Tag: Running

2016 Surf City Recap

Race- Surf City 13.1

Location- Huntington Beach, CA

Saturday- 

After the hotel snafu of Saturday and once I accepted that I would not have a nice, leisurely race morning- after my mother and I had mapped out a long, circuitous route to the race start- I realized the even bigger mistake I had made.   I hadn’t packed any water.   What? How?!  I had a bottle of Gatorade and my Skratch Labs but no water outside of what I had drank on the drive down.  Face palm.   So after a yummy dinner at Red Robin- water, lettuce wrapped burger and a few fries for me- we stopped at a Walgreen’s.    Where I bought 8 bottles of water.  🙂    Then it was back to the hotel for a little downtime before I headed to bed early.  And proceeded to wake up every hour on the hour.  Grrr.

Race day-

Luckily, I have my pre-race ritual down, so I don’t have to get up too early.   As of right now, I am still racing on an empty stomach and it has been working out.   The race had a 7:45 start but I wasn’t planning on being there super early, I knew it would be a while before my corral crossed the start line.   My mom was able to drop me off a few blocks from the start line a little before 7:30.   Another bonus about arriving “late”?  No line at the port-a-potties.   Except the damn thing almost blew over with me in it!

   
 Ok, the corrals.   Serious cluster-f***.  What is the point of asking a participant their projected finish time if it’s not used for corral placement?    More than a few people in my corral were in a similar position.    I put down a projected 2:10 finish time.   The 3:30 pacers were about 2000 people ahead of me.  Seriously.    I considering jumping corrals but at that point it was already so late.  Grrrr.    My corral crossed the start line around 8:15.

  
Miles 1-3 10:09, 10:14, 10:09

My plan was to treat this like a well supported long run and hopefully maintain around a 10:00 min pace.  Mile 1 started out ok.   My legs felt good and my pace felt good.  Mile 2 required more dodging. Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with people walking at races- however if you are walking 6 people across in the first 2 miles of a race- we have an issue!   This happened more than once.   Then the first water station was a crowded mess but I had learned from last year that this was the case and just avoided it all.      I also a music snafu in mile 2.  I had started my playlist in the starting corrals and paused it.   When I pushed start around mile 2, Christmas music started playing.  What?!

Miles 4-6 10:30, 10:54, 11:08

By my standards, this course is flat, the only real hill is in mile 4.  I was excited to see it as I had an ankle ache that I needed to run out.   And I did but I was starting to realize that I was having troubles catching my breath.   I didn’t feel like I was pushing hard but I was starting to wheeze.   I took a quick walk break to try and get things under control.  It didn’t really help.   There was a little down hill coming up and I was hoping to make up some speed but I just kept slowing down.   My inhaler wasn’t helping either.   Mile 6 is where I got real.   This breathing issue is not new.  I have been having troubles since I was sick in January.  It’s more than my usual asthma, it comes with some odd chest pain, but I was hoping that denial would make it all go away.   Because that works so well, right?  Yeah no.   I called my mom during mile 6 and let her know I was having some issues but was going to tough out.    I didn’t need her getting the real time runner alerts and wondering what the hell was going on.  🙂

Miles 7-9 11:50, 11:35, 11:37

New game plan was a run/ walk plan.  4:30 of running and 1:00 of walking.   The running was slow so I was hoping that these intervals would keep me moving but not gasping for breath.  I changed my watch face to just show the interval times so I had no idea what my overall time was.   This was a long section of out and back so I was able to see Ashley of RatherbeRunnin’ coming back on the other side of the highway looking strong.    Luckily the course is scenic so I was able to enjoy the view.  I also had time to people watch.  PSA here,  a fabric may be black but that does not mean that it is opaque!  If I can see the moles on your butt- wear underwear!!  Ok, PSA over.

  

Mile 10- 13:04

This was a struggle.  Even 4:30 seemed like way too long to run.  I was wheezing and the inhaler was useless.    We ran through the Cliff shot zone in mile 10 and I grabbed a citrus and a mocha one.  Both have caffeine and I was hoping for a Hail Mary pass and that one would help.    I walked a lot.   The finish line seemed so very far away.

Miles 11-13 12:17, 11:50, 11:36

I was beginning to think this was going to be my slowest half yet.   And it was getting so hot.  I had been drinking water at each station but now I was dumping it down my back too.   The volunteers were also having troubles keeping up with the demand for water.  There were some stations out of cups.  I am hoping more were on the way as there were thousands of people behind me still.   I was trying to stick to my intervals but the walking sections were getting longer.   It was getting more crowded on the course as well.  I accidentally smacked a guy in the crotch when he came up on my right.  Oops!!!  Sorry!    I just kept moving towards the finish line, the increased crowd support was helping.    I walked the beginning of mile 13 and then ran the rest in.  I crossed the finish line gasping and wheezing and promptly burst into tears.

Finish- 2:28:24

  

Not my slowest!!!   I collected my medal and avoided all the photographers.    I heard my mom and thought I was losing it but then realized she was on the other side of the fence.  I made my way through the recovery stations and then out of the chute into the crowd.    I met with my mom and headed to a curb to sit.  My legs felt good but I was so tired from fighting my lungs for so long.    It gave me time to admire my medal though- it’s huge!!!!  And was fought for.    But it was also a lesson in something I should already know- you can’t ignore things and hope they go away.  It doesn’t work like that.    Was this race I wanted?  No.   But every rough race is a lesson learned, right?   I still got to run with thousands of other crazies like me.   🙂   And for the record- I have a doctor’s appointment next week.

   
They were some things I didn’t like about the race this year but overall it is a good race.  The weather is gorgeous- just bare in mind that temps hit the high 70’s.    Perfect beach weather post race.  🙂

The day was finished out resting in the hotel watching the Super Bowl- yay Broncos!!    I needed some time off my feet—I had big plans for Monday—-Disneyland!!!!!  But I’ll save those adventures for next post.  🙂

Ramblin’ On

I seem to like to ramble in the middle of the week.  34 days into the year and I am in a funk.

Minus the 6 day sick streak in January, I have been hitting the workouts I set for myself each week.   January was a solid start to regaining my base.   I started cross training more often, you could even call it consistent now.  🙂   Then this week.  I have yet to run this week.  I just can’t seem to get motivated.

 

Kimi is unimpressed by my lack of motivation

Maybe it’s taper crazies?  Not that I really needed to taper but I have had some phantoms pains too.   Maybe it’s that the last week or so of runs have been ugly and rough.  I am not expecting them to be all sunshine and daisies but an 11:00 minute pace was kicking my ass last Sunday.  That doesn’t bode well for Sunday’s race.

Maybe it’s that work has been all Mondays for the last week?   Which is odd because even though we are running short handed, our crew is small but mighty.  However, I feel like I am forgetting some huge important detail.    I hate that feeling.    Maybe it will come to me during the race on Sunday.   🙂

I need to snap out of this.  I started this post on Tuesday night but deleted it- it sounded way too whiny and pissy.   But some venting does help.    And there is #shiny still.  Like I said, the crew at work right now is awesome.    I have a fun weekend planned with 20,000 other crazies like me.  Besides the race festivities on Saturday and Sunday, I have some other fun things in the works for this weekend that I am looking forward to sharing with you.

So tell me- is it taper crazies or am I just cranky?

Week 5/ January Recap

Upcoming races- Surf City 13.1

Focus–  I forgot to choose one this week. Oops.

How is it February?  Seriously, how did that happen?  Wasn’t is just Christmas?  Or I don’t know summer?  Anyways moving on.   One plus about El Nino is that things have been warmer than usual but that changed this week.   Brrrr.

Monday- Rest  Mondays really work as rest days for me.  Why do I keep trying to change that?   I will say that I felt guilty for not getting in some miles on the bike though.

  

Tuesday- 4 miles  Some very, very slow miles.  I had an episode of Z Nation to get me through it.  Though I do wonder if anyone can see my phone, between Z Nation and Blacklist, I feel kind of weird watching my phone at the gym.

Wednesday- 6 miles Stationary   I woke feeling more sore from 4 treadmill miles than I had from my long run on Saturday.   Grrr.   Daylight savings, are you here yet?    I ended up testing out the new Little Caesar’s on the way home so it almost ended up another rest day.  But instead it was just a very late start and fewer miles.

Thursday- 10 miles  I had to work this weekend so I was able to take a half day and I actually made it out of work by 1.    With a storm predicted for the weekend I had planned on trying to get my long run in early.  After last week’s successful though slow 12 milers, I was looking forward to it.    I almost quit in the first 2 miles.  Everything felt off, I was still sore, I felt uncomfortable in shorts, my throat had an alligator instead of a frog in it.  Every time I started to run I felt like I was going to hyperventilate.  What the hell?!  Was I embarrassed to be seen in shorts or something?

  
I got to the top of the hill and just stopped.   I stretched, had a conversation with myself and scrolled Instagram.   Anything to get my mind off of my panic issue.  I didn’t feel like anything was actually really wrong and I didn’t want to miss the chance to complete my long run so I reassessed.  Pace meant nothing so I turned on the run/ walk interval on my watch and set off again.  Slowly.   At mile 5 I assessed again, felt ok so I continued on.  Between walking and running my pace was holding around 11:30.  Since I was moving slower than planned I ended up having to run through the traffic when the high school let out.  Cuz I wasn’t feeling fluffy enough?!

  
When the run was finally done, I joked on Instagram that it was my slowest 10 miler ever.  Except it turns out it wasn’t a joke- it really was my slowest 10 miles ever.  It took me 2 hours to run 10 miles plus another 20 minutes of stopping for head games and a chafing concern.   But you know what?  I ran 10 miles.  Trying to think on the shiny side here. ☺

Friday- Rest Woo hoo!!!

Saturday- 11 miles Stationary   It was cold and the storm was looming when I got home after work.  I had planned on getting in a run after I finished my errands but just couldn’t bring myself to go back out.   Cross training and the comfy chair won.

Sunday- 4 miles  The storm was predicted to clear by the afternoon so I was going to run then.  While the rain did clear, it was freakin’ cold!  I still feel oddly achy and sore, so I kept it slow and easy for 4 miles.

  
And that wraps up my last full week before Surf City.  Since I am treating it like a very large, friendly long run I normally wouldn’t taper.  But the treadmill and I need to break up and this soreness needs to go away so this may be a heavy cross training week.  We’ll see.   And that brings us to the end of January-

   

Double what December was and that was with 6 days off due to the flu.  I am calling this a good base building month.  I will probably continue to build into February.   I’m currently trying to mash 2 training plans together.  Excel is giving me a headache trying to merge the 2 books.  Ugh.   I get the feeling I may just have to start over.

How was your January?

Anyone have any Excel tips?

 

 

2016 SLO Marathon

Last post I shared that I was lucky enough to be offered the chance to be an Ambassador for the SLO Marathon again.   Which is freakin’ awesome and I am looking forward to not only the race but all the awesome runners I get to see again.    As with most ambassadorships, it comes with some challenges along the way.   The first one was dropped last week- to share our resolutions/ goals for the 2016 race.  Hmmm, there’s that word again.

I’ve spent some time thinking about it for the last week.  How do I share a goal but stay true to my year of being goal free?    Well, I am still goal free.  That said, I feel like I have unfinished business with the SLO half.   Let’s recap.

In 2014 I was looking forward to running a race that I had been trying to run for years but never made it happen.   It was also my first ambassadorship so I was super stoked on that.    I was excited on race morning but mentally I just wasn’t there.   It wasn’t my fitness level, it wasn’t the hills; it was all in my head.    Mentally, I blew up around mile 8.   I finished the race in 2:10:32 which wasn’t bad but I felt like my legs had more in them, I just couldn’t stop the mind games.   Not sure if you can tell by my smirk/smile but I was very irritated with myself post race.

I swear I was trying to smile not smirk
The Ambassadors!!!!

2015 rolled around and I was able to train with a custom McMillan training plan.  The race fell in the middle of all my stomach issues so I knew breaking 2:00 was unlikely but I felt strong and ready to go.   Even though I had felt sick prior to race start, I felt great for the first 5 miles.   I was beginning to entertain thoughts of a new PR.    Then I went down, hard.   As clumsy as I am on a daily basis, I had never fallen while running before.  There’s a first time for everything right? Thanks to some helpful runners I was back on my feet quickly and running on.   Maybe it was a delayed reaction from the fall or just my stupid stomach but mile 7 started with my stomach cramping in a very bad way.   I pretty much walked the entire mile taking deep, slow breathes.  Mile 8 saw another first for me- a port a potty stop.  Despite all that, I was still mentally on point.  I had reassessed that a PR wasn’t going to happen but even with all that drama I knew I could still beat the previous year’s time.    But my stomach fought back and miles 11-13 were all survival mode.  I was also cursing that there are no porta-potties at mile 12.  Cuz who needs one with only 1 mile left?!  I crossed the finish line in 2:15:06 and I was damn proud of that.   It may not have been the time I was hoping for but for everything that day threw at me, I stayed strong and positive the entire race.

Half smile/ half grimace
raceSLO Ambassadors!!

So while I have no plans of setting a goal for SLO 2016, I do see it as a redemption race.   Both years I felt like I had more to give and I would like to see that happen this year.   I love the course- hills and all- and I can’t wait to see what I can do this year.   🙂

What about you?  Do you have a race that haunts you?

Ever fallen while running?

Happy Friday!!!

Mid Week Musings 7

Maybe I should rename these mid week rambles?  At least this one is actually going up mid-week and not on Thursday or Friday.   🙂

How is January almost over?  Seriously I need more time!

Everyone’s posting their race schedules for the year and I’m over here like I should have bought a Powerball ticket.   😅  My race account is looking pretty sad.   While I am wishing for the impossible- how about more vacation time too?

I’ve been given the opportunity to come back as a SLO Marathon ambassador for 2016!  Woo hoo!!!  More on that soon!

I’m not a football fan but Denver making it to the Super Bowl is making me nostalgic.   Growing up we had one of those huge satellite dishes.  You know the ones that had to move in order to watch a different station?   Anyways, for whatever reasons we only got Denver stations.   The Broncos and the Rockies were the sports teams popular in our house.  Combine that with the Broncos being my grandfather’s favorite football team and I am feeling the urge to rock some blue and orange at Surf City.  #nostalgicfan

Last Wednesday’s weird, sick feeling makes more sense now.   My last visit with my gastro resulted in a new medication to try.   New to me and him- he had never prescribed it before.  I was the guinea pig.  Oh boy.  Other than any possible warnings about driving or sleepiness, I try to avoid reading the potential side effects of a new medication.   I like to avoid any chance to think myself into a side effect and just give it a week or 2.   But I have been having some issues and felt kind of off so I read all the documentation yesterday.   I could check off more than a few boxes on the list.  The most interesting one though?  “Feeling drunk”  What?!    Once I made sure I read that right, some things from the last 2 weeks made a little more sense.  Yeah- bye bye pills.

Last week I shared that my local pizza place knows me by name.  Friday night I picked up a pizza on the way home and they told me I am their #1 customer.  Ummmm, yay?  I only ate pizza once last week by the way.

Another episode of Z Nation got me through a treadmill run tonight.  A very slow treadmill run but it’s the miles that count right?   I’ve found the only way I can run on the treadmill without any weird aches is to either run very slow or very fast.  Tonight was a slow one.  I felt kind of awkward watching a zombie show while running though.

Lastly, I’m sure most of you have heard about the dog that bandit-ed a half marathon but my mother made sure to share it to my Facebook feed today.   With a comment that the dog is faster than me.  Which is true.  I still love the story though.   ☺

Hit me with your random!

Are you watching the Super Bowl?

Anyone else remember those satellite dishes?