Training Recap: May Week 2

Below is the Another Mother Runner's Half Marathon: Finish It Training Week 6. Since Week 5 didn't go as well, I should have set that to repeat but instead I was using this week to taper a bit for the half marathon I thought I was running on Mother's Day (I'll touch on this again later). Maybe I should restart Week 5 today, May 13th.

Monday: 3 Miles + Strides or XT
The weather Monday was completely nasty, but it didn't matter since my running friend Katie (from Corral G) would be in town! We had talked about going for a run or dinner, then decided on a Hot Yoga class. The class was Be Hot and was 75mins in length. The instructor focused a lot of the class on balance, Katie and I have LOTS of room for improvement in our yoga skills. It was so nice seeing Katie, and it was so great of her for coming back to the house for dinner where Abigail covered her in stickers and she got lots of unwanted attention from Brewer.

As I walked her out, I checked the mail and my first StrideBox arrived! Through a Twitter chat sometime in April I heard all about StrideBox, it's a monthly subscription for runners to try "cool stuff". My box cost $15 and 9 items arrived, very wonderfully packaged, and I was very impressed. I had purchased/tried JellyBelly Sport Beans before but never this specific item and the same goes for the Stinger chews, I have tried another one of thier products but never these chews. I was most excited about The Klitch footwear clip! I never knew something like this existed, and I pulled it up on Amazon.com and this same item retails for $16.95.

 

Tuesday: 6 Miles
Food Truck Tuesdays has returned to a local park during dinner time, so I knew if I wanted to go I had to get my miles in early. I ran 5mi in 58 minutes, an 11:35 pace. I would have tried running a bit more but the gym's childcare closes from noon-4pm daily.

Somehow we never made it to any of the Smyrna Food Truck Tuesdays last year. Abigail & I drove straight over after her dance class, we enjoyed a popsicle each from King of Pops. Abigail chose Strawberry Lemonade and decided to indulge in their Chocolate Sea Salt! Abigail still devoured all her mac & cheese (The Mac Attack) from the Happy Belly Truck. Since it was the first week, we're hoping more trucks will rotate through each Tuesday.

Wednesday: Rest
I had a morning meeting which led to Chick-Fil-A lunch with friends. Abs & I came home to play with Brewer in the backyard before we headed to her swim class. After swim I was on a mission to find the new Chobani Flip I have heard so much about! They are currently only stocked at Target so I took a mini cooler bag to stock up. I found three flavors: Key Lime Crumble, Honey Bee Nana & Raspberry Choco Fix. I got extra lucky because Target had two of these on sale for under a dollar! I had the Key Lime Crumble for dessert and I was super surprised I had to fight Abigail for my yogurt. She loved the "sprinkles" of graham cracker crumbs and white chocolate chips and I'm thrilled, not only did she try it, but she really liked it! We'll be going through lots more Chobani in our house now!!!

Thursday: 3 Miles Speed Training
During Abigail's swim class I decided to search for race details Mountain Momma Half Marathon, my Mother's Day gift! Upon pulling up the site, I saw the race has been postponed until 2014. What? How did I not get notified? Upon further investigation, I discovered I never registered for this race! How did I miss this? Turns out only 19 people registered for this race. The race contact I spoke with said next year they plan to also allow men to register and it will not be held on Mother's Day in 2014.

I hadn't planned on running today, since I had been tapering this week for the half marathon on Sunday. When Abigail & I got home from her gymnastics class, Matt suggested I go for a run. (Well, I didn't think I was pouting.) I wasn't completely in the mood, maybe I was pouting, so I decided to use the VFuel Gel that came in my StrideBox. The flavor was Peach Cobbler and it was very yummy! Unlike other fuels, VFuel is made with only real ingredients. I have never had tummy issues from other fuels, I know other runners who have had some terrible experiences, but had a great run with the help of this VFuel. I ran 5.75mi in 60min, a 10:26mm average pace. I would absolutely LOVE! to sub-1hr at The Peachtree Road Race so I was very happy with this training run!

Friday: 3 Miles or XT
Before we headed out of town for the weekend, the mail arrived with my FREE Quest Bars compliments of Hungry Girl! I got two of Hungry Girl's favorites, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough & Apple Pie and I am so glad because these are two of my favorites too. Sometimes I warm the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough for 10-15 seconds in the microwave (I suggest you do this on freezer paper), and it tastes like a warm cookie straight from the oven. I am so glad Marcia & Lena introduced me to Quest Bars, they have become my new favorite go to bar over the last couple months.


Saturday: LR: 9 Miles
Sunday: Rest
There was zero running this weekend. Even though my race was cancelled, we still spent the weekend in Pigeon Forge. Matt & I used to make trips at least annually to Pigeon Forge but it's been THREE years since our last trip. I will post separately about our weekend getaway. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

QUESTIONS:
-Do you subscribe to a monthly subscription box service like StrideBox?
-Have you tried Quest Bars and/or gotten your two FREE yet?
-Have you ever had a race get cancelled because of low registration?

Finish on the 50

Yikes! This is my pre-race pic?

We have been looking forward to this race for a few months now. I am so glad we all decided to run and was even surprised we would know quite a few people running one of the four races all to Finish on the 50!

Matt and I arrived at 6:30CT so we could find parking and check-in. I quickly realized this was the most disorganized race I have run to date. We pulled up our names on a laptop then were "assigned" a race number by one of the volunteers, it was a bit strange. We headed over to find a spot in the sun on the corner where the Toomer's Oaks were recently removed. There were not very many people around yet and if my race number (#404) was any hint, it was not going to be a huge race anyway.

I kept my eyes peeled for anyone I might recognize, hoping I would find Emily my "old" Auburn friend. Instead I spotted, easily, Leigh and Diane two fellow runDisney enthusiasts I've met through Twitter and runDisney Facebook boards. Then Ramona found us and it was great finally getting to meet her in real life, which was nice since we had run the same races but never actually met before.

The Half Marathon was supposed to start at 7:30CT and I don't think we were finally off an running until 7:38. We couldn't really tell what was going on then everyone just started running, no announcement or music or anything. Spectators cheered, as did runners of the other races, but my favorite was the Auburn Swimming and Diving team cheering in front of Samford Hall!

The runners headed down College Street crossed in front of the Auburn University campus before turning to run down Gay Street and through residential neighborhoods towards Wright's Mill Road. There were plenty of rolling hills and a water stop around Mile2, but it's hard to say because there were ZERO mile markers and I was going by my NikeGPS App (since I forgot my NikeGPS watch).

When we got to the turn at Chewacla Park, there was a water table with cups and a huge tub of powder Gatorade but no volunteers. This was a crucial point since runners would be running past this table twice. There was no huge cooler of water and there were no cups on the ground, leading me to believe this station was just never fully setup. Luckily there was a small pavilion with a water fountain if runners were really in need, but I didn't want to stop.

We headed back along the same rolling hills of Wright's Mill Road and I felt very strong. I decided to really try to watch my pace, hoping to stay between a 11-11:30mm pace in attempt to run this entire 13.1 without intervals. I shouldn't compare myself to others, but it was really encouraging when I passed other runners. It was especially encouraging when I passed other runners as I felt strong running UPHILL. We continued to backtrack and passed the same water stop that was Mile2, maybe around Mile 6+ on the way back. Huge kudos to volunteer at the intersection of S Gay Street and Woodfield Drive, we passed him twice and had the very important job of directing 10K and Half Marathon runners to the split in the course. On my way back through, this same volunteer was also photographing runners!

While there were arrows helping guide runners throughout the course, color coded arrows for each race might also be helpful since parts of the course overlapped for the different races. Mile markers would have also been very helpful throughout the course, as I was asked by few runners wanting to know mileage.

Half Marathon

Another huge shout out to the Auburn Police during this race! They were very attentive watching for oncoming runners and halting traffic accordingly. There were four really important locations... 1. As runners turned off College Street at the beginning of the race. 2. As runners crossed the I-85 Wright's Mill Road overpass and the police were only allowing cars in one direction at a time. 3. As runners crossed the E University Drive intersection. 4. When the runners crossed back over College Street from residential neighborhoods heading back onto campus.

Once back on campus, there was another water station. I think it was fairly close after we crossed back over College Street but I'm not exactly sure if it was there on Woodfield Drive or if it was after we turned onto Donahue. This had to have been somewhere Mile8 and Mile9. If I had known there wouldn't have been another water station until Mile12, I probably would have stopped and chugged more than one half dixie cup of water.

We turned down Lem Morrison and I was really surprised to find so many buildings I didn't recognize from my days at Auburn. I wracked my brain trying to remember if this road even existed back then, fully knowing if it was it was not developed or utilized a decade ago. This same road curved and then became Mell Street, and buildings started to look familiar again. I ran past the Arboretum and then as I was passing the President of Auburn's house is when it really hit me, I was going to set a new personal record. My pace up to this point was excellent and I still felt strong and  only time would tell by how much my new PR would beat my last, set on March 17 of 02:36:17.

I got ahead of myself. I don't think I started running faster. I don't think there were more hills, yet. I could see the stadium but I still had another 3 miles to run. My mouth was dry, I needed water. I willed myself on, knowing a water station would be soon. I mentally kicked myself for not knowing the course better because I could have asked Matt to meet me on Tatch with a bottle of water, but the race organizers never posted where or how many water stations there were along the course and I had trusted they would be prepared. Mile 11 was downright awful, I caved and did a few intervals. I realized my thighs were chaffing a bit from my shorts riding up and so was the inner section of my left arm, both consumed me as we hooked onto W Magnolia Ave (or as I knew it, "Old Frat Row").

Finally at Mile 12 there was another water station. The volunteer was enthusiastic and gave me a fist bump for running for the Boys & Girls Club of Auburn, but I told him I was going to hang out a bit. I ended up chugging SIX dixie cups of water. The volunteer was nice and sprinkled some Gatorade powder in two of my cups. I was drained but I proceeded onward. Wire Road seemed to be a slow and steady uphill before turning onto Samford to head around the football practice facilities. I'm sure I drove this road many times in my years at Auburn but I never realized their was a crazy hill as you continue on Samford toward the intersection with Donahue. Wow, a brutal hill at the end of a Half Marathon is brutal. I no longer felt strong, I just wanted to move fast enough to still PR.

Looking back, I think I was more defeated than I let myself believe because I was just on survival mode. How do I know? I have zero pictures or screen captures after that 10 Mile screen capture. I didn't even send Matt a text message to give him an update I was getting close or even entering the stadium. They weren't looking for me, but Matt said my mother-in-law spotted me on the field. I finished. I set a new PR. I got my medal and felt like I was scavenged for refreshments. Someone pointed me to a huge tub, and I actually had to dig through lots of empty bottles until I found two. I stepped off the field and completely downed the first bottle of water. Matt and family walked to me and we took a couple pictures, I think. I recovered enough to spot Aubie and start heading his way, only to learn he left! HUGE sad face.

I asked about Matt and Abigail's race. Matt was so proud of her! He said she started out very timid, wanting to hold his hand but then after watching the other kids run with their families she caught on and decided to run too. I honestly wasn't sure if she would run or not, she didn't want to run at all during The Royal Family 5K in February and "ran" just about the entire race on Matt's shoulders. This course was shorter and she didn't have to be up nearly as early for this Fun Run!

Fun Run

Finish on the 50 Fun Run

Matt took lots of pictures during their run and even got video of Abigail's Finish on the 50!

Abigail couldn't wait to show off her medal to Aubie! She even told me Aubie kissed her medal and picked her up. Hopefully it wont be another 3yrs before we get our next visit with Aubie.

 

We headed out of Jordan Hare to get to the Tailgate Party at the Transportation Center. I saw a couple lines of people, and had to ask what was going on. Runners were supposed to be able to look up their finish time but there was some sort of error and none of the times were posting. There was another line to pickup race shirts around the side of a van and they were out of all the sizes we needed. Luckily, the ladies behind us in line were trading their Women's Medium for a Small so I was able to get my correct size. Abigail ended up with a Women's Extra Small and she's going to wear it as a nightgown. The only Men's size remaining was XL so we had to put his name on a list for reorder. The was no signage and I did see some Powerade, I never figured out how to get additional refreshments and we decided to just leave and head to lunch.

On our way to lunch Matt told me before his race the runners were being told some of their volunteers were missing in action. Unfortunately, there was more lacking than just volunteers. I should have remembered this was the first year the Half Marathon was being offered, and I should have been more prepared. I should have worn my fuel belt with my own water and I should have run with some GU or Clif Shot Gel. I still do not know how I forgot to run with fuel, but then again I forgot my watch at home too. (Sigh.)

While this was my FORTH Half Marathon, it was definitely the smallest. I'll chalk a lot of it up to a learning experience for me and while this race was still lacking in a few areas, I am still really happy that I was able to set a new PR. It was amazing to run through the city of Auburn and the campus, because when I was in college I thought the sororities who hosted races as fundraisers for their philanthropies were out of their minds. Now here I am 10yrs later and I couldn't be more thrilled to drive in from out of town to run/race here. I hope we'll be able to Finish on the 50 again next year!

I am not sure if it would be possible, or if the race organizers had already reached out, but it would have been pretty amazing if some of Auburn's organizations were present on the race course or helped at the water stations. Ideally, this race could work with Auburn's Student Government to allow the different organizations to earn spirit points if they have members running, volunteering at water stations or set up cheering sections along the courses. This "2013 Finish on the 50 will benefit Student Affairs for programming for intramural sports, group fitness and club sports for the student body" so it would only be fitting for the organizations to also be more involved on race day.

It seems like there are plenty of people unhappy with many aspects of this race but I hope they realize it's still a newer race and decide to register again in future years. The course was great, the organization with the city seemed to be great and if a few campus organizations would step up to assist, this race would be absolutely perfect.

QUESTIONS:

-Have you ever Finished on the 50 yard line of a race?

-What do you do when you run a race that is not organized as well as you hoped?

My 1st Half Marathon!

My alarm went off way too early, I rolled out of bed eager to get dressed and head from Odessa to St. Petersburg. Matt was a trooper, he decided to escort me to the race. Since this was my first big race, Matt suggested I get a photo in front of the start/finish line.

 

One of my Alpha Xi Delta sisters from Auburn was also running this race and it was fun to find her before the race. It has been MANY years since we've seen each other but try our best to keep up with each other on Facebook & Twitter. Cindy was also in town for Thanksgiving & ran the 5K with a family member.

  

I headed to my corral where I stayed near the side so I could wear my jacket until the last possible second. The wind coming off the water was crazy! Since I'm a rookie, I didn't know anything about throwaway clothes or wearing a garbage bag to fend against wind chill. Soon enough, it was time for the race to actually begin so I handed over my jacket and kissed my hubby goodbye (for good luck).

I knew I could run an entire 5K without intervals so I decided I would run straight through for the fist 3.1 because I had read it always takes a couple miles for the crowds to spread out. As all the corrals moved forward at the start I saw a sign that said "Run like there is wine at the finish!". At 7:16am, I was slightly over a mile in and two of the cutest grandmas PASSED ME! I could not believe it. 

Now when you look at my split times, you'll see where this wasn't the best idea. I mostly train on a treadmill, so when I get out on the open road I do not know how to pace myself! I do not average an 10-11 minute mile pace, more towards a 12 (or closer to 13 when running intervals). I obviously was not pacing myself properly!

Miles 4, 5 and 6 were a much better pace for me, at this point in my training. I even found a nice interval pace around some other interval runners. One woman had "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Phil 4:13" on the back of her shirt and I just kept reciting it over and over to myself.

Around Mile 6 I noticed my iPhone battery was in the "red zone". I was using my iPhone to supply tunes, run Nike GPS, tweet mile markers & thoughts and text Matt my whereabouts so I knew when to look out for him. I decided to turn off the music at this point, it was smart but I really missed the distraction.

 

Mile 7 & 8 were rough, the course took me down the St.Pete Pier, all the way around the building and back up the pier. The wind was CRAZY! I felt like I was running super fast but I was barely moving. It took a lot out of me. I was worn out and I still had to run all the way to Tropicana Field. Somewhere in this stretch I spotted Meghan, she looked great! I was very envious; I had been reading her blog and following her training. This was not her first Half Marathon (she was also training for WDWMarathon) so I reminded myself I only started running 5mo prior and pushed on.

Cindy planned to meet up with me around Mile 10 or 11 and she spotted me after my loop around Mirror Lake, I think I was walking as much as I was running at this point. It was right before Mile 10 when my iPhone completely died. I wasn't prepared for this, at all. Cindy & I walked a bit together, it was a nice break & she had some wonderful encouragement to share with me. We parted ways and I proceeded on towards Tropicana Field.

I finally made it to Tropicana Field and while it was cool to be running ON the field, the air in the building was stagnant. I couldn't breathe and decided to soak it in and walk it. Between 1st and 2nd base, the Sweaty Band crew started to pass me (they were running intervals too) so I decided I should try to use their timing since I had no way to pace myself. We eventually parted, I was exhausted and there were fewer racers on the course, though I could see I was still ahead of plenty of them (which made me happy that I wouldn't be finishing last).

It took all that I had to run the last half mile straight. As I got closer to the turn from 1st Avenue to Bayshore Drive, I could make out a recognizable voice. This voice was my mother, she was screaming at me...I ran faster to get away from her. I could see the finish line, then I spotted my dad, Matt, Abigail & my nephew Will, so I waved and sprinted to the finish. That's me in the teal shirt, saturated with back sweat. Gross.

My split times were a lot different than what the Nike GPS App on my phone had me at. Overall, I was proud of my average pace, it was what I was hoping to achieve but really had no idea after those last miserable three miles.

   

I am so glad I ran this race. This Half Marathon was intended to be a learning experience for me and it truly was! I was under trained for this race and I know I can do better, but I finished. In my book, finishing IS winning!

Written: March 12, 2013


QUESTIONS:
-Have you ever raced purely for it to be a learning experience? If so, what did you learn?
-If you are not a runner, have you done something to help you learn and grow so you can plan how to move forward?