This was a year of some great races and some that I wish I could go back and do over again. There are several factors that I believe contributed to my poor performance. The biggest factor being that I think I lost some of my mental toughness to push through the pain. In 2010, I had just started running and was just happy to finish races. By 2011, I was getting faster and my confidence was building in myself. I started doing some speed-work for my training for my first half marathon which helped me to get faster. I had a lot of adrenaline before every race and felt really pumped up. I think the newness of it all and especially winning awards really motivated me (...and winning awards was a whole new world to me!). Then this year, I realized how hard it is to keep up with that kind of intense training. Mentally I started doubting myself (which is no surprise since I have self confidence issues) and when the going gets tough sometimes I just would just give in to my brain telling me "You can slow down" or "You can shorten this run" or "You don't need to run today". I started getting a lazier mentality when it came to my training, and I knew that. I tried to fight it, but it was a tough battle. It wasn't always like that every time I trained or ran a race, but I definitely wasn't as excited and motivated as I was in 2011. Also, running a faster pace and trying to set PRs would make me very nervous before races. Like I said, when I first started running it was all about the pride of just finishing, but things changed once I took my training more seriously. So this year, I plan to work on turning off those negative thoughts, staying as committed I as can to my training and pushing through when I feel like I cannot.
So this was a pretty busy year of races for me. I ran three half marathons, a 15K, 10K and 5K, a 4 miler, two sprint triathlons, and an Olympic distance triathlon minus the bike (I don't know if I can call it my first since I didn't do the whole thing myself). Here's my short and sweet summary of each race:
Winter Winds 4 Mile
Huntsville, AL
February 12, 2012
Time: 29:30
1st in Age Group (30-39)
37th out of 235 runners
This race held true to its name because it was very windy and cold! I had forgotten my gloves so my hands were numb! In the picture below you can see me making tight fists with my hands. It was a beautiful day, though, with clear blue skies. The race course went through a pretty neighborhood with lots of big trees. It was on a Sunday afternoon, so I told Greg to stay at home with the kids since they would be tired after church and since it was so cold. However, I was surprised at the finish line when I saw all of them there cheering for me! I stayed for the awards with Jason and Isaac. Jason won a prize which he got to pick out. So he picked a tech shirt and was thrilled to get something! This was a great race for me and I definitely was determined to do my best that day!
McGuire's Irish Pub 5K
Pensacola, FL
March 10, 2012
Time: 21:47
Fun, fun race! Had a blast partying with my family after the race! Read the full race report here.
Oak Barrel Half Marathon
Lynchburg, TN
April 7, 2012
Time: 2:11:33
Greg's first half marathon! Great race, beautiful scenery! Full race report here.
Viola Valley Half Marathon
Viola, TN
May 19, 2012
Time: 1:50:53
3rd in Age Group (30-39)
43rd out of 312 runners
After the Oak Barrel, I had an itch to do one more half marathon before triathlon season began. So I signed up for this race on a whim, and it probably wasn't the best idea! I had just done the Oak Barrel a little over a month before this one, so I was pretty well trained for the distance. However, I learned a lesson and that was to study up on the course more before signing up for the race. Boy this race was had tons of rolling hills! It seemed like there were a few every mile! It was a very hot day, and the other two half marathon I had done were not in the heat. There was hardly any shade which made it even hotter. There were lots of positives to this race, though. Viola is this little country town out in the middle of nowhere, so the people were all so nice and friendly. One thing I remember was that some of the residents that lived on the course (The houses were few and far between!) had sprinklers on for the runners to run through. I took advantage of every single sprinkler too! The course was very scenic and picturesque since it was out in the country. There were lots of fields and barns. With as pretty as the course was, though, I will not do that race again because of the time of year that they have it.
Cotton Row 10K
Huntsville, AL
May 28, 2012
Time: 48:14
6th in Age Group out of 145 (30-34)
I had only done this 10K once and that was in 2011. Because of the speed work I had been doing, I was able to shave off about 7 1/2 minutes! I was really excited and happy about this race. Although it was a hot morning, this was a really good race for me and I was pleased with my performance. I was especially happy that I was able to slow jog up the extremely steep Mountainwood hill and not walk it! That was a big accomplishment to me! Greg watched the kids while I ran the 10K, and then he ran the 5K. He did really good and I was proud of him! The kids liked getting free pizza and ice cream sandwiches (I think that's the only reason they come to the races is for the free food!). Since this race is on Memorial Day I found some red, white and blue clothes for the kids so we could be patriotic!
Wet Dog Triathlon
Decatur, AL
July 21, 2012
Time: 1:05:18
1st in Age Group!!!
So as you can see by the enlarged font size, I was and still am psyched about this race!! This was my 2nd time doing the Wet Dog, and the first time I did it did not go so well. I made a wrong turn during the run and ended up at the finish line after about 10 minutes (yeah, I can run a 5K that fast!). Obviously, I was very embarrassed and was really down about messing up my first triathlon! So this time to be able to come back and get 1st in my age group put me on cloud nine!!! I remember I was holding Gracie during the awards, and honestly I did not expect to get 1st. I was thinking maybe 3rd. When they called my name, I got teary eyed, and wow, it was just a great moment in my life! I know I didn't win an Olympic medal or anything, but to me it felt like it! Greg's mom, sister and nephew were in town that weekend and were able to come to the race (which I thought was really sweet of them since they had to get everyone dressed and out the door really early that morning!). They were all really happy for me, and I was glad that they were there to see me get my medal.
Let me back up and summarize my training....I only had a few weeks to train for this race (which made me surprised that I did so well!). I went to Gulfport to visit my family as soon as school was out for the summer, and I didn't do anything that week except lounge around at my aunt's pool! When we got back, I frequented the Y alternating swimming, cycling and running on different days. We went to David's National AYSO Soccer Tournament in TN the first week of July, and I tried my best to train some, but it was hard with all the games and activities that week. It was David's week and his special event, and I did not want to miss anything!
Here's my swim time, T1, bike time, bike speed, T2, run time, pace, then overall time. I was able to cut off 20 minutes from my previous year's time!
8:37 1:18 29:00 19.2 1:02 25:22 8:11 1:05:18
Huntsville Sprint Triathlon
August 18, 2012
Time: 58:22
1st in Age Group!!
6th out of 203 women!
Another great tri for me! Greg and the kids were able to come cheer for me which I always love! This was the 2nd time I did this race. They changed the race to where the swim was first, then bike and run. I waited in a long line to start the swim. It was at the Natatorium, and we had to swim 8x50m lengths of the pool. I had my best swim time of 7:43. I had been focusing a lot on swimming after the Wet Dog because I was trying to build up to swimming 1 mile for the Rocketman Triathlon.
Next was the 7 mile bike, and I was very proud of myself because I remember pushing myself really hard. I did not try my best on the bike for the Wet Dog so I wanted to do better for this race. I think I was holding back for fear of not being able to run fast (because when you get off the bike your legs feel like brick and it's very hard to run!). The run went okay. I would have liked to run faster, but part of the run was on a trail so it was hard to run my usual 5K pace. Greg and the kids got to stay for the awards. It was another great moment!
Rocketman Triathlon
August 26, 2012
Time: 2:32:17
2nd in Mixed Relay Team
Greg and I did the Rocketman for the first time together as a relay team. I've always liked doing relays and thought it would be fun to do this tri with Greg. My strengths are swimming and running and Greg's are biking so I thought we would make a great team! We nicknamed ourselves "He Bikes/She Swims" after the movie "He Said/She Said". :) Like I said above, I trained a lot for the swim because I had never swam that far before (1.5 K which is almost a mile). We decided to bring the kids with us which thankfully worked out really well. When we got there we set up a blanket in the shade for the kids. We put them right next to the transition area so that way they wouldn't be far when we did T1 and T2. They all brought different portable video games, so the boys were occupied! We also brought tons of snacks and drinks for them. They were all very good for us. I thought they wouldn't be happy because they had to wake up early, and they don't usually like going to our races. But I was proud of them for behaving so their parents could do this.
So I got in line for the swim. We were jumping in in number order according to what swim time we put down. So the fastest swimmers got to start first. I put a pretty slow swim time because I really had no idea what my time was going to be. I think I put 40 minutes. We had to swim in the TN River which is always an interesting experience when it's an open water swim. One guy went veering way off the wrong way, and I tried hollering at him, but he could not hear me. I managed to pass a lot of people that started ahead of me, and my swim time was a lot faster than I expected: 21:31!! But several people said that they thought the swim was shorter than 1.5K.
Transitions had to be really fast! As soon as I got to the transition mat for the relay teams, Greg was there ready to take the timing chip. He quickly put in on, and then he was off for the bike! I have a lot of respect for cyclist!! That is one hard sport! Greg is a great cyclist and he had a very fast time! He had to ride 25 miles! Yes 25 miles! He averaged a speed of close to 20 mph and remarked afterward that it was fun to go so fast!
The run for me was not so great! I had not focused on running which was a big mistake. I ran a few times on the treadmill, and I really should have been training outside in the heat. Because let me tell you, it was HOT! It was miserably hot and hilly. That was my other big mistake in my training was not running hills. I didn't know the course would be so hilly. I thought since it was on the Arsenal it would be flat, but I was wrong. I had to walk some because I didn't want to pass out! My average pace was 8:36 which is about 30 seconds slower than my 10K pace. I guess I did okay, I was just wanting to do better. Just couldn't make it happen that day.
We got 2nd in our mixed relay division! We had fun and I think we made a great team! I don't think I'll be doing that race again because of the heat.
Can you tell I was struggling?
Monte Sano 15K
Huntsville, AL
October 13, 2012
Time: 1:15:03
3rd in AG
I ran the Monte Sano 15K as part of my training for the Huntsville Half Marathon. I had a 15K race scheduled for right around this time in my Hal Higdon Half training program. I thought it would be a good way to see how I would fare in the half. I ended up running an 8:04 pace which I was very pleased with and helped boost my confidence that I could do this pace for the half. But I was very nervous, and you can tell from the picture of me below. This was the first time I had done this race, and I really enjoyed running atop Monte Sano. It was a very pretty course, and we even got to run by an overlook. I don't remember too many other details about this race.
Huntsville Half Marathon
Time: 1:56:26
13th in AG
This was my biggest race of the year, the one that I really wanted to go all out and perform my best. The year before I ran it in 1:47 and was really hoping to cut some time off of my PR, but that was not to be. The training that I put into this race was nowhere as near as good as it was in 2011. I was only running about 4 days a week compared to 5 days in 2011. I was also cross training one day a week, but skipped that as well in 2012. The week before the race, I got a really bad cold. I was determined to run it all week even though I felt so bad, but then the night before I started having serious doubts. But me being so stubborn-minded I went through with it. Greg was sick too, but not as bad. He was running the HSV half for the first time. We both drank a glass of Emergen-C (in wine glasses to make it fun!).
I started out strong and was feeling good, but I started to loose steam around mile 8 or 9. At mile 10, I had to stop and walk. I started crying because I was so disappointed in myself and also mad that I got sick and couldn't do my best that day. A really sweet friend of mine, Allison, even offered to walk with me, but I told her no and to go on. After I got it out of my system, I gave myself a good kick in the butt and got back to running. I think I was just ready to be done. I managed to speed up the last two miles. Maybe next year will be better.
One good thing that did happen was I actually took a nice picture during a race!
This picture is right after I crossed the finish line. I was really fatigued!
Well, that's my year in review for 2012. There were highs and lows, but the good thing is that you learn so much no matter how a race goes. I just have to take what I learned and use it to make changes where I need to. The biggest change I need to make is to try my best to stay committed to my training.
2013 is going to be a BIG year for me as I am finally going to take on the full marathon!!! TWENTY SIX POINT TWO MILES!!! Oh my gosh, it just blows my mind that I am going to do this. But I am, and I am going to be damn proud of myself when I cross that finish line!
