Sauvie Island 1/2 marathon...finally

Okay let's give this a try again! On Wednesday I finished my whole blog post and then somehow lost it, so frustrating. This might be an abbreviated version though.

Since my last 1/2 on June 11th, I had been feeling a little burnt out. My runs had been hard and I was just not feeling it. Mentally I was not into it and I felt a lot of pressure because I had set a goal and shared it. I was seriously doubting myself and my ability to pull off a sub 1:30. I wanted to run for fun not race. Tell me I am not the only one who ever feels this way!

Luckily the night before I was able to talk to the ever encouraging Nicole from I Dream of Running who helped me wrap my mind around the race and gave me a great pep talk. It always helps to have someone else who understands and believes in you even when you are doubting.

It was a beautiful morning and I was excited to run and then get on with all of the 4th of July festivities with the fam :) I decided to just drive myself because I did not want to risk having my family miss the parade later if they came to see me and we did not make it home in time. I was a little sad that I was not going to have any of my family there but I was hoping to meet up with several blogging buddies and my running friend Eric was running this race and we planned to run together and hopefully pace each other to new PR's.

I arrived plenty early and just chilled in the car for a while then went and visited the port a potty a few times. Before I knew it the marathoners were taking off and then it was only 15 minutes until the start of the race. I did about a 3/4 mile slow warm up and then made my way to the start. This was the first race that I had ever done any sort of warm up for and I will be doing it again. I lined up pretty close to the front and luckily Eric found me. We talked game plan and luckily we were on the same page. For the first time I was going to try and go out slower than race pace and then drop down to race pace and then hopefully be able to kick it in the last mile. I was nervous about this plan because I was worried that I would not be able to make of the time after a slow first mile but I know this is how all the elites do it so there must be something to it.

So the goal was 1st mile around 7:20 and then drop down and hold at 6:50ish through mile 12 and then see what I had left. How did I do....

Well I tried to go out slow

Mile 1- 7:07 Shortly after mile run I saw Nicole on the side of the rode on her bike waiting to take pics of her friends and cheer us all on. How fun to see her :)

Mile 2- 6:43 Feeling good, chatting with Eric and hoping that the miles were going to fly by. Still doubting a little bit that I was going to be able to pull it off.

Mile 3- 6:52 Made myself slow a little just because there was so much race left and I wanted to have something left in he last couple of miles

Mile 4 - 6:42 This was the pace that was feeling good at the time so I went with it. There was a short out and back here. Always fun to see the competition :)

Mile 5 - 6:41 Nicole rode up and we chatted for a bit, it was nice to have someone checking up on me and pushing me.

Mile 6 - 6:41 Started running into a headwind, it was not too strong but I was feeling it. Took 2 energy blasts.

Mile 7 - 6:51 My legs were starting to hurt and I remember telling Eric that I was hurting, he told me toto draft behind him and it seemed to help some.

Mile 8 - 6:47 Felt like I was already having to dig deep which made me wonder if I was going to hit a major wall. Took another energy blast.

Mile 9 - 6:51 Turned and had a little bit of a tail wind which helped.

Mile 10 - 6:46 I remember thinking just another 5K, I can do this!!! Wish I had been able to carry on more conversation but I was pushing hard and it was not happening!

Mile 11 - 6:53 My legs were hurting but we could see the building where the finish was and we started discussing our strategy. Although I was not sure I would have anything left, I was going to give it everything in the last mile.

Mile 12 - 6:45 Can we be done yet? Although I had been taking Nuun or water at every aid station I was thirsty but was just going to gun it out.

Mile 13 - 6:35 Eric left with about mile left to chase down a couple of guys in front of us. I wished him luck and was on my own but only for a few seconds before Nicole rode up. Thank heavens she did, she pushed me through the last half mile, calling out splits, giving me encouragement, getting water at the aid station when I turned it down, making me believe that I could push harder. When she saw the clock she told me to kick it as I was going to be able to break 1:28. What? My goal was to break 1:30, was this for real?

I crossed the finish line at 1:27:49

1st in my age group

6th female overall

6:42 pace

I honestly could not believe that I had done it. Eric had crossed about 30 seconds ahead of me and we were both so happy. Nicole went back to pace some of her friends, seriously that girl is amazing!!!! I know it must have been hard for her to be at a race that she so badly wanted to be running. She was a lifesaver and I am so grateful that she was there!

Lessons learned:

• Starting out slow does pay off in the end
• Warming up does help
• Although I do take something at every aid station, I think that I probably need to give hydration belts another try. Any suggestions?
• My body is capable of a lot more than I thought :)
• It is amazing what it does when someone believes in you :) Thank you to all of my friends and family who constantly believe in me.
• If it doesn't feel a little uncomfortable I am probably not pushing as hard as I can. It felt somewhat uncomfortable the whole race.

It was an amazing race! I left it all out there and finished strong.

Running on air :) Coach Nicole pushing me!!!

Mission accomplished :) Race report coming soon!

It was a beautiful day for a race :)

My goal was sub 1:30 and I ran a

1:27:49

6:42 pace

1st in my age group

6th woman overall

More to come but for now there are too many 4th of July festivities to attend to.

Happy, yes. Tired, yes. Worth it, you betch ya!!!!

Pressure

So I have decided that I should not have shared my goal for my race on monday because now I am feeling the pressure!!!! Does anyone else ever regret sharing their goals? Maybe it is good for me, it will make me push myself, right? How do I deal with these nerves?

If anyone reading this has any ideas I would love to hear them!!!!!

Until I figure it out I will just try and go to a happy place :)

Balance

Between these,

This,

and this,

I am feeling overwhelmed and so out of sorts. How do I find balance? Usually running is my outlet, and it helps, but the past week I have felt sluggish and generally tired after. How do I get my mojo back?

Feeling overwhelmed trying to be a good Mom, keep the house show ready, and train like I want to. Something has to give, any advice? I am hoping a least a few people read this and have some great solutions for me.

Helvetia Half 2011 race report

I need to document this race before I forget all the fun :)

So I was pretty nervous for this race because I knew that had the ability to beat my time and I really wanted to!! I trained hard but I still found myself doubting that I would be able to pull it off. Friday was busy and my hubby had to work the night shift at work so that meant that I got to do a late baseball game and then get the kiddos down. I had great intentions of having all my gear laid out early in the day so that when I got them in bed I would be able to get to bed not long after. IT of course did not help that our house is on the market and someone wanted to come and look at it while my family was going to be at the race. So after I got the house "show" ready I had my ritual prerace fuel.

Yes, I love McDonalds ice cream cones :) So I got to bed at 11pm, which is pretty good, all things considered. The race did not start until 8am and is just about 10 minutes from where I live but the race organizers had been stressing getting there early. I was trying to follow the rules and there is nothing worse than sitting in traffic and having major anxiety about getting to a race late and having to start after the majority of the runners. I really wanted to give myself the best chance at reaching my goals.

My alarm went off and I really wanted to hit snooze :) Up and at em I was in the shower just to wake me up and dressed and ready to get the show on the road. Picked up my friends Dar and Becky and made it to the parking lot by 6:50. I had brought my oatmeal to eat in the car while we chatted about all things racing. I did not look at the clock but when my bladder was full we decided that it was time to get out and hit up the bathroom and check our bags.

There were so many people! I think 5,000 between the 10k and the half. The port o potty lines were so long so we headed to the stadium hoping the lines would be shorter. No dice!! They were just as long if not longer. It was now 7:45 and after standing in a couple of lines for a few minutes we decided it was a better idea to check our bags and stand in the port o potty lines near the start. Finally got through the line ducked under the fence, got to the front just as the national anthem started. 3,2,1 and I was off!

My goals for this race were to PR for this course (previous PR on this course 1:35:23), finish feeling strong, and fuel properly.

This is the first time I have raced this race with my Garmin and I was happy to have it.

Miles 1-3 were fast. Not the best racing strategy to have Mile 1 be the fastest of the race. Someday I will run a negative split, why is this so hard to do?

A trainer named Hayley from the gym I go to was running this race and we are about the same pace. I knew she was trying to run a sub 1:30. I knew if I was close to her that I would accomplish my time goal. So with in the first mile I found myself right behind and I started to psych myself out. I looked at my watch and realized just how fast I was starting out but I really wanted to stay close to Hayley. Then I started to question whether or not I was going to be able to hang with her.

Mile 1: 6:27

Mile 2: 6:37

Mile 3: 6:41

About mile 3 the hills started and I decided to slow a little so that I would be able to finish strong. The hills on this course are numerous and pretty big. Everytime I run this course I swear that I will not run it again.

Mile 4: 7:09

Mile 5: 7:44 Big Hills here, one after another

Mile 6: 6:57 Downhill to the turn around, I was pushing pretty hard and knew that I needed to fuel soon. It was fun going down and seeing the leaders flying back up the hill. At this point I also got to see that I was the 3rd female. Incentive to keep pushing :)

Mile 7: 7:03 I really like the turn around because I got to see a lot of my friends going down as I go back up the hill. It took my mind off the fact that I was going uphill. Time to pull out my fuel out of my back pocket and throw my gloves which I had been carrying since mile 1. My new favorite fuel are Energy Blasts from PowerBar. They seriously taste like candy. Finally out of the major hills it was time to get through the rolling hills that I always forget about.

Mile 8: 6:52 Feeling good and really hoping for somebody to talk to. I usually find someone to chat with but I really was alone most of the race. I thought about turning on my ipod but decided against it.

Mile 9: 6:50 Chatted with a girl who passed me but then she slowed and we ran side by side for a while. She was running her 1st 1/2 marathon and rocking it.

Mile 10: 7:00 Not a huge fan of the gravel road and the worst part is turning back onto the pavement. Once I turned onto the pavement I pulled away from the girl that I had been running with.

Mile 11: 7:08 Ran with a guy that was running his 1st 1/2. We chatted a little bit but we were both pushing hard and it was just nice to have other people around :)

Mile 12: 7:00 This mile seemed to last forever!

Mile 13: 7:05 I was so happy to almost be done :) I could still see Hayley and I knew I was going to accomplish my goals but as I was reveling in my near completion, I got passed by a woman! I was not happy about this but she was cooking and I was not going to be able to match her. She had a guy pacing her and I was jealous! I wish that I had someone running with me! I pushed as hard as I could but knew that there was no way I was going to catch her. :(

My friend Dar met me with about 1/2 mile left and ran with me for a minute. It was so nice to see her!

I love the finish of this race! You run into the stadium and they call your name over the loud speaker as you cross the finish line. It is so fun! Running down the chute I saw so many friends and my family, it was awesome.

Finish 1:32:05 Course PR by 3 minutes 18 seconds

5th woman overall

1st in my age group

I was so happy to have finished strong and get a course PR. Let the fun begin! I had a lot of friends running this race and it was so fun to see them finish and see them so happy!

Hayley and I talking shop right after we finished. She finished 50 seconds in front of me.

Nicole, Becky, Me, and Jillyn

Orange smiles :)

Yeah, we did it!!!

My little Lily eating my Helvetia burger :)

My buddy Dar, thanks for helping me believe :)

First place ribbon :)

I think that I fueled pretty well during the race. I think that I could have fueled a little sooner and maybe had more in the end but I am learning.

I think that I need to believe in myself a little more but I am getting there. I am actually starting to believe that I can run fast.

We will see what I am able to pull off on July 4th on a flat course. Hopefully sub 1:30?

Maybe I should follow the "rules" more often :)

Helvetia Half

1:32:05 -PR for this race by 3minutes 18 seconds

1st in my age group

5th out of 2731 women

I am happy:) and tired!

Full race report coming soon!

Trying to be good :)

So I am trying to be good and let my body rest some before my race this weekend. I usually run like I do every other week during race week, I don't get enough sleep, and I am probably not hydrated enough going into most races ( I have done 3 of my 5 marathons at altitude and I live at sea level).

I decided that this week I am going to try and run 25% less than normal, get more sleep, drink a lot of water, and decide when and what I am going to fuel with. I know for many of you these are the things that you do before most of your races but I always break the "rules".

I know what my body can do on tired legs but I am wondering what it can do on fresher legs. Hopefully is is better otherwise I may never follow the "rules" again! :) I probably need to get a coach if I want to meet the goal that I have in my head. I need someone to tell me what to do!! No, I am not going to share my goals just yet, maybe soon. We will see how it goes :) Hoping the results are this...

Couldn't leave this one at the store :)

Yesterdays workout:

11 miles-some good hills- 7:12 pace

Todays workout:

Killer spin class, 15 minutes elliptical