Turkey Day 5K - Boise Fun Run!

I'm so glad I decided to join my friend, Renee, and her family for a 5K fun run on Thanksgiving morning! It was a rather chilly morning, but that didn't stop 1500 people from getting out there to get a little exercise.  I figured from the beginning that I wouldn't get a PR for this race.  I haven't been keeping up on regular running since before the Chicago run almost a month ago, and while I knew I could very well run 3.1 miles, I didn't think I've be able to run it in under 31 minutes.  I have several goals for running and one of them includes running a 5K in under 30 minutes; I had a sneaking suspicion that just wasn't going to happen.  I vowed to just have a fun run for the morning and be glad I could actually run 3.1 miles.

We got to the start line with a few minutes to spare.  We nestled ourselves into the crowd and before I knew it, we were off!  I didn't have to maneuver around too many fanny-pack ladies and didn't have to worry about ANY strollers, since everyone with a stroller was lined up at the back!  I love it when people listen to instructions!  I lost Renee and her family pretty early, since we all run at different paces.

I noticed on our walk to the start line that my Garmin wasn't matching up; it indicated we were walking at 11:00/mile pace when we were clearly NOT doing so.  So when I arrived at mile marker 1 and my Garmin wasn't matched up with the marker, I wasn't too surprised.  I attributed the problem to the taller buildings downtown.  By no means do we have sky scrapers in Boise, but downtown is downtown and there's no denying the fact that some signals were lost during the run.  Mile 2 - still not match up.  I honestly didn't look at my Garmin all that much for pace, other than to try to keep myself under 10:00/mile and to see if it indicated I was running ridiculously fast or something.

I passed Josh waiting on the sidelines around the one mile marker.  He wasn't too thrilled to be out there but it meant a lot to have him there cheering me on. 

It must have been around mile 3.5 when I met up with a kid (probably age 11 or so) and his dad.  The kid was determined to stay in front of me, but he was obviously struggling with keeping up with dad.  The kid turned to look at where I was several times and each time he sped up to keep me from passing him.  Man, if the kid keeps up that determination, he could be a star!

I rounded the corner to the finish line and was astounded.  I thought I had another few blocks to go, but it was only a block away!  I looked down at my Garmin and realized I could totally finish in under 30.

I crossed the finish line in 28:30. 

I met up with Josh a few minutes after that and gloated expressed my happiness with my time.  Some of Renee's family members were already there and she followed shortly thereafter.  I sent Josh on his way to get started on the turkey for dinner and I waited around for the raffle.  I didn't win anything, but the prizes were enough to make me want to get in on the action a little more next year!

It got downright cold after the race while we watched other people win prizes and I still had about a 1/2 - 3/4 mile walk to the car and I knew it would take more than a brisk walk to get myself warmed up, so I decided to run back to the car. I felt loose and fast.  I didn't have my Garmin turned on because I just wanted to GO (and get warmed up!).

I got to the car and drove to my parents' house to get our Thanksgiving day meal prep going and watch Josh cook like a mad man outside.  What a wonderful day full of blessings.  We are truly lucky to have such great family, friends, and good health!

Speed work!

I will be very honest when I say I had absolutely no plans to do speed work on the 20th when I set out for my run.  I also had very little desire to run in general.  I also didn't feel up to par on Saturday and a lot of Sunday, but I ran anyway.  Aren't you proud?  Here's what happened:

I ran Friday after work.  I wanted to get up early on Saturday and run, but we had to be to my parents' house on Saturday by 10 to make lefse and I was very, very sleepy on Saturday when I woke up, so I chose to sleep before going to make lefse.  I drank a lot of water before digging in to the mimosas and even then I didn't have too much.  I had a white russian later in the afternoon and continued to drink water in the mean time.  It was probably about 4pm when I figured out that I just didn't feel all that great.  I convinced my dear husband to take me home to watch the Boise State football game that night.  I had a fairly normal temperature but drank some Emergen-C and I called it an early night.

Sunday morning came early and I still didn't feel so hot..so much that I didn't even want to drink any coffee when I woke up.  I had agreed to lead the adult Sunday School group that morning, so Josh and I went to church.  I led Sunday School and we went to eat after that at The Ram.  I ate only because I knew my body needed food.  I love the beer at The Ram and didn't even partake with Josh.  I did have some coffee with Baileys, but nothing more.  We made a few stops before going home and I started feeling a little better.  Josh laid down to nap, and I went to Target to get a few things we've needed for awhile.

I got home from Target and Josh was still sleeping.  I was bored and knew it would be best to get some exercise.  I threw on my gear and headed out the door.  I still didn't feel 100% so I figured it would be a tough run.  I ran a mile in 10:37...not bad.  I picked up the pace for a little bit: .16 miles at 9:30/mile avg.  And since I'm new to this whole "speed work" bit, the rest of my run was kind of screwed up.  I did several 1/10 mile sprints between 8:20/mile and 8:50/mile and walked/jogged in between.  Overall I ended up completing 3.25 miles.  I think I'll try to do more 1/4 mile splits at around a 9:00 pace from this point forward whenever I decide to do speed work so I don't feel quite as spent after the sprinting part of things.  We'll see!

Back in the groove

My brother got married last weekend, which doesn't excuse the fact that I didn't run from 11/8 through today, but things were a bit busy so I'm allowing myself to forgive myself for the lack of exercise for 10 days.  That being said, I worked too many hours from 11/14 to 11/18 and finally found some time to breathe on Friday.  I love throwing on my running gear at the office and heading out the door with no real plan in place...it makes me feel like I've earned the break from work and also helps me clear my head of all of the crap I have to work with everyday.

I felt fast during my first mile...really fast.  I suppose that makes sense though because I ran it in 9:32.  I remember feeling fine for the next 1/2 mile but then I started getting some side cramps and felt like absolute crap.  I slowed down, but I still ran my 2nd mile on 10:09.  I slowed down even more: Mile 3 - 10:55.  I got back into my groove for the 4th mile and ran that in 10:18.

My overall pace was 10:13, which is great considering the fact that I didn't run for 10 days.   I think I ran my first mile so fast because I was SO excited about finally getting out for a run!

On another note, I finally registered for the Turkey Day 5K to be held Thanksgiving morning.  It will be a great way to make sure I don't drink too much on Wednesday night and an even better way for me to get my butt out of bed on Thanksgiving morning to run!  Plus, my friend, Renee, and several of her family members are running too so I won't be alone at the finish line!

Bid Me Run

Jamie posted here and I fell in love with a new running quote:

Bid me run and I will strive with things impossible - Shakespeare: Julius Caesar Act 2, Scene 1.

My head is spinning with ways I could tattoo this on my body.  It means more than what it seems on the surface.  I did a little digging (I'm not a good person for deciphering Shakespeare) and found a modern version of the statement:

LIGARIUS:  (takes off his head covering) By all the gods that Romans worship, I hereby throw off my sickness! Soul of Rome! Brave son of honorable ancestors! You’ve conjured up my deadened spirit like an exorcist. Now say the word, and I will tackle all kinds of impossible things, and succeed too. What is there to do?

I found this, but it's not exactly what I want tattooed on my body:

Now, for today's run:


I went to work late because I could and ran 3.26 miles this morning at an average pace of 10:08.  Nothing special, just a run. 

Funny 4 miler and registration Portland!

After my spectating debut, I decided I needed to get out and run more than 2 miles.  I suited up on Sunday, 11/6 and went out to run.  I didn't know exactly how long I would go and I didn't have a planned route; I just wanted to run!  When I stepped out the door, I decided to go a different direction than I typically do and just go.  This was a funny run because I improved my time with every mile, which is definitely not typical for me:

Mile 1 - 10:30
Mile 2 - 10:22
Mile 3 - 10:12
Mile 4 - 10:06
Mile 4.26 - 2:35 (Avg pace 9:59)

This run felt particularly great!  Maybe I should take note and remember to do a quick 2 mile run post-half-marathon and gear up for a 4-5 miler a day later.  Maybe I should also try to take note and start out slower and improve with each mile...

On another note, I've registered for my next race!  Three of my friends and I decided to register for the Portland Half-Marathon next October.  Apparently this race is amazing and sells out quickly, so we had to register 11 months in advance for it.   I love, love, love Portland and can't wait to go for the weekend....I just wish I didn't have to wait a year!

One year ago...

One year ago, I ran my first half-marathon.  Up to that point I had run exactly one race: a 5k that wasn't even a timed event for non-chip-timed participants, and I was not privy to the beauty of time chips at that time.  Over the past year I've run four half-marathons, one 2.5 mile race, one 5k, one 10k, and two legs of the Sawtooth Relay. 

I've learned quite a few things over the past year, especially:

The importance of using bag check or why it's ridiculous not to, really.  Jamie and I didn't check a bag at the Indy Monumental for our first race, mostly because we had no idea we would need to.  It now seems ridiculous that we finished running a race when the temp was never above freezing and still had to walk back to our hotel.  It was SO cold and we were sweaty and our clothes were literally freezing to our bodies.  It's such a glorious thing after a race to have someone hand you a bag of all of the smart things you thought to put in a bag prior to heading to the start line.

and 

I'm not fast, but I've become faster without much effort.  I really haven't done any tempo training or much hill training over the last year but somehow I've shaved a minute per mile off my time for my half-marathon races.  How crazy is that? 

and

I want to run when I'm old because seriously, how cool would it be to win an age group race because you're the only person in your age group running?  That happened this summer at the 10k when the lady in dead-last place won in her age group because she was the only woman in her 60s running.  That's inspiration, people.

I've learned a heck of a lot more, but those are my big three that needed to be shared on the one year anniversary of my first half-marathon.  Today I'm celebrating these accomplishments because let's face it, I feel proud and happy of myself.

Being a Spectator

I ran 2.2 miles this morning.  Big whoop, right?  The thing about this 2.2 miler was that it was my first post-half-marathon run after the Monster Dash last weekend.  I think I usually take 4-5 days off of running after big runs like that but I took a solid 7 this time.  I think it worked because today didn't suck!  I wasn't ridiculously slow and tired!  Hooray!  My first mile was significantly faster than my second, but I don't really care very much, as I just wanted to log a few miles.  My overall pace was 9:58/mile; mile one in 9:40, mile two in 10:10, and .2 at 10:24 pace.  I had some side cramps toward the end, so I can't say I wasn't completely pain free but I can say that I ate and drank coffee just before heading out the door, which wasn't the wisest plan I've ever had. 

After the run, the kid and I met up with my friend, Renee, to cheer on our friends and (Renee's) siblings/in-law at the Zeitgeist Half Marathon in Boise.  It was a chilly day to be running (love it!) and although I contemplated signing up for it this week, I'm glad I didn't.  It looked ridiculously hard.  This was my first time being a cheerleader for runners on the sidelines and it was rather enjoyable.  Every race I run I love having people cheer for everyone/me and I was glad to be able to do that for others this morning.  I decided, however, that I need a few more phrases and words of encouragement in my arsenal for the next time I decide to be a spectator at a race!

Chicago Monster Dash Recap!

The Monster Dash has come and gone and I have done much celebrating!  I have a feeling this is going to be another long post, so go grab something to drink and come back to have a read. 

I flew into Chicago on Friday afternoon about 2 hours later than scheduled due to an electrical error on the plane.  Once I landed, I was able to navigate the CTA train downtown to packet pickup where I picked up my bib, timing chip, and rad new jacket.  I found a quaint little joint to grab a bit to eat and a beer and waited for Jamie to get to the hotel.  We gathered her race stuff and headed over to see our friend, Kirby, in action at the bar where he works.  We grabbed a beer and a small pizza before making our way to a running store so Jamie could stock up on Gu-like substances and to Walgreens so she could try to find a costume.  We were supposed to be Mario and Luigi but with all of the stuff that happens in life the Luigi costume didn't happen.  It was a toss up between Cleopatra and "Sexy Pirate Lady" for costumes and since the "Sexy Pirate Lady" looked slightly more comfortable, she decided on that one. 

With packets picked up and costumes purchased, it was time to eat some real food. We stopped at the grocery store and picked up some pasta and spinach to eat with some chicken breasts back at her apartment.  It was an uneventful night, which was just fine since Saturday would prove to be a busy day. 

I woke up without an alarm on Saturday at just the right time.  I enjoyed some coffee and a breakfast bar, threw on my Mario costume, and we loaded up to go to the race start.  Parking was a little more congested than we expected and we got to the race start with just enough time to put on some last minute items (Garmin, iPods, etc.) and check our bags at the bag check before heading to the portable toilets...except that the lines for the toilets was really long.  It was 9:11 and the 1/2 marathon was supposed to start the run at 9:15!  Knowing we wouldn't be able to hold things off for the length of the race and risking getting ticketed in Chicago, we snuck down into a bushy area and dropped trou to relieve ourselves.  We were lucky with the fact that only one person come down to that area during that time and that 1) he wasn't a cop and 2) he didn't care because he was going to do the same thing.  Turns out we probably could have used the toilets because the race didn't end up starting until 9:25 and we had to wait another 5 minutes to cross the start line due to the congestion of the race. 

Once things go started, I felt like we moved fairly quickly.  There was quite a bit of congestion, but it didn't slow me down much since I'm a slower runner anyway.  Jamie and I stuck together for the first 5 or 6 miles, which was cool.  We lost each other at one of the water stations and she kept up with her 10:50 pace.  I slowed down a little, which was a wise plan.  Miles 6 and 7 were my hardest for some reason and I got into a bad habit of looking down at the ground as I ran.  I constantly had to remind myself that I was on the lakeshore in Chicago and that the view was something to be seen, not ignored!  I took 2 Clif Shot Bloks at miles 4, 6, and 10-ish and actually wish I had more, something else, or that I had some Nuun in a water bottle with me, but I didn't...and I still survived. There were several mile marker flags missing throughout the race, which was disappointing.  Even though I had my Garmin, there were a few times I knew it was not registering the satellites due to the bridge and I wasn't entirely sure the miles were tracked accurately.  I could have used another water station somewhere between miles 9 and 10 but there was a drinking fountain available, so that wasn't so bad.

I don't have any really memorable moments from this half-marathon except for the last 1/4 mile or so. As I rounded the corner for the last bit of the race, I squeezed out every ounce of energy left in me and felt like I was running really, really fast!  I passed a few people at the end, which may or may not be contributed to the number of people yelling out "Go Mario!" as my feet hit the pavement.  I crossed the finish line in 2:27:11 for the race and had I not been gasping for air, I probably would have been beaming from ear to ear for my PR! 

I grabbed the goody bag of food and found my bag at the check station before heading to the meet up spot to find Jamie.  We hugged and I let her know my unofficial time and that I had accomplished yet another PR!  After a little while we took a rather lengthy walk to find food with a few other friends.  I'm sure Blue Man Group, a bee, Mario, and the Sexy Pirate Lady eating pierogies and drinking beer and this small little restaurant, but we were all smiles and didn't give a lick about what everyone else thought of us!

The rest of the weekend may or may not be shared at a later date, but here are the official stats from the race and a few post-race photos:

2011 Team Ortho Chicago Monster Dash - Half Marathon
Miranda M        Age: 32             Residence: Boise, ID

11:15 per mile
Overall place: 2203 out of 3030
Gender place: 1332 out of 1966 Females
Age Group place: 247 out of 385 Females in the F3034 Age Group

Passed 450 runners
Passed by 112 runners in the overall category

Sexy Pirate Lady and Mario

Post-Race Beers!

PR!