Category Archives: Race Previews

2015 – What’s Next?

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2015 has been quite the year for me in both my “real life” and running life. I started off the year with a half marathon PR 1:15:(59!)  in January on un-tapered legs in the middle of my marathon training cycle. I traveled a lot and finally learned to keep up with my intense workouts and training on vacation (even in Disney World, the Most Exhausting “Happiest Place on Earth”) and while we traveled through European countries for 24 days. My training came to a new level where I had 100% confidence in making the 2016 Olympic Marathon Trials. Workouts have gone better than ever, my training plans have been more enjoyable than any in the past, and it’s been fun to have a laser focus on my goals and stay motivated.

Even with some setbacks – an Achilles injury that squashed my plans of racing the Garry Bjorkland half marathon in June when my training was going so well and a marathon DNF in late March – I couldn’t stay down for long. I fixed the problems, jumped back on the horse and got back to work. It’s been a big year of growth for me that left me very excited about my next 10+ years of improving and hitting PR times.

This was also the first summer I hit my mileage and workout goals all summer through the heat and humidity. Not every workout was perfect, but all the workouts got done and left me feeling stronger. While I haven’t been using social media as frequently and have definitely been slacking on this blog, I was doing some major work behind the scenes and I want to thank everyone who has helped make that possible! I’ve felt a shield of invincibility around me, while still eating my humble pie daily.

So this naturally begs the question – what’s next?! Now… I’ve already had a friend jokingly accuse me of burying the lede but there is always a huge backstory and I definitely just gave you a short version of it! But, the thing that is next for me is: having baby #3! Whoa, right?! Whoa, whoa, whoa! The most exciting, strangest news you probably never expected, is true! Early this coming spring, I’ll be snuggling up with my third little sweetie. I’m 13 weeks pregnant now, and my husband, kids and I are very excited to share the news!

So, my racing days are over for the next few seasons, but I’ll be going out in a special way, running The Great Race 10k here in Pittsburgh tomorrow! It is my son’s 2nd birthday so the post-race celebration at my house will include party hats, cake & ice cream! In the past, I haven’t raced while pregnant (not that I think there’s anything wrong with it – I just have no desire to be competitive during pregnancy). The Great Race holds a special place in my heart as it was the first race I knew about in Pittsburgh (aside from the Pittsburgh Marathon and half marathon), it starts less than 3/4 mile from my house, and my water broke while running across the Great Race start line (2 days prior to race day) two years ago (you can’t make this stuff up).

So while I’ve been feeling extra exhausted and nauseous lately (that should be over any day now, right, right?!), I’m excited to run this special race and share the course with so many awesome people. The Pittsburgh running community is the best. We are lucky to live here!

Thanks for following along and I look forward to cheering for all of you while you go after your big running goals this fall, winter, and spring!

San Francisco 2nd Half Marathon Preview

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What a strange feeling. I’m running a half marathon on Sunday and I have NO IDEA what finishing time to expect. I’m 5 weeks post-marathon. While I know some people run distance races that close together, I’m not one of those people. My body needs time to recover. While Grandma’s Marathon wasn’t an all-out effort due to the restroom situation, it was a very hard, almost all out effort.

I’m obviously not PR ready. First of all, I took a week off after Grandma’s Marathon then ran easy for another 1.5 weeks. I’ve done 4 short workouts that didn’t feel awesome, but didn’t feel horrible either. I feel much more recovered after this marathon than marathons of the past, but it’s hard to say how I really feel until I get into a racing situation! After doing a few intervals at 6:05 pace a few days ago, I joked with my husband “don’t they always say ‘if you can do it for 6 minutes in practice, you can do it for 13.1 in race conditions’?” I know, I’m hilarious…

In 2011, I ran a 5k just 3 weeks after a marathon and my legs felt trashed from the half mile mark. It was my first speed attempt after that marathon and I definitely felt I needed more recovery (ran 17:56 when I had been consistently running low 17s). Anyway, all that being said, I think my time will be somewhere between 1:18-1:25. I think on a good day (and I have every reason to believe it will be a good day!) I will run in the lower range. I’m excited and so ready to suit up in my racing gear again! But now the dilemma is… what will I wear on race day?

"the original". This was my first Oiselle singlet from when I joined the team in late 2010.

“the original”. This was my first Oiselle singlet from when I joined the team in late 2010.

 

The first elite singlet and the one I originally packed for this race when we left Pittsburgh for the summer.

The first elite singlet and the one I originally packed for this race when we left Pittsburgh for the summer. Oh, hey Frank Shorter!

Most recent pro kit - won't actually wear this because it's in Pittsburgh, but had to include.

Most recent pro kit – won’t actually wear this because it’s in Pittsburgh, but had to include.

The latest singlet!

The latest singlet!

Pull a Kate Grace and race in the Rizzo suit? Just kidding! My milk-filled chest wouldn't stand a chance RUNNING in that! :)

Pull a “Kate Grace” and race in the Rizzo suit? Reference here. Just kidding! My milk-filled chest wouldn’t stand a chance RUNNING in that! :)

That decision will be made tomorrow, I suppose!

Finally, here’s a link to my San Francisco Half Marathon preview post on Oiselle’s blog. Thanks for the words of encouragement, everyone!

Call Me Crazy, It’s Time to Race!

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Well, it’s time to get off my “recovery high horse” and face the facts. I really want to race tomorrow. So forget about the last post where I said I’m just going to run easy every day for the next month. Tomorrow, I’m going to suit up in my Oiselle gear, lace up my flats, add some bells and antlers, and race the Reindeer Run 5k right here in Rochester!

I had convinced myself that I definitely wouldn’t race, and Currie and I would fully enjoy cheering for Jeff, up until yesterday afternoon. That’s when my dear friend texted me to say her husband was planning on running and she would be happy to watch her toddler, her newborn, and my little Currie at the race site so Jeff and I could both run. Wow. Brave woman! After asking her about 10 times whether she was SURE she would be ok, and after a night of thinking about it, I decided I NEED TO RUN THIS RACE.

So, I’m racing a 5k tomorrow! The first annual Reindeer Run 5k in Rochester! There isn’t a cash prize, but the top three male and female runners get some pretty rad trophies.  Plus, the first place male and female who wear antlers the whole race get a pair of Saucony Kinvaras. Jeff will also be racing, and even Currie will be joining in the racing fun. There is a half mile kids race and she begged to run it. She even got a cool race bib!

reindeer run 5k rochester ny race bib

Updates on all 3 of us after the race! Now it’s time to hydrate, buy some antlers, and plan our racing accessories!

 

CIM Marathon Week!

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It’s marathon week! Ah! It’s strange because it doesn’t seem like marathon week at all. In the past 2 years when it’s been 2 weeks out from the marathon, I’ve been so ready for taper. I’ve enjoyed the buildup, the workouts, the whole process, but when taper came, I was SO READY. This time, I’m feeling like I don’t really deserve down weeks. But, it’s marathon week and it’s definitely time to relax.

Here is my long run recap from the past 3 weeks. After my peak long run of 21 miles, I followed up the next Sunday with 12 miles (as part of a warmup, 6k XC race, and cooldown), then this past Sunday I did 10.5. I was going to do 12 again, but being with family for Thanksgiving, I cut it down a little. I figured it didn’t really matter what I did, so might as well do what felt convenient.

This week I’ve taken it super easy. 5 miles every day. 5 miles on the treadmill tonight, with 3x half mile pickups. I didn’t know the pace because I’m not versed in mph-to-min/mile-conversions, but it felt super comfortable. Which it should, since it was only 1.5 miles of faster running. So my workout this week is completed.

treadmill dreadmill

The treadmill is usually the dreadmill for me. It was actually ok today.

As a side note, I usually despise the treadmill. Today it was rather enjoyable. I give credit to 4 things. 1) I told myself it was going to be the WORST. RUN. EVER. The low expectations set the treadmill up for success! 2) Katie always writes about making treadmill workouts more enjoyable by switching up the pace. I did that and it made the time fly. Thanks Katie! 3) Molly has been doing lots of treadmill runs and is also on the 7 week marathon training plan. I thought of her and the 4am runs she’s done this training cycle. 4) Michele has been doing lots of treadmill running, especially with a toddler and newborn baby at home. She fits in the runs when she can and has been getting after some solid runs and a speedy time trial 5k. Definitely motivating!

So back to this week’s training. Tomorrow will be 4-5 miles, Friday will be a travel day and I may or may not do a few miles when I arrive in Sacramento. Saturday will be 2-3 miles easy. And on Sunday, this 7 week experiment will come to a close.

Seattle marathon 2004

Jeff and me before our first marathon, Seattle 2004. I can’t figure out how to make the picture bigger!

I’m so excited! I’m also 1% terrified. 99% of me thinks this is probably the coolest thing I can do to end 2012. I keep thinking of how I was injured in 2004 when I ran my first marathon (hit by a car while running). I was training heavy in the weight room, but only running 3 days a week. I finished with a BQ, 3:25. What will I do this time? I really can’t wait to find out!

Positive thoughts for me this weekend, please! Thanks buddies!

 

Racing Update – Next Goal

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Quite a few people have been asking “What’s next Jen? What are you training for?” I finally have an answer for you. I’m running California International Marathon!

California International Marathon

Picture straight from the CIM website… oooooo… ahhhhh….

As my “year of no marathons” was coming to a close, I started to feel a little sad about 2012 being an empty marathon year. The Columbus Marathon on October 21st would mark my one-year-away date. Just a week before that half, I was having a rough time personally and decided to medicate with more running. I started plotting a potential December marathon. It worked perfectly with my “train through Columbus half” plan. I applied for the elite field at CIM and told myself if I was accepted, I would run. The email response came after my long run on October 14th. I tweeted about it.

Just got an interesting email. #exciting #purposelyvaguetweets

Yes, I was accepted into the elite field. Very cool. Also, I was feeling extremely out-of-MARATHON-shape.

That was a rough 17 miles, but it was 17 miles!

I almost died (drama queen) doing 17 miles. It could be because I had been running 30-40 miles a week with an 8-10 mile long run most weekends up until that week. Then I applied for the marathon and got fired up and decided to run 60 miles with a 17 miler to finish up the week. #ouch

Maybe you wondered why I ran Columbus Half as a training run if I had no bigger race coming up. Or maybe you wondered why I was feeling insane enough to do a workout after my 5k race this weekend.

2nd place in the 5k. off for remainder of workout now.

Well, now you know.

I’m not out of shape. I have a good base. I was doing 12-13 mile long runs all summer along with lots of stroller running. I even did a 17 mile long run for fun one day in Seattle this summer. As you can see from my recent race recaps, I’m not in PR shape, but I’m in pretty good shape from 5k-half marathon. You saw in my Goals and Believing post that I’ve been working on hip/glute/hamstring strength in the month of October so I’m feeling strong. (More on how the month of strength went in a post later this week.)

believe i am journal

It’s all going in my Believe I Am training journal

The question is… how ready can I be for this marathon on December 2nd? I had 7 weeks until marathon day when I started training. That leaves about 5 weeks until taper… maybe 6 if I make it a short taper. In an attempt to remain injury free, my plan is to run 60-69 miles per week for the next 3 weeks with one workout and one long run. The other days will be easy so I can recover.

marathon pace chart

Hello old friend!

I will be ready for this marathon. Will I be PR ready? Not likely. Will I be ready to have fun AND run fast? Yes! I will be racing with a friend whose goal is slightly faster than mine. I will dig deep. I will be tough. I will see what I’m made of.

Why CIM?

  • My brother Jason Ordway will be running and it’s good family bonding time.
post race massage, columbus marathon

We bonded over post-race massage and a family cool down the last time we raced together!

  • Lots of my Oiselle Team birdies will be racing. I love a good meetup.
  • Other friends will be running.
  • Not many big marathons in December and I like the big race feel for 26.2 distance.
  • A history of great running weather usually ranging from 40-60 degrees F.
  • Strong field of runners.

So here I go! This is going to be exciting!

What’s your shortest marathon buildup? How did you do?

 

5k Tomorrow!

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Just a quick post to say I’m racing a 5k tomorrow. There is money for overall male and female 3 deep, plus nalgene bottles to all finishers.

Today it’s about 70 degrees and sunny. I was sweating just playing with Currie on the playground. Tomorrow it’s supposed to be a high of 49 and rain. Could be worse…

Today I ran 4 miles as my pre-race run. It was almost 60 degrees at the time, but there was a cool breeze so I wore a short sleeve Oiselle tee, roga shorts, and my arm warmers slouchy style. I was the perfect temperature!

oiselle arm warmers

After the race, my plan is to do another 3 miles of speedwork. Maybe it will be a tempo, maybe it will be a fartlek. Whatever my body and brain tell me they want to do, I’ll do! Should be a good, hard, soggy day of running!

Good luck to everyone racing this weekend! I’m sending fast, long distance vibes to all my marathon friends this weekend! 

Racing a 5k Tomorrow

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Just a quick post to say I’m racing a 5k tomorrow. I was a little torn on whether to run it (details about that in my race recap post!) but I have a comp entry so figured I might as well get a good workout if nothing else! It’s called Casa Larga Race for Grapes 5k “Peoplechase” and it’s at a local winery. I know the prizes up for grabs include custom wine glasses and I’m guessing bottles of wine!

Here’s a quick tidbit the race director sent me about the race:

race details

Should be fun! Recap and more details tomorrow!