Mother's Day Fun

We started Mothers day bright and early. The rain had cleared thankfully and we were ready to race. We headed out to Reston and after parking and walking quite a distance arrived just in time to slip into the Mothers Run This Town picture.

She doesn't look too sure here, but raced like a champ!

Courtesy of Suzanna O'shea

I then headed off to the bathrooms and got in place to race about 3 minutes before the start. Talk about perfect timing! I gave my husband and daughter a quick race and we were off. I don't typically spend too much time looking at race routes ahead of time. It doesn't seem to help me to know what is coming ahead, I just try to take the course as it unrolls ahead of me. I knew we were in for some hills, but hoped that for every uphill we would get a downhill. 

We hit hill number 1 right out of the gate. I felt like I was running really slowly, but talked myself into early racing stiffness and knew it would work itself out. 

Meanwhile the super cute racers were lining up. 

I was feeling good as we made our way around the loop that formed the course. I was keeping a pretty steady pace and was loving having so much room to run. The race had spaced us out nicely and I had fallen in with a few parent/child pairs and some other running. They didn't mark the mileage until Mile 2, which was ok with me. I knew were were past a mile and was feeling looser. Not fast, but I felt like I was keeping a nice easy pace. There was a water stop just past mile 2 and I decided to run through it. I started to think I had a chance to run the whole race. 

Meanwhile.....more cuteness. 

She decided to wear a tutu, because she like it when runners wear them. The 1 mile race wasn't timed, but my husband thinks she ran it in about 10 minutes. Way faster then Mom!

We were still doing some nice steady up and down hills. They were rolling hills. (haha) I just kept going, Slowing down when I needed to, but not stopping to a walk. We came over the last hill and I could see the turn back into the park. Yea! I was going to do it. 

I thought I might have PR'd, but the fact is I run slower then I walk. *sigh* 4 miles in 49:33. Not too shabby.  

In line for balloon animals with our support team

Happy Runners

All in all, it was a great local race. Potomac River Running does a nice race and the shirts were super cute. I was so happy to have my daughter out there running and experiencing a little bit of what mommy does. She isn't too sure about doing it again, but I will keep working on her. I know my son loves to run with me and he is a great coach. Maybe he can get me to run faster! 

Girls Night

Friday night my husband and son took off for a Boy Scout camping trip. As soon as they left at 6:30, my girl and I headed for the stores. our mission? To replace her sandals. Her current pair, while super cute and in good shape were just too small. We hit up famous footwear, Kohls and even Walmat (which I haven't been in for at least 5 years). We came up with nothing. Ugh the junk that is out there.

The best part of the night?

Hanging out and enjoying some frozen yogurt!

The rain clouds rolled in and the weather was pretty dicey. Turns out, that was the same at camp, but all ended up well, the girls were just considerably dryer.

Saturday was the most inefficient day I have had in a long time. We were up and out of the house in good time and headed to the mall. We hit up Macy's, Lord and Taylor, Children's Place and Stride Rite. Ugh, I hate shopping, have I mentioned that? My daughter hates to leave a store without something. Not a great combination. We finally hit upon success at Children's Place. Sandals we could agree on for $12?! I was so happy, I bought two!

Then despite the rain, we headed home and got ready for soccer. H loves to play, so she had a great time. It was hot and steamy, but didn't rain on us, thankfully. Back in the car to head out to Reston to pick up our bibs for the Mother's Day races. I was so excited for her. I am not sure she knew exactly what I had gotten her into, but she was game.

Whew, we still hit up the library for books and then finally headed home to relax before hubby came home for dinner. It was a good, but busy day.

After a good dinner, we laid out our race outfits. So cute!

I am so excited to tell you about our Sunday. Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day!

Race Day - Nike Women's Marathon

Race day started EARLY. What is it about these folks and early races? It wasn't as early as Disney, but I was at the metro at 5 AM. I had arranged to meet several ladies from the Moms Run This Town facebook page so I wouldn't have to go into the city alone.

 I don't look ready to go...really. 

I was feeling good and it was so nice to have company. We took a tour of the area and took in the sights.

There is nothing better then a race in DC. The monuments are so beautiful and the routes downtown are great. We had a meeting place set up for our group picture. This group loves pictures. :)

Aren't they beautiful, tough women? Ready to race

Everyone was in the corrals ahead of me, and we thought I could sneak in. I ended up deciding that I wanted to start in my assigned corral. It worked out for the best as their corral was apparently very crowded. I didn't have any trouble finding a place in my corral - maybe it pays to be slow sometimes.

There were lots of Team in Training runners there, all in their purple. There was a pacer with a sign right next to me for a 12:59 pace. I decided to try and keep up with her as well as I could. I was feeling good and ready to race. Fair warning, I didn't take any pictures because I wanted to focus on my race.

We had a moment of silence for Boston and then we were off.

Race Weekend - Expo

While the Nike Women's Marathon expo"tique" opened on Thursday, but I couldn't break away from work and kids sports until late Saturday afternoon. This was a mistake. Nothing could be done, but I feel like I missed out a little bit and I really should have gone with a friend/MRTT buddy.

I headed to Georgetown at 3pm on Saturday. It was a beautiful day and the world was out and about. I decided to drive down, but didn't make the decision to drive into Georgetown until when I got to Rosslyn. I should have parked there and then walked across the bridge. I pressed on however, and spent 30 minutes on M street regretting it. That was the worst of it. Or so I thought, until Io saw this.

Super crazy line. To be fair, the line moved along nicely, but was a bit shocking when you first tried to find the end. It was Disneyland long. Signs and all.

Once we entered the tent, there where tons of folks ready to assign bibs and give us our bags.

You then were supposed to head to the expo, which seemed to be a tent of 3-4 vendors. Nike, Bare Essentials, Luna and maybe 1 other. It was so crowded, it was hard to say. They had these 3 pin pads where you were supposed to enter the code you received at bib distribution and see if you won anything.

It was a fun idea. They had some nice walls and lots of places to take pictures. But none of the regular vendors that we in DC have become accustomed to. I can see where they wouldn't want direct competitors there, but there was no running supplies there at all. (that I saw)

I didn't make it to the Nike store where the runners name wall was located and apparently some race merchandise. I did manage to stop off at Hershey's to sneak a little pre-dinner ice cream before heading home. :) All in all, it was well run, if sparse and they were VERY lucky it wasn't raining. Folks were already not happy, and that would have charged up the negativity skyhigh.

I can't wait to tell you about the race! (Hint - the weather continued to grace us with pitch perfect temps!)

Taper Time

I am running the Nike Women's Half in DC next weekend. It is the first running of this race. Nike runs a marathon in San Francisco each year. So far I have mixed feelings about this race. The registration was a mess. It was a lottery, so MANY months ago we entered into the lottery and gave our ccard. This is pretty standard stuff, so no big deal. When the day of announcements came the  facebook page started to light up. Some folks posting that they got emails, others were checking their credit card statements for charges. And so it went for HOURS. I am somewhat of a scatterbrain, so I had no idea what ccard I had used weeks before. I never did get an email, but eventually there was a listing posted to the website with all the names of the registered runners. I was on it, so had to assume I was good. Frankly, I had registered for this race on a whim, with no one else. I was happier with the Cherry Blossom experience and I didn't even get in that race!

Anyways I am running. I would say my training has been sporadic at best. I ran a few long runs as the weather warmed up. So more outside running, which I think prepares me better for races.  But as you know, I have had a few weird knee issues and bouts with non-motivated weeks.

I ran twice today. The first 3 miles were for the local VisionWalk. I took my kids to the walk with me. I was meeting a few other DGs and a few of us were planning to run the route. My running partners in crime weren't able to make it, but I knew my kids would fill in - if I could keep up with them.

Stretching is very important!

Ready for some fun

We were at a local outdoor shopping mall. One of the many town centers that have cropped up over the years in the area. The last race my son and I ran together was at this same place, so I was pretty sure we would be following the 5k route. We were off. Another DG mom offered to come with us and helped me keep close to the kids. We were off and ran the first mile in 11 minutes! I knew we wouldn't be able to keep up that pace, and indeed I was right. We slowed to closer to 15 minute miles for the last two. I was very proud of my daughter for sticking with it and finishing the run/walk. She was so cute crossing the finish line with everyone cheering. I very well could be in trouble with this one! My son loves it when I talk about how he is such a good coach. He was prompting us to "run to the corner" or to that light. So great! The last quarter mile or so I let him go ahead. 

We ended with some bounce house fun and yummy sandwiches. 

Once home I took care of lunch and then headed out to my local trail for 4 more miles. I felt like I was back in business, running 11:30-13:15 miles. Great place for me to be a week out from my race! 

Last week I exercised all 5 days during the week. I am not sure I will do the same this week, as I should be tapering, but I do want to get to Boot camp at least twice. 

Have a great week!

Praying for Boston and everywhere else

As I sit here watching the coverage of the race (finally, I won't watch it when the kids are around) I am just as horrified, if not more so, since the news was broken at work today. I think about the runners who worked so hard to be there. So hard that their families would never think of missing them cross the finish line. That one person's goals put whole families, new couples, children at risk. I won't try to recap the news here. The facts as we know them are changing rapidly. I think about those that were impacted and those that might be reconsidering a goal race such as London next week or MCM in the future. I wonder about the runners who deferred from last year due to the heat and if they feel like this race is cursed for them.

Boston is a goal race, a big goal race. It has its own language. To BQ is to Boston Qualify. It is one of the few races in the nation where you have to meet a time target in order to run. Races advertise themselves a flat and fast for BQ. All of that was shattered today.

I heard about 17,000 people had already crossed the finish line. How do they feel about their accomplishment? Is it all overshadowed by the victory. Will the winners always be connected to this tragedy? Will they be more determined to come back and conquer this course and show that runners will not be defeated by such senseless violence. As you can see, I haven't been able to formulate any real thoughts around this. Just more questions.

The racing community is spreading the word to wear race shirts tomorrow in support of the runners, the marathon and Boston.

So this is how I am ending the day.

I began it at boot camp. Today was our first day outside. There was a light rain. It didn't bother me except for when were laying on our mats doing crunches. I am not sure how the weather will impact our schedule, but hopefully the rain will start after 7 am on most days. I feel like it is a major victory that I made it this morning. Tomorrow I am going to try again!

48.6 Miles?!

Run Disney opened up the registration for the 2014 Marathon Weekend at Disney World.

273 days ahead of the race! While I very much enjoyed the Princess Half in February, I am not sure even I can plan that far ahead!

This year they are offering a new challenge. In years past marathoners could do the marathon and half in one weekend. For 2014 here is the lineup for the aptly named Dopey.

"Run 48.6 miles of fun in the Dopey Challenge!

Are you ready for the ultimate endurance challenge? Then take part in four days of fun for a total of 48.6 miles in the all-new Dopey Challenge! Participants will run the 5K, 10K, Half Marathon and Marathon, and if you complete all four races within the pacing requirements you will be awarded the Goofy Race and a Half Challenge medal and the brand new Dopey Challenge finisher medal for a total of six pieces of "bling."" Rundisney.com

And what does all this bling cost you? A cool $495.  

And what is even more crazy? By the end of the day it is 76% full! 

Now please take what I say with a grain of salt, because I know there are many folks that run 50 miles or even more in a day. One has to consider the perspective of these comments. It would take me almost over 12 hours to run these races. 

Clearly there are many folks who are excited about this prospect, just as there have been for for the Goofy (composed of the marathon and half marathon) before it. 

As with everything else, Disney has marketing gold. 

Are you running with Disney? Thinking about a destination race? 

17.75 Race Recap

I will tell you I wasn't feeling very confident about this race. As you can imagine prepping for a race by going to a chiropractor is definitely a first for me. The forecast for the DC area was NOT springlike.

Indeed, Even last year when I was running a race a month, I didn't have a race this cold. Well, maybe the George Washington 10k, but we waited for the race inside!

The Marine 17.75 is in honor of the year the Marines were founded. We ran (or walked in my case) 17.75 km or 11.03 miles.

I woke up about 6:00 and got ready. I ended up wearing my capris with my yoga pants over them. I am so glad I did. The forecast was for the day to get to 50 degrees, but I could very well be done by the time it warmed up. Most of the run was in the Prince William Forest, which was very beautiful and peaceful.

First thing I did when I got to the race start was to meet up with some ladies from Moms Run This Town for a photo. So nice that it was light out!



After a short wait, we were off.

We started the race by going up a road with a nice continuous incline. The theme of this race seemed to be be what goes down, must come up. It was very hilly! Anyways, we began and I was moving quickly, but having trouble getting into running form. There were many walkers and the crowd spread out quickly. The race had published a quick video about the logistics a week or so ago and the woman's voice saying "grueling course and rolling finish" just kept repeating in my head. Rolling anything in VA is just another word for hilly.

Check out those hills. The last one is even after the finish to get to the race festival!.

Pretty early I got into a groove with a group of folks. I always make friends with the people around me. I don't usually talk to them too much, but I make up back stories about them and why they are running. Let's face it when you are our speed, there has to be a story! Does anyone else do this? Today I was with a father and daughter that looked like maybe they were running for a husband or brother based on his shirt. Another woman in teal was simply amazing, she kept running no matter what. I would run and get ahead and then slow to a walk and she would catch me. (I am not a slow walker, so this was a little surprising) She never made a move to talk to anyone, just was focused on the road ahead. There was also a guy that was stopping to take a ton of picture. At first I thought he was running with someone, but that didn't seem to be the case.

One thing I will say for the Marines, they are truthful! 

The race was not full of signs or even personnel. We were in the park after the first 2.5 miles and then ran down a huge hill of gravel trail. About the 5 mile mark we flattened out and were on a nice paved road. Then about mile 8.5 or 9 or so, the "rolling" hills began. It was tough, no joke. I was walking almost the whole time. I felt like I should run the downhills, but they were pretty steep and even that was difficult.

Then all of a sudden I ran into a treat!

Don't they look like the friendliest water crew you have ever seen? The moms from the Moms Run This Town facebook page gave me such a boost.

One of the hills. (this was a small one!)

At the end of the road, we returned to gravel trail for the last mile to the finish line. We finished on an uphill. How wrong is that?!

They even put up an 11 mile marker, even though the finish line was .03 past it! I pretty much ran through the post race area. Picked up my "Access Granted" card, which gives me the ability to register for the Marine Corps Marathon in October. More on that later.

They had these fun guys, a tent where folks were getting massages, a foam roller station, a beer truck and a HUGE line for the buses back to the commuter lot. I believe I was in line for about an hour to get on a bus back. It was all very courteous, but I was cold and tired. That would be my only complai nt about the race. I ended up having to text my husband to let him know I wasn't going to make it home before he left for baseball practice, so he had to take my daughter.

Can't see the end of the line or the buses! 

In the end I wasn't happy with how little I ran, but I managed to finish in 1:34:54, which is a 13:17 mile average. Not bad at all, and back to where I was before Disney. A little more run in my step and it would have been a perfect day!

A Long Drive - will it be worth it?

I slept in again today. No boot camp. I am taking the advice of the chiro seriously to not do anything but ice and rest. Well not really. I am kind of taking a break. I was so tired at the beginning of the week and it just sort of happened, but I am feeling more refreshed having not done anything at all this week except for walking on Tuesday.

Last night I slept with a little blanket between my knees. It seems silly, but it was so comfy. I iced tonight and will use the biofreeze again. The biggest shock is that I actually wore my sneakers to work today. My knee seems to be feeling better, but I am not going to test it until I need to.

Work was jam packed and in between we celebrated my team mate's upcoming baby. Lunch with the team and Cake! yea!

After a late afternoon conference call, I headed down to Dale City. It is down I-95, which is traffic central about 24 hours a day. I found the running store and bonus - no line!

I wrote to see what the pace requirement is and the answer was 18 minute miles. I can totally do that walking, so worst case, I can get a good workout in! We are still in a cold snap, so hopefully I won't be freezing! 

Marines - Here I come! 

Getting a Little Help

During my shirt run/walk yesterday I became greatly concerned about my knee. I struggled to run, even doing intervals. I have a race on Saturday - What?! I know, snuck up on me too! - and I needed to figure out what to do. So I called on my local running group - Mother Run This Town. We have a facebook page where folks post runs, look for advice, show of their shopping spoils and share their race/run stories. Generally gab around the virtual kitchen table.

So I put the call out and the verdict was generally IT Band. I was leaning more towards overuse/runner's knee or tendinitis. (Is that the same thing?) Let's face facts here, I have never been injured, and had no idea what I was talking about. I took a recommendation of one of the ladies to see a chiropractic practice, figuring it would at least eliminate what might be the cause.

I have never been to a chiropractor before and the office was welcoming and casual. I met with the Dr and answered lots of questions about my health. I started to feel a little funny because every time he asked me about pain I said no! I really feel pain only on the inside of my knee in a very specific place. I can probe my knee with my fingers and find what seems like a bump.

He did some modality tests and then hooked me up to a Electronic Stimulator.

Electrical Stimulation: machine transmitting electrical impulses that exercise small and large muscle groups and to stimulate nerve endings.

It felt a little funny, but soon I didn't even notice it. There were 4 pads, two on each side of my knee. At the same time I had an ice pack strapped onto my knee. 

After that he did some adjustments talked to me about stretches I should do, directions for icing and directed me not to run until Saturday. I had already decided if I wasn't feeling it, then I would scratch rather then putting myself on the injured list. This isn't a goal race for me and I am not running it with anyone. So no real high stakes and if I were to DNS (Did Not Start) a race this year, this would be the one. 

The Marine 17.75 already poses a quandary for me due to the automatic spot in the Marine Corps Marathon. This is a huge race in the area and a big goal race for many. 

My plan now is to go pick up my packet tomorrow and go back to the Dr on Friday for another treatment. The crazy thing is that my treated knee feels much better, but my other one seems to be acting up. I think it is just because I am so focused on these joints right now, at least I hope so. 

The evening was spent watching my girl in her 1st grade play and catching up with a friend from college. All good things, but I am just now getting to the icing. I am such a bad patient. 

Hoping spring has come where you are, because it sure hasn't gotten the message here! 

Decisions, Decisions

I spent the second half of last week discussing my thoughts on the Spring/Summer with my husband.

First major decision was the Green Bay Marathon. I had thought very seriously about doing it and knew my run up to Disney was a good foundation to begin training for the May race. It is a flat course, hometown for my husband and has a very generous race time.



While I know the challenges at Disney were mostly out of my hands, the 16 minute per mile average threw me. Between that and all the transitions my son is currently going through, I knew this wasn't the time for me to take on the hours of training. So, we haven't told my mother in law yet, but I know she will understand.

The next decision I/we had to make was Disneyland. The race was selling out so fast in February, I impulsively signed up for it.  I knew there was a chance that vacation plans and travel wouldn't work out and I would have to forfeit the money. That wasn't a happy thought, but it is the Sunday before school starts for the kids, over the Labor Day weekend and what the family needs does come first.



Long story, short, I seem to have worked it out with everyone. We are going on our family vacation in early August and I will take the kids to my parents in CA the week before the race. I still need to decide if we are going to take a red eye back or come back on Monday. Looks like I will earn my coast to coast medal after all. Laura and Sandie are running too, so we will be back together again. :)

All in all I happy that we are getting closer to have a finished plan for the summer. I am looking forward to the races I am registered for, the Marine Corps 17.75 and the Nike Women's Half. After that I need to come up with a plan to keep up my momentum!

And We Are Off.....

The race started and it was packed. I was able to get moving at a pretty good pace. I knew I needed to take it slow as it was plenty warm and humid. I had my water bottle, skittles and phone on me.

It was dark!

The first thing I saw in the distance was a pirate ship and Jack Sparrow! I knew I wanted to stop and take pictures, but I also wanted to be smart about it. I have been running a 13:30 minute mile in training, but Disney is serious about the 16 minute mile limit. I didn't completely understand this when I headed out.

After the race there was all sorts of comments on the Run Disney page about walkers starting in earlier corrals to give them a buffer from the sweep bus. I was in Corral F, so I did have some buffer. Apparently the sweeper bus picked up many runners at mile 8, but I was unaware and apparently not close to that action - thankfully!

We then passed the princes. I didn't run with Laura, but she stopped at many places I didn't so I am going to  intermix our pictures so you get a good idea. Plus hers are so much clearer then mine!

Each mile marker was a cute little storybook page. At the 5k mile marker I was running a 13:31 minute mile. So right on pace. I had a lot of walkers in my corral, so it was hard to get around and through people. We were out on the road, so we had good space, but there are only so many ways around friends all walking together. I am by no means fast, so I am fully supportive of walkers. It does add on to the mileage though.

We ran past the speedway and I saw this sign. I wasn't considering it at this point, but I thought knowing where the exit was would be a good thing. I missed a picture of Lightening McQueen just outside the Speedway.

The first several miles there were DJs and these photo ops, but I only did drive by pictures. I wasn't ready to stop yet and didn't know what was ahead of me.
We headed toward the magic Kingdom. I made sure to watch my footing as we headed over the speed bumps entering the parking lot. I had heard about them at the expo and falling was not on my docket for the day.

We hit main street and everyone was clearly excited. I was still running nicely and had stopped at every water stop, alternating water and poweraide.

Yikes! Hot, Humid and excited to be here? 

This is more like it! 

We ran up Main Street, through Tomorrowland, around Fantesyland and then through the castle.

I had to stop for Tiana, even though this was the same one I had pictures with on Friday night.

Wish I had stopped for Mickey and Minnie

At the 10k mark my time was 1:30:02, 14:29 minute miles. Not sure what caused the slowdown as I was feeling good still. The course did narrow quite a bit, so that could explain some of it. 

They had a vote for the song of the race before and at the halfway mark it was playing. So fun and got me moving.

Things were still going well at mile 8. I was tired and hot, but still moving forward. I was walking some, but not too worried about my time or stamina. At mile 9 they had a gu station, but I haven't had one yet and I didn't think that I wanted to experiment. Maybe I should have grabbed one for later to try it. My time at the 15k was 2:18:21 a 14:51 minute mile pace. Still within a decent range, but a little slow for me.
And then I hit Mile 10, or thereabouts. I can't be sure as the memories are fuzzy. I decided that I needed to stop and go to the bathroom. Kicking myself for not doing so in the park, but we were through it on our way back to Epcot by this point. So I stopped as the line wasn't very long. Soon after stopping I started to feel a little woozy. I stopped and sat down on a guardrail. A nice runner stopped and asked if I needed something to eat. I declined as I had a good breakfast and had been drinking and eating my skittles. I know it sounds low tech, but I wasn't going to change things up in the middle of a race. I decided to keep going. Soon I decided I needed to look for some help. I wasn't sure what was ahead, so I stopped at a security SUV.

I stopped and took a breather hanging over the hood of the SUV. I eventually sat down and caught a cool breeze from the side of the route. I am not sure how long I sat there, maybe 10 minutes, but eventually I decided I should try to keep going. I didn't really think about much there, just trying to listen to my body. After my stop, I slowly started gaining my energy back again.

I don't look like I almost passed out, do I? 

We had to go through a clover leaf pattern so we could see the folks on the overpass above us. Then it was a nice hill to get up there ourselves. Some folks were talking about sweepers, but I wasn't worried. There were so many people behind us that I didn't think it was possible to get into trouble.

I hit mile 12 and knew I could finish the race. I just pushing forward at that point and not paying too much attention to others. It was still crowded and in many places there were runners darting through the crowd. I can't figure out how they got behind me if they were so fast, but I can only assume they have great character pictures!
Coming into Epcot I saw a woman walking that clearly was going to pass out. She kept talking about how she had missed her time goal and how she had to finish. We were still at least 3/4 of a mile away from the finish line. I ended up moving on to alert the medics.

Finally we saw Epcot. The race takes you in the park a little ways and then you turn around and head right out into the parking lot. As we exited through the employee gate there was a gospel choir. So cool!

Finally the finish line was in sight! I didn't get my camera out until too late, but this is what it looked like to me.

Mickey and Minnie were there, and so were the medals!

The Volunteers were awesome! 

I finished in 3:31:51. Not anywhere close to my half in October, but I wasn't going for time, so it was all ok with me. A tough, but super fun race.