Friday, July 9, 2010

sometimes you just need...

* ...a pep talk
* ...a day off
* ...some cough medicine
* ...a belly rub
* ...your ears cleaned
* ...a cookie for breakfast
* ...a plaid running skirt and a matching gym bag
* ...macaroni and cheese and chocolate milk
* ...an arthroscopic shoulder MRI...or not
* ...a big wet kiss from a big fluffy pup
* ...a day at the beach especially when its cloudy
* ...a bath and your nails clipped
* ...some fresh basil that isn't wilted
* ...tea with milk
* ...a thermometer and some orange juice
* ...jammies at 3pm
* ...something pretty
* ...a pedicure and maybe a manicure too
* ...a neck and shoulder and that's it massage

...at least those are the things we need over here (yes, the pooch was a large contributor to this list)

Happy Friday!!  Hope you have a lovely weekend!!

Sunday, July 4, 2010

bring it (and don't judge me, please)!

Well I've officially lost count and don't know what practice number I'm on.  All I know is that it was 9 miles...NINE.  I don't know why they thought we'd skip 8 and go straight to 9.  Seemed like a horrible idea to me, but I'm obviously no expert, so I just did what coach told me to because following instructions is the easiest part of my day (I say this often, you'll see).

"Practice" started at 8am.  The world cup game (USA vs Ghana) started at 11am.  I did the math and realized that with the typical pre-run chat time, plus 2-ish hours of running, plus a mandatory refuel via Starbucks, I would not make it back home in time to watch the game if I stuck to the plan (ok, so I can follow instructions, but sometimes I interpret them my own way).  So, like a true soccer fan and a dedicated marathon-trainer, I dragged my booty out of bed at 4am...FOUR A.M....to prep for a 6am...SIX A.M...run to get back in time to catch coach's weekly rantings and the game.  (I needed two hours between breakfast and go-time, as I have the most sluggish digestive system known to any 28 27 year- old.)

I know you don't care what I ate for breakfast, but this is important because, well, it's funny.  We got our nutrition information, so I tried to plan out my fuel according to the instructions (see a theme here?).  I ate a couple of my homemade healthified peach muffins and drank the prescribed amount of water.  I also decided that a teensie bit of caffeine wouldn't hurt too bad, and that if I was going to try it, now would be the time since it's still early on. I made myself a cup of my every-day tea - Irish breakfast with a bit of honey and milk.  Then I went back to sleep for 45 minutes to let my tummy work on that.  Right before I left, I had my typical pre-run green juice and more of the prescribed H20, and set off on my journey.

As soon as I arrived at the glorious parking lot with the fancy fountain at Malaga Cove in PV, I realized I really ought to have used the potty (again) before I left the house.  I searched for the bathroom and found it locked, so I set off on my run hoping that it would somehow get "re-used" by my body and I wouldn't have to tinkle after awhile.  Well...less than a mile into the run, I realized I was wrong about that.  I wondered if running with a full bladder would feel like running with a water belt, and since people could do that, maybe I could too.  Again, I was wrong about that.  I made a split second decision, thankful for the woodsy area next to the road, and took care of matters, then jumped back onto the road like nothing unusual had just happened.   So...you must now be astonished that I did that AND that I admitted it.  Whatever.  It didn't phase me.  And I'm PROUD of it!  And then I had the best 9 mile run EVER.

In all seriousness, though, the route was amazing.  It circled around the PV Golf Course, the second half of which involved some really fun windy downhills (and peacocks running around), then went up the hell-ish Library Hill, then dumped out on PV drive for a bit more uphill trail running, and ended with the trek all the way back down the hill.  I finished almost 20 minutes faster than I'd planned.  I loved the route, I felt great, and I made it back home in time to cry over USA's loss to Ghana.

My nutrition record (from what I can remember):

pre-run nutrition:
night before: pasta with peas and lots of water
4am: two healthy peach muffins, tea, 20 oz water
530am: green juice, 8 oz water

during-run nutrition:
first 3m: ~8oz water
mile 4.5: 1 shot block
last 4m: lemon-lime Heed (yuck!)...didn't finish
(by the way, I did not stick to the nutrition instructions here either...I was too full)

post-run nutrition:
immediately after: Recoverite (citrust)
breakfast: Starbucks spinach, egg white, feta wrap, and a chocolate banana smoothie and more water
lunch: afghan food from the farmer's market
I don't remember the rest of the day, but I'm sure there was dinner, and then an outing to the Edison which involved two half-glasses of tanq and tonic, some munchies, and some cupcakes.  I think I had half of a headache.  Not a full-blown one, but I certainly didn't feel 100%.

My next run will be solo again...10 miles.  Hope it's as good as my 9.