2013 Race Schedule

Of course, now that it is 2013, I am excited to see how many races I can feasibly fit into my schedule. I love to race, if that isn't obvious. There is something about the excitement and adrenaline that gives me such a high! Needless to say, my 2013 race schedule is filling up fast!

As I look at my list, I can't help but notice how my racing style has changed just in the past year. I've gone from loving the half-marathon distance to full marathons. I've also acquired quite an intense crush on trail running, and find myself craving more time on mountains that I do on the roads. It's interesting how tastes can evolve. Even over just the course of a year. I'm excited to see what this year brings!

Without further ado, here are the runs that are taking up space on my race calendar presently:

Tiger Mountain 25k 
In case you were curious, I have dropped down from the 50k to the 25k for this race, which is coming up January 5. There are many reasons behind my decision to stick with 25k. First and foremost, I don't feel like I am trained for an intense trail 50k, which would be about 8 or 9 hours of intense climbing and descending. This is me trying to be smart and look forward to staying healthy the rest of the year. This is a very laid back race, without any support. I am running with Ultra Marathoner Jess and my friend Matt. It is sure to be freezing cold, snowy and lots of fun!

Lake Youngs Nuts Run
I am hoping to be able to do this race January 26, but I am also not sure I will be able to get off work that day. If I can get off, I will probably try to do 2 loops of Lake Youngs which is about 19 miles. Several friends will be running this, and it is a smaller race, so it's sure to be fun!

Birch Bay Marathon
I was going back and forth on whether or not to do this race because I didn't want to drive two hours north by myself and back again. I finally found a friend, though, who was willing to come and run the half marathon! I've heard the race is a giant loop, which I will be doing 2 of for the marathon. This will be a fun adventure because I've heard it is a beautiful course!

Lord Hill Trail Run
I have several friends who are running various distances for this race. I am planning to run, I am just not sure how far yet! Since it's a week after the Birch Bay Marathon, I am definitely not going to be completing the 50k, but I will probably either do the 20 mile or 10 mile run.

Eugene Marathon
I have no races scheduled after Lord Hill until the Eugene Marathon April 28! I am STOKED for this race. I am doing it with my favorite running buddies, but I also know a LOT of bloggers will also be at this race. It's sure to be fun and I've heard it is a great course. With the spirit of Prefontaine, a new PR may be in my future here!

Rock N Roll Seattle Marathon
And apparently I only run marathons now, because I also registered for the Rock n Roll Seattle Marathon on June 22. I've never run the full marathon course for the race before, but have completed the half the past several years. There are always a lot of people running this race and I know my favorite running buddies will be running, too!

So that's my race calendar for the next half year. I'm sure more races will be added, but for now, this looks like a good start! Three marathons by the end of June? I'll take it! Are you signed up for any of these or are there any races you are doing that aren't on my list?

Pigtails 50k Race Recap

I am now an official ultra-marathoner!

I'm not going to say this race was easy, and most of it wasn't even fun. Both of which kind of go against my love of running. But I finished! Let's start at the beginning.

As I mentioned before, I had been having some hip pain since I ran the Seattle Marathon. Friday afternoon, I went to my Crossfit gym, just to see if one of the trainers, Scott, could help me loosen it up a bit. From what he deduced, my TFL (tensor fasciae leatae) muscle in my thigh was causing the hip pain. Apparently, my hip flexors were overworked and my TFL was taking over, which it was apparently very angry about!

Once we figured out the problem, I basically tried to give it some relief by finding a trigger point, moving my leg where it didn't hurt anymore, and then trying to relax it for 30 seconds to a minute.

It seemed to work well! Although I still had a little pain when I left, I was feeling much more confident that I was going to get through 31 miles the next day.

By  Saturday morning, the pain had gone away, but my thigh was aching a little bit. That made me a little worried, but figured that trying to release it the previous evening would leave some residual strain.

I met my favorite running girls bright and early at 6:30am and we headed out to Maple Valley to the Cedar River Trail.

Jess, Me and Beth. Different day. Same awesome friends!

For Beth and I, this race would be a new PDR (personal distance record). Beth was running her first marathon and I was running my first 50k. Ready to run hard and take names!

Ready. To. Go! And also cold. Brrr.

Of course, Ultramarathoner Jess has done too many of these races to count, so she was just looking to get a good 50k in the books.

The race itself was small. After going through numerous races with the New York Road Runners in NYC, I will forever be amazed when I am not in a corral with a billion other runners. There were probably around 100 or 200 participants, and the fun part was, most of them new each other! Apparently the trail running community in Washington is a small and tight-knit group!

We started off with a short mile out and back before hitting the main Cedar River Trail.

After we started down the main trail, it started snowing!!! If you know me in real life, you know I am like a little kid when it comes to snow. I get overly EXCITED!!! Seriously, I'm like Buddy the Elf. SNOW!

I started out with four (!) layers on. Even during my coldest race ever (in Central Park, 14 degrees F), I only had two layers on. Haha. I guess I was cold. I finally felt warm enough by mile 6 to shed my outer fleece so I was in 3 layers for most of the race. Beth flew on ahead because she is a speedy little demon runner! Jess and I had talked about sticking together for the race, both stipulating that the other could run ahead if they ever wanted to.

Photo courtesy of Takao Suzuki.

The first 8 miles flew by, I was loving the snow and just enjoying Jess's company and the other runners around us.

I started getting a dull aching pain on the right side of my stomach around mile 10, and I was hoping it would go away. News flash of the day: it didn't.

From then on, I was in a fierce battle with my stomach. It was complete war. Since the race was so small, there weren't any bathrooms along the course. I was on my own.

Around mile 13 I saw a gas station across the highway, so I told Jess I was going to go do some business and she was welcome to take off. Bless her heart, she said she would walk it out so I could catch up.

Catching up to Jess.
Photo courtesy of Takao Suzuki.

I was able to relieve some of the cramps and unsettling, and felt a bit better by the time I caught back up to her.

We hit the turn-around just before mile 14, and I was happy to be heading back.

The next few miles, I was able to ignore my stomach and enjoy myself. The snow had turned to a rain/sleet mix, which was a little less fun, but I was having fun cheering on the runners going in the opposite direction. Slowly but surely, my stomach decided to cramp back up.

By mile 17, I was not having fun anymore. My usual thought process when it comes to running and racing is: if it's not fun, it's not worth it. Usually I'm having lots of fun, but not this day.

I finally had to stop and walk. I told Jess she would not hurt my feelings if she kept going. But she wasn't having it. She told me we were in it together. Be still my heart =)

Frozen faces.

Every time I started running again, my stomach would cramp up and start bouncing around (best way I can describe it). By the second time we had to walk, I told Jess that I thought I may just have to drop down and just do the marathon instead of the 50k. This was probably around mile 20, and I could hardly fathom 6 more miles of this nonsense, let alone another 10. Jess said just what I needed to hear: that we had all the time in the world, and that we just had a short few miles to the aid station, a short 2.5 mile out and back and then another 4 miles and it would be over. I would be in the car again before I knew it. She knew that I could hit this mileage. Just knowing that and the fact that she was supporting me helped a great deal. I made up my mind to plow on.

Frustratingly enough, my body felt pretty good! My hip was fine, and despite some neuroma pain, I was good to go! Minus that darn stomach.

I tried so hard to keep myself out of a negative mindset, but I have never walked so much in a race before. While that was disappointing, I kept trying to tell myself that there were many more races in my future, and this was just a blip along the line.

We turned up a side road to tack on the extra 5ish miles from the marathoners. We were still alternating between walking and running and I was literally hanging on with everything I had. Everytime we walked and had to start running again, it was so painful. At this point in a race, if I am hurting, I try not to walk because starting up again makes it that much worse. My stomach just couldn't take it this day. All I could think about was getting back to the car and passing out.

I was able to get in a good 2.5 mile stretch of running as we headed back to the main trail, where I knew there was only about 5 miles left.

Same trail, different day.

At this point, both Jess and I were pretty quite, and I was so grateful to have my friend there. Every time I made us stop to walk, she would try to brighten my spirits. I was literally just putting one foot in front of the other. I started giving myself goals: walk for .25 miles, run for 1 mile, etc. We finally took off again about .8 miles from the finish and I just put my head down, tried to ignore the cramping and got the job done.

We finished 31.1 miles in 5:09:55. I think our "official" time was somewhere around 5:18.

The finish line. 

After we finished, I got warm clothes on, and we got on the road back home, I was able to reflect a little bit.
I have to say I am very proud of myself. It would have been easy to have thrown in the towel. I have another 50k planned in January, and I wasn't particularly attached or trained for this race. I wasn't having fun and certainly could have bowed out. But I didn't. I totally credit Jess with this, but I stuck with it and finished my first 50k. I didn't crush it, I wasn't anyone's hero, but I did what I said I was going to do despite some severe setbacks. May this be a lesson for the rest of my life =)

In case you are wondering about Beth, she finished her first marathon with flying colors!!

Trying to get warm. Love this girl!

I am looking forward to many more marathons, 50k's and the like in the future, but for this race, I seriously can't thank my friends enough. Knowing Beth was running her first marathon, and with Jess by my side, I was given a boost of support and inspiration I couldn't have gotten anywhere else.

My running loves. Always up for shenanigans, and spirit-perking!

Aaaaaannnnddddddddd on to the next!

*As a side note, I feel like I need to mention the tragedy in Newton that occurred on Friday. My heart is full of sadness and I am keeping that community in my thoughts and prayers. Senseless killing is never an easy thing to comprehend and I am still processing and trying to wrap my brain around what happened. 

Lack of Recovery and Holiday Love

When I added the Seattle Marathon to my race schedule, I knew I was going to be running a 50k several weeks later.

The plan: Take it nice and easy. Don't push it and kill yourself so you can keep up 50k training.

And I think we all know how that plan went. Lesson learned: I have trouble holding back.

On that note, most people take a good amount of recovery time after a full marathon. I am not most people and I am still hanging on for my 50k's in December and January.

Unfortunately, the marathon has left me somewhat fatigued. Yesterday I was pretty creaky, and my left psoas was very tight and ornery. I pretty much rocked the compression socks all day and was wandering around the gym as slowly as possible.

Neon compression for the win!

I took things nice and slow all day and today I am feeling much better. I'm hoping to feel loads better by tomorrow and get in a nice run at Discovery Park before the rain comes. I'm going to do my best not to beat myself up if that doesn't happen, though. Bigger picture!

So the holiday season is finally upon us! I can't even begin to convey my love for this time of year! I have always been big into the holidays and love everything that comes along with it! (so many exclamation marks)

Case in point. I got my tree all set up and decorated this weekend!

So pretty!

Unfortunately in my move from New York, several of my ornaments were broken. I also lost two of the pieces that stand my tree up. It is precariously balanced against the wall for now. Not sure how to make it more sturdy.

Time for some superglue?

Another sad ornament story: my first year in New York, my parents mailed me all of my childhood ornaments. I never got the package and when I tried to track it down, no one would claim to have it, even though it had been delivered. I remember being so sad because there were so many sentimental ornaments in that box. Obviously I got over it, but seriously! Who steals and box of ornaments?!?!

I went to Crossfit last night basically just to see my friends. I planned to just take it super easy and sit out if I had to. After being mellow like Jello all day, I somehow had tons of energy once I got to the box! Our workout was a take on the Tabata, which is 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest. Our coach had us do 40 seconds of work and 20 seconds of rest instead. We did 5 rounds total.

As I said I would, I took it easy and used a lighter wall ball and kettlebell than I normally would have. I started off using a band for the pullups, but by the end made the effort to do them unassisted, even if it was only two in a row. Gotta start somewhere, right?

I hope everyone is having a great Tuesday!

Seattle Marathon Race Recap

Secondary Title: "I'm Faster Than I Thought I Was"

Remember when I said I wasn't "racing" the Seattle Marathon and using it more as a training run? Yahhhh, it didn't exactly happen that way.

Backing up, I woke up nice and early, ready and excited for the marathon. It was fun going in just trying to do the miles and not worry about time. I got dressed in the brightest outfit I could manage. Seriously, I must have looked like a giant watermelon.

I made it out to Seattle Center and froze my balls off (if I had them), waiting for the start.

Brrr I'm cold! Someone turn up the heat!

I was going back and forth on whether or not to run with my Camelbak. On one hand, there were frequent water stops on the course, so why would I need it? On the other hand, I could have water whenever I wanted and it could carry my fuel. Decision was made to run with my Camelbak. And now I'm pretty certain I will be running every race with it. Except for 5ks and 10ks. But, who knows, maybe I'd get thirsty!

Haha, please note the kissing couple in the
lower right corner. #specialmoments

The race started off pretty crowded. Although I have to say the Seattle Marathon did a good job of starting the marathoners after the half-marathoners. I can't imagine what a mess it would have been if we had all started together!

Mile 1: 8:27
Mile 2: 7:40
Mile 3: 8.28

I started out with the 3:45 pace group. I pretty much lost them first thing. I was trying to spot a friend and wasn't paying attention. Oh well! Don't ask me why my second mile was almost a full minute faster than my first and third. I guess my legs just needed to stretch out!

I went into the race thinking I would just stick around an 8:30 pace and then if I felt good after the half, I could speed up a little.

That didn't happen. I see all these people around me going fast and I get jealous. So I just ran. Probably with a goofy smile on my face. I figured I would probably hit the wall, but in the moment I didn't care.

Mile 4: 6:19
Mile 5: 10.05
Mile 6: 8.26
Mile 7: 6:55

I name these miles the "Allison is a schizo and can't pick a pace miles". Granted my Garmin definitely went off a little going through the tunnel, so the pace was probably off for some of these.

I thought I would hate going across the bridge, but I didn't. Sure, it was windy, cold and loud. The express lanes were split in half and you ran across on one side and then back on the other. On the way out, it was pretty neat to see the leaders flying past in the opposite direction. And then on my way back, I got to see all the people in back of me and cheer them on a little. I got lots of strange looks for my watermelon costume.


One guy even yelled at me: "Nice socks 2001!"

I gave him a fist pump in return, obviously.


Mile 8: 8:20
Mile 9: 8:19
Mile 10: 8:14
Mile 11: 7:55
Mile 12: 7:59

I was feeling great coming off the bridge. I had run along Lake Washington Blvd several times before and also around Seward Park, so I knew what to expect: flat and boring. Actually, on a nice day it's a lovely view, but it was super foggy yesterday, which meant you could hardly see past the shore.

I took this as an opportunity to play.

By "play" I mean go faster. I just wanted to RUN! Again, I knew this meant I was going to hit a wall, but I didn't care. In times like this all I am thinking about is having fun in the moment, which was just what I did.

All of a sudden I encountered a huge group of people and couldn't figure out why so many people were all grouped together! Then I spotted the 3:40 pacer and decided I had to pass them.

Hello Competitive Allison. Welcome to the party! I was certainly just channeling Prefontaine.

Mile 13: 8.11
Mile 14: 8.23
Mile 15: 8.18
Mile 16: 8.16

We circled Seward Park and I finally started feeling a little tired. Until that point I thought I could have run for days! I stopped to use the restroom which really ticked me off. I hate peeing during races. But I knew I would be more comfortable if I just went. I think I only lost about a minute, though.

We ran back along Lake Washington Blvd and it was fun to see people going the other direction again. There was a fair amount of spectator support around the Lake, which was nice to see. I gave some high fives and big smiles to thank the cheerers for coming out in the freezing cold!

Mile 17: 8.32
Mile 18: 8.24
Mile 19: 8.23
Mile 20: 8.35

I really started feeling the miles around this point. It seemed like we were running along Lake Washington for a trillion years and my neuroma was hurting pretty badly. Every time I stepped on just the smallest pebble, my foot would get what I like to call a "nerve shock". Not fun. I just tried to keep enjoying myself.

It helped that there were some hills, which I think killed some people, but I loved! I was getting tired of running flat. Woah, what a weirdo, where does all this hill love come from? (probably a little mountain named Tiger)

Mile 21: 8.44
Mile 22: 8.31
Mile 23: 8:59
Mile 24: 8:29

This was where I was expecting to hit the wall, but I never did! I felt great except for my neuroma. The hills slowed me down a little, but my muscles were happy for a change.

I'd brought my ipod with me and had it stashed in my pocket the whole race. It was around mile 22 that I took it out. I wanted to zone out. There was a lot of huffing and puffing around me and I was getting sort of annoyed with it, so I figured some sweet tunes would cool me down. I had a grand old time just lip syncing to the lyrics, although I'm pretty sure the spectators all thought I was bonkers.

Mile 25: 8:17
Mile 26: 7:54
Extra Mile: 7:41

I was still feeling great by the end. I was ready to be done, but still feeling awesome. I started turning my legs over and passing other people, which only spurred me on. By this time, my Garmin was way off on mileage, almost by half a mile. Way to not run the tangents, slugger.

I tore into the stadium and finished in 3.40.01 according to Garmin.

Official results say 3:41.28, which is more accurate, I'm sure.

I felt great afterwards, if not a little stiff. In the back of my mind, I was thinking about how I was going to have to run 5 more miles in a few weeks. Eeek!

I'm pretty certain my awesome time today had something to do with the neon green compression socks I was rocking.

I'm very proud and astounded with my time today and how great I felt! Now in the back of my mind I'm thinking about what I could do in Eugene in March. Boston qualify, perhaps? We will see what happens.

Thanks for a great marathon Seattle!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy belated Thanksgiving! And Happy Black Friday!

I will NOT be shopping today. Large crowds overwhelm me. But I will be headed into the thick of the madness in downtown Seattle because I have to pick up my race bib for the Seattle Marathon on Sunday!

Although I'm not technically "racing" this one, I'm still pretty excited for a sanctioned marathon after missing NYC. Since I have a 50k in a few weeks, I'm going to try not to wear myself out too much. So hopefully I can just have a no pressure, fun race!

I had a great Thanksgiving yesterday. I haven't spent a Thanksgiving with my family in about 10 years, so it was great to be at home. I took the ferry out to the peninsula of Washington on Wednesday and, thankfully, the ferry line wasn't too bad. The wind was howling, though, so it was one of the bumpiest ferry rides I've ever been on. Good thing I don't get sea sick!

Thursday I started the day off with a nice run! Obviously.

I was excited to be out at my parents' house because they have some fun trails and big hills in their town.

I set out with every intention of doing 6 miles while trying to find the biggest hills. What a weirdo! I feel like I have neglected trails in the past week, so I knew I wanted to get out and enjoy some.

I ended up with 7.11 hilly miles in an hour and 4 minutes. Whoooo! I was on such a running high after that, my family probably thought I was bonkers.

My family is pretty health-conscious, but we all have our favorite Thanksgiving foods. For my stepmom, it's potatoes and gravy. I've never met someone who likes their mashed potatoes so much! For my dad it's peas (don't even get me started), and I'm all about the sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts. Needless to say, we didn't have many traditional dishes other than the turkey and potatoes.

My dad asked us all to name 2 things we are thankful for over dinner. I couldn't keep it down to two, but here are a few things on my list, in no particular order:

My family
My supportive and amazing friends
Running
Chocolate
My apartment with a washer/dryer
My job
Blankets
Sweatpants
Puppies

Running, Murph-ing and Chia Coconut Energy Bites

This morning I woke up to the sound of insane rain and wind. I had planned to head to Discovery Park to knock out 10 miles, and I was determined when I went to bed last night. I was NOT going to take this one to the treadmill.

After seeing the monsoon happening out of my window this morning, I decided to scratch Discovery. As much as I wanted some hills, the slippery stairs were just going to be a recipe for disaster.

I put on my game face and headed out to brave the elements. I got started and by this time the rain had dissipated a little. By the time I hit mile 3, it was totally dry! definitely should have taken it to Discovery. Oh well! By the time the sun came out, the skies were clearing! How lucky!

I ended up having an amazing run! I'm not sure how, but I was going so fast for most of the 10 miles! After 5.5 I literally had to will myself to turn back around and head back so I could make it to a CrossFit workout. I love it when that happens! 10.77 happy miles in an hour and 27 minutes!

I finished up with a huge smile on my face. This was definitely the run I needed before the Seattle Marathon this weekend. It's always nice going into a marathon to have a little confidence to spare! Although I'm not really "racing" the Seattle Marathon. I'm using it more as a training run for my 50k in December. But that's another post for another time!

At my gym (the one I work at, not Crossfit), we have a WOD board. I am pretty much the only one that updates it. Which is sort of fun because I can work on programming workouts and learn what works and what doesn't. I decided yesterday to stick up a Thanksgiving special workout: Murph. This is one of Crossfit's benchmark workouts and it is a killer. Try it and you will see! I've only done this one once, and it was when I first started Crossfit. Thinking about working this out Friday evening.

Switching gear here.

One of my favorite on-the-go foods are Larabars. I frequently eat them between workouts and after long runs before I can get a real meal in me. The only thing I don't enjoy about Larabars are the price tag. Why do they need to be so freakin' expensive. Unfortunately, I don't have a food processor or I would make my own (it's actually not hard at all!). 

But I was excited to find these Chia Coconut Bites. They are a perfect snack on the run and they include chia seeds! I love my chia seeds. I used to eat them every morning (I'm not sure why I stopped). This little super food is awesome! Full of fatty-acids, protein and antioxidants. They also absorb water, which is a good thing for endurance athletes. 

Chia Coconut Energy Bites

From Delighted Mama

1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup chia seeds

1/2 cup raw chocolate cocoa nibs

1/2 cup almond butter

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes then roll into bite-sized balls. Place in an airtight container and keep in the fridge for up to a week. 

The Bad Runs

It's no secret that I love running.

It is my social time and my stress reliever. It keeps me sane and gives me goals and a way to push myself past what I thought was possible.

Most of my runs are great. I enjoy just about every single one, whether it's a "hard" run or the miles feel like they are flying by.

Of course, I am only human, and some days, I suffer from bad runs just like the next person. And, of course, the great runs always make up for the bad.

"That's the thing about running: your greatest runs are rarely measured by racing success. They are moments in time when running allows you to see how wonderful your life is." Kara Goucher

Friday evening was not one of the good runs. I was scheduled to run with my friends in the late afternoon. And not just a few miles. We were aiming for 20. I'm not sure what made me think, in my #teammorning body, that I could run 20 miles so late in the day. I've become a bit more accustomed to single digit afternoon runs, but I really did not think through the fact that this was going to be 20 miles. No small feat.

Not only were we running in the evening, but I had a full day beforehand. I had taught aerobics and gotten in a Crossfit workout (Fight Gone Bad! I'll share this another day...) as well. To say my body was probably already exhausted is an understatement. And it had completely slipped my mind that I had run a marathon only 5 days prior. Who am I and why do I think I am superwoman?

With all of my running friends, I think I get into a state that all the miles I put in is "normal" or even below-average. When I have friends training for 100 mile races and putting in 20 mile runs 2 or 3 days a week, I somehow feel like I should be doing the same thing. Never mind that I am NOT running a 100 mile race anytime soon. It's funny how your sense of normalcy completely goes out the window.

Anyways, back to Friday. So we head out to the Cedar River Trail. This is where I will be running my 50k December 15th. It is nice and flat and we had planned to do 10 miles out and 10 miles back.

The entire car ride down, I felt fine. I was singing and dancing to the radio and chatting with my friends. It hadn't really hit me that I had to run 20 miles.

We started our run and it was COLD! This becomes important later. About 2 miles in, I was hurting. Nothing particularly hurt, I was just spent. I was completely out of energy and wondering how I was going to get through 18 more miles. I trudged through the next few miles, trying to drown out the negative thoughts in my head and just listening to my friends talk.

At one point, we turned up another trail and decided to go out 3 miles and back three miles to continue on the main trail. About halfway to the turnaround, I just couldn't run anymore. My body was making it perfectly clear that it was done and I just didn't have it in me to keep going. I kept telling myself to push through but the thought of 12 more miles seemed too overwhelming.

Tired face.

I told my friends to go ahead and that I was going to walk until they caught back up to me. I turned around and started heading back down the trail. Of course, I was beating myself up about not sticking with my friends.

After about 10 minutes of walking and ending up at the starting point of the trail, I decided I felt better and started running back to where my friends were. I was able to keep up with them for a few more miles, but inevitably, I crashed again.

At this point, it had gotten very cold. I'm talking 30 degrees or so. None of us had planned for the cold weather and figured we would've been done before it really got cold. Not so much.

Pretty day! But COLLLDDD!!!

I headed back towards the car (which was still about 6 miles away at this point) and ended up doing run/walk intervals to keep myself warm. I have to admit, I was still beating myself up over not sticking with my friends. What was wrong with me? Why couldn't I run 20 miles?

GET WITH THE PROGRAM, BODY!

My friends ended up catching up with me about a mile before the trail end, so I was still able to "finish" with them. It goes without saying that at this point we were all flirting with frostbite.

My friends know me well enough that they had some choice words in the car on the ride home.

They reminded me that I had run a marathon 5 days beforehand and had hardly had a chance to recover from that. I had also done several workouts already in the day and to top it off, my body wasn't used to running in the evening.

After they laid it all out there, it became obvious. I am not superwoman and CANNOT do all the things. Even if I want to. I had tried to pack too much in and definitely needed to back off. My body was literally yelling at me to take a step back. Ok, ok, I will listen!

Right now, my goal has shifted to include more rest and recovery. I don't think my body was ready to go so soon after my "marathon" last Sunday, and I obviously wasn't paying close enough attention. I am running the Seattle Marathon in 2 weeks and want to be good to go for 26.2 more. So for right now, it's neon compression sock time!

NYC Marathon, Seattle Style

As I'm sure everyone is aware by now, the New York City Marathon was cancelled on Friday evening. Let me preface this post by saying my thoughts are still with all of those still struggling from the effects of Sandy.

After not really agreeing with Mayor Bloomberg's decision to hold the marathon, I listened to his urges that the marathon would help the city's economy and mental state, and jumped on a plane to New York Friday morning.

I had a layover in Dallas before my final flight to NY, and when we landed I had several texts and emails asking me if I'd heard and alerting me to the news. I would not be running the New York City Marathon this year. After dealing with the initial shock, I decided to head back to Seattle instead of continuing on to New York. As much as I wanted to help out and to see my friends, I decided this just wasn't the time to be in the city. I was able to switch my flight back to Seattle without much hassle and ended up back in the city by  midnight. What a long day of pointless travel THAT was!

It wasn't until the next morning that it really sunk in. All these months of training and excitement, all the long runs, the painful taper I tried to give myself....it all felt like it was for nothing. On the other hand, I tried to remind myself that I genuinely enjoyed all the training and that I would have been training for another race if it weren't for New York.

That being said, there is no race like New York and I was well aware of that fact. I still haven't heard what they are planning to do for the runners. I'm hoping we can defer to next year, but I'm not holding my breath. That is a lot of runners that will take up a lot of spots next year! We shall see.

Little did I know that after all the cancellation drama, my friends were planning a "marathon" for me on Sunday.   They told me to meet at our Crossfit gym and we would carpool to the start line on Sunday morning. Truthfully, I was just grateful to have some people to run with. The icing on the cake was that I got to run a marathon anyways!

I got to the gym bright-eyed a bushy-tailed on Sunday morning (thank you daylight savings time!) to find Ultramarathoner Jess with a race goodie bag for me. Complete with a race bib!

"Level 4 Nooners" refers to our team that ran the Tough Mudder, which is the group of us that works out at our Crossfit gym at Noon. This *hit was official!

We headed out to Lake Youngs again and Jess had mapped out a perfect 26.2 mile course for us. Everyone was doing different distances, but they made sure there were always two other people running with me.

The loop around Lake Youngs is 9.6 miles. We started out with 4 ladies: Beth, Jess, myself and Von. We started at a nice, easy pace and I felt great for the entire first loop! Tons of energy and pretty much a fireball of excitement.

We dropped off Von after the first loop (she had run a 200 mile race the weekend before...whaaaatttt), and picked up Matt.

Matt, Beth, Jess, Me. Level IV Nooners! (some of us)

We took off on our second loop, and I definitely wasn't as peppy this time around! Although Lake Youngs is relatively easy trail-wise, it is still trail running and definitely more hills than I have ever run for 26 miles!

We settled into a good 9-9.20 pace, and I was just enjoying having so much company and so many people to talk to. I do most of my long runs solo, so not only was I happy to be running my "marathon", but also just to have company on a long run was amazing!

Beth is training for her first marathon, so about halfway through our second lap, she hit a new personal distance record. I love it when I get to be around for this stuff. I seem to get more excited than the people who are actually setting their record, but I think it's fun to celebrate those little milestones!

During the second loop, my neuroma started becoming a big pain in the arse. That darn thing hasn't hurt for awhile, so I guess it was due to make an appearance. It didn't help that I was on trails, either, so every rock I stepped on just hurt like murder. Well, maybe not that badly, but it certainly wasn't like running on marshmallows!

We finished up the second loop only 20 seconds slower than the first loop and dropped Beth off with a new distance record under her belt. Matt, Jess and I took off again, for a final 7 mile out and back. It was about 2 miles into this section of the run that I really started feeling the miles. I never hit the wall, which I was ecstatic about, but things were just getting creaky.

We turned around about 3.5 miles in, and from there I knew this was the final stretch. At this point, Matt started picking up the pace and my goal became to just keep up with him. He was literally flying those last few miles and I just tried to stay right behind him and put one foot in front of the other, neuroma be damned!

We finished up 26.2 miles in 4.16.58, which is technically a new personal record! It makes me wonder what I would've been capable had I run New York.

As we came around the final bend, Beth had set up a "finish line" of birthday streamers for me to run through. I started laughing but was so touched at the effort!

Running through my finish line!

Afterwards, Beth put a medal around my neck and gave me a "milar blanket" made out of a garbage bag. I have the BESTEST friends ever.

I was definitely tired and feeling the 26.2 miles, but as usual after any great marathon, I was a super happy camper and so thankful that my friends lifted the disappointment and put on a great "race" for me.

Seattle running besties Jess, me and Beth! 

Despite not getting to run NYC this year, I still had an incredible day and am so thankful for my friends who "understand" this crazy running obsession.

Now I'm itching to do another sanctioned marathon this month...stay tuned for details!