I am still sans computer.

According to the Apple Store my Mac should be fixed and delivered back to the casa by Friday. Unfortunately for me, the blog and you all that means feeble attempts to blog and upload photos from my iPhone. Yikes. Since I know this will not likely go well I am apologizing now for my short posts (like this one) or lack there of. I promise it’s not forever. I also promise that if Apple doesn’t get my sleek silver book back to me before we leave for Ventura someone is going to get a kick in the hiney.

5 days.

Stomping Out Self Doubt (I’m a poet and didn’t know it)

Last weekend. Where do I begin?

After a Saturday filled with Yoga, 30 people at Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate the H-Man’s Birthday (a little early)and staying up until 11:30 p.m. finishing 50 Shades of Grey I decided to do my long run on Sunday. At 8:30 am. In hot, humid conditions with nothing but coffee in me. Man; am I one smart cookie or what? Dehydrated + exhausted = reducing 18 miles to 14. Whatever.

I took 2 Endurolytes and then headed out with 30 oz of Nuun and 2 packets of Hammer Gel.

Beings that Ojai has a lot of downhill I tried to map out my run to include some elevation loss to get my legs ready. It is impossible to avoid hills where I live and I was too lazy to drive somewhere that would give me flat with a steep downhill. This is what I ended up with

The downhill was glorious. The climbing was not.

This was not an easy run by any means but my legs were ready to run. I ended up with an average pace of 8:08 which was much faster than intended. I kept an eye on my Garmin and more than once had to check myself and slow down. A few times it meant stopping to gather my composure and start again. Yes Chacha I know, must.slow.down my long runs. I promise I am working on it.

Butttt you know what? This run increased my confidence for Ojai big time. A week or so ago I was ready to throw in the towel. I felt overwhelmed, mad at my foot, mad at my pace, just plain bummed on myself. Self-doubt.

Let’s pause to talk about that for a moment…

~

Self-Doubt: Lack of faith or confidence in oneself.

Self doubt can turn a goal crushing moment into a complete disaster. It’s self-inflicted torture. It makes us feel inferior.

If we doubt ourselves what is the purpose of setting a goal? Think about it. If you set a goal and then doubt that you will accomplish it you are setting yourself up to fail.

No more self-doubt. Plain and simple. Mentally we must train to trust ourselves. This rings true in all aspects of life: work, family, sports, you name it. Trust that you are ready. Trust that you are prepared.

Ok, I’m done with that.

~

Yesterday I showed myself that I can do it. I have it in me to go long. My heel was a bit sore for a few hours afterwards but today it’s just a little sore. That is AWESOME. I will keep icing, stretching, sticking, compressing and ibuprofening.

I am ready to be 100% on race day.  I am readying to freaking run.

~

How was your weekend?

Anyone celebrate an occasion?

Any races?

Talk to me goose.

2 Weeks

Ohhh Heeeeeyyyyy: OJAI.

T-2 weeks. That came FAST.

I have been having mixed emotions about this race. On one hand I am ready to go crush 26.2. It’s time for a marathon PR. Not just a few minute PR. A ginormo PR. On the other hand I have pre-race doubt. My heel is till nagging me a bit. That tiny bit of soreness could change the entire outcome of my race. Should I run?  Yes. No. Maybe so. I hate that.  I don’t want to run the race and feel disappointed at the finish. I want to give it my all. So here we are…

The past week (or so) has looked like this:

05/12- 18 miles (11 easy, 7 @ MGP)

05/13- Rest

05/14- Easy Run

05/15- Morning run: W/U, 4×800, C/D- 6.1 miles

              Evening Workout: 1 hr Barre Class

05/16- 30 min Yoga

05/17- Easy Run

05/18- Rest

This weekend I am planning on yoga and my last real long run. Then it’s time to mentally prepare. And taper. Yes. Bring on taper.

~

Off to drink hot chocolate and put together party bags for my big boys birthday party tomorrow. I know, wild night. Try not to be jealous.

Summer Running, Marathon Prepping and what not

Da Heat.

I know what you’re thinking. How can HRM even consider talking about “summer running” in a place that has perfect weather year-round. That’s not too far from the truth. We have awesome weather. Often. But unknown to most peeps it actually gets into the 90s in my neck of the woods (not yet thank the lawd) and in the late summer we have weeks where it’s humid (not East Coast humid, think Mexico humid). It’s not easy to adjust to hot weather running especially if you are a wimpy early morning runner like me.

Now that marathon training is in full effect I am back to doing 2-a-days (this is due to limited time. Don’t worry Mom, I am not running them fast). This means a fabulous morning run in overcast conditions followed by what feels like a harder than heck lunch run in the sun. If you follow me on Twitter or DM you probably saw me whining about my Tuesday HHH (hot, hilly run). I think I stopped at least 3 times to adjust my pace and catch my breath. Hot sweaty mess.

So what’s a gal (or guy) to do to get used to summer running? Here are a few tips from yours truly:

1. Don’t go out at try to run a zillion miles. Ok, I didn’t try to run a zillion but my original plan was 8 and it was in the high 70s. Dumb. I cut it short and was glad I did. Going gradual should be a no brainer but many of us (waving my hands) think that if we have a solid base the heat will not phase us. Wrong. Take it slow (it’s ok to adjuste pace) and build up your tolerance to the heat.

2. Check your wardrobe. Think moisture wicking, light, comfortable clothes and socks. If you are wearing cotton socks it’s time to ditch them. Seriously, tt will change your life. Invest in some shades that will not bounce and make you crazy or go with a ventilated hat/visor.

3. Stay hydrated. Make sure you are drinking water/electrolytes leading up to your run and that you are sipping along the way. Find a drink that works for you. I am a Nuun lover but it took a lot of trial and error before I found that it worked for me. I also like my drink to be ice-cold (Trick: I fill my water bottle half way and freeze it. When I leave for my run I top if off. The frozen part melts and keeps my bottle coooold. Love).

4. Sunscreen. And eye black. 10 min in the sun can lead to burn. By the sport spray kind that will not drip in your eyes and take care of your skin!

5. If you see sprinklers on take full advantage. It.feels.so.good.

Anyone want to add anything? What are your summer running tips? Please share!

~

I am T-3 weeks til my next race. I haven’t talked about it much because frankly I wasn’t sure if I would be able to run. I am still a little hesitant. My foot is getting close to 100% so now I am in full-fledged get ready for the long run mode.

Oh yeah, you wanted to know which race.

The Ocean 2 Ojai Marathon.

I registered for it after big PR’s here and here. I also figured that the All Day 25k and Ragnar Ultra would be great training. Turns out they were. In craptastic news I did not anticipate jacking up my heel. But such is life and such is the risk in participating in a sport where the legs and feet take a lot of pounding.

Anyway, this race is supposed to be freaking awesome. It is only in its second year and is already known for its fast profile.  Yeah, that means it sold out. Bonus? I believe there is a wait list at Race360 if you want to add your name to it. That’s pretty sweet.  Another bonus? This race ends at the beach! I am hoping for perfect, June gloom weather. And a nice PR tailwind. What? Is that too much to ask?

I had a friend graciously put together a mini-training plan for me for the next few weeks so come memorial day weekend I should have an idea of how I plan to run this baby (or if I can’t run it). As always if you have some healthy running vibes to spare I would greatly appreciate it.

Somehow I talked PrettyFittie into running some miles with me this weekend. Bwahahahahahah. Suuuccckkkkaaaaaa.

Kidding. Of course.

~

Anyone else running the Ojai Marathon or Half?! I’m sure you all know OUAL will be there running for Boston glory!

What summer race and/or event are you most looking forward to? I cannot wait for beach time. And the 4th of July. We did Coronado last year and it was awesome!

Has it been 5 days?

This week has totally passed me by. You know things are super cray when I haven’t blabbed on to you all about nothing for 5 days. Unheard of. At least you still had a VLOG of one my crazies to laugh at, right? Riiighhhhttttttt.

So let’s catch up. Without any pictures. Those will come this weekend. I promise.

This week my running/workouts were all over the place. I am still being cautious given I need my heel to be 100% by June 1st. That’s the drop date. If it’s not 100% by June 1st I am going to have to back out of a race that I really don’t want to back out of.  I made a promise to myself that I am going to lay the hammer down at that race so if I can’t do that I am not going to run. Lame? Maybe. But I am not going to break a promise to myself.

OK, back to how things went this week

Monday: 5.35 miles 7:45 avg pace

Tues: 6.3 miles of running on the stairmill. Literally was running up stairs (levels 15-19)  for 6.3 miles. Done in 45 min. It was equal to a 7:08 pace. Woah Nelly! Core/strength workout

Weds: 6.35 miles, TM 1% incline, avg 8:11 pace

Thurs: 4.35 miles, average 7:48 pace; core/quad workout.

Today: Rest. It’s my first full rest day since last Friday. I’m not messing around am I?

The plan for this weekend is to do Yoga and run long. You guys know I have been loving Yoga since I started going to class a few months ago. It is challenging both mentally and physically for me. Physical + mental strength = awesomeness on race day.  For my run this weekend I am going to focus on keeping my pace nice and easy. Running because I can. Running because it’s fun. One thing I know is that I do NOT want to run long fast. That’s going to be for race day 🙂

I bet you are all trying to figure out where I am running huh! This could be a fun game. My Ragnar girls know. And my fam. That’s it!

Bwaaahahahahahahahahahaha.

Maybe I’ll host a guess the race with a giveaway. Or maybe I’ll just do a giveaway soon. Yeah. That sounds fun. It’s been a while!

Now in my REAL life work is busy as usual. On a fun note I am in the middle of planning my big boy’s birthday party. He handed out his invites to his school friends today and tried to convince me that it was a good idea to invite the whole school. Yeah. I am sure Chuck E. Cheese would love that bill. Me? Not so much. Oh and the whole having to supervise a zillion kiddos. He is so sweet to not want anyone to feel left out, no? Proud that he is that kid.

Totally off subject:

What are you all having for dinner tonight? I need to decide on where to take the fam bam…