Three Things Thursday... And then some

1. The Workouts

Monday

As promised, I took it "easy" - opting to do the Crossramp (blah) and the Recumbent bike (blah, blah). The best thing about using the machines on this side of the gym is I'm NOT facing a wall of mirrors, so I can people watch. And boy, are people at my gym FASCINATING.

Tuesday

BodyPump class. The instructor STILL sucks. It's REALLY hard for me to not give her dirty looks throughout class. I have to be careful because her husband participates and even though he doesn't do half the lifting correctly, he finds it necessary to "teach" too, which is also beyond annoying.

Notice that I'm wearing shorts. So I wasn't PLANNING on running. But I had only a little time after class, so I ran anyway:

Picking up A at daycare after the workout - she is "striking a pose" (oy):

Psyched I let her wear a Halloween shirt

Wednesday

I know myself well enough to know I was going to run again this week. So, might as well do it a bit earlier in the week, just in case I needed extra time to rest/ice/etc. I shall call this outfit - "Rainbow Brite"

Run went ok, I went with my aerobic program, toned down the incline just a bit for an "easier" program:

Slow and Steady

2. The Injury

Well... I keep trying to get in to see a doctor. They never seem to have anything for a new patient. Last time I called I commented that this was the third time I had tried to make an appointment and the soonest they can ever seem to get me in is the following Monday. The receptionist had the nerve to say, "Next time plan ahead more." Really? Plan ahead for an injury? OK then.

Anyway, I have been doing what I can... using the green spiky golf ball thing to massage the bottom of my feet, using the stick to rub down my legs, using cream and massaging. Wearing compression socks 12+ hours a day. And most importantly... icing. I've been doing pretty regular regimen of ice on for 15 min and off for 20, at LEAST 5 sets a day.

The verdict? Well, I think it MIGHT be getting better. I did actually run this week (shame on me), but it doesn't feel as tender as it has. I will continue to take it easy this week, at MOST running a few miles Friday morning.

3. September Recap and October Goals

Thanks to my injury, most of September was a total fail.

September Goals (Recap)

• 
  
  Run 150-160 miles - Fail. Would have been on track if I wouldn't have been injured. Outside of racing, I've put in less than 10 miles the last two weeks. Actual September miles - 124.76
• 
  
  Get my long runs in!! At least one 18 miler and one 20 miler - EPIC FAIL. Yeah. Didn't get any long runs in at all. In fact, my longest runs were the FOUR half marathons I did in 22 days (Um, that sounds crazy).
• 
  
  Get a half marathon PR :D - WIN!! I got a PR when running in Chicago!
• 
  
  Increase my Yasso tempo up to at least 8 sets - Again, fail. I managed to get only one set of Yasso 800s added, I think I'm stuck at 7.
• 
  
  Remain healthy and injury free - Mostly fail. Healthy? OK, I'll say I stayed healthy. Out of town a TON, and I actually managed to end up a few pounds down for the month. Injury free? FAIL, FAIL FAIL.

October Goals

• 
  
  Run twice a week outside of racing (minimum). All this is assuming I am pain/injury free.
• 
  
  Really really try to get a 20 mile run in. Again, this is assuming my stupid foot gets better.
• 
  
  I'd love to get another PR on a half marathon this month, but I'm running 4 of them in the next three weeks, and without training properly, that is probably not a reasonable goal, so... the goal will be to keep them all sub 2:10?
• 
  
  Yasso 800s on the back-burner for now, if I start feeling better I'll do them.
• 
  
  Fix my damn foot!!! Whatever I need to do to be feeling at LEAST 85%... needs to be done.
• 
  
  BE A TOTAL BADASS AND RUN THE ATHENS MARATHON TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY. Holy crap. I cannot believe that I'm a month away. A month. Where did the time go???

You Go Girl! Half Marathon - Race Recap

Tacoma, WA (State #9)

Time for the inaugural You Go Girl! half marathon!! I was sorta "broken" after running last weekend in Albuquerque. Both mentally and physically. Unofficially I have some Achilles Tendinitis on my right foot/heel. After running less than 2 miles the entire week, I was mildly freaking out. But.. there was no time for that.

Saturday, September 25

Our flight left around noon, and as usual, we got out of the house a little late. (Thanks to my last minute trip to Target to get me the new Paul Frank knee high Halloween socks and the kids the new Tinkerbell movie). No problems at the airport, and off to Seattle. I was a bit panicky because I had NOT allowed much time to get from the airport to the Expo to pick up our packets. Luckily we landed a bit early. Go to pick up the rental car... apparently it's off-site. Awesome. By the time we are headed to the Expo we have less than an hour to get there. And then? We get stuck in a nice traffic jam on I-5. Somehow we get to the Courtyard Marriott with about 15 minutes to spare. Only there is nowhere to park. They allow us to leave the car for just long enough to get downstairs to pick up our stuff (as they were packing up, by the way). And then we headed back upstairs to check in. Really awesome goodies! Long sleeve shirt, small bag, and a Bondi band. Headed back upstairs to check in. Find out we have to park a few blocks away or pay $14 for valet. Thanks, we'll walk. The room was pretty nice (better be for as much as we paid to stay there!). Didn't feel like doing anything, so we relaxed and watched a few episodes of "Hoarders" before it was time for... THE BLOGGY MEET-UP!!!I was a bit nervous but totally psyched to finally meet some of the bloggers that I follow. Luckily it was only a short walk for us to get to "The Old Spaghetti Factory" (although the iPhone REALLY seems to have it out for me... got a bit lost AGAIN). Along the way:

Pretty sure that is Mt. Rainer in the distance

Get there only a few minutes late, immediately recognized Tall Mom and we made our way to our private room. WOWZA! Bloggy ladies everywhere! Got our name tags (great idea, we put our blog names on there since that is how most of us are known). Introductions and then lots of pleasant conversation. And of course... carbo load!

Spinach Tortellini with marinara and Italian sausage

L and I shared the fabulous cake, the beer? All mine.

I didn't bring my camera, but some of the other girls did and we got this awesome group shot before we disbanded for the evening:

We all look so... normal!

Oh Yes. We are doing "The Point"

Me and Kim (k2323)

L and I decided we needed to find some beverages for the morning... we ended up having to walk over a mile into the ghetto part of Tacoma. Did you know that absolutely EVERYTHING closes by 6 pm??? Subway, Starbucks, yeah. Everything closed. Got back, gear all ready to go. Early to bed, and with an 8:45 start, we would get to sleep in. HURRAH!!

Sunday, September 26
RACE DAY!!!

Got up at 7:10, look out the window... and gloomy, rainy mess outside. Yippee. Decide to braid hair again:

Get everything ready, and then head out to walk to meet the bloggy girls for some pre-race pictures. We run into the pacer team in the lobby and give a quick hello to Tamera (she is the only half fanatic to be at the "sun" level), who we met while running the Foot Traffic Flat back in July. She headed us in the right direction, and we found the girls with no trouble.

T - smartly wearing plastic over her clothes. Me? Not so much.

Team "Will Run For Ice Cream"

Close-up of the Awesomeness!!

Since it was so cold and rainy, we had worn our hoodies. We had 20 minutes to get to the bag drop and use the bathrooms. L was getting panicky so we wished everyone luck and then headed up to the start just a few blocks away.

I really had absolutely NO idea what to expect. No running all week. I decided that the best approach to this race was the same as Hawaii. Go in with NO expectations and then I wouldn't be disappointed with the outcome. It was still cold and rainy at the start and I was a bit worried that my Garmin wouldn't work correctly because it was getting so wet... but nothing to do but wait and see.

We were lined up with the 10 minute mile pace, I gulped down a GU (which I don't normally do at the start)... and off we go. I can "feel" my foot, but it doesn't really hurt... phew!! Try to take it easy, but like most races I start off a bit fast. But feeling good!! L actually wasn't that far ahead of me, and I managed to see her at the first turn-around (in between miles 1 and 2). And then? The hills. Um. I thought this course looked mostly flat. As we had been walking around last night L had made the comment "It's like we are in San Francisco. I hope we don't have to run up any of these." Oh. But we did... in between mile 3 and 4 there was a monster hill. Yuck. Still rainy. Course was very wet, I spent a lot of the time watching my feet to make sure I wasn't steppnig in any really deep puddles or holes. The loop around the park was nice and muddy... and then (FINALLY) some downhill. I saw quite a few of the team kicking major ass - it was so nice to "know" people along the course, made it even more fun. Before I knew it, the 10Kers were splitting off, and off we go.

Around Mile 7

Around Mile 7

Right before the GU station at mile 7.3, I feel it. HORRIBLE cramping. For the first time ever I stop and use the bathroom along the course. I feel better, and off we go. A woman around mile 8 asks if I have the 50 state blog... haha!! I'm "recognizable!" Feeling pretty good, I see L (waaaay ahead of me now), T from Racing with Babes (being paced by Tall Mom for a PR). And then? The damn cramping again! Mile 10-11 was absolutely terrible. I really REALLY didn't want to walk. Even with my bathroom break, a PR was still within reach. I just could NOT do it. I had the worst side ache and had to walk a bit. Luckily it didn't last the rest of the race, and by mile 12 I was doing a lot better. I see the last bridge, and mile marker 13, and I'm ready to sprint to the end (which I do, passing at least a couple ladies in the chute).



Look at me go!!!

 Pretty pleased that I finished in 2:07:08 - all things considered it could have been much worse.

Cute finisher's "medal" (as I described to J, fittingly "girly"):

New PRs for many of the ladies (including L and T!!) Grabbed some goodies, chatted a few minutes, and then we had to be on our way because the super awesome host hotel we were staying at refused late check out. We had less than an hour to get back there to pack and shower.

We checked out only 15 minutes late, and we were pretty annoyed to be blind-sided with a $10 parking fee. Headed to get some lunch - and decided to walk (bad idea with all those hills, I thought L was going to have to drag me) to get pizza. Got lost again (shaking fist at the horrible HORRIBLE iPhone map app).

We got the "Founders Pie"

And for dessert?



Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream and Carrot Cake

And then we were off... driving to Seattle for our "Washington Event" - the Space Needle. iPhone sorta sucked at directions (shocking), but we managed to find a lot nearby that charged us "only" $8.00 to park, and we walked up MORE hills.

Now included in your admission - picture with an awesome backdrop

Did you know it takes 41 seconds to take the elevator the 520ish feet up? Apparently that's about 10 mph. Felt faster.

View from the top

Outside Pacific Science Center

Headed back to the car so we could drop it off and head back to the airport.

Washington - State #9 - COMPLETE

If there ever came the opportunity to do a race like this again, I would in a heartbeat. Meeting up with my bloggy friends was great, and the atmosphere of the race was FUN. I have missed that in a lot of my other races.

Flight back to Denver uneventful and we didn't get home until almost midnight. I had to stay up another hour or so to give my foot some much needed icing. I think I'll try the same schedule as last week - no running, lots of cross training.

Forgive Me...

... for I have run. I took it easy though, I promise!! Well, the good news is that I am 99% sure I will be able to run You Go Girl! on Sunday. There is definitely still "pain" on the outside part of my right foot - extending now toward the heel. I ran for less than 20 minutes and while it is sort of tender, I think resting again today and tomorrow, I should be mostly good to go Sunday. With that said, I'll still try to get in and see a doctor next week. It's been bothering me about two weeks now, I probably can't put this off.

Now that you are done scolding me... :D

We hit up the park last night before gymnastics. A had a BLAST as I think you can see (she is laughing... maniacally). And at class? I was the only one there so I got some one-on-one attention. I tried to keep it low impact and mostly did my beam work. I'm thrilled that I can still hold a handstand for 30+ seconds - apparently it's impressive.

Random Fun Stuff!!

1. I have been wanting to run in something "fun" for the Zombie half marathon I'm doing in Alaska next month. I found this one at Clutch Tees:

2. I sweat a LOT when I run. I ordered this from Inperspire:

3. I don't normally take a picture of the scale, but I was PSYCHED when I saw this today:

Three Things Thursday - AWESOME EDITION!!

1. Did you know that this is my 100th blog post? Who would have thought I would actually stick with this (the running AND the blogging). Thanks for following!! (If I could figure out HOW, I would do a giveaway or something. Sigh. I'm a newbie to this and don't know how to do that, sorry).

2. I actually listened to the advice of my bloggy friends:

My daughter requires "muscles" when taking my picture

The shorts are actually mint green. Unsure why they look blue. Anyway, I decided to take yet ANOTHER day off from running. I did a very boring hour on the elliptical and a bit on the bike. Blah. I thought treadmill was awful?? Dare I say I might actually miss it? Anyway, The Ankle actually seems to be feeling better. I iced again last night, and am actually wearing heels today (so far so good):

I am undecided if I should try a slow jog tonight - just to see how it feels. I'm worried only because this is probably the second longest I've ever gone without running.. and I certainly have never taken this much time off right before a race. Hmmm.

3. IT'S HERE, IT'S HERE, IT'S HERE!!! MY ITINERARY FOR GREECE IS FINALLY HERE!!

New Season, New Attitude

Well. I'll try anyway. :D

Monday.

Sad to not be putting on my running skirt.

The Ankle is a bunch of suck. I don't like skipping a workout, so I decided to do some "non-impact" cardio. Get to the gym with A as soon as the daycare opens at 4:00... only the person who is supposed to be running it isn't there yet - they swore they thought it didn't open until 4:15. Oy. The other woman dropping off kids turns out to be the instructor for the 4:30 BodyPump class. She was a MUCH better instructor than the one that teaches the Tuesday night class. Score!! Workout ended up being 15 minutes on the elliptical, a one hour BodyPump class, and 7.2 miles on the bike (20 minutes).

I am NEVER done with the gym this early. Since it was still light out, we made a quick stop by the park.

She posed, very seriously, and said "Mom, take my picture" - hilarious.

"Mom, I'm a pretzel!"

Tuesday.

The Ankle still sucks. As much as it pains me to rest it, I opted to still not run today (sniff). No outfit picture, but shorts (neon orange) and a pinkish top. Obnoxiously bright, but still sad. Crossramp:

That is the completed workout, how I managed that exact number of strides is beyond me

Followed that up with 9 miles on the bike (25 minutes).

I have no clue what to do tonight. I have been resting The Ankle for 72 hours. I have been taking it easy (no running at all) and icing every night. It certainly FEELS better, but since I have a very intense race schedule for the next 6 weeks, I do NOT want to risk making it worse. Normally I would have done an hour long hill workout on Monday and my Yasso 800s tonight. Question: Do I "try" to run a little tonight or do I still take it easy?

I am super duper excited for the bloggy meet up for the You Go Girl! half marathon this weekend in Tacoma. I hope I'm actually able to race, but... some of my best races are the ones I go into with NO expectations. Maybe I just need to go back to that.

Chips & Salsa half marathon - Race recap

Albuquerque, NM
Sunday, September 19

We had to pick up our packets for the 7th annual Chips & Salsa Half Marathon by 3:00, so we took a late morning flight to get there in time. Picked up non-exciting packets (cotton shirt, bib, ads) and then hit up Whataburger for lunch (it being National Cheeseburger Day) and all:

Lunch was pretty inexpensive and fabulous. We had some time to kill so we drove to the "Petroglyph National Monument." We neglected to read the sign that suggested a hat, water and closed-toe shoes for the 2.4 mile round trip walk. It was mildly annoying doing the whole walk in flip flops... through sand... in the desert... but we managed. Most of the conversation varied between "This is the hottest I've been... ever" and "I wonder who authenticated these petrogylphs."

Petroglyph National Monument

Petroglyph

I think that is a goat or sheep petroglyph behind me

Pretty! But we decided probably a "fancy weed"

We finished up and headed off for the next adventure... The Albuquerque International Balloon Museum. Oh yes. It was supposed to cost $4 to get in but since as were there at 4:00 they had already closed their registers (???) so it was free. Took less than an hour to get through it - and I may have actually learned a few things. (Did you know farm animals were the first in flight? I believe it was a sheep and a chicken... there might have been a third one).

Then we headed to Target to pick up our beverages. Checked in at the La Quinta (which we found in spite of the iPhone's terrible directions. Quick shower and then we headed to Applebees for carbo load dinner (also found in spite of the iPhone).

Fabulous!!! Chunks of Oreo at the bottom!

Dinner was fabulous and by the time we got back to the room it was almost 8. Beer and reading for me - movie for L.

Made sure I had everything ready the night before. I don't  like any surprises on race mornings!!

Didn't sleep as well as I usually do so I was up before my alarm - which was supposed to go off at 5:15. Dressed, braid hair (took a bit longer than I had anticipated), bagel and peanut butter. Headed out the door right around 6. Found it thanks to the other people driving there, nothing was marked or lit, I might have passed it if I wasn't paying close attention. Parked the car and they were just setting up the tables... In the dark. Seriously. Got my timing chip found out the bathrooms were back in the unlit parking lot I'd just come from. Potty #1. Back to car - time to kill, eat iced oatmeal raisin Luna bar and drink more of my Nuun, putting remainder in my fuel belt. Potty #2. Wander around looking for the start line - we think it's back where we got timing chips. Random guy says "I've followed you girls before." We finally figured out it was in Red Wing - which he also agreed to be WORST EVER. Realize race starts back behind the parking lot. Ten minutes to go. Potty #3. Drop off stuff I don't need in car, hide keys behind tire because I don't have an extra pocket. Race starts about ten minutes late. Supposed to be flat and fast but I'm already hot and ankle is tender.

Pre-race

Pace is really fast at the beginning, which I hate. It's like half the people are actually "racing" and the rest of us are doing a slow and strenuous training run in a half-ass attempt to keep up. Ankle sore right off the line and .49 miles in I burp and vomit comes up. Shaping up to be a fabulous race.

2/3 mile in - we ran this direction a LOT - happy to have visor & sunglasses

Somehow manage to keep a sub 10 minute mile pace for the first mile. Then the cramping starts. There were supposed to be port-o-potties on the course but I never saw one.

Crossing the Rio Grande

Very hot. Drinking lots, thankful for belt which I re-fueled. Cramping getting worse, turns into full on side ache. By about mile 9, the pace slows and I have to walk every half mile because putting pressure on the side does nothing.

I stopped looking at my watch except to gauge how long I was walking. I didn't even look at it when I crossed the finish line. Official results say 2:10:53 (actually not bad considering how this went). I felt like I was going to throw up (again). I have NEVER felt so sick after a race. No water at the finish line. EXTREMELY disappointed that the medal I thought I was going to get - "Finisher awards for ALL Half Marathon particpants"(exact wording from the registration page) turned out to be a stupid salsa bowl... one not even decorated with anything affiliated with the race.

Stop reading here if you don't want to read snarky & whiny stuff.

So the big slap in the face was L getting a medal. She apparently got yet another PR and placed third in our age group. I especially liked the comment "Oh, the number three by name, does that mean I place?" Really, now??? I will just say it bluntly. I AM REALLY TIRED OF LOSING GRACEFULLY. There. I said it. Every.Single.Race. she beats me. Usually by "only" ten minutes, but this time 17. SEVENTEEN FREAKIN' MINUTES. When my other sister races? They BOTH beat me. The first time that happened I was pretty upset but I learned to let it go, figuring I was at least giving it my best attempt every time. Well. I'm tired of it. Every race seems to get harder and harder for me, while every race seems to get easier and easier for her. We do the same training at the same pace. We live in the same house and eat the same meals. SO PLEASE TELL ME WHY I'M NOT IMPROVING AND SHE IS??? UGH!!! Jealousy reared it's ugly head and the last six months came crashing down in a meltdown (from me). Everything came rushing back "I'm too sick to race, so I'll run with you" and "I decided I'm running a full marathon in a month" hit me... and I snapped. I'm especially mad about the marathon. Really??? You can't even let me have THAT??? You have to do yours TWO WEEKS BEFORE MINE????? (W - for the record, it does NOT help hearing about it before hand, it just makes me more and more pissed with every passing day).

So I've been sitting here even debating about posting and whether I should mention any of this. But you know what? It happened, I'm mad, and I really wish I knew then what I know now, because I wouldn't have pre-scheduled soooo many races.

Blah. Help me get out of this snarky, jealous, crappy funk. There is nothing I can seemingly do about it and venting doesn't help.

Oh. And the ankle sucks and it hurts worse than before. I'm sure a few unplanned days off will improve my mood. >:(