One Run At A Time

Race Report: California International Marathon 2011

2011-12-05T12:56:00.001-08:00

Well, hello bloggers! Yes, yes, haven't been here in a while, but don't worry, I still keep checking in on all of you!
I ran CIM yesterday and had huge plans, but sometimes plans don't go as you, well, planned. This is the post I put on my Daily Mile account. Since some of you aren't on there, but probably still want to know how it went, I'll put it up here, too. So proud of so many of you running and racing this weekend - cannot wait to go and read them all! Hope you're all well! Happy Running!

Wasn't sure how I wanted to write about this. As you can see, I didn't reach my goal. And I have been pretty beat up about it since yesterday. The one thing that is keeping me sane is a quote from a friend who read in Brain Training for Runners is that if you're meeting your running goals 50% of the time, then you're not making your goals hard enough. Running is not easy, and if I had gotten my sub 3 yesterday, that would have put me right at 50% - so I can rest a bit easier knowing that my goal is hard, is going to take a lot of work and is a goal worth fighting for.

So this may get long - sorry in advance!

I felt really good Saturday night, went to be early and slept great! I woke up rested, went through my usual pre-race routine and felt ok. Except for one thing, I couldn't go to the bathroom! I was a bit panicked and hoped that by the time I got to the portta potties that things would be "ready to go," so I relaxed on the drive there.

Thankfully the wind had stopped, and other than the 35 degree temp at the start, I wasn't too worried about the weather for the day. I was in shorts, a tank top and a light Lululemon shirt over that with gloves. I felt ok. But after I did a one mile warm up hoping to get things moving, as I stood in line at the potties I still couldn't go! I told the hubbs that I wasn't sure if I even wanted to start since I was afraid it would be a suffer fest of running to the bathroom multiple times for 26.2 miles. But, he reassured me and I bid him ado and went to the start line.

My legs felt good, nothing was hurting and had stayed good all week. So, other than the cold and fear of potty stops, I was excited to race. I ran into my friend Caitlin at the start line and we wished each other good luck. I couldn't get right with the 3 hour pacer, it was packed. But I wasn't worried. When the gun went off, I felt great and just started cruising.

The first mile is down hill for about .8 until you make your first turn and hit the first hill passing mile 1. It didn't faze me at all and I knew I was running a bit fast but thought I would just bank some time and capitalize on feeling good.

The first 4 miles went by easily, lots of ups and downs and my legs felt awesome! I do remember in this time thinking my ass was literally COLD - numb! But other than that everything was going to plan. I was hitting my goal MP pace of 6:45 or faster and just went with hit.

mile 1 - 6:32

mile 2 - 6:43

mile 3 - 6:29

mile 4 - 6:37

The hills weren't bothering me at all, and I was enjoying the cool morning. I saw the hubbs in here finally and just put on cruise control. Still in the back of my mind I was sure I was going to have a bathroom stop. But I was WELL ahead of the 3 hour pace group and I had banked enough time to make sure that if I stopped I would still be in a good place.

At mile 5, right before, you hit a good hill. Each hill I went up, I attempted not to get out of breath and know that there would be a good downhill to help. And this proved to be smart. I wasn't out of breath, I wasn't tired and I felt good. I also took a Gu in here, continuing each 5 miles. I also took water from the hubbs on the bike, for some reason, I was really thirsty all day.

mile 5 - 6:44 - big hill

mile 6 - 6:53 - other half of big hill

mile 7 - 6:51

Around mile 7, I could feel the rumble in my tummy and I had to go. It wasn't awful, but I knew I had to stop soon. No worries, I asked the hubbs and I was way ahead of the 3 group still so I decided to stop at the next potty. Right after mile 8, there was a potty and I stopped.

mile 8 - 6:57

When I stopped at the potty, I went in and squatted down. As SOON as I squatted down, I felt my hammy seize up!! OUCH! I screamed! I felt it run down my leg! My hubbs even heard me scream and asked if I was ok! I was panicked. I finished my business and when I got out my leg was in PAIN! I asked the hubbs if the 3 hour group passed and he said there were about 25-30 seconds ahead. Fine, I can catch them. Only, my leg was in pain. My whole left leg was cramping. I was trying to push through and find my stride as I chassed down the 3 hour guy, but my leg wanted nothing to do with that.

From there on, I knew I was in for a fight. I tried everything in my head to keep going. And it worked. I was loosing time, but the 3 hour group was just ahead of me and I still believed I could catch them. Before the stop at mile 8, I was on track for a 2:56-2:57, after that, I was just hoping to make 3!

mile 9 - 7:55

mile 10 - 6:48

mile 11 - 6:52

mile 12 - 7:06

By mile 12, I felt so mentally and physically done. I was fighting so hard but was in so much pain. I had so many thoughts running through my head, like should I just quit at the half? Am I doing permanent damage? How do I keep going with another 14 miles? I looked at the hubbs after the half and told him I was done. But he just looked at me and said, find your stride, keep pushing. You have a 1:29 half in YOU!

I will admit, when I hit the half in 1:30 I was so upset. I KNEW I didn't have that in me anymore. At mile 14 I got really low and down on myself. The hills were pretty much over but my leg was just killing me. The hubbs said my form was still good, which I guess I never broke, but my I was dragging my left leg.

mile 13 - 7:08 - half 1:30

mile 14 - 7:12 - the beginning of the end

mile 15 - 7:27

mile 16 - 7:21

With 10 miles left, I attempted to math in my head. Yeah, we all know how well that goes during a marathon. I thought if I kept 7:30's or better I would still make 3:05, so that became my goal. I did everything I could to keep it there. I still don't know how I did it. I was still Gu'ing and taking in as much fluids I could - I was soooo thirsty! But mentally I was done. I saw many friends cheering and pushing me along, but I was so out of it.

When I would think about mile 18 or mile 20 or mile 22, I couldn't do it, so I kept it small, counting down the miles. I could only think in terms of, "I have, 10 miles left, I have 9 miles left, I have 8 miles left," and so on. I couldn't think about how long 26.2 was!

mile 17 - 7:13

mile 18 - 7:25

mile 19 - 7:36

mile 20 - 7:41

At mile 20, after I saw my wonderful friends Jana, Beth and Karin cheering, I realized I had done the math wrong. I actually had needed like 7:15's to get that 3:05. I was heart broken. I didn't know how I would keep going - but I was too close to quit now. That last 10K was some of the hardest miles I have ever run. I felt a little like an out of body experience. I thought of my friends, many of YOU, my family and trying to be grateful that despite my pain right now, I was out RUNNING! A marathon! And I am lucky!

Like I said, that last 10K was a blur. I did everything I could to keep moving forward. I just wanted to be done. I tried so hard to not think of the loss of my sub 3. But that was hard when at mile 20, the 3:05 pacer group passed me. I was now just hoping to break sub 3:10.

mile 21 - 7:40

mile 22 - 7:46 - hill/bridge

mile 23 - 7:41

mile 24 - 7:49 - SHOOT ME NOW!

mile 25 - 7:46 - NO REALLY, SHOOT ME NOW!

mile 26 - 7:48 - GET THIS OVER WITH

Offical stat: 3:10:37 - 7:14/mi - this still amazes me. I lost over a mile/min that second half! I really had a lot of time banked in that first half!! Argh!

AG - (30-34) 29/393

Women overall - 121/2484

Overall - 581/5755

When I crossed the finish line and stopped, my left leg gave out and I fell over. Yes, I collapsed at the finish line - I was one of those people! The hubbs has a good video of it! I couldn't move anymore. My whole body just shut down. Thankfully, medics were right there and my GOOD friend Layla who was on medal duty caught me. I was so out of it. I hurt sooo bad. They took me over to the med tent where they tried to stretch me and get me some relief. I don't remember much, but I do remember at one point they were stripping my wet clothes off of me and I screamed, "Don’t cut them! It's Lululemon!!" LOL! I still knew what was important. :O

Apparently, I was hypothermic. My temp went down to 90.1 - even with 3 cups of hot soup in me! I was shaking uncontrollably and my legs hurt soooo bad. They wrapped me up and put me in front of a heater for an hour. The whole time my hubbs was outside so worried - they wouldn't let him in.

After an hour, and my temp climbing to 96, they finally let me go. And I felt better! I could walk; I could talk with out chattering teeth! But the reality of what happened hit me and I was a little overwhelmed.

I know I fought hard yesterday. Am I disappointed? Hell YES!! Do I know that I still ran an incredible race despite all my odds? Hell YES! I found my friends and we all rehashed the day - thankfully all of them had HUGE PR's and that took my mind off my own race.

I am a day out and still a bit sad, but I know I ran a race and a time that some only will ever dream about. I think the cold is what did me in. I know that my legs were cold and that is what made my hammy cramp. I probably should have gone with capri’s, but live and learn. AND, I have a new FIRE lit. I am MORE than determined now to do what it takes to get my sub 3. It is a goal worth fighting for. And like the Brain Quote says, it is a good goal – one that I can keep fighting for!

Thank you to all of YOU for the continued support. Like I said, I thought of many of YOU yesterday and it brought me a lot of strength.

Thanks for reading ;)

CONGRATS to so many of you that raced yesterday and kicked ass!!! <3

Race Report: Portland Marathon 2011

2011-10-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

I know, I know! I haven't been here in ages. And I am truly sorry I haven't updated here in a while. Life has been crazy, but thankfully good and I have been plugging away at work and training. I wanted, more than anything, to post my Portland Marathon race report on here to give you all a glimpse into what I have been working towards. Training has been priority #1 next to work and family and finally this past weekend I had a chance to give it my all and see if I could hit my goal.

Running had been going really well, I have been nailing all my workouts for the most part and really enjoying this training cycle - even though I was SO ready for race day to come. As you will see, the stars sometimes don't always align on race day, but these are the days and races that make us stronger and hungrier for more. This is the post I put up on my Daily Mile account so if you already got to read it there, thanks. I am more than ready to keep my head down and keep plugging away at my new, big goal of sub 3. Thank you to all of you who continue to support me through Daily Mile and twitter - I thought of all of you as I ran on Sunday and it kept the fire lit under me as I ran my heart out.

And, as usual...it's a long one ;) Grab a cup of coffee and settle in!

Where to start, where to start!?!

Sorry this is a bit late, but I was traveling home and recovering from this and I wasn't sure what I wanted to say just yet. I had a lot of obstacles to overcome this weekend and the race and I am not sure how much I want to give credit to all of it. So, I am going to just give you all of it (there is a lot, grab a drink and settle in!) & hopefully you'll see where I am coming from ;)

Friday when we arrived in Portland at our hotel, it was NOT like the hotel on Expedia that we booked. It was a dump - reeked of cigarette smoke, filthy and just plain scary. I couldn't stay there and we panicked as we attempted to find another hotel. I will admit, this sent my nerves for a tail spin, but after a couple of hours we found another, better hotel and all was well. We spent the evening with some family and trying to rest up.

We slept in on Saturday and got up and decided to drive the course. I did this in Eugene and it helped a lot. Once again, this proved smart. I had been hearing over and over again that this was a PR course and great for racing. Well, driving and running parts of it scared the crap out of me. There were a lot of hills, a lot of bridges and even though I am good at hills, the placement and degree looked challenging. I tried not to let it scare me too much and just use the info we gathered as best as I could. I made lots of notes on the maps, and that afternoon & evening went over them and the map TONS to make sure I knew what was ahead.

Fast forward to race day morning. I slept pretty well and woke up ok. We got ready and I thought I had taken care of “business” at the hotel so I wasn’t too worried. Also, it wasn’t too cold out so that made me feel better. We parked, got my stuff together and I said good bye to the hubbs who was going to see me around the ½ mile mark on his bike.

I waited in the corral area and used the bathroom a few times. But by now my nerves were a wreck. I started to feel a bit sick to my stomach and tried the bathroom again. Nothing, so I figured that once I started I would be ok. I was in the first corral and they don’t do “elite” status for this race, so I had all the fasties around me. After the national anthem, I lined up next to two ladies about my age and we exchanged goals. Both were going for sub 3 and only one had done it before. This was perfect – my rabbits! I should also note, we were just ahead of the 3 hour pacer. I was also wearing the 3 hour pace band that was specific to the course – which means it took the hills and stuff into consideration for mile splits – very helpful.

When the gun went off I felt great!! The weather was perfect, low 50’s and light rain, it wasn’t too crowded and my legs felt right on. So, I went with it even though I was a bit ahead of my 6:45/mi pace goal and the pace goals on the pace band.

Mile 1 – 6:35

Mile 2 – 6:38

Mile 3 – 7:05 (BIG HILL)

Mile 4 – 6:37

By the time I was starting mile 5, my stomach went crazy. I felt sick and nauseous right away and got all sweaty and hot. I had to use the bathroom, NOW! I wanted to cry, there was nothing I could do to push this down and I was freaking that this would be the end of my sub 3 goal. I tired to stay calm and ran to the first bathroom I could find. I was in there forever it felt like, but I also wanted to take my time so that it would be the ONLY time for the day.

When I came out I felt good again and started to find my stride. I also caught back up to the 3 hour pace group so my nerves were calmed once again.

Mile 5 – 7:48 – potty stop

Mile 6 – 6:40

Mile 7 – 6:44

Mile 8 – 6:50

Even though I was feeling good, I could NOT get down a GU or any water. My stomach still felt off and I was afraid to chance it. But I also knew I couldn’t run a marathon without any fuel. The whole time, the hubbs on the bike was trying to get me to eat a GU, and I would open it and try to get some in before it would make me gag and I would throw it away. Up until mile 8, I maybe had a little bit of GU, but not even a ¼ of a whole one.

Once again though, in mile 9 my stomach flipped and I had to go again!!! I was right with the 3 hour group and we were starting a 2 mile out and back section. I didn’t want to stop but I had to and I was once again feeling like this was the end of the race. No GU in me, 2 potty stops, what the hell! So I stopped once again and hoped for the best. I came out and felt a ton better and wanted to hit the half strong.

Mile 9 – 8:10 – potty stop

Mile 10 – 6:48

Mile 11 – 6:52

Mile 12 – 7:04 (HILL)

Mile 13 – 6:52

13.1 – 1:32:04 – 7:02/mi pace

After the half I knew we didn’t have much more time until the next big hill was coming. I still hadn’t taken but maybe a swallow of GU or water at this point and I was worried. I felt strong but my stomach was just off. I couldn’t feel myself start to fade but I knew it would only be a matter of time with no fuel in me. I also had lost the 3:00 pacer after the potty stop. I was just behind the 3:05 pacer and knew I could catch him and just ahead of them I could see the 3:00 hour guy once again. I didn’t think I had it in me to catch the 3:00 guy and this is where I had to switch gears. There was nothing I could do to get my sub 3 now, the hand I was dealt wouldn’t allow for that so I had to refocus my goals and shoot for anything close to that. I will admit, it was a HUGE blow. I was running well when I wasn’t in the bathroom, but I also had no fuel in me and a hard section of the course coming.

Just after mile 16 you begin your climb up the St. John ’s Bridge. The climb up this is something like the climb up

Lincoln Blvd.

in the SF Marathon – only this is at mile 16-17! My energy was fading here but I knew I was strong up the hills so I made it my goal to pass the 3:05 group up the hill. And yes, I passed them no problem and got across the bridge into some more flat sections. I was feeling a lot better in here and found my stride. I was just between the 3 hour and 3:05 guy and this felt doable.

Mile 14 – 6:49

Mile 15 – 7:00 (real mental breakdown – reassess goals)

Mile 16 – 6:59

Mile 17 – 7:33 (HILL)

Mile 18 – 7:09

Mile 19 – 6:56

Through this section I had zero energy. I honestly don’t know what kept me going other than I knew I had so little miles left and was so close to my goal. I was on auto pilot . The crowds were good through this neighborhood and I attempted to feed off them and kept going. But, once again, my stomach had other plans. I tried to push it down and tell myself I only had a few miles left but it wasn’t working. I felt so defeated. I had no clue what to do. Do I stop? Do I keep going? I wanted so bad to be sub 3:05 at least now and knew a potty stop would ruin that. But I had no choice and I stopped once again in mile 21. This time, I wasn’t in there but a few seconds as I just had nothing left in me. When I came back out I was RIGHT with the 3:05 pace group and jumped in and told myself to just hold on.

Mile 20 – 6:49

Mile 21 – 7:14 – potty stop, slight hill

Mile 22 – 6:49

Mile 23 – 6:56

I was moving pretty well with the group. We had some big hills to get over once again in this section. We had to go back over the river and the bridge just ate my legs up. At this point, I was so done. Physically and mentally. My legs were toast from the hills and the lack of fuel. But I had to keep going, I was so close.

Mile 24 – 7:57 – HILL!!!

When we came off the bridge back into downtown and I knew we just had over 1.5 miles to go, I felt so good mentally. I was going to at least get my sub 3:05. I knew I could out kick the pacers and I knew that I had a bit more in me. I also knew at this point I was 11^th or 12^th woman and I wanted to keep that in my sights. (A spectator told me this more than once). As we were winding through downtown towards the finish, all of a sudden the train barrier came down and we were STOPPED FOR A TRAIN!!! I screamed!!! Literally, I screamed, “NOOOOO!!!” I wanted to cry! Really, after everything I had been through? They warned us that trains were a possibility, and that most likely people later in the race would encounter them, but not us at the front. But here it was, mile 25 of my hardest marathon and I was STOPPED! They had also said a race official would be at the train crossing to take down bib#’s, but there wasn’t one, only a cop. The pacers had no idea what we should do. Everyone was pissed, screaming, swearing….at MILE 25, to be sopped was awful! Also, when I got to the gates coming down, I totally could have ran across, the train was at least 30 seconds away. But the cop stopped me and I had to wait. We were stopped an almost full 2 minutes!! By the time the gate went up, the pacers said hold on and run! I knew sub 3:05 was gone but I was now trying to beat the clock and at least PR (sub 3:08:36). When we stopped, there was probably 12-15 of us with the pacers, after the stop, only 2 of us could keep up.

We ran hard and we ran fast. I don’t know where this came from. I had DEAD legs, ZERO energy and just wanted to be done. We had to bob and weave the half marathoners who were walking but it didn’t matter, I was sticking to those pacers like white on rice!! I found my stride but my legs just felt so gone.

The finish of this race for me was the hardest ever. I had no emotion other than to just finish. As we hit mile 26 and I began to look for my family, I had this overwhelming feeling of sadness. I just ran the hardest race of my life, gave everything I had and still ended up short. We finally crossed the finish line and the announcer said my name and that I was woman #12 – not even the top 10 I wanted. The second I crossed and stopped, I burst out into tears. I held this back for so long. I was so deflated, so defeated. The finish line was just a line – I felt like I hadn’t reached my goal or accomplished anything for the day. I was sobbing, the volunteers were thinking I was injured, but all I could say was, “I WAS STOPPED BY A TRAIN!!” There were ZERO race officials around so I gathered my schwag, blanket, and water and tried to find my family. I was crying so badly. I was so sad. And I was mad I was crying. I ran a great race, still ran fast and PR’ed, but didn’t feel like it.

Mile 25 – 8:30 – TRAIN!!

Mile 26 – 6:50

Mile 0.2 – 2:46 – 6:53/mi

Official Results:

26.2 – 3:06:40 – 7:08/mi

12^th woman overall/ 4,405

144^th overall/ 8,386

3^rd AG (30-34)/ 753

Garmin Results:

26.4* – 3:06:40 – 7:04/mi

*the race website said the course measure with a Garmin at 26.37 - so I guess I naile the tangents pretty well once again.

I am a few days out from this and feel slightly better. I want you to know I thought of many of you out there today as I ran. I know I had a lot of obstacles to overcome from the upset tummy to practically taking in ZERO fuel the whole race. That, in and of itself, is huge and I can recognize this.

Also, THIS IS A HARD COURSE! It is NOT a PR course, don’t let anyone tell you that. It is deceiving. I am good at hills, I love hills, but this race is tough, and you better be mentally ready for it. It is a beautiful city and AWESOME crowd support, volunteers and organization, but don’t go there thinking you will set the world on fire. It is tough, and I feel so beat up physically from this race. I haven’t been this sore after a marathon in a LONG time. Granted, I know that I went into a huge deficit by not fueling and that will play into my recovery, but this was marathon #11 for me and I have felt better and stronger after harder races.

I am more and more determined that I will get my sub 3 SOON. I have said it before and will say it again, the stars have to align on race day for you to reach your goals. Had my stomach behaved, had there been no train, I would have maybe got my sub 3 here, but the course is hard. I probably would have come in 3-3:01. I know now though, that in December, at CIM, sub 3 is possible. I am right on track for it.

Thank you to all of you for your continued support through this training cycle and journey. Like I said, I thought of many of you out there as I ran. I promise, that sub 3 is right there and I can taste it! Also, I will probably have my time adjusted for the train, they will probably put my time around 3:04:40, which would put me as 9^th woman overall and an even bigger PR ;) I’ll let you know when it happens. Thanks again peeps!

Happy Running!

The Race that Wasn't

2011-07-13T16:30:00.000-07:00

I am sure you are all shocked to see a blog post from me show up in your reader! I know I am! Life has gotten busy, life got hard and things like blogging took a back seat. I want you to know though, that I have been keeping up on the reading for the most part. I read many of your blogs on my phone when I get a free chance, but being able to comment has been put on the back burner. I already follow so many of you on Twitter and Facebook that I haven't felt too out of the loop, and that has been my main source of communication with many of you. If you want to keep up with all things Katie, you can follow me on Twitter, SJRedGirl is my handle, come on over and find me!

Work is mainly what has been keeping me busy - it is hard to balance your own schedule when you don't punch in and out of the same job day after day. Learning to balance my time with personal things, work, training is a constant balancing act. But I think I am getting the hang of it. The good news is, I am actually making this "work from home thing" work and I couldn't be more happy being able to make my time work around my schedule. One day I am super busy going from one client to another, while the next day I am completely free to do what I please. Plus, it has allowed me to actually have time off with my hubbs since his day off always lands in the middle of the week, which before was a problem when I had a pesky day job to go to Monday through Friday. Balance - it's what I am trying to achieve ;)

But, as you can see from the title of this post, it was a hard race experience that has brought me back to my blog. My running and training has been going just awesome and I couldn't be more happy with how I am progressing with my running. I have had quite a few races since Eugene and each one I have met my goals. I actually have won, YES WON, two races since then and now have the confidence needed to push me towards my ultimate goal in Portland in October for a sub 3 marathon. Actually, my training has been going so well I was bound to hit a rough patch.

This past Sunday there was a local half practically in my back yard that I hadn't raced for a couple of years. The majority of the race was ran on a trail I run on quite frequently and knowing the trail was a big plus. So, as I find myself doing with almost any race I enter now, I stalked the past few years of winner's times. The Jungle Run has had some fast women show up the past couple of years, but each of their time's were not as fast as I have been running. Last year's winner won in 1:28:xx and the previous year before that was 1:31:xx, both of which I have been running faster. My last half, the See Jane Run in Alameda a couple of month's ago I won with a 1:25, so my confidence was through the roof that I could totally win a decent size race when I signed up.

With the massive amounts of miles I put in each week, running 13 miles doesn't sound as far anymore. I know for many runner's, this is still a hard distance. And it is, don't get me wrong. But I have progressed in my running that it isn't scary anymore - the other side of this is though, that I may not take it as seriously anymore. I don't have the same pre-race rituals I do as with a full. I don't take the day off before and rest, I don't worry about logistics as much and I don't necessarily watch my diet, but I also don't stress about it. Again, this may be a down fall.

The day before the Jungle Run, I ran an easy 9 on the hamsterwhizzle. A little bit of speed work thrown in, but if you have been following my running, 9 miles the day before was actually quite easy. My legs felt fresh and strong and I wasn't stressing about my legs showing up to get the job done. What I did stress about was getting to the start on time. The race started at 7am, which meant I needed to leave the house by 5:30 (I like to get to any race at least an hour before), which meant I needed to be up by 4:30. Yes, 4:30 is early, but I know many of us get up that early to get our runs on, especially on race day, so I wasn't too stressed about that actual time I had to get up. The night before though, I think I ate too late. The night before any race or long run, I like to eat by 6pm. Well, the day before this race I didn't get to eat before 8pm, but again, I didn't stress about it too much - I was only running a half, right?

I went to bed nice and early and fell asleep just fine. My alarm went off at 4:30 and this is where the spiral down happened. Mistake #1: I guess I slept too well and turned if off completely!! I NEVER over sleep! Even though I work from home, I am up most days around 5:30. An hour earlier shouldn't have made that big of a difference. Apparently my body & mind had other plans because I didn't wake up until 5:10!! AAAAAAAAAAAAA!! I shot out of bed and quickly turned on the coffee pot and scrambled to get ready. I had 20 minutes to get out the door and I rushed around like a crazy woman. We got in the car at 5:30, right on time and I proceeded to eat my peanut butter toast in the car - mistake #2. I know better than this, and it even crossed my mind if I should eat at all. But I was planning on racing all out and knew I needed to eat so I gobbled down my breakfast. I usually need at least 2 hours for my breakfast to digest otherwise I have a sour stomach. But I was so worried about needing good fuel that I ate anyway.

By the time we got to the race start my stomach was in knots. From pre-race jitters, to the stress of over sleeping and then shoving my breakfast down my throat so fast, my stomach was a mess. I told the hubbs quite a few times I was worried about my stomach acting up but he reassured me like a good hubbs that by the time the race started I should be fine. I had to believe him, it was all I had. But as the clock ticked closer to 7am my stomach was still a wreck and I had no idea how I was going to do. I wanted to run, my legs felt great but I was nauseous and just felt like garbage.

I lined up at the front of the race and looked around for my competition. From my view point, there didn't seem to be any "fast" chicks showing up. I have learned this year how to look for the competition. Yes, fast chicks do look different. Don't act like you don't know! They are usually in sports bras and shorts, speedy light shoes and sans iPod's. None were around me. I was the only crazy standing around in my sport's bra looking ready for a race. This gave me a bit of confidence but not much, as my stomach was still a wreck.

When the gun went off I took off with the lead pack of guys and never looked back. I knew that the men were going to be fast so I tried to stick with them for a bit. With in the first tenth of a mile you are hit with a good hill and I charged up it giving it all I had. I have been eating hills for breakfast in my preparation for San Francisco on July 31 so I actually got up the hill quite well. But at the top of the hill I felt like I was going to puke! I looked around and there were no women around me except for one, who recognized me as the winner of the See Jane Run race. She congratulated me and I thanked her and took off. I still had that pukey feeling though. I was pushing as hard as I could. I knew if I wanted a sub 1:26 I would need a 6:33/mi pace. When I looked down at my watch after the hill and recovering from it I was in the low 6's! Holy cow, slow down! So I backed off and tried to collect myself. I knew right away though, it wasn't my speed that was killing me, it was my stomach. I was burping up peanut butter and felt like I was going to spew at any second. I tried really hard to push it down and just run. It wasn't working though, and when my Garmin beeped a 6:18 I knew I was in trouble. I couldn't catch my breath, my breathing was very hard and I felt like absolute trash.

I decided to keep pushing and hope that my stomach would calm down if I backed off a bit. There were NO women around me so I knew I had some cushion if I slowed down a bit. It didn't work though and by mile 1.5 I had a volcano burp that sent so much acid into the back of my throat that it burned it! Ugh! My breathing was so hard at this point too, and I just couldn't catch my breath. In all reality, maybe my first mile was a bit fast, but nothing too crazy I couldn't handle if my stomach had been cooperating. I tried hard to talk myself down, to catch my breath, to just keep moving but it wasn't working. My throat was on fire, I felt like I was going to puke at any second and I had no idea how to keep going.

My second mile beeped in at 6:27 and I knew I didn't have much left in me. That mile felt like it took forever and I wasn't recovering. I began to realize I needed to stop, that I couldn't keep running. I couldn't catch my breath, the burning was so bad that one more step just felt too hard. I tried so hard to push those "just stop!" thoughts out of my head but it wasn't working. I was slowing down a ton and the spiral down just kept coming. I finally couldn't take it anymore and stopped at 2.5. Right away I started crying. My whole throat burned, I couldn't breathe and I was so heart broken that I had STOPPED during a race that I was an instant wreck. But...I knew I couldn't keep going, so I hit stop on my Garmin and pulled over to the side. A few runners passing me asked if I was okay but I told them to keep going - I knew my race as over, don't loose any of your race on my sorry butt on the side of the road. Tears came instantly. So many emotions came over me. A minute or so later, the hubbs found me on the bike and told me to start running. "I can't," I yelled at him! He offered me a Gu but I knew that was the last thing I could get down. I couldn't swallow without it burning! I told him my race was over and I sat down on the side of the road and cried. A few minutes later the first woman came by and tired coxing me to get up and start running but I told her to keep going, that she had this and off she went. That stung as much as my throat - I had a TON of time on the second place woman and the race was mine! But there I was, on the side of the road, throat burning and in a puddle of tears.

I don't think I have ever been so disappointed in myself until that moment. I cried as I walked the 2.5 miles back to the start. Actually...I sobbed. The hubbs tried to be supportive but I think he realized that it wasn't helping so we walked in silence - well, almost silence, I was after all, crying. One thing that I have learned from my running and racing is that was separates the rest of the running crowd from the "elites," is that the elites are able to push down pain and doubt. They can run through the hard stuff. And for the most part, I usually do. Trust me, running 110+ miles a week there is pain. Not every run is good, not every day is pain-free, but I keep pushing through, both mentally and physically. And this was the source of my disappointment. I push through so much during my runs in the week and today, when it counted - I couldn't. I knew that I had a lot stacked against me with this race. I over slept, I ate late, I ate my breakfast too late - things that are usually controllable but became uncontrollable that day. I took for granted my ability to go out and race 13 miles, I didn't take it seriously enough and as a result I ended up on the side of the road with my first official DNF.

Those 2.5 miles back to the start/finish were the longest 2.5 miles of my life. I actually took the side streets off the race course because I couldn't bear to see everyone running. Here I was with legs that wanted to run but I was sidelined due to stomach issues. It was just too painful to watch - which is the exact opposite for me. I LOVE to cheer on fellow runners, but that day I just...couldn't.

When I got back to the start I saw my two girl friend's who came out to cheer JUST FOR ME! I walked over to them and they had looks of disbelief on their faces. I just started sobbing again and they listened to me as I retold my tale of disaster. Thankfully though, these chick's rock and reassured me it was just not my day. And they were right. I say it all the time, race day can bring ANYTHING. You can do everything right and still have it fall apart. Or, you can do everything wrong and walk away with a PR. In all reality, race day is a crap shoot - and any day you get to race, and on top of that race your best, is a gift. The real journey, the real prize is the training that got you there, not your finishing time, not the medal around your neck.

I am a few days out from this and I am still saddened by what happened. I am a bit more clear headed about it, and a lot less "woe is me." I set myself up to fail in a way, and I only have myself to blame. I should have gone through the motions of preparing for a race like I used to. I should have eaten earlier the night before, I should have re-adjusted my breakfast....shoulda, woulda, coulda. What I did learn from all of this is that a) every race needs to be taken seriously, especially when you have big goals for yourself, b) that it is ok deviate from some rituals, like breakfast, c) that you will survive and see another day after your first DNF.

On the drive home my ego hurt as much as my throat. And believe you me, that is hard to type. My throat actually hurt all the way into Monday - I burned it good! But my ego took a hit too, my confidence went down the toilet. I was ready to scrap all my hard training, all my hard work and call myself a failure simply because I couldn't finish. I knew though, that we all have days or races like this and in the end it isn't what the outcome is, it's how you handle it. I will be honest, I needed that 24 hours of feeling like garbage to move past it. I needed to wallow in my own shame and pain to see that I really am better than the DNF next to my name. On Monday morning though, I got up and ran. My legs felt awesome! My spirits were on the mend and you know what? I ran that 13.1 miles! I didn't run it in a time that would have landed me on the podium, but I did run it in a time that would have gotten me a NY qualifier - which is awesome in and of itself. Just a few months ago, that was my big goal - sub 1:37. Now a days, I can run that on a training run no problem - and that is the lesson I take away from all of this. I have made HUGE leaps and bounds in my training the last 6 months, I have PR'ed like crazy, I have hit miles I never thought possible - so when it didn't happen one day I needed to be slapped back down to reality to remind me that running isn't always easy. Running is hard, running can't be perfect every day - and that yes, even on race day, there is a chance it won't be "my" day.

I am back on the horse this week and nailing my training runs already. I feel good, I feel renewed and a new fire has been lit. I am looking forward to October 9, the day I toe the line for the Portland Marathon. It is my main focus right now and I want nothing more than to get to race day ready and knowing I did everything in my power to reach my goal. In the meantime though, I have San Francisco to get through. I feel like I have been training for this race for so long that it just can't get here fast enough so I can really start focusing on Portland. But I know SF will serve it's purpose and I will get to the other side of it with a renewed energy for Portland.

I think what brought me back to my blog was the need to type out all of my thoughts. That is one thing I have missed about blogging. I don't get to "down load" all of my thoughts about my training or races. But I haven't kept up with it because really, there isn't that many exciting things going on in my life. Who wants to hear about another 20 mile double day I ran, or the speed work and times I just hit? I don't even that much! Yes, I have been racing and accomplishing things, but for me I have been really trying to live in the moment and appreciate things for what they are and then move on. But this race really struck a cord for me. I was knocked down hard but now I know that it is probably just what I needed. I needed a reality check, I needed to step back from the miles and times and PR's and see what the big picture is. Not every run or day can be fabulous, and not that I live like that, but I do live with a sense that every run is a gift and I try not to waste it. That is why I have been pushing so hard - all of this could go away in a second. I don't want to waste this moment, this run, this time. I have big goals and dreams for myself and I want to do everything in my power to reach them. Sometimes things need to be put aside to focus on them, and unfortunately, blogging has been one of them.

I promise to keep reading and checking in with all of you. I LOVE reading how all of you are doing and what you are accomplishing - it is such a source of inspiration for me, so thank you blog world, your words are very powerful.

If I don't get around to updating again before SF, good luck to all of you racing and running. I do promise to come back and update you on SF and fill you in on all of my goals and training for Portland. Your support and comments mean a ton to me, and I hope that my experience here will help some of you. Running is a gift. Every day we get to run injury free is a gift. And I intend not to waste it.
Happy Running Peeps!

Race Report: Eugene Marathon

2011-05-02T15:06:00.000-07:00

Before I dive into the awesomeness that was the Eugene marathon this past weekend, I need to say I am so sorry I have been absent from the blog world. I assure you I was reading, usually on my phone, but my ability to comment or update here has been hard. Life got busy, life got rough, life threw me some major curve balls this past month + and I just needed to focus on getting through everything. Thankfully though, life has calmed down, things are beginning to look positive again and hopefully things will continue to stay positive and back to its regularly scheduled programming. Thanks for understanding ;)

Among all the craziness that was my life, the streak...came to an end :( I was doing really awesome, too, but life had other plans for me and the weekend before Eugene I came down with the flu!! I was on day 108, I had managed to stay injury free the whole time, I was logging 110+ miles each week! But sometimes you can't control it all and the flu caught up with me. I was devastated...I even ran one of the days just one mile to try and keep it up, but I was just knocked out with the flu and was forced to take two days off. And just like that I was reminded...all good things must come to an end. I had a great streak: I ran well, I learned so much about myself, I became a better runner and person, it gave me structure and an outlet to keep me sane when life got crazy - it served it's purpose when I needed it most. You can better believe though that I started up once again and this time I'm hoping, baring any injury or major life crisis, that I will surpass 108 days! I'm thinking 365 days sounds pretty dang neat! I want to be like my friend Shelly ;)

So...on to the race report of my life!!! Sorry, it's long - you know the drill, grab a cup of your favorite beverage and sit back and enjoy!

All week I was just feeling "off." My first run back coming off the flu and the "forced" rest days I felt like garbage and I wasn't sure if I was going to even be able to run Eugen like I had been training for. I had visions of last year's Boston and Big Sur creeping up on me - I had the flu right before those last year, too! But I was bound and determined to make sure I would get there and enjoy it and run as best as I could.

The hubbs, aka "running Sherpa," and I drove up to Eugene on Friday morning. After staying up all night with my mom watching the Royal Wedding, we jumped in the car and made the 577 mile drive up to Oregon. The hubbs had never been to Oregon and we were actually excited for our "little 9 hour" road trip. We hit every type of weather you can have while driving there, from heat to wind to rain and even snow! We arrived early Friday afternoon and right away I went for a run. Yeah, that run was awful! And I was immediately worried that I was aiming just a little too high. I was forgetting though, I was living off zero sleep and just sat in the car for 9 hours. After a quick 5 mile run we enjoyed the town of Eugene. If you are not familiar with Eugene, it's the running mecca of the world. It's home to the Oregon Track Club, Hayward field, and the roads and trails were Prefontaine himself ran. It's rich in running history and the town never lets you forget you are right in Oregon Duck country ;)

Saturday the hubbs and I slept in and then went out for another quick 5 mile run. Thankfully the legs felt good this time around and I even was able to hit some MP miles while I was out there. It was just the confidence boosting run I needed. I finished up the run and spent the rest of the day driving the race course, stuffing my face full of pizza and attempting very hard to not focus on the fact I was running a marathon the next day!

All week the weather said a low of 47 - perfect for this running wimp. But Sunday morning, race day, we were greeted with 32 degrees and frost! Argh! Oh well, the lack of wind made it not so bad and we walked the mile together from our hotel to the start line. Right away I could tell this was going to be a great day - even if I didn't meet my "A" goal time. The start area was filled with electricity. Right away the hubbs and I noticed that the majority of people who were there were "runners." You know the type, hard core runners. Everyone looked and played the part well. I was excited to be surrounded by such awesome talent!

The Sherpa and me (he's going to kill me for this one! Sorry honey bunny!)

After using one of the zillion port-a-potties a few times, it was soon ready to line up in the starting corral. I said good-bye to the hubbs who was going to meet me at the top of the first hill on his bike, and stood in the front of the first corral with runners who all had the same goal as me - sub 3:10 or better. I wasn't sure if this was even possible that morning though, I had even taped on my wrist the 3:15 pace band because I was sure that would have to be my "B" goal for the day. But I still decided to line up in front of the 3:10 pacer and hope for the best.

After the cutest little 8 year old girl sang a great rendition of the National Anthem, the gun went off and I right away felt great! The pack of runners was thick, and within the first 1/2 mile you are greeted by your first "hill." It really isn't that bad, maybe a 10th of a mile up, but many people were already slowed down by it. The 3:10 pacer even caught up to me and I soon found myself behind the large back of runners who were attempting to pace off him. The 3:10 goal pace is a large BQ for many men, so it was a LARGE pack. I tried to stick with them, but just past the first mile marker I had to get out from there. So I decided to speed up and pass them. At first I was worried this could use up too much energy and I could pay for it later, but I knew I had to find my own stride and go with it. I passed the big group and I was finally out from all the crowds. There were a lot of half marathoners in here, but it wasn't crowded by any means and I decided to just go with it. My legs felt really fresh and my kick felt good, too, so I decided to see how long I could hold my pace. I was, at this point, thinking I would just try to hold this for as long into the race I could and if I bonked...well then, I bonked.
mile 1 - 7:08
mile 2 - 7:02
mile 3 - 7:09
mile 4 - 7:13

The pace I needed to get a 3:10 was 7:14's and for 3:15 was 7:26's. At this point I was banking some time and I was hoping it would pay off in the end when I would need it. Around mile 4 I started to realized I really had to pee! It was bad, we were in an out and back portion and I was trying to stay focused and I just couldn't - I had to go and there were no porta potties. I was also thinking that maybe I could just hold it and that the "urge" would eventually go away. At mile 5 I took my first Gu and instantly felt a good surge from it. But it was short lived since I had to go so.damn.bad.

I knew that between miles 7 & 8 was the big hill of the course. I was trying to stay focused and even through here since I wanted to conserve some energy for it. But damn, that urge to go was bad. When we turned a corner and saw the big hill in front of us, I knew there was no way I could make it up that hill without peeing my pants, so I found the first port-a-potty and dove in! Man, it felt like it took forever! But as soon as I was done I met back up with the 3:10 masses and passed them again before tackling the big hill. It was a good thing I stopped, I finally felt clear headed and tackled the hill good. And, what goes up MUST come down, and on the down I took full advantage of it before we were dumped back on the road passing the start and finish line once again.
mile 5 - 7:07 (gu)
mile 6 - 7:04
mile 7 - 7:06
mile 8 - 7:37 (potty break)
mile 9 - 7:10

I will be honest, that potty break made me worried. Before it I had about 200 meters on the 3:10 group and I was now trying to hold a steady pace and continue to stay in front of them. But the whole time I was feeling really good. In fact, I had to hold myself back at times. There a were quite a few times I would look down and see my Garmin showing sub 7's and I knew that would not be smart so I would rein it back and just try to focus on my stride. The crowd support was pretty good through here, too, which really helped. This was also my first full marathon where I didn't wear my iPod - and I am so glad I didn't. I could really pay attention to myself, my breathing, my form and just soak in the historic paths we were running on.

Around mile 10 you cross over the Willamette river and onto the bike trail that follows it. This is also were we split from the half marathoners. It was good to get away from them. Finally the paths would open up and it would be easier to navigate the more narrow trails. This section is just beautiful, with the river next to you and tons of beautiful trees. I tried hard to soak it all up. When I hit mile 12 I saw 1:2X:XX on my watch and knew that I was going to hit the half well ahead of the 1:35 I would need. This was just the confidence I needed, and when I crossed the half timing mat in 1:34 and change I was right on target. Again, I was feeling so fresh in here and just enjoying the whole run. I wanted to pinch myself I felt so good, because still, in the back of my mind I was convinced it would eventually come crashing down and I would feel like garbage.
mile 10 - 7:09 (gu)
mile 11 - 7:14
mile 12 - 7:13
mile 13 - 7:10

I was nothing if not consistent. I pulled back when I needed to and pushed it when I needed to. When I hit mile 14 and I realized I only had 12 miles left it felt sooooo good! I run 12 miles all the time! And by doing some math in my head I knew that even if I slowed down a ton, I would still have the 3:10 in my sights. I also was running with the same people at this point. They were all as consistent and strong as me. So it was good to have a few regulars around me. At mile 15 or so we had to cross over a large overpass. My strategy for the hills was to go up them by feel and not burn out. I knew I would make up time as I went down and got to flat ground. I couldn't believe how many people were already walking the hills, especially at this fast pace! But I held onto my pace going up and didn't feel burned out at all. And when I hit mile 16 and just 10 miles left, it started to feel soooo real! I could finally see that my goal was totally possible.
mile 14 - 7:10
mile 15 - 7:12 (big hill + gu)
mile 16 - 7:06 (gu kicked in!)
mile 17 - 6:58

After 16 I was feeling like I was on top of the world! I was so in tune, I felt so fresh and felt so good! I had to rein in my emotions because we still had some race left and as you can see, for a bit there, my emotions got away from me and I even ran a sub 7 by accident. I quickly realized this though and began to scale back. At this point though, things began to hurt. My right leg was feeling tight, my right achilles started to ache (WTF? It NEVER hurts!) and my kick started to suffer. I didn't know what was going on but this is what I had feared. I had been running so consistant, so strong and then out of no where my leg started to ache and act up. I tried hard to push it out of my head and began to tell the hubbs, who was on the bike next to me, to keep my focused. I was complaining to him...a lot. He was great though, and kept reminding me to stay focused, watch my kick, push through it.
mile 18 - 7:08
mile 19 - 7:13
mile 20 - 7:12 (gu)

Up to this point I was still very consistent. And with just a 10K left I was still feeling confident, but in pain. I was so upset, things that were hurting had never hurt before. I was becoming mentally drained. The peeps around me that had been just as consistant as me were beginning to fade too, but I tried to stay focused. The hubbs was planning on leaving me around 23.5 to get to the finish and see me and now, the thought of not having him out there to keep me focused made me worried. I was pushing through this crazy leg pain and so fearful it was going to come crashing to a halt at any second. In here we were on a bike path that had some un-easy footing. It was hard to find my footing and my kick and I just felt so off. Around here too, some women came out of no where and started passing me. I attempted to stick with them but I was afraid of kicking too soon so I let them go and stuck with my group. When my watched beeped a 7:19 mile for mile 21 I got scared! I wasn't ready to see that! So I dug deep in here to make sure I didn't see one of those again! Right before the hubbs took off I decided to take one more Gu - each time I took one I always felt good within a mile and I knew that was just what I would need to get me through the last 5K. I took a Gu at 23 and said goodbye to the hubbs in hopes I would see him before the clock said 3:10. I had been working so hard out there the whole race, I was going to be damned if I let it get away over a little bit of leg pain!
mile 21 - 7:19
mile 22 - 7:16
mile 23 - 7:24 (gu)
mile 24 - 7:17

After mile 24 I didn't feel the Gu kick in. I was getting worried, and one guy who had been even more consistant than me began to fade bad. I tried to kick away from him but I just couldn't shake him. We both were fading. People started passing me and I just felt so bad. I felt like the race was being lost with less than 3 miles left! When I got to mile 25 and my watch once again beeped 7:26 I freaked! I did not want to finish like that! So I decided to kick with everything I had. And I'll tell you, it wasn't much. I felt like I had energy but my leg was just killing me! I could push but my right leg did not want to respond. So...I zoned out. We were running through a beautiful park, along a beautiful river, the sun was shinning, crowds were cheering and I was running the race of my life. I put the pain out of my head and focused on getting to the finish line strong. I eventually dropped Mr. Consistent and just put my head down and ran. There was a chic who had passed me earlier ahead of me now I set my sights on her. I eventually caught up to her and passed her - she kicked too soon. When I got to the mile 26 marker my Garmin beeped 7:09!! and I switched my watch over to over all time. I saw 3:07:xx!! It was JUST what I needed! I rounded the corner and saw the finishing shoot and took off! My leg pain would NOT hold me back! In the final tenth mile I could hear the crowds, see the entrance onto Hayward field and saw the hubbs cheering me in! I kicked with all I had and finally crossed the finish line in 3:08:36 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
mile 25 - 7:26
mile 26 - 7:09
last .2 - 1:11 - 6:12/mi pace

Official Stats:
26.2 miles - 3:08:36 - 7:12/mi pace
Garmin:
26.2 miles - 3:08:38 - 7:12/mi pace (ran the tangents perfect!)

I screamed in excitement once again when I finished! And of course...started crying right away! I felt amazing! I was in so much shock, I ran the race of my life and everything went according to plan. There are no words to describe that feeling when I finished. All of my crazy screaming and excitement once again got every volunteer out there wanting to put my medal around my neck ;) I grabbed my medal and a bottle of water and started looking for the hubbs. I did stop though and look around - I had just finished the marathon of my dreams on HAYWARD field! Home of many Olympic Track Trials and the famous Organ Track! It was not lost on me.

I felt great afterwards. My right leg did not hurt - grrr! I wasn't sore, I wasn't gimping around like the rest of my fellow runners - I just felt...amazing ;) I quickly found the hubbs, put on my jacket and just relived the greatest last 3 hours, 8 minutes and 36 seconds of my life.

I am still on cloud 9 today - that is the only way to describe it. I did everything right out there. I stuck to my plan, I stayed focused with my eye on the prize and didn't let myself waver too much even when my leg was killing me. Funny thing, it doesn't hurt at all today. It didn't even hurt yesterday as I took the one mile walk back to our hotel. I even sat in the car for over 9 hours on the way home yesterday and it's just fine. Who knows what aggravated it - maybe it was the uneven pavement, maybe it was one wrong step - who knows - but I am thankful it doesn't hurt anymore. And that just goes to show you, anything can happen during 26.2 miles - what it also shows me, its not how the pain affects you, it how you LET the pain affect you. I pushed the pain down and showed myself I am stronger than it.

When I started the race I only wanted to run a smart race - and the goal of hitting sub 3:10 even in the starting corral just felt like a pipe dream. Today, I know that faster is possible. With some tweaks to my training, I am now believing that even a sub 3 is possible...soon. All of my crazy miles, all of my crazy double days paid off. My legs never got tired out there, I never felt out of energy and I do know that it was all due to my crazy miles and doubles - they were used to hurting! LOL!

I would recommend this race to anyone who wants to run in the footsteps of the greats. It was so well organized, the volunteers were amazing, the scenery was out of this world and the course is PR worthy. Put Eugene Marathon on your list of "must-do" races, it is worth the travel to the crazy little town of Eugene, OR.

I am not sure what is next for me. Of course I have an urge to find another one right away to start ticking away at that time. I know faster is possible and I am hungry for more. Right now only SF Marathon in July is on my books, but I will find another between now and then. I hope next year, when I go back to Eugene to run, I will be seated in with the elites - you need a sub 3 to line up with them. Before yesterday it seemed like a pipe dream, today it's not a matter of "if" it's now a matter of "when."

Thank you to all of you for your encouragement and support - I thought of many of you yesterday as I ran. I talk to so many of you on Daily Mile and Twitter that you all know who you are - so thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I'm off to catch up with all of you - many of you, like Marlene, Denise, Aron, Page, Tara, Kristen and Alyssa had great races this weekend! Congrats ladies!! Oh, and send LOTS of healing vibes to our buddy Tonia - she had a bit of an accident yesterday :(

Happy Running Peeps!
P.S. Here is the video the Sherpa took of me right before the finish - I have watched it a zillion times and tear up each time! I still have to pinch myself that yesterday actually happened!

Race Report: Sactown 10 Miler

2011-04-04T11:16:00.000-07:00

I'm sure none of you are surprised that I am writing yet another race report ;) I had originally been signed up to pace a friend in his first 12K on Sunday, but he ended up canceling last minute due to injury. Whoo hoo! A free Sunday to race! The Sactown 10 Miler was a run I had been eyeing, and since I hadn't raced one since the fall last year, I was excited to see what my new found legs would be able to do!

I was able to easily recruit my buddy Punky to join me in Sacramento. Being just one week out from his first 50 MILE race, it was a good race for him to get some fun taper miles in.

All week I had some goals in mind, but wasn't really sure what I would have in me. My high mileage weeks are still in full force, and as you all know, race day can hold anything. It also didn't help that Punky was feeding me motivation by telling me I had a good chance at hitting up the podium since it was the inaugural race - read, none of the "fasties" are coming so you're a shoe in ;) I liked his thinking though and began stalking the past 10 mile race results from Sacramento and the Bay Area. The top women were coming in around 1 hour, and then the peeps following around 1:06-1:10. I love running 10 miles, and recently, on a training run/speed workouts, I had been nailing 1:06-1:07 quite easily. If none of the fast peeps showed up, Punky might actually be right!

Punky & Me at the start in front of the State Capital ;)

Sunday had some of the best racing weather in store for us - minus the wind :( It was was chilly out, but the wind was a bit gusty. The race was very well organized, too. Easy packet pick-up & easy parking. With about 10 minutes to the start they called everyone to the starting corral. Punky pushed me to the front. We started eyeing the competition - and he was right, it didn't look like too many fast women had showed up. We did notice one woman who looked like would be the one I could latch onto and run with. We started calling her "booty-shorts chic." She had some skin-tight underarmor booty-shorts on and a sports bra. She didn't necessarily look like a fastie, but she moved to the front confidently when the race director called all people wanting a shot at winning to move to the front.

With about 5 minutes to go, I stripped my throw away shirt to the side and stood in the cold. With nothing more than shorts, my sports bra and arm warmers, I was cold! Then, all of a sudden, the race director came back on and said they had to delay the start due to the train. UGH! I quickly went and grabbed my throw away shirt again and found Punky a few feet back. We chatted up race strategy as we waited in the cold. And waited. And waited. Soon the 10 minute delay had past and they were saying another 10 minutes! WTH? Finally, it looked like the race was going to start, I once again stripped my shirt and lined up next to booty-shorts chic. It still seemed like we had a few minutes before the start so I started messing with my headphones and things. Then, all of a sudden the horn went off with no warning! I crossed the mat and hit start and was off running!

Right away I noticed that booty-shorts chic was FAST! But I was banking that she would eventually find a slower pace and I would hold on. I was running at a pretty good clip when I looked up and two OLDER women came out of no where and took off! I latched onto them good, bobbing and weaving the first half mile. It felt fast, but again, I was banking that they were just trying to get ahead of the crowd and would soon find a good clip I could tail off. Soon though, it became apparent, they were NOT going to slow down to the 6:30's I was hoping for. I had to back off, and around 3/4 of the first mile, I backed off and let them take off, booty-shorts chic included.

When I hit my first mile, it beeped 6:12 - way too fast! I was glad I decided to scale it back, I knew I would find my stride quickly and settle in. I wasn't thinking anymore about winning, I only wanted to see what I had in me. But I would be lying if I didn't say I was hoping they would eventually bonk and I would catch up to them once my legs warmed up. The first 3 miles went by quick and I set a PR in the 5K during the race - 19:44! I tried to keep a level head though, I didn't want to burn out too quickly.

By the end of mile 3, and numerous turns through downtown, I was starting to feel a bit off. My stomach was not happy, my legs were NOT warming up and I felt like I was just holding on for dear life. It was also in here we began to hit some rollers. I had passed a few more women that went out way too fast and was holding onto some faster men around me. I was just feeling a bit off the whole time through here. At the mile 5 turn around I decided to GU and hope for the best. I also got to see the front runners on their turn around. I counted them - I was in 6th. And the two older women were WAY ahead! I put it out of my head though and just tried to run. I also got to see Punky at this point. I just looked at him with a "I don't know what is going on?" look, and he told me I was about 35 seconds behind 5th. I didn't know if I could catch her, but I was going to try.

Around mile 7 I started feeling a ton better. My legs were warmed up, and the GU had taken affect. Also at this point, I had come up on a dude. We were kind-of alone out there, aside from the "out" peeps still passing us on the other side. When I came up to pass him, he started trying to respond. He did NOT like a girl passing him. So he grunted LOUD and tried to match my stride. This bothered me though, he was slowing and it was causing me to slow. We had this whole wide road and he was right on me! Every time I would kick and try to drop him, he would get mad and try to respond - and again, it would slow me down! Finally, I dug deep and took off, at the same time yelling at him to stay off of me! He got the message and backed off. He had some poor race etiquette - we had the whole road around us, no one around, he could have tried to pace with me instead of being right on me.

After I dropped him and I realized that I had less than 3 miles to go I started to kick. I found another pack of runners right away and passed them. Soon though, we were back in down town and it was WINDY! We were winding through the city and the headwind was bad! I HATE THE WIND! Every time we would turn a corner I would hope we would get a respite from the wind but NO! It was still coming at us sideways. It was hard to stay focused. Around the middle of 8 I came along a lone man running pretty well. I decided to pace behind him. We began leap frogging the mile. He liked a chic pushing him and I liked him pushing me. I was running pretty well in here despite the wind and was glad I had someone to push with.

After mile 9 I switched my watch over from "current lap" to overall time. I had a goal the whole time of coming in sub 66. The race directors had a fun way of rewarding you for your speedy race. They were going to put your time on your shirt at the finish if you finished in sub 60, sub 65, sub 70 or sub 80. At the start of the race, I was happy with sub 66, but as I was running I began to really want and see if I could get sub 65. When I switched my watch over to current time though, I knew that sub 65 was probably not an option, so I kept my eye on the prize and my original goal of sub 66 in the front of my mind.

The final mile was straight into the wind and I just wanted to be done. At the final turn the guy I had been running with kicked well and took off. I tried to respond and match him - we raced side by side crossing the finish line together in 1:05:37! I was sooo glad I had made my goal! I felt awesome when I finished. I felt like I could have kept going!

I thanked the guy I had ran the last 1.5 miles with, and we both agreed we pushed each other well. Let that be a lesson to others and that dude from back around mile 7. If you can tell people don't want you tailing them, back off or move! But, if you find they are up for the push, work it! You're only out there competing with yourself, don't ruin other people's race because your ego can't take being "chicked!"

When I received my sub 70 card in the finisher's shoot, I will admit I was a bit bummed. I was just 38 seconds from the coveted sub 65. I'm not sure where I would have made up those 38 seconds - maybe in those middle miles where I wasn't feeling so great, or...maybe not. I am finding that with all these miles, my legs do so much better once they are warmed up - usually around mile 5. I ran as well as I could on the day that was given to me - and I made my goal ;)

I finished the 6th woman overall! And 2nd in my AG! Turns out, I was competing against some of the fastest women in NorCal - so my original feelings of being bummed about 6th have been squashed, I ran well! The top two women were in their 40's and ran 59 and 1:02 respectively! And the three in front of me where only a minute or two off of me or just a few seconds - I'll take it! I learned a lot about race strategy out there so that made the race more valuable than my finishing time. I was smart in the early miles to back off and not try to stay with the rabbits. I took the race as my own when it became apparent I was running with the big dogs. I also rallied through some hard miles out there and was still able to meet my goal - all great mental prep for Eugene.
Official Stats:
10 miles
1:05:37 - 6:34/mi pace
6th woman overall
22/562
2nd in my AG (30-34)
Garmin Stats:
10 miles - the course was measured well!
1:05:38 - 6:34/mi pace

I found once again, that racing 10 miles is just has awful as racing a 10K. You are pushing for what seems like forever! I want to thank my buddy Punky for coming out with me and continuing to believe in me. He pushes me when I think I don't have it and that is invaluable to me. It is so easy to doubt your training, your ability, your whole training sometimes, but it is nice to have someone remind you that you are better than you think - thanks Punky ;)

I finished off another week at 122 miles - and 87 days straight of running. My legs are still thriving off the high mileage. I actually really love the double days and am finding that the second run of the day is usually my best day - they do so much better when they are all warmed up. I am less than a month out from Eugene and couldn't be more pleased with how my training is going. I am already worried how I am going to taper! I love the high mileage and double days - I have a feeling taper is going to be awful!

Congrats to all those who raced this weekend - you guys were amazing! Especially my buddy Marlene who surprised us all when she "ran" a marathon this weekend as a training run and ended up with a 12 minute PR! You are amazing girlie - you are going to rock your goal race!
I'm off to catch up with all of you!
Happy Monday and Happy Running peeps!

Race Report: Brazen Mt. Diablo Trail Half

2011-03-21T21:03:00.000-07:00

No, you're eyes are not mistaken, this is a race report from a half marathon. After last week's Shamrockin' Half PR, I was advised my many people that if my sights are truly set on running a great race in Eugene, it was probably wise for me NOT to do the 50K. Sure, I've been training like crazy to cross the finish line of my first ultra, but I have my sights on running a huge PR in just six weeks, and doing what I don't normally do, I listened to those around me who know best and decided to sit it out. It was a hard decision to make, but as soon as I made it, I knew that I had made the right choice. A huge weight was lifted off of me - I made a decision that I was actually o.k. with.

Thankfully, my heart was even more settled with my decision when the weather report for race day had 100% chance of rain. The thought of running 31+ miles in the mud and rain did not appeal to me, and now hindsight is glorious, because as you will see, the mountain was not good to us that day my friends.

I had the pleasure of joining my buddy Punky for the Mt. Diablo challenge. Just a week out from his first 50K, Punky was also signed up for the half. As we drove to the start together, it was pouring rain. Both of us second guessed our sanity as we arrived at the starting area to a giant, muddy mess. Thankfully though, Brazen always puts on a good show and we knew that no matter what the day held, we were in for a real treat.

I'm of the thinking that ignorance is bliss. This may or may not have come back to bite me in the butt on more than one occasion, and Saturday was one of those days. I had studied the elevation and maps in detail for the 50K, but as soon as I downgraded to the half, I thought anything else would be a piece of cake! Yeah, mistake #1 of the day - I should have looked. I had no idea what was in store for me - actually, if I had, I probably wouldn't have even started!

As we stood at the start line, Punky urged me (once again) to go to the front and attempt for a podium spot. I wasn't eyeing the competition too much, but I was ready to run. In all reality though, I just wanted to finish in one piece - I didn't want to trash my legs too much since I still had a long run to do for the weekend. But, like true "Katie" fashion, when the gun went off I didn't think twice and began running with the front running men.

Right away the trail was a muddy mess, but I soon learned that if I followed where the men in front of me ran, I would at least know where the sure footing was. We were slip-sliding right away and a muddy mess within a half mile. And as luck would have it, it began to pour even harder as we ran.

I don't remember too much from the race itself - I was in full on survival mode. Every step I took felt like I was going to slip and fall on my face. And so the race went on, I followed the three men in front of me and we soon became a band of brothers as we attempted to survive one of the most difficult trail courses I have ever ran. The mud was relentless, it stuck like clay to the bottom of your shoes, making it feel like your feet were an extra 5 pounds heavy! I often found running on the side of the trail in the grass was the best place for footing, but I soon found out around mile 6 as we were on the back of the mountain that it was not necessarily the best place to be. A giant gust came up at one point and slammed me into the side of the mountain! I couldn't believe I was running in such conditions! Who does this? FOR FUN? I had many low moments out there, times I just wanted to sit down and cry, but I kept pushing forward. Of the three guys I was running with,Tim, knew the course like the back of his hand. He kept us up to date on what to expect next. These guys were like mountain goats going up the hills, I did all I could to stay with them.

At around mile 8 and the final aid station, the guys all stopped for some liquids but I decided to keep going. Not to beat them necessarily, but because I was afraid if I stopped, I wouldn't start again. Mistake #2 of the day - I should have stayed with them. As I ran by myself, it was hailing - sideways. At one turn in the course I saw a guy up ahead climbing up yet another mountain, so I followed him. Mistake #3 of the day - not every runner goes the right way. Turns out I had missed a turn, but thankfully Tim saw me in the distance and stopped to yell at me! I ran a 1/2 mile out of my way! My only saving grace was that it meant I got to start the decent and FINALLY start going downhill.

The final 3 miles were all downhill and I wanted nothing more than to be done. I knew I was doing pretty good on time as I caught up with the guys again and even passed one - my final three miles were all sub 7! I flew down the hills, ran straight through all the rivers and finally crossed the finish line in 2:12:46 - FIRST PLACE FEMALE! I couldn't believe it! The entire time I was running, I had no thought of coming in first or even placing. I was so focused on just surviving I hadn't even stopped to notice that there were no other chic's around me. Crossing the finish line first, made it that much more sweeter to be done!
Garmin stats: 13.70 miles (1/2 mile out of my way + long course)
2:12:47 - 9:41/mi pace
Official stats: 13.1 miles
2:12:46 - 10:08/mi pace
1st Female overall, 1st AG
5th overall/94

When I crossed the finish line just a few seconds behind the guys, Tim gave me a big hug! I was so grateful to him! I owed him big and the rest of the guys. We tackled that mountain together and without them I don't think I would have done as well. It was a hard, challenging day, filled with some low points and some highs.

I also got to hang out with my buddy Ann who had ran the 10K. She did awesome too, and together we waited for Punky to cross the finish line (mistake #3 1/2 for the day - always take the keys if you plan on finishing first - just sayin')

Finally crossing the finish line!

My buddy Ann & me - thanks for waiting Ann!

Thanking Tim for saving me!!

My running buddies and me for the day ;)

I'm so glad I ran this - I learned a lot from the day. I was more than physically challenged, I was mentally challenged. There were a few points during the race where I just wanted to sit down and cry in the fetal position. But again, I ran an awesome course, with some awesome people and got to hang out with some pretty badass trail runners. Thanks Sam and Brazen for putting on a great day in not so great conditions.

After I got home for the day I decided my legs needed some easy miles, so I jumped on the hamsterwheel and made it an even 22 for the day. My legs really liked the easy pace and soft surface and I got off feeling a ton better. Ann warned me though, that my legs might not feel so great the next day - and boy was she right. I had 20 scheduled for the day on Sunday and with the weather crappy again, I hit the treadmill. I lasted 14 miserable miles before I called it a session. I was disappointed that I was feeling like garbage, but decided to leave the run behind me and went and hung with my family for a few hours. When I got home later that afternoon the treadmill was calling my name again, and I jumped back on. Thankfully, my legs once again felt good. I ran another six and called it day. That was a run I really needed - both for my legs and head.

The streak, as you can see, is still going strong. I finished off the week with 117 miles, my 4th week in a row of 100+ miles. My legs are really thriving on the high mileage, and I actually can't see an end in sight any time soon. I'm still doing double days, an easy run in the morning, followed by an evening run with some speed work. Today was day 74, I ran 20 miles, my 3rd day in a row of 20+ miles and my legs felt awesome. I split the runs up, 10 each, and felt like I finally had my legs and spirit back.

I have my sights set high for Eugene in May. I am working towards a really big PR, but more than anything, I want to hit the start line fresh and as prepared as I can be. Thank you to all of you for all the kind words from last weekend's half - it was a surprise but I can finally say all these crazy miles and training are finally amounting to something.

Congrats to all of you who raced this weekend, especially my running twin Denise who had a huge PR at her marathon, and to all my buddies who survived the LA Marathon this weekend - that was a wet & crazy race! And thank you to all of my new followers! Leave me a comment so I know who you are and can thank you! It is all of you that keep me coming back ;)

I'm off to catch up with all of you!
Happy Monday (evening) & Happy Running!

What...A Weekend! Race Report(s): Shamrockin' Half Marathon & Spectator Report - Way Too Cool 50K

2011-03-14T18:37:00.000-07:00

Where to start, where to START?!? This past weekend was filled with racing...once again. I know that I had informed all of you that I had planned on running my first 50K this weekend at the Way Too Cool 50K, as my friend Stacey had offered to let me use her bib. I had emailed the race director a few weeks ago and she informed that bib swapping was not ok, and if either of us tried anything funny, we would BOTH be BANNED from any future races. Well, with that piece of information, we both thought it wise to ditch that idea and for me to find a new 50K of my own. Being banned from the #1 50K in the country was NOT something either of us wanted, and really, in the end, I wanted my name to be on the official finisher's list, not my friend's. Luckily, next weekend is the Brazen Mt. Diablo 50K challenge so I have signed up for this and am sooo excited to be apart of that race, as Brazen Racing holds a special place in my heart.

So, without further adu, my spectator's report from WTC on Saturday & my own race report from Sunday's Shamrockin' Half Marathon. Grab yourself a drink, this might be long - sorry!!!

Even though I wasn't racing the 50K, I decided to still go and cheer on my buddy Punky for his first ever ultra trail run. I was honored to be apart of his first 50K and be the support crew that is so essential to runners when they take on the awesome challenge of an ultra run. Friday I headed up to Sacramento to stay with my family so that it would be an easier drive to the early start on Saturday morning. I got to hang out with my favorite 8 year old nephew, get a run in, stuff my face with quesadilla's and make some tasty banana muffins for Saturday - a perfect way to start out a fun weekend.

I got to bed a little late on Friday night, and soon my alarm was going off at 4:30. Punky and I made plans to have me drive him to the race, as it was easily predicted that he probably wouldn't be in any shape to drive home after the ultra. So right on time, at 5:15 a.m. Punky was at my door step and we headed off into the dark morning to beautiful Cool, CA. Yes, you read that right - the town was called Cool. Just off highway 49 in gold country, it was the most perfect and beautiful setting for a fun, challenging race. Punky seemed calm and collected, but he later informed me he was more like a duck sitting on top of the water, all calm, but below the surface his little feet and heart were going a mile a minute. I am sure this is what everyone feels when they are on the brink of tackling 31 challenging miles.

We arrived with plenty of time to check in and begin the process of gearing up for a 31 mile run. The race officials did an awesome job in organizing everything. The whole race area was decked out in fun frog theme decorations, including a giant 10 foot blown up frog that greeted you as you entered the parking area. One thing I did notice: ultra runners are their own breed. They just "look" & "act" different than your average road runner. Their clothes are little more flashy, they are calm and collected looking forward to the day's challenge, and they consume lots of food and water while waiting for the race to start. I also noticed, most every car had a sticker of some sort of past race on their bumpers or window, showing the world that they are inducted into the world of ultras. Also, there were lots & lots & lots & lots of Subaru's - take from that what you like ;)

What...have I gotten myself into?!?

Pretty soon it was time to send Punky off to the starting line. If you don't know Punky, he's kind-of a "celebrity" in the running world. I have yet to attend a race with him where no less than 5 people come up and say "hey", either personally knowing him or having known him from his blog. I guess I was in the presence of someone great, or at least someone who is good at personal P.R. ;) The whole vibe at the start line of the beginning of the race was of excitement - but a different kind-of excitement than at the start of a road race. Everyone had confidence, everyone had a smile on their face, and most everyone was ready with a kind word for their fellow ultra runner - not the typical game face that you can encounter in the start corrals of competitive road running. I actually liked it a lot and made me excited for my very own experience into the ultra running world next week. I snapped a few pics of Punky with his friend Rachel who was also tackling her first 50K and soon the gun went off and I said good bye to Punky. I was a little sad for a second that I was on the spectator's side and not joining him, but soon enough I was filled with excitement for him - he was finally taking the challenge of becoming an ultra runner ;)

Waiting for the start - his friend Rachel is in the blue ;)

And...their off!!

My plan for the day was to hang out with the other spectator's, get a run in, and then when it got close to his predicted finish time, I would run out to the end of the race and try to meet him around mile 27 or 28 and pace him back to the finish. I soon found out though, that I would have the opportunity to see him on a loop back at mile 8, so I gathered around the aid station and waited and cheered as fellow runners came in. I think the first runner came in right around 50 mins - smokin' time! And pretty soon I got to see Punky, looking strong! I was so excited to see him, check in with him and send him on to the next 23 miles. The good news was, he had a giant smile on his face and looked like he was enjoying the whole thing and soaking it all up.

Punky looking strong coming in at mile 8

After I saw Punky and sent him on his way, I headed back to my car to get my own run on. Cool, CA is not very big, and it has the major highway 49 running right through it. There isn't much to it, and if you blinked you would probably miss it as you drove by. But none the less, I laced up and headed out to the road. Within a half mile of running on a two-lane road though, it became clear to me (thanks to the many angry looks of driver's passing me) that running there was not an option, so I turned back a bit deflated. How was I going to RUN? A bit of panic set in as I walked back to my car. I had 7 hours to kill and couldn't run? What would I do? But then, God sent me a sign, I looked into the "shopping" center right next to the race area that held the local liquor store, pizza parlor...AND there was a GYM! WHOO HOO! I was saved! I ran right over to the gym and asked them if I could buy a day's membership and they more than happily said yes! So, for $8 (the BEST $8 I have ever spent) they let me run on one of the TWO treadmills they had. It was a cute little gym, nice and clean and even had a TV. So for an hour I ran on the hamsterwheel, knocking out another 9 miles and looking out the window at the beautiful Golden hills of California and wishing Punky all the best for the day.

The "gym" that saved the day!

I didn't want to run too much though, as I knew I would still be pacing Punky later and...I had a little race of my own the next day. So after 9 miles + that mile from earlier, I called it a day and went back to my car, ate some lunch and got ready to hit up the finish line and cheer Punky and some friends in. Sam, the race director from Brazen was also out there running today and he was hoping for a sub 5. With just over 4:45 into the race, and the winner's already crowned (the first male came in at 3:20!!) I began cheering for all the racers. Cheering is so much fun, and not something I get to do very often since I'm usually the one racing. It is such an honor to see someone cross the finish line of their first or 100th ultra. My voice was almost horse from screaming and clapping my heart out - such an awesome and humbling experience. Soon Sam came in looking strong and I got to pick his brain about what I should do with pacing Punky. He told me the course was muddy and a bit difficult, but I should head out soon and begin looking for him. I got my trail shoes on and began heading up the course backwards. I stopped often because the course was single track and I didn't want to get in the way of the runners. I also loved stopping to cheer, as they were all so grateful to finally see a smiling face after running 6+ hours. It took me just under an hour to go 3 miles, and pretty soon I found Punky. He was looking tired, but I do believe that is to be expected with you have been running that long. He was just as happy to see me, too. I won't share his story here, you'll have to cruise on over to his blog to share that experience with him, but let's just say it was good I came when I did. It was fun to walk and run with him, keep him motivated and cheer him on to the finish of his first ultra - a true honor. It took us about an hour to get back and when he got to the finish line it was so awesome to finally be able to call him an ultra runner ;)

Getting Punky to the finish!!

The race organizers did a fantastic job with everything at the finish line. Everyone was helpful, encouraging and they even handed out little cupcakes with frogs made out of icing. You can bet Punky ate a few of those! After chatting with a few fellow runners and congratulating some peeps, we made our way home. Punky did fantastic!! He ran strong and smart and I am so lucky he did this BEFORE me, now I can pick his brain for my own this Saturday ;) Congrats Punky for an awesome day on Saturday - you did amazing! I'm so lucky (and honored) I got to share the experience with you and can't wait to see what's next!

We got home around 4:30 and I was lucky enough to stay with my sister once again. She had a big dinner of spaghetti and salad waiting for me to carb load for my own race the next day. My good friend Layla also came to stay with me and my sister as she was running the race the next day, too. We got to chat and fill our bellies with pasta and soon enough it was time to hit the sack and prep for our own race. Thanks (or no thanks) to day-light savings time, we were loosing an hour of sleep that night, and once again the alarm went off at 4:30 (I felt like I was in that movie Groundhog day!).

When I got up that morning, I.was.exhausted. I felt like garbage, and I questioned my sanity as I got ready. I had no idea what the day would hold, I was really just hoping to get the monkey off my back that was qualifying for New York - sub 1:37. When I thought about that time and the mile average I would need (7:23), I was a bit overwhelmed. I had 89 miles on my legs for the week on race day, I had slept a mere 8 hours in the past two nights - total - and I was just mentally drained. As Layla and I drove to the start, in the dark, I was really doubting what I could do. We arrived with plenty of time to get Layla's bib and rest a bit in the car. It was a bit chilly out so we stayed in the car as long as possible. I may or may not have told Layla more than once, "I don't want to race today!" "I think I'll just stay in the car and take a nap while you run, come and get me when you're done." All week Punky and the hubbs kept telling me that I had the NY qualifier in the bag and that really I had sub 1:30 in me if I played my cards right. I really attempted to not let either of them sway me emotionally, I just wanted to race well, get my sub 1:37 and ENJOY the day - anything else would be icing on the cake ;)

Layla & me before the start ;)

Finally we made our way over to the starting line and I stripped myself of my throw away clothes and stood in the cold in nothing more than a sports bra, shorts and some arm warmers. It was chilly, but I could tell right away this was a smart move. I had decided to also use a pacer for the race since they had a 1:30 on hand. He was almost at the front, so I positioned myself between the front line of runners and the pacer. I was feeling like maybe the 1:30 guy might be a bit fast but I would at least try a shot at staying with them in hopes of banking some time. All of a sudden it was go time and the gun went off!

I began sprinting with the lead pack. My legs felt awesome. I started chasing a chic who was also in a sports bra and I had over heard her say in the starting corral she was shooting for a 1:25. She became my target as we bobbed and weaved through the little bit of crowd that was ahead of us. She was moving well, and when I looked down at my watch we were already running sub 7's. This made me a bit nervous. I have never strung together more than 7 or 8 sub 7's before, but in that instant I felt like going with it. The 1:30 pacer was right behind me at this point too, so I just went with it. At mile 1 my Garmin beeped a 6:41 mile and I panicked for a second. Whoa! TOO FAST! Or at least that is what I was fearing. I decided to try and scale it back and actually stick with the pacer from then on - I was really afraid of bonking too soon. Mile 2 I tried to run with the pacer but my legs did not like holding back and when my Garmin beeped at mile 2 a 6:51 mile I knew I had more in me and I began to let go and let my legs take over. Thankfully the girl in the sports bra was not too far ahead at this point and I began to chase her down once again.

By mile three I could tell my legs were feeling strong and I just went with it hoping for the best. I finally caught and passed sports bra girl and never looked back. I kept checking in with myself as I ran, hoping that I would know the signs to look for in case I started to bonk and would need to scale it back again. But it never happened. My breathing was in control, my kick felt great and my legs felt like they were on FIRE! And so the miles kept going by and each one was faster or as fast as the last. At mile 5, a spectator yelled at me that I was the 3rd female! WOWZA! How did that happen? I didn't know I was running that well but it really lit a fire for me. When I reached mile six in 40:15 I knew something awesome was happening and I just let it take me away.

Along this point also, a shorter chic came up and started drafting off of me. I could hear the clap of her foot steps behind me, matching my every stride each time I pushed a little more. It was so annoying. I even turned my music up but I could still "feel" her on me. Any time we had a hill, she would over take me, but I would recover quicker and take her over again. It continued on like this for the whole race and there were quite a few hills and bridges we would cross. She was playing the game well. I attempted really hard to zone her out, but she just kept on me. I also gu'ed around mile 6 or 7 - without water, but I never wanted to stop long enough to grab a cup and attempt to get it down. I was running well and I finally felt the gu kick in and just kept at it.

I couldn't believe how well I was running, and for the first time, in such a large race, I had spectator's cheering for me and reminding me how close I was to the front. Around mile 10 one woman spectator told me the second female was only a few seconds ahead of me and to go get her! Again, it was just the fire I needed and my tenth mile was 6:33! Every time though, that I would push and kick that short chic would match me. It became apparent she was waiting to take me over - she knew my kick and could respond. She knew what my weakness was now and it was now just a matter of time before she would attempt to capitalize on it. I had to stay strong though, because I was feeling emotions I have never felt before. I was in the lead pack at a pretty major race. I wanted to cry, I wanted to run faster, I wanted to shout to the world how awesome I was feeling. But I had to keep my emotions in check as the race was still unfolding.

Finally, with about 1.5 miles left, we hit the final bridge - and it was a rather large one. This time the chic over took me quick and found her own kick and took off. I tried to recover quickly but she just took off. She found my weakness, let me do all the work for the race and finally made her move. I tried to respond but I couldn't. My legs were moving as fast as they could and I didn't want to get out of breath in case she herself bonked and I had a chance to take 3rd back. But...she didn't. She ran strong. She was so close I felt I could reach out and touch her. And each time I responded she found another gear and pulled away. The final 3/4 mile was around the baseball stadium we started at. As we rounded around I heard them say the first female had just crossed the finish line and I do believe that lit a fire for all of us. I attempted to run faster but the parking lot and area they had us running on was all torn up concrete. It was hard to find my footing. At this point I was just holding on for dear life. The finish of the race is right inside the baseball stadium and as I entered chasing that chic I saw woman #2 cross. I put my head down and ran, seeing the clock read 1:27:xx. I finally crossed the finish line in 1:27:54!!! I couldn't believe it! I put my hands in the air and screamed loud! I was soooo excited! I couldn't believe I had just raced as well as I had.

After I grabbed my medal, the chic who had drafted over me came over and congratulated me. She ran a great race too, finishing just 13 seconds ahead of me. I had tears rolling down my face - if I had only know it was 13 seconds, what would I have done differently? It didn't matter in that moment though, my reaction made the whole crowd go nuts for me! They all were excited for me! I had every volunteer handing out medals trying to put a medal around my neck :) I found my sister in the crowd and the tears just kept coming - I couldn't believe what I had just done, I couldn't believe how good I felt - it was so surreal.

As I climbed up the top stairs I had many of the runners in front of me congratulate me. I do believe that many of them are used to running this fast and are a bit jaded, they were happy for me and my happiness, it felt really good. The second place woman also came over and gave me a hug - she finished a mere 40 seconds ahead of me.

I quickly found my sister and cried in her arms. I don't think I have been that overwhelmed from a race before. Sure I really felt awesome after CIM, but this was new. It was so unexpected, and I felt so fantastic afterwards that I was so overcome with joy. I had ran well, I had ran smart and felt oh, so good!

We waited for Layla to cross the finish line, who by the way, had a PR day herself! Go and check out her story, I won't ruin it here for her, but she should be proud! She ran a great race also - just three months out from injury! I also found out my official stats as we waited for Layla - turns out I came in second in my age group!! I couldn't believe that either! I had some more bling to gather! The only kicker to that was though, the woman who came in first - was the chic who drafted off me, the one who beat me by 13 seconds - damn!
Official stats:
13.1 miles 1:27:54 - 6:41/mi pace
2nd in AG (30-34)
4th woman over all
41/4654

My favorite and best cheerleader Buggy & me ;)

I am still on cloud 9 today. I am beyond thrilled with how my race turned out. But I will be honest, I'm left with a lot of "what-if's?" What if I hadn't ran 16 miles the day before? What if I hadn't had 89 miles on my legs for the week prior? What if I had a decent night's sleep? What if I had kicked sooner and not let that chic draft off of me for so long? What if I had been able to kick at that last bridge and not let her get away? What if... I almost can't let myself go into too many of those, I know I ran well. I know I ran as well as I could with what I had given myself. It was my first major race to run in where I actually raced it like I could really win it. Dealing with all the emotions while out on the course was a new experience to me, and I think learning to respond when someone is right on your heals is also something that will get easier and strategy will present itself as I get more races under my belt that are of that caliber. Right now, I am just enjoying the fact that I can finally say that all my crazy mileage and training is actually paying off. I am proving that what I am posting and running is for real and that when it comes down to, I can deliver when I want to - the possibilities make me excited, makes me excited to now ask..."what's next?"

To say I'm not nervous about this weekend would be a lie. I'm a bit overwhelmed, especially after seeing what happens at a 50K - but I would also be lying if I said I wasn't excited! I can't wait to see what it feels like to cross the finish line of my very first ultra, I'm sure it will be nothing short of amazing.

I need to say a big shout out of thanks to my sister Suzie - she made this weekend possible for me. She fed me well, she took good care of me and she was the best cheerleader I could ask for. Thanks Suz, you mean the world to me! And thank you to all of you for your encouraging support. I thought about many of you as I ran yesterday ;) Yesterday was day 66, I ran 19 miles yesterday (came home and ran another 6) and I ran 108 miles last week. My legs are feeling great, fresh and ready to tackle the week and my first ultra. If I don't check in here again this week, I will next Sunday, hopefully with a race report. Good luck to all of you racing this weekend - run strong, run fast, ENJOY & believe in yourself! You've got it in you! I'm off to catch up with all of you!

Have a great week!
Happy running peeps!

108

2011-02-27T19:42:00.000-08:00

When this "little" streak started, I really had no idea where it would lead me. Sure, I knew that what I was attempting was something new by trying to run everyday for 60 days, 100 days, what have you, but I had no idea where my miles and paces would go. I really had thought that my legs would eventually begin to revolt and that there would be more bad or hard days than good. Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

Last week I had dreams of maybe, just maybe hitting 100 miles, and although I kind-of had my goals and heart set on meeting that, I wasn't sold on the idea that it was even possible. Each day I'm able to run, and continue the streak, is a gift, and no set number of miles was going to make or break it. This week though, when I started the week, I had a little bit of excitement as I thought what I could really attempt this week. During this whole streak, aside for a few days, my legs have felt strong and fresh. And when Monday came, after back to back races and double days, they felt great and I set out for my first run of the day with my friend Jana. Together we tackled 10 miles, negative splitting, leaving us both feeling awesome and fresh. When I got home, my legs were not tired, so I jumped on the old hamsterwhizzle and pounded out another 6. Whoo hoo, 16 miles for Monday! 100 might just be possible!

And so the week went on, I continued to split up my runs and get into the double digits each day, running easy for one, and a bit faster harder on the other. I have found that double days really agree with my legs, they enjoy the break up of the speed and I feel like they are really thriving on it. By Friday though, after a long week of double digit days and my day job, my head had a hard time wrapping around the idea of even running one mile. For the first time during the streak...I didn't want to run! I know, GASP! By the time I got home from work, it was almost six, and I was looking at the mileage I would need for the next three days to hit 100 and I was instantly overwhelmed. 13.37 miles each day minimum was needed, and staring down that barrel made me sick to my stomach. But I changed my clothes, laced up my shoes, turned the TV on and just started running on the treadmill. The first 3 miles were horrible, and I did everything I could to keep running. Finally by mile 5, my legs and head warmed up, and the running high kicked in. It was short lived though, and by mile 7 I just wanted to be done! I lasted just two more miles and called it a day a 9. I haven't had a hard run mentally like that in a long time. I keep telling myself through this running streak, and all of my running, that the second this isn't fun anymore, it's time to quit for a while. I went to bed that night thinking the streak might just be over and there was no way I was going to hit 100.

Saturday I had a running date with my buddy Punky. Nothing like a running date to get you out of bed at 5:30 on a Saturday morning to run in 30 degree weather. I loathed the idea of running as I got ready and shoved peanut butter toast and coffee down my throat. As I drove I thought of a million of excuses to call him and tell him I was bailing, but soon enough I arrived at the trail and we were off in some of the coldest weather I have ever ran in. Yes, I know, I'm a California wimp - cut me some slack though, it hardly ever gets that cold here! Soon enough the miles were passing and we were turning around at 6. I felt so much better on the way back. My legs woke up, the fog of my running blues lifted and I enjoyed the run again. When we finished, I felt great! I felt renewed. I instantly started doing the math in my head of what I needed to hit 100 for the weekend - 22. 22 miles stood between me and 100 miles for the week - it sounded very doable.

When I got home that morning, I changed into some dry clothes and headed out for a few more. I had no idea what my legs or head were capable of, but soon enough I was hitting mile 10 and feeling fantastic. I knew I had to stop though, 22 miles in one day is enough for one person, especially when those last 10 were ran at an 7:21/mi pace! Oh, and I had my little sister's b-day cake to bake ;) My legs and mojo were back after 22 miles - and now all that stood between me and 100 was 10 little miles ;)

I slept like garbage Saturday night - just like after I run a marathon. Again, I made a running date with Punky to ensure I would get up and get the miles done. Both Punky and I are training for the 50K, so back to back long runs is not a bad thing. Punky though, has a 50 miler in just a few weeks after the 50K, so persuading him to run was not hard at all ;) When I woke up this morning, I was met again with dread and not wanting to run. I was exhausted, and even one mile sounded like one mile too long. Oh, and it was even colder this morning, 29!! Sheesh! I'm ready for spring! Thankfully, misery loves company, and Punky was just as sluggish as me. We took it easy, did some great hill work and soon enough we were back after 10 miles and I hit my 100!!! Nothing like a little run to make you snap out of it and realize just how wonderful your life is. I just hit 100 miles and I was beyond stoked! Thanks again Punky for meeting the milestone with me, I couldn't have done it without you ;)

When I got home from running, I was exhausted! I told my hubbs I was just going to lay down for a second, and well, that turned into a 45 minute nap! Guess I was tired! By the time I woke up, I felt great again. I ate some lunch, hung out with the fam and that old familiar itch to run crept back in. Yes, I know, I hit my goal of 100 miles for the week. But my legs and head still had the urge to run! A stark contrast to the 2 days prior. So I jumped at the opportunity to run again. I laced up and set out into a cool, brisk winter afternoon with no goals other than to enjoy the miles ;)

Right away, my legs wanted to move. I couldn't hold back, and soon enough I was checking off miles that I had no idea were capable after 100+ miles for the week. I was back in love with running and just enjoying the whole run. As you can see from my splits - my legs and heart enjoyed the run! 7:49, 7:38, 7:21, 7:08, 7:12, 6:59, 6:46 and my 108th mile for the week was my fastest at 6:24!! Where that came from, I have no clue, but that whole run I was on cloud 9! I didn't feel like I was pushing too hard, just enjoying a little speed and the beautiful afternoon.

When this week started, I had a goal in mind, but I had no idea how I would hit it. I had no idea if it was even possible, but I put my head down and just ran. I ran though some great feelings, with some great people, and through some hard mental struggles. I had highs and lows - which I now know, comes with the territory when you hit triple digits with miles in one week. I had no idea that this kind-of mileage or speed was even possible with a running streak, but I'm here to tell you, anything is possible when you're a stubborn red head ;)

Today was day 52, I ran 18 miles, and 108 for the week. I'm truly amazed at all of that. I will admit though, I'm a bit scared. What's next? What to do for an encore? At 100 days will I be satisfied? If I hit 115 miles in a week, will I be satisfied? I almost can't think about any of those possibilities at the moment, I can only do what I can with the day I have in front of me. One more day of running in the streak is a gift, no matter how many miles I hit. Each week I run with out injury is a gift. Each day I can get up and put one foot in front of the other is a gift, I don't intend to waste any of it. For now, I'm going to keep plugging away. I'm going to keep with that mantra, "one run at a time," because truly, that is all that we can control. I will be more than excited if I'm able to hit 100 again this week or the next, or the week after that. But I will also be excited for each day that I'm able to run.

Thanks again for all the encouragement this week! You guys are truly motivation for me! Reading and seeing what all of you are accomplishing is very inspiring, and I often think of all of you each time I lace up. Thanks again to Punky for keeping me sane this weekend and believing that I had it in me even when I didn't - that meant more to me than you'll ever know ;)

I'm off to catch up with all of you! Trust me I'm reading, but my comments may be sparse as I have a few miles to run and I'm in the thick of tax season! Cograts to Tonia for an awesome half marathon PR this weekend! You rock chica!
Happy Running peeps!

I Never Claimed to be Sane

2011-02-21T19:52:00.000-08:00

Oh man, I won't bore you all with one long blog post right now. I'll just give you all some highlights in bullet form - sometimes I even bore myself ;)

The week before, I had my highest mileage ever, 76, during the worst week ever for me. When this last week started, I wanted to see what I could do when I felt good and had less stress - it's official, I broke 90 miles this week! 91 to be exact, but who's counting ;) My legs felt awesome all week, and let's just say, this week, I don't expect that number to go down at all!
Today is day 46 - I ran 16 miles - again, I never said I was sane ;)
I ran two races this weekend - one Saturday in the worst conditions ever. Punky and Tara came out to run, too! Two of my fav running peeps! A half marathon in rain, wind, cold and gravel. But...I came out on top. Despite having 53 miles on my legs before the race, I ran a PR of 1:34!! Yes, I know, I'm in shock, too! That was a 7:11/mi pace for the race - and my last 3 miles were 7:09, 7:04 & 6:49! I'm beyond excited about this - and more excited to see what I can do with rested legs, a better course and conditions. Unfortunately though, it wasn't a certified race, so darn the luck, I have to go and get my NY qualifier somewhere else!
After the race, I came home and pulled a crazy again - and ran another 6 miles on the hamsterwheel to loosen up my legs & get my long run done. I'm really enjoying breaking up my long run. If I run slow in the morning, I'll do some speed in the afternoon. If I run fast in the morning, I'll do an easier pace in the afternoon - it seems to be working out well.
Sunday was a trail 20K with my buddy Punky again. It was cold, and I think I told him more than once that I was just going to stay in the warm car and sit this one out.

Freezing my butt off before (hey, it was 36 out, that's cold for this California girl!)

Since we had been pelted by rain here in the Bay for 5 days straight, it was a muddy scene out there. But Punky and I took our time and enjoyed the beautiful scenery running around Lake Chabot. We warmed up quickly, especially when we picked up the pace as we ran by a shooting range! We were NOT expecting to hear gun shots on our beautiful early morning trail run. I took it easy, probably slowing down Punky in the process, but ran the uphills and walked the downhills as to not tear my quads up or fall on my butt in the mud. We finished with 10.75 miles and jumped right into the car to get warm! We also may or may not have been beaten by a blind man ;)

One muddy hill!

After getting home and getting warmed up, you guessed it, I jumped on the TM to finish off the day. But...let me defend myself! I was at 84 miles and I wanted to see if I could hit 90! As soon as I started running I felt awesome. My legs welcomed a little even pace on the hamsterwheel and I finished the day with 18 miles and 91 for the week! Whoo hoo! That really made me smile ;)

As you can see, I had one hell of a crazy week! I think I'm going to be more than prepared for my 50K in March, but more than anything, I am excited to see where my paces are going to be when May comes around. I'm going to continue to ride the running streak for as long as possible. My legs are feeling fresh and awesome, and I couldn't be more pleased.

I'm off to catch up with all of you! Congrats to everyone who raced this weekend, especially my buddy LB who had a huge 5K PR and to Denise who also had a huge 5 miler PR! You guys rock!

Happy Running Peeps!

A Horrible, Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Week

2011-02-13T18:39:00.000-08:00

As you can tell by the title of this post, my week was less than stellar. Although, I have to say that I thank God that everything has worked out for the best. Things could have been worse, and for that I'm grateful.

The week started out great. The job has been going really well, and so far this is the easiest tax season I have ever had. Now, mind you, it's only the second week of February, and I'm sure I have just jinxed myself by saying that. But usually by this time of the year, I am beginning to loose my hair AND my mind. So far, things are going smoothly, a lot less stressful than ever before and for that, in this moment, I'm grateful.

My horrible, terrible, no good, very bad week though, came on with a vengeance Wednesday morning. I have an hour commute to work. I travel down a main highway that has bumper to bumper traffic all morning. It has a reputation for being a dangerous freeway, mainly because people just drive way too fast and have little to no patience for their fellow mankind. I always take my time though, going to work. I leave early enough that if I were to hit a major traffic hiccup, I'm still on time. And if I'm not on time, it's never the end of the world. Wednesday I was just driving along, had my hands at 10 & 2, paying attention to traffic, when OUT OF NO WHERE a woman in a giant Toyota Sequoia SUV decided to get in front of me and hit her breaks. I was doing about 30 miles an hour, had a car length between me and the person in front of me, and she just squeezed in for no reason. I couldn't stop in time though, and I rear ended her. It was awful. My car was totaled right away. I drive (drove) a Mercedes CLK 350 convertible, a smaller two -door sports car, and her bumper just ate me up. Thankfully though, my car saved my life. It did everything it was supposed to do, everything it was designed to do. It helped me break faster, it crumpled in all the right spots, it rolled down the windows, it turned on the hazards, shut the power off the car and even dialed the police for me as I sat in a haze with my airbag deployed and trying to figure out what had just happened. When I looked up a split second later, the freeway, that is usually jammed packed, was empty. Even the SUV that hit me was gone. About 2 minutes later, I see the SUV driving backwards for over a mile on the right hand shoulder. She had driven off, probably didn't even know I hit her GIANT car and saw finally in her rear view mirror my crumpled, smoking car. I was lucky. My face never touched the air bag, the seat belt pulled me into my seat, I even heard it lock me down in the collision. After I realized more exactly what happened, the tears just came. My arms were burned from the air bag. They were bruised, and so was my collar bone and neck from the seat belt - but I was alive! I had survived a major crash, and my car did everything for me that I wasn't able to do.

It seemed to take forever for the ambulance, fire truck and police to show up. I'm sure it was only a matter of minutes, though. I was so grateful that my car had the S.O.S. system in it, like OnStar, only for Mercedes, because I was so shaken and hurt I could barely call my husband five minutes later and tell him what had happened. Apparently I only said I was in an accident on the freeway and I was hurt. He jumped in the car right away to meet me, but it took him a long time to get there because of all the traffic back up I had caused. Shock set in and I started feeling pretty good. But the fire chief on the scene told me he really wanted me to get on the back board and take me to the hospital. Within minutes, I was laying on the side of the freeway, looking up at the blue sky, being braced down to a back board and loaded into an ambulance. It all felt so surreal. One second I was being a cautious driver, the next I had a totaled car and was in an ambulance. Just as they were pulling away with me in the ambulance, my husband showed up and took care of everything I couldn't. Thankfully, THANKFULLY I had the best group of emergency people show up and help me. The fire chief even went though my purse and car and got all my id's and cards out for me, all while cracking jokes and attempting to make me smile. I think at one point he told me my car was fine, that it would just need a little touch up paint! LOL! By the time I arrived at the hospital, I was in some pain, but I was alive and had nothing broken.

The ER doctor said I really dodged a bullet and that it was thanks to my car and my safe driving that I walked away ok. I had a few x-ray's done, but thankfully nothing had broken - only my confidence. This all happened at 7:20 a.m. and by 9:30 I was home licking my wounds and asking, "what the hell just happened?" I did nothing wrong on Wednesday. I was driving safe. No cell phone, no radio on, I hadn't even eaten my breakfast or drank my coffee yet - I was just driving. She just pulled in front of me and slammed on her breaks for no reason - the only damage done to her car was a bent tow hitch. My poor, pretty, SAFE car is gone, and I know it's only a car, IT SAVED MY LIFE, but I'm sad about it. Now I have the wonderful task of having to buy another one - something I'm not looking forward to. In an instant everything changed, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Later that afternoon, after I napped, iced and took some Advil, I went for a run. YES, I know, probably not something anyone would recommend. But it was the most glorious run ever. I was alive, I was un-hurt for the most part, minus a few bruises and burns. My legs worked still, the streak continued and I got to just let my mind rest while I ran. Those are the types of runs I live for, the therapeutic ones where you think about nothing but one foot in front of the other. I was angry, I was sad and I was so thankful that I had walked away alive. I'm still dealing with some nerves while driving. I'm a good driver, a confident, safe driver, but right now I'm more than nervous while I'm on the road, especially on the freeway. I know that it will get better, that time will heal this, but in the mean time I'm more than cautious.

Thursday and Friday I worked half days, sitting at the computer more than 4 or 5 hours really hurt my neck. So I took full advantage of the beautiful weather and the extra time to just run. Funny enough, my neck and collar bone did not hurt while I ran. Maybe it was just all the endorphins and happy thoughts that I was still able to run that masked anything, but today I feel great. No pain, just my arms are still a bit sensitive to the touch where the burns and bruises are, and my collar bone a little sensitive to the touch, too. My streak continues. You know what one of the first thoughts that crossed my mind immediately after the accident was? You guessed it, MY STREAK! I would be damned if this careless, wreck-less driver was going to ruin it for me. In those early moments though, when everything was hazy and I had no idea what was in store for me, a lot of the tears were for my fear that the streak was lost. I know, it sounds crazy, but I could only think that my running would help me heal through it all...and it did.

I don't know still what is going on with the insurance, thankfully the hubbs is taking care of it. I never saw my car after the accident. But it didn't look good from the view I had. I don't think I could see my pretty, now wrecked car, and not cry. I still tear up and want to sob when I think of everything that happened and could have happened. Lots of tears have been shed since Wednesday when I think about it all. I know it was by no means a life or death thing, but it did reaffirm for me that life is pretty damn short and that we only get one shot at it.

I finished off the week today with a great 20 miler. I got up early and met my buddy Punky for a run. It was cold when we started, but we finished 8 strong miles together, averaging 9:07. I came home, ate, stretched and went out to finish my day with another strong 12. If you've been following me on daily mile, you would know my left quad has been less than happy with me. It gets knotted really easy after my runs, and stretching, ice and my new BFF Tiger Balm are working wonders. Thankfully today it cooperated, and I finished the week with 76 miles - my biggest running week ever! And to think, I crashed and totaled my car on Wednesday. Guess my running really helped me get over it all. Next week will be a cut back week for me, I'm really looking forward to it. The streak continues at 38 days!

I know I babbled a bit here - it was actually quite therapeutic to get it all out of my head. So, as you can see, between mourning the car crash and running a zillion miles, I had little to no time to catch up with all of you. But it is my priority tomorrow night, as my valentine will be working. Thank you all for the encouragement this week as I continue on this crazy streak. I'm loving seeing what my body and my head can accomplish when I have a big goal in mind.
Hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's day and you spend it with the people who matter most to you ;)
Happy Running Peeps!

30 Days

2011-02-06T16:24:00.000-08:00

As I sit here today, I'm on day 31 of my streak. As I mentioned in my last post, I had high hopes of making it to at least day 30, but now that it has come and gone I sit here thinking what's next? Through out these 30 days I have learned a ton about myself. I have learned that I'm stronger than I thought, that my legs are strong and resilient, but above all, I have learned that when you have a goal in mind, all that stands between you and the finish is the mental attitude that you can get there if you really want to.

Running every day has become such a part of my routine, it's hard to imagine one day in the future of not lacing up and heading out for a run. My day doesn't feel complete until I've logged my miles and had a good sweat. I think there is some real truth to the 21 day habit thinking - it has become a habit, it has become more apart of me now than even before I started the streak.
I'm amazed at what I have accomplished. By the numbers, here is where I stand at the end of the 30 days:
day started: January 8th - Crystal Springs Trail Half Marathon - 14.57 miles
miles logged: 255.4
average pace/mi: 8:15
long runs done: 4 - topping yesterday's 30 streak with a fast 18
pounds lost: close to 9-11 (I'm amazed at this!)

When I look at the raw numbers, I'm pretty dang proud. I had no idea where this little streak would send me, but I just finished day 31 with another 8, and capping out my week with 68 miles - my highest mileage in I can't even remember! Amazingly, my legs feel great! I was a bit tired today when I set out, but it was windy and very warm, about 76, but I just pushed through and averaged a 7:55/mi pace - a pace I would have been ecstatic about just a few short months ago.

More than anything, I have seen my legs get faster. I would not have imagined that would have happened over the course of running for 30 days straight, I would have thought the exact opposite. But with the combination of loosing quite a bit of pounds, rolling out daily and taking an ice bath a few times a week, my legs are loving this and are finally turning over at a pace I have been only dreaming about. I feel almost as proud as when I crossed the finish line at CIM in December, and that's saying a lot!

With today being day #31, I can only think what's next? I have been being very smart about my running, I'm eating a ton better, icing, stretching, rolling out, and I do believe this is what has kept me going. My legs feel fresh everyday, and I am going to continue to ride this wave for as long as possible. Right now I'm shooting for 60 days, but in all honesty, I would love to hit 100. There's just something about 100 that sounds so bad ass! I know though, in order to keep going, I need to be smart about it. I need to continue to listen to my body, fuel it well, and treat it like that temple that it is. As I got farther and farther into the streak, I really tried to focus on what the benefits would be to me. In the grand scheme of it all, I'm hoping that it will reap dividends when I toe the line for my first 50K in March - knowing what tired legs feels likes will really help me mentally when it gets tough out there. Oh wait, forgot to mention that didn't I? Oops! I kind-of agreed to run a 50K in March with Punky. Our friend isn't going to be able to run it (boo!) and offered me her bib! Yayyy! But, at the time I agreed to it, I hadn't looked at the date! Oops again! It's the day before my Shamrockin' Half! Oh well, if I don't know what tired legs feels like now, I will then! My original plan was to try and qualify for NY at Shamrockin', but now it will be just a fun run with some of my favorite running peeps. There will be plenty of other half's this year to get that NY qualifying time, so I'm not at all bummed about that. Oh, and if you noticed on my little side bar of upcoming races for the year, I added the Eugene Marathon on May 1st. I was very much in need of a training plan when I signed up, I needed something to shoot and train for. I have heard so many awesome things about this race and the timing just seemed to be perfect - AFTER tax season was all I needed to read ;)

As you can see, I have a busy schedule ahead of me. But for the first time in a long time, I am finally feeling like my running has purpose, and that is a big relief to me. I love to run, I love everything about it, but I do so much better when there is a carrot hanging in front of me like a goal race. I'm hoping for a BIG PR there, so watch out, I'm thinking I'm going to have some more big weeks to come before race day. Thanks again for all the support, knowing I have all of you cheering me on means a ton ;)

Congrats to all my friends who ran and raced this weekend! Especially my buddy L.B. who had a HUGE PR at Surf City this weekend! And my girl Page who also had a HUGE PR there in the half - that's a NY qualifying time! You both are rockstars in my book! Very proud of you both!!! CONGRATS!!

I'm off to catch off with all of you, enjoy your Super Bowl Sunday!!
Happy Running peeps!

Hello?? Anybody Still Here??

2011-02-01T17:58:00.000-08:00

I've been a bad, bad blogger. I hang my head in shame for not coming around for a while. But I have my reasons. I needed a break. Life has gotten really busy, lots on my plate and lots to think about. I started my new job a couple of weeks ago and it's going pretty darn good, couldn't ask for more. The hour long commute in each direction leaves something to be desired, but I'm back in a routine, earning actual money and I'm doing what I love and do best: taxes. Yes, you read that correct, I love taxes ;)

January was a big month for me. Running has been very important to me and very much apart of my life. Since January 8th I have been on a bit of a running streak! I'm at day 26 and still going strong. I didn't mean to start a running streak, I think it just came out of necessity due to all that was going on in my life. I realized it one day when I was logging my latest workout and saw I hadn't taken a rest day in 10 days! Wowza! I was sure I had had one in between, apparently though, that was not the case. With that realization came a thought: I think I can keep going! I think I can reach 20 days! Then 20 turned into 30, and now I'm just four short days away from 30 and I think I'm going to keep going! Surprisingly, my legs feel awesome, still fresh and fast, which I didn't know was possible. I did have one day where my hip hurt and waited to do my run until later in the day, but aside from that little blip, my legs are loving it! And my head thanks me, too ;) I logged over 244 miles for the month of January - not a bad way to start the new year.

I really didn't have any rules for the streak, just that I run a minimum of 5 miles a day, and that has not been a problem what so ever - I usually end up doing at least six and am still getting in some good long runs on the weekend. I used to see other runner's doing streaks and think they were crazy, but I am eating my words now. Running each day has become such a habit, I can't see it ending any time soon!

To keep up the running though, and my job, and all my other responsibilities, I have been made to eat some more words: I have become a morning runner. I never thought it possible that me, the afternoon/evening runner would ever be able to get up early and enjoy a run. Well, my friends, I'm here to tell you, anything is possible when you want it. I get to work around 8 am, which means I leave my house around 7, factoring in getting ready before hand and getting a run in means I am up at 4:30 each morning and at the gym by 5am! Yes, 5am! I am often waiting for them to unlock the doors! Who have I become?! I will say, the first week was a little rough. The first couple of miles were dreadful, and I couldn't find my pace very easy. But after some time it has gotten so much easier and I'm actually loving having my run done before 6:30am! Who knew!? I also noticed that by mid-morning I don't feel like I ran at all, and if I could, I would lace up and run again. But I have been good and not been doubling up...yet. I'm actually enjoying my evenings home, not having the running monkey on my back!

Along with all my running, I have also managed to get a couple of trail races in! Don't think I would stop racing, did you? January 8th I did the Crystal Spring Trail Half Marathon with Punky and then this past weekend I did the Coyote Hills Trail Half with Punky, JoLynn, Stacey and a ton of other bloggy peeps. It wasn't the most scenic course, but it was definitely great to be out running the trails with some of my favorite running peeps! I have a few other fun trail runs and a half marathon coming up this month and next. My credit card has gotten quite the workout lately. I have decided to continue to sign up for races and play the wait and see game. I hated not having anything on the calendar, and as we all know, it is cheaper to sign up early than to wait. And if you're wondering, no, no news in that other department.

Punky, Stacey, JoLynn and me

(thanks Ron for the photo)

As you can see I've been up to my eyeballs in running and balancing my new job. I didn't realize how cushy I had it at my last one or how wonderful it was to not have a schedule each day. Be careful what you wish for, it might just come true! I am actually really enjoying the job, I just wish it would fit better around my social life and of course, running ;) My twitter, Facebook and blogging time has taken a serious hit! But I'm working on fitting it all in, one piece at a time.

I often read your blogs on my phone in between all the craziness, so sorry if I don't comment, I still am keeping up with all of you! Some of you are doing and planning some amazing things, I love watching it all unfold for so many of you. Keep it up!

I will do my best to get back here again in the very near future. Every day is different in the tax world, and unfortunately it is only going to get busier though May. So my apologies in advance if my posting and comments are sporatic. Just know I'm thinking about all of you and sending lots of good thoughts your way! Drop me an email any time, I love to hear from you and often times that is how I communicate even with the fam now! I know, tragic, but it's tax season, I'm on a running streak and life has gotten very, very busy ;)

Thanks for checking in!
Happy Running peeps!!

The Year in Rewind

2010-12-31T12:09:00.000-08:00

Is it just me, or did the New Year sneak up on you just like me? It feels like I was just writing my goals and recap from 2009! But here we are, on the eve of 2011 and I have a feeling it will be just as awesome as 2010.

I had a few goals for 2010, and I think that I accomplished almost all of them. Once again, I spent my year running and racing. I ran 24 races this year, more than double for 2009! I ran 8 half marathons, 6 trail races, 4 marathons, a 10 miler, a relay, a couple of 10K's and a fun 5K while I was in Boston - I would say that was a success! But more than anything, I met all of my time goals that I had hoped for. I really wanted a sub 1:40 half, and I got that in November! And I really, really, really wanted a low 3:30 marathon, and I finally achieved that with my final marathon in December. I learned to push myself when I didn't think I had anything left. I learned to dig deep and come out on top when I really wanted something. I also wanted to learn what it felt like to hold on to a pace that had always seemed so far off for the majority of my runs, and I can finally say I am there. This was a year of growing for me, I learned that running is so much a part of who I am, and I truly find myself when I'm out there running towards the finish line. I also finished off the year today with 1,916 miles - about 100 miles short of the 2010 I wanted, but still almost where I was last year. I'll take it! I also went through 6 pairs of shoes! Hahaha! Maybe 2,011 miles in 2011? We'll see!

2010 wasn't just about time goals, miles and finish lines, though. I also met some pretty amazing people this year, and made a friendship with a running buddy that means a ton to me. I also made the blog world a second home, where I could open up to all of you and share my success and failures while supporting all of you. I found out that blogging is very much an important accent to my running and that sometimes just knowing that all of you are here rooting for me on any given day fueled many of my runs. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I went into a bit of detail yesterday on what I hope my 2011 looks like. You all gave me amazing support as I shared with you my newest finish line. All of you gave me the support I needed as I venture into 2011 with a pile of unknowns - but more than anything you gave me the confidence to know that what ever happens, it will surely be another fantastic year. So again, thank you for all the kind words and support - you really know how to make someone feel pretty dang loved ;)

Aside from the dreams of becoming a mamma this year, I also want to make sure that I keep some goals in mind with my running - weather or not I get to start my family. I want to be able to keep racing. Many of you mentioned that running while pregnant is very possible, and that maybe I should focus on shorter distances. And I think you're right - I don't need to run 4 marathon's in a year, or a half dozen half marathon's to feel like I'm still in the game. I will focus on a few key races as long as I am able to in the mean time, and keep my fitness up. I would love to continue to get faster, incorporating more speed and core work. I don't want to forget all the hard work I did this year, so until "things" change, my focus will be keeping up my base. And who knows, NY marathon could still very well be a possibility.

Without recapping each and every race from the year, I'll leave you all with some pics of the highlights of 2010 - it was a very, very good year.

Bear Creek Trail Half with some amazing ladies and MUD!

Running the Great Highway for the Kaiser Half Marathon in February

My cousin Sarah and I at the Valentine's Day 10K - LOVE her!

Shamrockin' Half with Aron in March

Santa Cruz Half with Sarah in April

BOSTON! (with the flu!)

B.A.A. 5K with Lauren and Morgan in April

Boston Marathon with my BFF Jill in April!!!

Big Sur B2B challenge in April

The Relay in April - love these girls!

Sunset Run in San Francisco with Juliane!!!

San Francisco 2nd Half in July - with the fam

SVE Dirty Legs 10K with RBR and Punky

SF Sunset run with Kristen in August

Buffalo Stampede 10 miler with Buggy!

Lake Tahoe Marathon in September

San Jose Half with Kristen in October

Healdsburg Half with Aron, Punky and Tara!!

Stockton Half Marathon with Layla and Punky!

Summit Trail Half Marathon

Punky and me after the Summit Half

CIM in December

CIM

Crying in the finish chute at CIM

The fam at CIM

Wow, going through all those the pics really reaffirms for me, that 2010 was a really awesome year for me. And I TOTALLY noticed I dropped some weight this year! I had no idea I was that big! LOL! The one of me crying at CIM still chokes me up, and it's my biggest accomplishment to date. I hope I can relive that feeling once again in 2011. Thank you again to all of you for your continued reading and support. I can't wait to see what's in store for all of you in 2011!
Happy New Year!

I wanted to leave this with all of you, since it was a song I just loved the past few months while running - it's "Rolling in the Deep" by Adel. I ran with it in CIM and definitely hit repeat a few times out there! It has some great beats and strong lyrics - enjoy! (don't read too much into the lyrics , though! It's just a good running song!)

Back On Track

2010-12-30T12:29:00.000-08:00

I guess an apologies is in order: I'm so sorry I have been MIA from the blog world for the past few weeks. I needed a break. I needed to get some things in order, along with where I wanted things to go personally and well, here on the blog. I had some ups and downs since the time I have been on here, it's been a difficult and trying time. Nothing life threatening of course, just needed to square away what I wanted and needed out of life. But, I'm back and ready to keep up with all of you and keep you all up to date with what's going on in my small little world.

I wasn't sure if I would share this with all of you, but I do believe this blog is a place of honesty and where I can share with all of you as a great support system. See, there has been a ton of talk in the past month or so of where everyone will be and will be doing next year with their running and race schedules. As you know, I decided to sit out Boston this year. That was a really hard decision to make, seeing how I wanted a bit of redemption after last year's fiasco. It is the race that everyone hopes for, so all of you going, soak it up - it is everything you want it to be an more. But not only talk of Boston got me down, it was everyone trying to sketch out what their 2011 race schedules would be. I saw peeps signing up left and right for the races I wanted to run, and as we all know, I LOVE to race. I do really well when I have a training schedule and a race to work towards. And without any planned, I was feeling a bit bummed and disconnected from all of you. My plans though have a bigger plan for the 2011 year. See, my hubbs and I have decided to start a family. That was what I wasn't sure I wanted to put out in blog land. I was almost afraid it would jinx us.

We have been attempting to get pregnant for over six months now, and honestly, I thought I would be by now. It is a very trying time in couples lives when you are trying to start a family. Who knew? The plan from the beginning was I would be pregnant by the fall and hopefully be able to salvage the year with a great race schedule. But as I sit here now, no baby on board, and each month it doesn't happen, I see the year fading away from racing. I know what we are doing is so much bigger than a goal race or a PR, but running and racing is such a huge part of me that it is hard not to want to plan. And that is the problem, you can't plan. You can try, you can do all the "right" things, but sometimes things take longer than you want. And even now, I had big plans of the New York Marathon being my fall, big marathon of the year, and I am sad to say, I don't think that is in the cards. *sigh*

A part of me thinks I should just sign up for some fun races and see where life takes me. I feel like I shouldn't put my life on hold for something so unpredictable. But races fees are expensive, and I wouldn't necessarily want to put my health or a baby's health in jeopardy just because I signed up for a race and didn't want to loose out on the fees I paid. It's quite the predicament. I'm torn, and I still don't know what the right plan is. I really thought that I would be satisfied with all the goals I made and hit this year and that mentally I would be okay with sitting out - but I had also planned on being pregnant and that would make sitting out a whole lot easier. I had no clue what to expect, so now I'm in limbo and feel a bit lost. Some people have told me to just go for it, don't plan things you can't, while others have said that maybe it was all my miles and hard running that is slowing down the "process." I don't know what the right answer is right now, but for the time being, I'm just going with the flow as best as I can.

I'm still running a ton, and when I look back on what I accomplished this year, I'm actually quite proud. All of my runs lately have been at a pace that I never knew would become so comfortable. I have been doing all my runs in the 8:00/mi range and I can finally say, that is my natural pace. I worked really hard all year to get here, and as much as I want to start my family, I also don't want to loose all the gains I made this year. I'm loving running right now, the NorCal weather has been just perfect for every run (minus the damn wind!). It's hard not to have a training calendar, and running aimlessly for mileage or what have you. I have kept my base right around 40 miles a week, and I don't necessarily feel like it would have that great of impact on my health. But who knows? For now, it's keeping me sane in this trying time.

Christmas was wonderful, although not void of some MIL drama. That was the other piece of my life that really sent me down a spiral. Attempting to deal with behavior that isn't going to change, especially around the holidays is very trying, but we did our best and thankfully we had a very blessed Christmas. I couldn't ask for more. I also realized in the last month or so, that as much as I love being my own boss and working from home, it's just not for me. I felt a bit aimless and clueless with how to make it work. Not having a set schedule or where to be at certain times can be really hard. So, I decided that I needed to find a job. I am a people person, and in accounting and taxation, it is actually quite helpful to have other people and their own thoughts around when working. And thankfully, I landed the first one I applied for today! I'm super excited about it, it's an environment where I can grow and thrive and give me the structure that I'm craving right now. I even discussed with my future boss that I do have plans of starting a family in the near future, and they couldn't have been more supportive. I'm finally feeling like I made a really good choice for myself. A grown-up, healthy decision that will hopefully reap dividends that I can only imagine. I don't start until 1/24, so I still have some time to play and enjoy not having a schedule for a bit longer.

Right now, I am signed up for a trail half in the middle of January and the Surf City half in February. I had to bite the bullet and take the plunge. I didn't want to sit out on these, cuz some of my favorite peeps are running both. And I even managed a nice run on Sunday with Punky where we ran for the Operation Jack Virtual run - good times ;)

11 Chilly miles done!

I'm not sure what the near future holds for me, or what my 2011 will look like. I'm not good with the unknown - I'm a planner and love having things all lined up. But I'm realizing that not all things in life can be planned, and it's definitely a lesson in patience. I've spent my whole life making lists and plans, and relishing each time I can cross one off my list. Right now, no lists, no plans is a difficult place to be in - so if I get a bit frantic or crazy, just know, it will hopefully be temporary and 2011 will hold great and wonderful things for me and my hubbs.

Whew, I feel a lot better that I finally shared this will all of you. Some may think it's an "over-share" or that I'm just being whiny and feeling sorry for myself. And to those, you don't know what's it's like until you walk in my shoes. No one prepares you for what it's like when you start down this road of starting a family. Trust me, even from some of my closest and dearest friends and family, I'm constantly still getting, "it will happen when it's supposed to." That's all well and good, and I know there right, but damn it stings a little. And to all of you who continue to be supportive and excited, thanks - it means a ton. I promise to be back to my normal, happy, cheery bloggy self because I find so much inspiration and support from all of you. And I will live vicariously through all of you as you embark on 2011 and some really awesome races and goals.

Tomorrow I will do my look back post and see how the year wrapped up. I do know, 2010 was one of my best running years yet. All of my accomplishments and goals were pretty great in my eyes, and I'm going to use it as a reminder that I've got a lot going for me when I do get to get back in to my crazy racing schedule.

Thanks to all of you again, I'm off to catch up with all of you!
Have a wonderful New Year's Eve Eve!
Happy running peeps!

On Your Left! Race Report: Summit Rock Trail Half Marathon

2010-12-12T16:46:00.000-08:00

You probably don't know this about me, but I'm a bit of a tree hugger. Which may or may not surprise you, since I do live in the tree hugger capital of the world: the Bay Area, CA. True story: I'm such a fanatic about recycling, I used to take home all the recyclables from my office I used to work at. I couldn't stand that they didn't recycle, so much so that often when I left on Friday's, my car was stuffed to the brim with all the office recyclable garbage!

Tree Hugging Saturday

But I digress. I forgot to mention this to all of you, but I had a little race to run on Saturday: The Summit Rock Trail Half Marathon, with my buddy Punky. Yeah, maybe not the smartest idea to run a trail half less than a week out from a pretty grueling marathon, but I couldn't pass up a Saturday run with Punky or the beautiful trails that were pretty much in my back yard.

I like to think of myself as a pretty on-time person, mainly due to the fact that growing up, my parents couldn't be on-time to save their lives. I was often late to school, girl scouts, soccer practice, even Mass! So, being on time to me even means being about ten minutes early. Saturday I had told Punky to be at my pad around 7:45. I got up around 6:30, dottled around as I got ready and thought I had plenty of time to get going. But then, around 7:10, I got a text message that read, "You should really buy a rake." WTH? Ron? Followed by the next text at 7:11, "I'm outside." Oh $hit! He's here! Already? Quick, get dressed and let him in! Dude was over a half hour early! Talk about on time! And talk about embarrassing! So, I let him in and scrambled to get ready as he drank my coffee and hassled my dog.

Soon enough, we were in the car making the 20 minute drive to the race. The race was almost in my backyard, in the beautiful Santa Cruz mountains in Saratoga, CA. This was the first event that Brazen put on at this park, but they did an awesome job as always. Thank goodness Punky was early - it took us almost 15 minutes to get into the park with all the traffic. After we parked, got body-glided up, we headed over to pick up our chips and meet up with my girl Stacey and Ron's friend Anne. (Side note: did you ever notice, Punky has a LOT of girl runner friends!) The weather was really perfect, overcast and a bit foggy, but not too cold. After a few pictures with the gang, we lined up at the start together. Stacey was doing the 10K with Anne, while us two stupids, Ron and I, were doing the half. Stupid only hit us when we were a half mile into the run and wanting to turn around and find a doughnut shop instead ;)

Stacey and me - she's the smart one on the right

Stacey, Ron & Anne - a stupid sandwich

Neither Ron nor I had really looked at the course map or elevation chart - big mistake! But I guess ignorance is bliss, because if we had looked, we probably wouldn't have even started. The whole run is pretty much single track, where you are enveloped by the beautiful canopy of redwood tress. It was damp and dark, just the most beautiful scenery you could ask for. Right away, the course went up hill. And just kept going up. It was an out and back course, so in the beginning we told ourselves that this would be great - negative split, baby! But it became pretty apparent right away, that might not even be doable. The race director, Sam - great guy by the way - had encouraged runners to walk the uphill parts and run the down hills - pretty smart advice. So, walk we did. All week, my legs felt pretty great after the marathon, but all of a sudden, on those hills, I felt like a lazy butt. I couldn't run up them if I tried! We were both out of breath and sweaty messes by the time we finally, finally hit mile 1. No worries, it's a trail run.

The theme of the day became, "on your left!" We heard it constantly from the majority of our fellow runners passing us. Hahaha! Neither Punky or I could keep up with the mountain goats passing us. No big deal really, we had plenty of beautiful scenery to keep us occupied, and well, when you run with Punky - a good time will be had, even if your walking. I really, really wish I had put a sign on my shirt that read, "I'm not usually this slow! I ran a 3:34 marathon last week!" Funny how as runners, we don't ever want to show a "slow" side, but if there ever was one, yesterday was my slow day. I just hoped I wasn't slowing Punky down too much.

And so the day went on. Walk, jog the uphills, fly down the down hills - "fly" being relative also. We chatted with fellow runners, took in the great smells of the damp forest and just generally goofed off as we made our way to the top.

I'm also a bird lover ;)

By the time we hit the 10K turn around and aid station, we may or may not have contemplated turning around. But the show must go on! And on and UP we went. The conversation got pretty "R" rated in here, which means neither of us will be sharing exactly what crossed our mouths as we kept plugging along. By about a mile and half from the last aid station and half turn around, we had many, many people coming back down. WOW! I mean LOTS of people were already lapping us! Hahaha! And you wouldn't believe what they kept saying to us! "You're almost there!" "Just a bit more to go!" Did we look that bad!?? I mean, come on! We had a LONG way still to go! Thanks, but you can keep your pity comments to yourself. One woman, and I have to say this, she was on the larger side, looked at me at this point and said, "almost there, they even have pumpkin pie waiting for you!" WTF? Do I look like someone who is motivated by pumpkin pie? Do I look like someone that needs food as a motivator? Sheesh! Punky and I just had to laugh, but by like the 100th person telling us "almost there!" with just over a mile left, it got old - quick!

At the final aid station, we both stopped to fill our water bottles and grab a cup of water. I started chatting with a few runners and the support staff, when I turned around and I couldn't see Punky. Now, by no means was this a large area, so I would have seen him and his hair if he was still there. But no, he ditched me! He took off and left me as I stood there drinking my water. Argh! So I high-tailed it down there where I found him running down the hill trying to leave my slow butt. What a friend, what a friend. It was when I found him that I got my revenge, I jumped into a giant mud puddle and covered us both in mud! Tee hee! That's what you get for leaving me. Don't worry, he knew I would catch him...eventually. And so we made our way back down the mountain.

Down? Yeah, not so much. There wasn't much down happening on the way back. I guess it is possible to go up both ways in a race. We were cursing the course and Sam at this point - he's a dirty, dirty race director. Our legs were both toast at this point and we still had six miles to get back. So, back to shenanigans for us! More dirty jokes, more making fun of our slow selves and finally the miles began to tick by. We would attempt to run the down hills when we could, but both of us had quads there were screaming at us. No biggie, we still enjoyed the scenery.

My view for the majority of the race - check out those calf muscles! Meow!

I look happy, no?

We slowly inched our way down the mountain, only to be greeted by the last two miles that were pretty much straight down. You had no choice but to run, stopping killed our quads and well, we had been out there so damn long we just wanted to finish. We both did an awesome job of keeping each other motivated and finally, after 3:17:58, we crossed the finish line together - oh so happy to be done!

Yes, you read that right, it took us 3 hours, seventeen minutes and fifty-eight seconds to go 12.4 miles - or a 15:58/mi pace. Just think, I covered more than twice that distance the week before in almost the same amount of time - hahaha! When we finished, we felt like we had just come back from war - we saw some crazy things out there people, some of which will forever be etched into my brain. But you know what, I HAD A BLAST! Yes, the course was the most difficult trail race I have ever done, but I couldn't have done it without Punky, and I sure as heck wouldn't have had as much fun! Thanks Ron, you're a gem, and I'm so glad we got to share this "experience" together. Note to self: NEVER run this one again!

Before - all happy and ignorant

After - what the hell happened to us?

We finished!

The medals

I'm so glad I did run this, it taught me I'm stronger than I thought. I enjoyed a beautiful Saturday run in the most beautiful scenery around. I may not run it again, but so glad I can say I did run it - once!
Thanks Ron for all the great pics - at least the ones I could show here and still keep my blog rated PG.

My legs were pretty tore up all day yesterday, but I iced-bathed when I got home and today they felt pretty dang good so I went out for a quick run. I was so surprised they felt so good, in fact, they just wanted to run! I did some fartleks and some speed and enjoyed a foggy run - 5 miles in 39:44 - 7:57/mi pace. Did not know I still had it in me. I even managed to run over 27 miles this week even post marathon. Recovery went really well, I'm still recovering mind you, but so far so good.

I have a busy week again ahead of me, 2 days of tax classes and some snow boarding are on schedule!
Have a wonderful week peeps, I'm off to catch up with all of you!
Happy Running!

Race Report: California International Marathon 2010

2010-12-07T07:45:00.000-08:00

Where to start, where to start! I have so many thoughts and emotions about my race and everything involved with it, that it is kind-of daunting thinking of where to begin! But I'll start at the beginning, which is usually a good place to start ;)

I did not sleep very well at all on Friday night. I wanted to make it a good night's sleep, but I just was tossing and turning for pretty much the whole night. I did manage to get a few hours in early Saturday morning, but when I finally got out of bed I was exhausted. I was not happy about this, but went about my morning getting all packed up to leave for Sacramento.

My brother and sister-in-law live up in Sac, so we were planning on staying with them. My parents also joined us, and together we drove up with 4 peeps and 3 dogs ;) I had no appetite on Saturday - my nerves were really getting to me. But I forced down a sandwich and headed to the expo with my brother Michael and sis-in-law Suzie. Suz has been to a few expo's with me, but my brother was an expo-virgin. He couldn't believe all the crazy peeps and crazy gadgets. We had fun hanging out and sampling things and after I got my bib and stuff we headed home where I tried to relax.

My mamma made her homemade spaghetti sauce and for the first time I ate pasta the night before a race. I still had no appetite but I managed to get it down - along with a serving of Suzie's pumpkin pie desert ;) I was all nerves all day, I don't think I have been this nervous before a race before. I just couldn't get the knots out of my stomach. But I did everything else right, with hydrating, eating and resting the best I could. Finally, I hit the sack around 10 and attempted to sleep. I slept really light, waking often, which isn't unusual for me the night before a big race. But again, when my alarm went off at 4:15 in the morning I just didn't feel rested. My dad decided to drive us to the start up in Folsom while everyone else in the house slept in a bit more and got ready later.

I ate my usual pre-race breakfast in the car as we drove to the start. I saw lots of school buses driving on the road along with us. This actually calmed me a bit, finally I wasn't alone in this endeavor. Ari was planning on ridding his bike along side me during the race, so when they dropped me off at the runner's spot, he took off to the start on his own. I boarded a bus with other runners where they finally dropped us off at the start. I was worried Ari would get lost or have a hard time finding me, but I just couldn't think about it. I was so sick to my stomach. I felt like I was going to barf as I wondered around the start area. I stood in line a few times to use the bathrooms and each runner I talked to commented on how warm it was out. The weather report was calling for a 50% chance of rain and the temps in the low 50's. When I had gotten out of the car it was already 50, so I went with shorts, a short-sleeve shirt and wore a long sleeve shirt on until the start. The temps weren't too bad, you could stand around and not feel chilled to the bone. I even ditched my gloves before the start.

My plan was to stick with the 3:30 pacer. I met him at the expo and he is the head pacer. Everyone said he runs really even splits. I had a plan of going out faster in the first half, banking some time, and then using that time to help me if I struggled the later miles. I wanted to go 1:40 in the first half and 1:50 in the second half. The start wasn't too bad, and it seemed like all the runners were lined up in the right spots. This was one thing about this race I really liked: it seems this race really brings out the hard core runners. You know, not too many peeps making this challenging course their first one. I finally lined up between the 3:20 pacer and the 3:30 pacer. Figuring, I would shoot to stay between them.

As I stood waiting for the gun, I thought I was going to puke right there with my nerves. I don't know how I managed it other than I was afraid of loosing any nutrition even before the race. I even told the peeps around me to watch out, I might barf! None of them seemed to bat an eye - I'm sure I wouldn't have been the first to do that! Everyone was also shedding clothes like crazy! It was pretty warm in the start corral and I think everyone was banking on it being cold just like last year so they were all over dressed. I took off my long sleeved shirt, tied it around my waist and soon the gun went off.

The first mile is almost all down hill. I had memorized this course pretty well, and attempted to keep my strategy in the front of my mind the whole time. The 3:20 guy took off pretty fast so I let him go and just stuck to my feel good pace. I had my watch set to current lap and I was keeping at a pretty good clip the whole time. I was also on the watch for Ari here - I was still worried it was going to take him a long time to find me. Right away I also knew that this race was going to warm up fast. I was already pretty warm by the end of mile 1 and just tried to stay positive.
mile 1 - 7:50
mile 2 - 7:50
mile 3 - 7:38

Consistency was the name of the game for me. I just tried to go by feel as much as I could. Those early miles felt really good - no knee pain and my stomach had pretty much decided to play nice for the time being. Score! I kept looking for Ari and took some water at the first stop. I was getting a bit worried though by mile 3 when I didn't see him. He had my GU and I wanted one in my hand to start warming it up by my 4. I couldn't focus on that too much though, I was too overwhelmed with just keeping my legs right on task and not thinking too much about what was ahead. Finally, around mile 4 he found me and I instantly felt so much better. The miles in here are pretty up and down. Gradual up's but none the less, it is some good rolling hills. I kept my pace up through them and just went with what felt good. I used the down hills to my advantage and just kept plugging away.
mile 4 - 7:49
mile 5 - 7:53 (GU'ed at mile 5.5)
mile 6 - 7:52

Ari had done a pretty good job of memorizing the route. I had forgotten it all at this point. He warned me that there was some good climbs coming and that I should be prepared. Well, I was in for a shocker. Right before mile 7, a big hill came. I looked at my watch on the current lap setting which also showed elevation change. At the beginning of that hill it said something like 220 feet, but the time I got to the top of that first climb it said 350 something! WOW! It felt like that big of a gain! I was also getting excited to see my family who said they would be out just past mile 10. I couldn't wait to see them, and that was fueling my legs, too.
mile 7 - 7:54 (big first climb!)
mile 8 - 7:56
mile 9 - 7:56 (Gu'ed)
mile 10 - 7:42 (nice downhill)

Around mile 10 you enter into the cute downtown area of Fair Oaks. It's super cute and a big spectator spot. I kept looking and looking for my family. I couldn't see them, and when we got through all the spectators I was afraid I missed them. I turned to Ari and asked them if I had missed them. He told me the bad news - they couldn't get there due to the traffic closures and would be at mile 19. I.was.so.bummed. And angry for a moment. I really wanted to see them. I needed to see them. But I had to put it behind me and keep moving forward. The hills just never stoped in here. They just kept coming. I wasn't getting tired just yet but kept drinking water from the aid stations and Ari constantly. Sometimes because I was thirsty or needed to wash down a GU but also because I wanted to just stay on top of my hydration. I was also getting really warm in here, and by mile 13 or so, I took off my shirt and went with my signature sport's bra look ;)
mile 11 - 7:47 (BIG climb in here)
mile 12 - 7:55
mile 13 - 7:50
mile 14 - 7:45

At the relay exchange at mile 13 I got to see Tara and Kristin! I soooooo needed this! They spotted me first and it felt sooooo good to see a familiar face. I needed that boost. I was starting to get down on myself. I had hit the half in 1:42:xx, a bit off from where I wanted to be and this really bummed me out. But seeing them reassured me I was right on track - my legs were feeling really good in here and I was holding them back just a bit. To say that I had another 13 miles to go made me worried and I promised myself I could pull back a bit around 16 and gather myself and my plans. It seemed my legs were fresh, but my head was another story.
mile 15 - 7:56
mile 16 - 8:04
mile 17 - 7:56
mile 18 - 8:00

I had told myself I could back off a bit at mile 16, but seeing that 8:04 on my watch had gotten me worried. I didn't like it one bit and knew I was being easy on myself. So, at 17 I picked it up a bit and at mile 18 I just tried to cruise. With single digits left I tried to stay positive, but I was a sweaty mess and just kind-of done running. I had some really low moments here, but then I remembered my family would be at 19, so I grabbed a GU somewhere between 18 and 19 and that helped a bit. Not much, but it did help to think about that instead of running! Finally, at mile 19 I got to see my family - my dad, my mom, my sis Suz and my nephew William. They were cheering so loud I could hear them before I saw them. It felt so good to run by them, and I tried to be strong. For some reason though, I just wanted to cry. I was starting to hurt really bad and all the thoughts of loosing my goal started to enter my head. Ari also noticed around this point my posture was starting to slouch. He coached me a bit to stay more upright and to focus on my kick, but I may or may not have yelled at him to shut the heck up! I knew he was right, but I just didn't want to hear him. My legs started to get really, really heavy - mainly my quads. The whole course is rollers - some up's are really long and steep, while others are just a pain in the butt. They had taken a toll on me at this point and my quads were just not happy.

By mile 20, my quads had pretty much seized up. They hurt to step up at all and I had no kick what so ever. I couldn't understand what went wrong. Really, physically up to this point I felt great. I wasn't tired, my legs felt pretty fresh, and I was running almost by feel. Yes, my head had been an emotional wreck, but physically I was moving just fine until here. They just had no strength left by mile 20.
mile 19 - 8:12 (saw the fam)
mile 20 - 8:26 (the beginning of the end)
mile 21 - 8:34 (WTH??)
mile 22 - 8:48 (GU'ed)

I was in full on survival mode. I couldn't believe I had nothing left in me. Ari also managed to get a FLAT in here! Argh! NOT AGAIN! But I had to keep moving. At mile 22, the 3:30 pacer passed me and I died a little inside. I couldn't believe it. All my hard work was crashing down. My legs were DEAD. I felt like I had energy, but my legs had pretty much seized up in my quads. I couldn't get them to move any faster. I took one more GU at 22 right before Ari got the flat but that didn't seem to help too much. I wanted to cry again. I was on track for so long. I tried to stay with the 3:30 group (it was big!) and even though it was pretty flat these remaining miles, I just couldn't catch up. This was so disappointing to me. There were tons of spectators now that were back in down town again. It was nice to have the cheers, but they weren't making my legs carry me any faster.

I started doing the math in my head, even if I ran 9 minute miles for the next four miles, I would still hit my B goal of 3:35 so I just tried to stay positive. This was the lowest point for me during the race. Ari was gone, I just lost my great pace, and I felt really alone. I wanted to be done. I had gone from being on an 3:26- 3:28 pace down to settling for a 3:35. I was crushed. I had to stay with it though, I still had 4 miles left and decided to get my head away from the pitty party and just enjoy the fact that I was running the race of my life.
mile 23 - 9:05
mile 24 - 9:11 (it was getting ugly in here!)
mile 25 - 8:57

With just over a mile left, I knew if I picked it up I could break 3:35! I was running as fast as I could - I had looked over my shoulder at one point and saw the 3:35 guy coming and there was NO WAY I would let him come close to me! So I just started kicking as best as I could and before I knew it I was passing mile 26 and looking down just the last .2 with a few turns.
mile 26 - 8:19 (where was this 3 miles ago!)
last .2 - 2:16 (7:25/mi pace)

I crossed the finish line in 3:34:16 - an over 4 minute PR! I had done it! I was so emotional right away. I had worked so hard out there, fought so hard those last 6.2 miles that I was very overwhelmed when I crossed. I started balling right away. Thankfully, Layla was there to catch me and wrap a blanket around me. It was sooooooo good to see here. I was a sweaty, sticky, crying mess, but my friend gave me a big hug and carried me to my family. Thanks Layla - that meant a lot to me. When I finally saw my mom and everyone, they were also crying. I was so spent, but so happy. I'm proud of my time, proud of my accomplishment and so glad I had my family there. As soon as I crossed, after I saw my fam, my sis Suzie got in the car to go and pick up stranded Ari. He had missed me crossing the finish line - and I was so sad about this - he had worked hard to keep me going out there, too.
Official Stats:
26.2 - 3:34:16 - 8:10/mi pace
AG - 62/437
245/2549 - woman
1143 overall
Garmin:
26.31 - 3:34:16 - 8:08/mi pace

After I got a bit collected, I put on some dry clothes and went to see where Aron and everyone was. I met up with them inside the finish shoot and it was nice to see how every one's day went. This is a tough course - don't be fooled by the negative downhill they play up so well. Yes, it is a net downhill, but it is rolling hills for the majority of the race. It can chew you up and spit you out quick. The race itself, it just awesome. VERY well organized, great course management of the route and aid stations and I will definetly be back next year. I would recommend this race to anyone - it may be difficult, but it is so worth it ;)

I have some thoughts on why my quads seized up. I'm not 100% convinced though of what exactly went wrong. I know that I was running very well the first 20. Like I said, my legs never felt really tired, and my energy was always spot on until the end. I think it had to do with my salt intake and how warm it was out. I didn't bring any salt tabs on me, and since I just was not hungry the days before, I probably didn't eat enough of my usually salty diet before hand. I GU'ed and drank at all the right spots, but in the end I think it came down to the lack of salt and all the sweating I did. My shorts and sports bra were so wet I probably could have wrong them out and got a good puddle. I'm not sure what I could have done with that info during the race - I was probably already in a deficit. But I'm glad my knee behaved, my tummy behaved and my energy was great. I also know I ran pretty smart through 16. I could have gone faster, I could have tore that course up more - but I ran by feel and effort and the whole time (until 20) I had the right energy and legs.

I'm hungry for another. I wanted my sub 3:30 that I just know is waiting in me to be unlocked. Although, today I'm a wreck. Standing, sitting, walking, going to the bathroom are all still very, very painful. I know I left it all out on the course. I'm not sure what is next now - I had planned on this being my last full for a very long time, but I want more - I want my sub 3:30 - I need to step back and see what my options are and what my ultimate goals really are.

Thank you to all of you for your support during my crazy training cycle. You all always made me feel so special and so strong - and I thought about allll of you while I was out there. I kept you all in the front of my mind when it got tough or hard, and reminded myself that you would all be proud no matter what. So, thank you to each and every one of you - I couldn't have done it with out you.

Congrats to all my fellow CIM'ers out there and to all of you that tackled Vegas this weekend - you are all rockstars in my book ;)

I know this has been long, but I'll have pics up in the next couple of days - so thanks for sticking with me!
Have a great Tuesday!
Happy Running peeps!

Race Report To Come But...

2010-12-06T08:43:00.000-08:00

I DID IT!

I made my goal yesterday in a hard won battle and crossed the finish line in

3:34:16!

I will update you all tomorrow with a race report when I can sit still for more than five minutes pain free!

Have a great Monday!

Happy Running!

CIM Goals

2010-12-02T10:32:00.000-08:00

I hate to say it, but race day is almost here! Where on Earth did this week go?? Normally race week seems to drag for me, but this week, with a ton of crazy going on, it has swept past me and we're in the home stretch.

Monday I had 8 miles on the books and was a bit nervous about them considering my knee didn't feel too fab in my prior attempts. But by mile 2 it had behaved itself and I was able to cruise home with a teeny tiny bit of confidence for Sunday - 1:04:33 - 8:04/mi pace
Tuesday was scheduled to be an easy 5 at 8:32/ mi pace. Easy enough, especially when I was still tired from the day before. Does that happen to anyone else during taper? I felt tired after doing 8? Sheesh! When I hit the pavement though, and started running my 5, my legs apparently didn't get the memo about the "slow" pace or that I was tired. They just wanted to move! I looked down at my Garmin about 1/2 mile in and saw 7:30 pace! Whoa! Too fast! I tried to rein it in, but still managed an 8:02 first mile.   And from there, it just got worse. I couldn't slow them down and when I did, it didn't feel comfortable. So...I went with it and turned my 5 into a little tempo run. I finished the five in 39:28 - 7:54/mi pace and called it a day. My knee was not angry at all during the run, and after a good stretch and ice session, I felt even better. I can't say my confidence was lifted by much, but it gives me hope that at least the first five miles on Sunday should be fast and hopefully pain-free. After that...it's any one's guess! LOL!

Yesterday was a rest day and today is a tempo run 6. I think this will be an easy 6 since Tuesday was already a bit fast. We'll see. I'm heading out to my favorite trail later this afternoon with the hubbs when he gets home.

I know I have been talking about my expectations for Sunday for a while now. I had big plans of achieving them in Long Beach back in October, but as we all know, it just wasn't the right place or time for me. This Sunday, I have crossed all my "t's" and dotted all my "i's" and hopefully the stars align, and my sacrifice to the running god's will appease them. I have a great support team coming with me, which include my hubbs, my rents, my sister-in-law, big Bro and my nephew. All will be braving the cold for me, in hopes that I will succeed in crossing the finish line of marathon #8 with my fastest time yet.

I have a lot of goals I want to achieve. You would think by marathon #8 you would have this stuff down, but race day can be a crap shoot and you never know what you're going to get. I want to really focus on hydration and nutrition. I want to be spot on, even when my tummy doesn't feel so great. I know I had a missed opportunity in Stockton when I didn't take in anything, and I don't want to be in that spot again. I want to at least attempt to get it down. I also want to enjoy the race.   I don't want to speed by and miss all that comes when you run a marathon. It's my victory lap for putting in all the hard work, and if I don't soak it all up, then I feel I may be missing out on some of the glory. I also want to work on saying "thank you" to all the volunteers. I'm already pretty good about this, but towards the end of a marathon, I often fall off this and miss peeps. I want to stay alert and be gracious to all those people who are giving up their Sunday morning.

To say I'm not nervous or anxious would be a lie. I know we all get a touch of this when we are towing the line of our next big race, but mine seems to have gone overboard this time. Butterflies have filled my stomach since Tuesday. My dreams are already consisting of race day disasters, and every second I'm not thinking about the race, I'm thinking I'm forgetting something! Ha! But I know as the day gets closer I will be able to relax. I often have that occur for me - I get all the stressing done ahead of time so that when I toe the line I'm ready to attack! So, the big time goals for Sunday:
1. 3:29:59 - this is what I have been training for, it's what I want most
2. 3:34:59 - if I begin to see my 3:30 slip away, I would be happy working for this
3: 3:38:18 - beating my PR (3:38:19) by at least a second!
4. 3:39:59 - BQing - I know that this is possible
5. FINISH - with a smile on my face and knowing I did the best I could that day with what I had

As you can see, my #1 goal is to come in around 3:30. I have done most of my runs to shoot for this. I know what an 8:00/mi pace feels like even when I'm not running! I have drilled it into my head and legs and know exactly what I need to do to get back to that "zen" pace I know so well.  And....AND if McMillan has been accurate about anything, according to him and my recent 1:39 half, he believes I should be able to run a full in 3:29:21! And even if I put in my 1:41 half that had a course more similar to CIM, he thinks I could go 3:33 - which is still ~~great~~ awesome in my book. In the past McMillan has been pretty spot on with pacing and predicting - but that means that I would need the perfect race day, and I'm hoping that will grace me come Sunday.

I'm heading to Sacramento on Saturday with the fam. My brother and sister-in-law live there and thankfully I won't have to stay in a hotel bed. I'm already packed! I have my play list ready (although, side note - I may not wear music, I've been doing most of my runs without it, so I'm going to have it but might not use it) and all my running esscentials ready to throw into my suitcase. I want the day to get here now, but at the same time I could push it out a few days!

To say this week wasn't crazy is an understatement. I have had a ton on my plate. Work is busy and on top of that, my sister's boy friend had emergency surgery on Tuesday night and we have been going to see him when we can. I'm being pulled in all directions! But, there is an end in sight and I'm excited to cross #8 off my list!
Off to catch up with all of you! Hopefully I will get a chance to check in here one more time before Sunday. But, if not, you can find me with the runner tracker system on the CIM website and here, I'm bib# 201!
Happy Thursday and Happy Running peeps!

Turkey Day Low Down - and stuff

2010-11-28T14:03:00.000-08:00

I'm feeling less than inspired and witty today, please bare with me. With less than a week to go before CIM, I'm in a bit of a worried state. See, ever since I wore those heels a week or so ago, my left knee has been bothering me. And not just bothering me, but full on bugging me and hurting on every run. Thankfully it doesn't hurt when I am just walking, but by the time I'm running, it rears it's ugly head and tells me something is up. So far, I have slogged through every run, just attempting to tune out the pain. Sometimes it warms up and goes away, other times, like today, it stays with me the whole time. Sometimes its sharp, sometimes its dull - but always in the same spot. I know I'm not being too smart with attempting to keep running - but at this point, my sanity is just as important as having a functioning knee.

I managed to race the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving. My knee was not happy about this either. It was a chilly day, started out at 32 and by the time we left it was a balmy 33! I took it as great practice for CIM which is always cold. The race was really well organized and a decent course to run a fast race. But I gave up in the middle miles when it got to that painful 10K point and my ass had literally frozen. I managed to pick it up in the final mile and finish in 46:30. Not a PR but not half bad for a pretty twisty course. I also had the pleasure of having the hubbs and Layla join me! We were home by 9 and putting the turkey in the oven by 9:30 - I would call that a success!

Turkey day went off with out a hitch, for the most part the out laws behaved themselves, and I also had Layla there to help keep me sane - thanks Layla. I pretty much managed the whole dinner on my own, including clean-up, and by the time Friday morning came around I felt like I had ran a marathon! From the second I got up on Thursday to the time I got in bed that night, I don't think I sat down once except to eat my dinner. *sigh* The positive thing about that is I didn't have to interact with the MIL too much! LOL! I also got in some decent workouts and runs this weekend despite the knee pain. I have a feeling it is my left quad that is really tight and is pulling on the knee. It is sooooo painful to roll out that quad - it brings me to tears each time so I can only managed maybe rolling it twice. I'm getting a massage either on Monday or Tuesday in hopes that will help me. If not, that will be a very painful 26.2 mile jog come Sunday.

As I type this, I'm icing my knee and sipping some coffee after getting back from my final long run. I was shooting for 13 but only hit 11. I didn't want to push my luck any more than I have been. I'm actually very worried about my knee (if you couldn't already tell!). It's been in the back of my mind the whole week, and even though I took yesterday off from running to go for a spin with Doug in hopes that it would help, it didn't. I'm still in the same boat. No better, no worse.

This week will be all about rehabbing that knee and my head. I'm so focused on the fact that it could really ruin my race that I'm not working on staying positive and focused on my goal for the race. I managed to get in 49.4 miles this week, which is almost right on where I wanted to be with my miles heading into the last week. I'm so glad that I only have one week left - I'm so excited to not have a training calendar come December 6th!

I'm off to catch up with all of you. I hope your Thanksgiving's were filled with family and good food!
Next up will be my goals for CIM and hopefully some good news on the knee and tummy!
Have a great weekend!
Happy Running Peeps!

What A Week!

2010-11-22T13:23:00.000-08:00

No, I didn't race this weekend Jamoosh! But I did have a great weekend of finishing up my final longs run before heading into my first week of taper! Aaaaa!

My deepest apologies for not updating my blog at all last week. It was one of those weeks where I had time for nothing and tons to do! It made for the week to go by fast, but my list of things to do didn't ever seem to get shorter. *sigh* The good news is, I got two long runs in and felt pretty good. My legs were still very angry after last weekend's half. My quads were tight and a complete mess, and every run felt like a chore. I had also lost some motivation to do any type of running. Each time I laced up and headed out, I was not greeted by my usual calmness that accompanies me when I start running. Instead, I felt dread and couldn't wait for the run to be over. Each year, around this time, burn out seems to set in. I'm over my training, I'm over running for certain paces and distances and I just want to quit running. Which is a stark contrast to how my year usually is. But this week I found it hard to find running enjoyable and slogged through all my miles.

Since I didn't get in the planned added miles after the half, that long run was a monkey on back that still needed to get done. Thursday I woke up and it was cold, wet and rainy. Ugh. But I had to get in that final long run. So the hubbs and I bundled up and hit the Coyote Creek trail to take a stab at it. I wanted to go long, but the whole time I was giving myself outs. If I wasn't feeling it, I would quit. If something started to hurt, I would quit. Surprisingly though, I made it through all 21 miles and felt instant relief. I even managed miles 16-21 at faster that MP going up a pretty good grade to the car. It was the confidence booster I really needed.
21.01 miles: 2:56 - 8:23/mi pace
It was slightly slower than I wanted to go, but the first few miles my legs were like lead. And being able to finish stronger was exactly what I needed. Glad that was over!

Friday I took a rest day to recover and on Saturday, after a long, long, long baby shower I came home and ran a quick 7 on the dreadmill. My knees were angry at me, though. I had worn heels for the entire day and spent much of the baby shower on my feet. I haven't worn heels in months, and my knees quickly told me I was an idiot for trying to look fashionable. I should have stuck with flats, and just worn a button that says: "I'm in marathon training! No heels for me!" Sunday came and I still had that final good long run to tackle. Yes, I had just ran 21 a few days before but my calendar had 16 for Sunday so I sucked it up and headed out into the COLD! Seriously, it was 40 when I went out (I know all you East Coasters, I'm a baby!), the wind was hollowing and rain was sprinkling the whole time. Since it was such crappy weather, I did out and backs along the long road near my house. It was boring, cold and miserable, but gosh darn it! I got it done! 16 miles finished to send me into taper!
16 miles: 2:08:08 - 8:00/mi pace
Right on target for marathon pace. I couldn't believe I managed to keep that pace the whole time. I think running the same out and back multiple times helps. I knew the road and the inclines and was able to pick it up and recover when I could. Again, a run I needed to send me into a good taper. I finished the week with 55 miles ;)

Speaking of taper - I HATE IT! I know everyone says this, but it is NOT my friend. I don't do well with long tapers, so for this week I'm scaling back a bit. Not too much, though. I have a recovery run, some tempo runs and one more longer run to get in. And then next week will be full on recovery and scale back. I'm running a 10K on Thanksgiving and I'm not sure what my plan will be. I could use it as a tempo run or practice hitting MP miles again, but we'll see. It's going to be wet and cold again - I'm sure good practice for CIM.

I know I also promised to update you on what the doctor found. I did have to go back in to see her last Friday and I got some good news and some news to work on. Turns out, I was pretty anemic. My iron levels were in the toilet and my electrolytes were way off, too. Not too sure what could have caused it, but probably all of my training didn't help. I normally eat pretty dang healthy. I'm almost vegetarian, but I know for myself, I need animal protein to stay strong and try to eat chicken at least 3 times a week. But my doc thought the lack of red meat probably didn't help. She decided that we try and tweak my diet a bit before we start worrying. She gave me an iron supplement and the advice to go home and eat red meat for a couple of weeks. Also to increase my intake of dark greens. Easy enough. It's been going pretty well. My energy levels are better, not 100% and my stomach is still a mess, but it's progress. I also know that I lost about 14 pounds since I quit my job. She thought that this could have also contributed. I am by no means over weight, but I didn't necessarily need to loose the weight. I think that now that I work from home, I'm more active. I don't sit at my computer all day and I don't snack. I also cut out alcohol for the most part which I think contributed to the weight loss. All things to think about and tweaking my diet should help. I find out next week if it's working or if we need to explore other options.

I'm hosting 13 at my house for Thanksgiving. Including my crazy ~~out~~-laws. To say I'm a bit overwhelmed is an understatement. I think my alcohol intake will go up! The out-law's craziness is too crazy to go into here, but let's just say, these aren't your normal peeps. Ah, the joys of getting married. Ha! So, if I don't update again this week, my apologies in advance. I will be consumed with shopping, cleaning (something that my MIL always notices!) and generally stressing to make sure everything is done. On Friday the hubbs and I are heading to Tahoe to go snowboarding, so that will definitely help keep me a bit more sane on Thursday!

Congrats to all the racers this weekend! Especially all you Philly peeps! Yayyyy!
I'm off to catch up with all of you! Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Monday and Happy Running peeps!

Race Report: Stockton Half Marathon

2010-11-15T14:09:00.000-08:00

If you don't know this about me, I'm gullible and a push over. I can easily be talked into most anything and usually take at face value that what you tell me is the God's honest truth. I will admit, in the past being this naive could be a downfall. But I've found that it often leads me down paths that I might otherwise miss.

Take for instance, yesterday's Stockton Half Marathon. This was NOT a race on my radar. In fact, I had pretty much not been thinking about racing any more half's the rest of the year. But, thanks to my ability to be talked into anything, my buddy Ron guilted me into running this race with him. And I don't use guilt loosely. He knows how much I love to race, almost as much as him. And after a few, "you know you want to hang with me," and "you know you're dying to just hang out in Stockton on a Sunday with me," I was swayed to run and signed up last Thursday. Last week was a hard week for me as far as my energy was concerned. I had zero and adding a race to it didn't sound too smart. Dumb won, and on Sunday morning I met Punky at his pad and together we drove off to Stockton: the murder capital of California.

When I told my hubbs (and near anyone I knew) that I was running a race through Stockton, he wasn't too excited about this idea. Yes, Stockton has crime levels that out beat East L.A. and Detroit. Nice! He even asked if I would wear a bullet proof vest when I ran! LOL! Punky though, pulled up the map and even saw that we ran through the University of the Pacific and right by a country club - how bad could it be? Hahaha!

This was the inaugural running of the race and I have to say it was very well organized. Ron and I arrived with just over an hour to the start and found parking right at the start and finish. Score! After hanging out in the car (where we may or may not have been cracking jokes about our fellow runners), pretty soon it was time to head to the start line. Neither of us were expecting much out of our performances. All that Punky knew was that he really wanted a sub 2, and I was hoping to go around 1:45 and sticking to MP miles. At the very small start line, Ron and I, along with 1,000 other Stockton peeps stood around waiting for the gun to go off. I made us push up to the front, near some fasties and right ahead of a group of women wear fleece jackets! They snapped lots of pics of the start line where both Ron and I made sure our Punk Rock Racing shirts were visible. - tee hee. Right before the start, the race director served us up this little gem from the top of a ladder, "Congrats to all of you Stockton residents! Did you know you all hold the title as the fattest city in America? Congrats on coming out to beat that!" WOW! Not only do they hold the murder capital of California, they are also the fatties of America! What a great way to motivate some runners!

Ron and I looked at each other, had a good laugh, and said see you at the finish! And with that the gun went off and I just started running. All the rules went out the window that I had given myself for the day. I needed to get one of my last long run in that day and planned on adding 7 or 8 miles to the day after the race when I got home. Yeah, that didn't happen. Right away I was with the lead pack - about 10 of us. Three women and about 6 or 7 men. They were flying. I was right behind the motorcycle cop leading us! It was very cool! I couldn't believe I was holding on! I looked at my watch at about 1/2 a mile in and was running a 6:30! WOWZA! Got to slow down! So I slowed to around 7 and kept at it. I faded back about .10 of a mile but could feel like I was still part of the pack. I had talked about going for the 1:37 I needed to qualify for NY but I wasn't sure I could get it yesterday. In fact, I had put it out of my head completely. But as I was running and feeling pretty good, I started to believe that maybe it was possible. I hit the one mile marker and was about .10 short on my Garmin. I didn't know how that could be since I was running with the front and following their line pretty good. Oh well, I'll keep my work up.
mile 1: 7:09
mile 2: 7:15

I was feeling pretty good the whole time and kept checking in with myself. I wasn't convinced I could hold the needed 7:23's for the whole race but here I was hitting sub that and feeling strong. The mile 2 marker though put me even further short with my Garmin - my Garmin showed 1.80 when I passed it. Great, a short course.

At around mile 2.5 we entered on an out and back onto the University of the Pacific campus. We crossed a bridge, ran through the campus them looped back up a gravel path. NICE! WTH? They also said that there would be water stops every 2 miles starting at mile 2.5. NOT! Didn't get the first aid station until mile 3 almost and then the next one was way after mile 5. This continued the whole race and would be part of my demise.

After the loop at the campus we were dumped onto a levy road that felt like it went for days. At this point I decided to scale back a bit and the lead pack was about 1/2 mile ahead. I was with one other guy at this point and he was pretty consistent so I decided to stick with him. My legs and breathing still felt really good so I just kept ticking off the miles hoping to bank enough time in case I crashed near the end.
mile 3: 7:28
mile 4: 7:30

Miles had slowed up quite a bit but I was okay with that. I was starting to think that I wouldn't have the 1:37 in me, but as I did the math with the short course, I actually had a good chance. By mile 4, the course markers were WAY off - I was consistently reading .40 short or so, and the guy next to me was, too. With that on my side, I was thinking I really had a shot at it.

Up until this point I was 3rd woman overall. But at mile 5 or so, a woman came flying by me out of no where and just like that I was 4th. No biggie, I kept running my race and sticking with Mr. Consistent. All of a sudden though, around 5.5 I had to go to the bathroom - like STAT! My stomach cramped and I wanted to stop. It even hurt to breathe. I could see ahead around mile 6 that there was a potty so I aimed at that. But when I got there it was locked! Argh! I couldn't stop, I didn't want to stop, and decided to push through. Unfortunately though, I was sick to my stomach and couldn't even think of GUing. I grabbed a cup of water and hoped for the best. By mile 7 though, I felt like garbage.
mile 5: 7:36
mile 6: 7:48 (potty stop)
mile 7: 7:51

I wanted the race to be over. We were running through some really, really boring neighborhoods and the crowd support was few and far between. I didn't even have any other racers around me except for Mr. Conistant who was ahead of me. Around mile 7 also, I was passed by another woman - there goes 5th place. In here I decided to keep pushing and see what I had. The miles were still showing short and I thought that if I picked up the pace I might still have a shot at my goal time. So I put my head down and ran.
mile 8: 7:44 (started my kick)
mile 9: 7:29

When I had less than 5 miles left, I was showing that I could really get that 1:37 with the course so short so I kicked. I kept telling myself, "you can do anything for 40 mins!" I pushed hard through mile 9 and found out quick that I had kicked too soon. I needed to scale back. My stomach wasn't too awful, but I knew I still couldn't take a GU and just stuck with water on the last water stop. Mile 10 was a blur, but by mile 11 or so, I was running out of steam and loosing it. Without any GU or any thing but a few sips of water, I had zero energy left. And this is where they dumped us on a bike path that had been chewed up over the years. It was a gravely mess and it hurt to run on it. I just wanted to be done and any thought of the 1:37 had faded out of my head - I just wanted the finish line.
mile 10: 7:43
mile 11: 7:51 (was passed by one more woman - 6th place here I come!)
mile 12: 8:04

With about a mile left, it looked like the crappy bike path was almost over! BUT not before we had to dodge an overgrown tree! Seriously, it was so overgrown, I had to duck down and run through! WTH? Are you kidding me? I felt like I had zero energy, like someone had taken my batteries out. By the end of the bike path, with just over a half mile left, we were back in neighborhoods and winding our way home. My Garmin at mile 12 marker showed 11.68 - still short, so I was doing the math in my head and knew even with the short course I wouldn't get the 1:37. I was okay with that, I was still going to beat my 1:41 from a couple of weeks ago and still ran pretty good.

The last stretch felt like forever. My Garmin was catching up. And this is where they made up a lot of the distance. When I crossed the finish line (finally) my Garmin showed 12.96 miles - so they made up quite a bit even though it was still short.
mile 13: 7:43 (actually .96 on my Garmin)

I crossed the finish line in 1:39:16! I was actually really excited about this! I saw Layla right away and it was soooo good to see a smiling, familiar face. I wanted to puke, though. I was done. I know that if I had gotten to GU and drink more I would have done better. But I wasn't able to get it down and it was my demise. I should have taken it anyway, but run and learn. I was still really glad I ran as well as I did.
Official stats:
13.1 miles: 1:39:15 - 7:35/mi pace
3/20 Age group!!!!
6th woman over all out of 372!!
42/637

After I finally got to use the bathroom and grab a water, Layla and I started looking for Punky. He said he wanted a sub 2 and the clock was showing 1:53 or so. So we started to wander around a bit. All of a sudden, they announced his name and we saw him cross in just the nick of time! Ron got a HUGE PR! I was so excited for him! He's such a sandbager ;) He too, couldn't believe how short the course measured out there, but his Garmin showed 13.02 - a little closer. AND we both complained about the last mile or so being on the gravel path and the tree!

Over all, I would totally run this race again. There were some boring parts, but I really enjoyed it. There wasn't much crowd support, but the race was relatively well organized. Everyone was very friendly and I think Ron and I will be back next year.

I think I was congratulating him crossing the line - ha!

Ron and me at the finish - nice work buddy!

Me, Layla and Ron - thanks Layla for all the great pics!

After we got a bit cleaned up, they were going to be handing out the age group awards. So I talked my peeps into hanging out a bit. The race organizers did great with the after party, with plenty of food and drinks and even a jazz band. But we waited, and waited and they still weren't making moves to do the awards. So, like all fun runners, shenanigans ensued as we waited.

Hello, world? Yeah, it's me Ron. I got a PR!

I finally had to walk over to the race director and ask him for my award. I told him my ride was going to leave me (which may or may not have been true). I thanked him for a good day, told him about the course and grabbed my award.

Me with my AG award - I thought it might be edible ;)

I had a pretty great day hanging with my buddy Ron and my good friend Layla. They are both awesome running buddies. Thanks again Ron for everything ;) And THANK YOU Layla for all the fun pics you took ;)

Needless to say I didn't go home and run my added miles. After driving the hour car ride home from Ron's, my legs were done! My quads were shot. Thankfully today they aren't too bad, nothing a bit of bike work won't help take care of.

Since this has already gotten wayyyyy too long, I'll update you all about my week, give you an update about the doctor's appointment and start the countdown to CIM in less than 3 weeks tomorrow! WOW!

Have a great Monday!

Happy Running Peeps!

P.S. I got another follower! Thanks for stopping by! Let me know who you are!

The Verdict

2010-11-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

Sorry to say, even though I went to the doctor yesterday, I still have no idea what/was causing my craptastic week. But I got you pulled in, didn't I? Sneaky, no? Anywhoo, she did sound a bit alarmed by all the things that went wrong, given I'm usually pretty healthy and in pretty good shape. She ordered up some blood tests, and 8 viles later, I'll get the news at the end of the week. If they're good, no need to go back and to chalk it up as just an off week. If they're not so good, she'll call me back in by Friday and we'll discuss it together in her office. Fingers crossed it was just a bad week.

This week is a ton better. My energy is still not fab, but I think I have figured out how to get around the tummy troubles. I eat my pre-running meal at least 2 hours before, chug some Pepto and chew a couple of ginger candies. Yes, a ton of planning, but so far it has kept me from feeling like I'm going to puke. I'll take it as progress. Hopefully by the end of the week I can wean myself off this stuff:

On the running front, I have done some good miles already. Monday I decided I wanted to hang out with Doug, so off to the gym I went. Yes, it has been beautiful here and the temps absolutely perfect, but I knew some cross training was in order. This time, I went longer than I had the last few times and that Doug really worked me! I chose an interval training session and most of it was out of the saddle! Can you say, holy sore quads! I guess I have weak quads (that's for you Katie)! I also was listening more to Doug this time and he says some pretty funny stuff. For example, he constantly reminds you "this is your ride, own it," or "feel that sweat dripping off of you!" Really? I should be sweating? I knew I was doing something wrong. Also, the music is hilarious! One of the disco mixes is to the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies! Yes, that Christmas song! WTF? Or, some mixed up version of an AC/DC song when he wants you to push hard. I can't say I love his taste in music, but he sure knows how to work a girl out! And finally, he ends the ride with a good old, hands in prayer position, saying "Namaste." He's spiritual, too.

After my ass kicking on the bike, I headed over to the treadmill to get a good BRICK in. I LOVE doing these, you feel like such a bad ass when you're done. I started out slow to let my legs and hips warm up and by mile two I was back at MP. I finished up the run with a 10K and 17.21 miles on the spinner. Nice way to start the week. And in good news, my stomach behaved itself. I was starving by the time I was done (literally I think my stomach was caving in!), but I think that was due to the fact that I had eaten so long before and I had spent almost two hours working out. Needless to say, I enjoyed a brownie after dinner that night.

Yesterday I headed back to the gym (yes, I'm a pansy) because it was sooo windy out. I don't do wind. The gym was empty which was nice, so I got to pick one of the more favorable treadmills (right in back with a TV). I put on HGTV and went to work. After a two mile warm up, I went straight into some speed work, 5x800 at 7:00/mi pace then did a cool down mile before I started 3x1 mile hill repeats. I finished the workout with 9 miles for the day and again starving. Some jerk at the front desk was eating a cheeseburger when I walked out and I did everything I could not to reach across and grab it out of his hand.

With the weather getting darker earlier and the weather not so fab, I think we should all embrace the treadmill and use it to our advantage. It's easy to incorporate speed work and really nail paces. And you can also use the incline to really rock those hill repeats. Yesterday for my hill repeats, I would start out 1.5% incline and slightly slower than MP, then work up to 4% at MP by the end. They kick your butt and get the hills in that you need. I'm going to need some hills workouts since CIM is rollers. Plus, again, you feel like a badass when you're done ;)

This morning my mamma and I are headed over to a grand opening of a Whole ~~Paycheck~~ Foods that is finally making its way to our neck of the woods. Yes, we are dorks, but who wants to pass up free food and schwag?? If anything, it will be a fun time to hang with my mamma and get my grocery shopping done (which if you don't know me, is my nemesis!). I have a medium-long run planned for later in the day when hubbs gets home and so far this week is looking a ton better than last. Thank goodness, let's just cross our fingers the doc doesn't come back with something that will take it all to a screeching halt!

Have a great Wednesday peeps!
Happy Running!
P.S. Got entered into the lottery for NYC 2011 - who's with me?
P.S.S. Thinking about a half this weekend to catch the 1:37 that I need to qualify - can't decide still.
P.S.S.S. Last one I promise...lost a follower, WTH?

What's Up?

2010-11-08T10:38:00.000-08:00

I know that I have blogged about this in the past, but I had to remind myself of this again: leave it at the last hole (leave the last run behind you). I had a horrible, terrible, no good running week last week. Everything was off. My stomach was a mess, my legs felt like lead and when you added those two together, my head was filled with doubts and fears. I couldn't get a good run in to save my life - not even a so-so one where I at least felt like I had accomplished something with all my craziness. I slogged through every run, thinking that it had to get better...but in reality, it didn't and I felt even worse as the week went on.

I had my breaking point on Friday. All week I felt like I was going to puke, nothing seemed to help. After I put out the SOS on Thursday a few of you suggest ginger. I ran to the store as quick as I saw that and started sucking on ginger candies. They helped a bit but they didn't solve the problem. So I gave up and made an appointment with my doctor for tomorrow. Something is just off. I can't put a on finger on it. I just feel like garbage and I have tried most everything to no avail.

Even though I felt like garbage, I still managed to get my runs in. In hind-sight, probably not the best move on my part. But I wanted to run, I needed to run and I put up with having to stop 10 times during my 10 miler on Friday. Saturday, after talking with Jill on Friday afternoon, I decided to take a rest day. She reminded me of my crazy hard half just that past Saturday and that my body was probably trying to just recover. Hmmm...she might be on to something. But it was hard to believe since I felt perfectly fine just the day after. I listened to her wise words and stuck to some cross training.

Sunday when I woke up, I didn't feel great, but I wanted to run. Unfortunately, it was pouring and windy here. And, I've said it before, I'm a pansy with the wind and the rain. So I did the unthinkable - I did my long run on the dreamdill. Yes, I gathered my GU, my water and plopped the mill in front of the TV while I pounded out 16 miles. It wasn't too awful, I watched the NYC Marathon on TV and some football. I started out pretty slow and worked myself up to faster than MP for the final miles. I felt awesome. My legs were fresh, my tummy did not act up and by the time I hit 16 I could have kept going. I have no explanation for it. If you had asked me on Friday if I would tackle 16 on Sunday, I would have told you that you were crazy. Surprisingly though, it went as well as I could have hoped for. I really wanted to do 18 or 20, but let's be real here - 16 is FAR enough for the dreadmill and I was happy with what I got.

I'm a bit sore today, but I have a feeling that is from the fact that I ran flat for the whole 16 miles. No change in elevation can really take it's toll. I'm still going to the doctor tomorrow because I am sure that what ever was up with me all last week is probably still sticking around and I am sure it's probably not gone for good knowing my luck. I have to leave last week's craptastic week behind me. I have less than a month until CIM and I don't want to waste what precious training time I have left worrying about one bad week. Mentally I was really beat up last week. I couldn't see myself getting out of that funk. Today though, I feel a ton better. And that is a lesson to myself. I've been talking on and on about how my head always gets the best of me, and I need to really start working on it. I can't let one week ruin my game plan.

Somehow I managed 55 miles last week. They were just miles though, I don't think any of them were quality - except for maybe the 16. I need to start listening to my body, too. I am sure I didn't do myself any good by being stubborn and still attempting to pound out miles. Lesson learned. I have a pretty good mileage week ahead of me and I'm still going to see what the doctor has to say. Crossing my fingers that it was just my body trying to recover from that fun half.

I have spent the morning attempting to register for the 2011 New York Marathon. I think the server is just overloaded though because I get to the final page and hit submit and it times out before it goes through. No worries, I think we still have some time. I'm also contemplating running a half this weekend with my buddy Ron. I would love to get that 1:37 half that I need to guarantee entry into NYC. We'll see. If having to have a crappy week after to recover is what will be in store, I don't know if it's worth it - CIM is ultimately my big goal. Going to figure that out today ;)

I'll let you know what the doctor says after tomorrow - thanks again to all of you for your support ;) I'm off to catch up with all of you busy peeps!
Happy Monday and Happy Running peeps!

Three Things Thursday

2010-11-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

1. When I went for my recovery run on Sunday last week, the day after my race, my legs were NOT at all sore - they felt fresh and awesome. Which, again, I couldn't believe. I thought for sure I would feel the affects of the race. But I enjoyed the run and was excited for training this week. Then Monday came and disaster hit. My legs were like led, my quads were tight and my right hamstring decided to rear it's ugly head. Also, my stomach was a mess. And that has been the the theme all week - my stomach does not like running, and I can't figure out why. Nothing has changed in my diet and no, not prego. When I'm not running, I'm good to go. But every run this week, after about 10 mins of running, I want to puke. The second I stop, it goes away. Needless to say, every run this week involved a few extra stops. Not good - any thoughts peeps? I'm at a loss, and miserable :( Amazing how you can go from feeling on top of the world with your running to feeling like garbage in the matter of days - fickle running!

2. I hate to say it, but this stomach thing really got the best of me this week - hence it gets "two bullet points" here on TTT. Mentally, I feel drained. All I keep worrying about is weather I can fix this in time for CIM or am I doomed to deal with this the rest of the training cycle and race. I thought for a day it might have been all in my head, all fear based. But yesterday I did all my usual pre-race rituals and it still ended up the same way. In fact, I was on the trail with my hubbs yesterday, about 5 miles in to my 10 mile run and I just looked at him and started crying - what the hell am I doing wrong? So, today I changed up breakfast and am waiting a little bit longer to run, in hopes of feeling a bit better. I also bought a giant bottle of Pepto Bismol - I'm going to chug that stuff before hand. Can't hurt!

3. I have a low key weekend planned and I couldn't be more excited! Every weekend for the past month I have had something going on. Not this weekend! Aside from my last 20+ miler that I need to get in, I am going to be doing nothing! No place to be, no one to be accountable to except for ourselves. I've been wicked busy with work this week and having nothing on my plate sounds divine!

P.S. I just added my Daily Mile Widget on the side - come find me on Daily Mile and we can motivate each other there, too!
I'm off to check in with all of you!
Happy Thursday and Happy Running peeps!

Holy Hills! Race Report: Healdsburg Half Marathon

2010-11-01T09:11:00.000-07:00

Excuses:
I had a million excuses yesterday before I ever even toed the line. Seems to be a theme around here. I need to work on it. Some of the excuses I was giving myself for a less than stellar race were: it's cold, I didn't get to "go," I want to run with my friends, I have a cold, I ate Mexican food last night, it might rain, there is a ton of hills! As you can see, they weren't really a bag of excuses I could use if I bagged the race. So, I sucked it up and went with the idea that I would just see how I feel.

I ran this race last year with Aron, and remembered that it was a rolling hills kind-of race. The race course takes you through the foothills of wine country in Healdsburg, passing 24 beautiful wineries. Other than the rolling hills, I couldn't remember too much about the course other than that last year, I couldn't wait to get to the finish line.

Healdsburg is about 3+ hours away from me by car. So the day before (after a slight panic attack) I decided to head up with my sister and stay the night in near by Santa Rosa. I'm so glad I decided to do this, I got a decent night's sleep and didn't have to stress about waking up at 2 am to make the 7:15am start! I arrived at the start by about 6:30 and immediately ran into my team mates for Team Punk Rock Racing! Aron, Tara, Page, Ron and Aron's good friend Jessica were all amped and ready to enjoy our beautiful run in wine country. Ron had supplied the whole team with some great Punk Rock Racing shirts! Thanks Ron ;)

Jessica, Page and Aron sporting the shirts before the race!

The weather was perfect for running and racing - cool and overcast with showers expected by the end. Pretty soon it was time to line up and we all crowded together at the start talking race strategy. I still didn't know what I had in me. I had over 40 miles on my legs for the week and I was just hoping to come in with a 1:45 or MP for the race. Right away they yelled, "GO!" and we were off! I turned my music on and bobbed and weaved through the start following Aron. In the first two miles you are greeted by your first couple of hills. They are gradual but they can take a toll on you if you hit them too hard too fast. I decided to cruise, and enjoy the pretty morning and the scenery. My legs were feeling pretty fresh. For a split second, I thought, "this is going to be a good day!" Around mile 1.5 I began to pick up the pace and just see what I had in me.

mile 1: 7:55

mile 2: 8:03 (big hill and trying to conserve)

Right away I could see that the mile markers were not spot on by a long shot. I was running the tangents pretty well, and when I passed the mile 3 marker it was already reading I was .15 short. Oh well, a short course, I'll take it. Mile three was the first water stop, and learning from my last race, decided to take a quick cup of water and keep running. It actually went well! And off I went.

The whole course is pretty much up and down. The up's weren't too terribly awful, but some were longer than others and gradual. I would put my head up, kick up my knees, conserve it a little bit and then use the down hill to open my stride and use it to my advantage. I was feeling pretty dang good in here and just really enjoying all the pretty wineries around us. At this point I also was trying to get away from as many people dressed in costumes as I could! I didn't want peeps in costumes to beat me! I passed quite a few in this mile but there was still a guy about .2 ahead of me wearing a giant yellow mustard costume. It looked uncomfortable and I was going to be damned it he beat me to the finish! Thankfully, at mile 4, he pulled over to stretch - sucka'! That's what you get for dressing up as mustard for Halloween!

mile 3: 7:48

mile 4: 7:32 (HAD to pass mustard guy!)

At this point I was feeling fabulous and kept expecting it wasn't going to last. But the funny thing was, my legs kept wanting to turn over. I've been working on my stride and my kick for the past few weeks. And as I ran I really was trying to be mindful of this.

mile 5: 7:50 (water stop)

mile 6: 8:00 (water stop + GU)

By mile six I was looking at my watch and seeing I had been being quite conservative up to this point. I was still afraid I was going to bonk but decided to see how long it would last. I decided to just push on and see where I got.

mile 7: 7:52

mile 8: 7:46 (HUGE HILL where I may or may not have yelled a bad word when I saw it!)

mile 9: 7:44 (water stop)

Wow! I was flying and feeling awesome. I wanted to pinch myself. There was a woman in a green running jacket who was just flowing so nicely by me. She was miss consistent. I wanted to pass her though. I couldn't get away from her. The crowd had thinned out at this point and I knew we were getting close to the final stretch. The final stretch at mile 10 dumps you on a pretty straight and flat road. The hills were over. Up till this point I was actually enjoying the hills. I give them credit for not making my legs tire out. Using different muscles the whole time made it seem like the course went by really fast.

The last three miles on the straight section are on a road that is a bit cambered. I HATE THIS! They tore my legs up in San Diego and in Big Sur. This time though, I decided to just really focus on finding all the flat parts and keep turning over. I know I keep saying this, but my legs were still feeling fresh and by mile 10 when I knew I had a 10K left I started to fly. My breathing felt good, my kick was great and I started passing a ton of dudes. The course was still measuring a bit short up until mile 10, but nothing too crazy. But when I got to the mile 11 marker, my Garmin said I was at 10.80! WOW! Really short. I asked a few dudes around me if they were measuring short and they said they were too, but said this course ends up pretty accurate in the end. At the mile 12 marker, my Garmin said 11.75 still, even shorter. That was just the boost I needed though, mentally it felt like the finish line was so close!

mile 10: 7:43

mile 11: 7:32

mile 12: 7:28

After I passed the mile 12 marker my Garmin was finally catching up. I was so close though and started to do the math in my head. In the beginning, I was okay with a 1:45, in the middle of the race I was looking at sub 1:44, and now with just a mile left I could see I was going to be sub 1:42! I started kicking myself for being so conservative in the first half. Who knows, maybe it saved my legs for the end? Maybe it didn't, all that I knew was that my fastest half for the year was in sight and I wasn't going to let it slip away!

mile 13: 7:22

last .15: 1:01 - 6:50/mi pace

As soon as I rounded the corner for the last .10 I kicked it in and could see the clock reading 1:41:xx! I was so excited! I crossed the finish line and hit stop on my Garmin: 1:41:42! YES! I couldn't believe how good it felt! I felt awesome! It was just the race I had hoped for!

Final Stats:

Garmin: 1:41:42

13.15 miles : 7:44/mi pace (see, it did catch up!)

Official Results:

1:41:43 - 7:46/mi pace

3rd AG of 30-34 (3/270) - so excited for this!

overall: 103/1870

My sister and her boyfriend were waiting for me at the finish and it felt so good to share it with them. I was in shock at how well I ran and how well I felt. I kept saying I couldn't believe it! Everything went right out there. Sometimes the stars align and you just go with it. Within a minute or so, Page crossed the finish line and I got to congratulate her and then Aron crossed with a stellar race, too!

The cute medal (thanks Tara for the pic!)

Soon, Ron, Tara and Jessica all came in and it was so much fun to celebrate with them and compare stories. It is a tough course. You can burn yourself out easily on those hills. But I feel like I ran it the right way. I picked it up when I could and scaled back when I needed to. This was just the race I needed to send me into the final weeks before CIM. CIM is a lot like this, rolling hills with a net down hill. I ran them smart and I think this strategy will serve me well come December 5th.

Me, Aron & Page at the finish!

Aron, Ron, Tara and Me

The finish is pretty well organized. And by the time everyone crossed and got there stuff it was already starting to rain. Perfect timing.

I had a blast at this race. Not just because I ran great but because I had my peeps out there. Running a race with your friends out on the same course is just perfect. I loved waiting for them all to get in and congratulate them all. Thanks Team Punk Rock Racing - I had a blast, as always ;)

I'm excited to head into the next five weeks of training for CIM. My confidence level went through the roof. I need to really focus on being more positive and not letting my head get the best of me. Saturday when I started believing in myself, it all came together.

I finished the week off yesterday with a 6.2 mile recovery run and finish the week with 59.72 miles. My right hamstring that has been slightly bugging me for a bit has reared it's ugly head. I think changing my kick a bit has made it angry so more stretching will be necessary before and after my runs ;)

Congrats to all of you who raced this weekend! I'm off to catch up with all of you!

Hope you all had a great Halloween!

Happy November 1st! and Happy Running peeps!

Letting the Cat Out

2010-10-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

I have some unfinished business. Business that I need to take care of, sooner rather than later. See, I had big hopes for myself this year. I had goals and times that I wanted to meet and worked hard for months on end. When Long Beach came, I knew it wasn't my time to shine. I knew it wasn't my day. And being the smart runner that I am, I set my sights on something new. Maybe I had this in the back of my mind the whole time - maybe not. Maybe I set myself up to fail before I even gave myself a chance. Who knows? What I did realize though, is that I still want to achieve my goal of hitting a low 3:30 in the marathon before the year is up.

The night before Long Beach, when I decided not to run the full, I had made up my mind. I formed my plan and took the steps to put it into action. I couldn't wait to finish that race, drive home and hit register on something new. I knew all along which race was calling my name. I haven't talked about it here yet because I was still forming my own thoughts and ideas of how this next race will play out. I don't want any added pressure put on myself and with that I have spent the last couple of weeks working on my head. See, I know I built it up way too far in advance for myself (I just don't do well with LONG training plans). I talked the talk, but when it came down to it, I couldn't walk the walk because I scared myself shitless. This time, I wanted to be sure, I wanted it to be the right decision, and I'm finally excited to see what I have in me.

So, when I got home from Long Beach, and had a nice long chat with the hubbs, I decided to register for C.I.M. - the California International Marathon on December 5th. Yes, that is the race where I chickened out at the start last year because it was so dang cold! But not only was it frigid out, I was also burnt out. I had just raced 3 marathons and a couple of halves in the mater of just 8 weeks before that. I was done racing. This year though, come frigid temps or pounding rain...I will be at that start line to take home my own marathon victory.

I thought about not sharing this on here. I thought about posting about it maybe the Friday before? But that is not me, that is not what my blog is about. Honesty is the best policy, and I know you are all super supportive. I've re-worked a training plan for the next 6 weeks and am doing some tweaking in my diet and my cross training. I want to give myself everything I have before I toe the line so that there will be no excuses. Also, the hubbs will be at the finish line; above all, no matter what happens that day, that is most important to me.

I also want to announce...I didn't even attempt to register for Boston on October 18th. Nope, didn't eve open the BAA website. I had also made that decision that weekend. It was hard not to, and for a bit I was sad. But when it closed the very same day, I knew I had made the right decision for me. I will be sad I won't get to meet many of you come April, but I have other plans to work on next year. Bigger things that I want to do. Boston is awesome, I will get my redemption race in 2012. I do plan on running NY marathon if I get in (any help on this is greatly appreciated!), or maybe even possibly going the charity route to ensure I get in. That will be my big destination race next year - and I'm excited!

So, I've spilled the beans, let the cat out of the bag, told you all where I'm at and where I'm going. Phew, I feel better! My head finally feels like it is screwed on tight and I can put one foot in front of the other as I count down the days until December 5th! Thanks again for all your support!

Have a great Tuesday!
Happy Running peeps!

The Other Side

2010-10-24T14:08:00.000-07:00

As I'm sure you have seen, I race a lot. And I'm always so grateful for all the people that volunteer and put on the races. As runners, we are so lucky to be able to just show up, run our race, have someone hand us water and supplies, have a great time, then hop in the car and head home, relishing in a great day of running. But as I'm sure we all know, it takes a lot of work to put on a race - of any size.

For a while I have been meaning to finally volunteer. It's so hard though when it's a race that you really, really want to run. I've had every intention all summer of doing my part, but the race always entices me to say, "maybe the next one." But I had run out of excuses and decided last week I would man up and give back to the running community.

Earlier in the week, Punk Rock Ron, had asked me if I wanted to join him on a cheap, short (read 12 mile) trail half marathon in his neck of the woods. I love me some trail running! Right away though, I thought, this is my time to step up and volunteer! So I emailed the race director, told him I was available and he welcomed me with open arms to help with the 5th Annual Los Voqueros Tarantula Run! The run is put on by the Contra Costa County water district to bring attention to all that they do for water supply in the area. It was a small race, probably with no more than 250 peeps. They had a 5K, 10K, and a (12 mile) half marathon. I thought starting small was probably my best bet ;)

Ron had also invited our good friend, always up for a race, Stacey! This was turning out to be a great Saturday! The only problem was, I was sad that I wasn't going to run with those two characters. I knew though, I had a job to do and it was on! The race is in Livermore, about an hour and ten minutes away from Stacey and I, and I was scheduled to be at the race by 7 am. Ugh! Stacey though, is a morning person like me, so I hitched a ride with her and we were off hitting the road by 5:45 on a Saturday morning. Yeah, us runners are crazy.

The weather was predicted to be cold, wet, and rainy - perfect. And, I was coming down with a cold. Perfect. No worries, I knew I would have a blast and my face would hurt from laughing so hard at those two that I would completely forget my runny nose.

RBR - the trooper showing up with me in the dark!

Right away the race looked super organized. I was jazzed, especially since this group doesn't put on many races a year. They had plenty of tents set up, registration, bib pick up and refreshments all ready by the time I showed up. My first task was to make sure that each runner signed a waiver before picking up their bib. This was very cool since I got to interact with pretty much every runner of the day. The other plus was, that they were also having a 5K, and with any 5K you get lots of peeps who are running their first race! And there wasn't a shortage of them! So very cool to be apart of some one's first entry into running. I helped a few newbies pin their bibs on the FRONT of their shirts and remind them that running would be a blast, and no, they won't get lost on the trails!

Working the waiver booth ;)

Finally Ron showed up, (read, fashionably late on the short bus) and hilarity ensued. Ron and Stacey always make any situation fun, even when it was rainy and windy!

Sorry for the crappy photo - it was still dark out. But would you look at the calves on that guy! Nice!

When all the races had started, I was soon recruited to work the timing area. They were using one timing clock and the tear tag system. It was my job to tear the tags off and string them in order. Everyone was super friendly, and I was pretty much the only volunteer who was an actual runner. Everyone else came out to volunteer who worked for the water district. They all had a bunch of questions and I think I even inspired a few to look for a 5K of their own and start running. :) The first half marathoner came in at 1:05 and man, was he sweaty! That was the story of the day, tearing off sweaty, wet tags from the runners. Many had never used the tear tag system before, so there was lots of yelling of, "stay behind the person you came in behind! Don't get of order!" Everyone who came across said the trails were a blast, and I was sad once again I wasn't out there experiencing for myself. I knew though, I was in the right place.

The day seemed to go by really fast! All of a sudden it was almost 11 am and we were waiting on just a few runners to come in. Read, Stacey and Ron were still out there lallygagging and hamming it up for the camera. I had to laugh, they were contemplating taking down part of the running shoot with 9 runners still out there! I told them they couldn't, my peeps were still out there! LOL! Sure enough, 2 hours and 45 minutes later, a tall guy (with great calves by the way) and cute little chic (with a smokin' ass) came running across the finish line and I got to congratulate my two running buddies for surviving the rainy race!

My duties were pretty much done for the day when those two came across. They only had 5 more runners out there and they began tearing down the finish area. That kind-of made me mad, but from a logistical stand point, I got it. They would still be timed, just no big fan fair.

Ron and Stacey reassured me that their lengthy run was due to the fact that they had to rescue someone from a burning house, help a mamma cow give birth...and stop to tie their shoes a few times. They are such a bunch of do gooders! There was one other funny story of the day: a goat came out to cheer everyone on. Yes, you read that right, a goat. The story of the goat is actually quite sad. She belonged to an employee who had worked at the water district for over 25 years. She was quite instrumental in the race each year. Unfortunately though, she passed away suddenly just a few months back. They brought her goat out to honor her, as everyone who knew her said she loved Sarah the goat and all her animals.

Sarah the goat - I tried to get a picture with her, but my camera died :(

So the day was a huge success in my book. Even though I had to get up at the butt crack of dawn on a Saturday and brave the rainy elements with a cold, I still got to give back to the running community, hang with a goat named Sarah, and laugh my butt off with two of my fav running buddies! Success!

Stacey and me after the race

My buddy Ron

I'm so glad I went and volunteered on Saturday. It felt really good to cheer on all the runners coming across the finish line and to experience the race from a different perspective. I promised myself I won't wait so long to do it again! If you've never volunteered, give it a shot! I'm on the prowl now to find my next one!

The week went by really quick for me. I was busy and tired - I think the cold was coming on since Wednesday. I had a pretty decent week of running. I managed some speed work, a 12 mile medium long run and took two rest days. I also was able to get in one more attempt at a long run today. It was miserable with the rain, wind and cold, and decided it would be smart for me to turn around a 5 and just stick with 10 instead of the 18 I had planned. I'm hoping I will get out tomorrow morning for my long run - just need to get over this cold! I rounded out the week with about 47 miles. Not my best showing but I needed to get over this cold! I have the Healdsburg Wine Country Half Marathon on Saturday and I want to be healthy!

I'm off to catch up with all of you! Congrats to all the racers!
Have a great week and Happy Running Peeps!

Long Beach Race Report

2010-10-18T12:43:00.000-07:00

The short version: I didn't run the full. I ran the half and enjoyed myself!

The long version: take a seat, this may be a while ;)

Saturday morning, my mom and I hit the road for Southern California at 6am. With very little traffic, we were down there in record time and hitting up the expo after lunch around 12:30. The expo was so-so, they cramped the vendors into a pretty small area that they could have opened more and none of the volunteers knew what was going on. No biggie, I've been through the race experience a zillion times, we'll figure it out in the morning. By 2 we were checked into our hotel and taking a nap ;)

My running buddy and bloggy friend L.B. had asked me earlier in the week if we we wanted to have dinner with him. Of course I did! So, around 5 my mamma, my uncle who lives in the area and I all met Luis at California Pizza Kitchen for a nice pre-race dinner. All of downtown Long Beach was buzzing with runners - it was fun to be out in that atmosphere. Luis had plans of PRing at the half the next day and as we talked race strategy I had that same sinking feeling arise in me that I had pushed down all week and all day: I did not want to run the full. I had been telling myself that I would be fine once I got to the start, but I could not fight the anxiety that had built. I teased Luis that I would join him in the half, but I don't think he believed me. I don't think I believed myself.

By the time my mom and I got to our hotel, I let her know I was not going to run the full. She was actually quite glad, as she was worrying and could see it was eating at me all day. The second I said it out loud and confirmed for myself that it was the new plan, I felt a huge weight come off of me. Sure, I was a bit disappointed in myself, I was a bit sad not to be able to feel that marathon glory tomorrow, but I was okay with my decision. And that for me sealed the deal and reassured me that I was making the right choice for me.

When I woke up the next morning bright and early to get ready, for a split second I thought, "I should suck it up and just run the full." But I knew I wouldn't be happy - and no one wants to be unhappy at mile 15 of a marathon. Your heart has to be in it - and I just knew mine was not. We arrived at the start with plenty of time. I have to say there were a billion porta potties and I had no troubles at all with that aspect of the morning. What was a problem: the race corrals. They had all the races start together, and no defined racing corrals. Everyone just piled into the start area - and this was bad. I pushed my way to the front, just about 3 deep back from the elite. But all around me were people who should NOT have been in the front. By the time I was ready to start, I knew I had made the right choice.

The weather was actually quite humid. Both my mom and I commented on it numerous times during the weekend. We don't get much, if any, humidity where we live. So, when we feel it, WE FEEL IT. The weather temp-wise though, was perfect for running. That made me excited. But because I had been focusing on my race strategy all week for the full, I had not thought about my half. In a split second, I decided to see if could go sub 1:45 and attempt a bit faster pace than my MP (8:00) miles. I felt ready to run fast!

The gun went off and I was immediately glad I was not running the full. I had made the right choice and it felt good. The course has a lot of out and backs and loops, and that was one of the reasons I really didn't want to run the full. The first half there are a few out and backs, but the whole second half, from mile 10.5 and back to the finish is a giant out and back with a small little loop. I'm not good at out and backs mentally, I know this about myself and I had seen that on the course and knew it would be disaster for me.

I was cruising along pretty well early on, all the way through the 6 mile marker. It was so humid and wet out, I was soaked! I don't think I have ever been that soaked on a run before (aside from running in the rain!). By mile 6, I could feel things rubbing me raw - again, a good thing I wasn't running the full!

I was totally cruising through the first 6, it felt soooo good to just run and not think too much. I also wore my iPod, which I haven't done for a race in forever!
mile 1 - 7:42 (feeling pretty good)
mile 2 - 7:41
mile 3 - 7:39
mile 4 - 7:46
mile 5 - 7:36
mile 6 - 7:42 (I.am.so.thirsty.)
mile 7 - 7:59 (need.water.now.)
mile 8 - 7:58 (where is the water stop?)

Finally at mile 9, I came up to a water stop and walked through it. I drank down two cups of water. I had been just cruising along for so long that I didn't pay attention to any drinking or eating. I was enjoying the course (it's always fun to run in a new place), the scenery and just running that I never thought of drinking! I know, I'm an idiot. But when you were once staring down the barrel of a full, and now you're running a half, you think you have this in the bag! Wrong! You still have to be prepared, and not paying attention in the first half of the race cost me dearly.
mile 9 - 8:20 (walked through water stop)
mile 10 - 8:13 (walked through next water stop)
mile 11 - 8:28 (took an orange and a cup of water from a nice family outside cheering)
Also, in between mile 10 and 11 was the split for the full. For a split second (again!) I felt like going right. There was a guy on a ladder standing in the middle of the split directing runners. When I went with the half, he was yelling at me to go to the right! I gave him the cut off sign and kept running. I felt like an idiot. I felt like a failure. I felt deflated. By the time I got to mile 11, even though I had ran pretty well, I didn't want to run anymore. I just wanted to be done with all things Long Beach.
mile 12 - 8:29 (where the hell is the damn finish!)
mile 13 - 7:50
last .2 - 7:25/mi pace

Total time: 1:44:56
7:56/mi pace
div place (F 30-34): 23/946
overall place: 529/9107

When I got to the finish, I think I was one of the first to come through with a full marathon bib and everyone looked perplexed. The young kids handing out medals and blankets did not know what to do with me. It wasn't until I met up with LB at the finish that I saw that they gave me the full marathon medal - not the half :( Oh well, I payed for it and I know how the day went.

Right when I finished I saw my mom. She was so glad I ran the full. And so was I! I was covered in sweat. I was soaking wet and I had chaffed bad, which never happens to me. The weather had cooled a ton and I just wanted to leave. But NOT before I saw LB cross the finish! We finally got to meet up with LB on the other side of the finish area where we shared ~~battle~~ race stories from the course. Go and check out his big PR from yesterday!!!

The finish area was a bit of a disaster, but nothing that a little patience couldn't cure. By the time I got my bag and got out of there, I was ready to go home. I ran a decent race, I enjoyed the company and the town of Long Beach and crossed off the Long Beach Half as one of the races I need for the California Dreamin Series. I just have to run the Surf City Half in February to get my giant bling!

I learned a lot about myself with this race. I learned that, if your heart isn't in a race, you're not going to enjoy yourself. But on top of that, I also learned that you need to prepare yourself mentally before any race if you want to do well. I may have set myself up to fail from the get-go. I only wanted to run this race to BQ, and nothing else. I was never excited about the race itself, I wasn't excited that my hubbs couldn't join me. I never made the race important. Sure, I trained the hell out of it for it. Sure, I could have gone there and probably gotten the job done in terms of my time goals. But I never gave myself a chance - and that is where I come up short. I'm not ashamed. I'm not upset. I'm actually really proud of myself for recognizing that the full was not the one for me. Again, sure, I could have owned up to it way earlier on. But I was so focused on the task at hand (i.e. BQing again) that I ignored all of my fears. In the end though, I did what was right for me, I ran a race that I enjoyed way more. I was adult enough, and I was a smart enough runner to know: you don't run a race that you don't want to. You don't run a race that your heart is not into. Take that piece of advice from all of this: be committed, or you will surely fail.

I have big plans coming up. Big things I want to do. I am in great shape. I'm totally in BQ form right now and I want to see what I can do. I have some things in the works right now, I'll share it all with you in due time. But right now, I want to continue to run strong and enjoy it. I don't get paid to do this, it's not my job. I'm so excited that I still get to run this week - I'm not sore at all from yesterday. I still have one more goal race left in me for this year and I'm excited about it - no, really I AM!

Thank you to all of you for your support over the last few weeks. You were all in my head and heart yesterday when I made the right decision. I know you would have all told me to do what I did: run what you're going to enjoy - don't force it. So again, thanks for all the encouragement this past week, for believing in me and cheering for me. Don't worry, that 3:30 is in me, it will make it's day debut!

You all did amazing this weekend! I'm off to catch up with all you crazy marathoners! Congrats to Tonia and Marlene, and my girl Tara who is now a fellow Marathon Maniac! Whoo hoo!
I will also post all the fun pics from the race tomorrow, including my fun time with Luis!

Happy Monday and Happy Running peeps!

3 Sleeps

2010-10-14T15:23:00.000-07:00

(Thanks Marlene for the good blog post title ;))

3 sleeps and 12 miles are all that separate me and the starting line at the Long Beach Marathon on Sunday. Wow, it came fast! Tapering has not been easy (not that any of you don't know that) but I feel like I have really kept a level head this week (level being relative) and I'm hoping that it will bring me peace when I toe the line.

One second I'm jazzed and tell myself I'm ready - the next, I'm doubting myself, telling myself to hold back and just run it for fun, or better yet, the terror of running 26.2 miles at all makes me want to puke. I know I can cover the distance, it's the fast part that is killing me.

Monday I got on the treadmill and ran 8 miles at a comfortable pace.* When I was finished I felt renewed and ready. I went about my day and then...the Giants were in the bottom of the 7th and trailing! I was freaking out! If you don't know, I'm a huge San Francisco Giant's fan. Actually I love baseball, but my Giant's are doing awesome this year. Finally, by the 8th they took the lead and it was down to 6 outs! Argh! I was freaking out! So, I jumped on the treadmill to watch the last 6 outs and channel my anxiety! Those three miles were NOT on the taper schedule, but it felt oh so good to be pounding out some miles as they captured their victory! Whoo hoo! I love me some post season baseball!

Tuesday I had 7 miles on the schedule with 3 at MP. Sounds easy enough. So again, I jumped on the old mill and ran great! I did a nice warm up, 3.5 miles at an 8:30 pace then hit my MP miles feeling ready. I actually ran 2.5 at MP and then sped it up for the last at a 7:52 pace. Again, it felt good, comfortable...doable. But anything is doable for 7 miles. Anything is even doable for 13.1. It's the 26.2 miles that is throwing me for a loop.

If denial was an island, I would save up the cash to buy it. That is where I find myself most of the day this week. I forget I'm even running on Sunday, then, like a flash it enters my mind and I'm back to square one doubting everything. Taper does crazy things to your head. I'm hungry as hell, anxious, feel every bone from my feet to my hips, and doubt the last 14 or so weeks of training. Why do we do this again?

On the positive side, I'm excited to have a mini-vacay with my Mamma! Since Ari can't go with me, my Mamma decided to step up and come with! She is like the super fan you always want on your side. You can do no wrong, she says all the right things in the right moment, and well, who wouldn't want their Mamma with them? We're going to head down early on Saturday morning, hit up the expo and hopefully have dinner with L.B. (resident Long Beach expert and he's running the Long Beach half! Go L.B.!) And a ton of Bay Area friends and blog peeps are running the full and half, too! I can't wait to see all of them! Plus, looks like the weather is going to be cooperating and perfect for running!

With my reservation set, my race confirmed, and all plans set in motion, all I need now is to let go and run on Sunday. I need to quit analyzing everything. I need to quit worrying and enjoy the experience. I want to look back and say that I did everything in my power to meet my goal: which includes staying positive and not letting taper brain take away from the experience.

I'm off to get another 7 miler in with some MP miles. I had a rest day yesterday and all my legs want to do is run, run and RUN! I'm going to run 5 tomorrow and take Saturday as a rest day - I do really well when I have a rest day between races. I'll check in with all of you tomorrow, and I will be sure to wish all of you running and racing this weekend, GOOD LUCK!

*lots of dreadmill running this past week - there is another crazy on the loose and the hubbs is not liking me running outside at the moment :( Boo!
Off to catch up with all of you! Again, congrats to all of you Chi-town finishers - you are HARD CORE in my book!
Happy Thursday and Happy Running peeps!

Firday Update

2010-10-08T10:06:00.000-07:00

This week went by quick! And all of a sudden I realized I hadn't posted since Monday! Sorry! Time flies when you're busy!

I've also been really stuck inside my head. Meaning, I have been really caught up in all my thoughts about my running and my upcoming races. I've shared on here numerous times in the past that I had my doubts about Long Beach. I haven't been able to wrap my head around what I really wanted to accomplish. I do want to BQ again. I do want to race well. But my heart hasn't been in it and it's been playing games with me. I had told myself I wouldn't make any decisions until after Lake Tahoe - my favorite race of the year. And at Tahoe I was able to meet my goals. I figured that would be enough for me. I could cross the year off as a success. But when I got home, I wasn't so sure I was done, but I also wasn't so sure I was ready to tackle another big "A" race.

All year Long Beach has been my big goal. I have big plans next year and in a way this would be my going out party - hopefully on a high note. I race a lot during the year, as I am sure you can see by my cute little side bar to the right. And maybe that is the problem - I could be a bit burned out, which is exactly what happened last year. I don't think though that that is the problem. I think that I have let those little doubt demons into my head way too much. As anyone who has ever dreamed of BQing knows that it's a big deal. A lot of work and time and energy goes into crossing the finish line with a time that takes you to Beantown. It isn't easy. It's hard to put all the hard work of training in and then not see you meet your goal. I guess in a way, I'm afraid to fail. There, I said it.

We all put our own pressures on ourselves with our running. We do it for us at the end of the day. No one is breathing down our necks telling us we have to hit certain times or paces, no one but ourselves. When you work hard all year and put in all the time and energy you do have a fear that maybe...it wasn't good enough. I have hit all my planed runs, paces and times - for the most part. I may have skipped a few runs but nothing that should keep me from hitting my goal. But for the last couple of months, I just haven't been able to believe in myself. I haven't been able to say, "I got this in the bag." I feel like I had lost my fire.

All week I have been going back and forth with what to do. I even contemplated adding one more full at the end of the season as a "just in case" race. But you know what? I don't want a "just in case" race, I want my goal race to be the race. I talked it over with my good friend Jill and of course, my biggest supporter, the hubbs. Both believe in me and it wasn't until yesterday that I put on my big girl pants and said, I can do this!

It has taken me a long time to get here. I had a great tack workout yesterday. It wasn't planned, but I just didn't feel like going out and running a full 10 yesterday which was on the schedule and with the weather so perfect the hubbs and I went to the track instead. I did 8x800's and nailed every single one. I'm not sure if I have shared my biggest goal for Long Beach, but I would really, really, really love to shoot for a low 3:30. All my training is pointing to it. So, thanks to Yasso 800's, I should be doing my 800's at 3:30. Again, all training cycle I have been hitting the paces - but each time I always told myself it was just a fluke. Until yesterday, when the hubbs was out there with the stop watch. I actually was hitting them each time, and usually faster! I finished my 8x800's with an average of 3:22 - way above where I needed to be. And that my friends, sealed the deal for me.

The hubbs and I talked a long time after we got home. My biggest fear is the fact that he won't be able to come and ride with me. He won't be at the finish line for me. He won't be back at the hotel to help me pull on my compression socks when I'm too tired to do it myself. I was afraid I couldn't do it without him. All of that went out the window yesterday. All of those doubts were erased. Sometimes we need that good workout to remind us we really do have it in us - we just need to get out of our own way.

I feel really good today. I finally made a decision and I'm at peace with it. I'm going to toe the line in Long Beach with every intention of coming home with another BQ. I have wanted it so badly but didn't give myself the courage to say I could get it. I have a plan. I have some ideas. Yesterday I ordered some pace bands from an awesome company called Races2Remember.com They let you pick out 3 goal times you want to aim for, then you pick the type of race you want to race and they print it on a pace band for you. You can either shoot for even splits; warm up -where you run a bit slower in the beginning, bank some time in the middle miles then shoot for you goal pace at the end; or a modified warm up with a few less slower miles in the beginning. I'm hoping this will keep me on track. I also was reminded by the hubbs yesterday that I could use the pace group! Why didn't I think of that!? With a plan and my goals all set I just need to keep my head in the game.

I hate taper - yes, we all do. But I REALLY hate tapering. I'm just not good at it. I run almost every day - at least 6 days a week. And each run I give it my all, following my plan and paces. So when my scale back week comes to taper, I go nuts. Yes, I know we all have the same problem with taper, but I hate it with a passion. That is going to be my biggest obstacle next week. Keeping my legs fresh with out letting my mind get the best of me. I have put the time and work in now it's time to take my victory lap at Long Beach. I guess I'm also a bit sad that after this, I won't have anything big on the calendar until next year. No more big races to be aiming for. And this training junkie doesn't do well with out some good goal races. I love to train. I love to dangle that carrot in front of me that is a big race. I guess I'll just have to focus on some more smaller races and hope that I will be basking in the glow of another BQ.

Thanks to all of you for all your encouraging words this last week with my race in San Jose. And for all the encouragement this training cycle. I couldn't have done it without all of you. I love to read where you are all at with your own training and life. I love to pay it forward and remind all of you how awesome you're doing. I often forget to recognize that I too, am doing the hard work. So thank you, you guys are awesome ;) My plans for the weekend include getting one more decent long run in and then letting the taper begin. I've been riding with Doug all week and running as usual. Nothing exciting. I should round out the week with about 55 miles - perfect amount to send me into a decent taper.

I'm off to catch up with all of you! Good luck to all of you racing this weekend! Especially Tara, Angela, FL, Paige, Marcia, Spike and the rest of you!!! Congrats! Run strong, run fast and have fun!
Happy Friday and Happy Running peeps!
P.S. Go on over and wish my girl Katie a big Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday girlie! Welcome to your 30's!

Race Report: San Jose Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon

2010-10-04T09:16:00.000-07:00

I think that, as veterans, we often forget that we are so lucky that from one day to the next, we can decide on a whim to go out an run a half marathon. I know I'm guilty of this. Some of you may be just starting out, but trust me, get a few under your belt and you will say, "half marathon tomorrow? No problem!" Being fortunate for my ability and good health was very apparent yesterday for me. I often don't have very positive words when it comes to describing the Rock 'N Roll Running Series. They are big. They are expensive. They are just too flashy. But you know what? All of that has some great benefits. And I ate my words yesterday. They are so big that they have the race down to a science. The money you pay really does offer up some great schwag, great water stops, great course support and countless other amenities that are often forgotten on smaller, more local races. And....and here's the end: they get people out running/walking/exercising who might not otherwise participate in this type of event. They break down the barriers and stigma of an elite attitude that can come among runners and athletes, and cater to everyone - including the people who run/walk a 3+ hour half marathon.

My plan yesterday was to pace my good friend Kristen to her first sub 2 half marathon. I had scored my bib for the race from my cousin Sarah who had something come up at the last minute. I was honored to be pacing her! She is a strong runner and triathlete and a fun to run with! Sunday morning we both met up with her Fleet Feet group to take some pics and head to the corrals together.

Kristen and me before the start

I was seated in corral 8, while Kristen and her friends were in corral 6. No biggie. I would either catch up with you or sneak my way up to corral 6. After I entered into corral 8, I saw that it was super easy to get to the front of the race just by walking straight up! When I got to corral 6 we had just about 10 minutes before the start. This is the first time in a long time where I was not nervous for a race. Usually, even the day before, I'm a ball of nerves. But this time, with the pressure off, I was able to sleep well, eat well, practice all my pre-race stuff without a queasy stomach. So, even with less than 10 minutes to the start, I was feeling good - and in a way, feeling sorry for all the peeps around me who probably had that nervous tummy since Friday!

I waited and waited for Kristen! And like I said before, this race is so big, it's easy to loose people! Without seeing her in the corral, the gun went off and I found myself racing along. I had no idea where we lost each other, but I also knew I couldn't just stop - I'd get trampled by 13,000+ runners! In that split second, I decided to push on and make it a race for me! I hadn't thought about a plan at all! I hadn't even thought I would race it all week! My mind went a million miles an hour that first mile, trying to decide what I should do. By about the half mile mark I decided to use it as a great way to practice my MP goal. Genius! Water stops, cheering crowd, great weather and a chance to really feel MP in the throws of a race.

Okay, not to bring up the size of the race again, but that first mile or so was sooo crowded! They do not pay attention to where they place people in the corrals. You have walkers starting way to close to the front, or people for their first race starting way to far in the front and just don't know race etiquette. Needless to say, I did a lot of dodging that first mile. Surprisingly though, my legs felt great. They felt strong and fresh and I just hopped I could hold onto it.
mile 1 - 8:35 (lots of dodging)
mile 2 - 7:59 (perfect, right where I need to be!)
mile 3 - 7:59 (nice!)

I carried my little handheld and just plugged along. I remember parts of the race, but really it kind-of felt like a blur. The race is promoted as being flat and fast, and really, in the grand scheme of things, it is flat and fast. This area is also the area that I grew up in. So I know I didn't take in the sights and everything in detail as maybe someone who had never been there before. It is really pretty, it winds through Japantown, through the University sections and through some really pretty neighborhoods like the Rosegarden. Everyone came out to cheer, too! The excitement was really high! The weather though, was muggy! Such strange weather for San Jose! And it even sprinkled on us in the first couple of miles - again, weird for us.
mile 4 - 8:06 (pay attention Katie! pick it up!)
mile 5 - 7:57 (much better!)

The weather, like I said, was muggy. I was sweating like crazy. And I was thirsty! I had taken one salt pill before the race and was drinking my Nunn all the way through. But I got really thirsty in here. I don't think I had ever been that thirsty in a race that soon before. I kept plugging along and around mile 6 I saw Meb! Meb ran this last year and set a course record and then went on just a few weeks later to win NYC! At the mile 6 marker, you have the mile 11 winding backing in and on it's way back to downtown. He was way out in front and looking strong. And just after mile 6, you have your first little down-hill than up-hill. It goes under a freeway overpass and spits you back out on to flat ground. I had forgotten about this but tried to use the downhill to my advantage.
mile 6 - 8:04 (I think I hit the 10K around 50 mins)

After mile 6 I was plugging along and just tuning everything out and running. Let me tell you people: NOT a good idea. I was so certain of my race and pace that I tuned out completely. And this is evident by my mile 7 time - lesson learned - keep track of your pace and your mind during a race!
mile 7 - 8:23 (hello! wake up Katie!)
mile 8 - 8:01 (much better, but you have some ground to make up)

By mile 8 I was soooo thirsty and my handheld just wasn't doing it for me. I was sweating like crazy. Everyone around me was a mess. The muggy, unseasonable weather I think, threw everyone off guard. I needed something else and couldn't wait for the next water stop. My plan at the next stop was to just grab some water and keep running. Well, as you will see, my plan didn't go through so well. I had taken my shirt off before the end of mile 1 (LOL!) and had it tucked into my spibelt. During the water stop, it fell out :( I had to stop completely, back up and pick it up! Oh well, I got two cups of water and ran on.
mile 9 - 8:33 (damn shirt!)
mile 10 - 8:10

After that stop it was hard to find my legs again. I had come to a complete stop and that is hard to jump back from. I was also getting really tired. I couldn't imagine why though. I wasn't pushing myself too hard, but I was fatigued and my legs weren't turning over as fast as before. Hmmm....what is up!? Oh yeah, I remembered, I ran a MARATHON last week! No wonder my legs are a bit tired. All week my legs felt fresh and not sore in the least. But I also hadn't pushed myself and kept the mileage low. Now I was asking them to race? At MP? Yeah, no wonder I was tired!
mile 11 - 8:04 (there we go, that's better!)
mile 12 - 8:23 (hunh?)

It was around mile 11 I had been trying to do math in my head again - bad idea. I was hoping to come in at 1:45 which would have been MP for me. But with the first mile that was slower and then the couple in the middle, I knew I didn't have the 1:45. But I could at least come in sub 1:48 - my nemesis half mary time. When I saw mile 12 was so slow, I put my head down and ran. I don't know where the energy came from, but I shot off. I was passing a ton of peeps and just wanted to be done!!!
mile 13 - 7:48 - whoo hoo!

My watch at mile 13 said something like 1:46:xx so I sprinted to the finish - practicing my finishing kick. I crossed the line in 1:47:05 - and I was pleased. And I was thirsty! I couldn't down a bottle of water fast enough! I was covered in salt and just plan drained. I didn't GU or eat anything out there but I don't think that was the whole problem. I obviously didn't drink enough either. I need to work on this!

The good thing about Rock 'N Roll Races is that they have plenty of everything. They don't hold back. I walked through the water stations at the end three times, downing two bottles of water and then grabbing a third to walk and drink. I had no appetite though, so the food I just left. Everyone in my family was busy this Sunday morning (including the hubbs!) so after I grabbed my gear bag I headed home on the train. I was sad I didn't get to run and race with Kristen and I'm sad I didn't see her at the end! That is all the result of such a big field. But I was glad to head home and shower! I felt bad for anyone sitting on the train next to me!

The cute medal!

I think I ran the race as best as I could after a full marathon the weekend before. I enjoyed myself, I ran pretty smart (except for the hydrating and eating part!) and was able to pick it up when I had to. I'm still in the dark about what I want to do for Long Beach. I think I will take the week to figure it out. I ended the week with 38.6 miles - I haven't had so few miles since the beginning of the summer! But it was a great cut-back week coming off the marathon and I think it did my legs some real good. Again, I wasn't sore or tired all week and even today my legs feel great. I'm hopping they stay that way for Long Beach!

I think this race changed my mind about the Rock 'N Roll Series of races. I think you get your moneys worth. I may not make one a destination race, but I will definitely not avoid it just because it is a RNR race. They did a great job, brought out people who might not otherwise run and made it a great race day.

I'm off to catch up with all of you! One week to Chi-town! Two weeks to Long Beach! So much going on!
Happy Monday and Happy Running peeps!

My New Friend Doug

2010-09-30T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have a new friend. His name is Doug. Actually, I'm not sure what is real name is, but to me, he looks like a Doug - so Doug it is! In the past few weeks, I have been trying everything I can to get rid of my knee pain. After talking to a friend of my who is a PT, she suggested I do more squats, lunges and take up spinning. Cycling has been on my list of things to add to my workout for a while. I drool over the bikes every time I got to Sports Basement. But I know I'm not ready to fully commit to the whole cycling thing (that sport is expen$ive!), so my next best bet was the gym.

In came Doug. Doug is the guy on the spinning bike computer. I wish I had found this sooner! Has anyone else tried this? Or I'm just really late to the party? It's a spinning bike with a computer that allows you to pick the type of workout you want to do: interval, strength, endurance, etc. And each time I try it, it pops us something new! Doug is so creative! I've been sticking to the interval and strength training programs and cycling for about 45-60 minutes at a time. I did do a longer one last week and hit 29 miles, but it really drained me. I'll back off that for a while. Man, do I break a crazy sweat and get my heart rate up! Doug is a drill sergeant! Since I've never done a trainer at home, I'm thinking this is probably pretty close. It starts with a nice warm up, hammers down the workout, and then a great cool down.

My bike in the corner

The whole time, Doug has some cheesy music playing in the background, and it changes with the intensity of the cadence and heart rate he wants you to hit. I think I heard a Kiss song all jazzed/elevator music'ed up at one point and laughed out loud! Doug, you have a funny taste in music! But the program is quite neat, it has, depending on how long you pick your session to be, about 10-12 sessions of 3-4 minutes each. And each time, it's a different mix up of the sessions. I'm learning form, handle bar position and how to keep my heart rate and cadence in line. And...I'm really enjoying it!

This is Doug! Sorry, it's on my crappy phone camera.

Doug's kind-of cute, no?

The computer screen - there's Doug!

In about 45-60 minutes I can usually bust out about 16-20 miles each time. A real good hard effort that leaves me dripping with sweat. And the cool thing about it being in the gym, I can easily walk over to the treadmills real quick and get a BRICK workout in! I'm loving these, too! You feel like such a bad ass when you leave. And...the knee is feeling a million times better! I haven't had the pains or the tightness. I'm hoping to keep this in my training for a while - shooting for 2-3 times a week ;)

I can't believe tomorrow is October 1st! You wouldn't know it by the weather around here that Fall has officially started. The temps have been horrid (like really high 90's and even some 100's!) but thankfully we are going to see a light at the end of the tunnel here in the Bay and they should start coming down by the end of the week. September just flew by for me. One second I was quitting my job, starting my own business, and the next I was crossing the finish line at Lake Tahoe! I had a great mileage week last week, thanks to the race, and finished off with 59.2 miles. And with my run today, I hit 232 miles for the month of September! I haven't had a month like that since last year.

This weekend I have a chance to pace some friends of mine in the San Jose Rock N Roll Half Marathon. It should be fun - both would really love to come in around 2, so I'm hoping my legs will cooperate! They have felt pretty fresh all week.

Okay, I've procrastinated enough - I should get back to work. I've already taken a really, really long 2+ hour lunch with my workout - I'm sure my boss is not going to be pleased! ;)

Happy Thursday and Happy Running peeps!