corre! run! run like a llama!

Boston training, week 1-2

2012-01-09T09:55:00.000-06:00

I know all the cool kids are writing recaps of 2011 around this time of year (or maybe I'm a little late on that, considering it's January 9...) but in terms of running, 2011 was forgettable at best. Hopefully in 2012, tendonitis/ankle sprains/thyroid cancer will leave me the hell alone and let me do my thing. And currently, that thing is....Boston Training!

So, I really don't even know what I'm doing right now. I kept telling myself all semester "you really should make a plan for Boston training because it's coming up sooner than you think!"...and now all of a sudden it's here, and I don't know what's going on. To be fair I'm not usually a person who follows a specific plan and tend to wing it on everything besides the long run, but I've gotten wayyyy too used to just going out every day and running whatever I feel like. I need to actually think about the purpose behind the runs I'm doing and not just aimlessly run around. That being said, I actually did do a couple of things that could be construed as "workouts" this week and I think that's a step in the right direction.

One exciting thing that DID happen to me in 2011...I finally bit the bullet and jumped on the Garmin train with the shiny new 405 that I got for Christmas. I'm still deciding on a name, lol. Originally I said I was ONLY going to wear it for speed workouts, blah blah blah, but I quickly realized how amazing and fun it was to see exactly how far I had run at any point in time and now wear it every day. The only downside of this has been the discovery that EVERY route I've ever mapped out online is ~0.2 miles short. Wah wahhh. I know Garmins have some error too, but that it's probably closer to accurate than an online map. It has seemed pretty accurate as far as pacing in the couple of "speed" workouts I've done though, so I think for tempo runs and intervals it's going to be an absolutely invaluable tool. Plus I love being able to log my runs to the 100th of a mile. :)

Anyway...here's what's been going on in training land the past couple of weeks. Only 5 days of running each week, probably could have done better there, but I was home for part of the time and I had one of my best friends in town for a few days and we just didn't have the time to run every single day she was here. I got the long runs in though, which I think is what really matters at this point.

Week of 12/26-1/1
Mon - OFF
Tues - 7.02 E/8:02 pace, ran on some new trails around some retention ponds at home in Wisco which I was pretty excited about, since I get really bored of the same old parkway when I'm home (not that I'm there too often, but still)
Wed - 7.90 hills/7:44 pace, downhills workout on Heartbreak that I completely forgot about.
Thurs - 5.15 E/8:10 pace
Fri - Nicole arrived, we drank a lot, didn't run
Sat - 12.83 L/8:23 pace, ran the first 5 solo and then picked up Nicole for the rest...long runs with a friend make long runs SO much better...man oh man. It's been a couple years since we did a long run together so this was fantastic. And the perfect prelude to NYE festivities!
Sun - 5.0 E/8:21 pace, I mean, couldn't start 2012 with a zero now, could we? Hungover.
Total: 37.9

Week of 1/2-1/8
Mon - OFF. Rose Bowl day...had my heart crushed by the Badger loss.
Tues - OFF...hungover, miserably stuffed up, and it was my friend Nicole's last day in town and her knee was bugging her, so we wanted to spend the day doing touristy things rather than running.
Wed - 6.30 E/7:52 pace, the run where I realized my "6.55" mile route that I've been running a TON this fall was not, in fact, 6.55 miles. Core workout.
Thurs - 7.46 w/3.9 mile fartlek/7:55 pace, ran to Brookline res, 6 x 2min @5K pace/3min easy, ran home. Felt really hard but the paces were OK so I'll take it.
Fri - 6.33 E/8:07 pace, felt like crap but saw an INCREDIBLE sunset. LE strength workout.
Sat - 7.12 T/7:27 pace, felt good for the first time in forever, and was running in shorts + t-shirt in January.
Sun - 15.01 L/8:09 pace, first real long run of the training cycle, definitely tough but made it through surprisingly well with the pace probably unnecessarily fast. Made me wonder why I'm doing this marathon training business again but definitely was happy to get through it successfully.
Total: 42.2 miles, 2 strength/core workouts

And that is what's new on the training front. I'm enjoying my last week off before the semester starts again and looking forward to Thursday night when, after taking some radioactive iodine to kill off any rogue thyroid cells still lurking in my body, I can eat CHEESE again! Seriously...low iodine diet =/= fun. I haven't been able to eat any dairy or anything with salt added (because I don't know if it's iodized salt or not)...I have been trying to pretend I'm a healthy living blogger or something and "cleansing" myself of processed food but really...I am just hungry and looking forward to eating a pizza. Come on...I am a runner...I need my processed carbs!

Oh, and I've decided 2012 is going to be a kickass year. The end.

Compare + contrast

2011-12-13T22:26:00.000-06:00

June 2009 (pre Baystate training) 96.4 miles
December 2009 (pre-Boston marathon training): 99.3 miles
June 2010 (pre-Baystate training): 151.4 miles
December 2011: 82.9 miles and counting...guessing I'll end up around ~175, with November and October both hitting the mid 160s.

So Sunday marks the 16 weeks out point from Boston. There are not enough emoticons or adjectives in the world to describe my apprehension/excitement about this life development. Especially because I may or may not (hint: not) have actually come up with anything remotely resembling a plan yet. But I think I have the general framework and I think for the most part it is this: just run. And apparently, I have the best base going into this training program that I ever have had...what the hell? This is unexpected. I have just been...running. Just kind of doing whatever. So I have to say I'm happy that "doing whatever" has returned to along the lines of 40 miles a week, and not 25 like it was over the summer.

I was looking at my training for Baystate 2010, a race where I PR'd by 17 minutes. With that sort of a drop in time, you would think that I did something drastically different in terms of training, right? More speedwork, long runs, something? Er...not so much. In fact, looking back at my training for that race, I can't BELIEVE that I PR'd. I mean, the vast majority of my weeks were 50 miles or less (yet in my mind I really thought I was running a TON of miles.) Compare that to my Boston 2010 training, where I was doing a regimented program, diligently completing workouts as directed, gradually taking my mileage from 45 to 55 to 65....and I bombed the race.

So what does this mean for marathon training cycle number 4? Well, I think I'm going to need to hit a good balance between meaningful training and just getting the miles in. In the past "just run miles" has worked as a strategy but I have the feeling that if I want to come close to a PR at Boston that there is going to have to be SOME higher level of effort being put in - I just don't think it has to be to the level of compulsiveness that I stuck to the last time I was training for this race. So in essence, here's my general plan for marathon training. It allows for quite a bit of freedom while I think staying true to the things that I know work for me.

1) GBTC practice. Ever. Single. Week
The times I have been in the best shape of my life have consistently coincided with being a part of a team and doing track workouts. I have an incredible opportunity to train with a whole lot of fast ladies that I have NOT taken advantage as much as I should have over the past couple of years, and I think now is as good of a time as any to start.

2) Long runs, preferably on the course, with at least a few GMP miles (only because I know I'll hammer the whole thing otherwise)
I think I've got my long run thing down pretty well...it's just something you DO on Sundays. However, one enormous problem that I run into when training alone is I run too fast. All the time. Case in point: my "easy, let's run 8:30s" 12 miler on Sunday quickly progressed into a 7:38 paced hammerfest that was completely out of my control. I'm hoping that my request to Santa (a Garmin...I'm giving in...finally...) will help me with this.
There's also the fact that I live a half mile off the Boston course, so I really don't see any reason NOT to do my long runs there every Sunday. The only reason to change things up would be boredom, and quite frankly the Newton Hills has always been one of my favorite running routes especially during marathon season, so I don't really see that happening.

3) Keep the weekly mileage above 50, ideally peak around 70.
And I don't mean 70 in the completely cheater way that I ran 80 miles last year (2 20+ milers on a Monday and a Sunday because I skipped the first Sunday's long run due to being hungover, aka, I suck.) I would love to be a person who can run 70-80 miles every week, but realistically, I would have to sacrifice more than I'm willing to do so. Topping out at 70ish with several weeks in the 60s seems like a good step up without being crazy.

4) Don't do key workouts on the treadmill unless ABSOLUTELY necessary
I think this was a MASSIVE downfall of my 2010 Boston training that I never considered because I didn't get that running on a TM and running on a road are NOT the same. I would do these great speed workouts on the TM which were certainly confidence boosting, but I get the feeling that the transfer wasn't there because I didn't do enough work on the roads. With not one but two indoor tracks to choose from, I don't think this should be a problem even in the worst weather conditions.

5) Race.
I think doing 2 long distance (25K and 30K) races leading up to Baystate was a HUGE factor in improving my mental toughness. I have a few possibilities on the schedule for this spring, including a half marathon (a PR that really, really needs to go down) so we will see how that goes.

6) Make running my priority.
Now obviously, school comes first, but if I'm being honest with myself? This semester, I have SUCKED at getting it done when I wasn't in the mood. I think after the train wreck that was this summer, I was pretty much like...you know...I just want to have FUN this semester! And so when fun has come my way, I have accepted it, running/studying/relaxing be damned. But if I want to train to run a PR marathon in April, that shit isn't going to fly. Not to say that I won't be going out drinking on occasion...but running needs to trump going out. Along those same lines, I need to get back to racing weight. This being a running blog, not a healthy living blog, and me being blessed with a combination of an active lifestyle and a good metabolism, this is not something that I discuss much on here, if ever. But unfortunately when my thyroid decided to crap out on me over the summer, it brought with it about 12 pounds of unnecessary...extra baggage. Don't get me wrong - I'm not fat, I know I'm not fat, and I know if any of my non-runner friends read this they would shoot me on sight. But I know what I weighed the last time I PR'ed, I think that was a good racing weight for me, and I would like to get back there. Which primarily involves not spending every Saturday for 3 months drinking heavily and eating fried food/cheese balls (aka, college football season).

I think it's hard to make the choice to commit yourself to this kind of true training when you don't have any friends who understand. But I have to ask myself the question - what do I want most? And truth be told, what I want most after the bullshit of 2011 is a big, fat, glorious marathon PR in 2012. Preferably with a half marathon PR being brought down along the way.

So there it is - that's what I want. Time to go get it.

So that I post more than once a month

2011-11-07T18:01:00.000-06:00

I think I told myself that I was going to at LEAST try to post once a week, but let's face it, I post when I feel like it/have time and ONLY when I feel like it/have time...I don't understand how people have time to post 3 times a day or even once a day and I will just never be that person. But I'm still around. Yup.

Running has been going satisfyingly well. I've been hitting solid 40+ weeks pretty consistently, aside from the one week where I fell off the bus because my PT friends and I decided to spend the weekends drinking like undergrads...which makes it difficult to run an adequate amount when you are NOT in fact an undergrad anymore and thus cannot recover like one. I remember powering through long runs after track club parties back in the day, but let me tell you those days are long gone. Anyway, I've been pretty impressed with hanging around in the 40s despite talking 1 day off a week and not doing any long runs (unless you count 8-9 miles as long, which I do not). Just consistently getting out there and putting in 6-9 miles every day. I think this current scheme is pretty nice for just building a base, obviously things are going to change dramatically in 5 weeks when I start marathon training again (5. weeks. oh. god.) But for now, it's nice.

Speaking of running, I ran a race over Halloween weekend...if you could call it a "race". It was a dinky thing put on by the 3rd years in my PT program, billed as a 5K but more like 2.9 miles in reality, no timing or anything, and I was basically planning on running it as a tempo and (ideally) winning, since I was assuming there wouldn't be a whole lot of competition. And then I saw the girl doing strides in XC spikes. CRAP DIGGITY. Let's be serious, I was wearing a football jersey:

and was not exactly in racing mode. I didn't warm up. I didn't do strides. Because I was planning on this just being an excuse for me to get my run in for the day and potentially win some swag. Now I was going to actually have to attempt to race the thing? Sigh.

The bad news is that I didn't win. I was second woman, 3rd overall (the dude dressed as Prefontaine - complete with moustache, amazin g- was a legit runner). The girl in the flats beat me handily, I was about 20 seconds back from her almost instantly and never had anything to try to catch her with. The good news is I ran 19:34 for the 2.9 miles, or 6:45 pace...in a football jersey, without a warmup, with exactly zero racing mindset (and people dodging/street crossings...this was not a closed course by any means). And that? Is a good thing. I've gotta say, I was more than a little impressed with my ability to run the equivalent of a sub-21 5K on the amount of speedwork (read: none) that I've been doing lately. Taking this in combination with the 20:39 I ran on a similarly low level of training earlier in the summer, I'm forced to the conclusion that I can be, and SHOULD be, able to race faster than I'm running right now. Really, there is no reason that I should not be able to run sub-20 5Ks if I put in the work. I just haven't. You would think that consistently running times that aren't too far off from my PR would motivate me to work harder, but in reality I still get so excited when I see 20:xx on the clock that I hardly care. Which is dumb. STOP SETTLING AUDREY.

Now granted the 5K isn't my focus right now, since there's this little thing called Boston that I have to start training for in...oh...6 weeks? (GAH.) But really, the same thing applies there. I have moments of doubt on runs when I'm like "god, 8 miles feels hard, how am I going to get back to 26.2? Let alone run a PR at 26.2?" But I seriously can't sell myself short like that. Yeah, this year has sucked running-wise, my miles and racing schedule and speedwork haven't been what I feel like they "should" have been. But? I can still come within 30 seconds of my 5K road PR. So why shouldn't I be able to run a faster marathon? Why am I acting like I lost sooooo much fitness when obviously that isn't true? I do NOT think Baystate was a fluke. I think I am stronger at the longer distances and that's where I have a chance to excel. I need to put in the work, trust it, and see what happens, and I think that the timing has worked out so I'm being able to build a sufficient base before the real training begins.

In other news I finally got up the guts to do hill reps on Summit Ave, which is 0.4 miles of 9-11% graded HELL. It makes Heartbreak look like nothing. And I just have the feeling that since its located less than a mile from my house, it will be calling me to break myself upon it over and over again this winter.

And because this post has (again) taken a dive into philosophical territory (apologies, to the 3 of you still reading) here's a picture of my Halloween costume. Which was AWESOME.

Andrew's mom MADE these for ~$12. I think my skirt was once a prom dress. We were snooty British oil investor 1900s folk...let me tell you, speaking in an affected British accent and calling your boyfriend Reginald becomes even more amusing when there is jungle juice present. Halloween: allowing 20-somethings to pretend they're undergrads since forever.

I believe

2011-10-14T15:42:00.001-05:00

I'm on track this week for my 3rd 40+ mile week in a row. Know when the last time I ran 3 40+ mile weeks back to back was? February. As in 9 months ago February. Wow. The fact that I finally seem to be headed back in the right direction has gotten me thinking about what's transpired over the past year and what it's going to take to get past it.

I realized that this is truly the first time in my entire running career that I've ever encountered a serious roadblock to improving my fitness and being successful. Ever since I started running, from high school track and onwards, it's been a constant stream of harder workouts, longer runs, longer races, constant improvement, constant PRs, constant upward motion. There's never been a point in time where I've felt like I went backwards. Until now. And it happened so subtly, without my ever realizing it until months into the process. I had deluded myself into thinking all summer that the 30-odd miles I was doing every week were adequate, that it didn't really matter anyway how many days off I took, and without races to give me feedback of what I had actually lost, I slipped. Not without reason, clearly - a hip injury, ankle sprain, hypothyroidism, and major surgery over the course of 6 months will throw anyone's plans off track. But there was more I could have done in between these setbacks had I taken the long view and realized "damn, this is going to really suck when I actually want to be a competitive runner again".

And now here I am, back standing on the brink of trying to make a comeback, to once again be striving for upward motion. I have no delusions that the path is going to be easy. There are days, lately, when I'll be out running 7 or 8 miles at what (in theory) I want to become my marathon pace, or even something slower, and I think to myself "how in the hell will I ever run a marathon this fast again? How DID I ever run a marathon this fast, for that matter? And what the heck happened to the me that did?" It's a challenge to see my friends on DailyMile and teammates from home out there running PRs, killing it in races - I am of course thrilled for them, but I can't deny being a little jealous, and beat up on myself as a result. I can never completely silence the doubt in my mind. But I also know that the only way that I'm going to make it back is to find a way to put those doubts aside and believe.

Belief. It's been such an overarching theme in my running life, from the charm tied into my XC spikes to the words sharpied on my hand during every marathon. It's not that believing will make something happen, but if you don't believe, it never will. Belief in your legs, your training, your mind, and your heart. Belief that conquers doubt and fear. It's going to take a LOT of work for me to get back into PR shape for Boston, but if I don't believe that that's even a possibility? Well then really, what's the point. So I try to silence the doubt and find a way to believe, and I get out there and see myself improve day by day, mile by mile.

And now, since I see that it's raining, I think I'll go get my run in :)

The last 2 weeks, September roundup, and some thoughts on training

2011-10-03T17:00:00.000-05:00

Quick recap of the past 2 weeks of training, since I was too lazy to blog last weekend. The name of the game right now is building mileage, then adding in some speedwork, and above all, NOT GETTING INJURED. I've actually run 100% of the time in my Kinvaras since the end of August, and am beyond in love with them. I am a midfoot striker so I never really needed the giant heels that tend to come with motion control shoes, however, I also have a foot that predisposes me to a variety of injuries, most commonly medial shin splints, without a touch of stability. So I'm buying a new pair of Kinvaras, along with a pair of Saucony Mirages, which are built on the same base but give a little bit of stability as well (without the mega-heel). Sounds PERFECT for my easier/longer days, and I'll bring out the Kinvaras when I really want to fly. :)

Mon 9/19 6.5 easy, Watertown Square
Tues 9/20 7.1 including 6 x ~300 m moderate on Heartbreak Hill, I was super proud of myself for doing something that vaguely resembled a workout!
Wed 9/21 4.7 AM short Dean Road, sucked.
Thurs 9/22 8.3 Public Garden. Really humid.
Fri 9/23 6.4 Chestnut Hill Res, 97% humidity (shoot me now), almost got run down by the Harvard XC team, wah wahhh.
Sat 9/24 off! But took an awesome ballet class.
Sun 9/25 4.5 tempo, short Res loop, humid.
Weekly Total: 37.5 miles, 1 ballet class

Mon 9/26 off
Tues 9/27 6.6 moderate Dean Road, still ridiculously humid. And hot. 4 x Brad Hudson hills.
Wed 9/28 8.6 fabulous easy run on the Charles between class and Wednesday Night Beer Club...pretty much the perfect combination to get over the hump of the week! Oh, still humid.
Thurs 9/29 5.5 easy Harvard Ave. Still humid.
Fri 9/30 6 moderate Jamaicaway. This run was absolutely awful for some reason, but I met a really cute kid, so that was fun.
Sat 10/1 6.6 easy Dean Road. Wait for it...still incredibly humid. 4 x BH hills.
Sun 10/2 6.5 moderate Res alt. Felt pretty good despite procrastinating all day and being vaguely hungover.
Weekly total: 40.3 miles. No cross training.

September totals: 130.2 miles, 10 days off (excessive.) Looking at my distance totals for the past 5 months is just depressing...but then again, I guess there have been somewhat decent reasons for the shittiness. The last couple of weeks have been pleasing though, and a good indicator that things are finally back on the up and up. At this exact moment I don't consider myself to be "training". I am building a base, ideally I would like my average weekly mileage to be in the high 40s-low 50s for at least a few weeks before I start officially marathon training again in January. I'm hoping to start filling my race calendar a little more this fall as well, mostly to remember what it feels like to push myself in a racing situation, which is something I can't really recreate on my own. Also on deck for October is attempting to stay on the wagon when it comes to strength training and doing Brad Hudson's short, fast hills at least twice a week for a little extra speed stimulus.

On a somewhat related note, apparently according to our guest lecturer in Sci Basis of Movement today I am pretty much doomed to a life of hip replacements and shin splints. Because apparently "people who run 40 miles or more a week are more likely to get injured". Mind blowing news folks (I kid. Obviously the more you run, the more likely your personal biomechanical weirdness will come back to bite you in the ass, or you'll try to run through an emerging injury, or you'll just plain overload your body - it makes sense). But the funny thing is, I know for a fact that there are people in my class who subscribe to a 'healthy living' mentality of sorts who were probably like "oh my god! Well I definitely shouldn't run more than 40 miles a week, ever, because I will get injured." Granted I am all for injury prevention, and there is obviously such a thing as overdoing it (or upping your mileage too fast, killing yourself in a speed workout you have no business doing, etc) but this mentality of "if you run more than a few days a week, you'll get injured?" I call bullshit. I have the most biomechanically jacked up feet ever (no joke, my valgus forefoot is apparently described as "the destructive foot" because of its injury causing potential) and yet I manage to run 60-70 mile weeks during marathon training...and while I have dealt with my share of injuries (hip issues, ITBS, shin splints) I've taken the necessary steps to fix them, backed off until they healed, and then went back at it in an intelligent manner...6 days a week.

I'm not saying that people don't exist in this world who really, truly can't run more than 3 or 4 days a week without injury. I'm just saying that for most people that isn't really the case. And I'm saying that in order to be a better runner, you have to do one thing: run. Run fast, run slow, run short, run long, run hills, run flats, run everything in between. Anything else might help you prevent injury, it might make you feel good, it might be fun...but it's not going to make you a better runner. I don't take ballet every week because it's going to make me a better runner, I take it because I LOVE it. But at the end of the day when I look at myself and see that I'm not where I want to be as a runner, it sure as hell isn't because I didn't take enough yoga classes last month. It's because I didn't run enough, or hard enough. And if you aren't the sort of person who wants to race faster and running for you is purely something you enjoy or something you do to stay in shape - I have no problem with that. More power to you. My problem is with the people who decide "oh, hee hee, it's so trendy to run a marathon right now!" and then max out at like 30 miles a week.

I really have no idea what the underlying point of this little rant is (just another reason why approximately 10 people read this blog haha). I guess I just don't understand the point of doing something if you're not going to go for it full throttle.

Annnd now that I think I have exhausted my supply of bitchiness for the day...I'm going for a run :)

Training: Week of 9/12/11

2011-09-19T14:08:00.000-05:00

I think I'm going to try to start doing this weekly training business, even though I have a log in 2 other places...more for accountability than anything else. And to have something to write on the blog...because...ya know.

Monday: 6.4 easy, Charles River from BU. Felt really slow and awful, it was pretty hot still which didn't help. Lifted at FitRec which left me sore for 4 days. Time to get back on the strength training bandwagon.

Tuesday: 6.6 easy. Dean Road. Ridiculously sore so didn't bring a watch, otherwise I would have been obsessing about how slow I was running.

Wednesday: off. Because I have 7 hours of class and I'm lame.

Thursday: 6.25 easy, home from a doctor's appointment at BMC. The doc pretty much thought I was a nutjob for running home and I was like...whatever dude. Also it was really hot at the beginning of the run, and then it randomly started pouring rain when I was about a mile from home...pretty much awesome. Also took a 90 min ballet class which was awesome.

Friday: Didn't run, but kayaked for an hour and a half on the Charles!

Yes, I live here. I know you are jealous.

Saturday: 6.5 easy, Dean Road. I actually ran in the morning for the first time in forever, and was listening to my Badger gameday playlist and just loving my life. I was all cheerful and waving to all of the runners I passed...highly enjoyable.

Sunday: 10.2 long, Jamaicaway + the second half of Dean Road. This. was. AMAZING! I'm not exaggerating when I say it's the best run I've been on in months. I feel like all summer I've had something going on where I never was able to really get into a groove when I was running...it was always just really effortful. In retrospect, this probably had a lot to do with the fact that my thyroid wasn't actually working the way it was supposed to, but whatever the reason yesterday I finally got to remember what it's like to just not care, not think, and just run. I felt so relaxed, smooth, and strong, and on top of all that I was actually running fast. So good, so good.

Total running miles: 35.9

Highest weekly mileage since the week of July 11. OH DEAR. It really doesn't get much rougher than the last 2 months...it was really good to have some confidence inducing runs this week that give me hope that I will be able to pull things together and be in decent shape come January, when I have to start training for real.

In other news, I got my Boston confirmation the other day..eeeek! It is moderately terrifying to contemplate running another marathon BUT at the same time I am sooo excited. I've genuinely missed the madness. And I have a bunch of friends/training partners in the Boston area who are running this year, which is going to make the winter of training that much better...not to mention all of my non-runner friends are already talking about the t-shirts they're going to make with my picture on it...bahaha.

Also...GORGEOUS FALL WEATHER. Need I say more?

Let's talk about training.

2011-09-13T15:31:00.000-05:00

First of alll....who can guess what I will be doing at 10 am tomorrow?!?!
Well..I will be sitting in Diagnostics class, but that isn't the point. I will have my laptop with me and I will be putting that sweet sweet info in to sign me up for BOSTON!

Now this is actually a somewhat scary thing to be doing, because as you may recall, the glorious marathon that allowed me to sign up in the 10+ minutes faster than your BQ category happened almost an entire year ago. And the year of running that has followed has been, in a word, shit. I have had motivation issues, injury issues, health issues, the fun has been never ending, and I have lost a lot of fitness. But there is no way I'm wasting my 3:22 when I could race in my own backyard with all of my friends cheering me on in 2013, no freaking way. And I am bound and determined to put all of my life junk behind me, get my butt in gear, and spend the next 8 months getting ready to kill it in April.

So the real question is - how am I planning on regaining my long lost fitness? I'm thinking that cardiovascular fitness is going to be the easy part, since it's not like I haven't been running at ALL...my guess is my issue is going to be my legs. Which, really, has always been my issue. So you know what that means...what up, strength training. Yesterday was day 1 of my grand master Boston plan, which consisted of going for a run AND doing a strength workout...quite possibly for the first time since high school. The run was sucky, since Boston apparently decided that 84 degrees and humid in September is it's new thing, and then I headed to the gym to do strength. I did a pretty standard set of lower body exercises, 3 sets of 10 each. (Fun PT fact! The ideal number of sets/reps for strength building is 3 x 8-12. Anything higher than that and you're more looking at building endurance.) All of them were just body weight except for squats + lunges, where I really upped the game and added 2 5lb weights. Here's the sad part...I am SO. SORE. Clearly this is an indication of the sad state of my legs, but the soreness also tells me that if I keep doing this, I WILL get stronger. And that is definitely a good thing.

As far as actual running is concerned, the plan for right now is: do it. 4 days a week ain't gonna cut it anymore. I really don't feel like I need to be doing speedwork or any insane long runs until I build up a reasonable base to start, and the first step in doing that is getting my ass out the door and running 5-8 miles every. single. day. The end.

I was going to write about my new guilty pleasure, Dance Moms, but then it got late. And I need to go running. Sooo you'll have to wait for that...I know you're crushed.

How to win at having surgery

2011-08-29T12:03:00.000-05:00

So I don't have a thyroid anymore, which is weird, but the entire experience was MUCH less horrible than I expected. Aside from some extremely mild pain at the surgery site (seriously, I'm 4 days out and on exactly zero pain meds as of today) I don't feel any different. In fact - if this makes any sense - I feel BETTER. Maybe it's the lack of the gigantic stress black cloud hovering over my head, or maybe it's the fact that my thyroid was an angry, inflamed, possibly cancerous POS, who knows. And also, aside from being a giant wimp beforehand, I totally won at surgery. Didn't think that was possible? Oh, don't worry, it is...here are some helpful hints if you ever need surgery and you don't just want to have surgery, you want to WIN surgery.

-Tell your pre-op nurse that you ran 14 miles the day before. Word will spread quickly and people will look at you like you are batshit insane.

-Have one of the hottest men you have ever seen in your life be a dental resident scrubbing in on your surgery. Make sure to point out that they are a dentist, so they have a reason to stay longer and explain to you why they are there (if you want to be an oral surgeon, you have to do an anesthesia/general surgery residency so you can put patients under...makes sense, right?)

-Be able to max out an incentive spirometer (little thing that you inhale through to try to make sure that you are taking deep enough breaths). Nurses, med students, and doctors alike will be amazed at your skills. Actual pre-surgery conversation:
Nurse: Okay, this is an incentive spirometer...
Me: Oh, I know how to use this, we had to learn how to teach people to use them in school. Do you really think I need one?
Nurse: Well, we give them to everyone who's going under anesthesia. Why don't you give it a try.
Me: *Maxes out the test. Gives slightly smug look.*
Nurse: Um, wow. Okay. I've actually never seen anyone do that before.
Me: Yup. That's how I roll.

-When you come out of anesthesia, keep turning around to look at your vitals on the monitor (tricky when you've had surgery on your neck). Make sure to tell the nurse "I don't think I need this oxygen anymore, I keep taking it off and I am still satting 100%". She will look at you funny, but realize that you are right, and voila! O2 free!

-Make sure to be just distressed enough that the lady who makes the room assignments takes pity on you and puts you in a single room with ridiculously awesome view of the city.

-Approximately 8 hours after surgery, make sure you are power walking laps around the floor while chugging water so that your nurse will disconnect your IV. Make people think that you are a visitor by your appearance, energy, and general lack of looking like a sick person. Annoy the nurses when you are walking faster than them.

-Borrow/steal your boyfriend's smartphone and watch episodes of Grey's Anatomy when you finally decide your are bored of walking (appropriate, no?).

-Have said boyfriend bring you Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee in the morning, even though it means he has to wake up an hour and half earlier than usual.

-Beg your resident to finish up your discharge paperwork ASAP so you can leave, then walk laps around the floor again so he has to see you every minute and cannot possibly forget.

-And the final way to win at surgery? Do not leave the hospital in a wheelchair. Direct quote: "well, usually we call for a wheelchair, but if anyone can walk out of here it's you...so you can just go."

And that, friends, is how you win at surgery. I'm technically still not supposed to run but I also don't think anyone expected me to be feeling quite as good as I am...I have been a good little patient so far mostly because I don't feel like ripping out any stitches, but I did walk 6 miles yesterday and am planning on going to the gym today. Who does that 4 days post-op. Me. That's who. :) I am a bit concerned that at some point I will have the crash that comes with not having a thyroid --> not having thyroid hormone --> metabolism sloooows down and feeling exhausted and sluggish...but my hope is that since I started on meds before surgery that things will be able to level out quickly and I will continue to rock out as my normal self. That's certainly how I feel at the moment.

Also...since this IS a running blog (and will continue to be so, this will likely be the last you hear of my health issues except as they relate to my running) Boston signup is in like 3 weeks?! Holy effing crap that came up quickly. Looks like I'll be in class at the time when my signup slot begins but I will definitely have my laptop with me. It's a little scary signing up now because I feel like I'm in the worst shape I've been in quite some time, and worlds away from the runner I was at Baystate last October (can't believe it's been almost a year...sad what a shitty year of running it's been) BUT with this thyroid shit behind me (aside from one minor thing that I may or may not need in the winter) I am ready to train my ass off for the next 8 months so I am ready to toe the line and run a great race come April.

Things

2011-08-17T08:28:00.000-05:00

Things that are super about my life right now:

I'm headed off on Wisconsin vacation #2 tomorrow where I will be fed free meals and delicious Wisconsin beer will rain down on me like...well...rain, I guess.
I started taking ballet class again and remembered why I freaking LOVE to dance and never want to leave it for a long period of time again.
My Kinvaras are the most ballerific running shoes I have ever worn, they are like little pillows of happy on my feet and I feel more fluid, faster, and generally better when I wear them.
The BF and I finally took the leap into the 20th century and got legit cable. Which means doing things like watching a 4 hour marathon of Hoarders/Intervention, or what I like to call "the train wreck that you can't look away from special".
It is not 100 degrees outside.
I just finished "Unbroken" and it totally lived up to the hype.

Things that are not so super about my life right now:

I have to have surgery.
See above.

So I actually debated for quite awhile over whether I was going to put anything about this up on the blog or not, but then my good friend Nicole made the very wise comment that "not telling people doesn't make it not real". And thus, I tell the abridged version, anyway. See a couple of months ago, I started to have a weird sensation in my neck when I would run hard/when I was breathing hard. Honestly anyone who isn't quite as big of a hypochondriac as me probably would have been like whatevs, but I felt around and found this little ball right in the middle of my neck. I didn't really have time to deal with it since I was on clinical but I mentioned at a routine doctor's appointment in July and soon enough I was being referred to an endocrinologist because it turns out it was on my thyroid (yes...I did take anatomy, why do you ask?)...which is where things really got fun. I had an ultrasound, followed by an "I'm sure it's nothing, but we should biopsy it anyway"...followed by a phone call the next day of "well, it's suspicious, it might be thyroid cancer, you need surgery." BAM. It was like being hit by a train. Oh, did I mention that this all went down as I'm walking through a semi-sketch neighborhood of Boston after a day of jury duty on which I got picked for the jury and then had to call the defendant not guilty? Well it did. Which obviously make the whole situation even better.

To me, who has been blessed to live a pretty carefree life, this was a huge blow. I look in the mirror and I think - how could this person, who is a runner, a smart person, who eats well, avoids self destructive activities and almost anything that could be considered "bad for you" - even MAYBE have cancer? And I cried. I yelled. I played the 'why me' game - and after all, aren't all of my friends off enjoying their summers and scrubbing in to observe surgeries, not have them? I drank to excess a couple of times because it made me feel better. And then, after about a week of wallowing, I stopped. Just like that. Because really, what good is it doing me to make myself completely miserable? I am not alone - the PT I worked with this summer actually went through this same deal, as did one of my friends on DailyMile. And if I injured myself and had to have surgery for that, would I really be throwing this huge fit about it? No, because I would be like "well, I will have the surgery, and it will fix me!" And essentially, this is the same thing, it's just harder because I don't FEEL like I need to be fixed. But sometimes you just have to put on your big girl pants and deal with it.

So the big girl pants are on, and as of August 25 I will be minus 1 thyroid. Not entirely sure what this means for XC season yet (it can take awhile to titrate hormone levels to a point where you actually feel normal, although I keep telling myself that I'll be lucky and my body will just figure it out), but all I know is that when I PR at Boston, having gone through all this shit will make it all the more sweet.

[Fill In The Blank] Training, Week 1

2011-07-20T12:15:00.000-05:00

I'll be honest, I don't know what I'm training FOR at this point. I've been filing most of my running lately under "base for XC" but without a goal race for the fall I am floundering around a little bit. I had a really great week of training this past week that almost started looking more like a HM/marathon week, if you don't count the shorty of a long run. I guess I'm just trying to remember what it feels like to say to myself "hey, you don't feel like running right now? TOO BAD, suck it up and get it done." So far, it seems to be working, even though the high heat of summer is by far the most difficult time for me to motivate myself to get out there. I seriously think I sweat more than anyone else I know - last night I went out for an easy run in what I would consider to be acceptable weather (79, dark) and I was still a disgusting mess by the time I finished. But last week was a great week for getting the miles in - 47.3 miles, my highest in quite some time.

Monday - 6.25 easy. Running on Monday is something I really need to get back into...lately I have been taking Monday off, and then being a slacker on the weekend because I want to do something fun, and so taking another day off. But if I run on Monday...that's OK! Plus it sets a nice tone for the week.

Tuesday - GBTC workout, 2 x 4000m of 300 hard/100 easy. NOT an easy workout, especially since it was 90+ degrees and humid. I'm proud of myself for going back to practice, but at the same time it was frustrating getting left in the dust on the warmup and doing most of the workout by myself. My usual running partners are working Tuesday nights so it's kind of not so motivational to go to practice just to work out alone. But I was satisfied with the effort, even though I was sick to my stomach for a couple of hours afterward. 9.25 miles total.

Wednesday - Double day! 2.75 miles in the AM, 5.25 in the PM, both very easy. Doubling at least once a week is becoming a really nice part of my schedule - I like splitting up the day into shorter runs and of course tacking on the miles is nice. :)

Thursday - 7.6 tempo, felt great and was running ~7:05 pace for 5 miles, and then just died, haha. Good run though.

Friday - 10.6 long. Seriously, I went out for 4 miles and then I just could. not. stop! Did this one in the Kinvaras and just felt unstoppable. I had "Edge of Glory" on repeat and the weather was nice...I think both of those things helped haha.

Saturday - OFF!

Sunday - 5.6 easy, wanted to do 8 to hit 50 for the week but it just wasn't in the cards.

All in all, I'm pretty darn happy with how this week went - it looks like a real person training week! I'm headed to Wisconsin for a wedding + northwoods vacation for the next week and a half, so training most likely won't be quite as intense...but it also will likely be supplemented with mountain biking, hiking, swimming...etc. So excited!

June Recap!

2011-07-01T16:43:00.000-05:00

2 posts in 1 day? What is this madness? Just had to finish out the week/month with my June stats analysis. It was a good month, things are finally back on the upswing.

Miles run: 159.0
Rest days taken: 5 [+ 2 days when I ran/walked less than 3 miles with Andrew]
Differential from May: +55.2 miles
Highest mileage week: 40.5 [6/20-6/26]
Races: 1, an surprisingly solid 5K!

Current read: Song of the Silk Road - Mingmei Yip
Actually just finished this one, while I wasn't always a fan of the writing style (kind of awkward and overly descriptive at times) I got totally sucked into the story and ended up really enjoying it!

Current guilty pleasure:

Sigh. Lady Gaga, you scare me, but I am completely obsessed with this song. Also, RIP Clarence Clemons.

Current excitement: Starting my last real-person-job free summer!
Oh, and the fact that my beloved training website, runningahead.com, just added a training plans feature. Because I am an epic nerd. :)

July Goals

2011-07-01T16:06:00.000-05:00

First I will give myself a big pat on the back because...I am officially done with my first full time PT clinical! It went SO well and I feel like I learned an insane amount...I'll definitely miss my patients (especially adorable old men) but at the same time I am happy to say hellooooooo summer! Welcome back to my life, lazy days of reading for pleasure, staying up late for no reason, and running whenever I feel like it! However with my new abundance of free time, I've decided I really need to set some goals for myself to keep from slacking. Soo here are my goals for July!

1. Go back to GBTC practice.
2. Go back to GBTC practice.
3. GO BACK TO GBTC PRACTICE!

Enough is enough. I need to put on my big girl pants and get back to track workouts...yes they are going to be hard, but with nothing else on my schedule I really don't have the excuse of "I don't have time to take the train over there" any more.

4. Go to yoga at least once a week, preferably more.
I can tell when I don't go to yoga...my legs (hammies especially) get mad. Now that I'm free to go to any class that any studio offers time-wise, its' time to take advantage!

5. At least 20 minutes of strength training, 3x per week.
It's 20. damn. minutes. I really have no excuse for slacking on this even when I'm busy. Gotta put the goal out there to make myself do it though...

6. Race at least once.
Self explanatory. A 5 mile or 10K would be ideal. In theory I could race an 8 miler in Stowe on the 17th...but...yeah...my preparedness for a hilly 8 miler is questionable at this point. We'll see.

7. Higher mileage than June. No excuses.

Now that they're on paper, I have to do it, right? However, we'll put off the goals for one more day because I have some clinical completion celebration to do. If you'll excuse me....

Watermelon Beer Reviews

2011-06-21T16:27:00.000-05:00

First things first...I was out the door and running at 5:41 am this morning....you may give me a standing ovation now. This probably explains why I'm drinking my second iced coffee of the day as we speak. But this isn't about my awesome morning running skills, this is about beer. Yes, beer. I've decided that since I spend way too long not blogging because all I'm doing are lamesauce easy runs, that I need to find some other things to write about once in awhile. One of these things might be PT related stuff. The other is craft beer. I'm well beyond the "OMG COLLEGGGGGE" drinking stage, but damn, do I enjoy a good craft beer. So today's topic: watermelon beer!

Watermelon beer is somewhat new to me, as I'm usually more of a stout/imperial IPA kind of girl...but in the summer, it's pretty hard to find one that's more refreshing. Here are 3 different watermelon beers, each very different, that I've tried and would like to share with you!

#1 - 21st Amendment Hell or High Watermelon Wheat
beeradvocate.com
This is, hands down, my favorite of the 3. Pretty much it is the most refreshing beer I have ever tasted. It's pretty amazing because it tastes like watermelon, but it isn't really sweet (kind of like...a real watermelon!). The flavor is much subtler and it's really light and refreshing. And it comes in a CAN! Need a beer for a picnic, the beach, a backyard game of frisbee? This is about as good as it gets. Also, I drank this beer while cheering both the Bruins and Packers to national championships this year, so I think we will call it the official beer of my sports teams winning things.

#2 White River Watermelon Wheat
This is from a tiny brewery in Amesbury, MA, and I was able to try it at the American Craft Beer Festival, although I'm not sure if you can find it outside the Amesbury area. From what I remember it was was similar to Hell or High Watermelon, with a lighter watermelon flavor. Very refreshing. Also, they served it with a little chunk of watermelon in it at the festival...a nice touch. :)

#3 Thomas Hooker Watermelon Ale
beeradvocate.com
This one is completely different. And honestly, I'm not 100% sold. Andrew deemed it 'surprisingly ale-like' for a watermelon beer, but for me it was like being punched in the face with a watermelon Jolly Rancher. The taste was a little too fake-watermeloney for me, but considering that Andrew hates sweet beers and enjoyed this one, maybe everyone tastes it differently. Worth a shot if you're looking for a little sweeter watermelon beer, I can still imagine this one being good at a cookout.

Well that was fun! I'm off to yoga because my hamstrings are angry at me for not going last week. Hopefully a good yoga session will fix me right up :)

Under the radar racing: Tuesday Nite Trot 5K race report!

2011-06-19T09:14:00.000-05:00

Hi. I know. It's been a month + again. I started my first full time PT clinical in the middle of May and blogging has been on the back burner a bit...but you know I'm around. I'm done in 2 weeks so should have more time for blog fun times then!

First things first...I actually have a RACE REPORT to share. Shocking, I know. It's June and here I am reporting only my 2nd race of 2011...sad. But alas, I have been afflicted lately by something I'll call "race chickenoutosis". Symptoms include seeing races and being totally gung ho like 'oh, I am totally going to race that 5K!' and then not following through with it because you are too afraid that your 30-35 miles per week of easy running just isn't going to cut it when it comes to a 5K, and you're going to run a terrible race. And really, my confidence at this point doesn't need another hit, what with the Nashua 6K being basically the worst race I've ever run and all.

But finally I put on my big girl running shorts and decided I was racing a damn 5K. I picked one specifically for the fact that I thought it was going to be small and low key - the Tuesday Nite Trot. This was also good because I could go straight there from work, without having any time to go home and chicken out. So I finally showed up at Artesani Park....with no watch. I was running late for work in the morning and completely forgot it, so for the first time since freshman year of college, I would be running a race watchless. As I had expected, things were very chill, which was exactly what I wanted. Definitely a small race, tent with no frills t-shirts and numbers, a few people milling around. I kept telling myself that it was just a tempo run, run by feel, no one cares what time you run today. It's not big deal if you run a 22 something. Whatever. This is baseline...see what baseline is. There were only a couple of other women who looked even moderately serious so I knew I would probably be close to the front regardless...perfect opportunity to just go run hard and see what happens.

Annnd we were off. One of the fast looking girls and 3 or 4 guys shot off in a pack and I had no interest in going that direction since the more I looked at the girl the more she looked like the sub-20/sub-19 type. I glued on to a guy in a BAA shirt and just ran by feel. This was quite the interesting experiment - can I use what my body is telling me and figure out what I need to do here? I passed BAA guy, and was shortly passed by a college-age guy I had been chatting with before the race. Whatever. Then I heard someone's Garmin beep and I knew we were at the mile (not that it mattered)...apparently there are no mile markers in this race either. Another girl passed me and I wanted to go with her, but I was having the beginnings of a wicked side cramp and so decided to let her go. It was getting into misery time but it was like...just keep the legs moving, strong strides, breathe through this stitch. We finally crossed the bridge that signaled the turn towards the finish (running up the teensy 'hill' of the bridge and my legs were like whyyyy) and I was just desperate to be done. I felt like I had slowed down immensely the second half and really wasn't expecting anything stellar...so imagine my surprise when I get close to the finish and the numbers are still in the 20s! Um, what?! I crossed the line in 20:39 and it was like....WHAAAAT?!

So this...is really good. First of all, because my confidence has been restored that I'm not a slow pile of blah and that I actually am still capable of running fast, even on limited training. Second, apparently my baseline is a lot higher than I thought, because I remember when I had to kill myself over 3 months of XC training to run a 20:42 on a similarly flat course. Needless to say I am pretty pleased to run my 2nd best non-track 5K on probably the shittiest month of training I've put together in the last 2 years. Maybe there is something to this "run easy" business after all...but of course I also see the bright and shiny allure of sub-20 and the wheels start turning: If I can run 20:39 on no training, imagine what I could do with a couple months of 5K specific speedwork....

Oh, and I won a pint glass. Which is pretty much the best possible award, even though I have way too many at home already. :)

Nashua 6K: At least I didn't DNF

2011-05-09T09:32:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I ran the Nashua Medical Center 6K, part of the NE-Grand Prix series this year, and I have no reservations about saying that it was one of my worst racing performances of my life. However, it was also the first race of my life where I legitimately injured myself and had every reason to DNF...but didn't. So...there's that.

I drove up to the race with Joy and Jen (both of whom just ran Boston, and Jen had just finished the Cape Relay like, the night before) and none of us were super jacked about the race. I clearly had gotten myself into a bad mental pattern because I know I'm not in racing shape, ESPECIALLY not short racing shape, but I knew I just needed to get out there and suck it up and get the first awful one over with so I could have some sort of motivation to go back to short distance training so the next one wasn't so bad.

We got to the race and Tom's reaction to seeing me was like...laughter. Seriously, lol. I don't think he could believe I had actually come, because he knows I'm out of shape, and he knows I know I'm out of shape, so he was surprised that I signed myself up for basically, pain. We met up with my old running buddy Kelly, who lives in Nashua, she wasn't racing but she came on the warmup with us on part of the course, and told us she didn't think the rest of the course was that hilly.

Next thing I knew, we were on the start line. And I did not want to be there. Going into a race unprepared is just...not a good feeling. In the back of your mind you hope somehow you'll just gut it out and kill it, but for the most part you know it's going to suck. A lot. And it's your own fault, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Then we were off, and I was quickly feeling the "ahh what is this running fast BS?!" feeling...but I locked on the backs of Joy and Jen and was feeling pretty strong running behind them....and then I stepped in a pothole, rolled my ankle (pain! mayday! red alert!) and found myself flying through the air and thudding to the ground. Honestly given how early it was in the race and how tight the pack was, I'm astounded no one tripped on my. I couldn't even process what was going on and my ankle was screaming, my first thought was "shit. you really should drop out." But I just. couldn't. So I got up and started hobbling along, in the meantime getting passed by about 50 people. After a few minutes I was finally able to regain some semblance of a normal stride but it still hurt like hell and obviously any momentum I had was gone.

I came through the mile at 6:58ish (which is shocking considering the amount of time I spend on the ground and limping), and the rest of the race was just a waste. The second mile was entirely uphill, and I was hyperventilating from the pain and from the shock and frustration of what had just happened; any fight I'd had in me to try to run a decent race was completely gone. I would occasionally try to pick it up and then my ankle would tell me to eff off, and so I would slow down. I got passed by a 9 year old girl wearing all pink. I got passed by old women and chunky middle aged men. It was demoralizing, it was frustrating, it was awful. I knew that there was no point in exacerbating my already effed-up ankle by attempting to run faster, but still, seeing 7:40 as a split in a 6K? I wanted to curl up and die.

Finally got to the last uphill stretch towards the finish, I finally got past a girl I had been leapfrogging with all race (small consolation prize), crossed the stupid finish line, and then my ankle was like "YOU STUPID WOMAN WHY DID YOU FINISH?!" I explained to my teammates what happened which made me feel a little better (like, hey guys, I'm NOT actually this slow!) and they went off looking for some ice for me, which apparently they did not have. Um...okay. This race is at a medical center, and you don't have ANY ice?? Not even at the "first aid" tent? What do you have there, bandaids?

The only good things about the day were that I didn't run a personal worst (shockingly), the race gave out running hats which I actually kind of like, and the GBTC women won for the team competition, which gives us a big lead in the grand prix! Oh, and we went out to brunch afterwards. Nothing can soothe the hurt of a bad race like a huge, cheesy omlette and home fries.

Today my ankle is swollen and painful, but I think it's probably just a grade I sprain and will be fine in a couple of days. I think more frustrating than the fact that I got hurt in the first place was that I felt like it gave me an excuse of sorts to bail out on myself in a race that I knew was going to suck. And I know looking back that it would have been stupid to push and try to run harder through it, but still in the end to me it kind of feels like a cop out. But then again, it would have felt like way more of a cop out if I didn't even finish the race...so I guess there's that.

Week of 4/25-5/1 + April Recap

2011-05-02T11:54:00.000-05:00

4/25/11-5/1/11
Total miles: 50.1
Total runs: 7
Total strength/XT workouts: 2
Total workouts: 1.5
Longest run: 13.3 miles

I realized at the end of this week that this was my first 50 mile week since mid-March. I know April was a shitty month thanks to my hip issues, but damn did I fall off the boat hard. It's actually funny because hitting 50 this week just kind of....happened...I think the plan was more like 44...but hey, when things are working, why not?

I went to yoga at Karma Yoga once, which left me sore for 4 days. I had a really crappy/aborted GBTC workout, but then totally made up for it with the world's most amazing tempo/fartlek on Saturday. I FINALLY got in a semi-legit long run of 13.3 miles and felt fantastic. I only made 2/3 of my strength training mission, but 2 is definitely better than none - going to make that 3 x happen this week. :) All in all, a pretty solid week of running, with VERY nice weather and some very enjoyable runs.

April Recap
Total miles: 139.6
Days off: 9
Workouts: 3
Longest run: 15.5 miles

April sucked balls. By far my lowest mileage month of the year so far, and given the fact that I spent a week and a half not running and another week running super tentatively, that's no surprise (in fact, I'm astounded that the numbers were this high). I don't think I really went too far backwards in terms of fitness, but I sure as hell didn't go forward. However, with the discovery of what's actually wrong with my hip and strategies to make it better, combined with the fact that school is winding down for the semester, I think May is going to be a hell of a lot better.

The mysteries of life...explained!

2011-04-29T16:38:00.000-05:00

Well, the mysteries of MY life anyway. So I haven't really talked about it much on the blog, but I've been having some rather frustrating hip issues for pretty much the entire winter. The problem was in my right hip early on, after I was starting to get back into maintenance (fact of the day: I can NEVER spell that word right) mode after Baystate, and then sort of sneakily moved into the left hip after a month or so of painfree running. For the most part it was more of an annoyance than a major issue, and obviously my stubborn self kept running like nothing was the matter even when I was limping during the recovery periods during hard workouts. Anyway, a couple of weeks ago I did a (way too) hard 9 miler, and the next day when I walked out my door to run I couldn't. I was limping too badly to go with the illusion any longer..so I didn't run. And I didn't run for a week and a half. After that, I ran really slow for a few days, and have since been training pretty much normally, but the problem still exists, it's just much more under control.

Now right around the time when it flared up, my lab instructor had put out a call for people who actually had lower extremity issues to be 'patients' in our final lab so we could kind of put all the skills we've learned over the semester together into an actual exam. Yes...being a PT student has its perks. So I gladly signed up because while I was starting to get a decent idea of what was going on, I figured what essentially would be a free PT eval with the help of 10 of my friends couldn't possibly be a bad thing. In the process I found out a LOT of interesting things about my effed up body, which explain pretty much every injury I've ever had in my life. (Also...if you don't want to be super bored by a bunch of PT talk that I nerdily find really interesting...feel free to skip this part)

1) I have a forefoot varus. I'm not sure how to explain this but I will try because hey, that's kind of like studying, right? So basically, the bones of my forefoot (metatarsals & toes) sit at an angle compared to my heel. So when my ankle is in neutral, my big toe and 1st met actually sit up off the ground. So what does this mean for my life? Pretty much it means when I walk/run, I land really far in supination, on the way outside of my foot...but then, gravity wants to pull my foot down, so I fall into overpronation...no bueno. And because I'm even more awesome, I also take off from the inside of my foot (mostly my big toe) instead of rolling back outside before I take off....this was MIND BLOWING to me. I always assumed you were supposed to take off from your big toe! Nope. Apparently not. Those awesome calluses I have on the inside of my big toe? Normal people don't have those. So anyway, this super awesome foot type puts stress on all kinds of structures, and can lead to things like....IT band issues (yup, had those), shin splints (check plus), and a lot of other common injuries.

The good news is I'm wearing the right type of shoes for this. Mostly because I win at picking out running shoes...duhhh.

2) I have a really weak ass. Pretty self explanatory really, but both my glute max and glute med are extremely weak, and this moreso that my weird feet are pretty much the cause of my current hip issue. Interestingly, I NEVER had a running related injury until I stopped dancing....lo and behold, you use both sets of glutes a LOT in dance, and apparently they've gotten lazy in the past couple of years. I almost guarantee this is why I had such bad hamstring issues at Boston last year, because I was only using my hamstrings to extend my hip instead of my hamstrings and glutes, which is pretty much a recipe for hamstring cramps and tendinopathies.

Thanks a bunch, glute med.

So it turns out that my "strength 3 times a week, no excuses" plan couldn't have come at a better time - because not only is it going to make me awesome, it's going to FIX me! What more could you want?

Also my IT band is tight. HUUUUUGE surprise there *sarcasm*

So in the end, my 'diagnosis' was iliopsoas tendinopathy with some kind of irritation in my hip joint too, probably caused by impingement of some sort. It was REALLY (in the most nerdy way possible) cool to think through the different tests that you would do and see how it actually played out. Clearly I managed to pick the right profession! Although, we'll see if I'm still saying that next week when I'm in the middle of finals studying hell...

I also ran 7.3 delightful miles today in the glorious 72 degree weather with no watch and no ipod. Bliss, pretty sure I found you.

Boston 2011: Thoughts as a spectator

2011-04-20T11:53:00.000-05:00

So I had an absolute blast and a half spectating. I loved screaming my guts out at everyone who passed - if you had your name on your shirt or some sort of interesting apparel, you were getting some ridiculous motivation from me - and watching the elite race (and explaining it to my non-runner friends) was really cool.

However....

I think spectating brought it home for me that drinking and screaming and watching are fun...but out there on the course? That's where I want to be. I wasn't sad that I wasn't running this year since with my injury issues over the winter it would have been a train wreck anyway, it was just more of a yearning for the marathon and an epic explosion of excitement for Boston 2012. Like, as soon as I got home from spectating, I wrote 4/16/2012 on a post it note and stuck it up on my desk. Because THAT is the motivation for my next year of training. To be one of those people running through Brookline past a group of drunken screaming grad students at this time next year...and to be killing it. :) (Although after this year's 'once in a lifetime' weather, how much do you want to bet that next year its going to be 35 and pouring? Hmm?)

So we started out the morning at my apartment with a power hour to ensure that we were all sufficiently ready to cheer when it came time to go down to the course....5.5 beers in an hour will generally ensure that that happens. Hah! We were watching the race coverage on TV while we did this and everyone was commenting on Kim Smith taking it out like a crazy woman. "Why would you do that? I think I would want to stay in the pack" commented one of my friends, which honestly at the time I kind of agreed with, but she was looking so strong that I was interested to see what would happen by the time they were passing us (~mile 23)

We headed down to the course around 11 and staked out our spots - the crowd was pretty sparse at this point, but soon the elite women were coming through! We were all confused looking around for Smith, at first I assumed that she had just dropped back but more and more runners kept coming at we never saw her...only later did we find out that she had a torn soleus and had to drop out. Poor girl :( I was actually really rooting for her because I know she trains in Providence, so even though she isn't American she's kind of "local".

I took a lot of pictures of the elites...

Desiree Davila in the LEAD! I don't think I even processed while I was watching that this was an American woman. I wish this picture was less blurry, because it is cool.

Kara Goucher...none of my friends could believe that she had a baby 6 months ago. I was so excited to watch her run!

Top 2 men - Mutai & Mosop - on their way to a course record/world best/whatever you want to call it with wind and asterisks and question marks...still a pretty epic time

Ryan Hall! Happy to see him having a solid day out there today.

The perils of marathon running. Hey, I would be completely willing to poop myself if it meant I could run a 2:37 marathon (which this woman did)

My running buddy's husband Ryan, rocking the GBTC red!

After the elites my picture taking trailed off, because I was mostly focused on waving my sign and screaming at the top of my lungs. I also realized yesterday that what Andrew said last year was completely correct, that it is almost impossible to pick out individual people out of the endless stream of runners unless a) they're wearing something really distinctive or b) they recognize YOU. Out of all of the bloggers/DMers/teammates of mine running, I saw maybe 6 GBTCers and one DMer who runs for the BAA (although in retrospect, I think I noticed a couple others, I just didn't realize it at the time).

All in all, a really fun day. We all got quite sunburnt and were pretty much dead to the world by 7 pm...kind of like we would have been had we actually run the race...haha.

Yesterday I went for a delightful 7.75 miles, my longest in almost 2 weeks since trying to figure out this hip issue, and actually felt great. I tried to keep the pace easy, ended up with 8 flat, which I suppose is acceptable, and I promise based on effort it truly did feel easy. I'm hoping to get in a decent mileage week of easy running this week, and then see if I can head back to GBTC practice next week to at least complete part of the speed workout. God knows if I'm going to be racing a 6K in a few weeks, I need to remember how to run fast...

Running slow to run fast

2011-04-16T22:07:00.000-05:00

I had a mindblowing experience today.

So I was reading the May issue of Running Times (if you are not aware, a FAR superior publication to Runners World, catering much more to competitive runners/racers with lots of interesting articles on elites and training/racing type articles that go way beyond couch to 5K...I highly recommend.). I had initially bought the mag at Whole Foods because my alma mater track club, the WTC, had a big old 2 page feature in it, which is pretty sweet. But the main training article was on being "racing fit" all year round while still adding in periods of 'peaking' intensity for an A race. The concept is nothing new to me and it's always something I've generally tried to subscribe to (not so much this winter, but let's not talk about that) so that wasn't the crazy part - the mindblower was when I looked at the paces that were suggested for the various types of workouts (easy/maintainance/long, tempo, aerobic threshold, and intervals)

Using 6:30 as my approximate 5K pace, here's what I got:
anaerobic threshold (ie, short tempo): 85-95% of 5K pace, for me, 6:50-7:38
aerobic threshold (steady state runs, long tempos, the later minutes of progression runs): 75-85% 5K, for me 7:38-8:40
intervals: 1500-5K pace, 5:45ish-6:30
easy/recovery/long: 65-75% of 5K pace, for me, 8:40-10:00

Now we all know I'm pretty much incapable of running easy. Ever. But when I looked at these paces and realized that I'm running at the low end of aerobic threshold or faster every. single. day. it was like....whoa. Might I be actually hurting myself rather than helping myself by running like an idiot day after day? The answer, I'm pretty sure, is yes...but actually seeing concrete paces kind of helped put things in perspective a bit. Granted, my 5K probably should be faster than it is (although interestingly, according to McMillan, my 5K PR is actually quite a bit faster than my marathon would suggest, it's the 10K/half times that I 'should' be running that I haven't hit yet) and I think 10 minute miles are a little excessively slow, but even so, there are a fairly significant number of days in my week when I SHOULD be running 8+ minute pace. Why is this so difficult for me to comprehend? I ran the best race of my life after training hard, but logging plenty of slower miles, you would think that would be enough to get it through my head.

This is especially interesting to me in light of the fact that a) I've felt stale as stale can be for...well...pretty much since Baystate. And I suppose, after 3 consecutive hard marathon training cycles, "overtrained" is a word that could possibly have been used to describe me, especially taking into account the 'I can't run easy' business. And b) I've been riding the vague & nagging injury bus since November, with the latest exacerbation being a weird hip thingy that left me unable to run for the past week and a half. Things finally seem to be resolving themselves after some time spend with the elliptical and the pool, and thank god because a fem neck stress fracture was on my differential diagnosis list for awhile, but it has gotten me thinking about whether I just go at it too damn hard day after day, and it's bringing me down both mentally and physically. When running is hard every single day a lot of the fun goes out of it, and when you're injured a lot of the fun goes out of it.

SO...my new plan. I've pretty much realized that my A race for the next year is Boston 2012. The marathon is what I care about, training for it is what I love, and quite frankly, while I think maybe I have a 19:30 5K in me, I think the longer distances are where I belong. Yes I'm planning on racing cross, and summer races (assuming I can get back into shape after this damn injury), but THE goal is a PR at Boston next year. And to really be ready to go where I've never gone before in my peak training for that race, I need to be consistent in my miles and my workouts, but not get burnt out. And...ta da...that's where running easy comes in. It's going to be hard, but I feel like it's become clear to me that I need to change something in my training if I want to improve, and I think in my case it means running easy enough on the easy days to really be able to run the hard days hard..and to WANT to run the hard days hard. I see people on DM who are FAST - sub-19 5K fast - who run like 8:45-9:00 on their easy runs...and I'm like, they're faster than me, why on earth am I running my easy runs so much harder than them? This makes no sense. It's going to be a challenge for my mind to tell my legs to slow the eff down, but damn, I'm going to try.

On that note, today I ran my longest run in a week and a half, 6.75 out on the Boston course. My first mile I ran in 8:40...success! Except then I ended up with an 8:00 average...which is still progress...come on people, I'm learning here.

Also...I would be lying if I said I was not just a *little* bit jealous of everyone running Boston on Monday. You know how it goes. HOWEVER...Marathon Monday marks my first every opportunity to spectate a road race. Ever. I'm always the one racing them, duh. And, it also just so happens that Marathon Monday involves starting to drink somewhere in the vicinity of 7 am, a la 11am Badger games in undergrad. And you know what's better than a runner who knows what people want to hear at mile 23? A drunken runner who knows what people want to hear at mile 23 ;) I'm sure I'll have an epic spectating report up sooon.

And to anyone reading this is racing on Monday - you are ready to kill it, DON'T STOP BELIEVIN! I'll be the crazy girl screaming at mile 23 :)

To those about to run, I salute you

2011-04-13T22:28:00.000-05:00

Because you ran miles in the cold, in the sun, in the wind, in the snow, on sheets of ice and on treadmills, on days when the wind was at your back and days when you cursed the very fact that you were running at all.

Because you've been there, in all of your multicolored glory, through the months where there's nothing but white to be seen, as motorists honk and pedestrians gaze in confusion at these crazy fools out in the negative windchill. Or you've run like an animal, half naked in the summer sun, hoping to finish before the temps climbed above 90. The weather didn't matter. You ran.

Because you've broken down muscles and sat with teeth clenched in a ice bath, because you've performed amateur foot surgery on yet another black toenail, because you've diligently done your PT exercises in the hope that maybe, just maybe, that nagging injury won't hurt on race day. Because you've persevered.

Because you've done tempos, hills, fartleks, intervals, and myriad other workouts that you can explain to a non-runner but that they'll never understand. Because you gutted it out on that last 1000. Because you didn't give up in the middle of that horrible tempo. Because you carried on.

Because some days you had an exam to study for, a kid to take care of, dishes piling up in the sink, a boss with too many projects to comprehend, hardly time to think...and still you ran. You ran when the alarm went off at 4 am, you ran in the dark of night at 8 pm, you ran at lunch. Because you ignored the co-workers and friends who thought you were crazy. Because maybe, a little bit, you are.

Because there were days when you doubted. Dark days when you thought "why?". Days when you wondered "is this worth it?" Days when you felt like you were going to collapse under the weight of your own expectations, days when the wind was in your face no matter which way you turned. Because you never let your doubts overcome your passion.

Because there were good days too. Days when your feet seemed to sprout wings and carry you effortlessly along, runs with friends where the conversation made the miles fly by. Tough workouts that you finished with aching legs but a full heart. Long runs - maybe even your longest runs ever - to remember. Because you know what it's like to fly.

Because on Saturdays and Sundays, you were gone for 3 and 4 hours, leaving families, studying, work sleeping in their beds. Because you know what flavor of Gu will get you through when your legs are aching at mile 15 of a 22 miler. Because you know where the best public restrooms lie.

Because maybe you were told you couldn't. Maybe it was you yourself who thought "I can't". But somewhere deep inside, there was some tiny spark that said "you can". And because you will.

Because on race day, you will cross two lines - a start and a finish. Between those lines lies 26.2 miles of a race that you are ready to run. Because you're shooting for a PR, a BQ, a marathon finish. Because you WILL finish. Because no matter what awaits you out on the course on raceday, whatever Mother Nature can throw down from the skies, whatever your body dreams up, whatever the roads throw at you, you can trust in this: you belong here. And you are ready.

Good luck to all of my Boston Marathon running friends...I salute you all and can't wait to cheer you on out there on the course!!

Worst blogger ever? Probably me.

2011-04-03T22:21:00.002-05:00

Hmm...over a month since my last post...again...I'm pretty amazing at this whole blogging thing aren't I? I think it's because my training has been less than thrilling lately (especially given that I'm not actually..."training" for anything in particular per se) and who would have thought, being a PT student is actually sort of time consuming? Anyway, I hope you all don't hate me for abandoning you (for anyone who actually does/still reads this?) and I am really going to try to return to a more normal blogging schedule, even if it's just reposting elaborations on my dailymile workouts. I guess in a way that has become like a blog, since each workout presents the opportunity to ramble about it...and we know how much I love rambling!

Well, in the spirit of actually writing SOMETHING on this thing...today I ran 15.5 miles. Actually, when I mapped it out I got 16, but since I ran ~4.5 on a trail that I'm sure is slightly shorter than my estimate (and I don't think I ran 7:30 pace for 16 miles) I rounded down. It was a gorgeous day and I actually had FUN on a long run thanks mainly to a new route + a newly discovered park with TRAILS which are pretty much my happy place. There were also puppies, including a golden retriever who came bounding up to me with a stick and basically started begging me to pet him. Ummm yes...I will stop my watch and freaking snuggle with you, adorable dog.
15.5 miles - 2:00:23 - 7:46 pace

My next supposed race is the James Joyce 10K on May 1. I have no idea what my level of preparedness for this race is but it's becoming quite clear to me that if I don't run a damn race soon I'm going to go nuts and lose all motivation to run. Probably at the same time. There's also the possibility of a 5K at BC in a couple of weeks, but that will probably be a more spur of the moment thing. Speaking of a couple of weeks...my main running related thought process lately has been to SPECTATING Boston!! And yes, I am wicked excited. I know a lot of people running between dailymile friends, bloggers, and my club/other Boston people, so I plan on making like 18 different signs, yelling a lot, and generally being the most super spectator ever. (So for those of you running Boston...if you feel like letting me know what you'll be wearing so I can look for you and cheer for you I'd love it! :))

And now, because I really need to get back to studying neuro, I'm going to do this random bloggy thing that I found @Runner's Rambles. And I do enjoy random surveys!

Outside my window … it's dark, but there are lots of cars going by.
I am hearing … Chopin radio on Pandora (classical music is my study aid of choice)
I am thinking … about neuro. Sort of. Or about how much fun I had last night!
I am thankful … for my spectacular boyfriend and for my PT crew, I would not be surviving this program without them!
I am reading … Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases, I know you are deeply jealous.
I am hoping and praying … that I did well on the 2 exams I took last week, and that I do well on the one coming up this week!
I am wearing … Adrenaline dance sweatpants and my WTC sweatshirt...scrubbin' it hard lol.
I am creating … the most beautiful set of neuro notes ever. Seriously, I love highlighters.
From the kitchen … I made some amazing chili on Friday!
Around the house … messiness everywhereee...and lots of laundry that needs to be done.
Plans for the rest of the week … peds form tomorrow night, neuro studying the next few days, hopefully making it to a yoga class since I bought a Groupon for them!

A Picture to share …this is from earlier this winter, when I went running in 12+ inches of snow. SO happy I don't have to see this anymore until next winter!

I'm going running after this. Promise.

2011-02-24T15:53:00.000-06:00

I found/stole this delightful survey [I feel the need to note that I just typed 'surgery' which apparently represents where my brain is right now....7 am lecture on knee replacements = waaaaaah] from lindsey @ chasing the kenyans, and since I have 15 minutes until my self imposed time when I must be out the door and running, I'm doing it. More substantial content to come at some point in the future.

A) Age: 23
(B) Bed Size: queen, and I don't know how I ever slept on a twin.
(C) Chore You Hate: laundry
(D) Dogs? LOVE. 3 years working with all shapes and sizes, and can't wait to have one of my own.
(E) Essential Start Your Day Item: coffee
(F) Favorite Color: orange
(G) Gold or Silver? well...gold if it's a medal. Silver in general life.
(H) Height: 5'6''
(I) Instruments You Play: secret time! I've dabbled in piano, tenor sax, and drum set, and I played oboe/English horn from 5th grade through high school. Alas, the one thing I've ever been naturally good at, I really never was super interested in...haven't played since senior year of HS.
(J) Job Title: PT student. Please, let me pay YOU so I can work!
(K) Kids: eventually, 1 or 2.
(L) Live: Boston
(M) Mom's Name: Barbara
(N) Nicknames: Audge, Audgers
(O) Overnight Hospital Stays? an ER visit or 2, that's it
(P) Pet Peeve: People (or things...ie buses/trains) that are late
(Q) Quote from a Movie: "We're doing this thing called jogging...or maybe it's yogging, it might be a soft j. Anyway it's this thing where you just RUN for an extended period of time, it's supposed to be wild!"
(R) Right or Left Handed? right
(S) Siblings: 1 sister
(T) Time You Wake Up? an hour and 15 before class starts
(U) Underwear: currently - pink with strawberries
(V) Vegetable You Dislike: raw green pepper
(W) What Makes You Run Late: Not being able to find anything, ever. Keys, wallet, phone, at least one of these things is missing on any given morning
(X) X-Rays You've Had Done: Couple of wrist x-rays for my fractures at age 4 and 11
(Y) Yummy Food You Make: one time I made stuffed shells, and they were really good. Not much of a cook and definitely not a baker, I hate to say.
(Z) Zoo, Favorite Animal: aside from dogs, goats, llamas, otters...I like animals that are cute in a bizarre way...like, goats are really weird. But I find them adorable.

8 minutes to spare! It's run time. Woo hoo!

Adventures at the indoor track

2011-02-05T10:43:00.000-06:00

I'm on track to run 40+ miles AGAIN this week! 2 weeks in a row! That hasn't happened in...er...awhile. Like since Baystate awhile. No wonder I'm so out of shape...I have been sucking. it. up. when it comes to actually running acceptable mileage [for me.] Granted my rash of injuries over the past couple months hasn't been any help with that. But I THINK [fingers so majorly crossed] that I may have finally snapped out of the funk and am on my way back to...something.

My body is perplexed right now. It wants to be marathon training. I did a great 30 min/slightly more than 4 miles tempo on Wednesday where I just locked in and cruised for half an hour...best part was I was going into the workout thinking of doing 3 x 10 minute tempos with breaks in between, and I sucked it up and did the whole half hour - this is the mental toughness I need to start finding again. But my legs are like "tempo? psh I can handle tempo!" Actual legit speedwork? Not quite so much. Anything below about 6:30 pace isn't sitting so well, and while tempos have their place in track training they're not going to get me to a fast 5K on the track in the spring. I know, the time will come. I'm proud of myself for FINALLY getting back to GBTC workouts (well, not this week, since Reggie was closed due to snowpocolypse part #593) even though I'm getting my ass kicked by everyone at the moment. But besides being a major slice of humble pie, working out with the club is motivation to get back, because I know who I should be running with and the fact that they're killing me in a 600s workout is about all the motivation I need to snap out of my wintry blahs and get my ass out there and run.

So musings aside, I've seen a bunch of glimpses of my crazy competitive self over the past couple of weeks. Due to the ridiculous weather and the fact that I'd prefer not to roll my ankle again and/or die in slushy wetness, I've been spending a decent amount of time running circles on the upstairs track at BU. It's 7 laps to a mile, so basically like running on any other indoor track out there, but what makes it really entertaining is the people. Oh, the people. OK - so at risk of sounding like a mean/terrible person, I do a lot of people watching/judging when I'm running on the track. Don't get me wrong, I'm totally supportive of everyone who is getting out there and running and trying...but sometimes when I'm running in circles for an hour I amuse myself by judging the people around me. [I know, I knowww...who am I to be miss high and mighty, blah blah blah. I in no way think that I am the best or the coolest or the fastest or even anywhere close to any of those things. But musing over other people's behavior distracts me from the fact that I am running in circles. So shoot me.]

My personal favorite occurrence has happened twice in the past week, and that's people [ESPECIALLY boys] who take it really personally that I'm faster than them, and thus, passed them on the track. It's the same situation every time, I'm running easily, cruising along, and I happen to pass someone. Whatever, there are like 30 people on the track, some running faster than others. People get passed. Duh. But these people take it as some sort of personal affront/challenge/there is no way a girl is running faster than me sort of deal, and decide that I need to be taught a lesson. But here's a hint, boy in the gray shirt. When a girl runs past you, and she's not really breathing hard, or looking like she's putting a whole ton of effort in, there's a chance she's got several more gears. And so, when you try to pick up the pace and shoot past, her, she will pick up right with you and calmly cruise at your side while you give her dirty looks (no joke) and attempt to surge over and over again to no avail. And for 2 whole miles, you'll try to get rid of her and pass her, and every time you try she will be right there at your side...because she senses how irritated you're getting and wants to mess with you (what can I say?). And then, finally, when she's done with her run, she'll decide YOU are the one who needs to be taught a lesson...and so, she'll drop down to 5K pace the last lap and leave you in her dust. Newsflash, gray shirt guy: girls are occasionally faster than boys. It happens. Deal with it. (True story. And I enjoyed every minute of it...plus, it turned my easy run into a great progression and kept me entertained too!)

We also have your usual cast of characters who enjoy such things as walking in a huge pack in lane 1, even though there are signs all over the place that say "runners to lane 1, walkers to lane 4", and people who enjoy sprinting for ~15 seconds and then stopping short right in front of you, also (obviously) in lane 1. On Thursday I saw a girl who was walk/jogging while holding a water bottle (despite the fact that there's a water fountain right next to the track) and then stopping to stand (right next to the water fountain) and drinking it. We have the usual lane drifters, people who just can't make up their mind, girls who look like they spent about an hour getting prettified to come run a mile on the track, etc. All provide excellent amusement to me while I'm counting down the laps to 7 or 8 miles (except of course when they're in my way, which happens often, though I guess that's sort of a stimulus in it's own way). Anyway, a salute to you, BU track users, for making my workouts infinitely more amusing and occasionally more challenging when I have to pick it up to teach one of you a lesson. :)

That's about all I can think of at the moment. In an absolutely crazy move for me, I responsibly did my long run yesterday because I knew it was going to snow today and/or tomorrow. Thumbs up, self! Have a great weekend, enjoy the Superbowl...GO PACK GO!

No, nature. Just no.

2011-02-01T21:11:00.000-06:00

Oh, hi, massive snowstorm covering half the US. Because I mean, we don't already have like 2 feet of snow on the ground in Boston, most of which seems to have been left on the sidewalks and roads for me to potentially fall in while attempting to "run" outdoors. 6-18 inches more? For sure. Just what I needed. Thanks a bunch, NATURE.

In other news, I ran 43 miles last week and actually did a workout that nearly destroyed all of my self esteem and/or soul on Tuesday. Word on the street: I'm out of shape. The snow explosion isn't helping my motivation. Dear lord, am I glad I'm not training for Boston right now.

I'll think of more entertaining things to write later...enjoy your snow days if you have them. Something tells me BU will suck at life and make us go to class, but I'm drinking a Rogue Mocha Porter to spite them and keeping my fingers crossed. Because quite frankly, I wouldn't mind missing out on wound care lab tomorrow...although after tonight's extremely messy run through the slop, if the gym is closed tomorrow I may be in trouble...

Some whining and some motivation

2011-01-22T12:00:00.000-06:00

Once upon a time, back when I ran for the WTC, there was a small core of girls who raced consistently every. single. weekend. There were a ton of girls who would come to practice on and off, and do workouts, and long runs, and train, but when it came time to RACE, they were nowhere to be found. I remember the excuse was often "I'm not in shape to race" and the 5 of us who had been racing were like "well, you don't have to be in great racing shape to race, especially in track, where you race so many times that there's no way to be at peak for each and every one". And we thought it was kind of a dumb excuse. Well, I have officially found myself on the other side of that coin. Right now, at this moment, I feel like if I got on a track and raced a mile it would be a hideous embarrassment, complete with pity clap and calls of "there's still a runner on the track" and failure.

Granted, I have reasons for why my training has been sub-par. I've spent the last month struggling with a mysterious, transient, untraceable hip problem that has come and gone, some days making running painful, some days making it impossible, some days not bothering me at all. You would think that one semester of PT school would prepare me to self diagnose but alas, we just started on the hip this semester (though I fully plan on figuring out what exactly was/is wrong with me by semester's end!) At this point (knock on wood) it seems to have resolved to the point where it only flares if I aggravate it by doing something stupid (ie, a cutdown run on the treadmill, which it does not like.) But during this month, I've also managed to roll/sprain my ankle not once, but TWICE. The first was right before Christmas, and I spent the next 4 days hobbling around like a failure, and then yesterday my dumbass goes running in the most recent Boston blizzard and does it again. Granted, it seems to be relatively "okay" today, and I'll probably be back running tomorrow, but it's been an interesting month of trying to obtain any decent workouts.

I really don't know what the point of this post is. I think the point is that I haven't raced in over 2 months. That's a long time...too long. I am longing to feel the nervous energy and the pure bliss of the finish line and the pain and the camradrie and everything. And right at this second, I am just too scared. Things are looking up - I'm finally going to be making my long awaited return to GBTC track workouts, possibly as early as this week, and I have my sights set on the BU Valentine's Day Invite as my triumphant return to indoor track. I can't believe it's been 2 YEARS since I last set foot on a legit indoor track. Obviously I've achieved a lot over that period in the road racing realm of my life, but while I've still got some speed left in me, I might as well find it, right?

Anyway, we'll try to wrap this up with something positive, since so far this has mainly been one big random tangent. I never did a new year's resolution post, but I guess if I had to sum up my "resolutions" in 6 words, it would be this:

BE SMART, BE FEARLESS, BE STRONG

BE SMART - this includes, but isn't limited to, listening to my body as far as when I'm pushing too hard and when I can push harder, taking time off or cross training when I'm injured, paying more attention to the type of food I'm putting in my body as far as what's actually fuel and what's just crap, and (NRR) staying ahead of the game and performing well in school and in my first real-life clinical situation.

BE FEARLESS - basically, what this entire post has been about - not being afraid of a bad workout or race, leaving it all on the course, doing workouts that push me to my limits, and generally living without fear and without regrets in 2011.

BE STRONG - strength training is a HUGE part of what I want to accomplish this year - making it a part of my routine and something that I just do, rather than having to think about/force myself to do. Abs, yoga, circuits, and lifting all fall under this category...right now I'm aiming for yoga at least once a week, abs at least 3 times, and something else under the category of strength (lifting, circuits, pilates) at least once a week. I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't achieve these number goals but they're just something to think about to get me motivated to get stronger...which I know WILL make me a better, less injured runner.

That's about all I've got for today. I'm off to work on some school stuff and get some lifting and XTing in....I will be working at the GBTC Invitational meet alllllll day tomorrow (there are 100+ entries per gender in the mile and 200, oh my goodness) and hopefully making it to watch at least part of the Packer game, where the Packers will OBVIOUSLY be victorious! ;)

2010 Goals Revisited

2010-12-31T15:22:00.000-06:00

With 2010 drawing to a close I thought I would revisit my 2010 goals post that's been hanging out in the sidebar all year...as far as accomplishing the things I set out to do running-wise this year, I surpassed pretty much all of my wildest expectations. The only PR that didn't fall was my 5K track PR and no worries...I'm coming for you in 2011! I learned what a cruel mistress the marathon can be, even with what seems like impeccable training, at Boston, and I learned the utter joy of having things come together perfectly at Baystate.

Time Goals:

5K
A- PR [sub-19:54] FAIL (but just you wait...)
B - sub-21 DONE! 20:12
*Providence Women's Classic, I had a great time at this race with my GBTC teammates even though it was 2 weeks before Baystate and I thought I was in no shape to run a 5K. Turns out...I was!
C - road PR [sub-21:48] DONE! 21:17
*Mystic River Herring Run, which I ran when I was antsy after Boston...I think I was 4th overall female and I won a $50 gift card to an Italian restaurant.

10K
A - PR [sub-46:30] DONE! 44:20
*Super Sunday 10K, only 10K I ran this year, and a big PR. Very fun race on probably the coldest day of the year!

Half Marathon
A - sub-1:40 DONE! 1:38:34
B - PR [sub 1:42:25] DONE!
*Both accomplished at the same race, New Bedford HM, during which I really enjoyed myself, ran perhaps my most evenly paced to date, and heard 'Don't Stop Believin'' being played out of a body shop at mile 8.

Marathon
A - sub-3:30 DONE! 3:22:10!!!!
B - sub-3:35 DONE
C - PR [sub 3:39:15] DONE
*All accomplished at the same race - Baystate Marathon 2010, a day which I will never, ever, ever forget.

Other Goals:
Race at least 2 new distances DONE - 12K, 25K, bonus 30K!
*I actually had a really fun time racing a bunch of new distances, especially the longer 25K and 30K that fall somewhere between the HM and marathon. Especially when they're 2 exceptionally hilly races, and run in the same week. Heh. :)

Race at least once in XC DONE - USATF-NEs [3 weeks post marathon, haaah]
*Pretty confident the only reason I ran this race was to cross this goal off the list. It was absolutely awful but that's why I set the goal as "just race" for this one, right?

Do abs/strength/yoga at least 3x per week FAIL
*This was a pretty epic fail. I was doing pretty well with yoga ~ once a week through the winter, and got back into it a little this fall, but strength training? abs? mostly nowhere to be found. This is something I really want to do better on in 2011!

Fuel better DONE-ish
*I'm giving myself this one because I feel that in general I've eaten quite a bit healthier this year than last - more "real" food as opposed to the college staple of Pastaroni, some fun cooking endeavors with the BF, and many less late night drunk food runs. Still a work in progress but I'm getting better. I also nailed down my marathon fueling strategy, which is certainly a plus!

All in all, 2010 was pretty incredible, running wise. I ran the Boston Marathon, PRed by 17 minutes at Baystate, set PRs or road PRs in every road race I ran except Boston, and ran 2 5K's, a 6K, a 10K, a 12K, a half marathon, a 25K, a 30K, and 2 marathons. Pretty fun assortment of distances and I'm pretty proud of them all.

So what's up for 2011? Well...that will have to wait for a future post :) I only have so much to write, ya know. Happy NYE!

Some new gear, and a shoe rant

2010-12-30T11:03:00.000-06:00

First off, I'm sort of in the process of crafting a "2010 in review" standard post...but it's most likely going to take a while so I figured I would tide you over with some brief and useless ramblings....

I had a delightful Christmas break in Wisconsin, which involved a mildly sprained ankle, 3 runs during the entire week I was home, an absurd amount of beer and food, and some running-related Christmas goodies! Behold, my new most favorite piece of running apparel:

You see, I have greatly benefited from the new visibility trend because my very favorite color is orange. When I opened this jacket, my sister told me that it looked like it was meant to go hunting...in all seriousness though, it is a GREAT jacket...nicely fitted, lots of pockets, wind/water resistant, fun little LED light that can be recharged by sticking it in a USB port, and perfect for my night running habit.

I also received my 5th pair of Nike Tempo shorts (best. shorts. EVER.) as well as some running gloves, some sports bras, and a running log. Yay for Christmas...thanks parents!

However, something that I'm less thrilled about? This:
[warning...rant ahead]

One of these things is not like the other...
I've been running in the Mizuno Wave Inspires for the past 6 years and have LOVED them. The updates from 4 to 5 to 6 were pretty minimal aesthetically and fit-wise, and I've been especially happy with the 6's which fit me really well and have got me through the two hardest/highest mileage training cycles of my life thus far with zero injuries. So it was with great unhappiness that I saw the 6's go on closeout on runningwarehouse, which could only mean one thing...a dreaded 'update'. I anxiously awaited the release of the new shoe, hoping that I would see on the page something that looked just like my beloved shoes. And then I see these yellow monstrosities, and my heart sinks. To be fair, the basic outline of the shoe doesn't look THAT different. But first off, they're ugly! Second, and perhaps most important to me, they are half an ounce heavier than their predecessors. One of the things that actually drew me to the Inspires in the first place was how light they were, even though they were somewhat of a stability shoe, so the fact that after all these years they decided to add some (obviously unnecessary) weight is frustrating to me.

And then I hunted down a couple of reviews of the new shoe, which all pretty much have the same theme among people who happily ran in the 5's and 6's...a) they feel cheap, b) they fit poorly and come up too high on the ankle, c) they feel nothing like either of the previous shoes. People, I am FURIOUS! If there's one thing I hate it's trying to find a shoe that really fits me well and I've been so happy with these shoes for so many things that I figured Mizuno would know they had a good thing going. So now I'm going to have to go back out on a quest for a shoe I like...and I already know that I don't like the Asics model that is supposed to be similar to these because it feels clunky and heavy...and I don't think after running in a really lightweight model for 6 years that I'm going to be able to switch to anything heavier. Grr...Mizuno...you're on my shit list. For now, I'm going to keep buying the 6's while they still exist and wait for you to realize that you effed up and change them back when you come out with the 8's.

[end rant]

Sigh. That's all for now. I have 102 posts in my Google Reader, which I suppose is what I get for dropping off the internet for a little over a week. 2010 in review will be appearing sometime before January 6 I would imagine...my projected mileage total for 2010 is ~2233 MILES [currently sitting at 2220, and planning on ~8 today and 5 tomorrow]...that's 378 miles more than last year which I would say is pretty significant. Happy new year to all, and you had all better be cheering for the BADGERS in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day. :)

Fa la la la la

2010-12-12T15:12:00.000-06:00

Hi. It's me. I haven't posted in a month. I'm still alive.

As it turns out, finals when you're in graduate school are, well...intense. Like on Wednesday, I went to a class, took a practical, and then went to the library for 10 hours to study for another practical the next day. It's been rough and has not left a whole lot of time for blogging, and especially since my running has been somewhat uninspired lately as well, there hasn't been much to say on that front either. I've been hitting 40s in terms of mileage until this week, when I was completely derailed by a wicked bad cold + the whole 3 practicals of death thing. Needless to say, despite the fact that I have been getting in 10-12 milers every weekend and running fairly regularly, I am not even close to track shape. I did run a random night 5 miler at 6:45 pace one night, so there's that. But I also was fueled by massive amounts of caffeine and pseudoephedrine...so take that for what it's worth haha.

SO...because I really have nothing exciting to say but I wanted to post because I realized it had been a month, here's a fun little quiz thing I stole from Lacey...enjoy learning some exciting and random facts about my life. I'll (hopefully) be back to your regularly scheduled blogging program...or at least more than once a month...after finals are over...

If I could say one thing to myself 20 years ago…
Hah, well at the tender age of 3 I doubt I would have understood many of my own words of wisdom. But it's never too early to be told to never apologize for being who you are.

My favorite place in the world...
probably the Memorial Union terrace at sunset on a gorgeous summer night

The lesson I keep learning over and over...
No matter how much water you drink or food you eat, if you go out drinking you're not getting anything done the next day

The movie I watch when I want to laugh...
Anchorman never fails to crack me up

The most scared I've ever been...
Hmm...this is actually hard. Probably when I was about 10, there was a tornado that touched down about 10 miles from where my girl scout troop was camping in A-frame tents...especially at that age it was pretty terrifying.

No one knows I...
Belt out Broadway songs when I'm alone

Unhealthiest thing I've passed off as dinner...
A Mountain Dew and a bag of gummy worms, followed later by half a huge bag of chips (this was like, last week. thanks finals.)

Personal philosophy...
Find your passion.

Book that changed my life...
Once A Runner

I unwind by...
Having a good beer and watching a movie

Proudest moment in my career...
Since I do not yet have a "career" (only 2.5 more years though! Haha) I'll say the proudest moment in my running career (thus far)...which is without a doubt, the entirety of the Baystate Marathon this year.

What keeps me up at night...
Thinking too hard about all of the stuff I have to know for school, figuring out how to fit everything in

I define "downtime" as...
Time when I'm NOT in class or studying!

Coffee or tea?
Coffee. No contest.

Guiltiest pleasure...
Dark chocolate...and imperial coffee stout. Ideally together. :)

My mom was right about...
Hard work will get you far, and sometimes you need a little constructive criticism to really be your best

My mom was wrong about...
Thinking I would always live in Wisconsin

The last time I lost my temper was...
Hmm...probably with my mom over something stupid, we fight plenty but it's usually out of love

My favorite moment of the day...
In the winter, probably snuggling into bed and getting all warm. But obviously this is very dependent on the day. Like today, my favorite moment thus far was running down Heartbreak in the pouring rain...which is pretty much the polar opposite of being warm in bed haha.

I wish I had more time for...
Dance & acting...I miss ballet dearly and would love to do a musical again but there's just no time

I always make time for..
Running! (well, MOST of the time I make time for it...) My one hobby that's stood the test of time :)

I'm currently reading...
Orthopaedic Examination, Evaluation, & Intervention....oh yeah, don't act like you're not jealous

Home means...
Love

Well that was fun. Now back to bone and connective tissue disorders of the wrist & hand, yay!?

No regrets, just love

2010-11-12T11:28:00.000-06:00

First of all....

Obsessed actually doesn't even begin to describe my love for this song. I've probably listened to it like 30 times since I downloaded it on Wednesday. And sometimes I watch the video, purely because the lead singer is pretty darn attractive [no offense to my dear boyfriend of 3 years :)]

So I've been sort of acting like a real runner again this week. I'll probably hit like 45 miles for the week, so back on the upswing, and usually in the off season I like hanging out around 50, so this is a good trend. I also am going to hit 2000 miles for the year at some point during my run today! I ran 1856 miles total in 2009, and definitely less in the years prior to that, so hitting 2000 in mid-November is pretty sweet. Of course, training for 2 marathons over the course of 2010 will help with that, but I think I'm figuring out that higher-mileage (50s-60s...which I realize isn't very high for some of you, but I pretty much max out in the high 60s) training seems to help me with races all over the spectrum, so that's what I'm going to stick with.

Also, apparently my MO in the indoor season is going to be the 800/mile. This is both terrifying and amusing to me at the same time. I haven't raced a mile since junior year of college (my still standing PR of 5:44) and for the 800 it's been even longer - my PR was in outdoor sophomore year (in a meet where I also raced the 400 hurdles, 100 hurdles, and 4 x 400. Clearly my priorities have shifted since) But really, I haven't run FAST in over 3 years. After marathon training for the past year, I'm not sure I remember how. I'm sure it will come back to some extent, but my PRs aren't all that great and I'm a little worried about getting smoked by everyone at these track meets since my PRs aren't exactly anything to write home about...but there's also the chance that 3 years of running and training have made me *gasp* faster! At least I hope so.

Alright, well, my clinical is over so I actually have today off, and thus far I have done nothing of value (unless you consider eating a popsicle and watching "A Knight's Tale" valuable....) so it is time to be productive. Hooray! Happy Friday!

"Just 400 more, and then you can kill Tom!"

2010-11-07T16:22:00.001-06:00

Note to self: when you run a marathon, and then you basically don't run for 3 weeks, you are not in shape to run a 6K XC race. In fact, you will probably run one of the worst times you have ever run at the distance, while cursing your coach and your existence and the existence of a certain "Bear Cage Hill" along the way.

So this was not pleasant at all. It was like 40 degrees and windy, and Tom's "plan" for me involved me trying to go out with our top 5 women (bahahahaha...yeah....) and then accepting the fact that I would die at the first hill and pretty much just run comfortably the rest of the way in. His words were something along the lines of "oh yeah, you're going to suck today, it's OK". Very comforting. And it amuses me that despite the fact that he obviously knew that I was going to fail hardcore at this race he came up with a ridiculous plan for me to run anyway, lol.

It was freezing at the start and basically as soon as we took off my legs seized up for the cold. I had a brief shining moment of about 200 meters where I thought things were going to be OK, and then my legs balled up and were like "eff you! we want to be warm!" and I could not run any faster. My first mile was 6:45, whatever, but it's obviously only going downhill from there. Then we ran up the bear cage hill, and I thought I was going to die. [Aside from said hill, I actually really like the course, and I think in the future I would actually be able to throw down a solid time on it. But definitely not today.] As we ran by the GBTC camp Tom was sort of laughing at me because I was making a face, and I just yelled "I hate you" which made everyone else start laughing...lol..if I'm going to race poorly, might as well provide some comic relief, right?

I was just mentally done after about a mile and a half, I knew my time was going to be down the crapper and I had no interest in injuring myself trying to kill myself the last mile and a half, so I won't say I didn't try, but I certainly stopped racing....surviving was more like it. I miraculously passed a couple girls during the 3rd mile but I was so far back in the field that it was pretty inconsequential to me at that point. Up the bear cage hill again, I think I would have preferred to be mauled by one of the bears than be running up that beast at that point, back down, past the GBTC camp again where Christy yelled "almost done! 400 more and you can kill Tom!" which made me laugh...summoning some sort of failure kick, and done in 27:33. Disgusting, just about my worst time at the distance, and 30 seconds slower than even my disastrous race at NIRCA 2 years ago. [Edit: I just remembered that I did run like a 27:20 at Griak, and I was in pretty good shape at that time. This makes me feel a little bit better.] I just really can't bring myself to be too angry about it. I obviously lost fitness the past 3 weeks and that's my own problem, and I think it's fine at this point to still be in a little bit of recovery mode from the marathon. If nothing else, the race was a great workout and a kick in the pants to get back to real training.

And also, because I only had the goal of run one XC race this year [with no mention of running it well...]...I achieved another 2010 goal! Hoorah. And I got a $5 gift card to Dunkin Donuts because they are a GBTC sponsor now. I got to hang out with/meet more girls from the team, cheer for the guys, and run a 100% stress free "race" which sometimes is a really good thing. And it seems like Tom cares to some extent about my training, which for me seems crazy because there are so many faster women in the club, so it's nice to feel like I have some potential to run fast at some point. In the end, can't really complain.

But for serious, it's time to train for real again. Indoor track approaches...

Momentary insanity

2010-11-04T15:48:00.000-05:00

All post-marathon & midterm blues aside, I've been enjoying my life the past couple of weeks. I've been content to frolic along, running as far and as fast as I wanted, whenever I wanted, and generally had no running related worries or cares. I was happy to rest on my laurels and just enjoy life without the idea of any impending race on the radar...after all, I had just PRed in the marathon, why on earth would I go back to racing without a nice break from spending any time on the red line?

And then I received an email addressed to the Baystate ladies, telling us that it would really be ever so wonderful if we raced at USATF-NE's this coming Sunday. Blame it on midterm studying madness, the extreme quantities of caffeine coursing through my veins, or the fact that I still get a kick out of the fact that I'm running for a pretty awesome club...but I got this email and was like "a 6K! a cross country race! oh boy! sign me up!"

It was approximately 4 hours later when the reality of this situation hit. Last time I did anything resembling speed work? October 3, a month ago, at the Providence 5K. Total miles run in the past 2 weeks? Er...32. Oh. crap. This isn't going to be very enjoyable at all.

I couldn't make it to Tuesday practice because I had a midterm the next day, but I decided yesterday that if I didn't want to feel like I wanted to stab myself for 3.72 miles, I should probably go do the workout to remind my legs what the whole "running fast" business was all about. It was just 4 x 800 with 200 jog recoveries, which on paper doesn't sound bad, but when you're running them FAST (and really I was only hitting 5K pace, something tells me it should have been a bit faster)....yeeow.

It didn't go too badly, I had wanted to get the workout in on the outdoor track but unfortunately some mystery BU team was doing a workout so I was stuck on the indoor track. 800s were at 3:10, 3:14, 3:14, 3:17 and none of them were easy. Which I guess is fine - I highly doubt my ability to throw down 6:30 pace for a 6K XC race right now, but since my PR is only a 25:39...well...it wouldn't be a horrible thing to shoot for a PR. We'll see. It's been almost 2 years to the day since I set foot on an XC course and since I have always adored XC [joining XC my senior year of high school was 100% my gateway drug to distance running] I can't deny that I'm a little excited to feel grass under my spikes again. I will probably be the slowest GBTC woman there but whatevs...I'm sure it will be a fun time nonetheless. And by fun I mean painful...yeah.

Either way, I suppose it will be a nice "welcome back" to my legs...hah.

P.M.S

2010-10-31T10:35:00.000-05:00

No, it doesn't mean what you think. Try "post-marathon-syndrome", combined with a little "pleaseletmepassmy-midterms-syndrome", lol. Put these two together and it's been a pretty lame couple of weeks on the running front. I took my standard 4 days off after the race and tried to start running again on Friday, but it's been pretty craptastic due to a combination of my hamstrings still being really tight, and the fact that I've had 3 major midterms since the marathon that required more than a little bit of studying and caused me more than a little bit of stress.

I think I was a little bummed out the week after the marathon too, obviously not because I was disappointed in my race [on the contrary...I was flying high on cloud 9 about my performance] but it was just a bit of a letdown...which I supposed is fairly normal to experience after something big has just happened. As nice as it's been taking a bit of a break after the race, it's been weird knowing that I'm not going to be doing that again for awhile. I had already decided that I wasn't going to run Boston until 2012, which turned out to be probably a good thing after the race closed in 8 hours...I can tell you that there's no way I would have signed up the day after Baystate even if I WAS planning on running. I feel like I'm making a smart choice in taking the opportunity to try to run some fast times and bring my PRs down on the track this spring, since as long as I'm young and still speedy there's really no time like the present, but I have to say I think that I might be more built for the longer distance races. And I really like the marathon. Sure I bitch and moan about the Sunday long runs and there are days when it feels like I'm skimping out on all sorts of real-life responsibilities because I need to go do a workout, but there is something about the marathon and the training for it that's different for me than for all other races. So I may feel like there's a little something missing this winter/spring when I'm not pushing myself through long runs in hurricane-like Nor'easters and such, but then again, I'm probably still going to be doing plenty of LR's in the higher teens as part of my "higher mileage = faster at all distances" discovery, and if I start seeing things in the 19:30 range on the track, well then, I'm sure I won't be whining about missing the marathon anymore haha.

So I will definitely be doing track in the spring, and my original plan was to focus on XC in the fall, but I made the interesting discovery that my time at Baystate gave me an auto-qualifier for NYC. To be completely honest the NYC marathon isn't something I'd ever really considered because a) I had no delusions of hitting the qualifying time, and I don't like leaving my fate up to a lottery and b) I don't really think I like big-city marathons [which reminds me of a post idea I have entitled "why I like running Baystate better than Boston"]....but since the qualifying standard is so much faster than Boston, it is slightly enticing. I mean, or I could just run Baystate again....I think now and forever, in the rest of my marathon career, I will always consider Baystate my "home" course. Anyway, next fall is a long way off and I have plenty of time to figure it out.

That was a fairly pointless rambling. Apologies. It happens here frequently. On a more exciting note, since my own training is pretty lame at the moment, I think I've finally convinced Andrew to start running a little bit with me!! I told him I want to get him up to half an hour of running, and I'll never make him run more than that if he doesn't want to...seems fair, right? So far we've only gone a little over a mile but he's doing pretty well with running straight and not stopping. I tried to get him running a couple summers ago but I think he had the tendency to run too fast for his level of fitness and he hated it because of that...it's much more pleasant taking it slow, building up time, and then working on speed. I also have a friend in my PT program who doesn't run much these days, but wants to train for a half and she wants me to help her train...I think it would be fun coaching her, I don't have much experience training a beginner besides myself, but I think it would be a fun challenge.

Well, it's been a decent 2 weeks of rest - honestly, couldn't have come at a better time, because I had so much studying to do, and it was sort of nice not having to feel guilty about skipping a run because I needed to study. But I've probably lost some fitness and definitely feel kind of lame...it's high time I got back on a solid weekly mileage schedule to start the buildup for indoor track!

And here's a fabulous picture from Baystate to finish off this post

There is nothing in the world to compare to this feeling.

Looking good, feeling great: Baystate Marathon 2010

2010-10-18T22:44:00.002-05:00

aka Don't Stop Believin', taken to the extreme
aka Tom isn't completely insane
aka loving my life
aka becoming legit.

This is probably going to be like 20 pages long. And it will probably take as long to write as it took for me to run the damn race. And it's sappy, and a little ridiculous, and more than a little rambly. So if you read the whole thing I salute you...and would recommend finding a blanket and a beverage [I am enjoying a victory Fin du Monde as we speak]...otherwise feel free to skim, there are several pictures!

So you may have noticed that I didn't blog for pretty much the entire 2 weeks before the marathon - no crazy pre race jabberings, non of the usual. To be honest, my life has been CRAZY the past couple of weeks - last weekend I went back to my beloved Madison for the homecoming football game and insanity ensued, and this past week I was slammed with an exam on Monday and my first ever PT clinical on an inpatient rehab floor on Friday...not a whole lot of time to think about or dwell on the race. Which was a GOOD thing - it's hard to psych yourself out when you are spending the day helping with rehab on spinal cord patients [so. freaking. cool. I've been thinking that I might really want to go the neuro route in my PT career, and day 1 of my clinical has only confirmed this theory] So pretty much this entire week I haven't even had 5 seconds to think about the race. I did my usual taper runs, an easy 6 on Tuesday which pretty much felt like poo, then a couple of 4s and just some really short shakeouts at the end of the week. Everything was feeling pretty good and in place, but then again, it was before Boston too, so I wasn't exactly shouting from the mountaintops about what a fantastical race I was going to have. Just trying to stay focused and relaxed.

The day before the race I took the commuter rail up to Lowell to pick up my packet, which was an interesting experience in itself...I planned to take the noon train, but got into a crazy snafu at Government Center, waited forever for a green line train to North Station that apparently was never going to come, ended up power walking to Haymarket [great thing to do the day before a marathon, no?] and miraculously getting on an orange line train to North, and literally getting on the train to Lowell with 2 minutes to spare. On the train to Lowell I created my marathon day playlist and was actually planning on writing a quick pre-race blog...buuuut my computer has literally 40 minutes of battery life so that didn't quite pan out haha. I took a leisurely walk to the high school, and picked up my packet without much ado...compared to Boston, the Baystate 'expo' is about the most low key thing you could imagine...pretty much little tents for all the major shoe companies and a couple of cafeteria tables set up for packet pickup...and you know what, I am completely fine with that. No fuss whatsoever, I was in and out in 15 minutes with my number [171] and race packet in hand. The tech shirts this year are AWESOME, I absolutely love the new Baystate logo, and it was really nice that they decided to go to tech shirts this year, as well as different shirts for the marathon and half. Then I walked back to the train station and played Bejeweled on my phone for like 45 minutes while waiting for the next train home haha....really really addicting by the way. On the train on the way home, I wrote myself a little mental checklist sort of thing...just random reminders to myself for race day. Things like:
-STAY RELAXED
-listen to your legs/breathing...above all RELAX through 15
-if you're feeling good at 20, go for it the last 6.2
-gels at 7, 14, 21 (if you want)
-water every other stop, only take Gatorade if you think you need the sugar/salt
-the first few miles might feel weird, no panicking, RELAX
-pick off as many club women as possible
-HAVE FUN
- DON'T STOP BELIEVIN

You'll notice how many times the word "relax" appears in that checklist...and really, I think staying relaxed came to be a huge, huge factor in my success in this race. Anyway, I finally made it back to Boston and pretty much grabbed my stuff and headed to Charlestown, where we were staying with my friend Kelly who was driving us to the race. This was also the night of the HUGE Wisconsin vs #1 Ohio State game [BADGERS!!!!] and as it turns out Kelly's boyfriend used to play football for OSU...I don't think he liked me very much haha. At halftime they headed out to a bar to watch the rest of the game, and Andrew and I just relaxed and watched the rest of the AMAZING Badger victory. It was incredible seeing the student section storm the field and honestly watching the end of that game was the first time I really, truly got nervous about the race. For the Badgers to win was such a huge long shot [we haven't beaten a #1 ranked team since 1981, and we definitely haven't beaten Ohio State since I've been in school] and somewhere deep in my mind I had thought to myself "if the Badgers win, I'm going to have an amazing race". So stupid, but I felt like it was a good omen for the day to come. As soon as the game was over it was lights out...I still don't think it had quite hit me yet that once again I was here...on the bring of running a marathon...26.2 miles to glory.

I woke up only once during the night, at 4:15 am, and I fell back asleep pretty quickly and had a RIDICULOUS dream about putting my spandex shorts in the laundry, them somehow morphing into super baggy capris, and running around a mysterious marathon expo in a hotel ballroom trying to find some running shorts to buy before the race started, and NO ONE was selling running shorts. Er...talk about nerves manifesting themselves in an interesting way? Anyway, I was instantly awake with my alarm at 5, up and about, putting on my racing attire, grumpy that I couldn't effectively crumple my number because of the timing chip attached to the back, eating my banana and deconstructed peanut butter sandwich, making sure I had all my Gus and random crap I wanted for pre race...the half hour before we left went by in a flash and soon enough we were out the door and on the road to Lowell.

After a little bit of confusion with the GPS, we made it to the Tsongas Arena without incident. Everything was just as I remembered it...plentiful bathrooms, plenty of space, a comfortable lovely building to find a corner and prepare to race. Perfect. I quickly found myself a space after making a lap of the building to see if I could find any GBTC teammates. And here I was again, exactly a year later...in my corner, ipod on, stretching and waiting and hoping and wondering what the day was going to bring. Which is the thing about the marathon, or any race for that matter - you just don't know. You could be about to have the race of your life, an absolute breakthrough, or you might be about to have a total breakdown on the course. But unless some external factor- sickness or injury or whatever - is changing your outlook...you have no idea what the day is going to bring. All you can do is let it unfold and hope that your legs and heart and mind are ready.

We were there EARLY which is just my style...plenty of time to hit up the bathroom like 4 times [there was a HUGE line for the men's bathroom and none for the women's...I have to say, this was the first time in my life I've ever experienced that. And perhaps it accounted for the multitude of men I saw peeing off in corners out on the course...or the one man I saw randomly peeing into a bottle on the concourse of the arena...awkward.] ANYWAY...enough bathroom tales. I bounced around and assaulted Andrew [I decided that after 3 years he deserves to actually be called his name instead of the BF...haha] with my ipod music and he told me I was nervous and I was like, no just excited! Which was amazingly, true! I can't say I was ever nervous-nervous. Maybe I've finally reached the turning point in my career where I'm able to not have a panic attack over races? Because I really had no specific goals set for the race, but I knew I was fit, I was pretty much just excited to get out there and see what I could do. Soon enough it was time to head to the start line...no sooner were we out the door of the arena when we ran into Kelly, who has been my training buddy all summer and pretty much the one who got me through the darkest days of marathon training. We walked together to the start, I really wanted to hit up the porta potty one last time but the lines were INSANE and I wasn't messing with my start for the sake of what was probably just nerves anyway...so I headed back to the start with Kelly. I also saw a gaggle of 3 PUGS right before the start...which had to be a good sign, right? Because I love pugs, and pugs x 3 are even better. :) Just like last year, we were right at the front of the pack which was fine by me...better the front than the back! And then we waited...making small talk with a girl nearby, bouncing up and down, waiting.

Finally the loudspeaker came on as someone welcomed us to Lowell and to the marathon...they were going to play the national anthem but apparently there was some glitch in the player or mike and so they couldn't play it. Suddenly, someone out of the crowd of runners started singing, and people started joining in. It was such a quiet morning and the only sound was of this crowd of runners, each of us standing on the line, about to begin this marathon journey, all singing the national anthem. It was, no lie, one of the coolest moments I have ever experienced, and I was holding back tears as I sang...it was just so powerful and really, really cool. I had to keep the emotions in check though because as soon as the song was over...it was go time!

I can't even remember if there was a gun, or a horn, or just someone saying go, I don't even know...but we were moving towards the line, and about 10 seconds after whatever mysterious GO signal occured, I was over the timing mat, starting my watch, and off on the journey that would be my 3rd marathon.

Miles 1-8: Calm mind
7:04, 7:24, 7:41, 7:41, 7:38, 7:41, 7:43, 7:36
The first mile was the usual flurry of adrenaline and half marathoners shooting by and just general blazing insanity. My mind was on a continuous loop of relax relax RELAX but it's really hard to relax when everyone is busting out of the gate and it's always hard to get a handle on pace the first mile of any race, let alone a marathon. My effort seemed a little high but I wasn't sure if that meant I was about to have a very bad day or if I was just running like a moron...my fears were alleviated when I came through the 1 mile mark in 7:04...err...AHH! Way, WAY too fast, obviously. But, ya know, keep calm and carry on. I have to say I was sort of in shock because yeah, I knew I was running harder than marathon effort, but to be honest...it didn't feel THAT much harder. Alright, dial it back Audrey, don't be an idiot. Mile 2 was a 7:24, still too fast, and I must have made some sort of noise when I saw the 2 mile go by at under 15 minutes, because a dude in a grey shirt next to me was like "yikes, too fast" and I was like "uh yeah"...which of course he took as his signal to begin a conversation with me, which was OK I suppose...for a couple minutes. He asked me what I was hoping to run and for the first time I actually blurted out "3:20...if I have a really good day. But probably 3:30" And he was like, "oh, I HAVE to run under 3:30"...I assume that would be his BQ time. We actually hung together for awhile, and I can't remember whether I passed him or he passed me, but one way or another I didn't see him any more after awhile. I also got the first sight of my cheering section of Kelly and Andrew at the 2 mile - which was so much fun because I wasn't expecting to see them until later in the race!

Mile 2...me in the red singlet off the shoulder of the girl in the red long sleeve

Finally, with mile 3, I fell into the steady steady pace that I would keep until mile 20. Mile 3: 7:41. Mile 4: 7:41. Nice little downhill through the back neighborhood, I seriously felt like I knew this course like the back of my hand. Every mile marker, every little hill, I remembered it all so vividly from last year and it was really mentally nice to be like "oh yeah, I remember feeling like this mile took forever, but the mile marker is just after this store..." or whatever. Mile 5 - 7:38. Mile 6 -7:41. I took my first Gu [Tri-Berry...which I had made a special trip to Marathon Sports to buy because although I've shaken most of my ridiculous racing superstitions, I needed the damn Tri-Berry Gu...not mandarin orange, not vanilla..tri-berry. OK?] and it was delicious, and the "hills" in the backside of the course were pretty much nonexistent compared to the crap that I ran on at Cape Ann and Nahant, and I was feeling like a rockstar. At the same time I was mildly perplexed that I was running as fast as I was and feeling as good as I was, because in all of my raceday prep/calculations, the fastest I even dreamed of running on like...the best day ever...was 7:50s. And thus far I had seen exactly zero miles at or over 7:50s. So obviously that kind of factored into the back of my mind...like hmm...is this all going to end in disaster? But I really tried to keep the negative thoughts at bay and just focus on the moment, and at this moment, I was feeling strong and amazing. Might as well ride it out and see what develops!

At mile 7.5 there was a great water stop, I actually forgot but I probably should have voted for them in the high school challenge. They were super enthusiastic, they were playing music, and there was a girl with a giant DON'T STOP BELIEVIN sign which for some reason almost brought me to tears. I was only at mile 7 but down in my gut...somewhere...I just know. You know when you are in a race and you just KNOW? That today is your day and everything you could possibly dream of is out on that course for the taking? I think that was the moment I realized it. Everything just felt so, so RIGHT. I was feeling fantastic and strong at this pace, reeling people in and passing them like it was my job, occasionally a girl would fly past me but something told me she would come back...everything just seemed to be falling into place. At mile 8 I got to see my cheering section again and I was grinning and waving my arms in the air, giving the thumbs up for the camera, etc. Never in a race could I ever remember feeling this wonderful and happy. In the back of my mind there were still a few doubts as to whether I could keep it, after all there were 18 miles to go. But I think in my heart I knew that I would.

Mile 8, feeling great! Onward to the bouncy bridge...

Miles 9-13.1: Hips don't lie

7:42, 7:36, 7:37, 7:34, 7:37, 1:39:30 at the half

Over the bouncy bridge I ran, it was just as unsettling as last year although less slippery which I appreciated. Honestly it almost felt like I didn't have to do any work to run over it which was nice...I guess...but still weird, and felt very weird when I got back on solid ground. I still was looking at my splits with this feeling of disbelief and vague anxiety...I just kept expecting to see the slowdown before I felt it and so far I was just clicking off steady splits like it was my job. I spent what seemed like eternity with my eyes trained on a girl in blue shorts [you can see her ahead of me in the picture] and for the life of me I can't remember if I ever ended up passing her or not...but regardless, thank you blue shorts girl for giving me a target to pace off for some of the middle miles! I kept thinking to myself "I don't even know what I'm doing right now!"...which somehow made me think of the song Hips Don't Lie and the lyric "I don't, don't really know what I'm doing...but you seem to have a plan"...and then I thought to myself hah! It's like my legs have a plan, right? and I don't even know what's going on! And the song is about hips, and my hips are working really hard! So fitting right? Uh...okay...thank you marathon induced insanity lol. Anyway, 10 miles came and went and here I was still running under 7:40 pace, what in the world. Once again the little sneaky negative thoughts started sneaking in..."it's only the 10 mile, you can't keep this up, bah"...but I crushed them with my two mantras for the race: "Looking good, feeling great" and "LOVING MY LIFE!"...positive thoughts only. :)

I knew the half was coming up and was getting excited because that meant bridge + crowds + cheering section + halfway, etc. Miles 11 and 12 seemed to take a very long time, and I though that I was slowing down, but like clockwork I kept looking at my watch and there those beautiful splits were. Lots of cheers for GBTC along this stretch, and I saw Tom who yelled something to the effect of "you're running for the winning team right now!" Unsure of how to respond to that, I think I threw my hands up and yelled woo! or something equally stupid haha. If I remember right, mile 12 or so was the only time during the race where I took Gatorade [vs water, which I took at about every other stop, but I've realized I really dislike the taste and stickiness of Gatorade during a race]...and part of my motivation was this high school kid who was singing and dancing and yelling about his glorious Gatorade...it made me laugh. Soon enough we were at the bridge...and did I miss the memo about the whole bridge being a gradual uphill? Because...yeah...it seemed to last pretty much forever, and I was psyched to see the other side. As soon as I hit the other side, I saw Andrew and Kelly again, yelling and just going crazy. I was grinning from ear to ear, and I yelled at them "who AM I????" I was just in complete and utter disbelief at the pace I was running, what I was doing, and how this race was unfolding.

Probably the best race photo ever taken of me...complete and utter joy :)

I hit the half in 1:39:30...yeah...like a minute off my half PR and my second best half ever...WHAT?? A guy nearby said something like "I have this strange sense of deja vu...like I've been here before" as we headed out on the second lap...I was like "yeah, but I didn't expect to be back so soon!" At the half I was already 10 minutes ahead of last year and showing no signs of blowing up anytime soon...

Miles 14-20: I'm not afraid

7:37, 7:41, 7:37, 7:45, 7:43, 7:45, 7:55

I remembered the second time around the backside of the course being tough mentally, and this year was no different. It's like after the adrenaline rush of passing the half in such great time, you go back into the somewhat ugly, sort of "hilly" as far as this course goes, section, and you're too far out from the finish to be close to home but far enough away from the start that fatigue is definitely starting to set in. I took my Lemon Sublime Gu at 14 or so, and saw Ryan, Katie, and Kelly's parents around the same time...who told me I was looking strong! And I felt strong! It was around this point of the course that I picked up Chatty Cathy and her pal Chatty McChats a lot. Remember my tale of the talkers at Nahant? This was just as bad, if not worse. Ahh! These two girls, running along and just talking! I'm not knocking people who talk during races, it's just...we're clearly running a fairly competitive pace, and I couldn't deal with being near these two just talking away about their social lives and plans for the week and just random crap while I was trying to focus on my race. It took me a couple of miles to pass them, and even then they were on my heels for a solid 3 miles more before I finally lost them for good. To distract myself from the talking I tried to find a song to throw into my mental mp3 player...here's what I came up with

I'm not afraid to take a stand

Everybody come take my hand

We'll walk this road together

Through the storm

Whatever weather, cold or warm

Just lettin' you know you're not alone

holler if you feel like you've been down the same road

And it was true. I wasn't afraid anymore. All of the demons that had plagued me since Boston, that I wasn't good enough or fast enough or strong enough to ever run a better marathon than I did last year, that I couldn't really compete, that I didn't have that mental toughness or something....I just KNEW. I finally knew that I did. And after coming this far in this race I knew - even if I hit the wall from here on out - I'm coming in under 3:30. And holy crap, is this happening? Is this for real? It is, it is, it IS!! People were slowing down and I was passing them, as I chug chugged along. Soon enough we came up on the 7.5/17.5 aid station, where the girl with the Don't Stop Believin sign was...I couldn't help but to throw out my hand [which had DON'T STOP BELIEVIN written on it] and be like "I love your sign!!" Once again, the entire backstretch I really felt like I was slowing down, but really I guess it was that my effort was going up [obviously] but I was still holding pace. Freaking holding pace! I knew the breakdown was coming and when it did it wasn't going to be fun, but at this point I knew that barring walking the last 6 miles, a PR was in the bag, now all that was left to do was see just how big of a PR it could be.

At 18 I got to see my incredible cheering section again, which obviously gave me a boost, and Kelly jumped it with me briefly and told me that if I needed her at mile 23, she'd be there to run me in. I was still feeling great at that point but had the feeling that 5 miles down the road it was entirely possible that I would be in need of support. Having her and Andrew out there at so many spots along the course all day was just incredible for me...knowing that they were going to be there in just a few more miles was such a huge energy boost, and being able to smile and look strong when I came past made things all the better. :)

Mile 18, and over the bouncy bridge once again! There was a lot of cheering going on for myself and the pack of girls I was with, which I guess should have been my first indication that we weren't too far back in the general scheme of overall women [I ended up as 32nd woman overall]. I wasn't feeling bad yet, but I was definitely starting to feel...well...less good. Relaxation and fun times and rainbows were over now...with 8 miles to go of one of the best races I've run in my life, it's time to get down to the nitty gritty. But I still kept repeating that mantra "looking good, feeling great. looking good, feeling great" You could see people starting to break down and the number of people I passed increased by a lot over the last 8 miles as people began walking, stopping to stretch things out, or just dramatically slowing down. I had grabbed a Gu at the 17.5 aid station and was planning on waiting until 21 to take it, but I could feel my legs starting to grumble and I was thinking glycogen depletion was probably a reason, so I decided to mow down on it at like mile 19...with no aid station in sight. GENIUS I tell you...let's just say I hope there were no photographers in the vicinity, because I probably look like I crawled out of a swamp with chocolate Gu absolutely coating my teeth, lovely!

At the mile 20 mark someone had painted "THE WALL" on the sidewalk...I yelled out to no on in particular "THERE IS NO WALL!!!" I was slowing down a bit but nothing super significant, and I figured even though I had dropped a bit of time I could hold it for the last 6 miles. I can't remember what the clock at 20 read, but it was something like 2:30. I came to the realization that I had an entire HOUR to run the last 6.2 miles to come in under 3:30 [still, STILL not even considering the sub 3:25. I still couldn't even believe it.] and it was like...this is happening. I may crash and burn and burst into flames in the next 6 miles, but unless I am reduced to a walk for a significant portion of the rest of this race, I'm hitting sub-3:30.

Miles 21-26.2: Don't stop believin'

7:56, 7:59, 7:56, 7:57, 7:59, 7:55, 1:38

And just like last year, this is where it gets really, really hard. And you have to dig deep and find, somewhere, those last ounces of strength and will that are going to carry you home. I really don't think anything could have adequately prepare me for the incredible pain in my left leg that started emerging at mile 21 and continued on through the finish. It was probably the most painful thing I've felt in a race - and that includes the hamstring cramps at Boston. It was like every single muscle fiber in my left leg [right leg? totally fine. Kind of makes no sense, but okay] was screaming NO NO NO like an angry child throwing a temper tantrum. It. HURT. Would I have loved my life if that hadn't been the case? Yeah. But I was accepting of the fact that it was happening, because DUH, it's the last 5 miles of a marathon. It's SUPPOSED to hurt. And if it doesn't, you're not running hard enough.

I think it's a scientific fact that the further you get in a distance race, the further apart the mile markers are. Seriously, it's science. Because I swear I thought the 22 mile mark was never going to show up. All I wanted was to get to 23 and see Kelly and Andrew and have Kelly come talk to me through the last 3 miles...and it just felt like I was never going to get there. Once again I was trying so hard to keep the negative thoughts and doubts out - every time I would think to myself "well, if you go over 8 minute pace at this point it's totally OK..." I would snap out of it and be like NO! You do not need to go over 8 minute pace! Come ON! "Looking good, feeling great" didn't seem super applicable anymore, but any sort of random motivating phrases I could throw into my head were doing the trick at keeping me moving.

After what seemed like an eternity, I FINALLY hit the 23 mile mark, and even though the pain was..well...painful! I still managed to smile and fist pump at Andrew...and hit myself on the chest...meaning "it's all here now...from here you run with your heart". Kelly jumped it with me and I told her I just needed her to talk to me. I could not have asked for a better person to get me through the 3 toughest miles of my life...she was so incredibly motivating, telling me how strong I was and getting me to stay on pace, to pass people, to just keep moving...without her I doubt I would have kept my pace through the last 3 miles, and I am so grateful to her for that. We came to the last water station just past mile 24 [2 miles to go!] and I veered over to grab one last drink. As I started running out of the station, I suddenly heard the most glorious opening bars of any song in existence that I know of...

DON'T STOP BELIEVING!!!!!!

Oh. My. God. Words absolutely cannot describe the level of happiness that I felt in that moment. It sounds ridiculous but I'm not kidding when I say that every single time I hear the opening bars of that song, whether it be in a bar, on my ipod, randomly playing out of a car, in a store, whatever...a jolt of happiness runs through me. I literally threw my arms in the air, thought I was going to burst into tears, and let out some sound that was somewhere between a scream and a yelp, and Kelly was like...what? what? I was like no no no...this is MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE SONG EVER!! 2 miles to go, in the best race I've run in my entire life, and this song...this perfect perfect perfect song...it was like at that moment I was simply exactly where I was meant to be. All the miles, cramming in workouts between exams and studying and everyone I knew thinking I was completely insane, the times and times when I just didn't think I could do it, when I couldn't see the point, when I just couldn't understand why I was doing this...and feeling like I would never be able to truly RACE a marathon. This...this moment....this was why I was doing it. To be more than I ever dreamed I could be.

2 miles to go. I can't imagine 2 miles hurting more than those 2 miles hurt. Dear sweet lord I thought my left leg was going to come ripping off of my body. And yet I STILL was holding pace. After I slowed down by 10 seconds at 20, I kept that pace for the rest of the race, which I have to say given how I felt, I'm really proud of. Kelly continued to be the best motivator imaginable, urging me to pass people, and just getting me through to the next mile marker. Mile 25 and here we go...1.2 miles to go. This is really happening and I am about to run a sub 3:25 marathon....I couldn't even believe it was real. Finally we ran down that beautiful hill, past that beautiful track, and past that beautiful sign of ONE MILE TO GO...where someone had leaned a poster board with a drawing of the Citgo sign. And yet again...cue the near waterworks...because it was just one more reminder that every bit of negativity, how much I was beaten down, and every single thought in my mind after Boston that was "I'm not good at this, and I'm never going to run a great marathon", every demon I had harbored since that race...all of it was finally gone. And here I was, knowing I could doing it, and believing in my heart that I was for real.

The last mile seemed to take a second and an hour at the same time. Knowing exactly where the finish was and having to sort of loop around it before you got to go there was just agonizing, I think last year it was raining so hard that I couldn't SEE the finish so I had no clue how close it really was. My form was totally falling apart and I was struggling like crazy, but I refused to slow down. Finally - FINALLY - we hit that glorious "speed tunnel" bridge [straight into the wind, of course, not exactly lovely haha] and Kelly was like "I KNEW you could do it, GO GET IT!" and off I went, around the turn and the 26 mile mark, and into the glorious stadium. The warning track seemed a LOT longer than last year but I "kicked" with every single ounce that my body had left to give. Looking up and seeing 3:22 on the clock, all I could do was throw my fist in the air, close my eyes, and just revel in the absolute magic of this moment.

I think they have space blankets on Cloud 9 :)

After the race, I went through my usual semi-hyperventilation/almost crying from happiness/laughing from joy all at the same time. And also, in a lot of pain. You know the kind of pain where you almost laugh because it hurts so much? That's what my legs felt like. All I wanted was to find Andrew and Kelly, but without my phone I had no idea how I was going to go about doing that, so I basically just aimlessly wandered the stadium and occasionally plopped down in a random chair when I couldn't deal with walking anymore. Finally I found them, and was starting to pull myself back together...although food was still of absolutely no interest whatsoever. But by about 20 minutes after my finish, I was coming back to life pretty well, and was able to stand around without feeling like my legs were going to collapse like Jello underneath me or possible just straight up fall off.

So we went to the awards ceremony to watch Marybeth get her 2nd place OA award and Zandra get her 2nd place AG award, and just generally reconvene as a team. I had a beer which tasted delish, but food still wasn't so enticing at this point. We drove home and of course had to go to American Craft for the necessary post race fries with blue cheese beer sauce, burgers, and some tasty pumpkin beer...yes yes. :) Annnnnd then I fell asleep at 9:30 while watching Arrested Development...because I'm awesome like that. Clearly after a day like that sleep is 100% necessary. My legs started to get kind of achy later in the night, so I took an aspirin which I think helped with the inflammation a little bit, because I feel much better today that I did after my previous 2 marathons...actually semi-capable of walking around like a normal human being, although I definitely am having some trouble with stairs, especially after sitting in a lecture hall for 2 hours.

So. Yeah. 17:05 shaved off my PR in one shot. Never, never, never in my absolute wildest fantasies and dreams did I EVER expect to run this fast. In the back of my mind I knew I would most likely go 3:35, it would be sweet if I went under 3:30, and if I was anywhere near 2:25, well, that would be freaking incredible. But 3:22? No way. Not on the radar. But everything came together, the training, the mentality, the lack of psych-outage, the staying relaxed, the just letting my damn legs RUN...and I could not have asked for a more magical, amazing race.

Somewhere, in the deep recesses of my mind, I must have known I could do it. If I didn't think I could, I would have backed off the pace, or never gone out that fast in the first place, or panicked, and would have never known what I could truly do. But somewhere there was that tiny spark of a thought that was whispering "You are better than you know. You are better than your times make you seem. And today is the day to show the world, and show yourself, what you really are."

It's funny, because when I signed up for this marathon I had no specific aspirations or goals other than to requalify for Boston. And my training was so much less regimented, and so much more about getting the miles in, doing the long runs, getting workouts in when it made sense and when it felt good, running easy on the easy days and hard when it seemed like a good idea. I really thought that even if my fitness was right, I would never have the guts after Boston to go for a goal time ever again. But somehow, I knew, that yesterday was the day. And now I feel like I've blown my marathon possibilities wide open...that this is a huge breakthrough race for me. I mean, I basically just ran a time that in my wildest imagination I didn't think I would achieve in my lifetime. All because I finally figured out how to relax, let my legs do their thing, and not be afraid to take my shot.

Boston 2012, you better get ready. I've got a score to settle. :)

As a PS though it's likely none of them will ever read this, I also have to give the biggest thanks possible to Kelly my training partner, for being the catalyst for pretty much everything I've done this training cycle, talking me out of tears when I just couldn't bear the thought of going on another 7 am long run in the middle of the summer, and generally being an incredible role model and inspiration. And a thanks to Kelly my new running buddy, for the pasta, couch to sleep on, ride to the race, and for getting me through the last 3 miles, I could not be more grateful. And finally of course, thanks to Andrew, for not being mad when I occasionally ditch him for running and for learning that spectating a marathon can actually be very fun...which is a good thing, since he's got many more coming. :)

And if you made it this far in my race report, congratulations to you as well! Because given my wordiness that's quite an epic feat haha. I'm sure I'll be back with some sort of wrap-up recap and what's next post sometime in the near future...but I think I've given you enough to read for now. :)

Never, never, never stop believin'.

I always knew :)

2010-10-17T15:13:00.000-05:00

3:22:10
(yes, for those of you keeping score at home, that's a 17:05 PR)

Words cannot accurately express how thrilled I am about this race. I never, NEVER in my wildest dreams expected to run sub 3:30 at this race, let alone 3:22. I am absolutely overjoyed....full race report coming soon...for now...burgers and beer!!!!

I'm not afraid

2010-10-05T13:57:00.001-05:00

So much running, not enough blogging! Y'all know how it goes.

Well, I think I've sat down like 3 times in the past couple of weeks to write about something or another - mostly about the events of the week where I ran 80 MILES due to having to do my long run from the previous week (20) on Monday and then that week's long run (22) on Sunday. The short version: the 20 miler was probably the best 20 I've ever done, I felt completely relaxed and smooth the entire time, and completely forgot about the fact that I was running 20 miles...never had that happen on a major long run before. The 22 was definitely harder, the fatigue of the week had obviously caught up (since I did a hard track workout of 2 x [800, 1200, 1600 @ 5K pace] on Tuesday...yup...the day after the 20 miler) and another easy 10 on Friday. But it was hard in a good way, in the way of "I know my legs are fatigued, but this feels pretty damn good for having run 80 miles this week" way...and I also guarantee I negative split the last 5 miles as usual...that's just my style haha.

Which led into this week, the last "big" week of training I guess you could say, even though in reality by this point the hay is pretty much in the barn. This week was more of a sharpening time with a long tempo on Tuesday and *gulp* a 5K race on Sunday. If you had ever told me before now that racing a 5K 2 weeks before a marathon I would have called you crazy, but Tom was really adamant about the marathoners doing it and that guy knows his stuff, so 5K it was! Tuesday's practice was a 10K on the track in disgusting humidity and mist, and I felt like shit during the warmup and through the first couple miles, just logey and like my legs didn't want to fire. Then the further along we got, the better I felt, and the girl I was running with ended up dropping after 4.5 miles and I finished out the last 1.7 with negative splits. Fun!

Nothing much exciting the rest of the week, just easy-moderate running, which could really be the title of this training cycle for me. Do a few hard workouts, and other than that, just run. Run fast, run slow, just run. And I was about to discover that the "just run" philosophy apparently pays dividends on the shorter end of the racing spectrum too, since Sunday I went out and ran my second fastest 5K EVER, less than 20 seconds off my track PR and a road PR by over a minute. Oh, and I spent the entire day before drinking while standing watching football.

Wait....what??

For serious. The race was the RMH Providence Women's Classic, which this year was the USATFNE grand prix 5k for women's teams. As an aside, I cannot recommend this race enough!!! Pro #1 - $15 entry fee...tell me when the last time you saw one of those was! Pro #2 - for the cheap-o entry fee, you get not only your choice of either a long sleeve cotton shirt or a short sleeve tech shirt [being able to choose was a nice touch], but also a cute little polka dot spike bag with the race logo on it, and my personal favorite thing...a coffee mug with the race logo! Oh, and none of these things have advertising logos anywhere. I love it! Pro #3 - flat, well marked course ending with a really cool finish on the Brown U track. So huge, HUGE props to the RMH Providence running club...you guys put on a fantastic race!

I was very mehhh about the race going in....given my lack of speedwork, my confidence was not high about running a solid time even though I know I'm obviously fit. I also woke up and just felt weird the morning of [maybe just a little bit hungover...ooops] but some Gatorade and breakfast helped that. Didn't feel great on the warmup, but whatever, that's pretty standard. I was SO excited to race in my new road flats...which I am completely in love with.

Not that easy to see in this pic but...Saucony A3s...my new pride and joy :)

Got on the line with the HUGE group of GBTC girls...that was pretty cool. The past 2 races I did with the club there were only a few women racing but since this was the grand prix the team was out in force. So there was all sorts of cheering and clapping and yelling and high fiving and general excitement and it was GREAT!!! Such a change from every other race I've done the past year where I've stood alone in a sea of people, looking around and just waiting for the race to start so I could stop awkwardly standing there. I still don't really know many of the girls but it was fantastic just to be a part of the team thing again, finally.

So we all thought the race was about to start, but then of course they had to sing the national anthem, and then without warning the gun fired and off we went! I forgot how crazy the first half mile of a 5K is...just screaming insanity, and your body being like "what the #*%)# are you doing??" as you try to run as faaaaast as you can. I just locked on a couple red singlets in front of me and went. First mile was a 6:08 or something, I hit my watch a little late because Tom was taking pictures and I didn't want to be taking splits for a picture haha, but as I came up on the clock and saw it ticking down the ends of the 5s I honestly let out a little gasp/odd noise because I had NO IDEA that I was/was capable of running that fast at the moment.

It hurrrt obviously, that's the fastest mile I've run in...uh...like a year and a half...so now we were into mile 2 and it seemed to take FOREVER. Like longest mile of my life, seriously. I got passed by a couple women but I also passed a couple others so it evened out. I could tell I had slowed down a little bit but it was fairly obvious that that was going to happen haha. Mile 2 finally showed up, the clock wasn't working but I had 12:45 net time on my watch and I knew if I could hold on I would at least come close to a PR.

The last mile is where I wish I could have manned up juuuuust a little bit more. (of course its always easy to say that in retrospect, when you aren't in the process of feeling like you're going to puke everywhere and like your legs are going to fall off, hah) I think if I had known the course a little better I would have kicked earlier - I didn't realize that when we got into the stadium it was only like ~150m to the finish. But regardless...when I got close-ish to the finish I started trying to push it even though I honestly thought I was going to vom...passed a Whirlaway girl...got into the stadium, onto the track, and in my mind thought "kick like Jade!" (my former teammate who just has a wicked kick) and blew past one other girl, through to the finish. I was a little disappointed when I saw the clock click into the 20s, but I couldn't deny that I had just run my second best 5K ever, on NO 5K TRAINING, and a road PR by over a minute. Holy eff. 20:12.

It's funny because I think about track two years ago, and how I was about ready to explode with joy when I ran 20:27 and 20:18 when I was really seriously training for the 5K...and those were on the track. And now I just busted out a 20:12 on the road, and granted this is at the end of a marathon training cycle so obviously I'm fit, but with no real speed workouts to speak of. So this is...good. And needless to say, makes me very, VERY excited to see what I can do on the track this spring.

And then I got home from the race and ran 10 miles. Because that's just how I roll. :)

But wait, you say, isn't this girl training for some marathon that's in 2 weeks? Ohhhh right! Haha. Well it's been interesting actually having a coach/being a part of a team for the end stages of this training cycle, because it's made me rethink some of the things I did in taper the last couple of times around. (Case in point...racing a 5K 2 weeks before the marathon). Tom doesn't really believe in taper, or he does but not the extreme, drastic way I've done it in the past. It kind of once again falls under the category of "don't overthink it, just run".

So you may wonder: do I have some goals and aspirations for the marathon given that I've been racing and training well lately? Obviously in my mind I have them...yes. But I will work with whatever my body gives me on race day and there is a wide continuum of numbers that I will be pleased to see. That's about all I'll say about that for now...Tom apparently thinks I'm going to run out of my brain (I refuse to even put the number he threw out at me up here because its so insane, and if I actually achieved it I think my head would explode), and he wants us to win the team title again at Baystate. I will most likely be the 3rd GBTC runner which means I count for our score - meaning I actually need to run well for the sake of the team, not just for myself. The combination of team pressure and high expectations is making me a little bit nervous, I must say. But I refuse to get sucked into what happened at Boston and let my mind get carried away and completely psych myself out before race day. It's interesting because throughout this whole training cycle, I've never really thought to myself 'damn, I am MARATHON TRAINING!! I need to do all of these crazy pace workouts, and run fast a lot, and run my long runs as hard as I can' I have just been doing these runs, running a lot of miles, once in awhile doing a workout. Simple. And yet, over August and September, the two 'big' months of training, I've run 7 miles less than I ran before Boston. 7. And by this point before Boston, I was overtrained, sluggish, and miserable. Now, I'm just doing what my legs tell me and enjoying the ride. And I think that's the plan for raceday: shut off the brain, and let my legs do their thing. They're obviously ready..it's time to sit back, relax, let them loose and see what happens. :)

AND - I cannot be afraid to absolutely let it rock if my legs say yes. Because I know I've got a really good marathon in me and if the conditions and day is right, I've gotta go big or go home. :)

It's alright because I like the way it hurts

2010-09-16T12:11:00.000-05:00

Where to begin, where to begin...well, last week was an absolutely amazing week of training, and I had a whole bunch of firsts happen:
-First 70 MILE week!
-First time racing twice in one week (with a 25K on Monday and a 30K on Sunday, I really ease into it, huh?)
-First time racing in a GBTC singlet
And I am definitely still trying to recover since it should be fairly obvious that a week like that is going to leave the legs a little beat up. But as the song says....it's alright, because I LIKE the way it hurts! It's a hurt that tells me I've got my mojo baaaaack! Sooo let's start with item #1!

[Side note: I just realized that this is kind of an unintentional 3 Things Thursday too....man, I am just really awesome today :P Also this post is really long because it includes a race report...and I didn't really think I was going to write a full race report of Nahant but it just sort of happened...bear with me.]

So - 70 FREAKING MILES!! I've run 66-68 mile weeks before but 70 just looks so much more impressive, wouldn't you say? I did get a little help from the fact that I raced twice this week, but I could have easily let the mileage slide in between and I most definitely did not. Here's how the week panned out:
Monday: Cape Ann 25K + 1 mile warmup = 16.5 miles...you all heard about that race already :)

Tuesday: 3.4 mile warmup/tempo? @ 7:15 pace with GBTC, followed by 6 miles eaaaasy in Arlington and Belmont with a couple other women who raced on Monday. The GBTC warmups are hilarious....and by hilarious I mean super crazy fast. But to me its sort of a...I don't know...badge of honor to stay with a pack during the warmup so since my legs weren't feeling that bad I decided to just stick with the middle pack. I actually felt really good, but it was nice to run super slow after.

Wednesday: OFF! Mentally, I just needed it.

Thursday: 8.7 mile progression coming in at 7:17 pace overall...felt amaaaazing. I went out in the Newton Hills like the crazy I am and just felt like I was flying through the night. Probably started out around 7:40 and I wouldn't be surprised if I was hitting sub-7s by the end...thanks in part to my unending need to race people on the res. Hey, those boys needed to be taught a lesson :P

Friday: Easy 11 with Kelly, who has been my running mentor, friend, coach, and the person who [finally, finally] taught me that running easy IS OK AND BENEFICIAL. Seriously, I have been running with her a lot this training cycle and we usually keep things in the 8:20s-8:40s...which when I get home and see my pace, I'm like oh wow, we were going so slowww. But I really think this has been incredibly beneficial to my training as a whole in ways I never even realized...because I'm getting in a good deal of longer, 10-13 mile runs, along with my long runs during the week, but I'm still able to nail harder runs, workouts, and races. I guess I'll have to wait until October 17 to see what this has really been doing for me, but at the moment I'm thinking learning how to run truly easy is definitely a good thing!

Saturday: Pre-race 4.3....and I will admit that I was more than likely still a little tipsy from having spent my afternoon at a bar watching the Badger game...but hey, I still got my run in, right?

Sunday: Nahant 30K + 1.5 mile warmup/cooldown = 20.1 miles!

And so, this brings us to race #2 of the week, the Nahant 30K. I went into this race with pretty low expectations...and by low I mean none. I really wasn't all that jacked to do the race but I kept telling myself that it would be better than slogging through a long run all alone and I might as well just be entertained and have water and support out on the course. Since I raced pretty hard at Cape Ann and my legs were definitely feeling the burden of the past week, I was thinking that 8:20s - or basically, just an easy long run pace - would be totally fine. I had to wake up at 5:45 to meet Kelly and her husband to get to the race, and I was grumpy and sleepy and possibly the least excited to run a race as I had ever been in my life. Cape Ann was still extremely fresh in my mind [since, you know, it was 6 days before...] and while that race went really well and I was pleased, it wasn't exactly what I would call "fun" at many different points, and even though I was counting on running slower, I just wasn't super psyched to go through all that again.

We got to the start pretty early, wandered around, warmed up, etc. Probably a third of the field had done Cape Ann because apparently we are all batshit insane, so it was somewhat comforting to know that a lot of people probably weren't at 100%. I actually remembered to buy Gu for this race so I took a Lemon Sublime about 10 minutes before the start [I think no-caffeine is the way to go for me before the race...and this was a really tasty flavor]. Got up to the start with Kelly, other Kelly [who had been out drinking the entire night before and still ran 8:20 pace, she is a champion] and Joy...and then once again without much fanfare we were off...no chip timing again for this one since it was a pretty small race. We got off the line annnnd immediately I was behind people running slower than I wanted to go! [Remember how I was going to run easy long run pace? Yeeeaaah stay tuned...] I am a cross country girl at heart and I can't stand getting boxed in and stuck behind people where I don't want to be, so I was doing the bob & weave dance for a lot of the first mile trying to find my spot. We started off running around the building where the start was and then heading off down a long, straight, flat path next to the beach. I really had no concept of what was going on pace-wise [never do, really] and so I just kept trying to tell myself relax relax relax.

Right around the mile mark, wow I throw my elbows out a LOT when I run lol. Both these guys ended up finishing 3-5 minutes in front of me, so I kept seeing them when we hit random turnarounds. Another absolutely AWESOME thing about this race - the FREE!!! race photography that is absolutely amazing. This woman is so incredibly talented...so thanks Krissy Kozlowsky for the amazing photos!

So I hit mile 1 in 7:36 which was...ah...lets just say different? than what I expected to see. And as you probably already guessed, I figured whaaaat the heck, yes my legs are tired and this is supposed to be an easy long run buuuut here we are in a race....might as well stay relaxed and just, you know, see what we can hold onto here.

So then we got off the flatty flat beach path and into HOLY EFFING HILLS. I need to take a moment to say that everyone talks up Cape Ann as this crazy hilly race of death and no one mentions Nahant. Let me be the one to break the silence: I thought Nahant was without a doubt a harder course than Cape Ann. And it's also 3 miles longer. So whoever said that "oh, Nahant isn't that bad compared to Cape Ann" is a liar mcliarpants...because once again, I was going to spend the next 17 miles contemplating life on some of the biggest and steepest hills I've ever dealt with in a race.

So there were hills and hills and hills. Obviously it was early, but my legs already felt sort of fatigued - which I realize is what you get when you race on Monday and then just run through the week into another race. And yet I was rattling off some pretty steady, solid splits of 7:46, 7:41, 7:51, 7:53...and feeling generally OK about life. Not great, but OK. There wasn't a whole lot of movement/passing going on in the field after about mile 4, so I was just kind of chilling out by myself for a long stretch in the middle of the race. At mile 5 we ran up [another] big, long, steep hill to this gravel path that went around a random patch of grass at the top of the hill. There was a beautiful view of the ocean from the top, but it was also hilarious because it reminded me SO much of this XC course that we ran in college where you ran up this huge hill onto a huge gravel loop at the top. I hated that course [maybe because it was 3.3 miles instead of a 5K haha] but how similar this seemed made me smile.

Running alone on the gravel path just after the 5 mile mark, for the fact that it was only mile 5 I wasn't feeling that awesome, but trying hard to stay focused and relaxed!

So then I ran by myself some more...still staying really steady and consistent even though [or maybe because] I had no on around to pace off of. 7:53, 7:45, 7:42, 7:54. I seriously probably had a 200 m cushion at least in front of and behind me for quite awhile. We ran up some more hills [by this point, that wasn't even surprising anymore] and into a 3 mile lollipop out & back/loop thing...which was really fun because I got to see Ryan [who was leading], the other GBTC men, and Tara who was leading the women as I was heading out into the loop, and then Kelly, Kelly, and Joy as I was coming back out of the loop - and just getting and giving thumbs up and a little encouragement to people you know within a race is so awesome. In the loop part of this section, there were a couple absolutely HORRIBLE hills...incredibly steep and the type that I'm sure reduced plenty of people to a walk. Around the third of these hills, I started hearing footsteps and voices behind me...which unfortunately were going to stick with me for the next 5 miles. It was a girl around my age and a guy who looked in his 40s who I assume was pacing the girl and they were just chattering away like they were out for a stroll in the park. I wanted to punch them in the face. Like...I'm not trying to be mean, and whatever I realize people sometimes run these races for fun or as a training run and whatnot...hell, that's kind of what I was doing, and I have no problem with some quick exchanges or whatever. But to hear this girl giggling and carrying on a conversation CONTINUOUSLY for like half an hour just a few meters back from me while I am working really hard was just frustrating, and more than a little annoying. This is a race, people, and if you are telling your life story to someone you're probably not working hard enough. OK...rant over...it was just that I literally spent 5 miles with these people either close behind me or in front of me [they went on to finish 50 seconds in front of me, oh how I wish I could have summoned the speed to race 51 seconds faster...] and it was quite honestly a relief when they got far enough in front to be out of earshot.

So I hadn't looked at the course map at all before the race and really had no concept of where we were at any point in time, but at some point I realized that after we got out of the lollipop we were probably going to be backtracking on the course we had come in on. I was still, magically, holding on to my pace...7:46, 7:49, 7:51 - and seriously every time I looked at my watch I had this sensation of confusion...like, who am I and how am I still maintaining this pace, especially over these infinite, god-forsaken hills? We went back up the huge hill onto the gravel loop, and apparently the race director wanted us to run the opposite way around the hill the second time around, because the 12 mile marker was set up backwards and most definitely not at 12 miles the direction everyone was going [unless I somehow ran a 6:37/9:23 mile combo lol]. We headed off back along the ocean, which I tried to take a minute to appreciate how gorgeous it was - it was a gray, windy day so the waves were crashing on these cliff things and it was just really amazing. But of course after about 2 minutes of awesome it was time to go up another hill, and then another, and on and on. I was starting to get REALLY tired. The 13 mile marker seemed like it was just never going to appear, and then the thought of having to run 5 and a half more miles AFTER said 13 mile marker was just really a terrible thought.

Mile 14 was tough, 7:57, and mile 15 was possibly the worst mile you could throw at that point in an 18.6 mile race. As if I wasn't already exhausted from 15 miles of hills, there were 2 absolutely enormous monsters in mile 15. The first was just steep and long, but the second was the really cruel one - a curving beast that made at least 3 turns before it finally flattened out. That was my slowest mile at 8:10, and clearly for good reason. 3.5 miles seemed like INFINITY, and I tried not to think about the fact that if this had been Monday at Cape Ann, I would have been done by now....

We finally headed back onto the flat stretch by the beach, and I recognized that the 16 mile mark would probably be near where the 1 mile mark had been. Along this stretch I had finally caught up with someone, dueled a guy in Vibram Five Fingers for pretty much the entire mile, finally winning the battle just after the 16 mile mark. Mile 16 was back down to 7:51 and now with 2.5 miles left I was caught between the "that's so short!" mentality and "that's an entire high school XC race!" mentality. I think I fell somewhere in the middle lol. At mile 17 [7:55] we passed by the finish line and began the cruelest 1.6 mile out and back of my LIFE. I mean, number one, we had just had to run PAST the finish line, and now we were running out, into the blasting wind, on a seemingly endless stretch of path. I really thought the turnaround was never going to come...and then at the place where it seemed like the turnaround would be, you had to go just a litttttle bit farther - argh. I actually passed like 3 men along this stretch which was a nice boost, and running down people who were dying at the end definitely kept me in it until the finish line. Once we passed the 18 mile [7:47] I was like....ok....kickity kick kick kiiiiiick and DO NOT let that woman who you saw at the turnaround pass you! [she finished less than a minute behind me, phew!] And by this point I was so excited just to be almost done, and to have performed SO much better than I thought I would, I was just thrilled.

Bringing it in to the finish! You can see someone headed out into the evil out & back behind me

Final time: 2:25:54 (I had 5 seconds faster on my watch with the no chip time, but I think the pace is the same) = 7:50 PACE!!!

7:50 pace, for 18.6 miles, over an incredibly hilly course, at the tail end of a 70 mile week, feeling generally quite relaxed and not like I was pushing it throughout? Did I seriously just do this??? It's funny because after Cape Ann, I was happy with my performance, but after this, I am absolutely PUMPED. I feel like with the combination of circumstances this was actually a much better performance, and one that says even more about my overall fitness at this point. I refuse to jinx myself by talking about goals this time around - the goal is to not think, not worry, not freak out, stay relaxed, and run - but after this performance I'm sure you might be able to imagine what number may or may not be in the back of my mind 4 1/2 weeks from now. I ended up as 14th overall woman and 9th in my age group [oh, sometimes I hate being a 20-29]

So anyway, this week has absolutely renewed my confidence in myself and my fitness, and finally finally FINALLY made me excited about racing this marathon. It's like this whole summer I was just slogging through, putting in the miles, and forgetting that there was a point to all this....and now I finally see some results and it makes it all worthwhile. And I also think my GBTC singlet makes me faster....just sayin'. :P

Oh, and for your listening pleasure...here is the song that was in my head, literally, throughout the entirety of BOTH races this week...listen at your own risk, you may never get it out of your head.

Lookin' good in red: Cape Ann 25K

2010-09-09T22:18:00.000-05:00

I raced, I raced, I raced, I raced, I raaaaced! And it was - it had to be - that thing that I desperately needed to wake my mind up, give it a good shake, and be like "HELLO, you love this shit...and you are in way better shape than you even know....so get your act together and let's kick some ass, shall we?"

So what was the race where I chose to make my glorious return after 3 months off of racing? Why, one of the hilliest, hardest distance races in New England, of course! Basically, the sum of all of the things I heard about Cape Ann before running it would go something like this "holy hell HILLS there are so many HILLS and you die and you should expect to run slow because of the HILLS they just never end...oh but it's by the ocean so it's pretty." Needless to say, I wasn't exactly super pumped for the race, but marathon training makes us do some crazy things and I think I knew that I needed some sort of stimulus to get myself out of my mental slump - running a crazy hilly race would be just the thing, right? I really kind of forgot I was racing until I was standing on the start line...I didn't buy any Gu for the race, didn't really prepare any special way, and was just kind of like...woo hoo, this will be fun and random and an insta-PR!

So I was up bright and early Monday morning - so weird to race on a Monday since those are usually my time honored day off - and headed to Gloucester to run through the hills for 15.56 miles. We went on an interesting warmup/adventure to avoid the INSANE porta potty lines (when will race directors learn that 12 porta potties isn't enough for 700 runners with pre-race nerves?), then I hunted down the GBTC coach to get my singlet...yes...believe it or not...I am now an official GBTC runner! Only took me a year to get up the guts to join, but if there's one way to improve its to run with a group and run with faster runners...so while I can't help but be intimidated by a lot of the women on the team (case in point: our top 2 women took 2nd and 3rd female overall at Cape Ann) I know all I can do is train to be the best runner I personally can be, and running with such an incredible group is going to help me get there. So putting on my new, red singlet for the first time was really, really exciting. :) Soon enough we were on the line...after some confusion between the starts for the 25K and 7K and with zero announcements or ado, some kind of weird horn sounded and we were off!

I didn't really know what kind of pacing strategy to go with given that the race was longer than a half and the course was way hillier than any half I had ever run before, so I just decided to focus on staying relaxed and focused and see how things developed. I kept myself entertained the first few miles by counting hills (the course claims "16 major hills"...considering I counted 14 in the first 8 miles, I'd say there were quite a few minor ones as well) and trying to escape the conversations about IT band problems, travel, and boats being had by random groups of middle aged men nearby. Around mile 3 a little kid yelled "only halfway there!" and I kind of laughed...I wished! But so far things were feeling pretty good despite the hills - I was just focusing on maintaining effort up the hills and not hammering, then getting my breath and my legs back on the flats and downhills and just preparing for the next climb. Throughout the race there were spectators kind of scattered throughout (including some random drum circles and a 'mile 11.85 aid station'), and it was really cool to once in awhile hear someone yell "Go Greater Boston!" in my direction...I had to smile every time. It inspired me too to run just a little bit harder, because hell, if you run for GBTC people assume you are FAST!

For most of the first half of the race most of my thoughts were being perplexed that I was feeling so good. I was really holding my own spot in the pack, and I just felt really relaxed and smooth, like the hills weren't really affecting me at all. I just kept ticking off the miles - 7:43, 7:37, 7:37, 7:39, 7:47, 8:01, 7:53, 7:25 - just letting it ride with the ups and downs of the hills and holding a steady relaxed effort. By mile 8 I was getting lulled into the rhythm of the run and feeling quite secure about my life...and then we turned a corner and I was staring down a hill of death and destruction. Hoooooooly crap I thought that thing was never going to end....I so desperately wanted to walk, but one of the pros of hanging with a faster bunch of people in a race is that people at that pace aren't going to walk up a damn hill at mile 8...so I just gritted my teeth and hauled some ass up the hill. When I hit the top I'm pretty sure I sounded like I was actively in the process of dying...enough so that some random woman asked me "are you ok, sweetie?" Argh...ok...so yeah I sounded somewhat death-like but we had just run up an 800 meter hill and sometimes I breath loud when I'm working HARD...no need to go all condescending with the 'sweetie' crap. Sooo obviously the best course of action was to immediately pass her to show her that indeed, i was just peachy. Heh.

Miles 9-12 were kind of a blur...the pack kept weaving from side to side of the street which was...odd....and traffic got really sketchy and sort of disorganized - a couple of cops directing things or cones creating a lane for the runners would have been nice. We ran through a cute little seaside town which was very pretty as far as I can remember, and I started focusing on reeling the few women I could see ahead of me in and getting past them. There was awhile where I was leapfrogging with a cluster of 3 girls, one who looked about my age, and every time I thought I would clear them on a hill they would catch me on a flat. Finally I just kind of said to myself, OK, now or never. Get past them and STAY past them, because you're going to be beyond mad if you let them get away or even keep them in range and then have them blow you up with a kick at the end. The mile markers were off I'm pretty sure during this section (as much fun as it was to look down and see 7:05 for a mile split, the 8:46 that followed was much less exciting...and both were untrue) but I was still staying relatively smooth and feeling relatively relaxed. I was apparently starting to get warm too, which I didn't really realize until I ran through a water stop, drank some water, and dumped the rest on my head, and it felt SO good. It was like...oh...I guess I was hot? Haha. Obviously fatigue was starting to sink in quite a bit, but still nowhere near what I was thinking I would feel based on the horror stories I had heard. I came through the half around 1:42 which is my second best half ever, hilariously.

After that I pretty much just really wished that the race had been a damn half marathon instead of a 25K...because the last 2.56 miles seemed to take forevvvver. The field was really spread out by that point so while I did reel in one more woman and pass her around mile 15, there wasn't a whole lot competition wise to really hang onto. Somewhere in mile 14 was the second hill that really stands out in my memory, mainly because my quads were getting ready to curl up and die, then I came up to this big hill. You get to the top and you think you're heading straight over the hump to a downhill, but instead a volunteer points you to turn right and you keep. heading. uphill. CRUEL! But by this point I knew I hadn't slowed down that much and that I had, in my mind, 'won', because I honestly went into the race thinking I was going to struggle to hold 8:20s based on my long run pace lately and what I had heard about the course. Mile 15 was at sort of a desolate stretch right before we went under a highway, and it was like...ahhh...soooo close...then we ran up the BRICK WALL hill which I knew was coming, but was just this short but absurdly steep hill leading up to the finish. Up the hill, DONE with hills, kick kick kick, through the finish....and DONE! 2:01:25...7:49 pace. Holy effing crap! Because the deal with Cape Ann is this - apparently, given the extreme difficult of the course and how far out it is from Baystate, the pace you run at this race is supposedly a good indicator of the type of pace you could run at Baystate (ie, a flat marathon). Excuse me.....what? Obviously there's only so much stock you can put in that sort of thing, but both Kelly and her husband said that last year it held true for them within a few seconds per mile. Needless to say, that would be INSANE and I would probably die of happiness.

Basically, I'm really pleased with and proud of my performance. It was so incredible to remember what it's like to RACE...and to run a solid race at that. I've never felt so strong on hills in my life, and it was really excellent to see that all of the hill running I've been doing has actually been having some sort of effect. Considering the last race above a 5K where I didn't crash/burn/want to cry/fail at was New Bedford....6 MONTHS ago...it was spectacular and really important I think to get that feeling and remember it...to not forget that while there are times and races when running just plain sucks, there are also times and races when you surprise yourself and things are just wonderful. I think racing longer races is a great thing for me mentally and physically in this marathon training cycle...so logically, my next move is to race the Nahant 30K this coming weekend. Long runs are WAY more fun when you do them with friends...right? :)

The 2nd Annual WTC Beer Mile: A "Race" Report

2010-08-27T15:28:00.000-05:00

Look you guys! A post! Yes they are a bit few and far between these days but I'm sure you understand - pretty much this blog for me has always been a place to aimless ramble about whatever strikes me, when the mood strikes me...and that can be once a week, once a month, once a day, whatever. Just know that I don't think I'll ever "give up" this blog - it's too much fun having a place to write race reports and fly off on random running related tangents - but that there may be some unannounced hiatuses...never fear, I'll always come back eventually. :)

Well I am proud to say that in my absence I have set my first PR in quite a while....not in a real distance per se, but I am still kind of proud of myself nonetheless...I PRed in the beer mile by over 2 minutes! I don't think I ever got around to writing about the first ever WTC beer mile held last year, but I kind of spearheaded the idea as a fun summer event for the club, we had a huge turnout and some pretty impressive performances. For those who don't know, a beer mile is where you drink a beer...then run 400 meters...and then repeat x 4. It's quite the test of both running and drinking endurance and usually the winner is someone who has the right combination of both of those things. Last year we had a HUGE turnout, with 2 heats and a bunch of non-runners included in the competition.

Last year's beer mile finishers...an impressive crew

So I finally finished up with summer PT school classes on Thursday, and decided attending the 2nd annual beer mile would be an excellent reason to make a trip back to my glorious Madison, see my track club friends, and have a great, relaxing weekend to follow up 3 months of summer school. I got into Madtown on Saturday and after spending some time at the terrace and heading out for a 6 mile tempo with Jade, it was race time! There were way, way fewer finishers this year...5 to be exact. I didn't really think I was going to be successful at all, but apparently a year of savoring good beer instead of downing crappy beer (and maybe a little help from the 3 marathons I've trained for in the interim) has made me an unstoppable force.

Me leading the women's race (of 2), my friend Jade (a much faster runner) behind me

After about 2 laps, I may or may not have been a little tipsy, and running seemed wayyy more fun than it had before. The guy who ended up winning lapped the entire field, finishing in 7:04...you have to admit, that's extremely impressive. I finished 3rd overall in 11:06..a 2 minute PR! And yes, believe it or not, PRs are still exciting when they're in completely pointless made-up races. I still got excited trying to beat Jade. The beer mile really sums up our club pretty well - we are pretty hardcore about running, but we are hardcore about having fun too.

2010 beer mile finishers! Looking only slightly worse for the wear.

Of course we went out afterward...there was beer pong, Topper's pizza, cheese curds, beer stock exchange, shuffleboard, and a late night trip to the OP among other things. However, none of that Madison insanity kept me from running 18.6 miles on Sunday...which to be honest, I am amazed I actually accomplished that. Another girl from the club was running 21 for marathon training, and Jade and my friend Claire were each doing 13 or so, so we went out in the arboretum, hit up about 3 miles of trails, finished the loop and then went out towards Lake Monona/Monona Bay just in time for sunset...gorgeous! I spent basically the entire day completely dreading the run, but it was incredible how fast 2:32 flew after the first 45 minutes or so. Having friends to run with was just a blast and once again reminded me why I adore my WTC girls so much. :)

So fantastically, despite this weekend being a "vacation" for me - I made it pretty much to 60 miles last week - 59.7, YAY! It was funny how 60 miles just added up without me even thinking about it...I had like a 4 mile day thrown in there somewhere but it balanced out with the 10 and 13 mile days to make a solid week of mileage! I am finally, finally starting to get sort of excited about running a marathon in October...all summer it has been like this chore to get the miles in, get workouts done, etc, but I think I'm in much better shape than I realize and I just don't have the race results to show it - yet. Last night I went out on the Boston course for what I planned to be 7 miles...which then turned into 10, because I felt AMAZING. Like completely unstoppable. Heartbreak felt like a little bump in the road, that was how super my legs were feeling. I ended up at 7:21 pace for the entire thing, which is just utterly ridiculous, and I couldn't really chalk it up to stopping a lot or anything because...well...I didn't stop much at all! So it was pretty exciting to see my legs kind of getting into gear and to actually feel mentally into it! Long run wise so far I have a 17, 16.5, 15.1, 19, 18.6....I am amazed at how consistent I've been with just getting the miles in no matter if I want to or not. Time for those 20s pretty soon....as the weather cools down, maybe I'll actually look forward to them! :)

Tag!

2010-08-13T15:54:00.000-05:00

So I was tagged by Lacey to post 10 random things about myself...my first tag, hooray :) Actually she was probably thinking "maybe if I tag her, she will actually POST!" And apologies again for my incredibly sporadic posting...PT school has me in its grip and won't let go! I am as it turns out still training for a marathon and though I had one week of pretty much complete failure 2 weeks ago (24 miles total? 10 mile long run? Er....let's not talk about that) but admittedly I had an excuse, since I had an exam at the beginning of the week, then my mom and sister were visiting for the weekend and so I spent a lot of time walking...not so much running. But no worries, I brought it back this past week with a solid 56.5 miles, including a 19.2 mile LR. Woot woot! The "relaxedness" I'm letting myself have in this training cycle hasn't exactly been inspiring me to hit the track for any killer workouts, but for some reason I'm still getting long runs in. I will be completely honest - I have NOT been at the top of my mental game running-wise. For some reason, the past couple weeks especially, it's like I've had to absolutely drag myself out the door to go running, and when I do get out there I have no desire to run fast(er) than my "easy" (which is still about a minute per mile faster than it should be...in case you were worried lol). I think that's been part of my lack of desire to write anything on here too, since running itself has been so "meh" there's really been nothing worth sitting down and writing about. I'm trying to focus on the times when running has been great to me lately (like my most recent long run, which, despite being hungover and run on almost no sleep, was KICKASS in a way that only extremely hilly, tiring, and yet fantastical long runs can be) and just forcing myself to get out there...this, like all slumps, will end soon enough. :)

But anyway...the point of this post is to enlighten everyone to 10 random things about myself...sooo...here goes! I tried to make none of them running related, because I think you all know enough about my running life. :)

1. I met the BF completely randomly when he called me off the street to do a kegstand at a Badger football party and I accepted. Instead of going home to (drunkenly) make a notecard for my physics exam, I decided to stick around and befriend him...we went on an actual date a week later and it's been over 2.5 years since. :)

2. I started dancing when I was 3 and danced competitively all throughout middle and high school, then was involved with a dance student org in college. I miss it a lot and I choreograph dances in my head whenever I hear a song that inspires me - in college, I choreographed part of a piece while on a run.

3. I want the song Don't Stop Believin' played by a string quartet as I walk down the aisle at my wedding. (And I know such a thing can be done because one of my friends in college played in a string quartet that did exactly that)

4. I cannot stand the sound of ripping cardboard or touching my nails to porcelain (like trying to pick up a bar of soap in the tub)...just thinking about either of those things make me cringe.

5. When I was 4, I broke my wrist jumping off an upside down laundry basket.

6. I'm sort of out of the college phase of partying hard, but I am kind of a beer snob. I love craft beers, my most recent favorite variety has been imperial stouts, which everyone seems surprised by coming from a girl.

7. I absolutely LOVE dogs - worked with them for a little over 2 years, and met sooo many amazing puppies - and I can't wait until I'm in a life situation where I can have one of my own and be a good dog owner. My childhood dog was a mystery mutt (our best guess was black lab/schnauzer) named Corky and he was the best. dog. ever.

The Corkster...he deserved a pic :)

8. I have really terrible luck when it comes to electronics, and in the past 4 years have managed to lose/have stolen/break 4 cameras, 3 phones, 1 laptop, and 2 ipods. A lot of them weren't my fault (most recently, someone dropping my camera in the ocean) but some of them most definitely were (running in the rain with my ipod...)

9. I'm named Audrey after my grandma who is pretty much the coolest lady ever. She is 88 and still works because she loves her job, has traveled all over the world, is an amazing cook, dresses with style and class, and is the most positive person I've ever met - I really hope to be as awesome as her when I am old!

10. My favorite flavor of ice cream is gold medal ribbon, which is a flavor from Baskin Robbins that is chocolate and vanilla ice cream with a vanilla swirl. Sounds pretty basic but you cannot even imagine how good it is. YUM!

Alright...well writing this list has been a good source of procrastination from the run that I need to to today...and then it's off to a well-deserved night out after two exams and a practical at the end of this week. Hopefully I'll have an exciting long run this weekend with more to tell you about after that. Happy Friday!

Week 2: LR Fail/Workout Win

2010-07-19T11:58:00.000-05:00

A confession: I was a naughty little marathoner this week. I skipped my long run in favor of going to Cape Cod with a bunch of PT girls. Obviously I can't make a habit of this buuuut I have to say it was pretty fantastic to blow off ALL responsibilities [school, running, cleaning the apt, the works] to spend a day sunning on the beach, reading trashy magazines, frolicking in the ocean, and drinking sangria. And since that one day was probably the only real "vacation" I'm going to have all summer I really had to go all out and not spoil it with an early, hot, 14 miles, right? The night before I was all "oh, I'm going to get up at 5am and do it!" Haha riiiight....funny funny joke. The alarm went off and clearly THAT wasn't happening...maybe someday I can turn myself into an early morning runner, but I just haven't made it there yet.

I feel a little guilty but it's water under the bridge. Despite skipping the LR I still got in 34.6 which isn't really marathon training mileage, but it's not horrible - had I done the run I would have hit 50, which I plan to do this week. I did get in an AMAZING workout with GBTC on Tuesday - we did a speedy 3+ mile warmup (think 7:25 pace speedy), followed by 4000m of 300m @ 3K pace, 100@MP, 10 minutes of rest, and then another 2000 m of the same thing. I actually had a nice little pack of a couple other girls to run with and it was FANTASTIC - we went into the workout hoping to average around 7:15 for the overall pace (including the slow 100s) and wound up with sub-7...a number which I have NEVER seen in a workout over 1 mile reps. Hilariously the first 4K was also technically a 4K PR for me (I'm sure I've run faster ones within my fastest track 5Ks, but still)...granted I haven't run one since high school CC but it still cracked me up a bit - just looking at how far I've come since then. It was SUPER hard but running with a group was incredibly helpful, I was always motivated to chase the one girl who was just slightly faster. Then we did a relaxed 3+ mile cooldown which was the perfect way to end a 10+ mile day. That was definitely the highlight of my week, and honestly, after doing a workout like that, I feel slightly less bad about skipping the LR.

Nothing else too exciting on the running front this week - the heat has still been pretty unbearable and my schedule has forced me to do several runs in the heat of the day which has just been horrendous. I am leaving my job in a couple of weeks - I feel like it's really cutting into my study time for school and much as I'd love to have the extra money, I'm out here to be going to school, not working, and it's just entirely too much at this point - so that will free up a bunch of nights for some running after the sun goes down which is excellent news for my marathon training anyway. I did OFFICIALLY register for Baystate on Tuesday - with only 200 spots left I didn't want to take my chances - and of course it was terrifying as always when I hit that "submit" button. I wonder if I'll ever get to the point where registering for a marathon won't be a huge deal? Probably not.haha.

Hmmm...back to studying the shoulder and wrist complexes...fun times. I haven't been a very good student along with being mostly a lazy runner this past week...it's time to crack down, hit the books AND the roads! Have a great Monday!

Oh Hey!

2010-07-12T12:48:00.000-05:00

Yes, yes it has been over a month since my last post - yikes! I've just had a LOT going on school wise and barely enough time just to run, let alone to run and blog about said running. If I'm not posting here and you're just DYING to see what I'm up to training-wise (which all of you are of course, right? haha), I have actually been pretty diligent with posting stuff on DailyMile, it's kind of been my mini blog lately, so I'll occasionally tell a fun tale or two on there. But hopefully I'll be back to my usual at least once a week-ish posting since school has let up somewhat and of course, because I am BACK IN TRAINING!

Oh yes indeed. This week marked my first week of actual training for Baystate 2010. Right now, I am rocking and rolling with the "the plan is, there is no plan" plan. And hot damn, I'm liking it. Obviously to a certain extent I know what kinds of things I want to be doing, where I want my mileage to be at, what sorts of workouts will probably be helpful, etc, and I have a friend who's following the Daniels plan so I'm copying off her workouts a little bit. But for now anyway, I'm just going with running 6 days a week, doing a workout once or twice a week, whichever suits my fancy, 6-8 miles on the non-workout days [those 12 mile midweek runs will be here soon enough], and long runs on the weekend - duh. It's sort of odd but yet liberating not having my training planned down to the last detail - there were a lot of things I liked about knowing exactly what I had to do on a given day, but in my current life situation [read: grad school] things are going to come up and I just can't be a mindless slave to a training plan. Plus, so far in my life, "no plan" = 3:39, "plan" = 3:46...no plan's looking pretty good to me right now. :P

Anyway, week 1 has been good. I finally, finally got out of my 36-40 mile rut that I've been in for the past like month and a half, and got in a solid 48.2 miles, including a long run and 2 workouts. Combine this with the fact that it got up to 100 degrees in Boston this week and I'm pretty pleased with myself.
Week 1
Mon - 3 miles easy, it was balls hot and I felt physically sick for about an hour after I returned. Lovely!
Tues - 10 x 400 @ 10K pace [7:03] w/ 200 recovery @ 8:00, 3 mile warmup, 1.6 mile cooldown - did this one on the TM/track at BU's GORGEOUS fitness center because this was the day it got up to 100, and I'm pretty sure if I'd tried to do it outside the 400 pace would have more closely resembled MP
Wed - 4.3 miles on the indoor track, tired from the workout and it was still really hot
Thurs - OFF, the BF enticed me with pizza and drinks so...yeah :P
Fri - 2 mile warmup, 3 x 1.5 miles @ tempo pace [7:30], 1.5 mile cooldown - Indoors again, the only time I had to do the workout was mid-afternoon and once again, no way I was doing that in the blazing sun. Was kinda dragging.
Sat - 7.3 miles in the POURING rain, absolutely fantastic. It was raining so hard I couldn't even see the other side of the reservoir, the wind was blowing the rain sideways, and when I ran home on Beacon Street there was one point that was pretty much completely flooded out - there were WAVES for goodness sake. It was ridiculous but I've been dreaming of a rain run ever since this heat wave hit, so it was pretty glorious. :)
Sun - 17!! mile long run
Haha, so this was completely ridiculous. I was planning on doing 14 with my running buddy Kelly and another woman who is also tentatively running Baystate. I was really whiny at the start of the run because it was hot, but my legs actually felt pretty solid and the heat wasn't bothering me as much as expected, plus we were stopping for water every 20-30 minutes so things were going pretty well. We got on the Minuteman Trail and headed towards Arlington and at some point apparently missed the turnaround..soooo we may or may not have ended up with a 2:26/17 mile run. Slightly insane since the longest run I've done in the past 3 months has been 12.5? Possibly. Awesome? YES! My legs were starting to go at the end, but that's pretty much to be expected, and I'm honestly not really sore today at all. Way to start off true training with a bang, right? And then of course I was studying with some friends at Panera later that night, and there was another table of people from our class nearby [we call them the "smart" people...obviously, in a doctorate program EVERYONE is smart, but they're the ones who are like always, always, ALWAYS studying, and for that reason I'm sure they're also the people getting the A's.] I mentioned to someone that I was tired because I woke up at 6:30...they asked why....uh....to run 17 miles. The other table is like, who ran 17 miles? Yup, that would be me. One of my friends was like "you know, that doesn't even surprise me anymore"...told you these PT kids were smart . :P

Soooo that's where I'm at right now! I'm happy to have 5 seconds to actually post on this thing, and I FINALLY caught up on my Google Reader [I had like 200 unread posts on there at one point...yeahh...ridiculous] so hopefully I will back around commenting and posting from now on. :)

MIA

2010-06-07T23:58:00.000-05:00

Remember how I said I wouldn't be posting much because I had started PT school? I wasn't joking. Literally every waking moment of the past week when I wasn't sleeping, eating, or running (and sometimes during the latter two activities), I was studying....a semester-long gross anatomy class smashed into a month is no joke. Had my first exam of grad school today and I feel like it went reasonably well...so I've been able to give myself this one, glorious, anatomy-free night before I dive right back in to origin, insertion, action, blood supply, nerve supply...ack.

I also finally made it over the 40 mile hump this week (barely haha) for the first time since Boston - 40.4 miles, woot woot! Actually this is somewhat of an accomplishment considering that we've been experiencing jungle-like humidity in the northeast for most of the past week...80 degree weather + 90% humidity = one runner who wants to quit outdoor sports altogether. Longest run for the week was a 10 miler with my running buddy Kelly where my legs felt like junk, but I made it through and got up close & personal with a huge snapping turtle in the middle of the trail on the out & back which was quite cool...stopping and looking at the turtle was a good excuse to stop running for 5 seconds haha. But I really shouldn't be whining since running has been my one moment in time the last week (as I'm sure it will continue to be in the future) where I can just STOP thinking about all of the information flooding my brain and just focus on myself for an hour or whatever...I'd be so much more stressed out I think if I didn't have that daily run to look forward to.

Other than that I don't have much to report...training still won't be back in full swing until July so for now I'm just working on that base and getting through gross...hopefully at some point soon I'll be able to take another deep breath and come up with some sort of coherent/interesting post, but until then....happy running!

Mayday

2010-05-31T22:13:00.000-05:00

Well, May is over - not a terribly exciting month in my running life, but that's kind of to be expected coming down from Boston near the end of April. Considering I've been pretty lax about number of runs per week/distance/whatever, the numbers are pretty decent for a base building month.

Total Miles: 146.5
Races: 2 [5K & 12K]
Workouts: 0! haha
Longest run distance: 10.6 miles
Weekly Mileage Range: 30.7-36.4

Kiiinda lazy indeed. But I really enjoyed hopping in a couple of random races and seeing what happened - the 5K is definitely a good distance for that. I'm actually thinking about another one at the end of June - the Heartbreak Hill 5K - mainly because it's at BC, which is, you know, RIGHT by my apartment! Though running up Heartbreak at 5K pace doesn't exactly sound pleasant, but whatever, we shall see. I think my lazy time is about to come to an end though, as I'm working up a new marathon training plan that will most likely officially start in July, and I'm hoping to get my base up to a little higher place before then, and maybe start incorporating some light tempo work and hills back into my life. As I briefly mentioned in my last post, I've also decided for realsies that I'm going to join Greater Boston Track Club! I think it will be inspiring AND a great training stimulus to be at workouts with such fast ladies, and it sounds like there's a group that is like the "C" group that has goals more similar to mine - so that's fantastic too! And the singlets are really awesome and I want one....there, I said it. :)

I'm getting back in the swing of the Sunday long run and yesterday I went for a lovely 10 miler down Beacon Street, around the Public Garden and Boston Common and back. It was just....pleasant is really the only word I can think of to describe it. I sadly may have destroyed my ipod for good on a glorious run in a torrential downpour on Saturday [I was running to work, it was drizzling when I started...aaaand then 15 minutes later it was like a monsoon...I tried to wrap the ipod in a random piece I tore off a garbage bag by Jamaica Pond but alas...I think it's donezillas] and I wasn't really looking forward to doing this "long" run without it, but it turned out to be SO nice. I am working on hitting an EASY pace especially on long runs, and that was the goal on this one - if I came in under 8:00 pace I was going to be grumpy with myself. So my goal was to run by feel, and if I was breathing hard or my legs were twinging at all, I was probably going too fast. The result - 8:13 pace! Pretty much ideal for LSD. I was really pleased with that, and since I ran in the cooler temperatures after 7 pm, I was only sliiiightly dehydrated by the end. Speaking of hot weather I had a bunch of friends from my track club in Wisconsin that raced at the Madison half marathon yesterday - it was CRAZY hot and humid and they actually ended up cancelling the full marathon at about the 4 hour mark because the conditions were getting dangerous. So major props to them for some awesome times & races despite pretty awful conditions...I know for a fact I would crash and burn in a situation like that.

Hmm, well I might not be around this blog as much in June [not that I'm really ever around SUPER often but you know what I mean] because starting tomorrow I will be involved in what I'm pretty sure is going to be Gross Anatomy Hell Month...aka, the beginning of PT school. What should be a semester class in 1 month....exams EVERY Monday....4 1/2 hours of class every day...oh yes, this will be a blast and a half. I shouldn't be whining because I am excited about starting PT school, truly, but talk about diving right into the deep end. So if I start suddenly speaking only in muscle terminology...well...you'll know why. :)

Bedford 12K and 3 Things Thursday!

2010-05-27T23:03:00.000-05:00

Sooo I raced again last weekend! Kind of on a whim [when was the last time I signed up for a race day-of?], and despite some knee and Achilles issues that had been bothering me all week, I decided to head up to Bedford, NH with my running buddy Kelly for the Bedford Rotary Memorial 12K. Hello, checking another state off the list AND a new distance? Yes, count me in, even if the race pretty much served as a rude awakening as to the fact that as it turns out you actually DO have to run more than 30 miles a week to succeed at longer races - who would have thought? Hah.

I was up at 5:30 and out the door in 20 minutes, headed down to Brighton Center where I was supposed to catch a 6:11 bus to Watertown Yard where I was going to meet Kelly....except that bus just decided not to come. Neither did the one that was supposed to come at 6:20. Major transportation FAIL!! I also saw a bus blow right by a lady standing at the bus stop on the opposite side of the street, so apparently the drivers of the 57 line were just not on their A game on Saturday morning. I wound up successfully meeting Kelly and we drove out to Bedford. Exciting times for me since I have never in my life been to NH! Haha yes so it was pretty thrilling...the town was gorgeous and the high school track was a sight to behold - nicer for sure than plenty of college tracks I've seen [ahem, Ripon...haha] Registration was a breeze, and I was OK with not getting a shirt after seeing the extra large size/hilariously awful eagle design on the front.

I never really got nervous or entirely processed the fact that I was racing I guess. Kelly and I went off on a 20 minute warmup and I was feeling kind of crappy, but I was really only mildly concerned. We got back near the starting area and met up with a whole bunch of GBTC women [who are all fantastic, nice, and FAST as hell...and I think I've finally been convinced to join the club for real, yay]. The start was kind of awkward, there was really no line on the ground or cones or anything as far as I could tell - everyone was just kind of in a big blob, then the gun went off, and we were running. There was no chip mat at the beginning either, so I had no idea when to start my watch - my guess is 5-10 seconds went by before I went over the "real" start haha. The start was a pretty big downhill and being me, I went out way faster than was smart for my current fitness and the distance. My first mile was 6:45 give or take and clearly, I wasn't holding on to that since I'd run a slower average pace for less than half the distance the week before. And yet I pretty much decided to disregard the fact that I really, really wasn't in shape to go out for a PR, and that I'd run 7.5 miles or more like...TWICE in the past month and a half since Boston...nope, just gonna go for it. So mile 2 was 7:04, but the problems were already starting. The course was gorgeous, but the elevation profile posted on the website is also VERY deceiving. It makes it look basically flat, with one big hill at mile 3 or 4....ummm...that's a giant lie. Literally, the entire course was rolling hills - not huge hills or anything, but just relentless hills that beat my lazy, reservoir running legs to a pulp.

Mile 3 was 7:23 or so [you can tell this was an on-the-fly race when I don't even have my splits written down anywhere haha] and that was pretty much the end for me. I was totally donezillas. Which was kind of unfortunate because 4.5 miles is a decent way to try to run fast when you kind of blew all of your energy before even the halfway point haha. The hills were killing me and my legs were shot. It was really nice in a way though - since this was a 100% no pressure race situation, I didn't really worry about it too much. It wasn't FUN struggling the last half of the race, and I definitely spent a lot of time wishing it was over, but it wasn't like a feeling of "oh my God, I suck". Mile 4 was 7:45, mile 5 7:58, yikes. Right around the 5 mile mark a GBTC woman [confusingly, also named Kelly] came up on me and we ran together for a bit. She passed me soon after but I tried to at least keep her in my sights - I think she ended up finishing like a minute ahead of me, and I'm confident if I was actually in shape we could have run together for sure.

More and more hills, it pretty much seemed like the race was never going to end. 12K is kind of a weird distance - I'm probably biased because I went into it not fit for a race of that distance, but it just seemed SO much longer than a 10K. Mile 6 - 7:42....are we done yet? Mile 7 was 8:10ish [clearly I had kind of given up at this point....bad bad Audrey]...but at least now I knew that there was about half a mile to go, and about 400 meters of that were going to be run on the gorgeous, fabulous, track. As soon as I stepped on the track I was filled with glee - literally, I have not set foot on a track since October. That's the longest I've gone in 8 years without feeling the bounce of rubber under my running shoes. I got excited and actually managed an acceptable kick. My finish time was 56:28 - 7:35 pace. There were adorable little kids handing out Otter Pops at the finish - best. idea. EVER!

So not an overly thrilling race, but a good experience nonetheless. I can't say I was super jacked about my time, but I do think that I couldn't have expected much more given that I haven't been running any distance that would put me in good shape for anything over maybe 5K since Boston. I think a small part of me thought that since I ran a solid 5K last weekend, I could run a solid 12K this weekend...but 3.1 miles is MUCH different than 7.5 miles. I think it was a good thing though - definitely a good kick in the butt like...okay, naptime's over...time to get back to racing shape.

OK - that was probably the shortest race report you've ever read on Run Like A Llama! I think I procrastinated so long on writing it because really I didn't have too much to say about the race - I am not in shape really to be "racing" but it was a fun time and I enjoyed it as a workout anyway. :) Now onto the real 3 things of 3 things Thursday. :)

1. The Bedford 12K was my last race as a 22 year old...this past Tuesday I turned the big 2-3! Unfortunately I spent a lot of my birthday working, but afterward the BF and I went to the aquarium, strolled by the ocean, and grabbed appetizers and drinks in the North End. After a somewhat ridiculous experience trying to take the bus to the restaurant we were going to go to for dinner [long story short: restaurant closed at 10, got on the bus at 8:30, somehow missed the stop/stop wasn't announced, ended up at a random orange line station nowhere near the restaurant at 9:30...] we decided to just stick to what we know best and have dinner at Publick House, followed by a couple more drinks at American Craft. [Yes, I live within walking distance of not one, but two excellent beer bars...feel free to be jealous]. Delicious food, fantastic beer, and of course the best company ever - it was a wonderful evening. :)

2. Speaking of birthdays, it's kind of related to my next thing. I got a fun birthday package from my mom which included not only orange Nike Tempo shorts [the best running shorts ever]....but the WHOLE Boston photo CD! I was super surprised - I kind of wanted the photo CD since I would rather have the pictures on my computer anyway, but the prices were so crazy I would never have asked. But my mom is amazing and decided to get it for me - definitely a fantastic memento of my first Boston! Sooo now that I have them all for my own I can share some of them with you :)

Finish Line! I am shocked - SHOCKED - that I am actually smiling. That smile says THANK GOD it's over

This one really makes me laugh...what the HELL am I doing with my face? It's funny because I vaguely remember being at this point in the race [somewhere on the endless expanse of Beacon Street] and MAKING this face - scrunching my mouth up and just trying to fight through the pain. It cracks me up that it was actually captured on film.

Home stretch - note the classic head tilt/grimace look that appears when I'm literally on the verge of collapse :P

15K mark - I was already struggling by this point, and I attempted to make myself look strong/happy for the camera. Did it work?

This picture kind of makes me laugh as well, because I spent the whole race running on the right side of the road except for like ONE mile at the end. I think I veered over there because someone was handing out fruit punch Gatorade, which sounded way better than lemon lime at that point. I also was trying to hide because I was dying...don't ask me how moving to the other side of the road accomplishes that haha

I think this one is my favorite. Making the turn from Hereford onto Boyleston, and I can SEE THE FINISH!

There are a bunch more pictures besides those, but those are just a few highlights. Very fun & exciting birthday present!

3. Remember how I haven't really been doing anything worthwhile with my life since moving to Boston? Well my time of rest & relaxation is almost over, because Monday I am starting the 3 year journey towards becoming a doctor of physical therapy! I am kind of nerdily excited to go back to school, although I'm sure there are going to be points where I just regret the whole thing. It's weird starting at a school that's NOT Madison too, but it's good to be stepping out of my comfort zone, and obviously I already have an advantage having lived here for the better part of this year - no getting lost in a new city for me! Mostly I'm just really excited to be starting towards an actual career, as opposed to just a random job. So basically...exciting times in general. :)

Short but sweet: Mystic River Herring Run Race Report

2010-05-17T11:13:00.001-05:00

5K* run - 21:17 [6:51/mile]
22/282 OA, 4/150 F, 1/58 AG (minus top 2 women)
*long course - see below

As we all know I've been kind of sucked into the siren song of the marathon for the majority of the past year, and have really been neglecting other races in general, but especially my good friend the 5K. I realized recently that my last 5K race was a YEAR ago and given that my birthday is next week, I figured I had to run at least one 5K at the age of 22...and so I found the Herring Run. I won't lie, a small part of my reason for doing this particular race (besides the fact that it was cheap and actually accessible by T - it's harder to find a race that meets those criteria than you would think) was that I looked at the results from years past and got the impression that I would actually have a chance to race for place/an AG award - which I've discovered is an incredible rarity in the Boston area. In Wisconsin virtually every road race I ran (including my first ever 5K, where I ran a high 28 minute time) I was in the age group awards - generally second or 3rd, occasionally first. Mainly because the pool of runners in Wisconsin simply isn't as big, and the really good, younger runners that do exist there aren't running the Shamrock Shuffle, generally. Well then I moved to Boston and found the 'magic' of not only 10 year age groups (instead of 5 year) and a slew of speedy, speedy club runners, and I knew my chances of winning anything ever again were out the window for the forseeable future unless I got a whole lot faster. So finding a race where I actually had an opportunity to compete for place versus time was definitely a draw for me.

OK well now that I've bored you all with my reasons for running the race, let's talk about the actual race shall we? So first off I'm even more thrilled with this performance than I would have been, since I've discovered in browsing the blog-o-sphere today that the consensus via time comparisons and Garmins was that the course was long - most definitely a 3.2 mile race. I'm not overly surprised since it was a VERY low key race - no chips, mile markers were pieces of paper taped to cones, start line was just 2 cones on the path, etc - but with such a low key race I worried more about the course being short since that kind of negates the goodness of a good time. So I'm very glad to hear that the race was not only a) not short but b) long. Kind of unfortunate because take off that extra .1 and it puts me at like a 20:30, but I guess I will just have to do that on an accurate course, hmm?

Anyway I woke up race morning and was not really all gung ho about going to race. I just sort of threw on whatever clothes I could find and wound up wearing my high school track singlet and some random spandex shorts, just another testament to the fact that I was super relaxed about this race and really wasn't thinking about racing at all. Got on the T, got downtown, switched to the orange line, waited forever, got on the train, got off at Wellington. It took me a bit to get my bearings but I got over to the race site without too much hassle. I picked up my number and started scoping out the competition. Girl in the plaid shorts, keep an eye on her, ooh, that red haired chick looks fast...etc. As I said it was kind of weird actually thinking about people to beat instead of just focusing on a specific time, and that was nice - actually being able to RACE other people. I went off to warm up for a little bit and my knee was acting kind of funny - I think I must have twisted it at work or something - but it calmed down and shortly after I headed down to the start for lack of anything better to do.

We lined up and I took stock of the women around me. There were about 8 of us in the front 3 rows or so and I figured I wanted to be ideally in the top half of that. The whistle blew and we were off - immediately, 6 of said women were out in front of me. Crap! Am I running fast enough? How fast am I running? How do I run a 5K again? I literally didn't know what was going on haha. Sooo I did the only thing I knew how to do - pick a girl, reel her in, pass her. I closed on grey tank top girl fast, then came on to coral combo and Boston 2000 shirt running together. Once I got past those two, I knew I was in 4th or 5th position - plaid shorts was up ahead but she was already too far away for me to make a play at passing her. So the new goal was to hold position. I came through mile 1 in 6:28 and pretty much immediately knew I was getting a road PR today. My biggest concern had really been that I wasn't going to remember how to run fast and go through the first mile in like 7:15. Clearly that wasn't going to be a problem, though I knew there was no way in hell I was holding on to 6:28. Maintain, maintain, maintain. I felt kind of sick to my stomach, but breathing and legs were okay. The course was basically flat, a couple little rises and one point where we had to go up and over a bridge, but nothing major. It was really pretty, running through parks and paths near the Mystic River, lots of shade, really nice stuff.

Near the 2 mile, there was a turnaround where you could see the leaders coming around the bend. I made the turn, passing a guy in the process, and looked back to assess the competition situation. Coral outfit was maybe 15 seconds back, with Boston shirt about 5 back from her. OK....they are probably in as much pain as you are....hold on, one more mile. A guy near the turn called out "4th woman" to me - so there it was, I was exactly where I thought/wanted to be, now I just needed to stay there. Mile 2 was 6:59 [given that the race was long I'm not 100% sure if all the mile splits are exactly accurate but whatever, we'll go with it] and I was like gaaah, if you go over 7 you're not going to be happy, it's almost over. I had forgotten the suffering that is the last mile of a 5K. But at the same time my mind is like - hello? One mile? That's like...nothing. There was a pack of 3 men directly in front of me and I tried to hang onto them. I was feeling more and more like vomming on the side of the path and ohh man I wanted this to be over. We got up onto the bridge and the slight little rise felt like a mountain, ahh, but downhill on the other side. I passed a man going over and now I finally knew where we were, maybe 1000 to go. I willed myself to pick it up but my legs weren't having it, okay, hold pace it is. I couldn't hear footsteps or breathing or anything behind me, so I was pretty confident I was clear of the duo I'd been trying to stay ahead of. We passed the "3 mile" - 6:58, woo hoo, I didn't slow down!!! Down to the finish line, trying to kick, feeling like it had better be over soon or I'm going to puke on someone. And finally...I was coming to the finish, I saw 21:10 on the clock, knew this was going to be a road PR for sure, slammed my watch, DONE! I had 21:15 on my watch, 21:17 was the official - with no chip timing what are ya gonna do? I congratulated the 3rd place woman who was coming out of the chute on the other side, then on my way out high fived 5th place (coral) and 6th (Boston). I guess the finishing order was pretty much determined after half a mile haha.

I was incredibly thirsty, and my stomach still wasn't happy, but when I was offered chili I took it for some reason. Seriously, these Massachusetts races win at life in terms of post-race food. This was the smallest race I've been to in awhile, and there was a full spread of fruit, granola bars, vitamin water, coffee, chili, cookies, bagels...fantastic. The chili was actually really delicious although it seemed kind of strange to be eating it at 9:30 in the morning. I sort of meandered around for awhile, cheering for the incoming runners, eating some stuff...it's sort of weird racing alone because you don't really have anyone to talk to while you're waiting around for things. That's fine by me when I'm being hardcore and really focusing on the race but sometimes you just need someone to chatter and be ridiculous with. I was also RIDICULOUSLY tired...I actually considered going and taking a nap in the grass while waiting for awards buuut I didn't. Finally it was awards time - the winning girl looked like she was in high school and ran 19 high, 2nd place was 20:08 or so, 3rd was 20:20. Since the top 3 overall go out of the running for AG awards, I got to be AG champ! Yippee!! No medals, but something even better - a table full of gift cards to pick from! [and propane tanks and raspberry bushes...lol...seriously]. So I am excited about my $50 gift card to a pizza place in the North End, and I think the BF is too [he was like, you should win races more often! haha]

Overall, I am EXTREMELY pleased with this race. Between taper, Boston, and recovery, I haven't done any form of speedwork in 6 weeks, and my highest mileage week in the month since Boston has been 30, so to come out and run a road PR [which would have been an even bigger PR had the course not been long] is a pretty sweet deal. What is crazy to me is that assuming that the course WAS long, so assuming I actually ran 20:30-20:40 for the actual distance of 3.1 miles...that makes me think that if I actually did some speedwork I could ACTUALLY PR in the 5K this summer...not just a road PR, but an honest to goodness fastest time I've ever run on a track or a road or a golf course or whatever PR. I was talking with the BF and he said "well, I guess you were wrong, I guess marathon training didn't make you slower after all". I was thinking about it and I think that marathon training didn't make me faster, but it didn't make me slower either - so that's a gain of zero. BUT - it made me STRONGER - and that really made the difference.

So a fantastic race, gorgeous day, road PR, AG win....what more could I want? Let's just say I'm definitely going to need to race more this summer...possibly as early as next weekend [yes, I may have been talked into a 12K in New Hampshire. More details soon! :)]

Competition, discovery, joy

2010-05-12T14:09:00.000-05:00

So I had an incredible weekend of running. Not in the sense of "oh HELL yes I nailed that workout/race", but I had 3 runs in a row that were all like gifts given to me to remind me of how much I love running. It's easy for me to get caught up in times and races and analysis, but when it all comes down to it I wouldn't be a runner if I didn't love the sport...and sometimes that sport gives back when you least expect it. 3 days, 3 reasons to love running...

Friday - Competition
Most of my run Friday wasn't great - it was hot and I was dehydrated and my legs felt like sandbags. I had set out on the run with the intention of purposely taking it EASY, only to find that on this particular day "easy" felt remarkably difficult. So I slogged around the reservoir and finally, happily, made the turn onto Beacon Street towards home. I was briefly caught at a stoplight with a girl wearing blue Asics - who I have weirdly seen on the train and out running multiple times in the last two weeks. Well - when I heard her footsteps behind me shortly after crossing the street, something just clicked - I was not going to let this girl pass me! Probably unnecessary on an easy run, but I hadn't felt that competitive spark in so long that I just had to roll with it. I picked up the pace just slightly and focused on running strong, and strangely enough once I started thinking to myself "I am strong and I will not let this girl pass me", I FELT strong. The sandbag feeling evaporated and I coasted down the street with ease. And beat the girl to my turn onto Washington. In the back of my mind I was laughing at myself - like, oookay crazy, what was the point of THAT? But it was a gleeful sort of laughter. Because why not? Why not beat the girl down Beacon Street or pass the guy on the reservoir who is clearly not cool with a girl being faster than him, or try to lead a set of intervals at a track workout? I love to compete, that's why. And while I realize that no one wins a workout, if you can't race every weekend you have to find other ways to keep that competitive spark alive. As I've said before, I don't run to not be fat or because it's good for my health [wonderful benefits, yes, but not the point] - I run to be fast, to compete, to win. So remembering that reason in the middle of a stupid, hot, pointless run was a good thing indeed.

Saturday - Discovery
Saturday I worked a double and had planned on running to work until the clouds opened up and I decided that if I was going to spend 13 hours of my day working with dogs, I sure as hell wasn't going to do it soaking wet. So I just had to hope that I would finish up shift #1 early enough to get in a run before shift #2 [in the world of bathing dogs, the end time is different every day - it all depends on how many, how hairy, and how cooperative. Several uncooperative huskies means you are in for a very long day.] Thankfully my prayers were answered and at 3:30 I headed out with one goal in mind: trails. I knew there was an "urban wild" near my work that I had run past several times but never thought to go in, mainly because during marathon training knowing exact miles and times and paces was not something I would ever be willing to give up. But I'm not in marathon training right now and I wanted to run in the woods, damnit. So off I went. And oh my lord...it was absolutely heaven. There were paths covered in pine needles...hills and valleys and random side trails splitting off every which way....a stream...a waterfall...a pond...in other words, it was amazing.

In Once A Runner [or maybe it's Again To Carthage] Cassidy thinks something like "doing this thing you occasionally come to a rare overlook". I ran up this hill and came to the top of this ridge overlooking this pond - the water was perfectly still, the sky a hazy gray reflecting on the surface, a couple of ducks calmly cruising nearby - this random oasis in the middle of a forest in the middle of the city. And I just felt so appreciative of the beauty and the fact that doing this thing I love could bring me to an incredible place like this. And for once I couldn't care less about the time or the pace, I was just enjoying the freedom of running through the forest, scampering around rocks, flying down hills, leaping fallen trees...it was phenomenal. I returned to work in an absolutely giddy mood as my co-workers looked at my damp, sweaty, muddy self in awe. ["Are you...serious? You just worked all morning, then went on like, a 10 mile jog, and now you're coming back to work again? How do you do that??" - direct quote from a groomer lol] And I felt like I had this wonderful secret place that only I knew about, that I had DISCOVERED! And I had no clue how far/fast I had run and I didn't care, and it was amazing. I always like taking the time to stop and look at interesting/pretty things I have the opportunity to see while running - sunset at the reservoir, cool buildings/houses, whatever - but in the middle of the city finding this oasis of trails! forests! nature! was pretty much a magical experience.

Sunday - Joy
And finally we reach the coup de grace of the weekend, my Sunday run. Which was just a beautiful experience [and gosh, are you guys sick of my blathering over 3 fairly run of the mill runs yet? Lol] Anyway I wasn't really that excited about the run, I'd been kind of a bum all day, but I headed out anyway. It was pretty cool actually and windy, so in my mind basically perfect for a run. I was headed to to my usual reservoir loop but instead kept heading straight on, out onto the Newton Hills. Ahh, those Newton Hills. Things look entirely different when the crowds are gone, the runners are gone, the Gatorade stations and music and signs are gone, and it's just you and the darkness and the road. And for me going back there after the disaster that was my last experience on those hills - well, it was about time I exorcised those demons. Anyway, let's just say the magic fairy dust was back...because this run was absolute, pure, joy. I felt like I was flying. And the whole time I was thinking to myself - yes, THIS is what it's supposed to feel like. It may not have felt this way on race day, but it can feel this way. And it will again. I cruised up Heartbreak with nothing weighing me down, nothing holding me back, all of the memories of the pain and struggle replaced with joy. No one saw me crest the top of the hill and throw a victory fist into the air. But it was, in its own small way, a victory. And maybe sometimes that's the way it's meant to be - that those purest, most perfect moments of running aren't on the racecourse with fans cheering, thousands of other runners at your side. They are the moments when it is just you, transcending a bad race, a bad day at work, all of the problems that weigh on your mind - you break free. All that's left is the pure, wonderful joy of running.

I know that in these descriptions, I tend to make running out to be so much more than is necessary - like it's some kind of amazing spiritual experience or something. But for me, sometimes, it truly is. Running gives me something that I find nowhere else in my life, something I can hardly explain. And runs like these just serve as a reminder of the reasons why. And no matter how many tough races I endure, whatever else life throws my way....if I go back to the road, I'll never forget those reasons.

And on a final non-philosophical rambling note, I'm racing a 5K this Sunday!! What do you get when you cross a hard marathon and a month of lazy recovery runs with a 5K where I might have a shot at running for some hardware [depending on who shows up this year, of course]? Guess we'll find out soon enough...=)

Boston Analysis: What went wrong/right

2010-05-05T10:58:00.000-05:00

OK, I know you all are probably sick to death of hearing about Boston from me. But what's the saying - that like, in a relationship that breaks up it takes a week for every year you were together to get over it? Or something to that effect? Well I think it's the same thing in running. A 5K is like that stupid fling you had where it clearly was just for fun and you can find another guy the next week. [uh..not that I've ever been in that situation haha]. You can race it every week if you want, and while it definitely takes a certain type of effort to train for a a good 5K, chances are if you're in good base shape to start and tack on a few weeks of speed and sharpening, you'll be ready to go. A marathon is different. A marathon is like a long, tumultuous relationship that has its ups and downs but the people in it are truly in love...and then when it ends, they're left picking up the pieces for a good long while afterward. You invest a lot more in every aspect of the training and the race, just the straight up time-commitment to running is longer, and you can't just race a marathon every weekend. [unless you are one of those people who does/can...I am not]

So anyway, I am still kind of trying to wrap my mind around the race. This isn't a post to whine about my time or how bad the race was - it is what it is and I know that under the circumstances I did damn well and I'm too far out to still be wallowing in my sorrows about a race that didn't live up to my expectations. No, this is more of an analysis trying to figure out WHY the circumstances were...well...the circumstances. Obviously all you can really do with training and racing is try different things and just see what happens. So here are my thoughts on what I did wrong and what I did right.

Thing I Did Right: Training Plan [in general]
I really don't think my training was the problem here. I know I was in the best shape of my life going into Boston as evidenced by my huge HM PR just 4 weeks out from the race. I thought the Hudson program was a great mix of things - his philosophy is to keep up ALL aspects of fitness throughout all aspects of training, so there's always plenty of different workouts to keep things interesting. I pretty much followed his level 2 marathon program to a T this past time, his philosophy is actually that at some point you are kind of able to coach yourself so I am thinking I might tweak things a little more this time around - but I do like the general makeup of his program.

Thing I Did Wrong: Race Pace Training
When I look back at my log, I see almost zero runs done at between 7:55-8:05 pace. That right there is/was my GMP. I think in my mind I figured that if I was running FASTER than that all the time, then that should be easy, right? But I think knowing how to run a pace requires a certain amount of time spent running AT that pace, and I think more GMP work will definitely be key in my future training...which leads me to...

Thing I Did Wrong: Run Too Fast, All The Time
Someone needs to pound it through my head that my easy days need to be EASY. Seriously. There are zero reasons for running marathon/GMP or faster on a long run [unless there's specifically a segment that's supposed to be done at that pace for the sake of a workout]. This especially applies to long runs; I think my super fast 23 miler 3 weeks before the race might have completely done me in. I am a speedster at heart and it's hard for me to see slow paces...but there is a time and a place for everything, and I am not absorbing my hard training as well as I could be when I'm running too hard on my easy/recovery runs.

Thing That I Kind of Did Wrong: Stomach Issues
I followed the exact same plan for nutrition during the race as Baystate - or so I thought. But there were 2 key differences that I think may have messed up my stomach. One was the caffienated Gu Chomps I ate before the race. This sounds like such a small, stupid thing, but I was not planning on having any caffeine until my Gu at mile 6. Combined with the nerves, I think that really started my stomach off on the wrong foot. Another issue was hydration - I think that I did a relatively good job of staying hydrated, but it actually became a problem because my stomach just couldn't handle the fluids. This really is partially my fault because I didn't TRAIN with fuel - I had one Gu and some water on each of my 22-23 mile runs...I think maybe some fruit snacks on my 20 miler...bottom line, need to get my stomach used to what I'm going to be taking in during the race.

Thing That I Have No Idea How To Fix: Peaking Too Early
I said this in my last post, but I think it's pretty much beyond doubt that I peaked somewhere in late March/early April. I was flying through workouts and long runs and ran a great race...and then something was different. I will confess that even in the early stages of taper my legs didn't feel right. Not really sure how to fix this one.

Thing I Might Change: Taper
I think the last week of my taper was a little too drastic. I did it because it was the same thing I did before Baystate, but what worked for me when I was running a lot fewer miles and nearly killed myself to hit 60 is not the same as what works when I was consistently running high 50s-low 60s for like 8-10 weeks straight. I still feel like a relatively drastic taper is my style, but maybe 3-4 milers instead of 1-2 next time around.

Thing I Did Wrong: Psyching Myself Out
I have an issue with choking. There's a quote: "Big races which are anticipated almost to the point of dread are where great things can be accomplished". Well, for me, big races which have been anticipated almost to the point of dread are where I will inevitably crash and burn, fall apart, or just fail. At Baystate I was so proud of myself for actually running the race I wanted, when I wanted - and you know why? I had zero expectations for that race - it's your first marathon, finish. Finish under 4 hours, ideally. I think I started thinking about a BQ around mile 14. It was always there in the back of my mind but I never really made it a big deal. Same thing with the New Bedford Half - I kind of vaguely knew I wanted to break 1:40 but it was just a tune up race, and hey, I like racing, why not? And look what happens -a 4 minute PR. And then we have Boston. And we have my training going amazingly, and suddenly I'm looking at wanting to run 3:30. And as soon as it became clear that that wasn't happening [early, EARLY in the race] - I completely fell apart mentally. I won't deny that there are so many mental games that go on with the marathon and I just absolutely didn't have it. If I had said "hey, it's Boston, just enjoy it" or even "hey, just shoot for a PR, sub-3:39"...I would have gone out less ridiculously, and likely could have ended up with a better time. I did everything that everyone says NOT to do in this race because I was so stubbornly set on this time goal. The mental game is definitely something I need to work on especially in the longer distances, and I definitely thing it came back to bite me in the ass at Boston. Yes, I want to set high but realistic goals for myself, but completely screwing myself up mentally over them is really not going to help me have the race of my dreams.

Alright...so there are my thoughts. In all seriousness, I had a good experience at Boston. I'm thankful that there were moments in the race - the thrill of walking to the start like, random drunk men dressed up as women, the giant window at 7.8 with the sign that said "check your form", high fiving little kids, Wellesley, the spectacular spectators who always seemed to have a cup of non-lemonlime Gatorade or a FREEZY POP when I needed it most, making that turn onto Boylston - where I was able to think how amazing that it was that this was The Boston Marathon. I think I just regret that my first experience there was not the magical one that I was hoping for [apparently, the 26,000 other people did steal my "magical fairy dust" that I experienced so many times out on the course alone] and that I wasn't able to simply ENJOY the experience as much as I wanted. I was so worried about racing, then so in pain, and so frustrated about having 'failed', that I was caught up in my own mind and body to get everything out of it that I wanted. You know what's lucky though? I live half a mile off the marathon course. I run on at least part of it almost every single day. And next year and the year after, somehow or another, I will hopefully make that trek from Hopkinton to Boston once again - learning from all of the mistakes of my first time and running the race I know I can.

This is my last word on Boston 2010. As you might be able to tell I've been sitting on this post for awhile, I just haven't had the words. It's been long enough since the 'breakup' that I can look back and smile at the good times - the 23 mile run in a pouring, wind whipping rainstorm, the mile repeats at faster than I thought possible, the best half marathon race of my life, and so many incredible runs in between - and forget about the bad. It's time to get back out there and start anew - remembering what's brought me to this point and believing - don't stop believin' :) - that I can only go further from here.

April Recap and What's Next?

2010-05-03T10:21:00.000-05:00

It feels like it's been a really long time since I've posted, and I guess it kind of has - truthfully I haven't had much to say. I have been running a decent amount since Boston, but nothing really exciting - a whole bunch of 4.5-6 mile runs with one 7.5 miler yesterday, as I decided I needed to get back into the pattern of a Sunday "long" run. But I figured doing an April training recap was as good of a reason as any to post!

April's mileage was way down from March & February, mostly due to the fact that it pretty much went through the cycle of taper...race...recover...start slow. Still, I wound up with 156.5 miles, which I'd say is fairly respectable. The stats:
April 2010
Total miles: 156.5
Days off: 7
Races: 1
Workouts: 3

I've already been trying to peruse my training to figure out what things I want to change when I start my next marathon training cycle which will begin in July...remember when I said that Boston was going to be my last marathon for awhile? That was a huge lie. I think it's because the marathon is now my vendetta race, the one I KNOW I'm capable of more in and just haven't been able to show it yet. The 5K? Sad as it sounds, I got my sub-20 and that was really all I ever could have asked for. I will happily race 5Ks until the end of time, but something tells me that without a track season, actually training specifically for them isn't going to be a big priority for me. The 10K in my opinion is just a means to an end to other races...again, it's a fun distance, but not something I could see myself being devoted to training for one peak race. Half marathons get a little trickier, since technically a half COULD in and of itself be a peak race [to be honest, I think I very well might have left my Boston race out on the New Bedford half course]. And now that I've run a solid half that I was actually trained for, I like the distance, I really do. But I think the fact that I ran such a huge PR in the distance on my way somewhere else would make me less excited if the half itself was the end point. When it all comes down to it, at the moment, the marathon is the only distance where I'm actually dissatisfied with my PR. I think my 5K/10K/HM PRs are pretty reflective of my current status as a runner - of course I still want to improve them, but I'm thrilled with what they are even now. The marathon though...I know I have more to give. And my mileage-whore personality I don't think will be satisfied with anything less than the high mileage fun times that marathon training requires.

I learned a LOT from training for Boston and from actually following a plan - even though the end race wasn't what I wanted, I really can't say that there's much I'd change about my training. My fitness was high, my workouts were all fantastic. I do believe that I peaked too early [anyone remember me RAVING about my 23 mile long run in the rain, and then the kickass half marathon race the weekend after? Yeah, I think that might have been my peak...] I'm not really sure what the remedy for that is. I have been re-reading Hudson's book and he says the main reason for an early peak is too much race-pace running for too long - that that kind of running should really be limited to the 4 weeks of sharpening before the race. That doesn't seem to be the culprit in my case though, since really my race pace workouts were limited to that time frame. Maybe I needed a less drastic taper...who knows. Running, especially marathon running, is one big grand experiment.

Anyway, the next couple months are going to be pretty much a maintenance phase. No workouts, just base mileage hopefully staying in the high 30s-40s, and working my long run up to at least 12-13 miles or so. I am actually planning on jumping in a 5K in the next couple of weeks just for fun and because it's been forever since I've raced a 5K. My current plan is the Mystic River Herring Run - celebrate the return of the herring! Haha. It's funny, 2 weeks doesn't really seem like a long time post race, but it feels like it's been FOREVER. Like I hardly feel like Boston ever even happened. So I am a little gung ho now to get out and go have a race that isn't a death march...I think a 5K is a good place to make that happen. :)

Yeah...this is a pretty boring post haha. Seriously, I am just not as interesting when I'm not in training. We did have an exciting water main burst here in Boston that has left the entire city without clean drinking water...actually, the stuff running through our pipes now is partially coming out of my favorite Chestnut Hill Reservoir, which might be a gorgeous place to run, but with all the fish, birds, and muskrats that hang out in there...probably not so awesome to drink. Yesterday I did an easy 7.5 miles - longest run since the marathon - around the reservoir and it was weird seeing the spots where the water was bubbling and getting sucked out. Apparently things are supposed to be back to normal within 48 hours...I sure hope so!

3 Things Thursday: Recovery Edition

2010-04-23T10:12:00.000-05:00

Yes...I realize its Friday...but I worked a 13 hour shift yesterday [my post-marathon legs LOVED that, let me tell you] and didn't have time to post...so...ta da, 3 things Thurs/Friday!

1 - The legs! Physically, the day after the race I literally couldn't do ANYTHING - oh my god. My boyfriend was laughing at me and singing "domo arigato mr roboto" every time I attempted to get up off the couch [which was rare haha]. Ironically, my hamstrings which gave me so much trouble during the race weren't really that sore, but my quads? Let's just say I was feeling those downhills - ow ow ow! The outside of my left foot was also really sore, and I think I realized why after looking at my race pictures - apparently I land REALLY far to the outside of my left foot! There's one picture where it seriously looks like I'm going to roll my ankle when I land, my foot is so far sideways. I remember having the same pain after New Bedford but I've never felt it in workouts...wonder if it's just a race thing? Speaking of the pictures, I really want to order the CD so I can post them up here, because they are pretty ridiculous, and definitely tell the story of my race well. But we'll see if I feel like shelling out the $85 for that haha. Wednesday I went for a swim because I was having post-race mopey syndrome and needed to workout in some form to get over it, but my quads definitely weren't ready to run. Felt good to swim again and since I'm tossing around the possibility of an Olympic triathlon this summer, was glad to see that I still feel strong in the water. Today finally I am MUCH improved - definitely still some lingering stiffness and achiness, but nothing too severe. I am thinking about a 2 mile shakeout later just to kind of get things moving again, but we shall see!

2 - The schwag. I got my Boston Celebration jacket yesterday, along with a new pair of Asics armwarmers, which I sadly had to toss somewhere in Framingham during the race. RIP, Asics #1s. Luckily, they were only $8, and with the jacket being on sale after the race, I felt a little less guilty about my purchases :). Umm yeah...I don't think I'm ever going to take this jacket off again. EVER. I think I said at some point that I thought the celebration jacket was a little too over the top, but I lied. The further out I get from the actual pain of the race the more I want to SHOUT to the mountaintops that I ran Boston. Sooo the jacket is fantastic.

3 - The mind. As you all mayyy or may not have been able to tell, I was feeling a little disappointed about my race on Monday. That feeling is dissolving faster and faster as the days go by. The more I think about it, the more I am completely amazed with how fast I DID finish given the circumstances! It would have been easy to just dial it in and walk/jog to the finish - but I am a racer, and I raced that race to the end - if 3:46 was the best I had on that day, well at least I know that's ALL I had. So I am much more okay with my race now. I also have a lot more respect for that tricky bitch of a Boston course - I've heard it's almost impossible to run it right the first time and whoooo boy do I know now that's true. I certainly made some tactical errors on my part - ahem, going out too fast EVEN THOUGH I'd been warned time and time again that that was a bad idea. But what are you going to do? I learned from it, and that's just one more marathon under my belt to take into the next one. I am immensely proud of my training and of my race and nothing can change that.

As you can see, recovery is going pretty well...much as I am enjoying a little time off though, I'm raring to get back on the roads! Hope it stays cooler a little longer so I can keep rocking my Boston jacket. :)

Also....a final random side story. So I was on the train last night absentmindedly paging through one of the magazines that came in the Boston race packet - it was clearly an international magazine because it had ads for all these races all over the world - Europe, the Middle East, Australia...whatever. It was kind of amusing browsing the ads and all of a sudden I stumbled across an ad for...THE HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN MARATHON...obviously in his hometown [where he lived in a little yellow house] of Odense, Denmark [which is on the island of Funen]. How do I know these random HCA facts? Well, my sophomore year of college I needed a literature credit. Since I was already taking a full load of pre-med insanity, I tried to find an easy one. The result? Literature In Translation 275 - The Tales Of Hans Christian Andersen. The class was made even better by the fact that I took it with 7 of my friends, and that our professor was a complete nut who spoke in a faux-Danish accent and spent the first 2 weeks of class telling us about the glory that was Hans's life [we saw a map of Denmark + picture of the little yellow house about 300 times over that period]. Oh, and one of my friends joined the class a month late and still managed 100% on the first exam. It was hilarious and probably the most memorable class of my college career...so needless to say I am pretty sure the Hans Christian Andersen Marathon has just been added to my running "to-do" list of life. :)

A Day That Will Live In Infamy: Boston Marathon 2010

2010-04-20T19:59:00.000-05:00

First off, I just have to thank everyone for the AMAZING support and comments. The online running community is so. freaking. cool! It really means a lot to have a whole bunch of people picking you back up when a race knocks you down, so thank you all again.

So I'm feeling a little mopey today. I honestly think I would be a little sad even if I had run a good time/PR - I mean, 4 months of training and it's OVER. Of course, it doesn't hurt that my mind is just one big loop of "what could have gone wrong, what happened?" Obviously, it just wasn't my day out there. Running is always, to some extent, a crapshoot. You can train and train, have the most perfect training you can imagine, but if you wake up on race day and for some reason or another your legs just aren't in it, there's nothing you can do about it. It happens to the elites - and they drop out. Well for me that isn't ever an option (much as I would have liked it to be at several points during the race haha) Unfortunately, the experience of "having a bad day" is completely exacerbated in a marathon because...well....it's LONG...and if you are feeling bad early, it's going to be a long, slow death march to the finish. But that's also what makes the marathon so special. Sometimes its just going to suck, but you get through it, you learn from it, and if you're crazy like me, you start thinking about the next one within hours after finishing haha.

So on to the nitty gritty details. Nothing that happened race morning indicated that I was going to have anything other than a good day. My legs felt solid, I had slept reasonably well, and all I had to do was walk out the door and hop on the T - fabulous! I had my usual banana & peanut butter toast, and grabbed another banana and some Gu Chomps for later. I got to Boston Common around 6:15, and immediately encountered the insanity that was 26,000 runners trying to get on buses. Somehow I found my way to a short-ish line and started talking with a girl around my age named Kristen, who would become my athlete's village buddy. The bus ride was like...infinity. By infinity I mean an hour, but sitting on the bus thinking about how you have to RUN the whole damn way back? Umm...yeah.

The athletes village was pretty cool. It was weird having to just kind of chill out for so long before the start, but people watching was pretty entertaining [people who brought inflatable pool toys to lay on = genius!] and there was plenty of free Gatorade and Powerbars to go around. I waited in an INSANELY long/slow moving porta potty line and ended up being extremely glad that I brought my own toilet paper haha...if cross country meets have taught me anything, it's that there's NEVER enough toilet paper when you need it! Time flew pretty fast and soon enough it was time for the second wave to leave the village. It was actually kind of chilly at that point, so I reluctantly dropped my gear bag at the bus and we began the walk to the start.

The atmosphere walking the .7 mile to the start line was absolutely electric. Looking back, that was probably one of my favorite parts of the whole day. Just an endless sea of runners, everyone bouncing with the nervous energy of standing at the start line of a marathon....gloves and sweatshirts flying to the side of the road everywhere, already people out on their lawns wishing good luck...it was really cool. I made my way to the 16000s corral and soon enough - "5 minutes to the start!" Holy crap. I was quite calm, and a little scared - probably my first indication of things to come, since fear isn't really a great emotion to have on the starting line. I figured I would be fine once I started running, and soon enough...we were walking, then shuffling, then crossing the fabled start line...26.2 miles of hell had just begun.

The first mile was a pain in the ass. There were just SO MANY PEOPLE and it was just impossible to find any sort of groove. I kept having to weave around or getting stuck behind groups and it was just annoying having to expend that much energy to find my place in the pack. I went through the first mile in 8:04 and I figured - ok, that's about right - but it hadn't felt as easy as it should have. I chalked it up to dealing with the crowds and continued on.

Whoever says that the first half of the course is all downhill is a liar, liar, pants on fire. There are PLENTY of little rollers to keep you on your toes. My next 2 miles were 7:43 and 7:51, and go ahead and say it - yes, I probably went out too fast. Hindsight IS 20-20 after all. At this point though, I was still feeling OK - not fantastic, and like I probably should relax and slow down, but no major issues with the pace yet. I was still smiling, high fiving kids, and enjoying the shout-outs I got to the "Don't Stop Believin" on the back of my shirt. I also noticed I was hearing a lot of "Go Wisconsin!" cheers coming from up ahead somewhere....I looked up and saw a Wisconsin team singlet bobbing a few meters in front of me! I pulled up alongside the girl and we actually had a brief conversation - turns out, she used to run for the team but now does marathons instead, and she actually knows one of my friends from the track club - such a small world of runners! I pulled ahead, but don't worry, I would see her again before the race was over...mile 4 with that conversation was 7:49. Again, go ahead and yell. I think honestly my thought process at this point was one of knowing that things probably were going to go bad pretty shortly, and that if I could hang with this pace now, I might as well buy myself some time for the horrors to come.

Miles 5 and 6 I remember I thought I slowed down, but really they were 8:04 and 8:06. I was already not feeling great and pretty much knew that 3:30 was out of the question, but I thought holding 8:05-8:10 pace was a solid goal now. I was still having some fun at this point - the crowds were just out of this world, and the whole thing was honestly kind of surreal. I wasn't feeling bad really, but something was just off - no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find that pace where you can just lock in, settle down, and let it ride until the later stages of the race. I couldn't relax and find a groove - and that had me worried. I took a Gu at the 10K which gave me a little bit of a boost, then grabbed some water which I somehow managed to shoot up my nose...that was special haha. Mile 7 was an 8:05, and that was the last reasonable split I was going to see for the day. I noticed that my hamstrings were starting to seize up a bit and overall I just was having dead legs - NOT a good feeling to experience 8 miles into a 26.2 mile race. I tried to slow up the pace a little bit to see if it helped - miles 8 and 9 were 8:16 and 8:13. Alas, no relief. The hamstring cramps were only getting worse and just in general - nothing was feeling right. I had hoped at the start that maybe I just needed awhile to get into the groove, but there was no groove to be found. Suddenly it was looking like it was going to be a very, very long day.

So then, without even trying, I slowed down alarmingly. When I saw an 8:28 for mile 10 I was not pleased, and the 8:34 that followed had me pretty much freaking out. It was way, way, WAY too early for me to feel this way! Like, I had to paste on a game face going under the camera at I think the 15K mark...that's bad news bears right there. I should have been feeling smooth and easy at that point...and the reality was not even close. So...things were not good, and I was worried. Then I had 2 miles in Wellesley where I thought for a minute that maybe it was going to come back. 8:10 and 8:09, the cramps mysteriously dissolved, and I was able to ENJOY the miles at Wellesley College..which was a wonderful thing. My favorite moment of the race for sure. I grinned the whole time, high fived everyone, laughed at the signs (I won't tell your wife! hah), and actually felt hopeful for the first time in awhile. Maybe it had just taken me this long to loosen up - maybe things were going to be okay after all...

Orrrr maybe they were not. I came through the half in 1:46 and that was all well and good - I thought to myself hey, even if you slow down a bit from here, you'll still be solid, and yay, now you're on the course that you've run before! Familiar territory, yay! Mile 14 was 8:13, which I was fine with...and then the wheels really fell off. All of a sudden, the hamstring cramps were back with a VENGEANCE. I mean honestly I can't even describe the feeling. I was immediately struck with just complete terror - the terrain in Wellesley is still pretty forgiving so feeling like this with the big hills still to come? Noooooot good. Around this time, the Wisconsin girl came back up on me and passed me, looking just peachy keen. Damn. Mile 15 I walked through a water stop because I was starting to feel dehydrated and I knew that would only add to my issues if I didn't get some fluids in me - 8:43 for that mile. Mile 16 was the HUGE downhill which I enjoyed primarily because it took some of the agony off my hamstrings and so I was actually able to maintain a normal pace for awhile - 8:24, and actually feeling OK again at that point. The crowds were still amazing and I was trying to take the time to enjoy the signs (After 800 miles of training, what's 26.2 more?) and high five some kids, anything to give myself a boost. But the cramps would. not. stop. I had to walk again through another water stop and so saw my first 9+ mile of the day at 9:15 for mile 17. And then we came up on the hills...and my stomach absolutely decided to reject everything I had done all morning. I have NEVER in my life had to stop and use a porta potty during a race, but honestly at this point it was either that or become one of those people with poop running down their legs that you cringe at when you see pictures of them on the internet. [TMI, I know] The fact that I ran a 9:37 with a restroom stop AND the first of the big Newton Hills astounds me - but wow, that was frustrating.

From that point on, it was pretty much a struggle to survive. My legs were gone beyond the point of repair, my hamstrings scrunched into tiny, death-like balls of pain. I honestly hardly even remember the Newton Hills. I was in such an abyss of pain that it was like I was surrounded with a haze, the stabbing in my hamstrings overriding every other stimulus. The irony is that I remember feeling like the hills wouldn't have been so bad if it hadn't been for the cramps. Mile 19 was 8:52 - I bore down a little bit and made myself get through it, but unfortunately that was the last sub-9 mile I would see. I walked through a water stop right before Heartbreak since again, I was feeling dehydration coming back on top of all of my other problems. Started running again and was INSTANTLY hit with the most debilitating side cramp I have ever experienced. Oh my God. I tried squeezing it, I tried stretching it, I tried to run through it, there was just no way. I am pretty sure I may have shouted a couple obscenities as it pulled me up to a walk. This was NOT how this was supposed to be happening! Why was everything going so. incredibly. wrong?

The cramp subsided a bit but thanks to the extensive walk break it caused mile 20 was an abysmal 9:56. I had pretty much resigned myself to a run as much as possible/walk when you have to situation at this point and honestly I think I wound up with a better time this way than I would have if I had just tried to continue running. The pain in my hamstrings was so intense, I can't remember feeling anything vaguely close to that in my life. From what I can remember outside my bubble of suffering, Boston College was AWESOME. Loud, drunk college kids make quite a fantastic cheering section, and since it was a downhill I was actually capable of running for awhile, so I tried to soak it in. I remember one surreal moment when the green line train slowed down so the people on it could watch the runners, so even at my pathetic speed I was beating the train. Mile 21 was a 9:48, walked through a water stop. God, 5 miles to go. Every step was a struggle as I made the turn into Cleveland Circle. The crowds were crazy and it was incredible, and I only wished that I could actually ENJOY this moment instead of being stuck in this God-awful state I was in. I saw the BF with my amazing dinosaur sign, amazingly I was actually running as I went past him, and the only gesture I could think of to sum up my current state was slapping my hand across my face haha. I think in sign language that loosely translates to "DISASTER!" Mile 22 was a 9:30, 23 a 9:39. I seriously can't believe that my splits were even staying that reasonable considering I actually stopped at the side of the road to stretch out my hamstrings at mile 23, and there was plenty of walking going on during those miles - my effing hamstrings were just spasming and now everything else was starting to go to, in the standard breakdown that is mile 23 of a marathon.

But now there were 3 miles to go, and the crowds were getting more intense, and I was going to be damned if I wasn't going to run as much as was physically possible for this last stretch of the race. And I tried to just soak it in and find something, anything, to cherish and savor and keep me going. Then I saw someone handing out icy pops. THE BEST THING I HAVE EVER TASTED! My body had long since given up on accepting "running" food, Gatorade was making me nauseous and the last Gu I took tasted like sticky death. So this magical, cold, sugary pop was like salvation. Run, run, run, walk. Just keep moving forward. Then suddenly I saw a Wisconsin singlet up ahead. Seeing this girl again not only brought out the competitor in me, at long last, but it also made me realize - I am not the only one in this situation. I came up on her and said hi and that I was dying - she responded that she was pretty much the same. I passed her and that became my carrot on the string for the rest of the race -just stay ahead of Wisconsin girl.

Mile 24 was 9:16, I was forcing myself to run more because come on, come ON, we are almost there. Beacon Street just seemed like it was never going to end. I was caught in this bizarre spiral where when I would walk, a lot of people would pass me...but I would start running and pass them back. I knew a PR was gone, that even re-qualifying was gone...all I could do was salvage the end of this race the best I could and try my best to enjoy the moment. 2 miles to go. The bridge over the highway nearly brought me to tears. I just had nothing left, anywhere. Somehow, despite walking up that hill, I found a 9:01 for mile 25. One. God-forsaken. mile. to go. And I was not going to walk. I just would not. It was the most painful mile I have EVER experienced. My face was twisted into a grimace, my hamstrings absolutely felt like they were being stabbed with steak knives, and the rest of my legs weren't far behind. But goddamnit, I was going to run that final stretch. And I did. People around me were pumping up the crowds, all I could do was bear down and focus and hope that my legs just didn't suddenly stop under me. The last stretch down Boylston seemed infinitely long, the finish line like a mirage on the horizon that didn't seem to be getting closer. But I ran, I ran, I ran, and finally, with an attempt at a smile that I'm sure more closely resembles a grimace and a fist haphazardly thrown in the air, I crossed the finish line. 3:46:48. Done.

And then everything that wasn't already cramped up did. My lower back. My stomach. My calves. My hip flexors. Everything - spazzing out, complete disaster. In a weird moment of running serendipity, I looked over and saw a guy in brown Vibrams with Luau on his jersey...it was Matt from DailyMile! Somehow, despite the fact that he started 11 corrals back from me and the odds of it are ridiculously low, we ended up crossing the finish line at the same time - crazy! I attempted to talk but eventually just wandered away I think haha. The chute was just neverending. Much as I really wanted my space blanket and my medal and my lunchbox of goodies and my Gatorade, mostly I just wanted - NEEDED - to sit down, or do anything to relieve the nuclear war currently being raged in my hamstrings. Eventually I reached the end - got my bag - and started slowly hobbling to the train station. I knew I should eat something, but I also felt like I was going to puke at any given moment - fantastic stuff I know.

After splatting onto my bed for awhile when I got home, I realized I was hungry. It was weird eating dinner and drinking beer down on Beacon Street where just hours before thousands of people had been running. The aid stations were gone, the porta potties were being trucked out, a few drunken stragglers playing beer pong were all that was left of the marathon crowds. And really, it was a little sad. That letdown after something really big has happened - it's always kind of hard. A good race tempers it a little bit but it's always still there, somehow.

So that was my Boston Marathon. I'll probably do some analysis on here in the days to come but this is getting long and Lost is on soon. :) I think, given the circumstances, I have no idea how I even finished in the time I did. With how bad I felt for such a large percentage of the race, and how much walking I did, the fact that I never cracked 10 minute miles absolutely amazes me. I can't chalk the race up as a total loss because of that. But it is hard - mostly frustrating - to KNOW that I was in shape to run 3:30-3:35 based on my training and tune up races...and have this be the result. There's a quote that "the marathon will humble you" and it's true, especially when you're talking the Boston course. You never know what will happen on any given day and as I said that's part of what gives the marathon it's mystique. I am a little bummed that I didn't manage to requalify for next year...yeah...remember when I said this would be my last marathon for awhile? Somehow, despite the fact that that was the most painful experience I've ever put myself through, I have pretty much already decided to train for Baystate again in the fall, ideally to requalify to run Boston again in the spring. Yes....the marathon has seduced me with its wiles...and looking back on the race achieving the time I did under the circumstances makes me wonder....damn, what could I have done on a GOOD day? But this is the truth: there will be good days, and there will be bad days. Yesterday definitely fell under the bad category. But no one can take my incredible training, the two PRs I gained on the way, or the fact that I'm a Boston Marathon finisher away from me. And I have no doubt in my mind that I'll be back for more.

Boston Short Recap: Not Even Close

2010-04-19T19:49:00.000-05:00

3:46:48
Pretty much had to throw any hopes of a PR and/or 3:30 out the window early...it just wasn't my day today. Hot damn, it could have been a lot better. But based on the questionable legs starting at mile 5, MAJOR hamstring cramps starting at mile 8, stomach cramps followed by a necessary [but sad] porta potty stop at 18, with continuation of the worst leg cramps I've experienced in my LIFE, I'm impressed I made it in this time. Full race report to come [if I can actually remember enough outside my abyss of pain to actually write one]. For now all I have to say is this: I DID manage to beat a girl who used to run on the REAL track team for my alma mater [which in my mind is pretty cool], and since I'm a huge masochist, I'm already thinking about Baystate [since I didn't re-qualify, and all I want in life is to suffer massively on the Boston course again and again and again]

Today may not have been my day, but I know what I did in training...and I know what kind of marathon time I've got inside of me. It's a testament to how much I love this race that less than 2 hours after the most painful, awful, WORST, race of my life, I'm thinking about doing another....

Tik Tok: Boston Marathon Style

2010-04-16T12:10:00.000-05:00

This song came on during my last GMP run last night...since it's been one of my training anthems for some reason this cycle, I was inspired to change some of the lyrics to make it more fitting...I'm actually pretty impressed with what I came up with haha. Enjoy! And yes, I hope to wake up marathon morning feeling like P. Diddy... :)

Wake up in the morning feeling like P. Diddy
Put my Mizunos on, out the door, I'm gonna hit this city (Let's go)
Before I leave, brush my teeth, Gatorade in my pack
Cause when I leave Boston I've got to run the whole way back

I'm talkin' tech socks on my toes, toes
Skimpy spandex clothes, clothes
Athlete Alert texts on my friends phones, phones

School buses, listening to my favorite tracks
Eating power bars for snacks
The lines for the Porta Potties are staaaacked...

Don't stop, make it pop
Gonna blow my sneakers up this time
I'm gonna fight, til I see that finish line
Tik tok, on the clock, but the race don't stop, no

Oh oh oh oh....oh oh oh oh

Those BC students, they've got plenty of beer
Got my chip in my shoelaces, all the runners are here
And the corrals are lining up, cause we hear they got swagger
Don't wanna hit the curb with that Newton Hills stagger

I'm talkin' everybody goin' fast, fast
Hopin' that they can last, last
Where's the next girl I can pass, pass

Now, now we're goin' twenty six point two
I think I need another Gu....
Think I need another Gu-Gu
Think I need another....

Don't stop, make it pop
Gonna blow my sneakers up this time
I'm gonna fight, til I see that finish line
Tik tok, on the clock, but the race don't stop no

Oh oh oh oh....oh oh oh oh

Boston, you build me up
You break me down
My heart it pounds, yeah you've got me

Up Heartbreak Hill
You've got me now
Got that screaming crowd sound
Yeah you've got me

Ohh, you build me up
You break me down
My heart it pounds, yeah you've got me

We're at the top, put your hands up
Put your hands up...

Now the race don't start til mile 21...

Don't stop, make it pop
Gonna blow my sneakers up this time
I'm gonna fight, til I see that finish line
Tik tok, on the clock but the race don't stop no

Oh oh oh oh....oh oh oh oh

The rock candy's melted, only diamonds now remain

2010-04-14T22:28:00.000-05:00

[Apologies in advance for the extreme ramblings of this post...it is taper, after all....]

For some reason I've had this lyric running through my mind all throughout this taper week. 15 weeks of hard work, aching muscles, tears of joy and frustration, freezing wind, pouring rain, heartache, maybe heartbreak, and finding the point where you thought you just couldn't go on, then going on - to get to the starting line of a marathon, you've fought through these obstacles and the things that once held you back have melted away and you have been forged into something new, something strong, powerful, beautiful. Only diamonds now remain.

The nerves and the excitement have sprung up on me at random and utterly mundane times - walking from the bus stop to work listening to "Living on a Prayer", doing the dishes after dinner - and times that make complete sense - picking out Gu for the race at Marathon Sports, seeing the trappings of the finish line beginning to be constructed on Boylston Street. I am running the Boston Marathon. The number 16180 [my number!] floats around in my dreams...as does marathoning in general [I had a crazy dream last night involving being in a start corral by myself at 4 am and having a guy I had a crush on long ago come and give me a pep talk...bizarre.] I haven't been writing here a lot which is surprising because damn, I've sure been thinking about this marathon a lot. But every time I sit down to write something, I lose the words and the only thought that comes back is I am running the Boston Marathon....and I just don't think typing that out a million times would make for a very interesting blog post.

It's hard for me to explain or even quite figure out for myself why doing this race and doing it well means so much to me. When I first qualified I wasn't even planning on running, and before a few years ago I doubt I knew that the Boston Marathon existed, let alone that you had to qualify to run it. I am running it alone, without the motivation and support and push to perform that running with a team has given me throughout my entire running career up until this point. In a way, I think that's just it - this is the first race that I've ever trained for, and will be running, completely alone. No teammates, no friends - just me versus the road, my mind and heart versus my legs and the weather and the Newton hills. Getting through this training cycle alone has given me a strength that I'm not sure I would have found otherwise. As I once told my dad when he asked me if I ever went to church anymore, there's plenty of time on a 23 mile run to contemplate religion - and not only religion but me - who I am, what makes me do what I do - I have learned so much about myself. And I've learned enough to know that I can and I will run an amazing race on Monday - and when I do, I really won't be alone. My teammates, family, friends, and even rivals, who all, in some way, have been important in allowing me to get to a place where I actually AM capable of something like this - there will be a part of all of them with me as I run from Hopkinton to Boylston.

There is another reason I have come to realize too, and it's probably going to sound silly, but hey, it's the truth. By blogging standards I think I'm on the young end at 22, and I have a whole lifetime of training and racing ahead of me. But since I just graduated from college I've kind of seen the past year as an "end of an era" - the era in which I've gone from a 100 meter hurdler to a marathoner - crazy, right? As my events have changed I've changed as a person as well, but there are things in my high school past that have never quite escaped me - namely, my constant fear [which was sometimes made reality] of not being 'good enough'. I could tell stories about this from all over the map of my high school hobbies - getting cut from the top tier of dances in my competitive dance program, not getting the best and most prestigious scholarships, blah blah blah. But running-wise, what it all comes back to is this: my senior year of high school, the only thing I wanted in the world was to make it to state in the 100 meter hurdles. I trained my ass off, joined cross country to work on my endurance, ran some fantastic times, made the state honor roll, won the indoor conference championship....and then tripped out of the blocks at sectionals, costing myself precious tenths of a second and missing qualifying by 2 places. I. was. devastated. I felt like I let down my team, my coach, myself...It seems so silly in retrospect that I honestly can't remember being more depressed about anything in my life than not qualifying for a big high school track meet. But the sting of that defeat, combined with the fact that once I started running distance I found that I'd maybe been doing the wrong event all along - has given me this unconscious motivation to be better than okay at running - I want to be great. I want to make it.

And I think in the end, that's why I am so beyond pumped about running Boston. Because Boston means I made it. Boston means I am not average, Boston means I never settled, Boston means I refused to give up, Boston means I am stronger, better, more than I ever believed I could be. And Boston is only the beginning.

Only diamonds now remain...4 days. BRING IT, BOSTON!

It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes, and leap

2010-04-05T23:14:00.000-05:00

So here we are - 2 weeks until raceday...how time flies when you're training for a marathon! Weeks and months of endless miles, speedwork, long runs in every bizarre weather condition imaginable [freezing cold? check. monsoon? check. 70 and blazing sun? check.] - the hard work is all behind me and now it's just the one huge question burning in my mind: can I do this?

I feel like most runners probably experience the doubt that seems to appear in the days and weeks leading up to a big race. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I trained harder and better for this race than I've ever trained for any other in my life. But during taper all of the random insecurities creep in...will I be able to execute on race day? Did I REALLY train as well as I thought I did? And of course, the big one: can I REALLY PR by almost 10 minutes on a much harder course than Baystate?

I guess I'll just put it out there: I want to go sub-3:30 in 2 weeks. Actually writing that out is terrifying to me - I think I often have goals in my head but I never put them out there because I'm worried that they'll seem overly lofty or ridiculous, and actually having a number on paper to chase makes me put infinitely more pressure on myself to achieve it [and thus, much greater disappointment if I don't] But here are the things I know: both my 10K and HM performances during this cycle predict a 3:27 marathon according to the McMillan calculator, and the training I've done has put me in the best possible position to achieve that time. It seems so simple. I don't think at all that this is a crazy or random goal - I think with the way my training has been going I would be selling myself short if I "only" was shooting for a PR or say a 3:35 [and obviously, I wouldn't be unhappy about either of those...that's just not the A goal]

Why does it scare me so much to go for this time? I think it's the whole high risk/high reward situation - like, it's entirely possible [and frightening] that I could go out on pace for 3:30 and then have disaster strike in the Newton Hills and come shuffling into the finish - I don't want that. But at the same time, there's no way in hell I want to finish and feel like I could have run faster. I am fairly confident that this is going to be my last marathon for awhile [though I will admit, I am slightly addicted to the training and living in Boston makes it quite tempting to want to do this again year after year, masochist that I am...] and it's the freaking Boston marathon. At this point, I think I have to take the risk, see what happens, and regardless of what DOES happen, look back on it with no regrets and know I left it all out on the course. I think my problem is I'm still not used to thinking of myself as a decent-good runner and setting a goal that's maybe slightly out of my comfort zone scares the crap out of me. I am trying to come to terms with the fact that if I really want to go for it and run a fast time, there are probably going to be points in the race that are going to hurt. A lot. But I need to trust in my training and KNOW that I've put in the work to run this time and make it happen on the course.

Hmm well needless to say I'm getting quite nervous and excited for the race. I'm really happy that I forced myself to do a bunch of long runs out on the course - seriously, I know every bend and up and down of those damn Newton Hills. My last "long" run on Sunday was 17 on the course and it went pretty well. The heat definitely got to me - hello, 70 degrees, where did you come from? And would you kindly go away until AFTER the marathon? I was doing pretty well until the way back, just after cresting Heartbreak, and I was looking ahead to crossing the street, when BAM, I stepped in a pothole and rolled my ankle bad. Totally lost all of my momentum after that - and my foot is still bugging me a little bit, though not enough to really be worrisome, just another thing to freak out about during taper, obviously. After that, my hamstrings and glutes decided they wanted to join in the painful fun and cramp up like it was their job in life - SO awful! I kept trying to slow down since I knew I was being an idiot as usual and running closer to GMP pace than long run pace...but nothing really helped the little balls of pain that my hamstrings had turned into - it was AWFUL. Definitely a result of the heat/dehydration - if it's anything that even resembles warm on April 19, I am going to have to work my butt off to stay hydrated, because hot weather + me = disaster waiting to happen. All in all the fact that I got through it at around GMP while really not having a good day at all was heartening [although it was nothing compared to the excitement of my crazy-ass 23 miler the week before...good lord.]

It's funny because I was just looking back at my entries from before Baystate and there's one from 2 weeks out that is REALLY similar to this one - basically contemplating strategy and what kind of time I thought I could run...except with the goal pace being 20 seconds different haha. It's weird being back again so soon to pre-marathon taper madness...literally, this damn race is on my mind every minute of the day. 2 nights ago literally the last thing I thought about before falling asleep was what 3 flavors of Gu I wanted to buy for the race [I think I've decided on Chocolate Outrage, Mint Chocolate, and Tri-Berry]. I'm geeking out over what pair of shorts I want to wear. Aaah and now I'm getting myself all fired up, and I need to actually get some sleep before work in the morning, so I think I should just stop while I can still form coherent sentences haha.

2 WEEKS TO BOSTON!!!

256.2...and other mysterious numbers

2010-03-31T22:55:00.000-05:00

I'm having a bit of an obsession with numbers lately. Numbers like....

66.7 - number of miles run last week [weekly high by 5 or so]

256.2 - number of miles run in March [a monthly high by almost 30]

20 - days until Boston

8:00 - marathon pace to run sub-3:30

7:52 - pace of my 23 mile long run on the course on Sunday

Um...yeah...

I have a whole lot of thoughts flying around my mind about the race, my training, and my goals, especially after the above-mentioned ridiculous long run, but I'm not having much luck transforming my thoughts into words at the moment....sooo I will leave you with this exciting list of numbers and hopefully come up with a more coherent post tomorrow. Suffice it to say, I'm getting extremely excited and nervous at the same time - feeling like I'm standing on the brink of a really phenomenal race, and hoping that everything that I think I've done right will pay off in 20 days.

20 daaaaaaays!!

Break on through to the other side: New Bedford HM Race Report

2010-03-22T13:10:00.000-05:00

Man, racing is really fun. Settle in, it's another epic Run Like A Llama race report! :)

So yesterday I ran the New Bedford Half Marathon as sort of a "tuneup" race/a way to have a cutback week in my long runs before the last big push to Boston. The half marathon and I have had some interesting times together - my first one was cool simply because it was my first, but looking back it was hot and I got really dehydrated, resulting in an absolutely miserable last 4 miles or so. My second I ran at the end of track season last year, and while I was in really good 5K shape and had done long runs up to 14 miles, the endurance just wasn't there. I died pretty early and slowed down a lot over the last 5 miles, crushing my dreams of a sub-1:40 finish, though I did come through in a PR of 1:42:25. The last half I ran in August, as a kind of fun excuse to go back to Madison for one last run before I moved out to Boston...aaand it was a total disaster. I was sick, felt god-awful throughout the entire race, watched my friend/rival pull away from me at the 3 mile mark, and wound up finishing only 10 seconds faster than my first race - a pretty poor showing after 2 more years of hard distance training. Maybe that race just left a bad taste in my mouth, but I was skeptical about doing this race. Pretty much my overwhelming thought was - if I have a bad day on the course, if I don't PR, it's really going to kill my confidence for Boston, which really isn't what I need a month out from the race. Buuut with some convincing from Kelly and a cheap entry fee [$35 for a half? With medals, t-shirts, and a ridiculous spread of food after? Pretty hard to beat] I decided that I had to face my half marathon demons and see what I could do.

The race was about an hour away, so Kelly, Joy and I left pretty early because we knew it was a big race and didn't want to be stranded looking for parking at the last minute. Turns out, that was a genius idea because the check-in area was INSANE. Apparently they had moved it from the high school to the YMCA...which was way smaller, and involved waiting in long lines for a one-stall bathroom...ughhh. The line for number pick up was crazy even when we were there at like 9:30 [for a race starting at 11] and by the time we went off to warm-up, it was out the door...since I'm totally weird about having enough time to warm up and wander around before a race, that would pretty much be my worst nightmare...so definitely glad we got there early!

We went back to the car to drop off our clothes, since it was getting pretty warm out, and were trying to figure out what to do about the god-awful bathroom situation when suddenly...we spotted a lonely construction site porta potty! Being the smart runners that we are, we had to investigate. We found that they were fenced in, but there was a decent gap under the fence...someone mentioned that you could probably squeeze under, and I was already down army crawling under the fence haha. Of course, I got to the other side and stood up....only to see Kelly pushing the fence aside like a gate - apparently the two pieces weren't attached soooo I crawled under a fence for no reason lol.

After taking care of the bathroom, joking about going on a whale watch tour after the race, and warming up some more, we finally made our way to the start corral and worked our way up to the 7-8 minute mile area...only to hear an announcement that the race wasn't going to start until 11:15...half an hour away. We obviously weren't going to leave since we had a pretty prime spot at the start and there was no way we'd ever get back to it...so unfortunately we were stuck stretching and bobbing up and down as the MC tried to entertain us by enlightening us to the wonders of New Bedford....once again, talking up the whale museum hehe. At some point there was an announcement that the race would start in 7 minutes...and then approximately 2 minutes later the gun went off...and off we went!

I really had no strategy for this race at all, other than to just kind of relax into whatever pace worked and see what happened from there. The start was kind of crazy and the first mile I spent a lot of time weaving around people on a pretty long downhill...so when I looked at my watch at the 1 mile and saw 7:08 it was like - WHOA, slow the eff down. I pretty much just regarded it as money in the PR bank and tried to relax and chill out since clearly I wasn't going to be holding my 10K pr pace for a half marathon. Mile 2 was much more reasonable - 7:35 - and while in the back of my mind I had a few flashes of "but this is only 2 miles in, remember how you always crash at the end of halfs..." based on how easy the pace felt I knew that wasn't going to happen. There were a couple of little rollers leading up to a long, turning hill at the mile 3 mark [7:34 for mile 3 -holding steady], which actually kind of reminded me of Heartbreak in steepness and distance. Hills have generally been my downfall in life, but running up that hill, passing people and feeling really strong, made me realize that since moving to Boston, and especially over this training cycle, my hill running has improved immensely. I no longer look at hills with fear, but as a challenge to get through and push on into the rest of the race...and that's exactly what I did. Mile 4 was 7:39, with only a slight slowdown for probably 600 meters of hill. I think that was the moment when I knew - today was a PR day. But the real question was - could I go under 1:40? That remained to be seen.

The crowd support for this race was absolutely mindblowing - really, the ENTIRE town came out to support the race. It was really cool to see the pride these people had for their town and how excited they were about having this race. The cheers absolutely thrilled me and I had to think for a moment about how cool this was - me, who has this tendency to be so intense and get SO involved in races that I tune out the crowd and the experience of the whole thing, was actually enjoying the support, having FUN with this race. I mean, I was veering to the side of the road to high five little kids and loving it! I was just so relaxed, enjoying every moment, feeling like a rockstar to these kids who thought that these runners were the most incredible people around. And really, I feel like that attitude - just RELAXING for once, not completely freaking out every second over my splits or my pace or how I'm feeling, was totally the key to a monster PR in this race. Mile 5 was a 7:22, thanks in part I'm sure to the massive tunnel of screaming, cowbell banging, music playing New Bedford-ites gathered in a park to support the race. Seriously - so. cool. And at the same time I'm thinking..."I'm seriously running a 7:22 at mile 5 of a half marathon? Can I seriously go under 1:40 today?" All of those thoughts of a monster PR were always kind of present in my mind but they were never really the overwhelming thing - it was just stay relaxed, run your race, just do it.

Mile 6 [7:27] I took a mint chocolate Gu - YUM - which went down smooth since it had been heated in the sun haha. It was only maybe 55 out, but the sun was HOT out there! I took advantage of my recently discovered drinking-while-running skills to grab water at most of the aid stations since I've been down the road of HM dehydration before and I reallly have no desire to go back haha. So here I was, somehow holding pace, and feeling solid. Obviously I knew that the real race was yet to come, but for the moment I was just savoring the feeling of being able to run this fast for this long. Mile 7 was another 7:27, as we made the turn out of the random neighborhoods to start a long stretch by the ocean - what a gorgeous day to be running by the water. I actually NOTICED the scenery - the lighthouses, boats, sun sparkling on the water...it was just that kind of day. Also just past mile 7, possibly the greatest thing that's ever happened to me in a race happened. There was a random motorcycle? store that had music playing out of a car, and as I approached it I got excited, because hey, music! But suddenly it dawned on me what song was playing....

DON'T STOP BELIEVIN'

OK, I know. No one should really love a song as much as I love Don't Stop Believin'. But it is my anthem, my motto, and to hear it in a race, let alone a race where I'm pretty much having the race of my life, was basically the most exciting thing ever. I actually threw my arms up in the air with joy. The happiness of that carried me the rest of the way through mile 8 in 7:26. Still running sub-7:30 miles at mile 8 of a half? All I have to do is hold this pace...

And then there was mile 9. Which was pretty awful. Really the only dark time of the race. It was like it kind of dawned on my legs suddenly that, hey, we've been running fast for kind of a long time, and it would be nice to stop now? My left hamstring/glute was kind of starting to cramp, and I eased back a little bit to try to get it to work itself out. I really didn't realize I slowed down THAT much, so when I looked down at my watch and saw 7:56, I was definitely alarmed. So I guess it's time to race, huh? I forced myself to pick it up again after that, and set my sights on several girls in front of me to pick off and pass. Up until this point, I hadn't really paid attention to any other runners - pass me? I passed you? Whatever, I'm running my own race. But at this point I needed some other stimulus besides my splits to give myself the extra push, and picking off girls one at a time seemed to be the perfect way to do it. First came yellow singlet girl. Next up was tye dye shirt, followed by short girl with the sweet red singlet. I passed mile 10 in 7:32 and now that I was back on track, I realized that I had to stay on this pace for the last 3 miles, and I would get under 1:40 - the wall, broken through. There was a great aid station playing loud Irish music right after the 10 mile [the race was sponsored by the Friendly Sons of St Patrick, after all!] which gave me a boost, along with somehow managing to get the song "Kiss My Irish Ass" stuck in my head for the remainder of the race haha. I continued on with my picking-off plan...girl with the blue shorts, you're history. I was gazing at a woman in a pink hat for the longest time, but she was always just out of reach. We turned back into the city with the mile 11 mark [7:31] and I figured out [after about 3 minutes of mental math failing haha] that I had to run 2.1 miles in 18 minutes or something to go under 1:40. Well hell yes, I can do that!

I was starting to get really tired, definitely the point in the race when you are just ready to be DONE. But I set my sights on a girl in light green shorts and told myself to just HOLD ON. Just past mile 12 [7:34] there is a soul crushing, curse inducing hill. I have never wanted to walk so badly in a race as I did running up that damn hill. It's really the placement of it that's cruel - just looking at the hill its nothing spectacular - your average 400-600 meter, somewhat steep but not mountain-like hill. But at mile 12 of a half marathon? Death in road form. And for the first time in the race, true pain and exhaustion set in...but since I had just pulled even with green shorts girl, obviously I had to put in a little surge to pass her. Now I was at the top of the hill, everything simply screaming to stop, and yet...less than a mile to go and it's all basically down hill...come ON!

Finally there was one last big downhill leading to the mile 13 mark, and I just let my legs go and flew down the hill. Mile 13 was 7:31, all that was left was to kick it in...and I sprinted with everything I had. I actually pulled even with a short girl in an orange tank top, and was hoping to get past her, but she turned on the jet engines and shot away - I tried to respond, but my calves were cramping into tiny balls of pain and I just had nothing left to give. No matter, the finish line was a few steps away, and then, slamming my watch - DONE.

1:38:34.

I really wasn't even sure what to do with myself. I chugged a bottle of water while waiting for Joy and Kelly to finish. Once we all met up we decided to forgo cooling down in favor of fish sandwiches, seafood chowder, and other goodness back at the YMCA, where the gym had now been opened up to form a more acceptable space for 2500 people haha. We drove back to Boston and I went out for a quick 2.5 mile granny shuffle cooldown/beer run, then spent the rest of the night relaxing, watching basketball, and passing out early - I was out like a light by 11 haha. Racing hard really takes it out of you!

The race was really competitive and full of club athletes, since its part of the USATF New England Grand Prix series, so I was pretty pleased with 622/2308 overall and 117th woman [assuming I counted right, unfortunately the results didn't give any breakdown of AG or gender placements and I'm too lazy to figure it out haha] out of who knows how many. But really in these races I couldn't care less about my place - especially this one. I honestly didn't believe I had it in me to run under 1:40 in a half marathon. Maybe somewhere around 1:40, maybe just barely squeaking under, but not this fast, especially feeling as strong as I did the whole way. I feel like this has given me great confidence going into this last month before Boston that I can really do some great things out on the course on April 19th. Creepily, my 10K time a month ago predicted this performance within 5 seconds. Does that mean that a 3:27 marathon [the McMillan prediction given both by this HM and my 10K time] is in my future? Guess we'll just have to wait and see. For now, I'm really happy with finally showing the 13.1 mile distance who's boss, and having an amazing time while doing it. :)

I need to get back home to cool, cool rain

2010-03-14T22:19:00.000-05:00

Long run song of the day:

So today's long run was...epic. And awesome. And hands down the best long run of my life - I am not joking. What the hell is it about the combination of pouring rain, gusting wind, and general nastiness that turns me into some kind of run-dominating beast? I spent most of yesterday and this morning debating whether I even should set out for 22 miles in the craptastic weather - I seriously don't think I've ever been so unhappy about the prospect of going for a long run in my life. 22 miles just seemed so. long [okay well...it is...but yeah] and throwing the weather on top of that didn't help. But since this was really a KEY workout I had planned in my training schedule - 22 miles on the actual marathon course - I knew I had to just suck it up buttercup and get out there.

So I did - and I think once I realized that it wasn't as bad as I had made it out to be, I knew everything was going to be okay. I wasn't planning on really worrying about the pace, so I just fell into something that felt comfortable and easy and got into the groove. You know those days when things just fall into place and you find that sweet spot of pace where you feel like you could literally keep running forever? That was me today. Running on the course, as always, was a great plan because while there weren't a ton of runners out there, it seemed like everyone who was was a) wearing some kind of neon jacket or shirt that made them like a beacon of light in the endless gray of the rain and b) was equally happy to see a fellow runner partaking in this madness and would give a wave, hi, or at least a smile. Seriously, every runner I saw gave me an extra shot of energy - knowing I'm not alone, and that we're all out there for a reason, is such a boost.

It actually took me kind of awhile to notice that I was cold or wet. I think I had on enough layers that the gradual soaking-through process took about an hour haha. I stopped at the Marathon Sports on the course in Wellesley to grab a Gu and some water - perfect timing because I was getting really hungry and had the feeling I was on my way to being pretty dehydrated as well. Tried the new flavor of Gu - Jet Blackberry - it pretty much tasted the same as the Tri Berry, but I think it has more caffeine...anyway, after a few minutes in the store coming back into the deluge kind of sucked, and that was the first time I noticed the cold. And then I just kept trucking through Wellesley. There seemed to be a lot of hills [I really wouldn't notice that as much on the way back, maybe because anything that was uphill running the course backwards would be downhill going the right way]. I got nerdily excited when I saw the 14 mile/water mark with the BAA unicorn on the road, waved gleefully at a fellow runner on the opposite side of the street, and had to kind of laugh at the random empty Gu packets strewn around randomly on the sidewalk. [Definitely don't advocate littering...but it was just kind of funny...like, gee, do you think a lot of marathoners run out here or something?]. Generally I just continued to enjoy myself, finally reaching my turnaround point at Bacon Street [which...I seriously picked because I thought I would want some bacon at that point in the run. I really don't know what's going on in my head sometimes haha]

So I started the long trek back towards Boston, and honestly I kept waiting for my legs to do their usual seizing up/dying act that they always seem to do at the end of long runs, or for it to start feeling hard, or something...none of those feelings ever came. It just simply felt easy. Seriously, I don't know if there's magical fairy dust scattered all over the course or what, but every time I've run out there over this training cycle, it's been an incredible, effortless run...fingers crossed that the magic still works when I have to share it with 25,000 other runners. :) Also, my thought on this new part of the course that I hadn't seen before: really, not that many bad hills. It's funny because at first I thought "yes, well, you'll be running this at mile 12-20 of a marathon"...but then I realized that this section of the course was at mile 12-20 of my long run too...which was obviously the point haha. I guess the impression I get is that the course is never REALLY flat...but that you also spend more time running downhill than you do running up...and yes, that is the definition of a net downhill course, which Boston is, so sorry for stating the obvious haha. The one hill for me that was sort of a beeyotch, actually moreso than Heartbreak, was the one that comes right after the turn onto Comm Ave, at around the 18 mile mark. It's sort of a long hill that seems to drag, and I think since you've just had a big downhill it's kind of like...aww...a hill? Wah wah. But then there's like a mile of basically downhill before you have to deal with Heartbreak...I don't know, maybe it was just because my run went SO well on the course today, but I was left feeling a lot more confident about running a good race on this course than I was before.

You'll notice that I've only mentioned the crazy-ass weather once in this epic description of this run so far...really, I didn't pay much attention to it, and what thoughts I did give to it were basically along the lines of "this is so effing awesome. I am kicking so much ass right now. If the marathon was today, I would probably run a PR. I am so freaking glad I didn't skip this run. I love the rain". So the "song of the day" came on my ipod just as I had crested Heartbreak, and was headed onto the GIANT downhill through BC. Everytime I run that downhill, I want to put my arms up and yell like a little kid on a rollercoaster haha...it's like..I MADE IT! Combine that with The Who screaming about rain and the fact that there are less than 2 miles to go of a 23 mile run, and you have yourself a pretty amazing moment. I was also pretty impressed at how the run absolutely FLEW by...normally I get so sick of running by about 2:15 into a long run that the last 30-45 minutes are just a death march...but this time, probably since I was feeling good, it was totally no big deal.

Probably the funniest moment of the run actually happened after I finished. I finally made it back to my door, thrilled to be done, thrilled at how I was feeling, basically just on this massive runner's high...oh yeah, and also completely drenched and dripping a puddle into the foyer of my apartment building. My hands were COMPLETELY frozen, so I struggled for like 5 minutes to get my key out of my pocket...then struggled to actually get it in the door...and THEN once I got it in the door, I couldn't grip my hands enough to turn it...FAIL! I was just attempting to use the two-handed grip approach and looking like a giant idiot when a neighbor came in behind me and was like...uh...are you okay? [he probably thought I was trying to break into the place or something!] Just then I got the door open and let him in, and I was like oh, yeah, I'm fine, I just ran 22 miles though and so my hands are really cold, I couldn't get the key to turn. The guy was like oh...and then was like..wait...you ran 22 miles...TODAY? You have issues... Kind of reminds me of my boss who commented yesterday that "looks like you won't be getting any miles in this weekend". I'm pretty confident that 99% of the population [my mom, grandma, and boyfriend included!] think that what I did today was borderline insane...but seriously, having that great of a run in this disgusting of weather gave me such a HUGE mental boost - like whatever raceday throws at me, I'll be able to get through it. Maybe more importantly, it gave me the confidence that my training is actually working - that the higher miles and workouts and things I've been doing that I've bitched and moaned about really HAVE made me stronger, much stronger, than I was going into Baystate. Being able to hit 8:15 pace [haha, guess I didn't mention that I was actually running kind of fast for a LR...] for that long of a run without going downhill into my usual "run for a few minutes...legs tighten up...stop....stretch...start again" act that I usually wind up doing for the last 5 miles or so of any long run, was a total eye opener to me. And it was my longest run EVER...coming in at 22.9 miles [and yes, I kind of wish I had run around the block to get in that extra .1 mile, especially since I was feeling so good. Oh well!]

Sooo I will stop boring you all now with my epic account of my long run haha...I'm just really pumped about it and I feel like it's been so long since I had a run where I just wanted to run around shouting from the mountaintops about how awesome it was, that I had to let myself get a little excited about this. :) Running on the course was a great idea and one I'm going to continue to incorporate for the next few weeks...and probably for the rest of the time that I live near it too, since like I said, I think it might be magic. :)

Well, now I am comfy and warm [well, as warm as is possible in my apartment, where we don't pay for heat but the heat is also almost never on...], the rain is still blasting outside, and I enjoyed a delicious plate of pesto pasta, a Magic Hat #9, and some Ben & Jerry's as a post-epic-run treat. I actually have a lot of random things bouncing around in my head to post about, more musings than actual day-to-day running stuff....but I think this post is long enough, so maybe I'll just actually post more than once this week!

Oh...and it's a little late...but happy pi day! :P Thanks MarathonMaiden for reminding me :)

Tugging at my hamstrings

2010-03-12T09:32:00.000-06:00

Woo, I've been kind of MIA the last week or so - my laptop charger cord decided to fray it to the point where it doesn't even charge the computer any more, and since my laptop battery lasts for like 45 minutes anyway...no laptop for me! I've been jumping on the BF's computer when I get the chance but I never seem to have enough time to throw together a coherent post haha. Not that my posts are really ever coherent...

So last week was kind of a "meh" week of training. Yes, I got all of my runs done at their prescribed [or faster] paces, and it was another over-60 mile week...but I just wasn't really feeling it. The week just seemed to CRAWL by...the workout I did last Tuesday seems like about an eternity ago. By the time I got to my 18 mile "cutback" long run on Sunday, I just wasn't a happy camper. Thank God for the fact that my running buddy, Kelly, was down for doing 13 miles of it with me....I honestly think I would have called it in at like 10 otherwise. The first thing I said to her when I walked out my door was "I am SO SICK of running!" Most non-runners would be like, OK, why are you doing this then? But Kelly is awesome and basically let me know that I'm going to get out of this slump and I'll come through stronger than I was before thanks to all of the training I've been doing. The rest of the run wasn't great, we were both suffering from "dead legs syndrome" a little bit, but the conversation and company definitely saved me from getting to the point of just wanting to throw myself into the Charles to end the run.

As it turned out, the rest of my day Sunday was the perfect way to break out of the slump. AKA....I needed to have some fun! Working Friday and Saturday nights kind of sucks, let me tell you, and sometimes makes me feel like I lose all of my potential "fun time" of the weekend to work. So Sunday nights have kind of become the BF and I's "fun" nights where we either go out to dinner, get pizza and watch a movie, go have drinks, or whatever...basically things you would do on a regular weekend night, except on Sunday...Sunday Funday! Haha. Well anyway, last Sunday worked out particularly well because the weather was gorgeous and the Badger hockey AND basketball teams were playing conference rivals at 2:00. So off we went to the Baseball Tavern to cheer on the Badgers with some Wisconsin [and...sadly....Minnesota...] alums. A few beers and a Badger basketball victory later, we decided to walk across the bridge to Cambridge, where we were planning on using our Tupelo Groupon. It was a beautiful day and we stopped for some pictures

On our way to Tupelo [kind of a lengthy walk, but we were up to it, as usual :)] we decided we needed a bathroom, and maybe another beer. Miracle of Science looked like the perfect stop!

Their menu was a periodic table, and their stools looked like they were stolen right out of a lab. My chemistry major BF was a fan. :) So we continued onward towards Tupelo only to find it was CLOSED! FAIL! No problem - we went back to the T and decided to hit up our old standby - the Sunset, home of 380 bottles and 112 taps...beer lover's heaven, and with some pretty tasty Tex-Mex food too! It worked out perfectly, and I got to try Dogfish Head Fort....an 18% raspberry beer. So basically like a beer-wine? Whatever it was, it was amazing.

It comes in a teeny 8 oz glass...because it's crazy strong. And crazy delicious.

It was a fantastic night...I had so much fun. And when I woke up the next day, albeit a little hungover, I felt so refreshed from actually going out and doing something OTHER than run, work, sleep, eat, or clean the apartment, that I was pretty much instantly happier. Pretty sure the feeling carried over to my running too, because I banged out a great 7.5 miler on the Newton hills on Tuesday. I realized that I really have NOT been taking advantage of the fact that I live on the course of the marathon I'm going to be running. What kind of idiot wouldn't want to know the course, especially theoretically the hardest part of the course, like the back of their hand if they had the chance? So I've decided that I'm going to make myself run on the course at least twice a week for the remainder of training - well, until taper anyway. I really want to get to know the feel of running those particular hills, both while running hard and running easy, so that when race day comes running the hills is just like coming home.

Wednesday was another beautiful day, and I did this crazy bridge fartlek along the Charles. Basically the workout I had to do was 10 miles with 10 x 30 seconds @ 5K pace...how those were supposed to be spaced out was something I had to guess. So to keep it entertaining, and to not have to look at my watch constantly, I picked a route where I was constantly going under, over, or past bridges...and every time that happened, I had to do a pickup. There was a set of 4 around 6 miles where I only had about a minute easy in between [if you know the area...past Cambridge St, over Western Ave, past Cambridge St on the other side...and then another random overpass before the BU bridge about 5 minutes later] and that got tough, but I made it through strong and felt great when I was done. Only problem: I seem to have tweaked my right hamstring a bit, either from pushing it too hard on the hills on Tuesday or from the pickups on Wednesday, or most likely some combination of the two. I had a 4 mile easy scheduled for yesterday, but decided to skip it in favor of resting and icing the hammy. I HATE skipping runs, but then again if I have to skip a planned workout, "4 miles easy" is about as good as it gets - either to make up or just forget about all together. Had I just been sore I totally would have done the run, but this felt a little beyond that realm into more of a strain, and that's definitely not something I want to have escalate! It's feeling better today, so I'm happy I chose to rest it - guess we'll see how my 3 mile WU/5 miles GMP/3 mile CD run goes later today!

Oh, did I also mention Kelly convinced me to run the New Bedford Half? I think that might be a whole separate post. I do have a score to settle with the HM...

Anyway, Happy Friday! Hopefully my new laptop cord will arrive ASAP and I'll be back to posting/commenting on a more regular basis again. :)

Give me back that filet o'fish, give me that fish

2010-03-05T10:33:00.000-06:00

This has absolutely nothing to do with..well...anything...and the last time I had a Filet O'Fish was probably sometime in the 90s...but this commercial just cracks me up for some reason

Other things that start with F...February...as in, February Training Recap!
Total miles: 227.7
This was JUST OFF my all time mileage PR of 229.1, set in September '09. I'm pretty much giving it to myself as my highest mileage training month ever though, since February is a short month so in terms of miles/day, it was definitely a high!
Days off: 5
Workouts: 8 [3 fartlek, 2 tempo, 1 mile repeats, 1 progression, 1 race]
Longest run: 20.6
Weekly mileage range: 49.6-61.9

Wow, I usually despise February with all of my heart and soul, but this was probably the best month of training I've ever had. No offense to my home state, but leaving the Wisconsin winter behind was definitely a pretty fantastic thing as far as running was concerned. The winter out here has been super mild by my standards - there really haven't been any days when I've been like "oh, hell no am I running outside in that...", and really the only time I took my workouts to the TM was for the sake of knowing my pace. I really can't think of any god-awful runs in February either. I hit pace for every workout, set a big 10K PR, my long runs went reasonably well and I've been running them faster than last training cycle, and I've already got 2 20 milers under my belt. I guess my only concern at this point is that my training is going TOO well...as in, I really don't want to peak too early. That might have something to do with the fact that during my last training cycle, I was running a lot but I wasn't really "training" until like...7 weeks out from the race. So the plan at this point is to just stay tuned in to my physical/mental state as March, ie, training month from hell, progresses, keep an eye on an possible signs of overtraining, and other than that, just continue to rock it out!

Speaking of training, is it weird that lately I have been anxiously looking forward to my speed workouts, and absolutely dreading my longer easy runs? Seriously, why am I totally excited to run fartleks or tempo intervals on the treadmill, with a long warmup and cooldown, and yet an 8-12 mile easy run is something I just dread? I can't quite figure it out. I guess its GOOD that I get excited about speedwork though haha - never really thought I'd see the day when that would happen! I think it's because my quality workouts have been going really well in general, as far as hitting my paces and not feeling like I'm going to die at the same time. They've served as really great confidence boosters and kind of stand in my mind as a testament to the fact that I actually AM getting faster and stronger through all of this training. The easy runs just kind of "are" - some days I'm feeling it, some days I'm not. 12 miles is pretty long, but not long enough to be a "long run", but still takes a long time, you know what I mean? Well anyway, maybe if I start thinking of my easy runs as "3 mile warmup, 6 miles easy, 3 mile cooldown" I'll like them better. Haha.

Training aside, here are a couple of random things I've really been enjoying lately [aside from the Filet O'Fish commercial, haha]...mostly food. Because who doesn't love food?

Coconut Water! I had heard about this from some other blog or something, that it's supposedly this big deal in sports drinks because it naturally has a ton of electrolytes [especially potassium] and some sugar, without the obscene dose of fake sugar and dyes that you get in Gatorade or whatever. I really don't go one way or the other on the whole natural eating thing, but I saw this at Whole Foods and was intrigued. It was AMAZING! It comes in a bunch of flavors - I tried the VitaCoco tangerine and peach/mango flavors. I was kind of wary because I don't really like the taste of coconut that much, but the fruit purees that they added [the only other ingredient besides the coconut water itself] really added a nice, light fruity flavor. Totally not the super sugary, almost syrupy taste you sometimes get with sports drinks. The peach/mango was my favorite. As for it's properties as a good sports drink, I haven't tested that one yet - I had it for breakfast haha. I'm doing an 18 miler this weekend, 13 of which will be with a friend, so I'm planning on grabbing one for the last 5 miles and see how I feel!

Australian Yogurt! I LOVE yogurt. For breakfast, for a snack, for dessert...don't care, I think it's delicious. During my last WF visit I wasn't too impressed with the flavor selection or price on their "generic" brand yogurt, so I figured I would spend the extra 20 cents per carton and try something new - enter Wallaby Australian Yogurt. What is Australian yogurt? I'm still kind of trying to figure out the difference haha. As far as ingredients, I think they use a slightly lower percentage milkfat milk than like, Yoplait [1.5% instead of 2%?] and use organic cane sugar. I'm not sure if there's some sort of difference in the culturing process, all I know is the yogurt is super smooth and very light. It comes in some pretty tasty and interesting flavors that you don't see in regular yogurt [I mean, I love blueberry and strawberry as much as the next person...but sometimes that gets a little boring]. And I absolutely LOVED their fruit on the bottom flavors. Like, half the carton is fruit! I had the grapefruit one, which sounded weird but ended up being totally delicious. I think for the fact that this stuff is natural, comes in fun flavors, and not as uber-sweet as other yogurt tends to be, it might be worth the extra couple bucks to buy it instead. Yum!

Sweet Potato Fries! I think I got this idea from someone's blog too...and it has quickly become a go-to snack/side for me! So easy: cut up sweet potatoes, drizzle with olive oil, toss with pepper, seasoned salt, and whatever other seasonings you desire, and bake for 15-20 minutes...and there you have GOODNESS! It's a great way to eat something salty/tastes kind of unhealthy, but really it isn't! Yay for good-for-you food! :)

I really have been trying to eat better lately. Can you tell? I think the final straw was the day that I worked a long shift, and because someone bought us pizza, ended up eating ONLY pizza, ALL day. Yikes! It's not weight I'm worried about, just putting good FUEL into my body as opposed to crap, especially going into this super hardcore final month of training. So I'll keep you posted on any more delicious-yet-semi-nutritious items I discover in my random Whole Foods and Trader Joe's trips :)

Is it really Friday already? Guess I should stop whining about my 12 miles and just Get. It Done! Have a great weekend!

HurdlingHam: 1, Mother Nature: 0

2010-02-25T20:28:00.000-06:00

First off, I'll give you one hurdle highlight from junior year. It was the first outdoor meet of the season, I ran my usual 100 hurdles/300 hurdles combo and PRed in 300s, then wound up getting suckered into running the 4 x 400 after wolfing down a hot dog, yikes! 100s didn't go particularly well though, and here's what I had to say about it...

an alright day in the 100s though i still need to break 18! would have won my heat/made finals but the girl in front of me fell and rolled across the finish line!

What makes this story funny is the girl who rolled across the finish line and beat me out to make finals is now one of my closest friends. We met at a pre-med meet & greet picnic freshman year of college, somehow got on the topic of that we'd both run hurdles, and I told her about track club. Over the course of many entertaining hurdle workouts, somehow the topic of the meet where she somersaulted across the finish line came up [as a former gymnast she had that automatic forward roll mechanism haha] and sure enough...we looked up the results from the meet and there we were, 1-2 in the heat - hilarious! The next year she was sad when I decided to become a distance runner, but I sucked her into distance soon enough and she kicked my ass in a half marathon this past August. So that's gotta be one of my favorite "small world" stories. :) I can't wait until I convince her to run a marathon....muahaha. :)

Still competing against eachother...but now we're friends too...and she hasn't beat me by rolling across the finish line lately

We've been having some lovely weather in the Boston area this week...and by lovely I mean gray, rainy, windy, and generally disgusting. Because I'm kind of a weirdo I don't really have a problem with running in the rain, even when it's only 40 or so..it's the wind that really gets me. So after yesterday's super windy + rainy 6 miler, I was less than excited to pound out 12 miles in yet another rainstorm today. I figured that if I took the train home from work I might not be able to motivate myself to get back out the door, so I decided to make a 12 mile route leading from work and eventually home. As usual, my co-workers were amused when I left wearing my spandex and running clothes ["I know where you're going!" "Where? Is she going to the mall?" "How many miles are you running today?"] Really, I should do a whole separate post some time on my co-workers responses to my running craziness...it's the first time I've really had the experience of non-runners being really exposed to my training and I'm quite proud to have gotten allll the usual comments haha. [How far was that marathon? 6 miles, I couldn't even run 6 blocks! Who was chasing you?]

So it had been a long and somewhat frustrating day at work...cocker spaniels pooping on the drying table, poodles that just never seemed to be completely dry....the usual haha. When I headed out the door, my legs felt kind of heavy and basically "meh"...I had already tried to convince myself to really take it easy on this run, not really look at my watch, and just roll with it, so I guess I felt OK about the situation. As the run went on though, I just kind of started feeling better...and better...and loving the rain...and just generally loving life haha. The weather actually REALLY reminded me of the weather at Baystate which apparently is ideal weather for me to run in? Haha. There's just something about running in a rainstorm that just makes me feel so incredible...I don't know if it's the idea of being out training in weather that few others would brave, or if it's just the kind of giddy feeling of splashing through puddles and laughing at the sky. Or maybe it's just that focusing on the rain hitting my face makes me forget about the pain in my legs...who knows. I only saw 6 other runners over the whole 12 miles: a group of 3 of what looked like high school boys, 2 girls, and one lonely man. Random thought: so usually when I'm running, if I see another runner I'll give them a smile/wave/head nod depending on how my life is going at that point...but it seems extremely rare that anyone returns the gesture, in fact, it seems like a lot of people kind of avoid eye contact. I get that people can be very into their workouts, and I'm guilty of that at times myself, but when it's obvious that everyone is running easy, I don't know, isn't it nice to acknowledge the camaradrie between runners? Especially on a day like today, when you'd have to be mildly crazy, hardcore, or both to be out there? Maybe that's just me...thoughts?

I realized about halfway through that maybe running with my ipod wasn't the best decision ever...it got really wet and the buttons seemed to be kind of malfunctioning...of course, that also could have been the fact that I couldn't really move or feel my fingers because they were so cold...like completely frozen. I was only wearing a long sleeved underarmor type top under a short sleeve tech top and I wasn't really cold in general, but my hands just kind of gradually turned into popsicles. It took a loooong hot shower afterwards to warm up. Glad I got my run in early-ish today though, because now there are apparently wind gusts up to 55 mph outside? That's kind of frightening...and I can't even imagine how it would feel to run in that..talk about hitting a brick wall...yikes!

Well, I won't lie...I'm kind of excited about my 4 mile recovery run tomorrow. I'm probably going to do some yoga too...I'm expecting to be extra sore since it was chilly and wet today. And I just really LOVE yoga! It's so nice to switch things up from running once in awhile and feel like I'm doing a little something extra. For now, it's off to watch the Olympics [women's free skate, yay!!] and stay out of the wind. :)