I think so, but I am not sure.
Laura and I had a great run this morning. But, by the end, I was TOAST. We ran eight miles at just over 9 minutes per mile, but I am not so sure I could keep that pace up for five more miles in order to finish the half marathon in under two hours.
However, we had some pretty good splits today. We ran mile six, which is almost completely uphill, in 8:56 (although my Garmin beeped at me telling me that lap 6 was 9:13; either way is good). We ran mile seven, which has the hardest part of the hill, under 9 minutes too! After that, I was hurting. Laura ran on ahead of me while we ran the last mile. I still did that last mile in 9:06 so I know she was flying.
At around four miles or so, I started feeling weak and a bit sick to my stomach. I ate a Gu (plain flavor for me--those sweet ones just make me gag). It seemed to do the trick. I usually don't need a Gu until mile six or so. I don't think I ate enough last night. We had grilled salmon, rice and broccoli which might not have been enough fuel to get me through a run. But I did have a bowl of oatmeal this morning, so I don't know. Like a lot of you, I still haven't figured out this fuel thing completely.
Next week's race is the first race where I have a plan (in my huge five race career LOL). Since the race ends with a pretty long hill (the same hill we ran today), I am going to try to push it early. This means I should do a warm-up run, which I have never done. I want to run the first couple of miles around 9:00 minutes each. Miles 2, 3 and 4 look to be consistently downhill, so I want to push it to 8:40 or so (yikes). If I am hurting, I will slow a bit during the flat part around the bay to gather my strength before the hills at the end. If I run a smart race, I think I have a chance of finishing in two hours (hopefully just under). I need to average 9:09 to do it. I ran that hill this morning at a pretty fast pace. With a good start, I can slow down to 9:30 up the hill so I can finish strong going into the park.
I think having a plan makes me even more nervous. Shouldn't it give me confidence? The one thing I learned in my marathon was that plans don't always work. You don't plan on needing the porta potty (twice); you don't plan on feeling like crap. Cross your fingers that all goes well....
7 comments:
Sounds like a good run and a good plan for an under 2 hour finish.
I'm still trying to figure out the fueling thing as well. During my 15 mile run yesterday, there were actually points that my stomach was growling from hunger.
I hear you. I am worried as well. Sound's like your strategy is a good one. I'm hoping to start out fast too. I'm actually happy the hill is at the end. It looks like it will be a fast course besides that hill. Just think, when you get to the hill, you will be so close, you can basically go all out getting up the hill with out worrying about saving energy for the rest of the race. Thanks for the heads up on the humidity. I'm wondering how much I will sweat in the high 60's as apposed to the low 80's. I'm sure it will still be a lot. By the way, did you notice that they are serving a sugar free sports drink called Ultima? Have you had that before? Seems wrong. We need carbs! :) Guess I will be bringing a gel. Do you still want to meet? I'm up for it if you are! We'll get a good picture for our blogs.
Good luck on your run. I'm impressed you have such a strategic plan. I'm running a half-marathon and my plan is to just make it through! :-)
It's in the middle of the night, so I just want to have enough energy to do it. Plus my TNT coaches keep reminding me to look at this as just another training run, not a race. Hard to do once you're in that environment though.
My race is all uphill for the first 6 miles, so that should be interesting too!
YOU ARE READY! If you are doing 9-minute miles in a training run, you will kick ass in the actual race! The warmup run is a good idea to work the kinks out. I will be thinking of you on Sunday (while doing a long run) (although you'll probably be done with your race before I even start). Don't forget to eat your pasta the night before :) and something really yummy afterwards!
Alissa, I am totally up for meeting up. You can e-mail me, if you'd like at lisagensel at cox dot net (no spaces). We could meet up at the Expo or at the race. Since the last shuttle bus leaves the park at 6, I will probably be at the start area for an hour or so (I'm planning on parking at the zoo by around 5:20 or so).
Good news! The morning temps have really dropped this week. I was actually chilly when I woke up!
I have been using Ultima since I tried it after a 15k in March. I like that it is not very sweet. I can't stomach gatorade's sweetness when I run. I only use it for hydration and find carbs elsewhere...
Having a plan to meet your goal is good! It probably feels like you are putting pressure on yourself, but at least this way, you know exactly how to meet the goal.
And when the adrenaline of the race kicks in, you'll have no problem with those 9:00 minute miles! It's never the same as on a training run.
Can't wait for the race report!
according to my Running Within book, having a plan is supposed to make you feel more confident. One of my coworkers who runs a lot always does a warm up mile or two before he races, and he is pretty fast.
I found that the day that I had a long run, after eating chicken and broccoli the night before, was one of my worst runs.
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