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Showing posts from November, 2011

wordless wednesday

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The poet took the time to hook all you guys up on Saturday morning at the race. Especially since race photographers apparently don't care about my best side. But don't worry, the poet had it covered.  Just like me, he's got your best interests in mind.

Turkey Burnoff 5 Miler: race report

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I had originally planned to do the Alexandria Turkey Trot since it starts in my front yard and covers my usual run routes.  After making the switch to the Philly Half, I wasn't sure if I'd be recovered by Thursday, so I didn't register.  I woke up Thursday morning and desperately wanted to run, but a short jog down the block revealed that I was still pretty sore.  So instead, we spectated, but the turkey trot itch was there. I remembered Thursday evening that Amy had mentioned a 5 miler on Saturday up in Maryland.  Registration is ONLY available on-site, so I figured that if I was feeling good by that morning, we'd go up and I'd race.  I've never run a 5 miler before, and I've only run the 8K once (with a giant hangover), so I knew that no matter how the race turned out, it would be a PR.  I decided fairly ambiguously that I could probably come in somewhere around the 42-43 minute area without a lot of effort.   I spent Friday night discussing race ...

the fire is out

I had my turkey trot race recap all ready to go this morning, but I'm going to save it for tomorrow and instead talk about what's going on today.   I think I'm just a tiny bit burned out.  Or suffering from some pretty serious post-race blues. My plan after Waterman's was to basically shut down the bike and concentrate on the run for the 5 weeks leading up to Richmond.  After Richmond, I was planning on taking two weeks almost completely off to get rested and ready to jump in with my new coach on December 1.  But then things went a bit screwy.  I got sick, and I took 3 days off, but I spent those 3 days a) sick and b) stressing out about what to do about the race.  Once I decided to bag Richmond and run Philly, I jumped back in - probably just a hair too soon - to squeeze in a few runs before race day.  I'm completely happy with the decisions I made going into the race, but I definitely didn't consider the ramifications of pushing back the race on m...

things to be really, really thankful for...

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Happy Thanksgiving, friends.

things that are weird and or disgusting

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Just some more post-race notes... I did what I thought was a great job of hydrating in the days before the race and all the way up to the race start, with mostly water and the occasional powerade zero.  I took a Gu just before mile 4 with some water, and I felt the boost a few minutes later.  I took another one around mile 7 because I wanted some oomph heading up the hill, but I never felt it.  About 2 miles later, I reached for something and realized I couldn't close my hands all the way.  I looked down and my fingers were swollen to almost twice their normal size.  I freaked out a little, but didn't want to tell Beth because I didn't want to stop (race logic at its finest).  I tried to take another Gu around mile 10, but only got a little bit in my mouth before I dropped it because I just couldn't hold onto it. Looking back through all the video that Jon took, I can see that in the later miles of the race, I'm puffy and swollen everywhere - no...

Philadelphia Marathon: race report (guest post)

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To most people they were just flags in the road. Some thin wicking designed with the Philadelphia logo, a rounded curve of a thing meant to mark distance. To me, they were a sign that I was still moving, that I had not yet quit. For some reason, during the longest parts of the course, these mile markers were the sentinels I will remember. But, what I’ll remember most is the generosity on display. You wouldn’t think that. If you start cynical and work back you see the shoe companies making money and the expo making money and the race management companies making money on this activity which is essentially people running around in large circles in competition. But I have yet to meet a selfish runner. And what made the day for me was this feeling that everyone, family, stranger or friend, organizer, cop or medic, was pulling for me. Lesson #1: Generosity is at the core of the marathon. At sunrise we parked (potentially illegally) in a lot with a bunch of other runners and everyone was ...

Philadelphia Half Marathon: race report

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I did my final shake-out run on Friday afternoon.  I thought about pacing and the race plan and who was going to wear which watch and it was over far too soon.  I spent Friday night convincing myself that I had multiple stress fractures in my leg.  I did the tried-and-true test (hopping up and down), which irritated my IT band.  My foam roller is flat so I grabbed the next best thing to roll that sucker out.   Grumpy, tapered, carb-loaded and under-exercised, the poet and I got to the expo mid-morning on Saturday.  It was a bit of a disappointment - I was hoping to empty my wallet at Brooks and Saucony and Nike and possibly Newton Running, and they either weren't there or had a tiny closet of a booth with no shoes in my size.  So we took some pictures and ran. I had a great time hanging out with our friends on Saturday, talking about running and triathlon and all the things that go along with being part of these ridiculous sports.  But pret...

random friday facts

1. I actually don't really like cheesesteaks. 2. I know that I should get really excited about historical places and monuments and whatnot, but instead I'm just really really bored. 3. That said, I'd really like to go to Scotland.  Darn you, Diana Gabaldon! 4.  We buy a giant bunch of bananas probably every other day. 5. I don't think I could own too many Nike half-zips. 6. I really wish I was 6 feet tall so I looked better in jeans.  My little stumpy legs don't get it done. 7. It's 36º out.  I'm wearing shorts and have the space heater blowing right on my legs. 8. Almond milk scares me.  How do you milk an almond? 9.  2 weeks ago I tried chocolate raspberry Roctane Gu.  Roctane basically has speed in it and is amazing, but it tastes JUST LIKE the chocolate raspberry vodka I love, and when I burp, I feel like I've been out drinking.   10. I don't own a grown-up winter coat. 11. I can deal with the sight of my own bloo...

three things thursday

1. I am FINALLY starting to feel better.  Yesterday the urge to stomp around saying, "NOW WHAT?!?!!" arrived (i.e. complete rest day), and this morning I got in the pool to swim for half an hour and didn't want to stop.  Now I have some serious ants in my very unserious pants.  I'm feeling healthy and the LAST thing I want to do is sit around for another 3 days until Sunday morning rolls around.  But I will, and woe on those that have to be around me until I finally cross that starting line.   2. In continuing my never-ending quest to have an excuse to buy new running shoes, I think I'm going to work a few more pairs into the rotation.  I really do love my Ravennas, but because they kick up my cranky shins after a few weeks, I can't be in a committed exclusive relationship with them.  I put a pair of Asics 2160s in the mix a few weeks ago, and they feel pretty great for short workouts, but I wore them for my more recent 10 miler and they tore the sh...

mostly wordless wednesday

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Yesterday I checked off a goal from September October November!   It started with this. Plus a bunch of this. And ended up (with a LOT of help) like this. But I can't not mention the rest of my day. This is why you don't give tapering triathletes free frozen yogurt coupons. And somehow I woke up this morning and saw the mythical racing weight on the scale for the first time in a few weeks....it's a Wednesday miracle!  

two puppy tuesday

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Otherwise known as, I have nothing else to talk about except how I'm feeling (better but still tight in the chest) and the race on Sunday (as if enough blog posts haven't been dedicated to that already).  So here are some pictures of my pups! At the dog park: Wondering why we suddenly started feeding them dinner an hour later last week (the food is in that cabinet). This is where Molly sits while I cook, little fat muffin. When we finish a peanut butter jar: It was a clean sock. Helping me feel better.  Yes, I did wear those sweatpants for 3 solid days. Good night... Happy Tuesday!  

trying to breathe...

...and believe. I was a lot more pumped than sad when all of the awesome race results started pouring in Saturday morning.  All of my teammates had seriously strong races, and the collection of PRs that showed up in the newsletter this morning only made me slightly wistful that I had been there and nabbed one of my own.  Instead, I stayed put in bed for most of the day, venturing out to the gym to do some core and booty-busting work to wake up my glutes that had been allowed to sleep for a solid week while I coughed and wheezed.   Sunday morning I set out on one of my favorite runs - the 4-mile Sunday morning recovery loop that I did all spring with Beth .  My legs felt springy and bouncy and happy to be running again, and we chatted our way down into the mid-9s without a lot of effort.  Around mile 3.5, my lungs started complaining about the slightly cold air and tightened up a bit, but we finished out the run pretty smoothly and I was able to hold my ...

random friday facts

1. I held my nose while swimming until I was.....27? 2. I think compression socks make my knees look fat. 3. The registration page for my spring 70.3 has been open in a tab for at least a month now.  I'm not sure why I can't pull that trigger. 4. I don't understand why a gas stove is better than electric. 5. We don't own an iron. 6. Gravy is disgusting. 7.  It takes me 17 strokes to swim 25 yards. 8. I love doing karaoke ("Papa Was a Rolling Stone" is always a fave) in trashy bars. 9. I constantly "clean up" the refrigerator by putting things on shelves in an order that I don't really understand. 10. I'm still not completely sure that I'm doing the meters to yards conversion correctly, but it doesn't matter because that OWS always feels long and REALLY boring. 11. I read a lot of personal finance blogs.  I wish I could write one but my financial life just isn't that interesting, and I don't think ...