Just wanted to share a video of one of my favorite athletes Deena Kastor during the 2010 Arizona Rock n’ Roll Half Marathon. There’s a short clip of Ryan Hall also with Simon Bairu at the beginning. You can check the video from this website >>

http://running.competitor.com/2010/01/features/p-f-changs-rock-n-roll-arizona-half-marathon-replay_7872

Enjoy!

I will be running the Wolfson Children’s Hospital 5 mile run this weekend. The race is called Run 5 To Keep The Kids Alive. The race is part of the One To Grow On Ultramarathon celebration which features a 50 mile Ultramarathon event, a 5 mile run and a 1 mile fun run. The event is to celebrate the 40,000 children seen at Wolfson last year. They have a goal of lighting 40,000 candles this year. Please visit the website link below for more information. You can make a $10 donation to help light a candle.

www.wolfson55.org

I can’t believe it’s been almost 2 weeks since I ran my first marathon. Since then, I’ve taken a break from blogging and lowered my weekly mileage so I can recharge both physically and mentally. The experience however is still fresh. In fact, I could still felt a little bit of the after effects especially on my legs for several days after the race. Now that I’m ready to get back out there, I think now would be a good time to remember my first marathon experience.

I arrived at the Epcot parking lot around 4:05ish in the morning. The weather forecast was pretty accurate at a bad time. The evening low the night before was 29 F but with the windchill factored in, it felt like around 19-20ish. I brought an old blanket with me to protect me from the cold while waiting for the start. I also wore some layers of old clothing that I eventually threw away after a few miles. One thing that I will never forget about this race was how cold it really was. I remember I had to shuffle my feet around while waiting because my toes were starting to go numb.

After several minutes of waiting around in the gathering area, we were all instructed to start walking towards the starting corral. It was a good 15-20 minutes walk. I found out that Corral D, the corral I was assigned to would be the first wave to go. I still couldn’t believe that I was right behind the wheelchair and the elite runners. I remember going into the forums and a lot of people wanted to be in that first wave. I didn’t even submit any official proof of time but I guess I just got placed there by accident. The excitement grew as more people entered the corral. The music was playing and some people were dancing and jumping around. I remembered telling myself I would save all my energy for the race but I did a little bit of jumping myself just so I could feel my legs again. At this point, I couldn’t really feel my toes anymore. I remembered Jeff Galloway went up to the stage and gave some last minute tips to the runners.

I know this might sound cheesy but I got a bit emotional when the national anthem was sang. I just savored that moment, said a little prayer as the crowd cheered on “…the land of the free, and the home of the brave” part. After a few seconds, the countdown began. The fireworks started as the gun went off and I started running. I kept telling myself to start slow but it was hard especially with all the adrenaline. I was fortunate to get a glimpse of the elite runners and the guy who would eventually win the race. I watched them slowly pull away from our group.

Three minutes into my run, I had a little bit of a wardrobe malfunction. I felt my right sock slowly slip down and it kept slipping until only half of my foot was covered. So I decided to quickly pull to the side and untie my shoes to fix it. After that, I was back on track. The weather was very cold and it was still very dark. I didn’t break a sweat until mile 2. We did a couple more loops before heading out to Magic Kingdom.

The sun was starting to come up by the time I reached mile marker 9. I checked my watch and I already knew that I went out too fast. I wanted to slow down but I was feeling strong so I tried to keep my pace. A wrong decision that would eventually make me pay later on. There was a point right before we entered the Magic Kingdom where we could already see some of the elites on the opposite road which meant that they were already at the halfway point.

When I reached the half-marathon mark, my split was around 2:03 which was still too fast according to my original game plan. I stopped for a bit to send a text message to my wife to let her know that I’ve made it to the halfway point. When we reached the 15 mile mark I was still feeling great and this is where my second mistake happened. I decided I would surge for a couple of miles. After we passed the Animal Kingdom, at about mile 20. When I took a short walk break, that’s when I first felt fatigue.

By mile 21, I felt cramps on my quads which gave me a little bit of scare. I’ve never had experienced those during my training. At mile 22, my hamstrings were feeling the same thing. I had taken several walk breaks already and the distance felt like never ending. The Disney Hollywood Studios was just a blur to me. I didn’t really get to enjoy that part much because I was struggling the whole way. My legs were already lead and my pace was probably down to like 12 to 13 min/mile. I really didn’t care anymore.

What I will never forget though was my experience during the last 1.2 miles. I saw this guy hit the wall and at that time I was just about ready to walk the whole thing. I tried to motivate him and decided to walk next to him. He told me to go, so I decided to jog but then when I decided to walk again. I felt a tap on my shoulder and it was the same guy saying, “let’s go man…we can do it…you got it.” I jogged with him for most of the way. We stuck together trying to keep each other from quitting. When I saw the 26 mile marker, I tried to sprint what felt like the longest 0.2 miles ever.

Crossing the finish line was an unbelievable feeling. I can’t explain how great of a runner’s high it was. You have to experience it for yourself. My finish time was 4:30:20 but I didn’t really care much about it. At first, I thought I could’ve done better but looking back, I was really happy that I finished the race. Knowing that I accomplished all my goals for this race was enough for me. I survived. I am now in the best shape of my life. I had fun! The camaraderie between the runners and the people watching was awesome. And yes! I will do another one and will continue doing this. I’m actually thinking about which marathon will be next.

The guy I was running with earlier shook my hands and thanked me after we crossed the finish line. I thanked him back and we walked towards the exit to get our photos taken and that was the last time I’ve seen him. I never knew his name.

After 18 weeks of training, I’ve finally finished my first ever marathon. I crossed the finish line with an official time of 4:30:20. I was part of about 16000+ people that finished. The weather was so cold, my shirt and cap was covered with frost from the frozen sweat.

Like I’ve said before, I didn’t have any time goal for this race so I’m pretty happy with my finishing time. I still crossed the finish line running even though my legs were already feeling like lead. Running through all the Disney Parks and seeing the Disney characters cheering you on was indeed a fun experience. But I can’t say this race was easy for me. I faced some tough challenges too along the way.

I will post some more race details later. In the meantime, I will have to go ice my calves.

Just finishing up my bagel. It’s 2:37 AM. In a few minutes, I’ll be heading out to Epcot to the starting line. 18 weeks of training…over 126 days…it all comes down to this. This is it! The weather will be frigid! 30 F but feels like 21 F.

Just finished packing my running stuff…Getting ready to leave for Orlando tonight.

Today’s 2 mile run wraps up the training for the Disney World Marathon…my first ever. All I can say right now is that I feel great because I’ve already accomplished the most important part of my goal, which is to get to complete the training injury free and healthy. My legs feel great and ready to go.

The weather was nice today. Not too cold. Hopefully it will be like this during race but highly unlikely. So later tonight, I will make my final checklist of stuff that I need just to make sure I don’t miss anything. We’ll be leaving for Orlando tomorrow around late-afternoon.

We’ve been fortunate to have a nice gym in our office and an awesome gym programs and classes. The gym instructor has one of those cool Tanita Ironman Body Comp scales that measures your weight, body fat, body water, and muscle mass, visceral fat, etc. Every few weeks, I would go and get measured just to see where I’m at and to find out if my workout and diet have been working.

Today, I got my result and found out that I had lost 3 lbs of muscle mass. Body fat stayed the same. I guess it was the result of the peak training and also the moderate to hard pace that I’ve been trying out for the last few weeks. I got the best results last November, right before I started hitting the peak training. I don’t like loosing muscle mass but I guess at this point, it can work to my advantage since I will be running lighter. However, I plan to hit the weights more again after the race to gain some more muscle mass back. I just don’t want to look too skinny.

So I guess I’ve already accomplished Goal #2 of my marathon goal:

1. Survive
2. Get lean
3. Have fun

Here’s the comparison between today’s result and last November:
Age: 30 Height: 5′8″

I also logged a cold 4 miles today at an easy to moderate pace. Nothing special about the run. I just did a flat course today and wore my “TJMaxx Asics jacket” again. Not sure if I should wear this on race day or just wear an old sweater that I can throw away. This jacket does a good job of keeping me warm but I really don’t want to throw it away once it gets really warm. I might’ve gotten this for cheap but hey, I like this jacket!

I thought about skipping today’s 3 mile run outside and just hit the treadmill inside our warm and cozy gym. But when I checked out the weather forecast for Sunday’s race, I found out that it will be in the 30s for most of the morning! Brrr! I’m sure those northerners will just laugh but hey I live in FL where most runners train and run in shorts and and short sleeves for most of the year.

So I’ve decided this would be a good time to practice in the cold weather and test out my cold weather running gear. The temp during my 8 miler last Sunday was a bit cooler than today but the strong winds today made it felt like in the 20s especially when I hit the top of the Acosta Bridge! My Asics jacket that I found at TJ Maxx for cheap did its job. I still wore shorts though and I think I will still wear shorts on race day. I just don’t feel comfortable running in long pants. I’m more worried about the 1-2 hours of standing around and waiting out in the cold before the race starts. The forecast for the night before is like 28! I might bring an old blanket that I can wrap myself into while waiting and just throw it away right before the start. Also, I’ve been thinking about buying some cheap sweaters that I can wear as layers then just throw them away once I get warm during the run.

I still can’t complain because I would rather run in the cold than run in warm weather. I tend to perform well when running in the cold. I just really didn’t expect it will be THIS cold! Time to hit the thrift store later for some cheap sweaters.

I’m really excited about this week. Why? Because this is it! The week of my first ever marathon race. I’ve printed out my waiver and pick up form as well as my race number, I’m getting ready to download the final race instructions. I only have 3 more short trainining runs remaining and then we will be leaving for Orlando on Friday. I just wanted to share what I have in store for this week according to Hal Higdon’s Novice Training plan:

(NOTE: The following came from Hal Higdon’s Novice Marathon Training plan. You can find more about his training programs from his website at http://www.halhigdon.com)

Monday: Your whole final week leading up to the marathon should be devoted to rest, rest, rest! According to Tom Grogon, a coach from Cincinnati: “One problem that often develops is that people in training sometimes use these easy/lower mileage weeks to do something else equally stressful.” Grogon recalls one tapering runner who rebuilt his barn and another who spent his “rest” time swimming and biking–and none of these activities exactly qualify as resting. Grogon recommends using the extra time to catch up on family and work responsibilities.

Tuesday: Three miles at your normal pace. And mind what you eat this week, as I write in Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide: “Begin carbo-loading seven days in advance. Forget what you read years ago about depletion and three days of a low-carbohydrate diet before switching to a diet high in carbohydrates. (The theory was that the depleted muscles–’starved’ for carbohydrates–would then be able to suck up even more carbos than normal and thus provide the marathoner with even more energy on race day.) Stick with a high-carbohydrate diet throughout the week. You don’t need to eat spaghetti all seven days: Focusing on fruits, vegetables, and grains will keep you above 60 percent carbos even if you have lean meat as a main course. If you haven’t eliminated between-meal junk snacks, do it now.”.

Wednesday: Four miles easy. More on diet, a very important subject this last week because of the necessity to stock your muscles with fuel-efficient glycogen. Robert Eslick, a coach from Nashville says, “I tell my runners to watch their intake for the first three days of the marathon week to avoid weight gain and then to eat a little more than their normal intake, with the emphasis on carbohydrates, the last three days.” Sound advice.

Thursday: The last three days are critical to the final taper. Usually, I rest two days and do some light jogging on the third. In this schedule for Novice runners, I advise that you do 2 easy miles today, then rest Friday and Saturday. Carbo-loading begins in earnest today. Pasta, rice, potatoes, cereals, fruits. Don’t make radical changes in your regular diet, but now is not the time for filet mignon. Cut back slightly on your intake of calories, since you will be burning fewer calories in this final tapering week.

Friday: Get a good night’s sleep tonight. You may have more difficulty sleeping tomorrow night because of nervous anticipation. Also, you may need to get up early Sunday to get to the start on time. For this reason, your Friday night’s sleep is even more important than your Saturday night’s sleep. I say “Sunday” and “Saturday” assuming that your marathon race is on the former day. But some marathons are held on Saturdays. “Rocket City” in Huntsville, Alabama and “Grandma’s” in Duluth, Minnesota come to mind. If you’re running a Saturday marathon, move everything up one day.

Saturday: Many runners like to do some light jogging the day before the marathon, particularly to loosen up after traveling to the race. I prescribed an easy 2-mile run on Thursday for Novice runners, but if you want to rest Thursday and do your 2-miler today, that’s not a bad option. I suggest to runners following the intermediate and advanced programs to do some easy strides the day before the race to both loosen up and relieve nervousness. If you decide to do the same, simply flip-flop your Thursday and Saturday workouts. Quoting again from Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide: “There’s no longer any room in your training plan for hard, fast, or long runs. Forget them. If you run anything at or near race pace, don’t run far.”

Sunday: St. Paul once said, “Do you not know that those who run in a race, all indeed run, but only one receives the prize? So run as to obtain it.” (St. Paul, 9:24) I don’t know, Pauly, that message might have been accurate 2,000 years ago, but if you were around today and had an opportunity to experience today’s mass-participation marathons, you might agree that more than one runner receives the prize, or benefits from their participation. (That might make a good sermon subject for my former teammate at Carleton College, Bill Hendren, who is now a minister in Ventura, California.) Regardless of whether you expect to win a prize in today’s race, take St. Paul’s advice and run so as to obtain it. There’s not much more we can say other than this is the day and the moment for which you have spent 18 weeks. Remember everything you learned over those weeks. And have a very good day!