Running Ramblings

Deciding to run a marathon is one thing, training for it is another...especially during the frigid temperatures that this lovely season brings. 


These are some things that keep me going during the long cold months of training: 


~ I invested in under armor and it has definitely made a huge difference. Not the most flattering but it keeps me warm.


~ I make sure that I have some pretty good company on those crazy long runs. (Don't let the sunshine fool you. It only came out for the three hours we we running.)

These are two of my running peeps during mile 13 on our 18.2 miler on Friday. 

We ran from Liberty Lake to Couer D'Alene. We stayed there and took 4 minute showers then off to get us some carbs! We each ordered our own pizza...

~ Good music is essential. At some point there is a point where it takes all mental capabilities to just keep going so conversations have to stop and music is necessary. These are some of my faves on my running playlist...

Alright - Kris Allen

Firework - Katy Perry

Mr. Brightside - Killers

Off with your head/Thriller - Glee Cast

Every Teardrop is a Waterfall - Coldplay

Pretty Young Thing - Michael Jackson

Just Dance - Lady Gaga

This Town - OAR

We Found Love - Rhianna

Your Love is My Drug - Kesha

~ I'm really loving my training program this time around. My friends and I are doing the "Less is More" training.

Mon - Intervals 

Tues - Cross Train which is eliptical, core and weights for me

Wed - Run 5 - 10 miles depending on the week

Thurs - Cross Train eliptical, yoga, core and/or weights

Fri - Long run 10 - 20 miles depending on the week

I dread the intervals every week and it is my shortest workout! Sprinting is serious work.

~ I have changed my attitude about the long runs.

Running is all mental...it really doesn't take too long to get your body into the running groove. Once you have your lungs and legs built up it is all in your head. So I start thinking about my long run at the beginning of the week. I think about how good it's going to be. I think about my favorite parts of the trail. I think about how great it will feel when it's done. I only let myself think positive thoughts about it and so far it's totally helped me stay focused and enjoy those very long miles.

My marathon is May 19th. I am looking forward to it for so many reasons...packet pick up with my friends, the warmer weather, finally accomplishing my goal, losing the four pounds I always gain while training, but most of all, I love that I will be done with training! Until I decide on the next race I'm going to do...

Utah-Part 1 Top of Utah Half Marathon

We spent ten amazing days in Utah. Our first stop was Logan so that I could run the Top of Utah half marathon with my lovely friend Mike. His amazing wife, Amy, who also happens to be one of my besties, couldn't run it so I got to take her spot.

We had to take a shuttle to the starting line. It left at 5:30am! The race didn't start until 7am. It was brutal to get up that early but we got to see the sun rise in the canyon. The time went by quickly because we got to visit with my friend Cynthia who also ran the race. No photos but it was so fun to hang out with her.

It was Mike's first half but he ran like a pro. I felt confident in my training but I had no idea what the altitude was going to do to me. I didn't want to hold Mike back from running his best, but he stayed with me the whole race. I was able to keep up with his pace for the first nine miles but once I hit ten, I hit a wall. It was hot, it was uphill and the altitude became a beast. It was like I could never fill my lungs completely. In the end we finished in 2:01. I wanted to be under 2 but I am still happy with that time, I felt bad that Mike slowed down for me. He could have totally finished way under 2 hours, I told him to go on but he wouldn't. We finished together and it was awesome. I can't wait to do it again!

We had the best fans ever! They even made signs for us...

 

There is nothing like running a good race. It feels so great to cross the finish line knowing that you have accomplished a goal. Every mile of training has paid off and it feel so, so good. In the past five years that I have been running, I have ran one marathon, three half's, and a handful of smaller races. I have learned so much during the hundreds and hundreds of miles I have logged. I have learned that your body can do way more than you think it can. I have learned that good friends make for the best running partners. And most importantly I have learned that there will always be someone faster and that's okay. In the end I run for me and what it does for me. I loved every minute of this race, even the brutal tenth mile. 

Thanks Mike for pushing me and sticking with me...it was the best way to start my vacation!

This is what a full day looks like...

First of all...
You know it's going to be a good day when a box of fruit shows up on your doorstep!

The Fun Run

Our morning started out with the annual summer race our city puts on.

I ran first. It's a four mile run...mostly uphill. It's a killer! My friend Jess S. and I started in the front of the pack, we didn't mean to we just found a spot before the whistle blew and it happened to be at the front. 

I forgot my ipod so I just got in a zone and stayed there. I ran the fastest I've ever ran...four miles in 33 minutes! 

C.R.A.Z.Y.

The funnest part was that during the medal ceremony I heard my friend Cami's name called for third place in our age bracket and I knew I was a few seconds ahead of her, so I got second and my other friend Jessica got first! We had no idea that we placed, so fun! My friend Laura also placed in her age bracket.

After my run it was Camden's turn. He was with the six and under crew. 

Here he is doing his stretches...

He took off and ran hard for about 50 yards and then decided he was done. 

He needed a little help to finish it up...

Yay for Camden!

Then Eden was up. She had made a goal back in January to finish the race without stopping and get a ribbon.

I ran with her and she ran like a champ. I had told her to start slow and find a good pace. She kept seeing these boys sprint pass her and then walk but at the very end of her race she passed them. It was awesome!

Here she is finishing her race. I was so proud of her. It was not easy for her but she did it.

Yay Eden!

Last but not least was Maya's race. There was only one other girl and she was the youngest in her bracket. She had made a goal to get first place for the girls because last year she got second. 

Well she took off too fast in the beginning trying to keep up with all the sprinting boys. She got burned out and really struggled, so I ran with her. She did a great job pushing through her disappointment and finished strong. 

I was so proud of her. She still got her second place ribbon and in the end that made her happy.

I love sharing the love of running with my kids...

My brother Ben showed up at the medal ceremony to spend the weekend with us since he won't be able to be here for Eden's baptism that will be in a few weeks. 


(Notice the matching t-shirts...)

Sewing Project

I finished these cushions for our patio furniture.

The Shock Game

Then we went to the first ever outdoor Shock game. We took the kids and it was so much fun!

The Shock spanked the Blaze...WHOO HOO!

Camden was making friends right and left with his silliness.

It was not a lazy Saturday by any means, but we made some awesome memories! 

Yay Summer!

How To: Get Over Yourself

Two years ago I ran my first race. I ran a half marathon. It was hard. I started having pain during mile two which caused me to fall behind the pack. My running buddies all took off and I had to dig deep to finish. My time was 2 hours 8 minutes.

Last year I ran my full marathon, TWENTY-SIX POINT TWO LOOOONG MILES. I had never in a million years thought I could do it. My only expectation was to finish under 5 hours. I trained hard and took care of my knee so there was no pain. I had the best run. I felt great and finished in 4 hours 20 minutes. I was more than happy with that time.

This year I decided to run the half again. 

(picking up our packets)

(pre-race carb/protien overload)

I had a great training experience. I mixed it up from the last two races by adding more cross training and sprints. I wanted to do this race for time. I wanted to run it in 2 hours or under. I knew taking 8 minutes off my time was going to be tough but I felt like I had it in the bag.


Last Saturday was race day. 

I started with the pack but it was hard to stay together in the sea of runners. I got a little ahead of my friends and realized I had lost my buddy Melissa completely. I slowed down to find her and she was not doing so good. She was sick already. I ran with her for a little bit but I had decided that at mile three I was going to go for it and run my own race. The night before my friend Meg who I had ran with the last two races kept telling me to go for it and see how fast I could do it. So with her in my ear I took off.


I put on my running tunes and found a good pace. I didn't have a garmin so I had no idea where I was. Half way through the race I was under an hour and felt great.


As I came into mile 11 I heard my friend Randi behind me so I ran with her for a tiny bit, but then she told me to go. So I took off again. I was excited to be so close to the end but decided to save my sprint until I could see the finish line. Then I saw my other running friend Jessica who had already finished running towards me and she gave me some encouragement so I kicked it into gear again.


The finish line wasn't where it had been the year before so I couldn't see it, but then I heard my name and looked up and saw the finish line with the giant numbers displaying 2:03:42.


UGHHHHH! I was so disappointed. I couldn't find my family in the crowd. My friends were either on the trail or had left. I was all alone at the finish line. I begrudgingly grabbed my medal and drank some water as I walked it off. 


I walked around feeling so annoyed. It was such a different feeling from the year before. I felt like I had blown it. I was too tired to cry about it, instead I was mad.


After a while I realized I still had friends out there and I needed to cheer them in. I also had my family that I needed to find.


We took pictures and congratulated each other.

I got home and Aric took care of the kids so that I could have some time to recover. I finally let it all out and let the disappointment take over. I had a pity party all by myself. I was so mad that I had left my friends to run "my own" race just to be disappointed with my time. It wasn't worth it. I wish I had ran with them, especially Melissa. It was her first race and I left her at mile three sick! I felt like a horrible friend.


It didn't take long for me to realize how stupid I was being. I ran a good race. The best part of the race wasn't the race at all. It was training with wonderful friends who love me and inspire me. It was my kids and Aric at the end who were so proud of me. It was realizing once again how blessed I am to have a body that can keep up with all the demands that I put on it.


I had to get over myself. 1:59:00 is just a number. It's not who I am. With the time of 2:03:36 my family was still proud of me. 

And my friends still loved me, even though I ditched them.

This whole experience made me realize how I let unnecessary expectations get the best of me. I get so caught up in how I don't measure up, that I can't see what I have accomplished. Not just in running, but in my life.


So here is to a new way of thinking,(at least for today), I am going to get over myself and see the positive instead of the negative. Instead of looking at my house and seeing all the things I didn't get done I will focus on the things that I did do. Like go to the fifth grade celebration planning meeting. Like reinstall the toilet. Like watch my friends kid so she could get some training done for her job. Like work on my book that I never have time to work on.


I hope my little experience/life lesson will help you get over yourself and see past your unrealistic expectations. Maybe then you can focus on all the amazing things you do that you don't give yourself credit for.

Life Lessons and "Mom" Moments at the LL Loop

We have a fun run in our community every July. Last year was our first year participating in it. This year the girls were very excited to run again.

I just barely started running again, so I thought a 5k would be a piece of cake. It wasn't that bad but I will say that it stung just a little bit when two boys, 9 (thanks Gabe) and 12, beat me by like five minutes! The course was pretty much uphill, which didn't help one bit. In the end I enjoyed myself and didn't hurt so I'll call it a good run.

 

(me and my running buddies)

When I signed up the girls they were in the top of their age brackets, but when it came time to run they both wanted to run "up" so that they could run with their friends.

They hadn't trained for these distances...Eden 1/2 mile and Maya 1 mile, but I let them do it anyway.
Eden's birthday is in three weeks so she really wasn't that much younger but it made her feel good to know that she was probably the youngest in her group. So here she is at the starting line...

 

When she was about 2/3 done I met her on the course and this is what I saw...

...she was done. She didn't want to do anymore. I gave her a pep talk as we walked and then she said she could finish if I held her hand. So we ran together until the last stretch and then she finished on her own (8th place). This is what she looked like after her race.

This is what Camden looked like during the race.

Then it was Maya's turn. She took off pretty fast and I knew she was going to burn out so I decided to run the second half with her.

When she got to me she stopped and started crying. She said it was too hard and that she just wanted to go home. She really wanted to place in the top three and now she was worried that she was going to come in last place.

I walked with her a little ways and gave her a pep talk..."You can't stop. You have to finish what you started. It doesn't matter if you are last, you just have to finish the race. We will walk until that flag and then we are running again." So we got to the flag and started running. That's when we realized there were still a lot of kids behind her. We ran awhile and then stopped for a breath or two and then got going again. When we were about 100yrds from the finish line, one of the race workers yelled "keep going, your going to place!" Maya heard that and took off! I let her go and rushed back to the sidelines. I got all choked up when they handed her a red ribbon...my girl won 2nd place! (for the girls)

Here she is with her buddies. It was so fun that they all placed.

(before the race)

(after the race)

Maya is so proud of herself and I couldn't be more proud of her. She learned some very important things that day. Things that I hope she will remember for the rest of her life.
~ Always finish what you start.
~ Even when you think you can't go anymore, you really can.
~ Listen to the people who love you, they can help you.
~ You will always have your family to cheer you on.
~ You can do hard things!
It was a great family experience. I had a great "mom" moment and unfortunately those are few and far between so I will take them when I get them.