Race Day

It is well into the evening of race day now and I am still riding on a high from early this morning. The household woke up early and was out the door quickly after everyone had a small something to eat. Once we got there the crowd was still fairly small and it was no problem getting in line to complete registration and receive my t-shirt for the event. Then there was a lot of standing around waiting for the race to begin. The longer we waited the more anxiety and nervousness showed itself. I caught myself saying, "If I complete it.." not "When I complete it..". But once the countdown to begin ended and I was out on the road I shook it off and kept focused on finishing the time just like I do on my normal runs around the neighbourhood. 

My husband suspected that with all the training that I have been doing I should be able to come in under a half hour. A few times during the run I started to concern myself with the time and started gearing up to push harder but I quickly turned my mind to the present and reminding myself that my goal was not a time goal it was to complete the run without walking. In fact, I didn't even wear my watch. I thought that if I wore it there was a possibility it would throw me off of my focus. I am glad that I didn't bring it. I will try to remember this for future races.

This particular race doesn't have chips that active at the start line and turn off at the finish line to provide you with an exact time of completion. My husband watched out for me and tried to time it as accurately as possible. I ended up coming in at 31 minutes. This calculates out to a 6 minute and 12 second pace. Not bad. Not under the 30 minutes though. 

Preparing for the run, I was most worried about the bridge that is around the 3.5K marker. I remember from last year it being the time when I walked the most and when my mental motivation broke down. I was fearful that this would happen again and thought about it every time I did the hill strides during training. So today when we came around a corner and I could see a sea of people running and walking up an inclined street leading up to the base of the bridge, I slightly panicked. All this time I thought it would be that I just had to push my body and mentally work through a steep hill up a bridge and instead it was at least half a kilometre of ascending road plus the bridge! It took some focus and motivation to just take one stride at a time but I made it through very well. 

The descent of the hill marks less than a kilometre to the finish line. It was not difficult to push through the portion of the race. I came in smiling. 

No knee issues. No stopping. No problem (?) - not so sure about that. But so very proud of myself for following through on this challenge and completing the full training schedule. It has been a life-changing experience in terms of learning my mental and physical abilities - they are as limited as I want them to be. I earned the success I had today. I am going to put it on my motivation shelf to draw on when I need it sometime, but for now, I am going to quickly move onto a new goal. Beginning to train for a 10K starts this week!

Race Ready

My 45 minute run could not have gone any better. Again I surprised myself. I really had to push on those last 10 minutes and there were a few minutes I thought a small pinch in my knee might cause me to stop. I pushed through and soon my knee felt normal again. At the time I thought that I might have to give it an ice after but forgot later in the day and it hasn't bothered me since.

I decided to run the 45 minutes in a new setting, hoping it would keep my attention away from the time and to ensure the whole length would be flat - no hills or surprises. I chose the seawall and it happened to be a sunny and warm fall afternoon. So the pathway was packed with other runners and people just having a nice walk. As some other runners went past me, my self-esteem was challenged a bit. I still felt like I had to be the slowest of the runners. I kept strong though and tried to keep my mind on achieving the full time. My thoughts bounced between overhearing people's conversations or watching the technique and stride of other runners. Over and over I told myself to just keep going. There was a bit of babble again but it was controlled and helped the time pass too.

Overall, the experience surprised me and I think it has changed how I see myself moving forward. I think that reaching the 45 minute mark without injury and exceeding 5K (I couldn't map out an exact distance but it was near 6.7 - 7K) completely changes my perspective on what I am capable of doing. I am not fast, I don't know if I have great technique or stride, but I am stronger than when I started.

I am going to take this 5K race and rock it.

5.53K!

I reached my goal! Last week during my long run of 35 minutes I completed 5.53k! I have spent the rest of the week trying to let that sink in...after 5 years of on-and-off efforts to run a full 5K without walking once has finally been achieved. I remember my first "real" run along the seawall with my now husband, N. I was committed to trying to impress him and come in strong as we walked up to the pathway but within a minute I was a struggling, body aching baby. It is so strange to even try to remember that girl. I cannot identify with her now. In fact, I don't even know if I was really ever that girl. I always knew that I had this athletic, or, at the very least disciplined, person inside me. And here she is. It really is beyond words describing how a success like this feels. Even though it is a measly 5K to some, it is a long-time mind-blowing accomplishment for me.

This success came two weeks before the actual race. In the process of working through this running schedule I had a handful of runs that made me think that I would need to do it all over again and register for a new race later in the year. I thought that I wouldn't be able to do it remembering that there is a gigantic hill that you have run during the kilometre. I have been practising on small or medium inclined sidewalks - the hill during the race has killed me before. I am still nervous about this "hill" (which is actually a bridge - so there is a nice down hill afterward) but I think with the success of completing the distance I can talk myself through the harder parts of the race run. 

Tomorrow is my next long run and the schedule demands 45 minutes! This will officially be the longest run I will ever achieve, but I can do it. At least, I think I can. Last week I kept track of my laps and tracked it online when I came home. I have tracked a few of the shorter runs this week as well to see if my pace has improved or if the 5.53K was just coincidence. I tracked over 4k on all the other shorter runs. So, I am quite confident that I have improved in terms of speed and pace not just endurance. This will pull me through my long run tomorrow.

I am giving serious thought to what schedule I will follow or what I will do at the end of next week when this schedule ends. I think that if I repeat it the beginning weeks will be too simple and if I repeat the last three weeks that just isn't long enough of a schedule. I am nervous, though, to begin a 10K training program because I think it will be too challenging. But I curious at the same time. I will spend some time this week looking into options and then making a decision. For now, though, I am still basking in the high of achieving my full 5K without walking!

Runners Block

I realize that I haven’t written in awhile. I am still successfully completing each run and settling into a routine that works for me - both physically and mentally. Almost immediately upon arriving home I change and go run. I have learned from past experiences that once you sit down and enjoy a tv show or eat dinner it is far more difficult to find the motivation to pick yourself back up and get out the door for exercise. Then, later I am either devoting the rest of my day too my husband, step-son or my school work (I started a part-time continuing studies program in accounting this month). Now that I have convinced myself that I can reach this goal my desire to write about it has changed.

When I am running I often give thought to what my next post topic should be. Lately, I have been asking myself, “what more can I possibly say?” I put on my running clothes, sneakers, ball cap and watch. I watch the time and begin running when the clock turns to an exact minute; the first lap I run always includes a steep incline three blocks from the park, then I run laps around the park. When my time is up I stretch out my hamstrings and sometimes my arms and shoulders if they have a pinch or feel tight. I do this over and over again - what more can I say? 

After considering this for a week now, today I discovered the answer and it came to me through a conversation with my husband, N. I was in our living room telling him that I didn’t feel like doing the run today and I could rearrange the schedule in order to fit the run in on Friday. He wouldn’t have it. In fact he carried on to say that this afternoon he recieved an email notification that entry into a marathon for fall 2015 opened today and he pointed at me to acknowledge that he thought maybe I should give it a try. “You can do it if you want to,” he said. And he is completely right! I can take this new routine of running 4 times a week and take it to any level I like. My runs do not have to be the same laps every day at the exact same park. I can challenge my 5K run speed. I can attempt to run every 5K road race in the greater Vancouver area if I want to. I take just keep it to myself and run 4 pleasant runs around the park every week. I can try for a 10K or half-marathon. I could sign up for a marathon. The question has changed to, what isn’t there to write about?

The Dream

This goal did not come about to raise money for cancer or to loose weight or some other traditional reason for taking up a training program. I have had an attraction to running for a long, long time. Once during a trip to the Rocky Mountains with my family as a teenager, I remember suddenly having this urge to run. Just like Forrest Gump described it - for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So, I did. I ended up running along the tourist area, through the parking lots and out onto to the highway. I wanted to continue but had to go back. Even today I can clearly remember the freedom and energy I felt that afternoon. That feeling has stayed with me and for many years wished that I could be a runner. It has taken me all this time to take it seriously and to stop feeling sorry for myself when it starts getting challenging. But here I am. I am doing it! In fact, I am doing it really well. I am still very slow but with only one incident of a tender knee and successfully completing every run on my program with continuous running, not one single time stopping to walk - I am living the dream.

The dream is ever-expanding. When finish this training program, I can repeat it and try to work on my time or I can move onto a 10K training program. Continuing on this path my options are endless. But, as small as my little successes have been, my heart is glowing with pleasure and pride. In fact, there is a list of pleasures that I have been mentally storing during and after my runs:

- The smell of fresh autumn air

- After running an incline, reaching the top and the ground flattens out

- Seeing a rainbow at the end of the road after the rain stops

- Running a whole lap without running behind a smoker

- Watching children have fun playing in the park

- When I look at my watch and 10 minutes have gone by

- When I pass someone walking slowly eating chips/candy

- Laughing at myself when I think a car slowing down along the road might be a stalker

- Laughing at myself when I try to quickly dodge dog poo on the sidewalk

- Stretching out my hamstrings immediately after my run

- Seeing all the sweat my ball cap soaked up, preventing it from running down my face

- Preparing to write my next blog post

Writing this list reinforces that I am really living the dream. Four times a week I am out there running, pushing hard. I have gone from being stressed out and concerned about my pace to someone who accepts their athletic level and finds simple pleasures in hard work. I am definitely on the right path, running toward that next big dream. 

Long-Weekend Warrior

This weekend we attended a wedding out of town. We planned to leave early in the morning in order to make the two hour drive, settle into the hotel and still have time to make ourselves up in our formal clothing before the wedding. So, I set the alarm and woke up an hour earlier than necessary and made sure that I got in the 15 minute run scheduled for that day. It ended up probably being the run that I’ve enjoyed the most so far; it was short, it was in the early morning shade, and I was proud of following though - not letting the events of the day be an excuse not to get my run in.

I was surprised how my body quickly adjusted during the early run. I was expecting my body to be stiff and difficult to maneuver over the small hills and cracks in the pavement. Instead, my body was quickly just as alive as it is during an evening run. The morning benefits were evident though - less people walking around and no heat from the sun. I am still not convinced that my current morning routine will allow for morning runs but I may give this some additional thought sometime. There is a sense of joy and pride in starting my day well after I’ve tackled the pavement.

Yesterday I did my first 25 minute run - the longest run of this training program so far. Somewhere in between the 15 and 20 minute mark I was pushing hard up an incline and I felt my body starting to give out. I had to immediately think about picking up my feet and pushing forward. I kept repeating to myself, “You can do it. Keep going. You can do it. Keep going.” Once the rhythm of my feet matched the words that I was repeating in my head I was able to keep myself in a trance long enough to reach the top of the incline and start the lap over again. This was the first time that I really experienced any sort of physical resistance since I started this training. I will be sure to keep this mantra at hand for the next time. No doubt that there will be a next time.

The run yesterday also taught me the value of drinking water. Over the weekend on our small trip I drank very little water. I was busy drinking cider, sugary fruity drinks, Slurpees or tea. And after my run yesterday I lay on my living room floor for a while to catch my breath and cool off. When I picked myself off the ground I had a hard time standing straight because the backs of my calves were tight and stung with a pulling pain. I am pretty sure that I can prevent little pains like this with drinking enough water. My long-weekend wedding festive eating and drinking has come to an end. 

I will be faced with another challenge today because I have a 20 minute run scheduled and It is pouring rain outside. I haven’t had to face the rain yet. I am all comfy and cozy inside still in holiday mode and I will have to motivate myself to get out there in the cold. I am going to wait a little while longer to see if the rain will slow down some. 

I am proud of myself for not letting the long-week festivities be an excuse to not follow though. And, I faced some of the greater challenges so far in this training - in my books, I am coming out of this weekend as the Long-Weekend Warrior. Roar. 

Lesson Learned

My left knee is beginning to feel the strain. After Tuesdays run I started to feel tenderness and a small ache on the outside of my knee cap and decided to ice it as a precaution. The next morning it was throbbing for the first few hours of the day. But it didn’t last. I suspect the pain was caused either by the shoes I wore to work the previous day or the way I slept. I will be keeping close attention to this. I am only one full week in and have six left until the 5K race - so far as I can help it, my knee will not hold me back.

Interestingly, I also started the Tuesday run stressed out. I knew that I was frustrated and in a sour mood but ran anyway hoping that running would cheer me up. Instead, I ran with the weight of my frustration on my shoulders and it slowed me down. My shoulders were tight and my heals pounded the pavement harder than they needed to. At one point I remember running on a sharp turn while trying to massage out a pinch in my shoulder. 

The next morning I saw an article posted with the caption “If you’re stressed out on the run, your injury risk increases.” Lesson learned. Even though the run ultimately did change my mood around, it would have been best if I had tried to put the stress aside before I went out. So, today I tried to continually keep my thoughts on my running in the moment and I left my worries at home. Not surprisingly, I came home not needing to ice my knee.

Beginner Blues

This next post has been challenging for me to write. I have successfully completed each run this week without walking and even had  a cross-training day. And yet, I feel completely discouraged. After each run I have been calculating my pace just like I did in my previous post. To my surprise, the next two runs both came in at least 30 seconds worse than the first run. Why am I not improving? I don’t feel like I struggled any more and my mind has even managed to turn off Babble. In fact, for the second run I was required to do 4 sets of “strides” (see here for the training key with explanation http://cdn.womensrunning.competitor.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Training-Plan-Key.pdf), which means that I was required to add short bursts of sprinting to the run, which in turn should ultimately increase my overall pace. Instead, it did the opposite. So, this week I have been forced to accept my body’s athletic level. 

Accepting my body’s limitations is not a new concept for me (probably not for anyone). I was probably born the least flexible person on the planet. Only within the last 6 months have I been able to touch my toes or when bending at the waist have my finger tips reach the ground. I have made these small improvement with some Yoga practice but through my running I can tell I still have a long way to go. My leg span while running is small. It feels unnatural for me to push harder off my heal to force my leg span to widen. My hip joints feel open, tender and exhausted after a run. I have to accept that these things will only improve over time. It is inevitable that they will improve so long as I continue doing what I am doing. In reality, I am doing everything right because I am not injured. I am just anxious for my time and distance results to match the effort that I am putting in.

Yesterday I did sets of leg raise exercises about and hour or so before I went running. I think that this may have been part of the reason I came in slower. My hip muscles tightened back up after exertion and I wanted them to keep pushing. So today I have not done any leg raises to see if it makes any difference in my performance. Later this evening I will be doing my first 22 minute run and I want to finish proud of my pace time. At this rate, I will be happy with just remaining in the 8-9 minute range. If I slip any further…I hate to even think of it. 

So, this week the lesson is not about patience and waiting for results to come around - it is about acceptance. I am a beginner. My body is learning how to adjust to these new demands I am putting on it. It is telling me that it needs time. It is asking me to be happy with the level we are at and to keep going. I am not injured. I am not dehydrated or dealing with fatigue. In fact, while writing this it has become clear; I am exactly where I need to be in order to succeed. I can definitely accept that!

Babble Crazy

On the first day of starting something new I usually get overly excitable or nervous with cold sweats and a dry mouth. This goal has added a new interesting experience to the mix: babble. My mind went wild with ideas and worries all day at work, knowing that I was scheduled to do my first run in the evening. Which route should I run? Can I really do 15 minutes straight without stopping? What about that hill on the way to the park? Oh! I don’t know where my old digital watch is. Should I hold my iPhone in my hand and set the timer? Do I really have to time it? And on and on… Once home, I washed dishes, I put in a load of laundry, I did some stretching, I found my 10 year old bright pink watch that latches with velcro- until finally, I decided I just have to go out there and do it. 

I walked slowly waiting for the exact second to begin running. This run will be exactly 15 minutes, just like the online schedule says, I told myself. I made the assumption that I was already able to run 15 minutes without walking and skipped week 8 on the schedule. If I couldn’t run for 15 minutes straight I would have trouble progressing through the rest of the training. It would be an immediate fail. All my running up until this point was gauged by distance. I would set myself a goal like; I will run 5 laps around the perimeter of the park. I never brought a watch with me and timed it. Often I would look at the clock before leaving the house and again when I came back, but during those runs I also allowed myself to take walk breaks. 

Within the first lap Babble showed up again. How many minutes have you been running? Really? That’s it? You’ll have to do that 10 more times. There’s the hill, I bet you’ll need to walk once you reach the top. Bah! This babble persona I didn’t know I had followed me from work and self-appointed itself as my new running partner. 

To my surprise, despite all the drama happening inside my head, the run was not overly challenging. I was able to keep a steady pace and I chose a route that had less of an incline than my usual route to make sure I preserved my knee. On a lap around the park I passed a grey haired man hobbling along in an indigo blue Hawaiian dress shirt. When I was a few feet ahead of him he yelled, “Wanna gimme a piggy back?” So, I can only assume that I looked confident and strong. In fact, I looked so strong that I am capable of running with a grown man on my back. 

Later in the evening, I went to map out the distance of my run (http://www.mapmyrun.com/ca/). It turns out, I ran 1.87 miles (Unfortunately the website only calculates in miles) in 15 minutes, which is the equivalent of 3K. Not bad! Much better than I thought I would do! With this information, using an online calculator to determine my pace (https://www.active.com/fitness/calculators/pace/#) I was again surprised to learn that my pace was 8 minutes and 1 second per mile!  Running 5K without taking a walk break is a possibility. At that pace I will be able to run the total 5K in approximately 40-42 minutes. I can already nearly run half that! Take that, Babble! This is all theory, of course. Adding on another 25 minutes is sure to lower my overall pace. Knowing this, I am convinced that in following this schedule I will achieve my goal.

Now I know where I need to challenge myself for the next 7 weeks. I must focus on maintaining and increasing my pace and on pushing myself on the days that include Strides, Hill Strides, and Long Runs. I will get my first chance tomorrow. It is my first 20 minute run with 4 Strides.

Babble is not invited.