Mardi Gras 1/2 marathon- New PR-Love WORK
Hey,
I just want to say 'work WORKS'! I just returned from the Mardi Gras 1/2 marathon and set a PR by 6 minutes. Thanks RnP for a tough Out Season plan that actually works. I've never been emotional crossing a finish at any race but I was emotional this past Sunday. I was in a very serious bike accident last summer that required both knee and face surgery and the Mardi Gras 1/2 was my first race since the accident. When I started the October OS, I was basically starting from scratch, not having trained since before June. Imagine my shock to beat my pre-accident best by 6 minutes! I couldn't believe it.
As for the race itself, great weather (50ish at start), great city, and great on-course support. And not a bad way to cap off 20 weeks of OS hell. 
The only negatives were that the roads were not in the best of shape (you could feel every rut) and no pace groups. But if you have your own pacing device, no worries. I went conservative at the begining and then turned it up after mile 3. By mile 9, I was passing a lot of folks. Patience and discipline really are the key.
Comments
Nice job! Six minutes is huge!
Amy,
This is Tri Training Convention Wisdom checking in. We've seen your results and have decided they are not real. Per training article #4567 by JoeCoachofTheMonth, you clearly need to develop your Aerobic Flux Capacitor System through Spritzer Valve intervals (name the movies) before earning persmission to run faster. Despite your PR, we know that getting faster is more complicated than what you describe. Please stop talking about it so we don't have to consider the possibility that....
[Insert I'm a smartass smiley from EN 2.0 here]
Amy-
Congrats on a great day and results. Especially after injury! Gives me hope
I have had to really hold back, but over the last 2 weeks, it is the best my knee and foot have felt in a while.
Keep up the good work
P