The OMNI Exercise Blog...
Nov 23, 2009, 12:33 pm
#4501
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Join Date: Jul 2003
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Posts: 60,745
2009 Philadelphia Marathon Race Report
Short version: My best marathon yet. A BQ with a 3:10:15, representing a 25+ minute improvement over my past marathon PR. Pretty much a perfect weekend!
Longer version:
This was my 7th marathon. Best previous best was also at Philly where I ran a 3:35 and change a couple of years ago. Over the years Ive followed a number of Hals plans and they have always served me well, so I decided to go with his advice again for this one, using Advanced I as a base. I made some modifications to it like making the speedwork a bit longer (maxing out at 10x800 for instance) and ran more slow/recovery/easy miles. I think my peak was around 59 mpw. In retrospect I think the additional miles really helped me out.
Anyway, I was a bit nervous leading up to the race. I kept having negative thoughts about not being able to hold a 7:15 pace throughout the race. I thought I could BQ based on my shorter distance races, but the thought of running that fast for that long just seemed really hard. But I received inspiration from folks here and got myself in a positive mindset.
I was also nervous the last couple of days before the race because out of nowhere the bottom of my foot started to hurt a little bit when I walked around. It was in the ball of foot area. Ive had a metatarsal stress fracture before so this was particularly worrisome. But, I iced it, tried to stay off my feet as much as possible on Saturday, and hoped for the best.
We arrived into Philly Friday afternoon/evening and checked into the Palomar hotel (Kimpton property). It is a great new hotel in a very nice area of town (Rittenhouse Square). Highly recommended for marathoners. Got some pizza slices for dinner that night. Fell asleep around 11:30 and slept in till 9am. Felt great! I think sleep two nights before the race is really key.
Saturday we hit up the expo in the late morning (it was a breeze). Loved having it at the convention center and not that basketball stadium they used a couple of years ago. Following the expo we grabbed a quick bite at Maggianos for lunch with some family that lives in town. Back to the hotel for a little rest and then an early 5:30 dinner at Le Castagne, also in Rittenhouse Square, again with family from the Philly area. It was fun. I had a glass of wine, which I usually dont, but I figured it couldnt hurt me. Got into bed around 9pm but probably didnt fall asleep for real until about 10:30. Nerves and a couple of bathroom stops kept me from falling asleep easily.
I woke up to the alarm at 4:15am. I like to get up super early to 1) down a lot of Gatorade and allow it time to get into my system, 2) drink lots of coffee to allow it to have, um, effect on my gastro system if you know what I mean, and 3) I like to just kind of relax and get into the zone in my hotel room leisurely and not be too rushed. One of the great things about the Palomar is they are dog friendly, so we brought our golden retriever with us. This was great as I could play with her in the morning before the race, which was also very relaxing.
On to the race itself. We left the hotel around 6am and got a ride with some friends to near the start (we were dropped off by some water fountains). We immediately walked to the long line of portajohns and got in line. Basically what I do before races is stand in line at portajohns. I used it once and then got right back in line again at another one. I know it sounds crazy, but I find that going to the bathroom as close to the start time of the race is helpful. It also is kind of fun to stand in line and complain with other runners about how long the lines are. Takes the mind off the 26 miles were supposed to run in a few minutes. ?
I got into the maroon corral which is right near the front, actually right behind the elite runners. I was wearing an old sweatshirt and sweatpants which I took off shortly after getting into the corral (with about 5 mins to go). I kept the sweatshirt loosely around me for warmth and then ditched it as soon as the gun went off.
About 20 seconds after the gun went off we were running and crossing the start.
Now, everyone says that the first half goes by real fast in these races and you dont even feel it. Sometimes that is the case for me, but not so here. I noticed that the first few miles I was kind of winded for some reason. It was probably nerves. I think I needed a couple of miles to shake out the nerves and just kind of get into rhythm. In any event, I started out exactly how I wanted to, with a first mile of 7:50. I did not want to start too fast and I didnt. 2nd mile was 7:09 oops too fast. Unfortunately, I continued to speed up with the 3rd and did that on in 6:58. Slowed it back down again and the fourth mile was 7:17, fifth at 7:16. Not an ideal start but not horrible either. I didnt go out too fast and felt like I was in control.
By the 10k point I had shaken off the nerves and felt like I was right in that 7:15 zone. Crossed it in 45:30 or 7:19/mile average.
The second part of the first half as a challenging hill in a park but then youre rewarded with a nice long downhill. At this point I noticed that my Garmin was clicking off miles before I reached the official mile markers. So either I was running longer than course, because of tangents and such, or the GPS was a bit off. I decided to not pay attention to the distance my watch said, just the split times. I figured it could tell me accurately more or less what a mile was, so that is what I went off of.
My splits were a little bit all over the place in the 2nd part of the 1st half, with some 6:58s and 7:18s thrown in there. Nevertheless I crossed the half at 1:35:18 or 7:16/mile pace. Felt good. The foot issue I was worried about earlier in the week seemed to be nothing. I didn't even feel the ball of my foot.
I knew at the halfway point that I would have a shot at BQ. I still felt very fresh and while things would get harder, I felt like I had a very real shot at this sucker. The 3:10 pace group balloons were within my sights at all times during the race so far and I just told myself, keep them in sight, keep them in sight. This served me well for miles 13-20. I basically just tried to keep the distance between me and the balloons relatively constant. Each mile clicked by and I was beginning to fatigue. I would say that I felt really quite good at about mile 15 but by 19 I was feeling it. It doesnt help that to get to 20 you have to run some gradual uphill sections. Those kind of wore me out. Nevertheless, I was hitting 7:14s or 7:13s like clockwork. This was the most consistent part of the race for me.
At the 20 mile turnaround in Manayunk I was still feeling strong. The balloons were basically the same distance away and I used the energy of the crowd to run a solid 21 and 22 miles.
After 22 I was really starting to get tired and I could feel myself fading a bit. The balloons were still in sight but they were farther away. I was losing ground on them. I was tempted to look at the clock and see how slow I could run and still cross in 3:10:59 or less, but I didnt play that game. I just tried to stay positive and think about writing this race report! Mile 23 went by in 7:18.
Miles 24 and 25 were the toughest of the race for me. Everything hurt. My legs were obviously tired, my quads were cramping a bit. It was brutal. I just kept saying to myself: Keep the ship moving. 24 was 7:21 and 25 was 7:27. Yikes, the fade was on!
At mile 25.5, right before you start to really get into the finishing zone I saw my wife. I didnt have the energy to turn and say anything but I heard her say I was so close and I could do it. That encouraged me.
It also encouraged me to have folks yell my name (on the bibs) and yell Boston as I was closing in on the finish. The last half of mile I just tried to sprint as hard as I could.
As I rounded the corner and saw that the clock was something like 3:10:30, I knew I would do it. I had crossed the start probably 20 secs after the gun, so I knew I had a cushion. I pushed as hard as I could and crossed the finish line. I knew it was under 3:10:59 but I didnt catch the exact time. Garmin had said 3:10:17. It didn't matter, I knew I was in under the gun!
A BQ!!!!
I immediately high-fived the guy in front of me who could tell I was excited and he said enjoy Boston. Believe me bud, I will. (In 2011 of course. Arg.)
After the race I got some chicken broth and found a nice place to sit down while my family members found me. We sat for awhile, I changed my clothes, and we eventually went back to the hotel. I kind of felt ill the rest of the day, but I guess that is to be expected given how much this race took out of me.
Enjoyed a nice meal at Fish in Rittenhouse Square after resting in the afternoon, went to sleep early and woke up this morning with that wonderful sore body. A badge of honor I say.
I have to thank everyone for their support. Without your advice and encouragement I know I couldnt have done this. Particular thanks to dhuey and dukeman who planted the seed in my head that a Boston qualifier was realistic this year. Also everyone else who posts on the exercise blog - your peer pressure is tremendously helpful!
Garmin splits (take with a grain of salt, I have no idea how accurate these are):
Split Time
1 0:07:51
2 0:07:09
3 0:06:58
4 0:07:17
5 0:07:16
6 0:07:03
7 0:07:00
8 0:07:21
9 0:07:10
10 0:07:18
11 0:07:03
12 0:06:58
13 0:07:14
14 0:07:19
15 0:07:02
16 0:07:05
17 0:07:09
18 0:07:13
19 0:07:14
20 0:07:14
21 0:07:04
22 0:07:11
23 0:07:18
24 0:07:21
25 0:07:27
26 0:07:22
27 0:02:26
Summary 3:10:17
Short version: My best marathon yet. A BQ with a 3:10:15, representing a 25+ minute improvement over my past marathon PR. Pretty much a perfect weekend!
Longer version:
This was my 7th marathon. Best previous best was also at Philly where I ran a 3:35 and change a couple of years ago. Over the years Ive followed a number of Hals plans and they have always served me well, so I decided to go with his advice again for this one, using Advanced I as a base. I made some modifications to it like making the speedwork a bit longer (maxing out at 10x800 for instance) and ran more slow/recovery/easy miles. I think my peak was around 59 mpw. In retrospect I think the additional miles really helped me out.
Anyway, I was a bit nervous leading up to the race. I kept having negative thoughts about not being able to hold a 7:15 pace throughout the race. I thought I could BQ based on my shorter distance races, but the thought of running that fast for that long just seemed really hard. But I received inspiration from folks here and got myself in a positive mindset.
I was also nervous the last couple of days before the race because out of nowhere the bottom of my foot started to hurt a little bit when I walked around. It was in the ball of foot area. Ive had a metatarsal stress fracture before so this was particularly worrisome. But, I iced it, tried to stay off my feet as much as possible on Saturday, and hoped for the best.
We arrived into Philly Friday afternoon/evening and checked into the Palomar hotel (Kimpton property). It is a great new hotel in a very nice area of town (Rittenhouse Square). Highly recommended for marathoners. Got some pizza slices for dinner that night. Fell asleep around 11:30 and slept in till 9am. Felt great! I think sleep two nights before the race is really key.
Saturday we hit up the expo in the late morning (it was a breeze). Loved having it at the convention center and not that basketball stadium they used a couple of years ago. Following the expo we grabbed a quick bite at Maggianos for lunch with some family that lives in town. Back to the hotel for a little rest and then an early 5:30 dinner at Le Castagne, also in Rittenhouse Square, again with family from the Philly area. It was fun. I had a glass of wine, which I usually dont, but I figured it couldnt hurt me. Got into bed around 9pm but probably didnt fall asleep for real until about 10:30. Nerves and a couple of bathroom stops kept me from falling asleep easily.
I woke up to the alarm at 4:15am. I like to get up super early to 1) down a lot of Gatorade and allow it time to get into my system, 2) drink lots of coffee to allow it to have, um, effect on my gastro system if you know what I mean, and 3) I like to just kind of relax and get into the zone in my hotel room leisurely and not be too rushed. One of the great things about the Palomar is they are dog friendly, so we brought our golden retriever with us. This was great as I could play with her in the morning before the race, which was also very relaxing.
On to the race itself. We left the hotel around 6am and got a ride with some friends to near the start (we were dropped off by some water fountains). We immediately walked to the long line of portajohns and got in line. Basically what I do before races is stand in line at portajohns. I used it once and then got right back in line again at another one. I know it sounds crazy, but I find that going to the bathroom as close to the start time of the race is helpful. It also is kind of fun to stand in line and complain with other runners about how long the lines are. Takes the mind off the 26 miles were supposed to run in a few minutes. ?
I got into the maroon corral which is right near the front, actually right behind the elite runners. I was wearing an old sweatshirt and sweatpants which I took off shortly after getting into the corral (with about 5 mins to go). I kept the sweatshirt loosely around me for warmth and then ditched it as soon as the gun went off.
About 20 seconds after the gun went off we were running and crossing the start.
Now, everyone says that the first half goes by real fast in these races and you dont even feel it. Sometimes that is the case for me, but not so here. I noticed that the first few miles I was kind of winded for some reason. It was probably nerves. I think I needed a couple of miles to shake out the nerves and just kind of get into rhythm. In any event, I started out exactly how I wanted to, with a first mile of 7:50. I did not want to start too fast and I didnt. 2nd mile was 7:09 oops too fast. Unfortunately, I continued to speed up with the 3rd and did that on in 6:58. Slowed it back down again and the fourth mile was 7:17, fifth at 7:16. Not an ideal start but not horrible either. I didnt go out too fast and felt like I was in control.
By the 10k point I had shaken off the nerves and felt like I was right in that 7:15 zone. Crossed it in 45:30 or 7:19/mile average.
The second part of the first half as a challenging hill in a park but then youre rewarded with a nice long downhill. At this point I noticed that my Garmin was clicking off miles before I reached the official mile markers. So either I was running longer than course, because of tangents and such, or the GPS was a bit off. I decided to not pay attention to the distance my watch said, just the split times. I figured it could tell me accurately more or less what a mile was, so that is what I went off of.
My splits were a little bit all over the place in the 2nd part of the 1st half, with some 6:58s and 7:18s thrown in there. Nevertheless I crossed the half at 1:35:18 or 7:16/mile pace. Felt good. The foot issue I was worried about earlier in the week seemed to be nothing. I didn't even feel the ball of my foot.
I knew at the halfway point that I would have a shot at BQ. I still felt very fresh and while things would get harder, I felt like I had a very real shot at this sucker. The 3:10 pace group balloons were within my sights at all times during the race so far and I just told myself, keep them in sight, keep them in sight. This served me well for miles 13-20. I basically just tried to keep the distance between me and the balloons relatively constant. Each mile clicked by and I was beginning to fatigue. I would say that I felt really quite good at about mile 15 but by 19 I was feeling it. It doesnt help that to get to 20 you have to run some gradual uphill sections. Those kind of wore me out. Nevertheless, I was hitting 7:14s or 7:13s like clockwork. This was the most consistent part of the race for me.
At the 20 mile turnaround in Manayunk I was still feeling strong. The balloons were basically the same distance away and I used the energy of the crowd to run a solid 21 and 22 miles.
After 22 I was really starting to get tired and I could feel myself fading a bit. The balloons were still in sight but they were farther away. I was losing ground on them. I was tempted to look at the clock and see how slow I could run and still cross in 3:10:59 or less, but I didnt play that game. I just tried to stay positive and think about writing this race report! Mile 23 went by in 7:18.
Miles 24 and 25 were the toughest of the race for me. Everything hurt. My legs were obviously tired, my quads were cramping a bit. It was brutal. I just kept saying to myself: Keep the ship moving. 24 was 7:21 and 25 was 7:27. Yikes, the fade was on!
At mile 25.5, right before you start to really get into the finishing zone I saw my wife. I didnt have the energy to turn and say anything but I heard her say I was so close and I could do it. That encouraged me.
It also encouraged me to have folks yell my name (on the bibs) and yell Boston as I was closing in on the finish. The last half of mile I just tried to sprint as hard as I could.
As I rounded the corner and saw that the clock was something like 3:10:30, I knew I would do it. I had crossed the start probably 20 secs after the gun, so I knew I had a cushion. I pushed as hard as I could and crossed the finish line. I knew it was under 3:10:59 but I didnt catch the exact time. Garmin had said 3:10:17. It didn't matter, I knew I was in under the gun!
A BQ!!!!
I immediately high-fived the guy in front of me who could tell I was excited and he said enjoy Boston. Believe me bud, I will. (In 2011 of course. Arg.)
After the race I got some chicken broth and found a nice place to sit down while my family members found me. We sat for awhile, I changed my clothes, and we eventually went back to the hotel. I kind of felt ill the rest of the day, but I guess that is to be expected given how much this race took out of me.
Enjoyed a nice meal at Fish in Rittenhouse Square after resting in the afternoon, went to sleep early and woke up this morning with that wonderful sore body. A badge of honor I say.
I have to thank everyone for their support. Without your advice and encouragement I know I couldnt have done this. Particular thanks to dhuey and dukeman who planted the seed in my head that a Boston qualifier was realistic this year. Also everyone else who posts on the exercise blog - your peer pressure is tremendously helpful!
Garmin splits (take with a grain of salt, I have no idea how accurate these are):
Split Time
1 0:07:51
2 0:07:09
3 0:06:58
4 0:07:17
5 0:07:16
6 0:07:03
7 0:07:00
8 0:07:21
9 0:07:10
10 0:07:18
11 0:07:03
12 0:06:58
13 0:07:14
14 0:07:19
15 0:07:02
16 0:07:05
17 0:07:09
18 0:07:13
19 0:07:14
20 0:07:14
21 0:07:04
22 0:07:11
23 0:07:18
24 0:07:21
25 0:07:27
26 0:07:22
27 0:02:26
Summary 3:10:17
Nov 23, 2009, 1:06 pm
#4502
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
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I usually hate reading race reports, but I really enjoyed yours.
For other runners and potential runners here, I hope this inspires you. Don't necessarily think about marathons or qualifying for Boston. Think about how races can get you to push yourself and make it all fun. Think also about how great you'll feel -- both physically and psychologically -- when you become very fit. It might seem extremely difficult at first, but if you can just get through the first couple of months, you'll see how quickly your body will respond to the challenge, and it will get much easier.
For other runners and potential runners here, I hope this inspires you. Don't necessarily think about marathons or qualifying for Boston. Think about how races can get you to push yourself and make it all fun. Think also about how great you'll feel -- both physically and psychologically -- when you become very fit. It might seem extremely difficult at first, but if you can just get through the first couple of months, you'll see how quickly your body will respond to the challenge, and it will get much easier.
Nov 23, 2009, 3:21 pm
#4503
Join Date: Apr 2004
Programs: AA EXP, HH Gold,MR Gold, Avis CHM
Posts: 2,300
Great job magiciansampras! All the credit goes to you. dhuey and I may have planted the seed, but all the training and the actual race is all yours! Sorry I couldn't be there in Philly to watch the race and meet you personally, but I was in Chicago for the weekend.
Nov 24, 2009, 4:11 pm
#4505
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Join Date: Jul 2003
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Man that race took a lot out of me! Legs are still sore. Walking down stairs is very difficult. The quads seem to have taken the worst of it. Must have been those long gradual downhills.
Anyway, I did get to the gym today for an upper body weights routine. Still kept it at relatively low weights. 45 minutes. Felt good.
I did notice my biceps were already kind of sore. Must be from the race.
Anyway, I did get to the gym today for an upper body weights routine. Still kept it at relatively low weights. 45 minutes. Felt good.
I did notice my biceps were already kind of sore. Must be from the race.
Nov 24, 2009, 4:42 pm
#4506
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Join Date: Feb 2001
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Man that race took a lot out of me! Legs are still sore. Walking down stairs is very difficult. The quads seem to have taken the worst of it. Must have been those long gradual downhills.
Anyway, I did get to the gym today for an upper body weights routine. Still kept it at relatively low weights. 45 minutes. Felt good.
I did notice my biceps were already kind of sore. Must be from the race.
Anyway, I did get to the gym today for an upper body weights routine. Still kept it at relatively low weights. 45 minutes. Felt good.
I did notice my biceps were already kind of sore. Must be from the race.
Nov 24, 2009, 4:44 pm
#4507
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I wrote a letter to the boston athletic association asking them to let just one more little runner in for this year. We'll see what they say (if anything). Can't hurt to ask, right?
Nov 24, 2009, 8:05 pm
#4508
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Take a look at their list of sponsors. Do you know anyone who works for one? There are lots of "invitational" bibs for those with connections.
Nov 25, 2009, 9:22 am
#4509
Moderator: American AAdvantage, Travel Safety/Security & Texas, FlyerTalk Evangelist
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Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_1_2 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7D11 Safari/528.16)
Does it always fill early like this?
One of our local tv news anchorwomen did the Phornix PF Chang's marathon a few years ago in mid-Jan, qualified, and went on to do Boston that same year. It was 2-3 years ago, we had record cold at PHX (low to mid 20s at the start), and the weather at BOS was pretty crummy too (they followed her along with her training and races).
She's taken some time off, but just announced last night that she's doing PF Chang's again in Jan, hoping for an even better time...then she'll do Boston again. I'm assuming they allow this because of the media coverage (she said something about a friend/relative getting struck with cancer and the Susan G Komen foundation is sponsoring her).
Does it always fill early like this?
One of our local tv news anchorwomen did the Phornix PF Chang's marathon a few years ago in mid-Jan, qualified, and went on to do Boston that same year. It was 2-3 years ago, we had record cold at PHX (low to mid 20s at the start), and the weather at BOS was pretty crummy too (they followed her along with her training and races).
She's taken some time off, but just announced last night that she's doing PF Chang's again in Jan, hoping for an even better time...then she'll do Boston again. I'm assuming they allow this because of the media coverage (she said something about a friend/relative getting struck with cancer and the Susan G Komen foundation is sponsoring her).
Nov 25, 2009, 12:40 pm
#4510
Join Date: Apr 2004
Programs: AA EXP, HH Gold,MR Gold, Avis CHM
Posts: 2,300
Sure you can get a "charity" bib, but you might want to wait until you can get your official BQ entry. Starting corrals at Boston are tightly controlled. You can't get in a corral without the proper bib number. The charity spots are at the back of the pack. While you can certainly run well and pass a lot of people, part of the fun is running with lots of others at or near your pace. And with the narrow road for the first bunch of miles you won't be able to pass nearly as many people as you would like and you might get frustrated at the slower pace.
Nov 25, 2009, 12:43 pm
#4511
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Some have speculated that it is the economy (more laid off people means more time for getting in shape!). Others have said that the past couple of falls have seen hot weather at marathons meaning that lots of folks that would have BQ'ed did not until this year.
Who knows really. But there is speculation that the BAA will do something to qualifying times to tighten it up. I say hit the girls first (statistically it is easier for women to qualify than men, based on a Running Times article I read awhile back.. women aren't handicapped by 30 mins in "real life").
Nov 25, 2009, 12:44 pm
#4512
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Could be fun. ^
Nov 25, 2009, 12:47 pm
#4513
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Give yourself a break. I always take an entire week off following a marathon. Go with your wife if you want, but watch the race and drink coffee. You've earned it.
Nov 25, 2009, 12:49 pm
#4514
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True.. I kind of look at marathons like the super bowl. It's over and now we're into the off season. If I ran tomorrow it would be like the pro bowl. And no one watches the pro bowl.
Nov 29, 2009, 6:32 pm
#4515
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Not much to report for me as I've been taking it easy this week post-marathon. Went to the gym for a couple of upper body lifting sessions. Also did some light running beginning on Friday. Just little 3-4 miles things, real slow. Legs were sore the first couple of days. The soreness seems to be gone now but a general tiredness/fatigue still exists in the legs. I'm sure they'll bounce back soon enough.
I plan on following Hal Higdon's post-marathon advanced recovery plan.
I plan on following Hal Higdon's post-marathon advanced recovery plan.