I like checklists and instructions. They give me a point of reference. I don't ultimately follow them much when it's time to take action, but just knowing what I was supposed to do, or what someone else did before me, puts me in my personal power zone.
I thought I'd use today to just share the mechanics of how I do a big run. I had a great time out there today. The Park was in its full glory. I had a PR. I didn't get injured. I got a good cry in. I'm grateful for what I've got. Not suggesting you should follow any of this if you're looking to run 12 miles yourself! But if you want to know what goes on behind (and in the middle of) the scene with me, here's a peek under the kimono.
Day/night before:
Bought more gel packs, sports drinks, and waterproof sun block. Picked out outfit. Washed shorts and hung to dry. Drank protein shake. Ate 1 cup of pasta for dinner. Drank water. No alcohol.
8:30 AM
Woke up. Drank 1 cup of cold Kombucha tea. Putzed around. Read. Got worried about 12 miles. Made schedule for the day – and decided I still had time to keep putzing around and procrastinating.
9:30 AM
Put hair up and running clothes on (Lululemon two layer running shorts, Adidas performance tank, Moving Comfort sports bra, Nike headband that makes me look like a Jujitsu master). Ate breakfast (1 egg cooked in olive oil, slice of soy cheese, multi-grain tortilla, iced coffee with lactose free extra protein milk).
Checked outdoor temperature online (55 degrees) – no second layer needed. Good. I hate clothes. Packed for run: filled hydration belt with one bottle of sports drink and set out second bottle to hide along route, charged iPod, strung 3 gel packs on hydration belt, grabbed clean towel to hang over hydration belt (old Aquis hair towel cut into 4 makes a great sweat and snot rag! …I know, stop with the sexy talk - I’m turning you on.).
10 AM
Planned route. 12 miles so could easily do 2 x the big loop but wanted to see if the cherry blossoms were out along the Reservoir so will go small loop x 2 (5.2M) + Reservoir x 1 (1.58M) for a total of 11.98… and then will run back to my apt to make it a neat 12. This will also allow me to pass the Boat House bathroom, and I can easily tuck my water down along the lower loop.
Set time goal. Last time I ran 12 miles was in Miami, and I did it in 2:34:05/12:57 pace. Would like to beat that if possible, even though that was flat terrain. Applied waterproof (30) sun block to face and top of arms. Applied Body Glide to inner thighs and floppy lunch lady under arms. Brushed teeth and applied chap stick. Drank more water.
10:30 AM
Easter phone calls, checked email, waited for breakfast to digest… This is why I usually don’t eat before I run… tick, tick, tick…
11:15 AM
Put Wigwam socks and Asics shoes on, with old comfortable orthotics on. Can’t bear the lollipop orthotics for more than 5 miles. Ate one gel pack (25 mg caffeine) and drank 1 cup of water with fresh lemon squeezed in.
11:30 AM
Tucked sports drink under some leaves by a bridge and started running listening to mash mixes from Fozz.
12:30 PM
Nearly 6 miles down. No cherry blossoms around the Reservoir but the perfume from all the other flowers made today’s run the most amazing run of my life! It was simply delicious out there. The colors, the smell, the sunshine, the people promenading in Easter finery. I love New York! Ate a gel pack with 50 mg of caffeine and filled my water bottle with the second sports drink as I passed it around mile 7.
I recited what I could remember of my favorite short poem to myself as I went along, even though the flowers I was passing weren’t cherry blossoms:
Loveliest of trees, the cherry now
Is hung with bloom along the bough,
And stands about the woodland ride
Wearing white for Eastertide.
Now, of my threescore years and ten,
Twenty will not come again,
And take from seventy springs a score,
It only leaves me fifty more.
And since to look at things in bloom
Fifty springs are little room,
About the woodlands I will go
To see the cherry hung with snow.
- A.E. Housman (written in 1896)
Bathroom Break with Kadija
Oh, my dear friend the bathroom attendant Kadija! What a joyous moment it is each week when I see her in the ladies’ at the Boat House. She’s so proud of me. Today I learned she speaks French so I attempted a little conversation with her. “Merci de me donner l'inspiration!” And she said back, “Et le courage!”
There were lots of girls on line behind me in Lilly Pulitzer for Easter. One my age burst out, “I just ran a 15K last week! It was my first race!” We chatted. There were little French girls on line with us and hearing my broken attempt they said back to me in French, “Why are you running?” I said, “Je m’amuse. Ca, c’est tout.” They looked at their mother and giggled. Did I say something funny? My French has limits! Or maybe they were just giggling at the red faced American lady in spandex!
Then a toilet was free so we all stopped talking. I splashed water on my face before I left Kadija and the warm welcome of the bathrooms at the Boat House. You know, I turn my Nike+ off when I go in there. The line’s too long. So – if you want to call that cheating, I wouldn’t blame you.
1:00 PM
Around the 10th mile, I was flagging. It was the up-hill before the down-hill on the west side of the Park. There was a guy in front of me, about 50. He reminded me from the back of my college friend Julia’s dad, Mr. Beck. No idea why but that’s what flashed in my mind. Then, as if he’d felt my eyes on him, the guy suddenly turned around and waved his hand, like “come on, get going!” He stopped jogging then and I started, and passed him. I went about 20 feet and turned and yelled back, “Thank you.” He gave me a thumbs-up. Now he was walking. I was fine. I could run. I’d just gotten a little bored and strangely he’d seen me, and known what I needed. I love the running community. They don’t bother you unless you really need the help.
So I jogged on and then started thinking about how funny it was that this guy was reminding me of someone’s dad, and yet he was only 50; I’m at the age where I could easily be dating a 50 year old. Then I was thinking about dads, and my own dad, and the Half Marathon, and the Marathon… and I burst out crying. (Hey – last week the song “Disturbia” made me cry! You never know what’s going to set me off.) I couldn’t breathe while I was crying and so I had to walk for a bit. I really wanted the run to be over because my calves were burning so much. It was hot. I couldn’t stop crying and I tried not to worry what people would think if they saw me bawling.
Then the Mr. Beck man came up behind me and was looking strong again. We had a moment as he passed, but I couldn’t run yet. By the time I started again, he was off in the distance. Finally, I was ready to go and the path was down-hill so it was easy. I passed Mr. Beck for the last time and we waved. This might qualify as my first attempt at running with someone! It really did help.
As beautiful as the day was, I was very happy when my run was over. I went back to my sports drink hiding place and picked up my trash, which I’d left there, plus some dirty napkins someone else had left on my pile, and headed home.
1:30 PM
Drank 1 cup of high protein drink with acidophilus and lemon scented fish oil mixed in. Drank 20 oz of water with fresh lemon. Stretched – but barely.
I plugged my time into coolrunning.com and was excited to see I’d really run at a nice average pace, in spite of the many patches of walking. 12:03 per mile for 12 miles? Not too shabby, Sanders! That’s nearly a minute faster per mile than I’d run in Miami. I achieved my goal! Woo hoo!
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