PR in the Brooklyn Half Marathon - 5/21/11

First PR of the 2011 season and my first half marathon PR in 2 years since the Long Branch Marathon in New Jersey on 5/2009.

I wasn't going into the race with the intention of PRing (merely trying to put in a strong 1:40 or 1:41 effort) since I haven't really been training, except for my usual 10 mile run each week, but it was a very nice surprise to come back with one. Even better for me, this was done without the help of a pace group, which I have come to rely on to carry me to a PR. This was done all by self pacing, which to me is just as good of an accomplishment as the PR itself. I went out a little bit faster than I wanted to and had to slow myself down alot in the beginning. But the shade and cool temps of the two Prospect Park loops allowed me to keep up a strong pace without getting too hot or fatigued. Once I left the Park, I new that the race would get easier with relatively flat roads ahead, which I used to my advantage. I realized at about mile 10 or so that I had a legitimate shot for a PR if I get up the strong pace that I had for the previous several miles. I gave a big push once the boardwalk came into site, and then gave maximum effort for the nearly 1.1 miles left on the boardwalk. I squeaked by with a PR of 13 seconds!

Mile 1 - 7:27
Mile 2 - 7:44
Mile 3 - 7:34
Mile 4 - 7:20
Mile 5 - 7:44
Mile 6 - 7:32
Mile 7 - 7:17
Mile 8 - 7:14
Mile 9 - 7:26
Mile 10 - 7:26
Mile 11 - 7:21
Mile 12 - 7:26
Last 1.1 miles - 8:28 (6:53 pace according to Garmin distance of 1.23 miles)

Overall time: 1:38:06
Overall pace: 7:29 min/mile

This half marathon, as well as my other weekly runs and races, has shown me that my pace has gotten faster since my marathons last year. I guess that is what training for a whole year and PRing can do for your body and your confidence. It has been hard to gather up the motivation since my marathon to go out and run but I have been getting out there three days a week, including one strength day in the gym. My work commute tires me out and the lack of consistent running partners makes it tougher to go outside and give a strong effort every time.

However, I see that my regular Central Park 6 mile pace has dropped so that I consistently run a sub 48 minute (7:55-8:00 min/mile) pace almost every time, and my 10 mile pace has dropped to around an 8:05-8:10 pace. And most of the time these are solitary runs without the benefit of a partner or group. I haven't done anything out of the ordinary to drive down my times. I was even afraid that by attempting to run without my orthotics would adversely affecting my running and cause me to have a lengthy transition period which hasn't happened so far. Running in my New Balance 860s without orthotics has been good. I don't feel any pain in my feet, just some strain in my hips and glutes which I have been working on more during my strength days in the gym.

So, let's see what the rest of the year brings!