Rock & Roll Half Marathon & Marathons I am coming for you

After being sick which felt like forever I finally got back into training this week logging a lot more kilometers/miles than I have in any other week this far. I did a 15K/9.3 mile run today at an incline of 1.5 varying speeds from 6.5 to 8 miles per hour burning well more than 1000 calories. Surprisingly the run felt easy. During this week I ran 7.1 miles on Monday, 6.98 miles on Wednesday, 6.98 miles on Thursday. I cross trained Tuesday and just did the elliptical for 30 minutes.

The goal this year is to run the Rock n Roll half marathon in Seattle on June 22nd, the Edmonton Derby marathon in August 25th in my city, Rock and Roll marathon in Montreal September 22nd, and then the Rock and Rock n Roll half marathon in Las Vegas November 17 to wrap up the running year. If I feel ready and think I can get a personal best time in the Run Wild half marathon in St. Albert on May 5th I will run it but if not I will just run the 10K. I figure if I can shave 10 minutes off my time every few months I can get my time down to 1:20 to 1:34 some day for half marathon distance and between 3:05 and 3:20 for a marathon I will go to Kauai Hawaii and run their marathon one day since it is where me and Trevor got engaged and winning first place pays out $5000 which would pay for the vacation =).

I set a goal of running 1500 kilometers this year which I think might have been too ambitious but we shall see. There is still lots of time and once the snow and ice melts I'll be outside running again and not running like a hamster on a wheel on the treadmill lol.

Lululemon Seawheeze 2012



On August 11, 2012 I ran the Lululemon Seawheeze half marathon. It was my first half marathon and definitely won't be the last. I ran amongst 1053 men and 4769 women who averaged a time of 2:21:25:8. I finished with a time of 2:14:38:6 which I am very proud of since I just wanted to beat the 2 hour and 30 minute mark.



To be honest I didn't follow the Lululemon training plan since it didn't seem like it was for me as I am not really a yoga exercising type. Instead I turned to Jeff Galloway http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/half_marathon.html and followed his training schedule except I modified it and compressed it into a 8 week training schedule except my training week started on a Monday with my long run on a Saturday and actively walked twice a week for 20 to 30 minutes on non running days.



During the weekend Lululemon had set up a Seawheeze Showcase Store at the Vancouver Convention Centre which had clothing that exclusively available for the event but the evil hoarders that ended up picking up sought after items such as the limited edition bag and plaid shorts which I was angry I couldn't get and then saw them on Ebay retailing for $300. I did pick up a running skirt and the shorts shown below. I really love the shorts I picked up and have worn them a bunch of times. The skirt however I think was an impulse buy because of the color and how women were frantically picking up things it was like a frenzy and I got caught up in the moment, but I am positive I will break it out this summer as it has a great fit and I really like the feel of the skirt material.

The registration cost was $128 and  we received a limited edition pair of polka dot shorts(women) or blue shorts with plaid(men), Nature sandals, and the Seawheeze pack. Some of you may think wow $128 is steep and you only get a pair of sandals, shorts, and a bag. But really it is worth it considering all of the activities that they provide prior to the face, during, and after.

Lululemon offered their participants a variety of events to part take in such as sunset yoga, morning dymnaic stretch and runner's brunch and the festival afterwards which consisted of a variety of musical entertainment. Unfortunately we only took advantage of the runner's brunch as we were too tired to participate in the sunset yoga, we were busy stuffing ourselves with breakfast during the morning dynamic stretch and we took a nap after showering and lunch and missed out on the festival/concert portion. Their website http://www.seawheeze.com/vancouver/we-love-vancouver/ also offered a list of places to stay and things to do around Vancouver which is really helpful for first time visitors like my fiance.

The Lululemon Seawheeze half marathon really impressed me. Even though it was my first half marathon I thought that the water/aid stations were spaced out well and had adequate amount of volunteers passing out cups of water and electrolytes, Vega gels, and fruit. The music, bands, drummers and cheering groups of people really kept me going especially towards the end when I had gotten a cramp in my right calf muscle and had to stretch out on the side. I however didn't really like the Vega gels. I didn't think they were as effective as Clif or Gu gels I train with since they didn't kick in as well and I started to get a little light headed like I was going to hit the wall even though I had consumed two during the race and I normally only take one Clif or Gu gel during a longer run. I wouldn't recommend them, but I am sure a lot of people enjoy them. Remember to use what you train with because that is what your body is accustomed to.The brunch after the race included waffles, granola bars, quiche, and fresh fruit. I had two helpings of waffles and about 6 fruit skewers before I left the finishers area with my Zico coconut water which really hit the spot.

I know some people complained about there not being enough food at the end but the friends I had that finished after me got their share still so I am not sure how slow you had to have run to not get brunch. I also saw a complaint from slower racers that there weren't many people cheering from them at the end, which I frankly think that if you finish later you should expect that since I would get tired cheering for people after an hour or two under the sun and many of the people cheering are friends or family members of fellow racers and once their person finishes they leave too.

Me and my fiance ended up staying at The Fairmont which was basically across the street from the Vancouver Convention Centre. We had wanted to take a picture underneath the Olympic Cauldron and finally did but but it was after we had showered and changed and when the crowds of racers and cheering friends and family had dissipated. If you want a picture underneath the Olympic Cauldron I'd recommend going early evening after the race or Sunday as you won't get the chance to take pictures without people around you on Friday or the morning or afternoon of Saturday.

Overall it was a great race. I thought it was well planned and would definitely recommend running the Seawheeze Half Marathon to anyone. I would run it again this year but we're getting married on the Friday before the race. So happy racing to anyone that will be running it this year!