It’s My Fairytale!

So, I have been trying some visualization. Running the marathon in my mind, having a good time, not dying, not being in pain, not crying, not quitting…just running with Mel and waving at the crowd, leaping for joy every once and a while, a rose flies at me,  maybe I am winning?! Oh yes! I am winning!  Go ahead, close your eyes…see? I’m waving to you! You’re cheering for me, “GO!! Amanda! Great job!! Almost there!! (nope, scratch that. Don’t say that, especially since this is mile 10 or something). Looking strong! Are you even sweating?!” It’s foggy, like a whimsical haze, but the sun is shinning and sparkling, reflecting off of all the shiny Vegas things around me. My lip gloss is shimmering, my legs are tan (I have no idea, just go with it people, ok). My marathon outfit is smoking! I am looking groovy!

(Ok, back to the important running part) I am having a good time, my legs are fresh and not tired or sore. My shoes are light as feathers, my socks are dry and perfect, no blisters, my shoulders are relaxed, arms are loose. My neck is not cranked downward, like in Portland where I was watching every step land in water puddles and rivers. My eyes are upward, I am looking at the crowd, the scenery, the people! I find inspiration in all the people around me, running, just like me. I am with my people, others of like mind and will. I come up on a runner who is tired and dragging.  Mel and I encourage her, tell her she is awesome! And after today she will be a MARATHONER! One of a few! A special cat! She perks up, and looks like a new person. Our work is done and we continue on….we have a marathon to run too.

The huge sign for Mile 25 is ahead! What? Already? Can’t be! I feel so great! I don’t want it to end! I feel like a rock star with all the people cheering for me! I think I even saw my name on a poster! Mel and I smile at each other, the glisten in our eye some would call straight up NUTS! The way we are enjoying this, the challenge, defeating the beast that is 26.2, not a beast today. Not this time! The marathon is mine! I came. I ran! I CONQUERED!! Mile 26 sign is there, just steps ahead! The last .2 which has felt like a mile in the marathons past is but a step! It is there, within reach!

The finish sign says “YOU ARE AMAZING! YOU ARE STRONG! YOU ARE A MARATHONING MOTHER!”  Mel and I finish, hands clasped, arms raised! Tears sting my eyes, but not tears of sadness but tears of joy and pride. Tears of accomplishment. Above all hardship we raised above and we said, “We will do this.” And we did. Mel ran an awesome race to honor her dad, and you could feel the calm pride surrounding us. 

Now, hopefully come Sunday afternoon I can just repost this as my race recap. =) Off to finish packing and finish up some last minute work stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me, The Hubs and LB were in Vegas just over a year ago for Breaking Pace’s wedding. I remember after my run  in Vegas (read about it HERE) I said to my aunt, “Maybe I’ll be back next year to do the Rock n Roll marathon.” I wanted to, it was a just a thought at the time. I hadn’t even run one yet! And now look!  Marathon #3 in less than 48 hours!  Holy smokes!!! Woooooo Whoooo!!

Can’t wait to see Mel and hang out, have a good time…and kick some Marathon Bootie!!

 

See you all in Vegas since I know you ALL are coming to cheer us on. I know because I just saw you in my fairytale…

It’s all in my head…

The pain in my leg.

The cinder block shoes.

The sandpaper socks.

It’s all in my head.

The tightness in my calf.

The tingling in my toes.

The tired legs.

Please tell me it’s all in my head….

The hammering on my heal.

The pulling of my hammy.

The achy knee.

Over and over again…

It’s got to be ALL IN MY HEAD!

3.58 Miles today and it was not fun.

It’s all in my head, right? Taper madness is no joke!  It has me, big time. I need some positive visualization in a serious way. Maybe I can work on some meditation tonight. I’ll let you know how that goes.

I have realized lately that it takes me about 3 miles to warm up. That’s not necessarily bad in a race  that is 13.1 miles or more. But for a 5k, not so good. Guess I need to start warming up before races. Heck, I should even warm up before training runs. What a concept!

I got a sweet new jump/speed rope. It says 12 min a day 5 days a week will burn almost 700 calories. After Vegas I am beginning some wicked cross training. I am pretty excited for the change up.  And in case you need an excuse to change it up a bit you should check out this article by Runner Dude HERE. He spells it out for us in simple terminology and easy to understand verbiage. Essentially, muscle burns fat throughout the day whereas running, well it only burns while you are actually running. So while I’m running  for 4 1/2 hours, like I will be doing next Sunday, I will be burning fat/calories. But once I stop, so does the caloric burn and then I am STARVING and need to refuel with an entire pizza (or the like). Point is muscle burns fat and I am getting soft people. I need to hit the weights and lean up.

Have you all been thinking about what is next for you in 2011? What is your course? Will it include long races? Short races? No races? Weights? Cycling? Swimming? Yoga? Zumba?  What do you want to accomplish in 2011?  I hope to reveal my big plans for 2011 soon!!

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly…

So there are good, bad and ugly things I need to get off my chest.

The Good

Today is the Seattle Marathon and Half Marathon! I have a few friends running and I know they will do great!

I have run 835.75 miles in 2010!

Less than one week until I am in Vegas hanging out with Mel-Tall Mom and AN the RB! I can’t wait!

One week until Marathon #3!! 

The Bad

I am not running previously mentioned Seattle Half Marathon. I love, or loved to hate, that race. The first year I ran it (2008) I  thought it was awful. But with a year of half marathon experience behind me, in 2009 I felt confident I could tackle it, again. I did. And now in 2010 I want to tackle it again. But I can’t.

I have run only 835.75 miles in 2010. I know that is a lot of miles but it isn’t 1000. I know I have a lot to look back on and be proud of (like three marathons in one year) but I wanted to run 1000 miles in one year. I had a few set backs throughout the year where my monthly mileage was quite low. And I know that the best thing for me was to hold back and not risk injury, illness or worse.  So, in order to hit my 1000 mark I need to run 164.25 miles in the next 34 days. Can it be done? I don’t know. Maybe. That is 4.83 miles per day.  But, subtract my marathon that leaves me with 4.18 miles per day to hit 1000 miles in 2010. I guess I have a new goal (this should go under Ugly).

In one week I have Marathon #3. I feel slow, out of shape, sore, tired and have a huge lack of confidence. I also got a text from Pam telling me the 10 day forecast calls for rain. In Vegas. What the heck? Why do I have a rain cloud following me? Well, lets hope the weather changes up a bit and we have a dry day to run 26.2 miles!

The Ugly

I have gained some weight since, since I don’t know when exactly. I t just kind of crept up on me, like a bad guy in the dead of night. Ok, that may not be entirely true. I knew it was creeping up on me I could feel it. Kind of like I looked over my shoulder, saw it, mocked it, and dared it to come and try. It did. It won. I lost…so here I am heading into Marathon #3 with about 14 pounds more than I had in OKC marathon and about 4 pounds more than Portland (rough estimate). I need a change and I need to make I quick. It’s an ugly situation to find yourself in. Ugly.

I have to run approximately 4.8 miles every day for the next 34 days if I want to hit 1000. I don’t feel like running today. Ugly.

Yesterday I ran 8 miles. It felt like 20. I was tired.  I was bored. Annoyed. It was rough. It was only 8 miles. Ugly.

Well, I’m off to hang with the Fam. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

Thanksgiving….

I need a Turkey Trot or something. There is so much good food to be eaten and I think I will enjoy it SO much more if I get a workout in before hand. The Hubs is out on one of his mountain biking adventures and when he gets back I’ll head out for a short run. Last night LB actually rode his bike beside me as I ran! He was a little bit slower than  I would have liked but it is a start! I am pretty excited for him to get a little stronger so that he can go faster than a 10 min pace. I will say I was sub 8 at times keeping up with him on long declines! It was a good interval workout: fast, slow, slower, fast, slow, fast, slower……now if only he could ride 10 miles or more!

**Begin Random Thanksgiving Chatter**

Yesterday was spent in the kitchen baking pumpkin pie, pecan pie, cranberry sauce, green beans and wheat berry salad. My house smelled delicious! I love Thanksgiving! I love the smells in the house and the buzz about the room when the turkey is almost done!

Before I grew up and moved away Thanksgiving was always spent with family. My first Thanksgiving away from home I was living in Monterey, CA. My first roommate from college was living in Hollywood so I jumped in my car and drove the nearly 6 hours down Highway 1 to spend the holiday with her. She was the closest thing I had to family within 1500 miles. I was thrilled to spend the day with her. We went to a restaurant and I can’t even tell you what kind it was, other than it was pretty good.  I remember the feeling of missing my family and I know Annie was missing hers too. But we had each other. I have found, over the years since that first Thanksgiving away from home, that Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday to spend with friends who stand in as family when you need them. Being a military family we learn to make nice, I mean make friends and care for them as if they are family. I have come to enjoy the holidays that I get to spend with my friends, those who are usually in the same situation, away from their own families.

Today we are going to Breaking Pace’s house.  I remember the first Thanksgiving we spent here in NC. I believe her husband came to our house for that holiday. This was in 2004 and I had just found out I was expecting LB. We had about 10 people, all family-less, sharing the occasion with us. I think it is pretty cool that now we are going to their house to celebrate.  And lets face it, if you be home then be the next best place: with good friends!

I have a lot to be thankful for over the last year. I also have a lot to try to keep in a positive perspective, the negative things. The things that I don’t understand and ask Why? about. The things that scare me or make me sad.  There are a lot of emotions for me around this time of year…and I have to focus on the good things and be thankful for that.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you have a wonderful day! And take a few minutes to reflect on what you are thankful for! And if you can, hit the road for a pre or post turkey trot or turkey walk or turkey bike ride or turkey snow shoeing (for my friends in the PNW!!)!

 

Gobble gobble gobble!!

Know Your Course….

…literally and philosophically.

When I ran cross country in High School one of the things we always had to do, without fail, was walk the course before the start of the race. Today it hit me, in HS I just thought it was part of our torture, part of the ploy to make teenagers suffer, get up earlier than necessary, and to warm up. But today, I realized the true importance of walking the course before you run it in a race. I have my neighborhood figured out, already. It’s not hard when you can only squeeze 3.64 miles out of it by hitting every cul-de-sac and street. But it has some nice little inclines and declines. When I was running with the Hubs, the time I ran as fast as I could (HERE), I decided to use the hills to my advantage. I new where to turn around and how to use the downhills to bring my pace down, and where the incline was and how long that hill was and just how to run it so that I could use it all to my advantage.

Sure I have driven courses before but really that was just so that I could see it and get a feel for it, but never to study it. To analyze it. To create a plan of attack. To strategize! Now I don’t really think I would truly study 26.2 miles and try to optimize the up and downhills. Lets be honest, I am just trying to survive. But for 13.1 or less I think knowing the course is crucial, critical to doing your best (I am sure it is for a race of any distance but I am just not there yet for longer race strategizing) ! I have never looked at a course map before a race, except to see the over all elevation or over view of the ups and downs, but I have never looked at it and thought about how I would use the downs or prepare for the ups. I never really thought about it. All I knew was that there was a 1 in a jillion chance I would be first and leading the pack, so I didn’t need to know the route. But now, now I know better. It is more that leading the pack, it is about using every inch of a course to your advantage! I am so ready to begin racing shorter races and improve my overall racing strategies, fitness and pace. But for now I will study the 26.2 miles that is the Vegas course. Let’s see if it helps.

As for knowing your course philosophically, what is your course? Where are you headed? Where has your running taken you in 2010? Where will it take you 2011? What has it pulled you out of or gotten you into? For me, when I think of my course I envision a nice sail boat on the open water, going wherever it is the wind takes me. I can put my sails up or take them down…I can drop my anchor or I can follow a set course…

image taken from HERE

Last double digit run…..

…FOREVER.

 

 

PSYCHE!!!!!

 

NOT!

 

GOTTCHA!

 

Just joshing ya!

Today was my last double digit run before Rock n Roll Las Vegas! Two weeks until I toe the start line of my third marathon! WOW! This time last year I was getting ready for my redemption at the Seattle Half. I had dreams of a full marathon one day, but only dreams…I had no idea that by this time a year later I would be getting ready for my THIRD full marathon! What? That is nuts! I am nuts! And I wouldn’t have it any other way!

Looking back over the last year, running has gotten me through so many hard times, stressful times, emotional times. It feels like this last year has actually been 5 year when I think of all the life-changing events that have happened, no one should ever experience this much in one year, ever. Either way, running has kept me grounded and sane. Having a marathon on the calendar meant that I couldn’t worry about other stuff, there was no time. Nothing like 26.2 miles to keep you going. You cannot procrastinate your way to a 26.2 mile race. Unless you have a death wish. A death wish….yeah, at times I wondered if that very wish was what kept me running. But now I see it is exactly the opposite. Running kept me going, kept a smile on my face, kept me grounded and kept me getting out of bed.   But, all this is for my Year End Review post. I’m jumping ahead of myself…

So, today’s run was, er…interesting to say the least. I met my friend Breaking Pace and she came sans bike! She wanted to run! Wooo who! I ran the first three miles with her and it was nice to have a conversation and a running buddy. We made plans for Thanksgiving and finalized the menu (we will be spending Thanksgiving with her and her hubby and her fur babies this year). She is ready to get into running shape and has signed up for a race in December! I haven’t signed up yet but plan to! The mere thought of a 5k or even 10k gave me butterflies! I am ready to 1) Run my first North Carolina race 2) Run as fast as I can for a short distance and see how I can do!  I am ready for a change up in my training.

After our 3 miles together, Breaking Pace headed home to be with her pup who had a pretty gnarly surgery on her hind leg Friday. I continued on to finish up 10-12 miles. So, this is certainly TMI and if you are easily grossed out then just go ahead and end here. I got about 5 miles out and had to go to the bathroom. Now I’m not talking #1, that is easy. Find a tree. A bush. A deep ditch. Whatever, no biggie. I HAD to go bad, like #2. I could feel that I needed to go, I didn’t go before I left home. I drank coffee, which usually speeds up the process but not today. I woke up too late. So I just couldn’t close the deal before leaving. Great. I was expecting this. I knew the kids would be begging to be dropped off at the pool.

Anyway, I had a my sights set on the restrooms at the park on the Air Force base where I have been doing my long runs. It was a ways away (about 5 miles) but I had no choice. I kept running.

I decided to take out my phone and show you all my new running grounds. Plus, I thought that airplane on the tarmac looked like Air Force One. I now it wasn’t’, I saw the commotion Air Force One could make when it came to this post back in 2005. Today was quiet and calm…

So I kept running. I tried to run fast just to get to the facilities faster. But then I saw this:

I just had to to take a picture. The colors are so brilliant, so RED! The trees here this time of year are beautiful!

 

 

 

 

 

I tried to take my picture with the tree but as you can see, my   phone distorted it something awful.

 

 

 

 

I ran on, I had about 4 miles to the bathroom…I was in a serious way. I had to begin a walk/jog with about 1 mile to the bathrooms so I could, well control the issue. It was awful. I finally made it and…well, the rest is history. I ran the final 1.3 miles back to my car and finished with 10.53 miles for the day. I had wanted to hit 12 but 10.5 would have to suffice.

So, lesson here is that I need to get up earlier so that my breakfast goes down and my coffee has time to do it job. I woke up late, too late. I have been staying up too late all week and getting up early every day (I know, waaaah wah WAH. Cryin’ you a river here folks).  But that is the case.

Two weeks left. Have I done enough? Has my training been sufficient? I don't know. Call it taper madness but I am worried. But not too worried to back out (Insert evil grin here).

Finally, I have to say THANKS to Jessica for sending this awesome care package! One would think I was deployed to the dessert…but I’m not. I just have awesome friends!!! Which is more than I can say about myself in regards to The Track Coaches Adorable Wife….yes, I still have your shirt! I am SO sorry! And no, I haven’t been wearing it. I will mail it to you, I promise!!!!

   THANKS JESSICA and KATIE!!!   

   You guys are totally tubular!!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

And to close: I miss Washington.

3 Words…

My. Knee. Hurts.

I don’t know why. I don’t know what. I don’t know how. I know nothing aside from it hurts. I feel pain.

I’m not really worried.  More perturbed than anything.

I am RICE-ing….with an added N-SAID.

Of course my knee hurts.

Why wouldn’t it? I’m tapering.

I’m cranky. Maybe I need a snack. Maybe a little chocolate will work wonders on my knee.

V is for:

VEGAS!

First of all….Tall Mom The Amazing has graciously volunteered to be my chaperone in Vegas come to Vegas and RUN the marathon with me!!!! Can you all say “Super Duper Excited!!!!”? I am beyond pumped! I am also a little in shock, I just can’t believe she is willing to come and meet me and run with me and…on the other hand it IS Vegas and my Race- At-The-Last- Minute style is contagious. Although I never booked a flight and flew to another state to run a race on a whim, she’s got me beat there. Either way, it is going to be off the hook! Off the chain! Totally tubular! Watch out Vegas!!  I have always wanted to be a Show Girl…maybe they will have recruiters at the expo or the even the water stations…You think?

Ok, second.. Chaffing.

I have been suffering from chaffing lately:

  

Do you see it? The pics don’t do it justice. I wore the WRONG bra on my 18 miler and I am paying for it now. And so another one goes in Not-To-Be-Worn-Over-10-Miles pile.

I have heard, you know, from a friend of a friend (not ME of course)  about chaffing…you know…

…down there?

 

Talk about OUCH! Man! How does that even happen? Ok, I know how it happens  technically, but not really and more importantly how do you prevent it and treat it?

Lastly, I had a good three miler today. Last week I ran three with The Hubs and I had to run fast just to stay in his dust cloud. He physically cannot run slow (and he thinks my 8:30 + pace is slow) so I had to work hard to run AFAP (as fast as possible).  Well today, I ran with T-N HizzO….a friend of The Hubs who is staying with us until he can find a house here. It was nice to have a running buddy, even if he did tell me, “You make a lot of noise when you run.” Um, old running buddies, do I? I don’t think so. He said my feet sounded heavy. How can I use that information to improve? Um, is it possible to run lighter?

Stats for today’s run:

3 .09 miles---- 27:26    8:50  min/mile

And lastly, now I am no foodie but I am super stoked to tell you that I made bagels! That’s right, I made home made  bagels! And they were DEEEEEElish! So now I don’t have to search the town over looking good, fresh bagels! I can make my own!

Now, off to chilax!