My Magnificent Weekend/Mag Mile 1/2 marathon recap

The moment I heard that Lauren Fleshman was pacing the 1:45 group at the Women's Mag Mile 1/2 marathon in Chicago, it was a done deal...

I was going to run a local 1/2 marathon right in town that same day, but there was NO way I was going to pass an opportunity like this up. For those of you that don't know who Lauren Fleshman is, she's a pro runner for Oiselle(the same company I run for) except that she's way faster than I am and holds records such as a 14:58 5K and 2:37 marathon. She really caught my attention with the "keep it real" movement that encouraged women to be proud of our bodies and imperfections. Basically an all-around, real and inspiring woman runner that I and soooo many other women look up to.

The weekend started with packet pickup in downtown Chicago at Fleet Feet. Lauren was going to be there along with Coach Jenny Hadfield(another amazing and inspiring woman). I drove myself there and of course got there way too early and sat around the store waiting for the 3 mile shake out run that they were going to host. I heard a voice say, "hi" and I turned around and saw Lauren walking toward the store. I was able to mutter "hey!" back and just watched in amazement as she walked by. I looked at the girl sitting next to me and I could tell she felt the same way I did...total fangirls! We were both like, "oh my God, that was her!"

 

 

Coach Jenny and Lauren giving us a pep talk before our shake-out run

I felt like a creep taking pictures of her, but she was so amazingly nice and humble and was more that happy to get into photos with all of her fans. I met up with Sarah(@mahaney2) and we did our 3 mile shake out run together. We basically talked about our upcoming marathons and how we were feeling. After the run, I saw an opportunity to get a pic with Lauren. So I grabbed it! Meeting her was the highlight of my entire summer for sure.

 

 

 

 

The next morning was race day and I was up at 4am getting ready. I threw on my Oiselle singlet and never felt more proud to wear it, knowing I'd have other teammates wearing theirs too. My husband was kind enough to drive me out to Chicago and support me before he went into work that afternoon and my mom had my daughter for the night. I totally was getting flashbacks of the Chicago Marathon I ran last year, except there was way less runners at this event. Between the 1/2 marathon and 5k, there were about 5,000 runners instead of the 40,000 I ran with at the marathon. So parking and walking to Grant Park was easy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It didn't take long before I saw other women wearing their Oiselle singlets and immediately we acknowledged each other and offered words of support and encouragement. Even though we had never met each other, there was definitely a sense of empowerment and friendship between the Oiselle runners. That singlet is powerful. I met up with Sarah and Jessy(@momonthe_run) and did a warm-up with Lauren Fleshman as she offered more words of support. Then before we knew it, we were lining up in our assigned corrals.

 

 

All 3 of us were starting in Corral A, so we were about 10 feet away from toeing the start line. A few minutes later, we were off and running. I ran alongside Lauren who was pacing the 1:45 group for almost 2 miles. It was like a dream to me to have an opportunity like this to run with her. My legs actually felt amazing, even in the middle of marathon training with the Hanson's Plan(which is brutal) so I ran ahead of the 1:45 group and ran my own pace.

 

 

 

 

 

Around mile 4

 

 

 



The beginning of the race was of course down the historic Magnificent Mile in Chicago. From there the course ran along the Lakefront bike path and was an out and back course. I found my husband, Doug, at mile 4 standing alongside the course ready to cheer me on which was a huge mental boost for me. I was running crazy strong until about mile 10 then I could feel myself fading a bit. Chicago had 100% humidity that day and running along the lakefront there was hardly any shade, so the sun was taking a beating on me. I could feel the sweat dripping down my legs and flying off my fingertips as I ran. I just kept telling myself, "I can handle anything for 3 more miles, I've got this"

 

 

 

 As I entered Grant Park toward the finish line, I finished strong with an official time of 1:42:21. My Garmin showed I had ran 13.25 miles, so I'll go with that, ha!  It was no PR for me, but considering the heat and humidity and being in the middle of a brutal marathon training plan, I feel like I'm on the right path for a great marathon this November. I kind of walked in a daze to get my medal(I was so tired)chugged down 2 bottles of water, and turned around to see my husband walking up to me to give me a big hug. Perfect ending to an amazing weekend! I laughed and told him, "Man, it's going to be tough to do that for another 13.1 miles in a couple months." He replied by telling me that I've done it before and I'll do it again...but a lot faster!

 

 



 

The love of my life and biggest supporter :)





I was pretty happy to see my official results online later that day. I finished 63rd overall out of 2,571 total half marathoners and 17th in my age group out of 507. Congrats to all who finished and what an honor to be able to run with thousands of strong, inspiring women. Here's to finishing the rest of fall marathon training successfully and bring on the 50 degree temps! :) 

Sunburst Marathon Recap

2am wake-up call with the alarm

I didn't mind though as I shot out of bed, excited for what was to come. Marathon #3 and I was so ready.  I was running the Sunburst Marathon in South Bend, IN and the race started at 5am central time(the race was held in Eastern Standard Time)

My sister, Beth, and her boyfriend, Matt spent the night at my house and were both running the 5k race at Sunburst. They were already up when I opened my bedroom door. I brushed my teeth, threw in my contacts, put my hair up in a bun, got my racing clothes on and was out the door. We got there with an hour to kill, so I couldn't help but walk to the very place I did 2 years ago, to see the starting line of the race...when I was a 1/2 marathon runner admiring the marathon runners. Now today, I'm the marathon runner. I felt so humbled. I worked so hard for this.

The final minutes before the race started, I couldn't keep the smile off my face.  I high-fived Beth and Matt and kissed my husband and gave him the biggest hug. Before I knew it, I was off and beginning my journey of 26.2 miles. 

 It was still dark outside and the temps were in the lower 60's. I had my Nathan hand held water bottle all filled with Cocogo and a few GU Roctanes I'd take every 6 miles. I kept my pace in the 8:30-40 range and ran safe.  Right away there were a few hills and I remember thinking, "I hope this isn't the whole race." At mile 11, there was a huge hill and as I approached it, I just put my head down and pushed. Around mile 12, I ran past a street sign that said Madison St.  I smiled as I thought about my daughter, Madison who was at home with my mom at that moment. Apparently at the same time, my husband was along the side of the road trying to get my attention, but I missed him completely. He did manage to get a pic of me gulping down my gel.

At the half way point, I decided to start picking up the pace a bit. I wanted to run a negative split.  The sun had started to make things warm and it was rough running directly into it for several miles. I kept my pace steady but around mile 17, my legs started to feel the hills.  I didn't have any cramps, but it was like they just didn't want to move anymore. So I accepted the fact a negative split wasn't happening and just tried to enjoy the rest of the race. I still had a sub 4 hour on my mind and I was right on track for it.  

The course was absolutely beautiful running along the St. Joseph river.  The volunteers and spectators were just as awesome.  I had such a different mind-set than I did when I ran the Chicago Marathon. I never once thought that I could not finish the race.  I knew I could. I just didn't know what my finish time would be.  At mile 20, my legs were practically dead.  I started walking through the water stations but quickly recovered and pushed through with that sub 4 hour finish stabbing my mind.  At mile 26, I was in front of the Notre Dame stadium and gunned it for the finish line.  As I was running ready to turn the corner to the finish, I spotted my husband, sister, and her boyfriend on the side of the road waving and cheering for me. My heart almost burst as I pushed back the tears...then as I turned the corner, there it was, the finish line. 

 I looked for the clock which read 4 hours and my heart then did sink. I was SECONDS off finishing under 4 hours.  I crossed the finish line, arms extended out and head up. My disappointment did not last long. The medal was placed around my neck and I turned around to see my family walking toward me with big smiles on their faces.  I had just finished marathon number 3, when this time last year, I wasn't sure I could finish even one.  There are other marathons out there with my name on it.  I will run marathons until I can't run anymore.  I will get my sub 4.  I will get my BQ.  It may take many, many tries, many failures, but I won't give up.  I was born for this.

Marathons are not for the faint of heart. They hurt and tear you down. They're unpredictable. I had an amazing 20 mile training run just 2 weeks prior to the race and tapered appropriately, but there are so many things not in your control when you're out there running 26.2 miles.  I learned a lot about myself out there and know what my weaknesses are and what to work on this summer as I train for my upcoming fall marathon in Indianapolis.  Special thanks to everyone for all the support I've received before and after the race. It's been overwhelming and I'm so blessed to have that kind of love.  Thanks to Cocogo for such an amazing product. I had no cramps and no GI issues out there and it really kept me going in the heat.  Now BRING ON THE SUMMER MARATHON TRAINING! :)