On Saturday 11/16/13, I ran in the Delaware Canal Half Marathon in Washington Crossing, PA.

Short version:  2:29:05 Leg cramps started at mile 10 and I was reduced to walking / shuffling the last 2.5 miles.

Long, sorry story:

This is my second HM.  I ran my first in April (2:26), and had such a good time that I wanted to do it again.  The Delaware Canal HM is a small race, capped at 500 runners because the course is an out-and-back along the canal towpath.  It’s narrow, rocky in some places, and flat.   I trained with a 20-week Running Wizard plan, the first time I have followed a plan.  The plan predicted a 2:09 finish for me, which I knew was too aggressive.  A 5K time trial from last week, plugged into MacMillan, predicted sub 2:15.  My goal was sub 2:20, so my plan was to go out at a 10:30 pace.  Based on my last few tempo runs I thought it was reasonable.

Pre-race:  Start time was 10 am, so I got up at 6:15 and had my usual oatmeal breakfast and a cup of coffee.  DH and I left at 8:00 and arrived at Washington Crossing by 8:40.  I made a quick stop in the portapot and then got my bib and swag bag.  I did some warm-up jogging and fidgeted with my shoes for a while, then managed another quick trip to the portapot before 9:30.

The start of the race was delayed about 5 minutes because of lines at the packet pick-up and portapots.  I was in Wave 9, and while we were waiting for our turn I realized that Jess (lilacjive) was lined up right behind me.  I said hello, met her friend Mary, but before we could do any chatting it was time to start running.

Race:

The first six miles went pretty much as planned.   I had to keep reminding myself not to go too fast, but I was feeling strong and comfortable.  In fact, around the four-mile point I thought to myself “this is nice and steady, I can hold this pace all day”.  I felt really good.

1           10:22

2           10:36

3           10:24

4           10:27

5           10:35

6           10:28

I took water at one station and Gatorade at a second station on the way out.  In each case I walked a dozen steps or so in order to get the fluid in my mouth instead on down the front of my shirt.

I started laboring just before the turnaround point, and it’s reflected in my splits and reactions:

7           10:59   “hey, it didn’t feel like I slowed down”

8           10:54    “well it’s time to dig deep”

9           11:20   “WTH??  Pick it up!”

10         10:56    “That’s better, but you need to make up more time – suck it up”

Not too long after the 10 mile mark was another water station.  I decided to get some water here and then push hard to the finish.  My 2:20 goal was still within reach if I could pick up the pace just a bit more.  But as I was walking / drinking, my calves tightened up.  I stopped to stretch my calves, but that just made my hamstrings tighten.  After a quick hammy stretch on each leg I decided to try to run it out.  It took a while but I got going.

As I approached the 11-mile point I checked my elapsed time and saw that I had just gone over 2 hours.  To meet my sub-2:20 goal I would have to run better than 10-minute miles to the finish, and I knew that wasn’t going to happen.  But a quick calculation told me that I would get a PR even if I finished with 12-minute miles, and that should have been easy.  I was running at about an 11:00 pace at this point.

Then I got a flat tire.  At 11.56 miles…BLAM!  My right calf tightened up so quickly and intensely that I stumbled and almost fell.  It was all I could do to walk.  After a few dozen slow steps, then some power walking, I managed to break into a shuffle.  Any time I tried to pick up the pace, my calves seized up.  I had to alternate between walking and shuffling the last 2.5 miles.

11         12:34

12         13:21

13         13:33

0.1       2:39

DH met me when the course turned back into the park, only about half a mile from the finish.  He had seen me at about 9.5 miles and thought I looked good, and now couldn’t figure out why I was just barely moving while in sight of the finish and with other runners passing me.  I’m usually pretty good at sprinting to the finish, especially if chasing or being chased.  This time, I wasn’t even breathing hard when I crossed the finish line because I had been moving so slowly.

Post-race:  I accepted the finisher’s medal, then walked with DH up to the pavilion where there was pasta and burgers.  I had no appetite so just got a bottle of water and hobbled to the car.  I should have stayed to mingle but I was just too disappointed  (Sorry lilacjive!)  As we were getting in the car (kind of hard to do when bending knees cause calf cramps), DH suggested that “maybe you just need to stick to 10K or shorter.  NO!   I cannot let this be the last HM that I run.  I can’t “end” on such a bad day.  I will do another next year, place and date TBD.

Post-mortem:  This was very disappointing.  I was mad at myself around miles 8-9, but thought I pulled out of that funk and was ready to push for the last three miles.  I can’t be mad at myself for the limping finish because I know that part wasn't just mental weakness.  Going any faster made the cramps worse so I couldn't move at all.  It’s just sad to put in the work for 20 weeks, only to be derailed by calf cramps.

So what happened?  Dehydration?  The temperature was  in the low 50’s, I wore shorts and a light long-sleeve tech shirt; I never felt hot or sweaty.  During the race I drank about half a cup or water or Gatorade four times, and ate three Shot Blocs between miles 5 – 10.  Besides the cramps I had other things that may be symptoms – around the 10 mile point I had goosebumps; and after I got home and showered I was shaky and nauseated.  That feeling passed after a couple hours of rest, some water, and a bagel.  My digestive system was sufficiently recovered to enjoy a burrito platter at my favorite Mexican restaurant tonight.  The calves are very sore.

I’ll have to think about this race and what I can learn.  My struggles in the 7-9 mile period, and perhaps the cramps themselves, indicate to me that I need more endurance.  I need more miles, and to do that I need to just keep building up my base.  But not this week – I get to be lazy this week if I feel like it.

Sorry that you were disappointed, it sucks when that happens but you finished even with the shuffling and that is great. And there is always next time

That is strange, PF. I know you have been training well and were prepared for this. The first thing that I thought of was was "A 10:00am start? That is late!" You were well rested and hydrated and your splits were great. The one thing you didn't mention (or perhaps I missed it) was the elevation. Was it uphill on the way back? Maybe you should try calf sleeves or compression socks? If nothing else, maybe you just had a bad day. For what it's worth, I know you can run a quality HM and I don't think it's too much for you. Shake it off, recover, and do it again. I know you will get your goals. COME ON!!!

Let's start with this.  Cramps are completely unrelated to either hydration or electrolyte depletion.  While scientists aren't entirely sure what causes them, the best guess is that they are related to muscle fatigue.  Since your running log is public, I took a look.  My best guess is this.

Your mileage is about 25-30 miles per week.  That's kind of around the minimum you need to run a half marathon.  You are running most of your runs around a 12:00 pace.  Sometimes a bit faster and sometimes a bit slower but that seems to be about average.  Your goal in this race was a 10:30 pace.  That's about 1:30 faster than your easy pace.  By comparison, my easy pace is around 7:45.  A little slower if I have some fatigue in my legs and a little faster if I'm more rested.  My half marathon PR is at a 6:34 pace.  That's a 1:10 difference between my easy pace and my half marathon race pace.

I think you just tried to outrun your ability.  Many of us do it at some point.  I ran a 50K a couple of years ago and experienced horrible calf cramps during the last 10 miles of that race.  I initially attributed it to watered down Gatorade but additional research led me to believe I was simply undertrained for a race that had over 10,000 feet of elevation change.  I was in the middle of 5K training and hadn't done a long run of over 20 miles in months before that 50K.  The speed was there but the endurance wasn't and I cramped for the last 10 miserable miles of that race.

When I looked at your log in February and March, it looked like you were actually running a bit more mileage then yet you tried to run this one at roughly 40 seconds per mile faster.

Please understand that I'm not trying to be critical but when I look at what you did in this race and your training, I think you simply tried to run faster than you are capable of running for 13.1 miles.

Margo congrats on #2. Even if it wasn't the experience you wanted you completed and you

will learn from this experience.

I totally agree with LTH on his assessment and he has given you some good thoughtful advice.

I also think that trying to outrun our abilities is not always a bad thing. We try, we learn, we grow, we

set new goals.

And you better not give up on running 1/2's because I would be pissed at you for doing that. 

I see a big PR in your future on #3.

Margo, I agree with Damaris that the fact that you were not too far off your best HM time, after having to go through the last painful and slower miles, is a good sign of the fitness you've gained with this training cycle. Don't be hard on yourself. I really think that you should run another HM sooner than next year. You have all this base now, keep building on it! No matter what you feel regarding your finish time, you trained hard for this race and you should proud of yourself. Try to solve the mystery of the calf cramps (those are just awful, I know...) and you will rock your next half!

As for the calves themselves, I agree with what LTH said. 25-30 miles may be enough to race a half for some people, but others will need a little more mileage. In my first 3 marathons, I would train with 35-50 miles on average and I would end up walking parts of the course. Now I train with 50-70 mpw, and I no longer need to walk. But some people will do great on only 40-50 mpw... We are all different... A friend of mine, T.O., always ends up with cramps when his training mileage is low. The few times he's managed to train with more mileage, he BQd and suffered no cramps... It's just an idea, but I would consider it if I were you. Maybe only an extra 5 miles per week would do the trick for you. You deserve to PR, you certainly had the speed in you for most of the race!

I felt so badly for you as I read along.  You were doing so well.  For some reason, it sounds like you might have been a bit dehydrated, but you were obviously taking in liquids.  Perhaps not quite enough or you're on the verge of getting ill?  Anyway, if you're doing okay now, I'd highly encourage you to find another HM within the next few weeks, and use this one as a training run for the next.  Mitch found a great improvement when he followed his HM race a couple of weeks ago with anther, and I think considering your training and experience in this one, you'd have the same improvement.  Best of luck Margo, I think you were very strong to even finish this race with the pain you were going through.

After a good night’s rest and a lazy morning, I'm in a much better mood and my legs don’t feel any worse today than they would after a LR in training.  I may go for a jog later, or I may just keep my butt on the couch watching football.

Obiebyke:  Yes, I need to keep in mind that just a year ago I would not have thought that I could run 13.1 miles

FreeSoul87:  thanks

Zelanie:  There wasn’t much choice but to finish.  I had to get back to my car.

Jack:  The 10:00 start was actually kind of nice.  Remember that it is cooler here, so even by the time I was back in the car after the race it was still under 60 degrees.

DR:  I do feel more fit than I was in April…I just don’t have the finish time to prove it.

LTH:  I think you are correct.  I didn’t follow a plan for my first HM, I just tried to run as many miles as I could handle.  In the six months preceding the April HM I ran 678 miles, but did not do any consistent speed work.  I had two speeds – training pace and race pace.  For this race I followed a plan that incorporated speed work.  This taxed my legs, and I compensated by running the lower end of the distance ranges provided in the plan.  In the six months preceding yesterday’s race, I ran 686 miles.  So there was no increase in volume for the second HM, despite being more consistent with running 5 days per week. 

The plan helped me develop another speed – so now I have easy / tempo / race paces.  My tempo runs gave me the confidence to believe I could hold a 10:30 pace.  I guess it made me overconfident.  I will take your advice and work on getting the mileage up (while keeping the speedwork).

Ginny:  Thank you.

Just B.S.:  Don’t worry, I’m not giving up on running HMs.  I just got started!  This experience was a reminder that running is not easy.  I’m too ornery to quit after one bad experience.

LRB:  Nice of you to offer me an excuse, but there wasn’t any wind yesterday.  And if anything, the return trip should have been slightly downhill since it was downstream.

happylily:  I’m not aware of any more HMs in the area this year, but I’ll take a look.  I do feel more fit than I was in April, so you’re correct – the training was not a waste.  More mileage certainly won't hurt.

daisymae25:  thank you

She Can:  I’ll look for another HM, but racing season is pretty much done around here.  I think there is a 10K coming up – that might be right up my alley since I felt so strong for the first 10K of the HM!  Don’t be too impressed by my toughness to finish yesterday, I had no choice.  I was 2.5 miles away from my ride home, on a trail with no shortcuts and no chance of hitching a ride.

We did get some nice stuff yesterday: