The Seattle Marathon 2013: That Time I Ran a Marathon Without Training

Alternate title: Allison's a Doofus.

Why did I think running a marathon without any training would be a good idea?

Last year I was WAAAYYY overtrained and this year, I was WAAAYYYY undertrained. What a difference! I think I much prefer being overtrained, but I was also pretty unhappy last year as well. A story for another time! Anyways...

Here's a spoiler alert: I finished! There were many times I didn't think I was going to make it and several times I thought of just stopping. I finished in a pathetic 4.02. I'm trying to tell myself that's actually a pretty good time having not done any training (except for one 18 mile run a month ago). My time was faster than my first marathon was, even though its almost a half hour slower than what I ran on the Seattle Marathon course last year.

Start line at Seattle Center. There go the walkers!

Let's start at the beginning. I always get so angry that the Seattle Marathon makes you go all the way downtown during the busiest shopping weekend of the year to get your bib. Like, I get seriously irrationally angry about it. I wish you could just pick up your bib at their office, which is close to my apartment! Grrr. I was lucky enough to have a friend who picked up my bib for me the night before the race so I didn't have to deal with shoppers, parking and driving downtown.

I was slightly worried about the weather. The forecast was for rain and wind all day long. Luckily, it didn't rain the entire time, was quite warm, and the wind wasn't all that bad! Score! Just goes to show: no need to worry about something that is out of your control!

I was able to get my bib, get downtown and find some free street parking very quickly on race morning. Since it wasn't too cold, I had a light long sleeve shirt on, shorts and compression socks. I decided to run with my hydration pack because it just makes me feel more comfortable having everything with me, including water whenever I needed it. I was debating whether to wear my older shoes or newer shoes. I went with the older ones, but I think it is definitely time to retire them! Since I haven't been racing for a year or so, I wasn't really paying attention to how many miles are on my shoes, but it's safe to say these guys are finished now.

I had about 45 minutes by the time I got to the start line before the gun, so I wandered around, went to the bathroom several times, and looked around at all the Christmas decorations up around Seattle Center. Before I knew it, I lined up in the corral. I took my place around the 4 hour pacer, but really didn't have a clue what my legs were going to feel like doing. Before I knew it we were off!

Almost immediately, my stomach started cramping up. Grrreeeaaatttt. I passed the port-a-potties at mile 2 and decided to try and make it to the next set before stopping. I wanted to walk so badly, but knew I would just feel so stupid walking in the first 2 miles, so I slugged on. By the time I got to the next set of bathrooms, my stomach was feeling better so I didn't stop. Luckily, it kept getting better so I never had to stop at all! Thank goodness!

Despite the stomach trouble, my body felt pretty good early on. I was trying to hold myself back a bit, but wasn't doing a very good job. I probably should have started off slower and I know better than to start off too fast, but I didn't even know what I should have held myself back at! Yes, I was that unprepared and under-trained that I didn't even know what pace I should try to stay at. Zero plan for the win.

Mile 1: 8.36
Mile 2: 8.47
Mile 3: 8.44
Mile 4: 8.51
Mile 5: 8.21
Mile 6: 8.52

I ended up feeling pretty comfortable around where the 4-hour pacer was for most of the race, which was actually really annoying. I HATE running near the pacers because there is always such a crowd of people around them. I kept running ahead to try to stay away from them, but those little pesky guys kept catching up to me!

We ran over the bridge and back, which was less windy than I thought it was going to be. I saw so many people losing their hats, though! It's always nice to be able to see the leaders heading the other way on the way out and to see all the people behind you on the way back. We headed off the bridge onto Lake Washington Blvd. and I was still feeling pretty good. I was starting to get a little tired, and wondered how I was going to possibly finish. I debated just stopping at the half and asking for a ride back.

I was running right behind a girl who was on her 4th marathon in four days. I think her name was Tanya because people kept yelling at her. Anyways, it was a great distraction thinking about how tough that would be. I could barely even think about finishing just the one!

Mile 7: 9.25
Mile 8: 9.05
Mile 9: 8.43
Mile 10: 8.49
Mile 11: 8.46
Mile 12: 8.50
Mile 13: 8.55

We hit Seward Park and then turned around to head back to the bridge. I was starting to feel pretty tired at this point. I'd already taken a Gu, but decided to try some Gatorade at the next water station. I never drink Gatorade and I didn't know how it was going to effect my stomach, but I figured I might as well give it a shot. Idiot, party of one! Luckily it was a great help and I continued work well through the rest of the race.

At this point, I was just telling myself to get to mile 18. I knew I could make it that far since the only long run I'd done was 18 miles about a month ago. My body was feeling tired, my feet (especially my neuroma) hurt and I was doing everything I could to distract myself. It was a really weird place to be in so early in the race. I didn't want to pep myself up and start going faster, since I didn't actually know how long I would hold out. But, of course, I didn't want to dwell on how I was feeling because it wasn't that great!

Mile 14: 9.01
Mile 15: 9.08
Mile 16: 9.13
Mile 17: 9.02
Mile 18: 9.09
Mile 19: 9.29

I was slowing down and I knew it. I didn't do much to combat it and figured my body was trying to tell me something. Instead of kicking myself in the butt to go faster, I just told myself to keep going. I watched the bridge getting closer and closer. We wound our way along the water and back up. Then the hills started and I was dying. I ended up stopping at an aid tent for some Vaseline at one point because I was chaffing pretty badly. The culprit was between my legs, and of course the aid tent I stopped at was lined with people, all of whom watched me lather Vaseline between my legs. Haha, it helped!

Mile 20: 9.33
Mile 21: 9.55
Mile 22: 9.31
Mile 23: 9.50

Once I hit mile 20, I knew I was going to finish. I wanted to stop and walk more than ever, but kept telling myself the faster I went, the sooner it would be over and I could go home to my couch.

I may look happy, but I was dying!

I literally was just waiting for each water station as they came, where I would stop and take a few sips of Gatorade before picking it back up again. I hadn't walked in a marathon since my first one, but I could not help it. I ended up taking two walk breaks that lasted a minute and a half. They saved my life. Somehow I made it through all the tough hills running (or slogging), but the places I ended up walking were actually pretty flat! Haha, go figure. I was flabbergasted how much my quads hurt going up those hills though! I felt like I had just squatted 78 kilos or something. My guess is teaching an extra class two days before the race must have done it.

Mile 24: 10.44
Mile 25: 10.19
Mile 26: 9.35
Final .34: 3.16

The final miles were tough, to say the least. I just wanted it to be over was was cursing the dude in Greece who ran 26.2 miles and made that the "marathon". Why couldn't the guy ahve run 24 miles? Or 22 miles? Thinking back I was pretty delirious =)

The most bizarre thing kept running through my head every time I wanted to walk. I kept thinking how unfair it was to Milo that I was walking without him. Haha, whatever keeps me moving, I guess!

The finish line finally came, which ends in the stadium at Seattle Center. I didn't even try to pick it up at the end. I just trucked along, ran through the finish, got my medal and kept walking until I got to my car. I just wanted to be warm and sitting down!

I finished in 4.02 with an average pace of 9.13. I'll take it. Marathon #4 finished!

The race itself was great. As usual, The Seattle Marathon put on a great event. Lots of bathrooms, water stops, Gu stations and recovery area. I remember last year there being a lot more crowd support along the way, but that wasn't anyone's fault this year. I'll bet the threat of bad weather kept people away, which I totally understand. Other than that, I enjoyed this race for the second year in a row.

I would like to say that I will never do something this dumb again. I'll bet that next year, however, I'm going to forget all about this and do the same thing all over again. I live, I don't learn. Sigh. =)

Sore Legs, Running and St. Jude's Walk

Happy Friday! Finally! It has been a busy week!

After my wonderful idea of dead lifting and squatting the same day Tuesday, my life has been filled with running. My legs are STILL sore! But I not-so-secretly love that feeling.

The weather this week has been so perfect for running.

Its brisk and cold, but clear. The best running weather in my opinion. Despite the fact that I've been sleeping in two fleeces, sweatpants and wool socks, I am still going strong running in shorts! They just feel so much better than crops!

The Seattle Marathon is just a little over a week away. I am a little nervous, but mostly excited. I wish I would have gotten one more long run in, but I don't want to push it now. I'm hoping to do 10-12 miles on Sunday and I'll call it good! Hopefully I'll still survive 26.2! I read through my recap from last year, which got me pumped up. I'm hoping for a race anywhere close to how lovely last year's was!

Should I go with my watermelon look from last year?

Tomorrow morning, I'm working with another instructor at my gym to warm-up the walkers at the St. Jude's Give Thanks Walk!

The walk is downtown and I'm giving a short warm-up before its starts! Should be a fun morning, although I'm a little nervous to be onstage with a microphone! But what a great cause it is for. =)

Happy week-ending!

Where Have I Been?!

I pretty much disappeared here on my blog for awhile. I'm sure anyone who was reading was wondering what the heck happened and where I went to!

Honestly, I needed a break. I was dealing with some personal issues and had to step back to figure out what is truly important to me. I've discovered some really important truths about myself in the past year or so, but for the blog, the important thing is that fitness is a passion and force in my life that I continue to love and enjoy talking about!

So I've decided to continue blogging. I will no longer be posting all my workouts and what I do everyday, but I hope to let this be an outlet and a place I can share inspiration, struggles and fitness-related topics and ideas.

Now, what the heck has been going on in the past year for me!?

Firstly, I took a little break from running. I was getting burnt-out and was having trouble remembering why I loved to run in the first place. While I didn't completely stop running, I gave my Garmin a rest and ran by feel. I stopped signing up for races, and if I did, I didn't really have a formal training plan. Despite the heat of the summer (not a fan of running in the heat), I realized that I love longer races -- half marathons and marathons -- but tend to get a little over-zealous training for them, which becomes less than fun. And trying to break a certain time takes joy away from me as well.

So what's my plan?

I recently signed up to run the Seattle Marathon on a whim.

Have I run further than 10 miles in the last few months? Nope! But I think that will be part of the fun. As for a training plan, I hope to get in one 15 mile run and a 20 mile run before the race on December 1st. Other than that, I plan to continue running what I want, when I want. I may or may not even wear my timing chip on race day, just to take away the pressure of performing a certain way.

Several things have also been happening on the Crossfit front.

I also took a little break from Crossfit. After taking classes 5 times a week for a good 8 months, I had again, forgot what I loved about it. I didn't quit all together, but only took classes here and there.

It may come as a surprise, then, that I have become a Level-1 Crossfit Trainer! While I wasn't all gung-ho about Crossfitting for myself, I have always believed that Crossfit is the best way to get in general peak physical shape. I also think there is gold in the community aspect of Crossfit, but that's a talk for another day! Going through the weekend certification course, I completely renewed my love for this sport!

There are so many things to love about it, but for me, my favorite part is the heavy lifting. I was never much of a lifter and knew next to nothing about it, despite being a personal trainer. Now I have a love and passion for heavy back squats and deadlifts!

Along the same lines, Crossfit has taught me that it isn't about what your body looks like, but what it can do. That it's more important for me to beat everyone in a workout than it is to look a certain way. Crossfit box's tend to not have mirrors, so the only comparison is with effort. What an awesome lesson!

Currently, I am shadowing several of my coaches to learn how to become a great instructor. While I already teach classes at work, I don't know a lot about how to recongnize faults and how to correct them in the powerlifting movements. Shadowing has been a great asset to help me learn to spot things!

In completely unrelated news, I have a new love in my life: Milo!

Milo is an English creme golden retriever. He is a little over a year old, so he is still a puppy but full of cuddles.

I adopted my furry buddy at the end of August and we have become fast best buddies! I may be slightly obsessed with him, so he will obviously be making frequent visits to the blog.

I'm still personal training and leading classes at a gym in Seattle, which I have come to love. I'm very lucky that the gym I work at is like a little supportive community, so going to work each day is enjoyable (despite the fact that it's usually 4am).

Thanks for reading! Have a great Wednesday!

Seattle Marathon Race Recap

Secondary Title: "I'm Faster Than I Thought I Was"

Remember when I said I wasn't "racing" the Seattle Marathon and using it more as a training run? Yahhhh, it didn't exactly happen that way.

Backing up, I woke up nice and early, ready and excited for the marathon. It was fun going in just trying to do the miles and not worry about time. I got dressed in the brightest outfit I could manage. Seriously, I must have looked like a giant watermelon.

I made it out to Seattle Center and froze my balls off (if I had them), waiting for the start.

Brrr I'm cold! Someone turn up the heat!

I was going back and forth on whether or not to run with my Camelbak. On one hand, there were frequent water stops on the course, so why would I need it? On the other hand, I could have water whenever I wanted and it could carry my fuel. Decision was made to run with my Camelbak. And now I'm pretty certain I will be running every race with it. Except for 5ks and 10ks. But, who knows, maybe I'd get thirsty!

Haha, please note the kissing couple in the
lower right corner. #specialmoments

The race started off pretty crowded. Although I have to say the Seattle Marathon did a good job of starting the marathoners after the half-marathoners. I can't imagine what a mess it would have been if we had all started together!

Mile 1: 8:27
Mile 2: 7:40
Mile 3: 8.28

I started out with the 3:45 pace group. I pretty much lost them first thing. I was trying to spot a friend and wasn't paying attention. Oh well! Don't ask me why my second mile was almost a full minute faster than my first and third. I guess my legs just needed to stretch out!

I went into the race thinking I would just stick around an 8:30 pace and then if I felt good after the half, I could speed up a little.

That didn't happen. I see all these people around me going fast and I get jealous. So I just ran. Probably with a goofy smile on my face. I figured I would probably hit the wall, but in the moment I didn't care.

Mile 4: 6:19
Mile 5: 10.05
Mile 6: 8.26
Mile 7: 6:55

I name these miles the "Allison is a schizo and can't pick a pace miles". Granted my Garmin definitely went off a little going through the tunnel, so the pace was probably off for some of these.

I thought I would hate going across the bridge, but I didn't. Sure, it was windy, cold and loud. The express lanes were split in half and you ran across on one side and then back on the other. On the way out, it was pretty neat to see the leaders flying past in the opposite direction. And then on my way back, I got to see all the people in back of me and cheer them on a little. I got lots of strange looks for my watermelon costume.


One guy even yelled at me: "Nice socks 2001!"

I gave him a fist pump in return, obviously.


Mile 8: 8:20
Mile 9: 8:19
Mile 10: 8:14
Mile 11: 7:55
Mile 12: 7:59

I was feeling great coming off the bridge. I had run along Lake Washington Blvd several times before and also around Seward Park, so I knew what to expect: flat and boring. Actually, on a nice day it's a lovely view, but it was super foggy yesterday, which meant you could hardly see past the shore.

I took this as an opportunity to play.

By "play" I mean go faster. I just wanted to RUN! Again, I knew this meant I was going to hit a wall, but I didn't care. In times like this all I am thinking about is having fun in the moment, which was just what I did.

All of a sudden I encountered a huge group of people and couldn't figure out why so many people were all grouped together! Then I spotted the 3:40 pacer and decided I had to pass them.

Hello Competitive Allison. Welcome to the party! I was certainly just channeling Prefontaine.

Mile 13: 8.11
Mile 14: 8.23
Mile 15: 8.18
Mile 16: 8.16

We circled Seward Park and I finally started feeling a little tired. Until that point I thought I could have run for days! I stopped to use the restroom which really ticked me off. I hate peeing during races. But I knew I would be more comfortable if I just went. I think I only lost about a minute, though.

We ran back along Lake Washington Blvd and it was fun to see people going the other direction again. There was a fair amount of spectator support around the Lake, which was nice to see. I gave some high fives and big smiles to thank the cheerers for coming out in the freezing cold!

Mile 17: 8.32
Mile 18: 8.24
Mile 19: 8.23
Mile 20: 8.35

I really started feeling the miles around this point. It seemed like we were running along Lake Washington for a trillion years and my neuroma was hurting pretty badly. Every time I stepped on just the smallest pebble, my foot would get what I like to call a "nerve shock". Not fun. I just tried to keep enjoying myself.

It helped that there were some hills, which I think killed some people, but I loved! I was getting tired of running flat. Woah, what a weirdo, where does all this hill love come from? (probably a little mountain named Tiger)

Mile 21: 8.44
Mile 22: 8.31
Mile 23: 8:59
Mile 24: 8:29

This was where I was expecting to hit the wall, but I never did! I felt great except for my neuroma. The hills slowed me down a little, but my muscles were happy for a change.

I'd brought my ipod with me and had it stashed in my pocket the whole race. It was around mile 22 that I took it out. I wanted to zone out. There was a lot of huffing and puffing around me and I was getting sort of annoyed with it, so I figured some sweet tunes would cool me down. I had a grand old time just lip syncing to the lyrics, although I'm pretty sure the spectators all thought I was bonkers.

Mile 25: 8:17
Mile 26: 7:54
Extra Mile: 7:41

I was still feeling great by the end. I was ready to be done, but still feeling awesome. I started turning my legs over and passing other people, which only spurred me on. By this time, my Garmin was way off on mileage, almost by half a mile. Way to not run the tangents, slugger.

I tore into the stadium and finished in 3.40.01 according to Garmin.

Official results say 3:41.28, which is more accurate, I'm sure.

I felt great afterwards, if not a little stiff. In the back of my mind, I was thinking about how I was going to have to run 5 more miles in a few weeks. Eeek!

I'm pretty certain my awesome time today had something to do with the neon green compression socks I was rocking.

I'm very proud and astounded with my time today and how great I felt! Now in the back of my mind I'm thinking about what I could do in Eugene in March. Boston qualify, perhaps? We will see what happens.

Thanks for a great marathon Seattle!