Today will be my fourth day in a row of CrossFit. I am sore all over! Luckily, the soreness in my abs has subsided. CrossFit has you do these sit-ups that make you sore as hell. I don’t know why these kill me while other types of sit-ups really don’t. Ugh…
My CrossFit gym (it is called a box, actually) has the Bod Pod this week and I signed up to find out technically how fat I am. Don’t know what a Bod Pod is? Click here.
Turns out, I’m 38.8% fat. If I could get below 24% I would be a very, very happy girl. I will be re-checked in three months.
Besides have a low-grade cold, my left calf is having some issues. So is my right one. And my butt. I guess running/hiking up Angel’s Rest on Sunday was a poor decision. My race is on Sunday and I’m not sure what to do. I rested on Monday. Tuesday I took the dog for a brisk three-mile walk. I did not foam roal like I should have. Tonight I went to track and had to stop about two-thirds of the way because my calf was cramping/seizing. It would be fine, then it would grab again, etc. I kept going but realized it wasn’t wise. I spoke with the coach and he said rest, cross-train, foam roll. When I got home I rolled it (ouch!) and then massaged it with some oil. It feels better. Sleep tonight and then bootcamp in the morning. Friday a short run. Saturday rest. And then hopefully I will be race-ready on Sunday.
Overall place: 2659 out of 6442
Division place: 190 out of 706
Gender place: 1185 out of 3921
Time: 48:00
Pace: 9:40
Today was the Shamrock Run in Portland. I entered the 8k (5 miles). Got up early and got ready and this time I drove to the race on my own. I wasn’t as organized as I thought but managed to get there in plenty of time after parking and walking to the Waterfront Park area where the race was to start.
When I got close I kept hearing the announcer talking about a five minute to start time. I thought the 15k group was long gone so I assumed he meant it was for the 8k group. I panicked because I had all of my stuff that I needed to check and really needed to go to the bathroom! As I stood in line (anxiously) to check my stuff, I realized the 15k group hadn’t started yet. Then, I learned that they were delayed due to an Amtrak train. It took the 15k group forever to get going and by this time the 8k group was lining up.
34,000 people entered the race and while I knew this, I could not fathom the number of people this actually was! It was a madhouse, really. As we lined up to start, I tried to keep warm, stretch, relax, and get ready. They had pacing areas, but not corrals, which would have been nice with so many people. The signs were not very noticeable and with so many people, everyone but the elite runners at the very front just stood wherever.
The airhorn went off about 20 minutes later than planned and instead of doing a staggered start like they did for the 15k runners, they let nearly 6500 people start running. The first mile was a jog, trying to move around the slower runners and walkers that should have been in the back. I tried to make up for it by running faster on the downward slopes or when I found an open pocket, but then I’d get bottle-necked by more slower runners and walkers. Occasionally, a big guy would run through and I’d drift off him, but then lose him and have to find someone else to help me clear a path. Whenever I could, I would run the tangents. I looked ahead so I could maneuver myself to the correct spot and I think I got most of them.
Eventually, around mile 3, I found an open spot, and for the next mile I pushed it, still trying to make up for the slow jog in the beginning. Then, there was a hill. It wasn’t as big as I’d planned for. Originally my strategy was to speedwalk the hill and then bust my ass on the downhill side. I didn’t have to speedwalk it, but because of the hill and the slower and less experienced runners, we bunched up again. I had to really watch and strategize so that I didn’t have to slow down so much that I would lose my momentum.
Once the hill was over, it was stll crowded, and I realized it was because the finish line was so close and people were running over the finish mat and then stopping. There was a good downhill section from the top of the hill to the finish, about a half mile. I was feeling really great and had some time to make up for, so I planned to fly down the hill over the finish. I flew as much as one could fly when they are running with so many people, many of whom were not flying down the hill to the finish which I just did not understand. I mean, it’s downhill, you’re almost done, seriously you need to gun it!
At first I was really annoyed. But now, even though I could’ve run faster had I not had to run with so many others, I feel like this race was an opporunity to strategize and think about what I’m doing rather than just running the race to finish it, which in the past has taken all of my energy, mentally and physically. I felt great and using my head while I ran kept me from boredom. I never once found myself counting down the miles to the finish. It all apparently paid off because I PRed. Not that I’ve ever run an 8k (I would have PRed either way, techinically speaking) but my pace was even faster than my 5k in January (9:42). It was also 12 seconds faster per mile than my last race (9:52), which was a 10k and while that’s a longer race, it’s only longer by 1.25 miles.
Overall, I’m pretty happy with the results and even more important, I learned a lot, too!
Holy crap, I only ran 33 miles in January. Not good people, not good . . .
Today is my birthday and it was a great day.
It was the first birthday I’ve had as a single person for over 10 years. Yet, it was the best birthday because it was about me and what I wanted to do, not about what someone else wanted to do for me. And, I didn’t have to do what I wanted to do while dragging along someone who didn’t want to do what I wanted and then feeling bad for boring him and just wanting it to be over.
It was awesome.
This is also the first year in a long time that even though I’m older I feel OK with it. I feel like I’m physically 25 but smarter, wiser and making more money. Even though my life isn’t exactly where I thought it would be at 37, I can’t imagine it being any different.
Life is good.
Not only did I run today, I did 90 minutes of hot yoga. Oh, and when I weighed myself this morning, I realized I am now down five lbs! 15 more to go until I reach my current goal!
Today’s Run:
Miles: 3.23
TIme: 35:42
Pace: 11:02
I’ve been slacking, but today I ran. Tomorrow I have hot yoga and am running. And next week I am sticking with my program. The official training of the half-marathon starts soon!
Miles: 4.51
Time: 53:12
Pace: 11:48
So, the good news is I hit the pavement tonight. The bad news is that I did not make it to bootcamp. That’s OK, tomorrow is another day.
The run was short and as I brought my dog, slow. He did well with his pent-up energy from the past week of bad weather and my hectic schedule. Nothing feels better than not running for a few days because you don’t feel like it, only to go out, even though you still dont feel like it, and remember how awesome it feels to be back out there. Even if it is raining. I did not record it because my phone was dead, but it went something like this:
Miles: 2.5
Time: 30:00 mins.
Pace: 12:00
I haven’t worked out since Friday.
OK, there, I’ve said it.
I am working on some deadlines and didn’t feel great, but you know, there will always be deadlines, periods, headaches and sore throats, and during that time, I know I should do something, even just the bare minimum. Just keep going, keep it in my schedule. And, I will get back into it. Not tonight, but tomorrow, I will. Bootcamp @ 5:30AM.
In other news, I have started tracking my calories.
I also had a stress-eating episode last night. Granted, I stress-ate chicken (with some skin), but had their been chips in the house, they would have been ALL MINE. I also did not eat my afternoon snack, so that could’ve been part of it, too. I’m stressed over work and not working out this week.
I registered for my second race of the year! I will be running a 10k at the Heartbreaker Half in Portland on February 19.
I need a sponsor. The cost of these things really adds up . . .
See Julie Run. 