Here is my BoA Chicago Shamrock Shuffle Wrap-Up.
I would run this race again for sure. Maybe next time I will be allowed to actually go hard. And not jalk. Or maybe you prefer wog. Yes, a jog/walk. To clarify though, I never once walked any of the five miles. I know my nurse said to walk it. But I ran it...and by ran I mean that I
jogged so damn slow that I didn't even pass the freaking walkers! LOL.
No joke, I kept pace with the walkers. But I ran that whole damn thing! And you know what? I am perfectly happy with my results - honest.
Anyway, first things first. I have an awesome sister and since she lives closer to downtown, she went ahead and picked up our registration packets at the expo at Navy Pier on Friday morning. She said it was a good thing because Navy Pier is under construction and it was a nightmare to get to. Because of the crowds and limited space (all had to be outdoors bc of the construction), she wasn't able to walk around and look at the merchandise. This is one of my complaints about a lot of races. They only have all the fun t-shirts and socks and hats and gear at the expos. On race day I know they would sell a ton of product because people cross the finish line and are feeling pretty dang good about their accomplishments. Anyway, I'm getting side tracked here already.
We got a ride into the Loop from my FIL and then waited for my SIL and
her fiance too meet us. He and K were to be our personal photographers
on course, hahaha. We were in the third wave, corral J, and scheduled to
hit the course at 9:15.
Pre Race Pics
And we were off! K and SIL's FI started off about a just past the start line to try to catch us coming past in the beginning of the race. K had some fun catching pics of some random people, although he is mad he missed getting a shot of someone dressed as King Koopa.
There I am :)
After we went past them they had directions to go to State St. to try to catch us coming up the street with the Chicago Theater sign behind us (yes, I planned a photo op). We hit mile 1 without any difficulty but I knew I would have to hit the first set of porta-potties because it was that time of the month and it was a very heavy day. I told my sis to not worry about waiting around with me and to just head off on the course on her own. I think she was a little relieved because she wanted to have a better time than what I was going to end up with.
So I am sitting in the line for the potty and K finds me :) He said it was a good thing I was wearing my shamrock beret because that is how he spotted me. Anyway, so I get into the stall...and there is no more toilet paper. And I had to change a tampon. I was *not* a happy camper. Thank god we had some water and tissue in the backpack K was lugging around. That is all I will say about that. This paragraph is my only true disappointment with the race and the organization.
So I get going, K snaps some pics of me and I am off again. I won't plan on seeing them again until the end so I started to take pics of myself and the route along the way.
Mile 2
Selfie taken somewhere between mile 2-3
Mile 3
5k mark (sorry, pic is a bit blurry)
Jalking/wogging past the Sears Tower (excuse the double chin, lol)
Mile 4 - almost there!
On the very last hill (Roosevelt Bridge) about to make the final turn
The final stretch and the finish line
Post Race
I DID IT!!!!
And I ran it all! My time was laughable - but I'm still 100% proud of the accomplishment.
I am so damn sore in my right hip right now. We just got back to WI and I'm laying on the couch. I have a 6:45 am doctor's appointment so I am going to crash. I will write a longer wrap up, complete with pictures, either tomorrow or Tuesday. I have a super crazy week coming up- big boss in town at work, RE visits/meds/monitoring for IVF, bridal shower for SIL this coming weekend, appraisal on Wednesday morning for our refinancing, etc. so I will do my best to get the race wrap-up done asap.
Have a wonderful week everyone!
Today was one of the nicest days we've had here in Northeast Wisconsin all year long so I took the opportunity to actually get outside and get my run in. By nice, I mean about 38 with a feels like temp of 29 due to the wind, and partly sunny. But hey - it felt DAMN good to be out on the road getting that run in! I also had my longest run to date today - 4.09 miles according to Map My Run and I didn't stop once. I was/am pretty proud of that.
If the race was today, I know I could have pushed another mile out. I just know it. I felt it. If only it were today. I am still unsure if my doctor is going to allow me to do it. I'm honestly guessing no, even with my protests that my mile time is more than double an elite runner, lol. I'm pretty sure I'm going to get major side eye from him. Oh well, it's ok. It's for the greater good.
I believe it is supposed to be about 46 tomorrow and if I get home and there is still light out, I'm thinking about adding a nice and easy walk into the plan for the day. Maybe with the dog. I'm sure he would be in heaven getting out of the snow covered back yard. Thursday I have a doctor's procedure during the day so I'm not sure if I will have to make that a rest day or if it will be ok to keep trucking.
For the week ahead:
Monday: walk, stretch, strength (arms/upper)
Tuesday: 3 mile run
Wednesday: 4 minute cross train (try #3 for swimming)
Thursday: rest day or 2 mile + strength (legs)
Friday: rest or water fitness or Thursday's plan (play it by ear)
Saturday: play it by ear. If Th & Fri end up being rest days, 50 min cross train
Sunday: 4 mile run (man I'd love for this to be outside but forecast only says 26)
Have a wonderful week everyone! Keep up all your hard work!
Today is the last Sunday in February so next week's Shuffle update will be the first one I can say, "This month I'm running an 8k!!" Eeeek!!
Today I stepped up to 3.5 miles. I set my pace super slow because I wasn't sure how my knee and shins were going to hold up. By doing so, I still felt really good at the end of the run. I think around mile 2.75 I must have been putting my weight in a weird place when I landed because I got the tingling feeling in my right foot for a few laps. I slowed down and made sure to move my foot around and flexed it as much as I could while running and I was back in business in no time.
This week's training schedule looks like this:
Monday: stretch and strength (upper body & arms)
Tuesday: 2.5 mile run
Wednesday: 40 min cross train (I'm going to try swimming laps)
Thursday: 2 mile run + strength (legs)
Friday: rest
Saturday: 50 min cross train. I'll be home going to the Blackhawks game. We'll be doing a lot of walking from the train station to Soldier Field so I'm going to call that good enough.
Sunday: 4 mile run
In non-training news, I'm sitting here watching the closing ceremonies for the 2014 Sochi Olympics and I'm so bummed that the Olympics are over. I watch any and everything I can for both the summer and winter Olympics. I love seeing all the top athletes of the world come together to compete. It might not have been the best showing for the US, but we still did very well. I have grown tired of hearing the complaints about how "bad we suck this time." We don't suck. We just got beat or we beat ourselves. It happens. That's life. It will make us hungrier for Pheongchang in 2018. But first....my countdown to Rio in 2016 begins tonight! I can't wait for the summer games!
I'm another week closer to the BoA Shamrock Shuffle! Every Sunday it's like a flashing neon countdown sign in my head, lol. I'm positive these 6 weeks are going to fly by in the blink of an eye. My schedule is jam packed until then.
Today was another "step up" day in distance for me. I did my entire 3 miles!!! I only ran into a slight problem around laps 22-26 (of a total 33) when my feet seemed to go tingly. I'm not quite sure why that happened. I just kept on going and pushed through it. It wasn't that big of a distraction in hindsight. I probably wasn't saying that while it was happening though ;-)
I also got back on track in the food department and stayed under my caloric limit today. I feel a lot better (less weighed down with crap) tonight than I did last night, that's for sure. My face is still breaking out though. Sigh. Lots of acne cream in my future, lol.
This week's training schedule will be:
Monday: stretch and strength
Tuesday: 2.5 mile run
Wednesday: 35 minute cross
Thursday: 2 mile run + strength
Friday: 40 minute cross (water fitness)
Saturday: rest
Sunday: 3.5 mile run
Well, have a wonderful remaining portion of your weekend! I hope y'all have a wonderful week!
Well I have to say that I am quite pleased with myself tonight.
We were at home in Chicago this weekend and this morning I got up and headed to church with my grandma. I got to spend the rest of the morning into the early afternoon with her and it was wonderful. I am so lucky to have a chance to spend time with her. I miss being at home and being able to pop in whenever I feel like.
The only negative to this was that it cost me some travel time back to Wisconsin. The Y here in town is only open until 6 pm on Sundays. From my in-laws house, it is a 3 hour drive. We ate some lunch from our favorite local Mexican fast food hole in the wall (Taco Burrito King or TBK if you're curious) and then hurried to pack up the car.
We left at about 2:45 and I really thought that there was no way I was going to make it up here in time to get in a run. It was my "move up" day in training and it was really important to me. Today was the day that I needed to move up to a 2.5 mile run. I was really, really bummed out.
The traffic gods must have taken pity on me because somehow we managed to make awesome time. Well, truth be told I'm pretty sure that K was driving more along the guidelines that I use when driving. Ha!
We were rolling into town at about 5:15 so I made a comment about how he should just drop me off at the Y since we would have to pass it to get home and wait for me in the car with the animals. He said, "Well, if you want me to drop you off, I will. I'll just go drive the animals home, unload the car, and come back for you." Knowing that the only choice I had was just sucking it up and running in my thicker yoga pants and a heavy t-shirt on the track and getting in my actual run or having to fake it and do it on the elliptical at home, I chose to be dropped off.
I was pretty nervous to get this distance accomplished, especially since I wasn't really "prepped" to go and was literally just getting out of the car after a 180 mile road trip. But I freaking did it. I felt pretty good during it as well. A couple times my legs threatened to go to jello but I pushed through. I did not have a repeat of the breathing issues from Thursday, thank goodness. I guess the only explanation for that bad run is simply being off on my breathing. Oh well. I obviously sucked it up and moved past it. It's the only thing that you can do if you're going to continue to transform yourself.
The rest of my week looks like this for training:
Monday - stretch and strength
Tuesday - 2.5 mile run
Wednesday - 35 minute cross train
Thursday - 2.0 mile run + strength
Friday - likely rest day - I have a noon conference call that conflicts with my water fitness class
Saturday - 40 minute cross train
Sunday - 3 mile run (holy shit)
Well, I am exhausted and I should have gone to bed an hour ago. Have a wonderful week!
Nope - not my 30th birthday. That's not until August ;-)
But I hit the other type of Big 3-0 this week and that is 30 lbs. lost!
Actually, as of this morning I weighed in at 222.8! With my technical starting weight at 254.6, that is a total weight loss of 31.8 lbs. I am very happy right now!
You know what also finally happened? I had a bad run last night. I know it was bound to happen and it finally did. I've never had a run like this - even when I was starting out last year after having no exercise under my belt.
It was horrible. On the track I run on, it takes 22 laps for a 2 mile run. I was laboring in my breathing early on and when I hit lap 18, my side was cramping horribly. As I approached my water, I had my salad dressing kind of come back up and I had to stop to get a couple sips of water. I walked a half a lap and then pushed through the remaining laps I needed to do. It was hard. I felt disappointed. Really disappointed. I guess I am hitting a little mental road block that I should be able to do more than 2 miles right now. I know it will take time so I will just have to be patient and shake it off. One bad run won't stop me. And it will happen again. That much is for sure.
But....enough with the bad! I'm 31.8 pounds lighter!!!! Hell yeah!!! Woo Hoo!!
I think non-healthy foods go hand in hand with the Super Bowl. At least they do in my my house! This year we decided to go pretty low key for the game and only have one friend over and not make a huge spread. Which is a good compromise for my waistline.
Except the mini spread we have is taco dip, beer dip, and pizza. I don't even care because they tasted phenomenal. ;-)
The good news is that we got to the Y at 10:30 this morning to do our workout. We promptly found out 3 things.
1) They don't open the actual workout spaces until 11 am.
2) Sunday mornings are way too crowded on their track.
3) People on the track can act like big time assholes.
#3 is the main reason that as we were leaving we said, never again at this time. There is a clear sign by the stairs when you get up there that slower traffic should stay to the inside. This was only read by maybe 1/4 of the people up there. There was even a woman with a baby jogger up there walking slow on the outside and every time we got to her of course there was also a walker on the right. Bobbing and weaving takes so much energy for runners. It's so frustrating. I finally nicely asked her if she could move to the inside. She replied, "I'm fine, I'll stay on the outside." I turned back and said, "the sign says slower traffic on the INside. It's so the runners don't have to weave in and out." She mumbled something like "oh guess I didn't see that." Which is fine, I asked her nicely in the beginning. But don't give me attitude when you can't take the time to read the rules... She then commenced to bitch about K and me to her husband when he came back up to check in with them.
Like I care. Just let the fat kid get her run in, mmmkay?
In other news, today marks 8 weeks until my 8k! Eeek! I struggled a bit on my run today. It was due in some small part to all the lane traffic that messed with my pacing but I'm not sure that was the whole reason. I followed the Hal Higdon training schedule almost perfectly, only switching my rest day to Saturday instead of Friday. I think I ended up slightly short of running the entire 2 miles today. I know if I add in the walking laps I hit it but I was a bit disappointed that I didn't run it as I had done on Tuesday and Thursday. I was just not in good shape today and I can't really pinpoint why. I was wearing new socks that have the arch support band on them and my toes and feet did go slightly numb so I had to loosen my laces midway through. I'm still not sure that was enough to mess me up as much as I was. Oh well. I know everyone has off days. As the saying goes, "A bad run is better than no run." So I will just move on from it and do my best on Tuesday.
My training schedule for this week will look like this:
Monday: stretch and strength
Tuesday: 2 mile run
Wednesday: 30 Day Shred (level 1)
Thursday: 2 mile run + strength
Friday: water fitness (60 min)
Saturday: rest
Sunday: 2.5 mile run
Well...that's all for me tonight! Have a great week y'all!
This past weekend I was busy surfing through the bookmarked links of runs I want to do and I happened to see that one of the fun run 5ks, the Glo Run in Chicago, was open for registration and 40% off! I text my SIL and asked her if she wanted in because I was going to sign up regardless. She said sure why not...even if it's only two weeks prior to her wedding. Oh dear Lord please let her not sprain an ankle or something. I would never hear the end of it! ;-)
The run is on May 3rd and is a night race. The video promo looks fun and I figured, "hey, why not?!" It will keep me on track with my running schedule since I didn't have another race lined up right after the Shamrock Shuffle. Plus, it will just be a fun time with my sister and some friends that plan on running it too. I even found out one of my old coworkers up here in WI is going down with one of her friends to run it so now I'll have even more running buddies. Works for me.
Just in case you feel like signing up in a city near you, here is the info:
Locations/Registration
I have no idea what happened but I woke up feeling like I was hungover as all hell. Except I didn't drink. In fact, I've only had one drink this whole entire week. Shocker. But I didn't let that stop me. I made sure I got my workout in. By 11:45 am I had already finished and had a load of laundry done. Sweet!
I am really hoping that I am going to wake up and have a good weigh in for my online challenge. I am one of the best when it comes to being a weekend wrecker when it comes to diets.
I've found an 8k training program that I plan on starting this week. It comes from Hal Higdom's website and looks to be easily achievable for me by March 30th.
Which means that the BoA Shamrock Shuffle in Chicago is 10 weeks from today.
Which also means that 10 weeks from right now, I'll probably be wanting to die of exhaustion. ;-)
10 weeks from now I will have graduated to 8k runs. I can do this! I have to do this!
Here is the training program in case you are looking for something similar:
Hope you all have a wonderful week! Keep on trucking!
I hit submit! I am officially signed up for my first 8k! As soon as I completed the registration the ball of anxiety came back. That stupid anxiety that I had before my first 5k last year. I can do this! I know I can.
I just hope I am not dead last. That would suck.
When I posted on FB that I was signed up, my SIL chimed in with her well wishes...and then 20 minutes later she was posting that she signed up and was going to run it with me. Ok, on one hand, I'm so happy to have another race experience to do with her. I know she is in a little bit of a slump workout wise and so I am grateful to have a buddy in this. On the other hand, I'm slightly bummed that I am not going to run this one on my own. I think she also feels slightly guilty about ditching me in the Ugly Sweater Run in November but I was honestly ok running on my own.
I'm not a fast runner. I am not a good runner either. She can run laps around me. And she can talk while running. That's something that I haven't mastered other than, "gaaah, want run slow(gasp)er in min? hhhuu?" And she's great about taking it at my pace. I just get self-conscious. I don't like feeling like I hold anyone back. I will be fighting to keep on pace with the allotted time for the race - which is far from an elite pace. She's a great motivator though and I love her to death so in the end I know it will be fine. I think I fear disappointing or frustrating her and that is stupid because we're very close. So I need to just shut the hell up and realize that I'm only causing myself needless stress ;-)
See, I just needed to talk it out.
Excuse me while I go hyperventilate.
Eeek! Tomorrow is the Big Day - it's sign up day for the BoA Chicago Shamrock Shuffle 8k!It's first race of 2014 that I will run and it's also the longest race I will have run to date!! At just a teensy-tiny shade under 5 miles, I have some serious training to do!
This bitter cold isn't helping the motivation much either. Today our high was somewhere around -13 with wind chills at -50. It was horrible. I've never experienced such cold (that I can remember). I don't even want to go into the basement to use the elliptical right now either because it's cold down there. Can't it be warm already?? I want to actually run outside. I swear when we finally get some random 35 degree day I might be crazy enough to head out for one. I know there are people that run in this all the time but I'm still a newbie. I have my training wheels still on ;-) If anything, I think I will start on Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred tomorrow. I didn't complete it last time around but I did see results, no doubt about it.
I know that the Shamrock sells out so I hope that I don't run into any issues tomorrow when signing up...wish me luck!
Cross posted from my main blog There's No Crying in Baseball
I've
spent the last few weeks picking out the races I want to run next year.
I for sure will do The Color Run again. This is their 2014 Kaleidoscope
Tour. I am not sure when/where I will run it though. I might have to
shoot for Milwaukee or Green Bay because the Chicago date is 6/8/14 and
Amarillo is 6/7/14. The following weekend is my sister's wedding on the
13th so that might be tough.
On
top of that, the other June race I want to run is the Run for Their
Lives PAWS for Chicago 8krun/4k walk. PAWS is the city's largest No Kill
humane organization. I really love their organization and their
mission. I would love to be able to do some great fundraising for this
one. Last year it was the 9th of June and I'm guessing it will be the
same weekend. I think I'd rather do PAWS and move my Color Run to a
different city and date.
In
early 2014 I think I will aim to do the Shamrock Shuffle 8k. I believe
it will be held on March 31st. Somehow with a Wisconsin winter I will
have to figure this one out. We rejoined the Y and they have an indoor
track so I think that's what I'm going to end up using.
I
will probably run the Ugly Sweater again since K said he'd do it if I
want to again. My SIL said that she wants to do it for real next time
and not bail again. So we will see on that one.
I
feel like I need another run in there somewhere. After the Ugly Sweater
I could throw in a Turkey Trot or a holiday run but come January
10th-ish 2015...I will have the Disney Half Marathon!!! I can't believe I
am going to do it. But I am going to try my best to make this a
reality.
I better start both saving and running even more. And investing
in paper bags to breathe into. I foresee a ton of hyperventilating in
the next year.
