SPRING!

The problem with taking so long between posts, is that all my inspiration dissolves into the chaos that is my brain right now, and I forget what I wanted to write about. So this will be a mishmash of various topics.

At the forefront of the goings on in the Great White North is that spring is finally here! As proof, I shall provide photographic evidence:

It's the green thing in the center of the picture

 

If you don't know what is in the picture, it's the start of a tulip that I discovered earlier this week. The Boy and I planted 7 bulbs last fall, and it appears that all 7 survived the winter and the squirrels and are in the process of becoming flowers. We got a variety pack of bulbs, so the colors are going to be a surprise, which is kinda fun. I sort of hope that they are blooming before the family arrives in two weeks...

 

Aaron moved the last of his stuff from his rental, and now our house is stuffed to the gills. But it's another step, a big one, towards our life together and so it's a relief that it's finally done. Plus, paying a mortgage and utilities on one place helps a lot.

 

Last, but definitely not least, it is now 2 weeks until the big day, the day when I take that big step and marry my other half, my sweetheart, my love. We're down to the final little details, finally, and so far everything is falling into place. I'm trying to make a list of the stuff that still needs to be done, but when I sit down to write it down my mind goes blank. And I am surprisingly not overly stressed out about it all; so far no panic attacks or extreme binge eating episodes. I am happy and (mostly) calm, and I think Aaron has a lot to do with that. His attitude is that we just need to get hitched, the rest of it doesn't matter. I slightly agree with him about that, but I want to look good in the pictures too.

 

And then there was the running....

 

Tuesday's Run

This week was supposed to be a recovery week after Saturday's long run of 20 miles. I say "supposed to" because in reality, it was just as hard, if not harder, than previous weeks. On Tuesday we did ladder fartleks - 1 min run, 1 minute jog, 2 minute run, 2 minute jog, 3 minute run, 3 minute jog, 4 minute run, 4 minute jog, repeated three times. The fast parts were averaging between 6:30 and 7:30 average pace, which is pretty awesome. On Tuesday I ran 6.94 miles in 60 minutes, for an average pace of 8:38.

Thursday's Run

And then there was Thursday. The dreaded hill repeats. Fortunately for my glutes and hammies it's been an extremely wet "spring" so we were relegated to doing the workout on Seven Bridges Road. Not that Seven Bridges Road is easy at all, it's just a lot easier than going up and down a ski hill. For proof of the elevation changes, here's what the Shiny told me I did on Thursday:

Up and down three times

 

As my friend Ben likes to say, those poor runners in Nebraska are missing out on all the fun. We did this run once last year in running group, and I ended up walking the last little bit the second, and final time, through up the road. This year, I was tired on the last time up, but I ran the whole way. Ben and I both did much better this year. Which proves that our training is really clicking this year, and hopefully will continue on through to race day, which is now only 5 weeks away! On Thursday I ran 7.74 miles in 1:08:45, for an average pace of 8:53.

 

Today's Run

Long run Saturday. And I really felt it. We started out too fast, again, and were struggling a bit at the end. Not as bad as last Saturday with the 20 miles, but still not optimal. We are going to really try to go out slower in the beginning next Saturday, to see if we can finish stronger. Overall it was a pretty good run. Today I ran 16.13 miles in 2:21:14, for an average pace of 8:45. Just 5 seconds slower than my goal pace! 

 

Long runs and head colds

I was planning on making a post about Mother's Day, and how grateful I am to have not only my amazing little boy, but now two more awesome boys that will soon be my stepsons...

And then I got clobbered by a stupid head cold, and I can't be bothered to do much at all.

Maybe next time.

And now for what you've been waiting for....

Saturday's Run

Saturday was the big kahuna of long runs, the one that is the closest to the race while training. And I will admit that I was scared of the idea of running for 20 miles, by far the longest I've run in one go ever. Just the idea of that distance is extremely intimidating. Especially considering I've mentally broken down on shorter runs in the past. And I must say I am extremely grateful (there's that word again) that I have three really good friends to run with, that help me get through the miles with mostly laughs and songs and jazz hands. And despite the sore feet and ankles for the next day or so, I feel like I've conquered this mountain, and it feels really, really good. On Saturday I ran 20.14 miles in 3:01:17, for an average pace of 9:00. I may just be able to do this thing...

I am so not dirty. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

The English language is a curious thing. On one hand, a shower is something you do to get clean. On the other, it's a party for a female that is either a) getting married or b) having a baby. So one has to question: is this use of the term "shower" for a party implying that soon-to-be married ladies or soon-to-be mothers are inherently filthy and therefore need a group of people to get together to make them clean?

I digress.

A while back my bridesmaids (which is another term that I find degrading but have to use so that people know what I'm talking about) convinced me that I NEEDED to have a bridal shower, that my life wouldn't be complete without one or something. They probably didn't put it that way, but hindsight is a fickle thing, you know. I agreed to go along with their shenanigans and last Sunday was my little bridal shower party thing.

My two requirements for this shindig were there needed to be good food and socially acceptable brunch time alcoholic beverages. And it was going to be small, with only a handful of fun women that wouldn't be upset that I didn't want to play any lame games. And I must say it was a win on all possible levels.

I could go on and on and on, but I won't. But I will say that I have some AMAZING friends. And swipe some pictures from Facebook from the event, just because.

Tuesday's Run

Tuesday was another goal pace workout - 1 mile warmup, followed by 1 mile at goal pace and 2 minutes of jogging repeated twice with a 1 mile cool down. It was a lot colder than I expected, so I way under-dressed. The run itself wasn't too bad though. On Tuesday I ran 4.19 miles in 36:59, for an average pace of 8:50.

Thursday's Run

Today, well, was rotten. Rain started just before I was to head to running group from the Y. If it was a couple of degrees colder it would have been snow. Since Saturday's run is going to be 20 miles, Coach decided it was OK to just get out there and do something. I tried to do at least 4 miles, but after a little bit I was soaked to the bone and just wanted to get warm and dry. Today I ran 3.6 miles in 29:52, for an average pace of 8:17. I am so glad I brought a towel with today.

Time flies, or something like that

So, yeah. It's been well over a week since I posted to my blog. My life has been pretty crazy, and when things get crazy certain things fall the the wayside. Like blogging. And apparently cleaning.

For expediency, I feel bullet points will suffice to recap what's been going on in the last week plus.

• There was more snow. The less said about this the better.
• There was running. More will be said about that below.
• I assisted Aaron while he was DJing a wedding. AND I got paid for it. It was pretty awesome.
• I hung out with the future siblings-in-law. And ate peanut butter waffles. And drank mimosas. The Lowry is a pretty awesome place. And it was good seeing everyone.
• I went shopping with Aaron to get the last bits for him for the wedding. I was mildly disappointed with Macy's.
• I rested. Not enough, but I did.
• I worked. Too much. While watching dirty movies at the stinkiest place in the region. But the contractors were pretty nice so it wasn't too bad.
• I didn't sleep enough. Or run on Tuesday.
• It rained. A lot.
• I helped Aaron move stuff, as much as I could.
• I didn't have a panic attack from the sheer quantity of stuff that was moved to our house.
• I realized that it is now the month in which I'll be marrying my true love, my other half. And that is so awesome that I find myself dancing from the joy of it all.

That's all I could think of right now. I'm tired and exhausted and happy and scared and so many other feelings and emotions it's insane. But life is really, REALLY good right now.

 The Last Week in Running

Thursday, April 24
So, yeah, bad weather. So no specific workout, just got out there and ran. My feet got completely soaked. My shoes weighed like 20 pounds. It was not pleasant. I ran 4.28 miles in 39:18 for an average pace of 9:10. Gross.

Saturday, April 26
This long run was LONG. And HILLY. How hilly, you ask? I stole this from friend Cassie, one of those that suffered with me:

Yeah. That's hilly.

 

The surprising thing for me was that the time seemed to fly by, even though it was pretty torturous. I definitely felt it for the next four days - I didn't feel back to normal until late Tuesday. On Saturday I ran 18.89 miles in 2:55:40, for an average pace of 9:17 pace.

 

Thursday, May 1

As I said before, I didn't run on Tuesday - not only did I not feel normal-ish, I had to work late and so I just didn't have time to run. On Thursday was a goal pace tempo run - 10 minute warmup, 40 minutes at goal pace, and 10 minute cool down. It was very VERY hard to speed up at all to goal pace, but I think we were pretty close. I haven't downloaded the data yet to really check. I am very glad this was a recovery week though. On Thursday I ran 6.79 miles in 60 minutes, for an average pace of 8:50.

 

Saturday, May 3

Another Saturday, another long run. Where last Saturday's run was super hilly, this run was super flat. We ran out to Park Point, which is about as flat as you can get in Duluth. And the Army folks were doing their two mile run test thingie, which was kinda funny when you're running 16. I made a point of cheering them on. I don't think they appreciated it. Oh, and I forgot my shiny, so I ran sans-Garmin, which was kinda sucky and liberating at the same time. They say that it's good to run without a watch sometimes, whoever they are. Mae had a watch, though, so I got a time and distance. Today I ran 16 miles in about 2:20:00, for an average pace of 8:45. And I felt pretty good the whole time, and after. Nice. 

Obsession

I am probably like pretty much every other runner, or person that considers themselves a runner, out there and has been obsessed with this year's Boston Marathon. Not just because of what happened last year, but also because of how amazing American distance running is becoming once again.

I have been reading tons of articles, some new, some old, about running marathons, and the people that run marathons, and pretty much anything I can find right now about marathons. Something one person wrote really struck a chord with me. This guy, Mike Cassidy, finished the New York City Marathon with Meb Keflezighi in 2013 and he wrote an article about it that I found on letsrun.com. (http://www.letsrun.com/news/2013/11/time-life/) I hope he doesn't mind my blatant theft of his words, but what he wrote was so eloquent that I have to repeat it here:

I’m a believer that running brings out the best in people. Running inspires. Running unites. Running uplifts. By pushing us to our limits and across them, running takes us to places we never thought possible—or even real. A good run can turn a dark day bright and make a bright day shine brighter. Performed on the scale of a marathon, running can transform communities and change lives.

I could not have said it better myself. Running, in and of itself, is a very selfish sport, but it has the ability to be so much more. I have met some amazing people running. I have accomplished so much because of my running. This time of year it has the ability to take over my life, and in the end I am so much better because of it.

I joke about Boston qualifying in my first marathon, but when I think about it, really think about it, finishing in under 3:40:00 is indeed possible. And after what I've seen and read this week, if I do Boston qualify, I want to be a part of it all and I will try to sign up to be a part of the Boston Marathon in 2015.

First things first - I need to get through this week's training schedule.

Today's Run

Today's group run was a time trial - where you get assigned a bib and are timed to get an idea of where you're at. The time trial distance was 6 miles, and I was hauling ass on the way out, to the tune of 3 miles in 23:30. But when I turned around, it was like someone put the brakes on my legs and I just couldn't keep going. I was disappointed to say the least. Today I ran 6 miles in 47:59, for an average pace of 8:00. Good thing a full marathon is about sustaining a manageable pace, not going as fast as possible...

The worst thing

I honestly think there is nothing worse than stepping on a clear lego when thinking you've successfully navigated your way through the minefield that was once your living room. I love the idea of legos, and the skills they reinforce and grow, but in reality they are pretty much awful.

My poor dogs are not happy today.

It has been a crazy week, and a crazy month, and it is officially less than a month and a half until the Big Day. I am trying not to stress too much, and mostly succeeding. Big things to figure out - hair and other girlie stuff, outfits for the boys (the little ones, not the big one - his is all figured out), finalizing dinner details, other little things. And oh yeah, figuring out who will be officiating the whole thing. That has turned out to be a big mess, and hopefully will be finalized soon.

But at least my running has been pretty awesome. Speaking of which....

Tuesday's Run

There was no scheduled run on Tuesday with the group because there was a group dinner that night. Running buddies Cassie, Mae and I decided to get together before the dinner to whip out a workout. We did sub GP fartleks - 1 min fast, 1 min slow, 2 min fast, 2 min slow, 3 min fast, 3 min slow, 4 min fast, 4 min slow, repeated one more time. And the fast parts were super fast - fastest was about 6:44 and slowest was still 7:40 - way faster than the pie-in-the-sky goal pace of 8:40. Tuesday I ran 4.74 miles in 40:12, for an average pace of 8:28.

Thursday's Run

Thursday was back to normal for the group run. This one was tempo work - 1 mile GP, 2 min jog, 2 mile GP, 5 min jog, repeat on the way back. This run was super hard for me; it had snowed the day before and there was a ton of slush on the ground, and I got very little sleep the night before. Every step was a struggle, but I finished. And my GP miles were pretty much right on - between 8:20 and 8:40. So even though I was just not feeling it, I rocked the workout. Thursday I ran 7.31 miles in 1:03:26, for an average pace of 8:40.

Today's Run

Another long Saturday run, another round of craptastic weather. 34 degrees, rain. I was soaked through and pretty miserable early on. The way out had a hard head wind, which made it even better. But I made it through, even though the last mile was all me mentally willing my legs to keep moving. And another PR - today I ran 17 miles in 2:33:05, for an average pace of 8:58. Cassie thinks we should adjust our goal pace faster. I think she may be smoking crack. :-)

A breakup letter of sorts

Dear John (I mean Motorola),

We have had a long and tumultuous relationship, and I'm sorry, but I just have to break up with you. I know, you are the third boyfriend and our total history isn't totally on you.... Especially the second one that got struck by lightning, that one is definitely the faulty surge protector's fault. But things have to end now.

I will admit that you were a very good boyfriend for the most part. You kept me entertained on those nights when it was just the two of us. Heck, you were even game to entertain many people on occasion - that's a special kind of guy. But there was that one time when you forgot the record "Grey's Anatomy" for me, and that can never be forgiven.

I have decided to move on, to let you go and entertain some other lucky girl, or boy, or family. It's better this way and I think we'll both be happier in the end. I just can't afford to shell out that much money every month just to be with you. Especially when there are less expensive and free options out there.

Dear Motorola, it's not you - it's me. I'm sorry. I will be taking you back to Charter tomorrow.

I hope you have a great life, and I will miss you.

All the best,
Erin

Thursday's Run

After Tuesday's awesome run, I was excited to go out again on Thursday, albeit hesitant with the scheduled run as it was written out. Turns out the start of the run was supposed to be 3 minutes brisk running, not 3 miles as was written. My running friends and I decided that 3 minutes wasn't quite long enough, so we ended up doing 1 mile. So Thursday's workout was 1 mile brisk, 3 minutes jog, followed by 1 mile at goal race pace and 2 minutes jog repeated 3 times. I am pretty proud of how closely I got to my goal pace of 8:40 - we hovered around 8:15 to 8:30 in the 1 mile runs, which Coach said was pretty good. And the workout wasn't too hard. On Thursday I ran 5.12 miles in 43:40, for an average pace of 8:32.

Saturday's Run - The BIG ONE

Last year I trained and ran the half marathon at Grandma's. The longest run I did for training for that was 14 miles, which pretty much kicked my butt. Yesterday's long run was up the shore, and was 16 miles. It is an understatement to say that I was scared and intimidated by this distance. But that's what running friends are for - they help you out and keep you going when you feel like you're going to quit, they do jazz hands with you on the mile and tell you "You can DO IT!" And, of course, in typical Duluth fashion, the weather was pretty crappy on Saturday morning - wind in our faces on the way out accompanied by ice pellets that did an amazing job of exfoliating every single visible pore. Needless to say the way back was MUCH better. And I did it - I ran 16 miles and it wasn't too bad. I figured out that Shot Bloks are pretty good and I think that's going to be my fuel of choice for right now. I figured out that wearing compression socks after my shower really helped keep my calves from feeling like complete ass. And I figured out that my running friends are pretty much the awesomest people ever - Mae, Ben and the newest of our group Cassie are pretty great people. But now what torture are we going to have to endure NEXT Saturday...

It just looks cold, doesn't it?

Today's Run

Even though I was pretty exhausted and a bit achy, I stuck to my schedule of going to the Y to lift and get an easy run in on the dreadmill. And I was pleasantly surprised that after 10 minutes of kinda torture the rest of my run was really good. Until I stopped. Then my legs were like "WHAT THE HELL WOMAN!" Nothing a lot of stretching didn't cure. Today I ran 3.1 miles in 30 minutes, for an average pace of 9:40. And I am so glad tomorrow is a day off.

More tea bag wisdom and awesomeness

So, it's been a while since I got a different tidbit of wisdom from my tea bag, so when I got this today I decided I needed to share:

Love has no fear and no vengeance.

I also want to show off my favorite button, which is proudly displayed behind my mug: I do, in fact, eat, drink and sleep awesome. Especially after yesterday's run....

Yesterday's Run

So, the thing I really want to write about today is yesterday's run. Normally, I try not to go on about my runs because, well, most people find it boring. But yesterday... Yesterday was pretty amazing. Even though I felt like a pile of garbage (woke up with major sinus/sore throat/earache nastiness that took tons of advil to make me feel even remotely close to normal). The workout was 15 minutes brisk and 5 minutes jogging repeated three times. The furthest I've gone so far this year in 60 minutes was just under 7 miles and so I proposed to my running friends that we try to get farther than 7 miles on that workout. We were just flying on the brisk parts of the workout - one mile split was 7:50, another 7:52... And it felt GOOD. It was definitely a hard workout, but everything just clicked and it was awesome. It's days like yesterday that reaffirm my passion for this crazy sport and helps me believe that I can run 26.2 miles, that I can finish in my pie-in-the-sky time of 3:40:00, that I am amazing. Yesterday I ran 7.16 miles in 60 minutes, for an average pace of 8:23. Hell. Yes. :-)

That's right, I said suck it.

I am getting sick and tired of making blog posts about the weather. I really am. I really REALLY am. But the weather this winter has been pretty much the opposite of what it needed to be to get some good outside training done. AND it's been really hard for me emotionally and spiritually as well. Between the epic snows, and the epic cold, I have been done with winter for quite some time. As anyone that knows me or reads this blog should know by now.

And then....

And then yesterday happened. It was downright awesome out, relatively speaking. The sun was shining, the snow was melting... the high was somewhere in the 40's F, which felt like 70F after the past few months. The boys played outside without jackets, and managed to get super muddy, which was easy to do with all the snow melt and the fact that they're boys. I was actually hot last night when trying to sleep, even with the setback thermometer set to 60F, so I ended up covered in just a sheet most of the night. It was GLORIOUS.

Today was more of the same. And to celebrate the awesomeness of what is the end of the winter (or else) we grilled burgers for lunch today. By we, I mean I gave the reins to Aaron, since I suck at grilling burgers.

Ignore the white crap in the background

 

And those were some of the best burgers I have had in a very long time. Yes, I had two of them they were that good.

 

I think I may be grilling chicken for dinner on Wednesday.

 

Yesterday's Run

Yesterday's long run was pretty nice weather-wise, not too cold but not warm enough where I was sweating to death from wearing my jacket. It was a long, easy run, only 95 minutes this week. In that 1:35:00 we ran 10.43 miles, for an average pace of 9:07. And apparently the coach is going to be changing things from the prescribed training plan soon and we will be starting the major mileage on the weekends soon. I am scared and excited.

Today's Run

Being Sunday, I went to the Y to lift and then did a little bit of easy running on the dreadmill after. Lower body focus on the weight lifting, and 30 minutes at 9:40 pace for 3.1 miles. Overall a good day. 

I got nothing

Between life, and work, and sinuses, this has been one heck of a week. Needless to say, I don't really have much to put down in writing. Amended: I don't have much I WANT to put down in writing. I guess there's a big difference.

Except this darn snow needs to just go away. Seriously.

This Week (so far) in Running

So, on Sunday this week I redid my strength tests at the Y for the ActivTrax program. I probably should have done them a month or so ago, but, you know, busy. I was pretty impressed with how much I've improved since last October - not just strength-wise but also the decrease in percent body fat and increase in muscle mass. Anyway, after that I hit up the dreadmill for an easy 30 minute run. At my 9:40 easy pace that was 3.1 miles. And it wasn't so bad.

On Tuesday I was just in a really bad place emotionally, and I had to force myself to go to running group. I'm glad I did, but it was definitely not my best performance. The workout was supposed to be 2 miles at goal race pace, 3 minutes jogging repeated 3 times. After the snow on Tuesday morning and my overall fatigue I ended up only doing two reps. Oh, and I forgot my watch at home, so this is just an estimate. I ended up doing about 4.5 miles in 39 minutes, for an average pace of 8:40. Which is my goal race pace, so I did my faster runs a bit too fast. One of these days I'll get my pacing down pat...

And now, today. Today is Thursday, and I should be out at running group. But there's (supposedly) going to be a monster snow storm tonight into tomorrow. And my sinuses have been absolutely horrible pretty much all day today.  I know these are just excuses, but I really couldn't justify going out for what would probably be a short-ish run today. So, another week with only 3 runs. Assuming I get out on Saturday.

I still have some time... I think....