Running Therapy

Accountability Week: 6/13 – 6/19

- Mel

The most important thing for me this week was spending a little time on planning out my workouts — and I really enjoyed the process. I made some goals for the week, too… which included some burpees:

  • Run three times — including going to check out a new run club. No mileage requirements; do one interval/speed workout. — Except for checking out a new run club, I did three runs with one as a speed workout. I still would like to join up with a local run group and start building my community there, especially when it comes time for half marathon training again.
  • Do my regular Wednesday session of yoga — CHECK!
  • Two sessions of TRX — I only got Sunday’s in, since my Friday workout plans changed a bit (see below)
  • BURPEES with every workout — CHECK! In fact, I did them EVERY DAY.
  • Get through our BIG bike ride on Saturday — We didn’t complete anything NEAR the 78 miles of the course, but we got through our first trail ride in Iowa!
30something accountability week workouts Iowa
A Tale of 4 Workouts
MONDAY:
While today was really a REST day, I did my regular hip strengthening movements and 20 BURPEES before bed.

TUESDAY:
I planned for some deadlift reps (4 rounds x 12 reps; I used dumbbells) and a fun EMOM workout. The EMOM workouts, or “every minute on the minute,” workouts were popular in my CrossFit box, and a GREAT way to get in a high-intensity, quick workout. I started with a EMOM warm-up with 4 inch worms / 5 mountain climbers / 6 squats for 5 minutes total. Then I found a fun Odds & Evens EMOM online — in the odd minutes, you do 10 burpees; and in the even minutes, you do 10 overhead squats (again, I used dumbbells).

Cooling down, I stretched out my lower back by rolling backwards over my exercise ball (I think this feels really good after these types of workouts), and then some light yoga pose holds and twists to stretch everything else out.

WEDNESDAY:
My usual Wednesday ritual at LifeTime — run for 15 minutes on the treadmill (with a 5-minute walking warm-up and 2-minute walking cool down), followed by an hour of hot vinyasa flow. It was hotter OUTSIDE than it was inside for hot yoga. That’s intense, Iowa! Also, they switched instructors for Wednesday nights now, but I like the new instructor a lot. I felt really strong in this class (and sweaty) — and she taught us how to set up for side crow, WHICH I WAS ABLE TO DO ON BOTH SIDES! Holy crap, all someone had to do was show me the set-up.

After having my chocolate milk at home (my usual post-workout recovery), I got in another 20 burpees.

THURSDAY:
I intended to join a local social run for Saucony try-on night, but I hadn’t had a good night of sleep for the entire week. My body was too exhausted for a run, so I pushed it to Friday. My legs needed some foam rolling, so I spent about 10 minutes doing that (I know that I should be doing this with more regularity, but baby steps). AND: I did my 20 burpees before bed!

FRIDAY:
I ran for 3.5 miles on the treadmill, running a Pittsburgh street view map that I created on iFit that started at my old house (awwwww). This worked out almost too perfectly: It was my Pittsburgh CrossFit Buddy’s 56th birthday — and on birthdays, we do BURPEES! Maybe I should dub this workout my Pittsburgh WOD?

Afterwards, I stretched out with the resistance band from TheraBand that I received this week. I’ll be using this piece a LOT in my exercise routines!

SATURDAY:
We took off around 9am for the BACooN ride, and cleared almost 20 miles before the boyfriend crapped out from the heat and some numbness in his wrist. I was feeling pretty good — though it was hot. Finishing the full 78 miles definitely would’ve been a challenge, but I feel as though I could of at least made it to Linden (30 miles from the start in Waukee). It will be a fun challenge to see where our biking fitness levels take us in the next year. #goals

I also did 20 burpees before bed (trying to be really quiet because the boyfriend was already asleep, and I just kept cracking myself up; plus, I had a couple ciders that night).

SUNDAY:
Why change a good thing? I basically did the same as last Sunday’s workout: jump rope for warm-up, TRX for arms and shoulders, burpees (though only 20 this time), a speed workout on the treadmill (this time, I ran on The Strip in Las Vegas), my Strong & Fast workout from Runner’s World, and some yoga stretches to close it out. LOVE this workout!

For the speed workout, I did some fun ladder drills: run a minute, walk 30 seconds x 2, run two minutes, walk a minute x 2, run three minutes, walk a minute… you get the picture. I increased the run speed every 30 seconds until I felt like my legs would fly off. lol Overall, I got a great 20-minutes, and about 2 miles.

I definitely spent some time foam rolling my calves at night.

Hey, that’s a total of >> 206 << burpees for the week! Holy crap. Should I keep the streak going? I’m already 7 days in a row!

Goals for the week:

  • 108 Sun Salutations for Summer Solstice (YEP!)
  • Run 3 times
  • Take a new class! I have a couple things in mind here. Stay tuned! 🙂
  • Ride my bike once, over the weekend
  • Keep the burpees streak going?

Accountability Monday and Half Marathon Goals

- Mel 1 Comment

If I don’t have a plan, I won’t do what I’m supposed to — and having a plan means so much more than just adding all of my runs to my calendar and signing up for a class on MindBody (and, honestly, this applies the same for my personal life). WHY AM I DOING ANY OF THIS?!

What it means: Drafting a WHOLE workout to include the different warm-up exercises that I’ll be doing and for how long, what the focus of my run is (instead of just going out to accomplish a certain number of miles for the day), and planning out my cool-down and stretching routine.

An interesting thing happened: This process has made me much more attached to my workout and makes me feel TRULY accountable for my routine rather than showing up at the gym and not knowing what to do or plugging in my earbuds and tuning out on a slogging long run. It was a total mind-shift on my health and fitness. It may sound like a “no duh!” thing, but I’ve been exercising without purpose or focus for a while — it was really important to give more meaning to my healthy lifestyle and be more mindful of my decisions to do something and how I budget my time.

One of my goals for 2016 was to run a 2-hour half marathon, which I’ve decided to make happen this October at the IMT Des Moines half. To accomplish this, I will need discipline, speed and power, and a little help from my running community. My training officially starts in late July, so for now I’m focusing on my running base (mostly with consistency), my core, and overall body strength.

And also, just as REST has always been integral to my mental health and prevention of burnout, and given my awful Dam to Dam race last weekend, I took a week off to rest my body and mind. It was important to reflect on what went wrong and WHY. Well, Why #1 is that my training program was practically non-existent. There wasn’t one single week where I ran more than twice, and several weeks where I didn’t run (or workout) at all. Though I was a little surprised on how dehydrated I was on race day, especially with how conscious I am over my water intake and that I didn’t even have a drink the night before!

I sincerely want to follow through on a training program and be all “EFF YEAH, MEL!” Making the practice as important as the completion of the goal is my new purpose.

Anyway… SUNDAY I got my shit together and put together a great workout — and finally used my in-home TRX suspension trainer (and today I remember why I LOVE IT so much, woof!).

Warm-up: Jump rope for 3 minutes
Upper body strength: TRX arms and shoulders video workout, about a 20-minute workout
Cardio: A 15-min interval workout on the treadmill (a little over a mile in total)
Burpees (‘cuz burpees, baby!): 39 total, though I maxed out at 18 straight without stopping
Running strength/power: Strong & Fast Workout 1 from Runners World; 5 movements at 15 reps each/each side (took me around 15 minutes to complete)
Cool Down: Then some light yoga stretching to cool down

30-something workout Des Moines
Working out at home in my matchy-matchy Fabletics.

It felt like the perfect workout. And it felt REALLY good to plan it out and make it happen.

Goals for this week:

  • Run three times — including going to check out a new run club. No mileage requirements; do one interval/speed workout.
  • Do my regular Wednesday session of yoga.
  • Two sessions of TRX (I’ll likely do a similar workout to Sunday’s).
  • BURPEES with every workout! (I wonder if I can do them every day? HA!)
  • Get through our BIG bike ride on Saturday! (EEEK!)

Race Recap: Dam to Dam Half Marathon

- Mel 3 Comments

Thanks to a late push (no thanks to you, motivation) to train for this half marathon, I had zero goals aside from finishing in one piece. BUT aforementioned last-minute motivation or not has really helped propel my health and fitness goals and to get excited about some upcoming events — including the planning of my GOAL RACE in the Fall. More on that in another post.

Dam to Dam was my FIRST race in Iowa, and my fifth half marathon overall — and my fourth state! My PR for the half was back in February at Gasparilla… but with our big move in March, my desire to run really flat-lined. I was happy to at least get a 10-miler in (which went a lot better than I anticipated — and on the treadmill, no less. WHO AM I?!)

Two years ago, Dam to Dam changed course to a half marathon. The race still has remnants of its old school past, which is something that usually irritates me, but I actually kind of dug its small race charm (though 9000 entrants is certainly not “small”): there was no bag drop, no PERSON drop off at the start line (you had to take a bus), the emails were in all text (one that I received promised a lot of fun race day info but contained no images or links), and no real time tracking. Even the chip on the bib was MONSTROUS, considering the chip tech that exists in road racing.

And I guess, considering my not following my training plan, the race went about how I expected.

30something Flat Mel dam to dam
Flat Mel! (My race day uniform at this point.)

Registration and Cost: Registration was online via GetMeRegistered and cost $43.69 total (after some fees) — pretty great price for a half marathon! Dam to Dam has both a half marathon and 5K option, and the Half is limited to only 9,000. The first 5,000 runners get a $40 entry fee (I got in on this deal! WOOT!), $45 for the next 2,000 runners (5001-7000) and $50 entry for the last 2,000 runners. I sincerely couldn’t imagine this race adding any more runners to its registration, and I hope it never does!

Packet Pick-Up and Expo: Packet pick-up was downtown at the Veteran’s Auditorium / Convention Center the day before the race, so I had a double commute to drive into downtown from where I work. Thankfully, they were open until 8! Because there isn’t a lot of traffic in Des Moines (double WOOT!), I was able to find street parking; total time to park, pick up my bib and swag and peruse the FREE FOOD BUFFET was less less than the 42 minutes that I put on my meter.

I’m not sure if I missed a larger section of the Expo, but didn’t really explore beyond packet pick-up. Picking up bibs was by race number (which they posted the day before); t-shirts were a few tables down from there. The volunteers were REALLY encouraging me to enjoy myself with some free food. And I guess there was beer too!

Free Swag: Brooks t-shirt and socks! First time that I’ve received socks as part of my swag bag — and they’re hot pink, so YAY!

dam to dam swag brooks sponsor

Bag Check and Transportation: As I mentioned above, there was NO bag check for this race (on Facebook, the organizers posted about an unofficial and unsecured bag drop location downtown, but my day didn’t start there). I had to be dropped off at Valley West Mall in West Des Moines around 5:30 a.m. to catch a school bus that took us up to Saylorville. It seemed very organized, and once the bus filled up, the doors closed and the next bus pulled up. I did hear that at other locations, later in the pick-up window, it got a little messy and delayed. But I live by the mantra: BE EARLY! (especially when it’s your first time, and you have no clue what to expect).

I do get car sick, so I was honestly really nervous about taking a bus up (by myself, no less). But I did OK.

Start Line: The bus ride took, like, 20 minutes (if that), so I stopped into the Kybo (Iowan for port-a-john) — there were at least 100, if not more. And then I sat around for another hour. As the start time approached, all the runners make their way to the bridge over the Saylorville Dam (Dam #1!).

saylorville dam half marathon
Walking out to the bridge!

saylorville dam half marathon start

It was a BEAUTIFUL view, and you could see the downtown skyline in the distance where we would finish.

30something dam to dam dsm at start
Downtown Des Moines in the background — 13 miles away!

I didn’t see any official pacers, but there were sections posted with expected finish time. And then the swarm of people started moving after the gun went off and the timing mat for the start was kind of a surprise for those of us in the back of the pack.

Weather: UGH. Remind me why I sign up for summer races? I, thankfully but sadly, ditched my long-sleeve shirt. It was chilly enough to wear it sitting around pre-race, so I’m happy that I brought it. I wore it in so many races, so was sad to let it go. BUT OMG, a tank top and shorts was too much to wear within the first two miles. By the end of the race, it felt like 80 degrees and I could not keep my body cool. This was something of a disaster for me, as I felt thirsty constantly and probably drank too much water (despite properly hydrating the week before the race). And then by mid-race, I was legit feeling sick. By Mile 11, I had to stop running because my chest hurt and I was seeing spots, and I sincerely was freaking out about passing out on the course.

At least my allergies weren’t bad! #smallwins

Course: Saylorville Dam was the start, and the course almost immediately went into open roads and cornfields — so very Iowa! The course followed the path of the Des Moines River, though we didn’t see much of the waterway during the race. Portions of the race went through neighborhoods, others on bike trails; at one point we were running through the woods and over a wood plank bridge. The best was the approach downtown, coming past the Botanical Gardens and up the Principal River Walk over the Iowa Women of Achievement Bridge. We have a pretty cool pedestrian bridge.

dam to dam half marathon course des moines

Miles 6-7 were no joke!

Also around that incline in elevation was Morningstar Hill, lined with American flags honoring all the Iowan soldiers lost in the line of duty since the first Dam to Dam on June 15, 1980. That’s always a somber experience in a race.

I really enjoyed the variety of scenery on this course. Also, there were staggered water stops, not specifically at every mile, but enough to be sufficient; there were maybe 3 stops with Powerade. Kybos were scattered throughout the course as well. There were sponges at one stop, but they were gone by the time we got there, which was a HUGE bummer because SO HOT. At this point, I was just dumping cups of water over my head and down my back. I missed the ice cubes too, as we were approaching downtown.

Fans and Experience: As you’ve probably gleaned from my past recaps, I have problems with large race crowds; this one didn’t feel overwhelming at all. At various spots throughout the course, there was live music and DJs; in the neighborhoods, there were more people cheering on their tree lawns. Cyclists were out cheering us on at the trail crossings, too. There were a couple of nearly-drunk guys at one of the bike outposts and one of them offered us doughnuts… TORTURE. Most of the “fans” were lined up near the finish line and in downtown.

Finish Line: I didn’t specifically hear my name, but the announcer was calling in all the finishers, which I always think is super cool. The finish chute opens up into Western Gateway Park — there were so many runners with their shoes off and sitting in the water fountains. There was free beer (Coors Light and Smirnoff Ice, blech). Would have been nice if there was some kind of cider. #glutenfreeproblems I heard there was chocolate milk, but I didn’t see it (thankfully, the boyfriend brought me some).

And then the sprinkler system went off in the park near where they were doing finish line photos and OMG you could only laugh because it was definitely not on purpose.

30s Therapy dam to dam finish
A strained smile at the finish line. More happy about my chocolate milk.

After Party: BBQ brunch at Jethro’s. And heck yeah, I wore my medal inside!

Bonus: A mutual friend online connected me to someone on Instagram who was also running the race, and SHE FOUND ME AT THE START LINE! And we were planning the same pace! We were able to run most of the race together, too — and I never had to put in my earbuds (though, I will not let my $42 purchase on iTunes the night before the race be wasted).

Extra bonus for you beer lovers out there: Besides the beer at the finish line, at 400 meters from the finish line you approach Exile Brewing, and volunteers there are giving out beer samples on the course. I was almost desperate enough to take one. lol (But OH GOD the smell of warm beer on this hot day and already feeling sick made want to hurl.)

Random Bullshit: I realized post-race that something bit me on my inner thigh, and I have a rash on the inside of both of my legs. We ran through the woods in one portion, and I’m so stupid fearful of ticks (I don’t know if it was a tick but that’s where my mind goes). So, that’s something that I have to keep an eye on.

Best Sign: Run Now, Poop Later.

OVERALL
The Great: It’s always awesome making new running friends, and having someone to enjoy the experience with.
The Good: My first race in Iowa!
The Bad: My training overall for this race was not so great, so I’m not surprised how poorly I did. Despite this, I pretty much assumed that I would finish in about 2:30.
The Ugly: THE HEAT. The end of this race was an awful slog. I couldn’t even muster enough energy as the finish line was approaching; 12-minute runs-walks for the last two miles. SIGH.

Splits (per Garmin watch): 10:31 (1) / 10:36 (2) / 10:50 (3) / 11:04 (4) / 11:09 (5) / 10:49 (6) / 11:13 (7) / 10:58 (8) / 10:58 (9) / 10:23 (10) / 10:46 (11) / 12:19 (12) / 12:49 (13)

finish time: 2:27:05 / average pace: 11:06/mi

OFFICIAL RESULTS
#2154 overall
353 in my age group (35-39)
Five mile: 54:33
Ten mile: 1:49:41
Clock time: 2:35:22
Chip time: 2:27:00
Pace: 11:13

Dam to Dam Half Marathon: 9 Weeks Away!

- Mel 3 Comments

Jumping back into my half marathon training schedule. I’ve decided to use Hal Higdon’s Novice 2 program again for this race. Again, of course, is used loosely, as I have *yet* to follow a prescribed training program (and I’m already a few weeks behind). Be that as it may, I’m determined to make this training better than in the past.

The Dam to Dam Half Marathon in Des Moines is on Saturday, June 4, so only 9 weeks away! I typically structure my training program for Sunday races, but ultimately decided to maintain a Monday-Sunday training schedule and keep my accountability posts in line with that.

This week of the program calls for one cross-training workout, two 3-mile runs, a 4-mile run and a 6-mile long run. Since I’m “easing” back into this, I opted to do a walk for my first training day in place of one of the 3-mile runs.

MONDAY: 2-mile walk around my neighborhood. I was mostly curious how many miles that I could get in my development before getting bored and to get a look around the entire sub, and looks like I can probably do 3-4 miles before I start getting sick of seeing the same houses. I have access to trails nearby, but there’s one stretch of road without sidewalks to get to them that could be challenging. I was happy to get out and moving on such a beautiful day though!

I followed up my walk with some core work on my exercise ball and push-ups in my HOME GYM (So excite! It will soon have a treadmill, too!).

TUESDAY: Rest Day

WEDNESDAY: One hour of yoga at Life Time Fitness (they call it Yoga Roots; warm but not hot). I took advantage of the class with a free day pass, and the facility here is super nice. There are a few different levels of yoga classes, too, but I opted with a beginner’s session to get acclimated to any changes in flow and poses (and there were a few that tripped me up). I hadn’t had a regular room temperature class in a while either!

THURSDAY: RUN 3 miles (actually 2.96, dammit!) — I started off WAY too fast and like I was ready to anger-run, but I was able to reel it in after hearing my time at my 1 mile mark from my MapMyRun app. I mean, I WANT to run faster, but I also need to be able to sustain a pace. Unsurprisingly, I was bored with my neighborhood after 2 miles and circled around my block like a crazy, lost person to finish it up. I will definitely need to change things up!

I posted this to Instagram, and you wouldn’t believe it if I didn’t track it:

Yes, a 3-mile neighborhood route in Iowa is hillier than my same-distance neighborhood route in Pittsburgh. I was surprised, too!

[splits: 8:46/9:18/9:18 // average: 9:07]

I followed up my miles with another quickie push-up workout. By the way, I’m still doing my hip strengthening movements every day! Also, also: I officially joined Life Time fitness, so I see more classes AND social run group in my future.

FRIDAY: I ended getting super bogged down with work stuff and worked a little longer to get ahead of next week’s hot mess of a schedule. I felt super stressed for most of the afternoon, but by the time I started slowing up and relaxing, I was ready for my WINE.

SATURDAY: Rest Day. Today was our day to explore downtown Des Moines! And I can’t wait to share everything that we did.

SUNDAY: Holy, random 80-degree day! Instinctively, I planned a good day to run outside. Today’s plan called for 6 miles, and since the boyfriend went to the golf course, this was a great day for me to get out and explore another route. But mentally and physically I just could not complete 6 miles — I barely cleared 3 (2.94). IT SUCKS. I feel as if I’m starting completely over in my running ability, and I’m completely frustrated! Maybe I can just chuck this one off to the heat or because I waited for too late in the afternoon or because I was basically doing resistance training due to the wind or [leave your excuse here]. UGH. Honestly, I’m really bummed because how did I just do a big challenge race a little over a month ago and be completely deflated and done by 3 miles now?!

[splits: 9:18/10:38/9:47 // average: 10:02]

TOTAL CROSS-TRAINING WORKOUTS: 1 walk and 1 yoga
TOTAL RUNS: 2
TOTAL MILES: 5.90

Pittsburgh Marathon: Training Update

- Mel 7 Comments

I fell completely off the rails on my marathon training for Pittsburgh. Because of the move, I haven’t been able to find my workout vibe — and I haven’t run ONCE in two weeks (ie: since moving here). I’ve only had a handful of at-home workouts in general. Prior to moving, I was already a couple weeks behind in my training program due to feeling burned out after Gasparilla (read my recaps here and here). I thought that I’d be able to make it up after a couple weeks of rest. But I know that’s impossible now.

Regretfully, I’ve decided to pull out of running the Pittsburgh full, and I likely won’t return for the half either (but the latter is mostly for personal things that may force some travel elsewhere). I’m disappointed, especially because it was another opportunity to visit Pittsburgh and run with my friends there. My former neighbors had graciously offered for me to stay in their homes for me to save the expense of a hotel, too, but I’m now burned out on traveling as well.

Moving on: I’m signed up the Dam to Dam Half Marathon in June, here in Des Moines. I’ll also be looking ahead to the Des Moines Half Marathon in October — which I’d like to be my goal race (*2-hour half*). There’s still a chance that I may look into the I-35 Challenge depending on how my training goes and/or if the challenge sells out. Surely, there will be other races to fill in the blanks, but that’s where I’m currently sitting in my training. I am undecided if I’ll attempt another full in 2016, so for now I just need to focus on the half distance and the work that goes into that training.

More updates to come!

Race Recap: Gasparilla Challenge Day #2 (Half Marathon and 8k)

- Mel 2 Comments

I ran the Gasparilla Ultra Challenge in Tampa last month, and moved only a couple weeks later. I’m finally wrapping up my race experience. Read my recap of Day #1, if you missed it!

flat mel day 2 gasprarilla
Same bib, different day.

Day #2 included a half marathon and an 8k. This would be my 4th half — my last half marathon was in September (when I was training for the Niagara Marathon). I couldn’t find any record of running an 8k race, but I had a couple 5-mile races to compare pace to and plan out my strategy. This experience was no comparison to the day before — my knee felt GREAT using a brace, but I was definitely feeling my body fatigue in the second race and the heat was borderline unbearable. I won’t underestimate it, the last few miles of this Challenge were pretty rough.

Start Line and Course: It wasn’t as cool as Day #1 at the start, but I still wore a long-sleeve throw-away to the start line. We began earlier, and it was SUPER dark for a few miles into the course — at one point we were running on brick or cobblestone roads, and I thought we were all going to trip over one another. It took a while for the course to thin out too.

While the start line and beginning of the course were different than the first day, the end of the course and finish line of the half and 8k were the same. At the start line of the 8k, there were several of us that were randomly clustered together who were running our last race of the challenge. It was a fun group, and it was awesome to commiserate over our experience so far (and our will to finish). Though, the course: same fan groups, same lady shaking her poms, same music guy… I was definitely cranky by the end of the 8k.

I stuck with the 2:15 pacer for the half marathon for a couple miles, until I realized that I was running his race strategy instead of my own. I didn’t feel bad about walking through a water stop and letting them run ahead (it seemed he was skipping water stations every 2-3 miles). I would gain some traction further on in the race. Later in the half — around Mile 10 — I saw the 2:20 pacer pass me and decided that I was going to attempt a PR and knew it was maybe possible to gain a few minutes but STAY AHEAD OF THAT PACER (at the time, I had zero idea what my total time was, as I only watch pace for the current mile on my Garmin watch).

Medals and Swag: Like the previous day, these medals do not disappoint. The half marathon medal and shirt are my favorites.

gasparilla day 2 shirts ultra challenge

Bonus: That Ultra Challenge finishers medal is something else. SO HEAVY.

gasparilla ultra challenge jacket medal

Random Bullshit: Uh, my “bonus” from the day before (the cold towels at the finish) were not available on Day #2. Now that I was used to that perk at this race… that’s some bullshit! It was longer distance on Sunday AND hotter. I just couldn’t understand the reasoning (plus, you know, HOT and I was cranky AF).

Also BS, the volunteers had already packed up the water stop at Mile 4 of the 8k. I was sincerely ready to lose it and stopped dead in my tracks. The water stop ended up somewhere a quarter of a mile later or so, but… WHY?! I was definitely feeling dehydrated.

After Party: We packed up and drove to Sarasota after Sunday’s race activities (thankfully, I had enough time to take a shower before checking out).

30something gasparilla challenge all medals chocolate milk
Spoiler alert: I FINISHED!

TL;DR
The Great: Honestly, summing up my entire Gasparilla experience, this was one of the best-managed races that I’ve ever participated in – especially considering the logistics of some 30k+ runners and four different events over two days.
The Good: Both days, I had pacers from Pittsburgh. I met a few others on the course, too, with the same randomness of location.
The Bad: One bloody sock, a couple of blisters at the tips of my toes and a bruised toenail. This challenge wrecked my feet.
The Ugly: Those last few miles, man. ROUGH.

Some people have asked if I would do this race again. Heck yeah, in a heartbeat. Though, I really wish that I had friends running this one with me. There are definitely other challenges out there that I’d like to add to my trophy room first before going back to Tampa. I learned that I really like challenge/multi-day races, and even though the mileage was split between two days, finishing gave me a little more confidence to pursue a 50k.

RESULTS
Half marathon official finish time: 2:17:17 — a new PR!

Splits: 11:07 (1) / 10:27 (2) / 10:27 (3) / 9:59 (4) / 10:21 (5) / 10:16 (6) / 10:45 (7) / 10:20 (8) / 10:46 (9) / 10:32 (10) / 10:31 (11) / 10:31 (12) / 9:46 (13)

8k official finish time: 54:00 ON THE MONEY (but nothing that makes me rich! lol)

Splits: 10:06 (1) / 10:40 (2) / 11:11 (3) / 10:36 (4) / 11:17 (5)

gasparilla finishers certificate 30something

Pittsburgh Marathon: Training Week #2

- Mel

This felt like a GREAT training week! The week off for recovery really helped mentally. I’ve also been doing daily hip and glute strengthening workouts – it’s a set of four movements that takes less than five minutes (and I do while I’m brushing my teeth because I am the consummate multi-tasker). And I couldn’t have believed that something so simple would make me sore! But while I finally committed and followed-through on a 3-run training week, my mileage fell short of my training plans.

MONDAY: [walked to work] Hour spin class at the Y. I love this weekly class as much as I value my run-yoga group. I definitely intend to keep up this habit after moving.

TUESDAY: I joined SCRR for their group run on Tuesday night. I intended to run 5 miles, but it ended up being a Track Tuesday-focused workout. I definitely don’t do enough (read: any) speedwork this training cycle, so it was a fun break from just slogging through another base mileage run. Of course this would be a night when I would forget my watch, so I have only an estimate from MapMyRun about my 400 splits. I definitely appreciated the coaching in regards to speed and breathing.

Started with a slow mile warm-up, followed by 4×400 sprints. We totaled 3.70 miles. Splits: 10:43/6:23 (???!!!)/7:46/10:57. So, yeah… that’s madness!

And I think that I found a new way to get past some of the training burnout that I’ve been feeling (despite not really having a successful training mesocycle before Gasparilla).

WEDNESDAY: run//yoga//run//club — I’m going to miss this group so much when I move! And for REAL, I’m going to see if I can start a similar meet-up in Des Moines. I like the mid-week habit, and it was the first time that I felt like I found my “tribe” in the running community. *tear*

We changed course tonight (as did the weather), running into downtown, through/around the Point and back over the pedestrian bridge into the north shore. We finished around 3 miles (nobody tracked until the last mile, so I based off previous runs and maps) and at the end we were running a a sub 9-minute pace. So, WOOOOO!

Followed up the run with 75 minutes of yoga. It felt good. Really, really good.

THURSDAY: Rest Day – and dinner with friends!

FRIDAY: Rest Day – last day of work and going away party

SATURDAY: Another Rest Day – tbh, I’ve felt like I’ve been in a hangover fog for two days and really needed another rest day to sit around in my pajamas and purge my house of 8000 magazines. But I haven’t yet skipped my daily hip and glute workouts!

SUNDAY: One thing that I hadn’t yet accomplished in Pittsburgh that I always wanted to do, was the run up McArdle Parkway to Mount Washington. So… I did it Sunday afternoon. Starting and ending in my neighborhood in the North Side, I completed 8.01 miles at average 10:13 pace.

Splits: 9:38 (1) / 10:37 (2) / 10:15 (3) *going up* / 10:30 (4) / 9:52 (5) / 9:24 (6) / 11:06 (7) / 10:28 (8)

My paces for going uphill impressed me! And yes, the views from the top were amazing. Unfortunately, that familiar knee trouble came with me downhill and started getting really intense during mile 7 (hence, my pace), which is why I didn’t do the 10-12 that I intended to do.

Pittsburgh running McArdle Mt Washington

Gonna miss that view though!

TOTAL CROSS-TRAINING WORKOUTS: 2 (1 hour of spinning; 1 hot yoga session)
TOTAL RUNS: 3
LONGEST RUN: 8.01 miles
TOTAL WEEKLY MILES: 14.71 miles
TOTAL TRAINING MILES: 125.75 miles

Race Recap: Gasparilla Challenge Day #1 (15k and 5k)

- Mel

The Gasparilla Distance Classic series of races includes a 15k, 5k, half marathon, 8k, the Michelob Ultra Challenge (which includes all 4 races), the Michelob Ultra Amber Challenge (3 of the races: the 15k, 5k and half), and the Michelob Ultra Lime Cactus Challenge (the 15k and 8k). My choice: the Ultra. So, my challenge was 4 races set over 2 days. First up was the 15k and 5k on Saturday.

Flat Melinda race day gasparilla
Flat Melinda: Ready for Gasparilla Day 1!

Registration and Cost: I love to search for my registration confirmation to see when I decided to sign up for a race. Since I knew the Ultra Challenge was capped at 1,000 participants, I registered SUPER early (in May) to save some money — and it was before I had even completed a full marathon and just a couple weeks after finishing my first half marathon. That cracks me up.

Since I registered for all four races at once, the cost was $185. Everything was done online through imATHLETE, and I didn’t have any issues.

Expo and Packet Pick Up: We went to the expo on Friday after we landed. This size of this expo was on par with Pittsburgh’s — it was HUGE, with so many vendors. Publix was a main sponsor, so they gave out free race distance magnets (and, yes, I got all four!) and Cabot cheese was there sampling their awesomeness as well. Still no luck on finding some clearance Saucony Ride 7s in my size at any of the shoe vendors. Whomp.

I really liked that I wore the same bib for all four races. Also, the t-shirts could all be picked up in the same spot, and they gave us the Ultra Challenge finisher jackets at packet pick-up, which I found interesting (what if you didn’t finish?!). The swag was all packed into a reusable shopping tote, which was also a welcome change (I have so many of those backpack-like cinch bags!).

Bag Check: Didn’t use bag check for any of the races, since I stayed at a hotel within walking distance of both start lines. It was really nice that they had a medal drop in between races for runners completing the various challenges (my medal drop was my boyfriend haha).

Weather: Beautiful… but hot! With the early (dark) start times, I was able to toss out a couple of my old unwanted long-sleeves over the two days, but by mid-morning, temperatures were in the low 70s. Running in shorts and a tank (and hat, because ALL SUN) is my preferred comfort zone but OMG when I saw people running in long pants and sweatshirts and FURRY COSTUMES, I knew Florida officially lost its dang mind.

30something furry gasparilla race
A furry in Florida! RACING IN COSTUME. #hotAF

Fans and Experience: Great crowd support and I lucked out with incredibly friendly pacers (randomly, one who just moved to Pittsburgh) and talkative fellow runners. At the turn-around point, there was a large group of fans with freaking DOUGHNUTS. Throughout the course, there was music and cheer sections and entertainment of various genres (my favorite was probably the guy who was playing a keyboard and singing over electronica music).

Start Line and Course: Both courses took advantage of the beautiful waterfront, running out and back on Bayshore Blvd. Both the 15k and 5k also had the same start and finish lines. I had about an hour between races, and I made friends with a guy from Indiana (who had a Steelers tattoo), who offered up one of his extra GU energy gels for me. The 5K corrals felt SUPER packed and chaotic — more so than lining up for the 15k. There was water at almost every mile of both races, with Gatorade at some stops as well. This race had really great volunteers!

Medals and Swag: I already mentioned the individual shirts, but each race also came with individual medals.

Gasparilla challenge 15k and 5k medals

Bonus: You guys! There were cold towels at the finish line! This was the most amazing thing ever!

Random Bullshit: Ugh, my knee. This was the first time I’ve felt some pain during a race, and it started within the first couple miles. My strategy was total bullshit, too (but it worked) — run faster. (Seriously.) When I increased my pace, it no longer hurt, so I guess maybe my form is breaking down when I’m slowing up? No clue, but I was definitely nervous about running Day 2. And I was having arguments inside my head about being able to keep up the faster pace for 18 miles of running the following day. hahahaha NOPE. OR COULD I?!

After Party: I went back to the hotel to ice my knee and prop up my legs for a few hours, while the boyfriend Uber-ed to the local breweries and to a drugstore to get me a knee brace and some KT tape.

TL;DR
The Great: I PR’d my 15k!
The Good: Man, everyone was having so much fun at these races. It was contagious!
The Bad: That Florida sun.
The Ugly: Ugh, knee trouble.

Gasparilla Day 1 30something

RESULTS
15k official finish time: 1:34:27 — a new PR! I haven’t run a 15k since November 2014, so I took a few minutes off my old time.

Splits (based on Garmin watch): 10:47 (1) / 10:26 (2) / 10:27 (3) / 10:20 (4) / 9:47 (5) / 10:06 (6) / 9:25 (7) / 10:13 (8) / 9:41 (9)

5k official finish time: 30:48 — not a PR but still pretty impressive after running a 15k!

Splits: 10:19 / 9:43 / 9:33 — WOO! Negative splits!

Pittsburgh Marathon Training: Week #1 (and Recovery Week)

- Mel

Gah. My second marathon! I can haz freak out?

This past week, however, was my recovery week… so I did nothing! I did have to walk to work several times though, so that was good to keep my joints moving. So, instead of writing out my workouts for the week (because there were none!), I’m going to talk about my recovery.

recovery week 30something pittsburgh
Recovery: Resting your tired feet in the cool sand of Siesta Key is optional.

1. Chocolate Milk: You guys, I SWEAR by drinking a chocolate milk after every workout. It is my magic elixir to not feeling sore. And there’s science to back it up.

2. Compression sleeves: I had a conversation about compression gear recently with another runner friend (re: whether they actually work or not). VIM + VIGR sent me a pair of compression calf sleeves a few months ago to test out (no monies exchanged for testing or review, but I got a free pair). For recovery, these have helped my tired calves immensely. After my long runs, I put on my calf sleeves and prop my legs up for a good hour (or longer, if I nap, which… likely). I used them in the hotel room after the first day of Gasparilla, too, and I felt really fresh for Day 2. It might all be psychosomatic, but at the very least, this post-training regimen forces me to relax.

3. Massage: Sadly, I couldn’t get into my usual massage therapist this week (and OMG I have to find a new massage place in Des Moines!), but a massage after a long race is KEY to my body feeling back to normal. I get really tight IT bands, calves and quads like a lot of runners, which she works out perfectly; she also spends a few minutes helping me stretch those areas that I can’t get by myself. Because I didn’t have a massage this week, I definitely feel more “lead-legged” than usual. I probably should have scheduled one down in Florida. Sigh, 20/20.

4. Trigger-point therapy: I am guilty of not doing my foam rolling as much as I should (I’m a work in progress!), but I use several apparatuses to release tight and knotted muscles after big races or long runs: my RAD roller, a lacrosse ball, and two different foam rollers. I use this Foam Rolling app for guidance. I love the RAD roller especially, as I can easily toss it in my suitcase for traveling.

5. Hot tub: I don’t own a hot tub, but if I’m traveling for a race, I make sure to book a hotel that has one. We had access to a hot tub at the parent’s condo development — and sitting in one the day after the race, even for just 10 minutes, is just MAGICAL for relieving tired, sore legs.

Share your recovery methods in the comments!

Gasparilla Challenge: Training Week #12 – RACE WEEK!

- Mel

Week #12 in this training cycle was also Race Week! I’m currently in a recovery week.

Whew, this was not my strongest mesocycle and I felt immensely under-trained. But strangely, my body is striking back like I’m over-training. Because of my knee concerns, I decided to cut all my final training runs before race day. This has been a similar taper cycle to my last couple races, but unfortunately, this time around the pain didn’t go away for the race.

runners knee injury prevention RICE
:-/

Quick glance at the week – I’ll be doing separate Gasparilla race reviews in upcoming posts.

MONDAY: An hour of spinning at the Y

TUESDAY: Rest Day

WEDNESDAY: Upper body and core workout from Runner’s World (at home)

THURSDAY: Rest Day – packing for Gasparilla AHHHHHHH!

FRIDAY: Travel to Florida Day! Expo and packet pick-up

SATURDAY: Gasparilla Day #1 – 15k and 5k

SUNDAY: Gasparilla Day #2 – half marathon and 8k

TOTAL CROSS-TRAINING WORKOUTS: 2 (1 hour of spinning; 1 upper body/core strength workout)
TOTAL RUNS: 4
LONGEST RUN: Half marathon (and an 8k soon after)
TOTAL WEEKLY MILES: 30.4 miles
TOTAL TRAINING MILES: 111.04 miles (I’ll now be rolling my mileage into my full marathon training)

And going forward, we switch over to Pittsburgh Marathon Training!