Carbon Valley Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Saturday, May 18
Firestone, CO
Half Marathon #82
Colorado Half #22
Weather - Sunny and Warm

When my other birthday plans fell through, it only seemed appropriate to run the inaugural Carbon Valley half marathon. We didn't know much about the race and hoped that arriving about 40 minutes in advance would be enough time to pick up our stuff. Luckily, everything was easy to find and we were in and out of pack pick-up at the library (with indoor bathrooms) in just a few minutes. We were joined again by our new running buddy, Hope. We stood around at the start line chatting with her and her family. In a very short amount of time, I managed to get a few DOZEN mosquito bites. THAT was annoying.

And then we started, about five minutes late.

I had ZERO expectations going into the race. I had not run one step since Sunday. I had been out the night before having birthday beers with my sister. I had cake. I had candy. I fueled with donut holes.

We started off on a weird soft gravel section. I was feeling ok, but my calves (shockingly) were tight. Again. I did manage to run the entire first mile without walking. I was worried, again, that I would need to be stopping a lot to let my legs loosen up. I took a few pictures while walking.

Turns out, this was pretty much the best looking part of the course

I caught up with Hope just after mile 2. We would end up running (and walking) together for the remainder of the race. There is just not much to say. There were aid stations about every two miles. They had Gatorade (variety) at three aid stations and just water at the rest. Friendly volunteers. BORING BORING BORING course. It was a gradual uphill most of the course and it was hot. We walked quite a bit.

I also had to mess with my iFitness belt A HUNDRED BILLION TIMES. I really haven't raced with it much, but since it was hot, I wanted to carry water on  me. It would NOT stay put. It either rode up, or if I wore it too low, my hip bone was somehow managing to put enough pressure on the bottle that it was shooting Nuun on me. MOST ANNOYING THING EVER. I will never ever ever run with this thing ever again. I would rather faint from dehydration.

We were looking forward to the only section of the course that promised to be visually stimulating, a mile-ish jaunt around a small lake. There were gnats everywhere, which was NOT pleasant, although we did see this giant bird:

So yeah. The course was boring. It was hillier than we thought and we just wanted to be done.

So.... No idea what is happening here....

But, I had a pretty good time overall, even with tired legs. L managed to catch a picture of me GENUINELY smiling. Hurray!

Bib #204
Official Time - 2:42:57
Overall Place - 139/164
Gender Place - 74/97
Division Place - 34/42
MMR Time - 2:43:07
MMR Pace - 11:27
MMR Distance - 13.41 miles
Mile 1 - 10:37
Mile 2 - 11:54
Mile 3 - 11:18
Mile 4 - 12:58
Mile 5 - 12:39
Mile 6 - 12:57
Mile 7 - 12:56
Mile 8 - 10:35
Mile 9 - 11:40
Mile 10 - 13:35
Mile 11 - 12:56
Mile 12 - 11:37
Mile 13 - 11:43
Mile 13.41 - 11:27

Not sure this captures the "barren-ness" of Firestone

There was some food at the finish line. I missed out on the Chic-Fil-A, but I did get MORE donut holes. I swear, they melted in my mouth and were DELICIOUS. I wanted a beer (mainly because I was thirsty). I quickly slammed a not-so-great Miller 64 OUT OF A CAN.

Thoughts:

• Pretty good for an inaugural although there was not much information on their website about race day information. Also, I really had to search to find race results, there was no link from their website.
• No gels available on the course, BYOG! Well stocked with fluids though - 3 of the 7 aid stations had Gatorade.
• The map showed where the aid stations were, but not in relation to the miles, so that was a bit annoying.
• Pretty nice shirt, I may or may not wear again, but at least it was a women's cut!
• Pretty awesome medal!
• Boring boring boring boring boring boring course. And practically zero crowd support.

Other thoughts:

• DID NOT HATE RUNNING WHEN I WAS DONE!!! Major success! Sure, it was slow. Sure, I didn't feel amazing the entire time. But nothing really hurt and I was not miserable when I crossed the line. I call that a win!

The Running Hiatus

Even as I am typing it, it seems ridiculous to be "impressed" that I haven't run all week. Even with minor injuries, I still have always sneaked in a few short runs. You know, just in case I "forget" how to run. So the 5 solid days of not running are probably a record for me.

Instead:

• Monday - Monday Night Chaos. This class never disappoints. It is a mix of circuit training, crossfit, strength and cardio. I spend the next few days wondering how I've never worked out certain muscle groups. Every week is different. I go almost every single week, and it is a always a challenge.
• Tuesday - Nada. Epsom salt bath.
• Wednesday - Yoga.
• Thursday - Epsom salt bath and back to turbo kickboxing at the gym. Hrm. Things have changed since I went last. Apparently there is a new instructor, which doesn't really matter other than she wasn't the greatest at shouting instructions so I was LOST. I haven't been to class in 7 or 8 months and it was AWKWARD. I was dazed and confused.
• Friday (today) - NADA. I plan on having pizza for dinner and a couple of beers with my older sister.

There were some questions/comments on my whiny blog post about hating running right now:

• Back in February I finally went to the doctor to address my fatigue, lack of energy, general soreness, etc. I had blood work done (thyroid, iron, electrolyte and other stuff) and EVERYTHING WAS NORMAL. So, apparently, there is absolutely no medical reason for this? Which is VERY frustrating.
• Am I actually injured? Dunno. My knee has been achy since the trail race I did last week. Not the IT band, but sorta under my knee cap. That's new. Also, my ankle has been tender on/off for a long time. Calf cramping still a HUGE issue. So pretty much the same things that have been plaguing me for years.
• I have the P90X DVDs. I had done them a few years ago (not sure if I had any success or not). I am hesitant to start doing this again because it is pretty time consuming and it has to be done at home. I've lost so much motivation that the thought of getting out from under my heated blanket to exercise is... well, probably not going to happen. But, that IS an option.
• I'm pretty limited to the classes I can take at the gym, and I had forgotten about the kickboxing. Pretty fun cardio, if I can at all remember the sequences of the moves so I don't look like a weirdo. 
• When do I plan on running again? Well, I am running double half marathons for my birthday this weekend!!! I know, seems risky since I hate running right now, but I am determined to make the best of it. I most likely will take all of next week off from running as well. Not sure if the physical rest will improve anything, but the mental break seems to be helping?

Wordless Wednesday (Field Day)

#NotEatingAllTheThings (Week 2)

If you missed the premise and the Week 1 Recap - you can read all about it HERE.

Well, I'll admit that I'm a bit disappointed with the progress this week.

Weight loss - .8 pounds

That's lame. I was on track with all food logging and exercise. Mother's Day dinner/dessert was my only splurge (I refuse to turn down Strawberry Shortcake!).

According to Daily Mile, I ran over 35 miles last week. I also did an hour on the crossramp/elliptical, did my circuit/cross fit/weights class for an hour, and an hour of yoga. So all my activity was there as well.

And yet, barely a loss at all. Blah. I know that weeks have ups and downs, but it seems pointless to turn away cupcakes and chocolate if I'm not seeing results.

Not looking forward to my next weigh in as I'm taking the week (mostly) off from exercise. I'm tired.

I did indulge in half a "Big Kid" grilled cheese sandwich from Panera. Yum

Westminster Women's Classic Ten Miler (Race Recap)

Mother's Day
Sunday, May 12
Weather - Sunny and HOT (ok, 60ish, but FELT hot)

I was hoping to "run" the entire Women's Classic. I was hoping to repeat the half marathon I did on New Year's Day. Slow but not walking anything but the water stations.

I'll save you reading the recap to find out. I WALKED A HUNDRED BILLION TIMES.

I registered... I don't know why. It wasn't that much money and there was a kid's race before ours. The kids had a great time:

Sorry for the poor quality of the top left picture, I took that as a still from a video I took of the race. A ended up about 6th kid overall. Both kids finished with smiles on their faces!

The 10 mile race didn't start until 8:30 and it was already getting really warm. We had hoped to cycle through the bathroom line again, but there were way too many people in front of us (there was also a 10k and 5k that started after us). Five port-o-potties was probably not enough, especially for an all-women's event!

I started in the back. The course was on the Big Dry Creek Trail, the same trail where we ran the Redline at Westminster last month. I have run this a billion times, so didn't take any pictures, except for the flooded underpass we had to run through. Well, you were SUPPOSED to run through, but about half of the women turned around when they saw the water and ran up the embankment and across the street. CHEATER CHEATER PUMPKIN EATERS.

Anyway, I have NEVER seen the trail flooded like this:

Once you started moving, the water easily sloshed over your knees. What. I didn't mind, it was like an ultra experience in a 10 miler. River crossing? CHECK. Plus, it was already feeling really warm.

I forgot, like is typical of me, that there is ZERO shade on this course. FOR REAL, ZERO SHADE. It is mostly paved bike path, but there are some small areas of dirt and gravel. I know the temperature was in the low to mid 60's by the time I was done, but it felt MUCH MUCH hotter.

Anyway, I walked. A lot. My legs were crampy. Achy. Tired. I was NOT having a good time. I just didn't want to come in last. I ran a little, but probably never more than 3-4 minutes at a time

The course does a 180 at the end, A ran down the hill so she could run me in. Other than the river crossing, this was the only good part of the run.

At least ONE of us looks happy

L, Hope and Me (LOVE this picture!!)

Time - 1:57:58
Place - 119/143
Mile 1 - 10:50
Mile 2 - 11:58
Mile 3 - 11:04
Mile 4 - 12:02
Mile 5 - 11:18
Mile 6 - 12:15
Mile 7 - 12:02
Mile 8 - 11:52
Mile 9 - 11:03
Mile 10 - 10:27
Mile 10.24 - 11:11

I *guess* considering I walked a BILLION times, my splits aren't that terrible. While I obviously DO NOT love being slow, what I like even less is all of a sudden feeling like I CAN'T. I did not run one consecutive mile without walking. I am not even sure I ran an entire HALF mile without walking.

Thoughts about the race:

• There were 6 aid stations for the 10 mile. That barely felt like enough. I was so hot and thirsty and with no shade it was like running through the desert. They had FRS instead of Gatorade, which was actually pretty decent.
• There was "food" at the end. All pastry type stuff. Didn't really feel like junk food, so I didn't have anything. The kids really enjoyed it.
• Could have started at least an hour earlier, although spring in Colorado is so sketchy, you really never know what the weather is going to do. REALLY hot when I was done!
• Cute medal!

Running Thoughts:

• At the risk of being whiny, I am SO SICK AND TIRED OF RUNNING. Nothing about running on the treadmill or road feels good. Just about every step I have taken has been exhausting and painful. I don't think I'm actually injured. If you want to call it over-training or burnout, then do. I don't think it is "over-training" - I run 3-4 days a week, as I have for YEARS.
• Even though the doctor's seems to think there is nothing physically wrong, I disagree. I am always tired. Even after a few days of NOTHING, I don't ever feel energized or "fresh." When I get done with a workout, I have an overwhelming sense of THANK GOD THAT IS DONE. I hate feeling this way. Running is supposed to be fun. I'm not saying it is supposed to be easy, but when it becomes the worst part of my day and every day seems harder than the day before, then it is time to take a break.
• I have no plans on any DNF's right now. This weekend is my birthday and I have back to back half marathons. I do not plan to run between now and then. And after this weekend I just might taken another week off. 
• I do not plan on registering for anything else right now. Which means I feel like a total jerk for bailing on the other B and our Colorado race. Luckily, I've talked to her already and she is really understanding and we will do something else while she is here and I will try to spectate her race up in Steamboat.
• I hate hate hate being so negative. But I also feel that this blog (even if no one but me really reads it) needs to be honest. So, here it is. I'm being honest. I hate running right now.
• Suggestions for cardio appreciated. I'm pretty limited on what I can do since I need the daycare at the gym. Or should I skip cardio and concentrate on something else? Strength?

Anyway, overall, I had a pretty good Mother's Day.

Fear the Deer Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Saturday, May 11
Littleton, CO
Half Marathon #81
Colorado Half #20
Weather - Sunny and Warm

The Fear the Deer was the one half that I was half dreading and half looking forward to. Whenever I get in a running slump, a trail race or crazy running adventure usually helps fix my perspective. However, the race is also deemed the "toughest trail 1/2 on the front range." THAT would turn out to be an accurate assessment.

The race didn't start until 8, but looking at the information a few days before showed that we would need to drive about 40 minutes, pick up our packets and then take a shuttle up part of the mountain to get to the start area. Pick up was a breeze and we were on the first bus to the park. The view from the trail head was pretty nice:

Kim always reminds me that hot air balloons are good luck

We chatted with a few guys at a picnic table waiting for the race to start. We hit the bathrooms a few times and it was disappointing that one of the two toilets didn't flush. That was awkward. The race was capped at 175 runners, and it did sell out. This is the start area about 10 minutes before we started.

As soon as the last bus arrived, we started, a few minutes late. We had no idea if there were any bathrooms on the course, but we decided not to take a chance, and we stopped, 100 yards(ish) after starting the race and used them one last time. By then, we were already playing a game of catch up to the last runner. Immediately, the hills were pretty intense, this is probably a quarter of a mile in:

I will admit, I was pretty excited about FOR REAL trails. Once we got going, it was pretty nice with a bunch of GREEN trees and some shade (how on earth it already felt so hot, I don't know):

The sign says One Mileish (LOL)

I struggled pretty early on going up the inclines.

Once we got up one the longest hill in the world, we noticed there were some cute signs taped to trees:

The up just kept going.... and going.... and going....

And then FINALLY, there was some single track that we could actually run. That was FANTASTIC.

The views from the top were pretty impressive:

All the turnarounds were unmanned - but clearly marked. Not sure where I would go, except to go back the way I came...

We had one of the volunteers take a picture of us at one of the scenic view summits:

My vest felt "off" all day. No wonder, the chest strap is all wonky

 And some pictures of me on the course:

Unexpected "medal"

Official Time - 3:16:55
Overall Place - 146/155
Unofficial time - 3:17:29 (Forgot to stop MMR)
Distance - 13.47 (according to MMR)
Mile 1- 14:57
Mile 2 - 19:59
Mile 3 - 16:33
Mile 4 - 13:15
Mile 5 - 16:04
Mile 6 - 10:59 (must have been the single track!)
Mile 7 - 13:36
Mile 8 - 13:53
Mile 9 - 19:37
Mile 10 - 12:40
Mile 11 - 14:22
Mile 12 - 13:03
Mile 13 - 11:58
Mile 13.4 - 12:05

So. Thoughts:

• This shit was hard. But the type of hard I actually enjoy. The "ups" were crazy hard, I had to stop quite a bit to catch my breath. The single track was really nice, I love running "rolling" hills. The downhills were mostly ok, but there was a lot of loose rocks, I landed weird quite a few times. Biggest success was NO falling.
• There was one aid station on the course that we hit twice - once around mile 1.7 and again at mile 8.5. I do not understand the people that didn't carry water!! I wore my vest, and had it filled with 50-60 oz of Nuun and I drank THE ENTIRE THING. Plus I took water both times I hit the aid station. I took two gels and had 2 red vines. And I was STARVING by the time we were done. L drank maybe one tiny water bottle (12 oz??) and NO GU. What.
• L is so much faster and stronger than me I wish she wouldn't "run" with me. By "run with me" she is always about 20 strides ahead of me and I am always chasing her. Whenever I get within hearing distance, I get the "hurry up." Blah.
• Pretty, pretty, PRETTY course.
• Awesome volunteers. We had to take a "shuttle" back to the car, and one of the volunteers actually drove us down in her personal vehicle. That was really nice.
• The post race food was PHENOMENAL. So happy they had food AND beer left when we were done (there were only maybe 10 people that finished after us).
• Maybe, if I was in better shape, I would run this again. For the most part, I had a good time. Trails still make me pretty happy.

#NotEatingAllTheThings (Week 1)

If you follow me on Twitter, I've always been a HUGE fan of the hashtag #eatallthethings

However, it became glaringly obvious to me after the Weekend of Amazing in Eugene that I'm getting chubbier than I'd like. The group shot at the start of the race was a wake up call for me. (Isn't that how it always starts? With a picture of yourself?)

Anyway, after all the beer and donuts were gone, Heather and I have joined forces with a (super un-fun) plan to NOT eat all the things. For pretty much the first time EVER, I am actually watching calories (NOT FUN) and am keeping myself accountable by texting Heather pictures of my meals. (You're welcome by not overloading Twitter/Instagram/Facebook with my super boring pictures of salads).

To be honest, there has only been a few times where I started to get hangry (hungry/angry) and annoyed that I couldn't/shouldn't be eating anything. I still carb loaded before my race at Chili's (but made sure to watch my Chips & salsa intake), still had free beer Friday, and still celebrated post-race with Smashburger (Colorado burger and sweet potato fries).

The results? Down 5.4 pounds.

Now don't get too concerned, 3.6 of those pounds were in the first 24 hours, so it's obviously water/beer weight from the "Growler Challenge" I failed at last Monday. Taking THOSE pounds out of the equation, looks like I'm responsibly on the way to dropping those 10-15 pounds I've added in the last year.

My birthday is coming up in a few weeks, I'll just have to settle with ONE piece of cake instead of ALL the cake.

Hey, maybe I'll post ONE food picture:

Louisville Trail Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, May 5
Louisville, CO
Half Marathon #80
Colorado Half #19
Weather - Overcast and chilly

In our quest to run all the half marathons in Colorado, the Louisville "trail" half marathon was the choice for the weekend because it was close and less than half the cost of the "bigger" half of the weekend, the Colorado half marathon in Ft. Collins. Trail is in quotes because this is NOT trail. It is paved bike path and crushed gravel. No trail shoes necessary. So an urban trail? I dunno.

Anyway, the race started at 8, and we have run races put on by this group before and they aren't too big, so we dropped the kids off at 6:45, made the 20 minute drive to Louisville and parked a few blocks from the starting area. We hit the bathrooms and then went back to the car. We heard an announcement saying the race was starting in 20 minutes, and we weren't paying attention and realized we only had about 10 minutes for the race to start and we wanted to use the bathrooms again. There was also a 10K that was starting 10 minutes later and only one woman in line let us cut so that we wouldn't miss the start.

Well, we missed the start anyway, and I was the last one across the line. L is back on her kick where she wants to run fast, which is fine, she is clearly WAY faster than I am, and she took off. I tried to run just fast enough to keep people in sight so that I wouldn't get lost.

I have run part of this section of "trails" before (most recently the St. Patrick's Day 5K that A and I ran). Everything still looks dead and brown thanks to our 7+ months of winter:

Remember last week, in Eugene, where everything was green and lush??

I caught up to the last of the runners within the first half mile. And shortly after that was when I started walking. Early on, I was walking because my calves were tight. By the end of the race I was walking because I was tired and cranky.

This tiny section of single track was the only part I'd even remotely consider "trail"

I spent miles 6-9ish talking with a fellow Half Fanatic, Hope, which helped make the miles go by a bit quicker.

Really have to figure out why my upper body is so STIFF

 But I wasn't enjoying my day. I felt off and the weather was gloomy and the course was blah.

View from the peak of the one (GIANT) hill

I had talked my co-worker into running this and I spotted her on both out and back sections. She didn't enjoy herself much either.

I really didn't want to walk the end of the race. But I did. I walked more in this race than I probably have EVER. EVERY single mile, I walked. I bet I never ran more than a half mile before I walked. WTF, me.

L, who had been done a half hour, got shots of me heading into the finish. At least I looked cute?

Favorite course pictures and my finisher pic

Bib #2180

Official Time - 2:33:04

Official Pace - 11:41

Overall Place - 210/231

Gender Place - 127/142

Division Place - 44/47

MMR Time - 2:33:08 (slowest half in months)

MMR Distance - 13.24 miles

MMR Pace - 11:33

Mile 1 - 10:08

Mile 2 - 12:07

Mile 3 - 11:32

Mile 4 - 10:44

Mile 5 - 10:52

Mile 6 - 10:48

Mile 7 - 12:24

Mile 8 - 11:15

Mile 9 - 10:50

Mile 10 - 12:11

Mile 11 - 12:54

Mile 12 - 12:56

Mile 13 - 11:10

Mile 13.24 - 10:47

 

Thoughts on the race:

• Pretty well organized, but a bit confusing with two distances starting in two different directions
• Not really enough bathrooms at the start
• Generic unisex shirt = bad. Even the XS is giant on me. Waste of a shirt, I will never wear it. I swear, there were more women than men here - GENDER SPECIFIC PLEASE.
• I got a great deal on race registration through ZOZI (like living social) - $35!! So I guess I can't complain too much
• Nice medal
• Well stocked aid stations. They all had water and some type of electrolyte drink I had never heard of, but it tasted fine. Most also had little Lara bars and Honey Stinger gels, chews and waffles.
• Course was pretty well marked, mile markers at every mile, but with the multiple distances, the markers were a bit confusing.
• I like the figure 8 course, I got to see people on a couple out and backs - and reassuring that I was NOT last.
• Lots of food at the finish area. Rumor is there was beer but I was cold and cranky and we had to get the kids so I didn't even look for it. Finish area also set up with vendors like an expo, so there was stuff for sale at the end.

Thoughts on running:

• I am definitely in a funk. I hate running a lot right now.
• Calves are STILL tight and apparently NOTHING I do will fix it, they apparently will randomly flare up, and there is apparently NO cause for this. ANNOYING.
• Ankle and IT band both got a bit angry - but not too terrible. So happy I was only doing a half.
• I know speed is not everything. However, I'm tired of being slow. I'm tired of a jog feeling so hard. I've been to the doctor and there is no medical reason why I am so tired and sloggy all the time.

Anyway, the end. I've been complaining for the last 24 hours and even that is getting old. Anyway, L really liked this race and said she would do it again.

Raffle Winners!!

Thank you SO much to everyone that donated during my raffle! I am a bit more than halfway to my fundraising goal, and of course, if you can, donations will be accepted HERE.

Random.org picked the winners:

Pro Compression socks -Suzanne Westenhofer
Pro Compression socks - Heather Gonzalez
Nuun (2 tubes) - Suzanne Westenhofer
$25 INKnBURN Gift Card - Renee Taylor
Black Newton Visor - Alex Dietrich
Yellow Newton Visor - Sarah Jordan
$25 INKnBURN Gift Card - Lisa Jameson


Email me ASAP with your name, mailing address and phone number to squirrelgirl44 (at) hotmail (dot) com and I will get your prizes sent out.

Again, thank you so much to everyone, especially Pro Compression and Newton that donated the goods for my raffle.

(Speaking of Pro Compression, the "sock of the month" is YELLOW - which is AWESOME, and you can pick them up for 40% off using the code SOM5).

April Rewind

Well, I managed to eek out just over 100 miles for the month (108ish overall).

• 52 miles of that was racing (2 half marathons and 1 marathon)
• 20ish miles of that was a single training run - my greatest accomplishment!
• I only ran 9 days the whole month. And yesterday barely even counts since I only did 2 miles total - really just to test out my ankle/calves.

Current aches/pains

• Apparently, the ball on the inner part of my right ankle. It's been known to flare up on runs 10-12+ miles. Usually if I tape it, it is ok, but it hurt pretty bad during Eugene.
• Calves, like usual.

 The lofty goal

• NOT eating all the things. I had a free for all weekend in Eugene, and literally ate EVERYTHING. Donuts, pizza, burgers, fries and a LOT of beer. If I don't want to be a giant fat ass, I'm really going to have to change this. Sigh. So... the land of the un-fun started yesterday, and I will diligently pay attention to what I'm eating and (sort of) count calories. Sigh.

Running goals

• Still try to rebuild my base - that should help with 4(?) half marathons I am running this month...
• Not sold on doing speed work right now. My pace is so stupidly slow right now and I need to figure out why, before I try to push even more.
• If it ever EVER stops snowing (seriously), I'd like to start going to run club again on Wednesday nights. That will NOT be tonight:

My backyard at 6:45 am. We should have 4-8" by tonight