Ragnar Las Vegas in October

Since Cynthia just asked about signing up for a relay together I wanted to let you all know that I'm pretty sure I'm going to register and captain a team for Las Vegas Ragnar. I'm just too pumped up after L.A. that I just can't wait until next February for Del Sol (don't worry Lindy, I'm still down for Del Sol too!). Las Vegas is October 9th and 10th, so I know that is likely way too soon after St. George for those of you doing that if you win in the lottery. But I'm putting it out there...for those of you not signed up for St. George and if it so happens that the team is not selected in the lottery :(.

Not many details on the Ragnar site yet, but it is from from Valley of Fire, NV to Las Vegas, NV. A nice in between meeting point for the Utah girls and the AZ girls to meet up. I was just going to find a team to tag on to, but I really think we can get enough people together ourselves that would want to do it and form our own team.

Let me know if you are interested in being on the team. Just an up front notification - Ragnar gets expensive with van rentals, gas, uniforms, etc. Registration is $85-95 per person plus we will need anywhere from $30-100ish a person additional to cover expenses plus travel costs driving up or flying. That number all depends on our planning and how much fundraising we can do. Do we rent vans in AZ or UT and drive over? Do we individually make flight plans? When/where do we need to get hotel rooms? Etc. Lots of planning yet to do, but we have plenty of time to do fundraising and it is quite possible to raise ALL of the funds we need other than registration.

We can wait to see what is posted May 11th for St. George. Still crossing my fingers for all of you that are signed up for that! And hey, you can always be crazy and do both if you think you could handle it (no pressure during Ragnar if you want to be there for the fun and take it easy on the runs). Hard to say just yet how hard or easy the LV course will be since they don't have the route or elevation posted. Someone is always there to help you out on your legs if you can't make it through or just need a friend with you along the way!

Keep it in mind and comment back if you think it's a possibility for you. :)

Chasin' Cheeks

Ragnar Relay Los Angeles - My first leg (leg 10) coming from the Oxnard area and then down to finish out the 5 1/2 mile leg along Pacific Coast Highway.

This was my first leg and I was ready to go! I was runner number 10 and had been waiting to run since our team start at 8:00am. By now it was around 4:00pm. I took off fast after Brandi slapped the bracelet on me at the exchange. This run actually took me a little bit inland through farmland then back out to the coast. In the first couple of miles I encountered several tractors stopping for me to pass which was kind of funny. I was singing the theme song to Green Acres in my mind (and even a little out loud) for a few minutes during the run. Nice day, perfect weather, but wow...coastal winds can be killer! Something to keep in mind - running against high winds and additional gusts from passing cars on a highway gets to be a little frustrating, so plan your pace accordingly. ;)

At about mile 4 the team stopped to check on me and I let them know I was fine - see ya at the end! Then they pulled ahead after a few minutes and stopped again. I was thinking, why on Earth are they stopping again? Did they think I would walk the rest of the way if they weren't supervising?? LOL Then I see they have the camera out...ok, just taking some pictures of me, cool. Just then I'm passed on my right by another runner and all I see is CHEEKS!!!! I literally gasped! When I realized that the team was there to take the pictures I went running at full speed trying to catch him with my palm open ready for the smack! I knew he was running way to fast for me to catch, but it made for some great pictures! To see what I was chasing click here! Wasn't sure if the backside was quite appropriate to post to the blog, but it's out there if you want to see it! I included the picture of my initial reaction - priceless!!! There are more pics of Cheeks' warm up here. Quite funny, but I will remind you probably not safe to be opening at work. :) My Garmin top speed for that mile was 9.5mph (6:18min/mi) - Cheeks was FAST!

Shortly after that he was long gone and I had just a little over a mile left. I continued running into the wind until my pass off to Pete along the coastline a few miles north of Mugu Rock. I felt great after the run and was excited for the roads ahead! I did this leg in about 58 min - a 10:37 pace against the wind which I was happy with!

More general race pictures can also be seen on Pete's site, Mikey's site, and my site if you want to browse the fun! More to come later, but I must say that this leg was the highlight of the race for me! Too hilarious!

1st "New" PT Session & 10K Race Pace Determined

Today was my first PT session with this new organization called Endurance Rehabilitation, recommended to me by "THEE Running Guy" or the "Beaver".

I was treated by a PT with the name of Katie Dovico.

She did a very thorough examination.

The achilles tendon that has given me so much grief is on my left leg.

She determined that my left hip has hypermobility and that could be part of the problem.

My arches are very high and rigid, not collapsing at all, also could be part of the problem.

The length of my legs are only about 1/2 cm difference, not much really, good to know because I've wondered if that was the problem.

My injury fits the definition of tendonosis, due to the length that the issue has been going on.

I was a candidate for the "scraping" procedure.

There is a more official title but I can't think of it.

What this entails is three very hard plastic objects, one with a flat edge, one with a rounded edge and one with a more sharply pointed edge known as the "isolator."

These were scraped over my calf, around my ankle and on the sole of my foot.

The theory is that there is scar tissue that needs to be broken up so that it can heal properly.  So it is a type of re-injury.

Yes, it was painful.  I did some teeth gritting.  No screaming though.  And it was rather quick.  3 strokes up, 3 strokes down and then on to the next tool.

She said when she does it she can feel if there is scar tissue because the tool has a bumpy ride over the skin instead of a smooth one.  She said she felt a lot on my calf and heel.

I felt immediate increased mobility in my ankle after the procedure.  It has felt for a long time like something is binding it up.  I guess it was scar tissue.

I have another appt tomorrow and am looking forward to it.

I ran my 40 min. training session in the hot afternoon after my appt. in my new shoes.

Katie also mentioned that I might need some more arch support than my shoes have.

The run felt good.  Felt like I could push off on my left heel without something threatening to tear, like it has in the past.

I timed myself for a 5K and my time was 38:56.  I plugged that into the Runner's World tool and came up with the time of 1:21:05 to shoot for for the 10K, which is 13 minute miles.

So now I know my goal, yeah!

Missed a workout

Last Saturday, I skipped my training session.

I guess it was a combination of...

-going to bed too late (2:30am- because my husband was gone to Father's & Son's Outing, I was helping Taylor get ready for his Day Date for Prom and I was winding down from watching my mother-in-law who has Alzheimer's)

-no one to watch Emily while I went (Taylor was on his Day Date and the rest to Father's & Sons)

-an achey achilles tendon and achey shin on the other leg

-mad that the training program didn't keep me from these injuries (I thought if I cautiously followed it and didn't over do it, I would be able to avoid problems) 

-decided missing 2 sessions out of a 13 week program would be OK ( since it wasn't faithful to me, I didn't have to be faithful to it- how silly is that!)

But I did walk a 1/2 mile to and from the church to donate blood!

That's as good as a workout right!  Ha!

Congratulations to Marcie!

Okay, this blog entry is just because I think we all need to be excited about Marcie's new Garmin. I kept waiting for her to bring it up herself, but since she hasnt- we need to all recognize that she has joined the Garmin club. Yay Marcie! May your watch bring you continual knowledge and speed! (o:

I cant not be excited about people's new running shoes, garmins, any other cool running gear!

Ragnar L.A.!

Hi ladies! Just a quick post to let you know I survived and feel surprisingly good! The weather was great, beaches were beautiful and my team was a group of GREAT people! I tried to real time blog while I was out there but for some reason my phone wouldn't support it and I couldn't download an app that would do it. I will be posting a series of blogs this week to describe each of my legs and some other details of the race. I want you guys to take them in chunks because I know you'll want to make some comments...especially on my first one which I've already named Chasin' Cheeks (I know, the anticipation is killing you now!).

We came in 2nd to last which was a surprise to us. We planned on being dead last. If you have read the blog about my team you will understand why. We had many walkers on our team. We only came in before the solo team (yep - one guy that ran the whole thing!). 30:18:07 was our time. We did, however, win Best Team Name! S.W.A.T.T. - Sprinters, Walkers and Trash Talkers. I think I did a little of all three but they officially qualified me as a Sprinter which I have to laugh about when I think the best pace I had was 10:37 for my first leg. Details and stats to come later, but wanted to tell you all that I had a blast and we're already signed up for LA next year!!

Speed Racer

I haven't written about my running in some time as it's not very exciting. I go around and around the nearby park every morning. I rarely see anyone. On Fridays and Saturdays I go later because my husband doesn't have to work those days. Today I started out about 45 minutes to an hour later than usual. I also headed away from the park for a longer run. I didn't see any other runners until I was about 3/4 done with my run. I was seriously into my book, not paying much attention when a man raced past me. My only thought was that he was complete marathon material. I could see every muscle in his legs flex at each step. His quick stride was so natural and effortless. And his speed! I noticed my silly little shuffle in the shop windows and almost giggled at my reflection. No one would think me marathon material if they saw me running. Ah, well, at least my knees are not sore after the hills today!

Can't wait to hear about the L.A. Ragnar!

Running in Zion

This is where you could find me running this past weekend. My husband and I went on an anniversary getaway. We left the kids with grandma and grandpa - but my running shoes got to come along. Such a scenic, beautiful run. Isn't it fun to run in new places? Different pavement, new things to see, new smells, new routes. Especially near a national park like Zion's - nature at its best. And I was running with one of my favorite running partners - my spouse. A run I won't soon forget.

Internal Pace

I was inspired by Bronwyn to just comment on a non-race run this morning. I just wanted to get out and run a few miles- 3,4,5...whatever felt right. I decided to not look at the pace on my watch the whole time. I havent done this for a long time. Usually I have a speed goal in mind- my "easy" pace, or "tempo" pace, or "sprint" pace....but today I just wanted to enjoy the day. I found a pace that felt comfortable and enjoyable. I never once glanced at my watch. I did wear the watch- so in the end I was able to see what my pace came out to.

It was too warm this morning- I didnt get out til past 9 am, and it was about 80-85 degrees. But it was okay temp, and really nice and pretty outside. I am from Utah, and still am a little intrigued by the big blue skys and the tall palm trees of Arizona.

Anyway, a good run. Fun to try something different every once in a while, whether its a new strategy, a new goal, or new location.

What pace to race?

O.K. I'm sorry I've got so much to say.

I feel like I've taken over this blog.

So someone else, please post soon!

On Tuesday, when I ran for 50 minutes at a very easy pace I knew I could maintain, that ended up being 14:33 minute miles.

Yesterday, Thursday, I did 3-10 minutes intervals with a 1 minute rest in between.

Since it was this type of workout, I thought I would push myself more and I did the first two 10 minute intervals at an 11:57 and an 11:47 a minute average pace.

I was still feeling pretty good so I pushed it even more and did the third one at a 10:09 pace.

Of course these were done after I had taken a long time to warm myself up.  I don't know if I'm really odd but it takes me a long time to really warm up.  I had warmed up by walking over a mile!  I am going to try to do this on race day too.

Anyways, I called Lindy afterwards because I was really confused as to what pace to try and run this 10K that I have coming up next weekend.  15 minute miles? 14? 13? 12?  11?  10?  Yeah, right!

After talking with Lindy I think what I'm going to do is attempt to get a time for a 5K on my first training session next week and plug that in to the Runner's World formula and hope that will help me.

Another thing though, that is strange for me about this 10K is that I have yet to run that distance in my training.  In the past when I ran 5Ks or the one 10K, I was running those distances all the time.  So this feels strange to me, not knowing how my body is going to react!  Not that I would know for sure anyways but I think I would have a better idea!  I told Lindy, I see why you don't run Marathon distances all the time in training, but for a 10K, why not?  But it seems like most training plans are not set up that way.  Anyone know why?  I know this one in particular is designed for someone who is starting from a no running spot, so I can kind of see why this one isn't that way, but so many seem this way.  Any advice on how to figure out how fast to go?

Yesterday I went to the Running Store to see if I needed new shoes.  He said I was way overdue.  When I asked how he could tell he pointed at the bottom of the shoe that would be under my sole and pointed out the missing rubber.  He said the inside cushion wears out before the outside cushion does so the fact that your outside cushion is shot means you inside cushion is way gone.  So I've got new shoes!!  Yeah!  It's hard for me to get new ones when the uppers still look so nice but I suppose it is not the upper part that is the most important part of a running shoe!

Perhaps the shoes will help with my achilles issue and another pain in my shin on my other leg that has started to bother me.  But I'm not relying on the shoes I went ahead and made an appointment today with another physical therapist.  The one I went to before was someone I had known and probably specializes in backs.  This new one I am going to is a Sports Physical Therapist and recommended to me by "the guy" at the Running Store.  He told me his achilles issues are gone because of this PT.  So I have some hope!

This PT is out of network with my insurance, so it is not going to help out unless I get to $5,000, which better not (can't) happen!  The first visit is $170 and subsequent ones are $70.  Yikes, double yikes, triple yikes!  But I don't know what else to do!  Except stop exercising, but I've tried that for 3 months last fall and I still have issues!  Even though I've been very good to follow this incremental training program!  So I feel like my back is against a wall!

I have an appointment on Monday and am excited to see what he says.  It sounds like he wants to get to the root of the problem which is what I would like to know, the other PT just really treated the symptoms.  So here's to hope for total healing!

OK, I'm done, so now someone else post quick!

Trying to run 50 consecutive minutes

Alright, it seems like no one is posting too much about their training runs, it's mostly about races.

If I only blog about races, I'm not going to post very often.

I love to hear about races but I love to hear about people's every day running too.

So even if you don't think it is interesting, I would love to hear it!

So I'm posting about this stuff, and I hope I'm not boring anyone too bad.

I figure like Cynthia said once when we were talking about worrying that our posts were too long, "No one has to read it."

So, on my 1st training session for this week it was supposed to be a 50 minute run.

If you don't remember last week when I tried to do 40 straight minutes I got muscle gridlock and had to walk for awhile.

I really didn't want that to happen this time.

I tried to figure out what I'd done wrong.

I wondered if this program which has been mostly intervals has made it harder for me to run continuously?

 When I would run on my own without a training program I would always just run continuously.

And now after almost 3 months of training I couldn't do it?,

when I used to just go from nothing to running for long times within a short period of time.  (Stupidly, I know.)

What I had done differently though I realized was when I knew I was going to go for a certain distance I would just pick a pace I knew I could maintain.  On the other hand, when I had tried to do the 40 minutes last week, I had tried to start out at a pace I wanted to maintain! But a pace too fast for me to maintain!

So on Tuesday I picked a very comfortable pace and tried not to look at my Garmin and get discouraged about how slow it was.  After a short time I couldn't resist looking, and sure enough it was slower than I wished it to be.  BUT, I was able to maintain it the 50 minutes.  And that was a good feeling!

"The (Running) World according to Mister Rogers"

I have a book called "The WORLD according to Mister Rogers".

Yes, you remember the PBS show don't you?

I thought the show was so dumb as a kid,

and when us kids would always rag on him but watch it anyway because it was...

TV

and On

and we weren't allowed to change the channel,

my Mom would always say, "I love Mister Rogers."

Ohhhhhhhhhhh, brooooootherrrrr, I would think!

And then, when I was the Mom and my kids would watch it, for the same reasons I did,

I was the one saying "I love Mister Rogers."

Because as a Mom, you realize the important stuff he's talking about.

So when I saw this book at Walgreens several years ago, I got one for my Mom and one for me.

On the back of the book is this quote,

"If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never dream of.  There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person."

I've thought of this quote a lot.  And I would add to it, "no matter how brief the encounter, or perhaps there was no personal encounter, but words left behind on paper or now a days, videos etc, etc."  

I think from my perspective I feel and know how much other's impact me, but perhaps I underestimate the impact I have on others.

How does this apply to running, your wondering?

Yeah, I haven't forgotten this was a running blog.

Last Saturday, I slept in a little, til about 7 ish.  I was trying to rouse myself out of bed to go do my run, when I got a call from Sharon Peterson about Cub Scout Training that started at 7:45am.  She had told me about but I hadn't written it down!

I decided I better go to the cub scout training, but that meant trying to get my run done later in the day.

This almost never works for me.

If I don't do it first thing, when I have most of my energy, I usually can't make myself do it.  But since I committed myself to this training program I knew I would have to.  I knew another Sunday run would not work.

Well sure enough after the morning meeting, the afternoon came and it was HOT!  And I did not feel like running.  There was lunch to be eaten and other Saturday type things to do.  I avoided the run to the last possible minute, realizing if I didn't go now, I would not make my Stake Conference Mtg. in the evening.  As it was I would probably make myself late to it.  Could I do it later on tonight?  No, that would not work.

And so I went about 5:30pm and it was starting to cool off a little.  Just a little.

I slogged my way around my loop, enjoying the different time of day, the different lighting etc, and trying to ignore the heat and my lack of energy.  When I was about 2/3rds done, I noticed a woman, perhaps of Latino descent, I didn't even really notice much about her and at the distance she was from me I didn't expect any communication.  Sometimes people pass right by me and don't even acknowledge me.  But just right as she was going out of my line of sight, she yelled, "You go girl!"

I didn't know if she thought I was doing good or taking pity on my sorry sweaty state, but that brief comment buoyed my spirits!  And I feel good whenever I think about it.  And I think what  a kind extension of herself that was, to be my personal cheerleader, when she had no compelling reason to say a thing.

If I had been in her shoes, I don't think I would have said a thing.  And I don't know if she thinks I cared at all about her comment, I was so shocked, I didn't respond.   Maybe she saw my smile.  I hope so.

So anyways, it has made me think about this quote from Mister Rogers again.

"If you could only sense how important you are to the lives of those you meet; how important you can be to the people you may never dream of.  There is something of yourself that you leave at every meeting with another person."

Wow, what opportunities do I miss to cheer another on because it is not expected or I don't think they will really care what I say?  And what do I leave of myself if I don't say anything?

Thanks, lady, whoever you are!

I hope I will overcome my introspective nature at times so that I pass on the favor to others!

Easter Run

A couple of weeks ago, it was raining on a Saturday, a day I had planned to run.  And my brother and sister in law were in town with their family, staying at our house.  So I let the day go by without getting my run in.  I thought I would try the run on a Sunday, something I haven't done for decades.

So on Sunday morning, which happened to be Easter I went for the run I should have done on Saturday.

My kids were all scratching their heads at this unusual behavior for Mom.  I don't know what my brother and sister in law thought.  My daughter who is on the same training schedule as me and who had also missed her run the day before opted not to come with me.

I wondered if I was being quite the heathen but I remembered the wonderful run I had had on a Sunday over 25 years ago and thought maybe I would have another one.  Of course that one had been done for the pure enjoyment of the run without any preconceived notion of it being un-Sabbath like.

Well now I am not quite so naive about the general opinion of running on the Sabbath of people of my own faith.  And to avoid having anyone in the "ward" observe my exercise I drove to the canal instead of running around my neighborhood.

When I parked at a parking lot next to a park, I noticed a group of people having their Religious Easter Services outside on folding chairs.  It seemed like a beautiful setting to have Easter Services.  The preacher was the loud and emotional type.  I was touched by these people and that they had chosen to hear about about Christ on this Easter Day, of course I know it is one of the most attended services out of the year.  But on Sundays, I usually don't see other faith's services and so it was touching.  Good people trying to do good things or at least trying to be good.

I started my run, apprehensive about whether this was the right decision for me.  I pondered this subject the whole time.  I enjoyed the beautiful morning, loved the cool breeze and especially running on dirt as opposed to the asphalt, as well as the stress releasing pounding of my feet.  But watching my Garmin for the time and pace made it impossible to stay in a worship mood.  And after some more pondering I have to admit, bottom-line, I had run to get my work-out in, not for the pleasure of it, not for rest or worship.  So while I think there might be a time someday when a Sabbath run would work out for me, it is not going to be when I am doing it as part of a training schedule.  Not when my priority is work-out over worship.  Perhaps when my run can just be a form of worship or rest from worldly cares.

I am not trying to say this should be the case for anyone else, I'm just realizing what is going to work for me. 

Alright, confession over!

Just kidding!

Season Over???

Season over???? Come on AZ girls - 30 bucks, 5 summer 5Ks. At least it is something to keep you going even if you do want to die afterward from the heat! :)

ARR Summer Series Registration - You use the one form to register for all 5 races. On the 2nd page you circle "Non-ARR Member Special Series Fee (register for all 5 races using this one form)" and enclose a check for $30 by May 8th. Cheap for 5 very well run races even if you miss a couple. This will be my 3rd year running the summer series races.

See you out there!

Phoenix Pride Surprises

Hey there everyone, I didn't want to steal any glory from Lindy and Marcie since they accomplished something much greater than I did this weekend, but since Lindy is asking I will share. :) AND I want to hear about Pat's Run from Cynthia (please tell all!).

It all started with the Garmin. 2 Saturdays ago I was rained out of a 5K that I wanted to do to test out the Garmin during a race. So, last week I was debating spending the $40 on Pat's Run...I just couldn't justify it so I went looking online for another race. Found one for Sunday and it was just called Phoenix Pride 5K for $15 with a T-shirt. Sounded great and I decided to do it. The web site didn't look any different from any other running club website until I started clicking around to get more info after my decision to do it. One of the links popped up the AZ Pride page that said "Gay Pride" on the top of the page. I was surprised! Couldn't believe I didn't figure that out yet with the subtle rainbows on the pages. For a moment I thought, dang, should I still do this? But the moment passed quickly when I realized this might be one of the funnest races I'll ever do! Maybe I'd even see some of my gay friends there. I then emailed my friend Suzanne to find out if she'd go with me and we had to laugh a little thinking that we might be thought of as a couple, but she was in anyway! Let people think what they will - we were going and we were going to do awesome!

When we got there there it was no different than any other small 5K. Good music playing at the start, nice people at registration, and, well, lots of rainbow banners and flags. Guess that was the only thing different. ;) There were less than 100 people and everyone was very nice - not chip timed because of the small number of people. The race was a loop in Tempe starting at Moeur Park east on Curry then south to Tempe Town Lake. Majority of the race was along the lake and then back up to the park up Lake View Drive (nice hill included here - ugh. Hate that in the last mile!). Anyways, we did GREAT! The Garmin kept us on or faster than a 10min/mi pace except on that uphill, but our first mile rocked so we didn't need to worry. Another surprise - the Garmin makes you race faster!! I think my gun time was 30:12 (still yet to be posted) and Garmin time was 30:10! A PR for me at about a 9:44min/mi pace. YAY! Next goal is for a 5K in under 30 min which I just commented that I couldn't dream of doing. Hmmm...now I think I can! Maybe not until it cools off again though or if I head up north for a race.

And yes, the shirt has rainbow footprints. ;) Nice shirt though! Fun race! Great company! Suzanne's husband and friend came out and filmed it as well so we should have some cool shots of the Start/Finish line!

Congratulations Bridge!

I see Bridge has a new race time posted! Looks like a good one. We're waiting to hear your story. Way to go! I'm sad our running season (or at least our races)are coming to an end, I've loved hearing everyone's stories. Thanks for sharing.

These memories will last

I can already look back and laugh at several memories of today's race experience. Starting with friday morning when I was doing my hair. Blow-drying with a round brush. I turned my head to one side- and clink, there it was, a new kink! I started yelling swear words. A kinked neck the day before my race! It actually wasnt a very bad one, and didnt cause me too much trouble, luckily.

Next funny component- We were supposed to park at the end, and then ride the tram to the beginning. The tram was so crowded with runners, and still had to make every stop- continuing to get more and more crowded. We were standing up because all seats were taken. When the driver hit the breaks, we'd bump into the people around us. Marcie got stuck by a guy who was really trying to hit on her.

The next funny thing was that we lost the car key when Marcie unloaded gear on Hannah at mile 11. We really had a good laugh at the finish line.

And then there was the Seinfeld moment in the parking garage where we couldnt find the car on any of the 5 levels. We kept going in circles and passing this same little boy on a bicycle. I think he was a ghost, because that level was pritty empty, but he kept riding by us over and over.

I ruined our Kristin-Paige finish that I had been looking forward to, when I lost Marcie in the crowd- 2 miles before the finish. Darn it. Maybe next time.

There were lots of fun things to remember about this race. Ill bet we will laugh about them for years. Maybe we'll even embelish over the years, and it will get even better. But most of all I will remember that I got the chance to run with my friend, the same friend who used to run to Conoco with me for icecream.

On the way to the race, I was very nervous, as I always am on a race morning. Marcie turned on some music- Coldplay, which I love. She asked me "Do you like Coldplay?" And I immediately answered "Oh yes, its like the comfort of being with an old friend". As soon as I said it, it struck me that this is exactly what I had today. The comfort of an Old Friend. I couldnt stop thinking about that the rest of the race. And I couldnt stop smiling during the race. The feeling of the wind in my face, the adrenalin and excitement in the air, the pavement under my feet, and an old and dear friend close by, it doesnt get better than that!

Humbled.

I was humbled by two things today.

First, the half-marathon. Have you ever felt like a race just chewed you up and spit you out? That's what I felt like the race did to me today. Instead of me taking charge and feeling like I conquered the half, it got the better of me. I had high expectations of running it in 1:45 or getting at least a PR but it just wasn't my day. I felt like I was strong and had prepared for this race better than any other but this day had another plan for me. I started too fast and soon my legs felt it. And I began to struggle and I struggled through the majority of the race. When I talked to Hannah after the race she kindly told me, "You looked so tired." I felt tired and it definitely showed. I am happy I finished. Happy it's over. Learn from this one. Onto the next race.

Second, my dear friend Lindy. Through the first 1-11 miles she stayed a couple of steps in front of me. Always looking back to check if I was still with her. I would give her the hand wave and yell, "Lindy GO! Just GO!" I wanted her to go for 1:45 or go for a PR but she hung with me until mile 11 when the couple of steps she was ahead of me became many, many steps. And I crossed the finish line 1 min and 53 seconds after her. It should have been a lot more. Here's to great friends who stick with you through good runs and not so good runs. Lind, you're as good as they come!

Other mentionables about the race:

* The hill around miles 11-12. Not super steep but after 11.5 miles of running, you hate seeing that incline up ahead of you.

* The trax ride to the start of the race was crowded to say the least. Imagine trying to fit 1000 runners into a train that is only supposed to fit 50. It seemed THAT crowded.

* Seeing Hannah and hearing her cheer us on. Definitely a highlight! She was so sweet and ran up behind me and said, "Do you need anything?"

* When we saw Hannah near Liberty Park (around mile 10.5), I took off my water belt and threw it to her saying, "I'll come and get it later!" About 25 steps later, I realized my car key was in the water belt. Luckily, we had Lindy's cell phone so my husband could be informed of my stupidity and remedy the situation by bringing us another key.

* Taking forever to find our vehicle in the Gateway Plaza parking. We couldn't remember where we parked. We both desperately need a sense of direction. :)

So Proud!

This morning I rushed my family and visiting nephew (all kids in jammies) out the door so that we would not miss Lindy and Marcie as they raced through the park nearby at mile 10 of 13. We almost missed them amidst the throngs of runners, but Lindy spied me out just as I was recognizing Marcie. Tears welled up when I saw them. I would have cried, really cried real tears if my kids wouldn't have found it incredibly odd. I am so proud of our runners! This blog made me more invested than I realized in everyone's successes. They were pretty much on track for the 1:45 time Marcie was shooting for. Can't wait to hear how the last three miles went. Way to go, girls!!!

Go Lindy and Marcie!

Its funny how excited I am for these girls. It's awesome that they are running together again! I wish them both the best of luck tomorrow - and here's my inspirational quote of the day, I thought it was appropriate for tomorrows run:

The pain won't last but the memories will.
- John Maclean, Ironman hall of famer

It's all about the memories. I can't wait to hear all about it. Oh and one more thing..."While running, it is rude to count the people you pass out loud." (But we want to hear all about it later.)

Best of luck!

Running Scared!

Just a quick post to share my combined emotions of fear and excitement. Well, as usual, Ragnar changed race legs less than 2 weeks before the race. Unfortunately for me I was impacted the most by this change as well as Brandi (one of the 3 AZ girls). Suddenly I'm picking up more mileage than anyone else on the team! Ahhhh! I was already fearing my route prior to the changes at 15.8 miles, but now I'm staring down 20.7 miles total! They tacked on an extra 10.4 miles overall in the revision and now our total mileage is 188.1.

Maybe I should have just gone ahead and signed up for St. George with you guys. I'm only 6 miles away (but luckily I get some breaks in between during Ragnar). LOL I know I CAN do this and what an awesome accomplishment I will have when I finish it, but I just really need some encouragement - the race is next Friday!!!! If you are interested in what the route looks like you can check out our Race Bible.

The new chart:












The old chart for comparison:

Muscle Gridlock

Well today I was supposed to run 40, rest 1 and run 20.

This is the first session for Week 11 out of my 13 week program.

Up until this one, other than missing one workout, I've been able to follow the program.

But I could not make it 40 minutes without resting.  I don't know if I didn't warm up enough or stretch out enough, it could have been either, but after the first mile, I had to walk for a few minutes.  I couldn't take the muscle gridlock any longer.  It felt like running in wet cement.  I thought of all the people who don't like running and I thought, this is why!   If this is the feeling you get and you don't know there is something else then I wouldn't like it either.

I'm glad I know there is something else.  There are the days when the legs seem to move almost effortlessly, like they want to move, like moving them is releasing pent up energy!  When the rhythm of the feet seems light, like a race horse as opposed to plodding, like weighed down oxen.

My pace was also so slow I wondered if there was really a point in keeping up the "running", or as some would say, jogging form.  I thought of all the slow runners I've seen and have thought, well at least they are out there making an effort!  Well today I hope that is what many were thinking when they drove by me.

To be running so slow is actually really hard on me.

I had hoped by this point in my training I would be doing a lot better than I am.

I had hoped to be doing around 10 minute miles.

This is what I remember my pace to have been in the last 5K and first 10K that I did several years ago.

I haven't posted my race results to the side because I don't know them exactly.

But I remember doing the 5K in 29 minutes and something and doing the 10K in 63 minutes and something.

Well I need to get the notion of matching that time in this upcoming 10K out of my head but it is really hard.

I need to realize that for whatever reason, age or achilles issues or whatever, I'm just not there yet.  And then the added issue of higher altitude is really going to make the race more challenging.  And I need to be OK with that!  And I need to be OK that my daughter, DaLynn, is going to leave me in the dust and my sister-in-law who is also going to run will too I'm sure!

I need to be OK just running my own race, whatever it is that day!

But it is hard for me.  Hopefully writing this post will help me accept the fact of the matter!

I need to be happy just to be able to run!

I couldn't do that last fall!

Yeah, I can run!  Albeit some would call it a jog.

And although I would love to say I am up for the St. George Marathon!

I am not.  I need to keep my distance down while my achilles is still healing.

But I think it is healing, although very slowly.

And while it is healing, I am grateful that I can run.

Very very grateful!

Because there are mornings, although it didn't feel this way this morning,  when it feels so good I think I never want to stop!

Track Work

It makes me feel good to drive by Lisa or Cynthia or Bronwyn on a thursday morning, an hour or two after morning track work. Ill pass them going to or from Islands Elementary, because we are dropping off our kids for school. Im probably still in workout clothes, with my hair still matted to my head, stuck there with old sweat. But at this point, Lisa will look like a movie star- hair done and sunglasses on. Ill drive past one of them, thinking "nobody would know what we all did this morning..." but we know. We know.

Goodies, Gadgets and Helpful Stuff from a Running Geek

Call it my marketing blog. This post is for some good tips on all of the things that I use or have heard about that can help your running experience all around. It dawned on me during the Bodyglide posts that we might want a little forum to share our useful secrets. I'm just a bit of a techie, so anything that I can get that helps along the way I'm all about it. Surprised at myself for taking so long to get the Garmin! ;) Each heading is a link to more info. Just let me know if you can't get to any of them. Please leave comments or another post about what some of your favorite things are!

While You're Out There:
Bodyglide
Anti-chafing stick to use anywhere! They even have one that has sunblock built in.
Aquaphor
Great for healing and prevention of chafing. Works great as lip balm and also helps moisturize dry skin.
Bauerfeind Genutrain Braces
If you've got knee issues at all, these are great! I posted a blog on this specifically last month.
RoadID
Please, ladies, take the time to order one. It could save your life one day. It only takes a minute. You can even buy gift certificates for them - perfect birthday or holiday gift for your running friends if they don't have one.
Balega Socks
Great socks make all the difference! I just decided to give in and pay the extra money for some good socks...AMAZING. Make the sacrifice. It's worth it.
Nike Tempo Shorts
Can get these just about anywhere in all different colors. Great shorts - super light, dri-fit so you stay cool, small pocket inside, have underwear built in. I have at least 10 pair of these! I also love Nike Dri-Fit Sport Tops. Good support.
Goody Stay-Put Hairbands
They always pass these out as freebies at races and I love them. They do exactly what their name says - Stay Put! They are all over my house because as it turns out they double as cat toys. LOL
FuelBelt
A great water belt that doesn't bounce all over the place. I never leave home without it! Definitely lasts forever - I'm using Tim's old one and it's got to be more than 7 years "in the running". ;) Now they have all different colors with a bit of a bigger storage pocket than mine, so I'm thinking of getting a new one.
iPod Shuffle
Small and compact, and holds enough songs for any race. Not too technical of a device and not clunky! I have an older one without the voiceover, and I think it is perfect because at that size you don't feel it, it doesn't bounce, and you don't need any arm straps or holders. It just clips to anything. The new one is even better for song navigation, but if you can get an older used one for cheaper, go for it! My 1GB is just fine for any race.
GasCap
I don't have one, but it may be one of my next purchases. Holds gels on the sides of your hat! Very cool!
Rocktane
Just tried this new gel a few weeks ago and the flavors are pretty tasty. Also is the ultimate super booster!
Jelly Belly Sport Beans
A yummy treat - think of gatorade in a candy. I like all of them, especially the red ones. :) They also make Extreme Sport Beans that are not as flavorful but they have added caffeine.
Neutrogena Sport Sunblock Spray
Good stuff! Goes on with a nice cooling mist and works great. Doesn't have that bad smell and greasiness that other sprays have.
Timex Ironman Triathlon Watch
Not ready to jump to the Garmin? This one you can find on sale from $35-40 and does a great job with everything you might need for the basics. Water resistant for swimming, alarms, interval timing, splits, multi-lap, storage of your times, etc. Helpful and can wear it all the time if you wanted. Comes in lots of colors!
Garmin Forerunner 305
First, let me say that I don't recommend the newer model - the 405. Expensive price tag with bad reviews. The 305 has come way down in price and seems to do a great job according to reviews and friends that have one. Comes with a heart rate monitor too. Mine will be here tomorrow! Yay!

Healing and Prevention:
Foam Roller
Stretches and masages your larger muscles. Many injuries and soreness can stem from not stretching your iliotibial band (IT band) and this is the perfect tool for doing so among other awesome uses. Here's an article about the benefits.
The Stick
This thing is THE best for sore muscles. A must have! I have the small Travel Stick and can take it with me for Ragnar or leave in the car for after a half. Can even gear check it to have it right after the race.
Foot Rubz
A cheap lifesaver, well, footsaver at least! I love this thing for massaging out the foot cramps. Also works on hand cramps. The makers of The Stick also make the FootWheel and that works well too, but it is more expensive and the Foot Rubz just feels neato. ;) I'll let you try both if you want. LOL
AquaJogger
Sore but still need to get a run in? Sick of running in the heat? Head to the pool and get a non-impact run in. You'll work up a sweat but still stay cool in the water.
ACE Hot/Cold Compression Wrap
Think icing after a long run gets to be a pain? Keep a couple of these in the freezer and it will make the perfect solution for both icing and compressing. The best part...no leaky ice packs and you can still get up and walk around while wearing them because it's a wrap!

Planning Your Next Adventure (Long or Short):
Active.com
Active helps you find all of your local races and training groups. Most races you can register for right on their site. They also have great team and fundraising capabilities. Ask me if you need any info on teams and raising money.
GetSetAZ and GetSetUT
Lots of local races, sometimes list the less common ones that you won't find on Active. I sign up for their newsletter and they send updates for upcoming races.

Education and Progress Tracking:
Runner's World Subscription
Need some good bathroom reading? Good magazine to have around for motivation, shoe reviews, training tips, etc. If you don't want the subscription, definitely check out their website for some great articles, tricks of the trade and more.
Runner's World Training Log
If you don't log your runs, no better time to start than now. It's free and you can track everything down to mileage on your shoes! I love it. Nice reporting features too to see how you've progressed. I enjoy that it totals your hours of running. You will know how many complete days of your life you spent running. ;)

Shopping:
RoadRunner Sports
Great store online or in the local store. Sign up for their VIP membership and you'll end up saving a good deal. It will likely pay for itself your first purchase's savings. They have a 60 day shoe guarantee new or used. So test those new shoes out for a couple months - if you hate them you can exchange them for a different pair. No questions.
Dick's Sporting Goods
A few of these have popped up here in AZ and they've got good prices in store and online. Nice store with lots of stuff!
Amazon.com
No explanation needed - they've just got good deals!

Race Stats

For those of you who haven't created a section on the right hand side of the blog for your race stats, feel free to do so. Didn't want to exclude anyone. You can post past races/stats as well as future races - so we can cheer you on!

How Much do I Love 2 Run? HMMMMM....

This is my first post - thanks for renewing the invite!  What have I done?  Am I hoping we don't get picked for St. George this year because I did register?  Actually, no, I am still hoping we do!  However, it is challenging my nerve.  Does anyone have a great program for "slow & go" runners to train from a 4-5 mile run to marathon?

I actually gave up running for a little bit with the "I'm too busy"  to do this and I don't really like it that much anyway.... after getting totally built up with stress and anxiety, I decided to go for an alone run...Oh my, I think I do like it!!  it was an epiphany - I actually NEED it - for sanity, for fun, to feel like I'm doing something for myself, to get away from kids hanging on my leg, to get to listen to music that I love and to forget about everything and think through things only I need and want to think through.  I am excited to have something to train for...heres to getting PICKED!!!

30 minutes of Joy & Agony, 1 minute rest & Repeat

I've been looking forward to this morning's run ever since I started this 13 week program for a 10K.

It is the first session of week 10 and it is the first time I get to string together 30 minutes of continuous running.

I think 20 minutes has been the longest thus far and that just doesn't seem like anything to me.

Being able to run 30 minutes continuously now that seems like a start.

So I've been patient for 9 weeks knowing the day would come when I could run uninterrupted for 30 minutes!

But in the meantime, while I've been running and then resting at the prescribed intervals I have also become apprehensive about being able to run for so long.  I think I had more confidence about being able to do it 9 weeks ago than this morning.

So when this morning actually came I felt a mix of

 

anticipation/excitement

and

nervousness/intimidation!

And of course to keep things really interesting I had to throw in a lack of laundry!

Which left me with a running skirt that I bought last fall (before I ended up resting to cure the achilles tendon) and hadn't worn yet.

I bought the skirt, not to look feminine, but to solve ONE problem!

And that one problem is shorts creeping into my crotch and abandoning my thighs to feverish friction.

I actually gathered up the nerve, took a deep breath, and asked the Running Store guy what some solutions to this problem were, while I reassured myself that I can't be the only one with this problem.  Gratefully he didn't seem shocked by my question and offered the Running Skirt and biking type shorts as solutions.  Well I couldn't fit into any of the biking short options so that left me with a Skirt that did seem to fit.

Well, I just have to say that based on this morning's experience,

the Running Skirt is NOT a good option for this problem.

It did seem to hide the problem from the public's view, which is a good thing,

but I still suffered albeit privately,

unless you were the lucky one to drive by while I was digging and retrieving the under shorts. Sorry!

Boy am I glad I didn't wear these for the first time on Race Day.

This morning I fluctuated between being grateful for the run

... to feeling like I couldn't get home soon enough so that I could stop the sand paper action going on between my thighs.

So it is back to capri like pants for me.  They have to be longer than my knees or the creepy action just gets going.  I've tried long shorts and they're just not long enough.  Perhaps if I lose the weight I'd like to I won't have this problem some day but until then it will be me and the capri's.

Support System

I was thinking about something to post this morning and my mind drew a blank. It finally just hit me as I was brushing my teeth tonight. How thankful I am for a supportive husband who allows me to enjoy something I really love. I went for a two-hour run this morning. The weather was cold and snowy (I know, it's April. When will the snow go away?) but my run went great. As I was driving home, I was thinking that a nice hot shower would be heaven but I would have to give my 8-month-old a bottle and then feed him baby food, clean up my other two boys' breakfast, wash bottles, get all three boys dressed, eat breakfast myself and then I could think about jumping in a hot shower.

When I walked in the door, my two-year-olds greeted me fully dressed and ready for the day. My husband had fed and clothed all three boys, cleaned up breakfast dishes, washed baby's bottles and my breakfast was waiting for me on the table. Ahhhhhhhh. All I had to do was eat and then a hot, hot shower was next. The shower was heaven. I love running and love that my husband supports me by jumping into Mr. Mom mode when I'm out for a run. With three young kids, I couldn't fully enjoy and love running without him.

Random comments

Ive been very loosely following the Ryan Shay half marathon training program. I think it is the June 2007 issue of Runnersworld. Today it called for 12 miles- 6 easy, and 6 at half marathon goal pace + 20 seconds. So just a little slower than race pace.

I chatted with Cynthia, Karen, and Julie for the first 5 miles. It was nice outside and already totally light outside when we left at 6:30 am.

I spent the last several miles thinking about Marcie, hills, and our race in 2 weeks. Im very excited for this event coming up so soon. Im still apprehensive about the hills. Marcie, have you been training on hills? Do you have hill strategy? Do you go down hill full speed? Or hold back with hopes of keeping your knees protected? Hmmm. Still not sure what to do here.

I still feel fairly inexperienced with half-marathons. Im wondering how much to taper the next 2 weeks? Just one week of taking it easy, right?

Im debating if I need to sub out my muscle class 3 days before the race- I always worry that Ill twist, pull, whatever something. Muscle always seems risky to me!

What do you guys avoid/do in the week/s leading up to a race?

And what about sex the night before a big race? A yes, or a big no? Okay- dont comment on that one! We can keep it G-rated! But something to think about! (o:

A post I wrote on my blog a while ago-Garmin Addict

Yep, it's true.

I not only eat cold cereal,

which according to some is the consumption of pure evil,

(and as you know "you are what you eat", which means I'm p... e...-shh don't tell anyone!)

BUT, I also have an ADDICTION, to my Garmin Forerunner 305.

It was a gift from Santa, (who looks a lot like my hardworking hubby) this past Christmas!  A couple of my friends, also Garmin addicts advised Santa on the purchase!  They guaranteed him that it could do everything I wanted and more.  And so Santa really scored!

For those of you who know nothing about the Garmin other than the picture of the contraption up above, the Garmin Forerunner 305 watch goes around your wrist and the chest strap goes around uh, your chest, no, actually under it.  Good thing, huh?  Anyways, together these amazing pieces of technology can-

pin point where you are on this planet,

tell you the date and time,

tell you how fast you are moving,(mph),

show you the route you covered (ooh, someone's watching you!),

tell you the elevation change,

tell you how long you've been moving,

stop recording info if you stop for a stop light or

for your dog to drop a log, or as in my dog's case sometimes a pile of stinky hot fuming mush,

tell you your heart rate, 

and if that heart rate is not high enough, 

it yells in an army sargeant voice "Get your derriere moving!"

And of course if your heart rate is too high, it sweetly says,

"Slow down honey, you'll never get to your goal weight if you kill yourself first!"

It also tells you how many calories you've burned and

makes sure those calories come off from the right places to never return!

You want one of these techno gadgets right now don't you!

I wish I had one to sell that did the last two things I said, I'd be set for life!

Oh it also delivers the info to your computer and shows it to you in neat graph form!  This is especially cool!  I've got almost 3 weeks now of recorded workouts on my computer!  Three weeks of documented times that I got my heart rate up for an extended period of time!  It is proof, I have PROOF! And so if my weight doesn't go down I am going somewhere, I don't know where, but I am going somewhere armed with my definitive data that pleads my case and shows that I'm unlike any other human being on this planet and it is not about calories in and calories out for me!  Of course this Garmin gadget only shows the calories out part of the equation but I do have the other side covered with another gadget I might write about some other time.

This blog is about my addiction to the Garmin.  My fear that on the day that the battery went dead and it didn't record my work out that perhaps it didn't really count.  My manic concern when on the day after the battery died, it recorded my workout on the wrong day!!!!!  The high I get when I get home and immediately hook the Garmin up to my computer to download the info to the Garmin Training Center software.  And my obsession with seeing the number of calories burned in "black and white"!  

And while I'm in the mode of confession, I must say that I had bacon this morning!  Yes, one of those meats filled with nitrates, pietraits, carcinogens and suburbagains!  It was delicious!  One of my friends can't stand "real" bacon because of all the gross grease that gets left in the pan.  She goes for the "turkey" type.  I look at all that grease in the pan and think, "Yeah, it got left behind so it doesn't go to mine!"   For those who are worried about me, for having partaken of this forbidden fatty food, don't worry too much, I'm sure all the bad bacon attributes were negated by the whole wheat english muffin and cage free eggs that I had with it and the V-8 juice that washed it down.  I should even get some charity points for making enough for DaLynn and Emily.  Gratefully DaLynn partook but Emily said, "I don't want eggs, and I'm not hungry."  To which I replied well if you get hungry, this is what you get!"  A cook has to have tough love don't they!  I get brownie points for offering right?  Maybe even extra for the rejection!  She did eventually eat it.

Back to the Garmin!  I'm hooked!  Sign me up for a support group.  

Bronwyn's Intro. Part 2

(Sorry this is really long!)

OK, so in my last blog, I wrote about my relationship with running.
How I remembered loving it as a child and then after several negative experiences with it in my early teen years, I finally came back around to loving it as a Senior in High School.

And SOOOOOO, if this was the case, why are the years since (and there has been a few, my HS 20 yr. reunion has come and gone), why are the years since not filled with constant running and many many races??

This has been the question I have been pondering since I last wrote.

I have lots of excuses.

Lets see... How about?

College- I remember a few runs around the Provo, Temple, but mostly staying up too late and being more consumed with classes, work and, Oh yeah, BOYS, which I guess were really Young Men at the time. Also during college, can't forget, the FIT FOR LIFE class where I found out I was OBESE at 145 lbs and 27% body fat. That was fun. Oh if they could see me now! I would love to be that weight! Still haven't gotten over that. Anyways by the end of the class I had done the running I needed to and was able to do the mile and 1/2 in the time needed for an A, which I was proud of, even though I was sucking wind at the end, I still did it! As I go over this I really have to wonder why they structure a Fitness class to create such negative experiences?Why not reward improvement instead of measuring everyone against a fixed standard? Anyways, let's see, after college and tying the knot, came...

Oh yeah pregnancy and children!

6 pregnancies and 6 children.

I remember committing to myself with each pregnancy this time I am going to make it through without quitting exercise! And each time I failed!

Sometimes I would pick exercise back up after the nausea and exhaustion which of course was good, but make it all the way through, never happened for me.

The nursing side of pregnancy was even harder. Talk about exhaustion, and the thought of getting up extra early to nurse so I didn't have to run with boulder boobs was never enticing. Add in the fact that in AZ during much of the year, if you miss the chance to go early in the morning, you are in for misery, pregnant, nursing or not!

And so, let's see, I also have the injury excuses. Shin splints being the main issue, of course, because I would try and do too much. Like the time I joined Nancy Brough and her running gang, going from not running to pounding the pavement with a fit group. Not so smart!

I've done this multiple times. I wish I had known then that rest was actually a good thing. When I would start exercising I would usually set the goal of 6 days a week. And if I missed a day I would feel disappointed in myself. And then let weeks go by.

After my last child, Emily, I tried to do things smart. Build up slowly. For me anyways. Took rest when I had to. Iced the shins, etc. I was doing fairly well actually, even did my first and only 10K, the Mesa Turkey Trot. And then one Saturday, after what felt like a pretty strenous workout at the HS track, I came home and broke out in red bumps. My husband said I looked like a bunch of mosquitos had attacked me. I didn't know what it was. By Sunday evening, as they were getting fluid filled I was wondering about chicken pox, which I had already had. Maybe shingles? Then on Monday they were the size of quarters and red and raised and angry looking. I looked like an Alien. Turns out it was hives, an allergic reaction to Valley Fever, a fungus. Anyways, it was quite scary for me. And luckily after a few months, they went away, thank-goodness for turtlenecks! But unfortunately the combination of exhertion and breaking out in Alien spots was connected in my mind. And although I would go out and walk, I was scared to push myself to even walk fast. Or maybe I was just tired from the Valley Fever, I wasn't sure. Eventually I realized I was just scared. It took me a while to get up the nerve to face that fear down. Of course, throwing in a couple of miscarriages didn't help either.

And that brings us up to about a year ago. I'm starting to face down that fear and trying to get in shape again and looking forward to hiking the Grand Canyon in the Fall, when a friend tells me about a lot of success she's had with a bladder surgery. That is really exciting to me! Really, I don't have to live with the issue of incontinence? Mostly it was just a problem during exercise, and sneezing. But still no fun! Pictures from a Gilbert Days 5K years earlier revealed that the problem was apparent to anyone around, despite my best efforts to empty before the race. But to get this surgery in and include recovery time before the hike is a bit of a stretch. It is either that or postpone surgery to after the hike, which doesn't make running much fun in the meantime. I went for the surgery and it went well.

At the appropriate time, I started back into exercise and tried to really go slow. No Shin Splints for me this time!

I'd been running maybe 6-8 weeks, it was end of last summer, and I get this idea to join a Running Club. I thought I would get some personalized instruction to help prevent injury. All they asked was how much I had been running. I told them 12-16 miles a week. They thought that was great considering the heat at the time. They never asked how long I had been running for. Also at the same time, I went to "THEEE" Running Store and got the appropriate running shoes for me. Apparently I was in the exact wrong ones for me, and the Running Guy was surprised I didn't have any problems at the time. I suppose having the "right" shoes and being in a club with experts made me think I could train with abandon. I threw myself into the Running Club work-outs, along with continuiing my own, don't think I mentioned this to the club either. Anyways shortly thereafter, one night after a Running Club workout, my achilles felt like someone had pounded mercilessly on it. I mentioned this to a coach and she recommended rubbing the ball of my foot on a tennis ball. Which I did, and it felt wonderful. I could tell my foot was very tight. And my achilles felt 90% better. So full steam ahead. I went early one morning to the HS track and did stairs before I did a speed workout with Lindy and crew. Well at the end of that workout, I knew I had a problem. I could hardly walk to my car. How is it that you can go from feeling like an athlete at one moment and a cripple the next, so quickly?

Now I finally did some reading and found out the achilles is an injury that is a bugger to get rid of! GREATT!! And guess what else, hills and sprints are hard on it!

Well, what to do? The challenge of the Grand Canyon is looming in the not so distant future. I had hiked it before, and had been running around 4 miles at the time. But this time we were going to hike it North to South in one day. I felt like I need to be running around 6 miles no problem. And I definitely had a problem. I could hardly walk. After another trip to the Running Store, could it be the shoes? It happened when I got the new ones, "No, it's just tight calves" so here's a calf stretcher, which also helped the pain, again about 90%.

At this point I didn't feel like I had much choice but to rest it. I wish I had gone to a physical therapist who could have helped me keep exercising, but I didn't know one who would, and I was scared of the cost. Resting helped slowly, and I vacillated about what to do about the Grand Canyon. I really wanted to do it. But what if it made it worse? What if the pain got bad and I got stuck in the Grand Canyon? It seemed that if I stretched my calf, the pain would loosen up, quite a bit. So I finally decided to go for it. And I made it through the Grand Canyon without having to take a helicopter ride out! Me and Advil and Tylenol and lots of calf stretching made it through the hike. Not in the kind of shape that I would have liked but I did it. And amazingly, I didn't feel like I had made it much worse.

So then why wouldn't this pain just go away??

Shortly after the Grand Canyon I went for a walk, and the pain just started throbbing, and I could barely make it home. OK, I thought time to really give it rest. I abandoned exercise with the hope that someday I could start it up again without such pain. Part of me wondered if I was just being a wimp though.

I gave it almost 3 months. And it was probably 1 1/2 months before I could notice it getting better.

At the beginning of this year, I decided it was time to get back into exercise. The achilles felt a lot better but I knew it wasn't all gone. Sometimes it would just start to throb at the strangest times, like in the morning in bed. I decided whatever the cost I would see a Physical Therapist and I started with one I knew. I hoped he could help me get exercising without aggravating the achilles again. When he ultrasounded the steroid cream into my leg, wow it felt heavenly. I realized it had been hurting even when I didn't think it hurt. Anyways, my insurance only approved so many visits and the problem was not cured but at least I was back exercising and it was manageable. Meanwhile, I went to the Running Store again, my daughter needed some shoes, and found out the Running Guy was dealing with an achilles issue as well. Now that I'm familiar with it, it seems like I hear about it all the time. He told me he was seeing a Physical Therapist that attempts to break the scar tissue by scraping his achilles and then has him run on it. I took the guys card and decided if I needed to I would see this guy.

I finished the therapy with this other guy and the biggest thing I learned from it was that I don't need to kill myself to see improvement. The exercises he would have me do and the rate at which he increased the challenge was so small. I realized I have a tendency to overdo it. At which point you are probably thinking I am a slow learner too. Yep I am.

After doing some more reading in my running books, I happened onto a 13 week program for a beginner to eventually do a 10K. I decided that would be good for me to start out as if I was a beginner because I actually was. One thing this book taught me too, which seems so obvious now, and I don't know why I didn't figure it out on my own given my experiences, but it is that ONE INCREASES IN CARDIOVASCULAR FITNESS FASTER THAN ONE INCREASES IN MUSCLE AND SKELETAL FITNESS. This explained to me why I would always feel like running faster and longer but then get injured when I did. Having a regimented plan has helped me not to overdo it. It has been hard to walk as much as it says and rest when it says but then I feel so much better the next run! I have so much respect for the expertise that has gone into this program. The little variations in the workouts seem so minor to me when I look at them, but when I do them, I realize it is just what my body needs.

Anyways I have come to realize although running seems like such a simple sport, it really isn't. At least I can find lots of ways to mess it up or mess myself up with it.

And so these are my excuses for explaining why my relationship with running has been a series of fits and starts. And in the end, I can hear my son's Cross Country Coach saying, they are just that EXCUSES. He has compiled a list of Excuses that is pages long, that have been said to him over the years. And I know myself that there are many runners who wouldn't have been stopped by my excuses. I so admire Lindy for running through Melissa's pregnancy, even doing a Marathon. It just blows my mind.

I guess I just haven't been committed enough. I'm hoping to be a committed runner for the forseeable future. I have just finished 9 weeks of this 13 week program with only one missed workout due to flu and achille's issues. Glad they were together. And I ran for 4 weeks before that. So I am going on 3 months of running. I know this is nothing compared to most but it is good for me.

Having this achilles issue has been a pain but at the same time when I run without pain now I really appreciate it. I know what a wonderful thing that is! And I've learned that I can see results without overdoing it.

So here's "the long rest of the story" from my HS days until now. I hope that the next chapters of my relationship with running are not filled with excuses but more commitment and more enjoyment of a sport that is both simple and complicated at the same time.

I was just thinking this morning, how I so enjoy the simplicity of just putting one foot in front of the other. I love focusing on that. Probably as you can tell my thoughts get so crazy the rest of my life.

So I don't have so much experience as some of the runners on this blog, and it is rather intimidating but I enjoy reading it all the same and getting inspired, so thanks!

Bryn

Mixing it Up

Since I ran the race on Sunday I wanted to mix up my workouts a little this week. For some reason I was feeling like I don't really like running and maybe I need to just back off for awhile so here's what I tried.

On Tuesday I rode a stationary bike at the gym for an hour. My heart rate peaked around 120 but I did get through several chapters of a pretty deep book.

On Wednesday I walked all over the sweaty, stinky zoo with my daughters kindergarten class. Jennifer and I decided it counted as a workout, especially since we had to carry all their stuff around and lift them up and down to see the animals.

On Thursday I decided to go ice skating. My 12 year old daughter is a figure skater so I spend a lot of time just sitting at the rink. Yesterday I got some rental skates and hit the public skate session while she had her private lesson. I wore my heart rate monitor so I could see how good of a workout it would be. I was surprised that after only two minutes my heart rate was over 140. It stayed between 140 and 150 as I whizzed around the rink for 28 minutes. I was feeling really good and thinking that I needed to do this every week when I hit a turn and all of a sudden my feet went out from under me and I landed hard on my tail bone! I gathered my pride as well as all the stuff that had fallen out of my pockets and made it to my feet. I really wanted to get off, but wasn't willing to let anyone see how bad it hurt (I know a lot of Mom's at the rink.) So I sucked it up and continued on for 12 more minutes. I have a new found respect for my daughter when she complains about a hard fall - I tried to tell her it happened while I was working on my double axle but she didn't believe me. :)

So, after my fall and a restless nights sleep from a sore butt I hit the road again today. Five slow, steady miles, no Yasso 800's, no speed work, no goal in mind. It was great. I guess I really do like running - I better sign up for St. George right now before I change my mind.

Cheating on Yasso 800's

This morning I did my speed intervals. I took the girls in the double stroller and off we went. This is the usual drill on thursday mornings. Its one of my favorite runs of the week. Not so much because of speedwork. But because of the girls, and being outside, and just getting to go when we are ready. No rigid schedule. That will change as the weather gets hotter, quicker in the day.

I like to do "Yasso 800's". Because I pretend that Im running a marathon. Only its over in less than 5 minutes! But I tell myself- "Run fast, this is the one that will tell me the time Im going to get at St George this year!" Its just a little motivational trick I use on myself. Its fun. Today I was excited, and have to brag a little, because I got a 3:33 on one of them! That's a (stroller) record for me!

So the theory is, that what you get in minutes and seconds, is what you will get in hours and minutes, on the full marathon. So if I had a good day, maybe I could get a 3 hour, 33 min. marathon. Only not really, because I cheat- Bart Yasso, he works up to doing 10 of these in a row. And he says to give yourself a recovery between each of them- the time that the last speed interval took you. So I shouldve only taken 3 minutes, 33 seconds to recover before the next speed interval.

My cheating method- I take a half mile to recover. I run fast for a half mile, and then I recover at a jog for a half mile. I also cheat because I only do like 4 or 5 hard intervals. Not 10.

So Im proud of my 3:33. And I think these (cheating) Yasso's are beneficial to my running. But I guess they wont trully predict my marathon time until I follow Bart's rules.

If you want to read about Yasso 800's, Ive included a link:
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-244-255-624-0,00.html

The Story of My L.A. Ragnar Team

This is a motivating story that I wanted to share with all of you as an introduction to the team I'm co-captaining for the L.A. Ragnar at the end of this month. I think that it is great for all to read this inspiring true story as written by Tracey Martinez. It is a real life story that rings true the quote on the blog home page from The Penguin - "The miracle isn't that I finished, the miracle is that I had the courage to start." After reading this I know that one day I could do a full! :) Hope you enjoy!


This is a story about me (Tracey) and my best friend (Mike). We are both in our late 30’s and up until last year neither of us had ever thought of doing a half marathon or "several" half marathons or a 178 mile Ragnar Relay let alone anything else that required "that" much exercise. In May of last year Mike had the "lap band" surgery and he started losing weight. His progress was doing great but at that point he was not exercising much. In June I found out about the Disneyland half marathon coming up the end of August and being a huge Disney fan I mentioned I was going to sign up. When I told my "athletic" friends they chuckled and said "you know that is 13.1 miles right?" When I told Mike he said "great so lets sign up" and that was how this whole fun, crazy idea started. High school injuries destroyed Mike’s knees years ago so we knew he would not be able to "run" but he did start walking and training to maintain a pace under a 16 minute mile. We hear that people train for months to complete just one of these events and we did to but that is not where the story ends. By the time the Disney half marathon was here we now had the great idea that we should do the half marathon at Disney World in January of 2009. We had not even completed our first half and we were already going to do another one in 6 months. I completed the Disneyland one in just under 3 ½ hours but around mile 10 Mike was having trouble taking in water and keeping it down so his pace slowed down. He crossed the finish line in just over 4 hours so he did not receive a finisher’s time but more importantly HE FINISHED IT. At this point he had lost 75 lbs, I was so proud. I knew he could do it and even made up a t-shirt to give him at the end that said "THERE WILL BE DAYS I DON’T KNOW IF I CAN DO A HALF MARATHON, THERE WILL BE A LIFETIME KNOWING I HAVE." With our feet blistered and muscles aching we limped around Downtown Disney and plotted our next event. We decided we would do a "half marathon a month between now and Disney World in 6 months". Somehow this seemed like a great idea for the guy who started out at over 300 lbs and the girl that considers chocolate a major food group. (Did I mention I had a brownie the morning of the Disneyland half marathon (-: cuz it was yummy.)

The Lompoc half marathon was the third week in September and our feet had almost healed so we were ready to do it all again. The week before Lompoc my right leg had a horrible pain that kept getting worse. On Friday I went to the Doctor and they diagnosed me with a blood clot behind the knee. The next day Mike completed the half marathon with another friend of ours. This time he not only "completed" it but he finished 30 minutes faster then Disneyland. The Doctor informed me I could not compete until I am no longer on Coumadin (blood thinner) and that would be about 6 months. By now we had already decided it would be Long Beach in October, Pasadena in November, Las Vegas in December, and then Disney World in January. This was Mike’s big chance to back out and wait until "we" could do them together but he decided to finish what we had set out to do.

He completed Long Beach and with that he had done 3 half marathons in 7 weeks. On the morning of Pasadena the race was cancelled due to the Loma Vista fire and with such short notice he could not find another half marathon in November.

By around November I started looking for half marathons that "I" could do once the Doctor cleared me hopefully the beginning of April 2009. Mike decided he would keep doing these half marathons up until April and then "with me" after that. Each event we went to I would be there at the beginning, middle, and end cheering him on. I mean how many "big" people do you usually see at a half or full marathon. Mike and I decided even if we came in last it was more important that we tried in the first place. Since I no longer worried about the pain and blisters I had the time to look for new races and challenges :-). Then I ran across this race called a "Ragnar Relay". From the moment I opened the page I loved the story about "beach bunnies...and you and 11 of your friends....going 178 miles....and how the rest of them would support you with water, cheers, and love". I told Mike about it and showed people we work with the web site. I told them how fun it looked and they said yes until I explained it was 178 miles in 24 hours then they said I was crazy. I explained how we (Mike and I) would need team mates and again how "fun" it would be. About this time they started to remember I (me) had this blood clot but I promised I would be better by then so I would be participating.

In December we went to the expo for the Las Vegas marathon and there it was...the Ragnar van. I am sure the nice young gentlemen and ladies there thought Mike and I were crazy but we stopped and chatted their ears off about how much we wanted to do this. We said we were not sure if we could complete all 178 miles with our "semi" in shape team. I explained to the people in Vegas that we are "looking for some really fast runners that are willing to lose". They were so nice and encouraged us to go for it. We came home and told our co-workers and friends that we just had to do it. We have watched so many of those videos and my favorite quote is from "Friends, family, and a fool" when this lady is holding a water bottle to her head and she says "this is fun except for the running part". I kept telling our team just don't think about the running part. Our team keeps pointing out to me that all "those people" are skinny and in shape. So we have decided to bring some "bulk" to the race. We know we won't come in first and we will be thrilled to come in last because at least we will know we made it. Signing up for this race has inspired some of the team to join a gym. I am proud to say I will be the biggest cheerleader out there because I think it is awsome that my friends are doing this with me as we push ourselves beyond what we thought we could do.

As for Mike....he completed Las Vegas but somehow I ended up with a cheerleader outfit?? :-) I believe he said if he is doing these half marathons then I get to wear the cheerleader outfit. I even have a picture of me next to the Ragnar van while wearing it. January came and Mike could only sign up for the FULL marathon at Disney World so that is what he did. He was a bit disappointed because he got to mile 24 and they picked him up. He had 7 hours to complete the marathon and at mile 24 he was at 6 1/2 hours so he was really close but the blisters were slowing him down. This was his FIRST full marathon and if your keeping track that was 5 half marathons in the prior 6 months. At this point Mike has lost 115 lbs. He does not realize how much he inspires myself and his friends. He is someone with 2 bad knees that was once classified as "super morbidly obese" but yet he has not let that slow him down. He may not be "running" but he is definitely an inspiration for people to get out and start moving.

In February he finally took a month off to let his feet heal but he has decided to make up for it in March by doing 2 half marathons a week apart.. Come April you will see us at the Ragnar. We plan to start doing half marathons together again from May to Sept when Disneyland comes around again. After Disneyland the only one definitely planned is the Goofy challenge (a HALF marathon on Sat and FULL marathon on Sunday) at Disney World in January 2010.

I have walked in five 3 day 60 mile events to raise money for breast cancer and I know how much I enjoyed ALL of the people I walked with then. I am so excited and can not wait to experience the Ragnar Relay with over 60 other teams.

Have you registered???

Who is entering the St George Lottery? Remember to put Marcie's email address in the "group field". I hope to see 5 comments to this blog soon!!! Dont stand me up! I need all my friends to suffer with me this summer- as we train through the heat. It will be Awesome! (o: