Tag: PR

• Poulsbo Half Marathon

  Posted at 8:02 AM by Brittany, on October 14, 2013

  BOOM shaka laka-I am now a third time half marathoner. I have to admit I was slightly worried going into this race for multiple different reasons. One reason being that my training wasn’t quite on par and I actually ended up skipping my last long run due to the fact that I was a week off when I started…oops. Mentally this sort of tripped me up.

  

  Ever seen a fish with legs?? This is my shirt.

  Secondly, and as much as I hate to admit to this, I was worried to be alone during this race. Emotionally this was a huge accomplishment for me and almost as if I was fully closing a door to my previous chapter in life (almost.) Running this race alone meant that if I hit the wall, I had to pull myself through. Thankfully my mind was right this entire run.

  The course was amazing, with winding back roads and views of the foggy mountains and colorful leaved trees around every corner. Views of the water and farm land for 80% of the course. I couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful location. October is officially my favorite time of year to race. Perfect fall running month.

  

  This is what happens when you ask a stranger that doesn’t know how to use an iPhone to take your picture. Blurry photo. Owell it’s all I’ve got!

  I prepared the day before by consuming carbs slowly throughout the entire day, and capped off my night with a giant bowl of veggies and pasta. I also made sure to guzzle water and ended off with 100oz by the end of the night. I’m OK with that!

  Miles 1-8 were great. I felt strong, and I knew at this point the run was going to go well. Once I hit mile 8 I needed to stop for the bathroom..NEEDED. This added 3 minutes to my chip time, but I made sure to stop my Garmin while I…was…going to the bathroom. HA.

  The hills started to get intense around mile 8. Giant hills, which would then balance out into mild, gradual hills, which would turn back into giant hills. I had to walk a few of the intense hills and I have no regrets about that. I was already sitting good for a PR.

  Mile 10.5 was the game changer. I suddenly felt something sharp on both of my calves in almost the same spot on each side. I thought maybe I brushed against a thorn, but then realized that would only make sense on one side. When I looked down I got my answer. Still clinging for dear life onto my pant leg, butt inside my skin, was a hornet. Ugh. One of them fell off or escaped who knows, but I had to flick the other one off while running.

  At first things felt fine, but when I got to mile 12 my calves were KILLING. All I could feel were the throbs from the stings. Of course the last 3miles were some of the hilliest and I was dyyyinnngg. Finally at mile 12.5 it was smooth sailing and the roads balanced out.

  

  I stopped my Garmin when it reached 13.1, with a time of 2:09:28. A twelve minute PR from my last half marathon. I kept running about .1 of a mile more to cross the finish line and accept my medal. Second proudest running moment of my life. First was Disney. Along with my bee stings, I got my first subungual hematoma on my right foot. Real runner alert.

  To be honest the last two weeks leading up to this race I was ready to take a break from running. I even said to myself a couple times during the race, “just finish this up and then you can take a break from running.” After getting a PR and once again experiencing that high of crossing the finish line..I already want to find another half marathon. This race empowered me in ways I thought impossible, and re-sparked my fire for running.

  Thank you to all my blog friends and family for the texts, and messages wishing me luck.

  Q: Do you stop your Garmin when you take a bathroom break? Maybe it’s cheating, but I always stop my watch. My time is for when I RUN, not for when I go to the bathroom!! 
  

  | 84 Comments Tagged Accomplishment, Disneyland, Half Marathon, PR, Running

• Birch Bay Half Marathon

  Posted at 9:09 AM by Brittany, on February 19, 2013

  After what felt like the longest week of the year, I was able to successfully complete my second half marathon!

  The race would have been tough without this. 

  I contacted Pro-Tec Athletics about reviewing a knee brace, and Jennie with the sales/marketing department replied to me that same day. She was so helpful in suggesting a brace, and she ended up sending me TWO just to be sure I found one I liked. I ended up LOVING this patellar strap (the one she suggested), and I am SO impressed with this companies customer service. I’ll admit I was skeptical of a strap helping my knee, but boy was I wrong! This little strap worked WONDERS!

  Not only were these braces sent to me for free, they were sent priority mail and I received them the very next day. This was such a life saver. I wore this strap anytime I was on my feet for a long period of time. I wore it on walks, and I wore it for the race. My knee performed amazingly. I would recommend this patellar strap to ANYONE with runners knee, or anything similar. Oh and if it couldn’t get any better, Scott Jurek wears these braces..since we’re best friends and all. Thank you so much Jennie and Pro-Tec, you helped me run this race! Ok enough mush..onto the race!

  The location of this run was gorgeous. Along the bay for a good chunk of the race meant views like this.

  

  The race was flat for the most part, but did have some rolling hills. One of the hills was so beastly and lasted for over a mile (I am a wuss when it comes to big hills.) My pace held steady around 10:40 until I hit this hill and I dropped to an 11:40ish pace. That hill killed my hips. This was around mile 7 and I really started to feel the effects of being on my butt all week. While my knee felt great (yay) my hips were screaming.

  By mile 10 my thighs were burning so bad I thought they were going to cramp. This was a new sensation for me, and two days later they are STILL sore!! Miles 11-13 were on autopilot. At this point I wanted to be done. My legs were burning, my back was hurting, and my energy was GONE. I don’t think the cinnamon toast crunch I had for breakfast lasted longer than the first 3 miles. Free continental breakfasts are great! Thankfully I had my running rock with me and having him next to me was enough to keep going.

  With a bum knee, a week off from cardio (seriously this week off made me sluggish!), a lack of fuel, and massive hills, I finished without walking and I now have a shiny new PR.

  

  I chopped 9 minutes off from my last half! The Disney congestion during the first three miles made for some very slooowww miles. This meant I had plenty of room for improvement, and improve I did. Thank you to EVERYONE that sent me good knee vibes, it paid off!! I will be taking some time off of running to ensure my knee gets back to 100%. Hellooooo spin class! YAHOO time to look for the next half marathon!

  Q: Have you ever run/walk/biked in a race or something similar while injured? I saw two other people with patellar straps in this race, I felt like I was part of a special club! 

  

  | 75 Comments Tagged Half Marathon, Knee, PR, Running

• Running For Doughnuts Makes You Run Faster

  Posted at 5:48 PM by Brittany, on April 29, 2012

  There is something “off” about people that wake up at 5am to go running. Fortunately for me, I was never really “on” in the first place. This morning that’s exactly what I did, I awoke at 5am and headed to Seattle to get my run on. My running partner had to attend to more important things, so this was my first solo race. I was a bit apprehensive about going alone, but it turned out to be a smooth day. 

  Smooth flow number one-Timing. I arrived an hour and a half before race time. This ensured zero lines when picking up my race packet. 

  

  Smooth flow number two-Parking. Arriving early means prime pickins for parking. I was literally parked 30 seconds from the starting line. 

  Smooth flow number three-First to use the biffy. Ohh this was a real treat. A brand new outhouse, ready for me to destroy. An hour and a half driving in the car was more than enough time to brew my morning…what rhymes with brew..

  Smooth flow number four-Starbs across the street. I was able to walk to Starbucks, get a coffee, feel the crack caffeine sink in, and use the biffy a few more times before the race.

  The smooth morning continued as I laced up my shoes with my sweat pink laces, and I headed off for a walk around the lake. 

  

  I awkwardly asked for my photo taken, it was almost like asking Santa for an unreasonable gift..it’s just..awkward. 

  

  If you look closely you can see an adorable vein protruding from my neck. This was obviously due to the caffeine stuffing its way through my blood stream. Bring on the shakes! You’ll also notice a small chunk missing from the bottom left corner of my race number. 

  

  If you thought I waited until after I ran to get my free doughnut you are out of your mind. I was not going to wait in a line and get the bottom of the barrel doughnut, I wanted first picks. 

  

  Post race I only took one bite out of that horse hoof. I had an upset stomach so I decided I wasn’t going to eat the whole thing. DO NOT fret, I gave it to someone else. NEVER waste! I still got my celebratory bite, and that was all I needed.

  Speaking of upset stomach, yesterday I had similar tummy issues and I only ate a bagel and a protein bar. I was sure my run today would be affected due to this. I could only muster a few bites of a sandwich this morning, and a few sips of water. During the run I felt sluggish. My chest hurt, and I wanted it to be over. Come to find out, I managed a PR and ran the fastest 5K to date. I ran 3.12 miles in 29:58, a 9:36 pace. I ran a race on this very same course two months ago and my time then was a minute and 34 seconds slower. I’ll take the improvement! I only wonder what my time would have been had I fueled properly. 

  Although I wasn’t hungry for a doughnut (blasphemy!) I went to Mighty-O’s to get myself a vegan sugar fix. 

  

  I figured there is no way to justify buying a dozen doughnuts for yourself..so I settled on 5 mini’s. 

  To sum up this post, today I ran my first race alone, I ran for doughnuts, I ran faster than past races, I christened a port-o-potty (seriously this is a big deal), and I survived the streets of Seattle without getting hit by another car. I think my post title pretty much says it all. I’d say it was a successful day. 

  Q: Best post race treat you’ve received, or if you’ve never completed a race what WOULD you run for? Few things can beat a free doughnut…except maybe a free cat. 

  

  | 43 Comments Tagged 5K, Donuts, PR, Race, Running, Sweat Pink

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