Last blog/run of 2010

Well hello blog, we meet again!

This year has been full of changes for me :) I started off single, still working on the research for grad school, hating running and pretty much all exercise, and of course, this blog didn't exist! I end with an amazing boyfriend, research done, and loving running, then telling about it. Okay, maybe I don't love running, but I do love the feeling before/after, the conversations it sparks, the setting of goals that only you can set and fulfill, and oh yeah, that even Fred asks "so do you want a subscription to Runner's World?" Hee hee, why yes, because I am officially a "runner."

KR came with me on our spontaneous run. I didn't think I'd get a chance to run today, pre-tonight's festivities (house party?!) and my morning shower. Yes, with this much hair, getting it dry takes for.ev.errrrrr and I hate hair dryers. I didn't even own one until I was at least 21, true story. With my hair already washed and me already cleaned, the lazy bum in me went to work and said "well, no more workouts for me?" until I asked KR what she was doing. Behold, ta-da, everything fell into place!

We did my old 3 mile route. I was going to make the "out" portion longer to make the "back" section shorter and part of a long downhill, but as I came home, I realized all the runners were on the pavement of the scary twisty road that everyone speeds down because the ice/snow/slush was THAT bad on the sidewalk. 

Evil, evil quarter mile hill

I showed KR the route, and explained that there was a 5 min walk start built in, so we started after the 2nd cross street of our 3rd road. We got on the road, and she started running. Crap, had to somewhat keep up, so it was the hill. When we got to the top of the hill, ans subsequently, the 2nd cross street, KR gave me a "wait, did you just find the hardest, steepest hill to begin the run?!" and I reminded her the route hadn't technically started. Blegh! But I kept running, KR did a lot of running down the side streets as I trekked along. We sprinted one final driveway, then walked to the halfway marker. 1.5 miles in... 15 minutes :) There was a lot more walking on the way back, ack ack ack, but I think we did the full 3 miles in 35 minutes. Not bad for tons of walking at the end :/

KR and I are January babies, 354 days apart and when I was debating what to make for my birthday cake last year, we realized that making your own birthday cake is NO FUN! Hence, I made her cake and she made mine. Don't worry, I'll show that closer to the date, because no edible baked goods should have that color. BUT! As we walked back, we started talking about what we'll make this year. I think the current winner involves cheesecake :D MORE INCENTIVE TO KEEP RUNNING!

Here's to the next year AND TV timeout :)

-Syd

Three in One

Maybe its the Illini in me, but when I hear "Three in One" I think of this:

But, to catch up, you get three posts in one :)

First... Santa (aka my Aunt) was awesome and brought me... RUNNING TIGHTS! 

So of course, I had to test them out on Christmas. Can I once again say how amazed I am that I actually was EXCITED to run, especially on Christmas?! But I went with my mom to a little trail, and by little, I mean 1/2 mile. It will eventually link up with longer trails, but I didn't check the distance before we went out. Oh well :) I did a good 1.5 miles while my mom walked with Lucy. Part of my mom/Christmas-ness was a new Droid (go Verizon!) so I have 4 apps to track runs and 5 to play radio/music.  

I also realized I really need to work on crosstraining- aka weights! I have minimal arm strength and realize that better leg muscles should help limit the injuries. The legs had gotten nice and muscly, but the post-race/injury hiatus has led to them being loose again :( Also, while losing weight is somewhat of a goal, I'd rather weigh more and go faster, stronger. Plus, at 5' 9", I can weigh over 150lbs and still be in a healthy weight range, but qualify for "Athleta" divisions at races :)

Women's Health Magazine has some great workouts online, so I've decided that non-running days will be strength days. Many of them only require your body weight or light weights, which I have. There's something wrong with me and the fact that I love lunges and squats. Plus, the burn afterward? Yes it hurts, but you know you earned it!

Last but not least... I've decided its time to start working on the 10k! I want to be faster and go further- doesn't everybody?! So for now, I'm accidentally doing sub-3 mile distances, but according to the Droid apps, at faster pace- 11 min mile pace, even! And that's outside with natural changes in elevation :) I looked around at plans online and although there was one I loved, I knew I loved it because it was doable... and I need a challenge. So the one I picked includes a) hill work b) speed work and c) tempo work- everything to help me go faster and further! Right now, I'm thinking 10 minute miles as my goal- long term. If I can do a 10k at 11 min pace, I'll be happy- for the first one, at least! 

My little 3 mile route was derailed by 2 things today. First, I forgot Mom's ultimate rule of running: go pee before! About half a mile in, singing along to the radio was the only thing distracting me from the fact that omfg, I needed to PEE! Sorry, I realize its maybe TMI but it was not cool! Second, the sidewalks looked like  this:

Uh... no thanks! I've already shown how prone I am to falling on straight, flat, non-snow-covered surfaces! When I got to this chunk of sidewalk, the little voice in my head (aka Google myTracks) chirped up that I'd done 1.5 miles at 11 min mile pace. I could see my car, so I scurried back. 

This Eastern snow storm has me going "dang nature, you're scary!" a lot. When I came home today, I started hearing this crackle/crash sound and risked running on my walkway that looks a lot like the scary sidewalk above to get to the porch alcove. Its somewhat sad when you have to choose between potential fall on the ice or whatever scary ice/snow is about to come crashing to the ground. Thankfully, I got under the safety of a roof without falling and had nothing crash on me :)

Here's to the next TV timeout!

-Syd

Antlers and fuzzy socks :)

So I'm a few days behind now (oh the exciting Christmas story I have for you!) but  have an awesome run story :) 

Remember how I said my mom could outrun me? Yeah... SPOILER ALERT! We went to the running store where I got my shoes and did their Tuesday night group run. The 1.5 mile route we did was designed to show off decorated houses. They also had a competition for the best dressed runners. Even with costumes like this (please note the ever-fabulous ugly Christmas sweaters), we didn't get honorable mentions. But we did get some good ideas :) 

Like I said, it was a 1.5 mile route and I have no clue how long it took, but it was fun to do :) I lost my mom some time around the half way mark. No clue how long it took, but getting back into "running with other people" was a nice change of pace :) 

Now that I've done this run with someone, I'm way less intimidated to do other runs at the store. They've got a lot that I can do now, and even more to look forward to. 8 miles at 8 min pace anyone???

Hope you're staying warm and safe and, as always, here's to the next TV timeout :)

-Syd

Have a safe and happy holiday season, from me, Lucy and my mom :)

Exploring the Mountains

As KR told me, "it counts for exercise if you're walking around a lot!" Mom and I went to the mountains to visit "America's Largest Home"and see the *interesting* city that is Asheville, NC. The downtown is super hilly (no pictures) and even walking around the grounds and structure of Biltmore gives your legs and knees a workout, with the ups and downs. We got to tour 4 stories of the mansion at night, all decorated for Christmas. Mom and I went back to the grounds the next day to see the mountain view from the house and explore the conservatory. What can I say? The plant nerd in me appreciated their hard work :D

Overall, Asheville was *soooo* not my cup of tea, but the house and grounds of Biltmore were amazing, spending time with my mom is always neat, and I got that box checked off my list!

Here's to the next TV Timeout!

-Syd

Sunday Pictures!

I was too lazy as I was writing the post to put up photos from Sunday, but after finding the cord and the camera, here are a few...

Start area

Gear Check

First Half-Marathon-er crossing the finish line at about 1:20

KR Making the final turn. As I yelled at all the runners "ITS ALL DOWNHILL FROM HERE!" KR just yelled back "WATER!"

8.5

I put 8.5 miles on my legs this morning at the gym, in about an hour. No, I didn't all of a sudden turn into some KR-fast runner (btw, super awesome story if you stay tuned in!)- I walked about a half mile, ran a mile, then biked for 7 miles. One of my goals for 2012 is to do a sprint triathlon, so I'm trying to get my legs used to being worn out! I did the running first and then the biking, but when it comes to the tri, it'll be reverse order. Whatever :) I'm also just trying to re-gain cardiovascular endurance after basically a month and some change off. 

This morning's gym session was actually my 2nd of the week. Since calender weeks start on Sundays, so too do I! I did 20 minutes on a treadmill, alternating running and walking. During an off-season triathlon workshop (which I'll blog about one of these days!) they talked about how training on the treadmill should be done at a 2% incline or more to compensate for the fact that you exert less energy running on a flat treadmill vs. flat pavement. Plus, what road is ever flat?!? Even though I've clearly lost a lot of the endurance, I've definitely gained some speed. I used to push myself to run at a 12min/mile pace, and now that's my slow running pace. My usual training speed is 11min pace, and when I'm pushing towards a distance, not time, I'll crank it up a notch or two. I did a little bit at 10min pace on Sunday and man... the burning sensation was NOT pleasant! 

KR got me an awesome "KEEP RUNNING-SAFELY!!" present: ankle braces! And yes, this is totally a shameless way of showing off our Christmas tree- isn't it pretty?!?! :) Its sort of basic this year, but since the roomie put it up, who am I to complain? :) 

I'm sure that come Christmas, there will be a few more ornaments on it! Both the roomie's mom and my mom will be coming to spend the holiday with us and OMG I'm so excited for it!

Oh and your final story of the day... Its not really my story, but I'm so excited for her and y'all heard about her first race, so I feel like bragging for her like a proud mamma bear. KR did her first half marathon this past Sunday. She hadn't even run 13.1 miles before then and man, did she pick a doozy of a day to run her first 13.1!!! It was rainy, unseasonably cold, and the course had quite a few hills! Given the recent craziness behind the scenes in my life, I went to go cheer her on and figured that as long as I was there, I could volunteer as well. I helped run the gear check (btw, world's greatest invention for >5k races!) with an old retired Navy man named Sid (we laughed about that!) as KR did her trek. 

The race was a fundraiser for the camp where it was held- Victory Junction Gang Camp. Race car driver Adam Petty, of the Petty racing family, HUGE deal in NASCAR, was killed during a practice run and the camp is supported by NASCAR, drivers and NASCAR's sponsors in his memory. (My NASCAR-loving brother-in-law had heard of the camp!) During the summer, different groups of kids spend a week and they have family weekends during the school year. Just from what I saw, they have awesome rec spaces, horse stables, a frisbee golf course, and tons of room to just go, play, and be a kid. What I thought was really neat about the camp was that each week or weekend is dedicated to kids of a specific disability, so if you were a kid with, say, cystic fibrosis, you would be at the camp with other kids like you. It takes away some of the comparisons and heightens the bonding experience to be with other children facing the same struggles as you. Plus, the reason fundraisers like this race, which raised over $100,000 for the camp, are so important is that no family has to pay to send their kids here. Richard Petty himself was at the camp to support the runners!

I met some really neat people, both affiliated with the camp and other runners, as I waited for KR to do her thing. Like I said, it was super cold and rainy out there. The first half marathoner came in around 1:20. He was booking it with under 7 min miles! FOR 13.1 MILES IN THE POURING COLD RAIN! I don't get it. Even crazier, there was literally nobody behind him that we could see. The end of the course had you running down a hill, up a hill and back down a hill to the finish line, all in sight of the finish area. After they'd interviewed him (from Charlotte, his first time running this race, could they please cut out some of the hills), the 2nd runner still wasn't in sight. 

Forty rainy minutes later, I saw the figure in a white top and black tights and I started yelling "Go, KR, GO!" Her one reply? "water!" After she changed into dry clothes, we ate some delicious chili and cornbread, and headed back to the car. In true KR fashion, for her 2nd race, she got 2nd in her age group. We ignored the awards ceremony and left while it was happening because KR was sure she didn't place. I'd been working the gear check so I didn't pay quite as astute attention as the previous race to see if she'd won. Plus, how do you tell a 26 year old from a 24 year old? They look the same, but different divisions! Anyway, it was super exciting to go and see some amazing runners and it definitely inspired me :)

Here's to the next TV timeout!

-Syd

I still exist!

I do still exist, I promise. Its just that, as KR put it, I 'have blisters on my fingers from the thesis' and all the mind-melting that comes as a result. I won't bore you with those details and other stresses, except to say that worrying about that has definitely not been awesome :/

I'm finally un-bruised and un-sprained, but I got so out of the rhythm of any sort of work-outs between injuries, traveling and the thesis that getting back into that habit is definitely not easy to overcome. I should get over that this week. Running always made me feel a bit more clear in the head, which is definitely something I need! Hmm... gave me an idea :)

My usual running routes outside intimidate me because Raleigh got Illinois cold! FOR REAL! Its currently the same temp in Raleigh as in my hometown- and we've had an extra hour of sunshine!!! 22* is not human running weather. All that time I wanted it to be colder? Ugh, I officially have thin Southern blood :(

For as awful as the thesis/no-running has been, I've definitely been super lucky to be surrounded by people who really support me. I've got some crazy deadlines and scary life changes happening, if only I knew how they'd end up, but through it all, the roomie, KR, Fred, my mom and so many others have been my sometimes-lacking confidence! The roomie has positive affirmations in her office-space, which I used to mock- and first-time visitors always question- but I took a page out of her book yesterday and put up my own post-it notes on my work computer. We'll see how those help me out.

On two random not-related to anything subjects...

With the cold + Christmas decorations at the house, Lucy's usual cage spot was overtaken by the Christmas tree (Lucy stays in the cage when nobody's home. All she does is sleep, and this way, if she's home a little bit too long, the mess is easier to find and clean up). Finding a new spot that wasn't too drafty was a couple days figuring out, but the roomie figured out just how to make sure the spot wouldn't be too drafty or cold for Lucy.

Yep, even Lucy's giving the roomie the "Mom, what are you doing?!?" look!

Finally, in the spirit of Christmas, I will warn you that this will make you cry. The video explains most of it, but Dax's mom and grandmother are closely tied to my church back home, so I read along with the blog as Dax underwent two bone marrow transplants. Julie, his mom, is such a loving woman and was born to be a mother. My mom sent this to me, but I saw it posted on a friend's Facebook wall this morning, so I thought I'd pass it along. The warning my mom sent definitely applies- have a few tissues handy!

Here's to the next TV timeout

-Syd