iRun and Athletic Brewing have teamed up to create a race team for the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Throughout their journey, we’ve taken you inside their training for the highs and lows of what it’s like to prepare for a big race goal. Now, with just eleven sleeps to go before race day, two athletes talk about how they prepare for their moment of truth. Can you relate? Let us know in the comments.
Tim Hartley, “I want to slow down getting slower.”
In my work in a Cardiac Rehabilitation program I was shocked the first time I encountered a patient the same age as me. Surely I’m too young for that?! Well, first, heart disease encompasses a huge spectrum of illnesses, some of which can present at birth, so no, one is never too young. And second, yep, I’m the same age as many of our patients in Cardiac Rehabilitation.
One of the best predictors of mortality (death) and morbidity (illness) is functional capacity—fitness, or VO2peak. A larger and larger proportion of the Canadian population is becoming less and less active, and as we age, our functional capacity tends to decline: starting from a progressively more sedentary baseline, things are looking bleak.
I completed the final version of Ironman Canada in Penticton at the end of August—next year it moves to Ottawa. In a strange turn of events, the swim ended up being cancelled, resulting in a bike-run event— 180K ride followed by a marathon. That’s a really long warm up for a really long run, and it was more of a humbling experience than a race. But I finished, and I’m proud of that. It was also great to see Athletic Brewing in the athlete village! So I got to try their Run Wild IPA. It’s light, and refreshing, and without the alcohol, there’s no fuzziness and no headache, so I’m pretty much sold. My next choices are going to be the All Out Stout or the First Ride—I like ambers and browns, so they might tickle my palate more. The Oktoberfest might also be timely and tasty, we’ll have to see. It’s certainly the season to give it a try.
I was pretty worried about falling into a post-milestone funk, so the opportunity to do the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon sounded like an excellent antidote to a post-Ironman let-down. I planned to take a few weeks off, and then get back to running. Not having to fit in biking and swimming sounded blissful, too. Unfortunately, the few weeks off were extended by a travel-induced cold, but I have managed to get back out there, and I’m still looking forward to the marathon. I’m not feeling great about the training I haven’t done, but there’s nothing I can do about missed workouts now!
Trying to re-establish a routine continues to be the biggest challenge. There are always a million excuses to do a million other things. I did get out to 14k last weekend—and it didn’t feel horrible, so that’s really encouraging. I’m scheduling run time into the calendar, too, which cuts down on the excuses. I’m looking forward to getting back into cooler weather and some good runs, and I’m looking forward to getting back to Toronto to celebrate the running community and soak up the experience.
iRun: What have you learned, and what do you need to unlearn—what can be tweaked?
Tascha: Learning is a process and I have definitely learned what works for me nutrition wise while running. I now know when to take my gel, nibbling throughout my runs, and small sips along the way! I need to unlearn the bad habit of me not picking up my feet—the result has been going flying over roots and landing on my hands and knees! Haha! Cut knees and ripped tights have been the result!
iRun: What are you most looking forward to about race day?
Tascha: I am looking most forward to running among the crowd, motivating people along the way, and breathing in the fresh air. Running creates a sense of freedom that is what my mind and body need to conquer the weeks ahead and decompress from the one prior.
iRun: Tell us about one particular run that made you feel good.
Tascha: My run that made me feel good was racing at the Golden Ultra. 60km’s of trails including gruelling climbs and rocky terrain, but the reward of being on top of the clouds at the top of Kicking Horse. It challenges me but made me realize anything is possible as this was my longest distance ever.
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