Marathon thread

[steph08]

Archie - I would head to a chiropractor. When I was in the last weeks of marathon training, I got terrible lower back/butt pain. Turns out one of my nerves was pinched and it was pretty instant relief after I got adjusted. It would flair up after running, so I kept getting adjusted and it went away.

It is very common for mystery injuries or illnesses to pop up right before or after a marathon - your body is worn down from training and you are more susceptible to stuff (plus taper madness sets in and your brain starts playing tricks on you).

Good luck on Sunday! Don't start out too fast, no matter how "easy" it feels!  It will come back to bite you after a few miles, and then you still have 20+ to go.

[NancysSummerSip]

Steph, interesting you mention a chiropractor. I'm considering seeing one for the lower back/butt pain. I'm also pretty sure it's a nerve that's pinched, and yes, it does kick up after running, and also when I sit too much. Seems fine when I move and stretch and walk. I have an appointment for an annual physical next month, so I plan to ask then.

[steph08]

May 21, 2013 10:17:06 GMT -5 NancysSummerSip said:

Steph, interesting you mention a chiropractor. I'm considering seeing one for the lower back/butt pain. I'm also pretty sure it's a nerve that's pinched, and yes, it does kick up after running, and also when I sit too much. Seems fine when I move and stretch and walk. I have an appointment for an annual physical next month, so I plan to ask then.

Yes, running/walking/standing was all fine. But sitting - oh the sitting! The pain was terrible. I would bring an inflatable donut ring thing to work to sit on (thinking I had bruised something)! Once I got adjusted, it was easier to sit!

[NancysSummerSip]

Sounds like I need that plan. I'll ask some of my fellow swimmers, as well as my doctor. I know my health insurance does cover chiropractic visiits, though they are not unlimited in number. I did a search and found a lot of them listed within 20 miles of me, so I do have plenty of choices.

[steph08]

May 21, 2013 10:57:28 GMT -5 NancysSummerSip said:

Sounds like I need that plan. I'll ask some of my fellow swimmers, as well as my doctor. I know my health insurance does cover chiropractic visiits, though they are not unlimited in number. I did a search and found a lot of them listed within 20 miles of me, so I do have plenty of choices.

I highly recommend it! I think my health insurance covers 20 visits/year. To fix the problem, you really shouldn't need more than 2-4 visits. Mine was so much improved after just one.

Of course, my MIL works for a chiropractor, so I get unlimited visits.  

[Deleted]

Thanks Ratchets. My back felt better yesterday and is still feeling good today. I had a nice little 4 mile run last night that felt nice.

It looks like I am going to be getting wet during the race. But at least it won't be too hot. Starting temp in the 40s with a high in the 50s.

[NancysSummerSip]

Good luck Archie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ratchets, I was wondering where you'd been! Nice job on the run.

I did some speedwork last night, and will do a short run Saturday, with my last race next Monday. I've already started to look ahead to next season, to see what looks good. Might do one of the following half-marathons: Palm Beach or Space Coast (both in early December, a week apart) or next February's Daytona Beach race. I've done the Miami race (2/2/2014), but it's been many years. Never did Fort Lauderdale's race, but it is the same day as Daytona's race. DH would probably love it if I picked Daytona - the race packet includes tickets to the Daytona 500 Qualifier races, plus entry into the FanZone area. I enjoy auto racing, but after 13.1 miles, I'm not sure I'd want to walk the infield and sit through races, even if all the food is free.

[steph08]

Nancy - I hear Space Coast is a fantastic race to run.

[NancysSummerSip]

I saw the finisher's medals, steph...those things are awesome. One of my fellow swimmers has done Space Coast, and loved it. Palm Beach does not have a good reputation, so even though it is literally my backyard, I may skip it and go a few hours north. DH is a Kennedy Space Center fan, so he would love it.

[Deleted]

Race day was cold, wet and windy, but lots of fun. I had great support from my family and running partner. We ended up finishing at 3:47:41 and 3:47:43. I was the slower time as he was able to our kick me at the end. If I wasn't running with him, though, I would have never finished so well. He really pushed me the last 3 miles.

I'll write more later when I am on a computer and not an iPhone.

[Deleted]

Race day was cold, wet and windy, but lots of fun. I had great support from my family and running partner. We ended up finishing at 3:47:35. and 3:47:43. I was the slower time as he was able to our kick me at the end. If I wasn't running with him, though, I would have never finished so well. He really pushed me the last 3 miles.

I'll write more later when I am on a computer and not an iPhone.

[steph08]

Awesome job Archie!! What a great time for your first! Congratulations! Doesn't it feel great to be a marathoner?! Make sure you do a lot of walking and not resting - walking really helps keep the soreness away and helps you recover a lot faster! Awesomeness!

[NancysSummerSip]

Yay, Archie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I kept checking yesterday, to see if you logged on and were OK. Well done!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just did my last race for the season. Still waiting for official results. Unofficial is 38:38. I've done better for a 5K, but better was a cooler day and a flat course. This was 80 degrees at the start, no cloud cover and some elevation change.


ETA: Official results posted: 38:18. That's 18 seconds slower than the time I ran in April, when it was about 10 degrees cooler and the course was perfectly flat. But still below my previous best of 38:20. So I broke my old PR from years ago, not once but twice this year. I'll take it.

[Deleted]

Thanks guys ,it does feel good. i am going to try to write a race report. I am going to work on it here nad probably save it and edit it a bunch of times.

[Deleted]

2013 Key Bank Vermont City Marathon Race Report

The big story of the day was the weather. The average weather for the day in Burlington, VT has been a low of 49 and a high of 74. The previous 5 years had highs of 73 through 81. A week before the marathon, meteorologists were all forecasting a similar weather pattern with sun and warmth. But as one local station put it, it was the most dramatic degradation of the race day weather over such a short time that they could remember. Race day weather was stuck in the low 40s all day with rain and gusts of wind. Whiteface mountain, which is right across Lake Champlain had 36 inches of snow fall over the weekend! At least it wasn't too hot.

I got to Burlington on Friday night with my wife, my running partner and his wife. We stayed at a nice little B&B right on Main Street less than a mile from the start and finish of the race. We had a great dinner at a little taco place in an old diner on Friday (not Saturday night, Mexican before a marathon... probably not a great idea). We picked up our packets on Saturday at the expo and our wives picked up hats and gloves. My parents came into town with my two girls Saturday afternoon. On our way to their hotel to say hi my the exhaust pipe friend's car which we had borrowed (we carpooled up and they ad driven) came out of the bracket and was dragging on the road. We lucked out that it was a simple bracket fix and the tire barn we took it to fixed it for free. After getting back from the auto shop the kids and I took a dip in their hotel pool and hot tub, which was kind of nice. That night was awesome pizza at American Flatbread and lots of water. Back at the B&B we had a bathrobe party (they had awesome bathrobes) and looked over the course map. The course is clover shaped and by just walking down main street our wives could see us at mile 1, 3, 9, 15 and the end. So I circled the those spots and told them the times we would pass each one. It would turn out that we mapped and timed it almost perfectly and they were phyched that they could see us so many times during the race.

Ok, on to the actual race day, our goal was to finished under 4:00, which is a 9:05 average pace.  Our strategy was to start slow, try to maintain an 8:45 - 9:00 pace throughout the meat of the race and see how we felt at 20.

5:30 - I woke up and drank about 16-20 oz of water. 
6:00 - the B&B had a "runner's breakfast".  I had half a bagel with peanut butter, half a banana a glass of OJ and a cup of coffee.
7:00 - I had another 16-20 oz of water.   I decided to wear a short sleeve technical shirt, long sleeve technical shirt, shorts and a hat.  I also put on a longs sleeve cotton T-shirt, windbreaker and pants for before the race.  I was considering wearing running tights, but I am glad I went without.  I also thought about wearing a garbage bag, which I am also happy I went without.  I also lubed up my nips with some anti friction cream.  I had on my Garmin GPS watch but decided not the ear the heart rate monitor.  I had 5 packages of Stinger gummies that I put into 2 ziplock baggies, one in each pocket of my shorts.
7:10 - Left for the race.  It was rainy and cold.  43 degrees with a wind chill at 35.
7:30 - Hit the port-a-potty, checked my bag with my shirt, windbreaker and pants and headed for the starting coral. I ate a handful of gummies.
8:00 - We heard the crowd cheer for the start of the wheelchair division
8:03 - We heard the crowd cheer for the start of the full marathon
8:04:45 - We crossed the starting line

Mile 1 - 9:41 - The crowd was packed pretty tightly.   We did not want to go out fast though (we were paranoid about going out too fast and then "death marching" at the end.  The first mile marker was right at main street and who was there cheering like crazy woman and holding silly signs...  our wives.   Nicely done.  Although they hadn't realized that the B&B was on the corner we were running by so they left the B&B at 7:30, were at the corner and 7:32 and realized we wouldn't be there for another 40 minutes.  Oops...  can't ding them for not wanting to miss us, though.
Mile 2 - 9:17 - We were running across the hill that goes down to the lake and the water was coming down at the streets in sheets, flowing like little rivers.  I was trying to avoid the big puddles, but we were soaked in no time anyway.
Mile 3 - 8:53 - By the end of this mile we were running at our pace.  We had started nice and slow and felt really good.  We crossed main street during mile three again and again our wives were in the rain, on schedule cheering like nut cases.  (Here is where they ran back to the B&B for their breakfast.  They had about 50 minutes until they next saw us.  My wife ended up shoving uneaten french toast in her pocket to get to the next check point.  That is dedication).
Mile 4 - 8:30 - Here we were starting the out and back along route 127 which would put us back into town around mile 9. 
Mile 5 - 8:32 - We saw the front runners and rollers coming back towards us.  Guys were peeling off along the course to pee along the edge of the course.
Mile 6 - 8:39 - My running partner needed to pee.   We passed a port-a-potty that he was going to use if it was open.   There was a line so we kept running.  There was a cool drum band jamming out this way.  Our first 10k was just about done and we were feeling very good.   We were happy with our pace (a few times we had to slow eachother down) and we just had to keep trucking.
Mile 7 - 8:37 - Coming back from the out and back.  I ate my first handful of gummies and washed it down with water (which I had been getting at each station).   I ate about a packet, give or take.
Mile 8 - 9:03 - My running partner couldn't hold it any longer.  He ran into the weeds to pee.  I slowed to a jog and waited for him to catch up.  A few guys fist bumped me because of my Hartford ING shirt.
Mile 9 - 8:40 - We caught up to the 4:00 pacers and ran behind the, for a while.  We slipped pasted them when a space opened up (they were a big group).
Mile 10 - 8:34  - We passed through the center of town, which was fun.   Everyone was out cheering.  Our wives were following the schedule perfectly and my parents and kids had met up with them and were there cheering us on as well. 
Mile 11 - 8:39 - Running along Pine St.  Kind of a boring section of the race.   There was a bagpiper sadly playing which sounded like a dying cow.
Mile 12 - 8:51 - Up a slight hill.  My running partner's shoe came untied for the first time.   We passed a girl dry heaving.  I ate an orange that some homeowners were handing out.  I didn't eat the banana on my partner's advice.   They were giving out chocolate, too.   : 0
Mile 13 - 8:45 - Through some neighborhood roads.  I ate another pack or so of gummies.  We were  feeling good with the race so far.
Mile 14 - 8:45 - We crossed the halfway point in a little park where the first half relayers finished and their partners started.  We came out of the park onto a little bike path. 
Mile 15 - 8:37 - The bike path came out of the woods and opened up right next to the water.  The wind was howling and people who were wearing plastic bags were getting whipped around like they were wearing sails.  The waves were crashing up against the trail and splashing us with water.  It was cold back there.  We pushed the pace slightly simple to get the heck outta there.
Mile 16 - 8:44 - The big hill of the course up Battery Street.   We saw our wives at the bottom of the hill.  The rest of my family was in a coffee shop waiting for hot chocolate.  Drummers playing big bass drums played throughout the entire race coaxing us on with their rhythm. Honestly, thought, I am not sure I really heard them.  I told my running partner that I was going to take it really easy up the hill, but as we ascended it wasn't as bad as we heard tell and we didn't slow down the pace much.  Knowing that the rest of the course was essentially flat was nice, though.
Mile 17 - 8:29 - The course went out North Ave a main-ish long road that was a little boring. 
Mile 18 - 8:19 - We continued on North Ave and entered the neighborhood roads.  The rain had pretty much stopped by now.  That was nice.
Mile 19 - 8:31 - We ran through a short dirt path that was mucho sloppy.  A couple of guys were shoveling dirt onto the mud in a losing effort to make the mud less muddy.
Mile 20 - 8:33 - As we got the end of 20 we were a little surprised that we still felt pretty good, but I told my partner that it was all mental for that last 10k.  We met up with a woman running the second half of the relay who turned out to be very good company and a good pacer for the next few miles.  I ate some more gummies.
Mile 21 - 8:36 - We popped back onto North Ave for a bit and saw the runners behind us turning into the neighborhood section.
Mile 22 - 8:36 - We finished North Ave and turned onto the bike path that we would follow until the end of the course.  We were still feeling pretty good, in fact, my partner kept saying how good h felt.  My legs were starting to get a little heavy, though.  Still good, but a little heavy.   The woman we were running with said we looked great, like we just out for a 10k.
Mile 23 - 8:41 - My legs were starting to feel heavier.   The pace slowed down a little and I was fine with that.  She asked me if I wanted to slow down some more.  I said no.  My partner was still talking about how good he felt.  He was running in front of me, rather than next to me more. 
Mile 24 - 8:28 - He starts pushing the pace.  She says to him, George, you are running 8:20s. He slows down a little, but not for long.   My toes and or foot does a weird little cramping thing.  I hope it doesn't do it again because I could see myself falling because of it.  He asks her if this is where the crowd fills back in.  It has been sparse on the bike path.  She says no, no, no.  Still a little while to go.
Mile 25 - 8:18 - He keeps pushing the pace even more.  My foot cramps up again, but luckily for the last time.  I think about slowing back down to 8:45 or so, but not for too long.  I catch back up, leaving the woman we had met for the rest of the race and ask if he is trying to kill me.   There is not much talk for the rest of the race.
Mile 26 - 7:46  - Damn he is pushing the pace.  I concentrate on not cramping up and just keeping up.  I don't think about much else.  At the end of this mile we hear the crowd.  That is really nice.
Last .2 - 6:59 - We are full out now.  I turn the last corner and see my daughter on my father's shoulder and I see my wife going crazy.   I am on the inside of the turn, which is now muddy grass, and I try to push passed my running partner to take the win, but he has too much left in the tank.  He sees me out of the corner of his eyes and pushes his pace to a level I don't have.  I finish  seconds behind him and barely have the energy to lift my hands up as I cross the finish.  But we high five in success and keep moving.  My ankles and legs instantly feel terrible now that I stopped.   I keep walking to try and keep them lose, but I am not sure where I am going.  We hug it out a little further from the finish line.

[NancysSummerSip]

Aw, Archie, thanks!!!!!! That was a fun read, and I am glad your memories of it will be good ones. Are you feeling pretty good today, or did the wall hit you?

Just spoke to my Disney half-marathon friend. He is escalating his training, though still not running any races. I told him I would join him for a race when he's ready, and congratulated him on stepping up his running.

[steph08]

Archie - I am very impressed by the way you picked up the pace miles 23-26 - that is a fantastic job!

[NancysSummerSip]

May 28, 2013 20:04:36 GMT -5 steph08 said:

Archie - I am very impressed by the way you picked up the pace miles 23-26 - that is a fantastic job!

Pffftt....Steph, he's a typical guy. He was getting closer to the food, and he knew it. Of course he ran faster!

[Deleted]

May 29, 2013 9:38:46 GMT -5 NancysSummerSip said:

May 28, 2013 20:04:36 GMT -5 steph08 said:

Archie - I am very impressed by the way you picked up the pace miles 23-26 - that is a fantastic job!

Pffftt....Steph, he's a typical guy. He was getting closer to the food, and he knew it. Of course he ran faster!

; )


I haven't finished my race report yet, but I haven't had a lot of time to work on it.    If it hadn't been for my running partner there is no way I would have pushed the last 3 miles that fast.  At one point I thought of letting him just go ahead, but decided that I couldn't let him beat me by that much so I caught up to him and asked him if he was trying to kill me. 

[NancysSummerSip]

Archie, he wanted you to get to the good food before it was all gone, dangit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Speaking of which, the 5K I did Monday had a pretty hilarious post-race menu: cold pizza, chocolate milk, cookies, watermelon, oranges, bananas and Gatorade. Sounds like something a third-grader would eat for lunch. People did seem to love it, though, even at 8 a.m. (the race start was 7 a.m., not unusual for late spring/summer races here).

[steph08]

May 29, 2013 10:41:58 GMT -5 NancysSummerSip said:

Archie, he wanted you to get to the good food before it was all gone, dangit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Speaking of which, the 5K I did Monday had a pretty hilarious post-race menu: cold pizza, chocolate milk, cookies, watermelon, oranges, bananas and Gatorade. Sounds like something a third-grader would eat for lunch. People did seem to love it, though, even at 8 a.m. (the race start was 7 a.m., not unusual for late spring/summer races here).

After my marathon, I ate pizza and drank chocolate milk. It was the most delicious meal ever.

[NancysSummerSip]

I cannot handle food right after a race, for some reason. I did have some chocolate milk, though. I admit I do love that stuff. But nothing tastes good after a race, even if I am hungry. It's as if my stomach is still out on the course or something. I did take a banana home (ate it with my Grape Nuts this morning) and some cookies (DH scarfed those ).

On the advice of my Disney half-marathoner friend, I did start making protein shakes for post-race consumption, and try to drink a small one (6-8 ounces) within an hour of finishing a race. I make it and pack it in a cooler to take with me, if the distance to the race necessitates it. I find the shake helps ease the muscle cramps/pain issues, and my digestion seems to be fine with it. It's a vegan chocolate powder mixed with club soda, crushed ice and skim milk.

[Deleted]

I had a piece of pizza, coconut water and part of a pretzel. My insides were all crazy. I had to sh-t my brains out not soon after in a porta potty. I felt badly for the woman who went in after me.

[NancysSummerSip]

See, that would be me too, Archie. It's like the body just shuts off for the race, and then afterwards, it just lets go. Probably just as well that I don't eat after I race.

So...those ladies will not just remember you as another pretty face at the race, eh?

[steph08]

On my training runs, I always had to go to the bathroom about 6 miles into a long run - I am not sure if I really had to go or if my body knew that 6 miles is where the bathroom is on the trail so it just started telling me to go then!

I didn't go to the bathroom once during my marathon - of course, having the flu for several days beforehand pretty much took it all out of me. And it was so damn hot that the 125+ ounces of water I drank just while running just absorbed into my body. I was so happy when I peed about an hour after the race - no dehydration, yay!

[NancysSummerSip]

On my training runs, I always had to go to the bathroom about 6 miles into a long run - I am not sure if I really had to go or if my body knew that 6 miles is where the bathroom is on the trail so it just started telling me to go then!

Aw, we're related through our bladders! Mine does the same thing! Does not matter how much or how little fluid I take in, either. It's so freaking strange.

[Deleted]

I updated some more of my race recap.  I still need to do the post race. 

[Peace Of Mind]

What happened to Ratchets?  Did he get a blister or did he trip and fall down? 

[NancysSummerSip]

Ratchets might be doing the vacation thing, maybe. He's on a race break; nothing coming up for a few weeks.

I'm getting emails to do races over the summer. Oh, heck to the no. Nuh-uh. Nope. Not a chance. Unless my friend asks me to run one with him for his half-marathon practice. I am so done for a few months. I am planning a long run Saturday morning, followed by a short swim to test out a new style suit. And a nice pasta dinner that night.

[NancysSummerSip]

Ratchets, I think if you can survive training in Qatar, you can survive anything! I had no idea you were still in deployment mode.

I have my usual Wednesday night run tonight, weather allowing. We're east of a tropical low that's trying to form into a depression. It's been gray and miserable for days.