It's time to taper!

Since my really bad 20 miler a few weeks ago, I've had some great runs. My 22 miler, went very well. I started at 3:30 am, to run 2 miles on my own. Then, I met up with my Chicago girls, to run 10 miles. I had to be back at Fit2Run before 6am, to meet the training group. We kept a nice brisk pace, getting me back in time to meet the group. I had about 10 minutes of standing around, talking to members of the group, before I headed out with them. The rest of the run went well. I ran a little slower than the first 12, mostly because I was running at paces set by various members of the group. This was fine, I was still staying in my overall pace that I wanted to keep. I ran a little with a few different people, checked in with others, when I saw them out there. I ended up finishing the 22 miles faster than I had run the 20 2 weeks before!

Last Saturday, I had my longest run for this training session. 24 miles. My Chicago girls started out early with me, at 3:45am! We wanted to get in 12 miles, before getting back to the store just before 6am. Once again, I was going to need to go out with the training group. In order to get back in time, we needed to keep a 10 min mile pace. We headed south, towards Siesta Key. Before the turn around, Gina was falling back and once we turned around and headed back, she had fallen even further behind. I really wish I could have stayed back with her, she had done the same for me during my 18 miler, but, I had a work commitment, and needed to get back to the store before 6 to lead the training group! I felt really bad, but there wasn't anything I could do! We got stopped by the draw bridge for a couple of minutes, but still managed to keep a pace at just under 10 min miles, to get back to the store in time. The chicago group headed out, while I waited for the training group to gather and then we were off.

I started off slow with them, even though I was itching to pull ahead. I did get ahead a couple of times, but stopped, to wait for some of them to catch up. Most of the group split up into singles. Everyone seems to have a slightly different pace. I ran a bit with Roxy, and then with Edith. I pulled ahead to get to the turn around spot for the people running 9 miles. Waited there for a few minutes to check on runners and then direct others to turn around, before heading back. Added in a mile in the Golden Gate neighborhood, where a couple of other runners where adding in distance, then added in the last bit I needed, along the water front, towards Selby Gardens. Edith was having issues, not feeling well, so I got her to head back. Ran into Gina, who wasn't having a very good run and was on her own. Thankfully, there were only a few people that didn't have good runs today. Most everyone did great, even though it was pretty humid out. I had an awesome run. Finished my 24 miles in 4:02! I felt great for most of the run. Started to tighten up a bit towards the end, but that is good for me. Usually that happens around mile 20-21.

I feel like I am in really good shape this year. My training has gone well, so I am optimistic about having a great race in Chicago. Now, I just have to deal with taper madness. Starting to cut back on the miles will seem great at first, but I know I will start to feel a bit crazy from not getting the long miles in!

Chicago marathon training

Nike Chicago

Last spring, I entered the lottery for the Chicago Marathon. I was so excited when my training buddies and I, got selected. Even though the race is in early October, It didn't cross my mind that my marathon training for this summer was going to be different than previous summers. The last few years, I've run Fall marathons, but they've been in early November, or later. This is a full month earlier!

For most people, this might not matter. In other parts of the country, running in the summer, is the best time to run. In Florida, it is the worst time to run. August and September tend to be the hottest months of the year!

All through June and July, my training was going great. In early August, I had an 18 miler, that was slower than I wanted, but overall, not to bad considering the heat. Then, two weeks later, the dreaded 20 miler was on the schedule. As soon as we started running, at 4:30 am, I knew it was going to be a rough one. My stomach was a little upset. There was absolutely no breeze. And it was HOT! Around 80 degrees. I felt like I was breathing in my exhaled breath. Just nasty. We ran south for 4 miles, then back to the car. I tried a peanut butter hammer gel. My first time trying it. I had hopped it would be similar to the Gu peanut butter, but it was far from similar. It was really gross! I drank a bunch of water, then ate one of my extra nutrition products.
We then headed north, over the Ringling Bridge, towards Ken Tompson park. All I could think about, was the bathroom at the bait shop, that I knew would be open. I had needed to go for a while! By the time we got there, we were about 11 miles into our 20 miler. It all went down hill for me here. I ran for a bit, but then needed to stop and walk. I felt dizzy and over heated. Gina stopped to walk with me and ended up staying with me for the rest of the run. We headed out towards Lido beach. Once there, we stopped to get more water, and then started heading back. I had to walk a lot on the way back. I felt really bad about holding Gina back from her run, but she was stead fast in not wanting to leave me on my own. All I cared about at this point, was getting the miles in, even if I wasn't running them. I was so happy when I was done! But, I felt really down. I questioned my time goals for Chicago. I questioned my training for the rest of the days leading to the race.

Monday night (two days later), I headed out with my training group. I decided to try and push the pace, to help me get out of my funk. I ended up having a great run! The next morning. I stared my 9 miler, thinking I would take it easy, since I ran hard the night before. I ended up having an awesome run. Running faster and faster with each mile! This past week has been a great week of training. My spirits are lifted. I feel like I've been doing something right with my training.

This weekend, I've got a 22 miler scheduled for Saturday. I'm trying not to worry, to have faith in my training. but I've got to admit, I'm a little worried! The heat is back, after a nice little break this past weekend.

All I can do, is try my best. And know, that even if the run turns out to be not so great, my overall training will provide a solid base, for my marathon goal! It also helps to think of CJ, who is one of my inspirations, while running. CJ is a strong  little 8-year-old, who has Cerebral Palsy. He is a fighter and so am I!

Moon Over Croom race recap

14ish mile night trail race
August 1, 2015

Moon Over Croom is a 21, 14 and 7 mile trail race that takes place in Brooksville on the evening of the Full moon at the beginning of August. This is the second year for the race and my second time running the 14ish mile event. Last year Gina, Carolyn and I drove up, ran the 14 miles and then I drove us back that night. That was rough. Didn't get home until midnight. This year, we booked a hotel room, so we could hang around after the race and then get some sleep before heading home the next day.

Ready to hit the trails!

Gina, Sandi, Carolyn, Jo and I left Sarasota at 2:30 in the afternoon. We figured we would have plenty of time to get up there, check in to the hotel and hang out before the race. The weather was horrible. Lots of rain. We passed 3 accidents on our way north, which created lots of backed up traffic. Our trip took longer than we thought. We still got checked into the hotel, but didn't have as much time to relax as we thought we would have before we headed over to the race site. We got to the race area at about 5:30, picked up our goodie bags, then hung out by the car. There was a large group of us from Sarasota. We met up with some friends, took photos then watched the 21 mile runners go out at 6 pm. We ate a little something, then finished up our prep before we got started at 7 p.m. After some quick instructions, which included letting us know the direction we were running the loop this year had been changed, we were off!

There is a quick run down the road, before we turn right, pass over where the finish line will be, then head down the trail. We were warned that the first quarter mile was muddy. And it was! The trail was a single tract trail, so it was pretty congested this close to the start. Everyone was trying to stay to the sides, to keep out of the water. Some runners ran right through, but I wanted to keep my feet dry, at least for this first loop! At some point during this first section, Gina gets far ahead of us. We don't see her again until we finish the first loop. Just before we finish the first half mile, the trail becomes drier. Sandi, Carloyn and I stick together for the rest of the loop. Lots of up and down hills and pretty terrain. I love the first loop, because it's still light, so we can see everything around us. There are of course, lots of roots and branches down on the trail that we have to keep a look out for. I joke that we are going to be calling out "root" and "branch" in our sleep, with the amount of times we yelled it out to each other. I did twist my left foot and ankle on one root, but it wasn't bad enough to stop me. It did throb throughout the rest of the race. I was happy that I wore compression socks. I think it helped to keep the swelling down. The last section of the loop, is on the main road. Last year when I was here, it was still a dirt road. A few months ago they paved this entire section. Made for a nice break from the trails, but it wasn't a break from the hills. We had a long steady climb back up to base camp. We saw Jo cheering for us as we came in and found Gina there waiting for us. Jo got a few photos, we filled up our water bottles then headed out for the second loop.

Super sweaty at the half way point! That skirt was completely sweaty by the end.

It is now completely dark. We head out with our headlights and our little hand held flash lights. That first half mile is even muddier from all the runners trampling down the dry spots, We pretty much walk this entire section, going very slow. Once we make it through this section, we start running, but keep the pace slower, so that we can keep an eye on the ground and not trip. Even though the sun is down, it feels even hotter than before. The trees seem to be trapping the heat. It's very humid. Half way through this second loop, I can squeeze the sweat out of my skirt! Gross. Sandi leads us for the last hour or so, pushing the pace. We all manage to make it back to the main road without any falls. The last up hill is brutal for me. I struggle to keep up with the others, secretly hoping they will take a walk break. No luck for me. Gina picks up the pace as we close in on the finish. I find the strength to pick up the pace, too, following right behind her as we cross the finish line. With Carolyn and Sandi right behind. Gina and I luck out, getting the last two logo water bottles. We head to the car to get the cooler and finisher medals I made, before heading back to our chairs. Chips and beer never tasted better!

We are done!

So happy to be off our feet and drinking a beer! :)

I had hoped for a faster finish this year. It seemed like we walked a lot last year, but I guess the mud made us slower, because we finished the 14.7 miles in 3:19:04, which was about 10 minutes slower than last year! Oh, well. It was a good run and we had fun.

Engelwood Triathlon

July 18, 2015

This was my third year doing this race. Each year, I tell myself I am going to TRAIN for this race and each year, something happens during training, and I don't get in the biking and swimming that I should. This year, I was dealing with pain in my upper back and right shoulder. Biking and swimming irritated the area. I did manage to get out for a few open water swims, so I figured, while I might not have a faster race than before, I should be OK out there. Boy, was I wrong!

Toni, me, Carolyn, Wendy and Kristi before the race.

In the week leading up to the race, the weather had been pretty bad. Storms every day, with storms all day on Thursday and Friday. The water was very churned up. Not just choppy, but washing machine type water. Carolyn and I arrived at Engelwood beach around 6am. With the race to start at just after 7, we had plenty of time to get checked in and get our area set up in transition. I headed to the bathroom, which was located in an elevated building. Since it was still dark out, I held the handle on the stairs on the way up. On the way out, there were people walking on both sides of the stairs, so I went down the middle. Just before the bottom, I missed the last couple of steps and went down hard. Landed on my knees and then fell to my side. OUCH! I got up and walked around a bit. My knees stung, but seemed to be OK. Went back to the car and got my bike and gear, then headed to transition. Set up next to Wendy. Carolyn was in the row behind us. It seemed like transition was smaller than last year. Wendy told us that there were only 200 doing the race, which is less than the previous year. Probably didn't get many last minute signups, with rain in the forecast for this morning, during the race. We got some group photos, then headed out to the beach. I went in up to my knees, but didn't feel like getting a warm up swim in. Maybe I should have. My group was in wave 4, the last to go. I'm fine with that. It would mean fewer people trying to swim over the top of me. We watched the first 3 waves go off, then got lined up to go. The horn blasted and we were off!

Heading in to start the swim.

I started off at the back of the group, but kept up with a lot of the swimmers, until we got out to the first bouy. Took that turn wide, because the rope holding the bouy was so loose, no one wanted their legs to get caught in it. I was doing ok, checking where I was more than normal because if felt like I was getting pushed all over the pace. I must have been expending to much energy, because I couldn't get my breathing under control and started freaking out between the third and 4th buoy. I tried going on to my back, to relax a little. This works in calm water, but not this type of water. I got really scared because I just couldn't calm down. I almost swam to shore, but I stopped and called out to the lifeguard behind me. I yelled three times, but couldn't get his attention. Finally, a volunteer in a kayak came up behind me. I hung on to his board for a while, getting my breathing to calm down. I had never been so scared in my life. I really didn't think I could make it. After calming down, I decided I could finish. The last buoy wasn't that far away, and I would have the waves to push me back to shore, once I turned around the buoy. When I finished, I was so happy!

So happy to be out of the water!

Short run up the beach, then a run through the parking lot, into the transition area. Spent a bit more time in here than normal. Still getting over the swim, I guess. Got my feet cleaned off before putting on shoes and socks. Put on my helmet and sunglasses, reset my watch, then headed out of transition with my bike.

I was pretty fired up on the bike. Really pissed off about the swim, which I put into riding the bike. I passed quite a few people. There are a lot of newbies that do this race. I'm no expert, but if you are new to a sport, you should really read all the rules. There are not a lot for running races, but with triathlon, you can get disqualified or penalized for things. So, I got really frustrated with a few of the riders out there. Thankfully, there was no sign of a race official, because some people would have gotten in trouble for drafting off of me and for riding down the middle of the road. It's kind of hard to pass someone when they are in the middle of the lane! Anyway, I had a pretty good bike. A little faster than last year. The road didn't have any giant puddles, which we were all worried about because of all the rain we had during the week. This is one of my favorite bike courses. Lot's of giant trees on each side of the road provide shade for a good chunk of the course. Pulled into transition, got my helmet off, visor on, pulled on my Skirt Sports cover up skirt (that had my bib on it already) and then headed out for the run.

Finishing the bike ride, heading towards transition.

Thankfully the sky was still overcast, which made for a decent run. The course is all on sidewalk and road, so no sand! I was able to pass quite a few more people during this part of the race. I started out at a fast clip, but gradually slowed the pace, because I knew I couldn't keep it up. My goal was to keep a sub 9 min mile pace going, and that's what I did. Less than a quarter mile from the finish, I saw Carolyn up ahead of me, but didn't have enough in the tank to push it more to catch up to her. Happy with my strong finish though.

Race stats: 1:27:16. Swim: 12:42, T1 2:32, Bike: 43:43, T2: 1:02, Run:27:21

Carolyn, Me and Wendy. Carolyn and I got 4th
in age group and Wendy got 5th!

One week post race: Still not feeling the swim love. I know I'll get back out there, but with the weather still yucky here and the water still very choppy, I'm not getting back in any time soon. I'm not ready for another triathlon. But, I think it's like child birth, I will forget the pain of it eventually and I'll get talked into doing another one. :) For now, I'll focus on training for the Chicago Marathon!

SUP & Run 5K

Carolyn, Jackie, Wendy and I before the race.

Benderson Park
May 16, 2015

After many weeks of SUP training, it was finally race day. They day before the race, I learned that there would not be a seperate category for race boards, so I was going to have to compete on my bulky, surfboard type board against speedy boards. This is like riding a mountain bike in a triathlon and going up against people using speedy tri and road bikes. The surf SUP boards are heavy and slower. But, what could I do. I just decided to do my best.

Race morning: I got my board set up on the beach, right next to the water. By the time the race was about to start, I could see that more than half the boards were race boards. It kind of got me down, but I tried to push it to the back of my mind. It's not like I was going to win this thing, I just wanted a fair competition. The run was first, so I got lined up in the middle of the group. The race had a 5K Run, 5K paddle and a 5K run/5K SUP. I was going to do both. I started out at a fast pace, running up the little hill. I was in the high 7 minute mile range and knew I needed to slow it down. My plan was not to go all out for the run, because I knew I couldn't be out of breath for the paddle. People were passing my like crazy. There were a lot of fast runners out for the race. The course was out and back, so I was able to see everyone ahead of me, heading back. At the turn around, I did see some women, who were also doing both races, behind me. It was good to know I wasn't last! I picked up the pace a bit in the last half mile, Speeding up as I ran down the hill to the transition area. Gina was waiting down by my board. She gave me some water and stood by while I got my gear on. I hopped on the board and paddled out!

Heading to the finish

The paddle: we took a right, to loop around the back side of the island. I was passed by a couple of guys on faster boards, and then by a woman on a board like mine. She was fast! My heart rate was way up there, so I tried to concentrate on getting my breathing under control while not slowing down. As I came out of the little canal on the back side of the island, I could see about 5 people a ways ahead of me. My goal was to try and catch up. The wind was blowing from my left side, but because we were pretty close to the side of the lake, we had a bit of a buffer. About 10 minutes into my paddle, my music gave out. It was going to be a quiet paddle! Just before I got a mile in, I passed one woman, who had been at the back of the one pack. I now had my sights set on the other 4. This is were I made a little mistake. I didn't remember the announcer telling us we had to hug the side, just thought it would be easier. We were going to have to turn right at the end of the lake, so I started to paddle towards the middle a bit more, but, as I got closer to the end, I could see that I needed to go around a bouy before making the turn. That wasted a bit of time! After making the turn around the buoy, we had a short paddle heading west. There is a long walkway, that goes down the middle of the lake. It's set up for the rowing races. Thankfully, they had taken out a large section of it, for us to pass through. When Jackie and I had paddled out here a few days before, the walkway was in place, and there was only a small section at the end open. I almost hit the shore trying to paddle through. Just after making the turn, I passed another participant. She was struggling to move forward, with the now, very strong wind pushing us from the right. We both fell way behind the other people, who took the advice of the announcer, and stayed close to the center walkway. I, drifted further and further to the left. Since we would have to go to the left, to turn around the last bouy anyway, I figured it wasn't a big deal. I probably just had to work a little harder in the wind. After making the last turn, We paddled the last quarter mile straight into the wind, to the beach. I could hear my friends on the shore cheering me on. It was pretty awesome! I paddled in, left my board on the beach, and ran it to the finish line. Wow, my legs where like lead! Super happy to be done and very happy with my time. I took almost 15 minutes off from my previous 5K paddle!
5K Run - 26:00
5K SUP - 51:47

Crossing the finish line.

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#REALwomenmove

Skirt Sports has started a new movement that is totally awesome! It’s called #REALwomenmove. This is all about people like me. A woman, a mom, a weekend race warrior, a friend, a wife and an inspiration and motivator to all those around her.

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I’ve been an athlete for most of my life. I was a bit of a “tomboy” growing up. But, I didn’t start running until I got into college. Not sure what held me back, but one day I decided to give it a try. It was usually just a couple of miles at a time, with no goal at the end of it. When I got into my mid 20s, running was a great way to relieve stress from my first job as a journalist and always helped me get through break-ups with boyfriends. I got hooked on running short distance races, when I ran a 5K in Biloxi, MS. I had just moved there, to work at the local newspaper. I didn’t stick around after the race, I had no idea I could win an age group award. A week or so later, a 2^nd place ribbon came in the mail! I was so excited. That was the start of my love of racing. A year later, I ran my first half marathon and 6 months after that, I ran my first marathon. Now, I’ve run 55 half marathons, 21 marathons, 2 ultra’s and so many 5K and 10K races, I can’t even count.

My love of running has been with me for over 20 years now. My weight and pace per mile has fluctuated, with all of life’s changes. But, whether I was running an 8 minute mile or a 12 minute mile, I always consider myself a runner. I get out there and work to the best of my abilities. And the biggest surprise to me? I’m faster now, than I was in my mid 20s? My big dream goal is to qualify for the Boston marathon. Since I’ll be moving up in age group at the end of the year, that goal is getting closer! J

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