DNF: Do Nothing Foolish---Flying Pig Race Report

Well, the Flying Pig Marathon didn't go as planned, to say the least.

Here is the whole ugly story, as told in pictures and thoughts:

The night before the race around midnight:  My stomach is awfully rumbly.  I must not have eaten enough dinner!

1:00 a.m.:  I sure wish I could sleep!

2:00 a.m.:  Don't think about not sleeping.  Don't think about not sleeping.

4:25 a.m.:  It's almost alarm time.  I might as well get up.

5:00 a.m.:   I'm really tired, probably because I didn't sleep!  This oatmeal is disgusting.

5:45 a.m.:  Ready to go!  Eagle up!   (Me, Harriet, and Cheryl)

Mile 1:  Feelin' fine!  I'm so glad we didn't go out too fast!  This is going to be fun! 

Mile 2:  Wow, it's crowded.  There are people in my personal space!  Time to run with elbows out to gain a little room. 

(photo credit:  Flying Pig 2016 Facebook page)

Mile 3:  Oh, ANOTHER bridge.  It's pretty I guess. Wow, I'm getting HOT.  I can feel heat radiating off my face and chest.  That's weird.   I'll just keep sipping this Tailwind and stay hydrated. 

(photo credit:  Flying Pig 2016 Facebook page)

Mile 4:  I'm feeling really, really hot and now dizzy.  So Much Nausea.  Just keep sipping fluids. Should I tell Harriet in case I pass out?    "Harriet, I need to tell you something.  I'm not feeling exactly right.  I'm dizzy and overheated.  Here is my road ID with Chris's number on it in case I pass out."    

Mile 5:  Pouring water on my head and the back of my neck at the water station will help.  (It didn't.)

Mile 6:  I do not like this uphill.  Fight the nausea.  Fight the dizziness.  Keep moving.

Mile 7: (still going uphill)  Ugh.  Running makes me dizzy, so I'm just going to walk this looonng uphill.  Oh, look, it's Elvis.  If if didn't feel so crappy, I'd get a picture with him.  

(photo credit:  Flying Pig 2016 Facebook page)

Mile 8: (praying) "God, I need you to get me through this run!  There's no way I can do this on my own for 18 more miles.  Tell me what to do." 

Mile 8.5:  I remember that the half-marathon split is at mile 9.  Should I drop down?   I'm having chills, nausea, and dizziness now.  Every step is a battle.  Am I having a heat stroke?   I don't want the girls to have to take me to the hospital and for Chris to worry. (more prayer) "God, please help me to be smart and do the right thing. I don't want to do anything foolish and hurt myself.  Make it clear what I should do."

Mile 8.75:  "Harriet, I have a decision to make.  I think I may drop down to the half.  I don't think it is wise to continue feeling like this. I'm having bad chills and nausea now."  She totally agreed and practically pushed me over into the half-marathon lane!

Mile 9:   (with complete clarity after taking the half-marathon split)  I made the right decision.

Mile 10:  Oh, good grief, how many more miles do I have???   I feel like dirt.  Worse than dirt.  My energy is gone.  Ok, that's a cute sign.   

(photo credit:  Flying Pig 2016 Facebook page)

Mile 11:  Why is this downhill so HARD????   (12:00 minute pace on the downhill.....)   That guy is passing out Swedish Fish.  Maybe a little sugar will give me energy to finish. 

Mile 12:  I'm just going to walk it in from here.  No, I'm going to run.  Ok, I'll run a little and walk a little.  Oh, damn.  That was a dry heave. At least it was dry. 

Mile 13:  Don't throw up.  Don't throw up.  There are people everywhere.  

Mile 13.1:  Thank you, Jesus!  

(photo credit:  Flying Pig 2016 Facebook page)

Mile 13.2:  I should take a selfie that shows how I feel right now.  If I smile, the bile may slide out.....

6 minutes after finishing:  Which way is the hotel?   Oh, dear Lord, I don't know!!!

12 minutes after finishing:  (wandering around carrying an armload of finish line food I can't eat)   This doesn't look right.  Why am I inside the stadium??

15 minutes after finishing:  Ok, I'll Google the hotel address and use Maps app to walk back there.  Oh, it's only 0.6 miles away.  Thank goodness. 

20 minutes after finishing:  I'm never going to get there.  I wish I'd brought money for a cab.  If my arms weren't so full, I'd open this bottle of water and drink it. 

25 minutes after finishing:  Where is it???  Don't panic.  Don't panic.  Oh, thank HEAVEN, there it is!!  

5 seconds later:  Oh, man,  that is far away.  (It's the beige one in the distance behind the pole.)  I seriously feel awful.  Have I ever felt this awful before??  Just keep moving.....

30 minutes after finishing:  This is ridiculous.  

32 minutes after finishing:  Whew, I made it.  

I have absolutely no regrets about dropping down to the half.  A DNF sometimes means "Do Nothing Foolish."  I listened to my body on this day!  There will be other marathons.  (Maybe.)

I was sick the rest of the day and for the next four days with fever, nausea, fatigue, and chills.  My friends took good care of me on the long drive home.  Two of my kiddos came down with it on Sunday and Monday.  Viruses happen.  I just hope one never happens during a marathon again! 

It Was a Good Day to Be a Billy Goat: Tick Ridge Trek 25K Race Report

I ran the Tick Ridge Trek trail 25K last weekend in Elkton, Tennessee.  I didn't really have any expectations going in. I was just doing the race for fun, and the course looked pretty in the pictures from last year.  I needed a long run of 16 miles for my preparation for the Carmel Marathon in April, so I was pretty laid back about the whole thing.

A group of us left Clarksville at 4:46 a.m. to head south to Elkton.  That meant a 3:30 a.m. wake up for me, but I felt ok once I woke up and drank two cups of coffee.  We were looking sharp in our Middle TN Trail Runners shirts.

We arrived at the race site--a private farm, and it was several degrees colder than expected!  I was glad I had overdressed slightly and brought a throw-away jacket. 

The race began, and I took off at a moderate pace.  I hadn't planned to run aggressively, so I held back in the beginning.   

Within the first two miles, however, I realized Tick Ridge was not going to be the laid-back, moderately easy run I had expected!   The first climb was LONG and hard and kept going and going. 

I was only in mile two and my quads were burning!  I remember thinking, "Uh oh.  Maybe it's only the first two miles that are this tough."  Around the end of mile 2, I met up with friends briefly.  

They went their way on the 10K course about 2.5 miles in, and I ran the rest of the race alone, just briefly conversing with people occasionally.  

Then the second big climb came at mile 4.5.  I have truly NEVER seen anything like this hill in terms of steepness.  I've run many trail marathons and half marathons and even a 50K, but this hill was insane!  Power hiking it, I had to actually stop to BREATHE half way up.  My legs and lungs were on fire.  All around me, others were stopping, too.  

Up. Down. Up again.  The downs were better than the ups, but still really difficult.  One thing I was happy about though-- on every power hike uphill, I was able to catch and pass those around me.  I may not run fast, but I can hike like a billy goat!  (My trail name is actually Billy Goat.)

The race really had outstanding, ever-changing scenery. We went through fields and forests, over ridges, around ponds,and across streams.  I would say maybe 30-40% was technical.   I love this view from the top of one of the ridges (courtesy of my friend Cheryl):  

After that mile 4.5 hill, I got serious about the race.  I was still in shock that it was so different than I expected.  This needed to happen:  

I put my head down and I just ran.  When I couldn't run, I hiked as hard and as fast as I could.  I took chances on downhills (not my strength), I hurried through aid stations, and I kept moving at all costs.  My legs were TIRED, but I'd tell them to keep running.  I allowed myself to hike the steepest hills, but I ran the smaller ones.  I remember saying to myself, "Just run easy in energy-saver mode" to keep myself running when I wanted to hike.  After mile 10 (which absolutely felt like mile 20), I knew I had an hour or more left in the race. I began to really focus on just running the mile I was in.  I turned on my music, and it was a big help.  Kiss's "Rock and Roll All Nite" was the first song that   came on, and at that point, I felt like I'd been rocking and rolling all night!  Later, in mile 15, "Running on Empty" came on.  I truly was!  

Though the race was unexpectedly harder than anticipated, I just did what needed to be done, and I daresay I enjoyed it!  Sometime in mile 11 or 12, I took time to reflect on why it is that I choose to do hard things.  What is it in me that feels the need to push myself to my physical limits?  I thought about how I had CHOSEN to be there--to run through deep mud and hop across at least five streams, to trip my way down hills and fight my way up ridiculously steep leg and lung burning ones.  My choice. My way of testing myself.  My way of seeing what I'm made of.  My way of connecting with nature and my friends.  Then I took time to pray for those who are going through hard things they didn't choose.

I was still smiling when I nearly ran over this photographer at mile 13.  He was kneeling beside the narrow trail on a downhill.  

Those last miles were tough, but I stayed determined and in good spirits.  The hill at mile 13 was the only other time I had to interrupt my hike to rest for 3 or 4 seconds half way up the hill. I was ready to be finished, so I kept pushing. I crossed the finish line right as my Garmin beeped for 16 miles.   3 hours and 36 minutes.  

I almost cried at the finish.   Not because it was hard.  Because I was proud.  

It is definitely the toughest race course I've completed.  The Flying Monkey Marathon is the only one that comes to mind in an even close comparison, and I really think this was more difficult.  I'm so glad I did it!  I'll be a tougher runner for it.  :-)  

Fuel:  Water, 2 Huma Chia gels (mango and apple cinnamon), and Tailwind Raspberry Buzz.  Oh, and a few sips of Coke at an aid station with a handful of potato chips.    

Shifting Gears and Farm Bureau 10K Race Report

I've had a lot of fun this month.  I'm thankful I gave my body and mind a break from marathon and ultra training.  I've run with renewed excitement and determination for the most part on the track at the local college, on roads, on trails, and just tried to adapt to cold-weather running again.

I feel like I've turned a corner.  

The mental burnout is gone.

The chronically tired legs are gone.  

The stuck-in-slow-pace mode is gone.  

I just needed to wake back up.  In hindsight, I see many failings of my training in the past year.  One area that I neglected was speed, especially threshold runs.  I simply did almost no running at my 5K or 10K pace.  Another area I neglected was strength training.  I didn't really train my core, my hips, my glutes, or my hamstrings on a regular basis.  However, I ran two ultramarathons, four marathons, and five half-marathons, so there's that.  :-)  I'm just ready to shift gears now.  

Reading the book (or devouring it is more like it) Run Faster from the 5K to the Marathon: How to Be Your Own Best Coach was so eye-opening!  I see areas in which I am strong (endurance) and areas in which I am weak (strength and speed).  I know what to do in my future training to correct these!  It is THE BEST training book I've ever read.

So, for the past three or four weeks, I've trained differently.  I started doing more strength training.  I ran a 5K time trial on my own in 27:37, which is only 37 seconds off my fastest 5K of three years ago.  I was surprised at that one! I am relieved the leg pain and fatigue when I run are both gone. There were a few weeks between the most recent ultra and the marathon and the half marathon in which runs simply HURT.  

My goal has been to maintain 20 miles per week, and I have. I think that's reasonable.  I can still enter into marathon training for my April marathon with a decent base.  It's just been nice to not stress about the miles.

The one dark spot in an otherwise happy running month has been my left knee.  Patellar tendonitis has flared up.  I used to struggle with it in that knee when I first started running.  I was doing a single-legged squat one day three weeks ago, and a pain just ripped through that knee.  At first it only hurt during single leg squats and lunges.  Then it occasionally hurt during runs.  Then it started  hurting going up and down stairs.  So, I stopped doing squats and lunges.  I'm making sure to warm up well before runs, and I'm aware of it, but the pain is only at maybe a 1.  I'm hoping it just passes as it did before.  I ran through it then, and I'm running through it now. (We runners are like that.)  It got worse for a little while, but now it's holding steady and some days, I don't feel it at all.  When it flares up, I try not to feel disappointed or frustrated, but sometimes I fail and a dark cloud descends on my day. (We runners are like that, too.)  My husband's left knee is weirdly doing the same thing.  Sympathy pains, I guess....

On Saturday, I ran my first 10K race in almost two years.  Since I had run the 3.1 mile time trial at about an 8:54 pace, I figured I would be able to run at or close to a 9:30-9:40 pace.  I also knew that I needed a 9:39 pace or better to come in under one hour.  Running 6.2 miles at a 9:39 pace seemed doable.  

About two weeks before the race, read a couple of articles about the body/brain connection.  They advised that we should run more often without a watch, just listening to the signals our body is sending us, also known as "running naked."  (Regular Google it. Don't Google image it.  Just. Don't.)

Ummmm....

Where was I?

Then Coach Jason Fitzgerald from Strength Running sent a "success story" article in which he advised a client to get rid of her watch and run by feel.  Running by feel only, she was able to run faster than ever before and ran a half marathon PR!  The watch had been holding her back.

So, I figured I'd try it in the Farm Bureau Holiday 10K.  I purposefully left my Garmin running watch on the kitchen counter.  I just planned to run hard, but not too hard and see where it got me!

My friend Andrea and I left for Springfield around 8:30 that morning for the 10:00 a.m. start.  We met up with some friends from Clarksville who are also members of the Middle TN Trail Runners club we are a part of.  We dressed festively in honor of the event.  This is my friend Cheryl, Andrea, and me.

Andrea and I did some dynamic warm up stretches (as recommended on Strength Running) and ran about 1/2-3/4 mile warm up.  Without my watch, I have no idea how far it was!  We realized we were only 4 minutes from race time while in the middle of our warm up jog, so we hurried back to the starting line.  Everyone was already lined up!  We found a spot near Cheryl and our friend Jeffrey, and then another runner and I recognized one another from Facebook and introduced ourselves.  It's funny when that happens! 

We started, and I looked down at my empty wrist in an attempt to hit the start button.  Then I smiled.  :-) 

 The start was a downhill.  I tried to hold back and run a pace that felt natural.  I tried to tune into that brain/body connection.  But I'm pretty sure I don't have one.  

Andrea said later that I started out at about a 9:06 pace.  I was aiming for about 9:30-9:40 pace.   But my pace felt right.  My legs felt GREAT. I estimated I was running about a 9:30 pace, 9:15 at the fastest.  Something was wrong with my breathing though.  It was much too rough for a 9:30 pace.  I acknowledged this and tried to slow down.  It was my body sending me a SIGNAL!   But my breathing (and likely my pace) stayed pretty much the same.  

I decided to distract myself.  I picked a lady up ahead who looked like she might be in my age group and made it my goal to pass her.  

In mile two, I ran on her shoulder for a while.  Drafting is not something I'm particularly good at.  We almost tangled up a couple of times trying to run the tangents on the curvy greenway path.  Finally, I dropped her on a hill. ("Oh my gosh, I have just officially won the imaginary race between this lady and me!! And on a HILL!!!")  That made me feel very happy.  I've been doing hill sprints and strength training, and I can actually tell a difference. 

So, I picked out two other ladies to race.  Ummm......

One was younger than me most likely, but one was clearly in that 40-44 age group.  I can spot us!  I was mostly focused on my age competitor. She was shorter than me, sort of muscular, and was running strong and consistently.  I was careful not to let them pull ahead and maintained an even distance behind them.  We got to the 3.1 mile turnaround, and the ladies I was chasing both slowed to walk through the water stop.  Without trying, I zipped past them.  I drank a sip on the go and kept moving. Then almost immediately the shorter lady passed me back!  Oh, it was ON. I ran just behind her through about mile 4, waiting to make my move.  I pulled ahead a bit finally, but she sped up, too! I could hear her crunching leaves behind me, so I couldn't let up.  I kept pushing.  My breathing was more ragged than I would have preferred, but I was having FUN.  Two forty-somethings battling it away on the greenway, no chance of winning the actual race, but an age group place is worth fighting for!

Racing is fun.  Running hard is fun.  My legs felt awesome, it was just the breathing holding me back.  I have simply done way too few threshold runs.  My legs can handle the pace, but my breathing hasn't caught up.  My legs seemed to be on automatic pilot. I could barely feel them.  They were just doing what they've been taught to do.  It was pretty cool.

Finally, at mile 5, that too-fast start and the most likely erratic pacing began to catch up to me.  I really feel like I ran a strong race through mile 5.  I had picked off the three people I wanted to pass.  I wasn't passed by anyone in miles 4-5.  Then it sort of came apart.  Fatigue or lactic acid crept into my legs, and I'm sure I slowed.  Without a Garmin, I didn't know how much.  The good thing is my Garmin pace wasn't there taunting me, shaming me, and making me feel defeated.  (We runners are like that.)  A long uphill segment began.  My legs had begun to tire, so I walked twice on the hill.   At the top of the hill, I had no idea how far was left in the race.  That is definitely a drawback to "running naked."  I didn't know if it was time to leave it all out there yet or if another mile remained.  

The end was a series of turns as we wove our way back to Main Street.  I didn't yet have a visual of the clock.  As I thought about what the clock would say, I didn't know if it would say 56 minutes or 59 minutes or 1:03.  I was definitely hoping for under an hour.  I finally got my visual.  It said 1:00:20.   Can you tell my reaction?

Sigh.

Disapppointment.

It has been a while since I ran 10K's regularly, but coming in under an hour isn't usually a problem.  

I know it's due to the type of training I've been focused on.  I know what to do differently.  I know how to shift gears.  

But I was still a bit disappointed.  Not terribly, but a bit.  It was a good reality check for me though. Running without a Garmin was a gamble, and it may not have paid off.  If I'd been able to see my pace in that first mile or two, I would have gone slower than the 9:06 pace I apparently started at. But running free like that---- I like it.  I just need to teach my body what different paces feel like with the Garmin, so I can run them better without the Garmin.  

I checked the results that were posted on a wall near the timing tent and saw that the top three women in my age group had all finished between 52-54 minutes.   Wow. Big difference from my finish time. What I didn't know was that I was #4.  My official chip time turned out to be 1:00:14, a 9:42 pace.  That made me feel slightly better.  It wasn't that far off.  

My friends Cheryl and Andrea and I enjoyed a fabulous post-race lunch at a little restaurant called The Depot and then headed for Clarksville.

I'm glad I went.  I'm also very thankful for friends who share adventures like this one with me!  

Sometimes I almost wish I could "just run" and not care about paces or races.  But not really.  I'm too goal oriented.  Too driven.  And I love it too much.  Even when it disappoints me, running is still such a HUGE blessing in my life.  

I'm not listening.....

to my trainer very well. I didn't do a single workout this week the way he told me to. I was supposed to run 40 minutes on Monday, but I ran 45. I was supposed to do 22 minutes of interval speedwork on Wednesday, but I did 28. I ran two "bonus" miles on Thursday which weren't in my training plan at all. (And I NEVER run two days in a row.) I guess it's the overachiever in me. In this case, it's probably not smart since he really knows what he's talking about. But, his workouts just seemed too light. I did follow his stretching plan and am thrilled to say my ankle pain is gone and my knee is better. I've been running pain-free all week. Of course, my longest distance was only 4 miles and I am running in new shoes, so maybe all of those things are working together.

I'm in maintenance mode weight-wise. I just want to hold steady through the holidays. Easier said than done!