Ocean Drive 10 Mile Race Recap

I have started this race recap a few times over the past few days and then deleted it.  I did not even want to think about the race because I was disappointed.  This is the third year I have run this particular 10 mile race.  Last year I ran it in 1:43:51 according to my Garmin.  The race is not timed electronically so I pushed the start button when I crossed the start line.  Because I did that last year, I wanted to stay consistent and do the same this year.  I was really hoping to get under 1:40:00 but that was sadly not the case.  I PRed by right under 2 minutes and I am happy about that.  My finish time according to my Garmin was 1:41:52. 

The weather was better than what I expected.  Race start was 9 and the weather report was 32 and 30% chance of snow.  There were some flurries but for a half mile at the most.  I was concerned about what to wear because I did not want to overdress.  I ended up wearing my Brooks long sleeve running tee, a short sleeve tee on top, my tights, throwaway gloves, and my hat.  I tossed my hat to John around mile 8 but could have lost it sooner than that.  The gloves were tossed somewhere between mile marker 2 and 3.  I am glad I bought cheapie gloves at the expo the day before. 

I ran with my Ipod which I have never done before while running on the road.  I plan on having it with me when I run the Delaware marathon in May so I wanted to try it out.  Now I am working on what songs I want to have on the playlist.  I don't plan on running with music the whole marathon but I know Delaware will not be the Philly marathon and I will not have a ton of spectators to get me over the wall!

On the positive side, I felt strong.  I feel like my training was much smarter going into this race than it was last year.  I also recovered a lot easier.  I took Monday as a rest day, ran Tuesday for 35 minutes, and a 40 minute tempo run this morning.  My legs were heavy yesterday morning but I felt back to normal this morning!  John also commented that I looked better at mile 8 than I have at any other race!

Next up.....Delaware Marathon on May 15th!!

Taper week

I am running a ten mile race in 6 days so I guess this is a taper week for me.  My coach is decreased the time and intensity of my runs this week.  My schedule for the week goes like this:

Today - rest of a 30 minute easy spin.  I am going to take the rest day.  My legs are beat from the 11.3 miles yesterday.
Tuesday - 40 minute run with intervals
Wednesday - rest or spin.  I am planning on an easy ride.
Thursday - 35 minute tempo run
Friday - 30 minute recovery run
Saturday - rest
Sunday - 10 mile race with an easy 1 mile warm up and 1 mile cool down.

I went crazy on my taper for the marathon but that was a huge decrease in miles and over two weeks.  I hope this week is better for me!

This is the third year I am running this race and the first with a time goal.  I have yet to set that time goal but I have some thoughts on it. 

I am loving this running coach thing.  I love knowing that someone else is working out the pace, crunching numbers, and all that fun stuff for me!  I do enough number crunching at work.

Officially a bad ass!!

A few months ago I decided it was time to HTFU and I think I officially did that last weekend.  Last Sunday I had 9 miles on the schedule.  The weatherman was calling for rain, pouring rain that is.  Two months ago I would have banged out the 9 miles on the treadmill.  Not last weekend!!  I hit the road a little after 6 in the morning to beat most of the rain.  I ran 5 miles before it started to rain.  Miles 6, 7, and 8 were in light rain but 9 was in pouring rain.  I could have continued on home right after I hit mile 8 and would have been in the downpour for less than a quarter mile.  At that point I was already soaking wet and did not want to disappoint my coach on my first long run with her.  I turned right instead of running straight to go home and finished my 9 miles. 

I felt tough the rest of the day.  My 10 miles yesterday felt easy compared to the 9 the previous!

Three Things Thursday

1.  I am rotten to the core!  A friend texted me a picture of her positive pregnancy test this morning.  I decided to mess around with my dad/boss this morning.  I had my oldest son at the office before taking him to school.  As soon as I left to take him, I sent the picture to my dad.  I am still laughing about it but I don't think he is.  I thought I was going to have to pee on a stick to prove I am not pregnant!!

2.  I tried in the sample for my tri club's tri suits.  They are going to be great and I can't wait!!

3.  All of a sudden I am freaking out about my May 15th marathon.  For some reason I am afraid I don't have the time to get my long runs up there.  I think having a coach now has kinda freaked me out.  I don't see my plan layed out in front of me for every week between now and then.  I now have to trust someone else!

First race of the year and I hired a coach!

One race down, 11 more to go for the year to meet the challenge of Run for the bling of it.  I ran a 5k this morning and was more than pleased with my performance.  I have said before that I don't enjoy running 5ks because I am not a fast runner.  I have not ran a stand alone 5k since June and I shaved 3 minutes off my 5k time!  I uploaded the run this evening and realized I finally achieved negative splits for the first time in a race!

My finish time according to my Garmin was 28:47.76 but my official time was 28:51.  Either way, I was very happy.  My splits were 9:34, 9:33, and 9:18.  I just barely did a negative split for mile 2 but it was by a second! 

It was a fun morning and I am glad I did the race.  It was geared towards high schoolers but open to the community.  There was no mistaking the high school students because quite a few of the girls had full make up on!  We figured we would get creamed by a bunch of kids and I did.  At the same time, I ran past quite a few kids huffing and puffing as they walked or ran.  I had to laugh at the two boys who complained that they are not long distance runners. 

I decided last week to contact a local coaching company.  I know I will never BQ but it is not stopping me from trying to get faster and stronger.  I feel like I am not getting anywhere on my own and decided to check out the coaching company.  I was going to start working with a personal trainer again and went for the coach instead.  The coach decided to run the 5k this morning and we met up before the race.  I really like her and I am excited to start working with her. 

My next race is 4 weeks from today and will be the third year in a row I am running this 10 mile race.  Can't wait!!

A sad day for me

A very important man in my life passed away today.  This man was my parent's best friend.  I won't get into the details but he has been in critical condition for the past week and based on his deteriorating condition, the family decided today it was time to let him go. 

Last Sunday I hit the road for 9 miles early in the morning.  I told my husband not to call me if my mom called to update us on his condition.  We were not sure if he was going to make it through Saturday night.  I prayed for the first mile of my run.  All of a sudden, I heard him say "I am ok Megg.  I am with Jesus now."  He said it 4 more times and then I wiped my tears, ran the next 8 miles and did not give it another thought.  I fully expected to walk in my front door and John tell me he did not make it through the night.  My response was going to be "I know.  He told me he is with Jesus now." 

We had some ups and downs over the next few days.  I did not tell anyone what I was told on my run because I desperately did not want that to be the case.  I wanted to think maybe a bus drove past me and I inhaled the fumes.  Tuesday afternoon we got the bad news that he may be brain dead due to coding before surgery on Saturday.  When my mom gave me the bad news, I shared my experience with my parents.  She told me if he does pass away, she wants me to tell his wife what he told me. 

He was taken off support today around 2:30 and passed shortly before 3:00.  It is believed that he has been brain dead since Saturday.  If that is the case, he was with Jesus Sunday morning when he told me that.  I don't understand why he was taken from us so soon but I am having an even harder time understanding why he chose me.  There were so many people praying for him.  Why did he decide to tell me that he is ok and with Jesus?  What does he want me to do with this information?  I feel incredibly honored that he spoke to me but I have to be honest and say I also feel burdened by this information.  My mom has her thoughts on why he chose me and she believes I am supposed to pass this information on this his wife.  She thinks his wife will find it comforting and will also understand why me.  I hope it is clear to me someday too.

Has anyone else ever been spoken to like this?

Three Things Thursday: Race Edition

1.  Sunday will be my first race of the year!  I am running a 5k in the next town over.  I learned the other day I will most likely get crushed by a bunch of high school runners.  No big deal.  I always expect to be crushed!

2.  As of 15 minutes ago, I am registered for marathon #3 in my running career!  I just registered for the Marine Corp Marathon on October 30th in DC!  Cannot wait.

3.  I still need to decide on some tris for the season.  I tend to be very noncommital about the summer months because we are at the beach so much.  Because of this, I have not done many tris but I really want to get some in this year!