Chronicles of a fish: the days of surf and turf

Thanks everyone! Last half was brutal with the wind. Was doing a pretty good job the first half going for 3:3x, but I lost the guy I was drafting off (pee break and he never caught back up) plus the wind kicked up a few notches, and at that point the accountant in me did the cost:benefit analysis and decided it wasn't worth pushing but so much. Report to follow...I'll probably write it on the way home tomorrow. Now, time to get cleaned up and meet a few boardsies.

Thursday, November 6th, 2014

60 minutes on the Cat in the comfy confines of my living room....and what session isn't made better with a training partner or coach to keep you company and honest? Folks, when he isn't showing off his flexibility on the yoga mat, he's critiquing my form and effort while watching me spin. Let me introduce to you Mr. Furry Bum himself, tonight's trainer coach of the hour, Norris!!!!

(If that look doesn't put the fear of god in ya, then I don't know what will! :eek:;))

image.jpg

Saturday, November 8th, 2014

Crisp and partly sunny out there today, and it's been 6 days since the marathon so I thought it was perfectly timed for a run. 7 easy field miles, but the best thing about this run was that I got to try out a few recent acquisitions. Nothing says "fresh start" like new things.

I tried out my brand spanking, and very pink, new running shoes that I acquired at the NY City marathon expo. The only (and I mean only) two reasons I purchased these shoes had to do with a hamster wheel (that was a blast to run on!) and their color. I love all things pink when it comes to strength and toughness...however, I had no expectations I'd love these shoes for their performance....but, I LOVE THESE SHOES!!! These Adidas adizero Boston runners are so light (the saleslady told me that Adidas only makes one other running shoe that is lighter) and comfy, and fit my foot very well. I'm not sure how they will perform on pavement, or for more than 7 miles, but today's test run in them was a super nice surprise. Plus, a portion of each purchase of this particular shoe goes to the Boston Runs As One fund, which, for me, is an added bonus.

http://www.adidas.com/us/adizero-boston-5-shoes/M29705_530.html

In addition to sporting my very sporty new shoes, I was giving a new pair of tights a test run today - the Lululemon Speed Tight II, Brushed. I pretty much dig all things Lululemon, and these tights did not disappoint. As soon as I put them on I loved how they felt against my skin....and they kept my legs toasty warm and feeling energized during the run. And one of my favorite things about many of the Lululemon tights, including this one, is the pockets - two deep side pockets, two pockets in the generous waist band, and one zip pocket in the back. I've worn this design in a few marathons, and the pockets can handle all the gels and bloks I need to get me through the entire 26.2 miles. Winner!!!

http://shop.lululemon.com/products/clothes-accessories/pants-run/Speed-Tight-II-Brushed?cc=8353&skuId=3581361&catId=pants-run

Post run, I immediately hopped on the Cat for 30 minutes to spin nice and easy. The only mistake I made was that I did not change out of my running gear before hopping on the Cat - I smothered for those 30 minutes!!! :eek:

Then, I hit the mat after the trainer and did some nice stretching, yoga, core and foam rolling. No sign of either cat - apparently 2 o'clock in the afternoon is nap time for my boys.

New York....the Big Apple....it's everything you've been told and then some. Crowded sidewalks, crowded streets, tall buildings one after the other, concrete, glass, trash, shop windows, doormen, restaurants.....and the lights, oh my gosh, the lights: neon lights, street lights, video lights, flashing lights, strobe lights, camera lights, police car lights, colored lights, bright lights, dim lights, and construction lights, all going 24 hours a day. I couldn't help but wonder how much energy this tiny plot of land uses when compared to the rest of the world. And you've heard the term melting pot...well, New York City epitomizes that term, and it embraces it. Those are the things I saw as I looked around while walking through Times Square....those were the images that were immediately obvious to me when I stepped off the train at Penn Station (that happens to be directly under Madison Square Garden). But New York is certainly more than what my eyes saw. New York is a hub of culture and a vat artistic expression. It allows you to think beyond the normal lines of thought and proposes alternative possibilities. It is also the land of abundance, whether that be what you can purchase, what you can ingest, what kind of entertainment you can see, or how much you might spend to experience any or all of those things. New York is a unique place, there is no other I have to compare it to. A must for all to see, if you ask me...but embrace it for what it is and for what it unapologetically wants to be, and not for what it lacks.

This NY City marathon is the 6th marathon I've done, 7th if you count the one I ran during the IronMan 7 weeks ago, and it is the most logistically complex one I've experienced to date, including Boston. It is also the most international marathon I've ever participated in...and for those two reasons, logistics and international flavor, I'm going to touch on some of those moving parts periodically in this report with the idea in mind that there may be a gentle reader of my log out there somewhere looking to do this race in the future.

Getting To The Start Line On Race Morning

After a fairly decent night's sleep (and after a very busy Saturday that saw little rest time and a late dinner), race morning had arrived, and I was up and moving early to get dressed, grab a bite to eat, and get to the start line on time. Oh, and getting to the start line is not as simple as you'd think. No...of course not. Months in advance, each athlete has to choose from a short list of options how they will make their way to the start line on Staten Island. Basically, you can hop the ferry, ride a bus, or drive yourself - but if you want to hop the ferry or ride one of their buses, then you have to select which one (and at what time) way in advance of the race...and it is all first come first serve in the selection process. I chose the ferry. Simple, right? Not so. There is also the issue of getting yourself to the ferry. Do I take the subway or a cab?? Because I hadn't a clue about the subway system, I settled on taking a cab....and $25 later, my very chatty (but barely understandable) cabby deposited me at the ferry terminal. My ferry was to take off at 6:30, and I made it with 10 minutes to spare.

The packed ferry made its way with ease to Staten Island while its athletic cargo quietly chatted, ate their breakfast, and took selfies with friends, strangers and interesting backdrops. I enjoyed the ferry, especially so early in the morning, and I met a lovely woman from Australia who was supposed to have done NY two years ago, but due to Hurricane Sandy, the race was cancelled and she opted to defer to this year. I departed the ferry with my new friend and we made our way to the next mode of transportation, a bus, that would be the last leg in our journey to the start line. Cab, ferry, bus. Simple, right?? :rolleyes:

Waiting For The Start

The athlete village is separated into three areas based on your designated wave color - blue, green and orange. (There are 3 waves that start 25 minutes apart starting at 9:40, and each wave is broken down into the 3 colors - blue, green and orange.) My color was blue, so I made my way to the blue village to sit with my fellow blue athletes. Being in the first wave (9:40 wave), meant that there weren't too many athletes waiting in the loo lines - Hallelujah! I'm sure as the morning wore on, the lines got longer with the accumulation of athletes. I found a spot near a tree to relax in the futile hope that it would shield me from the accurately predicted wind that was indeed picking up. Ha! That was a joke. But I sat with a nice group of runners and, as they say, misery loves company. We all were bundled up - two fellas even had sleeping bags with them - I had two trash bags. I ended up mainly chatting with a lovely gentleman (47 years old) from Sweden who had difficulty translating "treadmill" (running band) and who very sweetly was convinced I hadn't reached my 40s yet. Girls, moisturizer is your friend!!!! When it was time, my Swedish friend and I made our way to our respective corrals and wished each other a good race. I never saw him after that.

The Start, The Course, The Bridges

The course is a point to point that takes runners through all 5 boroughs of New York City. The start is actually 3 simultaneous starts as each color within each wave follows its own independent path until mile 8, at which point all three colors come together. The start is on Staten Island, but the runners immediately cross the New York Harbor via the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge - the blue wave runs on the right side of the upper level of the bridge, the green wave runs on the left side of the upper level of the bridge, and the orange wave runs on the right side of the lower level of the bridge - and, after descending the bridge nearly 2 miles into the race, enter Brooklyn. The streets of Brooklyn make up the next 11 miles, and at about the halfway point (mile 13) the course crosses the Pulaski Bridge and enters Queens. After only 2.5 miles in Queens, the course then enters Manhattan for the first time via the Queensboro Bridge at about mile 16. Near mile 20, the race crosses briefly into The Bronx via the Willis Avenue Bridge for about a mile, then re-enters Manhattan via the Madison Avenue Bridge. It then proceeds through Harlem, down Fifth Avenue and finishes up in Central Park.

Attached is a map of the course.

http://www.tcsnycmarathon.org/sites/default/files/TCSNYCM14_Course%20Map_no%20subways%20copy.pdf


Miles 0 - 13.1

So, as I made my way to the start line, I tossed off my trash bag and all my extra layers, and I was hoping that I'd be surrounded by big, warm, friendly runners who would keep me toasty and shielded from the wind. Not so. You see, being so close to the front, and because of how efficient the organizers of this event have configured these waves, there was no congestion at the start. We all were horribly exposed, and that very first bridge was brutal - the wind was so fierce that at times it was a battle to stay moving forward. And hats...oh my...hats with bills were flying everywhere...in fact, I nearly got decapitated by one! :eek:

Not long off the bridge and I was on the hunt to find a body to draft off of - and by mile 3 or so, my wish was granted in the form of a tall (but lean) fellow in a white shirt and blue hat who appeared to be running at a very similar pace to mine (I was targeting 8ish min/mile). I slipped behind him without missing a beat....and sure enough, each time I checked my watch, it showed he was keeping an even and consistent pace, and I was feeling like I hit the jackpot. Woo hoo! Sure, I was still feeling the wind that was swirling all around, but his company was having a positive psychological effect on me. It sounds a little odd I suppose, but out of the blue I started to pretend that he was my coach and I was on a crucial training run with him....that he was dictating the pace, and I was not going to fail by not keeping up.....I honestly was in a very good place. The effort felt appropriate for these first 13.1 miles.....and I was happy as a clam knowing I was on target for 3:3x....however, I was also aware that the wind was starting to pick up even more....and it was somewhere near the halfway point that my silent companion left me to twist out in the open all by myself as a porta-potty was calling his name, and I never saw him again.

13.1 miles in 1:46:43

Miles 13.1 - 26.2

So, now on my own I was fully exposed to all the elements....and the wind was starting to really whip at times. I held it together pretty well through mile 15 or 16, keeping fairly on pace target, but it was becoming apparent to me that the effort required to sustain my pace was increasing, and I started to ask myself, at what cost? I mean, this was not going to be a PB effort, so why risk injury or prolonged recovery? I reminded myself that I have another race in 15 weeks, so it would be monumentally stupid to proceed carelessly. And at that moment I let go of effort and just ran comfortably. I even started walking through the water stations at mile 19 - and boy does walking the water stations eat up time! :eek::o

I hadn't really noticed a whole lot about the course up until I let go of things, mainly because I was focused on my imaginary coach pacing me for the first half, and then because I was too busy cursing the wind and doing calculations in my head during the first few miles of the second half....but now, 17 miles in, I had the opportunity to notice my surroundings, and I began to enjoy the musicians and cheering spectators along the way. Thank god for musicians and cheering spectators - they really do help make an event like this! As soon as I crossed the last bridge and turned onto Fifth Avenue on mile 22, my eyes lit up at the sight of the Empire State Building directly in front of me way off in the distance. I was unprepared for this, but it brought with it a very warm feeling, and I became aware that this journey was nearing the end. At mile 24, I turned into Central Park and was immediately greeted by layers of enthusiastic supporters with signs and cow bells and balloons, and offering an abundance of encouragement. We ran up a hill, and I felt the crowd carrying me. But it was as I turned the first of two corners on the final mile that I thought how lucky I was to be a part of this amazing event....and I counted my blessings that I was physically able to run with "relative ease" these 26.2 miles....and then my heart grew heavy with the thought of those less fortunate than me, especially the victims of both 911 and the Boston bombings, and in particular, a dear friend of mine who is losing his battle with cancer. So, with love in my heart and a tear in my eye, I ran this final mile for them.

As I crossed the finish line, the usual scene of any marathon was unfolding - medals being placed around necks of athletes in varying degree of condition...and I do mean, "varying degree of condition." It doesn't even bother me anymore, the collateral damage - the shock value has dissipated with each passing marathon - but I do tend to ask myself, why do we voluntarily subject ourselves to such brutality? I haven't totally figured that out for myself yet. Hmmm. ?? But no matter, I was fine when I crossed the line - I felt pretty good for having just ran 26.2 miles in insane wind.....and, other than having a 3 mile walk to my hotel ahead of me in the cold while in my wet running gear, what wasn't there to be happy about??!! :) I mean, I was in New York City....and I had just ran in a world marathon! Whoop whoop!!

26.2 miles in 3:48:52

Okay, How Do I Feel??

Post marathon, I feel great. I was smart to ease off the gas after the halfway point, no doubt.....and I'm not terribly upset about my time. My PB is 3:20:60, but I was in nowhere near that kind of shape for this marathon when I rocked up to the start line. I've done basically no marathon specific training in 2014, and trust me, training for the marathon in an IM is NOTHING like training for a proper, stand alone marathon. I had hoped to go a 3:3x (preferably as close to 3:30 as possible), and I think I would have been relatively close (sub 3:35, anyway) if the wind had not been such a factor and if I had kept up the effort.

So, another marathon done...and another year in the books. Honestly, I'm glad these last 12 months are behind me...and now I can look forward with some promise. Fresh start. Clear focus. Better planning. Fingers crossed.

ToTriOrNot wrote: »

Please please tell us what moisturizer you use...hehehehe

Fantastic report as always DD. Well done!! I don't know if I will ever do an IM or a marathon, but your reports and log inspire me!

I'm an Elizabeth Arden gal....and, thanks!!! :)

RayCun wrote: »

what is the next race?

Donadea 50k. See you there??

RayCun wrote: »

15 weeks away already? wow. Unlikely to have the time to get out there, but maybe...

Oryx wrote: »

That just scared me too.

I believe we are now under 14 weeks away. :eek:

Wednesday, November 12th, 2014

Run plan: Track session :eek:, done as 2 miles easy, 16 x 400m (5k effort on the straights, jog the bends for recovery), 2 miles easy

Feel the need for speed, anyone?? Ugh. It's no secret, the little bit of speed I once had is gone. But, I am hoping I can jumpstart the legs by giving some love to the track. Fingers crossed....and honest effort/desire from yours truly.

This was done over lunch on another beautiful day - it's supposed to turn quite cold tonight, so I'm thankful this was today's session and not tomorrow's. Brr!!! Our local track isn't anything spectacular, but it's only a stone's throw away and underused, so it's convenient and usually pretty empty....and today, I was the only one on the property. YAY!!!

The session itself was good...and sort of fun in a something-new-to-do kind of way as I've never ever done a session like this before...ever. I picked out a marker at the beginning and ending of each straight so I could be consistent with the intervals and time myself. I had no idea that both straights would be so evenly marked, but to my delight they were. I did have to deal with a bit of a breeze, and for the most part I had a tailwind on the odd intervals, and a headwind on the even intervals.

The easy: 8:45, 8:40
The intervals, stated in seconds:
23, 23, 24, 23, 23, 23, 23, 24
24, 23, 23, 23, 23, 24, 23, 24
23, 23, 23, 24, 22, 23, 23, 23
22, 24, 23, 22, 22, 23, 23, 23
The easy: 9:28, 9:12

The intervals were very manageable and I was careful to watch effort as these were not to be all out sprints, but rather a 5k effort. I appreciate the inherent imperfection of the interval times stated above, but I think there is an indication of some evenness. Interesting session!

Actual run: 8.2 miles in 1:09:28 for an average pace of 8:28 min/mile

This evening I decided to do a proper yoga session - Injury Prevention - and it was immediately obvious how long it's been since I've done a proper session. Must. Do. Better. I really need to try and get at least 2 of these done every week! The body really, really needs this.

Post yoga, it was core work and foam rolling.

Friday, November 14th, 2014

Run plan: 5 miles easy

And...still easing into things....first week and loving how I'm feeling, but I know sooner or later (probably sooner than later) this warm, buzzing feeling in the body will be replaced with concrete legs and missing toenails. And so it goes....

The layers got more serious today (was it even above freezing when I did this run? :eek:), and I dug out my fetching purple hat I secured while in Dublin last year to keep my head extra warm. Love that hat! But, at least the sun was shining brightly, even if there was a biting breeze stinging the face. I guess you can't have everything!

The lunchtime menu served up eight laps around the field in a pair of Saucony's. I've actually had these shoes for a good 9 months but I could never find the love for them, until now. I'm determined to expand my running shoe horizon - variety is the spice of life, and all that (plus I like all the pretty colors!) - and I'm going to do a better job rotating my shoes. I read somewhere just recently that you should rest your shoes for 48 hours between runs to allow them to recover (translation: to allow the cushion to fully decompress), and if this can in any small way help to avoid possible injury (been there, done that), then sign me up! And what a great excuse to treat myself to a(nother) new pair of pretty Adidas adizero boost!

Actual run: 5.6 easy and enjoyable field miles

Dabbled in 40 minutes of Black Cat action post work. I'm loving my Cat setup in the living room - makes it SO easy to hop on and ride in a comfy setting at the drop of a hat.

Followed this up with some nice stretching, core, and slightly painful foam rolling.

catweazle wrote: »

The Luray version of AKW will love the above however I would be inclined to stick with what suits you and hasn't caused issues. My wife has those said Adizeros in even more shocking pink and loves them too

Definitely agree to stick with what suits....and I seem to have a nice mix now of three brands of shoes that agree with me - Asics (4 pairs), Saucony (1 pair), and Adidas (I am now the proud owner of 3 pairs of Boost in 3 fun colors! ). But seriously, I am really impressed with these Adidas (wore them today for 8 miles and was loving life while flying with ease)....but I guess the real test will come on the first long run in them.