What a PERFECT race!!
I BLASTED across the finish line at 1 hour, 27 minutes, and 15 seconds, SMOKING my time at last year's race by over 4 minutes! AND, I'm even MORE excited to report that my leg did not bother me AT ALL! Yayyyyyy!
You can read Meghann's recap on her blog--I don't want to spoil all the surprises, but let's just say she ran an AMAZING first 15K and I am super proud!
To summarize, the KEY DIFFERENCES for this year's race were:
- It was a calm and balmy 70 degrees--not 90 and humid.
- I am much better conditioned and actually ran miles 6 to 9 in 8:30 minutes each, which is my fastest outdoor mile EVER!
- No medics had to make me breathe into a paper bag after I crossed the finish line (yes, I hyperventilated last year). I actually felt like I wanted to keep running at the end! :)
- I've learned enough about running to realize I needed a mid-race snack. This definitely kept my energy UP and allowed me to FINISH STRONG.
But, let's start at the beginning....
My pre-race breakfast consisted of oatmeal + a sliced banana. I added a 1/2 tablespoon of PB for some protein. I also drank a coffee + water.
I was really nervous and a little sleepy (it was only 5 AM!), so I only ate about 2/3.
It was so wonderful of Future Husband to wake up early with me and go to the race. He is so supportive. :) He wins Best Future Husband Award!
We met up with Meghann and her dad and took a few pre-race pictures. Meghann and I stretched out, and I tried to not feel too nervous about my leg. I just didn't know how it was going to go, so I told myself that it would be OK if I had to drop out due to pain. That made me feel a little better.
The Race!
Meghann and I agreed to pace with each other for the first few miles. It was a large race and took a while to actually get past the starting line, so our official chip times were 1 minute behind the clock time.
We ran the mile 1.0 in 10 minutes and paced the next 3.0 miles in 10 minutes as well. We smoked mile 5.0 in 9:30 minutes. That's when I decided to eat my mid-race snack.....
GUMMI BEARS! Yes, gummi bears! I read on another blog that gummi bears were the perfect "poor man's" mid-race snack, and I must say--they were ideal! I sealed about 150 calories worth in a plastic bag using a lighter and safety pinned it to the inside of my shorts.
I felt the simple sugars kick in around mile 6.0, which we clocked in at 59:00 minutes exactly.
At this point, I really wanted to kick it up a notch and started to HAUL BUTT. Meghann stayed with me for a little bit, but then we separated. I ran the next three miles in 8:30 minutes and felt like I was FLYYYYYING! I knew my goal time (1 hr, 26 minutes) was SO CLOSE, and I really wanted to make it!
Suddenly, I heard a volunteer scream, "Only 0.10 mile to go!" and started to SPRINT. Future Husband was yelling from the sidelines, "GO KATIE, GO!" and it definitely motivated me!
I got my medal (yayyy) and waited for Meghann to finish. She came in really strong, too! Check out the action shot:
Post-Race Fun
Since this is such a large regional race, there were tons of post-run festivities, like a kid's race, face painting, clowns.... but most importantly, there was FREE FOOD!
First, I hit up the fruit spread and grabbed watermelon and orange slices.
The race was sponsored by Chick-fil-a, so I also had a free fried chicken sammie (which was a-maz-ing post-race fuel!).
And I grabbed TONS of free Larabar and Kashi samples. Yippeee!
Official Statistics
Here are my stats from my heart rate monitor and my chip device:
- Chip Time: 1 hour, 27 minutes, 15 seconds
- Heart Rate Monitor Time: 1 hour, 27 minutes, 16 seconds
- Average Heart Rate: 169 bpm
- Maximum Heart Rate: 206 bpm
- Calories Burned: 812
All in all, it was a GREAT RACE and I'm proud of myself for improving on last year's time. Now, I'm really looking forward to next weekend's half marathon! Bring it on! :)
