Return of La Nina?

Nooooo!

So I was reading an article on King5.com (Seattle's local news) and apparently we are in for a lousy, wet and cold winter. Last winter we had La Nina, which meant it was warmer and dry. I was particularly a fan of 55 degree farenheight average in January! Not good news for local outdoor runners:

Seriously, I really prefer El Nino to La Nina!

A recap of last week's Anacortes Art Dash Half Marathon on the way!

And another two...

Okay, okay.....I have been another bad blogger lately. I SWEAR this time it was not just me being lazy. So much has happened in the past 2 weeks. Aside from starting a new position (and I am up for interviews this week AGAIN as well! Yay!) my grandmother also passed away. Urgent family get-togethers and frequent trips home in addition to 2 weddings have made things quite busy. I promise to be a better bloggy buddy in August!

To start things off in the right direction, I signed up for 2 more half marathons! I am going for a new Half Fanatic moon level as well. Currently I am a "Neptune" and I am going for "Uranus" (haha, seriously, it is not my choice of a name!)

Neptune (my current achievement):

2 Half Marathons in 16 days or

3 Half Marathons in 3 consecutive calendar months

Uranus (next goal):

3 Half Marathons in 16 days or

6 Half Marathons in 6 consecutive calendar months or

8-10 Half Marathons in 365 days

After these two races I will be at Uranus and will have completed 6 half marathons in 6 consecutive calendar months! (Mercer Half, Whidbey Half, Bainbridge Half, Kirkland Half, Seattle RnR Half, and the next two.) Pretty exciting stuff :) So here are the next two half marathons I signed up for:

Anacortes Art Dash Half Marathon (Saturday, July 31, 2010):

This half is located in Anacortes, WA, and also includes a 10K and 5K race. Races fees are $45 and include a race shirt, goodie bag and finishers ribbon (not medal?) This looks to be a smaller race, but should be enjoyable. The course runs along the water at Anacortes and along some sort or bridge. I am hoping for pretty scenery and hopefully not too many hills!

Tacoma Narrows Half Marthon (Saturday, August 7, 2010):

                                                             

This half is located in Tacoma, WA and runs across the famous Narrows Bridge, through Cheney Stadium and finishes in downtown Tacoma. The current race fee is $90 and includes a t-shirt, chip timer, goodie bag and commemorative finisher's glass. This race should be somewhat hilly, but probably and hopefully no more hilly than other races in the Puget Sound area. Should be another beautiful route.

I am really excited! Although I have not been blogging, I have been running, so I feel prepared for these races. I cant wait and a recap to come shortly! Are any of you running in these races?

Happy running racing!

2 years! ♥

Okay, this is only somewhat running related.....but today I am celebrating 2 years with my boyfriend :)

Ill skip most of the mushy stuff, but I am so happy with him (and to find someone that will put up with my running schedules, races, special meals, driving me to and from races, taking corny pictures of me while running....you get the picture)!

He even knew I wanted to run after work, so we have later dinner reservations! Yep, he's a keeper :)

Beat the Bridge 8k, May 2008: our first race

Post Seattle Marathon 2009: My first half and his first full marathon

4th of July, 2010 (after the Fun Run)

Thanks for running with me, and always supporting me too!

Happy 2 years! ♥

Running Randoms.....

A few random things about running that I encoutered in the past week:

A HUGE deer: while running over the weekend, I came upon a HUGE deer. Now I have seen deer before, but nothing like the size of this one. I am guessing that it was young because it didnt have antlers (or it was a large female) but it was gigantic. I mean, it was the size of a cow! Are they normally that big? It just stood there while I ran up to it on the road. I tried to make a lot of noise to scare it away (from me, and out of traffic) but it just stared. Good thing no one else was around to hear me!

 Similar to this, but larger!!

I ran into a tree: yep, you heard it right. On my early morning run last week, I ran into a tree. Well, I was running and there was a large, low branch in my path. I went to duck my head, but I didnt duck enough. I smacked the top of my head into the branch. Whoops!

A crazy mumbling runner: while walking to work this morning, I saw a runner approaching me. As she got closer, I could see she was talking to herself, saying "....almost there! I'm almost there!" It was so strange....I sure hope I don't mumble out loud while running! I'm pretty sure that I don't.....

This list goes right up there with the cat on the leash. Have you seen anything strange while running??

Wait, what??

Hmmm….two things:

First, I somehow woke up extra early today to run 5 miles before I went to work. Anyone who knows me this is somewhat impossible since I am NOT a morning person and a complete night owl. I don’t know what motivated me to actually get up and run (vs my normal hitting the snooze button multiple times) but I’ll take it!

 Somehow my run was more groggy than normal. I thought I would have been more awake since I wake up early for races, but it just wasn’t happening :)

Second, I JUST realized that my time in the BYS Fun Run on the 4th of July was only 3 seconds off my PR from 2009! Wow?! How did I not realize this? I was seriously thinking my PR was faster, and I wonder if I would have pushed it harder in the race if I had known. Hmm??

Looks like I need to sign up for a few more 5ks soon…..I am NOT running at my potential! Has anything strange happened to you lately??

"You ran....on purpose??"

Holy heat wave Seattle!

Well, summer is here all right....we hit 94 degrees in Seattle! To be fair, it was 91 degrees when I went on my run. I was set on getting at least 5 miles in, and I really didnt think it would be that big of a deal while at work. Yeah, I was wrong.

That was one of the most difficult runs ever! I made it my 4 miles at a 10:00 pace, but it wasn't pretty with the hills. For kicks, I decided to run another mile, thinking I could run back through a few sprinklers on my way. Within FEET of reaching the sprinklers someone turned them off! So much for my cool down.....it must have been there to tempt me :)

Anyways, when I got back from my run (dazed and confused, haha) a woman was walking through the front doors. She looked at me and said:
 
"You ran? In this heat......on purpose?"

I smiled and said yes, and she looked at me like I was crazy. Getting a few miles in isnt that crazy, is it??

Happy heat stroke running!

Well, hello summer!

In true PacNW fashion, summer has finally arrived AFTER the 4th of July. Most of you who are from around Seattle know this, but for all of you who are not, we rarely, rarely get hot weather before July. Then BAM, summer arrives just in time! Literally, we might hit 95 degrees tomorrow! A week ago Monday, it was a lovely 60 degrees, and it might have dipped into the 50's during the day.  Im not kidding....

Check the time....its 10:00 PM!

I decided to finally get a good run in since the RnR half, yet the weather was not cooperating. I ran 6 miles at about a 9:30/mile pace. The heat just takes it out of me. I did pause a few times to take the follwing pictures:

Hello, Seattle!

Rat-cows on the loose....

Sunset over the Olympic Mts

Love the awesome sunset......and no, that wasn't enhanced! Ill spare you all the self portrait this time....85 degrees at night wasn't a pretty picture :) We'll see how many I can get in in tomorrow's heat! Here's hoping to more than 10 miles this week, why wont the weather cooperate?? Recaps to come...I didn't forget!

Happy hot running!

A good excuse this time....

Bad blogger again, but I have an excuse this time...

I just started a new job last week! :)

Needless to say, this past week was my worst running week so far. I only logged 10.1 miles, which is way below my usual 25-30. I guess starting a new position, going to a wedding, a bridal shower and having a certain vampire-related movie debut at midnight one day last week took up all of my time. My hip was a little sore after the Seattle RnR Half, so I think I might have needed the days off. Im hoping to get back into it tomorrow and log those miles! Also, a recap to come tomorrow too...

Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July….it is always one of my favorite holidays!

Another new half PR?

Yep, another new half marathon PR at the Seattle Rock N Roll Half this morning!

1:55:59!

Recap to come tomorrow...Im too exhausted to type it all tonight. Hope everyone had a great race, it was my favorite so far!

Wow, 100th post!

Wow, wow, wow.....

Where did the time go? I never would have thought that I would EVER have a blog, let alone post 100 times! So far it has been an interesting journey, and I love all the bloggy friends I have made and even met. Thanks for making the past 6 months so rewarding :)

Lovely view at the park....so what if I was the only one laying out!!

I went for a final long run yesterday before the Rock N Roll Half this weekend. I decided to put in some miles at a slow pace just to get my mileage up. I ended up running 10 miles including hills at a 9:47 pace. It was 78 degrees during the run! As you know, I am not good with heat, so I think that also made me run at a much slower pace.

 Sunny colors for the sunny solstace weather!

Randomly during the run I spotted a 4-leaf clover! I decided to grab it on my second loop, and when I stopped to pick it, I found 2 other 4-leaf clovers right next to it! I really do have a special talent for finding clovers. The last time I found a 4-leaf clover I ran a sub 2 hour half at Kirkland. Here's hoping for good luck again on the race this weekend!

I just got back from the Seattle Rock N Roll expo, and I have a ton of info to post. I'm off for a quick run around the neighborhood, but will post soon. I hope everyone is enjoying the sunny Pacific Northwest weather.....I am loving it! It seems that summer FINALLY decided to show itself here!

Happy running!

Image found here

RIP Bug...

Yuck, it finally happened....

A bug flew into my eye while running! I should also preface this post by saying that I am horribly scared of any creepy, crawly creature, expecially bugs and spiders.

Well, I should say that actually 3 perished while on my run, but the first was definately the worst. I dont know how this hasnt happened to me before, but I sure paid for it on this run!

While running 6.2 around a local park, I was cruising along at a good sub-9/mile pace when something hit my eye. I quickly stopped and started blinking, but I could see it was HUGE. Since I hate bugs and are terrified of them, I frantically started clawing at my eye to get the thing out. Literally about 3 minutes later I felt it and tried to get it out with my finger (so gross!) but only a small portion of the bug came out! Without getting too graphic and grossing myself out more, pieces of the bug kept coming out of my eye during the rest of my run.

If you cannot tell already, sadly, the bug did not make it.

I guess there are just not too many bugs to fly in my face in the city. And that I am extremely thankful for!

Sorry for the gross post. Happy (bug free) running!

Thank You :)

After having an exceptionally crappy day, I found this waiting for me in my mailbox:

An AWESOME gift pack from Julie over at Minnesota Mileage!

The goodie pack included:

• A lovely note :)
• 2 Powerbar Energy Gels in Strawberry Banana
• Pack of Jelly Belly Sports Beans in Fruit Punch
• A Starbucks gift card

So amazing! I am new to the bloggy world, and this is the first thing that was sent to me. If you all are not familiar with Julie, she is a super-speedy bloggy runner who has completed many 5k, 10k and half marathons, but she is now training for her first full marathon! She not only sent this awesome gift pack, but has supported me since the beginning of my blog. Thanks Julie :) 

Not only are the gifts amazing, but the Powerbar Gel is a flavor that I have not tried yet, and I have never had Sports Beans (which I found out my other Step-Sis is working the Sports Beans booth at one of my upcoming races!) Product reviews to come!

Perfect for my 10 miler this week and a new product review!

This is my excited face, haha. I'm a huge dork....

On a running side note, I went for a quick 4 miler and realized that I didnt start my Garmin! Boo! I run with my iPhone and took a call a few minutes into the run.....but I never stopped running. I ended up running my 4 mile loop (with hills) at a 10:00 pace and without stopping and talking the entire time! I might have sounded funny on the phone, but she knew I was running, so I think it was fine. I could have gone faster, but I probably would have run into something or someone while talking and with my headphones in. I also probably had quite a few funny looks in my direction (I probably looked like I was chatting with myself, haha). Oh well, I got the run and the call in!

Happy running and thanks again Julie! :)

Back Blogging

Yet again, I was a bad blogger yesterday :( Yet, thanks to the wonders of Blogger, I can post this yet put a different time and date on it (sneaky, sneaky!)

 

Anyways, I went for a lovely 8 miler today (well, yesterday, but you get the hint!) I did a 4 mile loop twice that included several hills. It has been my regular loop now for the past 2 weeks, and it can be pretty challenging to get a sub-9 mile pace for the entirety of the run. I realized that the Seattle Rock N Roll Half is coming up in a few weeks, and I need to start running my longer training runs!

I ended up running an additional hill, but finishing 8 miles at a 9:15 pace. Not bad, and definitely an improvement over the last few longer runs, but not at my goal yet!! grr.....

It was also an extremely dark and stromy day again in Seattle, with periods of sunshine. My kind of run (but not tanning/summer weather!)

This picture doesnt do it justice!!

Why cant it just be sunny like this all the time??

B-E-A-utiful!

Alright, well I am a cheese-ball. Hope you all are enjoying summer weather somewhere and getting your longer runs in :) and not back-blogging like me!

Running on Builders Bars!

After reading the article I posted yesterday about the guy who runs on bananas, I keep thinking about the runs I have accomplished lately and trying to figure out which runs were more successful than others and why. I have come to the conclusion that he might be able to run only on bananas, but I could probably run only on Builders Bars!

On all of the runs that I have done lately (hill runs or just regular runs around the neighborhood) my speed and energy level seems to go with how much protein I have had that day. Usually this means if I had a Builder's Bar earlier that day or not. Even just yesterday I ran 6 miles and was completely dragging. I not only ran one of my slowest paces in months (9:45/mile) but I had no protein in my system. Today I had a Builders Bar and ran 5 miles at a 8:55/pace including hills. That is a huge difference!!

I don't think I would go as far as eating ONLY Builders Bars (I would need coffee, GU and Hefeweizen in the mix too!), but one a few hours before a long run seems to give me better results. More on my review of Builder's Bars here.

Is there anything that you HAVE to eat before a long run or race?

Happy running :)

Running on bananas?

Running on bananas, not literally running bananas :) My friend sent me an awesome link to Dean Karnazes blog on Runner's World. (If you are wondering who Dean is, he is the guy who ran 50 marathons in 50 days in all 50 states. You can read more about Dean on his website. He is the topic of another blog post in itself!) Anyways, Dean was talking about his friend, Mike Arnstein, who recently won the Napa Valley International Marathon. While Dean was talking to him, he found out that he was a “Fruitarian.” The article states:

he sometimes eats 40-50 bananas a day (no, that’s not a typo). In fact, other than oranges and the periodic tomato and stalk of celery, that’s pretty much all he eats.

Mike Arnstein is a “Fruitarian.”  That is to say, he only eats fruit and the occasional raw vegetable. He doesn’t even eat nuts. Okay, that’s because, you’re thinking, he is one.

Wait, don’t be so quick to write the man off. Listen to these stats. Mike’s been a fruitarian for the past two and a half years. In that time: he’s watched his percent body fat naturally fall to around 3%, he’s bumped up his training mileage to 20-30 miles a day (often logging 160-mile training weeks), he’s watched his half-marathon PR drop from 1:17 to 1:10, and he runs a successful software company with 20 employees. All on bananas.

Crazy! It really makes you think about your pre-race or long run routine. I swear that I need a LOT of protein and little to no carbs. Can you imagine only running on bananas? I dont know how you could do it!

What are your thoughts? Is this possible? Do you think you would become deficient on other nutrients or would it be unsustainable for the planet? I would love to hear your thoughts (and the comments on the article were interesting as well!)

Happy running! I'm off to go run 8 (but on protein, not bananas!)

Banana image found here.
Mike image found here.

Stairs, stairs, stairs

Im tired just thinking about it...

While running (almost everyday this week !!) I have been noticing a lot of stairs on my running route through the new neighborhood. Being the avid internet searcher that I am, I decided to Google it. Luckily, I found out information on the subject from the Seattle Times:

Resident TH has counted 120 public stairways on MY NEW NEIGHBORHOOD. TH wisely describes it as a "fairly objective estimate." His objectivity comes from exploring on foot every corner and cul-de-sac of his neighborhood.

At last count — in 2005 — Seattle had 482 public stairways. TH points out that while MY NEW NEIGHBORHOOD is not the highest hill in Seattle... it does have both the most and highest steps of any hill in the city.

 Literally, this guy wasn't kidding. There are a TON of hills and stairways to run on. I have noticed my time only slightly improve while running 4 miles around the neighborhood. I decided to do 2 loops today and had to run up the set of stairs twice! My time was decent (9:31/pace) but it wasn't pretty. Im hoping to get this to around 9 minutes per mile (which I have done once on only 4 miles) for all 8 miles.

Here's hoping! I really do hate stairs/large steep hills!! Do you try to run on stairs, or just incorporate hills into your runs?


Photo found here from this awesome Seattle Daily Picture Blog!

Month Review: May 2010

May 2010:

       Total Miles: 105.1       
       Average Pace: 9:19/mile               
       Running Time: 16:19:48 
       Yearly Total:  514.9 miles

       Yearly Time Total: 83:11:11
       Blog Posts in May: 11

Well, not the best blogging month, but a decent running month! This month included my first SUB 2-HOUR HALF in Kirkland (recap STILL to come, but short recap here), increased mileage, went 21.7 miles over my monthly goal (83.4 miles/month), increased my yearly mileage by 97.9 of where I should be for my Tall Mom 1,000 + goal, went on 2 vacations to Alaska and Vegas, and moved into my new cute apartment. Phew, Im tired just thinking about it :)

I promise to be a better blogger next month and post more regularly. Hopefully I will have a less hectic schedule. As always, a few extra pictures from the month:

 Kicking up my feet after a run and looking at the glaciers

Running by the Seattle "Fraiser" viewpoint

Sounders game at sunset after a run (Sounders won too!)

Chloe wanting me to play and not go for a run

Hope everyone had a great May! Happy running!

Moving, moving, moving

Well, I meant the title in two ways: moving while running, and moving as in moving to a new apartment. Whew! Through the chaos of moving into a new apartment, I was still able to manage 24 miles so far this week, but they were neither fast or impressive. I was able to find a new route around my new neighborhood, which has plenty of hills and stairs that I can incorporate into my runs. Here are a few pics from the run this week:

Excited about running stairs....

New Running Route

I'll write more later....off to a Sounders Game! Monthly recap to come as well.

Happy Running!

Oh no!

Had a bit of a scare there. I went out for a run today and when I went to turn on my Garmin....nothing. I mean NOTHING happened. Blank screen and I had checked it last night and made sure it was charging.

I tried the power.
I tried the lap/reset button.
I tried plugging it back in to the wall.
I tried plugging it into my computer.

NOTHING.

This went on for about 10 minutes. Then all of a sudden it came back to life. PHEW! I was getting really scared there....and I have never had any problems with it before. I ended up running 7.5 miles and the battery is charged, luckily there were no other problems. Maybe it was just playing tricks on me?? Not funny at all.

Off to finish packing then moving tomorrow. Happy running and Memorial Day weekend!

Halfway to the goal!

While entering my miles into my RunningAHEAD log, I noticed that I have logged over 500+ miles this year! Plus, as you know, it's only MAY! Woo hoo! I am officially over halfway to my goal of 1,000 miles in 2010! So exciting!

Aside from that, I have been keeping up my miles during this busy week. My last few workouts are below:

Monday: ran 4 in 35:00
Wednesday: ran 8 in 1:12:00
Thursday: ran 7.5 in 1:10:00

For those of you keeping track, the average pace on the Thursday run was 8:37/mile! That is a lot faster than my normal 9:00/mile pace. I'm not sure what is going on, but I'll take it! I read somewhere that to notice a difference in running you just have to keep at it and your time will slowly slowly get better. It seems that it is taking about 4-5 months of consistent training to lose half a minute per mile on my pace. Has anyone else noticed this too? I might just be slower than others :)

Hope everyone is having a good week! Happy running!