Posts Tagged ‘Monument Avenue 10k’

In the past couple of weeks, I spent a lot of time reflecting on a great year. Now that the calendar has flipped to a new month and a new year, there’s a feeling of starting something new. The great thing about this year is I don’t have to start over like I did last year.

The Runner’s World Holiday Run Streak — running at least a mile every day from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day — gave me some solid miles and solid runs that makes for an easy transition into training mode. I actually hit day 40 today of consecutive running days, but today was different — the first “official” day of training for the Shamrock Half Marathon.

So with this run, my focus shifts to the year ahead, and here are 12 thoughts for the next 12 months that are on my mind.

1. My “A” goal for the first quarter is a PR in the Shamrock Half Marathon on March 18 in Virginia Beach. Two winters ago I trained in one of the roughest winters around here in years and still managed to set a PR. This year is looking much better weather-wise (although I would love some snow at some point), and my mind will once again be set on beating my best time, which is 1:42.52.

2. I’m still undecided on whether or not I’ll run a marathon in the spring.

3. I want to get my weight to under 180. I don’t know what it is right now, but my letter to myself the other day is something I’m staying focused on. Weight is just a number, I know, but if I could stop eating stupid, I know that my race times would drop even more.

4. Barring injury, I will pass 5,000 running miles since the beginning of 2007 (I didn’t log miles from 2004-06). I have about 750 to go, so that should happen in late summer/early fall.

5. Speaking of mileage, I will not set an overall mileage goal again this year. It was definitely a great thing to focus on in 2010, but I liked how last year went with my “finish it stronger than I begin it” goal — a little more than 400 in the first half of the year and a little more than 600 in the second half. Right now I just want to run; mileage goals will be secondary whenever I realize I’m close to something.

6. I will buy a new GPS watch sometime this year.

7. It’s weird in January to think of things that will happen 11 months from now. It’s that feeling of that time will never get here. I know it will, so assuming everything goes like I hope, I want to return to the Christmas Classic 5k in Bedford and break 22 minutes.

9. I’m going to start riding my bike at least once a week when the weather warms up and I have a little more daylight in the evenings. I fully intend to continue to increase my cross training this year and I want the bike to be a part of it.

10. My sister is running the Monument Avenue 10k at the end of March. I’m not sure how much I had to do with talking her into doing it, but it will be just her second race. I’m really looking forward to her completing it.

11. When May rolls around, I will hit the campaign trail hard for Relay for Life where I will once again run lots of laps for a great cause. My donation page is active now.

12. I have failed to mention it on here, but I am doing the Mountain Junkies’ Frozen Toe 10k this weekend in Roanoke. It will be the first race I’ve ever done in January, but it certainly won’t be a race for time. It’s a trail race around Roanoke Mountain with some generous elevation change. Similar to the Trail Nut 10k last year, I’m looking at this event to gain trail running experience. I think it will be a great way to kick off the year.

Image: Idea go / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

These past couple of weeks have been fun reflecting on what happened in 2011. Today I bring you the last of my lists with my top running moments of the year.

Narrowing down the top 5 running moments of the year is hard, but honestly anything longer than that is boring and diluted. Anything beyond 5 is like having honorable mentions, which I will not do. This list is completely different from my top 5 racing moments of 2011 – this list is more broad and not necessarily as focused on one specific moment.

5. Monument Avenue 10k
While this was my No. 1 racing moment this year, it’s definitely not the top running moment. It was huge though, but from an overall perspective it wasn’t as important to me as other things on this list. Gradually building my mileage in the first quarter of the year, getting back to the start line and then setting a PR, though, still make this a great moment.

4. The Holiday Run Streak
In a few months, perhaps this will be higher on the list; it’s actually tough for me to include this here as it’s happening now with another day to go. That said, my running streak through Jan. 1 is teaching me a lot about running for the sake of running. It’s fun to just go out and run with training pretty far from my mind. I’ve run in the rain, in the wind, in awkwardly warm December weather, through neighborhoods brightly lit by Christmas lights; and included a few races to close out the year.

3. “Most ever” moments
It’s important to me to not confuse “most ever” with “best ever.” When it comes to this year, I won’t touch the “best ever” phrase. I’ll just use “best so far.” And with that nod comes many “most ever” moments this year — most weekly mileage (41.5 from Sept. 5-11); most ever miles in a month (135 in August and September); most ever mileage in a year (1,040.4); most ever races (13); and most ever consecutive races (4 in 4 weeks) are the highlights.

2. Watching my son race
I’ve learned a lot this year about running by watching my son. He has fun; he notices things like barns off in the distance in a race; and he runs just to run. If you don’t have kids, I highly suggest that you watch a kids race. Not the one with 10 or 11 year olds – the real kids race where everyone is under 5 years old. You’ll learn a lot.

Last night I passed last year’s running miles and now stand at more than 1,012 for the year. In just a few days I’ll pass my consecutive running days streak — Saturday will be the record-setting day. It’s a fitting way to end the year full of personal records. Here’s a look:

• It started in April with a 3-second PR in the 10k at the Monument Avenue 10k in Richmond. You may recall this was my No. 1 racing moment of the year in my post the other day.
• In July I had one goal — a PR in the Stars and Stripes 5k in Howland, Ohio. Mission accomplished by 31 seconds.
• A few weeks later, I dug deep and found a PR in the Percival’s Island 5 Miler, the fourth time I’ve done that race. I knocked 12 seconds off my PR from 2007.
• It wasn’t a personal record in the distance, but I did set a course record by more than 4 minutes on the “new” course of the Lynchburg Half Marathon in August.
• A week after that I set a new bar in the 5k in the Fab 5k, knocking off another 18 seconds off my PR.
• Perhaps the biggest PR came in the Baltimore Marathon. I never really talked about how much improvement I made in that distance, but my 3:56:17 finish was more than 16 minutes better than my first attempt at that distance in 2007.
• The final record of the year came with a course record a few weeks ago in the Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic in which I knocked off more than a minute and a half of my time from 2009.

This may sound confusing, but to me it makes sense — some of my top racing moments of 2011 may not show up in a later post with top running moments of the year, or some of these moments may rank differently. The Baltimore Marathon, for example, was definitely one of the biggest highlights for me — ever — but from a racing perspective, it’s not my No. 1 moment of the year. Read on …

5. Trail race + age group award + running with my son
In May I was very humbled by running the Mountain Junkies Trail Nut 10k trail race in Bedford. That experience was one that reminded me how challenging running on multiple surfaces really is.

This race was made special in that I was 2nd in my age group and my son wanted to run with me after – a perfect way to cool down. Winning a free pair of Injinji socks added to that great day.

4. Sub 7-minute final mile, Percival’s Island 5-Miler
The fact that I set a PR in this race is not the reason this is here – the final mile of that race is. As I think back to that day, I’m still not sure why I couldn’t pick up the pace in the first four miles, nor do I know where I found the motivation to have one of the best miles ever in a race. I do know, though, that it’s worth this list.

3. PR in the Baltimore Marathon
Here’s where this list gets tricky. Coming back this year after an injury and running in the marathon may very well be my best running highlight this year (that’s for another list before the end of the year), but when it comes to racing, it’s not what stands out as the best moment.

Here’s why: as I near the finish of 8 years of running, I have to think about where I started and where I am now. When it comes to racing, the marathon is not where my roots stand. Yes, it is very important to me that I ran 26.2 miles and was not injured afterward, but as I allow hindsight to tell the story, the Baltimore Marathon was not the best racing highlight of my year. Considering that I ran 13 races this year (also a PR), No. 3 isn’t so bad.

2. Destroying my 5k PR
In July I set out for a PR in the 5k at a race in Ohio. It was the first time in a while that I’ve approached a 5k with a “PR or go home” mentality. While I did set a PR that day, the next month I once again set my PR in a 5k (the Fab 5k, another Mountain Junkies race) with a time of 21:52. I have shaved 49 second off my 5k PR this year — more than 16 seconds per mile.

1. Getting back to the start line
Nearly 5 months after being injured after the Richmond Marathon, I went back to the River City for my first race of the year – the Monument Avenue 10k. Not only was getting to the start line a huge deal, I also managed to get a PR by 3 seconds with a well-executed negative split. There’s no doubt in my mind that day was my greatest race moment this year.

Yesterday’s Monument Avenue 10k in Richmond (click here for the race report) looked like this:

A 10k I ran a couple of weekends ago in my hometown of Bedford, Va., looked like this:

Think running on hills helps in training for a relatively flat race?

Coming back from my ITB injury, my plan was simply this: to come back smarter and stronger. If that meant faster, then all the better. Today those “comeback” plans to came together perfectly and the results were so surprising.

I ran 48:08 in the Monument Avenue 10k in Richmond today, 3 seconds faster than my PR two years ago, which was the last time I raced this distance. Even better is that this PR came with a negative split. I ran 24:06 in the first half and 24:02 in the second half. All week long I have said that I’d see how things were going at the halfway point before “going for it.” Truth be told, I “went for it” the whole race.

After I hit the first mile under 8 minutes and the second mile in 7:35, there was no backing down. I felt like I struggled a bit in the middle miles, but I was still pulling in miles under 8 minutes.

As I neared the last minute, I could feel the emotions hit me as I thought about my grandfather a lot in the final mile, just knowing he probably would have enjoyed being in the crowd at the finish line.

I love it when I have a race that I can walk away from with no regrets. I may have let a few seconds slip away in certain parts of the course, but this was my race today. It was so unexpected, but so awesome. Nearly 6 hours later I still can’t find the right words to explain it.

I’ve talked before about how much I don’t like the 10k distance — too long if you start too slow, too short if you screw up going out too fast — but as I was racing today I realized how important running 6.2 miles very hard is. I’m pretty sure that I’ll be tackling this distance again very soon.

So yeah … I’m not sure what to say right now.

First off, at today’s Monument Avenue 10k expo, I met this guy:

And then I posted weird messages on Twitter about signing up for something. A couple of hours later, I took this photo of myself:

And eventually I admitted on Twitter and to my Facebook friends what I had done: I signed up for the Baltimore Marathon in October.

Oh yeah, I also picked up my race number and information for tomorrow’s Monument Avenue 10k. Let’s focus on that first, right?

Headed out on a cool, breezy run this Month.

If I ever stop learning while running, I’m going to hang up my shoes and do something else. As the first quarter of 2011 comes to an end, I’m realizing how much of a learning experience the past few months have been for me.

• There are more important things in life than running. Take it away from me and I’ll find something else.
• My core was weak. Very weak. I’ve learned to take better care of my core; now I have to continue to strengthen it and get stronger and stronger. I think I’ve logged more core workouts in the past three months than I did all of last year. Seriously.
• Last year I learned to enjoy running and not complain about it. I’ve learned to appreciate the ability to run even more in the past few months.
• I’ve learned to love the Bosu ball — it’s great for push-ups, birddogs, sit-ups, squats and just standing on, among other things.
• I have learned to block other negative people out. Please people, stop complaining about the hill work or speed work or long run you HAVE to do. No, you don’t have to do it. You’re choosing to run. Don’t tell me that you’re happy with running and then approach it with a sense of dread. I’m actually staying away from Twitter as much as I used to because I’m kind of tired of all the negativity.
• I feel that I am becoming a better runner with my new stride. My foot strikes for a minute the other day were just shy of 90 with one foot. In just a few short weeks, that’s an increase of nearly 10 foot strikes per minute. Surprisingly my normal, everyday comfortable pace is about 20 seconds faster per mile than a month ago. That’s without much intentional speed work. It feels weird, but when I slip into my old way of running, I can quickly tell how bad it was for me.

I have said to many people that injuries are the body’s way to make you stop and think about what you’re doing. I’ve certainly done my share of thinking. I have said to others in the same situation that they’ll come back stronger and smarter. That’s happened to me after every injury.

I’m not afraid to boast about being smarter and stronger, and I feel like I’m right there on the cusp of breaking through some barriers with my running. Whether that translates into PRs this year or just feeling better overall or training for another marathon, I’m looking forward to what the future holds.

With everything that has gone on in the past week — with my grandfather’s death, family coming in and out of town, not always eating that great (still meatless though), not getting nearly enough sleep and even dealing with the crazy weather — it feels weird that I have my first race this Saturday in nearly 5 months. It also seems weird that I’ve been talking about my ITB issues for nearly a half year after my problems started in October.

But it’s here … race week. I highly doubt that I’ll be “racing” the Monument Avenue 10k on Saturday. I will run it hard though. I have to … I need to … for so many reasons. I need to run hard to flush things out of my mind. I also need to run hard just to prove to myself that I can do it.

I obviously have a lot on my mind. Family deaths have a way of weighing on me and pushing me in directions that I’m just not familiar with yet. I need to listen to whatever I’m being called to do.

I started this blog nearly four years ago right after my grandmother’s death on my dad’s side of the family — I never talked about it at the time, but my blog was an outlet for my running thoughts. I had just been hesitant to do something until then.

My grandfather’s death is having an impact on me that I never expected. As I continue to realize more and more how much of a positive influence he had on my life, I want to strive to live my life more like him. Every picture I looked at last week in our family photo albums he was smiling. He was smiling around family, with friends … even at work. It’s not that I’m not happy with my life, but I sure do need to express it more.

I’ve been asked how I can keep a positive attitude with running, even in recent months with my injury. Well, folks, I just laid it out there for you. Having an influence in my life like my grandfather gives me all the reason I need to stay positive.

So, it is with a heavy heart that I have my first race in 140 days this coming Saturday, but I can bet you that I’ll be smiling more through it than I usually do.

If you’re new to my blog, the numbered post refers to which number entry this is since I started my running blog in 2007. It’s been a while since I’ve done one, but it’s also been a while since I haven’t had much to say about one specific thing. Instead, I have a variety things in my mind.

* Last week I wrote about breaking through the comfort zone. Well, today I did something I haven’t done in a really long time — I ran before 7 a.m. I haven’t done that since sometime during the weekend while training for the marathon last year. I haven’t done that on a weekday since a failed attempt sometime last summer. AND I didn’t wear my Garmin. So this morning was truly about getting out of my comfort zone — and I enjoyed every minute of it.

* My hill repeats on grass the other day really had a big impact on my legs. It was quite the wake-up call to do more runs like that. My main goal that day, though, was to run on trails and I intend to do that very soon. It’s been a while and I need that feeling of running through the wilderness a couple of times a month. Plus it’s a good workout for the core and balancing.

* Speaking of core, my plank test this week was 1:50, a 10-second improvement over last week and a 37-second improvement since the initial test at the end of February. I’m fully confident that I will hit my 2-minute goal this month, perhaps a little earlier than I expected.

* After having a marathon goal all of last year, it feels very weird to not have a “big” goal for later this year yet. That being said, I don’t want to look too far beyond April 2 when I run the Monument Avenue 10k. My main goal is to get through that race completely injury free. I plan to push it pretty hard, but only as a springboard for the rest of the year. I’ve written all about that here. My “big” goal may in fact become multiple goals as I am leaning heavily toward getting faster and staying focused on short distances. We’ll see. I’ve been known to change my mind when I haven’t paid for anything.

* Lastly, if you haven’t check out my Relay for Life post, please do. If you have $5 to spare to donate to a great cause and to make me run for that great cause, I’d greatly appreciate it.