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Race Recap: Cooper River Bridge Run 10K

April 4th, 2012 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (7 Comments)

Less than 2 weeks to go, and the taper is on! Except my legs feel like lead and I’m exhausted. Not surprisingly, given a busy work trip, 10k race, and late nights this weekend. I’m going to try to make sleep a priority this week, lay low this weekend and hopefully I’ll be a bit more refreshed leading into race week.

About Saturday’s 10k race. All things considered, 40:38 is pretty good. It’s only 2 seconds off my (very weak) PR. I didn’t exactly have the best race prep, but since I was down in Charleston for a work trip (Chobani was a sponsor of the race), I had to make sure work was a priority. Racing was simply a nice perk.

Here’s a link to the full stats for the race, using the Polar RCX5 I’m wear-testing for Boston.com. If you know anything about heart rate training, I’d love your insight! Is an avg. of 181, max of 190, right for a 10K race?

Can you tell where the bridge was? Ha.

I hate to play the ‘excuses’ or ‘what if’s game, but bear with me. Under the right conditions I really believe I could have broken 40 minutes. Here we go:

  • My pre-race prep sucked. I spent Thursday & Friday entirely on my feet, shuttling & lifting cases of yogurt, and eating samples from booths at the expo for lunch and dinner (Muscle Milk, Blue Moon, fruit snacks, ice cream, and Atkins bars…)  Gross. Except all the Chobani, of course :)
  • Since I was offsite during the day, I had to catch up on work when I got back to my hotel each night after 9 at night. Combined with early wake ups, I slept about 5-6 hours each night– which is not enough for someone who needs 8-9 on average!
  • I had to get blood drawn on Friday (long story), so since I didn’t have a car, I ended up running to and from my blood test, while trying not to pass out, cry, or die on the 3 miles home. I felt really drained the rest of the day and into Saturday, unsurprisingly.
  • The race was delayed by an hour (!!!!) due to issues clearing the bridge, so it was even hotter. We stood around on our feet, not knowing when the gun would really go off, as the sun rose. Pretty sure it was over 80 degrees and this little Northerner was dying.
  • There was a massive, never-ending bridge for about 1.25+ miles, up which I hit blazing splits of 6:45 (started at the end of this mile) and 7:18. Combined with a whipping headwind, WTF. I shouldn’t run those splits in a 10K…
  • My legs weren’t exactly rested, nor trained to run a 10K. It doesn’t make sense that my 10K pace should be the same as my half-marathon pace, but it is. I’ll definitely drop time once I kick the high mileage & focus on ‘speed’.

Ok! Excuses, excuses. I know it’s like saying “well I definitely could have PRed if I was half-Kenyan/on a bike/magically had a tailwind/stopped a mile early!”, but I’m simply trying to put it in context of things I could and could not control. End complaint session.

On my 2nd Boston.com post this week, I wrote a bit about the race and loosening up a bit. After I finished and reflected on last year’s NYC Marathon, I made it a goal to become more flexible in training & racing. I was so ingrained in my routine, getting super stressed out when I had to stray from it. Everything about Saturday’s pre-race prep typically would have made me crazy anxious and defeated. “But I didn’t get 8 hours sleep the night before the night before the race! I didn’t eat my favorite oatmeal for breakfast! We’ve been waiting on the start line for an hour and I have to pee!” But this time, I just rolled with the punches and did the best I could, given the day. It was what it was. And obviously, the situation will be much different for Boston.

This training cycle, I’ve worked hard to let go, stress a lot less, and still live life. Through this, I’ve maintained a better running/life balance, and while everything hasn’t been perfect, I’ve been so much happier with myself, my running, job, friendships, life, everything. My post on working hard & playing hard just about sums it up. I firmly believe that keeping it fun and balanced will ensure a long love affair with running…and hopefully snag a few PRs along the way.

The remainder of my Saturday is a good example. Despite being exhausted from the race (and working the finish line event for about 2 hours post-race…in my sweaty glory), I still had time to grab some burgers and margaritas along the water with some coworkers before boarding my flight back to NYC. I passed out for a quick hour on the flight, got home around 7:30 p.m., pulled myself together (and threw back a 5 Hour Energy), went out to dinner with Terence as I missed his surprise birthday party while down in SC, and then went to Gian’s birthday where I drank (too much) and danced until 3:30 in the morning.

Again, it’s no surprise why I’m tired. While breaking 3:00 is THE goal and will make me feel incredibly happy and accomplished, spending time with friends and going out is a priority, too. Again, it’s about balance. I’ll just reel it in these next two weeks and hope I can “have my cake and eat it too.” Wishful thinking? We’ll see.

And now, sleep. sleep. sleep. And a little bit of running thrown in there, too.

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Cherry Tree 10 Miler & Cut Back Week

February 24th, 2012 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (8 Comments)

On Sunday, I trekked down to Brooklyn (/got a ride there so I wouldn’t have to take the subway, thanks Alex & Steve!) to run the Cherry Tree 10 Mile race. I didn’t really have a plan going into it beyond getting in at least 18 miles for the day and having the race be my workout for the week. I’m definitely not in racing shape and after traveling during the week, I was a bit beat.

The later 10am race start in Prospect Park was nice, so I woke up at 8, ate a decent breakfast & drank coffee (a must!) before heading down to the school to pick up our bibs and do a quick warmup.

We covered around 2.75 miles before heading to the start– my legs were really tired and just felt heavy. We started off the race a bit further into the crowds, with plans to start out conservatively and go from there.

Cherry Tree 10 Miler, Prospect Park Brooklyn, 2/19

Alex & I ran together the entire race until she pulled away from me the last time up the hill– it was so nice to have company! Our splits were relatively steady around 6:45, with a few quick ones on the flat/downhill miles and slower on the uphills. Honestly, I don’t mind Prospect Park at all, and don’t think the hill is that bad compared to Central Park. Sure, it’s long and I kinda wanted to die the 3rd time up it, but the rest of the park’s terrain is pretty forgiving.

My final chip time was 1:06:13, for an average pace of 6:38ish. I’m pretty happy with this effort considering how heavy my legs felt and that I wasn’t well-rested. But, sure does make doing 16.2 more miles just 10-12 seconds per mile slower sound really, really daunting.

A big CPTC crew ran back over the Manhattan Bridge, making the cooldown go by much faster than if we logged another few loops in the park. I covered 18.25 miles total for the day and rehydrated with the team a few hours later:

CPTC @ Loreley's

All the sudden I found myself extremely drunk before 8 p.m. on a Sunday. So much for taking it easy this weekend :)

I had planned this week to be a cut back week in terms of mileage, and I wasn’t sure if I was going to take it or not. I want my schedule to be flexible depending on how I’m actually feeling vs. what I planned, and what if my legs were feeling good? Well, my legs were still sore into Wednesday due to the race and wearing flats, so a cut back week it is.

I’d like to get in around 40 miles still including a long run of 18, with no workout this week. Someone asked why I don’t step back my long runs, too. For me, I’d rather gradually build up my long runs linearly (14, 16, 16, 18, 18, 20, 20, 20) instead of breaking them up with a scaled down long run. With only so many weeks ’till Boston, I want to try to get in as many long runs as possible, and stepping it down to a week would take away from that, you know? Instead for my cut back week, the long run is essential but I take a few more rest days and nix the workout to give my legs a break. Maybe that’s wrong, I’m open to suggestions :)

I also wanted to use this week to catch up on sleep and recharge my body to get me through the next 4 hard weeks until the taper. Unfortunately for my body, but fortunately for me, work has been keeping me super busy between meetings, projects, presentations, etc. so I haven’t slept and relaxed with ‘me’ time as much as I’d like. But I am so lucky to be doing something I love, and I definitely focus better when I’ve got more on my plate. No complaints.

After this cut back week, I hope to hit totals of 60, 60, 65 and 65 before backing off for the taper. Maybe more, maybe less. 4 weeks of hard work ’till Boston…April 16th, are you here yet?

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2011 NYC Marathon Recap; 3:03:37

November 9th, 2011 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (41 Comments)

I really didn’t want to write this post, and I know I’m a few days late to the recap game. I put it off partially because it wasn’t the sub-3:00 marathon I had hoped for, but mostly because writing this would mean it was over. I can’t go back and change the way I felt on Sunday. I’ve taken a few days to digest the race, which included a healthy mix of basking in pride and sulking in disappointment.

I’ll be honest, yes, I am disappointed. A time like mine should not reflect disappointment, but it does for me. I trained for, wished for, and pushed really hard to complete my second marathon in under 3:00. I know my time is still great, and it’s a 55 second PR from last year’s NYC. Who can’t be happy with a PR?! And NYC is a tough course! At the end of the race, the feeling of sheer depletion meant I gave it everything physically and that’s what mattered. I am proud of myself for finishing, setting myself up for success with a really great first half, and staying mentally strong and fighting despite the way I felt.

Finished!!

2011 NYC Marathon: 3:03:37 official finishing time. 83rd female, 1425th place overall, 7th in age group (20-24). My 2nd marathon. Now let’s get to the fun stuff :)

Sub-Elite Start

I woke up at 5 a.m., feeling pretty well-rested and excited! I made some coffee and a hugeeee oatmeal with bananas to heat and take on the bus with me. Around 5:45, I left my apartment and headed to 54th street and 6th avenue to board the sub-elite bus. Around 6:30 a.m. we headed east down the FDR, our caravan of buses escorted by police. Seeing the highway completely shut down to traffic for our buses was the first of many unreal experiences. We arrived in Staten Island pretty quickly and were escorted away from the starting villages into a private heated tent, next to the elite athletes.

Sub-elite tent

While we were separated from the elites, we still shared portapotties and a little warmup area. Luckily, I had my CPTC teammates to keep me company! I didn’t even need half the layers I packed since we weren’t out in the cold, but I sure was thankful I had brought them anyway. I drank Gatorade and ate another banana and Gu Chomps while we waited. Around 8:45, we checked our bags in a private truck and were escorted to the top of the Verrazano bridge.

The next 45 minutes until the start were the most incredible moments of my life. We were able to start right on the line, and were free to do striders and roam the starting area. I strode out about 100 meters over the bridge and took it all in… just me and the closed bridge, nobody else in sight.I turned around and the crowds were so far away. It was surreal to be standing by myself with the bridge wide open. It was at that point I realized I was going to go for it. I’ve worked so hard the past four months to be standing in this exact spot…and suddenly I was here, standing on top of the Verrazano, taking in these gorgeous views from a truly special spot. I started to get choked up, I was so thankful.

New York, New York!

Miles 1, 2, 3: 6:45, 6:19, 6:32

The gun went off, and suddenly we were running! I tried to stay steady up the Verrazano, and found myself trailing back a bit from my CPTC teammates. I had anticipated hitting the first mile in over 7:00, so 6:45 was a bit of a shock but I felt fine. I tried not to pay attention to the second mile marker since that’s down the Verrazano’s steep decline. I thought mile 3 was a tad more steady as we wound the streets and found our way to Brooklyn, but I see it was quick!

Miles 4, 5, 6, 7, 8: 6:42, 6:42, 6:46, 6:41, 6:53

Around the 5K mark, I found myself back with my CPTC teammates Erin, Erin, and Maria. We strode across the road in a line of 4, trying to reign each other back and get closer to 6:50s. But it just wasn’t happening. I know you know that feeling. So, everytime I felt like speeding up, I tried to picture myself absorbing that energy I wanted to use and saving it for later. During this portion, I felt like I was working a bit more than I wanted to, but I definitely felt smooth. Erin pulled away around mile 6. At 7.5, I swung out to the left side of the road as my Dad was supposed to be standing near 7.8. I scanned and scanned the crowds but missed him! I was a bit thrown off, but quickly hopped back with my teammates as we approached mile 8 and joined in with the green & blue corrals! I took my first gel at mile 8 and felt good.

Miles 9, 10, 11, 12, 13: 6:45, 6:38, 6:49, 6:47, 6:48. Half-marathon mark 1:28:06.

A bit after mile 10 (why did I run a 6:38??) I realized I felt like I was working a bit harder than I should be. The crowds, the energy, the noise, and my thoughts propelled me to continue pushing. It’s a marathon, it was going to hurt no matter what. I pushed any doubt and panic aside. We passed the halfway mark in 1:28:06 and I felt a boost. I knew we had to hit the halfway point in 1:28 low or under to run under 3:00. Being a bit OCD, I checked the past year’s results and saw that anyone who ran sub-3:00 ran between 1:24 and 1:28 for the half. Nothing slower. Yes, this was fast, and YES this was aggressive, but I wanted to know I did everything I could to set myself up for success. I was on track, and just had to run under a 1:32 second half– heck, that sounded reasonable!

Miles 14, 15, 16, 17, 18: 6:56, 7:09, 7:09, 6:48, 6:53

I continued through Queens and started to feel like legs going a bit. My breathing was a bit heavier than I wanted, but I was chugging along where I wanted to be. I fell way behind my teammates going up the Queensboro bridge, but tried to keep steady. Hills are not my strength, and I didn’t mind the quietness of the bridge. I used it to collect my thoughts and my strength while taking my second gel and working to draft a bit as it was pretty windy. As we wound down the bridge, and I heard the wall of noise of 1st ave. Manhattan! I made it! I knew I had friends in the 70s and 80s, and scanned the crowds while trying to stay focused. I felt my quads really going and started to get nervous. Last year, I felt pretty good on this stretch of 1st Ave and my current state concerned me a bit. I used the crowd’s energy to propel myself forward, still happy with my splits around goal pace. My mom was on 97th street, and I was so happy to see her…though I had very little to say but wave.

Miles 19, 20, 21, 22, 23: 7:07, 7:26, 7:21, 7:26, 7:32

After mile 18, the crowds thinned and I took a 3rd gel in hopes they’d revive my legs. My quads. Oh, my quads. I rarely have issues or soreness in my quads during long runs or workouts, but they felt paralyzed as we hit the Willis Avenue Bridge. My breathing was okay, aerobically I felt I could continue to push, but my legs were not having it. I lost major time on these miles. I looked at my pace bracelet and saw the 2 minute cushion I had to break 3:00 start to shrink. It was frustrating knowing I was mentally and aerobically feeling ready to push but physically unable to increase the turnover in my legs. I was stuck in the same gear. Around mile 23, I actually didn’t know if my legs would hold up to carry me to the finish line. But I fought.

Over the Willis Avenue Bridge... (19.5)

Miles 24, 25, 26, .2: 8:00, 7:28, 7:20, 1:38

The 5th Avenue hill was the worst, as expected. I counted down the blocks one by one, feeling like I traveled 10 blocks but only having made it one. 90th street felt like it would never come. I saw my parents and barely mustered a wave. As a whole, I really tried to enjoy and savor the course but this stretch was one I just about closed my eyes and wished away. Once we entered the park, I was hit by “The Wall of Orange”– my CPTC teammates cheering their heads off. I got a boost and knew I would finish. Unlike last year where I think I blacked out for part of Central Park to the finish line, I was extremely aware during this time. Again, I wanted to just go but my legs wouldn’t let me. I remained positive and focused, knowing I’d have to continue to push if I was going to PR at all.

Seriously, are we there yet?!

Cresting up the small hill to the finish line the last .2 miles, I tried to kick and push, and was suddenly hit with a wave of exhaustion. All the blood rushed from my head and body, I wanted to pass out or throw up. It was then I knew I was physically spent, a sign of a good race. I somehow raised my arms upon crossing.

Finish!

Victory!

Upon finishing, a volunteer quickly spotted my bib and escorted me to a special finisher’s area. On my way, I spotted my CPTC teammates I had run with and all finished around the same time. And, Alex who had started in local competitive found us too!

Alex, Me, Erin, Maria

The volunteer escorted us from the sub-elite to a special tent right after the finish line. I was so thankful I didn’t have to walk all the way to the end of the baggage trucks like I did last year. I barely made it to the tent, fighting the urge to pass out or at least sit down. The volunteer let us sit while she found my bag. For that, she was my hero! I sat and breathed and stared around for a while before changing into dry clothes and calling my parents.

That was it. I didn’t break 3:00, and the world wasn’t over (shocker!) I didn’t feel upset at that moment because of how physically spent I was. I wanted under 3:00 and my mind said yes, but my legs said NO. I felt proud of myself for finishing, and fighting, and still setting a new PR. So often, the mental piece of the puzzle is what goes awry and makes for a bad race. I can say despite some frustrating moments, my mind was really in the game. My legs just went a lot earlier than I anticipated which made for a really rough second half.

The Aftermath

After the race, I met up with my Mom and Dad and went to brunch at Fred’s on the UWS. Luckily, we didn’t have to wait and I had a pretty good grilled chicken sandwich. I hobbled back to my apartment and immediately got into bed and started crying to my mom. I’ve had a pretty rough few weeks, and part of me felt like I needed a sub-3:00 race to boost my self confidence and affirm I’ll be okay. After working so hard and sacrificing so much, I fell short. I failed. Running kicked me when I was down.

After drying my tears and saying bye to my mom, I brushed myself off and hopped in the shower. I knew sulking in my apartment wouldn’t help, so even though I was physically drained, I headed down to Opal for the CPTC afterparty celebrations. A few beers, a bottle of champagne, and shots later, I left with a happy heart and head. Sure, my time wasn’t the best, but I PR’ed. And the experience was worth every painful second.

Free bottle of champagne? Okay!

So now what? I’m trying hard to let this race just be and not analyze my splits, training, diet, lifestyle, etc. I feel like I did the right stuff, and it just wasn’t my day. Maybe NYC isn’t my course, and I’d fare better on a flatter one where I can keep a steady pace and not get crushed by awful hills and bridges. Part of me really doesn’t get why this year felt so much harder than last year, when I know I am a stronger runner right now. Maybe my pacing strategy was off, but I stand firm on the way I went out because it put me in the right position.

I’ve got Boston 2012 next, and I’m holding off on making any goals for that race quite yet. I’m a bit hesitant to say I want to break 3:00 there. However, I know I’m competitive with myself and probably won’t want to go into that race without the goal of setting a new PR. Let’s be honest.

For now, I will take the next week or two entirely off running and exercise of any type. For me, I need a solid rest period to break up training and racing cycles. Taking it easy until after Thanksgiving will ensure I am fresh and eager to train for Boston, and not get burnt out or injured. I’ll be sleeping in, enjoying my free time, and living a little more until then!

Finally, THANK YOU again for all the kind congratulatory messages. Even though it wasn’t my day, I felt extremely loved and supported before, during and especially after the race. As I said before the race, I’ll be back here working hard and writing about it until I get that sub-3:00!

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Soul Crushing Hills. Alternative title: Nike Women’s Half-Marathon Recap

October 18th, 2011 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (32 Comments)

That title pretty much sums it up. Going into the Nike Women’s Half-Marathon, I had two goals.

  1. Have fun and enjoy the ‘vacation race’!
  2. Practice marathon pace for the first 10K, then work on gradually bringing down the pace.

Welp, I only met one of these, but at least it was the more important one :) My time was actually new PW- personal worst-but I had a blast doing it! In fact, it was about 7.5 minutes slower than my half-marathon PR, and about 2.5 minutes slower than the first half-marathon I ever ran. Yowza.IMG_1180

I finished in 1:32:09. I was 24th out of 16,423 half-marathon finishers, and 6th in my age group. Pretty cool!

Let’s rewind. I landed late on Friday night and my sister picked me up from the airport and took me to her house to stay for the weekend. We headed to the expo in Union Square on Saturday, but the crowds were kinda intense, so we pretty much just picked up my bib and walked around before going to a few shops in the area.

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My aunt and uncle also live near San Francisco in a suburb south of the city, so they came in and took us out to dinner on Saturday night at a restaurant called Spork. It was soooo good, we shared a few appetizers and I had the seared scallops with coconut rice for dinner, along with a sampling of just about every dessert on the menu. Sweets=great race fuel!

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Luckily because of the time zone change, I had no problem falling asleep very early on Saturday night. We awoke bright and early and my sister dropped me off near the starting line. It was a madhouse. The bag check buses were so disorganized and it took me about 20 minutes, squeezed against dozens of others, just to get my bag on the bus. I then realized I should have just left my bag with my sister to hand to me at the finish. Durrr.

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Because of all the time I spent and the massive crowds, I couldn’t even find the starting area. I finally weaved my way through people and found myself in the 9:30/mile pace group. There was literally no way to get any closer. I missed the NYRR corral system. I wanted to be near the front. I was surrounded by people who were clearly going to be walking or jogging, and I wanted to set out at 6:50 pace. Seriously?! The gun went off. I panicked. My Garmin wasn’t getting any signal. We were barely moving. It took me just about 4 minutes just to cross the line. As soon as I saw a clear path, I darted. I was running on the sidewalk, weaving, being ‘that’ rude runner doing anything to get people out of my way! I didn’t even see the 1 mile marker. I was getting really angry, annoyed and frustrated. It was not good.

Finally, around the 2-mile mark, I looked down and saw my time. My pace was fine (fast, almost). The crowds were easing up and I could get into my rhythm. My legs weren’t feeling so hot, but they weren’t awful, either. I finally shifted my focus to the positive. I was running in a gorgeous city, on a fun course, amongst thousands of other women, and I was going to enjoy it. Plus, it was only a half-marathon. After three 20-milers, this was going to be a breeze.

Screen shot 2011-10-18 at 9.33.43 PM

A breeze? Not so much. The course was probably the hardest I have ever run. I knew San Francisco was hilly, and I studied the elevation profile, but nothing could have prepared me for the massive, continuous, steep, never ending inclines. In general, hills are not my strength. I always lose my stride up hills, and I always fall off the group a bit whenever we hit hills in workouts or races. Always been this way. So, this course felt especially cruel, preying on my weaknesses.

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Seriously? Look at that elevation profile. Those aren’t nice, normal hills. Those are straight inclines.

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My splits don’t really make a ton of sense given I missed some markers and my Garmin didn’t pick up satellite for quite some time. Split 1 is really miles 1 and 2 combined, pretty quick given the crowded start so I think my anger fueled the (too fast) splits as I wasted a lot of energy. Split 6 (mile 6-7) was all uphill. Mile 7-8 was about half uphill. Mile 11-12 was a long, slow incline. Up and up and up! I also didn’t see the 13 mile marker, so the last split is really 1.1, meaning at least I finished strong.

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But the views. Oh, the views. In the middle of the race, as we were up in the Presidio, we had breathtaking views of the Golden Gate Bridge and bay. It was a bit of a foggy, warm morning, which made the scene quite serene. The climbs were 110% worth the views. I remembered why I was doing this race (for fun!), threw my pride out the window majorly (seriously, thought I had a shot at being top 10 given previous years’ results), and tried to run in the moment.

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Before I knew it, I was powering down along the Pacific Ocean towards the red carpet finish line.

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My cheering squad, Aunt Deenie and my sister, Marly!

Honestly, as much as I enjoyed the race (and I did, I really did!), I am a bit disappointed that I wasn’t able to practice my race pace/negative splitting and use this as a gauge of fitness for the marathon. Had I really known how hard this course was, I definitely may not have had that plan or expectation. All things considered, I still gave a hard effort, and the experience was even better.

After the race, we headed home to shower and rest up a bit before heading to lunch at Umami Burger, LA’s ‘trendy burger spot’ that just opened in San Francisco. I was starving, and the signature Umami Burger hit the spot.

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And, what would a celebratory meal be without frozen yogurt? One of my sister’s roommates suggested Yogorino, which has super light/fluffy/creamy plain frozen yogurt. Delicious!

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We spent the rest of the weekend walking around the city, eating, and relaxing. I flew back home last night on the red eye, landed, ran 4 easy shake out miles (oh.my.god.im.sore), and went to work. Which means, I’m just about ready to pass out now. Luckily, this week is week 1 of the taper. After weeks and weeks of hard effort, bring it on!

What was the highlight of your weekend? Are you a good hill runner? Hardest course you’ve ever run or raced? Ever done the Nike Women’s Half-Marathon or Marathon?

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NYRR Marathon Tune-Up recap, fueled by cactus and meatballs

September 25th, 2011 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (20 Comments)

Sometimes, like this weekend, I question my sanity. I’m pretty sure running has turned me into a crazy person.

All the endorphins have gone to my head, blocking any sense of rationality, making me think I enjoy things that sound absurd and a weird form of torture to most. Like signing up for the Boston 2 Big Sur Challenge…yep, 2 marathons within 2 weeks of each other. Next April is going to be a blast.

Also like willingly paying $18 to run not one, not two, but three counter-clockwise loops of Central Park at 7 a.m. this morning.

It's 6 a.m. I'm ready to go.

18 miles of fun

Most days, you can’t even get me to do one full outer loop. I like variety, the soft bridle path, new scenery…and despise Harlem Hill. I can run 18 miles (for free) any day I want to, at whatever time I want to, on whatever course I want to. So why, despite an awful, awful experience at last year’s NYRR Marathon Tune-Up Training Run, did I still eagerly sign up again?

Sometimes I have a weird way of rationalizing how doing difficult, inconvenient things are actually a good thing for me. Like how I used to trek from the UWS to USQ (yep, 2 subways) just go to to Trader Joe’s. I like that about myself. Keeps me challenged. I could have slept in this weekend and ran an easy long run alone, but decided this race run would be a nice challenge for just one long run.

  • I had to get in 20 miles this weekend, regardless. Signing up reduced the chances I’d skip out or cut it short.
  • 3 loops is boring, yes, but great to build mental toughness for the marathon
  • My friend Alex was running it too. We both ran 3:04 in NYC last year and are both gunning to break 3:00 this year. I wouldn’t have to run it alone!
  • Central Park is hilly. Hills are good to build strength for training.
  • Water stations, Gus, and crowd support. Hooray!

See? Not so bad. Okay, maybe a little crazy. I ran 2 miles over to and around the park before the 18 started to ensure I hit 20 for the day. My first 20 of this training cycle.

It was a bit humid, especially earlier on, though it could have been worse. I was still a sweaty mess at the end! The first mile started out pretty slow with the crowds, but once we got into a groove it was great! The first two loops felt pretty effortless as we chatted the miles away. The third loop was a bit of a struggle mostly due to the fact we were lapping people and had to either weave through the thick crowds or keep to the outer edge of the road. Apparently not so great for tangents, as the total distance was 18.21. I am especially happy we were able to drop the pace on the last few miles, going sub-7.

Weird form of torture? Maybe. But I would not have hit those splits alone so I’m glad I did it. Doing hard, unpleasant things are often the best things. My confidence is boosted a bit from this solid effort, though I’m still very unsure how I’ll feel trying to hit sub-3:00 pace (6:50/mile) on race day. Bring it on!

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This weekend was also full of good eats and good friends! Despite the rain, I trekked over to the UES to MXCO to meet Susan, Shannon and Christine for dinner. I have a hard time saying ‘no’ to margaritas.

Susan, Shannon, and Gatsby

Christine, Me and Gatsby

And, we ate cactus. Just had to try it since it was on the menu! It was surprisingly tasty, though the delicious sauce on the top helped.

Cactus

On Saturday, I watched the 5th Avenue Mile, a premiere event in road racing. I ran to NYRR to pick up my bib for the tune-up and met Terence and Erin to watch the elite and pro races. My friend and old Villanova teammate, Nicole, won the NYRR Local Elite Championship race in 4:38. Woohoo!

Thanks for the pic, NYRR

Later that evening, I got to see Susan and Shannon again, joined by Kelly and Shannon’s sister at the Meatball Shop! I had been dying to try the spot and eagerly suggested we check it out. Luckily, these ladies <3 balls just as much as I.

I couldn’t decide on just one type of meatball, so I opted for the sliders to sample a few varieties. I chose the classic beef with tomato sauce, veggie with mushroom sauce, and the special ball of the day: buffalo chicken with blue cheese sauce. The side of special carrots with walnut, mint and prunes. It was hard to pick a favorite!

However, it was not hard to pick dessert. Mint ice cream sandwiched in between gingersnap and brownie cookies.

Well worth the hour wait, and certainly served as fuel for this morning’s run. Can’t wait for more balls! (That’s what she said?)

What was the best part of your weekend? Favorite type of meatball? Ever do inconvenient or difficult things because you rationalize that they’re good ideas? Once I decided it was a great idea to purchase a large floor rug at Ikea and lug it on the ferry and subway all by myself, because I really wanted it and didn’t want to wait another few weeks until going to Ikea with a car. Thankfully today’s 18 miler turned out to be a much better idea, though perhaps equally as tiring.

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NYRR Team Championships Recap

August 7th, 2011 | Posted by Lindsay Runs in Blog Posts | Race Recaps - (13 Comments)

Yesterday morning, I woke up at 7am and started going through my pre-race routine for the NYRR Team Championships: coffee, breakfast  (cereal/sliced banana), stretching, water, packing my backpack, etc. By 7:30am, I was out the door jogging over to baggage check. I went through the motions and warmed up, but I still didn’t feel like I was racing. As I mentioned on Friday night, I have a very hard time (mentally and physically) racing when I know it won’t be my best effort. But, I was looking forward to competing as part of a team and getting in a faster workout for the week. How bad could it be?

Overall, it was a modest effort. I didn’t score for the team (I was 20th, in fact) and that was mainly disappointing because I train with many of the girls who were in the top 10 and I should have moved up a few spots. I know I am capable of racing at a faster pace, but I am not currently sharp for racing. I’m just now starting to up my mileage for the marathon in November, and in return my legs feel flat. And that’s okay! (despite how awful I look below…)

Definitely at my most attractive. Is this race over yet?

My final time: 32:56, a 6:36/mile pace.

I’m not dwelling on the fact I could have gone faster or make excuses. I just didn’t. I had no pop or spring or drive to race yesterday morning, but that’s okay. A 5 miler at that pace is actually a pretty good effort for me in training right now, and just serves as a building block towards November 6th. Megan summed it up pretty well by citing a Saucony commercial: “What is strong? Is it your best time? Or your worst day? Maybe strong is just what you have left when you’ve used up all your weak” This certainly wasn’t my best time…wasn’t my worst day, either, but I am stronger for have completing the race and giving it what I had.

Onwards and upwards!

After the race, I spent the rest of the day enjoying a few many beers with my CPTC teammates at the Boat Basin and Gin Mill, which reminded me that despite how ‘sub-par’ my race was, I run because it’s fun! Especially when the people you run with are pretty awesome and also happen to enjoy drinking games.

How do you deal with sub-par races or runs? What was the highlight of your weekend?