Indiana 15K

Indianapolis was my first 15k, a distance I actually really like and hope to run again soon.

I know I've come far with my running when I not only register for and race 9.3 miles, but I actually like it!

Indiana came at a good time for half marathon training, so it was a fun race in itself, but also a good barometer of where I am at for June.

So let's see,

My first time in Indianapolis was for the race and I have to admit, I was rather impressed.  It was smaller than I imagined, but very clean with a fun little downtown area.  Like most of the country this spring, it was really windy, but luckily the wind turned to a nice breeze for the race.

The 15k started at the NCAA Hall of Champions.  The Boyfriend and I cruised through the museum at the start since it was a place to stay warm.  Indy was a little chillier than I had thought it would be, but I guess being April, the weather could have swung either way.  The race started right on time, a definite benefit of running a no-frills race.  Packet pick-up was literally just the bib; no other swag.  I appreciate the simplicity of not being handed a bag of stuff that is going to end up in the trash.

The race started right at 8am.  I lined up about mid-pack, while The Boyfriend went to front with the fasties.  My legs felt good and ready to run and my knees were braced to (hopefully) prevent any PFPS recurrences.  I started out too fast, most likely from an unfamiliarity with running longer distances and from just general excitement.  I hit the .5 mile mark at 4 minutes, even though I was trying to maintain a 8:50-9:00 pace (which is hopefully what I'll be running the half marathon in).  Way too fast!  I tried to slow down, but hit the mile at 8:15.  Since Indianapolis is completely unknown to me, I really had no idea where I was running, even after looking at the course map.  Not knowing, so far, works well for me.

Indy is slightly hilly, but nothing major.  Unfortunately, by mile 3, both my knees were starting to hurt. I told myself to make it to mile 5 and then decide how to handle the remaining 4.3 miles.  I was still holding a good pace and didn't want to lose that.  The breeze had picked up a bit and I was getting a bit warm.  I took my gloves off, and tucked them into the waistband of my running tights, but neither made it across the finish line with me:(

After the 5 mile mark, I told myself to push through to the 10k.  Despite my incessant knee pain, the rest of me felt great.  My legs weren't tired at all, despite the soft hills and the too aggressive start.  At the 10k, I told myself to just push through to the end.  Despite the last two very painful miles that slowed me down, I finished under my time goal at 1:22:22.

Thank you Indy for a great race!

13.1, only half crazy.

When asked “what is your goal for a half marathon”, the answer is almost inevitably a time goal.  I have one of those as well, crossing the finish line in under 2 hours.  The clock, however, doesn’t measure my actual goal, at all.  My goal is to run the race consistently, with a positive mindset.  I want to enjoy the training cycle; feeling my body getting stronger, finishing long runs pain-free, and enjoy the ass-kicking feeling of a speed workout.  Most importantly, conquering PFPS (Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome).  PFPS derailed half marathon training last year.  I still ran my first half marathon in an unspectacular time, but it led to bigger and better things with my fall running.  Months of physical therapy helped, but then I ended up back at the chiropractor to be treated for the same thing, different leg.

This year, I am stronger, more aware.  More confident.  Last year when I decided to embark on the crazy path towards running 13.1 miles on a sunny June morning, my longest running distance was a 10k.  Longer distances scared me.   This year, I already have a half marathon under my belt.  In November I raced a 10 miler. 

I am a totally different runner than I was a year ago.

My training plan is now complete.  Coach finished writing it up last night.  I’m excited for it.  It is proudly hanging on my refrigerator, waiting to be conquered.  I ran for the first time today in a week after being taught a lesson about myself from a stomach flu.  My legs were stiff and weak and the temperatures were frigid. 

It was perfect.  It is just where I want to be at the start of a promising, exciting training cycle. 

13.1, here I come!

Hawaii 5K

May 2013

Hele on Kailua was a fun Mother’s Day race that I had the pleasure of running with my big sister.  This race was right in the middle of my not running, but doing ample physical therapy time, and was somehow a month before my first half marathon (long story).  And who doesn’t want to run a 5k while on vacation in Hawaii! 

I’ve never run a 5k like this before.  The course consisted of 3 loops through a park right on the beach.  I think pretty much everything is right on the beach when referring to Hawaii.  I started out too fast, because it just felt good to be running again.  The course was a bit hilly, and the humidity was, predictably, pretty thick.  The race was really small, small enough that people were actually checking to make sure each runner ran the 3 loops and didn’t try to Kip Litton the 5k.  The humidity started to get to me a little after the first mile, since it was still pretty cool weather wise back home.  I hadn’t run in warm humid conditions since the summer prior.

Looking at the Pacific Ocean while running was awesome. Birds swooping and screeching, bystanders clapping and high-fiving, and the crescendo of waves hitting the shore matched every step.  There was a recently married Japanese couple taking photos that everyone had to run right past 3 times.  I’m sure there was nothing more romantic then a bunch of sweaty runners huffing right through your wedding photos.  Sorry about that.  I might have been the girl who waved at the camera a few times as well.  Again, I apologize.  I think by the end they just gave up and were waiting for the race to be over. 

I finished in a respectable, but not PR time of 25:39.  Not awful for literally not having run for almost two months. 

Thank you Hawaii, for the awesome memories.

Mackinac Island, MI 8M

September, 2013

This was my first race coming off a disappointing, but also exhilarating, first half-marathon a few months prior.  I had trained hard during the summer, still battling healing knee pain, but also impressed that my body, with inconsistent training and in lots of pain, still ran/walked/trudged through 13.1 miles on a sunny June morning. 

Mackinac Island is just about 8 miles in circumference, making for a naturally perfect race course.  The Boyfriend and I arrived Thursday, and rode bikes around the island once on Thursday and once Friday.  The road had some natural hills in it that weren't huge at all, but since I run on completely flat ground, any hill is of some concern.  I started to doubt my ability to run this in my time goal the night before, which made me nervous.

The Boyfriend and I woke up late on race day, since my phone died during the night which consequently also killed the alarm.  We rushed through breakfast, checked out of our hotel, and walked to the start.  Luckily we went to packet pickup the day before since we were already on the island and the sponsoring hotel was just a few down from ours.  Once we got to the start, we stretched.  A tendon that runs behind my knee was giving me some trouble, but I stretched it out and The Boyfriend and I ran a short warmup.  As the crowd started to gather at the start, I noticed that everyone was in shape.  These people all looked fast!!  We stood near the front and JThe Boyfriend eventually made his way to the very front to run with the really fast people.  One lady standing next to me said "well that's the last time we are going to see those people!"  I laughed, but didn't tell her one of those guys was The Boyfriend.
My goals for the race:  finish in 1:12:00 which is a 9:00 pace.  Negative split so I'd start slow, then finish fast.  Don't stop, and hydrate well beforehand.  What actually happened:
  Splits:
7:59
8:13
8:11
8:25
8:37
8:41
9:09
8:53

So clearly my plan to negative split completely failed.  I stopped at mile 4 to use the restroom, since I had way too much water beforehand.  I stopped my watch out of habit, so that's not reflected in the time.  I've never stopped for a potty break in the middle of a race before but running on a full bladder started getting kind of painful!!

My official time is 1:09:40 (8:43 pace), way faster than the 1:12 I was worrying about.  My watch said 1:08:34 (8:31 pace) for 8:05 miles, which is what I would have finished in had I not run off course to visit the little bathroom hut.  Seriously, I couldn't be prouder!!  Based on the results, the other racers were really fast!  I finished 21st in my age group and 273 overall.  Some of these people were speed demons.

This race went so much better than I could have imagined.  It was hard, especially towards the end.  I walked for about 10 seconds through a water station at mile 7.5 because the humidity almost killed me.  I needed the water really badly.  That's the 9:09 mile.  Since The Boyfriend finished way before me, he was there at the finish.  That was awesome. He wasn't expecting me to finish when I did and I loved the cheering and yelling he did while I ran past him into the finishers chute.  He met up with me carrying water and orange slices for me.  He said the best part of the race for him was seeing me notice the time as I approached the finish line, realize I was way ahead of my goal, and just charge through to the finish with a huge smile on my face.

Mackinac Island, aside from the race, was really magical.  We spent 3 days on the island prior to racing, then left the island to visit the Upper Peninsula.
My official time is 1:09:40 (8:43 pace), way faster than the 1:12 I was worrying about.  My watch said 1:08:34 (8:31 pace) for 8:05 miles, which is what I would have finished in had I not run off course to visit the little bathroom hut.  Seriously, I couldn't be prouder!!  Based on the results, the other racers were really fast!  I finished 21st in my age group and 273 overall.  Some of these people were speed demons.
This race went so much better than I could have imagined.  It was hard, especially towards the end.  I walked for about 10 seconds through a water station at mile 7.5 because the humidity almost killed me.  I needed the water really badly.  That's the 9:09 mile.  Since The Boyfriend finished way before me, he was there at the finish.  That was awesome. He wasn't expecting me to finish when I did and I loved the cheering and yelling he did while I ran past him into the finishers chute.  He met up with me carrying water and orange slices for me.  He said the best part of the race for him was seeing me notice the time as I approached the finish line, realize I was way ahead of my goal, and just charge through to the finish with a huge smile on my face.

Mackinac Island, aside from the race, was really magical.  We spent 3 days on the island prior to racing, then left the island to visit the Upper Peninsula.  
This race went so much better than I could have imagined.  It was hard, especially towards the end.  I walked for about 10 seconds through a water station at mile 7.5 because the humidity almost killed me.  I needed the water really badly.  That's the 9:09 mile.  Since The Boyfriend finished way before me, he was there at the finish.  That was awesome. He wasn't expecting me to finish when I did and I loved the cheering and yelling he did while I ran past him into the finishers chute.  He met up with me carrying water and orange slices for me.  He said the best part of the race for him was seeing me notice the time as I approached the finish line, realize I was way ahead of my goal, and just charge through to the finish with a huge smile on my face.
Mackinac Island, aside from the race, was really magical.  We spent 3 days on the island prior to racing, then left the island to visit the Upper Peninsula.  
Mackinac Island, aside from the race, was really magical.  We spent 3 days on the island prior to racing, then left the island to visit the Upper Peninsula.  

It wasn't terribly warm out, and the sun spent most of the morning behind clouds.  The humidity, man, that was awful.  At one point I felt like I was running through such dense air I could barely move through it.  The best part about running on vacation, though, was that I was so relaxed during the whole thing.  Just enjoying running, enjoying racing, enjoying life.

Chicago 5k

I finished up my race season with a 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. I had mixed expectations for the race. I wanted to break that 25 minute mark, but I'm also pretty beat up. My knee is still being treated by a chiro and my right Achilles has been sore for a couple of weeks now. The Boyfriend and I signed up for this race after another 5k race at the airport that didn't quite go as planned. We thought it was a small 5k, and since it started near my house, it was really convenient. When we showed up, the area was packed. Definitely not the small little race we anticipated. The temperature was 24 degrees, with that terrible windchill, not good racing weather. We did a tiny warmup, but it didn't actually warm either of us up. Since we planned to just show up and run, we walked right to the corral. I started with the 8:00 pace group and The Boyfriend went to the 6:00. The announcer said 6,000 people were running. Whaaaa?! We thought we were weirdos for racing on a holiday; clearly we live near lots of weirdos. The first mile (7:48) went okay. I started in the back of the 8:00 group, since lets be real, I barely belong in the group. The race course actually had us running on Lake Shore Drive, which was awesome. Way too many people to run on the nearby lake path. My lungs were burning during the entire first mile. It was so cold and every breath felt like I sucking in needles. At mile 2 (8:03) a lot of people started to slow down. Either the cold was getting to people or a lot of folks wanted to be in a faster pace corral than their abilities allowed. I spent a lot of time and energy weaving in and out of people. I saw The Boyfriend on his way back to the finish. He cruised by and waved acting like he was out for a stroll, even though I knew he was running at a low 6 something pace. Jerk. Mile 3 (7:47) was running back south into the wind. It wasn't awful, but I reached that point of feeling like my legs might fall off. The last tenth mile was run at a 6:47 pace. The Boyfriend had finished (way) before me. He went back to the 3 mile mark to run with me through to the finish on the other side of the barrier. My watch didn't synch well with the mile markers, and when I finished I couldn't stop the watch with my gloves on, so I knew my watch time was off. I did know I was below the 25 minute mark though!! Official results weren't posted for more than 24 hours after the race! 24:39 I did it!!! This 5k had such a fast crowd that I finished like 130+ female. Regardless, I beat my PR by 32 seconds in crappy conditions. I remember when I first started running and running a sub 30 minute 5k seemed hard. Running 3 miles was hard. A coworker made a flippant comment about I was running too slow and I should be running a 24 minute 5k. It seemed impossible. It was impossible, for about two years. He wouldn't even remember making the comment, but it stuck with me. One of my favorite things about running is how hard work is almost quantifiable. You practice enough, and race times drop. It's not easy, but it's worth it. Right now, I'm taking a break from racing. I'm on my usual December hiatus: no racing, no biking, and only running 3x a week. I've been doing my PT and new PT-like exercises from the chiro. That's going well and something I plan to do in earnest. I'm still trying to get my race schedule figured out for 2014.

The LIST

Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Up next, Indiana!

San Diego, CA

October, 2013

I didn't really have any expectations for this race other than to have fun. I had raced another 10k two weekends prior that went well in terms of time, but I felt like crap pretty much the whole race. Since I was content with the time (51:04) which was also a 10k PR for me, I just wanted to run this one with no goal. SD is also a bit hilly, so I thought the course would be way more challenging than the race I had just run.

My friend Joel picked me up a bit late for this race, which made me nervous. When I don't have my packet beforehand, I always feel unprepared. Luckily parking was a breeze, and we only had to wait a few minutes for our packet pickup. Since Joel drove, we walked back to our car to dump our stuff instead of doing gear check.

Joel and I didn't really have a plan about running together or not. We just set off together, near the front of the pack. Joel is more of a distance runner than I am, but I have more speed. Not sure how that was going to translate for a 10K. Joel started off running too hard. He took off ahead of me, then turned around and started running backwards. I told him he was going to crash at like mile 4 if he kept doing that. Before we hit mile 1 we were running on dirt. We made it off the dirt, circled a large warship, then had to run up a hilly bridge. I live in a completely flat area. Any hill is challenging for me. My legs felt really good, so I took a deep breath and charged up it. Joel fell behind me at that point and never caught up. After the bridge, we turned a sharp corner, then were back on a very narrow dirt trail. I got caught behind a woman with a stroller which was frustrating. She was hauling ass though. I passed her up as soon as I could. Then we reached the main drag and ran along the side of it. At one point, we hit a sand area and had to run through that. Even though my legs felt good, I really only race on flat, hard ground. Anything different is harder for me. I didn't look at my watch at all, bc I wasn't worried about time. I didn't think I was going to beat my PR, so I was really running to have fun.

As we neared the turn around point, I could count the leaders passing me on my way back. By the time I actually hit the turnaround, I was 10th female, though just based on who started before me. Right after the turnaround, I passed a female, which put me in 9th. I picked up the pace after that, but only passed two other females before I finished. When I hit mile 4, I passed Joel, who by that point was 1.5 miles behind me. My legs still felt awesome, but I really had to pee. I kept running, running, running, down the narrow dirt path, back up and down the bridge, around the warship. Here was when things got dicey. I thought the course would be just an out and back. It was for a large portion, but on the way back, we started twisting and turning around small parks for the last 2 miles. It seemed like we were so close to the finish line, but then we'd turn around and were veering the other direction. At mile 5.5, I knew we were close so I picked up the pace. I had to go to the bathroom SO bad at this point. Running on a full bladder is really uncomfortable! I passed the 6 mile mark, then ran the last loop to the finish line.

Running severely limits my ability to do math. Not sure if it is because all my blood is in my legs and not my brain, but I can't do anything involving numbers at all when running. I knew my PR was 51:04. I hit mile 6 thinking I was already past my PR. In sight of the finish line, I realized my watch said 50:30. It was then I realized I was still under my PR and gunned it to the line.

50:45. A new PR two weeks after my first.

I actually felt really good upon finishing. I waited nearly 10 minutes for Joel to finish, then raced to the bathroom. We left our phones and stuff in Joel's car, so I grabbed his keys and ran to the car. As I was running, I realized if I still had a lot of energy left in my legs, I could have raced even harder! Considering the small challenges on the course, my legs never felt tired or heavy afterwards.

Joel and I went to a nearby breakfast place which was awesome. Then he took me back to Megan's house where I was staying.

8:08 pace. 3rd place in my age group.

I love destination running!