Momentum Monday: Boston Peak

I’m a little unsure of how to clarify this weekend.

There was a wholllle lot go down. For starters, Angela left for freaking VANCOUVER on Friday. I may or may not have cried a little after she left. I am so proud of her and excited for the new adventures she will have on the west coast but will miss her a lot!

The other side of the equation is that we are in the process of getting renters to assign our apartment. Our condo is too big for one person and I am closing the chapter on roomie life and getting my own place. So last Sunday, we received a call from a couple who had sold their house and were madly searching for a place for April 1. They were coming this past Friday night to sign the papers so I madly spent the past week packing everything and preparing to move…only for them to decide NOT to sign on Friday night.

RUDE. 

So I spent the rest of the weekend unpacking and reorganizing.

The other interesting side of this equation is that meant that I moved my long run from Sunday to Saturday to get in an extra day of recovery in afterwards but I made this decision at 9 PM on Friday night after having done the following: had a stressful day at work, lunch meeting complete with a piece of steak and a glass of wine, more coffee than water all day, limited carbs, spending most of the day on my feet.

NOT proper preparation for my 3 hr Boston simulation run. At that point, I hadn’t even had dinner due to the renter scenario so I crushed the majority of a bag of Skinny Pop in an emergency carb load (thanks Christina) while binge watching The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt on Netflix.

I slept a solid 8 hours and woke up to have my pre-race breakfast.

500 ml of Gatorade Perform (this is what will be served at the aid stations at Boston)

2 cups of black coffee

2 cups of Love Grown Foods oatmeal

This long run was the peak of my training and I was nervous. I was running at race pace for 30 minutes, backing off to an easier pace about 20-30 s slower for 30 times 3. I purposefully did it solo and on a cold and windy day with a lot of hills without music and some extra weight with my hydration pack because I wanted to work on my mental game.

The first half hour was awful. I started on a down hill but about 3 KM, I turned into the wind and hills and that was the moment that my hydration pack decided it could NOT any more and the top came off and soaked me. It was -16 C with the wind chill so my backside was frozen. I finished off the first 30 minute segment and turned back home for the 30 minute tempo portion and to get changed. It was frustrating but I actually don’t mind when things like this happen because it prepares me for everything on race day. I also kept singing the theme song to The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt in my head- it totally paid off to binge watch the show for some race motivation!

I returned home after 1 hr, changed into dry clothes, took a gel and put on my hydration belt instead and set out for part 2.

The rest of it went smoothly. The only time I really was hurting with the last 15 minutes of the second tempo where I was climbing some hills and it felt like the wind was pushing me backwards. It was the kind of wind where your contacts freeze and you have your mouth gaping open like a fish just to get in enough air. Again, all awesome training for Boston and I was more or less able to hold on to race pace.

The way  back, I opened up and was pleasantly surprised that my legs had so much life in them. I finished each tempo km between 10-30 s faster than race pace and this was on hills on 2.5 hrs of running.

I practiced my nutrition for the race and my sports nutritionist has determined that I need 171 calories for every hour of exercise past 2 hrs. (So ridiculously specific). I did this with 500 mL Gatorade Perform, 3 GU chomps and 2 gels.

My coach and I had a serious talk this past week. We have hit a fantastic scenario where I am much fitter, much faster than expected but we are still sticking to the original time I started training for. I am not planning on killing this Boston. I want to run smart, execute the race I have been training for and ENJOY it. 

The rest of the season will be similar for me. I am operating well within my abilities and building a solid base, staying far away from injuries. Next year, we have some big plans for pushing me to my potentials and I am planning on getting some solid PR’s in. But 2015, I have so much going on outside of my athletic life that I am just playing out there and learning how to be the best athlete possible.

All that to say, the taper has officially begun and I couldn’t feel MORE ready for Boston. BRING IT ON.

Last week’s training:

MONDAY: REST

TUESDAY: 12 KM treadmill run, 4:58/km, 6 KM easy run with New Balance, 5:30/km

WEDNESDAY: REST

THURSDAY: 17 KM tempo, 4:35/KM

FRIDAY: 4 KM easy run, 30 minutes strength work

SATURDAY: 3 HR BOSTON SIMULATION. 39 KM at 4:39/km 

SUNDAY: REST

What are your biggest taper tricks? (I don’t WANNA)

Anyone race this weekend?