On Sunday October 19th, I ran the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. My 15th marathon since I started running them, in May 2010.

A LITTLE BACKGROUND

After three slightly disappointing marathons (mostly due to injury, hot weather and GI problems) since spring 2013, I wanted a little sign that would indicate that I am not on my way out as a racer. Something that would tell me that it is still worth fighting for those PRs. I am registered to run NYCM in two weeks, but I was told not to expect one of my fastest times there because of the crowded course. On the spur of the moment, I signed up for the Toronto Waterfront marathon, which is said to be fast and flat, and I decided to do New York City for fun, like a run through a carnival. This meant that I had to interrupt my training after 17 weeks, instead of 20.

THE TRAINING

This time I trained with the Hansons 65/85 plan, instead of one of the Pfitzinger plans that I have always used. This made me realize something interesting: I had always made modifications to my Pfitz plans, to better suit my tastes. For example, I would turn one of the week's 10 mile easy runs into an all MP run. Or I would turn the double at recovery pace (6 plus 4) into one single run of 8 at recovery, simply because I do not like to run twice during the day. By doing this, I was replicating the Hansons style without knowing it.

With the Hansons plan, I also changed a few things that I did not like: the tempo runs are done in the form of intervals (such as 3x2 miles at HMP, plus w/u and c/d. With Pfitz, the tempo runs are continuous: 10 miles including 5 at 15k or HMP, progressing in length week after week. I preferred that style, so I ignored the Hansons method and remained true to Pfitz that way. I also had trouble running the mid-week 16 milers that had  2x3 miles at a jog pace, with 10 miles at MP in the middle. More often than not, I'd run the whole 16 miles at MP, eliminating the warm up and cool down, which bring tears of boredom to me because of the treadmill environment. Unfortunately, by doing this, it would leave me tired the next day, forcing me to take a day off and thus run less weekly mileage than the plan required. Looking back, I ended up running a mutant version of the Pfitz and Hanson plans. I averaged about 63-65 miles over 17 weeks, which was less than the mileage I did in the spring of 2013, when I trained for Boston. I also did no hill work, unlike what I did in preparation for Boston, because I believe that hill work caused my PF injury (it must be said that it also helped my speed tremendously). Unfortunately, the injury has been haunting me ever since.

THE GOAL

My goal for this race was 3:30:00, because that was what McMillan was pointing to. I also had done all my MP miles between 7:50/8:00 pace, with no difficulty.

There was no point in trying to PR (sub-3:27), because nothing showed that I was in PR shape. In the spring of 2013, just before Boston, I could run 13.1 miles, in training, in 1:38. My best 10 miler was 1:11:58. I ended up with a 3:27 finish time. This time around, a HM in 1:38 would have been a true hard race effort and I was never able to run my 10 milers faster than in 1:14 in this training cycle. So I knew that a PR was out of the equation and I knew why that was (lower mileage and absence of hill work). But a 1:38/1:39 half-marathon points to a 3:30 marathon and I have enough experience with that distance to be allowed to use the McMillan's equivalence calculator successfully. So a 3:30 finish time was my goal, which equates to an 8:00 mpm pace.

I had no other goals. It was that or the realisation that I had done too many marathons and was now entering a declining phase. I would be ok with that also. I know it is an inevitable phase for all and I am no different. That day will come eventually and it does not worry me. I just need to know where I stand.

MY STRATEGY

I recognise my weakness in pacing evenly and I have come to accept it. My plan was to do about half the race 10 seconds faster per mile than goal pace (so around 7:50 mpm) and do the rest at about 8:10 mpm, or 10 seconds slower than goal pace. I know it is not kosher, but why fight with myself? If that is how I run, why make it unnatural and unpleasant to me by forcing myself to run differently? I do this for pleasure, it doesn't have to be perfect... As long as it makes me happy in the end, and if I'm pleased with the results, I don't care how it's done. That is the way I see things and I am trying to not feel guilty over the uneven splits issue.

GETTING THERE

We drove to Toronto Friday night and I had time to pick up my race kit just before closing time. On Saturday morning, we toured the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario). It had a fantastic exhibit on a famous Canadian artist, Alex Colville. One of the best art exhibits I've ever seen. We used the hotel pool later in the afternoon and had an early meal at an Italian restaurant. Toronto has come a long way in the last 30 years. We, Montrealers, used to mock our Ontarian neighbours, calling Toronto bland, boring, non-creative, with bars that used to close before midnight. Before midnight! Can you believe it? But it is no longer true. It is now a very vibrant city. Big, beautiful, very avant-garde, full of life and good times. I heard rumours that this could be due to the influx of Montrealers moving to Toronto after the economy in Quebec became shaky with the threat of separation in the '70s and '80s. That would explain things!  Anyway, Toronto, you are my Canadian Chicago: a big, beautiful, elegant, but with just the right amount of depraved, city.

WEATHER AND COURSE

The weather had been sort of warmish all week. But on Saturday, it started changing. The forecast was calling for 28*F at the start (8:45), slowly going up to only about 42*F around lunch time. Being the wuss that I am, I dressed like a polar bear, with tights, shorts over them, tee-shirt and arm warmers. It turned out to be warmer than predicted, but still quite cool for me. 38*F at the start to about 45*F at the finish. I was fine with the way I dressed, but I could have gone with a singlet instead of a tee-shirt. And the shorts over the tights just looked ugly on me. I've definitely been losing my fashion sense lately... The idea was to wear the red shorts in honour of the Scotiabank. And red, to me, represents Toronto (as opposed to blue for Quebec, of course). I thought I was being clever. 

The course is said to be fast and flat. I have seen faster and flatter courses, but it is definitely an easy one. On the comparison chart, the Toronto Waterfront marathon compares to Detroit, Boston and Philadelphia. Not the easiest, but certainly not difficult in any way. A very pleasant course that has some inclines at the right moments. I did find it annoying to have to constantly watch for the tram tracks. It can suck energy out of you when you need to concentrate on keeping pace.

The course starts downtown, then takes us along the lake, then off to a more industrialized area, then back through the streets of downtown. The spectators were very cheerful, trying hard to call us by our names (which were on our bibs). I used to be shy about this, but I am no longer. I wave at people and try to thank them when I can. I am always amazed at the generosity of the people cheering for us. They stand in the cold for hours, watching boring slow runners like myself, long after the elites have passed. I have never even done that myself... A big thank you as well to the wonderful volunteers. Everything was really perfect!

THE RACE

I think there were about 15,000 runners at the start line, half-marathon and marathon runners together. The first corral was the red one and it was mine. The last pacer in that corral was the 3:25 pacer, so I positioned myself completely at the end, just ahead of the rope separating the red and yellow corrals.

I wasn't nervous. I had done everything right as far as morning preparation and thought I had taken care of business well. I had slept well, was over the cold I had had in the days leading to the race, the blister on my left heel had miraculously stopped hurting on Saturday, at the end of the day (what luck!). Everything was the way it should be at the start line. I wasn't overly happy or enthusiastic, nor was I scared or anxious. It was my 15th marathon... They are not so meaningful anymore. They are simply fun things to do (fun in a strange, exciting and unpleasant way, of course).

Two things which happened to me are worth mentioning. The rest is just me running too many miles a little too fast and ending up having to run the last three miles a little too slow.

First problem: I had a GI issue once again, at mile 12. This has become a regular event in my longer races and training runs (over 13 miles). It is REALLY annoying. Of course, as an adult, I know the difference between "I can hold it" and "I have to go NOW". I had never had GI problems until my 14th marathon, last spring, when I had to stop twice. This time, it only happened once and I lost less time, but still an upsetting experience.

Second problem: For the first time since I started running, I laced one shoe too tightly and this caused not only some pain on top of my foot, but it also caused my sock to bunch up under my foot. I immediately thought of Damaris when I first felt the sensation of the bunching sock and this made me laugh. Sorry D.  I tried stretching my foot to liberate the folding, but the shoe was too tight on me to be able to move my foot within the shoe. So I ran like this for 22 miles. At the 22nd mile, the annoyance had turned into a sharp burning sensation and it was all I could think about. So, with heavy regrets, I decided to stop to fix the problem. By then, my hands were numb and weak and my laces felt hard to untie. I almost gave up hope of hitting my goal time and had some thoughts of walking the last 4 miles. The crazy mental state of the marathon runner in her final miles... The sock was finally straightened and the pain left immediately. Unfortunately I did not take the time to loosen up the laces. So I started running again with the same top of the foot pain, but that was more endurable than the bunched up sock.

THE SPLITS

Mile 1: 7:58 (I was proud of my conservative first mile!)

Mile 2: 7:45 (but then, any hope of having control over my pace was about to disappear )

Mile 3: 7:37 (here we go...)

Mile 4: 7:38 (and again...)

Mile 5: 7:29 (even worse...)

Mile 6: 7:53 (I remember telling myself "You don't have to be an idiot, damn it. Slow down!" It worked for one mile)

Mile 7: 7:36 (back to too fast)

Mile 8: 7:41 (and again)

Mile 9: 7:41 (and again)

Mile 10: 7:39 (see above)

Mile 11: 7:41 (here, I literally thought "Maudite marde!", which I won't translate. But it was for more than just the failure of pacing myself right. I was starting to have bad cramps...)

Mile 12: 9:29 (I stopped at the first porta-potty I saw. No line-up, luckily. My Garmin indicates that I covered the mile in a moving state at a 7:18 pace. So I think it's reasonable to think that I lost close to two minutes due to the GI problem)

Mile 13: 7:25 (back on the crazy horse)

I crossed the 21k mark in just under 1:42:00.

Mile 14: 7:48 (not bad!)

Mile 15: 7:46 (good)

Mile 16: 7:50 (I finally hit my target pace for the first half, 3 miles too late. Now I'm supposed to be running 8:10 pace for the second half)

Mile 17: 7:46 (8:10 is not happening...)

Mile 18: 8:06 (almost 8:10! I had been running through the aid stations, only managing a few gulps of water or gatorade with my poor run and drink technique. But by the 18th mile, I was feeling fatigued and decided to stop completely to get my hydration in. This would take more or less 10 seconds each time)

Mile 19: 7:53 (still not hitting 8:10. I think by then I had stopped calculating. I just wanted to finish this thing)

Mile 20: 7:59 (here, I reminded myself of all the horror stories about the 20th mile that I had read on the forums. Sometimes, I wish I didn't spend so much time here. )

Mile 21: 8:05

Mile 22: 9:03 (Bunching sock problem was fixed at that mile. About a 40-50 seconds loss of time)

Mile 23: 8:06

So far, I had kept all my splits under my slower goal pace of 8:10, except for the two problem miles. This was about to change in the last three miles, as I started to battle mental fatigue and an overall loss of energy. I knew that this moment would come eventually. I wasn't too worried about it, as long as I could keep it together and not break down completely. What mattered was just to keep running. Nothing really hurt, so that was good.

Mile 24: 8:49

Mile 25: 8:27

Mile 26: 8:36

Last .51: 3:58 (or a 7:42 mpm). I still had a marathon pace kick in me in my final moment. Woohoo! (Wait... is it a bad thing? I know opinions are divided on that one...)

And my glorious finish line pic! Surely as good as LRB's, no?  Try to find me. 

Official time: 3:31:39. 

3:31:39 over 26.51 miles, that is exactly an 8:00 mpm pace. Now don't tell me that I'm not an expert on crazy uneven splits that add up exactly to goal finish time. I'm the friggin' queen of crazy splits! 

I felt like the winner of the race, Kenya's Laban Korir.

But I looked like the same moronic and elated runner I always am.

I know that I did not officially hit my goal, but in my mind, I did. And I got the answer to my question: yes, it's still worth fighting for new PRs! And I'm going to claw and kick my way to them if I have to. 

Stats: 

15th marathon 

Second best finish time

15th BQ, 9th under 3:40, BQ -28 for 2016

6th NYCM qualification (4 through marathons, 2 through HMs)

A 75% age-graded score

We finished our weekend with a night out at the Princess of Wales theatre, which was playing The Book Of Mormon. In retrospect, compared to the marathon, a much more hilarious time was had there, and for the same cost... Still, I wouldn't trade my hobby for anything in the world.

Thanks for reading!

This was a pleasure to read!  Congratulations on your second best.

I admire your ability to say fuck the plan and do what you know is best for you!  I think you are very in tuned with your body and what you can/should do (at least more than me).

You describe my arthritic toe bunching very well.  Never ignore it for long or the balls of your feet will hate you!

Great job!  See you in NY!

And you look great in those shorts, damn it!

Why would you have to worry about a tram during a marathon and how would you rate the course as a half marathon course?

This was a pleasure to read!  Congratulations on your second best.

 

I admire your ability to say fuck the plan and do what you know is best for you!  I think you are very in tuned with your body and what you can/should do (at least more than me).

 

You describe my arthritic toe bunching very well.  Never ignore it for long or the balls of your feet will hate you!

 

Great job!  See you in NY!

 

And you look great in those shorts, damn it!

Thank you, Damaris! I think you are pretty in tune yourself and know well how to adapt your training to your situation. I'm sure it's not an easy thing to do!

I wasn't worried about being HIT by a tram! I was worried about tripping on the tram track. Silly you. 

Ah okay.  Yeah we had that here with stupid pot holes in the street, some large enough to swallow a foot.

Congrats Lily! While you slowed down, this shows you have PRs in your future still. Thanks for the report - I can't wait to run this one day.

"They stand in the cold for hours, watching boring slow runners like myself, long after the elites have passed. I have never even done that myself... "

 

That is an interesting observation, I do not think many of us have. I know I have not. Volunteering and pacing is similar though, I have done those.

 

How are the race day logistics there?  Would you recommend this event?  I am looking for a goal half marathon for next fall, something I can smoke...if you do not mind discussing that in your thread that is. 

While I haven't run anywhere near all the events, I can safely say anything with the CRS name on it is top notch.

Congrats Julie.  I love your RR's.  Good luck at NYCM.

BTW - I never tie my shoes too tight. Because I tie them once when I buy them, and never untie or retie them again. Ever. I just slip my feet in & out of them. I don't know if that's weird, but one less thing to worry about, and a tiny bit quicker out the door.

+1

I double knot mine and run for days but once every two weeks or so I will untie them purposely and retie them.  I have learned through trial and error to do this before or after a race, never the morning of.