Monday's 20 mile training run

So, yesterday I ran the longest run in my training program: the dreaded 20 miler. I very much loathe the 20 mile run day for two reasons:

#1. It's 20 miles!!! Do you really understand HOW FAR that is and how long it takes to complete?!? We are talking HOURS here people!

#2. The past two times I've done my 20 miler, I've tripped. February 2010: ate it on mile 19 and I have a permanent battle scar on my right hand. September 2010: ate it at mile 10 and scraped my ipod and garmin watch.

(SIDE NOTE: I CAN PROUDLY SAY I CONQUERED THIS RUN WITHOUT FALLING!!!!! 3RD TIME'S THE CHARM! :-D )

This is a difficult run not only physically, but mentally as well. It's SOOOOOO hard for me to motivate myself when I know I'm signing up to be in constant pain for hours on end. I woke up and planned on going out around 1 or 2 pm (I know, I'm a lazy runner). I didn't get out there to start my run until 3:20pm. Going out so late meant I had a race against the clock to get home before it got dark, so I knew I had to push myself...

Things started out well, I always enjoy running east here because there is a slight downhill which helps me run faster. ;) Around mile 7 I passed Invesco Field. Shortly thereafter I passed the Denver Mint, then the capitol building. I had to make a TON of stops because I'd forgotten about all the stop lights in the downtown area. You definitely don't want to run in front of cars against the light. So that sort of sucked. Run. Stop. Run. Stop. Had a Gu gel around mile 8. I got into Cheesman Park and was still feeling good. I left the park around mile 10 and headed down towards Wash Park. A tall man ran past me and that hurt my ego a little. I'm also guessing though that he hadn't just ran 11 miles, so I let it go. This becomes the part where I like to think of myself as being over half way done and on my way home. :)

Around mile 13, I had another Gu gel and kept on my way...  Miles 14 - 18 were the most difficult because there was a steady uphill so it essentially sucks the energy right out of me. At mile 17.5, I stopped to stretch my legs and had a meltdown. At this point, I wanted to give up and quit. I started running again and was wailing with tears running down my face. UGH, horrible feeling. I kept pushing through while crying, and convinced myself to stop when I came close to two ladies walking. I didn't want them to think I was a freak. After I passed them, I started to chant out loud over and over again, "Yes I can. Yes I can." It gave me a confidence boost and helped me keep going. A little after mile 18, another meltdown occurred and I was wailing again. I kept telling myself I was almost done! Just a little bit more, 20 minutes at the most and I would be home free! I calmed myself down again and around mile 19 I was wailing AGAIN. This time it was because I was overcome with joy that I was about to finish my run without falling! I was so happy I didn't make a fool of myself in front of tons of people driving on the road!

My run was completed right outside of whole foods so I could buy some epsom salts and chocolate milk. :) My finish time was 3:01:52, which comes out to a 9:05 pace per mile. This is right on track for my under 4 hour marathon finish goal! This was my best time for my 20 miler of the 3 times I've done it, so I'm hoping this is a good omen!

My garmin map can be seen here:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/75881796

I'm so proud of myself for finally conquering my 20 mile demon!

Now that the dreaded 20 miler has been completed, I only have 65 miles to run until the starting line at Salt Lake City in 16 days and 22 hours! YaY!!!

Oh crap, I signed up for the EARLY marathon start at 6:15 AM! DOH!

Welcome! Marathon reflection and training update

Welcome to my new blog! This is going to be a place where I can talk about all things running related. I started running races in May of 2009 and I haven't stopped since!

In honor of the LA marathon currently taking place and celebrating my one year (LA) marathon anniversary today (WOOHOO!), I thought I'd reflect a little over this past year and give everyone an update on where I'm at in my training for #3. (If you just want the update, it's under the bold heading below)

First of all, kudos to everyone who ran/is running the LA marathon today in the rain! That is awesome.

So what inspired me to actually train and run the LA marathon one year ago? That's an easy one: my brother-in-law, Joe. Seeing him run the NYC marathon back in 2007 was an eye-opening experience for me. You can't comprehend what makes someone want to run 26.2 miles FOR FUN. You would have to be CRAZY to want to put yourself through that kind of torture, and yet it became something I wanted to do JUST ONE time, to be able to say, "I DID IT." However, shortly thereafter seeing him finish the race, running a marathon became a distant memory and was no longer in the front of my mind.

Running was NEVER something I enjoyed doing (swimming is more my speed-I grew up in the water!). When Charna, my sister-in-law told me she was signed up to run a 4 mile race on mother's day of 2009, I thought she was crazy! She wanted me to do it with her. ME? I had NEVER run more than 3 miles in my life! That sounded like CRAZY talk. (Remember a year and a half before when I felt inspired to run a marathon? I was TERRIFIED to run 4 miles! AHAHA) I started running on the treadmills in my NYC apartment building and came to the realization that I COULD actually run a 4 mile race and signed up to do it with her (and Joe). Since I knew nothing about running at the time, I ran the race in my Nike WALKING shoes. HORRIBLE idea. They are not build for running and I ended up with swollen ankles for two weeks after. It was so painful to walk. I thought to myself, 'If I plan on keeping this up, I should get some REAL running shoes.' So I did. Little did Charna know, she was creating a MONSTER! ROAR. lol ;-)

Many races after that first one (in both NY and Denver), I signed up for my first half marathon in Denver in 2009. I remember being in soooo much pain after crossing the finish line and thinking to myself, 'HOW IN THE WORLD CAN PEOPLE RUN TWICE AS FAR AS I JUST DID?' I took that as a challenge to myself to ACTUALLY run a full marathon. JUST ONE. I wanted my one and only to be in my hometown, LA. 

What most people don't realize about running a marathon is that it's like a marathon just getting to the starting line. 18 weeks of training for one day. One race. I remember being TERRIFIED, excited, confused, nervous, and questioning whether I could actually do 26.2 miles on March 21, 2010. I had NEVER run that far before, my longest training run was only 20 miles (and I tripped at mile 19)! I don't remember his name or bib number, but I will never forget what the man behind me at the starting line said when I told him that LA was going to be my ONLY marathon; "Oh no. You can't run just one. They become addicting and you WILL do another one." I responded with, "I just want to make sure I don't die and get to the finish line." LOL I had no idea what he said to me was actually true. I DID get addicted.

After 4 hours, 16 minutes, and 11 seconds, I crossed the finish line of the LA marathon. My goal was to finish in 4 hours or less, but due to ankle and knee pain, I had to walk some (oh, and I cried like a baby while on the course, at least 4 or 5 times because a marathon is like putting your mind and body through MAJOR trauma). I thought about giving up so many times during that race. I almost had a nervous breakdown at mile 18 when I saw a man receiving CPR under the mile marker. I thought he had died and I realized that we are all human, and we can get hurt. (He was totally fine after he went to the hospital) Just because you run a marathon doesn't mean you are invincible (although you may feel that way). It just put everything into perspective for me and I realized I couldn't give up. I had to keep going. As soon as I finished, I was already thinking about signing up for my NEXT race. WHAT?!? I thought I was only going to do one. I guess that guy at the start was totally right!

Due to logistical reasons (and because I live here), Denver became my second marathon. I ran it on October 17, 2010 in 4 hours and 53 seconds. My goal was to finish in under 4 hours. I didn't accomplish that goal, but I did cut off over 15 minutes from my original time! I was definitely proud of that. The Denver marathon was pretty uneventful for me, I was "in the zone" for most of it and I only walked ONCE at mile 21 for 1 minute (I timed myself). ;) 

Here's the update part about Salt Lake City training:

For whatever reason, I felt inclined to sign up for a THIRD marathon: Salt Lake City on April 16, 2011. The strange thing about training for this race is that I know EXACTLY what to expect since I've done it twice before. LOOOONG runs, 16 miles, 18 miles, 20 miles... This should be the easiest one for me mentally and physically, and yet I find myself feeling TOTALLY burned out from this whole 18 week training process. To be honest, I don't want to do my training runs anymore. AT ALL. I've pushed long runs back, traded runs with shorter runs coming up, anything to avoid doing them. I always felt good about doing my runs that were 12 miles or less, and now I dread the 8 and 9 mile runs during the week.

I'm not exactly sure why the change of heart, but I guess 3 marathons in 13 months was a few too many. 18 weeks of training per race consumes your life, we are talking HOURS per week out on the streets or the treadmill. So with that said, I'm going to hang up my marathon running shoes after Salt Lake City. Quite possibly for good (and I really mean it this time). The only other marathon I ever desire to run in the future is the NYC marathon, because that was the one that inspired me (and running through the streets of NYC is just plain AWESOME! I LOVED running the Wall St. 5k back in 2009, that was the first time I truly felt free-my mind was completely clear and I had no cares in the world). 

In the future, I'm going to focus on shorter distance races (5k's, 10k's, and half marathons) and increasing my speed... I've also been thinking about taking up cycling! Anyone know of any good bicycles? I'm not all that familiar with what's out there...

So to the Salt Lake City marathon: 324 miles of training down, 112 miles to go until the start of the race. I'm going to have to dig deep down to get those last 112 miles under my belt. I'm hoping to make this race the BEST one yet and not only beating my best time of 4 hours and 53 seconds, but beating my brother-in-law Joe's best time of 3 hours, 58 minutes, and 2 seconds. I am coming to take the family record and the only thing standing in my way is me! ;-)

P.S. Here's a picture to leave you with. The look on my face is the look of true pain. This was RIGHT before crossing the LA marathon finish line one year ago! :) 

If you are wondering about the word "PROOF" across the pic, I didn't want to pay $80 to get the originals. Having the word across the picture doesn't bother me because it isn't really covering anything up.