New Years Double - Race Recap!!!

I have stewed and stewed over this race recap, and I figured there is just no way I can explain to you the experience, so I'll just give you the best overview I can.  The New Years Double was thought up, developed, and directed by a friend of mine, Libby Jones (no we're not related!).  Two races - New Years Eve and New Years Day.  Four distances - 5k, 2-person Half Marathon Relay, Half Marathon, and Marathon.  You could do any combination of the available distances on the available days. 

I chose to do a half marathon on New Years Eve and a full marathon on New Years Day.  The course was a quarter-marathon out and back loop.  This meant that you got to see and pass frunners All. Day. Long.  It was amazing.   I, of course, did my best to convince the Racing It Off team that Libby always puts on a good event and that it was the place to be.  Despite it causing most of them to miss an evening of New Years celebration, most of the team was on board.  It was a party!

Day 1:  New Years Eve

The weather was perfectly cool.  The team was ready to go.

Holly C, Denya, Monica, Christina, Samantha, Me, Sabrina, Christie, and Emily

The goal for day 1 was to run a nice easy 13.1 for two reasons - first, this double was a training run for the ultra and I didn't want to shred my legs, and secondly, I needed to pace Denya for her first full on New Years and wanted to be physically feeling good so that I could focus on supporting her.

The plan was to keep Emily company, but she had a nagging hamstring issue, so we agree to play the day by ear.  I ran with my camera, which led to me snapping a lot of frunner pics on course...

Michelle K

Amanda, Dana, and Marcie

Greg (aka "Ninja")

I enjoyed the day, enjoyed the beautiful weather, enjoyed seeing great friends on the looped course.  I spent the first 8 or 9 miles with Emily feeling good and telling stories... but I knew her hamstring was really bothering her.  She made the wise decision to preserve her body and take it easy the rest of the way in, so as another Racing It Off runner, Monica, caught up to us, I headed out with Monica to run with her for the rest of her half.  Monica was having tummy troubles, so I'm glad I got to distract her a little for the remainder of the miles.  And she finished strong!  We all knew we had another day of running ahead, so we all tried to be pretty conservative on the pacing.

 Libby, the amazing race director (in blue), with her sister, Elaine

Back - Heidi, Fiona, Me, Monica, Jenn, Emily

Front - Corina, Elaine

That evening, Libby had arranged a free viewing at the local theater of Spirit of the Marathon!  Really cool perk to the race.  I had a blast at the movie, then continued out to dinner with a big group of friends and then home to get some sleep.  Yes, this is how a runner parties on New Years Eve.

Day 2 - New Years Day

New Years was a big day for many reasons.  First and foremost... I was pacing Denya to her first marathon.  She's the first person I have coached to a full marathon.  I was more nervous than I was for my first marathon because I wanted to make sure I was present for her and ready to be supportive.  Secondly, it was the last 26 miles of my highest mileage week ever.  So I wanted to get through well to know that I could  handle the miles in the upcoming ultra.

The team was PUMPED and ready to go.  The mission of the day was Team Denya - get her to the finish line!

Holly C, Christina, Samantha, Me, Denya, Monica, and Sabrina

I have to start by saying that the awesome Shannon of IronTexasMommy was my partner-in-crime for the day.  Shannon was on day 2 of back-to-back marathons and ready to slow her roll and help me pace Denya to her first marathon.  I can't say enough about what she added to the day... we had SO much fun together and kept each other motivated which helped us keep our spirits up for Denya.  And it was nice to let her be the motivator for Denya at the moments where I know Denya wanted to wring my neck!!!

Note to self - self-photography is rarely flattering.

Denya was excited and ready to keep the day steady at 12:00 min/mile.  Again, I was crazy with the photos of frunners. 

Super-fast Sombrero Paul 

Samantha and Christina joking around to make Denya laugh!

Holly C and Monica!

Denya and Me

Denya was amazing.  She kept it steady through mile 20 or so, and then the exhaustion of the day definitely hit her (haven't we ALL been there?).  Shannon and I were being completely whacked out and dancing on the course - the sprinkler, roping cattle, doing the wave, attempting the running man while running... whatever we could think of.  By the 4th loop, we would do a dance for almost every runner who passed to try to get a smile!

The last 6+ miles were a little bit of struggle, but Denya has the most amazing determination... and she pushed through strong.  I am SO proud of this lady.  She is inspiring!  Congratulations on your first marathon, Denya!!!

And check out the double-day bling:

All of the Racing It Off girls accomplished amazing goals.  Frunners finished inspiring distances.  But I can't resist calling out this one special finish... Elaine, who had planned back-to-back halves, decided New Years Day morning to go for the full... and knocked it out of the park... literally... with a massive PR!!!

For me, this marathon symbolized a great accomplishment as a coach - getting Denya healthy and happy across the finish line (and fyi, she was texting me about marathon 2 before she even got home)... it was also the finish to a 71 mile week, and my legs felt GREAT, which really made me feel like I was on track for this ultra.  And lastly, this marathon qualified me for Marathon Maniacs - #4850.

All-in-all... a great race, a fantastic experience, and I will be back next year... but for the back-to-back fulls!

Setting Mileage Goals

I'm probably a  little late on this post since we're almost at the end of January... but oh well.

Mileage goals seem to be a big deal in the world of runners.  Most runners pick some random number of miles that they think he/she is capable of, and then wait and see how the year pans out.  In truth, I'm not a huge fan of mileage goals.  Yes, I succumb to peer pressure and love to see the mileage rack up as much as the next runner, but mileage goals are never my priority.

So here's my love and hate about mileage goals:
Love - Goals are a positive thing and keep you motivated.
Hate - It doesn't allow for injuries and "life happens" times throughout the year.
Love - It forces you into good, consistent running.
Hate - It encourages quantity over quality.
Love - It makes for a great sense of accomplishment when you hit the milestone.
Hate - Sometimes it forces people into massive over-training during the last months to "catch up".

The question then becomes, how do you set a mileage goal but avoid the pitfalls.

First - Pick an easily attainable goal based on your training schedule for the year.  Did you run 600+ miles last year and have a schedule full of half marathons this year?  1000 miles might be a good goal.  But maybe you live on the surface of the sun (i.e. Texas, Arizona, etc) and don't run much in the summers, you need to consider that.  Maybe you hit 1000 last year and have marathons on your outlook this year and 1500 would be an attainable goal.  Whatever it is, don't go too outlandish... just like you ramp up slowly on weekly mileage, don't force yourself into a 2000 mile year when you just finished an 800 mile year.

Next - Plan it out.  You don't want to be stuck with 300 miles left to run in December when you're thinking about Santa Claus and egg nog.  Write out your year with your races and planned mileage.  The best way to hit your goal is to make sure you are on track at least monthly.  And remember, there will probably be higher months around marathons and lower months after in recovery or in the hot summer.  What you don't want is to end up running "junk" miles just to boost your numbers when those excess miles could potentially be a detriment to your training.

Finally - Don't be stupid.  Seems easy, right?  Well, when you want to hit that mileage goal and have some nagging shin pain, it's easy to just go ahead and push through and hit the goal.  You have to be smart enough to draw the line.  Think about the goals that are most important to you - a new distance, a new PR, or whatever... and focus on being healthy and properly trained for that.  Ultimately, mileage is just a number and that number is relative to the person running it.


Be consistent.  Consistency is the key to having a good mileage year.

Make interim goals.  Monthly and quarterly will help make sure you stay on track.

Be aware.  If your body is telling you that you need a break, don't run just to hit a mileage goal.  In goals like this, it is important to be smart enough to let go of it when it's the right decision for your body.

Team Gab and a Day on the Trails

If you don't know about Giraffy's awesome virtual race for Team Gabby, you much go CHECK IT OUT.  If you don't know, Gabby (Giraffy's youngest kiddo) was diagnosed with leukemia a year ago.

I was honored to help support Team Gabby!!!  I decided to run the half marathon since I'm in taper for Rocky Raccoon 50-miler.  I was afraid Coach Adam might kill me if I ran a marathon during taper - although you all know I was tempted.

The plan today was to hit the trails!!!  I was really excited to go to a trail that is right down the street from me that I'm always too afraid to go on alone - fear of getting lost.  The Rowlett Creek Trails are a series of 14 small loops.  After a crazy busy morning, I met a great crew of frunners at around 8:30am (Libby, Alicia, Catherine, Lisa, Kristi, and Mahima).  I am so thankful that there are really great people willing to meet me for this run that I felt I needed before Rocky Raccoon in 2 weeks.

We headed out on several small loops... first loop was 1.65 because we missed a turnoff... oops!  I guess that's better than getting lost 10 miles from the parking lot!  The second loop we finished just past 6 miles.  Loop 3, we got to explore one of the slightly more difficult loops, and I really enjoyed it despite the ginormous hill that we wasted 5 minutes staring over wondering who was gonna go first.  There was some squealing during the decent, and we all felt better when we saw a dude on his bike sitting at the top of the incline with the exact same look on his face as we had a few minutes before.  That loop finished at 9 miles.

By the last loop, it was just me and Libby.  I was fatigued from 8 miles of speedwork on Friday (which was the goal... to have to run this on fatigued legs) and Libby is coming back after surgery and had an intense workout with her trainer yesterday.  There might have been some moaning and whining from both parties in those last miles, but we hit the car at 13.9 miles and called it a day.  3 hrs and 24 minutes on the trails was plenty of time on feet for this girl!!! No falls, no major issues, lots of time on trails... and now the taper gets serious!

Now, it's your turn!!!  Go sign up for Giraffy's Virtual Race and run *your* race!

Never Say Never

No, I am *not* going to break into a Justin Bieber song.  Did I even spell Bieber right?

Let's take a short trip down memory lane.

Once upon a time, in a small town in Virginia... there was this girl (with a really bad perm-gone-wrong):

This girl claimed she was not athletic and a total clutz (she was right).  She lived in nerd-ville and liked it.  Her mom's boss ran marathons... she thought he was totally out of his mind.  She hated even 40 minutes of gym class.

Then came college.  This girl was a little different:

She put on weight fast in the first year of college, so by year 2, she took up running.  Don't ask how far or how fast... she didn't know... she just ran in the early mornings - rain or shine.  But I'd guess it was no more than 2-3 miles, ever.  She lost the freshman weight and got healthy...

Finally graduation came, and it was time to get a big girl job.  This girl continued to run, but again - no clue how far or how fast.  Probably only a couple miles.  And then a co-worker convinced her to race... 5ks, 10k, then a marathon relay... (most the races were in 1998 and 1999...)

Then somewhere after that... she fell off the wagon.  Job, then marriage, then this:

Then #2:

Then leaving the big girl job, which also added some stress weight.  Then #3:

About 50 lbs more than before she had kids... it was time for a change.  She committed to a half marathon...

She said she would NEVER do a marathon, but she did...

She said she'd NEVER do another marathon, but she did...

Also, finally down the 50 lbs she gained during those child-bearing years...

Pretty sure she also said she'd NEVER do an ultra, but she *WILL*...

And at this point, there's only one thing she'll NEVER do... she will NEVER promise not to go further or faster or harder in her running.  

I don't know what lies ahead, but I have learned that limitations are only self-imposed.  

What would you NEVER do?

Going Long...

Most of you know that currently my head is wrapped around my first ultra - Rocky Raccoon 50-miler.  I am determined to go into this race prepared.  I am crossing my t's and dotting my i's the best way I know how.  When I first started training, the plans varied greatly between what I thought was too little and plans that made me nauseous even thinking about them.  I made my own plan that was somewhere down the middle of the road... enough miles to know my legs can carry me and that my mind is ready, but not so much that my body hits overload and breakdown.

My coach, Adam, is pretty much awesomesauce, and when I come up with a hair-brained idea, he's usually all behind it (or else he tells me I'm insane, but knows that I'll do it anyway).  I'm pretty stubborn, and I like to convince him that my ideas were his ideas all along.  Seriously, he couldn't charge enough to have to deal with me.

So my big training run was the New Years Double.  Conservative pace, back-to-back half marathon with full marathon.  Perfect 50-miler training - which involves a lot of back-to-back long runs.  The week after that I used for "recovery"... which in Lesley-world is a little different... but we pulled the miles significantly back from my 71 mile week to a 43 mile week - which ended with an 8-14 as my back-to-back long runs.  I have been feeling exceptionally good and this week had been planned as another peak mileage week with long runs of 14-22.  Buuuuuuuut, I felt so great on New Years, that I was really craving the mental boost that a super long run would give me... more so than back-to-backs.

I did discuss my plan with Adam.  He knew better than to say no when I have a plan for epicness.  Mind you, he knows I care about this race too much to blow it by being stupid.  He knows that I'm aware of my body and if I feel something alarmingly off, I'll stop before I screw something up... but I presented my idea to him.  14+22  = 36 miles... so how about I only run 6 on Friday and go for 30 on Saturday?  This was it... this was what I would need to just give me that extra mental edge.

I won't lie, I was a little scared of the thought.  I knew if I had a horrid 30-miler, I would be destroyed mentally for Rocky Raccoon... but I knew that if I could just pull out a good day, somehow, some way, I would have a great advantage on race day.

I planned the day, and my friends did not disappoint offering to pace me on my various loops.  The plan was 3 loops - 12 miles, 9 miles, and 9 miles.  The plan was to also imitate race day as much as possible - hydration pack on, PB&J and coke at the end of each loop like that ultra aid-stations, GU in-between, NUUN in the pack,  clothing changes just in case.  We even started in the dark, and I got to try out my Knuckle Lights (review coming - I loved them).  I had picked a comfortably easy pace so that I kept everything in check and could pull the whole run off.

Loop 1 - 12 miles - Christina, Samantha, and Robin D joined me.  This was the longest of the loops and things were feeling nice and easy.  The 30 degree temps actually felt nice - like having my hips and knees iced while we ran. We stayed right on pace.  At the end of the loop, I took a quick break at the car for food and to change to a lighter top.

Loop 2 - 9 miles - Robin D stayed with me.  Woman is a rock of support.  I run way slower than her, but she has run by my side many times when I needed someone.  The temps were warming to about the mid 40s and things felt nice, BUT a race was starting right as we started this loop... so you know we got caught up in that, and I pushed a few miles at a pace a bit faster than planned, but things were still fine.  We took a few walk breaks this loop, much like I will in the ultra - particularly on wobbly bridges and any hills.

Loop 3 - 9 miles - Elaine joined me after busting butt teaching class at the gym.  So we were both in the stage of jello legs, but my mental game was ON.  I felt great, I was still smiling, and I was pumped to conquer this.  She surprised me with Race Bibs that she made for us... the CSI 30-miler!

She was worried that I might not wear it, but no way, it went right on!  (She also brought me a peppermint GU which was yum!)   Believe it or not, I felt pretty good and happy the whole loop.  We walked the hills and bridges... and I did have to take one slightly longer walk when my hip felt a bit off... but all was well, and we even ended the loop with a sprint to our cars!

30 miles DONE in a little over 6 hours... right on planned pace.  I feel good... really good... surprisingly good.  I was fine mentally.  I was glad to be done, but honestly, could've gone further if I had to.  I am sore, but nothing major... just minor post-long-run stuff - a little in the left hip and really minor in the knees.

I'm really glad that I decided to take the leap and do this run... I feel confident and ready.  I'm coming for you Rocky Raccoon!!!

I love...

I love that my 3-year-old tells me she's busy texting her coach when I ask her to do something.

I love that when I come home from running, my kids ask me if I got a medal.

I love that if I take my 7-year old out for a run, she asks "are we running 5k?" And if I follow up with "What's a 5k?" She immediately answers with "3.1 miles."

I love that after I take my 2 older kids to school, the first thing out of my 3-year-old's mouth is "Are we going to the gym?"

I love that if I need it, my kids know the 3 possible locations for my Garmin.

I love that after a race or long weekend run, my kids know to bring a movie and crawl into bed with me so I can chillax for awhile.

I love that if my kids witness me eating something new, they ask if it's good "fuel" for a runner.


Our kids are watching us.  The best way to teach them that exercise is fun and healthy and positive is to show them through our actions.

Yes, I'm a Goal-Maker - 2012 Here I Come!!!

Love it or hate it, I'm a goal setter with my running... I focused better if I have something written down and keep my eye on the running ball!  So here's my list for 2012...

Health:
Eat more fruits and veggies - This is non-specific, but that's ok... I just want to eat a little cleaner than last year without putting hard restrictions on myself that I can't follow!

Knowledge:
Read the Stack of Running Books on my Night Stand - So much good info and inspiration, and I need to carve out the time to actually read them.

Fitness:
Become an ultra-runner - Scheduled for February 4th.  50 miles or bust!!!

Qualify for Marathon Maniacs - DONE! - Accomplished 1/1/12!!!  Maniac #4850

Run at least 12 races. - This seems silly for a race-aholic, but I hope to do a lot more marathons this year which means I'm going to have to give up some of the other races so that I can get in the right miles.  I think last year, I ran almost every weekend in January and February and I'm giving that up so I can focus on the ultra.

Run at least 2 races of each type (5k, 10k, 15k, Half, and Marathon). - Keeping this one because it reminds me to get some variety in my schedule.

Stay injury-free

2000 miles - I usually don't like mileage goals because sometimes it tempts me to run "junk" miles... going for quantity and thus dumping quality, but I think considering all the marathons I have planned, this goal should be attainable if I stay trained and consistent.

Time Goals:
5k - 24:XX
10k - sub-9 pace per mile.
15K - sub-9 pace per mile.
Half Marathon - 2:00
Full Marathon - 4:20

You ready to rock this year?  I just signed up for 2 more races this morning... so this is what my calendar is looking like so far for this year:
1/1/12 New Years Day Marathon - DONE!
1/29/12 Austin 3M Half Marathon
2/4/12 Rocky Raccoon 50-miler
2/26/12 Cowtown Half Marathon
3/25/12 Rock n Roll Dallas Half
3/30-4/1/12 Texas Independence Relay
4/15/12 Big D Marathon
4/29/12 Oklahoma City Marathon
5/28/12 The Patriot Half Marathon
6/25/12 Rock n Roll Seattle Marathon
9/22/12 Rock n Roll Denver Marathon
11/18/12 Route 66 Marathon
12/4/12 White Rock Marathon
12/31/12 New Years Eve Marathon

(HINT:  Today is the last day -1/5 - but you can use code RESOLVE to take $15 off any Rock n Roll race.)

This is the year of the full!!!  Please legs, don't fail me now!

2011 - An Epic Year

I think this is a required post at the end of each year, and I'm a little behind! 

I set out some goals at the beginning of this year, and it's time to see how I stacked up:

Health:

Cut processed sugar. - Major FAIL.
Reduce fast food to no more than once per week. - Success for the most part.
Lose 18 lbs. - Done, Gone, Never coming back.

Knowledge:
Complete RRCA Coaching Certification. - Complete and one of the best decisions I ever made.

Fitness:
Run at least 12 races. - Was this really a question?  I ran 27 races this year.
Run at least 2 races of each type (5k, 10k, 15k, Half, and Marathon). - Done (3 5ks, 4 10ks, 3 15ks, 13 Halfs, 1 20-miler, and 3 Marathons)
Stay injury-free. - Done.  Woo-hoo!
Incorporate weekly speedwork. - Done, for the most part...
Incorporate weekly cross-training and/or strengthening. - Yeah, giant FAIL.
2011km (1250 miles) - I'm going for quality over quantity this year! - Done.

Time Goals:

5k - sub-26 - Done!!! - 25:14

10k - sub-1:00 - Done!!! - 56:10

15K - sub-1:30 - Done!!! - 1:26:52

Half Marathon - 2:05 - Fail - Think this is definitely in my capability, but with all the marathons, I didn't have many opportunities to race a half hard... I spent most halves pacing someone and conserving my body for all the fulls.  My PR is 2:09 set this past March.

Full Marathon - 4:30 - Fail - White Rock was my shot at this, and the day just didn't pull together as planned, but it was a great PR day nonetheless, and I will take my 4:44 and be happy!

2011 was a fantastic year of running for me.  It was the first year I was completely consistent.  I felt like I stayed on track all year. 

Monthly miles 2011 (vs 2010)
January - 82 (vs. 77)
February - 81 (vs. 52)
March - 146 (vs. 79)
April - 169 (vs. 134)
May - 207 (vs. 63)
June - 116 (vs. 37)
July - 133 (vs. 77)
August - 186 (vs. 81)
September - 186 (vs. 150)
October - 174 (vs. 145)
November - 154 (vs. 124)
December - 201 (vs. 64)

Total mileage:  1837 (vs. 1135)

I closed out the year with my highest mileage week ever - 71!  I did have the help of the New Years Double... race report coming soon!!!

But none of those numbers made as big of a difference as the number 20!  That was the number of members on the Racing It Off team at the end of the year.  They provide me more motivation, inspiration, laughs, tears, etc than I deserve, and I love each of them dearly for it!