Santa Hustle Half Marathon Race Recap

The Santa Hustle Half Marathon in Galveston was the last race that I had scheduled in 2012 and also the last race before the Chevron Houston Marathon on January 13th.  Yikes, it's coming up really quickly!

Packet Pickup-The packet pickup was held at the Tremont Hotel near the Strand.  Honestly, the packet pickup was a pain in the rear!  I live about an hour and a half away from Galveston and they were only offering packet pickup on Saturday. At the time of registration I could have paid an extra $15 for it to be mailed to me but some people on FB did not get their packets on time.  I decided to just stay at my grandparents house the night before so I wouldn't have to waste gas on going down there twice.

At packet pickup we each got a shirt that we are supposed to wear during the race.  Mine is sort of big on me, but I want to be part of the fun Santa group wearing their shirts in all of the pictures!

Also, you get a hat and beard.  Do I look stylish?  The hat/beard was a bit much for 13.1 miles so I did not bring it with me.

I woke up around 6 am so I could make sure to eat breakfast and drive to Galveston. Maw Maw made me yummy pancakes and I cut up a banana on the side.  I probably shouldn't have eaten such a heavy meal before a race, but I figured I needed some carbs and I had three hours for it to digest before I ran.

I left my grandparents house about 7 am and drove straight to Galveston. I had an easy time finding parking and getting to the start line.  There were a few blowup characters in the square and I took a picture with Santa and Frosty!

The race started promptly at 9 am and we ran the route on Galveston Island.  The race was basically two out and backs down the seawall and 23rd Street.  There was a cookie station at mile 2 (ish) and one at mile 6 (and technically mile 11 since it was an out and back).  There were tons of cookies and M&M's when I went by both times so I don't think the half marathoners took too many, it's hard to eat cookies when you are running 13.1 miles.  It was a flat course and I didn't have any problems really.  At mile 9ish I started getting antsy for the finish.  I wanted to finish with a new PR of 2:20:XX but the slower I was going the more that number slipped away.  The first 6 miles were great, I was rocking a great pace of around 10 MM, but I lost steam by the end.  Luckily, someone I met earlier on the course caught up with me and helped coach me to the end at a very uncomfortable pace for me so I could get a good time.  I kept glancing at my watch to see how much longer we had and she said don't look at the watch so I let her hold it so I wouldn't see the pace and we could go faster.  I don't know how to upload my stats to my computer, but I think we were going way fast for me. :)  Looking back, I love it, but at the time if you were anywhere near me you heard some very choice words coming from me every few feet. haha.  

Finally, we made it back to the square and we just had to go around the corner one more time.  I told my new friend that I wanted to sprint to the end so when we rounded the corner I took off.  I think I was faster than she thought because she yelped in surprised! LOL.  I am a relatively faster sprinter compared to my running pace. 

 I finished at 2:25.10, a new 4:29 PR!  I thanked my friend for running with me at the end (and not letting me walk!) and then I got water and a banana.  There was some sort of granola bar and candy canes, but I wasn't in the mood for them.  I was disappointed that there wasn't any other food to choose from at the race, usually there is at least pizza or something. :/  Even the beer you had to pay for (I don't drink beer though).  The website said there would be a lot of food, but apparently bananas were all they had.  I guess you can't be too choosey when you got a great Groupon deal for a half marathon!

Success!  Last half marathon before my full!   Can't wait to add it to my medal rack. :)

Merry Christmas everyone! 

Sugarland 30K Recap

I woke up bright and early at 4:30 am to get ready for the Sugarland 30K race, even Jabba was not ready to get up so early.  He barely got out of bed when I put food in his bowl, and if you know Jabba that is rare never happens.  The night before I layed out what I was going to wear and filled up my fuel belt with water and fuel (Sport Beans and Gummies) so I wouldn’t have to do it when I was sleepy.   I still do not have a microwave since I moved (hopefully I will get to the store this weekend) so I just ate cold pizza leftover from Friday.

Aly was coming over to ride with me to cheer me and our other group members on during the race.  Alain, our coach from Gotta Run had a tent set up when we got there and we took group pics before the race.

The race started promptly at 6:30 after they sang the National Anthem (side note, I love it that the majority of the races I have been to sing the song beforehand).  The first few miles took us through the street of Sugarland by some nice houses, then we did a 4 mile loop three times around some VERY nice houses.  Aly and Alain did not race so they were at the turnaround of the loop to cheer us on each time and also Alain was taking pictures. 

The first loop wasn’t so bad I just kept trucking along seeing the super fast people go by me.  By the time I was on my first loop, the (future) winner was on his second lap (and like going 5 minute mile pace).  Sigh.  I will get faster!  The second loop wasn’t so bad either, but towards the end I was getting tired.  The third lap was tough!  Most of the crowd support was gone by that time to watch the finishers and it was just us slower people.  I did the majority of the race at a 11 minute (ish) mile, but towards 16+ I started to slow way down.  At mile 17 (right past the last waterstop) I was running with a girl that I talked to on the first lap and she was still following her friend.  We started running together and were passing people and I said “Let’s pass your friend”  she got a smile on her face and we passed her, then we passed about 6 or 7 other people.  Then she started to fade and I kept going (don’t judge me, I didn’t know her!) . 

I was at about 17.75 when I ran past a woman who was crying, I asked if she was ok and she said no and cried even harder.  I asked if she needed water because I thought I had another water with me and she said yes, well it turns out that I only had about two ounces left but I offered it to her and she took it.  She was still crying so I kept walking with her.  I asked her if she had stretched because her legs were hurting and I suggested she do the yoga pose Downward Dog to stretch her legs.  I had to pee really, really, really bad at this point so I couldn’t show her how to do the pose, luckily she knew how to do it.  It really helped her a lot and we kept walking together.  I suggested that we run for three traffic cones and then we could reevaluate if she wanted to run again.  The cones were about 100 feet apart so it wasn’t much but it was better than walking.  After three she wanted to keep running so we did.  After about 4 or 5 we would stop and do a downward dog then run at least three more.  We got to the final street intersection and ran the rest of the way. She told me I could keep going without her, but I didn’t want to leave her since she was still pretty upset.  I told her that my time wouldn’t be that different if I would leave her, so I stayed and helped her finish.  We introduced ourselves (her name was Marny) and pushed through the end.  At the finish line shoot I asked her if she wanted to sprint to the end and she did, and we ended up behind one other person and I told Marny to pass her, so we did. :) 

Me and my new friend Marny finished together at 3:38.10 .  She hugged me when we got done and said thank you for helping her finish.  I told her it was no problem, I was glad to do it. I know what it’s like to have a hard time at the end of a race and I honestly wouldn't have finished more than 5 minutes before her.  I wasn't trying to PR or anything so helping a person in need was better than a PR! :)  We got our water, goodie bag of food, pizza, and t-shirt and after I went to the restroom we went to the Gotta Run tent. 

(I only ate the banana, but I REALLY wanted to eat the chocolate bar.. The rest is in my pantry.)

The long sleep tech t-shirt that we got!  Nice!

I met back up with Aly and I went to change clothes because I was super sweaty!

I got home and promptly took a three hour nap, woke up for about an hour, ate something, and went back to sleep.  Jabba was obviously so tired that when he was lying on the couch he covered his eyes.  He is so cute.  I have no idea what he does all day to be so tired.  Seriously, it’s a hard life being a cat.



La Porte by the Bay Half Marathon 2012 Recap

On Sunday I finished my 3^rd half marathon and the final race in the Texas Bridge Series!!  The La Porte by the Bay Half Marathon was my first half marathon I ever completed and I completed it again for a second time in 2012.  My Uncle Roger and Aunt Laura also completed all three races in the Texas Bridge Series (see the Kemah and Galveston 10K recaps) with me. 

When you complete the Texas Bridge Series you get TWO medals!  The one of the left spins (the wavy part) and they both have glitter!!  I <3 glitter.

Jabba made sure to wake me up at his scheduled 5:11 am feeding time and I got dressed and packed my bag so I could change after I was done.  I started making a breakfast of oatmeal but when I tasted it, it was gross!  Since I was moving I had to use a serving stirrer that was HUGE so it didn’t work out to well.  I decided to just eat cheese and crackers on the way so I wouldn’t have to stop anymore.  I left my house later than I planned and got to my aunt and uncle’s house at about 6:40 am.  We left their house about 6:50 and got to the race at around 7:30.  They forgot their bibs so while I got my timing chip they went to see if they could get a new bib (they could).  I went to the porta potties (I loved how they had pink ones for women only at this race-no guys peeing all over the place!) and then got in line towards the back so people wouldn’t have to weave around me.

I decided to wear my SFA tech t-shirt for the race and  I got so many ‘Axe ‘em Jacks,”  “Go Lumberjacks”, “Lookin’ good Ladyjack” and more SFA comments that I need to wear this shirt a lot more often!  I counted and it was 7 people that said something.  I usually don’t have that many people commenting on my race wear choices.  Everyone loves a Lumberjack! :)

Ok sorry, back to the race.  The first two miles were weaving around people and getting in my groove.  At mile 3 ish I started remembering things from last year like where my family and friends were hanging out to cheer me on or where there was a bathroom last year (I had to pee!).  I walked A LOT this year since it was so hot and miserable.  It's December, it should NOT be this hot.  I wasn’t very prepared for this race this year mentally since I was moving the day before and was stressed out with that.  (Poor Jabba did NOT want to move.  More on that later).

Mile 4 is when I saw one of those big rig trucks and made the pull sign with my arm and they honked the horn.  I used to LOVE doing that when I was a kid. :)  The bridge was a killer this time around. I did a walk/run combo going up both sides and flew down on the other side.  Mile 8 I stopped to use the restroom since I didn’t think I could hold it to the other side of the bridge.  The line took forever!  Seriously, it was 3 or 4 minutes and I almost got out of line but I didn’t because I had to pee so bad.  After I used the restroom I went back over the bridge and finally I was at mile 10. 

Around mile 11 I started talking to a woman that lives way up in north Texas in Wichita Falls.  She is part of the Marathon Maniacs group and we chatted until mile 12.  I remembered from last year that once you turn the corner at mile 12 you can see the big green inflatable finish line.  I started to pick up the pace and every time I passed someone who was walking I tapped them on the shoulder and tried to motivate them to finish running with me.  One guys shirt said ‘your pace or mine’ and I told him my pace, stop walking come on.  At first he looked confused and then he said ‘oh, the back of my shirt’ then he started running with me.  I must have passed at least 20 people on that last mile.  I ran to the finish with my big group of stragglers and we all finished together.  Gotta finish strong! :)

 My final time was 2:35:16, which is a PR of from last year’s race at 2:52:05.  I didn’t beat my personal best from October, but I did get faster than last year.  I think if I wouldn’t have stopped to use the restroom I would have PR’d.  I think my time is pretty good considering that it wasn’t that much difference (6+ minutes) on a completely flat course.  I finished #50 in my age group out of #101, and #313 of #631 out of the women.  I was #753 to finish out of #1221, almost exactly half in both categories of women, but not half of the total participants. 

Afterwards I got some food to wait on my aunt and uncle.  I got a piece of pizza, oranges, bananas, water, and two sausage on a stick.  I was hungry!  I had taken some jelly sports beans and some gummies on the course, but I was very hungry when I got done.  Running Alliance Sports does a wonderful job of taking care of their runners before and after the race.  They are very organized and I have loved every race I have done with them (5 total now).  They always have plenty of food/water at the finish line and wait until everyone is done to pack up.  They even had shuttles taking us to the parking lot (about a mile away) so we wouldn't have to walk further.

I saw my uncle at the bottom of the bridge and my aunt towards the middle of the bridge so I thought they would be about 30 or 45 minutes behind me but I kept waiting and waiting and never saw them.  I thought I should get the car but then decided to wait for them since they shouldn’t be very much longer.  At the four hour time limit (I finished at 2:35) they started to pack up and I was beginning to get worried.  I told the race people at the finish line that I would hold on to their medals so they could have one.  They said they would wait for a few more minutes for them to finish and after that they would give them to me to hold them.  I would have hated for them to complete all of htem and not get a medal.  At four hours, 15 minutes I saw them coming in.  Thank goodness!! They got their medals and water then went to sit down.  What happened was that my uncle’s shoes broke at mile 8ish and he could barely walk in them.  Poor thing had blisters on his feet.  My aunt didn’t want to leave him so she stayed behind and finished with him.  Her phone died so she couldn’t call me to let me know what was going on.  The important thing was that we all finished and had lots of fun! 

                                                                                                                                      

My next race is an 18 mile race in Sugarland next Sunday.  See ya there!

14 Miles

Today was another training day for my marathon training.  Just under 75 days to go!  My group, Gotta Run of Katy, met at Luke's Locker in Katy to do our long run for the week at 5:30 am.  Some of our group did 10 miles, others did 12, but the full marathoners did 14 this week.  Lucky me.

I had been sick this week with a sinus infection, turned migraine, turned throwing up from said migraine.  Needless to say that I was feeling sorry for myself on this run that I was still feeling bad.  My run was split in 3 legs, the "I am feeling sorry for myself leg", the "let's get this done so I can get chocolate milk leg", and the "OMG I am so over this run" leg.

The "I am feeling sorry for myself leg" started at mile 1 and ended at mile 7ish.  I was all feeling sorry for myself that I had to do this run when I wasn't feeling very well and sort of light headed.  Mind you, that I didn't have to do this run, I CHOOSE to.  I remember thinking that this marathon was a choice that I made and no one made me sign up, I did that all by myself, and to suck it up.  I had no one to blame for my training but myself so I needed to just keep running.  The faster I ran, the faster I would get it over with.

The "Let's get this done so I can get chocolate milk leg" started at 7ish and ended around 11 miles.  At around 7 miles our coach Alain had followed a group of us in his car because the street we were running on was really dark.  He knew that I wasn't feeling very well so he wanted to make sure I didn't pass out (running with a sinus infection is not fun).  He left us at the end of the dark road once we could see again with the promise of chocolate milk at the end!!!  Chocolate milk seems to be a new favorite of mine lately so that put an extra spring in my step to get me moving faster.  I am like a little kid sometimes. :)  I also took a lemon lime GU  and walked a bit here (I walked a lot from 7-11 miles).  The lemon lime flavor was good, but I just can't get used to the consistency of GU. :/

The "OMG I am so over this run leg" was the last 3 miles of the run. I took some sports beans right at mile 11 and refilled my water bottles in my belt. This section was from 99 to Peak Rd to Cinco Ranch and back to Luke's Locker.  I remember thinking that Peak Rd came really quick from 99 and maybe I was closer than I thought.  Let me tell you, Peak Road to Cinco Ranch from Fry Road took foooooooorever.  The side of the road I was on did not have a sidewalk and I refused to exert the energy needed to cross the road to the sidewalk.  Eventually I did cross because there didn't seem like an end was in sight with the no sidewalk so I crossed.  I saw a church that said something Church at Cinco Ranch.  Me, being the trusting person I am thought, oh good, this is Cinco Ranch, let's turn left.  Then I saw the Katy YMCA and thought I do not remember that on this road, maybe I am further down than I thought on Cinco Ranch.  Then I got to a point where the road did not have a sidewalk.  Hmm, that's weird I thought.  I looked for a street sign and it said Westheimer Parkway. WTH?!!  Where am I?  Apparently the church at Cinco Ranch was not at Cinco Ranch street, it was just put there to confuse me.  I turned left about a 1/2 mile too soon. GRRRRR! 

So since I had been 'so over this run' since the no sidewalk situation on Peak Road I did not want to turn around so I just kept going until I saw 99.  Let me tell you for all you inquisitive people...there are NO SIDEWALKS off of 99 either!  No, you have to either run on the frontage (sp?) road, in the grass/dirt/mud, or get hit by a car.  Those are your choices.  I choose to run in the grass/dirt/mud section because option one and two would have gotten me hit by a car.  I had about 1/2 mile of running on the grass/dirt/mud before I made it to Cinco Ranch.  At one point I did run on the frontage road but the cars were whipping by me so fast I got totally scared (4 feet isn't much when a car is going 60 mph) and settled on the grass/dirt/mud.  By the time I made it to Luke's Locker everyone in my group had left, my socks and shoes were SOAKED, I was beginning to get blisters, and I was covered in grass and mud.  I was SO over this run and so thankful that I made it through alive.  Note to self:  Make sure to check street signs before you randomly turn left.

Luckily Alain, our coach stayed to provide me with my chocolate milk (two cups!) as promised and asked about my run.  He always has to wait for me since I am usually the last or one of the last people to finish.  I did learn that he found my blog once and read some of the posts!  Hi Alain!

All in all it was an off day for running.  Last weekend went so great with the two races I did, but this weekend was not fun. I think I do better at actual races than I do on training runs.  I need to work on fixing that! Next weekend is another 16 miler, but I will be in Dallas so I won't make it to the training session.

14 miles, done and done.

Houston Half Marathon Race Recap

This past weekend was the most running I have ever done.  Mega mileage.  First I had 3 miles on Friday, 9 on Saturday, and then 13.1 on Sunday.  Total of 25 miles for the weekend.  Whew, I am tired!  I am so glad Mondays are rest days from marathon training, otherwise I might just collapse!

I awoke at 4:11 am on Sunday morning so I could make it to my groups meeting place at the cop shop to carpool together to the race.  Unfortunately for me, Starbucks was not open at 5 am today. :/

Four of us from my running group met at 5:15 am and then headed downtown to the Houston Half Marathon.  Of course this weekend had been unbelievably cold so it was freezing outside.  I did not want to take off my jacket!  About 15 minutes to the start I took off my jacket and checked my bag at the station, went to the rest room, then headed to the start line. 

The course took us through downtown for about two miles, then all the way out to 610 and back.  There is also a relay (which Aly and Claudia did) that stayed with us to about mile 4 then turned around.  At mile 8 or 8.5 we turned around and headed back to the post race party.  I took almost an entire bag of sports beans at mile 4 and 8ish, and lots of gatorade at the water stops.  I was proud of myself that I didn't stop running except at the water stops!!

Mile 10-13 were rough.  Mile 12-13 was the worst!  People were walking all around me but I kept on trucking.  Mile 12.5 I really wanted to stop and my pace was waaaaaaaay slow, but I kept running.  Our coach Alain said that the final part of the course was Mile 20-25 of the marathon course in January.  That will be good practice for when I need to visualize in the coming months.  Finally I saw the 13 mile sign and tried to pick up my pace, but I couldn't go much faster.  I came in, got my medal and some water, found Claudia and we waited for Aly to finish her part of the relay.

I had seen Aly on the course at Mile 10ish I thought, but apparently I saw her later.  Claudia and I went over to the food line but saw the long line and headed back to the finish line to just wait for Aly, but while we were walking back I guess she crossed the finish line and we missed her.  Finally Aly called us and we found her at our designated meeting place.  Aly and Alain had already gone through the food line so Claudia and I made our way through.  I grabbed a bagel and two longhorn bars, but I only ate the bagel.

We headed back to the car and were joking how Alain better not make us run up the parking garage inclines when we get there (which we do every Tuesday at group practice), but once we got there the stairs were locked so we did have to go up the inclines! haha.  We walked though, no more running for me!

We went to Pappasito's for brunch and I had a DOUBLE mimosas and breakfast tacos.  I could only eat one taco and some potatoes then I was too full.  I brought the rest home and ate them about 5 o'clock for dinner.

I went home and took a three hour nap, then hung out with an adorable cat that I have neglecting too much this week.  Mommy-Kitty time is the best (besides when he decides to bite me).

My final time was 2:29.39, a 11:34 minute mile average and a PR of 23 minutes from my previous half marathon.  I am getting faster!

Monster Mash 15K Race Recap

On Saturday morning at got up at the crack of dawn early to run a 9 mile race at Sam Houston Race Park, the Monster Mash 15K.  There is actually a 5K, a 10K, and a 15K all at the same time, and also later there is a short kids Candy Corn Race a bit later.  The race was organized by Onurmark Productions, who were the same people who also put on the Bridgeland Triathlon that I did in August.  I gave Onurmark much better ratings on this event because they seemed much more prepared for the crowds.

(source)

I woke up at 5 am to make sure I was on time and also so I could eat a small breakfast before I left. I of course also had to stop at Starbucks to get a Pumpkin Spice Latte if I was going to make it anywhere that early in the morning after being out late the night before.

The race started at 7:30 am so I knew I needed to be at the race park early, but once I got there I didn't want to get out of my car.  It was so cold!  I eventually got out of my car and made my way inside to the waiting area.  Thank goodness we were able to go inside and wait before the start!

They called us to the start line, sang the national anthem, and we were off!  The course started off on the horse race track for a 1.5 (ish) mile loop in the sand, then we went in the street for two loops.  I really liked how we got to go on the same track as the horses, but I hate running in sand!  Oh well, it was fun. 

The street loop took you around back to a parking lot area, to the side down a street, to the front on the frontage road, to the side, and repeat it again (for the 15Kers).  The 10Kers only did the track loop, and one loop on the street, and the 5Kers did the track loop and went out to the street for just a little bit and came back in.

I actually felt really good the entire race, each time I passed the  finish line area I wanted to turn in, but I knew that this training run would help boost my confidence to be able to run my marathon in January.  At mile 7 I decided I wanted to go faster so I picked the next person in front of me to pass and picked up my pace until I did.  They call them 'roadkills' in running, but that sounds gross so I won't call it that.  I picked off at least 7 people for sure, but I was having a hard time running at this point since I was going so fast (for me) that I really wasn't paying attention. I just picked the next person, past them, and then picked the next one. 

I was going a lot faster than my comfort zone, but I pushed through.  I kept grunting and I am sure the volunteers at the last two rest stops thought I looked crazy, but I didn't care. LOL.  I turned the final turn back into the stadium area and had the longest run to the end ever!  It was like it would never freakin' end.  I grabbed my medal and some water and headed inside.

I finished my first 15K race in 1:46.36 at at 11:22 minute per mile pace.  I think that is pretty good!  Automatic PR baby!

Afterwards I headed to the food area and grabbed a ton of goodies.  I only ate the kolache (potato and egg), carrots, tomatoes, and drank the gatorade there though.  I saved the rest and will eat it this week (minus the chips, I am not a big chip person).

Wanna see some cool race bling?!  It's a GLOW IN THE DARK ZOMBIE MEDAL!!!!!!! I love it so much, ever since I had seen it on their FB page I couldn't wait for this race.  I actually went to bed last night and came back out a few minutes later because I forgot something and all the sudden I see something glowing on my wall (it sort of freaked me out), and then I realized it was my medal. haha.  The t-shirts were also glow in the dark tech t-shirts also.

I had so much fun at this race!  It was a great race to do as a mini-long run for my marathon training.  Hopefully next year some of my friends will want to run it with me. 

Houston Marathon Training-Week 1 and 2

For my Houston Marathon training I will be joining with the Gotta Run Katy program through January.  The program is based on the Brooks Hansen Method which maxes out your running program at 16 miles but is based on fatigue.  At the height of the program we will be running 6-8 miles on Friday, up to 16 miles on Saturday, and 11 or 12 on Sunday.  Our coach, Alain wants us to be prepared for the last 16 miles of the race, so he is going make us fatigued by running so many miles within a 3 day period.  On Tuesdays and Wednesdays we will be doing strength training and track workouts plus he will bring in different experts and vendors to speak with us.

At first I was hesitant to participate in a program that maxes out the running at 16 miles (what about the next 10!) but Coach Alain (plus I Googled the Brooks Hansen Method) relieved me of my fears.  I will try and update everyone on my weekly progress as I get closer to the big day!

Weekly Breakdown (Week 1):

Saturday: I started with the program on Saturday (I joined late, some members had been doing the program for about two weeks) and Coach Alain had us run 35 minutes one way, and 35 minutes back.  I didn’t have a watch so I tried keeping up with some other members in front of me.  I covered about 5 miles in the 70 minutes we had to run.  I know that isn’t much, but for me that is a lot seeing as I haven’t run hardly at all in the past 7 months since my half marathon.  Afterwards we stretched and we had a vendor from Luke’s Locker (also a Gotta Run member) who was the manager of the shoe department speak with us about the importance of good running shoes and also the different types of shoes out there.

Weekly breakdown (Week 2):

Sunday-Met up with Gotta Run Katy at 5:45 am (but I got there late-6 am) for an early morning workout.  We were supposed to run until we got to the dam, but my friend Aly walked with another member for a total of 4 miles.  I went home and fell right to sleep, I was exhausted from the mileage the day before and staying up later than usual.  I need to get to sleep earlier when I have to be there so early.

Monday-Lunchtime workout of Strong Body Ageless Body (45 min) using 3 lb weights (need to increase the weights!)

Tuesday-off.  I switched Monday and Tuesday because I had to meet with a potential pet sitter for Jabba when I go to Honduras (and misc times throughout the year) in September.

Wednesday-Since I am still sort of training for my first triathlon I took out my bike yesterday for a short time (very short, I borrowed a fancy bike from my friend and took it out for a test run), then I ran 3 miles, then I went home and did the arms/legs portion of the Strong Body, Ageless Body DVD.  Tired!

Thursday-Rest day!!!

Friday-Restday L I was supposed to run 6 miles, but that didn’t happen since I had a last minute errand to run that took awhile. Next week I will be better about getting ALL of my workout/runs in.

Saturday-8 miles!  Coach Alain said to run 45 minutes, which should be about 8 miles.  At 45 minutes I was only estimated to complete 6 miles so instead of quitting and saying that it was ok only to do 6 miles and cop out, I completed the 8 that he said to do.  I was the last person to finish, and the group had already done the stretching portion so I stretched on my own.  Afterwards I went to Starbucks for breakfast (Iced latte and a bagel with cream cheese) and to change out of my sweaty clothes so I would be comfortable to drive to Madisonville.

What’s next?

I went ahead and took the plunge…I registered for a TRIATHLON!  The Bridgeland Triathlon on August 5th to be exact. ;)

I know, I know, bikes just about kill me but I decided that I have just over 2 months to train for this thing and I will do it!  I am actually really excited. J

Now, I will tell you that I almost didn’t register because of one detail.  They make ‘fluffy’ girls/guys go into a different category called the Athena division. :/

Now, I am sure when they created it they had a positive spin in mind.  I know that larger people can’t quite compete with the skinny witches out on the course; however it does not make you feel good to be in a different division! 

I almost didn’t register but then I decided that the race wasn’t to show anyone anything or to compete against anyone, it was to compete against myself!  Who cares what category I am in?  My goal is to finish that race strong (and get bling!).  I heart race bling. J

I have decided I am going to rock out that dumb category.  My training plan is great, but I will need to tweak it a bit because I am also going to start marathon training in mid July...YIKES! 

So you guys have to help me become more accountable with my training plan and eating healthy!!  I mean it (PLEASE!).  I will update you on the progress. 

Run, Walk, Crawl, Finish

You only get to run your first ½ marathon once, and this is my experience.  It’s a LONG post, but enjoy!

On Sunday, December 4^th, 2011 I finished the La Porte by the Bay Half Marathon over and back the Fred Hartman Bridge in La Porte, TX.  You will remember my first 5k that I ran the entire way (I had always walked before) on my 29^th B-Day.  So only 5 months later I completed a ½ marathon. If I can do it, so can you!  One of my friends Krista ran it with me (she also ran my first 5K with me). I completed a ½ marathon and I ran the entire time except at water stations and once on top of the bridge for less than 100 feet. 

Let’s back up to the day before:

I wanted to make sure I didn’t forget anything so I made a checklist.  (Yes, I am O.C.D., how did you know?).  It was filled with the things I needed to bring like my bib, body glide (love that stuff), iPod, fuel, etc.  I am glad I made it because I needed all that stuff to succeed! J

My friend Shannon made me a shirt that said I <3 Sweat and blinged it out for me with my name on the back. I loved it!

My original plan for dinner was to make pasta with tomato sauce and chicken.  I made it for lunch and it didn’t turn out very well so we decided to go to CiCi’s pizza and carbo-load.  I ate lots of pizza!

For breakfast I ate my usual bagel with sunflower seed butter and a banana. 

When Mandy got to my house she made me a glitter sign and I made a sign for Krista and Nicky (who was unable to race do to illness-get well Nicky!)

Krista texted me these signs that she made.  Love them!

Me and Krista before the race.  We look determined to finish! 

Mandy, Brooklyn, Ginger, and Tyler all left to go to mile 3 and Krista and I went to the starting area where it started sprinkling.  They sang the national anthem and counted down.  We were off!

Miles 1- 3-Nothing to spectacular happened in miles 1-2, but each mile I started to chant only 12 miles to go, only 11 miles to go, only 10 miles to go! I saw Mandy, Brooklyn, Tyler, and Ginger at Mile 3 and took a Gu and some of my Nuun from my water bottle.  I loved my signs!  I really need to work on how to take good race photos…I looked horrible and this was only at mile 3! 

Mile 4 and 5-Mile 4 was right before the bridge and guess what?  It started raining!  Yep, rain.  Boo!  Mile 5 began the ascent onto the bridge.  It was a climb!   Yes, I did get out my phone and took a pic. J

Mile 8(ish)-After one side of the bridge you went around a loop and you go back up the bridge. On the loop I ate a pack of sports beans and had some water. At the end of the loop, guess who I saw?  Santa!!!! 

Mile 10-By Mile 10 I was soooo ready to be done.  I saw the sign right after I finished the bridge and told myself it’s only a 5k, you’ve done a ton of those!  At the water station I refilled two of my water bottles with Gatorade and kept going.  I also met someone that looked like she was about to pass out.  I chatted with her a bit and asked if she needed some Gu.  I was planning on taking it myself at around mile 11, but she looked like she needed it more.  I told myself that there were pickles and oranges in my bag at the finish line, in addition to other food, and to just wait.  It started raining again about this time…hard! 

Mile 12-Mile 12 is when it hit me that I was about to finish my first ½ marathon.  Wow!  You make a goal for yourself on a list months ago and you train (and train, and train) for this one goal for months and finally you get to see it happen.  It was emotional (I’m a nerd!) and I kind of got choked up. Makes you wonder what all you can accomplish if you work on it.

Mile 13.1-I turned the corner and could see that big green inflatable finish line and I was so excited.  WOW!  Mile 12 I knew I was going to finish, but I was secretly hoping that I wouldn’t trip or something (which happens a lot), but I knew if I did I would CRAWL to that finish line.  I didn’t have to though because I saw Mandy, Brooklyn, Ginger, and Tyler about 100 feet in front of the finish line holding the signs up for me and cheering me on.  A little bit further I saw Oscar and Erika cheering, and then I saw my Dad and Pie.  I heard the announcer call my name and city as I crossed the finish line and a volunteer placed my medal in my hand.  I earned that sucker!

Immediately after I crossed my legs and knees started hurting and cramping.  Pie kept telling me to keep walking and stretch my legs, but all I wanted was water, food and to see my friends/family.  Erika and Oscar came and said congrats then had to leave pretty much right after so Erika could finish some work stuff ß I am sad that I didn’t get a picture with them. L

Then we met back up with Mandy, Brooklyn, Tyler, Krista and Ginger and found food.  At first the line was too long so I ate one of my pickles (Brooklyn ate the other one!) and Pie got me a sausage on a stick. (Super yummy!).  Then the line got shorter and I had 2 pieces of pizza and another ½ of the sausage on a stick.  I tried to eat the rice and beans but they were not good.

My official time 2:53:29, a 13:08 minute per mile average.

Pie, Dad, Me.

The after…

The medal is now hanging up on my racing bulletin board.  I need more race stuff because it looks bare. 

The Recovery Process-How do you recover from a ½ Marathon?  Take the next day off to have a Massage, eat Mexican food, and drink margaritas of course!

I had bought a Groupon for a massage a few months ago and I used it on Monday.  It felt soooo nice, afterwards I went to a Mexican food restaurant and filed up on carbs Mexican food and a margarita.  Yummy.

Final Thoughts:  I cannot wait to run another one, they are addicting!  Yes, my legs hurt, and sometimes I complained that I didn’t want to do a long run on a Saturday morning, but nothing beats the feeling of finishing a huge race.  I did run the entire way except at water stops where I didn’t wan to choke on the water or get an air bubble in my stomach and once on the bridge for less than 100 feet. 

I want to say a HUGE THANK YOU to these people for supporting me at the race:

Krista-OMG girl, you are awesome!  You have completed TWO big 30 under 30 items with me and I cannot be more grateful.  You are a ROCKSTAR my friend.  I loved <3ing Sweat with you and can’t wait to get our FULL marathon’ing on.  I will see you next at your 3^rd half marathon next month…you want a GLITTER sign right?

Ginger & Tyler-I know you mainly went support Krista, but it still means a lot to me that you cheered me on as well!  I can’t wait to cheer for YOU at the Houston ½ next month and I know you will do fantastic. 

Mandy and Brooklyn-I am so glad you came to stay with me on Saturday night and helped calm my nerves.  I loved the shopping, pizza eating, talking, and sign making that we got to do!  I know it was raining, but I hope you both had fun.  Next time I will choose one with no rain. J  Jabba says hello and can’t wait for you two to come back and visit with him (he says he promises not to be so crabby next time).

Dad and Pie-I loved seeing you out of the blue on mile 4 and mile 6.  I was expecting to see you on the other side of the bridge so it was a very nice surprise to see you when I did!  I still can’t believe that you got out of the car to cheer for me on TOP of the bridge with cars whizzing by. Lol.  Awesome.  Oh, and I loved the sign too and can’t wait to see the videos that you took.  It means the world to me that you were there!  Start planning a trip to NYC or Philly. 

Erika and Oscar-You are awesome for coming out to my first 5K and my first ½!  You guys are an awesome couple and I can’t wait to hear about your trip!  Dinner next week right?  Oh, and I forgot to order that soap!

Facebook friends-Thank you for all of your encouragement before/during/after the race.  I kept looking at my phone on the way seeking your kind words to give me encouragement before the race.  You all rock!

What’s next? Marathon baby!  That’s right!  I am going to start training for a marathon early next year and I have chosen either the Philadelphia Marathon or the New York City Marathon which are both in November of 2012.  The Philly marathon runs by some really cool landmarks including the Rocky steps (and his statue), but the NYC marathon is an epic marathon that would be awesome to race at.  The Philly marathon is where my heart is set at, but I can’t seem to get away from thinking about doing NYC.  My Aunt Tracy will be able to come to either of them (she lives in the Philly area) and my cousin Steven wants to do one with me also.  Only time will tell which one I get into!  Wish me luck. ;)

Welcome to double digit land

Saturday was my longest run that I have ever done…11 miles!  Yikes, that’s crazy talk! The week before I ran 10 miles with my friend Nicki but I was determined to go further.  I had originally planned on 12 miles per my training plan, but a few things hampered my goal.  Let’s back up first.

On Friday night I knew I would need some carbs, so my neighbor Carol and I went to Zio’s for dinner.  I ordered the spinach, olive, lemon penne pasta dish with chicken.  It was ok, I guess I was looking for more of a sauce rather than lots of lemon juice with some spices. 

I had a margarita (#17 of 30 towards my 30 under 30 list) with dinner and it tasted off.  Boo! I  <3 margaritas, but this one tasted like feet.  I think my tastebuds were off. L

 

I went home, played with my favorite cat and promptly hit the sack for an early wake up call.  My plan was to get up early on Saturday morning and leave my house by 6 am to be at my parents house by 7.  So this is what happened: 

I got up around 6 (oops) and made Jabba his breakfast, heated my breakfast while I was putting my clothes on.  I ate breakfast (leftover lemon chicken pasta) and got my running gear together.  My grandparents called and said I had a package at their house that came in the mail.  Huh?  Well, I had ordered something on ebay to use to make my outfit for my ½ marathon and for some reason it went to their house (I guess I need to change the address in my ebay account).  So that put me behind a bit also.  Finally I made it to my parents house at 8ish and me and my Mom set out on the road to Huntsville State Park. 

About 15 minutes before my run I had a gel energy packet and searched for my gps watch to keep track of my mileage.  Turns out that I left it at my parents house in my overnight bag.  BOO!  It’s ok though, I have my phone so I could just bring it and use my app.  Oh wait, my phone app wouldn’t turn on!  Ugh!  Fine.  I just downloaded a new one (which I didn’t really like) and set out.

My Mom went in the opposite direction of the trail and we would meet by the lake (my 4 miles, her 3 miles).  I started out on the trail and was immediately overtaken by 5 bike riders, then a ways down another few bikers.  It turns out there was a bike race on the teeny tiny width of the trail that I was sharing.  After almost getting run over (which walkers/runners are supposed to have the right away) I just kept turning my head any time I thought I heard a biker so I could move over. 

Trail running is really fun, you just have to be really careful for your ankles so you won’t trip on roots and soft sand though.  I got to the 1 mile marker and I thought I had gone MUCH further, lol.  Trails weave all around so the distance seems like a lot more.

I don’t like to run with things in my hand so I didn’t have a water bottle.  I didn’t have one of those water bottle belts either so I was getting really thirsty by mile 4 when I met up with my mom.  I immediately chugged water and ate some sports beans and rested about 5 minutes while we made plans to meet up again.  She was going the 4 miles (walking though) that I just ran and I was going to go the 3 she just walked (running though) and I would meet up with her at her last mile and my 8^th mile (did I just confuse you?).

I set out for mile 5-7 and I felt really good, I was getting tired but no big deal.  At mile 7 I got to the car and drank some more water and had another Gu (Black cherry flavor=disgusting).  I went back on the trail to meet up with my mom. I saw her just after the mile 1 marker (mile 8 for me) and I got some more water.  I had originally planned to run to the 2.5 mile point and turn around (5 miles + 7 miles=12 miles) but since I did not have my cool gps watch, and my newly downloaded phone app was being dumb, I just told her I would go to the 2 miles point and turn around and meet her at the car.  So 11 miles it was!

At the 2 mile mark my Mom called and said that she made a wrong turn and came out at a different spot.  She was going to walk to the car and wait for me. I told her ok and set out for my final two miles (HURRAY!).

I passed a group of guys (my, but no hotties to try and flirt with) and they asked me how far it was to the nature center (beginning of trail), at this point I was so excited to tell them that it was only 1 more mile (I had been counting down you see) and new exactly how far it was.  Every time I passed a group of people coming down the trail and they said hello, all I could say was 1 more mile.  I am sure they thought I was a sweat crazed lunatic muttering to herself, but whatever I just ran 11 miles.

At about 1 mile into my last mile I didn’t see the end of the trail that I really was desperate to see.  Hmmm?  Did I miss the turn off?  Did I really just do what I silently laughed at my Mom for doing?  It turns out I did.  I somehow managed to miss the turn off to my trail and ended on the Dogwood trail.  I promptly (out of breath) called my mom and said I am not turning around and for her to come pick me up. LOL.  I was tired! 

So, I might have technically ran more than 11 miles, but I have no idea.  My stupid new running app that I just downloaded had stopped running (plus it was in km and I don’t know how to transfer it to miles ??) and it wouldn’t turn back on.  Boo. When I got home  I promptly deleted that app from my phone. Thank you very much.

My mom picked me up and I wanted to hurl.  Around mile 9.5 I had started feeling nauseous and needed food asap.  I had brought some veggies with me to hold me over til I could eat a really substantial meal but I needed food like yesterday.

We exited and found a Whataburger, I told my mom what to order me and I quickly ran to the bathroom to throw up.  TMI:  it was all carrot bits and water.  EWWWWWW!!!

We got our hamburgers, iced tea, two extra packets of salt, and onion rings to go and I chowed down.  It probably was not the best meal to eat, but I needed salt and food in my system so I didn’t car what it was at the time.  Whataburger=Yummy!

My mom kept asking me “So, this is fun to you?  Throwing up?” LOL, yes Mom it is!  I just have to get my nutrition and water intake down pat so I will be ready for race day.   I told my Mom that the water bottle belts were like $40 and I couldn’t afford one right now so I would just get water at the water stations.  She wrote me a check for $45.  J Spoiled 29.5 year old brat?  Well yes, I do believe I am.

Fun times in the woods.  How was your Saturday?!