Running in the Rockies

This was a fun run!  Dawn and I went to a different trail that was a little more rugged and we actually lost the trail for a little and had to follow the creek bed for a while.  It was surprisingly nice to have a different trail, where I didn't know the mile markers as well as my typical runs.  But it was a little tough to run in sand, up and down boulders, and through narrow trail areas where the scrub oak scratch you.  ; )  Fun run, though.

We're in New Mexico with my side of the family, so I got to go running with my husband while my sweet, solicitous nieces happily watched our children.  (hee,hee)  It was a nice run with my favorite running partner.  

Running with Lybi this morning!!!!!!  So fun!!  We even sprinted at the end and I gave her a "run for her money." (pun intended - hee,hee)  Having a great time in NM with family!!

For some reason, I was really dreading this run.  But once I finally got out the door, it was a great run.  At about mile 3 or 4, I was really enjoying myself (runner's high or downhill finally?  hee, hee)  It's nice to be home again, but I sure had a great time with my family.  I can't wait to see Lybi's family when they come up over Labor Day for the half marathon!!

I was actually a little sore this morning from my run yesterday.  Weird.  It was a good kind sore - muscles instead of joints - so I didn't worry about running today on it.  But I stretched my hips a lot beforehand just in case.  Dawn, her friend, and I headed back to that wild nature "park", and even though we took a different route, we still ended up blazing a trail at some point.  I really like our Wednesday runs.  I have no idea where I am or how far I've gone, but I'm climbing over boulders, through sand, doing a lot of uphill, and with 2 other equal running partners.  The only bad thing is I kept almost twisting my ankle.  I never fell or sprained it, but I came close.  Dawn's out of town this weekend, so I don't have a partner again until next Wednesday.  Bummer.  Maybe I'll see if Lynn wants to run slow with me for my 7 mile run....  ; )

I should've tried to do something yesterday, but didn't. I gave Mike the "morning slot" so he could go for a long ride; and then the rest of the day, I was either trying to finish reading my book club book or clean my house for the discussion that evening. Ha!

This morning was a sluggish run. I couldn't convince my legs to move much at all. I think my average pace was in the 11 or 12 range. Oh well. I always feel a run is an achievement in and of itself.

This long run was supposed to be on Monday according to my friend's schedule for us; but I wanted to go on my favorite trail and I feel safer when there are more people on it - so I chose to go on a Saturday instead (my friend is still out of town). I tried and tried to find someone who I could run with, but everyone was out of town. So, it was me and my iPod. It was a beautiful run. That's one thing nice about growing up in New Mexico - I'm ALWAYS grateful for beautiful scenery and cool weather because both were not easy to come by in NM. ; ) I also liked having my iPod so I wasn't freaked out by every little noise in the bushes. I kept my pace very easy and I'm sure my heart rate was around 150-160 so that was good for aerobic base building. My knee started hurting a little around mile 5, but then apparently went away because I don't remember it bugging me for long. Happily there was a port-a-potty around mile 6 (no further comment on that). I stretched when I got back to my car, stretched when I got home, and stretched after I made breakfast for my family. Last time I ran 8 miles, I got a pinched nerve that sent me to PT for 2 months. So, I've kind of had a mental thing with 8 miles. But I've been back for 2.5 hours and no pain anywhere! Yea!!!

I took the run I usually went with Lynn on, but took it nice and easy and then did a tempo speed on mile 3. It was so much better than when I ran with my fast friends. It is so important for my system to start out slow, apparently. I really felt like I had reserves to pull from instead of dying the whole time. So, here are my splits (for my records - these are still painfully slow to so many runners on this blog!):

mile 1 - 11.15

mile 2 - 11.32

mile 3 - 9:50 (and mostly uphill, too, so I'm pretty happy with that pace)

mile 4 - 11:16

last .27 - 9:04 (coming down the huge hill by my house)

I've also decided to run a 10K before my half marathon. The 10K is a week from this Saturday, while the Half marathon is on Labor Day. I'm getting kind of excited about them both!! ; )

I ran with Dawn and her friend, Laura, in our wilderness park again. We took a different route yet again; this one was longer and a really good workout. The uphill seemed to go on forever. We eventually had to walk some of it because we were all struggling to breath. ; ) So, that'll be a great challenge for us to get better and better on that route. It's funny to run with Laura and Dawn; they both have personal trainers who work them really hard on Tues and Thurs, plus they have really strict diets. So, our conversation this morning was on what and when they eat everyday. Dawn is allergic to gluten, eggs, soy, and dairy ... plus she's trying to loose more weight, so she's cutting (or reducing) other things too!! Tough diet!!

I actually went swimming today and did laps for half an hour. I'm not sure I've ever really done laps before -- and now that I've done them, I know WHY!! They were HARD!! I thought that my running would help transfer over to better strength and aerobic ability with swimming. Oh no. I died. It was a great workout, though, and I want to do it more often and see if I can improve my swimming ability. I'd like to some day compete in a triathlon, so swimming must be conquered! ; ) Maybe I should do an adult class and touch up on my technique. Hmmm...

Five miles on the trail with Dawn. We got progressively faster with each mile, which was great! Our last mile was 10:05 pace. That's always a good thing when you're not even trying! ha! There was a lady that we were just a following the last mile or so and I think I was subconsciously trying to pass her. Luckily for me, she didn't want to be passed easily, so I just kept speeding up without thinking about it.

Dawn and I had to change our initial plans this morning because I had a commitment at 8:30 this morning. So, we just ran a route around her house. The nice thing about where we live is .. you ALWAYS get a hill workout at some point. It just depends on where in your run it ends up. ha!

Monday is our 10 miler! Whoosh! That'll be the longest run I've ever done.

I did it!!! I am now officially a double digit runner!!!! [applause] My partner and I decided to try using hydration systems and fuel (GU, etc). We stopped/walked to "eat" and drink about mile 3.5 and mile 7. I was really tired the entire run. At about mile 7.5, I told her to run ahead because I was obviously slowing her down. I learned a lot on this run:

1) staying up late with my sister-in-law from out of town for 4 nights in a row takes its toll

2) my body prefers the BLOKS to the GUs

3) I should take at least 2 at a time, rather than 1

4) my partner must be sugar sensitive because as I was fantasizing about going to sleep on the trail, she was getting more and more perky from her BLOKS and energy drink.

5) I need to eat some fuel right before and right after my run because water isn't enough; I feel too exhausted to eat breakfast until I almost get sick

6) and last of all - I can do it!!!! ; )

I really felt awful for about an hour after my run, and then I started to perk up a little. But I've been tired and feeling "off" all day. All my joints feel great and my legs aren't even sore. But my body just feels low on ... whatever is necessary for normal life. ha!

(Hey, check it out! Since my long run is on a Monday, I'm on page TWO of the mileage board. Sweeeet!)

I forgot to set my alarm clock last night, so I missed the run with Laura and Dawn; so I just went out on my own route by my house. I can't believe my 10K is already 3 days away and my half marathon is a month away. Ahhhhh!!!

Nice, easy run this morning. I keep thinking about my 10K. Here are my goals.:

Gold - anything less than an hour

Silver - 1:05 or less

Bronze - 1:10 or less

Anything slower than 1:10 means I took it as easy as my regular runs. So ... we'll see!

My first 10K!!! It was absolutely the perfect day for it and the perfect race. It's considered the fastest 10K in Colorado; and the day dawned slightly cloudy with not a stitch of breeze. Perfect! I woke up and got ready as usual for a run, and right as I was about to head out the door I thought I would throw up from nerves. ha! I stretched at home and then headed to the race. I did a little warm up jogging and stretched more. With about 10 minutes before the race, I ate 2 BLOKS. The race started at 7:00 and I chose to place myself very close to the end of the pack. It was actually awe inspiring when we started and I saw how many people there were running. It's a strange but very palpable camaraderie. I took my first mile at a comfortable, but not slow pace. And then after mile 1, I kept telling myself, "It's a 10k, Laura, it's supposed to hurt! Give it your all!" My pace started slacking when that mental pep talk stopped. I'm glad that I positioned myself at the back because it was mentally more encouraging to be passing people all through the race, rather than being passed the whole time. I felt like I paced myself well and pushed hard as well. I'm glad I took my Garmin so I could see when I was running slower than 10:00 and consciously crank it up a notch. So, here are my splits:

1 - 10:15

2 - 9:41

3 - 9:32

4 - 9:49

5 - 9:38

6 - 9:33

.2 - 7:46 ave pace

Total time: 1:00:41 (ave pace 9:47)

I am SO bummed!! I'm a stupid 40 seconds off my goal time. I really wanted to get under an hour. But I didn't do the math right - I thought keeping it a little under 10:00 pace would get me there. But it's actually under a 9:40 pace. A stupid 7 seconds a mile faster than what I ran. I really feel like I could've done that. Aaaaarrrgh!

Learning how to run and beginning to race has been such an interesting experience over the last year. I was never a runner before - never even did sports in high school. So, the idea and ability to "give me all" is still somewhat foreign. I know that my last .3 miles, I was about to die; but the 6 miles before that I was pushing, yet still surprisingly comfortable. I don't know if that's because I wasn't pushing hard enough or if I just found my running "zone." Well, ... there will be many more races in the future; and I hope that by continuing to run and race I will be able to gauge myself, my limits, and my capabilities better. All in time, I guess.

I went to bed last night at 9:00, so today's long run was easier than last week's. We went 11 miles today but our pace was really slow. Both of us were actually surprised how slow our pace had been - it didn't seem like we were going that slow. We might need to run on a different route, just to break up our pattern. I tried a different water/fuel pattern today. I took 2 bloks before I started running, a little water around mile 5, a little endurance drink at mile 7 and 9.5. I think I need fuel a little before mile 7 because I started to feel like I was running out of steam.

After my run, I didn't have nearly the fatigue that I experienced with my 10 miler last week. I was a little sore, but I just kept stretching; and I'm feeling pretty good right now. I went to the chiropractor today; my back was out and it was hurting my knees a little as I ran. Cami hasn't been walking for a week and a half (because of an injury at a park), and my back hasn't enjoyed lifting and carrying a 55 pound kid.

This was more of a strength training day. We went up The Incline in Manitou Springs, which is a incredible workout -- a mile's worth of old railroad ties up the mountain that increase 2000 feet in altitude in that one mile distance. It's such a cardio workout and the increase in altitude also takes your breath away; so it makes for a great challenge. Once we got to the top, we ran down a trail that intersects The Incline. It's called the Barr Trail and it's 4 miles back down. Needless to say, my quads were SORE after today's workout.

[If you're curious about The Incline, you can check it out at www.inclineclub.com/incline. It's a funny local icon - although there are "Private Property. No trespassing" signs, the Incline is used by about 100 people a day.]

So, I can hardly walk down stairs or kneel down today from my workout yesterday. The run down the trail for 4 miles was harder on my quads than the mile on the Incline. I went swimming for 1/2 an hour today instead of running. I did a little better swimming than last time -- although, I really couldn't have done any worse!!!!! (hee,hee)