Building a race calendar

I love working on my calendar for the year, & trying to find races that look fun. It gets me all motivated & tingly. :-) One of my goals for 2013 is to run 10 races in the year, so my criteria is a little stricter than usual. Here's what I'm looking for in a race:

• The date has to work for our family calendar. That comes first, especially given the volume of races I want to do.The one exception to this is Hood to Coast, as obviously, that's a fixed date & I'm running with a team.
• I want something super local, to cut down on travel time/time away from the family/general inconvenience. I love running a race in the morning & still being able to hang with my crew in the afternoon.
• Most of the races need to be cheap. Hood to Coast surely isn't cheap, & I have a budget ($1200)  I need to stick to this year. That means no bailing last minute on races, & smaller races.
• I prefer smaller races anyway - they just feel more fun, & I hate the hassle of looking for parking, etc.

Here's my tentative lineup for the year:

1. January - ran a 5 mile train race. It cost $15 & was about 10 minutes from my house. Win/win!
2. March 9th - Lake Sammamish Half Marathon (already registered)
3. April 7th - Mud & Chocolate Half Marathon (trail race, in Redmond). Not registered, & this will depend on Michael's travel schedule. We may be at the beach instead.
4. May12th - Mother's Day Half in Kirkland
5. August 23rd & 24th - Hood to Coast!
6. September - work charity 5K. Date TBD.
7. December - Jingle Bell 12K - Kirkland. Date TBD.

I still need three more races for the year, so if you have anything to recommend, please do! I especially want a few in June & July.

And, I'm happy to report that I got up at 5:00 am TWICE this week to run. I'm on track for my planned workouts, & have my last long run on Saturday (12 miler) before my March 9th half run. My goal for that race is to get a PR. . . so below 2:23. I should have a good feel for whether that is possible after my run on Saturday. Fingers crossed!

I couldn't resist sharing this picture of (one of) my Valentines! This was Nick in Hawaii in November. Michael is still digging out our pictures from that fabulous trip. This boy is so cheesy, & I adore everything about the picture. The smile, the glasses, the tank top (his choice for a Hawaii souvenir), the pose, all of it!

What about you? What's on your race calendar for the year? How do you choose races?

Getting back into the groove

Where have I been? Skiing, hanging out with this bunch of cuties, celebrating birthdays, working, & occasionally running. Yesterday was my first solo trip to the mountain with the boys, & we all survived! Just one minor encounter with the ski patrol when Nick got lost. Let me tell you, skiing with two kiddos, & all of us being at different ski levels (& more importantly - speed!) is no small feat. And, one of those mini skiers can't read, so trail signs are of no use. Anyway, we had a great day at the mountain, & I felt like a super hero mom.

Ski season is winding down, & I have a bunch of races on the horizon, so time to get serious & get back into a regular running groove! I know what this means, & I've been putting it off. . .it means finally motivating myself to consistently run at 5:00 am. Oh boy, this should be interesting. I've been trying to do this for a year, but the time has come. With Michael's travel schedule, it's either 5:00 am or never on most days.

What I really need to do is fix my running location, because currently our treadmill is in the basement, facing a wall. If you enjoy feeling like you're in prison, this is definitely the place to be! I can run outside in the mornings as long as Michael isn't traveling (about half the time), but I need to make the treadmill running more enjoyable. We're thinking of hooking up a DVD player, or something. More on that.

I've also gained six pounds, & while I'd love to tell you that it's all muscle. . . I'm pretty sure it's not. I had to film a video for work, & seeing the footage was a cold, hard reality check. I've actually been getting quite a bit of exercise, so given that I'm still gaining weight - that should be a solid indicator of how much I'm eating. Gulp.

Recap from last week:

• Monday - Rest day. Ran 11 miles on Saturday & skied all day on Sunday.
• Tuesday - Ran 2 miles on the treadmill. All I had time for.
• Wednesday- 45 minutes of cross training (elliptical) + weights
• Thursday - Ran 2.5 miles on the treadmill. Because I was that lazy at 5:00 am.
• Friday - Ran 3 miles on the treadmill. I know, I know, such improvement! :-)
• Saturday - We were supposed to ski with a bunch of family for Sam's 7th birthday, but it was pouring buckets at the mountain. So, we went bowling & drank beer. And then followed that up with a movie + wine. Obviously, it was a stellar workout day.
• Sunday - 60 minutes of cross training + weights. Could have run at the gym, didn't. Have a cold, feel like dog doo.

So, there you have it! I did three runs, for a grand total of 7.5 whopping miles. My goal for the week was 22. And, I did two cross training workouts. Holy smokes! I have a half marathon coming up in three weeks, so it's time to get really serious.

Here's my plan for this week:

• Monday - The boys had the day off, so we went skiing. We skied 15 runs (that's a ton with kids!), so I got in quite a bit of exercise. 
• Tuesday - 5 mile run at lunch + arms. Pilates tonight.
• Wednesday - 4 mile run at 5:00 am.
• Thursday - 60 minutes of cross training at lunch. Yoga in the evening.
• Friday - At the beach! Taking a long weekend as the boys are on mid-winter break. I love running at the beach ! 6 mile run.
• Saturday - Long run for my half in a few weeks. 12 miler.
• Sunday - Rest day.

How do you get back into the groove with eating well and working out consistently? I'm going to lower my calorie goal on My Fitness Pal & get more serious with recording each food item. I've been lazy lately & just adding big bunches of calories at once (i.e. Lunch - 600 calories) & I'm clearly underestimating, according to the scale. :-)

Also, if you're on My Fitness Pal, & would like to connect, please let me know!

2012 in review & goals for 2013

Oh, 2012, you wily beast. There were some truly amazing moments in there. :-)

I ran a 5K, a 12K, a 15K, two half marathons (see that 5th picture down for the most glamorous moment of all ;-), & the truly epic Hood to Coast.

 

I also had some pretty fun times with my favorite peeps. Lots of trip to the beach, many trips to Las Vegas, & a family trip to Hawaii.

Life is good. :-)

My goals for 2013?

1. Lose 12 pounds, bringing my weight to 135. I'm trying to shoot for a healthy, but realistic number. I've gained fourish pounds over the last few months.
2. Track my food/exercise every day in My Fitness Pal.  
3. Complete 13,000 minutes of cardio. This will be a huge stretch goal for me, but I'm ready for the challenge! I surpassed my goal of 12,000 minutes in 2012.
4. Complete 100 strength workouts.
5. Complete 100 stretching workout
6. Run consistently, as measured by the following:
• Run 10 races.
• Run 20 miles (or more) per week
• Run 1000 miles
• Achieve a PR in a half marathon
• Run a 5K, a 10K, a 12K, a 15K, a 30K, a half marathon, & Hood to Coast
7. Blog a minimum of once a week. I miss the accountability!

What about you? Any goals for 2013?

I'm a giant slacker

Seriously, where does the time go? For me, I think the majority of it was spent at my office. I worked 60+ weeks from September until a few weeks ago, when (Hallelujah!) I switched jobs.

Life is much more manageable again. In the meantime, as soon as I left my old job, Michael & I took the boys to Hawaii. Best vacation of my life.

Our crew had the most amazing time together. After all of that crazy work & no time with the family, it was *essential*.

More pictures to come, but I have *so* missed this. All of it. The regular running, the blogging about it, the support of this awesome community, being inspired by all of the amazing people out there.

2012 was a great year, & I'm already plotting out my 2013 goals!!!

Hood to Coast - Leg 1 Recap

Where to start, where to start. I got asked to join a team the first week in July (one of their runners had an injury and had to drop out). I've been dying to try a relay, & decide to get over my fear & just go for it. Two days in a van with five of your smelliest friends with no sleep? Running 200 miles? Who can resist? :-)

I didn't know any of the other members of the team, save for my sister's boyfriend. I was assigned to the Runner 1 position, which basically means that you are the first person to run down the extremely crazy downhill from Mt. Hood, but it's also the easiest total running position. The second leg is in downtown Portland & totally flat. The third leg was also easy, & Runner 1 runs the least miles of all of the team. I was freaked about the downhill on Mt. Hood, & all of the advice I received was basically - take it slow. Don't shred your legs on that first leg, because you will suffer for the rest of the event.. . . So much easier said than done!

Our relay team, "We've got the runs", had an introductory barbecue the night before the event started. My grandmother passed away the weekend before HTC, & her funeral was on Thursday. I was an emotional mess, & didn't get to attend the barbecue, meaning I'd never seen any of the other runners before. This would prove to be a challenge during one of the handoffs.

I stayed at my sister's house in Vancouver the night before, & set the alarm for 4 am. We had a 10:45 am start time, & needed to: pick up all of the other Van 1 runners, decorate the van, load up, & drive to the mountain.

We'd heard horror stories of traffic jams, so we left for the mountain around 6 am. When we got to Timberline Lodge, it was a complete party atmosphere. They were calling out running teams every 15 minutes, & the place was loaded with excited runners. I had a Starbucks spinach/feta wrap at 5:00 am & some coffee, and couldn't decide if I should eat anything else before my first run at 10:45. I decided to have 1/2 of a peanut butter & jelly sandwich around 8:00, & drank all four of my fuel belt bottles filled with Nuun. I wanted to be well hydrated, since it was starting to heat up on the mountain.

Before I knew it, they were calling my team name, & I was lining up. My new BFF van members were cheering me on (seriously, I was with an amazing group & feel so lucky that I had already bonded with people I didn't know a day earlier). My goal for this leg was to try & pick up a few extra minutes, knowing that I would struggle with my legs for my 2nd & 3rd legs. I also wanted to not go full out & hurt my ankles or knees. The adrenaline was pouring on, & I started talking to another girl who was running for the first time. She was awesome & helped calm my nerves.

They counted us down, & we were off! The entire time we were running, I was thinking about my grandmother. She passed away at 94 last Saturday, & was an avid nature lover, & the hardest working, most disciplined person I know. She was way ahead of her time, & I will miss her so much. As I ran, I was thinking of her, & how much she would have loved the view from Timberline. It was breathtaking. This sounds silly & I'm really not the kind of person who believes in this, but I swear that I could feel her with me - telling me that I could do it & just to stay in control & enjoy the experience.

I finished 5.64 miles (and, 2000 ft elevelation drop) in 50:15, which was about 4 minutes under my race pace. I was so happy to see my teammate, Runner 2 (Everett), that I slapped that bracelet on him. I sat down & cried - it was such an emotional experience.

These awesome people totally made it happen for me - everyone was supportive, fun, & we were all first time HTCers.

Starting from the left (Nick, my sister's boyfriend, & the only person I knew before the trip), me, Elliot, Everett, Kelly, & Erin. All rock stars.

My second leg, coming up next!

Hood to Coast

Oh my, sweet lord. What an adventure! And yes, I'll just skip past the fact that I haven't blogged in months, because I have no excuses, other than just a crazy schedule.

But, Hood to Coast baby. . . it was amazing, and dramatic & awesome.

Here's half of my team (Van 1) at Timberline Lodge, about an hour before our start time.

And, me, right before my leg down Mt. Hood!

 

 

Me (in the purple) at the end of the first exchange - just finished pounding down Mt. Hood. . .  Oh, my quads.

 



We had such a crazy experience - Van 2 broke down, a runner got sick, a huge fire closed one of the roads & one of our runners had to add extra miles to get through the detour, we lost our slap band, got caught in a 3 hour traffic jam on our way to our "sleeping" area (I use that description loosely, given the 2 hours of sleep we got), our last runner got pointed in the wrong direction & ended up adding six extra miles to the finish (with about 50 other runners). . . it was nuts. And, easily one of the best experiences of my life. So, so, so much more to come, but if you ever get a chance to run this relay - DO IT! You will not regret it.

I promise a full recap, plus more regular blogging!

The discipline of running

Clearly, I have no discipline when it comes to blogging (life & work have been overwhelming lately!), but when I was running yesterday, I started thinking about how much discipline is necessary for running.

To set the stage, it was 52 and raining when I got to the park for my run. Yes, on July 1st, 52 and raining. I know, I know, it could be 110 and smoldering hot, but I was not excited to run in the rain - AGAIN. And, as I conned myself into getting out of the car & committing to at least 6 miles (my training plan called for 9), I realized how much discipline goes into my running.

• Getting my kids ready & out of the house when Michael travels, so I can take them to the gym & I can run.
• Waking up at 5:00 am on week days so I can squeeze my run in before work.
• Waking up early on weekends so I can eat & digest before my morning run, to minimize the impact to the family.
• Planning my weekends around my run schedule.
• Eating well before runs, because I've learned that valuable lesson many times of what poor pre-run fueling will do during a long run. ;-)
• Planning & organizing every day, to create that window of time for running. Life is busy, & if it's not planned out, it will not happen.
• Just the act of getting outside (or on the treadmill) is probably the hardest part for me right now. I do it, but I'm not going to pretend it's easy.

And, in huge/slightly scary news, I got asked to join a Hood to Coast relay team yesterday! One of their other members bailed, so I'm filling in. I'm super excited & very nervous to see which legs I get.

Much, much more to come, and after all of my hemming & hawing about my run yesterday, I ended up with my fastest 9 miler ever, and by far my most enjoyable long run. Boom! Love that.

Questions for you:
-Have you done a relay? Tips? Tricks?
-How should I think about training?
-What kind of discipline do you put into your running?