Quad Cities Half Marathon {September 24, 2017}

Quad Cities Half Marathon

September 24, 2017

7:30 am

2:01:24

(My 15th race of the 2017 season)

Ever since my 5k PR of 20:20 at the Evergreen Lake 5k in August (I mention this simply because I have to keep reminding myself that, yes, I actually did get pretty close to my goal of breaking 20 in a 5k this year…though my current fitness level has certainly plummeted since that time) I haven’t done much in the way of racing.  I am teaching my first college course this fall and that has kind of taken over more of my life than I would’ve liked.  As we all know, life ebbs and flows…and the great thing about running is the fact that it isn’t going anywhere. It will still be there for me when I am able to come back to it (though I will need to work hard to get back to what my fitness level had become!). 

Anyway, here is my race report from the only event I participated in during the month of September. This wasn’t a “race” for me - but I did run it, so I figured that warranted a report/story to share with anyone who is interested.  This event has been a substantial one in the life of my family - I have participated in it in one way or the other (completed the half or full) five times and spectated it once, making six times in the past nine years that I have been a part of this event.  If you’ve never trekked up 74 to the land of the Mississippi and John Deere for this event - I would truly highly recommend it. It boasts a 5k, half marathon, full marathon, marathon relay, a kids’ fun run, and some sort of “pump ’n run” nonsense.  The course isn’t necessarily the greatest in the world or anything, but it is decent. The Mississippi provides some beautiful views and running over bridges, in my opinion, is novel and kinda fun.  I will say - the course offers very little shade. Usually in September this isn’t a big deal…but if it is unseasonably hot WATCH OUT!!  

I had promised my sister long ago that I would run the Quad Cities Half Marathon with her this September. She and I have a colorful history with this race, starting back in 2009.  That fall, she ran her first full at the Quad Cities event while I ran the half and then ran my first full at Chicago a few weeks afterwards (I earned 1:52:09 in the half and she earned 3:52:19 in the full). The next year (2010) we both ran the full (I earned 3:53:31 in what was my 3rd marathon and she earned 3:57:37 in what was her 2nd marathon).  The following year, 2011, I ran the full (in 3:49:46, which would be my PR for 4 years until September of 2015!) and she had registered to run the half but didn’t end up running….because she was pregnant. Instead of running, though, she played Spectator Extraordinaire for me.  Sadly, Monday after the race she endured her first miscarriage.  Naturally, I (irrationally) blamed myself for the fact that she was running around like a crazy person at the race watching me (if you know my sister, you do know that “crazy” only comes close to describing her zest for life ;)).  I know that there is, of course, no blame to be placed in such a situation…but the “feels” were intense at that point.  At the time I couldn’t even fathom really HOW intense those feelings were for her…but after having my own baby now I know that the loss of a pregnancy would be absolutely earth shattering.  I do regret not being “there” for her more after that experience…but that fall also ushered in my own intensified personal drama/hell (if you know me well, you know what I am referring to), causing me to be rather emotionally compromised myself for quite some time.

I didn’t make it out to the Quad Cities Marathon in 2012 (I was in the Quad Cities the weekend prior to the event that year attending my dear brother and his amazing wife Laura’s wedding), but was back in 2013.  Megan and I ran the race side by side as her first postpartum half marathon - she had welcomed Macy, her first daughter and my first niece, into the world in November of 2012.  In 2014 - Meg was pregnant again! We didn’t run the race, but instead spectated Clint (my pretty-new-still “boyfriend” at that time!). We also spectated our friend Aaron Van Lauwe in the half (I believe it was Aaron’s first - Aaron is one of the people I can claim as someone I converted to running). It was a blast driving all over the place, doing our best to find Clint (and Aaron) at a few different places on the course.  Clint had trained hard that summer and did really well at the race - he ran a 1:25:32 in the half…19th out of 1946 participants and 4th out of 91 in his age group.  Seeing him do so well at this race is one of my favorite spectating memories.

The next summer (2015) brought our wedding and honeymoon…and pregnancy.  I ran the Last Chance marathon in early Sept and basically took the rest of Sept off before the Chicago Marathon in early Oct that year. We also didn’t make it out to the QC Marathon in 2016. I am glad that we finally made it back out there this year!  Megan had told me a few months back that she wanted to run this race - what would be her first half since 2013.  Since the 2013 event, she had another little girl (Charlee, in May of 2015) and then had very sadly lost two more babies/pregnancies.  In September of 2016 she lost a little boy, Caleb, at 26 weeks.  This was a soul-crushing time for our entire family.  This past September marked his one year birth/death day - what better way to commemorate his impact in our lives than by running?

As I mentioned, my own running has been sub par as of late. In September prior to the marathon weekend, my longest run was an 8 mile run I ran with Megan (and Gabe) over our Labor Day vacation in Michigan.  I was legitimately nervous about being able to successfully pace her during the race.  I did my best to keep my anxiety at bay and made plans and arrangements to run the race. Clint got the wild hair up his you-know-what to do the Quad Cities event as part of his 5-week ultra-extravaganza (this was, of course, after he had said a number of things including (but not limited to), “I will run the half too!” “I will run with you and Megan too!” “I am going to run the full but I will run the first part with you guys,” etc…etc.).  So, one way or another, it was going to be a family affair!

Clint, Gabe, and I drove up to the Quad Cities Saturday afternoon.  We hit the expo in Moline, IL where we gathered our packets, as well as packets for my sister, our friend Aaron (who was also doing the half), and Amber (who later ROCKED the 5k!).  Then, we drove out to Geneseo, IL to my parents’ home where we had dinner with my parents and my sister and her family. It was so much fun, as usual, to watch Gabe interact with his cousins (he is 17 months and his cousins Macy and Charlee are almost 5 and 2 1/2, respectively).  My mom had prepared a variety of grilled meats, including my FAVORITE “Hawaiian burgers” (ground pork and pineapple patties from a local butcher shop) and we enjoyed other pre-race staples such as sweet potatoes and fruit.

After eating and playing with the kiddos for a while, we got Gabe ready for bed and put him down to sleep at my parents’.  We then headed to Davenport, Iowa where we slept at my sister’s home.  Her house is just 15 minutes or so from the race start - totally ideal.  The Quad Cities event isn’t stroller-friendly, so we made plans in advance for my parents to keep Gabe during the race. I really HATE leaving him on the weekends (the plight of a working mom - the guilt over spending non-work time AWAY from my kiddo is REAL), but we don’t do it often.  It really is nice to have some carefree time away from him, knowing he is in the second-best place he can be (my mom is my second choice for caregiver after Clint/myself, with my sister at a close third).  

We had offered to pick up our friend Aaron who lives not TOO far from my sister's in a neighboring town to bring him to the race.  Unfortunately for us, this meant that our morning routine was a little earlier and a little more complicated. Big shout out to Clint who took one for the team (as he often does) by leaving a bit before 6 to go pick up Aaron…and then coming back to Megan’s house around 6:20 to pick up Megan and me to bring us all to the race start.

We arrived to the start in Moline, IL around 6:45 and got a totally rad parking spot on the street just two blocks away from the start/finish.  I texted with Amber to coordinate finding her to deliver her race bib to her…she had arrived on site super early (she drove in from BloNo that morning, which means she had to have left around 4am! Rockstar status!) and had found a coffee shop to get some caffeinated action going.  After finding Amber and delivering her bib, she set off on her 2-mile warmup and Megan, Clint and I jumped in a bathroom line at a Subway down the street from the start. Sure beat the long lines for the smelly Porta Potties!  Clint took his sweet old time and Megan and I were about ready to leave him and set off on our warmup…but then he emerged from the depths of the bathroom just in time.  We all set off on a warmup jog…just about 7/10 of a mile and called it “good.”

We scooted our way into the coral and I scowled at the extreme body heat radiating around us. I could tell it was going to be a steamy-gross day!! The humidity was just…yuck.  I gave Clint a kiss and he slithered his way up closer to the front while I stayed back toward the middle of the starting corral with Megan.  Meg’s rough plan was to try to average 8:45s. She wanted a finish in the 1:50-55 range. On a more temperate day, this would’ve definitely been a reasonable goal.  We waited through the Star Spangled Banner and the starting signal…and endured a crowded first mile that was a bit slower than our goal, but still reasonable. I did my best to lead a path through the bodies.  The first mile goes straight for a quarter mile or so and then takes a right-hand turn up a circular ramp up to the I-74 Bridge (bringing the racers from IL to IA within the first mile).  This is typically one of my favorite parts of this race - running across this HUGE bridge.  It’s kinda creepy (in a “good” way) being that HIGH above the Mississippi. To make things extra-creepy this year, to the right you could see cranes and barges in position in the beginning stages of building a new bridge.  Apparently the current I-74 bridge is getting on the OLD and UNSTABLE side.  YIKES.  Spoiler alert - all the runners made it across without the bridge collapsing and our first mile clicked off in 9:03.  One mile down. Twelve-point-one to go.

My only-slightly obsessive-compulsive brain was rather irritated by those “extra” 48 seconds. I take my “instructions” as a “pacer” very seriously, guys. I knew we needed to make these up, but carefully so as not to make Meg expend TOO much energy and waste her body.  The course boasts a pretty significant DOWN hill as the runners make their way off of the I-74 bridge and turn to the left in Davenport.  I “used” the downhill as an excuse to have us naturally gradually pick up the pace a bit.  As the second mile clicked off in 8:37, I quickly calculated in my head that we were EIGHT seconds “under” the goal on that mile so when you subtract 8 from the 48 seconds we were OVER in our first mile, we were still at a 40-second deficit. 

Mile 3 brings a turn to the left…and the second climb of the race.  I did my best to keep us from dropping the pace TOO much, but mile 3 clicked off in 8:50. Poop. Now we were in a 45-second hole. Meg was doing pretty great - but it was obvious that the warmer-than-anticipated weather was not being kind to her. I did my best to keep offering her water from my hand-held bottle and reminded her to stay on top of her hydration so that she wouldn’t hit a wall. Mile 4 was over in 8:43…one of our few miles that was within the target pace.

During the 5th mile, I let Megan know that I would stop at the next water stop to refill my hand-held water bottle so that it would be at the ready for both of us.  I pulled off at the water stop, filled up the bottle, and sprinted back to where Meg was.  A guy that passed us a minute or so after I caught up to her commented to me, “Oh, you were just running up here to catch your friend? I thought you were going to go on and win the whole thing!” HA! Mile 5 clicked off in 8:52.  I was pretty sure at this point that we wouldn’t be able to make up our “lost" seconds to achieve our 8:45/average pace goal - but I knew that sub-2 was well within grasp so I held that in my mind as my goal to help her achieve. 

The sixth mile runs along the river front in Davenport. We had the privilege at this point of witnessing a giant inflatable T-Rex waterskiing.  Seriously.  Gotta love people with a sense of humor - this definitely brought a bit of lightness to the suffer-fest that this run was starting to be for many.  Mile 6 was over in 8:25. What!? Thanks, T-Rex! Apparently you powered us on to smash our 8:45 goal pace. Maybe Meg’s goal would still be within reach…

The half- half marathon point featured the first relay exchange.  It’s always a nice little mental break to see and hear the cheers of the people waiting in the relay exchange areas.  Things were REALLY starting to heat up at this point.  Mile 7 was over in 8:41- hooray!!  However, the elation over our near-goal paces wasn’t to last...

Megan reported that her stomach was feeling sour sometime during our 8th mile.  Turns out the sugary gels (she had taken just 1) and Tailwind (my first fill of the handheld I was holding had Tailwind in it) was not sitting well. UGH.  The gel on the course was Boom, which is a fruit-based product, so Clint and I had both said it would probably sit well and I decided personally to take the gamble and try it.  Megan did as well.  For the record, I would never recommend that anyone try something new on race day…as we all know, sometimes it works out OK and sometimes it just DOESN’T!.  Mile 8 clicked off in 8:59 as poor Megan did her best to fight through the external HEAT and internal gut rot.

Mile 9 brings the runners onto Centennial Bridge for a bit.  We wrapped this one up in our slowest-yet 9:33.  Regardless of the fact that we were not going to achieve the A-goal of an 8:45 average pace for the race, I was very pleased that I was able to stay with Megan in spite of not training much for the 6 weeks leading up to the race. I was proud of the residual fitness that my body had held on to.

We ran our way toward the third bridge of the course - the Arsenal bridge.  This bridge is entirely metal grates and actually opens and closes to allow barges to travel through.  Course officials roll out rugs down the center of the bridge so that runners have a flat surface to run on if they don’t wish to run on the metal grates.  They also have volunteers stationed at the entrance to the bridge advising runners to watch their steps and not trip over the edges of rugs!  We ran mostly single - file over the bridge and I did my best not to push TOO hard so as not to get too far ahead of Megan.  Mile 10 clicked off in 10:04 right before our left turn onto Arsenal Island.  Arsenal Island, which was actually called Rock Island in the past, is a current US Army base.  It’s pretty neat to be able to run on the base.  In the past, they have had individuals who are currently in the Army working water stops on the base. However, this year there weren’t any uniformed Army soldiers - I am not sure why. In fact, the base seemed pretty quiet and desolate.  Mile 11 was over in a slightly-faster 9:51 as we soldiered on.

Mile 12, held steady with 11, was over in 9:52 after we passed an expanse of green with stark white military tombstones protruding in neat rows - talk about a somber scene to run past.  As we neared the end of mile 13, we had to climb our final bridge.  Megan asked for water from my handheld and slowed for a second before powering up and over the bridge. I won’t lie - I remember being SO SO SO hot at this point.  I will take this opportunity to note that there is barely any shade on this course! The heat and sun felt literally oppressive at times.  As we descended the bridge, we picked up our pace.  Mile 13 clicked off in 9:53 (making the final 3 miles pretty even actually - I am proud of Megan for FIGHTING through the pain on these miles and holding steady!) and we make the final right-hand turn off the bridge and onto River Drive, back in Moline where we had started this thing.  

With the finish line in our sights, we buckled down and ran hard to the finish.  It was awesome seeing Amber and Tanya over my right shoulder as we turned off the bridge! THANKS for the cheers and support guys!!  I slowed momentarily to allow Megan to cross right before I did…2:01:23 for her and the same +1 second for me.  I had the course slightly long and had our final 0.24 in an average pace of 8:24.  Megan can and did dig deep to finish it out!  I was slightly disappointed for her sake that we were just barely over the 1:50’s…but my pride in her accomplishment did overshadow that emotion!

We collected our medals and some water…and a banana for Meg and some salty potato chips for me.  Megan started to feel kinda light-headed, so I directed her over to a curb where she sat down to collect herself for a minute. Amber excitedly made her way over to us at this point to share her amazing news - she got fifth place in the 5k out of 705 women! INCREDIBLE!

I felt…good. I started toying with the idea in my mind of meeting Clint when he came off of the Arsenal Island bridge (where Tanya and Amber had been spectating) and running with him for a while during his final 10k (the full marathon runners exit the Arsenal Island bridge around mile 20). I wasn’t sure how long I could reasonably expect to run with him (seeing as I had already run 14 miles, 6 more than I had run at one time all month!)…but thought maybe I could keep him company for one mile out and then run a mile back to catch him at the finish.

Megan met up with her family who were there watching (Macy was all TOO proud and excited to see her Mommy! I just love that sweet girl.) and I wandered back over to the Arsenal Island bridge area with Tanya and Amber. We weren’t sure at this point when, exactly, to be expecting Clint. He’s kind of a wild card :). To review, he had run the Fox Valley Marathon the weekend prior AND the weekend prior to THAT he had run the 50k at Lake Evergreen. That paired with the big issue of the day’s heat and humidity…who KNEW?!  We knew he had gotten to the half at 1:42:xx (7:46/mile pace)…but things significantly slowed down after that.

When we did see Clint making his way toward us, it was about 10:14 - so about 2:46 on the race clock.  HIs pace at this point for the race was an 8:18 average…still clearly fighting the good fight.  I jumped on to the course with him and offered him some water.  I informed him that I would run with him for a while…”as long as I can,” I said.  

This out and back section is just awful. Awful! I remembered it all too well from the two times I had run the full at this event - my two runnings were back in ’10 and ’11, but this is the kind of crap you don’t forget. Literally, you run off the Arsenal Island bridge at mile ~20 and you SEE the finish line 0.1 mile away to your right. However, instead of running to the beckoning finish line, you must force your body to turn to the left and run a full 5k OUT and a 5k BACK.  It is seriously a straight out and back with ZERO. SHADE. So hot. So boring. I knew, if it were me, I would appreciate the company. So, after our first terrible, terrible mile (in 80 degree plus heat and some terrible humidity) clicked off in 11:08, I informed Clint that I was indeed in it for the long haul with him and would help him shut it down.  It became somewhat of a proverbial death march...water station to water station.  There were a few stations where volunteers offered cold wet washcloths that we could drape over our heads, across our necks, down our shirts, inside our hats…wherever! Those felt like slices of heaven for sure.  Our second mile together clicked off in 11:43.  I assure you, it wasn’t pretty.  Clint is a maniac - how he kept pushing through, I am not really sure.

After the final turn-around of his race, we had 5k to go to get back to the car.  We stopped somewhere shortly after the turn-around to pull off Clint’s sweaty calf sleeves. I balled them up and shoved them into the back pocket in my shorts (yup, that tiny little pocket in my Saucony shorts is roomier than it looks - totally functional and awesome!).  We ran past a coffee shop and all I could think about was how great an iced mocha with almond milk would taste and feel in my mouth right at that moment…

After what felt like an eternity, the finish line was within grasp.  I veered off to the left and “sprinted” down the sidewalk to try to catch Clint at the finish, while he powered on down toward the finish on his own.  I joined him in the finish area once he crossed the line (official time 3:59:21- yeah, yeah sub-FOUR in awful conditions both body- and weather-wise! :)) and did my best to make sure he was still alive :).  He was definitely rocky there for a bit…after we left the finish area, he hobbled from shop doorway to doorway along the few blocks back to the car.  

Don’t you worry, our boy lived to fight another day. Two weeks post-QC Marathon he went on to finish the 50-miler at the Hennepin Hundred. That Clint!!

All in all, I am thankful for another great Quad Cities running experience. It’s no Bix (what is, really?!), but the QC Marathon is always a great event and will hold a special place in my heart forever.  I got in an unexpected 20.2 miles in total that day - insane, really, when you think about the fact that my training in Sept in no way set me up for that kind of mileage.  I don’t regret it, silly or not ;).

Summary of my QC Marathon Experiences:

2009 (half) - 1:52:09

2010 (full) - 3:53:31

2011 (full) - 3:49:46

2013 (half) 1:56:55 (identical time as Megan)

2014 - Spectated Clint in the half

2017 (half) - 2:01:24 (1 second behind Meg)

THANKS to Mitch for allowing me to be on the great Often Running Racing Team. Thanks to Saucony for the ever-amazing gear (can we talk for a second about the new “Chroma” color way?! I have the Rides in Chroma and I love them more than anyone should actually love inanimate objects).  Thanks to the team for the camaraderie (I use this word all of the time, but it's true!) and support - it’s a privilege to have your friendship!  And, thanks to Coach Clint who is ever-patient with me and gives me some sporadic “coaching” right now as I ask for it which fits my current state in life…but has also been gently reminding me that I need to probably get my rear in gear sometime s-o-o-n to start working toward Boston 2018 since I got that acceptance letter and everything...

Up next:  I am traveling back to the land of the Mississippi and John Deere in October....Augustana College’s homecoming and I am running the 5k with Gabey. I graduated from Augie in ’05 but have never run the homecoming 5k (dubbed the Dome Dash - in reference to Old Main, a big old domed building on campus that is featured in most pictures of campus), so I am looking forward to it. It won’t be a 20:20, and it certainly won’t be sub-20…BUT it will give me a good idea of what my current fitness level (or lack thereof) is. Regardless - I hope to have a bit of fun! I might do the ISU homecoming 5k the next weekend after that as well…anyone want to join in that fun? I was the top female finisher last year and I don’t expect to repeat that, but it will be fun (and short - as you know if you’ve run that course!).

Happy Weekend to all, and Happy Racing to all who are racing!

Much love,

Rachel

Quad Cities Race Weekend (x2!)

I've written before about my love for the Quad City area...it holds a lot of history for me.  It is where my parents and my sister and her family all live and where I completed my undergraduate degree.  I've also completed many races in the Quad Cities.

The past two weekends, I went home for two great races:  The Quad Cities Marathon (I did the half) and The John Deere 5k Fall Classic.

#1:  The Quad Cities Marathon

On Saturday, September 21 I went up to the Quad Cities and had my pre-race dinner at Red Robin (YUM!) with my good friend/cousin Jen and my niece Macy.  Naturally, after dinner we hit up Whitey's for some ice cream (great pre-race fuel!).

Sunday morning, September 22, my sister Megan and I ran in the half marathon at the Quad Cities marathon event.  As I've written many times before, my sister is my favorite running partner.  We've run many races together...my first races (The Maple City 4 in Geneseo, IL was my very first race!  I got 2nd in my age group...out of two...with a time of 33:53, not too shabby for my first race experience and likely one of my first times ever running 4 miles!) were with Megan by my side (well, at the starting line at least...she was always MUCH faster!!).

Sunday's half marathon was Megan's second half marathon after giving birth to her sweet little Macy ten months ago.  I was nervous about committing to run the race, seeing as it was just two weeks post-Ironman, but thankfully it was possible to wait to register until the day before the race.  The day before...I felt great (ish :)).  So, I registered!  While at the expo, I saw my random-stranger-turned-friend Jen Blackorby which was awesome!

Sunday's race went pretty well.  I felt very tight throughout my legs for the first few miles (I hadn't run much since Ironman Wisconsin!), but was able to push through it and stay true to my commitment to stick with Megan throughout the race.  I did consider slowing down, but convinced myself that was ridiculous.  I could absolutely stick with the 8:30 pace we established at the beginning of the race.  Absolutely!

As the race went on, Meg had a few rough spots.  I teased her later because at a number of the water stops she waited until the very end to grab one of the last cups of water held out by volunteers.  Well, each time the last cups were Gatorade...which wasn't what she wanted.  So, each time...she got half (or more) of my cup of water :).

Later on, around mile 10 or so, she really needed to pee.  We had a long conversation about the pros and cons of just letting it go and peeing herself...and determined that we would instead keep our eyes pealed for a porta-potty.  Thankfully, we saw one (though I am sure it was a FAR longer run to it than she would've liked!) and made a quick pit-stop.

We finished side by side in 1:57...under two hours for her second race post-baby:  pretty stellar I do say!  Way to go Megan!  I'm so glad my body wasn't broken from Ironman and that I had the opportunity to run with you again!

Me with Meg post-race!

#2:  The John Deere 5k Fall Classic

A few weeks ago, my uncle Jack contacted Megan and me to ask if we were interested in running a 5k with him and his daughter Lanie (12 years old) for John Deere employees/families on Sunday, September 28 at the John Deere World Headquarters in Moline, IL.  I knew this would make for a crazy weekend...not only would it be the second weekend in a row that I drove up to the Quad City area, but it would mean a very early morning for me.  I had committed to volunteering at the 2013 Easter Seals Grape Soiree Saturday evening September 27, which is an event that typically goes pretty late.  Regardless, I decided that it would be a lot of fun and good to be able to spend time with family...so I said "I'm in!"

Saturday night I got home around 11:30pm from the Grape Soiree and was in bed around midnight.  My alarm went off irritatingly at 5am...and I was in the car by 5:30am.  YIKES!  Those who know me know this is quite a feat...I am NOT a morning person!  Sadly, Gloria Jeans (the coffee establishment closest to my home!) didn't open until 6am so I couldn't even drive by for some morning joe to power my drive there! ;)

I arrived at John Deere around 7:35, just enough time to locate my family and get fired up for our 8am start!  I found our group:  Megan, Macy and Danny, as well as Jack and his kiddos Lanie and Mitch.  Danny and Mitch were awesome spectators, while the rest of us ran in the race (Meg pushed Macy in the Bob stroller...Macy's first official race!).  My parents also came and spectated at the start/finish line.

Meg, Macy, Lanie and myself getting ready to race! (The sun was crazy bright that morning, hence the silly shadows)

The race was a lot of fun.  Jack took off like a crazy man as soon as the starting gun went off ;) and the rest of us started at a more reasonable pace ;).  Macy kept us entertained with coos and smiles and we chatted with Lanie about her school year and volleyball season.  Lanie had never run further than about 2.5 miles...and we were so proud to see her putting fort some serious valiant efforts to finish the race!  We stopped for 2 quick walking breaks, but other than that ran the entire time.  Some encouraging words were needed a few times ;)...and we had some conversations about the food Lanie wanted to eat at the end (precisely one and a half McDonald's cheeseburgers was what she mentioned.  Ha!).  Before long, though, we made it to the finish...in just under 34 minutes.  Pretty great time for Lanie's first 5k!  Meg and I (and Macy!) were both happy to be along for the her journey to the finish for the first time.  Truly one of my favorite things about the sport is witnessing new people give it a try...and hopefully fall in love with it (though I'm not sure Lanie was exactly "in love" with running Sunday!  She may or may not have uttered the words "I'm just not cut out for running!" a time or two ;).

My niece, little Miss Polka-Dots (and favorite toy Sophie!) after the race...gnawing on some post-race carbs!

After the race, we hung out with Jack and his family and my parents and watched some of the kid races:  a 50 yard dash, a half-mile and a one-mile run were among the other events that day.  It was a beautiful morning (though it started out cold and foggy!) and very nice to spend time with family.  Later we went to Panera for some brunch...and then I went back to Megan and Danny's and crashed hard for a few hours.  I.  was.  EXHAUSTED!!

As I napped, Megan texted me from upstairs (I was in their guest room downstairs):  "Pumpkin chai?"  These two little words got me out of bed almost immediately after I read them.  There is a drive-through coffee place in Davenport that makes these seriously AMAZING pumpkin chai tea lattes...we fell in love with them after the half marathon the previous weekend.  We ran out to get our teas and then went to Fulton, IL to a birthday party to celebrate my grandparents' 95th (my grandmother) and 99th (my grandfather) birthdays!  I was happy to be able to attend...living a fair distance away from my extended family, I often miss out on events like this and was glad that I was able to go to this one!  Talk about some impressive birthday milestones!

Next up:  a half marathon adventure in CALIFORNIA on October 13 with my sister in law Laura!  This will be her FIRST half marathon...and it will be THREE weeks out from the NYC Marathon for me!  I'm going for a half marathon PR (so under 1:46:49, which is my current PR set in April at the U of I half marathon earlier this season).  Stay tuned!

Quad Cities Marathon

I have officially completed my 3rd marathon in 12 months...and it feels amazing! :) When I crossed that finish line in Moline, IL...I was literally feeling "on top of the world." It was one of the best feelings in the world....

Quick wrap-up of highlights...

My Top Ten Moments of the 2010 Quad Cities Marathon (in no particular order):

10. Spending the night with my sister and her husband and all getting ready together with Megan and Jeremy in the morning :). Only other runners can understand and appreciate pre-race morning "rituals" ;).

9. Seeing a good friend from college, Rachel Annen. Rachel participated in the relay event and ran the second leg of the relay. I saw her around mile 7 or so and we ran together for a mile or so, including part of the course along the Mississippi in Davenport and part of the Centennial Bridge from Davenport, IA to Moline, IL. I got to see her brand-new engagement ring, as well! Congratulations to Rachel and Ryan!

8. Running around Arsenal Island (which felt a LOT longer/bigger than I ever realized!). This island is a military base. Dozens of military personnel in uniform were cheering the runners on as we made our way around the island. It literally brought tears to my eyes as I thought about how really meaningless what we runners were doing was compared to the sacrifices each of them had made and were willing to make to serve our country. Nodding and smiling in thanks as they cheered seemed silly. It was pretty amazing, really. And, the arsenal definitely provided a scenic route!

7. Feeling the community support. I would still run without spectators. I enjoy running for the sheer joy it brings me and the sense of personal accomplishment. However, it is a lot more exciting to run as spectators cheer on the crowd of runners :). It's really neat to run past families with little kids who are SO excited to put their little hands out to give the runners high-fives as they run past. It's energizing to listen to the local bands and musicians who play along the course. It's humbling to see the hundreds of volunteers who turn out for an event like this....the people giving out water, GU, and fruit along the course...the policemen/women stopping traffic...the women standing with sticks of vaseline (haha!!! I haven't needed to utilize this, but I am sure some people are very thankful for this! ;) )...the Palmer Chiropractic students who give adjustments after the race...the massage tent workers (I never wait in line for post-race massages, the lines are always WAY too long!)....the people cutting off chips and handing out medals at the finish...the people serving food at the finish....etc., etc. I made sure to say "thank you" to as many people as I could (especially the policemen blocking traffic!)...which I recognize is a small gesture, but it does mean something to some people based on their smiles.

6. Running the ENTIRE race. In my previous two marathons, I have had to walk at least a bit of the race. In Chicago, after about mile 11, I walked 30 seconds to a minute at many of the water stops. I had heard that this was a good strategy...to walk a bit at water stops to ensure you could get all of the water down and to give your muscles a little rest. "It is better to be in control of your body and walk a bit when you choose to as opposed to walking because you HAVE to," I was told. In Minnesota, I probably truly walked close to a mile as I neared the end. I had to stop and walk a few times after about mile 18. I truly "hit a wall." That was my most miserable marathon experience of the three (though still an amazing overall experience!). The course was hilly...it was HOT...and I started at too quick of a pace. At the Quad Cities marathon, though, I literally ran the ENTIRE thing. I never slowed to a walk, even at water stops. Right, wrong, or otherwise...I didn't even grab water at some of the stops (particularly the later ones toward the end). I just kept moving...

5. Having minimal pain. I'd be lying if I said I ran this marathon completely pain-free (ok....really...your body is in motion for approximately 4 hours...that's not going to always feel great! It's definitely not an easy feat!). In the weeks leading up to the marathon, I was experiencing lots of discomfort and pain in my right leg. It was mostly my right knee and right inner thigh. I employed the help and advice of many in the weeks leading up to the race. In fact, for the 17 days leading up to the marathon...I didn't run on land at all! If you know me, you know this almost killed me and turned me into a crazy person (well, a craziER person ;)). I did LOTS of running with a buoyancy belt in the pool...hours on end. It was boringboringboring, but apparently paid off. My knee did give me some discomfort throughout the race, but I pushed through it. I won't go into how I am feeling right now, a week after the fact ;)...let's just say I'm taking some time off.

4. Sharing a monumental occasion with my family....this was my sister Megan's second marathon (her first was the Quad Cities marathon last year!) and my husband Jeremy's first half marathon! I am SO proud of both of them!!!!!

3. Hearing an awesome band, The Funktastic Five, perform after the race! As Jeremy and I walked to our car from the "post-race party," the band started to play "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy"....which is probably our FAVORITE "wedding-song" to dance to at weddings, parties, etc. We turned and smiled at each other, paused...then turned around, sore legs and all, and hurried back to where the band was playing to take pictures and dance a bit (as much as our sore legs would allow ;)). This is the band that our good friends Aaron and Katie hired to perform at their wedding reception last May...they are really great!

2. Seeing my brother-in-law Danny with about 1/4 of a mile to go, then seeing Jeremy right after I crossed the finish, and seeing my parents a minute or so after crossing :). Seeing them all there meant the world to me. After we all got cleaned up, the six of us all went out for a post-race lunch at a family favorite, Red Robin, in Davenport. We missed Dan and Laura, though (they were both at school)!!! :(

1. Getting a PR....I finished the marathon in 3 hours, 53 minutes, 51 seconds. As I crossed that finish line, I could not stop smiling. This was approximately TEN minutes faster than Minneapolis in early June and approximately SEVEN minutes faster than Chicago last October! While I still have a long way to go before getting a Boston qualifying time (I need to get 3 hours, 40 minutes, 59 seconds for that....which means shaving 13 minutes off of the time I got in the Quad Cities)....I am still very happy with my Quad Cities performance.

Now...it's time to get back to work. Marathon Four is on the horizon!

Two days til #3!!

In just two days from this moment I will be almost an hour in to my third marathon!! :) :)
Have I mentioned that I'm super, super, SUPER excited?!

Absent...

Yeah, so I haven't posted since Sept 5 on my good ol' marathon training blog.

Sadly (in my opinion), that's because I haven't been doing a whole lot in the way of marathon training.

My leg is super jacked. Super.

I feel like a hypochondriac, but I swear I am not.

I know pain can be mental...but I am pretty sure this isn't. I mean, what is there to be afraid of? It's not like this is my first rodeo, kids. This is marathon three! Marathon three in twelve months! It's not exactly "old hat," but it's nothing new either.

I know what to expect.

I know I am SO excited.

I know I have only eleven training days left....

and...

I know I haven't run on land in 6 long days.

Six!

As I posted on facebook today, I feel as if I may explode. I've been "redirecting my energy" in somewhat odd (for me!) ways like...making salsa last night. What? Who spends their Monday night making salsa?! It was yummy, if you were wondering ;).

I ran eight miles last Wednesday (September 8) and, frankly, it felt like some sort of torture. The first two miles were heinous. My inner thigh area (groin?) on my right leg was super tight and painful-feeling...it's a pain that's deep in there. Hard to describe. Painful. Hated.

My knee felt as if it was grinding (right knee...always issues with the right leg!! Wish I could trade it for another left leg. That leg seems to be golden, for the most part).

I took 4 Ibuprofens before I left...and they seemed to kick in after about 5 miles or so. Well, either they were kicking in or my leg was just going numb. Or both.

I was definitely numb.

I did most of the 8 miles at a 9 min/mile pace, but was able to speed up a bit at the end (once the numbness set in!) to an 8:30 min/mile pace.

Right now...I am learning patience. I am not a patient person. Not in the slightest. Actually, that may not be entirely true ;). I had a teacher at a school where I see some kiddos for speech today compliment my patience. I also had a parent of a little guy I see on Mondays commend my patient demeanor with his son after the session on Monday. So, I guess I've got it in me somewhere ;). I have to admit, though, while I may exude patience on the exterior at times like that when it really "counts"...on the inside I am anything but.

And right now...I am anything but patient.

I want to run, and I want to run...NOW. Tonight. Last night. Every night.

I hate this leg for holding me back.

But....I am holding out for the "prize"...taking some time off, because I know my knee needs to heal. I know I can't obtain my prize...starting the Quad Cities Marathon 11 days, 14 hours, and 41 minutes from now and finishing said race approximately four hours after that...in this kind of pain.

Ick.

I am jealous of every runner I see outside. We've been blessed with some amazing weather here in Central IL lately...and all I can think about is how much I want to be out there running, how much I feel like I need to be out there running, and how frustrated I am by the fact that I am NOT out there running.

Do I have a problem?

Yeah, probably. Probably a few ;).

Saturday I went to water aerobics with my dear pregnant friend. I mocked it ;) before trying it, but it ended up being a great workout...and it truly made my leg feel awesome.

Sunday I did pool running for an hour. Talk about boring ;). But, again, my leg felt awesome.

Blah blah blah.

here's hoping things improve, soon.

20 miles, take two

So i survived my second 20 mile training run of this marathon-training-cycle! I went around 12:30 today. The weather was glorious....in the low 70's. Awesome, really.

The first mile really sucked. I almost turned back, but that would've been quite pathetic and I try to not rock the pathetic-ness on a typical basis ;), so I pushed through the discomfort. After a mile, while still feeling some nagging discomfort in my right knee and thigh....it got better.

Was it the 4 Ibuprofen that i popped before the run? Was it the full hour of pool running I had done yesterday (which, while a bit boring at times, was overall pretty wonderful.....ZERO pain or discomfort. Oh water, you are my dear, dear friend!). Was it the probably-somewhat-ghetto-looking bring pink KT kineseotape Jeremy and I rigged up together on my knee and thigh after watching online tutorials???? Hahaha!

Aaaand, thanks to Nate's advice (trainer at the Sports Enhancement Center here in blo-no) I've been trying to tweak my form a bit. Easier said than done, naturally, but I'm starting to maybe see/feel some improvement that is *hopefully* more than simply mental

Whatever it was, though, today's run was better than I was thinking it would be. And....i'm grateful for that!

Three weeks til the big marathon numero tres! Here's hoping it's a success story :). I'm excited!

Aaaaand....the big news is: I'm pretty sure Jeremy is going to run the half marathon at the Quad Cities event! He actually ran 12 tonight (the most he's run yet! He's done 10 a few times). He's been slowly but surely building up his mileage. I've been teasing him that he's going to do the half....and, in true Jeremy form, he's adamently denied it.

He hasn't registered yet, that I'm aware of anyway, but I'd put good money down on the fact that I'm pretty dang sure he's gonna do it.

And THAT, my friends, is freaking hot to me! :)

Yeaaaaaah!



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Falling off the wagon...un poco

Yeah, so my training has been less than stellar lately, thanks to my right leg. Why is it always the right leg, anyway?

Anyway.

So, last Saturday I ran 12 miles with my friends Dawn and Jamie. Dawn is training for her first half marathon (Labor Day weekend!! :)) and Saturday was her first 12-mile run ever in her life! I told her I'd join her for the momentous occasion! :) It was great...and I am so proud of her! Dawn has been training using intervals...so we did the run using her current training plan strategy, which is a 3-1 interval, or 3 minutes running, 1 minute walking. It felt good to "take it easy" since my leg was definitely causing a lot of pain last week.

It started out a few weeks ago with inner thigh pain. Two weeks prior to this coming Saturday, I started feeling it in the outside of my right knee as well. I knew that was a sure sign that something was amiss and I needed to ease up. So, I took it easy last week...and thought that doing the run/walk 12 miles with Dawn and Jamie would be a good, easy training strategy for the weekend.

Sunday I was supposed to do 20, according to Hal...but I did nothing. Yup...read: NOTHING. Ugh, it totally pained me...but I really didn't have a whole lot of choice. My knee AND thigh both felt awful. Heinous. So, I rested...thought it really irritated me. To make matters worse, my husband went out and ran 10. Talk about torture!! It was SO hard for me not to go out and do SOMETHING, too.

Monday night I ran six....

And it was awful.

One of the most painful runs of my life. I was bawling my eyes out when I rang the doorbell upon arriving back home. Jeremy took one look at me and informed me that I was taking a week off.

It was a pretty darn LOW feeling. I stretched, iced, ate, and slept. I felt a bit better in the morning.

(NO, this wasn't related to PMS or anything like that ;). It was legitimate emotion caused by sheer frustration at feeling failed by my ailing body)

Tuesday, I didn't run...but I played sand volleyball. It was great stress relief :).

Wednesday...I didn't run. We had dinner at some good friends' house. It helped keep my mind off the fact that I wasn't running...almost.

Tonight? I went over to the Sports Enhancement Center and got some advice from my friend Kristin's husband David (a PT) and Nate (an athletic trainer who runs marathons himself). It was great...really. Nate gave me some really useful (I think!) strategies about changing my stride...and I tried out the strategies tonight.

I am not sure if it's just all in my head (I don't think it is!), but it felt great. Sure, it felt good just to finally be out and running again...but the suggestions Nate and David gave me really seemed to help. It seemed less effortful to run quicker...and it really felt as if it was putting less stress on my knee as well.

I ran with my friend Jamie, who wanted to run 4. I was planning on doing 6. So, we ran out 2 and back 2 for her 4...and then I set off, planning to go out 1 and back 1 to make my total 6. Well, after I made it out 1 (for a total of 5 miles), I felt awesome...so I ended up going 1 more mile...and then back 2...for a total of a very glorious 8. It felt good. I feel as if I am almost "back in the saddle."

When I was a half mile away from my car, I decided to dig in and speed things up. I didn't push as hard as I could've...but ran the last half mile at a 7:30/mile pace...and it felt wonderful.

Ah, I needed a high :). It felt great tonight.

I am going over again to visit with David over my lunch tomorrow and getting some sort of treatment on my knee...and was instructed by him that after that I can't do any running tomorrow. So, tomorrow...a day off...again. It will be ok :). (Right??)

4 1/2 weeks to go!

Anywho....happy running, all! :)

REGISTERED!

It's official! I registered for the 2010 Quad Cities Marathon!

37 days....here it comes, ready or NOT! :) :)

Yahoo, bring on Marathon THREE!!! :)

It will be my THIRD marathon within a 12-month span! :)

I can't wait :).

Just 5 1/2 weeks....two more 20-mile runs :)....many more miles....one pair of new shoes (ordered!)...

Lots of smiles :).

Goodnight!

New accomplishment!

So, I ran 80 miles in the past 8 days!

80.6, to be precise!

WHEW!!

Last Saturday: 7.75
Sunday: 19.25
Monday: 4
Tuesday: 9
Wednesday: 6
Thursday: 4.6
Friday:10
Saturday (today): 20

TOTAL: 80.6!

WOWSA!

Tomorrow=day off=whew!! :)

I feel pretty accomplished!

In this training week (my "week" is Monday-Sunday), I have run 53.6 miles...the most I have run in a week in my LIFETIME! :)

Yahoo for new accomplishments! :)

AND, yahoo for a day of rest tomorrow! Let me tell you what, my legs are needing that in a pretty MAJOR way!! :)

Happy Running!

Wrap-up of past few days' worth of training

So....after my post about being BAD last week....

I didn't run on Thursday OR Friday! Egads!!!

Friday, actually, I got home from work at 5:30 (never mind the fact that I am technically OFF at noon on Fridays...yeah...I have a problem...) and literally fell asleep on the floor in the hallway outside of our office upstairs. I layed down on the floor to talk to Jer who was on the computer, and conked out. I transplanted myself to my bed shortly therafter (about 7) and fell asleep again....until 9! Talk about a wasted evening! ;) Well, my body probably just reallyreallyreally needed sleep ;).

Saturday I ran 7.75....was supposed to do 9...but slept in a bit. I had to get to a hair appointment by 8am (I know, I know...super important, right?? ;)).

Sunday I ran 19.25 (Hal called for 19, but my OCD self wanted to add that point 25 to round out the weekend's miles to an even 27 miles). WHEW!

Last week's total...(I count Monday-Sunday as a "week")....39 miles running. 11 miles biking :).

So far this week.....
Monday I ran 4 and today I ran 9.
a very, very sweaty nine!!

Seriously. Hal called for 10, but the heat....I can't even describe it! We have a heat advisory right now, effective from 1pm this afternoon until like 7pm tomorrow.

So, what does Rachel do...RUNS! HA! I mean, really, though what was I supposed to do?! ;) Training can't really take a hiatus for weather!!

I got out of work a bit later than I hoped, and had to hurry to a sand vb game (I was a few minutes late to the game as it was)....and couldn't keep up the pace I was hoping to do because of the heat....so I settled for nine tonight.

Let me tell you what...it was one of the HOTTEST runs I'd done yet! The heat index was far over 100...like 110ish!

Three miles in, I removed my tank top and soaked it in a drinking fountain along the constitution trail. I wrung it out over my head (seriously), and soaked my face in the drinking fountain. I re-wet the tank top and strapped it into the back of my sports bra for some cooling action down my back. I had to look like a freaking hot mess. HA!

Thank goodness for water fountains on the Constitution Trail, I have to say! They were definitely a lifesaver tonight.

Goodnight, all!

Guilt

So, I have been a bit of a slacker marathoner lately. Ugh. So, instead of running...I'll blog about it ;). Ok, ok...it's 9:43pm and I've been home for a whopping hour today. I guess I shouldn't feel TOO guilty for sitting here at my computer unwinding by blogging for a bit ;). But I still do. Anyway....

So, in my post about last week's "week-in-review"...I had written that Sunday was TBD. Hal called for 8 miles (well, actually, I had flipped Sunday/Saturday this week)....but all I got in was a four mile run. Two miles in, I started to feel awful. Awful with a capital A. I pushed through...but when I started in on that third mile, I had to slow to a walk. that never happens. Ever. I walked myself to a port-a-potty located in a park along my route...and let's just say it was very, very lucky that the port-a-potty was located where it was. Whew. I was able to run the final mile of my 4 miles after...some relief ;) (UGH!) and ended up running a 7:30 mile. So, I didn't feel as if the entire workout was wasted. But, I finished the week with a 4-mile deficit in my mind. Ugh.

Monday...I was supposed to do 4 miles. It was raining. I hate rain. I didn't feel like truckin' through the rain after a nasty day at work. I didn't feel like running on the loathed treadmill at the gym. Plus, my stomach was still jacked from the previous day. So, when Jeremy suggested that we go see Inception after work...I jumped at the opportunity. Relaxation? Score! Running? Fail.

Four mile deficit for the week thus far.

Sigh.

Tuesday....I was supposed to do 9 miles. I muscled through a very painful 6. My stomach has felt AWFUL ever since Sunday! It is really disgusting. I am sure it may be due to some gluten I accidentally ingested somewhere...but not sure where or what it was from. That makes it even more frustrating...I am so careful!

Three mile deficit from Tuesday, added to a four mile deficit from Monday...equals a disappointing seven mile deficit for the week.

Today...(Wednesday)...Hal called for 4 miles. I (SUCCESS AT LAST!) got up at 5am and did 8 miles before work!!! SO...that is a surplus of 4 miles for the day!

Seven mile deficit for the week, subtract a 4 mile surplus from today...remainder of a small 3 mile deficit for the week! (*Feelin' a BIT better about things* :)).

Tomorrow Hal calls for 6 800's. We'll see. We'll see.

Work has been somewhat stressful again lately, too. It stinks when I can't feel like I can get things under control there...especially when I can't get other things in my life under control (like my training) as well.

Sigh.

Tomorrow is a new day :).

Actually...a new day starts in approximately 2 hours and 6 minutes. If I want to be in bed before that, I need to stop blogging and finish up my work for the night!!

Goodnight! :)



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Week-in-review...almost

Monday--4 miles

Tuesday--8 miles

Wednesday--4 miles

Thursday--4o minute tempo run (15 minutes slow, 20 minutes faster, 5 minutes slow)

Friday--REST day! AHHHH (after TEN consecutive days of working out!)

Saturday--17 miles

Sunday (today)....TBD

I had to swap this weekend's runs a bit...Hal called for resting on Friday, and then an 8 mile run on Saturday followed by a 17 mile run on Sunday. Well, I was planning to go out of town Saturday evening through this afternoon (Sunday)...so I knew I needed to make the most of my available time and get the all-important 17-mile run in on Saturday morning. That leaves the 8 mile run for tonight....it's only 6pm here, so I still have plenty of time to get it in....but, MAN, sitting around sounds SO much more appealing right now after a busy weekend of GO-GO-GO!

{siiiigh}

We'll see what the night brings :). In an ideal world...I'll wait an hour or so and then head out. It will be at least a bit cooler, so perhaps I can get some good pace work in.

Week in Review

So, another running week has come to a close :).

Monday--off (we were driving back from the east coast)

Tuesday--8 miles in the evening after work

Wednesday--4 miles in the morning before work with my friend Jamie

Thursday--4 miles in the morning before work with my friend Jamie

Friday--4o minutes of pool jogging with my friend Jillian

Saturday--8 miles

Sunday--17 miles

Grand total for the week: 41 miles (not including "pool jogging")

Woot! New high-mileage week! :) I'm gettin' there! :)

This morning I met up with the Lake Run Club marathon training group at the constitution trail to do my 17 miles. Two other people ran with me for 10.5 of the miles and one guy ran with me for about 13.5. It was a great run :). I was planning to do 16 (what Hal Higdon called for today), but the pace with the group was a bit slower than I would've liked...so I added some speed work and extra hills at the end. Felt great! Legs are tired now, though. I've been stretching this afternoon...and I think I am going to go lay by the pool with a book :). We'll see :).

Have a great day, all! Happy running!

This week, so far

Things are moving right along :).

Training is going well.

Joints/muscles/body...all feeling pretty good :).

Monday: Ran 3.5 outside with Jamie (Hal Higdon plan called for 3)

Tuesday (tonight): Ran 7 outside, solo, withOUT music/iPod! It was actually refreshing....it was a beautiful night and a really great run. Average of 8:59/mi pace....with the last half mile at a 7:00/mile pace. I ran negative splits (each mile faster than the previous). It felt fantastic!

Plan says tomorrow calls for 3. We'll see what happens :).

Have a great day, all! Happy running! :)

Another Milestone!

Today I ran 14.25 miles....which was the most I'd run in 1 day since the marathon 3 weeks ago...

AND...

It brought my mileage for this past week (Monday-Sunday) to 39 miles, which I am pretty sure is the MOST miles I have EVER run in one week before (even in a week during which I ran a marathon!). WHOO HOO!

Yup, I am tired :).

And, no it wasn't easy ;).

I started running around 11:30 this morning, meaning I ran through the HOTTEST part of the day. Probably not the wisest choice :).

Oh well ;). Live and learn. It felt great, and I feel very accomplished now :).

Ah, I love running.

I survived week 5 of Hal Higdon's Advanced I plan....13 weeks til the Quad Cities Marathon!

Weird...my right foot has been bothering me for about two weeks now. I know nothing about stress fractures, but that term has been swimming around in my head...as in "I wonder if I have some sort of stress fracture." I hate to be overly, unnecessarily dramatic...and it's not as if it is keeping me from training or doing anything I would like to be doing, but it is just annoying. Honestly, it doesn't even really bother me while I am running. It is AFTER...when my shoes are off and I am just walking around the house.

Hm...

Oh well.

Have a great day, all! :)

13 weeks

13 weeks (+ 1 day) til the Quad Cities Marathon!

This week:

Saturday, June 19: Warrior Dash; 3.17 miles with 12 "extreme" obstacles; 28:34:20/ 9:13/mi pace

Sunday, June 20: 5 mile run outside; pace of 8:40/mile

***I jumped back onto the Hal Higdon training plan here; Using the Advanced I plan; the following is week 5

Monday, June 21: 4 mile run outside; pace of 8:40/mile (Hal called for 3 miles, but I wanted to do 4)

Tuesday, June 22: 7 mile run outside

Wednesday, June 23: 3 mile run outside

Thursday, June 24: 35 minute tempo run (3.75 miles is what it ended up being...ran 15 minutes at a 10 min/mi pace, 10 minutes at an 8 min/mi pace, and then 10 minutes at a 10 min/mi pace)

Friday (Today!): Supposed to be a rest day...but I don't really want to! We'll see ;)

14 weeks....

Just 14 weeks til Marathon Three!

Quad Cities, Here I COME!! :)

I think my little sister, Megan, will be joining me for this one...and I can't wait!

This week I am getting back on a Hal Higdon training plan bandwagon. The past two weeks since the Minneapolis Marathon, I've been taking it kinda easy. Last week I did NOTHING. Nothing at all athletic, unless you count sand volley ball on Thursday (HAHAHA!!!!!). My first day back at it was this past Monday, June 14th. Monday and Tuesday, I visited the gym and ran on the treadmill (sorry, Mr. Anon...I know you told me to ditch the treadmill...but the weather was bad, and one of the nights it was really late and I didn't want to run in the dark!). Wednesday I did 6 miles outside with my friend Jamie. It was great! Thursday and Friday I took off...and Saturday I did the Warrior Dash in Joliet! It was a 3.17-mile race with twelve crazy obstacles! It was a great time. Today I ran 5 miles at an 8:40 pace. It was swelteringly hot out, but I muscled through it! :)

I think I am gonna majorly amp up my training and try for the Hal Higdon Advanced I plan this time around...we'll see. I am jumping in this week at week 5. That means that this week I need to:
Monday--3 miles
Tuesday--7 miles
Wednesday--3 miles
Thursday--35 tem (have no idea what that means, need to look it up. Assume it stands for "tempo", but again...no real clue what that refers to)
Friday--Rest
Saturday--7 miles
Sunday--14 miles

Uh, just read this on Hal's website:
"The advanced schedules are designed only for the hard core, those willing to take it to the limit. Only a small percentage of today's runners classify themselves as Advanced or want to follow this demanding a schedule."
Haha, am I "hard core" enough for this?! We shall see...

Hm, ok, thank's Hal...just found what he means by "tempo run". Seems straight-forward enough!!

"Tempo Runs: A tempo run is a continuous run with a buildup in the middle to near 10-K race pace. Notice I said "near" 10-K race pace. Coach Jack Daniels defines the peak pace for tempo runs at the pace you might run if racing flat-out for about an hour. That's fairly fast, particularly if the tempo run is 45 minutes long, but you're only going to be near peak pace for 3-6 minutes in the middle of the run. In the Advanced programs, tempo runs are scheduled for Tuesdays or Thursdays. Here's how to do this workout. A tempo run of 30 to 40 minutes would begin with 10-15 minutes easy running, build to peak speed during the next 10-20 minutes, then finish with 5-10 minutes easy running. The pace buildup should be gradual, not sudden, with peak speed coming about two-thirds into the workout and only for those few minutes mentioned above. You can do tempo runs almost anywhere: on the road, on trails or even on a track. Tempo runs should not be punishing. You should finish refreshed, which will happen if you don't push the pace too hard or too long. It helps also to pick a scenic course for your tempo runs. You can do your tempo run with another runner, but usually it works better to run solo. There's less danger of going too slow or (more the problem) too fast if you choose his pace, not yours."

Now, I am excited to begin!! :)

I am also going to keep up the cross-training (I've been very good about pool jogging 1x/week, which I truly feel has saved my knees...I was injury-free during my training for this second marathon!)....but will do that on the low-mileage days either instead of say the 3-4 miles prescribed, or in addition to.

Bring it on! :)

Can't wait for number three! :)

Great Race!

So, on a whim a week and a half ago or so...I decided to sign up for the Quad Cities Half Marathon. My sister was running the full (her first!) and I decided it would be cool to go to support her...and if I was going anyway, I should probably get in a training run! ;) According to my schedule, I was supposed to do a 12 mile run this weekend (I am now in the "tapering down" period....last Sunday's 20 mile run was the peak of training). So, I figured that doing the 13.1 mile half marathon would be just fine. It was a great race....and I love the Quad Cities. It's weird how it really does feel like home to me. I didn't grow up there...but I spent 4 years of my life there (I went to Augustana for undergrad) and my parents now live in Geneseo (they moved there when I was 18; right when I moved to Augie, actually)...so it's always nice to be "back home."

Well, I ran the half in 1:52:09 today....15th out of 114 in my age group! Not too shabby :). I was happy with that...and I don't feel too terribly today ;), so that's a good thing too!

More later....it's been a busy weekend so I need to go get some things done before the work week starts...