Prepping for crazy. . .

So we planned to go 25/25. Our first 25 miles was sheer guts for me. Thoughtlessly, I increased my weight training last week but neglected to increase my food intake. None of those 25 mies felt good. After about 7 miles I realized that the run simply wasn't going to get better so I changed my thinking. I decided I was running 5-5 milers. Mentally it helped but physically it was just guts. My brother was fighting something so I was concerned about our second run. I got a text 5 minutes before my alarm was supposed to go off. The night before we had decided to just go 20. My brother was not feeling well. I told him to go back to bed then I decided to I would go back to bed for another hour and put in 12-14 miles after that. My brother told me to text him when I got up. We got up and ended up going just shy of 13 miles. Interestingly, I felt much better this second run than the last second run. The hills hurt but we were able to move. My brother was still fighting whatever so we walked more than usual but we got it done. 

We have decided what we are going to do next week for our 50 miler. Our older kids want to run a midnight 5K so when they are done we are going to drive up to Zion and start. We figure we should be running about 1:30 and be done before it gets too hot, roughly 12 hours later. My brother keeps saying it's good training for a 100 miler. I keep thinking when did I agreed to that. 

Nutrition is going to be interesting. I'm getting tired of chewy nutrition, gels are already out and so are PayDay bars. Stinger waffles are still amazing though. We'll probably carry 25ish miles worth of nutrition and water and plant both about 20ish miles into the run. By the time we need more we'll be into town and food will be available. There's a wood-fired pizza place in Hurricane that makes an amazing margherita pizza and we're hoping he'll be open on our way down. 

I'll fill you in on our run later. Thanks for checking in and come back soon. 

Back-to-back 20 milers

In preparation for our 50 mile run, we decided to run back-to-back runs. Yesterday morning we went 20 miles and today we did another course but also ran 20 miles. Yesterday's course was one we've run several times now. It has some really good hill climbs on it, basically the first 8 miles are off and on hills with more on than off. The second half of Red Hills Parkway was so dark! It was so surreal, almost dreamlike. An animal could have attacked us and no one would have known. I guess I should add that we left about 3:30 am so most of our run was in the dark. We did that so I could get my kids to school. That run was great. We moved along great, walking only to fuel and on the last hill for a short recovery.

Starting today was a little rough. Right from the start we could feel yesterday's run. We decided that we would run the hills as far as we could and then walk it to the top. There were 4 big hills on the run today and 3 little ones. We could feel them! Strangly, the longer we ran the less the hills bothered us. We could still feel them and they still hurt but the longest and hardest hill we ran to the top. We worried afterward that maybe we might have burned ourselves out (that hill came at mile 12) but we actually handled it well. I could feel the run today in my hips more than normal but overall, it was a good run. I am famished and can't seem to stay full long but that's okay.

Next week we haven't decided if we are running 25/20 or 25/25. My brother has to work when we were supposed to run so we haven't quite figured out what we'll do. I am tired of sports nutrition and I'm trying to find something else to eat. I want to take a burrito but I'm not convinced it would stay good while we're out running. A peanut butter sandwich would be great too but it would be awfully bulky. Someday I'm going to invent a new product. Someday.

Thanks for checking in with me and come back soon. :)

Crazy high mileage

I knew I had been running a lot of mileage but I hadn't totalled it up. Then when I was out running on Saturday, I figured out just how how my mileage was. After my run today, I have run 140 miles in 2 weeks. What I have found to be the most amazing is my body's ability to adapt to the demand I am putting on it. I blogged earlier about how my brother and I decided on a training run for
Red Mountain that we were going to run 50 miles in May. So 2 weeks ago I ran a marathon (Boston), five days later (not yet fully recovered) I ran the Red Mountain 50K. Then five days later I decided to run the St. George Ironman 70.3 run course. Two days later I ran 18.5 with my husband and brother (to train for the 50 miler) and today we put in nearly 17. I didn't mention the mileage I put in doing hill repeats or interval training but I did count them. When we did the 50K, I felt good but the hills were hard. By the time I ran the Ironman course, my body had adapted and I ran it well. By the way, I love the run course for the Ironman. It's killer but I love a challenge! The 18.5 we did on Saturday went well but near the end of the run today, we could feel the mileage and the heat. We went after our kids went to school so we didn't get started until after 9:00 and we had a daytime high of like 93 today so it was a warm run. We figured it would be good training because some of our 50 miler is going to be in full sun.

We decided that our training for the 50 miler would be back to back runs. Our plan was to run a 20 followed a 15. We got off late on Saturday and had a full day so we had to cut our run short and added onto the second run. Our next set will be two back to back 20s. Our last one will be 25/20 or 25/25, depending on how we feel. We're both solid runners and well able to run. With our heads so we should be able to knock this 50 miler out! It's probably crazy but I'm excited. I love a challenge and pushing my limits. It's only in pushing the boundaries and limits that I find out just how strong I really am.

Thanks for checking in and come back soon.

How did I miss making this announcement?!

Back in February I tested through AAFA to be a group fitness instructor. I only had about 2 1/2 weeks to read through all the material and to prepare so I was initially really nervous. I even considered not going to the test because I just wasn't sure if I could do it. By the time the workshop started, I found my confidence. I knew this stuff and I knew I could do it. But the time the testing rolled around, I was so ready for it. I left the workshop knowing that I had passed the test and I was ready to move forward. AFAA says it takes 4-6 weeks to receive test results. It took 7 1/2 weeks for me to get mine back. By then I had lost some motivation but was thrilled that I am now legal to teach group fitness classes. I really want to teach indoor cycling and maybe yoga. I wouldn't mind a bootcamp class either.

I'm not really sure what I want to do. My passion is running. I know I can get anyone to a finish line. I would love to be a running coach. I think I'm going to try my hand at being a pacer for marathons and half marathons. Helping people accomplish their goals is somehting that would make me really happy.

Anyway, thanks for checking back in with me. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have. I will try to answer to the best of my ability. Have a great one and come back soon.

I'm getting better and Red Mountain 50K

I had a really bad day. Crazy as it seems, after the really bad day, I started to do better. Everything seemed so surreal until about Wednesday morning. At that point everything became too real. I dealt with my emtions and allowed myself to feel all of them. By Thursday I was feeling better. I still have moments when thngs are not okay but the good out-weighs the bad.

Friday morning my husband and I went to my brother's house to get to watch the marathon. He had recorded it on his DV-R. That was one thing that frustrated me. I missed all the highlights from the day because of the attacks. We swtiched back and forth between the marathon and the developments going on in Boston. We had our race the next day so I spent the time making ribbons for the runners of the race to wear as a tribute to Boston, the runners, and the victims.

Saturday began cool though not as cold as I was afraid it would be. We started the race and only about 2 or 3 miles in it became apparent that we weren't as recovered as I hoped. The flats and downhills were fine but the hills hurt. The first 13 miles of the 50K are over a mountain. I was so glad to be done with the mountain. "We" was my husband, my brother, and me. My husband and I just didn't have the power that we usually have and my brother was sick. What a group we made. We walked the hills and several other times but we made it. What's crazy is that I was feeling better at miles 25-30 than I was at 6-13. We finished the 50K in about 5:45ish. It was a slower finish than I hoped for but with Boston being only five days before, I'll take it.

I'm looking forward to 2013 being a great running year. Thanks for checking in and keep running because it's still important.

So I'm not okay

This was not my intention when I started this blog. It was never meant to be a place to vent but since this applies to so many people, I feel that it's appropriate. I'm not okay. People keep asking me that. Initially, I told them that I was, but I'm not. I feel like processing the events of the Boston Marathon is like peeling an onion. I deal with one thing only to find another layer. This morning I went to the gym and turned the TV on while I was on the treadmill. The morning news was showing footage of the finishline. I nearly lost it right there. I pride myself on being a strong person and dealing with the things life throws at me but I am not handling this. I feel violated. Running is my sanctity, my outlet, what makes me a better person and someone I don't know for whatever reason tainted it. I deal with my problems, write papers, receive inspiration while I run and now my safety net has a hole. Every time I toe the line for a race for the rest of my life, Boston 2013 will be in the back of my mind. Why a marathon? Why runners and their supporters? Monday was supposed to be a celebration, the culmination of months of hard work, sacrifice, dedication, discpline. This was a senseless, shameful, cowardly event. I cannot make sense of it and I am struggling. I have found myself in tears off and on all day.

A thanks to the many, many people who have reached out to me and my family. Your thoughts have meant a lot. Please continue to pray for those that have been affected by the tragedy in Boston.

Thanks for checking back with me and come back soon. Hopefully, I'll have a better handle on things next time.

Boston Marathon 2013

I should start my Boston Marathon experience with getting to
Boston. We picked up our rental car and then headed to the Prudential Center where the expo was. We grabbed some luch and then shopped until the expo opened. CRAZY amounts of people all there to get their numbers for the marathon. Boston is so well organized and the volunteers were great. We wondered through the expo and saw Team Hoyt. What an inspiration! We were feeling beat so we decided to check into our hotel since we had red-eyed it in and we were exhausted. We grabbed some dinner and went to bed early. In the morning we did some sight seeing and then went back to the expo. My sister used to live in the Boston area and she told us we needed to get a cannoli from Mike's Bakery so we walked to the north end for a cannoli. After dinner, we went back to our hotel for the night. On Sunday we went to worship services and then to the 300th anniversary celebration of Lexington. After the celebration we went back to our hotel to put things together for the morning. Race day! It started at 6:00, I know, not too early. We had to board the buses at Boston Common between 7:00 and 7:30. It was a cold morng but the sun was shining. We had had cloud cover, rain, and wind since flying into Boston so we were thrilled for the sun. That was the longest bus trip to a starting line I have ever experienced. The starting line was crazy. So many people. We were in the last wave, in the final corral. Our start time was 10:40. We weaved in and out of people for the first 6 miles, fnally pacing about the same as the runners around us. I don't really remember the first 10 miles very well. By mile 15 I was feeling great and ready to let my endurance legs fly. My husband was starting to struggle, though. Several times we had to slow to a walk. I will admit that I did consider running ahead of him and then coming back to finish with him. I decided at wouldn't be fun for either of us so we would stay together. Just after crossing the 40K check point, just passed the 25 mile mark, we ran into a wall of people. The corral gates had been shut. Someone said something about there being an explosion at the finishline. We had 3/4 of a mile to the finish! It became apparent very quickly that we weren't going to get to finish this race. Cell service was spotty, clogged with so many people trying to use the system. I was thinking about our kids watching the race on TV and knowing we were so close. We kept trying and were finally able to reach our daughter to let her know we were okay and to tell her to call her grandmas to let them know we were okay. My husband had better service than most and was able to send many text mesages to famlies at the finishline that people were okay. After about an hour, a volunteer came to tell us they needed us to walk several streets to pick up our drop bags. We probably walked a mile and a half and were able to get our drop bags, a warming blanket, and a goody bag they handed the finishers. We asked a police officer if the train was open and he said yes. We walked back to Boston Common only to find that the train was closed at that stop. We ended up walking about another 2ish miles and were finally able to get on the train. We got stopped on the train but finally made it back to our car and then our hotel. We finally got food at about 8:00 that night. We were able to get our flighht out early this morning and made it safely home early this afternoon.

Something I would really like to emphasize is that during the crisis, humanity showed its best side. People came out and brought the runners drinks and garbage bags and sweatshirts. People forgot that they didn't know each other and just thought about the fact that we are all people.

Thanks for checking in with me and check back soon. Remember the victims of this tragic event.