Yep, that's what I ran this morning. Took 2 hours and 3 minutes, which means I have 27 minutes to run 2.1 miles to make my 2:30 1/2 marathon goal. Based on how I felt that last mile I may need 27 minutes.
Just kidding I will be really ticked if I don't stick with the 10:30 pace group for most of the race, which would have me finishing in under 2:30.
I'm not kidding about how I felt that last mile though. There is what I call normal pain when running, tired/sore legs, for me some pain in my bad knee, sometimes a side ache. Then there is pain that shouldn't be there, and I had some foot pain that was not ok, my knee hurt worse than it ever has (but this is the furthers I have ever run as well) and blisters on the arch of both feet.
But, my shins and legs felt great. No pain and while the muscles were tired they didn't hurt. What is making me crazy is the blister situation. Mile 7 I feel the hot sports and by the end of the run I have blisters. I have tried glide with several different brands of socks and the socks don't seem to matter, I have tried not using glide with all the different socks and still got blisters.
Maybe I need different shoes. My shoes still have a few hundred miles to go before they need replacing and I hate the idea of breaking in new ones at this point. I have two pairs, but I feel like the 2nd pair leave me with more knee and hip pain. So I guess I need to pick which pain I'm willing to run with.
What worked great, my outfit. The skirt, compression socks (for helping with shin/calf pain - not blisters), top, glide on every part of my body that moves all worked great. Just have to figure out the shoe/blister situation.
I also learned that eating grilled steak and baby bok choy the night before running was a really bad idea. All I will say is that I'm glad the school I run past has (had) a clean outhouse on the grounds.
Next week I hit 12 miles then the tapering starts. Really looking forward to that!
Any blister avoidance advice anyone has to share would be much appreciated!
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Thankful Thursday
Today I'm thankful for this view from my kitchen...
I know it's hard to see but Mark is reading Sky a book.
I love being in the kitchen cooking dinner, doing dishes, making Sky a bottle and looking up from the sink to see Sky and Mark playing, reading, watching football/hunting/car shows. Mark is a GREAT Daddy and I love watching them spend time together.
I love being in the kitchen cooking dinner, doing dishes, making Sky a bottle and looking up from the sink to see Sky and Mark playing, reading, watching football/hunting/car shows. Mark is a GREAT Daddy and I love watching them spend time together.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Had to Share This
Check out the link to a pic of me from my trail run Sat. http://stevesandersphotography.com/p910073141/h38B0044#h38b0044
I think that is the very first race photo that I'm smiling!
I think that is the very first race photo that I'm smiling!
A Good Day
Yesterday was a good day! Mark worked from home so I got to spend most the day with my two favorite people. It started though with a very rainy and windy run at 5 Mile Dr. Some brave ladies from Stroller Fitness class decided to go hard core and run no matter the weather. I was thankful to have company for a training run.
Since everyone that is key in her life knows (and stroller fitness class) I feel like I can disclose that Jodi is pregnant! Since she is nursing and pregnant her body is pretty busy keeping two little ones alive which means I have not been doing my training runs with her as of late.
That is why I haven't mentioned her much in regards to running. Been running alone a lot, which I'm actually not as apposed to as I used to be, but it's nice to change it up! And, I really miss running with Jodi...we don't get to catch up on life as much anymore. :(
BTW - Congrats Jodi! Can't wait for you to find out if it's a boy or girl! :) Oh, and she PR'd her 1/2 that she ran while I was on vacation! Sorry it's a little late, but way to go! Your newest addition already has a 1/2 under their belt. ;-)
I ran with my new GPS watch and it worked perfectly. Thank goodness Mark is smart and was able to understand the directions. He was able to do what I couldn't...set it up and make it work. Before I left for my run he showed me exactly what to do when I was ready to start running. LOVE it!
And now for some cute Sky pics. At least I think she is cute. :)
Since everyone that is key in her life knows (and stroller fitness class) I feel like I can disclose that Jodi is pregnant! Since she is nursing and pregnant her body is pretty busy keeping two little ones alive which means I have not been doing my training runs with her as of late.
That is why I haven't mentioned her much in regards to running. Been running alone a lot, which I'm actually not as apposed to as I used to be, but it's nice to change it up! And, I really miss running with Jodi...we don't get to catch up on life as much anymore. :(
BTW - Congrats Jodi! Can't wait for you to find out if it's a boy or girl! :) Oh, and she PR'd her 1/2 that she ran while I was on vacation! Sorry it's a little late, but way to go! Your newest addition already has a 1/2 under their belt. ;-)
I ran with my new GPS watch and it worked perfectly. Thank goodness Mark is smart and was able to understand the directions. He was able to do what I couldn't...set it up and make it work. Before I left for my run he showed me exactly what to do when I was ready to start running. LOVE it!
And now for some cute Sky pics. At least I think she is cute. :)
Sky in a basket.
"Come on Dad, can I get a little privacy please!"
Flying with Daddy.
She actually kind of hated the grass, but she was happy with her stick.
Playing at the park.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Post Race Report
I ran my first 10K Saturday morning and loved it! While the race itself was not perfect, I like the distance and felt really good the whole time. Some of my training runs every week are longer than 6 miles, so at the end I still had a lot left in my legs and felt like I could have kept going.
This was another Evergreen Trail run and took place at Dash Point St. Park. I really enjoyed the trails and how pretty it was.
Drawbacks, there were a few. One could not be helped and that was the rain that created all the mud. Deep, slippery, dangerous mud. It was a little unsettling to see how many people were injured along the course. I have never concentrated so hard during a race. Every step was slippery, lot's of mud puddles, several wooden boardwalks over water and gaps. Some of the boardwalks had broken boards, some were really slick and had no non-skid stuff on them, and there were wooden stairs with zero non-skid stuff on them. Usually I can look ahead during a trail run and note rocks, roots etc and avoid them without have to watch my feet. Not this race. I ran head down almost the whole way.
There was very little passing room,and side stepping to get out of the way was a slippery affair anyway. The longer distance runners (who had to do the loop multiple times) end up lapping you, passing you from behind and oncoming. I'm used to this with Evergreen courses, but this is the first race I have been pushed and tripped by other runners. Not cool.
I'm willing to chalk it up to me running with my head down (everyone actually was running head down) and not seeing them until the last minute and it being slippery and the tripping pushing was them trying to avoid falling.
I totally want to do this one again. Even if it is during the rainy season, but I hope they hit this spot again in the summer. I had a blast running with one of the ladies from Stroller Fitness. She filled in for Michelle, and she did a great job. It was her first trail run and she is not really a runner. She kept up and she made me laugh with the running commentary and squeals I kept hearing.
If I do it again I think I will do it alone. I feel like this would be a good one to get in my pace and just go. For as slippery as it was I felt like I could have gone faster in some parts and not walked as much, also would start closer to the front. It's so hard to pass on trail runs and I'm kind of over getting stuck behind slower runners for longer than my patients can tolerate.
All in all it was a fun time.
This was another Evergreen Trail run and took place at Dash Point St. Park. I really enjoyed the trails and how pretty it was.
Drawbacks, there were a few. One could not be helped and that was the rain that created all the mud. Deep, slippery, dangerous mud. It was a little unsettling to see how many people were injured along the course. I have never concentrated so hard during a race. Every step was slippery, lot's of mud puddles, several wooden boardwalks over water and gaps. Some of the boardwalks had broken boards, some were really slick and had no non-skid stuff on them, and there were wooden stairs with zero non-skid stuff on them. Usually I can look ahead during a trail run and note rocks, roots etc and avoid them without have to watch my feet. Not this race. I ran head down almost the whole way.
There was very little passing room,and side stepping to get out of the way was a slippery affair anyway. The longer distance runners (who had to do the loop multiple times) end up lapping you, passing you from behind and oncoming. I'm used to this with Evergreen courses, but this is the first race I have been pushed and tripped by other runners. Not cool.
I'm willing to chalk it up to me running with my head down (everyone actually was running head down) and not seeing them until the last minute and it being slippery and the tripping pushing was them trying to avoid falling.
I totally want to do this one again. Even if it is during the rainy season, but I hope they hit this spot again in the summer. I had a blast running with one of the ladies from Stroller Fitness. She filled in for Michelle, and she did a great job. It was her first trail run and she is not really a runner. She kept up and she made me laugh with the running commentary and squeals I kept hearing.
If I do it again I think I will do it alone. I feel like this would be a good one to get in my pace and just go. For as slippery as it was I felt like I could have gone faster in some parts and not walked as much, also would start closer to the front. It's so hard to pass on trail runs and I'm kind of over getting stuck behind slower runners for longer than my patients can tolerate.
All in all it was a fun time.
Sunday, April 1, 2012
New Running Gear!
It's my Birthday a little early! Dad knows I have a long list of running gear I "need" and he was kind enough to send me money for my birthday so I could go shopping and pick out what I want!
The one store I have been wanting to visit is Lululemon and since it's in Seattle, and Sky and I are busy bees, I just haven't made it up there. Mark had a presentation to go to in Seattle today, so Sky and I tagged along and shopped while he got educated about Genghis Khan and Mongolia. (He should know soon if he is going to Mongolia the end of the year, so this was good prep for him).
It was really a wonderful day with Sky. She was adorable and charming, and most of all patient while I tried stuff on and shopped. Also, the sun was out! I really do love walking around downtown when it's sunny and nice out.
Anyway I said I would post pics of what I got so Dad can see what he got me. :)
1. Purely a girly purchase on my part. I have a few skirts that work well and are really good quality, but I LOVE the two tears of pleats this skirt has, and the shorts underneath are amazing! Most comfortable and well fitting of any of my other skirts.
No this is not a picture of me in the skirt...I couldn't take a pic and get the details to show up, so I got this from the website. The bonus features that I'm supper excited about are the zipper pocket in the back and two gel pockets in the waistband on each side. That means I will not have to run with my fuel belt. I still hate my fuel belt, so am thankful to have 3 pockets for my gel shots.
2. My first GPS running watch. I have gone back and forth on the "need" for a watch. I'm happy running with my phone and using the Runkeeper application. But, my phone started having issues playing MP3's, and while I can use Pandora or Amazon Cloud, if there are clouds or trees I lose my connection to the music. So, I now run with Runkeeper on the phone, muted, and listen to the MP3 player I got for music. Its been working for me for months, until I started hitting 6 plus miles in my training runs. One thing about smart phones, the batteries don't last when you are connected. Runkeeper uses GPS to track distance and pace and my phone can't handle much more than 6 to 7 miles.
And, I don't like the idea of running with my phone for safety, only to kill the battery and not be able to make an emergency call. But, I was still having a hard time spending the money on the Garmin GPS watch I had picked out. It has a lot of bells and whistles I don't care about and most likely wouldn't use, but what I would use it for it would do a great job.
So, after talking to the sales person at REI I ended up with this NB GPS Runner. It is pretty basic, distance, pace, and time and that's about it. That's all I really want though. She did make it clear this is new technology for NB and it may not work that great. I will give it a go this week and see what I think. If the GPS takes too long to connect, or loses connection in cloud cover, tall buildings or trees then I will take it back and most likely upgrade to the Garmin Forerunner 405 that I have had my eye on.
Thank you dad for the birthday money and in turn the running gear! Love you!
The one store I have been wanting to visit is Lululemon and since it's in Seattle, and Sky and I are busy bees, I just haven't made it up there. Mark had a presentation to go to in Seattle today, so Sky and I tagged along and shopped while he got educated about Genghis Khan and Mongolia. (He should know soon if he is going to Mongolia the end of the year, so this was good prep for him).
It was really a wonderful day with Sky. She was adorable and charming, and most of all patient while I tried stuff on and shopped. Also, the sun was out! I really do love walking around downtown when it's sunny and nice out.
Anyway I said I would post pics of what I got so Dad can see what he got me. :)
1. Purely a girly purchase on my part. I have a few skirts that work well and are really good quality, but I LOVE the two tears of pleats this skirt has, and the shorts underneath are amazing! Most comfortable and well fitting of any of my other skirts.
No this is not a picture of me in the skirt...I couldn't take a pic and get the details to show up, so I got this from the website. The bonus features that I'm supper excited about are the zipper pocket in the back and two gel pockets in the waistband on each side. That means I will not have to run with my fuel belt. I still hate my fuel belt, so am thankful to have 3 pockets for my gel shots.
And, I don't like the idea of running with my phone for safety, only to kill the battery and not be able to make an emergency call. But, I was still having a hard time spending the money on the Garmin GPS watch I had picked out. It has a lot of bells and whistles I don't care about and most likely wouldn't use, but what I would use it for it would do a great job.
So, after talking to the sales person at REI I ended up with this NB GPS Runner. It is pretty basic, distance, pace, and time and that's about it. That's all I really want though. She did make it clear this is new technology for NB and it may not work that great. I will give it a go this week and see what I think. If the GPS takes too long to connect, or loses connection in cloud cover, tall buildings or trees then I will take it back and most likely upgrade to the Garmin Forerunner 405 that I have had my eye on.
Thank you dad for the birthday money and in turn the running gear! Love you!
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