Attention Phoenix Marathoners!! Discounts Abound!!

November 6, 2015

Remember how I mentioned in this post that I am running the Tokyo Marathon on February 28th? Well… it is the same weekend as the Phoenix Marathon (February 27th.) I was so sad when I found this out because I LOVE racing right in my own backyard and I love the course. Plus it’s not very often that I get to race and see all of my friends and neighbors! Boooooooo…

But….

At the same time, it is kind of cool because I will be training right along with all of you running the Phoenix Marathon! I will be using my Full Marathon Training Guide for Experienced Runners (use link below.)

How many of you are running it? There’s a 10K, a half, and a full. The course is so so great. And I love that it’s a Saturday race (Why aren’t there more Saturday races? Who doesn’t want an extra recovery day before diving back into real life??) Here’s the Course Elevation Chart for the full:

Course Elevation chart for the half:

Training for the full using my full marathon training plan starts on November 9th. That’s Monday, folks!!

Training for the half using my half marathon training guide starts December 21st.

And since I am so excited about training for Tokyo at the same time as my Phoenix friends, I’m gonna discount my training guides by 15%! To get the discounted rate on my guides, be sure to use the following links (as opposed to the link on the sidebar):

AND….. how about a discount on the Phoenix Marathon entry fees? Use code “myheartraces10” to get 10% off!! Woo hoo!!

Click here to be directed to the Phoenix Marathon website.

Let’s do this!!!

Maury

Ten NYC Marathon Thoughts Before They Escape my Mind

November 3, 2015

Hearing Frank Sinatra sing “New York, New York” at the start as you head onto the Staten Island Bridge is just as magical the second time.
My goal was to run a fun, happy race. Easy to do on this course, but I did it.
Before the race, I told myself I was gonna see which borough had the best spectators. Oh my word talk about a five-way tie.
American runners smell so much better than any others.
This race was much more difficult than I remember… those inclines aren’t steep but man are they long.
I saw a man running in front of me with “Run your perfect race” written on the back of his shirt. I love that. I want that to be my goal in every race from now on. To run MY perfect race. Not anyone else’s.
I took all five gels (miles 3, 8, 13, 18, and 23) and occasionally took in water and Gatorade in-between. I was so proud of myself each time I swallowed something without feeling like it was gonna come back up! Progress.
My shuffling iPod was on point! I know I said I would go without, but I made a last minute decision in my corral to go ahead and put them in. Glad I did. Mostly kept them playing low unless I needed to power up a hill. Took them out for the last few miles like I always do.
The way I tackled this race was by taking it one landmark at a time. After the start line, I told myself to just make it to mile 3 to take my first gel, after that, I set my sight on the 10K mark- that would mean 20 miles left. Next was mile 8, where I would take my next gel. Then I focused on the halfway mark. Once I got there, I knew B and the kids would be at 16 so that’s all I could think about. After the high of seeing them at 16, I knew I was gonna take another gel at 18. Next, I knew that at mile 20 I would make it to the Bronx and I would only have the last 10K. After 20, I made it a goal to stay strong until my gel at 23. Then Brian texted me saying that he and the kids were at mile 24.75! Once again, that’s all I could think about! I made it to them (took a quick photo) and knew I only had a mile and a half left! I think that’s how all of life’s big accomplishments should be approached- in little bite-sized pieces.
In “Theme from New York, New York” Frank Sinatra says “I’ll make a brand new start of it in old New York.” For this racing heart, that’s kind of exactly what happened. I gained so much clarity while I ran this amazing race for the second time and it hit me hard. The clarity was: my race to PR/BQ is taking all of the fun out of something I am completely passionately in love with. I am forever grateful that I had the opportunity to run Boston in 2011 for two big reasons: The first is that it was, and always will be, an incredible memory. Second, I was able to check it off of the list of the Six World Marathon Majors because at the time I had NO CLUE that completing all of the majors would be something I would soon try to accomplish. But I have decided that qualifying for Boston again and running a Personal Best can wait. I’ll come back to that goal in due time. For now, I’m gonna focus on my other goals (7 continents and 6 majors) because running with a smile for 26.2 miles is way more fun than staring at my Garmin for 26.2 miles. Run on, my friends!!!

(Connor captured this photo at mile 16. All of the other runners were worried about running the tangent, but I couldn’t get over to my family fast enough!!!)

Race Pictures and Thoughts

October 19, 2015

(The picture above I’d like to title, Why in the world do I keep signing up for this.)

In the following picture, I’d like you to note not my face, but the faces of the two gentlemen in the picture (I shouldn’t be laughing, but I am.) I assure you that had I not known that the cameraman was taking photos of me at that exact moment, my expression would have matched theirs.

Marathons are HARD. I relearn this every time I run one.

But look at the smile it brought to my face. Worth it and then some. No question there.

Guys, I didn’t walk away from St. George with a PR or a BQ. I walked away with something more valuable- a truckload full of lessons learned. I am taking those lessons, and I am putting them in a safe spot at the forefront of my brain. Because they are gooooood. And they will make me a better runner and a better person.

In the meantime, I’m gonna race with my HEART. It’s what I do best.

You guys cool with that?

Maury

TTT: Cutting Corners and Running the Tangents

October 13, 2015

(Do you see me? This is me running the Sydney Marathon last year. I’m in between the guy in the white shirt and the girl in the light blue shirt.)

I have run a marathon and finished with a watch that said I ran 26.66. Not good. Pretty sure I was running zig zags the entire race.

It took me quite a while to figure out how marathon courses were measured and why sometimes my Garmin would beep to indicate a mile, but I was still two-tenths of a mile away from the mile marker. It also took me a while to realize just how important it is to run in a straight line and to run the tangents. An extra half-mile on a marathon or half marathon course means an extra 4 or 5 minutes- that’s a lot.

Running the tangents, and running the course in the smallest amount of distance possible is pretty simple if you remember that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

In the following picture, the runner following the red dotted line is covering more distance than the runner who is following the black line.

When it comes to cutting corners, know that they will add up. If you have to be aggressive, do it. There’s a reason most runners are fighting for the closest spot to the corner, and that reason means cutting out time and distance.

Always remember that the person who runs the shortest possible route on the course is running 26.2 miles (13.1 in a half.) That’s how the course is measured. Everyone not running that route is running more. Be a runner that doesn’t run more than necessary!

For some very helpful and informative articles on running the tangents, click HERE, HERE, and HERE.

New York City runners: there are a lot of turns, especially toward the end! Click here to study the map and get familiar with the course. Realistically, you won’t be able to run the course perfectly, but it will help a lot if you put forth some effort.

Happy Tangent Running, my friends!!

Maury

A Non-Running Week

October 8, 2015

A few things about this non-running week:

Living on the foam roller while my little ones watch Chopped. They’re obsessed. Even Lou. They’re all gonna be much better cooks than I am.
My hair is gonna be clean all week!
The weather in AZ is pretty perfect. We’re spending lots of time outside at the park- FINALLY!
October is my favorite MONTH. I’m so happy it’s here.
I have been having a very strong urge to be at the top of a mountain. I think I’m gonna make it happen on Friday or Saturday morning. Can’t wait to say hello to hiking season.
Chicago marathon is happening this weekend and I absolutely love that race. Who’s doing it?? I’d love to do it again some day!!! It was my first marathon after having Lou (I think she was about 8 months old) and it was so much fun. I was so grateful to be running and to be running such a great race. I ran it with Rachael. I think my finish time was around 4:05 or so. Here are some pictures for you: