Happy New Year ya’ll! I had to throw the ya’ll in there because I’m a Southerner…and that I shall remain.
There are usually a couple of things that are happening on New Year’s Day.
You are recovering from a hangover.
Starting to take down the holiday decorations.
Getting ready for the upcoming work week.
Dreading the upcoming work week.
Making lists and smiling about all the “epic” shit you’re going to do this year.
Reflecting on the following year.
Okay that was a bit more than a technical couple, but you get my drift. I think every year I write how I don’t make resolutions. I don’t. I stopped doing that a long time ago. I make goals. Sometimes I reach them other times not. I find goals are different from resolutions. Perhaps a goal is something that can be started at any time and any day. Not like some voodoo that needs to happen on a particular day of the year in order for it to happen. The main gist of this…goals
Start now.
Write the goal down.
Create a time-line for completion or metrics of completion.
Understand your fear and face it headfirst.
Stop taking advice from people who don’t know you, don’t care about your success, or don’t understand your life or dreams.
Follow through. (The most important ~ a lot of people spend a lot of time “getting ready to get ready” and never really leave the planning stage.
The beginning of a new year is all about the “re” words:
Reflect
Renew
Rethink
Refresh
Re-energize
Reinvent
Rebuild
Regroup
What are your “re” words for 2018?
I had a pretty good year “mile-wise”. I had a goal to complete a race abroad when I first started this journey and I did it this year. I would have liked to complete more miles this year, but I did what I could do and was able to follow through to my goal of completing the Dublin marathon. This year was peppered with some physical discomfort, but now it’s time to re-energize, rebuild, and regroup for then next year.
This Monday’s motivation:
“When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed-door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.”
~ Alexander Graham Bell
Encyclopedia Britannica
I will admit this one blew me away. I had no idea that Alexander Graham Bell penned this quote. None. How often do we spend so much time lamenting change? Instead of embracing it and allowing new ideas and experiences to flow into our life? Alexander Graham Bell was born in 1847, Edinburgh, Scotland. He was an American inventor, scientist, and teacher of the deaf whose foremost accomplishments were the invention of the telephone (1876) and the refinement of the phonograph (1886), https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alexander-Graham-Bell. His mother was almost deaf which influenced his career as a teacher for the deaf. Very cool.
While I was researching this quote this also popped up…
“I know that when one door closes another opens…but man, these hallways are a bitch!” ~ Ahhh deep thoughts from Pinterest.
I completed my year with 789.96 miles. I am almost half-way home. My goal is to complete the remaining miles in the next two years.
A girl has to have dreams right? Here’s to making those dreams “re”ality. I have completed 5031.82 miles in my journey. I “re”joice that I gratefully have 6283.18 “re”maining!
Thank you to everyone who has continued to follow me throughout the years and provide motivation and comments. May your 2018 see goals met, your happiness grow, and peaceful, exciting and “epic” year!!!! Happy Miles to You!!
“Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired.”
– George S. Patton, U.S. Army General, 1912 Olympian
So where were we….yes…in Dublin, Ireland a day before the marathon and no suitcase! While I was on my day trip to the Wicklow Mountains and Kilkenny I did get a call from the hotel that my bag had arrived. A huge load off my shoulders but also a little annoyed that I had to go buy new stuff. It was a damned if you do, damned if you don’t type of situation. I didn’t want to get stuck so I made the hard call.
I ended up wearing a combination of old and new stuff. New running skirt, my shamrock compression socks and drum roll please….My Nikes. In the end, I decided to go with the shoes I railed most about. I felt that I had more toe space and they were a little more broken in then the Asics. What can I say….a woman is free to change her mind.
On to the marathon….
I really liked the fact the marathon didn’t start until 0900 for my corral. It gave me plenty of time to get ready in the morning and eat. The marathon instructions said be there at 0800, which I thought was a bit early, but then I decided to do just that because I didn’t want to get into any long porto potty lines. Right….
I stayed at the Hilton and it was a nice walking distance to the start line. When I got there people were already lining up for the bathroom. To put it in perspective there were 20,000 participants this year. I was in corral number four. This would put me at a finish time of around 4:30. The porto potties were lined up by the corral time so you could stay in your lane so to speak! I never miss a chance to have a potty mouth when it comes to portos at a race. Get it!!! I mean it’s like a box of chocolates…you just never know what you’re going to get! Man, I’m killing it today. Some photos:
Then there is always that guy….
Granted it was Halloween, but dude, really?
I was lucky – clean porta and done early. It was one of those moments you were glad you got there early to avoid the long lines.
A few pictures from the beginning:
My wonderful friend Diane wore her Wonder Woman shirt and had this support sign!
Wrong time on my Garmin, but I just needed it to track the run. Plus my running rosary received by a fellow runner years ago. I love it and wear it to most of my races.
Can you see “believe” on my shirt.
For a while it was a little unclear what was going on and where the actual start line began. I started following the people in front of me at a slow pace.
People shedding their clothes.
We walked for about a good quarter-mile and then I could faintly hear someone on a loud-speaker with a heavy Irish accent. “Come on lads and lasses” it was really funny. As we moved closer to the start line it began to get packed. I mean nose to nose packed. Then just as I was looking around the gun went off and EVERYBODY started running. I mean damn…it was like a herd. In the back of my mind I was like wait, I’m still trying to process all this I’m not ready! But, the starting pistol don’t wait for no one. Time to get going.
The race
The weather for the race started off at about 54° and slightly cloudy. I didn’t have any pain and I was tracking at a good pace. There were so many people there it really made it hard to “break out” of the herd. I’m not over exaggerating either. It was crowded. Instead of trying to break free and find some space I found the 4:30 pacer and just decided to keep pace with that group. It was funny because you had three people running with large red balloons with the pace time on them and a large group of people just clustered around.
The first half of the run took us through Phoenix Park and in front of a lot of sights throughout the city of Dublin. I was happy that I was keeping up with little effort. The amount of people who were out supporting the race was amazing! Hundreds of people lined the streets at different points all through out the race. Offering cookies, candy, and baked goods. It was a sight to see and a much-needed visual for support.
My fueling consisted of sports beans, gum, and I hydrated at the stations provided. There was no reason to wear a belt or bring a pod. There were plenty of water stations and support staff.
Things were good for me all the way up until the halfway point. There was a half marathon and a full at the same time. Nothing says “oh, I see you’re finishing” to the person next to you ~ “Yeah I don’t think I got the full experience, I’m going to go around one more time!” It was at this point I began to see the 4:30 pace balloon pull away from me. Sigh. I really wanted to keep up. I didn’t feel bad, I was just slowing down.
At least I was beating the gal in the full Wonder Woman costume. Yeah I’m good. I started to breathe a little heavy at this point. Everything else was good but the breathing was a little labored. The course itself was fairly flat. There were some hills that did provide a bit of a challenge.
Around mile 15 I was passed by Batman and Robin. I really wish I had my phone to take a picture. Batman was in a wheelchair and Robin was pushing him. It was one of the greatest scenes I have ever seen at any race. They were just so positive and happy.
At mile 17 I started to get hungry. The beans weren’t doing it for me. The streets were lined with people offering snacks or “jellies”. I had to laugh at the jellies because they were gummy sweets. I passed all of that for security reasons. I mean probably no harm no foul, but I thought better of it….until mile 18.
Yeah, let’s see….laced cookie? Yes? No? “The world is so much better with you in it, Clarice.” Hmmm, what to do…I ate the cookie. Heck, I ate a couple of cookies. Glad I did because they hit the spot.
I never really hit the wall. The definition ~ hitting the wall or the bonk is a condition of sudden fatigue and loss of energy which is caused by the depletion of glycogen stores in the liver and muscles. I have before, but not now. I was just slow. I will say at this point it began to seem like the never-ending race. More so around miles 23 and 24.
I find during the last two miles you tend to play patty cake with fellow runners. You speed up, then slow down, only to be passed by the same runner about 30 times until you get to the finish line. It’s a little annoying. Then I was passed by this one girl and I just had to laugh out loud. Another camera moment! She had a crudely hand written note pinned to her back that said “I absolutely hate running, I will never f*cking do this again.” It was just too darn funny. I followed her until the very end and I kept laughing every time I looked at her. There were definitely some characters at the race!
The big finish ~ there is nothing better than having someone support you in an endeavor like a marathon. I was about 200 meters from the finish line and I hear my name yelled ~ and there was my friend Diane yelling and with the support sign. Such a great way to end a race.
In the end I finish in 5:11:50. I am pleased. It’s not easy flying to another country then running a race. I have enjoyed every step of this journey and the outcome. This post wouldn’t be complete without a little self constructive criticism. Did I think I did my best? No. It’s as simple as that. I felt that I could have done much better with everything all around. Food, training and gear. I look forward to analyzing my performance and seeing what things I could have done better. Running this race has fired me up to run another. I love the race energy and the people. I would like to train for another marathon in the not so distant future and try to improve my time and running experience.
If you are a runner and want a fun challenge I definitely would recommend this race. It was very well organized and the the people of Ireland were so friendly. The proceeds go to assist the Irish Cancer Society.
I want to take this time to thank those who have supported me in this endeavor. My parents Charles and Darlene ~ thank you for all the texts, love and support. You both have been a catalyst for reaching for the stars.
My brother and his wife Lori, my sister Elizabeth and her husband Eric for all the love and support.
My sweet daughter who ran out of the house to meet me on my return. Sorry I didn’t catch the Mr. Mime Pokémon.
Diane who waited patiently for over 5 hours while I completed this race. You are a great friend.
Thank you to all of my friends and blog followers who dropped by to offer support and kind words.
This race was extra special this year. One, in a few days I will turn 50. Where has that time gone? Two, to honor my Mother, Karen Dennis and her Irish roots.
Completed
I completed 47.24 miles from Oct 16 – 29 with an end of month total of 105.92. I have 6339.47 miles gratefully remaining in my journey. The body achieves what the mind believes. What’s next?
Now that I’m back and recovered it’s time for the whole recap and nothing but the recap of my latest adventure. For this post I will cover the second part of my trip to Ireland.
I arrived in Chicago with a three hour layover. One of my biggest fears was the possibility of losing my luggage, but with a three hour layover you would think that there would be plenty of time to get my bag from one plane to the next. One would think.
In an earlier post I spoke about wanting to experience Ireland…including air flight. I decided to try the Irish airline Aer Lingus that is now owned by British Airways. Admittedly the reservation process wasn’t especially easy. I tried to book my flight through the website, which also wasn’t easy and ended up having to call anyway because the order wouldn’t submit online. I got the confirmation email but when I checked my account it said it wasn’t booked. After holding for about 30 minutes a nice Irish lass helped me out and the ticket was booked. The flight ended up being smooth sailing. The flight attendants were friendly and the aircraft wasn’t packed. The only criticism I had was the metal box that took up half of my leg space and was a little cramped. The flight took about 6-1/2 hours before landing in Dublin.
If you have traveled to a foreign country before you know you just don’t get off the plane, collect the baggage and hail the taxi. There is a process for foreigners and it usually involves very long lines. I had forgotten how it felt when you get to customs and nationals fly right through the lines and everyone else is in a very long line for passport check. Even though the line was long it moved very quickly and I was on my way! Now to collect my bag.
I go to the baggage claim and patiently wait for my bag. I’m sure everyone has experienced the nervousness of watching others pick up their bags while you wait for yours. There I sat and waited as the bags got less and less. Finally, I came to the bad realization that my bag wasn’t coming. Trying to placate myself I went to other turnstiles to see if MAYBE something got messed up. No, the realization finally hit me that my bag didn’t show up. Somewhat frantically, I walk over to the baggage information center and filled out my claim. They were very nice and I told the attendant that it was very important I got my bag because I was running the race in two days. She found out that the bag was still in Chicago (really Chicago) and that it may be here tomorrow but technically they have 72 hours to get it to me. 72 hours! Uh, no. I need my bag. I will admit panic started to take over. There I was in Dublin Ireland with the clothes on my back, a toothbrush (thank God) and a pack of Doritos. All my running gear (and clothes) were in my suitcase. There was nothing more to do but wait and hope that my suitcase got to me on time.
I exited the terminal to find my friend, Diane who would be meeting me for the trip. After a lot of Facebook IMing we finally found each other and were ready for our Ireland adventure to begin. We hailed a taxi that took us to our first stop the Hilton at Charlemont. I chose this hotel for two reasons 1) it was close to the start line for the marathon and 2) you pretty much know what you’re getting with a Hilton. The hotel was great and reasonably priced. Best of all I could walk to the start line.
Once settled in the hotel it was time to go to the marathon Expo and check in. I had some important decisions to make. If there was a possibility that my bag didn’t come in I would have to buy all new gear at the Expo. I had two days before the marathon and a scheduled tour the next day, so there wouldn’t be any time to go buy gear. I made the decision to buy all new gear at the Expo. When I say all, I mean shoes, clothes, underwear, and sports bra – the whole shebang. I had trained so hard and had come so far that I couldn’t take the chance that I might not have my stuff. The silver lining to all of this is I bought….more shoes. This time the Hoka brand. There were no Brooks or Asics to be found. So Hokas it is… I liked them…a lot but I didn’t want to run the race in new shoes.
Signing my mother’s name, Karen Dennis, on the dedication board.
My friend Diane enjoying the expo with me.
Woke up the next morning and no bag. Trying to put that aside it was time for a little Irish sightseeing. We booked a trip to take us to the Wicklow Mountains and Kilkenny. Once out of Dublin, we traveled to the Glendalough Monastic Site originally built in the 6th century by St. Kevin. It truly was a beautiful placae in the Wicklow Mountains with streams, trails and ruins. It was truly beautiful. Here are a few pictures.
My favorite photo.
I just love all that Irish green. Happy Miles to You!!
It’s hard to believe that in a week I will be in Ireland. Roughly 10 months ago on a whim I decided that I would run the Dublin Marathon for my 50th birthday. Thus began 8 months of training that will end next Sunday, 20 October. While I was doing my initial planning I had to decide if I would run the race at the beginning of my trip then tour the country or at the end. To me it was an easy answer…beginning. I wanted to be able to enjoy myself while traveling and this means being able to eat what I want, when I want. If I toured first then tried to run the race I imagine that would have been 1) boring and 2) a big ‘ol mess. So, I opted to run first then enjoy myself later.
I believe my biggest hurdles are acclimation and sleep. Anyone that has gone to a foreign country knows it takes a bit to adjust to the time change and I won’t really have enough time, only two days. I have made peace with that fact that this may be…harder than I thought. Meaning, this is going to be harder than I thought.
Ok. I did think about this one, but my favorite line states (…a month or two weeks before) uhhhh ain’t nobody got time for that! The article suggests changing your sleeping habits 15 minutes at a time. I think I will give this a go for as much as I possibly can.
2. Rest for three days before you leave.
Ok. Cats/house you’re on your own – peace out!
3. Cut back on alcohol, caffeine, and sugar before you leave.
What that he**!! Do you not know it’s October Fest and almost Halloween????!!! I have already bought my candy, and yes I have to sample!!
4. Drink plenty of water.
Done and done…I live in the desert.
During the Flight
1. Drink some more water.
If there is one thing I hate is having to go to the bathroom on the plane. I’m not kidding either. Transatlantic is the worst. I’m tiny and I can barely fit in that tube – but I will have to do it because the flight is about 7 hours…..so drink water I shall!
2. Sleep or stay awake (depending on arrival time).
Oh don’t worry…I will. Someone has to keep an eye out for shenanigans.
3. Reset your watch.
But it’s so much more fun if I didn’t…no?
After the Flight
1. Go to bed or eat breakfast (depending on arrival time).
I’ll be arriving in the morning, so eating it is…which there is never an issue.
2. Use melatonin.
Baaawwwwaaaawwwaa! Nice! I have the system of a horse, melatonin won’t help this gal cut some ZZzzzzs.
We’ll, there you have it ~ Important information about time change and travel. I will do my best to make the transition as painless as possible.
My week 14 training was very much welcomed. Time to start focusing on resting the body a bit and my long run was only 9 miles! Hallelujah! For the most part feeling ok. I’m not at 100% on feeling great and there are some aches and pains. Most runners will read that line and say “when are there not”, but it is possible to run with minimal pain. There is going to have to be an in-depth after action review on this marathon and my training when it’s all said and done. But like they say ~ the train has left the station, hop on board!
This weeks mileage came to 22.81. I have 6386.71 miles gratefully remaining. Happy Miles to You!!
My week 13 marathon training plan calls for a long run of 20 miles before the taper period begins. When I trained for the Saint Louis Rock and Roll Marathon in 2013, I fell short of the 20 mile mark by 3 – 4 miles. I’ll be honest, I thought I had mapped it out, but I think my training week timing/calculating was off a bit and I just didn’t have time to finish or make it up and I never ran the 20 mile training run required in the plan before the actual marathon. I was determined this time around not to deviate from the longer runs. Things happen such as injuries and life but I really wanted to at least complete these longer runs this time around. I was looking for an appropriate quote to fit this run and I couldn’t believe I found the one I placed in the title. The story goes like this….
There is no doubt that this time around has been a little tougher to train for a marathon. I just seemed to have some things working against me that I’ve made note of and will try to improve next time. (Yes, I plan to do another one) Some things you just can’t change, like the environment. It was very important to me that I complete the majority of the runs outside, which I did. There were a few smaller runs that I completed on the treadmill at the gym, but mostly to give my feet a break. But I’m happy to say 99% were out in this hot-assed weather! Not carrying that around as a badge of honor, but let’s be for reals ~ it wasn’t no picnic. I was lucky the 20 mile long run took place in October where there was a little bit of relief.
Pain and recovery ~ I had a lot of little pains this time around. Started off with the resurgence of the calf-injury, then the right leg pain and finally the feet. The physical therapy did help, but also brought about things that needed to be tidied up and addressed. Of course there is always the time factor, which there seems to never be enough. I feel that I did well in this training, but I always feel I could have done a little more. A little older and a little slower….but still ready to keep going forward and achieve this goal.
This weeks run was a pretty good one. I woke up with a bit of a headache and I won’t lie I did think to put it off until Wednesday. I ran on Sunday this time because the race will be on Sunday October 29th. But the first thing I said to myself was “pay now or pay later“. With that I rolled out of bed at 4:15. When I started off it was chilly (that never seems to last long) clear with no wind. One thing I need to work on is my warm up, meaning I could do more and better. I think I don’t like wasting time with the warm up. Just ready to get this party started. Not really sure why though, because it seems to take me until mile 5 to start feeling “it” so a proper warm up would be a good thing. I opted for gel blocks, a couple of Stinger™ gels, and some banana chips for my fueling. I’m not a big eater before a run or during. Had my…you guessed it…Eggos™, a cup of coffee and tried to chew down a fourth of a left over power bar for breakfast. I make good meals after, but the before might be due for an upgrade. Any way I felt fine. Around mile 4 or 5 I was feeling pretty good – or maybe that’s when the Aleve™ kicked in ~ pretty sure that’s what it was. The right foot started hurting early on – pinching – and I adjusted my stride and was feeling good and running pretty steady. Around mile 15 I just decided that I wasn’t going to run past some of the same houses – again. I literally was like – uh no. “Pay now or pay later“. I can’t stand to see this same route for the 3rd time today! So, I mixed it up and ran around the field at the park while people were playing cricket. With one eye on the ball and the other on mud puddles from over watering – it wasn’t pleasant and I canned that after three times around. Then I decided to run up this other road that circles the back of the neighborhood. It has a pretty steep hill “pay now or pay later“……………………………………yeah that sucked, I won’t lie, but I did it. Oh this was nice too, while I was running up this hill I was already at mile 19 – I’m telling you this so I don’t feel too bad. There was this guy and his kid riding bikes on the road up the hill while I was running on the sidewalk. This is a steep hill. I remember riding up this once and it wasn’t easy. I was impressed this little kid was attempting this hill. So, here I am shuffling along and what looks to be a 7-year-old kid passes me on his little bike that I think he just took the training wheels off. Yeah, good times. But, hey what do I care, that Garmin™ buzzed on my arm and I was like ~
Eat that!!!
Yeah baby – 20 done and done! My average pace was about 13.37.
So, what does the quote and my saying have to do with anything? I thought it funny, because there were a lot of times I was just like man…this is tough…but I would tell myself “pay now or pay later” every time I started to feel a little overwhelmed. I was looking for snappy Irish sayings and “If you do not sow in the spring you will not reap in the autumn” popped up ~ “pay now or pay later“. I want to reap on 29 October – so I paid now. Overall I completed 35.87 miles for the week. Let the taper begin!! So happy to just say I have a 9 mile long run this week. Despite the drawbacks, I am enjoying the process and forever grateful. There are 6409.52 miles waiting in my journey. I can’t wait to be listening to music like this live!
It’s hard to believe that October is here and my race is in less than a month. I can remember just thinking about it as something that I wanted to just do, now it’s coming to pass. I’m looking forward to it, but I don’t think I’ve reached the point of excitement just quite yet. I’m excited ~ but not crazy excited.
One of the neat things about running this race is I am “meeting” different runners through Instagram who are running the same race. I get to see their progress and the different types of training they’re doing to get ready. Even funnier there is this one gal I follow and she is from Dublin and she will be traveling to run the NYC marathon on November 5th. I’m going to Ireland and she is coming to NYC. She is doing really well with her training and looks fabulous. It’s fun, almost like an electronic pen pal. If you want to follow me on Instagram, it’s #11315miles.
It’s also been fun watching my running friends complete their marathons. I love the bib tracking. It’s almost like being there watching the race. You can get notifications sent to your phone so even if you can’t “be” there physically, you can spiritually! Lots of fun and I would suggest doing it to show your runner support.
This weeks training was fairly decent. I’m on schedule and I can really feel myself getting stronger as a runner. In other words the training is paying off. I feel I could be a little bit stronger. The training this time around has proven to be a little more difficult than in the past. As I typed that sentence I was like…uh what? Yeah, sometimes you don’t see the results you hoped. Or maybe it’s the dreaded “A” word. Never! I refuse to say it’s age! One thing for certain is it was just harder this time around.
The shorter runs were really good this week. I had a steady pace around 11:21 and my breathing felt strong with no stopping. This week’s long run called for 18 miles. The first half of the run was really, really good. I didn’t stop for a break and ran straight through for 12 before I started slowing down. It’s funny to see the metrics on my Garmin because it shows where it went to crap. What did me in was the foot pain. This time both feet. Foot pain led to sporadic breathing that led to some upper back pain. I would have to double over a bit every now and then just to stretch the back out. I bet some people driving thought I was nuts. It’s the damn shoes,so I bought new ones today. Definitely its own blog post. My arches were hurting so bad that I just couldn’t wait to sit down and rub them and get some relief. I wasn’t going to be denied any miles so I kept on going. I completed 18 miles with an average pace of 13:26. Not sexy, but I did finish and that means more than my pace…at the moment. One more long run then the taper begins! Which means no more really long runs until the actual marathon. I feel I need to have a taper party!! I finished 32.66 for the week bringing the monthly total to 132.72 miles. I have 6445.39 miles left on my mileage journey and I’m “feelin good”. Happy Miles to You!!
I love that opening quote.So many times I hear people say, I just got lucky, to explain their accomplishments. They got lucky on a test, getting a certain job or any other positive event in life.
The definition of luck ~ success or failure apparently brought by chance rather than through one’s own actions. I guess you could argue there is luck in some things, like being in the right place at the right time or meeting someone by chance and winning the lottery. But I think most “wins” in life are a conglomeration of little steps that brought you to that final “lucky” place. So the Irish saying (Yes it’s Irish) in the title, “There is no luck except where there is discipline” just proves my point (or so I like to think:-) )through hard work and discipline…things happen. Luck, really has nothing to do with it. What does this have to do with this weeks running mileage recap? Well, this week was tough for me mentally when it came to my long run. The running schedule called for 17 miles and I r-e-a-l-l-y didn’t feel like running. I’m tired of the heat, the nasty gels, the electrolytes, before workout products, recovery protein, my feet hurt and oh by the way I’ve already lost two toenails – WAY before the normal nail losing process. I lose the same two every long run event, but normally after it’s done.
I know quit whining…right? I just didn’t want to do it. But, I got up at 4:30 am and went through the pre-run ritual and was out the door around 5:45. It wasn’t luck that was going to take me to the end, it was going to be discipline. Discipline to get up and do what needs to be done to reach the end goal. This goal just happens to be the Dublin Marathon…and I’m not that lucky. I had a guy tell me one time that he just went and ran a marathon, no training – just did it. News flash ***There will always be people, better then you***. In everything you do, so know yourself and just get used to that fact. With all things in life, for most of us, discipline is the key to your version of winning.
I kept mulling it over in my mind that any time I feel like this, it may be a good day! For the most part the long run was a good run. The temperature was 66 when I started and I ran that first 10 miles easy with a break for water, some dried banana chips, and a gel. Got back out on the road and two miles in my stomach felt a little queasy (thank you gel) but that feeling quickly went away. The next five miles were good, but a little slower. My feet started to hurt a bit and I actually thought about quitting and finishing up at the gym. I kept going and the last two miles were difficult. My breathing was good – but I’m still dealing with the arch pain in my feet. Not a good sign with brand new shoes (another post). When my legs and feet starting hurting I focused on using my core and hip swing that does amazing things for the pain in the lower body. I swung by the house before the last two miles and had some water. Needless-to-say I had too much water….sigh another lesson learned (many times before – ha!). Need to watch how you consume. So at mile 16 I was doing the sprint home! All ended well and I got it done. Discipline. My average pace this time around was 13:05. Hey, I own that pace. I ended with 32.94 miles for the week that brings the monthly total to 100.06 so far. I find this song was appropriate for this week. One of my favorite Irish bands. On the playlist for sure. With all the aches and pains that “Linger” I continue on with 6478.05 gratefully remaining.
Like most people, I like to listen to music when I run. I trained for a whole month without listening to music a few years back and I will say my running performance was definitely better. Meaning that I concentrated on all the wrong things I was doing and corrected them while I was running. Getting lost in the music is a great stress reliever, but I personally believe it messes with breathing and pace. At least for me it does. Some great song comes on and you find yourself running to the beat, then a slower song comes on and changes the stride. I have read articles where runners say never to music…but I like to listen more than not. I never plug-in when I’m cycling, but running is a different story. I like creating a playlist for the event. Every time I run I find myself in a different place figuratively and mentally so I create my playlist to how I’m feeling at that moment.
I like all kinds of music. I mean I’ll listen to anything at least once and I have wide eclectic tastes on different genres. My favorite music is…wait for it ~ classical. Not the best to run to but there are some good ones you can. For this run I was wanting to have fun and pick some good Celtic music. Let’s face it, this little jaunt is going to last about 4:30 hrs…if I’m lucky. So, that means a lot of music. Not sure I can just listen to Celtic artists…but maybe I can! If you have some suggestions I would love to hear them. Matter of fact, help me pick my playlist! That would be really sweet!
Week 10 training went well. I completed three days of running and one day of walking. I decided to use that fourth day for either walking or speed training. I like it because it gives me two days and a little more recovery before the long run and that’s just something I need at the moment. The long run was 16 miles this go round and for the most part I felt really good. Pace is staying the same somewhere between 12 and 13 minutes. My biggest drawback was at mile 8 I started to have some epic foot pain. It was really weird because I didn’t experience that last week. I hate to admit it ~ but it might be my shoes. That will be another post.
I ended with 31.46 miles for the week. I can’t believe how fast time is flying! The marathon will soon be here! I hope this finds you with much peace and love in your heart. I have 6510.99 miles gratefully remaining. Happy Miles to You!!
I leave you with this little diddy. Safe to say this will not make the playlist….may afterwards at the pub! “May you live to be 100 years, with one extra year to repent.”
May you live to be 100 years, with one extra year to repent.
Week 9 Dublin Marathon 2017 Training is in the bag baby! This week officially starts the looooong runs – and no I’m not talking about what happens when you’re dehydrated. It was a good week as “they” say. I’m not sure who said it, but I believe it was “they”.
This week’s running plan called for 4/7/4/16 and I’m happy to say I threw in a 4.5 on Thursday for good measure. The temperatures at the beginning of the week where hot and my first three runs were a mere ok. Saint Sebastian looked down on me Saturday morning because it was cool, breezy and overcast! Thank you sweet Patron of Athletes! Oh and Archery….this was the only photo I found that didn’t have arrows in his bloodied body….
I got up around 4:15 am and had my normal breakfast of two Eggo™ waffles, water, a cup of coffee, an Aleve™ and a sports gel (which I take 15 minutes before I go). I ran with my water belt and carried 3 gels and some plantain chips. I froze two bottles of water each with a Lime (great flavor) Gu™ tablet. I tried the lime flavor this time around and it was great, I highly recommend it, as it wasn’t as sweet as the berry and didn’t leave that lingering aftertaste in my mouth. I left those on the porch for my rounds, along with a free sports bar I got at last weeks Hero run (peanut butter and jelly ~ which sucked majorly). I managed to get out the door around 5:45 am. It was a little darker than I wanted, but I needed all the time I could get for 16 miles while it was still cool and overcast.
There were a lot of people out running! Groups of runners young and old and then my long-lost friends…the cyclists. It feels good to say my long run was successful. I started off a little stiff, but into mile 3 I was feeling pretty solid. There is no doubt the weather had a lot to do with my performance. I have succumbed to the fact I am not a desert girl. I do much better in the cooler temperatures. My pace wasn’t really too much faster and I took a lot of breaks. I was drinking so much fluid, so I made sure that I stopped each time I ran by the house. My pains were minimal. All the physical therapy has helped realign my pelvis and I’m feeling stronger in my core. Not too shabby for an approaching 50-year-old.
Around mile 10 I started to develop some pain under my arms. It wasn’t muscle pain but chafing! A lot of sweating + the wrong shirt = what looks like 2nd degree burns. Yeah….that was nice. Apparently, St. Sebastian doesn’t do chafing. There is no saint for chafing, so will hand that over to St. Jude, the Saint of Hopeless Causes (No…I’m not kidding…look it up Sparky!). At mile 15, the sun…decided to finally say ~ “yeah you’re too slow…I’m coming out, let’s get this parade over with”. At that moment, I became – a clock watcher. You know, take two steps, look at your watch only to find you’ve only taken two steps. But, I got it done in 3:21.
I decided to take myself down to the IHOP ‘ cause I could “ate a reverend mother for breakfast”. I had hash browns, two eggs, sausage, crepes and four cups of coffee. And so it begins…. and that was my second breakfast. I actually have my own IHOP mug at home.
So, what does all this crazy tally? 32.52 miles for the week with 6542.45 miles gratefully waiting.
When it’s good you can dance an Irish jig, eh? Happy Miles to You!!
I decided to change-up my running routine this week and run the 9/11 Heros Run sponsored by the Travis Manion Foundation. 1LT Travis Manion was killed while serving in Iraq. The Travis Manion Foundation is one of the more interesting foundations, in that it places veterans in mentoring roles with community youth that need positive role models. The meaning of their motto, “If not me, then who…” stands for their mission to Redefine Americans Character through mentorship roles. The Foundation realizes that many veterans experience difficulty reintegrating back into civilian society. Often they feel displaced in their own community and mentoring youth without good role models provides purpose. From the website:
When I signed up for the race it asked the question who is the hero you are running for? There have been so many heros of 9/11 and unfortunately, there will continue to be more in a conflict that seems to go on endlessly. We are very fortunate to have individuals military/civilian that will step up when called to duty. We see it in all facets of life not just military conflict. Look at the Texas flood. The United States if filled with GOOD people.
A few shots from this weekend. I ended up running around a 10:25 average pace and 11th in my age group. My daughter made the sign! She is such a great supporter!
Week eight marathon training went well. My training plan called for 4/6/4/14 which ended up being 4/6/4/3.1. I had every intention of “making” up the other 11 miles….and that pretty much went out the window Saturday night. Yes, I know tsk tsk, but it will be okay. Just clicking my heels three times….there’s nothing like mileage!
If I have to hold my Guinness with two hands instead of one, I – will – be – okay.
This is a picture of Jason Momoa from GOT looking like he’s holding a Guinness…it has absolutely nothing to do with this post…moving on.
So yes, training was good and I will be back on track Monday ~ meaning no more “side gigs”. Pace is remaining the same in the 10 – 11 minute window for shorter runs and around 11 – 12 for the longer runs. I’m glad I took the time out to do something different. Stats are as follows: 17.70 miles for the week ending August with 96.11 total miles. I have 6574.97 miles remaining in this journey! There is always sadness when thinking about 9/11. Especially for all the life that was lost. Every day is truly a blessing, we never know when it will be our last. Celebrate every day.
Leaving this post on a high note, I’ve been looking for music for my run. I’ve been erring on the side of native…if you know what I mean. Found this little diddy…I’m in the back. (Just kidding) Happy Miles to You!!
Happy Miles to You!!!
11315 Miles 