I can’t believe we’re leaving for Ireland tonight!! I’m soo excited. I’m almost 100% packed and ready to go. So I’m saying goodbye for a while. We will be coming home on September 10 and then hopefully maybe I can post by September 12 with some great Ireland trip recaps!!
See you all in two weeks! 🙂
Happy Hump day friends. Although I can’t see anything particularly happy about it. 😦 This weather has got me down. Four days of dreariness is no fun. But I think tomorrow is supposed to be nicer.
In happier news, the running book I’m reading (Once a Runner) has finally started to get me excited to run again! I think I’m going to hit up the gym tonight after work for a quick treadmill run. I’ve been waiting and waiting to feel inspired by this book and just last night it started to rev me up to run.
Of course, I leave this Sunday for Ireland, so all running will be put on hold once we’re there, but at least I’m feeling some excitement about the idea – right?
And let me just pose this question to the marathoners out there: Does training for any other distance motivate you as much as training for a marathon does?
I ask because I do in fact have a half marathon coming up in October (I’m running the Bay State half while my friend runs the full and tries to qualify for Boston – cross your fingers!!). However, it’s been especially hard to tell myself I have to start training for it. I think when I come back from Ireland I am going to create an actual training plan for the half – something I’ve never done. I’ve only ever created plans for marathon training. But I think without a plan, I’m more likely to slack off. Plus, hopefully by the time I come home, maybe there will be a tinge of fall in the air! What’s better than fall running?!
I didn’t have any exceptional eats going on yesterday, so I only snapped a photo of my dinner:
A giant salad with grilled chicken, cheese, grape tomatoes and some rice. Although you can’t see much of the fixens in this photo.
Thanks for all your advice and feedback about my resistance to change post from yesterday. I know fighting it only makes things more difficult, but generally if there’s going to be some change, I like to have control over it. Haha – I think that’s the stubborn Taurus in me. 🙂
Anyway – I thank you and hope that this upcoming vacation will allow me to appreciate the constants and cope with the many changes happening. I am afraid that I’ll come back and won’t have any readers because I won’t be able to post from Ireland. I have not jumped on the smart phone bandwagon.
For other bloggers out there – how do you post while on vacation or traveling? Do you use sprintcard or other wireless option? Everything seems so darn expensive! Ideas?
Have a great Wednesday all!
Posted in Books, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged Once a Runner, training plans, wireless options
Hi all – I know, who the heck am I right? I’ve been MIA for so long, I’m sure all my readership is gone, my bloggy friends have written me off, and nobody likes me… I guess I’ll go eat worms.
So what’s the deal right? Well – things have just been crazy busy at work and at home. The fun non-work stuff has been running the Boilermaker back in July…
Camping with friends in Lake George…
Some BBQ-ing, hanging with friends and family, etc.
But when it rains it pours and as our summer fun picked up, so did my workload. A few weeks back, my boss gave me a new big project and responsibilities which have included a lot of coordination, creativity and writing.
But, as I started writing more at work, my desire to blog before or after work started to decline. I only had so many creative juices I could squeeze – ya know?
Anyway – I know this sounds like all excuses, excuses and maybe it is, but I don’t want to quit my blog completely. I just don’t think I can do it everyday. So my promise is to try to blog as often as possible, but it may not be everyday.
READ: Since I lasted posted, I’ve read two books:
EAT: Since I last posted, my eating hasn’t been great. On top of lacking motivation and time, we encountered an issue with our gas in our apt building and it has been turned off since July 24. Guess what – our stove is gas. Our solution was that Hubby and I went out and bought a hot plate, I’ve redefined the term microwave-friendly and have discovered that you can cook many, many things in a toaster oven. I jest, but seriously this has not been fun. Our dryer in the building also runs on gas, so Hubby and I have become the newest visitors to the nearby laundry mat, someplace I had never frequented before. It wasn’t as bad as I expected, but man is it expensive!
Run: This has been worst component. Since the Boilermaker on July 12, I think I’ve run maybe twice. And last night was one of those nights. I started off my run at a brisk 7:46 minute mile and then watched as my speed steadily declined and I began hyperventilating. Anyone watching would never have believed that I ran a marathon a short 3 months ago. I finished up at a 9:18 minute mile pace. Last weekend, Katherine texted me to see if I wanted to run either 9 or 11 miles (can’t remember which) and I literally laughed out loud as I pictured myself keeling over at the end of that run. However, this week as I watched my gut start to expand, I decided to get back in the game. Afterall, I am signed up for a Half Marathon in October. Eeek!
So alas my friends – you finally know the truth about my disappearance. I will try to regain my momentum and find the time to stay updated with the blogworld, but I’m going to beg for a little slack as I get back into the swing.
If you’re a blogger – what has been your longest lapse…if you’ve ever had one?
Posted in Bloggers, Books, Running, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged disappearance, eating, quit, reading, Running
Good morning – happy Monday! I’m trying to think positively here. How was everyone’s weekend?
I was a little mia for a bit at the end of last week and then we had a super busy weekend, so posting was not at the top of my list. Some of my weekend activities:
So those were the highlights of my weekend! What were the highlights of yours?
As far as the Boilermaker goes, I did not set a PR 😦 , but it wasn’t my worst time either. I ran it in 1:17:12. Last year I ran it in 1:17:03. I’m happy with that time considering I didn’t really train as well as I could have and hit a major running slump after the marathon in May.
So how was the race overall? It was fun, but tough. Last year when I ran this race, I had started marathon training a few weeks before and I think I was in a little better shape. This year, we started in a faster corral (thank goodness) and didn’t have to weave in and out of people as much. Here are my stats from the race:
Mile 1 – 8:13
Mile 2 – 8:15
Mile 3 – 8:22
Mile 4 – 8:43
Mile 5 – 7:39
Mile 6 – 7:50
Mile 7 – 8:38
Mile 8 – 7:59
Mile 9 – 8:32
.40 – 2:59
Total mileage – 9.40 miles in 1:17:13. Average pace 8:12 minute mile
It was pretty cool to run this race with a Garmin for the first time. In the past, I really didn’t have much clue what my splits were. Mile 3 -4 is definitely tough for me – it’s at a golf course and there is a big, huge, long hill that we run up for most of that mile. Ugh. I’m glad that is over.
But overall, this is such a fun race. The whole town comes out to cheer you on, there is music, tons of water stations, and even a popsicle station. It’s a good time and I highly recommend this race. Plus, it’s the biggest 15k in the U.S.! This year was even the largest in the history of the race – over 13,000 people! Anyway – if you’re even slightly intrigued, you should check it out.
We were having so much fun that we didn’t end up leaving the in-law’s place upstate until about 7:15 p.m. and get home until after 11!! That meant that bedtime didn’t happen until about midnight. That is super late for me. So, I’m pretty tired today and have a dentist appointment – not a good Monday.
Hope you all have a great Monday though!! I do have a NYC restaurant review that I need to post – hopefully tomorrow!
Posted in Races, Running, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged race recap, Running, The Boilermaker, Utica
Good morning all. Happy Hump Day! Except it really only feels like Tuesday since we had Monday off. Don’t ya love that?
Yesterday wasn’t as rough as I thought it would be. Anything that technically feels like Monday is never fun, but the day went by pretty fast for me. Breakfast was boring cereal – no pic.
In the afternoon, I went out into the sweltering heat to grab some lunch.
You know – my usual salad. The salad place happened to be particularly busy yesterday and my regular salad guy was trying to move quick. So he literally just started throwing all my items in without me even asking. I noticed several people giving me strange looks and then finally the guy next to me said “Don’t worry – he does the same for me too. He knows my usual. It’s kind of nice and it impresses the tourists.” Haha. It was pretty funny.
Do you have staple meals or items that you consistently eat?
For some reason, I have always been this way when it comes to my lunch salad. At my last job, my co-workers wanted to buy me my salad as a surprise for my birthday, so they actually went in with a picture of me, showed it to the salad guy and he knew exactly who I was and what I wanted immediately. Surprisingly, I never feel like I get in a salad rut either. I only eat it once or twice a week at max – so it doesn’t seem to get old.
Sorry for that random tangent. I just thought it was hysterical.
After work yesterday, I decided to head to the gym for a short run. The heat was out of control and I knew running outside would be brutal. I did a quick 3 miles in 26:14 and then finished up with some ab and arm work. I was just not feeling like working out yesterday.
Dinner last night was back to the basics – pork chops and a massive side salad.
After dinner, I spent a little time working on some of our Ireland itinerary. We are all set for Dublin and Galway. Slowly making some progress. And yes, I’m booking all of our accommodations ahead of time because I’m just not the girl that can go without having everything set. I’d love to be that spontaneous and free, but that’s just not me. I’m a planner and I wouldn’t feel comfortable if I didn’t have it all squared away.
Are you a planner or do you prefer to fly by the seat of your pants?
Oh and just for fun, here is one of the few pics that was actually taken this weekend.
Yup – that’s Hubby and me on a four-wheeler! My mom grew up on a farm (a real one with cows, chickens, vegetables and all that), and we go up there once or twice a year to visit with our family in that area. In case you didn’t know, the easiest form of transportation on a farm is by four-wheeler. I grew up riding on them with my older cousins, so this was like a little blast from the past…and a lot of fun! 🙂
Ok all – have a Happy Hump Day!!
Posted in Holidays, Running, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged four-wheeler, heat, Ireland, planning, salad
Hi all – welcome back to the work week. It was so nice to have a little break, but Tuesday really felt like it came fast. At least we’ve got a short week right?
How was your 4th of July? What was the most exciting part of your weekend?
My 4th was filled with family, friends, fun…and lots of driving. Ugh! I am really getting sick of the car. I didn’t take many photos this weekend. I wanted to just spend some quality time with family and friends. So I don’t have any exciting pics to share.
I did eat a lot of good and bad food this weekend, and squeezed in a 6.5 mile run with my friend Lauren on Friday. I’m not sure if I’m completely ready for the Boilermaker this Sunday, but it’s too late to squeeze in much more training now. I have a feeling that most of my running during this week will be done in the gym on the treadmill anyway. The brutal heat is just not conducive to a good run for me. So I’ll be playing it safe inside.
But, I do have one thing to offer you all! Another book review. I know – just call me speed reader. 🙂 I can’t remember the last time I finished a book this long so quickly. It was really good. So, here it goes:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
By: Stieg Larsson
I picked this book up because I had literally seen about a dozen people reading it on the subway or elsewhere in NYC. I figured there had to be something to it. And there was. I started reading this book on a Tuesday and finished it the following Monday. This book is 500+ pages, so that is superfast for me. It was a total page-turning thriller.
So what’s it all about? A Swedish financial journalist, named Mikael Blomkvist, is convicted of libel because of a story he wrote about a successful (but shady) businessman. But that’s just the intro to the story. After his conviction, he is offered a freelance job by on old industry titan. The first part of the job is to write a family history, but the real objective is for him to research the mysterious disappearance of the titan’s niece over four decades ago, and try to figure out what happened to her. The “girl with the dragon tattoo” ends up being investigator Lisbeth Salander, who Blomkvist brings on as his assistant.
There were definitely some disturbing scenes and themes in this book, but in understanding it’s a thriller, you’ve got to accept that there will be some drama and disconcerting episodes. The plot of the book and investigation completely drew me in and kept me intrigued and curious. I could not wait to find out what happened next and who was behind it all.
Throughout the novel, there are a few storylines going on—which means just when one mystery is solved, you remember that there are others that are still floating around. Beyond that, the characters are unique and interesting in their own right. I ended up wanting to find out more about them and what would happen—especially to Lisbeth.
I was satisfied with how Larsson tied it all together and wrapped up the different stories and mysteries. I was not entirely thrilled with how Lisbeth’s story ended, but then realized that she appears in his second book, which made her conclusion understandable. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes thrillers or mysteries – or to anyone who is simply looking for an entertaining read. Just remember that it’s not all flowers and butterflies. It contains explicit material which might make some people cringe. I will definitely be reading the rest of the trilogy as well: The Girl Who Play with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets’ Nest.
Posted in Books, Holidays, Reviews, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged 4th of July, book review, heat, The Boilermaker, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hi all – Happy Thursday – how is your week going? The forecast in NYC says it’s going to be around 90-93 degrees today! Craziness. Does anyone remember last June and how totally different it was from this year? Last June it rained almost every day of the month! What a difference a year makes, right?
Today after work I’m running the American Heart Associations Wall Street Run and Walk. It’s only three miles, but I thought it would be kind of cool to run a race down here where I work. Then a few co-workers and I might jog up the West side to about 14th Street. That is if the weather holds out and it doesn’t pour on us.
I started of yesterday with a breakfast of oatmeal with frozen fruit.
Then I got to work and my camera battery died, so no lunch or afternoon snack pictures.
After work I picked up my race packet at the NYRR’s on 89th Street and then headed home to get into the air conditioning. Yesterday was pretty brutal as well.
For dinner last night I made a boat load of pasta – so I have some leftovers for lunch today. I wanted to keep it light, so I just added some veggies and sprinkled with some Italian salad dressing.
Multi-grain pasta with grape tomatoes, corn, peas, walnuts, raisins and cheddar cheese.
However, the highlight of yesterday was definitely when I booked us a room in a castle in Ireland!! Our trip is at the end of August and our last night there will be in a castle. I may not want to leave!! I’m so excited. We’re really starting to get into planning now. I’m a huge planner and want to have our hotels and B&Bs booked in the near future. But other people have told me that we don’t need to book our B&Bs in advance and should really only worry about finding rooms in Dublin. I just don’t think I can go that route – I’ve got to have it out planned out and set.
BTW – if anyone knows of any great B&Bs in the following cities in Ireland, let me know! Kilkenny, Kinsale, Killarney and Galway.
Have a great Thursday all – hurray for tomorrow being Friday!!
Finish
Posted in NYRR, Running, Travel, Uncategorized
Wow – where did this weekend go? It’s already Sunday evening and I’m not looking forward to the start of the work week.
Saturday was a really nice day. We woke up a little later than usual and headed to Marlboro, NY to visit some friends who just had a baby a few months ago. By the time we left the apartment around 11:30 a.m., the weather was already pretty hot. We got to Marlboro and met the new little babe and then we headed to Newburgh, NY for a late lunch and drinks.
The area we went to was right on the water and I’m kicking myself for not taking more pictures. We went to The Blue Martini on Front Street. It’s a sushi bar, but they also offer sandwiches, salads, wraps, etc. I started off with the Over the Moon Martini.
I don’t remember exactly what was in it, but I think it has some pineapple juice and peach juice. Yum!!
We started the meal off right with a cheers…
I ended up ordering the California Chicken Wrap, which has grilled chicken, avocado, bacon and tomato – but I completely forgot to take a picture. It was very good though. I dove right in.
After linner (lunch/dinner), we headed back to our friend’s house to play some Wii and have a few more beverages. We didn’t end up leaving until almost 10:30 p.m., so we got back home pretty late. I think that may led to our SUPER late rising time today – almost 10:00 a.m. Granted, I woke up at 7, 8 and 9, but then went back to bed.
How was your weekend? What was the highlight? How did you beat the heat?!
Have a great Sunday night all!
Posted in Restaurants, Travel, Uncategorized
Good morning all! Long time no chat. I was soo busy all last week and then we were away this weekend, so my blogging has been very bad. I hope all is well with everyone! I desperately need to catch up on some blogs.
Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. Hubby and I headed upstate for the weekend. We arrived Friday night and then I went camping on Saturday on Schroon River. It was a blast!
We had a giant fire…
And enjoyed time spent with good friends
I avoided this guy as best I could…
I love dogs, but this big fella (named Clifford, but we called hims Jaws), was big, stinky, a heavy breather, a drooler and just kind of gross. I felt bad for him because the other dogs were getting so much more attention. But I got over that as soon as he pooped in the middle of the campsite area – YUCK!
After a day of camping, I headed back to civilization and went to see Sex and the City 2 with two friends.
My Verdict: I didn’t like it nearly as much as the first movie. I also thought there were some really cheesy/corny parts of this movie that were soo not SATC style. I actually wanted to laugh at a few parts they were so out of sync with what I would expect. I didn’t think it was as emotional as the first one and I didn’t like that there was so little of NYC in it. I know – that was a lot of negativity, but I didn’t hate it. It was entertaining and I love these women so much that I’ll watch just about anything they are in. But I think it could have been done better and the producers aren’t giving the viewers as much credit as they should. Yes, I’ll watch anything with these women in it, but it doesn’t mean I’ll LOVE just anything. Although – don’t take my word. The two friends I went with liked it better than the first one, so I could be totally off. See it for yourself and decide and let me know what you think!
How was your Memorial Day Weekend? What were the highlights?
Not the highlight of my weekend – me becoming completely accident prone. I was planning on running for the first time post-marathon this weekend, but that did not happen for two reasons:
1) I stubbed my toe jumping off a boat on Sunday and it’s badly bruised/sprained. I am limping everywhere.
Please ignore my ugly feet and terrible pedicure. Can you see my giant purple toe? God I hate feet so much.
2) Next up, as I Hubby and I unloaded the car yesterday when we got back to the city I totally wiped out and fell down the stairs landing on my back and arms. I am so sore and battered. Here’s one of my poor arms.
I was considering running a race in the city this weekend, but I guess that is not happening now. While I am totally bummed that I have to take even more time off from running, I am completely RELIEVED that these things did not happen BEFORE the marathon!! Can you imagine? All I keep thinking is that all my spills and falls must have been saved up and postponed until after the marathon and I can’t be anything but thankful for that. Still – I hate being injured!! And having a bum toe in NYC isn’t so easy peesy.
How do you cope with the frustration of injuries?
I’m hoping I’ll need only a week of recovery – mainly for my toe – before I can start running again. My next definite race is The Boilermaker , a 15k in Utica, N.Y. on July 11th and I’m hoping for a PR.
So it looks like for this week, I’ll be focusing on eating and reading and will be leaving out the running. I’m currently reading this book:
And so far it’s pretty good. I hope to have a review coming soon. I also hope the rain holds out tonight because Hubby and I are supposed to be going to the Yankee game!!
Have a great Tuesday all!
Posted in Books, Holidays, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged camping, Cutting for Stone, injuries, Memorial Day, Sex and the City 2
Happy Monday – I have the day off today! And boy do I need it after the race yesterday. I am extremely happy that I qualified for the Boston Marathon, but it was not an easy race by any means.
Saturday
We headed up to the host hotel on Saturday afternoon and got in around 3:00. We checked in and then hit up the expo to pick up my racing bib, etc. The expo was small, but it was helpful. One of the race coordinators was giving an in-depth overview of the course and what we could expect the next day. He reiterated what I’d already read online – the course has a lot of downhill in the beginning, so remember to pace yourself. He also briefed us on a few uphills on the second part of the course, which I was dreading.
After the expo we went to a local outlet we passed as we arrived for a bit and then stopped at CVS for water, gatorade, snacks and contact solution stuff I forgot. Once we got back to the hotel it was just about time for dinner. We spent a few minutes enjoying the view from our balcony. It was a gorgeous setting. There was actually a wedding happening at the host hotel that night as well, so we watched as the bridal party took some photos.
Gorgeous view…
The pasta party started at 5:30 p.m. and was what was to be expected: salad, bread, penne pasta and spaghetti sauce, as well as dessert. It wasn’t spectacular, but it was free for me and only $7 for Hubby, so understandably generic. We piled our plates and settled at a table. A few minutes later a brother and sister running pair joined our table and we started talking BQ-plans and dreams. We strategized, talked about our previous marathons and then wished each other good luck a little while later as we all headed to our rooms to try to get some sleep.
I laid out all my gear the night before, as well as my morning food and drinks. Around 9:00 p.m. I headed to bed. Hubby decided to head down to the hotel bar to give me some time to get to sleep and to have a few brews to help him get to sleep. After he left, I proceeded to lay in bed wide awake. I’ve never experienced such nerves or had such a hard time sleeping before a race – even my first marathon! I tried counting, I tried switching positions, covers on and covers off, but nothing worked. When Hubby got back to our room at midnight I was wide awake and told him so. He proceeded to hop into bed and fall asleep within 10 minutes. I tossed and turned and think I may have finally dozed off around 12:45 – 1:00 a.m. Not good!
Sunday – Race Day
I woke up Sunday morning exactly one minute before my alarm was set to go off. Anxious much?! I got up and started my pre-race routine. I don’t particularly enjoy getting ready for a race in a hotel room. I’m not usually comfortable or feeling my normal self, and especially not after such little sleep.
At 6:30 a.m. I headed downstairs to wait for the bus to the start. I ran into the brother and sister team from the night before and they shared with me their get-sleep tip: they split a Benadryl pill and slept soundly. Genius! Mental note to give that one a try if I face sleep issues again. We all hopped on the bus and began to head to the start when Louie (the brother) realized he didn’t have his timing chip! As he ran off the bus, two other girls realized they didn’t have theirs either and they went sprinting to find them. So after a slightly delayed start we were off.
We got to the Clear Run Elementary School and I headed straight to the bathroom. Then I grabbed a race-provided trash bag to put my long-sleeved shirt in for transport to the finish. Finally, I hit the ladies room one more time before heading outside. The temps were a little chilly for standing still, but perfect for running. We all lined up at the start and I could kind of hear the National Anthem and then all of a sudden we were off!
From the course overview the previous day, I knew the race wasn’t completely downhill from the start. From about mile 1 – 8 we ran through rolling minor hills. Around mile 4 there was a loop where the leading runners ran by. Then we moved up a slight hill. I was moving at a pretty good clip, but was nervous to hold back too much. I knew this wasn’t the “downhill” section by any means, so I tried to maintain a comfortable pace that was still pretty strong.
Mile 1 – 7:53
Mile 2 – 7:55
Mile 3 – 7:49
Mile 4 – 8:03
Mile 5 – 8:05
Mile 6 – 7:56
Mile 7 – 8:02
Mile 8 – 8:09
Starting at mile 4 or so, I took water or Gatorade at every stop, which was just about every two miles. As we hit mile 8, one of the spectators or course managers said: “Ok guys, it’s downhill from here for a while. Just settle in and cruise.”
And then the downhill began and this guy was not kidding. It was all down hill for quite a few miles. I tried to use it as much as possible, but kept telling myself to “use it, but don’t lose it.” I didn’t want to go crazy and really kill my legs on the downhill by just letting completely loose. From after mile 8 – 13 we went all downhill all the time.
Mile 9 – 7:44
Mile 10 – 8:02
Mile 11 – 8:09
Mile 12 – 8:04
Mile 13 – 8:06
My pace for mile 9 was a little too fast, so I decided to scale back a bit. I also took a Gu between mile 11 and 12. When I crossed the halfway mark I was pretty floored to see that my half marathon time was a PR! The clock said around 1:45:30 I think. This made me a little nervous – I knew I was going really fast.
A few minutes later I was very glad I took that Gu because miles 14 and 15 were rolling hills and my pace slowed a bit.
Mile 14 – 8:11
Mile 15 – 8:13
As I got past mile 15, my adrenaline began to pump because I knew that Hubby was likely going to be at mile 16. That was the only spot that I was able to give him directions for. My pace picked up and I started looking around as we neared the spectator spot.
I heard Hubby cheering me on before I even saw him and started grinning like a fool. (me in the blue tank top)
And then I started waving…
Doesn’t the guy with the number 664 bib kind of look like an older Steve Carrell?
Sorry – sidetracked. Anyway – I saw Hubby and was all giddy and he told me he was on the phone with my best friend and she was cheering me on. YAY! I was so excited I sped up a bit. So I checked my Garmin…
Mile 16 – 8:00
I was feeling good, but that was short-lived. My next mile was my first taste of the dead legs that were to come.
Mile 17 – 8:28
And then there was a lovely and much-appreciated downhill.
Mile 18 – 7:47
But that little spurt was just a tease because then came the hills. They weren’t huge hills, but they were hills just the same and they were tough. I didn’t walk at all, but I was moving slower and I watched helplessly as my split times crept up.
Mile 19 – 8:56
Mile 20 – 8:43
Mile 21 – 9:00
And then after mile 21 things went bad pretty quickly. Call it the wall if you want, I called it the end. The end of my BQ hopes. As I watched my splits get slower I began to prepare myself for the fact that I probably wasn’t going to qualify. I was just moving too slow. There was no way. And then I told myself that this was probably good. I didn’t want to run another marathon anyway – I completely forgot how awful I feel after mile 21. This was a good reminder and was reinforcing the fact that I am not cut out for a BQ. I decided I just didn’t have it in me.
So after this little non-pep-talk, I decided that it would be good enough if I could just finish the race and try to finish without walking. Although at the worst moments I wondered how bad it would really feel to not finish (I decided it would feel really bad), but thankfully I pushed on.
With my non-BQ pace acceptance, I struggled to just put one foot in front of the other. I decided once I got to mile 24, things wouldn’t be so bad.
Mile 22 – 9:25
Mile 23 – 9:29
Mile 24 – 9:32
As I hit mile 24 and saw that 9:32, I also looked at my pace band on my wrist and saw that I was actually a little bit ahead of the pace for a BQ. I didn’t quite understand how this could be, given my sluggish times, but I figured my surprising speed during the first half must have really built a cushion for me.
So this is when I decided that maybe, just maybe, I had a little something left in me. I started trying to push a little harder. As I’m working to build back up some speed, who do I spot and hear cheering for me just before mile 25? Hubby!! He was along Main Street cheering like crazy and I definitely needed it. I start to push a little harder.
Mile 25 – 9:04
I hit mile 25 and knew there was 0nly 1.2 miles left and that I can certainly finish, but if I maintained my speed, a BQ might still be in sight. I push on and on, for what feels like forever and finally I see a school up ahead. I know that this finish is around a school track. Pushing hard, I finally hit mile 26…
Mile 26 – 9:01
And then there is .2 to go. We had to run around the track and I could see the finish, but there was still more to go. Miraculously, my Garmin says I just hit 3:38 and there is a slim chance that I could sneak in under 3:40! I start sprinting – or at least try. It feels more like a slow-motion sprint, but I give it a shot nonetheless. I push and I push and I push and finally I cross the line:
3:39:35!! (official chip time)
I did it! I qualified for Boston. I cut things pretty close, but I finished under 3:40.
In all honesty, this is not how I pictured running this race or qualifying for Boston. I wanted a nice even 8:10-8:15 pace the entire way, but this marathon was not built like that, in my opinion. I think it’s inevitable that you will run this race much faster in the first half. This was a hard race – it was fast – but it was really hard. Compared to my first marathon, I think I gave more of myself and exerted a lot more energy.
I’m still shocked that I actually qualified based on my splits. I was fully prepared to accept that I wasn’t going to get my BQ. But I am beyond thrilled that I did it and that I’m heading to Boston next April. I hope to maybe even meet up with some of the amazing running bloggers I read regularly. And now I have to cheer on my best friend Lauren as she tries to get her BQ in October at the Bay State Marathon!!
Thank you to everyone who supported me, encouraged me and made me believe I could do it! And thanks again to my husband for coming to the Poconos with me and cheering me on. I did it!!!
Posted in Races, Running, Travel, Uncategorized
Tagged marathon, Pocono Marathon, qualifying for Boston, race recap
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