June 26, 2015 by Darlene

Friday Five: What I was doing 10 Years Ago

Every Friday, three DC area bloggers Mary at Mar On the Run, Cynthia at You Signed Up For What?! and Courtney from Eat Pray Run, DC to host the Friday Five linkup. Anyone can join with their own Friday Five post (yes, it must be a Friday Five!!) They encourage you to visit other blogs on the linkup, comment, share and engage!

This week, the theme is What I was doing 10 Years Ago.

So the year was 2005.

No running.

No boating.

No knitting.

No mah jongg.

What was I doing in 2005?

1. I played a lot of tennis.

I played in contracts, took lessons, played on several teams, etc.

2. I worked as a Technology Director for 40 Catholic Schools.

This was my favorite job…so rewarding…so varied…wish I could have afforded to stay there forever.

3. I got to travel and go to conferences around the country.

If only I ran back then…

in San Diego

4. I was into quilting.

I belonged to quilt guild and went to monthly meetings. I went on weekend retreats.

5. My annual trip with the tennis ladies was to Las Vegas.

We didn’t gamble but we liked to go to shows and restaurants and hike on the weekend.

Happy Running! What were you doing 10 years ago?

June 25, 2015 by Darlene

Thining Out Loud Thursday: Racing, Confidence & Walking

So I’m linking up today with Amanda for Thinking Out Loud Thursday.

Until recently I have felt that I had been racing more than running. In fact, I know I have.
- 3-14-15 – Runnin of the Green 4 m
- 3-22-15 – Shamrock Shuffle 5m
- 3-29-15 – Delmar Dash 5m
- 4-11-15 – Bacon Hill Bonanza 5k
- 4-18-15 – Asbury Park Half Marathon (in NJ)
- 4-26-15 – Cherry Blossom 5k
- 5-02-15 – Spring Run Off 10K
- 5-07-15 – Albany Law Day 5K against DV
- 5-09-15 – Mastodon 5k
- 5-10-15 – Mother’s Day 5K (for GOTR)
- 5-25-15 – Vermont City Marathon Relay
- 5-30-15 – Freihofer’s Run for Women
- 6-07-15 – Betar Byway 5K & Morea u M ile
- 6-13-15 – Walkway Half Marathon
- ~~6-21-15 –~~ ~~Adirondack Distance 10m~~ ~~(my flight got cancelled so I missed it)~~

That’s 14 (almost 15) races in 4 months.

When I first started running, I would sign up for races as a motivator to get out there and run during the week. I knew that my race performance would suffer if I didn’t.

Once I started running half marathons, I followed a plan so I would run during the week to train for the race.

I ran in order to race.

Many runners don’t race much at all. They just run. And that’s perfectly fine.

But I need to race. I enjoy it. I am not sure that I would run if I didn’t race.

I think that I have lost my confidence! From September to March, this is what happened:

5K PR– 27:11 (Run for the Roc -9/28/14)
10 mi PR – 1:38:45 (Perfect 10 Miler – 10/26/14)
15K PR – 1:33:23 (Stockade-athon – 11/09/14)
10K PR– 57:03 (Troy Turkey Trot- 11/27/14)
Half Marathon PR – 2:09:40 (West Palm Beach Half – 1/17/15)
7K PR – 44:24 (HMRRC Winter Series #5 – 2/2/14)
4 mi PR – 37:27 (Runnin’ of the Green – 3/14/15)
5 mi PR – 45:26 (Delmar Dash – 3/29/15)

Yup, that’s a PR at every distance!! Even after several serious injuries and being OLD! What a confidence booster!

Since April, things have slowed down. I have still been racing a lot but my times have been slow! (That is slow for me. Others would complain if they ran a mile in over 8 minutes. Some would be thrilled run one in 10 minutes. We’re all different.)

I feel like I have gone backwards…to the time when I struggled to finish a 5k under 30 minutes and a half marathon under 2 1/2 hours.

Being the analytical person that I am, I have searched for the reasons…

–my feet started hurting during my April half (which was annoying to say the least)
— I have cut back on my mileage (skipped runs)
–I have been running solo (no group runs)
–It is warmer (and humid)

All are very valid reasons. I don’t expect PRs. But I would like to have a good race to bring my confidence back.

Galloway may have a point. Lately I have been reading his tips on several blogs. His most recent is about walking. If you have read any of my race recaps, you know that I DO WALK.

According to Galloway:

Compared to running constantly, the 1-minute walk break still results in runners feeling better, staying healthier, and going faster, but it can get even better! Limiting walk breaks to 30 seconds, or in some cases even less, while cutting the run time accordingly, gives all the same benefits, with even less fatigue and even faster times.

Why?

The greatest benefit of the walk break comes in the first 30 sec. Our heart rates come down, the running muscles relax, we catch our breaths, and the fatigue melts away. After 30 seconds of walking, we tend to slow down.
As fatigue sets in, that walk gets slower… This means faster running is needed to stay on pace, which creates more fatigue at the end of each running segment, so the walk will get slower, and so goes the downward spiral at the end of the race.

I do not officially use the RUN/WALK method. But I do walk.

When I first started running, my goal was to run a race without walking. I was thrilled when I could. However, I didn’t get faster until I allowed myself to walk.

Not one of my PR times above were accomplished without walking.

Of course, I wish I was strong enough to run fast and not have to walk. But unfortunately I am not.

Happy Running! Any thoughts today? What do you think about racing, PRs and/or walking?

June 24, 2015 by Darlene

My Therapy Run

I woke up Monday in a really pissy mood.

I had the day off from work. I took it off to recover from my hilly 10 mile race. If you read yesterday’s post, you know that I DID NOT get to run one of my favorite races.

I also spent most of Saturday in a plane or at an airport and most of Sunday, in a car. None of which were part of the plan.

So, although, I was extremely sleep deprived, I NEEDED A RUN!

Not just any run but a special one. So I decided to drive to Peeples Island State Park. I had run there last year once and loved it.

Of course, with unpacking, housework and laundry, I didn’t arrive there until around noon when it was sunny and in the 80’s.

I decided to run around the area first. There was a nice path after the bridge.

I also discovered another path along the river.

I stopped for some water and then continued over another bridge and headed in the opposite direction.

At this point I had run about 3 miles. After another stop for water, I finally entered the park’s trail.

There are a lot of roots and rocks so it is hard to run. I did a lot of walking but ran when it was safe to do so.

As you can see by the pictures, it’s a very relaxing place to run.

When I finished the loop around the park, I had completed 5.75 miles. Of course, I ran across to the park across the street so I would end with 6 miles!

They may have been the slowest miles I have ever run but I felt 100% better.

Happy Running! Is running ever your therapy?

June 23, 2015 by Darlene

Adirondack Distance Run DNS

Sunday, June 21, 2015 – 7:30 a.m.

A ten mile race consisting of rolling hills from Lake George Village to Bolton Landing.

adc

Last year was my first year running this race which was on my bucket list since I began running.

adr3

I loved it. Especially since it ended at the marina where we keep our boat and my friends and my hubby could watch me finish.

This year, I was really looking forward to the race even though I would not be racing under optimal conditions:

I hadn’t be running this past week.
I ran a half marathon last weekend.
I would be coming home late the night before from Denver and would be jet-lagged.

Nevertheless, I laid out my clothes before I left for my trip and planned to give it my best shot and have fun.

My flight from Denver to Baltimore left on time and even arrived early. I was psyched to not have any flight problems.

But I spoke too soon.

After I landed, it started to storm.

My flight was delayed an hour.

Many of the other flights were delayed or cancelled.

I bumped into Carol whom I knew from college & her husband. They had been visiting their son who lives in Baltimore so we hung out together hoping to fly home that night.

The flight got delayed again and again and again.

And eventually it got cancelled along with every flight going out of Baltimore.

I’ll spare all the details but it was an angry scene of thousands of passengers trying to find their luggage, re-book their flights and find lodging for the night.

We were told that all the flights were booked for the next day and the lines for re-booking were miles long and not moving at all.

It also looked next to impossible to get a cab or even find a room for the night. There weren’t even any rental cars left.

Yeah, we were screwed.

So what my friends decided to do was to have their son come back to the airport to get them, sleep at his apartment and rent a car (outside of the airport) and drive home the next day. (They couldn’t stay longer sadly because Carol had to go to Boston Monday morning for cancer treatments.)

I was so lucky to have bumped into Carol. They invited me to sleep on the couch and drive back with them the next day.

So instead of arriving home Saturday evening at 10:30 pm and running my favorite race at 7:30 am on Sunday morning, I got home at 4:30 pm on Sunday afternoon.

I am disappointed but it could have been a lot worse.

Happy Running! Do you have a bucket list race? Ever miss a race due to transportation problems?

June 22, 2015 by Darlene

Monday Running Update

Last Week:

Monday- rest, ~~walk at work~~
Tuesday – rest, ~~walk at work~~, pack
Wednesday – fly to Denver for a conference, 4 mile running tour (flight delay)
Thursday – workshops
Friday – workshops, 3 mile walk

Saturday – 4 mile city running tour + 1 mile, ~~fly home~~ (flight cancelled)

Sunday – ~~10 mile race,~~ ~~boating~~ (drive home from Baltimore)

This Week:

Monday- off from work, 5 mile run
Tuesday – walk at work, tennis
Wednesday –3 mile run before work, dinner out
Thursday – walk at work, rest
Friday – 3 mile run, mah jongg
Saturday – rest, boating
Sunday – 5K??, boating

Happy Running! How is your running going? Any races ?

June 21, 2015 by Darlene

City Running Tour of Denver

As I mentioned last week, I went to Denver for a work conference. I wanted to see the city and run but I had very little time.

So I decided to do a personalized running tour:

You choose how far you want to run, which areas and sights you would like to see, and then we customize a run specifically for you…We run at your pace, provide water, and even bring along a camera in case you’d like to capture the moment or the sights.
At the end of the run, our running guide will …provide you with a souvenir goody bag with other keepsakes to help your remember your run through the city.

These runs are perfect if you are a tourist looking to explore a new city, training for a race and interested in a running partner, or a business traveler eager to fit in a run and looking to avoid the hotel treadmill. We work with you to recommend specific routes that cater to exactly the kind of run and experience you are looking for.

So my original plan was to get to my hotel in Greenwood Village, south of Denver and then check into the conference. They were giving us 10 tickets for the light rail so I planned to use one to get to Union Station in downtown Denver to meet Melissa and start my Denver “running tour.”

My flight was scheduled to arrive at 12:40 pm and the tour at 4:00 pm. Plenty of time, right?

And as with many best laid plans, things could go wrong.

Remember how my flight to Palm Springs in March was cancelled and I missed my 5k race. Well, this time, I was stuck in the Baltimore airport for 7 hours. Instead of arriving in Denver at 12:40 pm, I arrived around 6:30 pm.

Yep, I missed my running tour!!!

Luckily City Running Tours was very accommodating and offered to let me re-schedule. The problem was WHEN?? I was in Denver to go to a law technology conference, not to go running.

So I looked at Saturday’s sessions and decided that I could miss them and they re-scheduled my running tour for 9am on Saturday with Marty, instead of Melissa.

I was very disappointed not to run on Wednesday. I hadn’t run since Saturday and all I did at the conference was eat breakfast, go to a workshop, eat, go to a workshop, eat lunch, go to a workshop, eat, go to a workshop, eat, go to a workshop, eat, go to a workshop, eat dinner. Yes, they fed us a lot and mostly sugar and carbs.

After 2 days of that, I searched out a place to walk on Friday evening. I found a park with some walking paths not far from the hotel. It was very isolated and many coyote warnings so I didn’t stay long. It was very pretty and just what I needed in terms of exercise.

The next morning, I was very anxious for my run. I had breakfast in the hotel and then walked to the nearby light rail station. The ride took about 30 minutes. I arrived about 15 minutes early and Marty wasn’t there yet.

It turned out that he was waiting at the train station not the light rail station but we eventually found each other.

I was a little nervous about the pace. It was very hot and I wasn’t used to this altitude. But my young tour guide said he was getting over PF and was glad to go at my pace.

So for the next hour and 1/2 or so, we ran, chatted about running, stopped for water at each Starbucks and for many photo ops. Marty talked about all the important sights in Denver as we passed by them. It was so fascinating.

Here are some of the sites:

And I loved the city of Denver. I am so glad that I had the opportunity to visit it while there for a conference. It was kinda good that I was leaving later that day or I may have been tempted to return instead of attending my conference workshops.

We ended the tour near where we began. Marty told me to get something to eat and drink because it was included. So we went to a coffee shop in the train station and I had a iced decaf vanilla latte and a chocolate croissant.

Since I still had an hour before I had to catch my train back to the hotel, I decided to retrace some of my steps and run some more.

So my trip to Denver started off on a bad foot but certainly ended on a high note.

A 4 mile run to see the highlights of Downtown Denver was definitely worth it to me. If you have the opportunity to take a City Running Tour, I would highly recommend it.

The only negative was that there was no souvenir goody bag but that’s ok. I have enough tee shirts!

I’m linking this post up with Tara at Running n’ Reading for her Weekend Update!

Happy Running! Anyone take a “City Running Tour?”

June 19, 2015 by Darlene

Friday Five: What Makes Me Happy

This week, the theme is Five Things That Make Me Happy

1. Being on my boat with my hubby on Lake George

It is so beautiful, peaceful, relaxing. It’s my weekend place to be.

2. Hanging out with my friends

Whether it is playing tennis, knitting, going to a movie or the most likely, eating out. I them love!!

3. Running in scenic places

I love running along the water or on a trail.

Lake George

Peebles State Park

Corning Bike Path

Washington Park

4. Racing

There are more races now that any time of year. So there are so many choices. You can choose by location, bling, course, etc.

5. Playing tennis outdoors.

It’s free. It’s close to home. Love being outdoors in the fresh air.

Happy Running! What makes you happy?

June 18, 2015 by Darlene

Racing with Doubts

So I’m linking up today with Amanda for Thinking Out Loud Thursday.

I subscribe to Runner’s World magazine and finally sat to read it last week before my half marathon. I flipped right to “No Pity: It Takes a Lot of Courage to Run a Sucky Race,” by Lauren Fleshman. (I guess I thought that my upcoming half may be sucky…)

The title drew me in and I love Lauren Fleshman. I began to read Lauren’s article and proceeded to get teary-eyed.

She described pushing through doubt, facing failure head on in the wake of big goals, and embracing how important it is to try anyway during the Olympic Trials in 2012. The article led me to think about on my own personal courage.

I haven’t been feeling the “running” lately. I have skipped weekday runs. The ones I have done have been filled with walking and a pace of over 12 minutes. My longs runs since April have been non-existent other than the VCM relay. (That one was unplanned and so my goal was just to have fun.)

I doubted my ability to run another half marathon well. Yes, I could finish it. But I was embarrassed to just finish again. I am not injured and I have finished a half marathon this year in 2:09. So why attempt one when I knew the results in advance. I did not train well enough to do well. Should I still try?

On the fear of failing in a very public way and feeling sorry for herself well in advance of any failure, Lauren wrote:

“I would think, This is the very thing that holds people back from trying things. From having experiences. This fear that failing makes you a failure. In our core, we want to believe that trying matters, regardless of the outcome. That having the courage to see things through to their mysterious ends is worthwhile. That fighting well with what you have is enough.”

I realized after reading this article, that my race was more than just a finish time. It was an experience. Running 13.1 miles. Meeting new people. Seeing new places. Challenging myself.

If I didn’t try, I would miss all this.

So I ran the Walkway Half Marathon and gave it my best shot. And I didn’t have a PR. My time was even slower than my last half marathon (that I just ran for fun.) But that was okay and expected.

Trying is enough. Seeing things through to that mysterious end is worth it. Fighting with what I have is enough.

“…the reason we set big goals is not to achieve them, but to set ourselves on a road trip toward them, and that trip is where all the good loving is.”

Happy Running! Do you agree? Did you get a chance to read the article?

June 17, 2015 by Darlene

City Running Tours

I am going to Denver today for a work conference. I am staying in a hotel outside of the city.

I want to see the city of Denver and I want to run.

But I have very little time since I have to go to the conference sessions on Thursday, Friday & Saturday am.

I do have a little time after I arrive today so I found this:

City Running Tours

They have scheduled group tours several times a week in many cities, including Denver. It would be fun to run with others.

But unfortunately none are scheduled when I can go.

For a more expensive price, there’s this…

Our PERSONALIZED RUNNING TOURS are completely customizable to accommodate your needs and interests as both a runner and a tourist. You choose how far you want to run, which areas and sights you would like to see, and then we customize a run specifically for you. Your own personal running guide will meet you at the location where you are staying to take you on your run. We run at your pace, provide water, and even bring along a camera in case you’d like to capture the moment or the sights.

At the end of the run, our running guide will ensure you get back to where you are staying and provide you with a souvenir goody bag with other keepsakes to help your remember your run through the city.

These runs are perfect if you are a tourist looking to explore a new city, training for a race and interested in a running partner, or a business traveler eager to fit in a run and looking to avoid the hotel treadmill. We work with you to recommend specific routes that cater to exactly the kind of run and experience you are looking for.

Sounds perfect (except that the price is more than I paid for my last half marathon.)

I wish that I had the time to plan my own “running tour.” But I do not.

Denver

I will need a run after sitting on a plane for so many hours and I will not have run since Saturday (and I have a 10 mile race on Sunday when I return.)

So I plan to take the light rail from my hotel into downtown Denver and run for about an hour on a customized City Running Tour.

A 4 mile run on a Wednesday afternoon seeing the highlights of Downtown Denver seems worth it to me.

I’ll let you know how it went when I return.

Happy Running! Anyone ever take a “City Running Tour?”

June 16, 2015 by Darlene

Tuesdays on the Run: Running Solo Vs. With A Group

Erika @ MCM Mama Runs hosts Tuesdays on the Run with April @ Run the great wide somewhere and Patty @ My no-guilt life!

This week’s topic is: Running Solo Vs. With A Group

I mostly run solo so I’ll start here:

Advantages of Running Solo

You choose your pace.

You can run slow or push the pace. You can walk when you feel like it or just stop and take photographs. No pressure.

You can be flexible with regard to time and distance.

You can wait for the rain to stop or change your mind and run in the evening rather than the morning, You can cut short your run or if you feel like it, you can extend it.