Well friends, here I am at day 11 and so far I am doing well. I have made it 11 days without missing a run. I know I am still very early into my streak, but I have encountered some obstacles. First, I caught a pretty bad cold from my Little Babes. I was congested, had a headache and a cough, but I still made sure I put in at least one mile and what I found was that I actually felt better during and after the run. Maybe I was sweating out all the yucky germs :).
Next obstacle was our mini family vacay to San Diego. I usually don't run or work out when we go away and sometimes I will pack workout/running gear with the intention of running, but in the end, I always skip it, but not this time! The first day I did a light run (was still feeling pretty sick) on the treadmill and the second day I ventured out of the hotel for a 4 mile run. I even found a great hill and did a few hill repeats. I felt pretty proud of myself for sticking to my streak and getting my runs in and I loved that I remained active while on vacation.
Now the current obstacle I am dealing with is a tight right IT band. I've had IT band issues in the past...long ago actually so I am all for taking care of this before it gets too bad and I am unable to run. I have been foam rolling, using my stick and lacrosse ball to try and loosen my IT band. So far it's not too bad, but I will continue to foam roll, stick, and use my ball along with stretching. I haven't really been doing too high of mileage, but I guess my body is adjusting to running EVERYDAY. And I have to admit...I am not the best at stretching and working out the tight muscles after my runs so that is something that will definitely have to change. Any suggestions for how to work out a tight IT band????
Alright friends, I will check back with you on my streak at the halfway mark (25 days). Wish me luck!!! Until then, take care and happy running to all!
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Friday, June 13, 2014
I'm Going Streaking!
No, no, no...not that kind of streaking!
I've decided to do a running streak. Why, you ask...why not? The official definition of a running streak as defined by the Streak Runners International, Inc (SRI) and United States Running Streak Association, Inc (USRSA) is to "Run at least 1 continuous mile within each calendar day under one's own body power without the utilization of any type of health or mechanical aid other than prosthetic devices." The run can be done on the road, track, or treadmill. Running in the water does not count.
So the question is, how many days should I commit to? Well, in order for your streak to be recognized by the SRI and USRSA, your streak has to have reached at least one year. Now, I don't know about you, but the thought of committing to 365 days is a bit overwhelming and slightly discouraging. I am more of a commit to small goals in order to reach the ultimate large goal. So, I have decided to start with 50 days. I will start my running streak on Sunday, June 15. I didn't want to wait till July 1st to start this and my OCD will not allow me to start at any random day of the month so mid month it is :). Starting June 15th, I commit to running at least one mile everyday. Rain, shine, cold, hot, wind or no wind, I will run. I will run while on vacation, I will run if I'm sick (which I hope not to be during this process). I will run no matter how busy of a day I have. I will make time to run at least one mile a day. Hope you will check back every so often to see how I am doing. I will also document and post pictures on my instagram (runchelrun) page so follow me and join me on this journey.
If you are currently doing a running streak or have done one in the past, I would love some feedback and advice. Thanks and Happy Running!!!
I've decided to do a running streak. Why, you ask...why not? The official definition of a running streak as defined by the Streak Runners International, Inc (SRI) and United States Running Streak Association, Inc (USRSA) is to "Run at least 1 continuous mile within each calendar day under one's own body power without the utilization of any type of health or mechanical aid other than prosthetic devices." The run can be done on the road, track, or treadmill. Running in the water does not count.
So the question is, how many days should I commit to? Well, in order for your streak to be recognized by the SRI and USRSA, your streak has to have reached at least one year. Now, I don't know about you, but the thought of committing to 365 days is a bit overwhelming and slightly discouraging. I am more of a commit to small goals in order to reach the ultimate large goal. So, I have decided to start with 50 days. I will start my running streak on Sunday, June 15. I didn't want to wait till July 1st to start this and my OCD will not allow me to start at any random day of the month so mid month it is :). Starting June 15th, I commit to running at least one mile everyday. Rain, shine, cold, hot, wind or no wind, I will run. I will run while on vacation, I will run if I'm sick (which I hope not to be during this process). I will run no matter how busy of a day I have. I will make time to run at least one mile a day. Hope you will check back every so often to see how I am doing. I will also document and post pictures on my instagram (runchelrun) page so follow me and join me on this journey.
If you are currently doing a running streak or have done one in the past, I would love some feedback and advice. Thanks and Happy Running!!!
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Fontana Days Run - Half Marathon
This Saturday (June 7th), I ran the Fontana Days Run (Half Marathon). Like many others who run this race, I decided to run Fontana because it is known to be one of the fastest half marathons thanks in part to the down hill course...and I have to admit, I was hungry for a new half marathon PR so I thought this race would be perfect. The race started at 7:30am and is a point to point course from the Applewhite Campground in Lytle Creek down to Fontana City Hall. It's a great course with an elevation drop of 2,125 feet from start to finish, so if you're gonna run this, be prepared to say hello to those quad muscles :) Okay, now for the race recap...
You had two options to pick up your bib: Friday afternoon or Saturday morning before the race. Since Fontana is pretty far from where I live I opted for the Saturday morning pick up which meant an early night and an even earlier wake up call. I got to Fontana around 5ish since they were adamant that no bibs would be handed out after 6am. I picked up my stuff and headed to the bus line where runners were taken 13.1 miles up to the Applewhite Campground. Now here is my first piece of advice: Bring something to keep warm, because it is cold up at the start. I was wearing a pretty thick hoodie and was still shivering. I suggest a throw away outfit or if you don't have throw aways, there is a truck at the start line that will take your drop bags to the finish line.
I was at the start about an hour before the race started. I met some nice people including a woman (forgive me, I totally forgot to ask her for her name) who was running her 45th half marathon. She is turning 50 in December and her goal was to run 50 half marathons and 10 full marathons by her 50th birthday. She is an inspiration let me tell you...and looks nothing close to 50. I also met another woman (again, didn't get her name..I'm awful) who was super nice and had a great energy to her. She was doing a running streak where she has been running at least one mile everyday; I forgot how many days she had been doing this, but I also felt inspired by her. She was aiming for a sub 1:30 in this race.
The race started promptly at 7:30am and was very informal, which is kind of nice I have to say. There was no loud music, or an announcer to cheer for you as you passed the start. There was no one to sing the national anthem. I knew the race had started because all of sudden the crowd just started to move. Here is my second piece of advice: Don't get carried away with the downhill. Now that being said, do as a say and not as I do. I was well aware of the downhill course. I talked to others who have run this race and was told the same thing...but did I listen? Of course not. I sped through the first few miles and just took advantage of the downhill, but man did that creep up on me later; somewhere between mile 6 and 7. My quads were tight and I was tired. From then on, it was a mind game, I told myself, just get to mile 10 then you only have three more miles, but then when I got to mile 10, I was like, "S#!* I still have 3 miles." My legs were shot, I was exhausted and I slowed down significantly. Mile 10 and 11 were a struggle, but once I hit mile 12, I knew it was almost over. When the finish line was in sight, I picked up the pace and ran as hard as my tired legs would let me. I was so thankful to the crowd of supporters and spectators who were motivating and cheering me on. I crossed the finish line and as all runners do, I immediately stopped my Garmin which read 1:50:21. Not bad. I was hoping to get under 1:50, but was still very proud of myself.
All in all, I really enjoyed this race and plan to come back and run it smarter. I think if I would have just kept an easy relaxed pace at the beginning, I would have finished much stronger and maybe even with a better time. As you can see, my splits were all over the place.
Mile 1- 8:23 Mile 5- 8:14 Mile 9- 8:17 Mile 13- 8:57
Mile 2- 7:47 Mile 6- 8:15 Mile 10- 8:21
Mile 3- 7:51 Mile 7- 8:21 Mile 11- 8:52
Mile 4- 8:00 Mile 8- 8:15 Mile 12- 9:20 (Ouch)
You had two options to pick up your bib: Friday afternoon or Saturday morning before the race. Since Fontana is pretty far from where I live I opted for the Saturday morning pick up which meant an early night and an even earlier wake up call. I got to Fontana around 5ish since they were adamant that no bibs would be handed out after 6am. I picked up my stuff and headed to the bus line where runners were taken 13.1 miles up to the Applewhite Campground. Now here is my first piece of advice: Bring something to keep warm, because it is cold up at the start. I was wearing a pretty thick hoodie and was still shivering. I suggest a throw away outfit or if you don't have throw aways, there is a truck at the start line that will take your drop bags to the finish line.
I was at the start about an hour before the race started. I met some nice people including a woman (forgive me, I totally forgot to ask her for her name) who was running her 45th half marathon. She is turning 50 in December and her goal was to run 50 half marathons and 10 full marathons by her 50th birthday. She is an inspiration let me tell you...and looks nothing close to 50. I also met another woman (again, didn't get her name..I'm awful) who was super nice and had a great energy to her. She was doing a running streak where she has been running at least one mile everyday; I forgot how many days she had been doing this, but I also felt inspired by her. She was aiming for a sub 1:30 in this race.
The race started promptly at 7:30am and was very informal, which is kind of nice I have to say. There was no loud music, or an announcer to cheer for you as you passed the start. There was no one to sing the national anthem. I knew the race had started because all of sudden the crowd just started to move. Here is my second piece of advice: Don't get carried away with the downhill. Now that being said, do as a say and not as I do. I was well aware of the downhill course. I talked to others who have run this race and was told the same thing...but did I listen? Of course not. I sped through the first few miles and just took advantage of the downhill, but man did that creep up on me later; somewhere between mile 6 and 7. My quads were tight and I was tired. From then on, it was a mind game, I told myself, just get to mile 10 then you only have three more miles, but then when I got to mile 10, I was like, "S#!* I still have 3 miles." My legs were shot, I was exhausted and I slowed down significantly. Mile 10 and 11 were a struggle, but once I hit mile 12, I knew it was almost over. When the finish line was in sight, I picked up the pace and ran as hard as my tired legs would let me. I was so thankful to the crowd of supporters and spectators who were motivating and cheering me on. I crossed the finish line and as all runners do, I immediately stopped my Garmin which read 1:50:21. Not bad. I was hoping to get under 1:50, but was still very proud of myself.
All in all, I really enjoyed this race and plan to come back and run it smarter. I think if I would have just kept an easy relaxed pace at the beginning, I would have finished much stronger and maybe even with a better time. As you can see, my splits were all over the place.
Mile 1- 8:23 Mile 5- 8:14 Mile 9- 8:17 Mile 13- 8:57
Mile 2- 7:47 Mile 6- 8:15 Mile 10- 8:21
Mile 3- 7:51 Mile 7- 8:21 Mile 11- 8:52
Mile 4- 8:00 Mile 8- 8:15 Mile 12- 9:20 (Ouch)
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Happy Belated National Running Day
So this post was intended to be posted to my blog last night. I wrote and attached the picture from my phone, but couldn't get it to post. I'm still very new to blogging so forgive me for the late post :)
Am I the only one who was excited to get out and run yesterday? Of course not, because yesterday was the day to celebrate us and the thing we love to do.
I remember when I first entertained the thought of running. You see, I was never a runner, in fact, I kinda despised running. I was always active and went to the gym, but I never ran. About 8 years ago I decided I was going to give running a try...just because. I was also between jobs and had a lot of time on my hands. I started off slowly running a mile at a time until I was up to 3 miles at one time. I was pretty proud of myself and found that I actually enjoyed running. To make a long story kinda short, I ended up deciding to train for a half marathon and in the course of my training I was persuaded to train and run the full instead. I will never forget the feeling when I "hit the wall." I was at mile 19 and thought to myself that this had to be the dumbest thing I have ever decided to do. I also remember thinking, why on earth do people do this, let alone enjoy it. Needless to say I told myself I would NEVER run another marathon again. Well, here I am now, 9 full marathons, over 20 half marathons, and one relay later and I still love every step.
Yesterday I reflected on my running journey and many adventures in races and training. I thought about the friends I've made and all the memories we've shared. I'm so thankful to have found the joy in running. I love the running community, we're like a big, sweaty, some might say crazy family...but a family I am proud to be a member of. Happy belated National Running Day my friends!
Me and my Little Babes off to celebrate National Running Day.
Am I the only one who was excited to get out and run yesterday? Of course not, because yesterday was the day to celebrate us and the thing we love to do.
I remember when I first entertained the thought of running. You see, I was never a runner, in fact, I kinda despised running. I was always active and went to the gym, but I never ran. About 8 years ago I decided I was going to give running a try...just because. I was also between jobs and had a lot of time on my hands. I started off slowly running a mile at a time until I was up to 3 miles at one time. I was pretty proud of myself and found that I actually enjoyed running. To make a long story kinda short, I ended up deciding to train for a half marathon and in the course of my training I was persuaded to train and run the full instead. I will never forget the feeling when I "hit the wall." I was at mile 19 and thought to myself that this had to be the dumbest thing I have ever decided to do. I also remember thinking, why on earth do people do this, let alone enjoy it. Needless to say I told myself I would NEVER run another marathon again. Well, here I am now, 9 full marathons, over 20 half marathons, and one relay later and I still love every step.
Yesterday I reflected on my running journey and many adventures in races and training. I thought about the friends I've made and all the memories we've shared. I'm so thankful to have found the joy in running. I love the running community, we're like a big, sweaty, some might say crazy family...but a family I am proud to be a member of. Happy belated National Running Day my friends!
Me and my Little Babes off to celebrate National Running Day.
Sunday, June 1, 2014
Feeling Happy
Happy Sunday everyone! About a week ago I entered a photo contest with INKnBURN, the photo with the most likes by today won a surprise prize. Well, I didn't win, but I did come in second. Prizes were awarded to the top three so I won a $20 gift card. I'm super excited. I've never won a contest before, so even to come in second and win a prize is pretty awesome. If you aren't familiar with INKnBURN, you should totally check them out at www.inknburn.com. Their clothes are literally art on apparel and so different from what you normally see in terms of running clothes. Here is the picture I entered wearing my Lust Camisole and Denim Shorts (they look denim, but are actually running shorts).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)