Marathon Mom

Where to begin? Sorry about the silence over the past months but so much has been happening both in running and life so I will make this multi-part and start with the run part (since this is a running blog!). I guess I should start with a quick wrap up of my last races that I never talked about... The Halfs of August I think I left off with my 5K in August but then I went back to higher distance... Mora  I raced this hilly course a few years ago, missing a top 3 finish by a couple minutes and it has been my goal to get a clock. The top 3 overall finishers get handmade replicas of the big city clock, how cool is that? The weather was good, not too hot but still a little humid. We lined up and I took off behind a couple women and managed to hang in 2nd for about 10 miles but then I was passed by a smart runner who kept her speed. I ran with the goal of overtaking her but never got the chance and ended up in 3rd OA 2nd AG and got my clock! 1:38:30 (not my best but I'll take it...

This past Saturday was a local 3.7 mile race, it runs 1 loop around a lake giving it the weird distance. I have run this 2 or 3 times in the past, most recently 4 years ago when I finished 2nd in my AG with a time of 28:00. I rarely race anything under a half marathon. Let's be honest, I hate the feeling of pushing so hard you hurt! I'd rather suffer to a little less extent for a longer time! Earlier in the week the weather was perfect for running, 60s and cloudy, but come Saturday the heat wave returned, hot humid ad heat index reaching 100+, yuck! Friday evening Cooper startled when someone came to the door and used my foot/ankle as a launching pad resulting in multiple scratches and a deeper cut right on the top of my foot where my laces hit! I had no idea if this would cause me pain to run. We got there with a little time to spare, I took an easy warm up run to adjust the laces to not rub then met up with some MRTT friends. We complained about the heat and got ready to ...

Well, Grandma's was to be my replacement marathon for being sick right before Flying Pig and not being able to race. Coach Nichole and I decided to give it another shot since I was recovered quick after Pig and ready to race. I was lucky enough to find a last minute hotel and a friend wanting to share Friday night. After a week + pf tracking weather that looked perfect, tailwind, highs of 60, cloudy, it all changed! We got up early to ride to the start. Since Grandma's is a point to point course they bus to the start. I waited in a nice long porta-potty line as I drank my UCAN and shed my top layer of clothes. It was lightly sprinkling and a little cool, perfect! After dropping my bag I weaved my way through the crowds to get between the 3:35 and 3:25 pacers (no 3:30 pacer). The DJ played "Let's Go Crazy" and I had a great feeling, I was ready. That is my song, not only am I a huge Prince fan but on the bus to Boston the year I PR'd that song was playing. ...

The short and not so sweet...After being sick Thursday and Friday and not eating well at all I questioned what I'd be able to accomplish. Finally Saturday I was eating better but could tell I had calories and hydration to make up. Terrible timing before a race!  I was hoping for the best but knew plans might not go as we hoped. Friday dinner: Vegan and GF burgers! My brief picture filled recap... We had a fun weekend, dinner with friends, a little exploring Cincinnati, good food, relaxing! Saturday I hit the expo and quickly grabbed my gear and bought some Bondi Bands  (10% off through that link!) for O and I. We then headed for some lunch and time to relax before making dinner. Sunday was an early start, 6:30am! We headed over to the start bundled up and trying to stay warm. I got in my corral with minimal time to spare and the goal of not going out too fast. Success! First miles 8-8:10s, yay! I knew the hills would slow me but wasn't sure what I could manage. I...

Hi, did you miss me? Well a lot has been happening in my world both running and nonrunning but I will slowly share that as I am back to regular writing. I have been meaning to share a quick recap of what I am considering my first real race back after too much injury. So here goes... The Good Over the past 2 months I have done a couple races with decent finish times but both had been as part of my 19-20 mile long runs so not what I consider a race. Anyone who has followed me knows my struggle with hamstring injury since about 2013 and then weird knee issues since 2015 that compounded everything. Well (knock on wood) I think we are beyond this all thanks to my great doctors, PT and their work in fixing all that was wrong. Coach Nichole was running this half and thought it would fit well into my training plan so why not. Although part of me didn't want to race, mentally I couldn't do another bad race but if it went well I would have that hurdle accomplished. It started late s...

After a rough September I was thrilled that I was able to bet to the start line of TCM but part of me was panicking inside with all the what ifs of missed training. My final "long run" of training went great, I headed out for 8 but met a friend with 1 mile left and ran 10, oops. I figured after missing my last 9 mile tempo I could handle this. Two days before marathon day Nichole and I talked strategy and I was convinced to try a new approach instead of my crash and burn marathons of the past. Our plan was to start with 3:35 pacer and run 8:10s until mile 5-6 then creep down to 8:00 pace and slowly ease into 7:50s. My nutrition plan was in place, Nichole was meeting me around mile 12-13 with UCAN and we had high hopes for the day. I spent Saturday working at the expo with UCAN, sharing this great product with other runners, chatting with friends and then relaxing. This was the coolest weekend we've had in months so clothing was a huge decision and debated for hours un...

Sorry I left things abrupt with my pre-race posting and then nothing... We arrived in Chicago early on Friday and despite the instructions to rest my legs we walked all over! By the end of the day nearly 30,000 steps and over 12 miles! All without any attempt at a workout, oops! We hit the expo, picked up a new pair of ProCompression socks (that I wore for the 5K), had lunch, walked around and tried to relax. Dinner out at Frontera for Matt's birthday and then an early night to sleep. We were staying just across the park from race start so I got up and ran an easy mile before lining up to race the 5K. The plan for race and see what was left for the half. It was hot even at 6:30 am. I made a point to line up a few rows back thinking this would prevent going out too fast. We were off and soon there were walkers! The first mile was on road then we turned on the Lakefront path before turning towards the finish... The finish was just around the corner, road was less than ideal fo...

6 years ago when O was just over 5 months old we ran this for the first time, it was the first year they held the 4th of July race and we've gone back every year! I think the group is down to about 100 who have run every year. Once again we were up and read for an early start to the 4th! This year it was rough, after a long day of working outside we were exhausted and didn't sleep well. As we headed down I drank my usual UCAN cinnamon and vanilla mixture about 30 min prior then stood in the long line for the bathrooms! It was s quite start since it is residential and so early, but we were off. A new course from previous years. I started out where I wanted to be but quickly realized I had nothing! I wanted to find a comfy spot and go back to sleep. My body was tired, my breathing tough and despite cooler temps I was warm. My initial goal was 7:30 pace but after a few miles I decided to just aim for sub 8s. For some reason this race has always been tough for me, even the year...

As a runner what else would a mom want to do on Mother's Day but run?! To make it even better that race stared at 9:15 (Kid's run at 9am) and was close to home meaning I actually got to sleep in for once. Thanks to the later start I got up, ate breakfast, relaxed and drank coffee before getting ready. Before leaving I grabbed my latest concoction: UCAN Blondie (a cookie dough like mix of chickpeas, UCAN Cinnamon, UCAN Vanilla and Almond Butter). We got there early, grabbed our swag and shirts and relaxed until race start. The Kid's 1K headed out first. O lined up near the front with a big smile. The race was open to 10 and under so she was one of the younger kids but stayed right with the older ones! Go O! I grabbed a picture of O running by and did my own little warm up while I waited for her to finish and my race to start. A little disorganized as they gathered the 5K. I tried to get my spot near the front as I looked around and saw younger kids, strollers and plen...

After a rough patch of over two years of hamstring injury NOLA was to be my first real comeback race. I had high hopes even through being sick with what I'm sure was the flu making me miss my last couple big weeks of training. Come race weekend despite travel I still had these hopes. Saturday we walked a lot and hit the expo (in the end walked over 7 miles on Saturday, yikes!) Grabbed lunch at this hole in the wall place that served me a mixing bowl size salad that was amazing! We hit the grocery store for my required sweet potato before our team meeting. The team I coached was running the half while I ran the marathon to support CCFA! After eating my sweet potato for snack we headed to the team dinner, GF pasta and salad. But why? I never eat this prerace, again not following my own advice! My Team! Sunday morning came with a later than usual wake up thanks to staying 2 blocks from the start. I ate, rolled and dealt with GI issues (thanks to eating out and I'm sure gett...

Well I did it, the thing that 5 months ago, I was told to rethink. On July 1st I was cleared to start running after almost 2 months of intense therapy and nitroglycerin for my hamstring. Training was less than ideal for me but was focused on regaining endurance. I did no speed work, I just ran 3-4 days a week at a pace that felt good but I focused on strength training and cross training while working 50 hours a week and finishing grad school! So glad that is done! With all that I was saying I'm never running a fall marathon again. Saturday was the family events. O ran the 1 mile and had a blast! Then we headed for a quick run through the expo before I worked at the UCAN booth for a few hours. So much fun to share info about my favorite fuel.  Sunday the big day! O slept at my parents' yet somehow we got a late start, we got there, I threw my bag in the bag check just in time for the national anthem. No time to walk the 1/4 mile to pee! Oops :( So instead I get m...

2 weeks ago (sorry for the delay!) I ran my 4th Ragnar with an awesome group of running friends, most new to Ragnar! We headed down on Thursday evening, van packed and excited for our adventure. I was so happy that they added Thursday night pick up and safety training which allowed us extra sleep on Friday. We checked in on Thursday night to find the hotel room with 2 beds and a sofa sleeper really didn't exist! Instead offered 2 double beds or a king bed and couch, we opted for the first and had a pretty packed room with 6! Oh well it was more comfortable than any sleeping we'd find for the next 48 hours! Ready to go... Friday morning we were off with runner 1 at 7:00... Waiting for Runner 1! I was runner so plenty of time for coffee, food and the weather to get even hotter! I took off around noon and already the temperature was in low 90s with heat index near 100! Yuck, combine this with no shade after mile 2 and asphalt and it was rough. I took off in the shade...