i know. i cannot complain living in san diego.... but here is the forecast! looks like some wet workouts in my near future!

i learned yesterday that You Tube is the 2nd largest search engine behind Google on the internet. i apparently am behind- although i tend to watch a lot of You Tube videos- i did not know people use it so much as a primary search engine. in order to get on the ball with this breaking (insert sarcasm here) news i received i am determined to do some video blogging. looks like ill need my water proof camera this weekend however.

to your health,

C

PR Half Mary!!

i am pleased to report i came home from the surf city 1/2 mary with a personal best! yahhh! 1:38!

waking up race morning was a bit of a struggle... the night before the neighbors, up in newport beach (if you know newport those houses are really close together), decided to have themselves a party... until about 3am or so... which was everything less then ideal to wake up at 5:30am to go run 13.2 miles. so me- having been wide awake from 1am-3am, woke up at 5:30 thinking i had already run the race! counting on coffee and adrenaline i got up and out the door!

my entire plan was to 'see where i am at' in terms of pace vs. heart rate. i have not worn a heart rate monitor in a long time so i was interested in seeing where i could sustain running some what 'comfortably'. i started out in the back on the first wave and took the first mile to do the usual dodging of people as my warm up. by mile 2 i decided i really had no time to waste and got into my grove. by the middle of mile 2 i had caught up to the 1:40 pace group. in the past i would have thought i was running too fast if i was with them. but my heart rate was just under 170 and i felt like i was just out for a 'comfortably' hard run. by mile 3 the pace group was behind me!

i ran miles 3-6 with about 3-4 other people. it worked out that i had finally settled in with people running similar paces. mile 6 was a slight downhill and right turn back onto coast highway. since the course was pretty much flat (only slight ups/downs) i took advantage of any downhill! i ended up dropping the group of runners i was with and got into my grove. i felt the best miles 6-10. i really felt great! my heart rate stayed right around 173-175.

mile 11 i am pretty sure my lack of sleep, wine at dinner and overall pre season fitness caught up to me because i was over it! i was so ready to be done running. i just stayed on it though because i was still on track to beat 1:40 (my previous PR and long time 'barrier'). i finished right at 1:38!

i also finished without completely wreaking myself! i really felt like i ran the race at my threshold because i have run harder half marathons where i feel way worse. so- despite all of the factors- i am very happy to come out of it with a best time!! going in i felt like i could run a 7:30 pace but i just did not know how i would feel. the feeling of being in control of the pace was awesome and makes me realize i have a potential to run faster!

the 1:30's feels like i have entered new 'runners' territory! which is so much fun! breaking 1:40 has been a goal for a while so i happy to say that i CAN run faster and i feel more like a RUNNER! whaooohoooo!!

now to decide whats next...

to your health,

C

pre-race

its been since September since my last race! i feel a little out-of-sorts because i have not been in 'race' mode for a few months! i thought i'd list out my pre-half mary preparations this week.

1. the pre-race pedi. either done manually (myself) with limited color options or book an appointment at salon with too many color options. since it is only wednesday- i still have time to make an appointment. color choice... well we will have to revert to the outfit (#2).

2. pre-race outfit organization. this can really be divided into sub categories since we have the morning of the race, the race and post race drive home.

• morning of the race. start time is 7am. temperatures are predicted be in the 50s. these temps will require and not to be limited to: cream colored juicy knit beanie, oversized zip up lululemon sweatshirt and juicy sweats most likely some horrible color of velour. comfort trumps fashion race morning before the sun comes up.

• actual race attire: tricky here. it will be cold at the start but i will warm up quick once that heart rate gets going. lululemon speed shorts: yes too short for a pre seasonrace/current race weight but the most comfortable thing to chose from. Nytro women's race tech tee- gotta support the people who support me! comes in white with a lot of pink and black accents of skull and butterfly decals. most likely will race in my silver Zoot racing flats. fast and flashy! lululemon bright orange head band. and to top off the entire look my $1.50 Target rainbow striped gloves. i hate the fact that i will probably toss them at mile 3 (not because of their outrageous cost) but because they are my favorite ones!

• post race. if you participate in endurance sports you know you only stay warm for so long right after the event. eventually dehydration kicks in with the combination that its only 8:30am so the temps got up to 60 degrees and you are soaked in your own sweat. post race there are 2 key items: towel and hair brush. a towel drys off the sweat and allows you to put back on the velour pants and sweat shirt without too much hesitation of wasting perfectly clean clothes on a sweaty body for the sake of being warm. hair brush is equally necessary so you look half way decent when you make the stop at starbucks on the way home after the race. yeah yeah- you just did a 'half marathon' but the people in line next to you don't care and you should probably look at least half way put together. if you want to show off- keep that finisher medal on... =)

4. laundry. must finish my laundry to be sure everything is clean for race day.

5. race week nutrition. about the same as my usual. i am trying to cut back on wine consumption although it is not happening as i type this post. i will eat same calorie amounts, just less salad and veggies the night before the race. i do not want any stomach issues due to too much roughage! and to hydrate i will be sure to increase water/electrolyte consumption 3 days out. so tomorrow its me and my water bottle.

6. the once-over on race day logistics. logistics being first where and when to do the 'pack it pick up.' the 'pack it' usually contains a lot of advertisements and maybe a bit size luna bar. usually i eat the luna bar as i walk through the expo. other logistics include where to park before the race and where the most convenient starbucks location is post race.

7. race expo. happens day prior to the race. here is where the vendors sell the following: dorky running socks, 'i run for... ' t-shirts. special sports enhanced water. recovery nutrition. stretching apparatuses. you name they got it. i plan to look and see what is new but not purchase.

8. sleep. this is the most important pre-race component in my opinion. the week out from any race it is important to be getting enough rest each night so you wake up feeling refreshed each morning. especially early morning. my afternoon coffees lately are not helping me get to bed early so i am kicking the habit- at least until after the race is over!

to your health,

C