The One Time I had Decent Form and it was Captured on Film

The Lawyers Have Heart 10k race photos are available and they prove (well, at least one of them does) that miracles do happen. LOOK! I AM NOT HEEL STRIKING!*

*Obviously there is now no need to post any more photos of me running ever again. We'll just pretend that I look like this all the time.

Lawyers Have Heart 10k race report

Going into this race, I knew that I would be disappointed if I didn’t PR. I knew the heat/humidity and my lack of recent speed work would be against me, but I’ve improved so much as a runner since I ran that time over a year ago. I also knew that I have a history of starting races WAY too fast and limping back to the finish. Sometimes these times are halfway decent, but they could be so much better and so much less painful. I read through my race report for last year’s "downgraded to a 5k because of the heat" race and was reminded that it was one of my many not-so-smart races. (If you don’t want to read the whole thing, here are my splits: 7:48, 8:18, 8:40) So I decided, at some point on Friday, that I would be conservative and try to finish the race thinking that I could have gone faster. And my first mile would not start with a 7. I say things like this all the time and totally disregard them, but this time I was going to stick to the plan. Really.

One of the things I like about this race is that it starts two miles from my apartment. It’s just an extra bonus when your commute to a race can serve as your warm up. I arrived around 7:10 with enough time to see the lines and decide that I didn’t really need to hit the porta potties and chat for a few minutes with some of my coworkers/teammates before we split up to position ourselves behind the line. There were no pace marker signs and it was already crowded by the time I got there, so I ended up perhaps farther back than I should have been. I spent the majority of the first mile passing people and it involved a lot of weaving and squeezing through groups running four or five across. I wasn’t too concerned about this since I wanted to go slower than I thought I should for that first mile. This mile is also the only one that is significantly uphill so I just focused on staying relaxed and settling into what felt like a tempo pace. I did decide to have my watch set so that I could see pace, but I only glanced at it a few times during the race, most of which were during this first mile when I wanted to stay controlled. As I headed out Canal Road towards the turnaround I was at a relatively comfortable pace and told myself I would push the pace on the way back. This stretch was more shaded that I remembered from years past (maybe the earlier 7:30 start time contributed to that?) and I distracted myself by keeping an eye out for speedy CAR teammates who were already on their way back.

Miles 1-3: 9:17 (long - 8:10 pace), 7:05 (short - 7:57 pace), 7:49

The second half is a bit of a blur in my mind. Shortly after I hit the four mile marker I remembered that I avoid 10ks because they hurt. I told myself I could do anything for 20 minutes and not to back down. I decided that I would really pick it up when I passed five miles, though that was easier said than done. Once I got back on the Whitehurst I really started to feel the heat (no shade, elevated concrete), but I also knew that the rest of the way was more or less downhill and I was almost there. Unlike last year in this section when I felt like everyone in the race was passing me, I managed to hold my own and even catch up to a few people I had picked out in the distance. Mile 6 was at the top of a short downhill and I perhaps started my kick to the finish a bit prematurely. A few people I passed at that point definitely passed me before we got to the line.

Miles 4-6.2: 7:44, 7:43, 7:41, 1:26 (7:01 pace)

I had my watch showing pace not total time, so I was thrilled when I switched the screen and saw that I had crushed my sub-50:00 goal.

Final Time: 48:44

Age group: 31/364

2^nd Law Librarian (special category)

I was tired when I finished this race, but I finished knowing that I have a faster 10k in me and that is a great feeling. I could not be happier with how I executed this race, given my recent training and the heat. I know that I ran the best race that I could for that day. It may also be the first race where I have ever gotten faster every single mile. Sure, it’s not by a whole, lot but I’ve seen a progression in the other direction far too often. There are a lot of positives to take away and I hope that they keep me going through the inevitable rough patches in summer training.

Three Things Thursday

1. It's amazing what a good workout can do for your attitude about running. Obviously this is not rocket science, but it is something I had forgotten during the last few months as I slogged through workouts not knowing that anemia was to blame for my total lack of energy. I've now been taking iron supplements for five weeks and last Friday I returned to my first CAR workout since the Frederick Half at the beginning of May. During the first mile of the tempo I felt sluggish and dropped off the back of my normal pack. I felt just like I'd felt in March/April/May. But then I started the second mile and something just clicked. My legs felt great and I was just cruising along. I ended up passing a few people and felt great finishing out the 5k. I was so happy about how the last part of the tempo felt and it was an added bonus that it ended up being my fastest 5k tempo ever! I haven't done that many 5ks on the track so it's not quite as impressive as it sounds, but it's still a great sign that the iron is starting to kick in and I'm on the way to turning things around. I then spent the rest of Friday and the weekend thinking happy thoughts about running and looking forward to, instead of dreading, my next trip to the track.

2. On Monday night I went to talk on marathon nutrition. I left thinking that I probably need to spend the summer and fall experimenting with my fueling routine. The nutritionist who spoke was a big proponent of sports drinks serving as the key component of a fueling plan. She talked about then adding in gels or chews to get to the hourly requirements for carbs and sodium. Unfortunately, I've always had a problem combining sports drinks and gels/chews. I seem to end up with a sugar overload and my stomach revolts. I feel like I've had relative success drinking water and taking an electrolyte pill to make up for what I'm not getting by skipping a sports drink. I've been using Hammer Endurolytes, but she mentioned that these only have 40mg of sodium and you need 400mg of sodium every hour after the first one. Since most gels have 40-60mg of sodium, these means that I would need to eat a ridiculous number of pills and gels each hour to get enough sodium. I can only imagine what kind of stomach problems I'd have with that combo! I may test out using something like Gu Brew or Nuun while running, but that then commits me to carrying my own water bottle for the entirety of a marathon. I like starting out with a water bottle, but one that I can toss by about halfway through the race. I did a little online research of other electrolyte pill options and discovered that SaltStick caps have 215 mg of sodium. Just one of these will get me halfway to the hourly goal and sounds a lot more appealing that downing five gels. I've ordered a bottle so that I can start testing them out on runs soon.

3. On Saturday I'm running the Lawyers Have Heart 10k. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this race. I love it because my office has a team and there's a special category for law librarians (last year I got third) and I hate it because it's always ridiculously hot and humid and the course has almost no shade. Last year it was downgraded to a 5k on race morning because of the heat. I'm hopeful that this year it will stay as a 10k since I haven't run one since February 2011. My goal for this race is to PR (under 52:44). I think this is a realistic expectation since the average pace of my current 10k PR is the same as the average pace I ran at the Frederick Half a month ago. My A+ goal is to finish with a time that starts with a 4. I think I SHOULD be able to shatter this goal, but a lack of recent speedwork and the heat and humidity mean that Saturday is probably not the day for that. That last thing I want is a major blowup at 5k. I always say that I plan to start conservatively, but I know that I actually need to do it in this race when heat will certainly be a factor.

Wordless Wednesday - Memories

I spent the weekend at my ten year college reunion.

One of the highlights was a Saturday afternoon swim with my friends at the pool where we spent countless hours from 1998 to 2002.

We all liked this disclaimer

May Recap

Miles: 63.18 (+ ~12 miles in the pool)

X-Training: 11 (9 swims, 2 yoga classes)

Rest Days: 9

Race(s): Frederick Half Marathon - 1:51:28, Kinetic Half relay (1.2 mile swim) - 31:23, Jim McDonnell two mile lake swim - 56:32

Workout goals:
Less running - Success! I took a full week off after the half and ended the month with about half of the mileage I ran in April.

Swim 50k (or at least try) - I didn't make it to 50k, but I did get to 30250 yards. I think if I hadn't needed a mental break the week after Frederick and I wasn't in California for five days, I might have made it. Hopefully next year!

Mix up my routine - This month was heavy on the swimming, but I did make it to two yoga classes.

I'm happy with how May turned out. I raced my goal half for the spring and PRed and then took part in two fun open water races, first as a part of a relay and then on my own. I knew that after the half I'd need a break (mentally more than physically) and I took full advantage of my decision to back off from training this month. I didn't run for a week and took plenty of extra rest days through the rest of the month. I fit in one short run on my trip to California for a friend's wedding, but it was nice to not worry at all about missing workouts. I didn't have a chance to swim as much as I would have needed to reach the (ambitious) goal of 50k that I set at the beginning of the month, but I did keep going to the pool regularly. By the end of the month, I could finally start to feel the positive effects of the iron supplements I started taking at the end of April. I no longer sit at work daydreaming about taking a nap and I been able to stay up well past 8:30 without a problem. I'm looking forward to seeing similar effects on my running in June!

June  Preview

Workout goals:
Get back to running - I'd really like to start marathon training in the fall with a solid basis. I'm not sure how many workouts I'll do in June, but I do want to focus on adding more easy miles and slowly building myself back up.

Swim something other than freestyle - I'd like to start do another swim meet and if I'm going to sign up for anything other than distance free events, I need to start mixing up my training. It's time to add in some IM or breaststroke days.

Glute stretches and strengthening exercises - I slacked a bit during my relaxed May and I need to get back on track. These are things that I can't afford to skip.

Races: Lawyers Have Heart 10k - June 9 and most likely a 5k towards the end of the month.

Jim McDonnell Lake Swims 2 mile race report

Sunday marked my second open water swim of the season and the longest one I have done in a while. Several years ago I was very involved in Masters swimming and spent a summer doing as many open water swims as possible. Last week I did some searching to try and find one of my old two mile times, just to have a reference point, but they seemed to have been erased from the Internet. 2005 was a LONG time ago.

The morning got off to a not-so-great start when I woke up, looked over at my alarm clock and saw that it said 6:15, which just so happened to be the time I was planning to leave for the race! Apparently although I had set my alarm for 5:30 the night before, I had neglected to actually turn it out. I jumped out of bed and got ready in about 10 minutes. Fortunately, I tend to arrive way too early for most races, so getting out the door at 6:30 got me there right on time.

I was asked at check-in if I knew that wetsuits weren’t allowed because of high water temperatures, but since I wasn’t planning to wear one anyway I just nodded and kept going. I had my chip and was body-marked by about 7:10, so since I had time to kill I decided to jump in the pool for a brief warm up. Was this really necessary? Probably not, but it seemed to make sense at the time. Of course I remembered after getting the pool that I hadn’t put on any sunscreen yet (one victim of my late wake-up/dash out the door). So after swimming about 400 yards, I got out and attempted to dry myself off before applying sunscreen. I imagine that I was just damp enough that it didn’t stick at all, but at least I tried!

Then it was time to line up in waves and get the race started. It was at this point that I finally saw Victoria, and caught a glimpse of Beth behind me (someone was a little off with her seed time). Victoria and I were in the second wave, so as soon as the race started we were headed down into the water and got going shortly after. I don’t have too much experience with dealing with mass open water starts and I also see no need to sprint at the beginning of (what I consider) a long race, so I was pretty much at the back of the pack when we got going. I got bumped a few time,s but nothing violent and soon settled into a decent rhythm. When we got to the first turn, I noticed Victoria slightly ahead of me. We maintained this same position for most of the race. Sometimes I was close enough to gain some benefiting by drafting, other times I could just see her ahead of me.

I spent the first lap getting a good idea of the course. I had looked at the map, but it’s obviously a whole lot different when you’re at water level and trying to see the next buoy. After the second turn there was a long straight away back to the start and I definitely went way too wide the first time around the course. I couldn’t see any buoys for reference and only had a general idea that I needed to head back towards the shoreline in the distance. Once I got a bit closer I could see the weird grated structure that served as the third turn buoy and aimed myself that way.

As I passed the start/finish and headed out to begin loop number two, I was definitely questioning my decision to sign up for this race instead of the mile. It’s not like I’m training for an Ironman and needed any kind of long swim practice! I also attempted to see the clock at the point, but couldn't, so I have no idea how well I paced the two laps. I felt comfortable as I started the second loop and decided that I would hold steady until I made the second turn and would then attempt to pick up the pace on the long straight away back to the finish. About halfway through the second loop, Victoria decided that she was tired of me just hanging out behind her and dropped back to draft on my feet. I figured that she probably knew that I had been just behind her for most of the race and when she did that I knew for sure! All’s fair in open water swimming. :)

Finally I made that second turn and headed back towards the start. I tried to pick up my kick and increase my arm speed, though I have no idea if I was actually successful in picking up the pace. I knew from the first time around that I could swim a lot closer to the middle of the lake than I would have thought, so I really tried to keep that line back and avoid adding extra distance by getting closer to shore. Then I was making the last turn around the weird grate structure and tried to kick it in to the finish. When my hands hit the bottom I was up and running to the timing mat.

Final time – 56:32, 1^st in AG, 16^th woman, 43rd overall

It is very rare that I even place in my AG group, so I was very happy with the win! Once again I lost the showdown with Beth, but I was closer this time! Only 30 seconds instead of 50. Progress. I had been thinking before the race that I should be able to break 55 for two miles, but given that we both finished similarly again, I think I did the best that I could on this course. While Victoria and I both walked away with medals, sadly for Beth she is a part of a young, fast age group!

 

I really enjoyed this race and hope that I can do it again next year. Maybe I will even attempt the Sunday double (2 mile and 1 mile) or the whole Triple Dip (those two races plus the 5k on Saturday)!

Kinetic Half Relay race report

Two weeks ago I participated in my first ever triathlon relay, the Kinetic Half. If it wasn't totally obvious after I talked about it here and here and here, this was my A+++ race of the year. In addition to a "friendly" team competition with two other CAR & friends teams, there was a swim showdown with a certain Ironman in training. The fear of this intense competition motivated me to get back into the pool in January and to actually swim at least two times a week every week until the race. I took advantage of another future Ironman's excellent coach designed workouts by crashing a bunch of her swims, swam my first ever mile race, and managed to conveniently be at the pool a lot of the same mornings as my competition for pre-race reconnaissance. After four months of dedicated training, I was ready to race!

Sure, we look friendly here, but this was a cutthroat competition

Relays were in the last swim wave, so Beth, Jessica and I had plenty of time to get into our wetsuits and make our way down to the start. The course was a triangle so I decided to mentally break the race into three legs. Strong start, hold steady as we went across the far side and then go as hard as possible after I made the second turn and headed back towards the finish. We lined up right at the front and when our wave started I tried to dive right in a get myself clear of the masses. I could see Beth just ahead of me for about half of the first "side" but once we started to run into the waves ahead of us I lost her in the crowds. Once I caught up to those first swimmers, I never had a really clear path for the rest of the race. Being a relatively inexperienced open water swimmer, I still don't know exactly how often to sight or swim straight without a black line to follow, but I tried to settle into a decent rhythm. I'm guessing that I was probably looking up too often and would have been better off swimming for longer stretches with my head down. However, in addition to looking for buoys, lifting my head up helped me see the swimmers ahead of me. I definitely did a fair amount of weaving during the race, some that was helpful, some that probably just tacked on extra distance I didn't need.

By the time I made it to the second side, I felt like I had settled into a good hard effort and was happy with my pace. I was a bit frustrated by all of the traffic, but I was doing my best to kept pushing.  I was about halfway across the second side when all of a sudden I got a massive cramp in my left calf. I've gotten calf cramps in the pool before (though not during this training cycle) and I've always felt some sort of twinge ahead of time (normally when pushing off the wall) to warn me that it was coming. This one came out of nowhere. Immediately my brain went into overdrive. Given that there was no side of the pool where I could stop and stretch it on (my normal remedy), I wasn't sure how I was going to get rid of it. For less than a second I thought about stopping to do some type of awkward stretch while treading water, but immediately ruled that out because this was a RACE. Not only was it my race, I had teammates depending on me. So I settled for flattening my foot, lifting my toes towards my ankle and attempting to stretch it out that way while still moving. I more or less stopped kicking with my left leg and relied on my arms and a weak right leg kick.

The cramp had pretty much gone away by the time I made the second turn and headed back to shore on the final leg, though I was somewhat nervous that if I started kicking too hard it would come back. To be honest, my main worry at this point was that I would try to stand up and exit the lake and fall back down because my leg cramped up again. But I did try to increase my kick somewhat and pick up my overall pace. This leg was challenging because we were heading into the sun and even with my mirrored goggles I couldn't see much.  I swung far too wide going around the turn buoy and realized about a third of the way through the leg that the marker buoys were way off to my right. So I tried to work my way back onto the line while still heading forward. Finally my hands hit the bottom and I was up and running (no cramps!).

I heard them mention Jessica's name and team on the loudspeaker as I was running up the hill towards the transition area and knew she, at least, had finished ahead of me (turns out it was Jon leaving transition on his bike).  When I got to our rack and handed off my chip to Lauren, I found both Jessica and Beth waiting.

I ended up finishing in 31:23, a little over a minute behind Jessica and about 50 seconds behind Beth. I had been hoping I could break 30, and I am still quite confident I could do that for the distance in a pool, but I had forgotten about all of the additional complications of open water swimming. The calf cramp didn't help either, but I doubt it slowed me down all that much. Maybe 10-15 seconds, if even that? (As for the cause of the cramp, I'm blaming the wetsuit. It was the only thing that was different about the day. I think the compression, plus the fact that it ended mid calf, leaving half my calf compressed and the other not, must be the cause. To support this, my calf cramped again when I was pointing my toes to pull of the wetsuit and it got stuck around my calf.).

The time works out to about 1:29/100 yards. In contrast, at the Culpeper sprint tri last summer, I averaged about 1:43/100 yds over a significantly shorter distance. I wasn't wearing a wetsuit then, but this is certainly an improvement! With a few more open water races lined up for this summer, I hope to get that average even lower.

After getting changed, I spent the rest of the morning cheering for my team, the other CAR teams, and my brother who was competing in his very first 70.3! I felt like a bit of a slacker given that Lauren was on her bike for 56 miles and Steph had to run a half marathon in the heat. Not to mention all those athletes who did it all! Our team ended up finishing in 5:40:18, 16th out of 37 teams. Given that there was only one relay category and some of those teams could have been all men or co-ed, I think we had a very strong showing.