'C'-ing Cherry Blossom 10 Miler

5 years into this racing thing and I'm finally beginning to understand how to prioritize races and be ok with not setting a PR every time I toe the line.  In previous years I've labeled my races as A, B, and C but every race received pretty much the same taper progression.  A, B, and C were merely labels I used to denote which ones I wanted to really train for and others that I'd race on my way to the goal race.  No matter what race the goal involved be faster (set a PR), make the podium (if realistic), beat Adam.  I was quite successful in PR-ing almost every distance that I competed in last year.

With this year's Cherry Blossom 10-miler a "C" race and smack dab in the middle of a training cycle I was focusing on the process and enjoying the race.  The weather was pretty much perfect and the crazy winds of Saturday luckily subsided for race morning.

Pre-Race
12 ounces of Osmo Preload and an easy bike over to race start.  This easy bike let me know my legs were feeling Thursday and Friday's workouts and I was going to have to fight for everything during the run.  Once at our meet up corner I took some layers off, checked my gear bag, and had myself a short warm up.  Warm up felt good and I stripped the rest of my extra layers and headed to my corral.  Oh yeah, I took a Claritan in the morning right after I woke up.

Race Start
The 2nd start corral (red corral) at this race spans a 12 minute predicted finish time.  I figured I'd want to be somewhat near the front in order to finish in the top 2-3 minutes of the predicted finish time.  I squeezed through gates and slipped past people to get a decent spot in the corral.  The first mile in this race is crowded, well really the entire race is crowded but the first tight right hand turn is super crowded as is the next one about 1 mile later to get up to Memorial Bridge.

'Race'
My race plan was created based on HR as my training up to this point has been HR and not pace based.  This training model was a struggle at first, but I'm already really seeing the benefits.  Mile 1 - HR was perfect and I was looking to bring it up each mile from there.  Enter mile 2 - holy smokes when did my HR jump almost 15 beats? Yikes, what do I do, what if I can't control it, coach is going to have my butt if I crash and burn.  I was able to calm down, use some reasoning skills and remember all my HR goals correlated to RPE goals.  Thanks HR monitor but you're not going to be too much help today.  I monitored my HR every now and then and I was continuously able to bring it up - to levels that would probably make most people's hearts beat out of there chest, or at least allow them to set world records running 10 miles at that intensity.

The 'U' turns on this course resulted in the ultimate bottle neck and the tight, almost U turns, had a similar effect.  The thing I like most about this course is that I know it like the back of my hand.  I know exactly where I'm headed and what the terrain will be like.  Nothing can change the fact that I love Hains Point.  It was, yet again, my favorite part of this course.   Coming off of Hains Point and making the right turn up Raul Wallenberg Drive I saw some DC Tri friends spinning it out with cheers and motivation for the last 800 meters.  Super awesome.

Finish
This race wasn't a PR for the distance, but it was a PR for the course - almost a 3 minute PR for the course.  Coming off of a decently big training week my legs felt ok for the race.  I felt like I pushed it but didn't fall apart.  I was able to bring my HR up 1 beat every mile - even though it was ridiculously high I was still able to increase my effort level throughout the race, so I was pleased with that.
Finish Time : 1:17:00 (:34 seconds off of a PR and a 2:52 course PR, I'll take it for a 'C' race!)

It's tri time from here on out - as far as I have planned.  There may be another 10 miler and/or 1/2 marathon toward the end of the year but the schedule for the next few months goes something like - sprint tri, 70.3, 70.3, olympic....and Ironman Lake Placid :)  Don't worry it doesn't stop there!  Thank you Osmo Nutrition for great pre and post race beverages and of course DC Tri Club and Snapple Tri Team for your awesome support.

Rock 'n Roll USA 1/2 Marathon Race Report

It's great to have a race under the belt for the 2014 season!  Just 6 weeks prior to RnR 1/2 I started working with a coach and using a completely new training method.  I had my doubts but stuck with it and slowly saw improvements coming along but still wasn't sure I would be able to have a good 1/2 race with only 6 weeks of this training plan in the bag.

Race morning came along and I took down some Osmo Preload with my breakfast before heading down to
the race start.  Once at the race start I started shedding layers and getting ready to check my bag.  I help onto my throw away jacket and gloves and got started with a light warm up.  This is the first time I've ever warmed up for a race longer than a 5k or 10k.  I felt good and confident as I got myself situated in the proper corral just a few minutes before the elite wave took off.

I tried to keep warm and shake out any butterflies that were hanging around.  The 1/2 marathon is a distance I haven't had much success in over the past few years.  I've improved, but nothing like the improvements I've seen in my 5k, 10k, or 10 mile                                                                                         times over the past few years.

After just 3 minutes or so I was toeing the start line and ready to get this race underway.  The first 3 miles breezed by as did miles 4, 5, and 6.  All of these miles are basically flat.  Once you hit mile 6 the first climb starts and from that point on you are mostly running up or down hill with some flat sections mixed in.  My

energy levels felt good, I was using HR to guide my pacing and I felt strong on the hills.  For the first time during a 1/2 I felt good for miles 11, 12, and 13.  In past races I've been holding on for dear life during those last couple of miles.

I finished strong with a time of 1:46:12 for 13.25 (????) miles - I should get better at running the tangents I guess!  This was a 4 minute PR for me and most importantly an evenly paced and strong run.  I know there are still minutes upon minutes I'll be able to take off this time, for now it's a great start to the 2014 season.

Thank you Osmo for the pre race hyradration and thank you DC Tri/Snapple for the on course support and cheers!  Congrats to all who raced!

HR Zones and Javalinas

I've previously mentioned in the blog about my decision to go with a coach for my 2014 season.  I have not been 'coached' since October 2009 - my last college soccer game.  I'd initially enjoyed triathlon because I could train how, when, and where I wanted/was convenient.  It was great for juggling an active lifestyle and full time graduate school.  So fast forward 4+ years - past success and let downs, trial and error through training and racing....

I've been working with my coach now for a bit over 5 weeks.  It was a struggle at first - my HR zones/lactate threshold had not yet been tested and I had come off of running how I wanted to run.  This meant that I usually went out hard and finished harder.  I was frustrated, I felt like I was training to run slower, and I was contemplating throwing in the towel -- after only 2 weeks.  I spoke with a few friends who work with or have worked with coaches before and realized I needed to give the process a chance.  Then came testing week - a week for me to go all out and determine my own zones, finally!

Once testing week was over I packed up my bags and bike to head to Arizona for a week.  New zones, warm weather and a week of training at about 4500 feet.  Not to mention enjoying the Sedona Film Festival and the company of Adam and my mom.  I've been to Sedona a few times before, but never with my bike.  I definitely could spend a few more days out there with my bike.  The roads were open and smooth, the sun was bright, I felt good.  We did a few rides including an out and back toward Cottonwood, a ride out to and up to Jerome, and a quick local ride to try and snag some KOMs/QOMs.  My favorite ride was our ride to Jerome - the roads we took to get out there were amazing.  Lightly traveled, smooth clear pavement, rolling hills and open to the sun.  The climb up to Jerome was great - nothing super steep, good views of the valley below and of course the reward of Haunted Hamburger at the top!

The few runs I did in Sedona felt good.  I took pace off of my watch stayed in my HR zones and enjoyed the scenery and the javalinas.  Once we returned to DC I was much happier with my HR zones and training.  I've since had some great rides, great runs, and I am constantly improving my swim.  After all, in order to achieve something you've never had, you must be willing to do something you've never done.  So here's to patience, buying into the process, and enjoying the season (races officially start Saturday!).