Ain't no cure for the [end of] summertime blues

And just like that, we're down to our last week of summer vacation.  There's a saying about raising kids that goes something like "The days are long but the years are short."  The same can be said about this summer...the days have been long - averaging around 14 hours of actual interaction with my children every single day - but the weeks have just flown right by.  It was a summer that can be measured in number of waves surfed, miles ridden on two wheels, and ice cream cones shared in the sun.  It was a true test of my patience, and while I certainly didn't ace it, I think I get a passing grade.  I'm hoping Mother Nature rewards me with a gorgeous September and a number of warm, sunny afternoons spent on the beach before the chore of homework returns.  

I now have two weeks of post-injury running under my belt, and I'm feeling really good.  This past week included an easy run, a tempo run, and a "long" run.  Here's the breakdown:

Easy run - 4 miles @8:31 

Humid as all get out at the oceanfront that morning, but it felt great to be back out there after a couple of weeks staying closer to home.  Let's just say it has been a struggle to get up before 6am pretty much the entire month of August!  I've really enjoyed running the boardwalk with Kristy this summer, and I hope we continue when the weather is less than ideal.

Tempo run - 1 mile warm up, 1 mile @7:48, 1 mile @7:32, 1 mile cool down

I didn't have a set tempo pace in mind for this run - I basically wanted it to be comfortably hard for two miles.  Mission accomplished.  As expected, I have lost all ability to gauge my pace, as evidenced by the huge discrepancy between those two tempo miles.  I am making a concerted effort not to get caught up in the numbers as I continue to come back from this injury, so setting a goal of merely being more consistent with my pace suits me just fine.  I know I'll start to feel it with a little more practice, and I'm quite pleased with this starting point.  

"Long" run - 6.1 miles at 8:19 

I returned from this run feeling like I could conquer the world.  Maybe the universe.  After the 4 miler at 8:31 earlier in the week, I set out for those 6 miles thinking I'd be pleased with anything under 8:50.  I was committed to running at an easy pace, which is something my pre-injury self seemed to always forget a few miles into a long run.  Saturday's pace felt incredibly comfortable, with a little push for the last 1/4 mile or so.  I still feel great today, with no muscle soreness or ITB or plantar fascia crankiness to speak of, and I am giving myself the green light to continue light speed work and gradually increase my long runs.  When I'm not running, I'm working hard to keep my body happy with foam rolling, stretching, massage, and wearing good shoes whenever possible:

I know I have a lot of work to do to get back into fighting shape, but I'm really excited about where I'm starting.  The spark is lit and I'm ready to get to work.  My first post-injury race is a few weeks away, and I'm hoping I can hold out that long.  My goal for this race is pretty simple - miles of smiles!!!  I don't expect to PR or place in my age group.  I only want to run what my body is capable of right now and enjoy every pain free step along the way.  

Shut up I'm thinking

As we attempt to cram every bit of summer fun into these last few weeks of our favorite time of year, I have had little time to sit and type.  I've had plenty to write about, but I have been seriously lacking in the time and energy department.  Tonight is no exception (despite not being out there in the work force, we stay at home moms look forward to Fridays just as much as our clock-punching counterparts), so I will leave you with random tidbits of my brain's inner workings as of late.

• I have officially graduated from my return to running program.  While I certainly get an A for effort, I don't think I have a 4.0 GPA to show for it.  I can't say with confidence that my knee is 100% better.  It reminds me that it was injured every so often, which keeps me in check when I want to push too hard too fast.  I don't have pain, but I am aware of it.  I will keep fighting the good fight so I don't feel like this guy:

• I did my first official speed workout this week. I started with an easy 1 mile warm up, followed by 1 minute faster, 1 minute slower, then 2 minutes faster, 1 minute slower, 3 minutes faster, 1 minute slower, yada yada yada back down to 1 minute.  I finished up with a 1 mile cool down and an average pace of 7:33 min/mile for 4 miles. I am pleased with this starting point, and I look forward to putting in some hard work this fall.  I was all set to do a tempo run my next time out, but I thought it wise to stick to one speed workout a week for the next few weeks.  It feels great to run my old routes and leave the phone at home...armed with only my $10 Walmart wristwatch to time my runs, I can start to feel my paces and get to know my running self again.  This quote may be the most fitting group of words ever strung together:

• I've only run two 10 mile races in my running career, but I really liked that distance.  It was a challenge to maintain some speed for 10 miles, but it didn't knock me out or take as much recovery as a half marathon.  We had a great local 10 miler between Thanksgiving and Christmas that also fit in nicely with spring marathon/half training plans.  It was recently announced that this race got an overhaul.  Not only did the date change to the Saturday before Christmas (son of a nutcracker!), but it's now just a 5 miler (not even technically an 8k for the PR chasers) at twilight so as to enjoy the holiday lights along the boardwalk.  Ugh!!!  They also got rid of the 5k and 1k kids run that accompanied the original 10 miler, so if my kids want in on the fun, it'll be up to me to push their much-too-big-for-the-BOB butts through the cold and wind that comes with December on the Atlantic.  Bahumbug!  Now, this may make me sound like a total Scrooge, but it feels like they removed all competition from this holiday race and turned it into a run.  The 10 mile distance felt like a runner's race...there are no Couch to 10 Miler programs, and it doesn't come with the glamour or bragging rights of the half marathon when talking to the other elves around the water cooler.  With the field of our local races growing exponentially in recent years, the smaller 10 miler was the sweet spot for me.  I haven't ruled out running this holiday "race," but I'm quite disappointed my reindeer games aren't what they used to be. 

RIP, Surf-n-Santa 10 Miler

• We celebrated Camryn's 5th birthday last week.  For like the whole week.  

Brynn is happy to be done with the festivities, and she went so far as to remind her sister she is NOT the birthday girl anymore.  Our focus is shifting on getting the girls ready for school, and I have such mixed emotions about it.  I think we could all do well with a little space and time apart from each other, but I'm not quite ready to give up our flexible weekly schedule.  Come September, we'll have two kids going to school at different times (Camryn will go to half day kindergarten in the afternoon), homework, and two soccer schedules to follow.  Nothing crazy or overwhelming (purposefully), but less flexible.  I'm hoping my girls respond well to the new normal, and I look forward to finding my new groove with strength training and running. 

•   I've been thinking about my mother-in-law a lot lately.  Camryn and I have now had our first birthdays without her here, and her absence was palpable on both occasions.  She would have been so tickled to see these girls surf and ride their bikes all over the place this summer.  She would have made such a fuss over Camryn starting kindergarten and Brynn's blossoming artistic talents.  I get sad when I think there's a real chance Camryn won't remember much about her, so I make a conscious effort to point out things to my kids that remind me of her, even if we get a little choked up in the process.  It's ok to feel sadness months - and eventually years - after she's gone.  We loved her and now she's not here, and that's sad.  

• Here's a quote I feel carries so much truth:

You get back what you put out into the world.  Right now, I'm so pleased to see karma working her magic for some of the good people in my life.  The past couple of years have been a time of trials and tribulations for a few of my favorite people, but they have handled what life has thrown at them with grace and guts, and the universe is paying them back in kind.  I am overjoyed by their happiness, and they are a terrific example of how to deal with life's curveballs.  I am lucky to have them in my life. 

• One last random tidbit before I depart the blogosphere...you may want to write this one down.  The key to a most delicious and refreshing margarita is a splash of vanilla extract. 

The official Fancy margarita recipe:

INGREDIENTS:
ice
tequila
triple sec
1-2 limes
1/2 tsp sugar
vanilla extract

- Fill pint glass with ice
- Add about two finger widths of silver tequila and one finger width of triple sec (very precise measurements here)
- Squeeze in fresh lime juice (I usually use about 1 1/2 limes, depending on size and juiciness)
- Stir in sugar
- Finish off with just a splash of vanilla extract and stir well

CHEERS!

Until next time...hopefully that's not next month!

Ambassador of funk

Boo.  Disappointment, in my opinion, is one of the yuckiest feelings we can experience.  You visualize what you want to happen, what you think can happen.  You get your hopes up.  You get excited.  You wait for an answer (and in some cases, you wait and wait and wait).  You get your answer.  It's not what you wanted.  You pout.  Or is that just me?  

Back in June, our local race directors posted a call for applicants for their ambassador program on Facebook.  Here's a brief description from the J&A website:

"We are looking for energetic, socially influential and loyal supporters of J&A Racing to be a part of our 2014/2015 J&A Racing Ambassador Team. As an Ambassador, you will help us promote and market our races, both locally and regionally." 

The ambassadors' responsibilities included putting in some hours at race expos, running in local races in J&A gear (that they provided...sweet!), and using social media to spread the word about their races.  Aside from the expos, I already do all that!  The position also came with some perks, like three free race entries during the year that you're an ambassador, and extra race gear and swag.  I applied immediately.

I got the disappointing news today that I was not selected as one of this year's ambassadors.

  J&A sent a lovely email explaining they had an overwhelming number of applicants and 

ended up with more qualified candidates than they could accept.  There goes my balloon,

whizzing around the room as the all the air comes rushing out.  Obviously the perks were fantastic, but I was really hoping that being a J&A ambassador would help bring me out of my shell as a runner and as a person in general.  It fit so perfectly into my goal of becoming more social with my running, and I'm so bummed it's not in the cards for me right now.  

So of course with rejection comes the wondering.  Wondering if there's something else I should have written on the application to "sell" myself.  Wondering what those who were selected wrote to set them apart from the rest.  Wondering if the reason they rejected me is the very same reason I'd be a great fit.  

Socially influential.  Those words keep buzzing around in my head.  It's not exactly something I'd consider myself to be.  I mean, I'm active on social media (perhaps even overactive at times) and I have a blog with an extremely modest following, made up mostly of my mom and my best friend - even my most read posts only garner around 100 views.  That suits me just fine...I write it for me, so if I get one read per post I'm perfectly happy.  Would a bigger blog following have made a difference?  

One of the questions on the application was "Do you belong to a gym?"  I answered honestly, no.  We are a one income family, and most of our expendable cash goes toward extra-curricular activities for our kids - soccer, a week of summer day camp, our annual ski weekend, and summer camping trips.  We also set some of our budget aside for races, and when you have anywhere between two and four members of your household participating, it gets a little pricey.  But we all enjoy those races and they keep us motivated to live a healthy and active lifestyle, so we make it work.  I'd say it's a safe bet that there are plenty of other families who do the same.  I don't feel I sacrifice a thing by not belonging to a gym, but maybe not having that social influence to promote J&A races was a bit of a deal breaker when compared with other applicants. 

And while we're on the topic of being budget-conscious, it takes one glance at me to know I run J&A races...some days, their swag makes up my entire wardrobe!  From shirts to hats, jackets to beach towels, I use them all.  Why pay for a hat to run in when I get one every time I finish a Shamrock race?  Why buy a sleeping bag for camping when I have this great fleece blanket from that half marathon I finished?  Last year's Wicked and Surf 'n' Santa shirts are staples in my cool weather wardrobe, and they are quite the conversation starters.  "Why yes, I did run that race.  It was a lot of fun...you should try one!"  Run a few races, and you have enough clothing to get you through a week of running at no added expense.  Those ladies and gents in a higher tax bracket won't think twice about forking over a week's worth of lattes for a race, but when it comes to convincing the little guy it's a worthwhile expense, I believe I could be of influence.

I thought I would have heard if I'd been selected for an ambassador position a little earlier than today, so I sent J&A a Facebook message this afternoon to see if I was definitely out.  A message I sent to them earlier in the year popped up, and it took the sting out of the disappointment I was already starting to feel.  Last November, J&A was promoting their Valentine's Day race, the Virginia is for Lovers 14k.  They wanted to hear stories of people's love affair with running, so I shared mine:

"I’m not sure when my love affair with running started, but I do know that J&A Racing has been instrumental in its cultivation. Growing up, I was a gymnast, not a runner. My body has always been short and compact, not long and lean like the runners you see on tv. I didn’t run in the cold…it burned my lungs. I didn’t run in the heat…it just plain sucked. I didn’t run in the rain…because why on earth would you??? I am not a runner. That’s what I thought.

My first race ever was the Shamrock 8K in 2007, 4 months after the birth of my first child. My husband ran cross country in high school, and after I had taken to running a few miles here and there to shed some baby weight, he convinced me to run the 8K with him. I averaged just under a 10 minute/mile pace and felt really good about myself afterward. I guess you could say I caught the racing bug and wanted more. I’ve participated in a Shamrock event every year since, even when 5 months pregnant with my second child (and beat my first 8K time, by the way!).  

Then J&A started adding all these other races to the calendar. 10K’s, 14K’s, 10 milers. I thought those distances were insane. I’d never do any of those. And there’s no way you’ll get me to run the Shamrock half marathon. I’m not a distance runner. I couldn’t possibly. That’s what I thought. Then I ran 6 miles one day. And I didn’t die. So I convinced myself to try the Wicked. And eventually I tried the Virginia is for Lovers. Then I did the Shamrock half marathon. And I didn’t do half bad…could it be that maybe I am a runner???

Being the somewhat competitive person (ok, the really competitive person!) that I am, I just wanted to do better and better in every race I entered, so I’ve worked harder and harder to improve my times. I’ve found a level of self-discipline with my weight training and running that I wasn’t sure I was capable of, and having my husband right there with me at the start and my daughters cheering me on at the finish of these races are all the all the motivation I need to keep trying harder. Now I run in the cold…it dulls the pain. I run in the heat…it makes my post-run iced coffee taste that much better. I run in the rain, snow, and wind…it makes me feel like I’ve earned that hot shower. I signed up for the 2014 Shamrock Marathon because I AM A RUNNER. That’s what I think now. And I have J&A to thank for planting the seed."

The thing is, my story is not unique.  There are countless women and men whose love story with running sounds very similar.  But there are people out there whose story hasn't even begun yet, and I think those are the people J&A wants their ambassadors to influence.  I was hoping that through being a J&A Ambassador, I'd get the chance to put the pen in these people's hands.  After re-reading my own message from back in November, I realized I don't need a title or perks to do that.   I may not be socially influential on any grand scale, but I can still be an ambassador of living, loving, and running to the people who influence me. 

No money, no problems

Week 11 of my return to running program is in the books...woohoo!!!  When I first found this program on Pinterest, my jaw dropped.  I remember feeling simply deflated when I saw it would take 11 weeks for me to run just 30 minutes.  I was in a dark, dark place back then, filled with longing for some quality, pain-free miles.  Thankfully, I've come out of the dark and have some really great runs under my belt...short runs, but great runs.  

Yesterday was my last 30 minute session before I bump it up to 35 minutes next week.  It felt just like old times...Ryan took the early shift and got his miles in, then we tag teamed it and I headed out for my run when he got back.  I thought for sure I was going to be rained on, and I have to admit that I was pretty disappointed when I wasn't!  I was so looking forward to a run in the rain, but oh well.  For the first time since before the Shamrock, I ran down the path I normally use for speed work.  I passed a number of people out for runs, walks, and bike rides, and it felt so great to be one of them again.  Running down that path brought back memories of every grueling interval, every pre-dawn tempo run, and every Saturday long run completed on that (sometimes icy) asphalt last winter.  It made me realize how much I miss those Saturday long runs, and I feel like they're so close I can taste the pineapple GU.  

Returning home from that run felt just like old times, too.  The heavenly aroma of coffee and Ryan's second breakfast greeted me at the front door, and I immediately saw what my family had been up to while I was gone:

That would be the fort they have become accustom to building while Mommy's out running on Saturday morning.  It's been a while, so I'm sure they were pretty excited to bring all of their sheets and pillows down from their rooms and start moving some furniture around.  Do they ever return said sheets, pillows, and furniture back to their original state???  Not a chance, but that's a blog post for another time.

Since our typical Saturday trip to the beach was washed out by torrential downpours, I convinced Ryan we needed to go to Running Etc. because it was tax free weekend and they had some good stuff on closeout.  Regular clothes or shoes at bargain prices???  Not a chance.  Running shoes at a bargain?  Sure, let's go.  

I don't have enough miles on my Brooks Ghosts to retire them just yet, but my feet are starting to feel a little cranky when I wake up in the morning - as in I've started stretching before my feet even hit the ground.  Obviously my increase in mileage has been slow and steady, so I figured I'd try a different pair of shoes and see if that does the trick.  The next brand on my list to try was the Saucony Ride, and as luck would have it, the store had my size on closeout.  I tried them on, jogged around a little (with Camryn racing beside me), and decided they were mine ($40 cheaper than the newest model, thank you very much!).  And as luck would also have it, my new clearance shoes coordinate fabulously with the capris I recently bought on clearance from Athleta ($25 off regular price, thank you very much!):

I'm hoping Kermit the Frog is all wrong and it actually is easy being green.  Worst case, I now have a great outfit for Shamrock.  Ooooh, and the green can work for the Surf 'n' Santa also!  While all that green isn't exactly my first choice in color, I figure the money I saved is enough to buy another sports bra, Lulu shorts, a couple of tops from TJ Maxx, or even a race entry.  I spend the money where it matters most for me - shoes, bras, and bottoms - and go cheap on stuff like tops, socks, and accessories.  Get bad blisters on your toes?  Spend the money on really good socks.  Get bad chafing under your arms?  Splurge on fancier tops and skimp on bottoms if you don't have any problems there.  Running can get real expensive real fast, but as long as you can remain disciplined about your purchases (translation:  don't buy a ton of crap you don't need!) and search for bargains, it doesn't have to break the bank.  

I thought my return to running program took me through a 40 minute run, but I just checked and next week's 35 minutes is the end of the line.  Assuming all goes well, I think I deserve a little pomp and circumstance as I graduate.  Looking back, I realize this slow, steady climb back to running was the absolute best way to do it.  I learned a lesson in patience and stuck with the program, even on days I really wanted to let the beast out of the cage.  When I told Ryan next week is it, he asked "Then what?", which is exactly what I plan to figure out this week.  I think I'll keep my weekday runs on the shorter side, throwing in some fartleks (he he he) and tempos here and there, and continue building up the long run little by little.  All that money I saved on running gear is burning a hole in my pocket, so I think I'll decide on a September race this week as well.  I can't wait to pin a number on my shirt again, even if I'm not in top form at the moment.  I haven't raced for the fun of it in quite some time, so I think doing so would be the best way to start a comeback.