Half Marathon Finisher/Recap

Yesterday I ran the Germantown Half Marathon, yup 13.1 miles, 10 weeks of training, numerous injuries, a shoe change in the last week, and lots of ice and Advil all culminated up to this glorious event! On Saturday, Tony, Dana and I went to check out the expo and pick up our race packets, it was a beautiful day, 70 degrees and sunny, the packets were scant, just filled with fliers advertising a bunch of 5k's and a map of the course, along with our tech tees and our bibs and timing tag. I thought they could have at least thrown in a gel or something, I mean we did pay $50 each to run the race. There were only about 5 vendors at the expo, nothing was really being given away or anything, which disappointed me. I was entranced with some of the cool gear one vendor had and thought about purchasing a little zip pouch or amphipod water bottle. But alas, all I ended up buying was a 13.1 magnet to stick on the back of my car and a chocolate Hammer Gel for Tony for the race.

Unfortunately the meterologists were all predicting rain for Sunday. I think I stalked my Weather Channel app on my BlackBerry a million times on Saturday. Saturday night I made a nice carbo loading dinner of chicken marsala, whole wheat pasta, and roasted zucchini. Shortly after dinner and watching District 9 it was time for bed so we could be up at 5:15 am. Sure enough when we got up Sunday morning it was raining, not a downpour, but a light rain. I then ate my usual pre-run breakfast of a whole wheat english muffin with some natural peanut butter on it and a tall glass of water. I was praying the rain would stop by the time we got over to the race location, but of course it didn't, and it was so cold, only about 51 degrees and dropping, but by the time we finished the race it was about 40 degrees. The parking lot was a nightmare and completely full, we drove around for another 10 minutes looking for parking. Walked through the rain, and found the port a potty lines. Our friend Dana loaned me a rain jacket windbreaker to run in, but I was still cold and wet, and this was before the race even started. By the time we got out of the port a potties, the race had already started, so the announcer was yelling for all half marathoners to go because they were going to reset the timing for the 5k. So we missed lining up in our corrals, missed the gun going off, and were 4 minutes late crossing the starting line, thankfully our chips only started timing from that point.

The rain was coming down and I was cold. I had on my gloves, but the rest of me was still chilled, even though I had on pants, a tech tee, and the windbreaker (which was zipped up), oh and a baseball cap to keep the rain off my face. The first mile we booked it. Tony wanted to take off, I kept checking my Nike+ and it was saying we were going at about an 8 min/mi pace and even sub-8 at times, I knew this was too fast so I asked him to slow down. It wasn't soon before I had to walk. Between mile 1 and 2 there was a hill, not super steep, but a gradual incline. I couldn't do it, I had to walk. Tony got annoyed with me and my walking so early, that he said he was going to go on. And so he went. I was a little perturbed because we had agreed to run the race together. The first water stop was at 1.5 miles, I definitely needed some, so I walked on through and drank my water. I saw Tony ahead of me, in fact I kept sight on him up until about mile 5, he was only about 30 seconds ahead of me. There was lots of walking though. I would run a little bit, and then I would slow down and walk for a bit, then go again. The rain was really coming down and the temperature was dropping. At the mile 4 aid station I downed my Chocolate Hammer Gel and a cup of water. Mile 5 was pretty darn long. Mile 6 had us run through a park and we crossed one of the sensor strips at the halfway point. I was thrilled just knowing I was halfway. Over the course of the race my Nike+ was overestimating by about 0.07-0.15 miles, it would tell me I had completed a mile before I got to the mile marker.

At mile 7 I got a second wind and decided to kick it up. I ran until mile 8, and at the aid station there I had my second Hammer Gel, a Vanilla Bean one this time. Somewhere around mile 9 or so I looked down at my fingers (I took the gloves off around mile 2), and my wedding rings were super tight on my super swollen finger, so I decided I needed to take them off. I had a small zippered pocket on the front of my pants, so I put them in there, but it was so hard to try to take them off and get them in there safely while trying to walk and with the rain pounding down. Plus, I freak out when I don't have them on, I always panic and think I lost them. I was a nervous wreck with them in my pocket, even though it's zippered, I was still paranoid they would somehow fall out, so I kept reaching down to check to see if I could still feel them in my pocket. Plus, my stupid left shoe kept coming untied during the second half of the race, I had to stop to retie it 3 times! Mile 9 took us through another park, and another aid station, this one I walked through and got some Gatorade.  After that I got another wind and started running again. I ran for a bit and then slowed and walked until mile 10 or so. Then came the final stretch and the battle in my head. I kept telling myself, okay, when I get to mile 11 I will run the last 2 miles. Couldn't do it, I had to run and then walk some. Then when I got to 11.6, I told myself, okay time to run the last 1.5 miles. Couldn't do it. Then I said okay, just run the last mile and you can finish in 2:15:xx. I still couldn't do it. Finally, I made the deal with myself, I could run the last 0.50 miles. At that point I could see the mile marker for mile 13. I picked it up then, I pushed my Nike+ to play my "power song" which is Melissa Etheridge's "I Run For Life" and I booked it. As I rounded the curve after mile 13, I could see the finish line and Tony and Dana were standing on the corner with their finisher medals on waiting for me, I waved, they waved and cheered and Dana motioned me to keep going and run! So I kicked up even further and started sprinting, and then crossed the finish line!! Immediately a volunteer handed me my medal and I walked off to find some water. I grabbed a little water bottle and then went to find Tony and Dana. We perused the refreshment table and I grabbed 2 sandwich cookies and half a banana. My legs felt like Jello and just kept shaking. I was shivering. It was so cold and I was completely soaked. Every inch of me. My feet were sloshing in water. I felt terrible and wonderful all at the same time! My body ached, but I was just so happy and proud of myself.

After chowing down our little snacks and using the bathroom we headed for the car. We brought towels since we knew we'd be soaked. I stripped off my wet jacket and hat and shirt and dried off a bit and put on my warm sweatshirt I had left in the car. I was so worried about Tony though because he was shivering pretty violently and he didn't bring any dry clothes. We turned on the heat full blast and headed home with a quick stop at the Starbucks drive thru for some hot drinks to warm us up inside. Once home I was first to take a hot shower and relax. It felt great to warm up and be out of my wet clothes and shoes. After everyone had showers we settled in to relax and have green monsters and some other snacks/lunch and watch some TV. I also began icing my sore left foot and took two Advil. The rest of the evening was very low key with more icing, a nice dinner of filet mignon, baked potatoes, California blend veggies, and a glass of wine.

Today my foot is still sore, it's also pretty swollen, I'm still icing it and taking my Advil. If it doesn't improve by tomorrow or Wednesday I will go see my doctor. This afternoon I'm going to the spa and getting a one hour sports massage, facial, and aromatherapy foot bath. Race results were finally posted and overall I'm pretty pleased with myself. I didn't do as well as I would have liked, but I finished and surpassed my goal. My original goal was to finish in about 2:30:xx, but in my head I thought I could probably finish around 2:15:xx. Official results from my timing chip said I finished in 2:21:53. I was at the halfway point at 1:08:59 and for the first half of the race my pace was 10:32 min/mi. I slowed down for the second half of the race though and my pace was 10:50 min/mi, overall I came in 789 out of 1500, and 49th out of 66 in my age group (25-29), and 314th out of 764 for the women.

My Nike+ ended up underestimating at the end, it said I only ran 13.03 miles and I waited a couple seconds after crossing the finish line to turn it off, but overall I think it did a pretty good job of being mostly accurate.

Even though this race was pretty miserable given the weather, I still love the runner's high and the sense of accomplishment afterwards. I'm feeling pretty hardcore today knowing that I ran in those conditions yesterday. Next race is April 2nd, it's an easy 5k on base and I am hoping to run it in sub-30. Thank you all for all your support and encouragement on my journey, it has really touched and inspired me to keep going and do the very best I can and I couldn't have done it without you!! 

My First Fondant Cake

This week in Course 3 we learned how to work with fondant. I admit, prior to yesterday I was very nervous to do anything involving fondant. I also thought it would taste bad. I'm glad to say I was wrong on both counts. I took the easy way out and used the premade fondant from Wilton that I purchased at Michael's, but I was pleasantly surprised with the tiny taste I had, it was pretty marshmallow tasting and still fairly sweet. Working with the fondant was much easier as well, the trick is working it enough so that it become pliable.

This was probably my second favorite cake I've made, my number one favorite is still my flower basket cake, but this one was fairly easy and just in a different realm than working with buttercream. Today is my mother in law's birthday and our friend Dana's birthday. As luck would have it, Dana is staying with us this weekend as she prepares to move to D.C., so we will be cutting this cake tonight with her in celebration! Since I knew she would be with us and we'd have it as her birthday cake, I asked her what flavor she would like me to make, so the inside is my perfect red velvet with cream cheese filling. I can't wait to get a taste of all of it together tonight!

Spring Cupcake Bites

My mother-in-law's birthday is coming up, so hubby and I began brainstorming on what to get/send her. Tony suggested I send her some homemade treats to enjoy since it would be criminal for her to have to make her own birthday cake, plus she's an accountant and it's tax season, so she's short on time as it is. I knew I couldn't send her a cake, that just wouldn't ship well. So I came up with the next best solution to cake, cupcake bites! MIL's favorite color is purple, and while I wanted to do the tops of the bites in purple, I also knew I wanted to put some of my violet and apple blossom sugar flowers on top, so I settled on yellow as my color of choice for these. They came out looking like perfect little spring cupcakes! I love making these, every time they just come out cuter and cuter! This time I made them even more professional and put them in some tissue paper lined 1 lb candy boxes I picked up at Michael's, and then tied them with some metallic ribbon. Hopefully she likes them! But I mean come on, who doesn't like chocolate cake and frosting from scratch sandwiched between semi sweet and white chocolate?!

9 Minutes!

Boy does it feel good to be back on track! Today I did a quick 3 miles on the treadmill at the gym because it was gross outside. Spring is on it's way, but here, that means rain and gloom for right now. Not fun to run outside, even if it is in the 50s, no sun means I'm not going outside, not just yet anyway. But, today's run on the dreadmill did do it's job, in fact this is the best I've felt about a run in a while. In fact, I ran my fastest pace ever today and didn't feel like I was going to die. I was hauling! Most times I'd hit my iPod to hear my stats and I was consistently in the 8:xx min/mi territory! I was thrilled! I did slow down a couple times, but mostly due to my darn hair that kept falling down out of it's little bun on the top of my head. My feet felt like heaven though, my Mizunos were worth every darn penny I paid for them! Anyway, the big news for today, my average pace for today was 9 min/mi, the fastest I have ever run! If I keep this up, my dreams of a sub-30 minute 5K on April 2nd will definitely be attainable!

Back In The Saddle

Today I finally got back to running!! I am so happy to be back at it again and feel confident I will be able to finish the half marathon next week, even if it means walking some. I credit my long awaited return to my awesome new shoes! Yesterday, Tony and I went to our local running store, Fleet Feet Sports, and got professionally fitted for shoes. I've known for a while my Nike Air Moto+ 6's were probably not the right shoes for me, especially after all the recent injuries. Boy, was I right! The guy at Fleet Feet had me run on the treadmill while a video camera and computer taped me, then they analyze it and tell you if you overpronate, underpronate, or have a neutral pronation. Well, much like I suspected, I overpronate, so I need a stability shoe. Turns out my Nikes were a neutral shoe, and were so heavy and not flexible at all. After trying on several pairs of shoes recommended by the sales guy, and trying them out running outside on the sidewalk, I finally settled on the wondrously cushy and supportive Mizuno Wave Inspire 6's. I am in love!

I was also like a kid in the candy store at Fleet Feet. I wanted to buy everything! I did end up with that neat little pink pouch for my Nike+ sensor, some Body Glide, and a couple new gels, including a chocolate Hammer Gel, and a Vanilla Bean GU. I plan to try the chocolate gel during the half next week. But in addition to my loot, I also checked out and wanted some awesome Amphipod hand held water bottles and pouches, as well as some neato fuel belts, gels and sports beans, running shorts, and tech tees. I could have spent a fortune in there, luckily Tony reeled me in before I bought the whole store. As it turns out Tony is a neutral pronator, so basically he has the perfect form when running, but his Nikes were a stability shoe, so he ended up getting an awesome new pair of Asics Gel Cumulus 11, which he seems happy with. I am thrilled though that we both now have the correct shoes and can run the half pain free!

So, while I may have missed most of my training this week, and missed out on 15 miles, I am just so happy to be back to it at all. I leave you now with my stats for today's run. This next week will be a very light week as well in preparation for the big race next Sunday. Stay tuned for a full recap after the race!

Week 9, Day 1: 3.00 miles, 28:58, av pace: 9:37 min/mi (I was hoofing it today, at time I was in the upper 8:xx min/mi range, but I did slow down and walk a couple times).

My First Paid Cake Order

This week I was approached by the Mess Treasurer in Tony's office and asked if I would be willing to make a cake for their usual quarter birthday celebration. I, of course said yes! I love making my cakes, and to get paid for making one is even better! So for $20, I made my usual 9 inch layer cake in my usual yellow cake recipe, and did a nice rosette border and piped on some balloons, stars, and wrote out "Happy Birthday." I'm not as happy with this cake as I should be I guess. I think my piping of "Birthday" was off, the B was too big and then it's too smooshed at the end, plus I overdid it with the stars on the side of the cake. I tried to top it off with some colorful nonpareils, but since the icing had already hardened they didn't stick and just ended up getting stuck along the border. Overall though, I guess it came out okay, I am just highly critical of my work at this point. I know it will still taste good, and it looks bright and colorful and most of the work is pretty good, I just want it to look more professional I guess. So hopefully with a little more practice my next paid cake order will be even better!

Week 8 Half Marathon Training

Usually the title of this weekly post ends with the word "complete" however, this week I don't think that's the right word to use. I did not meet my mileage this week. According to my training plan I was supposed to do 22 miles this week, I knew I wouldn't make that, my goal was 18, I didn't make that either. How far did I get? 10 miles and 3 of them were walking. I am so bummed right now. This week was just terrible for me. I took Monday off after last Saturday's 12 miler. I felt okay, but I was just still a little sore and just not up to running just then.

Wednesday I went back to the gym and as I posted earlier this week, it was horrible. Thursday was much of the same, incredibly difficult to get through, lots of tightness in my left calf and ankle area. I ran maybe 75% of the 4 miles, the rest was walking and I got off that treadmill dripping wet and exhausted. Yesterday I had 9 miles on the docket, but I just couldn't do it. I was hobbling as it was, but I definitely didn't want to waste the beautiful day outside, so we just walked 3 miles around base. My left foot around the arch and the back of my lower leg were screaming in pain, so bad that walking was difficult, today they are feeling a little better, but I think the best medicine is just to rest it for now and not try to go back to training and meeting a mileage goal for the week. My main concern is getting to do the half and feel good and finish. 

Even though I know I need to lay off for a bit, it still drives me crazy. I want to run. I want to meet my mileage. I want to run pain free. It's really depressing right now, especially because it's beautiful outside again today and it would be perfect running weather. I debated going to a running store this afternoon to get professionally fitted for shoes, considering my Nikes came from the Exchange on base, and while they feel okay on my feet, I can't help but wonder if they are the cause or a contributing factor in the injuries I have been getting lately, or if it's just plain overtraining and too much stress on my body. But I don't know if it would be a good idea to go when I am injured and can't really run like I normally do. I don't know what the solution is right now other than rest and then going back out to try again in a few days. Then maybe taking a trip to the running store when I feel I am healed and back to my regular form. This afternoon though, I feel like a defeated runner.

Week 8, Day 1: 3.00 miles, about 33:00 mins, av pace: 11:00 min/mi (this was the day my iPod was dead)
Week 8, Day 2: 4.00 miles, 42:28, av pace: 10:36 min/mi
Week 8, Day 3: 3,00 miles, 53:27, av pace: 17:48 min/mi

My Prettiest Cake Yet!

Last night was the last class of Course 2, and so it was time to do our grand finale cake. I am so happy with the way it turned out. It was definitely difficult to make all the sugar flowers over the last few weeks, some were easier to make than others. Overall I am very happy with the way it turned out! Take a look:

 

  

  

 

When I showed hubby my cake, he immediately told me it wasn't going to be big enough for everyone at work, so I decided to make a dozen cupcakes to send along too, and of course they needed to be pretty as well, so I decided to use up the rest of my royal icing in the fridge after beating it back to the right consistency, I whipped out some more violets and apple blossoms. I wanted to use up the icing anyway, and I needed more flowers for part of mother in law's birthday present in the next couple weeks. So an hour and 150 flowers later all my icing was used up. I didn't have a chance to pipe on the little yellow dots though, so the cupcakes look more like cartoon flowers and definitely girlie cupcakes. I think they would be super cute for a little girl's birthday party myself, or at least something I would have loved to have for my birthday party as a little girl. For both the cake and the cupcakes I used my go to Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Cake recipe and the usual Wilton Buttercream frosting. I think both turned out splendid, if I do say so myself!

 

Bad Run

I know everyone has them, but seriously, I feel my bad runs lately have been outweighing the good ones. Today I experienced another running fail, and I dare say, this is probably the worst one to date. I took 3 days off due to some soreness after Saturday's 12 miler, my knee was feeling fine, but my left calf has been especially tight lately. So not to aggravate it further, I just decided it needed some time to heal and repair itself, I know I have been putting a lot of stress on my body lately with all the running. Well today I got up and was all set to hit the gym full force and do between 5 and 6 miles. As much as I am hating the treadmill lately, at least I know I can knock out a relatively "short" run in a short amount of time and try to distract myself by people watching or watching the TV while I listen to my iPod and fight the mental battle in my head.

But today, it just wasn't happening. When I got to the gym it was more crowded than expected for the time of day, and then I discovered my iPod was dead! I don't know how it went from fully charged in my gym bag on Monday to dead today, I can only figure I left the hold button on so it wouldn't turn on by accident, but maybe that somehow discharged the battery.  I can't run without music. Plus that meant that my Nike+ wasn't going to log my run, not that I necessarily need the Nike+, but I find it highly motivating to keep my mental battle going and pushing me to fight and keep going. I like hearing my pace, and how far I've gone and how far I have left to go. So alas, I got on the treadmill, immediately my left calf was tight and not wanting to cooperate, I walked for 5 minutes, then I started to run, I ran 1 mile. Then I got off and took a bathroom break. I got back on, I walked a bit, ran, walked, ran. I got to 2 miles that time. Then I quit. 3 miles total, in probably about 33 minutes of active time. Slow and dreadful. I wanted to die the entire time. I just couldn't get into it. I tried to watch the TV, I tried to focus on the 70 or 80 year old guy in front of me jogging along at a 6.4 mph pace.

I just couldn't do it. I feel like a giant fail today. I know I shouldn't, and I should be happy I got out there and did anything. But truth be told, I am just so tired of running lately, I want to find excuses not to do it. I'm not going to make 22 miles this week as my training plan has laid out, in fact I will be lucky if I make 18 this week. I want to run races, I really do, in fact I found another 5K to run on base April 2nd and am hoping I can beat my last 5K time and run a sub-30 minute race. But, I want to enjoy running again; zoning out, and running pain-free. I'm hoping that I can just get through the next couple weeks of training, run the half, and then take a nice break from training and just run when and for how long I want to and not based off of some schedule that I feel I must abide by.

The iPod is now on the dock and is not leaving it until I get ready to walk out the door tomorrow morning. I'm going to foam roll in a bit too and hopefully that will relieve some of the tightness in my calf. Hopefully I get over my funk and can run 6 miles tomorrow, we'll see how it goes...