So I survived my third half marathon.
Honestly, this was my best one yet. Not only did I shave about eight minutes off my last time, but I felt the best I have so far at the end of a long race. Usually my stomach bothers me, but this time I felt solid.
Only took me two years of racing. Go figure.
(Me pre-race)
This course was similar to the Long Island Half Marathon, though a little less interesting because we didn’t cut through any towns, instead sticking to main roads and parkways. We started and ended in a park.
People always ask me what I do or think about while I’m running long distance. It’s a fair question: we’re talking up to two hours of time for intense self-reflection.
Sometimes I’m daydreaming, sometimes I think about things that are bothering me. A lot of the time I’m calculating my current speed an trying to figure out what time I will finish, or planning the rest of my day after the run. It’s helpful for me when the course is new or interesting because I can forget I’m running if I have other thugs to focus on.
Because yesterday’s course was fairly flat and boring, though, I found myself thinking a lot about races in general.
I decided my favorite part of a race (besides the finish, of course) is that moment right when you finally break away from the starting line crush, after bobbing and weaving between people who really shouldn’t have started in the pace bracket they did, and you have some clear road to find your pace and just enjoy the run.
Sometimes I feel like that’s the moment we’re all waiting for — when we can finally outrun the madness and the obstacles and just hit our stride.
(I know, I’m super deep, right?)
This was also the first race that I really pushed myself in terms of speed. I knew I was running faster than I normally do, but I didn’t want to check my actual pace on my iPhone app in case I would psych myself out. Instead, I just decided to let myself run until I started to feel uncomfortable or get a cramp or something, and that moment never came. (Huzzah!)
Plus they handed out tiaras and feather boas and cookies at the end. Obviously, I was a happy girl.
My future running plans include: another half in April and…a full marathon next fall.
Eee!
I feel ready to take that on. The main thing I’m nervous about is fitting in all the training runs. I feel like its going to be a test of “how many runs can I skip or cut short and still finish?” Though hopefully, by then, my schedule will be as such that I can stick fairly closely to a schedule.
Speaking of which, do any of my runner friends have a training schedule to recommend? I’ve used the half schedule on MarathonRookie.com for all my half marathons, so maybe I’ll stick with that? Obviously, I’m open to suggestions.
So anyway. Today, I’m a little tired and a little sore, but overall feeling pretty good. How was your weekend?
Wow! You are a super star! Cutting off 8 mins is amazing! Congratulations!
Congrats on your half PR! You’ve come so far since your first one!
Which full are you thinking of doing?
As for training plans, my running club provides them based on what your time goal is and I usually tweak them to add more distance if I want to peak at higher mileage. They’re really helpful since they also include what your paces should be on easy runs and speed workouts. I could email you the originals if you want to take a look. My personalized plan is in a google doc: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ago4T0av5YwcdFh0MFptVnVzdTNZLWlwU1FXZzR6dXc#gid=0
Emilia @ Run for Your Life recently posted..Buffalo Stampede Half, goal re-evaluation, and kid runners
Thank you! That’s really helpful. I’m thinking of doing Chicago…I’ve heard it’s an easier course because it’s so flat. Your sister actually recommended it on FB this morning as well haha. Which one has been your favorite?
I’ve only done New York twice and Houston once. Obviously I love New York to be doing it a third time, but it is seriously a butt-kicking course. I’m biased toward Houston because it’s my hometown and I nailed my sub-4 PR here, haha. A lot of people don’t know that Houston is the third-largest city in the country and you get to see a lot of it on the course. The fact that it’s also such a huge city means that there is a ton of crowd support throughout the whole thing (there are parts of NYC that don’t allow spectators). Since it’s in January, it’s not exactly a fall marathon, but it’s fall-like weather here in January. And it was featured as one of the top 10 fastest marathons by Runner’s World last year http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-239-582–14153-0,00.html Have I sold it enough yet? Haha.
Emilia @ Run for Your Life recently posted..Buffalo Stampede Half, goal re-evaluation, and kid runners
Haha all good to know! I’ve never been to Houston before.
Anddd, guess what the qualifying time is if you want to use a half to get in? 1:52
Emilia @ Run for Your Life recently posted..Buffalo Stampede Half, goal re-evaluation, and kid runners
Haha you just really want me to visit you, right?
Great Job! My first half marathon is in February in Florida. I’m running in the Princess half marathon at Disney World. Never mind that I’ve never finished a 5k before. Just keep running you know?
I already have a bit of plantar fasciitis popping up. Not sure if it’s from running or just switching to winter boots that are not so comfortable. I know I’m going to have to start cross training though to stretch out all those other non running muscles. What activities do you do other then running?
I used to get a lot of feet problems when I would wear flats all day. I have flat feet, so I tend to be in some level of pain all the time. (Probably should get that looked at…) Plus, I’m an overpronator, so I had to start wearing more supportive running shoes. Once I did, though, it helped immensely. When I need a break from running, I’m usually on the elliptical or occasionally the bike.
Your half sounds like so much fun! I know a couple of people who are running the full marathon there. Let me know how it goes!
Congrats!! It looks like this race was a ton of fun–and sounds like you rocked it.
I am in awe of your marathon goal! That still seems totally impossible for me, haha.
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You could totally do it! You had such a great time for your first half. Plus, I’ll be living in Brooklyn then, so we could train together…? Just sayin