The Chocolate Race

My most recent race was the Chocolate Race, held in St. Catherines, Ontario on Sunday, May 13.  It was a little far from my home base of Toronto to go for a 5K-10K, but I went at a clients request.  Juliane, had heard about the race that served chocolates at the finishing line and insisted that we do it together to celebrate one of the sweetest reasons to actually go for a 10K run.  How could I say no to that?  

The funny thing was, I remember promising to do the run with her some months ago, but I have to admit, I totally forgot what weekend it was happening on, May 13, the weekend after the Toronto Marathon!  When I realized that I only had seven days for my legs to recover from the marathon I told her that I would have to drop from the 10K to the 5K event, but that would still be fine for us.  We still had our road trip and celebration together at the end, so no biggie.    

But to be honest, I was really doubting what my quads were going to be able to do that day.  I hadn’t run all week, just some walking and lap swimming (and hot tub epsom salt soaks, of course).  On the Saturday before the race, I ran just 2K with Eric, another client of mine, to warm up before a workout but my quads still felt a little twitchy.  I wasn’t sure how this was going to go.  But a promise is a promise, and if I can help it, I will never let a client down, so off we went to St. Catherines running for chocolate. 

  

The kids 2.5K run was first up in the morning, and all the little kids running so hard for chocolate covered candied apples was super cute.  The announcer was dressed up in a super hero costume and rallied all the participants up - like you needed to get the kids any more hyper with all the chocolate about, but it was all for fun. It felt a little like a halloween party actually.  It was a nice way to get the whole family involved for a Mother’s Day event.  After the kids had their race, the 10K runners started, and the 5K runners left 15min after that. 

I enjoyed running the course, the first and last 1.5K especially, as it was in the wooded area of Malcomson Eco Park and the Sunset Beach area of Lake Ontario.  Eventually the trail gave way to some smaller city streets for 2K, but ended up looping back at Cindy Drive to the same start/finish line in the Eco Park.  

It was a nice course, a mixture of trail and pavement.  But what made this run truly unique was the chocolate covered strawberries at the aid stations.  I don’t take any water or snacks during a 5K sprint, but I have to admit, I did glance back longingly at all the sweet snacks that I blew past. I can't help my competitive streak.  I was very relieved to see more chocolate covered strawberries at the finish line and then I did not hesitate to indulge!! Mmmmmm!  

On a personal note, I surprised myself with my performance at this event.  When I lined up at the starting line I really did not place any expectations on myself, I just told myself I’ll do whatever pace my quads would allow.  I jumped out to a quick lead, and managed to hold down an average pace of 4:39/km, just tagging behind a few speedy teenage boys.  At the 3K mark, one of the race officials told me I was the lead female and I told myself to just hang on for two more km. I crossed the finish line at 23minutes 20seconds.  

Race results: https://results.rmraces.live/Enfield/events/2018/chocolate-race/results 

Video clip: https://results.rmraces.live/enfield/events/2018/chocolate-race/26/entrant?share=1

While I had other age group victories within the last couple years, it was the first time I had been the overall first female to cross the finish line, and it felt really great to finally accomplish this.  Woohoo!!  The race organizers awarded gift baskets to the overall male and female finishers of the 5K and 10K events.  It was filled with chocolates, sweets and baked goodies that looked so beautiful I decided to give it to my Mom for Mother’s Day - how appropriate.  

And if all that wasn’t enough, once Juliane finished her 10K run, we headed over to the Grantham Lion’s Club, where they were serving the runners chocolate martinis to celebrate (only the adults of course, the kids had chocolate milks).  I’ve never ran a race quite like this one, but it was fun, festive and family oriented.  If you’re looking for an active way to celebrate Mother’s Day, or just a big fan of all things chocolate, I highly recommend checking it out.  

Toronto Marathon 2018

The Toronto Marathon is held on the first Sunday of May each spring (6th May 2018).  This course is one of my favourite marathons because it holds sentimental value for me. It is my adoptive home town race, it was where I did my very first marathon, and it was also the course where I earned my Boston Qualifier for the 2017 Boston Marathon.  My hopes were to earn another Boston Qualifying spot with this run.   

I left the condo early (6am) to make the shuttle bus run from the Hilton hotel up to Mel Lastman Square.  I was worried what the atmosphere would be like at the starting point this year due to recent tragic events, but the mood was the usual pre-race jitters rather than fear of anything else (at least that’s what I felt).  The memorials were still in place, but did not overshadow the enduring marathon spirit that so many athletes brought to the Square on race day. 

As we lined up at the starting line, the announcer asked for a moment of silence for the victims, we paid our respects, and then it was off to the races.  I felt really good for the first half of the race. I was holding my race pace of a sub 5min/km (4:56/km).  I saw my friend Maxime waiting for me at our usual spot at Yonge and Rosedale Valley Road, and I ran past her with a blazing high five.  I felt good going down Rosedale Valley Road and the Bayview Ave Extension, but I started to struggle a little by the time I reached the 25km mark just past Fort York in the downtown core.  

I usually start to struggle around the 30-33km mark of a marathon, but for some reason I’m not 100% sure of, I boarded the pain train early this year.  Every step on the Martin Goodman Trail was a gut wrenching effort on this run, and my pace had slowed to a 5:26/km at the 35km mark.  I began to worry that I might not make the cut off for Boston at this rate.  After hitting the 35km marker, the course brings us back east along Lakeshore Blvd for the final 7km stretch, and it never fails that the headwind smacks you in the face when you’re the most fatigued.   

I was running alongside another two women and we decided to try to draft behind two taller male runners just in front of us.  Running in a pack helps to converse energy and is a strategy used by many runners.  It helped for a few km but I struggled to keep up with the pack and found myself running alone for the last 2 km at a slower pace of 5:40. At this point, it was pure mental grit that kept me going, I dug deep and hung in there to cross the finishing line with a time of 3:40:45.  

  

Initially, I was disappointed with this run.  My current age group is 35-39 and the BQ cut off is 3:40.  I missed it by 45seconds!!!  Damn it.  But then once I settled down and thought about race dates on the calendar I realized it might not be a lost cause for me after all.  The next Boston Marathon that I would be applying for will be on April 15th, 2019, and I will actually be in the 40-44 age group by that date, and that age group has a cut-off time of 3:45.  The nice thing about getting older is that you get 5 more minutes to get the job done!  Considering this, I actually made my BQ with 4min 15sec to spare.  Woohoo!!  I won’t know for sure if I’ll be going to next years Boston Marathon due to the competitive entry system but I think I have a decent shot when the application process occurs in September.   

http://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/participant-information/qualifying.aspx 

So what went wrong with my race plan?  Why was I over 6 minutes slower this year than when I did this course previously?  I’ve wracked my brain trying to think of what went wrong.  As a run coach, I am very self-critical.  I felt well prepared.  I increased my mileage, my peak training run as 35km instead of 32.5km.  I had a great performance at the High Park Spring run off where I placed 3rd in my age group, I felt I had enough speed.  I was physically healthy, foam rolled and massaged out pre-marathon.   

What I found myself coming back to were the mental aspects.  I was definitely dealing with more stress this spring that I hadn’t dealt with previously.   My fifteen year old cat had to be put down a few weeks before the marathon and I was still coping with that loss.  In addition, I was also going through some workplace stressors that were proving quite difficult to resolve.  Most of my friends encouraged me to just channel that raw emotion into my run, but I’m not sure if it was the kind of emotion that would serve as rocket fuel.  It felt more like dead weight that piled on me and slowed me down.  In the end, I’m not sure why I was 6 minutes slower.  Stress? Age? Complacency?  I can’t say for sure, just speculation. 

In the end, I like to take away a positive from every event. And any day you finish a marathon is still a good day, a fantastic day in fact.  As critical as I am, I have to remind myself that I still ran a fast marathon at 3:40:45 and out performed most of the women in my age group (14th place AG).  I should be proud of that.  Congratulations to everybody who finished the Toronto Marathon! 

Thoughts on Running from Mel Lastman Square

I’ve always found strength, purpose and happiness in running.  As a child, I knew I was good at running, it was fun and fast, but I never realized that I would use running to actually help me cope with the stress of everyday life like I have to this day.  I’ve used running to help deal with stress, mental health issues and career fulfillment. It hasn’t always been a smooth journey, but I’ve been finding my way through it all.  

I remember watching TV during the Boston Marathon bombings in 2013.  I was no where near the place either physically nor mentally where I could complete a marathon at that point in time (I think I was competing in 10K then) but I remember feeling such empathy for those runners.  Bombs are for cowards, marathons are for the brave - I wrote that day.   I didn’t realize it at the time, but that moment solidified my intent to run that same Boston Marathon.  And I did four years later in 2017. 

This year I am going to be running the Toronto Marathon once again, on May 6, 2018.  The course starts at Mel Lastman Square and runs south on Yonge to Ontario Place on the Lakeshore.  A course I ran in 2016 and earned a Boston Qualifying (BQ) time actually.  I know this course well, it has a special place in my heart because it was both my very first marathon and where I earned my BQ.  

So this week when I was watching TV footage of the violent van attack near the start of the Toronto Marathon course (Yonge St between Finch and Sheppard), I was reminded of all the emotions I had back in 2013.  I know this may sound selfish, but I was so pissed off that someone may have ruined another keystone marathon.  I know people were injured and dying, and I didn’t know any of them, but I was angry that someone might have taken something else from the city and all the runners who take something more from this event that other people don’t realize.       

That was my initial reaction.  It may sound crude, but everybody reacts to tragedy in their own way, and how it impacts their own lives.  Obviously human life is more important than a road race, but I wanted to share how it impacted me on that day. 

Now my mind is continually thinking about what Mel Lastman Square will look like on marathon morning.  How will I feel running past the memorial site? Will I still see blood spatter on the sidewalk? Will I trip on flowers and bouquets? Will they re-route the race?  Will police presence feel intimidating or soothing?  Will there be signs held by pedestrians that make me want to cry? I had all these thoughts at Boston and now I will have them at home in Toronto now too, and it sucks.   

I never wrote about this before, but in the last 8K of the Boston marathon I felt hyperaware, scanning the crowds for signs of danger as I neared Boylston St. What if it happened again? My body was exhausted but my mind raced these thoughts. I had to stop looking for faces in the crowd because it was freaking me out, so I kept looking at the road instead. I missed out on seeing the faces of people I knew where there to cheer me on.  It changes your behaviour, thoughts and sense of joy in the moment.  And that’s not fair.  

Part of the reason I never wrote about this before now was because I used to think I didn't have the right to feel this way.  I wasn't there for the bombs, or the most recent van attack. I wasn't injured or directly involved, so what right did I have to I claim to feel affected in this way?  But it has affected me.  Its like a dirty second hand smoke wafting through the air over me, making me wheeze and cough.  I'm not sure where to go with these feelings. 

Terrorism sucks.  And I know that the root of both of these attacks are very different, (Boston was misguided political and religious beliefs, while Toronto was misogyny based), but its still very difficult to reconcile why someone would want to cause so much harm to others.  

They seemed so angry at the world but they chose to act on their anger in a very violent way.  I’m often angry.  But I’ve chosen deal with my anger, frustration and other negative emotions in much more healthy ways, such as endurance running.  

I love running to very angry aggressive music - Metallica, Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Eminem.  The driving throbbing beat sets wonderful running cadence and provides mental strength.  Even while writing this blog I chose to listen to Pantera’s “Vulgar Display of Power” and “Strength Beyond Strength” albums to try to bridge the mindset between myself and an angry testosterone driven male mind.  

While I find most people frustrating and annoying, I can’t find it in me to hate others to that same extent.  Maybe there’s something inside me that will simply never connect to the mindset of a mass murderer.  I suppose that’s a good thing.  I like to think I'm a good person.    

It has been a tough week so far.  I ran this morning in pouring rain, to work where 3 clients cancelled appointments, and then I learned my first trail race of the year (Five peaks, Terra Cotta, April 28) was cancelled because of the damage the freezing rain storm had caused to the trail.  I was really looking forward to that trail run, out in nature away from the chaos of the city. Its good for the spirit.  I feel like I can handle bad weather, I’ve been doing that my whole life on the Canadian east coast, but the beating down of the human spirit is the harder element to cope with.  Let’s hope things gets better from here or I might need more than a run to cheer me up.
     

All I know is that running from Mel Lastman Square is going to feel very different this year. 

Race Roster Spring Run-Off 2018

The first road race of the season in Toronto has traditionally been the long standing 8K and 5K Spring Run off in High Park.  I like this event for its natural beauty, challenging course and ease of accessibility (right on the subway route).  Not many courses offer all three of these options, but High Park is a beautiful and rugged park right in the heart of Toronto.   Although the first Saturday of April is still early in the season and often windy and cold, its always a fun day out, and runners forget the chill once they get running. 

This year, I had four clients who were running this event, and after leading so many group training runs through the park myself, I decided it was about time I finally ran this race and put an official time in the record book for myself!  

Alice was up first in the 8K event.  Last year she ran the 5K and took first place in her age group (AG), so the success of last year weighed heavy on her.  However, with consistent training and hard work, she did not fail in her attempt at competing in a tougher and longer course.  Alice ran the 8K in 53:27 and placed 3rd in her AG, collecting a bronze medal this year.  

The 5K event followed shortly after the 8K, and this year I ran the course with three of my clients - Eric, Jane and Muge.  

The husband and wife team of Eric and Jane had a great day out on the course, running 28:16 and 33:34 respectively, which secured top ten placements in their AGs.  Jane paced just as we had planned and expected based on her past running experience, but Eric (our dark horse) was a pleasant surprise, running under 30min for his first ever 5K road race.  Way to go!   

Despite missing some hill training work, Muge posted a solid 35:11 on the 5K course, not bad for a first outdoor run of the year.    

While I have ran this course many times with clients as part of their training plans, I had never personally raced this course before, and I had no idea what to expect for my own performance. I had never ran this challenging and hilly course on my own terms before.  I ended up holding an average pace of 4:42, laying down a time of 23:30 which was good enough to secure 3rd spot in my AG.  I was happy with that, as there were some fast runners testing their speed out there. 

A key feature of the High Park Spring Run off is the ‘Kill the Hill Challenge’ - the tough 400m climb up Spring Rd right at the end of the race.  This is the reason I had everybody running hill repeats, both outside and on the treadmill.  The more hill repeats squeezed into training the easier it will be to tackle this hill.  So how did we do?

Kelly - 1:58

Eric - 2:34

Alice - 2:40

Jane - 2:44

Muge - 3:26

Like I said during all those hill repeats in training, you’ll thank me later...maybe.

I’m proud of everyone for showing up on a chilly day and killing the hill.  

Alice and myself, both came out with bronze medals, while Eric, Jane and Muge all put down solid runs with valuable experience gained from the event. I’m looking forward to a fun and exciting run season with this fantastic run crew.  Here's to more medals and personal bests ahead! 

Thai Yoga Stretching for Mobility

I am always looking at ways to improve my skill sets as a personal trainer.  As a result, I take regular courses that I believe will help my clients, especially all the athletes I run coach, as well as the people I help manage chronic conditions such as osteoarthritis.  

Last fall I did the first in a series of Thai Yoga Stretching workshops that was aimed at increasing a persons flexibility (see my blog dated Nov 5, 2017).  Today I participated in the second of the Thai Yoga stretching workshop series that was aimed at increasing mobility. 

This workshop was a great refresher on the techniques I learned last fall, but more importantly let me expand on my skill set working further with clients’ major joints (e.g. knees, hips, shoulder, back) and the attached major muscle groups of the glutes, legs, back and arms.   

The elements of Thai Yoga stretching combine deep breathing, accu-pressure, body weight and yoga postures to help release tension in the muscle groups, increase ROM in joints and overall flexibility.  

One of the really enjoyable aspects of these workshops is that as part of the training process participants are teamed up in pairs in order to practice technique.  So half the workshop I end up receiving the Thai Yoga stretches.  I have to admit the deep stretches targeting my psoas (hip flexor), quads and hamstrings were very much needed and beneficial.  After the ‘Assisted Quad’ stretch and ‘Kneeling Leg Arc’ stretch my hip flexor felt much more relaxed that it had been in months, and I believe that it will benefit my run training going forward toward a two big events I have this spring.  

The ‘Forward Fold’ stretch with massage targeted some really tight muscles in my back, especially the lats, erector spinae and QL, which have tightened from all the planks and deadlifts I have been doing all winter to improve my core strength.  There’s no feeling quite like that of a back free of tension, which allows one to move without restriction.  

These stretches are just a few of the many I learned. 

If you are interested in seeing and feeling what Thai Yoga stretches can do to improve your athletic performance, reduce recovery between tough workouts or just improve your overall quality of life, then contact me for a Thai Yoga stretch session.  You’ll be amazed how it will relieve muscle tension, increase ROM, flexibility and mobility.  

Why not feel and perform your best?!

Here are some photos from todays session:

These pictures are of me stretching the hip, adductor and VMO (muscles of the inner thigh and quadriceps) of my partner, Andrea Leplae of Fuzion Fitness.  Thanks to Debra Dumont of Navina Thai Yoga Therapy for taking the pictures at todays training session.  And also thanks for the Can-Fit-Pro Academy for hosting the workshop. 

Chilly Half Marathon 2018

Burlington's Chilly half marathon is a race I've done three years in a row now.  Its a staple event in the Southern Ontario run circuit with several elite athletes, including olympians Reid Coolsat and Krista Duchene all competing.  Personally, I like it as its a fun winter event to run in the off season to help me prepare for my spring marathon.  I like to play around with pacing strategies and see how my endurance training has been coming along this far in the early stages of my marathon training plan.

While lots of running is always part of the plan, getting sick is never part of any athletes plan, but sometimes it happens and there is nothing you can really do about it, except try to tough it out.  Unfortunately this year, I came down with a nasty sinus infection a few days before the event on March 4th.  I was not alone in my misery, several other runners lined up for the port a potty were all complaining of their various symptoms of malaise. 

I had planned to hold a pace of 4:45/km, and for the first 3/4 of the race I was able to do just that.  But I started to struggle with my breathing at about the 16km mark and continued to do so for the last 5km of the race.  My run splits tell the story...

The last few km I was battling a side stitch from the laboured breathing due to the congested sinuses, but I persevered and laid down a strong finishing kick when the finishing line came into sight.

I finished the half marathon in 1:42:56 (pacing 4:53).  My 2018 time was 32 sec off my personal best from last years event when I ran 1:42:24 (pacing 4:51).  Considering I was suffering through a nasty sinus infection, 32 seconds off my PB doesn't seem so bad. 

I always like to take away a positive from every event I do, and I think I performed well all things considering. Holding a strong pace indicates that my marathon training is coming along well and on par for a strong spring marathon on May 6 where I'll be running down another BQ (Boston Qualifier), hopefully in much better health, cold free/sinuses clear!

As always, I came away from this race with another sweet long sleeve fleece tech shirt that is super great for winter running, as well as helping me survive the rather cool temperatures of the gym that I work at (think draughtiest room ever).  Shout out to New Balance for their support for the clothing over the last three years!

Looking forward to coming back to this event next year to lay down a new PB and hoping to finally break that 1:42:00 time that I seem to run so consistently at this event. 

My March Madness - time to start racing again!!!

It’s March already.  Where is 2018 going? This weekend is my first long course run of the year - the New Balance Chilly half-marathon in Burlington, Ontario.  Its my third year in a row running this race. I keep coming back to this event because its a great tune up for my spring marathon, its a fun/fast/flat course, and you get some great swag (e.g warm & comfy NB running tech fleece shirts) and yummy chilli to eat afterwards. 

The week before a race I always have to think about how much running and recovery I should do to be rested and ready to go.  This period is called the taper period, and the amount of time I taper depends on the distance of the event.  For half-marathons (21.1km) I like to taper 7-10 days, whereas for a full marathon (42.2km) I'd taper 4 weeks.  I have to remind myself to reduce my mileage, keep up intensity (in shorter bouts only), ensure I get my rest, and oh yeah, eat well, but not too well...basically: 

On the bright side, I always like to treat myself to a massage to work out any knots and muscle tightness that have built up in the training process, and make sure my IT band is nice and loose by spending some extra time on my foam roller.   This is me putting on my brave face, as I work out the last remaining knots of my IT band.  Grin and bear it girl!  I know I'll run faster if I'm nice and loose.  Tight muscles can reduce range of motion (ROM) and stride length resulting in poorer performance.  Every runner needs a good foam roller. 

Last year I ran 1:42:24. This year I really hope I can break the 1:40:00 barrier.  I’ve been thinking about my race strategy for this year, and comparing it to what I did last year.  On reflection, I started too aggressively, pacing at 4:30min/km. I got caught up in the excitement and tried to hold my 10km race pace, but I paid for it, and hit the wall at the 15km mark, and struggled through the last 6km.  This year, I plan to pace more conservatively at the start, 4:45min/km, be more disciplined and finish stronger.  Let’s see what happens on Sunday.  Wish me luck!