To prepare, I've been eating like a pig and sleeping like a log. I'm sure the five pound food baby in my belly will come in real handy at around mile 23!
I've only run 13 miles in two weeks, and will only run 2-3 miles this week, if that. Yikes. My entire body was in a lot of pain all of last week; I literally felt like I had been run over by a truck. It may also have had something to do with the six hours of LA traffic... Yikes. Thank the heavens for drugs. (Aleve) Oh, and pounds of food helped too. (Specifically, hand-made persimmon cheesecake, pumpkin pie, stuffing, bacon, ice cream, dim sum, Animal style fries... oh yes!)
I'm so glad Thanksgiving happened during taper week. Great excuse to rest up and Carbo-load :)
I met up with some of my favorite high school friends in Venice this weekend and it went a little like this:
doing my best Governator impression
Can I be eyeing that stuffing any more? Hungry much?
Gravy. Enough said.
Epic
After this trip, I'm even more serious about wanting to move further down the CA coast. I've been thinking about it for a while now... Santa Barbara is a great town and all, but it's really sleepy, small, and frankly, a place for older people. I don't really know what I'm gonna do... The new year is gonna bring with it some major decision making time!
Anyhoo... while jogging in Venice, we also saw a BUNCH of people training for the LA marathon in March, which I am considering running. And I found out one of my best friends is gonna start training for a half marathon! I was beyond excited.
But for now, all I know is that I am in denial about the fact I'm running 26.2 miles this weekend. Time to hit up that bowl of cereal :)
I decided running a race would be a much more fun way of getting a run in. I wanted James to run it with me too, but the waves were too good, apparently, so he went surfing instead. Since when are waves>running, anyways? ;)
The race was the UCSB Turkey Trot "10K". I honestly didn't even notice the fact that I was there all alone until after I registered, and had a bunch of time to kill by myself. In college or high school, I would have felt totally awkward and insecure showing up to something all by myself like that, but on Sat, I felt completely at ease just hanging out with me, myself, and I.
My, my. My little Julia's all grown up. Tear.
I ran 1.5 miles to warm up, and just kind of hung out near the starting area stretching and such. Right before the race, there was a group warm up exercise led by a local personal trainer. Unlike in Maui, this warm up was very well organized and executed. The instructor had us "jacking" and squatting and push-upping. "If you're tired already, you're in trouble!" she yelled at one point, and I had to gulp... but apparently others felt the squats too, as one girl yelled back "Oh no! I'm in trouble!" I love small races. Everyone feels more comfortable and just wants to have fun.
The course was actually very poorly thought out, in my opinion. First of all, the first 2 miles is very hilly. (Pansies like me don't like hills!) Second, they had us running on this trail which is hardly wide enough for one person. What made it worse is that they had us running back along the trail, which meant that the faster people had to cross the slower people on a trail that's not wide enough for even one person. Even worse was that some people were running with their dogs. Without leashes. Ugh. (BTW, it's cool that races allow people to run with dogs/strollers/etc. But leashes should be mandatory!) This made it difficult to pass anyone, or run fast. Good thing I wasn't racing, as this would surely have pissed me off.
The other bad thing about the race was that they didn't have an aid station until mile 5. The weather was in the upper 70's without the cloud in the sky. I was DYING of thirst by that point. Seriously DYING. Who puts the one and only aid station at mile 5?
The "10K" ended up being 6.75 miles. Again, good thing I wasn't going for time! In the last quarter mile or so, I made a new friend. I discovered he is also running the Santa Barbara marathon; he's running it as a relay, and he is running the last leg. In my opinion, the last leg is the best, because you're the one who gets to cross the finish line!) We ended up crossing the finish line together. Race friends make me happy :)
I left right after I finished to pick up James by the beach, so I have no idea what my time was. I don't even care. I had fun. I ran. That's all that matters :)
Here is the Race Shirt and freebies I scored: Jelly Bean Sport Beans. I'm excited to try them. I actually love the race shirt. I love the brown trim!
After the race, I absolutely refused to stay indoors. I mean, it was 70+ degrees out, without a cloud in the sky! The best thing to do? Go for a shoreline walk!
It doesn't look it, but this sammie was gigantor.
And then we met the most acrobatic puppy ever:
Incredible.
We ended up walking 4.5 miles, which brought my total mileage to close to 13 miles. Oops. So much for tapering! But it's ok, cause I am not gonna even have time to work out this week.
Seriously. The gym never ceases to entertain me. I mean... I thought people watching in Tokyo was fun, but lately the gym has had an endless supply of interesting views.
(Of course, Tokyo will always rank #1 in my mind. Where else can you walk in to a 7-11 and see two girls dressed in full body hamster costumes on a regular Thursday, see this, see boys shopping for beauty products, and ladies in kimonos all in the same glance?)
a guy running on the treadmill (not just jogging, but RUNNING) in full length jeans and a belt and non-running shoes (why, why, why..... or more importantly, how, how how???)
An older woman walking on the treadmill in daisy duke denim shorts and platform sneakers....(WTF)
A middle aged man in the tightest, tightest tights shorts doing hip thrusts endlessly. And I should also mention that his hip thrusts are done in fast-forward speed. Awkward. I should also mention that his tights are usually gray, and it is so tight that it perfectly outlines every contour of his..... um.... package. And his t-shirt is too short. Um.... did I mention Awkward? Oh, and trust me, I've heard other girls complaining about him too.
Way too many visible panty lines.
hmmm. Maybe this means I should stop spending so much time at the gym!
In other gym news, spin class last night was bomb! I was finally able to give it my all on the bike, since I didn't have to "save" my muscles for a run. The instructor played two Gaga songs, so I was a happy camper.
In other TMI news, tonight I have to finally deep clean my entire bathroom. This weekend, my bathroom decided to explode on me. Literally shit was coming out of my shower drain and my toilet, flooding my entire bathroom. Deliciousness. I've been avoiding my shower and staying with James and showering at the gym instead. Time to bust out that Chlorine! If you have any great cleaning product recommendations, please do share! I have never had to clean up such a mess before.
I don't feel like I'm tapering at all... probably because for the last two weeks, I didn't do a mid-week run either. I've been super low mileage for the last three weeks, so I don't even know if what I'm doing now counts as tapering.
After the 22 miler, I went for a stroll on Sunday, did elliptical and weights on Monday, did an hour of yoga on Tuesday, and am going for a spin class tonight. Is this tapering, or am I doing too much? I don't feel like I'm tired or anything... it's the work-out volume that I am used to, but I don't know if it counts as tapering. I still have 18 more days till M-day, so I feel like I can truly REST when I get closer to the date. And with Thanksgiving coming up, you bet your little tush I am going to pig out and spend a couple of days recovering from a food coma. haha. Well.... hopefully not :)
I've also been thinking about what I want to do Post-Marathon. I will be traveling over the December holidays where I will not be able to run (for numerous reasons). I thought I wanted to get into the whole p90x thing, and really work on strengthening my muscles (and lose some lbs. I have put on WEIGHT with this whole marathon training thing. How is it possible that after hundreds of miles I still put on weight? blah) However, there are a couple of spring marathons I have my eye on, so taking 90 days off from running is no bueno. eh, I don't have to decide right now. I will have a better idea AFTER I see how the marathon goes in 18 days. eeeeeeeeek!
I can't believe it's sooooo close!!!! Almost time to start freaking out :)
I am so relieved/excited/in disbelief/amazed/who knows what else that James and I were able to run 22 miles. I was friggin Scared about how my knee was going to handle it. I took precautionary measures to make sure my knees had adequate rest before the run, and spent the 4 days prior to the run foam rolling the sh!t out of my ITB and thighs. Thank goodness I bought that foam roller. Oh and I switched from plain old ibuprofen to Aleve.
And guess what?
It worked!
I had pretty minimal knee pain for the entire 22 miles. Obviously, there was some pain (I mean, it is 22 effing miles), but none of that sharp, debilitating, insane pain that I had last week. Success!
Instead of doing a play by play, I think I will sum up this run in "successes" and "fails".
Successes:
Taking the two days before the run to rest and foam roll/stretch like my life depended on it.
Foam roll
Switching from Ibuprofen to Aleve
Taking said Aleve night before, and morning of run
Not drinking too much liquid on the run and feeling like a bloated whale
Eating/drinking enough calories for breakfast. Here's what I ate:
1.5 Clif Z-bars
1 banana
2 slices toast with jelly and honey
1 waffle topped with 1 carton pumpkin yogurt and honey
some scrambled eggs
a handful of gummy bears
coconut water
a couple of bites of Power Bar
a couple of Clif Shot Blocks and yup, I ate all this BEFORE the run, and still managed to get hungry during the run
Careful application of Body Glide ;)
remembering to put sun block on my face
Running early enough in the morning
Choosing a very flat route: I recorded the fasted 16 mile split yet!
Carrying enough shot blocks to share with James who was close to bonking again
Post-run pizza with all the fixins!
Fails:
Some a$$hole stole our "Runner's Goodie Bag" we stashed at mile 18.5 with waters/gummies/sandwiches. This ROYALLY sucked as we were both very low on water by this point and extremely hungry. I ran sooooo fast the last half mile till the "runner's bag," looking forward to the sammie. When I realized it had been stolen..... tears. 'Twas a very sad day. But it did give me an adrenaline rush being angry.... I kept chanting "ba$tards, ba$tards" (excuse the language, but it's hard to be nice at mile 18.5 when thirsty and hungry) which kept me going for at least a mile.
Not drinking enough water at the previous resting spot (I was NOT expecting to have our stuff stolen!)
Not carrying a credit card to make quick stop at gas station to buy more water/fuel. Reminderto self: Always run with spare cash/credit card on the long runs!
My running singlet. For some reason, it kept bothering me.
Not wearing sunblock around my ankles. There's a two inch segment of flesh that neither my running tights nor my socks cover. Now I have a Really Awkward tan line right there. Oops.
But all in all, the run was as good as a first 22 miler can get. I felt SO incredibly relieved/happy that I was able to run it. I honestly thought my knee would give out by mile 16 again. I fully expected NOT to be able to finish the run.
But I ran every last step godamit! haha! :) Can you tell I'm super stoked? Like I told James, had this run NOT gone well, I would have been SUPER DUPER depressed/anxious/cranky/nervous/scared the entire three weeks till the marathon. I seriously would have been the biggest Betty Downer the world has ever seen, for the entire tapering period. So it's good for both my sanity, and James', that I was able to run this successfuly.
And now all I have to do is sit back and enjoy tapering weeks. I'll probably run a Turkey Trot, but mostly will stick to yoga and foam rolling for now. Gotta get that knee all fixed up!
ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Marathon time is here!!!!!!
It's Friday the 13th!!! And to me, this meant that I needed to go to the bakery for an apple fritter for breakfast. Hey. Life is uncertain.Eat Dessert First. Oh, and interestingly enough, "Dessert s" is "Stressed" spelled backwards. Ahhh, nifty, huh? :)
I think I'll spare you the "OMG, woe is me", "my knee hurts and my life sucks", and "wtf does my knee have to hurt now?" stories. (you probably get the gist). And did I mention that I have a 22 miler tomorrow? This should get really interesting, to say the least. At least I finally bought myself a foam roller yesterday, so that should help with some of the pain (keeping my fingers crossed).
So. Here's is my super delayed review of the Nike Air Pegasus+ 26. Bottom line; I really like this shoe. I like how it looks, and I like how it feels. It's light for a big-looking shoe. It's put me through the 4 longest runs of my life so far without any trouble, and it worked great right out of the box. (The white+turquoise color would have been my second choice color)
To be honest, at first I didn't believe that Nike made legit running shoes. I was looking at Mizunos, Sauconys and Asics. But more than a couple of people and a couple of sources recommended the Pegasus, so when I found a pair I tried them on on a whim.
Wow. They fit perfect.
I actually had to go to three different stores to find my size. Who knew 9.5 was such a popular size?
Anyway, here is the review.
I'm hoping to sharpen my video skills to make these videos more fun. I think I'll start with better lighting and not looking at 14 thousand different directions. haha. I like doing these videos, so you'll probably see some more on here soon!
In other news, I am working to add some more interesting things to my blog, such as an "About Me" page. It'll take me a while to navigate the blog thing, but it's in the works!
Also, I moved locations within my office. I used to sit in a back corner where I could blog and comment on everyone's blogs whenever I wanted, but now I sit right smack in the middle of traffic, and blogging/commenting has gotten 100 times more difficult. So I just wanted to say I'm still reading! (but I still can't find a good way to comment inconspicuously). I hope you continue to read mine too! :)
Muchos gracias, and have a safe Friday the thirteenth!
oh man, was that a black cat I just saw....???? :)
As is my running. I can go from wholeheartedly believing I could run across the country to pathetically limping through a 3 mile run in the same heartbeat.
I never thought I would be a runner, but started running seriously back in early 2009. I thought training for a Half Marathon would be a great way to get out of my quarter-life crisis rut! (you can read more here) The thought of training for such a huge challenge was an enormous adrenaline rush. Could I really do it? Could a non-runner like me actually complete the whole 13.1 miles? It seemed like a monumental task; I mean, heck! That's 13.1 painful effing miles! The first time I ran for a whole hour I damn nearly collapsed, and the first time I ran 8 miles I felt like my legs would fall off.
It hurt like heck sometimes, but I knew I would be even deeper in my rut if I didn't finish! With nothing but dogged determination and just sheer naivete, I ran every last step of the Santa Barbara Wine Country Half Marathon in May. And started this blog.
And boy have I learned a lot since then! Who knew you had to eat while running? I thought the whole purpose of running was so that you can pig out later! And who knew about crotch burns? And compression tights? And electrolytes?
The blogging community has been such an inspiration and a wealth of knowledge. Soon after my first HM, I got inspired to train for my first full marathon.
It was thrilling and terrifying all at once. 26.2 miles! Who was the genius that thought "hey! why not have a race and put the finish line 26 miles away?"
But once I decide to do things, I have an inability to give it any less than 100%. Training hurt like hell. I got tendinitis and ITB issues. I hated it. I loved it. I laughed. I cried. I screamed. I doubted.
But on December 6, 2009, I ran every darned step of the Santa Barbara International Marathon. (you can read about it here)
Booya! :)
Let me repeat.
Boo-YAH!
But my running journey's not over yet! I know more exciting races and PRs lie ahead. And my goal is to enter the world of triathlons as well. If you want to get me a sick road bike, (or a wetsuit) I always accept donations. :)
So I want to say thank you for stopping by my little blog and reading about my training. It's readers like you who give me the motivation, encouragement, and wise advice I need to keep at this crazy sport of putting one foot in front of the other.
This blog is a work in progress, just like my running and my life. Thank you for sharing it with me :) And if you feel so inclined to leave a comment, it will brighten my day :)
20 Random tidbits about me:
I grew up in Tokyo (read about my Japan chronicles here and here)
I am a proud hapa :)
I have so far run 3 HM, 3 10Ks, one 15K, and one full marathon!
I will freak out if I don't have vaseline. It is the best lip balm ever
You should hide your chocolate from me because I will eat it all!
Hawai'i is my most favorite place in the world and I want to live there NOW!
My brother and I went to the same university
I seriously need a personal shopper as I have a non-existent sense of style. Do running shoes count as fashion? If you want to be my personal shopper, please help me out!
I will not drink milk. I hate it so much I have to eat my cereal dry. But I love yogurt, cheese and ice cream.
I have never met a cheese I don't like
I have never met a chocolate I don't like
I am half Scandinavian
I speak English and Japanese
I absolutely cannot stand to be late! It must be the Tokyo upbringing
On pizzas, I only like the crust
Reggae music soothes my soul
The Today Show if my favorite TV show. If I could work for the Today Show.... well I would probably crap my pants in joy!
You've always been good to me. While the right leg had nerve issues, tendinitis issues, and all sorts of other pain, you've been steady. You've been sturdy. And strong. I liked you. You liked me.
So why....?
Why do you have to give me so much pain? The marathon is only 28 days away! Why couldn't you wait a few more weeks! grrrrrr! I don't know if I like you anymore....
Ever since the 20-miler, my left knee/shin has been giving me trouble. At first, it was just some soreness in the inner shin area. 4 days later when I tried running on the treadmill, my left calf was so tight and funky I could only manage 4 miles. Then last weekend at the Half Marathon, my left knee started to buckle after mile 7, and I basically spent the entire run nursing my left leg.
On Saturday, James and I set out for another 16 miler. I've run 16+ miles three times before, and I was actually looking forward to this run. I had great hopes. My mind was in the right place.
But 1.5 miles in.... Boom!
Sharp pain in the outside of my left knee. wtf? It only lasts a couple of seconds so I keep going. If I go slow enough, (9:30-10:20 pace), my knee doesn't hurt. But by mile 10, my knee's buckled once, a dull pain is ever present, and every 0.5-1 mile, I get sharp pains. At mile 11 I have a super sharp pain I have to walk. After a minute or so it disappears. But it comes back. I somehow manage to super slowly jog all the way to 16 miles. All in all, I had about three times when I had to basically walk from the pain. (I was too far away from my car to just stop and walk)
WTF is going on? I've NEVER had outside knee pain before, and never on my left leg! At least I know it's not a bone that hurts, so I know its not a stress fracture or anything. But still! Running 10 miles isn't supposed to hurt this much! It's never hurt this much! I am getting kind of nervous about the upcoming 22-miler and the actual marathon. Is my left leg going to hold up? Why is it even hurting in the first place?
I am guessing it has something to do with my ITB band. James has had ITB issues in the past, and he said my pain sounds a lot like the pain he used to have.
Could it be ITB issues? If so, is it something I can fix quickly enough in 28 days? I think stretching would help, because I can tell my muscles are really tense. I am going to take the week off from any running and any ellipticalling, and any intense knee bends in yoga. I just can't afford to have this sort of debilitating pain right now. No Bueno.
Come on left knee! I need you to last just 28 more days! If you're gonna have issues, come back to me in 30 days and then I will deal with you. Just not now! please!!!! :(
If any knowledgeable runner can help me with some sage advice (but please don't tell me not to run the marathon) about what this pain may be and how to deal with it/stretch it, please do chime in! I am keeping my fingers crossed that some ibuprofen, stretching, and resting will do the trick..... I am a sad little panda. :(
Sorry if the motions and sound don't match up perfectly. I have no idea why it's doing that.
But the fact remains that the SPIbelt is pretty darned cool. I know there are a lot of other fanny pack type products out there, but I think the Spibelt reigns supreme. I mean, this thing was invented by this girl who's a personal trainer, and I just love stories about young women entrepreneurs. Totally inspiring.
image from spibelt.com
I think I pretty much summed it up in the video, but I didn't mention that SPIbelts come in different sizes as well as different colors. You can get a dual pocket belt, a belt with a inner pocket, etc. The website even lets you customize your belt. How baller is that? There's one with a "26.2" logo on it too!
To reiterate, I think the SPIbelt rocks. I wasn't expecting it to be so stretchy and so comfortable. This belt will come in handy especially on those long runs when you need to carry a whole bunch of nutrition with you. It's also fun for races when you want to have a phone or a camera on you. I bet you could even carry your dog in there if he gets tired halfway through the run.
...ok that's probably a stretch, haha, but you know what I mean :)
What kind of bag/carrying device do you/have you used? Are there any other ones you would recommend? Please do share your experience!
And coming soon... a much belated Nike Pegasus shoe review.
The Healdsburg Wine Country Half was by far one of my most favorite of races! It was definitely worth the 14 hours of driving....! Yup. 14 hours of driving in 72 hours.
So..... let's start from the beginning!
James and I took off early Friday morning for our seven hour drive up the 101 to Santa Rosa. I have never been that far up North in CA before, and I was excited to explore a new city.... and drink some wine!
Upon arriving in Santa Rosa, we headed straight to the race expo. Though the expo was small and quite boring, it still is the coolest expo I've attended because..... they were serving wine! Awesome. Can't think of a better way to kick off a wine country race. Another highlight of the expo are the free massages being offered. I got a great 5 min massage. Saturday: Race Day
We woke up bright and early cold and dark on Sat morning, ate, and drove over to the bus pick up for the race.
Holy Moly.
Nor Cal is cold.
And dark.
And cold.
We had to wait around for an hour before the race started. It was so dark and so cold I could not feel my thighs or any of my fingers/toes. And my goodness! The sun didn't come up till 7 am! Though... when it did, it sure was pretty! I am so spoiled by the warmer climate in Santa Barbara. I have NO idea what you are supposed to do when your toes go numb. Or how to pee in the porta pottie without freezing your you-know-what. I just couldn't wait to start running already so I could finally warm up!
The Race: I was so thankful to start running and get the blood pumping again.
Wrong!!!!!
Holy crap!
I seriously don't understand how this cold weather thing works!
For the first three miles, I couldn't feel any of my toes or any of my fingers! I mean.... how the heck is the whole concept of RUNNING supposed to work when your toes, an essential component of the sport, are numb?
At least there were a whole bunch of funny costumes to look at! I was impressed at how some people went all out for their costumes. I saw a whole team of "The Incredibles", Raggedy Anne dolls, Lady Bug, Ultimate Warrior, Big Booty, pumpkins, men in tutus, a banana, and my favorite:
na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na Bat Man!
Yes, I made sure to sing that theme for them as they ran past. Actually, I sang it to them multiple times while simultaneously crying out "Bat man!!!" I hope I didn't annoy them! haha
The course was absolutely breathtaking. It was 13 miles of rolling hills through the vineyards in Healdsburg. It was sooooo beautiful, with the sun coming up over the horizon and slowly burning off the morning mist. The vineyards were amazing; we ran past merlots, zinfandels, and all sorts of other grapes.
The rolling hills made kept shit interesting, and I didn't mind them at all. There were no major climbs, and each uphill was followed by a downhill. I heard a bunch of people complaining about the hills, but I really didn't mind them.... and especially since I was always able to pass people on the climbs!
The highlight of the race came at mile 6 when we approached what I thought was an aid station... It was the best surprise ever! A wine aid station! I tried one of the white wines, and sampled two spoonfuls of their grape compote.
It was hella delicious. (hey I'm in Nor Cal so I'm allowed to say that :) )
The race was going really well until about mile 7. I had been running super conservatively trying to nurse my left knee/calf. But by mile 7 I started having sudden, sharp pains. The pain was honestly quite horrible.
But I was in such a good mood I honestly didn't care too much. I wasn't racing this time, and I didn't give a hoot about my finishing time. I was just having a fun time chatting with James, looking at all the pretty vineyards, stopping to take photos, looking at people's costumes, and just enjoying the run.
Soooo beautiful!
I even had time to take a couple of videos during the run as well. I took my camera along with me, in my brand-spanking-new Spibelt. (this thing totally rocks my socks off, btw)
Here's a taste of the Healdsburg HM:
Although my knee hurt like hell all the way to the finish line, I truly enjoyed this race. I LOOOOVED being able to run the entire thing with James. I know this totally sounds tacky, but we finished the crossing line holding hands. I can't wait to see the photos!
And the funny thing is, even though I ran this thing super conservatively, stopped to take photos, go to the porta pottie, slow down to take movies, I still finished only a minute slower than my first HM. I couldn't believe it. Have I become that much faster/stronger as a runner? On a hilly course???? :) It was a huge confidence booster.
The best thing about the race is the wine festival at the race. A whole bunch of wineries from the area come out, and you are allowed to taste as much wine as you want! It's put on by the same people as the Santa Babrara Wine Country Half Marathon that I ran in May. Seriously. Knowing you can have wine at the end is a HUGE motivator :)
I loved James' costume. He had a bloody knife and a severed foot. He got quite a few laughs.
I really truly enjoyed this race. I definitely want to do it again next year!
My knee/calf still hurts like a b!tch, but I think the problem is that my ITB is tight. It's just been super tight and tense since the 20 miler. I think a couple of sessions on the foam roller and taking it easy this week should do the trick. I'm staying hopeful.
Look at the views of San Fran/Golden Gate Bridge we saw on the way back:
It was a whirlwind trip, but every moment of it was fun :) What were you for Halloween?
And thank you so much for all your kind words last week about my cat Mii-chan. It really cheered me up to read your comments. I'm glad I was able to run as a cat, and I feel at peace now. But honestly. Thank you so much. It means a lot to me.
doing my best Governator impression
Can I be eyeing that stuffing any more? Hungry much?
Gravy. Enough said.
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