General Discussion Race Reports! » ING New York City Marathon Rss Feed  
Moderators: k9car363, alicefoeller Reply

ING New York City Marathon - RunMarathon


View Member's Race Log View other race reports
New York City, New York
United States
Sunny
Total Time = 4h 24m 51s
Overall Rank = /
Age Group = 30-34
Age Group Rank = 0/
Pre-race routine:

Woke up at 5 to get ready - headed out of the apartment around 5:45 to take the subway, ferry, and bus to the start! It was actually very easy, just a lot of steps along the way. Getting up so early, but not starting the race until 9:40 was strange.
Event warmup:

Light stretching, easy jog to the starting line as everyone started moving, then we were off!
Run
  • 4h 24m 51s
  • 26.2 miles
  • 10m 07s  min/mile
Comments:

Started off very well - used a course-adjusted pace band for the race and although a few miles were a little quicker than planned (like the first mile), we were close to being on track. Had a great time, enjoyed the crowds, and just enjoyed the morning. Kirk and I were chatting constantly the first 10 miles, so it was a very comfortable pace. The crowds were AMAZING - they were 5 people deep in many places - the entire course (except bridges) were lined with enthusiastic spectators. There were bands, random people singing, and all sorts of "entertainment" along the way - I didn't regret leaving my mp3 at home.

Around mile 10, things started to take a turn for the worse. My stomach started feeling very uncomfortable and around 12 I gave in and said we needed to run a little slower to try to settle things down. Around mile 14/15, I gave in - had to take a quick walk break. Kirk suggested I hold off on my 3rd Gu to try to let my stomach settle and take some more water - which seemed to help. Unfortunately, I started to get hungry and tried my 3rd gel around mile 16 - which brought back my stomach issues again.

**Note: I am still not sure why this happened. I used the same Gu flavors and frequency I have trained with all year!

Gave up on eating and tried to drink more water to settle things back down. As soon as that started to get better, everything else started to get much worse. My injured upper leg was completely fine all day, but everything else decided to cause severe pain. The hip flexor on my other leg, both hips, and my feet (the worst!) were just not having it! Kirk was such a good running buddy and massaged my foot a few times - it was a struggle for the last 10 miles - so I could keep going. I was so frustrated that I couldn't maintain even a 10 minute pace at this point, but I was in so much pain I just did what I could.

Finally getting to Central Park was awesome - although I think these miles were some of the slowest. Kirk was hurting a bit at this point too, so we were trying to encourage each other to keep moving when we could and stretching when we needed to. We already knew a PR wasn't possible, so it didn't really matter anyway - we both just wanted to get to the finish line and stop! :)

Finally crossing the finish line - the crowds were SO thick through here - was great. We were super cheesy and held hands crossing the finish line (I hope they got that in our picture!).

What would you do differently?:

Not get injured 5/6 weeks before the race. I think my body was not able to cope with the distance after so many missed miles.
Post race
Warm down:

This was my least favorite part of the race! They made us walk almost 15-20 blocks through Central Park before we could get out. I just wanted to sit down and warm up, but if you sat down, it was just so cold!

What limited your ability to perform faster:

Lack of mileage during the final stages of preparation. I am very happy with my performance the first half of the race. I think if I was able to complete my training without being injured, I would have been able to finish faster than planned. I need to add consistent strength training and no more standing intervals on the bike.

Also need to figure out what happened with my stomach and nutrition. I'm not sure why the nutrition I've trained with for a year caused problems during the race, but I could have had a better performance for a lot longer had that not happened.

Event comments:

This was my 5th marathon and the best course/spectators so far! I have never wanted to repeat a race, but this one will be on my schedule again. Highly recommended!!




Last updated: 2010-01-19 12:00 AM
Running
04:24:51 | 26.2 miles | 10m 07s  min/mile
Age Group: 0/
Overall: 0/
Performance: Below average
Course: Run covers all 5 boroughs: Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island
Keeping cool Good Drinking
Post race
Weight change: %
Overall: Average
Mental exertion [1-5] 4
Physical exertion [1-5] 4
Good race? Ok
Evaluation
Course challenge Just right
Organized? Yes
Events on-time? Yes
Lots of volunteers? Yes
Plenty of drinks? Yes
Post race activities: Average
Race evaluation [1-5] 5

{postbutton}
2010-11-09 10:01 AM

User image

Expert
882
500100100100252525
Marietta, GA
Subject: ING New York City Marathon


2010-11-09 3:32 PM
in reply to: #3202583

User image

Expert
931
50010010010010025
Smyrna, GA
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon

Great job, Heather.  Sounds like you had a few curve balls thrown at you but you hung in there.  You will always remember the experience of the NY Marathon

2010-11-10 8:17 AM
in reply to: #3203405

User image

Master
2638
200050010025
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon
Nice job and still a great time given your injury and other aches/pains/tummy.
2010-11-10 9:07 AM
in reply to: #3202583

User image

The Original
7834
5000200050010010010025
Raleigh/Durham
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon
That's so awesome that you and Kirk ran together!  Sorry about all your stomach issues- I had those SAME problems on my long runs and that is not a fun problem to have at all- very frustrating.  Way to hang in there!  Congrats on finally being able to run NYC marathon!  I hope you have a great recovery and get all rested up for IM training
2010-11-11 11:27 AM
in reply to: #3202583

Extreme Veteran
597
500252525
Atlanta, GA
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon

Congrats on the finish Heather! I'm sorry about the injury and issues during the race, but glad you enjoyed the race and venue.

2010-11-11 10:56 PM
in reply to: #3202583

User image

Master
2125
200010025
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon
Congrats on the finish. 



2010-11-19 3:13 PM
in reply to: #3207557

User image

Master
1201
1000100100
Woodstock, GA
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon
Good job Heather, too bad about the stomach issues...
2010-11-23 3:32 PM
in reply to: #3202583

User image

Expert
1192
1000100252525
Oak Creek, WI
Subject: RE: ING New York City Marathon
way to stick with it.. and congrats on the finish under difficult circumstances...
General Discussion-> Race Reports!
{postbutton}
General Discussion Race Reports! » ING New York City Marathon Rss Feed