Training Recap: Week Three (June 29-July 5)

This week was all about balance. I took a few days off of work with the hopes of going to Las Vegas to spend some time with the family but that did not happen. I did not want to leave my Grandma since she has not been feeling well. It is always challenging to stick to the training schedule and balance all of the other stuff in your life but it always comes together in the end.

I also decided on a last minute 10K on Independence Day since we were in town. 10K's are probably my least favorite distance which is why I chose it. I think the last one that I ran was in 2013 and I don't think I have ever ran a race on this holiday because of the summer heat.

Here is a recap of Week Three:

Monday: Strength Training: I am getting more comfortable in the weight area of the gym now but working out with my other half is kind of nice because we spend

Tuesday: Speedwork 3.48 Miles: This week was a little bit harder but I know in the end this stuff is really going to pay off for me. I think the heat has a lot to do with it.

Wednesday: Strength Training: I think squats are one of my favorites but I need to get better at them. I can't lift much but I am determined to get better at it.

Thursday: 12 Miles: This was an easy paced long run so I decided to change things up and run in one of my favorite places. The hills and the scenery were necessary to keep my mind occupied because I knew I was going to be out there longer than I wanted to be. I am really slowing down these longer runs and it can be tough.

Friday: REST DAY

Saturday: La Palma Fitness Run for Fun 10K: I wanted to run a race on Independence Day so I swapped out my goal pace run for this event. I definitely did not race this 10k but did run it at comfortable pace (8:09) that was faster than marathon goal pace. It was overcast and humid so I was seriously sweating after this one. It was a small race and most people run the 5k and not the 10K. I ended up placing 2/8 in AG. Gotta love those small races!

Sunday: REST DAY

TOTAL MILES: 21.73

Independence Day aka "Scare the Crap Out of Dogs Day" was a lot of fun. After the 10k, I went home and rested for a little bit and then spent some time with Grandma and BBQ'd. After Grandma time we spent some time with some other family members and watched fireworks from their front yard since they live near a school that does a firework show.

Did you celebrate Independence Day? If you did, how did you celebrate?

Did you run a race for the holiday?

8/31: The Inaugural Disneyland 10K

Run Disney events are pretty popular and draw lots of people so I always stay at a hotel even though I am about 45 minutes from the theme parks. We arrived at our hotel on Friday evening which happens to be walking distance to the Start. It is very reasonably priced, has all of the amenities that we need such as breakfast, a refrigerator and microwave and saves you the headache of having to find parking on race day. The Mickey and Friends Parking Structure gets pretty crowded on race day so I find this to be a much better solution to parking. The walk to the start is about 10-15 minutes so I didn't have to wake up at the crack of dawn to get to the race which is always nice.

What I love most about Disney races are the costumes that runners wear. Some of the costumes are so creative and people do some serious planning for their costumes. I saw one lady who was dressed in a full on Dumbo costume from head to toe. I am not sure how she ran in that costume because it was hot out there! I dressed up for the 10K but not so much for the half. 

The Disneyland 10K: This race started at 6:15 am on Saturday morning.The 5K started at 5:30 am so the corrals did not open until 6:00 am. The crowds were pretty large and it was a mad rush to the corrals once they were given the go that the 5K participants had cleared the corrals. 

The race start on time and the pre-race show was pretty entertaining as it usually is. The theme of the 10K was "Wonderland" so the Mad Hatter made an appearance and interacted with the race announcers.

I was able to make it pretty close to the front of the corral. I don't like to do the weave in and out of the crowds thing. 

My goal was to run the 10K at a 8:00-8:15 pace but the weather at the Start was 81 degrees and super humid so I immediately dropped the idea of any goal time and enjoyed the course instead. I also knew that I needed to take the 10K easy so that I would be able to run the half marathon the next day without dying. I rarely if ever, run consecutive days so I was already a little nervous about how my body would handle it. My normal routine is alternating between running and cross-training.

I have never taken the time to enjoy a Disney course so this was the perfect opportunity. I stopped and took so many character photos and had a blast! The course was fun and I really liked that 90% of the course was inside of the theme parks. 

We ran through both California Adventure and Disneyland. The half marathon spends much less time in the theme parks so this run was a lot of fun.

My favorite part of the race is running through Cars Land! I love that place because that is where my favorite ride ever, Radiator Springs Racers is located. Can you tell I that I love Cars Land?

OFFICIAL TIME: 52:33. My splits were all over the place (7:36, 8:04, 8:08, 9:20, 8:20, 8:45, and .33 at 7:05) because I was stopping to take pictures. 

Some characters had longer lines than others so I had to wait at times. This race was not a PR but it was definitely the most fun I have ever had! 

Do you like to run fun races like RunDisney events?

6/8/13: Ontario Mills 10K

This starting line of this race is about 2.5 miles from my house and the bib pick up is less than a mile from my front door but can you believe that I have never signed up for it? This event is usually held in January and it rains almost every year that it is held so I think that is what has held me back. The event is always held on Saturdays as well and I most of my classes for school were held on Saturday mornings which also stopped me from signing up. Since the event was held for a second time this year I decided that I would give it a try. It is a super small race so I figured what the heck.

I set my alarm for 6:00 am and left the house by 6:35 am. I parked and spotted Megan right away at the 5K start. We chatted for a bit and then her uncle told me that the 5K and the 10K started in different spots so I had to hurry and run to the 10K start. It was not far away but it would have been nice if something was posted to let the runners know the plan.

The 5K and the 10K started at the same time and there was no timing mat at the start which I found odd. Apparently the start time is the same for everyone and your time is picked up when you finish. I wish I had known that or else I would have gotten just a little bit closer to the front. I am also glad that I was not shooting for a PR!

I decided that I would try to run these miles by feel and not look at my Garmin. It was tough because there were no mile markers after the 5K mark and I really wanted to see my pace. The last half seemed really long but I hung in there and stayed strong. I settled into a comfortable pace around mile 2 and then kind of picked other runners to help pace myself. I ended up passing most of them and felt really good the last mile so I picked it up a bit. I am still kicking myself about Mile 2, which is the only mile that was not under a 8:00 pace!

Megan and her family were waiting at the finish and we hung out and talked for a while. It is always fun to meet up with other bloggers. It is almost like you have known them forever but you finally get to see them in person.

Let me say that this was a very, very small race! There were roughly 137 people who ran the 10K and 69 of them were women. I ended up being the 6th woman overall and second in my age group. Only in this small of a race will I ever place! 

 

My official time was 49:40 which was not a PR but had the course picked up at 6.2 miles then it would have been! My Garmin picked it up at 6.33@7:51 pace.

This was my 9th race this year! I still have to complete four more races to meet my goal of 13 races in 2013!

9/22/12: Girls on the Go 10K

I am thankful to have participated in my second 10K today! My right shin is still not 100% but I rested it all week and it does feel a lot better. I was hesitant to run this race since it was inside of Frank G. Bonelli Park in San Dimas which is very hilly for me. I have ran here before on a good day and it works me out! I made the decision to run this 10K at 6am this morning when I woke up because I was not feeling any pain.

My friend Shawna was also registered for the race and is just coming back from a foot injury so we were both on the fence about running it. Shawna suggested that we run it together and see what happens. Shawna's sister, her mom and a friend ran the 5K which started 15 minutes after the 10K. 

Bib pick up was only offered the day of the event which was nice. I live about 20 minutes from the event but it was nice not having to make the trip twice.

The parking was $10 which was not a plus but worked out since I was able to park close to  the finish. This was very convenient for me to get back to my car and ice my shin after I finished. I am learning that not every race has to be a PR or anything spectacular. It is always a great feeling when you have a great race but today it felt good just to run. This was an inaugural race and was not a very big event. It was aimed towards women so there was lots and lots of pink runners out on the course!!! Shawna and I joined in on the fun and wore our pink too!!

The 10K started at 8am and the course had lots of small hills so it was not easy. It did not help that I haven't ran in over a week. The uphill climb came right in the beginning of the course so it was challenging for us from the start. The last half was more downhill so it kind of made up for the first half.

Around mile 2.5 there was a small stream that you have to cross over to get to a dirt path so I took my time stepping on rocks to avoid stepping into the water.  This seemed a little dangerous to me but most of the runners were just running through it since the water level was very low. I did not want to run in wet shoes so I took my time!

At Mile 4 we took a short walking break and then finished it off. My official time was 56:39 (9:06 pace) and I was happy with that. I finished 24th out of 211 10K participants and 5th in my age group. 

Definitely not a PR but I did not monitor my pace at all today. I did wear my Garmin but time was not my focus today. My focus was to finish and not earn a DNF due to shin pain.

The event was very small and pretty well organized for being an inaugural race. The medals were not handed out at the finish and you had to go to another location to pick them up which I though was kind of strange. The medal is cute and very "Girlicous" as they call it!

Love my Chill Towel after a race!

Do you want to stay cool during and after a race/workout? Then enter my Giveaway! You can find it here!

Three Things Thursday

1. I finally bought a helmet and the puppies checked it out for me and made sure that everything was okay. Now I just have to put in on, get on my bike and go for a ride!

2. We are registered for the Color Me Rad 5K and will be doing it as a family. It will be the first 5K for all of them. I am excited and I am sure we will having fun more than anything so I am really looking forward to it.

 3. I will be running a 10K on September 22nd since I signed up for one yesterday. I got a Schwaggle from Active.com and the deal was for 50% off so I jumped on it. I am glad that I waited to register since it would cost me $50.00 + fees instead of $25.00 and then I would have been kicking myself for not getting the deal. I am due for a 10K since I have only ran one to date.

Is your race schedule getting pretty full? 

I know mine is and I am not done yet.  I still want to sign up for a Turkey Trot and possibly another run in December for the holiday.

Three Things Thursday

1. I am still on the hunt for the perfect running shoe.  I recently tried the Mizuno Wave Rider 15's and I love them.  Most of the girls on my Ragnar Team wear Nike Lunar Eclipse and have ranting and raving about them so I decided to give them a try.  They retail for about $130.00 but were on sale for $89.90 at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale.  If you have a Nordstrom credit card, you get early access to the sale items before the sale opens to the public on July 20th.  I didn't have a Nordstrom Visa but I applied for one so now I do! I didn't really want to do that but I wanted to get the shoes now versus later. They are really comfortable and I took them for a trial run on Monday and really liked the way they fit and they are super cushiony.

2. I have been considering a race that my friend Caroline who blogs over at Canadian Runner in Exile told me about.  Caroline has ran all of the local races and she gives me the best advise on which ones are good and the ones that are not so good. I am considering signing up for the Girls on the Go 10K since it is a local race and the course is in a familiar place where I love to do lots of my long runs when I am training for a marathon. I like that the race is "planned with the woman in mind" and everything about it is just really girly.

 

 3. Can you believe that I bought a road bike about a month ago and I still haven't taken it out for a ride? My biggest problem is that I need a helmet so I think I will buy one this weekend and actually ride the darn bike! I think I am kind of nervous about riding it too. I live in a gated community so it might not be a bad idea for me to familiarize myself with the bike before I take it out on the road!

  

So are you thinking about signing up for any races? I heard that the Big Sur Marathon sold out in 26.2 hours!  How cool is that?

My Memorial Weekend Recap

I made my usual weekly call to me Dad on Thursday to see how he has been doing.  Of course it is always hard to figure out how he is doing because he never complains about anything and acts like going through chemo is really no big deal.  Whatever Dad! My dad is always working on some new project around his house. His newest project is building a storage shed. I think it is his way of making sure that he stays active and proving to himself that he can still do things he used to do. He refuses to let cancer win this battle and I can't tell you how much I will always admire him for that! During our phone call, he mentioned that his company was hosting a family picnic and that he wanted us to go. He is on the employee committee and helps plan all of the events so I guess he wanted to attend in spite of having gone fishing the entire day. The picnic started at 5:00pm on Sunday and I never pass up an opportunity to see him because in my back of my mind I always wonder how much longer he will be here with me. It was good quality time and my son had a great time. He won the sack race and received a $10 Cold Stone Ice Cream gift card.

On Monday I ran a 10K and saw this interesting masked man!  It was warm out there...can you tell by my red face? After the race I went home, cooked and then spent time with my family.  My grandparents came over and so did my mom. We feasted on carne asada, ribs, corn on the cob, baked beans, and pasta salad!

Today was an added vacation day because I knew that I would need some time to recover from the weekend.  I went to the gym since I hate to pass up an opportunity to workout especially when I have a day off and have the time.  I also missed an opportunity to meet this sweet lady who happened to be at the gym at the same time as I was.  We somehow passed right by each other and neither one of us actually realized who the other was.
Weekly Recap
As far as last weeks running, I didn't have a great week in terms of miles. I only ran 16.65 miles but I am determined to do much better this week!  I am already ahead of the game since I have been off for the last two days and took advantage of both of them.

It's back to work for me tomorrow.  It's going to be tough going back to work after having five days off!  Have a great week!! 

Anybody joining the Runner's World Summer Running Streak? I would love to do it but sometimes things get hectic with my busy schedule and I don't want to feel bad for breaking the streak!

Run for the Red 10K: 5/28/12

This was my second stab at a 10K.  I have been horrible about setting goals lately and I didn't have any going into this 10K.  It seems like recently my overall goal has simply been to get out there and have a decent run! The weather was warm and I don't think that I have ever entered a race that starts at 9:15am.  It was 67 degrees at the start but the sun was beaming and I was already sweating before it even started.

The course was not bad at all and for the most part it was shaded but I am a big baby when it comes to running in temperatures above 60 degrees.  Those who ran the 10K basically ran the 5K course twice.  The biggest problem was that there was only one water stop on the 5K course at mile 1.6 or so and that was it!! I carried my own water but 90% of the runners did not and I felt really bad for them because they were thirsty!!

It was a very small race, with only 119 people running the 10K so that was just what I needed to give me that confidence boost that I have been needing! I love small races, especially when there are only 4 women in my age group!  That gave me a 25% chance of placing in my age group and I placed first! My official time was 51:52 (8:21 PACE).  It was not a PR for me but I felt like it was a decent time for me coming off of an injury and it gives me something to work toward. 

After the race, I iced my leg and headed home to BBQ for Memorial Day with my family! I guess I should have hung around for my first place AG medal but perhaps they will mail it.

Three Things Thursday

Happy Thursday to everyone!  Just wanted to share a few random things with you today...

1. I saw this story in the local newspaper, The Orange County Register, and thought that this was such a unique and original way to propose.  Many people spotted them and thought it was some type of photo shoot for a magazine but it was the real deal.

2. I was organizing my closet last weekend and realized that I have more running clothes than work clothes! I even had to move some of my clothes over to the closet in the guest bedroom so I guess it's time to stop shopping!

3. I got brave and registered for a 10K.  I have never ran this race before and decided that I will give it a try.  It's just want I need right now...it's small, local and only $30.00. 

It's going to be a five day weekend for me!  I am looking to getting caught up on my sleep!  It has been a stressful week!   

What are your plans for the Memorial Day Weekend? I don't really have any plans other than the 10K. We are kind of stuck at home for a while until Sugar has her pups!