Winter Made Me Do It - Part 2

1100 Miles, baby.

Eric correctly pointed out that that is pretty much the equivalent of running to Dallas. I countered that it took me a whole flippin' year, so that's really not that impressive.

It is a lot of miles, I suppose. An average of just over 3 a day for the last year.

I like that running is something that's steady in my life.

February did not make it easy on me. I never ran more than 6 miles at a time and the darn snow tried to keep me away. It was too slippery and cold to run outside, the gym child care kept closing early, and my nose and lungs made breathing particularly hard (who am I kidding? I'm still sitting here sniffling and coughing as I type). I'm not going to pretend like I enjoyed it last month.

I definitely enjoyed meeting a GOAL though. I'm way too goal-focused. But maybe that's not the worst thing in the world. I think I also felt like if I did this in spite of the dumb winter, in spite of the laziness I felt, that it would really be a victory, not just a goal achieved.

Hopefully I can keep up with last year's mileage for the next few months to maintain 1100. I want to try some new classes and diversify my work outs though. I also need to work on that eating healthier thing. ;-) If only brownies weren't so good!

2015 Fitness Goals

I'm always a little hesitant to set many running/fitness goals. After all, there are so many injuries that can occur and other factors that play in (health, weather, when I can afford new shoes).

2015 hasn't started off quite as hardcore as I was hoping it would. But we're only just beginning. I do think having goals helps me push myself a little more. So here are a few goals I think are pretty attainable:

1) Hit the 1000 miles in a year mark again, and stay there as long as possible. (I should be at 1000 by the end of January. Then I just have to keep up with last year me. :-)

2) Get faster in at least one race.

3) Do more weightlifting/cross training.

4) Eat healthier and less.

A few more specific, harder goals:

1) Hit 1100 in the last year.

2) Run a 6:30 mile/23:00 5K.

3) Lose 3-5 pounds. (I'm pretty okay with my weight, but it wouldn't hurt me to lose
 a little. Or to at least turn some fat to muscle. ;-)

4) Get rockin' abs.

So now that's out there. Let's see what 2015 brings. :-) 

You Don't Have to Go Fast. You Just Have To Go.

Half marathon #3 is in the bag, and, surprisingly, it was my fastest one yet. (But don't get the idea that it was fast. It wasn't. Almost everyone I knew finished before me).

It almost didn't happen, though.

My training buddies have been busy/out of town, so I had a hard time making myself really push hard during training. I did get in two good 10 milers, and ended up really enjoying running them by myself. So I was at least ready for this thing.

But then I got a cold/virus/something that made me gross and snotty the week of the race.
And then I pulled a muscle in my back the day before.
And then I saw that there was a 90% chance of rain/storms on race morning.

Great.

I really was about to call and switch to the 5K when a sweet friend came by to wish me luck and give me some GUs and running socks. I guess God knew I needed the extra push.

I felt pretty awful on race morning. My right ear was stopped up, my nose wouldn't stop running, my back still ached and it was definitely pouring outside. But I trained for this thing, and I determined that I was going to run it NO MATTER WHAT. I figured even if I ended up with the worst time ever, I would at least have a good excuse (okay, several).

But once I got going, it really wasn't a big deal. It was sprinkly and cold, but it made me forget my nose/ear problems. The rain actually felt really good once I got warmed up. I definitely felt pretty done by mile 11 (more mentally than anything - I just felt bored), and I kept having heart palpitations toward the end which made me slow down more than I probably would have otherwise. But I felt like I could finish strong and was able to sprint the last half mile, finishing in 1:57:22, right at 8:57/mile.

I love how flippin' awesome you feel when you realize you just ran 13 MILES. And you're DONE.

My finish was made especially awesome by my boys waiting for me at the finish line. I loved seeing their smiling faces and hearing Samuel scream "Yay Mommy!" (even though he had no clue what was going on!)

I still feel like I could have pushed a little harder and done better. But it was almost 3 minutes faster than last year despite a lot of adverse conditions, so, really, I can't complain!

My feet were pretty torn up afterwards. I had been considering training for a full, but, honestly, after feeling bored toward the end, having the palpitations bother me, and have my poor poor feet hurt for days afterwards, I think I've decided 13 is enough for me. For now anyway. ;-)

So there's my half marathon for the year. We'll see what next year brings!

Running Post-Baby, Part II

So I wrote several months ago about how surprised I was at the difficulty I had adjusting back to running post-baby. It took me a while to get my mileage up and speed down - much longer than I expected. All in all, I think 9 months in 9 months out was probably a pretty fair assessment though. I'm finally pretty much back to where I was pre-Samuel, and that's a good feeling!


I ran my second half-marathon last weekend, and I did it quite a bit faster than my first two years ago. Admittedly, the circumstances were much different this time around. The race did not start an hour late and I had water the whole way and running buddies to keep me motivated. The situation was definitely better than the last time I ran.

The only negative was that Eric was working, so I had to leave Samuel in the child care. He did fine, but I worried the whole time about how he was doing and if I would be feeling well enough to take care of him afterwards. I think that kept me going slower than I would have for the first several miles. (And this is definitely TMI, but as a nursing mom, my milk totally let down around mile 11. THAT was a weird feeling!)

It was SUPER helpful to have my training buddies with me. I lagged behind on some of the hills, but seeing them ahead of me gave me the motivation to speed back up and catch them, something I may not have done otherwise.

Anyway, it took me right at two hours to finish the course (two hours and four seconds. I was both thrilled and annoyed!). When I finished, I felt like I had to keep moving for the next 10 minutes. Every time I tried to stop, I couldn't breathe. I guess my body just got in the running groove? Anyway, I finally cooled down and un-froze the hand that had been carrying my water bottle (it was a pretty wonky color for a while). It felt good though, and I was able to sprint and the end and generally feel way better than I did at the end of my last race. It's nice to feel good when you're done!

I did sleep pretty darn good that night though!

Anyway, I'm hoping this spring I can really start working on my times some more. I was really getting into a good groove last year when I got pregnant and had to slow down. Hopefully this is just the start of a new, faster Christie! We'll see... :-)

Running! [Post-Baby]

So this is one of those posts that is really more for my own memory's sake than anything else.

I haven't always been the fittest person, but the last couple of years I have really learned to focus on taking care of my body. I only get one, after all! I've got a long way to go and I definitely cut myself a lot of slack, but I've learned little by little to make healthier eating choices, and I've made exercise a priority.

I was SO thankful when I got pregnant that I was in the best shape of my life thus far. I was even more thankful that I was able to run and exercise through my entire pregnancy. It was tough, and a LOT of days I just wanted to throw in the towel and use pregnancy as an excuse. I might have pushed myself a little too hard, but I was able to run and dance up until the day I went into labor (granted, it was a LOT slower!!).

I should point out that, even with the constant exercise, I still gained ~34 lbs. I may not have looked it, but I was pretty big!

Because I was so fit during pregnancy, I guess I expected that I would be able to bounce back super quickly and be back to my "old self" in a couple of months.

Let me clarify what I mean by that. I didn't have any crazy expectations that I would lose ALL the pregnancy weight right away or that some things wouldn't be different. I felt like I was pretty practical in my expectations, and, in most ways, I was pleasantly surprised. Things didn't change as much as I thought they would.

What I was thinking would come back quickly was my speed & endurance. Running is such a fun sport to me because it's a constant competition with myself. For 9 months, I wasn't really able to push myself, and I was SO excited to get back to my own little personal competition.

The week I found out I was pregnant, I did two "easy" 7-8 mile runs at around an 8:45 pace. At 6 months pregnant, I was still able to run 5-6 miles at around a 10 minute pace. I assumed that, with all that running, it would only take me a couple of months to get back where I was (or at least close to it) speed and distance-wise, and then I could resume my normal routine.

Wrong.

Childbirth was way easier than I expected (thank you, epidural)! And recovery wasn't all that bad either. My body looks amazingly similar to my pre-pregnancy self (except for the 6-7 extra pounds I have that I'm guessing aren't going to come off until I'm done nursing. They're pretty well distributed though). But running again has been SLOW.

 It was four weeks from the day I went into labor until I went back to the Y, about 4 1/2 before I started to jog again. And, despite my high pregnancy fitness level, I am pretty much finding that I am having to train myself all over again.

It took me a week before I was able to run a mile. At 2 months postpartum, I was able to run a slow 2 1/2-3 miles. I did my first 5K the day before Samuel's 3 month birthday. Pre-pregnancy, I could do one in about 24:30. 3 months out, it was 28:30, about 40 seconds faster than the Mistletoe Race that I ran 7 months pregnant. Yesterday I ran 5 miles in just over 50 minutes. So I'm getting there. But it's taking time.

Luckily, I know what I'm doing this time. I know that you can't do long runs at a fast pace right away. I know that I need a combination of distance and speed work. I know that I need rest time. And I know it doesn't happen overnight.

I'm planning to use this summer to train myself. It took me 9 months to get "unfit," so I guess it's reasonable for it to take 9 months to get back. Hopefully this fall I will be ready to kick some race booty.

And next time around I'll know... It just takes a little time. :-)

1000.

That's how many miles I've gone on foot in the last year!

I know it's silly... and no one else cares... but it's a goal I've had for a LONG time and I'm really proud of myself for reaching it (especially through moving, falling, first trimester sickness, etc. etc.)

In case you haven't figured it out, I am AVID about keeping track of my exercise. It gives me a way to challenge myself to push harder, do better. Who better to compete against than myself? I'm always here, and I can always push myself a little further. That's why I love running. I'm the one I have to beat.

So last year when I actually ran the whole year long and got in 775 miles, I knew it was only a matter of time before the day would come when I could look back and see that I'd done 1000 miles in the previous year.

That day was Sunday. And, I must say, it felt pretty stinkin' good.

Not all of it was running. Maybe 200-250 miles were on the elliptical or walking. Still, 1000 miles is 1000 miles. And of that I am proud.

Of course I can't just stop there. I'm not so naive as to think that I'm going to be breaking any records anytime soon considering I've got a baby coming in five short months. But hopefully I can maintain my 1000 mile status for a few months at least. And post baby... who knows... maybe a marathon???

The Finish Line!

In the busyness of the holiday season (and my own slothfulness), I haven't taken the time to post about how my RUN went. So now, for your reading pleasure...

There is a LOT of advice that is given to marathoners (and measly half-marathoners like me) about how to prepare for a long run. While methodology varies from runner to runner, some things are universal, particularly getting enough rest and eating a lot of carbs the few days before the race. I failed on both counts. 

You see, the problem was that Eric was on night shift the whole week (and night) before my run. Unfortunately, I still do NOT sleep well when Eric is gone. I almost always end up staying up a good hour later than I should, I wake up in the middle of the night, and then of course I wake up when he actually comes in at 5:30 or 6. I probably totaled 5 hours per night the whole week before the race.  

Likewise, I also found myself eating solo all week, and for some reason I wanted to use that opportunity to eat things Eric doesn't like. On any normal week, I have to seriously fight to pull myself away from the cereal and Wheat Thins. The one week I SHOULD have been eating those things, I was eating soup and chili (with beans) instead. Not my smartest move ever. 

So, as you can see, my pre-race prep was kind of a bust. But, no worries, because I still FINISHED and I RAN the whole stinkin' way. 

Of course I was crazy nervous and got up at 6 the morning of the race. I stretched and ate a pop tart and then made myself lay down for 20 more minutes. I got to the YMCA way earlier than I should have and waited around for forever.  After 12 weeks and over 225 miles of training, I was sooo ready to get this thing going! 

I started off super slow, but picked up my pace a bit around mile 5 (when the guy who finished first passed me on his way back already at mile 10!) and started passing people one by one. That was probably the most fun part. I would just choose a person and focus on passing them next. It's a pretty great feeling to pass someone and not look back. 

 I felt really good until about mile 11, when suddenly the HURT kicked in. I guess my legs decided they didn't like moving that much any more.To make matters worse, they RAN OUT OF WATER at the last water stop. That's right. NO WATER. My plan all through the race was to run like crazy no matter how much it hurt after the last water break, because I KNEW that water would give me the energy I needed to finish strong. But as I had my last few sips of water at mile 8.5, I was so parched that it took everything I had just to keep moving. Still, I never quit running. I was slow slow slow, and my muscles hurt more than I thought possible, but I kept at it. And I just kept thinking "how in the world do people run twice this far?!?" 

And, finally, parched and legs burning, I rounded the last corner to see my sweet husband smiling at me. He'd gotten up after 2 hours sleep just to come watch me finish. And it meant the world to me. :-) Of course, I wasn't physically able to tell him that until after I'd downed a bottle of water and some Gatorade... 

So that's one more thing I can check off my bucket list. I am officially a half-marathoner (I got my 13.1 sticker and everything). And I am still amazed at how many people showed up to run 13 miles. 13! I've worked really hard over the last couple of years to get to this point. But do you know that more than 1100 other people showed up to run that far? And with a time of 2:14:01 (that's an average of 10:13 per mile), I finished as number 800 and something. That tells me I have a LONG way to go!! But hopefully the next one will be that much easier.

 I've run a few (short) runs over the last two weeks and officially crossed the 750 mile mark for the year (yikes!). I've accomplished more fitness wise this year than I ever would have dreamed, and while it may not seem like much, it feels great to close out the year knowing I really challenged myself and finished strong. I can't wait to see what next year brings! 

2011 Stats

Fastest mile: 6:52 (okay, it was all downhill, but still!)

Fastest 2 mile: 15:34

Longest run: 13.5 miles

St. Leo 5K (March): 26:56

Ardmore 5K (October): 25:56

Mistletoe 1/2 Marathon (December): 2:14:01

And as of 12/18/11: 755 miles this year!

It's Training Season.

So, barring any injuries between now and then, I am planning on running a half marathon on Dec. 3. There, it's official, no take-backs. Anyone who knows how much I've been running lately probably isn't super surprised by this, but it's a pretty big feat for me nonetheless.

You see, I was not a super athletic kid. I ran around a lot when I was really little, I played a couple of years of basketball in early junior high and... well, that was about it. I didn't have any regular activity in my life. I walked some in college but, after being married for a year and realizing that I had gained 10 pounds (maybe because I had an unreasonable obsession with baking that first Christmas?), I realized I really needed to do something more. So I started jogging a little too, and it just escalated from there.

Even though I don't always love running while I'm doing it, I love the fact that it makes me feel good, that it helps me clear my head, that I can finish out my day knowing that I accomplished something, and that I'm doing something that's good for my body. So here I am, almost 2 years from when I first started working out, finally to the point where I really consider myself a (still very slow) runner.  I will probably be bringing up the rear of this race, but I am pretty stoked that I think I'll be able to do it at all. After all, if I can do it, anyone can, right?

Anyway, I will try not to bore everyone too much with running stats, but I hope that between blogging a little bit about this and having my facebook page linked to my mapmyrun page (where I keep up with my miles), I can hopefully keep myself accountable enough that I will keep this up for the 10 weeks of "training" I have left (I even made myself a schedule out and everything). That means I will be running 4-5 days each week & 20-26 miles per week. Am I crazy? Maybe. But how awesome will it be to finish out 2011 doing something I never even THOUGHT about until a few months ago ? TOTALLY. :-) (not to mention I'll be able to get one of those cute 13.1 stickers to go on the back of my car!)

Fastest mile: 7:36
Fastest 2 mile: 16:39
Longest Run: 7.5 mi.
St. Leo 5K (March): 26:56
Ardmore 5K: October 8
Mistletoe 1/2: December 3

Run the Race

So I'm sure you've been wondering if we've fallen off the face of the planet. No, no, I assure you we did not disappear. There's simply been a lot of excitement going on at the Yates house this week. (Unfortunately for you food enthusiasts, the excitement has led to a great cooking deficit, but I'm hoping to remedy this in the week to come... maybe. :-)

Isn't it great how sometimes, out of the blue, you just have a really great week? A week where things just seem to go your way? Where you find yourself handling struggles with grace, and opportunities are popping up left and right? It doesn't happen very often. But after a few months of job-hunting constantly and hearing nothing, of having my husband locked away in his study room that we now refer to as "the cave," of spending days not leaving the apartment complex, this week has been nothing but a breath of fresh air. :-)

The most obvious piece of exciting news is that I finally got a job! I know, I know, it hasn't actually been *that* long since unemployment took over my life, but it turns out that I am really bad at sitting at home doing nothing. Needless to say I am super thankful that I will be working as the head secretary & finance person at Konnoak Elementary here in Winston-Salem starting Tuesday! Yay!

I talk about unemployment, but I guess that's not completely true. I spent the greater part of the last two weeks substitute teaching at a private school here in town. Lucky for me, none of my classes had more than 5 kids, and this past week I spent the entire time tutoring one-on-one. It was super-easy and those kids were hilarious! I think my favorite moment was when a [very hyper] 5th grader told me he was part Cherokee (and Irish and English, too!), and so he started singing a Cherokee war song to me and doing a "Cherokee Dance." I'm pretty sure he was making it up as he went along, but he was sooo into it, I couldn't help but laugh!

As for Eric, he has only one more week of school until CPE week, which we are both SUPER pumped about! "What is a CPE week?" you may ask. That is a very good question! In long terms, it means he will take a week off of school to go do a "Community Practice Experience" in which he works with a doctor here in town and practice seeing patients, taking histories, etc. In short terms, however, it means I get my husband back for a week! It has amazed me how much studying has gone into second year of medical school so far. After 6-8 hours a day of lecture, he's back at home going over PowerPoints and re-listening to things he's missed until long after I've gone to sleep. I guess we both knew what we were signing up for, but it will be sooo great to get this break!

In other fun news, as of October 1st, I have run 500 miles this year! (This, of course, does not include whatever insane amount of miles that we walked while in Europe). I know, I know, 500's not really very much in the big picture. But, though I've run for a couple of weeks here and there in the past, I've never really followed any exercise regimen for more than a month. Just accomplishing the consistency needed to reach this goal has been a victory in itself! I'm hoping to reach at least 650 (maybe 700?) miles by the end of the year. We'll see how that goes!

Another fun accomplishment: I ran my first 5K this morning, and did it in 29:40! (My goal was 30:00). After running all year just for fun, it was nice to actually accomplish something! All the proceeds went to a food bank here in town, so in addition, I got to run for a cause. And Eric was absolutely wonderful and got up at the crack of dawn to come cheer me on, even though he's been feeling a little sick. Isn't he the sweetest?

We've been okay with how nutty our lives have been the last couple of months. Eric has dealt so well with his increased work load; and staying at home some made me sit and think a lot about life and what God wants me do with it. I've been humbled more every day by how small my faith can be and the fact that God accepts me anyway. And that's been tough, but it's been good. It's been a growing period.

But even though I've come to be okay with the way things have been, I have to say... I sure am glad to have week of wins! :-)

1 Corinthians 9:24 - "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. "