DCM 2015: Mentored Novices Thread

Wow kennyg I really enjoyed that report, haven't been logged on all day and just finished work so am gonna work back thru the posts to where I last was this morn when it was still 'the morn after the day before'. Congrats on the achievement, am well impressed with the plan you had so clearly made and executed with precision, shows my prep up anyway.

Well, it took me all day but a race report is up on my blog and I'll edit a shorter version for the thread tomorrow. I'm conscious that I need to go to bed now as I have to work in the morning. I really wish I had taken another day of but oh well!

Made it through 4 hours of college but it wasn't pretty, the legs seized up and I was shaking trying to get home afterwards!

Have loved all the race reports so far! Brings me goosebumps and tears to read about your races. I'll finish reading tomorrow!

Good night!

Pre-race
Uneventful enough pre-race routine. Arrived in town just after 8, parked up & met my mate. We’ve been friends since we started secondary school together well over 30 years ago. Neither of us had done any running till we were well into out forties. Our marathon journey started about 2 years ago over a few too many pints in Whelan’s. It was one of those “bucket list” conversations. The original plan was to do a 10k together. This led us to run the 2014 race series and ultimately to DCM 2015. As we headed to the start line, our main objective was to finish the race - ideally together. Target times were of secondary importance, but we had a loose target of 4:30 which we felt was achievable for both of us. This was based our HM PBs (mine 1:54, his 2:05).

We wore those throwaway paper jump suits to keep us warm & then discarded them before the race. Did a few stretches & a small bit of slow running to make sure laces were tight & runners were comfy. All good. I wore two watches (to be sure, to be sure!). I suspected my Garmin battery wouldn’t last the full race (it didn’t) so I wore a 2nd cheap digital watch on the stopwatch setting. Oh, and for good measure, I had my phone with Strava app. Anyway, got to the line, shook hands with my buddy & off we went.

DCM 2015 Target time 4hr30 / 10:18 per mile
Miles 1-4
10:29
9:57
10:02
9:52
Loved this part. Felt comfy, soaked up the atmosphere. Crowd were fantastic. Despite the weather, Dublin looked & felt amazing. Chatted with my mate and generally enjoyed the experience. Delighted that I’d put my name on my shirt. It really helped to have complete strangers calling out my name – especially towards the end.

Miles 4-8
10:09
10:08
9:48
9:34
Still feeling strong. The wind was more or less behind us which was great. Joked to mate that the wind was our friend now, but would be our enemy later. I wasn’t wrong. The Castleknock crowd were amazing – it was a real party atmosphere. We noticed that we were speeding up whenever they crowds got really vocal, and after we took gels, so we had to keep each other in check a few times.

Miles 9-12
10:08
9:56
10:14
10:22
There was a different atmosphere on the quiet section down the park of the park (where there was no crowd). For the 1st time, I started to think about the enormity of the task ahead. We were still chatting away to each other & I noted how quickly the first hour had gone by. There was a great crowd at Chapelizod & one of our mates was there to shout us both on. I wasn’t expecting the big hill in Ballyfermot. Looking back on Strava, it doesn’t seem too big, but I thought was bloody tough at the time. Huge crowds in Rialto & Dolphin’s Barn. It got a bit congested in places, but was great fun.

Miles 13-18
10:17
10:21
10:10
10:41
10:43
10:44
We crossed the HM point at 2:15. This was bang on track for our 4:30 time. We chatted about how we were feeling at that point. We agreed we were happy with the pace & neither of us felt we wanted to go any faster. Given my HM PB, I reckoned I should have enough in the tank to possibly run a negative split. So far, so good... or so I thought! I don’t if it’s just me, but almost from the second I passed through the halfway point, it got tougher. Despite the fantastic crowds along the Crumlin Road, it seemed to go on forever. Likewise from Walkinstown roundabout into Kimmage & Terenure. The combination of headwind & long, slow drags made life tough on this section. Amazing crowds all the way, but then I began to feel a pain in the top of my right foot from about 16 or 17 miles.

Miles 18-23
10:44
10:33
10:50
11:26
12:32
11:46

The foot pain got progressively worse and I began to wonder if I’d be able to finish the race. The pain varied depending on the camber of the road. I noticed it wasn’t as bad if I ran on the left side of the road. I mentioned this to my mate & we stayed on left as much possible. I don’t really remember much of this section because I was concentrating on my running form to minimise the foot pain. I also started to feel tiredness in my knees (my mate was the same). From here on in, it was a case of gritting the teeth & keeping the head down. Again, great crowds & this was where my name badge made a real difference. Getting namechecks from strangers really helped me through a very tough few miles. I don’t know what all the fuss is about Heartbreak Hill – the hill at Ballyfermot was much worse for me. Once we reached the turn at UCD, I knew at that stage that we’d make the finish.

Miles 24-26
11:23
12:20
11:31

On the home straight now. Just kept putting one foot in front of the other. At this stage we weren’t going to make 4:30, so it was just about getting to the finish line. Amazing crowds all the way. Garmin clapped out at 4hr29 but I didn’t care. Then I saw the “800 meters to go” sign. Turned to may mate & said “I think we might just do this”. Saw my wife, kids & extended family on the finishing straight – all cheering like a bunch of nutters.

26-26.2 Finish
10.01
We upped the pace for the last 0.2miles & crossed the line together in 4:42:xx. My mate and I shooks hands, uttered a couple a couple of expletives about “ never doing this again” & wobbled down to collect our medals & goody bags. Legs felt weird for the first few minutes – almost like they belonged to somebody else. Fantastic feeling to have finished it. I’ll never forget the atmosphere & the feeling of crossing that finishing line.

Post race
The foot pain disappeared as soon as I stopped running, but the knees were really sore. It was a bit of a logistical nightmare trying to meet up with the family afterwards & the rain was pouring down at that stage. We didn’t hang around in town as I just wanted to get warm, get home & jump into an Epsom salt bath.


So, the training really paid off. My foot caused real problems on the day, but on the plus side I felt very strong aerobically and endurance-wise. To use a car analogy, the engine ran perfectly and was capable of much more… but the chassis wasn’t up to the task!

The time is really irrelevant to me. I decided after my 20 mile lsr that I wanted to enjoy my 1st marathon and stopped worrying about a target time. I’m so glad I took that approach because I could easily have caused myself real damage by pushing too hard for a target time.

Legs are still sore today, but the knees are OK, so no permanent damage done and that was the main objective.

Thanks again to Dubgal & everybody on this thread for all the comments & advice. There’s no doubting that my first marathon was a much more enjoyable experience as a result of this community.

Roll on DCM 2016!!!

Edit: Just to add, I'll book a physio appt this week to see if I can get to the bottom of the problem with my foot. It only seems to get painful on longer runs. I'd love to do DCM 2016, but only with the physio's blessing. Otherwise I'll focus on distances up to HM in future.

Either way, I'm now a marathon runner, so I can tick that off the bucket list :-)

ZV Yoda wrote: »

Roll on DCM 2016!!!

https://em.eventmaster.ie/client/order_step1.html?eventId=744&showHeader=true - registration just opened for next year

Deleted User wrote: »

This morning is telling me where actually hurts, rather than just generally aching - my lower back and left hamstring.

My tummy is still very sick

I'm finding it hard to stomach any food myself. Not feeling nauseated but the thoughts of eating...blech. Am forcing myself to eat because it's good for me.

Other than that, I'm improving. I like how you put it, whoops. Pain is starting to localise! Hip flexors and glutes hurt, arm is still sore but more mobile. Bit stiff in the shoulders but I'm used to that.

Still editing my report! Gosh am I ever long winded! :pac:

This Fat Girl Runs wrote: »

Other than that, I'm improving. I like how you put it, whoops. Pain is starting to localise! Hip flexors and glutes hurt, arm is still sore but more mobile. Bit stiff in the shoulders but I'm used to that.

Same here on the pain localising - instead of my legs being sore everywhere, now I have clearly identifiable pains in my calves, thighs, etc. :pac: No longer completely exhausted after a good sleep last night.

Also signed up for Jingle Bells...

RayCun wrote: »

at the top of Fosters Avenue, entrance to UCD?

Yeap that was me - I'm guessing you were the one with the beard?

Fair dues, frash. That's some amount of money raised, you should be very proud!

This Fat Girl Runs wrote: »

Still editing my report! Gosh am I ever long winded! :pac:

You've just run a marathon you are allowed !!

Resumed my cycle commute today- slowly!!- that was interesting.... Didnt want the heart rate to go up so was getting passed out by shoppers, grannies and folding bikes.... that was possibly harder psychologically than the marathon! Anyway, really benefited from moving the legs. I still have to get home though!

Dubgal72 wrote: »

mobfromcork, sounds like your body is fighting something. How are you today?

Hi Dubgal,

Legs are still stiff enough and sore but went for another 4km walk down by the river this morning. My brother and I joked yesterday that we were like new-born giraffes as our legs shot out involuntarily at weird angles as we were walking along. I have a bit of a chest cold/cough as does my daughter so maybe that was the source of the abnormally high heart rate.
I was looking at my Heart Diagram on Strava and it said I spent 96% of the race at my lactate threshold pace. My average heart rate was 177 bpm, average pace was 8.26 per mile.
On previous similar long training runs my pace was 8.31 per mile my average heart rate was only 154 bpm. (Sorry for all the boring stats!)

For the next few months I'm going to try and focus on shorter runs as mentioned by Raycun and yourself above. I've never run a 5km or 10km race so I'll try and do a few in December/January and maybe a 10 mile/half marathon in February and see about another marathon next year at some stage. For now I'll concentrate on being able to walk down the street without lurching spectacularly and unexpectedly in any given direction.

Hope all the legs/muscles/backs/brains recover well.

Mob

Those of you who have any experience of project management will be familiar with the term 'lessons learned' or some variation of it.

Training for and running the marathon was a big project for most of the posters here. Take a few minutes to look back over the whole of your training and the race and write down what you learned with a view to looking back at it if/when you decide to train for your next race/marathon. You should have notes under a couple of headings relating to both your race and your training. Suggestions for headings (feel free to amend):

What went well with your training plan?
What would you do differently with your training? (frash's example of a longer midweek run is an excellent one)
What went well about the race?
What would you do differently if you could start the race again?

Obviously you want to correct the errors that you think you made but more importantly you'll want to reinforce the things that went well for you.

It's important to do this immediately because you'll be amazed at just how quickly the details will start to fade.

This thread is a good place to post them if you're interested in comments on your thoughts but make sure that your write them down somewhere that you can easily access and do write them down!

My race report is going to be a little different. I won't be giving a mile by mile replay like I normally do. Some miles were boring, some were exhilarating, some were exhausting! Instead I'm going to trace my way around the course and note thoughts, feelings and experiences I had on the way.

Pre-race prep

Luckily I actually managed to get a decent night sleep. My cat woke me up an hour early but I'm used to that so I used the time to just rest and relax. I got up at 6.30am to make breakfast (if I never see another bowl of porridge again!) and choke it down. Nerves were finally beginning to surface and it was touch and go for minute whether I would keep breakfast down! Luckily I did and I was able to start getting ready. It didn't take long as I'd laid out everything the night before.

(Important note in hindsight: I hated the shirt I picked to run the marathon in! Not because it was uncomfortable but because I couldn't print my name on it. I tried using stickers but they fell off before I even got 2 miles in. I won't make that mistake again! Personalized cheers are the best!)
Anyway, at 8am I took a taxi to as close to the start as I could; had an interesting conversation about the merits and risks of running, especially a marathon!

I arrived an hour before the third wave start and did the usual bag drop and loo stop. Then went over to the 4.30 pacers to say hello to the 4:30 novices (red balloons were a fab idea!) and generally soaked up the amazing atmosphere. I soon left the group and took my place towards the back of the wave and we got underway.

The race plan

As I started the race, I had my Garmin set to show me two things. My distance, and my mile pace. I did not look at my cumulative time, and I did that on purpose. My plan was to run the race by counting down miles, not counting up hours. I knew that if I looked at my time at 2 hours and thought about the 4 and half hours left to go, it could be demoralizing. This proved to be the best strategy as the time passed more quickly than I imagined it could. I know you're all saying it took mental strength to keep going for 7 hours, but the reason I could do it was by completely ignoring the clock! Except for certain milestones and even then it was more of a ‘am I on track’ than a ‘how long have I got left’.

As you know, my plan was to take a gel and a piece of a Clif bar every four miles. In this way I broke up the marathon into short, do-able stages. That plan didn't hold together towards the end but it got me far enough!

I also realized when I got to the start that I'd forgotten my race water bottle at home! This turned out to be ok, there was plenty of water available on the course and in fact I suspect I drank too much water while I was out there.

Miles 1-4

It felt a little surreal crossing under the start line and over the mat. To have spent such a long time training for this and to finally be underway; it didn't feel quite real! This, of course, didn't last and pretty soon the pain made it real enough!

So for the start, I deliberately tried to run these miles slowly, which is what we had all been advised to do (not looking in anyone's particular direction coughSingercough :P ) I do remember feeling surprised when I got to Patrick Street. I was thinking 'wow, I'm here already!' even though I was going slowly enough. From the quays onwards I was running the part of the course I trained on; I've run this section more times that I can count! I really enjoyed the cheering from the crowd on the corner turning onto the quays. My name was still on my shirt so getting personalized cheers was great! The stickers fell off soon after that though so I ran most of the rest of the race nameless!
First water station was great to see. I p
icked up a bottle of water, it was small enough and light enough to carry easily so I kept it with me. I was happy with my pace and the rainbow shining over the Phoenix Park, I took as a good luck sign.

At mile 4, I slowed to walk and take my gel and Clif bar.

Miles 4-8

Being so familiar with this part of the course made for an easy run. I had moved into and was keeping to my easy pace and enjoying the day. The weather at the time was perfect for me...unfortunately it turned on me later on in the day!

When I got to Castleknock, I got my one and only experience of the kinds of crowds Dublin Marathon is famous for. It gave me goosebumps. Wow! The noise and energy of the crowd was phenomenal! I knew that I'd miss out on those kinds of crowds for much of the run so getting a glimpse of what it's like was something I'll never forget! I said it once and I’ll say it again, I do enjoy that experience you had!

Back into the Phoenix Park at mile 8, again took on my fuel here. I was feeling really good, enjoying the day and my progress. I knew the next few miles would be ok, and that I'd see a few more friends cheering along the way including a pit stop for supplies. In the back of my mind I knew time was progressing, but I was losing concept of just how long I'd been running already. It did not feel like I was 2 hours in already! This feeling of time compression lasted until about 20 miles!

Miles 8-12

I think these were the best miles of my marathon. I felt comfortable at my pace, the weather was cool and I was feeling really happy. Just after mile 10 I passed a friend who had some supplies for me. He walked with me for a bit while I restocked, and was really encouraging. This was on St. Laurence's Road, just before the hill. Feeling good, I carried on, walked the hill and made it to the top, feeling happy to know I was nearing the half way mark.

It was on the South Circular Road that I entered new, uncharted territory. I had never passed beyond that point on my training runs. It was all going to be new from here! But I knew that at this stage, I was feeling a lot better in form and emotion than I was at the same stage during my half marathon in August. It was a big mental win for me, to know that my training had made such a difference.

Mile 12, took on my fuel as per plan, though getting down the Clif bar was hard, it was so sweet and sticky.

Miles 12-16

It was at Dolphin's barn when I saw my friend MG, and her daughter who had come out to support me. After that, the halfway point beckoned! I was pretty much on track for the time I was aiming for, I still felt good though I was starting to feel the distance and time on my feet. My Garmin was also beeping the miles early (by nearly half a mile!), so that was no help! I am allergic to maths so I couldn't translate the pace to match the race markers. So I just decided to stop trying and just keep running. I eventually made it to the halfway point, and felt so proud when I crossed the chip mat, knowing the various people tracking me would be notified I'd made it this far.

I think I took my next fuel a little sooner than 16 miles. I was feeling like I needed it so decided better to take it early, rather than leave it too late. So I walked as I took it, skipped the Clif bar as I didn't think I could stomach it anymore. I took my gel and sipped my water then carried on.

Miles 17-20

These miles were tough! The weather took a bad turn and it rained and poured by turns. I ended up running into a headwind so had to really slow my pace. I wasn't too bothered about having to go slower, while I did have a target time, my ultimate goal was to finish.

At mile 17 I remember thinking that I was down to single digit miles left. I had absolutely no sense of time of day, or time I had spent on the course. I'm glad I didn't know. I think it would have been a lot harder if I had! I had to walk a little bit here, and stopped to stretch for a minute as my hamstring was starting to feel tight. When I tried to rotate my ankle, I knew my body was feeling the strain; I could barely move my foot in a circle! The stretching helped though and I carried on.

At mile 18 I met MG again. I stopped here for a bit, taking the chance for a little break while I restocked my fuel belt, drank more water and thanked my friends for their support. I lingered here a bit longer than I should have but seeing them was just what I needed. Honestly, I don't know if I could have done this without them and I'm so glad I didn't have to find out! After I left my friends I ran down the street, rounded a corner and was surprised by yet another friend! Another guy I volunteer on the Soup Run with was out with his father. It was so nice to see them! They followed me for a bit and we had a little chat, which surprised my friend as he thought at 18 miles I'd be too winded to talk!

It really was just what I needed and I took off, rounded the corner and passed another timing mat (I think...did I?!). Again, thinking of my friends who were tracking me, knowing they would be cheering for me.

Miles 20-22

I really started to struggle at mile 20, my left arm started to twinge every time I bent it and it got more painful as time went on. I hadn't been carrying anything in my hand so I'm not sure why it happened but it threw me off my pace and stride. I had to alternate between walking and running from this point on just so I could straighten my arm. The pain in my legs was also starting to hit me, although I followed Dubgal's advice and accepted it, then kept moving.

At 20 miles, there were only 6 more to go, but these last 6 miles were the longest, toughest, most brutal part of the course for me. Each mile felt like it was twice the distance!

I knew I'd finish though. There was no doubt in my mind about that! You guys were waiting for me in the pub after all and I knew some of you would be watching the tracker for me! But it was hard. It was emotionally, physically, mentally the hardest thing I've ever done.

I can't even remember anymore when or where I took on more fuel. I do know I was drinking too much water. I'd had a magnesium drink at mile 18 but my mouth was so dry that I kept drinking water, and was too shy to spit it out so I kept drinking it. I need to work on that for future running!

It was during these miles that I realised the reality of my marathon being different to yours. Water stations were closing, roads were opening again and those of us slogging it out were left pretty much to ourselves. No crowds, no roads, running on and off footpaths, running with cars driving up or across the road.

It was lonely.

But I'm used to that so I kept going. I concentrated on getting from one mile marker to the next. It was rainy, grey, dark and cold. All I could think was how tired I was and how badly I wanted to get to the finish line (and to McGrattans to see you lot!)

Mile 22-24.5

These two miles were one dogged footstep after another. There were a few volunteers and people cheering and I could barely manage a wave with one hand to acknowledge them (I usually like to smile and say thank you! I didn’t even have the energy for that!). I was so tired and a little disillusioned with myself for not being able to keep up the pace I had set for the first half. I'd had such a great feeling about the marathon so to see it slipping away was disheartening. But I also knew that these were the uncontrollables I had been warned about, there was nothing I could do except stick to the plan; the plan to finish the marathon.

At mile 24.5 I said hello to the pain, to the tiredness, to the endless hours on my feet...I said hello then I said goodbye. I was going to finish this once and for all and I was going to finish at a run. I was also bound and determined to finish under 7 hours. I’d have to move my butt in order to do it!

Mile 24.5 to 26.2

It actually felt good to get back to a running pace, I pushed past the pain in my arm and just concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. Still giving a tired wave to people who cheered and feeling the emotion start to rise as I neared my ultimate goal, the finish.

I knew by my Garmin that I had passed 25 miles, but I somehow had missed the mile marker so I couldn't be sure. I was so tired that it was possible I was reading my watch wrong. I did feel a sense of disbelief, wondering if somehow I had to run further than I thought. Maybe I hadn't passed the 25 mile marker after all? Luckily someone yelled out that I was only half a mile away from the finish. In the grand scheme of things, what was half a mile?

As I approached the finish, I could see it, far into the distance. I've experienced this before, where a finish line feels like it's not getting any closer, no matter how fast I move so I put my head down and ignored it.
I just ran.

At 800m I knew I had it. And when a passerby yelled out to me 'this is your day' I nearly lost it and burst into tears then and there. From then on I had to battle the tears, finally allowing myself to look up at the finish line, seeing it so close and knowing I was going to do it. I knew the cameras were there taking my photo and I probably look a right mess with my face all crumpled up with emotion!

I crossed the line at 6 hours, 51 minutes and 15 seconds.

I crossed the line, a marathoner.

And promptly burst into tears of joy, relief, of pride. A volunteer was standing nearby and saw me crying, she offered me a hug and I collapsed into her arms, sobbing like a baby. She just held me while I pulled myself together, I still had to collect my medal!

Of course, I cried again when the medal was put around my neck. In fact, I cried a lot that evening, randomly and without warning it would hit me (some of you guys witnessed that in the pub!). The sheer magnitude of what I had done. The time spent on the course, the distance I covered, the challenge I had set and met. I knew I could run a marathon. And I did. (Didn't get the t-shirt though, they'd run out! They took my race number and will post it. Bummer! I wanted to wear it in the pub with you guys!)

This marathon has been the journey I always thought it would be. Challenging, exhausting, exhilarating, amazing. I am not the person I was when I started. I am better, stronger and more confident than ever.

I said this on my blog but I’m saying it again here. I don’t even want to think about what it would have been like to do this without you guys. I have enjoyed getting to know you all, seeing your progress and sharing the course with you. Physically, I ran this marathon on my own, but mentally and spiritually, I was never alone. You were with me the whole way.

Dubgal, that hug. Says it all. It’s how I pictured my finish all along.

Annnnnnd I'm crying again.

Chops1234 wrote: »

Enjoyed reading that. Especially the part near the end with the mother and kids cycling around you to cheer and support you. Fair play to them.

Well done

Thank you!

That family were the best! I know another guy on the course was really annoyed by them, but I found they were such great support. I first noticed them cycling in Castleknock, so they, more than anyone out there, knew what I had been though. They'd seen it firsthand! I really, really wish I could find them to thank them!