It's been a while since I revisited my own personal portfolio and keeping tabs on my training schedule this past summer and into fall race season... sorry! If you are ever wondering what I am up to, I am fairly active on Strava logging in my runs or other cardio related cross-training.
WHAT I'VE BEEN UP TO
Ever since my last post, I participated in quite a few races which I will eventually elaborate more in detail on separate individual posts and will be hyperlinked in the following lists:
I also joined my local Lululemon chapter for their group runs Tuesday nights and Saturday mornings on a weekly basis from April to October. You can find them numerous ways on social media and Strava here:
In terms of weekly running mileage, I managed to hold myself accountable for up to weekly 65km per week give or take. What worked for me this year was having the mindset that it is okay to be unstructured despite work commitments and hanging out with my social circle from time to time. For example, I will make an honest attempt to at least squeeze in a long run of more than 21km and juggling between some tempo runs and easy runs. This is important to me especially knowing that some days you have it in you to do the extra, while some days when you're planning for a hard workout and you're just mentally shut down for the day after long hours at work. Summer's been hot and humid most of the time. I vividly remember doing long runs with a hydration waist belt or in some cases having to divert the planned route to parkettes where there are those kiddy splash pads to temporarily cool down - only to be dying in the heat again with my singlets and shorts all dried up from the heat. RACE HIGHLIGHTS The best part of all races (after putting an honest attempt to train) is the runner's high the remainder of the day after crossing the finish line. Although I am proud of the six races and the PBs acquired since June, there are select races that really stood out more so than others. The first one is the Bang & Olufsen Yorkville Run 5K and the second one is the Chicago Marathon. Did you know? Up until this past September's race, I have never officially ran a 5K race before. Of course, I fell into typical stereotypes of that it is "simply" just a 5K. What actually transpired was the realization that I actually need more track workouts and manage my short spurts of speed and pace changes. I see myself that if I can make it work, then hopefully that converts to incremental seconds to minutes shed off for future marathon times. Chicago was my first ever travel-race. I recall being ecstatic being selected through lottery around this time last year. I also had just as much jitters thinking of the travel planning and coordinating the finer details since this was a solo excursion and I rarely travel out of province / country anyways. But now that I ran the race and have time to reflect upon it, I guess it all worked out just fine! I was pretty fortunate to come across our weekly run leader in Chicago so I didn't feel all too foreign. The course was as flat as it can be as described by fellow runners and bloggers on the internet. Race day conditions was as stormy and windy as it can be - true to the Windy City claim. More on that later, but the grand prize overall is my first ever BQ attainment. As much of a reserved person that I am, my raw emotions were on full display upon moment of reckoning that Boston is truly within reach. That's it for now, but my running journey doesn't end here as I resume regular running back in the uptown! See you on my run - Mike
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Race Season Begins!
It's quite literally been a fast and furious few weeks into the spring season with all the spring races happening. It has also been transition time for me to adjust the running training schedule earlier so I can avoid training in the summer heat. Fast and furious, mainly because of the key races such as setting a new benchmark for the marathon time in Pittsburgh and also a new PR for 10K for the (plentiful of downhills) Sporting Life 10K. I'm proud to say that I'm still basking on that extended runner's high even it's been a few weeks time. But like all things, can't dwell on past achievements and have to plan actionable training plans to keep pushing the PR envelope even further!
May 6: Pittsburgh Marathon
This full marathon at Pittsburgh is my first out of country run outside of Ontario. I was equally as excited as I was with the travelling and the unknown jitters. However, I felt pretty confident going in with the winter training finally coming to fruition with a few side race PRs from Burlington and Hamilton sedimenting that state of mind.
During taper week, I actually did not really minimize my weekly mileage but rather running at a significantly reduced pace - at least just so I mentally don't feel that I forgot how to run lol. I was increasingly carbing up at the second half of the week to reduce the over bingeing the very last minute. In terms of travelling, left Toronto at around 6:30 pm and headed straight for Pittsburgh with the intention of going straight to their convention centre for baggage and bib pickup. That was a relatively manageable 7 hour drive with a pitstop by Grove City as I made it down by around 1:30 pm... quite honestly not too bad in my opinion. That very day, I had a late lunch (not by choice) followed by yet another carb rich dinner a couple hours later so that there are enough time for digestion and be deep sleeping by 10 pm before race day. By the time I'm back to the hotel, I had roughly an hour to pack the next day's baggage prep and bib belt essentials. Pre-Race Rituals: Hotel Kuerig coffee pod, banana, Starbucks muffin that I got one the night before / anti-chaffing balm applications / Google Mapping the designated parking area again before leaving I find it nerve-wrecking especially if you have to blindly drive off to a set designated parking that's not your home turf with the addition of public roads gradually being closed off bit by bit as time winds down. Once the parking was done and over with, the first line of business was to do baggage check and then finding my set start line corral. Also in the meantime, it was just as important looking for nearby porta-potty and do my constant cycle from using the stall to lining up again to keep the bowels and the bladders at bay. 0 - 10 Miles New: I started at the first corral for this marathon. Unlike previous runs, I made a deliberate choice to space out at the very far end so I can manoeuvre around passerby without all too much additional effort. It was also quite new to me to get accustomed to mile markers as I'm so used to seeing kilometres over miles. Throughout the very first kilometre (based from my GPS watch), it was busy hunting for that sweet spot pace where it can dictate the overall tone of the entire duration of the run. Once the pace was attained, I started to push that benchmark pace a bit more and test if it is sustainable enough without any extra discomfort early into the run. The elevation for this part was manageable but the humidity that very day made things uncomfortable (although I can't complain about the overcast skies prior to the rain showers...) I recall that after the initial bit of bridge crossings, that's where that gummy worms pickup from some random stranger really came in handy and euphoric. Essentially those sugar bombs carried me through into the next sequence of the run. 10 - 20 Miles Still chugging along until the upcoming bridge crossing and leading into miles 12 - 13. From there at around near half-marathon distance, a very un-welcoming 43 metres of elevation awaited to be grind through. Essentially, the surface of those roads are highway exit on ramps which gradually merges into a residential road. You know how I mentioned about those gummy worms? They REALLY came in handy as I chewed down on them some more to extract as much sugar as I can to push on through ?. However after that initial uphill, it was not completely done and over with where the next sequence was nothing but small rolling hills around various sub-divisions within Pittsburgh. Although speed made everything seem like a blur, I managed to observe my surroundings and be able to pickup on generic impressions of the city overall and the community that keeps the place operational. Select areas remind me of Hamilton, Ontario when I did the Around The Bay and also the Hamilton Road2Hope Marathon. 20 Miles - Finish This last segment was mostly downhills as the course makes a returning route back into the downtown core of Pittsburgh. I recall the overall pace then was at around roughly 4:10 min/km and the time advantage really had me thinking that qualifying for BQ was no longer just a pipe dream but rather something that I can actually attain with even more serious training from where I'm at now. At around mile 24, I literally tried picking up the pace and flirted with the idea of actually gunning for that elusive qualifying 3:05:00 finishing time. However by the time the mile was done and onto mile 25, it was mathematically no longer feasible. I was not discouraged... very content as a matter of fact. So I consciously slightly dialled back the pace so that I can still finish at a respectable time frame. To my absolute surprise, the final time was at 3:08:48 based on my watch. I can't get any more ecstatic than that! Takeaways: YES - the qualifying times can be attainable, but the million dollar question is - "how badly do you want it and exactly what will you do to attain it?" In addition to those self-questioning statements, I need to hold myself accountable with an actual timeline to what I plan to do in order to measure progress and self-evaluations. After all, momma didn't raise no quitter! May 13: Sporting Life 10K 2018
What's Next
June 2018: Toronto Lululemon 10K
I have been running with my local Lululemon chapter in preparation for the upcoming 10K in June. You see, I love running in groups even more so than just running solo during my own training. I feel even more empowered when I know that I can help somebody make a positive difference, albeit a new PB, feeling good about themselves, moral boost, etc. Returning to the trails! Now that the Endurance Challenge in Blue Mountains for July is no longer happening, I can finally turn my attention to do trail running at other locations within Southern Ontario and tap into my inner adventure bug. But, I have been even more wary of nature's hazards such as blazing sun damage and disease carrying insects such as ticks and mosquitoes. Aside from that, let's keep adventuring on! Cheers and until next time - M.W. Week 19 ✕ Sporting Life 10K Toronto RecapI had the great pleasure once again to represent Team Running Free at this year's Sporting Life 10K along side with my avid weekend warrior group of friends. Aside from the Scotiabank Waterfront race in mid-October, this particular race down Yonge Street is my favourite perennial measuring stick of the progress that I have made from a year-to-year basis. I have become increasingly prepared and well equipped for each of these runs as each year passes and these kind of morning rituals are extremely helpful leading up to the even more important races. Case and point: the Barrie Half-Marathon that is coming up in two weeks time. However, I was not completely prepared. I had finished a late night shift from my casual part-time work the day prior. I also left the house without my almighty important GPS watch in the morning. Systemically, I turn to plan B which is using my iPhone to track the running data for this race. The first five kilometres was nothing but a straight downhill down on Yonge Street. Without thinking too much, I bolted out of the start line with speed and let the gravity take care of the rest. The flaw is that by manually engaging start on the Strava phone app, I lose concentration and placed my phone into my shorts pocket with the zipper 1/4 zipped up. Bad move. Just briefly after crossing Yonge and Eglinton, my Bluetooth wireless earbuds lose connection and my music was gone. "Oh it's just a bad connection" - so I thought. Kept pushing the power button and volume buttons; no reaction. Thats when unnecessary adrenaline rush kicked in with guilt. "Should I keep going? Or turn back?" That notion of uncertainty essentially carried on throughout the remainder of the race. I went to the conclusion that I may as well run faster to the finish line so that I can find out what to do next when finished. That's when I realized I was at the 7K mark, I think where the second water station is? The speed was constant with not as many obstruction while the elevation is now flat. And soon enough, I managed to push my way into the finish line - of course not knowing my official race time and not so much of satisfaction had things gone the way they were supposed to be. The next steps were asking strangers and my buddies with iPhones to borrow their phone and use "Find My Phone" app. At first, my heart sank as the first two locations tracked of my phone was gradually shifted southbound. "Fuck, somebody must've stolen it for sure" - so I thought. That's when I decided to remotely set it into Lost Mode and call my phone soon after to test my luck. To my delight, that person picked up the phone and responded. "We have your phone and meet us down at Princess Gate!" Major sigh of relief but still angsty. Let my main group momentarily to go to the specific area where the person said to meet. Alas, there was the person, a wife and husband with their kids, stroller and all. "My husband tried to get you but you were too fast to catch up!" she exclaimed. I guess that's where I might have gotten too carried away when I was running downhill. My takeaway: always activate your iCloud / Google account so that you can remotely locate your phone. If you have a valid iCloud account, simply login to "Find my Phone" app whereas for Android users, login your Google credentials to the official "Android Device Manager" app. After the scary episode, I looked up my results on sportstats.ca and looks like a new PB and slashing 2 minutes from last year. My takeaway: always activate your iCloud / Google account so that you can remotely locate your phone. If you have a valid iCloud account, simply login to "Find my Phone" app whereas for Android users, login your Google credentials to the official "Android Device Manager" app. After the scary episode, I looked up my results on sportstats.ca and looks like a new PB and slashing 2 minutes from last year. |
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