As I have been mulling/humming/daydreaming/nightdreaming over life the past few years, nothing has made more sense to me other than the feeling I have of gratefulness/blessedness/thankfulness/lucky-ness as of late.
I have a handful of ridiculously fantastic folk in my life and a few deserve special mention in 2010.
**Kari has been my sounding board through some of my ugliest days. We've shared more than several bonding moments over wacko life events and more so she has listened to me complain, rant, cheer, rave, cry and ponder nearly every single thought that has crossed my mind. She is also responsible for keeping me in the loop of current pop culture! Kari opened her basement to me in August when I found out I needed to be out of my house in 48 hours; a mentally and physically exhausting weekend. She helped me pack up my kitchen (and I will hire her out to anyone who needs a quality-control specialist in dish packing), and then filled her car with all my food and other kitchen items that I didn't want to put in the 10x20 and unloaded it in her basement. It was a "come on knock on my door..." lifestyle for about 3 weeks living with her and Dan, her "special friend" ;). It was also a great time-and I often wish I was still there. And I am forever grateful, thank you so much.
**All of the doctors, nurses, surgeons, family and friends that have diagnosed, cut open, sewn back up, sent cards, infused with chemo drugs, handed kleenex to, facebook-friended, drawn blood from, hugged and smiled at my mom deserve a big ol' hug from me. Through a crazy several months of a cancer diagnosis and on-going treatment, thank you for caring for her. I am constantly amazed at how dang strong she was and is, through all of this. She remarked the other day that 1-she can't imagine what life was like before all of this and 2-that she thinks she wants to show off her incoming (grey) hair. Thank you to everyone for being there for her as I cannot be there every day. My whole family is grateful for your love and support now and in the future.
**Lindsay is one more rock in my life. My summer schedule was nuts again this year (the first half anyway!) and during my down time Lindsay and I would spend it slathered in product on her deck, in the pool or at a baseball game. My favorite summer moments are spent with her and her fantastic family. We made several trips to our home-away-from-pool Target Field, Walgreens for a late-night pharmaceutical purchase and drank perhaps one too many beverages from time to time. Lindsay understands what I am going through with my mom...she lost her aunt to the same disease about one year ago. About 30 minutes after I told her I needed to pack my entire house (which was about 8 minutes after I found out myself) she picked me up and brought me to Target to purchase Rubbermaid bins. We packed (sort of) for a short while and decided that drinking heavily was the best coping mechanism at this time. What started with pizza, commentary from Keith, baseball and birthday cake for her brother proceeded to martini's and 21-year olds at the Martini Lounge to quasi-bar hopping through downtown to special-needs employees at McDonald's in the drive thru window, to peeing on a tree at the golf course to watching Jersey Shore in her brothers bed eating the McDonald's. It was a night to remember and exactly what I needed (other than a major hangover while trying to pack that next day). Lindsay also knows my trials with my ex and knows his behavior patterns....offering me a place to stay anytime I need it. Her family is a huge part of why I love her so much - I love all of the Andersons. I am grateful for everything ALL of you do for me - thank you so much. I cannot wait for another summer of WTP and getting nutty.
**My dad was my sherpa, or as he called himself, "my caddy" in Racine for my biggest race of my life (so far). We traveled from St. Cloud (him from Duluth) to Racine, WI together for Ironman 70.3 Racine in July. He helped me haul all my stuff around, held my bags, drove me nuts a few times, cheered for me, played photographer, drove me back to the hotel when I forgot the race number for my bike, walked the mile down the beach the morning of the race and kept me calm, kept me up at night with her Boeing-like snoring, supported me through the entire weekend and bought me my first finishers beer. I will always remember seeing him at the finish line with his hand up for a high-five yelling "alright, Erin!." He understands sports and he understood how much preparation I put in for this event. I cannot wait to have him caddy for me again this year! Thank you, dad! I'll say it again, I could NOT have done it without you.
**I spent a fantastic 3 days in Vegas with Ryan at a completely inappropriate time relative to my training for Racine and how I rounded up the funds for this trip has yet to become clear to me. The trip gave me a chance to get out of town and away from some of the ugliness that seemed to rear its head during that part of the summer. Living it up in Vegas with him as well as his awesome aunt and uncle was everything I needed at the time. This out of Erin-character behavior included drinking quite a bit, staying up ridiculously late, becoming even more skeptical and adjusting my ethnicity while lying in the Vegas sun. Thank you for your friendship, I miss you all the time. So does Nip. And Sweet Lo sends her best.
**Brian and Julie - my boss and my boss; my brother and my sister; my friend and my friend. I have worked with each of you for more than 10 years now and I hope for 100 more. Thank you for supporting me through everything I have been through. Nothing needs specific mentioning as we know what "everything" is. Thank you for offering me a chance to make a living doing everything I love doing; while doing it side by side two of my best friends.
I was sitting at "the home" enjoying alittle geriatric gathering last Thursday (me and my two grandmothers and great aunt aged 92, 89, 85-ish) when Mabel asked me how I was doing. My response, which was the same thing I said to my Grandma Miller earlier in the day, was "I am healthy. I have a roof over my head. I have friends and family that care for me and a job (or two or three) that I love to keep me slightly in the black." I've always been a pretty happy-go-lucky girl...I am very, very thankful for everyone who plays a role in my so-called-life :)
Monday, November 29, 2010
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Two (three, actually) recent races with some THANKS built-in
FOREWORD: About a week ago I decided I would write about what I am THANKFUL for - I have a lot... It will be a belated post, but it's ok to be thankful year-round. This post will have some THANKS built-in :) as I report on a few recent road races I completed to increase my long sleeve t-shirt collection.
When I first thought about the THANKFUL post I was up earlier than necessary getting ready to run in the Jingle Bell 5K sponsored by my former full-time employer, St. Cloud Orthopedics. The morning was A LOT chillier than I had anticipated. As I stepped outside my building I realized that my capri length tights were probably not a great choice. My capri tights end just below my knees...my lower legs were unhappy with my clothing choice, but they chose to cooperate thank goodness. I am SO THANKFUL FOR SPANDEX - more specifically, RUNNING TIGHTS. I made it through the race and finished In 25:08 and 31/268 in the female group - I was fairly pleased with this given my desire to NEVER taper for any race that is a 5K or shorter and "racing" just is not in my blood. (I'll save a lecture on fast twitch muscles vs slow twitch muscles for another day.) I did "make it hurt just a little" at the request of one of my besties, Sheena, who would not be able to join me for this year's Jingle Bell. She is the reigning women's champ - missing her lots this time of year. Anyway, I got to see several of my favorite former co-workers after the race and had a GREAT time chatting with 3 of them specifically. Mel, Amy and Lib...fantastic race this year Lib. I am always happy to be a part of it! I am THANKFUL for having the entire SCOA/OSC organization in my life.
Fast forward to Turkey Day, just 5 days later, in MUCH chillier weather and two races on my morning schedule. I am in Duluth, staying at my parents. I signed up for the Tough Turkey 1 mile race followed by the Gobble Gait 2 mile walk. I am walking with my sister and she is acting as my sherpa for the 1 mile.
Let me say a few things first, that 1-Duluth received 3-4 inches of snow the night before so my first warm-up for the race was shoveling the driveway so we could get the car out. 2-This is my 2nd 1 mile road race EVER. The first was the Proctor 1 mile in like 1995 or somewhere in the middle of that decade. I ran it in boxer shorts; that much I remember. 3-Temperature in the single digits, windchill near -3 degrees. 4-What was I thinking? The range of ages in the 1 mile race was 7-40 years.
I think about 25 of us competed in this race. My plan was to make it hurt the whole time. (If you've been following me lately, you know that "make it hurt" has been a theme over the past several weeks.) Like my friend, Kari, said to me via BBM a few days ago, 1 mile will go by so quick!
I warmed up -a much shorter warm up than originally planned and wore my Garmin so I could have record of this monumental event. I started out slower than planned, it was so damn cold. My fingers hurt SO BAD. The course was a modified out and back - with the "and back" going with the wind and slightly downhill! Whoo hoo! Most everyone started out at light-speed, including a guy that was probably twice my size (and the same height as me). As I suspected, he was walking a few minutes later. Which more importantly means, I passed him. It's all about passing people as I speed up. After I made the turn at the cone (and the race organizer dressed as a turkey) I was going with the wind and passing kids, including knocking one down. Oops, but that's what happens when 10 year olds can't run in a straight line as their pace slows. Sorry, bud. At least your dad was there to pick you up. There was one other female ahead of me (about 8 years old), but I never did catch her. A quick glance down at Garmin (my sister caught this with my camera phone) showed I could actually finish sub-8 which was my dream goal! Especially on a damn cold morning like this! Crossed the line in 7:47! Wahoo! Second female to cross the line and first in my AG. Time to jog it out and get ready (i.e. DRESSED....THANKFUL for full-length tights and fleece layers this morning) to walk the 2 mile with my sister.
The two mile walk (which I slowwww-jogged at random times) was a lot of fun for us. This race also goes through downtown Duluth (and by this time it was sunny out and perhaps raised the temp to HIGH SINGLE DIGITS!) She overheated, which is funny given the temperature and my choice of apparel over my sweaty race clothing was suiting me just fine. This race wasn't chip-timed, but Garmin told me we finished (she ran to the end - yay Christal!) in about 27 minutes or so. We stayed for the awards (PIE) and got some bagel bites (which are alone a great reason to race in Duluth) and coffee from Great Harvest/Peet's Place - major yum - and then headed home to shower and get ready for gobble gobble. This morning I was THANKFUL - as I am daily - that I have a strong set of legs and lungs that help power me to complete races like this. Christal said two or three times that morning, "this will be our new tradition!" I couldn't agree more :)
When I first thought about the THANKFUL post I was up earlier than necessary getting ready to run in the Jingle Bell 5K sponsored by my former full-time employer, St. Cloud Orthopedics. The morning was A LOT chillier than I had anticipated. As I stepped outside my building I realized that my capri length tights were probably not a great choice. My capri tights end just below my knees...my lower legs were unhappy with my clothing choice, but they chose to cooperate thank goodness. I am SO THANKFUL FOR SPANDEX - more specifically, RUNNING TIGHTS. I made it through the race and finished In 25:08 and 31/268 in the female group - I was fairly pleased with this given my desire to NEVER taper for any race that is a 5K or shorter and "racing" just is not in my blood. (I'll save a lecture on fast twitch muscles vs slow twitch muscles for another day.) I did "make it hurt just a little" at the request of one of my besties, Sheena, who would not be able to join me for this year's Jingle Bell. She is the reigning women's champ - missing her lots this time of year. Anyway, I got to see several of my favorite former co-workers after the race and had a GREAT time chatting with 3 of them specifically. Mel, Amy and Lib...fantastic race this year Lib. I am always happy to be a part of it! I am THANKFUL for having the entire SCOA/OSC organization in my life.
Fast forward to Turkey Day, just 5 days later, in MUCH chillier weather and two races on my morning schedule. I am in Duluth, staying at my parents. I signed up for the Tough Turkey 1 mile race followed by the Gobble Gait 2 mile walk. I am walking with my sister and she is acting as my sherpa for the 1 mile.
Let me say a few things first, that 1-Duluth received 3-4 inches of snow the night before so my first warm-up for the race was shoveling the driveway so we could get the car out. 2-This is my 2nd 1 mile road race EVER. The first was the Proctor 1 mile in like 1995 or somewhere in the middle of that decade. I ran it in boxer shorts; that much I remember. 3-Temperature in the single digits, windchill near -3 degrees. 4-What was I thinking? The range of ages in the 1 mile race was 7-40 years.
I think about 25 of us competed in this race. My plan was to make it hurt the whole time. (If you've been following me lately, you know that "make it hurt" has been a theme over the past several weeks.) Like my friend, Kari, said to me via BBM a few days ago, 1 mile will go by so quick!
I warmed up -a much shorter warm up than originally planned and wore my Garmin so I could have record of this monumental event. I started out slower than planned, it was so damn cold. My fingers hurt SO BAD. The course was a modified out and back - with the "and back" going with the wind and slightly downhill! Whoo hoo! Most everyone started out at light-speed, including a guy that was probably twice my size (and the same height as me). As I suspected, he was walking a few minutes later. Which more importantly means, I passed him. It's all about passing people as I speed up. After I made the turn at the cone (and the race organizer dressed as a turkey) I was going with the wind and passing kids, including knocking one down. Oops, but that's what happens when 10 year olds can't run in a straight line as their pace slows. Sorry, bud. At least your dad was there to pick you up. There was one other female ahead of me (about 8 years old), but I never did catch her. A quick glance down at Garmin (my sister caught this with my camera phone) showed I could actually finish sub-8 which was my dream goal! Especially on a damn cold morning like this! Crossed the line in 7:47! Wahoo! Second female to cross the line and first in my AG. Time to jog it out and get ready (i.e. DRESSED....THANKFUL for full-length tights and fleece layers this morning) to walk the 2 mile with my sister.
The two mile walk (which I slowwww-jogged at random times) was a lot of fun for us. This race also goes through downtown Duluth (and by this time it was sunny out and perhaps raised the temp to HIGH SINGLE DIGITS!) She overheated, which is funny given the temperature and my choice of apparel over my sweaty race clothing was suiting me just fine. This race wasn't chip-timed, but Garmin told me we finished (she ran to the end - yay Christal!) in about 27 minutes or so. We stayed for the awards (PIE) and got some bagel bites (which are alone a great reason to race in Duluth) and coffee from Great Harvest/Peet's Place - major yum - and then headed home to shower and get ready for gobble gobble. This morning I was THANKFUL - as I am daily - that I have a strong set of legs and lungs that help power me to complete races like this. Christal said two or three times that morning, "this will be our new tradition!" I couldn't agree more :)
Friday, November 12, 2010
Current plans...
I've been working on a fantastic 2011 race plan/calendar using Excel, naturally, because why not use Excel!! Love Excel! Currently 38 races are on entered in the spreadsheet...no way I could do all 38 primarily because there are often more than one on any given day. Hey, it's Minnesota, the race season is pretty short.
Breakdown looks like this
14 road races (5K, 7K, 10K, half marathon, 20 miler, full marathon)
2 duathlons
22 triathlons
What to do? What to do?
Lots to plan...and think about.
What I WANT to do at a bare minimum this: one sprint triathlon, one olympic-distance triathlon, one duathlon, one 20 miler or full marathon and a 70.3. I would LOVE to get a full Ironman on the calendar, but for several reasons I just don't think it's going to happen in 2011. Anyone growing a money tree?
For the rest of 2010, surprisinly I might be doing more races in the remainder 1.5 months of the year than I did all of 2010. Sad, but way to go, me!
November 20 - Jingle Bell 5K
November 25 (official turkey eating day) - Gobble Gait 2 mile walk (with my sister) and possibly the Tough Turkey 1 mile before the walk if possible. This is in Duluth!
December 11 - Snowflake Shuffle 5K
I am currently working on increasing my total training volume. The intensity creeps up there on some of my runs, but overall, I am keeping it moderate and bumping the volume up primarily with my runs. I am loving doing bricks right now...all inside of course. Example: 45 minute spin class followed immediately by 45-60 minutes of easy to moderate pace on the treadmill. Get a phenomenal sweat on and throw back a Gu if necessary. Burn, baby, burn. This is of course followed by a deep freeze AKA ice bath.
Stay tuned... :)
Breakdown looks like this
14 road races (5K, 7K, 10K, half marathon, 20 miler, full marathon)
2 duathlons
22 triathlons
What to do? What to do?
Lots to plan...and think about.
What I WANT to do at a bare minimum this: one sprint triathlon, one olympic-distance triathlon, one duathlon, one 20 miler or full marathon and a 70.3. I would LOVE to get a full Ironman on the calendar, but for several reasons I just don't think it's going to happen in 2011. Anyone growing a money tree?
For the rest of 2010, surprisinly I might be doing more races in the remainder 1.5 months of the year than I did all of 2010. Sad, but way to go, me!
November 20 - Jingle Bell 5K
November 25 (official turkey eating day) - Gobble Gait 2 mile walk (with my sister) and possibly the Tough Turkey 1 mile before the walk if possible. This is in Duluth!
December 11 - Snowflake Shuffle 5K
I am currently working on increasing my total training volume. The intensity creeps up there on some of my runs, but overall, I am keeping it moderate and bumping the volume up primarily with my runs. I am loving doing bricks right now...all inside of course. Example: 45 minute spin class followed immediately by 45-60 minutes of easy to moderate pace on the treadmill. Get a phenomenal sweat on and throw back a Gu if necessary. Burn, baby, burn. This is of course followed by a deep freeze AKA ice bath.
Stay tuned... :)
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Race Report - Monster Dash 1/2 Marathon
I ran my first legit half-marathon race last Saturday - that's just the running part, no biking preceding the run. The Monster Dash Half Marathon...they also host a 10 mile, 5K and 5K-9...about 8000 finishers. No, I did not wear a costume. Next year I'm thinking of dressing up as Wilma Flintstone. Who woud like to be my Fred?
www.teamortho.us
I set a few goals for the race which I "trained" for about 7 weeks using the RW 2:00 or under article/plan (Sept or Aug issue?) as a skeleton. I put in the long runs, but I wasn't very diligent about the mid-week runs as I love spin class and the pool.
1- 2:00 or under (this was my dream goal)
2- To finish strong (my primary goal). I am usually a great negative-splitter, but I wanted to let it all out, make it hurt and work towards being less conservative as I have been for 32 years.
3- To build my running-leg strength throughout the training as running is my weakest link.
4- See what I needed for recovery if I truly did finish strong...
Results:
1- 2:08:00
2- Put my head down and pushed the last 5 miles, especially the last 5K...2 runners passed me and I passed 242 runners. My last mile was around 7:54 pace (trying to remember as I type this without my garmin report in front of me). I was very, very pleased with this. Now, can I push this earlier in the race? At what point?
3- I surprised myself on the long runs and am confident they are helping to build a stronger running base for me.
4- A little stiffness, nothing major (ice baths and foam rolling are regular events for me). Elliptical and some biking Sunday and Monday, took Tuesday off due to sooo little sleep the night before, Wednesday back to my usual Wednesday routine (spin class followed by 60 minutes on the treadmill) no problem.
www.teamortho.us
I set a few goals for the race which I "trained" for about 7 weeks using the RW 2:00 or under article/plan (Sept or Aug issue?) as a skeleton. I put in the long runs, but I wasn't very diligent about the mid-week runs as I love spin class and the pool.
1- 2:00 or under (this was my dream goal)
2- To finish strong (my primary goal). I am usually a great negative-splitter, but I wanted to let it all out, make it hurt and work towards being less conservative as I have been for 32 years.
3- To build my running-leg strength throughout the training as running is my weakest link.
4- See what I needed for recovery if I truly did finish strong...
Results:
1- 2:08:00
2- Put my head down and pushed the last 5 miles, especially the last 5K...2 runners passed me and I passed 242 runners. My last mile was around 7:54 pace (trying to remember as I type this without my garmin report in front of me). I was very, very pleased with this. Now, can I push this earlier in the race? At what point?
3- I surprised myself on the long runs and am confident they are helping to build a stronger running base for me.
4- A little stiffness, nothing major (ice baths and foam rolling are regular events for me). Elliptical and some biking Sunday and Monday, took Tuesday off due to sooo little sleep the night before, Wednesday back to my usual Wednesday routine (spin class followed by 60 minutes on the treadmill) no problem.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Recovery: The Ice Bath
Recovery: The Ice Bath
I am a humongous fan of ice baths. I practice what I preach in several ways; this is one of them. I have taken ice baths at home, but having the facilities at work is a luxury that I take advantage of. My favorite temperature is about 46 degrees....15 minutes is perfect. At home a 6 pound bag of ice in the tub only cools to about 57 degrees - not cold enough ;) The video suggests an ice bath following runs of longer than 90 minutes or rides longer than 3 hours. I believe ice baths are beneficial for workouts shorter than this as well - particularly if it was a high intensity workout!
I am a humongous fan of ice baths. I practice what I preach in several ways; this is one of them. I have taken ice baths at home, but having the facilities at work is a luxury that I take advantage of. My favorite temperature is about 46 degrees....15 minutes is perfect. At home a 6 pound bag of ice in the tub only cools to about 57 degrees - not cold enough ;) The video suggests an ice bath following runs of longer than 90 minutes or rides longer than 3 hours. I believe ice baths are beneficial for workouts shorter than this as well - particularly if it was a high intensity workout!
I guess I CAN run without RIDING before the run.
This past Saturday was my first real-live Half Marathon. I signed up in early fall and located a plan in a RW that promised to get me across the finish line in 2:00:00 or under.
Any of you know that while I yes, I do run, I will never consider myself "a runner." I was looking at the opportunity to run a half-marathon as a way to get more running in my legs to ultimately better prepare me for the triathlons that I enjoy.
The following are reasons why I did not follow the plan exactly and therefore may have something to do with why I did not finish under 2 hours (2 hours, 8 minutes, 0 seconds to be exact).
1-the plan called for running about 4 days/week with a few rest/cross training days scattered throughout the plan. That's just too much running for this girl...I need to have some rides and some swims thrown in there. And Lord forbid I not get my chlorine fix. Good cross-training, right?
2-I have discovered one of my new FAVORITE workouts. Wednesday morning Road Rage (40-45 minute "spin bike class" followed immediately by trashing myself on the treadmill. Some will see this as a "brick" workout, which it is! I just simply choose to go balls to the wall. For example, two weeks ago I ran for 60 minutes at varying speeds on the mill following spin. Hello endorphins!!! To give you an idea how much I sweat that morning...I drank almost 60oz of my recovery beverage (nuun plus crystal light) and didn't pee till the afternoon. OOOPS. This wasn't in the plan - may have affected my running legs just a bit. I'm just sayin'
3-If the plan called for 11 miles at 10:26 pace I would do 11.5 miles at 10:14 pace. For example...
What I have learned:
1-I am not a single sport athlete (did I just call myself an athlete?)
2-I do believe I developed slightly more "running legs" through this training
3-I will do this again :) Full marathon anyone?
Full race report to follow...stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
Any of you know that while I yes, I do run, I will never consider myself "a runner." I was looking at the opportunity to run a half-marathon as a way to get more running in my legs to ultimately better prepare me for the triathlons that I enjoy.
The following are reasons why I did not follow the plan exactly and therefore may have something to do with why I did not finish under 2 hours (2 hours, 8 minutes, 0 seconds to be exact).
1-the plan called for running about 4 days/week with a few rest/cross training days scattered throughout the plan. That's just too much running for this girl...I need to have some rides and some swims thrown in there. And Lord forbid I not get my chlorine fix. Good cross-training, right?
2-I have discovered one of my new FAVORITE workouts. Wednesday morning Road Rage (40-45 minute "spin bike class" followed immediately by trashing myself on the treadmill. Some will see this as a "brick" workout, which it is! I just simply choose to go balls to the wall. For example, two weeks ago I ran for 60 minutes at varying speeds on the mill following spin. Hello endorphins!!! To give you an idea how much I sweat that morning...I drank almost 60oz of my recovery beverage (nuun plus crystal light) and didn't pee till the afternoon. OOOPS. This wasn't in the plan - may have affected my running legs just a bit. I'm just sayin'
3-If the plan called for 11 miles at 10:26 pace I would do 11.5 miles at 10:14 pace. For example...
What I have learned:
1-I am not a single sport athlete (did I just call myself an athlete?)
2-I do believe I developed slightly more "running legs" through this training
3-I will do this again :) Full marathon anyone?
Full race report to follow...stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
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