Accumulation

Everything seems to be piling up lately - work assignments, credit hours and miles, oh the miles. I tackled 19 yesterday and nearly fell off the hotel treadmill. I experienced my first mid-run cramp - well, late-run, cramp, at mile 17.5. I powered through, but had to walk a bit to get past it and get the full distance under my belt. This was my first really long run on a hotel treadmill and it was not entirely unpleasant. It was a bit distracting having other runners and bikers cycle in and out of the exercise room, but thankfully none of them tried to get the remote or even ask to change the channel. I am guessing the site of someone so geared up (knee band, compression tights, gps watch, gels, etc.) and profusely sweaty was enough to scare them into keeping quiet about keeping up with the Kardashians.

As to those other things accumulating - credit hours - as in just 2 Spring semester courses away from my dissertation. If I had a nickle for every time someone has likened grad school to a marathon, I'd be dead (yes, a Heathers reference). But cliches are cliches because they are usually true and it does indeed feel like I am getting close to that 22 mile run and tapering toward the main event. Ah, if only it went as quickly as actual marathon training.

So, I am now 5 weeks out from the City of Oaks 26.2, and only one more super long run (22 miles) before tapering is underway. And now that it's finally Fall, my shorter runs outdoors are getting a lot more enjoyable. I have even sprinkled several 5 and 10ks throughout the season to get back into racing mode. Which reminds me that I shocked the hell out of myself by PRing a 5K last weekend by a full 40 seconds! ...and it wasn't even all that flat! Much of the race was on the American Tobacco Trail, which I have been aware of for years, but had never actually traversed. The parts through Durham are paved and pretty serene, and starting at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, seem like the perfect venue for a Saturday morning trot with my better half.

Hmmm, come to think of it, tomorrow is Saturday! ...and the forecast calls for a cool, crisp, Fall morning. :-)

Made in the Shade

Jeeezus, it's hot! It's head-pounding, rash-inducing, baby-powder-in-the-shorts-necessitating HOT. ..and that's by 9 am.

Though I love summers in the south (yes, I'm all in for magnolias, iced tea, cicadas and all the other southern pride bs), I am not above complaining about the heat and humidity. And, I must be a glutton for punishment, because I picked this particular season to begin tackling long runs outdoors. As part of my November marathon training regimen, long runs (currently approaching the 10 mile mark) fall primarily on the weekend, when it's fairly safe to traverse the 45 mph road in front of my house. Not having to drive somewhere to run is a huge plus, and if I get out by 7:30ish, it's so nice and cool and quiet, the road practically pulls me to it.

The first 30 minutes or so are blissful, but not long after that I find myself acutely aware of sun and shade. If my fancy schmancy GPS watch had a function that mapped shade, I am certain it would show that I actually run faster in the sun in order to get to the shade, where I slow down and enjoy the respite of a minimal temperature drop. Shade becomes the reward. I often change my route after looking down an unfamiliar street and deciding it is more shady than my original plan, and I am also prone to break traffic rules to run on the wrong but shaded side of the street (for shame!). I know it's mostly in my head, but it makes a huge difference when my legs feel like concrete and my head is pounding. And, thankfully, my town is pretty sleepy and the streets are all on a grid, so none of my disobedience is all that dangerous.

Now, I do not mean to suggest that my new balmy weather running habits are unusual or even admirable - there are plenty of other runners out and about this time of year in our area. However, when you scan the crowded race calendar, the near complete absence of local, organized races listed for July and August points to the fact that we all may be a little nuts.

Last year, I did my marathon in May and then basically sat out the next 3 months; so, serious summer running is a new concept for me. I also only did maybe one run a week outdoors during the entire 6 month training leading up to that race. The past few weeks, I have switched to doing maybe half of my runs outdoors, that half including my longer ones on the weekends. I find that it not only breaks up the monotony of treadmill-training, but since I have to run a pretty large part of my town to get my mileage, it gives me a far better sense of my community.

Nonetheless, I'm definitely a wimp, so I don't see myself becoming one of those people that sees their treadmill as only a last resort for extremely foreboding outdoor conditions. You know, the folks who would almost rather crack their skull on an icy trail - or buy ridiculous winter weather gear - just to get that fabulous fresh air. Nope. Not me. I still crave being able to run in front of a tv, or at the very least in a temperature and humidity controlled environment, a few times a week. Indeed, my love affair with the treadmill continues, and this current tumultuous summer fling with the outdoors is absolutely no threat to that long-term relationship.

..at least until Fall. Fall is a different story.

Give and Take

Give:
$$$ for Komen

• Hubby and I both met our team goals
• after much email hounding of friends and co-workers
• and contributing to ourselves online
• getting thank you emails from yourself is underrated
• we were not the deadbeats on my mom's team - phew!
  

Time out of an extremely busy week/weekend to enjoy time with the family

• ran early 5K and walked later 5K with ma (and pa taking pics from the sidelines)
• post-race leisurely brunch with ma and pa
• drove 5 hours with tight muscles the next day for 1 hour lunch with birthday niece

$$ to Nike for my new gps watch

• yes, finally broke down and purchased
• cheaper and sexier than a Garmin
• already had foot-pod ready Nikes - who knew!
  
• tracked my zigzags through the Komen crowd (actually 3.3 miles total!)
  
• works on the treadmill
  
• wait, I need to say it again - WORKS ON THE TREADMILL!
  
• soooo glad I waited!!

Take:
Race for the Cure

• great opportunity to try out the new gadget (and fall deeper in love)
• lesson learned - crowded race full of non-runners not a good opportunity for a PR
• gave me a great reason to skip out on half a day of my Saturday class (score!)
• 10K run/walk = more calories for big brunch (I ate my mom's grits in addition to my own huge order) and half a pitcher of margaritas at dinner

Family

• enjoyed hilariously inappropriate conversations with mom during the race (anytime you can work "tea bagging" into a conversation with a parent is good times)
• post-race brunch? yes, please!
• maybe scored some brownie points with my sis-in-law for making the trek, belated gift in tow, and happily sitting next to my newly 5 year old niece (which, if you have a newly 5 year old in your life, you know that this involves putting a lemon wedge in her Sprite, cutting her lunch into bite-sized pieces, tying her hair back - but in a side ponytail, please - and putting a perfectly negligible amount of sriracha on her noodles when she begs for some and absolutely swears she loves it)
• guilt-tripped hubby into an Ikea stop on the way back (to get our full gas money's worth out of that 5 hour drive, of course)
  

Nike+ GPS Watch

• really motivates me to get outside and run
• even though it does appear to WORK ON THE TREADMILL (cha ching!)
• uploading data via usb is way better than manually entering runs into my now clunky-seeming online journal
• did I mention it's pretty damn sexy - in a verrrry geeky/hipster way?

So, yeah - a little give, a little take. And the marathon training for November rolls on. I'm back up to 9 miles .....with just under 5 months to go and just over 17 miles to add.

May flowers..... and PRs

My 4th 10K was last Saturday and I totally PR'd it by almost a full minute - boo yah! Just what I needed to rev up for marathon training. No, not NYC - I didn't get in. :-(
But, it's probably for the best, right? Right?

Well, I dealt with the rejection by immediately signing up for the local City of Oaks marathon on the same date, 11/6. And followed that by immediately looking up my previous training plan and revising it for this year. Done and done.

Full on serious training starts Monday - almost a year to the date since I ran the Boone marathon, my first and (so far) only. My plan to try one a year is officially underway.

Meanwhile, husband is starting to talk about tackling his first 10K (insert sly smile here). I think he got pumped up from running the Angels Among Us 5k with me a few weeks back, during which he continued his PR streak. One step closer to that couple's marathon, wink, wink.

Now, if I can just enter enough sweepstakes to win a replacement for our decrepit treadmill, we'll really be in business!

Footnote - next race with hubby is the Komen Race for the Cure on 6/11. We both joined my mom's team but we suck at fundraising. So, for anyone reading this who would like to help a girl out, here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/3uhwdu9

April Showers

Well, it was actually just drizzle, but the Tar Heel 4+ Miler last weekend was chilly and wet. Along with almost 4,000 other runners, the husband and I braved the early Saturday morning gloom, and we both did pretty well.

A couple months ago, after I had signed us both up for the race, he had emailed me about a major detail that I had somehow overlooked - that the last mile of the race was a big, long hill referred to as the Laurel Hill Challenge. This particular hill is such a challenge that they actually give a split time and separate prizes just for that section. This definitely dampened the enthusiasm I had felt at the prospect of running in downtown Chapel Hill, past several of UNC's athletic stadiums.

So, just for this race, I did something I have in the past pretty successfully avoided - hill training. Luckily, there is a nice, quiet, scenic and extremely hilly road fairly close to our house, so we made it our training course. We tackled it together only three times, but in the week leading up to the race, I did it 4 times by myself, 4 days in a row. And I actually kind of started to enjoy it.

Well, it paid off. I ran the 4.7 miles in 44:58 and my hill split time was 8:58. My partner in crime came across the finish just under 50 minutes, with 9:48 for the hill - quite impressive in proportion to the amount of training he was able to do. Passing all the stadiums was indeed inspiring and I think it will end up on the calendar for next year - despite, or maybe now because of, the big scary hill.

brief

Too busy for a lengthy update, so here goes....


Myrtle Beach Half last month was awesome! Definitely must do again. Since then, trying to keep up with about 18-22 miles per week. Intervals have worked their way back into the routine and I finally got back outside for a run the other day, despite the return of winter. Looking forward to the Tarheel 4+ miler with hubby a week from this Saturday - still need to do some hill training for the legendary long climb that comes toward the end of the race.

And I should find out soon if I got in to the NYC marathon this fall. Fingers crossed.....

Too much

Once again, a post title with multiple levels of meaning. Last week was all about going beyond capacity - doughnuts, concerts, wine, friends, school, work. The highlight was definitely the Krispy Kreme Challenge, but all the other stuff amplified the excess.

The week started slow, thank god, but by mid week I was in full overload mode. Wednesday was a regular day at the office, followed by my evening class, followed by sushi, followed by drinks and Robert Plant live at Raleigh Memorial. It all seemed sane in my head when we were planning it out, and fit neatly into the hour blocks of my calendar. It was all self-selected, but as with so many other days that I overfill - waaay too much. And that was just Wednesday.

Thursday was another day of work, an overdue lunch with Mom and then a 5 course charity wine dinner with my brother, his wife and friends. This particular event has become an annual occurrence for us, so I knew to expect too much great food and way too much wine. Let's just say it met those expectations. Too much, too much, too much.

And I paid for it all day Friday - my one relatively loose day in the midst of the cramming. Too bad I wasn't at all able to enjoy how relaxed it should have been. It took a full 24 hours to completely recover, just in time for the race.

So, the local weathermen accurately predicted a cold wet morning for the Krispy Kreme Challenge. My dutiful driver/husband reluctantly stood with me in the rain for a half hour at the starting line, bumping umbrellas with the other 6,000 undeterred participants. He was only slightly stressed with the multitask of holding my brand new camera, figuring out how to use it, and documenting the race without getting it or himself soaked.

The run itself would have been easy if the course had been wide enough to handle the bulging pack. I jostled my way through the first two miles, praying that I would not slip or trip or otherwise end up like the few unlucky runners who landed heels over head in the street and bushes. As one would expect, a lot of non-runners run in this race. And they act, well, as one would expect. I'll be nice and leave it at that.

As to the doughnuts, it was quite a scene. The last 1/4 mile to Krispy Kreme was lined with folding tables weighted down with thousands of square white boxes, the empty lot to the right filled by runners with fistfuls of doughnuts. I grabbed my dozen and found a spot to start inhaling. As planned, I squished 4 together and ate them as one. Though my strategy was not an original idea (as my husband so helpfully pointed out), I did set a trend among those around me who all started out eating doughnuts individually, but ended up following my lead, sugar-sticky hands and all.

The first 8 were slow but no sweat. The little smiling blonde girl standing nearby stared at me just hard enough to keep the last 4 down. I ate the last few bites as I walked around the corner to wave my empty box in victory. I hadn't registered as challenger (I opted in as a 'casual runner') which I now regretted enough to daringly run through the official "chute" anyway.

Surprisingly, the last two miles back to the bell tower were not all that difficult. There was an unfortunately placed dead opossum, but I otherwise had no trouble keeping the dozen down and mercifully missed seeing anyone else losing their load.

I ended the race in 57:10 (the objective was 'under an hour'), in the top 1/3 of the female runners. It had rained the entire time, but I had dressed smart and stayed relatively warm and dry. The husband and new camera somehow picked me out of the crowd in time to get a few good victory shots. The empty box had all but disintegrated on the return trip, but I still had it, folded into a soggy clump.

Even after a large latte, I started feeling groggy on the way home. But I somehow completely dodged the anticipated queasiness. By the time we got home, I knew that I had a choice: crash on the couch, unlikely to move the rest of the day, or keep moving and possibly have enough energy to enjoy the rest of the weekend. I chose to run 6 more miles on the treadmill, followed by a couple hours of homework, followed by another concert and evening out in Durham.

And, of course, the next day was Super Bowl Sunday. The weekend was as wall to wall packed as the few days preceding it. And then it's back to Monday......

This pace is, of course,unsustainable. The problem is, where most people can say that they just need to learn to say no - to invitations, requests, etc. from other people - I have to learn to say no to myself. And we all know that I don't listen well.

p.s. My husband sent me this link today, to one of his blog entries from 3 years ago. Hilarious.
http://alanporter.blogspot.com/2008/12/running-eating-puking-for-good-cause.html