Run Rudolph, Run

A quick update on our Holiday 5ks... The Turkey Trot 5k was a brisk morning uphill battle... both the run and also the getting out of bed on a holiday part. Unfortunately the final time was not a chip time so the mess of the start line cost us all a bit of time. I still wound up with a 10:07 mile pace. Slow, but for me, right about average. I wasn't disappointed, considering the hilly route and not feeling my best that morning, I stuck it out and ran the entire race. Sometimes just putting one foot in front of the other is the only goal I aspire to.

Four Personal Records!

The Reindeer run a week and a half later went considerably better. Despite another hill ridden race, I finally reached my goal of breaking a 30 minute 5k. There was no timing other than relying upon myself to look at the clock while crossing the finish line. Of course I only glanced long enough to see 28:-- (I'm going with 30 seconds, but really I have no idea). Even though real runners might scoff at my measly increase in pace, I felt a bit like Rocky throwing punches at the top of that stone staircase. Maybe by Tri season I'll be able to maintain a respectable pace.

Upcoming races include a possible trip to Cazenovia for the Chilly Chilli 5k, Maybe the Shamrock run 4 miler in March, and if any of us are feeling motivated the Mountain Goat 10 miler... but honestly if I'm going to run 10 miles up and down hills, why not just run a semi flat half? Guess we'll have to see where the motivation and athleticism stand in a few months.

For now I'll be counting down the days in hopes that Santa might bring me an indoor trainer for the off season. It sure would be nice to have a choice between my elliptical and a stationary bike.

Listening to: Cameras/ Matt & Kim

The Forgotten Post

I wrote this a few weeks ago and somehow forgot to post it...

Lately it's been an incredibly mild fall. So far I've seen very little snow which leaves me anxiously awaiting the day Mother Nature decides to flip the switch and bring her wrath of cold and blustery weather down upon us. In the meantime I'm happy to report Angela and I furiously pedaled our way up and down the wind swept hills of Oswego County and were able to get out for a 30 miler last weekend and 17.5 today. Every bike ride threatens to be our last of the season with the colder weather and shorter days. We definitely appreciate being out there, despite occasionally finding ourselves numb from face to feet.

Speaking of feet, I've just switched out my insoles for green Superfeet. They're much more stiff and less cushioned than my regular sneakers but they're supposedly designed to be stabilizing and good for shock absorption. Apparently you have to break them in for at least a week so it'll be cutting it close for use in my next race.

And the next race is... The B'ville 5K Turkey Trot! I decided to go for the 5K distance since I still seem woefully behind in my running training. I'm hopeful that I will be able to get the pace under a 10 minute mile, which would be a much welcomed first.

Last night I took, or maybe I should say Boomer took me for a run. You can take my word on this, it is not easy to tether yourself to an overexcited euphoric running dog, even if he is only 40 pounds. After being nearly attacked by unleashed dogs, dragged, pulled and tripped over the course of our 30 minute tug of war session I was ready to terminate our running partnership indefinitely. So I've decided in order to preserve our occasional workout bonding time we'll simply move our runs to a less canine populated and less hilly area. Possibly the superfeet will guard against the foot slapping that occurs when Boomer lounges ahead of me in the general direction of anything that moves and also stabilize my stride enough to keep me on my feet while being dragged down any sort of elevation decline we come across, including but not limited to hills, curbs, my front steps, etc. We'll see how it goes...

All Clear for Take Off

Stopped in to see the doctor today about my bum ankle. He's a fellow triathlete, or maybe I should say a serious triathlete as he's an actual Ironman and not a casual partaker of all girl sprint triathlons. Not to discredit IronGirl... I love it, it's not easy and I'm thankful it provides me with an inlet to a sport I would have otherwise avoided entirely. I was just trying to make the distinction Ironmen, (the guys and girls) are what I consider professional triathletes, where as I continue to enjoy the minors. So that being said, it seems there's hope yet for my bum ankle. Some minor plantar fasciitis, and moderate Achilles tendinitis was the official diagnosis and luckily I can continue my workouts with a few additions to my running gear. Tomorrow I'm off to Fleet Feet to purchase superfeet and compression socks. I'll report back about how another investment in my ever increasing Tri-equipment stockpile pays off, and possibly in the meantime... sign up for a race of two : )

Listening to: Us Against The World/ Coldplay

Rainy days and Mondays

Somewhere between work and home tonight my motivation bailed on me. Lately the rain clouds and general lack of daylight hours has got me desperately missing those long summer nights and the constant stream of available activities calling my name. Tonight I managed to get as far as changing into my workout clothes, and if lifting my fork from a plate to my mouth counts as exercise, I'm happy to report I got in a good workout.

I need a goal, stat!

There is a Veteran's day 5K in about 3 weeks and the Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving, both of which I am considering as long as I can remove the monkey wrench that has been unceremoniously thrown into my plans. I've been casually ignoring the minor swelling in my right ankle and the coinciding bruise like feeling that has been irritating me for a few weeks. The problem is that I haven't run since the race and a small hike, a few short elliptical sessions and one short bike ride is apparently still too intense a week of workouts to allow my heel to heal. It leaves me questioning what kind of workout I should be doing. As much as I claim to hate running it still sort of depresses me to think I might need to stop to prevent a serious injury. It may be time to seek professional advice for the little bump on my heel that's turning into a huge bummer. Maybe it's time to return to the pool?

Run 4 It!

Team Run 4 It! has officially finished a relay marathon and I'm happy to report we were far from last place despite my initial worries.

32 / 73 Run 4 It! 4:04:07 10th in the all Female Team category out of 27 all Female teams

I thought it was a good showing by us after all was said and done.

Kris finished his first Half Marathon today too, coming in 183 out of 1139 finishers. Not too shabby : )

The relay was a little nerve racking at the 3rd leg change over. There were roughly 73 teams wandering around B'ville wondering where the hand off was supposed to be. Mostly because of this little snippet from the website:

 Now after reading this we believed that the third leg would be the shortest and relatively easy so naturally I volunteered for it as I am not our strongest runner. While I was running I quickly realised the "flat to downhill" was a bunch of BS... then as I searched hopefully for Elyssa for a good mile after the 19 mile marker I decided someone should maybe look into the measuring next year. Even though I ran almost a mile and half more than I thought I was supposed to, I at least managed to run the entire thing. Thankfully Angela put in an impressively solid performance starting us out, running her longest run ever. Jess followed up with a killer fast second leg and Elyssa brought us home strong like we knew she would, running her 6.33 miles in 48:23. Good thing everyone brought their A game today.


Here's what map my run listed my run as, maybe Empire State Marathon relay organizers should compare notes:

Oh well at least I can say I accomplished a goal I didn't even know I had... running 6 looked nearly impossible a few days ago and I somehow managed 7, looks like it's time to learn how to maintain the distance and maybe pick up the pace a bit for next time.

For now I think I'll reward myself with a much missed bike ride!

I gotta mention what I think is an awesome relay team name I saw on the results page... Screw 26.2
If only I'd thought of that : )

We did have great team shirts even if we didn't get a team picture in them...

Luckily Noah & the Whale and The Wombats came through, playing on my ipod just when I needed their songs! I believe I may have even been lip singing along to pass the time more than once, thank goodness for ipods!

Here Goes Nothing

Tomorrow is the Empire State Marathon, Half and for me, Relay. As usual I'm dreading what's sure to be a restless night of too little sleep, a cold and windy morning and the longest run I've done yet. A month ago or so I was sure I was capable of a 6 mile run, on the eve of race day I know I am, but also well aware of the fact that this could be a rough hour and change.

I think the biggest bummer about this race will be that I'm running all alone. At least I'll be running towards Elyssa and Jess will run to me, and Angela will be happily finished with the first leg waiting for us to make our way back to the start/finish line. Kris will be there as well running the half, well on his way and training hard for his Iron Man next summer. It will be another race to look back on with a solid sense of accomplishment after all is said and done, but for now I just have a mean case of the jitters. To combat my most unwelcome nerves I'm loading up my ipod with new music to distract me both before and during the race. Hopefully my ear buds will stay put despite what sounds like gale force winds outside my window. I have a feeling the ipod will be my saving grace tomorrow.

Thanks to Kris's pasta dinner and a pre-race 3 mile run with Elyssa last night, I'm carb loaded and ready to go tomorrow. I'm just hoping for a little sunshine and some good distractions during my lengthy wait and as I take over for the third leg of our relay marathon. Good Luck to all runners, especially Kris and my Relay Teammates Angela, Jess and Elyssa... Go team Run 4 It!

Pictures of our fun team shirts and post race exhaustion to follow...


Listening to: Jump Into the Fog/ The Wombats

Four on the Floor

I think I've finally switched gears. At least what has lately been an uphill battle has become a much more manageble gradual uphill slope with the occasional much needed leveling out. Thursday night despite the misty weather and occasional passing rain cloud I managed to slowly but steadily run a full 4 miles. I know I'm only 3 and a half weeks from my crazy goal of having to run almost 7, but at least I'm finally moving in the right dirrection. My ipod, a flat course and the towering rainbows arching over the parkway were all contributing factors to my success. I also find fellow runners motivate me to keep going because I don't want to hang my head in shame and walk in front of them. I know I have a long way to go but I was pretty proud of my new bench mark. I just hope I can keep it up!

Listening to: Gravity/ Stephen Kellog and the Sixers