Chapter 2 page 487–Monterey Moments

I like to have fun – I work hard at my job, but enjoy playing around after hours.  While we were in Monterey, there was no shortage of me acting a fool .  . . see for yourself!

Do you cheese it up or play it straight?  Obviously, you can see my answer

Chapter 2 page 489–how far I’ve fallen

11 years ago I was . .

- 25 years old

-a graduate of Basic Combat Training for the Army Reserves

-100 pounds lighter

- a sub 6:00 min/mile runner (I ran the 2 mile PT test in 11:35)

-FIT with muscle definition to the max

-maxing my Army PFT test (Physical Fitness test:  2 minutes of push ups – not the girly kind, 2 minutes of sit ups – not lil’ ol’ crunches, and a 2 mile run)

Skip ahead 11 years and now, well, those days seem so far away and so hard to get back to.  Soon I will be posting about my 2012 goals and you’ll hear all about it, but tonight I took the FIRST step toward those goals. 

My BB (Bloggy Bestie) Kimberly from Healthy Strides and I signed up for a 3 week (6 session) Boot Camp class.  It’s exactly what I need to jump start my return to fitness,  health, and weight loss . . . BUT it kicked my butt. 

Now, Kimberly was rocking her guns, quads, and abs like a champ – sooo proud of her hard work!  That’s what it takes, no excuses, no quitting, just plain ol’ hard work.  She was cruising right through every rep of every exercise (I’m pretty sure I heard her say “Thanks Jillian” referring to her hours of 1 on 1 training sessions via DVD with Jillian Michaels which were helping her push through the circuit exercises).

Me, on the other hand, well, I did 1/3-1/2 of the reps (a girl’s gotta leave room for improvement) AND still my quads are shaking so much I can barely walk to the car after class.  11 years ago I could do nearly 80 military push ups in 2 minutes – tonight, I could only do 4 (2 sets of 2).  There is a lot of room for improvement (a lot of it) – and I’m glad to have taken the first step tonight . . . with by BB!  Thanks girl for not judging but rather laughing through it with me!  HUGS!

Have you laid off of something for awhile either because life got in the way or because you were rehabbing an injury?  It’s a hard return isn’t it! 

How did you stay focused and stick with it despite the difficulty? I’m welcoming any and all advice here!  I know that I don’t have a choice and that I MUST keep at it!

Chapter 2 page 486–TR 180 F.U.N.

In 2 weeks (eek!), I will be on a relay team for the H.U.F.F. which is an ultra trail marathon.  I hear it’s an uber technical course and combined with the weather we’ve had lately (extremely wet and muddy)– it will be extra challenging to say the least.  I’m excited to tackle this challenge and be a part of the relay – Victorious Secret (same group of awesome women as I was with for the W.O.O.F. a month ago – “C” and Kimberly from Healthy Strides).

Yesterday, in the gloom of a rainy day, Kimberly and I got together for a  social run that doubled as practice for our upcoming race.  We ran in a
Big City park that had several miles of easy natural trails.  We only ran about 3 miles using a 2:2 interval (thanks Kimberly for doing intervals), but we talked about everything under the sun and had a great time.  In a blink of an eye we were done with our run and off to lunch at a quaint little place. 

How often do you run in a new location?  Not very often – I live in a small town and have literally run the entire thing dozens and dozens of times.  I LOVE running in new places (that are safe).

Which do you prefer to do:   map out a route ahead of time or run where ever the path leads?  I really prefer a well planned route, but yesterday we just turned left or right as the mood struck us without fear of getting lost (I actually have no idea how we didn’t get lost).  I REALLY enjoyed the freedom of just going wherever we wanted.

Chapter 2 page 485– Big Sure Expo

Our trip to Monterey, CA for the Big Sur half marathon was a whirlwind to say the very least.  We were on the ground in Monterey for only 66 hours (so sad), but we made the most of those hours. 

Our plane left at sunset from our small local airport.  We flew to Chicago then to San Francisco and finally onto Monterey.

(left) sunset heading toward Chicago; (right) the straight line of lights pointing to the right is the Navy pier in Chicago (yes, we were just there in August for RnR Chicago – fun!)

(left) pretty sure that’s Chicago; (right) after 9 hours of traveling, it was GREAT to arrive at our final destination

We arrived at 12:30 a.m. local time (= 3:30 a.m. IN time) and went directly to bed at our home away from home.

Early (7:30 a.m. local time = 10:30 a.m. “home” time) Saturday morning we went to breakfast at a fun Californesque type restaurant. 

We then headed to the expo – what an upscale and fun expo – not huge, but packed with good deals and great information.

I made some extremely uncharacteristically different purchases at the expo . . . Here’s a sampling:

1.)  iFitness hydration belt (check it out HERE) – I’ve been using THIS belt for the past 18 months (totally uncool, but big enough to allow me to carry EVERYTHING AND the kitchen sink).  I’ve been thinking about this belt ever since “C” and I went to St. Pete last November.  My hesitation was the lack of storage space. 

2.)  misc. pouches for my new hydration belt – nameless pouches were sold for $1-$10 and fit perfectly on the iFitness belt and was appropriately sized for me to carry everything I need during a race (inhaler, phone, camera, key, money, id, kleenex, 4 svgs fuel, LOTS of water, and chapstick)

3.)  polarized running sunglasses  - my 11 miler on 11/11 resulted in blurred vision due to the gusty winds.  Last fall I remember wishing I had some glasses that would allow me to see easier during dusk as well as block the wind.  Last winter I wanted something that would reduce the glare off the snow.  At the expo, I got a solution to my vision issues.  (I wore them at the race – well, I had them with me for the race . . . I’m not really used to wearing sunglasses – will take some time)

4.)  3 Sweaty bands (check it out HERE) – I recently won 3 Active Bands from Gourmet Runner (more on that to come) and LOVED them – they are soooo cute.  MOA is a HUGE fan of Sweaty Bands and they were having an expo sale so I bought 3 to help her get a free band PLUS they are adorable!!!  (I wore the top one for the race)

5.)  Super Bandz (check it out HERE) – PLEASE check out their website.  This was the CRAZIEST impulse purchase I’ve made – possibly ever.  I’m a health education major and have a number of science based minors.  I’m not into alternative medicine and really don’t believe in hocus pocus – that is until I saw the demonstration of this product at the expo.  I sure wish I could have taken a video of it and posted it – it was incredible.

 

The vendor had MOA and “C” as well as other expo goers do some balance exercises and she pushed them over with little effort.  She then put the band in their energy field (in their hand, on top of their head, under their chin, etc) and repeated the balance exercise . . . this time – MOA and “C” and the other folks did NOT fall over!!!  WHAT?!?!  The first natural response was “the vendor pushed differently” – NOPE!  The vendor did a couple of other exercises with MOA and “C” and once again, as soon as the bracelet was in their hand they performance was significantly improved.  YES – I’ll take one!!!  I got a 3:13:20 for my race and felt pretty strong on a hilly course with little training in the last month – coincidence or a result of the bracelet????  Maybe both – but wearing it certainly didn’t hurt. 

Chapter 2 page 484–Big Sur final 5K

Do you feel as if you’ve been reading about a marathon and not just a half?  Sorry for dragging it out – just sooo many beautiful pictures to share!

Miles 10 and 11 were fine – the rain was a nice distraction (especially since I had gotten rather mentally fatigued during miles 6.5-9).  It brought the participants back together and made for fun conversation.  It was during these 2 miles that I made the most “friends”.  The other racers at this point were just out to have a good time and encourage each one another and finish the race with smiles on their face!

You can see the wetness we were experiencing by this point in the race – the bright blue skies had given way to grey and gloomy. 

(left) You should double click on the left photo – check out that hand painted wall mural (someone is so talented!).

(left) a sculpture of a sea otter – so cute!; (right) – PLEASE double click on that photo – those “lumps” on the beach are seal lions and seals – look how many there are!!!!!

This mile 12 marker marks the LOWEST part of a race I’ve ever experienced.  I bent over and put my hands on my knees and yelled “I can’t go on!  I can’t do this!  I have to quit!”  My friends, were about 2 blocks ahead of me and had NO idea that I was struggling!  There, in the rain, alone, I came as close to sitting on the curb as I ever have!  People were passing me telling me I could do it and of course, I had no choice – so, with one foot in front of the other I started back at it.  I had finally settled into a nice steady shuffle that I thought I could continue the rest of the time.   I had been using a 1 minute run and 1 minute walk interval the whole race but starting at about mile 12.25 I began doing a 2:1 (I guess I mostly REALLY wanted to be done!!!).  At mile 12.5, my great friend “C” had hit the wall and was struggling!  Some tough love was used and we walked across the finish line!

Next posts will be all about the touristy things we saw and did – such a cool place!

Chapter 2 page 483–Big Sur miles 9-10

Yeah, those storm clouds unleashed their furry right as we got to mile 9 – BOO!  Though . . . I’m not going to complain, it could have been pouring the entire time or freezing or windy . . . I consider ourselves very lucky regarding the weather!  I was mentally fatigued at this point, but my legs and lungs were still doing well.  I know how pathetic that sounds – mentally fatigued?  Really?  With the splendor of the OCEAN a mere 20 yards away?  Yeah, I know – pathetic!  It just felt remote and as if we would never get back to “town” (remember it’s an out and back course and it felt like we were a VERY far distance from the finish line).

(left) The ocean really began to churn and the waves got really big just before the rain started – very cool); (right) that’s the “you’re going too slow” van – those participants who were about a mile behind us were skipped ahead to be beside us (What do you think about that?  Personally, I’m thrilled they weren’t pulled off the course, but rather were given a chance to keep going)