I wanted to wimp out of this morning’s race because it was so hot, but Monica pushed me to go anyway and I’m glad I did. It was already 77 degrees by the time we started at 8am, with 92% humidity. Very soupy run. But I ran it without walking for the second time since coming back to running a year and a half ago and finished in 39:52. Not my best time, but when you factor in the weather, it’s pretty close. Did a lot of other stuff today too. Went to REI to pick up a new tent for our trip to Yellowstone, hemmed Christina’s pants for dance, went food shopping, did the dishes. I’m ready for bed!
Tag: running
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March 7
The Gate River Run was a bit of a disappointment. If I had known the 5k was a completely separate race and not actually part of the Gate run, I probably wouldn’t have gone. My medal is so ugly, and it was the only reason I decided to race even though I haven’t been training. I have decided that I am going to run the 15k next year whatever it takes. If it takes me all year to train, I am going to do it. Also I did not in any way need to wake up at 4:30am. But I used all that extra time to look up 15k training plans for people with runner’s colitis. I can’t wait to get started.
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March 6
Picking up my race materials for the Gate River Run today felt somewhat shameful. There were tables and tables of race bibs being handed out – 18,000 of them – and my bib number is 18223. The tables only went up to 18000, so when I asked where the higher numbers were, the woman was like, “Oh, you want the 5K table. It’s over there.” And she pointed to a lonely table all on its own in a dusty corner (ok ok the corner wasn’t dusty). It had like 15 bibs on it (ok ok it was more than 15). I didn’t even get the same shirt as everyone else, and this one is crazy ugly. But… so it is. I will make the most of it. I did get a box of cous cous in my race bag. That’s exciting.
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February 23
I am getting closer to having the rest of this training class prepared. I have 9 out of 20 samples pulled for training, and three of them have answer keys. I feel a little like I’m running on the beach at high tide, working very hard and not getting too far. I feel about the same when it comes to parenting. I can’t get Robin to brush her teeth or not drink Coke at bedtime without her hating my guts. And I know you’re doing the right thing if your teenager hates your guts, but it still doesn’t feel great when the people you love more than anything on earth can’t stand to be near you or ever say I love you. I really question whether I’m doing the right thing, basically every minute of every day and it is exhausting. And I’m still not running, at high tide or otherwise. That is also bringing me down. I have seen no progress at all as far as the piriformis strain, so I’m at a point where I may just run even though it hurts. Maybe I need to break it more for it to finally heal. That may be about as wise as asking Robin where her toothbrush is. I’m tired.
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January 31
Not quite feeling 100% yet, but I did get a lot done. Three loads of laundry washed, dried, folded, and put away, my first cup of coffee from Panera in over a week, cleaned the kitchen, designed, engraved, and hung my medal rack, fixed the keyboard issue on Robin’s iPad, did some coloring, did light food shopping, played Trivial Pursuit (and lost)… Hunkering down now for what will be a pretty cold night. Temps are expected to drop to the low 20s. The wind chill now is already 17 and it’s not even 10pm. These are facts, not complaints. As a New Yorker, I understand cold and this is not it. But it is unusually cold here this weekend, and unusual is always exciting. As long as it warms up again soon, because there’s a reason I now live in Florida and not New York, and this is not it.
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December 31
I made the unwise decision to run the New Year’s Eve 5k even though I was sick because I really wanted the medal. I did ok… didn’t run without walking, didn’t run very fast when I was running, and generally felt exhausted the entire way. When I finished, it took every ounce of energy just to get home and lie on the couch. My finishing time wasn’t bad, all things considered, but it wasn’t really worth it. I got fooled into believing I wasn’t really that sick because I’m not congested, but you know, tonsillitis is still tonsillitis and even without a fever, it takes a lot out of a person. But what’s done is done and, well, I guess this means I just have to sign up for another race!
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November 27
We had a pretty good Thanksgiving. It started off on the right foot… I finally completed a 5k without walking for the first time since 2018! I am so proud of myself and literally cried when I crossed the finish line, I was so happy. It wasn’t my best finishing time, but still so proud. Dinner was great and then we headed to Orlando for our day at Universal. The hotel is really nice… kind of amazing how cheap it was! Looking forward to our big day tomorrow.
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October 19
I got a lot done today. Talked to Siggi for a bit, went food shopping, made a bunch of octopuses, wrote up my race in my log (including this beautiful sketch), did laundry, played games with the family, made dinner and cleaned it up… Not too bad. I am not looking forward to facing work tomorrow.
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October 18
I ran my first 5k race since the spring today. After a whole bunch of great runs, I had built this one up in my head, big-time. Before the race even started, I was crying tears of joy imagining myself crossing the finish line after running the whole race without waking. But then I couldn’t even make it to the one-mile mark without walking. I finished with a dismal 43-minute finishing time. BUT: Until I looked at my finishing time, I was really happy with the race. Even though I stopped to walk a lot, I felt strong the whole way. The weather was incredible and the scenery was great, and I truly enjoyed myself. And I RAN the last quarter mile. My pace was GOOD and I felt pumped when I finished. In all those ways, the race was a success. And then I got home and realized why my performance had been so terrible. As I pulled into the driveway, I started having double vision. It was so disorienting that I could barely walk straight. I started thinking about what could have caused it and then I remembered, dear god, I didn’t eat anything today. And then I ran three miles after not eating anything. And then I had a beer at the finish line. I don’t know how I went the whole day without eating. I almost didn’t believe it as I tried to remember what I ate, because I never felt hungry. I did have a little tunafish sandwich, but that was it. That’ll do it, folks. So lesson learned: Do not run a race without eating for almost 24 hours and then drink a beer at the end.
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December 21
Today was a lazy day of doing nothing, followed by the Run Santa Run 5k. The girls did the one-mile run (which we walked) and then I did the 5k. I beat my Thanksgiving time by almost five minutes. It was a chilly night (under 50 degrees!). My Santa jacket wouldn’t stay on and my pants kept falling down and I couldn’t fix either because I had my phone and car key in my hand. I ran with Monica, who goes much faster than I do. We hung in together for two miles, but I finally had to set her (and me) free. I think she’s a big part of the reason I finished with such an improved time. We did 60/30 splits, but her running pace during the 60s was over a minute per mile faster than my usual pace. I am so glad I did it, I’m so happy the girls did it, even though Christina was mad at me for not letting her bring her iPad and Robin was too cold to enjoy anything. I feel so good right now, like I can accomplish anything. I kind of already have.
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November 28
I ran my first 5k since sometime in 2018-2019. I’m a little disappointed that I didn’t hit my 20-minute consecutive run target, but I got to 17 and my pace was faster than it has been while training, so not a total loss. Plus I ran a few more stints of about 3-5 minutes each in the last mile and a half or so, so I probably ran more distance than I expected to overall. I finished in 44:20, which is my worst finishing time ever, but probably the time I am most proud of because of the effort I put into getting out there in the first place. The rest of the day was fun. Great food, great family, and I know it sounds weird, but I also love the satisfaction of cleaning up afterwards. It is the messiest the kitchen and dining room ever get, and I love its gradual transformation back to clean. I generally don’t enjoy Thanksgiving much, but this year was pretty good.
Year in Photos 