Feet Move Forward

If there ever was a race that I had zero expectations for, this was it. First, I haven't been running that much these past two months, due to my Achilles , and just general complacency. I was severely concerned about my ability to even run 13.1 miles, much less do it at a respectable pace.  Second, this was my first Team Ortho race. Having worked for TCM for a couple years, it's pretty safe to say that I know the good, the bad and the ugly of event planning, and I went in with a complete understanding of how Team Ortho "organizes" their races. Needless to say, my expectations were low, both for myself and the race in general.  That's probably what saved me.  I woke up on Saturday morning around 6:45, and didn't feel like eating breakfast, so I didn't. I hadn't charged my Garmin, and hadn't given any thought to race day apparel, so I threw on some tights and double layers on top and prayed for less wind than the forecast was predicting.

This weekend had two important milestones, the first being I successfully completed my longest training run in over a year- 17 miles! I ran with Brady, who was a doll and agreed to run with me at 6:30 on Sunday morning. I only had 45 minutes by the time I got home to get out the door for church but I knew I needed an ice bath, which bring me to my second milestone: my first ice bath in 2+ years!  Ice baths are like marathons in the way that you forget how much you hate them until you're actually doing it, at which point there's no turning back. But ice baths are said to speed recovery so they're kind of a necessary evil, IMO. Active.com says: The general theory behind this cold therapy is that the exposure to cold helps to combat the microtrauma (small tears) in muscle fibers and resultant soreness caused by intense or repetitive exercise. The ice bath is thought to constrict blood vessels, flush waste products and reduce swelling and tissue breakdown. Sub

I've just spent a ridiculous amount of time pouring over my training journals from the past few years. Back when I was running a 5k a good 30 seconds per mile faster than what I just ran. Back when I was comfortably running under eight minute miles. Back when I felt like a real runner. I know fitness takes time to come back. But here we are in August, nearly two years from when I was shoved from the running wagon (and my subsequent PE) . And I'm looking back thinking what the heck have I been doing? and feeling like I should be farther along. It's hard to keep going when results are slow and even harder to see, when all you have to go on is a feeling, and dreams of what could be. So rather than looking at paces or miles, I'm looking at progress: Runs are getting easier. I'm uninjured. I'm happy to be running. It's all reason enough to keep moving forward.

I may have forgotten to mention that I ran a 5k yesterday. My original 2013 race plans had me heading to my hometown for a 5k this weekend, but instead I went up to White Bear Lake to raise money for children's cancer research. Brady and I got up there early to register, and it was a good thing we did! There were tons of people wanting to register, and only a few people there to check us in. It was cold, too, and I found myself shivering while we waited in line, wishing I had brought a sweatshirt! Doesn't MN know it's August? via @ChildrensMN My goal for the race was to run hard and try to maintain an even effort. Story of my life, right? The race starts at Lifetime Fitness and runs around Birch Lake, staying mostly on the sidewalks. Brady and I ran a warm up to get a preview of the course which was really scenic and relatively flat. When it was time for the 5k to line up, we tried to position ourselves at the front so we wouldn't get stuck behind

I can hardly believe that it's July 21! It feels like this race was just last weekend. Anyway, here's my recap for the Red, White & Boom! TC Half Marathon Relay (whew!). A few things about this race:  It's on the 4th of July every year, so if you have family in town and are looking to start some sort of healthy tradition, this is it. The relay portion makes it accessible to those that maybe aren't comfortable running the entire half.  That being said, it's really flipping hot. They start the race at 6:30 to try to beat the heat, but it's July in Minnesota, so it's to be expected. I wouldn't really plan this race for a PR or anything. Because it starts so early, don't expect a lot of spectators. They have course entertainment every so often but you're basically just running by a band for 30 seconds.  It's a quiet course. The first half goes through the more industrial part of Northeast Minneapolis, and the latter half winds thro

So I ran a 5k yesterday, the same one I've run in 2010 and 2011 . Sorry to disappoint, but there will be no race recap video like there was in 2011. There aren't even any pictures of the actual race, so you visual people can just skip this. But here it is, my race recap from the Henderson Sauerkraut Day's 5k. In bullets, for easy digestion: I hit and killed a squirrel on the way to the race. I have NEVER hit an animal before and it made me really sad. (Not race-related but I thought I should confess.)  This race is actually closer to three miles, since that's what my (and everyone's) Garmin says every single year.  I ran this a minute and a half slower than I did two years ago . (21:34 according to Garm) The surrounding high schools have a summer racing series so there were a lot of high school cross country and track girls there... ... so I assumed my secret goal of getting top three was gone. I realized within a half-mile what a sorry state small town

This race report is kind of late considering it was nearly two weeks ago- and I just deleted my draft that I had started (on purpose) because it was getting a little wordy for a simple mile race. So here's the abridged version, in bullets: I wore spandex shorts because they make me feel fast. It might have been a little early in the season (pale legs + winter weight) for them, a realization that came as I stripped off my sweats in the start corral. Oh well.  My only goal was to not go out fast and crash and burn. Therefore, I ran on feeling and didn't look at my watch at all. However... I caught a  glimpse of the clock as I was coming up on the half mile mark and I was well under six minute pace. I freaked out and slowed down. Still not sure why. I was feeling great and couldn't believe how quickly the race was going by (mentally speaking). Still, I didn't pick up the pace because I was scared that I would poop my tiny spandex shorts at the end. (Do people poop

As of yesterday, my official 10k PR is 45:45 , a 7:22 pace, which, incidentallly, happens to be my half marathon PR pace.  Self-fulfilling prophecy.   Yesterday I woke up feeling the worst I have in days. Without going into too much detail, it was clear my cold had turned bacterial. Lots of nose blowing, phlegm coughing, and water guzzling.  I got to the race around 8, found parking a few blocks away and got the lay of the land. With twenty minutes until the gun, I went out for a warm up jog. When I got back, the corrals were packed and I tried to work my way up to the front but stopped when it got too crowded to move forward without pushing people.  ( source ) I spent the first mile bobbing and weaving through a ton of people. ( My stats show I passed 498 in the first four miles.) I kept telling myself not to panic, that I had the whole race to make up for it. Besides, I wanted my first mile to be my slowest anyway. It was. 7:34.   The road began to open up a

Circa 1995. i specifically got this outfit for track & field day I think we can all agree that this picture is the true definition of runnerd .

One of the races that made its way onto my 2013 race calendar is The Bear Run in Linville, NC. The Bear is a five mile run up Grandfather Mountain (here's my 2011 race recap ). The race is near one of my favorite cities in America, and it would be a good excuse to sneak in a little vacation. We'll call this my destination race of 2013. Here's the elevation profile of the 5 mile course: So how does one go about training to run up a mountain? Hills. Lots and lots of hills. Even if you're not training to run The Bear, hills are a totally beneficial part of training. (Stud runners Carrie Tollefson and Matt Gabrielson break down the benefits of hill training in this video .) But what if you live in Minnesota where every hill looks more like a glacier? Two words: treadmill incline. When I was first training to run it, someone much better at math than me figured out a treadmill run that would simulate the elevation profile of the course. I honestly