In September my Father in law turned 90. To celebrate we had the entire family here at our place where we ate, laughed, watched football, and celebrated the life of the man who started this clan! We had almost all of his children, their spouses, the grand children, their spouses and the great grand children. I believe we were only missing a couple of folks and so we had 33 people in our home.
What makes this so special is celebrating the man he had been to all of us. Caring and kind, gentle yet stern, and until recently pretty damn self sufficient.
Food and drink flowing, games and conversation, memories thrown around with laughter all helped us to remember the wonderful times this family has had together.
Sadness also raised her head when we remembered those who have passed on, a mother, grandmother, great grandmother and a son, husband, cousin, nephew taken too early in life. We celebrate their life as well for they made us all better people.
So what does this have to do with running? Well running is something that keeps us grounded, just as family does and many in this family run, exercise, bike and otherwise keep fit. And so what do you do with family when everyone is itching for a run together but there isn't a lot of time to drive to a 5k race? You have your own!
Terry's idea was a predictive run and everyone was right on board. You have to run naked in this case means no watch, Garmin, of any kind. Prior to running everyone writes down the time they predict they will run. Terry and I got up early to mark of the 3 mile course we had mapped earlier in the week, we did so with flour and enlisted Tanner to ride his bike to lead the course. We then assigned two other non-running family members to do the timing.
With a predictive run it doesn't matter how fast you are it only matters that you are able to get closest to what you predict, therefore it's a fun race for all even if you are walking.
We then found an old ugly vase that had the look of a trophy and filled it with almond joy's (Papa's favorite candy), after all this is a celebration of his life.
And so the first annual Papa's Predictive Run went off without a hitch.
So you see, running can bring a family together in the midst of celebration and sadness. What a great time we had with family, and to think all of us will someday see our children, their children, and their children growing healthy and strong and know that it was because of our love they are in this world.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Friday, October 12, 2012
Hot Days of Training
I have a friend who told me my blog was boring him, mainly because he is having to reread them all as I post so infrequently.
Ok already, I get it. My intentions are good, I mean to post, I think of topics and fancy words but then the days pass by and still no blogging.
I promised him that today I would begin again and so here I am.
The last post in June I mentioned training for another marathon in the heat, this time the Portland Marathon in October, just last Sunday as a matter of fact. This year although we had high heat it did not start to really be a struggle until July and even then it felt different this year. Maybe because we didn't have as many days over 100 or maybe because I had the previous year's experience, I'm not really sure.
In an attempt to add some higlights into my training days I think back to the 5 am runs. That means getting up at 4 because I have to have a cup of coffee and some food and well, you know, go to the bathroom. These runs were amazing for so many reasons and here are a few:
It's dark so no hot sun beating you down
No one is up and moving, you are entirely alone
You can run down the middle of the highway without fear of cars
If the moon is full it's an amazing feeling of discovering another planet far far away
If it's foggy it's like being in the book "The Headless Horseman"
Terry always joins me when I am in the most need of company (after the sun comes up so he can sleep in)
We finish in plenty of time to beat the crowds to breakfast
One morning I ran on a road that usually sees a lot of traffic, I ran right down the middle of the road over the bridge . It was a surreal experience for some reason, running over that bridge down the middle, in the dark with no one else out, watching the lights and the stars reflect on the water.
Sometimes I look at homes and wonder what people inside are doing. Are they sleeping? Many times I see light flasing and I know someone is watching TV or fell asleep watching.
This is also a time of prayer for me, no interruptions, no distractions, just chatting with God about so many things good and bad. I envision him laughing at my silly questions, but also lovingly patting me on the back so my legs just keep on going.
Amazing sunrises always take me by surprise as do the days storms are coming in and the lighting can be seen far away over the lake. I never do get used to how beautiful these things are.
Of course the heat of the summer is tough. Speed work seems like an endless struggle, I can't get enough water or gatorade in my body. Somehow I make it through.
On the morning of my 19 mile run we had a cool front roll, it was in the 50's when I started. This run was also one of those where I started at an easy pace but in the second half my coach planned for me to run a hard pace. In the heat this is very difficult, but this day I ran well, feeling like I was floating. Wow what a difference the cool weather makes.
Of course my 20's and my 23 milers I was not as lucky, although it cooled some it was still pretty warm on those days. And yet I made it through.
And then the day was here. Tainted by some personal events I went to Portland with a sad heart. I am very blessed to have a great husband and good friends who were able to keep me light and relaxed. Of course we also had to experience the local brew...running is of course also about drinking good beer!
On race day I had a plan for how I would run broken up in segments. 10 miles an easy pace, 8 a bit faster, 5 pushing harder and 3.2 as hard as I could push. I stuck to my plan and my finish was well above my goal and I had my 3rd best time out of my 6 marathons. Now I would have liked to do even better (no I am never satisfied), but I gave it my all.
The race was a good one, well organized, lots of gifts, great long sleeve and short sleeve tech shirts, good food, great support. It was not as scenic as I expected, and had a hellacious hill at mile 17. But all in all it was a wonderful marathon. Some of the highlights:
Lots of porta potties
Lots of water stations
Beautiful view from the bridge
Great post party area
My very favorite - the neighborhood where they had all these chairs lined up with people sitting and cheering and then they would do the wave as we went by...I LOVED it!
And of course having the half start and go with us to mile 8 so that Terry and I could run together for awhile
And last but certainly not least...lots of good beer in Portland
So now we are back and next on the agenda is the Wurst 5 Miler for Wurstfest in New Braunfels. Always a great race!
Ok already, I get it. My intentions are good, I mean to post, I think of topics and fancy words but then the days pass by and still no blogging.
I promised him that today I would begin again and so here I am.
The last post in June I mentioned training for another marathon in the heat, this time the Portland Marathon in October, just last Sunday as a matter of fact. This year although we had high heat it did not start to really be a struggle until July and even then it felt different this year. Maybe because we didn't have as many days over 100 or maybe because I had the previous year's experience, I'm not really sure.
In an attempt to add some higlights into my training days I think back to the 5 am runs. That means getting up at 4 because I have to have a cup of coffee and some food and well, you know, go to the bathroom. These runs were amazing for so many reasons and here are a few:
It's dark so no hot sun beating you down
No one is up and moving, you are entirely alone
You can run down the middle of the highway without fear of cars
If the moon is full it's an amazing feeling of discovering another planet far far away
If it's foggy it's like being in the book "The Headless Horseman"
Terry always joins me when I am in the most need of company (after the sun comes up so he can sleep in)
We finish in plenty of time to beat the crowds to breakfast
One morning I ran on a road that usually sees a lot of traffic, I ran right down the middle of the road over the bridge . It was a surreal experience for some reason, running over that bridge down the middle, in the dark with no one else out, watching the lights and the stars reflect on the water.
Sometimes I look at homes and wonder what people inside are doing. Are they sleeping? Many times I see light flasing and I know someone is watching TV or fell asleep watching.
This is also a time of prayer for me, no interruptions, no distractions, just chatting with God about so many things good and bad. I envision him laughing at my silly questions, but also lovingly patting me on the back so my legs just keep on going.
Amazing sunrises always take me by surprise as do the days storms are coming in and the lighting can be seen far away over the lake. I never do get used to how beautiful these things are.
Of course the heat of the summer is tough. Speed work seems like an endless struggle, I can't get enough water or gatorade in my body. Somehow I make it through.
On the morning of my 19 mile run we had a cool front roll, it was in the 50's when I started. This run was also one of those where I started at an easy pace but in the second half my coach planned for me to run a hard pace. In the heat this is very difficult, but this day I ran well, feeling like I was floating. Wow what a difference the cool weather makes.
Of course my 20's and my 23 milers I was not as lucky, although it cooled some it was still pretty warm on those days. And yet I made it through.
And then the day was here. Tainted by some personal events I went to Portland with a sad heart. I am very blessed to have a great husband and good friends who were able to keep me light and relaxed. Of course we also had to experience the local brew...running is of course also about drinking good beer!
On race day I had a plan for how I would run broken up in segments. 10 miles an easy pace, 8 a bit faster, 5 pushing harder and 3.2 as hard as I could push. I stuck to my plan and my finish was well above my goal and I had my 3rd best time out of my 6 marathons. Now I would have liked to do even better (no I am never satisfied), but I gave it my all.
The race was a good one, well organized, lots of gifts, great long sleeve and short sleeve tech shirts, good food, great support. It was not as scenic as I expected, and had a hellacious hill at mile 17. But all in all it was a wonderful marathon. Some of the highlights:
Lots of porta potties
Lots of water stations
Beautiful view from the bridge
Great post party area
My very favorite - the neighborhood where they had all these chairs lined up with people sitting and cheering and then they would do the wave as we went by...I LOVED it!
And of course having the half start and go with us to mile 8 so that Terry and I could run together for awhile
And last but certainly not least...lots of good beer in Portland
So now we are back and next on the agenda is the Wurst 5 Miler for Wurstfest in New Braunfels. Always a great race!
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Long Time Without a Post
Wow, it's been a VERY log time since I posted anything. Life just gets in the way sometimes. I don't have much to report...the winter for running was very nice, and the sunrises never cease to amaze me. And now adding boot camp to our repertoire is giving early mornings a new meaning.
I am ramping up training now for the Portland Marathon on October 7. Another hot weather training like last year but in the end I will feel strong in the cooler weather in Portland. Going with some good friends to this one and it will prove to be a great time I am sure.
I will keep up with my blog as my training increases.
For now I just wanted to say I am still here :-)
I am ramping up training now for the Portland Marathon on October 7. Another hot weather training like last year but in the end I will feel strong in the cooler weather in Portland. Going with some good friends to this one and it will prove to be a great time I am sure.
I will keep up with my blog as my training increases.
For now I just wanted to say I am still here :-)
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Learning about yourself
Sometimes the lessons we learn about ourselves are important to keep in mind for the future. Today is one of those days.
Today was the Cowtown Half Marathon. This is a tough race with brick roads and three very tough, long hills in the last miles of the race.
Going in I knew my plan was to run the first 3 at a 10 minute mile, the next 5 at a 9:00 minute mile, and the last 5 how I felt. But what I did not do was think about what this meant for a total time in the race.
Two weeks ago we ran the Hot Chocolate 15K, I did well and felt very good so in my mind I really thought that I would be able to run strong in Cowtown. I didn't really think about what that meant to me. What does running well mean? And how can that be measured if you don't know what the goal was originally?
I was able to follow to my plan (provided by my coach) and hit the times pretty close through the first 8 miles, then the last 5 I was to run how I feel. Therein is another issue. What does that mean, how I feel? In my warped mined it means running hard for the last 5 miles, but I didn't feel that strong. And I didn't feel well. My stomach was cramping and I was in am dire need of a bathroom but I would not stop for fear of losing time. The time had become more important than "running how I feel".
Sure enough my last 5 miles were pretty fast, at least for me, with the last mile an 8:27. And these mile are where the hills are! But when I finish my time is 2:00:15. I was sure I would be under a 2:00 and I felt dissappointed.
When I go back to look at my split times on my Garmin I realized that I followed the plan almost exactly with a BIG push in the last 5 miles, so much of a push I made myself sick. And then it hits me, the whole plan was to hit the goal of a 2 hour half marathon. Had I really given it thought ahead of time I would have remembered. I hit the goal for which I trained. And that is a successful race.
So what did I learn about me:
1. I can meet my goals when I train for them, but I ALWAYS think I can beat the goal, even if it's unrealistic
2. I place unrealistic goals on myself based on the performance of others
3. I can't just go run a race for fun, I am way to competitive with myself and I feel like I have to push even when perhaps I should not
What will these lessons do for me now? Well I am not sure, not yet. I think I will just wait and see how it goes, keep them in mind, and try to train for the goal and then when I meet the goal, be happy in having accomplished what I set out to do.
All in all I came in 25th out of 255 runners in my age and gender division. This is the top 10%. You can't be unhappy with that number.
Today was the Cowtown Half Marathon. This is a tough race with brick roads and three very tough, long hills in the last miles of the race.
Going in I knew my plan was to run the first 3 at a 10 minute mile, the next 5 at a 9:00 minute mile, and the last 5 how I felt. But what I did not do was think about what this meant for a total time in the race.
Two weeks ago we ran the Hot Chocolate 15K, I did well and felt very good so in my mind I really thought that I would be able to run strong in Cowtown. I didn't really think about what that meant to me. What does running well mean? And how can that be measured if you don't know what the goal was originally?
I was able to follow to my plan (provided by my coach) and hit the times pretty close through the first 8 miles, then the last 5 I was to run how I feel. Therein is another issue. What does that mean, how I feel? In my warped mined it means running hard for the last 5 miles, but I didn't feel that strong. And I didn't feel well. My stomach was cramping and I was in am dire need of a bathroom but I would not stop for fear of losing time. The time had become more important than "running how I feel".
Sure enough my last 5 miles were pretty fast, at least for me, with the last mile an 8:27. And these mile are where the hills are! But when I finish my time is 2:00:15. I was sure I would be under a 2:00 and I felt dissappointed.
When I go back to look at my split times on my Garmin I realized that I followed the plan almost exactly with a BIG push in the last 5 miles, so much of a push I made myself sick. And then it hits me, the whole plan was to hit the goal of a 2 hour half marathon. Had I really given it thought ahead of time I would have remembered. I hit the goal for which I trained. And that is a successful race.
So what did I learn about me:
1. I can meet my goals when I train for them, but I ALWAYS think I can beat the goal, even if it's unrealistic
2. I place unrealistic goals on myself based on the performance of others
3. I can't just go run a race for fun, I am way to competitive with myself and I feel like I have to push even when perhaps I should not
What will these lessons do for me now? Well I am not sure, not yet. I think I will just wait and see how it goes, keep them in mind, and try to train for the goal and then when I meet the goal, be happy in having accomplished what I set out to do.
All in all I came in 25th out of 255 runners in my age and gender division. This is the top 10%. You can't be unhappy with that number.
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