20 and Done.

Yesterday, Sister and I tackled our very last long distance training run for the Disney Marathon!  How we finished, I still don’t really know but we did.  I took off from work on Friday to run but the lovely weather here in Wisconsin decided not to cooperate so we postponed until Saturday morning.  It was still kind of chilly but the wind was much calmer.  I think when we left it was like 5 degrees or something like that.

Yeah, we actually got like 1″ here…

We set off by 7:45 am or so because we had some fun afternoon plans with the parents.  Right away I think Sister was struggling on this run – maybe too many sugar cookies or something?  But I felt better than on our last 20 miler over Thanksgiving weekend.  We ran a different way than our typical long run route which was a good change of scenery and also considering the weather, was probably the safer route to take as well.  For once in our lives, we planned ahead and brought money so we could refuel with gatorade at a gas station instead of stopping home and man, that was a good idea.  Otherwise, this 20 miler might have turned into a 15 miler!

We also each tried out our new lulu turtlenecks we scored on clearance!

We kept a more moderate pace and walked a lot but that seemed to really help me make it to the finish.  Sister was not feeling the relief but at least it helped me?!  Also, when we stopped at the gas station, we took a few minutes to stretch and do a down dog or two and hip stretches and that made all the difference for me on the last 5-6 miles of this run.  I also should have taken one more gu sometime in the last 3-4 miles but realized it with only like 1.5 to go and I figured at that point, it was not really going to help… made that last part not so fun…

Highlights:

• Finishing
• Realizing I don’t have to train in the winter anymore this year!!!
• Running with Sister
• Talking about our newly developed running plans for 2013
• Reminding Sister that finish time is not important!
• Somehow being dressed appropriately – not too cold and only too hot for like 10 minutes!

Lowlights:

• Knowing Sister was struggling
• Remembering a marathon is 20 + a 10k
• Freezing water bottles/gu
• Rude cars that refuse to be polite to runners and slowdown/move over

We ran for about 4 hours which, to me, didn’t feel that long at all.  I really think running with someone makes the long distances more fun.  I can’t wait until I get to run with Sister over the finish line in Florida three weeks from today!  In fact, by this time, three weeks from now, we will be DONE!!!!!  And sporting some awesome Disney race bling around our necks!  Whoop!

‘case you forgot what this looks like.

Leave Well Enough Alone.

Why can’t running shoe companies make consistently sized and fitted running shoes?  Consistency is kind of nice when it comes to running shoes but I just can’t seem to get anything consistent anymore.

A few months ago I switched to Nike running shoes and they fit awesome!  They were the Lunarglide 3s and they cured my running problems I had been having at the time.

Fastforward 3-4 months and of course they don’t make the “3s” anymore, they are now the “4″s… The person at Zappo’s assured me they were the same model so I ordered them up.  I wanted to save them until closer to Disney so I just ran in them today and guess what?!  Now I have awesome bloody ankle bones.  WTF!

I just don’t understand why they have to change shoes all the time!  It’s impossible to ever find any that fit that you can rely on!  I am remembering now why I had sworn off Nike’s and it’s this inconsistency that totally pissed me off.  I don’t have $100′s to just throw away on stupid running shoes that just cause me pain and blood.  And I’m sure Zappo’s really wants these shoes back now that they are destroyed…

 

What do I do now?  Do you have running shoe consistency problems or is it just me?

Marathon Monday: 12/3

Another week is starting up.  I’m already certain it will be a crazy busy one.  For whatever reason, my work turns crazy busy this time of year #merrychristmastome But to distract myself from that, there is always exercise and marathon training!

Here’s a look at last week:

Monday: 2 mile run in the morning + TRX class at the gym in the evening (why does this class cost extra )

Tuesday: 45 Kickboxing circuit I did in the basement which also included some weights!  I always forget how much I love kickboxing and really wish it was at my gym…

Wednesday: 4 mile run in the morning + pilates in the evening at the gym

Thursday: 3 mile run in the morning + insanity upper body weights in the evening

Friday: rest!

Saturday: 11 miler for fun.

Sunday: rest (again)

I really like doing the double workouts during the week but then when the weekend rolls around, I just want to sit on my butt and do nothing!  But at least I ran Saturday…

Total running mileage: 20 miles!

Total gym trips… 2.

Made the mileage goal but fell a little short on the gym goal.  Hopefully one of these days I start feeling like less of an outsider at the gym.  Clearly I take these things way too personally…

Goals for this coming week include running 23 mile + 3 trips to the gym (for real this time)

Did you do anything extra fun this past week?  Any rediscovered favorite workouts?

11 for fun.

Sometime in the past year, 10, 11, 12 mile runs have become no big deal.  That makes me both sad and happy at the same time.  Sad because I know next year that distance will probably go back to feeling like death even when my brain is like NBD and happy because, well, at least for now those distances aren’t so terrible awful

I felt pretty good on my run this morning, keeping a 10ish minute mile pace the whole way through.  And for whatever reason, finished the last mile in 9:00?  WTF is with that?  I went back to taking Gus ever 45 minutes or so and walking every mile for a minute and that really does help so much!  I decided to pick the hilly version of a long run course this time and will likely regret that later this afternoon when I am trying to shop!  The weather today was also so warm!  Like 45+ when I left!  I can’t recall the last December run I’ve done in a tank top and was over dressed like that!  I’m pretty sure the weather was colder for Lakefront!  (How was it only 2 months ago that I ran a marathon?  Sometimes I feel like time is going fast and then sometimes things feel ages ago that are really not long ago at all!)

I just spent the last 20 minutes looking for the only pair of jeans I own that are not awfully tight on my thighs.  #runnerproblems And will likely go from fine to dying of starvation this afternoon when I am as far away from food as humanly possible… sometimes I really wonder what I like about running

Favorite running quote I think

Hope everyone is having a good Saturday!  Happy December!

Race Flashback: Turkey Trot 15k Prediction Run

On Sunday I ran my first ever 15k.  The concept of this run was to predict a finishing time and then run completely blind (no garmin, watch, looking at time in any way) and whoever ends closest to their predicted time wins a turkey.  I went fairly moderate with my prediction time and picked 1:35:45 which would have been about a 10:15 pace.  Long story short I ended up finishing this run in 1:26:XX with a closer to 9:15 pace.  Um, ok.  Too bad it wasn’t a 100% good reason I finished this fast.

The longer version of the story is that I got up Sunday morning after the lovely gift that is fall back feeling very rested and with 4+ hours until the start of the race.  Haha.  At least this race started at 9:30 so it wasn’t like I was up at 3am or something crazy like that.  I took my time getting ready, did some scrapbooking in my race Shutterfly album that I started over the weekend and then my parents stopped in to pick me and little dog up for the ride south.  The race was in Greendale which was supposed to be about 40 minutes away but I swear we got there in like 20.  So we had tons of time to wait around until the start of the race and it was a little chilly so that maybe wasn’t the best idea ever

How long do we have to wait?

The race got lined up and headed out – part of the group for 2 miles and the remainder for a 15k.  Now I’ve never run a 15k before and I’ve never run a distance + time blind race so I should have started very conservative but I’d asked about the course ahead of time and was told it was out this loop, out that loop and then to the finish.  Ok, I can do that.  So I ended up running pretty fast because I was visualizing what I had been told and it didn’t seem that bad.  Well, maybe if I was a better runner who’d done more long runs recently that weren’t marathons, I would have had a better grasp on what 9 miles feels like but…well… obviously that was not the case.

When I still thought the end was near…

So, I’m trucking along feeling good but really tired and ready for the end up ahead when I see people running out the course again… um… So I asked the people helping on the course do we have to run another loop?  To which I head “yes, you have to run the whole thing again.”  Wait, what?!?!?  Oh good heavens.  Everything in me just wanted to stop right there and be done because I was done.  Spent.  Out of gas.  But my parents had driven all the way down to spectate and I couldn’t full well disappoint them so I slowed WAAAAAAYYYY down and kept plodding along.

That was quite possibly the hardest + most discouraging 4+ miles I have ever run.  But somehow (with multiple walking breaks the second half) I managed to rally some energy to finish!  And about 10 minutes faster than I’d put down into my prediction aka no turkey.

Is this a trick again?

I know I didn’t pay much for this race but it still would have been nice to be warned that we had to do the loop twice.  Especially when I did ask a volunteer and she said nothing about 2 loops.  It does show my lack of real running knowledge that I thought 5 miles was 9 but I am also not used to running without at least a watch to look at for elapsed time.  I know that’s part of the trick of this race but would it have been the worst thing to have a little more description of the course online?  Or a rough sketch map at the start area?  I can’t really see how that would hurt… but oh well!

Me and my trophy.

Another race complete.  Another distance conquered.  Next time I run a 15k, I plan to actual pace myself a little better so I don’t positive split by like 10+ (but who really knows how many) minutes.  Yikes

Have you ever been totally shocked at something about a race?

2013.

I’ve told myself time and time again to stop signing up for races until after Disney.  And yet I have this incurable addiction to [pretending I'm] racing… I just can’t seem to help wanting to sign up for races and get out there and run!  I know 2013 is still a little ways away but I already have started putting some tentative races on my calender, much to my sister’s dismay.

Or it’s just true and I really don’t care

The races I really want to run next year are:

Deer Run. This race is literally a mile or two from my house and I have been meaning to do it for years but this year I think I will actually just do it!  It’s a 10k which is not my favorite distance but it might be fun to try this one?!

Cellcom Half Marathon.  I want to cross the finish line in Green Bay.  I want to PR in Green Bay and show this race who’s boss…

This time I want to earn the medal.

Summerfest Half Marathon.  Another race I want to conquer.  My attempt in 2011 was impeded on by the weather but I want to try again.  I want to finish strong.  I want to see what’s changed for this race and I want to crush the Hoan Bridge again.

Madison Mini Marathon.  This is another half marathon and if you do this half marathon and Summerfest, you get a special M2 medal!  I’m all about the medals so why not!  I might have already signed up for this one before the price increases today.  Oops.

Fox Cities Half Marathon.  I’ve been doing this one every year since 2010 and I love it so much, I would really hate to miss it!

Wisconsin Dells Half Marathon.  This one sounds hilly but Honkey Tonkey.

One race in either Illinois or Minnesota.  I’ve got my eyes on a couple, Chicago’s Perfect 10 in Illinois and a few in Minnesota but nothing REALLY catches my eye there… I would also like to get in a few 5ks that I can actually race and maybe a triathlon or duathlon.  But the more I think about doing those, the less excited I am because I really just like running…

I wouldn’t mind crossing another race off my bucket list either!

I’m sure I will change my mind like 100 times before the year is over and I might hurt myself or something stupid too but as of right now, I just really want it to be next year’s race season so I can get after a PR.  2012 was waaaaayyyy too light in the PR department. Like a whopping 1 in the 5k which hardly counts because I’d never really run one on the road before…

And I want an under 2:00 half finish.  Like enough to actually train for it

I want 2013 to be the year of the PR, the year of redemption and the year of no running burnout.  We shall see how that one works for me…

How about you, anything you are eyeing up for next year already?

Marathon Monday: 10/29

Another week of training is complete which means only about 11 weeks until Sister and I will be running a marathon!  Here’s how I spent the last week:

Monday: Ripped in 30 + 2 mile run
Tuesday Ripped in 30 Week 2
Wednesday: 4 mile run
Thursday: Ripped in 30
Friday: 6 mile run
Saturday: Monster Dash 5k!
Sunday: Bob Harper’s Pure Burn Strength DVD

No real rest day last week but I’d planned to take one Sunday but then had way too much energy this weekend so I needed to get rid of some

Total miles ran: 15.1 miles
Total times doing Ripped in 30: 3

Which means I met my goals this past week – whoop!  Ripped in 30 has been just the kick in the butt I needed to get back to doing weights routinely.  I’m kind of scared to see what weeks 3 and 4 hold though!

For the week ahead, my goals are to up the weekly mileage to about 16 or 17 and do week 3 of Ripped in 30 about 3 times!

How about you, any goals for the week ahead?

Race Flashback: 2012 Monster Dash 5k

Yesterday I got to join my blogging friend Allison for a little run in the woods  Her husband organized a 5k up in Two Rivers Wisconsin and I decided to head up after a haircut to be a part of the party!

All week we had been having temps in the 70′s but then of course on Friday, the temps dropped 30 degrees to be in the 40′s.  It actually ended up being an OK thing though and I still managed to overdress for the temps!

I had a haircut bright and early on Saturday morning and then after that, headed up to Two Rivers for the run.  Luckily the 5k started at 10am so I had plenty of time to get up there.  I was very surprised that people were still furiously registering when I got there though!  Nothing like waiting until the very last minute to sign up.  People were literally signing up until the start time…

 

Once Allison and I headed out to the start area, we only had to wait like 3 minutes and the race was on!  The first part of the race was on a road near the hospital where the race started and finished and this mile really seemed to take forever!  After that mile was over, we turned into a wooded trail which is where the rest of the race took place.

 

Miles 1-3 actually went really fast through the woods, I think because you have to concentrate so hard to not trip and fall?  I’m not sure I’m really cut out for trail running for my usual running routine but it was really fun to do one race this way.

Mile 0-1

Allison and I kept a really good pace throughout the whole thing and it didn’t feel like we slowed down a ton when the terrain changed.  I’m sure we slowed a little but it didn’t feel as different as I thought it would.  Allison and I ended up finishing in just over 31 minutes which really surprised me and was a PR for Allison! (I haven’t been able to find the results anywhere yet but will update my race page when I find them…)

Same finish as the marathon??

This race was really fun and I am glad I could make it up there for it!  It was really cool to be back in the town where I ran my first marathon.  I think this town will always hold a special place in my heart.  While driving down the road to the hospital, I actually drove right near the trail I ran and I was surprised by how much I remembered.  And I actually remembered where I’d seen my parents and sister along the way!  It was also de ja vu that the guy who won Maritime, won this race too!

Hopefully I can make it back next year for this race!  And I will try to have a better costume next year.  Wearing scrubs to a race near a hospital loses a bit of it’s costume impact… Oh well, at least it was comfortable!

Bye Manitowoc!

Friday 6 Miler.

Since I am running a 5k tomorrow (!!!), I won’t have time for a true long run this weekend so instead I did a medium long run this morning.  I set out for 6 miles at the whopping hour of 5 something o’clock.  Here are 6 random bits about these 6 miles:

1) It’s SO much colder this morning!  Yesterday it was 20 degrees warmer at this time… Oh Wisconsin, I <3 you – blah!

2) 6 miles is a really long way to run at this time of the morning… but it feels so good now that I am done.

3) I set out on 2 3 mile loops but that ended up making me feel like I was running a 3 mile run and paced myself accordingly… I finished this run with a 9:38 average which is much faster than I normally do a 6 mile run.

4) I want to take a nap now but instead I have to go to work.  Yuck.

5) I hope once the time change happens that it’s not quite so dark when I run in the morning…it’s like running at midnight.

6) I’ve missed running and I am glad to be back at it

Happy Friday, Everyone!

Disney Prep.

So you’re probably sick of hearing this already, but… I’m going to Disney World!!  In less than 80 days  I’m super excited for this trip and this run and just everything about the week we are spending down there!  I don’t really have time to go crazy with training and everything for this upcoming marathon in Disney but I do think it will help me a little to make some preparations for it to make sure I make it there without injury, etc.  Here are a few things I am going to implement to try to get to the start line healthy and injury-free:

1) Track my pre/post long run eats on a calorie count website/on paper.  In the past I’ve always just went with the mind set of eating whatever I want after a long run but that decision has led to quite a few extra pounds acquired in the past year… oops!  I obviously won’t starve myself if I am really, truly hungry but seeing a tally of my eats around my long run helps me see that maybe it’s not always that I am hungry but maybe I need more water/protein/fats, etc.  I’ve recently found a newish site called SlimKicker and am really liking the points you can accumulate for reaching certain goals, etc.  Plus with a long run, I’ll get tons of points and my self chosen reward is a new iTunes song.  Too bad I have to buy my own rewards

Too much ice cream, not enough vegetables…

2) Ice Bath, Stretch, Foam Roll.  Like it’s my job.  I’m so bad at this but I’m going to work to get better.

The Stick will become my friend. And new shoes will be in order soon I suppose!

3) Shoot for weekly mileage totals instead of per day totals.  That way, if I have a horrible run one day, I can cut it short, skip it, whatever and make up for it on another day.  So some weeks I will have a really long run + 1-2 very short runs and other weeks I will have 2-3 moderate size runs or any combination.  I’m hoping this will help me avoid burn out.

4) Leave my garmin hiding in a drawer somewhere.  Even though I wanted one so darn bad, now that I have one, I really, truly hate it.  It turns me into this time obsessed monster and I’m not really too keen on turning into that again.  I may have to wear it on long run for the sole purpose of knowing my distance but I will have to keep it in a pocket or something… or maybe I’ll try getting my iPod with Nike+ to start working again?  How do you ignore that 50lb weight on your wrist?  And I would also like it better if it didn’t show me such depressing information…

5) If I start feeling any kind of nagging pain, stop with the running for a number of days until the pain gets better.  I’ve always been really bad about pushing through but that just leads to a cycle of hurts and I don’t want to go there this time around.

6) Have fun.  I’m likely only going to get to run this marathon once in my life (unless I move closer to Florida ) so I want to enjoy everything about this training and experience as a whole.  I know I didn’t enjoy the half marathon last year as much as I should have and I am glad I get a do over with the marathon.  For whatever reason, DisneyWorld/Land turns me cranky sometimes  But I am really trying to stop getting so annoyed by everything…

Can we leave yet?

It’s crazy to think how soon I will be toeing this start line.  When I registered, it seems like years away but now that it’s getting so close, I am so, so excited!  Plus this time of year always goes SO fast with Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, etc. so I will be packing my bags before I know it!

Anything I am missing?  What else should I do differently this time around?