Race is Run

I ran the More Fitness Magazine Half Marathon in Central Park yesterday! We had perfect (perfect, perfect, perfect!) weather and I ran it with my best friend since seventh grade, whom I corralled, cajoled and somehow convinced to run it with me.

It was her first half marathon and my fifth.  Since I may or may not have strong-armed her into signing up in the first place, I ran with her for the entire race at whatever pace she was comfortable with.

Congrats, Pip, on your first (and maybe last, haha) half marathon!

While I didn’t get a “good time” by race standards, I definitely had a good time by my standards (didja like what I did there with the pun?)

Our other best friend Cara (seriously, the three of us have been BFFs for.ev. er- Sandlot Style) came to cheer us on, as well as my dad, Pete and little Perri. It was so fun to have everyone yelling for us at the finish line, we felt like rock stars! Or track stars, I guess…

Heart you girls!

I also had six co-workers who ran the race and everyone finished and (I think) had a great time, which made the coach in me quite happy.  I really enjoyed leading training sessions over the past few months in order to get everyone ready for this race and I’m planning on doing it again next year! Go team!

We ran most the course at about a 9:45/mile pace which is significantly slower than what I would typically race at (for a half-marathon, I usually average between 6:30/mile and 7:30/mile, depending on what mile I’m at, ha!)

As much as I loved (LOVED) running with my friend and enjoyed the leisurely feel of the pace, there was a small part of me that missed the true adrenaline rush from racing my hardest and sorta longed for that dead-tired ache that comes from running your heart out.

Which is why I’ve decided to register for the Bronx Half Marathon in August and make the two months leading up to the race all about training, which means doing work-outs like mile repeats (ouch) and hard-core long runs.  Imma go balls to the wall because I want to see what I’m capable of!

So, to sum up: Half marathon yesterday, sore today and as always, had a blast.

Have you ever run a half-marathon? Would you consider it? I highly recommend!

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Two Exciting Things!

Alright, don’t pee your pants just yet, it’s nothing that great.  But first and foremost, I registered for the MORE Magazine Half-Marathon in New York City’s Central Park on April 3!

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This is exciting for two reasons.  First, it will be the first race I’ve run since the Boston Marathon in April of 2010.  Second, I’m running it with a group of co-workers from my school, most of whom are beginner runners.  I’m leading training sessions twice a week and will be emailing out a weekly run schedule.

Basically, it feels like my first real (well, only semi-real since I’m not getting paid) coaching gig, which is AWESOME.  As in, feels like the babiest of baby steps towards one of my life’s goals, which is to be a paid running coach (hence this blog!)

Anyways, while I won’t be running the race for a personal record, I have a feeling I’m going to be pretty damn emotional when my 12 female co-workers cross the finish line, some of them for the first time.  Oh yeah, did I mention it’s an all-women race? Girl power, roowr!

I’ll be sure to post more about our half-marathon training sessions, as well as our weekly mileage and work-out schedule as we get into things

And the second exciting thing to happen to me today? I took Perri for her first run and it was a grand ol’ success! Turns out, I somehow managed to adopt my dog soul-mate (in my ways than one.  But we won’t go there because you’ll all think I’m nuts.) In short, little Perri loves running!

At first, she was all like, ‘I wanna sniff the urine of every single other dog who has walked past here in the last 10 years’ but once I got her moving, there was no stopping her.

She was running all out, ears back, galloping at a pace that even I struggled to keep up with.  It reminded me of when I was little and used to just run, as fast as I could, like there was no tomorrow and no on could catch me, ever. Yes, I’m 100% sure that’s exactly how she felt (feel free to stifle your laughter at my craziness, oh about…now.)

We managed to get out for about 25 minutes, with a bunch of stops along the way (I jogged in place while she sniffed.)

You know what? Running with my dog is a million times better than running by myself.  I’ll definitely be doing this more often.  Suh-weeeeet!

For a Monday, this day wasn’t too terrible, thanks to the above incidents.  It’s the little things in life, eh?

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Sunday Morning Race Fun!

I know, the title sounds like an oxymoron (*snicker, that word is so silly) but yesterday, Pete, Perri and I roused ourselves at an ungodly hour of the morning (especially for a Sunday!) and trekked out to Central Park, where I ran a 4-mile race on a gorgeous (albeit chilly) fall morning.

I organized my school’s participation in the races, as well, and it was so fun to see so many of my students out there running.  As a PE teacher, I firmly believe in the power of physical activity for children and am dismayed at the increasingly sedentary childhoods being shoved on our kids…

Whoops, sorry, got caught up on my soapbox…*steps off.  Anyways, the point being that it was personally awesome to witness everyone’s face glowing with both exertion and excitement.  Plus, one of my second grade girls won her division.  What’s up, PE teacher extraordinaire? (Yeah, I know she’s 8, I never said I wasn’t a competitive one!)

It was also totally gratifying when another second grader told me today that she “can’t wait for the spring race, because that was the best thing ever.” And the cherry on the top? Two of my Kindergarteners brought in their participant ribbons for show-and-tell.

As a teacher, these are moments where you realize that you are somehow making a difference in these children’s lives…*tear!

Well, huh, look at this, what started off as a recap of my race turned into a philosophical moment about my chosen profession.  Didn’t see that one coming but I’ll take it (and hopefully I didn’t bore you silly.)

I ran the 4-mile race in 27:36 (averaging just under 7:00 min/mile,) which I was happy with since I didn’t train for this race and expected to run it much slower (maybe 9:30 min/mile?) but I couldn’t find any of the other parents before the race, so I was on my own.

I can’t say enough about how fun road races are.  I highly, highly, highly recommend that you sign up for one.  Not only will it motivate you to actually get out and run but it will also be a great experience that will leave you wanting more (I don’t mean to sound cliche but in this case, it’s totally true!)

So have any of you guys run a road race, like a 5k or 10k? What did you think? Anyone doing a Turkey Trot?

 

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The Hills Are Alive…

…with the sound of me panting while running up them? Hmmm, not quite as an attractive mental picture as Julie Andrews spinning around in Switzerland but you get the point.

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Or do you? Well, folks, my point is that hills are important to run up and down, especially if you’re training for a race or making an effort to become a better runner.

I was born running hills.  Erm, that sounds silly but you know what I mean.  I grew up in the foothills of the Berkshire mountain range and where I live, we count the miles by the hills.  As in, going up and down a hill is usually about one mile.

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You wanna run up and down dees hills? Yeah, that’s what I thought! On a side note, photos  like these make me desperately want to escape the urban decay landscape of New York City and head for the…Well, you know.

Anyways, my track and field attempts in high school were punctuated by running up and down hills.  When I went to college in Central New York, it was the same deal; hills, hills and more hills.

So now I live in New York City, where hills are few and far between.  My favorite running route is on Riverside Park, since it’s mere steps from my door.  But the route is completely flat, with almost no incline to speak of (that’s what happens when you run down by the river. At least I’m not livin’  in a van down by the river, right?)

So yesterday I put my money where my mouth is and hit the hills in Central Park.  I had a session with a client and we did the simplest workout ever.  I picked out a hill on the north side of the park and we ran up and down it without stopping for 25:00.  Sounds easy, right? It wasn’t bad but believe me when I tell you my quads were feeling it afterwards.

So, moral of the story? Throw a hill or two into your usual run.  If you can, pick one or two days a week where you focus on hills.  As much as they suck to run, getting up and down them makes you a stronger, faster, better runner.

How do you feel about hills? Do you avoid ‘em like the plague or tackle them with gusto?

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NYC Marathon 2010

No, I didn’t run in it, although several folks at work asked me if I did today (apparently my reputation precedes me!) I ran it in 2008 and while it was totally, totally awesome, I’ve got a lot more marathons on my list to get through before I start repeating myself.

Just for fun and nostalgia though, here’s a photos of me from the 2008 NYC Marathon:

HahahHA! Fooled you! (or didn’t I…) That’s actually Paula Radcliffe cruisin’ on by.  My thoughtful (then) boyfriend (now husband) took this shot in an effort to motivate me to um, catch up,  I suppose.  I should also mention that Paula managed to make us mere mortals feel even less worthy by winning the marathon after giving birth less than six months ago.  What a bad-ass!

Anyways, where was I? Oh right, a photo of moi from the race:

Ahhhh, good times, good times…Yeah right, that was at Mile 19 and all I wanted to do was stop.  RUNNING! But I put on a good show for the camera.

Also, I love that Pete is wearing his Miami Dolphin’s jersey.  Sure, his girlfriend’s running the marathon and he’s out there supporting her and all but let’s not get priorities out of wack (it was a Sunday, afterall…He may have even missed the game to watch me race, therefore bringing a new level of sacrifice to the relationship.)

Um, well, anyways, the point of my ramblings is that I went to go watch the 2010 NYC Marathon yesterday.  It was a perfect, late-fall day and we (by we I mean, my dog and I.  Pete was watching the Dolphin’s game.  I ain’t lyin’ about his dedication!) walked to Central Park and stood a mere 200 yards from the finish line.

Perri hates looking at the camera. Dumb dog.

The excitement and emotions were running high.  If you’ve never had a chance to watch a marathon, you really should (I know, it sounds boring, watching people just like, run and all, but it’s really fun!) and the finish line is the best part.

I’m a crier, so of course I shed a few tears watching the emotional victories of those who were about to be able to cross “running a marathon” off their bucket list or those who held the hand of their sister or husband while they finished the grueling event.

Oh geez, I’m tearing up right now just thinking about it.  I’m such a softie.

Look at all those people, all 45,344 of ‘em. Crazy, right? And yet, within that surging mass, each runner that passed me by was an individual fighting for the right to be able to say (all nonchalantly, obvi) “Oh yeah, the New York City Marathon? I ran that.” Pretty awesome, I think.

I loved seeing runners from all over the country and the world.  I saw runners with signs on their shirts, runners running for a cause, runners walking, runners crying, runners cheering and most importantly, runners believing.

Because there are moments in a marathon where it’s genuinely hard to believe that you’ll ever finish.  It would be so easy to stop, pull out, say “This is too hard, I’m done with this.” But no, we believe.  The crowd believes and the runners believe that somehow, in someway, you will cross that sweet, sweet finish line and raise your hands in moral victory, overcome with the realization that you just ran a marathon!

Oh, it’s a glorious moment, indeed.  Probably why I keep torturing myself by continuing to run these damn races.  Finishing a marathon is a momentous occasion and the memories push me through all the tough training times.

To all you New York City marathoners out there, huge congratulations are in order.  YOU DID IT!

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The Holidays Cometh

Every year, from about the middle of October to Jan 1st, I always feel like there’s more to look forward to than ever before.  Let’s take a look at the run-down…

First off, I love fall.  Apples, cider donuts, pumpkins, changing leaves, cooler running weather…I love it all.

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Then comes Halloween. Halloween involves an abundance of free candy, therefore making it the most bomb holiday ever.

Within the following two weeks, Pete and I celebrate our 27th and 28th birthdays, respectively, which always involves multiple dinners out and lots of giving and receiving of presents (I love presents. Love them.  Like, to an embarassing degree.)

Then comes Thanksgiving, a holiday that is 100% centered around eating as much delicious food as can possibly be stuffed into one’s belly, so obviously I’m down that one.  Then Hannukah usually makes an appearance (presents!) , then Christmas(more presents!) and finally New Years Eve (whohoo!) Not to mention the holiday parties and events that have already started padding out calendars.

By the way, I swear I’m not as much of a spoiled brat as the above paragraph makes me sound, I just get unnecessarily excited by the thought of presents.

And clearly, all these events involve copious amounts of awesome food.  I rarely try and hold back during the holidays, I love to eat way too much to deprive myself and many of my favorite goodies are only around during this time of year.  I do, however, try to maintain some semblance of a running routine to combat the inevitable weight gain.  Five pounds is my accepted limit and usually running most days helps me maintain that.

Plus, food tastes so much better knowing that you’ve earned it; guilt sometimes leaves a funny aftertaste, ya know?

So I signed up for a 4-mile race in Central Park the weekend before Thanksgiving in an effort to get motivated.  I won’t be shooting for a good time because I’m doing it through my job, so I’ll probably run with a group of parents (I teach elementary physical education.)

But it should be fun and a good way to get my run on during the holidays!

Do you have any secrets to prolonging the inevitable holiday weight gain?

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