Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Week in Review (October 18 - October 24)

Tuesday (24,614 steps) - Up early AGAIN for a long(ish) run before work. It was definitely colder than last week and I was grateful that I was smart enough to wear long sleeves. The sunrise wasn't as impressive this week either, but according to Strava, I was faster.

Went to barre during lunch, but sadly it wasn't Fuzed, we had a sub. I had parent-teacher conferences, and once again, nothing but good things to say about A. So proud of her! Then we had gymnastics, a "reward" visit to Yogurtland, and dinner at home. In bed too late.
Wednesday (18,460 steps) - Went to barre at 6:00, when I discovered my biggest competition had gone TWICE the day before. I made the decision to go again at lunch. Something is wrong with me. After work we went to run club at Roost. Heather and I ran with Colfax while A stayed at the store with Mo.

A brought her viola and played for all of run club!
I had to get on a conference call with the ERS ambassadors to discuss next season, which ended up lasting almost an hour. Decided to DVR the debate since I had missed it, but it didn't start until 10. I only made it through the first half hour before I had to go to bed.
Thursday (17,365 steps) - Barre at 6:00. I'm really starting to feel it now, this was my 20th class of the month.
Getting a bit concerned about some tightness in my left hip again. I may have to bow out of this challenge - I don't want to risk injury! Belmar run club, where I ran with Colfax again. MUCH cooler tonight and I was really wishing I had long sleeves and/or gloves.

Brrr. Rocko's afterward. Finished watching the debate, in bed late.
Friday (11,297 steps) - SLEPT IN FINALLY. (So strange that 7:00 is sleeping in). Binge ate donut after donut (and excessive amounts of candy at work. Barre at lunch with Sasha. Stopped at the store on the way home (and bought another donut?).
Saturday (50,212 steps) - Long run with Runners Edge! I was sort of dreading this run because a). it was on Big Dry Creek and b). because I'm super tired from all the barre classes. Turns out, the course was actually pretty good. I had planned on 16-18 and the course was a big 8 mile loop that went west on roads out to Standley Lake by my house and then looped around on dirt and pavement. I did a counter-clockwise loop with the 4:20 pace group and then did the second loop clockwise by myself. It actually went pretty well, all things considered.



Yanny the Yak
Rushed home to shower and make lunch before A's soccer game.
Lounged around in the afternoon. Went to the rec center to book A's birthday party before meeting up with Amy and her son David at Sweet Tomatoes for dinner. Then we head up to Broomfield for a corn maze in the dark. Super fun time, even though we only found THREE checkpoints in two hours. Ah well, it was fun (even though a late) night.

We have been friends since 7th grade!
Dark and spooky
Sunday (16,643 steps) - Barre class in the morning. Early lunch, sat in the Elevated Legs before meeting up with the girl to return them (sad).
Batman Sour will NOT miss the legs. The sound  freaks him out.
Walked around the mall, which is always a bad idea because I always end up buying things. Then ANOTHER barre class (this time A went too), and after class we went to Denver Beer with Mo.
A and I walked Colfax for Mo since she still can barely walk. I was craving Panda Express, so we stopped and picked some up on the way home (and they were out of fried rice?) By the time we got home it was late. HOWEVER, IT WAS THE SEASON PREMIERE OF THE WALKING DEAD. OMG, what an intense episode. Pretty upset with who got killed off (why, Glen, why?) and then still stayed up to watch an hour and half long episode of the Talking Dead.
Monday (13,569 steps) - My biggest competition went to barre FOUR TIMES over the weekend, so I went to barre during lunch since Troy was gone. Then I went again after I picked up A at Scouts. I know, I'm obsessed. The night class was taught by Leah. I haven't taken her class in a while and it pretty much killed me. Dinner, shower, bed.

Stats:
  • 152,160 steps
  • 27 miles run
  • 9 barre classes. I understand this is too much. But I must win this challenge!!!
  • Current weight 123.0. After Friday's binge I was pretty careful all weekend.
Everything Else:
  • Pretty unhappy at work right now. I may need to start looking for something else. Although, I do really enjoy the flexibility that I have here. Womp.
  • Financially, I'm struggling right now. My ex hasn't sent money in a long time, and I'm back to some irresponsible spending habits. I need to get this in check, since obviously my situation isn't going to be improving any time soon.

Friday, October 21, 2016

Week in Review (October 11 - October 17)

Tuesday (29,096 steps) - Motivated! Up early to run at the lake. I wore long sleeves since it's been cold in the morning. Within 15 minutes I was warm enough to lose it, even though it was decently windy. I did have to wear my headlamp for all but the last mile. I was a bit faster than I expected and it was not awful.
Went to Laura's barre fuzed class during lunch. Tough workout, like always. After work, picked up A from soccer, went to the library for some homework, then gymnastics. As always, one of the busiest days of the week.
Wednesday (19,700 steps) - Barre class at 6:00. I ended up having to leave work early to pick up A after school because her soccer practice was cancelled. She did homework while I went back to work until it was time to go to run club. We had just enough time to go to Nothing Bundt cakes before the run. Mo was there with Colfax, so A stayed with Maureen and I went for a run with Colfax. It was a little chilly, but I was ok in my short sleeves and skirt.
Thursday (17,914 steps) - Barre class at 6:00. So tired! I had a long day at work and by the time I picked up A we were running a little late for Belmar run club. Met up with Maureen and A went with her again while Colfax and I went for a short run through the park. Interestingly, even though it was a lot warmer, I felt colder in a tee and capris than the night before.

We went to Rocko's afterwards for nachos and a beer (for me).
Friday (21,611 steps) - A had the day off from school, so I also took the day off. I went to barre at 7:15, then A and I packed and headed up to Berthoud Falls to hike at Jones Pass. There were only two other cars at the trail head and we lucked out never seeing anyone else on the hike. We were both overdressed and had to lose layers early in. I was a bit bummed that we seem to have missed all the fall colors, but it turned out to be a gorgeous hike. We had lunch at 11,700' IN SHORT SLEEVES. Once we got just a bit higher than that (and above treeline), we had to put on jackets as it got very windy.










On the way down, we were able to lose the layers again when we got back into the treed area. We drove to Central City to meet up with Kathy from Elevated Legs so I could pick up my rental. Then on to the expo for Denver Rock n' Roll half marathon. Expo is still at the horrible National Western Complex, although it was better than last year's. We wandered around for a while chatting with people and bought some fun Injinji Halloween socks. THEN, we drove up to Godfather's pizza for dinner. Such a busy day!
Saturday (21,523 steps) - Drove down to Stapleton for Runner's Edge. Finally healthy enough to run with my old pace group and did 6 miles - still beautiful fall colors in the city!


Then I headed over to a barre class at 9:30. Just barely had enough time to shower before going to A's soccer game.
Lisa met up with us and then we went to HuHot for lunch. Went home to sit in the Elevated Legs and ended up napping until it was time to take A to Rachelle's birthday party. After I dropped her off I went to Carrie's birthday party, only staying until about 8:30.
A new to me beer!
Headed home to watched American Horror Story and get my race clothes ready.
Sunday (38,361 steps) - Rock n' Roll Denver half marathon.
Drove back up to Thornton to pick up A from her sleepover. I was ravenous after the race, and decided I wanted a burger. We went to Red Robin and just barely missed the busy lunch rush. Showered, then sat in the legs and napped on and off. Barre class at 4:15. I'm a few classes ahead at this point, but my competition is fierce - and willing to come more than once a day! Dinner, laundry and TV. Went to bed early - A was exhausted from staying up too late at her party and I was exhausted from doing all the things.
Monday (10,577 steps) - Finally got to "sleep in" until 7:00. Busy day at work. Went to barre class after work/school. Dinner and watching Quantico.

Stats:
  • 158,782 steps
  • 30.3 miles run
  • SEVEN barre classes and a hike! (Personally, I really can't wait for this challenge to end. I can definitely feel a difference with my body and running taking barre, but not THIS many times a week. I need to rest!)
  • Current weight 125.2. Maybe I won't weigh myself for a while. Way too depressing.
Everything Else:
  • Work is still really busy. I really need a vacation. Badly. Getting stressed out.

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Rock 'n' Roll Denver Half Marathon (Race Recap)

Sunday, October 16
Denver, CO
Half marathon #156
Weather - Sunny and warm
Every year I say I'm not going to run the Rock 'n' Roll Denver again, and then they do a super cheap registration. For the 2016 race, I registered on October 20, 2015 (two days after the race) for $50 plus a $7.99 processing fee. Have I mentioned how much I hate processing fees?

Expo

The expo was held again at the National Western Complex. Parking is $5, which is super annoying. The venue is not the best for an expo. A and I went to the expo on Friday afternoon, however, and it wasn't too busy. And it was WAY better than last year. We spent over an hour walking around and talking to people. We both got fun Halloween Injinji socks, and NOTHING else.

Race Day

In 2015 I had parked at the garage I use for work because it's freeeee. However, I remember having issues getting in and out with road closures. A few days before I looked at the road closure map and decided I didn't want to screw around with it. Instead, I planned on meeting up with Heather at her dad's office and walking over. We made plans to meet at 6:00, and I left the house a few minutes late at 5:37 (yes, I looked), and still go there a few minutes before 6. Waaaay easier than anything I've done in years past.

It took us just a few minutes to walk over to the start area, and since Heather planned on checking a bag, I kept my hoodie on. We ran into tons of friends and teammates before the start. Took lots of pictures and used the bathrooms a few times.
No filter. This was the coolest sunrise ever.
Heather was supposed to be in corral 2, and I was in 7. By the time we tried to feed in I think we ended up in corral 8, which was fine by me. I love how every year I estimate a stupid fast time that places me in a corral I have no right to be in.
Trying to get a picture of the giant full moon
At the start line
I warned Heather that I was going to go out slow and try to not burn out like I did the year before. The tall buildings were messing with my GPS a bit, it was hard to tell what pace we were running. My legs felt very fatigued from all the barre classes I have been taking (6 days in a row before the race), but thankfully, no tight calves.

The course was completely different (yet again). We ran up 14th to start, and then we weaved through random roads downtown. Did not love this section. We looped over by the Pepsi Center around mile 2 (which in the past was about a mile in) and hit the first aid station about mile 2.5. We ran by Coors Field and up the big overpass early (I swear that in the past this has been much later in the race). The Runners Roost aid station was at mile 4, and as always, was a great boost to see so many familiar faces helping out.

I was feeling ok until we headed down Lincoln. That's when the leg fatigue really set in and I started taking walk breaks. The 10k headed towards the finish while we turned up 17th, and I walked up the entire hill, much to Heather's dismay. This section of the course is one of my favorites because as we head out to City Park all the fast runners are coming towards us. We managed to see quite a few Roosters, including Eric, on our way to the park. Runners Edge had the aid station within the park, and again, it was awesome seeing friends helping out. Pete gave me a high five and then we headed out for the rest of the loop in the park.
Still fall colors in City Park!  By far the prettiest section of the course.
David was sitting on top of his van using his bullhorn to cheer people on, which was fun. The out and back on 17th was a little brutal, although I managed to make it until the loop by East High School before I pretty much fell apart. I had to take way more walk breaks than I would have liked. Heather is a trooper and still stuck with me. (It will be interesting to see how I can run on rested legs after my barre challenge is done).

We turned south on Sherman and ran by the Capitol, where a man was yelling "look at the twins! the twins!" Except for Heather being about 6 inches taller than me, I suppose so. I had NO kick left, but managed to run through the chute without walking. The course measured incredibly long (much like last year).

There was NOTHING in the finish area except for water, chocolate milk, cups of fruit and Cheez-Its. Womp.

We met Eric just outside the finish area, and I checked my phone to see that I needed to start heading towards Thornton to pick A up from her slumber party. We wandered around the finish area before getting a small team picture, and then we walked back to the car.
Tony, me, Heather, Eric, Andy
All things considered, especially since I spent most of the summer injured, the race turned out OK. I did, however, barely beat last year's time.

Official Time - 2:23:11
Official Pace - 10:56
Official 5K - 33:066
Official 10K - 1:07:06
Official 10M - 1:48:52
Overall Place - 3868/6661
Gender Place - 1991/4113
Division Place - 355/705
Garmin Time - 2:23:33
Garmin Distance - 13.70 miles
Garmin Pace - 10:28
Mile 1 - 9:53
Mile 2 - 9:28
Mile 3 - 10:03
Mile 4 - 10:10
Mile 5 - 10:27
Mile 6 - 10:42
Mile 7 - 9:59
Mile 8 - 10:41
Mile 9 - 10:43
Mile 10 - 11:21
Mile 11 - 10:33
Mile 12 - 11:44
Mile 13 - 10:32
Mile 13.7 - 10:18

Thoughts
  • The race is fine. The course is pretty good, although I think this was my least favorite of all the years I have run. The early miles had us running on roads that had sections barricaded off from construction and running over light rail and train tracks. Not to mention all the potholes. I guess that is just road running though.
  • There were plenty of aid stations and they were spaced pretty well. It was really warm, but I did not need to carry my own hydration and I was fine with that. In the past, there has ALWAYS been GU on course at RnR races. I did NOT see any this year. Somewhere around mile 7 they were handing out SOMETHING, but I did not recognize whatever it was. Two aid stations did not have Gatorade, but again, for me, that was fine.
  • Last year I remember the course being a bit crowded in the beginning, I didn't find it that bad this year. I did, however, hear that registration numbers were really low this year (like 4,000 less than the year before).
  • The shirt is red this year, which is nice. I assume it is Brooks since that has always been the partner vendor/brand, but honestly, it is still in my expo bag.
  • The medal is probably my least favorite out of all of the years I have run. At the very least, the neck of the guitar should be longer.
  • Getting in/out of the race (parking wise), was easier this year than any year I have run. I assume it is still a nightmare if you don't have an "in" somewhere.
  • Will I run again? I'm saying NO right now, but you know me... I'm fond of changing my mind.

Monday, October 17, 2016

Week in Review (October 4 - October 10)

Tuesday (17,515 steps) - It was super windy on my morning run and my legs were still heavy after my "fast" run at RMRR. I only managed to get 2.5 miles in. Blah.
When to Laura's barre fuzed class during lunch. Regular busy afternoon of picking A up from soccer, homework at the library and gymnastics. Dinner, homework, TV and bed.
Wednesday (15,258 steps) - Totally invested in winning the barre challenge, so I got up early and went to a 6 am class with Nicole. This was only the second class I have taken from her, and I didn't love it. After work we went to run club. Fun evening running with Heather and Colfax, and then a pizza party at the store. Managed to not buy anything.
Thursday (14,371 steps) - 6 am barre class with Meredith. After work and school we headed down to Denver Roost for another Ladies' Night. We opted to not run, but we did enjoy the food and raffles.
 
Friday (13,708 steps) - DEAD FROM THE PLAGUE. My "maybe cold" turned into a full blown nightmare. Nightmare compounded by the main bathroom sink flooding.
The universe knows that sugar and carbs makes me feel better, so I had quite the feast for breakfast:
Went to a barre class during lunch with Sasha. I really like her classes, but it's hard to get away for more than one class during the week.
In the lead for now!
After work A and I went to Lowe's to buy parts to repair the sink. I was feeling like crap and we were pretty pleased with ourselves thinking we had it fixed. And then we realized the sink was leaking right at the drain. Long story short, we had to go back to Lowe's, buy more parts and channel locks and completely redo everything. Good news, we fixed it and we are awesome. Not the best way to spend a Friday night, especially when you're sick.

Saturday (8,259 steps) - Up early for A's soccer game. They were actually playing a team from their own school. They are playing better, but they still lost 4-0. A was pretty bummed.
Went back home to rest on the couch until I went to barre at 10:45. EVERYTHING FELT HARD. After showering and grilled cheese for lunch, HOURS of napping on the couch. Got up around 5 to get ready for Heather's birthday party. Instead of having it at her house like usual, it was at a bar/restaurant in Golden. The food had huge portions and the drinks weren't too expensive, I just don't like going out. It was great to see everyone, and I have to say that I was relieved that they kicked all minors out at 9 so we could go home.
Sunday (35,008 steps) - Louisville trail half  marathon.
After the race we headed home to shower and get ready for the Broncos game! We met at Heather's house and then she drove us to the stadium. What a cluster getting into the lot!

We walked around the replica of the original Mile Hi stadium and got to our seats a few minutes after the game started... with the Falcons already scoring a goal. The game was a lot of fun, even though we lost.


I hadn't been that hungry during the game, but pizza sounded really good. We decided to go to California Pizza kitchen for dinner. I had a chipotle chicken pizza (yes, I ate the whole thing), and A and I shared a slice of pumpkin cheesecake. Then we went to Heather's and watched the Presidential debate. What a fucking disaster. We didn't end up leaving her house until 8:45, so by the time we got home it was really late. Where did the weekend go???
Monday (13,913 steps) - Both of us slept in a bit too late. Chaos in the morning and we ended up leaving the house super late. At least it was a "holiday" so there wasn't too much traffic. Picked up A at Scouts and then went to barre class.

Stats:
  • 118,032 steps
  • 17.9 miles run
  • Six barre classes. I ended up skipping the Sunday one since we went to the Broncos game.
  • Current weight 123.8. One would think, that being sick with the plague and not being able to taste anything would aid in weight loss. Sadly, I barely moved all week, didn't hit my step goal on more than half the days, barely slept, and ate like crap.
Everything Else:
  • Work has been really rough. Troy is getting ready for a 2-week trial and has been an nightmare to deal with. Compound his attitude with scheduling issues and I have NOT been looking forward to coming to work every day.

Week in Review (November 26 - December 2)

Tuesday (11,120 steps) - I had messaged Amber to ask if it was ok if I came into the office a bit later so I didn't have to get up as ea...