Monday:
I was surprised when Norm got up to run with me today. I thought after yesterday’s adventure for sure he would sit today out. I was planning to run 8 to 10 miles, but since Norm was coming with me I decided to take it easy on him. We did 6 miles with hardly any climbing and I ran a couple miles fast just to remember what that feels like. FYI – it feels hard.
Tuesday:
Norm and I headed out for our run and he was pretty clear from the time we left that he was not feeling it. We made it the 3 miles to visitor center and I could tell he wanted to go home. I offered to run back home with him and then go back out to finish my run. He took me up on my offer, but at the turn to go home or get more miles he changed his mind and said to keep running. I decided to ease up on the pace to be nice to him since he was kind enough to keep running with me. I made sure to do an hour of yin yoga. No more cheating on the stretching.
Mid morning I got a text message from Hayley saying she extra stupid idea to add to our already somewhat stupid plans for Memorial Day weekend. I won't tell you what they are yet, but I will tell you that I was like “hell yes!” I love an extra stupid idea.
My friend Melissa was flying in at 7:10pm and I was picking her up at the airport and then going to dinner with friends. That meant I needed to get my run done in certain amount of time. Good excuse to do some speedy running done on the trail. My legs are feeling tired so I was pleased I was able to push it and keep my speed up. I went up a climb that we usually turn around and go back the way we came because it’s the only option. But today I saw a trail off to my left. I took it down the mountain. It was what Norm and I call a Jamil trail. It’s a trail, but clearly not used very often. I was happy to see that a mountain biker had been there recently because it helped me figure out where to go. But then the trail ended at the golf course. Knowing that I had a time restriction I just had to charge up the hill with no trail until I was able to find one. Despite my little side journey the run went well and I was happy with my pace.
I picked up Melissa at the airport and we went to Taco Guild to meet Kori and Nadine who are on the Aravaipa team with me. I met Melissa back when I was trying to qualify for the marathon Olympic Trials. The conversation was easy as we talked about road racing, trail running and all topics running. I dropped Melissa at her hotel, the opposite direction of my house, but I told her since she only comes to town every 5 years it was okay. I didn't get home until well after my normal bed time. I don't think I was asleep until after 11pm. I didn't set an alarm hoping I would sleep in a bit.
Wednesday:
Well, I slept in a bit. I usually get up at 5am, but I slept until 5:45am today. I tried to go back to sleep, but it didn't happen. I got up, had my coffee and headed out for my run. The goal was to run easy and not look at my watch. I just wanted to get an idea of what my pace is when I am running what feels easy. I’m happy with the pace. Weights, grocery shopping, and then off to work. I had to stay late so no second run today. This one of the things I like about coaching myself. My schedule changes week to week and sometimes at the last minute. It’s just a lot easer for me to make last minute changes and not feel stuck to a plan. It also let's me have a little more fun with my running. Yes, I take my running seriously, but I am not going to miss out on adventures with my friends. I am not married to a training plan.
Thursday:
Heads up – I’m going to talk about my period again. I tend to feel really tired and running feels really hard the day I start my period. I have dropped out of races because I started my period the morning of the race. I just felt like I could barely lift my feet so running on trail was a little scary. I ended up running on the road a bit to take a break from the mental part of trying not to trip and fall. Then I went home and went back to sleep for a couple hours. I was suppose to run in the afternoon, but that was clearly not happening. I ate diner early and was asleep by 6pm. I kept trying to make myself wake up, worried that I wouldn't sleep through the night, but I would just fall back asleep and surprisingly I slept through the night. I’m a little bummed because now I have missed 2 afternoon runs meaning my mileage isn't going to be where I want it to be for the week.
Friday:
Norm ran with me today. I felt bad because he was struggling, but I had a decent amount of climbing to get in. He stuck with it and I rewarded him with some easy running at the end.
My friend Melissa leaves Saturday morning so we I went to hang out with her. We had a drink by the pool at her hotel before meeting Norm for dinner. I have been out with friends more the last 2 weeks than I normally go out in a year. Okay, not exactly but it feels like. We had talked about doing a second run together, but Melissa can’t actually run. She was going to ride my bike while I ran next to her. I had a meeting after school that went longer than I thought and then I couldn't get the bike in my car. I could have taken the wheel off, but that didn't occur to me because I was annoyed about running late. But not a big deal in terms of running. We were just going to go a few miles at an easy pace on the canal. The point was that Melissa would get outside and get some exercise. She had surgery on her foot and has been laying on a couch for a long time now. Really she was just interested in getting some sun so sitting by the pool with a drink worked just as well.
Saturday:
I wanted to run FR201 and 201A today, but I couldn’t find any one who wanted to run with me. Come on people! I need training partners! When my friend Melissa was here, we were discussing this issue, that I never have any one to run with for training. A lot of people tell me I am too fast. I mean, I can run different speeds. And if I ask you to run with me, I am not then going to try to kill you. The thing is, there are places that I like to run that I am not comfortable running alone. So come run with me people!
I was in no mood for the trails around my house. I am all for people getting out in nature (my PhD work is on this) and I love that you are exercising, but I don’t want to deal with dogs off leash, children who are erratic and people and who don’t know how to share the trail. The weekend just brings out too many people. I decided instead to run a hilly road route with a little trail that is usually empty. When I got to Dreamy Draw I refilled my bottle and turned to go back home. I decided to go home more on the road than the trail, which was a decision that would lead me to a young woman standing on the street, holding her shoes and crying. I stopped to ask if she was okay. It seemed fairly obvious she was dressed in clothes from the evening before. It was so odd. This is a very nice residential neighborhood with large homes. Not the kind of place you expect to come across this scene. She said she was okay. Eventually she told me it was an “unfortunate online dating encounter.” She told me that he just “kicked her out.” Her phone was about to die but luckily she had been able to get a call to a friend and that friend had called her an Uber. I asked if she had been hurt and she said no, nothing like that. “I am too trusting,” she told me. I just felt terrible for her. “You have to trust people or where does that leave you,” I said. “Not after this,” she said and we shared a laugh. I told her I would take her to my house but it was so far away, we would be walking for so long. I decided to wait with her until her Uber came. Pretty quickly the Uber showed up. As we left I apologized for being gross, but gave her a hug. I told her, “Remember that you are a good person and just because some else is not, that doesn’t have anything to do with you. You are still a good person.” I mean, I guess I don’t know if she is a good person or not, but I just had this feeling. I could literally feel her pain. After I left her I wished that I had given her my number. I wanted to know that she got home and she was feeling better. And I wondered about this whole online dating thing. It wasn’t a thing when I was young and Norm and I were already friends through running. It just seems so risky. And why can’t people just be nice?
This leads me back to why I didn’t run on the trail this morning. I know that trail runners are for some reason hated on the trails. Norm and I have worked very hard to cultivate a relationship with even the crankiest of the people we see every day on the trail behind our house. There were a few I thought would never break, but have become friendly with us. In general, I will always just get out of your way. It’s just easier. But a lot of where we run isn't single track, it’s really wide. There is no reason we can't both be on the trail at the same time. When you see me and then weave in front of me or refuse to move to the side a little because you HAVE to keep walking right next to Becky while you gossip, it’s not nice. Just be nice.
I told myself maybe I would get a 2nd run in, but then Norm, Enzo and Brandi left and it was so quite around here. I had dinner early and Sinjin and I caught up on watching Catfish. I’ll take hanging out in bed watching crap TV with my kid over a 2nd run any time!
Sunday:
Time to add the speed work back into training. I will not lie. I was a little worried about being able to run fast for any length of time. I gave myself the goal of 5 miles at 6:50 pace or better. I was really happy to get 7 miles done. The speed didn’t feel too hard, but I am terrible at pacing. If I let my mind drift, my pace slows done. I really have to focus on keeping my pace where I want it.
I was surprised when Norm got up to run with me today. I thought after yesterday’s adventure for sure he would sit today out. I was planning to run 8 to 10 miles, but since Norm was coming with me I decided to take it easy on him. We did 6 miles with hardly any climbing and I ran a couple miles fast just to remember what that feels like. FYI – it feels hard.
Tuesday:
Norm and I headed out for our run and he was pretty clear from the time we left that he was not feeling it. We made it the 3 miles to visitor center and I could tell he wanted to go home. I offered to run back home with him and then go back out to finish my run. He took me up on my offer, but at the turn to go home or get more miles he changed his mind and said to keep running. I decided to ease up on the pace to be nice to him since he was kind enough to keep running with me. I made sure to do an hour of yin yoga. No more cheating on the stretching.
Mid morning I got a text message from Hayley saying she extra stupid idea to add to our already somewhat stupid plans for Memorial Day weekend. I won't tell you what they are yet, but I will tell you that I was like “hell yes!” I love an extra stupid idea.
My friend Melissa was flying in at 7:10pm and I was picking her up at the airport and then going to dinner with friends. That meant I needed to get my run done in certain amount of time. Good excuse to do some speedy running done on the trail. My legs are feeling tired so I was pleased I was able to push it and keep my speed up. I went up a climb that we usually turn around and go back the way we came because it’s the only option. But today I saw a trail off to my left. I took it down the mountain. It was what Norm and I call a Jamil trail. It’s a trail, but clearly not used very often. I was happy to see that a mountain biker had been there recently because it helped me figure out where to go. But then the trail ended at the golf course. Knowing that I had a time restriction I just had to charge up the hill with no trail until I was able to find one. Despite my little side journey the run went well and I was happy with my pace.
I picked up Melissa at the airport and we went to Taco Guild to meet Kori and Nadine who are on the Aravaipa team with me. I met Melissa back when I was trying to qualify for the marathon Olympic Trials. The conversation was easy as we talked about road racing, trail running and all topics running. I dropped Melissa at her hotel, the opposite direction of my house, but I told her since she only comes to town every 5 years it was okay. I didn't get home until well after my normal bed time. I don't think I was asleep until after 11pm. I didn't set an alarm hoping I would sleep in a bit.
Wednesday:
Well, I slept in a bit. I usually get up at 5am, but I slept until 5:45am today. I tried to go back to sleep, but it didn't happen. I got up, had my coffee and headed out for my run. The goal was to run easy and not look at my watch. I just wanted to get an idea of what my pace is when I am running what feels easy. I’m happy with the pace. Weights, grocery shopping, and then off to work. I had to stay late so no second run today. This one of the things I like about coaching myself. My schedule changes week to week and sometimes at the last minute. It’s just a lot easer for me to make last minute changes and not feel stuck to a plan. It also let's me have a little more fun with my running. Yes, I take my running seriously, but I am not going to miss out on adventures with my friends. I am not married to a training plan.
Thursday:
Heads up – I’m going to talk about my period again. I tend to feel really tired and running feels really hard the day I start my period. I have dropped out of races because I started my period the morning of the race. I just felt like I could barely lift my feet so running on trail was a little scary. I ended up running on the road a bit to take a break from the mental part of trying not to trip and fall. Then I went home and went back to sleep for a couple hours. I was suppose to run in the afternoon, but that was clearly not happening. I ate diner early and was asleep by 6pm. I kept trying to make myself wake up, worried that I wouldn't sleep through the night, but I would just fall back asleep and surprisingly I slept through the night. I’m a little bummed because now I have missed 2 afternoon runs meaning my mileage isn't going to be where I want it to be for the week.
Friday:
Norm ran with me today. I felt bad because he was struggling, but I had a decent amount of climbing to get in. He stuck with it and I rewarded him with some easy running at the end.
My friend Melissa leaves Saturday morning so we I went to hang out with her. We had a drink by the pool at her hotel before meeting Norm for dinner. I have been out with friends more the last 2 weeks than I normally go out in a year. Okay, not exactly but it feels like. We had talked about doing a second run together, but Melissa can’t actually run. She was going to ride my bike while I ran next to her. I had a meeting after school that went longer than I thought and then I couldn't get the bike in my car. I could have taken the wheel off, but that didn't occur to me because I was annoyed about running late. But not a big deal in terms of running. We were just going to go a few miles at an easy pace on the canal. The point was that Melissa would get outside and get some exercise. She had surgery on her foot and has been laying on a couch for a long time now. Really she was just interested in getting some sun so sitting by the pool with a drink worked just as well.
Saturday:
I wanted to run FR201 and 201A today, but I couldn’t find any one who wanted to run with me. Come on people! I need training partners! When my friend Melissa was here, we were discussing this issue, that I never have any one to run with for training. A lot of people tell me I am too fast. I mean, I can run different speeds. And if I ask you to run with me, I am not then going to try to kill you. The thing is, there are places that I like to run that I am not comfortable running alone. So come run with me people!
I was in no mood for the trails around my house. I am all for people getting out in nature (my PhD work is on this) and I love that you are exercising, but I don’t want to deal with dogs off leash, children who are erratic and people and who don’t know how to share the trail. The weekend just brings out too many people. I decided instead to run a hilly road route with a little trail that is usually empty. When I got to Dreamy Draw I refilled my bottle and turned to go back home. I decided to go home more on the road than the trail, which was a decision that would lead me to a young woman standing on the street, holding her shoes and crying. I stopped to ask if she was okay. It seemed fairly obvious she was dressed in clothes from the evening before. It was so odd. This is a very nice residential neighborhood with large homes. Not the kind of place you expect to come across this scene. She said she was okay. Eventually she told me it was an “unfortunate online dating encounter.” She told me that he just “kicked her out.” Her phone was about to die but luckily she had been able to get a call to a friend and that friend had called her an Uber. I asked if she had been hurt and she said no, nothing like that. “I am too trusting,” she told me. I just felt terrible for her. “You have to trust people or where does that leave you,” I said. “Not after this,” she said and we shared a laugh. I told her I would take her to my house but it was so far away, we would be walking for so long. I decided to wait with her until her Uber came. Pretty quickly the Uber showed up. As we left I apologized for being gross, but gave her a hug. I told her, “Remember that you are a good person and just because some else is not, that doesn’t have anything to do with you. You are still a good person.” I mean, I guess I don’t know if she is a good person or not, but I just had this feeling. I could literally feel her pain. After I left her I wished that I had given her my number. I wanted to know that she got home and she was feeling better. And I wondered about this whole online dating thing. It wasn’t a thing when I was young and Norm and I were already friends through running. It just seems so risky. And why can’t people just be nice?
This leads me back to why I didn’t run on the trail this morning. I know that trail runners are for some reason hated on the trails. Norm and I have worked very hard to cultivate a relationship with even the crankiest of the people we see every day on the trail behind our house. There were a few I thought would never break, but have become friendly with us. In general, I will always just get out of your way. It’s just easier. But a lot of where we run isn't single track, it’s really wide. There is no reason we can't both be on the trail at the same time. When you see me and then weave in front of me or refuse to move to the side a little because you HAVE to keep walking right next to Becky while you gossip, it’s not nice. Just be nice.
I told myself maybe I would get a 2nd run in, but then Norm, Enzo and Brandi left and it was so quite around here. I had dinner early and Sinjin and I caught up on watching Catfish. I’ll take hanging out in bed watching crap TV with my kid over a 2nd run any time!
Sunday:
Time to add the speed work back into training. I will not lie. I was a little worried about being able to run fast for any length of time. I gave myself the goal of 5 miles at 6:50 pace or better. I was really happy to get 7 miles done. The speed didn’t feel too hard, but I am terrible at pacing. If I let my mind drift, my pace slows done. I really have to focus on keeping my pace where I want it.
Champagne and catfish with my kid.
Sunday:
Time to add the speed work back into training. I will not lie. I was a little worried about being able to run fast for any length of time. I gave myself the goal of 5 miles at 6:50 pace or better. I was really happy to get 7 miles done. The speed didn’t feel too hard, but I am terrible at pacing. If I let my mind drift, my pace slows down. I really have to focus on keeping my pace where I want it.
Time to add the speed work back into training. I will not lie. I was a little worried about being able to run fast for any length of time. I gave myself the goal of 5 miles at 6:50 pace or better. I was really happy to get 7 miles done. The speed didn’t feel too hard, but I am terrible at pacing. If I let my mind drift, my pace slows down. I really have to focus on keeping my pace where I want it.
This went much better than I expected.
I had a second run to get done, but I didn't want to wait until the afternoon. 1. It’s my daughter’s birthday and I have to make Pho and I have never made it before. 2. It’s suppose to be 101 degrees here today. I usually wait 4 hours from the time I finish a run until I run again. Today I waited 3 hours because I was getting impatient. Holy cow did it feel hot! Norm volunteered to go with me, I wasn’t even going to ask him to go because he had worked all night at the Aravaipa race. I promised to go very easy on him.
I signed on to pace someone at Western States today. I am looking forward to going back. It’s so beautiful and it’s so much fun. It will make for a hectic weekend and that is stresses me out a bit, but it will be fun to help someone out and see everyone who is there. My son Enzo will be there working and last time we were there we ran into a ton of people that we knew. So yay!
Skipping all those 2nd runs left me lower on mileage than I wanted to this week. I ended up with 93 miles (I think). I know my mileage might make a big jump next week because I am running Nanny Goat 12 hour next weekend. But, I have no one to blame but myself. It's a tough balance between getting the running done and listening to my body and spending time with my family. That said, I feel good about training and how I feel over all. The stretching has put an end to the knee pain. I did decide to go back on my glucosamine supplement because the front of my knees are getting the achey feeling they get when I run high mileage without it. It might be a placebo effect, but it works so I'll use it.
I signed on to pace someone at Western States today. I am looking forward to going back. It’s so beautiful and it’s so much fun. It will make for a hectic weekend and that is stresses me out a bit, but it will be fun to help someone out and see everyone who is there. My son Enzo will be there working and last time we were there we ran into a ton of people that we knew. So yay!
Skipping all those 2nd runs left me lower on mileage than I wanted to this week. I ended up with 93 miles (I think). I know my mileage might make a big jump next week because I am running Nanny Goat 12 hour next weekend. But, I have no one to blame but myself. It's a tough balance between getting the running done and listening to my body and spending time with my family. That said, I feel good about training and how I feel over all. The stretching has put an end to the knee pain. I did decide to go back on my glucosamine supplement because the front of my knees are getting the achey feeling they get when I run high mileage without it. It might be a placebo effect, but it works so I'll use it.
