Happy Runniversary to Me!!!!

Hello everyone! Miss me? Ha ha. I realized that I needed to get a post up today. It is what I am considering my 4 year running anniversary (runniversary?) 4 years ago today, I laced up my shoes, and started the Couch to 5k program for the first time. Yes, I said first time. I believe it took me three times before I finally got it finished. I have learned many things throughout this journey. Hopefully this post finds you inspired to be able to do what I have done!!!

I had a routine blood test done in December 2011 which showed that my triglycerides were moderately high. I decided that I was too young to start having cardiovascular issues, and needed to do something about it. Diet and exercise, the magic pill.

So, I made the decision that I would get into better health. Running seemed to be the "easiest" and "cheapest" choice for exercise. All I needed were some tennis shoes, socks, shorts, t-shirt and sports bra. Easy, yeah right. I realized on that first run that none of this would be easy. I could barely run for 30 seconds without feeling like crap. This kept on for some time, before I finally felt good running a single mile without stopping. Oh what a feeling that was!!!

I ran sporadically that fall until I finally completed Couch to 5k. This led me to my first race. Lake Sara Dam Run 5k.

I had no idea at this point that I would run as much as I have. I had no intention on ever running anything more than a 5k at this point. Oh was I ever wrong! I have since run a 1 mile race, 5-5ks (3.1 miles), 2-10ks (6.2 miles), 1-8 miler, 2 half marathons (13.1 miles), and a full marathon (26.2 miles)!

Peachtree Road Race Start 2014

Heartland Half Marathon 2015

Lake Sara Dam Run 8 miler

Monumental Marathon 2015

I have learned many things on the roads of this little town I live in. I will try to highlight the things I have learned.

• Starting anything new is TOUGH!!! But, if you stick with it, it will get easier, and the aches and pains will go away. 
• Just because my muscles and joints may hurt occasionally when I start, after the first mile, things loosen up. It usually means I didn't stretch enough from the last run. I need to get better at stretching/foam rolling.
• Casey is FLAT!!! As in, the only hill work I get in is going over the railroad tracks. Makes it tough to prepare to run in Atlanta, or prepare for St. Louis!
• Speaking of flat, I have learned that the track at the High School is wonderful, and makes for some beautiful sunrises.
• I have also learned that said track is kind of eerie if you get there before the sun rises, and there happens to be fog. If it was up to me, I would have security lights around the track. (It's not, I checked)
• Waking up at 4 a.m. on a Saturday is not fun. Taking a nap after a long run is fun.
• It stinks that Casey shuts the park bathrooms and water fountains down in the winter. I understand why, but it doesn't make things better for me. Just because there is snow on the ground doesn't mean people don't need the bathrooms anymore.
• The best hills to run in the area are out by White Oak Church, Smithville, and Rouley's Hill. 
• The "cheap" sport I got myself into has cost me 8 pair of running shoes and numerous clothes for all different conditions. I "need" moisture-wicking clothes, reflective clothes, water-resistant clothes, a headlamp, etc. 
• I also "need" to have an expensive Garmin Forerunner 220 GPS watch that tells me distance, pace, cadence, heart rate, calories burned and I am sure more. I also "need' to have a Garmin Vivofit 2 that tells me steps per day, and also tracks my sleep.
• I have a weakness for Pro Compression Socks. As in, I might have a problem. They put out new patterns and/or colors every month. It's all I can do not to buy every pair. If you see me in long socks while running, these are it. I love them, and I feel they help with recovery very well.
• I also needed to buy a handheld water bottle, and a hydration pack. Marathon training would not have happened without it. Gotta stay hydrated while out for 20 miles!
• I also learned that I need to drink more water throughout the day. I don't hydrate enough.
• What you get out of your body depends on what you put in it. Eating crap makes me feel like crap. I had no idea until my diet changed. 
• I still enjoy crappy foods, just not as often as I used to. 
• You can't outrun a bad diet. As many calories as I burn, I will not have a 6 pack until I completely cut out the unhealthy foods out of my diet. Not ready for that, so no 6 pack for now!
• I am much tougher than I thought. Digging deep into yourself to finish a long run is tough. 800 meter repeats are tough. 8 mile tempo runs are tough. Running in the Midwest during summer is tough. Running through a blizzard is tough. Finishing 26.2 miles is tough.
• After typing "tough" 6 (now 7) times, it starts to look misspelled and sound weird
• I may not ever finish first in a race, but as long as I don't finish last, I am fine with that. 
• Non-runners believe that every race I run is a marathon. I have been asked by one person three times in the last year if I have run any marathons lately. I wish I could just pump them out numerous times throughout the year, but that is NOT HAPPENING! I don't have that much time on my hands.
• I started this blog as an accountability tool for marathon training. It is hard to find the time to post. I need to learn to make time for it.
• Last but DEFINITELY not least, I have a FANTASTIC support system. They have listened to me complain about aches and pains, about the amount of miles that I have to run the next day, and I am sure much more. Said support system has also accompanied me to my races. Leave at 5 a.m. to go to a race just to stand around and wait for me? I am definitely loved. Drive to Atlanta, GA or Jasper, IN just so I can run in a race? Done. Surprise me on marathon morning by showing up to try to see me on the course? Check. Thank you to my husband Chris, my Mom, and my Dad. Without them, I would not be able to do what I love to do.

These are just a few of the things that I have learned in these last four years. Running isn't easy, and it isn't cheap if you "need" all the expensive items. You will definitely learn a lot about yourself if you do not use headphones and just run. Use the time to look inside you and learn. Enjoy the scenery, because we live in a beautiful world that too often goes unnoticed. 

I have went on long enough. Here's to 40 more years!!!

Happy Running!

A quick update and I'm sorry!!!

Well hello there! Guess who's back? Back again (cue the Eminem).

I apologize for just abruptly stopping my blog posts! I got so wrapped up in training and work. Most people still kept up with me on Facebook, and I updated there often.

I finished my first marathon!!! I ran Indy Monumental on November 7th. My time was 5:21:23. What was more important was that I AM A MARATHONER! Only 0.5% of Americans can say that.

I will keep it brief and try to write another post on the race. I had a great first half. Fastest half marathon. Oops. I felt rough starting about mile 18 and fell apart around 22. I run/walked the rest of the race. I did manage to get enough strength to run the last half mile. Chris said I looked a lot better than most that were coming through ha ha. I was so excited that I was almost done!

He could have told me to turn my medal around

I had a surprise phone call from my dad, who had driven to Indy to surprise me! Thanks Dad! It was great having you there!!!

I decided that until I can get some speed, I am going to take a break from the 26.2 distance. I spent A LOT of time training this summer/fall. And spent lots of hours on the roads. I woke up at zero dark thirty on Saturday mornings to try to beat the heat. I ran most of my runs before work for the same reason. While I love running in the mornings, I also like to sleep!

Currently

I am currently training for my 2nd half marathon, Races for all Paces. I guess that means I need to update you on the 1st half marathon! Another day, another post. Gosh I am behind! I will be running a few local races here and there, including Lake Sara Dam run 8 mile run in April. 

I have also signed up for Rock N Roll St. Louis half marathon. I am contemplating running the 5k the day before. One to get in an easy shakeout run the day before, the second reason is for 2 more medals! If you complete the "Remix Challenge" you get a separate medal from the 5k medal. 

I am also looking at Rock N Roll Chicago in July. Chris and I haven't decided on that yet.

I wanted to keep this brief, and mainly say hi! I will try to write a few race recaps and keep you updated on my training. I felt bad making my Facebook friends see my running pics every day. But it was easier than trying to write a whole post here.

For the meantime, see you on the roads!

Happy Running!

The Long Run That Didn't Happen Monumental Training Week 7

Hi there! I'll get more into the title later but first, let's get the week wrapped up!

Monday, as usual, is track day. Lynnae had my workout as a 2 mile warm up, then 2 X 800, 2 X 400, 2 X 200 with a 1:1 rest between the intervals, then a 2 mile cool down. I thought I had figured what time I needed to get started in order to get it all in before work, but I miscalculated. So, I had to cut the cool down short.

I got my warm up miles in (11:49, 12:10) and stepped on the track. It was a VERY humid morning, think 75 degrees with 95% humidity at 5:45 in the morning. I started my intervals, and got my 800's in at a slow pace for speed work (9:12 pace for both). Those were tough, I'm not gonna lie. Then I started with my 400's and finished the first in 1:54 (8:44 pace). When I was halfway through the second, I thought I was going to get sick (I didn't). I walked for about 10 seconds, then finished in 2:11. The 200 was quicker, which is the intention. I finished in 0:52 and 0:50 (6:41 pace average). I pushed myself and again, felt sick. And again, didn't happen. I know it was just from pushing so hard on the intervals combined with the heat and humidity. I got a quick drink, and started my cool down miles. I looked at the time, and realized that I did not have enough time to get both in, stretch and recover, and get ready for work on time. So, I ran .8 miles for a cool down, and called it a day. Total miles for this workout - 5.37

When I got home and looked at my splits, it made me happy that I was able to push that hard at the end of my workout! What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and I can tell the track is doing that for me! Life happened, and I didn't get a strength workout in Monday after work.

Tuesday morning, I did a Yoga with Adrienne video, specifically hips and hammies in her weight loss series. It felt great, and was just what I needed to stretch out my legs.

Wednesday morning, I headed out for 5 miles. I was to do 1 mile easy, 3 miles at threshold pace, 1 mile easy. My warm up/easy mile was 12:15, then I  ran 10:24, 10:04, and 10:02 for my 3 miles. My cool down was 12:30. I didn't bring music, didn't stop for water, and kept my breathing in check so that I didn't have to stop during my 3 miles. It was a great run!

I was lazy Thursday, and only foam rolled a little bit.

Friday was 4 easy miles plus strides. It was hot and humid and I slowed as the run went on. Splits were 11:01, 11:34, 12:05, and 12:48. I did 6 strides to finish with 4.78 miles.

On a non-running note, Friday night, I was inducted into the Casey Softball Hall of Honor! I join a wonderful group of athletes (male and female) who have helped shape Casey softball to the powerhouse that it is.

Now on to the long run. I signed up to play in a slow pitch benefit tournament to help the 14u Illiana Dream Seams get to Nationals. I should have know that I would be playing the 8 a.m. game. I decided to push my run to Sunday, so I didn't have to get up and out the door at 3 a.m. to get my 9 miles in and recover before playing. It was a cutback week, but I still had to leave super early for softball. I ended up playing in 7 games, over the course of 15 hours, and we got 2nd place.

I woke up Sunday with every muscle in my body screaming at me to stop moving! Holy moly am I sore! I went to breakfast with mom, decided that the run couldn't happen, and went back to sleep. I felt guilty for a little while that I didn't get it in, but decided that if I could barely move my legs, there was no way I was going to be able to run 9 miles and have an effective workout without injury. I took a rest day and foam rolled.

Except for Wednesday, this was a crappy week. I shorted myself over a mile in Monday's run, and didn't get the long run in at all. Hopefully this is the last training run missed. This is the reason I decided that I wouldn't be playing much in fall league. My marathon is my priority, and I cannot miss another run because I have softball. I know I will miss it, but I need a break. I've played every year for the last 5 years, I believe. Time to shift into marathon mode and kick this coming week into high gear!

Total weekly miles - 15.15
Total Monumental miles - 127.72

Happy Running!

Monumental Training Week 6

Another week is in the books! Race day will be here before I know it! Only 18 weeks to go! So let's get with it, shall we?

The track workout for Monday was a ladder workout. I ran a 1.6 mile warm up (it was supposed to be 2, I cut it short), then had a ladder of 800, 400, 200, 200, 400, 800 with a mile cool down. My recovery between intervals was a 1:1 this workout. My warm up took me about 20 minutes, then it was down to work.

My first 800 was 4:28. I immediately knew it was going to be a tough day. Then, the 400 came out 1:58, and the 200 in :55. I was starting to feel good! My next 200 matched the previous at :55, then my legs started feeling very sluggish. The next 400 was 2:09, and the 800 was 4:42. Not even close to my previous splits. I didn't eat before the run, and I think I just ran outta fuel. My cool down 1.03 was in 13:18. I went the extra .03 to get me to an even 5 miles. I am obsessive about not stopping when it is that close! Anyone else like that?

I got in a strength workout after work. That's two weeks in a row! Let's see if I can keep this going! I worked on core, glutes, and arms. Gotta keep balanced!

I met with Lynnae on Tuesday to go over questions, and look ahead to the next month. We updated my paces, and talked about improvements.

Wednesday was a 5 mile hill workout. I picked a completely different route than I'm used to. Usually I get about 30 feet or so of total climb running through town. Flat as a pancake Casey is not good for hill training. I also ran in the evening instead of my normal morning run. Luckily, it was a cool grey day, so it wasn't bad at 5 p.m.

I didn't worry about my pace during the run. It worked pretty well! My splits were 10:42, 10:46, 10:28, 10:44, and 11:18. My legs were tired toward the end, but I kept pushing down the hills as per the workout. The uphills were done easy, well as easy as hills can get. Total climb - 226 feet, total drop - 232 feet. More than my last hill run, and I like this route better!

I didn't do yoga, or roll on Thursday. And I could tell during Friday's run. My left hip and my right glute were both tight. No pain, just tight. I walked a lot, and ended up stopping at 3.21 miles instead of 4 plus strides. I didn't want to push it when my body wasn't feeling it. Especially since I had 11 miles to do the next day.

I woke up super early Saturday to get my miles in. I drank some water, ate a banana, and set out on my run. It was muggy, and I struggled. Miles 1-4 were 11:03, 12:41, 12:18, and 12:17. At that point, I walked to take my gel. The next miles were 13:45, 12:05, and 15:04. I was ready to be done. Lots of singing happened to try to take my mind off how much farther I had to go. I took another gel, and ticked my last four miles off in 12:32, 13:47, 12:03, and 13:53. I was relieved to be done. I stretched, took an ice bath, and got in a 30 minute nap before the rest of my day commenced.

Overall, it was a crappy week. No yoga, and only one strength day. Gotta get on that cross-training! The hill run was the only run I felt good about. That, and the fact that I just kept of going on Saturday, even though I wanted to stop. I know that these miles in the humid Illinois summer will make my training in the fall feel easier.  I'm looking forward to next week, which will bring my first tempo run on Wednesday.

Total weekly miles - 24.28
Total Monumental miles - 112.57

Happy Running!

Monumental Training Week 5

Well hello, hello!

Week 5 is in the books! It was definitely a rough week. I had two 5+ mile runs before work. Not something I'm used to doing. Usually, I would run 3-4 miles tops before work. That won't work for marathon training.

Monday is track day. This week, Lynnae had me complete a 6 X 400, 1:2 recovery, with a 2 mile warm up, and 1 mile cool down. I got my warm up in (12:58, 15:17). I had to walk a few times, my legs were sore from my long run Saturday. I also stopped at the office for water before hitting the track. My 400 splits were 1:56, 1:58, 2:02, 2:01, 2:06, 1:59. My cool down mile was ran in 11:49. The workout would have had me stop at 5.93, but I had to round it off to make an even 6. I am loving the track, even though it is tough. And man was this workout tough. But I do know the tough workouts will pay off in November.

I went to the gym after work to get in some strength training. I've been slacking on it, and decided that Monday's after work, is when I will get that done. It's now penciled in the schedule. My coach didn't write in strength training, but suggested that I do it, of course. I have also penciled in a longer yoga practice on Thursdays. And have been doing an 18 minutes of yoga for runners when I feel tight in the evenings. We will see how well I stick with it. Keep me accountable if you don't see me mention it!

Tuesday was a rest day, but I did foam roll, and a little yoga. My legs were tight from Monday, and my glutes were sore. Holy squat! I definitely need more of them in my life.

Wednesday was a bad day. I had 5 miles scheduled. I woke up to an upset stomach, but went out after it settled. The workout was a mile warm up, 5 X 2:00 hard, 2:00 easy recovery, finish easy. My legs were still sore and tight from Monday. My first mile was a sluggish 13:44. I proceeded to do the prescribed workout. After the 4th set, I realized that I had not set up my Garmin correctly. I re-started my watch, and took off. I looked down at some point, and my watch had turned off!!!! CRAP! When it came back on, it was still in the workout, so I started my cool down then. I finished in 1:00:30.

I came home, stretched and refueled. I felt horrible, and ended up taking a sick day. I spent the day relaxing and hydrating.

Thursday flew by, and I only got 20 minutes of yoga in. I intended to do a longer practice, but I will take what I can get.

Friday's workout was 3 miles with strides. I ended up finishing right at 4 miles at a very slow pace. I walked too much on this one.

Saturday was my first double digit run of the training cycle. I woke up early, drank some water, ate a banana, and went out the door. I wore my hydration pack again, and brought Nuun in a bottle.  I went a new route, got snagged up by bridge construction, and had to turn around and go 2.5 miles back the way I came. I hit my halfway point before I even got into town. I took a gel around mile 4, and again around mile 7. I felt great, and my fastest mile was my last. My second half of the run was over 5 minutes faster than the first half! I don't think I've ever done that on a long run. I finished in 2:01:57, 12:11 pace. My moving time was 1:56:31, which means I was stopped for 5 full minutes during my run. I don't count moving time, only the total time. It won't count on race day. It is handy to see though. My actual average pace was right on where I was supposed to be. All in all, it was a great run! I drank more Nuun than water. It was a humid one out and I was sweating like crazy!

When I finished, I drank some water and chocolate milk, stretched and rolled, soaked my legs in the tub-cold water with a little ice. I ate a peanut butter and banana sandwich. Then it was off to watch the parade and enjoy the 4th, complete with a fish dinner at the park. Not the best recovery food, but it tasted pretty darn good!

Weekly mileage - 25
Total Monumental mileage - 88.29

Happy Running!

Wednesday Wrap Up Monumental Week 4

So I think I've settled in with how I will update the training. I plan on posting a weekly update, hopefully on Tuesday. I forgot to review this yesterday, so it's up on a Wednesday this week. I may still post through the week, and then link up in my weekly training post. My training plan that my coach came up with is 23 weeks long. It started on a Friday, since we met on a Wednesday. It's an odd number, but I like it! This past week was a good one, capped by a great 9 miles on Saturday. To catch you up, in case you haven't read, here are my previous posts:

Welcome to KZ Runner Week 1 (and Monday and Tuesday of Week 2)

Training Tuesday Week Week 2 (and Monday of Week 3)

Training Tuesday Week Week 3 (and Monday of Week 4)

Finally Friday Week Week 4 minus the long run

So the only run I need to update on is Saturday's long run.

I went to bed at 9:15 Friday night to prep for the early wake up. I didn't drink coffee before heading out, but I did take a gel. I'm using Carb Boom energy gels for fueling, since that is what is on the race course. I like it! It is pureed fruit, so it is more natural than other gels. I had to wear my arms sleeves with my tank top for the first 3 miles. It was cool compared to my previous runs, but felt nice! My legs were still a little sore from Wednesday's hills, so the first 2 miles were tough. I finally got settled in, and trucked along.

I stopped at my aunt's house for about 15 seconds since she was outside. I didn't need water this time, I brought my own in my UltrAspire pack. I also brought a small amount of Nuun in my handheld bottle and tucked it in one of the pack's pockets, and another gel. I took said gel about a half mile down the road. I alternated water and Nuun every other mile. As I went along, my legs felt stronger.

I didn't want to loop back around on roads I had ran earlier, so I headed out of town, and came back in on the highway. This was my first time running on the highway. I wanted to run on the left, as I normally do. There is a hill coming into town, so I decided that was a bad idea. So I just took my headphones out, and paid very close attention. I only encountered a few cars, and I survived! I put my headphones back in, only had about a quarter mile to go, and the headphones died. So I put them in my pack, and finished strong on my own! 9 miles down!

I ran what I do believe is my fastest 10k in this run 1:12:25. Peachtree Road Race one year ago was 1:12:59.  I also ran this only 20 seconds slower than my 8 mile run last week. Carrying my own water made a difference (so did the absence of morning coffee). Plus, I barely stopped, just kept trucking along. This run felt great!

I had a family reunion on Saturday, and had to prepare the dessert I took, Chocolate chip - cherry blondies. I stretched and foam rolled. Not as much as normal, though. I did get in a 25 minute nap. My legs were sore on Sunday. I foam rolled to try to loosen them up. I also got to witness my best friend get baptized on Sunday! Congratulations Ericka!

Weekly mileage - 20.08
Total Monumental mileage - 63.29
Total June mileage (2 runs before training started, plus Monday's run) - 76.45

Here's to another week of training!

Happy Running!

Finally Friday!

Woo hoo! It's the weekend! Which for me means I have a family reunion on Saturday, Chris is working both Saturday and Sunday at varied hours and 9 miles on tap!

The Rue family reunion is Saturday. My great grand-parents had 13, yes 13, kids. This makes for some large family gatherings! As you can imagine, the family is scattered throughout the country, so not everyone can be there every year. We do love getting to see who we can, when we can! Attendance helps for me, since the reunion is in Casey.

This year will be a little bittersweet. Since the last reunion, 2 of my grandpa's brothers, Rodney and Tony, passed. This year will be a year of remembrance, and also story-telling. New memories will be made, and lots of food will be consumed! My great-grandma was THE BEST cook, so we celebrate the way she would, with a FEAST! I will earn all those calories with the 9 miles that are in store in the morning.

Updates since we last spoke

I took a rest day on Tuesday. It was wonderful. On Wednesday, I was supposed to run 4 miles on a hilly course, pushing up the hills. I thought of the hilliest area I could run to in those 4 miles and headed that way. I had to dodge road construction, and change course, but got in a hill workout. When I changed course, I ended up running up a decent hill. I went on for about 3/4 mile, turned around, and ran up that hill 2 more times. Nothing too hilly, climbed 83 feet according to my Garmin (elevation chart looks worse than 83 feet). The run itself felt great, and I did a great job of pushing myself going up every hill. The next hill run is 5 miles, and I think I know just where I am going.

Although I stretched and foam rolled, I am sore from the hills. My muscles just aren't used to pushing me up hills. I probably need to do some squats. I have yet to dedicate time to strength train, so it's not getting done. I need to pencil it in my schedule, so that it gets done. I did 30 minutes of yoga yesterday, and rolled some more.

This morning, I headed out for 3 easy miles with strides. It was cooler, but very muggy. The first mile was tough, as my legs were just getting loose. The second mile felt better, and the third was downright hard. I wasn't sure how I would do during the strides. It was nice looking and seeing 4:37 as my best pace! On tired, sore legs nonetheless! The ending of the run, made the toughness of the run that much better. That's the wonderful thing about running, you develop amnesia, ha!

I'm going to roll again tonight, and go to bed early for that wonderful 4:30 alarm! Gotta beat the sun! (And take a nap before the reunion)

Happy Running!