Believe to Achieve

The good thing about this race is that I am walking around normally.  I walked barefoot to the conference center from my car because heels are just not good for calves, however, after running that long.  But after the YW conference last night I stood up without a single cramp, just minor whiplash injuries.  This morning not much soreness.  So it must be the electrolyte problem during the second loop in the salty, windy, cold air.  I should check into good replacements during a run like this.  All I had was water in my fanny pack, no salt pills and some watered down drink at the aid stations.   If the stars were aligned some of the things I had to deal with during the race would have gotten me through at least 15 minutes quicker.  Oh well.  I am pleased because I think I will be able to run the miles I need to this week.

8:50 Pace  for 6.1 recovery miles.  FELT AWESOME.  Like on a cloud with my mizuno precisions that have 500+ miles on them.  So much nicer than my trail shoes felt on the trails and road running just feels different.   I can't get over how amazing I felt on this run.  I loves the cloud-like feel and even though I have some residual soreness in mostly my left hamstring and a little bit on my quads I felt like I wasn't working at all. So nice.  So happy.  But my throat is sore and now since my daughter doesn't have tonsils her rapid strep came back negative.  My white patch is obvious and it is sending pains to my left ear.  I just try to use homeopathic ways to kill it--like probiotics and herbal remedies/vitamins.  I know it sounds odd that I should feel that good with this condition but I do.  Last week was so intense with the fatigue.  This week I feel like a miracle has been performed  :  D.  PS our ward was just split.  In fact our whole stake had a meeting last night to let us know where all the new boundaries are and we were moved to go to the next ward over.  Five years with people you got to know well and now A HUGE CHANGE FOR OUR street.  We are going to be like the new students at school in an established ward.  Good thing for my daughter Courtney as the new ward will have 34 Beehives now instead of the 8 that are now left in our last ward.  She had only two  friends in the ward now she has many more to make.  

PM:  going to run 4 more miles per schedule  : D   Looking forward to it.  I could have gone on with the run above but I had to take Courtney to the Drs.  At least now I am following the schedule-- 6miles in the am, 4 miles in the pm (all recovery).   Addendum: Ran 5 recovery miles (8:42 AP)  at 4:30pm in the snow flurries and high winds.  I actually don't get too bothered with the wind anymore.  It seems normal now.  Antelope Island breezes were quite brisk people pointed out but I didn't feel too affected or distressed about it.   Suncrest is great training to rid yourself of any feelings towards wind and hills.

Slowly removed myself from my bed at 4:55am and was bummed I couldn't get out earlier to get in my 7 miles before work so I settled on just squeezing in 5 miles at 8:24 pace.  IT WAS FREEZING outside.   I wasn't expecting the TON O' FROST and the drop in temp so I was feeling like the tinman for most of my run.  Worked all day in level 2 nursery.  Battled a massive fatigue attack from like 1 until 5 pm.  Oh my!!!  Eyelids were burning again.  It is pretty intense.  There were a lot of fragrances in the nursery that contributed.  When I got out in the fresh air in the evening to watch my two daughters' soccer games I was reawakened.  Yay!! Courtney's team won 5-0  (last year playing the same teams they lost all but two, and already they have won two strongly), and Brooke's team tied.  The other team scored and "woke us up" and then we quickly scored and then the other team scored then we had another adrenaline surge and scored pretty quick afterwards.   All the girls were quite frozen.  10 year olds don't do as well as preteens in the cold.  

Progressive 16 miler up into Alpine.  I now have a new found appreciation for that Antelope Island 16.1 mile loop that I ran twice.  As I was running this hilly, but what seemed way easy to me, 16 miler today in the wind and sleet at times, I was taken back to last Saturday.  It took me with two stops included 2 hrs and 21 minutes (and I felt I was holding back) to finish that first lap.  It took 2 hrs 8 minutes today to run a road run (and I stopped my watch for a potty break at Alpine Center, next to the Eternal Water Fountain).  That is only 13 minutes faster than that 1950 ft climb and descent run!!!   Antelope Island 50 k is about the second loop.  It was cold and windy and aide stations were 5.5 miles apart.  I was lacking MUCH sugar to the brain Saturday hence the depression/desire to quit for a bit.    Today I didn't bring any water or nourishment.  I really could have used a gu the last 30 minutes to get over the rough spot.  My pelvis started to burn at mile 14 when I tried to pick it up.  So I slowed and made it through that hard moment.  It is still burning a little so I am icing it.  Cardio-wise I feel very strong and not winded whatsoever.  THANK YOU ANTELOPE ISLAND :  D    AP for 16 miles today =  8:01!!!   : D

NADA.  Was going to run with Kim for a brief 4 miles but was pulled to UVRMC 12 miles further away and 20 minute drive.  So, when I awoke with the same IT band pain on the left I opted out of a run today.  Work was long and longer.  I had a major fatigue moment again from 1 to 4 pm.  My cortisol level must be dropping off then.  I was VERY low last September and I was told to take DHEA but that supplement made me feel very dizzy and out of body.  So apparently my body lives on low DHEA since it can't handle any more of it.  ANY way just excercised my hip all day at work and wherever I went.  My new RS presidency came to visit me.  Then Courtney's YW presidency.  Everyone seems so friendly.  Funny how we always lived by one another but didn't know one another because the line that divided the wards was just to the west of us now it is just to the east of us.  I think this will be a good change for all of us.  : D.  PENANCE:  NOT GOOD THAT I ate a cheeseburger, tater tots, ice cream and pumpkin pie for lunch.  How is that going to sit for my SW tomorrow?    Legs very swollen by end of shift from all the salt/saturated fat.  Self control please!!!

Plan:  LT run with 6 at half marathon pace.  Whatever that is  currently.  I think I forgot I ran an Ultra Marathon last Saturday.   I don't know why I think I can just pull these runs out like nothing happened.  But it seems that I am doing okay so  I just started the workout as  1/2 mile at FMP (hopefully SGM this fall, F= Fantasy) and 1/2 mile at 5K pace so it went like this:  3.5 mile warmup in 30 minutes 10 seconds at 2 % grade.  Brief potty break then 1/2 mile at 8:00 pace (1 %) and then the SW at 1%:  No stops ran 1/2 mile 6:53, then 1/2 mile at 6:31 repeated x 4.  Then without stopping started the 5th one so again 1/2 mile at 6:53.  But was SO not wanting to go into the 6:31 again so I stopped the TM for 30 seconds and then ran a 1/2 mile at 8:00 pace and then started the last 1.5 miles beginning at a slower realistic MP which felt SOOOOOO lovely.  It was 7:03 for 1/2 mile then I went to 6:40 for a lap (1/4 mile) then 6:31-6:35 for a lap then back to the 6:53 pace for 1/4 mile speeding up the last lap from 6:31 to 6:00 pace.  So basically I ran 6 miles at AP of 6:40-6:42 depending on how much my sprint to the finish helped my AP.    Finished off with a cooldown 1/2 mile at AP of  7:50.  Total 11 miles at 7:30 pace.    Iced in AF river for as long as I could tolerate.  Air super warm.  Water glacier cold.  Lasted 1 minute 45 seconds.  Feeling really good about things currently.  Running that is.  Mind over body.    I work this weekend.  So I will do a short jaunt before work in the am.  

PM:  Ran at 4:48pm for  8  total running miles with Jenn (stopped garmin for our walks which started at mile 3 for .07 miles)  It was rather WARM out!!   Over 70 degrees.   Quite the difference from Tuesday morning's run in 27 degrees.  AP for these 8 miles = 10 :15.  Just strolling around enjoying the sounds and smells of early Spring.  At mile 8 we met up with Heather.  Heather is running the last 12 of the 20 with her today.  She is doing amazing. Last week she ran 14 miles at 9:40.  She said to me at YW conference " Julie you would be proud of me, I ran 9:40 pace for 14 miles".  She was feeling bad for the 10:37 pace we ran two Satrudays ago for her 18 miler in the wind.  I told her I wasn't worried and knew she had it in her : D.   She will probably win the Ogden Marathon someday and kick my can all around : D.  Not sure how sane I am running 19 miles today but I feel great!!

Monsoon Evening Run 7:10 pm--- seriously I think the winds had to be at least 30 mph the entire run, but at least it was a cool breeze in the warm air if that makes sense.  Easy pace run at 8:25 pace for 5.1.   Worked all day and didn't feel like getting up this morning so got out quick before hubby home from conference and kids wondering what else they can have to eat.  Whacked my ankle with a hard end of a rocker at work today.  Done that before years ago and the bone bruise took a while to go away.  The chairs are solid oak and all the nurses have at least got hit by one once.  It hurts like the dickens for a few minutes.  Didn't seem to affect my gait on my run but is sore to the touch.