Woohoo! It’s officially taper time!
My wonderful and amazing friend Monica flew out from California to run my last long run with me. (Now that’s a GREAT friend, right!?) I had 20 miles on my training plan (well, technically, 3:00) and we thought it would be fun to do a race together, so we ran the Duxbury Half Marathon + some miles before the start.
Rise ‘n’ shine, it’s running time! Monica and I were already running on the course at 6:00 AM to get in the extra miles before start time. It was cold and rainy and quite the way to start a 20-miler. Oh, boy.
Have I mentioned that Monica is a really good friend?
We finished just after 7:00 AM, which was right in the middle of bib pick-up, so we swung inside the Duxbury Senior Center, grabbed our stuff, and then ran back to my car to change out of our wet clothes and into dry ones before the race.
Dry clothes definitely helped, but it was still pretty chilly at the start. Brrrrr! (FYI: My ombre capris are from Brooks. I lovvvve them!)
My friend Marisa also joined us for the race, but she cruised and met us at the finish.
It was the 3rd annual race, so it was still pretty small with about 250 runners, so everyone started together at 7:30 AM on the dot. Ready? Go!
Monica and I kept our slow and steady pace for the first 6 or 7 miles of the race without issue. We talked and talked and talked the entire time. I asked her tons of questions about running and marathons, and she gave me so many great ideas and insight into what to do on race day (i.e. pacing, fueling, hydration). (She’ll answer all of these questions in the next edition of Marathon Talk with Monica, so keep a look out for it!)
Around mile 8 or 9 (technically, mile 15 or 16), I started to lose a little steam. I didn’t feel terrible, but my legs were starting to feel heavy and, mentally, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed that we still had 4-5 miles to go. I told Monica and she replied: Focus on running the mile that you are in. Ok, then, so that’s what I did. And before I knew it, we were at mile 10, and I actually felt pretty good (maybe my GU kicked in?), so we picked up the pace a little bit and continued along.
When we passed mile 11, we picked up the pace even more. I felt great! And at mile 12, I picked it up even more and practically sprinted to the end. I turned to Monica and said: LET’S GO! And then I ran as fast as I could until I crossed the finish line. It was an awesome way to finish, and it made me feel so confident in my training. Bring it on!
Monica and I finished the half in 2:00 on the dot, which isn’t too shabby considering it was part of a 20-mile run!
The “medal” for this race was a packet of Forget-Me-Not seeds. Isn’t that adorable? I’m definitely doing to plant them!
After the race, we stopped by Marylou’s for iced coffee.
And then popped into Whole Foods for FOOD!
PSA: The chocolate-covered macaroons (in the bakery section) at Whole Foods are incredible. They’re my new favorite treat and, of course, I needed to celebrate the start of my taper with a few of them. Yummmm!
Questions of the Day
Any advice for taper time? What should I do and not do?
What’s the craziest/most unusual medal you’ve received at a race?
P.S. Just wanted to share… From today through April 15th, Hyatt Regency Boston will collect new and gently worn sneakers to benefit the guests of St. Francis House, a neighborhood shelter for homeless men and women. (They have a Back on My Feet team!) St. Francis House provides rehabilitative and housing programs for poor and homeless men and women, supporting 500-600 people each day and serving up to 800 meals per day, 365 days a year. All shoe donations can be dropped off in the main lobby of Hyatt Regency Boston, located at One Avenue de Lafayette, in downtown Boston.
You are going to rock your marathon !
Those capris are indeed adorable! Have you reviewed them? I <3 them aesthetically, but chafing prevention is always number one…
They didn’t chafe at all during my 20-miler! 🙂
What a great way to get in your 20 miler! I can’t wait to be able to train and run Boston next year!
You go Girl! Way to go! And mad props to Monica for being such an awesome friend and flying out to run the race with you! How fun! P.S. Loooooving your Brooks ombre capris. 😉
You are seriously amazing!!! Your capris are the cutest! I love Brooks stuff!!!
Well done! Epic long run! So much more fun having Monica with you no doubt!
How fun! What a good friend to run it with you too. I think it’s funny how Monica’s bundled up compared to you. Ha!
My two favorite bloggers ~~
So awesome! I love having real life relationships with other bloggers…one of my friends and I have a weekly lunch date. It helps me not always feel like I am talking to myself in the internet world haha.
You had a great run and are going to rock it at Boston!
Wow, great job!! Now I want an iced coffee and macaroons 🙂 It’s always a good idea to have treats after a nice long run.
I love the forget-me-not “medals.” They are one of my favorite flowers because they symbolize true love, so I was thinking about giving packets of them as a favor at my wedding!
Lots of runners apparently get the taper crazies! Hope youlL get through just fine 🙂
I love that race medal. Forget me not’s are such a pretty little flower.
I LOVE your ombre capris, too!!
That is so awesome that she flew out & did that with you! It sure sounds like you’re going to rock Boston, wahoo!
Nice job Tina (and Monica)! I’m glad you’re keeping with tradition and getting the Whole Foods hot bar post training runs 🙂
Hal Higdon’s book has the BEST advise on tapering that kept me sane when I did the marathon last year. He talks a lot about food and hydration, rest, and beer : )
I love those capris! Good luck with the marathon…you will do great!
Trust in your training! The hardest thing for me was to decrease my milage so much! It’s such a mind trip!
Sounds like you had a great race, congrats to both of you!
2:00 is amazing for a half preceded by 7 miles! Shoot, 2:00 for a half alone is great! Congratulations!!
Seriously you are SO strong! You are going to ROCK this marathon. It’s great that you’ve relaly been able to focus on it and enjoy the training too! Monica is a great friend to fly out and run with you – bet you had a blast!
Love those capris!! I’m so impressed you started running BEFORE the half! Wow!
This is amazing! I am just training for my first half and it AMAZES me that people can run all that time without walking at all. I can run 1 maybe 2 MAYBE 3 miles without having to walk but I can never run so many consecutive miles. Any suggestions to help me out?!
Have you heard of the Galloway Method? It’s a walk-run way of running with planned intervals. It’s a great way to increase your distance. I actually used it at the start of my marathon training to help me run for longer periods of time. Definitely check it out. A lot of people have had success with it! 🙂 http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/run-walk/
That “medal” is super cute! Great idea 🙂 You are going to do so good at Boston.