Pictures | Video | Links | Statistics | Training | Pre-race | Race Day | After
Pictures
Thanks to dear friend for showing up at the finish, being all supportive and stuff, and getting photos and videos of my first half-marathon!!!!
Video
Click here: Just before the finish line (7.8 MB). At the finish line (7.1 MB).
Links
My official finish record. This is hilarious... it shows a map of how I was just starting when the first woman was finishing, how basically everyone was in front of me... good stuff.
The wallhanging I think I'll get to commemorate my first half-marathon.
Statistics
Go here for a full size screen shot of the
Garmin GPS/HRM statistics.
Average pace: 16:57. Average heart rate: 166 bpm. Weight: 242 lbs. Body Fat: 47%
My record of time (excludes pottie break): 3:41:33. Official time: _______.
Training
January 2006 I could not walk further than 0.25 miles at one time. That's right, less than a mile. Training started at walking two miles per week at a pace of about 20:00 on a treadmill. I gradually increased the distance and was also swimming and doing weight training. 02 April 2006 I injured my left side sciatic nerve on the back of my thigh and was off my feet for approximately three months, though I continued with swimming and weight training.
I got back into walking with backwards walking on a treadmill until I was able to begin regular walking again. Once my distance got to be about four miles each workout, the treadmill became unbearable and I moved almost exclusively outdoors and stopped my cross-training activities. In October 2006, as my calf muscles strengthened, I had a dramatic shift in my stride and developed large blisters on the front outer quadrants of my feet which kept me off my feet most of the month. However, I also had a dramatic shift in my fastest possible pace, from about 19:00 to at one point completing two miles at a pace of 12:00, though in general my faster gear was about 16:30 and I completed most of my long walks at 20:00.
My highest mileage week was Thanksgiving week, during which I completed four 4.5 mile walks and two 10.0 mile walks for a total mileage of 38.0. December weeks were 28.0 miles, 15.75 miles, 16.9 miles, 22 miles and 13.3 miles. January weeks were 23.25 miles, 5.3 miles, 13.0 miles and zero miles the week prior to the race. This was not my ultimate plan, but was generated by my work schedule and an ultimate laziness and boredom with my training schedule that ended in a vow to get back to more cross-training activities.
Pre-Race ("Jitters")
Oh, the drama! In December I felt so prepared. After not getting much exercise in in January and packing on four pounts, I wasn't feeling so prepared. I got my ears pierced in December and I took out the piercing thinkies two days before the race. And then realized that I had only been buying dangly earrings. Roaming the mall the day before the race looking for the perfect non-dangly earrings. Going to the enormous registration thingy and not seeing anyone that looked like anything like me. Forgetting my choc blocs and calling the running store in Miami the day before the race to go get those and no one looking like it would cross their minds that the likes of me might be going to the race. I'm not going to wake up on time, I don't have the right food, I didn't prepare enough, I'm going to miss the train... aaaahhhhh!!!!
Race Day
Left my dear friend's house at 3:30AM to catch the special train at the last station at 4:30AM, which got me to the start at 5:30AM. At this point I had been awake forever, I had been on my feet forever, and I was hungry. And it was raining. Sat down (no one else was, but I really didn't have an extra hour available on my feet) and ate a granola bar.
At 5:50AM, about 20 minutes before the start, raining turned into pouring. I had my picture cell phone, my video iPod and no baggies. It was looking like this might be a six hundred dollar half-marathon that I wouldn't be able to complete after the wet-sock blisters started coming up. Chatted with a woman who was starting her third half-marathon and has been a "lurker" on my Weight Watchers group.
6:00AM, 10 minutes before the start, the rain stopped. I was soaking wet and my electronics survived. This turned out to all be for the best, as I was desperate for that iPod later and my soaking clothing helped me stay cool, a big problem for me with 47% body fat.
The last time I walked a half marathon I was about 12 years old and it was downhill. I had no idea what I could do, or what could end it for me. I knew that walking 10 miles at a 20:00 pace felt like about all I could do, and my #1 concern was that if I started out too fast I would end up finishing after noon. I wasn't really worried about not being able to finish. I had told dear friend to expect me to finish some time between 10:00AM and 11:15AM, emphasis more toward the later half of that. The finish line was open until 2:00PM; that was why I had selected this event for my first half-marathon.
As I crossed the starting line and turned up the onramp onto the causeway, I was a little daunted by the hill (worried again about doing too much too soon) but I didn't feel like I was being pulled along by the crowd too much. In fact, it felt like the bunch was still moving pretty slow. Check the GPS: a 15:00 minute pace. Way too fast. But my heart rate was still in a very safe range for me, around 140. Decided to make a rule that I shouldn't walk faster than 17:00 pace. Kept catching myself speeding up to 15:00. Kept catching myself walking at a turn-over that matched other people. I had never walked in a crowd before and didn't know that would happen. Had to stare at the palm trees or little open bits of road so that I couldn't see other people's feet.
I've had some trouble with a tight muscle on the inside of my right leg, left over from the sciatic injury, and had to stretch it every two or three miles throughout the race. No real problems though.
Miles one and two went by, I was still walking "too fast", but I was feeling good. Another hill at the end of the causeway and I felt like powering up it and I was still feeing so well I decided to just let it go. Somewhere along mile three or four took a potty break and ate a serving of chok blocks. Still going awfully fast, but feeling well enough that it is apparent I might be able to do the whole race this way. Decided to have another serving of chok blocks at mile six and decide at mile seven whether to call dear friend and tell him he was going to need to get to the finish line a little earlier. This was something else I didn't realize I would do: start planning little rewards (eat, call a friend) for the miles ahead. I hadn't planned this beforehand.
From mile six going into mile seven my heart rate is staying around 168 bpm to 172 bpm, on a hill or when I pick up the pace going up toward 180 bpm. In training, I can only stay in that range for three or four miles and then it is unsustainable, but I'm still feeling really well. Eat another serving of chok blocs. Decide I should make an effort to keep the heart rate under 172 even if that means I have to slow down. Call dear friend and tell him I expect to finish at about 9:40AM if I am able to continue with the pace. He says I sounded "energetic."
Miles seven and eight continue very well and I have a serving of caffinated choc blocs. Mile nine starts well. I had decided the somewhere near the end I was allowed to listen to my iPod, but that for the beginning I needed to concentrate on my body. I had learned in training that with the iPod on weird things happen with my turn over, and also I am cut off from the sound information from my breathing and I don't control my breathing very well. By mile 9.5 I'm promising myself that I can turn on my iPod at mile 10. By mile 9.75 I'm craving that iPod.
Mile 10, on goes the iPod and I'm telling myself that I've walked three miles lots of times, I know exactly what three miles is like and I can do three miles no matter what. I'm noticing that my checks on the distance on the GPS are becoming every tenth of a mile. "Are we there yet???" Turn up the volume on the ipod.
Mile 11 and I'm just stomping it out, one foot in front of the other, telling myself that two miles is nothing. My right calf is in danger of cramping and I don't really want to have a screaming fall-down cramp in front of people, especially since I've never been in this situation and I don't know if I'll be able to finish after a cramp or if a cramp means I have to stop. I'm starting to get pissed that there aren't more people around to cheer, because I need 'em. On the other hand I don't want anyone to talk to me, or walk near me, or bother me. I walk in front of a fire engine going off to some sort of emergency. I make eye contact with the traffic control police to make sure the traffic is stopped, but I'm just as much daring anyone to even try to get in my way. I'm wondering if I'm going to manage to be polite if dear friend isn't on perfect best behavior at the finish line. I'm thinking I might not be able to be polite even if he is.
Mile 12.5 and some earlier finishers are coming back through the course to return to their hotels. A marching band that is quitting for the day is walking across the course as well. Get the hell away from me! A beautiful woman carrying a trophie (so apparently one of the top five finishers from either the marathon or the half-marathon) says some encouraging words and I decide I do love her.
Back around the final turn and up through the finish chute. Dear friend has his camera and I try to look and smile and wave for his picture. Actually he's taking video and shouting encouraging stuff that I can't hear because of iPod. Stomp, stomp, stomp across the finish line. Start to reach across to turn off iPod but then remember I should wait for the finish photo. My hands will probably be in some strange midair configuration for the photo.
And then a line-up of tasks way, way too complicated for my tired brain. Pick up a bottle of water. Accept the finisher's medal. My hands get in the way and the man says, "Just let me put it on your neck, you earned it." Turn in my timing chip. Fortunately there are people to take them off the shoe because there is no way I could do it. Get a bagel. Find dear friend (this requires a cell phone). Eat bagel like a starving dog. Dear friend takes fabulous pictures and walks me back to the train. There was some sort of party thing; I haven't asked dear friend what he thought that I just wanted to leave and didn't even ask his opinion.
I'm both very proud of myself and somewhat disconnected. I think back to the morning and those 13.1 miles and it doesn't seem like it all happened just now in this same day. I was almost certain I would finish, but I didn't know that I'd be able to do that time and I didn't know that I'd be able to push through those final three miles. On the one hand it doesn't seem like that big of an accomplishment, but then I look around at the restaurant that night and at Starbucks the next morning and think, "Most of these people, these skinny people that I always think can accomplish more than me physically, almost all of these people weren't out there doing that. I really did accomplish something."
After (or "the Damage")
It wasn't even a matter of cooling down for my muscles to tighten, they were tight at the finish line. I was shuffling from recovery moment zero. I had a little bit of that carpet burn feeling in my feet (a nerve issue, I forget the name of it, that mainly afflicts women) which I hadn't seen since I first started walking ten miles. But just a little and it was gone within about three hours. Everything hurt: feet, leg muscles, knees, hips, lower back, upper back... everything. But nothing felt very badly damaged, in particular my hips and knees felt better than they would have after a short walk at the beginning of 2006. I'm just really stiff and big muscles are really lazy and I had to pick my legs up over the tub rail this morning, but no focused areas of pain.
After dinner I walk outside into the cold and that thigh muscle that was an issue throughout the day cramped right up. The calf muscles haven't cramped though, thank goodness. One large blister on one foot and a few smaller ones. But only one that's going to be a problem over the next couple of week. My heart rate monitor and bra took off a quarter-inch strip of skin all the way across the front of my chest. It looks and feels like a burn. I can't stand to let the shower water run onto it. That's the worst of it, so I've learned my lesson, will buy some body glide, and off I go to my next project. Not sure what it will be yet.
More Damage
The half-marathon took a lot more out of my body than I thought it would. Despite everything I had read, it just didn't seem like that huge of a stress to the body. But really I was exhausted for about ten days after. When I do this again, I will try to take a day or two off from work after the event to just sleep and rest.
More than 40% of marathon runners get an upper respiratory infection, such as a cold, after their marathon. I don't know if any studies have been done on the half-marathon. I got sick, and then I got bronchitis, which dragged out more than two weeks.
Four weeks after the event, finally healthy more-or-less, I tried to start walking again and I just don't feel right yet. I had whole-body cramping which finally drove me to go get a massage, which did help. I don't know if this has anything at all to do with the event or is just because the bronchitis knocked me off my walking schedule, but I think in the future I would have massages scheduled for the weeks after an event.
And I've learned that I definitely cannot do this every month or every other month as I had been thinking. A half-marathon truly does make a big hit on the body.