Mind Games

So I decided that my goal for running this year is to (eventually) get back to my corral. I am pretty sure that NYRR must keep your best pace on file for two years, because my bib still says my fastest pace is an 8:03. This is so not true. I have been much much slower since pregnancy and haven't quite been able to get back to the times I was used to two years ago.

I ran the Run for Central Park this week with the idea that I would try to get around a 9:30 pace (baby steps, right?). I had extra cheering from my mom and dad who were visiting, and of course, Bill and Liam.

Liam and Mommy before the race

Unfortunately in the morning rush, I kind of forgot my Garmin. Oh well. No biggie. It was only a four mile race anyways. Bill suggested that I count my strides (now that I know that I do about 90 per mile normally). I was just going to wing it and run how I felt. This is often how I get my best times anyways.

Liam watches for mommy

And it was HOT, so I knew I would be making lots of pit stops for water (I hate chugging and running at the same time).

I felt pretty good, like I was keeping a nine minute pace, but I had no idea if this was true or not.

When I got to mile 2 the heat was kind of getting to me, which I know can make me very drained. So I decided to try the whole counting thing. I figured it was at least a good distraction from the little hills on the west side.

It actually was very distracting, which was great. So I decided to step it up a notch. I would count 100 footfalls on the right side and then start another 100. Each 100 would have to get progressively faster. It actually worked really well! I found it was a lot easier to pick up the pace bit by bit instead of thinking 'I should pick this up soon and then probably a little more'. Because inevitably my next thought is 'But I'm soooooo tiiiiiiiiiiired!' This way the whole pick up the pace thing seemed manageable. Mind games. It's what I've needed to work on with my running for so long and now I've finally figured it out.

By the last turn of the race I was flying! My final kick felt impressive. And I got a 34:01!!! That is a 8:32 pace! Hurrah! I was very proud of myself!

Oh yeah and did I mention that I ran the race in my Vibrams? That was fun too. :)

Japan Day Race

I don't know WHY I am trying so hard to get in my 9+1 races to qualify for the 2011 New York City Marathon. I already have guaranteed entry since I forfeited my guaranteed entry this year. I guess I always need a goal in running and this is it for me. I also like running races because it makes sure that I am still running and staying in shape.

At any rate, after my very hot 6-mile run on Saturday, Bill and I woke up early to do the Japan Day 4-mile run on Sunday. It was still hot, and there was no sign of the rain that they were talking about all week, which kind of made it worse (recorded temps were 75 for the 8am race with 79% humidity).

But I am SO GLAD that we ran on Saturday. It made Sunday so much easier, mentally and physically.

One thing I did forget was that the summer races are CROWDED. Especially in the middle of the pack where I run now. The whole time we were on everyone's heels and there was never any room to pass...not that I really needed to pass anyone.

I felt like I was putting forth a good effort, which made me realize the truth about effort vs pace.

I was telling Bill about this during the run. When I ran competitively it was a whole different ballgame than how I run now. Last year it was all about time, no excuses. Even though people were telling me that things like heat, humidity, whether or not you had a long run, or a hill workout or a speed workout the day before, etc affected your race, I was always trying to PR, no matter what. I remember being really upset with myself last year during the Women's Mini 10k because at practice I was averaging 7:40-8:15 pace on 10ks and on that race I averaged an 8:33 pace. And it was hot that day!

But running during pregnancy has taught me that those things really DO matter. I can tell when my body is pushing hard, and time is not always a reflection of that.

In this race we were doing a consistent 10:37 pace and it felt just as hard as those 7:40s that I used to do at practice.

I have also really been able to tell the difference between pushing it so that I get a good workout and knowing when I need a break. My OB says that this is why athletes do well in pregnancy workouts. She said that athletes have a much better understanding of how their bodies work, and they are the best measurerers (hmmm, not really a word, I know) of their effort levels. Studies have shown that when pregnant athletes need to stop or take a break, they do. So that's what I do...I push to get a hard workout, but not so hard that I will hurt myself. It ends up being pretty rewarding, and I have almost always felt good afterwards about my runs.

I even made it up Cat Hill without stopping (Cat Hill has been my Achilles Heel on my last 2 long runs) even though it was in the third mile of the 4 mile race.

So I was pretty happy with my 41:50 (which averaged out to a 10:27 pace!). And I felt GREAT afterwards. Great enough to walk the 2 miles home and scarf down a sausage sandwich from the corner bodega. :)

Not Counting Time :)

I have decided that I am not going to be paying attention to my time too much during this whole running-while-pregnant thing. I say this because I was just checking out my race history for this year and it's kind of demotivating.

The good news is that I've completed another race! Yay! That makes 4 for this year, and I'm already signed up for another one. The nice thing about not training for a marathon (I've found) is that I can run a lot more races because they don't screw up training. I AM still looking for another half marathon to run though (before it gets too ridiculous to do so).

But anyway, back to the title?

Bill and I ran the Mother's Day run this weekend. It was perfect weather and unseasonably cold for May (but nice for running!) with 40 degree temps. Unfortunately there was a TON of wind, but I will take that any day over running in 90 degree temps.

Our first mile was 9:53, which is all well and good, except for the fact that I felt like I was running about a whole minute faster than that. AND (as I pointed out to Bill) kind of demotivating, knowing that I ran an entire 13.1 miles at about that pace two weeks ago. Yuck.

The next mile we picked it up to a 9:09 (whoops, no wonder it felt a lot faster).

Oh yes, and I forgot to tell you. Ever since about 2 weeks ago I start a race or run and immediately have to pee. It doesn't matter that I go right before the run. It doesn't matter that I drink my fluids all at the beginning of the day and run at night. It just doesn't matter. And this past WEEK I feel like I am running with a full bladder the whole time. Like, you know how it feels when you load up on too much water at the water stops and then go to run again? And you feel all heavy in the stomach as it bounces up and down? Yeah, well that's how I feel all the time now.

So I had to stop at mile two. And of course there was a long line...which added on I don't know how much time. But luckily, it allowed us to see our friend Donna and catch up to her in the next mile so we could be chatty for awhile.

Bill wanted to know how I felt and the best way I could describe it was "I'm definitely pushing myself. But I don't need to go slower." Which I think was pretty good for me. Oh yeah, and I had to pee again, but decided to try and finish the race first because seriously, this was getting ridiculous.

When we were around 79th some guy shouted "Only a quarter mile to go!" I said "What? That can't be right!" But here's what happened: I KNEW it was a 4 mile race and I KNOW the park loops like the back of my hand, but in my mind I was doing the 5 mile loop...so I knew that when he said .25 miles, I really had like 1.6 miles (the total of the lower loop). But there was no lower loop!!! Hurrah!

I guess my body was planning for a 5 mile race too, because I suddenly was able to take off and kick it in like crazy.

Which is why I feel like I deserve the 9:50 pace that my Garmin had for the race instead of my 10:36 pace that NYRR had for me. (That bathroom break took a long time).

Yes, I hate people that do that, but come on! Can I get a pass for it this time? :)

The shirt was Bill's idea :)

Whoo-hoo! PR!

This weekend we had one of my favorite races in Central Park...the Run for Central Park. I like this run so much because it is a 4 mile race, which means: it's short (duh), it skips the upper loop and therefore, Harlem Hill, it skips the lower loop, which I hate AND it starts on the east side in the 60s, so you get the worst hill over with in the first mile.

Despite this, last year, I most certainly did NOT PR this race (I did a 36:36). This year I totally did, despite the fact that it was 72 degrees with 96% humidity (yuck).

I had figured out all kinds of combinations of splits on Friday to get me where I wanted (which was around an 8 minute mile). I had hoped that I could start out the race with a nice and easy 8:30 pace, but in order to make my goal, I REALLY had to make up for it in the next three miles, and I didn't know if that was possible. I know this sounds stupid, but this is also why short races are hard...you just don't have a lot of room/time to do anything other than even splits. So in my mind, I was hoping to hit an 8:05 for the first mile, but I kept telling myself to take it easy and do an 8:30.

Well, I guess sensible/logical Emily won out, because I clocked my first mile at 8:33. But I think a lot of this was due to the fact that it was super crowded (the race had reached capacity at 5,000 runners earlier in the week). I was stepping on peoples' heels, which I know is really great for them. :( (I did apologize.)

This slower first mile probably saved me though, because it was a lot hotter and more humid out than I thought. I settled into what felt like a comfortable pace for me and clocked a 7:52 on the second mile. I had skipped the first water station, but when I hit the second one I decided to take some water, even though it was a short race. I even walked through it to make sure I was getting enough fluids even though I knew it would add to my time.

The third mile was the trickiest, but I knew it would be going into the race.

While I complain about Cat Hill and Harlem Hill, at least you go up them and they are over with. The west side is comprised of lots of tiny rolling hills. None of them is significantly large, but you can definitely feel them in your legs after running fast for 2 miles. It doesn't help that there are LOTS of them too.

My third mile was 8:17, and (surprise!) I was actually okay with that, seeing as that this was supposed to be our slowest mile (due to the hills) by 5-10 seconds, plus I had taken 5-10 seconds at the water stop.

Before the race, Coach Christine had told us to give it our all on that last mile because it was all downhill. LIAR. :) Right at the mile marker there was actually a significant UPhill. I was pushing anyway, but it took loads of energy. I felt like I was going fast but running on empty. Slowing down. Slowing down. Or at least it felt like it. But I was still actually passing lots of people. When I saw the huge group of coaches cheering at the end (they were in the last 5 yards or so) it gave me a burst of energy and I really started kicking. I could tell I was fast, but I felt like I was going to die!!!

Final time was 32:15, which means that my last mile was 7:32!!!

My average pace was an 8:03, which, while that doesn't beat my practice record, it is definitely a race PR!