NYC Half 2015 recap: I took a leap of faith

16. March 2015 · 7 comments · Categories: injury, running, Uncategorized · Tags: , , , ,
Hi peeps.
Welcome to Monday. So much to tell you. Let’s see last we spoke it was Friday the 13th and I was headed to Dr. Williams for more knee work. That went well.
Integrative Spine and Sports

heat first—then torture

Integrative Spine and Sport

The lovely waiting room. I always sit in the turquoise chair

I told him my plan for the NYC Half and he actually encouraged me to run more than 4 if I could. Love him! I high-tailed it out of his office and downtown to the NYC Half Expo where I met up with Lisa.
unitedNYChalfExpo

Love this clever cropping that the stranger who took our photo did. He probably didn’t do it on purpose but it’s funny to see half of a NYC Half sign. =)

I got my bib and bought some fuel and then headed home. I took duncan for a quick evening walk since I knew the forecast for Saturday was going to be rain.all.day.

6:30pm and we're taking a stroll. This is the best part of Daylight Savings

6:30pm and we’re taking a stroll. This is the best part of Daylight Savings

Saturday I woke up and did some retouching to some headshots I took for a brokerage firm a few weeks ago. Then I spent a couple of hours doing laundry, cleaning and eventually I started to pack up all my gear that I would need for the NYC Half plus an overnight bag and drove to the boyfriend’s house. We had dinner over at my brother and sister-in-law’s house and stayed out a bit later than I would have wanted if I was in full focus training/running mode. But since I figured most of my race would be walking I wasn’t too worried. Plus I don’t normally sleep well the night before a race. Always nervous I’ll oversleep or forget something.
OK now on to the recap of the 2015 NYC Half
Alarm sounds 4:15am. Ouch! That’s early. But I managed to sleep walk my way to my gear and suit up and was out the door by 5am to go catch a train into to the city.
4:30 am...before coffee...so flattering.lol.

4:30 am…before coffee…so flattering.lol.

I hadn’t had breakfast yet so when I arrived at Penn Station I popped into Starbucks for a petite vanilla bean scone and some coffee.

Say hello to my little Vanilla Bean friend. (taken from Starbucks website)

Say hello to my little Vanilla Bean friend. (taken from Starbucks website)

The scone is only 120 calories. It’s one of my favorite treats. I’ll have to learn how to bake them someday. I know I know not smart to eat something new on race day. But it all worked out fine. I sipped my coffee as I walked the block from Penn Station to the subway (the F train) that I would take up to Central Park. There was a man from Argentina who was running the NYC Half for the first time so I gave him advice on what train to take. I also let him know the course 411.

• Rolling hills in Central Park from mile 1-6!
• Crazy awesome energy thru Times Square. from mile 6-8
• Wind along the West Side Highway miles 8-12.
• Prepare for your Garmin to have difficulty tracking properly through Times Square and also mile 12 goes into a tunnel. (side note: my Garmin ended up saying it was more than 13.5 miles)
• Fast and flat from mile 6 to the finish.
• Heaviest recovery food bag ever (thanks to a huge bottle of water and Gatorade, plus an apple, pretzels and maybe a brick or something)
Hopefully he did well. Then the train pulled in and low and behold I get on the same subway car that my running peeps from Brooklyn had taken in. 8 million people in NYC and almost 20,000 runners coming in for the race and I get on the same subway and subway car as the 3 people I was planning on meeting up with at our designated street corner. Love when that stuff happens. (side note: I also noticed a woman along the course that I had seen at 5:30am in NJ while waiting for the train into the city. Again, almost 20,000 runners and I spot her).
We rode the rest of the way together and then had to make our way through the security checkpoint where we bumped into Robin, yet another friend.
The sea of runners waiting to get through security. It took a good 25 minutes (photo courtesy of JD)

The sea of runners waiting to get through security. It took a good 25 minutes (photo courtesy of JD)

This was no joke. We are talking TSA experience. Put your loose items in a basket and walk through the metal detector gates. Oh, and before that I checked my gear bag easy peasy at the trucks lined up on 59th street.

• So YAY for easy gear check.
• Nay for security congestion (although I totally understand and appreciate that the runner’s safety was a priority.)
• Yay for weather which was much better than last year. It did get a bit windy from miles 8-12 but it was overcast and in the 40s. Nice!
By the time we got through security we had to move pretty fast to get in to the corrals before they closed them. We didn’t have time to find our exact corral so we just jumped into the one closest somewhere in the middle and wouldn’t ya know we bumped into 2 more friends, Jorge and Lisa’s friend who she says she ALWAYS bumps into. A serendipitous morning for sure.
Jorge and JD. I love how runners are very individual with how to dress for the weather. Jorge felt a tshirt and shorts was plenty for a 40 degree day and JD wanted a little more coverage. =)

Jorge and JD. I love how runners are very individual with how to dress for the weather. Jorge felt a tshirt and shorts was plenty for a 40 degree day and JD wanted a little more coverage. =)

corral-nychalfAnd before you knew it we were off and running. I said goodbye to everyone and told them I’d see them at Au Bon Pain for our planned post-race breakfast. I ran the first 5k with no issue. I’ve run in Central Park plenty of times and also ran this race last year so I was very familiar with the course. As soon as I saw the 5k sign I slowed down and walked to assess. Of course right away the knee started hurting. Crap. Should I have walked the first 9 miles and run the last 4 like my original plan? I had multiple conversations with myself and eventually shut myself up and agreed it was going to be a long time until I crossed that finish and I better just deal. I walked most of mile 3-4 and then my knee felt better so I progressed to a shuffle and then I was back running.

Here’s the most amazing thing: other than that mile and a little issue during the last 800 meters of the race I RAN THE WHOLE WAY! I kid you not. I was not prepared to feel good enough to do so. And since song lyrics are my mantra these days I found a new one to describe this day. I was listening to a song by Nickleback called “What are You Waiting For”. There’s a line where he says “Everybody needs a leap of faith. When are you taking yours?” I took a leap of faith with this race knowing the outcome was a big question mark and it worked out for me. I’m really grateful for that. And yes, in true Sally fashion I cried a lot. I just get so emotional.
No cars....just runners. NICE!

No cars….just runners. NICE!

Took this shot for my boyfriend to show his girls. He mentioned that they love the M&Ms store. Of course I'm sure they would rather have some souvenir merchandise rather than see a photo lol.

Took this shot for my boyfriend to show his girls. He mentioned that they love the M&Ms store. Of course I’m sure they would rather have some souvenir merchandise rather than see a photo lol.

Look at that smile. I wasn't pretending. I was so happy. I was running!

Look at that smile. I wasn’t pretending. I was so happy. I was running!

I got a kick out of these girls who dressed up in that “is it blue or is it white” dress that went viral. So funny.

Is it blue and black or white and gold?

Is it blue and black or white and gold?

They were airing the race on ABC and I got to see myself on TV while running toward the Freedom Tower.

There i am on the big screen!

There i am on the big screen!

This view always makes me emotional

This view always makes me emotional

So as I mentioned just as the 800 meters to go sign appeared my knee gave way. I hobbled those last 800 meters but I crossed the finish line and within a minute my knee was recovered again. Whew! I did it.

Homestretch

Homestretch

Hi. My name is Sally and I love to run.

Hi. My name is Sally and I love to run.

26 minutes slower than my PR but with basically no training and a knee that isn't 100 percent I'll take it!

26 minutes slower than my PR but with basically no training and a knee that isn’t 100 percent I’ll take it!

I walked around the corner and met up with Lisa, Jorge and Amy.

post-race-nychalf

And then I made it back to Penn Station to get the train back to the boyfriend’s house.
Coordinating sneakers AND KT tape. It was a Turquoise day

Coordinating sneakers AND KT tape. It was a Turquoise day

later on in the day we took the dogs to the park for a 2 1/2 mile walk. And by the time the evening came to a close I had taken 40,000 steps!

blownup-garminvivofitThis morning I’m feeling SORE everywhere. But my knee actually feels pretty good! My hamstrings and quads though are not happy. I foam rolled and iced yesterday and I took some ibuprofen today but I guess this is what I get for running so many miles under trained. I’m really surprised though how endurance-wise I felt fine. I never felt fatigued or out of breath. My body remembers how to do distance running. And now I need to recover smart. I’ve got another 1/2 in 2 weeks!

How was your weekend? Did you run? Did you spend any time outdoors? Are you ready for Spring?

 

Related posts:

  1. Fun Valentines Weekend
  2. Let the weekend begin
  3. Worked my first expo and my bargain outfit

I can’t win(d)! NYC Half Recap

16. March 2014 · 3 comments · Categories: labradoodle, running, Uncategorized · Tags: , , ,

Yep, I had to start yet one more post about my gripe with the wind (I don’t beat dead horses and I don’t beat living horses because I’m humane).

OK so a little recap about how today went.

IT WAS WINDY!

1011618_10203348984747043_1195718030_n

And now I’ll delve a little deeper…

At 4:30am the alarm went off. I got up but this guy didn’t budge.

photo

I got dressed, took a selfie in my messy kitchen and was on the road by 5:30am.

when your number is 20725 you know it's gonna be a big race (over 20,000 runners big!)

when your number is 20725 you know it’s gonna be a big race (over 20,000 runners big!)

I parked the car midway between the start and the finish of the NYC Half and was up and running by 6:25am. Caught this shot of the Empire State Building decked out in Green for St. Patricks Day.

Empire State Building as seen from 22nd and 7th

Empire State Building as seen from 22nd and 7th

The plan was to run 2.5 miles before meeting my friends near the start. Well, the Garmin lost satelite because of some scaffolding so I wasn’t sure until I got home how far I actually went. I mapped it out on Runkeeper and it turns out I covered exactly 2.5! I’m guessing my pace was around 10:30-11 minute miles).

JD, Lisa, Gary and Roger

Joined my peeps (although we missed Cindy!) at 58th and 6th…JD, Lisa, Gary and Roger

Once the group met up we entered Central Park and headed to our corals. It was actually a full 1/2 mile (10 city blocks) to get to the corals! It was really crowded and we had to go through some metal detectors which I have to say was not my favorite part of the day. But it’s just part of the new normal.

Roger had his customary Sausage McMuffin and a Mountain Dew for his pre-race fuel! Gotta love it!

1958212_10203348985147053_824814177_n

One last photo op before we all parted ways.

1964796_10203348985547063_684346179_n

My goal for the race was to stay as close to 10:40 min miles as possible. Somehow I managed to finish in 2:15:25 which meant I ran 10:20 miles. Sweet!

eu1ih1sa_back_1395001214

But it was rough. I was cold the entire time, Central Park hills never get any easier and the wind was insane! (I think I might have touched on that already) I almost lost my hat on 3 occasions.

The race gave me a good feel though for how I want to attack my marathon next month. I walked through water stops (I think I hit 5 or 6 stops) and still maintained that 10:20 pace. My entire left side is a mess. I’m sure it’s all connected so i really nead to focus on my form and stretching and foam rolling. I felt tighness in my left glute, hamstring, and ankle. Oh, and my neck started to spasm a bit. It was definitely a combination of being cold and tense. Also, the visor on my baseball cap came down so low that I think I tilted my head back a little just to see.

I really wanted to zone out, listen to my music and just enjoy the miles but that just didn’t happen. There were glimmers here and there when I got in a groove and had a smile on my face. But even as I ran through Times Square I was just not feeling it.

1000591_10203348987307107_87159310_n

Some fun sights:

  • Back of a guy’s shirt that simply said “Always look on the bright side of life”. I needed to see that. Our lives are not one sided. We might have one side that isn’t so bright at the moment but we should focus on the brighter side.
  • Seeing separate spectators dressed as a gorilla and a banana. I wanted to tell the gorilla that the banana was only 3 blocks away. I wish I took pictures! I also spotted Waldo (with a sign that said “you found me”)

When I crossed the finish line I knew I had only covered 15.5 miles and needed to continue running to 18.

10003128_10203348987107102_62280889_n

yay done! Sort of….

But they made us walk for a long time out of the finisher’s area and by the time I got my medal and my “recovery bag” with apple, pretzels, water etc I was cranky and sore and not in the mood to run. I thought I’d start walking back uptown to my car and if I felt better i’d run. Well, I never did run. I walked for 2.5 miles, stopped at Starbucks for breakfast (I was SO hungry. Only ate one bag of sport beans and had a few sips of gatorade during the race) and to defrost.

10013339_10203348059763919_1785970663_n

I waited forever for this caramel macchiatto. The barista said “thank you for your patience”. I was not patient in my inside voices but i held it together

It was so cold and windy and my heat sheet wasn’t staying put:( After breakfast I continued to walk one additional mile until I FINALLY reached my car. So I did cover close to 20 miles but I only ran 15 1/2 ish….Frankly I’m ok with that. I had a great 16 miler 2 weeks ago and I still have a 20 miler to bang out in 2 weeks.

Lesson learned: ALWAYS do extra mileage BEFORE the race.

My splurge for the day. BBQ.

10001297_10203349305915072_730927843_n

ribs and garlic bread! yes please!

It looks like I’ll actually be able to keep my midweek training on schedule with a 5 mile hill workout on Tuesday. Next race is the Love Run (1/2 marathon) in Philadelphia 2 weeks from today.

Question: Do you prefer big races or small? Or are you equal opportunity? I like both but I think smaller races are just easier logistically. Bigger races build excitement more though.

Related posts:

  1. Let the weekend begin
  2. 36 more days!
  3. Almost silent Saturday