Running Plans

we came home to muggy heat and a downpour- we're missing the dry heat of Idaho and Utah already!

Normally I post my weekly mileage on Monday mornings, but I didn't log any miles last week. We spent most of the week driving home and while we did arrive home Thursday afternoon, I didn't manage to get on the treadmill Friday or Saturday. That may or may not be because the treadmill is currently buried under camping gear that got pulled out of the closet but didn't come with us. Guess I should get that cleared off really soon...

I've got a post in the works hashing out my thoughts on my 40 by 40 goal, but in the meantime I want to talk about my running plans for the next few months. Back in May I talked about my half marathon plans (or lack thereof), but I didn't really talk about other races I planned on running. 

As you can see if you read this post, I'm not stopping running races, I'm just cutting back on how many I run. The big change is that I will be doing the half marathon in September after all. I'd decided I wasn't going to, but as I ran (and walked) the Glacier half, I decided I wanted to do it anyway. 

I've already paid the registration fee and the campground fee, and while I can defer my race registration, the campground fee is non-refundable. I thought about just ferrying my brother and sister to and from the race, since they're running it. My plantar fasciitis is doing better, especially after the last two weeks of being more sedentary, but it still flares up, so it's still an issue to consider.

Walking so much of the first five miles of the Glacier half reminded me that I can walk a half. I don't have to train for and run all of a half marathon. Obviously, the over-achiever in me would like to, but the realist in me recognizes that I don't have to do it that way. 

In fact, I completed a trail half in Nov 2015 without any training. At that point, I hadn't done much running since I'd given birth to Ocean less than four months previously. I'd planned on walking the race, but it was a small race and I was the only walker, so I ran as much as I could. And I survived, so it's doable :)

The races put on by Vacation Races are walker friendly and are big enough to have lots of walkers so I don't feel like I'm in danger of coming in dead last. Not that there's anything wrong with that- it's happened to me twice before- but it's not something I enjoy, especially when they've already packed everything up. 

In the end, I decided that I will do the race- walking the uphills and running the downhills. I will do minimal training between now and then since I don't have time for long training runs, but I will get on a running schedule that works for me- three or four times a week, ideally. Cutting back on my mileage should allow me to get my exercise in while still allowing my feet to heal. 

As for my race schedule, now that I've completed my 40 by 40 goal, I'm moving back to my one race a month goal. 

I ran the mud run in July, I've got a four miler planned for August, the half in September, a 5k in October (not sure which one yet, there's lots of options in October), the turkey trot in November, and one of two 5ks in December.

I think that will be manageable from a training perspective, as well as a time management perspective. Time is always in short supply and now that we're home I've got to figure out my schedule so I can get everything accomplished in a timely manner. 

Sunday Funny

We were hiking back to the car after hiking to St Mary and Virginia Falls in Glacier National Park.

River: "My legs are breaking."

Mr M: "You mean they're tired from all the hiking?"

River: "Yeah."

He was a trooper, though and hiked most of the way there and back over more than 4 miles of hilly, sometimes steep, trails.

Idaho Mud Run

after the race- you can't see the mud on our legs

Last week we camped at Green Canyon Hot Springs for Mr M's family reunion. We had fun playing in the river, swimming in the pool, going to Yellowstone to see Old Faithful, and hanging out. I'll post pics from those activities later. But first, I ran another race, and I need to talk about it :)

Saturday morning, as everyone started heading home from the reunion, Mr M and I drove in to Rexburg (about half an hour away) to participate in Thor’s Mud Run. I’d found the race when I was looking for a 5k to do before my half marathon, and while it was after my birthday, I decided to add it to our schedule. I was even able to talk Mr M into joining me in the race.

We got the RV packed up and ready to go, then left the kiddos with Mr M’s parents and drove into town for the race. In the end, we thought the race was more obstacle run than mud run, but it was fun.

We picked up our shirts and joined a group of runners at the start line. Like a lot of mud runs, this wasn’t timed, and I didn’t wear my Garmin. The website says it's just under 2 miles, but we parked a ways away from the start line and walked to the car twice, so I'm recording it as 2 miles.

We started in waves, with groups of 10 racing to the first obstacle, a bucket carry. We carried buckets with sand in them (not very full, thankfully), and you could carry them individually or in tandem. We opted to do it in tandem.

The next obstacle was a javelin throw: pool noodles with pvc pipe in them that we threw at a target. You had two tries and we each got it on the second try.

From there we ran a bit further, then the course zig-zagged up and down a small berm before flattening out to a trail with straw bales blocking the way. These were just run-of-the-mill rectangular straw bales, not giant round bales, so they were easy to hop over.

We climbed over a couple barriers- one was just a framework, so easy to climb, but one was a wall, so it was harder. I think they were about 6 feet tall- not as tall as they could be, but still a bit challenging. I climbed the framework barrier without problems, but Mr M gave me a boost on the wall :)

We then came to an archery station, where we had two chances to knock a circle out of the target with a blunted arrow. There were five circles, but it was hard to aim properly because of the blunted ends (that looked like giant marshmallows). I knocked a circle out on my second try and Mr M knocked one out on his second try, but it only fell out because he hit the target so hard J  He only had to do five pushups instead of the ten he would have had to do if he hadn't knocked it out.

After hopping (or stepping, in Mr M's case) over a few more straw bales, we came to a freeze tag with arrows section. People with blunted arrows jumped out from behind trees and tried to hit us as we sprinted past. If you got tagged, you had to stand still for a count of 10 before taking off again. We each got tagged early on, then Mr M got hit again by the last archer, who took both of us by surprise- we thought we'd run past all of them already.

There were more straw bales, then we finally go to the mud part of the race. The first mud obstacle was a series of three mud pits that were too wide to jump across, so you had to wade through them. Next was a low crawl through a mud pit, though the ropes were high enough that I was able to crawl on hands and knees.

After that was a mud pit full of tires that you had to step in or on, and then the final obstacle. For that we climbed up a muddy pile of dirt, then slid down the back side of the mud pile into a large pit of muddy water.  The water washed a lot of the mud off, though we did accumulate more mud as we climbed out of the pit.

I may have swallowed some of that muddy water when I splashed down

Then we stopped at the photo op before continuing to the finish line, which was three feet in front of the water line of the small lake we’d run around. There we received our Thor’s hammers, and then jumped into the lake to wash off.

see- not much mud on us at that point

After washing the worst of the mud off, we stopped by the refreshment tables for watermelon, bananas, and an assortment of bottles of small batch root beer. You know you’re in a predominantly LDS area when the post-race refreshments include root beer instead of real beer J Not that we’re complaining- the last mud run I ran I didn’t use the included wrist band to imbibe in the post-race beer.

We didn’t get as muddy as I’d been hoping for, but we still had fun, and ending with a dip in the lake was a great way to finish. And honestly, it was more fun than doing a mud run while also freezing to death. I mean, that's fun in it's own way, but this was more enjoyable. Though part of that was due to my running partner :) We haven't had time for dates in quite awhile, so it was nice to get away for a bit and spend some time together. We couldn't have done it without Mr M's parents watching the kiddos- thanks guys!

When we got back to the car we dried off a bit, then sat on our towels as we drove back to the campground. Once there, we took quick showers then loaded the car on the tow dolly and hit the road, heading for home.

Weekly Mileage:

Saturday: 2 mile race

      total mileage: 2.0 miles

353.45 miles towards #365milechallenge

8th race of 2017

Sunday Funny

While we were driving on 89 between Page, AZ and Kanab, UT, we discovered doodle on the road. Whoever was filling cracks with tar decided to get creative. I only got good pictures of a couple of them, but there were arrows, smiley faces, a BYU helmet, paw prints, the state of Utah, and others. It definitely made that stretch of road more interesting as we searched to see what the next doodle would be!

June Mileage

River saying "I did it!" during a fun hike we did in June (post to come)

In June things got changed up a lot. I did not manage any treadmill time, but we did go on 10 hikes, so I think it's more than an even trade :) I also ran the most races I'll be running in a month this year. I will only be running one race a month from here on out, though there are some months I may not do one.

My mileage fell a little from May's total, which was mainly due to decreasing my training because of my plantar fasciitis and tapering early because of travel. All the hikes we did in Zion NP and Glacier NP really helped make up for the lost mileage. Those 10 hikes made up for the ones we've missed here and there, so we're right about at the half way mark, which is where we should be.

My grand total was 81.25 miles, which makes 351.45 miles for 2017. I'm super close to passing the 365 mile mark for the 365 mile challenge.

The three races I ran in June brought me up to 50 races completed in 2 years, and finished out my 40 by 40 goal, which I'll do a post about soon.

June's mileage:

0 treadmill workouts + 10 hikes + 3 outside runs + 3 races (1, 2, half) + 2 walks = 81.25 miles

52 hike challenge: 27 hikes

365 mile challenge: 351.45 miles

40 by 40 goal: 50 races

May's mileage:

11 treadmill workouts + 3 hikes + 1 outside run + 2 races (1, 2) + 1 field trip = 94.37 miles

52 hike challenge: 17 hikes

365 mile challenge: 270.2 miles

40 by 40 goal: 47 races

April's mileage:

15 treadmill workouts + 4 hikes + 0 outside runs + 1 race = 73.58 miles

52 hike challenge: 14 hikes

365 mile challenge: 175.83 miles

40 by 40 goal: 45 races

March's mileage:

3 treadmill workouts + 3 hikes + 2 outside runs + 1 race = 25.45 miles

52 hike challenge: 10 hikes

365 mile challenge: 102.25 miles

40 by 40 goal: 44 races

February's mileage:

12 treadmill workouts + 3 hikes + 3 outside runs + 0 races = 54.70 miles

52 hike challenge: 7 hikes

365 mile challenge: 76.80 miles

January's mileage:

4 treadmill workouts + 6 hikes + 1 outside run + 0 races = 22.10 miles total
52 hike challenge: 4 hikes
365 mile challenge: 22.10 miles

Sunday Funny

playing peek a boo with bobby the blankie

We were driving in the RV, and River had to pee.

River: "I need to pee!"
Me: "Ok, let's be quick."
Ocean: "Go pee!" (as he tugged on his car seat straps)
Me: "Sorry, but no. You've only peed on the floor so far, so you can just stay in your car seat."

Ocean just wanted to get out of his car seat. While he has shown some interest in the toilet, he always pees on the floor of the bathroom or in the shower or tub, all while standing up. He'll sit on his little potty, but he doesn't pee until he stands up and steps away from the potty. I'm guessing he's trying to pee like his older brother, who insists on peeing while standing up.

Weeping Rock and Emerald Pool

weeping rock

After we finished hiking Angel’s Landing, it was mid-afternoon, so we decided to hit some of the shorter hikes.

We hopped on the shuttle and got off at the stop for Weeping Rock, which is a short hike (only about 1 mile round trip) on a paved walkway, but it does get steep. You’re rewarded at the top by a cool, misty breeze blowing off the dripping rocks above. The water was quite cold as it dripped on us.

under weeping rock

After that hike we got back on the shuttle and got off a couple stops later at the lodge, which is also the stop for Emerald Pools. This was another paved walkway hike, and while it wasn’t as steep as Weeping Rock, it did have some steep spots and rolling hills. And the pavement wasn’t in great condition, either. This hike is about a mile and a half round trip to the lower pool, but the lower pool was looking less than emerald and we were pretty underwhelmed. By this point we were getting tired and opted not to hike to the middle or upper pools.

not very emerald looking

As we hiked back to the shuttle stop my sister called to say that they (she, my parents, one of my brothers and his wife, and River and Ocean) were at the museum. So we took the shuttle to the museum to meet them. Dad wanted to do some hiking, as did the little boys, so we went back to Weeping Rock.

The second time we did Weeping Rock, I pushed Ocean in the stroller since my parents had brought it and we were too far from the visitor center parking lot to ditch it. I’d already gotten a workout hiking to Angel’s Landing and back, and I got another workout pushing a stroller full of solid toddler up the trail. Going back down was almost as difficult since I had to make an effort not to go to fast or let the stroller get away from me. All in all, not something I would recommend for anyone else.

The stroller also proved to be a pain on the shuttle when we headed back to the visitor center. Everyone else was also heading back so the shuttles were super crowded. Even folded up the stroller was too wide to go down the aisle, so I was stuck at the head of the aisle, blocking everyone in and unable to go anywhere (Mr M was wrangling the boys). Lots of fun.

On the way back to the rental house we stopped at a grocery store for a few things and saw a shave ice stand in the corner of the parking lot, so we cooled off with some sugar covered snow.

Angel's Landing

looking up at Angel's Landing from ground level

Years ago, my sister and I hiked Angel's Landing one holiday weekend when Mr M was off at some training thing. I didn't research the hike ahead of time, so I wore my Tevas, which never fit as well as they should have (I have short, stubby toes and the straps always rubbed them wrong). I made it to the top in them, then hiked back down barefoot because the blisters were so bad. That was the last time I wore those sandals. If I recall correctly, it was a windy day and I made sure not to stand too close to the edge :)

Angel's Landing is one of the iconic hikes of Zion NP, but it is not an easy hike, nor is it one for the faint of heart. It's steep in places, you have to scramble over rocks in places, and you might be hanging onto a chain while crossing a narrow ridge in other places. 

Some of my siblings wanted to hike Angel's Landing, and after some discussion, we decided we could take Sunshine if we left the boys with my parents. The hike is way too hairy for impulsive toddlers or babies strapped to their parent's backs and throwing off their balance.

looking up Walter's Wiggles, the switchbacks that take you part of the way up

just one of the areas where it would not be a good idea to have little ones

Sunshine made sure to hold on tight to the chain

another hairy area where we were hanging on to the chain for security 

Sunshine had gotten sunburned the day before and wasn't feeling great, but she made it all the way to the top! It was a hot day, but I had her wear long sleeves and pants to protect her skin from further burns or irritation.

lunchtime at the top. everybody's too busy eating to look cheerful :)

Sunshine didn't enjoy all of the hike, and this is definitely the most difficult hike she's done to date, but I think she'll look back on this with a sense of accomplishment

way down there you can barely see the river, the road, and the lodge

looking off to the other side, road and river far below

Glacier Half Marathon

we continued climbing after we went around that curve

Saturday I ran my 7th half marathon, which also happened to be the 50th and final race in my 40 by 40 goal 50 by 40 goal that I embarked on two years ago. I'll do a post on my 40 by 40 goal soon.

The Glacier half is one of the most challenging and beautiful courses I've run. I was better prepared for this race than any other half marathon I've run, and my time shows that preparation. However, it was not all smooth sailing.

The first 5 miles sucked. The middle 4 were good. The last 4 were rough.

my sister and I trying to stay warm while we waited for the race to start

The first mile or so were flattish, leaning to slight uphill, with some rolling hills thrown in for variety.

Then we turned onto 49 and started climbing, relentlessly climbing, until mile 5. We only gained 900 feet in altitude, but it was never-ending.

We finally hit the summit and started an equally relentless descent for the next 4ish miles.

Between miles 9 and 10 the course leveled out, with rolling hills mixed in until the finish.

beautiful scenery as we climbed

I ran the first mile or so, then had to alternate running and walking until I reached the summit. I may have run several hilly races this spring, but it’s hard to prepare for 5 miles of hill climbing. The walking portions did give me some good photo ops, though.

Once I hit the descent, I picked up the pace and ran hard. I’d tried to keep my pace up while climbing, but it was still slower than I’d hoped for. I used those downhill miles to make up for some of the lost time. The only problem was that I ran them a little harder than I should have and paid the price during the last portion of the race.

looking back at how far I'd already come

Momentum helped me descend at a faster pace than I normally can maintain, but once the road flattened out I was on my own again. By that time my legs were tired and I just could not keep the pace up.

I’d been doing mental math and during the downhill portion I realized that if I kept my pace up, I could beat my current (nearly 9 year old) half marathon PR of 2:29:46. I even had a couple extra minutes of buffer that would allow me to slow down once I hit the last hill that I knew was still to come.

some of the runners around me saw a bear down in this canyon, but I couldn't see it right off, so I kept running rather than slow down even more while taking the time to look for it

In the end, the buffer wasn’t quite enough to see me through the amount of walking I had to do the last three miles. I was just too tired to run those last miles and had to stop and walk more times than I wanted to.  I missed beating my PR by just over a minute.

Honestly though, I’m only a teeny bit disappointed about missing that PR. I always knew it would be a long shot for several reasons:

• 1.     I’m not getting any younger
• 2.     The elevation difference
• 3.     The challenging course
• 4.     Cutting back on my training due to plantar fasciitis
• 5.     The early taper in my training due to travel. I had planned on running while we traveled, but the reality was that there just wasn’t time.

more beautiful scenery

The fact that I came so close is actually very encouraging. I may be getting older, but that doesn’t mean I have to get slower. Being smarter with my training and being in better health and shape (2008 was pre-gluten free) meant that even though this course was significantly more challenging than the course I PR’d on, I was able to come very close to setting a new PR.

2:30:54 (2017) on a challenging, hilly course versus 2:29:46 (2008) on a course that was all downhill or flat and specifically chosen because I knew I could get a good time on it. Yeah, I'm happy with how I did :)

pretty lake

I ran 13.0 miles in 2:30:54. My mile splits very much reflect the terrain we were covering. Slower while going uphill, faster while going downhill. One benefit of so much climbing in the first half of the race is that I ran the second half faster than the first half and finally managed negative splits on a half marathon. I also managed to run a 5k in the middle faster than I've run one since high school cross country. Though running downhill is the only thing that made that possible :)

  1st mile: 11:51

  2nd mile: 12:26

  3rd mile: 14:00

  4th mile: 14:23

  5th mile: 14:16

  6th mile: 9:58

  7th mile: 9:43

  8th mile: 9:11

  9th mile: 9:11

  10th mile: 10:50

  11th mile: 12:55

  12th mile: 10:48

  13th mile: 11:17

first half of the race (6.5 miles): ~1:21:51

second half of the race (6.5 miles): ~1:09:03

fastest 5k (miles 7, 8, and 9): 28:05

in the runner's area at the finish line, waiting for my sister

Other thoughts:

I slept horribly, as I usually do before a race, especially if it’s a big one. I’m always afraid of sleeping through the 4 am alarms, so I end up waking up multiple times to check the time and then lay in bed awake for the last half hour or so before the alarm goes off.

Getting to sleep was further hindered by fireworks being set off until 1 am and River waking up around 2, right when I was falling asleep again, because he was cold. And I’d drunk a lot of water that evening to try to make sure I’d be well hydrated in the morning, so I had to make several trips to the bathroom. I’ve never been so grateful for a bathroom at the foot of my bed, rather than having to walk a quarter mile to the row of outhouses at the other end of the campground.

the race hosted a campground that we stayed at (really it was a borrowed field)

It was really cold. 40 degrees I think? There was no cell service out there, so I couldn’t check. I’d worn layers so I could decide what I wanted to wear for the race, and ultimately went with the short sleeve shirt rather than the tank top. While I was cold at the beginning, I would have been fine in the tank top, as I warmed up during the race. Thankfully the temps didn’t climb too high until after the race was over, so it never got oppressively hot.

The altitude wasn’t an issue. We arrived out west two weeks before the race, so I had a decent amount of time to acclimate to the higher elevation. I ran a 5k a week before the half and completed a number of hikes (some strenuous, some not) during the two weeks leading up to the race.

doesn't Ocean look like he's in jail? 

he got a bit bored waiting for my sister to finish 

Something in the air violently disagreed with me after the race. Walking back to the car I started sneezing violently and by the time we got back to the campground my head was all congested as well. My usual post-race asthmatic cough was worse than usual immediately after the race, though it did calm down after awhile. The sneezing worsened when we drove up to Waterton Lakes, and a local said the white fluff floating around was aspen seed (I thought it was cottonwood fluff), so apparently I'm allergic to aspen seed. Good to know, I guess.

my sister and I 

we ran the Great Smoky Mountains half together a couple years ago, also hosted by the same race company

While my legs were very tired and sore from how hard I pushed myself in this race, I didn’t really suffer any injuries. I liberally applied body glide and moleskin to my feet (mostly around my toes and other known problems spots) so I didn’t get any blisters. My plantar fasciitis acted up later that day, cutting short a hike we’d planned on, but the PF has been an issue for several months now, so I knew my foot (my right is by far the worst) would be hurting. It didn’t hurt during the race though, so huge win right there.

Between the half marathon, 5 hikes, and two walks, this was my highest mileage week yet.

the post race snacks came in a recyclable, grab-n-go box (though I could only eat the Craisins)

Weekly Mileage
Tuesday: 1.6 miles walked around campground
Wednesday: .8 miles walked around campground
Thursday: 4.0 miles hiked
Friday: 4.29 miles hiked
Saturday: 13.00 miles run in half marathon + 4.07 miles hiked over two hikes
Sunday: 1.83 miles hiked
       total mileage: 29.59 miles

27 hikes towards #52hikechallenge
351.45 miles towards #365milechallenge
50th race towards 40 by 40 goal 50 by 40 goal

a fun graphic with all the runner's names

the lighter blue shape is in the shape of Glacier NP