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Oakland Marathon 2014 training: 7 weeks out

Oakland Marathon 2014 training: 7 weeks out

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7 weeks out – week 5 – week of January 27, 2014

OakMarathonLogo

Yeah, uh, 7 weeks out, not 8. Apparently someone can’t read an Excel spreadsheet too well, so all my numbers have been off so far. #facepalm

Anyway, few things were on my mind with my runs this week except a) being mindful of effort, given my intention of running-but-not-racing-but-doing-a-half on Sunday, the day following my LR, and b) getting through peak week #1. Pfitzinger’s 70/12 is a tad different from others in that instead of building-building-building to a training apex, and then having runners topple down the huge taper tower and barrel toward race day, you basically keep the mileage somewhat consistently high but hit your maximum volume a few times in the 12-week cycle. (I’m not sure if he does this for his other plans that are longer in duration, but I’d imagine so).

That said, this week was my first time I would intend on hitting my 70-mile maximum, and due to some scheduling shuffling, I included the Kaiser half in San Francisco–a bit of a rundezvous with Austin, as well as some nice quality time with Stone, and Chicago Bootlegger galpal Meredith, who was in SF for work–in the mix. I knew that this week would be taxing, but I also felt like if done well, it could be great feedback 25% into the cycle.

Also! Super fun! Late in the week, I found out I was selected to be a race ambassador for the Zooma women’s half marathon in Napa in late June. I never ran the Zooma series in Chicago, but when I saw announcements on twitter for Napa, I thought ‘what the hell.’ Most,if not all, women’s-only races are inherently quite different from those of the co-ed flavor, and I thought that this could be a great opportunity for me to meet other runners in the Bay/NorCal area. I was really surprised (and quite honored) that I was selected, but I’m super stoked to meet everyone and go to Napa (about two hours away) in June. 🙂  Discount code coming soon!

ZOOMA-Napa-logo-FINALI also wrote a guest entry this week for TSFM’s blog about the importance of setting, articulating, and then going after crazy-ass goals, and then I had a good little hyperventilation sesh with myself as I publicly admitted to the interwebz what I’m chasing this spring (and long-term). Oh baby.

Finally! If you’re in the Bay or NorCal area, or even if you just want to travel here for some runs (heeeeeey), you could TOTALLY use my discount codes and actually probably have these races fit right into your training plan this spring/summer!

  • Run the 408k – 8k – Sunday, March 2 – San Jose – $4.08 off with code 408hookup
  • ZOOMA women’s half marathon – 13.1 – Saturday, June 28 – Napa – discount code forthcoming 🙂
  • The San Francisco Marathon – 26.2, the first 13.1, the second 13.1, or the 5k – Sunday, July 27 –  $10 off with  code DSC10TSFM2014A26

Alright! Training!

Monday, January 27

p: rest/XT

a: rest. Like a boss. + PUs + glute med work

I can’t recall anything I did last Monday. It was the day after the Shoreline to Stanford Dish 20 that I ran with the RunAddicts group, and I felt pretty well but noticed a little stiffness in one of my left toes and a bit of high calf/low hamstring tightness on my right side following the run. Nothing was particularly bad, nor did it bother me on subsequent runs this week; I was just cognizant of it.

Tuesday, January 28

p: GA + speed: 8 mi with 10x100m strides

a: MLR 15: 8.05 mi in the a.m.; 7.64 in the p.m. + PUs + glute med work + RYBQ 10×10 strength routine, 2 rounds

C’s work schedule allowed me to do this run a bit later than usual, and since I was supposed to have my first two-a-day this week, I opted to break-up the MLR–not something I’d normally do, but the opportunity presented itself. The a.m. run was weirdly warm; for perspective, it’s usually between 38-45 when I run, and it was mid-to-high 50s, if memory serves. Running south on Capitol gave me the opportunity to dreamily watch the sun rise over the hills like a big weirdo and attempt to try to capture the beauty of it on my (very dirty… thank you, toddler) phone camera. In addition, my watch was being a B (yup, I anthropomorphize technology) and didn’t capture my splits: not a big deal.

Capitol, facing south
Capitol, facing south

The p.m. run, around 3pm (read: nearly 40 degrees warmer than what I’m used to right now, ha), was lovely and vitamin-D infused. I returned to the PCP and ran on the west side for a jiffy before picking up the east side and the track. My legs wanted to move, but we had a little talk and decided to take things down a notch. By the end of this run, it also looked like I pissed myself because I was wearing gray spandex. Noted.

west side of PCP
west side of PCP

a.m. average: 8:20 (splits disappeared)

p.m. average: 7:51 (7:53, 42, 49, 8:01, 20, 7:51, 41, 27 for .64)

Also, finally got my ass back into doing the RYBQ 10×10 routine. I felt like I could have taken three showers on Tuesday; that’s my contribution to the drought here.

Wednesday, January 29

p: MLR 15

a: recovery 5.05 (9:26 average; 9:48, 12, 21, 39, 12) + PUs + GM work

Another weirdly warm morning, probably the warmest pre-dawn that I’ve had here. Also had the joy of running in some rain/mist action for the first 1-1.5 miles. I was trying to keep things comfortable; mission accomplished.

Thursday, January 30

p: recovery 5

a: GA + speed, 7.19 miles with 8x100m strides (8:15 average, 8:57, 7:55, 8:13, 23, 12, 05, 01, 39 for .19) + PUs + GM work

Began this run planning to do 8 miles with 10×100 m strides but realized in my last 13 minutes of the run that my mental math faculties that morning were horrendous and that I’d have to stop at 7. NBD. Another wet morning here–which is WONDERFUL–but it made for slick sidewalks and some trepidation on my part to attempt any strides/speed for fears of wiping out. Things get slippery when wet here, folks. I try to avoid anything shiny (think pavement, sewer grates, and the like)…but everything is seemingly shiny when wet, or at least appears to be so between 4-6 a.m. Running in the rain is kinda novel though, so the fun factor mostly outweighed the fear Thursday morning. 🙂

Friday, January 31

p: lactate threshold 11 mi with 5 @ 15k/HMRP; recovery 4 in the p.m.

a: GA + speed, 8.1 with 10x100m strides (8:22 average; 8:40, 12, 39, 21, 16, 23, 25, 7:53) + PUs + abbreviated GM work

Tale of two runs. Part one, going south on Capitol, felt horrible–bloaty, heavy, just good and caca. Swung by home halfway through and then picked up the east side of PCP for the back half and hopped on the cinder-y track in nearly complete darkness, save for the bit of light from my headlamp and the stars. Running in the dark like that took me back to middle-of-the-night legs during Ragnar; initially, it is a bit unnerving, but it is also really cool and wonderfully serene. Besides a cat who didn’t move from its spot the entire time I was on the track, I saw a dude walking on the path, but a quick yell and wave to him, and his reciprocation, indicated he probably wasn’t going to knife me. And, really, truth be told, I was more averse to mountain lions coming down from the hills to play than I was with folks just out strollin’ in the pre-dawn hours. The back half of this run 100% turned the entirety of the run around for me.

Saturday, February 1 – hellllllo, February!

p: GA + speed, 7 mi w 6x100m strides

a: LR 17 with Meredith! on the Guadalupe River Trail (8:03 average; 8:31, 23, 00, 10, 10, 09, 18, 09, 06, 06, 13, 06, 03, 7:58, 45, 30, 14)

So very happy to have Meredith in town and that she willingly drove about 70 minutes super early on a Saturday morning to come down to SJ to run with me. After lots of plan flip-flopping–doing her Daniels’ workout, doing my 20, just doing 16 or 17–we eventually decided we’d do 17 and just run and not clockwatch or worry about hitting GMP or anything. My original plan was to do 20, but I ultimately decided to flip-flop my LRs from last week and this week, and given the Kaiser half on Sunday anyway, that seemed to be the most practical. I intentionally wanted to go into Kaiser tired, but 17 and 20, in the grand scheme of LR mileage, are comparable, and the difference, negligible, at best.

Anyway! Back we went to N SJ, to the GRT, where we ran north to Alviso, south to downtown, and then back north to the River Oaks area. Despite a few pit and fueling stops, this run was just wonderful and lovely–sun shining, a friend from home, no expectations, just awesome. We got to talking about goals for this year (and learned we share many!), and I think that inspired us to pick it up on the final 3-4 of the run. I had fun chasing Mere’s backside down the GRT 🙂

with Mere in SJ!
with Mere in SJ!

I felt really, really good during and after this run. The weird calf and toe things were inconsequential by now, and if anything, gave me some bio feedback that I need to spend some QT with my foam roller, a rolling pin, and a massage therapist.  We followed this run with Denny’s with C and A and eventually went into SF, where we would meet-up with Stone and Austin and friends for dinner and fun before Kaiser on Sunday morning.

they were 'cold' ;)
they were ‘cold’ 😉

 

yay, friends!
yay, friends!

Sunday, February 2 — heeeey, Groundhog’s Day!

p: LR 20

a: Kaiser half marathon (13.1) + 2.2 mi warm-up + 2.15 cool-down [race– 7:30 average; botched my watch and lost my splits. lowest was 7 on the descents; highest was an 8:43-8 on my pit stop. Most were in the 7:1x-2x range with a couple :3x, if memory serves]

Second road race ever in CA and first as a resident… what say whaaaaat. Stayed at Stone’s overnight (thank you, hostess with the mostest) and ran over to the race start with her and Foxy in the rain. I keep bringing up this drought that’s rockin’ the Bay right now, and naturally, Murphy’s Law apparently dictated that SF get more rain in the 12 hours preceding the race, and nearly all day, on the day of the race, than the Bay Area has gotten since I moved here in late December… and, oh yeah, some wind too, just to round things out. 🙂 Definitely not complaining–bitching about the weather is just silly–but it was just an uncontrollable variable to the race.

wet and trashy pre-race with Foxy and Stone
wet and trashy pre-race with Foxy and Stone

Anyway, I went into this race tired but ready to run as well as I could that day, going almost exclusively on feel. After running the first few miles with Austin, Stone, Foxy, and another Erin, I eventually settled into a 7:1x-2x range but slowly began to feel uncomfortable. I didn’t think I was going super hard–I would describe it as “comfortably hard,” post LR-day–but I just felt a little off. I rocked some PRPs, so I ruled out any gastrointestinal issues, but eventually, around mile 9.65, I made the executive decision to duck out for a second to tend to the Big D along the Great Highway. It didn’t take very long, no doubt because the public bathroom was locked and I just had to quickly commune with nature, and as you would expect, I felt much, much better afterward. (You’re welcome)

In addition, the race through the Panhandle and Golden Gate Park follows a lot of TSFM’s course, which is awesome, and has a ton of descents and few ascents, making this a great course for a half PR. Once we got dumped onto the Great Highway though, we ran smack into a hearty headwind for around 3-4 miles (I think), which, while irritating, actually made me smile a bit because I felt like I was on the lakefront. 🙂

I saw Foxy and Stone ahead of me for much of the course and knew that they were going to PR–making me so very happy for them (I tend to celebrate friends’ PRs like they’re my own)–and literally steps before the finish line, I heard, and then saw, Meredith on the sidelines, freezing her toosh off from the nearly non-stop rain and wind, cheering. You might recall that Meredith and some other Bootleggers were on the Chicago Marathon course around mile 24 or 25 and change; seriously, there are few people I look forward to seeing more than this lovely cat that late in a race. 🙂

Ultimately, I squeaked in just under 1:40, my soft and unofficial goal for the race, and I’m quite pleased with it. The other halfs with potty breaks were in the mid-to-high 1:40s, so this  went considerably better… and on fatigued legs… and in sub-ideal weather… so I’m calling it a win. The race could definitely stand to be improved–hello, the shitshow and security nightmare that is gear check–but I’d do likely do it again.

For me anyway, the race was pretty inconsequential in the grand scheme of my last 24 hours; at the risk of sounding obnoxiously treacly, I was just really happy for the QT with my friends from Portland, SF, and Chicago 🙂

about 10-15 seconds from the finish, I think
about 10-15 seconds from the finish, I think

 

final streeeetch
final streeeetch

 

soaked and chilled post-race w Stone, Mere (spectator amazingness), and a sleeping Foxy... thanks for these pics, M!
soaked and chilled post-race w Stone, Mere (spectator amazingness), and a sleeping Foxy… thanks for these pics, M!

 

can't believe I haven't seen him since Eugene!
can’t believe I haven’t seen him since Eugene!

 

And there we have it, folks! Another week down, another week closer to Oakland, and finally, some race feedback to work from. Though it only happened once this week, I’m glad I got some strength stuff in the books, and all things considered, I’m floored with how Kaiser went down. We are movin’ right along.

Weekly Mileage

p: 70

a: 70.48

Have you had to make a mid-race bathroom stop? How were your runs this week? Are you getting stoked for your target race(s)?!

ING NYC Marathon 2013, pt 4: the non-race

ING NYC Marathon 2013, pt 4: the non-race

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I’ve been doing this blogging thing off and on for a while now, and I’ve written some blog entries about marathons I’ve done that have spanned a over a couple entries, but I don’t think I’ve ever written a 4-part series like I have for NYC. Perhaps it is overkill, but honestly, given everything that went into making NYC what it was, though, it seems appropriate for me to shine a spotlight on it, if for no other reason than to help me remember what a cool weekend and race experience it was.

By this point in the game, though, I’ve already talked in pretty exhaustive detail about my strategy, the race experience, and the numbers behind the race, so this post, the last (I think) in the NYC series, will focus on all the other stuff that helped make the weekend so memorable.

I guess an interesting place to begin this recollection is a confession: I really wasn’t particularly looking forward to running NYC–not this year, not ever.

On a fluke in 2009, I had applied to the lottery and got in on my first go but decided to defer because I had committed to other fall races that year (Akron, Marine Corps). Stupid me misunderstood the whole deferral process and didn’t realize I’d end up paying twice to run the race once. Then, in 2012, after PRing in a half at a 1:35 and then, six days later, a 1:33, my good friend David told me that I should do NYC because I’d be guaranteed entry by way of the qualification standards (that have since been tightened to a sub-1:30 half for women my age), and I thought ‘what the hell.’  Then, of course, Superstorm Sandy hit last year, and all the fall-out happened because of the way the NYRR handled (or didn’t, depending on your source) the race, so by now, in 2013, I had essentially paid over $600 to run NYC once.

That is a HELL of an expensive marathon, folks.

Like I said earlier, though, it wasn’t until after I ran Chicago ’13 and began to feel like I had pretty much recovered from it that I thought maybe I’d see what I still had left in the tank and go for gold in NYC. I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Once I got to that point, I was just excited about the race–not nervous, not anticipating, just excited.

On my flight out Thursday night (Halloween), I quickly met other runners–easy to do when you’re wearing running tights at an airport, folks!–which was a cool way to begin the NYC experience (though, word to the wise: tread cautiously when interacting with male runners when their SO is present. Wow, did the lasers from that woman’s eyes sting. Good grief…). Friday mid-day, I leisurely made my way over to the expo to meet-up with Corey and Lynton and partake in all the expo goodness. Along the way, I had the pleasure of chatting with a NYCM expo volunteer for a good twenty minutes, and her energy was simply infectious. I thanked her relentlessly for taking time out of her life to help at the marathon–I’m sure she thought I was crazy when I said that–but the funny thing was that she thanked me for coming to run in her city.

Funny how that works.

Exploring the expo with Corey and Lynton was fun–these things are always funner with another–and shortly after they split, David arrived, so he and I met up for enough time to get a quick picture and try to arrange logistics to meet at the SI ferry Sunday morning (which, spoiler, never happened).

at the expo with Corey and Lynton. the self-imposed spacing between us cracks me up. also, I look incredibly short next to those two...??
at the expo with Corey and Lynton. the self-imposed spacing between us cracks me up. also, I look incredibly short next to those two…??
been runnin' with this guy since '09!
been runnin’ with this guy since ’09!
Reppin' BRC at the expo
Reppin’ BRC at the expo

An uneventful Friday night (grading… wish I were kidding here) was probably one of the better choices I made all weekend. Saturday morning, Lynton ventured up to the Upper East Side, where I was staying with Willa Rose, a friend of a friend, and he and I made our way over to Central Park for a four-mile (or four mile & change) shake-out, where we got caught up in the NYRR’s Dash to the Finish 5k. Shortly after we got into Central Park, we were running the marathon course–very cool–so naturally, I had to risk getting run over by a bunch of 8:30-9 minute/mi 5kers so I could take sub-par pictures of the mile markers. They were on banners over the roads, people! And, strangely enough, during our shake-out, we managed to run into Chanthana, another Chicago runner, who had come into town to cheer at the marathon. Such a small world.

in the shakeout, right before we jumped in with the 5k
in the shakeout, right before we jumped in with the 5k
Hello, mile 26 signage!
Hello, mile 26 signage!

After a delish breakfast with Lynton, we split so he could go on his Marathon in a Motorcoach bus tour and so I could make my way down to Brooklyn, to Williamsburg, to see my girl Leanne, whom I had stayed with last year. We met when we were RAs at DePaul in 2003, and she has to be one of my favorite people ever–just a super classy, super passionate, mega vegan all-star sweetheart of a person. She had invited some other Chicago friends of hers, who were also in town for the marathon, and me to meet her in Willamsburg at Dunwell Donuts, a vegan donut shop, for a late afternoon snack and to catch up. It was a blast seeing her and meeting these other Chicago vegan runners, and bonus! I got my new Vaute Couture coat from the maker/owner/creative director/founder herself, my girl, Leanne 😉

hello, beautiful and delicious vegan goodness
hello, beautiful and delicious vegan goodness- thanks for the pics, Leanne! xo
vegan love at Dunwell Doughnuts
vegan love at Dunwell Doughnuts, with Mr. Dunwell owner himself (Dave) between Leanne and me. Vegan entrepreneurs, FTW!

Lots of vegan deliciousness later, I hauled back to the Upper East Side to drop off and pick-up some personal effects before meeting Lynton and the rest of the Bootlegger gang at Angelo’s in Little Italy. Along the way, I somehow managed to get a bus all to myself for a while, which resulted in some fantastic banter with the incredibly nice driver. Seriously, this driver couldn’t have been cooler; I’m pretty sure there were invitations of post-marathon partying flying around, haha (ed. note: stop being so trusting…). Once I got to Angelo’s, having dinner with many folks in the BRC gang was a blast, and hey, I got a tutorial on what Tinder was and apparently (and accidentally) proved my photoshop prowess 😉

Bootlegger dinner in Little Italy!
Bootlegger dinner in Little Italy!

As far as race eves go, this was a pretty fantastic one. I wasn’t feeling especially nervous about the race, but more than anything, my face actually kinda hurt because I had been smiling so much. Yeah, it was that kind of awesome 🙂

Sunday morning, the race experience? Simply unmatchable. Totally amazing and wonderful and, at least right now, probably my favorite race to date.

Immediately after the race, marathon stinky funkiness and all, Lynton and I met up with another bootlegger, Colin, my San Diego Yogger relay captain from the summer, who had FREAKIN’ RUN SUB-3 IN HIS SECOND GO AT THE MARATHON DISTANCE, and his wife, Stephanie, before the rest of the BRC gang arrived. Again, being with other teammates or training buddies immediately after the race was so uplifting because they could totally identify with the experience that day. It’s a feeling that’s hard to convey, but suffice it to say that I loved being hundreds of miles away from home yet feeling like I was just at some bar in Chicago with some of my runner friends, and this feeling of utter elation just magnified once David and the rest of the BRC gang arrived–Lee Ann, LeeAnn, and others whose names totally escape me right now. We all partook in the obligatory libations and bar food consumption (which, actually, wasn’t bad) and celebrated each other’s victories–PRs, BQs–and commiserated over similar experiences on the course–not starting in the correct wave, hitting a wall of humanity, that sort of thing.

Celebrating with David
Celebrating with David. Yup, my name is still on my arm in Sharpie, and yes, I need to clean my phone camera…
you don't want to know, but I can't not smile for shit
you don’t want to know, but I can’t not smile for shit
makes my heart hurt a little. so.sweet.
makes my heart hurt a little. so.sweet.
rounds of Jameson post-marathon... ouch. burnnnnnnn.
rounds of Jameson post-marathon… ouch. burnnnnnnn.

 

BRC, baby!
BRC, baby!

After several hours in Manhattan celebrating another marathon milestone, we split ways, and late at night, around midnight or so, when I was damn near operating on fumes, my hostess, Willa, her roommate, and I heralded in another decade of my life–hello, 30s!–with rum and cokes and vegan donuts. (Apparently, it’s like an unspoken thing that I only stay with vegans in NYC. Noted.).

Taken after being awake for a million years the day of the marathon. We're hot.
Taken after being awake for a million years the day of the marathon; Willa had also been awake since about 4 a.m. We’re hot.
this is 30. Notice the birthday candle in the doughnut.
this is 30. Notice the birthday candle in the doughnut.

Somehow, it didn’t matter that I had a 6:20 a.m. flight Monday to get back to Chicago in time to teach my first class at 10:10 because I didn’t want to miss a nanosecond of anything when I was in NYC. It’s one thing to just run a race and to run it poorly or well; it’s such a different thing, though, to make an experience out of it.

At the luggage carousel at Midway, trying not to fall asleep
At the luggage carousel at Midway, trying not to fall asleep

By the time the marathon rolled around on Sunday morning, I was already completely satisfied with my time in NYC, and I think I had even told Corey as much on the bus and ferry rides out to Staten Island. That I could, and did, have such a positive racing experience in addition to the amazing weekend I had catching up with old friends and cultivating new friendships was just incredible.

Absolutely, completely, incredible.

And something for which I am so genuinely grateful that I can’t even talk honestly about my race without talking about all these other components that made my NYCM weekend about so much more than how well I covered 26.2.

After doing 21 of these things since 2007, I’m beginning to learn that the best races I have–including Houston, Eugene, and Chicago from this year alone–are the ones where I realize that it’s about much more than a race. Sure, I want to race well after training for months and after ‘practice’ running hundreds of miles so I can run 26.2 efficiently and intelligently in one go, but this whole marathoning thing has become so much more to me than that.

It’s so weird to admit that now, because I can promise you I don’t think of it in those terms when I’m getting my ass handed to me during a grueling workout, but it has become damn near gospel for me.

At the end of the day, the race, itself, is but a strand in the quilt, and in the case of the NYC quilt, it was a quilt that was years in the making.