Lake Effect Half Marathon Report

After such a mild winter, I could hardly believe the weather forecast for this race today. When I signed up a few weeks back I thought., This is going to be great! No snow all winter, no wind, no cold, Its going to be the be winter half marathon ever!

Well this is what I woke up to this morning....



A wind and snow advisory!! yay!! Great conditions, right?!

I did my pre race ritual meal...1/2 bagel, applesauce, banana, protein shake 3 hours before
Sipping on HEED throughout
1.5 hours before Half power bar
20 min before a gel with water.

As I was driving to the race, I thought darn, I should've brought my sunglasses to block some of this snow! All I had was my Jackie O sunglasses, and yes, I used them!!! ha ha!

I knew the wind was going to be cold so I dressed in layers. Polyester base, nike thermal top with a nike wnd breaker over this, My Thicker running pants, My compression socks, shoes, 2 pairs of gloves, Balaclava and Hat. I was prepared!

The race took off on Time. My plan was to keep a 9- 9:15 pace for as long as I could. This is what I was doing in training. I would see how it went.

Every 1.5 miles there was an aid station with a lot of support with water, and electrolyte drinks. I planned on taking a shot of my gel and water at every aid station. This is what I did...worked out perfectly.

I settled into a pace I could handle and was loving it despite the wind and snow in my face for the first 3 miles, on the way back it got a bit easier with a little of a tail wind.

I was at 6.55 miles in a hour. I was happy with this and was thinking I could make my time goal if I just stick with this pacing. Onto lap 2 of the run!

Then it hit me...the wall of wind and icy snow pelting my face, stinging it, making my lips feel like I had an anaphylactic reaction going on!! I mustered up all my energy to keep moving forward and not give up. I tried making my balaclava go up farther on my face but that was no use as it was soaking wet with thick snow. I tried putting my Jackie O's back on as I took them off to see...that just made me feel like I was drunk, and swerving because there was so much wetness and snow on them I was zig zagging while running.

I rounded the last bend and had about 3.5 miles to go. I felt good, I was running pretty well, then all of the sudden I got a sharp pain in my Left foot. I tried to run differently to make it go away, Tried loosening up as I know my tension was building. I tried everything I could and then my calf started acting up. What the heck! I was hitting my goal time, then I faded. I had to stop a few times to let my foot pain subside. The pain was on my left side, bottom of foot, laterally...Don't make me think that I have a stress fracture because that is not an option right now.

I tried my best to keep my pace but knew I was falling short of it when a dozen runners started passing me.

Ah, well get to that finish line and get your damn medal, I thought....Then my song came on..Eminem,...Collapse..great!!! followed by Im not afraid...Ill finish this thing even if my face, feet, and fingers fall off!!!

I saw the finish line in front of me! yes, Im there...oh no Im not!! One more little loop to tear you down! Around the loop and wind of about 30 mph in your face like a wall...I could hardly even run! The last half was brutal!!

I crossed the finish line in 2:12:50. for 13.25 miles according to my Garmin... Ill take it!! This is a 8 min PR for me despite the weather and my foot...grrrr...

I got my medal! My doggie loves it too!!


Thanks to everyone who supports my craziness!! My honey, my daughter, my family, my friends and coaches!!

Happy Training!

Weekend thoughts

These past few weeks have been nothing but crazy. I haven't posted in a while because mainly there is nothing special going on right now.

I have been doing all that I need to do training wise but have felt the need to push it further. I know consistency and repetition get you somewhere in triathlon but cant it be switched up once in a while?? I get board with the same workouts day in and day out.

So because of this I joined a running group through the local YMCA where I can have some coached workouts with one of the best runners in the area. For FREE if you are a Y member. SO for the past 5 weeks I have been working with a running coach, and a Triathlon coach...funny huh? I am not going to lie. Its freaking hard work. I want to be faster, then I need to put the time on the feet, do my tempos, hill repeats, speed work.

For the past few weeks, I have noticed a decrease in my times. I have been feeling more confident in my running. Today was a different story. I felt sluggish starting, all the way to the finish of my run. I dont know if it was a combination of nutrition, the lower leg work I did, the ice that was so slippery, lack of rest. Who knows?! All I know is that I pushed through the 10 plus miles and felt accomplished at the end. I felt that even though I felt crappy, what didn't kill me made me stronger. It was a tough run for me and Ill put it in the bank as mileage on my feet.

One thing I do know is that my feet were happy with me today.

I have been battling some foot issues to my right foot. Feels fine with running but then I notice that my calf starts bothering me with my long runs. So, I decided to divorce my lovey Saucony and choose Brooks one more time. I love them! They are a little but more of a stability shoe than Im used to but they were much better on the feet. No foot issues, no calf issues!! PLUS! The ride is awesome, the tox box is wide, and I love the color. Granted they are the mens version because I liked the color better. Womens shoes are too girly for me! I like bold colors when running! The bolder the better. I did notice though that my foot was heel striking a bit more in these shoes. Definately something I need to look into more, and pay attention to when running in these shoes.

I have a 1/2 marathon to mentally prepare for next weekend. This next week will be me envisioning a good race with the proper nutrition, hydration and everything in between going into it. I have goals I would like to meet. I have to envision those goals.  I feel like my longer mileage is just not where I want it to be right now. But I am still going to move forward and see how I do with this race.

Happy training~

TGIF!

Its Friday morning and I have had a wicked sore throat for the last 2 days. This is what stinks about being a medical provider. You get sick at least once a year because this is the time of the year you see so many viruses. I have been a Gargling, honey cough drop, Warm liquid drinking fool.

Anyways in training I have been doing great. I have been being consistent in training which is a plus for me. The weather here has certainly helped as it has been 30-40s here all week. This is not typical for NY in the middle of winter. But, The cold air is coming in for the weekend!! BRRR! It will be in the teens.

Nutrition is ok during workout windows but then it gets thrown out the window at other times. I was reading an article last night that stuck with me in the new Triathlete magazine that popped up in my mailbox yesterday afternoon. It basically said if your nutrition sucks, how are you going to make any gains in taking out your competition? Hmmm...ok. Back to behaving myself. I mean seriously getting back to my core diet. I have been loving the Wegmans Ultimate Chocolate cake a little too much lately!! UGH!

I am preparing for a half marathon next weekend. I cannot believe it has come up so fast! I have put in my mind that I would like this to be under 2 hours. If it isn't, I will be ok as this is not my "A" race. But it is a goal of mine to accomplish. I have been hovering right around 9 min miles for my longer runs so I think I may be able to accomplish this is I pace myself correctly.

This weekend is full of working, training and having a little fun in between. Happy Friday!!