I'm not slow-just hot

Wooooohooooo! 22:32 (7:16 min/mile). This is my second fastest 5K ever. (My PR being 21:42).

I'm actually increasing my mileage right now, I raced last weekend, and I went biking yesterday so there was no sort of taper. Just a...ooh crap, I overslept for my triathlon. Let me do some laundry, swiffering, dusting, dishes...Hey, isn't there a 5K a couple of miles away this morning? Google. Get on bike. Go to race.

There were cooler temps. It felt...ahhhhhhh. I was the third woman. The second place woman was 22:17. There were no mile markers, I never run hard so I had no idea of pace, and I was super afraid of bonking (my usual since I typically go out too fast). But I wasn't even hurting at the end. I wish I had gone after #2!!!!!

I also beat by 4 minutes the 57 y/o woman who beat me in the 90 degree 5 miler a couple of weeks ago. I think the heat affects me more than other people. I disintegrate.

I am so relieved to be running in the realm of fit. This is the longest stretch of running (since January) without injury I've had since ~2002. I wonder how fast I could go if I trained for this distance?

Finally, I also learned (again) not to predict how fast people are and get psyched out by what people look like. There were women in running clothes lining up near the front-and I passed them after 50 feet. Lesson learned-until the next time a skinny, barely wearing clothing runner out-psychs me.

And congrats Al (check out his race reports below!).

Another Race!

Because my roommate was running the Fall Into Fitness 5k today in the northwest-side neighborhood of Portage Park, I decided to go along and run it too, figuring that a larger race with chip timing would probably have an accurate course, so I could actually have some idea of how fast I was. Looking at past years' results it seemed that every year someone ran faster than I would be able to (16:30 to 16:45) and everyone else ran slower (over 17 minutes), so I predicted a second-place finish. The neighborhood has a large Polish community, and most of the past years' top finishers had Polish-looking names, or even listed their hometown as "Poland".

And given that I got no sleep because I was blowing my nose all night, was dehydrated, was racing for the second day straight, and that I didn't warm up very well because they called to line us up 15 minutes before the race started (and I actually listened, unlike the other fast people), I did OK. If the mile markers were accurate (I think they were, though the half-mile ones were off a bit) then my splits were really badly positive: 5:10 -> 5:25 (10:35) -> 5:38 (16:13), then 44 seconds for the last 160m to finish 16:57. All of those seem possible except for the 44-second last 160m; there's no way I slowed down to well over 6-minute pace for the final sprint. So maybe the third mile was even worse than 5:38. I finished second, as I predicted, behind a 40 year-old dude wearing a Poland jersey. Maybe under better circumstances I'm 7 seconds faster today, hard to say. But I still won my age division and got a $20 gift certificate to Fleet Feet, which covered the race entry fee. When you add that to the schwag from the race bag (including a $10 coupon and a 10%-off coupon to Fleet Feet), I scored pretty good profits from both of my races this weekend. Of course, the funds I got out are less liquid than those I put in, but I'm not going to complain about that. So I have a month to cut 37 seconds from my 5k to make 16:20. It will be hard, but possible. Maybe I should put some of my prize money towards racing flats. Or a Poland jersey.

Racing Short for Fun and Profit

Today my procrastination in finding a gym/pool thing to join paid off big-time. But first, some workout stories. I don't run many races, but I frequently have fun and eventful workouts. First, on Thursday I took a quick tempo run along the lake between getting home from work and going to a concert. And as I ran by a couple of twentysomething women, one of them took out a camera and followed me by with it. And probably took an unauthorized photograph of me! She'll be hearing from my agent! So if you see a picture of me running in a RAGBRAI bike jersey and magenta Big Sur Half Marathon cap, know that it was not taken by an Al Dimond (tm) Authorized Photographer.

Then yesterday, because of the race today, I ran one of my favorite pre-race workouts from high school: 3x400 with 3-minute interval. The idea is to start fast and get faster; in high school my goal was always 66-64-62, but I never made it. Yesterday I thought I might be able to run 68-66-64. So I jogged over to the track, did some strides, got loose, stood at the line, took off, finished: 68.9. Acceptable. Just have to get a little faster on the next one. Rested, got loose, toed the line, took off. Tried to run the same first half as the last one but kick it in to the finish. Obviously failed in one of those: 68.9. Gah. Rested, got loose again. Toed the line. Then it came to me: the advice my high school's sprint coach always gave on how to run fast. "Lead with your arms," he said, "If you run at any speed and accelerate with your arms, your legs have to follow, no matter how tired they are." Like magnetic and electric fields inducing eachother to make light. I had forgotten this for four and a half years and it came back to me just before starting this last quarter. So I resolved to go out hard with my arms leading. And I felt it. I felt it along the backstretch as I really accelerated and picked up my turnover. On the second curve I held it together better than usual. And the final straight, well, it wasn't exactly glorious but I didn't fall apart too badly, just pumping those arms. I thought, "Surely, this must have been faster. I felt so fast! Just like when I ran 55.7 on that relay split in high school!" Looked down at the watch, and it was indeed faster. THREE WHOLE #@*(-ING TENTHS OF A SECOND FASTER. 68.6! AAAAAAAARGH! "Screw the 5k, and all this speedwork," I thought, "I want to run marathons."

So today my race was only a 2-miler: the North Park River Run, put on by North Park University. My roommate had sent me a link to it while trying to send me a link to the race he was running, and I thought at the time that 2 miles would be a good distance. I was a bit sick, and didn't know what the competition was going to be like; I figured that with competition I could run 10:30. I also figured that lots of good 5k runners might appreciate an opportunity to race at a shorter distance, just like me. Some of the guys running warmups looked good. But when we stepped up to the line my hopes dropped: I was the only person that stepped all the way up to the line, while everyone else held back, as if to let the real runners through. I knew then I was going to have to lead wire-to-wire. So the race was totally uneventful; the pace cyclist led me through the course and I finished in 9:56. Which means the course was short. Because there's no way I ran just 4 seconds off of the best race of my life (senior year of high school, on a track, in spikes, with good competition, after a whole season of intense training focused for the 2-mile) today (mixed-surface race, in trainers, nobody within a minute of me, two weeks into the interval-work phase of 5k training). I probably would have run closer to 10:40 on a real 2-mile course, but that's a total guess, because I didn't see the 1-mile mark and didn't really trust the 1.5-mile mark, which had me at 7:50.

Oh, well. I guess I'll just have to give in and run big races if I actually want to have times. So anyway, they were giving out awards at this block party over by the university after the race, so I went over there, grabbed some lunch and waited for them. Then my nose started bleeding. Fortunately I had pocket-packs of Kleenex because I was sick... I went through 5 tissues and got blood all over my face, hands, clothes, backpack, and the sidewalk. Boo. So of course they wanted a picture of the winners after the awards, and I looked like I'd just come from a war zone. But the procrastination-paying-off thing: the prize for winning the race was a year membership at a health club! So by not going out and finding one, I now avoid duplication. It's about four miles west of me, which means biking over could be a nice warm-up. If they have a pool I can learn to swim now! Plus I won a Fleet Feet gift certificate so I can get one running shoe for free. And another running duffel bag. Woo.

Ode to Danielle's Foot

I have a friend names Danielle
who has entered running hell
she has fasciatis of the foot
and can't get at the root
of what is causing the problem
I'm at home full of phlem
from this cold that I have
and it makes me very sad
that she can't run the marathon with me

Y

Yippee! Yikes! Yea! Yeah! Yippee! YeeHaw! Yaw! Yowsers!

Why do all the good exclamation words start with a Y. After the alphabet was created, did people feel like Y didn't get enough use, so they came up with all these great Y words? Then why didn't they do that with z?

And, Y is both a consonant and a vowel. The only letter like that.

And, Y is the only letter that is both a letter and when you say the name of the letter it is also a word "why".

Oh. . . that's not true - then there is J as in "Jay" but that normally has blue jay or something like that in front of it instead of just jay.

These are the things I ponder when I mix my nighttime cold medicine with mountain dew.

8 Days to TCM

If you know me, you know that being more obsessive actually alleviates my nerves. So, I started packing today.

Twin Cities Marathon is 8 days away!! yippeee! yikes!

I packed my gu, my race book that I must have to pick up my bib, and my shorts. I have not yet found the matching sock to my favorite pair so I'm doing laundry. Do I need to carry extra socks with me even though I don't on training runs? In case it rains? Does someone know this stuff?

I read my race book. They give shirts and medals to you after you cross the finish line and if you don't finish in 6 hours you don't get to be an official finisher and have to get on the sag wagon. That scares me. Truly, if even on my slow, slow long run days I won't be pushing 6 hours, it's the "what if's" that have started. What if my knee hurts? What if I have to walk. . .how much can I walk and still come in in 6 hours - Danielle, can you do some math for me? What if this stupid cold that I have settles in my chest and I have to cough and can't breathe?

Something's wrong with me. Seriously wrong. I am nervous 8 days early! It may not be helping that I've been taking nighttime tylenol cold medicine all day long today. I'm a little weird.

Now, I'm going to do an experiement - what if I take cold medicine with mountain dew. What will the effect be. . . . .

I'm famous!

On C-Span! So I am just posting this because other than the one time I was on the local news during a grown-up Easter egg hunt, I haven't been on TV before. And national TV at that! National TV that only political nerds watch, but national TV still! Oh yeah, there was this time too.

This of course has nothing to do with running. But I am all about blatant self-promotion. In good news, today at PT, she said she could barely feel the plantar fasciitis in my foot anymore and reduced my visits to every two weeks.

A small bit of background - Chris Dodd asked if there were any former Peace Corps volunteers in the audience and so I raised my hand and then he came up to me after the talk when I was hanging out with the John Edwards kids and the following is what ensued. I would like to note that Chris Dodd gives the best hugs ever!

(Note you need Real Player to see the video - stupid C-Span! My friend couldn't get the link to work on his computer, but it works on mine.)

Me on TV!

Update: Apparently this link only works on my computer. Alternatively you can go to the search page at C-span, click on the top link there (the link is the search results -it should say in it somewhere "Chris Dodd attends a barbeque") and then fast forward to approximately 1:24.

Aren't distance runners supposed to get faster as they age?

This summer I was all...I'm a triathlete. I'm so healthy. I don't care how well I do, it's all about participating and loving it all!! I'm so well-balanced. Joy!!


Um, that lasted until this month. B/c what I DON'T like is being slower than I used to be. And. I. Am. And I don't like it. Yes, I'm finally running in all the fall races I usually miss b/c I'm injured. But yes, I'm slow.


Basically, I've been comparing the conditions surrounding my 23 year-old self in 2003 with my 27 year-old self.


@23
was doing speedwork for the first time in my life
a long run every week
lived in a very hilly area
set PR's at distances from 5K to 13.1 miles
[but then got patellar tendinitis that lasted a year b/c i was way overtraining]



@27
5 pounds lighter
but my diet sucks. it's lacking in nutrients/variety
less junk food which is good
long run every 9 or so days
never run fast
weekly running mileage is 2/3 what it used to be.
live in a very flat area. NEVER run hills.
only race when it's hot.
NO PR's


Sooooooo. I could run more. But then I might get hurt. But I don't like being slow. I have to find some hills. I ran in a 10 mile race today. 80 degrees. Hilliest course I have been on in my entire life. 1:29. Personal worst for the distance by 6 minutes 30 seconds (and I ran the 1:22 time with bronchitis). In some ways I'm like...BOOO. This bites. In other ways I'm just like...you really can't compare this course to the Cherry Blossom 10-miler in DC in April. That is way easier and cooler. And I just need to run more. And faster. And if I want to get faster I need to put in these slower miles until I get there. Sorry I'm rambling. But I'm WAY MOTIVATED right now. BRING THE RUN!! (and for the love of god hopefully in cooler temps).

I am losing my motivation

For those of you that don't know, I need to explain that I have trained for a marathon for three years. Not continually. But, my ITBand has flared up every year and prevented me from running. This year, I seem to have managed that problem and am pretty much ready. A little update.

• I have 10 toes and 6 toenails.
• I have yet to find a pair of shoes that remains confortable and blister free for 20 miles.
• I foam roller four times a day
• And, this week, I've completely lost my motivation to run

Really, I have a marathon in two weeks and I'm doing everything I can to avoid running. I don't want to run. I want to sink into slothdom, eat sugar and watch movies. I psyco analize myself and wonder if I'm nervous about this marathon so am avoiding the whole running thing all together. I don't really know. I need an excuse for running to be fun again (like our relay). Any input?

Sound of Silence

So... haven't had much to say lately since I haven't been running.

Or biking.

Or swimming.

The slothfulness is starting to get to me.

The foot starts to get better but then I have a day where I walk around a lot and it kills me.

I officially have to wear a splint at night now:
(Hot! It's a good thing I'm single! Note that isn't my leg - I may get lazy about shaving, but at least I'm blonde.)

It is all rather depressing.

And I went from hanging out with runners, who mostly are a good influence on me (although Kori and I sometimes manage to eat back every calorie we burn in chips and salsa and margaritas after a workout) to hanging out with political staffers who buy me beer and are otherwise a bad influence on me (Guess who overslept after dollar pint night last Wednesday and almost missed her flight to Ithaca! Let me say that flying in the clothes you passed out on your bed in the night before is always classy! And how come, for the first time in like ten years, I actually had a plane seat next to a cute boy?)

Sigh. This foot needs to get better ASAP!