My First Marathon (x2)

Confession: I usually just do my Christmas list as an Amazon wish list because the "add to Amazon wish list" button in Chrome is so darn convenient...but lately not everything is adding correctly. Also, just doing it as my gift wish doesn't share my favorite things with everyone, so here goes (I actually have these things already) Running Headsweats visors ( http://www.headsweats.com/categories/our-products/performance-visors/ ) RunLites ( https://store.gorunlites.com/Products/RunLites-Sling-II-Lights-sold-separately-One-Size-Fits-Most__316U2-OS.aspx  and  https://store.gorunlites.com/Products/RunLites-LED-Lights-(v2)__V2-prd-1B.aspx ) Saucony Bullet capris ( http://www.saucony.com/en/bullet-capri/12406W.html?dwvar_12406W_color=SA81682-BK#cgid=womens-apparel&start=1 ) Feetures no show with tab ultra light socks ( https://feeturesrunning.com/product/elite-ultra-light-no-show-tab ) 361 Sensation 2 shoes ( https://www.361usa.com/womensrunning/361-sensation-2

I haven't been writing much for my personal blog since becoming a contributor to Salty Running , but I should do a Chicago Marathon race report here. The primary goal was to finish the Chicago Marathon. To redeem 2014, and to finish a World Major Marathon. Spoiler alert, that happened. The secondary goal, the one that has been around for a while, was to break 5:30. Alas, that did not happen. I still struggle with the idea that a 2:22 half marathoner can't manage to find sub-5:30, but it will come. I am not sub-5:30 YET. This year has been weird. The temperatures through the "summer months" were mild and we thought we had dodged a hot year. Labor Day weekend was so chilly that they almost didn't keep the outdoor pool open. And then "fall" arrived and so did the heat. I made my way through two toasty 20-milers and a flaming hot half marathon. On the first 20-miler I managed to get second-degree burns under my arms. Which meant the next weekend I

Life has never given me lemons. Lemonade for Arnold Palmer's would be lovely. Sometimes life gives me turds...and you can only polish a turd so much (in the words of my financial adviser Paul Daniels). This block had some turds, not all running, but that affected running. Week 1 Monday run - oops, still haven't turned auto lap back on and forgot to manual split the Garmin. Good thing this was an easy run and there were limited expectations. Tuesday - 800 repeats. On the track. I hate the track. I feel...exposed...and I never get it right anyway. Wednesday - had to circle swim in the pool, but since it was in the 50m it was less annoying than in a 25 yd. Bike ride with the Endurance House group and I led the C group since I am not really directionally challenged and am on the faster end of that group. Thursday - ran a light progression run at Shadyside Park in Anderson after some work meetings.Practice goal was to focus on what it felt like to run in an unfamiliar place

Sooner or later, as a runner, you are likely to ask yourself "Do I need a coach?" If you're like me there are about 100 other questions that follow: I've never had a coach, what's that like? What does it cost? Do coaches even work with people like me (whatever that means for you)? and dozens more... So let's pick this apart with a bit of research... 1. Coach vs training plan A training plan is a schedule of workouts that will get you to a specific distance race. Some are very generic for 5K, 10K, half marathon, or marathon and don't really account for where you are starting from. Others may differentiate between level of experience, include some level of specificity for the workouts (quality vs easy vs tempo vs long), or vary between the number of days of running per week (from 3 to 7). Some will be geared for a Saturday goal race and some Sunday. Some have long runs on Saturday, some on Sunday.  Some use minutes and some use miles. Some a

How much of your race would you say is mental? How much time to you spend training? How much time do you spend training your mind? Mic drop. So about three weeks ago I started the intentional work of mental training. When the sports psychologist asked the first two questions I had answers...and then I had nothing...I could try to quantify how much time I spent mentally beating myself up...but in terms of working on the mental part of the sport...I got nothing. And by working on the mental part of the sport I don't mean meme turds (read The Brave Athlete: Calm the Fuck Down)... So I am doing that - and continuing the physical training. First week post race is recovery. I tried harder to be better at recovery this time. Then came the switch to marathon training.  Running on Monday and having a second quality run on Thursday were sure signs that tri season is over and it's time to get serious about Chicago. Monday I ran before work...I won't call it "

I have been MIA for longer than usual this time...to be honest I just wasn't feeling great about a lot of things after the 100 mile tri and I needed to get out of my own head and out of my own way. After the recovery week I had a solid week of training and did some things as I normally do and some a little different. I had a progression run at the group run, but it was different than the group workout and I was fine. I went for a group ride with Endurance House. I had my first flat in a really long time and that was embarrassing and frustrating. I did a morning solo brick. Ran a super humid 12 that I wasn't super proud of, but got it done. Rode 40 with lots of hills at Eagle Creek, including a little thunderstorm. The second week I swam and lifted on Monday. Tuesday I went to the group run for the hill circuit and I had a panic attack on the warm up...that I totally didn't belong running with this group and I should stop pretending to be an athlete. I pulled it back tog

I suck at recovery.  This is not news.  It's not even how I feel.  By now it is fact.  I am really, really bad at it.  Other people know I am bad at it: Because you do not like lack of structure during recovery weeks, I have posted workouts. But please feel free to take the week off to recover and get psyched for the rest of the season. - ME That's the professional way of saying that I suck at recovery. Sunday I went to the gym and sat on a spin bike for 30 minutes and covered about 12K with a tiny bit of increasing effort in the middle.  I went to yin yoga for an hour.  Yes, I have a couch...it's even in front of a 65" TV...but I needed to move a little and then stretch a bit. Monday I didn't go to OWS (open water swim for non-tri dorks) but I did go to a slow flow yoga class.  Of course the Loft/Phoneix crew was outside getting ready for their ride when I skulked into Kompose...I don't know why that whole situation still makes me feel weird, but it do

I don't remember when exactly ME first floated the idea of a 3/4 Ironman distance training race, but I do know it was on tap by the end of last year's review/2017 planning.  We picked a date between Grand Rapids 70.3 and Steelhead 70.3, which happened to be last Saturday - which is consistent with me doing an event intended to try to kill me right before my birthday (RAIN, Muncie 70.3, and Muskoka 70.3 are recent examples). I got my personal support team of Tom and Trena on board early.  I would need them to help me plan and get through the day and they were enthusiastically on board.  David was slated to ride the first lap of the ride and run point for the day...which eventually got reshuffled a tiny bit with the realization that NITE Ride in Indy was that night and he loves riding it.  Plan A was for Ft. Ben to be the venue, but in reality it is hillier than necessary out there so we moved it to Carmel (Monon Center). I had visited Lindsay to work through extending my 70.

This one seems a bit short because there's been the race report and the recovery video report, but... After the race we drove home from Grand Rapids on Monday and I had a 90 minute massage, which was wonderful.  Tuesday I ran an easy 4 while the PBT crew was on the track.  I wandered off the Monon and ended up getting deeper into a neighborhood than planned and had to walk quite a bit after I shut down the run when I was supposed to.  Wednesday was TRX and then pool time with my swim coach for the first time in a while.  I feel like my stroke is still a giant mess, but I continue working on it.  Thursday I went for an easy ride - which was also the first ride (maybe this year) without wind.  Friday I had a successful "ride the bull" swim, but it was the "easy setting" version of the bull ride.  Saturday I rode 20 miles with David, Swati, and Matt R then went to a sun salutations workshop at Kompose.  Oh!  I got new wheels for the bike!  I did it and bought Zip

I've never done a video entry before and I'm not super savvy with any of it, but here's a video update on this week's recovery from Sunday's 70.3.

Sunday (6/11) was my third 70.3 and the first time I did a 70.3 that was not Ironman branded.  I love the Grand Rapids tri (I did the Olympic last year) so I felt comfortable doing a non-branded race.  It is also the USAT Athena/Clydesdale championship race and so that is appealing since there is special attention to detail for the national champion athletes. David and I drove up to Grand Rapids/Ada on Saturday after I did a little shakeout brick at home, showered, and loaded the car.  We stopped at Fiddler's Hearth in South Bend for lunch on the way up since I hadn't been to SB in a while and I love that place.  I talked to coach Matt about the race on the way up and then we went to packet pickup at the Amway Spaulding campus.  I weighed in, got my packet, and we headed to the hotel.  We found a great restaurant called the Twisted Rooster for dinner and I had pork lollipops for dinner...so amazing.  We also split a gluten free chocolate cake/mousse/cinnamon whipped cream ama

The Grand Rapids half Ironman distance race (1.2 mi swim, 56 mile ride, 13.1 mile run) is in a week.  I am trying to be positive and working though impostor syndrome, but I will get right in the head this week. The past three weeks recap: M: uninspired swim and lifting T: quality work.  Ran it hard, which I needed mentally but probably didn't help physically. W: Rode before hanging out at the track.  Felt good.  Rode hard.  Evening swim was uninspired. T: Death slog run in the morning.  It was humid and my legs were cooked.  I took it off life support at 30 min.  Went to yoga in the evening and that helped. F: swim. S: Paced Geist half marathon.  Right on 12:30 pace.  Had fun.  Weather was the best we've had for Geist.  Amazed I could run and keep on pace after Thursday when I wasn't sure what was up. S: 50 mile ride.  Tested the new aerobars but they weren't fitted yet.  There was wind.  That has been the theme this spring. Went to yin yoga. M: Lifted and th

Three weeks ago my finish at Carmel was good and I was excited about TourdeLOU, my trip to NYC coming up and the start of tri season. Week 1 Monday: swim 2350 Tuesday: easy 6 run Wednesday: 2200 swim, 24.2 mile ride (progression)...well, until the wind shifted anyway, then more effort with less speed Thursday: bike commute (~9.5 mi each way), and TRX Friday: swim 2200 Saturday: I finally scheduled things too tight to make a run (especially a long run) work.  But I was at the ordination/consecration of the 11th bishop of Indianapolis, so it was cool. Sunday: TourdeLOU 100K ride with David.  Lots of wind, a little rain, lots of cray people. Week 2 Monday: Warm up to lift, lifting by myself at the Y, cool down. Tuesday: AM predator run (7 miles total) since I was working in the evening Wednesday: 2200 yard swim, 17.5 mile ride on the trainer (thanks cold rain) Thursday: 13.7 mi trainer ride (thanks rain) and TRX Friday: switched long run since I was headed to NYC.  8 so

Late last year I decided that David and I would ride the metric century (100K/62 miles) at the TourdeLOU that is part of the Kentucky Derby Festival.  I thought it would be a good way to start riding around Louisville some.  But with the weather this spring, April 30th came pretty quick as far as outdoor riding goes.  Pretty sure 37 miles on Easter was the farthest either of us had ridden in a single ride this year.  We both got some good wind training on Wednesday as David was out on City Loop with Phoenix and I was on a solo ride from Westfield to Sheridan and back when the wind associated with a storm front rolled in. The weekend was pretty full with the Ordination and Consecration of the 11th (Episcopal) Bishop of Indianapolis on Saturday and I was serving in one of the processions, so I needed to be there pretty early.  But with the storms Saturday morning (noticing a theme?) and the Y not opening until 7 to treadmill run I thought I would be able to get my run in later...but I

Somewhere in this block we went from cool and windy/raining to unseasonably warm...sometimes with wind (or rain).  In any case, it was time for me to break out tank tops and have Blake at Runners Forum get me this: I think I might have enough for the season.  But at least one is hanging out in my emergency race kit in my car.  It's also good for when you're wearing boy shorts under a dress :D. Anyway, the log: 3/27: 2400 yd swim 3/28: 6 miles moderate (30 sec per mi faster than easy) run 3/29: 2150 yd swim and some killer 5/10/15/10/5 bike intervals where I died 3/30: 9.5 my bike trainer ride that felt awful and strength for athletes where I discovered my TFL 3/31: 2500 yd swim 4/1: 12 mile run with a fast finish.  The inner monologue was amusing, but it got it done.  Yoga for runners too.  First time at Kompose with Toni and I like it. 4/2: 27 mi ride at Crown Hill - 12 min intervals with Swati and David chasing me.  Also lifted with Shannon. 4/3: