Race Recap: RnR San Diego 2016

(I'm writing this on day three of a really nasty head cold, which started with a throat so swollen I couldn't talk on Tuesday morning, so apologies if any of this recap is nonsensical.)

Sourabh and I drove down to San Diego on Saturday around 11 a.m., stopping in Carlsbad for sandwiches before continuing on. Traffic on I-5 is the worst on the weekends for some reason. Every time I've driven south of San Clemente on the weekend I've run into traffic! But we made it to San Diego and I picked up my bib at the Rock 'n' Roll San Diego expo relatively painlessly.

This is exactly what the start line looked like -- it's a big race!

We headed to the AirBnB we'd rented for the night, which was a great little place, just a couple blocks from the start line. When the race starts at 6:15 a.m., you don't want to be worrying about catching a cab or taking a bus to the start line! If anyone is interested in the specific AirBnB, just leave a comment or shoot me an email. Definitely a good place to stay if you're running this race!

Ok, quick aside to say a huge THANK YOU to the kind man at Lenscrafters who took pity on me and gave me some sample contact lenses on Saturday afternoon. As I set my race day items out around 4:30 p.m., I realized I had forgotten to pack contact lenses. DISASTER. I could not imagine racing if the distance was blurry -- it seemed like it would be incredibly disconcerting. Thankfully, after speaking to a local Lenscrafters in San Diego, I was able to get samples. Crisis averted!

There also happened to be a Tender Greens close to the Lenscrafters, which I figured was the perfect pre-race dinner (I got their seared tuna, roasted fingerling potatoes and some sauteed eggplant, for those who are curious).

I did a short jog around the nearby portion of Balboa Park with some strides, just to get the legs moving. It was nice to see a bit more of San Diego!

I'm pretty sure I didn't sleep at all that night. I wasn't even that nervous, and the bed was super comfortable, but I couldn't get my mind to settle, so I never really fell asleep. But that made waking up at 4am a lot easier!

After sipping some coffee, eating a Picky Bar and half a banana at 4:15, and hitting the bathroom the requisite five times, I walked over to the start line around 5:30 and did my warm-up stretches. The race is pretty big (the half marathon and marathon start together, and the half marathon alone had over 16,000 runners), but RnR did a great job of organization at the start line, I thought.

I ate a Honey Stinger waffle 15 minutes before the start because, given the humidity, I wasn't sure how much fuel I'd be able to get down so I figured more fuel early on was a good plan.

Ah yes, the humidity. For the bulk of my running time, it was around 90% humidity, which.... is a lot. It wasn't very hot, thankfully, but I definitely felt the humidity in my breathing.

I actually loved the course route, despite the elevation gain (I think it was ~50 ft more than the NYC half?), which was more than most half marathons I've run. There were so many people out cheering in the first half, especially in Normal Heights, including one older man who was pouring drinks for his friends out of what looked like a fully stocked bar.

I ran the first two miles at a strong opening pace, but I had a hard time really getting into a comfortably hard groove. I was trying to run on effort level, but I just had a hard time dialing into the right effort level.

At the same time, I was really enjoying the race, even though I could tell I wasn't on pace for a big PR. I started having a sharp stitch in my right side. I realized it started after the Gu I took at mile 4, and got worse every time I took a sip out of my bottle of half water/half Gatorade.

Having read up on this, my understanding is that the liver gets larger with glucose, which pulls on the abdominal muscles and can lead to that sharp pain. This is something I've dealt with in a lot of previous races, so in our post-race debrief, Coach Jess emphasized that it's something we need to figure out because it's definitely a limiting factor in terms of effort level. Every time the stitch kicked in, I'd slow down a bit and focus more on my breathing. I didn't take anything after that Gu at mile 4 since I recognized that I seemed to be in more pain after taking any fuel.

The last few miles run through Balboa Park, largely downhill, and finish in downtown San Diego. I felt like I had to slow down on the biggest downhill, though, because the pain was at its sharpest due to the heavier up-and-down motion -- that mile still clocked in at 8:07, though. The stitch actually continued hurting through Sunday and Monday, in a pulled muscle kind of way, but thankfully it went away by Tuesday (slash, was covered up by my overall aches and pains due to being sick).

I'm most proud of the way I pushed in that last mile, where the uphill and downhill evened out and there was no net loss -- I clocked an 8:01! That's the fastest mile I've ever logged in a half marathon.

Sourabh snapped this picture of me at the finish line. Clearly I was working hard in that last mile!

I paid $30 for this picture because (1) it's the best race picture I've had taken and (2) it came with a $20 credit for Shutterfly, so I can use that to buy prints to put in our new house, which means it really only cost $10... right?

Official Time - 1:53:08

I ended up running a much hillier half, in 90% humidity, 34 seconds slower than my PR. So, I'm happy with it, even though it wasn't a PR, and even though I know I didn't give a 100% effort level. The ease with which I walked off the course made that very clear, as did the minor soreness over the next two days as opposed to my typical "OMG EVERYTHING HURTS WHY" post-race soreness.

The big reason I'm fine with not PR-ing is that I feel like I learned so much with this race. I learned that I can run strong on a hilly course and that I need to figure out longer distance fueling better. And most importantly, I finished a 13 week training cycle without a muscle strain. That is HUGE for me! 

Coach Jess and I have also agreed that I should race more, so I am planning on a late summer half marathon and a late fall half marathon, followed by a late winter marathon in 2017. I'm pumped!

Half Marathon #9 complete!

I have some ideas for late summer and late fall half marathons, but do you have any suggestions for me?

Why I Might Not Run RnR San Diego

So, my spring goal race is this Sunday. And I'm not sure I'll be running it.

Let's back up. For the past four weeks, my legs have felt like lead. At some point I'll post my training logs, I suppose, but they won't show anything crazy. Training was fine, if not ideal. However, every run has been a slog and my paces have slowed substantially. Unfortunately with work being so busy, strength and stretching fell by the wayside a bit, which was stupid on my part, and I'm sure didn't help.

I think the stress of both work and personal stuff have contributed to whatever is going on, in addition to traveling to New Jersey for Sourabh's law school graduation in NYC. Plus, it took two hours each way to get from his parents' house into the city, and we made that trip three times.

GRADUATED!!

I would have written it all off as the end of a training cycle, since who feels good at the end of a training cycle? I went into Finish Line Physical Therapy on Friday while we were in NYC, and I got a 90 minute deep tissue massage Monday night that I hope helped.

I got to wear these incredible compression sleeves, so that was a highlight of my day. (I'd say the highlight, but I also got to grab lunch with Coach Jess, which was clearly the other highlight!)

However, I haven't run since Monday morning because I've also been feeling nauseous and ill all week (no, not pregnant, let's not go there). Additionally, I might have to work a lot this weekend (I won't know until Friday evening, which is how corporate life goes unfortunately).

The reason I am strongly questioning running the race is that these are the scenarios I envision:

Scenario A: I have to work a lot this weekend. A massive deal I'm working on was supposed to sign on May 28, meaning the weekend would have been free. However, that didn't happen. (Pro tip: you never sign on the day you think you'll sign.) In this scenario, Sourabh and I drive down to San Diego at the latest time that we possibly can so that I can still pick up my bib before the expo closes at 5:00 p.m. (thanks so much, RNR, for making it impossible to have someone else pick up your bib. Really appreciate that.). I work from the car and the hotel, and we order room service for dinner. I run the race Sunday morning then we immediately head back to Orange County so I can head into the office. [This assumes that it is not essential for me to be in the office all weekend, in which case I have no choice about running the race.]

Scenario B: I miraculously don't have to work this weekend. Sourabh and I can spend the weekend exploring San Diego (I haven't been there since I was 6). I run the race and it takes roughly 3 hours out of our day, and otherwise we're having fun in San Diego, so the outcome doesn't matter. It's just an extra excuse to eat ALL the food.

In Scenario B, regardless of how the race went, we would have a fun weekend and the cost of a hotel and meals out would (probably) be worth it.

However, Scenario A is a lot more likely, and in that scenario, if I run a shit race and feel awful the entire time, then we've just spent probably $300+ (not counting the race fee, which is a sunk cost at this point) for me to zoom down to San Diego and work out of a hotel room and then feel like shit for 13 miles before sitting in the car again and then at a desk, possibly causing some injury with all the sitting post-race.

Mason is ready to hit the road, so we know which way he's leaning.

All of that is why I'm not sure if I will be running the RnR San Diego Half this Sunday. If by some miracle the deal dies for a while (again, pro tip: deals almost never really die! They are like zombies and come back to life again and again), then I think it would be a fun weekend.

If whatever bug I'm fighting miraculously disappears and I run some amazing miles tonight or tomorrow, then I will want to run the race. But I've trained for a PR and to just run a race where I feel awful and come up short seems like a huge waste of both time and money.

[Sidebar: one of my favorite running bloggers, Angela of SF Road Warrior, recently wrote a fantastic post about how there are a lot of good reasons to DNS (Did Not Start) a race. You should go read it, and her blog in general, because she has an incredible wealth of good running info there.]


So here's hoping I can either have a fun weekend or a great race. But if not, hey, I live in SoCal. There are half marathons here all year round! I can find another one in a few weeks, or just wait until marathon training kicks in and run one in the fall.

Or I'll just console myself with beach views and Mexican food in Laguna. One or the other. 

Race Recap: 2014 NYC Half

I have no idea how to start this recap because two things happened at the NYC Half: (1) I finally broke 2:00 and finished in 1:58:46, and ( 2) I felt absolutely terrible during the race.

So, let's start at the very beginning. A very good place to start (name that movie/musical!).

Gear

I wore a Oiselle Lux Layer (does not seem to be on their website anymore), my best-purchase-ever C9 by Champion puffer vest, discontinued Lululemon tights, mittens, a Sparkly Soul headband, and Mizuno Wave Inspires.  

It was "feels like 23 degrees" at the start and was about 31 degrees for most of the race, but other than my face, I felt plenty warm in this outfit. I was on the fence about the Mizuno Wave Inspires for a while after I got them, but this winter I've really started liking them, and they felt great during the race.

Pre-Race

I wasn't able to do any runs the week before the race because I was so busy at work (the shortest day, I billed 12.7 hours) and Jess said to prioritize sleep over getting a run in. However, I was able to manage a 20 minute shake out run Saturday, taking advantage of the gorgeous, spring-like weather.

I woke up at 6:40 AM after sleeping terribly. I had decided to treat the race pretty casually when I saw how busy my week was going to be at work, so I wasn't extremely anxious. I still had that stomach flutter I get for all races, but I wasn't feeling the pressure of great expectations, which helped. I think my nausea had already started a bit, since I wasn't interested in food at all and barely got down 3/4 of a Picky Bar. 

I took a cab to Columbus Circle then jogged to the entrance at 6th Avenue and Central Park South. It was pretty cold out, but since I was moving continually, I didn't notice it as much as I did last year when I waited for 30 minutes in my corral. I met up with Brittany and we jumped in my corral. Brittany had been sick the previous week with strep throat and wasn't so sure about how the race would go, but we wanted to start together at least.

Almost immediately after we'd started chatting, the crowd started moving forward and just a few minutes later we were crossing the start line. "Are we really about to run a half marathon?" Brittany asked. 

Central Park

The new course that NYRR designed meant that we immediately climbed up Cat Hill then continued on the main Central Park loop. I was not a fan of the additional out and back they added at the top of Central Park. We ran out of the Park, along 110th Street up a gradual incline, around the Frederick Douglass statue, then back to where we exited and entered the park to run up Harlem Hill. The out and back just felt so tacked-on and the road was in pretty bad condition. I could easily see people tripping. 

After Harlem Hill, which Brittany and I were both happy to be done with, we saw Sourabh cheering with Mason at 96th Street. Shortly after we saw Fiona cheering -- hey, Fiona! I knew I should try to fuel around then, so I popped a chew in, but I could barely get it down. I had started feeling a bit lightheaded and didn't try to keep eating the chews. 

(1) 9:03

(2) 8:43

(3) 9:04

(4) 9:06

(5) 9:03

(6) 9:00

Midtown

After we exited the park, I got down about 3/4 of a gu between miles 6-7, but that was the last fuel I had. As the race progressed, I just kept getting more and more lightheaded, and I'm sure that was due in part to fueling, but I also felt nauseous and the thought of trying to get down more chews seemed impossible, so I just drank water from several aid stations. 

Thanks for taking this awesome picture, Kim!

We had a great pick-me-up at 52nd Street, seeing Beth, Kim, Allison, Leticia and Bernadette (did I miss anyone??), but after we hit a killer wind running east on 42nd Street, I think Brittany and I both felt like we were over the race. We both started listening to music. Huge thanks to Ke$ha and Pitbull for their fantastic duet, "Timber," which really got me through a tough time. What can I say, I love shitty music when running.

(7) 9:08

(8) 8:52

West Side Highway

By mile 9 or so, Brittany said her legs were just done, so we eventually parted ways. Those West Side Highway miles were the worst because I was feeling incredibly lightheaded. I'm not sure where it came from -- although I'm guessing my fairly sleep-deprived state and inability to take in much fuel had something to do with it -- but from roughly mile 6 or 7 onwards I felt lightheaded and somewhat nauseous. I kept wondering if I might pass out or throw up. I didn't, though, and each time I saw my pace drop too much, I just kept thinking about the people in my life who are going through way worse shit than a race that they chose to run not being perfect. 

(9) 9:08

(10) 9:17

(11) 8:59

(12) 9:16 [<-- I think this mile is messed up because I had overrun the course by .1 until the large buildings in the Financial District and the tunnel, and then my watch said I finished in 13.11; this mile was probably a bit faster]

Finish

Last year, I hated the Battery Park tunnel, since it seems to go on forever. This year, I loved it because it meant we were almost done and it was a bit less cold than the highway. As we emerged, I tried to push with everything I had left, but there just wasn't a ton left. I think the lack of fueling probably really hurt me when it came to that last mile, but I still was able to kick it up a bit.

(13) 8:45

(.1) ?? [tall buildings messed it up, it says 12:00 and there's just no way]

Post-Race

As I crossed the finish line, I stopped my watch and looked down with an "oh, 1:58, cool" shrug. It's funny that something I worked so hard for last year felt good, but not overwhelmingly exciting. It was almost an after thought to the happiness that was no longer having to run. My primary thought was, "where is Sourabh, I need someone to get me out of here because I am too woozy to navigate on my own." 

After walking through the exit chute for what seemed like forever (but let's be honest, it was probably no more than a half mile or so), Sourabh and I were able to meet up. He gave me a big hug and helped guide me to the subway. As soon as we got home, I ate a bowl of cheerios (basic carbs were all I wanted) then slept for two hours.

After a nap and some food, I think I'm happy with my time. I am 99% sure I could run a faster half, especially on a flatter course when it wasn't below freezing and I wasn't sleep-deprived and incapable of fueling, but I have finally reached my goal of going sub-2, and that's pretty damn exciting. 

SO MANY THANK YOU'S to Coach Jess! I have no idea how I would have navigated training for this half marathon and working an increasingly demanding job without her help, giving me guidance on what workouts to prioritize and which would be okay to skip. Jess: you are the best!

Did you run the NYC Half? If so, how did it go? Post your recap here, I want to read it! Super curious about how everyone else's races went. 

Nike Women Half Marathon DC Race Recap

I kept putting off writing this recap because I didn't know what to say. The race didn't go well, although it wasn't a disaster, I guess. It was only 1:51 off my NYC Half time (although I was sick for that race). I just didn't know what to write. 

Then I had coffee with Carrie this morning (well, coffee and hot chocolate because City Bakery has the best hot chocolate in the city). We have something really fun to share that we'll be posting about tomorrow -- stay tuned! -- but in the midst of our brainstorming, I mentioned that I didn't know how to recap this race.

Carrie said I shouldn't try to detail the race itself, since I'd already written about my feelings during the race on Monday, and instead just talk about the weekend and how the Nike race experience was. So, thank you, Carrie! I now have a direction for this recap :) 

Splits

First, I'm going to share my splits, because they honestly tell the whole story. Given my fabulous run two weeks ago, starting out at the speed I did didn't feel like going out crazy fast, but as I mentioned, both my body and mind just gave out partway through. I'm sure you will see that based on my splits!

Mile 1 - 8:46

Mile 2 - 8:50

Mile 3 - 9:07

Mile 4 - 8:57

Mile 5 - 9:09

Mile 6 - 9:20

Mile 7 - 9:13

Mile 8 - 9:30

Mile 9 - 9:20

Mile 10 - 9:48

Mile 11 - 8:35 (??? I think this was because of the tunnel)

Mile 12 - 10:14

Mile 13 - 8:56 (AKA I just want to be done, end this torture please)

Mile .25 - 8:21

Story told, right? Okay, let's move on to the expo and the post-race festivities.

The Expo(tique)

I drove down to the race with Lynette (who ran her first half-marathon!) and Julianne, and Lynette and I split a hotel room at the Dupont Circle Hotel. While the complimentary wifi was terrible, the hotel was quite nice and I'd recommend it to those traveling to DC if you don't need wifi. 

So... yes, Nike called their expo an "expotique." However, you couldn't buy Nike gear there and had to walk 1/4 mile up a hill to the Nike store in Georgetown for gear. I wouldn't have minded this if we hadn't also had to wait in line for 30 minutes to pick up our bib (and I heard others waited as long as 50 minutes). It was a hot day and being on our feet that much wasn't ideal. 

The line to pick up bibs in one direction. The red building was where the bib pick-up tent was.

I also did not love the fact that the expo was so "girly." Don't get me wrong, I love a good blowout or makeover, but the bulk of the tent was devoted to Nike products that you couldn't purchase there, bareMinerals makeovers, Luna Bar with fiber bar samples (runners, back me up, extra fiber is not what you want right before a race!!), and Paul Mitchell quick hair-dos. There was a nuun stand that was gorgeous, but the line was very long. The entire tent was dark, warm, and quite crowded, so Lynette and I got out of there pretty quickly.

In order to get actual running items, like shot bloks or gels, you had to exit the tent and go to a small stand behind the expo. It was the only place selling actual race necessities like fuel or body glide, and we snagged the last body glide around 2:00 PM.

I've read some other reviews by people who loved the expotique, and I think if you went on a day other than Saturday it would have been a better experience. I just wish Nike hadn't placed the emphasis on the pretty aspects of women's racing and instead had included more running-oriented booths. 

Shakeout run smiles by the White House. Sadly the Obamas did not invite us in.

Lynette and I grabbed a late lunch / early dinner at Pizzeria Paradiso, which was delicious, and checked out the Nike store, which was a madhouse. Then we headed to our hotel, ran 1.9 miles to shake out our legs, and finished up our day foam rolling and laying out our race outfits. 

Oiselle winona top, Oiselle stride shorts, Brooks Adrenaline GTS shoes,  pink Sparkly Soul headband, and pink Pro Compression marathon socks 

I really enjoyed wearing this outfit, and at some point I'm going to write a post about the body image triumph that wearing the stride shorts was. 

At 4:45 AM, we woke up, I did some yoga, we each ate half a bagel with peanut butter and half a banana, then headed to the start line. We arrived around 6:30 AM and found things to be a bit crazy, but bag drop was quick and I was soon in my corral and ready to go. I even got to meet Krissy in real life, looking adorable in her Breakfast at Tiffany's costume! I saw her again on the course with Ashley, although I sadly couldn't keep up with them since that was during those nasty lead-leg miles.

Shalene Flanagan ran the race, so they introduced her at the beginning, which was amazing. I also saw her pass on the bridge turnaround -- seeing Shalene in action was so cool!! I love her and Kara Goucher. 

Post-Race

Blah blah blah, the race experience wasn't great for me. I will say, though, that there was amazing crowd support almost the whole way. I'm not used to 75% of a course having people cheering along it! That was really cool. 

It's funny, though -- it spoke to the fact that I think a lot of those cheering were new to the whole cheering game. They were standing there, some holding signs, but not always making noise! I think the announcer said that about 6,000 of the 15,000 runners were running their first half-marathon, so it would make sense why their supporters might not be experienced "cheer-ers."

As soon as I crossed the finish line, all I wanted was water. I grabbed two water bottles, picked up my Tiffany's necklace, and took the customary photo with the tuxedoed man handing out necklaces. Thanks, dude with red sunglasses! 

Apparently there was a stretching booth and a finishers' boutique, but I didn't check either out. I was exhausted and feeling sick (was it the heat? unclear...) and just wanted to pick up my sweatshirt and find Lynette.

Funny story -- her phone broke so we couldn't communicate! I texted her, getting worried that something had happened despite having seen her cross the finish line, and eventually headed back to the hotel since I couldn't find her. Thankfully, she found her way back to our hotel!

Overall, the weekend was fabulous. The race didn't go as I'd hoped, but I had so much fun. Traveling for a race with friends is awesome because even if you don't have a great race, you still get a great weekend away out of it.

Have you traveled for a race before? What's your favorite kind of girls' weekend?

Race Recap: 2013 NYC Half

First off, to everyone who texted or tweeted at me after the race, thank you so much. It was so amazing to hit the finish line, pull out my phone to find my friends, and then get flooded with congratulations. It was a tough second half for me and seeing that meant so much. THANK YOU!

Ok so, straight up: I did not go sub-2:00 because my final time at the NYC Half was 2:00:00. Yes, 2:00:00 precisely. I missed my A-goal by 1 second.

In normal times, I'd be pretty bummed about this. I'm a Type A person. I set goals and I want to meet them. And I'd been working so hard for the past few weeks before my calf pain, fatigued legs, and being sick.

But the race was after a week of battling conjunctivitis, AKA pink eye, and a cold, and waking up constantly for two nights in a row (nerves? having a guest? I have no clue). So I'm  pretty ecstatic with the result. I didn't break 2 hours technically... but it was by 1 second. It was a PR of 9:34 minutes. So I'm happy!

First, splits:

(1) 9:19
(2) 9:11
(3) 8:43 - this was after Cat Hill. I felt strong and it was flat so I wanted to take advantage (and I'm glad I did)
(4) 9:29 - Harlem Hill
(5) 9:23 - rolling hills
(6) 9:05
(7) 8:56
(8) 9:00
(9) 9:07
(10) 9:11 - SO TIRED.
(11) 8:59 - SO TIRED BUT MUST PERSEVERE.
(12) 9:03 - THIS IS THE WORST. WHY DO I DO THIS.
(13) 9:12 - SO TIRED I MIGHT DIE. ALSO WHY IS THERE A HILL COMING OUT OF BATTERY PARK TUNNEL.
(.19) 7:22 - breathing was basically wheezing, nearly collapsed after passing the finish line.

Now, on to the race recap.

OH MY GOD IT WAS SO COLD. Before the sun rose, the park "felt like 20 degrees." Thank the lord I had those throwaway sweats to keep me semi-warm until the start line. FYI, for those who don't know (like I didn't before this race), the sweats are collected for the Goodwill.

The gentleman behind me did not approve of my grey-on-grey sweats, apparently. 

When we got through the start line, my legs felt great. I saw Beth, Abby, and Liz right after the start line which was a great burst to start (if I'm missing anyone I'm sorry, I am writing this after two glasses of wine and a long day!!!).

I kept myself going at a slower rate to save my legs, although I let loose after Cat Hill on the flat mile for an 8:45 mile. Harlem Hill sucked, obviously, and the rolling hills left my legs feeling tight. I had Sourabh and my friends Katie, Hana, and Sarah to look forward to seeing in between the first and second rolling hills, which again gave me a boost.

Me, running away from my cheer group.

But as I headed downhill and then exited Central Park, they didn't go back to feeling "normal" like my legs normally do after hills. The energy of Seventh Avenue and the incredible atmosphere of Times Square kept me going at a speedy rate for miles 7-9, but I was flagging, and by mile 10 I was so, so tired. I popped in my headphones and put in my music to try to keep myself going (playlist to come!).

I've never felt a wall like I felt around mile 10. I looked at my Garmin and saw that I had 27 minutes to go 3.1 miles. I was so fatigued that I thought I had no chance of making sub-2:00 and that I'd be finishing around 2:03 or so at best.

Keeping my pace up on the Westside Highway was a real struggle. I had to keep pushing myself as my pace went up and then down in each mile.

New friend Dejuan and me!

I am so thankful that I found a buddy in my corral before the race! Dejuan and I exchanged brief pleasantries at the beginning of the course, then somehow ended up sticking by each other the entire race. After Harlem Hill, we high fived, and after we exited Central Park, I joked that it was just a "7 mile victory lap" to go.

It was so good to have someone I wanted to keep up with, to fist bump, and to smile at. Three cheers for race friends! At my lowest point on the West Side Highway, I'm not sure I could have kept going if not for having someone I wanted to stay alongside and who kept checking in with me.

So those last three were tough, tough miles. I felt so exhausted and thought my goal was totally out of reach (sorry if I wasn't super smiley when you said hi on the course, Ashley!). But I tried to keep pushing myself to make it happen. The last mile was slow (9:12) going through the Battery Park Tunnel and then up the incline coming out of it, but I sprinted for the last .1 miles at a 7:22 pace (.19 on my Garmin, looks like I need to work on my tangent running). To finish with 2:00:00 exactly.

After those last three miles, where I thought I'd be missing my goal by a lot and felt so disheartened, finding out that I'd finished in 2:00:00 felt fantastic (thanks to Abby for texting me with this news!).

So mostly, I am just so happy. A huge thanks to all the friends I saw cheering (including three who are not runners at all and came out just to shout at me AND THEN I MISSED THEM on Chambers Street because I suck). It meant so much to see people on the course!

Katie and me post race

Considering that the last couple of weeks were less than ideal, this actually only makes me more excited for New Jersey. I am hoping I can do something exciting on a totally flat course, especially if I don't have illness or pain issues to deal with in the weeks prior.

Hana and me -- she woke up at 5 AM to come in to the city and cheer! 

I was so happy to see how many people had great races today (and yesterday in DC as well!). Congrats to everyone!!! Today might have been rough in places, and yes there were totally moments where I wondered, "um, why do I do this??" but ultimately it only reaffirmed my love of running and the running community.

Crushing on Running. Also, I need travel help!

Run Crush
I am loving running. Every run isn't great, and some runs hurt my face because of the whole being below freezing thing, but I'm just loving running and training right now.

I may have tweeted something along these lines yesterday after a brief two miles around Central Park to round out the 2.5 I'd run at Finish Line for my training plan's called-for 4.5 miles.

Lately, even when the runs are kind of hurting for some reason (cold, pushing the pace, etc.), I just feel good. I think this may have to do with increasing my mileage so running feels less difficult. Whatever it is, I'm really enjoying this training cycle so far.

also enjoying coming home and warming up by snuggling with Mason

I've been really open about my goals, telling everyone who asks (and some who don't...) that I'm training for a sub-2:00 half. So whenever my ass feels attached to the couch, I just think to myself -- will the couch get you a sub-2:00? That gets me off the couch and then once I start running, I feel great.

it also helps when I can come back from speed work and eat this. well, half of this.
stupid boyfriend wanting dinner. sheesh.

I'm sure there will be plenty of downs to come since there are still quite a few weeks left in this training cycle, but right now I'm just enjoying my runs and the increased mileage that I'd thought would be so tough. It's kind of a surprise, honestly, but I think it helps that I always feel so encouraged and inspired by the running community on Twitter and in real life.

Basically, I'm crushing on running. Real hard. We're close to Valentine's Day, and despite my feelings about that particular holiday, it's the perfect time for a crush. Right?

So about that credit card charge yesterday...
Thanks so much for the concern yesterday about that $4,000 charge! I was able to have it credited back to my card and then billed to my firm relatively quickly, so no harm no foul. It was just a lot of money to be worried about on a Wednesday morning! (Thursday mornings, of course, I could care less about $4,000. Obviously.)

In case you're curious, (you probably aren't but oh well) here's how law school works for those who have jobs lined up at NYC corporate law firms for post-graduation. I'll graduate in mid-May and have about 10 days before my bar review course starts.

Then, I'll spend June and July studying for the bar exams, and the bar review class and homework take up 8-10 hours a day.

this will be me from June through July.
I'd pretend I'd be better dressed , but let's be honest... no. I won't be.

The bar is a two-day exam, 6 hours each day, where you're tested on both New York State laws and multi-state laws. I'll be taking that the last week of July and then I'll have roughly 6 weeks off before I start working at my firm!

 And that, ladies and gents, is my next 8 months in a nutshell.

I need help! Have you been to Montreal or Quebec?

(source)

During that 10 day break after I graduate law school and before my bar review course starts, I'm going to be taking a road trip with my parents up to Montreal and Quebec. I've been to Montreal before (it was Sourabh and my first min vacation together), but never Quebec.

If you've been to either city, I would LOVE to get your recommendations! Where should we eat? Where can I run? What should we see?

If you're training for something, are you enjoying your training? Do you have travel tips for me? Help!

Peak Performance Analysis at Finish Line Therapy

Yesterday started out slightly disastrously: instead of my firm being billed for my Bar Exam review course, I was billed $4,000. Not exactly pocket change. I had to get that charge fixed ASAP and was stuck on the phone, making myself late for a very important date. Thankfully, things turned up once I finally made it downtown.

I had made plans to have coffee with Carrie and meet in person before my appointment at Finish Line Physical Therapy. After apologizing profusely for being late, we sat down and had a great conversation. We both agreed that it can be hard being "young" and training for endurance events since so often people in their early 20s don't really understand the concept of early bedtimes or dawn workouts (actually, I'm not so great about those dawn workouts either...) 

It was such a fun coffee date and I can't wait to meet up with her again soon! And the day only got better from there as I headed to Finish Line.

Ok, the Finish Line mascot isn't the reason the day got better. But he was part of it! His name is Miles. How adorable is that? Any place that has a dog wandering around is instantly a place I'm going to like.

Two weeks ago, I was contacted by Finish Line Physical Therapy about coming in for a Peak Performance Analysis by a physical therapist there. To say I was excited is a slight understatement since I've had some recurring pain in my right arch (and there was also that whole possibly-pulled-muscle during my second half-marathon). I took them up on their offer immediately and found a date that worked.

Here's Finish Line's description of themselves from their website:

Finish Line Physical Therapy is a private, outpatient clinic that utilizes a personal, functional approach to rehabilitation, injury prevention and performance enhancement. Our goal is to evaluate and treat the entire body as a functional whole—a fresh alternative to conventional methods of physical therapy that generally isolate individual joints or body parts.

I started my visit with a run on the AlterG Anti-Gravity Treadmill. Yes, you read that right. Anti-gravity. It essentially lifts you up so that your legs are only supporting a chosen percentage of your bodyweight.

what the set-up looks like
(source)

Do I really have to describe in detail how cool this was? I was zipped into the top and then air filled into the chamber, taking weight off my legs, and then I started running. I spent most of my 2.5 miles running at a 7:30 pace (8 MPH) and 65% of my body weight. I wanted to get in part of my 4.5 planned miles and figured this was the perfect opportunity!

It was so cool to be able to run faster because my legs felt far less weighed down. I'd be a pretty speedy runner if I weighed 50 lbs less! I even tried sprinting up hills and they felt like gentle inclines. Basically, I should move to the moon and become a professional runner.

If you're wondering what on earth this is used for besides astronaut training, it's actually very helpful for those recovering from injury and older runners who want to keep running but at a lower impact. 

Finish Line is a gorgeous facility, by the way. It's a large, wide-open space filled with all kinds of physical therapy and exercise tools, including bikes and treadmills. There are changing rooms, showers, and appointment rooms that look a lot like a doctor's room, but better because they have pictures of runners in them.

After about 20 minutes on the AlterG, I unzipped myself and waited for a few minutes before my Peak Performance Analysis with Alison. This meeting was SO helpful. I was filmed from a variety of angles and Alison then went over what each camera showed about my running form. She was able to figure out a lot of issues I have based on my form. (Tight calves? Yep. Tight hips? Yep.)

my analysis!
(contact details edited out)

Alison also identified my weak glutes and limited hip extension, things I definitely need to focus on in my strength and yoga practices. While I was aware of the symptoms of some of my issues, I really didn't understand why or how they were occurring. Seeing exactly how my foot reaching out too far as I land could affect the rest of my body was extremely helpful (and very cool).

After going through all of her findings, Alison gave me a few ideas on how to stretch for a run and a couple of great ideas for keeping my legs and feet healthy as a part-time office dweller (and full-time computer user), such as bringing a lacrosse ball to work to use for pressure point massage of my feet under my desk.

I had a fantastic experience at Finish Line and was sad to bid it (and Miles) farewell, thinking I couldn't afford to return until I started work since I assumed my student insurance plan wouldn't cover physical therapy. But, thankfully, the friendly woman at the front desk offered to call my insurance to check for me (this is something I would never do because I hate being stuck on the phone unless there is $4,000 on the line -- it is irrational, I admit it).

And great news! My insurance will cover 8 sessions of physical therapy, so it looks like I should be able to do regular appointments as I train for my spring half-marathons and my first marathon this fall. 

I'm really looking forward to making Finish Line Physical Therapy a part of my training and to getting rid of the lingering arch pain once and for all. To me, physical therapy makes sense as a part of a complete training program, alongside strength-training, yoga, and spinning. I just never thought I could afford to make that happen, so I'm ecstatic that I'll be able to. Running pain-free is wonderful and with all the running I have on my schedule this spring, I want as little pain as possible. 

Ok, and I'm also excited to see Miles again...

Have you ever tried physical therapy? Would you want to pretend to be an astronaut train on a treadmill that decreased the body weight on your legs?

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Disclaimer: I received the Peak Performance Analysis complimentary, however I was not compensated for this post. I was not asked to write a post about my experience, but I wanted to based upon my experience there and the fact that I will be returning and making Finish Line part of my training.

Weekly Goals and Workout Recap: Indian Cooking, Mountains, and Redeyes

Happy MLK Jr Day AND Inauguration Day! Four years ago on Inauguration Day, Sourabh and I were juniors in college on an off-term, living in a teeny basement apartment in D.C. and working as unpaid interns for two think tanks there. We'd only been dating a few months, but on a leap of faith (or rather, stupidity?) we decided to live together since it was the only way we could really afford to be unpaid interns. Not the brightest idea in retrospect since it could have ended badly, but hey, four years later and we're still together :)

Anyway, I have so much to write about from the past few days! Sourabh and my mini trip to Seattle, our last night with my family, traveling back to New York, and last week's training. I'm going to recap Seattle separately tomorrow so I can go into a bit more detail (and not overwhelm with mountain pictures in one post). Also, if you missed it on Friday, I posted a yoga flow for runners with lots of pictures illustrating each pose. Check it out!

Chef Sourabh

After getting home from Seattle on Thursday, Sourabh and I cooked some Indian food for my parents. We ended up cooking Friday night as well. Both times we made a very simple vegetable recipe -- it's basically sauteed vegetables with Indian spices. I'm going to post it on the blog soon! We also did a great fish recipe on Friday that I'd never had. It was delicious so I'll be figuring out the proportions (we were eyeballing) and posting that as well.

On Friday, we had lunch with my old piano teacher, Nancy. I was so happy that Sourabh got to meet her! I took piano lessons with Nancy for seven years, but more than being a piano teacher, she was always a surrogate grandparent to me. My mom's parents lived far away for most of my childhood and were never very grandkid-oriented, and my dad's parents sadly passed away before we could get too close. So I've always looked on Nancy as my grandma-fill-in, right down to the delicious cookies she always baked for piano recitals.

I was so glad Sourabh could meet her since he never met my grandparents. After a nice lunch catching up, my parents, Sourabh and I drove up the Mount Baker Highway so that Sourabh could see the gorgeous views in the Mt. Baker recreational area. The top part of the road was closed due to snow.

I have no idea why. It's not like there was that much snow. (Mt Baker actually gets some of the deepest drifts in the country because every time it rains in WA, it's snowing in the mountains)

We got to see the sun set over the peaks of the mountains, creating gorgeous shadows in the valleys while the mountaintops were capped with golden sunlight. It was breathtaking.

Mt. Shuksan, elev. 9,131 ft.

Sourabh doesn't share my (unhealthy) obsession with mountains, but even he admitted the hour and a half drive was worth it to see the Cascades up close. Trust me, if you're ever in Washington, you must drive up the Mount Baker Scenic Highway. If you go in August or September, then Artist's Point should be open -- it's the highest point of the highway at 5,140 ft. and has many trails you can hike while staring at the Cascades and Mt. Baker, which is a 10,000 ft. active volcano!

Ok fine, enough mountain talk. I'll stop. Even if you don't like mountains, there's a wonderful Italian restaurant partway up the highway, Milano's, which is a destination all by itself.

I'm so happy because we're in the mountains!

Oh, we also brought Mason up to the mountains! At first he was totally fine trotting around exploring. But after about 10 minutes, he suddenly ran to the car and decided he was done. I think his paws had gotten cold on the snow! He's not exactly a hardcore dog; definitely more of the coddled city dog type.

I forgot Mason's leash and collar, so my dad bought him a pink harness and leash. no gender conformity for him.

Saturday afternoon, after a 30 minute Nike Training Club workout that left me very sore the next day and my dad's yoga class, Sourabh and I took my parents to lunch to thank them for putting up with us and our finicky dog for a month. Then it was a flurry of packing and a 2-hour drive to Seattle Airport for our redeye flight to JFK!

Good bye, Washington. Till next time.

Weekly Workout Recap
Several of the blogs I read do a weekly workout recap, which I love reading. Yes, I'm a dork who likes reading about other people's workouts. Oh well.

Anyway, instead of just doing bullet points on how I did on my goals for the previous week, I've decided to start recapping my workouts a bit more, going day by day, before detailing my goals for the coming week. Let me know what you think of the change!

Last week's goals
• 2 short runs, 3 miles each
• 1 long run, 7 miles
• 1 tempo run, 35 minutes
• 2 strength workouts
• 2 yoga classes

Monday: 
Short 3 mile run around local golf course. It was cold (like, sub-freezing), but I had surprisingly few breathing issues, despite keeping an average 9:01 pace. My breathing was labored, but nothing that made the run difficult.

Tuesday:
Rigorous vinyasa class taught by my dad. This was at a smaller gym than my dad's normal class, and there was only one other student -- a young guy in great shape. My dad led a very tough class, doing extra exercises with weights, so I felt like it doubled as a strength workout.

Wednesday: 
Rest day (Seattle).

Thursday: 
Got home from Seattle after dark, so completed a 3.5 mile short run on the treadmill with an average 9:20 pace. I could have gone a bit faster, but the goal of these runs is to get my body used to the mileage more than speed up, so I didn't push it. I was really proud I made it happen, since I hate running on a treadmill and had just driven two hours, so was tempted to skip a workout.

Friday:
Unplanned rest day. My parents wanted me to stay home and since I was leaving the next day, I decided to spend more time with them. Thankfully for my training, this distraction is gone now!

Saturday:
30 minute advanced toning strength workout using Nike Training Club app. The workout showed me how much strength I've lost over the past month since I wasn't prioritizing strength training. And I'm still feeling it! Lots of variations on deadlifts. I love the areas I'm feeling sore in -- hamstrings, calves, glutes, and quads. The areas that I need to strengthen to be a better runner.

Restorative flow yoga class. My last class with my dad for a while! Since he had a large class with quite a few new students, he made it quite easy, so it was more of a restorative class.

Sunday:
Unplanned rest day. Was supposed to do my long run, but after a redeye flight from 10pm-2am Pacific time where I got no sleep, I barely moved from bed except to buy groceries for our startlingly bare fridge. I am not capable of functioning on no sleep, despite my age. Luckily, today is a holiday and I am heading out for my long run shortly.


This Week's Goals
I mentioned on last week's run chat that this time around, I wasn't going to make excuses. So no excuses: last week was not good. It's hard to prioritize workouts when you're on vacation and not in your groove, but it was not a good start to NYC Half training. I'm not letting excuses get in the way of my workouts this week. So here are my goals!

• 1 spin session
• 2 strength workouts
• 2 yoga practices
• 2 short runs (3 miles each, 1 at 8:30 pace)
• 1 speed work session (7x400)
• 1 medium run (4 miles)
• 1 long run (8 miles)
• foam roll!!

What are your goals for this week? Can you work out if you're sleep deprived? Would you like to see some easy Indian recipes on the blog?

2013 NYC Half Marathon Training Plan

I was already really excited about my spring half-marathon season in late 2012. "Season" feels weird to say, like I'm an athlete or something... but when I have three half-marathons and a destination 10 miler lined up in the span of 3 months, I'm not sure what else to call it! 

But now, after my slightly disastrous second half-marathon, I am officially psyched for a redemption race at the NYC Half. I had incredible luck with lotteries, although my bank account feels a tad bit less lucky (Mint.com's alert about how much I was over my exercise budget made me very, very sad). So I'm racing the NYC Half-Marathon in March, the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler and the Nike Women's Half-Marathon, both in D.C. and both in April, and the NJ Long Branch Half-Marathon in May.

The first one is the NYC Half, and it's the one I'm really hoping to break 2 hours in because I live in NYC, I have quite a few friends running it, and I'll be able to have friends and Sourabh rooting for me on the sidelines. 

So I'm going to take my training very seriously. I'm using Hal Higdon's Intermediate Training Program, adapted a bit to add in yoga because I want to avoid any more muscle issues. 

In addition, I'm going to commit to foam rolling. I watch a TV show almost every single day, so there is no reason for me not to foam roll while I watch. I also shortchange stretching every. single. workout. That has to change if I want to stay injury-free (which, um, yes... yes I want to stay injury free). And I'll be working with my trainer, Amanda, on calf, glute and quad-strengthening exercises. (Check out her tips on making the most of a personal trainer from yesterday!)

So here's the program I'll be following as of next week!

A few notes: RP means "race pace," which for me will be 8:45 or so. Runner's World has a great article on how to do a tempo run. Abby of Run Stronger Every Day wrote a wonderful guide to speed work in general for newbies like myself. Strength workouts might be a class or an in-gym workout (and since I need to not get any more Mint you're-over-budget-you-profligate-hoe alerts, a workout in my building's gym needs to happen more often).

Are you training for a spring half-marathon? I want to hear about your training plans!! What are your goals?

Race Recap: Last Chance Half-Marathon

Ow. That's not the way I was hoping to start off this recap, but I really can't start it any other way because that's the best word I can use to sum up yesterday's race. Also, steep. But mainly ow. Beth recently had a great post on when running fails you. Yesterday my body failed me.

Let me back up. I signed up for this race because I thought it'd be great to run another half-marathon in 2012. I could probably end the year with a PR since I've gotten a lot faster, even on long training runs. And it would be wonderful to have my family there to cheer for me. Oh, and the Pacific Northwest is gorgeous (if it's sunny or, well, not raining) so I thought maybe it'd be a pretty run.

shameless excuse to post a picture of mountains because I love them 

I had a pretty good training program for a few weeks leading up to the race. I got in all but one of the long runs, I did weekly speed work, I was strength training. I felt good. And despite terrible weather, my last long run on Christmas Eve would have been a PR if I'd run 1.1 more miles, even if I'd slowed down a lot.

So yesterday morning I was excited and ready. I had my traditional pre-race breakfast of half a bagel with almond butter and caffeinated tea. I nursed a water bottle of nuun as we drove the 30 minutes to the race course start. After checking in and hitting the bathroom once more, it was just about time for the race to start. I felt extremely nervous as we started, but also excited. I felt strong, I felt ready. I thought I could do something exciting. The race coordinator counted down and then... we were off!

one of their excellent signs - my sister contributed the penguin sticker 

So, first off. My family is amazing. They went to different spots along the route, standing out in the cold, holding adorable signs for me. One said "Run Jen Run!" Another said "Run faster, be stronger" just like my bracelet. And then the third was the ridiculous mantra I said to myself during my 5K: "you are strong, you are fierce, you are a warrior woman!" Ok, maybe I was a *tad* bit embarrassed that this particular sign is now immortalized, but it also means my mom and sister are dedicated readers of this blog. So really, it just makes me love them more. Even my sister's boyfriend woke up early and came along to cheer for me. Thanks, Jason!

As it turned out, no one else was along the course cheering. So it was just my family. And while I would have been embarrassed of that at age 13, at age 24 I just think they're awesome for being willing to drive along and stop at each of the three intersections between the trail and the road.

heading down into the Ravine of Doom

The first mile felt terrific. My breathing was a tad bit off because it was hovering around 32 degrees, and I tend to get a touch of asthma when pushing my running in the cold, but I ran an 8:55 mile without feeling like I was pushing myself at all. My plan was to keep it steady at 8:55 miles to compensate for any slower hill miles.

In the second mile, we hit the hills. Or should I say cliffs? The trail went deep down into a ravine then up and out. The decline and incline were so steep that the trail was comprised of switchbacks, but the switchbacks were still extremely steep. The total elevation gain for the race was 1,500 ft., but it's roughly 1,300 ft. on the Central Park loop, which is where my first half-marathon was. So going in, I figured that it couldn't be much hillier. The difference is that on this course, almost all of that elevation was packed into 2-3 miles. And while Harlem Hill is an elevation gain of about 70 ft., this "hill" dropped 100 ft. then rose 200 ft.

I couldn't run while going up because I felt the asthmatic breathing starting, so I had to walk. I thought that walking might be fine if I sprinted down the hills, but the downhills were just as steep and I couldn't run without starting to feel myself losing control. Since the trail was wet and covered in leaves and rocks, I was scared of tripping.

still feeling ok! ish! well enough to understand the importance of good photos 

I think one of these declines is where I hurt myself, probably coming down too hard or overextending my leg somehow. My lower back had been hurting a bit after mile 1, as had my abdomen (still not sure about why that happened), but it wasn't anything I couldn't ignore. However starting after these hills, I began feeling pain in my right leg. When we hit the flat part of the path again, I tried to push my pace, and yet my legs refused to cooperate and hurt much worse when I tried to pick up speed.

My Erica Sara Designs Say It Do It Bracelet is engraved to say "run faster, be stronger." Yesterday I couldn't run fast. It just wasn't possible. Every time I tried to speed up, the pain in my right leg got much worse and the left IT band started hurting. Instead, the race became about the "be stronger" part of my mantra.

This race became a mental test. Can I finish when everything is hurting? By mile 4, my abdomen and back were still aching, the pain in my right leg was becoming impossible to ignore, and my left IT band was starting to hurt at the hip. I decided to stop looking at my Garmin around mile 4 because I felt how slowly I was going and looking at the Garmin only made me more upset. Instead, I decided to just make it to the finish line. 

making a VERY attractive face to illustrate how I'm feeling to my dear father 

When I made it to the halfway point and saw my family, I paused for a second and said to my mom, "this course is hilly as shit." Then popped my headphones back in and turned around for the second half. (Apparently this flagrant usage of foul language scandalized the woman behind her, my mom later told me.)

The pain got a lot worse in the second half and my miles slowed even further to the point where I could barely jog -- I was kicking up rocks because my feet were dragging. I crossed the finish line and went straight to my family's car so I could sit in the heat and stretch out my legs.

trying to smile, but let's be honest... it's more of a grimace 

I think the right leg is a pulled hamstring, and we'll see how things shape up in the next day or two -- if it bruises, I'm going to the doctor because that means it's fairly serious. And the left IT band issue is hurting today, so I have to keep an eye on that as well. I swear I won't be stupid and try to work out for a week! I'm going to be VERY gentle. The last thing I want is any kind of lingering injury that prevents me from getting my redemption race at the New York Half in March.

Several times yesterday I started tearing up, both from pain and disappointment. Given my training and how my runs had gone, I thought for sure I'd PR yesterday, even if not by much because of a few hills. Despite the gigantic hills, I'd say 2/3 of the course was pretty flat, so I still think I could have PR'd if not for injuring myself. The pain was just a reminder that I hadn't met my goal, that I'd ended the year not with a race demonstrating all my improvement but by hobbling across the finish line.

However. I also learned something incredibly important yesterday. I am mentally tough. So many times, I considered just stopping and calling my parents to pick me up. 10 miles, including the Horrible Hills right again at the end when the pain was at its worst. This year, I want to run a full marathon. It wasn't the running part of it that I wasn't sure I could handle, it was the mental part. And after yesterday, I am sure that I am mentally capable of running a marathon.

It wasn't the race I wanted. It wasn't a good or even ok race. Honestly, it sucked. A lot. But I'm still happy with what it proved to myself.

SO... on to 2013 races!!