Category: Run!

Call me Crazy

Starting with the smiles-

Never be a naysayer! I said that I didn’t think there was any way that my location would win an award in the Halloween contest at work. I was wrong! We won the “Funniest Location” award. I think it helped that a customer put himself in our chalk outline while the executive was there checking us out. And that wasn’t the only customer who was willing to get down on the floor for a photo opportunity. Turns out the CSI theme was a hit. We get lunch catered in sometime soon as our prize. 🙂

Followed by coming clean-

Hello, my name is Fallon and this is Slacker Runner. Some may have seen the change when I comment on other blogs. Back when I started this blog I was aiming for a little anonymity. So I misspelled my name and blurred my race bibs. Then I got real. I mean, seriously, I was sharing race times, race dates and names of races, etc. Doesn’t take much more than that and there’s my name. Plus it wasn’t even spelled that different. I’ve been meaning to update this for a while but the Slacker in me won for a while. I finally followed through. There a few things I am going to update on the blog in future actually. Fun fact- Falyn came about years ago when I wanted to be a writer and was playing around with pen names. I have a few more stashed away. 🙂

And ending with the crazy-

Last night this happened-Woo hoo! I am stoked. I have wanted to run Surf City for a few years now but always had a reason why the timing wasn’t right. It’s still not right but I’m not going to wait anymore. I am looking forward a fun race. It will also be the biggest race I have run so far- 20,000 runners- that’s a lot of people! This will not be a goal race of 2015, my only goal is to cross the finish line.

Wise Oscar Wilde's words: life is now, stop waiting! — Can always count on pinterest for motivation

Which brings me to why it is still not the best timing. As of right now, I am running a 25K trail race with 3200′ elevation gain the weekend before. Insert sheepish face here!!!! Both of the races will be more like long runs than races. I am both nervous and super excited for them. And yes I understand the insanity of this undertaking. I think. I am currently working on adapting the half marathon training plan that I started yesterday.

Once getting through both of those, I plan to take a week off of running. Then it’s time to train for my goal race for Spring- SLO Marathon Half. Maybe I can break 2:00? I am kind of nervous about having plans like this so early. I rarely plan that far in advance! On the upside, this gives me the perfect incentive to keep working hard through the holidays. Which means I won’t start the new year feeling fluffy and in a training hole. Well, hopefully. 🙂 I have to follow through and get my butt to the treadmill.

Now onto you guys-

Ever sign up for something crazy? Got any training suggestions?

Ever run Surf City? Or SLO? Or back to back race weekends?

No, seriously, training ideas?

Adios October

How is it November already? I should not be writing an October recap yet. Oh and those Christmas commercials just need to stop!In keeping with my stepping back plan, October turned in fewer miles than before. Only 54.2 miles. I also ran zero races. That 54.2 miles were a mix of road and trails which is kind of cool. I also realize that my little 2.5-3 mile jaunts the last 2 weeks added to the decreased mileage. But I refused to give up the daylight until I absolutely had too, so I am ok with that. Overall, I would say that it was a good month of running. Yes I had some rough runs, but there were was an amazing one too. 🙂

October was kind of a giant stress mess and I maybe made a few poor food choices. I admit to stress eating especially since I was actively trying to run less. Couldn’t run the stress out so I ate yummy food. I took a day trip to LA for a doctor’s appointment at USC followed a week later by a day trip to Santa Barbara for notary renewal. I actually ate well both those days but both trips stressed me out. My stomach is still being a pain in the ass but I’ve adjusted, sort of. My doctor’s office called to set up a colonoscopy in December and I think I surprised them by how eager I was. 🙂 I just want answers.

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Friday was Halloween and I did good candy wise. I only ate a few of little boxes of Nerds. For work, we did a CSI theme for costumes. Complete with a duct tape body outline on the floor. However I have seen some pics on Facebook from co workers at other locations, so I know that there is no way we won the contest. It started pouring rain a few hours before I left which while great (rain!!!) meant I was even colder than I was before. I just wanted to go home and snuggle up in my chair. But my friend was having a Halloween party so I changed into my second costume of the day and headed out.

You know that part in Bridget Jones where she’s shows up dressed for a Tarts and Vicars party but didn’t get the memo that the dress code had changed? Ummm, yeah that happened. I had texted my friend a time or two to check about costumes, I was so not feeling the festive spirit. So I made an attempt. I had an old button up shirt of my grandpa’s that I have been hanging on to for years. It was pink, that plus a pair of boxers and my pink ProCompression socks gave me a lazy girl version of that scene from Risky Business. The shirt and shorts combo actually covered more than most of my running gear so other than being cold, I felt ok. That was until I walked in and was one of the very few adults in costume. Ummmm, boo. If it hadn’t been so wet and cold I would have just let it be but after about 20 minutes, I went and got my jeans from my car. I had to work the next day so I did not stay long before heading home.

I decided to check where I was mile wise with my 2014 goal of 750. My speed goals are not going to happen and with the last 2 months of cutting back I was wondering what kind of damage I had done. So I pulled out a calculator. Ok not really, I used the app on my computer. 721.7 miles ?!! What? How did that happen already? Woo hoo!!! I can do this!!

So long October, time for November. Time for hitting the treadmill 2x a week. 😦 But I do have a race next weekend!

How was your Halloween? Ever show up somewhere under dressed?

How are you doing on your 2014 goals?

Anyone else annoyed by the early Christmas commercials?

Runaway Chicken

With daylight savings fast approaching and being one of the few runners who does not look forward to it, I have tried to get as many miles in after work as possible. This can mean shorter than normal runs but I would rather run that than the treadmill sooner.

Tuesday I headed to the lake path on the chance that it was open like last week. Unlike last week, the signs were out. Waah. I stood for a few minutes and pondered. Then I became a lemming and followed the 20 people ignoring the signs. So bad I know but it was my last time at the path until spring. I only managed 2.5 miles before I thought it would be too dark to complete another lap. The path only has two lights- both near the playground.

from last week, when the signs were down

I was stretching out on the fitness bars when I saw a Chihuahua looking dog coming down the street. I waited a moment and didn’t see any owners. This corner of the path can be pretty busy car-wise so I decide to see if I could figure out where the dog lives. He was having none of that. His barking made me laugh. He didn’t sound mean, more like a petulant teenager. “Leave me alone, mind your own business, what are you looking at”. While I am trying to decide if I want to force it, I hear a rustling in the bushed across the street. I looked up to see a chicken walking away from a house and going towards the street. It’s making a jail break!

So now I don’t know if I should chase the dog or the chicken! Or do I leave them both and just go back to my car? A group of people was coming my way and a nice older man told me that the dog wanders on its own all the time. He also agreed that it wasn’t the friendliest. So I asked him about the chicken. While we were chatting the chicken came back down around the house. It walked to a gate in the fence and tried to squeeze in. Then it tried to climb the bush running along the fence. It wasn’t escaping, it was locked out! Once again, it followed the path around the fence, I think there must have been another gate back there. The man tried to open the gate but couldn’t get it open. I was beginning to feel bad for the chicken, all it wanted to do was go home. It knew exactly what door to go to but couldn’t open it. So the nice man and I went door knockin’. We found someone who lived in the same house but didn’t own the chickens. He called the owner before heading out to try to catch it.

Apparently the chickens roam during the day before going back inside the fence. I run this path 2x a week and have never seen or heard the chickens before. Plus it’s a residential area. After handling that, the man and I parted ways. So I probably could have finished another lap but I wouldn’t have had the runaway chicken experience. 🙂 Last evening at the path completed. I work this Saturday, so I was able to get off a little early on Wednesday. I headed back to town hoping for at least 6 miles but dreaming of more. Ha! I completed 6 but it was so damn hard. Nothing hurt, I just had zero energy. It was also 87º… on October 29. Ugh, where is fall. I hit 4 stop lights between mile 2.5 to 3.5. Then my stomach informed me that 4 miles would have been a better idea at mile 3.75. I was 2 miles from my car. There was a bench just past mile 4 and I took a break. I think I sat for about 10 minutes before finally heading off to finish my run. 6 miles done and I managed to keep my overall average pace at 11:45. Considering how I felt though, I will call that a win!

What was not a win was the bloody toe I found when taking off my socks. Boo.

What’s the strangest animal situation you’ve ever run into?

Did you know chickens were so good with direction? I had no idea.

Anyone racing this weekend?

Water and Gatorade, then go left

I said that a lot on Sunday!

First things though thanks for letting me know I’m not the only one! The comments on my last post were awesome, thanks guys! 🙂

I was still riding that runner’s high from Thursday when I went for a run on Saturday. While it was nowhere near the epicness of Thursday, it was still pretty good. My planned 3.8 turned into 4.5. Oops. 🙂 The weather started out overcast and chilly but I quickly warmed up. I’m still slower but I think I’ve finally, really accepted it. I just took my time and enjoyed my run. Going longer was only an oops because I had a meeting to go to with my mother. I ended up just throwing a sweater over my running gear. The only reason I felt ok doing this was because we were headed for a volunteer check in for the Harvest Marathon. I have wanted to run the half at this race for the last two years but it’s proximity to City to the Sea usually has me feeling burnt out. So instead I volunteer. My mother and her tennis teams have to work 2 stations so I hang out with them. The race has a 5K, half marathon and a full marathon. The half and the full are run on back roads through vineyards and orchards as well as farms and homes. Last year the teams were split between 2 water stations. This year we had one of the water stations from last year and a course monitor point at the 12ish mile turn around point. It was an early morning. Being up that early and not racing seemed like a crime. Have I mentioned that I love sleeping? However stopping for donuts along the way made everything better. Didn’t you know that donuts have magical healing powers? My boss said that the other day, I thought it was awesome. 🙂 We arrived at our aid station- mile 8.7 of the marathon- a little before sunrise. Fall has finally arrived, so it was damn cold, after setting up the station I jumped back in the car until it was almost time for the first runner. This is a small race put on by the high school and the funds go back into the high school athletic program. It is Boston certified but draws a smaller crowd. There were 97 finishers for for the full and 283 for the half. As for the Boston qualifying part- it has an elevation gain of 1600 feet. The aid station was at the top of a long slow climb followed by an immediate left and more climbing. I felt so bad every time a runner asked if this was the last hill. 😦All the runners were so nice. Most of them thanked the team for the water and for being up early on a Sunday. Our station had water and Gatorade which was an improvement over last year when we just had water. The port-a-potty was a huge hit too. Apparently one guy couldn’t handle the line of one and did his business behind the port-a-potty. Really?! There was no line! One runner did yell at me for the lack of race food provided and a woman from the orchard asked me if we were cleaning up after “the parade”. When I said yes, her response was that she wasn’t going to yell at me yet then. Ummm, thank you?On the whole, it was a good morning. It’s fun to cheer other runners on. Especially for a race that has no crowd support for the majority of the miles. The people who run this race rock. Now I am torn for next year- do I finally run it or do I keep volunteering? Getting teenagers to voluntarily get up at the crack of dawn is like pulling teeth so my mother will probably need help again. 🙂

Ever volunteer at a water station?

Ever been yelled at by a runner?

How about the port-a-potty? Would you have jumped the non-existent line?

This is how we do

My new boss recently told me how impressed she was by my dedication. I didn’t know what to say. Partially because I am socially awkward and partially because I don’t feel very dedicated these days. I have been hitting my 3 days of running but cutting back on speed and mileage has often left me feeling a little low. A little uninspired. Running’s always hard but sometimes it’s so hard you wonder what the hell you keep doing it for.

Running motivation quote gift for runner by JenniferDareDesigns, $10.00 — source

Why do we put ourselves through it? Why do we commit to the craziness? Some get up at the crack of dawn to get in a run. Others run at night in the dark. Runner’s run tired and injured and cranky and mad and sad and hungry. We run when it’s freezing cold outside, or when it feels like the side of the sun. Running in the rain can be fun until you fall on your ass. Running puts you at risk of crazies, inattentive drivers or animal attacks. You could run on a treadmill but sometimes you wind up feeling like a hamster on a wheel. Squeak, squeak.

And your body? Something usually aches. It could be a hip or a knee. Your ankle or crappy shins. Tight calves or hamstrings. Black toenails, no toenails, hide those feet! In my case, a crappy stomach. But we keep running. What person voluntarily chooses a sport that has a side effect called “runner’s trots”? I think we’re all slightly masochistic or just a little crazy. What does Einstein say about insanity?

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Albert Einstein

Oh yeah, that. Lets not even talk about the mind games we play with ourselves. Even when I don’t want to run, I want to run. How does that even make sense?Work ran late every day this week and on Thursday I had little to no desire to run. I was looking for a reason not to. I wasn’t injured and my stomach felt average for me these days. I have been in a funk and just felt meh. I just wanted to veg in a chair and catch up on my DVR. I wasn’t even hungry and didn’t want to eat. Which is very, very rare for me. But I changed into my gear anyways. Drove back to town and decided to run the river path. Daylight was fading fast but I had zero desire to run on the treadmill. That is coming soon enough. I just wanted to get it over with, if darkness cut it shorter so be it.

Running has become a chore lately and it’s been awhile since I have had good run. There have been decent miles here and there but all runs were less than stellar. It’s a big reason why I am working on getting back out on the trails. I set out for Thursday’s run not expecting or hoping for much. My warm up was little shorter due to the twilight hour. I started running waiting for the cough that would come or the stomach cramp that joins on all runs these days. My run went something like this-

1/4 mile in – oh jumping Rottweiler please don’t jump that fence and attack me. Are you on a trampoline?! 1/2 mile in- may as well start running. 1 mile in- no huffing and puffing. 1.5 miles in-still no cramp. 2 miles in -breathing still easy, no wheezing and still no cramping. Hmmm, this is nice. The weather is the perfect temp right now, and the sky looks so pretty at dusk. Oh the streetlights are on, that’s kind of cool. Can I run all of mile 3? Haven’t done that in a while, let’s try. Yay, I’m still running and I feel good. Damn this darkness, I want to run more. I feel like I could keep going for miles. Breathing is still easy, sweet. 5K mark, time to cool down, kind of dark now, oh and some interesting looking, umm, kids smoking on that bench. Run is officially over.

And that is why I keep banging my head against a wall. Sometimes the stars align and you experience a glorious run. It wasn’t long and it wasn’t fast but that wasn’t the point. The point was how I felt during and after. It was kind of awesome. Running is work, but the reward is worth it.

Thanks for listening to me ramble.

Who’s with me?

Why do you keep running?

Any quirks you want to add to the list?

Have a great weekend!