Pushing Limits: Rock 'n Roll VA Beach Half Marathon

My BRF wanted to run RnR VA Beach Half, so we signed up for it a few months ago not realizing we had to run 17 miles the week of the race. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue however, I really want to run a sub 2 hour marathon this year. 

I've decided to still go after this goal regardless of the extra miles I will be running prior to start time. I know this will be a huge challenge for me but that is the purpose of training. Train hard so that on game day it will be easy. Sunday I will run around 3 miles as a warm up, chase the 2 hour pacers to the finish line and run a 1 mile cool down. Lately, I've been asking myself, "how far can you go?", "are you really pushing yourself?" and I intend to find out over the next 8 weeks. 

#Letswork

Fitspiration Friday: Sanya Richards-Ross

She is EVERYTHING!!!

Namaste

I went to Yoga after hill repeats today. Today's class was amazing! I feel like I'm getting stronger with my execution of advanced poses. The instructor really took the time to walk around and help position our hips and feet so that we could twist properly into the poses. One of my fave poses from today's class is below. I have no idea what the name of it is but my quads loved it! My quads have been sore since Tuesday's strength training class. Hot Vinyasa Yoga is slowly becoming my favorite workout during training. Definitely need to make time to incorporate yoga twice a week into training. 

Get Right Get Tight: Week 11 of MCM Training

After my last long run fiasco, I've decided to incorporate more yoga in my training. I need to practice being still, more zen-like if you will. Strength training has helped tremendously during marathon training and yoga is another form of it. Yoga will help strengthen my core and my mental endurance. Here's my schedule for this week:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Strictly Strength (muscle endurance class) and 4 mile easy run

Wednesday: 8 mile pace run 

Thursday: 6 hill repeats (roughly 4 miles), F.I.T. (muscle endurance class) and Hot Vinyasa Yoga 

Friday: Hot Vinyasa Yoga 

Saturday: Cycle 

Sunday: Rock 'n Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon (17 miles. Have to tack on 4 miles for my long run) 

#LETSWORK

Getting Over That Hump!

"Those who want success should think like a planter. They should understand that having the right seed is an essential key to success, but they must also understand that the soil that they entrust to the seed is just as vital...can you honestly say the environment(s) you are in will yield the kind of harvest you are expecting?"  ~ Eric Thomas 

Happy Hump Day!!! 

Music Monday #MM

Long Run Report: 13+ miles of Getting Over that Hump

Hands down, this run was the worse run I have had during training so far. Over the past couple of days I've been in a funk and I have allowed some people to interfere with my feng shui for my life. Needless to say, I could not shake this funk I was in, even with my run. I could not mentally check into this run at all. To make matters worse, I kept forgetting to restart my Nike+ watch so I ended up running over 13 miles. Learned a few things from this run:

1. Fall has arrived. Leaves are already changing colors and falling. Where did Summer go?

2. My mental is strong. I wanted to stop after 2.5 miles but I refused to quit. I wanted to stop after 5 miles but I refused to quit. When I ran out of water around the 10 mile mark, I wanted to use that as an excuse to stop. At each point I told myself to push through the bs and get it done. 

3. 9 weeks to go! Time to reevaluate goals and make sure I am on track with training. I need to note my strengths and weaknesses and finesse my plan to meet my needs. 

4. Music is a great distraction. By mile 5 I was so over this run and I had to turn up the tunes. "Good Feeling" by Flo Rida is my go to pump up song. 

5. I need to listen to my gut. I was not feeling this run. I should've waited to run on another day or even later in the day. Sometimes, even when there is a schedule to be followed, it is best to just go with the flow instead. 

Get Right Get Tight: Week 10 MCM Training

I love the quote "Suffer the pain of discipline or suffer the pain of regret." This is my mantra for marathon training. I'm currently suffering the pain of discipline for the second week in a row. Training is becoming a second job. I may complain while training but I know it is what I need to do in order to succeed. I may skip workouts but I always make sure to make them up by the end of the week. It is all about balancing. Here is week 10 training schedule:

M: Rest Day

T: 4 mile run 

W: 7 mile pace run 

Tr: 6 x 800m repeats (am), Strictly Strength (pm) 

F: Yoga

S: 13 miles + beach after Woohoo (this is where balancing comes into play) 

Sy: Cycling (8am), Functional Interval Training (9:45am making up my strength training from Tuesday), Hot Vinyasa Yoga (11am) 

Long Run Report: 2 Women Wolfpack + 15 miles = HYFR

Friday morning I was soooooooo hype about Saturday's 15 miler. I think I'm so amped about pushing myself to see how far I can go if I set my mind to do it. Alarm went off Saturday at 430am.

I was out of the house with breakfast in hand by 5am and was in the vicinity to meet up with my group by 5:20 however, I was lost. My gps led me to one area of the trail but not at the beginning to meet up with my group. It was dark and damp and I was tired. At this point I called the BRF and realized I was roughly 4 miles away and tweaked her directions to get there. I was soooooooo over the 15miler at this point.

 I arrived at the group location around 5:45 when we were suppose to start at 5:30am. I turned my frown upside down once I met up with the ladies and took in the crisp cool air. Surprisingly it was cooler temps and perfect weather for a 15 miler! Here's what I learned after being on my feet for 2 hours and 32 minutes:

1) I can run without my knee brace. Last summer I was diagnosed with runner's knee after aggravating a prior injury by running a race when it wasn't fully recovered. Even though I have been strength training and have remained injury-free, I ALWAYS where my knee brace. I guess since I was running late and I was focused on getting started, I didn't remember to put on my brace. I realized I did not have it on somewhere between mile 2-3. Surprisingly, I felt confident that I didn't need it and decided to keep running. Strength training is definitely working magic on my knees. All the muscles around my knees are getting stronger and helping my kneecap stay in place. 

2) Mind over matter. I go into each run with purpose and goals. Lately, because I'm running distance I've never attempted, the goal is to just finish strong. When my feet begin to feel heavy at mile 13, I kept pushing and made a point to pick up the pace a little. My last mile split was 9:44. I succeeded. 

3) I no longer need music. I ran 15 miles with only music playing in my head. All I kept hearing was "oooooooooooooo sometimes I get a good feeling yeaaaaaaaah" or "hell yea hell yea hell yea I say fing right alright." 

4) Cliff bars and chews/gummies are not for me. Cliff bars require too much effort to chew and I could only eat half of a bar. I tried the chocolate chip bar and the flavor seemed off to me. The BRF had Honey Stinger cherry flavored gummies and offered me some. Glad I only took one because my stomach started to hurt right after I ate one. They tasted good but for whatever reason it didn't sit well with my stomach while running. Looks like Honey Stinger Waffles will be my snack of choice while running. 

5) Salty. I was very salty after this run. Salt all over my face and arms. I'm use to having salt on my face from sweat but when I was done Saturday I had salt all over my arms too. A veteran runner informed me that at mile 16 is when marathoners need to re-up on salt intake and fast or it all goes downhill from there. She suggested eating salt packets like the ones you find at a fast food restaurant *gag* or try a product called margarita Bloks. Bloks provide 3x the amount of sodium to ward off muscle cramps. We shall see when I run 17 miles in two weeks. 

6) My body will begin to hurt around mile 16. At mile 15 is when the creaks begin. My hamstring and hips were speaking to me saying "hey giiiiiirl. what's going on here?"

7) Eating breakfast is key. In the past I would eat a kashi breakfast bar and I would be starving by mile 6. Saturday I decided to try eating 1/2 of a whole grain english muffing with natural peanut butter. It did me justice. I never got hungry but made sure to eat something around mile 8-10. 

8) Therapy. I zone out while I run. I work through whatever issues I have been pondering all week and then I sync into my run. After my long runs I feel like I can take on the world. #runnershigh 

9) I ran 15.3 miles. I paused my watch while I waited for the BRF to fix her shoe and forgot to start it up until after we took off again. Once the BRF's watch hit 15 I decided to keep running so that my watch would record that I ran 15 so I ended up running over 15. YES it is that serious to me. Sad I know. 

10) So excited that next week is a light week. I never thought that I would say 13 miles would be a breeze till now. 

Long Run Report: 1 Woman Wolfpack + 14 Miles = GREATNESS

Sorry for the sporadic posting. Last week was crazy busy and I have a lot going on but I had to write about my long run! Saturday, August 11th, was my longest run ever! I have run four half marathons but I have never adventured into 14+ mile territory until embarking on the 26.2 journey!!! I woke up at 4:30am to get ready for my 5:30am run and it was storming. After running in the rain two weeks in a row, including once for an 11 mile run, I refused to do 14 in the rain. I decided that I was going to go back to bed and dreadmill it once I woke up again. When I woke up, it was cloudy and looked like the floodgates were going to open again but the sun was trying to say hello. While on the way to the gym I decided to take my chances and go to the lake. I was worried about running on my own for such a long distance but I needed to get it done, so at 8:30am I started my long run. 

Here's what I learned:

1) I'm disciplined even when I do not want to be. I was worried about this solo run but I pushed myself because I have goals. 

2) Solo runs are important. Running solo allowed me to be super in-tune with my body. It was just me and the LAWD out there running. No music throughout the entire 14 miles. I was able to focus on my form, listen to my breathing and listen to my natural beat that I created running up hills. I was able to completely zone out and have church on the pavement. 

3) I was able to come up with my race strategy for MCM in October from being in-tune with my body. Every 6 miles I need to eat something. I devoured that Honey Stinger Waffle like it was a vegan burrito. I know I looked crazy to those who were passing by. I need water every 3 miles and after 10 miles I need to start drinking gatorade. I ran out of water around mile 10 and I was craving Lemon Lime Gatorade at that point too. 

4) At mile 12, I ran to a gas station and got a Lemon Lime Gatorade. It is truly heaven in a cup. I felt like God, Allah, Buddah or Carmelita Jeter handed me that Gatorade. I was so hot since I started so late and it was cold and just so flavorful. *sigh* 

5) Not all pain is bad pain. There's a difference between an injury causing pain versus pain from your muscles getting finessed by the workout.

6) I actually believe I can run a sub 4-hr marathon for my first full marathon! This training run showed me how in shape I am in mentally and physically. 

7) Hills are my friends. I love hills because hills love me use to be my mantra but now I truly believe it. I have been training on hills for roughly 3 months. Hills help strengthen my glutes, hams, quads and my running form. I have been running hill repeats on this dreaded hill called "Harriet." Every hill, including Harriet, is no challenge. I look at hills and get excited. This one hill called "route 108" was a beast when I ran it during a 10k 4 months ago. Saturday that hill was my last mile and I ran it like a champ even at mile 14! 

8) Setting goals for each long run is imperative to my training and a successful marathon. 

9) Ice baths work! Legs were feeling great on Sunday. I didn't have any issues until I had to do squats. My hammies were not pleased with me. 

10) I have a runner's tan. SMH I have a booty shawts tan and a racerback tan. The definition of struggle. 

NEXT SATURDAY I HAVE 15 MILES *faints* 

Music Monday #MM

Get Right Get Tight: Haze Yourself!

So in usual fashion, Tuesday's are tough for me. I decided to sleep in this morning and I missed the morning Total Body Conditioning class. In usual Tuesday fashion, I was over my workouts for the day before I even got off work.  I decided to suffer the pain of discipline instead of regret. I knew I was going to run 4 miles at 7:30pm but I couldn't decide on a strength training routine that would be quick. I stumbled upon this little gem and I was actually excited to try it out. This vid had me putting in work! Whenever you are pressed for time and can't make it to the gym, test this out! 

Get Right Get Tight

Today marks the beginning of week 8 of Marine Corp Marathon (MCM) training. Last week I struggled a bit mentally. I was worn out! I struggled on Tuesday but pushed through and made every workout except 2, yoga and hill repeats on Sunday. Saturday's 9 miler was filled with hills so I decided to give my legs a break.  Sometimes you have to know when to have a seat. This week I'm feeling refreshed and energized after watching the track and field events at the Olympics. Here's my week 8 training schedule:

Monday: Rest

Tuesday: Total Body Conditioning (am), 4miler (pm)

Wednesday: 7 mile pace run 

Thursday: 5 x hill repeats (roughly 5 miles) (am), Strictly Strength (pm)

Friday: Yoga 

Saturday: 14 miles + ice bath 

Sunday: Cycling and I may go to F.I.T. class depending on how my legs feel after Saturday's run

Music Monday #MM

Happy Monday folks!

Outfit of the Day

 Lululemon’s Tata Tamer II

My fave sports bra! True to its name, this bra tames the tata's. I love the convertible adjustable straps and the multitude of purple shades this bra comes in! Purple is my fave color and the color of royalty. Get into it ladies!!! 

Under Armour Charm Banded Tank

I love UA! UA is a Baltimore based company so I have to support the home team. They always have the best moisture wicking items and color selection. This top was light and semi-fitted. Kept me cool during the heat and humidity.

Lululemon’s Run Shorty Short

*shakes tambourine and cues the organ* I LOVE THESE SHORTS! They feel like a second skin! They do not rise and help with chaffing. They come in so many colors and prints. Your booty will look amazing in these regardless of your size!!!

Lululemon’s Ultimate Padded Run Socks 

Like running on pillows and your feet stay dry and cool.

Mizuno Wave Precision 13’s

I use to be a Nike Vomero girl until I tried these on. So much lighter and stylish than my Nike's. Perfect for a neutral runner! Only downside is that they rarely go with my running outfits but they are fly on their own! 

Long Run Report: I Got Mileage in the Bank, Shawty What Ya Drank?

1) 3H's Hot, humid and hilly as hell!

2) Surprisingly I can keep a decent pace in the heat even though I despise running in it.

3) When it's hot as hell it's important to pullback and just focus on running consistently. This was key to me completing today's run!!! I could tell that I came out to fast in the first mile. After checking my splits, I came out at a 9minute mile pace which is ridic for a long run.

4) In the word's of the BRF "Today I learned that even if it feels slow, it probably isn't and if it feels fast, its probably a comfortable pace."

It was soooooooo hot and humid and I felt like trash within the first 5mins because I was already drenched in sweat. I had to pull back and just focus on banking mileage. I felt like I was running at a snails pace and after the run, I checked my watch and was pleasantly surprised at the average pace. I thought I was running at a 10:30 pace but after checking my splits I ran 5 of the 9miles under 10mins and 4miles just around the 10minute mile pace. Not bad for dealing with the 3H's! *diddy bops*

5) When all else fails, just bank the miles and keep it moving. At around the 4.5 mile mark, one of the leaders of the pack ran up to me and asked me if I was having fun. I responded, "HELL NO. It's too dayum hot and I don't know how you guys start so late. I am a 5/5:30am girl not 6:30/7am" After he agreed that it was extremely humid he replied, "Just run slower and focus on banking the miles." Greatest advice of all time!!!

6) Partially frozen lemon lime Gatorade is heaven in a cup after a long run! Almost better than a iced grande soy chai. Omnoms!

7) I can't start a run after 5:30am unless I want a booty shawts tan. SMH

8) Lulu's run shorty shorts are THE BEST!

9) Adidas slides are a must after every long run (yes I do a slight wardrobe change)

10) 2 liters of water isn't enough for me to properly hydrate after a run *sigh*

Fitspiration Friday: Carmelita Jeter

They Sleep. We Run.

My wake up call on any given day except Monday’s and Sunday’s is 4:45am. Yes you read that correctly! EVEN ON WEEKENDS! While you are rolling over in your pool of drool, I am lacing up my sneaks and making sure my Nike+ GPS watch has enough battery power to track my mileage and pace. 

The quote “They Sleep. We Run”, is my motto to get me out of the bed. I have set a goal and made a plan to get there but LAWDadadadadadadamerCY training is kicking my ass! I need to learn to balance marathon training with life. Lately, the two have not been coinciding with each other. If it wasn’t for Babe (my boyfriend) and my best running friend (BRF), I would not have started my training for the week.

Tuesday’s are my hardest days because my sleep schedule is off since I like to sleep in on my rest day (Monday). Tuesday I did not wake up and I paid the price for it. I was suppose to run after work but my stomach was doing back flips and of course when I was driving home from work, here comes the BRF saying that it feels great outside and I should be running. Insert *side eye* I WAS SO OVER IT AND HER. Earlier, Babe told me that I should just go to bed when I got home since my stomach was bothering me but when I got home he seemed to turn on me too and said I should go for a run. Insert *side eye* I WAS SO OVER HIM.  

Since they double-teamed me, I got dressed and headed out to run and it started raining. The LAWD got jokes. I guess he wanted to test my discipline. All I could do was laugh and get started.  Tuesday’s workout definitely set the tone for Wednesday and Thursday. *sigh*

The lesson for this week of training is to push through whatever mental barrier that is blocking my success. Easier said than done.