NJ Marathon

3 Marathons, 1 Year

May 1, 2011 by Kristy 11 Comments

My unofficial time for the NJ Marathon is around a 3:52. This is why I should be happy:

My 6th, 7th, and 8th marathons were all done in the span of a year.
6th marathon (May 2010): 4:13. %^&*!!!!! This was my 3 consecutive time finishing in the 4:10ish range. I was pissed.
7th marathon (October 2010): 3:58. Elated to finally break 4 hours AND score a 12-minute PR.
8th marathon (today): 3:52ish. Another PR…by about 6 minutes.

I should be thrilled, right? Usually, by your 8th marathon, PRs are hard to come by. I’m not happy though…in fact, I’m pretty bummed.

Today didn’t quite turn out as planned. No BQ and no 3:50. What makes me SO mad is that I ran faster training runs than I did today. I knew I could do it.

The sun took a toll on me. Temperature-wise the weather was perfect. But the sun was relentless. Running down the shore can be tough. Lots of long stretches of black asphalt and no shade. Today was no different. Not a cloud in the sky. Perfect beach day, but not for a race.

My left quad cramped up pretty badly at mile 20. This has never happened before so I think it may have been the heat…I was possibly getting dehydrated? Stretching helped for a little while but I ended up doing a “skip-limp” for the last 1.5 miles.

I’m allowing myself to feel bad for today ONLY. I know I’m being very hard on myself. I’m hoping in a few days I’ll actually be happy about my PR!

Full recap to come this week (with pictures)!

Again…thank you all for your texts, emails, tweets, and kind messages. I thought about all my loving family, friends, and blog buddies a lot during the race.

Congrats to everyone who raced today…Broad Street Runners, Big Sur, and Eugene runners!

NJ Marathon and I Support Adoptions

April 29, 2011 by Kristy 5 Comments

Hello again!

Matt and I are running on Sunday to raise money for isupportadoptions.org. We sent an email out today to family and friends and I wanted to share it with you.

Kristy is running the New Jersey Marathon this Sunday. I’ll be doing the Half Marathon because it’s so much fun. Hopefully I finish before she does.

In any event, we’re hoping you could sponsor us on behalf of I Support Adoptions, a charitable non-profit organization that provides support (financial, informational, and emotional) to families seeking to adopt. It was started a few years ago by two of my sisters, who were motivated by their own stories.

Laura and her husband Mike adopted their son Philip from an orphanage in Ethiopia when he was 6 months old. Now he’s a handsome, smart, silly 6-year-old who wears his heart on his sleeve. You definitely know when he’s happy and when he’s not! Kris is recruiting him as her newest protégé; he can run like the wind.

Maria and her husband Kevin are in the process of adopting a little girl, also from Ethiopia. She should be coming home soon.

Laura and Maria (and their husbands) are two of the most selfless people you’ll ever meet. Their goal is to enable other families to experience the same joy they’re experiencing. I Support Adoptions has financially supported two adoptive families so far through various fundraising efforts. Your donation would go a long way in enabling additional “success stories”.

If you would like to donate, click here and there’s a “donate” button on the left or go to my home page and there is a direct link on the right handside.

Friday Favorites

April 29, 2011 by Kristy 10 Comments

4/29/11

3 miles easy

28:38

9:32 avg pace

All I have to do now is run the marathon!

We leave for the shore tomorrow morning, stopping at my parents to drop Hawk off. My parents live about an hour south of where the race is taking place and we initially were going to sleep there and drive up on Sunday morning. After reading reviews on marathonguide.com about the not-so-reliable shuttle buses, we decided to get a hotel to be closer to the start. Otherwise, we’d have to get up around 3am. Eeek, that is just too early!

Friday Favorites time! And you probably guessed this already but it has to do with marathons!

Best Crowd Support – NYC Marathon
I’m sure Boston has similar crowd support but NYC is amazing! I felt like a rock star! There was never a point when someone wasn’t cheering for you. I got a brief glimpse of what it must feel like to be celebrity 😉

Most Efficient Expo – Marine Corps Marathon
I’m not a big fan of expos. I like to get in and get out. The Marines pull off a great, efficient expo…especially for such a huge race.

Most Scenic – Marine Corps Marathon
I must say I’m somewhat biased. I lived in DC for 3 years and fell in love with running there. It’s like a perfect (running) tour of the city.

Best Race Shirt – Philly Marathon
Another great race (again, biased…it’s my hometown) but the best part is the race shirt. A long-sleeved, DRI-fit tee that actually fits! Meaning I don’t give it to Matt to wear. They even have XS. Score!

Best Pre-Race Amenities – Steamtown Marathon
I walked out of my hotel room and boarded a bus to the start. We started outside of a middle school so we got to wait inside and remain warm. Bottles of water were handed out and the school cafeteria was even selling food! It was the most relaxed and calm I have ever been before a race. I literally didn’t have to think about anything.

The NJ Marathon does not have runner tracking. I promise to tweet, FB, etc. when I’m done. THANK YOU for the wonderful comments this past week. They mean so much to me. I will be thinking about all of them on Sunday. Go big or go home!

Random Thursday

April 28, 2011 by Kristy 13 Comments

I’ll stop posting about the NJ Marathon eventually…I promise. Think you have it bad? Imagine being Matt! He really can’t wait until it’s over.

Today’s random things are certain race day traditions/superstitions/routines that I MUST do.

I have to wear my Race Ready shorts. I’m a Nike tempo shorts girl 99% of the time but I need lots of pockets come marathon day. These shorts are NOT for the fashion-conscious; they are pretty hideous but extremely practical. They store my iPod and Shot Bloks nicely. I wish Race Ready would come up with a better design. Or…Nike could design tempo shorts with lots of pockets. Also, pockets in the back stuffed with Shot Bloks = big butt. Did I sell these shorts yet? 😉

racereadyshorts — Hot, right? Mine are this short too. But my only other option were the longer ones and they are even more unflattering. Imagine that?

I need to pee at least 5 times before the race begins. I have no idea where the number 5 came from I think it just became a habit/routine. I’ve used a porta potty before and then immediately got back in line to pee again.

source

I eat Shot Bloks every 4 miles. So that’s 4, 8, 12, 16, 20, and 24 during a marathon. These numbers are embedded in my head. Remember the “numbers” from the TV show LOST? That’s how I am….neurotic.

060913breakingnews — Hurley, I can sympathize...

source

I wear my “special” socks and foolishly think they bring me good luck.

Check out this short video. It’s a tour of Nike’s World Headquarters. Can I get a job there and hang out with Kara all day? Maybe I can pitch them my idea about pocketed-tempo shorts?

Please share some of your race day traditions/superstitions/routines so I can feel somewhat normal!

Marathon Strategy

April 27, 2011 by Kristy 7 Comments

4/27/11

4 miles easy

37:15

9:18 avg pace

I’m a total planner. Insane planner. I don’t think there is a spontaneous bone in my body. It shouldn’t be a surprise that when it comes to the marathon I leave nothing to chance (well, nothing that I have control of…if only I could control the weather). I’m not talking race logistics: hotel, directions, parking…although I do enjoy planning that. I’m talking strategy; how will you run the race? What’s your plan?

I used to run marathons with no plan. Kind of just go out there and see how I feel. This is a great approach if you are a beginner (first marathon). Your goal should be to enjoy yourself, soak it all in, and finish strong. Once I started having a time goal in mind, I found that the more I planned and strategized, the better I did.

So what’s my plan for Sunday’s race?

Start out slow
The best thing you could ever do is to start the marathon slowly (or any race really). Doesn’t matter if you are a beginner, intermediate, or advanced. This works every time, trust me! You should never go faster than your goal marathon pace (GMP) in these early miles. In fact, I plan on going slower than GMP for the first 3 miles. It’s tough, especially when everyone around you is flying by and you have so much nervous energy. Conserve that energy because no matter how great of a race you are having, everything will start to hurt during those last few miles. And all that energy you saved early on will come in handy. It’s the difference between hitting the wall and just being uncomfortable during the last few miles. I’ve hit the wall more times to mention and, believe me, being uncomfortable is way better.

I plan to mimic my 18 and 22-mile training runs. Starting out with 9:00 pace and take it down from there. Around Mile 13, I plan on picking up the pace. Hopefully I can maintain that “pick-up” until the end.

Use a pace band
Pace bands: either you love ’em or hate ’em (I happen to love ’em). I’ve used them in every marathon, except for my first one. I’ll only look at it maybe every 4-5 miles, just to ensure I’m on track. My Garmin is what I really rely on to keep me on pace. I don’t wear it on my wrist either. I cut it out and tape it upside-down on my bib so all I have to do is look down. I have a 3:45 and a 3:50 pace band for Sunday.

Pace bands have also come in handy during those not-so-stellar marathons. Call me crazy but I like to know how far off I am from my goal time. I told you I wasn’t sane.

So that’s my plan for Sunday…slow and steady wins the race and obsessively monitor my Garmin!

What are some of your race day strategies? Do you use or like pace bands?

NJ Marathon Goals

April 26, 2011 by Kristy 19 Comments

4/26/11

5 miles (2 mi easy, 2 mi @ MP, 1 mi easy)

44:57

8:59 avg pace

I’ve given a lot of thought about my goals for Sunday’s race. I also drove Matt crazy in the process.

My current PR is a 3:58 at the Steamtown Marathon last October (great race, by the way). For this marathon, I’m using the FIRST program to run a 3:50 (8:46 pace). I remember thinking I’m nuts thinking I can shave 8 minutes off. But I wanted to try and adopted the “go big or go home” mentality.

Then a funny thing happened. I ran an 18-miler at 8:40 average pace in early March. I couldn’t believe it. But, it happened again. This time during my last long run – 22 miles – before the taper. Then Boston started creeping into my head. What if I can drop my average pace from 8:40 to 8:34 and qualify? The thought made me sick to my stomach with nervousness. I had NO intention of even thinking of BQing this training cycle.

I have A LOT of motivation for trying to qualify for Boston 2012:
* I’m 34 now but will be 35 come Boston 2012, which means I can qualify with a 3:45. Hooray for getting older and having an early birthday!
* 2012 is the last year to BQ using the “old” qualifying times. Come 2013, I would need a 3:40.
* 2012 is also the last year the B.A.A. is allowing the 59-second grace period (meaning I could run a 3:45:59 and still qualify).
* The only (huge) drawback? The new ~~unfair~~ registration process starts this year, meaning the fastest runners get to register first and then the people that qualify by the skin of their teeth (i.e., me) would register last, IF there are still slots available. Essentially, you could BQ and not get into the race.

Goal A: try and BQ
I’m well aware that it’s going to be mighty tough dropping that pace from 8:40 to 8:34. The weather conditions would have to be ideal and I may have to don a cape and become superwoman. This is probably a long shot, but crazier things have happened! If everything falls into place, I have to go for it. If you could BQ on determination and will alone, I would have done it a long time ago.

Goal B: 3:50
This is what I trained for and I feel confident that I can maintain a 8:46 average pace.

Goal C: anything better than a 3:58
The weather for this race is a crapshoot. It’s at the Jersey Shore so it can be quite windy at times (just ask my Mom who lives there; she complains about the wind all the time). Last year it was ungodly hot; the year before cold and rainy. Right now the forecast looks OK, maybe a little too hot. If it is hot, I’ll have to scale back on my pace and just try to PR.

Needless to say, if Goal A or Goal B is attained I will be doing lots of this…

and a whole lotta this…

Did you ever PR (or BQ) in a race unexpectedly? Any race, not just a marathon.