Training for my First Marathon: Week 11 Around the Bay 30k Road Race

So, this is the week that my long run would take place in Hamilton Ontario.... with a race bib on... with ohhhh 12,000 or so other people - and one BIG ASS hill.

Around the Bay 30K Road Race. 

I did my best to take as many notes as possible for this blog post.  We caravan-ed in 2 vehicles up to Hamilton the day before.  2 carloads of my favourite people on the planet including my mom, my 2 best friends, and my awesome next door neighbour!  All the way up I don't think we talked running at all... we may have been a bit too nervous for that topic.  

At the expo, we bought a few things and picked up our packets.  When we saw the arena with the assembled finish line I couldn't help but get choked up.  It was the first time it really hit me that it was a "race" weekend.  I have been so concerned with my health and my mileage and my horrendous training pace that I didn't even take the time to consider that I had a RACE IN THE MORNING!!

At dinner, the 7 of us sat at a great restaurant and watched the wind rip through flags and rain moving almost completely sideways.... we were all hopeful that FOR ONCE the weatherman would be right and the weather would clear up in the morning. He was.  And if I ever met him I would thank him personally for that lol.

The race started right on time - 9:30.  We had overcast and 40F weather to start.  It was PERFECT.  My goal was to run each of the first two 10k's in an hour, and the third 10k in 1h20m (allowing for the tough hills I had heard about quite a bit).  I wanted to run the first 25k, then power-walk the "big hill" and continue running as soon as I reached the top and finish strong.

My goal was to finish in 3h20m - as LONG AS i was having fun :)


I was not going to allow myself to suffer through a long hilly course all alone.  I made a few decisions within the first kilometer of the race:
- I am going to read every single spectator sign and do my damnedest to remember the best ones.
- I am going to hi-five every little kid with their hand out along the route... if they can stand out there for hours the least I can do is make them feel appreciated. 

Looking for great signs and committing them to memory and looking for little hands to slap sure did keep my mind occupied and kept a smile on my face.


Here are some of the great signs I read - I hope I never forget these words:

"THERE ARE RUNNERS THAT CAN'T HANDLE THE ENDURANCE OF A LONG RACE LIKE THIS.  THE POLITE TERM IS SPRINTERS."

"EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOURSELF YOU LEARN IN 30K"

"MY NEW HERO IS: ME"

I started the race with my mom.  She's in the grey coat next to me in this pic.

I waved at every spectator that I recognized, and made SURE to smile for every camera that I saw.  I think my body language at 29.3K shows how I truly felt during the whole race:

I felt so amazing to cross the finish line and see that even the GUN TIME had beaten my goal!! I figured I started a couple minutes after the gun so MAN was I happy to stop my GPS after the finish line and see approx 3:15ish... 

OFFICIAL TIME: 03:14:48!!!!!!!!

What an amazing experience! Don't look now - I might just be ready for Nashville!!!!


Oh and in case you're wondering.... 

This lovely lady whoooooomped my butt by 18 minutes - SHE'S AMAZING!!

Official countdown begins: 29 days 21 hours till the start of Rock n' Roll Nashville!!!

Training for my First Marathon: Week 10

Ahhhh the cutback week.... how BEAUTIFUL it was to see that!! Not only was it a cutback week, but the weather turned SUMMER on us! we went from gloves and tights to fuel belts and running skirts - it was a great no-stress running week for me.

This week I made sure to be on the right schedule for my meds, and was focused on a lot of water intake.  I'm trying to get healthy and be at my best for Around the Bay 30k March 25th.  

Speaking of the race, boy did my heart DROP when I got the email with my Bib #!! I'm just so excited to be completing a race at that distance.  (my bib # is 7055 for anyone wondering lol).

For the first time this week, I also looked ahead in my training schedule.... I realized that I only have TWO MORE long runs after Around the Bay before my marathon!!! The end is IN SIGHT!! I am feeling so good and so excited just to run! I can honestly say that I'm not concerned with goal times - I just want to have a good race and know that I can run 30k (18.64 miles) with hopefully minimal walk breaks.

My next blog will be all about my ATB experience, with likely a zillion photos and insight into the travel and fun times spent with some of the greatest friends a girl could ever ask for.... a preview for Nashville I'm sure!

~just put one foot in front of the other and see what happens~

Training for my First Marathon: Weeks 8&9

Well, the nasty flu bug caught me again.  I'm starting to think that this Alopecia is really wearing on my system and all these miles are making me quite susceptible to viruses.  I was better prepared this time and I allowed myself to slow way down and just try to log miles regardless of pace, and I refused to get down on myself.  My poor friends had to put up with this process but they didn't complain one bit.  I have the best friends and running partners on the planet... did I mention that?!

Back to running...so between running and resting I figured it was best to just combine the blogs instead of trying to think of what to write with a foggy brain (insert funny joke here - ha ha).  So my week 8 mileage was 36 miles and my week 9 was 33.  Up next - CUT BACK WEEK!!

And I realized this week my shoes have almost 400 miles on them, and I'm starting to feel back pain and fatigue.  That can only mean one thing.... its time to BUY MY MARATHON SHOES!! Its pretty exciting to think these are the shoes I'm breaking in to run the biggest race of my life! Might sound silly for some but, for me it just makes that light at the end of the tunnel a little brighter!

Its bittersweet though, because my mid-training race is almost here - March 25th 30k Around the Bay in Hamilton Ontario.

I never thought I'd get to the place where I feel "prepared" for a race of that distance, but I really am ready.  The bittersweet part is that this experience is almost over (just over a month to go till Nashville) and also my mom won't be running my long runs with me anymore.  The 30k race is HER longest race ever and its her goal for this spring... so once that's done she really has no reason to run 19 miles the following weekend (or 20 miles the weekend after that) lol.  I wouldn't have gotten through this without her.  I wouldn't get through this LIFE without her, so its only fitting that I lean on her so much for this life-changing experience.

I <3 YOU MOM!

I'm starting to really get excited for this Hamilton race... to be honest up till now I haven't really thought about it or cared about that race... just figured it would be an interesting way to get a long run in... but you can't take the competitor out of this girl... I already have my race plan and goal time set for the 30k - promise that I'll share these HONESTLY once the race is done.

LOOK AT THIS WEATHER!! Doesn't matter if you run, walk, bike or blade... get out there!