I am a qualifier for the 2013 Boston Marathon!!!!

Boston Marathon Qualification at 24 Hours Around the Lake Marathon!

I am proud. I am ecstatic. I am in disbelief. I am relieved. I am a Boston Marathon Qualifier. Finally.

Qualifying for the Boston Marathon has been a dream of mine since I really became hooked on running. Qualifying for the Boston Marathon is on most runners list of goals.  And now I can say that I am officially going to run the Boston Marathon.

Boston Marathon Qualifier #Fifluential #PROOF

I ran my first marathon in 2004 at the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco, CA.  Completing a marathon was my first major running goal. I trained for this marathon with the Virtual Team in Training for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Since I live in the middle of nowhere, I trained for this marathon with the help of an online coach and did all of the training runs on my own. My goal for this marathon was to finish which I did in a time of 4:21.52. My pace was 9:59 minutes per mile. Running my first marathon got me hooked and was the start of my dream to get faster and to qualify for Boston even though in the days after the race I was hobbling around like a little old lady doing the post marathon limp.

This weekend I faced my goal of qualifying for Boston again head on. This was my 6th marathon. After running the Vermont City Marathon in May I was so close I could taste qualifying. My finish time at the VT City Marathon was 3:45.29. I had trained for this race as though I was studying for a degree. I followed my training plan to the letter. I think I only missed one work out. I trained my a$$ off. However when race day came, I was unfocused, I was negative. I let other things get in the way of my race day performance. I ran like a novice and did what we used to call in running, “Fly and DIE!” I ran way faster than I should have at the beginning feeling amazing on my rested, fresh legs from my taper and allowed myself to be pushed along by the cheers of the crowd. I did not run MY race, and so in the heat and wrapped up in the excitement I hit the WALL and ended up essentially willing myself to the finish line through the most horrific leg cramps, stomach cramps, and horrible negative attitude. It was NOT the race finish that I had wanted!

After the VT City Marathon I did a lot of soul searching, and thinking about the race and what went wrong.  I decided to sign up for another marathon but to approach the race and training in a completely different way. My first goal was to train but to not really tell to many people about my training to take the pressure off. I am often too competitive with myself and so did not want any added pressure.

Endurance Sport coaching based in coastal Maine but also available online

I also needed to find a way to get back to racing hard and having fun. Leading up to the race I ran some trail races, some mountain races and spent a lot of time running on the trails with my friends. I followed my training plan for my Sustainable Athlete Coach Denise Goode but also listened to my body carefully and rested as needed. I also spent time revisiting my fueling and hydrating plans as I had severe dehydration issues at the VT City Marathon and did not eat enough either.

The Marathon that I picked was 24 Hours Around the Lake . The race format is a totally different than a traditional marathon.  The marathon starts at 7 p.m. and in order to complete 26.2 miles you need to run around Quannapowitt in Wakefield, MA 8 TIMES (plus a little extra)!!!Yes, you heard me correctly . . . 8 laps around the lake.  To many people this might sound like a terrible idea but for me this race turned out to be absolutely perfect!

Marathon around the Lake!

I spent a quiet morning by myself on race day and ate plenty to load up for the night marathon.  I had two Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs (Fried) for breakfast with 2 large slices of whole wheat toast and a banana. Mid-morning I ate some pretzels and a whole wheat bagel with cream cheese. For lunch had a giant bowl of pasta with broccoli and grilled chicken and some bread. Mid-afternoon I had a bagel with peanut butter and another banana. I also consumed a ton of water and Gatorade during the day to keep myself hydrated without floating away (if you know what I mean).

I arrived at the race early in order to scope out the course and find my focus. When the race began you could feel a quiet energy from the runners. The weather was humid but cooled off to around 70 degrees once the sun started to set. There was a light breeze at times too which was needed especially during laps three and four when these ridiculously large clouds of bugs encircled the lake (cough, cough . . . try not to inhale!).

I settled in to a comfortable race pace right from the start not wanting to deviate from my plan. I worked hard to stay disciplined and to not get caught up in the initial excitement and adrenaline.

Be disciplined!

During my previous marathon I did not exercise self-discipline, instead I let adrenaline take control and I hit the wall. This time I would not let that happen.  I controlled my pace only picking it up at the half way point slightly when I knew I still had the energy to go further.  I focused on the energy from the environment around me, coming from the other runners, through their foot-strikes and breathing, from the sounds the music coming from the summer bandstand. My favorite part of this marathon was the evening start. There is something about running at dusk and dark that brings a different level of intensity and focus to a run. If you have never tried running at night I would highly recommend it!with

Amazingly I was able to stay positive for the entire marathon and broke the race down into manageable pieces. Once I got to the halfway point I focused less on my splits and more on my body, feeling good, and trying to “enjoy” the race. I actually loved the format of going around the lake 8 times because it gave me one less thing to worry about. Once I had completed the first loop I knew the course and did not have to anticipate what might lie ahead. During this marathon I totally felt in the zone!

With 2 laps to go I new I had a 10K left to race. Since the 10K is one of my strongest distances I knew I could go for it and push my way to the finish line quickly. My last lap I allowed my adrenaline to kick in and ran the last mile at a 7:58 pace! When I arrived at the finished I was shocked to see my time!

3:33.41!!!

A new PR by 12 minutes!!! 8:09 pace!

A Boston Qualifying Time!!!!

Boston Marathon Qualifier and 3rd Place Woman in my Age Group at the 24 Hours Around the Lake Marathon

Mission accomplished. This race was amazing and just what I needed to achieve my Boston Marathon goal time and then some!

I am still somewhat in disbelief but also proud of myself for believing in myself and for allowing my body to do the job that it had been trained to do. Now, I only hope that I can get in to Boston . . . I’ll keep you posted.

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Lake Quannapowitt, Wakefield MA

3rd Place Woman and Boston Marathon Qualifier!

I can!

Fly!

Proud Finisher (still standing!)

Fuel and Hydrate

Register

Time Needed to Qualify for Boston for 35-39 Age Group

Sustainable Athlete

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2.1.14

Congratulations to everyone who competed in this race and finished either the marathon, 12 Hour Ultra, 24 Hour Ultra, or Team Relay!

This weekend (Sunday, June 10th at 9 a.m.) I am going to be running at the First Annual “Sufferfest.” Sufferfest is a mountain adventure race put on by Littleton Bike and Fitness and sponsored by our family farm Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs.

Host of the first ever “Sufferfest”

Refuel with Pete & Gerry’s Organic Eggs

The race begins in Franconia, NH at the Franconia Inn and ends at the top of Cannon Mountain in Franconia Notch. You can pick your “poison” for the race, run it or ride it (mountain bike). The race will be a grueling 6 mile climb with an elevation gain of 3,150 feet. For trail enthusiasts and mountain runners this will be an exciting challenge and may even be referred to as “fun.” I’ll let you know how much “fun” I had post-race if I am still able to stand on my own two legs which are still in recovery mode post Vermont City Marathon. I am hoping some of the other Pete & Gerry’s Organic Chicks will join me on the mountain!

This race definitely has some cool features not to be missed:

• It is primarily a trail race (albeit a trail race that only goes up!?!?)
• If you are running perhaps one of the mountain bikers might let you hitch a ride?
• When you EVENTUALLY arrive at the finish you will be rewarded with sweeping views of Franconia Notch and beyond.
• It will NOT be snowing! (and if it is I think I may need to move somewhere tropical)
• If you actually make it to the summit you can officially call yourself a bada$$ for rocking this awesome challenge.
• You might win some egg-cellent raffle prizes that include some EXTREME PROTEIN to refuel your body post race!
  

  EXTREME Protein

You do not have to run or ride back down! The Trams often referred to by locals as “ketchup & mustard” will be there to bring you back to earth the base of the mountain.

Ketchup

Mustard

***DISCLAIMER: If you do not like condiments then you are all out of luck and will have to run or ride back down.

SO who’s in? Are you up for the challenge? If so please register here on active.com and I’ll see you at the top!

Are you ready to “suffer?”

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Be Proud

I am proud of myself for all of my hard work and for not giving up at the Vermont City Marathon on Sunday. I know after running this race that I have extreme mental toughness and also the physical strength and aerobic capacity to run a marathon. My finish time at the marathon was 3:45.28. For me this was a 10 minute PR which is a tremendous accomplishment. I was 26th in my age group (35-39) out of 160 women, 153rd female out of 1,085, and 626th out of 2,418 runners.

Ready to Race (hanging out by Lake Champlain)

Most awesome training partner! Love ya Bridget!

I did not achieve my goal of qualifying for Boston (at least not yet that is). For me it was not meant to be at this race. For me this race was a learning experience which we must all go through in order to achieve success. I am proud of myself because even though I did not reach my ultimate goal I know that I left everything out on the pavement on Sunday.

I made it! (3:45.28)

My training this fall, winter, and spring was incredible. I trained my a$$ off! I was focused, I was driven, I stayed positive and overall I learned a lot about myself. Training for this race gave me confidence and inner-strength to be able to reach for my dreams. We all need goals and to reach for the stars.

On race day I wanted to go for it and did not feel stressed about the actual race but found myself lacking focus that morning and consumed by outside thoughts. I need to remember to run my own race

Fast chicks in skirts. Thanks @skirtsports

. Rather than sticking to a solid race plan of going out with a nice even pace of 8:10-8:20 and then working towards negative splits during the second half of the race I went out way too. I allowed the energy of the other runners, the crowds and the easy feeling of my gait to sweep me down the race course at a pace that would not be easy to maintain during the crucial last 6.2 miles. I made the rookie mistake of “fly and die.” I knew I went out too fast but for some reason could not slow myself down. I did not allow my friend Bridget who was pacing me to do her job of reminding me not to go too fast at the beginning.

My body was challenged on race day also due to nutrition and hydration issues. I took in plenty of GU along the course, along with bananas, watermelon, oranges, and water ices however I did not eat the “real food” that I needed and I did not eat early enough. My metabolism races so fast that I could have used an entire peanut butter and jelly sandwich at around mile 5 and then every 4 or 5 miles after that. Around mile 19-20 the race course weaves through neighborhoods that have excellent crowd support but also are in direct sunlight and by that time the temperatures had climbed somewhere into the 80′s with no breeze. I had been alternating between water and gatorade at each aid station however the loss of electrolytes was too great and by mile 21 I felt myself bonking. My legs were wobbly and I began to zig zag. Thankfully Bridget was by my side to keep me focused. At the next aid station I was made to drink about 6-7 cups of gatorade (next race I will drink gatorade/NUUN at each station). My legs were cramping and then we had to walk for a while. Seeing the pace group leaders come by I knew my goal was passing but I still wanted to finish. At this point I had to focus on the finish line and on Bridget. I needed to focus on her energy and the energy of the other runners on the course. I had to find my “om,” to keep my emotions calm and just listen. I listened. I listened to my breathing, to my foot strikes. I listened to Bridget’s voice. I listened and I believed what she was saying and somehow found the last ounces of strength in my muscles and made my legs go. Crossing the finish line was not pretty and the end of the race experience required an extended stay at the lovely Medical tent in order to get my fluids back in balance.

Listen (Photo credit @Oiselle)

Not the way I wanted to finish and not the final outcome that I had hoped for but I am PROUD. I have been able to stay positive and have done a lot of reflecting and revisiting the experience and know that in the end this race has made me a much stronger person and mentally tough runner. There will be other races and I am going to go after my dreams.

be Proud. (ribbonworthy.com)

What dreams are you chasing?

You’ve been chicked!

Next race on my schedule: “Sufferfest“run by The Littleton Bike Shop in Littleton NH and sponsored by Pete & Gerry’s Organic Eggs our family farm. The race starts in Franconia, NH and ends at the top of Cannon Mountain. The course is 6 miles with 3150 feet of climbing. Who wants to join in the fun????

Looks like fun, right? Are you up for the adventure?

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I am feeling super amped about the marathon now that my stomach is no longer doing triple backflips. This week is totally focused on super nutrition, rest, and getting myself and my kids back to 100% health. As an athlete it is hard being sick but I have been good and listened to my body this time and allowed for plenty of rest while trying to load in the calories to nurse myself back to health. Thankfully it seems to have paid off and I have bounced back.

So now with fresh energy I decided tonight I would try my first real video log. So here we go . . .

So with less than a week to go until marathon Sunday I am desperately trying to get healthy. I have avoided getting sick throughout all of the miles and many different child and husband illnesses . . .colds, pneumonia, ear infections, tummy bugs (which including being thrown up on) and now here I am one week away from the Vermont City Marathon with some sort of stomach funk that started yesterday morning.

This painting by my 3 year old depicts how I am feeling right now . . .Green!

I haven’t actually felt too sick other than the horrible ominous rumbling in my stomach but now I am at the end of day 2 and wishing this would GO AWAY! I am working hard to fuel my body with enough nutrients to build my glycogen stores during this final week of tapering and to stay well hydrated with my trusty Nalgene full of NUUN by my side.

Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!

I have been enjoying a delicious diet of bland foods in hopes that my tummy will turn from topsy turvy to right-side up by tomorrow morning. My diet over the past two days has included plain noodles, oatmeal with Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts sprinkled on top in an attempt to get some extra protein, bananas, toast, and Stonyfield yogurt (come on pro-biotics do your magic!), and scrambled Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs (again for some protein of course!).

Fueling to be well

I am going to bed now in hopes to feel like a new energized me in the morning. Think positive thoughts and please share your tips if you have any!!!!

My mantra this week

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I completed 17.35 miles yesterday in 3:04:26 with 2,177 feet of elevation gain as a part of my marathon training for the VT City Marathon. The run was extra challenging due to the fact that we ran mostly on trails and had some serious climbing to do along the way. I am working on fueling for race day and found that I definitely need more calories during the run. At around 14 miles in I started feeling “bonky” which is probably equivalent to crashing into the wall somewhere between 18 and 20 miles at the marathon. I hope to get my fueling plan all figured out pre-race day to help me “climb” over the wall. During the run I had to push through it since we began a serious ascent at mile 14 as we ran/power hiked up to the top of Bear Claw. The climb and the push to the top was worth it though and I felt re-energized by the accomplishment of powering through a tough moment during the run. This was a moment of digging deep. We all put our heads down and the run became silent except for the sounds of breathing and the crunching of leaves underfoot.

Run Stats

View from the Top of Bear Claw

The views of Franconia Notch and the valleys below were amazing! The morning was crisp and clear and the energy of our group was high. I ran with my friends who motivate and inspire me with their enthusiasm and desire to just get out there and run and not question a challenge. My friend Bridget constantly buzzes with energy and seems to have endless power and speed. My friend Jenny taking a break from adventure racing to be a mom has strength within and drive to push hard. 4 months post-baby she is back at it and her running seems effortless. Today we were also accompanied by Gabe my friend Joanna’s husband and now proud father of two wonderful kids. Gabe has a quiet energy and positivity and fit perfectly with our group.I feel lucky to be able to run with this group and aspire to run like they do. The one common trait of these amazing athletes is the ability to not over think and to just run.

Gabe and his babes

More of Gabe and his babes!

Accomplishing this 17 mile run with these strong and intense athletes gives me the motivation to work harder. Plus running with my friends always has moments of laughter which keep things light along the way!

A moment of laughter on our run as Nanook needed to be carried across this bridge.

Giggles

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It has been crazy around here. I love having a full plate and being scheduled to the max. I always feel more productive. Although sometimes when I take a break for a minute I almost feel winded (almost like after running up a mountain . . . Which by the way I’ll be doing again tomorrow morning at the “egg” crack of dawn. Winter Wild Round 3 here I come!).

2 Laps of Pats Peak=4 Miles of Winter Wild

My two little chicks keep me on my toes every day. I wish I could drink in endless amounts of twirling, dancing, jumping, laughing pure energy. From the moment they awake they are out of their beds as though the starter pistol has gone off at the start of a race. During the race of our day there are meals to be made and devoured, intense playing at home and at pre-school, a daily battle of wits between 3.5 year old and Mommy, and wrestling matches with a cranky toddler who has discovered the joy of play and doesn’t want to concede defeat to exhaustion.

In the middle of this chaos is time for me to work, to write, to run. I officially started training for The Key Bank Vermont City Marathon this week to add in a bit more craziness. A coach from my friend Doug’s awesome coaching business The Sustainable Athlete is setting up my training. I am looking forward to having a daily plan to provide extra motivation. It’s been a long time since I had real coaching for sport.

Sweet one on one coach for ENDURANCE athletes

I am hoping for a Boston qualifying time which will be a fast 3:40. I feel like I’ve built a good base this past fall and winter thanks to half marathons and long miles with the awesome Pete and Gerry’s Organic Chicks.

Now it’s time to dial it up a bit. And just to kick things off with a bang my first official workout was intervals and I chose my friend Bridget (crazy fast with the energy of my 3.5 year old ) as my interval buddy. I had great plans to complete this workout in the morning but life took over. So, this workout ended up being a headlamp run on a dark VT dirt road. It felt amazing though and always the perfect way to end a crazy day and somehow I am always able to find the energy.

Post Intervals Glow

Now begins the race to the finish line. This time with a plan to guide me and high energy surrounding me to serve as motivation.

Where do you get your energy?

Find your power source

I had made a promise that I was not going to run another marathon and haven’t since my last VT Cit Marathon in 2007. Instead I have completed other “marathons” in the past few years . . .major surgery while 12 weeks pregnant with my first child, followed by an early c-section due to pregnancy complications in 2008 , then the marathon of first-time motherhood where I also experienced my first bout of postpartum depression (undiagnosed until 8 months-took a long time to find myself again), then pregnancy again, this time with a toddler (EXHAUSTING!), another c-section due to pregnancy complications along the way, and again postpartum depression (even trickier the second time around). In between the marathon of motherhood I have been trying to get myself back to where I want to be with running and am finally feeling AMAZING and headed towards a peak performance (at least I hope).

The last 26.2 miles that I attempted ended with a stay in the medical tent at the end of the race with an IV drip in my arm. Not exactly the finish that I had hoped for. I had been running very well that spring up until the week of the race when I came down with a horrible sickness that required taking lots of Sudafed to attempt to dry out my sinuses. Basically when race weekend rolled around I felt like crud and was completely dehydrated from all of the Sudafed coursing through my veins. I should have taken this as my cue to bail out and to skip the race altogether until I felt better and then to sign up for another race. For those of us though who have a running “addiction,” choosing not to run when sick or injured is generally not an option. So I ran, all 26.2 miles and it was grueling. I hit the wall. It was hot and then as soon as my body felt as though I had slammed into the pavement with my head pounding it began to pour buckets of rain. I dragged my body across the finish line just missing my p.r. and well off Boston Marathon Qualifier time. My muscles were seizing and vertigo began to set in. I got myself to the med. tent and then basically collapsed onto the cot. This was a stupid day to run a race!

Now, you are probably asking yourself, “and why would anyone ever want to do this race?” My husband put his foot down and said no more marathons and I agreed. We agreed that I could still run a marathon distance only if it was broken up in relay format so as to have adequate rest periods in order to re-hydrate and refuel (I often have a problem with bonking anyways as my metabolism runs like it is a race car rapidly burning through fuel.) This seemed like a great compromise until now.

This past summer and fall I began amping up my mileage in order to train for running the Vermont 100 on 100 Relay as an ultra team with two of my best friends and then later in the fall the Reach the Beach Relay. I chose several 10K’s and Half marathons to run along the way and started to find a real groove with running. My whole mindset concerning racing and competing these days has totally changed. Perhaps I have found my “inner-chi.”

inner Qi

Pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum was by no means easy for me and I have had to find ways to learn how to cope with this, how to alleviate stress, and how to focus in on positive energy. I also have a great friend Ken, who has the ability to hypnotize in order to help people overcome difficulties.I actually believe he used conversational hypnosis to help me (this will require a whole other post to tell more about this) find a different perspective and inner quiet when running to be more successful. As of late I have felt fantastic on long runs and even having too much energy if I don’t get in my higher mileage workouts. Racing this summer and fall was awesome with lots of personal records along the wat.

I want to try the marathon again because I just can’t seem to let go of my goal. It is something that I want to do for me. I am hoping for a Boston qualifying time (although they keep lowering the qualifying times!) but even more than that I am hoping to have a consistent race where I feel strong, race smart, and feel proud of my accomplishment at the end.

I can’t wait! VT City Marathon 2012, Burlington, Vermont

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