What has been going on???

Just about a month and a half is all the time that is left till Wisconsin Marathon.  If I told you I wasn’t scared that I’d be a liar, truth be told I’m damn scared.  I know that may sound strange considering I’ve done already 3 marathons and 1 ultra-marathon but the last time I attempted to PR I fell short, really short. I’m your typical over thinker I relive past failures trying to figure out what went wrong, and what can I do differently this time around. Instead of just dwelling on past failures I’ve done something about it. I changed up my training, not only with my training plan but I have been doing more speed work and really making it a point to strength train. Another thing was a joining weight watchers to help me survive the holidays (go ahead and laugh). I not only survived the holidays but I also PR’d at the last half marathon I raced. I’ve been doing a lot of training and haven’t had a race since the F^3 Lake Front half marathon, but I thought I should really update my blog.

Since I started training for Wisconsin marathon I’ve been doing 99% of my runs indoors on the treadmill, since the weather had been total crap. It was cold and snowy , and I live in the city so getting to the lake front path after work is not easy and forget running my neighborhood. Sadly many people do not shovel or lay salt down so speed work would have been an effort in injury. So I made it a point to hit the gym after departing the train, and made it a point to do speed work twice a week. It is very interesting getting speed work on the treadmill, since it really forces you to run. Tempo runs, hill repeats and even marathon paced 10 milers we on the menu.  My long runs on the other hand I didn’t do on the treadmill, something about running 15, 17 or even 20 on the mill just sounds very painful. So I opted to brave the lake front trail for those runs despite the sometimes freezing cold and windy conditions.  There is something about running against the freezing cold wind that makes you feel tough and like you can do anything.  Also it will make me appreciate the May weather during the Marathon unless it snows of course.


Over the past two weeks the weather here in Chicago has finally started getting much nicer, as a matter of fact all the snow and ice has melted. This means RUNNING OUTSIDE! The scary part of me anyways with running outside is can I keep the pace I was running on the treadmill; here I go again over thinking things. At this point in training Yasmin and I are celebrating our 4 year anniversary and decided to do a weekend away, and that meant no long run on Saturday. Normally I would get a little nervous about missing my long run BUT in this case I wasn’t.  There were a couple of reasons for this 1. I am doing something with the person I love most 2. It’s going to make me smile and 3. I ran 20 miles twice already this training cycle so BAM.  I had such a great weekend and I still got my 1 mile run in on Saturday and Sunday so run streak is going strong still YEA! Yasmin and I walked 5 plus miles up and down hill and she even walked 200 plus stairs with me, there was another set and I couldn’t resist going up and down them.  This weekend was so awesome and exactly what I needed, I got to spend time with my love and got to relax. Also I've been breaking in my new Garmin Forerunner 220 GPS watch, something Yasmin bought me for our anniversary. Getting used to a new GPS watch can take a little doing but I am getting the hang of the display and the fact that the GPS is way better then my old NikeID+ watch. It is funny to see as of right now I do not have many records since I have not ran any marathons or any races with my new watch, just yet anyways.

 

        (We did it,200 stairs)
 
On word and up word with training I go. All my runs at this point will be outside and I am going to keep getting speed work in. Also I am working on changing a few things up with my strength training, something it is taking some used too.  Life happens and not every situation will be perfect but that’s ok, as long as you keep pushing forward that’s all that matters.  Next race will be the Chi Town half marathon and it’s my tune up race before Wisconsin

F^3 Lake Front Half Marathon

Saturday Jan 24^th was the F^3 Lake Front Half Marathon, and it was also my first race and half of the year. Starting in late December I started officially training for the Wisconsin Marathon (May 2^nd), and with this training I have taken to using the PFitz advanced Marathoning training plan (55 miles peak). I’ll get into the training plan itself and changes I’ve been making in another post.  For this post I really want to talk about the half. 

1:51:30 that was my PR for the half last February, I’ve ran a number of half’s since then, but damn it all to hell I couldn’t beat that time. Why couldn’t I? I think there are a number of reasons, training was getting stale and I wasn’t mixing it up enough (Speed work, Distance, Cross training). I give a lot of credit to my new training plan for this PR.  The week leading into the race I took my coaches advice and made a minor adjustment to my schedule. On Wednesday I was supposed to do a 10 mile run instead I did 7 mile incline ladder run, and then Thursday did 5 miles and Friday 1 mile. The hope was my legs would be well rested for Saturday s race.  Something very helpful was I did my Friday Mile during my lunch break, I figured then I wouldn’t have to worry about it later.  Friday I did my best to try and relax and not worry about the race, I mean I have done this distance 8 times now. Needless to say I was still very nervous; wanting to PR will do that to you. Friday night I took my daughter Malina out to dinner to one of our favorite spots Portillos Hot Dogs. The thing with Portillos is that I never make the smart food choice when I go there; I always get the unhealthiest thing on the menu. Reason behind this, is because it taste so damn good. This time thought I made a different choice and got a grilled chicken sandwich and a baked potato, this way I get carbs and protein in one meal. After dinner and spending time with Malina I dropped her off at home and took myself home.  The car ride home seemed like one of those Cadillac commercials, me driving and thinking about the race. “I started running races before it were cool, I just did it because I liked it.”  I got home and laid out my gear for the race, which was my NikeProCobat long sleeve, CES wind vest, shorts and running rights, oh yeah also had gloves and hat. 

Thankfully the race did not start till 10am Saturday morning, and that was a very nice change. I am so used to getting early I Saturday, since I pace with CES and even if I wasn’t pacing most races start super early.  My new prerace morning routine is to eat a banana and drink a bottle of water. That way I have something in my stomach and I am not running on empty. The good thing is before leaving I took Rocky outside and that really helped I gage how the weather felt and thankfully it was nice out. I got dressed and put on my warm up clothes over my race gear, and we were off. 

When we got to the race Yasmin dropped me off and she went to the parking garage to park the car. When I got there I hung out for a min at the start line but the wind was picking up so I went inside. I got to stretch a little bit and warm up. As 10 o’clock approached everyone started to head outside. I should have maybe got out sooner since there was a line to get into the corrals and some people took to jumping the barrier. I opted on the side of caution and waited, turns out the opening was only a few feet from where I was standing. I said my runner’s prayer, crossed the start and turned my watch on. The race started and finished outside of soldier field and headed south on the lake front path.  I must say I really enjoy running on the south end of the lake front path for a number of reasons. It’s nice to not have to worry about bike riders and there is less traffic with the people too.  I wanted to do my best to play it smart at this race and not start too fast or too slow either. I figured if I could keep my pace about 8:30 min mile I can and would PR.  As I started running I noticed my current pace was an 8:15 min mile, now my fear was could I hold that pace.  I had enough confidence that I could in fact do it during this race. As happens with ever race/run my GPS decided to torcher me a little bit my changing my current pace from 8:15 to 11:00 then back up to 8:00 (thanks a lot modern technology.). What I decided to do was change my display from current pace to average pace. My thought was I was far enough in the race that I needed my average pace to stay on point. We ran all the way to the end of the path and turned around and headed back north, and I realized I was half way done with the race. I was keeping a good pace and refused to slow down, also tried to avoid speeding up too much. As I started the last mile I’ll admit my legs started to hurt I wanted to slow down but told myself I can’t, and I looked at my watch my average pace was 8:20. 8:20 with less than a mile to go, I knew I would PR unless something happen. Thank god nothing happen when I saw the finish line, I could hear Yasmin cheering me on and saw her and Rocky. I made my finale push towards the finish. I did it, I PR’D!

I collected my medal which also is a bottle opener and is very cool looking. My legs were sore as all get out after the race, and that is something that hasn’t happened in a while, but then again I haven’t been pushing myself like I did that day. Prefontaine once said “To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift.”  Honesty I feel that lately I have been giving less than my best and that is something I am going to change.  On the schedule is more training and some more races coming up.

Rosemont 8K and a PR

On Saturday Nov 15th, I ran the first annual Life in motion 8K aka The Rosemont 8K. The company Yasmin works for (LifeFitness) decided to put on there first race ever. I must say this came as a shock considering they are the leader in fitness equipment. On the plus and minus said it was not very full, this was do to really poor marketing on there part. In a way it was a nice change since most of the races I've done are BIG. I will also say the choice of route for the course was also very nice. Another nice thing was last min Yasmin decided to walk the race with her co-worker, this would be her co-workers first race. So I told her when I was done i'd walk back and finish with them.

One thing that was worrying me was what to wear on race day, it was going to be cold but I warm up really fast, so I didn't want to put on too many layers. So I decided to go with my Nike Pro combat long sleeve and CES t-shirt over that, then my running tights and shorts over them. I figured I'd be warm enough to not be too cold but also not risk over heating. Of course I wore my gloves and CES hat, I mean i am bald after all. I will say my choice of clothing was perfect at no point did I over heat or feel like I was freezing.

This race was important for me on a few different levels.

1. Yasmin's company was putting it on and I didn't want to be the slowest guy out there

2. I haven't PR'd in a while and honestly was sick of it

3. This was the race i was going to use to get my training paces for my next marathon.

 At this race I decided to do something I normally don't do, I went almost to the front of the start line. I was maybe 3 feet away from the start line. This was a part of my game plan, because I am tired of being in the middle of the pack and then fighting my way around people. The other part of my plan was to PR, so I checked the last 8k I ran and it was Shamrock Shuffle in March and I ran 8:10 pace. I figured as long as a I ran an 8 min mile I can get a PR. As I waited at the start I took a deep breath and cleared my mind, (this is difficult for me). 8 am hit and nothing yet, a min later the horn blew and we were off. I am a very realistic person and as much as i wanted to keep up with the lead pack I decided I was running my race and not letting anyone else dictate my pace. I reached Mile 1 at 7 min and 12 sec, (Crap!) I was going much faster then I had planned. I decided to stay the course and every once in a while check my pace. As I saw the mile 3 marker I realized that I had 15 min to finish and PR. I refused to slow down.  My body would have to force me to slow down before I let it.  Too many times in my life, not just running, I had given up when things got tough.  Not today! I ran down the finale stretch and with only half mile left I saw Yasmin and her friends walking, I gave her a quick hug and kiss and kept going. I made the finale turn and saw the finish line. I did it I PR'D!  I liked the course since it was one I've never ran before and it cut through the entertainment district of Rosemont. 

I stopped my watch and went into the German restaurant that the gear check was at. I put on my outer layer and headed back along the course.  I figured I'd walk backwards since that would give me a better chance to catch up to Yasmin and her friends. As I was walking I made it a point to have the medal showing, so that can see how close they were to finishing. I cheered a bunch of people on, and even say Jennifer (Our niece). As I was walking along they started to re route the last few runners to the side walk so they can get traffic moving again. I finally caught up to Yasmin and walked the rest of the course with her. I told her about my time and she even said "That's a PR, right?". As they got closer to the finish I ran ahead so I could get a picture of her crossing the finish line. 

Not only did I PR for the 8K but I once ran the Cinco De Miler (5 Mile race) well, this course was over 5 miles and I beat my Cinco De Miler time by a good 10 seconds. I Did something that I didn't think I would be able to do, I broke an 9 min mile for a race that is over a 5K. My next big goal is to start training in December for the Wisconsin Marathon in May. When I was trying to figure out what I should shoot for with WI, my coach said "Run a short distance race and go all out" that'll help you figure out your paces and what you can do. Well, I got my paces figured out and fingers crossed I think I can run a sub 4 hour at Wiscons

.

Lake Front 50/50

On Saturday I did something that honestly I didn’t think I’d ever do, I did my first Ultra Marathon. What in the hell is an Ultra Marathon?  Basically a race that is over 26.2, shortest ultras is 50K (31.068 miles).  So what would make me want to run this distance you ask? Well, originally my plan was to run 3 marathons in 2014, but by the time I figured out my 3^rd it would have been a big hassle with hotel, gas, time off etc. So I figured hey why not do your first Ultra, the drive was all of 30 min from my house so no brainer right? Also I choice this as my first since it is not a technical course, the lake front of Chicago is a flat course (WINNING). I want you to hold onto that thought of it being a flat course for a little bit for me.  

                 (Pre race me) 

Oct 31^st Halloween such a spooky and fun day, except this year it was not so much fun. The weather was terrible we had very strong winds and hail.  Crazy weather or not I decided to take Friday as a rest day; I figured it made the most sense since the ultra was the next day. Yasmin and I did our Halloween tradition of going to see the movie Halloween (1978). It helped a lot since to be 100% honest I was nervous about the race. I told myself I am not going to race it, I want to see how it goes and do it for fun.  Nerves still set in because well, I’ve never run 31.068 miles before.  After the movie I ate dinner and tried to call it an early night. The next morning I got up bright and early to set out for out drive to Jackson Park, and the start of my first Ultra. I put on my Nike ProCombat cold weather shirt and my CES T-shirt over that I did put shorts and just in case put my long pants over that. When I got to the start the wind was blowing so crazy. I thought about ditching my pants but Yasmin said “Keep them on for now, if you get too hot ditch them. They are old and big anyways.” She was right I could just ditch them no big deal. So I decided to keep them on. Since the weather was cold I told Yasmin to head home, no point in her waiting for me and honestly it was too cold for her to even walk with Rocky.  I set up E-crumbs for her to follow me along the course. The horn went off and my 31.068 mile journey started. 

(starting the race)

        (The Chicago Sky line) 

The wind was strong out there and ripping across the lake made it even stronger. The good news was I decided to implement and 9/1 run/walk approach for this race.  I figured with the marathon only 3 weeks prior, I should really take this one easy.  I was so glad at the start I kept my pants on because to be honest that lake affects wind was killer and would have frozen my nads. So as the race started we were all together and well I spit and when I did it flew and hit a young lady behind me, opps my bad. After apologizing I said fuck it I can’t control the wind and kept going. I will say that the view going north is awesome! You get to see the sky line of Chicago and with the wind the waves were so cool. Now thanks to those violent winds, one part of the course was closed off, so they had to reroute us up a giant hill. 

Remember when I asked you to hold on to that thought of a flat course well, thanks to Mother Nature we didn’t have that anymore. I decided to take the hill slow on the uphill and fast on the downhill. 

                   (The hill)

 There were other parts of the course that thanks to the storm had to be altered slightly, nothing major we basically ran on the grass then the cement.  The course itself was 3 10 mile loops or 6 out and backs. Really depends on how you want to look at it. As the race started getting longer I’ll admit I started feeling pain in my legs but my endurance was still good, kind of a catch 22 in away, the heart is willing but the body is not. Despite the soreness I was feeling I kept going.  I admit in the later miles the 9/1 walk plan was ditched and I just did my best to keep moving. I’d take little walking breaks and try and run for as long as I could. As the race progressed I was alone and many points but to be honest it didn’t bother me. I even thought  to myself “Damn I am going to come in last”, but then I remembered what a friend told me. You’ll never appreciate coming in first until you’ve come in last. That thought stuck with me during the last loop and I saw others coming towards me. Hey I wasn’t last after all, Yes! 

       (Course was a little rough) 

                    (Detour)

During the ultra I had some less than stellar moments, where I was hurting and questioning myself. As I made the finale turn on third loop, I thought "no one breaks out of prison with 2 weeks to go.” As I kept going three things happened that made me push harder. 

 

1 i saw a big girl and her friend; she was doing it come hell or high water. I found her strength to be inspiring. 

 

2. With 2 miles left i saw my ...fellow members of CES cheering. Seeing them helped so much and I knew i couldn't slow down. They were out there in the cold cheering; I was going to give it my all. 

 

3. And the most important was, I saw Yasmin when I had 1 mile to go. She was standing across the street waving at me. I'm not going to lie, I teared up. Despite the soreness and pain I felt I refused to slow down. I didn't want to let her down. She helped me get through the last bit. 

 

You know in a race, you hit several walls. Every time you hit a wall, it’s a big deciding factor in that race, or in life, if you’re not running. You have a big decision to make. You can either stop at that wall and go parallel left or parallel right. You are looking for that door. When you get to that door you have another decision to make. Should I open it or should I keep it closed. If you keep it closed you made the decision to quit. If you open that door you made the decision to carry on, to continue on your journey or mission, whatever you’re on. I'm glad to say I went through the door. I am now an Ultra Marathoner!

Chasing The Flying Pig

May 4^th was the Flying Pig Marathon. I was shooting for a sub 4 hour time and felt that with my showing at the Chi Town half this was a very good possibility. Well, needless to say that didn’t happen at this Marathon number 2. I’ve spent the past week going over what happen during the race and what happen leading to the race that cause such a poor performance. I suppose it would make sense for me to go over the race itself, so what is about to follow is the good, bad and the ugly.

Yasmin and I drove down to Cincinnati early Saturday morning but first we dropped Rocky off at my parents for the week. After the race we had to go straight back home since Monday morning we were flying to Puerto Rico. Interesting thing as we go into Ohio my ears popped because of the elevation. I have to be honest I was taken a back by this. So we checked into our hotel that was in Kentucky that is ridicules close to Ohio, like cross the street and you’re in a different state close. We went to the expo and got my T-shirt and Bib and picked up a few souvenirs. I picked up a T-shirt and so did Yasmin. After a night of carbo loading at Olive Garden we called it a night. 

                                                                     Start Line

It was the big day race Moring. We left the hotel and made it to Duke Energy center where we parked for the Expo and walked about 4 blocks to the start line. The start for the runners was the parking lot of Reds stadium. I got into my start corral but couldn’t find the 4 hr pacer so I said forget it I’ll just keep my own pace. I mean I had my Nike Watch and I had my pace tattoo. Interesting this they did not have waves for this Marathon unlike The BOA Chicago Marathon. The start gun went off and we started the race. It seemed really crowded but that was because the Half marathon and relay started at the same time. We were off to the races so to speak.

The race started and I tried to make it a point to not get overly excited and start out to fast, so I did my best to keep my pace in line with my pace tattoo. My pace at the start was 9:15 – 9:30 I figured I’m better off playing it conservative at the start. Since at Chicago I did 1 hr 55 min by the time I reached that half, so I didn’t want a repeat of that. I was feeling good at the start of the race and before I knew it we were crossing into Kentucky. I got to say seeing the sign that said “welcome to Kentucky” was really cool. I can now say I ran a race sorta in 3 states haha. I was still feeling good and doing my best to take in the sights and just really enjoy the race.

                                                          So hot I had to roll up my sleeve

Weather wise it was a perfect morning for a race, the sun was coming up and it was really windy but there was a nice breeze in the air. As the day progressed what started out as a beautiful spring day seemed to turn into a heat wave. The temps hit a high of 75 but much of the course was tree less and one large part was even on an express way. I am very self conscious so I wore a T-shirt under my racing singlet that I am sure did not me with the heat. I tried to make it a point to grab water and at least rinse my mouth out with it so I wouldn’t get dry mouth really bad. I pushed through the heat and just did my best to keep going.

HILLS! DAMN YOU HILLS! I’ve heard The Flying Pig was a very hilly race and many people down played it. Of course since all the hills are at the start was another big reason that I started off a slower then I could have. Between the elevation and the hills they kicked my ass. I was making it a point not to charge up them like Spartan heading into battle. And not all the hills were huge some were small ones but even those as the race went on were ridicules tough. Sorry to say that the hills got the best of me and made it very difficult for me to finish.

By mile 18 I was done, I started to walk as fast as possible and at some points would jog a little and then the pain started and I’d walk. Truth be told I gave up and at more then one point I seriously started questioning my running. Did I want to do more marathons a mistake was it a mistake to ever think I could get a BQ. Maybe I should stick to running halfs and 10Ks since those I could get done and not have to walk. As I came into the last mile or so I came across a couple who have changed my thinking. They were a married couple who’ve done a ton of marathons together and as the wife told me there times have all varied. We power walked together and they talked to me about BOA Chicago and how much they loved Chicago and that I should feel discouraged. At mile 26 we came across 2 guys who walked most of the race and were in much better shape then me. I tried following them thru the race and in the end I caught up to them.

Before we got to mile 26 we started running slow but we were running. The husband told me that no matter what we were going to finish. He pointed to the finish “Swine” as they called it for the race. As he told me no matter what we were finishing under 5 hrs. I crossed the Finish Swine and puked. Note don’t eat a pretzel in the hopes of getting some salt back into you. The husband put my medal on me and I thanked him an his wife for helping me finish strong.

                                                           Crossing the finish Swine

What happen? I didn’t train proper for the race. Not only did I need more hill repeats but I needed to make it a point to cross train and stay on top of my nutrition better. I’m changing a few things up for this next training cycle, 1.) I am going on a strict diet 2.) I am getting more aggressive with my cross training and 3.) I am going to follow a more advanced training plan. What are next other then a couple of half marathons and 10Ks BOA Chicago Marathon and it all go as planned a sub 4 marathon. 

                                                       Not my best but I got it done!

13/13 Reflections on Chi Town half and running 13.02 before racing a half.

What a weekend it has been. Saturday in prep for The Flying Pig Marathon May 4^th I had to do a cut back run BUT I also had a half planned for Sunday. The smart person would have said no run Saturday or short easy run since the race is the following day. Seeing as how I PR’d at the Shamrock after running long I thought hey I can do that again. So Saturday I did my 13.02 training run and to be honest felt good during all be it got a little hot weather really started to warm up. I felt good after the run and figured if I go home stretch and rest I should be ripping roaring ready to go for the half on Sunday.  

The Chi Town Half Marathon, in a nut shell is a really good race. It’s just small enough that you don’t get over whelmed by the people and you don’t have to fight your way around people. The course was nice BUT thanks to all the twist and turn you have to take it seemed way longer that it should have been. If you run an out and back or a loop they seem much faster. Night before the race I seriously debated what I should wear I knew for sure I was wearing my CES jersey (Side note I really need more CES racing gear). The big question was should I wear shorts or tights and shorts over them. In the end I decided to wear shorts and a long sleeve t-shirt under my jersey. Thankfully the long sleeve was really thin. Do to get to the race later then I would have liked everything was rushed. After a quick bathroom break I jumped into the start corral. I was hoping to find the pacer for the pace I was hoping to run but no such luck. Interesting thing is they started the 10K and Half at the same time a lot of races start one and then start the other right after. It didn’t matter though I was in the zone and ready to go. The run went off and I started my race. The original game plan was to start slow and pick up the pace at the end. Since I did not have a pacer I realized I’d have to pace myself. You’d think as a pacer for CES I’d be better at this sad truth is I have to work on it. As the race was going on I made it a point to relax and pass when I could and if I needed to slow down I did. As I was going along I caught up to the 9:10 pacers and followed them for a bit but then realized I could go faster so I passed them. Needless to say I never saw them again. As the race went on I kept my going trying not to go too fast or too slow. As the race started to go on my legs did start to feel tired but I was not going to give up. After a number of twist and turns I finally saw the last turn and knew I was close to the finish line. I started to speed up and when I looked at the clock it said 1:57:56. Since I started a few min after the fun went off I knew that wasn’t my time. In the end my time was 1:54:46, not a PR but still sub 2 hr half.

Now time for my final thought; running 13 miles before you plan to race a half marathon is not a good idea. I justified it because I PR’d the week before at the Shamrock Shuffle but what if I’d have run shorter the day before the Shamrock, could I have done better? Maybe I really can’t say and I can not dwell on it any more. The only thing I can do is take this as a learning experience. I’m disappointed with my setting a PR but at the same time I grateful for the learning opportunity this has presented me with. It has to be quality over quantity. Sure it is awesome to say I ran 100 miles this week but then ask how many of those were good miles? Were you feeling good during that run? These are all the things you have to take into consideration. I’d rather run 6 miles and a good pace and feel good after rather then run 10 or more but feels like crap through most of it.  

Weekend recap and The Shamrock Shuffle

It has been one mighty busy weekend for me. Saturday I had a 18 mile run scheduled and Sunday The Shamrock Shuffle 8k. I’ve had sometime to reflect on my log run and my race. So I think I am best starting with Saturday and talking about the long run. So the plan was originally to run 18 miles and to be honest I was feel good for most of the run. Then on the way back I passed Navy Pier, and that is where the Shamrock Shuffle Expo was being held. I saw the line of cars trying to get in and thought “You know what I’ll run in and grab my packet real quick.” I paused my watch at basically Mile 14; I was maybe .20 from 14. I was all the way across navy pier and then walked the entire expo. As I was heading out I ran into my brother Leo so I decided to walk the expo one more time. By the time we got done and to the front of Navy pier my watch had stopped and was no longer paused. Thankfully it saved my run data though. So I started up again figuring I’d just run out the last 4 miles caring my bag from the expo. I had been mentally debating all day should I cut my run short for the sake of the race. In the end I did cut it short because I just felt like it was the right thing to do and with the walk I covered good 16 or so miles.

Sunday morning was a very nice and semi perfect day for a race. Was a little colder then I’d of liked but still a beautiful day. I got into my carol with my cousin Pete and said my runner’s prayer as I always do. Interesting fact was this was my second race to go without my headphones (I’ll touch on that subject in a later post). I want to say this; I will certainly run the shamrock shuffle again despite the large crowed (40,000 people). As the horn went off we all took off running, now being part of such a large race does offer many challenges since you’re more likely to get stuck behind slower runners. I’ve been working out starting a little slower and then speeding more at the half way point since I knew that things would clear up the deeper into the race I got. So I started to do what I normally do and zig zag in and out of other runners buy still trying to remain calm and keep my breathing steady. I will admit there were points during the race I did get a little overly zealous and speed up too soon but I did work on dialing it back. As the end was near I started to speed up more because I wanted to finish strong. Now the one issue I had at the end is that right before the finish there is a hill! I powered up the hill and refused to walk.

In the end I think cutting my miles down but 3 was truly a benefit for me during the race. Also I am very happy to report that for the 8k I did set a PR! The last time I ran this distance my time was 45 min, so I knocked off almost an entire min off my pace. I do have some reflections from this weekend and it has helped me lay out my future goals. 1. Lose this weight. I can’t help but think if I can do this pace being over weight could you image what I could do being in shape? 2. I am more determined then ever to pick up my pace and make my comfortable training pace an 8:30 min mile. Time to keep training since I do have another race on Sunday.