Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon Race Recap

I'm proud to say I finished my fourth half marathon yesterday!

This was my first Rock 'n Roll event. There were some things I really liked about this particular race, and there were also some things I found incredibly annoying.

Let's start with the good:

::The weather was perfect! Seriously, I don't think I've ever run a race in better conditions ever. Upper 50's, low 60's, cloud cover...perfect.
::The course was mostly flat. Maybe you'd disagree with me if you were an out-of-towner, but as far as Northwest courses go? This one was pretty tame.
::The music/entertainment was great! I'd recommend this race for anyone with a super short attention span. There was ALWAYS something keeping you going on this course...bands, fans, water stations, and the like.

Now for the things that irked me:

::The pre-run stuff was not fun. The race starts in Tukwila and ends at Qwest Center in downtown Seattle. However, you had to park at Qwest and take one of the shuttles down to Tukwila. This took a long time. From the time we parked until we got to Tukwila? One hour.
::The corrals. While the race started at 7, it didn't start for me until near 7:30. UGH. I don't think I've EVER been in a race where it took so long to get the runners through the start line.
::My knee and hip! About mile 8 or 9, my left hip and knee started to feel buggy. I ended up having to walk a good chunk of the time the last 4 or 5 miles....which resulted in a not-so-good overall finishing time for me.

That being said, here's my stats...

Time: 2:47
Place: 12,879/17,593
Gender Place: 8,634/12,560
I finished before 39.5% of the people in my division

This is definitely a far cry from my PR of 2:10 (in 2005), but I am glad to have finished this race and added another medal to my collection.

Of course, I had to pull all my medals out tonight. I'd forgotten my first half marathon was in 2003...to think I've been doing half and full marathons for seven years now surprised me!

Pictured: (from L-R: 2003 Seattle Half Marathon, 2004 Vancouver Full Marathon, 2004 Seattle Full Marathon, 2005 Federal Escape Sprint Triathlon, 2006 Seattle Half Marathon, 2007 Disney World Full Marathon, 2010 Seattle Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon)

Not Pictured: 2005 Mercer Island Half Marathon. They did not give out medals for this race, and it's a crying shame. That's the race I got my 2:10 PR on!

I have a couple more things I want to share soon as I've reflected on marathoning. They deserve their own posts though...so stay tuned.

Tomorrow is race day

Ah....the day before a race.

How am I feeling? Nervous. Excited. Ready to go already. Ready to be celebrating my accomplishment, sore feet and medal hanging from my neck.

I can't believe here I finally am. After starting out of shape and overweight several months ago, I've lost most of the weight and am capable of finishing a half marathon without killing myself! The human body is truly an amazing thing. While I wish I would've pushed myself harder to have lost those last few pounds, I am truly grateful at the progress I have made.

Yesterday I picked up my timing chip and racing bib. I must say that most of this last week I haven't really been "feeling" this race. And then something happened when I walked into the expo. Maybe it's the loud music and flashing lights. Maybe it's being surrounded by hundreds of runners that are gearing up to run the same race. Or maybe it's the memory of preparing for my first half marathon several years ago. Whatever the case, I can say I'm ready!

I was talking to my friend Denise last night on the phone. I had the pleasure of training for and running my my recent marathon, The Disney World 2007 Marathon, with her. I was telling her how as I left the expo yesterday, I was fighting back tears. She understood exactly what I meant by that. There is just something so powerful, so moving, and life-changing about the marathon process. I can't fully articulate it (and I am a person of many words).

I feel so blessed that after two kids, I'm still at this. And no doubt tomorrow, even after 3 half marathons and 3 full marathons, there will still be a few tears of hard-earned accomplishment.

Time to eat some pasta, put my feet up a little, and picture that finish line.

See you on the other side!


Pictured above: my running shirt, bib, and swag from yesterday's Expo

Just signed up for the Seattle Rock n' Roll 1/2 Marathon!

Hooray! I did it. I just committed to run my next half marathon!

I selected the Seattle Rock 'n Roll event which is on June 26. My friend Crystal aptly pointed out that I got it wrong on my training schedule - it's in June, not July. Hmmm. So watch for a *revised* training schedule. Given that, I may well opt out of Sound to Narrows this year. That is a HARD race and I don't know that I want to have those races in the same month.

By the way, I was able to use coupon code AZSURVEY09 on my registration and it worked like a charm and saved me $10! The only bummer was that I ended up having to pay an online registration fee of $6.95, so it sort of negated my savings.

Oh well...now I'm committed to doing this thing and it's time to start ramping up. This wasn't the best week of eating for me, but I've done a decent job with my workouts. Tomorrow I've got a 3-miler to do and I hope that my weight will at least hold steady come Monday for my weekly weigh-in. Fingers crossed!

Has anyone else committed to signing up for a race? If so, which one(s)?

The year ahead in running & racing

I've finally settled on the races I want to participate in and the schedule I want to follow this year. This time around, I've decided on (loosely) following the Galloway Training Cycle. His is a 30-week cycle - much longer than the 16-week cycles I'm used to. His plan takes you way up to 26 miles, and I'm gonna modify that slightly making my longest run 23 miles pre-race. I'm also opting to spice things up by adding a few races into the mix.

So here is my long-run and race schedule for 2010. Each of these distances is a single run most likely completed on a weekend. For January, I will run once a month. In February, I may add a second running day per week if I can get get below 150 pounds (I want to avoid injury.) Once I get into the thick of my training, I will run 2 30-minute sessions each week in addition to my long run - that's it!

January
(Pre-training schedule)
Week 1: 3 miles (done!)
Week 2: 3 miles
Week 3: 3 miles
Week 4: 3 miles
Week 5: 3 miles

February
(Pre-training, cont)
Week 1: 3.5 miles
Week 2: 3 miles
Week 3: 3.5 miles
Week 4: 3 miles

March
Week 1: 3 miles
Week 2: St Patty's Day 5K (Tacoma) on March 13th
Week 3: 3 miles
Week 4: 5 miles

April
Week 1: 3 miles
Week 2: 6 miles
Week 3: 3 miles
Week 4: 7 miles

May
Week 1: 3 miles
Week 2: 9 miles
Week 3: 4 miles
Week 4: 10 miles
Week 5: 4 miles

June
Week 1: 12 miles
Week 2: Sound to Narrows on June 13th (12K)
Week 3: 13 miles
Week 4: 5 miles

July
Week 1: 15 miles
Week 2: 5 miles + a magical mile (I need to read more about this)
Week 3: 5 miles
Week 4: Seattle Rock n' Roll 1/2 Marathon on July 26th
Week 5: OFF

August
Week 1: 17 miles
Week 2: 6 miles
Week 3: 7 miles + a magical mile
Week 4: 20 miles

September
Week 1: 6 miles
Week 2: 7 miles + a magical mile
Week 3: 23 miles
Week 4: 6 miles

October
Week 1: 7 miles
Week 2: Portland Marathon on October 10th
Week 3: OFF

Beyond this, I'm unsure what I'll do. I *might* consider doing the Seattle 1/2 or full Marathon as well in November depending on how I'm feeling. But right now, October's my target!

Photo credit Felipe Wiecheteck

Coupons for Rock n' Roll Marathon?

If you read my other blog, The Coupon Project, then you know saving money is near and dear to my heart.

So you can imagine my excitement when I was reading on another running blog last night that Rock n' Roll Marathons often have coupon codes available and that you should NEVER pay full price for one. (I'm so sorry...I don't remember the blog I read this on...I should've noted it, I know.)

Anyhow, I'm pretty sure at this point I'll be doing the Seattle Rock n' Roll Half Marathon in July, and so I Googled codes and found: AZSURVEY09. According to Retailmenot, it should work through January and will save you $10 off ANY half or full Rock n' Roll race!

Through the end of February, the race costs $85 for the half (YIKES!), so you'd end up paying $75 with the code. After February, the cost hikes up to $100. The full costs $100 now and will move to $120.

My first marathon

Here I am...nervously smiling minutes before running my first full-distance marathon in Vancouver, B.C. Excited to be meeting this lifetime goal head-on, but also wondering what exactly I'd gotten myself into.

Months before, I'd finished my first half-marathon in Seattle. It had been a feeling like no other crossing that finish line. And yet, I felt it was a goal half-finished. I felt I needed to complete the entire 26.2 distance, if at least just once.

My friend Kim also decided she wanted to work towards this goal and thus began our grueling training. Grueling, because we ran the same route over and over and over. It was mentally exhausting. I remember on days we had to run 16 miles and over, we'd have to run miles around a local school track to make up the distance. Boy, I do NOT recommend that!

Come race day, I was feeling pretty good. Our longest training run had been 20 miles and I was pretty comfortable with the idea of tacking on an extra 10K. The first 8 or so miles of the race I felt great, really strong.

I decided at that point to take one of the Power Gels Kim had given me just prior to the race. It wasn't one I'd had before, but since I'd had similar varieties during our training, I didn't think twice. Bad idea. Two miles later I began feeling sick...really sick to my stomach. I couldn't believe this was happening.

About halfway into the race things started to go downhill pretty quickly. I remember looking for medical personnel or racing staff for assistance. I didn't think I could finish. It was also about this point I had to slow down to walk. I was miserable! But because I never found anyone to assist me back to the finish line, I HAD to keep going. Over the next few miles I was able to alternate running a little with my walking. I was in beautiful Stanley Park, and the scenery definitely encouraged my spirits.

At mile 17, I passed the beautiful gazebo my husband had proposed to me in a few years before! It was another nice surprise and encouraged me to keep pressing on. I also remember making the decision to complete the race about this time. I had completed 17 miles, had trained for months, driven all the way up and taken time off work...I couldn't quit. I'd cross that finish line if I had to crawl.

About mile 20, I was really fatigued. Exhausted. I recall seeing volunteers handing out what looked to be lemon popsicles. Famished, I grabbed one and nearly popped it into my mouth when I told it was Vaseline. Great!

I was completely dragging near the end. I remember meeting a man from Mexico City and we encouraged each other towards the finish line. By the time I approached, the finish line had been moved along a sidewalk to start making way for traffic. No matter - it was still beautiful to cross that finish line! I was proud, relieved, and tired all at once. It was a wonderful rush of emotions. I finished in about 5:45. My next marathon I'd train smarter and shave about 35 minutes off this time.

As difficult as this race was, I still completed it and am glad I did it. It's funny how all the hours of training and racing and effort pay off the instant you cross that finish line and receive your finisher's medal. And then you say, "that was fun. When's the next race?"

A blog about marathoning, weight loss, and seeing your goals through

In high school, I hated when we had to run even a mile. I wasn't fat by any stretch, just not very fit and certainly not convinced in my athletic abilities.

It wasn't until college I discovered that if I put my mind to it, I could run a few miles. Stepping out of my comfort zone, I entered my first 5K in 2000 - the St. Patty's Day Dash in Seattle. I instantly fell in love with the spirit of racing and the rush of the finish line.

Over the next few years I completed about a dozen 10Ks, a sprint-distance triathlon, three half marathons, and eventually went on to complete three full marathons. While I'm not a fast runner, I'm a determined runner. So I'm proud to say I've finished every race I've signed up for.

My last race was the Disney World marathon in 2007. While I finished, it was by far my most difficult race. I had had my first baby just 9 months prior via C-Section, was tired, and unaccustomed to the heat and humidity of running in Florida (I'm a Western Washington native). I was exhausted and decided to take a break from racing.

In 2008, I had my second baby, and once again, put on more weight than I intended to. I also found it has been more difficult to lose weight the second time around. Life as a stay-at-home mom of two has taken it's toll. In addition, I work from home as a freelance copywriter and blogger, so I'm frequently tired and short on time.

However, I can't stay where I'm at physically. I often feel sluggish. I miss getting the 'high" from a good, long run. I miss the excitement of gearing up for a race and the pride I feel after successfully completing a training cycle and race. And let's face it, I miss being able to wear some of my favorite pre-baby clothes!

So what am I proposing to do, exactly? Jump start my New Year's resolutions: lose the weight once and for all by training for, and completing my fourth marathon. I intend to lose 26 pounds - one for each mile of a marathon. I will be doing some shorter races leading up to the big one. I'm currently deciding on the marathon I will run, but it will most likely be late fall 2010.

I'm currently in the worst physical shape of my life, so this will mean having to attain a base level fitness before launching into marathon training. So I'm pretty well starting from scratch.

Would you like to join me in my adventures? I hope you will consider. Whether you've completed marathons before, or can't currently run a mile to save your life, we can do it together. If you have a few pounds to lose or just want to get fit, running is an excellent way to do it.

I'm going to share with you my very best ideas for training and racing, and I hope to inspire you with my own story along the way. While I'm generally pretty private about my weight - especially now - I'm willing to be open about how I'm doing and feeling in order to help you along the way.

Over the next few days, I'll share some pictures with you and my thoughts about forming a training schedule for the year ahead. In the meantime, I hope you'll consider joining me...1 pound at a time, 1 mile at a time.