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Philly Half Marathon!

November 20, 2011 by Kristy 17 Comments

Another Philly HM in the books…

Did I run a sub-1:45 like I wanted? No.

Am I disappointed? A little. I know I can run faster!

Am I already looking for a Spring HM to finagle into my Boston training? Absolutely!

Garmin stats:
13.35 miles
1:47:28*
8:03 avg pace
*A 1-minute PR from the Philly RnR in September!

Lots more to come. I met some wonderful bloggers this weekend and spent about 90% of the weekend talking and thinking about running. Absolute heaven. But for now, I have some Miller Lite to drink 🙂

I leave you with this….

Another flattering set of race photos…

November 16, 2011 by Kristy 14 Comments

Actually, these aren’t too bad. Apparently hating life translates well on camera for me.

At the start with Ann, Trish, and Sara.

This photo made me laugh. Cookie Monster getting his stretch on and an oblivious runner. Philly skyline in the background – so pretty!

Can you spot me (hint: I’m checking my Garmin for the 10th time)? I lined up towards the front and then 99% of the runners passed me within seconds.

Barely managing a smile somewhere around Mile 3.

This photo is pretty horrendous. But at least I’m not looking at my Garmin.

I’m sure the Philly HM photos will be just as fabulous!

After Saturday’s crappy showing at the WHYY 12K, I slightly reevaluated my plan of attack for the Philly Half Marathon on Sunday. Many of you said to not give up on my goals and I’m not…I’m just rethinking my approach and being a tad more realistic. Before I get into that though, here are the official results from the 12K:

59:31 (7:59 avg pace)
overall – 73/331
gender – 24/178
division – 9/62

Not too shabby for a crappy race! Painful, hating life race photos to come!

OK, my plan of attack…

THIS WEEK: easy runs! Speed work will not help at this point so I’m just resting my legs, especially after the 12K. I plan to take 2 complete rest days on Friday and Saturday. I’ve done this in the past for a HM and call it my “mini taper”. It has worked well.

RACE DAY:
1. Do not give up! I will NOT be checking out like I did during the 12K. The Philly HM is my favorite half; I think it’s way better than the Philly RnR Half. The crowd participation is insane for the HM (sorry marathoners, Manayunk is super fun but the run out to Manayunk and back from Manayunk is pretty lonely).

2. I would be happy with a 1:44:xx finish. As long as it’s sub-1:45. Nice, even 8:00 min/miles would get me a 1:45. I’m going to maintain 8:00 pace and hopefully towards the end drop a bit to get that sub-1:45.

3. I’ll probably wear a pace band. I’ve never wore one for a HM but feel it may be necessary for Sunday.

4. Expect it to hurt but enjoy yourself. Remember, I do this for fun 🙂

There are so many bloggers running Philly this weekend, I would love to meet some of you in-person! Anyone up for a mini meet-up pre-race? The race starts at 7am (ouch) but maybe meet at 6:30? Or Saturday? Let me know. Other meet-up ideas are welcome!

WHYY 12K Recap

November 12, 2011 by Kristy 10 Comments

Well, today wasn’t my day and that’s OK. Really, it is. I tend to beat myself up over races but this was only a 12K and I’m going to cut myself some slack.

FACT #1: I mentally checked out at the turnaround.
This was an out-and-back course (out-and-back on West River Drive is never fun). My pace was feeling hard and, as I predicted, I was hating life. I went around the turning point and just let my pace slip. I was done.

FACT #2: I lost a bit of speed since my last marathon.
The LVM was 2 months ago and I’m currently toeing the line between maintenance running and maintaining my speed. I have been training non-stop for the past 2 years and this is the most lag time I’ve had between marathons (Boston training doesn’t start until around Christmas). I need to allow myself some down time….some time away from weekly speed work. So it’s only natural that I lost some quickness.

FACT #3: I really need to get my iPod fixed. I generally run without music but there are some races where music is a necessity (like today). My iPod has been broke since the NJ Marathon last May!

FACT #4: I can’t wait to run an ultra! I just need to hang in there with the speed work for another couple of months until after Boston.

FACT #5: I need to reevaluate my goals for the Philly Half next weekend…or maybe I’ll have a better day next Sunday!

Here are the Garmin stats. A 12K is 7.45 miles so I didn’t do too bad running the tangents. Clearly, if I held back more in the beginning I probably would have done better. Mile 6 makes me laugh….yeah, that’s marathon pace!

The best part of today’s race? Hanging out with Sara, Trish, and Ann and having a delicious brunch of french toast with Trish afterwards.

Tomorrow is most certainly a rest day too 🙂

Friday Ramblings

November 11, 2011 by Kristy 7 Comments

Today is 11/11/11. I bet there are a ton of weddings today. Speaking of which, I’m sure everyone read about the NYC marathoners that got married at Mile 22. And finished in 3:54. I wonder why they chose Mile 22. Is anyone still having fun at Mile 22? And is this becoming a trend? Oiselle makes a “runaway bride dress” specifically for the purpose of getting married on the run.

I have been a lazy sloth all week. My 12K is tomorrow so I have been “resting” my legs. I debated all week about where to fit in my long run – Friday or Sunday. I don’t want to tire my legs for tomorrow’s race but Sunday we have plans and I would have to get up super early in order to fit in a long run. I’ve decided to forego a long run this week, even though the Philly Half is next weekend. I’m going to run 8 miles today, nice and easy, and will put in a few miles on Sunday morning. Or rest. We’ll see.

I’m excited that tomorrow’s 12K is chip timed! Woo hoo! I don’t have to worry about standing in the front and getting caught up with all the speedy runners.

I’m also terribly nervous for tomorrow’s race. The shorter the distance, the more nervous I get. I hate pain.

Did you get married on a specific date because of meaning (i.e., day you met) or because of numbers (i.e., 11-11-11)? We got married on 7-25-09 which didn’t have any meaning but I secretly liked the “25” aspect of it. And I wanted to get married in the summer.

Which makes you more nervous – longer races or shorter races? I guess 5Ks and 10Ks wouldn’t scare me so much if I did them more often. I just hate the running-until-you-puke feeling. I still get nervous for marathons but it’s a different kind of nervous, if that makes sense.

if it ain't broke, don't fix it

November 8, 2011 by Kristy 14 Comments

I get a lot of questions about gait, especially if I’m coaching in-person. People will ask if I’m going to watch them run, tell them what they are doing wrong, and tell them how to run “correctly”. My short answer is always no. Of course, I can check their form to ensure their head is up, shoulders are relaxed, they aren’t bent forward, etc. Checking footstrike and turnover? That’s messing with Mother Nature. Changing up simple things can have a disastrous domino effect.

So when people ask me my first question is “are you having problems”? If yes, there is usually another cause of the problem (improper shoes, overtraining, increasing mileage too quickly) but if there’s no problem? Follow these wise words, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”.

Case and point: me and my heel striking self.

I’m a classic heel striker. Always have been. Am I going to change? Probably not…because I’ve been running this way for almost 11 years injury-free. But, I have been making a conscious effort when I race or do speed work to use more of a midfoot strike to avoid overstriding. Also, heel striking will slow you down.

Until I read Born to Run I thought barefoot running was a little nutso. But that book really opened my eyes to the science behind it. Will I ever go sans shoes? Probably not because….if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it 🙂 And I love my Brooks Adrenalines too much. But if I was runner with chronic injuries (much like the author Chris McDougall), I would definitely give it a go.

Are you a heel, midfoot, or forefoot striker? Have you ever permanently altered your gait?

Ever tried barefoot running or running in Vibrams?