Treat a Race Like a Race!
This weekend I had the opportunity to run in the 8th annual Seawheeze Half Marathon racing through downtown Vancouver, BC. This is my third Seawheeze race, having raced in 2016, volunteered as a Pace Beaver in 2017 and running more casually this year.
I went into the race with the thought that it is just a tempo run effort, due to the fact that I am racing again the following week. This casual approach did not prepare me well for the task at hand! As a result, I got to learn some hard lessons again for the first time and probably suffered a bit more than I should have.
The laundry list of mistakes is long, but centered around:
- not mentally preparing for the race, including the need to know exactly what pace I should be running. I had thought 6:35 pace would be about right, but I was a full 10 sec/mile off and by the half way mark, I was 4 minutes ahead of where I should be. oops! That deficit did not feel good, even after I reigned in the pace and got back on track for the 90min goal.
- not nutritionally preparing for the race, which is true both before the race (no real coffee and a moderate (but not my race day standard) breakfast) and during the race. I started the race feeling thirsty and couldn't catch up during the race or even the 36 hours that followed. I also didn't have a goo or something I wanted to take during the race, nor a plan for when to eat. Even as a tempo run, it's important to fuel and keep the blood sugars up. Bonking is bonking and it will hit you even at a more moderate pace.
On the flip side, this is all a good reminder to prioritize the details before the race. The best way to do so is to practice your race day routine with a few key workouts before the big day. I often tell my athletes this exact advice, but failed to follow it myself. Ultimately, I got the work done and hit the goal but it just didn't feel all that great towards the end. Races are way more fun when you are prepared, regardless of your goal!
I went into the race with the thought that it is just a tempo run effort, due to the fact that I am racing again the following week. This casual approach did not prepare me well for the task at hand! As a result, I got to learn some hard lessons again for the first time and probably suffered a bit more than I should have.
The laundry list of mistakes is long, but centered around:
- not mentally preparing for the race, including the need to know exactly what pace I should be running. I had thought 6:35 pace would be about right, but I was a full 10 sec/mile off and by the half way mark, I was 4 minutes ahead of where I should be. oops! That deficit did not feel good, even after I reigned in the pace and got back on track for the 90min goal.
- not nutritionally preparing for the race, which is true both before the race (no real coffee and a moderate (but not my race day standard) breakfast) and during the race. I started the race feeling thirsty and couldn't catch up during the race or even the 36 hours that followed. I also didn't have a goo or something I wanted to take during the race, nor a plan for when to eat. Even as a tempo run, it's important to fuel and keep the blood sugars up. Bonking is bonking and it will hit you even at a more moderate pace.
On the flip side, this is all a good reminder to prioritize the details before the race. The best way to do so is to practice your race day routine with a few key workouts before the big day. I often tell my athletes this exact advice, but failed to follow it myself. Ultimately, I got the work done and hit the goal but it just didn't feel all that great towards the end. Races are way more fun when you are prepared, regardless of your goal!
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