Hi Friends... I DID IT!

HEWOO FWIENDS!

It's been DAYZZ since the half marathong and I KNOW I haven't written. I suck, I'm sorry. I've been crazy busy, but I finally found some time to sit down and write about how the Parkway Half Marathong went!!

We'll get to the part everyone wants to know: I finished in 1:57... WITHOUT TRAINING! I don't care what people say, I think that I did AWESOME considering I did not train well this time around!!

This experience was WAY different to say the least, compared to my other runs. For one, I was doing this race all by myself. For ever other run that I have completed, there was at least 1 other person running the event with me, and this time, I was it :( 

Around 7:50am, I hopped on one of the shuttles they had there and made it to the starting point. This year, like last year, they had this awesome Celtic procession where this bagpipe band played music as they marched down the starting point. They lined themselves along the sides of the start point so that when we passed the start of the race, we were surrounded by all this crazy bagpipe music! 

Anyway, I started off just cruising at a super comfortable pace with no real motivation to finish with a certain time. My mentality for the day was to just run and get a nice workout in :) At one point, I checked my watch and realized I could probably do a sub 2 and THAT's when I decided to start running through the water stations and stuff. Have you ever tried to drink water from a Dixie cup while running? 

I even tried being like the seasoned veterans where I would grab the cup and smash the lip of the cup together  to limit the amount of spillage. By the time I was ready to drink from it, there was little, if anything left in the cup. I had a couple good ones where I kept the water in and I was able to use the amount that I couldn't drink as a cool down and I just poured it down my back (it was getting a little warm). 

I finally saw the 13 mile marker and began SPRINTING. I swear, every time I do this, the distance seems so short in my head, but my legs totally beg to differ. My legs are pretty tired, but as I'm sprinting, I see the chronological time near the finish and it reads, "1:59:20". OMG, I NEED to cross before that becomes a "2:00:00", and I command my legs to move faster, but not before I take a leaping jump in front of the very last camera guy and throw up a peace sign. (The photographer was NOT ready for my big moment and I was PISSED, but who can blame him really? I doubt there are a lot of people leaping in the air and throwing up peace signs at the end of marathongs...I'd post it in my blog, but the stupid photo site has already figured out how to block cheap asses like me from stealing their images...)

And that was that. My official D-tag time was 1:57:50. I finished 31st in my age group out of 226 female runners between 25-29 years, and I finished 506th overall out of 2615 runners. Not bad for my last hurrah, eh?

That's the other thing... I'm officially taking a running hiatus for an indefinite amount of time. Is that was sabbatical is? When things stress you out and you have to take a break from it? Anyway, that's all I wrote and I hope you all enjoyed it!! Who knows, maybe I'll be back with some crazy fitness events and stories to share with everyone. Until then, stay healthy my friends!!

T.Lee

Parkway Half Marathong Eve

'Tis the eve of the great American River Parkway Half Marathong! I have hydrated all day, although, have yet to embark on my pre-race meal outing. Tonight, it's the usual Spag Fac (The Old Spaghetti Factory) to carb up before tomorrow :)

About one year ago, I ran the 4th annual Parkway Halfie, which began what would be an incredible journey through an additional 2 half marathongs as well as a full marathong. Since then, I have managed to log in over 500 miles, I've gone through numerous running injuries, and I've run through 3 pairs of shoes. It's pretty crazy when I really think about it.

I picked up my bib and shirt this afternoon (fyi, it SUCKS to drive through downtown Sac, especially when I'm trying to hurry back to work!), and I was a little disappointed in the shirt they had this year. For one thing, it looks almost identical to last year's shirt, except for these green stripes down the side. And secondly, it's way bigger than last year's and I ordered the same size! Men's small!! (I hate getting the women's shirts because for some reason, they're always really wide and they're always V-necks or something weird. Maybe they're wide because of the boobs?)

Take a look... this year's shirt...

Last year's shirt....

At least change the color of the stupid shirt, right? Well, whatever, I can't complain, it's a shirt that says, "I just ran 13.1 miles, what did you do today?" Ooh, that sounds like a cool shirt to have, I should suggest that for next year...

You all know that I've been bitching about how I haven't trained for this race, and I haven't. I ran more this week that I did all month! I know it's stupid to play "catch up" with running, because it's pointless, and I've probably tired myself out, but I feel more mentally prepared at least. I keep telling myself, "It could be worse... I could be running a FULL marathong!" No way will I ever do that again. Once is enough. Regardless, I just have to keep a strong mentality for tomorrow no matter how I've trained (or didn't train). I've done with twice before, this should be no problem...right?

The weather today was insanely windy, and I'm a little worried for tomorrow's race. I HATE the wind... with a passion. And yes, hate is a strong word, and I HATE the wind. It slows you down, it dries out your eyeballs, and it blows dirt all up in your grill. WTF. I've been sitting here begging the wind gods to just have mercy on us runners tomorrow. The wind today was about 20-25 mph, pretty gusty, and I looked up the weather for tomorrow and it only says the wind will be between 10-20 mph. We'll see...

Anyway, tomorrow will be the last race I run for a while. It's kind of cool that I began and ended my little running stint with the same event, though. Who knows if I'll be back, although I'm almost positive I will be, but I just need to take a break. Maybe I'll pick up a new sport, who knows. For now, I'm only focused on tomorrow and how awesome I'll feel when I cross that finish line and realize I could eat an entire bucket of fried chicken and not feel horrible about myself for it. I probably won't, but the option's there.

Until tomorrow my friends!! Wish me luck!

This Place About to BloOOOOOOw!

There are only 4 more days until my next race... holy $*!%... and let me tell you friends, training has NOT been going well.

1. I've only run about 5 times since my last race on March 13th
2. I just came back from an EPIC Las Vegas vacation with some old college friends
3. ...I just don't wanna!

I've said it a million gazzillion times already, but getting out there has been SOOO hard. I ran 10 miles on Saturday and while I've been struggling lately, it's probably the best run I've had in a while. I made sure to hydrate all day Friday, and I even downloaded an audio book to help me get through the run.

Side note: a friend asked me to join her book club. Apparently, people read books to talk about them and watch the out coming movies....weird. Anyway, she asked me to join, and I said, "No, I don't read". And really, I DON'T READ. Reading for fun is an idea that is so rare, I barely even know what books are anymore. But after much coaxing and convincing (aka complaining and bitching about it), I finally said, "FINE. I'll download the audio book for your little (quotation marks being made with my hands) "book club"..." To this days, she calls me a cheater for getting the audio book instead of the real thing. But let's face it: I paid $5 for a "book" that can READ FOR ME. Tell me that's not the most American thing ever- I just paid to have something do a job for me that I'm fully capable of doing myself. LOVE IT.

Anyway, back to running. The audio book made the time FLY. I'm contemplating on bringing it with me to the race. Normally, I run races without anything so I can hear other people and just take in everything around me. Considering I don't really want to do this event, I may just take my headphones with me to drown everything out and get the damn thing over with ASAP. Maybe not.

The run felt good. I took a GU with me (Tri-Berry... YUM!) and it really helped me. The only thing I could really complain about was my right knee. I'm thinking my IT band just wasn't stretched out enough, but other than that, I'm ready to rock. I even calculated my possible times for the race. If I keep a sub 9:15 pace, I'll finish in under 2 hours... I can totally do that. We'll see though. Normally, I feel great for the first 8 miles, then it starts wearing on me. There's just no way I can beat my last time with the little time I've spent training. NOT GOING TO HAPPEN...

I've got 3 more runs scheduled this week and then it's the big day. I'm fueling up and hydrating now; not much else left to do. WISH ME LUCK... I'M REALLY GOING TO NEED IT, CUZ MY TRAINING DID ME NO GOOD! (SCREAM!)

Cuz I Would Walk 500 Miles and-uh I Would Walk 500 More...

It's official: I've logged in a total of 500 miles since I started running with my Nike+ sensor in my shoe. As the Nike website says:

"500 miles is one serious road trip. And to think, you did it on one set of tires. Keep on truckin’."


You'd think this would motivate me, but it really hasn't. I did take heed to my friend's advice and I tried running a different trail today which helped a little bit, but I have definitely decided to take a break from running events after the Parkway Half Marathong.... at least until October. 


October is the Nike Women's Half Marathong and I definitely plan on running that one. Why?? Because instead of a finisher's medal, you get a Tiffany & Co. necklance. A TIFFANY & CO. NECKLACE. I shouldn't even have to say that twice.... YOU know why now :)


Anywhoosies... just thought I'd share the cool news about my 500 mile mark with y'all... pretty neat :)

EPIC FAIL

This training sesh for the upcoming half marathong is so far from good...it's BAAAD... I just can't seem to find the motivation to get my ass in gear and run!! First, I complained about the horrible weather. Now that the weather is AMAZING, I still can't do it!! I've got no excuse, although, Monday did give me a reason to give up just a little bit.

Picture this:
I'm at work. I begin to walk a parent out the door and as I'm talking to her about her child, her kid decides to break outta this joint and bolt!! "(KID'S NAME)!!! STOP!!" Nope, he keeps going and actually looks back with a gigantic grin on his face. Sorry, kid, autism does NOT excuse you from this-- So I chase him down.

Of course as I'm reaching out to grab him by the shirt, I FLIPPING ROLL MY ANKLE!

The pain was REALLY weird. I think because I was with a parent and I didn't want to scream, I probably made a really weird face and grimaced as I felt like vomiting from the pain. The pain went from my foot into my stomach and made me feel nauseas. Weird, right?? The first thing I thought of was, "Is this what guys feel like when they get nailed in the nuts?" Boys always say that the pain from getting kicked in the grapes can be so bad it makes them vomit.... anyway...

So there I was, leaning on the closest railing and telling the kid that it's not okay to run away like that all while trying to keep from screaming at the frustration of tripping.

And I hear you laughing... yeah, YOU! I know I've tripped SO many times already, it's like, WTF?!

So anyway, I take Tuesday off, I take Wednesday off, and I decide to go for a run since I had the day off (Gracias, Cesar Chavez). I gear up, I head out and I begin to run...

I first told myself, "Okay, 10 miles... let's do it. No no, 10 mile SPRINT workout! Yeah!" So off I went... Well, about 3 miles into it, I get SOOOO tired. WHAT THE HELL... UGH... THIS BLOWS...

Eventually,  said, "F--- this SH--", and I turned around and just went back home. I ended up only logging in about 7 miles and now I feel like such a failure! I just hate saying that I'm going to do something and then fall short. With my day off today, I really wanted to seize the G D day!! Well let me tell you... I did NOT carpe the diem... NOT-AT-ALL...

So now I'm just hoping to find some motivation SOMEWHERE... My race is coming up at the end of April and I at least have to finish under 2 hours (now that I know I can do it!)

Depressing entry for today, but hopefully entertaining. That's it for now. I'm going to go stuff my face with sushi now...

What's Next, You Say??

Well fans, I'll tell you what's next: THE PARKWAY HALF MARATHONG

For many of you that have been such loyal followers, you have already read my first blog entry and you already know that the Parkway Half Marathong of 2010 was my FIRST ever distance event. This year, I have signed up for the 2011 Parkway Half  in recognition of the event that served as the catalyst in my journey as a distance runner. So, April 30, here I come!!

PR-ing in the Shamrock Half was a proud moment for me, because not only did I PR, but it was also under 2 hours, which was my ultimate goal. Now, for the Parkway Half, there's an even higher standard to hold myself to, but I'm just not quite sure I have the motivation for it right now. The weather SUCKS which is probably my number 1 reason I don't feel compelled to run so much anymore.

Here is Sacramento, the rain keeps on falling and the river is just about overflowing. A co-worker even told me there was a flood warning an the levy is just about cracking!!! I can only imagine... I won't be running the race, I'll be FLOATING the race. Anyone have a raft I can borrow? It's like Oregon Trail all over again: Caulk the wagon and ford the river before we lose the oxen!

It's not so much that I don't have the will power to run in the rain (because believe me, I DID that when I trained for the full marathong...18 miler!! MISERABLE!). I just hate the wet weather... does not make for a happy run.

Since my last half on March 13, I've run a total of 2 times.... SO LAME I KNOW!! My original plan was to train for this next race using sprint workouts instead of just solely running. So far, it's been an epic FAIL and I need some motivation to get going again... I just can't seem to find it.

Anyway, just wanted to make the announcement and let everyone know I've got a race in April!!! Let's hope I can get my ass in gear and train!!

PARKWAY HALF MARATHONG on APRIL 30 in SACRAMENTO, CA

THE SHAMROCK'N HALF MARATHONG 2011

OMG PEOPLE... SO MANY THINGS TO TALK ABOUT I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER THEM ALL. So many things that I'm going to quickly make a list of topics so I don't forget...

1. My toes
2. The bums
3. The mayor
4. The gas
5. The ending

So quick overview: I completed the race in 1 hour, 55 minutes, and 24 seconds. 1:55:24!!
I placed 882nd overall (out of over 5500 runners!) and I placed 52nd in my age group (out of 497 females between the ages of 25-29!)

Although I'm super proud of myself for achieving my goal, I don't know if I ever want to put that sort of pressure on myself again... it was HARD! My pace averaged out to an 8:49, so I was definitely proud of myself. I only walked through the last 3 water stations for some Powerade, but other than that, I was truckin'.

Okay, onto the good stuff....

1. MY TOES: So for those of you who don't know, I've managed to lose a total of 4 toe nails since my marathong in February. Yep, they just fell off. Well, more like, they were loosened by all of the running I've done and I myself pulled them off so they wouldn't catch on anything. Do you even KNOW how long it takes toe nails to grow back? These ain't no starfish arms you can just chop off and grow right back... these toe nails are GONE. Anway, after the race was over, my toe tips were in excruciating pain to say the least. I was so scared to take off my shoe for fear of gallons of blister blood that might just pour out of my shoe. Luckily, they weren't all bloody, but they hurt like a mother effer.

2. THE BUMS: Along the race course, we ran through the woodsy area along the American River. Among the spectators and supporting families, I thought it was awesome to see all of Sacramento's bums on the side of the road cheering us on. Some people don't know this, but bums have great things to say sometimes. The only downside to the bums was that my boss reported that she saw one taking a fatty dump near the race course. I guess they've got no where else?

3. THE MAYOR: I was well into mile 13, just wishing everyone would get the hell out of my way so I could just finish the damn thing when I see a bunch of dudes wearing these matching shirts. I thought to myself, "aw that's cute. a little man running group..." THEN I hear one of the side volunteers say, "WAY TO GO MAYOR JOHNSON!" It took about 10 seconds for me to put all the pieces together (I was running my brains out, what do you expect?!). All the "dudes" wearing matching shirts... the bodyguards! And in the dead center of the pack... MAYOR FREAKIN' JOHNSON!  (And by the way... totally passed him up)

4. THE GAS: OH LORDY THE GAS!! We're going to get gross here. If you'd like to skip to number 5, go right ahead, this ain't pretty. Anyway, I always make it a point to "drop the kids off at the pool" before ANY running event. It saves on time, and you just feel better when you're "empty" and you have to run 13.1 miles. So there I am, happily running in the crowd of people. I'm doing my own thing, breathing in the nice crisp Sunday morning air through my nose and mouth... ALL OF A SUDDEN a gust of warm, stale, FART AIR gets blown into my face! WTF! OMG! OMG! Was that what I think... was that... O.M.G. I HAD FART IN MY MOUTH. The worst part of it all.... I couldn't run away from it! Fart after fart after fart just kept happening!! I was in a mine field and no matter where I went, I just didn't know if I would be met with another stink bomb... SO GROSS. Thankfully, I was able to run off to the side and limit the amount of fart air that I came into contact with.

5. THE ENDING: So my plan for the last ending picture was to jump up into the air like I had won a million dollars. I wish I had the energy to do that during my full marathong, but no way could I have summoned that sort of energy. So I decided I'd try to do it today. Okay, so I am SPRINTING toward the finish line... and let me paint a picture for you: The finish line was ON Raley Field, so people could watch from the bleachers. There are about a gazillion fans out there watching people run, and there were a bunch of kids that were down in the first row of seats with their cute little hands all sticking out for high fives. I LOVE pretending that I'm famous, so I'm like, "FANS! I should be a good famous person and give them ALL high fives!" So off I went... high five! high five! high five! high five! etc... And before I knew it.... BAM! The camera was already in my face! WTF! I had no time to prep for my jumping into the air picture!!! I was too busy tending to my fans!! OH NO!! THE POSE! THE GLORIOUS POSE!! G-D IT!! I missed my moment... So now all I'm hoping for is that my end picture isn't me with a face that says, "OH NO! AH!"

Anyway, folks, that's it for today!! Another success in the world of T.Lee's running. WHAT THE HECK SHOULD I DO NEXT?!

My group!