Veteran’s Day 10K – A Race Report

Or, a lesson in how to overdo it.

Who knows where thoughts come from?  They just appear. 

Sometime on Saturday, I decided that I was going to run to the race on Sunday.  I could have ridden my bike or taken the metro, although that would have been cutting it close since the race started at 8 and the metro didn’t open until 7:30.  I thought back to the GCF Half Marathon last November and thought, What the heck?  Why not?

The few problems with this idea – this race being a time trial to judge my current fitness during this marathon cycle and that weekend’s schedule being a cutback week in terms of my overall training schedule, to name a few – didn’t seem to deter me.  I rationalize them out of existence, telling myself that with my left shin bothering me I probably wasn’t going to get a PR or have a good time trial so why not get some more miles on my feet since I missed a few runs last week. 

Plus, how bad ass is it to run 5.5 miles to a race, race it and then run back!

I woke up Sunday morning, got dressed and ready for the race, ate a banana, drank a glass of water, and headed out the door with a bagel in hand to munch on as I ran.  As I ran through the quiet Arlington streets I wondered how many people noticed me running by with a bagel in one hand and a race bid pinned to the front of my shirt and wondered what I was up to. 

I made it to West Potomac Park, about 5.5 miles from the house, in exactly 1 hour.  Not overly speedy but definitely a good warm up.   As I ran I questioned whether I was going the right thing?  Whether I should even shoot for a PR (faster than 8:19 pace)?  Maybe I should just enjoy the crisp fall weather and be happy with that?   If I didn’t get a PR, would that mean a sub-4 marathon was out of reach?  I hate that I have been so full of doubt this past week but Sunday, before the race, was not the moment I would shake that monkey off my back. 

Eventually, we lined up at the start line and before too long the race was underway.  I decided to run what felt like a fast 10K pace and let the first mile decide my approach to the rest of the race.  If my pace over the first mile was anywhere near 8:20, I’d shoot for a PR.  If it wasn’t, then I would just find a relaxing but quick pace and put all thoughts of PR times out of my head. 

As always, people were passing me constantly even and I am getting much better at letting that happen.  I no longer feel the urge to try to keep up with the people shooting out of the gate, confident that I’ll see them again before too long.  The first mile felt like it was taking forever but I eventually passed the first mile marker and hit the lap button on my watch.

I was pleasantly surprised to see 8:28.  Well, that is sort of close to an 8:19 PR pace and even though 9 seconds seemed like a long time to make up over the remaining 5.2 miles, the pace gave me the confidence to try.  Just a pick up the pace a little bit, I told myself.

Mile 2 ticked off in 8:18.  Well, that is more like it.  If I can just stay with this pace for the next 4 miles or so, I wouldn’t be far from my PR.  I started to focus on just making it to the turn around and before I knew it I hit Mile 3 with an 8:11 mile.  As it turned out, I made up those 9 seconds pretty easily.

I swung around the turn around and headed back “home.”  That’s what I tell myself on out-and-back long runs after getting to the turn around spot – “Now, I just have to make it home.  Just gotta get home.  That’s it.” 

It was also at this point in a race that I expect to stop seeing so many people passing me and to start picking off all those people who started off too fast and zoomed by me in the beginning of the race.  However, this wasn’t happening.  People were still zooming by me and I felt like I wasn’t gaining on anyone.  In fact, it started to discourage me and I started questioning my decision to run to the race.

What was I thinking?  I’m fading 3 miles in to a 10K!  Stupid. Stupid.  Stupid.

Mile 4 was not an easy mile but I told myself to just relax in to the pace.  If my pace dropped below 8:19, I told myself it was OK to let the PR go and not try to push myself to accomplish something that was out of reach.  I ended up running an 8:18 that mile even though I felt like my pace had slowed significantly and that people were passing me with ease.  I couldn’t quite give up on the PR so I pushed Mile 5, just to see what I could do at that point. 

It turns out I could run an 8:08 mile for Mile 5.  With 1.2 miles to go, I started to doing the math – if I stayed on this pace, if I didn’t let up for even a second, I just might be about to squeak in a PR but it would be close.  I ran harder.

Before seeing the sign for Mile 6 – Where it is?  Where is it? – I saw the finish line ahead of me.  All I had to do was run to it.  It seems to simple and easy.  Mile 6.  I hit the lap button on my watch but didn’t even look down.  Just run to the finish.  Keep pushing.  Stay strong.  Just run!

It turns out Mile 6 was my fastest mile at 8:06 and I covered the final .2 miles in 1:32 minutes for a 30 second PR at the 10K distance.  My official time was 51 minutes 5 seconds.  I couldn’t believe that after putting over 5 miles on my legs and claiming it was a warm up once again resulted in a strong PR.  I felt great.  Tired.  Out of breath.  But great. 

I was the 188^th woman to cross the finish line and 58^th in my age group. 

I grabbed an apple, a banana, a water and two cookies and sat down to stretch as I cheered on the rest of the people finishing the race.  After scarfing all that down, I had to make a decision, am I really going to try to run home?  My legs felt heavy but they didn’t hurt.  I was definitely tired but I wasn’t exhausted.  I decided to give it a try, sticking close to the metro line so that I could jump on if I needed to.  I ended up running all the way home, (except for the last 3 blocks but only because Mike happened to drive by so he gave me a ride home). 

I paid for it the next few days – the most sluggish, cement-legged run ever on Monday and more shin pain on Tuesday and today – but I still enjoyed it.  Honestly, I can’t say I won’t do it again.

Pros:

• Convenient-ish location
• Great time of year to race in DC and pretty location along the river
• Good organization
• Cookies!

Cons:

• A bit crowded (not for most people, especially for a DC race but this is just a personal preference)

Can Do.

Can Do

Whenever I run to work in the mornings (braving the cold and windy elements this morning, I’ll add) I make it a point to run by as many of the memorials and monuments that DC has to offer. My more usual, pre-work early morning runs and my long run on the weekends rarely take me by these historical spots so getting to run by them one day a week as I commute to work is motivating.

Some of the notable sites I run by are the Marine Memorial (aka the Iwo Jima Memorial), Arlington National Cemetery, the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the National Mall and the museums that partly make up the Smithsonian, and the US Capital Building. I still get a little giddy when I come around a turn and the Washington Monument or the Capital Building pops in to view.

However, this morning, there was one particular memorial that made me start to think – the Seabees statue at Arlington National Cemetery

I’ve run by this statue dozens of times but this morning I made note of the large inscription: Seabees – Can Do (as I learned from Wikipedia, it is one the Seabees most commonly used but informal mottos). Two things struck me as I paused to take a picture: 1) the upper body muscles of the statue are totally disproportionate and 2) what a wonderfully simple but completely to the point phrase. Not questioning or hesitant – might do? Not even declarative or forceful – will do! Rather a simple statement of will and intent. Can do.

I think I’ve let myself get away from the “Just Run” motto and that’s why I ended up injured (too concerned with pace and speed) and why it took me so long to get back in to a groove (kinda being lazy). There were so many strings attached to running – pace, distance, training, racing, weekly mileage – I forgot to just run.

Run. Can do. Yeah, I like that.

Daily Dozen:
7.3 miles commute to work
Strength Training @ lunch hour

Snow Run

Yesterday, I was asked, “what motivates you to get up and run so early in the morning day after day.” At the time, I really didn’t have a good answer. “I don’t know, I just enjoy it,” was the only thing I could think to say as I shrugged my shoulders and smiled.

On most days, that really is the truth. I’m not really sure why I get up at 4 in the morning, roll out of a cozy, comfortable bed and head out for a run on dark, cold winter mornings and humid, sticky summer mornings alike. I just do it – me and Nike think alike it seems.

However, this morning as I crunched the fresh snow underfoot I found another reason why I get up early to run before work, while most people are still asleep. Being the first one to make tracks in the snow is one of life’s small gifts. It means nothing, the person following in my footsteps won’t even know who made those footprints, and yet it will make me giddy every time. Like seeing a rainbow or rain on a sunny day, it just makes me smile.

This is why I got up early this morning – to be the first person to make tracks in the fresh snow.

Less than a half mile later, I found another reason why I get up early to run; because I’m not the only one out there. I don’t mean this from a competitive stand point but rather from a place of camaraderie and community. I like being part of group that gets up each and every day to go out and run regardless of the weather and conditions.

Running in snow like this – fresh, soft, crunchy…perfect – is a rare treat for a DC area runner and I took full advantage of it on my run in to work this morning. I’ve run as it was snowing and I’ve run after it snowed but to run on such pure snow is a treat. The air was cold but clear. There was little of the wind that has plagued my running lately. I took my time, fully enjoying the experience and even stopping to snap some pictures. I love being a runner in DC and I think the city looks amazing after a snow fall.

The Washington Monument

On the National Mall

On the National Mall

Perfect.

Daily Dozen:
10 mile run-commute to work

Run Commute

This morning I ran to work. I commuted on the power of my own to two feet. I’ve run home from work on multiple occasions but this is the first time I attempted to commute the other way.

The Short Story: I woke up. I ran from home to work. I made it.

The Story with more Details: My first impression of becoming a run commuter is that it is all about logistics. Before I stepped out of the door this morning, I had to consider how to get from home to work with everything I would need for the day – shower stuff (towel, soap, etc.), work clothes including shoes, and lunch. Shower stuff and clothes for work I brought to work the previous day and I decided to pack my lunch in my Camelbak (without the bladder) and carry it with me on the run.

My second impression is that was humid this morning. I was drenched in sweat by the time I got to work and there is no way I could commute this way without having a shower available at work. I might have to start carrying a water bottle with me as well throughout the summer, which may look a little weird since I have a Camelbak as well. I made it to work just fine without water during the run but it would have been nice.

The run itself went well. My legs felt a little tired this morning, which was a bummer because I was looking forward to a really good run on my first run commute, but it was a good run nonetheless. I love the route I ran – east on the Custis Bike Trail, scoot through Rosslyn over to the Iwo Jima Memorial and around Arlington National Cemetary, across the Memorial Bridge to DC the Lincoln Memorial getting closer, in front of Lincoln overlooking the Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool, up the north side of the Mall past the Vietnam Memorial, the Constitutional Gardens, the World War II Memorial, the Ellipse and White House, past the American History, Natural History and National Archives buildings, finally leaving the Mall and scooting over Pennsylvania Avenue on to Chinatown and finally work.

Regardless of how many times I run in DC it always strikes me as an amazing experience to run through so much history on a regular basis. My commute reminded me how lucky I am.

I had allotted myself 2 hours to get to work but the 7.6 miles only took me 1 hour 20 minutes. I had plenty of time to drop my pack at my desk, go down to the gym to stretch jump in the shower to get cleaned up and then get dressed for work. Even with all of that, I was still 30 minutes early to work.

Maybe I’ll let myself sleep in a bit longer next week. Or, maybe I’ll just take a longer route!

My intention is to run commute once a week, usually Fridays. I love the idea of it – the self-sufficiency and “fringe-element” aspects. I love the anticipation and preparation that has to go in to pulling it off. I’m looking forward to next week.

Daily Dozen:
7.6 miles run commute to work

Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Miler – Race Report

This annual race Washington DC is billed as “The Runner’s Rite of Spring” and is a must as a runner living in the DC Metro area. The race takes place during the annual Cherry Blossom Festival put on by DC in order to celebrate the blooming of the cherry blossoms gifted to DC by the Japanese government.

After two and a half years as a runner, living and running in and around DC, I finally ran the race this year. I actually may not have ever run this race but a good friend of mine who loves 10 milers was running so I decided to run with her.

I had mixed feelings about this race. First, it’s huge, with close to 15,000 runners it makes for a crowded event. There was a 30 minute line to get in to the National Building Museum on Saturday to pick up the race packet. We ended up crossing the start line 15 minutes after the gun because of the line for the porta-potties. Once we finally got underway, the race never thinned out and I spent 99% of the time bobbing and weaving. This is far from my ideal race conditions.

On the other hand, it’s a spring tradition that I am glad I got to partake in and it is always fun to run with a friend. It is a great feeling to be out on the streets of DC, running among the gorgeous cherry blossoms with great views of the Potomac River, historic landmarks like the Washington Monument (where the race starts and ends) and the Jefferson Memorial and famous DC buildings like the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel. The crowd support is fun and everyone is in high spirits (especially with the wonderful spring weather we lucked out with for this year’s race – sunny and in the 50s).

However, I don’t know that I would run this one on my own. It is just so huge! It is mind-boggling to be part of a huge moving mass of people all taking part in a great athletic tradition; however, is it really worth the hassle and bother (and cost!)?

I will continue to run this race as long as my friend signs up for it but I found myself envious of the runners I saw during and after the race who were out on that fine morning enjoying their own run. They seemed so much freer than me being swept along by the moving herd.

Finish time: 1:35:00, 9:30 pace

National Marathon & Half Marathon, March 21, 2009 – Race Report

I was looking forward to this race. What began as an alcohol-encouraged declaration, “I want to run a half marathon” by a friend’s brother, finally culminated in the actual running of a half marathon.

Although my running partner for the race (a guy, quite appropriately named for this particular event, Myles) had had some foot issues, he had the go ahead to run from a podiatrist. As we stood in the cold pre-dawn dark, waiting for the race to begin, he admitted to being nervous since he had to lay off running for the last week and a half. Oh yeah, he was also nervous because he’d never done anything like this before today!

The race had a fun Start area this year – cheesy, yet oddly motivational pop music, mostly from the 80s was blaring, a chipper and enthusiastic announcer and plenty of room in the corrals.

Myles and I agreed that we would warm-up on the course and settled in to light stretching and general bouncing around as we waited for the race to begin. You see a lot of nervous energy being masked as warm-up/stretching at the beginning of races and back in slower corrals where there seems to be a larger percentage of first-timers, the nervous energy is almost palpable. The anxiety, fear, excitement, it’s infectious. The tension is not based on the live-or-die to hit a certain pace, get a PR or qualify for Boston. The tension, back where we started, based on facing the unknown – will I be able to do this? – seems much more urgent when it refers to making it across a finish line 13.1 or 26.2 miles away instead of can I break a certain pace or time.

Since Myles was running about 10 minute/miles before his injury, our plan was to take it slow (about 10:30 pace) for the first 2 or 3 miles, open it up to 10:00 pace after that and then see how we felt as the race progressed and adjust our pace accordingly. Best laid plans, right?

The gun finally went off but it took us about 5 minutes to get across the start line…and then (finally) we were off! One of the things I like about this race is that the course and water stops aren’t as crowded as other races in the area. It was nice to not have to jostle for position for the first few miles like you do at bigger races in the area (MCM, Army 10 Miler, etc.).

We hit Miles 1 and 2 at around a 10 minute pace but when I looked at my watch for the Mile 3 split, we were speeding up so I purposely slowed us down on the next mile. Oops, Mile 4 ended up being our slowest at around 11 minutes.

The race was going well as we started Mile 5 through the Dupont Circle and Adams Morgan neighborhoods…and some steady-climbing hills, where I got to unleash my hill running demons. This race, since I was pacing someone else and had to be conscious of their effort level as well as my own, made me realize how impatient I am when running hills. I speed up them in order to get them over with sooner and the feeling once you’ve leveled off and conquered the hill just can’t be beat. It is a sense of relief mixed with pride of accomplishment and it always gets me going.

Mile 5 was also are second-fastest mile of the race (I told you, I’m impatient).

Once we finished with the hills, we settled in to a fairly comfortable 9:30 to 9:15 pace through Mile 12. This part of the half marathon went by quickly and without much of note. I had laid off the chatter since Myles wasn’t much of a talker after Mile 4, only announcing the mile markers as we passed them and pointing out water/Gatorade stops. However, when we passed the Mile 10 marker, I turned to Myles and said, “well, you’ve officially run further than you’ve ever run before. How do you feel?” Myles half grunted, “squishy” and we kept running.

I was feeling good when we hit the 12 mile point and turned to Myles, proclaiming, “This is it. One more mile to go,” and with a glint in my eye and devilish grin, “let’s make it our fastest.” I just took off, hoping he would, and could, keep up.

For the rest of that last 1.1 mile, instead of running side by side like we had for the entire race, he was one step behind me and each time he caught up, I pushed it just a little bit more.

We were passing people left and right, just picking ‘em off. It felt great!

As we hit the last mile marker, I pointed out the finish line just around the corner and up a hill and said, “We just have to make it up this last hill to get there. Let’s do it.” Myles sounded a little surprised that the finish line was so close and we charged up the hill. (Race directors in DC, bless them, can be a little sadistic when it comes to ending their races on an uphill climb).

We crossed the finish line, with the announcer saying Myles’ name over the loudspeaker. “And here comes Myles Kitchen. With a name like that, you have to announce it!” We crossed the line in 2 hours 8 minutes, with a second between the two of us.

It felt good to be able to end this long-anticipated race on such a high note. We finished strong. We were able to bask in the after race glow for a while as we found family and friends who had come to cheer us on and get food from the runner’s tent before jumping on the metro, headed for a diner and a well-deserved stack of pancakes.

Race Pros: Proximity to home. Metro opens early. Decent amount of spectators (half only, I hear the second half of the full gets very lonely). Tech tee race shirt.

Race Cons: They ran out of cups at some of the middle mile water stations!! Expo is boring.

Mile Splits (according to my watch):
Miles 1 & 2 20:01 (missed 1st mile marker)
Mile 3 9:40
Mile 4 10:57
Mile 5 8:46 (where did that come from?)
Mile 6 & 7 19:49 (missed 6th mile marker)
Mile 8 9:30
Mile 9 12:36 (potty break)
Mile 10 9:20
Mile 11 9:14
Mile 12 9:15
Mile 13 7:57 (that last mile felt good...Speedy Gonzales good)
Final .1 1:11
Total 2:08:16

A good day for a walk

Outside? Inside? Outside? Inside?

I get an hour for lunch at work and I hate to waste it by surfing the internet the entire time (which is what I did at my last job with my 30 minute break). Lately, I've been eating lunch at my desk around noon and not actually taking my break until 2. I've been trying to take advantage of the gym in the office building; however, today wasn't a scheduled strength training day. When I pack my work bag this morning, I threw in some gym clothes, just in case.

All morning I was having an inner debate - should I stay inside and go to the gym or take a walk outside? On the one hand, the gym would probably provide a better workout but I was only going to do light cardio and I could just as easily do that outside, right? When it came down to it, I decided to brave the cold and wind and took a walk. As I headed down 7th Street toward the National Mall, I decided to head toward the Smithsonian American History Museum (SAHM). It has recently reopened after a 2 year internal renovation and, although I didn't have to time to check out the changes inside, I was curious to see what had changed on the outside.

I walked down to Independence Ave. and turned right, walking past the Smithsonian Natural History Museum, shaking my head and remembering the triceratops that used to sit outside the museum but was removed for safety reasons, looking across the Mall toward the the merry-go-round and the red Smithsonian Castle, and gazing off in the distance toward the Washington Monument as Marine One flew in for a landing, or at least, one of the helicopters that could have potentially been Marine One. I walked along with the large schoolg groups and the families who were braving the cold to see the Nation's Capital.

I finally got to the American History Museum, and as I circled the building, there weren't too many differences to make note of from the outside. I hope to make it inside one of these weekends soon to see all changes. It is my favorite museum in DC and I'm glad it is available again.

Unlike my path to the SAHM was direct - down 7th, right on Independence - I took a meandering path back to the office. I let the lights and walk/don't walk signs lead me back and along the way, I realized just how much history is within such a small space. I passed by the FBI, Department of Commerce, and EPA buildings, the Ronald Reagan Center for International Development, the National Theatre, Ford's Theater and the house Lincoln died in, the Spy Museum, and several other museums.

Although I never broke a sweat and it was colder and windier than I would have preferred, it was a lunch hour well spent even though it wasn't in the gym.

Today's daily dozen:
30 mins. recumbent bike
10 mins. stretching
10 mins. elliptical
1 hour walk
It was a good XT day but tomorrow, I work: Hill Intervals to the Max - 12% incline at a 4.0 pace with 2-3 minutes walk in between.