Yesterday I completed my first postpartum half marathon!
Friday evening, once Katie went to sleep, Bo and I relaxed in typical pre-race fashion. He whipped up a delicious, pasta dinner while I set out all my race gear.
By 8pm, I was settled on the couch for the evening, relaxing in compression socks and excited for the morning’s race. I received so many sweet texts and messages from friends and followers, wishing me luck the next day. I headed to bed at 9:30, which would allow for 8 hours of sleep. Unfortunately, I was up four times to go to the bathroom between 9:30 and 11:30. I couldn’t pinpoint what triggered it but was happy to have it end at 11:30.
I slept well from 11:40 to 5:40, when I quickly jumped out of bed to get prepared for the race. As soon as I woke up, I heard the wind and rain. Instead of letting that get in the way of my positive vibes, I thought about all of those women and men who ran Boston in the pouring rain.
While getting dressed I used extra Glide, especially along my sports bra, shorts and sock lines. Then, I cut holes in a large, black yard trash bag and cut the ends off my compression socks that I wore the previous night. The size small is way too short on me so I realized that these could serve as perfect arm sleeves for race day.
I could tell that behind the positivity, my body was bundle of nerves as I could barely stomach my usual coffee and peanut butter banana toast. I sipped half the coffee and ate half the toast before giving up. At 6:15 I left the house and hopped on a Citibike, my preferred mode of transportation to Prospect Park race starts. The 10 minute, uphill bike ride was a great way to warm up my body and legs and by the time I reached Grand Army Plaza, near the start, the rain had changed to a light mist.
The race signage made it easy for runners to find our way from Grand Army Plaza to the starting area, just a few blocks away. Ten minutes later I had made my way through security and into my corral where I was greeted by tons of porta potties and other excited runners. I spent the next few minutes chatting and doing dynamic stretches, while waiting for the start. I have to hand it to NYC Runs as they did a great job organizing the starting area for the race. Right as they finished the national anthem I dashed to the bathroom one last time, hoping to be done. Spoiler alert – I wasn’t done. Since I knew I didn’t have much in my stomach, I took 2 Shotblocks and water right before crossing the starting line, hoping this would help fuel me.
At 7:01 they announced the start, I took off the trash bag and by 7:03 I was crossing the starting line. The weather was misty, breezy and humid but the temperature was delightfully cool.
My coach and I had discussed a race plan on Thursday, knowing that I’m famous for going out too fast, and instead would do better if I could execute the plan and finish faster, similar to many of my long runs. Her plan for my goal of a sub-2 hour half marathon was as follows:
- Mile 1-2 9:15-9:25
- Mile 3 – 9:05
- Mile 4-9 Around 9:10
- Mile 10 9:09
- Mile 11-13 As fast as possible, but sustainable, remember form
- Mile 13-13.1 All out sprint
I wrote this plan on my hand so I could easily reference it. I was smiling ear to ear when I saw that my first lap was 9:05 and my second and third lap were 9:25 and 9:06. This was perfectly on plan. As I approached the third mile I heard someone screaming my name, and was surprised to see my friend Zoe cheering on the sidelines. It turns out that she and Evann had been scheming with Bo all week. It was such a fun surprise and I was so excited to know I’d see her again soon. I took 2 shot blocks and more water, as my plan was to take 2 shot blocks every 3 miles.
After passing the 5k point the course leaves the cute, quiet, neighborhood streets of Brooklyn for Ocean Parkway. I’ve run this parkway many times as it is a common part of any Brooklyn half marathon. Six of the seven times I’ve run it i’ve been bored to tears. The only year I wasn’t was when Amy and I were running together and spent the time watching for the many friends I knew running and were singing Brittney Spears greatest hits together since we were both listening to a shared playlist. This is also the point in the race when signage became very confusing. There were mile markers for both the marathon and half marathon runners, but since they were the same exact style and color, many of us initially thought that the course was mismarked. Yesterday, I just told myself to buckle down and focus. I was perfectly on pace for mile 4 (9:11) and then slowed a bit during mile 5 (9:21) due to headwind on the course and avoiding puddles. But I still felt good. I started to drop my speed a bit and was keeping around a 9:00 pace when suddenly I felt the urgent need for a bathroom. I quickly dashed back around, going back to the bathroom I’d just passed and was able to get in and out quickly, though I continued to have GI issues. I dashed out hoping to make up time and was able to hit a 9:21 and 9:33 pace for the next two miles. As I continued to run, I switched my playlist to the one of my favorite Spotify playlists, Song to Sing Along to in the Shower and tried to focus on the fun songs instead of my stomach. Unfortunately, I had to take another bathroom stop when I passed more portapotties at the middle of mile 8. That bathroom stop meant that mile 8 was a 9:54. As we started climbing the hill back towards Prospect Park, I felt completely empty. I couldn’t hold down the shot blocks I was trying to take and just kept thinking that I had to keep moving. I pushed forward and up the ramp, hoping to see Zoe or Bo at mile 10.
At this point, I was mad and frustrated. As my legs still felt strong. I just had nothing inside of me. I was lightheaded and starting to have dry heaves. When I saw Zoe, just past the 11 mile point, she asked if I wanted company. I was thrilled because at this point all I wanted was to be done. Since having my peanut butter toast I’d had three bathroom stops that left me sore and lethargic. My only goal at this point was to keep moving and not get into my head. I immediately apologized to Zoe. I told her I was sorry that she and Evann came out to cheer for me when I wasn’t going to have a PR day. Zoe reminded me that I not every race is perfect and even top athletes have days when they get injured, have stomach issues or have something else stand in their way. At least this was physical and not mental which for so many years was my case. We spent the next three miles making our way through Prospect Park and up the steep climb, towards the finish. I was focused on one thing at this point – seeing Bo and Katie at the finish line. On her sixteen month birthday, Katie was able to experience the joy and energy of a race finish for the very first time. As I did my best attempt at a sprint towards the finish line, I saw Katie on Bo’s shoulders, waving at every runner. That moment made up for the past six miles of misery and bathroom stops. That moment made every early morning and the hot and humid runs of training worth it.
Yesterday I may not have run the sub-2 hour half marathon that I hoped and trained for these past sixteen weeks. But, I ran my first post-partum half marathon after two years away from distance running in 2:08:35. I have no clue what caused the stomach issues – nerves, too much cheese the night before or some random bug. I’ll never know, and there is no use wasting time trying to figure it out. Later in the day, I apologized to Bo for asking him to come out to the race and bring Katie since it wasn’t a PR day. His response was so true, and made me even happier to have seen Katie at the end.
“We came out to cheer for you so Katie can see her mom do awesome things.”
After hugs, pictures and of course, giving Katie my medal, we enjoyed a delicious brunch at French Louie, one of our favorite spots for brunch or dinner in our neighborhood.
Many people have asked me whether I’m going to quickly sign up for another half marathon since I’m trained and in half marathon shape. My initial answer, at this point, is no. I am content. Back in July, I hadn’t run further than four miles postpartum and now I’m in half marathon shape. Instead of focusing on another quick race, what I definitely want to do is stay in half marathon shape. Back in 2013-2015 I ran relaxed long runs throughout the year, making training for half marathons a bit easier. Since I have such wonderful friends in the area who also tend to run a number of marathons and half marathons, this is my initial goal, after taking this week off from formal training. The other thing that is preventing me from signing up from a race is my upcoming travel schedule. Between now and Christmas, I am traveling a few times for work and, more importantly, going to China for a “quick” one week business trip. There are three half marathons in our local area during December, and they are all either the first or second weekend, when I’ll be on a flight or extremely jet-lagged. So, for now, my plan is to enjoy running, squeeze in a few shorter, local races during the holiday season, and hopefully run my next half in January or February.
Thank you for your support throughout this entire training cycle and especially leading up to yesterday’s race!
