20 miles done and 53 Days Until Competition... WTF!!!

Where did the time go? My first post had race day at like 200 days. Now I only have 53 until the starter gun goes off. Hooooly crap!!!

FITNESS NEWS
Whilst using the cable cross machine (one of my all-time faves and can I just say that men dominate this machine and as soon as I see it open, I pounce, and usually I am asked within 5 minutes by a male when I'm going to be finished. Excuse me, how about I add another set to my 10-to-1 just to make you wait longer?), I was accosted mid-rep by a very built young man who says the following: 1) he was watching me 2) he thinks I have great potential 3) he wants to train me. Now, potential for what, I have no idea (ooh can you see me as a fitness model?). Anyway, he offered me a free session to check him out. So I did. Here's what we found out:

Starting Measurements:
Weight: 130 lbs
Waist: 26 in
Hips: 34 in
Thighs: 20.5 in (holy shit!)
Body fat: 19%
My goals: 14-15% body fat, lose lower belly fat and trim thighs, all-around top fitness level possible for the race in January

He had me do full body, mostly using harness suspension moves. Never done that before (by the way, EFF suspended mountain climbers! no no no no no no no). I am sore all over. Thank god - I have a hard time making my body sore anymore. That means whatever he's gonna do is going to work. I will be training with him 2 days a week, adding one weekend session on low-mileage-run weekends. So there we go. We are on the road, people!

Now then... segway in to my LONGEST RUN EVERRRRR!
I am sore as hell from that workout yesterday but I had to run this weekend because I was forced to skip the long run last weekend due to shin splints. I HATE YOU SHIN SPLINTS!! (I didn't run for 5 days straight, healing them up and icing them everyday. They are much better.)

START TIME: 5:30-ish; END TIME: 9:37
FINAL RUN TIME: 3 hours, 27 minutes
NUMBER OF STOPS: 2 bathroom, 2 wrong-way trail mishaps =/

ROUTE
I wanted to do another new route because I get bored so easily PLUS it was imperative to run a route with minimal concrete sidewalk - due to the splints. Jennifer at work told me about the Aliso Creek bike trail, so I looked it up and it's 18 miles from beginning to end. Too long, but I was able to map it from my work location up 10 miles and do an out-and-back for a total of 20 miles. From Aliso Creek Rd to Portola/Santa Margarita Pkway and back. The main trail is asphalt, but on the satellite map I saw plenty of dirt on both sides so I figured it was a good bet.

WEATHER
Um, hi rain. You aren't welcome, go away. I don't usually run in the rain - who needs MORE water weight to carry around while running? - but I was absolutely determined to run this weekend so I got me some cold-weather running gear and prepared for the worst. I was lucky though - only a light mist miles 11-12. Other than that, weather was perfect. Perfect temp (chilly but not cold, moist so my throat was never dry, no wind), Only problem was the damp dirt - mud - from last night's rain. I had to run on asphalt more than I would've liked.

STRATEGY
Run 1 minute slower than usual pace to make sure I could finish the whole thing, no stopping, no walking, no pain, no problem!

RUN "WINS"
WIN #1: No Fear! Woooooooooooooo!
WIN #2: No shin splint pain
WIN #3: Felt pretty good the majority of the run - able to smile and say hi to all passers-by, no breathing problems, no stomach issues, etc
WIN #4: Loving my new cold weather running tights and hoodie. They felt great!
WIN #5: I ran slow and steady enough during the run that I felt good enough to be able to run more miles after the 20. Great news, because I need to add 6.2 more...

RUN "F.U.s"
FU #1: I had to pee 2 times in the first 3 miles (one was .25 miles from a porta-potty, I found out after the fact)
FU #2: Pulled left glute muscle from workout
FU #3: Ankle tape cut into my heel around mile 15. There was blood upon removal. Ouch
FU #4: Blood blister. Need I say more?
FU #5: My arms were so tight and sore from yesterday that it was uncomfortable to keep them in constant swinging motion. I had to frequently stretch them. Annoying.

"JUST KIDDING" BLONDE MOMENT
I guess I didn't pay enough attention to where I started the route, because I passed a fork in the trail at 3:16 and figured it was mine and stopped and walked halfway up the hill before I realized it was NOT. Ok, it was really dark at 5:30 when I started running, so I was a bit out of sorts. I had to walk back to the main trail and run the last mile and half or so until my actual turn-off. What a lame-O.

RECOVERY
Post-Run
I was obviously stiff and I was extremely hungry (tummy rumblings began at hour 2:15), so I walked briskly up the hill to the car, grabbed 1 gatorade, 1 water, 1 protein bar, and 1 banana. I walked around the large soccer field park very awkwardly (think "full diaper" awkward) and downed the gatorade and protein bar in record time. I still couldn't bend my knees properly - stretching necessary. Ate the banana and water while stretching. Once I was able to bend my legs without wincing, I drove home. You know what's NOT good for stiff, sore, leg muscles? A 45-minute car ride! Getting out of the car at home was PAINFUL!!!
All day
Immediate carb + protein breakfast refuel? CHECK.
Hot shower on sore muscles? CHECK.
Ice massage for both shins? CHECK.
Constant leg stretching? CHECK.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Nov 14 - 20: One mid-week run; 8 miles weekend
Nov 21 - 27:  One mid-week run; Turkey Trot 10k on Thanksgiving; Another 6 miles Saturday. Oh, and MY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!
Nov 28 - Dec 3: Two mid-week runs; 21-22 miles on weekend. *Last long run before race!!!*


Officially exhausted now. I'm heading off to bed, but let's not count on me being able to get myself out of it in the morning. More like "rolling out on the floor and crawling to the bathroom" in the morning. Ah, the life of a marathon virgin...

18-7-13, HELLO?

Yeah. it's been like a month since I've posted. I am so lame at this. I'll start from the beginning of the month and work my way down to now. Brilliant.

Sept 25
This was the day of my EPIC 18-mile run! Deciding where to run was tricky. Fullerton and surrounding area is SUPER boring to run in, and full of hills might I add, so I decided to make a morning of it and drive up to Santa Monica and run on the beach. Plus, that would mean I would be mere blocks from my fave cupcakery - Yummy Cupcakes - and win myself a little treat for being so runningly awesome. After looking through a few mapped routes via MapMyRun, I locked in on starting by Pico and heading south to Dockweiler and back, running through the marina. I wanted to run north up to Malibu but I was iffy on bike paths and whether or not pedestrians were able to take PCH all the way up. Maybe for my next 18-20 miler (scheduled in a month).

I woke up at 5:00am and drove up, found a great parking spot in the residentials three block up from the beach (which gave my legs a great mini warm-up), then started running around 6:15. It was dark and a bit chilly. There were a few runners/cyclists out, but we were way out-populated by the scary homeless people sleeping all over the bike path and on Ocean. As I headed into Venice Beach I saw a large group of people and tents and stuff. Turns out it was the same day as the LA Triathalon! Fancy that. So I ran past all the entrants warming up with their bikes and saw the news people. Then I thought "well this is gonna bite me in ass later!"

I continued on to Marina Del Rey and turned up away from the beach into the marina area. I ran around the entire marina until I hit a special bike path that headed towards the river mouth into the ocean. I crossed the bridge onto the Del Rey beach and kept south until I hit Dockweiler (and I knew when I hit it bc planes were taking off overhead!). I turned around at Imperial and did an out-&-back the way I came. I did take a bathroom break before crossing the bridge again (which was over halfway through so I thought that was very impressive). My legs got really fatigued around mile 9 and it was tough going until I hit marina again. By that time, my legs hit what I call "the robot" stage, where I don't even have to think about moving them anymore... they just go like a robot. The marina loop was faster going back, but I was still SO relieved to hit the crossroad down to the beach. Then it was like "woooo! almost there!" And I did hit the triathalon right as athletes were crossing the finish line. I had to bob up and down waiting to cross. And then the lady said "ok yuo can run through first" so I did... right as a finisher sped up and we almost collided. NICE. The last 3 miles were tough but once I saw the SM Pier in the distance I got super happy and made it. The actual route was 17.3 miles, so when I hit the end, I thought "yeah I'll just make it even" so I went 4 minutes more north and turned back which added just enough to make it 18. I walked for 10 minutes straight after that, and boy was I out of sorts. I was walking very gingerly and my ankle was killing me bc I stupidly didn't tape it (tape it for a 40 minute soccer game, but 3-hour run? not so much. dumb). It felt all wobbly and loose around the bone. It was really odd. I slowly walked back up the hill to my car and downed a full bottle of Gatorade, grabbed my sweatpants, stuffed a protein bar in my mouth, and took another Gatorade back down to the park at the beach. I stretched for another 20 minutes and then finally felt able to go back to the car and drive. It was crazy, and I was so proud of myself! Final time said 2:30 but I think I forgot to restart the watch after a traffic light or something because that just seems too fast. It was most likely 2:45-ish. I know I finished at 9:00am.

and yes, duh, I bought a dozen cupcakes. It was a good "special flavor" day that day.

The whole week was spent recouping. I don't think I ran at all until soccer.

Oct 3
I didn't do any running other than soccer that whole week, and I waited until Monday after work to do another run. I did my 7 mile loop around work. It was pretty good. I did it in 57 minutes, but my ankle was hurting a few miles in. I was so paranoid from that long run that I taped it insanely tight and it cut off my circulation a bit and made a big blister! So that was great. At least I was able to run downhill without wincing. I ran once more on Friday - only 4 miles - just to get another easy run in before the long beach race on the 9th. That was slower than usual. It was also a bit hot. Ugh.


Oct 9
THE LONG BEACH HALF MARATHON! weeeeee!

Hamming it up!

can I just say that Lisa is the BEST for running 13.1 miles with me for no reason? Yes, I will say it. Her family rocks too. It was wonderful carpooling with them so I didn't have to drive all the way to LB early in the morning. The Holmans run the LB every year and it was nice to have them there as MY family didn't care enough to come out and see me run. Jerks.

The race was not so much as good as the pre-race hijinks. I took a Gu at the start line. Mistake #1. Our first 3 miles were sllllow because the damn course is like an inch across and you get stuck behind slow people. Mistake #2. I had to stop for the bathroom at like mile 2. Gu's Mistake #1. That stretch of 4 miles along the beach was torture for those of us with no sunglasses. Mistake #3. I had to stop for the bathroom AGAIN at mile 7 or 8. Gu's Mistake #2. Some guy was handing out donut holes. WTF? Ugh my stomach is turning just thinking about it. My tum was not having it that race. I knew I should've been drinking more powerade or water, and perhaps have eaten an orange, but I was so worried that something would come out if I put anything in my stomach. I was iffy on taking a ShotBlock. It was really difficult the last 3 miles. I didn't want to increase my stride; I just wanted to go to the bathroom. I somehow crossed the finish line. and by crossed, I mean I jumped across kickbox-style:

Finishing Miss-style

The official time is like 2:03, but Lisa's watch had us at 1:59. I'll take it! I don't count bathroom stops in my time!

Lisa (and my abs) ROCKS!

I have never felt so sick after running. I got down a banana, some protein bar, and a coconut water, but I felt gross. The Holmans took us to Krispy Kreme and I didn't even want to eat one! ME! NOT EAT KRISPY KREME! yeah, I was that affected.

It took me two days to recover. I went home sick Monday because of this tummy trouble! So lame. I hope this was a one-time issue only. I don't need this happening with every long run from now til December!

Oct 16
Just a simple 8.5-mile run this morning. Plus a 1 mile walk cool down. It was nice. Now I will spend the rest of week 1) worrying about the 15 miles I'm doing Saturday and 2) where the eff am I going to run?? *sigh*

The Knot, the Pull & the 15 Miler

9/11/11. IDC. ("i was over it 9/12")

but i *do* care that i ran 15 miles in less than 2.5 hours today! weeee!

i skipped a few days (weeks?) of writing because i didn't really do much. after that 13-miler, i had a bit of an injury, so i took it easy that whole week and didn't run at all. i guess my muscles didn't like the 13 and thought if they all balled up together in my right thigh, they would feel better. well, as it turns out, it's not helping me *at all.* i've had a HUGE knot in my thigh for two weeks! and apparently NO amount of foam rolling or Tiger-Tailing is going to give this thing the slip.

this has put my strength on a standstill as well, since now travis can't really give me any leg exercises, and he has to spend 30 minutes (or more) rolling out my knot. my arms are starting to look mannish, since all i can do is arms, chest, back, and abs. my abs are totally starting to carve out, too! the damn lower belly fat won't budge though. i think it should get in cahoots with the thigh knot and go somewhere far away together. forever.

back to the fun stuff: training! i kept up my basic conditioning runs all week. did 45 minutes on monday, but that really hurt, so i was forced to skip TKB on tuesday (horror!!!). i ran again on wednesday after a 1-hour strength workout, which was awesome. and then friday night i did an almost-full-out 5k, where i clocked in at 24:43. weeeeee! under 25 minutes! that's practically high school time. if i remember correctly, my PR in high school was in the 22-minute mark, and my PR for Mt Sac was around 23-something. (i didn't keep meticulous notes on my high school races like Lisa. weirdo).

speaking of Lisa and high school - this was us in 1999! not sure if this is XC or track, buuut i AM sure i was making her listen to the Backstreet Boys here.

Lisa is the best runner i know (running is to Lisa as soccer is to Missy -- i always aced those on the standardized tests), so i drove down to san diego and forced her to do 15 miles with me. ok, i didn't "force" her. i bribed her with cupcakes. what a trooper!

night before nosh: basic pizza and salad. and a cupcake. maybe two.

morning fuel: whole-wheat waffle with chunky peanut butter and a G Step 1 (totally loved this morning fuel. i will use it for the next long run)

mid-run perk-up: clif shot blocks. these tasted like medicine. 

after-run energy: gatorade, protein bar, protein shake

run breakdown:

Lisa did this route when she was training for her marathon. she had it all worked out. it was a mostly-flat loop with lots of scenery. i was never bored, which is always great when running over 10 miles!

we ran the course in 2:28:44, which is just under 10-minute miles (9:40ish). kinda slow, but it was great because we didn't tire out and, since i was nursing a pulled groin AND a huge knot, and Lisa hasn't run that long of a distance in awhile, it worked out perfectly. we were never exhausted, was able to converse the entire time, and finished with a strong push. i, naturally, had to take like 3 bathroom breaks (which ended up being 5 bathroom breaks. apparently, ALL the public bathrooms from mission bay to pacific beach get cleaned at exactly the SAME TIME, 6:30 - 7:00am. ugh.) note to self: do NOT drink 32 ounces of water before a long run. maybe 16. not 32.

boy, does my groin hurt something fierce. it has cleared that knot from my mind completely. i think this groin pull showed up during soccer, and it's getting worse. i rolled it out and iced it, iced it, iced it, stretched it, rolled it (you see the pattern). still hurts. TKB will be interesting on tuesday. and forget squats. travis is gonna be maaaa-aad!

ok, so i've got two weeks to prepare for 17 miles. i should kill that one too, since 17 is my favorite number. isn't that how it works?

13 Down, 13 To Go.

Hey-O!

This was a loooong week, exercise-wise. =/

Monday: PT with Trav; good 50-minute conditioning run.

Tuesday: 45 minutes strength (full body circuit x 3); TKB. Count me exhausted.

Wednesday: not-as-good 30-minute conditioning run; soccer game

Thursday: 45 minutes strength; soccer game

Friday: god bless a day off!!

Ok, let me be clear to all those half-marathoners who go around saying they're running a "marathon" (here's looking at you, annoying TPI girls): they call it a HALF-marathon for a reason. It is half of what a marathoner runs. I say this because I ran half a marathon this morning, and I can't believe I am dumb enough to do it twice, one continuously right after the other.

I decided to run a modified Disneyland Half course because I can't run the actual one. =( Although, Snail's Pace is offering a spot plus a one-day park hopper ticket for $195. Um, that's an expensive race, no? I was disinclined to to acquiesce to their request.

Anyhoo, here's the route:

Ok this looked a lot bigger on my desktop...

It's technically 13.5 miles. I did the whole route, buuuuut I did not hit the start button on my watch hard enough to actually start it and realized it 0.5 miles in (at Disneyland Dr.) See, DUMB.

I felt pretty good until the 8th mile. I got the GI problem again (come ON with that!!!) so it was pretty uncomfortable. By 10th mile, my legs were moving pretty slowly and were verrry fatigued. It was molasses-city.

Also, here's a point worth noting: uh, the mile on Euclid between Ball and Katella is dodgy at best. I was scared for my life... and it was 8:00 am. So maybe I don't run over there anymore.

So I somehow managed to get to Harbor and Katella, and there I ran into a hotel and used the toilet. Sweet relief. I think it was affecting me more than I realized because as soon as I left that hotel, pistons were ON, kids. I booked it the last 1.5 miles. I made up most of that lag time. I felt SO good. My legs weren't as fatigued and I finished super-strong.

Finish time was [1:57:48], which doesn't include that 0.5 mile in the beginning. Which is fine because 1) that'll be my warm-up, and 2) I managed to do my half-marathon in under 2 hours, which was my goal! AWESOME. When I was done, I walked for 5 minutes, did some post-run drills, walked some more, ate a protein bar, and downed 32oz of Gatorade.

Unfortunate calamity #1: chafing. Turns out, my best sports bra and favorite shorts aren't as "best and favorite" after 10 miles. They totally chafed me. I wanted to take a pic but I thought a photo of my underboob might be inappropriate. Sorry all you men out there.

Unfortunate calamity #2: my streak of "no injuries" is fading into oblivion. I have a tight groin on my right leg. It pulls when I do the runner's lunge and run downhill. I think I need to take it easy this week and see if it finds it's way out on it's own. And my right IT band is giving me some grief. I bought a new foam roller though, so that should help a lot, as well as my kick-ass Tiger Tail (ahhh, my boyfriend the Tiger Tail... he massages all my knots out). Fingers crossed I have no major injury reports next post.

So, to sum up, I only have to run that entire route one more time and that's 26 miles and that's what I will be running in January. Plus 0.2 miles. (There's an "EEEK" moment).

Side note: HO-HO-HOLY CRAP IS IT HOT OUT HERE! This weather blows! I can't run in this!

"In Your Face, Last Saturday Me!"

"Think about it... you'd be in competition with yourself."

"That's my favorite kind!"

After stewing about that damn tenner on Saturday, I took Sunday to calm down and decide it wasn't a big deal to not run the full 11 like my schedule says to.

And then I said, "Eff that, I'm running 11."

So today, after training with Trav (who Tiger Tail-ed a HUGE knot in my left quad, ahhhhhhh), I ran 12. That's right, kids. 12.

SUCK IT, SATURDAY MELISSA! MONDAY MELISSA KICKED YOUR ASS!

Melissa, really? You couldn't do one more mile and make it a half-marathon length?

No, wiseass. Well, yes I could have done one more mile. However, I am scheduled to do the 13 a week from Saturday so I thought I should just wait. So shut it.

12 miles, 3 hills (Gilbert hill part II, Harbor hill, annnnnd Rosecrans hill East), and a total time of 1:52. woohoo, that's like a lower 9-minute pace. Solid. Which means, that on a flat course and one more month of training, I should run that half-marathon in under 2 hours no problem. Awesome.

Oh, and note to my digestive tract: any chance I could get in a long run sans the fear? That would be great... thanks. I'm sick of running into fast food joints and messing up my "groove."

PS: HAPPY (2-HOURS-TIL) BIRTHDAY, PRECIOUS! (Scott turns 25 tomorrow, Aug 16!)

It's (only) a Ten!

Ten, ten, ten. Stupid ten.

I was supposed to run 11-12 miles today. My own stupidity made it only a 10. I got the wrong route in my mind and failed to check my mapmyrun account prior to running, and I only ended up with a tenner. DAMN. I was all ready to run 12.

The good news is that

1) my route included 2 hills (Harbor hill .71mi and Gilbert hill 1.09mi)

2) I averaged 9:30 pace, and

3) best of all, my body felt great. No leg pain, no blisters, no lung anguish. Ended my run barely winded and feeling fine.

So hooray. I know I could have done 2 more miles. I am very disappointed I didn't get to execute. Now I'm worried I will be behind on my training. I'm going back down to 5 miles next weekend (hopefully doing a 9:00 pace). Maybe if I do 3 miles tomorrow it will make up for it? Ahhhhh hating life right now.

In body news, I think my abdominals are really changing, albeit slowly. Travis estimates I will be exactly where I want to be in December. Fingers crossed. I will need to do a "Before and After" pic and testimonial for him. And my arms are always killer. Sometimes I will just stare at my arms in windows as I pass. Does that make me narcissistic? Yes, but I deserve to be because I work hard for these arms!

Let's talk about music, shall we?

I've got a couple ("COUPLE!") of songs I *must* have on my running playlist.

Best for pacing: "My Life Would Suck Without You" - Kelly Clarkson

Best for taking your mind off the actual running: "Yakko's Nation's of the World" - Yakko Warner

Yes, you read correctly. I've almost got it memorized.

Best for slowing pace down: "Only You" - Yazoo

Best for powering up hills: "Club Can't Handle Me" - Flo Rida or "Shots" - LMFAO

Yeah yeah, I know. but seriously, great running song)

Best for final push: "Requiem for a Dying Song" - Flogging Molly

Other must-haves:

"Resistance" - Muse (YES!! Top 5)

"Shine A Light" - McFly

"Nowhere Left to Run" - McFly

"About You Now" - Sugababes

"Check Yes Juliet" - We The Kings

"3" - Britney (because I NEED my girl in there somewhere!)

Ugh, I'm still depressed about the tenner. Maybe I'll be over it tomorrow. "But I douuuubt it"

The 7-Day Itch

Well kids, it has been awhile. But it hasn't hit a month YET, so hey, I'm improving.

I'll start with this past week, bc my post title wouldn't make sense otherwise.

It has been one whole week between runs. See how dedicated I am? 7 days of no running.

Sunday 7/17: Irvine Mud Run! SO fun. It was a total blast. I ran the whole thing and did all the obstacles. My thighs were exhausted by the last 100 yards - which is where they decided to put all the deep puddles and slippery slopes. Highlight was wading in mud with the tailed hotness of Ted Stryker *swoon*. He beat me in the end - by a tail, as Miss Lisa would say. ;o)

I hope we do it again next year.

Psycho Mike would love my camel toe here.

On Monday I did strength with Travis and neglected my 1st conditioning run. Everything good and great there. On Tuesday, I was finally back to TKB. I pushed it as always after an hour of abs, back, and lunge work. Ahhh, then there's Wednesday. That was the worst day. I woke up so sore it was unbelievable. My left hamstring was incredible tight (ding!) and my right knee was acting up. I couldn't do any running that day either. I just stretched and tried some strength. But technically, I didn't do anything. Thursday, I had PT scheduled with Travis. It was a disaster! My muscles were shot. Trav quit early and Tiger Tailed my left thigh. It was heaven! He rolled out my tight muscles and I was able to play soccer! (two goals, thankyouverymuch!). Friday, I went to the fair, so no exercise there! Saturday I did an hour of strength . and then, SUNDAY, bloody Sunday, I was finally able to hit the pavement. I did my required 7 miles, and it was great. I paced mostly 9 minute miles, and I was barely winded when I finished. Nothing hurt. I was really proud of my success. I had expected to have to walk up Gilbert hill (last 1.5 miles is all uphill), but I was able to run up it no problem. Hooray!

Oh, and just for kicks, let's journey back...

I ran that Twin Lakes 5 miler on the 4th of July in Bridgeport, and I may as well announce it to the world of blog (a blatant disregard of the use of the word "blogosphere") that I most certainly did NOT win the race for my age division. I came in THIRD. Ugh. What a major disappointment. This was the most uncomfortable race I've ever run, for many reasons... one in particular I will not utter here for FEAR of spilling "too much in-fo-mation 'n shit, man!" But yes, it was over 80 degrees at race start, my shorts are chafe-city, and the first 2 miles are unshaded asphalt and I told myself to quite three times before I hit the other side of the lake. I was sorely tempted to accept that offer. But I persevered! I killed 2 minutes off last year's time (45:20) and fully expected to be #1. These bitches must've trained all year bc I was behind them by like 2 minutes! *groan*

Me in happier times, prior to the start of the race.

Now that we're all caught up, I'm heading out for the devil of all run workouts: HILL REPEATS! What am I thinking? It's like high school xc practice. Ugh.

So the plan is running a mile to the hill, then do 5 peats, then running the mile back. Should be a fun and exciting time.

This weekend, 9 miles. Check it.

You Say You Want a Revolution...

... the Barefoot Running Revolution, that is.

I have purchased two pairs of minimalist shoes, and let me tell you, after one run, I'm a fan.

Nike Free 3.0

Why I'm a fan...

Reason #1: They're cute. NOT pink. but still cute. I'm hoping for a pink one to come out soon so I can trade in.

Reason #2: They make my form impeccable. I'm forced to run on the balls of my feet - like I'm supposed to! - and they propel me forward with minimal effort, thus leaving more gas in the tank for longer miles. Double score!

Reason #3: They make me fast. See above. It's the same reasoning. I run so smoothly. I FLY. Ok, not really, but it feels like it.

Proof? I ran 5 incredibly difficult miles with Lise & Sky on Saturday morning (I blame the heat and pacing more than my lack of talent!). Then, on Sunday night, I ran a 5k very easily in my new shoes. I was barely winded, I ran two of the miles at 8 minute pace, AND I included a hill. I felt so good afterward. Those kinds of runs make me love the damn "sport."

Only drawback so far is that my calves have staged some sort of rebellion against this new style of running (I guess they are not fans?). They have seized up in protest. Walking up stairs was a feat of gargantuan proportions. Hopefully, this is only temporary resistance and they will embrace the barefoot movement as I have.

In other news... Travis tells me my shoulders are noticeably stronger. Well, that's great news, because when I'm in a bikini, my first worry is that my SHOULDERS don't look good. Gosh. Hey Trav, how about them love handles? The thigh jiggle? I still can't bounce a quarter off my ass. These are the real problems here, kid.

Next run will be a 4.5-miler Wednesday after PT. Actually, PTx2 because I have Physical Therapy, followed by Personal Training. I want to try the Frees again, but apparently you shouldn't go more than 2-3 miles the first few weeks. Ugh, I hate the idea of putting those clunky stabilizing shoes back on.

So, I have to run a 5-mile race in less than a week. WTF. I am so unprepared. Hence the required 4.5 miles on Wednesday. And then I leave for the Sierras early early Saturday, and need to run up there to acclimate to the altitude. Last year, I barely ran 10 minutes before I was practically collapsing. Then I waited 2 days and ran the race and won my age division in 47:something.

We are all hoping for a repeat performance. I told myself to cut off 2 minutes of last years time, but promptly ignored that all year until this week. Stupid injuries.

By the by... I know 9-minute miles are crap, but seriously, it's like 7,000 ft above sea level. Cut me some slack!

Even if I don't cross the line first, I still get Indian fry bread and a Jolly Kone raspberry marshmallow shake afterwards, so really, who's the loser?

Next post: Race results and the OFFICIAL START OF MARATHON TRAINING!

Personal training: it's new

i had my first PT session with travis today. apparently, my triceps and shoulders didn't get the memo. they are total weaksauce. i can NOT do pushups. or those weird shoulder pushups. wow. there were abs, biceps, mini sprints... dear god. and i felt bad because trav had this whole session planned out and my damn knee ruined it. he had to make it up on the fly. i appreciated the rests while he thought of new stuff though. =) so next sesh is wednesday. weeeeeee.

soccer news! i played for the first time in like 6 weeks last night! we played a super easy team and had a full squad so it was a nice transition. i even managed to score and assist. it's alllll comin' back. knee is still iffy. i'm scared to do more because it's still not 100% and i don't know why. the doc better figure it all out on tuesday. watch... something's torn now. grrrrr. i mean, it pops when i move it laterally, and clicks when i get up chairs, not to mention the constant dull ache and large muscle knot. that just ain't right... right?

update from my last post: that 4 mile run last week went along swimmingly. i actually made it 4.5. and i did do parks hill. slowly at first, and i had to rest at the intersection before phase II, buuuut i did it! and it hurt. not death-hurt, but normal run-hurt. so i was pretty happy about that.

running apparel!! i need it! i bought some UA running shorts yesterday. but seriously, all the good running shit is expensive! i need shorts that don't chafe, a sports bra that keeps in the ladies, and a breathable running shirt. although i might just run the damn marathon in my sports bra (by then, my PT should have given me flatter abs and NO love handles!!). and my running sneaks have just about had it. not to mention the fact that i want to try minimalist shoes just to see how it feels.

then there's the accessories. oh lord. i really need a good running watch. should i spring for that nike shoe thing that tracks my miles and times and all that jazz? and what am i supposed to do about holding protein and energy snacks? i hate putting things in pockets.

this post was so boring, *i* was falling asleep reading it. i'll try to be more witty next post, but hey, cut me some slack. my body is still recovering. tomorrow: tkb!!!

Competition Begins in 212 days

it's finally happened. i've changed the subtitle to my blog. huzzah.

ok, what's really happened is in march i decided to sign up for the disney world marathon. yes people, i've gone barking. i blame lisa.

this NEW and IMPROVED blog will (attempt) to showcase my training and all the drama that comes with it. technically, training doesn't start until july 4, but i'm starting the blog now because i know i won't post again until, ah, may-tember?

FAQs:

melissa, why are you running 26.2 miles?

BECAUSE I CAN!" if i can run 15, i can run 26." simple as that. and i've run 15. lisa inspired me. i only wish she could run with me. =(

melissa, why are you going to disneyworld to run this?

i can't think of a better place to torture myself. plus, i make a vacation out of it, and even if god forbid, i don't finish (please... we're finishing), i'm at disneyworld people. mum has promised me a churro no matter what.

melissa, how are you training for this?

3-day a week schedule starting july 4. i'm making my 4th of july 5 mile run in the sierras my tip off. i was 1st place last year, so i need to make it a back-to-back. the pressure!

ok i'm done answering questions. here is the lowdown lately:

i've been injured with this stupid knee thing for like 5 weeks so i haven't been running. last week i tried an easy 3-miler. eh, not so much the easy. i felt like i was going sooo slow. turns out, i was. i took me like 30 minutes. come on now.

then, last thursday, i tried again. i've been having some tough emotional problems, so i really wanted to push myself to pain. it worked! i ran 6 miles in the heat and almost died. well, almost fainted anyway. it was the toughest most grueling run i have done in a verrry long time. i could barely see straight, and on the 5th mile hill, i was going so slow, i was almost walking. the dehydration was incredibly taxing. my mom was pisssssssed...

today i am trying a 4-miler. but this time, i am waiting for the SUN to go away, and i am NOT doing hills. we'll see if i come back alive.

on a related note, it's like everyone and their mother is doing the LB half this year. WTF?

next post topic: running apparel! why i need to fork over hundreds of dollars on shoes, shorts, shirts, and other crap. spare watch, anyone?