adjustedreality.com

So I’m sitting here, post race, cheese burger nommed, just kind of chillin’.  If it weren’t for the entire back of my body

Race #7. Race #1 was next week last year. Crazy... And don't ask my WHY but those mismatched gloves have become my lucky running ones.

being tight and burning like disco inferno from my heels to my lower back, I feel just like I woke up early.  I thought I was going to be completely wrecked, but I feel fine.  So far.  Definitely don’t think I exacerbated my illness at all, I feel better right now than I have in days - so that’s a bit of yay.

Sadly though - what’s missing from the equation is the frantic refreshing of the race day page looking for results.  I know I didn’t PR.  I was very close - within a minute or two, but I very much doubt I hit it.  Even if somehow I did - it wasn’t by the longshot I figured I would.

A week ago, if you would have told me my finish time, I would have been crushed.  I would have not believed you.  I might have questioned even running the race if my finish was going to be that worthless.  “How on EARTH can I not PR?”  I would have asked you.  “Flying monkeys?”  The answer to this, my friends, is the combination of one hell of a week + one hell of a course.

Y’all know what I’ve been dealing with - while I’d like to say I was healthy and happy this morning, I was not.  My nose was still sorta stuffy, my throat was still tickly, and I definitely had some of that delicious lung butter going on (you’re welcome).  In spite of this fact, I was finishing the damn thing if I had to crawl it.  Also, in spite of all the gory details above, and the fact that I didn’t sleep too well or long and I had to be up at five-in-the-buttcrack-of-dawn-fucking-morning, I was actually feeling fairly groovy in comparison to any day but Monday last week.  I was worried how I’d feel halfway into the race, but I didn’t feel bad this morning.

We got ready and got to the starting line (well, technically the 4:30 marathon/2:15 half pace marker as that’s where I

Zliten and me hangin' out at 6am. For no reason. Sober.

determined I’d hang out to start) and waited around for about an hour in the dark.  I was thanking my little stars for the weather - it was 45 even at 6am and it just got warmer from there.  We were lucky for HIGHS in the 40s this week and again probably next week, but the weather deities decided to smile upon us this day!  I was a little cold as I shed my fleece for just long sleeves but once I got walking towards the start line I was a-ok.

It took just about 10 minutes exactly to get to the gate and the sun was just rising.  It was gorgeous.  As much as I say I get up this early for 2 things - vacations, races, and that’s it - it was a great way to start.  The first mile, admittedly, was a little rough on my lungs.  I hacked and coughed and checked my garmin a lot.  I figured that if that’s how it was going to be, it would suck, but I’d get through it.  Mile two got a bit better, mile three a bit better than that, and then before I knew it, I was cruising almost at my intended race pace and feeling WONDERFUL and half a mile had gone by the time I last looked.

This continued through mile four, five, and six.  I had made up a BUNCH of time and was looking in great shape to be

A beautiful sunrise at the starting line. Hated getting up so early, but loved that part.

well ahead of PR pace.  I hit the halfway point of the race, and then mile 7, and all I had to do was stick around 10 minute miles and I’d be in the gate around 2:10, which would be fine with me.

At the beginning of mile 8 things got a little rough.  I was feeling great, getting happy because all I had was 5 miles left to go, and then we started to go uphill.  A lot.  And it just didn’t end.  I toughed out about the first 15 minutes of uphill but when I was barely getting respite (beyond a few STEEP and SHORT downhill jaunts), I had to fold.  My glutes were screaming to the point where I was getting a little iffy on whether I’d be injured after the race, and my lungs were SCREAMING.  So I did something I’ve never done during a race.  I took some walk breaks.  The first one was up 10+% grade hill.  I was hoping that would be my only one.

Then the hills just kept coming.  I think I walked a total of 10 minutes of the race, starting in mile 9 and continuing through mile 12.  I felt like a righteous wuss, but it wasn’t just me.  Lots of people that had been running with me the whole race were doing the same thing.  It was liked they picked turn by turn the way back to the finish line with the worst hills with no flat and rare downhill (again, if downhill, plunging downhill) until about mile 12.5.  There were FIVE over 10% grade hills (one over 20, and one that said over 90 but I think the garmin screwed up there).

By this time I was done.  I just wanted to finish.  It’s like when you realize that someone’s cheating, or just beating you so badly that it’s not even fun anyone.  Let me reiterate - I have NEVER walked during a race.  I think the last time I

Bookin' it to the finish. My face tells the tale of 1000 hills.

walked during a run was last April (and I remember it because it pissed me off).  I just kept thinking to myself, “fuck this course”.  If I would have realized HOW CLOSE I was to a PR I might have been able to pull out another little ounce of something somewhere.  Maybe.  Once I realized we were up (hopefully, please dear fluffy lord please please please) the last hill, I banished the pain from my legs and lungs and started to book it around the capital building (which was a nice race end) - and I got through the finish.  By that time, I was just happy to be through, and be somewhat close to my last race.

Then, the clusterfuck happened.  We cross the finish line and STOP abruptly.  Come ON people, I just sprinted to the end I need to WALK.   Then we shuffle, shuffle, shuffle for about 5 minutes and get our finishers medals.  Then we continue to shuffle, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle, shuffle for like 10 minutes and get our finishers shirts.  By that time I was so over it and needing to either walk or sit, I ditched the food line and went to go meet Zliten to go home.

I want to clarify this though - because I do sound like a bit of a negative nancy - I am fucking proud of what I did today.  I had about 3-4 pleasant miles in that race and 9-10 uncomfortable ones.  The fact that I came even

Yay! Victory! Pretty bad ass shirts and medals.

REMOTELY close to PR ill and with the second half of the course climbing into the sky the entire time is a huge testiment to my training.  Sure, it didn’t net me the sub-2 hour half I wanted.  But I finished with a respectable time.  I pushed through a lot of crappy uncomfortable running to do what I set out to do.  I’m not sure if I would have done that well with the circumstances with last year’s training.

Oddly enough I don’t have this raging desire for revenge.  There is another half in 2 months, and I have no desire to enter it at all.  I trained my heart out, and my training helped me persevere.  How can I not be happy about that?  I do believe there is probably a little repressed emo as I am now sorta questioning whether I ACTUALLY want to do this marathon in November and thinking how much I like 10k races better than half marathons… but I think that’s just my sore muscles talking.

Stats:

Time: 2:19:36**

Average Pace: 10:39**

Percentile of finishers: 47.2% (so that means I beat 52.8% of the peeps there… I’m ok with better than half)**

Max speed: 7.8 mph (hit this on 4 of the miles)

Total Elevation Climbed: 1701 feet

Heart rate: stayed between 80-93% of max the entire time (this one fact here made me realize that I gave it my all - there is no question.  I would say the majority of the time it was between 86-90%)

What hurts now: achilies, calves, hammies, and glutes.

Coolest getups: Shirts that said “Run for the Pedicure”, a lady decked out with hearts all over and heart sunglasses, a race shirt that said “Love Hurts”.

Biggest faux pas (es): men with shorty shorts that give peek-sees of their dangly bits, people that stop and turn around in the middle of the road without paying attention to who’s behind them, people that veer out of the way just in time to

...and this is my commentary about the hills and the end of the race.

ALMOST make me biff right into a big traffic cone, and crowded race finishes (I mean, seriously, if I was feeling as rough as I was after my first, I might not have made it through 15 mins of forced standing…).

Verdict: I will probably not run this half again in the near future.  If I do get into and like marathoning I might consider this one YEARS from now (same killer hills early on, but a FAST second half) because it goes almost right by our house.  I think I WOULD like to run the 5k next year with Zliten.  I also realized that last year, I was sick this very same week.  The year before, the week after.  Thus - maybe no more distance races in February.  There is a nice half marathon at a resort near here in the wilderness in April.  Or maybe I’ll skip the early 2011 season in favor of training for a tri.  Or doing something completely different.

What’s next?  Well, I’ve certainly prattled on enough for one day.  I’ll get into that soon enough.

EDIT: Forgive the formatting - I’m tired. :)  More tomorrow.

EDIT 2: Race results posted**

So today, the throat is more tickly than sore, but I definitely have some chest congestion now.  I forced myself to sleep 10 hours (completely countering my whole “get up early to get used to a 7am start time” initiative this week).  Yay, t-minus 5 days before the race and I’ve got some sort of bug.  At this point, I’m going to throw all my energy into preventing it from getting any worse and hopefully I’ll feel right as rain by Sunday.  If I’m being honest with myself, I feel about 80% (and 100% being like my best most awesome ready to get up and bounce around the block day).

The worst thing about it now (besides the chest congestion, which if it’s not cleared up by Sunday, I have worse problems like preventing death), is even with all the rest I’ve had, my body is kinda achey.  Monday night my left glute was a little sore (so yes, the THIRD time this training period with the sore butt muscle - and the third time I realized I was slacking a little bit on the yoga/stretching…) and now my lower back is all tense.  I usually manifest a little bit of my sickness in my muscle, which normally makes me happy, as it’s not all cold symptoms, and sore muscles I can deal with, but this time - this week is supposed to be able resting them and keeping them loose.  I am very much not loose right now.

I’m trying to control the drama in my head, all the “woe is me” thoughts, and realize that this is not the end of the world.  I could be DEAD, not sick.  I could be in the hospital, and not able to race.  The race could be canceled due to a freak alien invasion in which we are to become servants to the little green men or some other natural disaster.  I could be injured.  There are many, many worse things than a mild sickness early in the week-I’ve got time to rebound.

I am going to be testing the theory that you don’t lose much cardio fitness within a week.  I did my baby sprints on Monday, skipped my cross training yesterday, and considering laying off everything but yoga unless I feel 100% until the race.  I’m debating on just doing some mild cardio today (walking, arc trainer on a very mild setting) just to try and stay loose, but I know that’s generally not a good idea.  But I *feel* fine, and it almost feels like it would help me somehow, so I might try and hop off at the first sign of fatigue/uncomfortableness. EDIT: Did 20 mins really EZ on the arc trainer, feel better after, exhausted now, will let you know tomorrow if I did good or bad.

I am also continuing to allow myself to eat until satiety and fullness.  I am not questioning anything nutritious - if I want to eat a whole head of broccoli or some cheese or pistachios or meat, then I’m letting myself.  If I start getting pre-occupied with snack food, then I’ll be doing a head check.  For example, last night I wanted some chips/popcorn/pretzels/etc.  I realized I hadn’t had too many carbs so I let myself graze a little.  Then, after dinner, I was craving ice cream.  I dug into that and figured out I just wanted something to soothe my throat, so I went for a all-fruit pop that’s 25 calories instead of 170 for the ice cream.

I’ve also been looking into other holistic type remedies and here’s what they suggest:

*Staying very hydrated (check)

*Hot tea/water/soup (check)

*Neti pot (tonight - I don’t have a head cold yet but maybe preventative medicine perhaps?)

*Hot water (aka shower) - tonight, I plan on a niiiiice long one.

*Massage - might see if our temp roomie massage therapist might know some good stuff to do for alleviating cold/chest buggies.

*Hot and Spicy Foods - this is no trouble for me *grin*.  I’ll just make sure everything is hot like I like.

*Chanting.  Ummm, I dunno about this one but I’ll try anything.  Zliten already thinks I’m off my rocker.

*Yoga - I searched this because I noticed this morning that my chest really opening up during certain poses, and figure that I might as well add some different poses to my every-day this week program to help get me better!

Reclining Bound Angle Position

Bridge Pose

Child's Pose

Wide-Angle Seated Forward Bend

Legs-up-the-Wall Pose

Shoulderstand

Now I ask the audience… what do you do to get over minor illnesses?  Have you ever run a race doped up on cold medicine or otherwise ill?  Any tips for me to be back to myself by Sunday?  Any suggestions if I’m still a little under the weather?

Well, this is it.  My race is in less than a week.  I’ve made it through all those crucial runs - the 5 - 1 mile sprints, the 8 mile tempo, the 12 mile long run, and everything in between.  I just have a few easy runs left and then it’s go time.  I am staring down that 2 hour half marathon and sizing it up.  It looks like a fierce competitor, but I also have all these things I’ve learned in the last three months.

I’ve learned that I can push through a lot of discomfort - usually what stops me is the voice in my head, not necessarily my physical capacity.  But I’ve run into both.  And I’ve learned the difference.

I’ve learned I can hold the pace I need to do it for 8 miles.  What’s another 5, right?

I’ve learned about how fast I can start out and not want to die at the end.  Running a couple good, speedy miles at the beginning actually boosts my confidence and helps me not feel behind.

I’ve learned that I run faster in the cold even though I hate getting out there.  Which is a good thing - since I’ll be running at 7am, it’s certainly not going to be very warm.

I’ve learned that I don’t have to sacrifice speed for distance, as long as I train smart.  Distance speedwork is AWESOME.

I’ve learned that not running two days in a row means much better quality runs and way less burnout.  I cannot foresee running more than 3 days a week ever again.  I guess technically I will this week but it barely counts.

I’ve learned that not worrying about a few extra pounds close to race day actually makes me a better runner.

I’ve learned that feeling like a human garbage disposal about a month out will happen every long distance race, and I just need to make sure to feed my body mostly good stuff.  And sugar is not the enemy, but it needs to be moderated.

I’ve learned that training my head is as important as training my body.

I’ve learned a lot.  And now it’s time to put it to the test.  So I am going to go for it at the race, and take all these things I’ve learned and bust ass.  Under 2 hours, here I come.  More importantly, cute little running skirt, here I come!  (priorities, right?)

Last week by the numbers:

Monday - 4×800 @ 4:02 per sprint, 400m recovery in between, 1 mile warmup and cooldown - done.  Easy peasy.

Tuesday - ditched serious business cross training to go to Adult Skate Night for an hour.  Totally decent workout.

Wednesday - 3 mile tempo @ 8:55 - done.  Also did abs and some legs after since 26 minutes doesn’t feel like enough punishment at the gym at all.  Woke up the next morning at 6:45 am because my abs hurt.  Must get back into lifting and pressing heavy things.

Thursday - 30 mins on the arc trainer, arms, and other leg muscles.

Friday - off

Saturday - 8 mile long run @ 9:40 pace (kinda demolished that at 9:27 pace).

Sunday - off

This week coming up it’s all about:

-No smokes or drinks until after the race.  I am in goody two shoes mode.

-Lotsa yoga to stay limber.  Every day if I can.

-No weights this week.

-Hydration and good nutrition, and no restriction on calories.  If I’m hungry, I must eat.

Training:

Monday: 4×400 sprints @ 1:58 per 400, 400 rest in between, 1 mile warm up and cool down

Tuesday: 30 mins cross training

Wednesday: 2 mile tempo @ 8:55 per mile.

Thursday: rest

Friday: 2.5 mile easy run in the neighborhood.  At 7am.  No matter the weather or temp.  I have never run this early before and I don’t want the first time to be on race day.

Saturday: rest

Sunday: 13.1!  Race day, BABY!

Last time I was really freaked out about the taper, but my legs felt SO FRESH and SO GOOD out there on Saturday’s run, that only putting in a few short miles this week seems like the right thing to do.  So good thing that’s the plan!

So, anyone out there with some karma to spare, send good running vibes my way., please!  Any last minute tips from you veteran runners out there?  Anyone want to lend me their morning-person-ness for a day so I can be bright eyed and bushy tailed for the race (seriously, 7am = the middle of the night for me)?  Anyone running this race here in Austin this weekend?

It was a weird week - I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel at the end of it.  Monday, I rocked my sprints.  I completely and totally rocked them.  I rocked them like Amadaus (come and rock me Amadeus… and total tangent, did anyone else used to sing “I’m a danish, I’m a danish…I’m a danish?).  Anyhoo - sadly, I had given myself permission to fail at them.  I was going to be ok if I was about to die after 4, quit there.  Or if I had to take the last 2 a little slower, I was going to be ok with that.  I had a helluva day at work, I even kinda did something I haven’t done in a while and ate some cake because I was pissed off after I was totally full from lunch, and then for some reason it became REALLY important to me to do this.  Just to show myself I could.  Just to take control of SOMETHING that day when everything else was out in orbit.

And honestly - it almost felt easier than it should have.  Sure, it was tough, but it wasn’t TOUGH.  Maybe that’s me getting stronger.  Maybe it was me refusing to let the run beat me.  Whatever it was, it was damn nice.  It was one important crazy run down, one to go.

Tuesday and Wednesday were more crappy crazy days   I was in such a mood, never mind the working late, so I just managed to get about 30 mins half assed weight training in and take the other day off.  These strength exercises may or may not have been between/during drinks on the patio.  I may possibly be insane and completely irresponsible, but I was getting a kick out of doing  lat raises in my skirt and heels with a bourbon chaser.

Thursday I knew I had to get back to it, and it wasn’t SUCH a bad day, and it was 4 mile tempo day.  As I said last week, it was pretty cake.  Instead of just being a ball of limp putty, I was able to do 30 mins on the arc trainer after.  To make up for the severe lack of any other movement beyond runs.  The plan was to do some circuit training but I was soooo done with doing anything but dinner and chillin’ on the couch, and figured I’d just rest up for Saturday’s run.  So my cross training this week?  30 mins weights, 30 mins arc trainer.  Not optimal.  Not at all.  I was feeling pretty meh about it all this week but then Saturday came.

I wasn’t looking forward to it at all.  The weather report was not looking kind - there were very few hours of the day that would feel like they were above freezing with the wind.  I got up in the morning and we grabbed some early lunch - tuna sammiches from Schlotzky’s - oddly enough they are the only tuna I will eat out because they do albacore and light mayo (so the sandwiches aren’t like 50000 calories), and they are taaassssty.  So I ate that around 11, and we sorta bopped around the neighborhood, and then I got home and very very leisurely got ready and I set out around 1:30.

It was a little cold when I first set out, but once I got running it wasn’t so bad.  I decided to just do my neighborhood laps over and over so I could drop by the house if I needed to pick up or drop off layers.  I set out with warm water in my camelback, swedish fish for rocket fuel, and the promise to myself that I would treat myself to the hot chocolate I was craving, but only if I made my pace goal of 9:40.  I felt super strong the first lap and went well below pace, the second lap I slowed a bit, the third - around mile 6, the tuna really started talking to me.  I don’t usually eat so much before a run, usually a protein bar and maaaaybe some fruit if it’s later in the day, so at first I was cursing myself.  Then after I got through the cramps I realized that I was feeling something different than normal - I wasn’t hungry.   Usually around then I’d pop my rocketfuel.  I didn’t actually use it at all.  I ran 12 miles hard with no sugar.  That was pretty incredible.

So besides figuring out that eating a big meal is good if I can let it settle/deal with the possible side cramps (probably not for the race at 7am, but for future reference), what else?  Well, I’ve also learned another interesting thing about my running for long races… I went out really fast (about 9 minute miles the first lap) and was a little worried, but it was a MUCH better run than the last one where I tried to save it all for the end.  I seem to self correct my pace pretty well.  So my strategy is to go out as fast as it’s comfortable and don’t try to stay one pace and bust ass if I need a quick slowdown.  I was running 10:30 miles on the uphill parts and the short time where my side cramps flared up.  When I felt good and it was flat or downhill, I went closer to 9 minute miles or even faster.  As long as it averages out to the pace I want, it’s fine.  And that’s why I’m training those sprints and tempos - so I’m comfortable running faster than the pace I need to go for an extended period of time.

I finished the run in 1:55:10.  9:35 pace.  I am thrilled and feel quite confident now about the race.  I definitely feel like I had a bit of oomph left at the end, and if I was running to feel entirely wasted and spent at the end I might have been able to go faster.  So under 2 hours?  Still possible.  I’m thinking under 2:05 is more reasonable.

Next week - taper week 1.  I still can’t believe I’m just 2 weeks out.  I’m definitely ready for it, I’d like to do something different for a while.  3 months of pace pace pace has been awesome for improving my running, but it’s been a little tedious.  I so enjoyed my scenic and slow 9 miler last weekend, and look forward to more of those as I work on getting used to being on my feet for 4 hours at a time.  But first things first - lets rest up those legs.

Monday: 4×800 sprints @ 4:02 per, 400m recovery in between, 1 mile warmup and cooldown.  Easy peasy, nice and short.  I’m not sure when 5 miles with 2 of them sprinting because a stroll through the park but hey, I’ll take it.

Tuesday: DDR circuits (I was going to taper strength 2 weeks ahead of time but I think 1 week will be fine)

Wednesday: 3 mile tempo @ 8:55 min/mile pace - it’s like a 5k, pretty close to my PR pace from last summer.  Again, when did that become easy?

Thursday: DDR circuits

Friday: off

Saturday: 8 mile run @ 9:40  min/mile pace

Sunday: off

Fairly easy week.  I really slacked on yoga this week (though I DID stretch really well every running day), I need to not do that this week.  No injuries please!

Today is brought to you by the I-word.  Yeah, injuries.  No, thank my lucky stars, I don’t have another one.  I’m actually feeling pretty great, thanks, minus a little fatigue from walking 6 miles yesterday which should hopefully subside as I sit on my ass all day at the office.  If it were a normal week, I’d be taking today off, running Tu/Thu/Sat, but life got in the way.  I’ve got a dentist appt and an industry meetup tomorrow, and lunch with the ‘rents Wednesday, so if I don’t run today I will have to get up WAY WAY too early to squeeze it in, so that makes the decision a done deal for me.

Now the reason that I’ve got injuries on the brain is THIS POST.  Mizfit captures my awe for 1) being so type B to my type A that she can just go run when she feels like it without a specific goal/race/program/etc and 2) she says she has never been injured.  Holy crap, woman, that is an accomplishment!

I’ve spent most of my life being a walking injury.  Only NOW am I realizing how abnormal that is and should be.  My excuse for everything used to be my weak ankles (if it wasn’t my size, heh).  This guy is pretty abnormal too.

When I was a wee thing I fell in love with gymnastics.  I loved the flipping, twisting, adrenaline rush associated with running full bore into something springy and propelling myself up into the air.  But as we all know, what comes up must come down.  And it doesn’t always come down quite as planned when you’re doing this over and over 5-6 times per week for 4-7 hours per day.

It’s worth mentioning that I was a fairly large gymnast, both height and mass-wise - even with all that training I was 5′3″ (I must mention that I grew 2 inches at age 16 when I quit - within probably 3 months…) and 115-125, so a fairly average weight/BMI.  I don’t look scary skinny in those pictures, I look like a normal human.  This is great for not being picked on in school, but rough on the joints.  Oh, I got pretty far because I was determined/stubborn, and I was pretty fearless, but it got to the point where to advance, the cost just seemed too high.

You see, for about the year before I quit, I had a routine.  Every day when I was getting ready, I would pop 2-4 advil, completely tape up both ankles, pull braces over the taped ankles, put on special slippers that provided a little more stability/support, and off I went.  I mean, any sane person would realize that it was time to take a break and let myself recover, right?  Well, not me, because I was a stubborn ASS and I had 2 years left before recruiters would be looking at me and I needed to get better so I could get a scholarship or life would fall apart and and and… yeah.

And my coaches never helped much - I remember the day before I came down with chicken pox I was fevery and shaky and I was almost in tears because I felt SO AWFUL but it was two days before a big meet so I was trying to push through but kinda failing.  I was yelled at, called a baby, so I got up, did what I had to do, then went and pretty much passed out on the floor while stretching.  Same with injuries - if it wasn’t in a cast, they didn’t believe it hurt enough to stay off it.

But ya know, I found a sick satisfaction in working through injuries.  That I was tougher because of it.   That I was going to overcome.

Now I know how stooooooooopid that is.  Not that I don’t have the urges, but now I have science and logic backing me up. Y’know, the knowledge that pushing through workouts when you’re sick actually makes you LOSE fitness and not resting an injury makes that body part WEAKER, not stronger.  And the only coach I have calling me a baby is the one in my head - and I’ve got some good control over her.  I just say “SCIENCE” and she shuts the hell up.

Pic unrelated, but cute!  Anyhoo, I also train much smarter now.  I don’t RELISH the strength training, but after the AMAZING gains I saw in my running post 30-Day-Shred, I am a believer.  I wish I remembered where I saw the quote, but you have to earn your right to run by strengthening and maintaining your body. In gymnastics/diving, it was just the icky I had to look like I was doing so my coaches didn’t yell at me.  For some reason, I never put two and two together that if I really ROCKED the conditioning, then I might get better.

I make sure my running has periods of ebb (running 5k distance 2 times per week and lots of cross training) and flow (last week’s mileage? 30.5 miles).  Also, I’m very in tune with my body and try to listen when it whispers so I don’t get knocked the fuck out when it shouts at me.  I know that I’ll never be immune to acute injuries like tripping and spraining my ankle, but adequate warmups and cooldowns, rest, stretching, and incremental increases in mileage/pace instead of leaps will keep me from those evil chronic overuse injuries.   It’s odd to say that I hurt myself less at 30 than I did at 13, but it’s true.

So, internet-ians, what do you think?  What’s the worst injury you’ve ever had?   Have you ever just tried to “rub some dirt in it” (or slap some tape on it in my case) and just keep going?  How bad do things have to get before you cancel your workouts and just rest?

p.s.  I don’t usually do this, but Chocolate Covered Katie is a very cool chick, a runner girl, and actually makes vegan eating look awesome.  She is also giving away a vita-mix, so please never ever visit her site because I want to win it.  Okie?

Well, this week was the week of almosts.  Of getting about 90%.  Of testing my limits and finding them.  Of just not quite having the juice to put up rock solid times, but close enough that I feel good about it.  The saying is close only counts for horseshoes and hand grenades, but I think it works for training too.  When close is still putting in the miles, and still feeling pushed to the limit, I’ll take it.

Monday’s run foretold a lot.  As I complained about here, I was just not recovered from my long run + epic night of drinking + crap food.  I’ve done that same workout before minus a mile, and I’ve never felt so bleh during a sprint before.  I made it through the first two, and *probably* could have held on during the third, but since I had four to do, I went ahead and slowed from sprint to tempo pace.  I was a little disappointed, but overall, it was not so bad.  I put in the miles, and just barely missed the mark.

Wednesday was the run I was super excited/nervous about.  I totally prepared, did everything right, and then I got to mile 6 and had to slow down or I was not going to make it.  On that day, I was simply unable to run that pace for that many miles.  6 miles or 7 miles?  I could have done it.  Not 8.

Saturday’s 11 mile run, I made the awesome decision/mistake to tackle the hill that fucked me up last week TWICE.  I just didn’t recover well after it, and most of my latter miles were either just under or just over the 10 min/mile pace.  I did finish the run at a 9:57 pace, and considering miles 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 were uphill, I”m calling this a win.  I think I’m going to pick something a little flatter for my 12 miler to see if I can hit the 9:40 pace.

So that being said, I’m feeling like I did what I could, though I am definitely starting to feel some muscle fatigue that isn’t recovering in my days between runs.  So - this training method is MUCH better than the run-more one, but it is not impervious.  Oh well.  The good news is that now my tempo runs start to taper, and two weeks from now, so does everything else.  So I just have to tell my stumps-for-legs that they just have to hold out a LITTLE longer, and then we can start getting rested for the race.

I still feel badass, I still feel strong, but I don’t really feel untouchable anymore.  Which is ok.  I was getting to be a little Cockypants McGee and while confidence is good, having some runs that don’t go your way helps you learn.  I learned a lot from the runs this week.  And though I could certainly have hoped for a little more out of all three, I definitely refreshed my memory on how to recover a run that’s not going my way and still kick about 90% as much ass.

By the numbers:

Monday: 4x 1600 sprints @ 8:25 pace  - check (did 2 @ pace and then 2 @ 8:50)

Tuesday: DDR circuits - check

Wednesday: 8 mile tempo @ 8:55 pace - check (ended up at 9:07 pace)

Thursday: DDR circuits - check

Friday: off

Saturday: 11 mile run @ 9:40 pace - check (ended up at 9:57 pace)

Sunday: off - actually cross trained (6 mile hike around the hood) for next week due to a) beautimous day and b) weekday shenanigans, so I can have an extra day off.

So, next week.  This week and next week, and then it’s taper.  Getting close!  Less than a month away!

Monday: 6×800 sprints @ 8:10 pace (4:05 per 800)

Tuesday: DDR circuits

Wednesday: yoga/off

Thursday: 6 mile tempo run

Friday: yoga/off

Saturday: 15k race pace (shooting for somewhere under 9:40)

Sunday: off

So a little less mileage, but 3 super intense fast pace runs.  If I can get through Monday’s on not-completely-rested legs, I think I will be alright.  Send good, happy, zippy thoughts!  What do you do when you’re partway through a run (or workout) and don’t think you’re going to make it?

…just aint workin’ for me today.  So let’s finish up this doozy of a week with a snappy little 5 Random Things Post.  Tricked ya, didn’t I?  Just WAIT until you get a load of what I’m planning for April Fools Day (guess I should let ME know because I haven’t decided yet, tee hee).  Ok, it’s not even technically Friday, and my brain is in crazyland already.  This does not bode well…

1.  I still need to experiment more with it and I’ll do a whole post soon, but OMG, I LOVE LOVE LOVE my garmin forerunner.  I never realized what I was missing but OH GOD I don’t ever want to do another outside run without it.  It always bothered me that I didn’t exactly how far and how fast I was running (some days it didn’t matter to me but I never am opposed to having a reference).  The coolest thing?  It pulls data points about once a house and shows me my pace at each one.  And I can sort of watch my performance after the fact in a graph and go - “ok, that’s where I crossed the street, that’s where the hill started, that’s where I was booking it to make up some time, etc”.  You can import it into google earth even and I could see where I ran around someone who was blocking the sidewalk.  I never REALLY wanted one before (well I did but… it’s expensive!) but it’s seriously awesome.  Today, I’m going to play around with the heartrate monitor strap for my cross training workout. EDIT:  Boo, it doesn’t do heart rate indoors well.  It took my heart rate alright, but said I burnt 18 calories.  Not quite.

1b.  For those of you accustomed to doing 10+ mile runs, do you ever feel like you’re getting ready for a trip?  Workout clothes, sunscreen (if I remember), attach runner ID to one foot, attach shoe wallet with sport beans to other, apply body glide liberally to cleavage/arms, fill and attach camelback to myself, then strap on my zune, find my running sunglasses (they’re thinner and give me less owl eyes - yes, I’m vain), and in the winter find my headband?   It’s exhausting before I even start my warmup!

2.  I’ve been on the spark again calorie tracking.  I retroactively put in Monday and am still going today.  Oddly enough, it motivated me to eat LOTS and LOTS of good for me food.  Fancy that?  Yesterday, I felt so full I was afraid I was going to lose my cookies (err…carrots I guess) later on the ‘mill.  And I came about 250 calories under my goal because I just couldn’t put another damn thing in my cakehole.  Monday was a little under 200 under goal.  2000 calories of healthy food is HARD. 1500-1700 feels about right.  Good thing today is a cross training day, so 1500 is the goal.  I’m at about 1k now after a gigantic snack (carrots/pea pods/hummus/necatrine/jerky/wheat melbas and laughing cow), and looking forward to an awesome healthy dinner.

3.  The scale, it moved yesterday!  Yeah, I probably shouldn’t be weighing every day but since I’m tracking it seems to feel right to weigh every day.  And this morning it sung to me like a songbird, 156.0.  Only 1lb to go until I can start the “I-trust-myself-at-maintenance” counter.  I’m going to predict 2 weeks of tracking and then I’ll be able to go back to fumbling my way through it without numbers.  I totally know why I’m NOT doing this for the majority of this year.  I’m learning pretty well about how to be pretty un-neurotic about my food and just do this thing naturally, but I start getting crazy when I have to be SO accountable.  Great for weight loss, bad for trying to figure out a “rest of my life” thing.

4.  The weather, while NOT beautiful today, has gone from stupid cold (for us) as in highs in the 30s and lows in the 10s, to decent, meaning highs in the 50s and lows in the 30s, to rainy today and tomorrow, but starting Saturday and extending into next week, it’s supposed to be upper 60s/70s and lows in the 40s/50s.  I AM SO LOOKING FORWARD!  I missed this weather something terrible over the last few weeks.  Don’t ever leave me again!  It should be perfect conditions for a nice long run outside this weekend, and maybe I’ll have to see if I can get in a lunch/after work run next week before the sun sets.

5.  Uhhhm, I’m kind of out of ideas now, so I’ll just say Archer on FX is pretty much hilarious.

Have a great weekend, everyone!  I’ll probably be playing some rock band, running a lot, possibly going out on the town, and hopefully enjoying outside time on Sunday.  What’s your plans?

**Note - I thought this would be a clever post, but upon rereading it, it feels very weird and disjointed.  Hopefully it makes some sense to y’all.  Also, super random funny pictures because it’s late and I’m lazy. /end disclaimer**

5pm:

So, I am SUPER NERVOUS about this tempo today.  8 miles @ 8:55 pace.  This is the run for all the marbles (if by marbles you mean confidence in the sillyfast pace I picked for myself which I do).  If I can hit this pace, I am convinced I can do anything.  This is also the LONGEST run I will have to do at this fast pace.  I’ve done 6 miles twice and the first time it was tough, and the second time I barely made it.  I am trying to channel the essence of time 1 when I wasn’t shooting darts through my brain at the inventor of the FIRST program after mile 2, and realize that all I have to do is add just a bit under 18 minutes to that fairly notsohard run.

If I just remember that #1 the pace is non negotiable and #2 I am not going to remember how hard it was, just if I finished it or not and #3 I never have to run this again at this pace - I should be all golden.  I have a good playlist, and I am about 1:30 away from hitting the ‘mill, but I doubt I’m going to finish the post before then, so instead I’m going to talk to you from the future.  I bet this guy would have liked a future-gram saying PROTECT THE FAMILY JEWELS, kthx.

Hi all!  It’s about 7pm and I’ve just gotten out of the shower after my run.  I am soooooo pleased to report that I was able to get through my 8 miles and keep my pace.  I’m totally pumped now because it means I can do ANYTHING! ROAR!  I have confidence a-plenty that I will ROCK my goal pace at this half coming up.

So I went into the day prepared.  I had a super 30g protein bar for breakfast, and made sure to stay SUPER hydrated all day.  I had a nice mild lunch that I know doesn’t aggrivate my tummy (seafood salad salad w/cilantro dressing) and kept feeding my face with healthy snacks (like pistachios, carrots and hummus, and fruit) so my fuel tank would be topped off and I’d be rarin’ to go.  I had also changed up my playlist and put all my favorite songs that make me pick up the pace so I didn’t run into silence around mile 6.5.

I got to the gym and warmed up and took off.  I decided that it seemed to work best last time when I started at 6.2 and worked up to 6.7 over the first half mile, so I did that.  Once I got there, it felt fast, but comfortable, and I threw my workout towel over the numbers and spaced out, getting really into my music.  I had even remembered to bring a second towel so I could cover the screen with one and wipe my sweaty face with another.

Miles 1 and 2 were uneventful.  Mile 3 started getting a little tough, but I focused on some happy news I got today and breathed through it and made it through my first 5k feeling strong.  I just kept repeating 5 miles to go.  You can do anything for 5 miles.  Look at how STRONG you look.  How STRONG you feel.  You are such a STRONG runner lately, how awesome is that?  Mile 4 - 5 seemed to go quicker, but 6 kinda dragged.  I was starting to feel it - this SHOULD be the end where I do my final sprint to the finish line, but I still had more to go.

I dug deep and reminded myself that this was the most important run before my marathon.  That if I can do this, I can do anything.  That though it was tough, I didn’t NEED to slow down, I just WANTED to.  That I would only remember if I did or didn’t do it, that there was no room for “I tried”.  That this was my longest tempo run I have to do.  That I have 2 days off running starting the moment the treaddy ticks to 8.0 miles.  These thoughts got me through the first half of mile 7, and then a really kickin’ song came on and I got buoyed up by that and barely noticed when I was onto mile 8.

When .5 miles to go hit and it was time to kick - my legs were barely my own, but my fingers were still within my control so I hit the speed increase every tenth and finished up the run at an 8:57 pace.

As Miz likes to say, I am my own superhero today.  Almost as super as Fire Breathing Al Gore.

After the gym, I shall come back and share how things really went in superfun strikeout text.

…ok back from the gym.  Here we go:

Hi all!  It’s about  7 9pm and I’ve just gotten out of the shower after my run finished my run, eaten dinner, had a beer, and am snugged up watching sci fi.  I am soooooo pleased to report that I was able to get through my 8 miles and *almost* keep my pace.  I’m totally pumped now because it still means I can do ANYTHING! ROAR!  I have confidence a-plenty that I will ROCK my goal pace at this half coming up.

So I went into the day prepared.  I had a super 30g protein bar for breakfast, and made sure to stay SUPER hydrated all day.  I had a nice mild lunch that I know doesn’t aggrivate my tummy (seafood salad salad w/cilantro dressing) and kept feeding my face with healthy snacks (like pistachios, carrots and hummus, and fruit) so my fuel tank would be topped off and I’d be rarin’ to go.  I had also changed up my playlist and put all my favorite songs that make me pick up the pace so I didn’t run into silence around mile 6.5.

I got to the gym and warmed up and took off.  I decided that it seemed to work best last time when I started at 6.2 and worked up to 6.7 over the first half mile, so I did that.  Once I got there, it felt fast, but comfortable, and I threw my workout towel over the numbers and spaced out, getting really into my music.  I had even remembered to bring a second towel so I could cover the screen with one and wipe my sweaty face with another.

Miles 1 and 2 were uneventful.  Mile 3 started getting a little tough, but I focused on some happy news I got today and breathed through it and made it through my first 5k feeling strong.  I just kept repeating 5 miles to go.  You can do anything for 5 miles.  Look at how STRONG you look (didn’t have a mirror spot).  How STRONG you feel.  You are such a STRONG runner lately, how awesome is that?  Mile 4 - 5 seemed to go quicker just about as painfully, but 6 kinda dragged.  I was starting to feel it - this SHOULD be the end where I do my final sprint to the finish line, but I still had more to go.

I dug deep and reminded myself that this was the most important run before my marathon.  That if I can do this, I can do anything.  That though it was tough, I didn’t NEED to slow down, I just WANTED to That I actually physically needed to slow down a little for just a little bit if I was going to make it through. That I would only remember if I did or didn’t do it, that there was no room for “I tried” That a strong finish was more important than pooping out at 7 miles.  That this was my longest tempo run I have to do. That I have 2 days off running starting the moment the treaddy ticks to 8.0 miles.  I took a tenth of a mile at 6.0 at the beginning of mile 6, and because I had to stop to reset the treadmill after 60 minutes, I slowed a tenth of a mile before and after stopping as to not shock myself into a stop from a breakneck pace. These thoughts got me through the first half of mile 7, and then a really kickin’ song came on and I got buoyed up by that and barely definitely noticed when I was onto mile 8.

I tried to start the kick at 1 mile to go to make up some time, but I had to slow down again because I felt physically spent, however… When .5 miles to go hit and it was time to kick - my legs were barely my own, but my fingers were still within my control so I hit the speed increase every tenth and then every 5 hundreths the last quarter mile and finished up the run at an 8:57 9:07 pace.

As Miz likes to say, I am still my own superhero today.

…no explanation for this one.  It just made me LOL.

Analysis:

So honestly, I’m going to give myself a B+.  Sure, I didn’t hit my pace.  Sure, I had to slow down.  Sure, it sucks BALLS that I was just 10 seconds per mile off my goal pace.  But - I was only 10 second per mile off my goal pace!  I felt pretty strong at the end of it.  I found that 8 miles was just a little too far today to keep one OMG CRAZY pace, but I did learn that it is way doable with a few slowdowns for recovery.  And if I can add 5 miles and stick pretty close to the pace I kept tonight, I will still beat my goal.  And… I firmly believe I run stronger outside, so I have that going for me.

Now, it’s up to me to keep training strong.  Somehow I had lead myself to believe in my sillybrain that if I did this run perfect, everything else would fall into place.  I didn’t do this run perfect, but I did good enough.  And that will just have to be good enough for my confidence.  I get another chance to rock it Saturday with an 11 mile run @ 9:40 minute miles, and then another 2 hard weeks of training to prove myself to myself before the taper.  Wish me luck!

Mrs. Fatass tagged me so I must oblige, and it should make for a nice, light, Friday post.   She tagged me last week but at the time I was in major back pain and nothing was making me happy.  So, in no particular order…

1.  Technology!  I love that I have a computer that sits on my lap on the couch.  My phone allows me to stay in constant communication if I chose to pay attention to it (which I often don’t but… whatevs).  My car works off a battery until it needs more power, and only then it uses gas.  When I watch TV in my living room, it might as well be a movie.

2.  Social Networking/Blogging/Internet Communication in general.  On twitter and facebook I can keep in touch VERY easily with everyone from former coworkers to my best friends from junior high school.  I’ve met some damn cool people blogging and reading blogs.  The internet in general makes the world just shrink down to nothing and puts like-minded people together.  How cool is that?

3.  Video Games.  I do believe I rekindled my affection for games this vacation.  I forgot the awesome thrill of solving a puzzle that Zliten and I had been working on over and over in Final Fantasy Crystal Defenders.  Or accidentally taking over the controller playing Brutal Legend and beating the game on the first try.  Or playing Peggle for hours.  I think I’m into slightly different games than I was a few years ago, but I need to remember to make time to play.  It is, after all, job research.

4.  Our house.  I’ve never felt so at home somewhere.  It is so us.  The kitchen is bright green and has a crayon green fairy drawing on the wall.  We have an awesome two-propellor huge silver fan that looks like it should be on an airship.  The workout room is bright orange and yellow and blue.  The light comes in the bedroom and wakes me up gently most mornings.  We have plenty of room - maybe too much, but we’re used to it now so there is no going back.  Some of my favorite days are just spent sitting outside enjoying my back patio.

5.  Austin.  I’ve loved both the places I’ve chosen to live as an adult (Reno being by default, I’m not counting it), but I think I feel more at home here in the ATX rather than San Diego.  The weather is pretty damn nice (this winter is pushing it though…), I can afford to live in a metropolitan area where I can walk to dinner and a movie, or the community pool, or the grocery store, or a place to go dancing, or clothes shopping…and the list can go on.  The amount of places I can hit on my bike?  Tenfold.

5.  My friends and family.  It’s really nice to have a group of friends locally that I hang out with on a weekly basis.  I need the reminders to just relax and have fun, and have fun we do!   And it’s nice to have my parents close enough to see on a regular basis.  Sometimes I forget I need people and it’s really super nice to never really have the chance to withdraw that often anymore.

6.  Running.  I love to have finally found something workout-wise that engages my competitive side and took me from fitness as a mechanism to lose weight to something I enjoy for it’s own sake.  Something I can do all by myself or with a big group.  Outside or inside.  Something that’s as easy as putting one foot in front of each other but can be as complicated and self-testing as I want it to be.  Something that I am incredibly proud that I can associate myself as (a runner).

7.  My own personal slice of fashion.  When I’ve got something on that makes me feel like I look damn good, I feel awesome all day.  Whether I was pushing 250 or 150, there is something to be said about clothing that makes you feel good wearing.  And I’m not talking about what you put on to putter around the house or sleep in.  I mean, the clothes you put on, look in the mirror, and want to make out with yourself.  A cute skirt, some tights, a sweater, and my new pirate boots, and I’m making eyes at myself all day in the mirror.  I’d do more fashion posts but…damn, I am lazy and forget to get pictures of myself when I look particularly nice.

8.  My Zliten - I seriously never though that it was possible to have such an awesome relationship and share such an amazing love with someone.  I seriously used to stay up at night and wish on the stars for someone like him.

9.  Writing.  Really digging in my head and finding the words to tell a story, or convey how I’m feeling.  People reading my writing is even cooler!

10.  I agree with Mrs. Fatass - me.  Even though I still have a lot to settle in my head, I am constantly amazed at things I can do.   I’ve come really far and accomplished a lot in many different aspects of my life, and I know it’s just getting started.  I used to think life was just going to go downhill at 30, and now, I know it’s so not the case.

Woohoo, there we go.  I am going to  just tag anyone reading this, because I love to learn new things about everyone!  If you do it, leave me a comment with a link to it.  Or, just leave a comment with one random thing about you, because that’s just about as fun, right?  Hope you all have a lovely weekend!

EDIT: Just realized I had 5 twice.  So I guess I have 11 things to be happy about!

EDIT 2: Also remember that I hit publish before finishing my sentences for 6/7.  It must be almost Friday! *blushes*

Epic.  Fail.  I think that’s about all I can say here.

I was psyched up to do some pivital runs this week (my 8 mile tempo and 9 mile long).  I had rocked the hell outta my sprints Monday.  I was feeling great and then Tuesday morning before my workout, I sat down on the couch and OUCH, something just popped out and my left butt cheek hurt like hell and I could barely walk.  For three days.  I got better JUST in time to enjoy New Years Eve not in complete pain and only returned to a DDR cardio only workout yesterday.  I’m finally feeling up for a run today, but I also don’t wanna go into next week wiped out, so I think I am going to do something yoga-ish or DDR-ish or strength-ish later.  Or just enjoy my last day of vacation on my not-in-pain hiney and resume normalcy tomorrow.  Still haven’t decided.

I have been battling the head-demons a bit, but mostly succeeding.  They’ve been trying to hit me with little ditties such as “missing two runs in the middle of training is going to set you back” and “what if you just lost your momentum and you can’t keep up your paces” and the classic “you are a failure for not pushing through the pain/making up the runs/etc etc”.  What I’ve been telling them is such: “Tomorrow, I’m gonna rock some sprints.  Mid-week, I’m going to bust up my self-doubt a tempo run.  Saturday, I’m going to run 10 miles and it’s going to be the fastest 10 miles I’ve ever run in my life.”  I don’t see a reason WHY a minor injury that is pretty much all better now is going to do anything to my pace.  Or missing 2 runs.  That’s just excuses.

The only little nagging voice that is actually affecting me is the one whispering, “oh yeah, well why has this happened twice in less than two months…hmm?”  Right now I’m combating this with “being lazy about stretching, duhhh”, but I am actually really quite lucky and have a massage therapist friend who is coming to stay with us in January who I might be able to convince to work on my poor naughty knotty back.  I just really really really gotta be vigilant about a quick stretch every time I work out, and keeping up with the yoga.

So there.  This week, I ran sprints as planned Monday (4×800 @ 8:10 pace), took off Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday unexpectedly and took off Friday expectedly (Jan 1st is official hangover day, y’know).  Yesterday I did 30 mins DDR, and today, as explained before, is up in the air.

Next week, the goal is to hit each and every workout as planned.  To keep my confidence up.  To keep my fitness up.

Monday: 6×400 sprints @ 1:58 pace (with the requisite 1 mile warm up, 1 mile cool down, and 400 recovery in the middle)

Tuesday: DDR circuits

Wednesday: 6 mile tempo (tempted to make up the 8 mile tempo but I think I’ll refrain)

Thursday: DDR circuits

Friday: off

Saturday: 10 mile run

Sunday: off

The mid-week might change a little as I might have an event to go to one night after work, but the book ends are non-negotiable.  By Saturday afternoon, I will log my 5th ever double digit run.   Wish me luck!

Nutrition/Other Stuffs:

I won’t be talking about losing weight very often anymore due to my resolution #1, but I am going to hop on the scale tomorrow as the first weigh in of 2010 and it will start the new modus operandi around here.  If it is under 155, no action is needed.  If it is over 155, I have one week to get it down.  If at the next weigh in it’s not under 155, I start tracking calories (attempting to average 1500 per day) until the next weigh in where I am under 155.  The only exception is right before a race - in which case the calorie restriction will start after.

My prediction is that I will be over 155 this week, but not next week.  I did indulge a bit more than normal but I didn’t go crazy all the time.  I am actually REALLY, REALLY looking forward to getting back into my normal eating habits.  I don’t quite feel right not having my normal regiment of protein bar mornings, fruit afternoon snacks, pistachio and jerky refreshers, and healthy home cooked meals most days.

As begrudgingly as I am returning to work and the daily grind, I’m finding that two weeks off without traveling was enough vacation to want a little normalcy back.