QUALIFYING FOR THE BOSTON MARATHON AND THE RACE OF MY LIFE

IN THE END, THE MARATHON BECOMES A TEST OF MENTAL WILL

If you commit yourself to a training schedule and you learn how to fuel and pace yourself properly for the distance, the marathon becomes a mental race.

As I reflect back on it now, I truly believe that I qualified for the 2016 Boston Marathon because of 4 key strategies which came together for me on race day.  

My December Workout Schedule

A PRE-DETERMINED WORKOUT SCHEDULE:
After reading the book Mastering the Marathon by Don Fink, I decided having a calendar and workout schedule would be extremely important and helpful.  In the book, the author outlines 3 key workouts that must be incorporated into a 16 week training plan; long run day, marathon pacing day and speed intervals.

Unfortunately, I didn't discover the book until I was 8 weeks away from my marathon so I missed the first 8 weeks of his 16 week program. The only option I had (if I wanted to follow his training plan) was to use the last 8 weeks of his program.

I downloaded an online calendar and filled in a weekly plan that included time, distance and pace.  Having everything clearly written down made life so much easier.  I never had to waste time looking through the book trying to figure out which workout I should be doing on any given day.  So, take a couple of hours out of your day and put together a realistic workout plan for yourself...on paper!

A FUELING STRATEGY THAT WORKS FOR YOU:
In the 3 years since I've been running, I had never put much thought or emphasis on a fueling strategy.  Truth be told, I didn't have any fueling strategy. That changed last summer when I entered into the sport of triathlon.

Suddenly, I was hanging out with people who completed Ironman distance races and heard their war stories of how a fueling strategy made or destroyed their race.  I decided it was time I learn something about fueling during an endurance sport.

A good fueling strategy MUST be good for YOU personally! I cannot emphasize this enough!  For me, fueling isn't a one-size-fits-all option and having Crohn's disease makes it a bit more challenging for me.

Once I was able to run 16 mile practice runs, this was when I began incorporating a fueling strategy into the plan.  I discovered that while I didn't mind the taste of sports beans, I was having a hard time chewing them as I ran (not to mention that I would constantly drop beans along the way).  I wasn't crazy about the texture of sports gels either, and both beans and gels made me extremely thirsty for water.

Eventually I settled on salted caramel flavored GU.  It took a few tries for me to be able to consume a packet quickly but once I was used to it, I was good to go.  I suggest you try various fueling products and find the ones that work for you personally.  Again, one size does not fit all.

I also tried various strategies for fueling until I found one that worked for me.  I consumed a packet of GU 30 minutes before the race, then another GU 45 minutes into the race, followed by water.  Every 30 minutes thereafter I consumed a packet of GU followed by water.  In between the packets of GU, I would drink a sports drink (PowerAde was provided on the Louisiana Marathon course).  The combination of GU always followed by water and a sports drink in between, worked perfectly for me during the race.

PACE YOURSELF PROPERLY FOR THE BEST RESULTS:
I cannot stress the importance of learning how to pace! Going into the marathon my goal was to average 8:45 per mile during the marathon.  I determined my marathon pace by using my most recent half marathon pace of 8:01 per mile.  I decided that if I could run 8:01 per mile for a half marathon, than an 8:45-8:50 per mile pace should be reasonable and doable for a marathon.

I based all of my training runs on an 8:45 per mile pace.  Long slow run days were done at 60 to 90 seconds slower than this pace (9:45-10:15 per mile).  Speed intervals were based on the fastest pace that I could hold which was usually 6:50 to 7:20 per mile.

But I still had one question; how should I pace myself on race day? Should I start at race pace or should I run slower than my race pace? Should I try "banking" a few seconds during the first 6 miles?  No one could give me a straight answer on this.

I turned to a triathlete friend and asked him for a pacing strategy that made sense.  Since I had never ran a marathon for pace, he wasn't sure what I was capable of. He gave me a simple plan that worked!  Run the first 15 miles at or 5 seconds slower than my race pace (this meant that I was supposed to run 8:45 to 8:50 per mile for the first 15 miles).  At mile 15 I was to mentally assess how I felt.  IF I felt good and I believed I had enough energy to pick up the pace, I was to pick up the pace at mile 15 and hold as long as I could (hopefully to the finish line).

This was EXACTLY what I did and I was one of very few people who ran the second half of the marathon faster than the first half.  But why was this strategy so important?  After much thought I discovered why this worked:

By waiting until mile 15 to pick up the pace, my body was better able to determine a pace that it was realistically capable of.  You see when run a marathon, the first 13.1 miles feels easy because you are now used to running a distance that is much longer than 13.1 miles (hopefully you've done several 16 and 20 mile practice runs).  By mile 15 however, the body has become fatigued and it now has a better sense or idea of what it can and cannot do.  You may think it's a risky strategy, but its a lot less risky than using up all of your energy in the first half of the marathon.  If you wait until mile 15 to run at a faster pace, you still have 11.2 miles to make up for "lost time".  And that's a decent amount of distance to cover.  So mile 15 was where my race really began.

NOTE:  My goal going into the Louisiana Marathon was to average 8:45 per mile.  I ended up averaging 8:41 per mile and exceeded my goal. And I didn't feel as though I was dying during the race either.

PREPARE YOUR BRAIN AND LEARN TO SUCK IT UP BUTTERCUP!
As silly as this may sound, I put a lot of work and emphasis on preparing myself mentally for this race.

There were practice runs where I purposely didn't fuel properly because I wanted to see how I would handle running while feeling fatigued and out of energy.  I took spin classes with tough instructors who knew my goal and purposely tortured me all little extra during class. They would test me to see if I could mentally push myself through their abuse and I thank each and every one of them for the flogging they gave me.  All free of charge mind you!  They made my workouts a bit more difficult and would yell at me to "pick up the pace" or "stay true to myself".  One would say "you have 2 more minutes on this hill.  What are you going to do with it? Are you going to quit or are you going to push harder and give more"? They taught me how to mentally "zone out" the pain and focus on the goal.

During the marathon I didn't have too many pain issues to contend with.  I don't know if it was because I was physically prepared, mentally prepared or a bit of both.  When pain crept up during mile 15, I was able to forget it very quickly.  When my foot and calves started to cramp at mile 22, I was able to stop the cramp before it ever took hold.  When I wanted to stop and walk at mile 23, I put that thought out of my head immediately and focused on breathing and coming across the finish line strong. I told myself "it's only a 5k. You've run plenty of 5k's. You know what to do and you know if you stop your muscles are going to stiffen up. Are you ready to give up on qualify for Boston during the last 5k of this marathon"???  I talked to myself and focused on the finish line and my goal.

Where you are mentally at any time during the race is of absolute importance.  Enjoy the journey, enjoy your surroundings, enjoy what you are capable of doing.  Talk to yourself in a positive way. Envision yourself coming through the finish line strong and confident.  Know that all of your training has helped you get to this very moment.  When the doubt demons come...and they will...SLAM the door on them immediately! Tom told me "whatever bad may happen, don't let it into your head". And that's what you have to do.  Don't let anything negative get into your head! Negativity is a very powerful creature.

It really takes a lot of focus to run 26.2 miles non-stop.  But if you train yourself physically, if you learn how to pace and fuel properly, and if you learn how to block out the doubt demons, you CAN do it!  I know you can! I know you will!

LOUISIANA MARATHON RACE REPORT 2015

ITS OFFICIAL...I AM A BOSTON QUALIFIER!!!

You can never be sure how race day is going to turn out. But this race day turned out to be spectacular.  In fact, better than expected.  The weather was perfect, the course was scenic and flat, the spectators came out to cheer, and I was ready to run for a Boston qualifying time.

Leading up to the Louisiana Marathon, a couple of injuries plagued me.  First, my ankle had been acting up since September then my right knee decided to go the week before Christmas.  I discovered that my knee issue was related to my IT Band and I had 5 short weeks to stretch and strengthen it, along with my hip flexors.  Would 5 weeks be enough?

HOTEL ACCOMODATIONS AND PACKET PICKUP:

We arrived in Baton Rouge on Friday morning, January 16th.  Our first stop was to The Staybridge Suites at LSU.  Since we arrived early, we weren't sure if a room would be available to us.  The staff was very nice and a room was waiting for us.  The room was terrific.  It had 2 queen sized beds, a small kitchen area and a small sitting area.  It was very clean, comfortable and the location was great.  There were restaurants within walking distance but since we rented a car we decided to explore a bit.  The staff made sure to have coffee available early on race day for the runners.

Packet pickup was okay.  I received multiple bib numbers for the 5k race (I was doing the 5k on Saturday and full marathon on Sunday) and the line was incredibly long and slow. They needed more workers issuing packets.  After receiving both bibs, I had to go to the timing company to have the bib issue resolved.  Although they resolved it quickly, they were not very nice about it.  Hey, not mistake buddy.

The expo was small compared to the NYC Marathon and the Marine Corps Marathon, but it was very nice nonetheless.  We bought some gear and I bought a delicious granola mix from Animae Mix (http://mostdelightfulfoods.com/).  Their almond blueberry granola was delicious.  Altra running had a booth set up and after talking with the reps, I may give Altra a try the next time I need running sneakers.   

THE LOUISISANA QUARTER MARATHON AND 5K RACE:

The Quarter Marathon (new this year) and the 5k race started at 7:30 am near the Capitol building in downtown Baton Rouge.  Caitlin and I were running the 5k while husband Tom was going the distance in the Quarter Marathon.  I decided to do the 5k race with Caitlin because if I ran on Saturday and Sunday, I would receive the DeJa Vu Award...which was a crawfish tray. I wanted the crawfish tray, ok?! Don't judge!

Caitlin and I didn't "race" since I wanted to save my legs for the full marathon on Sunday.  But hubby Tom took off and did really well with a Quarter Marathon time of 54:19 at an average pace of 8:18 per mile. He came in 4th place for his age group and was the 30th Quarter Marathon finisher to cross the line.  Caitlin and I mainly walked the 5k course and took some photos along the way.  We enjoyed sharing some girl time together.

The after party was organized very nicely with fantastic musicians and fabulous food.  We hung around for a while and enjoyed the party atmosphere. I've decided I should learn some Cajun style recipes.  We had a dirty rice with pulled pork and a kielbasa type sausage in it.  It was truly yummy.  I also had corn and crab soup which was outstanding!


THE LOUISIANA MARATHON...aka RACE DAY!

And here it was! Everything that I had worked for over the last several months came down to this one moment in time.

I woke up at 4:00 am and had a bowl of oatmeal (I brought a packet along) and a cup of coffee. On the way to the race, I sipped Gatorade and drank water.  We arrived at the parking lot 1 hour before the start time and secured the last parking spot!  It was freezing in the morning but the temperature was expected to climb into the low 60's.  I decided to wear a tank top and compression shorts. I kept my sweat jacket on until the very last second and I wore a pair of cheap gloves.  If my hands freeze before the race, I'm DONE! I'd rather throw the gloves away on the course than have frozen hands at the start.

Since the marathon course was an out and back I decided to start directly behind the 3:45 pace group.  I figured I could use them as a guide to determine how fast or slow I was going throughout the race.

The cannon fired and we were off!  Immediately I noticed the 3:45 pace team pull away and leave me in the dust.  I wasn't going to try and keep up with them since my race strategy was to run the first half of the race at a slower pace of 8:45 to 8:55 per mile.

ON THE COURSE:

The race began in downtown Baton Rouge and wound its way towards LSU. It was very pretty and scenic running around the LSU lake.  The morning mist hung over the water and white birds bobbed around looking for food.  There were a lot of spectators on the course holding signs, a few people dressed in costume and family and friends cheered us on.  Crowd support was outstanding! The race directors had plenty of water and PowerAde stations set up throughout the entire course.

The first timing mat was located at the 10k mark.  In advance, I had signed up for "track a runner", so I was anxious to see my split time.  After crossing the 10k mat, the text came through and all it said was that I had reached the 10k mark and that my ETA was 10:52 am.  Since the marathon started at 7:00 am and I was close to the start line I figured I was running a 3:52:00 marathon.  Not getting a per-mile pace split was a major disappointment!!!

I continued on enjoying the scenery and running at a comfortable pace.  Not too fast, not too slow.  Eventually the course split and the half-marathoners went left, while the marathoners went to the right.  The second half of the race put us through various neighborhoods in Baton Rouge.  A lot of homeowners came out to show their support and offered us water, oranges, apples, donuts and even beer.  Someone had a full bar set up on their front lawn.

I reached the next timing mat at mile 13.1.  The text message came through that my ETA was now 10:55 am.  This meant that I was running a 3:55:00 marathon and at this rate I would not qualify for Boston. At that point I picked up my pace a little bit and brought it to 8:39 per mile.  I held my 8:39 pace until mile 15.

MILE 15.  IT'S WHERE THE RACE REALLY BEGINS!

I didn't realize it at the moment, but this was where my "race" would begin.  The week before the Louisiana Marathon, I had spoken to a professional Kona-Qualifying Ironman triathlete who offered me pacing advice.  He told me to run the first fifteen miles 5 to 10 seconds slower than my anticipated pace (I was aiming for an 8:45 average pace).  He told me when I reached mile 15 I should do a mental scan on how I felt.  IF I felt good at mile 15, I could pick up the pace and hammer away to the end.  BUT I would have to trust the system.  I admit I was nervous about trusting this pacing strategy, but since I believed in him and his advice, I put my trust in his system.

At mile 15, I began dropping my pace down to 8:32 per mile (according to my watch).  At mile 16, I noticed the balls of my feet felt as if someone set them on fire.  I ignored the burn and the future blisters that were coming my way and just kept going.  At mile 19.6 I crossed another timing mat.  My new ETA was 10:42 am!  Holy smokes, I made up some serious time!  I'm running a 3:42:00 marathon! And best off all...the 3:45 pace group was suddenly in my sights.  If I could just stay close to the pace group I would qualify for Boston!

At mile 22 I felt a foot cramp begin in my left foot.  I tried to relax my body and feet, hoping the cramp would subside...it did!  As soon as the foot cramp subsided however, both of my calves felt as though they were ready to cramp.  Again I tried to relax my body and focus on rhythmic breathing in an attempt to avoid the cramps taking hold.  They never took hold.

I reached mile 23 and had no physical pain to complain about.  Minor aches here and there, but nothing major at all.  I did notice however that my breathing sounded labored.  I struggled to get it under control and slowed my pace down.  At this point, I was no longer looking at my watch.  When I reached mile 25 I knew I would qualify for Boston, short of a truck hitting me at that point.

I'm a Boston Qualifier!

At mile 26 I sent Tom a text that said "26".  I wanted to give him a heads up that I was close.  The crowd was encouraging the runners to the finish line.  I heard Tom shout "go Arletta" from the side.  I ran straight through the finish line, threw my arms in the air and began to cry.  A girl put a pretty finishers medal around my neck and before I knew it, Tom and Caitlin were there to greet me.  I walked over to them, hugged Tom and began to sob...and I mean sob. I was a crying idiot! Poor Tom!

Every emotion that I had felt over the last several months escaped me in that one moment.  I felt a huge sense of relief and pride in my accomplishment.  Going into this race I suspected that I should be capable of qualifying for Boston, but you never know what race day holds for you.  This race day however held a bit of magic for me.  Somehow it felt as though a positive power surrounded me and helped me run the race of my life!  Things that could have, should have or would have gone wrong, didn't go wrong.  All of the things that I worried about in training, never happened. It felt as though this race was meant to be. I will always consider the Louisiana Marathon and Baton Rouge with the fondest of memories.  Someday I will return and run this race again...with positive power!

MY OFFICIAL MARATHON RACE PACE SPLITS:
Start line to 10k mark: 8:49 per mile
10k to 13.1 mile marker: 8:58 per mile
13.1 to 19.6 miles: 8:38 per mile
19.6 to Finish Line: 8:51 per mile

Official Marathon Finish Time: 3:47:26 
Average Pace: 8:41 per mile

NUTRITIONAL INTAKE AND HYDRATION:
30 minutes before the race I consumed 1 packet of GU.  When I was forty-five minutes into the race I consumed another packet of GU followed by water.  After that I consumed 1 packet of GU every 4 miles and followed the GU with water.  In between however I drank PowerAde, which was provided to us on the course.

Louisiana Quarter Marathon and 5k Completed!

Caitlin and I crossing the finish line of the Louisiana 5k
 

LESSONS LEARNED FROM MARATHON TRAINING

THINGS YOUR MAMA NEVER TOLD YOU

And there we have it folks. 5 weeks out from my marathon and I ended up with an injury.  Runner's knee otherwise known as ITBS (IT Band Syndrome).  Like most runners, I asked myself "what did I do right, what did I do wrong"?  Through my mental assessment (and complete self-honesty), I discovered interesting things about marathon training.  Things no one ever told me. Or maybe they did tell me and I just missed the memo.

I'm not one of those people who has a specific training plan for races less than 13.1 miles.  My typical long run day (when I'm not marathon training) is 10 to 11 miles anyway.  So when it came to marathon training I figured it was a matter of adding distance, being consistent and learning about fueling. Well that was wrong.  There is so much more that goes into it, things I never realized...until now. The list of things that I did right and wrong is long.  But here are a few key things that I wanted to share with you.

THE GOOD:
As soon as I was done reading my marathon training book, I made a training schedule for myself.  Using an online calendar, I pre-planned all of my workouts including distance, pace and rest days.  The calendar worked out well for me because I never had to guess at what I should be doing on any given day.  Plus I never blew off a training run because the calendar would make me feel guilty.  So I stuck with my plan until the runners knee or ITBS happened.  And btw, runners knee can be extremely painful!

I built my distance up in small, 10% increments each week.  Also, a slow run day meant running 60-90 seconds slower than my anticipated marathon pace.  Over the last few months I have felt my aerobic system and breathing improve greatly.  I credit this to slow run days. And a slow run day doesn't mean its an easy run day.

I added in speed workouts.  Not every run day is meant to be slow and this was the first time that I have ever added speed workouts into my training plan. While I hated every single speed session that I had to do (actually I dreaded them), I did get the greatest sense of accomplishment after completing each one.

I did a "marathon pacing" run each week and LOVED marathon pacing days. This is where you do a slow warm up run, then you run holding your marathon pace for a certain amount of time, and end with a cool down run.  Each week the warm up run gets shorter and you hold the marathon pace for longer.  It became my favorite workout every time.

I concentrated on my daily nutrition by adding a lot more fruits, veggies and lean protein into my diet.  I cut a lot of sugar and refined carbs out of my diet. Smartest thing I ever did was cut refined carbs and sugar down.

On long run days I practiced specific fueling strategies during my run.  Eventually I dialed in on a fueling plan that works for me.  45 minutes into the run 1 GU followed by water.  Every 30 minutes I consume 1 GU or Sports Beans and follow up with a mouthful of water.  In between, I take a drink of Gatorade. I try not to overdrink so that its not sloshing around in my tummy.

Out of my 6 day training schedule, 4 days were specific run days and 2 were cross training days (bike and swim).  I honestly believe I would have ended up injured sooner and/or worse had I done 6 days of running with no cross training.  Cross training was good for me.

THE BAD:
There are 2 big mistakes that I made.  My first big mistake was the number of weeks that I trained for this marathon.  You see, when I read my marathon training book there was a 16 week training plan that I wanted to follow.  I counted back from the marathon date and realized that I was 8 weeks away from the marathon.  I decided to start the training program in the middle, or at week 8.  What I DIDN'T account for was the number of weeks that I had ALREADY been training for.  Technically, when I started the training plan I was at week 13 but instead I started it at week 8.  So when all is said and done, I'll have trained 21 weeks for this marathon when I should have trained for 16 weeks.  I also realized that at week 16 I felt fabulous and ready for the marathon.  Week 18 was when I became injured.  So long story short, I overtrained for the marathon by training for too many weeks.

The second big mistake was not strengthening and stretching my hip flexors and gluteus muscles.  Last year, I injured my right side training for the Disney World Marathon.  My injury stemmed from weak hip flexors and gluteus muscles.  You would have thought I would know better, but I was idiot.  It never occurred to me to specifically stretch and strengthen my hips and glutes.  I figured all off my swimming, biking and running automatically stretched and strengthened those areas, when it did not!  This was a huge mistake on my part.

I have since discovered that all of my injuries; SI joint problems, ITBS (IT Band Syndrome, ie runners knee), ankle pain, piriformis syndrome, etc., ALL STEM FROM WEAK HIP FLEXORS AND GLUETUS MUSCLES! I don't care what anyone tells you!  If you have an injury from the waist down, odds are its from weak and overly tight hip flexors and glutes.  Once you add serious distance on with weak, tight hip flexor and glutes...it isn't a question of IF you'll become injured, but WHEN! Trust me on this one and learn from my mistake.

I typically see my chiropractor on a monthly basis for maintenance.  When I started training for the marathon I should have started seeing him every 2 weeks.  When I was 8 weeks out from the marathon, I should have started seeing him on a weekly basis.  He's the best at assessing whether my leg length is off or if my SI joint is off or if I have a tight Psoas muscle.  So the next time I train for a longer distance endurance race, I will make my chiropractor a key factor in my training plan.

I will probably consider doing a 5 day training plan next time as opposed to a 6 day training plan.  I think 6 days is too much for me.

LESSONS LEARNED:
Every time you embark on a new adventure or a new distance, it's all a learning curve.  As long as you learn from it, you've gained a lot.  And to be honest, I don't think anyone ever perfects it.  You just make it as good as possible for yourself.  But here's one last closing note; If you feel pain during your training routine, stop immediately and re-assess your situation.  The smartest thing I did was to immediately stop running when I felt the runners knee come on and take a week off from training.  The thought of not being able to make it to the start line was a very big reality check for me.  So happy running, happy thoughts, stretch and strengthen your hips and glutes.  We'll see what happens at the marathon.  It's almost go time