I'm having the hardest time believing 2016 is only a few days away! Looking back on 2015, I've accomplished so much, both in my career and in running. I put together something really fabulous in Tableau to analyze running data, including distance, pace, mileage on my shoes, which days of the week I run, etc. #DataDork I ran TWO marathons, and ten other races. I have a new 10k PR of 57:00, I ran in five different states (Ohio, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Illinois), and I ran over 100 miles in four different months (August, September, November, and December). I came pretty close to my goal of running 1,000 miles during the year - I should hit 950 after my last two runs - and I'm really proud of how close I came! I've been really consistent with running four days a week and even had a few weeks where I ran five days. I made so many new running friends and had so much fun at all of my races this year! I'm really looking forward to 2016 :D I'm starting 2016 off with a brand new pair of the same shoes I've been wearing since July (Mizuno Wave Riders), but I got the pink ones this time. I'm running a 5k on new year's day, and Disney half the following weekend. My race outfit for Disney is put together (minus a possible hat or headband), and I will probably post a picture of it on insta sometime this week! I've already planned nine races for the year, but for some reason Athlinks won't let me add them all to my events. I haven't decided on any races for the fall yet so I'm sure I'll end up doing quite a few more than that. 16 in 2016?! Maybe! I have some ambitious goals for 2016! Half marathon PR Run 1,212 total miles Run 209 times - the equivalent of 4 days a week Race with my best friend Nicole! Increase my average distance (5.41 miles in 2015) Keep average pace under 11:00 Don't miss more than two days in a row unless I'm sick Get my half fanatics Run lots of fun races with pretty medals :) Catch up on my race bib scrapbook I feel like I should also mention that training for Disney half has been going really, really well! My longest run was 13.56 miles, and I had five other long runs over 10 miles in the last two months. Weekly mileage has been somewhere around 25 miles, and I did hit 30 miles one week! I've been super speedy, at least compared to how fast I used to be. I am definitely hoping for a PR in Disney!
Happy 2016!! xoxo A
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The last month and a half of my life have taught me the following things: 1. I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together. Love ya, Marilyn! So glad you understand! 2. My friends are the most wonderful, loving, supportive people in the world! I owe gigantic thank yous to everyone who stayed up all night with me, forced me to go out for cupcakes and yoga, and made me realize how truly blessed I am. It took a few weeks for it to actually sink in that I finished a marathon; it just didn't feel real at first. I ran 26.2 miles with no sleeping or eating the days leading up to the race. Looking back, I can't believe I even made it to the start line! I'm so proud of how huge of an accomplishment that was. I earned every single second of that PR!
Running feels magical again. I recovered from this marathon so quickly, and got right back into long runs. I ran a 5k race with a couple awesome friends two weeks after the marathon (finished in 28:36!), and my long runs are back up to 10 miles as of Saturday. I've been focusing more on enjoying my runs instead of on how far or fast I'm going, but I've actually been getting speedy again! I think my favorite distance is 10-13 miles, but I haven't entirely given up on my marathon career yet. I've also been doing lots and lots of yoga lately. My favorite poses right now are lizard and dancer's pose. I seem to be doing those every single day. I've also been trying to add inversions to my practice, so right now that just means handstands against the wall, but I've made a lot of progress and can hold myself up for a decent amount of time! I have a lot of exciting things coming up! I registered for a few races, including a 15k this weekend. I'm so incredibly thrilled about my Disney trip with Ashley and Amanda -- I already have outfit ideas for the race! I will also have to start making plans for my first international race soon - SeaWheeze in Vancouver. I feel like I've come so far in such a short period of time. Everything is inspiring again. I love running again. I have so much to look forward to and I feel so grateful for everything in my life and... I'm happy. I guess I just needed to take a step back to realize all of that. :)
I've gone back and forth over whether or not I should even post anything about last weekend's marathon. As much as I try to stay positive, I'd also like to keep it as real as possible. The last few weeks have been full of ups and downs, and the days leading up to the marathon were very, very difficult for personal reasons. I knew going into the race that I wasn't going to be able to pull off what I trained so hard for. I at least get points for looking super cute, right?
The race itself was everything I had hoped for. The course was beautiful (and flat!), the entertainment along the course kept me going, and every single spectator made me smile. The weather was perfect for running a marathon; it was a little chilly in the morning and I probably didn't need a long sleeved shirt but it worked out just fine. I ran the first 10 or so miles with my friend Chris, who did a great job of keeping me motivated that far! Through the angel mile and up past the Nationwide buildings into the Short North, I was actually feeling pretty good physically - that's where I ran my fastest splits. I saw lots and lots of friends out running and cheering me on. I didn't walk until past mile 19, and ended up walking the majority of miles 23 & 24 - compared to first walking at mile 12 of my first marathon and walking most of miles 18-26. I managed a 25 minute PR and broke five hours for the first time!
I just didn't feel right. I was so emotionally drained and I never got a runner's high during this race. I'm so proud of myself for even showing up to the start line, but part of me is so disappointed for not accomplishing what I trained so hard for.
For now, I'm focusing on putting one foot in front of the other, and not letting myself look back. On to better things.
Yesterday I finished my last long run of marathon training -- the big 20 miler! I'm so happy with how well it went. Mustafa and I went out early to run about 6.5 miles before meeting up with our running group. It was still dark at this point and we were off to a slow start, but things started feeling much better after a couple miles. Since it was the farthest I've ever gone on that trail, I took a quick picture right before we turned around. On the way back was definitely the best part of the run -- it's slightly downhill, we got to stop at the fire station for cold water, and we even ran negative splits! Towards the end, we caught up with three of our friends who are also running Columbus Marathon, and they really pushed us the last few miles. It's definitely the best I have ever felt during a 15+ mile run. I ran the whole thing, not including when I paused my watch to stop for water. I used a total of five Gu (4 apple cinnamon and one vanilla bean), so I'm thinking I'll use 7 during the marathon. I started my first at mile 2 and took one about every 4 miles after that. I also wore exactly what I'm planning on racing in to make sure everything felt fine! After the run, I took a long nap and feasted on lots of Panera in bed. It was a very relaxing Saturday after that!! I've set a kind of ambitious goal of running 26.2 in 4:45 in three weeks. My first marathon took me 5:24:18, but my training has been much better this time around. Yesterday's 20 mile run has left me feeling very prepared and optimistic about the race :) Knowing that Columbus is much, much flatter than Nashville, combined with how hard I've been training makes me think 4:45 may very well be possible. I'm hoping I feel just as great on race day as I did yesterday!! Only time will tell... :D
Last weekend, I ran Emerald City Half Marathon in Dublin, Ohio! I had already decided to run this race as a training run with a medal at the end, since it fit perfectly into my training plan but I didn't want to be too tired for my long run this weekend. This race has seriously the most beautiful course, with some nice rolling hills (nothing compared to Nashville!). I felt amazing the whole race! My splits were pretty much perfect, and I didn't go out too fast. I also ran every single mile in under 11 minutes, which was my goal after running a single 11:03 mile during my last half. My official time was 2:18:42, a 10:36 pace! I was six minutes away from my PR, but I was really amazed that this pace didn't feel too difficult, especially compared to running my first half a year and a half ago. It was also the first half marathon where I felt mentally strong the whole time. I guess 13.1 miles doesn't feel very long to me anymore after running a marathon :) My legs were a little bit tired the day after the race, so I took it easy this week to make sure I wouldn't miss my long run this weekend. I was up bright and early yesterday morning to run 15 miles! My pace yesterday was a little bit slower than my long runs have been, but still faster than my long runs before my first marathon. I'm really hopeful to run a sub 4:45 26.2 in 49 days!!
Yesterday, I ran the inaugural Shawshank Hustle in Mansfield, Ohio. It took about an hour and 15 minutes to drive there, so I was up super early in the morning! I left Columbus around 6, knowing that I would be cutting it close. I parked my car at 7:15 and had to wait 30 minutes for a bus to get to the starting line. I made it to pick up my packet with just a few minutes to spare, then met up with my friends who were also running. Then they announced that the start time was being delayed from 8:30 to 9 since so many people were still waiting for a bus from the parking lot! It was super hot and humid at this point, but there was obviously nothing I could do. I decided to take this race easy because of the heat and hills. We finally started right at 9. There were no corrals or pace groups, so with 3,000 runners it was a little chaotic trying to weave through the people walking the race. I am all for walkers, but the race would have been more organized if the walkers had started in the back. The course started out with a sharp left turn where it immediately narrowed - I think this is something that should be changed next year. Other than that, I completely loved the course! It was very challenging with two huge hills (one at the end and one at the halfway point). We got to run past a lot of the places where the movie Shawshank Redemption was filmed, which was super fun! My splits: Mile 1 - 9:38 Mile 2 - 10:00 Mile 3 - 10:48 Mile 4 - 10:25 .66 on Garmin - 10:57 pace My watch had 4.66 miles in 48:03, an average pace of 10:19. My official time was 47:56! I finished 17/62 in my age group, and 580/3,000 overall! I walked twice, toward the end of both hills. My average heart rate was 186, which is higher than I usually train at! I definitely worked hard on this race, and I am very happy with how well I did! Overall, it was a great race with a few minor first year issues. I love the t-shirt and the medal - they both glow in the dark! The course and location were definitely spectacular as well, and I loved the theme of the race. I think something needs to be changed so cars and buses can leave during the race; we had to wait for enough space between the runners right before the finish line to get through, so that was a mess! I don't think the race being delayed because no one showed up on time was the fault of the race organizers, and they did their best to fix that situation once they realized how long the line for the bus was.
Last week, I ran a total of 19.50 miles at an average 10:41 pace! I'm super happy with how well I'm keeping up with my training plan lately, especially with how busy I've been. I did take my first tumble of this round of marathon training last week -- I was on the trails near the New Albany Country Club (one of my favorite places to run!) and Charlie ran in front of me. I tripped over him and we both flew across the trail. Fairly quick recovery for both of us since we did finish almost two miles after that. When I was training for Country Music Marathon, I was getting massages pretty regularly, but stopped going now that I'm not working downtown anymore. It was so much easier when I could go on my lunch break! I finally made an appointment, and was so happy I did! Massages are the best when you're a distance runner :) I spent last weekend in Pittsburgh helping my sister with wedding planning. My favorite part of traveling is getting to explore a new city on a run! I woke up extremely early to do my long run on the trail along the river in Pittsburgh on Sunday morning. It was a beautiful view, but it was so hot and humid! I stopped at Dunkin' around halfway for a bottle of water and pretty much immediately regretted not getting a donut. Pittsburgh has some nice little hills, so that was good for training. I listened to music during my long run, which I rarely do. Overall, it was a perfect weekend!
Before I even ran my first marathon, I was already registered for Columbus Marathon! My training plan officially started Sunday, June 28th, but it has been pretty low mileage so far. I'm so excited to start building my mileage again! So far, my first couple weeks of training for my second marathon have looked like this: Week of June 22nd - 14.90 miles at an average 10:48 pace Week of June 29th - 20.14 miles at an average 11:02 pace Week of July 6th - 18.01 miles at an average 10:39 pace I'm off to a great start! I'm so proud of my long runs so far (6.39 miles at 10:50 pace, 10.01 miles at 10:36 pace, and 11.51 miles at 10:34 pace) because I felt amazing on all of them! I started marathon training with a brand new pair of Mizuno Wave Rider 18s. I was running in Asics Gel Kayano 21s before, so we'll see how I feel about this change. I tried a hot yoga class last week for the first time, and absolutely fell in love with it! I've been doing yoga consistently for a while now, and will definitely be adding more hot yoga into my training. Nutrition-wise, things have been pretty close to perfect the last couple weeks. My macros are pretty consistently around 235 C, 110 P, 40 F. I'm eating a mostly clean/IIFYM diet because ice cream (!). When it comes to "unhealthy" foods, I'm looking more at the ingredients (limiting high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils, and preservatives). There are a few things I'm planning on doing differently than how I trained for my first marathon. First, I had skipped quite a few of my shorter long runs (10-13 mile runs) and assumed I would be ok to jump back in my training plan with a 15 mile run. I ended up taking my long runs (15-20 miles) really slowly and walking a lot, and I was so sore from these that I also skipped a lot of my runs during the week. I'm blaming most of this on the weather, since we had a really bad winter, and I'm hoping I'll be a little bit better about training for this marathon. The other thing I wish I would have done differently was more hill work, since Nashville's course was very hilly; the first 17 or so miles were constant rolling hills, which was completely exhausting and ended with me walking the last 3-4 miles of the race. Even though Columbus Marathon is a fairly flat course, I think training on hills a little bit will only make me stronger on race day. Despite the fact that everyone says not to try anything new the week before race day, I spent the day before my first marathon walking around Nashville in a brand new pair of cowboy boots. I got blisters. Lesson learned. Over the weekend, I went with Mustafa to Run Fest, the official kickoff for Columbus Marathon training! I ran the half last year, but for some reason hadn't heard about this event. I'm so happy I went! There was lots of free food, and I got to see this year's finisher medal. I'm so excited that training for my second marathon is off to a great start! I can't wait to see how amazing my PR will be :)
Last month, I ran the Santa Race 5k in Gahanna with a few of my friends. It was definitely the worst weather I've ever experienced during a race; it was cold, rainy, and windy. We still managed to have a lot of fun! :) Splits - Mile 1: 8:41 Mile 2: 8:56 Mile 3: 8:58 .03 on Garmin: 0:27 Official Time 26:46, an average pace of 8:41 This race was a new 5k PR for me! I was so excited!! I won a gift certificate for my adorable outfit (ugly Christmas sweater and sparkle skirt... always a good combination). I also won first place in my age group -- they announced my name for the award but looking at the results now, I actually came in second place. The other girl must have left before they gave out the awards. Anyway, I'm not telling the last part of that story, and my first place plaque is hung proudly on the wall. :) It's been a busy week! I finally got caught up on quite a bit of cleaning early in the week, so Charlie and I were able to decorate for Christmas! I did a 5k race on Saturday, and for the first time ever I placed in my age group!! My sister Ashley got engaged over the weekend and I am sosososo excited for her and Jeremie! :) Monday - 1.03 miles at 11:10 pace Tuesday - 3.12 miles hills at 10:48 pace Wednesday - 1.74 mile run at 10:50 pace Thursday - 5.75 miles at 10:36 pace Friday - 1.05 miles at a 9:31 pace Saturday - 3.10 mile race at 8:43 pace Sunday - 1.03 mile run at 10:52 pace Totals! - 16.82 miles at an average 10:20 pace I'm 11 days into RW Run Streak with 25 days left, which means I'm already doing better than last year!
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Hello, my name is Alyssa!I'm a momma to Emerson Lilly and two fur babies, a distance runner, and just a girl full of sparkle and quirks. I love traveling to races and exploring new places to run! I started this blog in 2014 as more of a journal to keep track of training for my first marathon, and I've continued to post about training, races, and other things happening in my life. Also, I'd like to be your best friend. :) Categories
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