I'm too old to improve...

I'm too old to improve... Or at least that's what "people" say.  It's almost impossible to get development money at the ripe old age of 38.  We're told to just be happy being a master's athlete.  We're told not to try to make international teams.  We're told just to retire gracefully.

But you know what, I refuse.

I'm 38 and better than ever, and I can prove it.  How?  In the past 2.5 months I have done my best times ever in the following distances:  1500, mile, 3,000, 5,000, 10,000, 10K, 30K, 40K, marathon, and 50K.

And you know who would probably agree with me?  Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Venus Williams, Serena Williams, Dana Torres, Oksana Chusovitina, Meb Keflezighi, and Jo Pavey, just to name a few.  Do you know why they'd probably agree with me?  Because even though they're all "old" they're still at the top of their game.

I'm not saying that as you get older that your body doesn't change, of course it does.  Many people need more rest than they did before, more recovery.  Stretching, mobility, core work and strength become even more vital.  But it's doable.

Some people would say I'm improving now because I didn't live up to my potential earlier.  They could very well be correct.  I'm positive that many of the things I've been doing to improve on could've (and should've) been done years ago.  But you can't do what you don't know you should've done.  And just because I should've done it years ago is no reason to not do it now!  Because now I have the knowledge, the help, and the motivation to do it.

So how have I been doing it?  There are a number of things, some probably bigger pieces of the puzzle than others, but I think it's all connected.  The body is an amazing machine and it's all intertwined.  But here are some of the biggies:

1.  I got an iron infusion.  In June of last year I finally dipped below the line into anemic.  I've been borderline for years, and even saying to the doctors my iron levels are too low for an endurance athlete, it didn't matter.  I took iron supplements, ate iron-rich foods, didn't drink tea with meals, everything I could think of, and it didn't work.  This is obviously not something that will work for everyone, but I think there's a very important lesson.  Make sure you get your blood work done.  Have it checked as regularly as you can.  This will allow you to see if certain values drop, raise or stay the same.  Keep in mind that levels in blood tests are for an average person.  As endurance athletes we are not average and should not be treated as such.  If you truly think you are low in something and your doctor says you're fine, get a second opinion.  Do some research, talk to people and see what you can do.

2.  I worked on my technique.  I had issues getting DQed (for bent knee).  I worked on technique with a former coach, but we never quite got things sorted.  So I took matters fully into my own hands.  I went to people and talked, I watched videos.  I went to people who knew nothing about race walking and asked questions to get a completely different viewpoint.  And it worked!  In the past year or so I think I've gotten three or four paddles and maybe one card?  I don't remember for sure, but everything has been super clean.  And I've had a number of officials approach me after races saying I'm looking the best I ever have.  If you think technique is holding you back then work on it!  Video yourself and watch it.  Compare it to the best in the world.  When I coached track I had the runners do it too.  In my opinion running coaches don't work on technique enough.  You can learn so much!  Have other people look at the videos.  Visit a coach whom you respect to help you with technique.  Whatever it is do something!

3.  I've seriously upped my core/glute work.  I've known for a while that my right glute medius is a bit lazy (yes, I'm half a lazy a&&).  I had worked on things, but in hindsight no where near enough.  Some of it was that I'd work and maybe do the exercises not exactly right so that I wouldn't get the full benefit.  And then there's be the exercises that were so hard that I just couldn't do it and it'd be so frustrating that I'd stop trying.  I finally got well and truly over that and said if I can't do it I need to be able to do it and I will work on it.  Even if it makes me sore, even if it means I can't race walk for a day or so.  I'm not saying to work a muscle into such fatigue that it's exhausted, that's not a good idea.  But I would start off with a few and work my way up.  Now I'm happy to say that the exercise I couldn't do on my right side before at all I can do two sets of eight!  Progress!  My core is stronger than it's ever been and I'm sure it's been helping with my new technique.

4.  I'm the lightest I've been.  Definitely since 2012 but I think actually since high school.  I've accomplished this from a few different angles.  First I'm putting in more mileage.  Second, along with that bigger mileage I'm not necessarily eating a lot more.  It's a very delicate balance, and sometimes I do get quite hungry, but for the most part I'm getting better about not snacking when I don't need to and eating slightly smaller portions.  I always want to make sure I refuel, but don't want to feel like I just did a big workout so I can eat whatever I want.  Also, and for me this was a biggie, I'm allowing myself treats.  For a while I tried to cut out sweets and sugar.  All it really made me was miserable and feeling like I was denying myself all the time.  But I read something that really clicked with me.  I just want a taste...  Which is true.  I don't need a whole desert, I just want a taste.  I just want a piece of something.  And when I do that that every few days I'm happy.  I don't feel like I'm denying myself all the time, I get something yummy, and I'm not eating a huge amount.

5. The mental aspect.  I've improved on it but there's still more work for me to do in my mental game.  Now I have to know and believe that I'm as fast as I am.  With taking so much time off my 10K last weekend it's causing me to re-imagine everything.  The pace I did that race at, if I double it, would be under the IAAF time for world champs.  That's quite a thing to think and get used to, but a good one.  To improve my mental game I read a lot of books.  My favorite, and I've mentioned it before, is "With Winning In Mind" by Lanny Basham.  I have read it probably five times and each time I read it I learn something more or am reminded of something or see something in a new light.  I highly recommend this book.

Please, don't make the mistakes I did.  Don't wait.  If you want it, go out and work for it.  It'll be hard work.  You'll be tired.  It'll be super frustrating at times.  But then you can live your life with no regrets.  Find someone to help you.  If you have questions then ask them.  People in general, and especially race walkers, are generally so giving with their time and knowledge.  And there are lots of coaches out there wanting to help and waiting to share their knowledge.

Happy training!

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Santee 2017 - 50K

The 50K has come and gone.  I've had time to process the race and what to focus on moving forwards.  Lots of good, but some disappointment too.  First let's start with a bunch of good!

I'm so proud of my athlete Katie Smith!  She did her first 50K!  She had moments of wanting to quit (don't we all at some point during a 50K?) but never gave up and stayed tough till the end.  She almost set her 30K PB on her way through, and smashed her 40K PB, and finished 7th!  I'm so very, very proud of her!

Dave had an awesome race, sticking to his race plan and moving his way up to 5th.  I think he started in 9th or 10th or something?  He kept smiling all the way and had a very successful race.  I'm so happy that he enjoyed his 50K, and placed in the money!  And with the news that he was accepted to race at Milrose we're glad he didn't race super hard so he can recover for an awesome mile race.  He's already done some speed work and is in good form to have an awesome competition February 11th!

My race plan for the 50K was to go out and gradually pick it up.  I was successful at that until about 35K when I stopped accelerating and slowed up a bit.  But nothing horrible by any means.  Along the way I broke my 30K, 40K, marathon, and 50K PB.  In fact I set my 30K PB twice...  The first 30K and the 30K from 10-40K was faster, so that's fun.  Couple those with having set my 1500, mile, 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000 PBs since December 31st and I can safely say I'm just about in the best shape of my life.  On top of that I didn't get a single paddle or red card, and haven't gotten any cards in I think the last 7 or so races.  I got one paddle at the race I did 3,000 at, but I was pushing pretty hard and I never got a card.  So I think I'm safe in saying that I've successfully ironed out my technique.  I received some very nice complements from judges on how I'm looking, so that seems to reinforce my belief.

I followed my nutrition plan perfectly and didn't have any of the tummy trouble I had in New Zealand at their 50K championships, so that makes me happy.  The weather was much better than it had been the last few years in California, so that was a relief.  It started to feel a bit warm near the end of the race, but definitely nothing horrible.  The course was new this year and I liked it.  It was an L shape and it broke it up so that it didn't feel like you're just going straight out and straight back.  The turns were really nice and wide so there wasn't the feeling of losing all your momentum and having to get going again, so that was really nice.

As I have been reminding myself, about 7 months ago I was officially anemic and could barely workout.  Coming from that to here I think is a huge achievement and I'm very proud of the progress I made in such a "short" time.

Now for some nitty gritty...  Here's my 5K splits:
26:50, 27:05, 26:40, 26:47, 26:16, 26:31, 26:34, 26:54, 28:04, 27:53.
I'm happy that my last 5K wasn't my slowest.  In fact, of the top five finishers, my last 5K was the fastest of all of them, men included.  My halves were 2:13:38 and 2:15:55.  Even my second half was ahead of my old PB pace.  My middle two 20Ks (10-30 and 20-40) were 1:46:14 and 1:46:15, faster than I raced the 20K Olympic Trials.  I placed fourth overall, so even if for whatever reason there isn't a women's 50K NACAC Championship I will be on the open Pan Am Cup Team, so I'm officially going to Lima, Peru, which is awesome.

Am I sad I lost my American records? Of course.  But records are made to be broken and having more women racing hard, fast, strong 50Ks means that there will be an official women's 50K sooner rather than later.  And since records are made to be broken.... well....

When you need protein after a race what's better than a Brazilian restaurant!!!!!  Yummy!!!!

I recovered a little slower than I normally do, but only by a day or so.  I got a fantastic massage in Lake Havasu where we were visiting my parents and she really helped work things out.  Friday I did some speed work and absolutely flew.  I'm changing my focus to speed for a few months to work on foot speed and hit a few hard 20Ks.  But I still have some long walks in there to help me improve endurance for Peru.  It's so nice writing my schedule.  Since I believe in what I'm capable of I don't have to worry about a schedule that won't help me work up to my potential.  I've written it and had it checked by people whose opinions I trust and who know me and my training.  Everyone agrees it's a program that can help me get to all my goals, and that is very exciting!  It'll be challenging, but I'm up for the challenge.

The cheerleaders were awesome!  Cheering for us all the way!

So here's to another block of training, focusing like I've never focused before, believing like I've never believed before, and training like I've never trained before!  I think I'm going to surprise a fair few people this year with what I accomplish.

Happy training!
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Food, Glorious Food!

Food.   A necessity for everyone, and sometimes a source of stress for athletes.  We need to adequately fuel our bodies for what we want to accomplish, but at the same time we have to reach and maintain our ideal racing weight. 

Weight has always been an issue for me.  For a long time I’ve been about 8-10 pounds over my ideal racing weight.  Hold on you may be saying.  How do you know what your ideal racing weight is?  I was lucky enough to go through a slew of tests at the athletic department at Furman University when I was down training with Ian a while back.  And what we determined from all the awesome science things we did is that my ideal racing weight is around 130-132.

For much of my life I’ve been around 140 pounds.  Maybe 138 if things are going well, and up to 145 or so when they aren’t.  There was a time in 2012 that I was around 135 for a decent period of time and that was when I did my 50K pb.  Coincidence?  Maybe, but probably not.

“They” say that for every pound over race weight you are you lose a second per mile.  I put parenthesis around “they” because I don’t have the data to quote from.  It may be one of those things that’s been learned from trial and error.  I’m honestly not sure if there’s been a study done on it or not.  But I do know that when I’m lighter and getting closer to my ideal racing weight I feel better, move better and have more confidence in myself.

Since the 50K for women is gaining momentum and I’ve learned so much more about training - what I can handle and how to push myself even more - I’ve been again focusing on reaching my ideal racing weight.   Last time I checked the scale I was about 136, the lowest I’ve been for longer than a day (temporarily losing weight due to dehydration doesn’t count) in probably a year or two.  Since I’ve been floating around this weight for the last few months I’ve done two of my three fastest 30Ks, my third fastest 3,000 race and my fifth fastest 5K (which was a fartlek workout). 

Some of you have expressed curiosity as to what I do with my eating, especially since I’m basically a gluten-free athlete.  Let me state though, right from the get go, that I am not Celiac and I do not have a diagnosed allergy to wheat/gluten.  I can eat gluten, I just find I feel so much better when I don’t and weight stays off easier.  I’ve found, through trial and error, that there are some forms of gluten I can handle better than others, there are periods of time I can handle gluten better than others, and the gluten in different countries affects me differently.  I am not a dietitian, I have no degree in anything having to do with nutrition.  All I can offer are things I’ve noticed myself, conversations I’ve had with other athletes, and knowledge I’ve gained from reading lots and lots (and lots) of books and articles.

I thought I’d write a series of posts talking about some of my struggles (some continuing) with reaching my ideal racing weight, what it’s like eating when you’re in a foreign country, fueling an athlete on a gluten-free diet, as well as anything else you might like to know.  Please, if you have any questions or are curious about something let me know and I’ll write about it!  And post pictures of yummy food that I eat :)  

And to start that off, here is one of my favorite breakfasts!  Egg scramble!  I start with sauteing veggies.  I like onion, mushroom and pepper.  I added a bit too much water to this one, but I just drained a little and all was fine.  I like to add lots of veggies, it helps keep me full and is a good source of carbs.

Then I add some of the eggs from our chickens.  I added five, but this was for Dave and I after a hard workout.  And I had some mozzarella so I added that, because everything is better with cheese ;)

And here's what it looks like cooked.

Since I had some smoked salmon I added that on top.  It was very yummy!

New Zealand 50K championships and the next two weeks

Awards ceremony

One of the coolest pictures I think I've taken.  LakeTekapo

Holy cow, it's taken me over two weeks to write about the race!  One of the great things about being and training in New Zealand is I'm not sitting around bored a lot!  Maybe could also do with a bit more rest at times, but I love how I'm able to get in all my workouts and stay focused and still get out and do fun stuff.  But I digress....

One of the reasons I decided to come to NZ to train was to race in their Long Distance Champs and get in a nice training 50K race.  I never planned to race it all out because I wanted to make sure I could recover well and keep training.  The last thing I wanted was to have to take 2-3 weeks easy when I'm here to train.  And especially since I didn't bounce back quite as fast after the 100 miler as I was hoping I wanted to be careful.

Training up to the 50K was solid.  I had some really great workouts and some solid workouts so I was really ready to see what I could do.  My plan was to be sub 4:45, that would've made me satisfied.  I planned to go out at 4:45 for 35K and then kick it in the last 15K.  But the best laid plans....

One thing that was really great about my easy week before the race was Tony had a work trip that I got to tag along with.  I was able to get in all my workouts but also see a large portion of the North Island and do some tourist things.  A lot of times when I have an easy week or a taper week I can get really edgy, almost depressed.  I've found out this is caused by the reduction in endorphins from not working out as much.  So when I'm home I really have to focus on doing lots of fun stuff and not just sitting around the house stewing.  This trip was perfect!  Always new things to see and fun things to do, including roasting marshmallows :)

I arrived in Timaru feeling good and ready.  The day before the race I went and checked out the course.  Probably one of the most picturesque courses I've been on, especially for a 1K loop.  It was an interesting shape with one hairpin turn and two turns sharper than 90 degrees.  There was also a section where there were some concrete dividers that were on the course that would make it challenging to go two wide, never mind three wide.  But since the field sizes for all the races were small it probably wouldn't be an issue.  There were three entered in the 50K; myself, a guy named Miguel who has been living in NZ but doesn't have residency, and Graeme Jones.  We all started at 7:00.  At 9:00 was the 5, 10 and 20K races, so an additional 6 athletes.

I was in Timaru for 5 days and the day of the race had the best weather of all of them.  I think the high was 50 and there was always a bit of cloud cover.  At one point it dripped for a few minutes but not enough to measure.  And there was no wind.  So absolutely great conditions.  The meet management was fantastic, I didn't have to worry about a thing.  They were fantastic and rounded me up an aid station person (that ended up being a team) and they were fantastic.  I didn't have to worry about a thing.  In fact one of the girls was so cute she made me laugh so many laps.  On my aid sheet I put that it's easier to hold the bottle from the bottom so that I have lots of room to grab it as I go by.  She took that advice very seriously to heart and as I was coming would gently place the bottle on the palm of her hand.  She would concentrate really hard and get it balanced.  Once satisfied that it was balanced she would bring her other hand up and "present" it to me and look up with a huge smile.  It was the cutest thing ever!

As I said my plan was to go out at 4:45 pace, or 5:42 per K.  All three of us started off in a pack and things felt quite comfortable.  Unfortunately we came by the line and it was about 5:55.  Oops!  So I picked it up.  I overcompensated a bit though and came through the next K in 5:28, what would end up being my fastest K, but only by a second, so doesn't really count.  Then I got into a nice groove of around 5:36.

Obviously that is faster than I had planned but I was feeling good and the course was good and I thought, what the heck.  I came through 25K in 2:20:16 feeling fantastic.  Each 5K had gotten slightly faster to that point.  Obviously that is 2:15 faster than the plan.  I was going to hold that pace until 35K and then try and pick it up.  But then I made my mistake.  Someone told me, hey, you're looking great, see how much you can pick it up... or words to that effect.  I took a lap thinking, no, don't do it, stick to what's left of your plan.  But then I thought, eh, what the heck.  I was solidly in the lead and still feeling good.  So I continued to pick it up.  I basically did a kickdown until about 38K.  Then my body said, hmmmm, maybe that was faster than you wanted?  The next nine K were not the prettiest ones, but still not death marching or anything.

Also in that period something went wonky with my aid.  I'm not sure if I marked it wrong on my sheet or if my aid helpers jumped a few laps, but I'm pretty sure I took a GU much closer to the previous GU than I meant to.  I usually take a GU every 8K, except I'll take one at 40 and maybe 46K (never made much sense to me to take one at 48K).  I found out that taking them closer than 8K early in the race is a bad idea.  My stomach started hurting really bad to the point I went about 5K without drinking anything.  It was a really good lesson to learn.  Oh, and the other thing that was a bit of bugger was I woke up and got my period about a week early (sorry guys).  That was a very unpleasant surprise and one I wasn't fully prepared for.

Since I was never going to race this 50K all out when I started to slow down at 38K I didn't push it.  But I did push the last 3K.  I was able to bring my last 3K splits down to 5:36, 5:43 and 5:30.  I was very happy with my final push and my ability to bring it back down.  I finished in 4:42:15.  So while I slowed down I only slowed 2 minutes, which I don't think is too bad.  And.... I won the race!  As far as we know this is the first time a woman has won an open 50K National Championship.  Obviously Quentin wasn't there (He was New Zealand's Olympian in the 20K and 50K in Rio).  Had he been there he could've crushed me doing an easy day.  But to me it's more what it represents and I'm very proud to add this to my list of accomplishments :)

Just after the first turn, the aid station just up on the right

We went up and left around the fountain

And then up and around a 180 degree turn and back

After going back around the fountain on the other side we went down an aisle and had the view of this awesome sculpture. 

After the sculpture we hit this hard right turn.

And straight on to the start/finish line!

My recovery from the race has gone simply amazing!  I couldn't be happier with how I've recovered.  Monday I did a nice workout with a few people and had no aches or pains.  Tuesday I did a 10K, Wednesday I did a faster 10K on some hills feeling strong.  So I decided to really test the waters.  Thursday I did speed work.  I did a 3K, 2K, 1K workout getting ready for the upcoming weeks when I would bump it to a 5K, 4K, 3K, 2K, 1K.  It was cold, raining and windy.  But I did everything under 5 Per K pace!  Four days after a 50K!

The Wednesday after the race I went to the South Canterbury track practice and had an awesome clinic with a group of very awesome kids!

Today I raced a 3,000.  I was hoping to break my master's age group record of 14:09.  I wasn't sure if I could do it, but thought I'd give it a go.  We decided I'd go out at :55 per 200 which would be 13:45, which would actually be a PB.  I did 5x400 on Thursday (after my 5,4,3,2,1K workout that I did faster than 20K race pace)  I put my watch on countdown reset at :55 and was bang on pace for all of them, except the last one which I opened up the last 200 and did it in about :52.

Day of the race I felt a bit flat, but did a good warmup and figured I'd give it a go.  Laura Langley was racing and we were going to work together, with her following me the first bit as she sometimes goes out too hard.  The day was a bit warm and windy, but it's a great track.

I started off bang on and went through the 1K perfect, so 4:35, the fastest I've done a full K in maybe a year and a half.  I hit the half way I think maybe a second down.  After that I honestly lost track but I ended up 13:56.72, which I'm pretty sure is my second fastest 3,000 time (my PB is 13:48).  I'm quite pleased with that less than two weeks after the 50k and after a hard week of training.  I got no cards and no paddles and was told my technique looked good.  It gives me hope that I'm getting stronger and faster!  Can't wait to keep training hard here and see what I can do next!

Since I'm so late in getting this blog out, I'll also include what I did today for my workout.  I did 6x4K/1K (so four K hard then 1K medium and do that six times with no break, 30K total).  It went great!  Each one got faster and I finished in my second fastest 30K ever!  And the course I did it on is not a fast course.  I'm tired, but feeling amazing.  Training is going so well.

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New Zealand training camp!

I'm in New Zealand!  Actually I have been for almost two weeks now, but things have been so busy and I've been so tired I haven't had the time or inclination to sit and write a post.  But tonight is a very quiet night so I thought I'd get a bit caught up!

I am feeling soooooooo much better post iron injections!  My energy is back, my pace for my workouts is getting back to what it used to be and I'm feeling really strong. All the marathons I did this summer may not have been fast, but they did apparently make me strong.

So, from the beginning... The worst thing about coming to New Zealand?  The trip here!  Holy cow!  I've been to China three times and Australia twice, but this was a long flight.  And in terms of training a lot of time to get tight and cramped and sore.  But after more than a day of travel I arrived!  At 6:00 AM, so I had allllll day to stay awake.  I managed it, even got a workout in, but it was not easy.

It took me I'd say about 4 days to get sorted.  Luckily I found an AMAZING massage therapist who has worked on race walkers and knows exactly where the sore bits are.  After that brutal session I was so much looser.  I've been tight for so long and she really got stuff worked out!  So the first weekend I was there I did a fun little local 5K RW.  It was in a really nice park, a little out and back and then three loops of about a mile.  I would've been happy if I'd been about 25:30 after all the travel, the tightness and there were some rolls on the course.  I was so pleasantly surprised when I went 24:36!  And I came back in the afternoon with a solid 10x400 session that was faster than any I've done since January!

The next day I did a 35K and I ended up doing it on the track because Tony (my friend I'm staying with) had to work on the pole vault pits.  I did 10K one direction, 20K the opposite direction, and the last 5K the first direction.  I stayed incredibly even and pushed the last 5K really strong.  It felt so good to move again and feel like my old self.  Again, it was my best distance session since at least January/February, and probably even before that.

As I've done these workouts I've been going through my training diary to see the last time I've done a session that strong.  I have to look back to the very beginning of the year, and some of it was last year.  It makes me realize how tough this year has been.  I'm so glad it's gotten resolved.  I probably could've/should've known earlier about the anemia, but the thing with letting it get so low was I finally could get the shots which have gotten me really up and above.  Otherwise I would've been constantly floating around the almost anemic level.  So even though it made part of the year pretty awful, things are really looking up!

We didn't realize it would happen, but Alana, NZ's 20K Olympian, is in Auckland so we can train together some!  We did a kickdown together near the water and it was super windy (I mean windy) and it was great to have someone to walk with.  There's no way I would've pushed as hard as I did with us working together.  It was great!  We're doing it again this week and hopefully the wind won't be as brutal!

I did the Auckland marathon for training yesterday and it went great!  I was just going to do it as a training walk, so no pushing.  Man was that hard.  I hit 30K and really wanted to pick it up, but I didn't, I stayed good.  I only pushed the last 3K, which I would normally do in a workout.  The thing that everyone here said when I told them I was doing the marathon was "Oh!  You get to go over the Harbor Bridge!!!!"  Every. Single. Person.  It was pretty cool, but also fairly steep.  That was my second slowest K (slowest being the start when you're still trying to get sorted).  Even with it being one of my slowest I still passed so many runners.  And starting at about 23K I started passing people left and right.  I seriously should've counted.  Not one person passed me after 20K I think (might've been earlier than that) so I was really happy with that.  And the second half was faster than the first.  Of course the first half had the hills, so that makes sense.  But with how many people I passed I know I still paced it well.

And the best news is I'm not one bit sore today.  It's a cross training day and it went so well.  Which is great because I have one more hard week of training before an easy week and then I race the NZ 50K championships.  I'm not going to race it all out, it's going to be a solid training walk, I'll be a good girl and not push/race it too hard.

The nice thing about being here also is getting back in the swing of full-time training.  Doing all the extra stuff that sometimes goes by the wayside when you're home and have all those home things to do.  I've been doing my yoga again and hitting the abs really hard.  It's a good reminder that will carry on when I get home for sure.

And I'm getting to do some fun stuff, I'm really excited to see some of the Lord of the Rings sets, since I am a LOTR fan.  It hasn't been super warm yet so we haven't gone to the beach, but we will.  And while I obviously miss being home and with Dave, This is probably the best I've really kept myself busy and focused and am not completely crazily home sick, so that's both good and bad.

So back to training, back to staying focused, and onward to improvements!

As always, if you'd like to help support me, please go to my online stores and buy stuff!  It's stuff you'd get anyway and I get a percentage of sales to help me with training and racing.  So please, when you're getting your holiday presents, please think about buying through my stores!

Here's the link to my flipgive store.  There's tons of different stores you can go to, so take a look!
https://athletebiz.flipgive.com/campaigns/44081-erin-taylor-talcott-us-race-walker

And if you're looking for awesome workout gear head here!

https://www.athletebiz.us/athletes/erin-taylor-talcott/store


Thanks ;)

40K Race Recap

Whew!  Done!

Well, that was fun!  The national 40K was last Sunday.  The other way to think of it in it's orientation in time and space, is two weeks after I completed the 100 mile Centurion race.  And while I'll definitely go over how my race went, I first want to go over how my athletes did, because I'm so incredibly proud of them!

So proud of Katie!

Katie's training has been a bit spotty lately because sometimes life just gets in the way.  But she has been stubborn and focused and has goals and isn't giving up!  Last year she rocked the national 30K, so this year moved up to the 40K.  At the Centurion race she did a 32K workout, her longest ever, so she was racing off not the most ideal training, but she was ready and excited for the race, and boy did she do awesome.  The race conditions were awful.  The park has deteriorated every year since I've first been racing there.  About 500 meters of the course has tree roots poking up through the pavement, in places as much as 4-5 inches.  The temperature continually dropped as the race went on, getting down to around 47 degrees with a very bitter wind that made the wind chill factor something to take notice of.  And the rain...  It rained the entire time, so by the end of the race there were about 5 places where the course was under 1-2 inches of water.  Dave considers it the second worst race conditions he's ever raced in.  I put it in my top five.  One thing that made it difficult too was since the temperature started off okay people dressed differently than if it had been that cold at the start. That made for the end of the race to get harder and harder.

Leaving a surprise on my camera

Katie's first 20K was like a machine, strong and steady!  Then the first dip in temperature hit and from looking at splits a lot of people slowed down some around that time.  Even though you could tell she was getting colder and colder she just kept pushing.  She ended up with a time of 4:44:42 (honestly I probably would've waited two seconds to cross the line, just so I could have a time of 4:44:44, but I'm totally a dork that way) and walked straight into a waiting blanket and straight to the bathrooms to change.  Her second place finish is also her highest at a national championship.  So very proud of her!

Next on to AJ.  AJ has goals and is super focused on them.  He's just started college and has such a supportive coach who is helping him succeed.  AJ has gotten in some good long walks, but we weren't exactly sure what he'd be capable of.  He started off right on pace and was doing awesome.  He also hit a spot where he slowed down a bit, right around two hours into the race (temperature dip).  But what makes me so proud was he rallied back.  In fact, with less than 10K to go he saw that second place was starting to falter and charged after him, making up 1:30 in one 2K loop!  And he did catch 2nd place!  But he rallied back and ended up getting back in front, but what an exciting race!  I know because I stopped to watch it :)   AJ's time of 3:46:24 is full of promise.  His last 5K was his fastest, so his ability to push at the end is awesome.  I'm super proud of this kid and am so honored to be coaching him.

Maryanne Daniel, race walker and official extraordinaire!  

I went into the race with one goal; to finish.  I felt like my recovery was going well, and I was taking it really easy.  I hate recovery, I tend to want to just get going again, but I think I was really smart.  I did a 5K fartlek the Thursday before the 40K and did one of my fastest times of the year and felt solid at it, so I was feeling hopeful for the race.  My thought was to go out at a decent pace and see how long it held.  I didn't want to push hard as I didn't want to have to spend a lot more time recovering.  I came through 10K in 56:40, and it felt really nice and relaxed.  But then my body started complaining.  I think a number of things came into play.  First all the tree roots normally wouldn't have been too much of an issue, but with legs still a bit heavy from the 100 miler that extra effort was apparent.  Second, I definitely felt the cold seeping into my legs and my hammies got a bit cranky at me.  Third I just wasn't all the way recovered yet!

At 26K I was just so cold.  Luckily I had a second long shirt so I stopped and changed my top.  Not being in a wet, soggy top was really nice, while it lasted.  But changing tops and my numbers over took a bit of time, and then of course I had to get going again, because stopping made me very cold.   Near the end of the race I felt fairly confident in my win, so I was just focusing on finishing.  Since the men's race was so exciting and I did the math, I knew I could wait at one point to cheer for AJ, cheer for him, and then make it to the finish line before he got there.  That took me about 3 minutes of waiting.  Dave unfortunately had to stop due to cramps so I stopped one lap to make sure he was doing okay.  And my last lap I stopped to hug the aid station lady who was out there in the rain and cold the entire time smiling and being encouraging.  So while my time of 4:16:26 doesn't look very good, I probably stopped for various reasons for 6 minutes, plus or minus.

So I'm quite happy for everyone.  Happy to get my 40K title back, happy that I survived two weeks after doing a 100 mile race, happy for my athletes.  Even though I slowed down and took it easy I'm sure this race will extend my recovery period a little, but hopefully not too much.  And I know that myself and my athletes are super tough and can compete in horrible conditions and push and stay tough.  

Recovery meal from Wegmen's.  All gluten free and all yummy!

And finally, people have been asking how they can help, which I really appreciate!  I'm not big on asking for money, but this I think is something that can help me and help others!  Especially with Christmas time coming up and people needing to do lots of shopping, sometimes online shopping really works the best.  Athletebiz, who has been amazing with helping athletes reach their goals, has helped create a flipgive campaign.  Basically when you need to shop online if you do it via my online portal I will get a percentage back on what you spend.  Some of the stores you can shop at include:  Jet.com, Walmart, Macy's, Lands End, PetCo, Brookstone, and many others.  You don't have to do anything differently than you normally would, just make sure you get to those websites through my page.  Then I get a percentage back to help with training, race fees, travel and all the other things that cost money!  Feel free to share the link with friends and family!  If they're going to be ordering online anyway, why not do it so that they can support someone at the same time :)  Here's the link:

https://athletebiz.flipgive.com/campaigns/44081-erin-taylor-talcott-us-race-walker

And if you know you just want running/training stuff you can go to Runner's Warehouse.  Thank you to those who shopped and supported me last quarter.  It was so great to get the check in the mail, and the money was put to very good use!

https://www.athletebiz.us/athletes/erin-taylor-talcott/store

Thanks!  And happy training!

US Centurion # 85 will forever and for always belong to me!!!!!

All the competitors ready for an awesome race!

I have been so negligent in writing a blog post lately, but things have been insane!  A trip to Iceland including racing a marathon and exploring the country for a week, another training marathon, a concert weekend, and all the last minute planning/organizing for the event we hosted:  Not Just a Walk in the Park - a 100 mile Centurion race.  I'll probably write a blog later on Iceland, but for right now I want to share my excitement about the race last weekend!

Starting off nice and strong with Katie doing her workout.

For those of you who don't know what a Centurion race is, let me explain.  You have 24 hours to walk 100 miles.  If you accomplish this feat you are put on the US Centurion list (assuming you do it in the US of course, otherwise there are other countries that keep lists that you can get on) and get a number.  This becomes your Centurion number forever and for always.  Before the race only 80 people had ever finished 100 miles in under 24 hours on US soil, so we were hoping to put on a top-notch event so we could grow that number.

Thank goodness for the sponge station!

We've been working with the Town of Owego and local businesses.  We've been planning, organizing and working on this event for almost two years.  Last week was full of stress, last minute things, and many trips to pick up supplies.  But finally it was race day!


Dave played full time race director so I could race.  Not only was it our 100 mile Centurion race but also the Eastern Regional and Niagara association 100K championships.  I was entered in that, so I had to race walk the first 100K as it was judged under USATF rules.  The athletes entered in only the 100 mile were only subject to the lifting rule, not the knee rule.

The weather started off perfect, in the mid 60s.  It did get a little sunny for a while, so the sponge station got used.  Everyone started off great and solid, but when you're racing for 24 hours the beginning better feel easy!  Katie Smith and her hubby had come the week before the race and Katie did her long workout with me, so I had company for the first 30K which was wonderful.  I was on a solid pace and feeling good.

Still smiling! 

I was doing well with eating and drinking (which I did not do my first 100 mile attempt) and staying hydrated.  I was hoping to make it past 100K before taking a potty break, but alas I had to stop at 81K for a tinkle.  After going for almost 10 hours, I stopped pretty sudden and almost fell over.  Lesson learned!  Decelerate before stopping!

Having to keep my legs straight for 100K was pretty hard.  The last 10K was not very fun, and boy, oh boy, once I hit 100K was I super happy to bend my knees and walk however I wanted!  My 100K time was slower than I did in the Isle of Man, but I had wanted to pace myself better, so I think I accomplished that.  Also, on the Isle of Man I didn't take the potty breaks that I did this time, so that ate up some time.  All in all I'm happy with how my 100K went.  There was one section I picked up the pace a little, about 10-15 seconds per K, probably shouldn't have done that, so that's another lesson learned for next time.

A week ago in Owego it was a high of almost 86 and humid.  We were so lucky that the weather broke, but unfortunately it got really cold at night, down to almost freezing.  I packed clothes to layer in, but not enough.  Thankfully Dave brought some extra clothes and I ended up wearing almost all of them.  I had five thick layers on my top at one point and was still shivering.  I wasn't moving fast enough to produce much body heat of my own, and if I had to stop for whatever reason I would start to shiver even more.  Then it would take me a few laps to warm up again.

Foggy morning after a cold night.

The night hours between about 2 AM and 6 AM were pretty rough.  I was so tired and just wanted a rest.  A few times I think I fell asleep a little while on my feet, but I stayed upright and didn't wander off the course, so that's pretty good.  Every so often I would match up with some competitors and walk with them for a while, so that was nice.  I told myself before the race to just keep heading towards the light.... Wait til dawn and you'll get re-energized.  It was absolutely true!  Once the sun came up I got a burst of energy and was able to wake up a bit and pick up the pace.  The other downside of the night hours was that I sort of forgot to push myself to eat.  Definitely another area I can improve for next time!

Still bundled up and trying to keep warm.

With 20K to go, and about 3 hours of walking left, I started getting some blisters on the pads of my feet, deep under the skin.  We popped one of them but not the other.  They both were a bit painful, but really nothing too bad.  But as I was trying to do math after about 19 hours of walking I all of a sudden freaked out that I wasn't going to make the time and I took off, dropping about 2 minutes per K off my pace.  I was in second place for the women.  I knew I couldn't catch Caroline, she's just too amazing, and I thought I had a pretty decent cushion in front of third, so I did some thinking about recovery, other goals I have, training, and made the decision to just make sure I got it done.  So the last 8K or so I just enjoyed the walk.  Some of my friends came and walked with me to the end (totally legal in a Centurion race).  They helped keep me entertained and my mind off my poor, sore body.

Holy cow!  I did it!  Centurion #85!

So after 23 hours 31 minutes and 05 seconds I became Centurion 85!!!!  The 11th woman to be on the US Centurion list!  I still think it hasn't entirely hit me.   Three days later the blisters have basically healed and I have just a bit of soreness left in my legs.  I haven't slept well the last few nights, so I'm still pretty tired, but for having walked 100 miles I'm really happy with how my body held up.

Of course I would be totally remiss if I didn't mention April and Vince Terbrack.  They came to help their dad, Paul, who just missed making Centurion.  They agreed to help me out too and they were absolute champs, getting me what I needed whenever I needed it.  I don't know what I would've done had they not been there to help me!!!!!  A good aid station person is so important in a race that long.

Thanks to USATF Niagara for their help and support!

I definitely have room for improvement for the next time (and yes, there will be a next time!  I want to be on the other Centurion lists!) and think it's possible for me to break 22 hours.  I didn't do a great job of eating during the dead of night, so I'm sure I lost some energy there that affected me the last hours of the race.  Also since it got so cold making sure I stay even warmer and drank some warm liquids so I don't use so much energy just staying warm.  And of course not having to purely race walk for the first 100k and take some breaks from race walking I think really would've helped.

The newly crowned US Centurions!

Yesterday I went for a nice easy stroll with Dave up the road and for kicks I thought I'd see if I could race walk.  I only went for about 30 meters, but I actually had a decent amount of pep in my step.  I'm not going to start training, of course, but I might jump on the elliptical soon.  Tomorrow I'll start stretching.

Everyone who made Centurion.

So now that I can cross that goal off my list it's time to get back to 50K business!  I'll be looking for when there's another Centurion event that fits into my training/racing schedule.  It may take a while but I'm determined to get on all the Centurion lists!

So I'm off to rest and refuel.  Happy training!

Please like my FB athlete page!
https://www.facebook.com/RacewalkerErin/

And please help support me by purchasing your online shopping through my store:

https://www.athletebiz.us/athletes/erin-taylor-talcott/store

US Centurion # 85 will forever and for always belong to me!!!!!

All the competitors ready for an awesome race!

I have been so negligent in writing a blog post lately, but things have been insane!  A trip to Iceland including racing a marathon and exploring the country for a week, another training marathon, a concert weekend, and all the last minute planning/organizing for the event we hosted:  Not Just a Walk in the Park - a 100 mile Centurion race.  I'll probably write a blog later on Iceland, but for right now I want to share my excitement about the race last weekend!

Starting off nice and strong with Katie doing her workout.

For those of you who don't know what a Centurion race is, let me explain.  You have 24 hours to walk 100 miles.  If you accomplish this feat you are put on the US Centurion list (assuming you do it in the US of course, otherwise there are other countries that keep lists that you can get on) and get a number.  This becomes your Centurion number forever and for always.  Before the race only 80 people had ever finished 100 miles in under 24 hours on US soil, so we were hoping to put on a top-notch event so we could grow that number.

Thank goodness for the sponge station!

We've been working with the Town of Owego and local businesses.  We've been planning, organizing and working on this event for almost two years.  Last week was full of stress, last minute things, and many trips to pick up supplies.  But finally it was race day!


Dave played full time race director so I could race.  Not only was it our 100 mile Centurion race but also the Eastern Regional and Niagara association 100K championships.  I was entered in that, so I had to race walk the first 100K as it was judged under USATF rules.  The athletes entered in only the 100 mile were only subject to the lifting rule, not the knee rule.

The weather started off perfect, in the mid 60s.  It did get a little sunny for a while, so the sponge station got used.  Everyone started off great and solid, but when you're racing for 24 hours the beginning better feel easy!  Katie Smith and her hubby had come the week before the race and Katie did her long workout with me, so I had company for the first 30K which was wonderful.  I was on a solid pace and feeling good.

Still smiling! 

I was doing well with eating and drinking (which I did not do my first 100 mile attempt) and staying hydrated.  I was hoping to make it past 100K before taking a potty break, but alas I had to stop at 81K for a tinkle.  After going for almost 10 hours, I stopped pretty sudden and almost fell over.  Lesson learned!  Decelerate before stopping!

Having to keep my legs straight for 100K was pretty hard.  The last 10K was not very fun, and boy, oh boy, once I hit 100K was I super happy to bend my knees and walk however I wanted!  My 100K time was slower than I did in the Isle of Man, but I had wanted to pace myself better, so I think I accomplished that.  Also, on the Isle of Man I didn't take the potty breaks that I did this time, so that ate up some time.  All in all I'm happy with how my 100K went.  There was one section I picked up the pace a little, about 10-15 seconds per K, probably shouldn't have done that, so that's another lesson learned for next time.

A week ago in Owego it was a high of almost 86 and humid.  We were so lucky that the weather broke, but unfortunately it got really cold at night, down to almost freezing.  I packed clothes to layer in, but not enough.  Thankfully Dave brought some extra clothes and I ended up wearing almost all of them.  I had five thick layers on my top at one point and was still shivering.  I wasn't moving fast enough to produce much body heat of my own, and if I had to stop for whatever reason I would start to shiver even more.  Then it would take me a few laps to warm up again.

Foggy morning after a cold night.

The night hours between about 2 AM and 6 AM were pretty rough.  I was so tired and just wanted a rest.  A few times I think I fell asleep a little while on my feet, but I stayed upright and didn't wander off the course, so that's pretty good.  Every so often I would match up with some competitors and walk with them for a while, so that was nice.  I told myself before the race to just keep heading towards the light.... Wait til dawn and you'll get re-energized.  It was absolutely true!  Once the sun came up I got a burst of energy and was able to wake up a bit and pick up the pace.  The other downside of the night hours was that I sort of forgot to push myself to eat.  Definitely another area I can improve for next time!

Still bundled up and trying to keep warm.

With 20K to go, and about 3 hours of walking left, I started getting some blisters on the pads of my feet, deep under the skin.  We popped one of them but not the other.  They both were a bit painful, but really nothing too bad.  But as I was trying to do math after about 19 hours of walking I all of a sudden freaked out that I wasn't going to make the time and I took off, dropping about 2 minutes per K off my pace.  I was in second place for the women.  I knew I couldn't catch Caroline, she's just too amazing, and I thought I had a pretty decent cushion in front of third, so I did some thinking about recovery, other goals I have, training, and made the decision to just make sure I got it done.  So the last 8K or so I just enjoyed the walk.  Some of my friends came and walked with me to the end (totally legal in a Centurion race).  They helped keep me entertained and my mind off my poor, sore body.

Holy cow!  I did it!  Centurion #85!

So after 23 hours 31 minutes and 05 seconds I became Centurion 85!!!!  The 11th woman to be on the US Centurion list!  I still think it hasn't entirely hit me.   Three days later the blisters have basically healed and I have just a bit of soreness left in my legs.  I haven't slept well the last few nights, so I'm still pretty tired, but for having walked 100 miles I'm really happy with how my body held up.

Thanks to USATF Niagara for their help and support!

I definitely have room for improvement for the next time (and yes, there will be a next time!  I want to be on the other Centurion lists!) and think it's possible for me to break 22 hours.  I didn't do a great job of eating during the dead of night, so I'm sure I lost some energy there that affected me the last hours of the race.  Also since it got so cold making sure I stay even warmer and drank some warm liquids so I don't use so much energy just staying warm.  And of course not having to purely race walk for the first 100k and take some breaks from race walking I think really would've helped.

The newly crowned US Centurions!

Yesterday I went for a nice easy stroll with Dave up the road and for kicks I thought I'd see if I could race walk.  I only went for about 30 meters, but I actually had a decent amount of pep in my step.  I'm not going to start training, of course, but I might jump on the elliptical soon.  Tomorrow I'll start stretching.

Everyone who made Centurion.

So now that I can cross that goal off my list it's time to get back to 50K business!  I'll be looking for when there's another Centurion event that fits into my training/racing schedule.  It may take a while but I'm determined to get on all the Centurion lists!

So I'm off to rest and refuel.  Happy training!