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Dublin Marathon 2012 - Mentored Novices Thread
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Yeah but you had a 45 minute PB in between the two races
Like CL I paced the 3:45 group and had a ball too, I nearly fainted near the end from the roaring I was doing at the crowds to whip up noise over the last 3 miles, I had to take a deep breath before roaring some more down the finish straight as i was almost spent at that point
It was lovely to meet a few boardsies on the course and a lot of the novices in the Pub afterwards (Blockic, Career_Move and PM himself) and great to read about all the success stories on this thread over the last few days. I was in the initial Novice group back in 2009 which was fantastic, but witout doubt this is the largest and most successful Novice group to date. Some cracking times and brilliant performances all round. I just hope most of you continue with your running and stick around the logs a little more as you will undoubtedly improve and continue to receive loads of great advice. I would strongly recommend everyone to start their own training log in this section and still be around to help out with the Novices next year.
See you all at the races some time soon.
All a bit keen, but do you guys know when the Improvers thread begins, I really want to improve my time for next year? Thanks0 -
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Great reports everyone, some fantastic races there.
What to do next?
Join a running club (I'm a bit of a pest about this
) No-one ever thinks they're good enough to join a club, but you are all marathon runners now! Any club would be glad to have you.
I do intend doing this, but find it a bit scary despite being a grown woman! Clonliffe Harriers is the club nearest me, but they look very professional, anyone on here in that club?0 -
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I think that we should give it a few days before starting the new thread - keep the immediate afters for here as its the record of the marathon event as a whole and the next few days aches and pains are a part of it
I've a few ideas for an improvers tracker as well. Stay tuned 0 -
Target: get to the finish line, even if it’s on my hands & knees, & GET THAT T-SHIRT!
Estimated time: between 4:45 – 5:00
Actual time: 4:58 having run the entire way, couldn’t be happier than that!
Loooong version: (apologies, this is going to be rambling & incoherent after a night of very little sleep!)
So two full days later I’m probably the last novice to post my race report! It’s taken me this long to get through the 20-odd new pages of reports & I’m loving reading how everyone else got on. I’m in bed sick today & it’s really cheering me up! Not sure if I’m sick because of my inferior ability to microwave food, or my body is still very cross with me after what I put it through on Monday!
Starting on Sunday night, my mum was staying so I thought I’d better tell her where I was off to on Monday. I brought in my race number to show her, and she looked at it, went “13039. Oh lovely.” & continued brushing her teeth. :rolleyes:
Taxi on Monday morning was about 1 minute late & I was starting to get nervous that I was going to be late! Eventually it arrived & I was dropped off just beside the finishing line. Was good to have seen my goal before the race, as it really helped me visualise just how far I had left to go when I was coming into the final miles.
Headed into the baggage area to strip off the layers & got a text from FiiFii to see if I wanted to start off together with herself & Curr33. I was delighted to have some friendly faces at the start line; just knowing someone else there made me feel less like a fraud standing at a marathon start line with 14000 proper athletes. Saw rasher_m on her way to the start line too, & it started to feel a little less scary again. FiiFii, Curr33 & I headed into the starting area near the 5h pacers where we met Walkedit & DeeDee. Was great to meet other boardsies at the start line, and we headed off together. To start we were right infront of the 5h pacers, but after the first corner they were off way ahead of us! :eek: Was a bit of a surprise for me, I guess I assumed everyone would do a slow mile to warm up like me, but they were off on target with the gun! I think on O’Connell St FiiFii & I had caught up with them, and our pace was just a little bit faster so we headed on. One of the 5h pacers had a sign on her pack: "It's not your legs giving in, it's your head giving up. Don't stop running!" I did remind myself of this a few hundred times during the last 5 miles or so!
In some ways, the marathon was both easier & harder than I expected. I found the going got tough a little sooner than I thought it would, but then I was in considerably less pain than anticipated during & after the rest of the race.
At 8 miles (which is far too early for blisters!) I felt my first blister coming up, but just ignored it as I’ve learned to do & ran on. Over the next few miles I felt it spread (felt like very localised pins & needles), then possibly pop, and then it wasn’t so bad. A second much worse blister arrived in the second half, but 6 months of running on regular blisters has me well able to just ignore it until the finish.
Not long after the half-way mark, my left hip was starting to get a little rusty (a problem that I’ve had since the half I did in March), but it wasn’t enough to stop me so just soldiered on. Then my other hip, knees & ankles started to join in one by one. For a while I was just repeating to myself “just don’t think of the pain, just don’t think of the pain…” but then I remembered the pains in my joints during my first 10m & 13.1m races about 7 years ago and it wasn’t even close. Those early races were so tough that what I felt on Monday paled in comparison. Remembering that made it easier to just stop thinking about my current discomfort!
I took gels at 5m, 10m & 15m but after that I couldn’t even look at one. My stomach just didn’t want to know. My muscles were tired but not empty, & I didn’t make myself take any more after that. The whole way around I was a little worried about running too fast & hitting that wall, but fortunately it never materialised.
Coming up to Heartbreak Hill at 20m, I was keeping an eye out for Ray D'Arcy who I knew would be around there somewhere. He was right at the top, & I was so busy looking out for him that I was at the top before I knew it! I was running soooo slowly at this point that there was a tall man walking beside me, going faster up that hill than I was! But I was still running & he was definitely walking, so I felt good for persisting. Getting to the top of that hill felt great as I knew it all flat / downhill from there (except that sneaky little bridge outside Accenture). Even though I was quite tired & had slowed by 30-60sec/mile, I was on the home stretch & had run for longer than I ever did in my life.
I loved the support from the crowds the whole way around, but on the last 6 miles it was particularly appreciated. I gave the thumbs up to so many people, and hi-fived as many kids as I was near enough to reach. I got a good few cheers from people reading my name on my bib. And I ran for fairly long stretches near a “Jerry From Kerry” and a “Jim” (orange t-shirt) & they were getting loads of personal cheers which I shared a little bit Around the RDS, DeeDee & her clubmate caught up with me again. The encouragement from DeeDee was great & she was a great support for her friend also. DeeDee you’d enough spirit to get two people around the course & still meet your goal time, fair play! I was getting to the point where I wondered how much longer I could keep running, but sheer stubbornness & the atmosphere on the day meant I kept trying. I really am very very stubborn & I wanted to be able to say I ran the whole way. :cool:
Heading out with FiiFii, it felt like an LSR with extra company. So as not to be overwhelmed by the enormity of the distance, I broke it down into little stages. My OH said he’d be out at 11m, then was the half-way mark, then FiiFii’s family were at 15m, my OH was there again at 18m, sleb sighting due at 20m, FiiFii’s OH & friends were due at 21m and then it was the home stretch. FiiFii pushed on a little just before the 20m mark, but having her to pace me & keep me from taking walk breaks that far was great. I really doubt I’d have come in under 5h only for her bringing me that far. Seeing my OH pop up at two more points in the final stretch was lovely too, really lifted my spirits!
Coming into the last 2 miles, I couldn’t believe I was still running. At several stages I had to stop myself crying (I can’t afford to get dehydrated now!) From Pearse St past Trinity, I found I had a little bit of fuel left in the tank to speed up just a teeny tiny bit for the last few hundred metres. I felt myself doing proper running along the home stretch & passing the finish line the tears (of joy, shock, relief, elation…) were there!
After the marathon, I was in considerably less pain than I expected. This was a lovely surprise! I expected to feel like death, but I didn’t. Yes my legs were wobbly when I tried to get dressed after the race, yes I was just exhausted for the rest of the day, yes it was hard on my legs getting up & down, but I expected that I’d feel like I was dying. Not a hint of the drama queen, eh? :rolleyes: I’ve learned a lot about pain prevention & cure though so this certainly helped. Hot bath yesterday morning was just lovely, couldn’t feel any pain anywhere while I was floating away!
When I got home, I expected to be ravenous & want to eat everything I could see & get stuck into the bottle of wine that’s been at the top of my fridge for the last 6 weeks. But I had no appetite; ordered a take-away but could only stomach a tiny bit, and wasn’t even that interested in my glass of wine. Yesterday I was still a bit off, and then was up sick all last night.
Nothing like a sick stomach to make you forget about your joints! Think it’ll take a while for my system (translation: appetite!) to get back to normal.
I would like to say an enormous thank you to everyone involved in the organisation of the marathon. The crowds along the route really bring a great buzz all throughout, but especially when the going is tough. Thank you to Anne & all the other experts & novices on this thread without whose advice I wouldn’t have made it safely to the start line, and achieved my goal of running the entire marathon. I don’t think I could have been any better prepared for the day, and I would never have managed this on my own. I’ve learned so much about running this year, both what to do and very importantly what NOT to do! Also I’d definitely second PM, Blockic & Career_Move to lead next year’s thread. Between them they’ve got every level of novice covered, & gone through every injury & emotion imaginable!
So LarMan & PM, would I run another marathon or get the VCH re-done? Well only a small handful of friends know about all my piercings (the visible ones are easily hidden so you wouldn't know I've any if I didn't want you to), but I'll be telling anyone who'll speak to me that I've done a marathon. I'll be working it into every conversation, something like "Well, as someone who's run an entire marathon, yes I do prefer the green jumper to the blue one..." :pac: Knowing the pain / discomfort of both now, I’d hop onto the piercing table again a lot quicker than line out for a marathon. The after-buzz is comparable for sure, and the “you did what???” :eek: faces are similar too!
So what next? Well I’m not registering for another marathon just yet. I’ve registered for the Semi de Paris 2013 in March. I’ve done it 3 times before & my OH has registered to come with me for his first half-marathon. I’m excited for him to do such a nice course for his first half (and also about the mini-break to Gay Paree!) After chatting to DeeDee at the start, I think I’ll look into running clubs nearby. I’d like to work on my speed over shorter distances, eventually working up to improve on my half PB. I’m not saying never again to a marathon, but I’ll have to see how I feel after Paris in March. I might start getting crazy notions again like I did this year… :rolleyes:
What do you wish you had been told before you started training for DCM?
Anyone can run a marathon (yes even me!) Just commit to the training and you can do it. It’s a wonderful achievement, and not quite as scary as I thought it would be. People do make the marathon out to be this massive, epic, unachievable thing. It is massive and it is epic, but only unachievable if you never try.
What would you say to people who are reading this thread now and contemplating doing their first marathon next year?
Be realistic. Is now the right time? With family, work, study & other commitments, can you also commit to training 4 times a week? Will you commit to the training? Real life will get in the way occasionally, but don’t let trivial excuses ruin your training. Will you really sacrifice the occasional late night on the beer so you can do a good LSR the next day? If you really want it, you can do it. But there will be sacrifices along the way! (It’s totally worth it though!)
What were your high points and low points of the whole experience?
Low: some days running with legs of lead. I didn’t understand why & that was frustrating. (If my legs are like this just running 5m, how the hell can they do 26m?) I know now that I needed more carbs & more pre-hydration, and since my physio told me this I haven't had another lead-legged run!
That’s it for the lows for me really; I’ve enjoyed the challenge & got such satisfaction ticking off the box beside each scheduled run!
High: setting myself a massive challenge and following through to achieve it. Every short run is one move closer to the goal. I feel like I can do anything after this.
High: I’ve done something that only 1% of the population will ever do! I am an “elite athlete” in my world!
High: I’ve inspired a few friends to get their runners on too!
High: the buzz on race day!
Do you plan on doing another marathon?
Maybe. I’m going to aim for some faster short distances over the winter & my eighth half-marathon race in March 2013. And then we’ll see… If I’m not at the start line of DCM2013, I’ll definitely be along the route with the bag of jellies, roaring everyone on and clapping til my hands are as sore as their feet! 0 -
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I can't confirm it but I know I do a lot of hill work and although I could hardly walk when I finished, my legs were perfect yesterday and todayStephenRooney wrote: »Hi All,
My Quads are as sore again today! Calves are brand new. I can hardly get down the stairs again. My friend suggested It's because I did very little hill work.. and it makes sense I suppose. Can anyone confirm this? I live near Sutton so am planning on starting to incorporate hill work by running around Howth/Sutton Peninsula every week or two maybe in preparation for next years events! The Quads really slowed me down after mile 20. Thanks 0 -
career_move wrote: »I can't confirm it but I know I do a lot of hill work and although I could hardly walk when I finished, my legs were perfect yesterday and today
Like career_move, I did a good bit of hill work, largely because I ended up doing a good few of the LSRs in Donegal. Did some work around Howth as well. The legs feel almost normal today, and were not too bad at all yesterday.
Having said all that, although I never stopped running, it was Heartbreak Hill that did me in in terms of slowing me down and sapping the energy for the next few kilometers so not sure what to make of it all!
Like Stephen, I wondered if feeling too good after the race meant I could have worked harder. I suppose I could but I'm going to take my 4:02 and not dwell on it. It was a fantastic experience from start to finish (except for those hard few kilometers around Stillorgan and Ballsbridge).0 -
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What do you wish you had been told before you started training for DCM?
- Join this forum - well next yr's equivalent... (completely invaluable, would have been lost without it..)
- When you join, don't be afraid to get involved, ask q's, give advice. I was a lurker for quite a while and shy at the start as never really done the 'social media' thing but you get much more out of it (and help others) if you get involved
- Find a post run recovery drink that works for you (couldn't walk do for days after LSR's until started taking one of these immediately after, recommend the 'for goodness shakes' )
- Find a buddy for those LSR's - makes all the difference....And boards great place to look for one as variety of paces & runners!
- TRUST in the training plan (and esp the LSR pace)... it'll get you there.....
What would you say to people who are reading this thread now and contemplating doing their first marathon next year?
As the famous slogan says 'Just do it'
Yes it's tough - training gets very intense just before the taper, you'll have to seriously curtail your social life, evenings & weekend day taken up with training and your OH/family may get a bit frustrated with your incessant prattling on about training:o but the sense of achievement of setting a goal and achieving it is well worth it. Gives you such a level of confidence in all other area's of your life that if you want something, you just need to put in the effort and it'll happen
What were your high points and lowpoints of the whole experience?
Low: That 15 mile run when I took my first gel at 10k and then couldn't run more than 100 meters at a time cos my stomach was cramping so much
Low: The 18 mile run in Phoenix park on my own on the hottest day of the year, sweating it out as everyone else lazed around eating BBQ & playing frisbee..:(
Low: The 10 miler race in the park when came unstuck after 7miles and had top walk/run the end
High: Every time I went over my previous longest distance
High: Doing the HM race and getting to the 10 mile point almost 5 mins faster than the disastrous 10 miler only 3 wks before
High: Getting to say 'well I'm a marathoner runner' to practically everything since Monday
High: Crossing that finish line on Monday afternoon......
Yes you have the odd tough run but think most of us found was a reason behind it (hydration, nutrition, plan old 'bad day' etc) & if you address these and push on with the plan you quickly get over it
Do you plan on doing another marathon?
Absolutely yes
Bit awkward as hoping to do some traveling next yr (tx for suggestion of Ottawa Walkedit but but aiming to be sunning it in Fiji by that time). Have my Garmin now so tentative plan to keep fitness up over winter, try my best to follow a plan over the summer as move around and if can keep up training should be back for 2013. If not then will be on the sidelines cheering the rest of you on & target a spring 2014 0 -
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Slightly off topic but should give you a bit of a chuckle. Did anybody else here stay on 4th floor of Camden court hotel on Sunday night??? And are any of you from Louth?? I was woken from my slumber @ 4.30 am by this thick high pitched Louth accented female knocking on every door wondering if it was hers. She was getting a bit of grief from the guy she had pulled as he was tired and hungry. She eventually lost the rag and abused him for not knowing her name!! Then silence, followed by giggling followed by someone from another room shouting at them to STFU cos there was a marathon following morning coppers has a lot to answer for! 0
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What do you wish you had been told before you started training for DCM?
- Join this forum - well next yr's equivalent... (completely invaluable, would have been lost without it..)
- Find a buddy for those LSR's - makes all the difference....And boards great place to look for one as variety of paces & runners!
+1 to this! If I hadn't found this thread when I was starting training, it's possible that I'd have kept going on my own for 6 months, but the advice on here gave me the confidence that I was training "properly" & would get there well prepared & with a sensible approach.
Also an LSR buddy is the best thing ever. When I was doing the LSRs on my own, I could put it off from Sat morn til the afternoon, then the evening... & before I knew it, it was Sunday evening & I'd spent the whole weekend dreading the run instead of getting it out of the way & being able to relax! Having an appointment to run made sure I just got on with it. It's great to share training experiences & compare notes on all the boring running apparatus (garmins, gels, shakes, stretches, physio tips, foam roller vs the stick, etc) that no one else is a bit interested in! Also makes it much less boring when you're out there for almost 4 hours! 0 -
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Pageant Messiah wrote: »I think that we should give it a few days before starting the new thread - keep the immediate afters for here as its the record of the marathon event as a whole and the next few days aches and pains are a part of it
I've a few ideas for an improvers tracker as well. Stay tuned
Said like a true leader :-) (those novices in good hands next year).0 -
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guys don't be worrying about next years thread for the time being...relax and enjoy the achievement of having completed your marathon, no matter what the time was.
take it easy for the next few days, legs are probably still tender and sore but a gentle walk, swim or cycle will really help..plenty of good food too.
The mentor will be sorted early next year when the high chiefs are in town and call to me with the big cheque!!:D
Consider my application form in so. 0
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