Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Sunday, June 25, 2006
50 K report!
Well, I didn't get much sleep the night before the race as I was afraid that I would oversleep and not hear my alarm. I ended up getting up around 3:30 AM and left to pick up my friend Theresa.
We drove up together and discussed our pre-race strategy. The drive was traffic free and we arrived in Niagara Falls at about 5:45 AM. We were surprised to find out that we both received a very nice sweatshirt.
The weather was great and it was nice to see so many familiar faces at the race. I mentioned to whoever was listening that this was our first 50K race. Everyone was so supportive and wished us the best of luck.
The race started promptly at 7AM and things seemed to go well for the first 20K or so. I was on target for a sub 5hour 50K which was what I wanted.
However, things went bad from there and I started feeling pain and for the first time in my short racing career, I was having negative "self talk" along the way. I couldn't seem to shake free from this and while my pain was minimal, the mental games were agonizingly tough to overcome.
For whatever reason I couldn't seem to keep my pace and this was getting me more and more frustrated. Theresa tried to keep my spirits up but nothing seemed to work.
Although Theresa and I had planned to finish the race together, it became clear that this wasn't going to happen. Theresa decided to keep going at her pace and I told her that was fine with me. My only regret is that I didn't have my mp3 player with me so the final 15K I ran alone.
I tried to use the 5K aid stations as "mini goals" to keep me going and this worked for awhile but my pace was so slow that I got more and more frustrated by how long it was taking me to get to each station.
I used some walking breaks to catch my breath but tried to keep running as much as I could so I wouldn't stiffen up completely.
The final 10K was probably the hardest 10K I've ever done. Amazingly enough, I was still on pace for a 5hr finish with 10K left to go. The last 10K was a series of walks followed by slow runs. It wasn't until I hit the 48K mark that I knew I was going to finish and finish strong. I dug in as deep as I could and ended up doing the last 2K at a 5:30K pace.
I ended up finishing the race in 5:04. It was an amazing experience and something that I will definitely try again. I realized, though, that I have put myself through lots of races in the past 10 months (over 15 I believe) and that it's time for some much needed rest.
I've already accomplished my 2 racing goals for the year (complete my first marathon and first 50K) and while I still have several more races to go, I can relax a little now and just enjoy them more.
We drove up together and discussed our pre-race strategy. The drive was traffic free and we arrived in Niagara Falls at about 5:45 AM. We were surprised to find out that we both received a very nice sweatshirt.
The weather was great and it was nice to see so many familiar faces at the race. I mentioned to whoever was listening that this was our first 50K race. Everyone was so supportive and wished us the best of luck.
The race started promptly at 7AM and things seemed to go well for the first 20K or so. I was on target for a sub 5hour 50K which was what I wanted.
However, things went bad from there and I started feeling pain and for the first time in my short racing career, I was having negative "self talk" along the way. I couldn't seem to shake free from this and while my pain was minimal, the mental games were agonizingly tough to overcome.
For whatever reason I couldn't seem to keep my pace and this was getting me more and more frustrated. Theresa tried to keep my spirits up but nothing seemed to work.
Although Theresa and I had planned to finish the race together, it became clear that this wasn't going to happen. Theresa decided to keep going at her pace and I told her that was fine with me. My only regret is that I didn't have my mp3 player with me so the final 15K I ran alone.
I tried to use the 5K aid stations as "mini goals" to keep me going and this worked for awhile but my pace was so slow that I got more and more frustrated by how long it was taking me to get to each station.
I used some walking breaks to catch my breath but tried to keep running as much as I could so I wouldn't stiffen up completely.
The final 10K was probably the hardest 10K I've ever done. Amazingly enough, I was still on pace for a 5hr finish with 10K left to go. The last 10K was a series of walks followed by slow runs. It wasn't until I hit the 48K mark that I knew I was going to finish and finish strong. I dug in as deep as I could and ended up doing the last 2K at a 5:30K pace.
I ended up finishing the race in 5:04. It was an amazing experience and something that I will definitely try again. I realized, though, that I have put myself through lots of races in the past 10 months (over 15 I believe) and that it's time for some much needed rest.
I've already accomplished my 2 racing goals for the year (complete my first marathon and first 50K) and while I still have several more races to go, I can relax a little now and just enjoy them more.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Preparing for my first 50K race!
What am I thinking? In less than 72hours I will embark on my longest and toughest race of my very short racing career.
When I first got into running, the person who encouraged and influenced me me most was an ultra marathoner. She actually just completed her first 100 mile race a few weeks ago. I started off doing some races with her but while I was tackling the 25K variety, she was off doing the more challenging 50K races.
I always dreamed of what it would be like to put myself through this kind of a race. I recently completed my first marathon in May and was going to wait until the end of the summer to complete my first 50K but I remember her saying last year that the 50K in Niagara was fairly flat and not a bad course to attempt my first 50K at.
I did my last run today (11K at an easy 5:35 pace) and will spend the next few days getting mentally prepared for the race. My diet over the next few days will consist of some blueberry bagels, protein shakes, pasta, natural peanut butter, yogurt, pancakes and some granola bars.
The day before the race I'll have a big bowl of pasta with some parmesan cheese.
I plan on drinking 3-4 liters each day from now until the start of the race.
The race starts at 7:00 AM which means I have to leave my house at approximately 4AM. Thankfully a friend is joining me (I can't wait Theresa) and this will make the trip VERY exciting as this is her first 50K race too.
I completed a very nice talk at the Running Room in Whitby tonight and met some truly great people who are training for a 10K race in July. It meant a lot to me when they wished me well on my race. I also visited my "Mecca" which is the Running Room in Pickering. It was great to see Nancy, Miriam, Chuck and Maureen there. I am very fortunate to have such a great group of friends and they all wished me luck on my race. There's something magical about going into that particular store and seeing such a great group of people. Once I complete the race I'll be sure to stop in to tell them all about how I did.
Once this race is over I'll make sure I take some time off....................Until the next race that is!
When I first got into running, the person who encouraged and influenced me me most was an ultra marathoner. She actually just completed her first 100 mile race a few weeks ago. I started off doing some races with her but while I was tackling the 25K variety, she was off doing the more challenging 50K races.
I always dreamed of what it would be like to put myself through this kind of a race. I recently completed my first marathon in May and was going to wait until the end of the summer to complete my first 50K but I remember her saying last year that the 50K in Niagara was fairly flat and not a bad course to attempt my first 50K at.
I did my last run today (11K at an easy 5:35 pace) and will spend the next few days getting mentally prepared for the race. My diet over the next few days will consist of some blueberry bagels, protein shakes, pasta, natural peanut butter, yogurt, pancakes and some granola bars.
The day before the race I'll have a big bowl of pasta with some parmesan cheese.
I plan on drinking 3-4 liters each day from now until the start of the race.
The race starts at 7:00 AM which means I have to leave my house at approximately 4AM. Thankfully a friend is joining me (I can't wait Theresa) and this will make the trip VERY exciting as this is her first 50K race too.
I completed a very nice talk at the Running Room in Whitby tonight and met some truly great people who are training for a 10K race in July. It meant a lot to me when they wished me well on my race. I also visited my "Mecca" which is the Running Room in Pickering. It was great to see Nancy, Miriam, Chuck and Maureen there. I am very fortunate to have such a great group of friends and they all wished me luck on my race. There's something magical about going into that particular store and seeing such a great group of people. Once I complete the race I'll be sure to stop in to tell them all about how I did.
Once this race is over I'll make sure I take some time off....................Until the next race that is!
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Body For You Programs
Here are the following programs being offered with the accompanying costs:
Diet Analysis and Meal Plan ($100 or $150 for two people): This program covers a thorough analysis of your typical eating pattern and this will help me to prepare a proper 7 day meal plan that fits into your lifestyle. It will include what to eat before/during and after any athletic competitions (10K races, 1/2 marathons, marathons and ultramarathons, long distance walking etc),
easy to follow recipes, proper serving sizes, substitution lists and a recommendation of what vitamins will help you . This program also includes regular correspondence via email where I will answer any questions you have regarding your meal plan or any other nutrition questions.
NEW
In house visit ($75): I will come to your house and go through your kitchen with you so you can see what foods you need to eat more of. This will provide you with a good educational base and makes a great combination if you have purchased the Diet and Meal Plan program.
Grocery Tour ($50): We will go on a tour of the grocery store where you regularly shop and I will give a guided tour of what foods to eat more of and which foods to use less often. The grocery stores strategically place food items in certain locations and once you figure out what areas to avoid it will take some of the stress away from grocery shopping.
Diet Analysis and Meal Plan ($100 or $150 for two people): This program covers a thorough analysis of your typical eating pattern and this will help me to prepare a proper 7 day meal plan that fits into your lifestyle. It will include what to eat before/during and after any athletic competitions (10K races, 1/2 marathons, marathons and ultramarathons, long distance walking etc),
easy to follow recipes, proper serving sizes, substitution lists and a recommendation of what vitamins will help you . This program also includes regular correspondence via email where I will answer any questions you have regarding your meal plan or any other nutrition questions.
NEW
In house visit ($75): I will come to your house and go through your kitchen with you so you can see what foods you need to eat more of. This will provide you with a good educational base and makes a great combination if you have purchased the Diet and Meal Plan program.
Grocery Tour ($50): We will go on a tour of the grocery store where you regularly shop and I will give a guided tour of what foods to eat more of and which foods to use less often. The grocery stores strategically place food items in certain locations and once you figure out what areas to avoid it will take some of the stress away from grocery shopping.
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