Hello loyal followers! I know it's been awhile since I've posted. I owe you guys a bunch of race reviews and at least 1 post about my progress towards the big day. But I wanted to put up a quick post about something that means a lot to me.
I've mentioned before how I was never really super athletic as a kid and it took me until my senior year in college to figure out that I needed to get my butt in gear and change my life. But it wasn't until last year that I got into running. My intern forced me onto the treadmill a few times last summer and I still wasn't super thrilled about running but I did it when she was around at the gym. I kept up with other things at the gym but I never really went more than a mile or two on the treadmill and I never ran the whole time. Then in the fall a friend of mine who volunteers with the Special Olympics e-mailed me asking for a donation for a 5k she was running to fundraise for the Special Olympics.
I've always liked the Special Olympics and what they do so I decided to not only donate but to register to run as well. To practice I ran 3.1 miles on a treadmill the week before and managed to survive without stopping to walk. Unfortunately I had only run a few races before and that was quite a few years ago and in all of those races I got tired early on and ended up walking most of the race. I really had no idea what to expect or how long it would take me to run this race.
I showed up on race day with my Everything bagel and iced tea from Dunkin Donuts (something that has now become a race day tradition for me), registered, and lined up for the race. A few of my friends were running and since I had no idea what this race had in store for me I decided that as long as I could keep them in view I was doing ok. While waiting for the race to start I made a few friends with the Special Olympics athletes. I even ran a good part of the race with one of them before he sprinted ahead of me and left me behind in his dust.
Given that I had no idea how fast I was running or should be running I decided to count the number of songs it took me to run a mile. That way I'd have some idea of how far I was from the finish line (in terms of number of songs...). I chugged along for the rest of the race and I even passed one of my friends who had slowed down towards the end. I would have slowed down to finish it with her but I feared that if I lost the momentum of running I wouldn't make it across the finish line.
I remember reaching the 3.0 mile marker and being able to see the clock ahead and that it was still under 30 minutes. I mustered all of my remaining energy and ran as fast as I could so I could beat that 30 min mark. And I did, I finished the race in 29:25!
After that I was hooked on races and running. A few days later I saw a commercial on TV for the Space Coast Marathon and Half Marathon (clearly a sign from above, why else would I see a relatively small FL race advertised in the Northeast?!) and I set a new goal for myself, to finish a half marathon. A goal I accomplished just a few months later. Would I have gotten addicted to running without this race? Probably eventually. But since this was the race that got me hooked I decided that this year I wanted to give a little more back to the race that has started me down a new road in life.
I know that most people fundraise for marathons or other major events. I am training to run a marathon later this year but this race means so much more to me and I really like the cause. Special Olympics gives so many kids the opportunity to do things they probably never thought they could accomplish. And it was this race that gave me the opportunity to realize that I could be a runner, something I never thought I could accomplish.
I would greatly appreciate it if you would take a moment to consider donating this wonderful cause.
Here is the link to my fundraising page: http://www.active.com/donate/2011POHD5k/carolynandrews
PS I know donating to yourself is kinda cheesy but if you raise $30 you get free admission into the race so I figured I'd put some money towards my fundraising because I didn't pay anything to enter the race.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Monday, June 27, 2011
Mines Falls Trail Series 4 of 12
4 words: I FINALLY DID IT!!!
27:25
I was determined to get finish in under 28 minutes and to beat that 9 min/mile pace before the first half of the series was over. I felt it in my bones all day long. I knew today was the day despite the fact that I ran a 10k race yesterday. I just knew it.
It was super hot today but running in the woods was actually pretty cool...there were a few cool breezes I ran into. I hydrated all day so I could skip the water stop today. I knew today was the day! I beat my goal with 1 race left in the first half of the series. I'm tempted to switch to the 5 mile a week early to give me time to set a goal for that and possibly beat it by the end of the summer!
If I had any moisture left in my body when I finished I may have actually shed a tear. Unfortunately, I was a sweaty mess and worried about keeling over from running my little heart out (almost literally)!
Ohh and I went to the rock climbing gym after my race. I passed the belay test (I know...not a huge deal but exciting for me) and I raced up a few walls to burn off the energy from the excitement of the race! Much better than my initial lesson on Saturday!
27:25
I was determined to get finish in under 28 minutes and to beat that 9 min/mile pace before the first half of the series was over. I felt it in my bones all day long. I knew today was the day despite the fact that I ran a 10k race yesterday. I just knew it.
It was super hot today but running in the woods was actually pretty cool...there were a few cool breezes I ran into. I hydrated all day so I could skip the water stop today. I knew today was the day! I beat my goal with 1 race left in the first half of the series. I'm tempted to switch to the 5 mile a week early to give me time to set a goal for that and possibly beat it by the end of the summer!
If I had any moisture left in my body when I finished I may have actually shed a tear. Unfortunately, I was a sweaty mess and worried about keeling over from running my little heart out (almost literally)!
Ohh and I went to the rock climbing gym after my race. I passed the belay test (I know...not a huge deal but exciting for me) and I raced up a few walls to burn off the energy from the excitement of the race! Much better than my initial lesson on Saturday!
BAA 10k
Busy busy weekend! Swimming on Saturday morning, rock climbing Saturday night, a 10k race Sunday morning, brunch with some friends, and then sleeping for the rest of the day (well maybe not the rest of the day...I did get a chance to hang out with a friend and her baby boy and another friend who just moved after a fantabulous nap).
Soo...big race! The Boston Athletic Association decided that a marathon, half marathon, and 5k weren't enough opportunities to parade the world's best runners around Boston so they organized a 10k this year! Thinking it will probably be the closest I'll ever get the Boston Marathon and all of it's glory, I signed up and I made a friend from work sign up with me. I should have known trouble was coming when 2 days before the race my friend told me that I'd probably need to drive to the race because he might be still drunk/hungover from a pub crawl he signed up for the night before the race...
Staying true to his word, he was quite possibly still drunk when I finally got him out of bed and quite the entertainment on the way to the race. Good thing I planned lots of time to get there and get settled because in addition to being drunk (and still wearing the clothes from last night when he got in my car), he also left his race number at home so we had to take care of that. Luckily the BAA was super cool about it and made the switch in a few seconds. We got our super cool shirts and checked his bag o clothes and lined up for the race!
They sent the wheelchairs off first. Three minutes later they sent off the elite runners (these dudes didn't even have numbers on their bibs, they had their names!). Four minutes after that the first of the slow pokes were set off. And as my group was lining up to go they made an announcement that the lead runner had reached the 1 mile mark and was on track to finish the race in 28 minutes! I can't even run a 5k that fast!
We finally got to start and I quickly left my friend in the dust. I had forgotten my GPS watch so I had no idea how fast I was running. I settled into a pace that felt ok and sustainable. Did I mention that the weather was pretty crappy?! It wasn't insanely hot but I'm pretty sure I was in some kind of humidity vortex that was 200% humidity yet the air was still accepting moisture and sucking every ounce of water from my body! I hit mile 1 and doused myself in a cup of water and downed 1 cup. Sadly I didn't look at the time when I started the race so I had no idea how long it had taken me to run the first mile...all I knew was that it was 17:30 after the beginning of the race...Aaaand then around mile 1.4 I started hearing the crowd in front of me cheering and then I saw the lead cop car...WTF! HOW WAS THIS DUDE ALREADY ALMOST DONE WITH THE FLIPPING RACE?! Slightly demotivated, I kept pushing on....
By mile 2 I wanted to rip my clothes off...I was dying in the outfit I decided to wear...I guess I know how to plan better for humidity now? Probably not...I'll probably make the same mistake at least 10 more times. In the first mile the race when under an underpass and I remember thinking "crap, I'm going to have to go uphill towards the end of the race!" In mile 2 the race when through BU...I saw 1 bridge ahead and dealt with it thinking that I'd only had to run up 1 bridge and hoping the turn around was at the top. Boy was I ever wrong...I got to the top of the bridge only to see the crowd ahead climbing another! I stumbled through to the turn around checking my time and trying to do the mental math to figure out how fast I was running each mile after mile 1...I thought it was somewhere around the 9.5 min/mile which was my goal for the race so I was happy. But by the turn around I was starting to fall apart and I tried to slow down a little.
After the turn around I searched the crowd for my friend for about half a mile but couldn't find him...and then I saw the freaking sweeper bus! Demotivator #2, seeing the sweeper not too far behind you! Luckily my iPod could feel my pain and put on some motivating music as I pushed through those two stupid bridges. At least I was on my way back!!! Despite the fact that I was "trying to hold back" my mile splits weren't really getting any longer...whatever, as long as I finish the race without walking. Mile 6 was pretty difficult. Luckily, the race directors saw this coming and threw in an extra water station towards the end. 4 cups of water on my head later (I'm surprised my headphones still worked after this race with all of the water I was dumping on me) I was rounding the corner to the finish line. In my twisted mental math I figured as long as I finished in under 1:07:00 I probably ran the whole race in under an hour...but I had no idea what my real time was.
Slightly worried I waited for my friend for about 20 minutes but he finally showed up at our meeting spot. I guess drunk running isn't as glamorous as it sounds. To quote him...."By mile 2 I could smell the whiskey oozing out of me...by mile 4 I realized I was sober."
Overall it was a fun morning. I met up with some friends after for a quick brunch before heading back home for a shower and a nap.
Oh and my overall time was 58:38! 9:27 pace!! And somewhat amazingly my 5k splits were only 4 seconds off from one another. Yay for being able to self pace!
Saturday, June 25, 2011
The Sweet Smell of Summer
I grew up in Florida. This means that I spent my summers in the pool. I was even on the swim team for 5 or so years. During summer break you knew you had a good day when at the end of the day your eyes were stinging and there were halos around every light source you looked at because no kid every wears goggles and we always opened our eyes underwater! The smell of chlorine on your skin was second nature. It wasn't until I stopped spending every waking moment in the pool that I realized that it wasn't natural to smell like chlorine all the time. But to this day one of my favorite smells ever is the smell of chlorine on my skin and in my hair.
I miss those days. Growing up my parents called me their little fish because I would spend hours in the pool. I used to dream of being able to stay in the water all the time and be able to survive without having to come up for air. I finally fulfilled that dream (well kind of) last year by getting my SCUBA certification. I still remember how giddy I was the first time I donned my SCUBA gear and went underwater. It was so natural to me. It was a good 5 minutes before I realized that I had been underwater for 5 minutes without having to go up for air. I LOVED IT! I wish I could live somewhere that allowed me to go SCUBA diving whenever I want. I can't believe I moved to a part of the country that only allows for outdoor swimming about 5 days of the year.
I signed up for a few triathlons this year (one of which I've already completed!) so I knew that I needed to find a place to swim. A few weeks ago Groupon offered 25 drop ins at a local hotel gym with an indoor and outdoor pool for $35 so I snatched it up. I haven't really taken advantage of the opportunity until today. Sadly they only have 1 adult swim lane so the few times I've gone before today they pool was always busy.
Today was a cross training day so I figured I'd try swimming. I lucked out. I walked in and there were a few people in the pool so I went and locked up my stuff and I was going to putz around in the gym until the pool cleared out. I checked on the pool one last time before heading downstairs and everyone was getting out! I jumped in an claimed the only adult swim lane for the next hour and I swam 2.55 miles! Granted it was in a pool and a pool DOES NOT equal open swim but I feel like I really worked out some muscles I haven't used in awhile and I worked on my form. When I got out of the pool I smell the familiar sweet scent of chlorine and I was reluctant to jump into the shower to wash it all off. But alas, all good things must come to an end and I am now clean. I couldn't really delay showering because I knew my hair would be destroyed if I let the chlorine sit there for long enough (the major drawback of swimming in a pool!). I guess I'll just have to go back again soon!
Part 2 of cross training day is tonight. I'm meeting up with a friend at a rock climbing gym for a beginner class! I can't wait! And I'm running the BAA 10k tomorrow morning!
PS I had some old bananas lying around so I whipped up some of these babies today too!
One of my favorite pictures ever
I miss those days. Growing up my parents called me their little fish because I would spend hours in the pool. I used to dream of being able to stay in the water all the time and be able to survive without having to come up for air. I finally fulfilled that dream (well kind of) last year by getting my SCUBA certification. I still remember how giddy I was the first time I donned my SCUBA gear and went underwater. It was so natural to me. It was a good 5 minutes before I realized that I had been underwater for 5 minutes without having to go up for air. I LOVED IT! I wish I could live somewhere that allowed me to go SCUBA diving whenever I want. I can't believe I moved to a part of the country that only allows for outdoor swimming about 5 days of the year.
Breathing underwater!
I signed up for a few triathlons this year (one of which I've already completed!) so I knew that I needed to find a place to swim. A few weeks ago Groupon offered 25 drop ins at a local hotel gym with an indoor and outdoor pool for $35 so I snatched it up. I haven't really taken advantage of the opportunity until today. Sadly they only have 1 adult swim lane so the few times I've gone before today they pool was always busy.
Today was a cross training day so I figured I'd try swimming. I lucked out. I walked in and there were a few people in the pool so I went and locked up my stuff and I was going to putz around in the gym until the pool cleared out. I checked on the pool one last time before heading downstairs and everyone was getting out! I jumped in an claimed the only adult swim lane for the next hour and I swam 2.55 miles! Granted it was in a pool and a pool DOES NOT equal open swim but I feel like I really worked out some muscles I haven't used in awhile and I worked on my form. When I got out of the pool I smell the familiar sweet scent of chlorine and I was reluctant to jump into the shower to wash it all off. But alas, all good things must come to an end and I am now clean. I couldn't really delay showering because I knew my hair would be destroyed if I let the chlorine sit there for long enough (the major drawback of swimming in a pool!). I guess I'll just have to go back again soon!
Part 2 of cross training day is tonight. I'm meeting up with a friend at a rock climbing gym for a beginner class! I can't wait! And I'm running the BAA 10k tomorrow morning!
PS I had some old bananas lying around so I whipped up some of these babies today too!
banana chocolate chip muffins!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Trail Series Week 3
As you might be able to tell from my previous post, I had a busy weekend so I was tired and sore for week 3. I was also totally unprepared. I didn't drink much water, was on a 3 hour plane ride right before the race, and I didn't eat much that day.
Showing up for this race was pure stubbornness. That shirt for running all 12 races WILL BE MINE!
Within the first quarter mile my legs started to cramp up. It slowed me down a little but I powered through it. But by mile 2.8 my body decided to call it a day. I got the worst stomach cramps ever. I started to slow down to walk when an angel in running clothes came up from behind and said, "Don't stop! You are so close to the end! Raise your hands above your head and keep running, the cramps will go away!" So I lifted those arms and kept going and I finished!
It was slow, around 29 minutes...but I'll take it...still under a 10 min mile!
Showing up for this race was pure stubbornness. That shirt for running all 12 races WILL BE MINE!
Within the first quarter mile my legs started to cramp up. It slowed me down a little but I powered through it. But by mile 2.8 my body decided to call it a day. I got the worst stomach cramps ever. I started to slow down to walk when an angel in running clothes came up from behind and said, "Don't stop! You are so close to the end! Raise your hands above your head and keep running, the cramps will go away!" So I lifted those arms and kept going and I finished!
It was slow, around 29 minutes...but I'll take it...still under a 10 min mile!
A New Take on Cross Training
This weekend my cross training consisted of...
Running around underground
Eating cake in a cave
Squats
Controlled falling
About 200 more squats to get back up!
Climbing
and finally some swimming
:)
Monday, June 13, 2011
Trail Series Week 2
So I went ahead and ran the trail series race today mainly because I really want the shirt for running in all 12 races! My plan was to go slow since I had a big day yesterday and I was still a little sore from the bike. Well I had a crappy day at work and I guess my body just wanted to get rid of all of the frustration and I ended up running it in 28:13! Woohoo! I knocked 20 seconds off! I'm THAT much closer to breaking through a 9 minute mile pace!
Week 1 of marathon training started today and here's what I have to do...
So I did a bad thing and I missed the rest day BUT that's only because I know that I'm not going to have time to work out on Wednesday and I had my race today that I didn't want to miss and I don't want to take 2 days off in a row! We'll have to see how I feel tomorrow...maybe I'll end up taking my rest day tomorrow and my other rest day on Wednesday...I need to remember, rest is not a bad thing!
Week 1 of marathon training started today and here's what I have to do...
Rest | Run:3 mi | Bike: 30 min | Pace:3 mi | Rest | Run: 6 mi | Cross 60 min |
So I did a bad thing and I missed the rest day BUT that's only because I know that I'm not going to have time to work out on Wednesday and I had my race today that I didn't want to miss and I don't want to take 2 days off in a row! We'll have to see how I feel tomorrow...maybe I'll end up taking my rest day tomorrow and my other rest day on Wednesday...I need to remember, rest is not a bad thing!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)