Turkey Day Race Report

Well…I really enjoyed running on Thanksgiving Day!  This was my first 10K in a while, and I was just so excited to be running again.  Eric and I warmed up for about 1.5 miles, and I felt good.  I planned on running with a friend of mine, who I knew would be right around my speed.  We briefly talked before the race about the pace we wanted to run, and he said that he wanted to hit each mile right around 7:00 pace, with the first mile a little slower than that.  I knew that I could run harder than that, but running with my high school buddy was much more important to me than setting a new PR or at least attempting to PR.  The weather was great at the start line. In fact, I ran in just a t-shirt and tights, which ended up being perfect. 

So the gun went off and we were on our way.  The first mile felt a little slow, but comfortable and we hit right at 7:05, which was okay.  The second mile was mostly downhill and flat, and we ended up running a 6:43 for the second mile.  Nick, my friend, was a little concerned, but I knew that we would be fine.  The third mile starts when you go over the first bridge of the course. Mile 3 historically has been the slowest mile since the bridge is pretty long.  As I was going up the hill, I really focused on form, and used my arms to help push up the hill. Nick fell a few steps behind, but we regrouped at the top.  We tried to recover on the down hills and into the flat section.   We hit mile three at 7:11, which was not bad considering the bridge.  Mile 4 consisted of mostly flat roads and a small bridge, so we tried to pick the pace up a little and make up some time.  Although I felt like I was running faster, we still only hit at 7:05 at the 4th mile, which was not bad considering the bridge.  At this point I knew that we had one more long bridge to cross, and then the rest was flat and fast.  Nick and I pushed up the last bridge, and at that point my legs started to hurt a little, especially my quads.  But we made it to the top and on down the other side.  I cannot remember the exact split of mile 5, but it was somewhere around 7:05.  We were now headed towards home base, and I told Nick that if he felt good to take off without me (I have never been a very strong finisher).  He ended up running about 15 -20 feet in front on me for the last 1.2 miles and we finished within 10 seconds of each other.  When I crossed the finished line, I saw that I had completed the run in 43:44 (7:03 pace).  At first I was a little disappointed because I am so damn competitive, but I felt great when I finished and realized that my time was pretty damn good given that I only have been running consistently for about 7 weeks.  Nick was very happy with his result, and I was happy for him on this wonderful Thanksgiving Day!!!

This has given me some hope for the months to come, as I prepare for Ironman Wisconsin in September.  I am excited about running and actually enjoyed a 10K!  The best part about the whole race, however, was seeing my husband afterwards and hearing that he had just had his fastest 10K ever (41:11).  Congratulations to Eric and congratulations to everyone who finished the race!   It was entertaining and the weather was perfect!  Until next time…

Beth Atnip

I can run again!!!

I have been contemplating posting a blog for some time now.  Since this is my first ever blog, bear with me as my writing skills are a bit rusty.  I wanted to share some very good information that I received from the USAT Coaching Clinic that I attended back in October, but first would like to give a brief background. 

After competing in Ironman Florida in November of 2005, I started not feeling well about three weeks later.  I started feeling very tired, short of breath and was having chest pain.  So I went to the doctor, and after months of blood tests, and cardiovascular tests, it seemed as though I just had a mild case of anemia (which had a dramatic impact on my training).  On top of that, I hurt my back again in April of 2006, and was unable to do much except swim for several weeks.  So as you can tell by the circumstances, I have not been running much at all over the past year.  I did compete in a few triathlons, but just as a swimmer in a relay.  As August was approaching, I was still having some problems with my breathing and still was not running much. I would just fatigue so fast, and I became very frustrated. So from August until late September, I ran occasionally, maybe once or twice a week, nothing hard because I could not do it.  Then it was time to attend the coaching clinic in Colorado Springs and this brings me back to my main point of this story.

When Eric and I were at the clinic, Bobby McGee was a featured speaker on running efficiency, and running form.  I had heard of him before, but was not really familiar with who he had worked with.  He showed us some valuable lessons on running form, by doing a couple of demonstrations and warm-up drills.  On the grand scheme of things, we really did not have much time with him, since we only got to see him talk for about 45 minutes.  But what I learned in that small period of time has changed my running form and I have actually been able to start running well again!  I think taking some time off from running and other vigorous activity helped with my anemia, and my back problems will always come and go, but after I left Colorado Springs, I started concentrating on my form, which has helped me become a little more efficient on my runs.  Here are some of the things I have been working on (not scientific terms, but in my own words):

1. Focus on dropping my chest a little, which causes a slight lean forward

2. Hitting the ground with my feet under my center of gravity instead of in front of it

3. Using my arms to propel me forward – driving my elbows and arms backwards instead of having most of the arm motion forwards (this has helped the most, but has also been the most difficult to focus on)

4. Looking down and out about 20 feet in front of me instead of looking directly forward (this has also been a little challenging to work on, especially when I get tired)

I have now been running about three or four days a week (depending on how I feel), running anywhere from 20 minutes to 68 minutes, and feeling good every step of the way. I even was able to compete in a local 5k, and did a 20:34, which is a pretty good pace for me, especially since I really have only been running consistently for about 6 weeks.   So I wanted to share one thing that Bobby said that has stuck with me this whole time and helps when I am out running.  He said, “Finish your 90 minute run in 85 minutes.”  This sounds so simple, but this really means so much.  We must always remember to focus on our form, and perform skills and drills in our workouts in order to make adjustments in our form, which will ultimately improve our running.  Changing your running form is not easy, and does not happen over night. I still catch myself occasionally going back to my bad habits, especially if I start to get tired.  If you get a free moment, check Bobby out at www.bobbymcgee.com. He was wonderful to watch and I wish we had more time with him.

And so I conclude my first ever blog, and if you are reading this, then I thank you for staying with me on this one.  I look forward to many more posts in the future and I am getting excited about my Thanksgiving Day 10K.  I am just so excited I can run again!

Thanks for your support,

Beth Atnip