Quad Cities Half Race Report

Do you ever feel like you just go, go, go and don't even have time to breathe? That is how I felt ever since the QC half, which took place on September 26. But, as all things do, things will get less-hectic and return to normal, in time.

I went to the QC on Saturday. My aunt and uncle live there so I got to visit with them and stayed at their house. Plus, my uncle was also running the half. I didn't know what I was capable of doing because my training was so erratic this summer and leading up to the marathon. My knee was hurting off and on and I was hoping it would be find on race day. I didn't think I could PR and was fine with that. Let's be honest - they all can't be PRs! I've run 5 halves and PR'd for all of them, so I was due to not PR for once, or so I thought.

Going into the race I had tons of questions. What should I wear? It was supposed to be upper 40s...long sleeve? short sleeve? I opted for shorts and a long sleeve running t-shirt but got really hot running in it towards mile 10. I also wore gloves for the first 8 miles before tossing them into the trash can along the route. Should I run with a pace group? If so, which one? 1:50, 1:45, 1:40? I felt like I was on decision-making overload, and I am a really bad decision maker.

I ended up running with the 1:45 pace group for the first 10 miles and then started to get tired so I ran on my own. I finished with a time of 1:46.20, which I was pleased with. My previous half (Flying Pig in May of 2009) I ran 1:43.06, so it was 3+ minutes slower, but still okay. I had a fun time because I did not put the pressure on myself to PR. It made such a difference! Also, my blood sugars acted nicely, and I ended the race at 203...much better than my other post-run numbers. I had a good time at the race. My parents came down for it and my brother and some of his friends so it was nice to see them all.

Unfortunately, my knee has been acting up post-half-marathon. It is random - some days I'll run 3 miles with no pain but it will kill shortly after. It is a hard thing to describe. I know that it makes me stride differently. My knee gets really tight and although I can walk fine, running causes excruciating pain. I'm going to visit my endo. in a week so I'm going to ask him if he knows a good sports med. doctor to go to. He works with a lot of athletes so I think he'll give me some good advice. What do you think I should do - not run at all? I do have a 15k planned on November 6 in Chicago and I really hope to run it.