Race Recap: GW Parkway Classic 2012 (Strong & Proud)

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Coco

Despite my worries and the gloomy weather forecast


the weather turned out not to be the story of this race. Actually, the weather was nearly perfect for me–cool with a light drizzle. I’d much rather run under those conditions than on a bright, sunny day.

Nevertheless, my husband made sure I was prepared for rain at the start. He was very proud of the perfectly-sized neck hole he cut for me in one of our pretty blue yard trashbags!


As you can tell, I decided not to wear my lightweight jacket. I figured I was more likely to regret having it than not having it, and it was the right decision. I was never cold or even very wet.

The real story of this race was my mental attitude. Maybe because this was my third race in six weeks, or maybe because my friends had bailed once again, but I just wasn’t very excited about it. I did all the right things to prepare for race day, but as my husband was driving me to the race, I commented on my lack of enthusiasm.  Even when I was lined up at the start I felt more calm and relaxed than pumped up. Maybe that’s not a bad way to start a race, but it’s unusual for me.

I had just read David’s post about his experience at the Blue Ridge Half Marathon and was struck by his comment that approaching a race without a goal didn’t really work for him, so I set myself a goal of maintaining an 8:30-ish pace. I had no idea what finish time that would translate to, but I figured it was a reasonable goal given my recent times in the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler and the Rock’n’Roll USA Half Marathon.

I made a last-minute decision to hit the porta-potty and then lined up in the 8:00-8:30 pace group just a few minutes before the start time.

The start was a bit crowded, but the first mile is mostly downhill, so my first mile split was where I wanted it to be (8:16). The first five miles include some rolling hills, and they were as challenging as I thought they would be. I kept thinking that we had reached the last hill before the long downhill and flat stretch that would take us into Old Town, but then I would see one more rise up ahead. I was pleased when I reached the mile 5 split at about 42 minutes, and glad that that really was the last hill for a while.

I was using my Garmin to monitor my pace, and noticed that even on the downhill and flat sections I was falling into a comfortable pace instead of pushing myself to keep a race pace. Soon after mile 5 I found myself running side-by-side with a woman who was going just a bit faster than I was, so I made it a point to keep up with her, and eventually passed her (although I’m pretty sure she passed me at the end). That mental challenge lifted my spirits and helped me pick up my pace.

Afer mile 6, I kept seeing higher numbers on my Garmin than I wanted to. I noticed that I was getting discouraged and gave myself a pep talk. I knew that I was on track for a decent finish as long as I didn’t throw in the towel. I don’t usually use mantras to keep me going, but I decided that I needed to focus on finishing “strong and proud,” so I made that my mantra.  

That helped me get to mile 8, but it was hard knowing that I was being passed by lots of people. As we turned into Old Town and went up the final hill, I felt strong, but I reminded myself that we still had a mile to go. I tried to push my pace a bit, but was afraid of using up whatever energy I had left too soon.

I had convinced myself that the finish line was going to be farther off than I expected, so I actually was surprised when I could see the finish banner up ahead. It didn’t take me long to realize that I had nothing left for a sprint to the end, but I did my best to keep pushing. The finish clock was ticking to 1:25 and I really wanted to beat that number!

(Hah! I crossed that finish line at 1:24:59 on the race clock!)

When I crossed the finish mats and stopped my Garmin, I was proud to see my time:

1:24:30

Going into this race, my vague goal was to finish in 1:25-ish, and I had nailed that goal.

I called my husband to let him know where I was (he saw me finish, but I hadn’t see him), and then we made our way to the car. The seat warmer never felt so good, but my hot epsom salt bath felt even better!

Garmin Data
Totat Distance: 10.05 miles
Total Time: 1:24: 30 (avg 8:24 pace)
Split Times: 8:12, 8:08, 8:16, 8:23, 8:36, 8:16, 8:25, 8:33, 8:47, 8:30

How do you handle the mental challenges of a race?

Do you have a mantra you draw on?

Posted in Fitness, Race Recaps | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

Racing Rain or Shine?!

Posted on April 21, 2012 by Coco

So here we are on the eve of the GW Parkway Classic and the meteorologists are telling us that today is the nice day of the weekend, because the forecast for tomorrow calls for heavy rain. I am trying to psych myself up for a 90 minute run in the rain, trying to convince myself that it will be fun, trying to keep in mind how much better that post-race grande bold Starbucks will taste, and reminding myself to get some more Epsom salt for a nice hot bath afterwards. I’m not sure it’s working yet, but I still have about 23 hours to convince myself.

This past week seems like a blur because I had so many after-work activities and meetings, but I did a pretty good job of sticking with my morning workout plans.

Monday (Weights)
Walking: 1.5 mile morning dog walk
Weights: 30 min mostly arms and abs

Tuesday (Treadmill Speed Intervals)
5 min walking warm-up @ 3.7 mph
5 min running warm-up @ 5.7, 6.0 and 6.3 mph
30 min of 5 min cycles with 2 min @ 6.5 mph, 2 min @ 6.7 mph, 1 min @ 6.3 mph,
     with 2 min @ 7.0 mph tossed in at the end
2 min running cool-down @ 6.0 mph
3 min walking cool-down @ 3.7 mph

Wednesday (Weights)
Elliptical: 15 min random program
Weights: 30 min mostly arms and abs
Walking: 1 mile afternoon dog walk

Thursday (Rest)
I woke up with a headache and a slightly sore throat and decided to snooze.  I think it was just allergies but the extra hour of sleep did not hurt.

Friday (Weights)
Walking: 1.5  mile morning dog walk
Weights: 30 min mostly arms and abs

Saturday (Walking)
Walking: 1 mile morning dog walk

Last night I picked up my race bib and t-shirt.


(I think it’s silly that they chose the monuments for their logo
because the course isn’t anywhere near them, but it’s a pretty logo!)

My plans for today are to hydrate, eat right, and find a big garbage bag to keep me dry at the starting area.

Have you ever had to race in the pouring rain?

Have you decided not to race because of a rainy weather forecast?

Posted in Fitness, Training Log | Tagged , , , | 14 Comments

Having Time, Taking Time

Posted on April 19, 2012 by Coco

At 11:30 am on Monday I was tapped for an urgent work project that had to be completed by Tuesday. When a friend asked if I could go out for lunch, my first thought was “I’d love to, but I can’t.” But it was a gorgeous day, and I knew the rest of my day was going to suck, so I took the time anyway.

On Tuesday, I had to tackle the work that I had intended to do on Monday, and was hoping to leave early for my son’s lacrosse game. I didn’t have time to stand outside for half an hour in the hope of seeing the space shuttle Discovery, but I took the time anyway.

On Wednesday, I didn’t have time to get my hair cut, go to the dentist, and keep my car repair appointment, but those things could not be put off any longer, so I took the time anyway. When I got home at 4:00 with three things still on my work “must do” list, I didn’t have time to walk the dog, fix dinner, or watch Revenge, but I took the time anyway.

 

When you don’t have time, what do you take time for anyway?

Posted in Life, Work | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Wordless Wednesday (The Discovery Edition)

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Coco

Taken by a colleague with better photography skills and a better camera than I have,
as the space shuttle Discovery was flown over our office on its final tour before it is retired
to the Smithsonian Institution’s Udvar-Hazy Center in Dulles, Virginia
Posted in Life | Tagged | 3 Comments

Going Halfway

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Coco

When I was losing weight, I saved calories by switching from my beloved Half & Half to
Fat-Free Half & Half. Once I reached my goal weight I switched back, and I haven’t looked back until I recently discovered Low-Fat Half & Half.

Taste-wise, it gives full-fat Half & Half a run for its money, and with only 25 calories and 1.5 g fat in each 2 tablespoon serving (compared to 40 calories and 3 g fat for the full-fat version), it seems like an easy way to save calories and reduce my consumption of saturated fat.

But one morning as I was pouring some Low-Fat Half & Half into my coffee, the ingredient list caught my eye.

Ingredients: Milk, Cream, Contains less than 1.5% of the following: Whey Protein Concentrate, Carrageenan, Potassium Citrate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Vitamin A Palmitate, Color Added (Ingredient not in regular half & half)

The ingredient list for the full-fat version is much shorter:

Ingredients: Milk, Cream, Contains less than 0.5% of the following: Sodium Citrate and Disodium Phosphate (Stops cream from separating in hot liquid).

Maybe “less than 1.5%” of additives isn’t worth this much thought, but it is still three times as much as in the full-fat version.

So which is worse, three times the additives or twice the saturated fat?

Posted in Food | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments