Fits Do Race Reviews: The City of Lakes Half Marathon

This past Sunday, I ran the Jeff Winter City of Lakes half marathon. I believe this race was the original Minneapolis marathon (you can read about the history of the race HERE). Then it was changed to a 25k. This year was the first year that it was changed to a half marathon.

The course starts at Beard's Plaisance on Lake Harriet. It goes around Lake Harriet to Lake Calhoun back to Lake Harriet and back to Calhoun!

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I was a little worried about the monotony of running each lake twice, especially since I run these two lakes ALL. THE. TIME. (though I'm not complaining, I live where I live so I can run the lakes!)

However, I realized that its actually pretty rare that I race around these lakes. I found it to be a nice change because it was a race, if that makes sense.

It was also a huge bonus that a lot of our friends from the Calhoun Beach Running Club came out to cheer for the racers! Knowing where they would be after passing them the first time really gave me something to look forward to the second time around.

There were two support stops on the course that we hit twice, which I think was perfect for a somewhat cooler morning.

The finish line was right after the bandshell.

Everyone received a pint glass and a medal.

I haven't received a medal for a half in awhile and this one was pretty nice.

I took two Hammer Gels during this half marathon- one around mile 6 and one around mile 10. The support stops offered both Powerade and water, so I would drink water with my gels and Powerade the other times I passed the support stops.

I did try out a singlet that I might wear for the full marathon <- test out your marathon outfit before race day people!

No chafing with this tank, so that was a win. It's from Gear Running Store if you like it.

I'm so proud of Dustin who broke 1:30 at the race! He ran a 1:29:06 which is a 6:48 min/mile average! Yay for Dustin!

My performance...I ran 1:49:37. I had hoped to run closer to a 1:46-7, but it definitely did not happen. Sure it was a PR by about 15 seconds (got to update the PR page at least), but I didn't race smart at all. Based on my splits (below) I should have started more conservatively, as I clearly lost my speed in the last three miles.  I think I need to go out slower than I did- well, clearly I need to go out slower than I did, but I felt so great and the weather was cool...lesson learned. Start slow folks so you can finish strong!

Splits:
Mile 1: 8:00
Mile 2: 8:12
Mile 3: 8:04
Mile 4: 8:03
Mile 5: 8:02
Mile 6: 8:17
Mile 7: 8:09
Mile 8: 8:13
Mile 9: 8:20
Mile 10: 8:32
Mile 11: 8:40
Mile 12: 8:42
Mile 13: 8:49
Last 0.22 (on my Garmin): 7:41 min/mile pace

There were a lot of PR's on the course on Sunday. Congrats to all the runners out there, especially my CBRC friends (below) as well as Dustin's old boss Curt. Curt is training for his FIRST marathon and he passed me by in the last few miles for a great race! Nice work Curt. He will #crushit at his first marathon!

Weekly Recap: Two Races in a Week and a Run MSP Singlet

A really short weekly recap today for you guys...

I am so glad you enjoyed this morning's interview with Elizabeth Turner! I will pass along all your incredible feedback to her. She is definitely an inspiration. I loved her tips for staying mentally strong the most. I plan to try them out at the OBX marathon!

I just returned from a hill workout, which probably wasn't my smartest idea after doing a half marathon yesterday. Tomorrow will definitely a rest day from running.

Here's how things turned out last week in Fitness and Fitness Fashon:

Monday: MDRA Victory Labor Day 10k (warm-up approx. 2 miles for about 8 miles total)

Tuesday: Complete rest. I needed it!

Wednesday:  7 miles easy with Matilda, 1 hour strength conditioning class at the Calhoun Beach Club

Thursday:  Close to 9.5 miles…before work! I met two friends in the morning who were doing a tempo run, but I had 5-7 miles at marathon pace (8-10 miles total) on my schedule. I started with them, but then did my own thing. Even though we weren’t doing the same workout, having friends to meet before work really helped me get my butt out of bed!

Friday: C2 vinyasa yoga class at Corepower Yoga

Saturday: 5.5 mile run with Matilda before walking to Woofstock (pics to come on tomorrow’s Tilda Tuesday!)

Sunday: Yes two races in one week, yowsa! This time it was the City of Lakes Half Marathon. We did 1.5 miles to warm up and then walked the same route back home after the race (I couldn’t stomach running on the way home…I guess walking would have to do as my cooldown!) Total running distance- about 15 miles

Summary: 5 days of running, 1 complete rest day, 1 yoga, 1 strength

Here's what's happening in Fitness Fashion:

This Asics singlet from Gear Running Store is what's happening in fitness fashion! I wore it for the City of Lakes Half Marathon (race recap to come later this week) and I think it's my new favorite. Light-weight, no chafing. Simple logo in my favorite color- blue!

That's all for the week. Stop by tomorrow for Tilda Tuesday!