Hello! How’s your weekend? I just ran the Shoreline Half Marathon in Ventura, CA.
I was MIA from RER yesterday because I was chillin’ with my dogs.
I spent the night at my mom’s because it’s closer to Ventura and I didn’t want to deal with paying for a hotel this time around. I’ve been eating F3 Foods delivery this week, which is high-protein & fat, but low-ish carb. And even though I picked the highest carb dinner to eat last night and had fruit throughout the day, it was definitely not enough to prep for 13 miles. (F3 Foods is not intended for distance runners and I could have supplemented my meals, but that’s not part of the plan. This was all on me.)
I had oatmeal before the race, but this is the first grain situation I ate since Wednesday. Plus, I was kinda nervous since I thought I was late so I didn’t finish it. I wasn’t worried about it since I was genuinely curious how a limited carb intake would affect me in a half marathon. It wasn’t horrible, I did okay at the race but I did feel less energy and almost felt some of the wall I feel late in a full marathon. Noted. This was a learning experience.
Okay… 5am wake-up call – which is pretty late. The Shoreline Half Marathon doesn’t start until 8am! No LA traffic meant I was there in no time. I grabbed my bib and took some pictures, trying out new RER poses and stuff.
Finally it was time to line up! The start chute is pretty narrow so I just waited to the site until the gun went off and I could squeeze in…
The course is pretty but repetitive because you do the loop twice. So, you do two pretty loops near the ocean. I dig it. There are just two big hills, but is pretty flat outside of that.
And sometimes I like out and back courses because then you can cheer and smile at the runners going the other way!
Shoreline Half Marathon 1:51:52 Last year I did this race in 1:44 – I have to say the difference in performance and feeling has to be in part to the different approaches to fueling this time. Based on the pictures it looks like it was warmer today (it looked overcast last year) too. Since this wasn’t a goal race for me, I am glad that I was able to run strong and learn something from it. Progress, not perfection.
After the race I took a quick dip in the Pacific Ocean to wash my feets. And by wash, I mean freeze 
On the way back I got an iced coffee and one mini Reese’s PB cup. I need five more to be satisfied. Preferably on fro-yo. Thanks.
And for lunch I was craving Subway. I got a salad with chicken and tuna, because that’s how I like it.
And I can’t close out this post with that picture since it looks kinda gross. So, here…
Question: What was the BEST thing you ate this week/weekend? Me: That Reese’s PB cup. I need more.
The best thing I ate this weekend was some scrambled eggs with fresh Pico after my long run on Saturday. Then watermellon and cantalope…of course.
I love the beach pics! Makes me so excited for my Half this weekend in Huntington Beach!
Best thing I ate this weekend was a “Polish Egg Roll.” It was basically sauerkraut and kielbasa wrapped up in a wonton wrapper. Sounds strange, but I swear it was delicious!
A run by the beach is always awesome!!
Congrats on your race! I ran a 5K on Saturday, feeling like a slacker…
Best thing I ate was fresh grilled Nantucket striped bass atop mixed greens with a white balsamic vinaigrette…followed by a homemade s’mores brownie topped with vanilla ice cream.
looks like a nice race — love the ocean pix. best thing i ate this wknd were fish tacos and guac with red sangria. mmmm.
Props to you for sticking with F3. I will never change anything I eat before a race. I know my body well enough to know it would not perform well. I bought a juicer this weekend and getting fancy juices on.
The new running poses are hilarious, I like the “bend over and touch your toes” one the best. Flexibility is important, right? We all TOTALLY make enough time for stretching… 😛
Best thing I ate was a perfectly ripe apricot. It doesn’t sound that exciting, but holy god this piece of fruit was so sweet and juicy and delicious. It was almost embarrassing to eat it in public: I couldn’t stop making yummy noises.
Best thing I ate this weekend was definitely Greek salad with chicken and olives on Friday night – om nom nom, Greek is my favourite 😀
Good job and that’s interesting to note about the carbs. We always tell ourselves to carb load but now you’ve had the experience both ways and can tell first hand the difference. The best thing I ate this weekend was raw lasagna, I followed the recipe from This Rawsome vegan Life and it was so tasty. i’m not even a raw vegan but wanted to try something new and a bit different
Saturday my father in law made paella. I didn’t really know what to expect but it was finger licking good!! He put a huge paella pan on the BBQ and there was enough for the entire extended family.
” goes the old joke, “And don’t tell me ‘eat right and exercise’ – I did
that for a whole day and it doesn’t work. For convenience,I jut eat the same foods everyday.
One may also beaes burning pain in legs, feet, arms and hands.
I’ve friends who go on a no-carbs diet for 3 days eg (Sun/Mon-Wed) and then carb up until the Sat (race on Sun) and says it worked very well for them, glycogen wise. Would love to hear your views on this.
No questions asked it was a full sized soft serve ice cream “helmet” bowl at the cubs game. Worth every calorie!
Awesome! I lived in Oxnard during middle school and I really want to come back down that way to do a race or two – there are so many good ones in the area, and smaller than most in San Francisco!
Great job today! I also ran the Shoreline Half, such a pretty course. The best thing I ate this weekend was my huge breakfast sandwich post-race, with eggs, avocado, tomato and herbed cream cheese.
We went crabbing and shrimping this weekend so definitely fresh crab and shrimp smothered in butter.
What a beautiful race!
The best thing I ate this weekend was the berry cobbler I made with my grandma’s recipe. Once I (finally) put my laundry away I am going to have some with ice cream. Yum!
Congrats on another solid race done! Isn’t it amazing when you pay attention to how fuel affects you? It can make a huge difference. But you still ran a great race and I am really jealous of the gorgeous scenery.
Great job! A reeses cup sounds like the perfect post-race treat!
The best thing I are this week was a dish of vanilla ice cream that followed the Shipyard Old Port Half Marathon and 5K in Portland, Maine. It was perfect!
That I ATE this week, I mean!
I would GLADLY take a reese’s peanut butter cup but the best thing I ate this weekend was watermelon! Speaking of…I need to finish off the half I cut up this afternoon… 😉
You look adorable!
My Dad has been cooking up a “Native American Meal” alllll weekend because he got a Native American Cookbook. I haven’t had it yet but I have a feeling this meal will be the best thing I ate this weekend 🙂
I ate some zucchini muffins today that were fantastic.
I also had a Peach Propel for the first time this week. It was delicious!
My run this week is called the Shoreline Run, too, but it’s a 10K.
Nice run chica! Missed you in the OC this week. Luckily my fans let me run with them :). I’m for changing the rules before a race as long as it is minimal. Would you have gone the F3 route if it was a full Mary? Have a great rest of you Sunday!