Day 60C--Kathrine Switzer

I met Kathrine Switzer last night. :) I wrote a bit about her back in May. In person she's even more impressive. Before her presentation, she went around the room to make sure she met everyone there personally. She even stayed after a bit to take photos and talk to people. She also made me feel some sympathy for Jock Semple, the race official who tried to physically remove her from the race. He should get credit for the fact that more women are running in marathons today. Still not 50%, but getting closer. Without those iconic photos, her entry into the Boston Marathon would have been a mere footnote. His actions made it front page news and encouraged all women runners after that date.


She was in town to promote Icebreaker clothing. I couldn't afford any of the clothes, but going to the book-signing/presentation got me a free pair of socks that sell for $15 a pair. I will try them out this weekend. If they work, I think I'll make them my long run socks. At $15, they should be super amazing.

Day 35C--Inspiring Person

Katherine Switzer. My marathon pace group is named for this inspiring runner, so I thought I should look into her story. The picture at left is of a Boston Marathon race official trying to remove her from the race in 1967. She managed to get a number in the race, despite being a woman. In 1996 the B.A.A. retroactively recognized as champions the unofficial women's leaders of 1966 through 1971. In 2011, about 43 percent of the entrants were female.

Women in Boston

Source: Uploaded by user via Meredith on Pinterest

F2--Nina Kuscsik 3:20:26--Winner
F6--Kathrine Switzer 3:29:51--3rd place
F3--Elaine Pederson 3:20:35--2nd place
F5--Ginny Collins
F4--Pat Barrett Shore 3:40:29
F10--Frances Morrison
F1--Sara Mae Berman 3:48:30

The Boston Marathon is one week away and I found this amazing photo of the women who ran Boston in 1972. That was the first year women could run officially. I can't find times beyond the top 5. It's possible the other women didn't finish.

Day 1D--starting again

Six weeks on crutches and unemployment have done a number on me. I am sluggish, heavier and just plain out of shape. Now that I've ended my stint on crutches, it's time to get myself back into shape. My goal is just general better health, with a more specific goal of running the marathon next year. To achieve that specific goal, I will be targeting muscles that will help me improve my run performance. To determine which muscles to target, I will be doing research into anatomy and running injuries.




The first muscle that I know I need to work on is my quadiceps. It seems such a straight-forward muscle, but it's not focused on enough by many runners. It's the muscle that makes walking possible, but that doesn't give it enough work to fully strengthen it. To isolate the quadriceps, I will be doing wall squats. They consist of "sitting" with your back up against the wall and your feet about a 12 inches out but with no actual chair. It's amazing how quickly this will make your legs quiver in exhaustion.

Kathrine Switzer mentions this exercise in her book "Marathon Woman" and how she was insulted at the idea that she needed to strengthen her thighs, despite running 100 miles a week. Her first try she was able to hold it for 70 seconds. Later, she built up to 11 minutes. The doctor who gave her the exercise had never seen anyone exceed 4 minutes. I don't know if I will get up to 11 minutes, but need to improve on my current 25 seconds.

Race Training Errors

Earlier this week, the International Association of Women Runners (IAWR) held a free teleconference called "How to Correct 7 Common Training Errors Committed by Marathoners and Half-Marathoners" It was hosted by Bennett Cohen, the founder of the group.

I listened to the entire call and here's what I took away from it.

"Running is a chance for you to become a hero in your own life." Kathrine Switzer

He seems to indicate that shortness is somehow nonathletic. I don't know if he actually meant it that way, but that's how it sounded to me, a short woman.

Error 1: Too few rest days. Can hit a PR with 3 days running 1-2 days cross training. More than that can eliminate the repair your body needs to get stronger.

Error 2: Quantity over quality. Tempo, interval, race pace and hills should all be part of your training. Don't just keep running long runs.

Error 3: Running long every weekend. There should be a week or two of shorter runs in between the long runs.

Error 4: Failure to include goal pace runs during the long runs. Hard to hit a pace in the race that you've never reached in training.

Error 5: Lack of running specific strength training. Wall squats, bridges, planks and side leg lifts should all be part of your cross-training.

Error 6: Failure to taper properly leading into a race. It can take four weeks from your longest run to fully recover for the actual marathon.

Error 7: Lack of mental preparation. 26.2 is as hard mentally as physically. Practice visualization. Practice eliminating self-doubt and negative thoughts.

The IAWR has individual training programs that take into account age, injury issues and other items that can affect training and racing. They can review and adjust during the training program.

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All of these errors are eliminated when you follow the T2 training program. If you're thinking of running a marathon or a half marathon, you should join Team Twitter.