The Not Really a Race Race Report

As you might recall from yesterday's clifnotes post, our family weekend was a busy one.  It came on the heels of several very full weekends.  Although I knew we had several activities planned with the kids I was actually looking forward to getting to relax, put my feet up and let go of some of the stress of the hectic schedule.

However when the kids and I arrive in VA it wasn't long before Hubbs told me that he had registered us for a 5k, aka the least favorite distance for Shelly to run let alone race ever!

I am no longer 20 something.  It hurts to run fast and not in that "I've been running for 10 hours" good kind of hurt way that I currently love.  Running fast hurts.  Running fast makes me feel like I am going to puke.  And I promised myself a long time ago the puking was something I wasn't going to do anymore*.  But in light of my Hubbs new found desire to run and race a little more I cheerfully agreed that it sounded like a great way to start our Fourth of July day.

while secretly starting to worry about what kind of paces I could hit

The morning of the Fourth I was up early doing all the normal pre-race things.  We were ready to go in plenty of time.  Hubbs even had time and energy to be the one to start the trash texting with his guy friends who would also be running. 

We arrived for the Kiwanis Independence Day 5k sponsored by the Charlottesville Track Club and picked up our bibs and T-shirts.  Then joined Hubbs friends for a little pre-race discussion of the other runners race plans.  While we were talking another friend, D shows up.  D is running late and quickly goes to get his bib.  The next time I see him he has a year old-ish baby in a jogging stroller and is standing near the back of the pack.  The group of guys are saying how D is really getting back into shape and is really working hard.  I figure that his wife probably had to work and he figured he would get in a little supported 5k run in with his daughter. 

I tell Hubbs I'm going to offer to push the baby so he can race with the guys.  Hubbs thinks that a great idea.  I sprint off to ask D if he'd rather race with his friends.  After several offers D seems very interested in being able to race and I'm rather okay with pushing the jogger since I do it all the time anyway.

But then....

The WIFE

I see a lady walking towards us and she seems concerned as I have my hands on the jogging stroller. 

Oh snap!

Seems D's wife isn't working, she is working on learning to run and preparing for a September 4 miler.  This is to be her first race EVER.  Okay I'm cool with running with the jogger but she isn't inclined to allow me to do that without her.  Although D is now eager to get to the front of the pack. 

Now I enjoy helping others reach new goals.  I was a trainer for years after all.  So I assure the wife that she can set the pace and I will just stay with her.  Finally she's okay.

RACE VIRGINS

After so many years of running you forget all those little things you learned and race habits you picked up along the way until you race with someone who has never.ever.raced.  When the "gun" went off she didn't move.  When there was a person in front of her she didn't go around.  Once I got her moving and away from the pack, she fell into a steady pace with really good form.  Race virgins don't realize that without a garmin they are very likely to be pulled along with the other runners causing them to run a faster pace.  I did do most of the talking but when I picked up the pace the slightest bit she responded without her form decaying at all.

FIRST MILE

Our first mile was 10:20.  I swear a minute and a half was spent standing behind the start line.  But I digress.  The Wife is breathing hard now but it is very hot and humid.  I ask her how that pace is for a mile.  A PR?  She says it's very fast!  I am praising her up on side and down the other.  She is not as happy.  I ask if she needs a walk break knowing she had said she might not be running the entire race.  She says no.  Her form is great so I do what any supporter would do....

...I start running a stride or two in front of her.  Now remember I'm pushing the baby not her.  She keeps pace with me.  I frequently check in with how she is feeling. 

WATER STOP

aka Get the F away from me

That is the most accurate way of describing how the wife was looking at me when we reached the bottom of a hill and the water stop at about 1 3/4miles.  Even though I assured her we could walk she was adamant that I go on without her.  We had seen my husband as we come down the hill to the water stop and she encouraged me to try and catch him on the return trip.  She had had enough cheerleader Shelly.
CATCHING UP
I thought there might be an outside chance I could catch Hubbs.  And we all know I didn't really want him to beat me anyway...stroller or no stroller!  So I was off on a sprint to catch him.  Let me just say, not everyone knows what you mean when you say, Left, Left, On your Left, Passing Left.....10 dozen times.  It was really fun to feel so fast as I passed people but a bit humbling when I saw how many young kids were out running the 5k.  A few of them were not very happy that I was passing them. 
Every blue shirt I saw I would sprint to only to see it wasn't him.  I passed D and paused to explain that the wife had nicely asked me to go on without her.  I wasn't happy to see him double back (he was so close to finishing, now I really feel bad!) but he assured me that she had run far more of the race with me than she had planned on running anyway.  What a great husband.  Off I went one more blue shirt.  Could it be? 
Unfortunately it wasn't and I ran out of race course.  See why I do longer races?
Hubbs had finished and was walking back from the finish shoot to meet me.  So after a 10:20 first mile and a 10:40 second mile (that's where the wife and I walked at the end) I finished a 5k in 29 minutes, a Personal Worst.
LESSONS LEARNED
Since I didn't race until the last mile or so I can't really count this as a race so I won't beat myself up.  I will have a list of take aways from this experience and will share those in my next post. 
I'll leave you with one final thought, some times we grow the most when we've performed at our least.

* yes there is a whole story behind that comment.  I'm sure you can figure it out.  If not and you are interested feel free to email me.  I'd be happy to share my story.

Three Things Thursday - R is for Remember

Our holiday weekend was so packed with fun.  I have to give you the Clifnotes version.

Or you'd probably stop reading half way through.

RAN

I ran.  and ran.  and ran.  and ran a race.

It's a 5k to remember.

details later.

REMEMBERED

We went to Ash lawn Highland which is the home of James Monroe.

We made candles and sweat. 

We made lanterns and paper hats and learned to dance and embored a flower and sweat..

We took the tour.

We hugged a tree

We made great memories.

We made soap which we'd need later from all the sweating.

RAIN

We watched fireworks in the rain.

Even wet they were amazing!

We will remember 2011 as the year we watched them in the rain.

sometimes you just shake your head

I had this whole long great recap of my big Fourth of July Holiday Weekend planned for you today BUT sometimes things happen that you just have to share.

Army Son aka Gamer Son was home alone.  That should have been my first concern. 

Then the majority of the work day goes by and I haven't heard from him all day.  That should have been clue number two.

When the phone finally rings at work, I am on another important call and can't take it right away. 

The message:  It's your son.  You might need to go home right away. 

Being the calm cool collected person I am, I dial my home number and wait while it rings.

"hello?"

"Hi Gamer Son.  I got a message from you.  I need to come home?"

"Yeah well.  Ummm.  I was burning  boxesandIwentinsideforaquickdrinkandsmelledsmokeandtheyardwasonfirebutitdidn'tgetintotheshedIcheckedit!"

breathe.breathe.breathe.

"Gamer Son.  So you had boxes you just had to burn unattended on one of the driest and hottest days of the year?  And you caught the backyard and maybe the shed on fire?  Is that right?"

"It's no big deal!  It's not that bad!  I just wanted to tell you now before you got home and freaked out." 

Sometimes you just shake your head....and go for a run.

Off to remove all incendiary devices from my home.  I recommend you do the same.

Any Better Tricks?

I know ya'all are just dying to read about my action packed weekend.  And to see three hundred random blurry photos of all that fun however I am the sheer definition of whatever it is that lay beyond freaking tired so you will have to hold your horses and wait until tomorrow for me to get all that greatest organized.

In the meantime, I wanted to talked about something I will be dealing with today.

Staying awake

Normally I can suck it up with the best of them.  I have an almost 3 year old who still doesn't always sleep in his own bed or all night long and is having separation issues with my boobs nursing so having to get the kids ready and head off to work each day when I'd really rather not is nothing new.  I used to having getting to do it all by myself 95% of the time with my Hubbs not with us during the week. 

But we just came back for the third weekend of not getting home until dawn of the next day much later than we should.  I'm not looking for sympathy here.  I knew our summer activities would be hectic and I am the one who mostly sets the schedule so I made my bed, right?! 

What I will struggle with today is the how to stay awake and productive when I put myself in these situations and still have to work outside the home.

If I was a stay-at-home mommy I dream that I could just sleep in and nap as needed.  I know that isn't always the case either!

When I was frantically grabbing food to bring to work this morning I don't leave my office and take a lunch break of course we just returned home so fresh fruit and healthier options were scarce not like I would have grabbed them anyway.  What I did grab was a pbj on toast and a big cup of coffee and I now wish it was an even BIGGER cup of coffee.  I also grabbed a cinnamon crunch bagel from Panera Bread, pine nut hummus and some bread not carrots to eat my hummus with. 

So starch, starch and you guessed it more starch!

But that is what I all too often do.  I eat myself awake.

Do you do the same?  Or is it just me?

When you are pressed for time and sleep deprived what tricks do you use to get through your day and be able to stick to your normal schedule?

Because I still have a 6 -7 mile run tonight followed by Insanity.

It's Day #422

I'll leave you with evidence that the way I am feeling today is worth it...

my family.

Off to draw eyes on my eye lids, just incase.

WIWTW

What I Wore This Week

In a effort to change my habit of wearing the same thing day after day

and not washing it nearly enough

I bring you WIWTW to help keep me accountable.

Unlike T HERE who is being nationally accountable for her running wear!

This week might look a bit like a fail on the success chart for switching up my running wardrobe but I was reviewing the two tops and only running singles most of this week so I couldn't really keep from having the tops on for the photos.  I did however test out the top's perma-stink resistance by wearing them so much.

Both tops scored wonderfully.  No stink.  Great washability.

Sunday run in VA ~ 7.5 miles

after driving through the night back from TN

Monday p.m. run back in PA ~ 7 miles

Tuesday p.m. run ~ 7 miles

Wednesday p.m. run ~ 7 miles with the crew

Biking Sherpa's return to Insanity!

Thursday p.m. run ~ 6.5 miles

Friday a.m. run ~ 3.5 miles

I followed my evening runs with Beachbody's Insanity.  I really dislike the lower weekly mileage but I am loving the results of serious cross training.  I'm sure I'll have EMZ abs in no time.

yeah right!

Let's see it.  What did you wear this week?

A Confident Woman Runner

On a recent post I received the following:

Jessa commented; I'm a regular reader and find your blog so inspiring; thanks!

As a mom of young children, I would love to run in the early morning. Unfortunately, I have anxieties about running alone as a woman, especially on quiet roads or if it's dark. So much so that it keeps me from going, or I just go to the fitness center and run on the boring treadmill.

My question is: What do you to to feel confident and safe as a solo woman runner?

First off, Thanks Jessa for reading.  I am so happy that my adventures in my version of normal can inspire you.  Jessa doesn't have a blog currently so I was unable to answer her question directly and after some thought I realized that there was more to the answer than might first appear.

What do I do to feel confident and safe as a solo woman runner?

The answer goes back to my version of normal and your question is a reminder that it often goes unsaid that my path through life (and all those I read and am inspired by) are not to be copied.  That is not my intent in sharing.  I wish to inspire others to realize that whatever their dreams are, they are achievable.  It's not about everyone running every day.  Or about everyone giving up road racing and hitting the trails.  Or a 5k being a race that's too short. 

My journey and what I want to share is the reality that there is no limit to the number of roles you can own in life.  Your dreams are not limited by the adjectives you can use to describe yourself.  Neither are they excuses for not reaching for the things you want for yourself.

Just because I am a mostly-single-parenting-full-time-working woman does not mean that ultra-trail-running-adventure-racing-AT-hiking athlete can't join the list.

Now that we understand that the description woman does not create a limit to what we can do or how we can do it.  I will remind you that what I do to feel confident and safe may not be sufficient for you to feel and BE the same. 
But here are a few things that help me.

Familiarity

Having lived my entire life in my small hometown I have the luxury of knowing nearly everyone who lives along my typical routes.  The majority of those road routes do not cater to "through" traffic so even the passers-by in cars a typically neighbors and cause me little worry.  I run at night in the dark and often turn off my headlamp because I can usually see better without it, I run in the snow, I run in the rain, I run in the fog of the morning.  All because I am so familiar with where my feet are landing.  I know which cars I will encounter at 6 a.m. or 6 p.m.  Familiarity.  I can be confident and safe because I know my area having lived there so long.

Awareness

  One thing to remember is to not allow familiarity to lessen your awareness of your surroundings.  Simply because I know who should be coming or going for work at the times I run does not allow me to be an unattentive runner.  I run into traffic when I am running on the road, in that I mean I run against the flow of traffic.  It is my job to make eye contact with that driver.  I don't allow it to be their job to notice me.  I keep alert for things along my way that are out of the ordinary.  But the number one way to stay aware is listening to my gut.  If I get a feeling of uneasiness about a road I am on or a trail I want to take, I listen to my gut and get out of that situation.  Even if it means calling for a ride home.

The Plan

Preparedness

Although this applies to when I run solo it also applies to when I run with the kiddos.  Even at 2 1/2 years old, LBM knows the plan.  What's the plan?  The plan started when I used to push my oldest in a stroller and it has been shared with each child as they have taken their turn going with mommy.  The plan is what to do if mommy is hurt during a run.  Sound like a creepy thing to talk about with an almost 3 year old but I'm from Mennonite country where kids are driving tractor at 2 slight exaggeration.   LBM is honestly old enough to understand what to do if something goes wrong.
We have a worse case scenario plan.  It's simple and straight forward.  I have talked with the neighbors along my weekly routes about what my kids would do if.  This simple plan helps them and me feel as though we are safer by simply knowing how we would handle an emergency situation while "on the road."
I'll bore you with the details of The Plan in a later post.

Equipment

In my early days of my running, safety equipment was usually leaving a note behind with my scheduled route and anticipated times on the range hood of my stove back at the house.  Although I still do write a note if I am leaving an empty house I also typically carry my cell phone, wear my Road Id and have told at least one person when and where I'll be and confirmed a check in once I am back.   

The Reality

The reality is that no amount of planning, awareness, equipment or familiarity will ensure that as solo women runner we are always safe.  Additionally, there are many things that you as a runner can do that I do not do. 

Because why?  Because we each are running in our own circumstances.  Remember what works for me may not work for you so keep an open mind and ask for advice from many runners.  You can run with a group or a partner.  You can choose to run only in the day time.  You can choose routes that will put you in populated areas.  You can carry a whistle or "pepper" spray.  You can take classes on self-defense.  There are many options to help you feel more confident and safe. 

I think the best way to stay safe is to be confident. 

Run with Confidence!

Run like you know you should be there. 

Run like you know where you are going. 

Don't allow what might happen to keep you from making your dreams happen!

just a little pair of socks

While I was blog hopping late the other night (which is what all blogging runners do, right?) I hoped down through my ever increasing google reader list and came across Lesley at Racing It Off. 

She is currently hosting a CEP Compression giveaway.

This got me thinking.

I own two pair of compression socks and a pair of compression shorts.

I almost always wear my CEP Compression and not the other ones I have since I truly feel the CEP Compression is a superior product.

Those beautiful pink socks are on my feet from the moment I step out of the shower post workout until I step back into the shower the next morning.  I have worn them to work all day in the days following my ultra races.  They have been with me in VA, TN, PA and soon they will join me at the beach.  They have gone on training runs, picnics, movies and out for dinner.

It's a lot to ask out of a little pair of socks.

Maybe I put too much faith into those little socks.

But it is hard to deny results.

I have been able to run every day for the past 417 days.

I ran after a PR setting trail 50k followed by my second best PR trail 50k followed by a fabulous finish in my first trail 50 miler.  Not to mention after all the shorter races sprinkled in between.

Every day I ran.

Every evening I slip into my socks and some nights shorts too with tired legs and I wake up ready to go.

It is a burden to place on one little pair of socks.

That's why I need another pair.

CEP...I'm just sayin'