4th Place

FOURTH PLACE....THE FIRST LOSER?!?!?!

Do any of you remember those "No Fear" shirts that were pretty popular in the early 90's? They would usually have the "No Fear" logo on the front and then some saying on the back. Some of them were pretty inspirational, some were pretty mean and in my humble opinion, a bit inaccurate too. I remember one shirt having this phrase..."Second place, the first loser!" I'm sure this was intended as motivation to always shoot for the top, but I hardly considered a second place finisher in any competition to be a "loser."

Watching the Olympic games every two years though does make me think about 4th place being the "first loser." I have always felt a little bad watching the fourth place finisher in the Olympics. They have obviously worked so hard to even be in the Olympic games in the first place. Being the fourth best athlete in the world is nothing to scoff at either, but just being out of the medals must be a bit disheartening at times.

So what does this have to do with me?

Well, I got the official results from my half-marathon on Saturday. My time was 1:56 (as you can clearly see from the picture). My surprise was that I actually finished 4th in my age group! The race was REALLY small...I usually don't even come close to placing! It made me both excited and a bit sad though...

Happy because, hey, I came in 4th!! With an injury no less!!

A bit sad though because only the top three finishers received a prize (a pretty snazzy backpack) and the recognition. And perhaps the hardest part...I finished only 90 seconds behind the 3rd place finisher in my age group. Awwwwww, so close yet so far away!!

I will do my best to be happy about it though. I really feel like I gave it my all. Could I have gone 90 seconds faster...perhaps. But it's easier to second guess myself now that it's over. I was in a lot of pain at the time and it took just about everything I had not to stop and quit. So I'll try to take a "glass-half-full" approach and shout to the rooftops....

I CAME IN 4TH PLACE!!!

Talking Point: How would you feel about coming in 4th place? Any words of advice, condolences, congratulations, etc.?!?!?!

Pain is temporary, Pride is forever!

That quote was my mantra during the half-marathon today. The BIG NEWS...I survived it!! Now on to tell the tale...

Backing up a bit, about two weeks ago I strained my left glute somehow while doing some walking lunges at the gym. I felt some discomfort, but nothing too bad and I really didn't think anything of it. I only really felt it when I ran, but it was just nagging for a while, until it started to get much, much worse. I was determined to do my last "long" run last Saturday of 8 miles and it was pretty excruciating. I did most of it by myself since I had to slow my pace way down and I completely broke down after 4 miles. I remember yelling (at least in my head)..."This is SOOOO unfair!! I have only one week until the half-marathon and I have been running my butt off!!" (Butt is about as vulgar as I get!!) Then I actually started to chuckle a bit at that point because what I had just said was a bit too literal...I had literally run my "butt" into a huge amount of pain. The last few miles my backside seemed to go numb a bit and I was able to finish up the miles close to what I really wanted my race pace to be (about 8:30-8:40 min/mile.)

I decided to take the next few days off from running and did a lot of cross-training instead. Again, it never seemed to bother me except while running so I really enjoyed the cross-training. Then on Wednesday morning I decided to try a test treadmill run. I made it about 5 minutes before I had to stop. At this point I literally ran into the bathroom at the gym and bawled my eyes out in one of the stalls. I was so beyond frustrated and angry...just two weeks before I had been able to comfortably run 12 miles and now I was struggling to run for 5 minutes!! The pain was sharp and started to head down my hamstring during that treadmill run which I knew was not a good sign. I came home from the gym that day and cried my eyes out again with my husband on the phone. I told him I should just bag the race because I really didn't want to be in that much pain for 2+ hours. I definitely had a "woe-is-me" pitty party that afternoon!!

I spent the next two days considering dropping out (which by the way is what I would recommend to anybody else experiencing that kind of pain...I'm just terrible at following my own advice!!) I also rolled out my backside like crazy (did you know a simple rolling pin makes a great substitute for a foam roller?!?! Every time my son Landon would see me get it out he would say "Ohhh, momma's bottom hurts!") I also popped ibuprofen like it was candy and prayed for a miracle. I even had a blessing last night that somehow I would be able to survive today's run.

RACE RECAP

I am always nervous before a race, but I was exceptionally apprehensive about this one since I really had no idea what to expect. I wasn't in any pain, but I knew that it was running that always brought it on so I would only find out once I started out. Sure enough, I could feel the pain in my left glute from the very start, but it never got unbearable, just a constant ache. Fortunately there was no shooting pain like there had been on the treadmill. Miles 1-4 went by pretty smoothly, but I could tell I was holding back my running partner so I told her to run her own race and go on ahead. At this point I also turned on my music and it did help distract me from the pain.

Then at mile 7 the pain really started to get to me...not the pain from my left glute though. Fortunately that pain had begun to go numb by this point, but my left hip and especially my left knee really started to ache (I'm sure from compensation!) Miles 7-11 I limped along, hoping that I could survive the misery that was now my life!! Then at mile 11, my mp3 player died...I really missed my music at that point, but I also knew that there was no way I would stop now with only 2 more miles to go. I picked up a bit of speed and realized that unless something catastrophic were to happen, I could still finish my number one goal...to finish under 2 hours. It was a magical feeling when I reached mile 13 and I ran my heart out for that last 0.1 miles coming in at exactly 1:56.

I am actually really pleased with that time. It was under 2 hours (yeah!) and actually only a minute off from my PR (1:55). But there was still a bit of disappointment. My running partner had a great race and was able to run it just like we had trained. She finished in 1:49 and ended up taking second place in our age division. I was so happy for her, but a bit disappointed about what could have been. I had trained so well, eaten so well and my times were awesome, but it just wasn't meant to be today.

That is the hard thing about running and especially racing. You can do everything right, but you never know just what kind of body you will have to run with when it comes to race day. I was reminded of two very important lessons today though...

1. I'm STRONGER than I think I am!

and

2. I can do HARD things!

Today's run was the most painful run of my life (that's saying a lot since I have been running for 15 years now!) But I DID it!! I finished it because I am STRONG and I can do HARD things!! I am also so appreciative of all the prayers and thoughts that were sent my way today. I prayed several times during today's run and I know that it was the Lord who helped me to overcome what I could not have done on my own!

"I can do all things through Christ which STRENGTHENETH me." (Phillipians 4:13)

Now it's time to go rest and massage this aching body!!

Talking Point: Have you ever had a hard experience that made you realize just how tough you really are? I would LOVE to hear about it!!

Getting the Motivation

Well it's 9:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning and I've already done this today...
We averaged 8:40 min/mile for all 12 miles which we were all happy about. (Side note: I run every Saturday morning on the C&O Canal towpath with a running group that formed about three months ago. It consists of me, one other woman who is also running the Western Maryland Half Marathon and two men, one of which is training for an October marathon and the other who still can't understand the notion of paying someone else to run a race when he can run every Saturday for FREE!! He definitely has a point...I seem to wonder the same thing at the starting line of every race that I run. Of course running with so many other people and seeing that finish line at the end seems to make it all worth it!)

As much as I detest waking up at the crack of dawn to run, it is nice to finish early and still have the whole rest of the day to enjoy doing whatever I want (of course after running 12 miles that usually consists of lots of eating and a nap if I get my way!)

I was asked this last week by a friend on ways to stay motivated when starting and maintaining an exercise routine. I listed some of my main motivators in yesterday's blog entry, but here were some of the other ideas that I gave her...

1. Set a goal. I know that I am less apt to skip a workout if I am training for something specific. Make a goal to walk/run a 5K, swim a mile, complete a triathlon or even do 25 push-ups. All of these things will help you to stay on track.

2. Give yourself a reward. I told her to create a chart, much like you would do for a young child, and when you complete 10 planned workouts, give yourself a treat (manicure, new workout shirt, new pair of shoes, etc.) Make it something you really want so it makes you want to get it that much faster!

3. Create a fun play list. Sometimes knowing I have a new play list to listen to on my MP3 player helps to get me out the door on those mornings that I would rather stay in bed. Music can be a great motivator!

4. Find a workout buddy. Knowing that you are responsible to someone else besides yourself always makes you more likely to keep your fitness appointments rather than blow them off. Find someone who is around your same fitness level and try new things together.

Talking Point: How do you keep yourself motivated to workout?

Going Long

I was a little worried about my 10-mile run this morning for two reasons...1. I felt a bit of a sore throat coming on yesterday and I was afraid I may be coming down with a virus, and 2. I had a GIGANTIC serving of fat-laden ice cream from the creamery last night and I wasn't sure how my body would digest it!

So I was pretty stoked about this morning's run...I felt fantastic! It's been a while since a long run has felt soooo good. I guess you have to experience the bad runs sometimes in order to truly appreciate the good ones.

Here are the final stats for today's run...

TOTAL TIME: 1:26:38

AVG PACE: 8:40 min/mile

Mile Breakdown:

Mile 1: 8:47

Mile 2: 8:44

Mile 3: 8:42

Mile 4: 8:44

Mile 5: 8:47

Mile 6: 8:46

Mile 7: 8:41

Mile 8: 8:43

Mile 9: 8:38

Mile 10: 8:04

I love to see my mile breakdowns, especially since I am really working on maintaining a consistent pace throughout my runs and finishing stronger than I start. Today's run definitely accomplished those two goals. I loved kicking it in at the end too! Only 6 more weeks until the half-marathon and I'm feeling pretty confident about it now!!

After a few stretches, I did my "wall-sit" for about 15 minutes. This is a great way to stretch out your hamstrings after a tough and/or long workout and it also helps to drain the lactic acid from your leg muscles so that they aren't as sore for the rest of the day. I have noticed a huge difference since doing this wall sit at the end of each long run.

(Please excuse those pasty legs and dirty ankles...we ran along the C&O towpath today which always leaves me a bit grimy.)

After a nice long, hot shower, I refueled with my breakfast staple...protein and flax oatmeal. Nope, it never gets old!!

I also ate a banana before heading out this morning and I fueled mid-run with some Nathan Catalyst Sugar Free Electrolyte Drink Mix tablets in my water bottle as well as some Clif Shot Bloks Electrolyte Chews. I am loving this new combination I have been trying out during this training season. Gatorade and the power gels were a bit too sweet for my taste and they always left a nasty film in my mouth afterward.

Talking Point: How do you fuel before, during and after a hard workout? I used to be unable to eat anything before a run, but I have gradually weaned my body into being able to handle a bit of fuel before long runs so that I don't run out of gas too quickly. My shorter runs during the week are usually done in a fasted state though. What about you...to eat or not to eat before exercise, that is the question, right?