race - AnnaTheApple

April 28, 2016October 28, 2016

Boston Marathon 2016

The expectation for this race was insane. The entire city was buzzing with anticipation. Every person I saw seemed to be involved somehow. Everyone knew it was happening and was excited. [Warning: another long post]

Like I said before, I was really nervous. Yes I had no time goals per se but I was genuinely worried about my hamstring (in true Anna fashion, there’s always something, right?). The tightness had popped up the week before and I could feel it when I stretched it. In any normal circumstance I’d have probably given myself a few days off…but I had an expensive race I needed to do. I was worried how it would fair over 26.2 miles. It was just a hint of a niggle, but what if all those miles turned it into a full blown injury?

Anyway, I was going to run it and see what happened. I decided to go for 3:40 and perhaps better if I felt good later on. I was confident with those paces – it wasn’t going too fast and should feel comfortable. I had my mile paces printed out and laminated (with Cellotape) that would be tucked into my sports bra (I’ve done this for previous marathons).

My alarm was set for just before 5am. I had a black coffee and got myself ready. I put on some throwaway clothes to keep warm (one of my dad’s hoodies and a pair of tracksuit bottoms I’d had since senior school!). My mum waved me off (she would be coming down later to stand somewhere on the course). I took my oats downstairs in a container. Handily the hotel had put on a tuck shop of breakfast items and coffee so I used some of that milk to create some cold porridge/gruel which I’d eat later in the race village (mmm…).

I bought a handy container from Tesco the week before

I caught the water taxi with a few other marathoners. I was probably too early as my (white) wave didn’t need to catch the shuttle buses until 6.45-7.20am but I wanted to get out there.

Early morning selfie before the taxi

We walked the mile to the common where the shuttle buses were waiting. It was all fairly easy. We had to make sure we were using clear bags and that our stuff fit into another plastic bag to make sure we weren’t taking too much to the race village (as there was a proper bag drop near the Common) and that security could see what we were taking. I had my phone, some nuun water, a banana, my gels and my porridge. There were security everywhere. You had to get your bag searched before going on the shuttle bus. But it was very well organised, like clockwork.So many yellow school buses lined up

I got on a bus and was off in no time, about 7am. I sat next to a girl from Chicago who I briefly chatted to. I was so nervous that I honestly didn’t fancy chatting too much and I think she felt the same. Instead I ended up listening to some girls behind me talk about all the track workouts they’d done. Joy. I wondered how I could sustain these nerves for another 3.5 hours…surely this can’t be healthy!

That bus ride was so boring. The roads were dull, there was nothing to look at and all I could think about was how bloody long it was taking us to drive away from the place we were going to run to. It was funny though to see so many school buses going in convoy along the motorway. It was also a novel experience to travel on an American school bus!

Finally we arrived about an hour later at the race village. I was in need of a wee and just wanted to get into the race village.

It was nice and sunny but still quite cool. I did my business and then found a piece of cardboard going spare to sit on and ate my porridge. The cardboard idea was a popular one and was easy to get as there were so many boxes of free bagels, bananas, Clif products and Gatorade that new boxes were being opened all the time. The grass was damp from the dew so this was a good plan. There was also free coffee. It was quite the buffet.

I found the one area where my phone picked up free WIFI and stood there for a bit checking up on social media, posting some pics and updates. It was so lovely to get so many well wishers and kind messages. I felt truly loved and buoyed. But it suddenly occurred to me how many people knew I was running and the pressure suddenly heightened. I also realised that as it was Monday lots of people might be bored at work and there was the tracker…

I decided to conserve my battery on my phone and laid down for a bit on my cardboard. It was now very sunny. People all around me were sitting or walking around or snoozing. This was like no other race I’ve been to in that everyone looked fast. Everyone was lean, prepared and focused. The vibe of the place was very different to other races. There were no fun runners here. Everyone had run a marathon before in order to qualify. And, to me, it seemed everyone was well-trained and ready to go-go-go. I felt so out of place. I know this sounds ridiculous as I earnt my place there like everyone else, but I honestly felt like I didn’t belong. I know not everyone was actually running for a fast time, but it definitely felt that way.

Eventually I thought I better go to the loo again. Good job as it took 40 minutes in the queue despite the obscene number of portable toilets! And I was just in time for when they called my wave to go to the start. Again, everything was super organised. And the place was full of police, military and sniffer dogs (and snipers on the roof!).

At this point I was really concerned with the weather. I kept my hoodie on as long as possible, not from the cold, but from the sun. It was beating down and I knew I needed to find some suntan lotion or I’d be in trouble. Luckily as my wave made our way to our corral at the start there was a collection of Vaselines, waters and suntan lotion bottles that people had kindly left behind before going to the start.

Lots of runners were stopping to use this pop-up facility and I joined in slathering myself with lotion.

Just before we headed down to our corrals there was another area of loos. Honest to god with the many, many loos in the race village I’ve never seen so many for one race. I knew I didn’t have the time (or patience) to queue up again but mentally I needed to be certain. I saw lots of people going over the material fence to some bushes to have a quick wee so I followed. There was nowhere to hide though. I say bushes but really I mean leafless branches. Girls just squatted down as best as they could and I will unashamedly say I joined them. Needs must! The funniest thing was that if I turned to look one way all I’d see were the men lined up to pee right in front of us. So many willies on display!

Anyway after that lapse in human dignity, I headed to the start feeling ready.

I hung about in my corral, doing my leg swings and dynamic stretches – more to calm my nerves than anything. It was hot. I was sweating already. Then we were off. I was actually that distracted by everything around me that I almost forgot to start my Garmin as I crossed the start line!

Miles 1-3: It was very crowded at the start but I didn’t really mind this as it kept my pace in order. I was surprised that people weren’t zooming off but I did get overtaken a fair bit. I kept in the middle of the road and felt happy. There weren’t a huge number of supporters but there were sprinklings of people cheering and people on their front lawns, set up for the day with chairs and drinks. It was full on downhill right from the start and I felt comfortable at my pace. But there were a few rolling hills as the initial miles tick by. I glanced at my pacing paper each mile to check where I should be for the next mile and it gave me a good indication of where the hills would be.

Miles 4-7: So far I’d been keeping nicely to my plan, though perhaps slightly quicker but I expected this. I heard one man suddenly gasp when he realised he accidentally turned off his Garmin by mistake instead of switching the screens and he hadn’t realised. I felt his pain – what a bummer! He was then in a dilemma as to what to do. I never found out…

I kept looking at my pace paper and felt on track but it was starting to feel really tough. It wasn’t supposed to feel as tough as this. I grabbed water from the aid stations (thankfully they were so regular) and began pouring one over my head and sipping the other. Annoyingly they were cups which meant drinking was tricky but I squeezed the top together so I could create a spout. I also had to dodge the Gatorades as they were always first (could you imagine if I accidentally dumped one of those on my head?? #sticky).

The course was fairly dull. As a non-American I wasn’t sure what was significant and what wasn’t. There were spectators along the way but not as many as I thought they’d be. As the course is pretty much a straight line to Boston you could occasionally seen straight out in front of you and the 1,000s of runners ahead. It was mentally tough to see that. I crossed over the 10k chip mat and thought how my time would ping back to my dad (I thought it was only significant markers. I’m thankful I didn’t know it was every mile as that might have freaked me out).

Miles 8-12: At this point I knew things weren’t going well. I was struggling. My hamstring was fine (just a tiny niggle barely noticeable) but my brain wasn’t happy. I was losing motivation fast. The heat was really getting to me and I was struggling with the paces. I heard a girl next to me say to someone else, “It shouldn’t feel this hard this early”. I was so thankful that someone else was feeling the strain like me. I realised the heat was affecting everyone (of course).

My piece of paper was difficult to read now as I’d sweated through to the ink. Then a gust of wind blew it away – I kid you not. I watched it fly over my shoulder and gave a little scream which scared a nearby runner. I briefly contemplated going back for it but realised it was for the best. My 3:40 (and definitely 3:35) goal weren’t going to happen. Now I just wanted to finish. I switched my watch to miles rather than the pace I was doing.

Water wasn’t helping and I wondered about Gatorade but knew that would be dangerous having never tried it and the thought of a sickly drink made my stomach heave.

I was in marathon hell. Nothing about the course was helping, there was no shade and I was quickly spiralling into a dark, dark place. I took my gel early in the hopes that it would perk me up and then decided “sod it” and put a podcast on. I needed something to take my mind off the race. I wasn’t enjoying the race and was having a mental battle with myself about stopping. But stopping would be a) embarrassing and b) I’d have no idea where the hell to go or what to do.

We then came into the Wesley area. I didn’t think it was this soon but suddenly there was a long (and I mean LONG) line of girls hanging over the barriers with bright red lipstick on screaming to be kissed. They had signs with funny messages and it took my mind off the race completely reading them. I’d heard about this before the race so it was fun seeing it live.

Just a small section (Source)

Their screaming was deafening. I found myself laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. Some runners went over to have a quick peck and I even saw one guy get a selfie. It hugely lifted my mood.

Miles 13-16: Suddenly I was back in the groove. I was back in race mode and pulled myself together. This is BOSTON, I told myself. Don’t waste it. I saw a girl in the crowd handing out bottles of Vita Coco coconut water and I decided to grab one. Hands down this probably saved the race for me. The water was deliciously cold and tasty, and it perked me right up. I kept pouring water on my head at each water station but I kept that coconut water with me to sip on as I went on. Now I was just ticking the miles down until the hills would begin at Newton (mile 16). I saw a guy with a parkrun 50 shirt on and this made me smile too. I had my second gel.

Miles 17-21: I hit the first hill after a sharp decline and it was a long slog. It was tough but there was lots of support and I just remembered that after every hill there was a decline. I also envisaged myself running up my local hill. I could do this. I remember reading a sign saying “May the course be with you” with a picture of Yoda and this made me smile. Another said “Motivational message for people I don’t know”. Random but funny. And my personal favourite “If Trump can run, so can you”.

When I was at the race village my mum had text me saying she was on the left next to a fire station (I do love my mum’s vagueness). I had no idea where that was. I assumed it wouldn’t be early in the race but at best 17 miles onward. So I now spent lots of time searching the supporters for my mum and any fire stations (thankfully I wasn’t aware that she was actually about 800m from the finish…).

The hills kept coming but I didn’t really notice them. It broke the race up nicely and I found myself overtaking people who were walking or struggling. Amusingly I was only aware of Heartbreak Hill after I’d climbed it and saw a huge sign saying I’d conquered it. Personally I’d say the first hill was the hardest as it dragged on, Heartbreak was more of a sharp but shorter hill. I enjoyed the downhill and found my quads were fine (I’d be warned that your quads could seriously hurt on these later downhills) and felt giddy that I’d gotten past the worst of the race.

I grabbed a Clif gel from a volunteer at the energy station (this was always my plan as I only wanted to carry two gels). I realised it was Vanilla flavoured and that there were other flavours going so I picked up a few more and then made my selection (oh the luxury!). I went for Citrus in the end, and threw the other gels back to the energy people’s feet. I took it at mile 18 and it was gloriously tasty. Like lemon curd.

22-26 miles: Aside from Bournemouth, these miles have always been good for me. I felt I was almost home, I was running strong and was happy. There was a gentle breeze which had a lovely cooling effect. The crowds were thick. I finished the coconut water and ditched it. I raised my hands and smiled and this made the crowds louder (other people were doing this too, I wasn’t the only loon).

My only annoyance was a painful stitch in my side. I tried stabbing my side, breathing differently, putting hands on hips, stretching upwards…nothing shifted it. My only relief was bending over as I ran – this, I know, looked weird but it provided me with minutes relief after I did it. At this point in the race you do whatever you can to stay comfortable. I saw that famous Citgo sign in the horizon and smiled – finally another landmark I recognised.

We went under a bridge where the words “Boston Strong” were painted.

I took this photo on our last day when we drove back to the airport

And then it was time for the only two turns in the entire race, the famous: “Left on Hereford, right on Boylston” (I’d only heard about that the day before). And then the crowds were crazy. I pumped my arms and smiled and smiled. I could see the finish in the distance. Still so bloody far away but within my grasp. I felt strong and overtook people as I headed to the finish. And then it was done.

Finish: My time was 3:38:46. I am fully shocked by this – somehow I managed to get my goal despite giving up earlier and ignoring my watch.

I stumbled along, my hamstring now saying hello to me, it was very tight. And within minutes I had text messages off people saying congratulations and then my dad rung me. Blimey! I answered saying “I’ve finished! I did it!” and he goes “I know, it’s just said on the tracker. I’ve been tracking your every mile.” I blinked, my every mile!? Thank god I didn’t know that.

Looking behind at the finish line

I plodded along talking to my dad, telling him it was the hardest road marathon I’ve ever done. He replied that he could tell by my splits (thanks, Dad). He also said he could see from the TV coverage that it was a hot day and the elites struggled too. Hilariously my dad had said he’d already text my mum to tell her I was finished as she didn’t know. I got my medal and thanked every volunteer I came near. I was euphoric. I’d have probably given away half my savings to a charity at that point I was so glad to be finished.

After getting my medal I walked along to collect the various food items, a goody bag and water. I asked a kind volunteer to take my photo…

And then stumbled along to get a foil wrap. I wasn’t cold but I knew I would be soon.

I’d pre-agreed to meet my mum at the Prudential Centre which was such a good idea. I could see it because it was so big so I couldn’t get lost and it wasn’t too far away.

It seemed every single person I passed congratulated me. I got to the Prudential Centre, saw my mum and she ran towards me and grabbed me in a hug. She said, “I’m so proud of you! I saw you! You were smiling!” I hadn’t seen her, which is such a shame but I’m so glad she saw me. Apparently the lady next to her said, “How can she be smiling at this stage!?”

I almost cried hugging my mum but managed to hold it together. My dad is such a supporter of all my races and has seen so many and of course I know my mum supports me too but to have her there at a marathon and to be so happy for me, it was really very special. She always tries her best to come and support me but she worries about leaving their dogs for too long so she’s never seen me at a marathon. It was a lovely, lovely moment. She was so excited for me and buzzed by everything. It made my day as I was worried it would be a long, hard day for her that she would grin and bear it (as mothers do). But she was smiling from ear to ear.

We headed straight to the Barnes and Noble Starbucks where I could finally sit down, have a giant iced coffee and just absorb what had happened.

It was strangely quiet and peaceful in the shop, whereas outside was mental with runners and people. It was the perfect location to decompress. And the goody bag had an APPLE. A GLORIOUSLY CRUNCHY TASTY APPLE. It was absolute bliss. No apple has ever tasted that good. Big words.

It was definitely the hardest road marathon I’ve done, despite going into it without a time goal. My easy pace I’d planned didn’t feel easy – I’m assuming because of training through winter and than having a very sunny and warm race. It was definitely a fantastic experience. But not one I’d do again. I’ll save my reflections for another day!

How do you motivate yourself when you find yourself in a dark patch during a race/workout?

Would you prefer to train cold and race warm, or train warm and race cold?

The best thing to find in a goody bag is…?

April 7, 2016

Boston Marathon Goals

So my next marathon is the Boston Marathon, which is Monday 18th April. Less than two weeks away. I fly to Boston, with my mum, on the Friday (15th) beforehand, which should hopefully give me time to de-jet lag and acclimatise.

Source

I’m really excited. I’ve done big marathons before (Paris and Berlin) but never a US marathon. There are apparently going to be around 30,000 people running. I think Berlin was around 40,000 so I imagine it to feel similar. I will never be alone on the course and it’s like London in terms of supporters and crowds. I’ve never done London but I’ve heard it’s amazing. So yeah, I’m really excited.

When I PB’ed (3:24:06) and got my BQ in the Liverpool Marathon last year I thoroughly enjoyed myself but it was hard work and I was very much focused on getting a good time (for me). For Boston, I’m not aiming for a PB because a) I’m not in as good shape as I was before Liverpool and b) I’d quite like to enjoy the marathon and feel somewhat relaxed so I can take everything in.

Source

I’m not saying I’m not aiming for a PB to then secretly go out and smash a PB and be like “oh it just happened, didn’t I do well la di da”. No. I am literally not in that shape and as the course for Boston is quite challenging I would need to have the clear intention of going for a PB. I’m not the type of person to just go with whatever pace I fancy on the day. I am a Type A personality and will have paces written down that I aim to stick close to (as I have done in previous races). I just haven’t decided exactly what my time goal is right now.

Source

The Boston marathon is somewhat undulating – long downhills and short, sharp uphills throughout the course which can “trash your legs”. The first four miles are downhill. I’ve been advised by everything I’ve read and heard to NOT just go off flying at a ridiculous pace “banking time” as this would then ruin my quads and kill me later on when I hit the four clustered hills from mile 16 to mile 21 (this includes the Heartbreak Hill). Handily, I found a very cool pace calculator from the Runners Connect website which takes into account all the undulations and gives you paces to stick to in order to reach a certain time goal.

I’ve plugged in four different time goals: 3:45, 3:40, 3:35 and 3:30. Despite saying I have no time goals, I’ll be honest, if I go over 3:45 I’ll be disappointed. If I go anywhere near 3:30 (8:01 pace) I’ll be really pleased. I just need to think sensibly about how I’m feeling as I get closer. I’ve been running most of my long runs around 8 minute/miles but the undulations of this course (especially being so far through the race) make me doubt my ability to have that pace as an average. In all likelihood I’m probably going to aim between 3:40 and 3:35. I see those range of paces as achievable (8:12-8:23 min/miles).

My big fear is the weather as last year’s weather was awful. I don’t mind a cold start, I just don’t want relentless rain and/or wind. I’ve done that for other races but never for a whole marathon. I’d like it to be enjoyable and I’m not sure almost four hours of rain and wind could make that possible! But you can’t control it so there’s no point worrying.

My absolute number one goal is TO NOT GET INJURED. I am scared that, despite my training going really well (bar one foot niggle that lasted a week due to poor trainer choice), I could have an injury crop up during the marathon randomly like I had in Bournemouth. I just hope that for Bournemouth it was because I had done too much beforehand and hadn’t really done structured training or had a pace strategy. Who knows. But saying all this, I do want to finish Boston so if I do get injured, it could get ugly.

Anyway, my bib is 13445. Feel free to track my progress on race day if you’re bored on that Monday. There are ways to track athletes I believe HERE (I’m not that self-obsessed to think you all will, I just know this for my dad as he’s not coming!). I start in the second wave at 10.25am (3.25pm British time), which I’m quite happy with (though I do have to catch the shuttle bus to the start at 6.45am and made me have major anxieties about what the hell and when the hell I’m going to have for breakfast).

And that’s that. I’ll be packing about five different race outfits for different weather scenarios (I’m sort of joking…), old clothes to wear at the start and keeping my trainers in my carry on luggage…just in case. And my passport has stayed far away from my washing machine

Have you ever done a US marathon?

How would you pace Boston?

When and what do you eat for breakfast before a marathon? I just feel like 6am will be far too early for breakfast but this causes me issues about having porridge.

March 31, 2016October 28, 2016

IAAF Cardiff Half Marathon 2016

Cardiff has such a special place for me in my heart because of the three years I spent there at university. I met some of my best friends there and we have such good memories of our time (amongst the ridiculous hard work and stress, of course). So running a half marathon there just made sense to me. I was never a runner at uni so it was strange going back for a race.

So carrying on from my last post…

The wind was picking up and the rain was just starting as I clustered together in the starting pens with my running club buddies (though some had gone to the super speedy pens – sub 1:30!). I’d lost Matt after seeing my running club and it was difficult to spot anyone when we were all wearing our ridiculous white ponchos (ridiculous perhaps, but definitely grateful for!)

As we stood waiting we heard the male elites announced (big cheer for Mo Farah of course) and after each name huge bursts of fire were sent up next to the castle. For those brief seconds we were warmed by the flames. I had a moment of panic when I realised I needed a wee…but thought “just hold it”.

We jostled about (took a selfie, of course) and then finally we were off! The wind was against us from the start but I didn’t feel it too much. I found a comfortable pace and decided to keep that feeling of effort, regardless of what my watch told me.

I’d separated from my running club buddies but was happy to run at my own pace. I had a brief moment of “damn I wish I had music or something” as I soon found myself a little bored and demotivated. I had a weird moment where I suddenly felt a bit tired and “can I do this?”. I have no idea what came over me but I just felt a bit mentally exhausted, without that actually translating to my body. I gave myself a shake and got on with it though.

(Photo credit: http://www.cardiff2016.co.uk/)

We began running through an area of Cardiff I’d never been before (out of my student bubble I suppose) and it reminded me so much of the Reading Half Marathon. There were residential areas and also industrial bits that just reminded me of the monotony of the Reading course, and the fact that there were always people around me as the entry size was about the same. And similar to Reading, despite the weather, there were a good number of supporters all along the course shouting and cheering. It had a great atmosphere. But every single loo I saw made me want the loo more but I couldn’t bare to stop and faff about.

Before the race, Matt and me had discussed the course and where we thought the wind would be the worst and both agreed it would be around the Bay where there was so much exposure. As I got closer to that area I found the wind was actually behind me, pushing me along. It was amazing! OK it was annoying having my ponytail flap me in my face and it being so gusty but it was great having it behind us. In the back of my mind I kept thinking, when’s it going to turn…

Going through the Cardiff Bay area and past the Wales Millennium Centre

[I bit the bullet and bought my race photos as they weren’t that bad – plus my mum wants some nice ones for her conservatory…haha]

I let my pace increase as the wind pushed me along (it would be silly not to take advantage!). At around seven miles it suddenly (and I mean suddenly) down-poured. Within seconds everyone was drenched. I was actually a bit worried about my contact lenses! I remember hearing people around me swearing and then this Welsh guy goes “come on guys, what did you expect – it’s Wales! This is our summer!” which was funny.

A couple of times during the race my tummy went funny and I had some regrets about the rather large pre-race breakfast. I definitely did not need any gels during that run!

I have no idea where this photo was taken!

We headed back towards the city and still I felt the wind on my back. I kept a smile firmly plastered on my face as I found that more people cheered when you looked happy. I was genuinely happy though. The pace wasn’t easy but it wasn’t a sustained effort either. The wind was contributing to some easy and tricky moments but overall I felt it was helping rather than hindering.

We got to a lovely residential part of Cardiff that has a beautiful park and lake that, as a student, my friends and I used to walk around (Roath Park). I know I keep saying this, but it just felt so weird to be in such a huge race running those same streets again. I saw the coffee shops I’d been in, saw where the Woolworths used to be that we always went to to buy our cheap pick n mix for the cinema (we were that cheap)… it was just great. It kept me entertained. People cheered my name out as I had it on my vest and I just kept smiling.

Then as we came around the lake the wind hit us in the face. The dream was over and the work was needed to be put in now. I tend to break half marathons into chunks: get to 5 miles, get to 8 miles, get to 10 miles (just a parkrun to go!) and then mile by mile until the end. The last three miles were tough. My legs were tired (mile 10 was actually almost mile 16 after my earlier run) but I kept going. I stuck with a girl who had “Elaine” on her vest and played the game in my head of who got more cheers, Elaine or me. It made me smile more and look at the crowd so I think I won Elaine did well though, a worthy contender.

(Photo credit: @Dan_Nash94)

There was a steep incline at Mile 12 which was tough…but generally the course was flat.

Then the best, but hardest part, of the race. Running through the Cathays area. This is literally where I used to live. Despite feeling tired, I couldn’t help but have a huge smile on my face. A guy next to me turned to me and said “that’s not fair! You’re still smiling!”. And then I ran past the road I used to live on and, this will sound ridiculous, but I got a bit emotional. Must have been on those endorphins I knew where we were finishing so I knew exactly how far we had to go, because I’d walked that way so many times during university. Past the Lidl I used to shop at, the pub I used to go to, over the bridge (what a bitch at these final stages of the race!) and then past the beautiful university buildings and all those crowds. It was a fantastic way to end the race.

I finished in 1:42:55 (chip time), 159th in my age/gender category and 2498th overall. For a training run as part of a longer run I’m over the moon with that! 7.47min/mile average is not too shabby!

I finished the race and headed straight for the bag drop area as it was COLD. I was soaked through and got very cold very quickly. Luckily I bumped into Matt again as he was heading back from the bag drop (he did a very speedy 1:36 dead). Then we walked back to his hotel and where my car was parked. It was a good job I was with him as I wouldn’t have had a clue how to have gotten there again!

We said our goodbyes and I stripped off my wet vest right there in the street (I had a sports bra on it was fiiiine), got a dry layer on and got straight into the car and headed home. I stopped at the first services back in England after the bridge and dashed into the loo. Finally had that wee I needed!! I got a hot coffee and then back on the road again.

My heating was blasted on full, I had a post-race banana and I had my music up. I sang all the way home in a happy buzz of post-race euphoria. Despite the awful weather I got back to my parent’s in under three hours, but it seemed like no time at all. My dad had picked up a takeaway for me so I had that literally as I got in. Showers can wait!

And then I was completely wired for the rest of the night. The coffee, the food, the buzz… I just couldn’t relax. I was tired and my legs ached but I was buzzing. But I had no alarm set the next morning so I wasn’t worried

So a fantastic race. I loved it and fully enjoyed it, despite the wind and rain! And an extra small ladies technical t-shirt that fits!!

Have you ever raced in a city that’s special to you?

Do you prefer the wind behind you or no wind at all?

What’s your perfect race start time?

March 29, 2016

Easter Weekend

And just like that the four day Bank holiday Easter weekend is over… But it was a pretty good one!

I didn’t do that much on Friday as I was driving up to Cardiff to see some friends and also to do the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Cardiff on the Saturday (sounds way more exciting than just saying the Cardiff Half Marathon). From Southampton to Cardiff it’s about three hours and as one of my friends and her husband lives there I went and stayed over on the Friday night so it wouldn’t be as stressful getting up there in the morning.

It was really nice to see them and they cooked an amazing chicken chorizo meal that evening (I stole the recipe, a Hairy Biker’s one, and will be recreating!) They even got slices of cake from a bakery as pudding – now that is good hospitality!

The next morning I’d planned on getting up and doing the Cardiff parkrun in the morning as the half marathon didn’t actually start until 2.10pm (which I assume is so they could get optimum TV coverage). As I raced my last weekend’s half marathon I wasn’t intending on racing this one and wanted to try and get to around 18 miles for the day, though it would obviously be a bit disjointed as parkrun starts at 9am.

I went to Cardiff University so it was such a blast from the past to be back again. Though I have obviously been back since, just not for a while and usually just to visit my friends who live in the suburbs. I love the city and have such great memories so this was one of the main reasons I wanted to do the race (and the parkrun).

The parkrun is right next to a huge Tesco so they’d advised parking there, which was very handy as I knew exactly where that was. I got there just before 8.30am. I was meeting up with my friend, Matt (a good running friend who went to the MT running camp weekend). A few of my running club were doing the Half but most of them wouldn’t be up until later and Matt was happy to run a couple of miles before parkrun with me to get my mileage up.

One half of a running club couple, Mark, who had also stayed in Cardiff on the Friday night joined as well and ran down from the hotel (another marathoner in training) so it was nice to catch him too there.

Matt, Mark and me resplendent in red!

Matt and me ran 2.5 miles nice and easily and quite close to the parkrun starting time so there wasn’t much of a gap. The parkrun course was super flat and followed the Taf Trail. It was such a walk (or run!) down memory lane as I used to live in the student flats literally five minutes away and we’d often come down to the park. I wasn’t a runner back then so it was quite surreal.

I ran with Mark and we both decided to keep it easy… though this didn’t exactly work out that way as we were both enjoying the flatness and also both being too polite to the other person to slow down in case the other person didn’t want to.

(Photo credit: Danothy Bennett)

So in the end we went faster than we’d intended and tried not to worry what that would mean for the half later on!

The above splits include the 2.5 miles at the start (obviously). My parkrun time was 22:59. I’m really chuffed with the royal flush negative split for the entire run – not too shabby! (Though it was entirely unplanned).

Mark ran back to his hotel (hardcore), and Matt graciously invited me back to his hotel (wahay! Joke) so I could freshen up and get changed before the next run. I packed so much kit as I wasn’t sure what the weather would be like. I really didn’t want it to rain at parkrun and then for me to be soaked for the rest of the day. Luckily parkrun was lovely and pleasant and rain-free. I sensibly brought some warm trousers and a good coat to put on over my shorts and vest this time. We now had a long time to kill before 2.10pm!

After changing we walked into the centre of town (so handy for me to leave me car outside his hotel as it meant I could avoid ridiculously expensive car parks and could get home quickly at the end without getting stuck in traffic coming out – thanks Matt!).

The city was buzzing with excitement for the upcoming race. Runners were walking round everywhere, brandishing coffees and bananas looking at maps and carrying their race packs.

The sky was looking more and more ominous as the time ticked by. There had been weather warnings for Wales and the chance of rain was now almost guaranteed.

To fuel up, keep warm and pass the time, Matt and me headed to a Welsh cafe for breakfast, though really brunch at this point. My friends the night before had recommended this place to me the evening before saying they did great breakfasts and it was just slightly off the beaten trail down one of the boutiquey alleyways.

It was called Garlands Eatery and it was a lovely quaint cafe with beautiful, random decor (lots of old pictures all over the walls). We both saw the ‘Full Meaty’ English breakfast (Welsh breakfast I suppose!) and ordered that with some coffee and some added black pudding for me – I love the stuff!

It was about 10.30-11ish by the time we were eating and I thought this was pretty safe for such a big meal before a race. I’m too greedy to resist a Full English and it was a training run (these were the arguments I told myself as I tucked into that epic meal). It was, as you can imagine, delicious.

To pass some more time we had another coffee and just chilled out chatting. Then we left for a wander around and to help digestion!

We checked out the bag drop area and race centre which was packed already full of people and good atmosphere. Matt then indulged me by walking with me to my old psychology building where I used to go to lectures etc. Compared to the beautiful Hogwarts-style university building nearby, the psychology building is so ugly!

A 12-floor tower block of ugliness. But it brought back good memories nonetheless. At just after 1pm we headed to the bag drop again as the race drew closer. The race pack came with ponchos so we quickly put those on after de-robing. It was windy and chilly but nothing as bad as I’d felt in Weymouth the week before. The rain was just about holding off…for now.

This obviously required a poncho selfie I then met up with my running club mates who were equally attired in the latest look.

Hedge End Running Club (Photo credit: Andy Cockerell)

I’ll recap the race in full in another post as this will be far too long otherwise.

So skipping instead to Sunday… I had a terrible night sleep on the Saturday. I think the combination of the later than normal race, a Costa coffee late afternoon on the journey home, aching legs from a big mileage day and just general excitement and buzzy-ness from a good day meant I was a bit wired. I didn’t fall asleep until about 1am, and then woke up around 7am (though because of the clock changes it was actually 8am now). I was at my parent’s house so I did have the absolute bliss of laying in bed and watching stuff on my iPad for a couple of hours as Alfie could just go out in their back-garden with the other dogs so I had no reason to have to get up straight away.

I also had no long run as I’d done it the day before! I did want to have a 3 mile recovery run though to shake my legs out as they felt pretty terrible (especially after the three hour car journey home). I was a bit dubious to go for a run after such a hard day the day before but in the end it was the best thing I could have done.

The weather was sunny and the temperature cool, though it was still so gusty. Surprisingly my legs felt OK. I thought they’d be niggling and heavy but they felt good. I just ran comfortably and went with it, listening to the radio (Radio 1 had a requests show all weekend so there were some great and random songs being planned, not just the top 40). Then at around two miles it suddenly went really dark and the heavens opened up. A ridiculous amount of rain and hail descended upon me and I was literally drenched. This sped me up somewhat as I ran back to the warm and dry. My dad found it hilarious when he opened the door for me.

But I’m glad I got it done as my legs felt a lot better afterwards. I’ve never really been fully on-board with recovery runs as I always fear the pounding will only make things worse for me and my injury prone body…but actually it worked nicely.

A hot shower felt so good after that run!! After breakfast my parents gave me my Easter egg. I realise this makes me sound about 12 with that sentence but I’m doing my parents a favour in a few weeks and I jokingly said they could repay me with an expensive Easter egg… They thought it a great idea and who am I to disagree?? Especially when it’s a Hotel Chocolat THICK chocolate egg (£25!).

It’s a ridiculously thick egg (as you bloody well should expect for that price!). One half of the egg is packed full of cookie and puff rice pieces and the other half with caramel pieces. Inside the egg it’s full of different chocolates. Best. Egg. Ever.

The rest of the Easter break was full of a) lots more food with my family and enjoying some film-time and walks, b) lots more chocolate, and c) lots of chilling out and a bit of shopping! I did manage to get the gym on the Monday but it was heaving with people. Not a fun experience! Clarifying why I prefer to go so ridiculously early normally! Everyone clearly had some calories to burn

What did you do over the Easter weekend?

Did you get any Easter eggs?

Thoughts on recovery runs?

March 24, 2016

Weymouth Half Marathon

On most marathon training plans you usually have a half marathon where you try to push the pace to see where you are fitness and speed-wise. Though it’s always nice to drop the mileage down for a long run, you know it’s not going to be that easy because the effort is going to be so much harder than the normal long run.

Anyway, I’d chosen Weymouth Half Marathon to give it my best go as I’d heard really good things about it, we got a discount through my club and a couple of other guys were doing it too. We merrily signed up a while ago and then as we were organising getting there etc. we realised the start time was 8.30am. Coming from Southampton we were looking at around 1.5 hours to get there. Ooof. That meant a 5.30am alarm for me. Thankfully my parents agreed to look after Alfie so all I had to do was get up and get my stuff on. I wasn’t having breakfast (see last post’s mega meal) and I was being picked up so it was really very simple. Except ridiculously early.

Will (left), Mike (right) and me on our way (Photo credit: Mike Head)

Mike, Will and me got to Weymouth, with a pit-stop for a coffee, at 7.30am. It was cold and breezy. Parking was easy and nearby. I had my hoodie on but had chosen shorts for the occasion. I really need to invest in some long sport trousers to remove before races…

The sights of Weymouth, including the clock tower and some amazing sand sculptures

We headed straight to the race HQ which was thankfully indoors and warm. We used the proper toilets (hurrah) and then loitered for a bit before dropping our bags off. I had a race poncho with me to keep warm at the start and one gel. I left my phone and everything else in my bag. The race had a no headphones rule.

We lined up just next to the Jubilee Clock on the seafront about five minutes before the start and huddled a bit like penguins in the crowd. It was cold!! My poncho helped somewhat but I ditched it as the race started.

(Course map from JustRacingUK.com)

It was very crowded at the start. In fairness I should probably have started further forward but it was difficult to judge and also difficult to move forward without annoying people when you’re lining up pre-race. This caused the first mile to be quite tricky as Will and I spent a lot of time dodging through people and weaving in and out.

Will had a similar sub-1:40 goal so we naturally stuck together aiming for 7.30min/mile pace. Straight away it became clear this wasn’t going to happen because of the crowds and because of the headwind that was directly against us at this point. I didn’t worry too much though as I knew we were coming back the other way in a bit so it would even out. Plus there’s always time in a half to gain back time later on.

On the second mile we headed back and though we couldn’t feel the wind behind us (isn’t that always the way?) it was far easier to run than it had been. I had some initial worries of not being able to maintain the set pace with Will and wondering if I should just run an easy run. But as we got to the third mile I felt myself getting into things and my pace naturally quickened. I pulled slowly away from Will and hoped he didn’t mind but I knew I just had to go with the good feelings I had. It didn’t feel like I was exerting too much effort so just went with it. When the wind wasn’t against me I was running comfortably around 7.15s and then when it was behind me closer to 7s. I just went with it as I knew the wind would be against me soon (and my pace would be closer to 8 minutes). I decided to maintain the same effort and ignored my watch.

(Photo credit to Stephen and Helen Jones)

Previously I’d have dreaded a race that wouldn’t allow music, but now I actually find I quite enjoy it. I feel claustrophobic and a bit alone with headphones on – shut out from the external things of the race. I definitely think I need music when I do short sharp intervals on my own or if I really want to push a 5k but for longer stuff I think I do better listening to things around me and also my body. How funny how things have changed.

(Photo credit to Stephen and Helen Jones)

I concentrated on overtaking people in front of me, not quickly but slowly gaining on them. The course runs along the Jurassic Coastline, which is gives it fantastic beautiful views of the sea, the cliffs and the historic harbour. As there are a couple of out-and-back areas it helped break it into different segments. Though good mentally it was hard because at times the wind was fully against you, and then to the side and rarely behind you as you headed along the coastline to Portland. Though I knew there would be a blissful time at the end where the wind would be behind us as we made our way back after we got to Portland Castle.

At around seven miles, before the turnaround, I spotted the lead runners heading back. This gave me a boost as I realised we’d be heading back again and then it kind of feels like you’re almost done. There was a huge car traffic queue building up (the race was mostly on road and the major roads had been closed) and all the cars were suddenly honking and some drivers were even getting out and yelling at the marshals. It was quite amusing but obviously not fun for the marshals.

Finally after reaching the turnaround bit (in a not-so scenic random car park around a cone) we headed back, this time along some off-road section. This was tough going. The wind wasn’t so much fully against us but side-ways on us and the path was pebbly and tricky. It seemed to go on forever.

I’d been sort of running with a friend of one of the guys from the club, Adam, who was training for London. He said he was aiming for around 1:35 so at the beginning I knew to not go with him – I wasn’t in that sort of shape! But I caught him up around 5-6 miles – apparently his knee had been giving him a bit of grief earlier on but was now OK. He kept encouraging me on and as grateful as I was for that I just wanted to focus on my own race. I didn’t want to make conversation (I know this sounds quite rude); I just wanted to zone out. He drifted ahead for a bit and I zoned out again though it was nice to keep him in my vision.

Mile 11 was one of the worst miles. It was fully against the wind and we went through a section that felt like a wind tunnel. I wondered if I was just slowing and had gone too fast at the start but I kept pace with everyone else so knew it was the wind. At this point I knew I could hit a better time than expected if I could keep going at sub-8 minutes for the last few miles.

The last mile was absolute bliss. We swung back through Weymouth town centre and the wind was right on our backs. It felt glorious. I started overtaking people, Adam included, and got into the zone. The finish line is right on the seafront but the wind was behind so I was flying.

I finished in 1:36:35, 9th female, 108th overall (out of 939). Not a PB (just over two minutes from it) but my fastest half in a while and my third fastest half ever. For it being windy I’ll take that! I was never going to PB (I just know what shape I’m in) but aiming for sub 1:40 and getting that made my day!

At the finish line I collected my medal and they had an array of biscuits, sweets and chocolate, as well as protein bars and a whey protein drink. The water had run out and people were getting a bit annoyed as no one really wanted the luminous chalky liquid… I quickly headed to the bag drop and grabbed my bag before heading back and cheering on Will as he finished and snapping a great action shot photo.

Apparently his previous injury had flared up and he decided to take it a bit slower (sensible) so didn’t quite hit his target. He grabbed his bag and we waited for Mike. Mike was aiming for marathon pace which he achieved with flying colours (and more as I think he went faster than he expected!). So two out of three…finger’s crossed Will’s injury heals quickly as he has the Brighton marathon ahead (as does Mike).

And then we quickly became cold again so walked back to the car. I was glad to have brought a huge bottle of nuun water with me as I never did get any water at the end.

The car journey home was a bit longer on the way back due to the time but we were chuffed to have got a half marathon done and dusted before 10.30am. Normally halves are a bit later and with journey time you often find the day has run away by the time you get home. By this point however I was starving. I hadn’t needed my gel during the race and I hadn’t eaten since the ribs the night before (though to be fair, that was a HUGE meal). As soon as I got home I had the biggest lunch before even considering showering or sorting my stuff out. I had been banking on a post-race banana but sadly there weren’t any. I didn’t want to refuel on sugary crap so I hadn’t had anything at the end. But my lunch fully made up for it!

The medal is pretty cool and we were given a buff as well. I have so many buffs now! I definitely recommend the Weymouth Half as it was well-organised, the marshals were all really helpful, friendly and cheered you on and it was mostly flat (there are a couple of short sharp inclines though) and despite the wind I enjoyed it.

What do you like to be seen offered at the end of a race food-wise?

Do you wear buffs?

Do you like to run with other people during a hard race?