I forgot the most important things:
1.http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=45861&BIB=3855
The running skirt and stupid pink race shirt in action! And my lamest marathon performance ever. Oh, well, at least I expanded my sartorial limits and met people (medics and the hapless injured guy who accepted the baggie of ice I fished out from underneath my shirt. Ok, to be honest, from within my bra.).
2. I signed up for Emilie's Run. I'm not feeling sharp enough for a 5K, and I anticipate this race being as hot as last year, but it was the race that started this deployment and blog and it feels fitting to end off the deployment with it (sort of--the end date of the deployment won't be conveniently cut and dried!). I think the blog may live on beyond the race, though. It's always 3XX days to something!
3. Tomorrow will be JUNE. The little list on the right will have TWO Junes on it. Meaning, man, it's been close to a year. Time for my husband to come home!
Meanwhile, tomorrow will be time for a retrospective of some sort. On the one hand, I don't feel like a lot has happened this year because I was much more curtailed funds and travel-visa wise during this deployment (basically, USCIS crapped on my plans to work hard and play harder in Asia again), but there were still high points. And low points, of course, but I'll try to be positive :)
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Sunday
There is a lot to talk about in this post.
1. the capriciousness of Mother Nature. I ran today in about 8C, overcast, drizzly. Two weeks ago, I ran in about 4C, overcast, windy. Good running weather, both days. But, of course, the Ottawa race weekend was a week ago, and 18ishC, and sunny. WHAAAAA?
2. Yesterday: 3.5 miles with the dog, and 1.5 miles to work. Then at work I was exposed to some new contagion or whatever, and started sneezing a lot.
3. Got up this morning for run club, but it wasn't feeling right, so I conked out and slept in until ten. Then I felt ok, just a bit tired, and I headed out to meet run club at the end of their run. Jogged back, so 2ish miles total there, albeit with a brownie and chat interjection.
4. Grabbed the dog and, considering the nice weather, decided to run ten miles. Yes, run. WEll, jog. No walk breaks. So we did that and it was nice, except
5. FOLKS, this whole coming out of winter hibernation to cast the evil eye at my dog isn't cool. I try to look pleasant and my dog heels well, better than 95% of the dogs I see, but people have been kind of pissy about my dog lately. Yeah, he looks evil but we made it through the winter without anyone getting mauled and he's been very easy-going about sharing the paths we held down in -20C and below. Bikes, trikes, Hummer baby strollers, blades, other dogs, etc, he just jogs by. Yet people glare. Not everyone, but enough to harsh our buzz. We get into a groove, maybe get a nice compliment, we smile, we keep running, and then someone punctures that with a glare. The same thing happened last year, too: we ran through slush, whatever, no worries, just smiles from the other people crazy enough to be out there too, and then it gets nice out and suddenly we're running into folks who look like they've been sucking lemons. People haul out their toys and weekend warrior attitude and squirrely little kids and ill-trained designer dogs pulling the whole family along and it beomes How Dare You Run with Your Mean Dog in Public. But very few people confront me directly, which makes me even more annoyed because I think I'm itching for a fight, although I get a kick out of people who get hauled towards my dog by their golden or labradoodle or whatever and then mutter that my dog is vicious. (my 2nd favourite is when we're running along and someone's loose dog runs up to mine and they mutter that my dog is vicious). So, whenever I see someone glaring at me-at my dog-at me (it's becoming quite distinctive), I try to smile angelically. Next step is to match their passive-aggressive bullcrap with a good ole 'How you doin'? Gotta problem?'
Or maybe I should just quit running through the Glebe. LOL. Oh, it's too easy to knock the Glebe. I should quit that. It's very convenient and calming to run through, and it's not like we don't get issues elsewhere.
And, if last year is any indication, this sort of thing will die down as the spring of spring wears off and people venture less outdoors again.
And some people compliment my dog; a few people, including two dog trainers, have commented that he heels really well. And there are people who are all over him...he is something of a man magnet, lol. He has his fans. He's the type of dog that most people have a strong opinion about, good or ill. More importantly, though, he is well behaved in public. I take him out with the attitude that when he's out, he's 'working'. He has to behave. He has to stay close beside me unless I tell him 'ok'. We're still fine tuning things such as when he crosses the street--he tends to drift away a bit--but he's never pulling ahead of me. I don't accept that. "Who's the human here? Who created fire?" If he starts tuning me out, on goes the halti--how he hates that! He can still enjoy sights and smells, but on my terms. I'm the leader. Sounds harsh, but it's a lot safer for everyone than the all-too prevaling attitude that going out in public is a good time for a dog to play and go crazy. My dog has his crazy play moments too, but not in public. People are afraid of dogs. Everyone deserves to have a nice calm outing.
Anyway, he 'worked' for ten+ miles today. :)
And the real main issue is that my blog title is misleading--it's not 3XX days to go. It's maybe not even 3X days to go. I'm excited that it's so soon and annoyed that it's been so long. It's high time that my husband got back so that we as a cohesive family unit can cast judgemental glares with impunity (although that's not really on my homecoming list, lol).
1. the capriciousness of Mother Nature. I ran today in about 8C, overcast, drizzly. Two weeks ago, I ran in about 4C, overcast, windy. Good running weather, both days. But, of course, the Ottawa race weekend was a week ago, and 18ishC, and sunny. WHAAAAA?
2. Yesterday: 3.5 miles with the dog, and 1.5 miles to work. Then at work I was exposed to some new contagion or whatever, and started sneezing a lot.
3. Got up this morning for run club, but it wasn't feeling right, so I conked out and slept in until ten. Then I felt ok, just a bit tired, and I headed out to meet run club at the end of their run. Jogged back, so 2ish miles total there, albeit with a brownie and chat interjection.
4. Grabbed the dog and, considering the nice weather, decided to run ten miles. Yes, run. WEll, jog. No walk breaks. So we did that and it was nice, except
5. FOLKS, this whole coming out of winter hibernation to cast the evil eye at my dog isn't cool. I try to look pleasant and my dog heels well, better than 95% of the dogs I see, but people have been kind of pissy about my dog lately. Yeah, he looks evil but we made it through the winter without anyone getting mauled and he's been very easy-going about sharing the paths we held down in -20C and below. Bikes, trikes, Hummer baby strollers, blades, other dogs, etc, he just jogs by. Yet people glare. Not everyone, but enough to harsh our buzz. We get into a groove, maybe get a nice compliment, we smile, we keep running, and then someone punctures that with a glare. The same thing happened last year, too: we ran through slush, whatever, no worries, just smiles from the other people crazy enough to be out there too, and then it gets nice out and suddenly we're running into folks who look like they've been sucking lemons. People haul out their toys and weekend warrior attitude and squirrely little kids and ill-trained designer dogs pulling the whole family along and it beomes How Dare You Run with Your Mean Dog in Public. But very few people confront me directly, which makes me even more annoyed because I think I'm itching for a fight, although I get a kick out of people who get hauled towards my dog by their golden or labradoodle or whatever and then mutter that my dog is vicious. (my 2nd favourite is when we're running along and someone's loose dog runs up to mine and they mutter that my dog is vicious). So, whenever I see someone glaring at me-at my dog-at me (it's becoming quite distinctive), I try to smile angelically. Next step is to match their passive-aggressive bullcrap with a good ole 'How you doin'? Gotta problem?'
Or maybe I should just quit running through the Glebe. LOL. Oh, it's too easy to knock the Glebe. I should quit that. It's very convenient and calming to run through, and it's not like we don't get issues elsewhere.
And, if last year is any indication, this sort of thing will die down as the spring of spring wears off and people venture less outdoors again.
And some people compliment my dog; a few people, including two dog trainers, have commented that he heels really well. And there are people who are all over him...he is something of a man magnet, lol. He has his fans. He's the type of dog that most people have a strong opinion about, good or ill. More importantly, though, he is well behaved in public. I take him out with the attitude that when he's out, he's 'working'. He has to behave. He has to stay close beside me unless I tell him 'ok'. We're still fine tuning things such as when he crosses the street--he tends to drift away a bit--but he's never pulling ahead of me. I don't accept that. "Who's the human here? Who created fire?" If he starts tuning me out, on goes the halti--how he hates that! He can still enjoy sights and smells, but on my terms. I'm the leader. Sounds harsh, but it's a lot safer for everyone than the all-too prevaling attitude that going out in public is a good time for a dog to play and go crazy. My dog has his crazy play moments too, but not in public. People are afraid of dogs. Everyone deserves to have a nice calm outing.
Anyway, he 'worked' for ten+ miles today. :)
And the real main issue is that my blog title is misleading--it's not 3XX days to go. It's maybe not even 3X days to go. I'm excited that it's so soon and annoyed that it's been so long. It's high time that my husband got back so that we as a cohesive family unit can cast judgemental glares with impunity (although that's not really on my homecoming list, lol).
Friday, May 29, 2009
Friday
The dog and I jogged 8.39 miles...well, about 7.39 and then we walked the last one home. I met up with friends and stopped to chat, and didn't feel like running after that. At any rate, it was a really nice run. The weather was reasonable, plus overcast and somewhat cool, and it was relaxing. I'm especially pleased with my shoulder thingy...I tend to do a weird thing with my right shoulder. It drops and tenses up; it has to do with holding the dog leash in that side, although it happens even when I don't have the dog. I've been working on relaxing--sometimes by tensing up extra hard and then totally relaxing--but today was the first time that I felt where things were supposed to go; I let them go there and relaxed totally and quickly. It was amazing how much easier that felt. this is a big breakthrough for an issue I've been dealing with for a couple of years at least. Typically, when I'm working hard, most of my tension is in my right shoulder.
The million dollar question is, though, how much mileage can I get out of my Nike Frees? I can't remember when I got them except that it was over a year ago. I've rotated shoes since then, but I have put on a heck of a lot of miles on them, but they feel fine. I guess a shoe without much cushioning to begin with isn't going to have a lot of cushioning break down. Guess I'll just keep wearing them.
After the run, I did resistance exercises. I did them Mon-Wed-Fri this week, so I'm happy about that.
tomorrow will be an easy run, and then work.
The million dollar question is, though, how much mileage can I get out of my Nike Frees? I can't remember when I got them except that it was over a year ago. I've rotated shoes since then, but I have put on a heck of a lot of miles on them, but they feel fine. I guess a shoe without much cushioning to begin with isn't going to have a lot of cushioning break down. Guess I'll just keep wearing them.
After the run, I did resistance exercises. I did them Mon-Wed-Fri this week, so I'm happy about that.
tomorrow will be an easy run, and then work.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
a nice run
Tues--just walked a bit with the dogs. Maybe 1.5 miles?
Wed--I walked with the dogs a bit more, lol, plus did more in the way of morning exercises. I'm trying to get back into that.
Then I jogged to run club and did almost 6 miles with them, then jogged home for a total of 8 miles. It was about 12 and drizzly--nearly perfect weather. I felt so fresh. My legs were springy. It was like that thing on Sunday had never happened. LOL
Anyway, it's too early to decide what I'm going to do in the fall (apart from the Army 1/2), but I can decide how I'm going to train. I'm not sure I'm going to do an ultra. I'm not even sure I'm going to do a marathon. Who knows? But I can decide how I'm going to train.
My foot seems to be fine so I can run continuously pretty well. I have to get the dog back into it. I've decided that, especially since it'll be getting hotter, we can stick to the same 3.5ish mile loop for the time being. There are two water fountains there and it's flat and easy. Ideally, this will be an early (for me) morning run. Then, on certain days, like Wed and Fri, I could do speedwork or longer runs in the evening. Sunday will be the long run. Maybe Wed will be a longer morning run too---that seemed to work well as a double. If I think that I want to run more in the mornings, or on one particular morning, or whenever, I will.
I don't mind running longer regularly, but I'm curious to see if sticking to the same loop will be more relaxing/effective, instead of running wherever, and a different route, pretty much every single time. That's fun, but after a while (a few years?) of that, I think my body is craving a bit more of a routine.
And, definitely, I need to do the resistance exercises 3X a week.
So I have all of June to get into a groove and then things will probably get wonky--but my husband's return will be worth it :)
Wed--I walked with the dogs a bit more, lol, plus did more in the way of morning exercises. I'm trying to get back into that.
Then I jogged to run club and did almost 6 miles with them, then jogged home for a total of 8 miles. It was about 12 and drizzly--nearly perfect weather. I felt so fresh. My legs were springy. It was like that thing on Sunday had never happened. LOL
Anyway, it's too early to decide what I'm going to do in the fall (apart from the Army 1/2), but I can decide how I'm going to train. I'm not sure I'm going to do an ultra. I'm not even sure I'm going to do a marathon. Who knows? But I can decide how I'm going to train.
My foot seems to be fine so I can run continuously pretty well. I have to get the dog back into it. I've decided that, especially since it'll be getting hotter, we can stick to the same 3.5ish mile loop for the time being. There are two water fountains there and it's flat and easy. Ideally, this will be an early (for me) morning run. Then, on certain days, like Wed and Fri, I could do speedwork or longer runs in the evening. Sunday will be the long run. Maybe Wed will be a longer morning run too---that seemed to work well as a double. If I think that I want to run more in the mornings, or on one particular morning, or whenever, I will.
I don't mind running longer regularly, but I'm curious to see if sticking to the same loop will be more relaxing/effective, instead of running wherever, and a different route, pretty much every single time. That's fun, but after a while (a few years?) of that, I think my body is craving a bit more of a routine.
And, definitely, I need to do the resistance exercises 3X a week.
So I have all of June to get into a groove and then things will probably get wonky--but my husband's return will be worth it :)
Monday, May 25, 2009
recovery Monday
3.5 miles with the dog, then some light exercises, a few squats, clamshells, etc.
My legs are a little stiff, but not bad.
I had to tell some woman that I don't let my dog near other dogs that are "pulling like that"--meaning, pulling their owners towards us. I've been mulling this issue over for ages, how to politely tell people that if their dog hauls them to my dog, we're not interested in 'socializing'. And then this dog hauled its owner to my dog, but I veered off in the road, and it just spilled out:
"I'm sorry, I don't let my dog near dogs that are pulling like that."
It just came out! there it is. I'll try to be apologetic rather than accusatory or righteous about it. I don't think she took it well, but she appeared all too eager to let her dog pull itself towards mine so she earned whatever I had to say. It could have been a lot worse.
My legs are a little stiff, but not bad.
I had to tell some woman that I don't let my dog near other dogs that are "pulling like that"--meaning, pulling their owners towards us. I've been mulling this issue over for ages, how to politely tell people that if their dog hauls them to my dog, we're not interested in 'socializing'. And then this dog hauled its owner to my dog, but I veered off in the road, and it just spilled out:
"I'm sorry, I don't let my dog near dogs that are pulling like that."
It just came out! there it is. I'll try to be apologetic rather than accusatory or righteous about it. I don't think she took it well, but she appeared all too eager to let her dog pull itself towards mine so she earned whatever I had to say. It could have been a lot worse.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
well, I'm glad I dressed fancy
because there was nothing else going right for me on that run.
I started off a bit late, due to my own klutziness: I had packed my bag the night before, including the stuff I was going to wear. When I put that stuff on, I dumped the bag out including the chip and bib. So I had to borrow my friend's bike to go back home and get it. Still, that felt nice and refreshing with the breeze. It looked like it was clouding over, so I was optimistic.
I ended up at the very back of the pack, and I gradually eased forward. In retrospect, I had been going too fast--I hadn't realized that my gun and chip time were so far apart. And it was hot. I couldn't tell what was going on effort wise. IT felt easy, just hot. I passed the 4:15 bunny and could see the 4:00 bunnies, and felt hot. Passed 10K in 56 min, I think. Which turned out to be 53, but it was still slow as a 10K, but fast for the first one of a marathon. This is where a garmin would have come in handy! LOL. The course started downhill, though, which made it easier. But I was hot. I dumped water over my head every chance I got.
I had to slow down. I started walking through aid stations. Around 17 km, I toyed with the idea of quitting after 21.1 k. Got through that at 2:02/1:58, and decided to stop at the next medic. It was about this point that a medic passing by on a bicycle asked if I was ok. I told him I was hot, but alright. But I was starting to get dizzy.
Somehow I didn't get to a medic until 27/28 k...I was alternating walking and running at this point, and saw a few medics with bicycles but none that appeared to have what I needed: ice. I didn't know if medics had ice, but I had hopes. Finally, I got to a medic station and asked them for ice. I was pretty loopy at this point and couldn't quite explain myself--I was ok, just really hot. Although, when I stopped, I almost felt chilled. I wasn't getting to the crying stage of heat exhaustion (been there!) but I felt close. They got me some ice and discussed my plans for the future. They said I was looking pale.
I stayed there for a few minutes and deliberated. At that point in the course, I was almost the furthest away from the finish. It didn't seem to matter which way I went. I didn't care about finishing the thing, really, although the prospect of two DNFs in a row sort of sucked, but I didn't want to go back the way I came because it had been so horrible getting there. The medics offered a ride, but I decided to wait a bit longer and then walk. I was starting to get chilled (!) standing in the shade. They wrote down my bib number and offered to have someone check in on me further down, but I said I would check in myself. There was a station around 30K. I could make it there.
I got more ice, walked, jogged, got more ice, walked, jogged. I walked until I stopped feeling dizzy and ran until I started feeling dizzy. It worked. And I chatted with people. I met a guy doing a video of the course (he had a camera strapped to his head) and a woman who had just had cancer and some operations (I didn't ask for specifics). She had had to restart running from scratch this January. I talked with other people as well, but those were the two that stood out.
And, honestly, the fans were great. I felt horrible, but was smiling. After a while, I got tired of holding the ice against the back of my neck or head or whatever, so I tucked it in my bra. It worked.
I just kind of went along until about 36-37 k, when I was sick enough of the whole enterprize and decided to run more to get it over with sooner. My legs felt ok. My head was still a problem, but less and less so as I went along. There was a guy with an injury at 38K, so I gave him my ice. I hoped to get more, but didn't. So I just continued jogging and finished it. Got a bit dizzy but got it done.
At the end, I got to the medic tent and asked for more ice, but they were out. I also had a space blanket. I was feeling hot and cold at the same time.
I drank some fluids--I was well hydrated and well fueled, just hot.
I'm not sure if this has to do with my heart issues or what, but my thermostat was totally off. Temps ranged from 14-19C and the humidity was kind of high, and it was sunny, but other people seemed to deal with that a lot better than me. 5C is tank top and shorts weather for me, and it sure didn't help that I got used to winter conditions all too well, lol. Someone pointed that out to me, and it makes sense. If I try the Ottawa marathon again, I'd have to train indoors at least a little bit. I don't think I will. I enjoy the winter races too much and would rather acclimatize to those.
But at least my legs didn't get too beat up. my foot was fine. Wearing really light and flimsy shoes helped a lot.
So I'm not sure where I'll go from here. Rest, yes, and then jog easy for a few weeks. I'm still waiting to see a cardiologist. I signed up for the army 1/2 but if I can't work hard enough in training, I'll have to jog it. And maybe drop out of run club. dunno
My head still hurts! lol
I started off a bit late, due to my own klutziness: I had packed my bag the night before, including the stuff I was going to wear. When I put that stuff on, I dumped the bag out including the chip and bib. So I had to borrow my friend's bike to go back home and get it. Still, that felt nice and refreshing with the breeze. It looked like it was clouding over, so I was optimistic.
I ended up at the very back of the pack, and I gradually eased forward. In retrospect, I had been going too fast--I hadn't realized that my gun and chip time were so far apart. And it was hot. I couldn't tell what was going on effort wise. IT felt easy, just hot. I passed the 4:15 bunny and could see the 4:00 bunnies, and felt hot. Passed 10K in 56 min, I think. Which turned out to be 53, but it was still slow as a 10K, but fast for the first one of a marathon. This is where a garmin would have come in handy! LOL. The course started downhill, though, which made it easier. But I was hot. I dumped water over my head every chance I got.
I had to slow down. I started walking through aid stations. Around 17 km, I toyed with the idea of quitting after 21.1 k. Got through that at 2:02/1:58, and decided to stop at the next medic. It was about this point that a medic passing by on a bicycle asked if I was ok. I told him I was hot, but alright. But I was starting to get dizzy.
Somehow I didn't get to a medic until 27/28 k...I was alternating walking and running at this point, and saw a few medics with bicycles but none that appeared to have what I needed: ice. I didn't know if medics had ice, but I had hopes. Finally, I got to a medic station and asked them for ice. I was pretty loopy at this point and couldn't quite explain myself--I was ok, just really hot. Although, when I stopped, I almost felt chilled. I wasn't getting to the crying stage of heat exhaustion (been there!) but I felt close. They got me some ice and discussed my plans for the future. They said I was looking pale.
I stayed there for a few minutes and deliberated. At that point in the course, I was almost the furthest away from the finish. It didn't seem to matter which way I went. I didn't care about finishing the thing, really, although the prospect of two DNFs in a row sort of sucked, but I didn't want to go back the way I came because it had been so horrible getting there. The medics offered a ride, but I decided to wait a bit longer and then walk. I was starting to get chilled (!) standing in the shade. They wrote down my bib number and offered to have someone check in on me further down, but I said I would check in myself. There was a station around 30K. I could make it there.
I got more ice, walked, jogged, got more ice, walked, jogged. I walked until I stopped feeling dizzy and ran until I started feeling dizzy. It worked. And I chatted with people. I met a guy doing a video of the course (he had a camera strapped to his head) and a woman who had just had cancer and some operations (I didn't ask for specifics). She had had to restart running from scratch this January. I talked with other people as well, but those were the two that stood out.
And, honestly, the fans were great. I felt horrible, but was smiling. After a while, I got tired of holding the ice against the back of my neck or head or whatever, so I tucked it in my bra. It worked.
I just kind of went along until about 36-37 k, when I was sick enough of the whole enterprize and decided to run more to get it over with sooner. My legs felt ok. My head was still a problem, but less and less so as I went along. There was a guy with an injury at 38K, so I gave him my ice. I hoped to get more, but didn't. So I just continued jogging and finished it. Got a bit dizzy but got it done.
At the end, I got to the medic tent and asked for more ice, but they were out. I also had a space blanket. I was feeling hot and cold at the same time.
I drank some fluids--I was well hydrated and well fueled, just hot.
I'm not sure if this has to do with my heart issues or what, but my thermostat was totally off. Temps ranged from 14-19C and the humidity was kind of high, and it was sunny, but other people seemed to deal with that a lot better than me. 5C is tank top and shorts weather for me, and it sure didn't help that I got used to winter conditions all too well, lol. Someone pointed that out to me, and it makes sense. If I try the Ottawa marathon again, I'd have to train indoors at least a little bit. I don't think I will. I enjoy the winter races too much and would rather acclimatize to those.
But at least my legs didn't get too beat up. my foot was fine. Wearing really light and flimsy shoes helped a lot.
So I'm not sure where I'll go from here. Rest, yes, and then jog easy for a few weeks. I'm still waiting to see a cardiologist. I signed up for the army 1/2 but if I can't work hard enough in training, I'll have to jog it. And maybe drop out of run club. dunno
My head still hurts! lol
14C?!
It's just past 6:00 am, and already 14C. That's already too hot for me. :(
I might as well wear the cheetah print. LOL
I might as well wear the cheetah print. LOL
14C?!
It's just past 6:00 am, and already 14C. That's already too hot for me. :(
I might as well wear the cheetah print. LOL
I might as well wear the cheetah print. LOL
Saturday, May 23, 2009
taper nerves!
Yeah, I'm feeling more and more nervous. Not bad, though, just one day of that.
I have my clothes sorted....I'm going to drop things off at a friend's house
I have my clothes sorted....I'm going to drop things off at a friend's house
Saturday!
I jogged about three miles with the dog.
Hang on, I've been getting lazy, not just running-wise but mapping-runnning-wise: 3.57 miles. An easy run. I hadn't known that it was the great Glebe garage sale, so it was a little crowded there, but clear enough by the Canal.
I wore the race shirt, the blindingly pink race shirt--I'll put some bodyglide on, so that should be ok. I didn't wear the skirt this morning. Ottawa isn't ready for the skirt yet. The Great Glebe Garage Sale isn't ready for the skirt yet. Heck, I'm not ready for the skirt yet! Maybe tomorrow. At any rate, it's very comfortable, so with enough bodyglide, it should be ok. The pockets are big enough to hold my canned coffee, which is a big bonus
It's funny, though...I nixed plans to wear a costume and then ended up with one, sort of, anyway.
At any rate, I'm starting to feel the adrenaline for this thing. My guts weren't steady this morning, so I went on the meds, and will be sure to eat and drink enough today. Should be fine. I have 6 20+ mile workouts under my belt this year, including 2 marathons--endurance shouldn't be a problem. I'm lacking in stamina, though. Speed too, but stamina is more important. Will see!
I'll have some kraft dinner and a nap then head down to see the 10K.
Hang on, I've been getting lazy, not just running-wise but mapping-runnning-wise: 3.57 miles. An easy run. I hadn't known that it was the great Glebe garage sale, so it was a little crowded there, but clear enough by the Canal.
I wore the race shirt, the blindingly pink race shirt--I'll put some bodyglide on, so that should be ok. I didn't wear the skirt this morning. Ottawa isn't ready for the skirt yet. The Great Glebe Garage Sale isn't ready for the skirt yet. Heck, I'm not ready for the skirt yet! Maybe tomorrow. At any rate, it's very comfortable, so with enough bodyglide, it should be ok. The pockets are big enough to hold my canned coffee, which is a big bonus
It's funny, though...I nixed plans to wear a costume and then ended up with one, sort of, anyway.
At any rate, I'm starting to feel the adrenaline for this thing. My guts weren't steady this morning, so I went on the meds, and will be sure to eat and drink enough today. Should be fine. I have 6 20+ mile workouts under my belt this year, including 2 marathons--endurance shouldn't be a problem. I'm lacking in stamina, though. Speed too, but stamina is more important. Will see!
I'll have some kraft dinner and a nap then head down to see the 10K.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Things are heating up!
At least on thurs--I think I covered about 6 miles, but all walking--two with the dogs, and then at least 4 to/from my volunteer thing. But it was certainly hot enough! I might as well have been running.
Friday, today, I walked with the dogs another 2 miles or so (at least--we were out for an hour) and later went down to the race expo with Gaz #1. It was a blast! we overdosed on supplements, electrolytes, anti-oxidants, etc...I'm coming off the buzz now but hope to replicate it on Sun. LOL
But, man, talk about a sucky colour for a race shirt. I don't mean to be a baby about it, but pink? pink?! The men had lime green and I was sooo tempted to ask to switch, but I've gotten too many medium shirts when I asked for small at registration eons before, and so I wouldn't want someone to not get their size because they gave it to me. But hot pink? not my colour!
but as it turns out, Gaz was eyeing some running skirts at a stall which had some pink ones. So I got one that had some pink in it. Go big or go home--or, as the opera singers I used to work with said--go ho or go home. I'm going to try it out tomorrow and if it feels ok, I'll slather on the bodyglide and hope for the best.
Usually I wouldn't wear new things to a race, but this pink shirt irks me so much! So I'm going to work that pink thing, get it really smelly, and then perhaps never wear it again.
Meanwhile, I have been drinking a lot of fluid...feeling kind of bloated, but that's ok. I'm already feeling sort of logey this time round, so an extra pound or two won't hurt. Hopefully the extra blood volume will help. Will see what happens on Sunday!
Friday, today, I walked with the dogs another 2 miles or so (at least--we were out for an hour) and later went down to the race expo with Gaz #1. It was a blast! we overdosed on supplements, electrolytes, anti-oxidants, etc...I'm coming off the buzz now but hope to replicate it on Sun. LOL
But, man, talk about a sucky colour for a race shirt. I don't mean to be a baby about it, but pink? pink?! The men had lime green and I was sooo tempted to ask to switch, but I've gotten too many medium shirts when I asked for small at registration eons before, and so I wouldn't want someone to not get their size because they gave it to me. But hot pink? not my colour!
but as it turns out, Gaz was eyeing some running skirts at a stall which had some pink ones. So I got one that had some pink in it. Go big or go home--or, as the opera singers I used to work with said--go ho or go home. I'm going to try it out tomorrow and if it feels ok, I'll slather on the bodyglide and hope for the best.
Usually I wouldn't wear new things to a race, but this pink shirt irks me so much! So I'm going to work that pink thing, get it really smelly, and then perhaps never wear it again.
Meanwhile, I have been drinking a lot of fluid...feeling kind of bloated, but that's ok. I'm already feeling sort of logey this time round, so an extra pound or two won't hurt. Hopefully the extra blood volume will help. Will see what happens on Sunday!
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
"speedwork"
At least I got more sleep! I'm really going to try to get to sleep before midnight. I really need to do this from now until race day; I got some time off work so I won't be thrown by shiftwork.
I also need to lay off on the popcorn and drink more water.
I made a big batch of soup with udon noodles and tofu...of course, I'm now snacking on nachos instead, but hey~
Anyway, speedwork went surprisingly well. I was very relaxed. I haven't been doing speedwork at all, and it's too late to start, but this was a gentle workout: 2 X 2K at race pace. I don't know what my race pace will be, but I took it easy, was the slowest person there, lol.
10:21
10:22
Well, not sure that will be race pace, but it's nice that that pace felt so comfortable. I seem to lock into that 8:10-8:15 pace automatically, and 2K isn't long enough for it to catch up on me...not sure what would be long enough, lol. At any rate, I'm going to start super easy and try to keep things like that as long as possible.
I'm still wavering about garmin/watch/nothing...
I also need to lay off on the popcorn and drink more water.
I made a big batch of soup with udon noodles and tofu...of course, I'm now snacking on nachos instead, but hey~
Anyway, speedwork went surprisingly well. I was very relaxed. I haven't been doing speedwork at all, and it's too late to start, but this was a gentle workout: 2 X 2K at race pace. I don't know what my race pace will be, but I took it easy, was the slowest person there, lol.
10:21
10:22
Well, not sure that will be race pace, but it's nice that that pace felt so comfortable. I seem to lock into that 8:10-8:15 pace automatically, and 2K isn't long enough for it to catch up on me...not sure what would be long enough, lol. At any rate, I'm going to start super easy and try to keep things like that as long as possible.
I'm still wavering about garmin/watch/nothing...
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Tues
2 miles with the dogs, then 4 miles jog/walking around.
I checked out the elite runner lists for the Ottawa Race weekend. Turns out that the winner of the Boston marathon, Deriba Merga, will be in the 10K. I watched both the men's Olympic marathon and the Boston marathon--Merga was in third until very close to the finish of the Olympic marathon, when he was passed. That was one of the events that made that race gripping, but I felt pretty bad for him.
So it was nice watching the great race he had at Boston. And it will be cool to see him in the 10K, for all of 2.84 seconds before he glides out of sight. I'm looking forward to seeing all the elites. Maybe some of that efficiency will rub off on me.
I didn't get enough sleep after work tonight, so my legs are pretty stiff, but now I have a few easy days. Should be enough to complement all the arduous training I've devoted to this marathon. (lol)
I do have to stop eating popcorn for a bit, too. I'm heavy/flat/sluggish enough these days.
I checked out the elite runner lists for the Ottawa Race weekend. Turns out that the winner of the Boston marathon, Deriba Merga, will be in the 10K. I watched both the men's Olympic marathon and the Boston marathon--Merga was in third until very close to the finish of the Olympic marathon, when he was passed. That was one of the events that made that race gripping, but I felt pretty bad for him.
So it was nice watching the great race he had at Boston. And it will be cool to see him in the 10K, for all of 2.84 seconds before he glides out of sight. I'm looking forward to seeing all the elites. Maybe some of that efficiency will rub off on me.
I didn't get enough sleep after work tonight, so my legs are pretty stiff, but now I have a few easy days. Should be enough to complement all the arduous training I've devoted to this marathon. (lol)
I do have to stop eating popcorn for a bit, too. I'm heavy/flat/sluggish enough these days.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Monday
I ended up jogging/walking to and from work yesterday, so three more miles.
This morning, after staying up late, tsk, I walked a couple of miles with the dogs, and will walk/jog(?) to work, and perhaps back home again. I didn't get enough sleep so my legs are stiff, but I'm going to have a good long nap before going to work.
This morning, after staying up late, tsk, I walked a couple of miles with the dogs, and will walk/jog(?) to work, and perhaps back home again. I didn't get enough sleep so my legs are stiff, but I'm going to have a good long nap before going to work.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
I ditched the dog!
And I don't know how far I travelled. I'll figure it out more precisely later.
Warm up walk, about 10 min/half a mile. I guess!
Then 10 miles:
9:13 (warming up)
8:57
8:45
8:48
8:51
8:39
8:09
8:04
8:10
11:25 cool-down jog..then I jogged/walked another 1.5 miles home, punctuated by a chat at a coffee shop with my run club friends. Though I started at 8:30, it was from my house and not with the rest of run club a mile away. Still, this is a triumph of sorts. I've turned into a ghoul. I wake up at 9, which isn't bad, but it takes me a while to get moving. Ah, well!
Anyway, I was really surprised about today's run. For the traditional 10ish miler the week before a marathon, it went really well. Better than all the other ones I've done, actually. Usually I feel like crap a week before. And it's the first time I've run that long without walk breaks in about a month, at least. I was wearing the fast shoes, but it's been eons since I've done a mile under 9min, feels like, and to knock out a bunch of them was nice. I kept relaxed for the first while, and then the faster miles happened because I was starting to pass people which meantthat I couldn't let them pass me so I kept speeding up (lol) and those three miles were hard. Not so much breathing wise as muscularly. I kept tensing up, especially in my shoulders. Not used to 'relaxing' at that sort of pace anymore, which is kind of sad, oh, well! And another factor could be having the Garmin and the numbers, which kind of takes away something from my running.
I needed to take things easier this spring and if I end up being sluggy during the marathon, I've still built up a pretty decent base with which to tackle speedwork in the fall. This spring has been the best so far mileage-wise. Last spring I was lucky to get in 30-mile weeks.
I'm not quite sure what's going to happen during the marathon. I wanted to go without a watch. My run club coach tried to talk me out of that. He seems to think I have a reasonable chance of qualifying for Boston. I'll talk with him more on Wed, but maybe I will wear a watch with the face on the inside of my wrist (so I'm less tempted to focus on it)...dunno.
At any rate, I took a nice long warm up and cooldown today, and I think that helped a lot. This might be what I have to do from now on to manage the heart thing. Not sure when I'll get to see the cardiologist, but hopefully it'll be one who's at least a trifle sporty.
Meanwhile, I have to nap, and then go to work. Apparently I'm training someone again. Means less squatting/crouching/lifting/carrying for me, but more coherent thought and speech.
Warm up walk, about 10 min/half a mile. I guess!
Then 10 miles:
9:13 (warming up)
8:57
8:45
8:48
8:51
8:39
8:09
8:04
8:10
11:25 cool-down jog..then I jogged/walked another 1.5 miles home, punctuated by a chat at a coffee shop with my run club friends. Though I started at 8:30, it was from my house and not with the rest of run club a mile away. Still, this is a triumph of sorts. I've turned into a ghoul. I wake up at 9, which isn't bad, but it takes me a while to get moving. Ah, well!
Anyway, I was really surprised about today's run. For the traditional 10ish miler the week before a marathon, it went really well. Better than all the other ones I've done, actually. Usually I feel like crap a week before. And it's the first time I've run that long without walk breaks in about a month, at least. I was wearing the fast shoes, but it's been eons since I've done a mile under 9min, feels like, and to knock out a bunch of them was nice. I kept relaxed for the first while, and then the faster miles happened because I was starting to pass people which meantthat I couldn't let them pass me so I kept speeding up (lol) and those three miles were hard. Not so much breathing wise as muscularly. I kept tensing up, especially in my shoulders. Not used to 'relaxing' at that sort of pace anymore, which is kind of sad, oh, well! And another factor could be having the Garmin and the numbers, which kind of takes away something from my running.
I needed to take things easier this spring and if I end up being sluggy during the marathon, I've still built up a pretty decent base with which to tackle speedwork in the fall. This spring has been the best so far mileage-wise. Last spring I was lucky to get in 30-mile weeks.
I'm not quite sure what's going to happen during the marathon. I wanted to go without a watch. My run club coach tried to talk me out of that. He seems to think I have a reasonable chance of qualifying for Boston. I'll talk with him more on Wed, but maybe I will wear a watch with the face on the inside of my wrist (so I'm less tempted to focus on it)...dunno.
At any rate, I took a nice long warm up and cooldown today, and I think that helped a lot. This might be what I have to do from now on to manage the heart thing. Not sure when I'll get to see the cardiologist, but hopefully it'll be one who's at least a trifle sporty.
Meanwhile, I have to nap, and then go to work. Apparently I'm training someone again. Means less squatting/crouching/lifting/carrying for me, but more coherent thought and speech.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Dog on the loose
Not mine! Someone was biking along the river and had their large dog running free. I didn't see it in time to get away, so I figured I'd just keep running and hope that it wouldn't run in front of us or trip us up. It bolted right up to my dog and after a brief growl, it ran off. The owner apologized and biked on. I was too steamed. I waited a few seconds. Too steamed still. I yelled "Not good enough."
We caught up to them a minute later. She was on the side of the path clipping a leash onto her dog. She apologized again. I was still steamed, but I smiled and shrugged and said, "Ah," and ran on. I was not going to say that it was ok, because it wasn't. There are umpteen dog parks in the city. The bike path is not one of them. Nice that she was exercising her dog, but it did not have a good recall--she had been yelling at it to come and it didn't until it ran away from my dog. Still, I felt like a butt later on...I could have thanked her for apologizing.
I also thought about going back and explaining that there were leashes designed for dogs and bicyclists but, eh, I was too steamed. Mainly on my dog's behalf.
I think he was the one who growled. He definitely lunged at it, not enough to pull on the leash, but he got out of its way and behind it and then lunged. Usually I'd give him a correction for this, I guess--it's never happened before--but this dog bolted straight at him/us. We have had loose dogs run alongside and past us without incident, but this dog was moving faster and perhaps was going to stop us, I dunno what my dog read from it, but it was a large dog that came suddenly at us. So he warned it off. That disappointed me in a way because he trusts me not to let that sort of thing happen. That's part of the deal. He doesn't pull towards other dogs, and I don't let anything weird happen.
The thing is, my dog looks mean to most people. I think he's cute--he kind of chose us, rather than the other way around, but I thought he looked sort of goofy and my husband liked him too so we took him home. But he's definitely not cute and fluffy, if that makes sense; his appearance is incriminating. Some cute and fluffy dog could run up to him and start something (and it has happened), and my dog would be at fault no matter what. So I really don't want things to go that route.
Well, anyway, we ran on past them, and my dog didn't give her dog a glance this time. It seemed like a nice enough dog, just untrained. The next dog we saw was a big German Shepherd straining at the leash, but at least the guy had a firm grip on it. My dog just ran by it. THat's what he does. Running with me is his job. Runs are not for socializing. He'll play with other dogs--most of them he's not much interested in, but there are a few he wants to play with--but they go through prelude of circles and butt-sniffing first.
We ran/walked just under 5 miles. My legs are still heavy. Hopefully that will go away in time for the marathon.
We caught up to them a minute later. She was on the side of the path clipping a leash onto her dog. She apologized again. I was still steamed, but I smiled and shrugged and said, "Ah," and ran on. I was not going to say that it was ok, because it wasn't. There are umpteen dog parks in the city. The bike path is not one of them. Nice that she was exercising her dog, but it did not have a good recall--she had been yelling at it to come and it didn't until it ran away from my dog. Still, I felt like a butt later on...I could have thanked her for apologizing.
I also thought about going back and explaining that there were leashes designed for dogs and bicyclists but, eh, I was too steamed. Mainly on my dog's behalf.
I think he was the one who growled. He definitely lunged at it, not enough to pull on the leash, but he got out of its way and behind it and then lunged. Usually I'd give him a correction for this, I guess--it's never happened before--but this dog bolted straight at him/us. We have had loose dogs run alongside and past us without incident, but this dog was moving faster and perhaps was going to stop us, I dunno what my dog read from it, but it was a large dog that came suddenly at us. So he warned it off. That disappointed me in a way because he trusts me not to let that sort of thing happen. That's part of the deal. He doesn't pull towards other dogs, and I don't let anything weird happen.
The thing is, my dog looks mean to most people. I think he's cute--he kind of chose us, rather than the other way around, but I thought he looked sort of goofy and my husband liked him too so we took him home. But he's definitely not cute and fluffy, if that makes sense; his appearance is incriminating. Some cute and fluffy dog could run up to him and start something (and it has happened), and my dog would be at fault no matter what. So I really don't want things to go that route.
Well, anyway, we ran on past them, and my dog didn't give her dog a glance this time. It seemed like a nice enough dog, just untrained. The next dog we saw was a big German Shepherd straining at the leash, but at least the guy had a firm grip on it. My dog just ran by it. THat's what he does. Running with me is his job. Runs are not for socializing. He'll play with other dogs--most of them he's not much interested in, but there are a few he wants to play with--but they go through prelude of circles and butt-sniffing first.
We ran/walked just under 5 miles. My legs are still heavy. Hopefully that will go away in time for the marathon.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Friday
I'm trying to remember what I did/ran these past few days! It's mainly been gadding about as feels right, and wondering where spring went. It already seems like summer. I think the trees spat out full-size leaves during the 5 days I was away. Suddenly there's that thing called shade in places.
Wed: 5.5 with the dog, a nice jog
Thurs 3.5 with the dog, mostly walking
Fri: 7.69, 5 jogging, and the rest walking with the dog.
My legs are still a bit stiff, but otherwise I feel ok. I'm considering taking protein shakes again, to see if that lifts the dead legs feeling a bit. Apart from that, I guess all I have to do now is taper. It certainly doesn't feel like I'm going to run a marathon in about a week, but maybe springing it suddenly upon myself is a good strategy. Admittedly, I'm feeling quite flat due to a lack of recent speedwork, but at least I won't have too heavy a case of taper nerves.
Wed: 5.5 with the dog, a nice jog
Thurs 3.5 with the dog, mostly walking
Fri: 7.69, 5 jogging, and the rest walking with the dog.
My legs are still a bit stiff, but otherwise I feel ok. I'm considering taking protein shakes again, to see if that lifts the dead legs feeling a bit. Apart from that, I guess all I have to do now is taper. It certainly doesn't feel like I'm going to run a marathon in about a week, but maybe springing it suddenly upon myself is a good strategy. Admittedly, I'm feeling quite flat due to a lack of recent speedwork, but at least I won't have too heavy a case of taper nerves.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
My first DNF
Not that I actually expected to finish this race, but I'd hoped to make it past the 2nd hard cut off, and I never for one moment dreamt that I wouldn't make the first, although the worst part of the course in term of elevation gain was at the beginning: up the mountain.
I couldn't have had a better DNF, though.
We drove down on Friday, and I felt carsick so didn't eat much. That was a mistake: I should have stuck to plan A: train. It's longer but easier on me. Anyway, we got to the hotel room around 3 or 4 pm. I walked down to the course start to be sure, drank a protein shake and ate a few things, set out my things for the morning, including drop bags, and then lounged and started to doze.
at the very least, I slept a lot!
Woke up at 4, pulled on my clothes, grabbed my drop bags, and walked over to the start. It was dark and raining but I didn't use my headlamp yet. I picked up my bib and then had another protein shake and banana for breakfast. My stomach was still feeling kind of weird, but since I'd taken my IBS medication (usually I don't these days), things were pretty steady. First time ever for a race day!
I dropped off my stuff, three bags. One for the 4/34 mile points (same station), one for the 27 mile point, and one for the finish. I lined up near the back.
Then it was on. By that point, I was pretty soaked, but it wasn't too cold. I had my headlamp on.
I quickly realized that it was easier to hold it in my hand. Everyone started off at a run, so I followed--there was a bit of a downhill at first. Then uphill. I ran/walked this. And then there was another downhill, but this time on loose rocks.
Not gravel, rocks. Grapefruit/kleenex-box size rocks. I had to walk. Everyone else shot ahead (relatively). These rocks would be my bane. I wasn't expecting them. I was expecting the hills and the trail, and the stream crossings/water (though admittedly I was surprised at the few points where the trail was a stream--the area had gotten a lot of rain recently so parts were awash), and I was expecting mud, gravel, etc, but not loose large rocks. I had visited the site, and run/staggered up and down other trails in the area, but none had these rocks. Admittedly, I was a wuss and didn't make it to the Gats for training, figuring that going up hills/stairs behind Parliament Hill and the Arboreteum, and umpteen months of running in/on snow and ice would serve me well. Gravel/dirt/mud/roots/grass and the odd boulder, no problem. Even rock stairs or bare rock, fine. I'm used to that. But not these larger loose rocks.
There was no getting around those rocks. I'd get a bit of a break, and then more rocks. I find it easiest to skip down steep/rooty slopes, changing my leading leg, and I was doing that, but I wasn't making up enough time on the downhills. I got a crash course in Rockology 101, semi-successfully. After about an hour, my old foot issue started to complain, but soon subsided, eclipsed by the bashing about from the rocks, stubbing my toes, rolling my ankles, etc. The frequent stream crossings were great cold baths for this, and after a while, I stopped noticing my feet. My calves started to complain more vociferously going uphill. My quads were fine--I have been doing a lot of squats at home and at work lifting things--but my calves weren't up to the challenge. And then, after a while, my stomach began to feel more and more sore.
I got through the first two aid stations under the cutoff times, according to people around me...I wasn't wearing a watch, but others around were. I ended up mostly running with an older guy, with a newlywed couple leapfrogging. We were all kind of leapfrogging, although the couple stayed together. My effort wasn't as easy at I'd thought it would be--I felt pushed, not in a bad way, but at times I felt like I wanted to catch my breath on the tops of inclines, or look around, but I had to keep going, keep the rocks and dirt and water moving underneath me. There was so much to see, but it was a blur. Not in actuality--I was going pretty slowly--but it was overload. There was too much to see. Nature nature nature. I lost track of the stream crossings before the first aid station. There were so many. I lost track of the inclines. I lost track of how many times I drank. I don't even really remember when the sun came out. The rain made it very gradual, and I started shutting my lamp on and off, depending on the tree cover, and then it remained off and I forgot I was carrying it for a while.
At the first aid station, I was expecting my drop bag, including canned coffee, but it wasn't there yet. I ate some apples and took some Gatorade and salted banana. There were all sorts of things to eat.
I gave my headlamp away at the 2nd...was bored of carrying it. Not tired, just bored of having my hand around it, if that makes sense.
The next leg was long. The couple left me. I caught up after a while with the older guy, which helped because some of the trail markers were far apart and it wasn't clear where the trail was. THere was often a steep hillside with scattered rocks all over it, or a stretch of bald rock, particularly on what seemed to be the summit of a hill (hard to say, as there was fog all around), and we had to look this way and that for the marker. A few times, we'd found it considerably above or below us and we had to puzzle out how to get to it. The markers were great at first--they coupled them with glowsticks so we could see them in the dark--and then they sort of dwindled.
There were supposed to be great views, but the fog had remained (I didn't notice when it had stopped raining) and it was just white around us. There was a benefit to this: I couldn't see how far it was to fall. I have no idea if we were on anything with a steep drop-off--I could see trees sticking out lower down--but I could convince myself that I could run across this wet and slippery rock without consequences. This leg also involved a few places that required hands, at least for me. My companion told me to go ahead on these. I am not a rock climber, but ok at scrambling, and he thought that I was better than him. Not really sure, but my shoes seemed to have better grip than his.
At one point, the couple shot past us--they had gone the wrong way.
At another point, we came across two racers, one of them sitting holding his head in his hands, the other looking resigned. He waved us on. Shortly after, we were passed by rangers in an ATV, coming to get them, I presume. We saw the stricken runner later on, after the paramedics had wrapped him in foil.
At another point, we came across a pack of hikers. We heard one of them crying out in pain a few minutes after we'd passed them. I felt bad, but my companion told me that there were more of them than us and they had more first aid equipment, presumably. We couldn't do anything. We had to keep going.
At another point, several times, I thought that this thing was awfully Last of the Mohicans. Pity I couldn't recall the soundtrack at the time.
My memory is a bit mucked up....I didn't get to feel really trippy, but after a while, I became numb and somehow propelled forward by greater forces.
But too slowly.
I got to the 3rd station, the first hard cut off, after about six hours. The cutoff time was 5:20-30, something like that. Missed it.
I wasn't disappointed, though. I was tired. Not in pain, surprisingly, but tired in an indescribable way. I felt like I hadn't really woken up yet, or that I had never gone to sleep. And I had loads of muscle fatigue in some ways, but in others, I was fresh. I hadn't really run much, seemed like, but had done 100000 sit ups.
I rode back in a van with others and it took FOREVER to get back to the start!
And then I started feeling bad about the failure. I took my bib off and inquired about my drop bags and then got some food and ended up at a table with others who had ridden back in the van with me.
I have to say, these guys (and couple of girls) were really encouraging. I joked about reconsidering the ultra thing, and they said, no, no, no, this was no normal ultra course, there's one in Vermont, one in Maine, one here, one there, all of them much better, and I would find it much easier. I really picked the wrong one for my first.
No, I really picked the right one. I've never had my ass handed to me so thoroughly. (I love that expression). I've never had a DNF before. I've had a few tough races, but that was just the wall, or heat, or loose bowels/cramps or whatever. This was on a new level. It affirmed my insignificance, which is terrifyingly inspirational. What, a few piddly rocks and streams got me down? Just a mere fraction of what the world can throw at me. I'll have to be tougher next time. I never before realized how weak I really am.
It's good to fail. It'll mean so much more when I succeed. I enjoy running but my motivation has been lagging lately, especially with the health issues this spring. Plus, I think I've been taking things too much for granted. Even my first marathon was sort of an afterthought, and I was undertrained, sick, hit the wall at mile 11 or so, but I finished it with a feeling of 'so, what?'. And, yeah, I've missed qualifying for Boston a few times now, but it seems more of a case of having a good race day than training better next time--I've trained well but have been undermined by IBS, so I'm not inspired to train harder or even as hard next time. But, with this race, I saw so much more possibility for improvement. And it's such a concrete challenge that I can endure the burn of hard workouts for it. It won't boil down to 'perhaps Boston pace, if you don't crap your pants.' That's too abstract. That means nothing to me now. Instead, it will mean 'You will get over that ridgeline without stopping for breath.' I will get back up to 200 crunches or 2 min planks or whatever and feel the burn and remember the hills and rocks that cracked my core on that course. The more I burn, the straighter and quicker I'll be up and over that stuff next time.
I definitely want another go at this course. I will have to alter training. I think my long-long runs served me well, but I have to do much more resistance exercises and more on scary footing. Not just hills and stairs. Hills and stairs with piles of shoes thrown on them, as I told someone.
Meanwhile, I spent three days relaxing and walking and jogging on the beach in New Jersey. How you doin'? And since I didn't get beat up badly running-wise (but I felt like I was ripping out my own sinew doing calf raises yesterday), I signed up for the Ottawa full. I'm as slow as dirt, but will have the upper hand on the rest of the field if there's a flood or big hailstones, at least.
I expect I'll be adding more to this report as I remember things...I definitely hit at least one of my objectives, running in a zone. LOL
I couldn't have had a better DNF, though.
We drove down on Friday, and I felt carsick so didn't eat much. That was a mistake: I should have stuck to plan A: train. It's longer but easier on me. Anyway, we got to the hotel room around 3 or 4 pm. I walked down to the course start to be sure, drank a protein shake and ate a few things, set out my things for the morning, including drop bags, and then lounged and started to doze.
at the very least, I slept a lot!
Woke up at 4, pulled on my clothes, grabbed my drop bags, and walked over to the start. It was dark and raining but I didn't use my headlamp yet. I picked up my bib and then had another protein shake and banana for breakfast. My stomach was still feeling kind of weird, but since I'd taken my IBS medication (usually I don't these days), things were pretty steady. First time ever for a race day!
I dropped off my stuff, three bags. One for the 4/34 mile points (same station), one for the 27 mile point, and one for the finish. I lined up near the back.
Then it was on. By that point, I was pretty soaked, but it wasn't too cold. I had my headlamp on.
I quickly realized that it was easier to hold it in my hand. Everyone started off at a run, so I followed--there was a bit of a downhill at first. Then uphill. I ran/walked this. And then there was another downhill, but this time on loose rocks.
Not gravel, rocks. Grapefruit/kleenex-box size rocks. I had to walk. Everyone else shot ahead (relatively). These rocks would be my bane. I wasn't expecting them. I was expecting the hills and the trail, and the stream crossings/water (though admittedly I was surprised at the few points where the trail was a stream--the area had gotten a lot of rain recently so parts were awash), and I was expecting mud, gravel, etc, but not loose large rocks. I had visited the site, and run/staggered up and down other trails in the area, but none had these rocks. Admittedly, I was a wuss and didn't make it to the Gats for training, figuring that going up hills/stairs behind Parliament Hill and the Arboreteum, and umpteen months of running in/on snow and ice would serve me well. Gravel/dirt/mud/roots/grass and the odd boulder, no problem. Even rock stairs or bare rock, fine. I'm used to that. But not these larger loose rocks.
There was no getting around those rocks. I'd get a bit of a break, and then more rocks. I find it easiest to skip down steep/rooty slopes, changing my leading leg, and I was doing that, but I wasn't making up enough time on the downhills. I got a crash course in Rockology 101, semi-successfully. After about an hour, my old foot issue started to complain, but soon subsided, eclipsed by the bashing about from the rocks, stubbing my toes, rolling my ankles, etc. The frequent stream crossings were great cold baths for this, and after a while, I stopped noticing my feet. My calves started to complain more vociferously going uphill. My quads were fine--I have been doing a lot of squats at home and at work lifting things--but my calves weren't up to the challenge. And then, after a while, my stomach began to feel more and more sore.
I got through the first two aid stations under the cutoff times, according to people around me...I wasn't wearing a watch, but others around were. I ended up mostly running with an older guy, with a newlywed couple leapfrogging. We were all kind of leapfrogging, although the couple stayed together. My effort wasn't as easy at I'd thought it would be--I felt pushed, not in a bad way, but at times I felt like I wanted to catch my breath on the tops of inclines, or look around, but I had to keep going, keep the rocks and dirt and water moving underneath me. There was so much to see, but it was a blur. Not in actuality--I was going pretty slowly--but it was overload. There was too much to see. Nature nature nature. I lost track of the stream crossings before the first aid station. There were so many. I lost track of the inclines. I lost track of how many times I drank. I don't even really remember when the sun came out. The rain made it very gradual, and I started shutting my lamp on and off, depending on the tree cover, and then it remained off and I forgot I was carrying it for a while.
At the first aid station, I was expecting my drop bag, including canned coffee, but it wasn't there yet. I ate some apples and took some Gatorade and salted banana. There were all sorts of things to eat.
I gave my headlamp away at the 2nd...was bored of carrying it. Not tired, just bored of having my hand around it, if that makes sense.
The next leg was long. The couple left me. I caught up after a while with the older guy, which helped because some of the trail markers were far apart and it wasn't clear where the trail was. THere was often a steep hillside with scattered rocks all over it, or a stretch of bald rock, particularly on what seemed to be the summit of a hill (hard to say, as there was fog all around), and we had to look this way and that for the marker. A few times, we'd found it considerably above or below us and we had to puzzle out how to get to it. The markers were great at first--they coupled them with glowsticks so we could see them in the dark--and then they sort of dwindled.
There were supposed to be great views, but the fog had remained (I didn't notice when it had stopped raining) and it was just white around us. There was a benefit to this: I couldn't see how far it was to fall. I have no idea if we were on anything with a steep drop-off--I could see trees sticking out lower down--but I could convince myself that I could run across this wet and slippery rock without consequences. This leg also involved a few places that required hands, at least for me. My companion told me to go ahead on these. I am not a rock climber, but ok at scrambling, and he thought that I was better than him. Not really sure, but my shoes seemed to have better grip than his.
At one point, the couple shot past us--they had gone the wrong way.
At another point, we came across two racers, one of them sitting holding his head in his hands, the other looking resigned. He waved us on. Shortly after, we were passed by rangers in an ATV, coming to get them, I presume. We saw the stricken runner later on, after the paramedics had wrapped him in foil.
At another point, we came across a pack of hikers. We heard one of them crying out in pain a few minutes after we'd passed them. I felt bad, but my companion told me that there were more of them than us and they had more first aid equipment, presumably. We couldn't do anything. We had to keep going.
At another point, several times, I thought that this thing was awfully Last of the Mohicans. Pity I couldn't recall the soundtrack at the time.
My memory is a bit mucked up....I didn't get to feel really trippy, but after a while, I became numb and somehow propelled forward by greater forces.
But too slowly.
I got to the 3rd station, the first hard cut off, after about six hours. The cutoff time was 5:20-30, something like that. Missed it.
I wasn't disappointed, though. I was tired. Not in pain, surprisingly, but tired in an indescribable way. I felt like I hadn't really woken up yet, or that I had never gone to sleep. And I had loads of muscle fatigue in some ways, but in others, I was fresh. I hadn't really run much, seemed like, but had done 100000 sit ups.
I rode back in a van with others and it took FOREVER to get back to the start!
And then I started feeling bad about the failure. I took my bib off and inquired about my drop bags and then got some food and ended up at a table with others who had ridden back in the van with me.
I have to say, these guys (and couple of girls) were really encouraging. I joked about reconsidering the ultra thing, and they said, no, no, no, this was no normal ultra course, there's one in Vermont, one in Maine, one here, one there, all of them much better, and I would find it much easier. I really picked the wrong one for my first.
No, I really picked the right one. I've never had my ass handed to me so thoroughly. (I love that expression). I've never had a DNF before. I've had a few tough races, but that was just the wall, or heat, or loose bowels/cramps or whatever. This was on a new level. It affirmed my insignificance, which is terrifyingly inspirational. What, a few piddly rocks and streams got me down? Just a mere fraction of what the world can throw at me. I'll have to be tougher next time. I never before realized how weak I really am.
It's good to fail. It'll mean so much more when I succeed. I enjoy running but my motivation has been lagging lately, especially with the health issues this spring. Plus, I think I've been taking things too much for granted. Even my first marathon was sort of an afterthought, and I was undertrained, sick, hit the wall at mile 11 or so, but I finished it with a feeling of 'so, what?'. And, yeah, I've missed qualifying for Boston a few times now, but it seems more of a case of having a good race day than training better next time--I've trained well but have been undermined by IBS, so I'm not inspired to train harder or even as hard next time. But, with this race, I saw so much more possibility for improvement. And it's such a concrete challenge that I can endure the burn of hard workouts for it. It won't boil down to 'perhaps Boston pace, if you don't crap your pants.' That's too abstract. That means nothing to me now. Instead, it will mean 'You will get over that ridgeline without stopping for breath.' I will get back up to 200 crunches or 2 min planks or whatever and feel the burn and remember the hills and rocks that cracked my core on that course. The more I burn, the straighter and quicker I'll be up and over that stuff next time.
I definitely want another go at this course. I will have to alter training. I think my long-long runs served me well, but I have to do much more resistance exercises and more on scary footing. Not just hills and stairs. Hills and stairs with piles of shoes thrown on them, as I told someone.
Meanwhile, I spent three days relaxing and walking and jogging on the beach in New Jersey. How you doin'? And since I didn't get beat up badly running-wise (but I felt like I was ripping out my own sinew doing calf raises yesterday), I signed up for the Ottawa full. I'm as slow as dirt, but will have the upper hand on the rest of the field if there's a flood or big hailstones, at least.
I expect I'll be adding more to this report as I remember things...I definitely hit at least one of my objectives, running in a zone. LOL
Thursday, May 7, 2009
packing
And catching up on sleep. I had several short sleeps in a row. Unfortunately, I couldn't sleep well on Monday night, so woke up feeling crappy on Tues. Tues, it turned out that I was training someone so ended up staying late at work, hyped up on tea, and got maybe 3 hrs of sleep that night. Wed, I was even more of a zombie, and things got more and more surreal. I was at the hospital for a while--I applied to be a volunteer, so had to go through orientation--and after about three and a half hours, I found myself not quite getting my question across at an info desk in the neuro ward, long story. I was a bit lost. Then I was watching someone's physio session, which was cool, but I kept having to remind myself to focus. Later on, I was walking the dog and feeling a strong urge to drop and sleep where I fell. It was one of those days where I wanted to step off the train a little to catch my breath.
Fortunately, I slept about 10 hrs last night, and will sleep a lot more tonight, hopefully! I'm still feeling sort of pessimistic about this ultra, but I think that's normal.
I bought bodyglide for the drop bags and bandaids. Also wasted 8 bucks or whatever on spray-on bandage. I tried it out on my hand--imagine the heaviest head-spinning marker fumes ever. On the one hand, I don't think it'll work well as a bandage, but if I really need to not be present anymore after mile 40 or so (I don't mean dead, just on a trip), it might come in handy. So I guess I'll put it into the last drop bag. LOL. Along with my canned coffee and ginger ale. I have no idea what else I want to eat, and they'll have bananas and chicken broth at least which will suit me.
I guess I'll put spare socks and a spare pair of shoes in the drop bags, too. And a spare bra/tank top/pair of shorts. Why not? I think I won't be wearing much:
Saturday
Partly sunny. A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning...then a chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 70s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40 percent.
This thing might get pretty mucky! Should bring gloves--my hands get cold. And I definitely need to remember to bring the headlamp.
Well, this post has turned into my to-do list!
Fortunately, I slept about 10 hrs last night, and will sleep a lot more tonight, hopefully! I'm still feeling sort of pessimistic about this ultra, but I think that's normal.
I bought bodyglide for the drop bags and bandaids. Also wasted 8 bucks or whatever on spray-on bandage. I tried it out on my hand--imagine the heaviest head-spinning marker fumes ever. On the one hand, I don't think it'll work well as a bandage, but if I really need to not be present anymore after mile 40 or so (I don't mean dead, just on a trip), it might come in handy. So I guess I'll put it into the last drop bag. LOL. Along with my canned coffee and ginger ale. I have no idea what else I want to eat, and they'll have bananas and chicken broth at least which will suit me.
I guess I'll put spare socks and a spare pair of shoes in the drop bags, too. And a spare bra/tank top/pair of shorts. Why not? I think I won't be wearing much:
Saturday
Partly sunny. A slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning...then a chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 70s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40 percent.
This thing might get pretty mucky! Should bring gloves--my hands get cold. And I definitely need to remember to bring the headlamp.
Well, this post has turned into my to-do list!
Monday, May 4, 2009
ultimate suffering and resurrection
For a moment there, I got really depressed.
I didn't have to work today, yay! Not that I'm working much, but the job I have at present is a rather fatiguing combo of physical exertion and mental abuse--the latter comes from people who are not in their right minds, so usually I just shrug it off but after a while it tires me. So, working two days in a row feels like a regular work week! Fortunately, for some reason, I didn't have to work today. Tomorrow, yes, but not today. yay!
So, I slept in, then jogged to the hospital for a TB test...I'm going to be volunteering as a physio assistant....and then I jogged/walked the long way home, through the tulip festival. Yep, they're mostly out and, more importantly for training purposes, the food vendors are out too.
Now I feel guilty! I really enjoyed seeing the tulips. They are one of my favourite types of flowers, and I marvel at the variety of colours they display. And the first pass through the gardens, I looked mainly at the tulips, but my wandering eye saw that there were popsicle vendors as well.
I went home, had a meal, changed, and set back out. No dog, it was too hot for him. He begged to differ and actually tried to sneak out of the house with me, which he usually doesn't do. I had a moment of second thought but knew that I wanted to do at least nine more miles. Plus, dogs aren't allowed in the tulip gardens, so there would be no popsicles if I took him.
I set out, walking, then running, then walking....my foot is still sort of iffy. I'm beginning to wonder if I cracked something. However, fortunately, jogging just a mile at a time is fine. I'll be alternating anyway during the ultra. I can't stop reminding myself of this. I feel like a slug these days, not having run more than a couple of miles straight in eons. Oh, well.
I went back through the tulip gardens to make sure that the popsicle people weren't just mirages.
Then onto the Arboreteum, where I did a light hill workout, just a mile's worth, three laps up and down a hill. It felt easy. I told myself that I would just have to do that 50 times.
Then, back to the tulip gardens, but, wait! There had been a popsicle vendor there, but no longer!
I swear, it was an incredible tragedy. The bottom fell out of my world.
I decided that I was mistaken and the vendors were further up. I then noticed that there were stalls/tents set up in the middle--I'd been going on the outskirts--and so I went to investigate.
And then I saw it.
The Big Lemon.
I forget what the franchise is called, but the stall is a big lemon and all it offers is freshly squeezed lemonade. I could taste the icy tartness already.
There was a tip jar set up...I'm not a fan of this sort of thing, tip jars at counters, and usually I ignore it unless I've been going someplace regularly. The whole lemon shook while she was shaking up my lemonade, though, and that made me feel that she was doing an exemplary job, so I tipped her. The lemonade could have been a little more tart, but it was delicious enough and very refreshing. I drank most of it too quickly, though, and for a bit, I was worried about getting stomach cramps. I decided to walk for a while, holding the remainder of my lemonade.
Then I met a friend, and jogged with her for a while back the way I came. I jogged back to where I was, and then met another friend and jogged with him for a while, again, in the opposite direction and then jogged back(I was getting pretty tired of Dow's Lake by this point!). After a while, I walked, drank the rest of my lemonade, then jogged. I tried to keep up with some random guy in an Army 1/2 shirt, but he was going too fast for me--I had no idea at the time how far I'd already gone. Then I met another friend...the Canal was buzzing! I walked the last mile home. I'm getting to be a big fan of walking, particularly with longer runs. It pushes the wall way back.
My total ended up being a bit over the 16 miles I'd planned on; I'd lost track of time (couldn't do the math), plus I had to catch up with my friends. I did 22.42 miles in about 4:50. Feels fine. My body now knows what it has to do on Saturday, albeit for just a bit longer.
Now all I have to do is stretch, eat, sleep, and pack. I'm not quite sure what I'll wear, aside from shoes and bodyglide. My bottle/belt combo sucks but I can deal with it...after a while, it stops sliding around and I forget I'm wearing it. Shoes...well, can't wear the ones that did my foot in! I'd bought another pair of trail running shoes, and I know that trail running shoes are kind of stiff, but I just haven't taken a shine to them. Will bring them anyway just in case. I have two oher pairs of shoes to wear, one trail shoes, and the other not quite, but comfy. I guess I'll put the comfy shoes in a drop bag for the last ten miles, just in case.
I didn't have to work today, yay! Not that I'm working much, but the job I have at present is a rather fatiguing combo of physical exertion and mental abuse--the latter comes from people who are not in their right minds, so usually I just shrug it off but after a while it tires me. So, working two days in a row feels like a regular work week! Fortunately, for some reason, I didn't have to work today. Tomorrow, yes, but not today. yay!
So, I slept in, then jogged to the hospital for a TB test...I'm going to be volunteering as a physio assistant....and then I jogged/walked the long way home, through the tulip festival. Yep, they're mostly out and, more importantly for training purposes, the food vendors are out too.
Now I feel guilty! I really enjoyed seeing the tulips. They are one of my favourite types of flowers, and I marvel at the variety of colours they display. And the first pass through the gardens, I looked mainly at the tulips, but my wandering eye saw that there were popsicle vendors as well.
I went home, had a meal, changed, and set back out. No dog, it was too hot for him. He begged to differ and actually tried to sneak out of the house with me, which he usually doesn't do. I had a moment of second thought but knew that I wanted to do at least nine more miles. Plus, dogs aren't allowed in the tulip gardens, so there would be no popsicles if I took him.
I set out, walking, then running, then walking....my foot is still sort of iffy. I'm beginning to wonder if I cracked something. However, fortunately, jogging just a mile at a time is fine. I'll be alternating anyway during the ultra. I can't stop reminding myself of this. I feel like a slug these days, not having run more than a couple of miles straight in eons. Oh, well.
I went back through the tulip gardens to make sure that the popsicle people weren't just mirages.
Then onto the Arboreteum, where I did a light hill workout, just a mile's worth, three laps up and down a hill. It felt easy. I told myself that I would just have to do that 50 times.
Then, back to the tulip gardens, but, wait! There had been a popsicle vendor there, but no longer!
I swear, it was an incredible tragedy. The bottom fell out of my world.
I decided that I was mistaken and the vendors were further up. I then noticed that there were stalls/tents set up in the middle--I'd been going on the outskirts--and so I went to investigate.
And then I saw it.
The Big Lemon.
I forget what the franchise is called, but the stall is a big lemon and all it offers is freshly squeezed lemonade. I could taste the icy tartness already.
There was a tip jar set up...I'm not a fan of this sort of thing, tip jars at counters, and usually I ignore it unless I've been going someplace regularly. The whole lemon shook while she was shaking up my lemonade, though, and that made me feel that she was doing an exemplary job, so I tipped her. The lemonade could have been a little more tart, but it was delicious enough and very refreshing. I drank most of it too quickly, though, and for a bit, I was worried about getting stomach cramps. I decided to walk for a while, holding the remainder of my lemonade.
Then I met a friend, and jogged with her for a while back the way I came. I jogged back to where I was, and then met another friend and jogged with him for a while, again, in the opposite direction and then jogged back(I was getting pretty tired of Dow's Lake by this point!). After a while, I walked, drank the rest of my lemonade, then jogged. I tried to keep up with some random guy in an Army 1/2 shirt, but he was going too fast for me--I had no idea at the time how far I'd already gone. Then I met another friend...the Canal was buzzing! I walked the last mile home. I'm getting to be a big fan of walking, particularly with longer runs. It pushes the wall way back.
My total ended up being a bit over the 16 miles I'd planned on; I'd lost track of time (couldn't do the math), plus I had to catch up with my friends. I did 22.42 miles in about 4:50. Feels fine. My body now knows what it has to do on Saturday, albeit for just a bit longer.
Now all I have to do is stretch, eat, sleep, and pack. I'm not quite sure what I'll wear, aside from shoes and bodyglide. My bottle/belt combo sucks but I can deal with it...after a while, it stops sliding around and I forget I'm wearing it. Shoes...well, can't wear the ones that did my foot in! I'd bought another pair of trail running shoes, and I know that trail running shoes are kind of stiff, but I just haven't taken a shine to them. Will bring them anyway just in case. I have two oher pairs of shoes to wear, one trail shoes, and the other not quite, but comfy. I guess I'll put the comfy shoes in a drop bag for the last ten miles, just in case.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
recovering...nicely
I'm definitely feeling less tired.
My foot is definitely better. I now have a glitch with my right hip flexor, which tells me that I've been neglecting certain rehab exercises (it's an old thing), so hopefully that will disappear soon too. Strangely enough, the best thing for me has been jogging in flip flops. I guess it puts less pressure on the arch of my foot where it hurts. I tend to slip out of the flip flops when going uphill, and after a while my toes get cramped from trying to cling to them, but alternating running and walking takes care of that. And it feels nice to run with my feet more exposed. I wish I could devise some sort of paint on/peel off sole protector because there is still too much grit on the bike paths to run barefoot comfortably, but sandals are a good compromise.
It still hasn't quite hit me that I'm supposed to cover 50 miles 6 days from now. At this point, I'm more concerned about the early start: 5 am. That's just a few hours after my habitual bedtime (the evening shift has made me more ghoulish as of late). However, if I consider getting up the hard part, that will be over first. By the time I wake up, there will be a couple of hours or whatever behind me. It'll be like various mountain hikes I've been on starting at 2-3 am or whatever. There are advantages to getting up and rolling super early. Just don't ask me to demonstrate quick reflexes or operate heavy machinery.
My foot is definitely better. I now have a glitch with my right hip flexor, which tells me that I've been neglecting certain rehab exercises (it's an old thing), so hopefully that will disappear soon too. Strangely enough, the best thing for me has been jogging in flip flops. I guess it puts less pressure on the arch of my foot where it hurts. I tend to slip out of the flip flops when going uphill, and after a while my toes get cramped from trying to cling to them, but alternating running and walking takes care of that. And it feels nice to run with my feet more exposed. I wish I could devise some sort of paint on/peel off sole protector because there is still too much grit on the bike paths to run barefoot comfortably, but sandals are a good compromise.
It still hasn't quite hit me that I'm supposed to cover 50 miles 6 days from now. At this point, I'm more concerned about the early start: 5 am. That's just a few hours after my habitual bedtime (the evening shift has made me more ghoulish as of late). However, if I consider getting up the hard part, that will be over first. By the time I wake up, there will be a couple of hours or whatever behind me. It'll be like various mountain hikes I've been on starting at 2-3 am or whatever. There are advantages to getting up and rolling super early. Just don't ask me to demonstrate quick reflexes or operate heavy machinery.
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