Thursday, March 10, 2011

Three Things Thursday

1. I should know better...

I had the worst stomach ache Sunday night and most of Monday. Turns out that neglecting to eat anything of substance all day after the race, and then stuffing myself with wine and pizza in the evening was not the wisest choice. Post race recovery at its finest. Nothing wrong with a little indulgence now and then, but recovery and nutrition must come first! Lesson learned.



2. Recovered

I've been feeling surprisingly good other than the stomach issues. That's one of the things I love most about half marathons; you can give it all you have for 13.1 miles and feel more-or-less "normal" again within a couple of days. I ran a really comfortable 5 miles on Tuesday and trudged through a fresh dumping of snow and slush for 10 miles last night. Thank you, legs!



3. Running the Numbers

What's the first thing you do after establishing a new PR? Update the blog, of course! And then plug it into McMillan's Running Calculator.




A 1:42:22 half marathon projects:
  • 22:09 5K
  • 46:00 10K
  • 3:35:54 Marathon
Of course I know you can only put so much trust in a predictor like this one and several factors come in to play, but it's still fun to see the numbers and get an idea of potential "equivalent performance."

Worth noting is that this is the first time I've entered a long distance race time to reveal 5K/10K predictions faster than my current PRs. My long-distance legs are finally catching up with my short-distance legs. :-) 

36 comments:

kristen said...

That McMillan number is exciting!!!

Denise said...

when it comes to mccmillian and the predictions for you, i totally believe them!!!

Unknown said...

i like to plug in new PRs to McMillan too!

TMB @ RACING WITH BABES said...

So with you on #3. I totally believe McMillan. My numbers (with the exception of the marathon, because I am a head case) are pretty much dead on.

Running Ricig said...

Glad you're feeling good, minus the stomach issues! Sometimes you just need pizza and beer, though ;)

misszippy said...

Look at those numbers! Believe in them.

I have done the whole wrong food thing post-race many a time. We all mean to do it right, but in the moment, well, it's just too much fun to think about it!

ShutUpandRun said...

3:35. I have no question that is within your reach!!!

beer, wings, pizza. I eat it and wonder why I feel like crap. It must be that clean eating we do 90% of the time that makes our bodies revolt. Glad you are feeling better.

Emily said...

I think mcmillians is ALWAYS right!

fancy nancy said...

Great predictions...very exciting! I'll have to check that out! I feel your pain with the stomach yuckiness...I'm awful with post run fuel!

Steel Springs said...

Great time predictions! It's awesome that it's predicting faster 5k and 10k times now, too. It's time to set some more PRs!

Laura said...

WooHoo for Mcmillan...very true stats I think.
I was so happy to run fast-ish this morning. It felt awesome.

Jen Feeny said...

Damn speedy!!! I love plugging in times and seeing what it says my potential is. You totally got this girl, keep up all the great work!!!

Jen Feeny said...

Damn speedy!!! I love plugging in times and seeing what it says my potential is. You totally got this girl, keep up all the great work!!!

J said...

I have been there with the refueling thing. its tough sometimes, plus my stomach seems to hate any food right after racing! So exciting to see the numbers from McMillan! I bet you could run that fast in a marathon!

Mel -Tall Mom on the Run said...

I do the same thing when I get a PR.. "McMillan says" I BELIEVE without a doubt that you have a sub 3:40 in you.. When all things line up and you hit the ZONE on race day it WILL happen.. No doubt..

I have been eating sooo bad.. UGH!!

H Love said...

sky's the limit! very cool!

Gotta Run..... said...

At my first HM I crossed the finishline and headed straight for Starbucks. One Mocha Latte later I was... well on the can :)

Lesson learned for me too!

Anonymous said...

Ha, I've been in that poor-recovery-indulgent-choices situation...Mimosa brunches aren't ALWAYS the best idea (but most of the time they are) ;)

I have a hard time trusting those pace calculators, but whew, 3:35 marathon on deck?? That's a BQ now! ha

Gotta Run..... said...

Can not find your email address. Wanted to email your the recipe for the steel-cut oatmeal.

send me a quick note at gottarun472@gmail.com

Teamarcia said...

What McMillan says goes! Very nice numbers and very reasonable for you. : )

Shellyrm ~ just a country runner said...

I hear you on number 1. Big race day I ate a pbj, 6 GUs, a handful of preztels and drank Gatoraid (or whatever they had along the race). Period. Until 7:30 that night when I got my hands on a subway sub. The next day I kinda forgot to eat much. I felt like i was moving through quicksand all day and couldn't figure out why. DUH!

Compression and movement are my keys to recovery!

I am going to put in 50k in McMillan now put I don't think it works when the courses are so technical. There should be a elevation gain/loss factor.

Shellyrm ~ just a country runner said...

McMillan does offer an option beyond 50k. Infact, there is a lack of predictors that allow you to factor a "difficulty" or technical level. Hmmm. I need to brush up on my programming.

ajh said...

Love the recovery time from half marathons!

I am in the airport -waiting to fly to DC and hopefully nicer weather. Bye bye snow!

Erika said...

I love McMillan. It's pretty darn close for me for everything except the marathon (and that's actually because I've never really trained to succeed at that distance, just to survive LOL)

You are gonna rock that marathon!

Nicole said...

I told you!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :)


eeeeeeeeeeeee :)


april cant come soon enough!

Unknown said...

I have fun running the McMillian numbers, it's always so inspiring. It's a great way to set some new goals as well! That looks like a great marathon goal!

Mark said...

Congraulations!!! Great race report!! You are getting better and better all the time!

Nitmos said...

It just means you are on the upward swing. The calculator is never precise but it sure shows where you are headed, at least.

Jill said...

Isn't it cool when ya get to the level where a 1/2 marathon isn't that big of a deal training-wise nor recovery, it just happens as part of the big picture!! :) You got that 3:35 baby!!!!!

Happy Weekend
XO

Anne said...

Those predictions are wicked fast...I do believe that your next marathon will be a huge PR!! Even McMillan says so :)

Thanks for your encouragement Marlene!

Kelly (She Wears a Red Sox Cap) said...

My stomach is all about punishing me when I forget to take good care of it!

Glad you are feeling better otherwise!

N.D. said...

mcmillan! I think you can do it Marlene!

Lindsay said...

watch out maurk, maurlene may be leaving you for mcmillan! ;)

Unknown said...

I am just checking your blog now, but on Friday I was doing the exact same thing with some of my previous race times. I'm running my first race of 2011 tomorrow (a 5K) and I can't wait to get home and plug in some #'s!! (PR or not)

Johann said...

Those numbers are pretty accurate it seems. My best half marathon is 1:41, 10km 47:13 and 5km 21:14 (training run, no official 5km race). That's close to the numbers you have so definitely doable for you. Nothing better than the feeling of recovery!

Pretend this is real said...

Haha! I've learned lesson #1 so many times I couldn't count them... somehow that knowledge fades away by the next race. That being said, I always figure a day or 2 of indulgence after a race gets me back to craving healthy food. Not a bad way to transition into recovery. Good luck with your next PR projections! ;)