Hitting the Reset Button

After putting in a distance PR a couple of Sundays ago, I hit a week of the blahs, where I felt extra tired and rundown, but continued to slog through work and summer school, exhausted but feverless. So, day before yesterday, I got back into exercise with a very slow mile. I'm still a bit weary, but am feeling a little bit better. Summer school is still ever present, but only for two more weeks.




Meanwhile, I signed up for the Chocolate Party 5K in Cary in early September. It will definitely be a walk, but it's a (re)start, right?! After poking around the website, I decided it looks like a relaxed race, one where I don't need to worry about my time (thank goodness!).

More Walking

I've been doing more walking lately, thanks to my newish Fitbit. It's quite motivating to try to increase my steps! (Some days and weeks are better than others, of course.) I've been able to work my distance up to a mile at times, so time will tell if I can keep working up to a 5K (3.1 miles).  I sure hope so! Life is busy, but I've gotta keep on walking!



Clipart from Clipartheaven.com 

Maybe a Comeback?

Well, I've done it, I've added another 5K to the "Races on My Radar" section. It's not until March of next year, and I haven't paid for it yet. Still, a new race is percolating in my head. I need some motivation. Maybe that's it. Stay tuned!

One Milestone Down, Many More to Go

I just finished walking my first continuous mile in AGES, and I'm pretty darn excited about it! I'm  a little tired, but nothing bad, and I'm not in pain, the main thing! Yay! I may be able to get ready for that 5K in June after all!




Clipart from Clipartheaven.com

2013 Race Schedule

I've been so inspired by the recent and upcoming fall races of many running friends, that even though we're not done with 2012 yet, I've already started plotting my running comeback in 2013. Too soon, you ask? Maybe, but I love the planning, love seeing how races map out on the calendar, love the possibilities!
I've been down and out for a couple of weeks with a collection of -itises that include coughing, congestion, and loss of voice, so both physical therapy and exercise have been put on hold lately. ON the plus side, I haven't felt like eating as much, so my weight is down a bit. While my voice is still gone, the coughing and congestion are better, so I'm finally to the point of THINKING about exercise! Yay!
I'd initially thought about some half marathons for the spring, but after looking at previous races, times, and training, I've decided to assume a slow recovery and build-up, working on 5Ks and 10ks this spring. If training and weight loss go better than expected, great, but I think I'd rather work toward building up slowly than crashing and burning due to overtraining.

My initial plan for the winter and spring is to shoot for the Second Empire Grand Prix Series Spring 2013 lineup, In this series, runners earn points for each race completed, and accumulate points throughout the season. The top 5 overall men and women, and top 3 point-earners in various age groups get prizes. Plus, runners who compete in 6 of the 10 races get invited to the nice Awards Luncheon at Second Empire as well. I'm shooting for the "6 out of 10" option, obviously! ;o)

My fall half marathon schedule will depend on how training goes over the next 10-12 months. Important things for me to work on:

1) Cardio
2) Strength training
3) Weight loss & better nutrition
4) Stretching when warmed up
5) Keeping running shoes pretty current

You may notice a lot of races in my "Races on My Radar" section. Don't worry, I'm not planning on doing all of them! The list is a work in progress, one I'll be updating in the weeks and months ahead.

Meanwhile, if you're planning to do the Second Empire Grand Prix Series this winter/spring, let me know!

Race Report: 2012 Run for the Oaks

Lesley, Nancy, and Karen (part of the corporate team competition)

I completed C25K W1D3 with a 5K! I did the Run for the Oaks 5K in Raleigh, NC, and also competed in the corporate team challenge with a couple of Duke employees. I'd paid for the 5K a while back, but hadn't gotten motivated back then, so I decided to participate for the team (minimum of three) but walk most of this race to prevent injury.

Early on in the race, a policeman pulled up me and gave me course directions, urging me to the sidewalk. Thank goodness the print was big enough for me to see without my reading glasses, which I don't run with. For a chunk of the race, I was able to see the people in front of me, but at one point in the race, there were a number of neighborhood street turns. I missed one turn and overshot by a block. Another walker slightly behind me and I asked a man walking his dog, and got back on track. *sigh*

A little more than halfway through, I decided to start run/walk intervals of 30/120 seconds. There were times when I ran a little more. This wasn't my normal 60/90 run/walk for the C25K, but  the distance was longer than I'm accustomed to lately, so I took it easy with the intervals until the last push when the finish line was in sight.

When I got near the finish line, I couldn't see the clock, but I kept running anyway and finished. When they announced the corporate team standings, our team wasn't called, as I expected us to be, so I went back to the finish area, and found Jim, the man who owns the timing company that did the race. I asked about my time, and learned that the official timing had indeed stopped before I finished (a first for me!). He asked if I had a watch time; thank goodness I had my Garmin Forerunner on! It had recorded almost 3.3 miles (thanks to getting lost earlier in the raced), but I didn't mind at that point, as long as our team got credit! I showed Jim my Garmin time (which he wrote on his hand!). A few minutes later, he motioned Karen and me (Nancy had already left) to follow him, and he gave us the 2nd place team plaque! Yay! Okay, there were only two teams entered in the open women's division, but it's still fun getting the bling!

So, I finished 3.23 miles in 1:04:20 yesterday, last by a long shot. Having to find my own way on the course was a little stressful, but I had a lot of fun otherwise. I'm happy to have a beginning time in an official 5K race, as I begin running again. It's great motivation, really. I'm already looking at 5Ks down the road.

I took my new iPhone 4S with me, and loaded some new songs beforehand to help me through this race and training in the months ahead. I took some photos with the phone before and after the race, and they turned out pretty well! One thing I like about taking photos with the iPhone is the ease of adding them to Facebook and Flickr!

After the race, I decided to stop at Big Ed's for brunch, where I had a veggie omelet with grits. Yum!

To see all four of my photos from the 2012 Run for the Oaks, click here.

5K Registration and Progress

This morning I registered from my first 5K of 2012! I'll be run/walking the Run for the Oaks in Raleigh, NC. I'm excited about having this accomplishable goal. Although I've registered for a couple of spring half marathons, they seem a little out of reach right now. But a 5K?! Ahhhhh! I'm smiling as I type! I've run this race before, and it's a good one. The weather's usually pretty good, and it's a well-run race. A couple of years ago, I organized a team from work for the corporate team competition that coincides with this race, and we came in 3rd place in the open women's division! That was pretty darn neat! We got a plaque at the post-race awards ceremony, even! (Okay, so there were only three women's teams entered, but it was still fun!) It gets better. There's a series of spring and summer races with this corporate team event, and we ended up taking 3rd place for the whole series, along with another plaque AND a $35 check to split between us! All this happened because we showed up and had fun. So yep, we're working on doing this again!
In other news, the Get Moving Challenge at work is going well, best I can tell. Several of us have started taking walk breaks together at work, and that's been fun! My plantar fasciitis is acting up now, though, so I need to be more consistent about treating it at home.

I'm still on the Engine 2 28-Day Challenge, and have gone 2.5 days without cheese! Wow! I've lost 2.6 pounds since Monday, so that should tell me something.

More Crosstraining

I'm still taking a break from running as the plantar fasciitis in my left foot heals. Meanwhile, I've been to the gym two days in a row now to crosstrain on the gym equipment, and it's been a surprisingly refreshing break from running. I think part of it is that I've been able to concentrate a little more on grad school, now that I've let go of my running training plan for a bit.

In some ways, I feel like I've traded in my identity as a runner for a new identity as a part-time grad student. I'm definitely enjoying grad school, though it's a lot of work and has wiped out much of my free time. I'm not ready to totally ditch running, but it could be that I need to adjust my goals for the next few years and concentrate on different ones. For instance, in my quest to run more half marathons, I have missed running the 5K races that I ran when I first started running again. One of the bright sides of training for shorter distances is that I'd run less chance of having the recurring pain in my right toes at distances of 3-4 miles (due to extra long metatarsals, not interested in bone-shortening surgery, thank you very much).

So, we'll see! Meanwhile, I'm back on the elliptical and the stationary bike, plus some weight lifting and other things. Maybe I'll plug into a fitness class or two for the social thing that I'm missing with the running group.

Race Report: 2011 Catch Me If You Can 5K

I've been eyeing the Catch Me If You Can 5K in Garner, NC, for a few weeks now, but finally registered for it last Wednesday. I had to get up at 5 AM this morning, which was harder than I expected it to be! I had laid everything out last night, so it was fairly easy to get myself together this morning. The only thing I didn't do last night was check the weather forecast for Garner this morning, and when I opened the door this morning to leave for the race, I saw that it was raining! Oy!

I paused briefly, but decided to head down the road anyway, since I'd already paid for the race. Surely, the rain would stop by race time!

It took me about 35 minutes to get to the race start and get my race number. The races (my 5K and a 10K too) started and finished at a strip mall, Aversboro Square, so the bathrooms were nice--a big improvement over the usual porta-johns, only we had to go upstairs to use them! I ran into Hardin Watkins, the Town Manager of Garner, who was participating in the 10K, and it was nice catching up with him. (Hardin is a marathoner, and part of the Raleigh Galloway Training Group too.)

The rain did slow down to barely a spit, so I thought it was be a perfectly cool, cloudy morning for a race! The 10K started first, then after about 5 minutes, the 5K started. Initially, I tried 0:30/0:30 run/walk intervals, but my legs were pretty tired and creaky from yesterday's 3-miler with the Raleigh Galloway group, so I took it down to a walk after a while, and worked on my walking form, especially with using my arms and keeping my chin (which tends to drop when I'm tired) up.

Within the first mile, I had to go to the bathroom, and while I eyeballed some bushes and a convenience store along the route, I made it to the finish line for a gun time of 1:00:52.8. If I'd made a pit stop, I would've missed out on the "00" part of the time. Slow as I am, it's the little victories that count! :)

The course was mostly residential, with some "rolling hills." It was pretty, but it was wet! The rain picked up while we were on the course, but there wasn't any thunder, so we kept going. One volunteer, under her umbrella, actually said, "Isn't it miserable out there in the rain?!" Another volunteer along the course said, "Are you the last one?" I told her I was probably the last 5Ker, but I didn't know about the 10K runners. I was a little grumpy by then because of the run, and that didn't help! She probably wasn't having much fun out in the rain, herself!

I was, indeed, the last 5K participant, but came in before a handful of 10K runners. My finish time was slightly faster than my current training pace, but not a 5K race pace of old. It's a good place to restart, though. In fact, Buckeye Outdoors, my favorite online training log, is back up after a hardware crash. All of the runner data was lost, so when I put this morning's race in, it told me that it's a personal record! I know better, but it's a nice place to restart!

Catch Me If You Can

Well, I've registered for my first 5K of 2011, the Catch Me If You Can 5K in Garner on May 8. It'll be my first 5K since last September. I'm looking forward to seeing how my times compare. Since I haven't done much speedwork since then, I may be slower. BUT I do have custom orthotics in my shoes now. We'll see. I love the name of this 5K! Maybe it'll help me run faster! :)

Signed Up For Another Race!

Well, I did it! Last night I registered for the Tobacco Road Half Marathon in March! The race is a local one (in Cary, North Carolina), and a good chunk of the course goes along a section of the American Tobacco Trail in Wake County. One of the biggest plusses for me is that the half marathon has a seven hour time limit! Not that I plan to take seven hours for a half, mind you! It means that the race, which has the same finish line as the full marathon, is walker-friendly! :)

Meanwhile, training at the gym has been going pretty well the past few days, but it's nice to have a race to focus on now. I'm tempted to do some 5Ks now for speed practice (and, truth be told, I love road race mornings!), but I'd be pretty slow right now.

And yes, I am watching the calendar! January 7 is my podiatrist appointment for casting the orthotics! Woohoo!

Walk Report: Triangle Run/Walk for Austism

This morning I decided to take a break from the new gym and walk a 5K race, the Triangle Run/Walk for Autism. I was ready to walk with a bunch of people around, like when I used to be able to run with the group. I got to Moore Square in Raleigh early to register on-site, enjoying the crisp fall air. I didn't see anyone I knew, but it was still a great morning to be outside. I did have doubts as I lined up near the back of the pack before the race, but once the horn went off, I was happy to be there.

It was hard at first, adjusting to just walking this one, but I wanted the practice in walking faster and using my arms to help me move forward. I ended up talking with a mother-daughter pair for most of the race, and that helped the miles go by quickly. We enjoyed talking about the big, old homes we walked by, including the Executive Mansion.

I had some discomfort in my right foot, as expected, but nothing that caused me to stop. I ended up finishing the 5K walk with a chip time of 56:29 and gun time of 57:03, good for 840th place out of 853 overall, and 32/32 in my age group. I'm glad I did this! (My only regret was not taking my camera with me.)

Race Report: 2009 Run for the Oaks

I ran the Run for the Oaks 5K this morning! Though it didn't turn out like I'd planned or hoped, I had fun, and I'm definitely glad I did it!

1) The weather. It was raining and in the 40s--the whole race. I knew this was in the weather forecast, but when I headed out the door, it wasn't raining (yet--or again, I should say), so I was hopeful. Ha! By the time I got out of my apartment complex, there were sprinkles on my windshield, and it got a bit harder. Not gully washer, though. Still doable for the race.

2) The team. This race had a corporate team component, where female and male teams from a same employer could sign up for team award eligibility, in addition to running as an individual. I thought it would be fun to try to get a library team together, so I sent out an email blast and got five interested women! Earlier this week, it whittled down to three, the minimum number for a team, but alas, there were two of us left standing at race time this morning. Although Amy and I didn't make enough members for an official team today, she was a great sport about coming anyway (from Hillsborough to Raleigh, no less!), and it was a lot of fun to see and talk with her outside of the work arena.

3) My finishing time. Official times haven't been posted yet, but I think I finished around 41 minutes, much slower than I'd hoped, considering I've been working on my speed more lately. I'll blame it on the rain.

On a bright note, I saw several online acquaintances in person this morning, meeting some for the first time! Shout-outs to Cindy, Mary, and Margett for being out there this morning. I also caught up with Louise (from the Frozen 5K, the Run for the Roses water stop, and numberous other races) for a bit, which was fun too. Another nice surprise was running into coworker Colleen, and meeting her boyfriend and father briefly. In ACC Basketball Tournament news, the Duke t-shirt I wore for today's race garnered a couple of comments about last night's game, which Duke won by one point!

UPDATE: Chip time 40:37, Gun time 41:01

Race Report: 2009 Run for the Roses

It was a beautiful afternoon for a 5K, and I was registered for the Run for the Roses 5K in Raleigh! The race start was at 2 PM, so I was able to go to church first, and changed into my running clothes afterward so I could drive straight to Raleigh.

I arrived at the Halifax Community Center in plenty of time to find and meet Pauline, a Facebook friend and fellow runner, for the first time today! We've run in at least a couple of races together (including last year's RFTR) without meeting, so it was great to meet her today! I also saw Louise (from the Frozen 5K, the Resolution Run, and other races around here!) at the mid-point water stop. It was a treat to see a familiar face there--thanks for volunteering, Louise! Ray from the Apex Turkey Trot and other Second Empire Series 5Ks last year was out as well, and a newcomer to the Triangle struck up a conversation with me--turns out this was his first race since moving here from New Jersey. He was loving the weather, and his child was signed up for one of the kids' races following the 5K. (The kids races are always sooo cute!)

I knew today's race would be a little slow for me, coming at the end of a fairly high mileage week (didn't quite make 30 miles), a long run yesterday, and a pretty good workout on the recumbent bike at the gym this morning. Still, I was hoping to come in under 40 minutes. The hills in the race were a little tough as I remembered, but I stuck pretty closely to the 3:1 run/walk ratio I started with. (A couple of times I extended it to 4:1 or 5:1, if I caught the downside of a hill!) I ended up coming in at around 40:45, but am waiting for official results. While I'm a little disappointed in my time, it was great to run outside and see so many people out running!

UPDATE: Gun time was 40:50, chip time was 40:28.

Race Report: Frozen 5K Race, Cary, NC

This morning, I ran in the inaugural Frozen 5K Race at Bond Park in Cary. When I left home, the temperature was 11 degrees, colder than I'd like, but I'd aready registered for it, so I felt like I had to do it!

Bond Park is a pretty plan to run in in Cary. There's a lake, some ball fields, a ropes course, and probably other facilities there. I ran there a couple of times last summer with the North Carolina Roadrunners Club, as part of their summer trail series. The first time I ran there, I took a couple of wrong turns, and they ended up sending the course sweeper out to find me! Needless to say, I was a little concerned about wrong turns this morning, but fortunately, there were volunteers at nearly every place there were options of which way to turn. Thank goodness I guessed right at the spots that weren't manned!

The race was pretty low key, with early registration only, a cap of 185 runners, and no timing chips. In fact, there wasn't even a big clock at the end, just manual timing by someone at the end. Everyone was handed an index card after we crossed the finish line with our place in the race (I got #133), and we had to handwrite our names and bib numbers on the back of our finishing numbers! It felt very low tech and homey, rather refreshing, really.

I officially met Louise there, a lady I've seen at a number of races over recent years. I also met her friend, Jen, and a lady (no name) from Waterville, Maine. Nice to meet new folks and out names with faces.

I wore a long sleeve t-shirt over a short sleeve, and long tights, as well as cotton gloves. It all felt decent once I got moving. Once I started, I was glad I didn't have a hat on. I don't do caps well.

I ended up with a time of 40:34 for the 5K, pretty slow, even for me. I decided to take it easy because of the pre-shin splints (self diagnosed). No long run today, going to take it easy for the rest of the day. A Duke basketball game comes on this afternoon, so there's a good excuse for me to just hang out! :)

First Run of 2009: Race Report for Resolution Run

Last night I decided to get up and run the Resolution Run in Raleigh this morning. The decision suprised me, since I was at a New Year's Eve dinner and party at the time, and it was cold outside, so I knew it would be cold this morning!

Although I didn't get to sleep until after 2 AM, I decided to go for it anyway. The morning was cold, indeed, but a nice one otherwise. Okay, it was a bit windy too! The nippy weather gave people something else to talk about though, which was nice.

Although the race was a bit hilly, it was a decent one for me. While I'm still waiting on the official results, I finished in about 38:12, just a few seconds slower than my last 5K. Considering the lack of sleep, plus the wind and the hills, I'm not disappointed, really. And I loved starting out the year with a 5K!

Afterward, I stopped at the gym. (Yes, I'm crazy!) I ran another 1.39 miles (17 minutes) on the treadmill, walked 0.30 miles (5:06 minutes), then rode the boke for 12 minutes (2.4 miles).

This afternoon, I am tired and sore, for sure! George and I met his cousin, Jacob, in Cary for lunch. Afterward, they decided to head for a local used book store. I would've loved to join them, but I decided to come on home. Time to stretch out on the couch with a book! Zzzzzz

UPDATE: Official time for the Resolution Run was 38:11. The picture above is a shot I took of myself before the race, trying out my new digital camera.

Race Report: 2008 Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis

I had a really nice race this morning in Raleigh! This was my second running of the Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis in Raleigh, a festive race for a good cause. The race starts and finishes at St. Mary's in Raleigh, where I went to high school, an added bonus. (I know how to get there, and it's always nice to see the campus again.)

Like last year, there were a lot of people dressed up in red and green, some in more elaborate costumes. I got there early to get my packet, and enjoyed warming up around campus. It was a chilly morning, but sunny. I was glad to have a long sleeve t-shirt and leggings on before the race, but warmed up quickly once the race started.

I only took a couple of short walk breaks during this race, which was encouraging. (I hope to return to running the whole 5K in time!) My running segments were fairly steady. With about a quarter of a mile to go, I felt a nice spurt of energy, which was soon aided by a nice downhill stretch to the finish line. (I can't believe I'd forgotten this nice finish from last year!) I ended up finishing in about 38:05, according to the clock, so I'm hoping my chip time will be even lower. Either way, I finished up about a minute faster than my last 5K, the Apex Turkey Trot two weekends ago! I finished last year's Jingle Bell Run in 38:02, so it would be sweet to beat that time too.

Before the race, I was starting to feel a little down about 5Ks, thinking I needed to start concentrating more on training for longer distances. But I really enjoyed this race day! I only saw one familiar runner person before the race, but I met a new runner at the starting line, a lady who has been kind of reinventing herself since the birth of her 3rd child. She picked up running a few months ago, and was competing in her 3rd or 4th race today. She's so psyched about running and getting fit, is running a race in Phoenix over Christmas, and can't wait to get her family to join her. (They don't know it yet, though!)

After the race, I saw a lady in a St. Mary's sweatshirt, and struck up a conversation with her. I thought she was an alum, but turns out she works part-time in the library, so we had fun talking about the school. She loves working there, and we enjoyed swapping library stories. On my way to my car a few minutes later, I ran into the lady who taught me piano there at St. Mary's! She's still giving lessons there, and looks almost the same!

All of this reminded me that participating in road races isn't just about the running. I love race days, and now part of that is the people I get to meet.

UPDATE: My official time was 38:02, which was the exact time I ran this race in last year!

Treadmill First!

Today I got on the treadmill FIRST, after yesterday morning's struggle to get a turn on the treadmill. I ran 40 minutes (3.27 miles) at a 1% incline. Then I got on the recumbent bicycle for 15 minutes (3.15 miles).

Tomorrow I'll be running in the Apex Turkey Trot 5K. Gobble gobble!

Race Report: Autism Ribbon Run 5K

This morning I ran in the Autism Ribbon Run 5K in Raleigh, and had a good time! The race started and ended near Moore Square, which has a number of interesting stores and restaurants around it. I always enjoy running races in the area, because the routes often include running through the downtown historic district, including the governor's mansion. The particular course was a little hilly, with more downhills going out and some uphills coming back in. None were too bad, though I did walk up a couple of them.


The weather was great for running! The skies were overcast, there was a light breeze, and the temps were in the low to mid-6os.

Before the race, I had to get there in time to pick up my race packet. I usually like to pick that up the day before, but the website incorrectly listed last night's pickup at the Athlete's Foot at Cameron Village for both Thursday and Friday nights. The BROCHURE correctly listed the Friday evening packet pickup at Moore Square. By the time I arrived at the Athlete's Foot last night, it was about 6:40, and I didn't think I could get to Moore Square by 7:00. Kinda frustrating, but at least I had the option to pick up it before the race this morning.

Since I got there early, I enjoyed looking at the various vendor tables set up in Moore Square. It was fun to catch up with Wendy from the Magnificent Mile there, and to see that she's out of her orthotic boot--no fun! I hope she had a good race! I also gave a big hello to a lady at one of the tables; I thought I recognized her from the Galloway group, but it came up in conversation that she hadn't run in a couple of years! Ugh, oh well! :)

Afterward, the vendors were still there, and post-race refreshments were plentiful.

I ended up finishing the race in 39:31, under my goal of 40:00! Woohoo! I beat my last 5K of 39:47, and I'm happy about that! I'm still trying to beat my pre-injury PR of 35:30. I'll get there sometime!

Good Treadmill Run

It was back on the treadmill for me this morning. My basic plan was to run 30 minutes, but to hit the 5K mark if I had it in me. I remembered to set the incline to 1% at the beginning of the run, and hit the Start button. I ended up going for 45 minutes and 3.4 miles--yay! The pace was a little slower than it has been on the treadmill lately, but the steady incline, eventhough just a little, took its toll a bit, as the plantar fasciitis in my left foot flaired up a little. The foot feels better now.

I'm thinking about running a 5K on Saturday! Hmmmm....