Knowing this is just around the corner has me reflecting on my first half marathon, Boston’s Run to Remember (here’s the recap), and some of the lessons I learned in preparing for the race, running the race itself, and dealing with the post-race letdown (both physically and mentally).
Here are 7 lessons I learned from my first half marathon:
1. I’m going to need new sneakers before then (I bought my current pair in early April), but this time I am going to look into a 1/2 size larger, per the advice of some of my more experienced runner friends. Why? See #2.
2. Cut my toenails short beforehand. Gross, right? But I injured my toe during the race as a result of my second toe (which is longer than my big toe) continuously banging the toe box of my sneaker (which is why I want to look into getting a slightly larger shoe). I eventually lost that toenail, after a long and somewhat painful (not to mention ugly) process.
3. Think outside the box when it comes to gear. For that race, the temps were in the low 40s and it was overcast. I get warm really quickly when I run, but I know how brutal it can be at first, especially when you’re waiting around in the cold. I didn’t want to deal with wearing a jacket and then tying it around my waist or tossing it mid-course, which seemed like a waste.
So I did some research and found a bunch of people recommended buying men’s tube socks, cutting off the heel, and using them as makeshift arm warmers. Tossing a pair of $2 socks sits much better than tossing a jacket. I also had a bunch of people recommend the whole garbage bag thing, which I was prepared to do, should it be actively raining before gun time (which, thankfully, it wasn’t).
4. Don’t neglect cross training. I had so many people tell me to make sure I stick with my Body Pump weight lifting classes during my training, that it would help me become a better runner (plus you don’t want to neglect your upper body). And you know? They were right. And I’m not going to lie … a few times, when I was running uphill, I would tell myself, This is why you’ve been doing all those freaking lunges!
5. Tunes! Having a fun playlist that was long enough to cover 2+ hours was key. I also embedded some of my favorite speedwork songs within the playlist to give me a little boost here and there.
6. Embrace the spirit of race, enjoy your surroundings and be present. I am so happy I didn’t get too trapped in my own head during this race and that I took the time to marvel in my fellow runners, the cause and meaning behind why we were running (fallen police officers) and what I was out there accomplishing. One of my favorite parts of the race was clapping for the police officers who were out there on the course cheering for us and rooting us on, and high-fiving a group of transit police officers carrying an American flag during the out-and-back.
7. Eat (or drink) protein after the race … be smart about post-race refueling. This was my downfall. Immediately after finishing the race, I was ushered into the convention center, where I chugged a cup of regular Gatorade. As someone who usually drinks the lower-calorie G2 Gatorade, it felt like I was drinking a cup of pure sugar, and it didn’t take long for my stomach to grumble. As a result, I was only able to eat a half a bagel and – not surprisingly – experienced some major nausea for the next few hours.
Every experienced runner I’ve spoken to said it’s critical to have some protein after finishing an endurance race like that, whether it’s drinking some chocolate milk or protein smoothie, snacking on a protein bar, etc. What I probably should have done is just drink water, followed by my half bagel or some carbs, half a banana and then a chocolate milk. This is going to be tricky for the October race, since I’m running it with some girlfriends and I wont have Dr. G. and the kiddos there to hold my bags and hang on to my stuff. So maybe we bring a cooler to keep in the car with chocolate milk and protein bars?
What running, training or racing lessons have you learned?
Also, be sure to come back tomorrow for some exciting news!! It’s been hard keeping this one a secret …