Recovery is part of your training. Racing is part of your training.
This morning was the annual CVRR Half Marathon. I LOVE this race. Almost as much as I love the Snow to Surf. This was the 6th year I've done it. I had 33K on the schedule, so did 4K before (I ran from my house) and 8K after. My coach Sarah recommended that I do the race even though I couldn't really "race" it given the extra mileage I needed to save energy for. I followed her advice, but still slightly doubting the benefit of a road race with no elevation as training for a mountain ultra.
Well, here is what I learned.
1) Sarah knows what she's talking about.
2) Adrenalin does crazy things to the body AND to the mind.
3) My legs are not trained for 33K on the road.
4) Running a race in the middle of a training run prepares you to run on tired legs for the last bit.
Why was this race good prep for my ultra? I really really really tried to run on feel for this race. I didn't want to go out too fast, I didn't want to feel the pressure of all the other racers passing me. I tried to run my own race, even if it meant not getting a PR. The hardest part is that I COULD have blown my PR away - I felt great. But I held back, telling myself that I had 33K to complete that day, not just 21.1. I didn't have a watch and going totally on feel, I failed to eat enough and drink enough (lost 4 lbs). I blame that solely on adrenalin. I had only 2 dates the whole race. I knew better, but I felt like a million bucks as I (yes I did) raced the last 3K to the finish line. I had a girl panting down my back and just couldn't let her beat me!
But no sooner did I cross that finish line complete with the 100M sprint to the finish, and the adrenalin rush STOPPED. I chatted with friends for 90 sec and then started a painful trot towards the airpark to complete another 8K. I didn't make it far before I needed to stop for 2 more dates and a fruit bar. Pace dropped by 45 sec/km. Hips seized up. Once the sugar hit my system it was better, but I shuffled painfully up the hill to my house and collapsed on the living room floor totally spent.
 |
| My new ibuprofen...the Strawburst Anti-Inflammatory Smoothie by Scott Jurek (Eat & Run) |
And to top it all off, I was out of epsom salts for my post-run bath!!! Oh well, I survived and learned a valuable lesson: No matter how well you practice, in a race situation your brain and your hormones can betray you. In my big race I WILL watch the clock and eat/drink on time, regardless of how I feel.
Total Distance: 33K (road)
Time: 3:14
Fuel: 1 Fruit Bars, 4 Mejool Dates: 312 calories
Notes on Fuel: totally not enough calories or water (calories burned: 2259)
Post run recovery: water, water, water, and SALT!
Plans for next week: ramping up the mileage and more hills!
No comments:
Post a Comment