Richmond Marathon Recap - Finally! (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

I had another week of very little work outs.  I ran a couple of times, including a Turkey Trot, and went to the gym once.  I really need to get back on a good schedule.  Not a very exciting week, so I'll give you a more exciting (and a little long) recap. :)

So two weeks after I ran the MCM, I had decided to run Richmond.  Because I was signed up for the Marathon Training Team, I have entry to the marathon.  I wasn't sure if I would drop down to the half, or run my second marathon in two weeks.  I had gone back and forth on what I would do for the two weeks.  Come the week of the expo, I was leaning more towards the marathon and when I went to the expo, my decision was made to run the marathon.

So let's start off with the expo.  This race hosts the marathon, half marathon and an 8k.  I've done the half and 8k but this was the first time I would run this marathon.  The expo was the same as always.  We usually go to the expo on Thursday night and then go out to dinner.  This year was the same.  We went to the expo after work on Thursday and bib pickup was easy as usual.  The expo seems crowded and hot, but really there are no lines for anything.

I picked up my bib with no wait.  Went to the official merchandise area and decided that I wanted to get a marathon shirt since this probably is the only time I do that distance.

I walked through part of the expo to pick up my race shirt.  I do hate how the official shirts are so far away from bib pick up as I'm always afraid to put down my bib and lose it.  We get a bag with the shirt, but till then we just carry around the bib on its own.

I walked around a little waiting for my friends.  While I waited they had beer samples.  I don't mind if I do.  A couple of my friends showed up and we went on a lookout for cheap gloves that we could throw out.  We headed out and went for a very fun pasta dinner.

On Friday I decided to go check out the talk by Bart Yasso.  Both Bart and Don Garber were there to talk logistics of the race.  While I knew most of it, it was nice to hear it all again.  Both are fun speakers and people asked Bart a bunch of questions and I heard some of the same stories he shared at MCM.

I even got a picture with Bart Yasso.

Race day...

I met up with my running friends at one of the hotels.  The Richmond Marathon has been known as "American's Friendliest Marathon".  I didn't know this, but Bart Yasso said this of the Richmond Marathon because of the nice hotel and businesses that open up their doors before the marathon to keep us warm and let us use their bathrooms.  I did see Bart Yasso as I walked to the hotel and said hello again.  My friends and I hung out in the hotel and used the bathroom a couple of times and I ate my Honey Stinger Waffle.  Then we headed out.  They all were doing the half and I was the only one to do the full so we parted ways as each race has it's own start line.

I dropped off my bag at the UPS trucks.  I have to say that this is the only race that doesn't make you use a clear plastic bag.  I was able to check my backpack.  Then I headed towards the start line.  There also wasn't any security to get to the start line.  There were only 6 corals and of course I was in the last.  There really didn't seem like any structure to the corals so I stood on one of the corners and finished up my water and took a 5 Hour Energy.  I turned everything on and realized that my HR monitor would not stay on.  I know I charged it but it kept going off.  So I would have to run this without my HR monitor.  I wasn't going to run by my HR, but it would have been nice to have it to look back on.  I did run 30 second walk/1 minute run.  And before I knew it, we were off.

I had a throw away sweatshirt on as it was about 38 degrees as we started.  I also had my throw away gloves and a headband ear warmer.  We did a couple of turns and ended up on Broad Street where we could see the half marathoners on the other side of the street.  I kept looking over and I did eventually see my friends.  They didn't see me and they were too far away to yell at.  I wished them a good race to myself.

I was debating on when I should take off my sweatshirt.  It was still a little chilly but I was warming up.  We were in the shade of the buildings and I decided once we moved out of the shade, I'd take it off.  I did finally ditch it and decided that the first bank of port-a-potties I'd have to go.  What I loved about this race is that the first set were 10 long on both sides of the street.  No lines as this is where everyone decides to take a potty break.

The crowds were good.  Our bibs had our names on them and everyone was calling out by name.  I loved that.  Felt like they were all out there for me.  The first few miles went by quickly.  Everything was feeling good.  We made our way onto Grove Street and saw this wreath that was still up from Halloween.

I felt like I had to use the bathroom again.  I have never used the bathroom more then once during a race.  What was going on?  I saw another batch of port-a-potties and stopped.  We headed down to cross the river.  I ran into someone from the training team who is just a tad faster then me.  He was running with a bunch of people from out of town and they sounded like they were having fun.  I also ran into a lady that said that this was her 149th marathon.  I can't even imagine that.  How great.

As we were crossing the bridge about mile 7 I felt like the race was really thinning out.  Like a lot.  There were times that I felt like no one was around me.  I kept looking behind me to see if I was the last one, but there was a handful of people behind me still.  It was like this the rest of the race.  No wonder everyone on the training team was always ahead of me, this race has mostly fast runners.

We crossed the river and ran beside it for awhile.  We have run this road a couple times and I find it so pleasant to have such nice scenery right next to the road.  I felt like I had to go to the bathroom again.  What the heck?  I decided to ignore it to see if it would go away.  Eventually it did.

There was an older gentleman that ran past me and the back of his shirt said that his name was Woody and he was 86 years old.  We will see each other several times throughout the rest of the race.

We made our way away from the river and it seemed like every road was up hill.  Looking at the elevation chart, I was heading into 3 miles of rolling hills where most of them is up.

During the race, the coaches from the training team were all over the course.  They were there to cheer us on and run with us every so often.  At this time, one of the coaches from my team saw me and ran with me a little.  It was nice to chit chat with someone even if it was only for a few hundred feet.  He had said that he had already run about 11 miles back and forth at different spots.  So he was right about at the same mileage as I was without running the course.  I did notice about this time that every so often, even on my walk breaks, I was having a hard time catching my breath.  It wasn't bothersome, it was just weird as this has never happened before.

There were a few more miles till we reached the bridge to cross back over the river.  I heard stories of the wind on this bridge.  Everyone says to keep your gloves cause it will get breezy and cold while crossing the bridge.  I never took my gloves off, so that was no problem.  By this time it probably was in the mid 40's.  Before we turned onto the bridge, I could feel the wind.  I was a little anxious about what it would be like when I finally was on the bridge.

Once I hit the bridge, there really wasn't any breeze.  It was kinda nice out there.  At the end of the bridge, you could hear the after party.  Seriously, I had 10 more miles to go and the after party was so close, right under the bridge.

We headed up one of the biggest hills of the course.  I've run this a few times and hate it every time.  About this point, I started to feel nauseous.  It wasn't much, but it reminded me of the first 10 miles of MCM.  I hoped that it would go away quickly.

We made our way out onto Main Street and there seemed to be a bit more people out cheering.  It probably was cause they were hanging out at a bar and they were drinking.  That's OK, I was glad for any and all of the people out there cheering for the back of the pack.  They even had this cool drumming group from VCU.

Once we turned onto Boulevard we were on the half marathon course.  I was also so very nauseous.  I kept taking my Gu cause I didn't want to hit the wall hard cause I didn't fuel.  But the Gu made me more sick to my stomach.  Once I started to feel a little better it was time to take another Gu.  I was so excited for the last Gu I had to take.  We would pass a pizza joint and it made me want to puke.  We passed a BBQ place and it made me want to puke.

We made our way through some really nice neighborhoods.  I was so glad there were no more restaurants around to have to smell.  We have run this a lot, not only in marathon training, but for long runs throughout the year.  It was finally getting close to 50 degrees and I started to peal off my gloves and ear warmers.  Every mile during the last 10 miles I would skip one of my running segments every mile to take a break.  I knew if I kept up my pace, I would get a second PR in two weeks.

The course was so space at this time.  We got to one turn and the other two people that were around were not sure if we were supposed to go strait or turn.  We stopped and had to ask a volunteer that really wasn't paying attention to the runners.  That's how few people were still on the course.

I got to the last few turns and knew I was almost there.  The coaches were there and so encouraging as we made it to the hill.  If you haven't seen the end of the Richmond course, the last .2 miles goes strait down hill.

I was so happy to be done.  My legs held up and really didn't have much pain with them.  Crossing the finish line was very emotional for me.  I knew that my stomach would feel better once I stopped and I couldn't believe that I just finished a second marathon in two weeks.  Not only that, I couldn't believe that I made it under 6:30, which was my MCM A goal.  My official time was 6:26:45.

After I crossed the finish line I saw Don Garber, the MTT head coach, and I asked him for a hug.  I needed a hug so bad.  And then I heard that Woody (the 86 year old man that I saw many times on the course) finished right behind me.  I turned around cause I wanted to congratulate him, but he had stopped to talk to a couple people and I was just so tired that I needed to keep moving.

I got my finisher medal, blanket, and hat.  Along with water and snacks.  I couldn't even think about eating, but I did grab a bagel and was able to eventually eat about half of it.

I ended up buying the finisher jacket.  I have the finisher jacket from my first Richmond Half (which was my first half ever), and wanted one of my first (and probably only) Richmond Marathon.   They didn't have my size so they are shipping it to me for free, which was nice.  I just wish it was a full zip, but I love the color.

I started walking up the big hill towards where I remember the bag pickup was and my car.  I was just tired and just wanted to be home.  I was wrong about the bag pick up and ended up having to walk all the way back to the finish line to get my sandals and jacket.  It was probably good that I went back as I saw the PR bell on my way back up the hill to my car.

My breathing at this point had not gotten any better.  It was just like I had walked up 5 flights of stairs. Everything turned out OK, but it was really scary for a while that night.

Overall I was really glad that I had done it.  Except for the nausea (that stopped soon after the race) and the breathing problems after the fact, it was a great race.  The weather was great, the few crowds that stayed out for the back of the pack were wonderful, and the course was not too bad.  I know I felt like I was going up hill the whole time, but there were a few good down hills.  I probably won't do this race again, as I don't see me doing many more marathons.  I'd rather do a new marathon then this again.  I actually would like to do the half again.  Out of the many halves I have done, I've only done this one once.  Also, I'm officially a Marathon Maniac!

Have you done the Richmond Marathon before?  Are you a Marathon Maniac?  Have you ever felt really sick during a race?

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

Last Week of Taper Before MCM (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

So we are now a week away from MCM.  Seven more days, three more training runs, four more days of work, and one more billion checks of weather.com till the big day.  So far tapering has been fine.  I've never had a hard time with it, but do start getting nervous as the race gets closer.  But the more detailed planning I do, the better I feel.  The weather got a lot warmer this week and most days were highs in the mid 80s.  For mid-October it's a lot hotter then normal.

Monday's run was good.  I tried the walk/run of 30sec/1min again.  I still think HR running is better for me even though the time seems to be about the same.  The run felt a little hard, but with the weather getting warmer, it was a lot more humid that morning.

Wednesday I went back to my HR running.  It was still humid, but a good run.  I ran into Agnes who I see a lot out walking.  We always seem to be going the opposite ways, but this morning we walked about half a mile together.  It was fun getting to know her a little more. 

Friday was my last mid-week run of 5 miles.  All next week I'll be dropping down to 3 mile runs.  I did see another shooting star.  That's two in two weeks.  I did take a few moments to think about a wish unlike I did last week.  Whether I get my wishes or not, it's really cool to see a shooting star.

Saturday the MTT team is doing another 20 mile run.  Since I'm in my last taper long run, I only wanted to do 6 miles.  The half marathon team was doing 8 so I decided to do a run with them (but cut 2 miles off).  It was a good run.

I saw some odd things while on this run.  Including this weird huge bird nest.

And Alan. I've seen him before, he is not just a Halloween decoration, but this was the first time I stopped to get a picture.

And this kitty.  She (or he) walked right up to me and let me pet her (or him).  While I tend to say hi to all the dogs on a walk, never a cat before.  She must live around there somewhere and have a home to be so trusting.

And then I got to go out to brunch with my running friends.  I haven't been able to join them in ages cause we have been running different distances as they are training for the half.  It was so great to catch up with everyone.  And to show how small a town Richmond is, the lady that has been helping me at the Alzheimer's Association had been running with my running friends all summer long.

So remember to follow me on Twitter - @heatherlas and Instagram - @heathersspin as I will be posting throughout the weekend.  And maybe even during the race.

Have you ever seen a shooting star?  Have you seen anything interesting out on a run lately that wasn't just a Halloween decoration?  Has a cat ever come up to you to say hi?

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

Trying Walk/Run Again (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

First week of taper is complete.  Two more weeks till MCM.  This has been another hard week for me.  Not for running, but everything else.  The help we had for my dad didn't work out, so there was time spent with him and stress about what we are going to do weighted on me.  I went to another job fair.  I like to see so many employers at once, but it is really exhausting.  But running seems to be going better.  And I'm focusing on detail planning for MCM.  That seems to be calming me some.  Planning just does that to me.

I didn't run on Monday as I was still exhausted Sunday night and decided not to get up early and take an extra rest day.  I'm on my taper so I'm not worried about missing a day.  Wednesday was a good run.  Even though I was in a bad mood the whole run.  I was hoping that the run would help my mood, but it didn't.  Just too much going on and too much stress.  But with cooler temps, my pace is coming down slowly.  Though on my run I did see an accident.  I'm not sure how it happened, but it looked like the car crossed the median and hit a brick wall.  I hope that everyone was OK.

Friday my mood was better.  With things with the job, I have been working from home more often and that means that I can wait till the sun rises to run.  But not Friday.  I had a job fair that morning and I had to make sure I had plenty of time to get ready.  This run was good even though it was in the dark.  I did see a shooting star.  I made a wish quickly and then thought maybe I should wish on something more important and changed my mind.  Can I do that?  Will I get the first or second wish?  Or will I get one at all? :)

Saturday was a much cooler day.  I really wasn't sure what to wear as weather.com told me something completely different then the local news channel.  So I went with a light long sleeve shirt and tights.  While I could have gotten away with a short sleeve shirt and shorts I wasn't really hot at all.

I decided to try and do a walk/run again.  I wanted to see if I could do that for the race and if it made any difference.  I went with a 30 second walk/1 minute run.  We ran down to the bottom (downtown).  There are a couple reasons I hate running those types of loops - 1) you run down but you have to run up all these hills for the second half and 2) the streets and sidewalks are mostly made of cobblestone and brick.  Makes you have to watch your step so you don't trip.

We did run past where the Over the Edge fundraiser was happening.  It's for the Special Olympics where people raise money and rappel over the edge of a building.  No one was coming down when we ran by, but it would have been fun to watch someone.  I always sort of wanted to do it, but I'm terrified of heights.  I want to do it though as I can't let my fear to stop me from doing fun things.  But it looks so scary.   My dilemma.

We did cross the canal.  It has some paths to run on, but it's not very long.

And we crossed the river twice.  I love crossing the river as it is so beautiful.

So, over all, it looks like my pace and heart rate were about the same.  I did feel more tired at the end of the run.  I'm still trying to decide what I will do for the race.  I'm running with a friend and want an even walk/run and not random when my HR goes up.  For now I'll do a couple more walk/run runs just to see if Saturday was a hard run or if I should stick to HR.

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

Running 23 Miles with Matthew (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

So on Saturday, I ran 23 miles with Hurricane Matthew.  While we didn't get a direct hit, we got a lot of rain and some wind.  Not bad enough to cancel the run, but enough for it to be a very wet run.

Monday I didn't go out for a run as I didn't have time.  Plus I kinda counted the hiking we did on Sunday as a run.  Wednesday I got out there and had a great run.  I worked from home so I ended up being able to run after the sun came up.  I really felt like I was finally getting back to where I was before I hurt my back.  There was a guy that was out there with his dog.  He said he has seen me running a lot and to keep it up.  Makes up for the stupid guy last week. :)

Friday while it was still a good run, I felt slower.  I realized it was a lot more humid on Friday then it was on Wednesday.  I had to go into the office, so I had to run before the sun came up.  This is the time of the year where the acorns are falling from the trees.  They kept hitting different surfaces and freaked me out a bit.  That and the acorns were all over the road and I had to watch myself at some places.

Saturday the long arms of Hurricane Matthew hit us.  The weather was in the upper 60's but there was a lot of rain.  I started off before the MTT group as they only had 20 miles on the docket and I wanted to get in 23.  I ran up and back for an extra 3 miles and then off on the route given to us.  I only had 4 miles that I ran over a 16 minute mile.  I was so impressed with my consistency through the run.  I didn't feel like I ran out of steam at the end like I usually do.

I felt like Matthew was keeping me company on my run.  Most of the time it was a light rain, but every so often it would down pour.  And there would be wind gusts every so often.  Every time the rain or wind picked up, I felt like he was encouraging me to keep going.  I just had to embrace the rain and enjoy what was given to me.

The route that they had for us went through a lot of nice neighborhoods.  It was still a little dark out, but there was a lot of street lights still on.  I ran by this church that had signs of all the terrorist attacks that have happened and at the end is a sign that says "Love One Another".  I was very touched by this.

I also ran by a few houses that had Halloween decorations up.  This was my favorite one.

This same house had a big metal rooster and it really reminded me of The Bloggess.

But most of the run this was my view.  A lot of rain.

And a lot of puddles to watch out for.

I used this run to see what time I would make it for mile 15.5 and mile 18 for MCM.  So that I can beat The Gauntlet, I would have to be there no later then 12:38 PM.  Which means if I cross the start line right at 7:55 AM then I have 4:43 to get there.  If I cross the start line at 8:55 AM then I have 3:43.  I got to 15.5 on my training run in 4:03, which means I have to cross the start line by 8:35 AM or earlier to feel comfortable.

To beat the bridge at mile 18 by 1:15 PM.  That would mean I would need to get there between 4:20 - 5:20.  I got there in 4:40.  Plenty of time after getting past The Gauntlet.  So my main concern will be getting to The Gauntlet on time.

I was still one of the last people that got back to the parking lot.  I just hate that feeling that I know I did great for me, but still one of the last people to finish.  I told one of the coaches that I did an extra 3 miles and he scoffed at me.  The MTT thought of training is that you only need to do 20.  One would think that they would encourage you if you felt better doing something different from that.  There is not one way to train, and I'm doing what is best for me feeling like I can get to the finish line.

When I got home I saw how badly I chaffed.  I used so much Glide on myself because I knew it was going to rain the whole time and it didn't help.  I'm chaffed between my thighs, on my waist, and all around my bra line.  I also wish I had shorts and a sports bra that would treat my body better.  But thank goodness for Aquafur!

So now I have two weeks of tapering and then it's race time, though it really hasn't hit me, yet.  Some people have a hard time with taper time, but I really try to embrace it.  I feel really good about MCM after this run but I know I will be very nervous about beating those times.

Do you ever feel encouraged by the weather, even bad weather?  Do you look forward to taper time or dread it?  

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.

Heart Rate Training Week 10 (Weekly Wrap-up Edition)

This week has been much better.  Back has been feeling great (knock on wood).  I did bruise my toe nails on both big toes pretty badly last Saturday so I took Monday off to let them heal. Not sure what the deal was with that as those were the same shoes that I wore though my last few races so I know they are not too small.  They are getting close to 300 miles so it may be time to start rotating a new pair into my week.

Wednesday was another dreary day.  Luckily when I got out there it was in between down pours so it was just misty out.  The only thing I hate about running in the rain is that I wear a hat or visor and they make my head so hot.  But other then that I really don't mind running in the rain - only when it's warm. :)  My toe nails hurt a little towards the end of the run, but other then that I felt great.  It's been such a long time since I've said that.

Friday I was able to wait till the sun came up to run.  I'm not sure what I hate more, running in the dark or waiting till it's lighter out but having to deal with more cars on the road.  Guess it's best that I do half and half and really appreciate the best part of each.  I have also noticed a ton of mushrooms, not only around my neighborhood, but all over the city.  It's just weird as they all just popped up at the same time everywhere.  Also, it looks like one of the condos was throwing out another couch.  This is the second one I have seen in the same place in the past month. Just weird.

The temps were cooler which was great.  It was misty again and very dreary out.  With the coolness I have been able to run more hills before my heart rate would jump too high.  Man I forgot how hard it is to run up hills.  I really should have incorporated them more in my training this time around but I could only focus on the heart rate training this time around. Oh and the day before my toes had healed enough for me to clean them out and trim the nails and they felt fine on my run.  Yay to no pain!

Saturday was such a fun run.  I drove up to PA to visit a friend and we decided to head out to a trail near her which she runs on all the time.  It had been dreary and raining all Friday and Saturday morning when we woke up.  We got up and looked at the radar and thought we could get out there right away and the second we said that it started to rain.  So we piddled around and got dressed and the rain stopped and we headed out.  The moment we got to the trail it started to rain again.  We decided to sit in the car as the radar said it would pass quickly.  Once we did we were out the door.

The trail is fairly flat, with little elevation and it was beautiful.  A lot of farm land around with animals and people to watch.  I had a hard time with the first few miles as I sometimes do.  I'm used to running on the streets and have a lot I have to pay attention to with the cars and this just brought me into my own thoughts, which can be interesting or not so interesting. :)  But I kept looking around at the beautiful nature and animals and farms.  It just sank into me how lucky I am to be experiencing and seeing all of this.  One of my favorite things about running is to be one with nature and this really was.  After that I got out of my head and really enjoyed the run.

It was in the mid 50's.  I haven't seen anything under 65 degrees since May.  It was so nice.  I wasn't sure what to wear so I went with my tank top and shorts.  I wish I would have worn a short sleeve shirt as with the misty elements my shoulders got really chilly at times.

Because of the weather there were not many people on the trail, which was nice then we could run next to each other and not really worry about people coming up behind us or ahead.  We did see a lot of Mennonites out for a leisure stroll or bike ride on the trail.

Can you see the brown bunny in the brown brush?

We also saw a ton of animals.  Lots and lots of cows.  A few dogs.  A bunny.  A couple of kitties.  We saw some little cows in individual tents and Meranda had to explain to me that they were being raised for veal.  That made me feel real sad and and I just wanted to take them out to go for a walk with us.

We even saw a dirt pile where kids have put their toy trucks at the top.  It was so cute.

I was a little disappointed with my time.  I know I can't focus on it, but the weather was a lot cooler and there wasn't really any hills.  I know I haven't done a lot of running in the past month or so and I'm really kinda starting over.  While my heart rate was amazing for this run and I had absolutely no pain, I really just wish I could go faster.  I know I can't focus on that and just need to focus on getting the miles in, it just disappoints me.

Meranda was a lot of fun to run with.  I am a very slow runner and even though others say they will stay with me they tend to get antsy and go on ahead.  But it was fun to gab the whole way, which since I'm used to running on my own was a nice change of pace.  She was only going to do 10 miles but decided to do the last 2 with me anyway since we were going slow enough.  When we finished the moment we got back into the car it started to rain again.  Talk about perfect timing.  It's like the running Gods were looking out for us and waited just till we finished.

So just one more long run next week.  The MTT has 20 on their schedule but I really want to do 23.  I always feel better if I do a little more then 20 for my last long run before a marathon.  Not sure how I will fit in the extra miles, but I'll figure it out.  I can't believe I'm just one long run from taper time.  Things are getting a little real now.

Miles run in September: 63.01
Miles run in MCM/Richmond training: 332.52

Good luck to all of those who are running Chicago this weekend!!!!


Do you normally run on roads or trails?  Have you dealt with bruised toe nails before?  Are you seeing a lot of mushrooms around you or it's just around me?

Linking up with Holly and Tricia's Weekly Wrap Up.