Celebration Half Marathon Recap: A PR!

On Sunday, I ran the inaugural Celebration Half Marathon. I think at one point months ago I contemplated running the full, but then I snapped back to reality and told my marathon brain to shutup. I am so glad I did not run the full. I heard many great things about the race from full marathoners - well organized, lots of support, more spectators than expected, etc. but I could not imagine doing two loops on that course.

Craig and I had a carpool date with Victoria and so in the wee hours of the morning we snuck over to her casa and she chauffeured us on down to Celebration. We were concerned about parking but literally found tons of open spaces about a quarter mile from the start. Score.

I was bragging about the fact that I took two Immodium (one the night before and one the morning of) so that I did NOT have to defile the port a potties. There is something about a race (even a teeny tiny 5k) that makes my stomach go haywire. I tried this method for Disney and it worked like a charm. Well, I guess my stomach is stronger than I think (not sure if this is good or bad) because it said, "Screw you, Immodium," and I ended up cutting about a hundred people in line to abuse that port a potty. I guess I am upgrading to three Immodium. I do not know if I should be proud or ashamed about this.

Even though I used the port a potty a total of THREE times, when we lined up at the race start I had to pee again. I contemplated how many people would notice me squatting in the bushes before the race, and then just told myself that if worst came to worst I could just pee on myself while running and everyone would think it was sweat. Yes, these were real thoughts. Sorry, Victoria for thinking about peeing on myself and then riding home on your leather seats. In all seriousness though, if it meant a PR, I would probably do it. No shame over here.


But, I digress...the race started after a national anthem that was sung by a woman and not the man advertised. Victoria and I started with the 3:40 marathon pacer (8:24/mile pace). Let me tell you, this man was booking it. My first mile was 8:20. He was a good ten seconds ahead of me. I wanted him to be my rabbit and eventually pass him, but he was going way too fast so I decided to play it safe. I honestly was not thinking about PR'ing because I was two weeks out from my last marathon and had not run much, or very hard since. This was a race to see where I was at, speed wise.

Victoria stuck with the pacer and I watched her short self pass me and thought, "Dammit man." I wanted to run faster at that point, but I kept telling myself to run my own race. Run MY pace, not anyone else's.

I settled into a running groove that scared the crap out of me. I was running miles in the 8:00-8:20 range and that is rare for a half mary. My half marathon pace is 8:43 (and that's my PR) - usually I run about an 8:40 pace the first ten miles, then hit the wall and shuffle to the finish around 8:50-9:00/mile paces for the last 5k. Seeing miles clocking in at 8:15 scared me because I felt like I just might fall over and die by mile 10 if I kept that up. Surprisingly, I did not. I had a steady pace for miles 2-10. I felt good. I felt like I was maintaining a comfortably hard pace. I wasn't dying, but it wasn't easy either. I hit the 10k around 51:00 and I was still going strong. My splits miles 1-9 were: 8:20, 8:13, 8:15, 8:18, 8:09, 8:04, 8:07, 8:17, 8:18.

I hit the 15k around 1:17. A new 15k PR. I've never run one under 1:19. This was an 8:16/mile pace. I was thinking at this point that I was the biggest badass in the world, and wtf was going on. So unreal. I felt good  though...until the dreaded mile 11, my archnemesis. This is where I usually slow down, and I did slow down but not by nearly as much as normal. Miles 11,12, and 13 were: 8:34, 8:46, 8:39. The last .22 was a 7:58 pace.

This is good news for my running. I'm starting to hit the wall at the same point, but it is having less impact on my speed. I realized I had a chance of a 1:50 half marathon around mile 11.5 and I picked up the pace a little bit more. I still had something in me. I wasn't letting this race go.

At mile 13, I saw the finish. I will add that mile 13 on my Garmin came earlier than mile 13 on the course, but I expected that. My official Garmin distance was 13.22. Not terrible, but I have run the tangents better for sure. I could have had a sub 1:50 time if I had actually run a 13.1. I was giving it my all at this point (which was a 7:58 pace...my all needs to get faster) and I knew this was a big PR. I crossed the finish line and was so freaking proud of myself. Official time: 1:50:28. A 4 minute PR. This really was a Celebration half marathon (hehehe, I had to).

It doesn't happen if you don't take a picture of your Garmin.

I met Katy earlier that morning and she finished right after me with a PR! So awesome. I finally also got to meet Michelle and even got to stalk her baby Evan when her family was at the finish. (He is as cute as his Instagram pics). Michelle PR'd too which is amazing! It was PR city. We snapped a cute pic and got to chat for a bit after the race.

Lovely ladies (photo cred: Victoria)

My runnin' buddy. 

What is even cooler than PR'ing is that I WON MY AGE GROUP! As in, first place. Never happened in a half marathon before. Yay yay yay!

(Source)

Thoughts on the race:

This course was fast and flat. I loved it. Half the time I wondered where the heck I was at, and where I might be going (lots of neighborhood loops and running through preserve boardwalks) but it still was a good course. I got to see a lot of identical white houses with picket fences that I could never keep clean. The support was EXCELLENT. Water at almost every single mile and they were also handing out Cliff bar gels, which I ended up taking. I would run this again in a heartbeat. Honestly, for a first race I was expecting a lot worse, so I was pleasantly surprised. And for $40 I got a great race, a good tech tee (V neck!) and a nice medal. Definitely a must do if you are in the area. I can't speak for the full, but I did hear good things.

Fueling:

My fueling plan was different for this half than any other, and I think it played a big role in my PR. I ate two pieces of Cinnamon raisin bread before the start and drank a lot of Nuun. I took a salt stick at mile 4, a Powerbar gel at mile 5, another gel at mile 7, a salt stick at mile 10 along with my last gel. I actually wish I had taken another gel around 12, because I think it could have boosted my last two mile splits. Eating this much for a race is something I have never done (I used to do halfs eating NOTHING and only drinking water and Gatorade before the race). I definitely think that fueling more has done wonders for my speed. Last February, I ran my PR half time - and it was a 2:03:47. My PR for this race was 1:50:28. That's 13 minutes in one year. I have worked my butt off to get to this point, but I know I can take even more time off my half.


What does this mean for my running? I am not sure. It kind of scared me to be running the paces I did, but it excited me more. It means that my tempos need to be much faster. My mile repeats should be sub-8. My track intervals need to be faster. Which they will be - I am not going to underestimate myself. I am going to push hard this spring training season and see what I can do. My goal (a lofty one, but still my goal) is a 1:45 half marathon. Will it be hard? Hell yes. That is an 8:00/pace. I have to take 25 seconds off per mile to achieve that goal. Is it doable? Hell yes. I just took 20 seconds off per mile during this half marathon from my previous PR - and I took that much time off in exactly a month.

My goal race is the Swamphouse Half Marathon on March 2. If I make my goal, awesome. If not, I have many more months to work on it in 2014.

And whether I ever PR again or not, I will continue to eat this after every half marathon:

I love you, BurgerFi.

What are your race goals for 2014? 


Have you noticed an improvement in your running because of fueling changes?

Disney Marathon Recap

I ran the Walt Disney World Marathon for the first time last year. I did Goofy's Race and a Half Challenge and hated it. It was miserable. Partly because I didn't get to train properly (my last long run(s) were a 10 miler and then The Jacksonville Bank Marathon the day after. Did the 10 miles then proceeded to eat bad tacos and woke up doubled over in stomach pain the next day, unable to move...food poisoning is a bitch). Long story short, I was unprepared. Also, I ran a half marathon 6 days before Goofy and my legs were not fully recovered. I had a bad impression of Disney and their races just because I did not enjoy my first experience. I was not a happy runner. Disney and the volunteers, course, etc. were AWESOME, I just couldn't appreciate it because my legs had revolted.

So I swore that I wouldn't do another Disney race...but then registration opened and so many of my running group buddies (aka "Team Ed," named after our awesome Marathonfest group leader) were signed up, so I figured what the heck...I would give it another shot. My sister was also doing it and I am a sucker for races.

I honestly was not that excited for this race until the expo. Any expo gets my blood pumping. I love them. I want to buy all the things and eat all the samples. Plus, Cigna and the AT&T Fam Cam were there, giving us the opportunity to take pictures and then have them printed out and sent to our email. Pretty dang cool! My favorite is the 360 photo that my boo and I took together. He was a good sport and put on the pirate hat with fake braids attached that I suggested forced him to wear. Hehe.

I also liked this Cigna one (quality is bad, sowwy). The quote is so true.

I think I was also excited about this race because it had been a full two months since my last marathon, thanks to my Space Coast fail. My last completed full was the Savannah marathon in early November. I was ready to run long this time. Mentally I was refreshed and my body had been able to recover and take time off from running long. My last longer/faster run was the Jacksonville Bank half that I ran last minute with my sista two weeks prior to Disney and it was a PR, which was a good mental boost for me. I knew I could finish Disney comfortably. I figured I would run it with all my friends and have a blast.

And I did just that...sort of.

Race day morning:

2:15 am was our wake up call since my sis and I were meeting two of my friends Rick and Mike to follow each other to Epcot. We wanted to make sure we parked next to each other and didn't want to deal with the hassle that trying to track someone down at Disney can be. So at 3:15 we met up and moseyed on over to Disney. The drive was not bad and we were parked and walking up to the bag check area by 4:10.

We used the porta-potties (3 times for me), ate, and complained about how freaking early it was. Then we went back to our cars to nap for 30 minutes since we had so much time to kill. After our shuteye, we started the cattle herding walk to the corrals.

Rick, Mike, myself, and Sarah before our nap.

Ed, our group leader, had agreed to meet us in Corral I and start with us. He is a perfect Disney marathoner (has done all 21 marathons!) so this was extremely nice of him. If you are a perfect Disney marathoner, you get the very nice amenity of starting in Corral A. So Ed is a saint for coming back to Corral I. This also meant we could run on autopilot and not focus on pace so much. Ed is so great about keeping our splits consistent and making sure we don't go out too fast.

Team Ed from left to right: Steve, Mike, Rick, me, Ed, and Bill

We met Ed, took some group pictures, and waited for it to be our turn to run across that start line! Carissa, the best race announcer ever, gave Team Ed TWO special shout outs before the start. I have to admit, it was like being a local celeb for five minutes. Everyone around us was like, "Who's Team Ed?" and we got to respond, "It's us!" So that's my rise to stardom. I doubt I will ever surpass that notoriety.

The race:

So the start line loomed closer, Mickey gave us the go ahead, and we were off! It was just as crowded as I remember, which was a little frustrating, but it pans out around mile 5 and got a lot better. Miles 1-5 flew by. I seriously wish my running group could come to every race with me. Chatting with them and laughing as we run makes it so much fun. We passed the 5 mile checkpoint at 52:10 with a 10:26/mile pace. A little slower than I anticipated, but it was early. We had a lot of time to speed up.

On our way to the castle! Photo credit: Rick

Mile 6-7 are some of my favorite miles because you go through Cinderella's castle and Main Street. There are TONS of spectators at this point and I felt so pumped up! We decided to stop for a group photo in front of the castle. Normally, I am against photos during a race but I did not plan on PR'ing and so I figured, why not? Might as well get my money's worth. I am SO glad we stopped - our pictures are amazing!

So pretty!

My favorite picture

Before the castle scenes, I took a Powerbar Performance Energy Blend gel at mile 5 (my new favorite race fuel), even though I was not hungry. I knew I needed to fuel before I felt like I needed to. I also took a salt stick at mile 4. My fuel plan for the race ended up being like this:

Powerbar Performance Energy Blends/Cliff gel: Miles 5, 11, 14, 17, 19.5, 23
Salt sticks: Miles 4, 8, 11, 14, 17, 19.5, 23

My fuel plan worked like a charm. I was never exhausted, hungry, or tired during the run. I had a LOT of energy and felt great after the race. Also, the next day I was not nearly as ravenous as usual. Not sure if I can attribute it to my fueling, but I definitely think fueling properly and so efficiently made a big difference.

Back to the race...

Miles 7-14 were filled with the Richard Petty speedway, Animal Kingdom, Everest, and knowing that there was a long stretch of highway ahead of us. We hit the 10 mile checkoint in 1:43:10 at a 10:19/mile pace. Faster, but not as fast as I thought we would be by that point. I thought we would be in the 9:5x range for overall pace. It was not something I was concerned with though, because I wasn't feeling too well during these miles.  I was honestly getting cranky and was upset I still had a half marathon left to run. I stopped for a picture with Rafiki with Mike and Rick just because I figured I would get done around 4:45 and that is not even close to a PR - so a picture wouldn't hurt my time at all.

Don't I look awkward?

We hit the halfway checkpoint in 2:15:31, with an overall pace of 10:21/mile. Our pace was dropping, and I could feel it. Rick asked me how I was doing, and I told him I was tired. Ha. Well, too freaking bad because we were only halfway done, he told me. I let him know I didn't plan on PR'ing and that we could all have fun together and finish whenever we finished. Might as well enjoy it! That was my plan, anyway......

Then came mile 14. I am not sure what happened. We were going through a water stop, and the group stopped to walk, and I continued to jog. If I walk through a stop, I will walk the rest of the race. I have to keep my legs moving. So, I did. According to my Garmin, mile 13 was 10:49. Mile 14 for me was 10:03. I could feel that I was moving faster. But I felt okay. Actually, I felt great. So I started running faster. Mile 15 was 9:53. Mile 16 was 9:50. At this point, I had lost my group. They were behind me and I thought to myself that I had to take advantage of how good I was feeling. I was experiencing second wind, which is so rare for me. I felt ON TOP OF THE WORLD.

I put my headphones in at Mile 16 and told myself that I had a ten mile training run. I was so pumped. My music playlist was new and the songs were getting me hyped. Mile 17 was 9:20. Mile 18 was 9:23. Mile 19 was 9:46. Mile 20 was 9:43. I was running faster, passing people, and feeling so awesome. Never before have I felt so alive while running, so happy and free. Yes, it sounds cliche, but that's how it went down, people. I was killing it. I passed the 20 mile checkpoint in 3:23:20, with an average pace of 10:10/mile.

I realized at mile 20 that I could PR. Not by much (my current PR was 4:34:37), but maybe by a minute. I made that my goal. I could not stop to walk these last 6 miles. I could not focus on the pain. I just had to run. AND I DID.

Pictures that Rick took around mile 24-25 during the final stretch in Epcot.

The last 10k of my race (or the last 6.60 if you are going by my Garmin) was an average 1:08:30. Average pace of 10:22. Incredibly fast? Not even close. Off my 10k time by quite a but. But the last 10k of a marathon is where I usually bite the dust. As in average mile splits in the 12:00/13:00 minute range. Not a pretty site. But this race was different. Yes, I hurt. Yes, I wanted to be finished. But I kept going. I didn't stop to walk once. I pushed through it all. And when I looked at my Garmin at mile 25 and realized that I could negative split this race, I ran hard. I gave it all I had.

I finished in 4:29:22. First half: 2:15:33. Last half: 2:13:49. I RAN NEGATIVE FREAKING SPLITS.

AND I GOT A 5+ MINUTE PR.

I still can't believe it when I think about it. The PR I knew I could make happen around mile 20. 5 minutes is great, and I ran a sub 4:30 race, which I am proud of. But nowhere near as proud of the fact that I ran a SMART race. I paced myself correctly. I fueled perfectly. I listened to my body. I ran the last half of a marathon faster than the first half. That feeling is so incredible, and I am still on a runner's high.

Finish photo with Team Ed!

I am not an elite athlete. I am not fast by most people's standards. But I am a marathoner and I am so proud of my accomplishments. This was my 11th marathon and by far, my favorite. It has ignited my love for the distance and for the sport of running right when I needed it. It has made me excited for 2014.

Congrats to everyone that finished any one (or all four) of the Disney races last weekend! BE PROUD of what you accomplished!

OUC Orlando Half Marathon Recap: My first pacing experience

This recap is late, but you know what they say...better late than never. 

I signed up to be a pacer for the OUC Orlando Half Marathon that was put on by Track Shack back in the summer. I absolutely love Track Shack - I am part of Marathonfest, a marathon training program that Track Shack hosts, and it is unbelievably awesome. Seriously, I would not get half my runs done without Marathonfest. I'm a co-dependant runner.

Only a few of the large Marathonfest group before the race. Can you spot me?

I ran my first OUC race last year and it was a PR. Loved the course and loved the medal, shirt, etc. It is a really great race, and seems to be turning into a destination race for Floridians. This year is was on December 7, and the weather conditions were sucky, for lack of a better word. It was HOT, and HUMID, and to be honest, if I was trying to race, there was no way I would have PR's (so congrats to everyone that did!)

So, after my Space Coast fail I was a little nervous about pacing the half marathon. (The half was 6 days after Space Coast). I signed up to pace the 2:15 group. The pace per mile is 10:17, which is a good minute slower than my long run pace. I was worried about being inconsistent, but that morning when I woke up, I decided that I was going to try my best to be the best pacer possible, and have a lot of fun. Ended up doing both. Boo ya.

The race started at 7am, and I had to be at the Track Shack tent by 6:20 to get my pacing sign, meet everyone, and be available for questions for anyone that wanted to run with me.

All the pacers before the race.



I was getting really pumped when I saw all the people that planned on running with me! Some of them were running their first half, and some were trying to PR. I told them that we would have fun and explained my strategy (run straight through, no intervals) and that my goal was to get them through the finish line about 30 seconds under 2:15:00.


Before I knew it, it was time to grab my pacing sign, and line up in the crowds. 

One of my favorite running buddies, Rick, found me before the start of the race and told me he would run with me. I was so happy to have someone from my running group there. Rick and I usually stick with each other for long runs and he is awesome.

The national anthem was sung, the horn blasted, and we were off. I knew the first mile would be slow, and it was (10:34), but I warned everyone who was running with me about that. This race had almost 4,000 finishers and the first mile was very packed. We picked it up the next two miles (just under 10:00 each), so that our average pace was just about 10:15. I wanted us to be able to finish strong, but to have some extra seconds in case something happened during the race.

The miles seriously flew by. Rick helped me so much with pacing because my Garmin (though I love it dearly) tells me my overall pace per mile, but only for the mile I am running. It does not tell me overall pace for my entire run. Rick made sure we were sitting around a 10:15 pace the entire time. He was awesome.

Before I knew it, we were passing the 10k, and then we were at the halfway point. I was feeling good because the pace was pretty comfortable and I wasn't pushing myself. I loved carrying my sign and I thought my arms might be tired by the halfway point, but they weren't at all. Everyone was chatting away and really enjoying the crowd support and volunteers. They were SO cheerful and positive! So many residents came to support the runners, which really helped morale. Much of this course is through residential neighborhoods, and seeing families, dogs, children, etc. really made the run enjoyable.

We passed the 15k and had a great pace still. Right after that we came to a tailgate that I had heard about through Facebook and they had.....BEER!

They were giving it out in these lovely cups. 

Rick and I shared a cup and the beer was delicious. It was cold and definitely hit the spot. I love beer on race courses. Usually I skip it if I am trying to run fast and "race," but since this was more of a fun run, I helped myself. The people there were probably wondering who the alcoholic pacer was for the 2:15 group.

Miles 10 and 11 passed pretty quickly after the beer stop, but there were some "hills." More of inclines, but that's all we have in Orlando. We kept our pace consistent and still had a 10:15 pace. 

Rick spotted a race photographer just after mile 12, so we turned on the smiles and posed. 

We are just so photogenic.

I saw the finish line just around the lake, and knew we would finish strong. We were passing a lot of runners, but our pace was consistent. By that time, it was almost 9:15 so it was miserable outside (the understatement of the year) and you could tell a lot of people were hurting. We tried to pump them up and have them run in with us, which was cool. Runners are so nice to each other. 

We crossed the finish line in 2:14:29. 

Looking good.

I was so happy! I had done it. I paced perfectly and got in thirty seconds under. The race announcer even commented that the "2:15 group is awesome, coming in within a minute." Seriously, that made my morning.

What did NOT make my morning was the line for free beer after. We had two Mich Ultra vouchers but the line was like 30 minutes long. I love beer, but I'm also impatient and I knew I had some in my fridge, so we said forget it. Rick and I took some photos, got some chocolate milk, and hung out for a bit before leaving. The race had a good after party with massages, ice, beer, and chocolate milk. My kind of perks.

Rick and I after the race. We make an excellent pacing team.

Some things I loved about the race:

1) I was able to run with one of my former student's mother and she ended up with a 20 minute PR! She had to ditch us around mile 8 for a bathroom break, but she found me after the race and that alone made me so happy. 

2) People cheering, "There's the 2:15 group! Go 2:15 group" everyt ime we passed supporters. I felt like a celebrity and it was AWESOME. It really kept me going and gave me more excitement. I think it helped other runners too.

3) The thanks I received after the race. I have never in my life felt so appreciated! Tons of people told me thank you for pacing. Some told me I helped them make their goals. I had some who PR'd and others who told me thanks because they stuck with me for half the race and then went on to finish faster with negative splits! It was one of the most rewarding experiences. 

4) The free race swag. Well, duh. Track Shack hooked it up. Free Brooks pacer tee, event tee, the awesome medal (see below), and a gift card to Track Shack, plus free race entry. I will definitely pace this race again next year if I have the chance!

 Lookin' fine with my bling.

All in all, a SUPER fun race (the race I have had the most fun in to date) and an excellent event put on by Track Shack. Run this race next year if you are able to - it is worth it!

How to be lazy and productive at the same time

Welcome to my Saturday! Aka Caturday.

 This is how it went down, in chronological order. I have the uncanny ability to be productively lazy. It's a gift and a curse. I figured I would share in case anyone would ever like to try. Just follow the steps below - they are a recipe for success. Or failure. Depends on your perspective.

1. Run a half marathon. Proceed to convince yourself that 99% of Americans are still sleeping in their beds while you are in Orlando running 13.1 miles in unbearable conditions for December. This obviously entitles you to whatever the heck you want for the rest of the day.

Photo cred: Paula from Eat: Watch: Run - there is no other way put into words the atrocity that the weather in Orlando was yesterday...and has been for quite some time.

2. Eat. Then tell yourself that because you ate, you must rest. Continue to rest for hours upon end, because it wears you out to keep resting for so long.

3. Do three loads of laundry, fold them, but don't put them away. The fact that you even did laundry in the first place should be rewarded. With a cider. Or three.

This cider literally tastes like liquid Jolly Ranchers. Which is good for my taste buds, and bad for every other aspect of my life.

4. Organize your house, but don't clean it. Cleaning should be saved for another day. There's always tomorrow, right?

5. Watch five episodes of American Horror Story Asylum. Scare yourself into taking a shower. See, you weren't lazy, you took a shower! (6 hours after you ran a half marathon, but whatever).

This show is amazing. But it really does scare the crap out of me.

6. Leave the house to get Panera for dinner. The fact that you got out of bed qualifies as an accomplishment. It does not matter that you did not even drive and you convinced your bf that he needed to chauffeur you. You left your bed and that's all that matters.

7. Eat Panera. So productive! And tasty.

I love their Thai Chicken Salad. This is not my actual salad. I got it to go and then inhaled it so fast that there was no time for pictures.

8. Play with your new Samsung Galaxy 3 Tablet. 

This thing is pretty cool and I do not regret my Cyber Monday purchase.

9. Google "cat memes" and then laugh hysterically at what Google provides you with.

10. Complain about the fact that Sunday will be too busy and you don't really want to do anything.