Christmas Run

Merry Christmas!
I hope that you are enjoying this holiday time of year and can spend time with your friends and family.

I have to admit my training has taken a little bit of a break more so because of icy road conditions for running, laziness (and travel) for biking and pool is closed for swimming until January.  But, life is happening too and I realize my training has to roll with it too.  I have done a little strength training and stretching inside, but nothing rigorous.

So I have to share what I received for Christmas...  A Garmin Forerunner 310xt with heart-rate strap!!!

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!
Do I need it... NO.  Am I totally geeked, YES!!! It is intended for triathletes so I can use it for running, biking and swimming! So, now, I'm learning how to use it and all it's capabilities.

So, far I've paired the heart rate strap, set-up my Garmin connect account and paired the watch to my account so it will upload my data through ANT+ technology.  This is the same protocall that Roger is researching for the Moxy Monitor and we hope that some day Garmin will pick up the muscle oxygen reading SmO2 and display it on their watches.

Because of traveling and celebrating Christmas, my first chance to do a run was Christmas morning! I'm not sure why the watch was displaying "Saturday 10:17PM" but I'll figure that out later...

...Everything else is right.  Nice 4.15 mile run averaging 9:22 min/mile.
I also got to try out my Mother-in-law's Yak Trax.  She saw my post on face book and asked me if I wanted to try them.  Cool!  So, here is a picture of them.

They are really easy to put on.  The loop indicates the back. You just put the toe of your shoe in the front and pulling the loop in the back pull it onto your shoe.

I've heard mixed reviews. So I was anxious to try them and see how they felt.
It was so beautiful that morning! It was funny running in the country. Long straight roads. First, I spooked some cows.

You can't really tell by the picture because it took me so long to pull it out while running, but the cows were all grouped together by the fence and then bolted to the other side of the pasture when I came running by.
Then there were dogs.  Yep, every farm I think has a dog and the dogs are outside left to run.  YIKES! My first experience where I didn't know if I was going to have a leg after running by one of the farms.  Definitely could use some advise here.  Do you yell at them, ignore them, eye contact or no? Stop? Run faster?

Well, I got past OK and at the end of my route I came to Lidtke Mill on the Upper IA River.
And here is a picture of my favorite silo.  I love this color brick and think silo's and barns build with this brick are so beautiful.

You can't really tell by the picture, and it didn't really dawn on me until I was at the Lidtke mill, but I was going downhill most of my run out and had to go uphill most of the way back.

I definitely liked the Yak Trax, but realize their limited use.  You really will only use them on snowy paths and roads.  They were awesome for fully snow covered areas and for running on the gravel roads where I was.  But as soon as you encounter bare pavement with nothing to "sink" into they provide a weird feeling for landing and actually slip a little with nothing to "grip."  I also don't think these would help in my glare ice conditions on my circle at home, but I don't have far to get to gravel where I live, so something for me to consider.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have safe and happy running!

Longer Runs

For those that don't know me, I have two girls. Ages 6 and 8. As any parent, I love them dearly and have loved every stage of their growing.  In this post, I'll talk about my oldest, who is in Gymnastics.

Since the time she was little she loved to climb and while other parents were shrieking with concern, I would shrug and say, "She does it all the time." As soon as she turned three, I entered her into gymnastics to put some of that strength to some constructive use and have her learn how to move and use her body in a way that wouldn't hurt her.

Here she is at age 3 1/2

I've always liked gymnastics so I was supper excited when she tried the sport and liked it. She is strong and petite which makes for a great gymnasts body. So it helps that she is good at it too.  BUT, for those not familiar with the sport... watching gymnastics meets are NOT like watching the Olympics! They take an entire day and you watch your kid perform for a total of 5 minutes.  That right! The rest of the time you are watching others or waiting.

My girl started competing last year for the first time. So meets were new, fun and exciting. We get up early to get there when the doors open, so the team is ready for warm-ups.  Depending on the meet warm-up take 2-3 1/2 hours.  Then the meet begins and usually take 3 hours then you wait for the scores to be tallied and finally the awards ceremony.

Last year, I would sit through it all and watch all the girls and learn about the sport.  But after the new-ness has warn off that gets old in a hurry. So, this year I've decided that meet days are going to be long run day's because I do not have to sit and watch all the warm-ups and then watch all the girls again through the meet.

Which was a long story that brings us to today... Annandale Holiday Invite.

I've decided that on meet days I  can pack my running gear and while the girls are warming up, I'll go for a long run.  Last meet - two weeks ago, I had my longest run yet at 4.5 miles. Today I went 5.6 miles. You can see the log of the run from RunKeeper Here. But, I'll give the highlights in this blog.

The map below is what I planned in blue and what I ran in red. I started from the Middle School, saw there was a lake on the north side of town and planned on running around it.

This was my first time planning a run on Run Keeper and using the program on my phone.  At first I thought it was crummy because I didn't think it showed the map I had programmed in even after I picked the route and started the activity.  But, I'm not the brightest bulb when it comes to using software and figuring it out for myself.  I'm a visual learner and usually have to have someone show me.  So where you see the grey Pin on top of the 21 about a 1/2 mile into the run.  I wasn't sure I was on the right road.  I paused the activity to find  the map... low and behold there is a little map icon on the side that when you tap on it, it brings up your route and shows you where you are!!!  

This is a picture on my phone after the run was completed, but the icon is the same, the screen just looks slightly different when in the activity.

Very Cool!  I'm starting to like this. Then I realize it has a picture taking function built into the app as well, so I don't have to switch to my camera during the run. Cooler Yet!

It was a snowy, icy run, but as long as I stayed on snowy parts it was better than the ice. The roads were pretty quiet and they are all decorated for Christmas.  I quickly was out of town on the East side of the lake where I was glad I had dressed as warm as I had because I was going into the wind and coming off the lake it was nippy. This was a fairly well traveled road and with such icy conditions so I was concentrating on staying on the side that was ice-free and waved at cars to make sure they were seeing me. 

Once on the north side of town I was on a less traveled country road.

It was pretty running.  Here is a picture of the Lake from the West side.

Here I had the wind to my back and when I started to enter town. Downtown was really cute and had even more decorations.  I finished my run and then walked back up and down main streets just to window shop.  Being a Sunday, nothing was going to be open for the day.  I might have to come back for shopping sometime.

So, with my run done in less than an hour! I headed to McDonald's where I knew they would have free Wireless Internet and could plug in my phone.  And they had a train track right behind the restaurant!

Well, back to the meet to cheer my daughter and her team on!

Thanks for reading!

Cold Weather Running

I saw a quote on FB that I think is so appropriate for any new athlete that trains or competes outdoors.                  "There is no bad weather, just bad gear."

So true when it comes to cold weather running in Minnesota. I learned quickly I needed new clothes. Up until Monday, December 10th the coldest weather I had run in was 21 degrees F. My running class is on Monday nights and as the temps started to fall on Sunday, I knew I was in for a really cold run on Monday. I go to class straight from work, so I packed my back with: silk knee high socks, cotton sock (I'm allergic to the lanolin in wool), running tights, cotton pants, wicking long sleeve, mid-layer long sleeve, light down feather jacket, neck warmer, hat, light gloves, big red fleece mittens. I was ready. I had my class as my motivator to get out and run in...  -4 degree F Temperature.

Then... my class wimped out on me! I guess an email went out, to an account I don't check at work, earlier in the day that said we would be doing inside core work for the class. To give some credit to the instructor and the others in the class: It is a beginner class, it was really cold, the ground was snow packed from 10" of snow that had fallen the day before, and there was an indoor running track alternative at a school in town later that night. But there were some other unforeseen circumstances that caused the class to be delayed, moved, and then finally cancelled.  Finally, the instructor did say she would stick around and run for about 20 minutes with anyone who wanted too. 

There were three of us!  I was all psyched and ready to go. Below is a picture of Sarah, my instructor, and I before going out.

One other lady came with us too. I think she had headed outside already so I missed her in the picture. She pulled a calf muscle a couple weeks earlier that she was still nursing, so she ran a couple laps with Sarah and I and then bowed out to stretch.  

We took a pretty easy pace because it was slick out. I was dressed so warm I was still sweating by the end and during the run we could feel our eye lashes getting crust with frost and ice, but I had no idea how frosty we were getting until we looked at each other at the end...

 After a couple tries I finally got this second picture to flash and really show the frost.  My hair is not typically white!

I already forgot how long we ran, but it was about 20 minutes, so I think it was around 2 miles or slightly over.

You can stay warm!  But get inside quick after you are done. I still sweat quite a bit, so I drove home and changed into dry clothes before I got chilled. I would like to have a cool head sock like Sarah's. It is wicking so she can wear her hat over it and her head doesn't feel the moisture like mine does by the time I'm done. Plus the front can pull up and cover her full face if needed only letting the eyes show.

Happy running!  Thanks for reading.

It's Official - Buffalo Triathlon

As I said in my last post, I'm I little behind in my blog.  A lot has happened in the last couple weeks and I need to keep up here...

When I first started thinking about doing a triathlon, I started researching what distance I should sign-up for.  Like running you can pretty much find a race of any length or distance you want. Since most of my friends are runners I'll make the comparison here...

5K, 7K, 8K, 10K - First time, smaller stepping goals, fitness running, maintenance and fun runs.

1/2 Marathon - Good step if you don't want to commit to the training of full Marathon.

Marathon - The goal for most serious runners that can commit the time to the training. 

Ultra Marathon's - For the (insane) runners that want to do more.

Now for the Triathlete:

Anything shorter than a Sprint - Like running (see 5K, etc.)

Sprint Triathlon - 1/4 mile swim, 12.4 mile bike, 3 mile run (5K); Like a 1/2 Marathon

Olympic Triathlon - 1.5K (.9 mile) swim, 40K (42.8 mile) bike and 10K (6.2 mile) run; like a full Marathon

1/2 Iron man - 1.2-mile (1.9 km) swim, a 56-mile (90 km) bike ride, and a 13.1-mile (21.1 km) run

Iron Man - 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bike, and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run

(Again in my simple mind... Anything over the Olympic Triathon is insane)

So the big debate...  Spint or Olympic, Sprint or Olympic, Sprint or Olympic?!?!?

What the hay?  Olympic!!!

Thanksgiving weekend I made it official and signed up for the Buffalo Triathlon!!!

So, I based this decision on I can swim, I can already run a 5K, and anyone can bike, right?  Plus, when I compare it to the runner's Marathon, that is a huge accomplishment and that's a goal that will be a little bit of a stretch!

On goes the journey and the stretch towards my new goal!

Thanks for reading!

She learns why People Love to Run!

WOOOOOOWHOOOOO!!!
So this is what it feels like to have an awesome run.  Let me back up....  It has been awhile since my last post.

This has in the last 4-5 weeks already been an amazing journey.  I realized first and foremost how much exercising and event training is a mental game.  Being a past athlete, I have gone from the head knowledge of thinking, "I can do anything I want as long as I train for it," to complete doubt of, "what the heck was I thinking? I'll die during the triathlon" to today of, "Wow! This feels so great, I can do anything!"

So, running has never been my sport. In fact, I had many people in Junior High and High School try to talk me into track, but I couldn't get past all the running I would have to do and always said no.  You see every time I would run I would feel like I was going to puke my insides out.  Why would I want to continue an activity that makes me feel like that???

I attempted running about 10 years ago when my best friend at the time decided to start running.  Being a supportive friend I thought I can do this with you...  I think it lasted two weeks.  She hurt her knee and I was glad to be done. But I learned a valuable lesson during that trial running period: I run too fast and run myself into the ground which is why I always feel like I'm going to puke my insides out.

Now, it seems like 1/2 my friends are running. I can do this! I had to slow down. Slow down I did.  Then My Guy started to run with me!!!  Then, I joined a running class. I am still getting pushed, but I don't let myself get to the puking state that scares me.

Today I have never felt better on a run.  I felt like I could have kept running forever at the pace I was at and you want to know something?  I was on a record pace!  

This is why a person trains (struggles for weeks). I hope everyone could experience a workout like this.

I have learned to love running!