Time to Shelve 2012

The last year of my life has flown by. 

I could never have expected how much fun 2012 could be...

I ran my first 5K, first 10K, First Mini-Mudder, First 10 miler & First Half Marathon...then I ran a few more!

I've successfully maintained an 85lb weight loss for a full year... even tho I still eat way too many sweets (I'm a work in progress!). 


2012 also brought a few new friendships that I couldn't imagine living without! 

A few of our amazing friends had awesome babies (that I’ve enjoyed cuddling & spoiling). 

I am so thankful and blessed!

Here's to 2013...

Schedule {so far} for 2013:

• February 17th Rock 'n' Roll Pasadena 
• March 16th Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon Washington D.C. 
• April 28th Nike Women's Half Marathon Washington D.C.
• September 1st Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon VA Beach

Race Thoughts

A few more race thoughts from Wednesday’s 10K {aka. babbling from a #running obsessed girl}:

I have no idea how I’m going to make it 13.2.

Because I felt absolutely spent at the end of 6.2. Maybe that was partially mental (knowing 6.2 was the end) and partially the heat (9am in July is HOT).

Races make me go to fast.

This sounds great, but it’s not. I start out going way too fast because of the excitement of the race and those around me.

I need to train for negative splits.

 I don’t think I’ve done a negative split, ever.

Drinking water from a cup while running is hard.

I wore more than I drank, which was fine, it was hot. Thanks to my running buddy (aka marathoner) who told me the trick to pinch/squeeze the top together and drink. Hope that will help the next race!

Maybe I should rethink my “try never to walk” mentality.

I saw plenty of people who took walking breaks and came back to pass me later. I mean honestly my “running” probably equals walking speeds at some point. Would it be better to just full out walk and then start again? I’ve had this don’t stop and walk mentality since I started running and it’s not based on anything factual. Any advice?

Running makes me feel accomplished.

It makes me feel good. Whether it’s a race or just a normal day, running makes me feel like I accomplished something.

Race Day gear to celebrate the 4th!

First 10K!

Yesterday I ran the Valley 4^th Run 10K. My second race ever (first race was a 5K in May). I got up early and had my normal pre-run breakfast - oatmeal.

I dressed up a little to be festive.

Being the cautious over-planner that I am, I arrived very early and was the first to register for the day. Don’t worry, I brought a book and spent some time reading in the car pre-race.

Then I met up with two hot mamas who were running the 5K (with strollers!). We spent the hour before the race playing with the babies and chatting. This was a great distraction for my nerves!

The race was 2 laps for a 5K and 4 laps for a 10K. It got started shortly after 9am and we were off. First lap around I felt great, but knew I was going too fast (low 8 pace). I have never been able to do negative splits – something I really must train for!

It was hot but I kept going. I knew I did not want to walk. It’s a personal thing that I like to be able to complete it without ever walking. I managed it but I saw people who walked a bit and then later passed me – so maybe not the smartest decision, but my personal goal.

It really helped to have a high school friend and my two hot mama running buddies cheering for me! They really helped me on those last two laps.

Going in I knew I wanted to come in under 60 minutes. But in the end, I just wanted to complete it without passing out from the heat. When I got close, I saw the clock was at 56 and hauled it on in to the finish. I stopped my nike GPS a few seconds late but it said 56:12. I know the race clock said about the same (it was 56:08 when I ran past into the finish). The official race time was 57 minutes but there were people complaining the times were about 1 minute off.

Either way I’m happy with my time! And happy to have successfully completed my first 10K! I rewarded myself with ice cream & pool time to celebrate the 4th of July!

Pre-race Nerves

Yesterday morning while I was out running (tapering? Uhhh nope), I started actually thinking about the race today. Can we please say nerves?! I was nervous about my first race (5K in May) because I had never participated in a race before, but 5K? I felt more than comfortable with the distance.

Now it’s July, heat is outrageous and the idea of running a 10K in weather I like to refer to as hot as h$*#... well I briefing considered just not going. The distance isn’t so scary, yeah I run that distance plus some regularly. The distance in the heat = scary. I drip sweat. I often don’t drink enough or worse, drink too much during a water break. I’ve done longer runs with no water, but I don’t think that’s a good idea for this heat. So I’ve decided I’m taking this race easy, running it at a comfortable pace because I’d rather finish than pass out from the heat.

Weather forecast is almost 80 degrees with 80% humidity for run-time…. Here’s to being crazy! 

Dripping Sweat from a 6am 6.7 miles run!