Cleveland Fall Classic 1/2 Marathon Race Report

After my PR race at the Detroit Free Press 1/2 marathon back in October, I scaled back my training. I wasn't feeling up to par for several days after the race and I just couldn't get myself overly motivated to get back into the swing of things. I threw it out on Facebook that I needed a new goal. My friend Jenn's husband replied and said that I should run the Fall Classic 1/2 marathon with Jenn on November 21st. I figured that was the perfect solution. You would think that would motivate me to get out there more but I still continued to scale back my training and take more days off than I did while training for Detroit. At this point Jenn and I decided we would just treat the 1/2 as a training run. We both got in limited mileage the two weeks prior to the race. Jenn was sidelined by the flu last week and then she woke up with a cold Saturday morning. By the time we got to the start line yesterday, Jenn had full blown laryngitis. We decided we would shoot for sub 2:30 and treat it as a training run. We started out great and faster than we had anticipated. The course was unique as you ran two loops around the course. It was nice because you got to see other runners the entire time. It was great to see people we knew heading in the opposite direction and being able to cheer them on. In fact we got to see Connie (here) several times! During the first loop we happened upon fellow dailymiler Angie and we all ran together for quite a while. After we headed back out for the second loop, Jenn and I both decided we needed visit the port-o-potty which was right by a water stop. Angie was kind enough to wait for us to finish and then we all kept running. I am so glad we stopped because I felt so much better and it was much easier to run without a full bladder!

Since we treated this as a training run, I was able to work on my nutrition/hydration. Morgan(here) had suggested I try Power Bar Gels and I have to say I loved them. I had a strawberry banana one before the race and it went down very easily and tasted great. The best part...no stomach issues! I also decided I was going to try the Power Bar Gel Blasts. I was glad I looked at the packaging on Sunday morning and realized that it was going to be too bulky to fit in my amphipod waist belt (that I purchased on Friday at packet pickup) that I love by the way! I took the blasts out of the original packaging and put them in a ziploc sandwich bag. It worked well. Although, I think a snack size bag would have been the perfect size so I will be purchasing some snack bags! The plan was to eat the blasts at mile 5. The blasts were also strawberry banana and they were great. They were nice and soft and very easy to chew and again....no stomach issues! I had originally planned to take another gel at mile 10 but I was feeling good so I opted to just finish my smart water in my handheld during the final 3.1. I think I have found my new fuel! Thanks again for the recommendation Morgan!!

Around mile 10 or so, Jenn was having a hard time breathing. The cold was definitely catching up to her so we just took it nice and slow until we hit the 13 mile marker and then we booked it to the finish in a time of 2:21. Not bad, not bad at all!

Since a race report just isn't a race report without pictures, I give you the finish line in photos!

Jenn, Angie, and I

Connie and I

Jenn and I

Jenn with her hubby (who ran his first 5K yesterday and crushed it) and kiddos.

Keep running, you're simply the best, and you inspire me!!

A Few Quick Reader Questions And Discount Codes

So, I have really been thinking about something a lot lately so I figured I would come to my wonderful bloggy friends and ask all of you what works for you.

1. When doing long runs or 1/2 marathons and marathons where/how do you carry your nutrition and hydration?

2. What do you use for your nutrition and hydration?

3. Is there a certain brand you prefer for carrying your nutrition?

I was recently reading some reviews on Spibelt (here) and became rather intrigued so I sent an email to the company to see if their product would work for me.

See, I want to be able to have my phone, some form of ID, and my nutrition fit into something. I do have pockets in my running shorts but my blackberry is just too heavy and is constantly pulling on my shorts. In the email I explained exactly what I wanted to carry and I got a response assuring me that everything would fit. They also pointed out that there is an energy spibelt which has additional loops on the belt to hold gels. The best part of the entire email was that they are currently offering a holiday discount of 15% (code is "holiday22") as well as free shipping (code is "ship09"). I figure since the shipping code is listed on their website and I have sited their website (here) it is okay to share this information with all of you!

So, please tell me how do you carry and hydrate?

Keep running, you're simply the best, and you inspire me!!

Sunday 7 Miler and Race Week

I headed out this morning to do my longest run since Cleveland. I got out there at 7:15 am and it was hot and humid already! I recently shared information about the importance of hydration on my blog. I took said advice and weighed myself before and after my run today. Before I left the scale registered 148.4 and upon my return I saw 147.2. It appears I "lost" 1.2 pounds out there today and I even drank 16 ounces of water during the workout so the heat was definitely a factor especially since I could literally wring the sweat out of my running clothes when I got home. I, of course, came home and drank 16 plus ounces of water to make up for that 1.2 pound "loss". I felt pretty good out there today. I made sure to take it easy and came in at 1:11.05 (10:09 pace). I will take it. Tomorrow is a rest day for me and my last day of work for the summer. I am looking forward to my early morning runs and spending lots of time with the kids. Of course I say that now but ask me next week how many times I have had to hear "I'm bored". HAHA!! My training schedule this week will be a "mini-taper" of sorts for the Girls With Sole 5K I am running next Sunday. It will be my first "race" back. I am very interested to see what my legs can do out there after many months of marathon training and recovery. And let me be completely honest, I have some "unfinished business" with that little thing called the finish line!! The plan for the week is pretty light. Run five miles Tuesday and Wednesday, four on Thursday and rest days on Friday and Saturday!

Keep running, you're simply the best, and you inspire me!!