Monday, October 22, 2012

Marathon Madness Monday: A Race Recap

As promised, here is a race recap!  Overall, I feel really good about the race.  I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed that I didn't run a sub-4 race as I was on pace to hit this goal until about the 23rd mile, but it just wasn't the day for that.  I will say I totally and completely hit a wall around mile 23, and just had absolutely nothing in the tank.  I mean, my final 3 miles were slower than the last 3 miles of my Portland race in 2010...  Looking at my splits, it is clear I went out too fast in this race - lesson learned!

The course was very beautiful, though.  And very hilly.  We ran on city streets past beautiful homes in a historic area of Des Moines, around the Drake track, along a nature preserve area, and along a lake.  So all in all, there was a lot of diversity in the scenery, which is always nice!  It wasn't very well-spectated, but I listen to music, so that wasn't a very big deal.

I am really happy with the stats from my race!  I was 39th in my division (out of 137) and the 176th female finisher (out of 645).

Here are how my splits broke out!

Mile 1:  8:58
Mile 2:  8:48
Mile 3:  8:45
Mile 4:  9:11 (massive hill on this mile)
Mile 5:  8:47
Mile 6:  8:52
Mile 7:  9:03
Mile 8:  9:18
Mile 9:  8:51
Mile 10:  8:54
Mile 11:  9:01
Mile 12:  8:44
Mile 13:  9:10
Mile 14:  9:16
Mile 15:  9:02
Mile 16:  8:52
Mile 17:  8:53
Mile 18:  9:16
** This is when the race started to feel HARD.  Up until this point I felt very strong and confident that I would run a sub-4 race.
Mile 19:  9:13
Mile 20:  9:33
Mile 21:  9:36
Mile 22:  9:43
Mile 23:  9:30
* At this point, the 4 hour pace group passed me.  I tried to stay with them, but I had NOTHING left in the tank.  I was beyond exhausted and just wanted the race to be over.  It was very difficult to not walk, but I made myself run, albeit very slow (for me).
Mile 24:  10:21
Mile 25:  10:40
Mile 26:  10:38
Last .2:  10:21 pace

I staggered over the finish line, and barely had it in me to lift my arms for the finish line photo!

I am really happy with my time - and I made my A and B goals.  And I was just shy of a 19 minute PR, which is a great accomplishment!  It was a beautiful course, and a beautiful day, and now I can say I truly know what it feels like to hit a wall - I didn't really get that 'wall' feeling in my last 2 marathons.

I left everything I had out there on that course, and am proud of my race.

I'm tired and very sore, and really wish I was not working today, but I'm far too low on PTO to waste a day laying on the couch!  I am working in the Des Moines office today and will head home this afternoon - and go straight to a massage.  Thank God I thought to book that.  It helped with my recovery for my last marathon, so I know it will help this time as well.

In closing, I will say there is one unique thing about this marathon - for the first time I am walking away knowing I will run more marathons; the last 2 marathons I finished and said NEVER AGAIN.  I'm looking forward to running Chicago next fall with some of my favorite ladies!

****
Training Tally
Week 18:  35 miles
Training-to-date:  534.25

And that is a wrap for me!  No more marathon-themed posts - at least not until next summer.  :) 

23 comments:

Charis Faith said...

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! I know the wall, and the feeling of leaving it out there but not for a marathon. It's an odd feeling. Your head knows what you want to do but your body can't give you what you need.

You ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy Monday!

Kelly (She Wears a Red Sox Cap) said...

Congrats Lisa! A 19 minute PR is absolutely crazy!!! I've never hit in a wall before but I can imagine it must be really hard to push through an keep running at that point for 3 more miles! 3 miles is no joke, I would know because that is my limit haha.

Anyway, Congrats! I loved following you and you are amazing :)

Caroline said...

Congrats, Lisa!! You did so awesome! A 19 minute PR is definitely something to be proud of!
I loved following along during your training and the race itself. Good luck with recovery!

You will love Chicago and it's a great place to break sub-4: flat and the energy in the crowd is crazy.

abbi said...

That's a great PR and you were very close to your big goal. Looks like those last three miles were hard compared to how strong you were up until that point! Great job either way, be proud of your huge PR!

Unprofessional said...

Congratulations!! What an accomplishment!! All the hard work paid off.

And you'll sub-4 in Chicago....sooo flat and so much crowd support!!!

Amber @ A Little Pink in the Cornfields said...

I'm so proud of you! I loved waiting for you at the finish and spending that day with you!! What a rush and so much fun!

I cannot wait to run a really big race like Chicago. Still super bummed that the Chicago half and full are not the same day!

Marlys said...

CONGRATULATIONS AGAIN! That is awesome that you shaved off 19 minutes so you have every reason to be proud of yourself! Glad you have a massage lined up when you get home! Well deserved!

Nilsa @ SoMi Speaks said...

What an amazing feat, Lisa. Seriously. You rocked it, despite being completely drained in the last few miles. Also, I think this race was supposed to end with you not running a sub-4 marathon ... that way, you can kick that goal clear out of the water when you come to run my hometown race in 2013! =)

Nora said...

Way to go!!! So proud of you =) I hope that recovery gets a little better each day and I'm sure that massage tonight will feel awesome and amazing. xoxoxo

Marisa A. said...

I can't even imagine running a sub 9 minute mile on a marathon course! That is so awesome I know what you mean about hitting the wall at that exact mile marker even. Still it feels good when you finish knowing you gave it everything you had and then some! Congrats again!

Alli said...

You are a rockstar! I'm so glad that you're able to see what a fantastic job you did and take pride in it because you earned it!

Stephany said...

That is a HUGE PR! I know you're sad to not get that sub-4 but you still did AMAZING and I am soooo proud of you. 4 hours to run 26.2 miles!! That's insanity. CONGRATS!

Leigh said...

Congratulations again on a great race Lisa! A 19 minute PR is HUGE!!

Amber said...

I'm glad to hear the course was so beautiful. I know the feeling of going out to fast and also not having gas in the tank at the end. It was the final three miles at Vancouver where I fell apart too. But you still got a 19 minute PR and that is amazing. I also think it's a good sign you finished this one KNOWING there will be more marathons in your future :)

Carolina John said...

A 19 minute PR is huge! that's wonderful Lisa. 4:03 is really close to breaking 4 hours, my last 2 fulls were 4:05 and 4:08, so you came closer than I did.

I've hit the wall before too, and it is so tough to push through it!

qwerkyqook said...

Congrats Lisa, 19 minutes is HUGE! Well done. Love you.

Becky said...

You are AMAZING. The end.

Kyria @ Travel Spot said...

A 19 minute PR is freaking awesome! Did you fuel differently than normal? I wonder why you hit such a hard wall this time! We need to learn how to avoid it next time!

J said...

Congrats girl! Awesome job and awesome PR! You worked so hard for that and even with the sickness and time off from training you still killed it! Well done! So proud of you!

missris said...

Congrats again! You'll definitely sub-4 in Chicago next year--can't wait!

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said...

What an accomplishment! I would love to be able to do something like that one day - however, my problem is that I don't really enjoy running.

The Many Thoughts of a Reader said...

good for you!!!!!

Shoshanah said...

I know I'm a few days late, but congrats! It's always so inspiring reading marathon success stories. And while I know you would have loved to have been under 4 hours, the fact that you made your other two goals is something to be proud of! Congrats again!!