January Recap/Stats

This morning I headed out for a 4 mile recovery run with the Orlando Runner's Group. We did a route around the Waterford Lakes area and despite the rather blustery morning it was an excellent run and I met some great new peeps. I kept it a nice easy pace and felt d@mn good for having just run 22.5 M yesterday. On the way home I swung by the new pedestrian sidewalk along the 408 to see if it was open yet. Apparently it's not but I snuck past the sign and jogged a little ways in just to round out my monthly mileage... (Have I mentioned I'm OCD and don't like odd numbers?)

What sign? I see nothing but finished sidewalk here! :)

On a nice day this will be so pretty with Downtown as the back drop, can't wait work it into a route soon!

In an effort to stick with my goals for this year and hold myself accountable, here are my stats for the month of January. I decided to make it a little more interesting by adding in a fun list I stole from Kelly who stole it from Lisa which means I don't get an ounce of credit for creativity whatsoever. Enjoy! :)

January Recap

Miles Planned/Ran: 200±/170
(Coach EK has additional Recovery Runs on the training plans that you can nix if needed, thus the ±)

Rest Days Planned/Taken: 5/11 :(
(Due to illness, injury, travel, holidays, etc...)

Highest Mileage Week: 53.5± M - Current week.
(My training week runs Mon - Sun)

This week was my first time ever breaking 50+ miles and last week was my first time ever breaking 40+ miles. Yay for firsts!

Long Runs Planned/Ran: 5/5 - With one cut short; 16 turned 10 in Chattanooga

Hill Workouts Planned/Ran: 4/3 - Bubonic Plague

Pace Workouts Planned/Ran: 4/3 - See above

Current Book:
Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George
I can NOT put it down. So friggin' good!!!

Current Shame-Inducing Guilty Pleasure:
AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com Thank you Razz.

Current Colors:
Bright Green, Bright Pink & Gasparilla Marathon Red. In no particular order.

Current Obsessions:
Look no further than this here blog.

Current Drink:
Always the H20 - It's all about hydration.

Current Song:
How Low - Ludacris - I love his crazy @ss and have you seen the video? LMFAO!

Current Wish-List:
A pair of Nike Dri-FIT pacer shorts in size XS. I can't find them ANYWHERE?!?!?!?

Current Need:
To have my boyfriend within cuddling distance.

Current Triumph:
Building 22.5 Miles of Confidence on Saturday's Long Run

Current Bane of my Existence:
See above item *Current Wish-List*

Current Goal:
Sub 4 @ Gasparilla

Current Indulgence:
Carrot Cake Mini Cupcake from after this mornings run with the group! Mmmm!!!

Current Blessings:
My family, friends and boyfriend.

Current Excitement:
3 weeks til Donna Half w/ Jill & 4 weeks til Gasparilla

Rocking last years Gasparilla Half Shirt for this mornings run;
4 M Recovery Run - 4 Weeks til Gasparilla!!!

I hope ya'll had a great January filled with confidence building runs that helped you achieve your goals! Next up February... On, On, On!!!

22.5 Miles of Confidence Building...

While training for Chicago I began most long runs not knowing if I was capable of going the distance. Each week I pushed my limits and each week I learned what I was made of. I discussed some of this in the post "Training in the Know." To further marinade on that thought I want to explain to ya'll my goals coming into this training cycle;

I knew I was capable of going the distance, so to that end, I wouldn't have to question. But I wanted to train and run stronger this cycle. I had the tools, knowledge and experience and now I wanted to utilize them to capacity. Last training cycle I struggled at the end of every single long run, I took walk breaks, I psyched myself out. I got skeered. So besides just incorporating regular hill and pace workouts into this cycle my number one goal was to RUN every long run and finish STRONG.

Going into the 22.5 miler I had a healthy dose of fear brewing. It felt good. It made me realize I hadn't gotten cocky. I still respected the distance. The long runs leading up to it had been such a mixture of mileage, location and levels of difficulty. This weeks run loomed before me built up in my head as being a pinnacle point of training. I had finished each prior long run strong, no walk breaks, in rapid succession; but this run would show me what I was really made of. It became a mental hurdle I had given myself... that I soared over and landed gracefully on the other side of. When I all but shouted at the girls, "I call that 22.5 miles of confidence building!!!" at the end I meant it. We had all started that run with our own inner struggles but we all finished it stronger and more confident in ourselves.

So yeah, now that I got all that off my chest how about I recap this run for ya?

Rachael had asked for some pics of this elusive 22.5 miler and I had to explain to her that it's a 4.5 M out and back along a very boring stretch of road and we start at an ungodly hour so there's not much to see until the end anyway. Essentially our run looks like this:

4.5 M x 5

Exciting huh? Our next and thankfully last 22 miler will be run along Bayshore, the actual race route itself and I promise to snap some shots while we're there of the route, the Gulf and us running like majestic gazelles along side it.

Moving on...

The first 4.5 miles is always spent catching up from last week and finding our stride. Hollster and I had resigned to run a steady pace and not get pulled by the slightly speedier runners in front of us. At the turn around we did not dally, it was "Gu & Go." We were back pounding the pavement within a minute. Somewhere about mile 6 I took a ricocheted piece of wood to the ankle but otherwise there was no carnage to speak of. Bringing it in at Mile 9 we took a quick pee break and then got right back out there.

4.5 M III was spent marveling at the beautiful sunrise, enjoying another lucky bout of gorgeous running weather and unknowingly picking up the pace. We continually passed other BRA runners and utterly FAIL'd time and time again to conduct a successful high five. At the turn around it was another "Gu & Go" and a few minutes later we passed Mr. Huge-Quad-Shorty-Shorts from last week. I tried to keep from laughing by plastering a friendly smile across my face. Where is P-Funk & B.o.B when you need them? LOL!

Well into Mile 16 we both admittedly started to feel tired, the chatter quieted down and I think reality sunk in that we still had a ways to go and one final round of the never ending hill to conquer. Right about then a Sears truck passed and I told Holly about their commercial I had recently seen, have you seen it? The R.A.D. one? HILARIOUS. Then we passed a pile of crap in the middle of the sidewalk... with a pair of underwear nearby. Seriously. WTF?!?! As we approached the never ending hill we put our game faces on. I remembered what Spike had told me about running up hills and stated the we needed to pull back our shoulders and straighten up our posture. No burning up energy from slouching here! Half way up is Mile 17, as we hit it Hermes beeped a 9:19 pace. I refrained from telling her because I wanted to see if we could keep it up through the top and to Mile 18. (At the turn around before repeat II Hollster had FAIL'd to restart her Garmin so she was 4.5 miles off the rest of our run) As we crested the hill and brought it in to Mile 18 we passed a male runner with unfortunate sweat patterns in his crotchular region... we laughed ourselves silly right in and Hermes beeped a 9:10 pace. We had just negative split the toughest part of the run! We only had one more effing 4.5 M repeat to go and we were done but as far as I was concerned the worst was behind us. The last of the miles could be good, bad or ugly, I had just wanted to make it over that hill.

After a quick pee & Gu break we headed back out and easily looked like two 90 year old women attempting to run. We had stopped all of maybe 3 minutes but that was enough time for the fatigue to set in and I'm sure we were a very entertaining sight! Just as we finally got into the swing of things again we passed P-Funk & B.o.B bringing it in to the turn around. Hollster gave them words of encouragement and I reminded them to straight up. Apparently I am the Posture Nazi all of a sudden. Mile 19 was rough. Mile 20 came with renewed energy and strength. We passed Coach EK and it was not lost on me that he shouted "You two would look awfully good finishing Gasparilla together." Mile 21 came and went. As we came up on Mile 22 I looked at Hollster and said, "I gonna open it up and see what I have left for this last .5 you in?" She declined and said have at it. As Hermes beeped Mile 22 I gunned it...

At 22.5 I hit stop and ended the run, wholey spent but feeling absolutely on top of the world. I trotted back to Hollster and we both successfully double high fived and dubbed ourselves rockstars. I checked the stats, we negative split the last half of the run and I rocked that last .5 at a 7:13 pace. *Fist pumps the air* F*ck yeah!

We grabbed some H20, I changed into my recovery socks and we headed out to cheer B.o.B & P-Funk in. It seems they had the same idea at the 22 and brought it in strong. Then I all but shouted at the girls, "I call that 22.5 miles of confidence building!!!" and I meant it. We had run it like we meant it and it hurt so good.

Big shout out to Hollster for being the best pace partner a Redhead could ask for! Big congrats to B.o.B & P-Funk for kicking @ss on their run too!! Next run together is a dress rehearsal for Gasparilla and we are so ready!!!! 4 more weeks! I hope all ya'll out there had a confidence building kind of run too!

Please excuse this A.D.D. moment...

• First and foremost, you guys are abso-freaking-lutely AWESOME! THANK YOU SO MUCH to each of you that donated towards my Operation Jack/Train 4 Autism goal! Not only did I meet my goal, but I exceeded it! The blogging community is so supportive and I am forever indebted to you. I will run my heart out at Gasparilla, dedicating a mile of to each of you. <3
  
  
• Speaking of Gasparilla, The Laminator decided to share with me that every time I write Gasparilla all he sees is Gorilla and thinks I'm Gorilla training. Now that's all I see too. I am not, I repeat, I am NOT Gorilla training. Furthermore neither myself nor B.o.B will be running Gasparilla in a Gorilla costume. Just wanted to clear that up in case there were any questions...
  
  
• Yesterday Jamoosh posted a very informative post about learning to run, found HERE. Go read it RIGHT NOW. Especially all you newbie runner's out there. Seriously, go now. I'll wait.
  
  la-la-la-la... Oh you're back? Ok good... moving on...



• Bum walks into my night gig last night.
  Me: "Can I help you?"
  Bum: "Do you have a plastic bag?"
  Me: "No I'm sorry."
  Bum: *Looks around, gives me the meanest stank eye in the history of man*
  "WELL F*CK YOU THEN B*TCH!!!"
  Me: Speechless.
  Server: "Oh no that's the angry bum, what did he say to you???"
  True Story.
  I love working downtown O-town.
  
  
• This morning as I head out to my car with purse and pillows tucked under one arm and wheeling my luggage with running shoes and lunch hanging from handle out to my car with the other arm, I drop the glass of milk I'm holding in my mouth and it explodes all over my luggage, front door and IN my shoes. Apparently I can not multi-task. FML.
  
  Shoes are currently hanging from the "oh sh*t bar" in the back seat to dry out, but here's my question: How do I clean milk out of shoes?!?
  
  EDIT: TMB from Races With Babes told me to rinse them in water and then sprinkle baking soda on them and let dry out. I may have over done the baking soda a bit lot but there's no way my stank shoes need to stink like sour milk on top of sweat!!!
  
  



• 22 Miles tomorrow. Twenty-two. 2-2. I've run that and then some and yet... I still have a healthy dose of fear brewing. I know we'll get it run and done. I don't question that. I guess this just proves that despite finishing a marathon I still humbly respect the distance and that is a good thing.
  



• The Brunette is headed out of town for the weekend and I volunteered to take care of Smelly Ellie in her absence. I've been instructed to feed her once in the morning, once at night and to walk her when needed. Keep your fingers crossed I can keep her alive until Sunday.
  

Have a great weekend ya'll! Rock those races & long runs! Catch ya'll on the flipside of 22!!!

3 Things Thursday

1. Ya'll love to talk about boobs or rather lack there of. LMAO! Thanks for all the feedback yesterday. I will gladly accept all boobage donations from those of you that offered! LOL!
   
   But seriously, ya'll are right; I should just be happy I will always have perky girls that never hurt my back. Good thing Spike isn't a boob guy. ;)
   
   



2. Holy high mileage Batman! This week has been a doozy and I've still got my first 22 miler on deck for Saturday with B.o.B and the BRA to go! What's the highest mileage week ya'll have ever completed in a training cycle???
   
   

3. And last but certainly not least... One month from TODAY I will run #2 - Gasparilla Marathon!!! I can't believe it's right around the corner! I am just about ready to tackle the distance; only a few more long runs to go before taper. I have my tank ready to be screen printed with the Operation Jack & my blog logos and the only thing I'm short on is my goal. I had hoped to raise $750 and I am just shy of the final amount....
   
   *Gets on knees, clasps hands together and turns on the puppy eyes*
   
   Would you, kind readers, help me achieve my goal and throw a fiver my way??? Please oh pretty, pretty, pretty please???? I would be ever indebted to you and just think about the many chittlins lives you could improve by helping out this great cause! (If you didn't read my post about why I'm running for Operation Jack & Train 4 Autism you can find it HERE.) Now if you can find it in your hearts to help me raise awareness and can spare a square... er rectangle o' green, please donate here:
   
   http://operationjack.kintera.org/redheadrunning
   
   
   

Runner Boob Loss Revisted

The other day my fav sports bra's at Target, the C9 ones with the adjustable straps, were on sale. I picked up a new one in size XS and happily made my way to the check out. A few days later I went to wear it and that's when I realized its happened again...

My boobs have disappeared.

Remember the last time this happened?

Well this time it's worse. I didn't realize it until after I noticed how loose the new bra fit that my other sports bra's are loose too. I was never a Gal with Girls to begin with but my Target bra's have been tried and true! I've tried almost every other kind out there but they either don't come small enough or are not comfortable. M2Marathon suggested Itty Bitty Bra's to me after my initial post but I don't think I'd dig wearing such a bra-like sports bra. What to do?

I've got less than 5 weeks til the marathon and I've always doubled up workout shirts that have the built in bra's with my sports bra's so it's not like I'm hurting for support or anything. I mean they're gone, what's there to support anyway? I know they'll come back after I stop training so hard. Or at least I hope so... they did last time. They will right?!

*sigh*

I've got no lovely lady lumps.

*sigh*

Guess I'll just resort to stuffing my bra again... do you think chicken cutlets are sweat resistant?

Weekend Wrap-up and another 18...

Alright peeps, between my crazy jam packed, sleep deprived, many miles driven weekend, followed by a mind numbing corporate retreat for work today and then hauling major @ss on the hills I am beyond frazzled so you get this weekends recap in a discombobulated semi-list /semi-story format... try to keep up.

Saturday

• 18 Miles were on deck - It was a BEAUTIFUL morning! Absolutely PERFECT. The entire run I just kept thinking to myself, if only we could get this weather for Gasparilla, I'd be in heaven! We did the same 4.5 M repeat as last week and with the low humidity, refreshing breeze and amazing sunrise I don't think anyone could've had a bad run. In fact no one did.
  
  
• Hollster & I kept a solid pace and I've realized we run really well together. We pick up on each others subtle cues of fatigue, monitoring pace, etc... I think I may have just met my running sole mate. :)
  
  
• Captain Nuts again graced us with his presence here and there but was mostly working on his own agenda. He is seriously like a running ninja, one minute he's there, next minute he's gone...
  
  
• I'm convinced B.o.B & P-Funk have parties during the run. We are forever hearing them cackling in the distance behind us ...
  
  
• About mile 12 my ankle started bothering me. WTF?!?
  
  Side Note: I've noticed when I run this route with the BRA the front of my ankle (or where the top of the foot meets the bottom of the leg) gets sore. At first I thought my shoes were tied too tight, but this week I made a conscious effort to loosen them. After more consideration I'm wondering if its the hills on the route and how I'm digging into my shoes on the downhill?!?! Any thoughts???
  
  
• B.o.B & P-Funk, having been feisty all morning, decided to pace with Hollster & I the final stretch. The next few miles were hilarious and since I know I could never do it justice I will rely on B.o.B to explain to you the scenario of the guy with the HUGE quads in the shorty-shorts who ran up alongside Hollster & I for a few minutes. Let's just say it took everything I could not to die laughing.
  
  
• Apparently my flowing pony tail is not only shiny and distracting but also mesmorizing and brings on feelings of nausea. Do not look directly at the pony tail while in motion.
  
  
• Hollster & P-Funk had 20 on deck so they took their leave of us to rack up the extra mileage while B.o.B and I brought it in for the 18. For the record, not only did we negative split the entire last half of our run but we negative split every mile of it. Speed Demons!!!
  
  
• Those last 2 miles with B.o.B we discussed Gasparilla, our training and the morning's run and I just gotta say, I can't wait to see her shatter her expectations! Boo you are going to rock Gasparilla I just know it!
  
  
• After the run Coach EK & I discussed how the training cycle has been going and agreed upon my Gasparilla race strategy. I am feeling great about both and Coach EK seemed to be pleased. *cue happy dance*
  

Now let me set this next scene up for you; I'm following P-Funk to breakfast and out of nowhere on the other side of the road, two deer come galloping along at full speed. I am at once both in awe at seeing a Florida deer (I've lived here 10 years and never seen one; they are so little!) and also wondering when they will dart across the road. I'm from Michigan, deers are suicidal masochists. When you see one, it is inevitable that it will jump in front of you. (Kinda like the one that Spike eviscerated when I was visiting in October) So I'm waiting for the eventual suicide attempt and hoping P-Funk has noticed them as she is in front of me and they are paced with her car, when the leader makes it's move... and P-Funk notices within seconds of almost hitting it. I had slowed proactively, knowing the second would follow so it passed between our cars with plenty of room. When we arrived at breakfast I asked P-Funk why she was trying to kill Bambi and she was like, "I was looking at the second one!!" LMAO! Ok so maybe it's not as funny but ya know how after a long run you're a bit runtarded and things just make sense in a way that normally they wouldn't? Well it was one of those scenario's and we both just cracked up.

Breakfast was full of the usual hijinks of the assembled BRA runner's and I was thoroughly entertained. Especially when D planted a big wet one on Coach EK's freshly shaved upper lip! LOL! Afterwards I headed back to B.o.B's to clean up before meeting up with Rixy at the outlet mall. Shopping ensued. Things I did and did not need were purchased at killer prices, but better than that, I got some QT time with my Rixy. I love her.

After the spending of money was done I headed back to BRA country and set up shop at V's as we waited on the rest of the slumber party to assemble. We wined (well they did anyway), we dined and had a whole lot of fun! Strawberr-E lived up to her name and brought the most amazing fresh strawberries, B.o.B provided us with ghetto fabulous music and we all managed to make watching figure skating a highly offensive and ill mannered affair. "She fell again?!?! WTF? She only gets 2 crackers for dinner tonight!"

P-Funk, V, B.o.B & I

Sunday Funday

• Woke up at @ss crack of dawn to head home. Me + unfamiliar bed = no sleep.
  
  
• Attempt recovery run... ankle is so sore I barely make it a mile before calling it. WTF is up with this wonky ankle situation?!?!?
  
  
• The Brunette & I decide to ride downtown to the Farmer's Market
  
  
• Neither of us have cash... but technically we still drove up...
  
  
• Farmer's Market Goodness... I think we've started a new Sunday tradition
  
  
• While meandering home we decide to wander over to a park I've been meaning to check out... Gotta love discovering new places in your city. It was so beautiful!
  
  
  
• After a glorious nap I headed over for some QT with the Beaker Luv clan and got to see all of Baby RJ's newest tricks! 6 months old already and so much fun!
  
  Beautiful weather, amazing friends and a great run = A perfect weekend! I hope ya'll had just as great of a weekend as I did!!!
  
  
  4 Weeks til Donna Half with Jill
  5 Weeks til Gasparilla
  
  

Color Me Happy

Happy Friday peeps!!! Morning Runner tagged me to list 10 Things that made me HAPPY and tag 10 more people to do it. I don't know about you but Friday certainly makes me Happy, but here are a few more things...

1. The Little Things... Like random text messages that have seemingly nothing to do with anything at all but totally crack you up or coming across an unexpected smile while walking down the street...


2. Getting lost in a good book... Despite working two jobs and running ungodly amounts of miles, I still manage to devour books on the regular, that's how I spend my "Me" time.
   
   



3. The Color Pink... Its been my happy color for years. Something about it just puts a pep in my step and a smile on my face. Why else would I love Flamingo's so d@mn much?
   


4. Chocolate Chip Cookies... My kryptonite.
   
5. Mulberry Scented Candles... They remind me of my little brothers for some reason.
   
6. Blogging/Blog Buddies... Since starting this blog I have found a never ending outlet of support, encouragement, inspiration, understanding, advice and friendships. Writing this blog makes me happy for so many reasons! Thanks for reading!
   


7. Baby RJ... He makes my heart smile every time I see him.
   
   


8. Spike... He is the most amazing man I have ever met and makes me happier than I've ever been.
   


9. My Friends... They are my Family down here in Florida and I don't know how I would have survived that last 10 years without them. They are a constant source of encouragement, support, inspiration and entertainment... mixed with a whole lot of amazing and fun!
   
   
   
   
10. The Joy of a Good Run... Needs no explanation.

Who to tag, who to tag... How about:
Adam - I am Boring
littlerunner
Maureen - Mo Sho Runs
Muddy Runner
Harold - My World Thru the Lens
Run Jess Run
Sun Runner - Running into the Sun
runningbarefoot
The Brunette - That'll teach ya not to take a blog hiatus!!!The Tan-O-Phobic Runner
COMMENCE WEEKEND!!! Rock those races & long runs! Catch ya'll on the flipside!!!

3 Things Thursday

1. Just wanted to say "Hola Peeps!" to all the new followers I've acquired lately! I have been trying to visit your pages to share the love. Thanks for following along... hope you enjoy my random running ramblings! :)
   
   
2. Not sure if anyone noticed or not but I've added a new race to the "To Do" list... The infamous Gate River Run!!! After an email exchange with Christy of It Just Looks Like Slow Motion it has been decided that I shall head up to J-ville and crash with her for the 33rd Annual USA 15k Championship! Woo hoo! I'm pretty stoked and seeing as how it is nary two weeks post Gasparilla Marathon I have decided rather than race the event I will pace Christy to a PR!!! So excited!
   
   
3. I'm also totally stoked for this weekend; First up I'm headed over to B.o.B's again Friday night, 18 Miler w/ the BRA Saturday a.m., QT time with Rixy Saturday afternoon, BRA Slumber Party (Ladies Only) Saturday night and topping it off with a trail on Sunday morning with Lazy Runner! Be prepared for lots of fun pics next week! Bring on the weekend!!!

She's a Brickhouse...

First Official Brick Workout
2.6 M Bike - 6 M Run

So this morning I decided to switch it up... It's Wednesday and I typically head over to Eola to meet up with Therese for our weekly run. (Which should really be down played to like monthly as we have missed it consectively for weeks!!!) Anyway, I had a MLR of 6 M on deck and The Brunette wanted to bike pace me. After thinking on it I decided rather then drive the bike over, I'd break in my new bike from Christmas and do a brick workout. We'd bike over together, I'd lock up my bike at my work and then I'd run around the lake and home. Everything was going as planned and we had a refreshing ride over to the lake... I say refreshing but what I mean is I froze my legs off because I wore shorts and it was in the 40's and wind against your legs on the bike is MUCH colder than wind against your legs when you run! BRRRR!!!

We dropped the bike off and headed over to the lake to wait on Therese... who totally FAIL'd me!!! (J/K I still love you!!!) After waiting for a few we decided she must have slept in (Slacker) so I began the run. Well first The Brunette tried to run me over. Seriously I had tire tracks up my leg! We were discussing when Panera opens and she started daydreaming about coffee as I was instructing her to turn right... So I turned right and she kept going... right up my leg! LOL! Anyway, my legs were all "whoa what is going on" all googly like at first but after about a half mile they felt normal again. I can't imagine how weird they would feel had I of biked further or faster! I have mad respect to my Triathletes out there! That's def going to take some practice!

A few jaunts around the lake later we headed in the direction of home and called it a day! First brick workout attempt = Success! Yay! I'm thinking I might try to work in a brick every now and then, if I can, just to switch things up a bit. Nothing too crazy til after Gasparilla though, it's all about the run right now. After that, then it's on to attempting a Tri...

To my Triathlete's: How do you get over that crazy leg feeling after transition???

To my Runner's: Have ya'll ever attempted a Brick Workout? How'd it go?

First 20 Miler of Gasparilla Training... CHECK!

Hola peeps! I hope ya'll had great weekends and enjoyed some excellent runs! I'm feeling great after rounding out the week with decent stats despite rebounding from the plague!

Friday I headed over to B.o.B's as promised and arrived promptly for pasta dinner, Project Runway Reruns and early bedtime. Yay! I love us, we effing rockstar a Friday night! Not to mention just enjoying some catch up and QT time with my B is always a stellar way to spend an evening...

Bright and early Saturday morning we headed over to meet up with the rest of the BRA peeps to hash out our first 20 miler of the Gasparilla training cycle. The squad was: P-Funk, Hollster, B.o.B and I. Upon start B.o.B immediately pushed me up with Hollster because she wanted to run reserved and although I had originally planned to run with her no matter the pace, I think she made a good call. Hollster and I ran well and rocked it! Our pace was more relaxed than the 18 miler Spike & I ran last weekend but I was good with that because I was secretly stressing about how the run would turn out despite my best game face. The thing is, I had only run one 4 miler last week. One.Day.Four.Miles. The bubonic plague hit me like a ton of bricks Sunday night and lingered around putting a steady beat down on me until Wednesday. I missed 3 other runs. So yeah, just a little worried I might totally hit the wall during this run...

We did 4.5 mile repeats. First 4.5 were great and went by quick. At the turn around R jumped in with us and although she pulled us on a little faster I was none the worse for wear, I actually felt pretty good. 9 M done! Heading back out it was decided that we'd tack on the extra 2 miles needed to round out the 20 before the turn around so we could straight shoot back. When we got to the entrance to the neighborhood we stalled to wait for B.o.B to catch up and then we headed in. B.o.B & I were thirsty so we split up from R & Hollster to get a drink and wouldn't you know the drinking fountain was broke! FOL!!! Then we go into panic mode and start considering drinking out of a hose (another FAIL.. wasn't attached to a faucet) then we start contemplating taking our chances with a fountain at the entrance of the neighborhood that may or may not draw from the retention pond. What? Desperate times call for desperate measure... but luckily B knew there was a little coffee shop nearby we could hit up. So we ran across the street and thru some bushes and fended off our thirst! How quickly one forgets to drink more water when the temps suddenly rise back up to 60+ degrees with ungodly high humidity! Wasn't I just freezing my @ss off last week?

Anyway, back to the recap. As we brought it in to the turn around we ran into Captain Nuts, running with a friggin' McD's soda in hand and paced with him for a few minutes to chat. Classic. At the turn around R calls it a run and the rest of us head out to finish it up. Hollster & I fall into a steady pace and brought it in strong with a negative split. No wall, no walk breaks and feeling great! I'm so happy the run ended well and besides the usual soreness that most certainly comes after a good 20 miler, I'm feeling great. It's like I knocked the dust off my long distance legs and reminded them that this is what they do!

This morning I headed out for a nice & easy 5 M recovery run. It was gorgeous outside and my legs felt surprisingly fresh. I spent the entire time with a smile on my face, lost in my thoughts. I love mornings like that, where everything just feels right with the world.

After the run I got cleaned up and waited on Irish Cream to arrive. We headed over to Thornton Park and hit up brunch to catch up and chit chat. I got the inside scoop on her GOOFY Challenge experience! I can't wait for her to post her recap for everyone, she had some major issues along the way and still managed to PR both distances! Amazing!

Quick shout out to Julia for the package she sent me this weekend! Totally made my day girl! You are so sweet! :)

Well that's it for me, I hope ya'll had a great weekend as well! Thanks again for all the great feedback on Friday's post, it was great reading what everyone had to say about their training. I know I for one am ready to hit the ground running this week!

5 MORE WEEKS TIL DONNA HALF WITH JILL!
6 MORE WEEKS TIL GASPARILLA!!!

Training in the Know

With one marathon under my belt and in training for the next I find myself comparing the two training cycles and the affects of training "in the know".

What I mean by this is, when I was training for Chicago I was a newbie to long distance and all things marathon training related. Sure I had trained for a Half but taking on the Full was a whole new beast and my longest run pre-marathon training was 14 miles. Each week as I counted down to Chicago and ramped up the miles I experienced uncharted mileage, aches never felt and plenty of toenails lost. Every week was a new learning experience. Every week I pushed the limits my body as I knew it, was capable of. I became an O.C.D. FREAK about my routines, I planned every detail; clothing, fuel, run, etc. down to the "T" and basically became obsessed with all things training. It was all I could think about. It consumed my life. If I wasn't running, I was talking, blogging or dreaming about running. If running had been a real person I'm sure it would have broken up with me and filed a restraining order.

Yet now here I am, still absolutely, hopelessly in love with running but I have a more healthy respect for it. This training cycle I'm more relaxed. I KNOW I can run the distance. I KNOW I can handle the training. I KNOW if I miss a run it will not make or break my training. This training cycle, while far more aggressive than my last, I am more confident of myself. I haven't had a crazy freak out. I haven't felt especially burnt out. I haven't been running around in pain and not telling anyone. If anything I've enjoyed almost every single run. Sure I've had a few that sucked for whatever reason and yeah, I've totally had some FAIL's with all the holiday's, traveling and getting sick but nothing spirit shattering. This go around I've realized sometimes life just gets in the way and we have to put on our big girl pants and deal with it. (Although admittedly this sentiment is mostly thanks to Spike & Coach EK)

It's not that I didn't have fun training for Chicago, ya'll know I absolutely did! It's just that I ran so much more restrained and cautious. This training cycle however, has been like a breath of fresh air, there's been so much freedom too it because I KNOW I can do it!

So what do ya'll think? Did you find that after that first initial marathon training cycle you trained better cuz you were "in the know"? How has running/training "in the know" affected you? Very curious to see what ya'll have to say on the matter so please weigh in!

That's it for me, I'm off to B.o.B's tonight for our 20 miler in the a.m. Have a great weekend and as always, rock those races and long runs! Good luck to everyone racing/spectating Phoenix!!! Catch ya'll on the Flipside!

3 Things Thursday

1. As Lindsay so lovingly called me out in her comment yesterday, I've had to cancel on B.o.B twice now but come hell or high water I WILL run with her on Saturday. I am headed over there after work tomorrow and we have our first 20 miler of the training schedule on deck. She's rebounding from a long run cut short last weekend and I'm rebounding from the bubonic plague... together we will rough it out and come out victorious!!! 20 Miles, here we come! 7 weeks til Gasparilla!
   
   
2. Tuesday night Jill & I spent well over an hour on the phone... this wouldn't be worth noting if it wasn't for the fact that this was the first time we had ever talked on the phone. She and I have booked our hotel for the Donna Half next month, registered for the race, made up a whole trip itinerary via email but never once thought to call each other! LOL! It was so fun to chat and it made me even more excited to run together in 6 weeks! (Holy crap how did it sneak up on us so fast?) We also laminated on how blogging has changed us not only as runner's but as people, how we've made such amazing friendships with ya'll and how much those friendships have come to mean. Have I mentioned lately how much I love you all??? Cuz I do!
   
   
3. Although I refuse to Twitter, I have made a Fan Page on Facebook for Caution: Redhead Running - Click the link to become a Fan or click on the "Become a Fan" button on the top right of the screen under the header. I'll try to be good about posting updates and uploading the new blog posts... but no promises. I already spend far too much of my life on the blog & FB as it is!!!

2010 Walt Disney World Marathon Spectating Recap

First off I just want to apologize for the delay on this post, Sunday night I came down with the bubonic plague and have only just now been able to crawl away from the bathroom floor. See how dedicated I am to you guys; I finally stop heaving my guts out and the first thing I do is write up my weekend recap...

Friday night Spike arrived and we had a quiet carb-load dinner before hitting the hay early pre-long run. We had intended on heading over to B.o.B's neck of the woods to run with the BRA but all the emails flying around Friday made me weary about going over there in the event that they would cancel the run due to weather. Spike and I weighed the pro's & con's and finally settled on just running here.
Saturday morning we got up around 6am and did our morning rituals before heading over to Cady Way. It was around 30 degrees with a light drizzle... joy o joy! We got to the trail head and I begged a few minutes to see if the rain would lighten up only to find that it had started to HAIL! HAIL!!! In Florida!!! OMG!!! And that my friends is how the next 18 miles passed, with rain, sleet and HAIL! I totally earn the HARDCORE stamp for that run! He doesn't though, he runs in that ish all the time... but he does get mega brownie points for helping me push thru that last mile... I was fading fast and he totally got me through it for a negative split! Best.Running.Boyfriend.EVER!
With all that out of the way, now on to the spectating...
Spectating the 2010 Walt Disney World Marathon
Whoever said spectating isn't a sport has never spectated a marathon in sub 30 degree weather for 7+ hours! At 4am Sunday morning we layered up and headed over to spectate what I am certain was the coldest Disney Marathon in history; we froze our @sses, toes, fingers, etc... off all in the name of support!
After getting caught up in crazy traffic, we headed over to the family reunion area to meet up with friends and then over to the Mile 4-ish spectating area to cheer on the runner's. There we spent a good hour or so cheering with the assorted noise maker's I brought everyone, ringing the cowbell and basically jumping around like idiots... more so to keep warm than anything else. I was so cold I seriously debated jumping in to run bandit just to warm up! The only runner we managed to find was Tall Guy Surfing and only because of his height! LOL! After that we headed over to the monorail and I snapped this pic of the dawn breaking on the infamous Epcot ball. If was a beautiful morning for RUNNING a marathon!
(Click on any of the pics for a larger view)
The monorail from Epcot heads over to the Transportation area where we would have to board another monorail to get to Magic Kingdom and that was where we met up with B.o.B! YAY!!! (Her spectating recap HERE)
After that quick pic we boarded the next monorail and set up shop at the Mile 10ish area to cheer and wait for our runner's. It was a sight to see the runner's making their way down Main St. and under Cinderella's castle. If I ever run Disney it would be for that and that alone!!!
B.o.B was smart enough to find a coffee stand and got some java and cocoa for us to warm up on and we were able to catch her friend Daisy, Tall Guy Surfing and Spike's cousin run by! Everyone seemed to be looking good and on pace! Yay!!! I was a little bummed I didn't see any of the other bloggers but I knew I'd have the chance when we headed back over to Epcot as we had all planned to meet up around the mile 25ish point.

After a quick bathroom break (hello it's me we're talking about) we got in line for the next monorail over to Epcot... and waited and froze and waited and froze until FINALLY a guy tells us the monorail is broken. F.O.L! So we go from being the first ones on the monorail to the last ones waiting for the Ferry over to the main land. Awesome... NOTSOMUCH. So we wait and wait and start to get a bit anxious as I am getting text updates from the other bloggers as they hit various areas and I realize that there is no way I will get to see Chris of Beyond Defeat (Link is to his race recap) because he is killing it out there on the course and there is no way we'll get to Epcot in time. Now mind you all this waiting is outside so we are all still freezing our @sses off! We finally board the ferry only to get held up just outside of the docking area for a good 5-10 minutes! We finally land and find ourselves in the longest line ever to get on the monorail over to Epcot. If there is one thing I will say about spectating the Disney Marathon is this: Disney is not Spectator friendly at all.

Spike & I huddling together for warmth on the monorail over to Epcot

B.o.B pouting cuz she's still cold

Our feelings towards Disney

We finally arrived at Epcot and by now we're at the 4 hour mark of the marathon. Chris has long finished but the other bloggers would be coming by soon enough. We left B.o.B at the finish and headed into Epcot to set up camp between Miles 25 & 26 as planned. It was still freezing cold and the winds had really picked up. I was so thankful I had thought to wear tights under my jeans but I no longer had any feeling in my hands and toes. We were miserable but had no time to dwell because it was game on! Time to rouse the spirits of the runner's as they brought it home for the Finish!!!

The first blogger to find us was Marlene of Mission to a(nother) Marathon! She was looking strong, had a huge smile on her face and if I hadn't known I would never have guessed that not only did she run a great marathon but had just ran a Half the day before! That girl definitely earned her Goofy status!!! Congrats Marlene on being GOOFY!!!


Not even 10 minutes later I see this girl heading towards us with a big smile on her face and I realize it is Christy of It Just Looks Like Slow Motion!!! (Link is her marathon recap, def worth the read! Go congratulate her!) I had never met Christy before but I knew it was her! We hugged and I slapped her on the butt and told her to go finish her marathon!!! She looked so happy and I'm so glad I got to be there to see her just before she finished!!! Congrats on your FIRST MARATHON!!!

About this point a Disney official comes over and makes us get rid of one of our motivational posters... Apparently "Your feet hurt from kicking @ss-phalt" is not a Disney appropriate motivational poster! LOL! No worries we still had the one above and plenty of cowbell left for the rest of our runner's. We kept inching our way further back until finally the park opened and we could set up camp closer to the Mile 25 mark. We were still freezing our @sses off but we refused to stop cheering the runner's. Every time someone gave us the thumbs up or yelled "More Cowbell" we knew we were doing a great thing. We tried to cheer on any runner that looked like they were struggling by name (Kudo's to Disney for putting names on their bibs) and we kept yelling the most random things ever...

"We're freezing for you! Do us proud!" "That's a sexy Garmin!" "Can you taste it? The finish line is right around that corner!!!" etc... Spike had more of the stranger ones but then again have you read his blog? Shouldn't have surprised me...

A little while after we relocated I see this tall figure actually skipping towards us and realize it is none other than Tall Guy Surfing! (Link is to his race recap) Yay! He looked surprisingly good despite running under trained and injured and we snapped this hilarious pic! Congrats on your FIRST MARATHON!!! (I can't wait to read his recap as he has warned me he has quite the story to tell!)

Shortly after TGS ran by I caught a fleeting glimpse of Maddy from Gotta Run who also completed the Goofy Challenge. She was in the zone and on the other side of the course when I recognized her so no pics but a big CONGRATS to her on going GOOFY!!!

Again not even 10 minutes later I see this vision in blue with a huge smile on her face and I jumped up and down and ran towards Melissa of I Don't Need Excuses! (Link is to her race recap) I had spectated her first Half Marathon back in November and now I was able to spectate her FIRST FULL MARATHON!!! She looked great and ready to finish strong! Congrats girl!!!

With Melissa in we only needed to wait for Spike's cousin who like TGS, was running injured and under trained. We were worried and started to get scared that we had lost him somewhere but thankfully he rounded the corner looking none the worse for the wear. He was in pain but the adrenaline of being so close pushed him through and he finished his first marathon!

With the cuz through the Finish chute we could thankfully conclude our spectating day. It was cold, it was miserable, we kinda hated Disney... BUT we had fun cheering on our friends and family and we know we really helped a lot of runner's dig deep and finish strong at the end there. That in itself was more than worth it.

After we trashed the posters and Spike ceremoniously stabbed the balloons to pieces we went in search of warmth and food. We had tickets for the day but after lunch decided to just head home instead. 7+ hours of spectating had kicked our @sses.

And that is that. I'm off to finish disinfecting my house with lysol and bleach. I'll try to catch up on blog posts when I can but I'm still not feeling 100% and only just now starting to make my way towards the land of the living... I hope ya'll had a great weekend and congrats again to all my Disney runner's out there! Bask in the after glow, you've earned it!!!

FANTABULOUS FOTO FRIDAY FUN!!!

• Baby RJ in the Snow... isn't he an angel?!?!?
  
  
  
  
• The parking meters in Chattanooga were very judgemental of Spike's parking... LMAO!
  


• Last night as promised I met up with Marlene for a drink in Downtown Disney..well er... actually, first I got us lost going there... which was great considering her hubby was worried that I was going to end up being some weirdo online lunatic! LOL! (True Story: Although I've lived in O-town for 10 years I still have no clue how to navigate the Disney compound.) It was so fun to meet her; lots of running talk, strategizing for Disney and typical girly chat! She was so sweet and brought me a bag o' goodies from Canada! (I totally FAIL'd and forgot the card I got her. Hopefully I'll be able to give it to her Sunday!) Here's a few pics we snapped. We cracked up at the first pic which basically looks like I'm drinking through my nose! LOL!
  
  


• Text message from Spike this morning: "Do you get the feeling that despite the cold temps something big & sunny will arrive today... just in time for the weekend?" Of course I was thinking he meant his arrival this evening but I should've known better... Have I mentioned how crazy I am about this man???

• And finally, today I did something I have never done before: I PAID OFF MY CAR!!! Lola is officially 100% mine! Such a feeling of accomplishment!
  
  
  
  

  

Have a fantabulous weekend ya'll! Rock those runs and try to stay warm! I'll catch ya'll on the flipside with Disney spectating fun!!!

3 Things Thursday

1. I am so excited for this weekend! I have officially dubbed myself the Blogosphere Spectator of the Disney Marathon this weekend!!! YAY!!! I promise I will spell check the posters and track down a cow bell or two... I will be taking lots o' pics to share with everyone so be prepared for a fun spectating recap next week!
   
   First up tonight, I get to meet the much beloved, most infamous Marlene of Mission to another Marathon!!! So.frigging.excited! Marlene is def one of my favorite blog buddies and we've been chatting off line for awhile now so it will be nice to finally meet her! Then on Sunday I will get to meet Christy of It Just Looks Like Slow Motion, Chris of Beyond Defeat, and also see formerly met blog friends Irish from Do It, Melissa of I Don't Need Excuses, Maddy from Gotta Run and my own Tall Guy Surfing. Good Luck to all the Disney Runner's this weekend especially you Goofy's out there!!!
   
   



2. We've had quite the cold front round these parts this week! Holy crappola it's COLD! And by cold I mean real, bonafide cold! 28* this morning!!! The Disney runner's are emailing me left and right asking me what is up with these chilly temps! Believe me I don't get it either! I came back from Chattanooga hoping to thaw out! Apparently Hades has frozen over!
   



3. Another weekend with Spike!!! (Two weekends in a row! It's like we're in a real relationship!!!!) He gets in tomorrow night and Saturday will find us over in B.o.B's neck of the woods for a run with the BRA! Yay!!! After having to cancel on her a few weeks ago I am so happy to finally see my beloved Boo and introduce break in Spike with the BRA! I was hoping he'd get to meet Caribbean Steve but he emailed saying it's too cold for a brother to run this weekend. LOL! Coach EK & Coach Tom have already suggested they would have the final say on whether or not he is worthy to date me as Spike get's the pleasure of running with them that morning and I'm sure Captain Nuts will have a thing or two to say as well... Those crazy BRA's... Spike's in for a real treat! *insert evil laugh here*