3 Weeks In!

Well folks, I'm about three weeks into post-knife training.  It really is amazing how fast you lose it...not that I really had that much to lose haha!

I was in computrainer earlier this week and I was killing it! Or at least I thought I was until I looked up and saw the pitiful example of watts I was putting out.  I really just had to shake my head and laugh.  A "WTF" or two may have escaped as well, but I assure you they were good hearted WTFs.

No, this is not me.
My toe stand is much more
entertaining.

It can get a little frustrating, I won't lie.  I say at least once a day, "I can't wait to get my legs back" or "I'd like to regain at least 2 of my 4pk" or "What the hell happened to my lungs?"  As frustrating as it is, it's fun at the same time.  I really am having a blast.  It's a little liberating starting back at square one.  It's like a whole new adventure and I keep surprising myself; trying things I wouldn't normally do and doing things I didn't think I could.
Things like this ------------------->

Now, mine doesn't quite look like this, but I think I am almost there.  I just need to get one more hand up off the floor
And then there is that whole getting-back-up part....

It's not sustainable yet, but it looks like I may have gained a little speed somewhere along the way.  I see glimpses of it in my run/walk intervals Coach Sarah has had me doing.  Now, if I could just run a mile without stopping......

We'll see what I can sustain.  My first "race" back is the last race in the Summit Racing Series this Saturday night, the Twilight 5K benefiting Movember.  I'd say I'm firing at about 85% right now, so this will be a nice gauge of what I'm able to do, or not do, whatever the case may be.

What I'm really excited about?  Papi Queso Food Truck will be there grilling up thee most remarkable specimens of grilled cheese sandwiches known to man.

Oh, and truffle chips.
Can't forget about the truffle chips.
Almost as good as tater tots.
Almost.

Race Recap - Cupid's Cup 5k

This past weekend, I left my two-exit bubble and ventured into the Queen City to race a 5K.  This was actually supposed to take place the day after Valentine's Day, but due to the Snowpocolypse the event was pushed out a week.

Coach Sarah had this race distance on my training schedule.  Some folks asked me why did she want me to do a 5K.  I don't really know.  What I do know is I do whatever Coach Sarah tells me to!  But, if I had to fathom a guess, I'm thinking she wanted to do a little time trial to see what kind of speed I had. It's been awhile since I've gone all out, more than a year actually, so I'm guessing she was curious to see where I was and to see if the workouts she's been giving me are giving us the results we want.  Makes sense in my head anyway!

So, after a restless night and an early wake up call, I inhaled my English muffin and peanut butter then rushed to make my beasties their breakfast and herded them out the door for their morning poo, (Yes. I just said poo.  Get used to it, because my life's schedule seems to now revolve around when my dogs need to poop.  My new tagline should read "a chronicle of mis-adventure within the world of running, triathlon.....and dog poo) and then was on my way to Charlotte.

I met up with some fantastic ladies I work with that happened to be doing this race as well, huddled around the outdoor space heaters to keep warm until the start.  We took our time to line up.  This was actually the first time that I had the nerve to line up closer to the front part of the crowd.  We chit chatted about what we were going to try to do, laughed a lot and then...oh crap we're moving!  So, off I went.

Since I had no idea of what kind of speed I had, I didn't know quite what to do as far as strategy.  Well, let's be honest, I never have a strategy!  But, a good friend and running guru suggested to hold an 8:00 pace for the first mile in which the first .5 mile was the course's only major incline.  If I could do that then just try to hang in for the rest of the relatively flat course and take advantage of the down hill finish.  

Yea..I think I can do that, Captain.

Mile 1:  7:45

What The Captain neglected to tell me was that there was another substantial incline at mile marker 1 for another .5!

Well Dammit.

Mile 2:  7:57

PRs for All!
That's me on the left, Jennifer, Kim and Sarah!

After mile 2 marker, The Captain's ears MUST have been ringing as I was doing my darndest to hang on and thankfully the course began to level out.  Then I felt a descent.

Mile 3:  7:19

The Captain was however spot on about the downhill finish, and it did NOT disappoint!

The Last .10:  6:02

Not too shabby.  I'm pleased and I think Coach Sarah is too!  

PRs abound, but sadly no Cupid's arrows to be had :(

The Actual Results:

2/48 in Age Group

12/350 in Gender

49th overall out of 552 finishers.

I'll take it.

It doesn't matter if I can do it tomorrow, because I did it today

Today, my friends, today I had a good day.  Something happened that I never ever thought possible.

Today I ran a 5K.

Fast.

So fast that I achieved a personal record.

Fast enough to place in my age group, something I've wanted to do since my first 5K.

Fast enough that.............well, shoot.  Fast enough to actually WIN my age group.

And what is even more cool?  Is that those women in the 30-34 and us in the 35-39, and 40-44...well, we were faster than most of the girls in their 20s.

It just goes to show that we're just like a fine wine...we just keep getting better with age!

As I just told a good friend of mine.  I don't know if I'll ever be able to do it again.....but I did it today.

Party on, Garth.

Blue 5K - Racing, Reflections and Bagels

Speed work has not been included in my marathon plan, but I have been doing a good amount of cross training instead.  My "coach" wanted me to do a speed trial to see where I was and to see if the cross training is doing its job, so I ran the Blue 5K in Charlotte this past weekend.  I don't run in Charlotte often; only twice actually, once with the Fund Racers and with the Do-Life Crew.  So the third time HAD to be the charm right?

Let me say this.  There is absolutely nothing charming about running up Morehead St.

Jyl and I arrived about 45 minutes before the start to get our chips before the lines descended, and to just have enough time to relax and get a little warm up in before hand. Then we found Graham, the third musketeer of this trio and "ran" into a good friend, fellow DARTer and total running guru , The Sockless Runner.  He gave us the run down on his preview of the course, which I very much appreciated.  I normally don't have a race plan, I just go.  So it was very good for me to hear what I would be facing in the miles to come.

Runners began to find their spots for 7:30am start, already humid with still air, temps slowly climbing and a little bit of cloud cover.  Not a bad sized local race, almost 700 runners come to find out.  The Trio (that's us!) lined up towards the backend of the middle. Ready....Set....Run Like Hell!

And we did.

Here is the abbreviated version.  Why?  because that's how I roll sometimes.

• Mile 1 - fast and fun.  Of course, Mile 1 always is, isn't it?  And then the realization sets in that maybe you set off a little to fast....
• Mile 2 - less fast and still fun.  You're working hard, and you can feel it, but you're still under the delusion that you can maintain the pace you're on.
• Mile 3 - if Hell was a hill, this would be it.  A "terraced hill"  with more hill than terrace.  Not much relief and you're thinking, "I can't take another step."  "Omigosh I'm gonna die."  "Is that my lung on the side of the road?"
• The Last .2 - downhill....  can I kick it in?  If you do, you can be done faster...... Engage Turbo Finish.  The internal voice is saying "almost done, keep going....don't puke, don't puke, don't puke...." 
• Cross the Finish - STOP THE GARMIN AND GIVE ME GATORADE.  And race volunteer, if you want this timing chip off my sneaker, you best get it because I can't bend over at the moment, or we both might have a problem.....

And then we were done!  YAY!  After checking the boards for chip times, Graham headed out so he could start getting ready for his triathlon the following day and Jyl and I headed straight to Bruegger's Bagels, which is fastly becoming a favorite of ours!

I don't know if I like the actual racing part, but I do love the pre- and the post-!
 
My results in case you were curious.

chip time: 26:00
age group placement: 7/61
PR: 24 seconds (Corporate Cup, March 2012 - 26:24)

Training, Racing and Drumlines

This past Saturday, I went beyond my normal two-exit radius and ventured into the big city of Charlotte, North Carolina.  You see, I was able to talk some of my co-workers into running with me in the Alston+Bird LLP Corporate Cup 5K and Half Marathon.  Now, we work in the fundraising biz, hence the really cool team name and awesome t-shirts.  May I present to you Team Fund Racers!

I'm the one on the left, looking like she has to pee....

We met at 7:30 am on a beautiful, yet windy, morning among 2,333 runners. We had some folks running the 5k and some running the Half.  After our photo op, we all headed to the start line with our racing faces on.....

 We don't put the "Fun" in Fund Racer for nothing, yo!
 
Anyway.  I had 12 miles scheduled for Saturday as part of my training.  Seeing that I'm "saving myself" for the Flying Pirate, I decided to run the 5K and run some miles before and after.  Plus, I was really curious as to what kind of time I could put in since my very first race last April, almost one year ago.

I did a 3 mile warm up with Jyl, (you remember Jyl).  She ran the Half as part of her marathon training.  Then, at 8:00 we all started running the streets of Charlotte.  I have never ran with so many people before!  It's good practice though, as the Pirate will have about 4,000 runners and the Boilermaker I'll be running with my family in July has just SOLD OUT, capped at 14,000.  Also, navigating water stops is new territory for me too!  (oops getting off topic...)  So.  Well, plainly said, I set out way too fast!  I didn't think I'd make it the 3 miles....almost puked at mile 1.75.  Somehow I pulled it together and made it through.  Then, when I looked at my watch it said 26:23....my last 5K was 32 minutes.  That's a sub 9 minute pace per mile.  (p.s.  official chip time came in at 26:24)

Booyah, my friends, Boo. Yah.

Now, if you're doing math with me, you'll remember that I had 12 miles to complete.  So, with 6 miles down and 6 miles to go, I decided to head out backwards down the half marathon course to see if I could meet up with Jyl.  After 3 miles down and a nice chat with a police officer, there she was, looking strong!  After a mile or two of chit chat and me spilling Powerade in my shoe, we come to one of the last hills of the course.  And on this hill was a drumline.  Man I LOVE a drumline!  Sexy. As. Hell!  And it is at this point I must issue a public apology to all that had to witness me doing the run/dance combination.  Sorry y'all, I just couldn't resist it!

Thankfully, Jyl resisted her urge to push me down (no, I wouldn't blame her if she did!), and we made it to the finish, Jyl getting a PR too!  Made for a great day!

And now, I leave you with these parting words of wisdom.

If you hear a drumline, you just gotta dance.... even though cute cops will laugh at you.

Race Recap - Town Day 5K for Davidson/Cornelius Day Care

Well, I've seen better days.  It all looked promising with my new running apparel, hot oatmeal and successful attachment of the timing contraption to my sneaker.  Pre-race was alright.  I was a little anxious....they posted a different course and there was a lot more people there than my first race, but still, all was well.  Kevin was happy taking pictures at the Farmer's Market and he promised to be at the finish line.  And then....we were off.

My friend, Eileen, was just ahead of me, and she slowed her pace so she could run with me for a bit.  1st mile was good.  Imagine my surprise when dude called out 9:35 at the mile mark....11 seconds off my previous pace!  I was in good shape to finish under 30.  Then WHAMMO.  The entire upper portion of my abdomen felt like it was under a vice-grip.  I couldn't breathe, I couldn't concentrate...holy stitch Batman.  I couldn't stretch it out, I couldn't breathe it out.  I had to do walk.  Then, when I started walking, ligaments started snapping over my ankle bone.  Not an uncommon thing, but not an easy thing to deal with.  It would have been okay if I could just relax my entire body, but the pain in my stomach combined with the pain in my ankles...all I could think of was "Well Shit.  How in the hell am I going to finish?"  I even dropped a few choice cuss words, and I apologize to all those around me...it was a family friendly event after all . 

Thankfully, Eileen stayed with me.  She didn't have too and I felt bad that she did, I mean, she gave up her own race because she was worried about me.  Don't get me wrong, I'm THANKFUL she did, because I don't know if I would have kept going if it was for her.  Then we made it to the around-3-mile-mark.  At that point you can hear the finish line.  Everything magically went away for a second.  It was like I felt my legs working for the first time in 30 minutes, and we crossed that wonderful red line...in 32:50-something.

Not the best morning.  And I was very disappointed I didn't beat my PR.  And then after some reflection, I've come to a conclusion and I said to myself "DUDE!  You're still a beginner.  You're still figuring this all out, and it takes longer than less than a year of running on a treadmill and 2 small races in the past 2 months.  Cut yourself some slack!"  So I've made up my mind to focus on the positive:
1)  I finished.  Looking back, I should be proud for finishing.  You see, my abdomen is still in pain.  Something must not have been right if it's still being ornery.  And I still finished. 
2)  A hug from a running mate always makes things better.
3)  I got a cool shirt.
4)  It was another experience that brings me another step closer to being a runner. 

So...when's the next one?

Race Day

So.  Today is the day.  My second "race".  I'm awake, so that's a plus.  I've got my oatmeal cooking, so I've got that going for me.  I have my running shorts on , sneakers laced and Body Glide ready to go.  Hubby is up and out of bed and his coffee awaits.  2 hours 'til the start...and how do I feel?

Excited and nervous, and a bit apprehensive.  I know I can finish, I proved that to myself a month ago.  So why am I so worried about it?  Is it all about beating my PR? Maybe. I can't quite put my finger on it.  Hopefully after a few more races under my belt, this uncertainty will go away, but until then I will just try to go with it, eat my oatmeal and be happy.

An hour until we leave.  Hopefully that's enough time to figure out this timing contraption I have to put on my sneaker.....

Will it be under 30 today?  We shall see....Town Day.  Be There!