Dashing into 2010

It's the New Year and I had a race on January 1st, so it looks that I have three jobs to do in today's post: assess last year, set goals for this year, and recap the race. I thought blogs were supposed to be fun and that sounds like a lot of work. Let me see if I can get through the boring stuff and so I can talk about the race, which of course is the fun stuff.

Eight weeks ago, I set four goals to get me through the last eight weeks of the year. My conclusion? The last eight weeks of the year isn't the best time to be setting goals. We had our trip to IM Florida, travel for Thanksgiving, a trip to Vegas, Christmas, New Years... does that sound like a list of excuses? I knew you were smart. Here is what happened combined with the goals for 2010.

Strength Training The goal was to continue hitting the gym twice a week with the benchmark of doing three sets of 15 push ups. While I didn't make it to the gym twice each week, for some reason I can now do three sets of 15 push ups. Maybe I was fatigued before and that's why I had trouble cranking out the push ups. Whatever the reason, I somehow made my goal without doing the work. For 2010, I'll keep up with my twice a week lifting schedule and see if I can legitimately make some gains in strength that will help with with my racing and maybe keep me healthy.

Flexibility The goal was to make it to yoga six out of the eight weeks. How many times did I make it? One. My only accomplishment in this area was that I bought a yoga DVD. I haven't even taken the shrink wrap off of it, but it is in my house. I've decided that with running 4 days a week and lifting 2 days, making it to the gym for yoga one day a week is not going to happen. For 2010, my goal is to do a better job of stretching at home and to fit yoga in when I can.

Nutrition I was supposed to lose 5 pounds. What did I lose? One pound. Does that even count? I mean, I feel a little dehydrated, so I'll probably have a glass of water and be back to where I started. This is back on the list of things to accomplish for 2010. I hope to get the pounds lost before I have to wear spandex in front of a crowd again.

Running Finally, something that I said that I would do and I actually did. The goal was 160 miles and I hit 165. Yeah! Goal for 2010: run a fall marathon with no pain. Sounds like a simple goal, but there is so much that goes into making that happen. I have at least 10 months to drone on about every facet of this goal, so for now I will just leave it at that. Hopefully it will be the New York City Marathon, but if I don't get in I will find another one.

Whew! I didn't like all of that. Accountability... yuck!

Polar Dash Race Review

New Year's Day, the temperature was zero. Hey, let's go run a 10K race. That sounds fun! Well, it didn't sound fun, but Mike and I headed downtown with our friends Josh and Jennifer. We got there early enough to park close to the start line and then sat in the car waiting for it to get close to race time. For the hour that we sat there, I mostly irritated the group by fretting over my clothing selections. I had brought layers of various thicknesses, and arriving at the ultimate combination of layers is a science. I don't want to be cold waiting for the start, but I don't want to get hot during the race. What to wear in the cold is a big deal for me. Sorry, it's just the way I am.

With 10 minutes until start time, we jumped out of the car and snapped a couple pictures. I didn't post the one with Jennifer in it because all you can see is her eyeballs. Here we are with Josh before jogging to the start line.

Josh was running the 5K which wasn't chip timed and Mike planned to run fast, so they waded to the front. Jennifer and I found two other running friends, Lisa and Cindy, and we lined up at the 10:00 pace line. Within minutes we were off. There was no wind and the group kept us warm for the short time we were standing around.

The four of us girls ran and chatted and had a great time. All of us were just out there to have fun and to start the New Year off on the right foot. The streets were clear and the course was very nice with a few rolling hills. We stopped mid-race to snap a picture. The guy we gave the camera to was having a hard time figuring it out, and he was kind of joking around and being silly. I finally said, "Let's go, it is a race you know!" Not very nice of me, but I was getting cold and the clock was ticking. Here we are:

It's a cute picture and I should be more patient. Sorry I snapped at you, picture man.

I finished the race in 1:01:43 which is a 9:56 mile. That's not bad for taking it easy and stopping for a photo op. Here I am with Cindy heading for the finish:

Here are the girls showing off the very nifty medals. These medals are super cool and were worth braving the cold.

Both Mike and Josh PR'ed and I was very happy with my run, so it was a great day. The most important thing: my clothing choice was impeccable! I wasn't cold at the start and I was comfortable for the entire race. Of course, I noted what I was wearing and the conditions so that I can use this information for future clothing decisions.

The Polar Dash is part of a 4 race series that I am doing this year. I hope that this race is a good indicator of what is to come because it was a lot of fun and was well coordinated. Having friends to run with is hard to beat, too. I didn't get to see Julie or Amy out there. The sun was really bright and it was hard to spot the 5K'ers when they passed us on their way back. Hope to see both of them at a future race!

Welcome, 2010! So far it's off to a good start.

Working Out the Kinks

My triathlon last weekend pointed out some things I need to work on. My number one problem during the race was my wetsuit. As I complained about at length, I couldn't get the wetsuit off over my calves. The wetsuit that I rented was a couple years old and had reinforced knees. This area wasn't very stretchy and resulted in me being frustrated during T1. In my own defense, I don't think my calves are extra large. I thought that the numbers on my arms and legs were cool, so Mike took a picture of my calves. Here's a picture so you can judge for yourself:

See? I think my calves are a pretty normal size. If you think they are big, I would appreciate your keeping your thoughts to yourself, thank you.

Living in Minnesota, the temps are still dropping into the 40's at night. It's going to be quite a while before the lakes warm up enough that I'm going to be happy swimming without a wetsuit. During the race, I noticed how much easier it is to swim with one. I like the extra safety that the buoyancy adds, too.When I returned the rental on Monday, it also happened to be my birthday. I decided that it was time to buy my own, proper fitting wetsuit. So here it is, my new swimming partner:

This Blue Seventy is not only girlie and cute, but it is super flexible. I was able to get it off in the changing room in 30 seconds. Yeah! For my birthday, my parents gave me a super cool Blue Seventy triathlon bag. Us girls love it when our accessories are coordinated!

I'm going to try it out for the first time tomorrow with a lake swim with a friend. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will keep me warm and afloat. This will be my first real open water workout, so I'm a little excited and a little more nervous. I'll let you know how it goes!

Outfit Test Drive

What do guys have to do to get dressed for a long race? I'm guessing they do some nipple protection, strap on the Garmin/Polar/watch of their choice, throw on some old clothes and head out the door.

Women? Not so simple. We want to look good while we are racing. What is the point of running a marathon if your race picture looks terrible? Yes, I know there is still a point to it, but it sure is a lot more fun when you look cute and fast in those finish line photos. I ran the Gopher to Badger Half Marathon in some Race Ready shorts. They were perfect in that they held all of my GU's and emergency Imodium, but when I saw the race pictures? Not so flattering on my legs. I'm sure that on other people's legs they would be mighty attractive, but on me they just hit me in the wrong spot. It was a tough race and I PR'ed. Did I buy a picture? No way.

With two really long runs left before the Fargo Marathon, its time to test drive an outfit and see how it performs under pressure. On Saturday, I'm going to be doing the Ron Daws 25K (15.3 miles) plus an extra 4.7 miles to get my 20 miles. The weather is supposed to be craptastic. The forecast says there is a 30% chance of a rain/snow mix with temps in the morning right around 40 degrees. Given that Fargo just got snow dumped on them again and the marathon is only 5 weeks away, that may be pretty close to race day conditions.

My husband is probably thinking, "Honey, you ran the Twin Cities Marathon in the exact same weather conditions just last Fall. Why don't you just wear that same outfit?" Silly man, I don't want to run two marathons in the same outfit. Does a movie star go to the Oscars in the same dress that she wore last year? No, no, no. Get with the program. If signing up for a marathon isn't a shopping opportunity, then I don't know what is.

Dick's Sporting Goods... I love to go to Dick's so much that, when we pass it on the highway, my husband tries to distract me so I won't insist that we stop. With recent economic conditions being what they are, I have tried to avoid going there as much as possible since I am incapable of leaving the store without a pair of Nike Tempo Shorts or a 1/4 zip top in my shopping bag. Needing a marathon outfit was the perfect excuse to go and I caved.

While I am usually an Nike girl, I will be test driving a pair of Under Armour shorts and tank top at this weekend's race. I really don't like to be hot while I'm running, so I'll take a throw away shirt for the start and dump it after I warm up. I'm still having sock problems, so I'll be trying to work that out, too. It looks like this race only has 3 stops and only serves water, so I may have to wear my hydration belt with some Gatorade Powerade. Jenny just took a job at Coke and the Fargo Marathon serves Powerade, so I'm trying to convert.

Jenny and Guy are running also, so I'll ask one of them to take a test picture of me so I can see the outfit's photogenic qualities. I'll also be assessing comfort, wicking, and chaffing issues. I hope this outfit passes the test. Of course, if it doesn't, I guess that means I'll just have to start all over and shop for a new outfit. This being a girl thing is tough. Good thing I'm up to the challenge!

Pesky Little Details

As I mentioned, I got quite a blister on my toe after my terrible slogfest on the treadmill last Thursday. Oh, the agony. The blister is right by my toe nail, so every step is complete torture. When I try to sleep at night, my toe throbs and complains with every touch of the sheets. Isn't it funny how we can suffer terrible pain and mental anguish during a marathon and come out smiling, but walking around with a blister is unbearable and makes us snap at strangers and family alike?

After careful examination and experimentation, I have determined that my sock is the culprit. Either my feet have grown or my socks have shrunk because the end of the sock shwoops down and presses on my toe. Apparently, after 17 miles my toe has had enough of the sock pressure and revolts.

I went to my local running store yesterday to pick a replacement. This is dangerous territory. If I get a sock that is too big, then it will bunch up under my foot and cause a blister on the bottom of my foot... that would be a catastrophe. A sock that is too thin may not protect my foot from rubbing. I've tried the two layer socks and they are not for me. After 20 minutes, this is what I picked out:

They are Smartwool PhD Running Socks. At $12.49, they may very well be the most expensive pair of socks I have ever bought. They say The Highest Degree of PERFORMANCE on them, so I figured I would try them out. I ran 6 miles with them today and they were great! I was worried that they would be hot since they are Smartwool, but they seemed fine.

The real test will my 19 miler coming up on Thursday. The weather forecast looks perfect with a low of 28 and a high of 46.

I had figured that long distance running would be hard and painful. I didn't realize, though, how many little details had to be worked out. Does your hydration bottle jiggle up and down when you run? Does your GU fall out of your pocket? Does the iPod case you wear around your arm keep slipping down? Do your headphones make your ears bleed after hours and hours of wear? All of these annoying little things can take lots of time and money to work out. If you don't figure them out, they will slowly drive you crazy and sap all of the joy out of your run.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my toe and my new socks get along. 19 miles will be hard enough without thinking about my socks!