What's Up Next?

What's next? March 4, 2012, New Orleans, Rock and Roll Half Marathon - that's what's up next.

I registered on Monday. I've had this one on my tentative calendar for a while now. I actually waited until Monday to register because of a special promotion they have going on right now. Because it's football season, R&R New Orleans has been offering discounts based on when the Saints win. The day following a win, the registration fee is discounted by the number of points they win by. I had the Oct. 23rd game highlighted because we played the Indianapolis Colts. I was rewarded greatly for my patience as the final score was Saints 62 and Colts 7!! Yes!! That's $55 off the registration fee!

(New Orleans Saints photo)
WHO DAT!!!!!

This will be my first race where I've given myself a time goal. My goal is 2:30. I have completed 3 half marathons so far. In order of completion my times were 2:49:03 (Vegas), 2:45:22 (Estes Park), and 2:51:09 (Denver). 2:30 would be a huge improvement. I'm justifying it this way:
1.) Training - has been haphazard so far. A more focused effort will produce a better result.
2.) Altitude - training at altitude will give me an edge in New Orleans.
3.) Cheering section - my family and friends can be strategically placed along the route to cheer me on.
4.) Familiarity - I will know the route, part of it passes in front of my aunt's home (well, it did last time.)
5.) Reward - I can't wait to celebrate with food and drink when it's over!

I trained about the same for the first two. I was pleased with Estes because it was the most challenging so far. I did suffer a little in the last mile with a headache. I'm going to say it was altitude but, it may have been dehydration. I ran with my camelbak and ran out of water shortly after finishing. I also drank gatorade at the aid stations. I also took a long potty break. So, my time could have been even faster, closer to 2:40, if it weren't for that break and walking the last mile. So, I don't think 2:30 is that far out of reach.

The last half, just a few weeks ago, was amazing for what I didn't do. I didn't train very well at all. I really thought it would suck, and even though it is my slowest to date, I am quite proud of it as well. It taught me a lot. I learned that I do have a decent running base. I learned that I can be consistent. I learned that I can push myself harder. I learned that finishing is really fun. I learned that I should train more and train better.

I purchased the Jeff Galloway book "Half-Marathon - You Can Do It". I checked it out from the library as I prepared for the Las Vegas race. I checked it out again right after the Denver race. I decided to buy it so that I can use it to prepare a training plan. There is a 2:30-3:00 training plan and also a 1:59-2:29 training plan. I'm going to evaluate both and also incorporate the Runner's World SmartCoach app in order to come up with my own plan. I could ask a few people for some training advice but I kinda wanna do this one on my own. I just want to see what I can accomplish on my own.

My strategy is Tuesdays on the treadmill, Thursdays on the trail or at the "track", Sundays for my long run. Some of my known obstacles are:
1.) Cold/Snow/Ice - I'll need to train through the Colorado winter.
2. Speed work - My "track" will be a nearby park that has a paved path that's about a third of a mile. I'll do my speed work there.
3.) Stress - I have really been having a hard time managing stress. That was really what stalled my training for the Denver race. I'm working on that. I'm also looking into a yoga class.

19 weeks. I'm working on building my base up to 6-7 miles for my easy long run before I start my focused 16 week training plan. Week 16 is the week of Thanksgiving. I'm also looking for some races of appropriate distances to keep me on track. The Winter Distance Series is on my calendar. (Dec. 17 - 10K, Jan. 21 - 10mi, Feb. 18 - 10mi) Unfortunately, it's in Littleton which could be problematic if the weather is bad.

19 weeks to go.

:-)

Run the Rocks 5K & new shoes

 The weekend after the Rock & Roll Denver half marathon I participated in the Run the Rocks 5K. My sister and I planned to do it together but she injured her ankle and has been recovering from that. So, I recruited my friend and neighbor Renea to run with me instead. This is a run I've been wanting to do since last year. It seems really scenic and also quite challenging. I can't remember why I didn't run it last year. Maybe I wasn't ready for the challenge at that point in my running "career". This year I wasn't ready either but it was because I'd just run a half marathon the weekend before. :-)

 The run didn't start until 9:30am! It felt so nice to sleep in to a regular hour and still have time to race. I think the hardest part about running for me is the early hour. Anyway, the sun was up as I drove to pick up Renea which did not make me grumpy. We arrived pretty early in order to pick up our bibs. I was glad we were so early because apparently the traffic became so backed up they had to delay the start. I don't know how many runners they had last year but this year there were almost 2,500! When we arrived it was pretty chilly. By the start we were quite overdressed.

We started towards the back of the pack which was difficult when we tried to get past the walkers, dog walkers, babies, etc. We both agreed not to wait for each other and had a predetermined meet up spot after the finish. The first half was all downhill. (And you know what that means.) I decided to take advantage of the downhill and took off pretty fast. I figured I'd use my half marathon mantra - the faster you move the sooner it'll be over. (There was chocolate fondue at the finish.) I was enjoying my ability to move fast downhill, all the while knowing I was going to suffer on the way back up. But, I didn't care. I wanted to fly however briefly.

I think it was almost half and half. At about the aid station we started going uphill. keep in mind, this is Red Rocks. The finish was up the stairs of the amphitheater. But, to get to the amphitheater, we had to run uphill, then run up a ramp, then run up some stairs, just to get to the amphitheater. At least it was a beautiful morning for it!

Ok. I was wrong. I just checked the course map and it was mostly uphill. Anyway... I walked most of the uphill parts. I wanted to try to run the stairs so I told myself I was conserving energy if I walked the uphill before I got to the amphitheater. And, I believed myself. My legs however were not fooled. Once I got to the amphitheater stairs, I started to run a little. Well, it was more like quickly climbing. I ran a set, walked the flat part, ran a level, walked a flat section, until my legs finally said no more. I walked. Barely. My legs were quite wobbly. As I approached the finish line I heard the announcer say to the group just ahead of me they had 20 seconds to finish in under 45 minutes. Oh no, I thought! I can make it too. As the words formed in my brain and moved to activate my legs, nothing happened. I could not move my legs any faster even if I'd tried. It was all I could do to keep moving up the last few flights. Ha! It was hard! It didn't dawn on me until I got home that the announcer was going by the gun start not my chip time. Yep, I was tired.

I ended up finishing in 42:10! I was very happy with that! And I can't wait to do it again! And, best of all, we got finishers medals!! Sweet! 2 medals in 2 weekends. That's some nice positive reinforcement! Woot!

I went with my new shoes for the run and they felt ok during the event. I think my left foot fell asleep but I wasn't sure if that was because it was the first time I'd worn them and just hadn't figured out the lacing yet. The next day, my ankles were really really sore. I attributed that to my hard downhill running, which is something I never do, especially on pavement. But now I'm wondering if it had to do with the shoes. I did a training run this weekend and had similar issues with my toes and foot falling asleep. It's only been my left foot. I think I'm going to return these shoes and try out another pair. I have 90 days to return the shoes to Road Runner Sports even after I run in them. That's a nice policy. I hope they don't mind a little dirt on them.

Rock & Roll Denver Half Marathon

I did it! In spite of myself and my haphazard training schedule, I managed to finish the half marathon. :-) How crazy is that?! I'm not sure if that's really a good thing, to know that I have enough of a running base to roll out of bed and finish a half marathon. Ok, there was some training involved. And, ok, it was painful. And, yeah, I really wish I'd put more effort into my training so that I would have finished faster than my first half marathon (Vegas R&R.) But, it is what it is, and it ain't so bad.

I was quite worried about and perplexed by the day's forecast.

On Saturday, we had rain and snow all day. And it was very cold. I don't mind cold. I've run in highs of 20 degrees F. But, it was very sunny that day. Cold and wet would simply be miserable. I don't have any wet weather running gear. You'd think I would as much as I like shopping for gear. I guess I should work on that. Anyway, the day turned out to be quite comfortable. The rain subsided Saturday evening so the roads were dry by the morning. And the sun was going to be out as well. I layered and was just fine.

Why do these events have to start so darn early? I guess, maybe the better question is, why I continue to sign up for these early events. I am always worried I'll be late for these events so I over compensate by getting there really early. I left my house in the dark at 5:30am.

It was still pretty chilly but not unbearably so. The bad part was that I knew I wanted to wear my sunglasses, which are prescription, but didn't want to carry my regular glasses during the run. So, I was really having a hard time seeing until the sun came up. Which it did just before the start of the race. The good part about that is that I was easily able to find a close parking spot. That came in handy later while I waited for my friend to finish the full marathon.

I found my friend Natasha at the bag check area. She was in corral 14 and I was in corral 15 so we wandered over to take out places. I also ran into another friend who was running the half from corral 14 as well. It was just luck that I walked right in front of her. Pretty cool. Later as the corral began to move to the start, I ran into another friend also running the half. She took this photo at the start line!

She took off like a shot when the gun went off for our corral to start! It was her first half marathon and the adrenalin was running high. I managed to start off very slow, which is what I planned to do. And I kept that slow and steady pace for the duration - mostly.

My main goal was to finish and not injure myself. I really didn't know how I'd feel because my longest run had only been about 6 miles. I knew I could suffer through it.. I just didn't know how long I'd be suffering. My secret secondary goal was to finish under 3 hours. My previous two times were 2:49 and 2:45 so I had that in my head. I figured I'd be slower but really, I had no idea how slow.

The first 3 miles were basically a warm up for me. I tried not to push it so that I'd be properly warmed up and not feel too sore for at least the first 6 miles. I thought if I could be comfortable for the first 6 miles, I'd be ok. I also forgot to turn my watch on, so I really didn't know what my pace was. That turned out to be a good thing though. At about mile 6 I felt like I was in a groove and was quite happy and comfortable. Nothing really hurt yet. The sun was out. I was drinking and eating enough. I took short walk breaks at the aid stations as planned. I think I may have even skipped one, running through in the groove.

About mile 8 or 9 I started feeling the miles and lack of training. :-) The usual things started to hurt, which didn't worry me so much. I would have been worried if something I didn't think should hurt started to hurt. I probably slowed down a bit and made sure to walk at the aid stations. I also stopped to stretch a bit. While stretching, my hip popped, which was great. I knew it wouldn't hurt any more than it already was so I was good to go at that point. :-)

Mile 11 - something happened there that made everything seem much harder. At mile 11, I really felt like I was done. I was really tired and I was slowing down more. It didn't seem like an unusually tough part of the course so I chalked it up to the mileage and lack of training. (Later I found out from my other two friends that they felt the same way about mile 11. One friend said she looked back at the course map and mile 11 had the highest elevation gain, even though it didn't look like a hill.) I walked more at this point but I also knew the end was near.

One weird thing about the course, it was mainly in and around downtown Denver, on roads that I was familiar with. But, for some reason, I was very disoriented. I couldn't tell where I was in relation to the start/finish line. So, because of that, I felt like there was so much farther to go, even though I knew by the mile markers that there wasn't. It was probably because I was so tired and so focused on running. But, it was very disorienting.

I told myself, between mile 11 and 12, the quicker I moved the sooner I'd be done. That was my mantra to the finish. Don't stop, keep moving, steady on, the quicker I moved the sooner it'd be over. Some how my feet agreed and kept moving. :-)

At mile 12 I was still very confused about where I was on the course and even though I knew it was almost over, I couldn't see the finish line or hear the finish line. It's the Rock & Roll series so there should be loud music going on! I can't remember now if I saw a mile 13 marker or not but there had to have been one. All I remember is turning a corner and seeing the straight for the finish line. I kicked it and started to sprint. Well, I thought and felt like I was sprinting anyway. LOL! I pushed as hard as I could knowing the end was so close!

I didn't know it until I got home to look it up but, I finished in 02:51:09!! That's only about 2 minutes slower than my Vegas time! Woo hoo!! I was so exhausted at the finish. My legs even felt wobbly. I also needed some ice for my right knee. I grabbed as much food as I could carry once I crossed the finish line. I also grabbed a foil blanket so that I could stretch out on the grass. Icing the knee, eating some snacks, chatting with my hubby on the phone, and stretching a little, I felt elated and exhausted that I finished my 3rd half marathon!

Technical shirt...

And...bling!

ROCK & ROLL!!!!!!! WOO HOO!!!!

Up next.... Rock & Roll New Orleans - March 4th.  :-)

Road Runner Sports 5K

My sister and I signed up for the free Wednesday evening 5K offered at Road Runner Sports in Westminster. Apparently they had been having these races all season, once a month. Today was their last one of the season so the winner would be the person who came closest to predicting their finish time. And that meant we were on more equal ground with all the other runners. :-) The prize was a pair of shoes. Cool!

The last run I did was last Tuesday. I had such high hopes for last week's training schedule. But, I failed. Actually, I fell down the stairs on Thursday. I am ok, and really I was from the beginning. I did bruise my behind where I landed, and my head, where I must have hit the railing, and also my shoulder and elbow a little too. Hmm. As I write all of that, maybe I was a little more injured than I wanted to admit. Anyway, I didn't run at all, feeling a little injured and feeling a little sorry for myself. Whatever. I just didn't get it done. So, I didn't have very high hopes for being fast tonight. But, my sister has been training. When I asked her what her prediction was going to be she said 37:21. That seemed fast for me at this point so I said I'd give the same time and we could run together. I was really hoping she'd pace me. She was hoping I'd pace her. :-)

This was the very first time we've actually run together. We did a 4th of July run together but I ran faster than she did that day. I was feeling strong and fast back then. (Sigh.) We started out and she wanted to run faster than I did but she slowed to my pace. I've never been a fast starter. Except for the very 1st half I did. I sort of had a feel for my slow pace and have learned what a true conversational pace (for me) is. That's what I was shooting for. So, we ran and talked pretty much the whole way. There were two women behind us. When we stopped for a short walk break, one of them passed us. She said she had been using us as pacers. We laughed and said she could be ours now. We did actually keep pace with her. Even after stopping for a short second break. Towards the last stretch, she slowed to run with us and we learned her predicted time was 37:10. So we all felt very good about running together.

My sister pulled away a little as we approached the finish line. And even though we were second to last, there was still hope that we could win. Haha! I like this race. But, it wasn't to be. We actually ran too fast! Ha! We lost because we ran too fast. I can live with that. 36:06 for my sister and 36:11 for me! Woot! I felt very good about that time. I felt very good that we ran practically the whole time. My sister was super excited too. This was her fastest 5K time by quite a bit.

My left foot did fall asleep at some point. Painfully so. Once we stopped running, it immediately came back. Weird. I'm not sure what that's about. Maybe my laces were too tight? I am pretty sure I'll need new shoes after the Denver Rock and Roll Half. But, I hope they at least get me through that one.

This Saturday we are running again. This one will be chip timed. We are planning to run side-by-side again and plan to best today's time. I'm feeling good about the half again. Maybe I'll walk most of this one, but that's ok. Maybe I won't. We'll just take it as it comes.

After the run, there was a drawing. I won some running socks! Cool! I shared my winnings with my sister since it was a pack of three. :-)

 

Oh, and BTW, this was unofficially my 2nd fastest timed 5K finish.Only unofficially because it wasn't an official or chip timed event. Stay tuned for an update on that front after Saturday's Blue Shoe 5K.

And, we finished the evening at BJ's Brewery thus continuing the post race beer tradition. Very important. :-)

Week's update...

Ran Sunday. Monday I ran without timing myself. I did a 3 mile loop out the door from work in about 37 minutes. Tuesday evening I met the Arvada Running Club at Oberon Middle School. Tuesday's they do speed work at the middle school track. But, everyone is welcome to attend even if they don't want to do speed work. I ran laps on the outside and got in about 3 miles. That makes three days in a row. Wow. It felt hard but awesome when it was done.

My Wednesday boot camp work out hasn't happened. Maybe when I get home I'll do a fast abs set and the pushups and dips ladder. That will feel good. My abs are certainly very flabby these days. Sigh. It's my tough area for sure.

I'm starting to get that running feeling back again. I'm remembering what it's like to move my feet. Even running 12 laps at the track felt meditative. I've never run with music. I just enjoy the scenery and my efforts. Some times I look at my feet (easy to do on a track) and am in awe that they are moving. And I think about how I won't be able to do this some day. And I'm grateful for now.

Just keep moving.... Ndank, ndank*...





*Slowly, slowly in Wolof. I should put that on a running t-shirt.

That running feeling...

I'd lost that running feeling. Life got in the way. All good things. My sister got married. I had lots of vacation trips. That's all good for my mental health but not so great for my running health. And boot camp is over. Well, the paying for it is over. My trainer has moved to Utah so I've decided not to register for more classes. The idea is to get my workouts in on my own. (That's not going so well.) Now I'm feeling fat and slow. The good news is I ran yesterday (5 miles) and today (3 miles). That's quite a feat these days. I'm planning to run tomorrow evening with the Arvada Running Club. That'll make it three in a row. Wednesday I'm planning to workout, boot camp style, with a friend and her neighbors. Thursday I can run trails. Maybe Friday I'll rest or boot camp it again. Rest Saturday with a walk to Starbucks. Sunday, 3 weeks from the half marathon, I'll do 6-7 miles as a long run. 

I want to feel like this again:

And this:

I am remembering my original half marathon goals - finish and not pass out. I can do that. I don't have to break any time goals. I will add to my total number of half marathons finished. That's all that matters. Finish. Have fun. Don't pass out. :-) I can do that!

Not running...

Ok. I've decided not to do the Georgetown to Idaho Springs half on Saturday. I could try to do it, simply because I've already registered. But, I don't think I'd feel very good after it was over. And I have too much to do between the end of it and the following weekend. My sister is getting married! I have a house to clean, a tent to put up in the yard, a BBQ dinner to prepare, shopping to do, etc. If I'd actually trained for the half and thought I'd recover well, that would be a different story. But, there is no way I am even close to being ready to run 13 miles and feel good about it. Which, on any other weekend, I'd be ok with. I'd be ok suffering through just to say I did it. But, I don't want to be leaning all crazy while standing next to my sister on her big day. I want to be able to stand up straight and proud right next to her. So, there. It's decided.

The next one is October 9th...Rock and Roll Denver. I've got 2 months to get back at it.

Game face...starting August 23rd.