Mississauga Marathon Training Week 12!

What another GREAT week!

I had some great runs, I turned 35 and I ended the week running my first 30k at Around the Bay!

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: It was SUCH an amazing day weather wise that I couldn't bare to hit the treadmill even if they do have personal TVs. I headed out (from King and Yonge) and ran down to Jarvis to Queens Quay to Spadina and back. It was a tempo run, but I'm not sure I trust my watch because it was kinda spazzing when I asked it to track pace and stuff with all of the large buildings in the big TDot. I have to go with it though, its all I've got. 7k, 38:56

Wednesday: My 35th birthday! As always, I had dinner at my parents before Run Club and my mum came through with my traditional Strawberry Shortcake in cupcake form:

After that, I was ready to tackle a record 9 hills at Thomas Street with the group! 11.5k (9x500m hills), 1:11:51

Thursday: Run club 10k night. I started out pretty quickly with our clinic leader, but quickly reeled it in considering Around the Bay was up on Sunday. 10.19k, 1:04:39

Friday: Rest.

Saturday: I just headed out and ran without looking at the watch much and letting my mind wander. I had watched Spirit of the Marathon on Thursday so I thought a lot about what it would be like when I cross my own finish line on May 6th. 6.29k, 38:16

Sunday: My first 30k run and first Around the Bay. It was a super-amazing day and run! 30.22k, 3:18:12 (chip). Here are some photos:

The Finish!

Whoops! They caught me mid-tweet!

I love this race, even though I'm dying of sweat and heat as seen by my pit stains!

Proof that my silly smile wasn't just a put on when I noticed the cameras.

Our group (minus Anila who finished about seven minutes behind us). L-R: me, Julie, Peter, Peggy, Steph. Paul is squatting.

Total KM: 65.2, Total Time: 6:51:54, Average Pace per KM: 0:06:19

Have you ever entered a race and run it as a training run? Did it end up being one of the most fun times ever? Have you ever text, tweeted, Facebooked or otherwise engaged with people via a mobile device during a race? Can you believe I posted photos of those pit stains?

Around the Bay Recap

What a super, amazing, phenomenal day yesterday was!

As you know, the people from my marathon clinic group and I decided NOT to run the Around the Bay race as a race, but instead to run it as a Long Slow Distance run per our usual Sunday strategy. It was the first 30k run for six out of the seven of us and we were all going to PB no matter what!

We arranged meet up points and carpools and caravan's and were on the road to Hamilton by 07:40. Despite thinking we'd park in one place, we ended up in a lot just up the street from Copps and lucky for us, we met up with our clinic leader Chris (which was completely unplanned). We hit Tim Horton's for a pee break and then headed to Copps to meet our seventh group member, Anila and my cousin Jodi:

That's me with my cousin Jodi.

Jodi is the person who inspired me to start distance running. I ran my first 5k at the Mississauga Marathon races in 2009, the same year she ran her first full marathon. Seeing her come in and beating her goal time of 4:09 made me determined to continue with this sport. She blew her 3hr goal out of the water yesterday, finishing in 2:55:17

Before too long, it was time to say goodbye to Chris (who went on to a silver medal in 2:11:09) and line up for the port-o-potties.

Except the lines were way too long and the race was only 15 minutes from starting. We all figured we could tough it out and grab a pee on course as it was only a LSD run anyway. We were very far back from the start and it was still crazy and congested. We actually were lined up with the 3hr and 3:15 continuous pacers, but decided that our group of seven would be all we needed to pace. Before we knew it, the crowd was cheering and we were off!

1-10k. I've never started this slow. Where is the water? I HAVE TO PEE!

The seven of us managed to stick together through the start, with Peter, Paul, Anila and I slightly ahead of Julie, Peggy and Steph. At one point, when we were talking about how slow our pace was, Peter commented, "I've never started a race so slowly!" It WAS a bit strange to be continuously reeling in and keeping it to easy pace while being passed by so many people (but also passing people too). At 4k, we passed Ivor Wynne stadium and I decided to send out my first tweet:

We passed a water station here and I didn't get a drink as I had a full belt with me. We also passed port-o-potties with Peter commenting that he'd need to stop by 15k at the least (and I agreed - Damn small Tim Horton's coffee!). Then we were running though downtown row-house neighbourhoods with kids watching through windows as the thousands of runners raced by. I turned to the group and said, "Wow, these kids must be thinking: WORST. PARADE. EVER."

I booted ahead to get a shot of this guy:

and he ran back to shoot a photo of me! I was having so much fun already! The best part was that the seven of us were still sticking together just like any Sunday run.

Around 8k, we started looking for water again as both Peter and I wanted to take a GU. I had water on me, but wanted to time the GUs with the stations as I already knew that the day was hot and I was over dressed (as you can see from above, I had a vest and long sleeved top on). The station didn't come and finally as we were heading over the highway, I handed Peter one of my bottles and told him to take the GU. We were 10k in by that point and neither of us wanted to compromise our runs. We also decided that the need to pee was getting unbearable.

Splits 1-10k: 6:31-6:23-6:25-6:22-6:25-6:27-6:25-6:25-6:22-6:19(GU) (5k split: 32:06, 10k split: 1:04:04) - pretty amazing consistent splits, eh?

11-20k. FINALLY! Port-o-Potties! Pace... PACE!
The next few KMs were all about getting to that next port-o-potty. Peter, Paul, Anila and I decided that we were stopping no matter what (meaning no matter how long the lines were) the next time we saw the orange boxes. Before we came to that aid station, we passed a bunch of signs that said things like 2845 miles to Boston, 9864 miles to Berlin etc with a guy with a bunch of race medals giving out high fives (he was apparently handing out bacon before we got there as well!). It was just part of the fun to give him a high five.

We finally spoted the next aid station and port-o-potties and yelled that we were off. Peter and I sprinted there with Anila following and Paul hanging out to get water and wait for us while Julie, Steph and Peggy decided to continue on. The stop cost us 5 minutes as you'll see from the 15k split, but:


After we were all done, we continued on, under the highway, over the lift bridge (Oww to any barefoot or five finger runners!) and onward to the hills. We ran a bit fast here to make up time, plus we were behind the 3:30 walk/run pacer and I was determined to get in front of him, so a lot of these KMs were spent with Peter yelling, "Pace! Nicole PACE!!!" at me.

Splits 11-20k: 6:19-6:36-6:24-6:26-11:09 (duh! Potty time!)-6:15-6:26-6:24-6:28-6:49 (GU) (15k split: 1:40:58, 20k split: 2:13:20).

21-30k. Nicole! PACE!!!! THAT's the Hill? Really? Let's go, let's go, let's go!

By 20k we were into the super nice homes of Burlington near the Golf Club and hitting the rollers. We came up a bigger one and Anila asked if that was "the Hill". Lots of runners around us laughed and we said that it was at 26k, so she would know it! We passed lots of great support in this section and we walked through all of the water stations which was an AMAZING strategy (Thanks Paul!). By this time I was BAKING and was taking one cup to dump down my neck and back and the other to drink. I was also drinking from the poweraide I had in one of my 8oz bottles and I had the very beginnings of hunger pains! Just when I was starting to think too much about being hungry, there was a table of orange pieces and I took one and ate it with glee! PERFECT!

We lost Anila around 22k on the rollers and part of it was probably my fault. I spent a lot of time on the downhills or flats being told, "PACE! PACE! NICOLE PACE!!!!" by Peter as I just couldn't help myself! Thank goodness he reeled me in as downhills can be really mean to my knees and they feel fine today.

This part of the course also brought with it my favorite sign of all time, which I stopped to take a photo of before chasing Peter and Paul down:


Before we knew it, we were at THE HILL. Valley Inn Road. As Chris had told us, this hill on its own wasn't the problem. It was the fact that it came at 26k AFTER all of the rollers that made it difficult (he said that Heartbreak hill in Boston is just like it). Of course, Peter, Paul and I (man, I wish my name was Mary just for this race!) were motivated to run up the thing without stopping. In fact, Peter took off yelling, "Let's kill this!" and I said, "Well, let's not get CRAZY, let's just get up it." And so we did. (26k split - 6:11)

And that was that.

From there, Peter really had to hold me back. I was like a horse CHOMPING at the bit! I wanted to go, go, go.


Right around this time, we saw a familiar back! JULIE! It was amazing, but we had caught back up with our group! Peggy and Steph were just ahead.

We blew by the grim reaper and by 28k, we could see Copps in the distance. I totally laughed at the 28k marker which said, "It is rude to count the number of people you are passing out loud" because we were passing people like roadkill. That is the benefit of running a race at easy pace, you can really turn it on at the end.

I let Peter and Paul know that I would be veering off course to tap the 29k marker and once I joined them again, I started screaming, "Let's go! Let's Go! LET'S GO!!!" we booted it home taking care not to fall on the ramp down into Copps and ended up at the line with Peggy and Steph! I head Peter's name and my name and I had my arms in the air from the second I entered Copps. I WAS BEAMING! I can't wait to see the photos.

I took my time walking off the course with my stupid smile plastered to my face and an EMS asked if I was okay. Oh yes I assured him and one look at my face and he knew I was just thrilled with it all.

21-30.2k: 6:16-6:34-6:26-6:28-6:36-6:11 (Valley Inn WHAT!?)-6:13-6:25 (JULIE!)-6:01-5:41-1:32 (last 220m - 6:56 pace). 25k split: 2:45:40, 30.2k split: 3:17:58.

Official Chip: 3:18:12
Place 4683/6118
F35-39 (first time in this category): 331/451
Gender: 2012/2945



So, that's it! The first 30k, the first Around the Bay!

I will be back next year to race this one. I had a blast and I know that I would have had the same fun even at a race pace or on a cold day.

Next up: Mississauga Marathon on May 6th!

Around the Bay 30K RUN goals

You read that right. These goals are RUN, not RACE, goals.

I decided not to race Around the Bay this year as it is not my goal race. My goal race is the Mississauga Marathon on May 6th and I do not want to do anything that may compromise being able to complete that race.

Also, everyone from my running clinic who is signed up for Around the Bay feels the exact same way.

So, we are all going to travel to the race together and stick to a LSD pace, likely crossing the finish line between 3hr15min and 3hr20min.

The only other goal I have for this race is to NOT walk up any of the hills.

I’m bib 4305. I hope to meet many people on Sunday!

Good luck to everyone using this as a race, I have no doubt I’ll be racing this one year soon.

Respect the Distance

If you’ve trained to run for a marathon or if you’ve been around running circles, you’ll have heard it said many times: Respect the distance.

Simply put, 42.2km is a long time to be on your feet running.

And I don’t care if you’re Paula Radcliffe or Patrick Makau Musyoki – 42.2k is still a long way to run.

I have heard the mantra many times in my years of becoming a runner before I had started to train for the marathon.

I had heard it.

But I had never understood the true meaning.

Not until I went on my first 29k (18mi) run two weeks ago.

I decided to take the run easy and to stay with the group. I started out running well within my Long Slow Distance run pace around 6:42/km (a full minute slower than my targeted marathon race pace). Then, I started chatting with a lady who was running slightly faster… and slowly we began to pull away from the group as we increased our speed by seconds.

The run was going well. There were three of us sticking together and we were hitting splits, chatting and just plugging away. We each fueled around 14k (GU for me) and continued onward. Around 19k, the route hits the only serious hill – a 500m climb with about 4-6% grade (I think?!?). It wasn’t tough, but it wasn’t easy either. When we got to the top of the hill, we had to look up our route again and so we walked for a bit. We made our decision on which way to go and headed out. Suddenly, the lady I had been chatting with the entire time said she wasn’t feeling 100%. That the hill had done a number on her and that she was almost out of water and fuel. We only had about 8km left in the run and I knew I would be fine. I quickly gave her one of my half full 8oz bottles and my second GU. She took it and felt good enough to complete the run, but had to start doing frequent walk breaks in the last 4km or so.

Before we left her to walking (I don’t follow any kind of 10/1 run/walk plan – I usually walk to take GU’s. I find that with traffic lights, I don’t require more breaks), I discovered that she had eaten HALF of a Lara bar for breakfast and had brought one 8oz water bottle and 8oz of coconut water for fuel.

Seriously?!?!

I know that people have a difficult time eating in the morning or before a run (I don’t – I can gobble down two toast with peanut butter and banana and then giv’er for 29k), but you can’t expect to run for 3 plus hours on half of a Lara bar! And if that is all you CAN stomach, then for the love of God (and the sake of your training partners), bring adequate water and fuel with you for the run!

Respect the distance.

The other part of this story is how challenging I found this first 29k run to be. I think part of the problem was that I speed up too much (I ended the run with an average per KM pace of 6:38 – again within my LSD pace, but I was TIRED and my legs protested largely). Contrast that with this past Sunday’s 29k run (which had its own challenges with the heat) when my average pace was 6:43/km (which was brought down by my last two KM splits – 6:12 and 5:56) and it was like night and day. I had learned from the first run and had learned that I needed more fuel myself and that I needed to keep the run slow.

In short – I learnt what it really means to Respect the Distance.

So what does this mean for my initial goal of running a 4 hour marathon on May 6th?

Who knows?

I have a few weeks and a 32k (20mi) run to get through before I make any decisions.

For now, I’m going to continue to strive to keep that respect at the forefront of my mind, especially this Sunday when I run my first 30k ever at Around the Bay.

Stay tuned for race run goals.

What I Ate Wednesday

As always, this post is hosted by Jen at Peas and Crayons and again, it is;

I've documented the things I ate on Tuesday, March 20 (also know as my last day being 34):

Toast with organic crunchy peanut butter topped with banana. Did you know that I had NEVER had PB with banana until this year? True story. I love both and have no idea why it took me 34 years to combine them. I also had some OJ and Immunity drops.

Every day. As soon as I get to work.

This is a combo photo of my pre-run snack (yogurt and a few grapes) and my lunch, iceberg lettuce salad with carrots, cherry tomatoes and cucumber with a cheese string. I don't really care for cucumbers or cherry tomatoes but I don't HATE them either and they are cheap and easy to add to a salad. I finished the grapes as well.

My mid afternoon snack was some yummy Pop Chips (Salt and Vinegar) and chocolate milk. My grapefruit is still sitting on my desk, unloved. Oh well.

Dinner (made by my husband), was a super good chicken thigh, broccoli, onion and red pepper stir fry with long grain and wild rice (topped with sriracha sauce). My plates are really big, so trust me this is a good serving size.

I'm posting this at 20:06 on Tuesday evening, and according to My Fitness Pal, I have some calories left today so I may have another snack later. It won't be healthy. I'll either have a beer, chocolate pudding or popcorn.

Today (March 21) is my 35th birthday and I'm planning on hitting up Swiss Chalet for a chicken sandwich and their AMAZING dipping sauce with a caesar salad for lunch! YUM! I will eat dinner at my mum and dad's house before running hill repeats with the group later. I expect it to be a good day of birthday eats! My mum usually makes me a strawberry shortcake!

I hope you enjoyed a great day of eating! Do you have any special meals or treats that you eat on your birthday?

Mississauga Training Week 11!

What a wonderful week! The days are getting longer, the weather has been AMAZING and this coming week will be no exception!



But enough about this week, let's get to last week!

Monday: Rest. After my first 29k run ever, I had no problem resting

Tuesday: Treadmill Tempo! Although I felt rested and my legs felt fine on both Monday and Tuesday, I did feel the effect of the 29k run when I attempted my tempo pace. I ended up breaking the 20 minute session into two 10 minute tempo sessions with a 2 minute jogging break in between. I still hit my tempo pace of 5:19/km, but I could tell that my legs were tired. 6.44k, 37:42

Wednesday: Thomas Street Hill repeats! 8x500m repeats. I was able to wear shorts and a short sleeved top and while I was slow up and down the hill, I still got it done! 11k, 1:10:20

Thursday: Rest. Our clinic leader went on holiday and a few people were going to do the run earlier in the day while I was at work. I decided to make Thursday a rest day and on

Friday: I met up with my friend Kerry for a morning 10k run. She brought along her adorable daughter, Lauren in the jogging stroller and we got nice and sweaty running around the neighbourhood. As I was running home from her place to mine to get to work (I work from home on Friday), I was wishing that I didn't have to work at all and that I could run 10 miles instead of just 10k. 10k, 1:02:56

Saturday: My husband had to work on Saturday and my oldest had a birthday party from 2-6. Inspired by Kerry (and the weather), I decided to take Fergus for his first spin of the season in the jogging stroller:

Man, pushing 26lbs of toddler who is yelling, "SIIIIDDDEE!!!" (slide) as we run past every neighbourhood park, uphill, into the wind (I shit you not), is HARD WORK. PHEW! Of course, I can't wait to get out with the Ferger-Berger more! 6.5k, 41:32

Sunday: As our clinic leader was away, a group of us decided to meet at 7:30 instead of 8:30 to start our 29k LSD. We were joined by our friend and summer half marathon clinic leader, Peter and set off for three plus hours of good running. It was a beautiful morning - cool and foggy with the promise of sun and warmth. We made a Tim Horton's pit stop at 14k which likely saved me from stomach trouble later in the run even though I didn't think I had to use the washroom at all. I decided to try out Gu Chomps (apple-cranberry) and really enjoyed taking in fuel more often and actually having something to chew. It was a great run for me and I think that part of the reason is because it was the exact same route as last week. I knew what to expect at every turn and I knew when we were almost finished. I am going to make a point to drive the Mississauga marathon route multiple times before the race if I can't get out to run parts of it. I really think this will help me just as much as the 32k training run. 29.22k, 3:16:04

Total KM: 63.16, Total Time: 6:48:32, Average Pace Per KM: 0:06:28

It was another great week! This coming week is no exception! I turn 35 on the same day I'll run up the $&*%ing Thomas Street Hill a record NINE times, the weather as seen above and I'll hit my first 30k distance when I run (not race) Around the Bay.

How have you been enjoying this warm weather (if you're in the GTA?)?

Do you have any race plans any time soon?

Should I wear a crown to run hills on Wednesday?

Mississauga Marathon Training Week 10!

Week 10!

Wow! How did we get here so quickly?

8 WEEKS TO GO!

Monday: Rest!

Tuesday: 6k tempo After the Chilly Half Marathon race two days before, I figured I could take a tempo run off. I ended up getting this run done in town as I was home with my sick son, so once my husband got home from work, out I went. It was nice to just run easy and let the mind wander. I wore the Chilly jacket for the first time and I really liked it. 6.29k, 39:20

Wednesday: Thomas Street Hill repeats! I always try to make this sound like fun... but it really never is. What IS amazing is that both the marathon and the half marathon clinics are currently hill training so there are lots of people going up and down the hill to smile at or give high-fives to. Because I've been with the same running room for over a year now, I recognize pretty much everyone which is also nice. 7x500m repeats into the freaking wind! 10k, 1:03:17

Thursday: Clinic night. We spoke about goals and the best way to set them so that running continues to be fun. Then it was time for an easy run and it was. I ran along with four ladies chatting away as we reversed our normal route thorough my childhood town. Sometimes there is nothing better then just reversing a usual route. It felt new and thus shorter. HA HA. The wind was SUPER KRAZY though and of course we hit the worst of it right in the last 1.5k. It felt like we weren't running at all. 10k, 1:01:38

Friday: Rest

Saturday: I had been feeling gut rot since Friday and nothing I ate or drank was helping with it. I decided to head out for my run anyway as I figured I could always come home pretty quickly if I was feeling that badly. I ended up changing my route slightly, just to keep me interested and got through the prescribed 6k. 6.44k, 41:02

Sunday: EPIC DAY! It was the longest distance I had ever attempted: 29k! I had decided to join the clinic for this run, because who really wants to run 3+ hours alone? I was rewarded with great company and GLORIOUS weather, running with a lovely non-clinic lady named Val and Paul from our clinic. I was perfectly dressed in capris, long-sleeved shirt and vest and got through the run without ever being discouraged. The best part? We are doing it all over again this coming Sunday! 29.05k, 3:12:49

Total KM: 61.78, Total Time: 6:38:06, Average pace per KM: 0:06:27

Chilly Half Marathon Race Report

As you know, I had decided to attempt a PB for this race and to run it with my running room clinic friend, Steph.

The morning of the race was not an early one as the race didn't start until 10:05, so I got up around 6:30, ate my normal pre race meal of a bagel with peanut butter and even had a small coffee! The weather was looking nice - it was going to be sunny with a slight wind, but nothing like the 90km/h winds we had on Saturday.

Another friend from the clinic, Julie drove to my place and we headed out to Burlington just after 8am. Sadly, my friend and neighbour, Kerry wasn't able to run in this race as her daughter had been up all of the night before with the stomach flu and Kerry just didn't feel like she could complete a 21k run, even at an easy pace (Kerry's already signed up for Mississauga as redemption!).

We got to Burlington in plenty of time and parked at one of the designated lots. We then walked to the performing arts centre where Steph and some others from our running room clinics past and present were waiting for us. I quickly decided NOT to wear my extra layer and checked my bag. I opted to run without water on this race, but with my phone.

We milled around the PAC for a bit and then headed outside to hit the porta-potties. This is when the sun came out, so Julie and I walked BACK to my car, sharing a banana and got our sun glasses. When we got back to our friends, it was time to line up. This ended up being a bit hairy as many people were already lined up and the corrals were 1:30-2hr! We ended up squeezing in the front (noting that people were going to be PISSED at us slowpokes being up front) and before long, we were off.

What a CRAZY start! I lost Steph almost right away, but we found each other pretty quickly again. I hit reset, not START on my watch and then once I hit start, I ended up stopping the watch again for a few seconds. Then Steph's watch wouldn't load satellites and wouldn't lock - it was CRAZY. Finally we sorted ourselves out and settled into a pace as best as we could considering the mass of people.

The first 3k took us down past Joseph Brant Hospital, which this race is run in support of and allowed things to settle down a bit. We hit the turn around and the first water station and it was chaos all over again. The station was under-manned and the water was frozen! I was very conscious of taking in water at all of the stations as I didn't have a drop of my own, but man - ice water was not pleasant. I lost Steph AGAIN here, but she stayed behind me with an eye on me and we hit Lakeshore and 5k together.



She's in the red, I'm in the maroon.

1-5k (we were aiming for a 5:35 pace per km): 5:34-5:34-5:33-5:46 (water station disaster)-5:37. Total: 28:04, pace band: 27:57.

When I checked my time against the pace band, knowing that I was at least 10 meters off, I was worried. I had NEVER been behind on a race before and didn't know how to attack it, except to attack it. Steph and I ran the next few KM together, but she was starting to lag a bit behind. I kept checking for her and lost her AGAIN at the second crazy frozen water station, but found that she was still slightly behind me. I kept checking and checking and finally waved at her to let her know, I just have to go and Steph gave me a thumbs off and waved me away to run my own race (I've since found out that she had a hard time with her breathing starting around the 5-6k mark and it just wasn't her day. She didn't get her sub 2hr half this time.).

6-10k: 5:31-5:37-5:41(GU)-5:38-5:34. Total 1-10k: 56:05, pace band: 55:55.

To say that being so behind the pace was freaking me out would be an understatement. At the same time, I didn't want to kill myself on this race because it was only meant to be a test of my marathon race pace at most. I was feeling absolutely fine though and was actually with the 1hr55min walk/run pace group, so I decided to pick up the pace and attempt to get back within the 1h58m goal. Increasing my pace felt fine and before I knew it, I was at the turn around point, still chasing the 1:55 group:



Yes, I was feeling that good!

11-15k: 5:30-5:22-5:34-5:25-5:43 (tweet!). Total 1-15k: 1:23:39, pace band: 1:23:53.

I just keep plugging along at this point. I was feeling so good that I really don't even remember much about this part of the race. I tried to high five the priest giving out oranges, but failed. I had no demons in my head to battle. My legs were fine, I was thinking woohoo! 6k is nothing; just a short neighbourhood run. I knew I had the 1:58 time in the bag and I was just cruising to the finish. I actually had to keep telling myself to reel it in and not kill myself; I wouldn't let myself go until about 20k even though I had LOTS in the tank.



There were police ensuring that we stayed inside the traffic cones, but I still ignored that rule to tap the 20k sign as I ran past (I've never missed this step in a half marathon). Before I knew it, I was back at Brant Street and gunning it for the finish!

16-21.1k: 5:26-5:33 (GU)-5:27-5:36-5:32-5:14-0:28 (0.1k) Please note that my times are off a bit due to my watch issue noted at the start of the report. Funny that my Garmin actually recorded 21.1k though!

Final Gun Time: 1:57:29
Final Chip Time: 1:57:10 ---> 1min22sec PB!
Gender placement: 413/1787
W30-34: 75/227 - my last race in this category!



I felt AMAZING! No pain, no mental blocks, nothing! I quickly met up with my friends and we headed to a pub to get our free treats:


Free chili and beer!

Another race in the books. Next up: Around the Bay!

WIAW - Race Day Eve Edition

As always, special thanks to Peas and Crayons for hosting!

That's right, today I bring to you the food I ate on Saturday which was the day before I ran the Chilly Half Marathon. I didn't keep to the green memo here. Whoops.

Now, I'm not sure how much I really needed to carb up before the race, but I went with the "better safe than sorry" route.

Breakfast was chunky peanut butter on a toasted English Muffin

With coffee
Lunch was a turkey and lettuce sandwich on my favorite bun of all time - Onion and Poppy Seed. I also had a glass of chocolate milk.
I ate a bunch of crack some of the best granola around for snacks thoughout the day (we went to Costco after I picked up my race kit).
Dinner was penne with veggies cooked in olive oil tossed with pesto. Do you like my Christmas theme?
And a homemade peanut butter cookie!

I had some popcorn as an evening snack and enjoyed every morsel. There was also unpictured water throughout the day (yes, my big green glass is never far away).

I raced to a PB time on Sunday, so maybe all of these carbs helped. Who knows? They sure tasted good though!

Do you carb up for a race?

Mississauga Marathon Training Week 9!

What an AMAZING end to another great training week! But we'll get to that later.

I started this week with very sore legs after my 26km run the Sunday before. My IT bands were tight and I was worried that they wouldn't loosen up at all and start to cause knee problems, but by the end of the week, everything was okay.

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Tempo Tuesday. I headed to a newer facility and ran with a personal TV attached to my treadmill. This location is SUPER busy compared to my Women's only gym, but - PERSONAL TVs! I think I'll be heading there from now on. I ran 10 minutes warm up, 20 minutes tempo pace (5:19) and the rest to cool down. 6.44k, 36:22

Wednesday: Thomas Street Hills! It was a miserable night. It was windy, damp and misty out. I was soaked by the end of the warm up, but trudged along up 6 hills (6x500m).I was starting to worry about my IT bands as they were still tight, but I figured a shake out run the next night would do them good. 8.76k, 56:28

Thursday: Our clinic talk was with a guest speaker - my old Half clinic leader, Bing! He spoke about the importance of Carbs when training and racing and the science behind how they get your body to work and perform. Then we went out for our easy run. My plan was to take it super easy, but we have a small clinic and I wanted to run with company, so I ended up pushing the pace a bit. 10.15k, 1:03:14

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 6k Rest. I didn't want to run in 90km/h winds and I didn't want to run the day before a half marathon that I had decided to race.

Sunday: Chilly Half Marathon!



I'll be writing up the full race report soon. It was a great day and my legs felt awesome the entire run. 21.1k, 1:57:11 ---> 1m21s PB!

Total KMs: 46.45 Total Time: 4:33:15 Average Pace Per KM: 0:05:53

We are half way through training and I'm feeling great! Can't wait to take on 29k this Sunday!

Chilly Half Marathon Goals

When I first signed up for this race, my goal was to run it a marathon race pace

(which is 5:42/km - 2:00:16 half marathon).

Then I started talking to people in my clinic who are also running and found that Steph wanted to run it in 1:59:00.

We decided to run together.

Then, I started thinking - what's a minute?

My PB is 1:58:32.

Surely we could beat that.

Then I worried about the weather.

The wind.

The 10am start.

Then I printed out a pace band:

I figured I might as well go for it.

There are LOTS of peeps running this race - if you see me, please say "Hi" or cheer loudly!

Steph and I will love the support.

I'll be back to write it all up after.

February Recap!

Another strong month of training despite two low weeks due to our awesome TRIP

# of runs: 17 (I missed five due to vacation!)

Longest run: 26k on a great morning for running even if I started at 0606! I was able to meet my friend Kerry mid way through for about 8k which kept me going. This is my current distance record. The most I've run before this point was 22k.

Races: None

Total KM: 163.52 – 38.49k less than January, but I think that it is still a good amount of KMs considering my vacation.

Total time spent running: 16h54m50s

Average pace per KM: 0:06:12


This was another very strong month for me. I'm very happy that I didn't crash and burn with taking so many runs off mid-month and I'm ready to tackle March and the long distances it will bring with renewed enthusiasm.

I'm going to start March strong on Sunday when I run the Chilly Half Marathon in Burlington. Stay tuned for race goals.

How was your February?