Everything

Good morning! I'm getting ready this morning for the River Ramble 5K and wanted to post a bit on what's been up lately and what I expect for today.

I've spent the past month slowly working on muscle imbalances and flexibility. I haven't run long or fast or even on hills at all. I'm being patient and working on this first so that in the future, when I train for a longer race, I don't get injured in the middle of training, take a month to recover, and then poop out in the middle of said race because I'm undertrained. So I'm not expecting to set any speed records today.

That said, I'm going to go out and push hard and run as hard as I can. The past couple of races, while I felt that I did well (Only two races ago I set my 5K PR), I finished feeling like I could have pushed harder. So, today's goal to to go out and give it everything that I have. Let's do this!

Call me Mrs.

On the last day of summer, I woke up at about 6 am. My alarm was set for 7:15, when I intended to get up and go for a run along the Delaware River. I lay in bed for 45 minutes, knowing that I needed to be well-rested, and finally got up and dressed in my running gear. The river valley was blanketed with thick fog. I jogged down to the water's edge and could not see across to the other side. Still, it was a good morning for a run. I thought I saw a kingfisher perched near the water, but it flew away before I could get a closer look.

I parked at a picnic area near the trailhead and began my run down the smooth gravel path. I kept the pace slow and easy and just enjoyed the movement. I passed through woods and along the edges of fields. There were river access points and campgrounds and bridges over streams that drained down into the river. The path was hilly, and I didn't want to tire my legs too much, so I turned around after a mile and a half. 

A run was the perfect way to start my wedding day.

When I got back to the room, I had to make the decision about where to hold the reception: outside in the tent I had wanted so much, or inside in a ballroom. My bridesmaids and I watched the weather report and decided that even though the weather would be beautiful for most of the day, I should move the reception inside because it would rain that night. After the decision was made, I spent the rest of the morning in the salon with my bridesmaids getting our hair and makeup done. One-by-one, the  photographer, wedding coordinator, florist, and band arrived. I was a little antsy waiting for my parents to arrive so I could get my dress on. I wanted to be ready and make sure that everything happened smoothly, which it did.

The ceremony was held outside on the banks of the Delaware River. The late summer day was exactly what I had envisioned: calm and green with bright sun beaming through the trees and just the slightest hint of autumn colors creeping into the mountain ridge behind the river. As my dad escorted me across the lawn toward the ceremony site, the sweet and achingly beautiful notes of "First Time Outside", a song from a movie I loved as a child, carried in the air.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAVm4ASJvBM

The ceremony was over so soon. We said our vows, exchanged our rings, and before I knew it, we were walking down the aisle, married! 

The outdoor setting felt very special to me, because I feel that the outdoors draws me out of my little librarian shell and into all kinds of adventures. This is just one more adventure on my journey, and I am so lucky to have such a special traveling companion. Ever on!

Wildcat Ridge Romp Race Report

The Wildcat Ridge Romp is a trail run put on by the NJ Trail Series. This year's race was held on August 10th. 

I signed up for the 10 mile distance, and as I posted in the weeks coming up to the race, was not quite able to put in the training due to moving and wedding planning. I figured that I could take it easy and finish, so that was the game plan going in. 

The weather gods smiled down on us that morning and provided us with a not-too-sunny, not humid, perfect-for-running day. I arrived around 8:30 and saw several of the ultra runners coming through the aid station on one of their laps. They had already been running for a couple of hours!  

When the 10M started, I took my place at the back and tried not to go out too fast following the faster runners. After a half or three-quarters of a mile, the course turned uphill. Some people were powering up it, others were slowing down, and some were walking. I was hopping lightly up with a quick cadence that didn't feel like I was expending too much energy. As I passed some people, I saw that I could make some moves and pass more.  I put a little more effort into it and finally settled into a comfortable position. I still ended up leap-frogging some people, but for the most part, everyone here was running with similar paces. When I got around mile two, my support staff (human and canine) was there to greet me. The pup wasn't on a leash, and when she saw me, she bolted after me and right onto the trail, where she ran with me until the next road crossing. 

Anna is admiring the view after unexpectedly joining the race.

I was afraid that the other runners would be annoyed that she was in the way, since she has a tendency to come barreling up behind you on the single track, but most people enjoyed seeing her bounding through the woods and trotting down the dirt roads. 

Anna hangs out with a 50K runner.

After running with me for about 2 miles, Anna was leashed and held captive while I got to continue frolicking in the woods.

I may have passed an ultra runner during one of my peppier sections, but for the most part, when I heard someone coming up behind me, I stepped aside for them to pass. I was extremely impressed by their speed and nimbleness after all of those miles. It seemed like everyone on the course was courteous and supportive. Thanks, everyone, you were awesome! 

The trail was a great mix of terrains. Lots of single track up and down hills in the woods, some wide dirt roads, rock gardens, large stream crossings, and there were a couple of blown-down trees to climb over. I was running along a wide path next to a really pretty stream when I took the picture to the right. I didn't have a lot of speed, and the soles of my feet were hurting from the rocks, since I was advised that my particular trail shoes are bad for my feet and that I should stick with my road shoes until I get new trail kicks. Anyway, I was just hanging out, running through the woods. I had to walk through a lot of sections, especially the  rocks and slick mud, since I didn't have much traction, but I felt pretty good. 

Here's the dam for the reservoir that supplies Newark's drinking water.

Talking about varied terrain, there was a bit of a rock scramble to get up from the base of this reservoir to the top. I walked it, was disappointed that there was no water left at the aid station at the top, and then was rewarded with a view across the reservoir.

As I ran up to the end of the reservoir, my support staff was waiting for me.  Anna jogged along with me for a little while before returning to captivity.

In the final three miles, I started to feel a little more uncomfortable. I had almost finished my water/Gatorade solution and was very thirsty. I got a side stitch and downed the rest in my bottle, hoping that the aid station at 8.5 miles would have water. It did, and after the volunteer there pointed me in the right direction, I was in the home stretch. The section right after the aid station was flat and downhill, but the surface was sooo rocky on my sore feet.  My side stitch improved after drinking, but for a while I couldn't focus on anything but how much the balls of my feet hurt. I didn't see anyone else around me for about a mile and a half or two miles.

The trail came out into a housing development, on the road for a little. My knees hurt at this point, and I felt my under-training. I was soon back on trail, though, and when I came back out onto a road again, it was the last half mile before the finish line. I didn't have any speed in me, but I finished feeling really good about the experience.  

The finish!

I enjoyed being out there with all of the other runners. I loved the adventurous feeling of not knowing where I was going and what I was going to see or do next. I was proud of myself for being able to complete the distance without feeling as if it had caused some major injury, and even though I had felt those twinges in my knees and the pain in my feet, when I was finished, I felt great. I wasn't totally wiped out or limping for a week. I was sore, but a good sore. (I guess I can credit foam rolling for that.) Now I can't wait for my next trail run!

Rocks and roots

I've been interested in trail running for a couple of years, and after an awesome 8 miler the other day, I just wanted to share some of the great experiences I've had on the trails lately. 

The photo to the right was taken when I was visiting Maine for the 4th of July. Despite the 80-90 degree heat (even up there!), I wanted to get a run in, so I flipped through a hiking book and found a nearby short hike loop that looked like it would have a nice view. Because of the bright sun and the baking heat of the blacktop, the idea of running on the road just wasn't doing it for me. 

The trail was steep and muddy in places, so it wasn't the best for running, but when I got to the top, the view was so rewarding! The pace was slow, I was dripping with sweat, and mosquitoes and flies were harassing me, but it still felt good to get out, see a new place, exert some energy, and relax at the top with that view. 

Not too long before that, I had run a local 5 mile trail race and won 2nd in my age division. I had been diligent about training for that race, and the intention was for me to continue with the training so that I'd be prepared for a 10-mile run in August. That seemed very reasonable after having finished a half in May.

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I'm getting married! in September, so wedding planning and a last-minute and very time-consuming move in July prevented me from dedicating much time...ok, any time....to training.

Last week I looked at the calendar and got a shock when I realized that if I didn't get out for some long runs soon, there would be no chance of being even slightly prepared for the 10 miler. So I've been getting out for a lot of 4 or 5 mile road runs, and last Friday I took the dog to a state park to run trails.

I have run a lot on trails in that park, but there were several that I hadn't tried yet, so we went on a little adventure, turning down trail off-shoots when ever we came across them and just finding out where we ended up. The park is small, and I had my phone with maps on it, so I wasn't afraid of getting lost. I was never too far from a park road, the rail trail, or a major road or landmark. I kept the pace very slow and kept the mindset that I was going to just run the trails and see where they went - not focusing on time or distance.

Running just for the experience of it made the miles go by faster and easier. By the time I was approaching 8 miles, I was pumped because I felt great. The pup was dragging, so we had to finish up and let her jump in the lake, but I felt strong and injury-free and am no longer dreading the 10 miler. I don't know exactly when I'll fit in another long trail run, but I know to take it slow and easy and that I can do it.

Maybe I'll post later about meeting with a trainer, which I did to evaluate my stride and correct injury-causing imbalances. In any case, one thing she said was that trail running may really be my friend. With the changes in elevation and and the constant shifts in stride, the same muscles are not being pounded over and over again, which is important if your natural stride lands you oddly and puts stress on weak areas. It's also great interval training. I have to agree on all points. I enjoy road running and actually intend to focus on road racing speed this fall, but trail running will always be a big part of my running experience.

This coming week, I'll be hiking Camel's Hump mountain in Vermont (weather permitting). Let's see how well the trail running has prepared me for it!

So little time

16 days until Wildcat Ridge Romp 10-mile trail run

51 days until Pass-It-Along 56-mile bike tour

58 days until...my wedding!

All of these things used to be so far in the future. Now it feels like crunch time! 

It's all very exciting, but I have to be careful about how I use my time. Balancing between getting workouts in and leaving time to call wedding vendors and getting enough sleep and eating healthfully has been a challenge, but I have to budget my time carefully now to get the most out of all of these upcoming events. 

The trail run will be the hardest, since I haven't prepared for it and will need to get in at least two quality long runs beforehand to be able to complete it without being a mushy pile of misery the whole time. 

I really enjoyed training for the Ride to Read last year, and I look forward to spending a lot more time on the road bike and increasing my skills there, but I don't want to sacrifice too much training time that could be devoted to running. This will be a tricky balance, but I'm seriously thinking of commuting at least one (and maybe two or three) days a week to work by bicycle. This would be healthy, would save on gas, and would be environmentally friendly. Sounds like a win, win, win situation. 

I can't believe how quickly the wedding has come up. There are still a million things that need to be done. So, I'll have to make a list and make an effort to get something done each day. Many days, I use all of my time before work to get a run in, but I really have to budget time better. Running is important, but I shouldn't let it overwhelm my free time. 

Here's to calling the dress shop and scheduling my wedding dress fitting!

"All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given you." - Spoken by Gandalf in Lord of the Rings

One week and counting

About this time next week, I should be enjoying the company of my running buddies as we celebrate finishing the Long Branch Half. It's been 3 years since I first ran that race and had a pretty painful experience. I think I've avoided injury this time around, and the weather report is looking promising, so here's looking at a much better experience this time around. I'll be going out for my last long run this morning. The plan for today is to get one more long run in so my legs remember what it feels like (since my last long run was a couple of weeks ago).  10 miles flat and easy on a lovely day in preparation for next week!

Foxtrot 5k Race Report

Records fell at the Foxtrot 5k yesterday!

I convinced my running buddy to join me at this small race to support the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and we rocked it! We both wore our sparkle skirts (because everyone feels faster in a sparkle skirt!) and had a great time. 

Before the race started, she talked to a lot of people at the front of the starting line to see if she could use anyone as a pacer. I had in mind that I wanted to PR (which would mean coming in before 24:26), and I was really hoping to coming under 24 minutes. I didn't have much of a plan though. I forgot my ifitness belt, so I held my phone while tracking the race with RunKeeper. I had set the app to tell my my time, distance, overall pace, and current pace every quarter mile, so it helped to keep me on track when I started to slow a little. 

I felt really good for the first half of the race. I was breathing easy and felt like I was hardly exerting myself. Once we hit the turnaround point, though, it hit me, and I really had to push to keep at my goal pace. I closed my eyes and breathed as deeply as I could, I took shorter, faster steps, and I tried to create more momentum with my arms. In the end, I stayed behind a group of 4 or 5 runners that had formed a bit of a pack. As we neared the finish, one of them made a move to pass, but overall it wasn't much of a race. I knew from  my phone that I was definitely going to set a new PR. As I got closer to the clock, though, I saw that the last seconds of the 23rd minute were winding down. Seeing that gave me an extra burst, and I crossed the finish in 23:55, a personal record by 31 seconds!

My buddy, her husband, and some other spectators were cheering me on, and after I came through the chute she came over to tell me that she was the 1st female and came in under 21 minutes! Her final time was 20:51, and she was the 1st female and 3rd finisher overall. Congrats!!! 

She got a gold medal that said 1st and even won a free massage door prize. And I came home with a 1st place age group medal! Yay!

Yep, those are gold!

As the awards were handed out, I snuck away to my car to get some soft-baked chocolate chunk cookies to celebrate her birthday this weekend. We toasted our cookies, and there was much feasting.

In retrospect, it was a fun race for a good cause, and I am so excited to have set a new personal record. I don't think that I gave it everything, though. I had an extra burst when I saw the clock, and I think that if I had been motivated enough, I could have kicked more at the end and maybe even passed some of the people right ahead of me. In the long run, it doesn't really matter that much, but it really is interesting how much your mental state of mind can affect your physical performance. That will be something to keep in mind for the half marathon coming up on May 5th.  Only 3 weeks to go!