Hills and Sprints

First things first...yesterday I confirmed what I pretty well already knew. I won't be lining up with thousands of other women at the starting line for the Nike Women's race in October. I'm a little sad since this would have been a chance for me to see my gal pals from San Antonio, Suz and TK, my cousin who lives in Kentucky, and my best friend who recently moved out to San Francisco. But...I have run the race before...and I can always enter again next year.

Anyhow, back to Thursday. There was no swim class scheduled so I opted to sleep in slightly (sleep in being relative since I was up at 5:30 to get to work) and put my swim off until the evening. I also had a hill workout to do, which was perfect for fitting in over lunch. It was about -4C out and a bit windy in places, but the sunshine was terrific. I headed down to the river and warmed up for 15-20 minutes to start my hill repeats at the big hill by the curling club. I had 5 x 2:00 repeats on the schedule. There were a bunch of people out there with the same idea as me and it felt like they were just blowing past me all the time..! I kept my pace steady and strong throughout all the repeats and even managed to improve the pace on them slightly. Just as I finished off my last repeat and was taking off for my cool down run I ran into my teammate Michelle. She had 3:00 hill repeats on her schedule!

I headed off to the Y in the evening and got in the pool around 8:30. Angie gave me a 2200m sprint workout to do. I figured that since it is supposed to be spring break that maybe the pool wouldn't be that crazy. Hmm... I really need to remember to not swim at my Y in the evenings at all..! There were three lanes set up for swimming and I jumped in the medium speed lane. As soon as I got in the water I was feeling really good - so much better and more efficient than Monday! As I moved from the warm up and into my sets the lane got a bit busier and there were about 5 of us in there. I looked over at the fast lane and there was just one other guy swimming so I decided to move over. The only problem with swimming in the fast lane is that this is the lane next to the open area of the pool where the kids are there to hang out, horse around, play with anything that floats and cannonball into the water. No problem with that, but somehow noodles, kick boards, weights, pull buoys all kept ending up in the fast lane. Tough to sprint when you are dodging debris. I pulled it off though and had a really successful swim...so I'm starting to feel like I might be back to my old self!

I have a busy day today, and I really wish I had time to go to the Outdoor Adventure Show. Samantha McGlone is giving a talk entitled "Ironman Training on a Time Budget: How to Train, Race, Work and Still Have a Life." It would definitely be interesting!

Miscellany

• I'm in the lottery for the Nike Women's race. After putting some good thought into it (i.e. thought that doesn't happen when I'm running) I knew the half marathon was the right choice. This was also confirmed by coach Angie. She wants me to work on my speed and a full marathon isn't the forum for that. And I don't want to enter a marathon just to run one, I want to do well. Anyhow, fingers crossed that our group gets pulled in the lottery!
• Yesterday was our last day of nice weather for the next little bit. I got a run in around my neighborhood in the afternoon. I was supposed to go for 5 miles but my route was slightly off and I finished up with 4.5 miles. Oh well. The run went pretty well - nice pace that I managed to hold on the uphills.
• I have been totally sleep deprived this week. No bueno.
• Despite the sleep deprivation I rolled into the Y on time...for the first time in weeks!! My IMLP lanemate was back and we rolled through our workout together. We had a ladder to do - 11 lengths, 10 lengths...down to 1 length...with front crawl on the odds and our choice on the evens. Since I was pretty tired I kind of copped out a bit and did a breast stroke when I had the option. When we had one length left to go my friend turned to me and said, "Wow, you really go fast on your breaststroke! I look up and you are half a length away from me!"
• After I got out of the pool I was looking over my swimsuit. Sheesh! Swimsuit integrity issues for the second time this week! This time it was in the rear end of my suit, and seriously...this may not be a spot you want the suit to be threadbare!
• I was chatting with a couple of gals today and actually used the word y'all. Wow, where did that come from?! It has been awhile since I activated my inner Texan.
• Tonight was a 54:30 spin on the bike with hill repeats. I propped the front wheel up under a couple of phone books and knocked the workout out. I loaded the iPod up with some old school songs. Well...old school for me...and had a good workout. Finished up and ran through a quick strength workout.
• Tomorrow is a rest day and lunch with an old friend of mine that I knew from Texas. We both live in Calgary now and are off for Indian food tomorrow! Can't wait to catch up with her.
• I have 342 unread posts in my Google Reader. My apologies if I haven't been around to comment on your blog this week, but hopefully I'll catch up with y'all soon!
  

Hope everyone has a good Friday!!

Outdoor Run in Shorts!

I was in a training course all day today, and I looked wistfully outside over lunch today. Such bright sunlight...such warm temperatures... But my lunch break on the course was too short to attempt my run. Sigh... I was ecstatic while I drove home to see that it was still 12C (54F). That is shorts weather in my book! I quickly fed the pups, changed, and rushed out the door. 3.22 rolly hilly miles done at a 9:41/mi pace! I saw a few other runners bundled up in track suits and toques, but it was so comfortable out there in shorts around the melting snow.

So Suz and I are going to enter as a team for the Nike Women's Marathon. Is anyone else interested in joining our team? There isn't a lot of information on the website for a team entry. It almost looks like there is only one entry for the team, so adding people doesn't increase your chance of getting picked. But...hopefully once the lottery opens on Wednesday morning that will be more clear. So, if any of you gals are interested in going in for a blogger meet up, then let me know. E-mail me at runnerleana at gmail dot com and we'll go from there!

Beyonce vs Backstreet

I'd like to think I've been listening to some half decent music lately, however when it comes to working out it has been a constant barrage of T-Pain or Beyonce in my head. I am somewhat ashamed to admit it, but I guess whatever pushes you through your workouts, eh? This morning Beyonce's oh so catchy Single Ladies was running through my head in the pool. We had a 300m choice warm up and at one point I opted to do a few lengths of breast stroke. When my head popped up out of the water the Backstreet Boys were playing over the sound system. Loudly. Telling me to quit playing games with their hearts. It was kind of a musical nightmare in my head...but I did swim pretty well today.

This evening I had a short spin on my schedule involving some simulated hill repeats. Today my legs realized that I had indeed worked them fairly hard on Tuesday and Wednesday so I didn't want to push too hard for a third day in a row. I adjusted the gearing and trainer tension so that it did indeed feel like I was pedaling through sludge but I kept my heart rate pretty low. After that it was back inside for a strength workout. I still needed to make dinner so I got my tofu baking and quinoa boiling then ran through some step ups, lunges, squats, hamstring curls, push ups and tricep dips, followed with some stretching. After that I threw together my Quinoa Salad with Pickled Radishes and Feta...which was really good. I topped it with a slice of tofu that I had dusted with lemon pepper and baked. All in all, it was pretty good stuff. I totally spaced on a picture though...sorry!

***Just a note on the Nike Women's Marathon this year. Has anyone else noticed that the event has disappeared off of the Nike webpage this week? I'm assuming they will be announcing the lottery soon..?? My friend Suz in San Antonio and I are hoping to go again this year since we had such a blast two years ago. Anyone remember what the deal was for groups of friends hoping to gain entry together last year?

Nike Women's Marathon 2008: A Public Service Announcement

I know my blog comes up when people search for information on the Nike Women's Marathon so I thought I would post a public service announcement regarding registration for the 2008 event. Due to the popularity of the event last year entry into this year's event is via lottery only. You can sign up at active.com between March 4th and the 18th, then lucky entrants will be posted on April 1st. This information isn't up on the race website, nor are they e-mailing this information out to people who raced before or registered for updates but you can find all the details here. This race is definitely a great one as it has some amazing scenery and of course you get a Tiffany's necklace when you cross the finish line! Just be sure to train for those challenging hills! Good luck to everyone hoping to enter.

Years of racing in review

My racing career started way back in April 2000 at the 10K Vancouver Sun Run. I was between third and fourth year at The University of British Columbia. I signed up for the race, didn't train because I hated running, and ran my heart out on the day all the time wondering what I was doing. And I'm pretty sure I committed the newbie mistake of wearing my cotton race shirt too. But as the race shirt had my team name on it I thought this was what I was supposed to do. I'll admit, I got into running, particularly races, not because of my own conviction, but because my friend Nikki was interested in racing. Together we signed up for a 5K just a couple of weeks later with our boyfriends (who both kicked our rear ends on the course). That 5K is still my PR - 30:28. Maybe if I ran more 5Ks I could beat it now, but I find it amusing that my first 5K race is still my best ever. By the end of the year the boyfriends were gone and I had four races under my belt - two 10Ks and two 5Ks.

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In 2001 I ran the Sun Run again, along with one more 10K and another 5K. After that I moved down to Laredo, TX which resulted in a major hiatus from running. Initially I wanted to find races to sign up for, but there were barely any nearby, and any ones I could travel for didn't seem to mesh with my days off schedule as I was working 11 days on, 3 days off at the time. I stopped running for several years, and it wasn't until I moved to San Antonio in 2005 that I slowly got into it again. Tally up a 5K and a 10K in 2005 for a total race count of eight.

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In 2006 my cousin's wedding in Vancouver happened to be on the same weekend as the Sun Run. Despite not running seriously at all I really wanted to get out there and do this race again. I had fun in the beginning, but ran pretty poorly in the last half and clocked my worst 10K run time ever - 1:18:12. Despite the horribleness of that race I somehow or other came up with the brilliant idea to train for a marathon. I think maybe it was because my quads didn't hurt the day after the race, and when I got home I found a post card from TNT in my mail advertising the Nike Women's race. I was keen on that Tiffany's necklace. I found my training program, stuck to it, and came out with an injury that sidelined me for a couple of months and nixed my marathon dreams. I wrapped up 2006 with another 10K and two more 5Ks. Total race tally is at twelve by the end of the year.

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2007 was the crazy racing year...thirteen races total.

1. March 17 - St. Patrick's Day 10K in Calgary - 1:07:03 :: This is a great race put on by the Calgary Roadrunners where you run two laps through the University of Calgary. The post race spread is one of the best I have seen - beef stew and Big Rock beer (beer for a fee) at the end.
2. May 5 - Go Red for Women 5K in Orlando - 35:23 :: This past year the race wound through Downtown Disney, Saratoga Springs Resort, and one of the nearby golf courses. Pretty good bling for a 5K.
3. May 6 - Minnie Marathon 15K in Orlando - 1:45:06 :: This race follows the last 15K of the Walt Disney World Marathon course. You start in the parking lot of Animal Kingdom, run along the highway past the Wide World of Sports, through MGM Studios, along the Boardwalk and through EPCOT. Training for a race longer than 10K, and completing it, felt like a great accomplishment.
4. May 27 - Calgary Women's Run 5.5K - 32:12
5. June 9 - Footstock 10K in Cochrane - 1:05:38 :: Another race with a terrific post race spread - pancakes!
6. June 17 - Banff Citizen's Race - 1:00:05 (5.8 miles) :: I remember the weather the most about this one - wow it was wet and cold! My trail sneaks still look terrible. It was a fun race, but transportation between the parking and the race start/finish was a bit unorganized.
7. July 8 - HSBC Calgary Half Marathon - 2:21:32
8. September 9 - Ryka Iron Girl 10K in Seattle - 57:56 (PR)
9. September 22 - Melissa's Road Race in Banff - 1:02:40 :: This is definitely one of the prettiest race courses around here. A good spur of the moment decision to race!
10. October 21 - Nike Women's Half Marathon in San Francisco - 2:14:56 :: I absolutely loved this race - the scenery, the hills, the Tiffany's bling, you name it. I definitely want to run this one again.
11. October 27 - Tower of Terror 13K - 1:29:07
12. November 5 - Banff Winterstart 5 Miler - 51:30
13. December 9 - Catch the Elves 10K - 1:00:44

In case you missed any of them I have provided links to all my fascinating and riveting race reports where applicable. I've really seen improvements in my race times - especially my 10K. Over the years I've gone from someone who absolutely, without a doubt, hated running to someone who can't imagine not having that next race to train for. Besides going Goofy in 2008 we'll see what the rest of the year brings for me racing-wise. I'm always keen to travel for a good event, so if there are any races I should put on my radar, let me know!

Picture time!

Why are race pictures always so darn funny? Here's some of the official ones from my last two races...



It is like Where's Waldo in there... Interesting finish line shot.

Nike Women's Half Marathon...final race statistics

One final note about the Nike Women's Half Marathon....here are my final race results:

2:14:56 (10:18/mi pace)

Overall finish: 2381 out of 12196

Age group (25-29): 434 out of 1998

5k: 32:45

10k: 1:04:36

15k: 1:38:16

I still owe a few more pictures from the race, so I'll try to upload them to Flickr this evening.

Nike Women's Half Marathon - Trip Report - Sunday

It was a pretty restless night from about midnight to 4 am. Nervous race anticipation? I woke up, had a quick shower and scarfed down some bread and jam and drank some water. We were out the door before 6 am heading to Union Square. The best thing about the location of our hotel was it was along the street where the gear check bag buses were, so we were able to check our bags far up the street and avoid the crowds. Union Square was so busy with people and so loud! I felt sorry for anyone staying at the hotels around there that weren't running the race. I wasn't able to find Instructor S and her group of running gals, but Maddy recognized me so we were able to say hi and grab a picture before starting.She was shooting for a 4:30 marathon and I was aiming for a 2:15 half so we hung out with the 4:30 pacer at the start line. It took us about 9 minutes to cross the chip mat and we were off, slowly but surely. It was great chatting with people in the first few miles. Maddy and I were able to run together until we lost each other about 2 miles in or so. I'll be honest, I'm not sure what my game plan was for the race. I've run 4:1, switched to 9:1, but also run 20:1 with Instructor's S group. I decided to play it by ear, try just walking at the water stops and see how I felt. The water stops were fairly well spaced out, about every 2 miles or so. We ran from Union Square down to Embarcadero and along Fisherman's Wharf. The first 6 miles was all fairly flat, and then it was a straight uphill climb for the next mile with a gain of about 250 feet or so. The course narrowed at this point and people slowed down but my aim was to keep running. I felt like I had great momentum and I knew that if I stopped to walk at any point it was going to be hard to get running again. That hill climb was tough....but it felt amazing...and I knew my hill training was paying off. At the top we got a nice downhill run and some great views. There were some more hills along the way - you just went up and down for several miles after that but I didn't really notice it until a climb at mile 9 when they had a water stop halfway up the hill. I stopped to walk to down some Gatorade and some water and it was tough getting going, but I was back up and running. I saw a lady with a Strides Running Store shirt from here in Calgary so she and I chatted for a bit and I said hi to anyone I noticed who was TNT from Canada. I was having a great time enjoying the race and the views. They had an orange slice stop and a banana stop along the way but I bypassed it all. Once I started drinking the Gatorade Endurance I got a tiny knot in my stomach - not too bad - but I didn't want to try anything new. I was eating my Sport Beans along the way, but unfortunately the bag came open and at one downhill point I could hear my Beans falling out and hitting the pavement behind me. Good thing I packed lots! There wasn't a ton of on course entertainment in the middle half of the race. We turned into Golden Gate park and it was so pretty running through the trees in there. At mile 10 I realized I was on a great track to reach my 2:15 goal if I just kept running steady....such a good feeling! Around mile 11 we were on a dirt path for a short bit and this just zapped the energy from my legs. I saw the chocolate mile up ahead though and grabbed some Ghirardelli chocolate squares and stuffed them into my waist pack for later. Mile 12 felt pretty good, but when we hit the final turn to the finish line at Mile 13 my legs were like jelly. I saw the finish and I wanted to sprint hard but there just wasn't much left in my legs. I looked down at my watch, saw I was still good for 2:15 and it was the best feeling in the world. I crossed a chip mat and they announced my name just before I crossed the finish line. 2:14:56....amazing!!!!! I got my little blue Tiffany's box from a very handsome firefighter in a tux and went to get my chip cut off my shoe. As I put my shoe on the footstool for the kid to cut my chip off my leg started shaking like you wouldn't believe.... It was good to be done. I got my finisher's shirt, some grub and waited from TK and Suz to cross the finish line after walking there half in 4:00. What an amazing race! A tough course, a great time, I can't say enough about it. I will definitely be back next year.

Nike Women's Half Marathon - Trip Report - Saturday

Saturday morning we had a tour booked to Alcatraz. We really lucked out with the weather - very sunny and warm. We took the audio tour around the old prison. This is definitely something worth seeing on a trip to San Francisco.After our we got back to Pier 33 we were starving for some lunch, so off to Pier 39 we went. After some clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl Suz and I hung out watching the sea lions sunning themselves and making tons of noise.
After that it was back to Union Square for some shopping, then an early dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant called Aux Delices. I meant to go for my usual noodle bowl with grilled chicken on top, but I was swayed by a glass noodle dish with crab and prawns. It was so yummy....and I would have loved some of the hot chili sauce they had on the side but I figured that wasn't such a good idea... Back to the hotel to get race numbers pinned on, clothes and gear check bags sorted out and time to turn in for an early night.

Nike Women's Half Marathon - Trip Report - Friday

I flew into San Francisco Friday afternoon. All flights in and out of San Francisco were delayed that afternoon so I got in a little later than planned. I would say that my plane was probably 75% full of folks heading down for the race, including the TNT group from Calgary. TK met me at the airport and we hopped BART into town. We were staying at the Hotel California which was just three blocks away from Union Square. A great location, and the place was really nice. I would definitely stay there again. We checked in quickly then wandered down to the Expotique.

A man from Ghirardelli chocolates was right outside giving away free samples so I happily grabbed a square. Yum...I love free chocolate. We first went to grab our packets and right away I had an issue with mine. The bib number and chip were registered to me, but the sticker on the front had the wrong name and number. I was hoping to have my name on my bib, not someone else's, not to mention that my sticker shows that I paid my $10 to catch a bus from the finish line back to Union Square. We fine my name (on another bib entirely), peal the sticker off and tape it back on to my bib. After all this commotion I didn't bother to get my own chip registered, I just went with the one in the packet. TK and I opted to skip looking around the expo and head over to Niketown for some gear shopping. Boy howdy this place was busy... After waiting in line to get into the store we were finally among the throng of women, all clamoring to buy race merchandise in whatever sizes were left. At first it seemed like the selection wasn't too terrific, but I noticed after going to Niketown over several times that weekend that they would find new items to put out. Case in point - I was hoping to buy a race jacket but none were out on Friday. When I was back on Saturday afternoon the jackets were out, but by then I had given enough money to the Nike corporation that I didn't get one. Anyhow....I found a few race items I liked, stood in the ridiculous line to pay for them, and then I spent enough money that I got a free plastic frame to display my race bib in. Glad my bib has my name on it now! Afterwards we went outside where Nike had a huge wall with all of the participants' names on it.
We found ours, and by that time our friend Suz had arrived so we wandered back to the expo to meet her. After she got her packet we finally had a chance to check the rest of the expo out. You could get your iPod engraved for free, and 24 Hour Fitness were doing Nike+ trials. You could also get massages, manicures and foot rubs. The lines for everything were crazy so I didn't take advantage of anything. I did see Sarah - amazing triathlete and formerly on Amazing Race - wandering around the expo. She's currently in an ad campaign for Nike and she ran the half marathon. Afterwards it was time to head down to Cioppino's at Pier 45 for a terrific dinner, then a good night's sleep.

Nike Women's Half Marathon Results

My goal for this race? 2:15

My results?
2:14:56
Overall place: 2380
Female place: 2229
Division place: 432
(placements to be confirmed)

It was an awesome race! I promise a full report when I get home. I'm not going to lie, this was a tough and hilly course but I felt great the entire time. And guess what..?? I even ran the entire thing, only stopping to walk to grab a drink through the water stops. 2:14:56... A new PR!

Nike Women's Half Marathon...coming soon!

Well, tomorrow I am off to San Francisco for the Nike Women's Half Marathon. I can't even begin to tell you guys how excited I am. I'm meeting my gal pals TK and Suz there - two of my closest friends from when I lived in San Antonio. Friday is a travel day, and as soon as I get in I'm off to Niketown to see if there is any gear left to buy. Dinner at Fisherman's Wharf... Saturday we are hitting Alcatraz, fitting some shopping in (maybe) and dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant. Sunday...race morning! Check out the weather forecast - in Celsius and Fahrenheit for my friends on both sides of the 49th parallel. It looks like it will be amazing racing weather. I cannot wait!

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This race is a big one for TNT so there are a lot of people that have trained and fundraised for someone along the way. The race is giving us a chance to tell them who we are running the race in honour or in memory of and they will display our dedications at the expo. I am running this race in memory of my Aunt Mary. She passed away from lung cancer in July 2006. She was my aunt, my godmother, and one of my biggest cheerleaders. She was full of stories, laughter and love and was a shoulder to cry on, or someone to share special news with. You can definitely say that my Aunt Mary was the social glue of the family. Holidays weren't the same unless you were at her house chatting, gossiping and scarfing down her delicious cabbage rolls. She always thought of others before herself and her generosity and kind spirit will always be remembered. I dedicate this race to my Aunt Mary, and I run in honour of her sisters who miss her every day - my mother Donna, and my aunts Ilona and Elizabeth.

Progressive Improvement

Wow, that countdown on the right is really getting smaller and smaller. Hard to believe that in a week and a day I'll be on a plane to San Francisco. I'm halfway there to being ready... We have dinner reservations for Friday, a restaurant planned for our pre-race dinner on Saturday that doesn't accept reservations (Vietnamese food, which should match with the ol' stomach pretty well), and tickets for the Alcatraz tour as well. I can't wait to catch up with my gal pals from Texas - TK and Suz - so it promises to be a good trip. If any bloggy readers notice me at the race, be sure to say hi! I know Maddy, Amanda and Maritza will all be there so I'll keep a look out for you. Too bad I'll miss you at the animal cracker station Martiza! Now all I have to think about is what I want to pack...
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Yesterday I hit the pathway over lunch for weekday run #2. I finished up with 5.52 miles and it was pure running nirvana. I mastered the art of increasing my pace throughout the run. I know posting mile splits are boring, but check these out:
1 - 10:58
2 - 10:41
3 - 10:28
4 - 10:18
5 - 9:50
0.52 - 9:59 -- OK, so technically the pace lagged a bit here, but I was back running through tall buildings and I stopped my watch when it looked like it had lost the GPS signal. So I'm assuming this number might be a tad off.

All in all, not too shabby. Today is a rest day, and this evening I meeting the 'rents at the airport as they are flying in from Indonesia. I last got to see my mom in May, but I haven't seen my dad since my Christmas/New Year's vacation so it will be great to have both of them in town here. They are meeting their granddaughter for the first time....exciting, eh?

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Oh, I feel like I have to post a link to this article in the Chicago Tribune. Wow, this story really struck a nerve with me. Obviously this fellow isn't a runner or else he wouldn't have written an article like this. I don't want to comment on what may or may not have gone wrong at the Chicago Marathon because I wasn't there. But try to tell a runner that they shouldn't have raced, that it was all their own fault if they fell - that I disagree with. If 10,000 people didn't show up to the start - it might have been because they were concerned about the weather, but I wonder what percentage of people who sign up don't make it due to injuries or dropped out due to lack of training. Don't call those 10,000 people smart and then imply that the rest that lined up at the start line were stupid. If I was there I would have been ticked off that water stations ran out of supplies when you were told beforehand by the race officials to make sure you hydrate properly. Don't make us out to be whiners when we rely on those aid stations in a race and they run out. I guess everyone wants to offer their opinion, but as a runner I was taken aback by that article. If you want to read some amazing accounts of the race check out Running Jayhawk, Emily, Ali, or Cranky.

A blustery, thoughtful 5 mile run inspired by crazy dreams

Yup...well...tonight my time management skills were not their sharpest again. Truthfully they were off to a rough start from the get go when I attempted to take the train in to work for about the third time this month (I've been spoiling myself by driving in during my quest to start work at 6 am for most of this month). I got to Dalhousie station at 6:38 am and there were no parking spots left. Rather than driving to the next station to park and arriving late I opted to suck up the $17 to park near my building and arrive on time. So anyhow....needless to say I didn't run with the Roadrunners tonight, so I was on my own. I decided to head out to Edgemont since it was close enough to arrive and finish running before dark. I wasn't feeling the crazy hills at the start of where I normally run though so I started a bit further on. This pathway is pretty quiet so my thoughts really start to wander normally. On a blustery night like this one it was even more quiet than usual, so it made for some interesting thinking throughout the run. I was remembering a recent post by No Wetsuit Girl that you have to read - but really she referenced an older post of hers about some of the crazy race inspired dreams she was having at the time that was leading my thinking. (You should read both posts if you haven't already...they are really good.) I've been having crazy running nightmares recently - mostly involving waking up in the morning and looking down at my right ankle and seeing it swollen into a heartbreaking cankle. I start hyperventilating because the Nike Half Marathon is a month away, and I'm just starting to train for the Goofy and this can't be happening to me... I'll put it in words now and say my ankle at times feels funny even now, although I know it is mental over anything else. I'm guessing the nightmares come from a certain amount of anxiety that I feel about starting to train for the Goofy because for as strong as I feel on some of my back to back runs, running that often still worries me. I ran a grand total of 92.17 miles last year over a period of about 2-1/2 months that resulted in a stress fracture. So far this year I have run 464.83 miles... I know I wasn't in a place where I probably should have attempted marathon training and that things are different now, but I guess I still have that deep seated worry in the back of my brain that creeps into my subconscious while I sleep. When I was looking at starting up running again last fall I walked into a Running Room store to talk to them about their group training programs to get some more information. I told the fellow behind the counter how I was recovering from an injury and I wasn't sure if I should try the 10K training group or not since marathon training really hadn't gone so well. He made an important point that the biggest thing about coming back from an injury is the mental aspect of it, and having to trust yourself a bit that you aren't going to go back out there and get injured right away if you are smart about it. Sometimes I think I'm there, but I guess the dreams indicate that I still need to learn to trust myself a bit more. Maybe one of these days I'll go back to having the non-running related dreams like where I show up to school but I've forgotten that I'm actually supposed to be back at school and I have no books and I don't even know where my classes are. Except I've been out of school for over six years now. Right....I think that will get an interpretation at another time....

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Anyhow, back to the fact that I ran tonight... Since I was attempting to beat the incoming storm and the impending darkness I only went out for 5 miles. I took my new Asics Gel Kayano 13s out for a spin to see how I liked them. I wasn't intending to put these in the rotation just yet since I've got a pair of green 2110s with 160 miles on them, and a brand new pair of pink 2110s that recently just came out of the box. I'm not loving the pink 2110s as much as my green pair though, so I'd like to see how I feel about the Kayanos in case I'd like to pick up a second pair for the tail end of my Goofy training and races. Truthfully I wonder if I don't love the pink shoes because they are pink....and for as much running in skirts as I do I'm not much of a girly girl and these shoes just scream girly girl to me. So far I like the Kayanos so we'll see where they go (plus they are orange...not pink). Oh....and the 5 miles went well.

Going through race withdrawal

My next race is not until September 9 (the Ryka Iron Girl - Seattle - 10K) and I'm getting some itchy feet to run a race again. I haven't been able to find anything that really works well with my training schedule though. The Robert Hamilton Memorial 5 mi and 10 mi road race is on Sunday August 26th is the closest thing coming up, but it still would have required a bit of schedule jiggling. Dawn (aka Pink Chick) suggested volunteering which sounded like a fabulous idea to me. So there we go - I'll be at the race - not sure doing what exactly, but I expressed an interest to help out at the finish line since I've court marshaled and water stopped before. Might as well try something new.

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I did wind up signing up for another race though. The end of October, beginning of November is now going to be race crazy... I have the Nike Women's Half Marathon October 21st. Then the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror 13K at Disney World on October 27th. Finally the Banff Winterstart 5 mi night time run caught my eye some time ago, I just wavered on signing up. I actually booked a hotel in Banff in case I wanted to run the race all the way back in early July. Today I decided to take the plunge and sign up since it was starting to fill up and I'm not sure if they cap the race. I am registrant number 731. I will really have to take it easy on this race because I'll have a 15 miler to run the day after. I hear this event in Banff is a lot of fun though so I couldn't pass it up (plus I hear you get beer tickets after the run - which will make that 15 miler feel even better). Wow....two night time races in back to back weekends. Should be interesting!

Humid Hills

After watching the course video of the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco it has reiterated my thoughts on including hill training once a week in my routine. So yesterday was hill workout day, and it was terrific! I opted to get my run in over lunch in an attempt to beat the heat. On my way into work it was dark, raining, thundering and lightning. By lunch time the rain had cleared, but it was still overcast and really humid. It was about 88% humidity, which for Calgary is a lot - this city is normally dry as a bone. Thanks to the clouds it wasn't super hot out and the humidity felt okay. I ran up to McHugh Bluffs, my favorite hill, and did four repeats, with running on flat ground in between. After I figured I had enough of the hills I ran up and down the stairs there as well, just for a final push for the legs. It was then another mile back to the start on flat ground, so all said and done I got five miles in yesterday. I felt like I pushed myself pretty well and it felt great. My aim for future hill workouts is to cut down the amount that I run on flat ground between repeats so that I can start fitting more ups and downs in.

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The best thing about running over lunch (besides the cooler temps) was that I was also able to fit a yoga class in last night. It was another great session and we did a lot of back bend poses. Boy, oh boy, do I need to work on loosening up my quads. That will certainly help to make some of those poses feel a bit better. My unlimited summer drop in pass ends September 2, so I signed up for a yoga class in the fall. I think I've been to enough sessions now to realize that I really enjoy it and see a lot of benefit out of it. It is definitely good to have a more calming workout to balance out the running and boot camping. Speaking of boot camping - tonight is BBC #4.

Nike+ Women's Half Marathon

I'm registered to run the Nike Women's Half Marathon in San Francisco on October 21. How cool is this - for folks who want to run 13.1 miles that same day you can register to complete the Nike+ Women's Half Marathon. All you have to do is register, use your Nike+ system and run 13.1 miles wherever you are on October 21. Upload your results before midnight and you'll receive an official finisher's key chain from Tiffany & Co, plus a (gender specific) finisher t-shirt. I don't have a Nike+ system (or an iPod nano for that matter), but I think this virtual half marathon is an amazing idea.

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For more information check out this link and that link.

BBC Fitness Assessment

This morning I had my fitness assessment for Bikini Boot Camp. I signed up to get some new cross training into my workout, and boy, did I pick the right class! I met my instructor and we started going through my paperwork, where of course you have to mention any injuries you've had. We started talking about my stress fracture from last year, and how it developed when I started to train for a full marathon, the Nike Women's in San Francisco. Turns out my instructor was the TNT coach in Calgary for that event last year, and this year she is training with a group to return and run again. How great to meet some people that will be there for the event as well!

I learned some interesting things today. First off, I'm doing not too badly on the fitness scale! (Not sure why I'm surprised about this, I have been working really hard. I am still not good at "man" push ups though, but I have been assured that this will change.) Secondly, she had a look at my shoes and how I was standing. She could tell I'm not striking off on my right foot properly, and that I'll have to work and pay attention to my form, or else I may be susceptible to IT band issues. Apparently it is really common for women since we have weaker hips, and a lot of hip stability exercises are going to be built into the boot camp workouts. Excellent! She also suggested I start using a foam roller on a regular basis. And of course she suggested to keep going with hill training for San Francisco, but to start incorporating fatigue or speed training to help out with Goofy. Oh, and she also mentioned yoga being a great addition. Good thing I'm going for that 3 hour "yoga for runners" workshop tomorrow..!!

Class starts the second week of July and lasts for 8 weeks. I'm really excited about it. I think I'm going to get a lot out of it to help improve my running.

I Heart Hills

Last night I decided to head out to McHugh Bluffs for a little up and down work on a hill. The pathways were pretty popular last night since the weather was so nice out -- 25 C (77 F) at 7:oo in the evening.

I ran on flat ground for about 10 min, then scaled to the top, ran on flat ground, ran back down, and jogged it out on flat ground. Repeat two more times. I haven't had a chance to download the data off of my Garmin but I think you gain about 100 ft in about 0.3 miles. I then ran back to my car and totalled 4.5 miles for the day. It was certainly a workout, but I loved the challenge. With a few repeats I'm sure I'll see improvements and it will definitely help me out in San Francisco in October at the Nike Women's Half. At the 6 mile marker of that race you gain about 270 feet over the next mile... And of course there are other hills along the way too. I think Thursdays are now officially hill training days.