I skipped out on Pilates today and decided instead to go running. I set out to run a 3:1, my old ratio that I trained with last summer. I wanted to run three miles to just see what time I could do it in. After a few minutes I decided I would just try to run as much of the three miles as I could instead of doing a run walk ratio. 36 minutes and a few seconds later I stopped running. I did three miles without stopping which for me is a huge feat. Only once did I ever run 2 miles without stopping and today, after not running for months I did 3 miles without stopping and averaging slightly over a 12 minute mile which is a minute and a half faster than what I trained for the 1/2 marathon at. My goal is to do my 3 mile "trail" and finish with my 2 mile corbin loop to make 5 miles. If I can do 5 mile maintenence runs without stopping throughout the week I will be thrilled. It is amazing what running minus 20 pounds will do! Thinking ahead to my two 1/2 marathons in September - I should be running with at least another 20 pounds off my body. I cannot wait to see what I will be able to accomplish without all the added weight.
Today just showed me that I am indeed a runner and got my excited to start running again...bring it on!
3.31.2009
3.14.2009
It's been a long year baby...
A year ago I decided to run my fat butt across a 1/2 marathon finish line in Virginia Beach and run across it I did. This March my fat butt is a bit smaller - and is again making the decision to run across that 1/2 marathon finish line in Virginia Beach (and Philly 2 weeks later). I cannot wait to begin running more and training because I am in such better shape than this time last year. An exciting part of this process will be competing in the Reclaim program at the YMCA(formerly known as Biggest Loser). I am 1 week in and loving the strength training built especially for me - keeping in mind that I wanted a program to help make me a better runner! Over the next 11 weeks I am hoping to see a mind and body transformation and then be running my not fat butt across 2 1/2 marathon finish lines in September.
And a side note for those that know me really well... During the Reclaim program we have these optional group challenges - Kayaking, Rock Climbing & a Run, Hike, Crawl. What did I sign up for.... you guess wrong I'm sure - ROCK CLIMBING! The guy sold the rock climbing experience so well (and after reading about Heather's love of rock climbing) I've decided to give it a try. Never would I have found myself in a rock climbing gym without a program like this, so I shall attempt it in May. Let's just hope I drop a bunch mroe weight before I try to hoist my body up on a wall in front of other people. Yikes!
And a side note for those that know me really well... During the Reclaim program we have these optional group challenges - Kayaking, Rock Climbing & a Run, Hike, Crawl. What did I sign up for.... you guess wrong I'm sure - ROCK CLIMBING! The guy sold the rock climbing experience so well (and after reading about Heather's love of rock climbing) I've decided to give it a try. Never would I have found myself in a rock climbing gym without a program like this, so I shall attempt it in May. Let's just hope I drop a bunch mroe weight before I try to hoist my body up on a wall in front of other people. Yikes!
10.28.2008
10K
I did it and in good time too - 1:16 - 12 minutes less than my 1/2 marathon 10K split. :) Since I had only run about 4 times from half marathon day until race day I considered that time awesome! I was not so excited about the 3:15 am alarm clock time on Sunday morning but the 4 1/2 hours of sleep did me well. Nicole and I woke up - showered - made coffee - packed bagels and left to meet the crew at TBC. We left Easton around 4:15 and headed to Crystal City- from there we took a Marine Corps Marathon shuttle to the starting line. After meeting with the full marathoners and sending them off Jenn, Julie, Nicole, Tracy, Taylor and I headed to our starting line. I was not excited to run and assumed I'd give up and just walk it - no such luck. After I started running and felt good I decided I'd run to try to beat my time from the 1/2 marathon 10K split. I ran about 4 miles of the marathon course during the 10K - thoroughly enjoyed the Marine eye candy along the route. The hill at the end was a killer - it was killer whether you've trained on hills or not but when you are from the FLAT eastern shore any incline is tough. I ran almost the whole final hill (walked a bit of it because my calves were cramping) and sprinted to the finish line where I quickly caught up with Tracy and Nicole who had only finished 58 seconds before me! Got medaled by a good lookin Marine - got pictures taken and headed off to find a bathroom and food. Great Times! We walked around the finish festival and headed back to the charity village to our tent to wait for our first marathoner to return - which never happened. After a while we walked down to the finish line and headed to mile marker 24.5 to cheer on the ROCKS runners. Got to see almost all the marathoners pass by and we ran to the finish line with Marian and Lea Ann. It was so great to be a supporter and see the amazing marathoner runners. I have NO desire to run 26.2 miles but am in true amazement of those that do. It was also way cool to walk and run on 395 around DC - sit and cheer people on running past the Pentagon and Arlington Cemetary. How Cool?!?! FUN FUN! So...no more races in the near future although I need to keep running when the weather permits - 2009 is the year for the VA Beach 1/2 followed by the Philly 1/2!
9.13.2008
slacker
So I have not run since August 31st (race day). Many friends have been keeping up with their running and yet I have been a slacker. I have to get back in the game this week if I am going to reach my goal of running the 10K without a run/walk ratio in October. 6 miles feels like nothing in comparison to what I've trained for but without keeping up with running 6 miles will kick my hiney.
9.07.2008
my "sprint"
Apparently Taylor and I were doing under a 10 minute mile during the last 5 blocks of the race. LeaAnn told me that yesterday at the bagel bakery (she was tracking on her gps). So...my spint is around a 10 minute mile. haha
9.05.2008
the rest of the story...
The alarm went off at 4:30 to which I promptly hit the snooze button (if you can call it that on a cell phone). I laid there attempting to wake up, deciding if I was excited or nervous - whether I would be spending the morning in the bathroom and not able to eat or whether I was ready to run. Turns out I was ready to run. I had worried about being sick the morning of the race. When I get nervous - even if my mind is unaware of being nervous - by body sends me to the bathroom. Typically this happens on the first day of school etc. It even happened to me on almost all of our longer runs this summer. However on race morning - my body was ready and I became the encourager in the room. Surprisingly enough Nicole was nervous and I was the peptalker! My only goal was to be mentally ready and be able to go to the bathroom (*wink wink*) before the race began. I did NOT want to have to stop along the way.
Around 5:25 several of us runners met in the hallway and went downstairs to gather together before walking to the shuttle. As we got on the shuttle we saw our coaches and other runners on their way too. A few minutes later we arrived at the convention center and waited to meet the rest of our group. There was a steady crowd of people heading to the starting line. That was one aspect that just amazed me. They just kept coming and coming and coming. I arrived at the convention center around 5:45 and I don't think the steady stream of runners started to filter down until after 6:45. As people arrived we shared excited and nervous hugs, took prerace pictures and finally got last minute encouragement and instructions from our coaches. The whole time I'm trying not to tear up. It was such an emotional moment. Having spent the last 4 months working towards this seemingly unattainable goal and realizing that the day I've(we've) been working for is finally here. It was go time...after a group picture and a LONG porta potty line in which I got my morning wish and a 42 minute wait from the first wave start to my wave start. We all moved to the starting line like a herd of cattle. By the time I got to the line I already had to pee...I truly ignored this feeling for as long as I could. We started off around 7:42 and by 7:45 Taylor and I were walking. We made our coaches proud and followed the rules to stick to our run/walk ratio from mile 1. Fortunately many others were doing the same. I took it easy and Taylor and I watched our mile time to try to stay as consistent as possible to what we've been training at. My concern was that my last long run that I completed was the 10 miler. I knew I had 3 miles more than that to complete that morning and I did not want to push myself early and not be able to finish strong. Slow and Steady finishes the race (they may not win but they WILL cross the finish line).
Mile 1 & 2 - Felt great - took it easy and cheered on the elite runners who were rounding mile 11. Hit the first few bands - great music - loud fans albeit no one I knew. I did see an awesome sign - One said "better you than me" the other next to it read "you run and I'll drink" as she held her travel coffee mug to her mouth. I couldn't get over how many people we were running around and was waiting for the mile when this would begin to clear up (that mile never came).
Mile 3 - Finished a 5K feeling awesome. This was where we found Amy W. our "fill in" coach for part of the race. She informed me that Nicole and Tracey were up ahead but waiting in a bathroom line. It was crazy crowded and we waved as we passed Nicole and Tracey in line - apparently LOTS of runners had to go at mile 3. This was the only bathroom spot that had a line longer than 1 or 2 people. Eventually they caught up and we snapped a few pictures while running. It was at this point that everyone else from our group - minus the walkers and one other running group- passed us. These were all groups that had per mile times longer than ours. Taylor and I decided to stick to what was working - stay at or slightly over our normal pace to make sure we made to it to the finish line. She probably could have gone faster being she is only 17 but I appreciated her willingness to stick with me for the long haul.
Miles 4-7 Bands continued to be pretty good. Body still feeling great. It was during these miles I had to keep commenting, quietly of course, how prepared we were. By this point people that started off running were now run/walking or just walking. We passed people who were huffing and puffing, people who were sprinting for 30 seconds only to walk for the next 5 mins, people wearing NEW sneakers, people without water belts - people who did not have awesome coaches who prepared them to face what this day would throw at us. It was also somewhere between mile 7 and 8 that I made my poor running buddy wait for me to go to the bathroom. It wasn't an emergency but I knew I had to go and assumed it would easier at this point to go rather than waiting until I was uncomfortable or wouldn't want to get back up from a sitting position later in the race. While there was no line apparent, I did wait for 5 mins. Grrr. We were finally coming out of camp pendleton with some eh bands where the mental battle started in.
Mile 8&9 - It was during these miles that all I longed for was to see a double digit mile. I kept reminding myself that I had run 8 miles many times and it was no big deal. My back was starting to get sore, my body tired. I had already taken salt and eaten several packs of sport beans. My stomach started to feel a little iffy and all I wanted was to be done but knew I had a ways to go. I think I also knew that coming up on 10 miles was the longest I had run. The final 3 miles were new territory and would be a long mental more than physical battle to the finish line. And of course...right when I needed her most Coach Amy comes running towards me with her arms in the air. We ran for about a mile together and it certainly helped. Encouraging words, a fresh face - a change of conversation with an update on other runners. I didn't want her to leave but I knew it was now time to focus on the finish line - running smart - not giving in to my head saying that I was too tired to run and should walk. She left saying that all we had left was a maintenance run. Around this time I realized that we were not finishing in under 3 hours. I wanted that and assumed it would happen. Secretly disappointed but knowing that crossing the finish line was the more important goal I ignored the overall time on my watch and kept running.
Miles 10-12 - Tough physically - tough mentally. I decided that I was going to maintain my run/walk even if I was tired. I did NOT want to say that I finished but walked the last few miles. That was how I finished the 11 miler and I was disappointed in myself. I was NOT going to disappoint myself now - this was the time to push through. We passed a few familiar faces cheering us on but many of our runners families had already gone to the finish line to congratulate their runners. We kept plugging along ,passed our last water stop, passed other runners and kept watching for the 12 mile sign and the turn onto the boardwalk. The 12 mile sign finally came and shortly after we rounded the corner onto the boardwalk.
The FINAL mile - I don't remember seeing the ocean or sand, even though I know we ran for quite some distance on the boardwalk. I decided to take an extra walk break just so that I could finish strong . With 5 blocks left until the finish line we saw coach Lea Ann and she got us going to the finish. Everything hurt and I was ready to be done. I kept one tshirt I saw along the way in mind - pain is temporary, pride is forever. So with that in mind I sprinted (in my mind at least) to the finish with my calves cramping the whole was across the final line. In 3 hours 9 minutes and 46 seconds I completed my first (and not last) half marathon.
It took all I had in me to keep walking through the secure area to get my medal, iced towel, water, goodie bag, banana, and ice pop. I just wanted to sit and take my sneakers off. Taylor and I got a finish line photo together with the beach in the background and soon after saw Nicole walking toward us. She helped us navigate our way through the crowds to get Tylenol (after a brief survey of course) and to our charity tent on the beach. I remember being tired and just wanting to see Amy and Lea Ann. I spent most of the time quietly sitting by myself just resting and thinking and texting everyone I knew that I had indeed finished. It was great.
My Body - 2 small blisters underneath a callus - some leg and back soreness that was gone by Tuesday night. This run was easier on my body than others - and contrary to what some people say - I did run hard - eventhough I was less sore than other runners. I just ran smart! hehe
Something I found funny - so many people commented on the humidity - how hard it was to run through that. I honestly did not notice the humidity at all. I've run in much worse. Maybe I didn't notice because I was so focused/excited/prepared - who knows. Either way I'm glad I felt the weather was great for a run - even if others found it tough. G0 figure!
I still cannot believe I finished. I can't believe I set out to do something so unlike myself. I am a runner (I may not look like one but I am darn it!) Next time I'll come in under 3 hours. I've said so many times that I would have NEVER agreed to do this if it weren't for Amy. She has been such (she is such) an encouraging person and is one of the only reasons I stuck with this. I didn't want to let her down and in the end I didn't let myself down either. This not only helped me get in better shape - even though I gained weight (my own fault) - but reconnect with old friends and develop new friendships. I've found an athletic event I can be good at and improve on. I am living proof that ANYONE can do this - even someone still many pounds overweight and someone who started VERY out of shape. I still find myself thinking about the race from time to time when I'm doing other things. There is no way to truly say thank you the way I want to to Amy and Lea Ann and have yet to begin to try to show my appreciation. I just cannot put into words yet what their dedication and encouragement has meant. I keep forgetting that throughout this I also raised over $1,200 for Easton ROCKS. I gained so much out of this process that I forget I helped my kids too. :)
Apparently I miss getting up at 5am on a Saturday so much that tomorrow - during the pouring rain - I'll be doing water stops for our full marathoners who are running their 20 miler training run in the morning. I did enjoy eating what I wanted to tonight though - no more pasta w/ meat sauce - I went out to eat! Woohoo! I said all along that I would not do a stop the first Saturday after our race because I was going to sleep in but when do I actually stick to my original thoughts - If I had I would have been cheering on other runners instead of being cheered on while running.
Around 5:25 several of us runners met in the hallway and went downstairs to gather together before walking to the shuttle. As we got on the shuttle we saw our coaches and other runners on their way too. A few minutes later we arrived at the convention center and waited to meet the rest of our group. There was a steady crowd of people heading to the starting line. That was one aspect that just amazed me. They just kept coming and coming and coming. I arrived at the convention center around 5:45 and I don't think the steady stream of runners started to filter down until after 6:45. As people arrived we shared excited and nervous hugs, took prerace pictures and finally got last minute encouragement and instructions from our coaches. The whole time I'm trying not to tear up. It was such an emotional moment. Having spent the last 4 months working towards this seemingly unattainable goal and realizing that the day I've(we've) been working for is finally here. It was go time...after a group picture and a LONG porta potty line in which I got my morning wish and a 42 minute wait from the first wave start to my wave start. We all moved to the starting line like a herd of cattle. By the time I got to the line I already had to pee...I truly ignored this feeling for as long as I could. We started off around 7:42 and by 7:45 Taylor and I were walking. We made our coaches proud and followed the rules to stick to our run/walk ratio from mile 1. Fortunately many others were doing the same. I took it easy and Taylor and I watched our mile time to try to stay as consistent as possible to what we've been training at. My concern was that my last long run that I completed was the 10 miler. I knew I had 3 miles more than that to complete that morning and I did not want to push myself early and not be able to finish strong. Slow and Steady finishes the race (they may not win but they WILL cross the finish line).
Mile 1 & 2 - Felt great - took it easy and cheered on the elite runners who were rounding mile 11. Hit the first few bands - great music - loud fans albeit no one I knew. I did see an awesome sign - One said "better you than me" the other next to it read "you run and I'll drink" as she held her travel coffee mug to her mouth. I couldn't get over how many people we were running around and was waiting for the mile when this would begin to clear up (that mile never came).
Mile 3 - Finished a 5K feeling awesome. This was where we found Amy W. our "fill in" coach for part of the race. She informed me that Nicole and Tracey were up ahead but waiting in a bathroom line. It was crazy crowded and we waved as we passed Nicole and Tracey in line - apparently LOTS of runners had to go at mile 3. This was the only bathroom spot that had a line longer than 1 or 2 people. Eventually they caught up and we snapped a few pictures while running. It was at this point that everyone else from our group - minus the walkers and one other running group- passed us. These were all groups that had per mile times longer than ours. Taylor and I decided to stick to what was working - stay at or slightly over our normal pace to make sure we made to it to the finish line. She probably could have gone faster being she is only 17 but I appreciated her willingness to stick with me for the long haul.
Miles 4-7 Bands continued to be pretty good. Body still feeling great. It was during these miles I had to keep commenting, quietly of course, how prepared we were. By this point people that started off running were now run/walking or just walking. We passed people who were huffing and puffing, people who were sprinting for 30 seconds only to walk for the next 5 mins, people wearing NEW sneakers, people without water belts - people who did not have awesome coaches who prepared them to face what this day would throw at us. It was also somewhere between mile 7 and 8 that I made my poor running buddy wait for me to go to the bathroom. It wasn't an emergency but I knew I had to go and assumed it would easier at this point to go rather than waiting until I was uncomfortable or wouldn't want to get back up from a sitting position later in the race. While there was no line apparent, I did wait for 5 mins. Grrr. We were finally coming out of camp pendleton with some eh bands where the mental battle started in.
Mile 8&9 - It was during these miles that all I longed for was to see a double digit mile. I kept reminding myself that I had run 8 miles many times and it was no big deal. My back was starting to get sore, my body tired. I had already taken salt and eaten several packs of sport beans. My stomach started to feel a little iffy and all I wanted was to be done but knew I had a ways to go. I think I also knew that coming up on 10 miles was the longest I had run. The final 3 miles were new territory and would be a long mental more than physical battle to the finish line. And of course...right when I needed her most Coach Amy comes running towards me with her arms in the air. We ran for about a mile together and it certainly helped. Encouraging words, a fresh face - a change of conversation with an update on other runners. I didn't want her to leave but I knew it was now time to focus on the finish line - running smart - not giving in to my head saying that I was too tired to run and should walk. She left saying that all we had left was a maintenance run. Around this time I realized that we were not finishing in under 3 hours. I wanted that and assumed it would happen. Secretly disappointed but knowing that crossing the finish line was the more important goal I ignored the overall time on my watch and kept running.
Miles 10-12 - Tough physically - tough mentally. I decided that I was going to maintain my run/walk even if I was tired. I did NOT want to say that I finished but walked the last few miles. That was how I finished the 11 miler and I was disappointed in myself. I was NOT going to disappoint myself now - this was the time to push through. We passed a few familiar faces cheering us on but many of our runners families had already gone to the finish line to congratulate their runners. We kept plugging along ,passed our last water stop, passed other runners and kept watching for the 12 mile sign and the turn onto the boardwalk. The 12 mile sign finally came and shortly after we rounded the corner onto the boardwalk.
The FINAL mile - I don't remember seeing the ocean or sand, even though I know we ran for quite some distance on the boardwalk. I decided to take an extra walk break just so that I could finish strong . With 5 blocks left until the finish line we saw coach Lea Ann and she got us going to the finish. Everything hurt and I was ready to be done. I kept one tshirt I saw along the way in mind - pain is temporary, pride is forever. So with that in mind I sprinted (in my mind at least) to the finish with my calves cramping the whole was across the final line. In 3 hours 9 minutes and 46 seconds I completed my first (and not last) half marathon.
It took all I had in me to keep walking through the secure area to get my medal, iced towel, water, goodie bag, banana, and ice pop. I just wanted to sit and take my sneakers off. Taylor and I got a finish line photo together with the beach in the background and soon after saw Nicole walking toward us. She helped us navigate our way through the crowds to get Tylenol (after a brief survey of course) and to our charity tent on the beach. I remember being tired and just wanting to see Amy and Lea Ann. I spent most of the time quietly sitting by myself just resting and thinking and texting everyone I knew that I had indeed finished. It was great.
My Body - 2 small blisters underneath a callus - some leg and back soreness that was gone by Tuesday night. This run was easier on my body than others - and contrary to what some people say - I did run hard - eventhough I was less sore than other runners. I just ran smart! hehe
Something I found funny - so many people commented on the humidity - how hard it was to run through that. I honestly did not notice the humidity at all. I've run in much worse. Maybe I didn't notice because I was so focused/excited/prepared - who knows. Either way I'm glad I felt the weather was great for a run - even if others found it tough. G0 figure!
I still cannot believe I finished. I can't believe I set out to do something so unlike myself. I am a runner (I may not look like one but I am darn it!) Next time I'll come in under 3 hours. I've said so many times that I would have NEVER agreed to do this if it weren't for Amy. She has been such (she is such) an encouraging person and is one of the only reasons I stuck with this. I didn't want to let her down and in the end I didn't let myself down either. This not only helped me get in better shape - even though I gained weight (my own fault) - but reconnect with old friends and develop new friendships. I've found an athletic event I can be good at and improve on. I am living proof that ANYONE can do this - even someone still many pounds overweight and someone who started VERY out of shape. I still find myself thinking about the race from time to time when I'm doing other things. There is no way to truly say thank you the way I want to to Amy and Lea Ann and have yet to begin to try to show my appreciation. I just cannot put into words yet what their dedication and encouragement has meant. I keep forgetting that throughout this I also raised over $1,200 for Easton ROCKS. I gained so much out of this process that I forget I helped my kids too. :)
Apparently I miss getting up at 5am on a Saturday so much that tomorrow - during the pouring rain - I'll be doing water stops for our full marathoners who are running their 20 miler training run in the morning. I did enjoy eating what I wanted to tonight though - no more pasta w/ meat sauce - I went out to eat! Woohoo! I said all along that I would not do a stop the first Saturday after our race because I was going to sleep in but when do I actually stick to my original thoughts - If I had I would have been cheering on other runners instead of being cheered on while running.
9.04.2008
Professional Pictures
Below is a link to the professional pictures from the race - not loving them. Also never realized I ran with my thumbs up...gotta break that habit.
Pictures
Pictures
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