Finish Line Smiley!!!

Well after 30 years of consistently running 25-35 miles a week I finally ran my first large race! Yes-it was quite a huge accomplishment for me! I began running 30 years ago after my second child was born..story for another day. In all those years I have lived in mostly rural areas and have always enjoyed running alone.So, racing for me was never very enticing. A few 5 ks, but in general,racing just wasn't appealing. Throw in  raising 3 kids and running my own business, and well you get the picture.
For some unknown reason-this was THE year. I began barefoot running last spring and have been working on that all summer as well. So I was training for a preliminary 12 mile race in July, and sure enough-race week injury! Because I am antique and experienced I was wise enough to realize I should not race that week.Besides that, I have had a chronic achilles problem all summer,but I forged ahead.Onward and forward,after prodding from friends, I signed up for the Twin Cities 10 mile race on 10/2 and the Monster Dash 1/2 marathon 10/29. I never do anything the common sense way-only ever dive in head first and this was no exception.
Living in a rural area is amazing for daily running, but always poses issues for being in the big city at the crack of dawn for any reason.Luckily a friend of mine was sweet enough to offer me a gourmet meal and a bed nearer the race. We had a fun lovely evening that even included quinoa for the prerace meal as she was also racing.
Interestingly enough, I was not nervous at all. It was only 10 miles-piece of cake,and I had no illusions of breaking any time records.I have been doing 12-15 mile runs every Sunday.  So this was just going to be a run smiley fun day. I did have one little trick up my sleeve however. I hesitated to even tell anyone.
My personal goal was to run the end of the race barefoot.
I had been barefooting all summer, and after all only have,let's see chip and seal ,or chip and seal,or oh yea chip and seal as my daily barefoot terrain options. (oh wait or gravel)
So race morning arrives! NO sleep whatsoever...an inadvertent extra cup of coffee in the eve-should have known better. So although the bed was comfy and the accommodations were luxurious..um yea..no sleep.
Also -no a.m.coffee-me who has 3 cups of coffee before my daily run. The neighbor lady was kind enough to bring me coffee on the way to the race ,but by then I was in race(not I need a bathroom) mode.
On to the race...chilly morning ,but it would be go into the 70's by noon. My stomach was remarkably calm. I was packed into the slow newbie starting corral, so my hopes for the first few miles were not very high. I had studied the course,hills,  etc and I was ready!! The race began at 7:09 (why I have no idea) and we actually were able to start by 7:23. So far so good. I was sandwiched in between the 7,579 other TC10 milers.Because I don't own a Garmin and never even run with a watch,I just set up for a cruisin smiley race.
The crowd actually moved ahead and spread out more than I expected.For the first 2+ mile I ran up on the sidewalk edge as much as possible to get around people and not feel claustrophobic. As I am used to running alone,this was a bit of a concern. But I grew up in the Chicago suburbs,so crowds didn't really bother me. Having never done such a huge race  before ,I had no idea what to expect regarding pacing. I just decided to run how I felt and I did. The first several miles seemed really long,partially because we were going uphill. But once I began passing a lot of people,I felt a lot better and settled into my pace. Somehow,I never really knew what mile I was on throughout the whole race. Why ? I can not tell you why I couldn't see the mile markers.I noticed all of the marathon mile markers,but not mine! Maybe God's way of nudging me into the marathon next year?
Finally as we were headed on a gradual incline (which I only knew from studying the course) up Summit Av, I gave up and started asking people what mile we were on.Surprisingly no one else I asked knew either!!
One girl said," My Dad was supposed to be at 5 1/2." Ok-never knowing if she saw him or not-Sooooooooo-figuring we were near mile 6,I thought-Now is the time!!! I was keeping a good pace ( for me) and felt overall great(my achilles were holding up!)....so I quickly jumped over to the side on the grass and whipped  off my brand new Stem minimalist (awesome and amazing shoes by the way) without even using my hands! Picked them up and off I ran!! It usually takes me a mile to pick my pace back up after taking shoes off in the middle of a run. I was shocked that I seemed to pick my pace back up almost immediately!! I just kept cruising. It did turn out to be a lot of (ok mostly) chip and seal and I thought, "Haha-I fooled em-I can do chip and seal!!"
I ran and ran, feeling awesome and free as I passed people. Inadvertently ran through a crowded and messy water station that I promptly avoided by changing sides of the road-so  I would avoid much wet pavement.
I did notice as we were heading due East that the sun was aggravating me. I had sunglasses, but no hat and my sunglasses were steamy. That was a mild irritation.
 This was soon disspelled by cheers from the crowd of "GO barefoot lady!!!"   And THAT my friends was worth everything....
I heard several more comments as I ran but none was as inspiring as the first. As we descended down a mild hill toward The Wall and then back up the last hill,I still had no idea what mile we were on. I knew we were getting close,but still no idea! Then out of no where, I saw the Minnesota State Capital and the finish line!!!! I was like -"YES" I am so going over that finish line barefoot!!!! ...and I did..waving my shoes in the air .....
I could have kept going but you couldn't even get through the crowd!! I figure I ran the last 4 miles barefoot according to my calculations.And it was awesome!

ok-so my husband was little confused as to which race this was...

We went back to watch the marathoners coming in and cheer. I saw only about 3 other barefooters in the marathon,but no others in the 10 miler.I yelled as loud as I could for those barefoot marathoners!

Here is my picture of me and my very first medal (which husband hung in the kitchen ).

5 Mile	47:00

9:26 per mile (view kilometer pace)
62 percent (view time)
3824 out of 7549
1812 out of 4632 Females
83 out of 276 Females in the F5054 Age Group


and I passed 581 runners overall and was passed by  only 36 overall.

Yup ...just pretty dang proud of myself!!!!

And without knowing it,this was the 30th anniversary of the Twin Cities Marathon...

  What a smiley way to celebrate 30 years of running!!

Run :))) always!






     

Happy Heat Wave

As the whole world knows the Midwest has been engulfed by an unusually horrendous heat /humidity wave for about a week now. As a runner, this is always a challenge. Well dumb me, who totally knows better, ran last Sun 7/17/11, when according to the local meteorologist, Minnesota was had a heat index the SAME as the Amazon jungle!! Altho I knew it was hot and humid, I didn't get myself out the door until 10am-bad choice! I work 6.5 days a week, and so Sunday is my only full day off,well you get the picture. Sunday is also the only possible day that I can work in a long run. So as I was working my mileage back up after being injured, I was determined to suck it up and pound out a few extra miles. To top it off I am very fair skinned,so the sun is also an issue.
Because I was so excited to run again,after a short day before, I wore my VFFs and chose a gravel road run that is somewhat shady . I wasn't expecting to break a speed record,mind you, but I was hoping for a decent pace. It was so humid it was hard to breathe and no breeze.
The first 3 miles were great and gorgeous as I ran down into a into a woods and past a small lake, enjoying the pelicans along the way. As I ran out of the woods up into the farm field area,it was slightly hotter. I was ok-I can do this-no  big deal.After all I am a Minnesotan (actually an Illinois transplant).
As any Minnesotan will tell you, we are accustomed to accepting all weather as a  challenge.I run all year-all through the winter...many blogs for many another day.I will just add though,that I do not own a treadmill and run in -10-15 below 0 and who knows what wind chills, and run in sheet metal screws through the ice and feet of snow....like I said food for other blogs.
So back to the heat. I can do this. Just relax and take it slow. I was well hydrated and only planning on about 8 miles. No big deal. As I progressed uphill and rounded the curve at about mile 3 I noticed I was slowing down. It was hot and blazing sun. I saw the marker for about mile 3.5 and thought, ok I will turn around there and do 7. After turning around, I am on my way back-yea!! Psychologically that was a triumph in itself. Ok slowing now, 5mile and coming back now  downhill and into the shade!!! SHADE....like a long tall cold drink of water...Right next to the lake ( a wildlife lake,not sparkly clean on a hot day...in a marsh...) and the thought crossed my mind..I could actually drink that water...NO ICK.. like I said not sparkly clean. It occurred to me that if I was thinking of drinking mirky water, I was probably getting close to being overheated. Here I was 2
miles from home in the SHADE ,and what did I do ??? I STOPPED!!!!!!!! Now you have to realize in  30 YEARS yes count them -I am old(54)-in 30 years,in ALL weather,ALL terrain, I have NEVER stopped in the middle of a run before!! NEVER!!! Not even when I have gotten injured! NEVER,not one time!!!
I stopped in the shade,walked in a few circles, and then started running again..slowly... about 1/2 mile later I stopped AGAIN!! I actually blame this all on the Smiley Collective...because I suddenly realized...hey running smiley means it's ok to stop!!! WOW !What a revelation! As I pondered this, I decided to walk briskly-hey-this will work-walk 1/2 mile, run 1/2 mile...so that was the last 2 miles of my heat run. And guess what ??? IT WAS OK!!! I was still smiling!!
  Plunging my feet into the lake after returning home, and letting my body recover from the heat, I felt like running smiley was taking over my life!! Sounds dumb ,yes... but it has overflowed into all of my daily activities!! Running smiley was definately restructuring my runs.
Now it is Wednesday.It is still extremely,abnormally hot and humid. Although I have AC at work, we do not have AC at home. We live in the woods, on a lake, and normally it is comfortable. But this week has been extreme. Sleeping has been rough.
Monday, ran at 7am 5.3 miles -very hot and humid-but last mile barefoot!! Tuesday ran at 7am same and today Wednesday  a breeze yea!!, I ran 2.5 m and ran 2 miles barefoot (on chip and seal road).. I felt fantastic!!! I even was slightly faster today...slightly...my barefootin WAS faster!!I am so excited!! I can run smiley and barefoot in the heat!!
Proof positive that running smiley breaks barriers.....and stopping to smile is ok :))

pps/ Do not run in heat if you are not an experienced,seasoned runner and stay very well hydrated.

:)) running again

Yea!! After my whole week off, I am back to running again! So far, so good! I am still running minimalist shoes before I transition back to VFFs and then barefoot,after my injuries. Maybe I should go straight to barefoot,but I am trying go gradual and smart.
Since I am back on the road again, after a solid week of heavy duty core work,I have noticed renewed strength as I run.So funny today to read an article on "What is the most important muscle to strengthen as a runner ?"

No, not your calves...even as a bf runner...but your CORE! It is true!! Strong consistent core strength empowers your running.  You do have to be consistent,tho. And, I don't mean sit ups. I mean hard core pilates,yoga ,ballet core work. The best overall training DVD for this I have found is "The Bar Method,Dancer's Body" DVD. It gives perfect core strength, develops balance and strengthens back muscles to really kick in and support strength in your running. But, you have to keep at it!!This DVD is especially great for woman runners who do not want to develop heavy muscle. It really sculpts your body!! I am 54 and I could really notice a difference!!
So, my week off of running turned out to be a blessing in more ways than one. My core strength really girded up the healing process and made my back on the road experience that much stronger!!
So far 18.3 miles this week!! I am still training for a 1/2 marathon...so here I go!!

Running Smiley when you can't run

This summer marks 30 years of consistent running for me!! I have been celebrating this by  embracing barefoot running wholeheartedly. So much so in fact that I made a crucial mistake of over training recently which of course resulted in an injury :((
After 2 weeks of mental struggling...I have realized that there is a deeper well to running smiley than I had noticed before. Whether barefoot or shod, running smiley is always about the smile buried deeply under all of the daily struggles of life. On a good day, running smiley is obvious. On a good day, we strive to achieve our
pre -conceived goals. We smile when we accomplish them.
Even though I have run for 30 years, missing daily run is always an interior panic attack. Through years of minor injuries, setbacks, scheduling conflicts,raising  kids, owning a business, I was always a RUNNER.
If you aren't one -you just don't get it.
Barefoot running has set me free. Not in the ways you might expect though.
Yes, there are the obvious ones. But deep deep inside....it has set me free of myself. It has set me free to ENJOY running at it's core. It has taught to release my grip on expectations. To inhale and enjoy every breath,every step.
As I age, injuries are more threatening. When you are young, you know you will heal.When you are in your 50's, you are not so sure any more. The first thought is always -will I really be able to run again?

This week my goal is to take the WHOLE week off of running to heal.  That is very hard to do. I can run through pain, walk in pain all day and still get out the next day and do it again.  But this week my goal is to
run smiley without running .
Running smiley without running....dig deep into the smiley well and reach for the essence of running :)))