Carlsbad Half and oh yeah I turned 49

The Carlsbad Half Marathon was my best yet.  It was amazing because everything down to the last detail went perfectly.  Pre run: a decent night sleep, a 5am wake up call with a banana and date smoothie and a half a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter, evacuated the bowels (tmi but super important on a race day), carpooled with a good friend and left on time and arrived with a a perfect amount of time to wait, not too much not too little, quick line at the outhouses, weather a bit chilly but not freezing.  So far so good.  The race: It was full, thousands of people but didn't feel too crowded.  It started on time.  I felt good.  The whole entire time.  My newish shoes felt good.  My newly purchased spibelt to hold my phone and gels felt good.  My watch Kelly gave me for Christmas paced me perfectly.  My nutrition ( Vega pre run 8oz drink 20 minutes before and Vega gel at mile 6 and mile 11) didn't cause any nausea and gave me energy.  My support team of Kelly and Aiden cheered me on at mile 4 and 10 which I loved.  I ran harder the second half than the first.  And I finished strong.  I beat my Personal Record by 4 minutes.  Post race: Met up with my friends, sampled drinks and food at the expo, and then had my traditional veggie burger at the Habit (or Burger Lounge).  Nothing really hurt just a bit of soreness.  It was awesome!  

I feel so happy that my training has made me improve.  It is only a 4 minute improvement but I also feel strong and have no injuries.  So....  now for the big one?  I am nervous.  Should I just keep doing half marathons?  I enjoyed it!   I don't think a full will be enjoyable.  In fact it will probably be grueling and the risk of injury is much higher.  But still...  It pulls at me.  I feel the urge, the tug to go for it.  Perhaps I should wait until next year like I had originally planned, when I turn 50.  Two momentous events at once.  Ugghh.  I don't know.  I want to go for it and I don't want to. But,  I think I have to at some point or I will feel a sense of regret.  A missed chance.

One small thing I am super happy about are my new running shoes.  Running shoes are pretty key to running as you can imagine.  And I love my new ones.  They are Mizuno Wave Riders.  I have never had Mizunos before but they felt great.  They gave me support for my feet, knees, hips etc and no blisters despite that this was only my 4th run in these shoes and first long run.  So happy.

I haven't posted since my birthday.  A surprising theme came up during my birthday and guess what it was?  Running!   Kelly gave me a roller device to massage my feet which I have been using all morning today.  He also gave me compression socks for my calves (which I haven't tried yet as I didn't want to do anything new on the run) and most amazingly some sandals called Oofos.  Now these sandals are not exactly beautiful but they are the most comfortable things my feet have ever touched.  They are "therapeutic" for after running but I may never wear anything else.  They felt so good yesterday after the run.  My number one fan brought them for me to wear right after.  

For my birthday last weekend Kelly and I went to the Westin Hotel in San Diego using a voucher we bought at the Rolling Hills Foundation auction last year.  It was so nice to get away with just my hubby.  And on the morning of my birthday I got in a fun run along the harbor in San Diego.  It was almost 5 miles and a beautiful morning along the bay.  It was such a great way to start my last year in the 40's.  

A Bittersweet Holiday Season

 The holidays were bittersweet this year for me and our family.  It was the first season with out my Dad and the anniversary of losing my brother in law Frank.  My dad used to give us one special present when we were young and it was often shoes wrapped in brown packaging paper.  I always thought my Dad did the wrapping but recently found it out it was probably his secretary at work.  I liked that present, though.  It was special because it was from him.  Not that I didn't love everything else (shopping, wrapping, cooking etc) that my Mom did, of course.  It is that way in my immediate family now.  Is it in yours?

Thanksgiving with the Lynd Pugh Family

My brother Steve and his grandchildren 

The bitter was the absence of my Dad and Frank.  The sweetness was spending time with family and friends.  Kelly, Aiden, my Mom and I went to Yosemite for a few days before Thanksgiving and then spent the holiday with my brother Steve and his wife Dayna and her family.  It was different but nice to be a part of another family's traditions.  And Christmas eve brought us to my church, Chalice Unitarian Universalist Congregation.  We have a new minister and I enjoyed her homily that night.  The morning was the same as usual with gifts and breakfast, again we missed my Dad.  And dinner seemed more relaxed than ever before with a nice meal at my Mom's.

After Christmas we went to the desert for four nights with some good friends.  We had a lot of fun hiking, biking, shooting bb guns, launching rockets and more.  One special celebration we did was let off paper lanterns that were like mini hot air balloons.  We lit and sent off one each hour starting at 9pm and all made wishes for the new year.

AND another great thing about vacation was I ran a lot!!  I ran in Yosemite. I ran in the neighborhood. I ran in the rain.  I ran in the desert.  Uphill and downhill and around a lake.  Okay now I am sounding like Dr Seuss.  But really,  my running has been going great.  I am feeling strong and determined.  I haven't had any injuries and have been slowly increasing my mileage.  I have been pretty much faithfully following a plan that includes interval runs, tempo runs, core work outs (though I still need to do that more often), easy runs and long runs.  Friday I will run 10 miles with Alisa in PQ preserves.  Then I will do a few more short ones and on January 19th I have my 5th Half Marathon.  If that goes well then I am signing up for the real deal on May 4th.  I am super excited and scared to tackle this endeavor.

Self talk and Marathon Plans

X-training on the bike

My training has been going great lately. I downloaded a training program I purchased from the No Meat Athlete website. It has me doing tempo runs and intervals along with easy runs and slow long runs.  Mixing it up a bit has helped with the boredom issue. I think it is also helping with strength.  Tomorrow morning I plan to get up before work and go do an interval session at the park down the street.  It only takes 30 minutes which is sweet to be done so quickly. I do 5 minutes of an easy warmup run then do 1 minute as fast as I reasonably can then 2 minutes slow jog and repeat a total of 6 times followed by a 5 minute cool down.  My legs have been a little sore from this workout which is good.

Our friend Rick taking a jump

I'm about 90% sure I am going to sign up for the marathon in the redwoods up by Eureka CA.  I think I am ready to up the mileage and training. My pediatrician friend, Alisa, is going to do some of the long runs with me. She had surgery on her leg for an ileo tibial band injury not too long ago so isn't ready to do the full marathon yet but she is ready to do some training runs. I love running with her. She is fun to talk to and the miles fly by. We ran 8 on Saturday morning at PQ preserve and it felt easy as pie.  My body was a little sore after but mostly I felt great.

Sunday I cross trained on the bike.  Well, really we just did a family bike ride at PQ preserves also.  We rode 3 miles to the waterfall and back.  Kelly got a nice new mountain bike which I hope he uses a lot. His knees hurt so he doesn't like to run but hopefully the bike will work well for him.

My Man

I really love to run. I was thinking about it the other day and wondering why this is so. Why do I love to run mile after mile.  There are a lot of reasons but one that I think is big is the fact that to do it at all you have to believe in yourself .  You can't run 5 miles or even one mile if first you don't believe that you can. And then while you are doing it you have to be nice to yourself and say things like, "you can do this" and " keep on going you've got this".  It's nearly impossible to run and tell yourself negative words. And this may be true in other activities as well but for me it is very apparent in running.  

Christmas traditions are awesome!

Yosemite, motivation and the ever present nagging of injury

A dog ran out from this run down house along the road and scared the heck out of me

Thanksgiving week seems like a long time ago now even though it has only been one week back to work.  The week off was great for running, nice for family time and over too fast.  I ran fairly often on vacation.  Taking a run in a new place is always exciting and I have no problem motivating myself to run in these situations.  It is a day like today, Saturday, no one home, lightly raining and cold outside that I find it hard to get out there.  Plus I am so bored with the runs in my own neighborhood.  While on vacation I ran along a small back road just out side of Yosemite, on a trail in the trees up and down hills and then long distance on a flat highway in Hollister near my brother's house.  They were all new and had a lot of scenery and it felt good.  

The very steep hike to Vernal Falls

Since I got home last Sunday I have only run once.  I ran around Lake Miramar for perhaps the millionth time.  How does one get over the boredom factor?  I have seen articles in Running World and on running blogs about this very subject.  They mention running with friends, which does help, but that takes planning and scheduling.  They also mention new trails or locations.  I should try that some more.  Another thing mentioned is listening to podcasts.  That actually might help a bit.  On our long drive in the motor home up to Yosemite I listened to quite a few podcasts on iTunes.  Mostly about running.  No Meat Athlete and Rich Roll have good ones.  They talk about veganism and running and health and other areas that interest me.  I like them too because the guys who do the podcasts seem like nice people.  

A farm along Highway 25 on my 8 mile run

Running my last half marathon and running on vacation really inspired me to get ready for the full marathon.  My only concern, though, is the recurrent orthopedic issues I have.  I'm worried my body might not be ready for the training.  I just have these nagging issues like mild pain in my right knee.  It isn't bad but it bothers me a little when I run more than usual.  And then the groin pain on my left.  This is what I ran on vacation: Sunday-4mi, Tuesday 4 mi, Thursday 8mi, Saturday 3 mi and then back home on Monday 5 miles.  Tuesday night I had to take Motrin to sleep because deep in my groin back to my hip and butt it ached.  It wasn't severe, more like when you are a kid and you get growing pains.  It wasn't aching muscles, that is a good feeling.  More like a ligament/bone/joint ache.  I felt fine the next day.  I just worry that if I step up my mileage one of these issues will really manifest itself.  But I can't run longer with out running longer!   I have a half marathon scheduled on January 19 at Carlsbad.  I think I will see how that goes and decide from there.  

A double selfie on our hike at Pinnacles National Park

I still need to figure out how to incorporate strength training in to my routine.  I have a 15 minute workout doing 2 sets of different exercises to strengthen the core that I like.  I decided on December First that I would do these exercises every day until my half marathon to try to make it a habit.  I lasted 3 days!  Then I had a really long day at work with an overnight shift and I quit.  So now what?  I guess I will start again and see if it can stick?  Any suggestions?  I am also going to try to vary my runs with intervals and tempo runs which hopefully will help with strength too and also maybe with the aforementioned boredom issue.  Well, I've written long enough and now I have to convince myself to get out there and run today!   I can do it, yes I can.  Uggghh.  We'll see.

Marathon Plans

My New Piano

I've been thinking a lot about the marathon lately.  Even though the half was hard I feel even more inspired to pursue the full marathon.  In fact, I am wanting to start training for it soon and not wait until 2015.  So, I have been looking at the different options.  One that interests me is the Avenue of Giants Marathon in the Redwoods up by Eureka California.  It is absolutely beautiful there.  The only issue is it doesn't have a lot of spectators and not a lot of different sights except for the amazing trees.  There are a lot of reviews of the race online.  Some absolutely love it and others mention the lack of people and some poor organization.  It is in May which I like as this gives me time to prepare but also the chance to get started on the training soon.  Also if I get it done in May I can relax over the summer.  Plus I was thinking of being a little more involved at Church next year (I'd like to be a worship associate-the one who leads service) and this would give me more time.  If I wait to do the race next winter than the fall is shot as far as taking on any more activities.  

We are getting solar power put on our roof!

But... I really like spectators.  Their cheering helps keep me running and I think with 26.2 miles I am really going to need it.  Ok, so there is the San Diego Rock n Roll marathon on June 2nd.  Good spectators, sights, music, support services.  But a lot of the reviews mention a nasty hill at mile 21!  Omg, that doesn't sound good.  Chicago marathon is in October, it is supposed to be great, especially for first timers,  but that is pretty far and expensive.  Marine Corps marathon is also in October in Washington DC.  Pretty cool.  But again, there is the expense and I would still have to wait until October.  And waiting until then would wipe out any significant travel in the summer or fall unless it is to the race itself.  I was sort of considering going to Europe with the family in the fall too.  

Max

Well, the Avenue of the Giants is starting to look better.  Plus there is this amazing sounding eco-vegan-resort in Mendocino that we could go to after.  And if we did that perhaps it would just be Kelly and me which would be nice.  On the other hand I love having the whole family there to support my run. But then the resort would be kind of expensive for a family of 4. (or 3 if Kaylie has school which she might and Aiden would too of course.)  Oh my.  I just can't figure this one out.  I guess I will give it some more time and see what unfolds.  

Lake Hodges Half Marathon Recap

Saturday I ran the She Runs Half Marathon trail race at Lake Hodges.  I got up at 5:00 am and made myself a smoothie of 2 dates, a banana, water , chia seeds and ice.  It is pretty basic and less than what I usually put in a smoothie but I wanted mostly carbs and something easily digested.  I drank it up, half awake at 5 and then went back to bed for an hour.  At 6:30 I got up, took a quick shower (why, when I am going to run, take a shower?, but I think it helps me sweat less therefore chafe less. No hair wash just the body), got on my best (i.e. least likely to chafe) running clothes and did the most important thing to do before a race.  Can you guess?  Well, there is no nice way to say it but emptying the bowels is paramount to a good race.  It is really uncomfortable to have to go the bathroom half way through the race.  So that is why I eat at 5am for a 8am race.  I also drink a lot of fluids the day before and some at 5 am but then stop after that until during the race.

I arrived at 7:20 for the 8:00 am start.  I used the porta potty again (twice actually) and then registered.  I got a cute shirt though it is a bit small for me.  It is always so hard to figure out what size to request.  Sometimes small is perfect and medium is too big and sometimes small is too small and medium would be better.  Ugghh.  It's cute too but we'll see if it will work for runs. Maybe short ones.  I also got a cute water bottle and a pink wrist band that says "proud to run like a girl" which I like and wore all day for a couple days after the race.  Anyway, I put my new stuff and my jacket in the car and lined up at the starting gate.  It was a small race, only 133 people finished.  That was fun to be in such a small race after the last which was at Disneyland and had thousands.  I ran with my pediatrician friend Alisa almost the entire race.  She left me behind at mile 12 to finish strong.  The race was all on dirt and had lots of rocks and tree roots to watch out for.  I almost fell on my face twice.  Overall, though, my body felt good.  There was a big hill mile 10 to 11 and I ran up it without stopping which was a goal of mine.   Alisa stopped for a short part of the hill and this is probably wise because walking is as close to as fast as running like I did but for me it is psychological.  However she quickly caught up and probably had a little more energy to finish by walking a small portion of the hill.  Or maybe she is just in a little better shape.  She has run many more races than I have and been at this for longer.  She even ran a full marathon.  My goal, my elusive, crazy, insane goal.  Back to Lake Hodges.  I felt really good until the last mile.  This was the case with my other runs too.  That last mile is hard.  I was feeling slightly nauseated and the fact that the sun was much stronger now didn't help.  But I kept going, not stopping and crossed the finish line to the cheers of Alisa, Kelly and Aiden.  She finished about 1 minute ahead. My final time was 2 hours and 24 minutes. #70 of 133.  This is about the same time as my first marathon in March of 2012. But this one was on dirt which makes a huge difference.  So, I am feeling pretty good about Carlsbad in January.  I think I may be improving somewhat and might be able to pull off a personal record there.  We'll see.

My only concern though is a new physical issue.  I think I may have pulled my groin muscles somehow.  Both sides hurt but the left worse.  It was happening before the race but is worse now.  Every once in a while I have sharp intense pain in the muscles/ligaments along my inguinal region.  And last night it was throbbing when I was trying to sleep so I had to take Motrin.  It isn't constant but it is super severe when it hits.  It only last a few seconds or so but it hurts so much.  And it worries me.  This is a new one and I haven't read much about it in my running magazines so I am not sure what to do.  I will have to research it and maybe speak with my doctor if it continues.  I don't want it to hamper my future races.

Lastly, 13.1 miles was HARD.  I really can't imagine doing 26.2.  At 13 I was ready to collapse. And I even felt a little like throwing up.  It passed quickly and I felt fine and actually recovered pretty quickly.  But how am I going to ever do 26.2?  Really not sure.

detour ahead

Tomorrow morning I will run my fourth half marathon. This is the first one I have done on a trail instead of the road. It is at Lake Hodges. The trail has hills and can be a bit rocky. I am not sure how many women will be running (it is a race just for women -that's a first also unless you count Disneyland's Tinkerbell half which was mostly women and some men) but I hope there are not too many runners because the trail can be a bit narrow and slightly treacherous. I've run some of the trail I am doing tomorrow many times before which I think will be helpful. Especially the hilly part. But half of the run is unknown. I will also have a friend to run with. We are planning on starting out together and then if one feels more inspired to run faster then we will split up. I know I will be running this much slower than my other half marathons on the road just due to the effects of running on dirt and rocks etc and also due to the hills. So I am mentally preparing myself for a slower result. I am excited. I mentioned it to my stepdaughter, Kaylie. And she said "oh, yeah, running 13 miles sounds like a lot of fun" with a bit of sarcasm I believe. She made me laugh because it will be miserable at certain points (the hills, the last 3 miles probably) and I wonder why that it is fun but, what can I say, it just is.

Earlier this week I ran a 6 mile run at Penasquitos Preserve.  I have run the trail many times.  I go there at least once a week.  On this particular day I went on my regular trail and one mile in came upon this detour sign.  They were doing some trail construction work so I had to go on a smaller side trail.  This single lane trail basically ran parallel to my usual road with the same end point of the water fall at 3 miles.  I had never noticed this trail before.  It was so beautiful.  The photos I stopped and took along my run don't do it justice.  It was gorgeous.  And if it wasn't for the detour I never would have seen it.

A friend of ours recently was diagnosed with cancer. He is doing this intense regimen of chemo where he is admitted to the hospital for a full week of continuous chemo then is off for 2 weeks and then admitted again to repeat. He will do this until next February! Can you imagine? You are swimming along in your life and all of a sudden wham this is your new reality. Forget work, forget dinners at home, forget sleeping in your own bed, forget everything you normally do. From now on you will be living one of every 3 weeks in a hospital getting poison put into your veins to stop the cancer. I have been thinking of him, his positive attitude, his strength, his friendships. He's a lucky guy to have so much. I am a lucky woman to have so much. I am grateful. I am grateful.