First Swim Meet!!!

I'll make this short and sweet.

So today was the first swim meet of the year.  I was penciled in to swim the 50 & 100 yard freestyle, the 50 yard breaststroke, and the 200 free and medley relays (if we could manage a team.)

Unfortunately, we were unable to get together a team for the 200 freestyle relay.  Oh well.

Since practice on Friday, I've been having back problems.  I pulled something and now, every time I breathe, there's a sharp pain on my left side in the middle of my back.  Probably not good.  I'm hoping that in a couple days it will go away.  ::fingers crossed::

First event was the 50 free.  My seed time was 25 seconds (my best time in high school was 23, 22 high on a relay pickup,) so I was hoping to get under that.  The time was good enough to be seeded 2nd, which i was pretty surprised about.

Long story short, i was in lane 5 and out touched the guy in lane 7 to take 1st overall with a time of 24.93.  

More than a second off my best.  

Second event was the 100 freestyle.  I put in my seed time at 1:00 but my previous personal best was just over 1:01 back in high school. 

Like always, I'm always ahead off the start but my turn is mediocre at best (although the first turn in this race is probably the best i've ever done!) and i lose ground there.

Ended up coming in at 1:00.14 which was good enough to win my age group and place 4th overall.

The 50 breast is not exactly a strong event for me.  Anything other than freestyle is rather awkward.  I put in my time as 35 seconds, not knowing what a "good" and "bad" time was for this race.  I touched the wall in 35.8 seconds which again, was good enough for a win in my age group and 4th overall.

The last event was the 200 medley relay which a few random people threw together at the very last second.  We had to play catch up from the very start and I was able to hold off the other team on the last leg to keep the 1st place in our hands (although my relay split was 25.17 ... nearly 3 seconds slower than in high school.)

Overall, I was disappointed with the way i swam.  I know i can swim faster in the 50 and 100 free, and when i get my technique better for the breast and in the turns, i'll be a force to reckon with.  Not to mention, when i shave down.

Other than the swim news, I've been running a lot.  10 - 11 mile runs have gotten very easy and prep for the Philadelphia marathon is going well.  Still hitting the weight room, but unfortunately cycling has taken a back seat because of the weather and priority.  

I need an indoor trainer for my bike.

Brrrrrrr

It's getting effing cold out there. I actually haven't run in this cold of weather in a long time. Prolly not since soccer in high school. It definitely takes some getting use to. The feeling of sweat freezing is not something that is a great feeling.

Got myself some spandex and a long sleeved running shirt and have been running. Effing freezing. Gotta try to stay lose for the big race on november 23rd. I know that I am not doing the half marathon anymore but a 8K is still the longest race that I have done so far. Nate is coming done for the race so I must not disappoint him.

I miss riding my bike but I have decided that it is too cold for that now. 2 weekends ago I went for a ride up at my parents and it was way too cold. Especially when getting some major wind going down a huge hill.

Well thats all for now.

Cheers,
e

Blah.

So first of all... it is freakin' cold outside. 

During my run today, i went by a thermometer board that had the temperature at 34 degrees.  With the wind chill, it's safe to say that it was well into the 20's.  Blast my body's inability to handle running on a treadmill, where it's nice and warm!

Anyways... two days ago i set out for a 10 miler, the first one since the marathon.  At about the first mile marker i was crossing a main intersection and accidentally stepped in a pothole and rolled my right ankle (yes, that is my reconstructed one.)  I managed to "run off" some of the pain for about 5 miles, but had to call it quits at mile 6 since it just hurt too much.  

I was scheduled to run 10-15 miles yesterday morning with my good friend Mary Hankin, but i nearly collapsed when i put weight on my ankle getting out of bed at 8am.  Ah yes, it was like deja vu, back to my old soccer days when this was a daily occurrence.  It didn't seem to bother me so much back then, maybe this "being physically healthy" thing is making me soft.  

::shrug::

Decided against running yesterday and lifted hard at the gym instead.  Rounded up the night with an hour and a half swim training session.  I'm pretty stoked that on November 2nd, the team i'm swimming with actually has a meet up in Rochester at RIT.  Should be a great time... just like the ole' high school days, only swimming, not diving, and against really really old people.  Errr...

Much to my delight (horror,) we emerged from the pool area to a winter wonderland.  First snow of the season.  I immediately popped the trunk and rummaged around for the snow brush / scraper and did the neighbourly thing and brushed off my fellow relay members cars.

So today i decided to head out for a long run again.  Mind you, it wasn't high miles today, but 6.7 miles is something considering how cold and windy it was and how "old school" my ankle was feeling.  It's just horrible that after a serious athletic career altering injury, any little thing that happens to that body part afterwards is amplified 10 fold.  Both physically and mentally.  

It's hard to get that confidence back.

Went out (way too fast) and rounded the first mile in just under 6 minutes.  Whoa there Nate... slow down buddy.  Settled in and just started cruising.  It was FREEZING but the pace was comfortable overall.  Towards the end my ankle began to stiffen up and the pain migrated back to my right achilles tendon area (which i have also had problems with in the past.)  At the end of the 6.7 miles, the inside of my right knee had also joined in the pain game (where i have a partially torn mcl,) but to my delight, my left leg felt wonderful.

I'll take pleasure where i can get it! (thats what she said.)

Finished in just under 48 minutes averaging 6:58 per mile.

Hopefully my ankle and knee wont be too sore tomorrow and i can get out for a longer run.

Run / Lift / Swim tomorrow.

Pitt Homecoming this weekend.

Woo!!!

Baltimore Marathon.

It was a long and brutal weekend to say the least... and i am anything but motivated in wanting to post about it.  So i apologize in advance for it being brief and without my normal array of quips and wittiness. 

I got a late start on Thursday and headed down to Baltimore / DC, arriving a little after 10pm.  After hanging out for the night, I headed to Ravens Stadium on Friday for the Event Expo... to register and to collect all the SWAG from the various booths.... i.e. chapstick, more water bottles than i will ever use in a life time, plastic cups, lanyards, gloves, etc etc etc.

Picked up my bib number, signed up for a pace group (3:10) and collected my UnderArmour marathon shirt.  I also purchased some things i probably shouldn't have:  a 2nd UnderArmour shirt, a fuel belt for long distance running, and sweat bands for my wrist.  

Left after about 2 hours of meandering and picking up at least a dozen marathon fliers for other races and headed out to my cousins place about 25 minutes northeast of Baltimore.

When i arrived, i was immediately greeted by a joyous 3 year old who was more than willing to tire me out before i had even run!  I spent most of the day (Friday) playing with him, throwing out my back, and watching Ratatouille / Finding Nemo.  Finally we were able to get him to bed after some convincing and a half hour story time session courtesy of yours truly.  

I think i'll be a great dad.

Went to bed around 11 in anticipation of the 5am alarm that was set to go off.  

Of course, i woke up 2 minutes before the alarm was supposed to go off, so i just got up instead of waiting.  Hopped in the shower, made some oatmeal, and drove to Baltimore.  

Arrived at about 6:30am and wandered about for a bit. I had until 8am to kill until the race start.  Listened to the ole ipod, took in some water and gels, stretched, dressed, laced up the shoes, checked my bag and went to the starting area at around 7:45am.  It was there that i met up with the 3:10 pace group (thanks to Geico) and met some great guys who i was to be running with for the race.  

It was great because the runners were set up so that there wouldn't be faster ones dodging and weaving through crowds of slower ones.  The 3:10ers were at the head of the pack, right behind the Ethiopians.  No. Really.  I lined up right behind the Ethiopians.

The time grew near and at 7:58am, 2 mins before the start, i realized i had to go to the bathroom.  Great.  

Welp... gotta hold it.

The gun went off and we started off on your 7:08 per mile pace.  It was surprisingly comfortable and easy.  We were having conversations and it wasn't laboured at all.  The biggest thing was that i really loved running with other people.  After the initial jockeying for position and crowding, we spread out a bit and just 'chilled' so to speak.

At mile 2, a helpful man on the corner gave us encouragement... saying "you're doing great guys... you're only 4 minutes behind the leaders."  

4 minutes behind the leaders... at MILE 2!  

We pranced on... up one hill, down a little, up another big hill, down a small one.... i swear i have never run so many hills in my life.  I wasn't exactly prepared for that.

About an hour in, i took down my first gel of the race.  Its tricky the first time out.... running, grabbing water, pounding it, grabbing gatorade, pounding it, and trying to get gel too.  

The sun eventually came out and we could tell it was gonna be a hot one.  Through mile 10 we were actually under the 3:10 finish pace which was great.  I still felt great and strong.  The crowds were great and inspiring, and even through some of the ghettos i mean "less wealthy sections" the people had their speakers in windows blasting 'Eye of the Tiger' and 'Chariots of Fire.'  It was a rush! 

Came through the halfway point at about 1:35 which is right on pace for a 3:10 marathon.  It was about this time that we saw the leaders streaking by the other way.  

Unreal.  

Throughout the first half of the race i was ever vigilant of the professional photographers on the course.  I can't wait for the cd to get to me with all the pictures on them... i made a point of posing for a number of them... so it should prove interesting.  Another thing that will be great to see is my inevitable decline after mile 16 and the how bleak i looked.  

Heres a mile by mile recap of the end of my race:

Mile 16 - Left leg started cramping up a lot.  First my calf, then my hamstring had to play too.

Mile 18 - I had been able to keep the pace group in my field of vision up until this point.  No more.  My race had turned in to running with walking through aid stations.

Mile 19 - My right leg finally felt the peer pressure and started cramping up... only worse than my left.  These cramps were the balled up ones where every time i kicked my hamstring constricted.  I haven't felt that kind of physical pain in a long time.

Mile 20 - The 3:20 pacers started to pass me.  This is when i knew i was in serious trouble.

Mile 21 - Lost view of the 3:20 pacers.  My run became more of a pathetic hobble.

Mile 22 - My body finally gave me the big middle finger and reduced me to walking.  Talk about humbling.  I decided to finally stop and use a port-a-pottie if only to give my legs a rest.  

Miles 23 / 24 - Consisted mostly of a humorous hobble / walk combination (humorous to watch, not experience) and a "grab everything i can get my hands on" mentality through the aid stations.  I was grabbing a cup of water, pounding it, grabbing a cub of gatorade, pounding it, and then another water to wash that down.  My body hated me.  To add insult to injury, the 3:30 pacers had began to pass me.

Mile 25 - Almost entirely a walk, at this time it was about finishing... but oh boy did the first aid booths look inviting along the course.  

The last mile was entirely down hill and i met up with another struggling member of the 3:10 pace group.  We just said screw it and starting running as fast as we could.  I sprinted the last mile (well, as good a sprint could be after 25 miles of physical battery) and finished in a time of 3:38:54.  Almost a half hour after the the group i had set off with.  The surprising thing was that my last mile was actually ran in under 6:30. 

I hate my body.

After the race, we were corralled into the runners area where we were treated to a medal, a reflective sheet to ward off the sun, liquids and some food (bananas, chips, granola, fruit, etc.)  Stupidly, i pounded 4 cups of gatorade, grabbed two bottles of water, chips and granola and went and sat on the ground.  This is where i started to feel bad... dizzy, nauseous, all sorts of not normal.

I stood up and walked over to the other side where i checked my bag.  Sat down on a bench, put my head in my hands and i may have 'fallen asleep' for a good 15 minutes.  In reality, i probably passed out.  When i 'woke up' i went and collected my bag and then got that mouth watering feeling that comes to you right before something bad is going to happen.  Yeah, you know what i mean.

I snatched my bag and made my way as quickly as possible to the far end of the nearest parking lot, where no one could see me, and promptly returned all that gatorade back to the earth.  On the plus side, it made me feel 150 times better, but at the cost of soiling my new $110 Adidas AdiZero running shoes.  

I guess they're officially broken in now.  

After collecting myself and getting my act together, i was delighted to see that ONE PERSON came to see me.  Maren Bertwell from my Italy Round 1 lives in Annapolis, so she drove up to say hi.  It was amazing to see her and was really the highlight of my day.

I think the hardest part about running there wasn't the heat, wasn't the hills, wasn't the distance or any of that... it was the fact that i had no one there to support me.  No one for the hour and a half prior, no one cheering for me during, and no one at the finish where everyone else was hugging their loved ones.  It was just me, my little spot on the pavement and eventual puddle of gatorade.

Congrats Nate.

Gotta be honest, sitting in a car and driving yourself home 30-40 minutes is not an ideal way to wind up a marathon experience either.  For a lack of better way to put it, that sucked.

Went back to my cousins place, but only after i stopped into a Walmart to grab a 10 pound bag of ice.  Filled the tub up, dumped the ice in, and submerged my battered lower body.

Now, you're only supposed to be in an ice bath for 10-15 minutes.  I FELL ASLEEP in my ice bath and only woke up when my cousin pounded on the door 50 minutes later.  

Nice one Nate.

After washing off i headed downstairs where Derek (the 3 year old) was more than willing to pick up where we left off the day before.  Unfortunately, i couldn't say no to him and ignored my body's pleas to rest and relax.  We ripped through Finding Nemo again, and then sat down for a great meal of eggplant parmesan.   After putting the kids to bed we sat down and watched Reign Over Me.  Well... my cousin and her husband sat, i kind of sprawled in whatever position would make my body the least angry.

I went to bed before 11pm and passed out until my alarm went off at 9am.... i MUST have been tired.  I never completely sleep through the night.  Due to the fact i drink too much water (or maybe because i'm getting old) i have to get up to piss 1-2 times during the night.  I know you wanted to know that.

When i got up, i was greeted with eggs, bacon, and strawberry / chocolate chip pancakes.  Ugh... heaven.  At about noon i said my goodbyes and began my trek back north.

If there's anything worse than driving 40 minutes right after running a marathon, its driving 6+ hours the day after.  Not exactly pleasant.

So that was my weekend in a nutshell.  Today i was antsy, and although unable to run for another couple days, i went against my better judgement and cycled an easy 34 miles.  

::shaking head::

Lifting and swimming tomorrow... hopefully turn on the high mileage running at the end of the week in prep for the Philadelphia Marathon on November 23rd.

I learned a lot this weekend, about the race and about my body:

1.  I underestimated how hard a marathon is.

2.  Despite what your mind and lungs want you to do, your body will do what it wants.

3.  Running with other people make all the difference in the world.

4.  I've said it before, and i'm saying it again:  i have to check my ego at the door.  Even though my time was "really good" for a first timer, i wasn't nearly prepared enough from my training.

5.  Have people there for you.  At the end, there's nothing i wanted more than to see the people i care about.  It's a crappy feeling when you can't.  Substitute "crappy" with a much stronger word though.

6.  Ask questions and take advice.  Encourage others and accept encouragement.  

7.  Fuel and hydrate.  FUEL AND HYDRATE.

8.  It's an emotional experience.  Crossing that finish line was more than gratifying.  To the point of wanting to cry.  When it hurts to the point you want to quit, think about that finish line.

40 days until Philly.  Lets see if we can cut 30 minutes of that time, shall we?

The Philly Half Marathon

Philly Half Marathon

13.1 miles

I know that it has been awhile. I apologize and will get back on the ball.

So...triathlon down. Next... Half Marathon.

Now I know that I am only on my way to becoming an IRONMAN (goooo NATE!) but a half marathon is something that I never thought I would be able to do in a million years.

November 23rd I will complete my first half marathon. Who would have ever thought?

Last Saturday, I ran the furthest I have ever run : 6.18 miles. I know that is not the longest distance but for me, it was my first hurdle.

The course looked pretty epic when I mapped it out:














Elevation:





First 2 miles were great. Beautiful day and felt good. As you can see, mile 3 started a pretty steady climb. For some reason, this is when I wanted to give up. I had to mentally take back control of the run. That is my biggest hurdle...the mental game. I tend to get really negative with myself and psych myself out. Got a work on that.

I pushed through and ended up feeling pretty good at the end of it. I had my new Asics shoes on and they actually felt really good. Much more support than my Shox.

Tonight was a 4 mile run. Legs are tired but run I must.

Cheers,
e

20.4

Anyone i've talked to has made a point at saying "if it's the only thing you do, run at least a 20 miler before your first marathon, just so you get a taste of what you're in for, and know what to expect."  Well, today, as promised, i did just that.

Although still a little achy in the joints from the devil treadmill, i really couldn't have asked for a better day for a run.  Not humid at all, clear skies, sunny but not sunny enough to warrant sunglasses, and a refreshing 55 degrees.  

So this was the plan : my normal "10 mile run" is actually a 10.2 mile loop that i do, starting and ending at my house.  Since it was my intention to run at least 20 miles today straight, i figured i'd do the loop twice, with a quick water / food / pee break after the first 10.2 miles.  Simple enough.

I head out, feeling absolutely great.  After about a mile, any rust and aches that were in my joints melted away and i was on cruise.   Long easy strides and my breathing wasn't laboured at all.  If pressed, i would have to estimate my heart rate wasn't too far above 100 bpm.  Maybe 110 at most.  I was still able to have a conversation at the pace i was running... it's incredible the progress i've made... now thinking that a 10 mile run in just over an hour is "easy."  

"You're a machine Nate... and more than a little insane."  

Yes... so i've been told.  Repeatedly.  If i had a dollar for every time i've heard that, i could probably purchase one of those new sweet C-series 450 horsepower AMG Mercedes.  

Donations anybody??

Came in after the first 10.2 miles in 1:12:52 which is 7:09 per mile.  Legs felt great, breathing still wasn't laboured, i was just a little thirsty.  haha.  

Took a 5 minute break.  Downed a water bottle of water, ate a banana quick, took a bathroom break and was back out for round 2 after only 5 minutes "rest."  I figure that during the actual marathon, i can easily cut off 3 minutes of that since i'll have HAMMER GEL packs on my tri belt and there will be aid stations throughout... so i can actually cover SOME distance as opposed to remaining stagnant at my house for 5 minutes.

After the break, took off for lap two, and it took about a mile to get back into the groove and have the newly ingested fuel take affect.  About mile 13 my right knee started bothering me and by mile 15, that pain was replaced by sharp pains in my left knee.  At mile 17 i definitely started to slow down a little bit... the knee pains were promptly replaced by pain from cramping calves and hamstring.  Unlike the joint pains... these stayed with me until the bitter end.

I ended up running the 2nd 10.2 miles in 1:19:51.  Just shy of 7 minutes slower than my first 10.2 and at an average of 7:50 per mile.  

Added together and including the 5 minute pit-stop, my total time for 20.4 miles was 2:37:43 which equates to a 7:43 per mile average.  Plenty below the 8 minute average i need to reach my 3:25 goal in Baltimore.  Take off a couple minutes with the on-the-go aid stations... i think i'll be golden.

After i got home i quickly filled the bathtub and dumped a bucket of ice into the water.  Dipped myself in and sat there for about 20 minutes... i think thats going to save me in the next few days and i hopefully my soreness level will be far lower than it was last week when i only ran 13.7.  

I estimate that i probably burned around 2,000 + calories during todays training session.

Just finished eating, spent about 15 minutes stretching, and i currently have an iced gel pack on my right knee.  Hopefully i'll be in good enough condition to head out for at least a 3.5er tomorrow.

I learned a few things about longer runs on my training session today:

- i am capable of going 10.2 miles without hydration in conditions similar to today.

- the race really doesn't start until mile 17 and higher.

- distance running is a testament to how well you can endure and shut out pain.

- if you cant endure or shut out the pain, embrace it.

- i no longer have to wonder if running a marathon will suck.  i KNOW it's going to suck.

- throughout the entire 2nd half of my run, i could only think about the fact that i will be doing this next summer, after a 2.4 mile swim and after a 112 mile bike, through the mountains.  it has given me a new perspective on how difficult the Ironman really is.

- i consider myself pretty fit and my athletic ego tells me i can finish any type of race without training hard.  i mean, REALLY training.  shorter races, yes... ok.  these longer endurance races i have to check my ego at the door and train seriously.

- the body is an incredible thing, and only a week after struggling so much with a training run, the fact it allowed me to come back and run well today, 7 miles longer, with more ease, and less physical punishment.

- endurance races are humbling.

Baltimore is just going to be a stepping stone.  I think after todays run i definitely want to run in Philadelphia and drop my time.  The time of 3:25 which i want to reach is an average of 7:48 per mile.  Even with that long break today, i'm 5 seconds below that.  I'm like rainman.  It's always a numbers game for me.  

Always crunching. 

Oh, and i got new running shoes a few days ago.  Adidas AdiZero Tempos.  They are incredibly light and they make a world of difference compared to my Nike Shox (purchased in fall 2004 and with 500 + miles on them.)  haha.

After the marathon, i'll finally be comfortable enough to call myself a real runner.