spring thaw

The weather is absolutely georgeous!  We had such a long, horrible winter, that when the weather started warming up I thought it was a fluke.  I have honestly been waiting for more snowfall, but now that it has been 3 weeks of warm weather, I am beginning to think that maybe it is here to stay.  I guess it is the middle of April.  Hello, Spring!

I am not the only one that has been having trouble with this concept.  As you know, my running buddies and I are pretty hardcore outside runners.  We ran outside all through the winter, most times in subzero temperatures.  I don't care how many layers you put on, or how fast or far you run...it is still cold.  Of course, we also meet at 5:30 - 6:00am to run, so it is dark, as well.  Yesterday my friend, Karen, and I met for a 5 mile run at 6am, and it was 65 degrees outside! at 6am!  I was so excited to wear shorts and a tank...it was great!  Karen showed up wearing two pears of pants and three shirts.  She told me I was crazy to wear shorts and wondered if I would freeze.  In 60 degree weather.  Ah...no.  I was fine.  Karen was a sweaty, hot mess by the time we finished our 5.  I hope she learned her lesson! 

Just a quick reminder to drink lots of water as the temps start climbing.  It just makes you feel better, and it helps your skin, hair, and just about everything else.  I drink bottled water during the day. It is easier for me to remember to hydrate, plus it is easy when I am on the go (which is pretty much all the time). 

How do you make sure you get enough water in your day?

pre-run fun

Saturdays are the longest running days of my week.  That means that Friday is a complete carb-loading, calorie consuming day for me.  Since my family is not running the marathon with me, they don't want to have to eat like they are, so this can cause problems for us at dinner.  This past week, my running buddies decided it would be fun to get together and have dinner together on Friday night, so we all make sure we are getting what we need to have a great run the next day. 

Jayme had us all over for grilled Alaskan salmon.  Yummy.  I made a pasta dish that had grape tomatoes, red onion, basil, EVOO, lemon juice, sea salt, and pepper. Karen brought a spinach and almond salad.  It was so yummy!  It is sad, but usually the only time we see each other is during our runs, and then it is different.  Friday, we all had our kiddos with us, and, even though the husbands got the night off (they have to watch the kids during our long runs, so we figured it was only fair), it felt really great to get together socially.  I even took a bottle of wine (which is kind of a no-no, but we had only a little bit and lots of water), and it was a nice switch to guzzling down water in the middle of nowhere!

We ate, had a great time, and went home early to rest up for our big run, which was fun.  The wind was not a huge factor, which is amazing in South Dakota, and it was sunny and warm.  One thing that we had been struggling with during our Saturday runs was hydration, so we all decided to get a hydration belt for Saturdays.  I chose the Nathan Speed 2 hydration belt, and am glad I did, because it was a great belt.  I was worried that the water would feel heavy and bouncy, but this belt fit very snugly, and so it hardly bounced and did not rub whatsoever.  Plus, I drank more water than I normally had been drinking, which helped me recover during the particulary rough patches. 

I have to say that there is a real art to drinking and running, and I am afraid I am not very good at it yet.  How do you get enough water on a really long run?

One thing that I noticed this week was that I got a rub spot on the bottom of one of my feet. This is the first time it has happened, and I can see from this weekend how it would have been a real issue by mile 26.  I am going to try to find some sort of possible remedies for this.  I read a post on fitbottomedgirls.com that said Aquaphor is great for this, so I might try it this week to see how it feels.  I am not sure about running with greasy feet, but running with the rub spot was no picnic.

This week is a taper week, but then we are running the big 20. It will be the longest run before the race, and my longest run to date. I am both excited and scared, but know that with my buddies, I can make it through.

We made that run our b*tch

2:07.  I ran 15.25 miles on Saturday, and it was great.  I completely shattered my half-marathon time, and we even finished the last two miles at a 7:30 pace. There is something liberating about running to a different town.  It is an amazing feeling to be able to tell people at the gas station that you just ran from another zip code to here.  They look at you like you are crazy.  But I kind of think they are crazy for not wanting to do it, themselves.  Let me walk you through my morning.

I woke up at 6am, because our run was at 8 and I wanted to have some coffee and breakfast and give it a chance to settle before the run.  Breakfast this morning was granola and milk.  Have you tried Feed granola before? It is organic, packed with good stuff, and really sticks with you.  I figured I was going to need something substantial for a 15 mile run. I also threw back about three glasses of water, just to stay hydrated.

I played with my Swiggies a bit, but I don't think I am going to wear them.  They are a little ridiculous, and uncomfortable when filled with water, as they do bounce.  Then it was off to meet the girls.

Although there were originally 6 of us, one lady canceled because her kids had a basketball tournament. The remaining 5 of us met, and we were ready to go! Rachel is our resident 20 year-old, and she is as cute as can be.  She told all her friends that she was, "running with the moms today."  Too funny.  She can run forever.

Carol is an experienced marathoner and tri-athlete.  When we met at 8, she had already run 7 miles.  Because 15 is for beginners, I guess.  She is my new idol. Talk about strong.  Amazing.

Here's me!  The sun is shining on me right now, but don't let that fool you.  It was windy and cold.  If you have ever been to the Midwest, you know that it is always windy.  This time of year it can be really difficult to run in.  Fortunately for us, the wind was either blowing across us or was at our backs the whole time, so it was okay.  If we had run the other way the run would have been completely different.  It's also difficult to know how to dress on days like this.  Today I have a tank, long-sleeved wicking shirt, another long-sleeved layer, and my fleece.  It was, arguably, one too many layers, but I just hate being cold. Also notice that my clothes are all too big for me.  I have dropped a few pounds since starting training, and I have no good winter stuff.  I'm hoping to fix that with end of the season sales!

Once everyone felt ready, we were off.  You can click the link for our route.
It was a really smooth, fun, easy run.  We averaged between 8:20 and 8:40 pace, and just visited the whole time.  We only had one water stop, at mile ten, and I don't think it was enough.  I was pretty thirsty starting about mile 6, so next time will definitely drop more water.  Jayme's dad was kind enough to drop the water for us, and he just kept patroling the road, most likely making sure none of us passed out or got hit by a car.  The second half of the run was much quieter than the first, since we were all a bit fatigued and just kind of got in "the zone."  I ate almost a whole bag of Sport Beans, since I was kind of wilting after mile 11, and they helped keep me strong. Before long, we all could see the bridge that signaled the finish line, and so I pushed the last two miles in.  I always like to push at the end, and fortunately these ladies don't mind it.  Jayme and I will often race a bit, although she is usually faster and beats me by a few seconds.  I love it, though.

Once we finished, we walked a bit and stretched, then loaded up in Jayme's Dad's truck to head back to our cars.  This is Karen, Jayme, and I.  Don't we look great?  The only thing that made me mad was that my Ipod locked up on me, so the run did not register on Nike+.  This is the third long run that this has happened to me, and it infuriates me beyond words.  I am going to try to figure out what is happening.

This was kind of a tough run for me mentally, and now that I dominated it, I am no longer as scared about the marathon.  Saturday I have to run 16 miles. I know I can do it.  And, I get a new PR!  

As for the Swiggies...my boys love them. Maybe I'll try them on a short run sometime.