Well Badwater is out of the picture

I am feeling much better today, though my heart aches for those in Oklahoma. I can't even imagine what it is like to live through something like that and then realize you have nothing left. Though even in dark times there are always stories that make your heart smile. This one of a woman finding her dog is my personal favorite. The bravery of the first responders, teachers and average citizen is amazing.

After being told what is up by the heat during Sunday's marathon I am sad to say that I will not be running Badwater.

From the website: Covering 135 miles (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F (55c), it is the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet. The 36th anniversary edition will be held July 15-17, 2013.

 Now I never had any intention of running Badwater. But my inability to handle heat very well has taken me out of the running for that. Not that I ever wanted to run that but just so everyone knows in case you found this blog and were like this person has Badwater badass written all over them. Nope sorry, not happening.

Since warmer temps have arrived I thought I would share this interesting article with you all about training in the heat.

 Basically:  heat impacts runners at a physiological level through various means, including dehydration, increased heart rate and reduced blood flow (and subsequently oxygen) to the muscles used for running.
But what really matters apparently is the dew point. The higher the dew point the less sweat can evaporate off your skin to cool you. For Sunday's marathon the dew point was around 65 with humidity around 75% with temps in the upper 70's and 80'. Gross.

DEW POINT (°F)	RUNNER'S PERCEPTION	HOW TO HANDLE
50–54	Very comfortable	PR conditions
55–59	Comfortable	Hard efforts likely not affected
60–64	Uncomfortable for some people	Expect race times to be slower than in optimal conditions
65–69	Uncomfortable for most people	Easy training runs might feel OK but difficult to race well or do hard efforts
70–74	Very humid and uncomfortable	Expect pace to suffer greatly
75 or greater	Extremely oppressive	Skip it or dramatically alter goal

Tips to beat the heat:
- run early
- stick to shaded paths if possible
-fill your handheld or hydration pack with ice and ice water to help you stay cool
-ease into running in the heat- workouts will seem harder until you adjust
-stay hydrated
-take up Mai Tai drinking by pools or other bodies of water until cooler temps roll around again (okay maybe not).

How do you handle hot and humid summer temps?

Throw me a bone here

This morning I woke up feeling fine but tired. Took Max for a stroll and went to work. I joked with a co-worker about wanting to call in tired and zitty (sweating for multiple hours does not equal a gorgeous complexion the next day) and should not have done that because by 10:30 I felt like death. Shaky, feverish and like I was going to puke on someone. So I called it a day, grabbed multiple Gatorades on the way home and tried to nap in a cool place. (Not sure if it is marathon exhaustion or whatever crud is floating around the office this week.)

And then lay there listening to my lawn being mowed (yay for landscaper, boo for timing) and finally almost fell asleep when I got a call from work. WTF. Ahhhhhhh give me a break. If I am not at work- then I am hard pressed to care about what is going on at work. Unless it is on fire- do not call me.

I do not excel at napping apparently. 

Some funny things that happened yesterday during the marathon:

Apparently nature was not a huge fan of me running this marathon, besides the heat nature threw a couple other hurdles at me.

1) Mosquitoes- I got a couple bites while out there. If you run faster is this less of a problem?
2) I startled a deer at one point and it was running right next to me for a few moments which was cool until it dashed in front of me across the path and scared the crap out of me. Glad it didn't try to plow through me. Heart was beating fast enough thank you very much.
3) I inhaled one of those cotton floaty things from trees and I swear that thing was stuck to the back of my throat for at least twenty minutes. Bleh.
4) Bumble bee attack- no actual stinging or anything- it was one of those big fat ones, do they even sting? But it would not leave me alone.
5) Bug in the eye. I had a visor and sunglasses on- come on now how did it even get in there? Skills.

Long story short if you disturb me while I am trying to nap I get very ragey

 and nature is conspiring against me. 

Chicagoland Spring Marathon Race Review

At mile 16 when I got the chills, felt like I wanted to vomit and realized that temps were getting up to the upper 80s I knew I was in trouble. Actually I think I knew when I turned the air conditioner on in the car on the way to the race. I got another clue that today was going to be rough when within the first mile I had sweated through my shirt. But I will get there.

Rewind- lets start with packet pick-up. The one thing I really like about All Community Events is their race day packet pick-up. This saves me about two hours of driving the day before. So when I showed up this morning (an hour away from my home) and packet pick-up was a bit unorganized and took awhile I didn't really get that annoyed. Waiting in line for ten minutes is better than the alternative. And you people in line before me that were throwing a mini shit fit about waiting- GO THE DAY BEFORE.

 After getting my number, stashing my bag and shirt in the car and hitting the loo one more time. It was go time. The half marathon and marathon started at the same time with pacers for both distances I believe. I stuck by the 10:18 pacer with the goal of sticking with it for as long as possible. My original goal was to try to stick it out the whole way. The thing about pacers is they let you turn your brain off and just run. Super helpful. If it had been about 40 degrees cooler I might have been able to stick it out. I felt good- no lingering fatigue or pain from the last marathon. And my weird butt pain from Saturday, though still there, did not hurt while running. The only logical conclusion is my butt hurts from sitting on it so much the last two weeks (I am ready to get back to training on a regular schedule after I recover- I miss training).

 The course was pretty nice for the most part, through the forest preserve. I think this course was prettier than the Wisconsin course. I really like running through the forest preserves. The worst part was the first three and the last three miles which were on a concrete road, no shade, close to the freeway, and uphill towards the finish- just cruel man.

There were so many great things about this race. Pacer Donna, Joe and Nicole were three of the great things. They were my own pace group for over half the race. It was so fun to chat with them and joke around. They really made the miles fly and I loved running with them. When we eventually split- Donna and Nicole to dominate and Joe and I to slow for the heat it was fun to see them and cheer them on during the out and backs. Thank you guys for making this race more fun. Donna was at the finish and even gave me a hug- which says a lot about her because I was basically a giant, smelly salt block at that point. Best pacer ever!

Other great things- the volunteers who were handing out ice towards the end, helped dump water over my head and let me take a million cups all at once. And the cheering- thanks for cheering even though it was hot for you too all I am sure.

Random race angel who was actually there for the person you had trained for the marathon and who I happened to be running by for most of the race and also gave me a bottle of Gatorade and ice to stick in my sports bra. I don't even like grape flavored Gatorade but due to the heat it was the best tasting beverage I have had in a long time. Thank you for being awesome!

The two ladies and gentleman I ran with towards the end who shared a bag of ice with me around the midpoint of the race. Thank you- your ice got me through the next few miles to the next aid station. And everyone else who was running and dying of heat stroke but managed to cheer me on, share a laugh or just run in silence together for a few miles.

This is why I like races so dang much. I feel like I get to see the best of people. Too much we see the bad on the news or at work or while out and about during our everyday lives. Races are a chance to see people at their best even when uncomfortable, hot and tired. It is a magical thing.

I stuck with my plan until about mile 15. That is when I realized the heat was getting the best of me and I needed to not overheat. I do not do well in the heat. You would think with living in Arizona I would be a better heat runner but I am not. I could feel my heart pounding way too hard and the first sign I am getting overheated is when I get the chills after being super hot and sweaty for awhile. Once I got the chills I switched to running slow in the shade and trying to do a brisk walk through the sunny parts- which were very frequent the last half. I also dumped cold water on my head at every stop and stuffed ice down the front and back of my sports bra every time I could find it. Towards the end I didn't even notice the ice cooling me down. Not a great sign. I saw the ambulance out several times during the race with lights flashing- goal towards mile 20 was to not get a ride in that thing.

Not gonna lie the last few miles were not fun. They were hot and all I could do was my brisk walk because every time I tried to run I felt ill. On the plus side though this race was not my greatest performance pace wise I learned that I can tough it out, know my limits and can finish a marathon in less than great conditions.

The stats:

Bib #	258
Overall Place	243
Age Group Place	F 25-29
Half Rank	224
Half Time	02:19:01.4
Half Pace	10:37
Gun Time	05:33:54.8
Chip Time	05:30:40.9
Pace	12:37

After finishing I downed some more water and did the slow crawl to the car. On the way home I stopped at a gas station in full on sweaty crusty mode in the most ridiculous outfit for chocolate milk and Gatorade and found these for super cheap. Best day ever.

The swag for this race was not bad. 

 The medal is just eh. I mean it is no cheese dressed up in a blues brother suit that doubles as a bottle opener like the Wisconsin marathon but I will take it.

The shirt, at first I was like whoa that is green, but it is super comfy and even has sweet thumb holes which I love for cold weather running. I am sure this will get a lot of use in about five months when it gets cooler again.

Would it have been awesome to PR today. Absolutely. I think all runners want a PR. But some races are for PRing and some are for finishing. I have never been so happy to finish before.

Random Saturday Stuff

Since I haven't been running as much as usual I have had time to do other things. Besides watching the first five seasons of Say Yes to the Dress (why is that show so addicting- it is basically a show about shopping and yet I love it) I have been reunited with my other hobby- photography.

Photos from the morning walk with Max.

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Get ready to see more photos on the blog- if you aren't into it, tough my blog.

It has been really fun to get back into and I think it is good for me to have something to do besides work and run......and watch entire seasons of shows about dress buying. Of course once I start hitting the high mileage again other things tend to fall to the wayside.

Since I am basically spending this Saturday waiting around to run the marathon on Sunday I thought shopping seemed like the perfect time killer. I got myself a sweet new tripod.

It's a photo... of a camera- just blew my mind

I also finally made my way to the Outlet Mall, can't believe it has taken me this long and found these at the Nike Outlet.

Shoes for $45 and skull shoelaces for 92 cents. I haven't decided what shoes the laces will go in yet but I had to have them.

I am slightly concerned that I woke up with a slight pain in my butt/hamstring area- but is it real or is it the taper crazies/ paranoia. I guess I will find out.

And with that I go back to waiting for tomorrow and 26.2 miles!

What show is your guilty pleasure?

Chicagoland

This Sunday it is marathon time again.

I am excited even though it is violating my Sunday rule.....

But seriously Sundays are for brunch and naps. Not running 26.2. More races should be on Saturday so I can continue not to move on Sundays.

Most importantly I have picked out the outfit. The weather calls for a low of 61 and a high of 81. This is about twenty degrees warmer than the Wisconsin marathon starting temps. In other words- sweaty. I will address this by wearing less clothes and bringing more water. And sunscreen- lots of sunscreen. Though I do feel that most of it ends up in my eyes. That mix of skin saving chemicals and sweat really burns.

Running skirt, target tank, Mizuno inspire 8's, Nathan hydration backpack, visor, balaga socks, moving comfort bra,

Pictures from my run this morning. 4 easy miles.

If you need me I will be carb loading. Does anyone else feel like I have been carb loading for about a month now? Oh wait I pretty much have been. 

Happy Friday!

Anyone racing this weekend? Good luck!

Taper Crazy X 3

I ran the Wisconsin marathon 10 days ago.
The week before that I was in taper mode.
Ever since the marathon I have been in recover/ taper mode because I decided to run the Chicagoland Marathon on Sunday. Also the Hanson Marathon training book convinced me if I did not rest for two weeks after the marathon my legs would fall off. Pretty much three weeks of not really running.

It is getting serious over here.

The last few weeks I have learned some important facts about what running does for me.

1) When I run I burn some energy. When I don't run I become increasingly annoying to myself and others. I am all up in everyone's business and have a hard time sitting still. This does not translate well to the workplace.

2) I also have a harder time filtering my thoughts. You know the thoughts you have that should not come out of your mouth. No running leads to having to focus really hard to have self-restraint and not tell people how it is.

Apparently when I run a lot I am too tired to care.

3) Running takes up time in the morning. Forces me to stay focused and get the necessary stuff done. When I have too much time in the morning I get distracted by weird things like cleaning the stove and change my outfit 15 times. Too much time quickly turns into- crap I am going to be late for work.

Long story short- I gave into the addiction and ran this morning. Just three miles down to the lake and it was a beautiful morning.

And I feel so much better about life.

I also saw this on the interwebs and had to share.

This is totally not true. Runners will never shut up about their races- of any distance- or their training. Just ask those who have befriended me or are related. I never shut up about running.

The taper crazies are real- have you ever had them?

What does running do for you?

Breaking all the Rules

This past week I am been focusing on recovery and reading the Hansons Marathon Method Book. After running 19 miles this week I got the section that says do not run for two weeks after the marathon to fully recover.  I waited three days. Now I am second guessing myself- thinking I have messed up royally. Oh god I have killed my legs. So now because this book has freaked me out I am going to take it easy for another week. Maybe stick to walking and biking. A break is always a good thing. Hopefully keep me injury free.

Which is a good thing because I have another marathon to run...... on Sunday. I broke another Hanson rule- signed up for another marathon while hyped up on endorphins and Gu. I am running

Originally I was going to do the half but I couldn't resist the lure of trying 26.2 again. This time I want to work on pacing the first half (there are supposed to be pacers to there- general plan is to stick to the 10 min pacer for as long as possible) and staying strong the second half. Running this is doing two things:
1) I am viewing this more as a training run then a race- an opportunity to figure out how to run this distance smarter and
2) An opportunity to see if I can run two marathons within two weeks because.....I also want to do this in the Fall. This is already registered for

and I can't wait. But two weeks before I have the opportunity to go visit Cathryn over at My Heart's Content  and run the Half Moon Bay International Marathon. Which uh yes please. Get to hang with one of my favorite bloggers and run a marathon on my bucket list = perfection!

You may be picking up on that I liked the marathon distance. And while I would like to eventually get faster at both the half marathon and marathon distance currently I am content running and completing these races. I think if I was serious about PRs or Boston qualifying times running back to back marathons is probably not the way to go. But if you are serious about experiencing different courses and size races and collecting medals this is the way to go....I don't know I will let you know after Sunday.

Ever run back to back marathons?

How do you recover from racing?