A Great Marathon Weekend

This overdue race report will begin a few days before the marathon...



Here's a video that sums it up as well

Thursday July 23

I work up in the middle of the night and never went back to sleep. My mind was racing while I was thinking about racing. I read too much about getting a PR and I just froke out. Friday morning I decided to just go out and have a lovely time and forget about getting a huge PR.

Friday July 24

Friday I woke up pretty exhausted and worked from home. Sarah and I met up and went to the Marathon expo. We met Bart Yasso who gave us some tips about track workouts. It was really exciting, especially for two running nerds like me and Sarah. Afterwards we went to Goat Hill Pizza for some carbo loading.

In the afternoon, I finished up some work and hung out with Dan. He then headed out to go to happy hour with some friends. I told him to not wake me up when he came home. I implored him, "I need sleep for the marathon!"

At about 11:30 I heard Dan come in. He came into the bedroom and put a ring on my finger and left the room. I said "What did you just do." He thought I'd just wake up with the ring on my finger. It was like a dream, partially because I was still dreaming and partially because I was very happy. Of course since I had just gotten engaged, I could not fall asleep.


Saturday July 25

I woke up and had to call everyone I knew to tell them the news. I laid on the couch all day, talking on the phone and looking at magazines. It was nice to just relax the day before the race. We went to Ella's for pancakes and had pasta for dinner. I went to bed at 8 and fell asleep at 9. It was a pretty good night sleep considering.

THE DAY OF THE RACE!

Woke up at 4 feeling fairly well rested. I ate some wheat toast and had coffee, called a cab and got my stuff together and went downstairs to wait. The cab NEVER Came. They don't let you reserve it the night before, but when I called in the morning they said they'd be right there. Maybe I came down too late, I'll never know. Then I walked to the corner and looked for cabs. I saw a girl at the bus stop who was heading toward the marathon as well and she gave me $2 for the bus since I didn't think to bring cash. Then we saw a cab and decided to share it. Two other girls ran over and asked if they could join us. So the four of us got to the start at around 5:50. I knew Sarah would be nervous waiting but she was a trooper and was just glad that I got there.

We ate a gel and waited at the start. 6:06 and we were off!

Miles 1-5

This section takes you from the ferry building, along Fisherman's Wharf (with the smell of sourdough bread), up Fort Mason, down past Chrissy Field and then up a pretty decent size hill to the Golden Gate Bridge. I tried starting out slow and I felt pretty good.

Miles 6-10

I should look this up to be exact, but I think these miles take you over the Golden Gate Bridge and towards the park. I still felt good. The bridge was super hectic and misty, slippery a bit but ok. Running up and down the bridge (it's hilly) felt pretty good. At some point I realized I was behind by 3 minutes on my pace band. I'm not sure if my garmin just caught up with the satelittes or what, but I don't know how I got behind. I didn't worry about it that much, I think I was still excited from being engaged. I think it calmed me in some weird way.

Miles 11-15

Still feeling good. Running in Golden Gate Park felt like being in the Blair Witch Project - the route kept going in circles and I would have been lost had it not been for the other runners around me. I felt trapped in the park for hours. I still felt pretty good. Was about 7 minutes behind my time goal at that point but felt ok.

Miles 16-20

I felt pretty strong until around mile 19. I just felt faint all of a sudden and decided to walk for about 15 seconds. I drank some gateorade and felt better. That was the wall for me for a short time. I recovered but didn't push it as much as we left the park and headed down haight. Dan was supposed to meet me at mile 20 with coke and m&m's but we somehow missed each other. I just kept going and knew that I'd see him eventually. This was a good downhill portion too.

Miles 21- finish!


The hills never stop. I am getting tired but still ok. At around mile 24-25 I run into my friend Lora who runs with me for awhile. I must have seemed manic and cried, "I am sooo happy to see you! Don't make fun of my form." I had heard that you should use your upper body at the end so I was running weirdly. Right before I saw her I was picked up the pace a bit. We chatted for that mile and she let me take off. I was so thankful to see her.

I finished pretty strongly at 4:51. Congrats to Sarah who finished at 4:19!

I think I could have pushed harder for the last 4 miles or so but some kind of survival instinct kicked in after I felt faint and I didn't push it as hard. I felt better then I ever have at the end. Sarah's training plan worked wonders. I know now for the next marathon I just have to do more speedwork, more miles and maybe some cross training and I can get toward my goal of 4:30.

What's next?

I'm running the Philadelphia Marathon in November. Sarah is running NYC a few weeks before so I thought we could somewhat train together. My cousin is running the Philly marathon with me - it's her first marathon so it should be really fun.

Survived and PR'd Marathon #6!

This is just a note to tell you I survived and had a new PR for the San Francisco Marathon 2009! Very stoked and will report soon.

Got engaged on Friday so that put a great spin on the marathon and the rest of the weekend :)

Off we go!

Eating toast and drinking coffee. Everything is in my race bag and ready to go!

You can find me along the route by going here and typing in 7404.

See you in 26.2 miles!

Inspiration #2

I got really lazy with posting inspirational thoughts. But here's a good one I found:


"The marathon's about being in contention over the last 10K. That's when it's about what you have in your core. You have run all the strength, all the superficial fitness out of yourself, and it really comes down to what's left inside you. To be able to draw deep and pull something out of yourself is one of the most tremendous things about the marathon."

Rob de Castella

I’m just going to go out there and have a really lovely time

I woke up at 4 am - perhaps I am trying to get used to waking up at that hour so on Sunday it will seem like a breeze? No, it's just nerves. I've been going over the run over and over in my head. Last night I started reading a marathon training book that I just bought (somehow thought I needed another one) and was reminded that even shaving off 10 minutes from a PR is a big deal and here I am trying to shave off 30! Crazy? Ambitious? I don't know. So I decided to not worry about it. I've run 5 marathons and they've all been around 5 hours, but so what? It's always a challenge to just finish them and I still always go back for more. Isn't that enough? Then I remembered all of the training I've been doing, how I've been running 5 times a week, tempo runs, hill workouts, track workouts, etc etc and maybe it will just give me the push I need to somehow do better. So now I'm just forgetting about all of it and going to do my best. F the PR - I'll see how I do and just try and push harder at the end with whatever I have. Now I just have to REST and eat and drink right, hope the nerves go away. I'm just going to channel Katie Holmes who last night apparently sang and danced on So you think you can dance. When interviewed about getting the job, she was asked "Are you not terrified? Are you not scared out of your mind?" she said "I’m just going to go out there and have a really lovely time." I think that sounds lovely. Of course, dancing and singing to a Judy Garland song is probably one of the furthest things from running a marathon, but oh wells. They both require a certain amount of grace and guts.

Bang your head

People ask me if I am nervous about Sunday's "run" (MARATHON), I say it's nerves more than feeling nervous. To me, nervous is something that you are aware of, where nerves just kind of sneak in when you are doing other things. For example, I banged my head the last two days very stupidly. Luckily, I am combating the nerves by keeping busy working, watching Big Brother, and one trip to Kabuki with my friend Lora. She is a fellow runner who convinced me to go to Dosa last night (where I banged my head again). It was nice to get out. I feel like the last few weeks of marathon training makes you feel like a recluse.

Just a few more days to go until Sunday - water, carbs, potassium and protein are my best friends. And hopefully sleep...

Mini track workout

Back to the track one last time before the marathon! We did 3 400's at a somewhat slower pace. We went on a different day so I didn't get to see the regulars - my favorites are three women runners with a former Olympian coach. The coach once gave me a tip that I literally keep with me every time I run (don't work so hard, relax your shoulders) and one of the women always tells me to "run her down" meaning to catch up with Sarah. Despite them not being there, it was a pretty good last track workout.

Week of the 2009 San Francisco Marathon!

This time next week I'll be stumbling drunk up and down the stairs, not from booze but from post marathon side affects. Bring it on!

Sarah found a great website that allows you to plug your goal time to create a pace band. You can select the time of start you want (slow, slow/med) and it calculates what you need to do at each mile. Basically it has you starting slow for a few miles, running a little faster than your goal for most of the middle of the run, and then slower at the end giving you a cushion in case you slow down. I think it will help assure us in the beginning that it's ok to start slow.

This week we are running a 35 minute easy run, 3 400's at the track during a 45 minute easy run, and a 30 minute jog on Friday.

Two 1/2 marathons!

Is there any way I can trick myself into thinking I am only doing a 1/2 marathon, then have amnesia and do it again? Both my brain and legs would feel fresh, yet I'm half done. I am going to try and trick myself into thinking that.

Faster than fog

After last week's track workout I felt like I didn't need to bust my butt anymore until the day of the marathon. Sarah, my overachieving, perfectionist, hardcore runner, running buddy is relentless about making the marathon day seem "easy" so she made sure even this week our plan would include a real workout. So after work I picked up Dan and went to Chrissy Field for the last tempo workout of training. The bridge was yet again eaten by the fog monster, but the wind was at our backs during the 20 minute 1/2 marathon pace portion, so all went well. I split the 20 minutes into 5 minute segments so I could track each - I got faster for each segment and didn't feel exhausted at the end. I stopped cursing Sarah as I realized that this faster pace did indeed somehow (how?) feel, dare I say it? Easy!

Also, Sarah sent me this article about pre marathon tips. I plan on utilizing them figuring I need all the help I can get.

ps. We only have four runs this week - 50 easy, 45 tempo, 40 easy/med, and an easyish 8 miler on Saturday.

12 Mile run along the Crystal Springs/Sawyer Camp Trail

It felt a little like vacation today on our 12 mile run on the Crystal Springs/Sawyer Camp Trail, the second to last weekend run before the San Francisco Marathon. We experienced beautiful views of the Crystal Springs Watershed, fog covering green hills, and deer crossing the trail. The paved 6 mile trail ends at the San Andreas Trail for a 12 mile out and back route. Bikers, groups of runners and walkers made the trail a little bit crowded, but it was nice to go somewhere we hadn't run before. Between mile 5 and 6 it's a pretty "nice" uphill (if started on the south side) with a nice downhill after we turned around. All in all, it was a very nice mellow run. Next week is mellow as well with an 8 mile run on Saturday. I am going to try and encourage myself to rest, hydrate, stretch and think positive thoughts over the next two weeks so I can do my best to do my best on July 26th. As cheesy as it sounds, I think all of that could only help. Cheese is good.

Running is a good cure for the post vacation blues

It took me longer to put on my running shoes today. I've been feeling sluggish all week (except for the track workout) and I have diagnosed myself with post vacation stress disorder. The only known cures are drinking, going on another vacation, and I guess going for a run. It helped a little bit. I ran along Chrissy Field for a 50 minute tempo run which included 20 minutes at marathon pace. The 20 minute tempo part went pretty good - I was around 10:02, faster than marathon pace but I felt like I wasn't pushing it too hard.

Tomorrow is a 12 mile run with Sarah. We are running on a trail that is new to us so I am looking forward to it. Hopefully it will feel a little like vacation.

Inspiration #1

With 18 days left to the marathon, thought I'd be a dork and start posting inspirational thoughts for myself.

Here's the first one from Mile Markers from Kristen Armstrong. She kind of rocks. I like it because it's about the times we think we fail ourselves and that we need these failures. Not that I plan on failing, but knowing that you just need to do your best can be very inspiring in itself.

Last track (800) workout!

Sounds a little like "last chance workout," stolen from The Biggest Loser, but they are somehow related. This was the last 800 workout before the SF Marathon. I felt like this was a test to see if the vacation totally got me out of shape (and if I had no hope of a new PR for the marathon) but I am so happy to say that I passed. We ran 5 800's (two laps) and started out almost on fire. It was so hot out that I literally felt on fire. I was also scared to slow down and jinx myself. I was hoping to finish between 4:14-4:25 and finished 4:04 for the first one. The second was 4:10. The next two I did slower (the 4th was two seconds slower than should be) and for the last one I did 4:22. I started out too fast on the first one so I couldn't quite get that one again, but overall I think I did pretty good. I am hoping to finish in 4:30 for the marathon so according to McMillan.com, I "should" be able to at that 800 pace.

Yippeeeeee......

Less than three weeks to go!

As I said in yesterday's post, I am nervous since my last long run. But I'm trying to put that aside and enjoy the last few weeks of training. This was on my mind today as I ran up the Presidio hill and down to the Golden Gate Bridge and back. I've been homesick since last week's vacation (saw lots of family) but who can be homesick while looking at the Golden Gate Bridge. I watched the surfers catching waves, tourists stopping to gaze, and other runners whizzing by. This was the last longish weekday run of the training. Tomorrow I have the last 800 track workout with Sarah. I will once again write my target numbers on my hand and do my best to reach them.

Philly for the last long run before SF Marathon

Oh vacation, you are such a buzz kill to my marathon training plan. Every time! Too much fun, too much drinking, not enough sleep, no set schedule - you think I would learn by now not to have a vacation in the middle of training for a marathon, or marathon training in the middle of a vacation! Ok, I will stop my rant. Just wanted to set the tone of my "boo hoo is me" mood post vacation.

Over the ten days traveling I managed to only skip two runs, which was great. The only problem was planning my last 20 mile pace run. The intention was to run for 12 miles and then 7 miles at marathon pace, followed by 1 mile of cool down. I was thinking I could do this in Watertown NY where my brother lives. He had to work the day after we got there so I thought I could run then. He was able to get the morning off last minute so of course I wanted to spend time with him instead. This caused me to plan the run on Saturday when we'd be in Philadelphia. Friday night we stayed at a hotel and went out for dinner and drinks with family. I went to bed at midnight after carbo loading on beer and pizza. I woke up at 6am and started running at 6:30. It was already hot and I didn't have coffee or toast like I normally do. Instead I ran past a 7-11 and bought some Smart Water (has electrolytes!) and string cheese. I ran along Penn's Landing, down to the Art Museum, along Kelly Drive, to Manayunk and back.


There was a rowing race going on so it started to get crowded on the path along boathouse row and slightly beyond. I did the 12 miles without a problem and managed to get a mile or so in at pace before it got really hot and my legs got really tired. I opted to just finish the run at long run pace. At the time, it seemed like my only option. I also didn't plan it right, and got back to the hotel at 17.5 miles instead of 20. Now I feel like I failed myself in some way. I am hoping this didn't mess up my training and I can still get a really good finishing time on marathon day.

I did an easy run on Sunday and today and have a few quality runs scheduled for this week. I am going to try and do the best I can.

ps. the next few weeks should be filled with sleep, good eating, lots of water drinking, and more rest.

Running in Franconia Notch State Park

Last weekend and the beginning of this week I was in New England, pretty, cozy and sophisticated New England. Me and Dan spent a weekend in Maine with his brothers and their wives and kid before heading to New Hampshire. Sarah recommended staying in Franconia because it was pretty and had spectacular pancakes. Dan and I stayed at the Sugar Hill Inn for two nights. For the first night, his brother and sister in law also stayed at the inn, but the second day Dan and I toured the park on our own. Since I had a hill workout in my schedule, we found a place to run. The recreational trail in Franconia Notch State Park is a multiuse trail and had some very gradual rolling hills. We found a couple of hills to alternate between. It was very warm and I kept looking around for bears, but other than that, it was a great place for a run.


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