Race Recap: How I Got My Half Marathon PR

I've had a lot of bad luck when it comes to race days, but this past weekend I finally had a race where everything went my way, including breaking my almost 5-year-old half marathon PR (personal record). I guess these pants really are lucky!

Here's a recap of race weekend:

Scott only worked a half day on Friday so we could head up to New Braunfels early for our mini family vacation. Our first stop was my packet pick-up, and I loved the shirt! I even slept in it, and then wore it on race morning because it was so comfy. I'm not sure if you can tell by the picture, but it says "running with purpose" on the front since the money raised from this race went towards orphanages and adoptions. After the packet pick-up we went to Chili's for dinner, picked up a Redbox, and then headed back to our cute timeshare to relax. 

 As far as exercise goes the week before the race, I stuck to my taper plan perfectly! 

Here's what I ate the day before the race (to the best of my memory):

Breakfast: Smoothie with 1 C. almond milk, 1/2 banana, 1 C. frozen antioxidant blend fruit, and about 2 tsp. of chia seeds. + 2 rice cakes with almond butter and honey.

Lunch: 2 red potatoes and 2 cornflake chicken tenders with BBQ sauce and honey mustard. + 1 rice cake, activia yogurt, and 6 tootsie rolls.

Snack: Fun Size M&M's, some sour chewy things, and a couple of B's fruit snacks. (Gotta love the Halloween candy laying around the house.)

Dinner@Chili's: Too many appetizer chips with salsa :) Margarita grilled chicken with rice and cinnamon apples. 

Late night snack: Clif Bar.

Race morning breakfast: 1 rice cake with peanut butter and honey.

As usual, I didn't have the best night's sleep the night before. It consisted of a couple bathroom breaks, an itchy mosquito bite, a loud breathing husband, being too cold, and having dreams that I slept in and missed my race. Ha ha. 

It was incredibly convenient for both me and my boys to stay in Scott's mom's timeshare that happens to be right across from the starting line. The boys got to sleep in, and I didn't have to deal with traffic or parking on race morning. I walked out my door too see a line of cars waiting to park, and started my ten minute warm-up jog. It was chilly before the start, but it was the perfect running weather. 

I really had no idea what to expect for my time in this race because I hadn't raced in awhile, and I heard the course was hilly. I'm not used to hilly courses because in Utah, where I'm from, most of the races are downhill since they usually start towards the top of a mountain. I hoped I would at least be able to get under 1:40 and there was even a tiny part of me that wanted to get a PR. However, I almost didn't want to admit that, because I didn't want to be disappointed like I was after the Boston Marathon for missing my PR. My main goal was to follow these racing tips from Run Less Run Faster, and run my best without killing myself so I could enjoy the rest of the day. 

I reminded myself about 100 times not to start out too fast, and my first mile was successfully my slowest. 

Here are my mile splits:

Mile 1: 8:00

Mile 2: 7:26

Mile 3: 7:18

Mile 4: 7:00

Mile 5: 7:00

On both mile 4 and 5 I sped up when I saw the mile marker because I wanted to try to get at least one mile in the 6's, but I ended up getting to the mile marker at exactly 7:00. I was pushing it, but at the same time trying to conserve energy for the hills at the end. 

Mile 6: 7:18

I started my music, and ate a vanilla Gu during mile 6.

Mile 7: 6:50

Mile 8: 6:50

For mile 7 and 8 I missed one of the mile markers, but those two miles combined were about 13:40, so that's a 6:50 average for both miles. 

Mile 9: 7:21

Mile 10: 7:35

Mile 11: 7:03

Mile 12: 6:55

I knew at this point by my mile splits that there was a really good chance I was going to get my PR. I hadn't dared to look at my total time until this point though. When I had less than a mile to go I finally switched screens on my watch to see what my overall time was. I was at 1:33, so I really pushed it at the very end to make it under 1:35 (my old PR from January 2007).

Mile 13: 7:15

.1: 40 seconds

My final time was 1:34:31. I ended up beating my old PR on a harder course, and I had the biggest smile on my face when I crossed the finish line. It felt so good to finally have a good race.

As soon as I crossed the finish line B said, "Yay! Good job! Mommy done. Jump on Octopus!" They had some bounce houses at the finish line for the kids and Scott told B he could jump on them as soon as I finished, so he was just as happy as I was when I finished. :)

I love how supportive Scott is of my running addiction. I thought it was cute that he wore the running shoe shirt I bought him to my race. 

Instead of finisher medals, they gave out cool bracelets which were made by children in Haiti with Haitian currency. I really love that bracelet and would much rather have that than a finisher medal. 

After a long, hot shower we went out to eat at Cracker Barrel and did a few hours of shopping at the outlets. 

We made it back just in time for a church Halloween party and some trunk-or-treating! 

My cute frog, and handsome prince. B was too busy getting a head start on Halloween candy eating to look at the camera.

I've been wanting to be a witch for Halloween for a long time now. It might have something to do with my love for Hocus Pocus.

 I hadn't been a witch since I was 4, but I knew I had to be a witch this year when I saw these shoes at Cracker Barrel. This is probably the first of many Halloweens that I'll be sporting these sweet shoes. 

Happy Halloween everyone! I'm off to eat some tamale pie and then it's trick-or-treating time!!

Packing My Race-Day Essentials

We just got home from a chilly morning at Sea world, and now I get to pack for race weekend while B sleeps. We've become wimpy Texans because we thought the 50 degree weather this morning was pretty cold. It looks like it's going to be even colder tomorrow morning!

It won't even reach the 50's by the time I'm done running. I guess I'll be wearing tights. I'm actually excited to run in the cold because I feel much better running in the cold once I warm up, and I love these tights that I got in Boston. They are so comfortable, and they make me want to run fast. :) I hope they work for me tomorrow.

My other race day essentials include my ifitness belt, GU, shotbloks, gum, lifesavers, rice cakes, PB, and honey for breakfast, my watch, and my pink puma shoes. Still can't decide if I want long sleeves, or short sleeves. 

Oh, and I'm pretty excited that I might actually get to run a race feeling healthy thanks to these Zicam chews. My running buddy recommended them to me when I was getting a really bad sore throat and cough last week. They're supposed to help you get over your cold faster, and I think they worked. The entire box is gone now, and so is my cold. You eat one every three hours at the first signs of sickness and continue for 48 hours after the symptoms go away. The box ran out before my symptoms were all the way gone, but I'm about 80% better. 

I'm so excited for our weekend in New Braunfels! I'm looking forward to eating out, renting Zookeeper from Redbox, and shopping at the outlets after the race. Thanks to my mom-in-law, we were able to reserve their timeshare right across from the starting line, so all I have to do is walk across the street in the morning! That means extra sleep for me and my boys.  

As far as time goals go for this race, I really don't know what to expect, or shoot for. I haven't done a single race since June, not even a 5K. I would be pretty happy with anything under 1:40, but I'm trying not to get my hopes set on any certain time. I just want to run my best and feel good when I'm done so we can shop, and have fun at our church Halloween party later that night. 

What are some of your race day essentials?

5 Race Day Tips From Run Less Run Faster

I bought this book awhile ago and would definitely recommend it. It's not one of those books you will read once and then stick on the bookshelf to forget about. It has several useful training plans for a variety of race distances, including specific training plans for Boston qualifying times, and all sorts of pace charts. I'm always pulling this book out to look up paces and workouts. 

I've been following the half marathon training plan in here (for the most part) for my half marathon this Saturday. I haven't followed it perfectly, but that's mostly because I'm not really in racing mode right now. I'm in run for fun and stay in shape mode. The training plan is based around three important runs: a tempo run, track intervals, and a long run. I've done pretty well with the track intervals and long runs, but my tempo runs were usually slow jogging stroller runs. I've never been into cross training or intervals, but I've really learned to love both of them, and I can't believe it took me 9 marathons to realize how important both speed work and cross training are!

Since my half marathon is in two days I decided to go back and re-read some of the things I highlighted the first time I read this book. 

Here are a 5 things from Run Less Run Faster that I think will help me this Saturday:

1. An early fast pace has consequences. "Run the first half too fast, and you slow down at a much faster rate in the second half. Run the first half too slow, and you can't make up the time in the second half. We strongly believe that running even splits is a desirable goal and a realistic one for 5-K's, 10-K's, and half marathons." (For marathons they recommend trying to keep the disparity between the two halves less than 5 minutes apart since it's far more difficult not to slow down the second half of the marathon.)

I'm not so focused on aiming for even splits as I am for not starting out too fast. I've noticed on all my long runs that when I allow myself to start slower and gradually increase my speed, I finish feeling better and with a faster overall pace despite my slower pace in the beginning. 

2. Another reason to aim for even splits: "The most efficient energy yield from stored glycogen occurs with an even running pace. A fast pace early in the race speeds the depletion of glycogen and leads to "hitting the wall.""

3. How many calories to eat race morning: "(Hours before race) x (body weight in pounds)= number of calories to eat. For example, if you wake up at 6:00 a.m. and your race is at 8:00 a.m., that's 2 hours. For a 150 pound runner that would be 2x150=300 calories."

4. How much to eat during the race: 6-8 ounces of sports drink every 30-35 minutes, or an energy gel with water every hour. This will help maintain blood glucose levels and prevent "hitting the wall."

5. Good running form: "Runners need to monitor their form to make sure they stay relaxed. Fatigue often causes runners to tighten their upper bodies, which reduces efficiency. Going through a mental checklist periodically while training and racing can help remind you that your hands, arms, neck, etc. need to be relaxed. In particular, runners tend to lean forward and push their hips back when fatigued, a body position not conducive to economical and effective running."

I'm guilty of the upper body tightening as well as leaning forward and pushing my hips back when I'm tired. I'm going to try to remind myself throughout my race to keep my upper body relaxed and my hips in line. 

I know I have a few friends running a half marathon this weekend as well, so I hope these tips help them too, and anyone else who has an upcoming race! 

What Runners Have to Understand About Tapering...

It's time to do a little more of this...

And a little less of this...

Today's 8 mile long run was the start of my taper week leading up to my half marathon next Saturday. I'm half excited to see what it will feel like to not be sore for a while, and half nervous that I'm going to go crazy during this rest week. That's why I'm going to write up a taper plan today and stick to it like I stick to my grocery lists at the store. Actually, I better stick to it better than that or else I'll be pretty sore on race day. I like following training plans and setting goals, so this week my goal will be to rest!

Even though running is hard a lot of the time, not running is a lot harder for me. I've known this for a long time, but it seems like it's even more apparent lately just how addicted I truly am to running. I guess I didn't realize it before because I'd never considered quitting my running addiction until recently. (I'm not quitting running by the way. I've just been considering turning this taper week into a few taper months.) This running addiction of mine has gradually crept up on me over the years. When I first started distance running about 6 years ago, I had to mentally gear myself up for my long runs each weekend. I used to kind of dread them/look forward to them at the same time. Now I just plain look forward to them. No more dread or pep talks, just some Friday night texts to my running buddies to figure out exactly when, where, and how far we're running the next day.

I pulled up an article on Runner's World about tapering after my run this morning to get myself in the  tapering mind frame, and I saw this quote that made me laugh. "Runners have to understand that they won't be fat by Thursday or lose their fitness by Sunday." (Janet Hamilton, M.A., C.S.C.S., an exercise physiologist at Running Strong in Atlanta.) 

So here's my half marathon taper plan for next week:

Monday: Pilates

Tuesday: Track Workout: 20 min. warm-up, 6x400, 20 min. cool down.

Wednesday: Pilates

Thursday: 3-4 mile run

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Fresh legs for race day! 

Janet Hamilton also said, "One of the best gifts you can give yourself is well-rested legs on race day."

I'll admit I have a little bit of anxiety looking at that taper plan. I know all you runners out there can relate, and all you non-runners are probably wondering what the heck is wrong with me. Tapering just might be the hardest part of race training, but I can do it!

Carrabba's San Antonio Half Marathon Recap

I woke up race morning thinking the usual, "Why am I doing this?" You'd think by now, after 9 marathons and 14 half marathons, I'd quit asking myself that. Obviously I know the answer to that question, but the noise of the 6:00AM alarm clock always has a way of fogging my memory.

Nothing ever sounds good to me this early in the morning except going back to sleep, but all it took was one bite of my favorite breakfast (to-go style), and my appetite woke right up. I wasn't sure if yogurt was a good thing to eat before a half marathon in the Texas heat, but I didn't really care. I figured if I didn't have a good race, at least I would have a good breakfast. :)

As I was wiping the sweat off my head before I had even finished mile 1, I thought to myself, "This is going to be the worst race ever." I realized my attitude needed some serious re-adjusting, so I decided to quit worrying about my time, pace, place, etc. Instead, I decided to view the race as a long run and focus on maintaining a comfortably hard pace. 

Once I did that I started feeling much better, not only in my head, but my body as well. My first two miles were probably the slowest of the 13. I gradually picked up the pace as the race went on, and ended up running negative splits. This taught me a HUGE running lesson, one I already knew but needed reminding of. Negative splits are the way to go. I've known this since my very first marathon, but the more races I did, the more time-focused I became, and the less willing I was to slow down in the beginning. Here's an article from Runner's World about why and how you can be a better runner by running negative splits. 

I guess I thought panting like a dog would cool me down? 

Towards the end of the race I was taking two waters from the water stations, one for my mouth, and one for my head. It was seriously hot and humid. I don't know what the exact temperature was, but I'm sure it was in the 90's because it got to be 104 that day. 

Normally I'm feeling so crappy by the end of a long race that my hobble to the finish line can barely be considered running. This picture will be a reminder to me that my goal for every race from here on out will be to run negative splits. I want to feel good enough at the end of the race to sprint past the two guys within sight in front of me, and I want to look like I'm actually running in, not like Quasimodo like I usually do. 

I didn't get my best time, it was actually 10 minutes slower than my best time, but I was really happy with a 1:45 because I had no intentions of even coming close to running my best time. My overall pace ended up being 8:05, even though my first few miles were around 8:20 to 8:40 pace. Next time I run a race I'll remind myself that starting out slower than goal pace does not mean I'm wasting time. It just means I'll be able to run faster at the end of the race and still feel good. 

I love having these two faces to look forward to seeing during and after my races. It gets me through the crappy parts of the race.  

 Don't worry, that's not all sweat, only about 50% of it is. :) I didn't even think twice before I dumped two cups of cold water on my head the second I crossed the finish line, which is why I no longer have a working cell phone. :( Next time I run this race I will (1.) Bring a towel for the car ride home, and (2.) Wrap my phone in three plastic bags, or don't bring it. 

Chicken marsala from Carrabbas. Post-race food doesn't get better than that!

Watching mom run is exhausting. 

Right before I left for the starting line he said, "Go momma go." with the cutest little two-year-old voice ever. It made my day. I looked forward to seeing the huge smile on his face every three miles during the race. (The race is four 3-ish mile loops, so I passed the same spot 4 times.)

I was surprised to find out that I got third in the females on Monday morning when I looked up the race results. Normally a 1:45 puts you in the middle somewhere, but the heat of this race steers most people towards the relay rather than the full half marathon. (There were only about 120 females that did the full half marathon.)

Anyway, I know this was a long post, so here's a three point summary of my race learnings:

1. Good race-day breakfast= rice cakes, fruit, and yogurt.

2. Good racing strategy= negative splits.

3. Good phone care= Don't bring it if there's even the slightest chance it will get wet. (This was the second phone I've ruined from running in less than 5 months.)

What's the best post-race food you've ever had?

What's your favorite pre-workout meal?