Starts, Stalls and Stops

Maybe I should rename my blog the title of this post?

I can't tell you how many posts I have in "draft" form right now (well, I can, because they are listed in my dashboard, but I'm just going to keep that dirty little secret to myself).

The last few months have been absolutely...freaking...insane.  And rather than resurrect a bunch of old race reports, rants and general craziness, I'm just starting fresh.

From here.

And what's going on right now?

• Things are settling down, evening out.  The planets are apparently realigning in a manner that is calming to me (and quite a few others out there in Blog-Land who appear to have been as frantic as me these last few months).
• The plantar fasciitis that I've had since March is showing no signs of abating, but is generally not getting worse so I *think* I'm OK with that.  I want it to go AWAY completely, soon.  I'm working on it.  Right now I'm reading THIS BOOK - I read about it in the comments on another blog.  Will let you know if it helps.
• I'm in Week 2 of January Marathon Training.  WHOO HOO!!  Making a run for it, again (tried last year then training got derailed over the holidays).  Also on the running front: a 10K this weekend and another at the end of the month - the Xterra 10K on Maui the day before Xterra World Championships.  Killer race (new strategy this year - will write more about that later - probably post race since I don't want to give my secrets away).
• I'm trying a new supplement line this month from BASE PERFORMANCE.  It was developed by Ironman pro Chris Lieto.  I hope it's the answer to training well in hot, humid weather.  I like it because it is clean and will be a good supplement to the Hammer products I know and love.  Will report periodically throughout the month and write a review at the end.
• Finally decided on a NEW BIKE!  Ordering it this week.  More on that later.

 Hope your fall season is off to a great start!

VIRR Turkey Trot Race Report - 16 miler

Sometimes it's best if you don't know the race course in advance...

For most races, I haunt the website, review the race course and decide on a plan of action well before race day.  I like to run portions (if not all) of the course prior to race day so that I have a strategy and can be mentally prepared for the tough spots.  I like to look at the previous year's race results, check times for my AG, and think about where I might end up in the standings.  I'm sure a lot of athletes do this.  At least the Type-A athletes do, even if they know they aren't going to place in the top (that would be me, chaser of the FOPs (Front-of-Pack'rs).

This race was going to be a little different.  It was my first time entering.  It was a fun run.  It was FREE.  It fit fabulously into my training schedule and took the place of my long run for the week.  IT WAS FREE!

The course map was not posted until a couple of days before the race.  I've run races with VIRR from Rice Park (the start), so I assumed it would probably be an out-and-back to Grandma's, with two loops to get to the 16 miles (they also had an 8.4 and a 2.6 mile run that day).  When I finally glanced at the posted course map, I did not zoom in, and I assumed it would be down Kula Highway, then back up Lower Kula Road.  OK...different, but extremely do-able.  Then I got the surprise.

A group of us were standing around at check-in and I overheard someone say, "It's the same course as last year."  So I told him this was my first time and asked "what, really, is the course?"  Turns out the "down Kula Highway" part was right, but then we turned right at the high school and ran UP AND AROUND Kekaulike Hwy.  Oh, s%@t!  This is an approximate 2,000 ft elevation gain.  It is an uphill run from about Mile 7 to about Mile 13.  (FYI - I chickened out and didn't sign up for a 10K in May of this year because it was primarily THIS section of the course - billed as a "one hill" race.  Ha Ha!  The entire race is that one hill.)

But the race was FREE.  And my training was going well.  And I completely rescheduled my training plan for the long run on Thanksgiving.  And I was there.  What the hell?  It would be fun, right?

Pre-Race
Standard pre-race smoothie at 4:30 a.m.  Race started at 7:00. FYI - I've pretty much decided that the 2-hour window is too short.  It leaves me feeling a bit sloshy.  Next time I will get up earlier and drink the smoothie prepared the night before, then go back to bed for a little more snooze.  It works!


Warm Up/Race Prep
Ha ha!  It was 53 freaking degrees at the race start!  That is downright COLD for us Maui folks.  I kept my sweatshirt on, did a little light jogging to stay warm.

After hearing about the real race course, I added 10 minutes to my "guessed" time.  Those who come closest to their guess can win a prize (no watches, garmins allowed).  I originally planned to go for 3:00, but added 10 minutes for the serious climbing.  (I was going to wear my Garmin as this was supposed to be a training run for me and I wanted to watch pace, heart rate, etc., but one of the long-time runners cajoled me into leaving it in the truck.)

We also found out at check-in that there were no "official" aid stations on the course, but that someone was going to leave water at about Mile 6 and Mile 12.  Although I had my Nathan carrier with my bottle of Heed and two Hammer gels, I decided to grab an extra water bottle from my truck just in case there was no water.

Off came the sweatshirt, but I wore my new YMX Yellowman long-sleeve dragon shirt underneath (more about that in a later post).


Race
There were 24 of us in the 16-mile group.  The ultra-runners (one only clad in black running shorts and shoes) took off and never looked back.  I ended up with a group of about 4-5 runners at the tail end of the pack, but I was OK with that.  This was supposed to be a long training run, not a race, and I was perfectly content to let everyone else take off.  I figured this would be a good way to practice pacing and see if the rumors were true: that I would eventually pass some of the runners who took off too fast and paid for it at the end.

The first 6 miles were mostly on a gradual downgrade, a pleasant way to warm up.  Several of us chatted as we ran along.  I felt good and even though I felt I could pick up the pace, I tried to stay slow.  This is where I sort of missed my Garmin, but I realized it was probably very good for me to run by feel for a change.  Mentally I felt good because I wasn't DFL in the pack, which is a driver for me, for better or for worse.

We made the turn at the high school and started the climb.  There was no water at the first "drop" but I was OK - I popped my first gel as planned and finished the bottle I was carrying.  We began the ascent, and this is where some runners started dropping off in pace.  I was still feeling good and elated that I felt so strong...in the tougher sections I reminded myself that it was OK to walk portions.  My pace slowed and I walked what I thought was quite a bit, but I still felt good and strong and ran as often as I could.  I enjoyed the beauty of the day, the fact that I was out running sixteen miles (which still amazes me - it was the longest distance I have ever run in my life!), and kept a positive mindset.  I even stopped to take a couple of pics:

A friend of mine says I look like I was hitchhiking in this photo!

I thought I knew the stretch of highway fairly well as I've driven it many times, and I got excited when I saw the houses just before Kula Lodge because I thought I was near the top.  I wasn't and it was still quite a ways to the Haleakala Crater turn-off where the second water drop was.  When I got there I was glad so see there were still plenty of bottles because I'd burned up my HEED on the climb.  I took a quick break, took my second gel and topped off my water bottle so I wouldn't have to carry another, and took off.

After this stop my legs protested a bit.  There was still a bit of climbing left to do and I got back to it.  This is when I noticed that I was getting a blister under the base of my big toe (at the top of the ball of my foot).  I stopped to adjust my sock, which was bunching a little in that area, and took off.  Side Note:  I noticed that I am getting more blisters as my runs get longer. I thought my feet would toughen and callus up, but they aren't.  For this race I wrapped my 4th toes with bandaids to avoid the nasty blisters I got in the Harbor-to-Harbor, and really rubbed my feet up with Body Glide.  I wore socks with my Mizunos.  Mostly a winning combination.  I still have several long runs to test shoe/sock/no-sock combinations before race day.

I caught a few more runners in this last climbing section, then the glorious downhill began!!

About Mile 12-13 my quads started getting cranky with me, but I told myself the same thing I told myself at Mile 10 in the 1/2 marathon: as long as the pain doesn't get any worse, I am fine.  I can run with this.  I can deal with this.  I still felt strong, and if I hadn't had the blister really yelling at me at this point, I could have even picked up the pace a little bit.

Soon I saw the intersection at the highway and made my turn for the home stretch.  As I came up the last little hill before the finish, I saw my family on the sidelines cheering me on.  It was awesome!  I left them all, still sleeping, that morning (I had told them the night before that I would finish at around 10:00 IF they wanted to meet me at the finish line).  It was great!

I finished in 2:59:58!  If I wouldn't have added that last 10 minutes, I would have only been 2 seconds off my time and would have probably won a prize.  I can't believe how consistent my pace is, even without the Garmin to check.  And that was despite that crazy incline!

My uncle said he couldn't believe I wasn't even breathing hard at the end and I looked as if I barely broke a sweat. 

I am very pleased with this race and the results. It did wonders for my self confidence - I know I can tackle just about anything with good, consistent training.

Can't wait to see what happens next year!

Marathon Monday - Week 9 of 18

"I'm at the half-way mark!" I realized, as I typed the title for today's post.  So far, so good.

I missed posting last Monday because I was on vacation, here, at home.  My mom came to visit from California and we had a great time together.  I stuck with my run training (minus one 3-miler), but swimming, biking and blogging all kind of fell by the wayside.  It was a good mental break for me. Today, though, it's back to our regularly scheduled programming.

I ran a fun race on Saturday - the 20th anniversary of the Maui Harbor-to-Harbor race.  It clocked in at a little over 10 miles (10.55 according to my Garmin) and I was thrilled with my average pace of 9:28!  Running more is paying off!  I felt good the entire race and incorporated some new mental tricks to keep me going in the later miles: keeping focused, staying positive and checking in on my body and how it was performing.  Run tall.  Hold your core. Smile. There was no swearing involved, unlike Xterra.

With a little more than a mile to go, a younger woman passed me.  Usually this is not a big deal, because people pass me a lot, but for some reason I could not let this one go.   I remembered something I read recently, that if someone passes you near the end of the race, do not let them get too far ahead.  Her pace wasn't much faster than mine at the time, so I hung on around 25 yards back.  We got inside that last mile and I knew if I didn't pick up the pace she would think she had it in the bag.  I remembered how Mirinda Carfrae tried to chase down Chrissie Wellington in Kona.  We hit a slight downhill and I lengthened my stride a bit, gradually catching up, then I dug down deep and pushed enough to get past her.  I figured she would push it and pass me again, but I stayed strong and finished just ahead of her.  She came up to me at the water station after the race and congratulated me on the finish, which was really nice of her to do.  I thanked her and told her I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to catch her and told her she set a good pace.

I went into the race with the intention of racing strong and trying to sustain a 9:30 pace.  It was a hard effort, but it also reassured me that I can run faster than I think!

The race was an exchange for my long run for that weekend, scheduled for 10 miles.  I know I'm supposed to get my long runs in slower, and I won't be doing any more "racing" throughout my marathon training, but this was a really good check-in for me and a great confidence booster.

I promise to take it slow at the Turkey Trot next week!

Marathon Monday - Week 7 of 18

With some creative scheduling, I eked out my mileage for last week by the seat of my pants.

I ran the Xterra 10K last weekend (race report coming!) and, without doing any specific hill training or trail running in the weeks prior, my legs paid for it last week.  Sunday they weren't too bad, but DOMS always hits me worse on Day 2 post-race, so Monday I was in some serious hurt.  I was supposed to get 10 miles that weekend for my long run but I figured the exertion required of the off-road race would equal a 10-mile LSD, so I called it even.  And post-race I felt that it took WAY more out of me than the 1/2 marathon a month earlier (my race pics show it, too, but that's another story).

Last weeks mileage:

• Monday - Swam 1500yds - thought it would help.  It did, sorta.
• Tuesday  30 minutes easy spin on trainer
• Wednesday - Rest
• Thursday - Rest
• Friday - 3 miles
• Saturday - 5 miles
• Sunday - 3 miles
• Monday - 7 miles

Running just wasn't quite happening on Wednesday.  As scheduled I should run Wed., Thur., Fri., rest on Sat., then long run on Sunday.  I'm OK with moving stuff around, A LITTLE BIT.  I figure Hal Higdon is the expert and I should try to stick with the basic plan as much as possible.  But life does require a little more flexibility sometimes.

I've bumped my morning alarm from 4:45 to 4:30 to try and get on a little earlier schedule so I can fit in the longer runs on Thursdays.  So far, so good.

I have a 12-mile run this Sunday ON THE ROAD for once, and with a new running partner.  I'm a little anxious about it, but looking forward to spending time outside and with someone to chat with on these long days.  We are both training for the same marathon, so our training schedules and mileage are pretty close.  She's a faster runner than me, but her long runs are at 10mm so I can hang with that.

Marathon Monday - Week 6 of 18

I had this crazy idea that I would post every day in the month of October.  For the first part of the month, I didn't feel like I had that much to say.  Now all the post ideas are piling up and I think this will be a banner posting week!

I've decided to dedicate Monday to marathon training updates.  I'm in week 6 (of 18) of Hal Higdon's novice training plan and so far, so good. 

I was supposed to have a 10-mile long run yesterday, but I raced in the Xterra Kapalua 10K trail run on Saturday.  Suffice it to say that I believe it was equal to the effort required of a 10-mile run, and then some!  (I have a full race report to post later this week.)  It actually felt harder than the 1/2 marathon I ran last month.

Sore quads today, which was helped by a little dip in the pool this morning...only 1500yds.  Today is a cross training day, so it was good timing.

Tuesday's are usually rest days for me, but I've unearthed the trainer in the garage so I can get back on the bike.  I think I'll go for an easy spin tomorrow morning to warm things back up.  There is a century ride mid-November (with a 25-mile option - perfect!), and a 36-miler in December.  I think a little time on the bike will be good, as long as it doesn't interfere too much with the longer mileage I'll be hitting those months.  

We'll see how it goes!