Celebrate the Little Things

This is the time of year for celebration and it can be quite busy.   We celebrate our holiday traditions with friends and family.  We celebrate the end of another year.   The end of the year always has me reflecting on how the year unfolded.   What things stood out for me?  What things did I take the time to celebrate for myself and for others?

There are a LOT pretty awesome moments that I celebrated this year:

Two of my friends completing their first Ironman
A friend of mine completing her first half marathon
Coaching a friend of mine to complete his first marathon
Getting through a non wetsuit swim at Eagleman without freaking out (this was probably THE highlight of the year for me)
Multiple weddings
Leading my AG from start to finish in one of my favourite races
My sister heading back to school to do her second Masters
My sister's boyfriend graduating from Teacher's College
My mom's 65th birthday
A friend of mine walking the first half of the Appalachian trail BY HERSELF (my mind is still blown by this)
Getting my Triathlon coaching certification
Helping one of my athletes win her AG and get to the 70.3 World Championships
And being told yesterday that I didn't have to take the rest of the month off from running / cycling.  Which was nice to hear after I wrote this post on Monday.

I think it's important to take the time to celebrate the little things as well as the milestones because it helps us appreciate what we have to be thankful for. 

Thanks to Deb Runs for hosting the Wednesday Word link up!

The Journey is the Reward: Mississauga Marathon Race Report

I woke up at 4:30 am with butterflies in my stomach.  Today was the day I had trained for for the last 16 weeks.  Was I ready?  Yup.  Was I confident I'd meet my goal?  Maybe.  I got out of bed and jumped into the shower for a quick scrub down.  The hot water felt nice and relaxing.  I wrapped myself in my fluffy robe and went to the spare bedroom where I had laid out all my race clothes the night before.  I wriggled into my cw-x compression shorts, put on my sports bra and hesitated a moment before grabbing my t-shirt.  Should I just wear my singlet?  My doubt got the better of me so I picked up my t-shirt, put it on and then put my singlet on over it.  It was the same outfit that I wore for my A-race last year when I crushed my half marathon PB so I hoped there was still some good race juju left in it.
I ate my pre-race pumpkin protein oatmeal, made a few moves in Words with Friends and then packed up the rest of my post race stuff.  At 6:10 am, my friend Kiki came by to hitch a ride up to the start.  It took us all of 15 minutes to get up to Square One.   Gary drove around trying to find the best place to drop us off.  He pulled up to the lights at Hurontario and Burnhamthorpe and said "All right ladies, time to get out."  We scrambled to get ourselves ready and got out of the car into the bright sunshine and a cool breeze.  I was glad I had decided on a t-shirt under my singlet.
We made our way to past the start line to the baggage check area.  We hung out there for a while looking for people we knew.  Kiki mentioned that Bob Weeks was running the half so we kept our eyes peeled for him.  I found him about 5 minutes later.  Now we were 3.  A few minutes later
 Kelly Webb from the Milton branch of Running Free came over to say Hi.  There was a big contingent of Running Free folks at this race which was so nice to see.
We noticed that the starting chute was open so we made our way towards the start line.  There were no actual corrals, just signs along the side of the fences that had varying pace times in them.  I spotted the 3:15 pace bunny and figured I'd situate myself a bit of a ways behind him as my goal was sub 3:20:00.  My plan was to keep him in my sights for as long as possible.  I hung back a few hundred meters and milled about with Kiki and Bob, fiddling with my necklace and thinking about everything I did to get me to the start line. On Saturday I took off my Tiffany necklace that Gary gave me for Christmas a few years ago and replaced it with the necklace I bought myself after Ironman Switzerland as a reminder of that amazing journey.   It is a sterling silver pendant with the words "The Journey is the Reward" written on it.  A reminder to me that it's not always about the end result, it's the steps you take to get there that are what really matter. 
 Michael Burgess sang the National Anthem and then the countdown was on.  Two resounding bangs denoted the start of the race.  They scared the crap out of me but they definitely got me off and running.  I crossed the start line and made sure I hit start on my Garmin.  The first 6.5km were going to be unfamiliar territory for me.  I tried very hard not to go out too fast.  I kept checking my watch.  4:19's, 4:24's.  Slow down!  People kept passing me and I had to remind myself that I had a long way to go and that I should run my own race.  I checked my watch again an saw 4:38.  Better.  I tried to keep this pace but it felt slow.  I ended up speeding up again.  In fact, I yo-yoed all over the place for the first little while.  My legs didn't feel great but that's probably because I didn't really do any sort of warm up other than a few drills and stretches.  I figured I probably wouldn't start to feel good till about 6 or 7 km in.
We ran along Robert Speck Parkway to Burhamthorpe and then west on Burnhamthorpe to Mississauga Road.  I could see the 3:15 bunny about 500m in front of me.  Perfect.  There was no wind along here and I could really feel the sun beating down on me.  I began to think that perhaps the t-shirt under my singlet was not such a good idea.  Especially a black t-shirt.  Oh well.  I was only carrying two 10 oz bottles with me so I made a concerted effort to get something at every aid station I passed.  I used the GU Brew/X-tend mix in my bottles to wash down my chocolate raspberry Roctane.  This seemed to work well and I figured my bottles should hopefully last me till about 32km or so.
Before I knew it, we were at the U of T Mississauga Campus.  I knew my way from here, for the most part.  I knew there were going to be some spots along the Lakeshore that I didn't quite get right on my course recce a month ago but I knew most of the course.  Mentally this was huge for me.  I felt like I didn't have to worry about what was coming up, I just ran.  At the 8km mark, I noticed that I had gotten a fair bit closer to the 3:15 bunny.  I knew I was running faster but we were also going downhill.  Sure enough at 9km, I caught the 3:15 group.  My legs were feeling amazing.  It just felt easy.  I thought "This is exactly where I want to be".  I ducked in behind the last folks in the 3:15 group and ran with them for a while.  I felt like it was a pace that I could manage until I looked at my watch.  4:27's.  Hmmm....maybe not.  I think I should back it off.  I went through an aid station and slowed down a bit.  As if on cue, the 80's hit Relax came on my shuffle, and I let the group go ahead of me but made sure I kept them in my sight. 
We hit the turn off for the marathon route and I chugged along.  I noticed a wind had picked up and was blowing from the south.  That would mean that our run down Southdown Road was probably not going to be good.  I saw a lot of cyclists riding around and I happened to look over at one guy that was riding along not far from me.  To my surprise it was Gary.  My heart melted.  I figured he would have gone to Sunday morning swim practice but instead he went back home, packed up his bike, drove to the finish line and then hopped on his bike and rode out onto the route.   I'm such a lucky woman to have an amazing husband that supports all my insanity.  He asked me how I was feeling and I said pretty good.  I think I was just coming up on the 15km mark.  We were heading into a few rollers.  My legs didn't seem to like those but I still managed to keep a good pace.  The 3:15 bunny was still within my sights so it was all good.  Gary took off to find another viewing spot and I motored along.  I couldn't believe how quickly the time had passed.  Before I knew it we were turning on to Southdown Road.  Sure enough it was windy.  Not terrible but enough to be annoying.  I caught up to a guy in a white t-shirt and ran behind him.  We were coming up to the halfway mark.  Down the hill, under the bridge and up another small hill.  I saw Gary with the camera.  I hit the halfway mark in 1:37:40, just slightly off a 3:15 pace.  Excellent. 
I started to feel really good along here.  It was slightly down hill so I motored along, listening to Rush and turning over 4:35's.  It was definitely getting hotter as well.  I was sweating a lot.  But I was also drinking a lot.  I couldn't believe how good I was feeling.  I passed a few runners along here.  We were heading into what I called "No Man's Land".  It was an industrial area with not much around but I knew there was a really nice park that we ran through at some point on the way back.  The km's clicked by and then I started to feel it.  The ache in my legs.  I was getting close to the 25km mark.  Then it hit me.  I didn't feel good.  I saw Gary again and I waved but didn't say anything.  He could tell I was struggling.  I was thinking about the last marathon I ran and how I totally caved at the 26km mark.  I was hoping and praying that wouldn't happen today.  I grabbed some Gatorade at the aid station just after the turnaround.  The wind seemed to have changed direction a bit and I was now running into it.  Great.  I heard my name and looked up to see Linnea.  Heyyyyy!!!!  Shortly after I saw her, I saw Kiki.  Heyyyy youuuuu!  I could see Gary waiting for me at the entrance to the park but he couldn't see me because I had ducked behind another guy to block the wind for a while.  Ahhhh..that felt good.
I turned into the park and caught a couple of guys.  I passed them and forged ahead.  I looked around and didn't see anyone.  I wasn't actually sure where I should go either.  There were no pylons, nothing.  I then saw the orange arrows on the ground so I followed them into the park.  I had missed this turn off when I did the course recce so I was in slightly unfamiliar territory.   I wound my way around the park until I eventually started to recognize things.  I was really starting to hurt.  26km had come and gone.  I had slowed down a bit but it wasn't horrible.  I was coming up to 27km and the exit of the park.  I could see Gary sitting there and as I ran by him I said that I was starting to hurt.  I don't remember what he said to me.  I was starting to lose it a bit mentally.  It was time for the head games to start.  If could just get to the 30km mark then I can walk for a bit.  That was going to be my focus. Getting to 30km.  30km came and went and I didn't walk.  I was on a good wave again.  I grabbed some water at the aid station, thanked the volunteers (who were all AWESOME) and motored along.  I was back into the lovely neighbourhood of Lorne Park.  I knew there were another couple of hills coming up.  They weren't terribly big but they were big enough to make me suffer.  I got to the top of the second one just before the 31km mark and I had to walk.  My legs were really starting to hurt.  And my feet were starting to cramp as well.  Not a good sign.  I started running again when I hit the 31km mark.  I turned onto Lakeshore.  I knew there was one other spot along the course that I wasn't totally familiar with and that was coming up.   My legs were starting to scream at me.  I looked down at my watch but the time meant nothing.  I couldn't figure out my pacing any more.  I knew that 3:15 was definitely not going to happen.  I was really starting to lose it.  I desperately wanted to stop.  As I came up to the 32km mark, I grabbed some water at the aid station and realized that I should have filled up my bottle.   This obviously distracted me because I kept running along Lakeshore and somehow missed the turn off the led into the park.  I only realized because I was running with a girl and then suddenly she was gone so I turned around only to hear people yelling you missed the turn.  Crap.  I had to run back up  hill to get to the turn off.  Oh man.  I have no idea how I missed the sign with the big arrow on it but I did.  I was obviously seriously out of it.  The girl I was running with was way ahead of me now and there was no way I was catching her.  We were heading towards the water again and I was on a good wave. Probably because I was running slightly downhill.
The path we were on led into the outskirts of Jack Darling Park, which is a beautiful park along the shore of Lake Ontario.  Once again, I didn't really know where I was supposed to go so I looked for the orange arrows.  I actually managed to pass a couple of people in here which was surprising considering how horrible I felt.  I could see the 34km marker towards the top of the path.  I passed a guy who was walking and thought to myself, "Just get to 34km and then you can walk".  I got to the 34km marker, walked for a bit, took half a gel and started running again.  I didn't want to linger for too long as it generally gets harder to start back up again once you stop.
I got out of the park and back on to Lakeshore.  I distracted myself by doing the math in my head and telling myself that I still had time to make 3:20:00 even if I slowed down to 5 min km's.  The thing is I didn't want to slow down.  I wanted to be sub 3:20.  Period.  My mind started to wander to my other races, other times where I felt this kind of pain.  I thought about Boston in 2003.  I thought about Scotia in 2010.  I wasn't going to crack again and give up like I did those times.  I've worked hard over the last year and I knew I was mentally tougher than that now.  I knew that somewhere deep down inside I had enough guts to get through the last 8km and still break 3:20.  It might be close but I would do it.
As I made my way along Lakeshore, I was caught and passed by a couple that was running together and I was reminded of Gary pacing me to my Boston qualifier in 2002.  This couple looked a bit older and I had the sneaking suspicion that this woman was in my age group.  The competitor in me latched on to them and tried to hold on for dear life.  They were running strong.  I drafted off both of them and actually started to feel good again.  I stuck with them until we hit the aid station just before we turned into the park before the Port Credit Marina.  If I hadn't slowed down at the aid station to refill one of my bottles, I think I could have hung on with them for a while longer.  But alas, I slowed down and they were moving too quickly for me to catch them.  As I made my way towards the park entrance, I saw Gary waiting there for me.  He rode beside me for a bit offering words of encouragement, which I had no problem hearing as one of my headphones had died.  Not only was I falling apart, so was my gear!  I could see the 37km marker at the top of a small hill.  Gary rode with me to the top and then took off.  I stopped at the top, took my last Roctane and hoped that it would be enough to get me through the last 5km.  I passed a guy on the down hill into the Port Credit Park and made my way along the path.  I could hear dance music blaring and I saw a huge group of people that had set up speakers and were all dressed up and holding various signs.  Support like that is amazing and should be acknowledged so I pumped my arms in time to the music and yelled You Guys ROCK! as I ran through.
I was coming up to the Port Credit Marina.  This was familiar territory for me.  I knew the way back to the finish line like the back of my hand.  38km came and went.  I passed a few more people.  39km came and went and the pain in my legs was almost unbearable.  Just 3 more km.  15 minutes at most.  Hang in there.  It's hard to walk when there are so many people around offering encouragement.  I passed some of the folks that were walking the half marathon and they cheered me on.  I hit the 40km mark and the last aid station and I stopped to get a cup of Gatorade.  I quickly gulped it back and started running again.  I felt like I was shuffling.  I was having a hard time picking my feet up.  My left foot kept threatening to cramp.  I could feel my toes starting to spasm.   Only 2 more km...come ON!  From here it was past all the big houses on the water and into the winding path through the small forest and then back into a residential area and then over the wooden footbridge and into Lakefront Promenade Park.  It's not that far.  You can do it.
My body started to operate on a whole other level.  Every fiber of my being hurt and as much as I wanted to stop, I couldn't.  I had to keep moving forward.  I came out of the winding path and headed towards the footbridge.  I could hear Kevin MacKinnon announcing the finishers.  I was so close.  As I crossed the bridge I saw two race photographers and I smiled for both and made some comment about that being a grimace.  Then I saw Gary.  He was grinning.  I said as I ran by: "You realize that every word out of my mouth since 40km has been a swear word".  I'm not sure what he said, because all the other spectators were laughing but I imagine it was probably something along the lines of "Why would that be different than any other day.." 
I could smell the finish line.  My legs started to come to life.  What little adrenaline I had left in my system kicked in.  I spotted a bunch of Team RF jerseys and got cheers from them.  The crowds were starting to get bigger.  I heard my name and saw Kelly and a bunch of other Team RF athletes going nuts.  That gave me such a boost.  I pushed hard as I ran along the path to the finish line.  I came out into the parking lot and could see the clock counting down.  I heard Kevin MacKinnon announce my name as I came up to the finish line.  I kept my eyes on the clock and I sprinted as hard as I could.

3:19:00.1 Woohoo!  That was my gun time.  My watch said 3:18:38.  I did it.  I broke 3:20:00.  And I managed to qualify for Boston again.  10 years after the first time.  That's some good running karma. And the absolute best part of all: I didn't crack.  I didn't give up when it got tough, I dug deeper.  I found a resolve that I didn't know I had.  That is worth more than anything to me. 

I also managed to snag the 3rd place overall Female Masters spot which was an unexpected surprise.  All in all a great day, despite how much I suffered.  I really enjoyed the course and the volunteers were outstanding.  If I had one complaint it would be that they should have had Marshals directing people in some of the less populated areas as well as at the turns going into the parks.  I'd definitely do it again.  And of course, it was so amazing to see all the Team Running Free jerseys out there on and off the course.

Well earned finishers medal.

Keeping Calm and Carrying On

***

I wanted to pick up my race kit after work yesterday but after Friday afternoon chaos ensued, I realized I wouldn't be getting out of the studio in a timely fashion which frazzled me a bit.  I really didn't want to have to go out and do anything today other than put my feet up.  After a very short run I headed over to the Race Expo first thing this morning.  I wasn't the only keener that wanted to get my kit early.  It was quite busy.  Luckily I had my bib number so I didn't have to go to the big list to find it.  I made my way over to the marathon bib pick up and gave them my bib number.  The young guy flipped through all the 600's a couple of times and then said "Ummm, I can't find it."

What??

He then had his friend look through it.  It seemed as though my bib disappeared.  Bib #643 and #645 were both there, but bib #644 was not.  Bizarre.  Somewhat flustered, off I went to the registration table to see if someone could help me.  I was then directed to the Sports Stats booth.  He looked me up and then checked to see if someone had picked up my bib and activated my chip.  Negatory.  Weird.  He wrote me a note and sent me back to the registration table.  Ugh.  I handed my note in and my old bib # to the woman at the table and got a new "nameless" bib and chip in return.  This number was #1179.  Which, to be honest, I actually liked better than #644.  The superstitious runner in me will always tally up the numbers in a bib to get it down to a single digit.  1+1+7+9=18. 1+8=9.  9 is a good number in my books.  Why?  Because it breaks down to 3x3 and 3 is my lucky number.

Ridiculous I know.  But whatever.  There's nothing rational about superstitions.

They scanned my chip in and I went on my merry way, still somewhat flustered, only to start worrying about "what if they don't have my AG info?"  No one physically transferred anything while I was there and I didn't get confirmation on anything.  So, I turned around and went back in to make sure that my age group info was all there.  I'm trying to qualify for Boston, the last thing I want is to have any sort of incomplete or incorrect results posting.  After being reassured by the guy at Sports Stats that he'd make sure it got done, I made my way home with my fingers crossed. 

My wonderful husband stopped by the Expo on while he was out running some errands and double checked that everything had in fact, been transferred over.  I'm happy to report that it has.  I can now officially stop fretting and relax.  Keep Calm and Carry On as the saying goes!  Too bad I didn't realize that I had neglected to pick up my race t-shirt, I could have had him grab that for me while he was there.  Although, truth be told, I need another race t-shirt like I need a hole in the head, and it wasn't really that nice anyway.

***scan of original 1939 poster taken from Wikipedia.

The Game Plan

It's t-minus 3 days till the marathon and from the way I'm feeling, you'd think I was getting ready to run my first one.  Every time I *think* about the race, I get butterflies in my stomach like a love struck teenager.  I've also been obsessing about what sort of food and how much of it I should be eating over the next few days.  Why I've suddenly decided to focus on that for this particular race is beyond me.  I've run 6 marathons and generally given no real thought to what I ate in the days leading up to them other than my dinner the night before and my breakfast race morning.  Sometimes that worked and sometimes that didn't.  I suppose if I was a really anal runner, I'd have notes on all this stuff, but I'm not so all I've got are the unpleasant memories of when things didn't work out.  Like my last attempt at qualifying for Boston in 2010 at the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon.  What a disaster.  I really really really don't want a repeat of that day.   I've got a few more races under my belt and 2 additional years of "life experience" so here's hoping I know a bit better this time around.  

I normally reserve my starchy carbs for post workout but given that I'm going to be running for over 3 hours, I know that I'm going to have to make sure my glycogen stores are as full as they can be come race day.  That means incorporating more starchy carbs into my regular meal rotation.  I've been reading all sorts of different articles on carb loading and now I think I'm even more confused than when I started.  Some articles I've read say that you should do this the day before the race.  Others say you should do it 2 days before the race.  There is one thing that seems to be consistent and that is the amount of carbs that one needs to consume.  Apparently I should aim to eat 10g of carbs per kg of body weight.  At roughly 125lbs, that translates to 56.8kg, so, doing that math, that means I should aim to eat approximately 568g of carbs.   Given that one whole wheat bagel has roughly 50g of carbs, I'd have to eat 11 bagels to get even close to 568g of carbs.  How insane is that?  That would pretty much guarantee a porta potty stop or two during the race, never mind even trying to get out of the house and get to the start line in the morning.  

So what is a girl to do?

1) Chill out and 2) make it up as she goes along and hope for the best, of course! (much like most of my training this year).  As of yesterday I've been gradually adding more carb dense foods in.  I had quinoa for dinner last night and I had the leftovers for lunch today.  Dinner tonight will probably involve some sweet potatoes and eggs.   Breakfast tomorrow is still somewhat undecided but lunch will also involve sweet potatoes.  Dinner is going to be pasta with veggies and a meat sauce, of course.  Saturday morning will be pancakes and lunch will also be a bit heavier on the carbs.  Dinner will be something light, probably a grilled chicken breast with a salad.  I will probably have a bottle of GU brew during the day to add a few more carbs in and make sure I keep my electrolyte balance ok instead of drinking water all day peeing away all the minerals and other goodies my body needs.   Hopefully that will be sufficient to ensure I've got a full tank race morning.  If not then, oh well.  At least I've written it all down this time so I know what not to do for next time.

I gotta be honest, I'm a little scared.  42.2km is a long way to go.  It's no 147 mile ultra but for now,  it's far enough for this little lady.   A little fear is a good thing.  It keeps me on my toes and proves that I still care enough about racing to actually feel that way in the first place. 

Keeping the Cooties at Bay

This is the critical week for me.  Forget all the weeks of training, this week is the *big* week.  It's the week that I absolutely have to stay healthy.   The last thing I want is to get a cold the week of my A-race.  Knock on wood, that hasn't happened yet but my gallivanting in the Caribbean last week is a sure fire recipe for a germ invasion.  In fact, I felt like I was getting sick the day after we got back.  After a couple of solid nights of sleep, I am pretty sure I nipped it in the bud.

But just in case, I'm taking extra precautions this week.  Those precautions involve a regular dose of Cold FX Daily Defense, along with some extra vitamin C and drinking a lot of fluids.  Given that my sinuses are also prone to getting infected, I've taken to using the neti pot daily and I'm keeping my trusty Sudafed handy as well.  I've had to take one this morning already.  If I even feel the slightest scratchy throat or sniffle, I'm busting out the Oil of Oregano.  Maybe I'm going a bit overboard but I'd rather be safe than sidelined this Sunday.

What do you turn to to try to keep a cold at bay?

Eat, Drink, Repeat

My view for the week.

I was going to title this post "How Not to Taper" but I can't say for sure if my shenanigans this past week have been a bad thing or not.  I guess I'll find out next weekend. 
I do know one thing, I'm glad I have another week to get back to "normal".  As much as I enjoyed the week away, I'm glad to be back home, away from the buffets, beer and blender drinks.  7 days of "Eat, Drink & Repeat" will do a number on anyone, no matter how fit they are.  There was a scale in the bathroom in our room and Gary actually weighed himself at the beginning of the week and at the end of the week.  I didn't bother.  I didn't want to know.  By the middle of the week, I felt gross and I was incredibly bloated. Par for the course when you go to an all inclusive resort, at least for me anyway.  But, it was a vacation.  Vacation to me means a break from everyday life.  So I took a break from my regularly scheduled healthy living and indulged in a week of quasi debauchery.  Once and a while it's nice to let loose.
I had big plans to run at least 3 times while I was there.  Those big plans never materialized as I was too busy having fun.  I made it out twice.  I did manage to run 10km a couple of days after my 5.5km outing.  I was tempted to try and run longer but the sun was climbing higher along with the temperature so I pulled the pin.  That and all I really wanted to do was lie down and listen to the ocean.  I got a lot of that done this past week along with a few naps on the beach, which is never a bad thing.  I wouldn't say that I've come back well rested though.  Sub-par air conditioning,  past-my-bedtime booze filled evenings and a rock hard mattress resulted in less than ideal sleep.  At least the lounge chairs were comfy enough to nap on!  Good thing I've got just over a week to catch up on my sleep and get rid of the last bit of bloating from my 7 days of eat, drink & repeat. 

12 weeks in: Mississauga Marathon Training Update

The Universe finally seems to have gotten it.  I can't believe I've actually made it through these last 4 weeks with minimal disruption.  I also realized that my updates have not really occurred when they were supposed to!  HA.  I'm actually a week off.   As of today, I've got 3 weeks left till Mississauga, not 4.  So it's pretty much taper time.  I'm so glad my friends Mike & Mel decided to get married in Jamaica this week.  Yah Mon.  We're off to the land of Bob Marley and jerk chicken on Thursday for a week of fun in the sun.  I know I'm going to have to do some training while I'm down there.  It may only involve sprints to the bar but that's better than nothing, right?  I've logged all the long miles, now I just have to focus on intensity and getting some rest.  Sleeping on a beach counts as rest right?

These last 4 weeks haven't been too bad.  I've missed some runs due to racing, recovery and getting sick but I've tried to get most of my mileage in.  The bigger deal is that I haven't missed a long run yet and I don't intend to.  I couldn't see myself running 23km around the resort in Jamaica so I'm going to do my long run on the Wednesday night before we leave.  That still counts in my books!

So this is where I've netted out over the last 4 weeks.


Week of March 19th: 
I was still dealing with some residual leg issues so I cut my distance back a bit for each run this week.  I was also going to be racing Around the Bay that Sunday so I didn't want to overdo it during the week.   I was also still fairly busy at work.
Scheduled Mileage:  68km  Actual Mileage:  58.14km - not bad.

Week of March 26th:
I was recovering from Around the Bay so I figured my Tuesday night tempo run was definitely not going to happen.  It was a scheduled "easy" week so I didn't mind cutting back on my mileage a bit.  My Sunday run that week was only 17km.  What a treat that was!
Scheduled Mileage:  47km  Actual Mileage: 36.25km - not bad.

Week of April 2nd:
This was supposed to be my biggest week of mileage yet.  I had a race and my longest run within 2 days of each other.  I was planning on racing the Good Friday 10 Miler so I had to shuffle all my runs around.  I was going to use that race as my long tempo so my Tuesday night run ended up being hill repeats.  I didn't quite get the entire 12 km done but I was ok with that.  I also skipped my easy run during the week.  Sunday's run was my 36km course recce.  Made for a pretty huge week of mileage but I still missed my target. 
Scheduled Mileage:  71km  Actual Mileage:  65.13km - pretty darned good. 

Week of April 9th:
This week started off with such promise.  I felt a little run down on Tuesday but not too bad.  I figured I'd go out and run at least a 13-14km tempo vs the 17 I was supposed to do.  I ran just under 15km and when I got home, I couldn't warm up.  Uh-oh.  Sure enough I woke up that night with a totally stuffed up nose.  I thought it might have been allergies because my ears and palette were itchy so I took an allergy pill.  Took care of the itching but not the stuffy nose.  The stuffy nose turned into a runny nose and a lot of sneezing which then turned into a nasty cold and had me on my ass all day Thursday.  I probably should have stayed home Friday as well but I didn't.  My big goal this week was to get my 32km with hills run in and I was doing that on Saturday so I could go and watch the G-man race Paris to Ancaster again.  I woke up Saturday morning feeling a whole lot better so I managed to get that run in at least.
Schedule Mileage:  67km    Actual Mileage:  47.03.  Yikes. 


The big question now is will I have done enough to get me to a sub 3:20 marathon?  I don't know.  I don't think I've ever missed as much training as I have with this particular marathon.  I do know that when I train for New York, I may re-think the long tempo runs.  They are a generally a very tough effort and I think those are the runs that really kill me.  I may actually cap those at a max of 15km but we'll see. 

Now it's taper time. Time for me to pack my bags and get my fun on in Jamaica. 

Irie, mon.

8 weeks in: Mississauga Marathon Training Update

I am officially at the halfway point of my 16 week training program.  These last 4 weeks have been challenging to say the least.  I managed one almost perfect week of training and then it all went to hell in a hand basket.  Work got stupidly busy and I ended up sidelined for almost a week with some muscle & sciatic issues.  Not where I had hoped to be at this point in my training.  I've missed weeks of speed work and had to cut last weeks 29km run short.  I managed 22km before I had to call in the sag wagon.  Turns out I buggered up my adductor muscle, my hamstring and my glute medius, all of these incredibly tight muscles were putting pressure on my sciatic nerve.  Excruciating.  And just the kick in the pants that I needed to actually take care of myself.  One A.R.T session had me almost back to normal.  I took an entire week off and did an easy 7km run on Saturday.  It went well so I decided to tackle my 29km again on Sunday.  Success!  It was slower going than normal but I didn't care.  I got out and did it relatively pain free.  And in shorts to boot!  Woohoo!

I started off this quarter of my training plan with a very successful week of training.  Work seemed to have evened out, I didn't have any shoots happening, so all was good.  I didn't have any weight workouts scheduled either so I did my long tempo on the Tuesday morning.  Work did get a little busy and I ended up missing my Thursday run with the group so I did my intervals on the Friday night.  Then I did my easy run on Saturday and a progression run on Sunday.  By Monday my legs were fried.  I discovered that I can't run 3 days in a row anymore.

Scheduled Mileage:  58km  Actual Mileage:  57.24km - AWESOME!

The following week things at work were still relatively quiet. I wasn't feeling great though so I opted to skip my Tuesday night run with the group.  The last thing I wanted was to get sick leading up to the Chilly Half.  I opted to ride my bike instead.   I managed to get out and join my run group on Thursday for a short interval session.  My hamstring was feeling a bit tight so I was a bit apprehensive about the race on Sunday.  I made sure I stretched well and foam rolled it.  Saturday was my birthday and I figured I wanted to go into the race with totally fresh legs so I skipped my Saturday run.  Sunday was race day.  I did a decent warm up, raced and neglected to do a cool down.  So my mileage this week was less than stellar.

Scheduled Mileage:  56km  Actual Mileage:  33.32 km-  Uhhh...yikes.

All hell had broken loose on the Friday before my birthday so I knew that this particular week would be very challenging workout wise.  My hamstring was also still really bothering me and my legs were still feeling the 1:31:00 half I ran on the Sunday.  I still managed to get out and do a few runs but I didn't make it out to my group runs at all.  The Sunday I was scheduled to do 29km but I had to call the G-Man to come and pick me up at 22km.  That's when I realized I was in trouble.

Scheduled Mileage:  61km  Actual Mileage:  40.07 - better than last week but still....!!

After my disastrous run on the Sunday I knew I had to get in to Pivot and get myself sorted out.  Running was out of the question until my legs felt better.  No matter, we were shooting on Monday and Tuesday, which meant long days.  Wednesday I finally got in to Pivot to have some A.R.T work done.  Oh god.  There was not going to be any running after that.  We were also doing casting that day and then I was off to see The Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys with my sister and her friends.   No time for a run.  Besides, my legs didn't want to run.  I had a hard enough time standing at the concert.  The PT told me that I would probably hurt for about 48 hours or so.  He wasn't kidding.  Thursday was beautiful and I desperately wanted to go out and run but I figured I'd give my body the time to heal.    Saturday I went out and did a very easy 7km run.  My legs felt great.  Virtually no pain.  I figured that I'd try to tackle 29km on Sunday.  I headed over to Marie Curtis Park with my friend Kiki and we ran along the Lakeshore portion of the Mississauga Marathon course.  I normally wouldn't attempt to do a 7km increase in mileage from one long run to the next but I figured I'd have to give it a go as I'm scheduled to do Around the Bay 30km next weekend.  Kiki and I toughed it out.  My legs were pretty pissed with me by about 26km.  But, we did it.  It was a bit slower going than normal but I didn't care.  I did it AND, it was virtually pain free.  That was huge.  Just the boost I needed.

Scheduled Mileage:  68km  Actual Mileage:  36.69km.  Disastrous.  But it is what it is.

This week looks fairly decent in terms of work.  One shoot on Wednesday so hopefully I'm able to get out to my run group on Tuesday and Thursday.  I had another A.R.T session with Peter this morning which hurt like hell but he was impressed with how much looser everything was feeling so I think my first torture session with him last week really helped.  I'm going in again on Saturday for a tune up before Around the Bay. 

Fingers crossed that the next 8 weeks are relatively uneventful!

The Happy Camper in her new shoes - March 18th, 2012

Miracle of Miracles

I can't believe it.  For the first time since I started this training program, I finally managed to get all my scheduled running workouts in.  Sure I cut my Tuesday workout a bit short but I actually got everything done.  And in the end, my workout yesterday was a bit longer so I came very close to actually running the 58km I was scheduled to run this week. My total mileage this week was 57.24km.  Yeah!  A few more weeks like this and I'll be right back on track.

It was a beautiful day for a run.  Cool and sunny with NO wind (love!).  I was scheduled to do my first ever progression run.  I was looking forward to this workout.  Once I got out, my legs decided that they just didn't want to go.  Great.  I struggled right from the start.  This was going to be ugly.

My plan was to increase my pace every 5km by about 5 seconds per km.  This proved to be a bit more challenging that I anticipated given that my pace was all over the place to begin with.  I tried to keep my initial pace at around 5:15 kms but that was difficult.   My legs just didn't want to cooperate.  I am chalking that up to running 3 days in a row.  This "old" bod can't take that anymore.  I suppose if I had done my 12km interval run on Friday morning vs. Friday evening I probably would have felt a little bit better.  But alas, I did not so I had to work through the aches.  After my first 5km things did feel a bit better but I just felt sloppy.  Not fluid at all.  I chugged along, happy that there was no wind to make me work harder than I had to.   Before I knew it I had made it out to Port Credit.   It was so clear you could see the CN tower.

It was time for me to turn around and head back home.   To say I was tired was an understatement.  I kept looking at my watch to check my pace.  My legs were starting to hurt.  I was 15km in and decided that I was just going to push the pace for the next 8km.  I aimed to hold 4:45's for the next 5km.  That 5km seemed to take forever.  It just about killed me.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do for the last 3km.  Should I back off and cool down or should I try to pick up the pace once again?  The hard head in me decided that I needed to be able to handle running on seriously tired legs so, I opted to push the pace some more.  I figured I could probably pull off 4:35's for 2km and then ease up for the last km.  I think I managed 1km at 4:35's and then the chute came out.  My legs just plain hurt.  I glanced at my watch and figured that I was close to finishing in 1:55.  I willed my legs to go faster but I was maxed out.  I glanced at my watch: 4:47's with 1 minute and 15 seconds to go till 1:55.  Ugh.  Here goes nothing.  I rounded the bend towards home, legs screaming.   The km's were now down to meters.  I was almost there.  1:55 came and went.  100m left.   Finally.  23.01 in 1:55:24.

That was a tough workout.  I can see why it's a good one for marathon training.  Perhaps the next time I do it, I will have had a more appropriate amount of rest.   For now, it's time to put my feet up and have a well deserved nap.

4 weeks in: Mississauga Marathon Training Update.

To say that these last 4 weeks have wreaked complete havoc on my training schedule would be an understatement.  I am a creature of habit that happens to work in an industry that is completely unpredictable.  Never really a good combination.   The result usually ends up involving a lot of workout improvisation on my part.  Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  

My first week of training started off fairly promising.  I managed to get out of work at a reasonable time and actually get my 13km tempo in.   Thursday I ended up skipping my run group run because I had eaten a whole pile of garbage during a 5 hour meeting.  You may think that is lame but like I said, I'm a creature of habit.  I generally eat healthfully and I eat at regular intervals throughout the day.   When you're sitting in a meeting for 5 hours and all you have is scones, jam, cream cheese, muffins, fruit, veggies and dip...well...let's just say things can get ugly.   I need real food.  Not grazing food.  I finally got to eat my lunch at 3:00 pm, which totally messed me up.  I figured I wasn't going to have the energy to do 15x1 minute intervals.  So I went home and did a half-assed run from there.  Better than nothing I suppose.  I got my Saturday & Sunday run in no problem. 
Scheduled Weekly mileage: 51 km  Actual Mileage: 49.7km - Not bad!

I knew that my second week of training was going to need some tweaking as I was going to be on an overnight shoot from the Monday night to the Tuesday morning.  I figured there was going to be no way that I was going to pull of a 16km tempo run after staying up for 30 hours straight.  I'm not 24 anymore.  So, I shuffled my tempo run to Wednesday morning instead.  I then thought it would be smart to go to the gym on Thursday morning and do some leg work.  I stepped into the squat rack and did my first set of squats.  Hmm....legs don't feel so great.  Ah well maybe I just need to warm up a bit more.  Second set of squats results in debilitating quad cramps.  Motherofgod.  Ok so maybe not the greatest idea.  I spend the rest of the workout doing upper body, ab work and foam rolling the hell out of my quads.  It was too late, the damage was done.  I was so sore the next day I shuffled around the studio.  I opted not to run that night.  I probably should have as that would have helped move out some of the lactic acid.   I woke up on Saturday morning feeling like I'd run a downhill marathon.  I forced myself to go out and run.  It was painfully slow.  My legs were so sore it was affecting my gait.  It was sloppy and I kept tripping over my feet.   At that point I figured it was time to pull the pin.  I was supposed to do 8km but I ended up doing 6.  More foam rolling and stretching ensued when I got home.  Got up Sunday and the soreness was almost all gone.  The first half hour of that long run was a bit rough but once I got really warmed up, I ended up having a great run.   
Scheduled weekly mileage: 53km Actual Mileage: 43.21km - not great.

I had high hopes for the third week of training.  I had a couple of small things on the go at work but nothing that should have impinged my training.  Until Tuesday.  Of course.   I had to quote on a project and they needed the estimate by the end of the day.  Of course I finish it mid afternoon but am waiting on one number.  I finally get that number at about 4:45.  I sent the estimate out with a note telling the Art Buyer that I'm leaving at 5:15.  Of course she calls me at 5:00 pm and wants to be taken through the estimate.  Fair enough.  I've managed to get in to my running gear at least, I should be able to get out at 5:30.  That was not to be.  Revisions needed to happen.  Lots of back and forth.  I finally left at 6:00 pm.  I had a 17km tempo run scheduled that night.  I managed 10km.  When I got home from that run I wasn't feeling so good.  I had some chills and my throat was a bit sore.  I mixed up a glass of vitamin C powder and downed that.  I had a hot shower but I couldn't warm up.  Not a good sign.  I woke up at 1:00 am drenched in sweat.  I woke up again at 3:00 am with a pounding headache, stuffed up sinuses and a sore throat and I couldn't get back to sleep.  I was officially sick.  I skipped my Wednesday morning swim, drugged myself up and went into work.  I should have stayed home but my boss needed my paperwork.  I got home and went to bed really early.  I had a meeting on Thursday that I couldn't reschedule.  It was a pre-production meeting for a shoot we were doing the following week.  I dragged my butt into work, drugged up on Benalyn daytime.  I ended up working late.  Friday morning rolled around and I took the day off.  I spent it working in my pj's from the comfort of my couch but it was hardly relaxing.  I did, however,  feel better by the end of the day.  Saturday rolled around and we had a huge dumping of snow.  I was feeling better but still not 100% so I opted to skip my 8km run and save myself for my 22km on Sunday.  That Sunday run was just plain awful.  Slushy and gross and I could feel the toll that cold had taken on my body.  But I was out and running.   
Scheduled Weekly Mileage:  58km  Actual Weekly mileage: 32km - YIKES.

I figured this week might get a bit tricky.  I had figured I'd be able to get out and run on Tuesday night but work took over and I ended up leaving late.  No run for me.  I figured that I would do my interval run on Wednesday night and then do my tempo run on Friday morning.  We were shooting on Wednesday but we weren't supposed to finish late.  We finished late.  Arg.  I did still manage to get a run in.  Not the full 11km I was supposed to do but it was better than nothing.  My hamstring was really bothering me as well.  More foam rolling and stretching.  Learned my lesson from 2 weeks ago and didn't do any leg work the next day when I went to the gym.  That made for a short workout but it was better than nothing.  Friday morning I tackled my tempo run.  It was less than ideal.  I felt like crap.  My legs were tired and I was just generally not feeling it.  I did get to experience an amazing sunrise which made that outing totally worth it.  I managed to get a bike ride AND my 9km run in yesterday.  My legs were still a bit cranky but I think getting out and moving helped clear out the residual soreness from my massage.   My long run was lovely.  I went out to the east end and ran with Stephanie through the Leslie Spit.  So nice.  My legs were still a bit sore, especially around the area of my lower hamstring just behind my knee.  Luckily we ran on mostly packed gravel trail so it was much more forgiving than pavement.  I was scheduled to 19km but we ended up doing just over 20. 
Scheduled Weekly Mileage:  56km  Actual Mileage:  53.12km - Better!

Given how these last few weeks have gone, there may have to be some goal re-evaluation for the Chilly Half which is 2 weeks away.  I feel like I've totally missed out on some key speed workouts.  I'm hoping that things calm down a bit for my next 4 week block of training.  March and April are going to be big mileage months.  I'm going to need to get those long tempos in as well as my interval training if I want to nail that 3:20 marathon.  And, most importantly, I'm going to have to remain injury free. 

We'll see how that pans out!

Moving Pictures

No, I'm not going to write a post about one of the greatest rock albums ever.  Instead I'm going to treat you to a visual summary of my 20km excursion this morning.  It was a glorious day for the beginning of February with temperatures hovering just over zero.  The sun was shining, there was no wind and from this runner's point of view, it doesn't get any better than that!

Spit at Samuel Smith Park.  I never get tired of this view.

The path into the Rich Man's Land, Mississauga

Turn around point in Port Credit, Mississauga.

View of Lake Ontario from Port Credit.  On my way back.

Running along the Waterfront Trail. 

Herbie the Love Bug!  Hanging out in Lakefront Promenade Park.

Tempting....but I'm almost home.  Picked up the pace here and tried to get my last 12 minutes done in 10.

On Any Given Sunday

Everyone has their own Sunday ritual, for some people it's church, for others it's football.  For me it's my day to go long.  It's my long run day.  Last Sunday marked the start of yet another quest.   This time I'm tackling the 26.2 mile monster.  Another 16 weeks of long runs through whatever Mother Nature has to throw at me, which doesn't seem to be much given the way this winter is going.

I really look forward to these runs, these lovely little escapades that end my week.  I run them mostly solo.  Sometimes I have company.  They give me the time to tune out or tune in depending on the situation.  They build my strength and tear it down all in one go.  They give me time to reflect and time to observe.   Some days are amazing and some I'd rather forget.  The route I take may be the same but the experience is always different.  That's why on any given Sunday, you'll find me out going long.

Geese - copyright Phaedra Kennedy 2012

Setting Goals

As excited as I was for this year to start, I have to admit, I am still kinda hanging on to last year.  I want to move forward but I think I'm a little scared to.  I had such an amazing year last year.  I think it's only natural to wonder if this year could be any better.   I set such high expectations for myself by the end of last year.   They haven't gone anywhere but, knowing I'm going to be tackling a much more challenging distance, there is some doubt.  What if I fail?  I suppose that doesn't really matter to anyone but myself in the grand scheme of things.  I have to go out and try.   So that means taking off my rose coloured holiday glasses and taking a good look at my upcoming race season.

It's time for some goal setting and it's time for me to put it all out there once again so I can remain accountable.  So far I've actually registered for 3 races between now and the end of May.  The goal is 4 races but I also need to budget accordingly.  Race entries ain't cheap!

First up:  The Chilly Half Marathon, March 4th, 2012.  The day after my birthday.  So, no big night out for my birthday.  That will have to happen the weekend after, ha ha.  I ran that race last year in 1:47:49 on a snowy day.  Considering the snowless winter we're having now, I'm really hoping that we have a nice cold snowless day this year for the race.  It is just under 8 weeks away.  Given my current lack of top speed, I think I will have my work cut out for me.  One of the insane girls in my run group said that we're going to aim to break 1:30.  I think that's nuts for this early in the season.  I think I'm capable of a 1:40:00 with my current level of fitness.  I may re-evaluate that when I get closer to race day.

Next up is Around the Bay, 30km on March 25th.  The last time I did this race was 2006 when I was training for Ironman.  I pulled off a 2:40:15 which included a 2+ minute stop at an aid station to tape down a toenail.  So I could have broken 2:40:00.  I am much faster than that now.  My ultimate goal at this race has always been to break 2:30:00.  I'm more than sure I'm capable of that, even though it is a hilly course.  So I'll put a goal of 2:20:00 out there.   That puts me at 4:40/km's which will be tough but I think it's doable, especially given that I'll have a few more weeks of mileage and speed work under my belt.  Again there may be a re-evaluation of that when I get closer to race day.

My BIG race this year is the Mississauga Marathon on Sunday May 6th.  The goal here, which has been set by my friend Kiki is to break 3:20:00.  THIS will be a challenge.  My marathon PB is 3:34:07.  I know I'm faster than that now.  The question is by how much over that distance.  I have upped my mental game big time in the last year and the marathon distance is 50% training and 50% mental.  So I think when the going gets tough, I'll be able to suck it up and keep going.  I'm also hoping to re-qualify for Boston, which with a 3:20, will be no problem.

The 4th race I've registered for is the Toronto Women's Half on Sunday May 27th.  It's only 3 weeks after the marathon but I think if I'm smart with my recovery, I'll be able to go out and rock that course.  I ran it last year and ran a 1:41:37.  If I'm fully recovered, I expect to be sub 1:35 here and hopefully better my age group placing (I was 5th in my AG last year).  Which would be awesome given that this race is usually stacked with very fast ladies.  I'm also coaching a friend of mine who will be running this race so either way, I was planning on being there. 

I am going to have to learn to use my Garmin as well.  I think that will really help me with my pacing.  I guess I should actually finish reading the manual.

Making it all official:

Chilly Half Marathon:  1:40:00
Around the Bay:  2:20:00 or faster
Mississauga Marathon:  3:20 or faster
Toronto Women's Half:  1:35 or faster

It's going to be a fun and challenging season of racing!

The Natives Are Getting Restless

It's the in between times that are tough.    Mentally and physically.  My mind checks out and my body seems to do exactly the same shortly there after.   I'm sure it's trying to tell me that "enough is enough, you need to rest.  Hell, I need to rest.   So rest I  must.  And I need some TLC as well.  My shattered legs have spoken their mind and refuse to run another step until I get a massage.


Yup, it's officially "Off Season".  It's technically been off season since my A race in October but I decided to throw one last kick at the can in at the end of November.  NOW it's really off season.  I have no races coming up in the near future.  In fact I've got nothing in the books until March.  As much as I welcome the down time, I sometimes find myself spiraling into a hole of complacency.  With no solid goal, it's easy for me to slip down that hole.   I start to feel somewhat uninspired to lace up the shoes and log those empty miles.  Much like I've felt kinda uninspired to write too.

No longer.  The natives are getting restless.  This native in particular.  This is the worst kind of restlessness, where I know I should be resting, my mind wants to be doing but my body says Meh, I don't think so.  So I will have to satisfy myself by starting to think about my marathon training plan, which is slated to start on New Year's Day.  I know.  Nothing like starting off the year with a long run.  At least I should be able to run off my hangover!