#26.2in201

1)      Croydon Half Marathon 

So guess who ran a half marathon last weekend? Me!

I just had this nagging feeling that I needed a race to take inventory of where I am in my training. Someone in my running club mentioned this race and it fit the criteria perfectly: close to Central London and easy to get to, hilly (Edinburgh’s marathon course is notoriously hilly for the first 6 miles) and on the smaller side in terms of participation (less than 1,000 people).

I rocked up Sunday morning at 8:15 quite sleep-deprived (thanks to my punky neighbours throwing a house party until 3:00 am) to find a very well organized and friendly race start. The queue to collect my race number and chip took less than 10 mins, so I had plenty of time to stretch, change outfits and use the porta-potty. 

The course was made of three loops, one short loop to begin and then two identical longer loops, mostly through suburban neighbourhoods and along some busy roads. The traffic was not closed off on the route, meaning you had to keep to the pavements.

Like any race, the start was a mad rush of runners going out way too quick. I had put myself at the back of the 1:49-1:59 group and felt like I was crawling along for the first three miles, as runners flew past.

Mile 1: 8:50, Mile 2: 8:42, Mile 3:8:55

We weren’t allowed headphones  and all around me, I could hear the heavy panting of people who were waaayyy over-exerting themselves. I decided that with the hills, I would avoid looking at my watch too much and focus on effort. The looping course helped and I tried to remember the hill profile going round the first time (spoiler alert, I wasn't totally successful at this) in order to keep enough juice in the tank. 

Miles 4: 9:34, Mile 5: 8:53, Mile 6: 8:53

I knew I was a little head of pace but I was feeling strong and my breathing was collected. 

I wasn't committed to a fueling strategy before heading off, packing a LARA bar and Shot Blocks for the race. I felt confident with just the shot blocks and got to mile 8 before taking three of them. However, this caused my mouth to basically glue shut, until some water from the next water station restored my ability to mouth breathe. 

Something about the water-Shot-block combo made my stomach start to feel really heavy. The hills were pretty bad at this point and I pulled back a bit on my pace to keep effort levels steady.

Mile 7: 9:34, Mile 8: 8:55, Mile 9: 9:23

Mile 10 things started to go a bit more wrong with my stomach. It started to move from heavy-feeling to cramping. Also, the hills got bad. I was starting to suffer and check my watch every 0.20 miles. 

Mile 10: 10:17, Mile 11: 8:54

The sign for mile twelve was sweet relief because the stomach cramping was getting bad. And then I hit another hill.

Mile 12: 9:37

Now this is where the wheels fell off. My stomach was really hurting and I gave into walking AGAIN, hoping to calm my breathing as I came to the crest of the hill. I didn't realize my watch was really off the course markings until I got to the top and saw a '400 meters to go' sign. What now?? I unexpectedly crossed the line thirty seconds or so  later.

Mile 13:9:31

Official Finish time: 2:00:05, Average pace: 9:14

Elevation Gain: 708 feet versus Elevation loss: 692 feet - TOLD YOU IT WAS HILLY

That few thousandths hurts. BAH. While this is still a PR (previous record of 2:03:50 in November), it is hard to have come thiiisss close to a sub-2:00 hour half

There are lots of positive though right? Clearly all this marathon training has helped me to become a much better runner.Pacing is about effort, not about numbers on a Garmin, right??

Secondly, I now have a much better handle on how little water or fuel my body needs for those distances. I have clearly been over-hydrating in the past, hence the lack of porta potty stops on this run.  

Finally, I was able to trial my race outfit. I have a new Lululemon running skirt for the marathon but it has been too cold to trial. No chaffing, excellent pocket ratio with added novelty factor in this country. Fellow runners (mostly women), course marshals, spectators and some random people driving by, all shouted compliments as I went by. It really is more fun to pass people when you are wearing a skirt, sorry that I am not more sorry.

---- 

I will run a sub-2:00 and honestly, I do believe if this had been a flatter finish, I would have done it yesterday. If I could find another small half before taper begins in May, I will very likely do it.

Marathon training update:

My body is still holding together, despite the 250+ miles that I have put it through since January 1st. 

There are a few niggles here and there but the IBT friction syndrome is under control, the piriformis is holding back and my quads seem to have loosened up a bit. Since leaving the gym this month, I have been trialing a wonderful yoga studio in Chelsea called Triyoga. Gold stars for this kid: four yoga classes in the last two weeks. 

Edinburgh Marathon is seven weeks away, meaning four solid weeks to build up peak mileage and trying to not eat all the food. Thank God

Mini Egg season is finally over.

Scenes from my weekend:

Lining up to start. Wait, where are the corrals?? HOW DO I KNOW WHERE TO GO. Oh no, its okay because there are signs. Phew. 

Now that's how you refuel - delicious runny poached eggs in some homemade heuvos rancheros. Perfect racing weather, good race, delicious lunch and amazing couch nap?? Recipe for the perfect day.