2014 Chicago Marathon Recap

I can’t believe that it has taken me so long to put this together, but I guess I needed a few weeks to let it all sink in… I ran the Chicago Marathon, AND finished with a PB!

It was a few years ago when I had started running again and talking about going up from the half marathon distance that a colleague of mine suggested running Chicago. He said it was an amazing experience and the crowd, atmosphere and event were incredible and I filed that away as a goal race for the future.

I have now only run 3 marathons but each one has been better and for each one my training has improved, as has my diet, and ultimately I believe my health. I truly believe that the information I have received from my coach and from the runners I follow on Twitter has given me so much more than I ever expected.

I am encouraged by the support of the online running community from places like #RunChat and the #PoweredByBits @EnergyBits ambassador groups. These runners have encouraged and inspired me to keep going and as well to give back by encouraging others. I feel guilty now when I miss the Twitter chat sessions and try to keep up with what everyone is doing.

But enough about that… let’s get on to the weekend recap for the race!

My wife and I flew to Chicago on the Sat and checked in to the hotel, and then walked to the shuttle bus area for the Expo. It was a longer walk than I expected but the weather was nice and it helped me get my bearings for where we were. The lineup for the shuttle was long but fortunately a few more busses came quickly and we were off to the Expo which was a mass of people and motion. The layout is one that forces you to have to walk the length of the Expo to get your bib and shirt, but we were on a mission to get in and out quickly as I didn’t need to buy anything and I didn’t want to just browse.

After grabbing everything we headed back to the shuttle busses and jumped on a different one that brought us closer to our hotel. On the walk back we passed by a few places and stopped to pick up lunch to eat at the hotel and make late pasta dinner reservations. We returned to the hotel so that we could rest up and my wife could get some work done. We spent the afternoon resting, laying out the running gear, and then headed out for a late dinner. After chatting with the kids and making breakfast plans it was off to bed early to get rest.

I was up early and ready to go, so much so that I left the hotel early as my nerves were starting to make me antsy and I didn’t need to annoy my wife at 6am. I headed out for the walk to the starting line and began the process of getting into race mode. The weather was great, it wasn’t too cold and the walk kept me busy as the crowds grew larger heading towards the corrals.

Security was heavy but the lines weren’t too long and I realized that I wouldn’t have enough time to try to catch up with a few fraternity brothers who were hoping to catch up before the race. I needed to get into the corral and start the pre-race ritual of last minute fuelling and finding the right pace group. The goal was to keep ahead of the 4hr pace runner and I found many in my area.

The air was filled with excitement as the national anthem was sung and the elite racers were off… it felt like forever in the slow walk to the start line but around 13 minutes after the lead pack I crossed the start line and saw the sea of runners both ahead and behind and then the true magnitude of the event started to kick in.

The initial pace was great and to tell you the truth I felt awesome as we wound our way through the downtown area before the long stretch heading north towards Lincoln Park. I had planned to take my PocketFuel nut butters every 45minutes (which was every 5 miles) and my ENERGYbits every hour, and took water as needed but avoided the first few aid stations based on crowds. All the while keeping many 4hr pacers in sight I ran along enjoying the sights and crowds and reading the signs they carried. Even as we approached the halfway point I was feeling good, coming in a bit slower than I hoped but still under 2hrs for the first half and then it donned on me that the lead pack was almost done at the same time! But I was here to run my race and not let anything get me down… I tried to find my wife when we made the return loop to the downtown core, but the crowds were deep and I really didn’t’ know where to look, but she told me after she did see me run by.

As we moved along I was still consistent with both the splits and my fuel plan, and with the crowd support it was incredible… It seemed like every time you turned a corner there was a loud cheer and the enthusiasm was amazing and even at time almost overwhelming.

I started to feel a little tired around the 30k mark and by 32k I need to take a walk break. I had initially planned to take frequent walk breaks to allow my legs to rest and recover but I think I got caught up in the drive to hit sub-4hr and that I felt good early but that strategy eventually back fired and for the next 6k I struggled to maintain a decent pace and felt the legs begin to feel like lead. I also wonder if in moving back and forth in my head from miles to kilometers meant that I mistimed my energy intake but somewhere things fell apart but I refused to let it take over.

By the time I hit the 38k mark I was determined to get back on track and had resigned myself that the sub-4hr target was gone but that I was going to easily beat my time in Detroit from last year. This renewed focus allowed me to grab my last fuel load, and drive towards the finish line knowing that Michigan Ave and one small bend was all that stood before me.

With each step I felt stronger and more determined to finish strong and making that last uphitt climb and turn on to the finishing stretch was empowering – hearing the crowd screaming, the announcer calling out names and knowing that I had just completed the Chicago Marathon in a Personal Best time of 4:07.17!

 I was flooded with emotion – the tears and exhaustion mixed and I stumbled around looking for water, food and that moment of rest that was soon to come. The corral at the end funneled the runners to food and water, and even that post race beer, which was actually not even appealing.

I had my picture taken, and then began to field the text messages and notices on my phone… My kids had been watching online back home and actually saw me cross the finish line, and my coach texted me as well… that set me over the edge and I needed to sit down and rest/recover while I downed my drinks, ate fruit and anything else I could find. Shortly I texted my wife who was back at the hotel and I began the slow painful recovery walk back to a welcome shower, breakfast and a pillow.

The post-race recovery was quick, the shower helped and the food was awesome including a few gluten-free donuts, some chai pudding, and every liquid I could find. After resting for a few minutes we decided that a quick cab ride to the airport might mean an earlier flight home and more time to spend with the family (as it was the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend). The refueling at the airport consisted of my last chance to have Pizza UNO deep dish before leaving Chicago, and Stacey ran to another Terminal to grab some Garrett’s Popcorn for the kids.

We managed to get a flight home 4 hrs earlier and were actually home with the kids BEFORE our original flight would have left. We then spent the evening together and prepared for a Thanksgiving feast for lunch on Monday before taking my daughter to the train station so she could return to university.

It was amazing to think about how much we did that weekend, from a CFL game on Fri pm, trip to Chicago, run a marathon, trip home and then a celebration and drive to the train station and back…

It was truly a time to be thankful!

Chicago Marathon Training update

I set my goal to run the Chicago Marathon over a year ago, when I was training for Detroit and now it is less than 2 weeks away… time flies when you are having fun and training.

My program is based loosely on one from my “unofficial” running coach Kate Laing at Smooth Running, and is based on a 16wk buildup that we used for half and full marathons – the difference is that this year I did most of my training solo.

The amazing part was that I found it easy and enjoyable to train – the early morning weekday and weekend long runs were not a chore but actually things I looked forward to, and as it turns out, I have already logged almost 1300km by the end of Sept which is 200km further than I ran all last year.

My initial goal of 1500km is now well within range, and I expect to exceed 1600km with a stretch goal of 1700km factoring in the unpredictable Ontario winter coming up.

During the training I have managed to run a few races to help with motivation and to provide a changeup to training runs, these included one trail half marathon as well as 2 races with my 13yr old son. Some of these runs were highlights of a very busy summer and I an anxious to hit the road in Chicago with the ultimate goal of my first sub-4hr marathon…

Through it all the biggest factor has been my nutrition. My regimen consists of ENERGYbits before runs as well as every hour, Pocket Fuel nut butters every 45min during runs, as well as RECOVERYbits post run. Another thing I have added is chia pudding made from chia seeds and almond milk which has now become a daily staple in my diet.

The weekly running schedule is at least 3 weekly runs for 6-8km in the mornings, usually at 5am, and then at least one long run (20+km) and this has been relatively consistent all year.

During the last 2 months I have logged over 500km and finished the Nike+ Chicago Marathon 4hr Challenge of 362km in 45 days (I finished in 14^th place) which in itself is an accomplishment I am proud of…

My dedication to this has been key to building up the mileage and the confidence that the goal is achievable.

Stay tuned for a post Chicago update in the upcoming weeks.

North Face Endurance Challenge Ontario half marathon review

I heard about this event on Twitter and decided to enter this to provide a challenge and change it up from just road running. My training partner and I accepted the challenge and began to work on mileage training.

We have both run numerous half marathons but this would not only be our first trail race, but on what is listed as one of the most challenging courses in Canada. Just what were we getting ourselves into? We were soon to find out…

The morning started out with showers as we drove the hour north to Blue Mountain and I knew it was going to be tough as I was running with traditional road shoes, the weather was only going to make it tougher.

The run started with a quick dash across a few slopes and it became obvious that we were going to be battling showers all morning and dealing with mud and slick conditions. As we made our way across the slopes we encountered a few bottlenecks and the crowd kept moving and warnings were shouted to keep runners behind aware of mud, water, and dangerous footing.

Kerry and I kept a good pace for the first few KM with the constant climbs and narrow passages in the trees it was important to keep moving and my first break was once we hit an open area with a bit of road on the downhill portion of the first part.

The climb approaching the first aid station was long and challenging but I walked when I needed to so that I had the energy to carry on. At the first station (5.5km) I caught back up to Kerry and we carried on now that I had recovered and again we ran on this second section feeling strong.

The views were spectacular and the trail was in good shape considering the rain we had. This second section was not as challenging as the first but it had sections once we crossed the second ladder that worked through the hills with a few series of switchbacks and single paths that were slippery and made everyone cautious about footing and grabbing the small trees for balance and support. It was during this portion that Kerry pulled away in traffic as I struggled in spots with footing but kept on determined to run strong heading towards the second aid station.

Knowing that the major climbs had passed was relieving, but having seen the elevation map, I also knew that the next 10km was going to be a constant series of ups and downs as we headed into the loop sections that brought us back and forth across Blue Mountain with gorgeous views of Georgian Bay.

It was through this section that I carried on conversations with numerous people as we ran and walked along and began to enjoy more of the trail camaraderie that I would normally have missed by running with earbuds and music. Many were veterans of trail races or marathons, but we were all enjoying the challenge of this course and inaugural race as the first Canadian stop in the North Face Endurance series.

Mentally I was fine until around 16km at which point “Just. Keep. Moving. Forward” became my mantra. At some points the trails was hard to see in the trees especially if there was no one else around so it forced me to pay attention to all possible paths which also kept my mind of the distance and fatigue that was settling in.

I had properly hydrated and fueled using both ENERGYbits and PocketFuel packets which kept me from “crashing” but the energy output definitely was high as this course  was way more challenging than the local trail I had run on for training.

My goal since registering was to finish the race – which meant I needed to stay ahead of the 4hr pace, which was never in doubt even with the much needed walk breaks. No matter how bad I felt, or tired I was, I was not going to stop or complain, and this was more a result of coming across a female running the 10k who was navigating the course with one prosthetic leg (a blade) and whose determination was incredibly inspiring.

As we made the final descent the course was again tricky and treacherous as evidenced by my wipeout going down a set of stairs. Thankfully I landed on my butt and avoided a major injury – only a few bruises and sore ankle…

As we cleared the downhill section and doubled back on the path we started the Village and crowd was audible in the distance and that motivated me to carry on strong and finish with a smile. Triumphant.

As I came to the line there was Kerry to cheer me on and the rest of the crowd at the finish line was inspiring and realizing that I had completed this course intact and with little energy left meant that I had left it all out on the slopes.

With many refills of water bottles, a quick spray of the hoses, a stop at the Clif tent for fuel we headed to the ice bath to soak the aching legs and change into dry clothes. The weather by then had cleared and warmed up significantly so the atmosphere was just one big party – a great reception to end a great day.

The event staff are to be congratulated for an amazing event, one that I will definitely be back for… next time I will train for the hills and will then focus on running a stronger race.

The goal was to finish. I did. That was a victory and I can’t wait to get back out there again – but I will take some time off to rest the aching legs… they earned it.

Summer running

Now that the days are longer, and supposedly warmer, my training program will focus on morning runs to avoid the humidity and late day sun and heat… and even at 5am it is light enough that I don’t have to carry a light (but do to be safe).

My morning run consists of a simple 6+km loop down the hill, and through town, returning uphill to finish off… from here I can add a small paved path run to add on 2km or depending on time of day and add significantly more distance as required.  Ideally I like to run the loop 3x a week and then at least one long weekend run.

I have recently begun running around the lake on a trail and if running this as part of a loop I can significantly add both mileage and difficulty to a simple road run…and if I drop the boys off at the skate park I can do an “out and back” on the trail as part of a 15+km run in under 90min.

The addition of the trail run has been great as it has helped me to train for The North Face Endurance Challenge Half Marathon trail run in July. This race is taking place at Blue Mountain, near Collingwood ON, and I am so looking forward to the experience. This event sounds more fun than Warrior Dash and Tough Mudder, both of which I have previously run. I love the idea of trail runs and am looking at making them a staple in my annual running calendar.

The training plan has merely been a continuation of the half marathon training I did for Mississauga in May, with the trail runs added on to give me more of a feel for what is in store in a couple of weeks. The thought of running up the ski hill is still daunting, but having completed a few obstacle races I am sure it is something that I can handle…

This year my race calendar is full – 7 planned races with the gem being the Chicago Marathon in Oct, but the actual highlight has been my 13yr old son asking to run with me, and to date he has completed a 15k race and today we signed up to run the Oasis Zoo Run 10k at the Toronto Zoo in Sept. He has trained with me in Florida over the holidays and has run with me in evenings and on weekends and his desire to spend time with me and keep active is what is keeping me going.

Having a training buddy is great, it motivates me, and hopefully inspires both of us to remain active and healthy. We are working on healthy eating – gluten-free where possible and have eliminated most processed foods to keep clean. We also fuel our runs with ENERGYbits and PocketFuel as needed. I am beginning to think that Kris runs just so he can have a smoothie to recover when we get home… but I am not going to argue….

So as the summer begins and kids are out of school, I hope to keep going – I set a goal for 1500km in 2014 and am almost halfway there, so with the marathon training kicking into gear, it should be achievable and having my son there to run with me and cheer me on, I am looking forward to the next run….