Boston Marathon

Friday Thoughts

June 1, 2012 by Kristy 13 Comments

Bonjour! Just practicing.

Speaking of French, after 2 years of high school French and 3 semesters of college French, I can’t speak a lick of it. I can read some but once it leaves my mouth, it’s horribly butchered and completely wrong. The side of your brain (right?) that helps with foreign language learning is also the same side that prevents me from drawing a decent stick figure. But if you need me to explain the intricacies of the kidney to you, I’m your girl.

The past 2 weeks of running have been great! Quality runs, decent long runs, and…fun. Not worrying about pace and not hitting the track every week is freeing.

Since Boston, I’ve been kind of checked out of reality. Pretty easy to do with Boston, Kauai, and now London/Paris back-to-back. I must say the life of a gypsy (that’s what my co-worker called me yesterday) is sweet!

I have 2 runs planned while we are in London and Paris. I wish I could do more but our itinerary is jam packed. In London, walking along the Thames was on our list so we decided to make an early morning run out of it. Notice I said “we”? Matt agreed to join me and come out of his early retirement from running! In Paris, I plan on doing a solo run along the Seine while Matt goes to the French Open with his nephew. Fun, fun, fun!

Would your (non-running) significant other agree to go on a vacation run with you? Matt was technically a runner at one point and did a few HMs and a marathon but he hated every second of it. So he retired.

Are you fluent in another language? If so, I’m impressed. That’s definitely not in the cards for me!

3 days are better than 2…

May 28, 2012 by Kristy 14 Comments

Fun and productive…that’s what you get with a 3-day weekend.

I kicked off the weekend with a 15-miler on Friday morning, my longest run since Boston. I did my same hilly, long run route but slowed down the pace significantly. There’s no need for speedy long runs right now and that is more than OK with me. I really missed just getting out there and running, with no agenda.

On Friday night we went to a wedding (see the importance of getting the long run outta the way?!). But first we swung by my brother’s house to see my niece – it was her Junior Prom. She looked beautiful!

To balance out the fun of Friday night, Saturday was all about sleeping in, no running, making up training plans, and a wee bit of shopping (GAP was having an amazing sale).

And with Sunday, we were back to fun – a BBQ at my brother’s house. In the morning I knocked out 6 miles on trails, bringing me to 40 miles for the week.

Monday morning started with 9 miles on the same trails and then extreme productivity. I made a very optimistic to-do list and, as I type this, I have just 1 item left on the list! We leave for London/Paris on Friday night so I’m trying to get as much done as possible early on in the week. And I’m squeezing another 40-mile week into 4 days of running. Fun!

Was your Memorial Day weekend fun and productive?

Spontaneity

May 6, 2012 by Kristy 22 Comments

aka – Broad Street Run recap.

Warning: I’m going to start out negative and end on a positive note. This race is a bit of a nightmare. Back in the day, it used to be a fun and relatively small event. Now, it’s hysteria. From the expo, to parking, to the subway ride, to the porta potties…long lines everywhere. But what else can you expect when you allow 40,000 runners in? Broad needs to take a lesson from the Cherry Blossom 10-Miler – start doing a lottery system and cap the damn race!

So why do I run it every year? I love the course. Flat, fast, and straight ahead. And they do have good food at the finish.

I said earlier this week that I didn’t have a plan since I wasn’t sure how my legs would hold up 3 weeks post-Boston. My current PR is 1:19:13, from Cherry Blossom last year. I wasn’t sure I could beat it and frankly, I didn’t care. Honest. I just wanted to have a good time out there.

I started out Mile 1 just under 8:00 pace. I felt good but everyone always feel good during Mile 1.

By Mile 5 I was still running under 8:00 but I was just waiting for the dead marathon legs to set in.

Mile 6…still waiting for dead legs.

During Mile 7 I did the math and realized I could PR. I kicked it up a notch.

I crossed the finish line in 1:18:28 – a new PR!

Spontaneity works well, apparently. I may have to implement the no-plan plan more often. And all that speed work I did for Boston didn’t go to waste!

Do you have a love-hate relationship with a specific race because of its size? For me, it’s definitely Broad Street. But I love the course and the tradition of doing it each year.

Thursday Updates

May 3, 2012 by Kristy 19 Comments

Erica Sara Necklace
I’m not normally a necklace wearer, but I instantly loved this Erica Sara necklace that Meggie featured on her blog last month. I love the button concept and the ability to personalize it. So what does mine say? BOSTON 4-16-12. I didn’t want the word “marathon” or “26.2” included – I wanted it short and sweet and not obvious.

Broad Street Run
I’m running Broad Street this Sunday, the flattest and fastest (and most crowded) 10-miler. I’m transforming into spontaneous Kristy and running without a plan or a strategy. It’s too soon after Boston to tell how my legs will hold up (although my quads are feeling back to normal) so I’m just gonna go with the flow (gasp!).

Coaching
I don’t talk about coaching often but I realized earlier this week that it has been a year since I started my little coaching biz (officially…unofficially, I’ve been coaching for years). To say that it’s completely rewarding and fulfilling is an understatement. I just need to figure out a way to do it full-time

Hawk has seasonal allergies
Yes, just like me! On Saturday his one eye was a green, goopy mess. Since this has happened before, I immediately started giving him Benadryl. A few hours later he was pawing at it – something he never does – so we went to the vet. We walked out with this and some eye drops…

cone of shame

Don’t let the slightly pleasant look fool you, Hawk was miserable. Thankfully we didn’t need to leave the cone on too long since the Benadryl kicked in pretty quickly. Poor guy!

Are you more spontaneous or more of a planner? I’m interested to see your response, as I know most runners are Type A.

Recovery

April 26, 2012 by Kristy 11 Comments

Recovery from Boston can best be summed up in one word: humbling.

I have the whole recovery thing down to a system: no running 1 week post-marathon, ease back into running during week 2, increase mileage and maybe add some easy speed work during week 3, etc. Essentially…reverse my taper. This works for me.

Earlier this week, I set out to do a rather ambitious 8-miler. Keep in mind this was my first run post-Boston. Not sure why I wanted to do 8 miles but I guess I missed running?

8 miles turned into 6 miles with a walk break. My quads were screaming. Kinda like I went to barre class for 4 days in-a-row.

I know trashed quads are typical of the Boston course. But I never, ever thought my quads would be this beat up though. Why?

1. I trained adequately. After “experiencing” the course, I wouldn’t change a thing about my hill prep.

2. Umm, I certainly didn’t go out too fast in the beginning on the downhills. Hello, 89 degrees.

3. I was fine after running Steamtown, which was far worse in terms of downhills than Boston.

So what is it?! Time on feet. I haven’t ran a marathon in 4 hours 33 minutes since 2006. I certainly didn’t train to be on my feet that long. In fact, my 21-miler was my longest run and it lasted 3:04. That, coupled with the extreme conditions, is probably why I’m still feeling the effects of the marathon.

Humbling.

I’m happy to report that my quads felt much better this morning and I hope that trend will continue – very quickly – as we move towards the weekend.

I have Broad Street in a little over a week! I haven’t decided if I’m going to race it or run it as a tempo/progression run. I will all depend on how my quads feel next week.

Have a great weekend!

Now What?

April 24, 2012 by Kristy 24 Comments

Some people have asked me what I plan on doing after Boston. For many years I just ran marathons and chipped away at my time until I BQ’d. This is the first time in a long time where I don’t really have anything major planned. And, I must admit, it feels good!

I do have some plans though. Please, I’m not that spontaneous and fly-by-the-seat-of-my pants.

Immediate
I’m definitely burned out a bit from racing marathons. I need a break. So I’m taking what I love about marathon training – high mileage – and sticking to it. So how is that a break? I’m decreasing the intensity of those miles. No more track work for the foreseeable future. Tempo and progression runs will be done if I feel like it. But mostly, I’m going to run whatever pace I feel like on that day. Sounds a little bit like ultra training, huh?

Sooner or Later
Ultras! 50Ks and 50-milers! Running long is my favorite aspect of running so I think ultra training would be a good fit (because, let’s be honest, speed is not my forte). I’m not rushing into it yet and haven’t committed to anything race-wise but there just so happens to be a few ultras bookmarked in my favorites! We’ll see!

Future
BQ’ing again. I know I have a 3:3X in me and I would love to get another shot at Boston…and race it.

Racing
Other than Broad Street (popular 10-mile race here in Philly) on May 6, I have nothing planned except for 2 HMs in the Fall.

I’m really excited about this new running “chapter” as cheesy as that sounds. It’s very different from how I spent the past 10 years running but this change is much needed. Only good can come from it!

What are your running plans right now? For the future?