As I prepare for grocery shopping this weekend...

Yesterday's eating did not go well for me. As I up my miles, my appetite increases too. Only I don't make healthy choices. I've gained weight post marathon training in the past and I'd really like to avoid that this time. So I'm thinking if I make healthy food choice while I'm training...leans meats, lots of vitamin-rich fruits and vegetables...maybe I'll have more success at maintaining a healthy weight. I need to stop the excuse of "well, I run so I can eat that cookie (or 10)". Of course, this idea sounds good on paper, but the will power is a whole different story. Because I like to eat. And I especially like to eat desserts. And chips. And fried foods. And desserts. In past adventures of losing weight, I have kept a food journal. It may be time to resurrect that habit.

 

In preparation of this weekend's grocery shopping, I've also been exploring some advice on nutrition for endurance running. I found a some good resources on Runner's World.

 

A colorful diet! Fun!
Healthy Runner's Diet

There's a bunch of math in figuring out the nutrition in this one. Not sure how I feel about that...said the scientist... ;)
Real Runner Nutrition

I need to remember that food is fuel. If I want to run well, I need to fuel my body well.

I can do this.

I hope...

I choose Awesome

It's not always sunshine and niceness. Sometimes there are situations I can't really avoid, opinions I can't change, negative comments that ring in my ears. And it stinks, even hurts a little. So how do I move past it?...I choose Awesome.

Choosing Awesome is not always an easy task. Like deciding to run or workout every day, it can be a deliberate, conscious choice. Some days it's easy to lace up the running shoes to pound the pavement, some days it necessitates an encouraging word from a friend. And other days it takes the kick-in-the-pants order of "Go for your run. Now."

When external forces hinder my spirit, I'm thankful to have little reminders of the awesomeness in my life.

Awesome is a present wrapped with the "brightest pink bow" because even the little details are worth paying attention to.

Awesome is a gift of a bracelet handmade by women in third-world countries because supporting women is important. The beads are made by rolling strips of magazines. No two bracelets are alike, reminding me that I am equally as unique.

Awesome is my must-wear running accessory. My "medal" given to me after my first marathon. It has an inscription on the other side that I think of often during a tough run or a tough day.

Awesome is running with a tail wind, making me feel fast.

Awesome is running with a head wind, making me feel strong.

Awesome is even less than awesome days and the reminder to be kind to (and about) the people I encounter. Because life's too short not to be kind and caring.

Awesome is different for different people. What you find awesome may be different than what's awesome for me. But everyone has something. Whatever it is, it is something that builds others, and yourself, up. Awesome does not tear down.
Go find what's awesome in your life. As you do, be kind. Be caring. Be generous.
And, of course...
Be Awesome.

Get Lucky Half Marathon

First half marathon in 2013! First half marathon since 2011! And I was not trained for this race. Honestly, I don't even remember why I decided to register for the race in the first place, especially only four weeks prior. Who does that? Apparently I do. ;)

One of the benefits of being relatively untrained for a running event is this...I went in with zero expectations. My only goal was to finish the race and run the whole time. I was confident that I could accomplish this. Anything above at beyond that would just be icing on the cake.

Mmm...cake...

What was I talking about? Oh yes, the Get Lucky Half. It was cold and incredibly windy. The website had pictures from last year's race and people were in shorts, this year was much different. Wanting the dress the Irish part, I had purchased a green running shirt. Short sleeved. No problem, layered it over a long-sleeved orange shirt and I was all set. The race started off by Soldier Field then headed South on the Lakefront path for an out-and-back race. The Lakefront path worries me with a larger number of runners. It can get crowded on a pleasant running day, let alone for an organized race. Fortunately, this was not a pleasant running day so there were not as many additional runners/bikers/dog walkers to commingle with the race participants. Another fortunate occurance was that the race organizers seemed to have had a handle on an appropriate number of runners. There were two distances to run, the half marathon (21K) and a 7K. The organizers appropriately spaced the start of the two races. The half started 30 minutes before the 7K started, assuming most of the half marathon participants would be past the 7K turn-around before the 7Kers caught up with them. I never really felt like I was jockeying for position or trapped behind anyone.

Like I said, I went into this race with zero expectations. I seeded myself in the 11 minute/mile group hoping that would help keep me from going out too fast. I reminded myself to treat this as a training run. No need for speed, just run, have fun, and avoid injuries. The only thing missing was a running buddy. The run itself went surprisingly well. My first mile was around 10 minutes, but I was feeling good, so I stuck with it. While I would check my watch at the mile markers to monitor my pace, I focused on running by feel. My knee was doing well, my foot was doing well, my strides felt smooth and seamless so I chugged along. The first 6.505 miles had a tail wind, even better.

And then...the turnaround...

If you've ever run on the Lakefront path, you will agree with me that it can be beautiful. It can also be an unforgiving "B". The tail wind that we were all enjoying now was a vicious headwind, cold and whipping off the lake. When I ran cross country in high school, my coach would remind us that everyone's running in the same conditions. Whether it's 50s and gorgeous, or 30s with high winds, everyone is battling the same elements. Basically, no excuses. Half way through the race and I was on PR pace. I wasn't about to let a heavy headwind take that away from me. That's right, I started the race with no expectations, but at the turnaround point, a switch flipped in my brain. I was running a consistent pace and I was feeling good. In other words...

Bring.

It.

There is a side effect of switching from no expectations to racing with the intention of beating a previous time. The race changes from a fun run to a mental game. My mental game truly began at mile 8. In my prerace planning, I was going to space out my Shot Bloks between miles 6-11, a Blok a mile. At mile 8 I had 4 left. And at mile 8 I could feel my sugar dropping and the mental game starting. Negative, defeating thoughts start at this point. But I only had 5 miles to go and I was still on pace for a PR. I just needed a rush of carbs. I finished the remaining Bloks. Best choice of the run, it was just the surge of carbs and caffeine my body needed.

Mile 13. A tenth of a mile to go. The PR was mine. The seconds were ticking away. I realized that I had the chance to break 2:10. Another thing my high school coach told us was that if we could sprint it in, we hadn't given enough during the race. Leave it all on the course. I didn't have much left to give because I had left it on the course. But my body wasn't starved for oxygen either. Despite little training and high winds, I had a race that exceeded my expectations. I wanted to break 2:10. I had come this far. I needed to break 2:10. I just need to demand a little bit more from my body. I gave the final push.

The results...

Broke 2:10 by 11 seconds. Beat my previous best by 9 minutes, 28 seconds.

And I couldn't be more pleased :)


To the victor, go the spoils

Runner's high after a 9-minute PR

Guess who has two thumbs and is registered for the Chicago marathon...

This girl!!!

:)

SuperJulia's Running Pamphlet: Tips for Running in the Rain

So you've decided to run on a rainy day. Congratulations! Running in the rain has many benefits including, but not limited to, not sharing the sidewalks with fair-weather pedestrians, training to adapt to adverse running conditions, and general bad-ass-ness. If you follow these few simple tips, you can ensure that your Rainy Day Run is a success!

Tip #1:
Rainy day runs can be muddy, particularly if it is near spring and the snow is melting. Take care when choosing your running socks. Perhaps white isn't the best color to pick as the mud may not wash out. However, if you do stick with wearing the white socks, there is the hidden "bragging rights" for the acquired dingy-ness. "Why are these socks so dingy?...Because I went for and six and a half mile run in the rain and mud. Yeah. I'm cool like that."

Tip #2
Wear a hat and sunglasses or... "rainglasses". While running in the rain ups your awesomeness, you still need to be able to see. Running with a brimmed hat and sunglasses keeps the elements out of your eyes and your level of cool at the maximum. No body wants to be squinting whole time while running. Hazards abound, my friend. Best to don the sunglasses and let the non-runners judge you.

Tip #3
Stutter step to jump over puddles. Of course, you may end up jumping into them anyway. In this case, your lost the war so you should give up by the end and purposely run through the puddles.

Tip #4
Melted snow makes ice cold puddles. You need to remember that before you go too wild splashing through puddles.

Tip #5
Dry your shoes by stuffing them with newspaper. Don't put them in the dryer. Don't have newspaper?...good luck with your stinky shoes.

Tip #6
Having three fire trucks pass you on your run is not a coincidence. Nor is it because there is a sudden onslaught of emergencies. It is because you are one sexy mama (or papa) and anyone that is that smoking hot is gonna need a fire brigade on hand. ;)

So there you have it, folks. Some simple reminders to help make your next rainy run a successful one.


Next up: "Tips for running after eating half a pint of blueberries"

Call the WAHmbulance

I cannot iterate this enough: it is extremely important that you do not increase your weekly miles suddenly. The guideline I learned was no more than 10% of your weekly total. It can put stress on your body and increase your chance of injury. Or, as in my case, lead to stiff, clunky legs and rough, achey runs. But just as often as I give this advice, I ignore this advice.

In a fit of...uh...awesomeness (yeah, that's the story I'm going with), I registered for a half marathon with only four weeks to train. Having accidentally run 11 miles and recovered decently from that, I thought "why not?" and jumped right into a training plan two-thirds of the way through. Since then, my long runs have actually gone surprisingly well, but my short runs have suffered. I'm starting to wonder if I would have been better off just keeping my miles lower and run the half without training at all.

Wednesday's 6 miler became Thursday's 4 miler after what turned out to be a long week with lots to do and little sleep. Still, I need to make running a priority, especially when I am stressed because it helps. Usually. I will say this about running...sometimes it can just plain suck. It had been a bumpy day at work. My Monday run was not even mediocre. I was pumped and ready for a chase-your-cares-away type of run. Little did I know, a WAHmbulance was heading my way.

The first couple of minutes went remarkably well. I even made the mistake of thinking "this is going well!" Barely a nanosecond later my legs were tightening, my stride was getting clunky, and the internal whining began. Oh my, but did my inner voice start to whine! Everything about the run felt bad. I was the dreaded "heavy stepper". I was sluggish. I was tired. Wah, wah, wah! Fortunately I had the forethought to cut my run to 4 miles before I started. If I make those decisions mid-run, I feel like a pansy (even if that's the smart decision to make). After a mile of mental complaining, I forced myself to change my focus. First focal point, what doesn't ache and isn't stiff? My arms, I decided. Instead of thinking about how clunky my legs felt, I concentrated on my arms. Rhythmically pumping my arms, as if they were driving my stiff legs forward. After a few minutes of this, I felt my complaining diminishing. During this time, I also passed a school parent running back the way I came. Encountering other runners always helps, because I focus on looking like I'm not dying. By this time, I was 1.6 miles into my run. It's only 4 miles, you can run 4 miles, I told myself.

My next tactic was to ignore the run completely and replay happy moments in my mind. Wednesday was my son's 7th birthday so this ended up being an easy task. Kids are hilarious. I treasure the fun moments I have with my kids. Being a mom is my biggest challenge, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. My son's excitement about his birthday was too cute. He was more willing to let me cuddle and kiss him than he normally is, which warmed my heart immensely. He also milked his special day for all it was worth.
"Mommy, since it was my birthday, I only sort of had to follow the rules. So at recess, I made a snow angel!" What a rebel!
"Mommy, can I pop this bubble wrap?" After I told him he could, he took the bubble wrap in the living room where I soon heard, POP! POP! POP! POP! POP!! as he had put the bubble wrap on the floor and was stomping on it. He walked back into the kitchen with the popped wrap, "It's my birthday," he declared, satisfied. "That was fun!" Too cute. :)
As I replayed these fresh memories, the remaining miles clicked by unnoticed. I looked at the snow and even considered making my own snow angel. I decided against it because I was sure I would freeze the rest of the way home. I did run through some unmolested snow just to leave the footprints. By now I had forgotten my stiff legs and was laughing.

And wouldn't you know it, by the end of my run, I realized it didn't suck as much as I thought it would. All I needed was a little bit of an attitude adjustment. Some times the run itself is enough. Other times, it's the thought of renegade snow angels. ;)

Cotton Candy Vomit

Running the streets after dark necessitates bright clothing. Yesterday evening, after donning my black tights and long sleeve shirt, I added my bright pink skirt and obnoxiously pink fleece. I also put on my matching pink running socks. Enter my 7th grader...

I ask, "Tell me, does this running outfit look like cotton candy threw up on me?" She regarded my appearance briefly. "Yes. It really does."

And then we dissolved into laughter.

Just before heading out the door I put on my headband, also pink. "To finish off the look, I have to add my pink headband," I told her. "You mean your cotton candy vomit?" she asked without missing a beat.

More laughter.

My girl, who is not a fan of pink, fully accepts her cotton-candy-vomit-loving mom. My heart is full. :)

The Qualifier

Coworker: "Are you a runner?"
Me: "Yes I am."
Coworker: "Do you actively run?"
Me: "Yeah. I'm training for a few races coming up."
Coworker: "That's awesome!"
Me: "I'm not a fast runner..."
Coworker: "I didn't ask you if you were a fast runner, I asked if you were a runner."

Thank you for the reminder to stop qualifying my status beyond simply...

Runner