Half Marathon Race Recap

Yesterday was the half marathon that I've been training for the last 10 weeks.  The weather was perfect.  A little cool, a slight breeze, clouds and no rain.  The previous year it poured for most of the race. 

This was the third year for this race and the turnout was really good.  There was over 100 runners for the half marathon and quite a few for the 5k.  My dad, Amanda, Robyn and SB all ran the half as well.  SB and I started at the front with the plan to stay around 8:20 pace and then pick it up.

As soon as I started running I knew it was going to be rough.  We took off with the crowd and before we knew it our pace for the first mile was 7:45.  My feet were killing me most of mile one and two.  I seemed to notice every little rock under my foot.  This course is all on a rails to trails path which has gravel as the base.  I don't remember it being as rough last year - maybe because I was tromping through puddles and landing in mush.  I wished there was mush this year.

I had to stop at mile two and retie my shoes and lost SB.  Mile 2 - 5 I really had to get out of  my head.  I was beating myself up and knew I wasn't keeping the pace I needed to finish with my goal of under 1:45.  I finally started daydreaming, planning lessons, singing music and anything else I could think of to get my mind off of the actual running part. 

At the turnaround I took a Chomp and got some Gatorade.  I caught up with SB at this point and pulled ahead.  She was finally in her marathon pace mode and was considering this a training run for her marathon in four weeks..After the turaround I seemed to finally catch my groove.   I just focused on the people ahead of me and got lost in the rhythm of things.  By mile 10 I started to feel it in my feet again and in my hips.  About a 1/2 mile from the finish Amanda's fiance jumped in with me and took me to the finish line.  Having him run with me that last bit really helped me to push it in.  Right at the finish line I had several sets of feet pounding and pushing behind me so I kicked it in and kept ahead of them.

My Garmin wasn't working properly so I had no idea what my time was.  When they finally posted our times I was happy to see that I finished in 1:49:23.  A min slower than last year according to posted results.  I didn't get close to 1:45 like I hoped but I still stayed under 1:50 so I was happy.

Overall it was a good race.  I like this one because it is mostly flat, out and back.  It seems to go quick and I can usually just get lost in the run.  Now I have five more weeks to train for an extremely hilly and challenging half marathon.  No goals for that marathon other than to finish.

Here's my week 10 recap and my plan for week 11:

Definitely looking forward to the decrease in miles this week. I have the fun Doggers and Jogger's 5k race this Saturday with Copper to look forward to as well.  Copper's fan club (aka the in-laws and Cowboy) are even planning on coming to cheer him on.

QOTD:  How was your weekend?  Any runs, races and goals accomplished?

HM Week 9 Recap

I can't believe my half marathon is next week already.  Where did the summer go!  Time just flies by anymore.   

I've been very blessed during this training.  I've been able to get in my miles and have avoided any major sidelining injuries.  I haven't been pushing myself as hard as I did last year, but I still feel prepared for next week.  This week, I backed off a little bit since I had two long runs.  Here is what I had plan and what I actually accomplished:

I felt good after Saturday's long run.  My legs, feet and IT band haven't complained too much.  However, my head and belly have been grumbling.  I did not get enough fluids in after Saturdays run and definitely haven't been eating that well either.  I have been extremely hungry yesterday and this morning.  The head has been aching a little too.  So today's focus is making sure I get in plenty of fluids and calories.  My plan for this week is to continue to take it easy and just keep things stretched out and ready to go for Sunday.

I find that when I increase my miles I really struggle with balancing the calories in/calories out.  How do you guys do it?  Do you have any magic solutions for keeping your tummy happy?  I haven't been "hungry" for much.  I'm hungry but I don't really crave anything so I end up not eating because I don't know what to eat.  Does that make sense?   I guess I better think up some of my favorites so that I can be sure to eat properly this week.

Going with the Flow

Yesterday's Workout:  13.6 miles in 1 hour 59 mins and 18 secs with Dad, Anda and Rob

Yesterday was my second long run of the week since I pushed last weekends run to Monday.  I made plans with my dad and sisters to get through the long run.  It was great to have company the whole way.  I picked Dad, Amanda and Rob up about 7 miles away from my house and then we came here to the house.  We started from here and the first 7 miles really flew by.  We had water stops at 4, 5 and 7 miles.  That helped to break things up a bit.  Dad and I continued to finish our planned 12 miles.  I felt good at mile 9, but probably should have eaten the snack we had hidden at the water stop.  By mile 10 I was hungry.  Mile 11 and 12 were a little tough and then we realized that our run was longer than planned and ended up with an additional 1.65 miles.

I guess I am ready for next week!  I am looking forward to tackling the Hellbender Half for the third year in a row.  I don't know if I will get under 1 hr 45 mins, but I hope I get close or at least around the same time as last year which was 1 hr 47 mins.  Dad and I kept a good race pace for several of the miles, hopefully I can do it for most of them next week.

Today was a busy day with my sisters Bridal Shower.  It was a little stressful for me in the beginning since I realized that my cooler with the meat, cheese and cookies was left at home, in the garage, beside the car where Cowboy left it. He got things out of my trunk but never put the cooler in the trunk.  I had to call Cowboy and luckily he was able to meet me to halfway so that I could pick it up.  I had just a "tiny" Heather meltdown, spazzy attack which are just not pretty.  I wish I could handle those planchanger moments better than I do, but for some reason it just throws me all out of whack when things don't go as planned.  I don't always go with the punches as well as I should for some things, other times I have no problem going with the flow.  Today was not one of those days.   Definitely one of my flaws that I need to work on fixing.

Regardless of that little bump in the road, the shower was great.  The food was delicious and everyone seemed to have a wonderful time.  The bride and groom-to-be got showered with lots of love, gifts and well wishes.  Only 27 more days to their wedding!

QOTD:  Do you handle stressful times with grace and go with the flow?  How do you do it?  How do you not show everyone you are freaking out on the inside?     I wear my thoughts, feelings and emotions on my sleeves.  I don't know if I will ever perfect the way to mask all that and keep it together, but I hope that someday I can react a little more gracefully than I have been when I'm tossed a curveball.

Busy as a Bee

Yesterday's Workout:  6.5 mile run in 58:40 with Dad and SB

Just a quick post today to say that I am indeed still alive.  I have just been keeping extremely busy. It seems to be one thing after another at this time of the year.  Between getting ready for school, training for the half marathons, taking care of the garden, canning and freezing my garden goods, taking care of six dogs, and working on stuff around the house I'm only left with a hour or two to eat, shower and take a break before grabbing a few hours of sleep. 

I've been taking it easy on the runs this week.  I did my sunday long run of 11 miles on Monday morning.  Tuesday and Wednesday I didn't get a run in at all.  Yesterday though I met up with Dad and SB in the morning and got in 6.5 miles.  Today I hope to find 30 mins to get in 3 easy miles before tomorrow morning's 12 mile run.  Next week I will take it really easy and rest up for the Hellbender Half Marathon. 

I hope to have some pictures of the projects I've been working on sometime this weekend.  It will be a busy few days though as I get things ready for my sister's bridal shower on Sunday!!!  Life may be busy, but Life is Good!  I am so blessed with everything and I thank my Lord and Savior for that every day.

HM Week 8 Recap

Workout:  11.75 mile run in 1:48:22

What a great weekend!  I was having so much fun this weekend keeping busy with the husband.   I was thankful for the rain on Saturday because that made my husband, the energizer bunny, slow down a bit.   Cowboy melts in the rain (because he is made up of sugar and chocolate which is all he eats) so he tends to stay in the house or the garage and even takes time for afternoon naps.  He still kept me busy with three trips to town and work on the fence.

I tried to motivate myself to do my long run on Sunday but if I don't have plans with my running crew I am not so successful at getting out the door.  I talked myself into saving my long run for today.  That left me plenty of time to bake some zucchinni bread Sunday morning and work on the fence and garden with Cowboy. 

This morning I did get myself out the door for a steamy, foggy 11.75 mile run.  I was glad that I gave myself two rest days.  I felt really good.  I was worried about my foot but it didn't start acting up until late in the run.  Today's route was out here in the sticks and was quite hilly as usual.  I did quite a few walking breaks to help get up some of these hillls...

Because I did my long run today, my week 8 total miles are a little low but I'll bounce back up next week.  Here's my recap from week 8

And a look at Week 9:

I am liking that my mid week runs are going back down to the 5 and 6 range instead of the 6, 7, and 8 range.  That will be much easier to keep up with as I start to gear back up for school. 

Got lots to do today here at the house so I better get moving.  Those green beans aren't going to can themselves unfortuantely. 

Lovely Friday with my Cowboy

Workout:  3.3 mile run with Copper in 28:44

What a great day!  For most of the day I couldn't tell you what day of the week it was, I am so confused - but regardless it was a wonderful day.  I spent the day with my husband enjoying life.  We didn't do anything too exciting just little things but it was nice to spend the whole day with him accomplishing things together.

This morning was an early morning hike with Cabella and Macy while they chased rabbits.  So I didn't get my run in during the morning like I planned.  We spent most of the afternoon working on the yard and expanding our farm fence to include the next section of our yard.  Cowboy got dinner around while Copper and I went for an evening run.  It finally cooled down quite a bit by 6:30 so it felt good, although still humid.  Copper was dragging his tail a bit on this run.  I don't think he fueled properly or hydrated himself enough. 

I on the other hand felt good during the run.  It was after the run that the heel pain set in.  I don't know if I am getting heel spurs or Plantar fasciitis -regardless I don't like either.  I rolled my foot around on a frozen mason jar of strawberries for about five minutes which was as long as I could stand it. I think it helped a bit but I can still feel the aches.  Hoping a rest day and some stretching helps things out.  I am also going to look for some better cushioning sandals to where around the house and in the meantime try to wear some sneakers more to see if that prevents these after run aches.. 

All in all a wonderful Friday.  I am so glad it was a Friday afterall so that I can still enjoy a Saturday and a Sunday with my handsome Cowboy!

QOTD:  Any exciting plans for the weekend?  Fun run, long runs, races to accomplish?

              We will be working on the fence when it isn't raining and I have my 11 mile long run on Sunday!

Feeling stronger

Workout:  7.49 mile run in 1:11:12 with Dad

It has been a while since I've run in the late afternoon.  Since school got out, I've been doing all my runs in the early morning.  So today's run was a little different.  Luckily the temps were not as high as forecasted.  It felt good when we got started at 3:40.  However up the first big hill I began to really feel the mugginess of the afternoon.  Dad and I kept up a pretty good pace up the hills and only walked a few times.

I was worried about doing a long run and not having any water stops but felt good.  I didn't feel dehydrated but I am sure a drink along the way would have tasted pretty good.  I felt pretty good.  I was a little worried that my yoga workout from yesterday would have left me a little sore for my run but guess what?  You'll never guess.... strength training makes you stronger!  Can you believe it!  It's true! 

Just changing up your routine everynow and then makes a difference.  My muscles woke up yesterday and were used in a different way which I think make them work better for me today.  Yes I am a little sore but it is a good sore.  I really need to do strength training more often.  I like the feeling of knowing that I'm doing my body some good by challenging it in different ways. 

When we got done with the long run I took my Gatorade Recovery.  It tasted pretty good after todays run.  I didn't get dinner in me until 7 and by then I was starting to feel lightheaded, so I knew I needed to get myself replenished.  I am realizing mroe and more just how important it is to refuel and help my muscles recover quickly.  Now it is time to get in a few more of ounces of water before I head to bed to get up for another run tomorrow morning.

Strength training is IMPORTANT!

Workout:  30 mins yoga and 30 min walk with Cabella and Macy

Why do I always put strength training on the back burner?  I do not like to strength train, but when I do work on it I realize just how weak I am.  Today I decided to work on some yoga since I've been saying that I would all summer long.

I can't believe how quickly you can lose strength.  I did a lot of yoga, pilates and strength training this spring but really slacked off once the warm weather got here.  I was ready to collapse within the first few minutes of the workout.  Nothing seemed easy.  All my muscles were tight and even the upward dog was difficult.  Ugh.   I really seem to lose flexibility if I just do all running and no strength training.  It feels like all my muscles are just shortened up and compacted.  Once I got done, I could already tell a difference - the slight backbends didn't hurt as much and I already felt "longer".  If that makes any sense.

I definitely need to work on this.  I can be motivated to run but never seem to find the extra time to work in strength training.  The only reason I did it today was because I didn't run and I didn't take the beagles to the club to chase rabbits.  I decided just to stay home and focus on little things I've been meaning to get to. 

Moral of my story this morning is to remember that strength training is important and you will notice a difference in how you feel and how your body moves throughout the day and during your next run.  It really does help and shouldn't be forgotten about.  I know so many of you are great at balancing running and strength training and I am in awe of how you manage it all.  Maybe someday I will figure that balance out.

August, oh August...

Workout:  5.25 mile run in 48:09 with Dad and SB

August how did you get here so quickly???  Time never went this fast when I was a kid.  I don't know why it is flying by now. 

I took the last two days off as well deserved rest days.  I didn't run other than to jog around the yard with the doggies.  This morning I met up with Dad and SB for a five mile run on the south side of town.  SB and I both grumbled and ouched for the first .25 miles as we stretched out the sore muscles from the long run.  As soon as we got the first ouchy part done I was doing pretty good.  We were cruising right along, after the half way point though we were all grumbling that the way back seemed a lot longer.

 I've been trying to find a few good before run and during run fuel sources to help me out.  Today I tried the Gatorade Prime before the run. I took it the recommended 15 minutes before my run along with a granola bar.  During my run I felt really - unusually hot - the kindaof clammy hot that I get before I get sick.  I did not like that feeling at all.  I didn't feel nauseous just steaming hot.  It was only about 65 degrees but the humidity was creeping up.  I don't think it was the temps though.   I'm gonna blame it on the Prime for now but might try it again on Thursday.  Since it was only five miles I didn't take anything during the run.

I also had the Gatorade Recovery after the run with my delicious bagel twist.  I've had that before.  It tastes good and I think it works for me.  I definitely didn't feel parched and dehydrated.

Hopefully by my half marathon in two weeks I will have some good options figured out. 

QOTD:  What do you take to fuel prior to a run - especially early in the morning? What do you use to fuel during the run?  What run distance do you take fuel - anything after 3, 5, 7 miles??  How many times do you take fuel during a half marathon?

HM Week 7 Recap

This past week was a very good week for my training.  I got in all my runs and got in all my miles, plus some.  I struggled during the week with the runs for various issues, but regardless I pushed myself and got out the door.

This is when the training seems to always get tough for me for some reason.  My motivation starts to dwindle and I start to put other things first since I am gearing back up for school.  I am really trying to work on staying positive and focusing on the goal I have set for the half marathon in August. 

Here's a look at Week 7:

A little high in total miles since I did a long run on Monday and a long run on Saturday.  Now however I am back on schedule for Sat/Sun long runs - hopefully.

Week 8 Plan is as follows:

My Tuesday and Thursday miles might get moved around a bit since I have to be in town to conduct two trainings on those days.  But otherwise I should be all set. 

I am looking forward to my second rest day in a row and have been focusing on eating properly to refuel my lil muscles.  I did have some calf cramps last night so when I get my groceries today I am going to be sure to stock up on some bananas.  They always seem to help prevent those crazy cramps.

QOTD:  What do you do to help with the occassional and sneak attack calf or leg cramps?