What's up Wednesday

What's up Wednesday 

(this is what you get when I have 2 awesome posts I am working on, 

that just aren't quite ready yet!)

What's up with my running?

2 year Maraversary 3/26

I can't believe my next marathon is so close, a little over 50 days to go! Yesterday was my 2 year maraversary, 2 whole freakin' years since I ran my first marathon. Here I am training for numbers 5 & 6, my how time flies! Crazy to think how things have changed since then!
Yesterday: 5.2 mile shake-out/recovery run. Legs were still sore from Sunday's Around the Bay 30k, but I was very happy to be outside. 45 and sunny, therefore I didn't care how sore I was, I just wanted to run!
Today: I have an easy 6 miler on the schedule and am excited to hopefully get back outside! Legs are feeling better today (I did get a massage last night so that might have helped :) )

What's up with my Cross-training/Triathlon Training?
Last 2 weeks my XT/TT was kind of on the back burner in prep for at ATB30k this past weekend. I still did some but I wasn't focusing on it nearly as much. This week it's back to basics with running/XT/TT, gotta keep in a steady groove of training right now, too many races to worry about!
Today: I have a 70 minute endurance ride planned, as well as 30 minutes of laps in the pool.

What's up with my Nutrition?

My Fitness Pal

I have been pretty good lately, but I do think I am going to log my food for a little bit. I do not log my food every day, I don't think it helps me to do it ALL the time. I am conscious what I eat every day, and make mental notes, and adjust my intake/exercise based on that. I do however, use a wonderful app called My Fitness Pal. I do this for a few reasons, it helps me monitor intake/caloric burn, helps me stay accountable for what I am doing and it helps me to gauge where I am at. You can log your food/drinks you consume (their database has anything you can think of, and if it's not in there you can add it!), and you can log your workouts and it estimates your burn based on your weight, and the intensity/length/type of workout. I found that doing this each and every day got to be too much for me, I was worrying too much about my weight and getting too focused on the numbers. This is why I only do it about one week a month, it really helps me see where I am at, and base my intake on where I am at in my training. Some people do it every day and that works for them. If you are trying to lose weight, every day logging is a good idea to hold you accountable.

I have been making some nutritional changes the last few months and I have noticed some changes in my health because of it. I have been making SMALL changes, I am not a person who can just up and change everything at once, I do better with small goals and baby steps.

1. First thing I have changed is I changed my pasta to gluten free. I don't eat a lot of it (I used to eat pasta all the time), but when I do I noticed the gluten free pasta doesn't give me that overfull feeling. I did eat regular pasta this past weekend at a friends house before the race and I was fine, but that was the first time in months I have had it, and I noticed a huge difference.

2. I have been forcing myself to eat right after I run/workout. I know that the first 30 minutes after a workout are the most critical for recovery, the things you do (stretching, etc.) and eat during that time are crucial. I never really liked eating right after a run, my stomach never liked it either. I have been really good lately about making sure I have at least something right after, whether it be a protein bar, yogurt, or some snack to re-fuel. I have noticed that I am recovering quicker and that I have been able to do more the following day after hard workouts.

3. My other nutritional change, is a sugar-detox that I will be doing next week. Laura from Mommyrunfast started this and I am excited to do it. The Sugar-Detox-Challenge starts April 1 and runs through April 7th. I am doing level 1, which is cutting out added sugars, but I will also cut out as much processed foods as possible. I will post over the course of the week on the progress of this challenge! Try it out, right after Easter really is the best time to do it!

What's up with work?
Life has been, BUSY to say the least. I can say though, it has been a good busy. Work has been good, we have a lot going on right now but my boss has been in helping a lot so it makes it easier. He has also taken time lately to appreciate the hard work I have been putting in. This job is still new to me, but I am learning more and more every day and I couldn't ask for anything else. As for my part-time night job at the restaurant, I haven't been there much because I have so many things going on. I worked Monday night but wont work there again until my sister has her baby. I am so worried she is going to go into labor and it's not as easy to just walk out of work from the restaurant as it is from the office.

Speaking of the baby...where is my nephew?
Well, he is still cooking! This is actually a good thing though, my mom is out of town until Thursday for work, so my sister needs to hold that little man in for at least another day or so. We are all on edge waiting for the call that she is going into labor, luckily my parents and myself get the first call as we are the furthest away (about 1.5-2 hours). My sister is under direct orders not to call/text me right now unless it's the baby, because every time she does I jump out of my chair and almost have a heart attack thinking I need to get my butt down to the hospital. I can't wait to meet this little man, we have been waiting for so long and I have never been happier for my sister.

What's up with wedding planning?
Planning has been slow lately....I looked at my Google Drive last night, and noticed the wedding spreadsheet (yes, I am THAT person), hasn't been updated since February. The good news is we have a lead on a potential place for the reception and are waiting for them to update menu's so we can set up a time to meet. It's nice knowing I have my dress already, and that there are some other things already taken care of. Once we nail down the reception venue I will feel a ton better and can focus on some of the smaller(but still important) things.

What's up with my Education?
I announced on my blog last week that I was enrolled in a program to become a Certified Personal Trainer (YAY!!!). I am still waiting for my books to arrive (I am not being very patient!), I actually emailed the company today because I don't have a FedEx tracking number (why didn't they send this to me when I signed up....UGH!). I am very excited to start the work and excited to be a nerd and spend my nights reading and learning about fitness and exercise (something I clearly have a passion for). I have also been on the lookout for a Running Coach certification course, I am on the RRCA email list, just waiting for a course to come semi-close to here and you bet I will be signing up. I think between my ACE certification and getting my running coach certification it will really help me be more well rounded and help myself as well as others.

If you have time, I'd love some input on a few things (that are for some future posts that I am working on) you can leave a comment or email me at Lea.9487@gmail.com with your input! I really appreciate you opinions, I am looking forward to creating some interactive posts:)

1.What makes someone a runner?

2.How do you define running vs. jogging?

3.What makes someone an athlete vs. recreation runner/cyclist?

4.Do you think there is anything that makes one person more of a runner than another?

5.How do you feel about All-Womens events?

6.Do you think men have a right to complain about said events?

Around the Bay 30k

The Around the Bay 30k is the oldest race in North America ("Older than Boston" is it's slogan!). Yesterday I went for an 18.6 mile run with about 7,000 other people around the bay in Hamilton, Ontario. This is a race I can say I will definitely be doing again, next year it will be the 120th Anniversary. In all there were about 12,000 participants (30k, relay, 5k) .


The morning started like most race mornings...EARLY. We were up at 4:15 and out the door by 5. We got to Hamilton about 2.5 hours before the race(we saved extra time for border crossing and parking...). The time actually went by quick, we tried staying warm inside the Copps Coliseum, got some food, changed, and stretched out. Also ran into Jamie from Couch to Ironwoman, and her husband Mike. Chatted up with them for a few. We all had the same goal, get a good quality long run in as preparation for the Cleveland Marathon.

Getting to the start line was one of the most stressful times of the entire day. I was getting anxious, and just wanted to get outside to the start but there was NO WAY that was happening quickly. It was the biggest mess I have seen, people everywhere and no one was moving. Everyone was standing in one place, or trying to move towards the stairs to get down to the doors. Then you had those 'less smart' people who were trying to be the salmon swimming upstream which was clogging it up even more. Not to mention we were trying to shield John because he was on crutches and I was in serious "protective fiance mode", I swear that if someone hit his knee 2 days after surgery I would have absolutely lost my shit. We were trapped in the crowd for a while and I was getting even more anxious and started getting very nauseous because of it. Finally we got out of the coliseum but had to get to the car quick, say a quick goodbye to John and leave him on his crutches while the 4 of us  hauled ass to the starting corals.

My nerves were so out of wack at the start. It's more than a half and less than a full, what the hell am I supposed to be thinking about! This was one of those times I was overjoyed to be in Coral A, because I could start closer to the front and have less crowd to fight. I was able to get into a groove pretty quick, but a quicker groove than I had planned. I went into this race with a goal of 2:15-2:25 (quite the spread...but it was a long training run), and I like starting out slower so I can finish strong. That plan went out the window almost instantly. My first few miles were almost identical, 10k split was 45:49 (7:22 pace). I decided to just go with it, took a risk and said I'll try and hold it for a while then back off if need be.

The first 15k of the course, I was very disappointed. It was depressing, very industrial area, not much to look at, and the roads were NOT in great shape. Cracks everywhere and potholes I could have gotten lost in. There was a stench throughout the first few miles (and last few coming back into the city), I think someone should call the sewer company because that was not pleasant! I also kept going "Where the hell is the bay?!"(I was already planning in my head, writing about the false advertising of the race name. hahaha). Finally around 15k there it was, beautiful breathtaking view of the bay, clear blue skies over the water and the sun shining down as we crossed over the grated lift bridge. This was also the point a Twitter/Dailymile friend Dave recognized me, BY MY SNEAKERS AND SAUCONY HAT. (Maybe it's because I post pictures of them all the time?). We chatted for a few, then went on our way, and I decided to try and stick behind him for a while, knowing he was shooting for a faster time than I was. This is where my I took my second risk, but I figured 'hey, it's worth a shot'.

A little over a mile to go, energy level LOW.

The rest of the course was much prettier than the first 15k, nice small neighborhoods, and more things to look at. The last 10k was rolling hills, the only one that really got me was the damn hill around mile 16-17, I am pretty sure I cursed more than a few times (This was my slowest mile split for the entire race.). In the last 10k you also run by what I assume to be the resting place for all of the dearly departed in Ontario. This cemetery was HUGE, the only one I remember being at that were bigger were the cemeteries in Normandy when I was in France in 2002.

Throughout the course I bee-bopped to my music, high-fived little kids, tried not to focus on the distance, and just keep moving. My legs felt pretty damn good, my issue was the fact that my stomach kept cramping. The left side kept getting the worst cramp, and nothing would make it better. I fueled with shot blocks and water( I know for a fact I didn't take in enough though...I can pinpoint this as a major error).

[2:16:14] 53/3325 females!

The last 2 miles or so I had to dig deep. I was tired, and my stomach was cranky, and all I wanted was to cross the finish and find John. I spent the entire last mile trying not to get sick on the lovely spectators, and almost bit it going down the steep ramp into the coliseum. (I'm glad I didn't but it sure would have made for a great story). I took my sunglasses off and put them on my hat, and gave it what I had in me passing about 5 people in the last 100 feet, crossing the finish line in 2:16:14 (7:18 Average pace).

I was the 466th finisher of 6848 overall, and the 53 female out of 3325 (top 1.5%!). Lastly I was 18th out of 397 in the age group 25-29. Success!

I'm really not sure where the BIG CHEESY grin came from.
But I'll take it :)

 The race ended inside the Copps Coliseum, which was cool, and they had the entire lower level set up for runners (medals, food, water, etc). Liz (one of the people I went up with) caught up to me while I was gingerly walking around aimlessly, she finished in 2:18! While walking around, we had the pleasure of seeing a man strip down to tighty whities ONLY in the middle of a crowd (Come on, I really DON'T need to see things like that.)Then we went up and found John camped in the stands with his crutches being an awesome spectator. I have to give him some props here, he was supposed to run the race with us but instead had 2 knee surgeries within 50 days and still came to play "race mom" for the 4 of us running.

John and I after the race :)

Around the Bay 30k 2013

Overall I think it was a well run race 

(they have been doing it for 119 years!)

here's some thoughts...

*Great medals and race shirts

*Course wasn't over challenging but wasn't super easy either

*Rearrange booths/setup within the Coliseum to avoid the clusterf* that there was in the morning ( Don't put expo booth right by stairs)

*Don't tell people they can't use the escalator while you stand there and block it (when J came back in after the start the escalator was running but some guy wouldn't let him use that or the elevator) even though he was on crutches.

Great NB shirts and Medals!

*Plenty of Food/water after the race for runners, that was very good!

*I was pleasantly surprised how many spectators there were along the course

*Each kilometer was clearly marked and had a running/inspirational quote on it, I really liked that!

* Good amount of water stops along the way

*Disposable chip timing was commemorative with name on it

*They should have put signs up for directions to Corals 

*Grim reaper at top of hill, I give them credit for this

The last thing to mention about this race is:
*Stop the trains & Have some respect!I didn't experience it personally this time, but I read online after the race that there was a group of people that got stopped part way through the race for a train. I had this happen 2010 Buffalo race, it's not fun. I can understand why those people were angry. Even if they weren't set to win or anything, you train so hard and have a goal and then a train runs through stopping you?!?!?!
It is one thing to get stuck at a train(things happen), but to have a race director say this:

NO THOSE PEOPLE WERE NOT HAPPY FOR A BREAK! And the stop happened around 10:15 AM, according to things that I read by other runners, not at Noon. It's disrespectful of the race director to say that it's okay as long as it didn't affect top runners. He needs an attitude check! Every person there was a 'runner' and worked to train for that race and was there to run and have a good experience. Whether you ran 6 minute miles or 15 minute miles you should get the same level of respect! Like I said, this did not affect me, but I feel very sorry for those it did affect. And I seriously hope the race director understands that he was wrong for what he said.

[Photo from CBC .CA ] Do these people look happy about this to you????

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend :)

I do recommend this race(as I also recommend the R.D. apologize to runners), it was a good race and a great training run. The timing falls great for spring marathons, I know so many people were there to get in a good quality training run for an upcoming race!