Before I get to the changes as in the title, I wanted to briefly discuss today’s run. Because of the extra work days I have this month, my total number of days I can run has been shortened by a bit. My goal today was to hit double digits (at least 10 miles) for the first time in a looooong time. The last time I came close is when I did 9 with KP before she left. I did 5 miles yesterday and wasn’t sure how today’s run would go.
The easiest way to get to double digits without doing multiple laps through my neighborhood was to hop onto the American River Trail and bang out the miles. I figured I’d run along the trail to where my old apartment is located (~4-4.5 miles from my current home). Since I knew I was doing a long run I brought my phone with me and snapped some shots. I brought with me a Honey Stinger Honey Waffle that I had picked up at Sports Authority before they closed. I’ve always used various gels (GUs, etc) on my long runs and thought I’d see how my body did with something you actually chew/eat. I made my way east along the river until I hit the Watt Ave bridge, crossed to the south side and then ran around my apartment. About halfway through the run I stopped to try the Waffle. It had already broken into smaller pieces but was still not too bad. I specifically stopped at Watt Ave bridge because there are 2 actual toilets and a water fountain in this location (this is also where there’s a boat ramp, today there were some geese present)
I elected not to carry water on this run and that was a big mistake. I had a few sips of water at Watt Ave and then again at the small park/boat ramp at Howe Ave as well. But by the time I reached mile 8, I was parched and just tired. I could also see that my heart rate was running higher than normal for my speed (It was hovering around 160 and I was not going fast. Normally 160 would be me pushing it and running fast). I figured I’d post a picture of what the paved bike trail looks like.
I finished at 10.6 miles today at a very slow pace (finished in just over 2 hours). Normally at leisurely pace I should still be able to get to 10 miles by 1:45 or so. My body was not ready to do this distance and I even walked about 3-5 times, which is very abnormal for me. I have been contemplating implementing a run-walk method for my next marathon training plan.
Speaking of marathons, I have made some changes to my upcoming full marathon for 2017. Originally I had signed up for the Surf City Marathon (in Huntington Beach on February 5, 2017). I had applied to be an ambassador but didn’t get it – c’est la vie. Now early this year when I started thinking about a marathon for 2017, I had a few in mind. I thought about the Carlsbad Marathon (you get a run jacket as part of the swag) as well as Surf City since it is near my hometown. But the one I really wanted to tackle was Big Sur. Because of the popularity of this race, they went to a lottery system to gain entry. Even though I was signed up for a full marathon already for 2017, I decided to toss my name into the lottery system for 2017 since it didn’t cost anything. At first I thought maybe if I was accepted I would tackle 2 full marathons a few months apart (Big Sur is April 30, 2017).
Last week I received an email that I had been chosen in the lottery for First Timers & Bucket Listers. This would be my first Big Sur Marathon and also on my bucket list of races. I thought about it for like 2 seconds and registered for the April 30th race. With my history of injuries (and prolonged recoveries from full marathons), I decided that I should transfer my registration for Surf City from the full marathon distance to the half marathon distance. This was easily done through the registration web site (https://www.imathlete.com/).
I am excited about Big Sur. A little apprehensive given the amount of elevation change. Even though Sacramento is very flat, on today’s run I realized there are some rolling hills and various areas that have a bit of steeper hills that I can train on for next year’s marathon. There are also places I can drive to (within an hour) that would allow me to do both trail running and hill training. My other apprehension is the time limit (strict 6 hours) but I should hopefully be okay as long as I train properly and don’t get injured (*knocks on wood*).
-StewsCat
StewsCat 