Reflections Monday on Running

Well after a couple of days off from writing about my deepest, darkest thoughts (do I really have those?) I figured it was time to take a step back from running/blogging and etc to realize how far I've come in less then a year (because why not pat yourself on the back from time to time?).

YTD over 206 miles...although I don't have a place where I compared PYTD (prior year to date for those that don't know all the stupid abbreviations of the world) .. let me see...carry the 1 ... add the ... ok I ran zero miles at this point last year. 

I really never expected to run a half marathon when my girlfriend (now my fiance) started running them multiple years ago...in fact I didn't get it at all.  "Why would you pay $75 to go run for 13.1 miles if all they give you is a medal and shirt if you aren't goign to win the whole thing?"  I'm sure we have all gotten those questions before....but now I'm obsessed.  I still hate running, but wow the competition and pushing myself to do things I couldn't do in high school is what gets me to keep going. 

So in the final 9 months of 2012 what do I have planned running wise?  Lots of things

• PR 5K (break 21 minutes)
• PR 10K (only signed up for one..and it's the day after a 5K..but I can do it..I'm tough?)
• Break 1:40 for a half marathon (2 shots at this ... most likely I'm attempting at Providence Half Marathon)
• First Marathon (the more I think about it the more I think I need to do the Baltimore Marathon)
• Wear deoderant when I run half marathons (yep I forgot it in DC ... I smelled horrible on the metro...but I did have lots of space on the ride home:))

Off to Ohio today for a week of high altitude training...that 200 ft. of elevation difference really seperates the men from the boys:)

Turtle Pace Wednesday

Well I got out there today...after 2 days off a failed attempt on Monday and a day off yesterday.  Still a little bit sore from the half marathon but determined to walk I started a very slow pace.  I ran for about 20 minutes or so at a 10 min/mile pace and felt pretty good afterwards.  I would say the clipart represents my speed, but also how I felt.  I wasn't planning on doing anything tomorrow, but I may just do the same workout as today...then take Friday off and try to get in a couple of easy miles on Saturday.  The plan is to be sort of back into the swings of things by next week. 

Still no decision on the Red Shoe Shuffle 5K....it will definitely be a smaller race as I think right now only 300 people signed up....so there could be potential to place fairly well (hopefully improve on my best overall place of 22nd in the Jingle Bell run).  I also would like to get a 5K in prior to the Cleveland 5K.  Decisions decisions.....

Rock 'n' Roll DC Half Marathon Recap - 3/17/2012

Well my first half marathon is in the books.  I had the prerace jitters the most at the expo.  Something about an offical countdown clock made all of the training very real (I definitely had one of those 'this is the stupidest thing you have ever committed yourself to moments').  All of that went away on the morning of the race, but a quick picture of the countdown clock.



Not sure why there were only two options "Women's" and "Unisex"? 



Got to the expo with plenty of time, but I think we all need more countdown clocks



The Official Recap

Prerace:  Hopped on a very crowded metro, but got to use the bathroom and get in corral 3 with plenty of time.  I couldn't believe there were over 25 corrals and immediately I had a big gulp of panic as the people I was lining up with looked fast (we all know people that just look extra fast).

Mile 1:  I had really decided that mile 1 should be around 8:00, so when I came in around 8:07 I wasn't too worried...I felt my plan was working and that I would run negative splits during the last half...

Mile 2-3:  I felt like I had picked it up a little too much (I was only wearing a regular watch with stopwatch on it and had my phone tucked away using mapmyrun)...at mile 2 I realized I had made up a lot of time...some slight panic, but nothing to be worried about until at mile 3 when I realized I was back to my 1:40 pace that I had set as my reach goal.  I still felt good, but was sweating pretty profusely (it was about 65 degrees at that time).

Mile 4:  I felt good (I would later find out this was a 7:20 pace mile, but it was all flat..and I knew that at this mark I was running better then 1:40 goal...but I knew the hills would probalby kill me in miles 4.5 - 7.5, so not bad to bank some seconds away).

Mile 5:  Mile 5...was probably the equivalent of how the kids at Camp Crystal Lake felt every time Jason would show up in Friday the 13th...it was uphill and I'm like "are you f^&*(ing serious?".  What didn't help matters were spectators running across to the other side in front of the runners (although 99% of the spectators were fine...oh that one percent!:))  (8:00 min pace)

Mile 6 - 7:  Lots of people cheering.  I wasn't feeling great, but the crowds got me through this uphill section.  The was a transition point for a 2 person relay (at this point in the race I wish I had someone to get me through).  A really nice guy at some point was handing out bottled water...this was the best.  I carried mine until about mile 9.5 and really needed it.  Mile 6:  7:29 Mile 7:  7:58

Mile 8-10:  "Help me Jesus! Help me Jewish God! Help me Allah! AAAAAHHH! Help me Tom Cruise! Tom Cruise, use your witchcraft on me to get the fire off me!" (Talladega Nights quote)...but yeah I felt that way.  I had a couple of good songs come on the nano that took my brain somewhere else..but I was not feeling great.  Mile 8:  7:44, Mile 9:  7:40, Mile 10:  7:48

Mile 11:  When I saw the sign for mile 11..I just kept repeating "2.1 miles just like you have done a million times before"...sense of calm came over me.  Some people were starting to give up and walk...I really wanted to encourage them to keep going as we had all come this far together, but I couldn't talk. 

Mile 12:  Oh how I wanted to walk for like 10 seconds at this point...however I told my coworker that I would not walk...it's amazing that this actually kept me running.  In hindsight if I stopped for 10 seconds I'm not sure I could have gotten back into it. 

Mile 13:  The mile marker was one of the best things I have ever seen.  It also reminded me of a ridiculous mountain biking trip I had when I was 16 and I was starving and I devoured a ham and cheese sandwich w/mayo.  I have not eaten mayo since or ham (my least favorite foods), but at that time it tasted like the best thing ever.  Mile 13 marker was the BEST THING EVER. 

Finish:  I had no extra gear left for any sort of kick or anything like that.  The picture of me near the finish shows me, an older guy and a very fit looking guy...ironically the older guy who also looked struggling beat me by a second!  And the super fit looking guy was about 20 seconds slower then me.

After the finish I kept going a bit and then got my medal...I tried to keep moving and stretch but could barely move.  A couple of minutes based and the fiance came in (at this point I was hoping she got under the 1:45,which was her goal and she did!)...she saw me and walked right past me...she needed to stretch...so I grabbed a couple of bananas and water and made my way to where she was.  I'm glad I've already signed up for other races as it would be tough knowing how I feel today to signup for additional races, but I knew I would feel this way:) 

Official Time :  1:42:52 (my mapmyrun app had that I ran 13.5 miles, so I think that messed up some of the splits by a couple of seconds, but overall I think a 7:50/pace)

Official Splits:  5k: 23:48, 10k 48:05, 10mi 1:18:13

Overall: 1050 out of 16291

Division: 185 out of 1111

Gender: 747 out of 5584

This Can't Be Monday...

  Well the final week of prep before the DC Half.  My morning run had the makings of a horrible run my music wasn't working, exhaustion from the one hour time change, and the realization this run probalby wouldn't make a difference in Saturday's race.  Started off pretty slow and just did a comfortable pace.  A really uneventful run...besides the fact that I must not have gotten the memo that before 6:30am you don't have to use a turn signal in Baltimore City.

  So I just had time to check the splits for the 4 miles and 9:03, 8:25, 8:03, and 8:06...for a run that I didn't care too much about I was a bit surprised at the last two splits...the whole run felt easy...it almost felt like I was this guy (yep that's Captain Planet).  Only one more short run this week then a couple of days off before DC. 

  On a random note...had the old fantasy baseball draft this year.  Last year we switched to an auction and after somewhat figuring out what people would do this year my strategy changed.  $260 can be spent through 21 rounds and we have 12 teams...last year Pujols went for about $70 and due to that the other top tier guys went for around the same...this year I realized I just couldn't stay back and watch these guys get taken even at these prices (my other strategy was to always nominate Philly players as we have about 5 guys in the league that are from Philly and overbid on these guys).

    Anyways, the 2nd player nominated in the draft was Miguel Cabrera...assuming he would go into the $60s I kept bidding until all of that stopped at $57...going one going twice and sold.  The 5th player nominated Albert Pujols I kept bidding on as I was not going to allow someone to get Pujols for less then $57...the bidding stopped at $54 and I now had two 1B and I had just spent over 40% of my total budget on two players...about 10 players later Justin Upton came up and my $40 bid was not challenged (yikes already spent about 60%) at this point I was really ready to curb my spending, when 15 picks later Evan Longoria came up for bidding (I've never drafted him but felt intrigued and I hadn't bid on anyone in a long time...so at $42 I got him..so now we are at about 75% of my total budget spent...so no bidding until about 100 players later...overall though the draft didn't end as badly as you would think and initial projections show a 2nd place finish...although those are always wrong.

Saturday Test Review

  One week away from DC, so let's call today a "Test Review"...the plan was to run 8 miles at race pace today.  It seemed like a good idea and really with this half marathon "plan" I have really listened to my body and done whatever the heck I wanted ... within reason.  I decided I would attempt for 7:40 miles.  I had a watch on and figured I could easily calculate the splits (as I still don't have a GPS watch). 
  Immediately from the start I realized I didn't have it.  So at that point I listened to my body and figured I would just push myself a little, but no sense in doing anything stupid (I must be getting wise in my years). 
  The positive for the run was that I didn't stop for the bathroom.  The negative was that it was somewhat nice out...what that usually means in Baltimore is that people run in groups with usually 3 across or people decide to walk their dogs on the sidewalks ... nobody ever moves over.  I mean I totally get that your dog needs to walk on the sidewalk (I don't) and I really get when you are running in a group chatting it up that you don't give right away to someone that is faster than you (what the f^&* is that!). 
  I think it's pretty obvious when someone is running at you to determine who is faster and the slower person should move over.  I move over all the time (although it's usually on runs Monday-Friday as I see the "usual suspects" out and some of them are really moving).  And really your dog can't walk in the grass?  I may turn an ankle, but I get that your four legged friend who has adapted to run on exactly this type of terrain wants to walk on a sidewalk.  
  I have come to expect this from Baltimore a city that once claimed it was the "City that Reads" or "Greatest City in America"....but I'm done ranting because let's be honest I'm going to probably be annoyed at the race next weekend for the overcrowding and people feeling overly ambitious in mile 1. 
  Although this run didn't go to plan (miles averaging from 7:42 to 8:03) it was consistent and I would rather have a bad run today then a bad one next week.  Light week of running ahead, but I'm ready for next Saturday.

Slowing down or speeding up (a glass half full day?)

  I felt great waking up this morning, but that soon wore off rapidly.  I put on my "slow" tights today (probably the placebo effect of having great runs in my CW-X and 2XU compression tights, but not the ones I recently purchased).  I figured I would go out slow and then gradually speed up.  I was using my phone with mapmyrun, so I really do this by feel as I put my phone in an armband shortly after I start and never look at it again until the finish. 
  I believe the "slow" tights were playing mind games on me as I was going fairly slow on mile 1 (I would later confirm this by checking my splits and it was 8:57)..mile 2 seemed a bit faster, but mile 2 is generally an easier mile for me as I'm warmed up and gradual downhill, miles 3 and 4 I didn't think I sped up from mile 2, but I suppose I did and ran those in 8:00 and 7:52, respectively.  A bit slower then a normal 4 miler, but I was happy with the negative splits.
  The lesson from all of this is that it may not have been the best workout, but it's also the 3rd day in a row of running or strength (or both).  I suppose I earned a day off....how about that for feeling entitled to something?  :)

 
Related to entitlement and things I've found amusing over the past couple of years.   I used to watch the show "Deal or No Deal" I was always fascinated by the idiots these people would bring to them with the show.  The banker would offer $100K and family/friends would tell these people "No deal.  Keep going.  You earned this!"  This usually ended badly for these people and I'm surprised more shows didn't end with the contestant fighting his cheer squad that he brought with him/her.  So I suppose I shouldn't say "I earned an off day"...it's just in the schedule tomorrow.

Pushing

  Let's be honest...there are times when you really don't feel like doing a workout.  Today was one of those days.  I slept in until 5:40am and then decided to just get up and put my workout clothes on.  Scheduled strength day, which meant firing up the Kinect and doing 30 minutes of the Gatorade workout followed by planks and pushups.  In the back of my mind I believe every workout a week before a race helps you in the actual race (it must be true:))  So today made me stronger being 11 days out from DC.  

Case of the Mondays

"Peter Gibbons: Let me ask you something. When you come in on Monday and you're not feeling real well, does anyone ever say to you, "Sounds like someone has a case of the Mondays?"
Lawrence: No. No, man. Shit, no, man. I believe you'd get your ass kicked sayin' something like that, man. "

That quote is from the movie Office Space (a classic in my opinion).  I can honestly say that today feels like a case of the Mondays...but I won't go admitting that to anyone.  Monday is the day in the office where everyone talks about their weekend.  Nobody ever says they had a horrible weekend...or would admit it to their coworkers.  How often does anyone say anything bad to "how's it going"?  It just doesn't happen in the office dynamic.

  After getting everyone's detailed weekend summary I give them a, "weekend was good, but too short".  I can't really tell people that I ran over 11.5 miles on Saturday...even my own family is a bit surprised at this new passion for running (even I'm surprised)...but telling some coworkers that you ran that much and somehow even though it was raining and you had to desperately go to the bathroom around the 4.5 mile that I actually liked it in some weird way...it's just not normal:)

  So in case you are having a case of the Mondays and can't talk about your running with your coworkers I will leave you with another Office Space quote.

"Peter Gibbons: Boy, I'll tell ya, some days... One of these days it's just gonna be like...
[He mimics the sound of a machine gun. Brian, a waiter, walks up and does the same and laughs]
Brian, Chotchkie's Waiter: So can I get you gentlemen something more to drink? Or maybe something to nibble on? Some Pizza Shooters, Shrimp Poppers, or Extreme Fajitas?
Peter Gibbons: Just coffee.
Brian, Chotchkie's Waiter: Okay. Sounds like a case of the Mondays."

 

4 miles of horrible & 8 miles of in the zone

Long run Saturday.  Today had the makings for a horrible run (in fact I thought it was going to go that way after my first 4 miles).  I had planned to do anywhere been 11.5 and 12.0.  It's was raining when I started and I was tired after the first 1.5 miles (although that is a stretch going uphill).  At around mile 3 I felt ok, but had the feeling I would need to go to the bathroom....luckily I knew at 4.0 and change I would be entering Fort McHenry and the bathrooms were open.  I figured I would keep my time going as during the half no one will really care that I had to go to the bathroom.  I hated stopping and with the rain and how I felt I figured this would be a horrible remaining 8 miles...but then something happened.  Something that I didn't expect....right after I get out of the bathroom and start on the pathway around Fort McHenry I get a song from the Bloodsport sountrack on my nano...and then it was on:)  I suddenly didn't feel tired and everytime I felt like I was about to get tired another song came on that boosted my spirits...the whole run was sparked by the Bloodsport soundtrack, Highway to the Danger Zone, So Glad You Made It by Iron Eagle (Days of Thunder), Highlander Theme Song (lame, but hey it worked for me at the time), and the Rocky Theme Song.  Quick recap of the run by mile (highlighted bathroom stop) miles 10-12 have a lot of stoplights, but I can't complain.  Have a good weekend.  Enjoy!

Split	Time	Distance	Pace (avg)
1	0:07:15	1.0 mi	7:14
2	0:08:16	1.0 mi	8:13
3	0:07:48	1.0 mi	7:43
4	0:08:12	1.0 mi	8:11
5	0:12:03	1.0 mi	11:58
6	0:08:20	1.0 mi	8:16
7	0:08:08	1.0 mi	8:05
8	0:07:56	1.0 mi	7:55
9	0:07:28	1.0 mi	7:22
10	0:08:40	1.0 mi	8:39
11	0:08:28	1.0 mi	8:26
12	0:06:06	0.7 mi	8:13

Baba Marta Day Two

  Well being the super cultured person I am....I am now participating in the Bulgarian Holiday "Baba Marta"...my coworker is Bulgarian and gave me a Martenitsa.  The tradition requires me wearing the martenitsa until I see a crane or until the end of March. "The martenitsa symbolises new life, conception, fertility, and spring. The time during which it is worn is meant to be a joyful holiday commemorating health and long life. The colours of the martenitsa are interpreted as symbols of purity and life, as well as the need for harmony in Nature and in people's lives." (Thank you wikipedia:)) 

  So all of that is just going to help me get through this half marathon.  I'm convinced of it.  I also received yesterday another pair of Brooks Ravenna 2's.  Unfortunately, with getting the pair at only $53 from Runnerswarehouse I was only able to get the boring color pair, but they still work all the same.  I did a quick 3 mile jog in them this morning as I like to get a quick run in the day before my long run day. 

  Tomorrow long run day...shooting for 11-12 miles tomorrow.  Pace is really not important and although I will take a watch I'll be more concerned with overall time then splits (it's also supposed to be raining all day tomorrow, so that should be fun).  Everyone have a good weekend.  Stay dry if you can and for you crazies out there running in the rain on Saturday morning I will see you there!

Forgetful Thursday

  Well today was a scheduled rest day ... apparently my brain also decided to take a rest this morning during the usual routine getting ready for work and I forgot to wear a belt.  It wasn't until the exact moment that I sat down at my desk that I realized I forgot it.  It's right up there with missing a spot shaving, wearing a shirt that has a stain on it, or realizing you only made one cup of coffee in your traveler mug instead of two.  I've debated going home, but after cruising through the workday schedule I'm going to stick it out (note to self in the drawer that you keep emergency ties you should probably keep an emergency brown and black belt).

  On a running note yesterday I registered for the Rock 'N' Roll Half Marathon in Providence.  I was definitely drawn in by the leap day discount of $29 making the cost of the race $61 (the fees on these races are ridiculous).  With all these half marathons scheduled I've started to think about switching from the Baltimore 5K to the Baltimore Full Marathon (not really interested in running the Baltimore Half ).  It could be a great test to see before going down to Houston for the Full Marathon there.

  Finally, back to office rules.  I'm always interested to see the office decoration dynamic.  I share an office here.  My coworker and I have exactly one decoration...a Christmas tree that is up all year round...and when I see Christmas tree I mean the sad 10 inch green cutout on our filing cabinet.  I have zero pictures of up (neither does he).  And the only thing personal on my cork board behind my desk is a route map of the DC Half and the results from my last race.  Other people have about 100 pictures of their family, books, plants, coffee makers, artwork from their kids (which is generally not very good), and framed paintings or pictures.  Although I appreciate them wanting to make their office more like home..I always thought it would be extremely awkward packing that stuff up if they ever got let go.  I also feel like if I don't have anything up maybe everyone will think I'm some sort of secret agent like Jason Bourne.  I'm sure people are thinking, "he can't possible use excel and access 24/7...he must be a secret agent"...I suppose when people start asking me what I have going on this weekend I can now respond with "it's classified" or "secret agent stuff" instead of "long run on Saturday".