Time to move on, time to get going…

Sooo.... about that race today. Yikes.  I woke up this morning and I just did not feel excited, nervous, anxious, all of the things I usually feel before a race that get me pumped up.  I slept on the way to the race and didn't even play my good luck songs. I was just 'off'.  It showed during the 5k today. I just didn't have the urge to dig deep, or push myself to move it.  I ran an 18:20 time. 30 seconds SLOWER than last months' race. Oh well, it just wasn't my day. I also ran 80 miles this week, so I think I was tired.  But, I  have to move forward and focus on AFC. Like my BF Ter reminded me, lucky I was feeling 'off' today and not next Sunday when it really matters! (Well, I am hoping I am not 'off' next Sunday too) Now  I get to taper for AFC. I will still run 64 miles this week, but the drop in mileage will hopefully freshen those legs up!

Arizona RoadRacers Summer Series #4

Last Saturday was the 4th out of 5 summer series races. It was SO hot and humid at this race. It was 95 degrees at 6:30am with the clouds keeping the humidity in. Oh well, at least the sun wasn't out! My goal was a 17:45 which would be a 5:43 pace. I ran a 17:50, a 5:45 pace for the 3.1 miles.  A new PR and my first time breaking 18 minutes! I am super happy with that considering the crappy weather!  My splits were pretty even, with my last mile being faster than the middle mile. And each time I race these shorter distances, I am feeling better and better during the race. (i.e. not feeling like I have to stop!)

Race results

Sally Meyerhoff came in first female with a 17:11! She is an amazing runner and is going for the Olympic team in the marathon. Now, not just the trials, the TEAM. I really believe she is going to do it, she is SO fast!  Check out her blog here! She is also just the nicest, most inspiring gal!

Sally and I

In other news, I had the dreaded 3 x 2 mile track workout yesterday. This workout has been my enemy. I mentally, have such a hard time with this workout and have not had a lot of success with it. However, yesterday I NAILED IT!!! YAY!! I had 3 x 2miles at a 6:00 pace with 4 minutes rest in between. Each set was  under my goal time! YAY!!!  Confidence in this workout is restored!

**NEW DRINK ALERT** I was getting a tad sick of having chocolate protein shakes, So I came up with this gem- 12 oz skim milk,  4 oz black cherry juice ( the pure stuff is proven to decrease tissue and muscle inflammation), a banana, 3 ice cubes just to chill it, protein powder. So good!

Happy running!

ARR Summer Series #2- Cooler than a polar bear’s toenails.

Well, not exactly, but it was only about 85 degrees this morning instead of the usual 95! I am SO happy with this race! Yesterday I kept telling myself just to relax, just run against myself, and have fun with it rather than dread it. (after my debacle of a race 2 weeks ago) I told myself that I was only allowed to  turn on the nervous energy at 4:30am race morning, but other than that, there would be NO pre-race freaking. It helped me so much.

I woke up this morning, had my special breakfast (still need to share that!) and headed to the race. This is a trail race, so I wasn't exactly sure how I would feel while running, but I was just going to do what I could and HOLD back the first mile.

Mile 1- 5:48

Mile 2- 5:51

Mile 3- 5:51

.1- 5:50

Official time= 18:06- 5:50avg. pace

I finally ran a consistent race! I felt so much better and didn't feel like I was going to keel over and die during the race like I did at ARR #1. I didn't break 18 minutes, which I really wanted to do. I thought 5:50's would do it, but I guess I messed up on my math a little! (big surprise!) This race was a break-through for me more on the mental side of racing. I stayed strong, stayed relaxed, and didn't panic when it got hard. Making progress!!! I also earned top female, so that is pretty cool as well. There were 360 women, 441 men. I was 28th overall.

Official ARR results

Next up, my VERY FIRST 10k in San Diego on the 4th of July. I have been told it is a fast, competitive course. I looked at the results from last year and there are some super fast women that run this. I am very excited to run with them and practice racing with some speedy chicas!