Sham rocked

There are so many ways I could start the race report for the Shamrock Half Marathon. I could wrap it up in one word: awful. But it really wasn't. I could use the words frustrating and disappointing, but it hindsight 10 hours later, it really wasn't.

I could start with discussing the 8k the day before. To me, it was just a normal easy run with an old friend of mine. I finished in 46:11.60, never running hard until the last half mile. In fact, we started more than half way back just to not get wrapped up into thinking about running fast. In the end, it was a 9:18 pace and I placed 1,353rd out of 4,920 runners. The weather was great. After the run, though, I felt a slight pain in my left foot. Nothing major. Nothing worth worrying about. The rest of the day was spent taking it easy, drinking lots of water and enjoying being away from home.

The half-marathon race report starts at 10 p.m. last night when I went to bed. I feel asleep quickly only to be awakened an hour later by some apparent domestic issues across the hall. Then a couple of hours later, the fire alarm at the hotel was going off. I looked outside and it was POURING down rain and very windy. I thought if the hotel was on fire I'd grab my wife first, my race number and my race outfit. Fortunately there was no fire and the alarm went off about 10 minutes later and I quickly went back to sleep. (Note to self and anyone else Googling Virginia Beach: Don't stay at Marjac Suites.)

So ... at 5:25 a.m. my alarm was going off. By then the rain had stopped but it was still windy. As we (my wife and my mom included) walked toward the start line, the wind was ripping through us. It was a bit chilly - mid-40s - but nothing like last year. I met my friend Travis on the way there and we continued to battle the crazy wind. The forecast was for 20-30 mph winds throughout the day, but these gusts were definitely higher. Once I got to the start line, the winds died down and were not a factor at all for us half-marathoners. (The marathoners who started an hour later probably have a different story.)

The race started slow. Even though I was closer to the start line than I was last year, my first mile time was 8:40. It was no big deal though. I avoided weaving in and out of people to conserve my energy. There was plenty of time to get on track. Mile two was in 8:11. It was a nice increase and I was feeling good and warmed up. I tossed my gloves that I started with and logged the next mile in 8:05. A nice steady increase.

Between miles 3 and 4 I tossed my long-sleeve shirt and began to pull away from Travis just a bit. The fourth mile was in 8:02. In my head I knew I was on track, but my head was also reminding me of my left foot pain. I could feel it, but it wasn't anything unmanageable at the time.

The next three miles were the best of the race - 7:55, 7:53, 7:56. Around that halfway point I knew that beating last year's time could be done. At that point I was feeling awesome physically. I was ready to maintain that pace for a couple of miles and then pick it up the last 5k. It was very similar to the way I ran this race last year.

Between miles 7 and 8 though, I couldn't ignore the pain in my foot though. I spent the next couple of miles speeding up and slowing down between the cones on the road. Keeping a pace wasn't working. Mile 8 was in 8:04. Nothing really wrong with that. I was still on track assuming I could pick it up the last bit. Mile 9 was also 8:04. OK ... hitting last year's time is still a possibility. Just pick it up, is what I was telling myself.

Picking it up, though, just hurt. It was like taking a nail to the side of my foot and hitting a hammer. People around me were picking it up and I was passing no one. When people would pass me, I'd pick it up for about 5 seconds to keep their pace. It helped a bit because I still hit mile 10 in 8 minutes flat. In my head I knew if I ran a 5k like I know I can, I could still hit my time from 2007. It was kind of far-fetched, but I tried to pick it up. Mile 11 was 8:06. It was then that I knew I better slow down and not hurt myself more than I already had. Beating my goal time was out of the question.

As I slowed a bit, my foot began hurting worse. Just before mile 12 I had to stop. So I stopped briefly to stretch my foot. I still hit mile 12 in 8:56, but despite my body having plenty of fuel left, my foot had nothing to give. As the race turned onto Atlantic Avenue, I stopped twice to stretch a bit. I wasn't about to turn onto the Boardwalk and walk in front of all the supporters. My last 1.1 miles was 11:10, with the two stops included. It was saddening to be getting passed by everyone, but I was leaving what I could leave on that course. I would have loved to have finished strong -- my upper legs, my lung and my brain wanted to and could have had it not been for my left foot.

In the end, my chip time was 1:49.07, an 8:20 pace. Had I never ran this race before, I would have been thrilled with this time. For a short time, I was very disappointed that an injury came out of nowhere to kill my momentum. But how can I be upset about that time? I was 836th of 5,501 runners; 104th out of 365 in my 25-29 age group; and 620th out of 2,339 men. And I probably saved myself from a serious injury by stopping when I wanted to push it.

As for the Dolphin Challenge -- doing both the 8k and half marathon -- I was 36th out of 222 participants. Not bad for not really racing the 8k. (Note: these actual number of runners could change in the next couple of days.)

Afterward, I had trouble finding my mom and my wife -- somehow they missed the slow guy crossing the finish line. I went to the tent on the beach and had a couple of beers and then ventured back to the hotel. Here at the end of the day, my foot doesn't hurt me too much when I don't have shoes on. My legs aren't too sore either. It kind of feels like a hard shorter race rather than a half marathon.

As for now, I'm going to enjoy the fact that I finished this race in one piece. It's only my fourth half marathon, and only my second one with a race frame of mind, so I'm still getting used to what my body has to go through to get ready for this distance. With the exception of this freak injury, today was perfect. I did everything right. Mentally and physically, I feel like I have a lot of potential to still unlock.

For the record, though, I will not be running a marathon this year. I have some ideas for a long-distance race or two this year, but that's another post for tomorrow or later this week. It's time to drink some Magic Hat and eat some pizza.

75 percent

Did running cause me to get sick? That's a serious question I've been thinking about these past two days. Did the high of the marathon cause my body to just shut down? I've done lots of reading on post-race depression and what people go through following big races. It's not that I really feel sad or anything, but everything changed following race day. There wasn't as much reason to get out of bed. So that leads me to wondering if because I slowed down, everything else in my body slowed down with it.

I guess you could say I'm at about 75 percent now. I ran 2 miles this morning, but certainly would have like to have gone at least 3, if not 4. I know not to push it, and I didn't really feel like pushing it. The end of this illness is in sight; it's just taking much longer than I ever thought possible. I've only been sick like this a couple of times in my life, so it's hard to take it easy.

Just like the marathon, this past week and a half is difficult to describe. It's like it has given me too much time to think about things, but no time to sort anything out -- that's one reason I like to run. I don't have that "out" that I'm used to having. I hope by this weekend, I can break out of this funk.

I won't be doing the 8 on the 8th (a quick shout out to Non-Running Nancy), but I hope to run more than 2 miles at one time. There's a 5k nearby on Sunday that I might do. As long as I continue this slowly steadiness of feeling better, I should be up for it.

Missing out on a tradition

For the past three years on the first Saturday of December, I have ran in the Bedford Christmas Classic in Bedford, Va. Even though I moved to Richmond a few months ago, I had every intention of making this race my first post-marathon event. I think it would have been a perfect chance to return to the 5k distance that I first fell in love with.

But as you've probably already read, the snot in my head had other plans for me this week. Two days after getting on a prescription, I'm finally feeling worthwhile today. There's not as much cloudiness in my head. I was sluggish this morning, but by noon and a quarter box of tissues later, I took my sad-looking dog out for a walk. Poor thing hasn't had his usual walk/runs this week. We even ran for 0.7 miles, which felt pretty good. It had been a week since I last ran -- my longest running drought since September 2006. Even though it wasn't even a mile, it does a lot for my confidence. My legs still work and they felt great! And I think the full week off helped me fully recover from the marathon. On Thanksgiving and on Saturday, I had some discomfort in my right heel and my left knee, but nothing major. I stress discomfort over the word pain. Perhaps completely taking time off is the medicine my lower half of my body needed to get back to running again.

So, on a day that I lost a 3-year-old holiday tradition, I feel like I've actually gained a lot when it comes to running. Now, about those 1,000 miles I want to hit ...

By the numbers

Since finishing the marathon became such a high priority, I never did look at the actual statistics with where I finished. According to the marathon's Web site there were 3,783 starters. You have to do a little digging to find that there were 3,684 finishers.

I placed 1,852nd overall, so I was barely in the second half. A mid-packer. Out of 230 in my age group (25-29), I was 131st. And out of 2,215 male finishers, I was 1,272nd. Crazy, crazy numbers since I'm so used to runners with 200 or fewer people. These are all numbers that generally I don't care too much about, but they're out there for me to possibly challenge one day.

I'm tired

I'm tired. After months of what felt like non-stop thinking about running and spending 4-5 days a week getting up and running, I'm just flat-out tired.

I know this feeling will subside, I'll get re-energized and will enjoy running. Besides, I have a 1,000 mile goal to hit. I have a half marathon in less than four months to run. I have 2008 to plan. But I'm tired. I know there's no rush or no pressure to run hard for a little while, and I don't feel bad about it. On the days I have run, I can feel my body still getting over the abuse of 26.2 miles.

Some people can just get right back out there and keep racing. But did I mention that I'm tired!?!? I'm not one of those people. Not yet.

Hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving. For those turkey trotting that day, have a great run. I'll be running my own, very slow trot that day, but I'll be out there no matter how tired I feel. There's no reason to stop now.

1.1 of 925.4

Since it was raining this morning, I promised by best running buddy, Duke, that I'd take him on a walk when I got home from work, and maybe a short run if the rain had let up.

Well, it's about 20 degrees colder this evening than it was earlier today, but the rain had cleared up. We headed out for the walk and quickly we were jogging. It wasn't much, but I had my first post-marathon run today of 1.1 miles. It probably came a day or two earlier than I expected, but it felt great. Aside from still being winded, my legs, my knees, my ankles and my arms all felt great. Apparently, it just takes my lungs a while to feel good again -- I was like this back in March after the Shamrock Half. I was doing some group track runs on Saturdays, and a week later when I tried to run hard I had to take it easy about half way through the workout. I rarely read about this problem, but I know I'm not alone in this feeling.

So that run puts me at 925.4 miles for the year with 46 days to go this year. That's an average of just over 1.6 miles a day to hit quadruple digits -- sounds easy, right?

Decisions ... but not before 1,000 miles

I have a lot to think about while on my journey to 1,000 miles. I don't want to rush into decisions about 2008, and that's why I am committed to hitting 1,000 miles this year before I fully plan out next year. That doesn't mean I can't start asking myself questions on what I want to do.

Four days after becoming a marathoner, my legs are only sore when going up or down stairs, and nothing else hurts. I've gone on a few short walks this week and have felt great. I'm obviously still winded from running 26.2 miles, but I never expected to feel this great in such a short time. I'm not jumping back into anything though. I'll have a couple of short runs this week and three short runs next week. I seriously contemplated a turkey trot on Thanksgiving, but I don't want to risk injury by running hard within two weeks of the marathon. I am about 95 percent sure of doing the Bedford Christmas Classic on Dec. 1 -- whether it's the 5k or 10k is something I'll decide later.

My plan between now and Dec. 31 is to have a reverse taper to get back to 8-10 miles as my standard long run. I'll smartly do what I have to do to get to 1,000 miles. I should have no problem hitting that mark as long as I stay healthy. As far as training goes for the Shamrock Half, I'll lay out those plans later. But beyond that?

You should've heard me after the 30k in October. I said I'm never training for a marathon again! My wife properly ignored the crazy talk. In my head I was preparing a blog entry on how much I hated anything past a half marathon. Those long training runs were boring; it was hot; I was running alone after moving; it was eating too much into my weekend. But after Nov. 10, I have that itch. I've seriously thought about the Charlottesville Marathon in April. That would make Shamrock a perfect warmup, and instead of laying off the mileage too much before summer, I could increase the long runs, then get some rest in late April/early May ... which would then be perfect to train again for Richmond. Basically it would be: good rest between now and late December, train January-April, rest in May and early June, then build back in July. I think I could get in the 40-50 miles a week range rather than 30-40. Or I could focus on getting better and stronger in shorter races. I haven't done a 5k in a while and I've missed that distance. 10ks continue to be a big challenge for me. And half marathons seem just the right distance. I feel I have it in me to make my current 5k pace be my half marathon pace. I'm in competition with myself, and these shorter races are so much fun to go out and try to beat my previous times. There are plenty of half marathons out there -- including Richmond next November. They're less time consuming and not so hard on the body. But then there's the endurance challenge of the marathon, and I have that one 4:13 time sitting there.

The good thing is, I don't have to make any decisions right now on any of that. I'm still enjoying my marathon experience for at least a few more days. I'll enjoy some french fries a couple of more times before signing up for something else in 2008. Tonight, I think I'll have some Oreo cookies for the first time since ... well, I don't really know when. You can bet, though, that as soon as I hit mile 1,000.1, I'll have something figured out.

Post #101

This blog started as something to hold me accountable for the Richmond Marathon. What started as a journey to just another race turned into a story of so much more. Just two days after running 26.2 miles, I feel like I can really do anything I set my mind to ... except walking down stairs!

This is my 101st post. I couldn't have timed it better by having 100 posts ending with the marathon report. Number 101 is like a starting over number ... a what's next type of thing. Back in April when I started this blog, I thought I knew so much about running and was treating the marathon the same way I had approached all other races. But a marathon the first time around is about pushing your limits and taking your body to the edge. It tests you just as much mentally as it does physically. It makes you think about everything you've ever done in your life -- if you're a person who has regretted things along the way, it turns you into a no regrets type of person. It puts the "life's too short" cliche into reality. Life is too short to waste time on a lot of things. Life is too short to have regrets.

Who knows why it takes training and running a marathon for the first time to realize these things, but it just does. Life is like a marathon -- there are ups and downs, fast times and slow times, times where you feel the best you've ever felt and times you question your own sanity. And it all works out in the end.

By sitting at home today and getting rest, and unable to do much since I can't walk normal, I keep asking myself, "What's next?" I don't like the term "off season" -- once you're hooked, there's downtime, where training continues in a lesser way. My approach to 2007 was: run the Shamrock Half Marathon and see how I feel. Well, I ran it, then was marathon bound. All races in between were for training. And that's the biggest thing that's changed about me this year -- focus on the big event, but keep running races for speed training and running with large groups of people.

Before I worry about 2008 besides the Shamrock again, I have a goal to meet before Dec. 31 this year -- hitting 1,000 miles for the year. It wasn't a goal I had until recently, but it'll be a great way to close out the year. I'm at 924.3 now and will resume that journey (slowly) on Saturday or Sunday. After I hit 1,000 miles, I'll fill you in on the rest of 2008.