St George Marathon Recap

Let me start this post by saying "AH YEAH!!"  STG 2013 did not disappoint.   I ran my guts out and finished in 3:32:00 a PR by over 8 minutes and another Boston Qualifying time!!!  I am seriously so excited with how the race went.  I think the St George marathon is one of the best.  It's great for me because it's close to home but it is so well run and so beautiful it just can't be beat.  It's hard to get into but I totally know why.  It's a fast, beautiful race. 

Now for the recap....

We drove down Friday afternoon and hit the expo.  The expo was great.  It took a matter of minutes to get my number and shirt and then we walked around for a bit so I could buy random running gear.  Then I got my heel taped up.  I waited in line for like 40 minutes to get taped up but I wanted to be sure my heel wouldn't bother me during the race.  I thought it was hilarious that the only line in the entire expo was getting taped up and some people were getting some serious taping done....makes me wonder if marathoners are hard on themselves :)  ha ha

 

I of course picked pink.

The only problem with the entire race was this years race shirt.  They are HUGE!  Last year I got a women's medium and the arms were a little short so I decided to get a women's large this year.  However - it's more like a men's XL and I will never be able to wear it.  Even though it's one of the cutest bright green shirts ever.  Oh well.  

Kami (my sis-in-law) and I got on the 4:30 shuttle from our hotel (if you run STG stay at the Marriott they are amazing to the runners).  Then got right on a bus and headed up to the starting line.  We got there with A LOT of time to spare hit the porta potties then sat down to rest and wait for Kelli.  It was cold at the start - in the 20's.  Once we met up with Kelli we hit the potties again and then dropped our extra clothes off and headed over to the starting line.  We crossed the line about 3 minutes after the gun went off.  I was freezing and couldn't feel my feet for about 3 miles and didn't even toss my gloves or jacket for 5 miles.  But the temps were PERFECT for a marathon. 
 

 
The goal was to shoot for a 3:35 time so that all 3 of us would qualify.  I liked knowing I might have a nice big buffer and instead of focusing on myself I could focus on my training partners instead.  It helped me stay mentally tough.  I wore a clif bar pace bracelet to keep track of where we should be.  I didn't watch it too closely but every 5 or so miles I'd double check it and we were ahead of schedule.  The closer we got the happier I got.  

Post race group photo.  I couldn't be happier.  We worked so hard and have trained for so long and it all paid off on race day.  We were strong and made our goal.  

 After stretching and walking around the finishers area for a bit Kami and I headed back to the hotel.  I did a 10 minute ice bath and put on my comfy clothes and compression socks.  Then we headed over to Swig to get a big fat diet coke and cookie.  A very well deserved treat.  We drove home right after and I was home before 6:00 pm and ready to lay down in my bed and not get up again :)

A few more details for me:  I did a caffeinated GU at mile 5, chomps at mile 11, Roctane at mile 17 and chomps at mile 22.  Drank a full glass of water and/or gatorade at all 4 stops and drank one other time.  I didn't cramp up during or after the race so I feel like my nutrition and water were right on. 

30 Day Challenge

Day 4:  I am so confident in my wardrobe that I wore 2 pink items today.  I was planning to save these awesome pink shoes as a back-up in case I ran out of pink.  But I am sure I can do this so I busted them out with my pink shorts today.

Day 5:  Race day.  You know I'm wearing pink on race day whether I'm doing a challenge or not.  Pink is my go-to race color.  It makes me run fast!

Day 6:  Since I am still dying from the marathon we went for a walk this morning so I needed to really bundle up.  It was the perfect thing to get my tired sore legs moving a little.

30 Day Challenge - Day 2

T-minus 3 days until the marathon.  Today was a short speed work - done in pink shorts of course.  It was 4 miles total with 2 sets  one mile intervals at a 7:13 pace with a half mile jog between.  It was so short I just ran on my treadmill in my basement.  I hate working out alone so I rarely run on my treadmill.  I'd rather run on the treadmill at the gym so I have friends with me.  But for a run this short I was done in less time than the drive to and from the gym.  

And look at the forecast for this weekend. It looks perfect!!

My October Fitness Challenge

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month so I have decided to do a 30 day challenge.  Unlike most fitness challenges - situps, push ups, planks, etc - I've opted for wearing something pink every workout this month.  And just to really challenge myself it has to be something different and I can't buy anything new.  Don't worry...I've totally got this.  I counted my tops and bottoms last night and came up with 28 items.  I was planning on using accessories too if needed but it doesn't look like I'll need them.   Today I taught spin class and wore this pink skirt. Day 1.  Check.

I am 4 days away from the marathon.  I am so ready to run hard and then rest for a while.  My poor body is starting to feel the high mileage I've been putting in.  My right heel is killing me and I'm pretty sure the only thing to do to fix it is rest.  Why do I have to get old?  Ha.

New Race Outfit

I love (and I mean really love) buying new running clothes.  It's the way I reward myself for hard work and training.  Plus I love having a new outfit for every big race I run.  I train hard then focus my race jitters on random stuff like picking a new outfit.  I love running races in lululemon skirts - they are super comfortable, have 3 pockets to carry all my GU's and iPod and are dang cute.  

So when I saw this new black and white striped skirt I knew it would be my race outfit.  I wore it on my 22 mile run and it was perfect.  I am of course throwing in a touch of pink too.  I used to always race in all black - but the pictures weren't nearly as fun.  So next week if you're looking for me crossing the finish line at St. George you know what I'll be wearing. 

September where have you gone?

Wow - I haven't posted in a month.  Sorry I've been busy running and getting kids back in school and taking an amazing vacation.  

My training has gone great except for the week when we went to Florida and on a Disney Cruise.  I only ran 10 miles total over 8 days....oops!  I planned to run but the first day on the ship while I was on the treadmill we were coming into port and the movements of the ship turning, slowing down and docking were too much for me so I called it at 5 miles.  The next day I planned on running 9-10 miles outside on the island.  Disney has a 5K so I would have a course to follow and would be safe.  But by the time we got off the ship and started the 5K it was 80 degrees and really humid.  I ran the 5K - and took 2nd overall and 1st woman finishing in 22 minutes and a few seconds (I didn't have my watch so I don't know exactly).  It was so hot I knew without any drinks and nutrition it wouldn't be smart to run more miles so I just ran the course out and back a few times to run in with my sis-in-law and mother-in-law who ran the race.  I'm guessing I put in between 5-6 miles total.  Then the next day I woke up and my low back was killing me so I knew I needed to take it easy and without my mom next door to work on my back I didn't dare put a lot of miles on for risk of injury.  So....I had a nice unplanned week of rest. 

Just after I finished

My SIL after her finish. 

My MIL's 2nd 5K ever.  She was awesome!

My sweet plastic finishers medal - my kids love it!

When I got back I was a little stressed because it took me 3 days to feel good on a run again.  But by my run on Wednesday when I did my speed work (1 mile intervals) I felt great.  I did a week of good runs and now I'm tapering to get ready for the race.  8 more days!!!  I am so ready to just get it done.

This weeks workouts:
M - 7 miles
T - spin
W - tempo run 6.5 total with 3 at 7:40 pace
Th - 6 miles
F- rest
S - 8 miles

August Recap

My goodness I'm so behind on my posts.  This whole back to school thing takes a while to get used to.  August was a big month for me - my highest mileage month EVER  (191.10 miles) in my life.  Which might be why I've been feeling tired.  But I also feel very ready for the marathon. 

 

Saturday was my 22 mile run.  We got dropped off up the canyon and ran down all the way back to the house.  I felt better on this run than on our last 20.  I did GU chomps at mile 7 and 17 and a roctane gel at mile 11.  We dropped drinks along the trail so that I didn't have to carry anything - one of my gatorades got taken but luckily there was a water fountain near that stop.  I did the whole thing without music too.  

Monday was supposed to be a 10 mile recovery run and even though it was Labor Day there was lots going on so I left my house at 5:30 am to drive up the canyon to meet a friend who was staying at her cabin for the weekend.  It was really dark at 6:00 and the trail just seemed too scary to both of us.  So we ended up running 4 miles up a mountain and back down.  Not the best "recovery" run - it was a tough 8 miles but I finished it.  It rained on us the last mile which was actually really nice. Then yesterday I taught spin and did crossfit.  And today was a 9 mile run.