Sub-Zero...

Well, I've learned a few things since my last post. Some of the trial and error "stuff" to sort through, but such is the territory of winter running. Thankfully I haven't had a completely miserable run yet, which is quite remarkable given the temperatures & weather we have had.

Last week was strong for training. I logged 15.5 miles and am very happy with that.

Jeremy and I joined the morning run with the group at Dick Beardsley's last Thursday. Why they call it "morning" boggles me. That early is technically still night to me. Anywho, as it turns out I am the slowest runner in the 5mile group. If I want a running buddy I either need to speed up or join another group. I know attempting to catch up makes me run faster, which is good. But I've accepted that on these nights I will be primarily running alone. It was disappointing at first though. At least starting off and gathering later with people who share the same passion and effort is it's own reward.

I've reached the point that a 5miler three times per wk. is comfortable and something I look forward to. Eventually I will make the Saturday run a long run. For now I'm more focused on getting a run in. Period.

Moving on to this week,

When temperatures fall below zero you have three choices.

1.) Snuggle up with your down blanket & cup of hot cocoa.

2.) Hop on the dreadmill.

or,

3.) Pile on a ridiculous amount of layers. Michelin style. Stick the ipod in the sports bra so it doesn't freeze up again & leave the water bottle at home. Again because of the freezing.

Since I have this periodic curiosity of what I can handle of the elements, I of course chose the third option.(I say periodic because nothing in my body wanted to leave the apartment yesterday to do anything let alone run.)

Today I ran in -5 degree weather for nearly 5miles. Finding a clear path was difficult after the wknd's blizzard & 40+ mph winds. The aftermath was beautiful, but I definitely have compassion for those plowing and hauling away the snow.


Given the right technical gear and proper layering I'm feeling very confident about running through the winter. My only regret is not doing it last year. No I wont be making any PRs in training and yes sometimes my eye lashes freeze together, but there is something invigorating about getting out when most people wouldn't consider it. The brisk air no longer chills me, it refreshes me. I was hoping to get a before and after shot of the ice build up on my face warmer and eye lashes, but it melted by the time I grabbed the camera. So ^ that's all I've got.

Tomorrow I get my ink retouched. There are a few spots in the solid area under the camel that need more filling in. Which is normal with that much solid area. Hopefully it wont effect my running to much. There is no avoiding wearing something over the tattoo this time of the year so I will have to be brave.

Once that is all healed up I will be able to hit the pool again. Something I desparately need to do. Most of the triathlons we will do this summer will be Olympic distance with one 1/2 iron (hopefully) in there. Right now swimming 1/2 mile wears me out, that has to change by June. I'm determined to swim the 1.2mile needed for the HIM. Lots of training leading up to that though.

As we near the end of this year I'm finding myself setting goals for '09. Trying to be optimistic and realistic at the same time is challenging. Staying focused on what is truly important gets even more challenging. My passion and drive for tris & running allows me to worship my God in a uniquely powerful way, but I also don't want it to become a distraction. Living actively is a gift. I just want to be sure I use it wisely & to His glory in whatever way He should lead.

A Triathlete's Wife...

Being married to a triathlete and being one myself has incurred some changes in our relationship. Let me point out that most of those changes have been positive ones. In fact the only real downside at this point is the extra load of tech-gear that piles up in our laundry room each week & budgeting for gear, but that's a necessary evil.

Today it hit me when I opened up the parcel my Beloved said would be coming in the mail with a surprise for me in it that those sweet gifts we give one another when we feel the need to spoil just aren't the same.

For most married couples the husband's idea of gifting ranges from going out to buy flowers, a box of chocolates or some time at the spa. Not my hubby. He has always been an awesome "gifter" and yes I've been spoiled with all the things I listed prior, but now his gift ideas have shifted to tech. Technical gear that is.

These were in the box.... :) Don't pay any mind to how white my legs are. Please. Thanks.



They will last longer then flowers or chocolates. Especially chocolates. And I absolutely love them!

I haven't run in them yet. That should happen tomorrow, but so far just walking around the house has been very comfy in the Injinji socks. Adjusting to actual toe socks is a little weird, but I think I'll like it. If nothing else it will creep some people out. Can't beat NuWool either.

Other then that, yesterdays run was a bit difficult in areas. Most of the paths I ran on were covered in at least 2-3" with 6" in spots where the plow or drifting had piled up the snow. It takes a lot more leg work to keep sure footing and not hurt an ankle on the uneven surfaces. I am a little stiff today, but not to bad. Will definitely be using my new route again. It is away from the road & more scenic for about 3 miles of a 5.3 mile run.

Houndstooth...

Round two of the plague monkey battle has seemingly come to an end. I am no longer taking the Devil's Ju-ju to stop coughing long enough to get & stay asleep. All of the kleenex in the house has been used up and for now I don't feel the need to go out shopping to replace it.

Despite feeling incredibly lazy for doing so, I took advantage of every possible hour of sleep I could grasp. Judging by how I've felt the last few days it looks to have cured me. For the most part.

While I may have been sick that didn't keep my mind from longing for a run, pool-time, bike training, something. In addition to watching "Spirit of the Marathon" I at times this week found myself following the you-tube rabbit trail of Ironman clips. This is a dangerous trail for me. It makes my heart beat faster and has me tip-toeing the fine line of moderation.

In my more idleness physically, mentally it was a toss-up of trying to fit the training puzzle pieces together of how to make the best use of the winter months & still giving my body a recovery season. There is commitment and then there's having a sport become like a job. I know reaching the fitness level for the full marathon & Ironman will take a lot of commitment, time & sacrifice, but I'm hoping to train smart enough to avoid it becoming a drudgerous (That might be a word.) job.

This afternoon I put on what I felt would be the necessary amount of layers for a run in 5degree weather. It's still a test of trial and error, but today my gear was close to perfect.

I would like to introduce a new ( but needed) member to my already copious amount of jackets. No, it is not my desire to have my winter apparel be a cornucopia of Burton prints, but for a fleece-lined, wind-breaking jacket at only $20 I'm pretty "stoked". I was worried the houndstooth print would bug my astigmatism when running. Fortunately it didn't and as far as the technical aspect, it performed even better then I hoped. :)


My running performance however was in one word: Challenging. Breathing through a face warmer is kinda tricky and when my breathing rhythm is out of sync it really messes with my pacing. I wasn't so much concerned about time, I didn't wear a watch this run, but the time it took for the run to become comfortable could've been better. Once I reached that point it was a joy run though. Great views of the setting sun reflecting across the crystal frozen ponds in our neighborhood & the perfect instrumental techno flowing out of my ipod. Until the battery got to cold and it shut off. That was only a few yards from the end of my run though so I can't complain.

I will have to fill my water bottle ahead of time with warmer water so that the nozzle doesn't freeze up and probably put the ipod (if I use it, zen running is good too) in the pocket of my jacket for anything over 3 miles.

Hopefully I'll be back to 3 runs a week routine starting Monday. We shall see.

The Ju-Ju...

This week can be summed up in the above image. View Large. (Yes, I play in photoshop when I'm sick & have free-time.)

Beautiful snowfall today has me excited to be able to run again, I might try tomorrow. Depends on how I'm feeling.

General Cho...

Roughly a week and a half since the plague monkey first took hold of my body I have finally beat the battle against it. I think. Well, I hope. If I don't see another kleenex for a while, I am entirely okay with that. I've also decided that if satan had a flavor he would taste like cherry Nyquil. *bleck*

Anywho...

My new Mizunos arrived this week and all I can say is that I still love the colour of burnt orange & that I hadn't realized just how much my old pair of running shoes had been broken in. I guess several hundred miles will do that to a shoe. :)

Of course I spent every chance I had wearing the new arrivals in order to start the breaking-in process. So far so good. However breaking a running shoe in by means of walking isn't exactly what I had in mind. But when work has you tied down & a plague monkey topping it all off, you make due with what you can.

Today the Turkey Trot came and went without my participating in it. I did listen to common sense this time around. Despite an exciting PR at the Full Moon 5k I can't help but think that in the long run (no pun intended) it may have made my cold a little worse. I decided if I were going to run this weekend I would be smart & run at a comfortable pace with walk breaks if needed rather then hauling like my red hair is on fire throwing caution into the wind.

The increase in work has meant an increase in the budget for things like running gear. Thankfully I have a husband that is wholly understanding of the need for proper gear which meant a trip to DB's to get the insulated tights I mentioned needing earlier.

Growing up I thought the reasonable price for a pair of pants was anything under $40 and the once every two yr. or so $80 for replacement snowboarding pants (I had a tendency of catching them on barbed wire fences when snowboarding around the farm). Tonight I bought the most expensive pair of pants I own/ have ever owned and it didn't make me feel guilty. Somehow purchasing the necessary equipment to pursue this passion that brings me so much joy, keeps me healthy & strengthens my walk with the Lord isn't a meaningless indulgence. It's just what you have to do. Especially this far north when running outdoors gets chilly.

Now upon arriving home after our trip to DB's & dinner out with some friends I realized I had a problem(s).

1.) Way to much energy this late in the evening. (Thanks to two glasses of coke. Yes, I should've known better.)

2.) A shiny pair of new Mizunos & Brooks tights that hadn't been christened properly.

Hmmmm, what to do. The thought of going for a run seemed like the only logical thing to do and once such thoughts/anticipations of the run that awaits me come into mind there isn't much turning back. Unfortunately a good portion of my tech-gear was in the wash. Like my habbitual orange hat, wool socks, green fleece, black running top with built in mittens & the base layer I got on sale for $0.95 which I'm still not sure is meant for what I use it for, but hey it works.

While it was unfortunate not to run in my usual gear this didn't keep me from my aspirations of at least a 5k tonight. Monday seemed like a long time to wait. So I scrounged around in my closet and came out resembling a less then sleek ninja. Overall the gear wasn't bad considering. The new tights are very nice.

The first mile or two of my run felt like I was flying. All this week I've wanted to be out there & tonight I finally was. There is also something about seeing my running shadow that makes me feel faster. It also lets me know how wide my gate is and how the rest of my form looks, but that's beside the point.

Eventually I reached the 2.5 mark on my route which is where I need to make the decision of whether or not to continue onto the 5mile loop or call it quits at 3. The weather was beautiful, everything was still & only a gentle mist was falling so I chose to continue on. I'm still glad I did, but I had the same issue I've had on several evening runs of only partially digesting my most recent meal & feeling it. General Cho's chicken is phenominal, however not something I would like to taste twice so I did walk a section here and there to allow things to settle before picking up the pace again.

I maintained a 10:50 pace which I am content with. Every run does not need to be a PR. I was out there tonight to enjoy myself & test out the new gear. Both of which I did. It was a good 5miles. :)

Looking forward...for some odd reason the thought popped into my mind of trying to run 1,000 miles in 2009. That would mean running roughly 20miles a week which I'm not sure is doable in addition to tri training. That and I typically need a little over 5days after a race to recover well. It's something to think about anyway. Reaching the first 100 miles logged was a pretty big deal to me and I would like to set a goal for this upcoming year. Not so much as a resolution, but as another building block.

:)

The results just came up on... http://www.dbrunningcompany.com/ for last Thursday's race and after a day of feeling partially miserable due to the lingering viral crud this made my day.

I've finally come under the 30 minute mark for a 5k!!!!!!!! My time for this race (with the plague monkey even) was...

Full Moon 5k- 28:54.63 ( that's roughly a 9:21 pace)

I gave the race all I had considering I was sick and now I can't help but be curious just how fast I will be able to run my next 5k healthy. Guess I'll know after the Turkey Trot. :)

That's all for tonight. Now I'm really looking forward to getting over this cold and starting training up again.

I'm off to kill the plague monkey with some Zzzs.

Full Moon 5k - Running with the Plague Monkey

After noticing a few white speckles on the back of my throat I decided to head to the Dr. Wednesday night. Two hours of waiting amounted to a negative test result for strep and the conclusion that there is nothing they can prescribe to cure the plague monkey illness.

I was then left to my own devices and tactics to battle said plague monkey which I must admit was a bit discouraging. There is something comforting about an antibiotic when you are ill. Perhaps it's the knowing that in a week or so everything should be fine instead of the viral crud that can linger on & on with no obvious end.

Being sick irritates me. Not that anyone enjoys being sick, but it actually makes me kind of mad. In my mind my body should work properly all the time and when it doesn't, argh. Thankfully I have a husband who can help urge me to do what is healthy. Like take a nap & stay hydrated rather then staying up looking grumpy.

Once my angst of being under the weather and fretting about the up coming race had subsided a tad I headed to bed at 9p.m. (stupid early for me.)

Some solid rest did my body a lot of good. I woke up feeling better, no great, but better. Good enough to race I thought & so I did.

Pulling in at Dick Beardsley's Thursday night was a little surprising. I assumed since the race was held during the week and in the evening that the turn-out would be limited. A full parking lot and glow-stick adorned runners pacing about everywhere proved me wrong. Seeing the anticipation of them all made me excited even though I may have looked less then enthusiastic outwardly.

Since my Beloved was busy I went to this race alone. It's a rare day that I participate in a race Jeremy doesn't so it was a tish lonely those 30min after packet pick-up before the race started. I visited with a few of the "Regulars" (people who we see at most of the races we attend.) and that helped make the time pass relatively quickly.

The start of the race was on familiar territory. I had the pleasure of running with the ladies group @ DB last summer & they use a section of this route. Despite feeling worn from being sick running actually felt good and I felt like going fast.

Common sense told me to play it safe and not make myself more ill by overdoing it, but since when do I heed to that? ;) Actually I behaved, for the first mile. After that I slipped into my tri-breathing rhythm and the haze the plague monkey has cast on me had me in an almost mindless running state. Imagine the slow motion first person eye-view of someone running that they depict in movies and that's about how I felt. The pace seemed a slight push above what I usually aim for, but I was okay with that.

White parchment bags with lit tea lights marked the finish line and as I rounded the final corner I could see them not so far off in the distance. A pair of runners around me said "lets hit it" and they did, but I held back knowing what distance I can cover in a sprint. Once I reached that point I gave it all I had left passing about six runners, including the pair that "hit it". :) Yay.

Unfortunately I neglected to check the clock to see what my time was when I finished. It's possible I may have come in under the 30min. mark, but I don't know for sure. Only after a few stretches and catching my breath did I think to peer around the corner and check. At that point the clock read 33minutes.

As I mentioned before race swag has high appeal to me. Especially when there is a raffle & great gear to be had. Much to my disappointment somewhere along the line I either wasn't informed or was unable to hear that attached to the bottom section of the race # bib was a tab you were to tear off and place into the raffle box.

It hadn't occurred to me to check what each of those tabs were for until I realize that the numbers they were pulling out of the box once the prize winners were being announced looked a lot like those on the bottom of my bib. Sigh. I blame the plague monkey.

So if you saw the only person in the packed DB Running store leaving during the raffle, that was me.

As it turned out the best prize was waiting for me at home. There is nothing better after an evening run in the cold with the plague monkey then to crawl into an already warm bed, snuggle up with your sleeping Beloved and to catch some much needed rest yourself.

There are a few lessons learned about running with the plague monkey. Such as...

1.) When putting kleenex in the pocket of your running fleece remember to place (not fold) them in. Otherwise you end up pulling out a handful of them all jumbled together instead of one.

2.) Hearing anything on the loud speaker when surrounded by chattering runners and congested sinuses is impossible. Look for the person with the microphone & try to read lips.

3.) It's really difficult to cheer other participants on when you sound like Gonzo & clapping is mute with your gloves on.

Overall not bad sacrifices to be made in order to participate. It's certainly a different mindset to approach a race with, but I would consider racing when under the weather again if the need arose.