Seawall to Seawall (Iowa) Race Recap

Race:

State # 32, Iowa. 

Stats:
Official time 1:54:05 my first time in 1:50s since March :(
Division Place:  6/10
Gender Place: 11/69

Iowa is one of those states that I was less than thrilled to visit, so I managed to somehow convince Kim to spend her labor day weekend with me doing a double half mary weekend in Iowa and another equally exciting state, Nebraska!

Since there wasn't  a lot to do in Clear Lake, we got our kicks at the World Market in  Des Moines before making our 2 hour BORING drive up to Clear Lake... have you seen anything so glorious?!?!

The Before:

Best Western was the host hotel and it just so happened to be within a 5 minute drive to the start line. There was no address for where the start line was, just that it was 'at the seawall'. We decided to scope out the area Friday night to see where we needed to go, however were disappointed that we still couldn't find the elusive 'sea wall'. Naturally Kim and I were suspecting something quite obvious, and it was only on race morning that we found out the below structure was considered the "sea wall" - crazy Iowans don't know the difference between a barrier and a wall. 

If you're looking for entertainment on a Friday night in Clear Lake- apparently you have to go to the football game because downtown, is not the place to be

Otherwise you could just rent one of the village bicycles and take that for a spin.... thats how I like to spend my nights, cruising around town

After our tour we grabbed some dinner at the Bennigans attached to our hotel and attempted to call it a night. We ended up chatting till just shy of midnight about relationship history(s) as well as Kim educating me on some information that I can let her share with you since both my parents read my blog ;) 

Race day:

As said earlier, we didn't realize that small retaining wall was infact the sea wall, so we had to ask a guy walking his dog if he knew where the race start is--- gee, how could we miss it?

Once we established where the start was, I realized I left my newly purchased knee brace at the hotel, so we had time to drive back to get it and still take some photos before race start

we had to make sure to get a pic with the seawall.

*as a side note- we were supposed to be "matchy matchy" with purple skirts, but I'd like to take a moment to recognize that Kim forgot hers. Despite my many travels, one would think I'm an expert when it comes to packing. Quite the opposite is true and I ALWAYS forget something. Although Kim not bringing her skirt meant we couldn't match, I was thrilled that it wasn't me this time, end side note*

After a prayer from a local pastor (a sign you know its a small race) the air horn blew and we were off. Due to continued knee pain, the fact that this was race 1 of a double header weekend, AND that my marathon weekend was in 2 weeks, I knew I wanted to take it easy. The problem with taking it easy is I didn't realize how fast Iowans are and I clocked my first mile at 7:36- surely I knew I'd pay for it. 

I made it to a whopping 1.8 miles before I fell apart. My right knee started throbbing, my left arch was bothering me, and the heat was causing me to sweat more than normal, BURNING my eyes- at this point I knew any goal I had of placing in this race was a fat chance. 

The first few miles were through some neighborhoods, and then we were graced with the lovely sights of cornfields and creepy windmills... as an added bonus, NO SHADE. 

Due to heat, they made sure there were water stops at every mile, which I happily stopped at and took a breather, stretched, wiped the sweat off my face etc. 

The combination of knee pain + sweat burning my eyes made them water thus I felt like I was crying for a few miles- thank goodness for waterproof mascara :)  I kept trying to wipe my eyes on my shirt, but it wasn't enough and I had to keep lifting it up every min or two. 

Finally at mile 5 I did the absolute unthinkable, something I have NEVER done during a race, let alone during daylight (except in highschool)- I took my shirt off and ran the rest of the race in my sports bra. I know you're probably thinking "so what?" but for me my stomach is the one part of my body that I'm super self conscious about (after I got over my membership card to the IBTC), so the last thing I want is to be worrying if my stomach is jiggling while I'm running.  

Let me tell you.... it was FAN FREAKING TASTIC! Right away I cooled off and it was nice to just be able to carry my shirt and wipe the sweat away as it came--- it did nothing for the knee pain though. 

Right when I got to mile 6 is when I lost the mental battle- I wasn't even half way done and I was wondering if I could finish the race. I made my mind up there that the marathon was out of the equation if I was this miserable when it would be less than 1/4 of an actual distance. As soon as I made the decision I  ripped off my knee brace since it obviously wasn't helping, then facebooked the marathon was a no go--- it's not official till its facebook official right? I knew by putting it out there, I couldn't retract my decision and too often I'm stubborn enough and forgot about the pain once its over and I couldn't put my body through that. 

Next few miles sucked and then somewhere around mile 9 my gu kicked in. It just so happens my power song came on which gave me the mental push I needed to pick back up the pace and push through the pain a bit. Once I got a good rhythm going, the knee pain was manageable and I started passing people that has all passed me during my many, many, many walk break b/n miles 5-8.

It's weird because as the miles ticked by, the knee pain subsided a little bit, but the pain in my left arch was increasingly getting sharper- such an uncomfortable feeling, almost like a bruised arch? Looking back I'm not sure if the knee pain was less or if it was just there was a new pain to focus on. 

The last few miles were run alongside the lake vs. cornfields, so that made it more tolerable. It's been awhile since I've done this, but that last mile + .18 was pure guts as I had ZERO left to give and my pain threshold was wearing thin.

I crossed the line and started to limp toward where everyone was congregating in hopes to find some ice. One of the volunteers had to chase me down to give me my medal. Turns out, NO ICE on premises, ugh. I grabbed a banana and peach and made my way toward the car to take off my shoes, ifitness belt, and grab some sun glasses.

Literally the second I took off my shoes I developed HUGE charlie horses in both of my feet, what is going on? I managed to stretch a little, cheer Kim on, and carefully walk barefoot over to meet her at the finish area, no way was I putting shoes back on feet.

I was happy the race was over and more so that I was able to rally and actually finish stronger than I thought I could. The big question lingering was how in the world was I going to do this tomorrow on a hillier course with hotter temps?!?!

Mile 1 7:36

Mile 2 8:02

Mile 3 8:08

Mile 4 8:23

Mile 5 9:01

Mile 6 9:34

Mile 7 10:06
Mile 8 9:16

Mile 9 8:07

Mile 10 8:58

Mile 11 8:43

Mile 12 8:23

Mile 13 8:22

        .18 7:31

State #32, Iowa, done. Next up, #33- Nebraska. I thought Iowa was boring, Nebraska has it beat!

No more marathon

This past weekend I was able to venture to the less than stellar states of Iowa and Nebraska to complete a double header, state 32 and 33 for my half marathon quest. Although the recaps are coming it can be boiled down into a very quick synopsis:

It sucked. 

My knee gave out both days before mile 2,  1.8 miles on day 1, 1.77 miles  on day 2 (yup I checked my watch) For those who are wondering what is going on- I have plica inflammation in the knee. Kim R thought it was PICA when I first told her, and apparently that would mean I eat chalk- so a brief explanation on what it actually is: Quite simply is the inflammation of synovial (plica tissue) in your knee. Symptoms and pain wise, it mimics what a meniscal tear or patellar tendonitis would feel like.   Although you can run in terms of not having to worry about any more damage, you have to be able to endure the pain. I'm pretty good with pushing through pain as I did it for 3 months worth of races when I had ITBS in 2011, but unfortunately this pain is much worse, and unlike ITBS, it doesn't go away as soon as I stop running. This pain lingers for a few days and I look quite pathetic trying to go down any stairs (up is fine), as well as attempting to  walk without a limp. (its really quite sexy)

Although I am stubborn, I'm also not an idiot. it's one thing for me to push through and go ahead and complete another half marathon on a double header weekend because I know my body can at least get through it, however I've never ran a full marathon before. Yes I've already completed my 20 miler and 21 miler,  but running a race is not the same thing as practice runs since I go out at a faster pace. So as much as it pains me to do it, I'm pulling the plug on the Air Force Marathon in two weeks.

My focus has always been on the 50 state quest and I decided to do a marathon just for fun and to say I did one- unfortunately I'm not going to jeopardize future races just so I can have bragging rights to finally completing a marathon (that would be stupid on my part)

The only thing that will make my knee better is rest, and unfortunately its been a month of me minimally running (pretty much my LR on weekend, MAYBE 1 short run during week) and its only gotten worse. I'm hoping that the Air Force Race director will let me drop down my registration to a half (both full and half sold out months ago)- depending on how I feel that day I might go easy and pace my brother at his attempt to break 2 hours. Otherwise it might be a first and I'll just be a race cheerleader for all those that are running.

Eventually I may get a marathon under my belt- next time it will NOT be an early fall one so I can at least have better training temps than this past summer, but for the time being, I have no immediate plans to run one. I'm trying to remind myself that this summer was not a waste because I was still able to learn a lot about pushing myself beyond what I thought I could do and when I'm back 100% I will use that for future races.

Have you ever had to make a tough race decision?

This is actually the first time I said no to a big race that I've been working toward for months- I'm just glad that I did the double header otherwise I would have went into marathon blind and probably would have had my first DNF 

21 in the books

Last week I had a mini epiphany and wondered if switching my inserts had something to do with the increased knee pain. For 1.5 years I ran in the 'berry' super feet, and this spring they switched me to orange because it cups my heel better. It may 'cup my heel better,' but the arch support feels wrong for my foot, which in turn, makes me run a bit different. This isn't anything major when it comes to half marathons, but obviously can be detrimental with longer runs. On a whim I switched back to berry for a few bootcamps last week and it was very minimal pain- wooooooooooooo!  So I decided to give it a whirl for the weekend. 

This Saturday I used my berry super feet and did go ahead with my 20 miler run to see how my knee would hold up and determine if Sept 15 was going to be the day I finally run a full marathon, or just another half.

I was supposed to run 11 miles (5.5 out and back) and then meet up with Ashley to do the back 9. At mile 5 I was feeling surprisingly great so I decided to do 6 out and back so I could get a full 12 in before meeting up with Ash. 

Despite it being early, it was already getting swampy out, so it was actually nice to run alongside the train and get the cool breeze coming off of it as it passed by. 

I realized that I am quite frankly terrible at math. I originally told Ash to meet me around 7, which turned into 7:05-7:10 and finally my last text said 7:15ish.... I actually didn't get to the point I was supposed to meet her until a little after 7:30. Being the good friend she was she had started to get worried and walked a bit into the trail to find me, but then decided to wait a bit longer just in case I slowed down. 

Truth be told nothing bad happened, I just thought I was going faster than I was--- same story different tune with the heat, always feeling like I'm working entirely too hard for the times I'm running. First 12 miles done with a 9:02 avg pace. 

Last 9 with Ashley were comical- I am terrible at running and talking--- it seriously winds me. We had to take several stops to stretch and walk, poor Ash wasn't getting much of a workout in. Majority of our run was ran at a 9:30 pace and Ashley made the comment how it was very comfortable and now she 'gets' when people say they feel good when they run--- we both have a tendency to push ourselves too much during training runs so they tend to be miserable. 

Last few miles sucked- I was tired, we couldn't break a 10 min pace, and my stomach was growling at me to get some food--- I did see a cow though, and cows are my secret good luck charm, so stupid as it may seem, it did help 

 Last 3 miles the knee was bothering me, but not in that "holy cow I think my leg is going to fall off" kind of way... more so in the "why the hell are you running 21 miles Lisa" kind of way. I couldn't have mapped the distance any more perfectly as I finished RIGHT at my car for 21 miles---- so extremely happy to tackle that distance relatively pain free - Air Force Marathon here I come

21 miles with 9:30 average pace- finally got proof of my LONG run since last 20 miler I had to go based off someone else's watch.

Last night I did the Tin Roof run and Ash was nice enough to let me borrow her knee brace to see if it would potentially be worth getting for the marathon-----ZERO and I mean ZERO knee pain, it was magical. Needless to say I'm going to Dick's this week to get one and I'll be rocking it for my race... 3 weeks

Ash, Stu, me, B (4 out of the 6 of us for Van 1 Bourbon Chase)

This weekend I have a double header planned with Kim, Iowa on Sat, Nebraska on Sunday. If knee behaves well for this, I surely will be good to go 2 weeks after that!

To marathon or not to marathon

This summer I have been 'semi' training for the Air Force Marathon. I say semi, because my mileage is still low, but I'm at least managing to stick to the long runs. 

Ever since I ran my 18 mile run, my knee has been on the fritz. Yes I managed a half marathon and a 20 miler, but both were with significant pain.

I went home this weekend and was all excited to run in the cooler temps with my brother- something as simple as sleeping wrong and putting too much pressure on my knee made it too wonky in the morning to want to do 6 measely miles--- I ended up not running at all this weekend leaving me with a grand total of 5 miles for the whole week. I know you're thinking how awesome I am right about now.

Tonight I met up with our Fleet Feet group and had the worst 4 mile experience in a LONG time. Within 1 mile I was cursing at how much pain I was in--- naturally I began that lovely mental self doubt talk and finally came to the conclusion that if I'm in this much pain after 1 mile, how the hell am I going to run a marathon in 1 month?

So as much as it pains me to say this, I will be using this weekend's 20 mile run as a verdict. If I struggle through it, then I will see about downgrading from the marathon to the half. It sucks because it feels like this summer will have been a waste of time, but 26.2 miles is a LONG distance to venture injured and I think it would put me out for several months.

I'll need all the healing thoughts and good lucks for Saturday, hope all goes well :)

5 things Friday

 great things that happened this week

1. Started new job this week. First few days were stressful, but I've gotten into my groove. I used to count the minutes down to when I could leave at 3:55. Now I find myself staring at the clock at 6pm and not yet lready to leave... OBVIOUSLY i'm in the honey moon stage right now.  I  have a new AMAZING view to look at every day - though it can be distracting to watch people enter and leave work. 

2. Went running on Wednesday after work and the run itself sucked and my knee really bothered me. When I had 1 mile left I just kicked it with all I had to be done... the result below in lower left hand (goes to show even with my last mile being that fast, avg pace was 9:29... goes to show how the other 4 miles were)

3. Had some great deals arrive in the mail this week-

First up runningskirts was having a sale over the weekend for free shipping. I also used the 15% off code , iskirt.  I was able to get my skirt plus a free gift for all for $36.55! I'll be honest I forgot about the free gift and didn't even know what it would be... was stoked when I opened it up. I've used it so much already :)

 Then I happened to find some GREAT value sparkly non slip bands on etsy. The below 3 were $15 total plus $1.50 for shipping. Yes please!

 Put them both together and I have one sweet running outfit for my run in Ohio with my brother (if he answers my texts or phone calls)

4. Business Cell came in today!!

Although I have been using the Droid for 2+ years, an I phone and all its functionality is new to me. I think what I'm most excited about is I'm going to downgrade my phone plan now to basic and use the iphone for internet gadgets and such--- yay for saving money!

5. I'm leaving to head back to Ohio in an hour. I haven't been home since Easter, but considering my sis- in - law turns thirty and this little guy turns 2, I figured it deserves a trip since my schedule can allow it 

From last time I was home- apparently he talks more. 

Hope you had 5 things that made you happy this week :) 

20 Miles in the books

A few of you sent me emails asking how this weekend went since I didn't yet post- my new job started at work and what once was an 8 hour day has turned into 10-11 hrs, so free time is a commodity. As I learn my role the hours will get shorter, but for next few weeks I might be a little lack in posting often.

Who is no longer a 20 miler virgin?!?!

This Gal!

This past Saturday I ventured off for my first 20 miler. I had a running meet up at 6am with a group of individuals, but their plan was to just do 15, so I ventured out a little after 5am to knock out the first 5 miles before meeting up with them.

First 5 went amazing- temps were low 60s, sun wasn't out yet, jamming to my music, and no knee pain- 8:30s average pace. 

As soon as I started running with the other 4 individuals I felt like a different runner- the 9:10 pace we were doing was HARD and the dull ache in my knee was starting to get more consistent vs. coming and going. Luckily when I run with people vs. solo I tend to push myself more so instead of walking I just kept  a short distance of 5-10 feet behind them for awhile.

The miles actually ticked by due to extreme inappropriateness topic of conversation- another reason I love running with guys when I am able.

A few of you were curious how testing out the Nathan Women's Intensity Vest would be--- it was MAGICAL. I don't own body glide (crazy I know considering its a staple for most runners) and it didn't chafe one bit. I did put deodorant on the spot where the straps lie just in case, but does deodorant do anything? This was a fluke weekend for Nashville, so humidity and temps were extremely mild- I was worried I would get hot in the vest, but it never bothered me. I wish I would have  purchased this earlier in the summer.

Route we chose was 12 miles (for my group, 17 total for me) and we were going to do a 1.5 out and back to make up the last 3. Since we were back at cars I ditched my vest, had some gatorade, and off we went. Once I got to mile 18 I was struggling so I told one of the guys who was hanging back with me that I needed to put in my music---- what a trick. Immediately my pace picked up and I felt amazing. My last 2 miles ended up being sub 8s with the mile 20 clicking in at 7:42.

I decided that I'm going to try this out for actual marathon, only, not sure how long I can go without music when I'm running solo.

Overall I was pleased with how the run went. I was able to walk normal afterward, and more importantly the next day.  My total time was 20 miles in 2:58:30. 1.5 min faster than when I did my walk/ run/ jog 18 miles a few weeks back. In two weeks I'm due for another 20 miler, however I'm thinking of making it a 22 miler (maybe) so I can get more time on my feet. I NEED to run longer than 3 hours!

For any experienced marathoners out there--- what's a good chunk of miles you go before putting in music to get your 2nd wind?

Five for Friday

 things that make me happy this week, in no particular order

1. Today is my LAST day health coaching. Come Monday I transition into my new role (same company) as an account management consultant-- longer hours, more busy, but there is a significant increase in pay and its way overdue for some change. Yesterday my current team gave me a going away basket of some of my favorite things-- what I thought was sweet is these are all items they've heard me talk about in conversation--- I swear I do eat healthy despite what they gave me haha 

• 2 packages of Haribo Gummy bears
• 1 package of normal gummy bears
• king size reeces
• pop corn
• Hershey's cookies and creme pieces
• caffeine free diet coke (actually its coke I love, but its the thought that counts)
• and the kicker- 1 large white onion and onion ring mix so I could make my own (i crave fried onions after long runs)

Only thing missing in the basket is bacon. Sad to leave such a great team, but I'm sure I'll see them around at bootcamp or the cafe. 

2. My knee is feeling MUCH better so I"m going to go ahead and get in my FIRST 20 miler ever. I received my hydration vest in the mail last week so I will be testing that out as well. At first I was nervous, but I planned it out so I'm waking up EARLY to get 5 miles in during the 5am hour and then at 6 meeting up with one of my running buddies Brian to do 15--- at least I won't be bored.  Its funny what you find when googling the word "20 miles"- Vanessa, you showed up haha. I don't know who this guy is, but looking at his last blog post we have the same shoes, and  I dig the photo so I'm sharing it

mmm blue moon. 

3. 

81 degrees is what the temps will be today and tomorrow... oh and low humidity. That is worth doing a little dance for because normally its a swamp out there (just in time for long run) 

4. If you haven't figured out by now.. I like bright colors- whether its my racing outfits or shoes. Case in point when I set a goal for myself to run sub 1:45 and rewarded myself with these bad boys:

I do love them, but they are not the same as a stability shoe, so these I generally wear for cross training and my actual shoes are BORING. For those out there that wear stability shoes I'm sure you can relate: I'm getting tired of all these cute, vibrant colors out there for minimalist shows (brooks pure project for example)--- WHERE is the love for those of us that wear stability shoes. I found my current obsession- HOT pink version of the shoes I already wear (Saucony Guide 5s) 

I've been SCOURING the internet to find my size, no luck so far, all sold out. So if any of YOU happen to see a size 10.5 in womens, please email me ASAP Lisarun2@gmail.com Thank you in advance :) 

5. My dog back home, Madie had a large tumor on her paw removed, just got word last night that despite what they thought was most likely cancer, it was infact benign! I can't wait till next time I go home so I can smother her with kisses.

On the upside- her cast is fabulous hot pink and at least her cone is transparent vs. the traditional white like they use to have. 

Anything exciting good happen in your week?