Ready As I'll Ever Be!

Here we are, the evening prior to the 2012 ING Hartford Marathon.  It's very exciting. I'm not the only one who is excited though. My step sister Missy is excited, as well as Justin and my nephew Isaiah. My sister Melissa is presumably also excited, as she plans to run with Missy for part of the half marathon. Justin and Isaiah will be running in the kid's 1/4 dash. It's quite the family affair.

Yesterday I went to the Healthy Lifestyles Expo. Not even for packet pick up, but on official business. I went with my boss to meet with one of the women who works for the Hartford Marathon Foundation. She is interested in having our event planning company produce her expo next year. It was interesting to say the least, discussing all that goes into such an event. My boss is certainly a local icon in the industry and it was pretty neat hearing them discuss all the things they would do to make the event better.

While I was there, I did walk around for my own personal benefit. I bought Justin a cute shirt that reads: "Future Marathon Runner" and I grabbed some temporary tattoos that say "26.2".  I was thinking about putting them on my arm but since it will be ONLY 30 DEGREES at the start of the race, I'm going to have to put them on my cheek.

So a 30 degree temp at the start of the race may scare some people but not me. Looking forward to chilly conditions. The temperature won't get above 55 all day. If there's one thing I hate, it's running in heat, so tomorrow's weather will be welcomed!

If there's anything October is good for, it's unpredictable weather.  The last two years I ran this race, it was warm. I wore shorts and a tank top.  After last year's race (repeat- in a tank top), we were greeted with a foot of snow the very next week.  Silly New England!

Okay, well I'm off to get my massage and then to Missy's for family pasta dinner. Looking forward to seeing my family, especially my sister and two of her kids who flew in from Vegas on Wednesday and I've not seen them yet.

Taper Week is Upon us!

We are 5 days away from my 4th marathon. It will be my 3rd Hartford. In four more short weeks, I'll be completing my 5th marathon. Wow, who planned that endeavor!? LOL! I'm looking forward to Hartford because I love the race. It's a beautiful route with a lot of spectators. This year, I took the plunge and signed up to lead a pace team. Holy Moly! Thinking about it makes me queasy. I'm totally prepared mentally for this awesome experience, but my leg has been sore since the day after my last 21 miler. I was able to get two 21 mile runs in as part of my training this time. For that, I'm feeling confident, BUT still I feel apprehensive about the leg.

I've been nursing the poor thing for a while. Running less, doing the elliptical more. And lots of stretching! I managed to get two yoga sessions in and will be doing Bikram once more this week. Got a massage on Friday too which I'm looking forward to.

If nothing else, I'm hoping a double dose of Advil coupled with some IcyHot will do the trick. I'm determined to finish this race... and in my goal time. I'm leading a group of other racers that aspire to do the same, so it WILL happen. 4:25 is the goal. we will average just under a 10 minute mile and walk through water stops. If I could only find a damn map of the race route, I'd be able to learn about where the water stops are and how many there are. For whatever reason, it's not in a likely location.

I'll assume there is a stop every two miles. I can't remember from previous years.

In checking the marathon website for maps, I found out the pacer information was published. My bio and pic are in the newsletter! Woot woot!! It's very exciting!

So the weather looks great for Saturday. High 50's and some cloud cover. I'm considering registering Justin in the kids fun run. He was so proud after that one run he did. I would love to see his expression after another.

Okay, so it's late. I'm falling asleep. Was up early today at the gym then finished the day with a great Bikram class. Stay tuned for a post race wrap up!

Ramblings of a Prepared Racer

So two posts in two days! Wow. The excitement builds as each day passes and we get closer to marathon day. This is why I do what I do. Because I love the feeling of anticipation. Then subsequently I LOVE the feeling of completion!

In follow up to yesterday’s post, I did find a course map. There is a ridiculous amount of water stops which made it difficult for me to do my math and calculate which ones we should stop at and for how long. 

The goal here is to do the race in 4 hours and 25 minutes. That’s 265 minutes. When all is said and done, my group will have averaged a 10:07 pace, BUT not really. We will average a 9:55 pace and walk through our water stops. Knowing this, we can only spend 20 seconds at 13 water stops. I think I determined there are actually 18 water stops along the way. We will have to skip some. 

In my write up/bio thing in the newsletter, I suggested all runners come to the race with a water belt. This is because I don’t want them running any differently than they did in their training. Bringing your own water belt is good for a few reasons. Essentially, you become dependent on only yourself in the race. Let’s imagine for a moment that water stops at miles 20-26 actually ran out of water. If you had water in your belt, you’d still be able to hydrate.  It’s called preparation.

Last year, I did the Las Vegas half marathon. I ran without a belt and was fine, BUT a huge complaint from some back-of-the-pack runners was actually that the race ran out of water. Yes, they were pissed. I would be too, BUT in the end, you can’t always depend on the race. You must come prepared.

Another reason you should run with a water belt is that you may not realize how often you hydrate until you don’t have the means to do so. In your training, you may not calculate how often you sip from your bottles. You may just do it when you are thirsty. Makes total sense… but when you’re in a marathon and you leave your belt behind, you may find yourself feeling parched when you’ve gotten used to hydrating every 1 mile. 

By encouraging my group to keep things consistent with their training when racing allows for minimal surprises on race day. Don’t eat anything weird in the days leading up to the marathon. Don’t try new GU’s. Don’t even try a new flavor of Gatorade.  Assume your stomach will not like it. And make sure you’ve worn a new pair of shoes for at least 50 miles before race day, but no more than 300. No new clothes either. I’ll never understand how people wear the free race shirt fresh out of the bag on race day. What if you break out in a rash because it hasn’t been washed? What if the itchy tag is in the exact wrong place and chafes you the whole time?

Bottom line is STICK WITH WHAT YOU KNOW. You’ll be pleased by the close of the race when all goes as planned.  You'll be better off knowing you did all you could do to make it a successful race. You don't want to left saying at the end, "Oh I never should have worn those new socks. I never would have gotten blisters if I stuck with my regular ones."

So, in other thoughts… I’m trying to plan where “my people”, i.e. my family will go to cheer me on and give me things. LOL.  In previous years, my mom would be at miles 13 then 21 with food and big signs. I LOVE THAT!!! Not sure if she’s planning that again. My aunt lives at mile 15, so I’m going to ask her to throw me a PB sandwich as I run past. My dad and step mom, Joe and Justin are always at the finish line. Knowing I’ll see my son in 6 miles, then 4 miles, then 2 miles, then .25 miles is wonderful motivation. Maybe if I think I can grab him and take him over the finish line with me this year, I will. I always think I want to, then I get there and I feel like my arms wouldn’t be able to handle the weight. 

Oooooh, all this dwelling in possibility has me excited! 

I skipped the gym this morning. I had a double workout yesterday. Gym in the morning then Bikram in the evening. I figure I may walk this afternoon after work so I decided to sleep in. I certainly needed the extra 75 minutes in bed though.

Justin was up last night around 1:30 am. He came into our bed and was moving and squirming all over. I could tell he was miserable. Upon inspection, I realized he had peed through his diaper! Ugh. Very frustrating for two reasons… The end of diaper use is in sight. He’ll go all day in undies. He even poops on the potty now, which was a big hurdle to get over. I’d like to think he’ll be sleeping in undies soon, but then we experience something like last night.  That coupled with needing to fix a wet bed in the middle of the night makes for the act of sleeping in (until 6:00 am) much desired.

By the way, here a few links to check out:

Hartford Marathon Pace Team Leader Info 

and

The race route map which I swear was hiding yesterday and was unlocatable until now 

A Beautiful New England (almost) Fall Weekend!

25 days until the Hartford Marathon! What better way to celebrate, er train, than to run 21 miles!? Did that this weekend… plus some…

Due to a pop-up weekend work day coming up at the end of September, I had to shift my training schedule. I had not planned a 21-miler until 2 weeks from now (on a day which I’ll need to now work) but pleasant weather, an open schedule and a sense of motivation led me to doing my longest run (pre-marathon) this past Saturday.  I left the house at 6:00 a.m. and headed east for Simsbury. A quaint beautiful town, while even though only 12 miles away, seemed to be booming with the feel of autumn, even more so than Windsor. 

Miles 1-5… left the house in the rain. I knew it was a passing shower so I headed out anyway. Fluorescent singlet, check.  Head lamp, check.  40 ounces of water and Gatorade, check.  New running shoes, check! Around mile 4, I recognized a smell. It was sweet and unique. It was the smell of drying shade tobacco. The town’s fields had been picked over the last few weeks and the crops hung to cure.  I believe The Farmington Valley is the only area in the country which still grows shade tobacco. It originated here and I THINK is still exclusive to this area.  I do not condone tobacco use but the smell is wonderful and reminiscent of late summer and early fall. Just lovely.

Miles 6-12… Sun came up, head lamp went off.  From my head to my waist it went. The thing only weighs a few ounces but it feels heavy after a while on the noggin.  I exited Windsor and entered Bloomfield, but only the little “forgotten corner” which happens to contain one of my most favorite stretches of road.  Route 189 in this little nook, I consider a corridor. The walls are high with cliffs covered in maple and oak trees and some were already turning to shades of yellows and reds. The corridor runs parallel to a portion of the Farmington River, known as the Tariffville Gorge. A white water “elbow” in the river which was home to various mills and factories at the turn of the century.  I took it all in as I entered Simsbury.

I took a left up Route 315, a big hill which felt strangely easy to climb. Up the hill, through the woods, to the Greenway to Starbucks in the center of town. I had planned on meeting another runner there and she was to take me on an 8ish mile loop through Simsbury and back to Starbucks where my husband would pick me up from. I was right on time. We introduced ourselves and we headed east. 

 My view as I headed over the bridge onto the Greenway.

Miles 13-21… Up and down the streets of the center of Simsbury is beautiful. Flags on antiquated lamp posts line the road. Potted plants don brick sidewalks. Small town shops, restaurants and “haunted” hotels are an added bonus for those that choose this little town to “leaf peep” during a New England autumn. As we ran through town toward another part of the Greenway, I embraced it. A chilly, sunny, early morning run through a gorgeous town are the qualities which make a long run so enjoyable. Then to be so cliché, once we reached the Greenway, two deer crossed our path. 

One of two deer I captured on camera.

Our route then took us over the steel bridge, past the largest tree in the state, the Pinchot Sycamore, onto Simsbury’s East Weatogue Street.  With Heublien Tower behind us we ventured past vineyards and farms showcasing pumpkins and squash.  Past a “second chance farm” for animals whom were not wanted by the previous owner. We said hello to donkeys, ducks, horses and goats. Onward by the old militia training fields then followed the Farmington River back into town. 

My whole run, which I rewarded with an iced coffee at Starbucks, was an enjoyable 20.8 miles. Yes, I’m rounding up and calling it a 21-miler!  As if the length of the run wasn’t enough to make a girl feel empowered, I averaged a 9:45/mile pace. My confidence was restored with regard to leading the 4:25:00 pace group for the Hartford Marathon. All summer I’ve been running in shoes I knew were worn out. I knew the lack of padding and support was contributing to a slower pace all summer; that mixed with heat and humidity, ugh! But finally, on Saturday, I was faster than my goal speed for the marathon. Great weather, new shoes and a companion for the last 8 miles were all contributing factors.  What a great run!!

Later in the day, I met up with one of my oldest friends at the pumpkin patch, and let the kids run around like crazy. Then I took Justin to the driving range. We ended the day with white pizza topped with shrimp and veggies. Was a great fall day!

My little cutie at Brown's Harvest.

Sunday was great too! I started the day with my two favorite guys. It was snuggle-fest with hubby and Justin until I decided to enjoy a cup of pumpkin coffee. I relaxed with my mug on the couch surrounded by the crisp, cool air flowing in through the windows. Only a few more hours until the Tavern Trot!

The Tavern Trot is a 3.5 mile road and trail race has run for 6 years. All proceeds go to Alex’s Lemonade Stand, and organization which raises money to fight children’s cancer.  Last year I placed in my age group. This year, I did not. 

My sister Missy came over around 11:30 a.m. and we ran down to the start of the race. It was the biggest turn out the organizers had seen in all the years. 700 registered runners!! 

12:30 p.m. gun time… on your marks, get set, GO!  It was a hot run.  Though hot, not humid. But the sun was beaming down hard.  I hate running in the heat.  My mouth was dry and I could feel the sunburn setting in.  Heat mixed with the sore muscles from my long run the day prior had me doubting a placement in my age group. I learned at mile one though, I was pacing 7:36. Wow! That’s not bad I thought, maybe I would place.  Mile 2, I was at 16:08. Hmmm, I’ve slowed down, I thought. Mile 3 was 24:00. Finish time was 28:05 or something. No placement, but the stats showed I was 5^th in my bracket. I was pleased, but still a tad disappointed I couldn’t have been at least 3^rd. 

Celebratory drinking commenced anyway.  Missy, Joe and I drank the day away in a crowd of smelly runners, entertained by live music.  We were there for hours. Too much Guiness!!  I never drink beer and yesterday I had like 8. I’m still feeling the bloat today.

This was pre-race: Missy and I all smiles

 Missy headed for the finish line. Strong finish, up hill!

All in all, a lovely weekend was had.  I can’t wait for next weekend! 

Busy Few Months Ahead!

So it’s been a very long while since I’ve posted last. Not gonna lie, life got busy. Not too busy to run, but too busy to write about it. 

Reading my last post (especially if a while ago) always entertains me. Sometimes I forget the chronological order of things until I read an entry detailing several days or weeks of events. Apparently my last entry was on the day of my first interview with a job that never panned out. Thankfully I was able to secure another position and get back to work after my contract ended at Valassis. Currently I am getting my feet wet in the world of event planning. I had my hands in event planning at Valassis but not nearly like I do now. It’s great so far and because I support he President of the company and am not really on the operations side of things, I can leave my work at work and still focus on my family and my passion for running.

On the agenda for the upcoming months are a few marathons. Hartford is in a few weeks, followed by a lovely, much desired vacation to St. John. Then two weeks later is the Philly Marathon. Come February is Hyannis again. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going and take a stab at my first ultra in April 2013. It’s a 50K. 

I’m excited for a few reasons about each race. For Hartford, I will be leading a pace team. I will be leading the 4:25 finishers and though my last two marathons have been completed in well under that time, I’m nervous as hell because people will depend on me to lead them to their victory. Sounds corny, I know, but my training has proven me a slow runner as of late. Hopefully new shoes (as of yesterday) will speed me up. 

As for Philly, I’m excited because I will be running with my step-sister Missy. She did NYC last year, but this will be our first full together. I was thinking this could be my first 4 hour marathon, but having just come off a vacation AND being timed so close to Hartford, I don’t know if I’ll have the stamina to do it in 4 hours. It’s a flat course, so maybe it’s doable.

So, that brings me to Hyannis. Realistically, this could be my 4 hour marathon. I did it in 4:16 this year. If it weren’t for 40 mph winds, I may have been closer to 4:05. I can shoot for 4 hours this time. I’m confident that I will get close!!

So Justin turned three a few months ago. He is doing well. I know I expressed frustrations in previous posts about him going through a difficult phase. Bed time routine is still challenging, but less so than 6 months ago I guess. He continues to go to school three days a week; in fact he transitioned into the pre-school program last week. My baby is getting so big!!

This week I turned 31. Ugh. I still feel waaaaayyy younger than that, so cheers to that I suppose. My birthday weekend was complete. Spent with friends at high-stakes BINGO, then a kid-less night with hubby, then a family feast over brunch, then dinner with mom. Was good!! 

Well if anyone reads this still, THANKS!! I’ll continue to update on mine and my co-runner’s progress as we approach these big races!

 This is Missy and I as we headed out for a 7 miler on Labor Day!

It's been a while...

Was just reading my last entry to see where I left off. It’s been a while since I last blogged (for the record I hate that word) so I figured some catching up was due. I DID place in my age group for the Burn Calories for Fuel 10K last month. I was second in my age group which is exactly what I thought I would do. Yay! Cheers to victories! Justin did amazing in his fun run that day too. It was priceless watching him run and cross the finish line. We framed his number and he was given a medal. Something to cherish for many years!!

(Here is me and my little guy pre-kids fun run.)

On the topic of victories, I participated in the Valassis 5k last weekend. It was the inaugural race, put on by the company I’m currently contracting for. There was a small group, and I feel like I must say that as a disclaimer. There were about 25 participants, but of those 25, I was the third overall finisher and the first woman finisher. Woot Woot!!!

(Here I am with my fancy trophy)

So, I know I’ve mentioned Girls on the Run in the past-- an organization which I have decided to support this year. This past weekend while I was running the Valassis 5k, a group of about 15 people met for the second Hartford Chapter “start up” meeting. I couldn’t be there, but want to report the success from our first meeting which was a few weeks prior. We established that the basic steps required to start up the Hartford Chapter are to create a Board of Directors, find about $10k in funding (ugh) and attend a weekend long training at the GOTR Headquarters in North Carolina.The training teaches the 12 step curriculum which will then be shared with the girls that enroll in the program—girls that are looking to be empowered and feel confident. I’m unsure of how much of my time I can commit to the program. The start up requires a huge commitment and I’ve got a lot on my plate already. What I’ve tried to do is register as a SoleMate with GOTR. What that means is I would basically raise awareness on my own time and encourage friends and family to donate money to the overall cause.I would promote the program prior to each race I run, sort of like a ramp up. I’m awaiting direction from a Chapter Leader in Fairfield County. I think I keep telling everyone to stay tuned… but I’ll say it again… STAY TUNED!! LOL. For more info click: Girls On the Run

Onto other things… since the title of my blog is “A Mom’s Journey in Today’s Runner’s World”, let me talk about some mom things and I suppose general life things… For those that don’t know, my sweet Justin will be three years old in July. When I decided to return to full time work six months ago, it was a big deal because we were putting Justin in daycare/school for three days per week. The other two days each week, he goes with my mom or my dad. Rarely is it difficult to leave him with my parents, but dropping him at daycare has proven to be challenging. More times than not, he cries when Joe or I drop him off and it’s heart wrenching walking out that door. Though drop off is hard, he enjoys his days there and has developed quite the vocabulary and thirst for knowledge. Seeing him interact with other kids is sure priceless too. Daycare has been ultimately wonderful for him. Now, the contract that I’m on (basically the source of funding for Justin’s school) is up in two weeks. I worry because after my contract, if I don’t find another job, I’ll have to pull him out of school. Though he’ll love the thought of being home with mommy every day, I do believe he needs the structure of school.

Enter interview at Travelers Insurance today!! A previous boss of mine reached out to me a few weeks ago and hooked me up with the interview for the role of Assistant to a VP. Wish me luck!! Sure hoping this happens for me so I can keep Justin in school, and well, pay my other bills too!! It would be awesome to work with Tricia again too.

So, in an effort to get a good start to today, I ran a rainy 9 miles this morning. I’m feeling fresh, clear and good about my interview skills and what I can offer this VP as an assistant. I’m glad too because Tricia said the VP is currently training for a marathon. Something in common with a potential boss is always great!

Wish me luck! Only four more hours to anticipate…

An Exciting Year Ahead!

I’m looking forward to many things in the upcoming months! Lots of exciting things on the horizon. This weekend, I’ll be running in the “Burn Calories for Fuel 10K” which in it’s self is not THAT exciting, but I set a goal to place in my age group so I’ll be interested in seeing how things pan out.

Not only am I running on Saturday, but so is Justin! There’s a kid’s fun run and he’ll be participating!! He’ll get his first race bib and everything! I can’t wait. My race is at 9:00 and his at 10:00. If I can pace a 7:45 mile, I’ll finish in 45 minutes or so, but I suppose my main goal is to finish before Justin starts so I can see the cutest race ever.

I was sick a few weeks ago for several days and that really set me back as far as training for speed is concerned. I’ll be happy if I can finish, having paced in the low to mid 8’s but I think a placement will happen if I can pace around 7:45. I got 2nd in my age group last year for pacing a 7:45 mile in the 5K, so assuming a similar group is signed up as last year, maybe I can count on a lack of speedy 30 year olds pacing in the 6’s.

Either way, this will be an epic day for my little guy…assuming he is truly interested in running. He MAY just get shy and not want to do it! I wouldn’t be entirely surprised.

Next up on the agenda of exciting things is the month of June! There’s the Iron Horse Half Marathon on June 3 and a trip to Vegas on June 7.

The Iron Horse is a beautiful, scenic race which is my unofficial kick off race to Hartford Marathon training. I’ll hope to finish the half marathon with a PR of 1:50. Not going to miss many beats with speed training for this race!

June 9, my eldest niece will graduate high school, so Justin and I are flying out together, accompanied by my mom, my dad, my step mom and my step sister Missy. It’ll be fun spending time in the desert sun by the pool or out on the strip partying. I’ve never been on vacation with Missy, so I think it will prove to be a fun time!

Enter months July-September… the months leading up to the Hartford Marathon (October 13), my yearly commitment to myself. I just e-mailed one of the race directors today to see what is entailed in volunteering as a pace group leader. If no opportunity is available to me, I will shoot to do this race in 4 hours or less. If I’m able to volunteer, I will look to pace a group finishing in 4:10-4:25. Quite a few people have signed up for this race already… My step brother, step sister, my friend Tammi… Looking forward to another success in October!

Then to cap off the year, we’ll be flying down to St. John in late October! My mom was nice enough to rent a villa for my family, my sister’s family and herself. We will enjoy a week with our toes in the sand, our butts in crystal clear water, drinks in hand…Ahhhhhhhh!!! By far, a vacation of a lifetime.

So much to look forward to in the upcoming year! Anticipation is half the fun though, so now I shall wait…with a smile…