Paula's Persuasion

If Paula Radcliffe says "Yes" then @TwinsRun must run the 2013 Bank of America Chicago Marathon! :-)

Should @TwinsRun 2013 Chicago Marathon?

We ran 2012 Chicago Marathon 2gether and raised $1,000 for Alex's Lemonade! We also ran our personal bests!

Faster 1/2 of @TwinsRun
@LeahCville (3:36:35* BQ)

Leah's legs in the 2012 Results Book!

Slower 1/2 of @TwinsRun

@MalindaAnnHill (4:05:58)

Malinda's bag signed by Joan Benoit Samuelson!

The best PR of all - we met Paula Radcliffe!

Chicago Marathon Registration opens February 19.

Alex's Lemonade is a Chicago Marathon Charity Partner

Should @TwinsRun the Chicago Marathon?

Did you run the 2012 Chicago Marathon?

Will you run the 2013 Chicago Marathon?

Why I Love the Philadelphia Marathon

WHY I LOVE THE PHILADELPHIA MARATHON [ENTRY #3]

ORIGNALLY pUBLISHED oN: www.philadelphiamarathon.com/blog/

The Philadelphia Marathon represents many things to many people. A common bond is a love of the Philadelphia Marathon. In their own words, race competitors explain why they love the Philadelphia Marathon and return to the race course.

Name: Malinda Ann Hill

Age: 41

Hometown: Findlay, Ohio

Current Residence: Wynnewood, Pennsylvania

Personal Best: 4:16:37 (2008) at the Philadelphia Marathon

Number of Philadelphia Marathon appearances: 2

Marathon Background: Malinda ran her first marathon (Marine Corps) in 1995. She ran San Francisco in 1998 and then her first Philadelphia Marathon in 2008 with her identical twin Leah. She also completed the Charlottesville Marathon in 2009 and the Walt Disney World Marathon in 2009 and 2010 while dressed as Minnie Mouse after running the half marathon on Saturday — otherwise known as Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge. Malinda ran her second Philadelphia Marathon in 2011. Although the weather was ideal, she did not train properly to set a PR. However, she reached her goal of finishing under 4:41 — posting a 4:40:59! Malinda loves to run in costume so you may see her dressed as the Queen of Hearts, Minnie Mouse or Belle at the Philadelphia Marathon!

Memorable Philadelphia Marathon experience: “I ran my first Philadelphia Marathon with identical twin Leah. We ran together for the majority of the race. But, at the end, Leah was in pain and she told me to keep going as fast as I could and I finished in 4:16:37. It was the first and only race that we’ve run together where I finished before her!”

Why I Love the Philadelphia Marathon: “I love running the Philadelphia Marathon because of the mostly flat, historic, scenic course and the enthusiastic crowd support. An added bonus is it’s a local race since I live in Wynnewood. Earlier this year, Leah and I deemed ourselves ‘TWINS RUN in our family.’ We blog about our opposite approaches to running and our experiences running together to support Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer at www.twinsruninourfamily.com. This year, I look forward to raising awareness for Alex’s Lemonade Stand and running my personal best at my hometown marathon!"


Donate online: Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation's Team Lemon
Follow us on Twitter: @TwinsRun
Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/twinsruninourfamily

Will 2nd 1/2 of 2012 be Faster 1/2 for Faster 1/2 of TWINS RUN?

A look back at 2012 so far ... will the 2nd Half of 2012 be the Faster Half for the Faster Half of TWINS RUN)
By Leah Connor

Wow, 2012 is more than 1/2 over, but what a year it's been! I've PR'd in 5 distances this year - the mile, 5K, 10 miles, half-marathon, and marathon. The marathon PR of 3:38:04 means the most to me because my 2nd fastest time was more than 4 years ago (March 2008 - 3:54:47).

You'd think I'd be ready for a break, but I still haven't met all my goals for 2012. I'm eager to try for a PR in the 10K (Pepsi 10K) and 4 miles (Women's Four Miler). I'd also like to improve my mile and 2-mile times, though I'm not sure I'll have the opportunity. Below is a collage of some of my favorite racing photos this year as well as best times and goals.

Don't expect to get faster every time you race, year after year...

 
Don't expect to get faster every time you race, year after year...

by Leah Connor

There are 8 races that I've run consecutively for at least 4 years. Of those, only one, Disney's Princess Half Marathon, did I improve my time each and every year.

You can't always expect to lower your finish time every chance you toe the starting line. Some days you might feel a bit off - from either overtraining or undertraining, something you ate, a recent illness, or the weather. I hit PRs back in 2008 and then struggled for 2-3 years wondering if that's the best I'd ever do. I didn't give up. I kept plugging along and finally started seeing some serious improvement in 2011 and 2012.

I've learned that it's important to enjoy the race experience and keep challenging yourself without always chasing a PR.

For instance, there are other ways to improve besides your finish time. Even if you don't run your fastest time, you can still improve your ranking. Last weekend, on an extremely hot and humid morning, I ran a 10K over 2 minutes slower than the previous year, but I still came in 1st in my age group rather than 2nd. Talk about a silver lining!

Another option - practice running a smarter race, even if it doesn't necessarily translate into a PR. Instead of going all out from the start, try running much slower than you normally would the first mile so you can run negative splits (each mile faster than the previous). Even if you don't run your fastest race, it surely will be one where you feel your best as you cross the finish line!

fastest 2nd fastest Women's Four Miler year time pace 2007 38:06 9:36 2008 29:45 7:30 2009 30:44 7:43 2010 30:10 7:35 2011 28:44 7:10 2012 goal 28:27! 7:07 Fairview 5K year time pace 2008 23:17 7:31 2009 25:23 8:12 2010 24:04 7:46 2011 23:28 7:35 2012 goal 23:15! 7:29 4th of July 5K year time pace 2007 29:21 9:28 2008 23:24 7:33 2009 24:11 7:48 2010 24:19 7:51 2011 23:03 7:26 2012 23:48 7:41 Martha Jefferson 8K year time pace 2007 42:58 8:40 2008 39:21 7:56 2009 42:15 8:32 2010 41:11 8:19 2011 36:26 7:21 2012 37:08 7:30 Princess Half Marathon year time pace 2009 1:55:40 8:52 2010 1:54:03 8:42 2011 1:43:52 7:56 2012 1:40:02 7:38 2013 goal 1:39:59 7:38 Cherry Blossom Ten Miler year time pace 2008 1:19:03 7:54 2009 1:21:07 8:06 2010 1:21:13 8:07 2011 1:16:36 7:38 2012 1:12:36 7:16 Marine Corps Historic Half year time pace 2008 1:50:02 8:23 2009 1:51:32 8:30 2010 1:46:52 8:09 2011 1:44:39 7:59 2012 1:44:31 7:58 Park to Park Half Marathon 2009 1:58:42 9:03 2010 2:04:06 9:28 2011 1:41:02 7:43 2012 1:45:19 8:02 Turkey Trot* only 3 races so far! 2009 22:47 7:21 2010 24:54 8:02 2011 26:13 8:28 2012 goal 22:46! 7:21

Nike+ Running

Now that I have an iPhone, I decided to use a running app.

On June 23 I began training for the Chicago Marathon.

As of this morning, 100 miles completed!

The best part of Nike+, I received several "Congratulations" from Paula Radcliffe,

including my personal best 10k this morning!

I love Nike+ Running! :-)

Do you use a running app?

Officially in Training for Chicago Marathon

Leah & Malinda (TWINS RUN in our family) are officially in training for Chicago Marathon since we both received our Charlottesville Track Club Marathon Training Programs from Coach Mark! Leah followed Coach Mark's training plan and reached (surpassed!) her goal to qualify for the 2013 Boston Marathon! Malinda received her training program with a postmark from Eugene, OR since Coach Mark was at the Olympic Trials. This has to be a good sign for a personal best on October 7! :-)

TWINS RUN in our family run with Team Lemon to support Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer in memory of Leah's brother-in-law, Michael Connor.

"Fighting childhood cancer, one race at a time."
http://www.alexslemonade.org/mypage/81058
Any donation is greatly appreciated!
Thank you for your support!

Do You Race Too Much?

It's been 30 days since the Charlottesville Marathon and I haven't quite taken a break from racing. In fact, I've run four 5Ks and a half marathon in the past 3 weeks. Probably not the wisest idea, but I'm a race addict! 

If I have the opportunity to earn a medal or get a bib to post on my wall, I'm there! 

Oh wait, I forgot, I also ran/walked a 4K with my daughter, Annalivia Plurabelle, in matching purple Team Sparkle skirts. 

So that's 6 races in 3 weeks. Oh my!

Why I love to race...

I know I won't and can't PR in ever race, but I'd still prefer running more races even if it means I might not always be at my best. I've learned that some events are more about the experience (Montalto) than the finish time. Sometimes I look at a race as a speed workout or a fun run. No matter what, I love the community and the competition.

I love having the opportunity to interact and connect with other runners. Working from home is a very solitude affair, which is perfect for me to be productive, but it also means most days the only adults I speak with in person are the starbucks barista and gym lifeguard.

The local not-for-profit race is a great opportunity to do good for the community as well as be an active member of it. Oh, and then there is the excitement of winning an age group award or grab bag prize! If I counted all the swag I've collected and distributed to friends and family over the past 4 years, it would be quite a haul!

A recap of my 6 races in 3 weeks...

The Fourth Annual Pi Miler was a week after the marathon, and I was definitely not recovered. I ended up walking up a huge hill, but somehow still managed to be the first female community member to cross the finish line (ok, there probably was only one other person in my category!). 

I scored a Ragged Mountain Running Shop sweatshirt and was thrilled when I went to redeem my certificate to see they now carry them in navy blue! Whoo hoo!).

The following week I ran 2 more 5Ks. The Run for Autism 5K on Saturday and Darden Cares 5K on Sunday. I came in 2nd in my age group at the VIA 5K and improved on my time from the previous year. 

Unlike Lopez Lomong who miscounted the number of laps, thinking he was finished when he actually had one lap to go, I actually thought I had to finish the race with a lap around the track, so when I saw the finish line banner appear before the track, it came as a huge surprise. So much for for hammering out a super fast 400M as I had mentally prepared myself to do! Oh well!

The next day I ran a smaller 5K on the UVA campus and I had so much fun! There was no pressure to perform well since I had just raced the day before and I didn't know anyone running so I felt anonymous. 

I enjoyed racing fast and the game of getting passed, but then passing those same people with less than .5 mile to go. It was so exciting to see 21:31 on the clock (a PR by 10 seconds), but my garmin said it wasn't quite 5K, so I'm not sure I'll count that. Actually the 21:41 was also on a questionably short course too, so maybe I'll stick with 22:06 as my 5K PR (that course was exactly 3.1 on my watch!).

Last weekend, I ran the Park to Park Half Marathon and it was a nightmare.

I woke up with an upset stomach and ran the entire race feeling both sharp stomach pains and nauseous. I just wanted it to be over! I didn't enjoy the experience at all, except for the last 200M when I decided I had to pass a couple on my left and prevent myself from getting passed on the right. I later found out that someone from my local gym was trying to catch me, but didn't. PHEW! 

My time wasn't bad (1:45:19, but it was more than 4 minutes slower than my course PR last year, 1:41:02). I think I would have preferred a slower time if I could have enjoyed the experience more. 

I know have a deeper appreciation for feeling healthy and a deeper understanding of the physical struggles my twin deals with on a daily basis. I felt sick for nearly 4 days and was a miserable mess. I don't know how Malinda does all she does with her gastroparesis. I'm in awe of her.

Yesterday I ran the Montalto Challenge - an all uphill race on the beautiful grounds of Monticello.

Once again, I didn't do as well as I did last year (over 2 minutes slower), but at least I had a great time running (and WALKING). I saw so many familiar faces and received lots of compliments on my Team Sparkle skirt. I even had a couple of people come up to congratulate me on my recent BQ. I felt like a rock star! :)

I was going to leave right after I finished because I didn't think I had won anything, but I ended up having a great conversation with another running mom. While we were talking, a volunteer came up and asked me for my age because I won an award. Whoo hoo! My twin, Malinda, is going to get a new XL navy blue Ragged Mountain Running Shop sweatshirt in the mail this week! :)

I've accomplished so much so far this year, my coach told me a couple weeks ago that I could stop right now and still have the best year of my life... not that he's suggesting that I do that, or that he believes I actually could (remember, I'm a race addict!). 

Even though I'm so grateful for all my running success, it still stings a little when I don't do as well in a race as I had hoped. Luckily, I'm getting much better at not dwelling* on any bad days, but there's still room for improvement.

*For more information, read Traits of Successful Runners by Greg McMillan.

REDEFINE POSSIBLE: 19th Annual Philadelphia Marathon

Leah Connor & Malinda Ann Hill

2008 Philadelphia Marathon Finishers

*P.S. One of the only times Malinda finished before Leah! ;-)

19th Annual Philadelphia Marathon

Whether you’re a seasoned marathoner or a first-timer, Philadelphia is the place for you. 

The course is scenic and the terrain is mostly flat.

The temperature is usually ideal and the crowds are awesome.

Join me this fall and REDEFINE POSSIBLE!

My 1st Philadelphia Marathon

November 23, 2008

4:16:37

(Age 37)

Overall Place: 4,210 / 7,344

Gender Place: 1,379 / 3,040

Division Place: 248 / 511

Age Grade: 56.4%

Pace: 9:47.4

5K: 0:30:41

10K: 1:00:16

15K: 1:30:50

25K: 2:39:04

30K: 3:09:07

35K: 3:36:38

40K: 4:04:41

My 2nd Philadelphia Marathon

November 20, 2011

4:40:59

(Age 40)

My 3rd Philadelphia Marathon
November 18, 2012

?:??:??

↑

 PR? ;-)

(Age 41)