i want adventure in the great wide somewhere - running journal! (comments welcome)

[FredtheDuck]

Good luck in your 10k this weekend! I'll think of you at the finish line

That's very sweet of you! Good luck this weekend, fingers crossed for good weather for you! Can't wait to hear how it goes.

 

[roxymama]

You Got This! Weather looks good. I'll cross my fingers for you too.

 

[KSellers88]

Good luck this weekend!!! You've got this, just trust the training!

 

[FFigawi]

 

[ZellyB]

 

[McNs]

Good luck for the race! Looking forward to reading the recap.

 

[xjillianpaige]

Thank you all so much for your well wishes! I have GOT to shower, but I couldn’t leave you all hanging...

 

[DopeyBadger]

Thank you all so much for your well wishes! I have GOT to shower, but I couldn’t leave you all hanging...

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[xjillianpaige]

Foxborough Healthy Body Health Minds 10K Race Recap​

Happy Race day, every one! I am soooo thankful for your support! These boards have been such an amazing resource and inspiration for me! If I hadn't committed to writing this training journal, this would have been a very different day, I can tell you that. Also, heads up, I don't really have any photos because it was just me and Devin, so no-one was there to take my photo crossing the finish line, and I didn't notice any race photographers, so there's just one photo that I took after doing my hair for the Bruins game tonight. That said, let's get onto the 10,000 word recap!

The Basics​

What: Foxborough Healthy Bodies Healthy Minds 10k
When: October 21, 2017
Why: To get my Princess Half Proof of Time (+ the money raised by the race went to the school. Yay for education!)

The Journey​

So, I'll start with the day before (10/20/17). It was packet pick up that night from 4-7, but I couldn't make it because I overbook myself in October. Big time. That day I had work from 10-6, a school Halloween party from 5:30-7, and my work's annual fundraising gala from 7:30-9:30 (and that would have been later if I didn't have the race the next day). So, packet pick up was out and I had to go this morning. Pick up started at 7:15 and went to 8:15, so my friend Devin and I decided to get there for 7:30.

My alarm went off at 5:30 and I hit snooze until 6:10. My goal was to be on the road by 6:30 because from my house to Devin's apartment to the race would be about an hour drive. That was one early Saturday morning. I grabbed a few granola bars and waters and all the stuff I had laid out the night before, threw it all in a lululemon bag and hit the road. Good news: I remembered my inhaler! Bad news: I somehow managed to forget my headphones, which I had left out with everything, but for some reason didn't grab.

I ate a granola bar on the ride down. I don't usually eat breakfast before my Tues/Thurs morning runs, but I had some time before race time (9:00) so I decided to down one and grab some stuff at the pre-race breakfast.

We arrived right on time at 7:30 and went in. No line. We could probably have gotten there closer to 8:15 and been fine, but better safe than sorry. I grabbed safety pins (I forgot all about grabbing them, in high school they were permanently attached to my track uniform) and got my swag bag and t-shirt, dropping it all off back at my car (Devin held my keys in her belt so all I needed was my phone). We went in for breakfast and I got a half banana and a chocolate milk. Devin stretched and we laughed our butts off. We looked around and had a good feeling that we were going to be pretty close to last place.

My mindset was in JUST the right place, guys. I didn't get into my head at all. I knew that I was there to run MY race at MY pace and who cares if that meant I was last? I sure didn't! I've come a long way and I was going to finish. My goal was 1:15 and Devin did the math and figured that we had a 3 minute cushion of 1:18 for PoT. I've done 1:17 in training, I was confident that I could hit the 1:18.

They did some speeches outside and sang the national anthem and by roughly 9:00 we were off!

The Race​

Heads up, all of these times are based on my endomondo, it might not be perfect, but it is what it is.

START: The starting line was pretty unclear, and I started my endomondo a few seconds after we began running. Devin started us off by checking our 2:30/1:00 ratio so I could let my half marathon app catch up. We started at the back of the pack, exactly where we wanted to be. We were actually in the same spot as a woman who had been wearing a 2017 Princess Half jacket, so I decided to sort of track her to start, I wanted to be around where she was. We started slow (or at least it felt slow) and got into our groove.

MILE 1: 11:19
We hit the first mile and I told Devin our split. I was shocked. I didn't feel 11:19 fast, but apparently we were. I don't remember much about the first mile, except that about 30 seconds into the race I wondered when we would be done. The first mile had some gentle, small inclines through neighborhoods.

MILE 2: 11:27
Again, I remember very little, except that I saw the mile marker for 2 miles a little after my app told me I had hit 2 miles. That made me think the start line was a little far back or they put the marker a bit too forward. This was through some beautiful conservation land, but was luckily still on a paved road. We were on paved road or sidewalk the entire route. This was also hillier than the neighborhoods, but nothing I couldn't handle. Unfortunately, Devin had an injury recently to her knee and this is where she fell behind because it just hurt too much. I knew that she'd be pissed if I slowed down to match her and didn't run my race, so I kept going and we texted to wish each other luck.

MILE 3: 11:38
Around here I started to leap frog with the Disney Princess runner. I would run ahead of her and then walk, so then she ran ahead of me, and vice versa. Eventually I got to a place where I passed her and stayed there, so that was one person who I raced for a little bit and beat. The next person during this mile was an older gentleman who was wearing long sleeves and pants and I don't know how he did it. We played our own game of leapfrog and at a hill I passed him and stayed there.

Mile 4: 11:28
I think at this point we were almost out of the woods (in the literal sense, we had made it back to a main road and were running along side it). It was one lane and a big breakdown lane that I ran in. As the lanes shifted to become two and the shoulder disappeared, there was a police officer to keep the cars off to the side and away from killing me before I could finish.

Mile 5: 11:02
This was still on main roads and through neighborhoods. There was a water stop somewhere along here that I used to douse my shoulders and forehead. This is where the cheering started to ramp up. The whole course really didn't have anyone, the first mile or so had a few people cheering you on and getting you water, but then it was just marked by arrows on posts and the occasional person with an arrow or a water. At this point, there were more of the volunteers out cheering you on, but still mostly only one or two people. Everyone I did encounter was so kind and positive! I always felt a little boost by them. This is the mile that, although it doesn't show in my time, I started to feel tired. There was a pretty big uphill and I figured I would be pretty darn slow, I was surprised when I saw how fast it was.

Mile 6: 10:27
This is where I saw the most volunteers, my legs were aching at this point but I was SO CLOSE to finishing and I wanted to finish strong. Lots of the student volunteers and families were out and cheering us on and telling us where to go next, every time I saw someone I smiled and thanked them. I realized that while, yes, I was a bit tired, I wasn't really breathing that hard. I really could keep going. In fact, I felt good. I felt strong. I felt like I could have/should have pushed on more earlier in the race. But I'm also really glad that I listened to my body and ran by how I felt because I think it allowed me to break 11:00 on this mile.

My endomondo has the last .42 miles tracked - hence my little bit of confusion - on pace to be at 10:00. But basically the last .2 miles or so was around the school. It was kind of strange because the 5k runners were leaving so I saw all these people walking and I wasn't sure I was really supposed to have gone around the school, even though the volunteers directed me there. I was literally the only runner left. But then some more volunteers around the corner started cheering me on and directing me to the finish and I. Gave. It. All. I. Had. I sprinted to the finish, guys, and I felt GREAT. Everyone was clapping and cheering and they had one pad that you ran over and it beeped, so that must have given the guy my demographic information because he announced that a "10k finisher" was on their way to the finish line and congratulated me by name as I crossed the finish line (hands up, like the champion I am). I grabbed a Gatorade and wondered about Devin.

Finish Time According To Endomondo: 6.42 miles @ 1:11:32 • 6.2 miles @ 1:09:15
Finish Time According To Fancy Tracker on my Bib: 6.2 miles @ 1:11:37

Average pace according to Endomondo: 11:09
Average pace according to Fancy Tracker on my Bib: 11:32

Place: 69/78 finishers
Division Place: 18

I got to the finish line and texted Devin to find out her ETA. I wasn't sure how rough her knee was or how far behind me she was. She texted to let me know it wasn't going well, but thanks to some good luck and pixie dust, she ended up getting her PoT. The two people I had in my sights to race came in just a few minutes after me, too. I made my way to the cafetorium for post-race snacks (pizza and cookies) and met Devin there. We listened to the awards and then made our way to Dunks for post-race Donuts & hot chocolate (Devin)/iced apple cider (me).

Now I'm off to the Bruins game as a reward! I am SO EXCITED and SO PROUD of myself for this accomplishment! I can't wait for the next one!

FINAL TIME: 1:11:37​

 

[FredtheDuck]

Sounds like an amazing race! Congratulations on smashing your goal!

 

[GollyGadget]

Great job! You crushed your goal and finished strong.

 

[roxymama]

Awesome job! Your paces getting faster at the end is really great! Good job pacman chomping a princess

 

[ZellyB]

Way to go!! So proud of you and your effort. Congrats on killing that goal and earning a great PoT!!

 

[xjillianpaige]

Sounds like an amazing race! Congratulations on smashing your goal!

Great job! You crushed your goal and finished strong.

Way to go!! So proud of you and your effort. Congrats on killing that goal and earning a great PoT!!

Thank you all!

Awesome job! Your paces getting faster at the end is really great! Good job pacman chomping a princess

 

[xjillianpaige]

Week 1 of Training
16 Weeks to Half Marathon​

Hello everyone! I'm back and we are 16 weeks (112 days) away away from the Disney Princess Half Marathon! I am so excited to share my week's training recap with you, but I wanted to first go over my first training cycle for the 10k.

Here's the monthly breakdown:
July: 10 runs • 26.47 miles • 5:36:04
August: 13 runs • 42.36 miles • 9:15:59
September: 6 runs • 22.38 miles • 4:48:37
October: 11 runs • 41.53 miles • 8:36:40

That means from July to October, I went for 40 runs, totaling 132.74 miles over (no more math, please!) a lot of time... 26 hours and some minutes and some seconds. Maybe enough to make that around 28 hours of running and change?

Now it's time to start my training for the half! This time it's not about speed - I got my 10k time - this is about being able to finish 13.1 miles without dying and having enough of a cushion to meet some characters and have some fun! The plan is to follow the Jeff Galloway calendar they have on the runDisney website. I'll be using a 2:30/1:00 ratio (although I could definitely do a longer run time if I wanted to, but this is about the runs feeling good and easy). Also, this is about meeting my fundraising goal! I'm only $100 dollars away and know that a handful of friends and family still plan on donating - so I think that's another goal I get to say I crushed thanks to the generosity of the people in my life!

Week 1 Plan:
Tuesday, October 31: 30 minutes
Thursday, November 2: 30 minutes
Saturday, November 5: 3 miles

During my first training cycle leading up to the 10k, I was using the Galloway plan that is for beginners. I just looked at the plans on the runDisney website again, and am going to switch to the plan for people who are already running but don't have a time goal. The only difference is in the long runs. They start out being a week ahead of the beginner plan (ex: 2 vs. 3 miles, 3 vs. 4 miles, etc.) and never dip below 3 miles after you hit 6.5 miles. Then they catch up to each other at the 9.5 mile week, with the every other week being 3 vs. 4 miles. Anyway, here are my 3 runs from this week:

Tuesday: 2.84 miles • 35:34 • 12:32 avg. pace
Thursday: 2.77 miles • 35:04 • 12:39 av. pace
Saturday: 3.5 miles • 43:08 • 12:19 avg. pace

This week I've felt pretty sore, particularly my quads and shins. I think it was just because I took a week off, so my body was getting used to using all those muscles again. I think that this coming week will feel better. I'm still running at my 12ish minutes pace, which feels good to me. Some days are obviously better than others, for example Saturday felt like a very slow run with a lot of effort, but it really wasn't any slower than normal and I know I wasn't putting in extra effort. After the first mile I did feel better, but that first mile was a doozy for whatever reason. The mornings have been tougher, too. Winter hours means that when my alarm goes off at 6:30 it's still dark. And getting out of bed when it's still dark is next to impossible. I need to get my butt in gear and get on those roads before work, because after work it'll be pitch black and I want to avoid treadmills for as long as humanly possible.

Coming Up:
Tuesday: 30 minutes
Thursday: 30 minutes
Saturday: 4 miles

 

[JulieODC]

Hi from MA! Joining in!!

Your training is going so well - reminds me a lot of where I was last year heading towards PHM 2017!

Also, your 10k is the exact same race I used last year for my POT!! That’s where I grew up, so loved the course - but it was pretty hilly! Funny coincidence though!

 

[xjillianpaige]

Hi from MA! Joining in!!

Your training is going so well - reminds me a lot of where I was last year heading towards PHM 2017!

Also, your 10k is the exact same race I used last year for my POT!! That’s where I grew up, so loved the course - but it was pretty hilly! Funny coincidence though!

It's great having another runner from the best state in the country here on these boards. Thanks for popping in! I feel really good about my training so far and hearing about people who have been where I am and seeing where they are now is hugely inspiring!

That's funny about the race! It's an absolutely gorgeous course - hilly but nothing someone from this area can't handle. Hills are everywhere in my town.

 

[xjillianpaige]

Week 2 of Training
15 Weeks to Half Marathon​

Well, fall in New England was strictly pretty colors. We skipped the fall weather and jumped right into winter. I swear, two weeks ago it was 70 degrees and now it's in the 20s, 30s and 40s. I am freezing, and my morning runs are freezing. I don't remember ever being this cold when I ran outside in the winter during high school track. Thank God for daylight savings, because at least now when my alarm goes off at 6:30 there's light outside. That makes it a teensy bit easier getting out of bed for my runs.

Week 2 Plan:
Tuesday, November 7: 30 minutes
Thursday, November 9: 30 minutes
Saturday, November 11: 4 miles

Week 2 Actual:
Tuesday: 3.01 miles • 36:33 • 12:09 avg. pace
Thursday: 2.77 miles • 35:30 • 12:48 avg. pace
Saturday: 4.35 miles • 51:53 • 11:55 avg. pace

All those muscles from last week felt better this week. I did have some weird pains, but I think it's related to the cold. Like, my glutes hurt for the first time ever while running, but I think my butt was just cold. The cold also makes the runs feel like they require a LOT of effort. Even with the warmup, it takes a lot to get my legs moving. I'm also still trying to figure out what to wear. I wore a very warm hat on Saturday and by the end of the run my forehead was soaked in sweat. I'm considering cutting this hat into a headband and seeing if that helps. I just want to do everything I can to avoid treadmills. I'm sure that eventually I'll need to run on a treadmill due to weather or ice, but I don't want to. Does anyone have any advice for treadmill running?

I also think I am going to buy some new sneakers. I like the ones I've been running in, so I'll just buy those again if I can. I don't think I'm quite ready for a gait analysis or anything. Let's see how the half goes first. I also think I need to buy some clothes that are more suitable for below-freezing runs. I've been wearing a t-shirt with my old track jacket from high school on it. Glad it still fits and is fairly warm!

Coming Up:
Tuesday: 30 minutes
Thursday: 30 minutes
Saturday: 5 miles

 

[ZellyB]

Solid training week. Good job. We also seemed to skip fall as well. 80 degrees one day and then down to 30 the next. Sigh.

 

[xjillianpaige]

Solid training week. Good job. We also seemed to skip fall as well. 80 degrees one day and then down to 30 the next. Sigh.

Thanks! It's just not fair. We're either boiling or freezing.