booster, especially for me. Everyone crowding around the finish area made for a lot of cheering. However, I had the best cheering section. My co-worker and best friend came with her four year old son. They made Matt and I a poster and showed much support. It was very sweet. I remember standing in the start line and looking over to see little Connor waving to me!! Jodi took some fantastic photos. It was great to share my accomplishment with such a great friend!
Fast forwarding, as I don't have much to say about mile 2. I approached the last half mile and knew that I would have to put forth some major effort to make it to the finish in under 25 minutes. Next thing I know, Matt is running towards me down the street. I catch up to him and he runs side by side with me for about .10 and is telling me that I better beat the female runner in front of me. He always has a way of pushing me and getting me pumped up. He simply said, "Don't let her beat you!"
I knew I didn't have far to go. I sprinted past that female runner and as I turned the corner I caught up to another female runner. She sensed that I was pushing it and she started pushing too. It came down to who wanted it the most at the end. Of course, I did! I blew past her and the finish and clocked a 24:51!!!! Fastest to date. 8:01 pace.
I set a goal and I accomplished it, no matter how bad it hurt or how tired I became. But I also realized something. It's not all about what you have on race day, it's about the work and effort you put in every other day of the week that truly counts. I have been incorporating tempo runs into my training a lot more, which has helped me to establish a quicker pace.
I am very blessed and thankful. I am doing something right! I have been injured numerous times, but this time I have really seemed to bounce back. Eating right and resting is a must! I even changed my training program, but definitely for the better. Each race I am learning, improving and accomplishing my goals.
What's next???
Kutztown 10 miler this Saturday, April 2nd. This will be my second 10 mile race. Rather then nervous, I am actually excited for this one. I know what to expect. I learned a lot from the first one and I'm prepared to make changes for this one.
What's my goal??
Under 1:30. I've set a reasonable goal. I have mapped out this course, I know where the hill is, and I say bring it on!
This past weekend was a successful one for training. I took a break from the long running miles and decided to work a little on my tri training. That event will be here before I know it.
When I registered for the Black Bear Triathlon I knew that biking would be my weakness. Obviously. I've always been a swimmer and I've been running for two years. I have never biked. I remember telling my boyfriend awhile ago that I will never get on a bike and that I would never do a triathlon. I have no idea how I convinced myself otherwise. I guess to prove to myself that I can accomplish anything I want to.
So this winter, actually just the past two months, I have been riding the fluid trainer in the exercise room. 30 minutes here, and hour there. But this past weekend Matt decided he wanted me to complete my first brick workout of the season. Sure, why not, I thought.
So we set out on Saturday, midafternoon. He told me the route would be about 15 miles with some hills, not too bad. Not too bad for him! I am the one who is trying to learn how to clip in my cleats, how to change gears, keeping up my cadence, riding the aerobars, stopping with traffic and unclipping one shoe so I don't fall over. I'm also the one learning how to increase speed downhills, learning to drink from a water bottle while in motion and taking gels! It's a lot at once. I was able to retrieve my water bottle and take a drink, once!
Climbing the hills were the toughest for me on this ride. It's kind of like when I run, I am terrible at running uphill!! I learned I have to practice that a lot more. You aren't going to get better at running hills or biking hills unless you training doing so!
Also, I am very nervous about increasing my speed downhills. It's something about flying down a hill on a bike that freaks me out. I need to get over that!
On a positive note, I completed the full 16.8 miles, and it was faster then the first time I was out on the road. My first time on the road we went 10.4 miles and I was just trying to get the feel of what it's like to be out on the road.
So it was off the bike, and onto taking a gel, drinking water and putting on my running shoes. Then out the door we went for a run. 3 miles, my race distance. Talk about weird. Going from pedaling to running, my legs felt out of whack. It took me a good mile to get them used to running. I don't have any complaints or concerns about the run, I completed it!
Matt kept telling me how proud he was that I completed my first brick of the season. Me being me responded with, "it wasn't that fast though!" He told me he was just happy that I completed it and that I didn't quit. I never quit. True.
That night I was exhausted!! Talk about really shocking your body. But it also gave me the confidence I needed. I completed a 16.8 mile bike ride ( race distance is 17.0 miles) and followed it with a 3 mile run (race distance is 3.1 miles). Right on for the first one!
That wasn't the end of my weekend either. Sunday I was planning on a rest day with a leg strengthening session. Well, Matt decided to do a tempo run, and somehow convinced me to do it with him. So I laced up the sneaks again and off we went. 4 miles, tempo. I expected to feel sluggish, but it was the complete opposite. I did .5 as a warmup, 2 miles at an 8:30 pace and 1.5 strong.
Yesterday I was still feeling good. I decided to take to the pool. 3600 yards, distance.
All in all a good past couple of days.
Goals for this week: one more bike ride, a distance run, another speed workout, possibly one more swim, with some strength training if time permits.
Sunday March 20th we are running a 5k that goes before the St. Patrick's Day parade. Supposedly it's a flat and fast course. I'm goingto be in the 24's for this 5k. No excuses. Speed hurts. Failure is not an option.
I also got really pumped up when the LV Half Marathon posted this year's medal on their facebook page. 47 more days, I really can't wait to have it around my neck. That will mean that I will have accomplished one of the goals that I have had for a long time!!!
Well, I've done two 5 milers, and a 10k. Next up, 10 miles. I was confident I could complete a 10 mile race. I have already logged in two 10 milers and a 12 mile training run, not to mention a few 8 milers too. I needed to see what these longer distances were about.
My friend told me about this race and I decided since it was close to home I would do it. I had 2 goals:
1.) to complete it
2.) 1:30
I got to the race and went to pick up my shirt and race number. I went and looked at the course map which was printed out and laying on one of the tables. I was more concerned about the water stops on the course then anything. I packed my fuel belt and gels, but I couldn't decide if I wanted to wear it or not. As I'm looking at the map, a runner standing around the table asked: "Have you ever run this race before?" I replied with, "No." The runner looked at me, smirked and nodded her head. Now I knew exactly what she was implying because two days before I had a conversation with my friend about the race course. She told me that it was extremely hilly!!! Lots and lots of hills. I kind of brushed it off. I thought people were just trying to psych me out. (Little do they know, I am terrible at running hills!)
I did a short warmup, got my legs moving and I headed to the start. I ran into a co-worker who has run the race before. He gave me a run down of the course. He told me the first half is much worse then the second half. If I made it through the first, I'd be golden for the second. This only meant one thing to me, lots of hills in the first half.
I should have known when the race started off downhill. That really only meant one thing, it finished uphill! I know I'm not very efficient with running hills, so my plan was to make up time on the downhills. For most of the first half that is exactly what I did, until just past mile 4.
After mile 4 came a steady incline. This was the hill that I witnessed people in front of me walking, and heard people behind me moaning and saying "what a hill!" Personally, I felt like I was crawling up this hill. What a sense of relief it was mentally and physically when I got to the top. That hill was miserable. There were quite a few hills in this race, but that one really sticks out.
Runner's high occurred around mile 5. I really felt great. At 6.5 miles there was a water spot. I took an energy gel just before it, so I could run through it, grab water and wash the gel down. This became a challenge for me. The gel that I took was rather thick. The cup of water I got was rather small. Now anyone who has run a race knows that running with a cup of water in your hands is a task, let alone trying to drink from it. Some of it spilled out, some of it ran down my shirt, and some of it did get in my mouth. However, not enough to completely wash down the gel. Note to self, if you aren't that efficient in getting water at water spots, wear your fuel belt! I plan on wearing mine from now on for races 10 miles and over. Anything less I never get water on the course anyways!
At 8.5 miles I started to cave. Mile 9 was torture. My saving grace came with about .5 to go. I was running on a road and as I looked to my left there was the elementary school where the race started! But what awaited ahead was the uphill climb to the finish. It sucked, to say the least.
I crossed the finish line in 1:30. I met my goal.
The icing for the cake came during the awards ceremony. I was sitting on the cafeteria floor, stretching my legs, when they started to announce my age group. My name was called for 6th place!
Not only did I meet my time goal, but I also placed in my age group. All in all it was a great day and a great race. It was a lot of back road running, and the weather was in the 50s.
I felt a sense of accomplishment after this race, knowing that I ran 10 miles, but I also ran 10 miles over an extremely hilly course.
I will run this race again in the future, but I have to make sure that I start running some more hills!!!
The day after I was extremely sore and fatigued. But I am almost back to 100%. I'm not the only one though. I talked to others who ran the race, they were sore too!
Next up, Kutztown Fools Run, 10 miler... April 2nd, 2011.
My first 10k race. And the Steelers were in the superbowl! (They didn't win, oh well!) I looked at pictures from the past Superbowl 10k races and saw that a lot of runners wore jerseys or shirts supporting their teams. So I put on a steelers t-shirt and headed for the Lehigh Parkway.
In the days leading up to the race I looked at the course map and elevations. I knew there was a climb somewhere in the middle of the race, so I was prepared for it. Little did I know that the course would change that morning.
I parked and went to pick up my race packet. I took time to warm up because the roads had some icy spots. I planned out where I needed to run in these areas so I could avoid slipping and falling.
I was not particularly confident going into this race. Being that it was early in February my training was hindered by snow and ice. I did very little outside running. The majority of my training occurred on the gym treadmills. Did I mention that I HATE treadmills? I am a firm believer that they are much easier to run on then running outside. I don't feel that I get the same workout on a treadmill as I do from running outside. On a treadmill the ground is constantly being pulled underneath your feet and there is no wind resistance. So the winter months this year really hindered me.
So I set a reasonable goal for this race: to finish in under an hour....
Before the start, the race director announced the course had changed due to the icy conditions. I figured oh well, I didn't even know where I was running to begin with. The announcer then stated that we would run in and out of the parkway twice. I thought, "how boring!" And how boring it was!!
The horn sounded and off I went. At least running the race out and back twice I knew where the hills were. That's all I'm saying. I don't really have anything to say about this race other then I finished it in 52 minutes! Talk about smashing my goal! I held an 8:30 pace and felt great doing so. However, immediately when I stopped I had extreme IT band pain.
I took some much needed trips to the chiropractor for some graston and recovery massages!
I was a swimmer through high school and college. After my collegiate career I took some time off, but quickly returned to the water. I participated in the master's swim program. It was during that program that I became good friends with some good runners. Somehow they convinced me to sign up for a local 5k race in the Spring of 2009. So I started running a little here and there. I registered to run the Pocono Run for the Red 5k.
I showed up that morning, intimidated. I had no idea what I was doing, how to warm up or even how to run a race, period! I remember telling my friends and family that my goal was to finish in 30 minutes. I would be happy with that. My parents and sister were there to cheer me on, which calmed my nerves a little bit.
The race started and I went running. This race was neat because the finish line is located in the high school football stadium. You run about 3/4 of the way around the track to the finish line. I entered the stadium and saw the time clock out of the corner of my eye. It was in the 26th minute! I crossed the finish line in 26:57. I couldn't believe it. My goal was 30 minutes and I beat that by 3 minutes. It was at that point that it all started, my desire to train and run. I always knew that I need something other then swimming in my life. I knew I wouldn't always have a pool to swim in, but I would have two legs to run at any time. Also, I knew competition was a huge part of my life. I have always been competitive in everything that I have done, from school to sports. I no longer had swim meets to attend, so I need to channel my competitive edge elsewhere.
And from that day forward I kept running. I joined a local run group every Tuesday and Thursday at 6pm and ran with them. I also tried to run one day on the weekend by myself. I then immediately developed the goal of running a marathon. That goal did not consist of any planning, or registering for any other races. I justk kept running. It wasn't long before I found out that increased run mileage, along with a poor diet would lead me down injury lane.
One morning in June of 2009, I woke up with extreme pain in my lower left leg. I couldn't go up and down the stairs. In fact, I couldn't even get out of bed. I went to my family doctor who ordered me to undergo a bone scan and blood work . Now this was all foreign to me. I have never been to a hospital for anything at this point. I laid on the table and watched as my bones shimmered in the computer screen. All of a sudden I saw a huge white spot on my left leg, along with little white cracks up and down my shin bones. I remember the tech looking at me and saying, "You really were hard on your legs!" No kidding, I thought. I then had to take my results to an orthopedic doctor where they determined I suffered a stress fracture on my left tibia. I was on crutches with an air cast for 3 weeks. At that point I had no desire to ever run again...
I finally laced up the sneaks again in the early spring of 2010. I started training for a 5k after my boyfriend decided he wanted to run one. It was a local race for a police officer killed while on duty. I told him I would run it with him, but wasn't really interested in hardcore running, I didn't want to get hurt again! Little did I know that running that race would lift my spirits and bring back my competitive edge! I felt the desire to run again. After barely training for it, I still ran a low 26!
Since then I have ran many 5k's during the summer and fall of 2010. I ran my first 5 mile race in October of 2010 and another in December of 2010. With each race I gained more confidence that I could race longer races. And it was at the start of 2011 that I became determined to compete in longer races. With the proper knowledge, training, nutrition and rest.. I began my journey.....
