Earth Day Run Volunteer Report + Long Run Lessons Learned

We had a busy weekend!

Saturday, we volunteered at the bag check for the Earth Day Run in Tigard. We had a lot of fun, and got to talk to a lot of runners. We were also able to enjoy some delicious beer (specially brewed for the Earth Day Run) from Hopworks. I've never had Hopworks beer before, but I can now say it is delicious! Now I'm even more excited to stop by their restaurant after the Girls on the Run practice 5k this Thursday!

Arriving bright and early:

Checking a bag.

Letting J do all the work! ;)

It had rained for about 10 minutes randomly, but we were able to warm up with some beer:

Since we were “in the area”, we drove over to Dundee for some wine tasting. (Delicious, of course!) Then relaxed (and napped) for the rest of the day.

Since Saturday was so busy, we saved our long run for Sunday. I was looking forward to this run all morning. My legs were finally feeling fresh, but I would soon realize that we shouldn't have waited so long to start our run! (This would be our first mistake.) We ended up heading out after lunch (on full stomachs, our second mistake). We decided to try out the Maple Trail in Forest Park (our third mistake). This trail was much too hilly and difficult for me after the past week. All week my legs have felt like lead, and I decided to finish them off with a super tough run. Not a good idea. I was miserable. My legs were tired, my stomach was upset (ugh!), my Garmin was feeding me weird numbers, and I soon lost all desire to complete our planned 7 miles.

We each took a Gu somewhere in the middle. I was hoping it would make me feel better, but it only seemed to make me feel worse. I tried the chocolate mint flavor, and it felt like I was choking down thick frosting. Blech. I don't think I gave it a fair chance, since I was already feeling pretty terrible, so I'll give it another go sometime in the future.

After the Gu, we found ourselves on the Leif Erickson Trail. We decided to change our path, here, thank goodness. This trail seemed to be much more up my alley, today. By the end of the run, my legs actually felt pretty good, but I still felt like I was going to hurl. I didn't, but the feeling wouldn't go away. We ended up walking the remaining 1.5-2 miles back to the car, since my stomach was giving me so much trouble. This was not the best week for my digestive tract, and it was definitely not the best week for my running.

I'm not going to let this week of running get me down. It was kind of a “recovery” week after last Sundays 10k (which capped off a great week). Everyone has great and not-so-great weeks. You just gotta work with what your body gives you!

Sunday:
5.32 miles (measured out later with maps)
1:18:57 (this includes walking and stopping, at least my Garmin could still measure time...)

We also walked another 2-ish miles. Meh.

Anyway, this upcoming week is going to be great! At least, that's how I've planned it to be! ;) Here's the plan, as of right now.

Monday:
3 miles

Tuesday:
5 miles (We're going to try to make it to a track workout! :)

Wednesday:
Rest Day

Thursday:
5k with GOTR

Friday:
Rest Day

Saturday:
Flying down to SoCal (again!)
8 miles (on nothing but flat pavement!)

Sunday:
Rest Day/Kid's Bday party, so not much rest, I guess ;)

Here's to a better week!

Blah week + Bridge to Brews Photos

This week has been a really “blah week” after our awesome 10K last weekend. Monday, I was unable to run due to a stomach ulcer flair up, which was probably for the best, because my legs have been really heavy this week. Here’s a recap of the week, thus far:

Monday:
MD visit :)

Tuesday:
Rest Day

Wednesday:
4 miles (10:55 pace)

Thursday:
3 miles (10:57 pace)

No, those paces are not typos (although they are consistent! :). My legs have been heavy as lead. I haven’t experienced any “bad” pain, and I have been able to complete the runs. But I’ve certainly felt better before! I am hoping my legs have recovered by this weekend for our next long run. We have 7 miles on the agenda. Here’s our weekend plans:

Friday:
Rest Day

Saturday:
Volunteer at the bag check for the Earth Day Run.
7 miles (may move it to Sunday)

Sunday:
Rest Day/7 miles (we’ll see)

That’s right! We’re volunteering again! It should be a good time, and I think we’re gonna be working with the same people. (And we might even get hooked up with some free “beverages” at the end! :) I’ll try to recap the race (from the volunteer perspective) at the end of the weekend.

I’ll leave you with some pictures from the Bridge to Brews 10K last Sunday.

Running over the bridge:

The bridge:

The other bridge (Why do I run with my thumbs up?):

The stupid little itty bitty hill, right before the end:

Some brews and our cute matching hats!

Bridge to Brews 10K Recap

We had a great time today! The course was definitely tough, but we made it through. My Garmin was a little off (it counted 6.4 miles), but I’ll just use its paces for the recap, and report on the “official results” at the end.

Firstly, the packet pickup for this event was not very well organized. We stood in line for 30 minutes to look up our bib number. Then waited in another line (10K or 8K lines) for our bibs. As we picked up our bibs, they attached our timing chips. If we had ordered a shirt, we would have had to wait in another line. Oy! I can think of several things they could have done to make it more efficient, but oh well!

We made it to the starting area this morning without difficulty, about an hour before the start. We got our ID’s checked, and wrist bands applied. Then we waited. They had the kids race right before the start of the 10K, which had us all waiting on the wrong side of the starting area. We finally made it to the starting chute, but had to keep moving to the end on the wrong side of a barricade. We tried to work our way to the middle of the pack, but the gun went off before we’d even gotten past the barricade.

Mile 1: 9:16
The start was a little hectic, but we’ve seen worse. There were of course people to dodge (my mom said there were walkers lined up at the front…) but nothing like the Shamrock Run. This whole mile seemed to be a gradual uphill climb toward the bridge, but didn’t seem too bad. At this point, I thought we were going too fast, and tried to slow us down (to no avail).

Mile 2: 8:43
Yeah, we were going much faster than I had anticipated. This part had a nice long downhill section as we made our way to the freeway on ramp (to exit the bridge).

Miles 3/4/5: 8:44/8:45/8:41
After we exited the 405, we continued onto flat roads with a few turns. My legs and lungs were feeling really good and strong, until we started on Mile 5. Even then, I was feeling good, so we just kept pushing through.

Mile 6: 8:55
I had been dreading this part (the Broadway Bridge) ever since I first read about it. Who puts a hill at the end of a race!? :P I definitely struggled a bit, but just kept running and pushed through it. We got to the top and headed out onto the final stretch. I was feeling strong, so I started to push the pace a bit.

Mile 6-6.4: 7:54 avg pace
And then it came; a stupid little itty bitty hill, right before the end. My legs felt like lead, but I made it up, and we were definitely almost there. Who knows how accurate any of these paces are, but I know I kicked it into gear on the final stretch.

Final Garmin time: 56:16 (8:47 avg pace for 6.4 miles)
Official time: 56:07 (9:02 avg pace for 6.2 miles)

I think the extra 0.2 miles may have come from when we were on the lower part of the Fremont Bridge, which is why it seemed like we were going so fast (especially on the uphill section), but our pace was still much faster than we had anticipated! Yay us! :)

At the end of the race, we kept our eyes peeled for Jen while enjoying our brews. We were about to give up hope when I spotted Zach with my eerie recognition skills. I introduced myself to him and explained how I knew his name. (Yeah, I’m sure I was creepy. ;) We lost him in the crowd, but he found us again, and we got to meet Jen and Amy! Yay! So nice to meet you all!

On a separate note; I notice a lot of things out there as a Physical Therapist, especially other people’s gait. And boy did I see some crazy things! Several people didn’t have any hip extension (stretch your hip flexors people!). One girl had significantly limited hip extension in her right leg, which somehow caused her leg to circumduct? (Her right hip looked really painful!). And the worst of them all was a girl with the worst knee valgus I’ve ever seen. Her knees kept bumping into each other, and I’m sorry, but your knees aren’t supposed to bend that way. The worst part about it was that she was just in front of us for at least 4 miles; we never got past her, and it was brutal to watch! I don’t know how she can run like that, but it will most likely catch up with her sooner or later… :(

I haven’t been too sore today, but we’ll see what tomorrow brings. I haven’t decided if we’ll run tomorrow, but we’ll probably at least go for a walk! ;)

Good job to everyone on their runs today! Hope to see you again, soon!

Bouncing back

This week was so much better than last week. It is so great to be able to breathe! :) My runs felt really great, and I definitely took advantage of my functional lungs! Here’s a recap of the week:

Monday:
3 miles (9:13 avg pace! what?! oops!)

Tuesday:
Restarted the pushups (and subsequently skipped the rest of the week. oops part 2!)

Wednesday:
4 miles (9:45 avg pace. J had a headache, but I felt great!) We had our first “bloggy meet-up” with Alisa. (I’m “borrowing” her picture.)

We didn’t get to “run” with her this week (husbands are so demanding! That’s why I just bring mine with me! ;) but I’m sure we’ll make it work soon!

Thursday:
Moved our run to attend Trivia Night. Had a lot of fun!

Friday:
3 miles (9:24 avg pace)

Some of those runs may have been pushing it, but my lungs felt great, and so did my legs, so we went for it!

Sunday, we’ll be running the Bridge to Brews 10K. It will be our first 10K and I'm really looking forward to it! I don’t have any set goals, so we’ll just see what the day brings. As long as we finish it, we are guaranteed a PR, which is always a great place to be! We have kept a pretty consistent and comfortable 9:30 min/mi pace, so if we can keep it there (or under) I’ll be happy.

Sunday not only marks our first 10K, it also brings us to our One Year Anniversary; and we couldn’t be happier! It has been a busy year, and I have loved every minute of it! We’ve done a lot together in the past year; a lot of things I know J never thought he would do. But I’m glad he decided to join me! :) Our wedding day was so much fun, and thus far, we’ve managed to keep the good times going! Here’s to many more years! :)

Good luck to all of you on your races, long runs, and other various activities!

SoCal Vacation, Part 2, and back again

It has been a little while since my last blog entry, and I’d like to say “things have been just too crazy to blog!” But that would be a lie. Vacation didn’t go exactly as planned. Instead of having fun in the sun, I was assaulted by Southern California’s allergens.

Friday, during our vacation, I went to bed with a tiny bit of a sore throat, hoping it would go away. It did not. Saturday was our planned 6-miler, and we completed it as scheduled. I felt good during the run, and my sore throat disappeared (only to come back soon thereafter). Boo! And it only got worse from there. The sore throat vanished by the next day, but then the nose started running, and then the cough developed.

And the runny nose and the cough stayed with me until…well they’re still kinda with me. :(

We returned to Portland last Tuesday, and I was planning on returning to work on Wednesday, but I was still sick. So I planned to return on Thursday, but I was still sick. So I planned to return on Friday, but yeah, I was still sick.

But I’ve finally started to feel better. Finally!! And I think I can return to work tomorrow. *Fingers crossed*

So how did this affect my running. Blarg. Here’s a recap:

Saturday:
6 miles (9:35 avg pace)
The run itself was kind of fun. We ran along the HB path near the pier. Our pace was pretty even, and there were actually a lot of other runners out there. Some in long sleeves and TIGHTS! It was 60°+, and we were roasting! What a difference living in different climates makes!

Mile 1: 9:32
Mile 2: 9:28
Mile 3: 9:41
Mile 4: 9:33
Mile 5: 9:43
Mile 6: 9:33

Monday:
3 miles (9:41 avg pace)
This run was done in the rain. And not just wimpy rain. I think the same amount of rain fell during that 30-ish minutes then falls all day in Portland. :) This run did not feel good. I could not have run any further, that’s for sure.

Wednesday:
Cancelled

Thursday:
Cancelled

Saturday:
3 miles-ish (“Blech” avg pace)
I was starting to feel a bit better, and was hoping this run would make me feel better. Strangely enough, it did. Not during the run (“Blech”), but afterward I did feel better. And look at me today. I have enough energy to blog! (And go with J to Costco! Whoopee!)

It appears that I’m on the mend! Here’s hoping the mending continues. I have my 1st 10K on Sunday (which just so happens to be our Anniversary), so I have to be better by then!

Also on tap for this week:

Monday:
3 miles

Tuesday:
Cross training/stop being lazy

Wednesday:
4 miles/Meet up with Alisa (hopefully! :)

Thursday:
3 miles

Friday:
Cross training?

Saturday:
Rest

Sunday:
Bridge to Brews!

Here’s hoping all goes according to plan! :)

SoCal Vacation, Part 1

Before I get into our trip, here’s a recap of the week, so far:

Monday:
3 miles (avg. pace 10:22)
This run took place around the city, i.e. around tall buildings. Therefore, I’m taking Garmin’s avg. pace with a grain of salt. Either way, I felt really good on this run, and it was fun taking a random path through town.

Tuesday:
Rest Day, and I mean it!

Wednesday:
3 miles (11:07)
We joined a running group for the Easter Fulton Pub Run. There were probably at least 50 people there, and I think everyone had a good time. J and I apparently are not very good at finding Easter eggs (we only found 1 each, and by “we” I mean J let me have one of his…), but we still managed to have fun! The first 1.5 miles were along a thin trail, and we were following a group in the back of the pack. We didn’t want to pass them for fear of getting lost, so our pace was a little slower than usual (12:13 and 10:57 for the first 2 miles). After we made it to the turn around for the second half of the loop, we picked it back up and brought it in at 9:48. All in all, we had a great time, and I hope we can join in for one of these group runs again sometime!

Thursday:
3 miles (9:35 avg. pace)
I’ll recap this run later on.

Friday:
Rest Day/Vacation Day!

Ok, now onto the vacation:

Obviously, we made it safe and sound! We started our voyage by waking up at 3am! Look how chipper we are waiting for the Max to take us to the airport:

We made it through all the various airport lines, got ourselves some coffee and breakfast snacks (mmm…coffee cake!), and finally made it on the plane.

We flew JetBlue, so I got to catch up on some trashy reality shows. This trip included America’s Next Top Model (reruns) and Sober House; good quality stuff!

We landed in Long Beach 30 minutes early to beautiful blue skies:

We made it to J’s mother’s house by 9:30am. Good Morning! We were fading fast. Nap time? Nah. Let’s just go for our scheduled run! I brought my Garmin and we took off in random directions, around various neighborhoods, for 3 total miles. J totally picked up the pace for the last mile, and we clocked in at 8:59. I didn’t even notice how quickly we were going! Here’s some pics we got along the way:

I like how this picture is all distorted from the combined movements of J an I running:

Self portrait:

Thumbs Up?

Later that day, I had a dentist appointment (our secret reason for coming down here). I’ve been going to this dentist for more than a year and a half for the same problem, but after yesterday, I only have 1 trip back in May, and I’ll be done! It has been nice to have a reason to come down and visit J’s family, so we’ll take it!

Today is reserved for relaxing and spending time with J’s family. Tomorrow, we will complete our long run (6 miles!) sometime around watching the nieces and nephews hunt for eggs. Sunday is reserved for family time! Happy Easter!

I hope everyone has a good weekend, and a good Easter! See you next week!