When your training hits a speed bump, especially while you are on vacation from work, you start to reflect on a lot of things. Today I’m reflecting on the fact that I don’t blog nearly as much as I would like to. And I have missed some recaps of races along the way. So here’s me catching up on what’s happened in 2019 so far, and what I hope happens the rest of the year.
January 2019: I didn’t run any races. This was the break in my 4 year long streak of running a race every month. As you will see, I immediately started a new one. But that doesn’t mean I plan for this to continue. Part of my reflection this week has been that I spend too much time worrying about streaks and goals. I focus a lot on the past and the future rather than living in the now (as evidenced by this post, actually). So the rest of this year I want my focus to be on living in the moment.
February 2019: I ran Winterlaufe 8k. You can find the race recap here.
March 2019: I traveled to Virginia Beach for the Yeungling Shamrock 8k and Half Marathon. It was an amazing experience that you can read about here: part one, part two and part three.
April 2019: I ran the inaugural April Kade 8k. I had posted a race recap that I later deleted. I had thought that I had gotten a PR, which was huge, because it was a race honoring our friend April who tragically passed away last year, plus the conditions were just awful. It turned out that I didn’t actually get a PR (I was super close!) and I was so embarrassed that I had humble bragged about it, so I deleted the post. The race was awesomely awful, and what I mean by that is everything about it was incredible besides running through cold, wet sleet. There were awesome aid stations, incredible food, and of course it as amazing to be among some of my favorite people. It was a lot of fun and I can’t wait to run the 2nd annual race in 2020, hopefully in better weather! I also did Glass City in April 2019, which you can read about here.
May 2019: I ran with My Team Triumph at the Run Like An Animal 5k. I ended up walking most of it with my friend Staci, who has struggled with injury this year. It was a nice day for a race, it was wonderful catching up with Staci and I enjoyed cheering on my friends who were doing the half marathon. Many PRs were earned by my friends that day!
June 2019: This month started with a bang, with me getting a 10k PR. Huge deal for me because I hate 10k races! The race recap is here. I also ran the Prediction 5k – a 5k where no music, watches or phones are allowed, and you place based on how closely your time was to your predicted time. I ended up getting an award for how close my prediction was. I actually ran faster than predicted, and decided that if I wasn’t going to guess close at least I would come close to a sub 30 5k.
July 2019: 4th of July week is always full of races, and this year it was also full of concerts. On July 3rd, I saw 311 in Mount Pleasant. I then did the Volkslaufe 10k the next morning, which was absolutely miserable. Hot, humid, disgusting. But hey, I did it, and not in a horrible time either. On July 5th, I saw 311 again but this time at Pine Knob. The next morning I ran the Canadian Lakes 5k Fun Run and ended up with my 2nd best 5k time! It was a good test for how I might do at my big race at the end of the month – the Running to Honor 5k. Another inaugural event that I was a part of, it was my birthday weekend and I wanted to get a sub 30 minute time, maybe even PR. My friend Christine agreed to run with me and she helped push me to a PR. It wasn’t too hot but it was humid. And it definitely sucked. The more I have reflected on it, I think, “Man I don’t really like 5ks either – unless I’m just running for fun!” It was a whole lot of work, time and training to get to that race, and it was over in less than a half hour. Yes, you read that right, I got another sub 30 5k! And I just happened to get my 5k PR! Happy birthday to me!
August 2019: Another busy month between racing, social events and work. I ran the Rise and Shine 5k with My Team Triumph, which was a lot of fun. We had a good team of angels that ran together, taking turns pushing our Captain. Plus I got my custom My Team Triumph Goodrs, and ya girl LOVES her some Goodrs! I also was a part of a relay team for the Lake Lansing Marathon Team Relay. We were “Cool Chicks and an Average Joe”. The event itself was fun, but the race was tough. I was the last runner and by the time I ran it was so hot and humid. (Are you seeing a pattern here? Summers are humid here in the Mitten!) Thankfully I got to run my lap with Christine. Our team had a really fun time! And the last race of the month was Crim. It was awesome and you can read about it here.
September 2019: Since my new running coach had given me a 13 mile run at 11 min pace the first weekend of September, I decided to sign up for Run For Your Heart. It is definitely one of my favorite half marathons, and it holds a special place in my heart because it was the last race that I did with April before she died. There was so much support and energy from friends on the course that for the most part I kept close to an 11 min pace. I was smiling and giving out high fives each time I passed someone I knew on the out and back portions. Unfortuately when I got to Wickes Park, I ended up slowing way down and had to run/walk the last couple of miles. It was a combination of the out and back sections being finished, so I was no longer getting the excitement from seeing people I knew, and my legs were just done. I thought maybe it was nutrition at first because I had started the race hungry, but I took a gel and nothing changed. I didn’t feel better and I didn’t feel worse. I knew my nutrition and hydration were okay. It was just being on tired legs from working a lot, doing hard workouts, etc. I still ended up with a half marathon PR, but this was when I started to feel my wheels coming off, and I started to fall out of love with running. I struggled a lot through the rest of the month. Maybe it was too much during the summer and my body was done. Maybe it was not doing enough cross training. Maybe it was having the wrong shoes. Maybe I was just tired. It was probably all of those things, but when it came time for the Capital City River Run half marathon relay, I was actually hurting. I had done a 16 mile run the day before and my shin was very tender. I knew it probably wasn’t good that putting on the compression sleeves actually hurt my shin worse. Plus, my feet were still hurting from the shoes I had gotten a moth before, and even though I had changed shoes twice they still weren’t feeling great. Anyway, the race weekend itself was a lot of fun – I’ll give it a recap later, because it deserves a separate one – but I was sure I was injured when it was over. This led to me seeking a PT screen where I was told I may have a stress fracture. That led me to not to do Ragnar. That choice was so difficult, but I know it was the best decision for me.
That is what has brought me to where I am now. Rethinking my goals for the rest of the year. Adjusting my training. Changing my mindset. I’m taking better care of myself – mind, body and spirit. And I hope it means I’ll be able to safely complete both the Detroit International Half Marathon in 3 weeks, and the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon in 6 weeks.
Stay tuned…
RD on the Run 