Salt Lake City Half Marathon 2013

I was a good girl and got everything all laid out the night before the race just like I always do.

Black tank top, black skirt, my Boston shirt (to represent), Shamrock Pro Compression (people on the Facebook were saying to wear green to honor Boston...gladly, any excuse to bust out my lucky socks) and of course my beloved Kinvara's.  Matching is overrated people!

Holly, Jorge and I headed up to SLC at 4:30 this morning.  It was raining but for some stupid reason I believed the weather reports and assumed it would stop or be a slight drizzle by the time the race started.  I'm sure you all know what happens when you assume :)

We hung out under a big ol' tent until it was time to head to the starting line.

We're glowing and I'm Satan ;)

#keepittight

I added this shirt to my ensemble that I got from the founder of Altra at the starting line.

The Back

I guess you'll just have to turn your computer on its side cause I tried to flip the ding dang picture 3 times but for some reason it wants to stay on its side, whatever!

Right before the start they had a moment of silence and then blasted Sweet Caroline as a little tribute to Boston, it was awesome.  There were quite a few runners there that had just done Boston on Monday, some even did the FULL.  That's hardcore baby!  One guy even ran carrying an American Flag the whole race.

The bomb squad was at the starting line and there were helicopters flying around.  There were more cops than I've ever seen at a race before.  Almost every corner had at least one cop.  Holly and I tried to thank as many of them as we could.

So did I mention that it was raining?!?  Yes, it rained and then it rained harder and then it poured and then it turned into more of a hail.  As we were running I actually quite enjoyed the rain, it reminded me of TOU...I LOVED that race!!!  I could have done with out the wind though.

There were a lot of people cheering along the course, they actually cheered, that's kinda rare for Utah!  It was such a fun run.  Holly and I photo bombed a news anchor doing a story :D  I yelled "Woohoo!"  And Holly said, "Hello, news anchor man!"  He actually stopped his story and the camera guy got us, too bad I have no idea what channel he was with.

Holly was pacing the 1:45 group and I "helped" her.  A lot of help I was though because Lou, my dumb Garmin, froze up on me and never started.  I tried everything but he wouldn't listen, lame!  I need to write a letter :)

We finished in 1:44:59 pretty much nailed it, AWESOME!!!

This is where it all went down hill.  First we broke a photographers camera with our beauty ;) sorry dude!

Then we realized how freaking freezing it was.  All I wanted to do was get on a bus and get to Holly's car ASAP!  That didn't happen.

We waited forever to get Holly's drop bag and tried to figure out how to get back to her car.  We saw signs that supposedly led to a shuttle to get us to TRAX.  Never found the flippity flappin' shuttle.  We walked past some motorcycle cops and I asked if I could borrow their motorbike for a minute.  They didn't seem too amused and assured me that I wouldn't be any warmer on the motorbike.  True 'dat but it would have gotten me to the TRAX train a whole heckuva lot faster than walking 20 blocks, or 6 but who was counting.  I know 6 blocks doesn't sound like a lot but when you are frozen to the bone it seems like 20 miles.  All I wanted to do was lay down and cry, I was miserable.  Wearing layer upon layer of soaking wet clothes, socks and shoes after finishing 13.1 miles is no fun!

We finally made it to the TRAX loading station and sat there for about 20 minutes...dying!  After an hour and a half we were finally back to the car.  Even with the heat cranked up, seat warmers and blankets we were still frozen when we got home 50 minutes later.  I do declare that we were suffering from some kind of hypo!

I loved the race but the shuttle situation at the finish area was a big ol' #FAIL!

I think it's funny that last year at Boston we got an aluminum blanket...when it was 90 degrees but today when it was 40 degrees and pouring rain we got nothing #FAIL! 

 Shoot, I plum forgot to get my Beer...oh well ;)

Here's a picture of the marathon winners

The guy on the far right, you know the one with the HUGE muscles, that is Mr. Seth Wold!  I used to work with him, he is pretty much the nicest guy in town aaaaand he is super speedy!  YAY Seth!



Runner's Unite!

"If you're trying to defeat the human spirit, marathoners are the wrong group to target."Mighty Brighties

 

I want to do a post but don't really know what to say.

Yesterday I thought about my Boston experience all day. I thought about what a wonderful trip we had.

You can read my Boston post HERE!

We went to Fenway Park which was awesome!

We found the Athletes' Village the night before the race and had some fun.

I think Holly was telling me to bow to her...so I did, I'm very obedient!

Here we are after 26.2 very HOT and quite miserable miles.  I'll take it though.  It was a great experience that I will never forget.

  Yesterday I couldn't wait to get home from work to read everyone's FB updates and blog posts.  Then I got a text from Jake telling me what had happened.  The remainder of the day I got Facebook messages, text messages and phone calls from people saying how glad they were that I wasn't running it this year.  To say that I felt loved would be a bit of an understatement.  To say that I felt honored that people associate me with the Boston Marathon would be a HUGE understatement.

It's so sad that there is so much evil in the world.  As soon as I heard what happened yesterday all I could think, was why on earth would anyone want to hurt runners?  We are pretty much the jolliest, nicest people around.  In most cases, you see another runner and you either smile or say hello.  You may even try to give each other a high five, just like the dude flying down the canyon on Saturday tried to do to me.  I didn't dare give him five for fear that I would end up in the river...the dude was FLYING!  I did give him a fine smile though :)

I then realized that people kill innocent children while they are at school, innocent people sitting in a movie theater and innocent people shopping at the mall.  It's pretty sad that we really aren't safe anywhere.  I never would have even thought to be scared at a race.

Last year Jake and Jorge were standing under all of the flags which is where the first bomb went off.  As soon as I watched the video and saw where it happened I started to cry.  I can't imagine the fear that everyone felt.  To go from being over joyed to have just finished the Boston Marathon to pure terror. 

 

Who knows why on earth someone decided to target a marathon.  But if their intent was to scare people from doing races they have failed miserably.  Runner's are uniting together more than ever!

I am running the Salt Lake City Half Marathon on Saturday.  Is there a tiny bit of fear?  If I said no I would be lying, but guess what?  Life goes on, we can't live in fear and we certainly can't let some psycho win.

My prayers go out to all those affected by this horrible act of terrorism.

Koko and I wore our race shirts today!

 

A Special Deal For You!!

I said that if I heard of a promo code for Aspaeris compression shorts that I would share it and I am a woman who keeps my word...most of the time.  So here you go, use the code word SPRING and get 40% off at Aspaerispivotshorts.com !!  Yahoo for compression.

Speaking of Aspaeris Pivot Shorts, it just so happened that I wore mine this morning for my 5 X mile repeats.  They really do help you to keep good running form :)  Now I need to wash them up right quick so I can wear them later on to recover in, or better yet I should use that fancy code and order me some more!

I am SUPER excited about an upcoming race that I am pacing, it's the Dino Half in Vernal, UT.  What's in Vernal Utah you might ask?!?  Well, apparently a beautiful canyon and DINOSAURS of course.  I wanted to do this race last year but wasn't able to, so I am really looking forward to it this year. 

Borrowed from Dino's FB page!

Here is what the medal will look like.  I'm going to have to fight Kobe off of this one.

I believe there is a kids race as well.

I happen to have a promo code for this as well.  Use promo code Dino5 and receive $5 off!  Go to Dino Half.com  I would love to have some fun friends there to pace :)

Jorge also worked out a deal for everyone to go to the Dinosaur museum after the race for only $3 per person, just use promo code "RYRpacers" for the special rate.

It's sure to be a party so come on out to Vernal for a weekend of fun!

Just watch for stray dino's running about the city, they might get ya'!



I'm a FAN!

This morning I headed out for my second 20 miler of this training cycle with Holly, Josh, Joanna, Dr. Lloyd and about 3287 other runners.  We truly missed having Pam with us, she is injured right now :*( I HATE INJURIES!!!!

I decided that after my last 20 miler, which was pretty miserable, that I would do everything possible to set myself up for a good run.  I carbo loaded like it was my job!

These little beauties do a fine job of properly loading a runner!

I ate 2 chocolate donuts cause if 1 is good then heck have 2!  I have 2 kids and that worked out good, I have 2...shoes, that's all I could think of.  I ate one for each of my running legs or something like that!

Jake took me on a hot date to Malawi's for some pizza, I think I was pretty well loaded with the carbs :)

I have decided that I am a real fan of running in my Pro Compression socks.  I have run in them here and there but this past week I wore them for 3 of my runs, I think I need a few more so I can wear them every.day!

I didn't wear just any ol' Pro Compression, no I busted out these..

Seems how I didn't do a Shamrock Shuffle ;) or the LA Marathon, I decided to wear my "lucky" socks today!  They did their job wonderfully!

Here is our attempt at getting a jumping photo...#FAIL!

Holly and I did the P90X stretch DVD and I took The Stick to myself right before bed and then slathered BioFreeze all over my legs.

The run was GREAT!!!  The first 10 miles were a challenge as we were running up Provo Canyon, although it's not as steep as Hobble Creek Canyon so that was a relief.

We saw a million runners, walkers, bikers and army guys.  Holly and I thought we were going to be flashed by 2 army dudes...FREAKS!  They were being highly suspicious so I made sure not to look at them, it was quite scary.  Holly said one of them was looking at us real creepy like, yikes!

Coming back down the canyon felt awesome!  I felt like I could have run a marathon today, it was really good.

The hardest part of today's run was the 12 minute ICE BATH that I forced myself to take.  It is so hard to get into an ice bath but I really do notice a difference when I take them.  I showered up, put on a fresh pair of Pro Compression socks and stuffed myself into my "sausage shorts" aka Aspaeris Pivot Shorts.

These shorts are AWESOME!!  Aspaeris is sponsoring Run Your Race Pacers and sent Holly and I a pair to try out.  I have run in them a few times and absolutely love them, the only down side to running in them is that then I can't recover in them.  I don't love being swassy all day, unfortunately.  I LOVE wearing them for recovery and wear them nearly every day.  Needless to say I am wearing them out right quick.  I only wash them if I sweat in them or once a week.  I figure I'm not getting them dirty so I may as well not wash them to death too quickly.

They are really tight which is how they should be but I do feel like I have sausage legs when I wear them.  NO ONE will ever see me in them alone again.  When I first got them I put them on and showed my family.  They gave me some pretty horrible looks and Kenna said "Nice butt MOM!"  They are not flattering at all but it's all good.

They are best worn under things!

Kenna and I got a little silly on my "photo shoot"...kiss it Whoville ;)

 And last but not least I try to imitate the Monican, she's hilarious!

That's Monica's running pose and without even thinking about it I did it, we should be friends :)

I'm sooo a fan of Aspaeris!  Pro Compression and Aspaeris should get together and have a baby, not sure where that one came from but let's just go with it okay?!?

If you haven't tried compression before then I feel sorry for you already, it's pretty much the bomb.diggity!

I think I will be living in my compression gear for the next 2 and a half months.  Here is a glance at some races I will be doing.

April 20th Salt Lake City Half Marathon

May 4th Dino Half Marathon

May 18th Ogden Marathon

June 2nd San Diego Rock 'N Roll Marathon

June 21st ULTRA RAGNAR Wasatch Back

That's a lot of running...I hope I survive.

Sooooo #keepittight!!  I believe you can use promo code BLG13 for 40% off and free shipping on all Pro Compression Marathon socks!

If I hear of an awesome promo code for Aspaeris I will be sure to share, cause you NEED some!

Meningitis is no good!

Sometimes we all get over trained.  Yep, it happens to the best of us.  I wrote about it HERE and as of late I have been feeling the effects yet again.  I took my workouts down a notch and even ate the Reese’s Eggs that Holly claimed “Dr. Google” told her were the cure for “meningitis!”  Don’t get me wrong I thoroughly enjoyed those eggs but they weren’t the magic cure.  I even tried a little sugar detox which is very unlike me.  I thought perhaps all that delicious Easter candy had done me in.  Detox didn’t work either.

After Friday’s long run of 12 miles when I felt like death I decided that an extra day of rest may be needed to kick this bad case “meningitis.”  It just so happened that we were taking a little family vaca to none other than Albuquerque, New Mexico for Kobe’s regional gymnastics meet.  I figured this would be the perfect time to take a day off.  Friday we arrived in Farmington, NM and checked into our hotel.  I looked out the window to see a running path along the river…how rude!  We went to the pool and I saw the hotel gym…rude! 

I considered waking up early and heading down to the gym for a few miles but my legs were not happy!   I also knew it would make Jake’s whole trip if I didn’t work out, for some crazy reason it bothers him that I work out…especially on vacation.  I skipped my workout more for him than for myself, I am so selfless ;)

Saturday was beautiful and oh so warm.  We got to Albuquerque and headed right for the pool.  As I was laying there minding my own business this woman walked up dressed in her running gear.  She was on the phone with her friend saying that she was ready for their run, seriously?  I nearly asked how far they were going and if I could join them.  Then I realized it was super hot and it would be quite miserable.  I fought with every ounce of my being not to chuck a Dr. Pepper at them as they headed off for their precious run ;)

As we headed to our room I checked out this gym hotel, it was big and beautiful with many treadmills and some weights.  It was quite the set up and I wanted to go play soooo badly!  I considered doing my Monday workout on Sunday while everyone was asleep.   Then Kobe asked if he could come with me in the morning for my work out.  My kids know that I work out no matter if I’m on vacation or not but for some reason Jake doesn’t get it.  Jake piped up and said “Mom isn’t going to work out, she’s going to be with us.”  CRAP!  I really didn’t want to make Jake mad even though my body was needing a workout.  Things don’t work right when I don’t work out.

I hope that my skipping a day has cured what ails me.  It took a lot to overcome so much temptation.  I have also decided that I am done being so selfless and if I want to work out on vacation by golly I’m going to.  My body shuts down when I don’t work out and it’s just no good I say.

Kobe did so great at his competition.  He was against the best 96 Level 5 gymnasts in our region. 

He got 12^th place on rings and his team took 3^rd place overall which was pretty amazing seems how they only had 4 gymnasts there.  I could see the hurt in the little fella’s eyes that he didn’t place on more events and it broke my heart. There was some tough competition there.  The most important thing was that he improved GREATLY from his past meets.   Unfortunately, he had a couple of little slips and falls.  His feet slipped on his front handspring and I nearly burst into tears, his little face was sooooo sad!  It really took everything I had not to run out there and give him a big hug.  The rest of his routine was great but you fall once and your score is toast.  He had worked really hard with Coach Wan Wan (Wanda) for the past 3 weeks and had made some real improvements.  Wan Wan coached Jake Dalton…”Jake Dalton, YUM!”  That’s what Kenna said, not me, so don’t judge!  Jake Dalton is an Olympic gymnast my friends, Wan Wan is pretty amazing.

 I know this post is never ending but I have to tell you about Jake’s mom’s car that she let us borrow for this trip.  It’s a brand spankin’ new KIA Optima Hybrid.  We got about 40 miles to the gallon on this little hog, hee hee hee that’s from Dumb and Dumber, it’s not really a hog!  There is a little picture that shows you how eco friendly you are driving, if you are driving green then flowers blossom.

This picture is quite small and craptastic but if you look veeeery closely between the speedometer and the other thing you can kind of see the blossom.

I may be the last person on earth to know this but did you know that when you stop a hybrid car it turns off, WHAT?  It’s pretty awesome if I do say so myself.  KIA has come a looooooong way! 

It’s a smooth ride and nice looking too.  Don’t worry I still love Susan, that’s my Acura TL’s name, but it would sure be nice if she got better gas mileage.

I guess I’ll be done now!

Don't Be Unbalanced!

I don’t know if you know this or not but nearly ALL running injuries are due to muscle imbalances.  It’s true!  What exactly is a muscle imbalance you might ask?  It’s when one muscle is overactive (tight) and an opposing muscle is under active (weak).  Let’s say you are experiencing knee pain, if one muscle is overactive it is tight and pulling on your knee.  In order to fix said imbalance you must not only foam roll,

 massage, use The Stick and stretch

 but you also MUST strengthen the weaker muscles.

I think one mistake a lot of runners make is that they only run!  Running is great, it’s my very favorite thing to do in the whole wide world, BUT if you repeat the same motion over and over again you are risking injury.  I will talk more about cross training another time.  Strength training is imperative to staying healthy and injury free.

In my opinion, which you can take it or leave it, the way to know if a physical therapist is good or not is simply this.  Have they given you a list of stretches and strengthening exercises?  When I had my first running injury the first physical therapist I went to didn’t give me a single stretch or strengthening exercise.   Needless to say I wasn’t getting any better.  I finally gave up on that yahoo and went to a sports medicine doctor.  My first appointment he showed me exactly what muscles needed strengthening and showed me a long list of exercises to do.  He told me to continue doing the exercises I was currently doing during my workouts and told me to add a few of his.  Many of which were things I was already doing but putting more emphasis on my vastus medialis oblique.  Instead of just doing a squat I would squat with a ball between my knees and squeeze my legs together to really work that inner part of my quad.

One easy way to look for imbalances in yourself is to look in the mirror while you work out.  When you squat do your knees go in?  If so, strengthen your glutes and outer thigh.  Do your knees go out?  Strengthen your inner thigh and vastus medialis oblique.  In my case, being a personal trainer, I was constantly watching my form, I was trying to keep good form but didn’t notice that my legs wobbled a bit.  They wanted to go out but I fought it.  Even that small wobble ended up being a big problem for me.

I have always worked with weights and made sure to hit every muscle group equally.  Sometimes certain muscles might need a little more attention.  For the most part when I’m not injured I just try to make sure I hit every muscle at least once.   You don’t want to do a leg work out that only consists of quadriceps   I think a lot of times people think they are working their whole leg but while doing squats they are not activating their hamstrings or glutes.  They aren’t going down far enough and not squeezing their glutes at the top.  We can’t just go through the motions we must concentrate on what we are doing and really activate as many muscles as possible.  Let’s get those glutes firing ;)

I also try to include at least one power exercise in my leg routine.  One example of a great power exercise is the jumping lunge.

To get a well rounded leg workout you don’t have to be a muscle expert.   Make sure in one exercise your quads are burning (aka the front of your upper leg).  In another, your hamstrings are on fire (aka the back of the upper leg).  Your calves want some love too (aka the back of your lower leg).  And PLEASE don’t forget about those glutes.  Please don’t park yourself at the “inner thigh” machine at the gym and think that you are doing yourself a great favor.  Most trainers cringe every time they see someone doing that machine.  There are waaaaay better ways to work your inner/outer thighs than those lame machines.  In fact, you’re much better off sticking to free weights.  A machine locks you into position so you aren't use your stabilizing muscles.   I feel like I’m going off on a bit of a tangent here so I will stop :)

Here is an example of a leg workout for you to try.

Weighted squats, watch your knees!!

Calf raises, hold heavy dumbbells

Hamstring curls using a stability ball

Split leg squat with one foot on a bench, hold dumbbells.  If you want to be super awesome stand on a Dyna Disc.

Weighted step-ups.  Use a bench or something about as high as your knee, hold weights and step up and down.

Lunge jumps.  I like to do 15 on each side.  To really feel the burn pause at the bottom of your lunge for 5 seconds, JUMP switching legs and pause.  Repeat 30 times and your legs will surely be on FIRE!!

I usually do 10-15 reps of each exercise.  

I was planning on doing a vlog for you but I have had this written for months and have yet to do it so if you have questions Dr. Google is very smart ;)  Your welcome!

One other VERY important thing to remember is that you want to vary your workouts from week to week.  Our bodies are magnificent and adapt to what we are doing extremely fast.  I can’t tell you how many people I see doing the exact same workout over and over, week after week.   CHANGE IT UP!