... because I run for doughnuts.
This was a race that I got a lot of emails for and basically threw on the schedule because it looked fun, and fun is what I am about this year. I was okay with it even being the same weekend as the Rockies race because I figure I'd do what I did - race this one easy, and the Rockies race for serious.
On the plus side, I nailed every one of my race goals.
- have fun. Oh yes, I had fun.
Pre-race. Yes, I'm wearing my ancient Skirt "I run for donuts" shirt. And non-technical donut socks (over tech socks).
Mid-race selfie.
Goal? Hit.
- take it easy. My toes were the only things that hurt after this race (okay, so the two pairs of socks might not have been the smartest idea). However, trying to stay at a slower pace is surprisingly hard, but we were successful.
- plus 30 min. I even got plus-33 minutes. Awww yeah.
It's weird lining up in the second wave of a 5K for "over 10 minute milers," since I try not for that to be me on a typical basis ... but today wasn't a typical day.
We ran the whole first mile, purposefully checking the Garmins and making sure we weren't going too fast. 10:15 pace? Whoa there, back it off, no need to sprint. We'd surge occasionally to get around walkers/large groups, but other than that, took it easy.
It is frustrating, though, that even going at a slower pace, I can't maintain it, breath-wise, for a full 5K. Someday I will be able to do that again. Needless to say, we took some walk breaks. Which weren't all that frustrating, if I'm being honest with myself, as it was just in keeping with the easy peasy theme of the day.
Place-wise, even though I wasn't really trying, I still ended up in a decent position ... proving to me that I really need to probably stick to a single sport.
Final Stats:
Time: 34:06
53/131 AG (F30-34)
229/711 gender
434/1082 overall
Just about an 11:00/mile. Perfect.
Donuts were Safeway (and Krispy Kreme) ... both of which I don't particularly like, so I only even ate one donut post race. But, I did get a medal, so there's that.
I think I set myself up well for success this month, knowing we had our Italy trip ... but I also knew that life is sometimes a thing.
Well, life was still a thing, but I still managed to hit my goals! And I did have ridiculous walking numbers ...
Swimming: 5600m (3.48 mi)
Cycling: 61.59 mi
Running: 21.03 mi
Lifting: 11 sessions (2:21)
Other: eight walks (18:00), one yoga session (:16)
I hit my very modest goals ... and I should have even surpassed all three ... but that's where life became a thing. The run goal actually looked iffy (despite running twice in Italy), but the two late-month 5Ks helped push me over the edge. Phew.
May has started out okay (this actual week, not so much), but I'm hoping to refocus here and get back rolling ... particularly since multisport season starts Sunday. Eep.
I do have some minimums I'm hoping to hit - 10,000m swimming, 200 mi cycling, 50 mi running - which are a touch ambitious, but I also know Brandon's going to be gone a good chunk of this month, so I have nothing to do but train!
(Okay not really, but it's time to get rolling ...)
Oh hey, I'm finally going to start racing this season!
This is one of my later starts to race season this year and I weirdly feel some trepidation. Why, I'm not entirely sure, but whatever.
I've got the 5K double this weekend and then my first multisport race of the season in Barkin' Dog next weekend. Which I'm pretty sure I'm completely not ready for, but I used my free race entry from volunteering for it, so I guess I'm showing up.
Donut Dash 5K:
This race is for total shits and giggles. I have a shirt (and a swimsuit, let's be honest) that says I run for donuts ... so I literally will this day. B actually ended up having it off, so he'll be running with me.
My goals are to:
- have fun. Selfies shall abound.
- take it easy. I don't want to hurt after this. At all. Unless it's my stomach from the donuts.
- plus 30 min. And ideally over 31, 32 minutes. If I can make it 33, all the better.
The main reason why is ...
Rockies 5K:
Which we're doing on Sunday and would preferably like to do well at.
Said goals are to:
- have fun. This is a permanent race goal. If I'm not having fun, I shouldn't be doing it. Probably won't mean mid-race selfies, though.
- pace well. Forever an issue, but it doesn't mean I can't constantly keep working at it.
- sub-30? My running has been okay and I've even gotten some mileage ... but it's kind of gone downhill since we took about a two week vacation to Italy where I ran twice (but did get in a lot of walking). So we'll see on this one. It might take some pain.
Barkin' Dog Duathlon:
I missed this race last year. I didn't sign up thanks to an awful spring of training and decided to go to Boston and LA instead. Since I volunteered for the Ralston Creek Half, and Racing Underground volunteers get a free race entry ... I decided to use it for Barkin' Dog again. And also short course again.
Running's been okay and cycling has also been okay and I will probably be cramming in some bike miles on the course next week prior to the race.
I've gotten first and second in my AG before at this race and there's a chance I could do it again ... but it all depends on who shows up. And oh crap, I just realized I aged up this year. Dangit. So who knows.
Therefore, I believe my goals should be:
- have fun. Because obviously.
- pace well ... Two runs with a ride in between. Short so I can go close to all out, but not so much that I'm completely dying on the second run.
- ... but go hard on the bike. I've had the fastest bike in my AG the two times I've done this ride. Yes, I'm aging up, but can the streak continue??? I'd like to at least try.
I missed some workouts this month for sure (when do I not?), butbutBUT I managed to hit my mileage goals, so everything is wonderful!
Swimming: 9800m (6.09 mi)
Cycling: 85.34 mi
Running: 42.88 mi
Lifting: 16 sessions (4:53)
Other: two curling sessions (2:30), one barre session (:10), one stationary bike session (:10), three yoga sessions (:48)
Curling is almost done for the season - we've got one more mixed doubles match left (our last game we'll be out of town for) and we might participate in a bonspiel, but other than that, that's going to stay quiet for quite a while. I attempted to do my Pure Barre DVD ... but that wasn't wise on a day that I already did a decent strength workout. Couldn't get through it keeping proper form, so did the prudent thing and turned it off. The stationary bike session was me getting on the bike in Costa Rica and a case of "something is better than nothing." The yoga has been tossed in here and there and has felt great.
Swimming, like always, should have been higher - probably around 15k? - but I hit my main goal of 7500m so I'm happy.
I've been on the trainer more than I'd like lately, but I'm still getting my rides done, and I surpassed my goal of 75 miles. By a lot. I finally did one of the longer rides from the house and I got invited to go ride dirt with Katie (she had a bike I could borrow), and that was my longest ride in a really long time.
Running was the main joy, as I hit my 40 mile goal. Those 42.88 miles are also the most I've run in a month since last August (camp, Pikes Peak), which is a touch embarrassing to type, but whatever. I'm working on it. I'm also already at 100 miles a third of the way through the year which means I'm on pace for at least 400 and hopefully more than that. Hopefully.
I didn't really add in plyometrics yet, but I have been somehow fortunate to always schedule my TIU workouts on the HIIT days, so there's that.
******
In other news, I came to the decision that I'd like this race season to be fun. I'll still probably try to go for my 5K PR (because speed *is* fun), but I'm not sure about any of my other speed goals. I've registered for the Donut Dash 5K and the Colorado Rockies 5K, which are on the same weekend. The Donut race I don't plan on taking seriously at all, while I may try to actually race the Rockies race. Brandon will be joining me for the latter, too.
I emailed Racing Underground to use my free entry for the short course at Barkin' Dog, so that will be pseudo-serious as well.
I guess "serious" isn't the proper word. Fun is races I enjoy and can enjoy myself during. I don't particularly enjoy the olympic distance when it comes to triathlons, so I won't be doing any of those. Sprints, however, I like. So I will. But I'll also "race" them (as much as I race anything ...) because, as I said above, speed is fun. This means that a fast(er) half-marathon this year might be off the table; I haven't decided that yet. A slower, half, however, IS in the works, as I may have talked my friend Lindsey into doing the Blerch half with me in September. A race where I can eat cake and sit on couches in the middle of it? Sign me up!
******
I'm not setting ambitious April mileage goals - 5000m swimming, 45 mi riding, and 20 mi running - solely because I have an almost two-week vacation to Italy and I want to enjoy it. Will I be bringing running shoes along? Technically, yes, I shall (older ones, for walking around purposes), but I don't want to stress out about training. I want to spend the time exploring with Brandon.
My walking numbers should be off the charts, though.
And, realistically, I should be able to hit those goals (and surpass them) no problem, but, well, life.
Women Run the World events at Skirt Sports are now every other month so last week was this month's event.
It was a touch different in terms of format - we didn't have a speaker (well, kinda) - we had food!
No, seriously. We had Amy Kimoto Kahn, who runs the Easy Peasy Japanesey blog and wrote the cookbook, "Simply Ramen." She spoke a bit on her background and then demonstrated "sushi tacos," an even simpler way of doing hand rolls.
Amy talking. Slightly smaller crowd as we had a $5 sushi fee.
Cheat note: for the tuna, you don't need sushi grade. Yellowfin from Whole Foods works just fine. Freeze and chop!
The best part of all of this, of course, was the food.
Appetizers. Some edamame/hummus mixture on a honey rice cracker. SO GOOD.
Close-up of one of my sushi hand roll/tacos. This one was with crab. I may have eaten many ...
Dessert. Some adzuki bean/coffee custard thing. Taste was good, but texturally it was hard for me to eat.
While I've liked past events with the speakers and the nuggets of information, this was a super nice change up, especially with the food.
Why I Run.
This is a current blog prompt for a Skirt Sports challenge, but it's actually quite timely for me so I'm running with it. So to speak. Ahem.
There's a lot of talk in sports - particularly the solo ones - okay, maybe just triathlon - about "finding your why." Finding the reason(s) why you do what you do.
For a lot of people it's simple. For my health, for those who can't, to prove the naysayers wrong, to podium, etc.
For me, however ... I've honestly struggled with this. I figured out "why IRONMAN." While I'm still not sure I actually want to do a stand-alone marathon, I absolutely love the Ironman marathon. Sure, both I've done have been in the six-plus hour range, but it's me. I know I can spend an insane amount of time on my feet. I also know that because I've made the run, I know I'll make the finish line ... and that finish line is one of the most amazing feelings ever. So I do the training to be able to swim and bike to get me to that run.
(This also means that I'm not sure if I ever have the desire to actually race a 140.6 because that means the marathon part won't be fun.)
But that's only Ironman. One measly distance ... that's a super expensive time commitment, so I don't do it often.
I genuinely enjoy racing, too. I like the competition of yes, technically other people, but really, just yourself. I like the atmosphere. The training part is what's harder. (We've had this discussion here.)
That all being said ... I look at my tentative race schedule there on the sidebar and I wonder. I wonder if even half of it will come to fruition.
************
I started running post-college.
I ran in sports pre-college and even for things during college, but throughout most of high school and college, hockey ruled my life.
That's me with the puck, trying not to lose it. I am a very defensive defenseman, so I didn't carry it often.
After I graduated, I moved back home and still played a little puck, but ice time was expensive and shh, I didn't really have health insurance so hockey probably wasn't a good idea. That summer, summer 2005, the neighborhood decided to put on a Fourth of July 5K. I'm still not 100% sure my reasoning, but in any case, I decided to run it. I did it with my dad, who would walk it.
It was hard (mostly because knowing Colorado as it is, it was probably 90-something degrees and the race is 300 feet up and then back down), but I did it, in 35:17.68.
I recall getting a job, getting health insurance, playing hockey ... but also going to the gym fairly regularly. I also decided I wanted to run it again, and this time do better.
Coming to the finish line. 7.4.06.
I achieved that goal, in 31:31. I still didn't necessarily think of myself as a runner (probably), but hey, not too shabby for my second-ever 5K, eh?
2007, I got talked into doing my first triathlon, so my race season expanded, from one to five. The early season 5Ks didn't go so well (particularly my third year at the neighborhood race - back in the 35s), but I completed my first sprint tri, and a little over a month later, set my 5K PR of 26:27, which still stands to this day*.
2008, Brandon came along, and I got a running buddy. By this point, I really enjoyed racing (as evidenced by the NINE races I did that year. from this point on, the least amount I'd do in a year was seven), and now I had someone else to join in on the fun with ... at least in terms of running.
I did the same triathlon again (alone), and it was terrible.
Body-language wise, you can tell I hate my life at that moment.
Because I had to. SkirtChaser race, 2008. Also my first official running skirt even though the shorties weren't long enough and it chafed the ever-living crap out of me that day. Skirt has improved things IMMENSELY over the years. I also kind of wish I had never gotten rid of that visor ...
From there, things progressed. A four-miler that fall. My first 10K, olympic triathlon, and half-marathon in 2010. First 70.3 in 2011. First 140.6 in 2013. And so it went, and I kept running.
************
Unlike many runners I know, I've never run that many miles in a year. The most was 488.23 in 2013, also known as IMAZ training. For this reason, I sometimes wonder if I am a true runner, or if I just do it at this point because
a.) I like racing; and/or
b.) if I want to do multisport, running is part and parcel.
Running impostor syndrome, possibly? Knowing me, it's likely.
************
Which brings us to today. (Quite literally, as it stands.)
The initial goal was to do IM Wisconsin this year. That got shelved due to finances; it's fine. New plan was to keep rolling, keep training, maybe get fast** again.
But now it's March. I haven't officially signed up for anything. The HR training I was doing I learned I wasn't doing correctly AT ALL, so that's four months gone. With the first technical running race on the schedule in about 6 weeks, I should start cranking up the miles (which, kind of) and the speed. And I really should get more focused on the bike. And swim more than 1200 in the pool.
And ... I'm just not sure if I want to.
I don't hate running. I don't think I love it, but I definitely don't hate it. Maybe I miss being faster, and I make too many excuses as to why I'm not. Oh, it's where I live. I don't live around a lot of hills anymore so that's why I'm not as strong as I was back when I lived in the south metro. I ran better when I was blissfully ignorant of how hard it was supposed to be.
Knowledge is power? Knowledge can also be crippling.
************
So, why do I run? Why do I race?
I started because it sounded like a good idea, something to do. I kept doing it because I liked the finish line. Maybe after over 100 of those, it's lost a bit of its luster for me. Maybe I need to reassess my goals and clear anything off my race calendar that doesn't sound FUN.
Maybe I need to just stop dwelling inside my head and go out for my planned run.
Because, after all, at this point, I ultimately run because it's a part of me. Because I've been doing it for 13 (14? I never get year math right ...) years. Because I know that even if I walk away from it for a few weeks - like I have before - something internally will pull me back, even if it's not consistent.
I run now because running has wormed its way into my blood.
* dang it.
** well. fast for me.
Another month down ... and it didn't go quite as well as I'd hoped it to, but I almost hit all my goals. Onward!
Swimming: 7564.4m (4.7 mi)
Cycling: 40.9 mi
Running: 32.65 mi
Lifting: 11 sessions (2:08)
Other: one curling session (:60), one stint race volunteering (2:00), two walks (8:00), two yoga sessions (:32)
Not a lot of curling this month, but that's because one or both of us was gone for almost every Sunday and stuff was cancelled due to snow and/or the Olympics. (woo gold!)
I volunteered at the Ralston Creek Half-Marathon/5K. Racing Underground mentioned in their emails that they still needed volunteers ... and volunteering means a free race entry (which I will probably use for Barkin' Dog) ... so I signed up. I helped out with directing parking pre-race and then handed out medals to the half-marathoners. So really, I was out there for more like six hours, but I just counted the two. And a sunburned face.
I didn't actually go on two really long walks; what I did was hang around Disneyland/Disney California Adventure for two days and that is a fair (probably under-) estimation of the time spent on feet. 28, 29k steps each day.
As to my actual February goals, they were to swim at least 5000m, ride 50 mi, and run 30 mi. As you can see, I hit two of the three. I got close to riding, too, despite not riding my bike for about two weeks in there. Almost all of those miles were done in the last 10ish days of February, but hey, I made a valiant effort!
I had a weird malaise mid-month ... and I'm not exactly sure why. I don't know if I'm struggling finding purpose in training since I haven't officially signed up for anything yet, or what. I have had a bit of renewed vigor the past week or so, though, and I'm seizing on to it as tight as I can.
Going forward with March ... I'm actually stopping the HR runs. I was curious as to why it didn't seem like I was progressing and my research told me ... I didn't actually start doing the whole process correctly. Instead of feeling like I just wasted the last three months ... I'm choosing to go forward with a different path. My legs clearly want to run fast, but I have absolutely no lungs. I had better lungs when I was doing hockey training and sprint work ... so I'm going to go back to a bit of that. Plyometrics, agility training, short sprints. All things to build up my lungs. Since Brandon bought new hockey skates and we'd ideally like to try picking that up again ... it'll also help in that realm, as well.
I've been enjoying planning week-by-week, so I'm going to stick with that.
My mileage goals are a bit up from last month (and I actually hit my swim goal so as long as I equal what I did in February I'll be good) - 7500m in the pool, 75 miles on the bike, and 40 miles running. Wish me luck!
