3 Things Thursday

1 - My attempt at making a come back at blogging isn't going so well.

2 - After baffling yet another doctor with my insanely tight, non-flexible calves, I've been told to spend my all my free time in this:

While it looks like a straight jacket for the feet, it's actually called the Strassburg sock. It's to help with PF, Achilles tendonitis and tight calves. I can barely pull my toes back but even that little bit created a pretty significant stretch in my foot. I'm supposed to wear it on both legs but I'm testing it out first on the craptastic right one to see if it makes a difference. At this point, I'm willing to try anything.

3 - I forgot to mention that I received some really cool news right before the Holidays...I'm a 2012 Hammer Nutrition sponsored athlete this year!!!

I started using Hammer products over the summer during Tri training and they saved me from my reoccurring stomach issues during long workouts. I'm so excited to be a part of this program but I have to admit, I'm also slightly intimidated to be grouped with such a collection of incredible athletes. Even though I'm only base building now with my training, I've been incorporating Hammer products to help with refueling and recovery and I've been feeling really good. I'm using these light months of training to also get a base line with nutrition and to make sure I'm refueling properly after each workout...something I've struggled with in the past. Anyway, I'm grateful to be a part of this program and will definitely share what's been working for me since I know I'm not alone with the stomach issues.

I'm back...January Recap

Oh, right, I have a blog. Kind of sort of forgot about it for a while and then realized I didn't really miss it. But after an email from Aron, I realized while I didn't really miss writing about running (and now swimming and biking) per say, I did miss the people that I've met through blogging.  Sure it seems like more of a hassle lately, but I'd like to take another stab at it so I can stay in the loop with what's going on with everyone. I'd also like to think that taking on the biggest challenge of my life might give me something to write about. So I guess I'll start off with what I've been up to the past month...

The first few weeks were rough after putting Newman down, but I'm very thankful that hard time came when it did. If that happened when I was knee deep into Ironman training, you probably would have had to lock me up. I still shed a few tears most days, but for the most part, we're back to our daily routine. The biggest difference; you'd be amazed at how much better you sleep without a cat on your head. But I'm not complaining, I'd rather have him here then get a good nights sleep.

My workouts this month consisted of easy swimming, biking and running. I'm working on my stroke and trying to correct any inefficiencies.  Some days I feel great in the water and feel like everything is coming together. Then there are days like today where I just feel like a slug and my back half wants to sink. Bottom line is that I feel way more comfortable in the water than I did last year and I'm not dreading my swim workouts at all. Cycling has consisted of base building on my trainer and making sure my fit is perfect now that I'm aero position. With the change in position, the hoo-ha took a beating. I suffered long enough to make sure it wasn't an issue where I just needed to toughen up the area and then I cried uncle. I swamped my saddle out last weekend for a new one and based on my ride last night, the jury is still out as to whether or not it's the right one for me. Running has been on the light side, 2-3 times a week. That's really hard for me but I'm following coach's orders. Especially since I've had some all too familiar heel pain recently....

As for the heel pain, on my coach's recommendation, I went to see a sports doc to expand my "team" for this upcoming year. I finally feel like I found someone who is going to help me through this rather than say, "get an MRI and go back into the boot." I had my first appointment last Saturday and oh...my...gosh. Hurt like a mother! Basically my right side, from the hip down, is sort of messed up...which I pretty much knew. But I feel hopeful that we'll get me squared away.

So while things haven't been too exciting, I've been keeping myself plenty busy. With work, my workouts, personal training, appointments, trying to have somewhat of a life, etc I don't have much free time. I'm definitely going to have to knock a few things off my list as training gets more intense, but I'm ok with that. I'm actually looking forward to training picking up; I miss my crazy workouts!! But when late summer rolls around and I'm beaten down and broken, I'm sure I'll be eating my words.

10 months to go...

Rough Start

We had a rough start to the New Year. I had been counting down the weeks, eager to start the journey to Ironman Florida, but instead I found myself having to make the hardest decision of my life. After 12 years of having a little black kitty attached to my hip, I made the painful decision to put Newman down. Things had slowly been getting worse over the past few years and while I kept trying not to see it, it was clear on Friday morning that he deserved a life without anymore suffering. I spent most of Friday with him giving him tons of hugs and kisses, but I would still give anything to have just a few more hours with him. Not having him around has been really rough on both Andy and myself, but we keep trying to remind each other that he lived like a king and he's in a better place. It's crazy what kind of impact a pet can have on your life and how happy they can make you. There will never be another kitty like him. RIP Newmie, we miss you so much.

Needless to say, last week's workouts weren't the best. I got them in but it wasn't how I wanted to start the year. I was tired, emotionally drained and completely preoccupied. But I'm starting to pick up the pieces little by little this week and catch up on 12 years of lost sleep. My swollen eyes have even started to go down and I was able to wear goggles and go for a swim today. And while I have this overwhelming sadness weighing me down, I feel ready to get back to my routine. I'm ready to start the journey to Ironman Florida...even though it won't be the same without Newman to keep me company during my weekend recovery naps.

Reggae Marathon Race Report

I feel like the Reggae marathon was ages ago!! Coming home to so much craziness I don't even feel like I was ever away; the only thing reminding me are my tan lines and a scar from a jellyfish sting. As usual, we had an incredible time in Jamaica and I'd do anything to be back there right now. As for my race report…it’s completely discombulated due to lack of time and too much stress. And of course, it's long.

Packet pick up - so hot and tired I couldn't even stick around to take pictures.

Trying to keep my eyes open long enough to enjoy a Lychee martini; perfect pre race carbs.

Getting up two days in a row at 3am before a race and getting very little sleep was rough. I was so tired on Friday night that I had trouble sleeping and all I wanted was to get the marathon over with so I could have some fun. We were exhausted when we woke up Saturday morning but after a quick change and grabbing some food for Andy, we headed out into the dark to pick up the shuttle at the entrance to the resort. There were free shuttles that were running along the course picking up runners and taking them to the start of the race at Long Bay Beach. We boarded the first shuttle that came by and were at the park in a few short minutes. There wasn't much going on at the start of the race but I made sure I found a "hydration pack" and tested it out. This is how the water and Hi Lite were supplied on the course, in these little bags that looked like implants.

These were made in Jamaica, very cool way of supplying water. Wish we did this in the states.

After milling around for a little bit I decided I better hit the bathroom. A little disappointing that all I saw were 4 port o' pots (for 1300 people) located in a very dark spot. My first thought was that I should have brought my headlamp but that changed as soon as I got in that thing. I'm not kidding when I say there was maybe 2 inches of room left in the hole and pee all over the floor; I probably would have died if I had light in there. So after that gross experience, when I felt like I had to go again, I decided to wait and use one of the bathrooms out along the course. I should have known better.

The time came to line up pretty quickly so I kissed Andy goodbye and wiggled my way through the crowd. There were a lot of large groups of half marathon and 10k walkers that I did not want to be stuck behind so I positioned myself aggressively near the front of the pack. The race started right at 5:15am. It was a little weird running in the dark, trying to navigate around other runners and watch for holes, etc in the road but once the pack thinned out, it was fine. The hotels along the road provided some light and it was really peaceful way to start a race.

The course was an out and back it two directions from the start and the marathoners ran it twice. Immediately I fell right into an 8:30 pace and felt great. It was warm and humid but since the sun wasn't up, it wasn't that bad. The first 3 miles were pretty quiet down through Negril and the round about since it was so early, but the miles flew by. There wasn't much chatting going on between runners, which was fine because I wanted to save my energy for when the sun came up. When I looped back past the start and saw Andy around 6 miles in, I was comfortable and felt great. So far the day was going better than I had hoped for.

The sun started to rise over the next 6 miles but the temperature was still ok. This stretch of the race was a little challenging mostly because it was boring. The reggae music that was advertised wasn't what I had envisioned and the few cars along the course with huge speakers on the roof left a little to be desired. At times I thought about stopping at the half. Nothing was wrong with me and I felt pretty good but once again my head started to get the best of me. On top of that, I had to use the bathroom but there were very few port o' pots out along the course. I passed one but thought I could make it a little further and that the next one couldn’t be *that* far away. Again, I should have known better.

Of course at the half way mark I continued on. I slowed down to get some Vaseline from Andy because I was chafing and set back out feeling a little tired. The sun was up at this point and even though I was feeling lonely (with only 127 marathoners, there were not many runners on the back half of the course); I was holding that 8:30 pace steady. With each mile my stomach upset got worse and I knew I needed to find a bathroom. Then as we approached the Negril round about, I could see my competition going the other direction and realized I was the 3rd female. I couldn't believe it!! I actually thought I was wrong until people started yelling, "good job 3rd female." HOLY CRAP! Never in my life did I think I would hear those words and I'm pretty certain I'll never hear them again. Go figure I had no choice but to stop to use the bathroom just before mile 18. The bright people who set this one up put it on a down slope with the door facing down. The door wouldn't close so I had to take care of everything with one hand, using the other one to hold the door shut. The pit stop took longer than expected and when I came out, I saw the woman who was behind me up ahead. Boo.

It was at this point that the heat started getting to me. When I saw Andy around mile 18 I told him I didn't really even feel like finishing. For everyone who thinks he encouraged me to keep going, you're wrong. His response, "they are handing out Red Stripes over there!" I shot him a look and said, "I didn't come all the way here to DNF" and off I went.

The last 6 miles sucked. It wasn't that the temperature was that hot but the sun was scorching and there was ZERO relief. No shade AT ALL. And the misting tents that were advertised as being along the course, there was one…towards the end of the course, waaay too late. By the time I hit it with only a few miles left, I had stopped sweating and had the chills miles ago. I made the best of those last 6 miles and I worked with other struggling runners to stay positive and have fun. I was pretty worried about one guy who was hyperventilating and nauseous so I stayed with him shuffling and walking for a few miles. I knew I was losing time and placement, but at the time, I just wanted to do what I could to help this guy.

When I hit mile 25, named "Bob's Mile", I left him and picked up my pace. A course marshal on a bike rode up to me chatting till almost the very end when he congratulated me and thanked me for visiting his country. That was really cool and he kept me going that last little bit. Seeing Andy up ahead at the finish chute was the best feeling I had in about an hour and I just started beaming. I was so happy to be done and officially start vacation! I crossed the finish line a lot later than I had expected but I was smiling, which was not what Andy expected. Knowing I was out there longer than I hoped, he thought for sure I'd cross upset and crying. Not the case at all. I just ran a marathon in my favorite place in the world and I had 8 days of relaxation and fun ahead of me; I could not be happier.

I was so stanky, sweaty and disgusting after the race that I grabbed a Red Stripe for Andy, a coconut for me, and we got the hell out of there! Luckily we nabbed a shuttle right away (some people waited over an hour) and were back at the hotel in no time. I showered, washed out my clothes in the bathtub and was on the beach by 10am. Aside from feeling a little tired, I felt better than after any marathon I've run. I had some foot pain the days after that kept me from working out but my legs felt absolutely fine. I guess floating in the ocean and sitting in a hot tub with champagne is the best marathon recovery you can do.

4:01:35

2nd in AG (30-39)

6/48 Female

28/127 Overall

It was a great run and it was fun. But I learned my lesson; you can’t train in the colder months and then acclimate in 12 hours to that heat. When I finished I thought I wouldn’t run Reggae again…you know, been there, done that. But looking back, it was a great way to start vacation and I met so many great people during my stay because of the race. While we all know I’ll be back to Jamaica soon, I think I’d even do the marathon again. But I’d use it as a training run, not as my goal fall marathon.  That's the only thing that's killing me right now. I feel like I trained so hard and missed my shot at my goal. I guess that 3:30 is going to have to wait. I have a bigger goal staring me down for 2012.

Really like the timing company they used for the race. Showed a lot of neat details. You can see below how I feel apart miserably.

Second attempt at the Lychee martini the night of the race; much better!

Marathon #10 Done!! (Pics)

I've been home for almost a week and I haven't had a chance to catch up at all! I worked my ass off to wrap everything up at work so I could come back to peace and quiet before the Holidays and obviously I shouldn't have wasted my time. And after two weeks of no tv, facebook, twitter, etc I feel so disconnected from everything (however, I really didn't miss social media while I was gone).  If I'm missing anything exciting, let me know! But anyway, Reggae marathon, #10, is in the books and the trip was fabulous! I've been writing my race report in bits and pieces and will hopefully post it soon. Until then, here are some pics from the race.

Poor Planning?

I'm around; just insanely busy with work, getting ready for the trip, holiday shopping (or should I say, telling Andy what everyone wants so he can take care of the shopping), etc. It's been a crazy few months and this trip could not be coming at a better time. Well, actually, it could if I take into account the fact that I'm running a marathon in 3 short days.

I'm not sure planning a marathon the week after Thanksgiving was the best idea. With 5 days off work, multiple get togethers and a lot of workouts to off set said get togethers, I haven't done much of a taper. On top of that, knowing I'm going to spend a week of sipping champagne on the beach and helping myself to soft serve ice cream whenever I want has not necessarily made me have the urge to carb load...at all. So once again I've done everything I should not have done leading up to a race. But I did declare today a full day of rest, which is my first true rest day since well before taper officially began. One day is better than none, right?? Thankfully, the decision was already made for this to be a fun run so I have zero pressure on myself. I'm just looking forward to taking it all in and wearing a smile on my face while I do it.

Weather for race day is looking...um...warm. But I love my heat so hopefully I can adjust quickly. It's been unseasonably warm in Philly so at least I'm not going from temperatures in the 20s to hot and humid. Right now the low on Friday night is 76 and Saturday will be sunny and in the mid 80s. The race starts at 5am so I'm hoping I can get a lot done before the sun comes up and gets hot. It would be nice to have a Red Stripe in my hands before 9am. But we'll see...

I'm beyond excited and really just can't wait to get there. I'm pretty much packed up and ready; just hoping my Ensure makes it through security and that I get some sleep. Two days in a row of 3am wake up calls before the race are going to suck, but it'll be worth it. Bring on marathon # 10!!

Philly Half Marathon Race Report

Wow, work is beyond busy and I barely have time to hit the bathroom let alone read/write any posts! One more crazy day to get through and then hopefully I have some time this weekend to decompress. All that stands between me and Jamaica is four crazy days at work, I think I can manage...and it will make sipping champagne on the beach all that more enjoyable.

This past Sunday was the Philly marathon. I've run the marathon the past 3 years but with Reggae only 2 weeks after, I decided to play it safe and run the half this year. The weekend started off great with a nice dinner Friday night with Abby and Amanda. While Abby lives in the area and we've met up before for runs/coffee, Amanda and I have never met. It was so nice to finally meet her as we've been chatting and following each other for years. After dinner, we ended up stopping by a friend's house and I probably did everything I shouldn't have done two nights before a race (damn vino). But since I wasn't planning on racing, I threw caution to the wind and just had a fun weekend.

After spending hours on my feet shopping at the outlets on Saturday and not drinking a sip of water all day, I went to bed super early hoping a good night sleep would rejuvenate me a little. I have to say, I really like waking up for a race with zero expectations and no pressure. I figured the wine I had on Friday, the busy day on Saturday and the pre race salad I had for dinner left no hopes of me doing anything spectacular on Sunday, so I just lined up for a fun little run through the streets of Philly.

Right from the start I told myself to not look at my watch and just run by feel. I'm thinking I should have left the Garmin at home because I can't resist checking my pace. And every time I did check, if I saw a 7:30 or below, I'd slow myself down thinking I couldn't hold that for the entire race. Truth is, I don't think I should have slowed myself down, I felt great and think I could have even run a little harder. The entire race I just did my thing and took in the excitement. I was feeling so good until we hit the hills through Drexel and the park. I have done ZERO hill training since Reggae is flat and that sort of came back to bite me in the ass. I wanted so badly to stop and walk one of the hills but since I was only doing the half, I powered up them the best I could knowing the pain would be short lived and I'd be done racing altogether in a few more miles.

All along, I really had no idea where I was going to finish. I obviously need to learn how to calculate finish times while I'm running. It wasn't until I had less than 2 miles to go that I realized a PR was going to happen and that I had a shot of breaking 1:40. Once I realized it though I pushed as hard as I could. The last mile I gave it everything I had and pushed so hard that I wasn't sure if I was going to pee myself or puke. But honestly, I didn't care if either happened! I wanted as close to 1:40 as I could get! As I approached the finish, another girl and I "chicked" some guys which the announcers happily shouted over the loud speakers. I'm sure those guys loved that, but it was all in good fun.

I crossed the finish in 1:40:28 and felt great! In fact, I mentioned to a friend that I didn't even feel like I had run yet. Now, after walking another 5.5 miles and running my friend 3 miles in for her first marathon finish, my legs weren't so happy and I was definitely feeling the effects of the day. But it was such a fun day the little aches and pains were worth it.

I'm really happy with my finish time since I went out there with no real goals. I PR'd and had an incredible day so there's not much more I could ask for. The pace felt so comfortable that I'm wondering if I'm actually where I need to be for that 3:30. But, I'm going to stick with my decision of not racing Reggae. Instead I'm going to line up just like I did this past Sunday and see what the day brings.