Where did we run off to?

Honestly, I don't know.

For some reason I lost all motivation to blog after the marathon. Perhaps it was a way to try to keep all my motivation for actually running, perhaps it was my shame for not running like I used to. Whatever it was, blogging didn't make it on my to-do list for a while, and running took the back seat as well.

But I have been running, kinda. Three miles here, four miles here, I even pulled out a seven miler a few weeks ago. I'm trying to get back on a schedule, but the early darkness, cooler weather and busy life have made things a little hard.

Mostly it's the weather. There is nothing I hate more than being cold. As I think I mentioned, all I could say during/after the marathon was how cold I was. I've even been considering moving to a warmer climate (mom, if you're reading this I don't mean that I plan to move back to AZ) just to escape the cold. So to combat the weather I have begun running in an absurd amount of clothes. Think "A Christmas Story" kid in the snowsuit and that's me. And it's not even all that cold yet. Yesterday it was 50 (any runners dream) and I was out in legging underneath yoga pants, a wife beater, a thermal, a short sleeve tee and a performance long sleeve. Not to mention the gloves and ear warmers. It's kinda ridiculous, but I seriously see no alternative. I like to LOVE my runs and I just don't see that happening if I'm event slightly chilly. So until I save up the money and courage to move cross country, I'll be wearing more, moving less and going through a lot of laundry detergent.

Any other suggestions to stay warm when it actually starts getting cold? I'm pretty nervous...I am on the verge of running in a knee length down jacket and snow pants!!

Comments and advice please!

Pittsburgh Half-Marathon Recap

So a few days after the marathon I was feeling pretty cocky and decided to register for the half marathon taking place in my neighborhood 10 days later.  I blame the post-marathon brain, which should seriously be considered an actual neurological disorder, as I was mixing up words and unable to form coherent sentences for a good 48 hours afterwards.  

I also wanted another opportunity to avenge the marathon in a way - I knew I was capable of running better than I did at Newport, despite the ridiculous weather conditions.  I also was familiar with the course, as it began and ended a few blocks away from my house, and one of my good friends was registered, so I would have a companion.  [Sidenote:  I felt like I was cheating on Ange by running with Katrina....I talked to her the next day and said "It was just this one time I swear...I was thinking of you the whole time."]

Yesterday I described my less than stellar training plan, which basically consisted of overeating and binge drinking.  Two thumbs up.  But race day came along and I was feeling pretty good.  The weather was a little colder when we started out than I would have like (low 30s), but honestly, after Newport I was just giddy that I didn't have freezing rain stinging my face.  

This half was SO well-organized.  It was night and day compared to Newport.  The expo was better, we got more/better swag, there were pace groups (I didn't do one but it was nice to know they were there and it was a good way to gauge my pace along the way),  and the aid stations and all around organization was fantastic.  There were clearly marked areas to drop off and pick up belongings (perfect considering the freezing temps, we wouldn't have made it without wearing sweatsuits beforehand), the aid stations were well-stocked (including orange slices at mile 8.....I wanted to kiss the man who placed one in my hand...seriously never so happy to see an orange in my life) and there was so much great crowd support along the way.  

As for the race itself, it went well...except for one small part.  Around mile 7 or 8, my left knee started acting up.  Prior to this, it had been twinging during uphills and downhills, but ok on flat ground.  After the halfway point, it was acting up regardless of elevation, so I started having to take stretch breaks and eventually waved Katrina on (sound familiar?).  After a few walk breaks and some intense stretching, I decided to just run and ignore the pain as best as I could.  Then I hit the 15k marker and decided that was close enough to the finish to pick up the pace.  So I started running HARD.  There were timers every 5k along the course, and at the 20k mark I realized I had just managed to run a 28 min 5k between 15 and 20.  To illustrate how huge this is, that is only a minute slower than my fastest ever 5k.  Which was not done after running 9 miles previously.  Insanity.  

Long story short, I ended up finishing at 2:16, which is not at all bad considering the full I ran two weeks before and the knee pain.   

For your daily laughs:   go here and enter bib number 2385.  Seriously, some of the worst pics I've ever taken.  But in my defense, I think the truly horrid one was taken at the height of "oh dammit my knee really hurts."  And sadly the knee pain has not left.....more on that tomorrow.

Adjustments

So we kinda dropped off the whole "blogging" thing post-marathon.  Oops.   Speaking for myself, the week after the marathon I was in a permanent state of coldness and sleepiness.  And hunger.  No one tells you that the week after the marathon you want to eat everything in sight.  Or maybe that's just me, who knows.   

The weekend after the marathon I had a friend in town, and I proceeded to relive my college days [read: drink, eat, drink, eat, repeat] for 36 hours.  And wow.  There are two reasons I weighed a lot more in college.  And I think they're called beer and drunk eating.  After that bender, I remembered that I had in fact registered for a half marathon that was in a few days.  That's when I set out on my one semi-decent run in between the marathon and the half.  Yup, you read that correctly, here's Sarsh's plan for running a full and a half with two weeks in between:

Day 1: Run marathon in nor'easter.  

Day 2: Fly home, struggle to get your luggage and yourself home in one piece.  Moan.

Days 3-6: Use marathon as a justification for everything you eat, including but not limited to, bacon cheeseburgers and ice cream.

Days 7-8:  Live like a college kid. 

Day 9: Remember why you were physically unable to run more than .5 miles in college.  

Day 10: Run 4 miles.  

Days 11 -13:  Eat.  Sleep.  Contemplate going to the gym.

Day 14: Run half marathon.

There you have it folks.  That's what I've been up to.  It's still a little tricky getting back on track and adjusting back to running for kicks rather than having a set mileage in my head that I need to achieve.  I'm not going to lie, adjusting to normal eating habits for a 20something woman is not so easy either.  I was so used to eating whatever I wanted (sometimes enough for a family of four, don't judge), and it wasn't really an issue because I was running between 30-40 miles a week.  This week my jeans informed me that these reckless eating habits are no longer acceptable, especially considering my weekly mileage is more around 15.  Blah.   I'm determined to get back in the swing of things this week and hopefully be running like a normal human being.  We'll see how this goes.