Pictures in the Meanwhile

Sorry for the silence. I've been in a sorry state around here. My foot has kept me hobbling since Sunday, I tweaked my back on Tuesday, and have been sick since Thursday! Yup, total whammy week for me.

But on I'm the up and will be posting soon. Lots to catch up on!

In the meanwhile, here are pictures of Nugget and his milkshake (technically it was for the three of us, but someone didn't get that memo).

Reality Check: Lessons Learned from My GW Parkway Classic Race

I ran a good race (for me) this weekend, but there is always something to learn.  Here are my takeaways from the 2012 GW Parkway Classic 10-miler:

Refuel before you need to refuel:  My original plan was to take a Clif Shot Gel at the 5-mile mark.  But when I passed the 5-mile post, I was feeling really good so I changed my mind and decided to take the gel at the 7-mile mark for added boost at the end of the race.  Bad idea.  By mile 5.5, I was spiraling downward fast.  I took my gel and had some Gatorade, and ran miles 6 & 7 faster.  (I am wondering though, can I train myself to go without fuel for longer periods of time?  Or is that unadvisable?  Hmmm...)

My fuel of choice this race via  ClifBar

Know your limits:  I told myself that I would push really hard through miles 8 & 9, but I didn't have enough in me to sustain a push that long.  Not to mention I completely forgot about running mile 10.  Instead, I should have stayed on pace through miles 8 & 9, and pushed hard at mile 10.  I possibly could have ran every mile sub-9:00, and finished with a better time.  It would also help if I learned how to do math.

via SparkPeople

Smile!: I'm making this a running goal, both in races and during my regular runs.  I try to smile as much as possible when I run (yes, to the point of looking like a crazed maniac) because it reminds me that I really do enjoy being out there torturing my body pushing my limits, and I feel that reminding myself of that makes me a better runner.  And its not just me.  Ultrarunner Krissy Moehler believes that too.

Smile!

What lessons have you learned from a race?

How do you develop your race strategies?  Through experience?  With a coach?  By the seat of your pants?

GW Parkway Classic Recap

I ran the 28th George Washington Parkway Classic 10-miler this morning.  It is put on by Pacers, a running store local to the DC area.  The race was executed flawlessly.  But before we get to the race, lets talk about getting our little family unit to the race.

Pre-Race

The race was held in Alexandria, VA, about an hour from our house.  It is a point-to-point course, meaning the start and finish lines are (in this case) 10 miles apart.  Buses were provided so runners could park at the finish line and get shuttled to the start.  Not to mention, the start line was at Mt. Vernon and there was no parking available nearby.  The race details encouraged runners to get to the buses by 6:30, with the strict warning that the last bus would leave promptly at 7:00 (the race started at 8:00am).  

With this in mind, I told the hubs that I wanted to leave our house by 5:00, so that in the event we hit traffic into Alexandria, the likelihood of me getting to the buses by 6:30 was still high.  Which meant I needed to wake up by 4:15.  I guess I was really nervous about this race, because I woke up at 3:45.

I ate a leisurely breakfast of a banana, two pieces of raisin-walnut toast with almond butter and a cup of coffee.  To get me pumped, I read Born to Run (absolutely loving this book, but I'll talk about it once I'm finished). The hubs was downstairs by 4:30.  I got dressed, gathered last minute items, and loaded everything into the car while the Hubs grabbed Nugget.

Ready to race!

 The kid was amazing.  He didn't cry or fuss, and he seemed eager to be going on an adventure so early in the morning.  His two demands: juice and music.  Once he had both, he was golden.  Sadly, he didn't fall asleep AT ALL on the hour drive to Alexandria, which caught up to him (and us) a little later in the day.  But he was still a trooper.

We encountered ZERO traffic on the way into Alexandria.  Such is the curse of over-planning.

I kissed my cheering section good luck, boarded a bus to the start and off I went!  I guess the Hubs found a great parking spot near the finish, so they just hung out in the car for an hour (which is probably Nugget's favorite thing to do anyway).  

My cheering section staying dry until race time.

Complimentary coffee, bananas, bagels and water were available the start, as well as Vita Coco Coconut Water.  I had a sample of Pure and found the taste slightly odd (you'd think it would be in my blood to love this stuff, right?  Considering I am half-hawaiian.  Too long I've been here in haole land) yet very refreshing.   Definitely put an extra spring in my step.  Will be checking that product out for future runs.  

Complimentary coffee shots!

A half-hour before the run I also had two Clif Shot Bloks.  Today I had one orange flavor and one mountain berry flavor.  I enjoy the mountain berry, I LOVE the orange flavor.  These things really work for me, plus the orange flavor totally reminds me of the Tomoe Ame candy that I devoured as a kid, minus the dissolving rice paper.  Always puts a smile on my face. :)

The weather was cold, drizzly, and windy.  Free heat sheets were on hand and, omg, those things work.  The hour-and-a-half wait was bearable due to these awesome amenities.  Pacers knows know to put on a race!

Due to my foot, I was changing my race goal from sub-9:15 minute/mile to sub-10:00 minute/mile because I didn't want to push too hard.  I positioned myself at the start line accordingly.

Hindsight being 20/20, I could have started in an earlier corral.  Que Sera.  Was still a good race.

The Race

The first mile was pretty much downhill.  Not a steep downhill, but enough to make it difficult to find my rhythm from the git-go.  People were passing me left and right, and I had to fight with myself to reign it in; if I pushed too hard at the beginning, I would burn out and/or injure myself.  By 0.8 miles or so, I hit my stride and gained some ground.  I ran mile 1 in 9:56 and was pleased that I was 4 seconds faster than target.  I was feeling good so I challenged myself to run mile 2 in 9:00, and was able to run it in 8:45!  Thats a total "Hell Yeah!" moment for me.  I was pushing hard, but not too hard; I felt I could sustain this pace for the rest of the race, so thats what I set out to do.  I wasn't entirely successful, but I'm happy that I was able to maintain a sub-9:00 pace for most of the race:

Mile 1:  9:56

Mile 2:  8:45

Mile 3:  8:58

Mile 4:  8:55

Mile 5:  8:51

Mile 6:  8:48

Mile 7:  8:51

I told myself I would take a Cliff Shot Gel at 5 miles, but I was feeling pretty good so I revised my plan and opted to take it at mile 7 for a boost through miles 8 &9.  Bad idea.  By mile 5.5, I could feel my energy levels plummeting quickly.  I have heard/read that you should refuel before you actually need to refuel, but seeing as how I'm new to this running scene, I wasn't sure at what point that was for me.  Turns out, 5 miles is about right.  As soon as I felt my body drop, I whipped out my gel.  Gave me a good kick plus we hit an aid station with Gatorade, so I think that also helped (as you can see above, my pace improved through miles 5 & 6).  

Embarrassing admission: I can't do math on a sunny day in June, and I sure as hell can't do math halfway into a 10-mile race.  I was planning on gunning it at mile 8, thinking I only had two more miles to run.  I COMPLETELY FORGOT that you actually need to run the 10th mile.  So I was mentally preparing myself for a race that was a mile shorter than the race I was actually running.  Pure genius.

Mile 7 was a bit tough.  I wanted to kick but told myself to reel it in because it was too early.  I was trying to stay focused and prepare myself for the kick through miles 8 & 9 (because I forgot about mile 10), when I saw a mile post up ahead that says...11?  No that can't be right.  I'm not wearing my glasses, so things in the distance look blurry.  Does it say...1?  That also can't be right.  It must say 7.  WHAT?!?!  I thought we already passed the 7 mile post.  I thought I was already running mile 7!!  Oh no!  I'm screwed!  I'm mentally one mile ahead of my body!  "I can't do this!," I thought.  "I should just die.  Or throw myself into the Potomac.  Or maybe less dramatically, just curl up in a ball on the side of the road.  Or just shut-up and keep running."  My mind was all over the place at this point.  Luckily, there was a chipper couple next to me who noticed that it was a 1 mile post...for the 5K earlier that morning.  So turns out my body and mind were still together, on pace.

But only just.  My kick at mile 8 quickly fell apart when I saw the hill that I was fast approaching.  The course was relatively flat with just a few rolling hills, so this was the first significant incline we had seen all race.  Damn you race directors!  But it really it was my fault for not having paid more attention to the race details.  At any rate, my body could not sustain my increased pace up that hill, so I had to dial it back considerably.  We also hit another shorter but steeper hill in mile 9 and while I ran that one strong, my body was pretty fatigued.  

Mile 8:  9:05

Mile 9:  9:02

And then I had to run the mile I completely forgot.  The final mile was a flat straightaway, and I wanted to finish strong.  I picked up my pace considerably, but couldn't sustain it the whole way through (note to self: practice mile sprints!) and ended up slowing about a quarter-mile out.  Still, despite the fact that I couldn't run at that increased pace for the whole mile, it was my fastest mile of the race, and I think I finished strong:

Mile 10:  8:40

I saw DJ Research and Nugget as I was closing in on the finish, which made me so happy.

I used the RunKeeper app on my iphone while running, and I think the stats from the app are different from what the Pacers timing device logged.  According to their device, I finished in 1:31:31 with an average pace of 9:10 minute/mile.  I'll take it.

Rank: 2206 overall / 362 in Age Group (F, 30-39) 

[out of 4822 entrants overall / 1058 entrants in my age group]

Post-Race

We didn't stick around for the post-race activities due to the weather and the fact that Nugget was getting cranky because he was so tired.  He put up a half-hearted fight when the hubs strapped him in and promptly fell asleep as soon as we turned the car on.  Woke up immediately upon getting home, so not much of a nap either today.  He's still bursting with energy though.

If I may say so, I'm very proud that I was able to not only beat my amended goal for this race, but beat my original goal of sub-9:15m/m by 5 seconds, despite not being 100% today.  I think running a 10-miler sub-9:00m/m is not beyond my reach, and I look forward to training and pushing myself to meet that.

Still want to share my podiatrist appointment with you, but will have to post on that later.  Blogging in exhausting!

Game on!

Sorry I've been silent this week. It's been busy, plus I've been sulking since I haven't been able to run until today. It went well and I will still be running the GW Parkway Classic 10-miler tomorrow. Though the goal has now changed to "finishing without getting injured," so I will be running much slower than desired. Still, I will be so happy to be out there.

I saw a podiatrist this week and thought the appointment interesting for a slew of reasons. More on that later this week.

Right now I've got to turn in since I have to be up at 4:15. This race is kinda a logistical nightmare for us (more on this later too). I should have read the race details before signing up. That's what I get for being too eager. It will still be an adventure.

The weather is supposed to be in the low 50s, windy and rainy. I'm ready, even if I'm really not.

Race outfit.  

Water resistant jacket options: $30 or $0.25

Still Recovering

Yesterday I decided to take the day off.  Totally, completely, no workout.  Instead, I gave myself a heart attack:

Chili Mac'n'Cheese.  So bad for you.  So yum.

I ate that entire portion, and was so disgusted with myself at the end.  But it was oh so good.  I can't figure out how to rotate the image, so you'll have to rotate your computer screen.  Or your head.  That might be easier. 

I'm still hobbling around today, almost 4 days after my long run.  I'm concerned, so I've made an appointment with a podiatrist.  Hopefully this podiatrist will be better than the podiatrist that my husband went to see, who responded with incredulity to my husband's report of his recent run, "What?!  You ran seven miles?! With your feet?!??"  Ok, maybe he didn't say that last bit, but thats how my husband tells the story, and its so funny.  The podiatrist I am going to see has ran a marathon and handful of local races, plus she hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro with a broken foot.  I'm taking that to mean she's not afraid to push her boundaries, and not that she didn't know her foot was broken (despite all my husband's joking).

Hopefully this doc can tell me whats wrong.  I know what I did wrong--went too hard too soon--but I want to know what I injured, how long it will take to heal, and less importantly, if I can run my 10-mile race on Sunday.  Ok, maybe that last bit is the real reason I made an appointment...because I've already paid the fee and picked up the shirt!!!!  I don't want to DNS (do not start), but I'm bracing myself for the news that I will have to rest, rest, rest.  

And I find it so ironic that all of the podcasts I listened to today and all the blog posts I read have the same theme: Don't think you are superhuman.  Listen to your body and know when to pull back and know when to rest.  Ok, running gods!  I get it!  Please let me run again!!  

Le sigh.  Seriously though.  I do get it.  I hope I haven't done any major damage, but I am definitely taking it slower from here on out.  I recognize that I am not superhuman, even though I have the cape that suggests otherwise.  

Best Day Ever

This is a guest post by little Nugget.


salak ioalsk wk famaoisfva xskvnowhgrgjvblbvsj     askkkslaf pwejf   eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee'ajs 'ijsd ajri
v'dsoj woo!woo! ';KV'P LDS; jpa9iuosdi dslkjwwwwwwwwwwww;     JF LKSLAK V9oLJLKDSAN

[Translation:  Today was the best day ever!  'Ama let me stay up past my bedtime, and we ate ice cream while watching a parked woo!woo! (fire truck).  It was so red!  And whenever I felt particularly inspired, I would yell WOO!WOO! and point at the fire truck, just in case anyone forgot it was there or what it was.  It was so much fun!  I have the best 'Ama! (and my 'Ada is pretty cool too!)]

Reality Check: Lessons Learned from a Long Run

I had an awesome run on Saturday...that actually left me feeling not so awesome.  On Saturday I ran 15.3 miles, which is the longest distance I have ever run.  My goal was 15 miles, and I'm proud that I accomplished it, and then some.  Problem is, I could barely walk after my run, and am still not comfortable on my feet more than 48 hours later.

I started feeling pain in my achilles tendon around mile 8, but nothing so bad that I had to stop.  It got progressively worse during the run, but I was determined to finish my 15 miles.  As soon as my brain registered that I had reached my goal, it sent a message to my foot saying, "Mission accomplished.  She needs to stop now," and my tendon promptly tightened and I wasn't able to run anymore.  I had to walk the mile back to my car.

It was during my return that my arches also starting hurting, particularly in my left foot.  I realized that my feet are not yet strong enough to run long distances in my minimalist shoes.  I pushed them too hard too soon, and they weren't too happy about it.  I should have iced them as soon as I got to my car, but for some reason, that important detail slipped my mind.

So is this really a bad run?  I set a personal best by running 15.3 miles, but I'm still paying for it more than two days later.  Did I do well or did I do poorly?  Was my awesome run really awesome, or not?

View of Lake N. from one of the trails

After spending a good part of yesterday trying to answer this question, I realized the answer is YES.  My run was awesome because I pushed myself farther than I ever have before, AND because this run taught me a lot.  My goal of running to become a better runner means I should really be asking the question: What did I learn from this run?  Because thats what this is all about: pushing my limits, but in a smart way.  This run provided me with great reality (aha!) moments and helpful reality checks:

Reality:  I CAN run 15 miles!  I felt great the whole time.  I was mentally engaged and loving every minute.

Reality check:  I should have given myself more time to adjust to my minimalist shoes.  I can do 10 miles, no problem, but I should have gone up to 12 miles rather than jumping immediately to 15 miles.

Perhaps I'm being punished by the running gods for my poor fashion taste?
Or for the fact that I tie my shoelaces like a 3-year old?

Reality:  I LOVE running in the morning.  Provided I can get my butt out the door, once I'm breathing that crisp, cold air, I am in total heaven.

Reality check: I am slower than I thought I would be at 10+ miles.  No big deal.  Just means I have to adjust my goal for the GW Classic 10 miler this weekend, from sub-9:00 to sub-9:15.

Reality:  I LOVE talking when running.  About everything and nothing.  I am a strong introvert, and have mastered the skill of standing awkwardly in the midst of any conversation.  I am horrible at small talk.  But get me running, and I will gab your ear off.  If no one is around, I will talk to myself.

Reality check: Transitioning from road to trail was much more challenging than I thought.  I ran the first 10 miles on paved surface and the last 5 miles on trail.  As soon as I stepped on to the trail after having been running on hard surface for almost 2 hours, my feet practically freaked out.  Every root felt super sharp (!?!), every rock felt like it was out to get me.  I think this drastic change is part of the reason why my feet hurt so much the next day.

Reality: I LOVE running and I AM a runner.

The "river" I need to "forge" on my run.  A few yards down I could just jump across,
but running across this log is so much more fun. :)

Obviously, I took yesterday off, and I will take today off from running too, focusing on core and doing yoga (or at least trying to; I am horrible at yoga).  Hopefully I can run again on Tuesday, but I'm going to play it by ear.  I really want to do well this Sunday, so if that means resting for most of the week, I will.  But at least you'll know why I'm cranky. ;)