Tips and Tricks. II

My 11+ years of running along with some research has taught me some helful strategies! 1. Running diary. For every run I record my time, distance, pace, as well as the temperature and how I felt during and after. And any other relevant factors. I also write down my non running exercise-swimming and fitness center workouts. 2. Caffeine. This drug has been shown to have a positive effect on endurance. It acts to stimulate the central nervous system, is absorbed within 45 min, and begins to wear off in 3-4 hours. About 85 mg.is recommended. A soft drink contains around 50 mg, an "energy" drink, much more. However, be careful.I did the NJ marathon in 2008, had too much caffeine and experienced heart palpitations. It took almost 7 hours to finish! 3. Mantras. It improves my pace if I repeat an inspiring phrase over and over. My current favorites are "Light, Strong, Fast, Smooth, Easy" and "I feel good, I feel strong, I can do this all day long!" 4. I wear a fit bit to track distance and pace. I found that over a 12 mile distance, my phone records .5 mile LESS, and a slower pace, than the fit bit! I wonder why. 5. Hills. I run down hills, walk up hills, and run on level when I can. Strangely, I find if I try to run more, my pace is often slower. Figuring out my fastest walk/run ratio is a work in progress. 6. Water. I try to remember to drink more in the day or two before a race. Unless it is hot, I usually pass by water stations. 7. Race day strategy. I like to start near the back. It is more fun to pass people than to be passed! Take the tangents on turns. In other words cut corners and save steps wherever possible. Set mini goals. For example, run thru shade, walk thru sun. Run to the next corner, or catch that person just ahead. 8. Reward accomplishments! For a good training run, or a race, I have a "Yellowing Ceremony". I get my training log and a highlighter and Boyd and go to a restaurant. I light a candle, tell Boyd all about it, highlight the run in my log book while I play Chariots of Fire on my phone. Then I blow out the candle and that's it. Kinda cheesy, I know! 9. Realistic goals. Since I started running 11 years ago, my pace improved every year--until January, 2015. My PR for the half marathon (2:38), was set 4 years ago. Despite consistent training and effort, my times have slowed. My goal now for the half marathon is under 3 hours. It is not easy, but I have accepted this!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My half marathon goals

Image
Today is my birthday. 75! A good day to set new goals! I have been run/walking for 11 years. This year I plan to complete a half marathon each month. My goals for each of the 12- 1. Finish each in less than 3 hours. 2. Win my age/gender group. 3. Stay healthy! Goal #2 will be challenging. My PR is 2 hrs 39 minutes, but that was 2 yrs ago and my times have slowed since then. Goal #1 is more achievable- I will often be the only entry in my age/gender group! I also strive for negative splits and to run at least 50% of the distance, but the above are my main goals. Most of these half marathons had a few hundred finishers last year. But one had 29, and another over 20,000!  My half marathons are in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Hampshire, Florida, North Dakota and British Columbia. Most will be on paved roads but one is 50% trail, and another is all trail. I have done a couple of these half marathons before but, most are new to me. I am excited to be doing this and
Read more

10/7/201-The Shades of Death Half Marathon

Image
This half  marathon had a far different vibe than Ocean City last week! Spooky legends abound. The course runs along one of the most haunted lakes in New Jersey, Ghost Lake. Shades of Death Road is said to be cursed due to the poisoned water here which caused the  plague. Many murders have alledgely occured here! Race day, the road was quiet on farm roads past fields of pumpkins, kale and corn. Also chickens, goats and horses! The weather was cloudy, in the 70's. Although the website said it was "mostly flat", there were many hills. I mostly walked up hills and ran down, but did a lot of walking the last few miles. Still, I finished in 2 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds. ONE SECOND under my goal! I came in 169 out of 174 finishers. I was the only 75-79 year old woman, and my first place award was a knit cap. How did I finish this race only 1 second under my goal of 3 hours? Possible factors- I used the mantra "How Bad Do You Want It?" from the book by
Read more

8/10/2019. Go Far Woman Half Marathon

Image
 We travelled to much cooler North Dakota for this flat and fast race. Also, Boyd had a Bucket List goal of visiting all 50 states. After years of travel, this trip fulfilled his goal- North Dakota was his 50th. state to visit!  Amazingly, ND celebrates this! We stopped at the visitor center in Fargo and he was presented with a certificate and a T shirt, reading "Best for Last Club" of Fargo. North Dakota!       And this half marathon was also the last- and best- for my race a month challenge, for my 75th year. I actually finished with my best time  in at least 5 years, in 2:48:51. That is a pace of under 13 min/mile!  Not my PR- that would be 2:38. But to be realistic, it is not likely that I will finish in that time again.        It was cool, in the 50's, and the course was as flat as could be. As with several other races this year, the age category was "70 and over". I was beat by a 72 year old, so I came in 2nd! It was a female-themed e
Read more