04 - Tiny Dancers and the Beach and Bay Half Marathon

I ran my first half marathon this week! 

I've been so caught up in pre-preparation for my 50K training that I slightly lost sight of the fact that this half marathon was the reason I began training in the first place. I got really excited during the week leading up to the race because I knew the half marathon would be a great indicator of my progress as a runner overall. Here’s how I did...

Runner’s High

I ran the Beach and Bay half marathon in San Diego. This gorgeous course circled Mission Beach, and, because the distance lined up so seemingly well, I was surprised to discover that this is the first time the race was put together.

(Photo courtesy of sandiegobeachandbayhalfmarathon.com)

This is the course as it displayed on Strava upon completion

It wasn’t until a few days prior to the race that I actually considered how I’d run it. Initially, I thought maybe I’d treat it like another long training run, taking it easy and getting through the mileage steadily. Having had very few race experiences, however, I didn’t want to limit my potential performance or experience so I decided to make a plan. How well could I do? What sort of time would I likely be finishing?

Pre-race Butterflies

Everyone says that starting too fast can be detrimental, and I didn’t want to kill myself, so I took a look at the paces I’d been running and gave myself a range to stay between. I decided I’d go out and listen to my body but to be especially wary if my mile splits were are under a specific range. I extended my walk/run intervals to be less frequent but still kept an interval so I would be forcing myself to stop periodically throughout the entire race for nutrition and hydration. I wanted to make sure I kept my effort levels low for at least the first half of the race.

Based on the pace I expected to run, I knew I’d be out there somewhere between two and three hours so I packed enough calories to keep me active and (hopefully) bonk-free for the duration of the race. I also calculated about how much water I wanted to drink at various spots of the race. In retrospect, all of this planning definitely helped lead to a successful run.

How do you plan for calorie intake/hydration for half marathons? As I’m training for even longer distances, I’m hoping to incorporate more whole foods into my races and training to avoid GI issues down the road when the events get really long.

I would have at least preferred to wake up bright and early, but unfortunately we didn't even get that luxury on race morning as the sun wasn’t even up when we left the house to get to the race for our 6:30 AM start time. Fortunately for Katie and I, as parents who run on a lack of sleep 90% of the time, getting to bed early the previous night was not very difficult so we were able decent night's sleep. Katie and Kim normally get to races early to avoid as much of the chaos as possible so we left before 5. I definitely recommend this strategy, although it results in less sleep overall, because you avoid the pre-race pile of cars, which is almost always out of control. 

We took pre-race pictures, I bounced around a bit with some dynamic stretches, and our legs began moving. The initial part of any race is exciting but also slightly technical. Hundreds of people around you are running at mostly different paces, and you have to navigate your way through them. To get through this, I stole a strategy I learned from Katie which is to run through at least the first mile before beginning walk/run intervals.

We're ready to go!

I settled into what I thought was a reasonable pace based on how I was feeling. My heart rate was low, and I was not expending a lot of energy on the first few miles as per my race plan. This being the case, I was surprised to see how fast I was going. It must be the adrenaline, I thought.

I was so captivated by the energy of the event, the cheerful volunteers at the aid stations, and the beauty of the ocean around me that the first five miles flew by. I kept up my walk/run intervals but not really paying too much attention to how fast I was going. Around mile 6 I looked down to see the times I’d been running.

Uh oh. I was going too fast.

I mean, I wasn’t breaking any records or anything, but I was going way faster than I’d trained, and I wasn’t sure how that was going to play out down at the latter miles of the race. I did a mental recap: I have enough calories at this point, I’ve been drinking water, and I have stopped at all of my walk/run intervals. Ease up a bit and regroup in a couple miles.

My splits for the majority of the race.

Mile 8 came and went, and I was still feeling solid. Mile 10 came, and this is when the race started to get difficult. Finally, I thought, this is that feeling I’ve been anticipating. Legs are stiffening and starting to feel heavy, and my heart rate was beginning to rise along with the rising temperature of the day. Now what?

Do I slow it down and finish the race off as if it were a training run? Do I go all out and attempt to finish as strong as possible? Would I even be able to do that if I wanted to?

It turns out, my brain wasn’t up for sorting through any of these questions after having run for an hour and a half so I just kept following my intervals and trying to maintain control of my heart rate. Keep the cadence up, and the steps light.

I shuffled my way to mile 12 when the thought finally hit me, When is this thing going to be over? It’s officially hot, this Gu tastes gross (why did I think salted watermelon would be a thing?), and my legs are blocks of cement.

Finally, a light appeared in the form of a saint who told me, “The finish is just around the corner there. You’re almost there.”

If it’s almost there, does that mean I already finished? Can I just stop now and say that I made it? Is that a thing?

No, that’s not a thing.

I'm trying to enjoy the course along the way. I think it's working.

 What?!?!?!?! Nooooooooo. That saint was actually a devil. The finish wasn’t “just around the corner,” it was still over three quarters of a mile away. For your personal reference, if you find yourself cheering anyone on at a race, don’t make this mistake. Whatever energy I had left vanished instantly, and I began walking.

Before I could completely slow down to my brisk walking pace, I felt a tap at my elbow. A determined runner behind me confidently reprimanded me. “Nope. We’re running this. Let’s go!”

But… But… Yeah, but…

I wanted to offer up some excuse, but she was right. “Alright. Let’s go,” I said. Slowly but surely I got my legs churning again. Eventually, more spectators and previous finishers lined the course with encouragement to get the weary to the finish line when I finally glimpsed it. THERE it is! 

I would have sprinted had my legs allowed it, but, as they were, a quick jog was just about all I could muster. I raised my hands in victory as I crossed the finish line just behind my encourager. I did it!

Aren't these throwback Cali license plate medals cool?

I didn’t know what my time was or what place I got (it was like 1000th or something, I’m sure), but the victory for me was running hard and further than I ever have before, following my race plan and accomplishing a goal I’d sought after for months.

I finished with enough time to stretch and get some water before cheering on Katie and Kim to the finish line. I could not have asked for a better first half marathon experience. If you have a cool half marathon in mind, let me know! I would love to fit it in somewhere along the way with my current training. Cue photo dump.

Katie and Kim are ready to be done with this race. It's now way too hot.

Hey stilt-man, you're blocking the finish sign! What you can't see is that there's a shark eating his leg.

Look, guys! Strava says I burned a day's worth of calories.

Bonk of the Week

What’s a taper? I’ve heard of this concept but have mostly been kind of winging it these last few weeks before my 50k training plan begins. I was in a weird spot because I wanted to run this half marathon well but not kill my body because I’m about to embark on huge training. We will see how I feel this next week.

I didn’t do any PT this week, but don’t tell, OK? Although I have been stretching, using the foam roller, and lacrosse/massage ball for my feet, I did not do any PT strengthening exercises. I got a little lazy and wrote it off as “tapering.” I’m not too worried about this at this point, but I definitely can’t get this lax when training starts to really get tough.

Dad is the Best

If you ever have the opportunity to attend a toddler’s dance recital, accept the offer without hesitation. They are cuteness overload, especially if you happen to know the toddler involved. This week Iris had a dance recital at the local community center and performed both a ballet and a tap number. Check out how ridiculously cute this is...

Iris got distracted during the performance, but who could blame her? Those kids on the side were being loud and were definitely worthy of attention. She didn’t always demonstrate it on stage, but Iris loves her dance classes. She’s constantly moving around the house and will dance along to any cartoon or Disney music you throw her way.

It fills me with joy to see her enjoy herself, and I’m unbelievably fortunate to have these experiences.

She's about to explode with excitement.

This week also marks the end of Iris’s time at the Child Development Center at Mt. Sac. I can give further details to anyone interested on why, but she got a lovely parting card from her teachers and brought them cupcakes as a treat for her last day.

Oh yes, and there’s this parting gem...

Dad Lesson of the Week

Sometimes there is nothing revolutionary to report. This is one of those times. I had a difficult time being present this week and am constantly working on growing my patience. Isn’t that what parenting is to some extent?

Parenting is an endless journey toward growing patience.

Placing someone’s needs above and before your own is humbling. Sometimes the slog of teeth brushing and cleaning up toys and spilling drinks after you repeatedly asked to use both hands pushes personal patience to its limits. I feel like I did fairly well this week with respect to maintaining grace and patience during these circumstances, but I know I can do better.

That’s the goal: let’s do better than we did the week before. Let’s pay attention to our actions and pursue more patience and grace. That’s my wish for myself and for you.

Brew Overview

I’d hoped to comment here about the craft beer garden at the marathon after-party but have no such luck this week. Unfortunately, halfway down to Oceanside on Friday we discovered that Katie accidentally forgot her ID at home! I was bummed and definitely didn’t respond with the grace and patience I mentioned above.

I could attribute this the nerves bubbling around within me, but I’m going to instead fall on the grace of my wife who patient with me when I most need it. We still had a great weekend and got to visit Hess brewery where I tried the delicious Grapefruit solace.

Grapefruit Solis (courtesy of mikehessbrewing.com)

According to the brewery's website, this beer “kicks it up a notch by taking an awesome San Diego–style IPA and pumping it full of citrusy grapefruit—we're talking real fruit, zest and juice. The hops complement the zestiness, and the subtle malt makes this an award-winning, crisp, and deliciously refreshing India pale ale.”

I love IPAs but was worried about drinking one on this hot afternoon as I thought it might be sensation overload. I was pleasantly surprised, however, by how refreshing Grapefruit solace actually was. It was the perfect taste for the afternoon, and I definitely recommend anyone in the area to check this place out. I believe they distribute throughout the San Diego area as well. Good stuff.

Each emblem hanging in the tasting room represents a different house beer. Very cool idea.

Thanks for sticking with me through this long post. This got out much later than I would have preferred, but I had much to say as it was quite the eventful week for me.

Will write again soon.


Be well,
UltraDadRunner