the week:
Oh, it turned October when I wasn’t paying attention. That means it’s marathon month. But also my favorite time of year — COLD WEATHER AND LAYERS. YAAAAAS. I’m not a PSL drinker, but I do love some pumpkin roll. Which I plan to make a gluten-free version of this year!
weekend:
20-miler long run weekend! I’ll be running Sunday morning with a few ladies from my 16-mile group a couple weeks ago, and completing the Lemiuex 6.6k race as part of the “course.” I won’t lie: I am terrified.
I have a massage scheduled for Saturday, which is TOTALLY IN THE WRONG ORDER OF THINGS.
52 books in 52 weeks:
I’m 6 books behind right now so I’m going to need some quick, easy, fun reads to catch up. Any recommendations? (I’m halfway through a 400-page book and about a quarter through another 400-page book.)
seven things, seven days:
1. I had brunch last weekend at the Blue Door Cafe in Akron (Cuyahoga Falls), and they had the most amazing breakfast-sandwich-in-a-gluten-free-wrap. And individual french press coffee. I can’t wait to return when we’re back in town!
2. Went to my first graduate school open house… and my good feelings about this school and program grew stronger. I only have a month though until the application deadline, so I need to start thinking about my personal statement.
3. Being in love with The Moth podcast, I was so excited to attend the Pittsburgh live tour stop of their story slam.
4. Admittedly, I lied about never wanting to run another marathon. Because one day, I’d like to run this.
5. Why is it so hard to catch your own typos?
6. This research on weight vs diet and exercise in different generations is super fascinating. {via The Atlantic}
7. I initially published this with only 6 things. That’s a first!
It’s ALMOST taper time, you guys. I have my long(est) 20-mile run to look forward to this weekend and then the insanity of waiting and advanced mental training begins.
MONDAY: walked to/from work (2.75 miles); LOTS of stretching and foam-rolling tonight too.
TUESDAY: walked to/from work (2.75 miles); I’ve been obsessed with squats lately, so every spare moment — brushing teeth, petting the cats, eating breakfast — I’ve been randomly doing them around the house. My neighbors must think I’m SO weird.
WEDNESDAY: Ran 3.04 miles and 75 minutes of hot yoga with Urban Elements run//yoga club. We had a substitute yoga instructor for the session, which helped to keep me focused on my yoga poses instead of my mind straying to off the mat. I loved the difference in style and it switched up my practice a bit. Unplanned, but obviously something I needed.
THURSDAY: Run 3 miles… three ANGRY miles. I did *not* want to run, and I was exhausted. But I tried the ol’ sport psychology trick of putting all my running stuff on to see how I felt then. And then I walked out the door to see if I still didn’t feel like running. Well, it worked, I guess, because I ran. But I still didn’t want to. lol
I’m so happy that I was asked to join a relay team for the Akron Marathon. This was my first relay — and one of my favorite races so far. I’ll likely plan to do the half next year because I had such a great experience. Thanks again to my teammates Chelsea, Lauren, Joe and Sarah!
Thanks to Pittsburgh City Girl for this group shot!
Registration and Cost: Individual cost for 5-person relay team was $40 each. Registration page currently shows a cost of $48/per person, so the price must go up at certain intervals as the race approaches (which is typical). Akron Marathon reps were giving out discount codes during the Pittsburgh Marathon Expo, which were not redeemable for the relay portion, but good to look out for if you’re interested in running this next year.
Expo and Packet Pick-Up: The Expo was definitely not as large as Pittsburgh, but easy to navigate with what seemed to be many of the usual expo vendors. I was a little confused about packet pick-up, and ended up at the t-shirt table first… then had to re-route back to the escalators to get my bib. THEN go back and get my shirt. Directional flow just wasn’t intuitive to me, despite there being a blue line right from the escalator to the packet pick-up. DUH. (I know, I know, that’s ALL on me.)
Follow the Blue Line, Mel.
Bag Check: I didn’t do bag check for this race. But on the way to my relay exchange spot, there was a woman who walked along with me and couldn’t find where the drop-off was for Leg 2. Because I wasn’t on that leg, I had zero clue how to help. She was super anxious though.
Weather: BEAUTIFUL, and on the cooler side, especially since the race started in the dark (no thank you, 7am start time). Sitting around waiting for the relay was an interesting experience — and a little cold, to be honest. But I made some start line friends and settled in with my coffee and snacks. I didn’t anticipate building up so much nervous energy while waiting… I just wanted to run!
Making friends at the relay exchange.
Course: I really loved my leg of the course — I had one of the steady climbs of the race (there was certainly a worse hill though on Leg 5), which I didn’t mind. This part of the relay leg also took me right by my sister’s house, so I was able to see her and my niece cheering from the tree lawn (or, “devil’s strip” if you’re *that* kind of Ohioan). My leg was 5.5 miles, which started downtown and proceeded out of the city up (!!) W. Market and onto Merriman, continuing onto Portage Path and through the (gorgeous!) Stan Hywet grounds. My exchange ended at Firestone High School.
Heartrate Hill was TOUGH (not part of my relay leg, but part of my run)
I needed to get some extra mileage in, so I ended up looping into the fifth relay leg of the course on the opposite side of Firestone (sidewalks and off the course when I could to not actually be “participating”) to get myself back into the city. Which is really easy to do when there’s a blue line to follow! Some of the spectators were hilarious, commenting “You didn’t run enough?” and “Over achiever!” as I passed through. Unfortunately, I ran out of time to complete the full 18 miles that were on my training schedule, as we had plans in the afternoon with the family.
Fans and Experience: At Pittsburgh, I felt really overwhelmed by the crowds; Akron, I felt just the opposite. They invigorated me — I was giving high fives and thanking everyone, talking to other runners. I didn’t run with my headphones for my entire leg. Music, food (people with oranges are the best!), Swedish fish… probably mimosas, had I asked — everyone was so freaking fun and excited to be cheering us on.
AK-Rowdy lives up to its name, even when celebrating the marathon. I was positively inspired to be one of these kinds of spectators at Pittsburgh next year to experience the opposite side (side note: I’ve decided that I don’t want to run Pittsburgh next year).
“Blue Line badasses this way” — in front of DBA restaurant (and where I had an AMAZING dinner the night before the race).
Finish Line: I didn’t finish off the fifth leg, so after my extra 5.8 miles, I looped around the stadium to check out the finishers festival and meet up with my relay teammates.
Chocolate Milk in my hand, and I am happy from a good run.
CHOCOLATE MILK! That always makes my day. I knew that I would basically be left out of the post-race noms, considering they were a) beer, b) pizza, and c) a power bar with gluten in it; so having chocolate milk canceled out any ill feelings.
Bonus: It was really nice to have water, port o potties and silver blankets available at the end of the relay exchange. Again, this was my first relay, so I’m sure this is probably customary. There were also shuttles available to take runners back to the finishers festival (I opted to run back).
Medals and Swag: Another SUPER bright t-shirt, which I’m pumped about. The medal reminds me a lot of the Runner of Steel medal from Pittsburgh. The race sent out a virtual “race bag” email with discounts and such, but there was a nice physical bag given out with packet pick-up.
Great race swag!
Since I ran miles 20-26, I got to see a bunch of different marathoners perspectives and personalities: some looked like they were dying, others smiling and talking to their running mates, another was seemingly video recording her experience by way of the cyclist who kept riding along with her at several places. This one poor girl though was breathing SO HARD at Mile 22 it took everything in me to not tell her to stop and slow down for a minute. But… #notmyrace.
OVERALL The Great: It totally made my day to see my sister and niece cheering. The Good: Since I was waiting around for my relay start, we got to watch the front of the marathon pack and WOOO BOY was it amazing to see them. The Bad: I seriously don’t have anything bad to say about this race! I had a wonderful experience, despite being super nervous and totally Type A about doing my first relay (yes, I printed out the 22-page info booklet). The Ugly: Oh man, the finishers had to CLIMB UP STEPS to get out of the stadium… and that was rather ugly to watch. I also watched someone run to puke, so… great visuals to bring with me when I run my first marathon in a few weeks.
Splits: 10:12 (1) / 9:50 (2) / 9:56 (3) / 9:31 (4) / 10:03 (5) {and the extra 6:08}
Results: Our official team finish time was 4:43:44.
My watch showed a total of 5.63 miles for an average 9:53 pace; total time: 55:40.9
the week:
I hit my 30-day countdown point for my marathon training. I also got my first marathon reminder email this week. So… EEEEEEEEEK.
weekend:
This weekend I’m running the Akron Marathon Relay with a few friends. It’s my first relay, and I’m running leg 3 (the leg with the “hill”), which is 5.5 miles (I also need to run 18 total miles for my long run this week). I’m already experiencing a good amount of anxiety about the race because relay-ing seems so complicated because of its many moving (ahem, running) parts. And how the heck do I get to my starting point? Do I *have* to line up at 7 a.m. with everyone else?
If you’re in Pittsburgh, the Great Race (aka: the Great Big Clusterfuck) is happening on Sunday.
52 books in 52 weeks:
I happened to start two different 400-page books this week, so I’m not finishing anything soon (but both stories are SO GOOD). One is a work of fiction, which I haven’t included in my reading for a while.
seven things, seven days:
1. I started two applications for grad programs, and I have two open houses on my calendar. Highly motivated to start graduate school in early 2016.
2. My new on-site, day-to-day manager is two floors below my current office (no clue if that will eventually change), so I’m getting a lot of stairs in.
3. Reality TV is one of my guilty pleasures, and no matter how much Bachelor in Paradise annoyed me, I still watched and rolled my eyes incessantly. Read: Misattribution in Paradise {via Science of Relationships}
4. Speaking of TV, how do you feel about the season openers of Scandal and How to Get Away With Murder? Me: MEH.
5. How to be mentally tough: lessons from sports psychologists {via Today}
6. What’s the source of success in sports? A great listen from NPR.
7. Not there yet, but almost time to taper (and 11 fears you experience while tapering for a marathon). {via Women’s Running} I legit nearly cried from fear when I read this article.
I have no reason to split out Week 14 since… well, my only run was the Movie Madness Half Marathon. Every other day I was hit by a major struggle bus. I don’t know if that’s a typical point where wannabe-marathoners feel super exhausted and like everything is impossible, but I feel those things.
So, Week 14 — total runs: 1; total miles: 13.1 (those were 13.1 GOOD miles though!)
Week 15 MONDAY: Rest Day
TUESDAY: Didn’t realize that my afternoon meeting was scheduled through 6pm (and I had to walk home), so unfortunately, my scheduled run didn’t happen. I probably could have done a quickie workout at home, but I was so exhausted from traveling over the weekend (and again all the way to the North Hills for a dinner party Monday night) that I fell asleep early. The boyfriend said he pulled my iPad out of my hands and I didn’t even move.
WEDNESDAY: run//yoga//run club with Urban Elements. Tonight we did just shy of 4 miles. No splits. Followed up with some really powerful hot yoga. Body felt pretty good and yoga felt strong.
THURSDAY: Rest Day
FRIDAY: Today was National Run @ Work Day, so I took advantage of the group run that Steel City Road Runners was hosting from Point Park. It was hot, and I was sweaty (for a long time after the run too). But I befriended a couple guys for the five-mile loop, and they kept me motivated to finish at a quicker pace than I anticipated my body would do in the mid-afternoon. It felt good. I might make that part of my work-week schedule (I purchased some scented body sprays this weekend to stash at my desk too).
5.06 miles at average 9:42 pace. Splits: 10:02 / 10:16 / 10:30 / 7:50 (??) / 9:58
SATURDAY: Recovery Day with a massage and facial (and a little retail therapy at the mall).
SUNDAY: I was so glad that I saw someone post a group run from downtown in the SCRR group. While I wasn’t doing the full 20-mile Bridges of Pittsburgh course, I knew that I needed some running camaraderie to get in my 16. I seriously lucked out with this group, who all shared great marathon and training advice — and their own long-run courses and schedules. I’ve been looking for a “tribe” so to speak to keep my training in check, and they really made me feel welcome. I never needed my headphones, and I was able to converse throughout the run. I think I got 12 of the 14 total bridges (I also crossed the 10th Street Bridge off my list!).
Side note: I woke up SUPER early for this run: 4:45am. It was still dark out when I left the house around 6:15, and I had a scary almost-incident with some guy yelling after me in the park by my house. I freaked out (honestly, I was truly scared) and my fight-or-flight response took me quickly back to the house, where I locked up and set the alarm and sat still in the bathroom for 10 minutes. Anyway, I waited for the skies to lighten up a bit (and more signs of life to appear) before I set out to meet the group at the West End Bridge at 7:05 — just in time for the perfect sunrise over Pittsburgh.
I would never have paced this fast if I was alone, but it was really cool to see that my body was totally capable of handling it (until I got a side stitch at Mile 10). I split off from the group at Mile 13 to take the North Shore Trail back home. After showering, I immediately napped for nearly two hours. I felt really, really sore for the remainder of the afternoon (and hungry!), so I spent half an episode of America’s Next Top Model (ha!) stretching and rolling my feet.
the week:
Today is National Run at Work Day, so I’m going to see what it’s like running at my lunch break (and then returning to my desk all sweaty and smelly for the duration of the day). I’ll be certainly putting my sMEL U moniker to the test. I have also already added to my list to use my Bath & Body Works gift card towards some body sprays that I can keep at my desk. Plus, my five miles will be over and out of the way so that I can enjoy my Friday happy hour.
weekend:
I’ll be watching the WFTDA D1 Jacksonville Playoffs and cheering for my former teammates in black n’ gold throughout the weekend. The Steel Hurtin’ have already won their first game this morning and play again at 4pm against the Seed 1 Team (London). NAIL BITING NERVOUS EXCITEMENT.
I am also having a massage and a facial this weekend. Getting there should be fun. And then I’m going out for some retail therapy. #earnedit
Hopefully we get some kind of cool front so that I can have a good 16(ish) mile-run this weekend too. And I guess there’s a football game or something.
52 books in 52 weeks:
#32: So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson — loved, loved, loved this book. I plan to write a lengthier review about it as part of another post. Important take-aways (for me): the shame spreads wider than the person being shamed (often at the person/s doing the shaming); the internet is a gross place; and yet another disparity between men and women. And when the book ended, I wanted more.
seven things, seven days:
1. I ate tomatoes again. In the form of tomato jam on a hamburger because OMG THE KETCHUP CRAVINGS. And I think I might altogether start reintroducing nightshades (or maybe just tomatoes) into my diet again because I feel all right.
2. Had lunch at the new Yard Gastropub Market Square location with my (now former) work team. Gluten-free bread at a grilled cheese place makes me a very happy downtown worker despite all the annoying workplace crap going on. Though I secretly wish Yard could dedicate a fryer so that I could have those sweet potato waffle fries!
3. I have two more cracked teeth in my mouth per my six-month dental check-up. FFS.
4. Favorite read of the week (going to miss this show so much): Psychology lessons from Key and Peele
5. Why do runners get slower with age?Ugh, age. {via NY Times}
6. Like your flextime but also feeling symptoms of burnout? You might not be balancing your job demands, job resources and recovery properly. {via Huffington Post}
7. Why do we compete? {via The Atlantic}
This past weekend was special. My family joined me to celebrate my accomplishment of (finally!) completing my bachelor’s degree. I traveled to the commencement ceremony in Columbus, Ohio because it was important that I acknowledge this achievement in-person. I really wanted the opportunity to savor it — to meet my classmates and those who I worked with in online courses, to meet my senior capstone adviser, to nervous-chatter and laugh (and cry a little), and to really feel proud of myself.
And I did.
This goal was personally important to me, and I had so much support from my partner during the last couple years to return to school and finish. He gave me strength when I had none. He (smartly) did not give me answers when I needed them. At times, this was a serious struggle — especially balancing work and travel and other life responsibilities. And other times, it felt impossible to see it through. All the trips that we took for long weekends, and I had to lug with me a laptop and a few books. Weekends and evenings completely devoted to writing papers and attending class sessions. I gave up volunteering. I retired from roller derby.
My life was one big note tornado.
And it was all worth it. But I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the impact of that stress — up to and including the commencement ceremony. For starters, I never received confirmation of my final grades, possible honor status, and a degree audit… until I had to ask for that information. Nobody from the school provided details about the commencement ceremony, save for a static webpage that told me what time to be there. I received no President’s Letter for my final semester. I never heard from the program chair congratulating me on my completion.
And then my heart broke when I realized that our program’s graduates (and, yes, including me) were completely left out of the program book. I tried my best to not let that bring me down (but you bet your ass I emailed the Registrar’s Office to demand a reprint).
I won’t do too much cheerleading here, but know that if you have a goal like changing careers or going back to school in your 30s: it will seem impossible, and you find yourself continually struggling with the day-to-day and wondering how to juggle life. It is all worth that final moment of walking across the stage and seeing that piece of paper with your name on it. To hear your parents or partner or kids tell you how proud they are too. Don’t ever let your age stop you from making changes in your life.
For the record, I graduated Summa Cum Laude. Yep, that level of dedication was all worth it.
As I’ve written about here several times, I have adopted a gluten-free lifestyle because of some health issues (still, a couple years later, without a lot of answers but at least staying gluten-free keeps my symptoms in check). I am also conscious about gluten in my beauty products — it’s incredible that I haven’t had a single eczema outbreak since I gave up gluten (and remember when I used to get patches on my eyelids???).
And this is where skin care lines like derma e® wonderfully come into my life. derma e® is an entirely gluten-free, vegan, and cruelty-free natural skincare company. After taking an online evaluation, their site suggested products especially for my skin concerns — and are ideal for those of us with skin sensitivities, allergies or the need to use gluten-free products. derma e® also sent me four full-size products to try out based on my evaluation (I mostly have oily skin but concerns about aging — similar to many late 30-something women): a glycolic facial cleanser, dark eye circle creme, purifying youth serum, and a brightening day creme.
While I haven’t had much time yet to use, after a couple days I am already impressed by the quality of these products. Sincerely, I can already tell you how much I love the glycolic cleanser!
To bring some additional awareness to the gluten-free lifestyle, derma e® Natural Skincare is celebrating (an unofficial) Gluten-Free Month this September — AND they’re hosting a pretty sweet giveaway! Between September 16-30, 2015, derma e® will host the #ICANTWHEAT Giveaway. One winner will get a $150 gift certificate to shop at www.dermae.com and 1,000 runners-up will win a derma e® Gluten-Free sampler kit!
Participants can enter to win here: http://bit.ly/1ESe4Oe. derma e will also be offering a 25% discount with the promo code ICANTWHEAT through November 15, 2015.
I encourage you to take the derma e evaluation and learn which products are best for your skin concerns.
Disclosure: I received four full-size products from derma e in exchange for review and promotion of the #ICANTWHEAT campaign. All opinions herein are my own.
After mentally and physically having a rough couple weeks of training, I needed to have some accountability for this past week’s long run. I have also been dealing with weird stomach nervousness and anxiety before I leave for my runs. Since I was traveling to Ohio for graduation, I searched for — and found — a half marathon for early Saturday morning: the Movie Madness Half Marathon in Lewis Center (about 30 minutes from downtown Columbus). My training run called for a total 16 miles, so I planned to do the race at an easy pace then add another three miles to it. But… well, there was a plot twist.
Race Day Selfie. Plot twist was not that dreary sky.
Registration and Cost: Registration was easy and online through Active.com. Since I made my decision a couple days before race day, it cost $59 (plus fees).
Expo and Packet Pick-up: No expo, as this was a super small race. There was race day packet pick, which started an hour before race time. I planned for about half hour before race time and there was no wait. I even had some extra time to relax in the car beforehand.
Bag Check: No bag check, but the state park had PLENTY of available and close parking near the start line.
Weather: When we left the hotel it was about 55 degrees and RAINING. Thankfully (smartly), I packed my rain jacket — so I ran back up to the hotel room to get it. The weather apps all said that the rain would move out of the area by race time (8 a.m.), AND THANK THE WEATHER GODS, it ended up being a beautiful, cool fall-like morning. LOVE.
Course: This “all right turns” course took the scenic route around Alum Creek State Park and its lake.
Map
I liked the course (there were water/snack/Gatorade stops at Mile 3.5-ish, 6, 9, and 11), and there was a relentless climb after Mile 10 as you can see in the elevation below; however, the roads were NOT closed off, so we basically ran in pace lines on the shoulder of all the streets. Mile 10-ish also was the area where the dam is, which I’ve never seen. It was really neat.
Fans and Experience: No fans, and the course was quiet and peaceful (save for passing traffic). I did run with my earbuds and music for the duration of the race. I honestly felt like I was having some sort of spiritual awakening on this run. It was beautiful.
Random Bullshit: Running on the side of the roads, you see the amount of litter that people disgustingly toss out of their cars. I passed at least three dirty diapers. People are just gross. There was also, um… roadkill. I legit had to jump over the carcass of a possum at one point.
Finish Line: There was music playing at the finish line approach, and I sincerely loved hearing my name and time called out when I finished. I played a serious game of mental skill for that last mile. And somehow, my mile 13 split was only 9:37.
Medals and Swag: I like my new pink short-sleeved tech shirt! It’s not race-specific, but has the US Road Running logo on the front. The finisher’s medal is pretty sweet too.
Bonus: Because this was a “Movie Madness” theme, there were several runners dressed in costume. The best of which (and the costume winner) was the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. He was hilarious (and said that he bought the costume the night before and never trained in it).
Double Bonus: Well… I couldn’t run my extra three miles because I GOT A TROPHY AND PLACED 3RD IN MY AGE GROUP!
OVERALL The Great: The realization that I really, REALLY like the half marathon distance. Also, small races are awesome! The Good: I had a pace friend for most of the race, which was awesome. I chatted with her a bit after the race and it seemed like we both needed/used one another. Kinda cool experience. The Bad: I started going into disaster scenario solution mode when Mile 3 didn’t have a water stop (it was about .6 miles after that). But OMG could you imagine?! I was planning in my head the logistics of my boyfriend tossing bottles of water out of the car at random course points for me. LOL The Ugly: Car drivers. I mean, COME ON. If you obviously see a pace line of runners on the side of the road and there is traffic in both directions, SLOW DOWN — don’t speed up just to pass more quickly. I kept my left ear bud out for portions of the race because I was nervous about getting run off the road at a few points.
the week:
This has been a rough week. My job was realigned into a new department, on a new team, and I now also report to a new person. There has been a lot of confusion about how my role is changing for the company, and I’m really trying to be open about embracing those changes. What a lesson in organizational development and change management! I wish I was currently in those i/o-psych classes to tap into the experience a little more. And, maybe… help me process everything.
weekend:
It’s finally here — graduation and commencement! (Are they the same thing? WHO CARES! HOORAY!) I’m looking forward to spending some time with my family and celebrating this accomplishment. But also will be doing a LOT of thinking about my future on this weekend’s 16-mile (!!!) long run (I ended up registering for another half marathon to keep me accountable). I really think that I need that career coach.
52 books in 52 weeks:
I realized this week that I’m *tired* right now of reading self-development/inspirational/how-to books. I need a break and some more reading for fun. Have any good book recommendations? Please leave in the comments! I do prefer non-fiction, so a good memoir or biography that you’ve read would fit my interests.
seven things, seven days:
1. We went out (and subsequently got *smashed*) on a Sunday night when we found out that Howl at the Moon was having a luau because of the holiday weekend. We had a BLAST! Nice change of pace.
2. I’m all for social media, but can we PLEASE stop with the wedding hashtags?
3. Speaking of change, I had some lavender dyed into the “hidden”/underneath part of my hair. YOLO, amirite.
4. Pittsburgh blogger? Sign up for Allegheny Inn’s “Partei Für Blogger” happening next Friday.
5. The heel of my loafers somehow completely fell off on my walk to work on Thursday. Like, seriously life?
6. Performance sportswear gives psychological as well as physical boost
7. A breakdown of research about the role of Vitamin D in athletic performance — something that I’ve long considered is the reason behind all my persistent fatigue and exhaustion (I have extremely low levels of Vitamin D, despite supplementation; and yet, still have no answers as to why).
