This fall has gone by quickly, which is good because the weather has been rather WET. However, with every soggy run, I remind myself that winter and summer this year were very good (the winter was cold and dry, the summer hot and humid but still comfortable), and since spring is pretty much non-existent here, that leaves only one season to provide negative balance.
I am still not running enough: my body rebels with 30-40 miles/week, but once I get around 50 miles or so, there is acceptance, neuromuscular synergy, and the mysterious unlocking of hoarded strength, and running becomes surprisingly easy and automatic. A reasonable goal might be to regain this by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, I have been running and recovering. Yoga and switching from various fancy tarted up teas back to plain old green tea has helped reduce symptoms a lot. I've been doing an endocrine yoga routine I found on youtube, and will investigate this avenue further. I should also tweak my diet a bit: I know I like butter too much and that grapeseed oil tastes almost as good, but sometimes I need more willpower.
A minor setback last Friday was caused by a rogue pack of Mentos--not all of them contain wheat glucose syrup, including the ones I'd eaten during several 3 hour biochemistry lectures this term (candy is necessary--it's my brain craving glucose, not me), but during my temporary time on the Mentos wagon, the old supply at the bus station had run out and was replenished with wheat glucose syrup fiends. Halfway through the lecture, I started to feel kind of funny. Looked at the label and, yep. So Mentos is now on the list of Never Again. I know I need to look at each and every label, no matter how many times I've bought that particular product before, but the bus was coming and just this once...
as an aside, the gluten issue has weaned me off many mass-produced "food" items, and perhaps I should eliminate a few more.
Fortunately, I found some gluten intolerance enzyme pills, kind of like lactase for lactose-intolerant people. It was too late at that point, and I have to avoid gluten altogether rather than wash it down with pills, but the pills seems to have helped me recover more quickly this time. The enzymes help break down other things as well.
And the final cog of my recent progress is chia. Yes, it's a part of the barefoot running-Tarahumara fad, but I can't be too cool for fads, especially those involving food described as looking like frog eggs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAZXTrpXRRs&feature=related
Basically, I bought some chia seeds, mixed them with 1 freshly-squeezed lime and water. That was enough to hook me. The stuff is very fulfilling. My last long run (some with Gaz, some with the dog) was just over 20 miles, and all I had was chia, lime and lemon juice, water, and a bit of sugar or agave (can't remember what I put in), and it was enough. I'm definitely taking some on the upcoming super long run.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
Yoga
Yes, I've returned to regularly scheduled yoga classes. A relative of mine is testing it out and so I've been going too.
I don't know why I always forget how much yoga helps! I have been doing a tiny bit everyday, but not enough to get fully into it, I've realized.
Sunday, I woke up feeling off. I grabbed the dog and we did the world's slowest 6ish mile whatever it was...I did jog most of it (at a pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 min/mile) but we took breaks. My legs were heavy and everything was sore, etc.
I decided during this adventure that it was time to go old-timey, medieval, if need be, to get rid of this issue I've had since September (!!!). It comes and it goes, yesterday, it was back again. Surely a hot compress or something could push it toward a more decisive exit? I still haven't hit google for this yet but I figure that this is one of those things that women have had since the dawn of time and there's got to be some sort of folk remedy.
Fortunately, it turns out that twisting up for an hour or so in a yoga class is pretty therapeutic! I felt much better during today's run and it was fine. Just 3 miles (I could have kept going quite easily but my gloves were too thin for the cold wind), then a bodyrock routine, then a yoga class in the evening. Oops, I just realized that I forgot the clamshells. :/
I don't know why I always forget how much yoga helps! I have been doing a tiny bit everyday, but not enough to get fully into it, I've realized.
Sunday, I woke up feeling off. I grabbed the dog and we did the world's slowest 6ish mile whatever it was...I did jog most of it (at a pace somewhere between 10:30 and 11 min/mile) but we took breaks. My legs were heavy and everything was sore, etc.
I decided during this adventure that it was time to go old-timey, medieval, if need be, to get rid of this issue I've had since September (!!!). It comes and it goes, yesterday, it was back again. Surely a hot compress or something could push it toward a more decisive exit? I still haven't hit google for this yet but I figure that this is one of those things that women have had since the dawn of time and there's got to be some sort of folk remedy.
Fortunately, it turns out that twisting up for an hour or so in a yoga class is pretty therapeutic! I felt much better during today's run and it was fine. Just 3 miles (I could have kept going quite easily but my gloves were too thin for the cold wind), then a bodyrock routine, then a yoga class in the evening. Oops, I just realized that I forgot the clamshells. :/
Friday, November 18, 2011
slugs
I'm in a 3 mile/day rut. That's all I want to do, or rather, it's what I have to do. The daily minimum. My dog requires at least 3 miles a day. Without him, I don't think I'd head out as much these days.
Not that this is bad...I ran a fair bit during the spring and summer and and had 4 races that went better than expected. I honestly didn't expect to run a 3:53 marathon and a 1:42 half this year (especially the latter). Consequently, I'm not disappointed that I don't feel like running much for the time being.
However, lately, I've been mildly troubled by something else: elusiveness of easy run effort. There's a weird dynamic at play and it's taken a while for me to figure out what could be happening, and it's still a guess...I can't seem to jog anymore on my own. My core feels stronger and the temps are a lot easier to handle, and these pull me into a faster pace which is still easy aerobically but sort of hard muscularly. I can only hope that my leg muscles will catch up to my core. Meanwhile, my runs are too fast to be easy and too slow to be exciting. Maybe a few more weeks will see a turning point of some sort. I have no idea of how fast I'm going; it might be really slowly after all and my legs are just tired from the cross-training. I have been hitting the bodyrock routines pretty diligently. 3-4X a week!
Plus clamshells (again).
And I am presently typing in pigeon pose. My yin exercises have sadly dwindled to nothing, which could be a factor too. Will see.
There are a couple of health factors too, and it's sort of typical that as I fix one (gluten/malabsorption), another one begs for attention (the same cyst, not gone). The best solution? tweak my diet, probably. Lately I have been craving and consuming arugula/green salad with pepitas and homemade lemon juice dressing. I ate a similar dish during the dinner with Gaz and the guys and it was so fulfilling that I could practically hear every little cell screaming for more, every day. Unfortunately, I have also been craving and consuming perhaps too much popcorn, with perhaps too much butter/grapeseed oil and parmesan, naturally. I mustn't pretend any longer that the weight I've gained is purely muscle. ;)
Not that this is bad...I ran a fair bit during the spring and summer and and had 4 races that went better than expected. I honestly didn't expect to run a 3:53 marathon and a 1:42 half this year (especially the latter). Consequently, I'm not disappointed that I don't feel like running much for the time being.
However, lately, I've been mildly troubled by something else: elusiveness of easy run effort. There's a weird dynamic at play and it's taken a while for me to figure out what could be happening, and it's still a guess...I can't seem to jog anymore on my own. My core feels stronger and the temps are a lot easier to handle, and these pull me into a faster pace which is still easy aerobically but sort of hard muscularly. I can only hope that my leg muscles will catch up to my core. Meanwhile, my runs are too fast to be easy and too slow to be exciting. Maybe a few more weeks will see a turning point of some sort. I have no idea of how fast I'm going; it might be really slowly after all and my legs are just tired from the cross-training. I have been hitting the bodyrock routines pretty diligently. 3-4X a week!
Plus clamshells (again).
And I am presently typing in pigeon pose. My yin exercises have sadly dwindled to nothing, which could be a factor too. Will see.
There are a couple of health factors too, and it's sort of typical that as I fix one (gluten/malabsorption), another one begs for attention (the same cyst, not gone). The best solution? tweak my diet, probably. Lately I have been craving and consuming arugula/green salad with pepitas and homemade lemon juice dressing. I ate a similar dish during the dinner with Gaz and the guys and it was so fulfilling that I could practically hear every little cell screaming for more, every day. Unfortunately, I have also been craving and consuming perhaps too much popcorn, with perhaps too much butter/grapeseed oil and parmesan, naturally. I mustn't pretend any longer that the weight I've gained is purely muscle. ;)
Sunday, November 13, 2011
getting back into the saddle
Thurs, Fri, Sat: 0. I was sick on Thursday and just plain lazy on the other days. I'm also feeling a bit off in general due to a few recent gluten exposures. It happens; the trick is to space it out enough that damage doesn't accumulate too much. Unfortunately, I started feeling it a couple of days ago but it's not bad.
Fortunately, the staff at the restaurant Gaz and I and the boys went to last night was experienced with GF issues, not to mention that the cooking was excellent!
This morning, Gaz and I started at 8:30 (ok, 8:35, my fault). I wore my backpack instead of my fuel belt to avoid squeezing my guts.
We ran around for a while, went where we felt like. no plan. It was great.
Unfortunately, I started to feel the beginning twinge of ITBS near the end. It's been ages since this has happened, but it has also been ages since I've done clamshells, and the correlation is definite. And nothing else can replace clamshells. Yet I get sloppy with the clamshells now and then and then receive a gentle reminder.
When I got home, my husband was preparing to go for a run. I jogged with him and the dog for about 3 miles, and then I walked the last mile and a bit. I didn't want to aggravate my ITB too much; best to stop while the complaining was still mild. Then I did bodyrock AND clamshells.
total traveled today: 20.19 miles.
Fortunately, the staff at the restaurant Gaz and I and the boys went to last night was experienced with GF issues, not to mention that the cooking was excellent!
This morning, Gaz and I started at 8:30 (ok, 8:35, my fault). I wore my backpack instead of my fuel belt to avoid squeezing my guts.
We ran around for a while, went where we felt like. no plan. It was great.
Unfortunately, I started to feel the beginning twinge of ITBS near the end. It's been ages since this has happened, but it has also been ages since I've done clamshells, and the correlation is definite. And nothing else can replace clamshells. Yet I get sloppy with the clamshells now and then and then receive a gentle reminder.
When I got home, my husband was preparing to go for a run. I jogged with him and the dog for about 3 miles, and then I walked the last mile and a bit. I didn't want to aggravate my ITB too much; best to stop while the complaining was still mild. Then I did bodyrock AND clamshells.
total traveled today: 20.19 miles.
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
I didn't make it into the dawn
Well, it was still dawn when we ran, but not that crazy atmospheric gold dawn. I don't think it lasts too long. Will try to catch it tomorrow.
The dog and I ran about 8 miles. It felt sort of off...aerobically, very easy, but the mechanics were somehow not efficiently aligned, plus my legs felt a bit heavy. But I couldn't slow down. It felt worse to go slower; my body kept picking the pace back up.
This is something I've been thinking about: ideal pace. Yes, there's one for every distance, etc...I long for the pace that really feels good. There are actually a few: the slow dreamy and restorative jog around 11 min/mile which I can't seem to tap into these days despite spending many miles this past summer in it, the quick trot at about 8 min/mile (a bit slower and easier than my recent 1/2), and this faster pace where I lean forward a bit more and somehow my legs become light and almost absent, the motion becomes that fluid and effortless and superfluous jiggles vanish BUT my lungs burn. I can't keep it up for very long! I can't even capture it reliably by trying to run faster: if I push too hard, the form is lost. I've done whole workouts which are at or around that pace without feeling it, and I actually don't know exactly how fast it is, just how it feels.
It seems to happen when I fall into a faster pace for no reason except that I feel like running faster. Today, for instance, on our way back near the end of the run, we hit a dirt path and it felt good to pick up the pace and there it was. for a minute or two, it was transcending and nearly perfect. My dog broke into a canter and it was a whole new level. And then the oxygen debt hit and I slowed down
I feel like I have to handle it in a certain way: no push, no pry. I'm running mostly without the Garmin anyway which helps resist the temptation to find out how fast it is. I just have to remind myself that I seek the feeling, not the numbers. Open up and see what happens, enjoy it, but don't reach for more. Not yet.
After today's run, I did a new bodyrock routine. It went well: more exercises, longer reps, but just two sets. It was easier mentally.
The dog and I ran about 8 miles. It felt sort of off...aerobically, very easy, but the mechanics were somehow not efficiently aligned, plus my legs felt a bit heavy. But I couldn't slow down. It felt worse to go slower; my body kept picking the pace back up.
This is something I've been thinking about: ideal pace. Yes, there's one for every distance, etc...I long for the pace that really feels good. There are actually a few: the slow dreamy and restorative jog around 11 min/mile which I can't seem to tap into these days despite spending many miles this past summer in it, the quick trot at about 8 min/mile (a bit slower and easier than my recent 1/2), and this faster pace where I lean forward a bit more and somehow my legs become light and almost absent, the motion becomes that fluid and effortless and superfluous jiggles vanish BUT my lungs burn. I can't keep it up for very long! I can't even capture it reliably by trying to run faster: if I push too hard, the form is lost. I've done whole workouts which are at or around that pace without feeling it, and I actually don't know exactly how fast it is, just how it feels.
It seems to happen when I fall into a faster pace for no reason except that I feel like running faster. Today, for instance, on our way back near the end of the run, we hit a dirt path and it felt good to pick up the pace and there it was. for a minute or two, it was transcending and nearly perfect. My dog broke into a canter and it was a whole new level. And then the oxygen debt hit and I slowed down
I feel like I have to handle it in a certain way: no push, no pry. I'm running mostly without the Garmin anyway which helps resist the temptation to find out how fast it is. I just have to remind myself that I seek the feeling, not the numbers. Open up and see what happens, enjoy it, but don't reach for more. Not yet.
After today's run, I did a new bodyrock routine. It went well: more exercises, longer reps, but just two sets. It was easier mentally.
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
a post so boring that I might fall asleep while writing it
Which would be nice! This isn't insomnia, more like getting that second wind, which I've been getting too often lately.
At any rate, the dog and I ran 3 miles today. It was a normal average run, but really above average considering the past few weeks. It should be the normal morning distance, and I'm hoping to keep it up (with longer runs mid-week and weekend) because my dog seems to have a 3 mile daily minimum. Below that, he starts getting depressed and pushy and once the regular morning routine is amply reestablished, he returns to his normal self very quickly. Usually I notice the change after the 2nd normal run. i should add that Sundays don't count: I usually run with humans and he's used to sleeping in with my husband instead. Unfortunately, Fridays have become a bit problematic because I have to leave earlier than normal and I haven't quite been getting up early enough to do more than a mile or two.
However, the time change has been very helpful. I find daylight savings hard to adjust to, even in fall, but the dawn sky has been this amazing yellow orange colour. It's a wonderful hue to wake up to. I would like to run in it but that hasn't quite happened yet.
Meanwhile, I'm pumped about this farewell long run I've been planning. There are more bike/rec paths in the city than I'd known about!
At any rate, the dog and I ran 3 miles today. It was a normal average run, but really above average considering the past few weeks. It should be the normal morning distance, and I'm hoping to keep it up (with longer runs mid-week and weekend) because my dog seems to have a 3 mile daily minimum. Below that, he starts getting depressed and pushy and once the regular morning routine is amply reestablished, he returns to his normal self very quickly. Usually I notice the change after the 2nd normal run. i should add that Sundays don't count: I usually run with humans and he's used to sleeping in with my husband instead. Unfortunately, Fridays have become a bit problematic because I have to leave earlier than normal and I haven't quite been getting up early enough to do more than a mile or two.
However, the time change has been very helpful. I find daylight savings hard to adjust to, even in fall, but the dawn sky has been this amazing yellow orange colour. It's a wonderful hue to wake up to. I would like to run in it but that hasn't quite happened yet.
Meanwhile, I'm pumped about this farewell long run I've been planning. There are more bike/rec paths in the city than I'd known about!
Monday, November 7, 2011
restoration
I've been feeling drained for a while. a few weeks?
Yesterday, Gaz and I ran for a while, but not a long while. My total mileage ended up being about 15 miles. Our energy levels were fortunately similar. walk? sure! Stop to eat something at the farmers' market? sure! We even met another friend and ran with her for awhile...it almost seems like we did everything but run.
I had sore guts, but in a muscular way, not digestive. I suspect my fuel belt interferes with my revamped core. At any rate, I enjoyed all the peripheral benefits, good conversation, snacks, lovely fall weather, etc, but the running itself felt too hard and yet too mild to be of any use.
HOWEVER, this morning, I ran with the dog and felt like a million bucks. I hadn't slept enough again (six hours, and the night before was three, due to social stuff), and I was going to do a couple of miles by the Canal but this bored me. So we headed down to the river and I loosened up and felt really light. We even sprinted up and down a few steep hill portions. It's been a while since I've done steep hill sprints and I was much more aware of my core. I kept it tight and it drove everything else. Before, i'd feel my quads and shoulders more. And then I did resistance exercises, a bodyrock routine that I'd done twice before, which further pushed things into a familiar and competent groove. It was not easy, but I felt like I wasn't merely pushing against fatigue, but toward gains.
In short, the long run on Sunday was the exact restorative thing that I've been requiring these past few weeks. I've broken slumps with extra long and easy runs before, but I'd forgotten about this. And apparently Lydiard (someone who's written a lot about long-distance running) advocated long easy runs as a cure for tired legs and general fatigue. This is second-hand knowledge and maybe I've misconstrued it, but the basic observation seems the same.
Yesterday, Gaz and I ran for a while, but not a long while. My total mileage ended up being about 15 miles. Our energy levels were fortunately similar. walk? sure! Stop to eat something at the farmers' market? sure! We even met another friend and ran with her for awhile...it almost seems like we did everything but run.
I had sore guts, but in a muscular way, not digestive. I suspect my fuel belt interferes with my revamped core. At any rate, I enjoyed all the peripheral benefits, good conversation, snacks, lovely fall weather, etc, but the running itself felt too hard and yet too mild to be of any use.
HOWEVER, this morning, I ran with the dog and felt like a million bucks. I hadn't slept enough again (six hours, and the night before was three, due to social stuff), and I was going to do a couple of miles by the Canal but this bored me. So we headed down to the river and I loosened up and felt really light. We even sprinted up and down a few steep hill portions. It's been a while since I've done steep hill sprints and I was much more aware of my core. I kept it tight and it drove everything else. Before, i'd feel my quads and shoulders more. And then I did resistance exercises, a bodyrock routine that I'd done twice before, which further pushed things into a familiar and competent groove. It was not easy, but I felt like I wasn't merely pushing against fatigue, but toward gains.
In short, the long run on Sunday was the exact restorative thing that I've been requiring these past few weeks. I've broken slumps with extra long and easy runs before, but I'd forgotten about this. And apparently Lydiard (someone who's written a lot about long-distance running) advocated long easy runs as a cure for tired legs and general fatigue. This is second-hand knowledge and maybe I've misconstrued it, but the basic observation seems the same.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
a slow slide into fall
so much to update. I fell prey to the mind-AND-body snatchers of certain science courses; finished the first round of midterms and started the 2nd (yes, multiple midterms) and I have had a few nights of low sleep, including a bizarrely invigorating 40 minutes (the next day was great, the day after that awful) but now I feel like I have a bit of breathing space. My laptop didn't make it through, though.
I have been running, just not as much. There are multiple culprits, including races (more on the latest), less sunshine (bought cod liver oil this week), studying, and that ccyst which is still on its way out...I prefer this slow deflate to a big bang, but it's been draining in more than one fashion. My total this week is just over 50 km which is low, but I am not feeling like I'm getting much or anything out of running apart from exercising my dog. Runs are not fun. This happens sometimes. So what if November is a down month?
Fortunately, Bodyrock.TV has been a great outlet. I have been doing those workouts 3 times a week--this week, 4! That is a burn I can relate to better nowadays and so I pursue it.
And it has had a positive effect on running. Last week, I ran a 1/2...last minute decision, a friend couldn't use her bib, etc. I was feeling dull but, hey, a race! I showed up and it was cold and there was a lineup for the porta potties, but I had to join it...they delayed the start because I was not the only one, but that extra five minutes of standing around took its toll. My feet were so cold, they didn't seem to be connected to the rest of me properly.
Once the race started, I was able to warm up, but at a price: I knew I was going too fast (just had my watch, but sub 5- min kms are easy math). slowing down was not in the works: I was cold, I was hanging behind some people including someone dressed up as Beetlejuice, and it was a lovely sunny crisp fall day...I was just going to have to see what would happen. The 1/2 is my most natural distance, my strongest PB and my best pacing, etc, etc...time to wrench it out of the comfort zone. I did 5K in 23:30, not sure how fast that was but it was way too fast for the first 5K of a half, but, so what?
I lost much time in the 2nd 5K...the turnaround was at 10.5 km and I was running on unfamiliar paths which was a lot of fun but there was a false turn at one point so I stopped cold for whatever reason and accidentally dropped a gel. i was still breathing hard and had to get used to the idea of doing this for over an hour more...anyway, I hit the turnaround in just over 51 minutes and I was alone. I lost the people I was trailing and I felt like I was going so slowly.
But, somehow, Bodyrocking kicked in and my abs knitted into this painful but solid platform and I was very aware that slowing down would just mean prolonged discomfort. After a few kms, I noticed that they were still sub 5-minutes. I thought that was a fluke, but I started doing math, as long as I got under 1:50, etc, etc, but the kms were still sub 5-min and somehow the math was skittering away but meanwhile, I was still going. It didn't matter that I was alone, I didn't care, I just wanted to get back. There were hills, and the 2nd last one came out of nowhere and ripped up my guts pretty fiercely (honestly, I forgot I was human for a few moments or even a separate entity because everything became a swarm of agony, reddish veil and all--it was a pain similar to the last few reps of weights where I don't know what I'm doing anymore except pushing against pain, which somehow distances itself and lets me go deeper), but once I got to the top of the last hill with less than 1 km to go, I could see the bottom and the end...and then I noticed that the race clock was still under 1:43.
Usually, it's my legs that feel sore, but this time, my guts took the heat! I got a core now.
This was a huge boost, not only because it's so close to my PB which dates from a leaner meaner pre-op time when I was faster at speedwork and about 10 pounds lighter (but now I have 10 more pounds (ok, 5?) of muscle), but ALSO because I went out harder and managed to hang in. I had gotten used to 8 miles of slightly faster than easy pace and 5 miles of more discomfort for a 1/2, I had become too conservative, too scared.
I'm not sure what will happen next year in Kansas (yes, we're moving again) but I have plans for the rest of my time in Ottawa at least. Definitely, I'm going to continue the crosstraining, if only because it's so thrilling making horrendous exercises less so (I actually got three relatively fluid dive bombers in a row). No more races this year, but I have to run an homage to my city of birth before I leave. This is going to be epic and might encompass daylight hours completely, hopefully.
I have been running, just not as much. There are multiple culprits, including races (more on the latest), less sunshine (bought cod liver oil this week), studying, and that ccyst which is still on its way out...I prefer this slow deflate to a big bang, but it's been draining in more than one fashion. My total this week is just over 50 km which is low, but I am not feeling like I'm getting much or anything out of running apart from exercising my dog. Runs are not fun. This happens sometimes. So what if November is a down month?
Fortunately, Bodyrock.TV has been a great outlet. I have been doing those workouts 3 times a week--this week, 4! That is a burn I can relate to better nowadays and so I pursue it.
And it has had a positive effect on running. Last week, I ran a 1/2...last minute decision, a friend couldn't use her bib, etc. I was feeling dull but, hey, a race! I showed up and it was cold and there was a lineup for the porta potties, but I had to join it...they delayed the start because I was not the only one, but that extra five minutes of standing around took its toll. My feet were so cold, they didn't seem to be connected to the rest of me properly.
Once the race started, I was able to warm up, but at a price: I knew I was going too fast (just had my watch, but sub 5- min kms are easy math). slowing down was not in the works: I was cold, I was hanging behind some people including someone dressed up as Beetlejuice, and it was a lovely sunny crisp fall day...I was just going to have to see what would happen. The 1/2 is my most natural distance, my strongest PB and my best pacing, etc, etc...time to wrench it out of the comfort zone. I did 5K in 23:30, not sure how fast that was but it was way too fast for the first 5K of a half, but, so what?
I lost much time in the 2nd 5K...the turnaround was at 10.5 km and I was running on unfamiliar paths which was a lot of fun but there was a false turn at one point so I stopped cold for whatever reason and accidentally dropped a gel. i was still breathing hard and had to get used to the idea of doing this for over an hour more...anyway, I hit the turnaround in just over 51 minutes and I was alone. I lost the people I was trailing and I felt like I was going so slowly.
But, somehow, Bodyrocking kicked in and my abs knitted into this painful but solid platform and I was very aware that slowing down would just mean prolonged discomfort. After a few kms, I noticed that they were still sub 5-minutes. I thought that was a fluke, but I started doing math, as long as I got under 1:50, etc, etc, but the kms were still sub 5-min and somehow the math was skittering away but meanwhile, I was still going. It didn't matter that I was alone, I didn't care, I just wanted to get back. There were hills, and the 2nd last one came out of nowhere and ripped up my guts pretty fiercely (honestly, I forgot I was human for a few moments or even a separate entity because everything became a swarm of agony, reddish veil and all--it was a pain similar to the last few reps of weights where I don't know what I'm doing anymore except pushing against pain, which somehow distances itself and lets me go deeper), but once I got to the top of the last hill with less than 1 km to go, I could see the bottom and the end...and then I noticed that the race clock was still under 1:43.
Usually, it's my legs that feel sore, but this time, my guts took the heat! I got a core now.
This was a huge boost, not only because it's so close to my PB which dates from a leaner meaner pre-op time when I was faster at speedwork and about 10 pounds lighter (but now I have 10 more pounds (ok, 5?) of muscle), but ALSO because I went out harder and managed to hang in. I had gotten used to 8 miles of slightly faster than easy pace and 5 miles of more discomfort for a 1/2, I had become too conservative, too scared.
I'm not sure what will happen next year in Kansas (yes, we're moving again) but I have plans for the rest of my time in Ottawa at least. Definitely, I'm going to continue the crosstraining, if only because it's so thrilling making horrendous exercises less so (I actually got three relatively fluid dive bombers in a row). No more races this year, but I have to run an homage to my city of birth before I leave. This is going to be epic and might encompass daylight hours completely, hopefully.
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