Believe to Achieve

I think my heartrate is still up.  Let me check.   Okay it has come down but it is still pounding. I think I was still dehydrated from my QUICK 21 miler on Saturday.   Um.... the GOOD NEWS--- 10 k PR for me at a tough course. Sasha's course tool puts the race at .08 miles longer than a real 10k due to difficulty.  The  WIND was ridiculous (headwind the first 1.5 miles. There is a reason why they put FOUR MODERN  WINDMILLS right here ).  After the first 1.5 miles it was MUGGY.  I was hot the entire time.  Kim was cold.  But I must have been hot flashing.  I warmed up with Melanie for 1.3 miles (8:20pace) then had time for a brief stretch and prerace anxiety about why in the heck do I run 10ks?  They totally STRESS me out.  I am not even in a race until the 6th mile.  Took a gu about 15 minutes before race start.  No caffeine. I don't take caffeine in any of my races.  But this gu was chocolate (a natural cliff gu).  It seemed to increase my heartrate too early in the race along with the GROSS first mile of HEADWIND AND STEEPNESS.  That first mile was a 6:57 and before the ascent at .25 miles I was at a 6:20 pace. That tells you how fun of a hill it was.     After that I just couldn't relax in the race at all. I poured water over me to cool myself off.   Humidity hit the towns again.  Last week was so nice without it.  Now today, race day it hit again.  It is currently muggy.    It seems just like the 4th of July 10k was.  Back to the race.  I just wanted to PR.  I was sucking wind with a soaring heartrate so it wasn't easy.  I could see Kim until the last 1/2 mile.  That was nice.  I tried to pass a girl and instead of quickly passing her I stayed beside her and then she decided to answer back but I had no answer.  Then another girl (the same girl that was with me the end of Freedom 10k) came by us.  She did some talking to the other girl and signing with her fingers.  I am not sure what she was doing and since they stayed together I thought maybe she was pacing her.  This made me kind of relax too much and "give up" without my own pacer and certainly no brain power to stay with them  Then with .4 miles to go a guy I had run with throughout the race came up from the side of me and motioned with his hands for me to follow him and chase the two girls.  Well, I felt he was my angel I needed until I tripped over a rope that some parade watchers had used to mark their spot for seating on the ground and then I had to step back and jump over it.  You see they had crossed (the three runners I have been talking about) on to the sidewalk and then I did further down but didn't see the ropes when I turned to the  sidewalk and then back on to the street there the ropes were!!!  I am in no shape to hurdle in my last moments of a 10k and with that shaking me up I lost the spunk to push harder and power pass them.  I was so close.  But really it didn't matter to me because when I saw the clock I was like "I am PRing, it doesn't matter if I try to beat these other two women".  I am so NOT competitive.  Just with myself.  I have this old nightmare going on in my head about when I was in track in high school.  I hated competing against my friends and I would hyperventilate any time we were in a race together.  So....over 20 years later I continue those anxieties.  Maybe I need therapy : D.  Time was 40:47.  Pace 6:33.   Almost exactly my pace as my half marathon (6:34) last week.  That is pretty funny.   I was sixth overall and 1st over forty.  I won 18 holes of Golf.  Troy is really getting all the goods lately.  I give him a lot of my shirts and now he gets my prizes too.  He can't complain. BTW I ran back to my car and turned too early (I don't know the area well) and added another couple miles on to my cool down.  I ran back to the river bottoms after running on 300 south for a while and came up through the back way to the golf course.  I was quite frustrated at myself as I left on this run not even 4 minutes after I finished the race.  I was thirsty and getting hungry and the WIND WAS FEROCIOUS!!  I even had to jump a fence/bridge to get to my car after running through the golf course.  Pretty comical.  There were some pretty areas however so it wasn't all that bad.  It was I intended for four more but ran 5.85 miles instead.  I should have just followed the course in reverse.  AP for 5.85 cooldwon miles= 8:16.  Total miles 13.37.    There was a shuttle back to the cars but that would have been too easy.  : D.

Raging Waters (7 peaks Salt Lake) for 4.5 hrs yesterday.  Lots of stair climbing.  Not so relaxing but maybe once.  But lots of fun with my kids and husband going down slides. Got to bed late last night but dragged myself out of bed to go running at 4:40am.  Had to work in Provo at UVRMC's NICU so had less time in the morning and had to waken earlier to run.  Another "sleep run" and IT WAS DISGUSTINGLY HUMID!!!  5.54 miles @ 8:37 AP.  Legs have absolutely NO soreness in them.  : D.     Worked all day then did Activity Days with my daughter and her group (I am a leader).  We went to Twilight Tales at the Library then had the kids read their book they brought.  Another late night ahead and early start in the am before work.  I work again 25 minutes away in Provo.  It sure puts a damper on my motivation to get up and run when it is 430am. BUT I always AM glad that I did  :D.  BTW wore my trail shoes.  They help my muscles not get used to the same old pair of running shoes.

7 before work, wore my trail shoes again.  AP 7:55.  Ran at 4:35am.  So missing some quality sleep.  But oh WELL.  Must push on.  I thought about staying in bed but I just feel better at work if I run.  I worked 12.5 hours and NEVER was fatigued.  Just TIRED of SAD babies.  Whatever I did to make them happy lasted only a few seconds.  Then the crying would start up again.  Five babies crying pretty much MOST of the day.  Luckily I can tune it out pretty good but feel bad if others can't and think that we aren't doing are job if the babies are crying.  BUT babies cry.  If you meet their needs and they still cry-- IT IS NORMAL.  Studies have been done and babies process things by crying, some cry less some cry more.  I just happened to be taking care of THREE CRIERS and the nurse with me had TWO criers.  So it made for a CRYING party.  : D.  

Was worried about this run with JulieE and Melanie.  I mean the last time I ran just with them I was like breaking through a pixie stick.  Basically worried because of two long shifts and lack of sleep.  But last night I somehow got in bed at 9:45pm and fell asleep close to 10pm. I was watching the clock, telling myself to hurry up and fall  asleep. Because my dreams were pretty active I awoke at 410am feeling like I hadn't really slept. But obviously I did.  I tried to fall back to sleep, since I didn't need to be awake until 5am.  We were meeting at 5:30am at South Fork (Vivian Park).  Oh well at least I got 6 hours.  Got to the park on time and Mel and Julie were just a few minutes later.  We ran UP the canyon 3.32 miles.  I told them I was going to do what I usually do and not run with them for the warmup.  So my AP was nice and easy (first mile being 9:14  : D)-- AP for 3.32 = 8:39.  We then got water at the park and stretched briefly and went right into our 12 @ MP miles.  We were going to try very hard to keep it at 6:48 to 6:52.  Well, it was just too darn easy.  And I was having one of my good days.   I think I get one of these every 10 weeks or so.  How is that I wonder?   So basically another BREAKTHROUGH run for me.  I stayed up with Mel and Julie the whole time, which I thought was going to be next to impossible and never once did I feel like I wouldn't make it or want to quit.  I felt better than Speedy Spaniard or Byrce Canyon half.  In fact my pace was only ONE minute off my Bryce Canyon time and that HALF is WICKED downhill, unlike this course today.  The first three miles were our slowest and they were the ones that were great downhill.  On all the flatter to gradual downhill miles we were at 6:30-32.  SERIOULSY?  How is that?  I don't know.  I just felt great the whole time.  Melanie said I just ran too much before Bryce Half and shouldn't have run 16 miles two days before the race.  Probably true but I was trying to RACE THRU my training.  I was terribly fatigued for Bryce.  Not a way to start a PR half marathon.  So  I definitely think I can so get a 1:24 at Hobble Creek with a brief taper and NO ridiculous mileage a few days before.  Even Speedy Spaniard was run with a 21 miler at 7:23 AP two days before.  Hence why the fatigue there.  Today, NO fatigue and my body was loving it.  I ran two easy runs the last two days and I was ready to go.  Even though in my thoughts I was worried about my speedstar running company.  I was happy I could finally stay with them : D.  AP for 12 miles= 6:39 --one mile we turned up by Bridal Veil falls on the old road (Provo half marathon course) and the head wind was ferocious and our pace once read 7:54!!  We eventually got it down to a 7:12 for that mile.  Geez.  Oddly are other miles there was no wind as we were up against the mountain on the trail.  We didn't feel a tail wind until about mile 11.5 coming out of the mouth of the canyon after running under the bridge.    So loved every bit of this run.  So beautiful so relaxing.   Here are MY splits:  6:37, 6:44, 6:36, 6:47, 6:42, 6:41, 7:12, 6:34, 6:31, 6:32, 6:30, 6:31!!  :  D.  AP once again 6:39.   Cooled down .7 miles.  Total 16 miles.  The pace felt nice and controlled, no regrets or thoughts that we were pushing it too hard.  I could have run at least 5 more miles at AP of 6:45.  What a way to start the day.   Julie drove us back to our cars at South Fork then we iced in the river at another park down the canyon for 8 minutes.  Brrrr!!  Took a warm shower to thaw out.  I am hungry now.  I ate but am still hungry.  Took only one gu on the run and two sips of gatorade, a  little bit of water.   I might take a short nap to rejuvenate.  

10 easy/recovery pace miles @ 8:33 AP (wore trail shoes again, three times this week : D) running to the finish of the AF half and up to the mile 10 mark (at the West Pond road dip) then turning around and heading home.  Yup gotta include the dip for added strength training.  I ate a little before I left because I was hungry after yesterday's workout.  It seemed to help until mile 7 I was getting really hungry/thirsty again.  I ran at 7:32am ran four and then ran into my ol' ragnar buddy Amber Sandberg.  We talked in the humid heat and caught up a bit on each other.  Then we went our separate ways.  She is running the half tomorrow. I am running the first half with none other than the FAMOUS Kelli Stephensen : D!!   We should have a blast.  It will be a coolish evening running at 320am thirteen miles considerably UPHILL the whole time.  I need 15 miles tomorrow and I work at 6am so this works out perfectly except for the fact I have to leave my car up the canyon.  Not at the start line but at mile 15 when we turn around and run two more down before the half starts.  We should be well ahead of them.  : D.  I think they start at 6am now. Correction the 1/2 marathon starts at 5:40 am. 

Sogonapmit Marathon DNF : D due to the fact that I had to work.  NEXT year :D. Kelli picked me up from my house at 245am. Had slept 2 to 3 broken hours. I was getting pretty sleepy by race start time thinking about my 12.5 hour shift at work starting at 6am but after we started in the humid warm air and running beside Kelli for the first time I began to feel better and better. This was most assuredly the best training run/MLR ever. Having run 16 miles with 12 at MP on Thursday (my BEST MP MILES  RUN EVER)then 10 miles yesterday I wasn't sure how I would feel but in just the first mile I was thinking "I should have gotten someone to work for me for an hour" so I could run the whole thing. I felt great the entire time. No aches, no pains, no cramps no increased heartrate, totally relaxed totally like a kid at a candy store. I was on such a high and it was the biggest BUMMER to get in my car. I was so tempted to just follow with Kelly but I couldn't. My job is important and it just wouldn't go over well to not show until an hour late. They would have called my house and woke my whole family and I didn't have a cell phone with me (no coverage in the canyon anyway) SO I drove to work and clocked in at 5:59am, took report and then took a brief, wash your sweat off shower in the Dr.'s locker room. I had a towel with me and all my work clothes. I was totally prepared. Then I worked hard to take the best care of my patients and their little ones. The whole time flashing back to my AWESOME morning run up the canyon (and down 2+) with Kelli, Steve and others. The top was spectacular, running through the half marathoners cheering us on in the huge spotlights. I felt like a superstar. I had to make sure Kelli ran over the mat and grabbed her arm for one more spin under the balloons and over the mat. I was worried she didn't want to hear me talk but she assured me she was okay with me chatting away. I felt so incredible the whole time, even on the steepest hills I felt like I was on a cloud. I never felt tired or the feeling of why am I running this. It was like my spirit and body were freely enjoying life in nature. The cool air was so welcoming compared to the humid valley below. There are not many words to describe how elated I felt and I intend to feel this very elated at SGM when I go SUB THREE FOR THE FIRST TIME. I see it. I feel it. Mathmatically it has to and WILL happen. No doubt. No holding back. Thanks Kelli, Steve and Smooth (for getting Kelli to run it so I could run it with her : D). I think after SGM I am on to the ULTRA WORLD. Wasatch 100 here I come!! :D.