You Knew It Was Coming

Nov1

I think in the back of my mind, I knew it was coming. I knew it was inevitable and I knew there would be no going back. If not, why would I run 20 miles. I did my 20. I was sore from my 20, but I survived my 20 and really within a day felt fine. Once I crossed that barrier, there was no going back. It was just fighting the inevitable and it was a logistics game.

I casually brought up the subject with Dear Hubby. Mentioning that friends were trying to get me to do run a marathon with them, but it was in Philly and I would have to sleep there the night before. I think part of me was hoping that it would be a problem for him, so as to have an excuse not to run one till next year. Just my luck, Dear Hubby was totally supportive and fine with it. Nope. No problem with me going to Philly and running 26.2 miles. Damn, that supportive husband of mine!

Now the only excuse left was that maybe I’m a big ole chicken who still doesn’t think that she has what it takes to cross the finish line and become part of the 1% of the population who has completed a marathon. I guess the only way to find out is to actually attempt it.

So I did it!

I signed up!!!

Not sure who was more excited, me or my cohort in crime. She called me and left me a very excited message about it. She is the excited one. I am the nervous one. But what’s done is done. I’ve signed up and if you no nothing about me, know that I am one determined SOB. Now that I’ve signed the dotted line, there is no going back. If I have to crawl accross the finish line, I just might. Eye on the prize. Eye on the prize. (which reminds me, Is there bling for this race? I will have to check into that!)

One of my many motto’s is

GO BIG

GO BOLD

GO HOME

Luckily, I’ve trained my @ss off for the Hat Trick. I did my 20 with a fair amount of hills. I’m in taper now! So it’s all easy training till the starting line.

Sent to me from my very exited friend whom I could not do any of this without

That’s what I’m going to try and do now.

Game on!

Halloween Friday Five

Oct31

Another Friday Five!

Since it’s Halloween, it may be no surprise that today’s theme is anything Halloween.

Reminder of what Friday Five is all about…..

.It is a weekly Friday link up to other like minded blogs —

a “Friday Five.”

Now, I’m going to take a turn today.

It’s Halloween, so why not?

Normally, this blog focus is just on my running and my training,

So today I will scare you with something new.

We are not all about just our training, or at least most of us.

We have other interesting factoids of our life.

Today, I give you my

5 FAVORITE HALLOWEEN TREATS THAT I’VE MADE

So now you see why I must run

and

run far.

Happy Halloween

and

don’t forget to check out the other blogs through

the Friday Five Link Up hosted by DC area bloggers Eat Pray Run DC, Mar on the Run and You Signed up for What?!! Don’t forget to visit each host and a few other blogs 🙂

Testing the Limits

Oct29

So today was a BIG day for me. Today was a test. A test that I passed. Barely. It was hard as hell, but I completed the task at hand (or foot). Today I ran for the VERY first time 20 miles. Did I hit “the wall?: Maybe, but I kept on going. I did it in 3:57:02 burning over 2000 calories which I think I may have consumed since I finished.

So why the test?

You may remember my post Can’t Always Get What You Want

Where I talk about how close I came to possibly being in this years NYC Marathon.

Obviously, I didn’t get in, but it was there in the back of my mind. Could I run a Marathon if I wanted. Could I push myself? I didn’t get the opportunity to find out, so I focused on the Hat Trick training which worked for me. But in my mind, the seed was planted. I may do the NYC Marathon in the future, but I wanted to test my limits now. I have friends that are going to Philly to do the Gore-Tex Marathon in a few weeks. I’ve been toying with it, but haven’t made a decision. I could even do a half. I could call it a day and just wait till next race season. I’ve pushed a lot this year. A lot more than I ever thought that I would. But I was curious if I could push myself for a long training run. I wanted to see if I could do it. Dawn had one today. So I tagged along. Why not? Just a fun day with a friend. But I told her I would do the 20 and she got me there.

Before today the most I’ve ever run in one day is a little more than 13 miles. Training for the Hat Trick, I did have days where I would run 13 after running 5 & 8 in the preceding days. I ran 22 total when I did the Hat Trick. I needed to see if I could do the 20 though.

I never fully understood how heavy the legs would feel on a long run like this. There were decent hills too and as the miles rose it felt like someone was adding weight to my legs. Since I didn’t “need” this run for any other reason than to test myself, I probably (no probable here) would have stopped without my running buddy. I would have hated myself later, but I still would have stopped. She needed it, but she also knew that mentally I needed it. We plodded through this run with a good solid pace even up those big hills. It was worth it, when we hit the 20 though.

What did I learn about pushing it to 20 today?

Don’t do Crossfit with wall balls the day before.
Don’t do a 6 mile hills two days before
I can do it.
I am ready, I just need to decide if now is the time.

So as I ponder these things, I will finish my wine, eat my chocolate, and go to bed as I’m tired!

What limits do you push?

Strike A Pose!

Oct28

I was taught by the Master (yes, I mean you Robyn) on how to strike a pose while running a race. I’m not to her level yet, but I have come a long way from some of my race pictures.

Let’s see if I’ve got this right…

Keep your eye out for the camera people.

When you spot them – Big Smile, Raise your arms in the air and make it look easy.

Still working on that, but I will say that my photos from the Hat Trick came out much better (not all of them), than let’s say my photos from my Sprint Triathlon. Part of that may just be the nature of the beast because it really is hard (at least for me) to look all together while looking like a water rat at the same time. It’s a work in progress. I’m still looking for a way to look good while doing a Tri. (Yes, I may be that shallow. Although, maybe not because I do still share those photos).

Case in point….

Anyway, I would love to show you actual race photos, but I really don’t have many during events except for the time a friends husband came and took pictures. I have a few before selfies and maybe a couple after, but not many during. Why is that when there are trained professionals throughout the course taking photos. Photos that I now have been trained to smile and pose for. Like this one from the Half at Runner’s World Festival.

I LOVE this picture!

I would LOVE to have a copy of this picture, but I don’t.

I also LOVE how the two guys behind me are showing how truly tiring running a race is at the finish line. Therefore making me look that much better.

I hope I don’t get in trouble for sharing. Don’t mind the dots…..

So if I love the way my pictures came out, why have I not ordered them?

Ok. Let’s start with that I am a mother of three boys. Two of them starting their braces and one of them in speech. These minor things usually come before my race photos especially when I’ve already paid for the race which I certainly understand the cost there. What I do not understand is why race photos are $60 to download or $45 to order 4 photos. And for the Hat Trick, its triple the cost. Now I am not beating up on Runner’s World because the cost of Race Photos is across the board!

I further understand that they do need to pay the photographer for their time. They need to pay to sort the pictures or what ever magical program is used to match the photo to me. I get that there are costs. I know that there is nothing free in this world and I’m NOT expecting free, but come on people. Really 60 bucks! I wonder how many people actually buy these photos. I don’t know many. We LOVE to look at them. We wait for them to be sent, but most of us of the people I know don’t buy them.

Here is a thought….

LOWER THE PRICE OF RACE PHOTOS AND YOU WILL SELL MORE!!

Therefore MAKING MORE MONEY!

I admit if the price was between $30 and $40, I probably would be more tempted to purchase them.

I just can’t justify $60

Am I the only one who feels this way?

Do you spend the money on your race photos?

Would you buy them if they were cheaper?

Race organizers, please listen to us and I bet you will make more money that way and also have happier runners!

What Makes a Runner?

Oct27

I will admit some people are literally born to run. They have the long legs and lean shape that makes pushing through the wind an act of beauty and ease. Now just as everyone who was given the God gift of a runners body does not like to run, many of us who are not so lucky also choose to run.

I am one such person who was not born with a runners body nor do I have any hope of developing one. I am not even remotely close to being tall at my 5 foot 2 which may also be a slight exaggeration. I have short legs and I do not have the lean physique of top runners. You would never look at me and think, “Wow, she must be a runner!” I will let you in on a little secret though. I am still a runner.

The Webster definition of a runner is as follows:

run·ner

noun \ˈrə-nər\

: a person who runs as part of a sport, for exercise, or in a race

There is nothing in this defniton that says that says that I can’t be a runner. I meet the criteria. I run both for exercise and in races. So check, I’m a runner. I don’t even need to do the races and I still qualify. I have the desire and heart to be a runner and that’s all it takes. I may never (and there really is no may in this sentence) be more than a middle of the Pack runner and I’m ok with that. I’m still a runner and that is all that matters.

I have even been told that I must look funny running fast (that being a relative term) because of how short I am. Well I have never crossed a finish line where they asked for my height, so that really doesn’t matter to me. And if you have seen some of the things that I’ve worn while running, you know that I really don’t care much about looking silly or others opinions too much. I run for me and I hope that you have the confidence to run for you.

I think often we limit ourselves with thinking we can’t do something because maybe we don’t fit the traditional mold. I hate molds. I hate limits. I like to push limits and prove that I can do things that both myself and others thought that I could never accomplish.. The worst thing that we can do in life is let others expectations and views define us. We need to break the molds and be who we want to be letting no ones keep us from reaching for the stars.

Do you push your limits too?

6 Days

Oct25

Today is 6 days without a run. Is it crazy that I can tell you this? Maybe. I have friends who think I’m crazy with all the running that I do. Now, by no means, am I saying that I’m not crazy; BUT not about my running. The rest we won’t get into that today. These are the friends who don’t understand why I am constantly running around town, getting up at the crack to do events, and just “giving up” so much time. I honestly don’t get it sometimes too.

When I started running it was simple so that I would be able to finish the run in my Sprint Triathlon. I remember bitching about how much I hated running. I remember not being able to complete a mile and I when I did I remember how slow I ran it. Now don’t take offense as I am not dissing anyone’s who runs time. I am just saying that I am faster now than when I started. I am by no means fast as to compared to some of my friends who are Speedy Gonzalez, I look like a turtle. A mile is a mile no matter the pace. I am just trying to say that over the course of my training for various events, something happened.

I have not only developed a love for running (OMG WTH), but I have developed a NEED for running. It has become one of my sanity busters along with cake decorating. Yes, I know opposite spectrum, but the balance each other out don’t you think. As with running, I need to concentrate solely on the task before me and it clears the mind. You can’t always decorate a cake, but it is usually easy to squeeze in a run. Except this week.

I purposely took Monday and Tuesday off to recover from my Hat Trick. No, I wasn’t really that sore. I did have some soreness in my right calf and I didn’t want to push it. I’ve done that before and it’s never good. So I did want to take a few days off, but now I am at six days and it’s too much. I kept thinking that I would be able to squeeze a run in during the week, but that never happened. Dear Hubby went back to work on Wednesday and there has just been too much stuff to do that either didn’t get done last week, needed to be done before today, or just the normal stuff that has to get done in life. But today is day six and I can’t take it.

Today is also going to be a rough day. Today is the day we say goodbye to truly one of the good guys, My Father-in-law. A man who worked his whole life with the simple focus of taking care of his family. He raised 9 children (5 natural, 4 adopted) and that doesn’t even begin to touch the scope of who is was. It will be a day of tears. A day of remembering and a day to say goodbye.

This is why, for me, I do need my run. As you know, running is my time alone. My time to let off stress. My time to just let things tumble through my mind at will as my feet hit the pavement. No running isn’t therapy, but running can really help to release stress, tire you out, and sometimes you have runner’s tears when the wind hits your eyes even if you have sunglasses on. I know though that today though that there once again may not be time to run and I will be ok with that as tomorrow I will get up before my house and go for a long run. Not because I’m in training, but because both my body and soul need it.

How does running help you?

Friday Five: Why Run a Half Marathon

Oct24

Another Friday Five! This time it’s 5 reasons to run a Half Marathon and considering that I just ran one and am also diligently looking for another one to run next month, I thought I would jump right in on the conversation.

Now please remember what Friday Five is all about……It is a weekly Friday link up to other like minded blogs — a “Friday Five.”

So without further ado,

5 REASONS TO RUN A HALF MARATHON

The Challenge and Accomplishement of Crossing the Finish Line: It’s a long enough distance to be challenging, but not so long that your life will become consumed with training still giving you time for a life. I ran my first Half before I even really knew what I was doing not that I really know now.

When you cross the finish line no matter what your time, you feel such a sense of accomplishment. There are always crowds cheering you on and the people are amazing. It’s even better when you cross the finish line with a smile too!

Bling, Bling, Bling –

(Yup, I’m going to use that picture as much as possible:)

Where else can you show up and when your done they will give you a pretty medal to wear, hang up, look at, and impress people with especially yourself. They are a reminder of what you can do when you put your nose to the grindstone or better yet your feet to the pavement!

Location, Location, Location

Since these races cover more ground and have larger crowds, they are usually held in larger locations. Every town can host a 5K (now, I’m not knocking the 5K because I like them too and actually one of my goals in 2015 is to run one in 25 minutes – Did I say that out loud). Most towns though can not host a Half Marathon leaving larger venues to hold them. So most have really good location or at least the ones I’ve been to – Central Park and Rolling Hills of Bethlehem, Pa just to name my two favorites. The Super Hero half also had a good location running through the hills of Chatam/Moristonw.

I’ll let you in on a secret – I’ve only done these three.

For now….

Tutus and Costumes

When you are running a Half, it is still a short enough distance that you can have fun with it and dress to impress without hurting your run time. You can still run a challenging race but manage not to take it so seriously that you can’t have fun.

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

Eating for the Run

While training for a Half, I needed to eat. So I ate. I ate to fuel but also because I could. Part of preparing for any race or run is making sure that your body is properly fueled, so I was just doing what I needed to do:)

According to the Runner’s World Calories Burned Calculator, I burned the following in my last Half:

You burned 1,486 calories.. Check out the table below for your calorie burn rates at this pace too.

Distance:13.1 miles

Duration:02:06:08

Pace:9:38 / mile

Calories Burned:1,486

Calorie Burn Rates:

113.44 / mile
706.9 / hour
11.78/ minute

So when you are burning up calories like that you don’t feel so bad going for that extra snack at night.

Now I will say these are not the only reasons, because I didn’t even get to the goodie bags and expos! So just sign up already and see what it’s all about!

You can join the Friday Five Link Up hosted by DC area bloggers Eat Pray Run DC, Mar on the Run and You Signed up for What?!! Don’t forget to visit each host and a few other blogs 🙂

What to Do? What to Do?

Oct23

Today I’m hitting 100 posts with my blog. That’s good news because not only does it mean that I’ve kept up with my blog, but that I’ve been keeping up with my training.

I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do now that I’ve accomplished the Hat Trick. I had thought about riding into the sunset until next season, but that doesn’t seem to be happening. If I could race this weekend, I probably would. Don’t know why. Don’t know when, but somehow I seem to have gotten hooked. It’s not necessarily about the bling, although I do love me some good bling. It’s about the feeling you get when you cross the finish line.

I’ve said it before I need a goal. My friend told me yesterday while trying to get me to sign up for the Philadelphia Gore-Tex race that she knows that I wouldn’t sign up for the full because I’m a planner. I may sign up for the half, but I’m not sure. Would love to do the full, but I’m not sure. It’s hard not to want to keep going though when you spent your weekend surrounded by amazing people with a love for running.

My friend is right though. I am a planner. I plotted and trained specifically for the Hat Trick. As soon as I register for it, I bought the Runners World Intermediate Hat Trick Training Plan. I needed it as I’ve said before I’m a good follower. Besides the fact that I was in no shape or form to run this event without training. I ran, but I didn’t RUN RUN. I also really wanted to not only finish, but to finish with a smile.

I can not say enough about this plan. I’m guessing if you are Runner’s World, you know how to train for a event of this kind. Thank God that with a few dollars from me that they were willing to share the plan. Money well spent! As you know not only did I Rock the Hat Trick, but I actually walked away feeling good. The only thing that really kept me from running this week is time. I actually could use a really nice long run too.

(Who said that!)

What made this plan so perfect for me other than the fact they told me exactly what to do when is that I learned not just about how to train better but how far that I can push myself. It was an amazing plan and I really can not say enough good things about it. Anyone who wants to try the Hat Trick next year, I really say add one of their Training Plans. Think of it as a registration fee. Think of it as insurance to make sure your ready.

So now I’m off to plot my next adventure because there is no way that I will make it till January without another race.

(Who said that?!)

Find the Joy!

Oct22

So I’m taking a step back from all Runner’s World Hat Trick talk to tell you a cute story that happened today.

In my town, we do not have pick-up for recycling. You are required to take recycling to our town recycling center.

Yes, I know you are scratching your head thinking,

“What? You can’t just put it on the curb?”

No we can’t, but that’s a whole different post! Now even though I have to sort and drive over my recycling, I still do. I am THAT Recycler who even recycles the box her butter comes in, but considering the amount of butter I use in my house I feel like I’m doing the world a favor. I firmly believe in taking care of the earth and that there is no Plan B.

Anyway, that is not the point of this post.

Now, I’ve been dropping off my recycling now for about 15 years. Over time you get to know the people. To be honest most of them are a little on the grouchy side, but there is this one gentleman who is a sweetheart. We chat every time I go and he has such a positive outlook on life and makes the trip a little nicer. In talking to him today, he was telling me how everyone is thinking that he’s sick because he’s lost 25 pounds. He further goes on to tell me that he decided that he needed to start taking better care of himself and setting a better example for his grandkids since he’s older now ( I don’t know exactly how old he is, but I swear he said that he was in his 70’s). He started telling me how he just goes out and runs. He said, ” I run here. I run there. I just go out and do it. I don’t need to be doing marathons or any of that. I just want to be healthy. I used to be able to do it, so I just decided to do it again.”

I will interject to add that he has no idea that I like to run or that I run races (one day, I will get to say marathons). He was just so cute telling me how good he feels just because he started running. He said that he couldn’t stop telling people how great running is and how much better you feel doing it. He brought a real smile to my face simply with the joy he obviously gets simply from his runs.

I can further guarantee that this is not a gentleman who has any type of GPS training watch, fancy shoes, ear-buds, or any such thing many of us, myself included, think that are needed to run. He runs for the joy of it and there really is joy in running if you have the right attitude.

So next time I go out for a run, I am going to go out Naked and Afraid (not that way!!!!). I’m going to leave my GPS off (ok, I will never do that, but I WON’T look at it) and I will leave my music off just to run for the run. I will feel the wind on my face, the air in my lungs, and just experience the joy and beauty that is around me.

Don’t Be THAT Runner!!!

Oct22

Not sure if you know this, but I ran in a big event this past weekend.

(Just kidding because if you don’t know than you haven’t been paying attention!)

Anyway, since I was there by myself I was probably a little more observant to those around me.

I realized something and want to do a PSA announcement

(those who know me know I love my PSA’s)

This is important because I don’t want people to listen to you or see you and think,

“What an @sshole!”

So here are some tips.

Just because you think of yourself as a “serious” runner, don’t think that the rest of us are somehow beneath you. If not for those of us that finish slower than you, you wouldn’t look so good nor would your time.
Don’t take yourself so seriously. What is the point of all the training if you can’t enjoy yourself. Life is too short not to have fun.
Speaking of fun – If someone is wearing a tutu, costume, cape, or any such fun outfit to run it; smile at them. See number 2 for reasons why. Besides which, you don’t know their reasoning for wearing what they are wearing. Maybe it inspires them. Maybe it inspires others. Maybe they just want to have fun. If they can run in it, it’s their call. No one is making you dress up (but you should! Try it and you might see why it’s so fun).
Cheer on your fellow runners even after you finish. Now I’m not saying that you have to stay all day, but take a few minutes while you are stretching, refueling, or what ever your post race ritual is to cheer on those that finish after you. You know you like to hear the cheers when your running.
Don’t look down on other people’s time. See number 1 for why. If someone has the courage to start a race no matter what the distance, they deserve respect. If they cross the finish line even last (and someone always has to be last), they finished no matter what their time.
When waiting in line for the Port a Potty, don’t brag to your friend how at the last race you went to you consistently cut in line and only felt bad the first time. It makes you sound like a person who will rationalize parking in a handicap spot because you’ll only be in the store for a minute. Rules are rules and your not that special that they don’t apply to you.
When spitting while running (come on even us ladies do it even if you won’t admit it), please think/look before you spit.
Speaking of being polite, don’t throw your trash on the ground. I’m not talking about your drink cups at water stations as most of the time they are expected to be dropped (although, you could aim for the garbage to help the volunteers out). I’m talking about your Gu, shot blocks, or what ever. If you don’t want people throwing garbage in front of your house don’t throw yours in front of other peoples. I don’t care if it’s a race or not. You had a place you were holding it in when it was full, so wrap it up and put it back till the end of the race!
Lastly at the start of a Half Marathon don’t tell your friend whom you are waiting to start with that you think “running a FULL marathon is much easier than a Half.” When you say that where other people can hear you, it really makes them want to say something to you that isn’t very pleasant. Don’t ruin what may be their big moment because you are trying to sound so cool. You don’t come across as cool. You come across as a douche. Sorry to tell you that.

Now I’m only telling you these things out of concern. I will say that these runners are in the minority and if you come across one of them just ignore them. Go out there, do what you came to do and have the race out want to have! My PSA to you is don’t let THAT runner spoil your day! Enjoy doing what you want to do and just keep on running:)

Have you come across these people before?

The Accidentally Running Mama

Run, Bike, Swim and Have a Life!