Monthly Archives: February 2011
Hyannis Half Marathon Race Recap
| February 28, 2011 | Posted by Lauren under Running |
…or the power of rest, Dayquil, and a good mental attitude
(For those of you who are like Lizzy and just want to see my time, I’m sorry but you’re going to have to scroll all the way to the end…. 
)
Nothing about yesterday pointed to me having a PR day. First there was the simple fact that I hadn’t run one single step since Wednesday, and then spent most of Friday and Saturday sitting around, hoping the sickness that had suddenly hit me would miraculously go away. Add to that the couple inches of freshly fallen snow I woke up to on Sunday morning, and a forecast that showed more snow and freezing rain throughout the day. And, to top everything off, the fact that the ontherun van got stuck in some nasty traffic getting into Hyannis, giving us way less time to get ready for the race than we had planned. As we inched along at what seemed like one mile an hour, I found myself feeling more and more relieved that this race was just going to be a training run – the first of two races I’m incorporating into my marathon training this time around. Despite all the elements, and my rapidly increasing stress that I wasn’t going to get my number, or more importantly, use the restroom before that gun went off, I found that I was really excited to run. The Dayquil seemed to have calmed my cough, and my legs were ready to get back out on the roads again.
Becky and I rolled into Hyannis for the 31st Annual Hyannis Half Marathon with only a few minutes to spare. Luckily, Bekah was on the ball and offered to pick up our race packets – giving me just enough time to make one pre-race trip to the lady’s room (vs. my usual 3 to 4 – very stressful!!). The snow was falling and the starting area packed as I made my way into the corral. A sold out race filled with half marathon, marathon, 10K, and relay runners made for some tricky maneuvering to actually find a spot at the start.
When the gun went off, I didn’t have much of a plan. I told myself I wasn’t really going to look at my watch and instead just run by feel. The Dayquil may have taken my cough away, but I had traded clear lungs for a queasy stomach, and I wasn’t sure how that was going to hold up over 13.1 miles. The beginning of the race was pretty crowded, so I spent a lot of time doing the one thing that you shouldn’t do in a long race — using extra energy weaving around runners to find my spot in the crowd. I didn’t care though. The snow was falling, the crowds were out, and it felt amazing to just run. I ended up settling in much too fast (sub-7s for the first 3 miles), but instead of getting nervous I just went with it. I could always slow down later.
You can’t tell in the picture below, but it actually snowed for the entire first half of the race. At times, it was coming down so heavy that all I had to do was stick out my tongue as I ran to get some much needed hydration , which was only fitting after this crazy winter we’ve been having. During the second half of the race, the snow turned to a lovely freezing rain – oh New England winter, how I love you.
I’m the little speck of yellow on the far right, leading “my” pack
During the 4th mile, I settled into a pace just over 7:00 min/mile. I’ll be honest, at this point, all thoughts of a training run were completely erased. And that little competitive voice in the back of my head started growing louder and louder. This was only my second half marathon, after all, and I finished the first thinking I could have gone faster. Which meant I had a pretty good chance of PR’ing today, if I could just keep it up. By the time I saw EC at the halfway point, the little competitive voice had grown from a whisper to a full out scream: “PR! PR! PR!”
This is my PR-face. Isn’t it intimidating?
Everything was so wet that my number ripped a few miles into the race! I was so afraid I’d lose it that I ended up attaching the bottom hole to my race number belt (which is why it was all crooked). Lesson learned: always bring extra safety pins!
My plan for the second half was to keep my pace under 7:15 for as long as I possibly could. I told myself that for every mile I ran in 7:15 or better, I would have that much more of a cushion and still get a PR (I’ve mentioned this before, but I constantly count down and recalculate how fast/slow I could go and still run X time during the second half of races. It’s how I motivate myself to keep running fast when I get tired.)
Despite the awful things going on in my stomach, I still felt really good into the 7th and 8th miles. In fact, mile 8 was probably my highest point in the race — I was suddenly overwhelmed with excitement just thinking about how few miles I had left. “You’re flying!” I told myself. “You are doing so well! You’re going to run way faster than you ever expected!!”
And then mile 8.5 hit, at which point I realized that somewhere between miles 5 and 7, I had completely forgotten how to subtract. Since mile 7, I had been telling myself that all I had to do was make it to mile 8, and then I only had 4 more miles left to run…and I could do 4 miles in my sleep!! (because everyone knows 13 – 8 = 4…right?? I blame the Dayquil). The realization that I had completely mis-calculated how much further I had left by an entire mile almost defeated me. You’d think that when you’re used to running double digits, one measly mile wouldn’t seem like so much. But when you’re racing, a mile can seem huge. And for a few seconds, that extra mile seemed like more than I could handle.
But by the time I got to mile 9, I snapped myself out of it. This race was supposed to be fun. So what if my clothes were drenched, my legs were numb, and my feet weighed an extra ten pounds from all the water that had soaked into my socks and shoes? And who cared that the course they advertised as flat definitely was not, or that my number was flapping about in the wind? I was going to enjoy every last one of those remaining miles!
From there on out, I focused on soaking it all in. I reveled in the snow lined streets, and was thankful for the awesome spectators and volunteers that came out and stood in the freezing rain to cheer us on or give us water. I thought about Lizzy, Becky, and Bekah all out there on the course with me, each fighting to run their own race. And I thought of the wonderful people who had come to support me. With the exception of mile 8 (which included my panic attack and the most steady uphill climb of the race), I kept my pace incredibly consistent – a first for me in the later miles of a race.
Though I was convinced I’d have to stop and throw up a few times in the last few miles, I made it through the end without incident. As my watch ticked past the 1:30 mark, I picked up the pace, knowing I was about to smash my old PR. I crossed the line a little while after my watch hit 1 hour and 33 minutes. I had done it!
Final splits according to Garmin:
13.22 miles in 1:33:14 (average pace = 7:03)
Official Results
Time: 1:33:07 Pace: 7:07 173/2,694 runners (19th in age group — there were so many fast runners!!)
After cheering for the others, we all got changed into dry clothes and met at Not Your Average Joe’s for a delicious post-race meal. It felt so good to be warm and dry again – and to get solid food into my stomach (I hadn’t eaten since 7 that morning). We all had so much fun relieving the glory of our hardcoreness. It’s good thing we get to do it all over again in a week!
Congratulations girls!
Tuckered out after a tough day of spectating
When Sickness Strikes
| February 25, 2011 | Posted by Lauren under Marathon Training, Running |
I’ll admit it, I’m no good at being sick. I’m not sure anyone is, really, but I’m fairly convinced that I’m up near the top on the “World’s Worst People At Being Sick” List. And I don’t only think this because sickness immediately transforms me from a capable, self-assured adult in her mid-20s back into my 3-year old self who wants nothing more than her mother. No, a huge part of the problem is that I spend the entire time that I’m sick being annoyed that I can’t run. It’s as though this sickness has been brought upon me purely to torture my runner’s brain.
(Source)
I realize that this probably makes me sound like a crazy person who is addicted to running. But although I may love it more than the average person, I assure you that I don’t love running that much. I struggle with motivation just like everyone else, and there are plenty of days when I’d rather sit on my couch than head out into the cold night for a run. The cruel irony of it all, however, is that whenever I’m physically unable to run (whether due to sickness or injury), the desire to do it becomes stronger than ever.
This is always made worse when training for an event like a marathon. Marathon training spans the course of many months, after all. And if you want to be successful on race day, you need to start preparing well in advance. After months of planning and scheduling runs, it starts to take over your life. No matter how easy-going of a person you are, when you’re in training, there is always a portion of your brain thinking about your next run.
And that is why sickness drives me crazy. Because every run I build into my training plan is important, the more I miss, the more my stress level increases. Not only that, but the crazy Type A runner in me spends a good deal of time over-anaylzying whether or not I actually should run. I’ve touched on this before, but even despite the standard neck rule (above the neck, ok to run; below the neck, rest), sometimes it can be hard to tell.
Today, however, there was no question. The chest cold I’ve been struggling with all week long suddenly gave signs that it was turning into something more. And when a co-worker told me the flu that had side-lined her and half the office earlier in the week had started off as a dry cough (and happened to be caused by a strain not covered by the flu shot – just my luck), I knew I might be in trouble. So I took my slightly dizzy, space cadet self home and curled up in bed. Where I’ve stayed for the remainder of the afternoon. I may be stubborn, but I’m not dumb. When real sickness strikes, the best thing you can do for your body is to rest. Not only does running just feel plain awful in that situation, but it will wear you down and ultimately make things worse. If you want to be back on the roads sooner rather than later, you’ve got to take care of the bug before it turns serious.
Soup for the Sick: Spicy Spinach and Bean Soup made with vegetable broth, spinach, cannellini beans, penne, and spices (salt, paprika, chili powder, crushed red pepper, cumin, and a dash of cinnamon)
Doesn’t mean I have to like it though. Or feel moments of panic when I think about not being in good enough shape for the marathon in March (or the race I’m supposed to be running on Sunday!). But thanks to some words of wisdom from EC, I’ve let go of the craziness to embrace the healing.
In response to my complaint that it’s not supposed to be this way, EC asked: How many times has your marathon training gone exactly as planned? (Answer: none) So stop stressing. Nothing can go exactly as you planned it for 4 months. That’s just not the way life works.
He’s right, of course. And even though you probably have to be a little crazy to train for a marathon, you shouldn’t let the training drive you crazy. Because in the midst of all that training, life happens. You can’t control it, and you really shouldn’t want to. Marathon training is a journey. You do the best that you can with what you’ve been given, and when you toe that line on race day, you take a little leap of faith that the best you could give is going to be enough.
Chances are, it will be.
The False Promise of Fast Food
| February 23, 2011 | Posted by Lauren under Health News |
Cheap. Convenient. Perfect for the family ontherun. For years, fast food companies have promoted themselves to be everything that Americans need (and then some!). And now, they even appear to be offering “healthy” options, to cater to all those consumers who are concerned about their health while onetherun.
But, as you critical HOTR readers know, when something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Fast food companies are in the business of making a profit, not improving our health. A recent New York Times article by Mark Bittman clearly shows how they’ve even managed to mess up the most iconic wholesome breakfast you can think of: oatmeal.
“It’s a bowl full of wholesome” ~ McDonald’s Website
(Source)
The article, How to Make Oatmeal…Wrong is, in a word, awesome. If you haven’t read it already, I strongly encourage you to take a few minutes and read it now. (No, really, click away from the blog and read it. I’ll still be here when you get back.) Bittman is funny and insightful. A few highlights:
A more accurate description than “100% natural whole-grain oats,” “plump raisins,” “sweet cranberries” and “crisp fresh apples” would be “oats, sugar, sweetened dried fruit, cream and 11 weird ingredients you would never keep in your kitchen.”
And…
Incredibly, the McDonald’s product contains more sugar than a Snickers bar and only 10 fewer calories than a McDonald’s cheeseburger or Egg McMuffin. (Even without the brown sugar it has more calories than a McDonald’s hamburger.)
Moral of the story – fast food is not healthy. Period. And it’s not always that much more convenient either. I probably don’t need to tell you that making oatmeal at home is incredibly simple. You can do it all in one bowl/mug in the microwave if you don’t feel like dirtying a pot on the stove. Companies like McDonald’s have falsely led us to believe that they can make us food that’s better, faster and cheaper than we can ourselves. But it’s all just advertising.
Still need convincing? Here are a few facts about the fast food industry’s advertising antics. All are taken directly from Fast Food F.A.C.T.S., a site that aims to “reveal the marketing techniques aimed at children and the nutritional quality of fast foods.”
On the huge dollar amounts fast food companies spend marketing their products:
- They spent more than $4.2 billion dollars in 2009 on TV advertising and other media.
- Although McDonald’s and Burger King have pledged to improve food marketing to children, they increased their volume of TV advertising from 2007 to 2009. Preschoolers saw 21% more ads for McDonald’s and 9% more for Burger King, and children viewed 26% more ads for McDonald’s and 10% more for Burger King.
- Even though McDonald’s and Burger King only showed their “better-for-you” foods in child-targeted marketing, their ads did not encourage consumption of these healthier choices. Instead, child-targeted ads focused on toy giveaways and building brand loyalty.
On fast food companies and web marketing:
- McDonald’s 13 websites got 365,000 unique child visitors and 294,000 unique teen visitors on average each month in 2009.
On targeting teen and ethnic minority youth:
- Hispanic preschoolers saw 290 Spanish-language fast food TV ads in 2009 and McDonald’s was responsible for one-quarter of young people’s exposure to Spanish-language fast food advertising.
- African American children and teens saw at least 50% more fast food ads on TV in 2009 than their white peers. That translated into twice the number of fast food calories viewed daily compared to white children.
Don’t let the “healthy” options fool you:
- Just 12 of 3,039 possible kids’ meal combinations met nutrition criteria for preschoolers; 15 met nutrition criteria for older children.
- At most restaurants, young people purchased at least half of their maximum daily recommended sodium intake in just one fast food meal.
- The average kids’ meal has 616 calories, which is too many for most young children
For more “fun” fast food fact, visit fastfoodmarketing.org
I know people are busy, and the economy is awful. After a long day at work, it can be tempting to pull up to your nearest drive-thru and get dinner for your family that’s ready in little time, for little money. It might get you out of a bind in the moment, but please don’t believe that fast food is healthy. And honestly, eating it over the long run will ultimately do more damage to your health than buying fresh fruits and vegetables will do to your wallet.
Top 10 Signs Marathon Training Has Taken Over Your Life
| February 21, 2011 | Posted by Lauren under Marathon Training, Running |
If you’ve ever trained for a marathon, you’ll know that there’s so much more to it than the actual running part. While programs may claim that you can train for one without having it take over your life, my experience has been that that’s rarely the case. Because the time you devout to training is not just measured by the hours you spend running. So even though you may only be running 3 or 4 days per week, the entire structure of your week often becomes all about those runs. And it probably won’t be long before you’ve developed a bad case of the Marathon Crazies.
Now I know what you might be thinking – that will never happen to me! There’s no way I’ll let myself get sucked into those Marathon Crazies…I have so many other things in my life that are way more important! Well friend, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but letting your training take over your life is a lot easier than you may think. In fact, if you experience any of the symptoms below, chances are you’ve got it bad.
Top 10 Signs that Marathon Training Has Taken Over Your Life (i.e. symptoms of the Marathon Crazies)
10.) The passage of time is measured by training plan week number. And your life revolves around the weekends, not because you have extra time for fun things, but because that’s when you do your long runs.
9.) You constantly smell like Icy Hot, and have stopped caring about this fact when you’re out in public.
8.) Everything that goes into your mouth becomes “fuel.” And I mean everything – from that morning bowl of oatmeal to that piece of cake you enjoy after dinner….because it’s all about the carbs, right? Or giving yourself a much-deserved treat after a particularly challenging run.
7.) You worry about getting enough sleep not because you want to feel rested and alert on the job, but because being tired could negatively affect the tempo run you have scheduled the next day.
6.) Your weekend nights start to look like this. Both the night before your long run so you can rest and fuel, and the night after so you can rest and re-fuel.
5.) You judge new music you hear on the radio based upon how good it would be to run to.
4.) You check the weather obsessively. At any given time, you know the projected forecast for the next 5 days, including sunrise and sunset, chance of precipitation, windchill factor, and whether there’s even a remote possibility that a winter storm can blow through, dumping extra snow before your run.
On the day leading up to your long run, you refresh the forecast every 15 minutes on the off-chance that things have changed since you last checked.
3.) You arrange your long run around the warmest part of the day in the winter/coolest in the summer. You delay getting started because that 2 degree temperature change really does make a difference.
2.) Compression socks become your favorite fashion accessory.
1.) Your training becomes relevant to any and all conversations without even trying. People talking about the weather? You comment on how awful/wonderful it is to run in this. Plans for the weekend? Running, of course. Co-workers excited about new clothes/shoes they got on sale? Wait till they hear about those new Nike running tights you found on clearance! And when you can no longer find anyone who will listen to your obsessive ramblings, you turn to your running friends, sending them email after email venting, asking for advice, and trying to get their thoughts about running in 50 mph gusting winds.
If you find yourself experiencing any of these symptoms, chances are you’ve got a bad case of the Marathon Crazies. Unfortunately, the only known cure is running that marathon. But don’t worry – you’re not alone. Thousands of runners are hit by the crazies every year. And as long as your loved ones don’t get sick of you before your training plan ends, you should come out of the training cycle without any permanent damage*.
__
*Unless, of course, you catch the highly-contagious marathon bug, and choose to submit yourself to a never-ending cycle of marathon training. If that’s the case, well, you’re out of luck.
You Know You’re in Training When…
| February 18, 2011 | Posted by Lauren under Marathon Training, Running |
Energy-conserving
Reality TV-watching
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