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The LOVE Run Philly {Race Recap}

April 6, 2014 by Kristy 5 Comments

Last Sunday I ran Philly’s first ever LOVE Half Marathon.  CGI Racing put together a fantastic half – super organized with wonderful volunteers (who stood outside for hours in a freezing downpour).  If you like the Philly Half in November (my favorite race), then you’ll like the LOVE Run.  I’m so happy that Philly has another distance race in the Spring…something other than Broad Street.

This race was a lot of firsts for me:  first race postpartum, first race in a total downpour, and first race where I didn’t look at my Garmin (not one single time).  The weather was awful – freezing, windy, and nonstop rain.

My original plan was to make this a fun run, especially since postpartum running has been very blah lately.  Standing at the start, freezing and wet, all I kept thinking was the faster you run, the faster you get done.  Screw the fun run, I didn’t want to spend another minute in these conditions if I didn’t have to.

That’s when the strategy changed to let’s run HM effort and not look at the Garmin.  I love running by effort (although I rarely do it) – there’s no magic pace to hit, no pace charts to follow, just you and your breath.  And not looking at my Garmin was WAY easier than I thought…partially because it was under my windbreaker and I couldn’t see it anyway.

M1 – 8:51
M2 – 8:19
M3 – 8:51
M4 – 8:14
M5 – 8:20
M6 – 8:43
M7 – 8:19
M8 – 8:08
M9 – 8:52
M10 – 8:48
M11 – 8:41
M12 – 8:45
M13 – 8:36

Official time:  1:53:07 (8:38 pace)

Not the most consistent pacing and the wheels came off a bit towards the end but that’s to be expected after a year plus of not racing.  I was in total shock when I crossed the finish line and looked at my watch.  I was hoping for a (barely) sub-2:00 finish time.  If I were eyeing my Garmin I would have freaked out about my pace during the middle miles (what are you doing?  You have no business running that fast!).  Not looking at my Garmin was the best thing I did that day.  And also having absolutely no expectations helps tremendously.

Thanks to Oiselle teammate Danielle for keeping me company for a few miles.  It definitely took my mind off the misery of the weather.

Race photos: me, my sister, and sister-in-law pre-race (and rain) and post-race awkward selfie.

love run

 

 

 

halfway done and other updates

August 16, 2013 by Kristy 10 Comments

I officially hit the 20 week mark this past Wednesday and I would like to think that it’s all downhill from here but I know that’s not the case.  I have a feeling that I just went downhill and the next 20 weeks will all be uphill.  Good thing I like hills.

19-and-a-half week bump shot.  We were going to a wedding.  A little different from my pre-run, no make-up bump shots.

IMG_1465

It has been a busy 2 weeks since I last posted.  Let’s see…we went on vacation.  My parents celebrated their 50th (!) wedding anniversary earlier this year and we celebrated by taking them to the Outer Banks for a week.

IMG_1423

I got a nice surprise while on vacation – I was selected to be part of the 2013-2014 Oiselle Team!  To be honest, I was shocked to be selected since I fully disclosed that I was 9 weeks pregnant on my application and would be doing minimal racing this year.  Thank you, Oiselle!

Mail AttachmentDemonstrating the stretching capabilities of Oiselle’s Winona tank

The biggest news happened this past Tuesday – I passed my personal trainer certification test!    To say I’m relieved and running around a little lighter (as light as I can be at the moment) is an understatement.  This was something I always wanted to do but always put off.

One of my new favorite quotes…

Never-give-up-on-a-dream-just-because-of-the-time-it-will-take-to-accomplish-it.-The-time-will-pass-anyway.I felt like I had a gap in knowledge being a running coach.  I know a lot about running and training but strength training?  Not so much.  I got my certification through NASM, which is huge on movement inefficiencies and muscle imbalances.  This is why I went with them (versus NSCA and ASCM); realizing it would be the perfect “addition” to my running coach certification and knowledge.

In the short term I plan on using my PT certification immediately with my running clients.  Long term?  I haven’t decided yet…but I definitely plan on using it in a greater capacity.  I plan on doing a full post devoted to how I studied, etc. since I found similar posts helpful when I was beginning the process.

Have a great weekend!

 

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