Well, that was a let-down: Kansas City Half Marathon

The Short:
The biggest lesson I learned from this one is that achieving your goal becomes a let-down if you first think you've exceeded that goal.  I ran this race as a progressive split tempo workout, and expected to finish in 1:23:40 if I executed the workout as written (yes, I did the exact math).  The weather was craptastic (68* and 25 mpw wind), the course is hilly (around 750 ft gain), and my Garmin freaked out, but I ran the workout the best I could under the conditions I had, and I finished the race in 1:21:36.  I later learned that the female lead cyclist guided me though a wrong turn that cut 0.28 off the course, meaning that I should have run a 1:23:16 (I did the exact math on this too).  Oh, and despite having that female lead cyclist with me from mile 2 through the end, and having her and multiple spectators tell me that I was winning the race, I actually placed 2nd overall female.  I would have been thrilled with hitting the challenging workout on the challenging course, and perfectly happy with 2nd overall when running it as a workout had I not thought I ran a 1:21 and won for hours (and posted it on social media).  Oy!

The smile of someone who *thought* she was about to win, hah

The Long:
I love the Kansas City Half Marathon and have run it 7 times now:  2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 (I ran the full marathon with the event in 2005, 2007, and 2011).  In what was perhaps the luckiest win of my life, I won a free entry for life into the race in a 2011 photo contest, so I will obviously keep running it every year!  I highly recommend the event and would run it most years even without the free entry too -- even after what happened this time, though it's going to take me a bit to get over it.

2017 was a year that this event didn't work as a goal race for me.  It's a challenging hilly course, but I've PRed on it twice in the past (with a 1:24 in 2015 and a 1:28:36 in 2010), and wouldn't be against trying that again, but the timing for that wasn't right this year. With the way the weather panned out I am so glad I did not make it a goal race.  When I sent my coach my list of races for this season, I noted "can be done as a workout" by several of them, including this one.  I expected to perhaps run this unrested at marathon goal pace, but I didn't exactly expect the workout I got, which was a split tempo workout of 4, 3, 2, 1 miles with 0.5 mile recoveries (and the last 1.1 with "all you've got left").  Essentially this meant the race was supposed to be 10 miles at tempo, 2 miles at recovery, and 1.1 of hammering.  The tempo goal paces were challenging (6:15-6:20 for the 4 mile, 6:10-6:15 for the 3, 6:05-6:10 for the 2, sub-6:00 for the 1), and I knew if I hit them I would end up with a pretty solid half time.  I had some pretty big concerns about being able to hit them in the wind and on the Kansas City course though!  I was still glad I was running the workout during the race, because I didn't exactly have any training partners jumping up and down to run this one with me, and I was also able to combine it with my once a month-ish work trip to Kansas City.

Getting ready to roll to the race solo

I treated the race like a workout day, but it's also hard not to get extra pumped in a race environment.  I tried to time my warm-up jog to go straight into the race, and ended up with 2.5 miles total plus some drills and strides.  Then we were off!  The 10K, half, and full marathon all started together, it's a huge race, and it's still mostly dark at the 7:05 a.m. start, so I saw a handful of women out ahead of me but I didn't know which event most of them were in, and then it was difficult to track as the masses spread out.  I was fully invested to sticking to my pace plan, but I also knew that 1:29 won the half in 2016 (the first year the race stopping giving prize money), so I thought I'd have a chance at a top spot.

I hit mile 1 in exactly 6:20, right where I wanted to be.  During mile 2, I looked at my Garmin to check my pace and it was reading 4:33 average pace for that mile, which I was definitely not running.  Just before the 2 mile mark the 10K course split off from the half and full, and a cyclist started riding just behind me.  I checked my Garmin again and it read 8-something pace, which I was also definitely not running.  I ended up using the course miles for mile splits 2, 3, and 4, because my Garmin was being funky.  I knew I was right around my range of 6:15-6:20 for those miles, because math was work-able off the course markers at this point.

I had my workout programmed into my watch, but since my watch was screwing up pace and distance, it made my half mile recoveries not fall when they should on my watch, and I started getting stressed out about not having my workout splits.  I thought about starting to manually lap by the course miles and just using my watch distance for the half mile recoveries, but since I was running the pre-programmed workout I thought I'd really screw it up by starting to manually lap, advancing it and making it end early, so I ended up just doing the best I could with doing the math on the course markers when I could (which is not easy when running hard!).  Because of all of this the splits my Garmin took were often a mix of hard running and recovery running (and also not even correct -- I think my Strava data were close to accurate but were also a mix of hard running and recoveries).  I don't have my actual workout splits at all, aside from knowing my first 4 miles were right on.

When I was on my first recovery, I asked the cyclist with me if she was for me, and she told me she was the lead female half cyclist.  I then got excited that I was leading, but worried that someone was going to pass me on my recovery jog.  But I stuck with the workout plan and did the recovery jogs!  The factors that really helped me stick to this was that I knew it wouldn't be a good day to race fast due to the temperature and wind speed, and no one (men or women) passed me on my recoveries, but since CIM is the big goal I think I'd have stuck to the workout regardless.

The miles went by pretty quickly, I think partially because I was focused on each segment of my workout and not 13.1 as a whole -- and probably also because I panicking about screwing up the workout due to my watch issues and trying to do math on my splits.  Several people on the course told me "first female", which spurred me along, and the cyclist complimented me several times, which was quite helpful.  I was also very ready to get out of the crazy wind, so anytime we were running into it I was pushing to get to the next turn for some relief.

The face of someone trying to do mental math on splits

 In the final 2.5 miles or so, the half course met back up with the 10K course, and then I was pushing to get to the finish and out of the 10K masses!  For the final quarter mile or so, the road was divided with the half finishing to the left and the 10K finishing to the right, so that was helpful.  The announcer said my name as I was coming in, and I kind of expected a finishing tape and a "first overall female" announcement, but there was none of that.  I was, however, pleasantly surprised to see a 1:21 finishing time; when I was a bit farther away I thought the clock was on 1:24 instead of 1:21!

Happy finishing stretch shot, with 10Kers on the left

I specialize in ruining finishing photos by stopping my watch

Forced smile for this one

My friend Michelle, who ran an awesome 10K, was at the finish waiting for me, as we had planned to meet there and cool down together (she had a 10 mile cool down and had already started it).  She told me that she got to break the finishing tape, although she actually placed 2nd (perhaps they thought the winner was in the 5K), and I commented that I didn't get the tape for winning either.  She told me that I was 2nd, with 1st female coming in at 1:18.  I then explained that I'd had the lead cyclist for the whole race!  I feel bad for the 1st girl, but I guess the cyclist missed her coming by.  It just pretty much sucked to think that I was leading for 11 miles only to find out that, nope, I did not win.

Michelle made it in my picture here!

Later, another friend who lives in Kansas City and who had been out on the race course told me that she saw me and many other runners make a wrong turn that cut some distance off the course.  From her description, the course map, and my Strava map, I was easily able to figure out where the error was made.  I used MapMyRun to determine how much we cut off the course, and we were 0.28 short or about 1:40.  I was extremely disappointed because the lead cyclist took me this route, several men around me also ran this way, and it meant that my 1:21:36 was incorrect.  I should have run about 1:23:16.

What I ran

What I should have run

Now, I would have been perfectly happy with hitting my workout and running a 1:23 as calculated, and with placing 2nd overall if I hadn't thought I'd run a 1:21 and won!  I felt like I got short-changed, because I would have been pleased with the actual outcome (especially considering the stupid wind), but with how it all played out I ended up unhappy with reality.  If I'd have known I was in 2nd (or at least just not thought I was winning) the whole race, I'd have felt fine about it.  I was coming in the final mile thinking, "I'm going to win the KC half!" and crossed the finish line thinking that, only to learn that, nope, I did not!  The race results initially had a bunch of 10K runners mixed in with the half, so for awhile I was listed as 11th, which I knew was wrong but I was wondering if there were others in front of me I didn't know about too.  I was also upset about not having my workout splits to know if I executed the workout well.  From my overall time, I know I had to have been close, but I also doubt I did the splits just like I was supposed to, especially not having the feedback.  I'd like to compare this to the similar workouts I've done before others marathons.  And the 1:23 that pre-race I thought would mean a super solid workout now feels sub-par since I thought "Wow, I had a really good day to run 1:21 in a workout on this crazy course in this crazy wind; maybe I can actually run a 2:45."  Nope!!!

For a couple of days I was also worried about posting anything publicly about this and made my activity view-able by only me on Strava, because I was worried I would get disqualified (I've since changed it back).  The cyclist provided by the race took me the wrong way, so I don't think I should be penalized, but if I'm out a plaque after writing this then so be it.  It did not affect my placing, as the third female ran a 1:29, and I was among many runners who made the same error.

Perhaps this is my race karma for running about the same distance too far in the Bass Pro Marathon last year. The universe owed me that 0.28 in my forever race results, hahaha!

The run really tired me out; I suspect it was a combination of running this during a 71 mile week, the wind, and the elevation, but I was much more tired in the 2 days after than I was after the Indy Half.  I'm thankful for another solid week in the books, and I'm thankful for this run (give me a few weeks and I will be more thankful).  I will definitely wear a pace band at CIM, which is helpful for many reasons but also really nice in the case of Garmin error.

This is not an easy course

Official results can be found here.

A fun article on the race, particularly the women's full marathon winner, can be found here (I'm listed at the end).

Results

Well, the placing is correct

A few things Jon and Albani did while I was away for work in KC plus this race (I was jealous and sad I missed them):

Halloween cupcakes (I was there for the pumpkin decorating the week before)

A survival shelter

She's been watching some survival TV programs!

CIM Training Journal #5: Plan B

This continues CIM Training Journals #1, #2, #3, and #4.

October 10, 2017
Here is my official announcement that I am registered for the Chevron Houston Marathon on 1/14/18.  Surprise!  I've had success running two marathons off of one training cycle every time I've tried it, so why not?  I qualified for their Athlete Development Program (basically sub-elite), barely, with a cut-off of 2:50.  The half cut-off time is 1:25, though, which I don't exactly understand, but regardless I applied for a marathon entry and I'm in!  I am currently trying to talk some of the girls I train with into running it as well, so we can make a girls' weekend out of it.

My exact path for Houston won't be decided until after CIM, but it will be one of these:

• If I don't get a 2:45:00 at CIM but feel it's within the realm of possibility off of this cycle, and Houston weather is conducive to a fast race, I will try again at Houston.
• If I get the standard at CIM and come away feeling good OR if I don't get the standard and don't think it's within the realm of possibility off of this cycle, I will drop to the half and go for a sub-80 at Houston.
• If I come away from CIM simply not feeling up for it or the Houston weather is atrocious, I'll skip Houston altogether. Historically I have handled marathons well so I don't anticipate not feeling up for it to be the case (race day weather is always a crapshoot though).  I could also skip it if I think it's in my better long-term interest not to run it (for example, if after CIM I pick a spring marathon to build to and do a 4 week lay off before rebuilding).

I like knowing I have a Plan B/back-up race option.  So much goes into a marathon cycle, and it's not always possible to have everything come together on race day because so many variables are out of your control (weather being the biggest, but also flight issues, getting sick, just having an off day, etc.).  In the past I've been able to rally and have a stronger second marathon for one reason or another, so why not have this in my back pocket?  It also makes me feel more relaxed about CIM and more comfortable going out conservatively there, both of which are very helpful things.  So -- Houston, hopefully we do not have a problem!


October 12, 2017
I was so inspired by watching and tracking the Chicago Marathon!  21 women there hit the OTQ standard, including 2 who I know!  I was so excited for them and so happy that their hard work paid off (they both paced brilliantly, too).  It also made me so excited to run a marathon, and I started wishing I'd have chosen Chicago instead of CIM so that I could have been out there too and didn't have to wait 8 more weeks (on the other hand, less than 8 weeks, ahh!).

Then (ironically during my highest mileage week yet), I started worrying that I'm not running nearly enough mileage.  Those women killing it in Chicago put in 100-120 mile weeks.  My current mileage is big for me, and I think I'll end up with 7 weeks in the 70s during this build, probably averaging 66-68 mpw for the 12 weeks leading up to the race (comparatively, during my Mesa-Phoenix build I averaged 57.5 mpw in the 12 weeks before).  Prior to those 12 weeks leading up to the race, I had 10 consecutive weeks in the 60s, which I have never done before.  So all good for me -- but such a far cry from triple digits!  I'm trying not to let comparison steal my joy, because I am really happy with my increase in mileage and with how great I've felt and healthy I've been with it, but I'm also worried it's not enough.

Seriously.

Isn't that the mentality of a distance runner though; always wanting more and always wanting to add more to get there?!  I know that I couldn't run 100+ mpw currently (or possibly ever) and stay injury-free, and obviously an essential component to running a PR marathon is making it to the starting line healthy.  Putting things in perspective, I know this training cycle is a helpful step regardless of how I race at CIM.  This marathon build will help my future marathon builds, and I will be able to gradually and intelligently increase my mileage over time if I need to (with my coach's help -- I need him to save me from myself!).  I'd say there is a greater chance that I won't run 2:45:00 at CIM than that I will; however, this cycle helps my pursuit of that big goal either way.  I figure that it's far better to not run a 2:45 off of 65-75 mpw than to not run it off of 100 mpw, because I have room to go up from where I'm at now if I need to.

Also, I trust that what God has in store me is better than what I could dream up for myself, and that brings me great comfort with this goal and everything else in my life!


October 13, 2017
In a recent conversation I had about multiple races coming into the same finish line, the Dallas Marathon came up, because they did an excellent job with dividing the road so that full and half runners had separate sides when the courses merged for the final several miles of the race.  I commented, with slight exaggeration, that I probably would have quit in the last 3 miles of that marathon if I'd had to fight through the seas of half runners that I saw on the other side of the road, because I was on the struggle bus.

My friend commented that she couldn't imagine me struggling during a race.  I then realized that I think the same thing about professional runners and strong runners ahead of me:  that they aren't struggling and that it's easy for them.  Many make it look effortless!  But the truth is that everyone competing at 100% struggles at the end of a race; in fact if you're not struggling to maintain/pick up pace towards the end then you're not at race effort!  Now, the end of a race struggle is a different feeling when you're in shape vs. out of shape, you paced well vs. went out too fast, etc. (I've been on both sides of both of these!), but it's always a push.  I think it's nice to know that it's hard for everyone at the end.  In my good races it's a "hurts so good" type of thing, but I certainly hurt at the end of all of them!  I think that makes us all normal!  If it's truly effortless, you're running too slow, right?!

Thinking about Dallas also made me contemplate that if I aim for a 2:44:50 at CIM and end up struggling to maintain at the end, if I lose 2:00-3:00 (at Dallas I lost about 2:20 in the final 3 miles but was spot on until then), I would run a 2:46:50-2:47:50, which would be a nice PR and time I would be very proud of.  It would just be a much more painful way to run a 2:47 than via a negative split!  If 2:47 is what I'm going to run, I'd much rather do it via 1:24/1:23 halves than the other way around!  It's hard to know exactly how to target your exact maximum marathon pace.  Regardless, I'm looking forward to that end of the race struggle; few painful things are so very rewarding.  I am ready to push to my max and to embrace the temporary pain that will accompany every all-out marathon.


October 14, 2017
Today I am another long run closer to my goal!  A solid 21.4 miler (6:52 average pace) in the books this morning, solo aside from a 3-4 mile rendezvous with Missy and Rebecca.  I only have 2 more monster long runs standing between me and CIM, a 22 miler and a 24 miler!  I will also have two workout long runs (both 18 miles total I think) and two shorter long runs (during my taper 2 weeks and 1 week before the race).  It's crazy how base long runs at 6:5X have become my new "normal" this training cycle.  I am thankful.  The first time I had a 17 miler come in sub-7:00 I was worried I'd never match that, but now I feel comfortable that I'm in that zone.

Although it didn't work out for me to run much of the 21 miler with anyone, the majority of my runs are with company, which I am extremely grateful for (this week I even had a second run with Amy P. - my first ever company when running from work at lunch!).  God has brought so many amazing people into my life through running!  Running friends quickly become close relationships that are somehow different from other friendships; it's something about covering miles and miles next to someone and chatting away while never actually looking at one another.  No backdrop of a restaurant, bar, event, etc. is ever needed -- just a headlamp and farm roads most days!


October 15, 2017
Wrapping up my biggest week yet at 77.1 miles!  It was pretty much a pure volume week; I ran over 77 miles yet only 5 minutes of it was hard running (5 x 1:00 pick-ups within my long run)...funny.  Workouts are back next week, and one of them is a bear!  Today's recovery 7 miles turned 7.4 (because I thought I needed the 0.4 to hit 77 -- I could have stopped at 7.3) reminded me why I used to take the day after super long runs off; my legs were tired!  I was also thinking that if I had 10 miles today I'd have an 80 mile week, so now I almost know what one of those feels like and of course was tempted to run 10.

It's funny how what used to be huge becomes the new normal, and for me right now that is mileage in the 60s and 70s.  A year ago I would have never believed that I could run this kind of mileage without getting injured.  I work on doing the extras (foam rolling and stretching, proper nutrition and always eating soon after running, strength training, keeping my easy days easy, compression socks), and my coach structures my training far better than I ever did on my own (for both performance and staying healthy).  I truly thank God for every day I run healthy, because there was a time I questioned if I ever consistently would again.  If you are struggling with injuries please don't ever lose hope.  Anytime I am unhappy with my performance, I need to remember how fortunate I am to be able to train and race, period.  There's few things an injured runner hates more than healthy people whining about a few seconds in a race or workout.


October 18, 2017
We officially booked our flight and hotel for CIM!  Only 6 weeks and 5 days left on the countdown!  My husband and parents are joining me on the trip, which is really exciting and also comforting to know that even if I bomb the race I will have a nice trip with my family.  I hope I do not disappoint them, as this has not been the most minor financial investment for any of us...  My sweet mother-in-law will be staying with Albani while we are gone since she has school.  Suggestions on things to do in the Sacramento area aside from the marathon?

Lazy Healthy Meal Prep

I'm a lazy cook who aims to eat very healthy to best fuel my running.  With a bit of meal prep on Sundays after our weekly trip to the grocery store, I put meals together for the week without much effort.  After waking up between 4:45-5:00 a.m., working 8-10 hours, sometimes running a second run in the evenings, Mom duties, and maintaining a home, I don't have much time or energy to deal with cooking on week days.

On Sundays, I:

• Make a meal in the crock pot that I then divide up into containers for my lunches each day
• Cook a big batch of a healthy grain (quinoa, red quinoa, brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat cous cous)
• Roast a ton of veggies (whatever is on sale and whatever is ripe in our garden)
• Cook salmon, tilapia, and/or chicken
• Hard boil a dozen eggs
• Often also make protein bars or granola bars, make trail mix, and cut up raw fruits and veggies
• Ensure I have the following on hand:  fresh and frozen fruit, fresh and frozen veggies, yogurt, cottage cheese, string cheese, several varieties of nuts, peanut butter, whole wheat bread, protein powder, tuna, almond milk, potatoes and sweet potatoes, oatmeal, pretzels, popcorn, tea, coffee

During the week, I nearly always end up cooking more veggies and fish/chicken, but those are as simple as throwing them on a baking dish with seasonings and olive oil, so only take a moment (the key is remembering to put them in 45 minutes before you want to eat...do not wait until finishing that 4 mile shake-out run!).

Here is an example of how a few items can combine for different dinners each evening.  My healthy grain for this week was a huge pot of whole wheat spaghetti (3 standard packages).  My child complains about whole wheat spaghetti but she will eat it!

Night 1:  Whole wheat spaghetti topped with marinara (also homemade and homegrown, but not by me), roasted eggplant, roasted tomatoes, olives, and Italian seasoning

Night 2:  Whole wheat spaghetti with roasted tomatoes, steam-in-the bag asparagus, light olive oil/lemon sauce, and Italian seasonings

Night 3:  Whole wheat spaghetti with roasted tomatoes, olives, steam-in-bag asparagus, and cottage cheese

Night 4:  Whole wheat spaghetti with roasted zucchini squash and yellow squash, garlic, and lemon/garlic roasted salmon

Night 5:  Plain whole wheat spaghetti...the option when you're super exhausted after a 4:45 a.m. alarm, a day in Joplin for work, and a second run.  After eating part of this I found the energy to add some Parmesan.

Meal examples with baked salmon and roasted asparagus (just add a potato!):

I was going to use the title "What I ate for lunch every day for a week" and then include this picture 5 times, but I thought that be annoying.  Usually, I eat the same thing for lunch at work five days in a row.  I make different recipes each week, but during the week it makes it pretty brainless to just take a container full of it each day.  The pictured dish is a pumpkin curry prepared in the slow cooker - white beans, veggies, pumpkin puree, coconut milk, cumin, curry powder (I also put plain gelatin in every slow cooker meal I make to promote tendon strength; it is tasteless).  This curry can be served over rice, quinoa, or cous cous, or by itself.

I am pretty organized/routine about food-prep, so it usually goes off without a hitch and doesn't take very long at all.  The only time I struggle is if we are out of town all weekend!  Even then, omelets, baked potatoes with cottage cheese, tuna sandwiches, canned beans/soups, etc. are always super easy.  Peanut butter banana sandwiches are also always winners!

CIM Training Journal #4: Just keep doing the math & rationalizing

This continues CIM Training Journals #1, #2, and #3 .

September 25, 2017
If only rationalizing and "perfect scenario" math would get me a marathon PR!  I felt really good about my 20 mile training run at 6:49 average pace on Sep. 23.  I felt nice and relaxed on all of it except for the 5 x 1:00 pick-ups to 6:00ish pace (so 2:11:15 relaxed running, 5:00 hard).  Although I need to average 32 sec/mile faster for 6.2 miles farther on race day, hopefully I can count on getting 10 sec/mile from ideal weather, 10 sec/mile from a fast course, 10 sec/mile from a taper/being at peak, and the other 2 sec/mile from running with a pace group.  The additional 10K can come from this training run not being a race effort run, and race day being, obviously, a race effort run.  Too bad hypothetical math rarely translates into real-life settings...  I looked up my first 20 miler in my Mesa-Phoenix marathon build, and I averaged 7:21 pace for it (with 4 progressive fast finish miles, meaning more time pushing the pace than my recent 20 had, and in much cooler weather), so in theory I am pretty far ahead of where I was then.  Too bad theory is just theory!  One of my worst marathon-related fears is running slower at CIM than I did in Phoenix.

September 26, 2017
Although 400 m repeats are certainly not a key marathon workout, nailing my 12 x 400 m workout today was a nice confidence boost!  My coach steadily sneaks down my goal split range on these, and it was 1:20-1:22 for this workout (the last time I ran 400s it was 1:21-1:23, and it used to be 1:25-1:28...don't think I haven't caught on!).  These are probably still relatively slow compared to what others running around my race times are doing for 400s, but I just don't have the speed.  I was pretty intimidated by this goal, but decided to try it and see what happened.

Success was what happened -- I ran 8 of them in 1:21, 2 in 1:22, and 2 (including the final rep) in 1:20!  Clearly, being able to nail a 400 m workout in no way translates into a successful marathon, but it showed me that I am improving and that speed comes with mileage.  The last time I ran 400s I had 8, and 4 were 1:21 and 4 were 1:22, so doing 4 more reps faster made me very happy!  I also enjoyed the workout, which is perhaps the biggest victory of all, because typically 400s are my least favorite workout.  This was also my first time back to the track after my failed 1600 m repeat workout on August 22, so I am happy to report that the track and I are back on speaking terms.

September 29, 2017
Tomorrow I'm going to race somewhat rested for the first time in months!  The morning low is 49*, so hopefully I am also going to race in ideal weather conditions for the first time in months (the wind may be the X factor).  I am excited for this checkpoint and to see what 12 consecutive weeks of mileage in the 60s-70s has gotten me, but I am also so very intimidated because what if this race tells me that I am not on track for my marathon goal?  I have learned, though, that I can't pressure or bully myself into being any faster or giving more than I've got on any given day, so I am going to aim to enjoy the race and to do my best, and also to (at least try to) be satisfied with whatever my best is and to thank God for it.  Regardless of what time I run or how I place, I am absolutely thankful for the opportunity to get on the starting line and try.

October 2, 2017
All in all, the Indy Women's Half was a good step.  I am happy to have a new PR that shows my training is working.  I wish I could have run faster (we all know I am chasing a sub-80 in the half), which I know sounds greedy, but the more I think about the race the happier I am with it.

The big successes in relation to marathon-training were:

• Running a half PR without having perfect conditions.  The faster anyone's PRs get, the more we need ideal conditions to beat them.  The circumstances for this race were average -- not bad by any means, but also not perfect (I elaborated plenty on that here).  The circumstances for my previous PR at Rock 'n' Roll Phoenix were pretty much perfect; I even mentioned in that race report that the biggest blessing was not feeling like I needed to list ways in which things could have gone better, which is clearly rare for me (the White River Half was that way too though).  Basically, it's helpful to know that I am in good enough shape to PR without having everything align.  I feel that way about CIM too; that I could run a PR marathon without everything going perfectly (it just would not be a 2:44:59, just as Indy was not a 1:19:59).
• Pacing evenly by feel.  My splits were all within 11 seconds of each other (within 8 seconds if you throw out the 2 outliers), and I did not use my Garmin to pace after the first 2 miles.  I used it early to ensure I didn't get out too fast, but once I settled into tempo pace I was in the zone. When considered with the wind and elevation, the splits were even more even than this.
• Grinding it out solo.  A half marathon is a long way to run on your own, but after the lead pack gapped me before the 1 mile I went at it alone the rest of the race, although being able to see and try to pull in another lady during the final 5K was helpful.  This built mental-toughness for the marathon!
• Holding my own in a competitive field.  Although I was never in the thick of things for the lead in this race, I am happy with my place of 5th among such talented ladies.  I will be around many more talented ladies at CIM.  I did not get intimidated by my competitors, and I also did not get drawn into anyone else's race and stuck to my personal pace plan.  I certainly cannot go out fast at CIM, and plan to go out conservatively and not get drawn into anyone else's pacing.
• Success with pre-marathon nutrition.  The night before the race I ate my pre-marathon dinner, and the morning of I had half of my pre-marathon breakfast and my pre-race fluids.  I also used the same gel pre-race that I will use before and during my marathon (I took half of the gel right before my warm-up, and the other half about 10 minutes before the gun).  I don't take gels or fluids during halves unless it's hot, because I don't need anything running less than 90 minutes, but in retrospect I should have tried a gel during just to practice running hard with it on my stomach.  There will be opportunities in long run workouts for that though!  All of the nutrition I had set perfectly.
• I recovered quickly.  My recovery from this race was so good that it made me think I did not run it hard enough.  My easy pace the day after the race was a typical easy day; the day after some other halves I've barely been able to run a few miles 8:30 pace the following day.  I had 6 miles the day after and my easy pace was 7:18.  I had no soreness and my legs didn't feel any different than after any long run or workout.  This may be because I'm used to higher mileage, but maybe I just couldn't quite push as hard running alone.

The not-encouraging component in relation to marathon training was:

• I did not run a 1:19:59.

 The true miracle:

• I liked a couple of my race photos, which is harder to come by than a PR.

Focus

October 3, 2017
My husband is researching flights and hotels for CIM, and just sent me a text that said, "Can we cancel the hotel and flights if it's over 60*?"  I don't think any further explanation is needed on my reaction to this question.  I responded with a single emoticon.

October 4, 2017
I had a big confidence boost today, wrapped up in the package of a PR mile repeat workout.  I averaged 5:37.8 for 5 x 1 mile on the road (splits below), which is a better average than I've ever run on any mile repeat workout, including 3 or 4 x 1 mile.  Ironically, the last time I ran mile repeats it was a major hit to my confidence (details under August 26 here - but basically I quit the workout the first time then 2 days later rallied to finish it with 3 x 1 mile a bit slower than my goal times).  Although my fitness has improved some since then, the main difference was today I didn't stress about the workout beforehand and just went out with the goal of doing my best and seeing if I could hit the upper end of the pace range my coach gave me (5:38-5:42).  Last time I convinced myself before that I wouldn't be able to hit my splits.

The slight downside was that I really questioned if I'd pushed hard enough in the Indy Half, since I was able to do this workout 4 days afterward.  I suspect that part of the reason I'm feeling so good this week, though, is because I cut back to 51 miles last week, but maybe I couldn't quite go to that extra level due to running so much of that race solo.  Regardless -- onward and upward!

I couldn't really believe it either

October 5, 2017
I've been been in a good place on my runs lately, which leads me to start worrying that I hope I am not peaking to early!

October 8, 2017
Wrapping this one up one long run closer to my goal (with color coordination from my shorts to my socks to my Garmin - which never happens!).  I watched/tracked the Chicago Marathon today, and I was so excited and inspired I don't know how I am possibly going to wait 8 more weeks to run a marathon myself!  On the other hand, 6.5 more weeks to make fitness gains doesn't seem like enough!  But I suppose waiting until you're completely ready to run a PR marathon is like waiting until you're completely ready to have children; the completely ready day never comes, so you just use the best timing you know how.

Panther Run 5K: A 5K at tempo is a 5K I can get behind!

There is no "the short" and "the long" on this one, because it's all pretty short!  I've lamented tirelessly about how I'm no good at 5Ks, but like with my September 2 5K, running a 5K at tempo pace makes it far more fun!  I decided to run this one because I needed one more short distance race for my running club's 2017 competition, it's a nicely put together local event, and I thought I could win some prize money without full-out racing it.  The weather was disgusting (70s and humid -- which you'd think we'd be through by October -- and a south wind around 15 mph with gusts of up to 30 mph), so I was awfully thankful this wasn't a goal race!

5Ks at tempo may also be the way to get decent professional race photos!

Run happy!  Wish this was a little more clear, but love my expression.

Start

I did a 2 mile warm-up, timed to finish about 5 minutes before the gun, and then got on the line.  My plan was to run about 6:00 pace, but if I had to run harder for the win I would.  For the first bit, there were 2 women out in front of me and several men.  I passed the women within the first quarter mile and many of the men.  I checked my watch and I was at 6:00 exactly - pacing by feel for the win!  I aimed to maintain even effort, and I passed 3 or 4 more men throughout the race.  The third mile was into the wind and I kept thinking "This feels harder than it should; I'm so glad I'm not running an 8 mile tempo today!"  I ended up with 3.16 miles at exactly 6:00 pace (I knew the course would read long, another reason I didn't want to race this one -- most others told me their Garmins had 3.2+).  I also netted the overall female win (4 men finished ahead of me).  Mission accomplished!

Coming into the finish

Pace goal accomplished, precisely, & the Panther Run shirt logo

After I finished, I ran back out on the course to run in my friend Amy in the 15K.  I met her with around a mile left (her race had started 20 minutes before mine) and tried to block the wind for her and also to clear the tangents for her since she was going through slower 10K and 5K runners.  She was 1st overall female in the 15K!  I ended up with a 3.1 mile cool down to finish out my mileage for the day.

Overall winners

Official results are here.  My official time was 19:01, so I clearly should have run a few seconds faster, but the finishing clock was on the 15K so I had no idea.  I'd already broken my streak of running 5Ks in the 18s with my Labor Day weekend 5K that I ran at half marathon pace, so I'll just remember the asterisks by my workout 5Ks!

I was glad to get this one in for my final short distance race in my running club's 2017 competition.  I would like to race a 5K all-out and rested at some point, but it just doesn't fit very well with marathon training, so I think I'll wait and try one on the track in the spring.  I had a really solid mile repeat workout on Wednesday that made me hopeful that I can break 18:00 in the 5K (5 x 1 mile, average 5:37, which was a workout PR).  I know that would not have happened in the Panther Run no matter what, with the weather, course, and my fatigue level, so I am glad I followed the tempo plan, and will be even more glad about it on tomorrow's long run!

Danielle rocked her first postpartum 15K!

Photobombed

Awards

Indy Women's Half: Thankful, but not satisfied

The Short:
I ran a bright, shiny new half marathon PR of 1:20:50 under circumstances that were not nearly as ideal as those I had for my previous PR of 1:21:26.  I walked away from this race feeling like I'd nailed one of my best workouts ever, but not exactly like I'd raced or PRed (you'll have to read The Long for an explanation of why).  However, the more I analyze this race the happier I become with it.  I placed 5th overall, netted some cash, and best of all enjoyed an amazing weekend trip to Indianapolis with my parents. 

Official results can be found here.

Sunny clock shot courtesy of my mama

The Long:
I looked at a lot of fall halves trying to find the "perfect" goal race before deciding that none were.  The major things I was looking for were: A) fitting into my schedule (marathon training and non-running), B) likelihood of good weather, C) straight course/minimal turns, D) flat course, E) competitive field, and F) within driving distance.  The Indianapolis Women's Half fit the bill on 5 of the 6, only missing requirement C), but the more courses I looked at the more I realized how hard it is to find one as nice as the White River half (which, alas, does not meet requirement A) this year since it is only 2 weeks before my goal marathon).

So I landed on Indy, and was accepted as an elite entrant and honored as one of the "5 Women to Watch" in the race.  The race organizers were amazing and I was fortunate to be a part of this event.  The race was on a Saturday, so I made the trip to Indy on Friday with my parents.  Since I won't pull Albani out of school for a race, she and Jon weren't able to come.  I treasure my time with my parents so greatly, which also meant that even if I bombed the race, it would be worth going to!  I never got nervous for this race, and I think that was big part of why.

From the event program

Expo fun

More expo fun

I was quite excited for this checkpoint in my marathon training cycle.  After 10 consecutive weeks of mileage in the 60s plus 2 weeks with mileage in the 70s, I had a 50 mile week the week of this race.  While I may not have been completely rested since I ran 20 miles one week before the event, I was the most rested I'd been in months, and I also had the opportunity to race in NOT 70-80* with 100% humidity for the first time in months!  I felt like a new woman!

Feeling like a new woman in the hotel room pre-race

Based on the "5 Women to Watch" and a handful of other elite entrants, I expected to have several woman right around my pace.  I lined up on the starting line feeling very relaxed and ready to give it a go.  I kept reminding myself to trust my training and to trust God, and to go get what I'd trained for!  Nothing is ever guaranteed in these long races, but fretting about it never helps.  I planned to aim to keep my pace at 6:05-6:10.

I'm looking weird on the starting line as per usual

At the gun, a lead pack eased out, and a check of my Garmin around a quarter of a mile in showed 6:05 pace as I settled in right behind the leaders. For a brief moment, I thought, "Perfect!  Maybe this will be the 6:05 pace pack!  Couldn't be better!"  After that brief moment, I could feel 5 of the girls accelerating (the 2 others who were not accelerating were 2 I expected to drop off before the mile at 6:05 pace).  I couldn't decide; should I risk going through the first mile in 5:55-6:00 for the benefit of running with the pack, or should I stick to my plan?  I let them go and stuck to my pace.  I knew that if they could maintain sub-6:00 pace, I could not compete with them, and if that was too fast for them, they would come back.

When 6:05 pace was briefly happening

The 5 quickly pulled away from me, and at the mile I gauged them as over 20 seconds ahead of me (I later spoke to one who said they went through in 5:45).  I came through the mile in 6:08, right where I wanted to be, but so alone.  I felt antsy during mile 2, and really had to hold myself back because I wanted to chase the leaders, and kept questioning my decision about not going with them.  However, the gap grew and I settled into complete no man's (no woman's?) land.  Somehow I could feel that no one was close behind me.  With the turns on the course, I simply couldn't see anyone.  I had to start paying attention to the course markings/signs, which the event did a really good job with (including course marshals at all turns), but which just takes extra work.

In regards to the course markings, in many places the cones on the road were set up in a way that did not allow you to run the tangents on turns and curves.  When a course is certified, it is measured on the tangents of the road, but I noticed early on that many of the tangents were blocked.  I knew I was not running the shortest route, but I didn't want to risk disqualification by going outside of the cones (and in some places the tangent was occupied by an aid station in the road, which I clearly could not go through).  I was frustrated about this early on because I knew I was picking up extra distance, and there was nothing I could do about it.  We all know I dislike anything out of my control!

Between miles 4-5, I picked up a cyclist escort.  I believe there were 10 cyclists, for the prize money positions, but I am not sure why they didn't pick up with the runners until that far into the race.  I sure needed my guy earlier!  Having him was a great help in regards to navigating the course, but I think the cyclists were probably told not to aid the runners (as they should be), so it wasn't helpful pacing-wise.  I was extremely thankful to have him to keep me on course though - no more thinking about markings and signs!

Between about 5.5 and 7.5, the course doubled back on itself, so I could see the runners ahead of and behind me.  The leading 4 ladies were still pretty closely bunched when I saw them, significantly ahead of me (about 1:30).  There had been 5 women ahead of me when I lost sight of them, but one of them was in the 5K (I hadn't been able to see the 5K turn off, but confirmed the 5K winner from the bib number in the photo above).  At the time I thought maybe someone dropped out or stopped in a porta-potty, but regardless I knew I was in 5th at that point, with little chance of moving up.  As I turned the other direction, I saw that 6th was farther behind me than I was trailing the leaders, so I also had little chance of being caught.  I checked my watch at the 6.55 mile mat, and I was at 40:23, which was about what I wanted (the online results have the 6.55 splits wrong for everyone).

I pressed on, feeling solid at the pace I was at and happy with my splits, and also really channeling those long tempos that I'd done solo.  I kept thinking, "This is just like that 8 mile tempo, only 5 miles farther" -- which I am really not sure was the most encouraging mantra I could have invented, haha!  I've really been working on pacing by feel, and after the first 2 miles when I used my Garmin to ensure I didn't go out too fast, I only looked at it when it beeped mile splits.  I believe all of my tempo runs have really helped me pace consistently.  My pace felt like exactly what I could maintain for a half marathon, but at the same time it's intimidating to try something you've never done before so I hoped that the wheels didn't fall off before 13.1!  I tried to focus on trusting -- trusting my training and trusting God -- but I kept coming back to, "It's just like those 8 mile tempos, just 5 miles longer."  Hah.

Around mile 9.5, for the first time since about mile 1 I could see someone ahead of me!  I realized that one lady had fallen off the lead group and even though she was still uber-far ahead of me, I was gaining.  I told myself to give it my all to finish strong and to pull her in.  I looked at my total time when I passed the mile 10 marker, and when I saw 1:01:35 (a huge unofficial 10 mile PR), I knew that it wasn't my day to break 1:20 because I knew I couldn't close with an 18:24 5K, but I also felt confident that I would PR.

I worked on pulling in #4 throughout the final 5K.  Mile 11 felt great, and then the final 2 miles were into the wind.  I truly believe that I maintained a 6:00-6:05 effort on those 2 miles, but when you're running into a 14 mph wind, that does not translate into 6:00-6:05 splits.  Although this was a tough time to encounter the wind, I am thankful that much of the course had fantastic wind block, because the main other time I felt it was at the beginning of the race (which makes sense, since we started and finished in the same area).  Also, for what it's worth, Strava gave me a grade adjusted pace of 6:02 for mile 13.

I was happy to see the mile 12 sign, and I knew I could gut out one more mile, but I was sure ready to finish!  As we turned onto the final stretch, the finish seemed so reachable yet so far.  I gained a lot of ground on #4, but not enough (she went on to finish in 1:20:40), and it was apparent I wasn't going to catch her by the long final stretch.  It was a mental battle between easing off since I couldn't pass her, and going with all I had left to get the best PR I could.  My kick was a far cry from my best (5:59 pace), but it was what I could do mentally and physically at that point, and that final half mile or so was the most prominent incline of the race (still very minor, but I could feel it!).  I crossed in 5th in a new PR of 1:20:50.  My dad's video of the finish is here, and the announcer even pronounced my last name correctly!

Splits

I guess I called it quite well when I noted here that I felt ready for a half PR but not ready for a 1:19!  Although I'm very thankful for this race, I could also identify key factors that, if different, would have led to a faster time:  A) less wind, B) people to run with, and C) being allowed to run the tangents.  My Garmin read 13.19 at the end of this race, and in my last 3 half marathons it has read 13.10, 13.09, and 13.08, and it almost always reads slightly under on certified courses (it read 26.10 in my last marathon and 6.15 in a recent 10K).  Whenever someone says their Garmin was right and the certified course was wrong, I am the first to say that, nope, your Garmin is wrong and the course is right; but we were not allowed to run the shortest route on the road, which is how courses are certified, and I think that cost me about 30 seconds.  The course was right, we just didn't run the shortest route that it was measured on.  My pace on my Garmin was 6:07.X (must have been 6:07.9+ because Garmin Connect rounded up to 6:08), and per the course was 6:09.96 (no, I am not rounding up to 6:10, bahaha!), so not a huge difference, but when you're chipping away at your PR, every second counts!  A 1:19:59 takes 6:06.07 pace.  Fun fact:  my last 8 mile tempo was 6:07 pace, so this pretty much was just like that 8 mile tempo, just 5 more miles!

One of these distances is not like the others...

However, I've decided to let these factors boost my confidence that I can run faster.  When I ran a 1:21 in Arizona, I wasn't sure if it was something I could top because everything aligned so nicely for that one; I am very pleased to beat that time when things did not align as well.  The lower you work down your PRs, the more you really need that White Unicorn of race day conditions to improve them.  I got a bit spoiled because I actually had those conditions for not one, but for three winter/spring races (Arizona Rock 'n' Roll half, BMO Mesa-Phoenix full, and the Wash U Distance Carnival 10,000 m).  Maybe I can find them again at CIM, God-willing!  When I told my coach about the race, he said, "You need to see what you can do on a straight course", and I look forward to doing just that.

I've also been thinking, we often discuss trusting God when things go wrong, but it's just as important when things go right!  Throughout the race, I kept reminding myself to trust Him, and to relax and just remember that whatever He had in store for me that day was far better than anything I could have planned myself.  Luckily, things went right in the form of a new PR, but regardless I trust Him and I trust the process.

"God is within her; she will not fail." - Psalms 46:5

Awards ceremony

My sweet dad

My sweet mom

One of these things does not belong (that would be ME!), w/ podcast affiliated runners & the race director

I got to post-race brunch with my dear friend Briony who was in Indy from Kansas!

Bling

Results

The trip home

Now it's back to marathon training!  Less than 9 weeks until CIM!