First Marathon Training Run!

Finished my first official run of my marathon training this afternoon!

Fueling before the run:

• 1 cup Fage 0% Greek Yogurt
• 4 Belvita Breakfast Biscuits
• 40g pitted prunes (about 4 prunes)
• 1 Banana

Not pictured: Starbucks Venti Dark Roast, with Lucerne Sugar Free French Vanilla Coffee Creamer (about 5 tbsp).

I think the coffee was a bad idea – for one thing, I haven’t drank it in a little over a week, let alone have that much creamer. Usually I use only 2 tbsp, but because it was a venti and I was down to the bottom of the bottle, I decided it was a good idea to use all of it. NOPE. Just as I was getting ready to run, my stomach started gargling and I had to delay until I felt better. I also could have done without the banana or the prunes, not both – with the Belvita, it’s just too many carbs. My eyes were a little bigger than my stomach this morning. But that’s what this is about – trial and error!

Another mistake – I didn't have any water this morning. BIG no-no. I definitely need to remember to hydrate!

Ready to run!

My gear:

Sunglasses: I was trying out these Pugs Sunglasses and I decided that I absolutely love them. They're tight enough against my temple to not slide down the bridge of my nose, but not so tight that they give me a headache.

Arm Band: Rocketfish Mobile - Arm Band with Molded Case. I need to find a new case - I have tiny arms, and I'm always afraid it's going to slide down my arm.

Tank Top: 4Paix. I typically tend to favor cotton when I'm running.

Sports Bras: Yeah, I have to wear 2. That's a whoooole other post topic. I'm wearing a Champion Style N9500 compression bra (purple) underneath a Wacoal Sport Underwire Encapsulation bra (black), which seems to work pretty well. I need to find a new sports bra, though.

Pants: Reversible Champion Fitted Pant, no longer on their website - I'm sure I purchased it YEARS ago. I wouldn't be surprised if it was meant for yoga instead of running, but they're great running pants!

Socks: Fitsok CF2, lime green. I love these socks!

Shoes: Nike AirPegasus+ 29

These babies have about 220 miles on them!

This afternoon it was a BEAUTIFUL 65 degrees with a slight breeze. PERFECT running weather, so I was determined to run outside. (If I wait too long, I usually feel like I have to run on the treadmill). I didn’t want to run where I normally run – a small half-mile loop in the park – so I decided to just start running and see where I could go without being stopped by a light.

Where I usually run - 6 times around is 3 miles.

I decided to run towards the park but go right past it, and see where my legs carried me. I knew there was one long road that ran along Meydenbauer Bay (the area of water pictured) and sure enough, I found myself running along and getting wonderful views of the bay.

I really surprised myself with a 08:27 pace that first mile – usually I’m more of a 09:30 pace. Elevation (according to Nike) changed from 128 ft to 18 ft, and those downhills really helped. It definitely gave me a boost of confidence.

Even better surprise – about 14 seconds faster! At a 08:13 pace, I knew I couldn’t keep that up through the end, because I knew I had for all the downhills I was cruising on, I would eventually have to run uphill. I was mentally prepared for it, though. At the halfway mark, after watching police pull a car over (for some reason I love witnessing that), I turned around to head back.  

I was ready for this change – at 09:41, this is my typical pace. There was a killer hill at 2.5 miles that I had to stop to walk up, since I wasn’t going any faster running, and another slope uphill from 2.6-2.8 miles. Plus I had tired myself out from running so fast at the beginning that I knew I was bound to slow down at some point.

Total time: 26:31 at 8’41’’ average pace

After my run! Hook 'em!

Overall, I’m very happy with my first run! Of course I’m a little disappointed that I couldn’t keep up my pace for the third mile, but because it was a new course and because I started out way too fast, it was inevitable. One of my goals for this training, in addition to simply mileage, is to always finish my runs strong. Gotta start early!