So on March 14th I got up at 4 am, finished packing, loaded the bike, the car and the dog and headed 2 hours southeast to my sisters to leave my dog Kizzie for a week. Left Wilburton and headed to Fort Worth to meet my Sole sista Tammy,
When I arrived, after hugs, and a bathroom break we loaded up in her jeep for packet pickup. We located the packets, received the ugliest Shirt/jacket, super cute St Paddy socks and bought us bib belt for the Sprint Triathlon
. Then it was next door for some Latino food. I say this because it offered, Peruvian, Brazilian and El Salvador specialties.
After a late lunch it was back to Tammy's for utube videos of transition set up. Then practicing laying our stuff on a towel in a way that seemed logical. We visited over a healthy dinner of roasted chicken, broccoli and some of the best coffee I have had. I got to check into getting one of those cold presses!
Early morning wake up at 4:30 am. Bathroom, coffee, breakfast of boiled eggs, English muffin with peanut butter. Packed our go bags, loaded the bikes and it was off to Keller Natatorium. We lined up for marking and to get into the transition area. Now I think it is just plain BS that they mark you in large numbers with a black marker; your bib number and your age at the end of the year! My birthday is not until December 29th which is when I will be 24! There is no reason to mark that number on my skin now, that is a long time from now. That is just plain hateful.
Now I set up in the transition area, then I rearrange it, then arrange it another way and then back to the original way. It doesn't matter in hindsight because I really had no clue as to what the hell I was doing! Into the Natatorium for the bathroom and pre-race meeting instructions. No diving, a swimmer goes in the water every 5-7 seconds until all 600 participants are in. Oh hell we are going to be here a while might as well get comfortable, since I was #575. Before the race started Ben found me and we wished each other well. One of my friends asked him what he expected to finish in -- sub 58 minutes! Ben do you mean for all 3 events? Well yes. Hell you will be finished before I even get in the water! Probably! Ugh!
Now 2 hours later, I am about 30 people away from getting in the water, here comes Ben. He is all nice and dry, finished with his race and ready to head back to Oklahoma! His friend takes a pic of us. Let me tell you I do not rock a tri suit and a swim cap! Ben finished in 57:20 minutes and placed 3rd overall! I'm very happy and proud of him but I would be lying if I didn't admit to wanting to push him in the pool. js
Now I am fighting with my new watch, I don't know if I should put it in Triathlon mode since it is a pool swim or just put it in pool swim mode. Unfortunately I didn't decide in time so no mode got chosen because the pool police was yelling at me to go! Splash into the water! Stroke, kick, stroke, breathe and repeat. Look around am I at the wall yet? Hell no I'm not even 25 meters in to this 50 meter lane. I pass a few dog paddlers. Start to tire and revert to my old bad form. Reach the wall take a breather, regroup and start again. I did this at the end of every lane till I reached the ladder after 300 meters.
Swim 9:46.5
Run to the bike, shit don't fall on the wet floor, damn I am cold! Shirt, food, socks, forget socks, shoes, helmet, bib belt, and bike. Let me say running in clip-in shoes pushing a bike to the mount line is stretching the definition of running. Mount up, clip in and take off!
T1 3:21:3
Now on the bike, wet, COLD, hungry and thirsty. I'm performing a circus quality contortionist act to get a drink of water, eat a protein bar and ride the bike. The course is 2 six mile loops totaling 12.6 miles. The description said a couple of Texas Hill to keep it challenging. Surprise! They lied! It was all big rolling hills! I got through that first loop and some teenager is holding a sign that reads loop 2 and it was the same path I just did, I seriously thought about running him over! Somewhere on loop 2 I lost my garmin vivofit .
Bike 52:16:3
Now dismount before the dismount line and run to other side of transition area to hang bike, change shoes, and leave helmet. Still no socks but I grabbed the sport beans!
T2 2:16:3
Run to the train. I lost my legs they must still be on the bike. All I have are these 500 pound weights dragging behind me. My hip starts hurting, so I decide it will be a walk/run 5K. Damn it! I'm getting passed by people I know I can out run if it wasn't for my hip. I have to say every person I met on the trail had encouraging words. Every single one said something positive. I don't know if it was because no earbuds, phones or music devices were not allowed or what. It was very nice though. I pass on the water. I make it to the turn around. After I go back through the water stop I meet some guys doing race support work and they tell me I should pick off the lady in front of me. I try to tell them I am rehabbing an injury but they are not listening. I really wanted to let go and pick off some people but the hip was screaming at me so I played nice. Nice sucks!
Run 41:23:8
Total time 1:49:04:3
I didn't even place in the middle of the pack. More like the bottom of the pack. I wasn't last. So I will take this as a learning experience. Improve my swim, work on my saddle time and let the hip heal. Practice transition set up and transitions. I have a lot of work to do before Boulder in June!
During the race I was thinking why am I doing this? It is like a competition for being a jack of all trades but a master of none. As the race continued my thinking changed, I may not master any one part but I endured all of it. The more I endured the more my confidence grew in my fitness level.. I felt pretty BADASS when I crossed that finish line.
Oh yeah there are more tri's in my future!
Live Epic
Michelle
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Sunday, April 5, 2015
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Temper Tantrums & 5 Miles.
So on Monday I was scheduled to run 7 miles. The plan was to go meet the trainer for strength training. Run my 7 miles then return to the facility to get in a little pool time. As I was packing my bag, I noticed my Garmin had not charged from Sunday's long run of 19 miles. So I checked all the connections and put the watch back on the charger. Decided to meet the trainer and return home to get in my 7 miler and nix the swim time.
On return from the fitness facility I check the Garmin and surprise, surprise, surprise it still was not charging. Damn it! Rechecked the connections and was going to let it charge just enough to get my run in. By 9:30 pm the watch still would not charge. Decision was to do 5 miles in the morning and 5 miles after work to make up the 7 from Monday and the 3 for Tuesday. So I put the Garmin to charge to a wall charger to see if that would make a difference. Yay! Hip Hip Hooray it is charging!
So in the morning at 3:45 am the alarm went off and I evidently reverted to my toddler years mentality. I literally kicked the bed, hit snooze, cursed and said out loud I don't wanna! Hit snooze again. Cursed some more and got out of bed stomping my feet, cursing, slamming doors. Let the dog out, made coffee, went to the bathroom, sat in bed with coffee and thought of all reasons why I should can this run. I'm tired, it is to cold, it is to early and it is not fair. Why should I have to get up at 4 stupid o'clock in the morning to go run in the cold. It is not fair and nobody else has to do this. That's it F' it I am not doing it. Reset the alarm, turned out the lights and pulled the covers over my head!
Damn It I Can Not Go Back To Sleep! Kick the covers off and get out of bed cursing, stomping and slamming doors. I guess I will go run! Put on my clothes, go outside, slam the door, lock it, curse some more and take off.
For the first mile literally I am cursing, kicking rocks and really just stomping my feet running! Sometime after the first mile I start to settle down. In mile 2 I start to notice the crispness in the still cold morning and how refreshing it is. In mile 3 I notice the quiet and the full moon going down over the downtown skyline. By mile 4, I am glad I got out and did my run. By mile 5 I am grateful that I can run and give my Thanks and Praise to my Father in Heaven for blessing me with the ability to run.
So every once in a while I guess I do a really good imitation of a teenager in the midst of a temper tantrum screaming about the unfairness of life. Then I go outside and do the miles. My mind clears, my stress abates, the beauty of my surroundings invades, peace seeps in and gratitude rises to the surface.
Show up, do your best and be grateful for the ability. I am always better for putting in the time. I will strive to remember this the next time adolescent Michelle shows up.
Live Epic!
Michelle
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
2015 a Run and a Plunge!
New Years Day started with a 5K at my local fitness club. The Commitment Day 5K. I have been training to improve my Half time. So I am in the middle of a training cycle or in other words my legs are not fresh. They didn't feel fresh, they felt stiff, sore and heavy.
The weather was cold, damp, breezy with some winter mix precipitation. Rain, sleet and snow. 30 degrees with a wind chill in the teens. Oh yay!
I ran into my run coach Nate and his fiancé Cecilia. We chatted for a minute, he asked me what my goal was. I told him I knew what I wanted but I didn't know if I could do it. He persisted in wanting to know, so I told him I wanted a sub 30 but I didn't have much faith in it. He told me he thought I would surprise myself and it would be close. We wished each other well and headed off for the start line.
We line up, listen to the National Anthem, cheer, and the BOOM! Go Time! I love toeing the start line. There is such a sense of anticipation, nervous energy, and the possibility of meeting your goal. Mile one is flat and even and I am on pace with a 9:55. Mile 2 is flat then down hill turn around and straight uphill and I'm on pace at 10:07. I meet Nate going down hill as he is going uphill, he waves and shouts out encouragement. Mile 3 is the same as mile one since it is an out and back and my pace is 9:27. I can see the finish now, damn it a 15 yo boy passes me, damn kids! I sprint to the finish and cross with a 29:53!!!!!!
I am so freaking stoked! I really didn't think I could do it! A freaking sub 30 5K! My first 5K had a time of 45 minutes. My second 5K this same race on New Years 2014 finish time of 39:48! This summer the breast cancer 5K of 34:49. A PR anyway you look at it. I'm just happy with a stupid grin on my face.
First person I see is my trainer Matt , so of course I have to tell him! We chat for a few then I leave to go cheer in the other runners. I see Nate and we celebrate! It is a damn fine day!
The next event is the Polar Bear Plunge at noon. Now when I signed up for this in September it sounded like a damn fine idea. Now today with sub 30 temps, sleet, rain & wind not so much. In fact it starting to sound down right insane.
We line up outside at the start line after a free shot of Rumple Minze. I don't know why they didn't give us the good stuff. I think for jumping in an outdoor pool in Winter should qualify for a shot of bourbon! Oh well! The gun goes off and away we go for a .5 mile run a jump and run through the shallow end of the pool! Holy Jesus that water is cold!
Around we go for another .5 mile run and a wait in line to go down the slide. So we get to stand outside in line, unmoving in the sleet, wind, wet clothes and look at ice forming in the railing. Freaking great! Down the slide, super fast in the dark. Splash! OMG that is COLD! Now Polar Bear guy is yelling at me keep moving, come on, come to the steps! Oh yeah big guy you just don't want to rescue my dumb cold ass!
Around we go for the last .5. Mile run and jump to the bottom of the pool to retrieve my medal. Which is the size of a dinner plate! I go inside to the indoor pool and get in. It is a balmy 70 degrees! Ahhhh! It causes burning tingles! Ohhhh! Feeling better!
Now some of my run club friends join me and we take lots of pics. We say how much fun it is and yes we will probably do it again next year! I think we are all crazy but that's ok. It is all just fun and games anyway!
Live Epic!
Michelle
The weather was cold, damp, breezy with some winter mix precipitation. Rain, sleet and snow. 30 degrees with a wind chill in the teens. Oh yay!
I ran into my run coach Nate and his fiancé Cecilia. We chatted for a minute, he asked me what my goal was. I told him I knew what I wanted but I didn't know if I could do it. He persisted in wanting to know, so I told him I wanted a sub 30 but I didn't have much faith in it. He told me he thought I would surprise myself and it would be close. We wished each other well and headed off for the start line.
We line up, listen to the National Anthem, cheer, and the BOOM! Go Time! I love toeing the start line. There is such a sense of anticipation, nervous energy, and the possibility of meeting your goal. Mile one is flat and even and I am on pace with a 9:55. Mile 2 is flat then down hill turn around and straight uphill and I'm on pace at 10:07. I meet Nate going down hill as he is going uphill, he waves and shouts out encouragement. Mile 3 is the same as mile one since it is an out and back and my pace is 9:27. I can see the finish now, damn it a 15 yo boy passes me, damn kids! I sprint to the finish and cross with a 29:53!!!!!!
I am so freaking stoked! I really didn't think I could do it! A freaking sub 30 5K! My first 5K had a time of 45 minutes. My second 5K this same race on New Years 2014 finish time of 39:48! This summer the breast cancer 5K of 34:49. A PR anyway you look at it. I'm just happy with a stupid grin on my face.
First person I see is my trainer Matt , so of course I have to tell him! We chat for a few then I leave to go cheer in the other runners. I see Nate and we celebrate! It is a damn fine day!
The next event is the Polar Bear Plunge at noon. Now when I signed up for this in September it sounded like a damn fine idea. Now today with sub 30 temps, sleet, rain & wind not so much. In fact it starting to sound down right insane.
We line up outside at the start line after a free shot of Rumple Minze. I don't know why they didn't give us the good stuff. I think for jumping in an outdoor pool in Winter should qualify for a shot of bourbon! Oh well! The gun goes off and away we go for a .5 mile run a jump and run through the shallow end of the pool! Holy Jesus that water is cold!
Around we go for another .5 mile run and a wait in line to go down the slide. So we get to stand outside in line, unmoving in the sleet, wind, wet clothes and look at ice forming in the railing. Freaking great! Down the slide, super fast in the dark. Splash! OMG that is COLD! Now Polar Bear guy is yelling at me keep moving, come on, come to the steps! Oh yeah big guy you just don't want to rescue my dumb cold ass!
Around we go for the last .5. Mile run and jump to the bottom of the pool to retrieve my medal. Which is the size of a dinner plate! I go inside to the indoor pool and get in. It is a balmy 70 degrees! Ahhhh! It causes burning tingles! Ohhhh! Feeling better!
Now some of my run club friends join me and we take lots of pics. We say how much fun it is and yes we will probably do it again next year! I think we are all crazy but that's ok. It is all just fun and games anyway!
Live Epic!
Michelle
Sunday, December 21, 2014
135 or Bust!
Week one of the new training program started on Monday. The goal of this training plan is to shave some serious time off my Half marathon time. The strategies in the program are 1. To build a base of running at aerobic capacity, 2 to shed some extra pounds and get to a better racing weight, 3 to increase my endurance for running at faster paces.
Monday kicked off for 3 miles while trying to keep my heart rate below 135. This is proving to be way harder than I anticipated. I feel like I am barely moving but I check my heart rate and it maxed out at 149 with an average heart rate of 123.
Tuesday was another 3 miles and strength training with Matt. I did 120 pound squats! YAY ME! Now Tuesday runs are my free runs, meaning I an run at whatever pace I want and heart rate be damned. Since I am new to running with my heart rate as my gauge I decided to try and keep it under 135. I averaged a heart rate of 120 with a max of 139.
Wednesday brought more metabolic testing with Nate. This one was the resting metabolic test. Very easy to do and yields some great information. Mainly it gives you the calories the body needs just to exist. Mine is 1743 which is a 100 calories more than optimal for a woman my age and size. Fantastic news because it is always good news when the trainer says eat more. It also gives you the macro nutrient breakdown , i.e. How many grams of protein, fat, and carbs. Now I have no excuses on the nutrition front. I had two four mile runs on the schedule for Wednesday. After talking with. Nate about the schedule he agreed that I could do just 8 miles at once. So I headed out in the sleet and cold cold rain for 7 miles. Average heart rate of 131 & a max of 154, kind of failed at keeping the heart rate low. I stopped at 7 because it was time to strength train with Matt. Dead lifts dead lifts and dead lifts! I attempted to do one more mile on the treadmill to make 8. I made it a 1/4 of a mile before my glute's and stomach screamed UNCLE and went to find some food!
Thursday was a rest day so I worked all day.
Friday was another day of 2 a days. 4 miles before work which average heart rate of 129 & a max of 144. Work for 12. Then home to run 4 more with average of 124 and a max of 141.
Saturday was a rest day and I was off work. I would like to tell you I was incredible productive but the reality is I imitated a blanket draped over a chair really well.
Sunday was long slow day of 13 miles. 13 miles at a 14:30 pace with an average heart rate of 131 and a max of 147. I choose a relatively hilly route because if we can't push the pace at least I can push the difficulty.
Summary of my performance is a B overall. All the runs completed except for .75 for a total of 34+ miles. I kept my average heart rate under 135 but failed at keeping the max under 135. Nutrition is a lot better but still have room for improvement in quality and variety. Weight is down 4.2 lbs and down .6% body fat as of Wednesday.
Merry Christmas!
Live Epic
Michelle
Monday kicked off for 3 miles while trying to keep my heart rate below 135. This is proving to be way harder than I anticipated. I feel like I am barely moving but I check my heart rate and it maxed out at 149 with an average heart rate of 123.
Tuesday was another 3 miles and strength training with Matt. I did 120 pound squats! YAY ME! Now Tuesday runs are my free runs, meaning I an run at whatever pace I want and heart rate be damned. Since I am new to running with my heart rate as my gauge I decided to try and keep it under 135. I averaged a heart rate of 120 with a max of 139.
Wednesday brought more metabolic testing with Nate. This one was the resting metabolic test. Very easy to do and yields some great information. Mainly it gives you the calories the body needs just to exist. Mine is 1743 which is a 100 calories more than optimal for a woman my age and size. Fantastic news because it is always good news when the trainer says eat more. It also gives you the macro nutrient breakdown , i.e. How many grams of protein, fat, and carbs. Now I have no excuses on the nutrition front. I had two four mile runs on the schedule for Wednesday. After talking with. Nate about the schedule he agreed that I could do just 8 miles at once. So I headed out in the sleet and cold cold rain for 7 miles. Average heart rate of 131 & a max of 154, kind of failed at keeping the heart rate low. I stopped at 7 because it was time to strength train with Matt. Dead lifts dead lifts and dead lifts! I attempted to do one more mile on the treadmill to make 8. I made it a 1/4 of a mile before my glute's and stomach screamed UNCLE and went to find some food!
Thursday was a rest day so I worked all day.
Friday was another day of 2 a days. 4 miles before work which average heart rate of 129 & a max of 144. Work for 12. Then home to run 4 more with average of 124 and a max of 141.
Saturday was a rest day and I was off work. I would like to tell you I was incredible productive but the reality is I imitated a blanket draped over a chair really well.
Sunday was long slow day of 13 miles. 13 miles at a 14:30 pace with an average heart rate of 131 and a max of 147. I choose a relatively hilly route because if we can't push the pace at least I can push the difficulty.
Summary of my performance is a B overall. All the runs completed except for .75 for a total of 34+ miles. I kept my average heart rate under 135 but failed at keeping the max under 135. Nutrition is a lot better but still have room for improvement in quality and variety. Weight is down 4.2 lbs and down .6% body fat as of Wednesday.
Merry Christmas!
Live Epic
Michelle
Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Route 66 Marathon
On Saturday afternoon I go to the race expo to get my packet. I go to the packet pickup and give them my ID. A few seconds later the young man with my bib in his hand says loudly we have a first time marathoner. Everyone behind the table start yelling and ringing cowbells. I turn bright red and silently pray the floor opens up and takes me away. No luck and now people in line are wishing me luck and saying how great it is. I smile and nod, say thank you and keep moving away. OMG people should warn you that they do that.
5 am Sunday the alarm goes off, first instinct is to hit snooze, second thought is Oh hell it is RACE DAY! I get up make coffee, let the dog out, bathroom, dog in, breakfast, brush the teeth, wash the face, comb the hair, bathroom, & get dressed. Get the race bib straight, earbuds, garmin, protein/Ucan shake, house key, & phone. All morning I focus on the small details because the minute my mind goes to the race, I am nauseous. Run to Quik Trip for a Cliff bar I forgot to buy on Saturday and head over to meet with the run group before the start.
Take some pics with run club, bathroom again and walk to the corrals. Find corral C and meet with some friends I met at the OKC half marathon. We take a few pics, chit chat and they talk about me doing the Full. I'm trying not to hurl. My trainer Nate comes by for a few words of advice, "Start slow, it should feel slow, it should feel easy!" Ok Nate! Is what I say out loud but what is running through my mind is: don't puke, don't puke, don't puke!
7:55 gun sounds & confetti cannon erupts for the wheelchair races. Gulp!
8:00 guns sound for Corral A! Ugh!
8:10 gun for Corral B. Shit!
8:15 gun for Corral C damn it here we go!
Slow down, breathe, slower, breathe, slower, breathe, ok,,, stay here this pace just keep it steady. This is just a 10 mile easy run, followed by a 10 mile pace run and ended with a 10K finish. Hahaha yeah right.
Mile 1-5 were mostly about me settling into a groove and focusing on the mile at hand and not the other 21 to go. The terrain is mostly level with some very small hills followed by a downhill. The weather is 55-60 degrees, humid, partly cloudy with wind gusts. The crowd is scattered along the course, cheering with signs and cowbells. At mile 5 a male runner passes me and I read the back of his shirt "They shall run and not be weary." Isaiah 40:31. I say a prayer of thanks.
Miles 6-10 are mostly level ground. The run is feeling good. I am constantly checking my pace, my breathing, heart rate and level of effort. My heart rate reads high but I feel good. The crowds are thicker here on Brookside. I come up on Emily a fellow run club member. We chat for a bit and then I move on. At this point I laugh out loud at a sign on the course that says "Smile if you have to Pee!" I laugh and point at the man's sign and say why yes I do, so thanks for reminding me. haha!
Miles 11-15 start a constant uphill. I do a quick check. Breathing good, heart rate good, legs good, now my feet are getting a little tender from the minimal shoes and hard ground but not bad. At about mile 12 we part ways from the half marathoners and head out for the other 14 miles. This is the point of no return now. Oh crap did I really sign up for the FULL? Why did I do this? Oh well here we go. At mile 13 we run right by my car. Really? I even have the key with me. No Keep going cupcake. Mile 14 we go by within a block of my apartment. Really? Oh well I don't have the house key with me. Mile 15 is port-a-potty time. Yuck! By the way running tights and sweat do not aide in a speedy pit stop.
Miles 16-20 is still a constant upward climb. The crowds says the top of the hill is right up there. Yeah right. You get to the top take a corner and go uphill some more. None of the hills are straight up or steep it is just a constant medium grade incline. Mile 16 my feet are really feeling the force of the ground but it is endurable. Mile 18 my right lateral thigh is aching but again it is not bad. I just attribute it to fatigue. Mile 20 I stop and stretch my right quad and hip flexor which seems to help. Now just before mile 21 starts I have another laugh out loud moment. Somebody has tacked a sign on a pole at a point where the course takes a left turn. There are no spectators here it is just the sign on the pole that says "SMILE IF YOU MASTURBATE!" So random, who puts a sign up like that. Dang it, laughing hurts too.
Miles 21-25 Unchartered territory which is going to take me right by my house and my car again. Mile 21 starts the downhill to the finish. Mile 21 introduces a new pain. A stitch in my right side of my abdomen that causes a spasm in my diaphragm. I am not out of breath but with this spasm in my diaphragm I can not draw a good breath. At first instinct you want to panic, but I force myself to calm down. Am I breathing? Yes. Am I getting enough air? Yes. What to do? I decide it is probably dehydration/electrolyte imbalance. At the next water station I walk through it and drink a Gatorade, a water and chew on some of the Cliff bar. It helps for a bit. At mile 23 it starts to spasm again, luckily a woman had set up her own refreshment table and had her carton of salt out and would pour it into your hand to lick off. It was awesome and probably is what kept me from having to walk to the finish. Bless her soul! Mile 24 brings my male runner back to pass me again. Yes it was the same man with the Isaiah 40:13 verse on the back of his shirt. I don't know how or when he got behind me because I promise I only seen him the 2 times and both times he passes me and got right in front of me long enough for me to read the shirt and say a Thank you Lord. Then he keeps going till out of sight. I am really tired at this point. Everything hurts. I keep running. I will not stop. I have to finish. Mile 25 Ronnie from my run club, runs out to me on the course pats me on the back and tells me "you have got this Michelle. Turn up here to do the Center of the Universe tour then a couple more turns and you will be at the finish. You look strong Michelle." This brings tears to my eyes because I really needed it. My side hurts. My diaphragm is still having spasms. I pretty sure my feet are going to be a bloody mess if I ever take my shoes off. I turn and do the universe detour and hear Gary from run club call out to me and say "looking great Michelle you got this!' I wave and say thanks!
Now I come back down from the detour and see Amanda from run club on the corner and she yells "Go Michelle!" As she says it I hear all of you saying it too. I can feel all of you with me on the last leg of this course. I make a turn and there is the lady from the running store. She has been everywhere on this course. This is the 5th time I have seen her along the course. Each time she has razzed me about my beauty queen wave, this time she jumps up and high 5's me and says the finish line is around the corner. I believe her because she is sitting by the 25.9 mile marker. I hear all of you yelling GO! GO! FINISH!
Mile 26 I can see the finish line and the crowds lined up on either side of the course. I pick up my pace. I lean forward and start kicking it to the finish. I see Nate my trainer on my left and hear him yelling. I hear other run club members yelling. I see Bart Yasso and he says he likes my kick! I high fived Bart Yasso as I cross the finish line at a chip time of 5:31:59. I collect water, Gatorade and my medal! I assure the medical people that I am OK!
I am a Marathoner! A year ago I did my first 5K in over 45 minutes. Six months ago it took well over 3 hours to do a half marathon. 6 months ago I smoked. 4 months ago I could finally run a mile nonstop outside. Today I am runner, an athlete, a marathoner and anything else I decide to take on.
Live Epic!
Michelle
5 am Sunday the alarm goes off, first instinct is to hit snooze, second thought is Oh hell it is RACE DAY! I get up make coffee, let the dog out, bathroom, dog in, breakfast, brush the teeth, wash the face, comb the hair, bathroom, & get dressed. Get the race bib straight, earbuds, garmin, protein/Ucan shake, house key, & phone. All morning I focus on the small details because the minute my mind goes to the race, I am nauseous. Run to Quik Trip for a Cliff bar I forgot to buy on Saturday and head over to meet with the run group before the start.
Take some pics with run club, bathroom again and walk to the corrals. Find corral C and meet with some friends I met at the OKC half marathon. We take a few pics, chit chat and they talk about me doing the Full. I'm trying not to hurl. My trainer Nate comes by for a few words of advice, "Start slow, it should feel slow, it should feel easy!" Ok Nate! Is what I say out loud but what is running through my mind is: don't puke, don't puke, don't puke!
7:55 gun sounds & confetti cannon erupts for the wheelchair races. Gulp!
8:00 guns sound for Corral A! Ugh!
8:10 gun for Corral B. Shit!
8:15 gun for Corral C damn it here we go!
Slow down, breathe, slower, breathe, slower, breathe, ok,,, stay here this pace just keep it steady. This is just a 10 mile easy run, followed by a 10 mile pace run and ended with a 10K finish. Hahaha yeah right.
Mile 1-5 were mostly about me settling into a groove and focusing on the mile at hand and not the other 21 to go. The terrain is mostly level with some very small hills followed by a downhill. The weather is 55-60 degrees, humid, partly cloudy with wind gusts. The crowd is scattered along the course, cheering with signs and cowbells. At mile 5 a male runner passes me and I read the back of his shirt "They shall run and not be weary." Isaiah 40:31. I say a prayer of thanks.
Miles 6-10 are mostly level ground. The run is feeling good. I am constantly checking my pace, my breathing, heart rate and level of effort. My heart rate reads high but I feel good. The crowds are thicker here on Brookside. I come up on Emily a fellow run club member. We chat for a bit and then I move on. At this point I laugh out loud at a sign on the course that says "Smile if you have to Pee!" I laugh and point at the man's sign and say why yes I do, so thanks for reminding me. haha!
Miles 11-15 start a constant uphill. I do a quick check. Breathing good, heart rate good, legs good, now my feet are getting a little tender from the minimal shoes and hard ground but not bad. At about mile 12 we part ways from the half marathoners and head out for the other 14 miles. This is the point of no return now. Oh crap did I really sign up for the FULL? Why did I do this? Oh well here we go. At mile 13 we run right by my car. Really? I even have the key with me. No Keep going cupcake. Mile 14 we go by within a block of my apartment. Really? Oh well I don't have the house key with me. Mile 15 is port-a-potty time. Yuck! By the way running tights and sweat do not aide in a speedy pit stop.
Miles 16-20 is still a constant upward climb. The crowds says the top of the hill is right up there. Yeah right. You get to the top take a corner and go uphill some more. None of the hills are straight up or steep it is just a constant medium grade incline. Mile 16 my feet are really feeling the force of the ground but it is endurable. Mile 18 my right lateral thigh is aching but again it is not bad. I just attribute it to fatigue. Mile 20 I stop and stretch my right quad and hip flexor which seems to help. Now just before mile 21 starts I have another laugh out loud moment. Somebody has tacked a sign on a pole at a point where the course takes a left turn. There are no spectators here it is just the sign on the pole that says "SMILE IF YOU MASTURBATE!" So random, who puts a sign up like that. Dang it, laughing hurts too.
Miles 21-25 Unchartered territory which is going to take me right by my house and my car again. Mile 21 starts the downhill to the finish. Mile 21 introduces a new pain. A stitch in my right side of my abdomen that causes a spasm in my diaphragm. I am not out of breath but with this spasm in my diaphragm I can not draw a good breath. At first instinct you want to panic, but I force myself to calm down. Am I breathing? Yes. Am I getting enough air? Yes. What to do? I decide it is probably dehydration/electrolyte imbalance. At the next water station I walk through it and drink a Gatorade, a water and chew on some of the Cliff bar. It helps for a bit. At mile 23 it starts to spasm again, luckily a woman had set up her own refreshment table and had her carton of salt out and would pour it into your hand to lick off. It was awesome and probably is what kept me from having to walk to the finish. Bless her soul! Mile 24 brings my male runner back to pass me again. Yes it was the same man with the Isaiah 40:13 verse on the back of his shirt. I don't know how or when he got behind me because I promise I only seen him the 2 times and both times he passes me and got right in front of me long enough for me to read the shirt and say a Thank you Lord. Then he keeps going till out of sight. I am really tired at this point. Everything hurts. I keep running. I will not stop. I have to finish. Mile 25 Ronnie from my run club, runs out to me on the course pats me on the back and tells me "you have got this Michelle. Turn up here to do the Center of the Universe tour then a couple more turns and you will be at the finish. You look strong Michelle." This brings tears to my eyes because I really needed it. My side hurts. My diaphragm is still having spasms. I pretty sure my feet are going to be a bloody mess if I ever take my shoes off. I turn and do the universe detour and hear Gary from run club call out to me and say "looking great Michelle you got this!' I wave and say thanks!
Now I come back down from the detour and see Amanda from run club on the corner and she yells "Go Michelle!" As she says it I hear all of you saying it too. I can feel all of you with me on the last leg of this course. I make a turn and there is the lady from the running store. She has been everywhere on this course. This is the 5th time I have seen her along the course. Each time she has razzed me about my beauty queen wave, this time she jumps up and high 5's me and says the finish line is around the corner. I believe her because she is sitting by the 25.9 mile marker. I hear all of you yelling GO! GO! FINISH!
Mile 26 I can see the finish line and the crowds lined up on either side of the course. I pick up my pace. I lean forward and start kicking it to the finish. I see Nate my trainer on my left and hear him yelling. I hear other run club members yelling. I see Bart Yasso and he says he likes my kick! I high fived Bart Yasso as I cross the finish line at a chip time of 5:31:59. I collect water, Gatorade and my medal! I assure the medical people that I am OK!
I am a Marathoner! A year ago I did my first 5K in over 45 minutes. Six months ago it took well over 3 hours to do a half marathon. 6 months ago I smoked. 4 months ago I could finally run a mile nonstop outside. Today I am runner, an athlete, a marathoner and anything else I decide to take on.
Live Epic!
Michelle
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
Tapers, Nerves & Countdowns!
In training for a marathon, you learn all sorts of terms. Things such as time on feet, quality runs, long runs, pace runs, tempo runs, yasso's, cumulative fatigue, cross training, rest days, foam rolling, hill repeats, cadence, heart rate zones.and last but not least the Taper. Some of these I have a good understanding of, some of them I will get a better understanding of in my next training cycle, right now I am getting an understanding of the Taper.
Runners will tell you a good taper is vital for optimum race day performance and I agree with them. They will tell you it is to recover from cumulative fatigue and overuse injuries. It is time to perfect your nutrition, sleep and hydration. To visualize your race and plan your stategdy.
Now during marathon training you have a schedule that is about 12-16 weeks long. The schedule tells you what days to run, how long to run, how fast or how hard to run. It tells you what days to rest and what days to cross train. A schedule is revered and followed to the last mile. Every week the mileage or time running increases unless it is a drop down week. The schedule consists of your first double digit run the 10 miler. The week you do a half or 13 miles and you secretly wonder are you able to run double that number. The 16 miler that you complete easily and know you could have went further. The 18 miler that strips away your belief that you can and forces you to face the question, Can you really? Then the 20 miler that is so much easier than the 18 but makes you ask could I really do another 6.2 miles more? I don't know?
Everybody says if you can do 20 then you can do 26.2 on race day. That nerves, momentum, crowds and fear of a DNF will carry you through the last 6.2 miles. Everyone tells you when nerves arise to trust your training because you put in the miles. Then they tell you to taper for 3 weeks!
The Taper is the 2-3 weeks before your race. Each week your mileage or time running decreases up till Race Day. That is 21 days spent with less time running. 21 days to analyze every run. 21 days to remember every missed training mile. 21 days to remember every run you might not have given all your focus. 21 days to remember each poor meal choices. 21 days to remember the extra Cape Cod drink. 21 days to remember the nights of poor sleep. 21 days to remember all the days you didn't drink water, stretch, or foam roll. 21 days or 504 hours for your nerves to build and nightmares of DNF to occur.
As you taper and have more time on your hands you might catch up on social media, nonrunning friends and family. Bad idea. Every friend you have is suddenly an expert on running and have nothing else to talk about except your upcoming race. Family members all have that one person who blew out their knee in a race and were in a full body cast for a year. Every time you get on a social web site you will be confronted with an image of a countdown to your race. Such as the link below.
http://route66marathon.com/expopacket-group/health-and-fitness-expo/
Now a well executed taper does help resolve cumulative fatigue. Overuse injuries will heal during this time. You will focus on the things you can control, your nutrition, hydration and rest. You will focus on what you didn't do. You will question your ability to finish. Your nerves will get out of control. You wil resolve your mind to the fact that you will finish, even if you have to crawl.
Race Day will dawn. You will be rested. You will be hydrated. You will be fueled. You will be a jumble of nervous energy, excitement and scared witless! But really if you are calm and not scared then you are not dreaming big enough! OMG 4 Days to Race Day!
Live Epic!
Michelle
Runners will tell you a good taper is vital for optimum race day performance and I agree with them. They will tell you it is to recover from cumulative fatigue and overuse injuries. It is time to perfect your nutrition, sleep and hydration. To visualize your race and plan your stategdy.
Now during marathon training you have a schedule that is about 12-16 weeks long. The schedule tells you what days to run, how long to run, how fast or how hard to run. It tells you what days to rest and what days to cross train. A schedule is revered and followed to the last mile. Every week the mileage or time running increases unless it is a drop down week. The schedule consists of your first double digit run the 10 miler. The week you do a half or 13 miles and you secretly wonder are you able to run double that number. The 16 miler that you complete easily and know you could have went further. The 18 miler that strips away your belief that you can and forces you to face the question, Can you really? Then the 20 miler that is so much easier than the 18 but makes you ask could I really do another 6.2 miles more? I don't know?
Everybody says if you can do 20 then you can do 26.2 on race day. That nerves, momentum, crowds and fear of a DNF will carry you through the last 6.2 miles. Everyone tells you when nerves arise to trust your training because you put in the miles. Then they tell you to taper for 3 weeks!
The Taper is the 2-3 weeks before your race. Each week your mileage or time running decreases up till Race Day. That is 21 days spent with less time running. 21 days to analyze every run. 21 days to remember every missed training mile. 21 days to remember every run you might not have given all your focus. 21 days to remember each poor meal choices. 21 days to remember the extra Cape Cod drink. 21 days to remember the nights of poor sleep. 21 days to remember all the days you didn't drink water, stretch, or foam roll. 21 days or 504 hours for your nerves to build and nightmares of DNF to occur.
As you taper and have more time on your hands you might catch up on social media, nonrunning friends and family. Bad idea. Every friend you have is suddenly an expert on running and have nothing else to talk about except your upcoming race. Family members all have that one person who blew out their knee in a race and were in a full body cast for a year. Every time you get on a social web site you will be confronted with an image of a countdown to your race. Such as the link below.
http://route66marathon.com/expopacket-group/health-and-fitness-expo/
Now a well executed taper does help resolve cumulative fatigue. Overuse injuries will heal during this time. You will focus on the things you can control, your nutrition, hydration and rest. You will focus on what you didn't do. You will question your ability to finish. Your nerves will get out of control. You wil resolve your mind to the fact that you will finish, even if you have to crawl.
Race Day will dawn. You will be rested. You will be hydrated. You will be fueled. You will be a jumble of nervous energy, excitement and scared witless! But really if you are calm and not scared then you are not dreaming big enough! OMG 4 Days to Race Day!
Live Epic!
Michelle
Tuesday, November 11, 2014
Jenk's Half Marathon
This last week was all about prepping for my half marathon on Saturday and it was the first official week of the marathon taper. The taper is a discussion for another post all by itself. This is all about my second half marathon.
Now my first half marathon was in April at the Oklahoma City Memorial marathon. It started after a 2 hour severe weather delay. In ended with temperatures in the 90's and high humidity. Back then I was walk/run method, I finished with a chip time of 3:12:59 and a gun time of 3:27:39. Now my trainer did the full marathon in 2:52 something. Did you see that he did twice the mileage 20 minutes faster than I did half of it. That pissed me off. Probably why I kept running and trying to improve. The bitch of it was I couldn't even cuss about it because he stayed and cheered me in and told me how great I did. Don't you just hate it when you want to have a melt down cussing fit and you can't because people are being nice. Geesh!
The Jenk's Half Marathon dawned on a windy crisp 55 degrees and started right on time at 8 am. There was 500 and something entrants. It started just down the street from the Jenk's track and ended on the track. The gun goes off and here we go.
Miles 1-2 seemed to drag by mainly I think because I kept looking at my watch for my pace and trying to slow myself down. I did not want to repeat the Tulsa Run experience of just hanging on the last 2 miles.
Mile 3-4 were easy pace wise. I was running by a group called Running the Streets which is mentoring program for teens in Bartlesville OK. One of the girls started asking me about how long I had been running and what all distances I had ran. I told her I was a newbie and training for my first full. She allowed this was her fifth half marathon. She wants to do a full but her dad won't let her until she turns 16! OMG! Nice kid, I passed her eventually but just because she had to stay with the group. I may have to look into one of the mentoring running groups.
Miles 5-7 were rolling hills but manageable. Mile 8 was a hill a mile long straight into the wind. I did not think it was ever going to be over. Mile 9 was downhill always my favorite. I may have picked off a few people here. Since most people use the downhill to recover instead of attacking.
Mile 10 I realized it was almost over with just a 5K left. I looked at my watch and knew if I picked up my pace a bit and maintained I could be under 2:30. So I did. I picked off people and no they did not come back for me like at the Tulsa run.
The Splits were as follows:
Mile 1 - 11:21
Mile 2 - 11:30
Mile 3 - 11:39
Mile 4 - 11:39
Mile 5 - 11:20
Mile 6 - 11:38
Mile 7 - 11:28
Mile 8 - 11:11
Mile 9 - 11:02
Mile 10 - 11:21
Mile 11 - 10:41
Mile 12 - 10:51
Mile 13 - 10:19
Mile .2 - 9:22
Chip Time was 2:27:52 Gun Time 2:28:26
Now if you do the math that is a Chip time PR of 46 minutes. Which is great and I am damn proud of it, but when you go from walk/run to a constant run big PR's should happen. Now beating my own best goal of 2:30 with a 2:27:52 is great. My last mile being my fastest mile is fantastic. The last 6.5 miles faster & stronger than the first 6.5 miles is priceless.
I can build on this. I have something to work with. I have a new goal to work towards with this data. I want a sub 2:15 half. I am sure I will want a better marathon time than what I finish with in two weeks.
So I will savor my success for a few days and then get back to work and try to taper effectively and patiently. I mean because really there is some work to do. A man in my Run Club who is 58 years ran a sub 2 hour Half at Jenk's. Well hell that pisses me off. A 58 year old beat me by 30 minutes and of course I have to be nice since he is so encouraging. Damn it here we go!
Live Epic!
Michelle
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