Build'n.

T.M.I. 18 Miler

2010-05-29T23:01:00.015-05:00

After last weekends' deuce of long run fails I felt some pressure to get 18 miles logged. The mileage actually didn't phase me too much. I wasn't nervous about whether or not I could complete it, especially when I thought of it as two loops around the Sandrat trail. But, unfortunately, even though I tried hard to eat clean this week I ran into some unknown trigger ingredients towards the end of the week. I suspect decaf coffee uses corn as a preservative on the beans and also in the de-caffeination process. Companies will swear up and down they don't use any chemicals, blah-blah in their process but corn avoiders pretty much have a hard time finding a safe coffee -especially decaf. Anyway that and a couple other ingredients led to some more days where I just felt sluggish and had bodily function problems.
Never-the-less, I got out to the trail a 1/2 hour earlier than the usual meet-up time to run 2 miles. Shaving those off left me with two 8 mile loops.
Gary was waiting in his car as I came out of the woods. After waiting around a bit we decided no one else was coming and set off into the forest. I like running with Gary because he lets me fly at my own pace and has lots of conversation for keeping your mind occupied. We talked about jobs, family, endurance running and the Hawk 50. We saw mulberries and snake berries (pictured to the right). We ran into our fellow Trail Hawk, Christine, who was a Hawk Marathon finisher last weekend. And then Gary taught me a big trail lesson I'd been wanting to know about: Poison Ivy. Because the trail is a popular biking trail for weekend warriors (the ones that don't know the rules of the trail and that the runner actually has the right of way), we have to quickly step aside off the trail as they come swishing by at top speed. They almost never slow down. They barely say thanks. Mostly they just breeze by as we are teetering on the edge of the singletrack and the brush just glad to have seen them in time to hop out of the way. Well, I had be worrying that every time I'd jump to the side, I was standing in poison ivy. It turns out I was right, it's everywhere. Gary had me point it out along the way (I think I got pretty good!). The trail is maintained super well but still, there's so much poison ivy that it seems a matter of time before I'm going to come in contact with it.
While chatting we were trying to come up with a Trail Hawk name. It's customary for each new member (I finally paid up in dues) to be named out on their next trail run. Laurie had already came up with a hilarious name about a month or so ago but then Gary suggested 'Bama Hawk.' It's hard to sum up who you are in one little name, but as soon as he said that I thought, yeah, I got a soft spot in me for the deep south. And it stuck.

Southern Girl, Erykah Badu (Link to Play or Lyrics)

After about 8 miles, where I'd felt pretty good, the cramping came back. Gary thought it was salt/water intake. It was warm but I'd ran farther distances in lots of warm weather and I knew from experience and from the days before that it was my food issues. I was still paying for mess ups the day before. Heck I still had eczema and issues from a week ago when I ate wheat.
I slowed down a lot and started walking off and on. ARGH. Makes me want to pull my hair out that my body overreacts to food that isn't truly a poison.
I thought about taking a break and going to a bathroom where I could deal with part of the issue. But, I was so thrown by my previous failed attempts that I couldn't let myself stop, even if it was just a break. I was worried I'd go home and log another too-short attempt.
So after saying goodbye to Gary I headed back into the cooler woods and plugged my ear buds into my ears. Surely the scenery, the music and the cooler forest would help move me forward the last 8 miles. Relentless forward motion as they say.
I did move for a few miles but then as a lovely biker came hurling towards me around a corner. I stepped out of the way in time but he chose to stay in the middle of the path instead of hugging the opposite side of the trail (as I was) and totally clipped me.
*#@*% BIKERS!!!!!
It hurt but wasn't lasting. More frustrating than anything else. And sometime soon after that the cramps and nausea came back and the last 6 miles were a battle. The closer I got to finishing the worse I felt. I just needed to get the h-e-double hockey sticks off the trail.
But I wasn't going home early that's for sure. I was sticking it out if my body had to blow up and all I had left was legs.
I was finishing.
And I did.

18 miles DOWN!

Food that worked: Coconut Water, Whole Foods Electrolyte Water, Reed's Ginger Chews (2), Chocolate #9 Agave Gel @ 6mi., Banana @ 10 mi.

Next up: Storm the Dam Trail Half Marathon, El Dorado, Kansas

Long Run Fail

2010-05-24T11:14:00.010-05:00

They say if you first don't succeed try, try again.

They also say, if you first don't succeed then skydiving is not for you. *lol*

Luckily my feet were firmly planted on the ground running or I'd be a goner.

I tried getting in my 18 miler twice this weekend. Both times I ended up with only 5 miles in the bucket. I'm super frustrated and don't even want to really be thinking about running right now.

Saturday I woke up at 3:30am and volunteered at the Hawk 50 Ultramarathon for a mere 16 HOURS. I think the Trail Hawks put on a pretty great trail race especially considering the amount of rain that poured the week before. Marking the course alone had to be a huge challenge. You can read Laurie's awesome and detailed race report about how the water crossings were chest high in places (includes photos). CRAZY yet oddly intriguing and fun sounding, no?
Anyhow, I naively assumed we would be rotating shifts or at least that we'd have people relieving us at noon or something. But when are there really ever enough volunteers to have that luxury?
Well, it was extra hot and I was stationed on road by myself where there was zero relief from the sun. I underestimated how much water I would need (and turns out that the runners needed it too at that point in the race) and that I would need to bring safe food for me to eat. I knew I'd have fruit available (although, I wouldn't be able to leave my post to really get to it) but I just thought I could get by with bringing some nuts and a raw bar. I just didn't think I'd be there all morning, afternoon and evening. I didn't know I'd have access to my car and that I could have made myself a cooler stocked with ice and food for myself. It was just partly poor planning, I should have asked how long I'd be expected out there. I should have asked if I'd have access to my car, and therefore could have packed better. I don't expect people to cater to my food allergies but I should have asked more questions to make sure I could prepare. And the person that was supposed to be out there with me didn't show or I might have even been able to leave more... but even that, I can't go to fast food places really. Even if I get a salad to go I have to make and bring my own dressing.
Soooo... long story all to say that by hour 14 or so, I popped something into my mouth that I shouldn't have eaten. I was HUNGRY. I read the ingredients and although I suspected the product to be made of wheat, it named only soy and fish. So I believed it and ate it. In the U.S. wheat is supposed to be clearly labeled on a product as it's a top 8 allergen. It's the law to label food in this way. Well, it must have been mislabeled and when my symptoms started happening I realized that I had never seen this ingreident to not have wheat in it and therefore I had been duped. It's not the first time a label misled me. Won't be the last time either, I'm sure.
And for the next two days I paid a price.
Oh yes.
Oh yes.
Sunday my parents decided to go for a bike ride. I thought I'd tag along and run my 18 miler. Within 4 miles I knew my body was not up to it. I was tired, I was over-heated, I felt out of it and foggy, and my body was wanting to reject and eject the "poison" from the day before.
Monday I tried again. Rinse and repeat. Reject and eject.
5 miles each time and it just leaves me frustrated at myself and my body. This week however I resolve to eat like a saint so I can try, try again next weekend.

Night Runner

2010-05-20T20:00:00.002-05:00

I don't normally run at night but rain has poured here for a week and I haven't been running the trails.
But tonight, the sky cleared, the roads were dry and the air was still except for me slicing through for 4.5 miles.
What I'm loving about night running is the element of surprise. I smell the strong fragrance of honeysuckle all of a sudden but can't see it's source. I hear the trickling of water going down storm drains. My head lamp catches a frog leaping just out of my path. Street lights momentarily light up a bit of earth and flying insects as I pass.
Its the same streets I drive, walk my dog, and go about my errands but at night, it's a brand new trail I've never explored.

Current Inspiration: John Muir

2010-05-18T22:14:00.005-05:00

"I only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in."

"The mountains are calling and I must go.

"The power of imagination makes us infinite."

"Few are altogether deaf to the preaching of pine trees. "

"Surely all God's people, however serious or savage, great or small, like to play."

"Only by going alone in silence, without baggage, can one truly get into the heart of the wilderness. All other travel is mere dust and hotels and baggage and chatter."
-John Muir

Mother's Day 5k

2010-05-10T20:07:00.007-05:00

Before moving to Alabama, my Mom and I participated in the Mother's Day Run a couple years in a row. Now that I've moved back, we decided to continue the tradition. My mom has had foot issues, including surgery, so we took it nice and slow. I'm happy to do that anyway because the reason we do it is just to enjoy the experience and each other. I had also run my 16 miles the day before so it felt good just to walk and stretch out the legs.
There were signs all along the course with sayings that Moms say:

"You'll thank me when you're older."
"I don't care who started it."
"Wear clean panties in case you get in a wreck."

Hehe. We laughed because they were true and it was a nice touch to the race. Afterward there were long lines for the free food. It was ridiculous and so we skipped it. I couldn't have eaten anything but brown bananas anyway. Mostly, this race is an average road 5k but I love doing it because I get to be with my Mommie.

16 and Build'n

2010-05-09T22:32:00.000-05:00

If it was a snake, it would've bit me!

I thought this was a sleek, black, shiny, long snake as I was running up to it. Luckily it was just a trick stick.

That's what happens when you're out running for two and a half hours! Ya start see'n things! Actually, it was a relatively easy run that I really enjoyed. My legs took a couple miles to warm up and then at six, I got distracted and my foot caught a root. BAM! I was eating dirt. Ugh. I get so pissed off at myself for doing that. My knee HURT too. Just ached for the next three to four miles. Then the pain disappeared for the rest of the run. Whew!
At mile eight I stopped off at the car to wipe up the dirt and scratches a bit, top off my Nathan and grab a little food. I had a Reed's Ginger Chew on the first loop and coconut water. Even though I wasn't exactly hungry, I wanted to start playing with eating more solid foods. The most I've done so far I think is to eat an all natural, organic fruit leather in mango, Justin's Almond Butter & Maple Syrup, and Chocolate #9 Agave Energy Gel. Which has all worked out great. This time I ate a RAW Organic Food Bar in Chocolate Chip (Ingredients: Organic Cashew Butter, Organic Dates, Organic Agave Nectar, Organic Brown Rice Protein, Organic Dark Chocolate Chips (Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Chocolate Liquor, Organic Cocoa Butter, Non-GMO Soy Lecithin), Quinoa, Flax). I cut the bar up in tiny, bite sized pieces and stored them in a snack baggie. This worked out okay although the baggy was kinda hard to stuff into and pull out of my already-used chest pocket. I really need a smaller bag. But, the bite sized pieces were perfect for eating slowly. I'm finding so far that I can eat while running, but I have to do it slowly over a mile or more. I eat a little and drink a few sips, then as soon as I can, do it again. Maybe this is good anyways for a constant supply of energy while requesting my stomach to work a little at a time.
Otherwise, nothing new out there - just logged the miles, felt great and went home. :)

Homemade Salty "Margarita" Trail Runners Drink

2010-05-06T15:56:00.008-05:00

Is this for real?! Well, ...maybe. :) If you are wild and crazy like that, you could add some tequila. Heck, I ran a marathon with a guy who chugged a beer, kept it down and finished just fine. But, otherwise, this virgin margarita has sea salt for sweat replacement and to keep you drinking, potassium, calcium and magnesium to balance your electrolytes, water for the obvious and limes for taste! I also added agave nectar not only to sweeten the drink, just like a margarita mix, but to add some calories for energy. It's all natural, home made and works on a hot, summer run!

Recipe: Amy's Salty Margarita Runners Drink

22 oz. (650 mL) Hydration Bottle
Whole Foods Electrolyte Enhanced Water
1 Lime (2-4 slices, to taste)
Sea Salt (2-3 dashes, to taste)
Organic Lime Juice (Optional, 1 Tblsp.)
Agave, Honey or Sugar (1-2tsp, to taste)

Shake well & best chilled before run!
Enjoy!

Current Inspiration: Amy Palmiero-Winters and Jan Brett

2010-05-04T20:24:00.007-05:00

Today I went back out to the Sandrat trails for a mid-week run during perfect weather. 80 and breezy, in the shade almost the whole way.

I was facing the usual neighborhood running and realized I had the time today, I should freaking run where I'll be happy. A lot of people had the same idea as it got pretty busy on the return trail of my five miler.

Although it took me some time to warm up, my run felt good, the leg tweaks I had been having silenced, the trail felt smooth and I just rolled on. It's funny how you can feel so creaky and rusty beginning a run for it all to just start loosening up into a nice flow. I had been reading a profile on Jan Brett, author and Boston finisher, in Runner's World and she said, "The first mile of every run I always get this feeling that I'm not a runner and that this is all a joke." Ha-ha. That's me until later on in the week when I realize that running for 2 and 3 hours at a time probably means you are a runner. Even though I second guess all those hours out there wondering if it wasn't hard enough, fast enough, if I should have been on a different terrain, upset over a leg or knee ache, etc. Scared that my ultra marathon goal race will never happen. Maybe if I even get into the race, if I don't walk too much, if I'm not last, if I finish.... maybe I'll be a runner then. :)

I came out of the forest briefly where the trees part and a breeze came over me, the sun shone and the tall grass whipped back and forth. I just felt glad to be right in that spot at that very moment. Today running felt good. It got me thinking about Amy Palmiero-Winters and how she described her amputee as a challenge like any other. Running challenges can come in many forms, although I'd say hers is up there and her statement is very modest for what she has overcome! But I love it all the same, recognizing that not every run is a good run, not every day is a good day to run, not every body is up to running, and not every moment out there feels right.

But today, it felt right and everything showed up that needed to show up and lay down a weekday run.

Current Inspiration:
Amy Palmiero-Winters, U.S. Track Team
Link: USAToday article.

Jan Brett
Children's Book Author/Illustrator and Boston finisher (7 times)
Link: Website

Sandrat 8 Miler

2010-05-03T19:41:00.008-05:00

I missed the Clinton Lake group run because had a lot to do on Saturday and wanted to jump my errands as soon as possible that morning. I probably could have gotten in my two hour run but driving home, showering, changing, unloading crap from my hydration pack and then getting ready for the day would have put me behind more than I wanted.

I never mind running alone anyway. In fact, it's my preference most of the time.

It kept trying to storm but the mix of the cool air trying to overtake the warm made for a mix of breezes and sunny spots. It also made for dramatic scenery every time the trail peeked out from the forest.

I lost my GPS signal (unlocked Garmin.. oops) very early on in the run. I'm unfamiliar with the trail enough to not know the mileage at the turn-around points. I guessed distance by how I felt and how far I had gone since I had restarted my watch. I'm pretty sure I got in all 8 miles and left the trails feeling great.

P.S. My shoulder is healed from last weeks' crash. :)

Anouk's Trail Run

2010-05-02T19:34:00.005-05:00

I took Anouk to a dog park that has a grouping of trees and groomed trails. It's completely fenced in so my little escapee could run off leash.

Of course, once back into the open area, she ran top speed through the only puddle in the dog park!

The Trails Are Calling and I Must Go

2010-04-30T00:13:00.005-05:00

The title is a 'lil remix of John Muir's quote, "The mountains are calling and I must go." For being a trail runner, I haven't been doing a lot of trail running lately. Yesterday I ran a neighborhood (neigh-boring-hood) 4 miles. This has been a long winter and now a very wet spring. Which has made the trails muddy and I just haven't been feeling like making my knee's ache from the wet suction effect, nor straining muscle from trying to move through slippery earth or dealing with wet, muddy shoes. If I had shoes to rotate, it might make that a little less of a sticking point, but at this time I only have one pair of shoes that aren't over mileage.
But, tonight was the Gal Gallup run at the Sandrat trails. The ground had dried out so I went early to run with Laurie and Coleen. Coleen led at a brisk 10:30ish min/mile pace. I don't know if that was the real average but every time I looked at my watch we were doing 9 something... 10 something.... I quit looking. We past 2 miles, then 3miles.... I stopped talking. I tried to stop my brain from thinking because all that I came up with was something like:
I have to stop.
I can't keep this up.
etc.
Negativity I didn't need. So, like I said, I told myself to shut off the brain. It wasn't doing me any favors.
New rule: Don't shut off the brain.
Within no time at all of mindless brain wandering I hit a sunken rock HARD. And boom, I was down, sliding into an invisible home base. I got up and thought SAFE! But, as we resumed walking I realized my left shoulder and wrist hurt. Ugh, annoying. We resumed running and my left knee sorta clicked. UGH, very annoyed at myself.
Then, not a couple minutes later, BOOM, my foot hit another rock. Luckily I did a Superman, staying airborne until my foot was back under me. But now I was pissed at myself. I was just tired and I had probably stopped picking up my feet enough. Not used to running so fast took the juice outta me quickly.
However, I'm still really happy to have run with these girls tonight. Every Thursday is a nice little challenge for me, and I need that. It's either faster than I usually run or an exercise in not being able to take walking breaks (as much as usual) as we run single file on single track trail. Both really great for a tempo training run midweek.
At mile 2ish Laurie had just finished telling us how a tree we were climbing over had fallen during her last run. Then we heard this huge creeeeeeeeeak! Mile 4 brought back the creaking and groaning of the trees waving high in the wind so we pressed on the gas to finish up. My watch said 4.5 miles but the girls say it's a 5 mile loop.
Felt good to be back on trails and back in nature!

Fourteen Mile Garage Sale & Review: Sportslick

2010-04-28T23:45:00.002-05:00

Five days later and I still have little dots on the insides of my legs. They don't hurt at all anymore but I forgot how long it stays with you! I also forgot the stinging and burning experience in the shower after your run. I cowered under the dripping water on the verge of crying for my mother. I forgot how a mixture of moisture (rain) and friction (running) on a warm day is a perfect setup for chafing. Oweeeeeee!
Saturday was the Fort Leavenworth Yard sale and I had 14 miles to lay down so I decided to just do both. I actually didn't stop at any of the sales, but it was interesting to people watch and browse on the fly. I started up at the old DB and worked my way through the 100+ year old housing and toward the brand new housing at the back gate. The furthest houses toward the West side of post sit on a hill overlooking the Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary (photo: view from the hill). At about 5-6 miles (one hour-ish) into my three hour run, it started raining.
As I made my way back down, eastward, I found a nice little trail behind some housing and was surprised at how close you can come to the Federal Pen! Ft Leavenworth also did a good job with the walking paths. Although too short for a runner doing anything over a mile or two, they are perfect for families and strollers. They really add to a park-like feel and better quality of living for Post housing I think.
Anyhow, at this point I was about 7-8 miles into my run and the burning/chafing had started. I've only ever had one chafing issue with a sports bra on a double digit run about 6 years ago. The elastic band had dug into my skin and left slash marks for a week or more. I had always chalked that up to the material (even though I've always tried to stay away from cotton). But this wasn't the material. I think it was just sweat drying and then re-wetting as well as the rain mixed with warm temps.

By this time I also needed to use the restroom and wasn't in the luxury of a hidden forest trail so I made my way to the PX. This was on route back to the db and my car, where I was looking forward to dealing w/my skin issues. In the PX I felt really self-conscious with the hydration pack on my back. It just looks, ...pretty out of place. Not to mention the rest of me, red faced, sweaty, smelly, etc. :) But I ran in, did my thing, had a chance to look at the chafing, washed up really good and felt completely refreshed. I had a fleeting hankering for a small espresso at Starbucks, which is located in the PX. I was feeling tiredness creeping in and thought it might be a nice pick-me-up as well as something to warm me on the inside. But, I still felt weird that I looked like a hiker, 7 days off trail and lost... so I walked back outside. At this point I also unstrapped my long sleeved shirt from my Nathan Intensity pack and threw that on. Back out into the rain I went.
I took a different route on the way back, which has the most scenic views on Post. This street meanders along the new Command and General Staff College campus, as well as the oldest housing along the Missouri River. I stopped off at the historical markers and checked out the old canons lining the bank. Fun!
Making it back to my car, I was able to throw on a wind breaker. The temps had dropped and by now I had been running in the rain for about an hour and a half. I also figured I'd try out my new Sportsslick Solid anti-chafing/blister stick. Although the only brand I've heard of is BodyGlide, this is the brand they carry at EliteFeet, so it's the one I picked up. They are very picky about the brands they carry and I should have known this would be a good one just because they carried it. Literally, from the moment I started walking and then running again, the pain was gone. I had another half hour or so to finish my run in the rain, and I felt zero discomfort. Had I put it on before the run - or at least when it had started raining - I believe I wouldn't even had the chafing at all. I had just thought it was mostly caused by cotton clothing but now I've learned better!

Food eaten successfully:
VitaCoco Coconut Water - best tasting brand so far.
WholeFoods 365 Electrolyte Water
Chocolate #9 Agave Energy Gel
Justin's Maple Almond Nut Butter
Reed's Ginger Chews

Review: Black Diamond "Cosmo" Headlamp

2010-04-22T23:08:00.010-05:00

Wet earth, my foggy breath, head light burning, damp clods of grass looking like frogs, twigs looking like snakes, still night air... I'm night running.

I had planned to run with the girls out on the Sandrat trails today but it's been raining for about 24 hours. At the risk of sounding like a wimp, I honestly didn't feel like dealing with the mud. I need to run 14 miles Saturday so getting my shoes completely muddy out there tonight, and then having to wash them out - they'd never be dry in time to do my mileage. Sometimes I can set them out in a hot sun and they might be ready in a little over a day - but it's supposed to rain a lot in the next 3 days so that's not happening. I actually don't even know when I'm going to get the 14 in but as soon as there's a break in the weather, I'm going to be out there laying it down.

I had already resigned to the fact that I just wouldn't get a run in today. I kept thinking however that I hadn't run since my Monday ...and that was eating at me a bit. I want to keep building my base miles. Running 4 miles is pretty much a breeze these days and I'd like to push it to where 8 miles feels easy. It already is very, very doable and on flat surfaces it is a pretty easy run. But, I can't wait for the day it feels just as easy as 4.

I went outside to let the dog out and realized it had stopped raining. The temperature had lifted a little as warm air infiltrated the cool. Out there I decided it'd be a great night to test my headlamp. I had picked it up last year but didn't do any races that started in the dark. I definitely had some training runs that ended in the dark unplanned but never had the headlamp on me.

I ran on city streets so the street lamps lit my way fairly well. But on the darker streets I was able to see just how well the Black Diamond Cosmo lit up the pavement. I don't have anything to compare it to but I believe this will be good enough for my purposes. Certainly, it's a lot less Blair Witch Project (read: jumpy) than holding a flashlight. The headlamp is just a lot smoother and more convenient than holding one more thing in your hands.

The Black Diamond Cosmo is also super light. I have tried out an electrician's head lamp before which is a bit bigger (as well as older) and the Diamond has definitely done a good job minimizing the weight. I would forget that I even had it on. It straps very snugly to my head and didn't move as I worked up a pretty good sweat. There are three settings: Hold to turn on (3 LED lights), push again to dim, push again to flash/blink and hold to turn off. The rubber button for these settings is fairly large, on top of the device, and I was able to access those settings easily while on the move. For being so powerful, the light is pretty compact and I can see taking it off when I don't need it and stowing it in my Nathan Intensity side mesh pockets or in the back, larger zip pocket.

As for the cons, I noticed two minor ones toward the 45 minute mark of my 4 mile run. I felt like it kind of made me itch. I probably have sensitive skin however and maybe having something strapped to my sweating skin was a little irritating. I don't know, but I feel like it was pretty minor. Secondly however, I noticed I had a headache toward the end of the run. I have no idea if this is due to the tightness of the strap, the moving light I'm constantly following or if it's completely unrelated. The pollen count has been astronomical lately - but it had just rained, and I think that's supposed to suppress environmental allergies isn't it? But still, it will take a few night runs to find out if the headache is related to the headlamp. And if it is an issue of following a shinning light in the dark, no headlamp is really going to fix that for me. I would say though, if I have to wear it for more than an hour, it could be more than a minor issue. We'll see though - maybe it'll just take some practice!

Overall, I would recommend it!

Black Diamond "Cosmo"

Retail: $29.95
32 meters max light distance
3 LED lights
High and low beams plus strobe signal light
Water-resistant
Uses three AAA batteries

Review: Nathan Quickdraw Plus and Adrenaline 10

2010-04-19T21:10:00.005-05:00

Ran a 55 minute loop around the airfield today. It felt quick and very easy. I got a chance to test out two new pieces of gear as well: 1.) Nathan Quickdraw Plus Handheld and 2.) Brooks Adrenaline 10.

I tried a few hand held bottles over the past couple weeks but don't remember all of their names. I was inclined to buy the Nathan because I am so happy with my hydration pack. They test their products out on elite runners and although they aren't perfect in design, I feel like their products generally are well made. This was definitely true for the Quickdraw Plus. It fits like a glove. When you put your fingers through the strap, it just fits and stays. There is no effort to grasp the bottle at all so you don't feel like you are carrying weight at your hands. A bottle wouldn't necessarily slow you down, but mentally, I was always adverse to carrying one because I thought it would at least feel heavy enough to be a burden. I have no idea why, but it just doesn't feel cumbersome or weighty in your hands. I did have a little trouble with the screw on lid. After filling it with water, it never seemed torqued down tight enough. I couldn't tell if there was water spillage from the cap or if it was coming out the top of the nozzle or just that it was wet from being filled. I think this worked out okay though. When I started running some water was coming out but I hadn't pushed down the nozzle stopper. So that was my bad - but duly noted that you can't just throw the bottle around w/out plugging it back up. I don't think the cap not screwing down was really a problem either - - and maybe it just looks like it's not completely tight, I don't know.
Anyhow the strap also has a small pocket for keys and a few cards and /or energy gel. I didn't have to put anything in it so I'll have to do a short review when it's loaded up with stuff.

The second thing I picked up were some new shoes. I've been running in Brooks Adrenaline's since 2004 with only one deviation to Saucony that was a mistake by Garry Gribble's Running Sports. (I have a very narrow AA foot and I guess Saucony is a fairly wide shoe.) I have exclusively bought my shoes from Elite Feet otherwise and recommend them to everyone I can.
I was a little worried about the 10 because I've read that there have been a few changes in this model. It felt the same as previous versions when I slipped it on however.

Running in it for the first time today I felt two tweaks: one in my left ankle and one in my right knee. *brow furrows* I was running on the right side of a slightly sloping dirt road however so at the very end of my run, when the tweaks started letting me know something wasn't working, I moved over to the middle. I hope this was the problem. The only other thing that it could be was that I used an old insert in my new shoes. Since Elite Feet was closed, I couldn't buy my inserts because Gary Gribble's doesn't carry them. I might run in the shoes once more on a different terrain before going and getting a new insert at Elite Feet.... even if that is the issue, it's just a $20 solution. Otherwise, the feet felt fine I think.

One other issue that is still bugging me is that I'm getting a little skin irritation on my outer toes even during short runs like this one. Mainly my left foot. I'm wearing those thin drymax socks and a little disappointed in them still. I really wish I could get ahold of the thicker trail version. The skin issue turns to blisters at anything over 10 miles and especially on the trails in the mud. So in a race, I imagine I'd be in for a real problem. And the most irritating thing is that I've never had a blister problem before! I guess that's what training is for though - working out all of these problemos!

Homes Tour

2010-04-17T20:28:00.009-05:00

Image: wikipedia

Today I planned to do 6-8 miles as a low mileage week between 12 (which turned out to be 11) miles last weekend and 14 miles next weekend. My legs were still a little sore and cranky from my trail run this week, so I decided to run the miles out at the flat Army airfield.

The first loop around, 4.5 miles-ish, went fairly easily and fast. That's one good piece of news. Every time I run a loop or two out there now it feels relatively easy. I think grass and trail running is really strengthening my legs and building my cardiovascular health as well.

When I came around from the loop, I saw some Army tents and soldiers sitting out in front of them. Mostly, everything looked dark inside the tents and I couldn't make anything out. There were also a few personal vehicles around the tents as well. My first thought was that it might be some kind of training but secondly I thought it might be a dragoon encampment! Dragoons are re-enactors who dress in 1840's uniform and educate people on what it was like living and working in a frontier fort. They usually have horses, tents, shoot cannons, as well as perform ceremonies (flag raising/lowering) and march. There are women as well who demonstrate what it was like to live and travel as an Army wife. I've heard they also have balls with full 1800s gowns and dress uniforms. Anyhow, when I saw them I decided to run the street nearest to them and check it out. Unfortunately, when I ran by, it was just far enough where I still couldn't make out what they were doing and it's not in the spot they usually perform. I didn't want to run by if it was a real training exercise so I took the road that led away and up to the old disciplinary barracks... home to the military prisoners for over a hundred and forty years.

I ran past some horses behind the DB and guiltily snapped a pic (it can be illegal to take photos on a military base). They always have horses on base but it had nothing to do with Cavalry anymore... I think they usually belong to families and even civilians. Past the horses I kept taken on the hill that leads up to the prison. It used to be called "the castle" and was built by it's own prisoners in 1875. A new facility has been built recently, but it still felt wrong to be running up along side the huge walls and guard towers. At one point I ran past the huge doors/gates that were open and led into some sort of yard inside the walls. I wanted to take a picture so bad but didn't.... So just think Shawshank Redemption and you'll pretty much get the picture not taken.

Once I got up past the DB and back onto the main post roads, I headed for the old housing. It turns out that day they were having the annual Homes Tour which features structures from the 1880-1890s. People pay to go inside homes and see the architecture and collections... in the fall they do an awesome history and ghost tour as well.

I passed the homes, wound around to the National Cemetary (c. 1844) and then pass the golf course and back to the main road for the last 1.5 mile back to the airfield. I had filled my hydration pack up with 50ml of coconut water and plain electrolyte water from Whole Foods. I ran out sometime in mile 6 so next time, if it's warm out at all, I need more than 50ml for a 1.5 hr run.

Lots of people were out walking in nice clothes for the Home Tour. I think I was attracting lots of stares passing them by at mile 6, 7 and 8 with my sun-pinked skin, hydration pack and huffing and puffing. Hey, I was just taking the tour as well... at a little faster pace!!

If I can't go to the beach, I'd rather be here

2010-04-15T10:22:00.014-05:00

Ran the Hunt Lodge Valley trails on base today! I hadn't been to the deer trails since my hunting scare last season. It hadn't rained in days so I wanted to find out if the area had dried out, which it had for the most part. Except when the trail was muddy, it was a pit! It was also slow going over some of the dried mud because they were deeply rutted from hunting boots traipsing through this snowy winter.

I lost the trail twice on my short run but for the most part the path is easy to follow. After about 1.5 miles in you start to see quite a few trails crisscrossing. I have only stayed on the main path so I'm not sure how far the off-shoots go. It's really unfortunate that the Post doesn't assign a unit to maintain the trail system like they do at Fort Rucker. With all the PT that is required of the soldiers, you'd think it'd be an excellent place for them to get in shape. Although, I know they aren't really concerned about distance as much as speed.

Speaking of distance, I picked up an awesome GIS map from Santa Fe Bike Trails shop in Leavenworth. It's a satellite view of the West side of Post and has the trails marked very clearly. There looks to be quite a lot of miles out to explore!

Trail Run with a View

2010-04-10T19:44:00.017-05:00

Saturday morning I met the trail hawks at Clinton Lake again. There was a pretty good sized group gathered with some new people (new to the group, not running). A couple were road racers and one of them was a triathlete.

We had some good talks about triathlon training, which I always think is something I want to do. Then I remember that I don't love the water. I can't even do a technical stroke. So at that point I always go back to hoping to get into duathlons. Until I remember that I don't own a bike anymore. Gaw.

The group went fairly slow because some people had a 25 mile run planned ahead of them and others were new to trail running. This was perfect for me as I only needed to do 12 and I was able to keep up. Finishing is always goal #1. Keeping up is goal #2. :)

The morning had started out a pretty cool 50ish degrees and almost half the folks were in long sleeves. I went sleeveless knowing that it'd warm up 20ish degrees while running in addition to whatever the sun would do for us. Nick had on some Moebens which I have been lamenting over online for quite awhile. I haven't bought any because I had no idea what size to get. I have freakishly long arms but they are skinny. Nick had size large and let me try on a sleeve. While the bicep area was almost too loose, it would totally work and was definitely the right length. So happy I got to test them - and it was exactly the right kind of day to wear them.

About mile 7 I started feeling some tiredness... energy wise. I had gotten very little sleep the night before and I'm not sure if that is why I was feeling it so much. I took a Chocolate #9 and never really felt like it did a whole lot. I don't know - the jury is still out for me on that product. If there was any way to put caffeine in that product with out using a corn derivative it'd probably be the most perfect product. This time I ate the product very slowly - maybe over a half mile or more. I didn't experience any nausea this time and I think that consuming it as slow as I can is key to this success.

I turned around at Land's End and took a mixture of blue and white trails back with one other gal. We ended up with only 11 which was fine by me. By the last couple of miles my legs were trashed. The trails are pretty tight and winding, with some hills and a good amount of mud. So the ole tree stumps took a lot of pounding. I was also out there for 2 hours and 45 minutes so if you look at "time on my feet" I was pretty happy with that...

One of the girls who had wrapped up earlier with 6 miles had gone to a cafe and brought back bagels. She opened the huge box for me but sadly, and hungrily, I said, "no thanks." My gluten free little body thanked me and I rewarded myself with at a coffee shop later with hot coffee and an allergy free Bumble Bar. :D

5+ Miles with the Girls

2010-04-08T21:38:00.005-05:00

I met the women's trail hawk group for a 5 mile run tonight. It started out feeling pretty cool at 55 degrees but once we started running the temperature felt awesome. Last week I had a little knee complaint after running on very muddy trails the Sunday before. This week everything seemed back to normal!
I ran with some girls who are definitely faster than me but it's probably good for me to speed it up once a week. On Tuesdays I can run at my own pace and then Saturdays I can push the mileage. This way I'm getting a varied workout through the week.
I love running with these girls and getting to talk about girl stuff - running skirts, food, yoga, boys... Good times! :)

Review: Chocolate #9 and Drymax Socks

2010-04-04T21:24:00.008-05:00

Easter Sunday I spent with my Dad running around Sherman airfield. The weather was great for most of the run but started pouring during the last 1/4th of my 8 miles. I had on an ipod with headphones and worried about electrocution. Can that happen? lol.

The downside to running on Post is that it's a pretty good drive for me. I feel bad about spending the gas on it when I'm also going to Lawrence to run twice a week now. I usually try to double up on my errands when I go there and visit my parents and/or grocery shop at the Commissary, get gas (tax free), etc...

But I love running here for a few reasons. The loop is 4.6 miles which means regular access to your car amost every 5 miles. I also love it because it's perfectly flat. The elevation gain and loss is about 40 feet. :) Watching planes come in over your head also makes for something new to look at.

On the front side of the loop there is almost always soldiers or their families out there. The 2 mile strip is the Army Physical Fitness Test 2 miler course so a lot of military guys and gals are out there training or doing their test.

I walked a little too much with my Dad on the first loop. He doesn't sustain a pace for long because he's not trained up but naturally, he's way faster than me and feels pretty uncomfortable running my slower pace. He's going to start biking it along side me in the future. This is what we did a couple times last year and it works out perfectly. We both get a good workout in that way. So although we walked, time wasn't really wasted because we get to catch up and spend time together. The 2nd loop he went back to the car and I really booked it. I finished the last half of my 8+ miles in 45 minutes. I just felt like I really knocked it out!

Two things I got to try during this run that were successful:
1. Chocolate #9 Agave Energy Gel

Taste: Like chocolate ganache. Amazing... sweet but not overly sweet like GU.

Ingredients: Agave and swiss chocolate. So I was able to eat it with my allergies and not have problems. This makes me so happy. This is the ONLY gel I've found that I can eat.

Packaging: I was carrying around agave sticks which would work but they are as long as straws and not easy to carry with me. I'm so happy to have a normal, rip off packet now, easily stored in my pocket.

I did get a little stomach nausea for 10 minutes about 10 minutes after eating it. I am used to agave as I use it in place of honey and maple syurp for my coffee or pancakes, etc. But, I still felt a slight queasiness so next time I'm going to try half a packet, eating the other half later.
Also, I never felt a jolt of energy. This was to be expected though, as agave is a slow burner and that's the whole point vs other sugars that spike and then crash. I only ate it on an 8 mile run so it's not a great test anyway as far as energy. I'd normally not eat an energy gel until running something like a 10 or 12+ miler. But I will say that at the end of my run, I still felt like I could do more. So overall, I'm very happy with the product and have 3 more to try out.

2. The other thing I tried out were my new Drymax socks. I wanted and looked for the trail socks but couldn't find them in stores in my area. I settled on picking up the Running Lite-Mesh version. They felt a little thin and weren't even the thinnest one they make! As soon as I put them on however, they felt comfy and gripped my feet in all the right places. No slippage or sliding. I wore them on this run even though my normal Target running socks would have probably worked fine. I still had 2 blisters from my mud run last Sunday so I didn't want to take chances on interrupting the healing process. So, for my 8 miler the Drymax socks seemed to have worked - no additonal blisters. My current blisters didn't lose their new skin and my feet felt great.
I still would like to try their trail socks though. The lite-mesh version are white and trail running turns all my socks brown. And I hate to use bleach as it damages some fibers. I also wonder if the trail version is more sturdy - especially with how much twisting and turning your feet do on a trail versus on the road... Anyway, I should be logging most my miles on trails this year and my big goal race is out on the Ice Age Trail! Can you guess which race I've set my sights on???

Meet: The Gal Gallup

2010-04-01T20:46:00.006-05:00

On Tuesday I ran a quick 3 miles on some neighborhood roads but tried to stay in the grass as much as possible to simulate trail running. I think it helps to build my legs muscles. Although, when running uphill or when grass isn't available I've been not worrying as much about pavement running. I'm so much faster than I used to be (at least going short distances) and it's been fun to look down at my Garmin and see a 9:45 min pace or 10:30 pace here and there. I can't hold it for long, but more often, I'm seeing those faster paces flash across the watch. My legs are used to having to dig into the grass or mud or dirt for traction, so when I'm on the roads I'm fly'n! (relatively speaking to my usual snails pace)

Thursday I met another new trail running group! This is an all women's group that meets on the Kansas River Sandrat trails. The trails are on a loop but it's so narrow it's almost an out and back. They are also relatively flat - nice! There were a bunch of new runners (new to running and new to the group) so it was a great turn out and fun to meet everybody. There were two different paces going on. The first group I went out with ran faster than a 12 min/mile pace. I stayed with them until the turn around and then joined the 12 min-ish group to go back to the trail head. We finished right before it was getting dark and the air was still warm. Such a perfect evening!

Can't wait to see these girls next Thursday!

Meet: The Lawrence Trail Hawks

2010-03-27T20:01:00.007-05:00

Last year, after moving to Kansas from Alabama, I knew that I needed to do two things to keep running: one; find unpaved trails and two; find new running friends.
After running the Dogwood Canyon 25k, I met up with the Kansas City Trail Nerds one night. They were very nice and have run together consistently for years. However, the 3 guys I met that night ran way faster than my pace. One guy from out of town did stay behind me but I held everybody up by alot and it was obvious. The hilly trails they run at WyCo Park were just too much for me, especially a week after doing a very muddy, hilly race. We were probably going seriously slow from their normal pace but their slow pace still sent my heart pounding into my throat. I wasn't ready and after two miles I had to drop out. I didn't go back. I didn't know when there would be girls or if there would be slower runners. I couldn't hold them up all the time and I couldn't run alone in that area. So I just quit. I ran a few more times outside at Fort Leavenworth before the weather turned cold and I turned to the treadmill at the YMCA.
But this spring, looking at hitting double digits on my long runs, I knew I'd have to find longer stretches of unpaved road or trail. I also needed people to run with for safety and for help reaching my new goal this year.
It turns out that my old boss is married to someone who is in a running group in Lawrence. So, I contacted Gary and within a half hour knew where and when everyone would be meeting! Today I met the group at the Clinton Lake north shore trail head for a 10 mile run. Everyone was very welcoming and there were a few other new to the group runners as well.
Again, everybody ran way faster than me. UGH. In fact, I'm so slow that I think people think I am new to running. People mentioned it a couple times but after we talked for a while they realized I knew a little more than a newbie would know.... I've been running since 2004. lol. Oh well. And the funny part is that I've actually gained some speed this year - - I have been running in the 10-11 min/miles on paved roads and 12+ on trails. But running with faster people all the time is tough (though they are all super supportive - it's my own negative self talk) and it makes my gains in speed seem like nothing!
I will say, in my defense, the Clinton Lake trail is more technical than I've been training on so far this year. -Lots of hills and the mud was outrageous! Almost every step we sunk, slipped and slopped. Worst mud I've ever ran in for a training run. I've run in rain, hail, sleet/snow, on icy paved paths, etc. I'm not a pansy to running in less-than-perfect conditions. But the way that the mud pulled at my shoes, my knees ached at pulling back with every step. Hoping my knees heal quickly and if I have to, I'll go back to running dirt roads and wait until the trails harden.
Anyway, Gary was awesome and let the group go on so he could run my pace to keep me company (and keep me on the right trail). Thanks Gary!! Colleen also met us half way through and finished out my milage with us.
Afterward, in my car I peeled off all my wet, brown clothing and saw blisters on my feet. Dang! I never get blisters so I chalked it up to the 2 hours and 45 min of running in the mud with old socks. As soon as I can I'm going to pick up some Drymax socks that I keep reading about...
I will definitely be running with the Hawks again! I will probably let everyone know that I can run alone because I don't want to hold people back each run. They've got their own races to train for and I'd feel terrible if someone had to baby sit me each time. I think it will be good enough to know people are out there on the trails when I am, for safety.
And I'm really excited to have new trails to train on!!

Running errands

2010-03-25T23:09:00.005-05:00

Today I decided to mix it up a bit by combining errands I needed to "run" with my 4 miler. It's almost exactly 2 miles to the Post Office from my house and the library. I found that doing this really helped to bring some purpose and new direction to my weekly run - which has been feeling like a chore lately.
Running the pavement always worrys me because I feel like they make me more prone to injuries. I felt a tweaking on the outside of my right knee and since I've been home it's felt sore. All that on a little 4 miler. But I have been mixing up my shoes lately and most of them are worn out. I think I might have put on a really old pair and I'm hoping that they were the cause of my knee pain.
Otherwise, I knocked out 3 things I had to do today in one jog. :)

Some Sun and some Run

2010-03-23T22:50:00.011-05:00

Prior to yesterday, it had been snowing for three days! :( I lost my free YMCA gym membership on the 17th so I couldn't run my 6 miler scheduled for this weekend indoors or outdoors.
Yesterday, however, the sun came out and was shinning warm and strong. It melted about 3/4 of the snow and then today, the sun was working on melting the rest.
Although it felt like summer, I still didn't feel like running! This kinda shocked me because usually the sun pulls me outdoors. I decided to get my running clothes on and take the dog out on a walk to get my blood flowing. That helped wake me up and put a little energy in my step.
Anouk (puggle) was so happy to be walking: tail up and bouncing, tongue out, panting.... bliss!
Once we got home, I hopped into my car and drove an exit down where the neighborhoods have sidewalks. My neighborhood sucks on so many levels... tight hills, sidewalks that disappear and reappear, country roads where drivers can not see a runner because of the hills and overgrowth as well as a lack of shoulder for someone to safely move over for on coming traffic.
So, although this neighborhood is just as boring and the views are basically middle class mid-west suburbia, it's safe and there's a grassy area on both sides of the sidewalks. I try to run in the grass most of the time. Usually I only pop over to the sidewalk if I'm going uphill and want to bring my heart rate down. Since I don't have easy access to real trails here, I feel like running in the grass strengthens my legs and works my stabilizer muscles enough to simulate trail running. You also have to pay attention to the ground just like trail running... there are frequent dips, holes and uneven terrain that could be a quick ankle twister. Also, I can tell my heart rate jumps up pretty quickly due to having to push off ground that gives rather than hard concrete. Lastly, I hope that by opting for the grass I am pounding the pavement less which hopefully means less chance for injuries that road running seems to produce.
I had scheduled 6 miles but only got in 5. In addition to taking days off due to weather, on Thursday I only got in 2 miles so my legs were really feeling this workout. I also didn't have any coconut water so my Nathan was filled with plain water and my legs cramped up pretty good the last mile. The sun felt hot and at 60 degrees outside it probably felt like 80 running - I even got a light sun burn (reminder: start wearing sunblock)! I decided that since this coming weekend calls for 10 miles, I'd give myself a break and not push my legs now.
Usually, I hate snakes but seeing this little guy sunbathing on the side walk made me think that maybe Spring is here to stay and Summer is around the corner!

A Girl in the World

2010-03-18T11:08:00.007-05:00

Went over to another neighborhood to put in 2 - 4 miles. I'm disappointed to say I only worked up to 2. I'm obviously having motivation problems here big time. I've said it before on this blog, but running around a bunch of neighborhoods is boring and I have a hard time pulling myself out there.
I feel trapped into neighborhood running though. There is a huge trail system in a forest around a local county lake but it's just completely unsafe to run there alone. Even some guys I know don't go there at night by themselves as it's surrounded by some not-so-great areas. There are park rangers, but it's pretty big and if you're going to run miles, it's not like someone can keep an eye on you the whole time.
There is also a system of paved trails that the city maintains. These are really nice but two problems there are safety (every year there's a women who get attacked on the trail system it seems) and secondly, I don't want to put in the majority of my mileage on roads. It just leads to injury for me.
I thought about starting to pay for a gym membership but I just had 6 months of free access to a YMCA and although I appreciated being able to cross train, I know I'd never want to do the majority of my mileage on a treadmill. Running for me is about life and being in nature. Treadmill running is just something I do when I have to get in some miles and there is no other option in sight.
The best thing that could happen to be is to find someone to run with.... Someone with the same mileage goals in mind and who runs at the same pace. Almost everybody I've ever run with, runs faster than me and one of us ends up frustrated. I'm getting faster by continuing my leg workouts, but still, I absolutely hate being pushed on my daily runs. - Unless it's a run where I'm working on speed, I just want to be working in my zone.
I used to run with a group on the weekends and I could join a group. But it still leaves me with the rest of the week, running in my neighborhoods.
Anyway, it's just where things have to be right now I think.
I feel frustrated often about being a woman and having the safety issues that men might not face. A woman just can't run anywhere without safety being a concern. Men also have situations where that is true, but it seems the majority feel free to run wherever and whenever they want. A lot of woman do it too, I know. I read some trail runner blogs where girls set out for miles on their own. Sometimes I think that maybe I should just do it.... but the truth is, I'd be so full of anxiety that someone was going to mess with me out there that I'd just not even be able to enjoy the miles.

Current sources of motivation:
Dirt Diva (trail runner/ultra runner)
Lisa (ultrarunner)

Review: Ultramarathon Man DVD

2010-03-16T00:21:00.007-05:00

Just watched Ultramarathon Man: 50 Marathons in 50 Days. I had already listened to the audio book version of Dean Karnazes' story last year, but saw the movie on Netflix and decided to watch it.
I've been trying to soak up motivation from various sources. This has been a really harsh winter with a lot more snow than we usually get. Running for me is very much tied to loving the outdoors and warm weather. Cold weather makes me want to curl up in the fetal position under a blanket and not move unless it's to eat. :) So, I thought I could at least lay on the couch and watch someone else run a bunch of miles and maybe it'd somehow light my fire.
Well, it did and it didn't. I did want to build my endurance and I did think about how I need to put in the low miles now, even though I don't feel like it because by the time my mileage builds to something decent, it'll be warm outside and I'll want to be out there.
The movie itself was pretty entertaining. The complaints I read about this film seem to be people who were upset about how focused it was on Dean. Well, Dean was the one running the 50 marathons! What do they expect? He also focused on his cause which is childhood obesity and other smaller themes like the research they did on his body and how the crew survived living in a van for a month together.
One reviewer wanted the documentary to go into how Dean prepares his body and how he's able to endure that much exercise stress. But I think the documentary does hit on that. It shows Dean running a lot of miles to prepare for the Endurance 50. It also shows how he eats well on the road, how he never got as much down time as he needed, how he admits that a lot of his success is probably due to genetics and how afterward, he ended up doing 1300 more miles and ran half way across the country!
I think that Dean isn't doing secrete concoctions of Cytomax and Gatorade or a certain amount of gels and salt caps. Maybe in important races he strategizes but in this one, the fueling plan didn't seem very rigid. I think his success is just because he puts in the mileage day after day and his body is able to recover from it quickly due to genetics and his healthy lifestyle. They said that after 50 marathons, Deans body only showed 1/4th of the damage that a normal runner would have after just one marathon!
Anyhow, I thought it was an interesting story and definitely worth watching while snowed in on your couch.

Oregon Trail Run

2010-03-15T14:57:00.009-05:00

My Dad came out with me to run on Post today. We ran 4.6 miles around the Army airfield but had to plan out another three+ miles somewhere else unless we wanted to go another 4.6 around again.

We decided to head off the airfield towards the 120 year old housing. This post is the oldest active military post West of the Missouri and and has a lot of beautiful old buildings and housing. I figured we could run up the hill and then just run in the grass along the sidewalks and look at all the scenery.

There's a huge grassy field that we ran up. It's a long hill that dips right in the middle which was created from all the wagons heading West on the Oregon and Santa Fe trails. It still has the double ruts from the wheels although they are covered in grass now (shown in the picture of my Dad). It was fairly steep and we looked back down the hill towards the river and talked about how difficult it would be to get where we were standing. The travelers had to float their wagons and force their oxen to swim across a swirling, quickly moving, wide, muddy river (river pictured at the bottom of the post) - unless they could pay for a ferry. I copied the inscription on the monument:

The stone monuments to the West mark the trace of the original road leading up from the river. For many pioneers, traders, settlers and soldiers, this was the beginning of the Oregon and Stanta Fe Trails leading to the Far West. The steamboat and ferry landings were nearby, and foundations of one of the old levee warehouses may still be seen to the east of this marker.

It had rained for days before we were out there so a lot of the airfield road was muddy and rutted out. My dad held up great for not having trained at all (besides working out regularly at the gym). He finished with 5 miles and is thinking about doing a 5k. I told him he could probably even do a 10K at this point. Hopefully we will plan one together soon!

Floor workout and Four Miles

2010-03-08T14:11:00.003-06:00

Snapped a picture of the area I'm trying to run in these days. It was pretty much all long, rolling hills. It is better than my neighborhood however because of the wide shoulder and sidewalk.
I had 4 miles to do today on the schedule and got in 3.75. Close enough.
I've been doing my floor workouts - legs/abs/yoga - for a couple weeks now and I really think it's helping! I guess I'm surprised by this. The Runners World articles I collected with exercises for runners shows how each routine is targeted towards an area running requires for power or balance, etc. I found myself running at a faster pace, often. I'd look down at my watch and I'd be running in the 10:30 or 11 or 11:30 pace!? I did also have to stop and walk more here and there. My cardiovascular system might be lagging behind where my legs are ready to be! This has really motivated me to continue these floor routines! I would love to pick up my pace a little without having to do a bunch of sprinting. I also really believe this might strengthen the knee and hip area and help me to not get my ITB type injuries. Coupled with yoga and stretching my hips/thighs, of course.

Sherman Airfield lap 4.5miler

2010-03-06T15:13:00.005-06:00

Well, I'm finally feeling like I'm running again. I've printed out a year's calendar, found some races to shoot for and planned out a training schedule. It feels so good and a great motivator for getting me out there on a cold day like today.
The weather is trying to push into Spring although it's still usually cold, especially at night. And we are still getting ice storms here and there. Ugh. But now, each month that goes by means it gets warmer and I will be gaining more endurance!! I'm finally feeling some excitement. I'm going to try to think of my long term goals when I go out for these runs where all I was doing was questioning why I'm out there.
Today I headed out to Post to run my 4.5 mile loop. The dirt road is dodgy this time of year because wet=mud=bad ruts. It was dry today, though the ruts were so hard you could twist an ankle if you were abset minded enough!
From here on out I will be working on upping my mileage - can't wait to see what my body can do with my new eating guidines!

6mile.... walk around town

2010-03-05T23:00:00.004-06:00

I walked my dog to the library, then to a coffee shop and back home tonight. Mostly the scenery was just old neighborhoods but about halfway there was a gurgling creek that made the most plesant sound! I notice these things because I'm just not a fan of being on the roads with cars and their exhaust. So a little bit of nature goes a long way. :)
I wore my Garmin 405 GPS watch to see how many miles we racked up. Last time it was about 4 miles and this time I think we were in the upper 5 miles to 6 mile range!
It was so nice out, for once, in the evening. Really felt like Spring/Summer and just made me happy. And I know little Anouk appreciated getting out too. She's been cooped up inside just like I have all winter!

Neighborhood Loop 3 mile

2010-03-01T23:19:00.004-06:00

Three mile loop around the neighborhood today. Still unsafe. Still dodging cars and smelling gas fumes.
Mostly I've been working out at the YMCA because we keep getting snow dumped on us here. Storm after storm after storm.
Unfortunately, my free YMCA membership expires mid-month so hopefully the weather improves enough that I can run outside. I think I'm just going to have to commit to driving to other locations to run.
One new thing I've started doing are a series of core and leg exercises at home. I'm really trying exercises to build up the muscles around my knees and hips. I've read that doing it helps to stabilize those areas when I run and may even ward off ITB and knee injuries. I got the routines from old Runner's World magazines. I've been thinking about cutting them out and sort of pasting them onto new paper so I don't have to flip through the magazine and find them each time. It'd be a way to collect floor exercises I can do at home and add to my routine. After abs and legs I follow up with a series of yoga poses for flexibility and stretching. This little routine is just something I can do on days I can't run (especially due to the weather) to make me feel like I'm doing something towards my running goals. And who knows, maybe I'll be injury free this year!

Neighborhood loop 3 miler

2010-02-10T23:20:00.005-06:00

Went running outside for the first time this year. It's been a long winter. Snowy. Crazy amounts of snow for this area. Ice. Mad ice. And I think everybody has had cabin fever.
So, that's why I haven't posted much. I've gone to the gym here and there doing the elliptical and treadmill but even that I've skipped out on. Who wants to drive when you've just gotten 8 inches of snow. Ugh.
Everyone in the area kept saying they hadn't seen snow like this in Kansas. I think it was especially hard for me just coming from Southern Alabama where the winter is very mild. In the deep South there was maybe 1 or 2 nights where there was a possibility of temps getting down to 30 degrees and everyone was worried about their plants. Ha! Most days during the dead of winter the temps reached above 50 or even sometimes into 60 degrees if I remember correctly. So, being stuck inside here. Being cold all the time now. ...Makes a depressing season. And it's only early February so we're probably not over winter until mid-March.
I tried to be positive today and find three runnable miles near my house. I found three miles but they weren't exactly easy or safe. I've mentioned it before but a lot of the roads near me don't have sidewalks. They are old roads that are still narrow with ditches on both sides. There's no shoulder to safely hug when cars go by. Miles one and two are on these types of roads and one is super hilly. Tall hills where the oncoming cars crest the top and can't see you. Since there's very little to no shoulder for me to be out of the way, I really have to listen for cars and try to move over the tops of the hills when I am fairly certain I'm the only one on the road.
It's a lot of work just to try to run a simple three miles. But it's all I've got right now except for some treadmill running at the gym.

Sherman Airfield 5 miler

2009-11-07T23:21:00.003-06:00

Went out for a 5 mile loop at Sherman Airfield today. I'm trying to hold onto some of the endurance I've built up this year.
Unfortunately, driving out to this spot is pretty time consuming and gas consuming so I don't get out here as much as I'd like. And there are probably not too many more bright and warm days left in this year.

Run with TrailNerds

2009-11-03T21:00:00.005-06:00

Since I moved back to Kansas in September and realized what my running options were locally, I've known that I'd have a hard time putting in long miles by myself. Mostly for safety reasons.
I have been following a lot of the Trail Nerds' blogs since living in Alabama and decided to meet up with them for an evening run.
I got out there with only a minute to spare but luckily for me, they never start on time. It turned out there were about 3 guys who showed up and myself. Right off I asked them if they were going to kill me slowly by pace. They were really awesome and quickly promised to "go slow."
We set out and right away I knew it was a pace I'd never be able to hold. I had never run at Wyco Park and found out immediately it's all hills with a 600ft elevation gain and loss. And November means the trails are full of leaves so seeing the trails is impossible. On top of that it was pitch black out there in the forest and I only had a flash light. Oops. Shaking and jarring around my light made me think of Blair Witch Project. Awesome. Out here with three guys I have never met, in the dark, in a forest. Brilliant!
These guys couldn't have been kinder though. As I dropped back further and further the guys took turns one at a time staying behind me to make sure I didn't get lost. Then the guys out front would stop and wait for me to catch up. It was so amazingly sweet but wow, I felt like a loser. Like I'd never ran a day in my life. I had just ran a 25k last weekend and I just completely looked like a noobie.
The guys reassured me I just needed to get to the gym and work on strengthening my legs. But two miles into it, feeling guilty for slowing them down (and with how fast they were going, they must be super fast when I'm not there), I bowed out. I asked them to loop us back to the cars so I could split.
*sigh*
So now, I don't know what to do. I am a 12 minute/mile pace. It's slow, I know. But I've been this pace for the 4 years I've been running long distances on and off. It's just where I'm at. I probably should join a group that you pay so you can run with a group of people who are your pace but they all run roads. I'm so not into that anymore.
Frustrating.
Going home tonight I just felt really let down by myself.
There's one other group I thought I'd try: the Lawrence, Kansas Trail Hawks. It'd be a long drive and they are all in super long distances right now. But it seems some of them go at a 12 minute pace so maybe I could tag along some weekend runs. Right now I want to crawl under a rock with SUCK inscribed on it.

Hunting vs Trail Running

2009-11-01T23:27:00.004-06:00

I had heard from some online sources that Fort Leavenworth has some hidden trails. After getting confirmation on this from a guy on the Kansas City Trail Nerds message board I decided to try to find the trail. My Dad said he would go with me so we took off to Post and parked near the skeet range. The guy had given us the best directions that you possibly could for finding a trail that never really reaches a road. You basically have a couple land markers (water tower, skeet range, fence, etc) and have to suss it out as you go into the woods.
Once we finally found the trail we were off at a pretty slow pace. It's basically a deer/hunting trail - single track - and at this time of year it's covered in leaves. Deceiving. You can't see any ruts, rocks or other debris under the fallen foliage, so stepping down and off each time is quite a gamble. The trail was sometimes easy to lose as well.
As we were going, and having fun we kept hearing gun shots. But, it didn't really register too much because the skeet range was at the top of the hill. They were aiming at the targets flying above us.
We go a little further and find a geocache! My Dad had never heard of these so I explained it to him and we took an item and left an item. Fun!
Going a little further on to the trail we see deer right ahead of us! There were only a couple and they were so huge and majestic! We stood still, a little in awe, watching them watch us. Then they took off and I took off after them. After they quickly out ran us I looked down and pointed out some shot gun shells on the trail. A little further, we smell gun smoke but again, just assumed maybe it was still the skeet range "perfume." :)
We decided to head off the trail and try to find the road. After coming out of the woods we see hunters hanging around at the forest edge! We also see the sign "WARNING - Hunting Area."

The shells, the smoke, the sounds - not just the skeet range. We were literally running with the hunted. WE were the hunted!

Lesson learned. For Xmas I'm getting my Dad this bright blaze orange cap from Cabelas! haha.

Dogwood Canyon 25K Trail Race Report

2009-10-26T09:00:00.009-05:00

This is the 2nd year for Bass Pro's Dogwood Canyon Trail race. The trail is located a little over an hour SW of Springfield, MO and dips into Arkansas a bit as well. This part of the Mark Twain National Forest is actually private land of the owner of Bass Pro Shop.
The Web site for this race completely sucked. Maps were promised and never posted. In fact, the forest was easy to get to using my iPhone GPS but we only found the entrance to the Dogwood Canyon park because of 5 cars turning there in a row. Had we been on our own a few minutes before, we would have certainly driven right by. Additionally, more race info should have been posted to the site. Since I am not from this area, I had no idea about the terrain. All I knew to train for was the mileage and "trails." The obvious. Well, trails can certainly vary in description... city/park trails, bridal paths, cut grass paths, single track, double track, paved.... How easy would it have been to post some pictures and/or post a more descriptive review of the challenges? Challenging it was and a few words about what to train for would have certainly focused my training runs to hills, hills and more hills! And I know true trail races might factor in hills but an elevation map was promised and in this race, the elevation change was the most significant factor in the race and they should have posted it. I need to send an email with that suggestion to the race director for next year.
There are two options for this race, the 25K (which I did) and the 50K. Weather: Although it had been freezing and winter-like all week, we woke up to temps in the 50s and a race day ending in the 60s although, it rained alot during the race.
We took off from the Springfield area about 6am and got to the park a little after 7am. Everything was easy at this point... parking was close and organized, finding the bib table was a short walk from the car and there were no lines, ... within minutes we had our stuff and went back the car to get ready. I would guess there was a 150 runner turn-out so it's quiet small and I loved that! Lining up right before 8am the race director had a LONG winded talk, introducing some famous runners and explaining the rules. We were off and running on time however.
The race starts out on the parks' paved path and within a mile or so starts going off-road. The most significant thing about the first 4 miles of this race are the 14 water crossings. We think there were probably at least 15 total in the race, with almost all of them being in the first quarter. Some are shallow and narrow and some go up to your knees and are very wide for a creek. Either way, your shoes are wet and muddy this entire section. Also starting a couple miles into the race are the hills. We counted about 9 hills throughout the race which doesn't sound like a lot at first but considering a 15.6 mile race, you are pretty much going up or coming down at any given point. You'll feel some fire in the quads, calves and glutes! We read afterward that the hills ascend around 400 feet and my Garmin 405 gave me an elevation gain of over 4500 feet! The hills were steep, muddy & rocky. It rained for 3-4 miles straight, adding to the mud fest especially around the water and really making the downhill sections a slip-in-slide except in the grown-up version if you slip, the rocks are gonna tear you up. The one thing we kept saying about the rain though was that it could have really made for a freezing cold day - but luckily the temps held and somehow I had dressed just right so that I never felt too hot or too cold! My race outfit was: wicking long black pants, short sleeved shirt, Nike wicking light jacket w/fleece outside, and a ball cap.
The course was very well marked. They used pink ribbon tape that was easy to see and marked off areas to not go and marked other ares to make sure you were still on the path. Additionally they had some signs up as well. Another nice thing was the mobile aid stations on jeeps. We heard them and saw them throughout the race and I really felt like if something happened, help would not be too long or too far away. They also were constantly joking with us and checking in to make sure we were still having fun - nice! The aid stations were also wonderful. I didn't really pay attention but I want to say they were every 3-4 miles. I don't use aid stations much due to my food allergies so I'm not sure what all they had but I did eye the gummy bears for a few seconds until my friend slapped me out of it. We did however, take advantage of the steamed new potatoes! They left the salt off and I THANKED them profusely because had they pre-salted them I would not have been able to eat it due to my corn allergy (a corn derivative binds iodine to the salt in regular table salt). This made me overly happy and gave me such a boost to be able to eat something new. Otherwise, I munched on a couple of my Yummy Earth organic candy (the only candy I've found that i can eat), a half a ginger larabar (before I knew I could have the potatoes), and one packet of maple-almond butter. I had my Nathan filled with coconut water (natures Gatorade folks, try it) and Smart Water. I had zero cramps, good energy the whole time and only a little nausea towards the end after trying to eat a 2nd potato. In my training I hadn't had any nausea since going all natural and eating less and I used to SUFFER from it constantly back in my days of Gatorade and GU products. Yuck.
Best news for last: The swag. Wow. Entrants receive a New Balance long sleeved tech tshirt (in white - bad news for girls - totally see through) and finishers received a workout towel w/race logo and a NORTH FACE TKA Glacier pull over fleece jacket!! Yes, it says North Face. Yes, it feels great. Yes, it's worth $50 which is more than the race itself cost ($45). The womens jackets were black and the men's were a mossy green. Wow.
Overall the race was a lot of fun. Beautiful scenery with numerous waterfalls towards the end of the race. The hills totally killed my legs at about halfway through the race but if I ever do this race again I'll train for the hills and take 'em on a lot stronger! Don't expect to PR here -- my time was not quite, but almost double of my normal half marathon time. But, I should add though, we also didn't go all out - not that we didn't run or try but just that the hills really made us hang back for safety and to conserve energy and we also stopped to take pictures of ourselves and the views. I don't regret that either - - I'm running to enjoy the ride. Some racers have a problem with that but I'm not a racer, I'm a trail runner and I'm out there to experience it all, not just let it whiz by unnoticed.

Link: Trail Runner Magazine review of the race.
Link: Anton Krupicka's review of the race from 2008

13 Miles on a Dreadmill

2009-10-18T23:34:00.002-05:00

I just ran a half marathon on the treadmill and it wasn't... that bad. I mean, I'd rather be outside on a nice day any day, but it wasn't horrible either. I don't have cable at home and therefore, pretty much never watch t.v. So when I got to the Y and there was a marathon of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, I got sucked in ... for 13 miles.
Well, at least I wasn't sitting on the couch with a bag of potato chips watching trashy reality t.v.!!

How To Train in a New Heart Rate Zone

2009-10-05T23:35:00.004-05:00

Ummm.

The things you see on your daily run in suburbia.

Today I was minding my own business, running the along most boring side walk in a neighborhood near mine. As I was coming up the hill, I saw a guy standing in the middle of the side walk facing the houses on the opposite side of the street. He set up, drew up his arms, which held an archery long bow and arrow and was shooting these across the street, across the opposing yard and into his fence!

I couldn't believe how serious the bow and arrow looked. It freaked me out actually. I dawned on me why the Indians used it - it's so fast and effective! It just sinks right into the target with smoothness. As I passed by him I got a chill. I don't know why - he wasn't unfriendly. He didn't say anything and did pause his shooting but I just felt...... a little scared. He could totally turn on me in a second and take me out with that thing! It might as well have been someone shooting a gun in the street.

Maybe I'm over -dramatic but I felt uncomfortable about it. It also seemed a little unsafe. What if an animal or kid came into his yard or was playing beyond his fence and he couldn't see them? What if he accidentally aimed wildly? He should take it out to a field in my opinion.

Anyway, that definitely took my run out of boredom and into a new heart rate zone!

10 Miles at Sherman Army Airfield

2009-09-27T23:10:00.005-05:00

Ran 10 miles around Sherman Army Airfield while my Dad biked beside me. I was thinking for that many miles I wouldn't be able to talk much but we chatted the entire time!
It took a little over 2 hours. The weather was great but hot so we kept drinking and sweating!
As for longer, weekend runs: I'll run less than 10 next weekend, then a 13 miler the next and then taper for the Dogwood Canyon 25k!

Kansas River Run

2009-09-04T15:52:00.009-05:00

Went for another run at Mill Creek but only got in under 3 miles. Although people were sporadically playing at the park, I was mostly alone on the trail and it just felt unsafe.

I do enjoy this area although it's paved. I wish I could run here for my weekday runs just to have a nice view and some shade. I just don't think it's smart to come out here alone. Running past the Kansas River it's very secluded and all I could think about was not wanting to end up a body floating in it.

Anyhow, this time I went North on the trail instead of South. The trail loops a couple times along the Kansas River (a.k.a. The Kaw - a nickname relating to the Kanza Indians who used to live here). It was a beautiful view. A cool breeze swept off the water and made for a pleasant run through the dense trees. Lots of flowers are still blooming as well.

Neighborhood Run

2009-09-03T20:30:00.004-05:00

Well, I tried.
I tried to run in my neighborhood. It's boring. It's paved. It's very, very hilly... The closests streets are filled with houses and then the closest roads are so country there's no place to run.
The country roads are narrow, shoulderless and back up to fences and trees. It's just not safe as cars zoom past and I barely can get out of the way - which basically forced me to stop running every 30 seconds.
So, daily runs are going to be a challenge...

New Trails

2009-08-31T22:23:00.015-05:00

This week, we are finally moved and settled. I have moved from the deep South to Midwestern Suburbia.

5 years ago I trained for a marathon on the local county trail system which spans a lot of different cities. I live in a different part of the city now but was still able to pick up the part of the trail. The trail head is close to my house (but I have to drive to get there) which is nice since I'm not sure that my neighborhood is conducive to running.

Today I headed out to this new-to-me part of the trail system. It looks a lot like the other paved trails: paved, dense trees, well maintained, and weaves through city parks, soccer fields and baseball fields along the way.

It was Saturday so all the fields were being used and the trail felt really safe with so many people. The air was cool for summer - maybe in the 70s!
It isn't as exciting or interesting as my Alabama trails. It isn't as natural (unpaved) or unexpected (dirt bike paths). But, it's clean and wide and I still have a chance to run in nature.

Springfield, Missouri

2009-08-20T15:50:00.009-05:00

I'm currently staying at La Casa del Marcy. ...err... otherwise known as my friend, Marcy's, apartment. I am currently a transient, moving from Alabama to Kansas. My friend has graciously offered to let me stay with her before pressing on towards my new home. Besides opening her home, she has accommodated all my crazy food allergies with an eager willingness, helped me make TONS of delicious allergy-free foods AND to top it off, took me on a few runs this week.
Springfield, Mo has a short city trail called the Galloway Greenway which is part of the Ozark Greenway Trail System. It weaves around a macob pet cemetery, a (busy) Sequiota Park, very cute (busy) bars and stores, a (chilly) cave, waterfalls over quartz rocks at the Nature Center, and fruiting elderberry bushes (which we ate mid-run).
The first two runs were both 4 miles in length. It rained a little one run and as we turned around to come back through the old iron James River Bridge, it had flooded out where it had been perfectly dry before! We ended up having to veer off the trail cross the street on top the bridge. Then picked up the trail up again on the other side. -It surprised us how fast water can change course like that!
We are about to go out for another run tonight. How awesome is that? A true friend, a good cook, a wonderful host, and a running partner all in one little gal.

2 Southern Runs

2009-08-20T15:34:00.009-05:00

This week I ran my last two runs in Alabama. I am moving back home to Kansas. It will be good to be near my family but sad to be leaving my southern home - very sad. I loved the weather, the forest trails, the base, and my friends here but that season is over. Change is upon me.
I like this picture of a plank "bridge" some Army maintenance unit put up over the dry ditch.. Seemed like a metaphor for this run where each footfall leaves behind Alabama and the next step brought me closer to new paths.

I ran twice for only about 2 miles each time. I had gotten some blood blisters on my feet (Doctor's office procedure) and couldn't do much more without irritating them. I have also been recovering from ITB which cropped up on my last 14 mile run.

One thing I love about the trail at Parcours Lake is that the bikers trek new, narrow paths all the time. It's an opportunity for a little exploration and a change of pace. Since I have my Garmin 405, I can go anywhere. My path, time, and distance is always tracked, allowing me the freedom to go down any new trail. Love it.

There is not much more to say - each run was lovely. My ITB never flared up. I'm cured for now. Check out the following post (below) for pictures of all the mushrooms sprouting on the forest floor.

Mushrooms and Forest Floor Fauna

2009-08-14T15:22:00.006-05:00

14

2009-07-18T13:02:00.006-05:00

I ran 14 miles on Friday night and I've been so bummed I haven't even wanted to write about it. I did finish. I had many successes including no nausea and really feeling good the entire run. In fact I kept getting hungry which I thought was a GREAT sign. I had some of a larabar and an all-natural fruit roll-up. Another success was being able to drink the entire 70oz in my hydration pack. I really did try to sip often the entire run and towards the end had a hard time sucking back water. I thought it was just the Nathan pack because I definitely didn't think I'd hit bottom. But I had!!! Completely emptied it.
I went back to the Golden Hawk 6 miler loop and ran it twice, then finished up with 2 miles around the Air Assult Track nearby on Post. The air was fairly cool the entire time and besides bugs hitting my chest like a car grill, it was turning out to be a fairly trouble-free run. ...Except at around mile 10 or 11 I started feeling a knee ache. I was worried this could be ITB but hoping still that it was anything else. The outside of my left knee twinged and hurt before growing into pain, searing with each step. I had to walk. I'd try to run but the pain would come immediately back radiating along my knee. This sucked. I walked for most of mile 12 trying to decide if I should just quit right there as I was nearing my car. Walking must have helped because as I kept going onto the Air Assult track for mile 13 it felt better. I finished 14 and although it still was sore, I wasn't exactly in pain anymore.
I grabbed a bag of ice and took a decent 20 minute ice bath while praying for a miracle cure. I popped some ibuprofen that night and the next day to help with inflammation. Since, I've taken Sat., Sun., and Monday off before walking my dog just now. It had been difficult to go down stairs for the first day or so but feels fine now. I'm so worried this is ITB and it's going to take me out completely like it did for my first marathon. As an overuse injury the only cure is stretching (supposedly) and strengthening the knee (supposedly) and laying off running (which I believe is the real cure here). Oh and more anti-inflammatory meds. So, that's what I've been doing. And I'm really anxious about it and praying for God to somehow heal me and let me continue to doing the one thing that I really enjoy. I'm not sure when I'm going to go out for a short run - - I'm really scared to feel that pain and know it's an over-use injury. I will probably head to the trail next so that I'm not doing the same movement over and over like I did running on the road.
Other than the knee issue I had no residual soreness. It's so sad because 14 would have been a fairly easy run for me and an easy recovery.

Zero Tolerance: Training with Food Sensitivities

2009-07-15T23:53:00.015-05:00

I am ecstatic to see food issues get attention in the running world! Trail Running Magazine wrote an article on training Gluten Free.

Most of the article is super informative about celiac disease in which the only cure is to avoid gluten. The author did a great job explaining what the disease is, how it is diagnosed and how gluten is hidden in our food system. However, I felt like the article was a little narrow in their advice and solutions so I wanted to write my own addendum. For example, they suggest dairy and don't take into consideration that at least 50% of people with celiac disease also can't have dairy. Also, most people with food sensitivities are actually allergic to multiple foods. So, a lot of their suggestions for gluten alternatives included soy (top 8 allergy) and corn. Better advice would be to encourage the exploration of natural, whole foods like dried fruit (dates), agave, honey, seeds, and alternative grains like quinoa. The article could have been a lot more original and informative by showing readers how to make their own allergy-free granola bars or fruit roll-ups from whole foods. Both would be great race fueling alternatives.

The article was directed towards the newly diagnosed runner, which makes sense as they are probably the ones in most need of direction and help. I did think it was a great suggestion to go see a nutritionist. Especially for help learning about all the derivatives made from gluten. But the author focused too much on suggesting that the runner slow down when they are beginning to run again after being diagnosed. I can tell you that you don't have to tell someone starting to purge gluten out of their system to slow down. One of the biggest, most common complaints with this condition is extreme exhaustion. Believe me, no one has to tell me to lay down when I've been "food poisoned" because it'd debilitating when I've eaten enough. My arms and legs are completely fatigued. My mind is fuzzy and I usually have headaches so bad I used to lay in the dark. Gluten makes me feel achy all over and extremely tired, paradoxically however, I can't sleep because my body inside is in a frenzy trying to "work out the problem." Then, there are more annoying side effects like coughing, wheezing, itching and stiff joints. The author does say one time that erratic energy levels can be a side effect initially and I would say that is almost going to be a definite.

Anyhow, I just came up with a lot of negative points but I am really impressed to see an article addressing this condition. And I wouldn't expect a race to accommodate people with food allergies anymore than I'd expect to go to a foreign country and for everyone to speak English! Although, really, wouldn't dates versus gummy bears be a healthier racing fuel for all of us runners? Like they said though - and the best advice for runners with food allergies is that you have to change the way you fuel and race to accommodate food sensitivities. Gatorade, etc is out for me - - so I will have to carry my own hydration because I can't drink the common race provided beverages. I can't eat cookies and candy or broth (etc) provided at a lot of races - - so I will have to carry my own fuel. I can't use GU or powerbars and most other energy replacement products (because of my corn allergy) so I will have to carry my own natural foods. I can't even pop an ibuprofen anymore (unless I get it specifically compounded with potato starch) because it's made with cornstarch.
It definitely takes extra thinking and extra work and I enjoyed seeing that noticed by Trail Magazine.

Air Assault 4 Miler

2009-07-14T22:30:00.006-05:00

Tonight I ran 4 miles (2 loops) around the Air Assault Track on Post. The feels like temp was 96 degrees and humidity was almost 100% as its supposed to rain any minute now. There was lightening in the distance as it grew darker and darker.
I felt sick the entire run because the last couple days I've been hit with what feels like food poisoning. It's not truly food poisoning however, it's just that my body thinks that corn/wheat/dairy is it's mortal enemy. So a few days ago it started with a headache, then stiff/achy fingers, then as I messed up a few times more it grew into eczema, nausea and then today added on exhaustion and body fatigue. When I say fatigued I don't mean like tired-at-the-end-of-the-day feeling but like as if I had the flu. But... as I looked at my running goals and my schedule, I really needed to get in 4 miles. I can't do it tomorrow, and Friday would be the day before my long run, - it had to be tonight. I decided that even though I felt like I had the flu, I knew I didn't. Even though I felt sick, even to my stomach, I knew it was just my body overreacting to what it thinks is a toxin. So I decided to run/walk as much as I could. And, I ended up going 4 miles - feeling sick the whole way, feeling tired and walking on and off but I finished.
Most people have challenges running. Running is a challenge in itself. Then there's weather, hydration, old injuries, overtraining, undertraining, etc.. And this is just one of mine - but now I know I can run through it.

Currently Listening: 50/50

2009-07-14T19:36:00.007-05:00

I went back to the Golden Hawk Course for my weekend "long" run. I was hoping to do 8 miles but only ended up with 6. I hadn't had energy all day but towards the end of the afternoon I found a little spark and took off. I am glad for what I was able to get done and without any problemos - no aches, no nausea, and drank plenty of water.
The hour and 20 min went pretty quickly as I was listening to Dean Karnazes new book: 50/50: Secrets I Learned Running 50 Marathons in 50 Days -- and How You Too Can Achieve Super Endurance! I'm probably 3/4 through the book and at his 26th marathon (out of 50). It's been an interesting book with a review of each marathon he accomplished in 50 days as well as tips and tricks peppered throughout. A lot of his information is obvious and he admits that his ability to run extreme distances is probably due to genetics, but I still recommend the book. The uniqueness of the subject is in the newness of each day, which brings a different marathon in a different state, with a changed climate and new people. So every chapter really is a new story, building on the aches or tiredness or drama or inspiration of the day before. I don't think this is a take-home book of technical ideas for the veteran marathoner but more of a story about running. The title leads a reader to believe they will learn how to run so far, so often, but I'm not sure that the instructions to do that are really there in the book. New marathoners will find lots of tips, but most of them are looking to just complete the distance, not yet, surpass it. Like I said, it's more of a collection of stories with his personal tips here and there.
As an author, he is really likable. Dean doesn't seem to be the media lover he is made out to be as he states over and over in different ways how he is truly an introvert. However, his "good old boy" persona does get a little grating. I found myself rolling my eyes at some of his comments about doing it all for the children and some other well-chosen ways of looking like he's completely self-less and has no idea how perfect he is... But other times he comes across as very caring and honest. Who knows, but it's a decent book to help keep your mind occupied while running. And I've found a great little technique for audio books. I've been stuffing my iphone in one of the mesh chest pockets of my Nathan Intensity vest on speaker phone. So I can listen to music or an audio book without using headphones at all. (You can't wear headphones while running on Post.) I wondered if it'd just drain the heck out of my battery but I used it on my 12 mile run and by turning the screen off while the audio book is still playing, it barely even uses battery power - and that was over 2.5 hours! Also, I'm VERY happy with my Garmin 405 battery. Reviewers all over the place complained about the battery life, but again, on my last 12 mile run, I think I still had 60-80% of battery life left in it. Whatever it was, I remember being shocked - because reviewers seemed to act like it'd never last for any decent run. I also want to note that I was using the GPS and the Heart Rate Monitor functionality!
So anyway, a good run this weekend and really happy to be able to enjoy a book and stay engaged the whole time!

Parcours Trail for 3, Easy.

2009-07-10T23:05:00.006-05:00

Got in a little 3 mile jog tonight as the sun was sinking. Upon finishing the firefly's came out. I love summer. And I love it that the bridges got make-overs ARMY style.
My calves are still tight but I worked them out with a hand massager tonight. I'll try to do it tomorrow as well.
I am hoping to put in an 8 miler on Sunday-ish. We shall see what the day brings.

Un-run.

2009-07-08T23:08:00.006-05:00

Doesn't this look like a nice place to run? It should be, but today I wasn't feeling it.
I ran 12 miles this weekend and really felt great over the last couple days except my calves felt tight (been trying to work out a couple knots) and I've just felt kinda tired.
I only went out today because it's been a couple days since I ran and needed to get moving more than a mile dog walk. I figured I'd head to the pine needle-covered trail for hopefully a soft footfall and an easy run.
Well, it was hot, humid, I felt tired, my legs never loosened and no amount of music and pretty scenery was making it better. I finished up with 3 miles and was pretty glad to head home and clean up.
Not every day is a good day. Not every run is a good run.
I've continued reading The Extra Mile and I will say that it has picked up at Chapter 17. Pam Reed starts talking a little bit more about how she got into racing the ultra marathons, including Badwater. It's beginning to be more about running (really interesting) and less about her personal life (un-interesting). I'll review again after I've finished!

Review: Running On The Sun DVD

2009-07-08T13:31:00.008-05:00

I have no idea why but I've watched this movie about 4 times. I've had the DVD, rented through Netflix, for about a month and still haven't sent it back! The trailer is probably more professionally made than the actual documentary is... but I guess the stories are so intriguing and the race is so captivating that I keep thinking I'll watch it once more before returning. I just need to buy it! Haha. Anyway, here is the trailer if you haven't seen it.

Current Inspiration: 13 Year Old Runs an Ultra

2009-07-08T11:10:00.007-05:00

I love this video even though it's kinda old and I've watched it a number of times.
I appreciate the moms' support of her daughter, their time together, that a 13 year old wanted to do it and succeeded.
Mackenzie says that she didn't really train, ..it's an ultramarathon, surely they did a little running beforehand. :) Anyway, it's inspirational and makes you want to get out there and go farther.

Golden Hawk 12 Mile Run

2009-07-06T21:40:00.013-05:00

On Sunday morning at 6am I started the Golden Hawk 6 mile course. This route is 100% road but I ran on the grass when I could. Since it was so early, I saw very few cars. I wish I could stay on the trails but the only ones we are "authorized" to run on are short 2 mile-ish loops. I was not going to loop 6 times on the same path, especially since I did that for my 10 miler (5 loops).

The humidity was choakingly thick. I had started early just to avoid the heat and worried that I'd still be in for a steamer. Oddly though, as the sun came up it seemed to burn away the moisture and cloud cover moved in, keeping the temps down. Every so often I'd feel an almost cool, refreshing breeze move past me! Nice!

My legs and previous weak areas (calves, left knee and heels) felt really great the entire run. I've been using a hand massager on them and working out any knots I feel during the week. I also was back to wearing my Brooks Adrenaline 9 and they felt great on the grass as well as brief trips over asphalt. The major battle I had for this run was nausea - almost the entire time on and off. - - I'm still experimenting with food however, and pretty much stuck to all natural products this run. I'm just wondering if my stomach is going to be my achilles heel, causing issues no matter what I throw down it. In all other areas I seemed fine (ie: no cramping). Towards the 10th mile and then definitely at the 11th, I was running out of energy. And I know why... I simply had not been able to take in enough calories. I'm so freaking slow - especially running in grass and on trail - that in 3 hours, I had probably depleted all I had in me. I tried to eat half a luna moon around the 6th mile and could only get that much down before spitting out the rest, wishing to throw up.

Let's see, about 45 min before running I ate an Almond & Coconut KIND bar, 1/3 of a Sugar-free Red Bull, and some coconut water. I did want to eat the bar a little earlier but I was already waking up at 5am to do that and really, that's going to be the earliest I'm rising. Then, during the run I had a total of 1.5 luna moons, which are the size of 2 gummie bears. Not much. And my Nathan was filled with very, very watered down Clif Luna Sports Drink. Also interesting to note, I filled my 70oz bladder up completely and only drank 30oz. I'm sure I should be drinking more since it took me hours to finish. Then, I finished the coconut water after my run.

So, disappointingly, the nausea that haunted me in the past is still nagging me even though I'm trying to go as natural and easily digestible as possible. I don't know... maybe I still need to go more broken down, more close to the earth. I'm considering honey as my only source of fuel. Or even a honey product like Stinger. At Whole Foods I used to be able to buy raw honey sticks where you bite off the top and stir it into a drink or whatever. I don't have anything like that local but it would be convenient and easily absorbed. So, if I went the honey route, I'd probably want to get into S-caps (sodium and potassium) and then drink plain water from the bladder. Hitting some coconut water (5 electrolytes & 60 calories for energy) whenever I can as well. That would really pair down the amount of work my stomach has to do and maybe, eliminate the nausea.

Anyhow, to rap this up, next weekend I should only go out and do 8. On my last run I kept thinking I needed to re-do this 12 miler. I don't know why.... maybe just to go out and do it stronger before moving up again. I have a little bit of healthy fear about pushing mileage in one run. Things are going good and I want this to last - even if that means backing off.

Goal: I would really like to do the Dogwood Canyon 50k (31 miles) Oct 25, 2009. If I keep going up in mileage every two weeks I can probably hit 26 miles two weeks prior to the race. That should be enough training to go out and try for my first ultramarathon!

Link: Dogwood Canyon Nature Park, Missouri-Arkansas

Note: Update 4/21/10... I now know that most of the products I was eating contain ingredients such as citric acid which are usually made from corn. Corn causes a lot of problems in my body and probably caused a lot of the issues I experienced that day.

Currently Reading: The Extra Mile

2009-07-06T20:22:00.009-05:00

Title: The Extra Mile
Subtitle: One Woman's Personal Journey to Ultra-Running Greatness
Author: Pam Reed

Pam Reed is a two time Badwater Ultramarathon winner, a multiple ultramarathon record holder including the 300 mi and 24 hr track, the Tucson Marathon Director as well as a mom and wife. Although she's achieved a lot and certainly an athletic hero, her book is less than inspirational. This may not have been the point of it however (in her defence).
It's basically an autobiography, written as if she's speaking to you. But the voice of the author is very choppy, skipping around from thought to thought and topic to topic. She talks about how energetic she is and that characteristic comes through in her writing as very scattered.
If her life other than her athletic background was exciting and full of unique, captivating stories, this book might have been a great idea. However, it feels like a public diary full of mistakes and selfishness. She even adds quotes from her children about family dynamics and her lack of maternal instinct which made me cringe.
Some amazon reviewers hinted about these negatives points and I still bought the book thinking maybe people were just uptight. I was really interested in hearing about the process and drive of an ultramarathoner. I was curious about her training and about her future goals. But, the book is about her over-idolizing some Olympic gymnast from the 70s as a child, the dissolution of her first marriage, how she is cold emotionally, has difficulty communicating her feelings, how much she and her current husband clash and how hard it is to direct a marathon. Nothing uplifting or inspirational.
I am a little more than halfway through and will finish it just because I paid money for it. If I come across anything worth more than I've described, I will update my review!

p.s.
Update on my Nathan pack from my 12 mile run today (will review soon): I loved it. I didn't notice any of the previous problems except the bite valve issue. But I read a trick online that you need to twist it as you pull it out and that did seem to help. I also played with it a lot, pulling it in and out before running with it again to loosen it up. I guess you want a tight valve so you don't have leaking but, both times I've ran with it, it's leaked onto my shirt. I always end up with a huge circle of water near my waist. This has been OK since I'm sweating so much anyway, but in the winter time that would suck. Also, if I had any colored beverage like Powerade Zero in there - it could stain clothes. I'm currently thinking about getting a Camelbak Omega reservoir. Everyone seems to say that combo of the excellent Nathan pack and that bladder is the best of two worlds. The only issue there is that you have to rig the reservoir to your pack since it's got different hooks to hold the bladder down. I need to read more about this...

Review: Nathan Intensity 2L hydration pack

2009-07-03T02:52:00.010-05:00

4 mile run tonight while the sun was setting.
The rest of my pictures were deleted by an MP who tracked me down on a complaint that I was photographing the base. He took my iPhone, then viewed and deleted the pictures before writing me up. I wasn't even aware that I had been doing something wrong.
A very upsetting end to a nice run.
Anyhow, 12 miles to run down sometime this weekend. I'm feeling a little jaded right now but hopefully I'll get into the spirit soon.

Otherwise in the news, I received my Nathan Intensity 2L hydration pack! I took it on my short run tonight to work out the kinks before really needing it on longer distances.

Pros:
Didn't bounce.
Small and tight on my back but yet holds more than I even need to carry right now.
Easy to adjust - I think.
Easy to take apart and clean.
Key ring and strap so the keys don't bounce at all in the bag.
Mesh pocket holds my iPhone while I have it on speaker so I can hear music (because you can't wear headphones running on base).

Cons:
Bite valve was very stiff and I had a difficult time getting a sip and then pushing it back in to lock. This SUCKED. I tried using my fingers and my teeth. It is very difficult to pull out and in on top of having slick sweaty fingers.
I felt rubbing against a piece of plastic under one arm... I'm worried about chaffing and need to look at adjusting it differently if possible.
And lastly, the cords all seemed to loosen up as I ran and I had to keep adjusting them tighter. I am not sure if this is my problem or if the fabric is too slick. I'm really worried about this one because I'm not sure I can knot the cords in place because they'll stick out and rub against my arms I think.
Argh. I really do like this water pack.... It got GREAT reviews all over with only the mention of the bite valve problem. I think there have been complaints about the bladder but I'm wondering if I have an updated model because mine seemed secure. It does slosh, but didn't really move around or slouch - and I definitely didn't notice it beyond hearing water in it.
I'm just not sure if the issues are all me yet or if it's the Nathan design. It was kind of a love/hate run with it tonight and that has me a little worried. I am really, really not a big fan of hand carrying water though, so I'm going to really try to make this work.
I did get a good deal on mine: $69 on Amazon with no tax and no shipping (I got the last one sold by Amazon however). I couldn't find it anywhere local and online it's normally $85 plus possibly the tax/shipping on top!

Eventful 4 miler

2009-07-01T00:12:00.013-05:00

Tonight the plan was to run by the Chinook heliport and see the guys take off in their helicopters. Sounded like some good scenery! Furthermore, the weather was awesome at a "cool" -80 degrees!
I arrived at Knox ARMY heliport around 7pm. When I arrived, I saw all the Chinook heli's, maintenance crews, soldiers ...AND firetrucks, ambulances and MP cars!?
My first thought was that either someone had a bad takeoff or there was a electrical fire during their start up.... or something... I debated over my run in case they tried to reach me... Then figured I might as well and just take my phone. Also if I didn't get on the road, I wouldn't make it back in time to see them off. I grabbed my small bottle and phone and took off for the Hanchey ARMY Heliport. The intersection at that field makes 2 miles, for an out-and-back total of 4 miles.
I felt great this run! I had been drinking my sample of (Clif) Luna Sport Electrolyte Splash electrolyte drink. Zero corn syurp and gluten free! I had also had one blueberry luna moon with a lot of water. I had great energy the entire run and no cramping at all.
Half way through they called to see where I was but we had a bad connection since they were in a running helicopter and I was on a country back road. *sigh* I said I was 2 miles down the road at Hanchey which would take at least 20 minutes to get back. Since I could hear the rotor blades turning loudly in the background I figured they were starting up... if so, I didn't know how long I had before they left, especially since they were having to wait on maintanence.
After getting off the phone, I started to run back faster. I was somewhere in the 10 minute mile range. It was starting to get dark and cars were a little more frequent today than on Sunday when I ran the same stretch (but shorter loops). I really wanted to try to see them off and snap a few photos so I pushed it hard. My legs and lungs pretty much max and I'd have to walk here and there, but within seconds I'd remind myself of my goal and run again. No true cramping ever felt in my legs... just a feeling of overwhelming... something... and I'd have to slow down.
By the time I hit the forest before the airfield, all the Chinooks were on full power. The sound was like constant thunder vibrating through the trees. For probably a half mile or more it sounded like the huge helicopter was hovering over my head. I kept thinking I was closer than I really was because the sound was already so loud. Just as I was nearing the edge of the forest two Chinooks took off in front of me. I reached the airfield and saw two more go to a hover before taking off. Then, walking the last bit to my car, another hovered for awhile and took off.
Signs warn passerbys of high wind and I've heard that the breeze from a Chinook can push over motorcycles and cars! They are really powerful with double rotor blades and engines. There were a lot more helicopters on the tarmac and a lot of noise but it was dark, so I couldn't tell if there were anymore helicopters leaving.
Turns out I had finished 4 miles in 52 minutes. The first two miles were a lot more casual than the last two for sure! I can tell by my Garmin stats I was really booking it as well - my heart rate for the last 15 minutes went from the 180 range to 196! My max heart rate is estimated at 185. lol. Yeah,... well, like I said, I was workin it!

Note: I found out later that the emergency vechicles were there because someone fell out or off of a Chinook.

Running Essentials

2009-06-29T12:47:00.014-05:00

It's hard to remember everything as you're going out the door at o'dark thirty for a run. And accidents happen out there: sweat in eyes, blisters, scrapes from thorn bushes, dry contacts, etc... So I've wanted to put together a box of things that I might need for a run and leave it in the car.

Here are the items I've bought or plan to add to my box:

1. Fragrance Free Baby Wipes

2. Travel Tissues

3. Baby Oil gel (chaffing) or Body Glide

4. New Skin Liquid Bandage (blisters)

5. Toilet Paper travel roll

6. First Aid Kit: Flex Band aids, Cleansing Wipes, Gauze, Aleve, Biofreeze

7. Individual Rewetting Eye Drops (minimizes contamination) & extra contact case

8. Hand Towel and Regular Towel (for dog park visits as well as running)

9. Water Bottles

10. Hairbands

11. Extra energy products

12. Spare headphones (forgot this last time!)

13. Spare socks

14. Flip Flops (I usually run errands after a run and don't want to stay in my wet shoes - especially after a long run where my feet have swollen some.)

15. Winter time accessories: gloves, ear-headband

16. Waterproof sunblock

17. Waterproof, light jacket

18. Girl-needs. (I've had my "monthly" start during a marathon before!)

19. Anti-bacterial waterless hand gel

20. Head lamp, flashlight & batteries

21. Reflector Belt (I have an Air Force waist-strap)

I also might keep some items in the box after each run because I forget them really easily... things like my tiny ipod shuffle and heart rate monitor. I'm a little concerned about the heat getting to things, so that's why I won't keep much food, and just a couple of the eye drops, etc. But, my car is kept in the garage and has very tinted windows.

The total for what you see in the picture was about $25. Some things, like eye drops and band aids I already had but I didn't want to take things from the house that I already use... I wanted this box to stay in the car and be used for when I'm on-the-go. I also wanted to have containers for everything (like the first aid kit, wet wipes box & T.P. holder) so things don't become messy.

It'll be so nice to have everything when I need it!

Change Up

2009-06-28T20:27:00.010-05:00

I wasn't planning on running until I put on my shoes and headed out the door. My knee had been tender, especially on stairs lately so I haven't pushed myself at all. The most I had done for the last 4 days was the daily one mile dog walk. So, by now, I had enough of sitting around.

Driving around post, I was thinking of changing things up. Firstly, I put on my older Brooks Adrenaline 8 shoes, the predecessor to it's upgrade that I usually wear. I thought that maybe I needed to get back to switching off between two shoes to avoid overuse injuries. Then, I added coconut water to my powerade zero to try out the natural carbs and extra potassium for avoiding leg cramps and soreness. I also decided to get out of the forest and run some open road. Maybe running the technical trail every time was wearing out my knee... I thought a smoother surface might be in order. Smooth, but it was not flat I should add. Lastly, I had received my Clif Bar samples and wanted to try something. I opened up the Blueberry Luna Moons and popped one in with a couple big swigs of my mixed brew. It was much better than the Clif Shot Bloks. Much better. It tasted a lot more natural and it was a smaller serving. Another change in this run - no iPod. I had forgotten my headphones and anyway it's against Fort Rucker rules to wear headphones while running near roads.
I decided to start my run near the beginning/ending of my last 8 mile run on Hatch road. This 3 mile section spreads from the Engineer/Hatch road intersection, past the Chinook helicopters at Knox ARMY Heliport to the Hanche Heliport turn where the Apache and Kiowa pilots train. It would be just a few hills, some new scenery and low traffic. My first concern though was where to park. I pulled into Knox AHP, where an MP was staked out and asked him for suggestions. He was super helpful and said parking on the side of the road is fine but recommended a hidden parking lot just behind the tarmac. So this way I would start my run at the Chinook AHP and use my GPS watch to just mark out when to turn around.
I take off and in the 1st mile I decided to run 6 that day, as long as my knee felt good. I also realized I had left my Powerade/Coconut brew on top my car. Great, it'll boil there until I returned. The sun was blazing at about 92 degrees. The southern sunlight is totally different than back home in Kansas too. The only way I can explain it is that it's just really intense.
Pretty quickly my run deteriorated. Although there was a storm coming and thunder in the distance, shady spots of road seemed far and few between. Energy just seemed to leak out of my body. The missing hydration was a little bit of a mental blow as well as physical. I decided the best thing to do was shorten my loop. Not total distance, just shorten my out-and-back to 1.5 miles so I can return to my car halfway and reassess the situation.
I noticed after peeing in the woods that I had these black specks all over my legs. Looking closer, they were just bits of plant debris. Whew, thought they could be small bugs.
And at 3 miles, I reached my car, grabbed my warm water and chugged a good bit. My stomach had been cramping and my sweat was really cool on my body which I read is a sign of heat exhaustion. It was obviously really hot outside and I felt really hot, but there's also a chill close to my skin. My body was workin hard to bring down the internal temps. I sat for a bit in my car, which I don't normally do. My thoughts were pretty negative...
"You just did 10 last weekend and you can't even do 3 now?"
"You're walking waaaay too much, you should be going faster."
"People are totally watching you from the heliport and stressing you're a bomber...quit looking at the gate guards so much."
"My knee is gonna give out..."
"Wow, my shirt is soaked."
"Maybe peeing again would help my stomach cramps... or throwing up."
"Maybe I ate too soon to running, ...too much sugar... too much new stuff...."
"Why can't I look like the Runners World covers all tan, sweat gleaming, and effortless form.."

*sigh*
As if the run isn't hard enough.
I decided I felt a little better. I grabbed a water bottle and headed back out to double my mileage. Within the first mile I was considering turning around. My body just felt exhausted.
I looked down at my legs with the specks still on them and they seemed to be moving individually. Maybe they were bugs after all! I bent down to look closer.. Naw, they're not moving. I picked one on my hand - definitely plant parts. Geesh.
Okay, now it's time for my own mental tricks. I invited tiredness to jump on my back and I accepted how I felt. I kept telling myself something a civil war soldier in The Blue and The Gray would tell himself: the body can go farther than the mind. My running friend texted and I put her on speaker and told her how I felt. She encouraged me and it helped. Laughing and smiling I got off the phone. A mile or two down the road a cyclist that had whizzed past me before, waving, now slowed down to almost a stop and asked me if I had enough water. Awe. Damn, that was nice. I assured him I did and after commiserating about the heat he started grinding up the hill that was in front of us, hooping and hollering. I was smiling again and soon enough I saw the Chinook, monstrous on a runway, before me and that meant my car was near. I finished 6 miles. Not the longest run I've done my any means, but it wasn't the easiest to lay down either.

Waiting Game

2009-06-27T12:56:00.010-05:00

A little video for inspiration or torture if you're not running, like me. *sigh*

I've been sitting on my arse for a few days now and worrying over my knee. I've monitored it going downstairs. Listened for clicks or aches walking the dog. I've taken ibuprofen when I remembered too. Massaged my calves. ... All just hoping that the next time I run my knee issue will be magically gone.

Most of my alternative means of entertainment happen to be visiting running blogs, perusing Runners World, reading running books, watching running DVDs, talking to runners and searching for all natural alternatives for fuel while running. So all this not-running just makes me want to drop myself off at a trail head and disappear for an hour in the woods.

I might be difficult to live with meanwhile. *sheepish grin*

Yesterday, I hung out in this little beach town and got to go to a Fresh Market grocery store. They carry a coconut water, Zico, I've been wanting to try. I'm not sure where I first got the idea, but I'm pretty sure it was an article online about alternatives to Gatorade and GU products. Coconut water (not milk or the oil) turns out to be natures' sport drink. It has five essential electrolytes; potassium, sodium, magnesium, calcium and phosphorous, and tons more potassium than commercial drinks. I'm so excited to try it during a run! Some brands like, Goya, have added sugar. The only benefit I can see from that would be some carbs during a run but I don't really want it. I went with Zico, although I hear that Vita Coco is also good.

Speaking of run, I may go out tonight around sundown and try for a short run. I'm almost scared that my knee will still feel weak and I'm just in for disappointment. Part of me wants to put it off another day and see how it feels....

The Root Finally Got Me

2009-06-23T23:53:00.012-05:00

One reason I love running Parcours Lake Trail on Post is that I'm almost always alone. Although I usually run with my ipod headphones on, it's still nice to just enjoy the space all to myself. Sometimes, I turn it all off and just listen to the forest and the padding of my feet on dirt. It's glorious. It sets my whole day to right. I think. I talk to God. I just watch the ground go under me and trees go over me.

The canopy is pretty thick so even though I started my run at noon, I never felt overheated. I went through a huge Powerade zero however because I wasn't sure how much I was planning to run. I looped around one trail 3 times - and going off my last GPS reading (I had forgotten my watch), it should be about 1.3 miles a loop. I forgot to check the time when I got back to my car so I have no idea how long I was out there. So I finished up around 3.9 miles. I definitely could have gone more but I'm not sure I am completely healed from this weekend because some things started breaking down.

After tripping on a root, hard, my right knee started clicking. *worry* In addition, I had cramping and soreness on my right calf and right back thigh. After my run I took ibuprofen to combat inflammation and I'll be resting it as much as possible.... even taking a couple days off I suspect.

*fingers crossed*

Funny though that just in my last post I mentioned something about my fear of tripping over a stump (near a snake).

In the picture to the right I was trying to capture a shot of a blackhawk roaring overhead. It's a speck on the left side of the opening in the tree cover. Today a TH-67 helicopter crashed near Hartford, AL killing the Instructor Pilot and sending the student pilot to the hospital. These soldiers really put their lives on the line to do their jobs and the familes certainly risk a lot to be a military family.

Snake!

2009-06-20T20:56:00.005-05:00

I'm pretty sure this is a picture of a type of snake I've seen on my trail runs. They are usually yellow and this rusty color - which by the way, blends into the reddish dirty and sandy soil perfectly. Boo. This one really doesn't have distinctive markings which, I think, are a diamond pattern.

Some have warned me this could be the poisonous coral snake. ...But... that snake usually has stripes and I'm pretty sure this trail snake doesn't. I also see black ones with rattles! Ugh.

*shivers* This is the ONE thing I don't like about trails. My only other fear would be tripping on a tree stump/root and falling near a snake. Definitely fear number 2. *shivers again*

A Slow 10

2009-06-20T14:07:00.016-05:00

After a night where I didn't get to sleep on time, got woken up at 2am, then continuously woken up every hour due to snoring, I suprisingly got up to the alarm buzzing. 5:15am and something was already going right.

I got down to the Parcours Lake Trail and ended up parking in a new area at the trailhead. This allowed me quick access to my car between laps - and it was going to take a lot of laps. I planned to loop twice, stopping at the car every two and a half miles. This scheme worked out beautifully - I was able to switch Powerade zero for water, pick up 2-3 Shot Bloks and nibble at my Lara (raw) Bar as I was hungry.

The weather stayed on the cool side of warm/hot until about 9am when the sun was looking high in the sky already and feeling hot. Luckily, by that time I was 8 miles into my run and the last loop wasn't affected much due to being under tree canopy.

This was my first run using the Garmin Forerunner 405. I was pleasantly suprised that the GPS worked so well through the forest. My old Timex Ironman would always lose connection repeatedly and guesstimate my course. I had my distance, pace, heart rate, etc all at my finger tips. I checked my heart rate every time I felt the need to walk and found out I was hitting 171-176. This is pretty much my red zone because 185 is my max heart rate. So before I even had this watch I was able to listen to my body enough to slow down... yay me. I also realized that I'm not able to keep pace very well on trails. When I ran paved trails, I was always the person to watch pace and keep it consistant at 12 min/mi. But, on dirt paths, the terrain is inconsistant and your legs really never get used to the rolling earth. I'd go from a 9 or 10 minute pace to a walk and everything inbetween as I ducked under branches, skipped over roots and pinecones, bounded up stair-rocks and half slid down small declines. This is an issue I probably need to tease out - maybe trying to just go slower and stay on pace as much as possible. I think there is an alarm setting where it will let you know if you're off pace -which would probably help train me to be more consistant.

When I got home, my data was uploaded, and I was able to look at the stats: pace (varied), distance (10 mi), lap splits, heart rate, calories (945!), elevation changes and an awesome map of the 10 miles (pictured above). Overall, I'm super happy with this watch. There are a few settings I need to tweak, but otherwise it was easy to use and gave me the info I like to see.

Although I was on technical trails, it took me 2:41 to finish. I ran the Georgetown to Idaho Springs, Colorado in 2:45 in 2004. So that was 3 extra miles and a 1,000ft elevation change, altitude sickness (8500 feet), a bloody nose, and rolling landscape in the same amount of time. So either I was better condidtioned back then, or this was really technical, OR I just had an awesome race buddy back then. Naomi Rademeyer, from Pretoria, South Africa. I think we met about halfway though the race. She told me a bit about her lifestory which included escaping from Africa due to the violence and oppression. She moved to Englewood, CO with her husband and children but had left behind some family - I believe her fathers and brothers. She said in Africa, you can't just sign up for a race, you have to be fast enough to gain entry. And she was full of awesome tips like when going down hill, try to relax your body and run in a controlled fall. I think of her help everytime I'm going down a decent hill now.

Anyhow, I am really confused by my time and actually worried a did a lot more than 10 miles. My 8 mile run took 1 hour 30 minutes. And I had not only driven that distance to check the milage but I also plotted it out online (out and back twice equaled 8 miles). The other thing is that when I run this loop for my week days runs, it usually takes me 50 minutes to go around twice. An hour run for me right now is usually at least 4 miles. I had to loop this baby 8 times with each lap amounting to 1.3 miles. So if that's correct, my mid-week short runs are only about 3 miles since I go around twice. 3 miles in 50 minutes?? Something is off... either this trail is SO technical that I really do go that slow or I'm off in some other way. I need to use my Garmin on a marked trail and test to make sure it's accurate. I know that I only had 25% accuracy on the satelite read. I saw that, and kinda tried to figure this out during my run noticing the time but thought I just couldn't do the math while running. Now, I'm still trying to figure it out and it's not adding up.

Another note of interest.... after my 8 mile run I had some soreness. Really, I had some worries like my heel was tight and felt pulled (esp in the morning) and I had some knots in my calves and I think I had to ice my knee. This time, I did take a quick ice bath (which melted too fast due to the water being too warm) but I don't know if that is the reason or what, but I have NO side effects. The main difference with this run is also the terrain - most of my 10 miles were on soft pine-hay and dirt packed trails. Really cushioned. The 8 miles were done on road and off the side of the road in the grass and gravel. Anyway, going along with my worry about distance and thinking I could have actually done more than 10, doesn't seem right when my legs feel this great. A little tired but no aches. Sooo... ice bath? Pine needle hay terrain? I dunno, but something was working for me during this run.

Some Say Size Matters

2009-06-17T15:14:00.011-05:00

Today I went back to the Parcours Lake ARMY obstacle course for an hour-ish run. It went really well although temps are in the 100s so the heat was killer. Since most of my distances are short and the long ones are out-and-back, I've been able to hand carry small water bottles. This weekend however will be 8-10 miles out-and-back, so that'll be 4-5 miles before I can refill a bottle. I'm starting to really think about hydration systems. I'd really like to try a Nathan women's pack but my local Dick's Sporting Goods only carry Camelbaks. ...And only one women's pack which felt like a chaffing nightmare when I tried it on. I might have to just bite the bullet and order a Nathan from REI.com. The Nathan Intensity pack got 5/5 stars so it'd have a great chance of working out. $85 though... and they say running is cheap cuz all you need are a good pair of shoes. *shrugs*

A lot of people seem to use the bottles that strap to your hand. I really, really don't like carrying items so I can't see this working out for me. I tried the Nathan Quickdraw Elite ($14, Dick's) and it was better than a regular bottle since you don't have to grip it as tight. - But with water, an energy gel or keys.... ugh, too much. I left it behind.

Speaking of energy gels.... since I'm starting to up my milage finally, I've also been thinking about different sources of energy. With my food issues, I've been hesistant to try almost anything with chemicals. But considering my location (BFE), I can't find much more than GU and Clif shot bloks at Dicks, a half hour a way. I know I can't do GU except possibly vanilla - but vanilla flavorings, even in natural products like Rice Milk make my hands ache and swell. Weird. Powerade Zero (no corn syurp) has worked ok I think. I can't drink anything else on the grocery shelves (ie: Gatorade, G2, Powerade, etc). So, I ended up calling the Clif Bar customer service because their site lists ingredients but still, things like carmel color and flavorings can be allergen derrived. I told her I tried Shot bloks and was curious was Gluten/Corn/Dairy free. She admitted that all their products may have trace amounts. This means, you can have one package that was cross contaminated but buy the same thing again and it can be free of allergens. I'm willing to try anything however, if they really don't think it's in there. So, she is sending me samples of allergen-free (hopefully) items! If they work, I can start buying them online. Happiness!!!

Items for me to try:

Luna Moons (like Shot bloks): Organic Brown Rice Syrup, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Organic Brown Rice Syrup Solids, Pectin, Citric Acid, Colored With Black Carrot Juice Concentrate, Natural Flavor, Ascorbic Acid (Vit. C) , Organic Sunflower Oil, Carnauba Wax, Palmitate (Vit. A), Tocopheryl Succinate (Vit. E).
* Red Flags for my food allergies are citric acid, Natural Flavorings, juice concentrates and vitamins.

Electrolyte Splash (like Gatorade): Organic Evaporated Cane Juice Crystals, Natural Flavor, Colored With Vegetable Juice Concentrate.
* I LOVE seeing like 3 ingredients in a Gatorade alternative. The Natural Flavor though throws a red flag for me.

I've read of some runners using dates for a natural energy source. I have been wanting to try this but first need to locate dates with no additives. There is a Fresh Market, 2 hours a way in Destin, Florida that I know carries fresh dried dates. So, next week, on my monthly visit down there I will pick some up. Now... I probably should email her about how in the world she carries them.... in baggies? Sounds messy...

When I got home from my run the UPS man (a.k.a. Santa Claus) came with a a package for me! I received the Garmin Forerunner 405 with heart rate monitor.

So far I went through the short Quick Start - an automated little tutorial on the actual watch. Very easy. To set the time and dates all you had to do was get a GPS signal. It automatically updated. Nice.. easy. In fact, if you read the manual - everything was simple. But then later, I tried to put the HR strap on someone else to take his heart rate and realized I had forgotten what buttons to push to see it. Sooo I am seeing that the device is easy to use, but you have to know how to do it. Like, that HR is under the "Training" menu on the watch. So getting to that screen was where I faltered. But.. still, I really think it'll take me a couple times to do it to remember it. No big deal.

Other cool notes about the watch: the fact that I walk into the room and it auto updates all my stats to the Web site. Also, that my route gets updated to my profile and I can see exactly every drunk-driver looking swerve I made on the road. Fun. I also am loving if you get lost, it will guide you direction-by-direction back to your start. I'm going to test that on a dog walk here soon.

One thing I'm not loving,... since the watch has the GPS unit inside (all others are a device on an arm-band), you can't swim with it or wear it underwater. I used to sometimes just hop into the shower with my old Timex Ironman GPS watch (without the unit on my arm of course). I didn't even think about it. I don't swim - and have no goals to include swimming but it was just nice to never worry about the unit and water. However, this for me, is not a serious detraction.

Also, its size is a slight consideration. It isn't crazy huge - especially on a man. But how much people complained about it's size worried me before I bought it. But, heck, it's like the 1st watch to have the GPS actually in the watch. And the arm GPS units are huge - I've used one for years and it was a pain in the winter time especially with layered clothes. I'd MUCH rather be wearing this all-in-one watch. And it's not so big that it'd look odd while you're running. Now, for a woman, wearing the watch with casual clothes, - I would do it if I was afraid to leave it in my car or in a desk drawer. It's not that odd. But, I probably wouldn't put it on if I wasn't going running and I could just leave it safetly at home. I think if a runner is put off by the size of this watch, then they probably aren't serious enough about running to even buy it. The technology that this watch brings, ......size really shouldn't matter.

Now, I just gotta get the basic functions down for this Saturday!

Currently reading: Born To Run

2009-06-15T14:50:00.006-05:00

I'm 75 pages into the 287 page book and it's been very entertaining. The book starts off with a author, a runner himself, getting diagnosed for his running aliments. That frustration propels him into a journey to research why so many people get hurt running. Why we don't seem to be made to run. But, quickly, he hears of a tribe in Mexico that run long (60+ mile) distances. Everyone in the tribe; elderly, women, kids, etc.. all run as a way of life and their name for themselves means "Running People." He goes to Mexico in search of these people, escaping drug lords, enduring an unforgiving desert landscape, walking/running/hiking everywhere and meeting interesting people. I'm hooked. And almost every review I read before buying the book seemed to be captivated beginning to end of the story.

Recommended to anyone who likes running, history, true-stories and adventure/travel books.

Fried Toes

2009-06-15T14:12:00.006-05:00

I started my day off with a trip to the Doctor to get some plantar warts flash frozen. First, they use a knife and shred off as much as possible then move on to the cryo-thingy.
It hurt.
This is probably my 5th time going to get the treatment ...... and then going running.
I headed to the alligator trail but found another trail head to re-route past the low lake area, hitting only the flat trails above. I looped twice and even found some new short trails off the main loop. I ran for about 50 minutes to an hour so I would guess I tracked somewhere around 4 miles.
It was about 85 degrees and muggy so sweat poured down my body into my socks, stinging my new wounds. It was kind of a burning sensation actually. Then of course, I don't use gaiters so I get lots of sand and debris in my socks which added to the discomfort. Poor paws. Everything felt really good out there except my feet, and that was as expected.

Review: Clif Shot Block & Unsheduled, scheduled run

2009-06-13T22:03:00.010-05:00

Today I was scheduled for a 6 mile run, but nothing I did today ended up being planned. I woke up late (8:30am) which means I'd be running in the heat. Not having slept well, I got up and around quickly, going out the door pretty groggy. It was hot.
My friend texted to meet her garage selling. I didn't exactly feel like shopping for junk, but I also wasn't feeling like running at all. I felt tired, hurried, I hadn't eaten, hadn't sipped coffee, and mostly unorganized. I decided to meet up with her and put off running for a few hours telling myself it was already hot and a few hours wasn't going to make much difference.
We ended up driving to the nearest city and retail shopped - until 4pm!
Going home, we both relayed how tired we were. I laid my head against the car passenger seat and planned my run for tomorrow.
Then, I remembered I wanted to try out my Clif Shot Blok. The directions said to take one before running, and although I never did that with GU products, I thought it might create some energy and help me salvage a run tonight.
I ate one. Ugh. Hard to get down. Overly sweet. Overly soft, like a jelled syrup. Whew! I swigged a little of my watered-down soda. You're suppose to eat this with a good amount of water, but I don't have it on me.
I decided to run the 6 miles. I hopped in my car and headed for the Beaver Lake Trail to do 3 loops of 2 miles. I figured that paved running would literally be the path of least resistance.
Within a mile of starting out, I felt nausea. Enough nausea to double over, hoping to throw up, only to stare at a dead, black lizard. Instead of the relief of hurling, I unfolded back upright and kept moving forward. My stomach stayed upset for most of the run and the swealtering heat just added to that discomfort.
I ended up detouring from the paved path onto a dirt obstacle course. This is a totally old-school ARMY obstacle course where the idea is to run from point to point, stopping only to hurl yourself over logs stacked up at varying heights or pits filled with water. Needless to say, I skipped that fun. I walked a lot.
I saw a fuzzy, white rabbit tail hop into the darkened forest. I saw lots of blackberries starting to juice up and turn from red to black. I got scratched until I bled on my legs and arms from said blackberry bushes (at least I think that's the culprit). I sweat salt into my new wounds. My head pounded so much that I couldn't listen to my ipod. I felt dizzy. My stomach ached on and off. My body lagged. I worried that I had gambled on pushing a crappy run instead of waiting for the next day. It was just really sucking. Until..., it wasn't.
On the 3rd lap, I all-of-a-sudden felt good. So good that I thought about throwing 2 more miles on the fire, making it 8. I basked in this new found delirium..., until the tiredness came back and I realized I was mistaking good for just better. I felt better, that was all, but not well.
Coming into view of the last bit of road I thought about how bipolar runner can be during training. The highs and lows, the goals and revisions of those goals as you delve into more miles. Getting off the roller coaster, I walked into the parking lot, to my car and was just glad to be done today.

Review for Clif Shot Blok: I felt nausea, but that's not all that uncommon for me and GU type products. I also didn't have the water to dilute it in my stomach. I felt perked up after it got into my system, but it was short lived and I wondered if it was simply a sugar (brown sugar syurp) high. But, I also had been really, tired today and additionally, I'm not exposed to a lot of sugar in one sitting like that. - Although I'd only had two of the bloks (not even a serving). I will say though, that for the first run in a long time, my legs felt GREAT. No cramping, no tightness, and really they were the least tired body parts. I was running on paved ground however, which is an eleviation from the difficulty of unpaved surfaces. Soo... I will try the Bloks again, with water, and see how it goes.

Update 2010: I now know that I can't eat Clif Blok Shots or take Ibuprophen or Aleve or drink Powerade. I had thought back then that if it didn't have corn syurp, I was okay. I now know that citric acid, salt and other additives come from corn. I probably was having an allergic reaction in this run (dizziness, tiredness, nausea, etc).

Obstacles

2009-06-11T15:31:00.005-05:00

Today I went back to the obstacle course at Parcours Lake (alligator territory). Tuesday and Wednesday this week I had taken off from running. I walked my dog but otherwise just didn't feel healed up enough from this weekend. I'm showing signs of slow recovery: achey legs, tight heals, feeling tired, etc. I've been taking time off, using an electric massager and taking Ibuprofen when I think about it. I really think that the soreness in my legs is from doing so much off-path running. I run a lot on uneven terrain or in grass and it's just so much more of a beating.
But last night I walked Anouk and my legs felt better walking than they did just sitting around. I thought today I might try a short run and see how they felt. I mean't to run on the Beaver Lake path to give my legs a break but then last minute, turned the car towards Parcours. I set out a little after 9am and found more paths to run this time. I don't think I ran farther though than Monday because I skipped the first stair section of the trail and went staight into the forest. So whatever I skipped there, I probably made up for mid-way on the new paths I found.
I found my way back to the car about 10am. I was sweating something fierce and my legs were again, toast. I'm laying on my bed hours later (after cleaning the house too) and they still feel like dead weight. That trail is just full of jumping around roots, uneven path, rolling small hills where the ground has caved in and you're scrambling up or down moving soil, ... it's a beating!
I probably should have just gone back to that paved path and took it easy.
My plan was to run 6 miles this Saturday - about a day and a half from now. I am going down in milage before hitting 8 or moving up to 10 miles the next week. With how my legs are really slow to recover, I'm thinking that I should wait to run the 6 til Sunday, and even then, run it on a flat, paved course. Then, the next week I probably need to stick to doing 8 again and not push anything.
These are the obstacles I knew would come with just not being made to run. Going against nature - but that's what's fun about it as well. Doing something you are not sure if you can do.

Alligators and other hazzards

2009-06-08T13:13:00.014-05:00

As soon as I pull up to my new favorite dirt road near the blackhawk heliport, a car pulls up behind me. A gray, unmarked car. At first, I think that I may have running company on the road and I'm disappointed. Well, I became even more disappointed because they were actually military police. Damn.

There were two of them and they were really nice. They asked me if I was okay (probably assuming I might be having car problems). I answered that I was going out for a run on this dirt road.

They let me know that it was unauthorized and I would need to run in a designated area. *sigh* He broke it down for me that this road is a bow hunting ground and for my safety, I couldn't do it. *true*

We talked for a little bit about where the designated areas on base are located. One being the Beaver Lake Trail that is nice, but so short and paved. The other as Parcours Lake trail. I exclaim, "The one with alligators?!" "Yeap."

See, now to me, being an accidental bow hunting target seems less likely than running around alligator territory. But what does a civilian know?

He also noted that I could run along any road, but that I'd need to remove my headphones. *ugh!*

After they took off I decided to drive around a bit and think about it. Running along any road is going to be bad idea because it's already really sunny and really hot.

I decided to go to Parcours Lake. I ran this one time last year and just remember it being really short and really technical. Technical where it goes to single track and even then, half of the path has fallen down a ravine 35 feet. Or the path is broken up and caved due to tree roots that are actually probably still holding the other half of the path in place. The path winds so much its difficult to know which way to go. Even though it's used as an ARMY obstacle course, and signs are everywhere, unless you find the start they are useless. You'll run past Obstacle 3A to just run into Obstacle 16A seconds later. The other challenge is the rolling hills which wind down to the lake area and raise my blood pressure thinking about alligators.

After starting off with the blocked staircase that pretty much takes you to the top of the "hill" you then go into the forest area. This section which I think might be called "B Trail" is really short but winds quite a bit. I have no idea how long it is but guessing I would say a mile. It's a mile that kicks your glutes into high gear as you use your stabilizing muscles and push off uneven ground and climb tons of short hills.

Coming out of the forest I ran into another runner across the street coming out of the woods. I found out from him that the trail actually continues on another mile or more. SWEET! I had no idea when I ran it last time that there was so much more trail. This section which I think is "A Trail" was much flatter and the dirt path compacted and easier to traverse. I really flew this part of the trail.

Something interesting about this trail are the 1950s physical fitness signs. "Exercises" like the "toe touch" just seem so silly now. But there were harder ones like the swinging rings and the pull up bar. I tried to do a pull up and ... yeah,.... nope.

Anyway, it turned out to be a really fun run. Really different and technical - kept my mind busy. It was also fun getting a little lost and not really knowing how far it would be or where it would end. I just really had to go on how I felt and turn around when I started to feel tired.

I got back to my car and saw that I'd been gone almost an hour. So, based on my running I would guess I ran 4 miles of very technical trail. I felt tired, but mostly due to the heat as it was about noon. My legs were shot though. After 8 miles on Saturday, they weren't completely recovered. I went out on tired legs and had only planned on an easy jog on the dirt road when I came out today. So, doing 4 hard miles was unexpected but really great.

R&R: Movies

2009-06-07T13:03:00.013-05:00

Just ordered: Spirit of the Marathon DVD
I've watched the NOVA documentary, Marathon Challenge, on YouTube a couple times now. In that program they picked new runners and trained them for the NYC Marathon.

This movie might be based on that documentary. But it's changed somewhat: They added in more professional athletes (Deena), interviewed famous running authors (John Bingham) and filmed runners from various continents preparing for the Chicago Marathon. The original program was interesting and educational. The movie/documentary got great reviews on Amazon so I'm looking forward to it!

I just finished watching Running on the Sun. This DVD was rented via Netflix but I would like to own it.

I first heard of the Badwater Ultramarathon from my marathon Coach, Karl Keltner who is a former Marine and participated in Badwater. In fact, he was training for an ultra event while coaching us and during our marathon he would run in each team member. So basically, he'd run all over the course of 26.2 miles, visiting and checking in on each runner. Then as one neared finishing he would run up to be with them and after they crossed, he would run back to the next runner to cross with them, and so forth. It was unreal to watch when you're struggling to just lay down your own first marathon.

Running on the Sun was a pretty good documentary, focusing on the race but mostly the participants and how they trained and then how they raced in those brutal conditions. Each runner usually has a crew helping them and funds themselves: the race entry, travel and accommodations, their own gear & food, a vehicle (usually rented), the gas, the crew (free if they're your family/friends), supplies, etc. It was interesting to see how people struggled just to particpate in the race, not to mention whether or not they finish!

The movie isn't high budget. But, if you aren't a movie snob and are interested in running stories, this is a good one to watch.

I'd like to watch, Dancing the Bear, a story about two women training and racing this 100 mile ultra. It's not available on Netflix or Amazon however, so not sure how I can get my hands on it. There is a review of it on The Final Sprint Web site. It also got 4 out of 5 stars on Amazon although some people said it wasn't exciting enough. I'm thinking; running long distances is a challenge in entertainment sometimes even to the runner not to mention a producer trying to get effect out of every mile.

Small Victories

2009-06-06T12:04:00.013-05:00

About 6:00 this morning, I get up, get dressed and peered outside. Rain, but slowly stopping. Next, I drove around my usual running spots to figure out where I was gonna lay down 8 miles.
I checked out the dirt road near the blackhawk heliport. Verdict: too muddy. I need to run today and minimize issues.
Next, I went over to where I had done my off-road runs near the grenade qualifying area. On the way there, I was eyeing Hatch Road. It runs from Andrews, the main road, to the Apache and Chinook heliports. I mark out 4 miles from Andrews to Engineer Road. Going out-and-back twice makes 8 total. This way I'll have access to my car halfway through.
Right away someone stops to ask if I need help. Nice! I guess you know you're a distance (vs sprint) runner when you're running by yourself, in the middle of nowhere, so that any reasoning person would think you're stranded.
I set out in the grass along the road at 6:50 a.m. Within a few steps, I realize, my shoes are getting soaked. Now, I've just mentioned getting wet/dirty twice, so before I start sounding like I can't deal with that I should note that I've run in mud, ice, rain, snow and temps so cold that my hair froze and sweat froze outside my clothing. My real worry is that wet = blisters. Especially if you don't have the right socks and I was wearing a target lycra-cotton mix that I didn't know if I could trust.
Runners, like animals in the wild, are constantly mindful of any and all factors that will take you out. For most, blisters are one of those and they freaking take forever to heal.
After quickly mind scanning alternative locations I decided firstly that my shoes AND socks were already completely soaked. So relocating won't change that circumstance. Secondly, any other location besides the Beaver Lake paved trail would also pose wet feet/sock issues. Short trail loops? Sidewalk? I'm already bored just thinking about it - no way.
I press on, sloshing. For being mostly a country road surrounded in forests, the grass was mostly short to medium length. I got whippings across my legs often, but it wasn't bad. The hills were tolerable - mostly long and I walked when I needed to. After 4 miles I was back at my car and ate an organic fruit roll up in loo of an energy gel. I've never loved gels and now that I have food sensitivities, I want to experiment with other sources of natural sugar/energy. I think it worked with only a little stomach upset right after consuming it, then going away quickly. I also carried my baby gatorade (powerade zero) bottle, drinking all of it over the course of 8 miles. My run ended at 8:20 on the mark for a total of 1 hr 30 min.
I ended with walking a lot of the last mile probably. My legs felt full of lactic acid and soreness was setting in. The energy blast from any stores were running out. But, ending, I felt really good. I couldn't have gone another mile with any decent effort but 8 miles was exactly where I needed to be and took pushing but not too much.
I'm ALMOST back to half-marathon distance!! It also felt like a small victory knowing I can definately knock out a 10k. That is one thing that I do love about running.. it's a series of small victories. A negative thought, pushed through. A twinge of soreness, worked out. Basic necessities felt, like thirst, and satisfied. Fatigue sets in, and then restoration.
I thought of a lot of very other elloquent sounding philosophies about running and how it's life in miniature, but most thoughts were lost among the miles. *sigh*
Next week I will probably drop down to 6 miles again before upping the next week to 8 or 10 miles. I should probably repeat my 8 miler and keep building slowly and patiently.
P.S. I ended up with only one blister; left foot, pinky toe. Popped it and spread antibacterial on to hopefully speed healing!

Same Route, Different Run

2009-06-04T13:42:00.003-05:00

This time, when I set out to run the dirt road near the blackhawk heliport, I made sure I started early. Last time, hot temps quickly deteriorated my run. It was slightly rainy and kept temps down today. Not knowing if it had rained all night, I thought the road might be too soggy to run but I keep forgetting the sandy soil drains quickly here. Awesome. Another thing that worked out well was to bring these tiny gatorade bottles and hand carry powerade zero (calorie and corn syurp free). I drank about half during the run. Fab.
The entire run felt different this time. I set out happy and motivated. I thought of old races and new ones for most of the way. The road just slipped underneath me quickly and effortlessly (almost). Wow.
I stopped half way because the road ends and intersects with the airport. Sipping my powerade I watched new pilots trying to balance airframes the size of buses in the air. As they hovered, I'd hold my breath and watch them tip and totter back and forth. The tail dipping lowly. Most were probably getting a good tongue lashing from a Gunnery Sergeant Hartman look-alike:

If you ladies leave my island, if you survive recruit training, you will be a weapon. You will be a minister of death praying for war. But until that day you are pukes. You are the lowest form of life on Earth. You are not even human, fucking beings. You are nothing but unorganized grabastic pieces of amphibian shit. Because I am hard you will not like me. But the more you hate me the more you will learn. I am hard but I am fair.

*sigh* Poor bastards.
I turned around and set off again. This time, I didn't walk much until the last third of a mile or so. In fact, it was weird, I was thinking so much that I'd all of a sudden realize I was walking. So I would start running again, until soon, I would again be walking!? Crazy. Losin my mind.
Tomorrow I need to set up for a long run again. Last week was 6.3 miles. I could do that or push it to 8. I've been thinking all week about a slice of road that would equal four miles so I could just go out-and-back. I don't know any long stretches of road so I might have to wing it and drive it in my car real quick before running it. I do know of a VERY looooong hill on a road that would equal 1 mile, 2 there and back. I could run that four times and have access to my gatorade & car for refreshing. Loving the idea of refreshment, hating the idea of upping milage and attempting to mix in a new, large hill. The rule in running is to never up milage/speed/terrain at the same time. Do one new challenge in a week (either up milage, or add speedwork or add hill training, etc) and dedicate a run to it.
I'm a rule follower pretty much in life and in running. Not because I'm so good, but actually because I'm one of those people more likely to get screwed if I don't.

Another Dirt Road, Another Heliport, Another Run

2009-06-01T19:27:00.012-05:00

I woke up this morning with stiff calves, not feeling well, and feeling tired. I chatted with a friend on Instant Messenger and fully believed it was going to be a day in bed watching a movie.

I was wrong.

After laying around I thought cleaning the house might be enough moving around to loosen my legs. I wiped, vacuumed, loaded the dishwasher, cleaned the floors, two bathrooms, dusted.... felt a little more energized. Then, I ate my gluten free Envirokids Rice cereal. More energy. I ran two errands. Then decided, I needed a run. I figured I'd stay slow and if my calves hurt too much I'd turn around.

I was anxious to try out a dirt road North of a Heliport on base. I parked in the grass, got out my ipod and took off around 2:19pm. It was hot but with forests on both sides of the deeply rutted road, I hit shade on/off. My calves were still tight in the beginning but started to loosen up. Unfortunately, around a half mile in my foot hit a tire rut and my ankle turned quite a bit. Scary. It felt a little achy and immediately sore but I could walk on it right away. I decided to run and found out that it actually felt better running, but was noticeably sore when I walked. So I ran.

I got to where the road splits right and left, took the right because I had driven it before and knew finishing it and turning around would give me 3 miles total. This leg of the road had quite a bit more shade and ended at the heliport. Blackhawks roared overhead and I stopped to watch them take off and land for a minute or so.

On the way back, it was really starting to feel hot and I was needing a drink. A lizard sprinted in front of me: show off. The darkened woods around me looked cool and deep but like a mirage, pretty inaccessible as they are really overgrown and thick. It's a shame the military can't make more dirt paths with the mileage of forest on this base. - Especially since PT is a really big deal to the Army.

I started to walk on/off. My calves had completely worked out the tightness but my ankle was starting to stiffen. I walked a good portion of the last 1/2 mile and returned to my car at almost 3pm. Wow that was almost a 40 min run and might have only been 3 miles. I either really took my time walking and staring at the helicopters as they flew overhead or maybe it's a little farther than I thought. I didn't get a good mileage check in my car when I drove it a few days back.

This is a PERFECT run for midweek. I will definitely use it again and learned my first off-road lesson: watch the ground or twist an ankle. Noted. Duly.

When I hit that fork in the road I was really missing my Timex Ironman Speed + Distance watch that died. I'm hoping to purchase the Garmin Forerunner 405cx. It doesn't seem to need an arm unit, looks more like a normal watch (hated the previous forerunner options), and seems to get good reviews. Need to read a little bit more about it first however, so I'm off to do that now!

Running humor

2009-06-01T11:08:00.005-05:00

Current Inspiration: George Sheehan

2009-05-30T22:18:00.015-05:00

Bits I'm loving right now:

The common man reaches excellence by making demands on himself.

My legend will not be your legend. We are about the business of making a unique self.

The battle is never over. The war is never won. Today's bare landscape is always and ever the arena where I contend with myself. I say my prayers and go to combat.
No one else may be aware of this struggle.

The only true fame, is the inner celebration of yourself. Nothing else lasts. Legends are perpetually dying. They must constantly be revived. We must always be searching for the grail, never ceasing in our labors, forever on trial for our gift of existence.

People are always asking me why I run. I think that is a common question for a lot of runners actually. I see lots of blog posts on it. I think George Sheehan's first quote I posted is a great answer to why some people train to run. It's an answer that puts the question back onto the asker about themselves - what are they doing to make themselves excellent? Endurance can do that... enduring a serious illness, enduring a life-threatening circumstance, enduring difficult situations in life... can all help you to find your answer. I like to think that the demands we ask in our running schedules and endurance races whittle us down to our very selves. And there we have the opportunity to see who we really are.

Link to full article: Our Highest Need

Joy.

2009-05-30T21:41:00.007-05:00

Today, not at 4.5 miles like the last "long run" but today, at 6.3 miles I felt like a runner again.

I think there are a few reasons why this small accomplishment felt good.

#1 I had planned for it. Today was my long run day. Just like when I used to run higher mileage, I always had a plan and up til now, I really never set any goals to improve on. And maybe since, I never improved!

#2 I used another trick from when I ran longer distances. I used to cut up the mileage mentally, telling myself, this is only "3 5ks" for a 9 mile run. Or, this is 2 8 mile runs for a 16 mile day. I did it in races too. Well, today I ran 3 2.1 mile loops and was able to mentally tell myself "I'm just running 2 miles."

#3 Walking the hills when needed and stopping for water between loops. When I grab a drink at my car quickly, I can start out again almost completely refreshed somehow. An old tactic that I'm using now on low mileage, but heck, it got me over my 3 mile stump!

#4 I woke up early, just like I used to, so that I could run in the coolest air of the day. Friday the sun just took me out of my run. It was miserable. I felt completely defeated. I was parched (hate carrying water). I prepared for my miles today by waking up and taking in some calories before getting dressed and leaving. Organized and on my game plan.

I'm taking Sunday off.. I had felt a few aches, my upper heal/back of the right foot and left hip/knee pain a little. I babied it with ice and Aleve. I'm taking no chances!

Monday I'll probably run 3 miles and then I need to also get back into cycle class so that I crosstrain and avoid overuse injuries. I used to love spinning but these days just don't want to be inside. I don't have my bike here in Alabama, so it's not an option. *sigh* Crosstraining needs to happen though. I know my body.

Anyway, pure joy. I smiled finishing. I felt that old feeling of accomplishment. Of salty sweat crusting. Of not feeling guilty when I eat (I didn't overeat, just felt like I was feeding my body). And.. lastly of feeding my soul. Cheesy it may sound but it was soul food. It WAS joy to have legs and be out there on them today. And everyday.

Current inspiration: Michelle Barton

Off Day

2009-05-29T20:28:00.007-05:00

I tried to run today.

As soon as I woke up I knew I'd probably not be able to run the 5-6 miles I had planned. Well, I had a creeping feeling but didn't believe it. I woke up late for starters. And while that's not a huge deal, the weather here in the South is starting to get blazing hot by 9 a.m. Its in the 80s but humid and just the hottest freaking 80-something degrees I've ever felt. So it's about 9:30 as soon as I opened my eyes.

I got around and got dressed and trying to get out the door, I realized my car was blocked. I had to wait a good hour to drive away. All the while the weather just heating up.

Then, an argument with someone. The discussion stayed with me afterward, a seek-your-own-adventure story in my head where I tried out various endings and responses to try and work it out. I realized after replaying senarious the entire drive to my run, my energy had been zapped by all of it - the argument and my inability to shake it. Thinking about my lack of energy I realized I really hadn't drank any coffee that morning or really ate much food (too late now). Oddly, I had to pee for not taking in much liquid!

Argh. The negativity mounting, I was determined that running would actually be the very thing to clear me of all this. I headed to the "new" 2.5 mile route and started out.

It was hot. Whew, the run started with a hill. Past a pretty, but wide creek that gurgled and foamed and all along the way a lush, darkened forestry. The trees didn't seem too dense and I could see forest floor so I decided to divert into it to see if it was runable. No matter how spacious the trees were, there was so much debris (fallen branches and young trees, rutted, uneven dirt, vines) that it just wasn't runable. I would take more time and energy clearing a way than actually pressing on. I hoped back out into the beating sunshine and kept working my way up the hill. At the top was a strange looking fenced area. Buildings in the middle, wire fencing around them with guard towers on each corner. I felt..... watched. The sign nearby just said Forward Operating Base.

This section probably had 2 long hills but I felt like I was constantly going upwards until maybe the last 1/4 mile. And it was an out-and-back!? Anyhow, it was pretty bad. The sun was just too much less than a mile in and I walked ALOT. On the way back my legs felt like jello, I felt faintish, and all I tried to do was look for the side of the street with the most shade - which was neither. Apaches roared overhead loudly, interrupting my nimble focus.

Getting back into my car my first thought was, with a drink could I continue? Quickly, my response was NO, this was a disaster. My second thought, was okay, well that was two HARD hills. Really! And thirdly, I thought I'd keep my options open all day and maybe tonight after the sun goes down, come out and finish the other section for another 3 miles. I'm writing this at 9p.m. and can tell you the energy and drive never came today.

I'm going to try to get some sleep and wake up tomorrow to try again. Earlier this time.

Run 'til the road is closed..strategy

2009-05-27T21:24:00.012-05:00

Since we PCS'd here last year I've been wanting to find a new place to run. Last year I only ran a couple times a week but never-the-less the same paved trail gets boring. The old path is off-road & surrounded by tight woods but very limited in milage & you still usually run into people every few minutes.

To avoid sounding anti-social I'll note that I used to run in a running group regularly. Even after becoming a veteran runner & could make my own training decisions, I kept showing up for the o'dark thirty runs to see my friends. I loved the bonding and friendliness of runners. I loved meeting for coffee & breakfast after a run. BUT, I was also slow... and usually wound up running alone while everyone else jabbered and gosspiped and laughed miles ahead. I felt like I was missing out. A little mental blow threatening my willpower. However, running paired up I noticed a pattern of eventually wanting to concentrate in a zoned out way. A point where I'd plug into my ipod and harness energy within.

At some point in true long runs, it comes down to the solo anyway. Although your body is churning the output, the battle usually ends up in your head. In addition, I felt pressured to run at my partners' pace. Even when people offered to run "with" me, naturally being faster, they usually ended up always pushing the miles per minute. It can be good to do this when training to PR, but mostly I knew where I needed to be min per mile and my body wanted to be there. I could care less about time improvement and more consumed by time/energy management. Maybe somehow training alone was training me to be alone. When you run alone, you might also be training mentally to push past signals of tiredness, to endure some boredome, & to rely on self motivation. Maybe its a way to whittle down superficial reasonings for running and find out why you're truely there. If you're running for any reason other than what's personal, how many miles over how much time does it take to work that to the surface & become a reason to quit?

Driving me is the extra-ordinary, going beyond a self image that I can't because I'm slow or injury-prone or inheriantly lazy. Whittling down to my center puts me in touch with my center. Who I am and how I'm responding to my environment & hightening all my senses to where I know exactly how I feel physically. It's so easy to get caught up in life, ignoring how much our bodies speak to us.

I regress however...

Finally, using the Runners World Run Finder, someone had posted the idea of running off a road (no path) that rarely sees cars. YES, please! I got in my car the next day to check it out, driving the route first. Basically it starts behind the golf course on base and ends at "Road Closed to Unauthorized Personnel." Sweet. Military secrecy. I spent part of the run dreaming up what could be going on down that dirty road - until I ran into another sign: "Hand grenade qualifying." - Really glad I ignored the anti-authority teenager still residing in me & didn't take the path less (or never, unless authorized) traveled.

The road was pretty short but perfect for where I'm at milage-wise. It's 3 miles with 4 rolling hills. While I only had one car pass me, a sky highway happened to be right overhead and Apache helicopters ROARED past. They were loud and vertically close because the heliport was just over the trees and down another closed road.

I'll be able to almost double the milage using another 2.5 mile road that intersects with this run. My strategy is to do both for my "long" run towards the end of the week.

Running without Motivational Drill Sergeants

2009-05-26T11:53:00.009-05:00

Today I ran two of the three loops at Beaver Lake Trail on post. The "trail" is a mostly paved path (there are a few dirt roads) through the woods and loops around a lake. It has been rainy and humid lately in Southern Alabama but the rain had just stopped, so the start of my run was slightly cool. I felt really good the first loop (2.3 miles) with rolling hills and stopped to walk here and there as needed. The second loop (1.1 mile) was mostly uphill (counter-clockwise) and I sputtered out pretty good on each hill. I almost never look at the time anymore so I can't tell you how "fast" I ran it.

(Begin rant) On runnersworld.com I started using their training log again and wanted to use their public trail finder where other runners post trails. I've always found their Web site to be sub-parr. From a usability stand point and also, their servers just seem to be always overloaded. I remember this from years ago trying to use the same service. Every time I try to look at public running routes or make my own, it times out and I get errors on the page. Each time, I still look at my own connection thinking, maybe it's me, but it's not. It's not my browser and not my computer, it's runners world who for a big operation, still can't create a professional Web site. argh. (End rant)

Anyway, I've seen runners weave out of the woods on post but it's kinda complicated finding places to run (besides the street) because a lot of dirt roads/paths are for Authorized Personnel or are training grounds for soliders. Once I was running on a dirt road off the usual trail and out of no where (mostly because I had headphones on) a HUGE troop of soldiers, carrying guns, appeared out of the woods and headed for me. The first thing I thought was "they look scary" the second thing was "dang, they have guns" the third was wondering how long they've been in the woods and lastly was, "this is going to be akward running by them (same path) while they are training." They were probably Warrant Officer Candidates and I was wondering if drill sargents yell at civillians too. In my head it's going something like this: (with the huge hat of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman hitting my head), "WHAT ARE YOU DOING NUMBSKULL RUNNER. DON'T YOU KNOW THESE ARE MY F'ING WOODS? CAN'T YOU READ SIGNS?! GET OUT OF HERE BEFORE YOU START LOOKING LIKE THE ENEMY!"

Whew! See? Scary. Especially the playout in my head. lol.

But, hopefully if I can get the RW appplication to work so I can figure out some new running locations. I think there is also a run finder on USATF and the Rails to Trails program site (none in my area though). Something to look forward to!

Build'n.

2009-05-25T09:00:00.006-05:00

I've played sports my entire life but I have always sucked at running.
In April I ran every few days on the paved trails up to 2.5 miles. This month, I have finally built to 4.5 for a "long run." It's been slow and I wasn't prepared either. What I mean by prepared is that I have to baby everything about my runs: stretching consistantly for flexibility (overuse injuries plague me), eating just a little but not too much at the right time before a run, the right socks, new shoes fitted at Elite Feet about every 5-6 months worth of milage... My body is not forgiving and already, from running on old shoes, I've had twinges of knee soreness.
Running has always challeneged me in this way. Even when I was conditioned for a marathon, an 8 mile run could never be called "easy." I run slow, at a 12 min. pace that could creep up to 11min/mi if the stars align just right. This is just where I am. My passion far exceeds my natural ability as Alison Colavecchia says.
It's REALLY hard to start over in running. When you were running long distances, you feel like that's the runner you have become. You also develop a healthy fear of losing that conditioning. I had to take a year or more off from running as I got more tired and more consistantly suffering from my symptoms until I could find out what was plaguing me. I ran a couple short races and took a cycling class regularly but I really struggled to show up for work outs with how bad I felt. I was hard on myself too! I thought I was lazy, or getting older, or just never slept well enough, etc. So, now that I'm on a healing and healthy path, I've started to run again but I am basically a beginner in terms of my physical condition. In my mind I can still go out an run 8 miles any day I want. :)
My other challenge right now is what I eat. It affects me immediately and/or sometimes up to a day or more later. I can get really exhausted, body fatigue, body aches, itchy skin, headache, sinus trouble, asthma and wheezing, my fingers can swell & pop, I develop ezcema on my hands, arms and face, I have sleeping trouble although I feel so tired and sick I stay in bed.... Needless to say it affects my workouts when I eat an offending food. And I mess up ALOT. Sometimes due to temptation: living in a household with a doughnut, cookie, bread, pasta, etc eater. Sometimes it's due to cross contamination and I have no idea I'm eating it. But mostly, I don't have a lot of natural foods available in this small town Alabama so it's very easy to reach for a normal food item and try to get away with it.
The biggest hurdle however is our food laws and labeling lies. Even though I try to read down a list of chemical names, it is hard to know every single name for a derrivate of wheat/barley/oats, soy and corn. Companies can be very misleading and hide allergens under "natural flavoring" or "spices." Even more obscure, if it's not a top 8 allergy (such as corn) they don't have to specifiy it. And if they buy an ingredient pre-made and it contains the offending allergen, they don't have to specify it on the label because they didn't add it. Pointless! It boils down to a mess and almost every single packaged food in the store contains wheat, corn or soy.
It's very frustating to think about every single thing you eat.
I do believe though that eating whole foods is the healthiest path for everyone and I'm better for it I'm sure.

If you haven't seen the PBS documentary KING CORN, I highly recommend it to scare you into checking labels.

Current inspiration: Alison Colavecchia "On Being a Beginner"

Fort Rucker Chili 5k Run

2008-11-01T22:00:00.005-05:00

Since moving to Fort Rucker at the beginning of the year I have been trying to work out regularly but not building any mileage. I run a couple times a week on the Beaver Lake Trail (paved) for one or two miles. Alternatively, I'll walk the dog there for up to three miles. Three days a week I go to a spinning class at the gym on Post. The instructor is a cyclist and runs the group sessions as if we were really outside. She's great at giving visual imagery and challenging us to challenge ourselves.
Today I ran in the 17th Annual Fort Rucker Chili 5k Run & Cook off at Howze Field, Fort Rucker, Alabama. I had pre-registered at the gym but needed to pick up my race bib and t-shirt prior to the race - along with everybody else. There was a chili cooking contest going on simultaneously, so I parked near the crowd and planned to walk around and find the race registration table. A funny note about the chili cook off: there were multiple awards, one being 'worst tasting!!" lol.
Anyhow, so I walked and walked and asked people where the heck it was and followed every piece of advice to no avail. Finally after walking around for 20 minutes and getting too close to the race start I finally got back in my car to drive the gym (someone said registration was held there one year). I arrive at the gym and ask the person at the front desk about the race and she says she had no clue what I'm talking about. Ooookay.
I go back out and get in my car driving around the entire other side of the parade field (which you can't see from the opposing side) and run into some people directing traffic. Turns out I'm talking to the race director himself! I'm finally pointed to the registration table but, I'm not allowed to park near the parking area where they are set up. ARRRRGH.
Finally, I temporarily park, get my bib and get back into the car to drive somewhere else to find parking while I'm in the run. I had to go over to the entire other side again to park and then get out and walk all the way back to the registration area where the start is located.
I felt like I'd already done my 5K!
Standing at the start line I made sure to position myself at the back. A lot of the runners were soldiers and their units so I assumed they would be in it to run it hard. The race is off on time and we wind through the single soldiers 1950's orange brick housing mostly. Pretty much the most uninteresting part of the base. Wow, they really could have chosen better views of the Post but I assume these streets were easy to shut down traffic-wise.
I didn't have a great race and walked a lot. My energy this year has been low. Every workout feels like a great effort and I never seem to be able to improve much but yet have to recover a lot.
Doing a race gave me a feel for participating in the running community again, but I'm just so far away in endurance that it is bittersweet.