Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon 2017

It's kind of nostalgic that the first race I run after more than two years due to injury, would be the Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon. My first half marathon I ever ran was this race. And aside from the last 2 years, I have run it every year since then. I completed the race, which I was very happy about. However, I did not train enough and suffered for it.

Overview

The race venue had three races; 5k, 10k, and half marathon. The 5k and 10k were both held on Saturday. There was a 30-minute difference between start times, so you could technically have done both, back-to-back. The half marathon was held on Sunday as usual. I did not participate in either Saturday race, so I'll just talk about the Expo and Sunday.



The Expo

The race expo was at the Philadelphia Convention Center as usual. And per typical Rock 'n Roll fashion, they had a great selection of vendors. This is an important thing to me, even if I don't buy anything. I really like seeing trending running gear and attire. I also use this opportunity to get additional discounts to sign up for upcoming races. Plus I just feel it makes the whole experience that much more well-rounded and enjoyable.

Some of my favorite vendors there were Jaybird and Garmin. I was a bit disappointed from Philadelphia Runner, as I was hoping to score some discounted On Running shoes. Oh well, maybe next time. I got to try out the upcoming Jaybird earbuds, the Jaybird Run, which were AWESOME! I will definitely be choosing these, once they are released in October, over than Apple wireless earbuds.

Other than this, the expo was typical and I score a lot of really cool samples and tried some awesome food.

The Race

The weather was a mixed bag depending on the person. For me, the temperature couldn't have been more ideal. However, the humidity was 80% and the dew point was around 70%. Therefore, it made it near impossible for my body to cool properly during the race. Thankfully the sun didn't pop out until the last mile of the race. Anyway, setup was good as always; plenty Port-o-potties, convenient location for gear check, easy entry into corrals. Some people complained about the port-o-potty lines back to the gear check. However, the grass was really wet and already fairly muddy, so I felt it was very thoughtful of the race coordinator to keep everyone from being covered in mud before the race.

There were tons of people as always, and the corrals were packed. They did a really good job at the staggered start, which is definitely an improvement from the last time I ran this race. Not only that, but for the first time in memory, I didn't experience pushy runners at all. Everyone was in a good mood and very courteous. This was very refreshing and helped keep me motivated as the race started.

The course had a few up and downhills. Nothing too crazy, which for someone who actually trained, would have made this a very fast course. I didn't train much, so all it did was tire me out more, haha. The route was really nice, with only one slight out-and-back, which kept the scenery constantly changing. Plus I love the Philly scenery for the races held here. Plus there was a good amount of bands along the way playing pretty good music.

My Race

I started off at what I felt to be a slow pace. I did this because I didn't want to spend the first couple miles trying to sprint around people. This strategy worked to my advantage, since I felt pretty good until mile 8. However, as I hit mile 8, my legs started to tire quickly. By mile 9 I was struggling. Once I hit 10 however, I was cycling through some of my motivational music, and was able to get myself moving. I still had trouble though because my longest run leading up this was 10 miles, but aside from that one run, I had only done one 8-miler, and then a couple 7's and 6's. Overall I didn't have a great base to handle the latter miles. I still pushed out a small kick at the end to finish as strong as I could.

The Finish Line

Even though I finished later than I wanted to, the finish line was very well organized. There was plenty of water, Gatorade, chocolate milk, and snacks. This was refreshing because so many times races will run out of hydration and snacks for the later finishers. There was free beer (1 per registered race participants over 21) and live music. I didn't stay to enjoy the bands playing, but I definitely got my snacks and drinks. I was bummed there were no food trucks, but that's alright, because I was so dead afterwards I just wanted to get home.

Final Thoughts

Overall a very fun race and I am so excited to officially be back to racing. I will be making sure I am properly trained for my Disney Dopey challenge in January. Hopefully my recovery doesn't take too long from this race, but I'll be tossing in some swimming to help promote quicker healing. Hope anyone else who raced had a great time!

Half Marathon - Week 11 & 12 Training

Another two horrible training weeks. On a positive note, almost have the painting done at my house that I need in order for us to move in! Aside from that, no time to workout at all.

Swimming
No time for sessions.

Cycling
No time for sessions.

Running
I got in two runs during this two week time period. Fortunately, I think it was just enough to allow me to complete my Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon. I had a 5 miler and 7 miler. Both felt pretty good, but were tough since I hadn't run much prior. Recovery-wise, I was completely fine after both runs. I definitely planned on a much slower half marathon than my goal was set for.

I completed my Rock 'n Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon. I definitely didn't come close to the pace I wanted even after I had adjusted due to lack of training. The worst part was how awful my lower body felt immediately after the race. My legs were shaking and I felt pretty awful. In addition my ankles and feet with swollen a bit. I did a lot of stretches once I was re-hydrated. This helped a little, but not as much as I had hoped. As I am writing this post the following day, my legs are still exhausted, knees a bit sore, and walking up stairs is almost a no-go.

Strength
Aside from a few stretches, I didn't get any strength sessions in.

Nutrition
In addition to not getting time to exercise, I didn't do myself any favors with my horrible eating habits these two weeks. With Disney training starting this week, I cannot afford bad eating habits. I will be working diligently, with my goal of logging 100% of my food for all 7 days.

Final Thoughts
Not happy with my training or mental discipline. I was very happy to get a lot of painting done and get a lot closer to moving into my new house though. Therefore, I will just have to be happy with non-workout goals completed and move on.

Half Marathon Training - Week 4

A much better week overall from the prior week. However, I still had house hunting and other things comes up, so I did miss a few workouts. Overall a great week for nutrition and exercise though. I even got in more stretching, which I feel is what allowed me to achieve my Saturday and Sunday workouts.

Swimming
I got in a swim this week, which felt amazing. I was extremely tight from strength training on Monday and I felt awesome afterwards. Thanks to this swim I had no trouble with my run.

Cycling
I was excited to finally get in a ride this week on the SRT. I did a run-bike brick and cycling really helped me loosen my left hip after my run. I hope to start getting more rides in, but I'll take what I can get for now.

Running
I got three of my five runs in this week. Although the two runs I missed were easy days, they are still important days and I hope to not miss any for this upcoming week. Overall, each run felt pretty good.

So far it's looking like my easy pace is around 9:30 minutes per mile and my tempo is around 8:30 minutes / mile. This is fine for now, but I am really hoping I can run my Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon in September around an 8:30 minutes / mile pace. That would put me around a 1:51 half marathon time, which would be awesome, especially since my best HM is around 1:40.

Strength
I only got in one of my two strength sessions. I loved my Monday session even though the DOMS was extremely bad. As a matter of fact, it was so bad I was having trouble walking on Tuesday. Sadly, I didn't swim or do any stretches, which I think dramatically slowed recovery. Thankfully I did a swim on Wednesday though. I had no excuse for missing the other strength session, since it was a short benchmark test. I technically had three sessions, but the third was too intense to fit in with my running over the weekend, so I pushed it to the following Monday. This isn't so bad since it was scheduled for Sunday anyway.

Nutrition
Overall I did pretty well with my nutrition. I still snack way too much, but crazy schedules don't really seem to allow me to get any sort of schedule. I did not do as well as logging either. I kind of wish there was a way to have MFP remind me to enter everything each night. I know I can set regular phone reminders, but it's just one of those things I wish an app offered but doesn't. On a positive note, I have added a reminder for this, just not via the app.

Final Thoughts
I think this was a pretty good week considering all of the life stuff trying to get in the way. I have been getting myself more active as well. I hope to keep this progression and to always work towards more consistency. Hope everyone else is doing well.

Half Marathon Training - Week 2

I started off the week well, but I think my body is far from being used to this level of fitness activity. So, starting Thursday, I had to take 2 days off. I was hit with some severe allergy issues which were causing my chest to constantly hurt and be short of breath, even after taking allergy medication. I really didn't like missing a run and 2 strength sessions, but I am pretty sure I am better for it right now. On a good note, I have these two training weeks under my belt now, plus the prior weeks of running, so I now have a good idea on paces for training. They aren't the paces I want, but all that matters is I have baselines now so I can start tracking my progress more accurately as well as making planning a lot easier.

Swimming
I didn't have time for swim sessions, but plan to resume swimming during Week 3.

Cycling
I didn't have time for cycling sessions, but plan to get a long ride in during Week 3.

Running
I got 4 out of 5 runs completed. Fortunately, I only missed an easy run day. I just wish I could have done some other sort of cross training in its place; but my allergies prevented me from doing anything at all. I was finally alright to run again Saturday, which went really well. However, my Sunday long run was not as great. Although I completed my 6 mile long run, my hips and lower back were excessively tight, even despite my efforts to stretch earlier before the run. My last 2 miles were really tough since my left hip was in pain. The final mile I was concerned I might have to walk since I was struggling to keep good running form. Fortunately I was able to keep proper form and finished out the run. My hip is still a little tight and sore, but nothing is injured and I feel great otherwise.

Strength
I only got one of my three strength sessions in this week. As I already noted, wasn't feeling well. I will be extra vigilant not to miss my strength during Week 3, as I need to keep building muscle and work on keeping my muscles loose to prevent any running injuries.

Nutrition
I didn't bother logging anything this week and my nutrition was healthy, but portion sizes out of control again. After my long run Sunday and feeling bloated and weighed down, I am getting my act together and starting logging and watching my calories in going forward.

Final Thoughts
I hit a new long distance record since I have been back from injuries. Aside from muscle tightness and the resulting hip pain, I am feeling great and will be adding additional stretching to the mix. I look forward to some hard training and a 5k time trial this upcoming weekend. It will be a time trial since I was too cheap to pay an entry fee for a 5k race.

Racing 2017

I haven't really done a race post in a long time, since I have been dealing with a multitude of injuries over the last 2 years. But with me healed and rebuilding, it's time to get back in the game!

I am definitely going super light on races this year though, as the main goal is to get a qualifying time for Disney so I am not in the last corral, and then a triathlon to get myself back in the mindset. With that said, this will total 2-3 races planned for this year, with my fourth race technically being next year, although it's right away in January.



Running Races

First off, Rock 'n Roll Half Marathon. As always, this is a fairly flat and uneventful race, which is perfect for me getting back. I am familiar with the course and hope to do well; goal is to run 8:00 min per mile, or a 1:44:00. This won't be my best time, but it will be in the right direction.

I might toss in a 5k somewhere along the line, but I am not as motivated for shorter races, as my ultimate goal is to lead up to an Ironman in 2018, which means marathon for the 3rd leg.

Triathlons

Triathlon is one of those sports that you can't do well if you don't practice AND race. Sure, you can pull off amazing times by just practicing everything; but nothing compares to the stress of race day and especially transition. I really don't want to do short course, but I do really want to get back into the feel of triathlon. Therefore, I am considering Escape Philly Sprint. I am not sure I will be doing another one this year, although I have considered one after my century ride.

Cycling Races

This isn't technically a race, although I will be using this to gauge how prepared I will be for my Ironman next year. The plan is Bike MS: City to Shore Century (100 miles). I completed the 80 last year, but did very little training and struggled a lot at the end. This won't be the case this year. I have already started my cycling training and will be doing lots of training all year.

Final Race

Alright, I know this is technically 2018, but all of my training is leading up to the Disney Dopey Challenge in January 2018. This will be followed by an Ironman mid to late summer.

Final Thoughts

Overall I am pretty excited about the races. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous and even a bit scared, given my injury history. But that's the kicker this time; I am working my butt off to get consistent with exercise, especially strength training. I am looking forward to a great and injury-free race season.

Building Plan: Week 14 Complete

Week 14 was an interesting week. Although I started out trying to get back into my routine, I found myself not as motivated as usual. I dropped back 2 training plan weeks, and my first run of the week went well. However, my second run was horrible. I had been extra tired and sore from my prior strength day, and knew I should have just done a warm-up run only, followed by a more relaxed strength session. However, I did not do this and could not complete my run. Plus I was so exhausted I did no additional workouts. The following day I had an awesome strength session, but took off Sunday because I just wasn't feeling it. Overall, a decent workout week in regards to consistency, but not too well in regards to success of all sessions. In addition, my nutrition, which I did not log a lot of my meal details, was horrible.

Swimming

I did not have time to get to the pool this week. I really intended to get 2-3 sessions, but my schedule ended up being much different than expected. I am not sure next week is going to be much better, but I am going to make sure I get at least 1 session in.

Cycling

I only completed 1 of my trainer sessions. I had planned on 2, but I did not have time for a double on Saturday, and strength training is more important right now.

Running

I got 2 of my 3 sessions in this week. My first session went extremely well. Despite that though, my heart rate and recovery time was much higher than usual. My second run went horribly. I knew going in that I should skip that day with how I felt; extra tired and severe leg muscle tightness. I tried doing some stretching beforehand, but my run was rough from the get-go. I was not able to complete my planned run, as my foot started acting up. I did not even attempt my third run for the week because my foot was only just starting to feel well again and I decided I wanted a few more days for it to get back to 100%.

Strength

I got in ALL of my strength sessions this week! I was extremely excited about this. I have been slacking the past month or so, only getting a max of 2 strength sessions per week. This was unacceptable, especially since my focus is rebuilding strength. I will continue meeting all of my strength sessions each week.

Nutrition

Not much to say on this. I did horrible with eating, and even worse with keeping track of it in my log. I am focused to change this though, which has been an issue for me for a long time now. I am expecting a really good week of tracking and hopefully sticking close to or right on my caloric goals.

Final Thoughts

I had a rough week mentally and with things going on in my life. This upcoming week is going to be even rougher, but I am determined to not let this get me down and I am going to make sure I press on and get everything done. On a positive note, I am now registered, with my wife as well, for the 2018 Disney Dopey Challenge. I am very excited and can't wait for this. I am going to shoot for at least a half marathon later this summer or early fall. If time, budget, and conditioning permit, I might even shoot for a marathon.

Runner's World Half & Festival 2013 Review

The Runner's World Half & Festival for 2013 was held in Bethlehem, PA, October 18th-20th. What a beautiful venue; the town has been going through constant revitalization, but you still get to soak in all of the history. Based on the location of race events, I found the Sands Casino Resort and Hotel to be the most convenient place to stay. It was definitely not the cheapest, but staying there you could basically walk to everything, plus the starting line for the half was there.

As a recommendation for new and seasoned runners, don't make the noob mistake I did. I figured the hills wouldn't be any worse than what I trained on near my house, and I didn't really study the course or the grading. That hurt me big time, as I trained on hills a lot less steep than what I ran on, and the super hill in the Half killed me.

Shake Out 3 Mile Run

The Shake Out 3 Mile Run was free to anyone...you just had to show up and sign a waiver. It was held on Friday by the Runner's World staff. It was really fun and we did just over a 3 mile trail run. If I had realized it was so close, I would have ran over instead of driving. However, I knew I would be doing enough walking with the expo and for the non-racing stuff, so it was probably smart I drove over...plus parking was free for this.

5k Race

The 5k race started out right on schedule, 8am. The National Anthem is my absolute favorite pre-race "thing" that really gets me going. Sorry if that seems cheesy, but it motivates me like crazy. And then followed by some older dance music right before the gun. The course itself was fun. There was 1 decent uphill, with an equally steep downhill. The bridge was a very gradual uphill / downhill, so I don't count it.

Personally, I had set a goal of coming in under 23 minutes. I got 23:20, which was still a PR for me, but not what I was aiming for. The uphill was a little more challenging than I had originally thought it would be, which based on my TomTom info, is where I lost the 20+ seconds.

10k Race

The 10k race also started on time, 9:30am. Since the National Anthem had already been done for the 5k, they didn't do it again. I am embarrassed to say I wasn't paying much attention and I forget what song they did; I think it was God Bless America. Anyway, the course included the same starting leg and finishing leg of the 5k. This was really nice, as I visually knew when to kick at the last mile. The course had 1 extra uphill and downhill, both of which were fairly steep, but nothing too crazy. The first uphill started at 0.3 miles in and was 2/3 of a mile long, but 100 ft. elevation gain. The second uphill was around 1.8 miles in and was about 0.9 miles long, but had a slight downhill half way through, with a total elevation gain of 134 ft.

I was prepared for the first hill, however, and the second wasn't too bad since I expected it after dealing with the 1st hill and knowing there were 2 uphills. My goal was 9:30 min/mile since I figured I would be dead from the 5k and wanted to make sure I would be good for the half the following day. I was energized like crazy and I ended up getting a 50:54, or an 8:11 min/mile pace and destroying my previous best. So, 2/2 on PR's for Saturday.

Half Marathon Race

The Half Marathon started at the entrance to the Sands Casino. This was nice because I literally rolled out of bed less than an hour before start, got my free continental breakfast, and walked through the heated casino and was at the starting line. This was nice because Sunday morning was a good 8 degrees colder than Saturday.

There were 4 uphills for the half. The first one was around mile 1 and was about 0.5 miles long with an elevation gain of 74 ft; not too bad. The next uphill was around mile 2.2, and was even shorter. The next 2 uphills were technically part of 1 super long gradual uphill, with a few mini and short downhills before continuing the climb. This started around mile 3.8 and went until about mile 7.7, with a total elevation gain of about 172 ft. After that is was basically downhill until the end.

My goal was to beat my Philly Half Marathon time, which meant doing better than an 8:30 min/mile pace. I was kind of on track until mile 6, which was the start of the worst part of the super long hill. I was able to regain my pace a little miles 7-9, but my legs were completely shot and my mile times exponentially jumped up after mile 9, causing me to finish with a time of 1:53:12, or an 8:38 min/mile pace. Still not bad mind you, but I wanted to not only complete the Runner's World Hat Trick, but I wanted to get a Hat Trick with PR's. Nice dice; so 2 out of 3 PR's for the weekend.

Expo

The expo was pretty good. I am used to the gigantic expos for the largely publicized races, like the Rock 'n' Roll series races for example. So the expo was mini comparatively. However, for a smaller venue expo it was really good. The best part was really the seminars. Having the runner's world staff and other pro's giving advice was priceless. To add insult to injury (for my half race), I had gone to a seminar on proper fueling, and what did I NOT do for my half race...properly fuel of course. Hah! Oh well, lesson learned and kind of funny looking back. The pictures are of the ArtsQuest building where the expo was held and the 3 story spiral stair climb for swag pick-up (the blown glass sculpture was AMAZING!). The start and finish lines (except for the half start), were here as well.

Other Info

There was also a kids fun run and the Eukanuba Dog Run. Both were great and entertaining. The beer tent was awesome...nothing like some free beer after a race. Overall an awesome event, a great time, and I am hoping to do this again. 

Distance Races: Tips and Tricks for the First Timers

Are you about to run your first 10k, 10 miler, half marathon, or even marathon? I want to share some tips and tricks for training, taper week, race day, and post race. I have done a bunch of distance races, plus I grew up with my dad always running distance races, and I have a lot of his experience to rely on as well. I selected 10k as the shortest "long" distance. Technically anything under 10 miles is mid or short distance, but I decided to focus on any races that for the average runner would be close to an hour long or more. Yes, there are plenty of beginners running 5-6 min miles, but you can still hopefully benefit from some tips.

Training

The easy part is gear. Make sure you get fitted by a professional at a running store or by an orthopedist for your shoes. In regards to other clothing, the only major thing is to make sure whatever you wear allows for full range of movement for your running form or any exercise you will perform, and that your socks you use are not too tight or too loose. I recommend sweat-wicking running gear, as it will help you from dehydrating quicker, and is generally a lot more comfortable.

For you training plan, I recommend sticking with a simple beginner plan. They usually have at least 2 rest during the week so your body can get used to the mileage and physical abuse you are going to give yourself...remember, running is a high impact activity. Most importantly for your plan; stick with the plan! For your first races or races, unless you are naturally the world's fastest runner, you are probably more focused on completing than competing. I will cover competitor tips in another blog article at a later time. So, follow your plan. If you want more activity, cross-train. Your body will thank you for it. Leg strength training is huge for runners, as your legs, joints and lower back get pounded the less leg strength you have in your legs. Or you can add some other workouts like HIIT, swimming, cycling, P90X/Insanity-type workouts, or whatever you like. The other workouts will not only improve your overall fitness and stamina, but will also aid in faster recovery.

Other things to keep in mind is anything you want to try new for the race, such as water bottle holsters, running with or without music, taking GU or other energy replenishing items, then you really want to train with them. For the beginner, changing up more than 1 or 2 things on race day from your training could cause a lot of unwanted issues. Once you get more experience under your belt, then you will find that the only way to know if something is going to be useful is to try it on race day. But make sure to NEVER change shoes on race day or the week before. You are asking for injury otherwise.

Taper Week

Tapering is basically lowering the volume of your training while still keeping the intensity of your training. This is usually done the week before the race. For beginners and if you are going from something like a couch to 10k, you may want 2 weeks of tapering, but typically 1 week is more than enough. The idea here is to keep active and keep your body used to the faster training speeds so you will perform well at your race. This still applies even if you don't really care about speed. Regardless of your goals, the taper week is designed to keep you active and ready for the race, but not push your body to the levels of your normal training...you don't want to be exhausted and in pain on the day of your race.

For those of you who slack off, I recommend tapering at least 3 days before the race. This usually isn't enough time if you do a really long run right before the race, but for many beginners, this will be the bare minimum time to recover enough to complete the race.

Race Day

Everyone loves carb loading the night before or a couple nights before the race. This is usually pointless unless you are always on a low carb / low sugar eating lifestyle. Usually carb loading is only good for making your bloated or cramped for race day. On race day, try to stick to your usual breakfast you would have on any other long run day. If you are nervous or anxious, which most are, then make sure to have avoid any foods or drinks that are acidic and any foods that would be too heavy or salty. So, OJ is a great example of a drink to avoid. Most dairy will sit pretty heavy for most people, and eating pre-packaged freezer meals (sorry Jimmy Dean) is probably not the best idea because of the insane sodium levels. You don't want to get to your race and have a stomach ache or be dehydrated before you even start.

If you are opting to stay at a hotel, then I recommend picking a hotel either in middle of the start and finish, or closer to the start. Even though you may be exhausted when you finish, the last thing you need before the race is to have to rush to get to the race and get stuck in traffic. If you are staying with someone or going from your house, then make sure you get to the race at least 1-1.5 hours before the races starts. I usually recommend 2 hours before race start. This will allow you to take your time finding a parking spot and getting acclimated to the race environment. If you are nervous, the last thing you need to worry about is parking and finding your way to the race starting line.

Finally, lay out your race gear the night before the race. Usually you will be excited or nervous and not always thinking clearly. You don't want to get to the race only to realize you are missing something vital...like your shoes or your race bib.

Post Race

Usually when you finish the race, you will be hot and sweaty. This means that unless it's an extremely hot day, you will get cold quickly after the race. If you have spectators with you, get one of them to hold at least a dry shirt for you to put on after the race. You probably should have a basic change of clothes though, or a warm-up outfit to put on over your race attire. If you don't have anyone with you, hopefully there is a gear check at the beginning of the race. If all else fails, train with a backpack and just run with your gear. It's not ideal in any way, but at least you will feel "comfortable" after the race.

One important thing after the race is to get some carbs and sugars back in you, as well as making sure you are rehydrated properly. So, eating a banana, bagel, energy bar, having some Gatorade, or similar is always a good option. For longer races, you will want to also get more sustenance. I have found that that chocolate almond milk is a miracle recovery tool. There is no other food or drink I have tried that compares. But, you usually won't have that with you or available, so look for items with a higher carb amount. Ideally, a recovery food or drink item will give you a 4 to 1, carb to protein ratio. 

Lastly, stretch! Get some static stretches in after you finish. It will help avoid extreme muscle tightening later and can also aid in faster recovery after the race.

Most importantly, have fun! The race is the reward for the hard training you just did!

I'm running on a half, but everyone else is full

You are going to pick up your race packet for the half marathon you are so eager to run in. You have trained hard and are ready for a PR the next day at the race. As you walk into the expo, you see 2 areas; 1 for the half marathon event, the other for the marathon event. The area for the marathon event looks nicer, but who cares, you are picking up your race bib. You are then directed to get the rest of your racing swag; clear bag for putting your warm-up stuff in, tech shirt, samples, etc. As you approach this area, it's packed. You look around and notice that most of the people around you have bibs for the marathon. For some odd reason you start feeling uncomfortable, even a little embarrassed. All of the sudden your excitement for your race turns into a slight panic. Why do you feel this way?

Welcome to being a human! Competitiveness is a natural instinct. And although you may be shooting for a 10 min / mile pace for that half marathon, the idea of other people doing that marathon just drives you nuts. And that is completely natural. Even if you aren't ranked, professional, elite, etc., you will still feel the urge to be as good or better than everyone else around you, based on some factor you determine subconsciously. So, if this were a half marathon race only, the shear fact that you are here to complete the race and everyone around you is here to at least complete the race, puts you on equal footing. However, you doing the half and others doing a full marathon means you are running half the distance they are. You have therefore decided subconsciously that your competitive factor for that situation is total distance. For some people, it may be the fact that they are getting their number in the general line, but see others getting their number from the elite runner line. Now the factor is either speed or title or both.

Sadly, this feeling tends to discourage many people and even though they might complete their half marathon, they may give up and not do anymore races unless there is no other distance or runner status other than what they will be doing. In some cases, it causes a person to train even harder so the next time they will be one of those elites, or the person running the top distance, or something else. So, is there a way to cope with or use this natural instinct to your benefit?

The simple answer is yes. The truth is that it can be challenging and difficult. For someone like me, I fall into this classification: Competitive self-competitor. This basically means that although I feel very competitive with others, my primary focus is competing against myself. Using various psychological profiling techniques, I can justify this and say this is completely natural. But can I change this? Can I see someone else who is better and then make myself stop at nothing to beat them? Aside from physical limitations, I can achieve this. However, it's in my nature to analyze and over think everything, and then to come to a realization based on my conclusions. Therefore, it's extremely challenging for me to strive to beat someone else.

Here is a good example. I currently have trained to try and run an 8:30 min/mile pace at my upcoming half marathon. My prior time for a half marathon was around 9:07 min/mile. Based on what you now know about me, this time I trained for will more than satisfy my competitive nature. However, I have a coworker who will be running the same race. He is looking to run at a 6:52 min / mile pace. I find that impressive and inspiring, but know there is no way I will get to that level anytime soon. Therefore, I am not going to go out after my race and start training to run at that pace. However, I can take my coworker's time, and look at my long-term goals. One goal is to qualify for the Boston Marathon. I need to be running around a 7 min/mile pace to qualify. So then I tell myself "I can run as fast as him, and to prove it I am going to train to qualify for Boston in a couple of years". Now I have no limits. Usually, my typical thinking is "Okay, knocking another 1:30 min/mile off of your current goal time is not only not reasonable, but impossible for the short term." But because I can now use my coworker and put his time in terms of a way I can compete with myself, I will now be trying to achieve that goal time in as short a time as I possibly can.

So, do I already have a plan even though I don't know if I will even hit my current 8:30 min/mile goal? You betcha! To get myself to thinking this was rough. I had many failures and gave up many times. But I finally got it right, and now the sky is the limit. As a parting note, I used a half and full marathon as the example here, but you can use this for any distance or any event; running, swimming, cycling, triathlons, rock climbing...anything! If I can do it, you can do it too; just figure out what makes you tick; what drives you.  Good luck and remember, always persevere!

Multi-race and Multi-day Race Phenomina

Are you Dopey? Can you stake claim to a Hat Trick? In addition to multi-sport events, such as triathlons, becoming increasingly popular, another sport is becoming popular as well; multi-race events. I have yet to find a buzz-word for this yet, but basically it means that a race event, usually running races, has multiple runs on the same day or throughout the course of multiple consecutive days.

The pioneer of this is Disney. They started with the Goofy run, which is running the half marathon, then the full marathon the following day. Due to its popularity, Runner's World introduced the Hat-Trick for its half marathon events, which involves a 5k and 10k on the same day, and then the half marathon the following day. More events like this are popping up everywhere. But why are these so popular?

The concept of running multiple events on the same day or consecutive days is nothing new. Many people have done this for a long time. With running such a popular sport for amateurs and pros alike, there are many instances where there are Saturday races and Sunday races. They can be part of the same event or be completely different events in different places. Some people want to do both races, so they do. There is no additional medals for this however; just the personal achievement and bragging rights for having that level of endurance. Other races have a weekend of events, such as the Pittsburgh Marathon, with a variety of races on Saturday, and the half and full marathon on Sunday.

So, with the popularity of these new events, the big question is "How do I train for this?" For the shorter distances, it's not too bad, even for beginners. For long distances, this really becomes challenging, as you are putting your body through a lot in a short period of time.

Shorter Distances

For events where you can do something like a 5k and 10k or a 5 & 5 (5k then a 5 miler), you can basically follow a mix of a 5k and a 10k plan. I won't outline plans, as there are so many available on Runner's World and many other fitness sites. I still may post some training plans at another time, but not in the article. Since the races are short enough, you don't really need to worry about much other than hydration for the races. Which is great, because you can pack light and really just focus on enjoying the races.

Longer Distances

Longer distances are a whole other story. Depending on how long each race is and the time between races, you have a lot to worry about. First, you need to follow a training a plan that is tailored for your max distance you will be running; so if your max distance is a half marathon, then make sure you have a half marathon plan in your training. After this, you have a couple of options. First, you can always just make your later long runs equal to the total distance of all of your runs you will do on race day or race weekend. This is good if you are mixing a half marathon with a 5k or 10k. However, when you start getting into marathons as your max distance, then adding a half marathon and maybe even others to your long run is not really feasible. You might as well just train for an ultra at that point. So, the next option is to have back to back longer run days. So, if Sunday is your long run, say 20 miles, you might want to be doing anywhere from an 8-12 mile run on Saturday, at a little faster pace than your long run pace. The short period between the two training runs will help build up your endurance greatly, and your body will be able to adapt better for recovery. Now, of course, you don't want to overdo anything and you will still need the proper nutrition and hydration.

The good news is that for races like Goofy, if you are already training for a marathon, then the 5k and 10k should not be an issue at all. You will just need to incorporate the second option from above to handle the half marathon after the 5k and 10k, and then doing the marathon the following day.

The Competitors

There are those of your who want to compete no matter what. Therefore, if you are going for time and want to place in these types of events, then you will need to follow a training plan that incorporates everything mentioned above, but also include multiple interval sessions each week. In addition, you will want to make sure your interval sessions vary to cater to each distance you are running. So some weeks you may be doing intervals for your 10k race speed, and another week you may be doing intervals geared towards your marathon speed. You will also want to include training runs where you are doing a race pace run for the short distance, following up with a long run the next day.

Health Notes

As some parting wisdom, don't ever blinding sign up and think you will be able to do the multi-race event with little to no training. You will be putting extra stress on your body than it's used to and it's always good to get a physician approval before embarking on such a tough physical challenge. Also make sure you are getting enough "fuel" and hydration; don't want you bonking on race 2 or 3 because you got over-confident and didn't take those extra water stops. And most importantly have a great time and enjoy your bragging rights when you complete it all!