Category Archives: General Reflection

Jan11

Race Plans, Boston Training, & Clean Eating

Posted on by
Standard

…For Boston Training that is!

I began my 16-week training plan for the Boston Marathon on December 27th.  It was a tough first week, as while I had been doing the RunStreak through Runners Soul all December, I really did not have the mileage (or speed…or skill) that I had last year at this time.  I had been taking it really easy the last two-three months (as I needed to) so getting back at it has been tough.  Those “Easy Paced Runs” aren’t feeling very easy, but I’m managing to hit my pace goals for each day so far.  This Saturday was my most impressive day, as I did 9.12 miles in 80 minutes in the nasty cold (-4F when I went out to start).

When I compare the data I have from last year’s training cycle for Vancouver to what I have so far for Boston, it is slightly frustrating as I was A LOT faster 365 days ago.  But, I was on a stretch of a bunch of races, and hadn’t taken a moment to slow down.  I took the time to slow down and BREATHE this fall, and have been managing with my foot bone-spur issue.  Will I be able to get to Vancouver 2015 shape by Boston?  Who knows.  But I do know I am going to Boston in April and I am going to finish that damn race and be happy no matter what my time is!

A better indicator for how Boston will go, time wise, will be the races leading up to it.  Other than my under-trained 5 km in November, I haven’t had a longer distance race since Labour Day weekend.  I have updated my race schedule for 2016 here.  There are quite a few unknowns, as two races I normally do (10 Mile Road Race & Rattler Run 10km) don’t have their registration up year, so I am not certain of the weekends.  I am also toying with the idea of doing the Calgary 50 km again (My husband and mom are going to yell at me when they read that).  That would in a way probably be my ‘last hurrah!’ before my foot surgery.  Or, if they schedule my foot surgery later in June or July, I would try to register for the coveted local race, LadiesFest, which is an 8km.  It is later this year than usual, as I am normally at ASAA Provincial Track & Field.  I have not done that race before!  Lets be honest, as long as my surgery isn’t until later in June, I’ll probably register for both…Might as well mess my foot up more before they cut it open!

As an unrelated (sorta?) thing….Dan (my husband) and I decided to not learn from our craziness in June 2014 and we embarked on the Buzzfeed Clean Eating Challenge yet again.  I wrote about it twice on this blog, once at the beginning and at the end.  The beginning post from the last adventure is here.  Why the hell are we putting ourselves through this again?  Well, we did learn some great recipes the first time, we did lose some weight, and we actually had fun (in between our angry bouts due to lack of booze, sugar and salty snacks).  We also somehow convinced our friends Peter & Mac to join in on this, and they are doing it too.  We will all celebrate with pizzas and beer once the shenanigans are over.  The timing for these two weeks have been carefully planned, as we needed it to be two weeks where neither of us are too overloaded with work, as this requires a lot of cooking and time.  We did a weigh-in on Saturday and started the challenge Sunday.  Dan is documenting most of the cooking with pictures and videos on his phone, which yesterday consisted of me almost peeing myself laughing at the sheer size of the meals we were creating.  And the volume of dishes.  Lots and lots of dishes to wash…….

clean eat table

How will this diet alter my ability while training??  Not sure.  When we did it the last time, I had just finished training for and running in the Calgary full marathon.  That marathon was the first attempt I made at qualifying for Boston, and I fell way short, running a 3:46.  I was in really good shape at the start of the diet, and the diet did really clean out any ‘bad’ I had going on.  But it did wreck havoc with my system a bit.  I had one race during the diet in 2014, Millarville Half Marathon, and I certainly did not feel the best when I was done.  I have some straightforward training runs the next two weeks with some basic speed work, so I should be OK.  Pushing through the long workouts while not ‘carbing up’ will be interesting, but I think this diet tying in to me getting back at it with my Boston training couldn’t come at a better time.  I will keep everyone posted on how it turns out in the end!  Until then, time to keep on running…Boston is less than 100 days away!!!!!!!!!!

Dec31

2015-Year in Review

Posted on by
Standard

What an amazing year in running for myself!  I started January 2015 off strong, as I had just came off a very productive 2014.  Injuries weren’t messing with me as of yet, my husband and I had just moved into our new house, work was going well, and I was motivated to train for my spring goal race of the BMO Vancouver Marathon.

January brought a quick trip to Temecula, California, during exam week, where I participated in the Spartan Super & Sprint with my BFF Ali.  February came and I decided it was a good idea to run The Hypothermic Half marathon in Calgary during a huge cold snap.  Good thing I did, as I ended up running what is now my personal best-1:35:41.  That race was crucial as a morale boost and proved to me that training and hard work does pay off.  Never did I think I could run in the 1:35s!  I also signed up for and participated in a virtual race; The Coaster Run.  Why did I choose this as my first virtual race?  Well, the actual race was held at Knotts Berry Farm in California and had a Peanuts theme!  I needed that Snoopy medal!

pic1

In March, I had the local Moonlight Run 10km.  I pushed myself to my limits there, running my best Moonlight time ever of a 43:47, earning me 1st in my age group.  I was very pleased with my training progress!  A local 5 km in Coaldale came in mid-April and I crushed my previous 5km time, running a 20:42, earning me first place female.  The following week, on the anniversary of my dad’s death, I ran in the Rattler Run 10km in Medicine Hat.  This was the pinnacle race at the peak of my training cycle for Vancouver.  I busted out a 41:30, good enough for 1st female overall!  So, I had bested my 5km, 10km and half marathon times all before my goal race even came.  Had I burned myself out?

pic2

I have written about it lots on this site, so I can just briefly mention the importance that the Vancouver Full Marathon was.  This was my third dedicated try at qualifying for the Boston Marathon, having failed in 2014 while running the Calgary and Edmonton Full Marathons.  This May, it all paid off.  The training, pushing, races, tears, and pain were worth it because I not only beat my qualifying standard of 3:35.00, but crushed it with a 3:24.56!  I would be going to Boston!

Dan & I headed to Montana for the Montana Spartan Beast, which completed what would be my first trifecta of the year.  I had plans on going for a double Trifecta later in September, so this was part of the process.  I also did the Calgary 50km Ultra during Marathon weekend at the end of May, which was my first ever 50km.  My 4:40.34 earn me 2nd in my category.  The first 5 months of 2015 were such a huge success, I felt unstoppable!

But then, my body was starting to feel it.  I took a bit of time off before doing the Alberta Summer Games in July, where I ran the 10km.  A sloppy 45:55 on a hot afternoon had me frustrated—I am way better than this.  It motivated me to push hard the rest of the summer as I trained to try and get a personal best at the Disneyland 10km in September.  Before that race, I had the Lethbridge Police Half Marathon at the end of August.  Here, I also had plans to shoot for my best time.  This was a huge slap in the face, as I went out too fast, started having stomach issues, and almost broke down.  I ended 3rd female overall, which is fantastic, but my body was breaking.  The 1:40.14 at the end of summer, in the midst of a forest fire smoke warning was respectable—but I was frustrated.

pic3

September was all about Disney & Spartan Races.  And being stressed with work.  But, I had to make it happen somehow.  I went to Disneyland over Labour Day weekend where I did complete my goal of placing in my category at the Disneyland 10km.  I wasn’t anywhere close to my goal time, but I ran a respectful 43:28.  Then the following day, I ran the half marathon with my BFF and helped her crush her personal best!  All while dressed as Mary Poppins!  It was my second Dumbo Double Dare Challenge, and it was a great one.  I had registered until the DDD, however, Ali hadn’t been able to and had to do the 10km and half as two separate race registrations.  Having a Dumbo medal from last year was enough for me-I passed my 2015 medal on to her.  She earned it by completing both races!

pic4

pic 6leaping to the finish

Spartan Races….the highs and the very lows.  I did the Hurricane Heat, Super and Sprint three days in a row in Red Deer.   I felt great during all three and was pumped for my Ultra Beast in Sun Peaks two weeks after.  I have a post about that here, and let me tell you….it was humbling.  I had my first ever DNF for a race, and I think I was over my head.  I could have crawled my way to the finish perhaps, but I was exhausted and fearing injury.  This was the time that the “bump” on my foot had been really bothering me.  As I ran by myself during the second loop for about an hour I was imaging hurting myself and not being able to do Boston.  I pulled myself out of the race, and a lot of tears followed.  While I can’t go back and change it, or say register just for the Beast, I don’t regret my decision. 

pic5

October brought the end of Cross Country season coaching and no races for myself.  Our team made us proud, and we sent five talented young women to Provincials in Grand Prairie, Alberta.  That is WAY north!  I took it easy, and took about 2-3 weeks off from running after the season ended mid October.  I started physio for my foot, and found out more about my x-rays.  Degenerative Arthritis and a bone spur in my right foot.  Surgery is in the works, for a time after Boston.  If something isn’t done to this soon, I run the risk of not being able to run down the road.  And I don’t want that!

pic7

November had me give it my all in the local Claus Cause 5km, only to then laugh at myself and realize how out of shape I was starting to feel.  A 22:04 would have been something I dreamed of two years ago, but now I knew I needed to keep recovering, but then get back to work.  The month of December brought the Runners Soul 4th Annual Run Streak, which I just completed today.  31 straight days of running at least 1 mile!  And this past Sunday I began my 16 week training for the 120th Boston Marathon.  My plan for Boston is to go in prepared, do my best, finish, and have fun in the process.  This is a once-in-a-lifetime race, something I have been striving towards for so long.  So, it is perfect that my 2015 ended with me doing day 5 of my Boston Training plan, as one year ago I had yet to start my Vancouver Marathon training….and Boston was just a distance dream away.

Cheers to everyone as they bring in the New Year!  Best wishes, happy thoughts, and enjoy every moment.  Je me souviens.

-Andrea

 

 

 

Dec13

Claus Cause 5km, foot issues, and getting back in the swing of things…

Posted on by
Standard

Long overdue for a post. Long overdue.  I have been meaning to do my Claus Cause 5km recap for a few weekends, but never got around to it. Also wanted to touch on some of the other running-related things going on with me.

On Saturday, November 21st, I ran in the Runner’s Soul Claus Cause 5km. This is now the third year in a row doing this event, but the first time doing the 10km. I knew I wouldn’t be in 10km racing form by this time, so I was playing it smart picking the 5km. Thing is, I wasn’t in any distance racing form…and while I knew this in the back of my head, it wouldn’t be clear to me until after this race.

The weather was the nicest for any Claus Cause I’ve been a part of. With a 9 am start, I was able to get a normal amount of sleep and get down to Indian Battle Park with plenty of time. I lined up at the front next to my friend Bob all set to go. To say I was a bit anxious is an understatement-I went out with a ridiculous pace that there was no hope in holding. It had been a long time since doing a road race (Disneyland half marathon was my last traditional race, and that was Labour Day weekend) so I had a lot of pent up energy. When my first mile clocked in at 6:34, I actually think I started laughing, as this was my goal pace I tried training for all summer for the Disneyland 10km. My ass was burning, my legs were already yelling obscenities at me….this was not going to be a pretty two miles to follow.

I won’t even go in to detail, but my second mile slowed to a 7:14, and third even slower to a 7:22. Maybe if I hadn’t been so stubborn I could have gone out with an even 7 minute mile and hold that comfortably for the whole race. But no, I decided to take my out of shape self to the limit and feel like crap. I finished with a time of 22:04; a time I would have been really excited about a year ago. In April, I ran a 20:42 in the Coaldale 5km. But, that was at the peak of my BMO Vancouver a marathon training. I was in the best shape of my life, so for me to go out there at the Claus Cause and expect anything even close to that was asinine.

My 22:04 was good enough for 2nd female overall and 2nd in my age group. I hung around for a bit chatting with people, and when I got home I immediately felt like garbage. My body ached, I was sneezing, sniffling and had the chills. I took a shower and then bundled up in sweats, curled in a ball, and was a complete pile of shit the rest of the day. You would have thought I had just completed a full marathon.

What have I learned from this? That I am out of shape. But…I knew that. I had been taking it really easy since my Spartan Ultra Beast, and been just getting back into daily cardio. My body needed the rest this fall, as I pushed it to the limits earlier this year. I am now dealing with trying to handle my foot issues-a bone spur is prominently taking over my right foot, and surgery is tentatively being looked at for in June. It hurts on a daily basis. I also had a Gait-Analysis completed at FIT Physiotherapy, and had some startling results. The main issue is that my gait is considered a “cross-over gait.” I am working at trying to correct this slowly, also while using my custom orthotics. I have a lot to work on as I start getting ready to begin my Boston Marathon training (which will start the last week in December.)

One very positive thing that has happened since the 5km blunders and foot/gait issues is that I have been streaking since December 1st....Our local store Runner’s Soul has their annual RunStreak going on. You just need to run at least a mile a day, every day in December. If you do, you submit your run each day to their Facebook page to get entered in for a daily prize. I have done that mile a day, and many other days have gone farther. Friday, I went for a solid 4 mile run and felt great. Getting my cardio back up to a basic level has been my goal this whole month, as when I start following my training plan I will need to be set to push. This RunStreak has gotten me excited and motivated to get back at consistent training, with my training ending at the race of my life, The 120th Boston Marathon.

I hope to do one more post before the end of 2015. So keep a watch out for that. I need to do a reflection on the year-what was good, bad and ugly. Thanks for reading!

Oct18

Disneyland 10km Recap (Better late than never…)

Posted on by
Standard

I’m sitting in the basement at 8:30 pm aimlessly switching between HGTV and the Sunday Night Football game. This is a first since August. School has been so busy that I have fallen behind on my posts. I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon and 10km back over Labour Day weekend…yes, first week in September…and haven’t written the recap yet. Well, it won’t be as long and glamorous of a recap as usual, but I’m getting it done tonight!

image
I went out to California Labour Day weekend of 2015, much as I had the year prior. I was going to do the RunDisney DumboDouble Dare Challenge. My BFF lives in Redondo Beach, so accommodations are easy! I booked the direct flight from Calgary on Thursday evening of the weekend knowing I’d be back before work started again on Thursday….but, oops. Misread the school calendar. While I knew I’d be taking a day off of teaching on the Friday, I thought it was just a work day (year prior classes hadn’t started yet). But I would miss a teaching day. And I hate missing teaching days. Especially since we only would have had one regular class day before I bailed. But I had the days planned to use, so it was what it was, and I went on my way.

image
Now, as a RunDisney veteran (so to speak) I knew what to expect with this weekend. I knew the lay of the land. But this weekend was different as my goal was to place in my age group in the 10km, beat my personal best of 41:30 in the race, and help my BFF crush her half marathon personal best.

image
Summer training went alright…but I was burnt out. I spoke in previous posts that I was feeling the burn and needed to rest. But with this 10km goal I didn’t want to stop. 10km race day came and I was anxious. And warm. It was by no means hot in Anaheim this particular weekend but the air is just different than Alberta and I was feeling clammy. I also had just had a sub par performance at a local Lethbridge half the weekend prior, that while placing and winning prize money, I had felt like garbage with stomach issues. I was nervous this would happen again.

image
Racing Disney races with a goal time in mind is so different than just doing them for fun. If you do them for a goal with the first corral you are in the DARK the whole race. I mean, it starts at 5:30 AM after all. I began with a dead on split at mile one of 6:31. If I held this I could well beat my goal. But my legs were already feeling a bit woozy and my body warm, so as I entered California Adventure I slowed to a 6:48 for mile 2.

imageNow, note…I am writing this recap a month and a half after the fact. I cannot remember the details but I knew I was counting women in front of me from the very start and trying to peg if they were my 30-34 age group. I just wanted to be top 3 in that.  

Between mile 3 and 4 I was still trucking along but slowing. A lot. And I was getting frustrated. I had been at an extreme level for myself in April when I ran my 41:30 and felt like I should be able to match that here…low elevation, happiest place on earth….but as I ran down Main Street, through Tomorrowland, around Small World and through the back stage, I slowed to a 6:51 and 7:00. Damnit. What is going on? I had had mile repeat workouts at 6 am this summer that were fastest than this. I was running at “my happy place” but not happy.


I knew I was still in an OK position to hopefully place in my age group. I pushed on what I could for the last two miles. I got really scared as one woman passed me with about 800 left because she looked my age and I wasn’t sure how that would make the results look. Miles 5 and 6 were 7:23 and 7:18. I finished with an official time of 43:28. I was mad. Frustrated. I felt like I was better than this.  

image image imageIn the end, this was good enough for 3rd out of 1046 in my age group. Yeah, I realize how that sounds, and now it looks like I’m looking for a pity party….but while I reached my goal of placing in a RunDisney event, I didn’t do it to the caliber I know I am capable of. Maybe I have now set myself into a bad spot, as I spent the first six months of 2015 breaking my own personal bests and thus, maybe I think I can keep up with that?

image
Second week of October I received the email from RunDisney verifying my address and where to send my age group award. And this weekend I just finished coaching five amazing grade 12 runners at Alberta Cross Country Provincials. These things put it in perspective. 1.) I did reach a goal. I set a goal to place in my age group at a RunDisney event. And I did. 2.) All weekend I told my girls to go out and run the best race they could. That every day is different. That every course is different. And that just because they ran a certain time on a 4km course in Medicine Hat, Alberta, didn’t mean they could get that or beat that, or beat the same girls for that matter, while running on a new course in Grand Prairie, Alberta.

image
Every race is different. Some don’t turn out exactly how you hope, but that’s why I just keep running. After being around all these amazing young athletes this weekend, I realize how stupid I was to get mad that I didn’t get my time goal. Getting a personal best isn’t going to happen every race you run; I realize that. But I had a convoluted idea in my mind that while in Disneyland, anything can happen. I’ll just have to set that time goal off to the side burner for now, with the heat on simmer, and I’ll stir it occasionally until it’s time to taste it.  

image

Sep4

My Best Friend 

Posted on by
Standard

I’m flying to Los Angeles for the second time this year. And for the third time in a rolling calendar year. I used to go to LA to visit Ali while she was out on summer program at USC, and then while she was there doing her masters and after. That would be maybe once a year…sometimes summer, sometimes college breaks. I’d go and visit, and we would attempt to go to Price Is Right (which we got into while Bob Barker was still host, but not never called to “Come on Down!”!), drive to Tijuana, Mexico (before it was basically a ‘do not enter zone’ as it is now), or go to Conan O’Brian tapings. But now, I apparently go for racing. And not just for myself.   
  
It’s only been the last year that Ali has started doing road running races. She did her first ever 5km in Independence, Iowa, in August 2014. Don’t know Indee? Yeah, unless you’re an Isham, you don’t know Indee. There’s an Insane Asylum museum there you can go on a tour at…We have pictures in straight jackets. There’s also a lot of corn and Dollar General stores we used to ride a two-person bike to when visiting her grandparents in the summer. Anyway, Ali did her first ever Spartan Race later that same month of August when she came to visit me in Lethbridge, Alberta….the other LA. We drove the two hours to Calgary one Saturday morning to compete in the Spartan Sprint. She has admitted it being one of the hardest fucking things ever. She could have stopped trying after taking 1 hour and 44 minutes to finish a 5 km obstacle race.  

  
But she hasn’t.  
This girl has always hated running. I’m serious. While she was a competitive swimmer growing up, she would loathe dry land practices. I do remember once having her go on a run with me when we were both in Franklin and she did a 2 mile loop on the bike trail and hated her life. The fact she went back at it after having such a hatred for it so many years later is admirable.
Ali has found a love and healthy addiction to Crossfit. Crossfit works for her. It motivates her. She is focused. She has caught on to healthy habits and lost a shit ton of weight the healthy way. She has achieved so much since being part of it. And she keeps pushing herself. She has now, since that 5km, run numerous other 5 km and also 10 km races. She is hooked on Spartan Races (she even bought a damn spear to practice throwing) and the Rock N Roll series of races. She has become a “bling addict.” Last year at this time I was flying down to run her first ever 10km race with her in Disneyland. We ran it together in a 1:27. This past May she ran the TinkerBell 10km in 1:04.  

  
So this weekend I head to LA not for Tijuana or late night shows. I’m going to run the Disneyland Half with my best friend. I’m going to push her towards her goal time, and we are going to have a great time doing it. She may hate me partway through (I can already picture the look of death at mile 10) but I’m there for her. I’m always there for my best friend.

  
Lanikai 

Aug26

…And that was Summer 2015

Posted on by
Standard

Tomorrow is the first day back to work for us teachers in the Lethbridge School District.  So, farewell summer—it’s been nice knowing you. The first couple days will be a lot of the general small talk of “How was your summer?  Do anything fun?!?” And I personally have had people already ask me, or more so say to me, “You must have run a lot Andrea?”

I did run.  I did my one race of the Summer Alberta Summer Games, but I trained a ton.  Followed a training plan from my coach Dean Johnson pretty well, which was meant to keep me on track and work toward the goal of a 40:30 10km personal best while running the Disneyland 10km, which is coming up this Labour Day weekend.  I also have the Lethbridge Police Half this weekend, which I hope to run my best time at!  We have been having Air Quality Warnings in Southern Alberta the past few days, due to wildfires in Washington state.  Hope it clears up!  I also have in two weeks the time Red Deer Spartan Super and Sprint….and also the Hurriciane Heat!  I have never done the special Hurricane Heat before in all the Spartan Races I’ve done before, so this will be a first!  If you don’t know what one is, you’ll have to wait for my recap!  And rounding out September is my Spartan 2015 grand finale—Sun Peaks Ultra Beast.  26.2 miles of Spartan hell. 

So I am excited for the school year to start because I have some great races ahead!  And not just that; I do love my job.  It is my sixth year in the district and I’ve been at the same school the whole time.  It’s great looking at your class list and seeing familiar names year to year, and it’s also great having courses you’ve taught before.  I have gotten the opportunity to be involved in our schools IB (International Baccalaureate) program over the past year, so that’s always a great challenge.  And today, while we didn’t have to report to “the office” officially, I went in to do a couple hours of housekeeping items.  And I even decided to get to work the best way I know how-I ran.  So long Summer 2015, and hello new school year!
 

Hanging out at my desk after running to work!

 

Jun21

This is Supposed to be Easy……

Posted on by
Standard

I have hit a roadblock.

After the Vancouver Marathon on May 3rd, I still kept up with my training for that month, as I had the Spartan Montana Beast and the Calgary 50km Ultra. I mustered through those (pretty decently too) and forced myself to take a solid 15 days off. No running at all. My body needed some recovery time. Near the end of that rest period, I contacted Dean Johnson and asked him to make me a summer training plan, with my end goal being to get a sub 41 minute 10km at the Disneyland 10km Labour Day weekend. Training for a 10km…easy enough, right?


Well, last week Tuesday I started the plan. My first run went well, although I may have pushed myself a bit too much. On Wednesday, I was really sore and my hip flexors were in pain, but I did an awesome hill workout. Thursday, though, it started to fall apart. I opted to take off on Thursday (could take off or do 40-60 minutes easy) as I thought I would feel better come Friday. I went out to attempt my Friday run of 60-70 minutes at easy pace. Mistake 1 was doing this at noon. Holy hell it felt like hell. The heat is not my friend. Mistake 2 was trying for the lower end of the pace goal (8:15 minute miles). I should have aimed for 8:45 from the get go. I held it together the first 4 miles, but by mile 5 I had an 8:58. Then I self destructed and ran a 9:43 for mile 6. I ended up running 6.68 miles in 60 minutes and felt like garbage. This weekend, I skipped my 90-105 minute long run and took off both days. I am not even a week into this plan and I am already sliding.

The plan was supposed to help motivate me to achieve my goal of a personal best 10km time. But right now, I’m in such a weird place and having a hard time getting back in to running. Maybe it was the 16 weeks of intense marathon training this winter and spring that just has me burned out. I mean, it probably is. I guess I just thought getting back in to a rhythm would be easy, as I had such a successful first 5 months of 2015. I got my best 5km, 10km, half and full marathon times in that time frame, and I also ran my first ever 50km. I have been on Cloud 9 and flying high! But now, it’s month 6, and I am a proverbial pile of shit.
If this summer is going to be successful “running-wise” I need to get out of this funk and back in the game. I need to start establishing a routine again. Having the framework of one, with my training plan, clearly isn’t enough. I need to be getting up before work to do my runs, as if I wait until after it is too hot out. And if I run when it’s the afternoon sun blazing down, I get crabby. And frustrated. And even after this last week of school, I need to be setting an alarm each morning so I am up and have a normal breakfast and out the door doing my run by at least 9 am. If I can get into this consistency, the rest should fall in to place.

“…there are no shortcuts or paths of least-resistance on the road to reaching something worthwhile.”-Dean Karnazes “Run!”

May7

Vancouver Marathon Race Recap Part 1….Before the Big Event

Posted on by
Standard

I registered for the BMO Vancouver Marathon back in about November.  I was feeling really frustrated and defeated after my summer marathons (Calgary & Edmonton) as I didn’t come close to qualifying for Boston.  I ran 3:46.22 and 3:44.59, respectively, at both of these events….well off the qualifying standard of 3:35.00.  So when I decided to give my Boston qualifying attempt one more shot, I wanted to pick a race I hadn’t done before.  And a race that was known for being a good course for qualifying.  It was suggested to me by many people that Vancouver was the course for me.  Sea level, rolling downhills, late Spring, spectator support, large city….I registered, booked a flight, and started thinking about my training.

flat andrea

I have mentioned before I had Dean Johnson create a training calendar for me.  It was a 16 week training plan, which he took into account my previous fitness achievements and levels.  Each day had set paces I needed to achieve and unique workouts.  Dean went above and beyond and updated my training plan to reflect the success I was having in half marathon and 10 km distances in late winter/early spring.  This training plan held me accountable, as I kept a log of how each workout went in a Google Doc, and it really pushed me above and beyond what I thought I was capable of. 1

So here comes May 1st.  The day I travel to Vancouver.  I was nervous, anxious, excited, scared….basically a pile of emotions.  I had been training specifically for this event for 16 weeks, but as I drove to the Calgary airport, it occurred to me that I really have been training for this since my first half marathon in May 2004.  I wrote about that half marathon here, as it was a race I ran in a daze….it was less than a week after my dad passed away unexpectantly from a heart attack.  I have been running long distances ever since.

2

So this race was important.  I have been committed to running long distances for now over 11 years.  Some years were low, some have been high.  The past two years have been a steady high, with breaking personal records, getting podium at local races, and feeling like I am in the best shape of my life.  It was also low when I didn’t get that coveted Boston qualifying time.  I was out on this run to prove to myself I was worthy of running in Boston.

3

4

The expo was held in Downtown Vancouver at the convention centre next to the Olympic torch.  I had stayed with my good friends Alex & Tim in Burnaby the night before, and they were nice enough to drop me off down at my hotel for the night, which was near the expo.  This hotel wasn’t originally in the plans, but my cousin Erin is too nice and booked me a room.  She would be staying there too!  I wandered over to the expo, and this is when I first started getting the chills….the expo was right on the water, it was a gorgeous, crisp and clear day, and the energy was high.  Packet pickup was extremely fast, and before I knew it I was on the merchandise floor.  There were not tons of vendors, but enough things to look at.  I bought a Run Van tanktop, which I know I will wear lots in the summer, and some more Nuun tabs from their vendor table.  Included in our race package (which was a drawstring backpack) was a commemorative shirt (which I really liked….a short-sleeved charcoal grey tech shirt), our race bib, and a transit ticket for the race morning.

expo goodiesbibexpo booth

I ended up going back to the hotel to nap in the afternoon, as I didn’t sleep well the night before and was a bit worn from all my travelling.  Actually, before the nap I ordered pasta for lunch via room service.  Eating that in bed while watching HGTV was fantastic.  I was wide awake then when Erin and her friend Rob were ready to go get food for supper.  We went to this sweet market nearby and bought sandwiches and salads, headed to Stanley Park, and had a picnic.  The weather was gorgeous and this was a very relaxing way to spend the evening.  We were back at the hotel somewhere around 7:30, which gave me tons of time to wind down and get prepared for the big event in the morning.  I even was able to head to bed by 10 pm and slept great!  Now I just needed the following Sunday to be the best run of my life……

dinnerdinner viewrelaxing

Mar29

Digital Running “Time of the Season” Challenge

Posted on by
Standard

When I was training for the 2014 Dopey Challenge in Walt Disney World, I was introduced to Digital Running.  The website offers a place for other runners to meet and participate in team relays, share information, training plans, and more.  You can also register and participate in online challenges.  In 2013, I registered for the Hat Trick and Grand Slam Challenge, which were completed at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend where I ran a 5km, 10km, half marathon and full marathon.  I also registered for the Interstate Challenge where I needed to complete an event in both Canada and USA.  

   

 

Since I am a bling addict, I registered in March 2014 for the “Time of the Season” challenge.  For a full year, I needed to log an event of 5km or longer, at least one per month.  Each event would be verified, and once I completed three months in a row, I would earn a pie piece towards a giant medal.

Tricky part was finding a chip-timed event nearby once the weather got cold.  I could not find a chip-timed event in December, only local fun run 5km events.  I still did those events (Santa Shuffle and Resolution Run 5km) but they wouldn’t be officially counted.  Luckily, a one-time “free pass” was issued if you couldn’t get a timed event in.

  

My final event for this challenge was the Hyptothermic Half in Calgary, Alberta.  It was tough to find a February event in Alberta, but I am glad I did as this event was where I ran my 1:35 half personal best!  Soon, after logging this event on my member page, the final piece of my “medal” came.

  

Virtual races and challenges aren’t something I always sign up for, and they aren’t for everyone.  But when I found something fun like this, which encouraged me to compete in events each month for a full year, I couldn’t pass it up!  

 

Mar22

Weekly Recap-6 Weeks to Go

Posted on by
Standard

i headed into this week of training a bit nervous, as I had been sick the week before.  I really wanted this week to go well, as I needed my confidence in my ability to run a 3:30 full marathon to be strong again.  Here’s how the week went:

Sunday

My first run in three days.  It was a 55 minute run in the coulees and felt awesome.  I was still a tad sick so I was very pleased.

Monday

5.5 miles in 46:25.  8:15, 8:35, 8:35, 8:40 and 8:19. Did my last half mile in 3:58.  Was feeling great!

Tuesday

Fartleks training today.  Did 15 of 1 minute hard and 1 minute jog.  Got 3.92 miles in and felt solid.  I had been having a stressful couple days at work so this was a great feeling. 

Wednesday

I didn’t follow Wednesday training plans exactly as I run with my track kids.   This was a great workout nonetheless, as I got the kids to do a speed workout at Chinook Lake and then I finished it with my own 3 miles at my newly prescribed pace (Coach redid my pace ranges on Tuesday night since I have been doing a lot better in races this year).  Totaled 7.64 miles over a total time of 65 minutes.

Thursday

An epic speed workout!  I was nervous as my new pace times had me needing to run 3-5 miles of intervals in 6:54-7:10 per mile.  I really didn’t know if I could do this alone, so my friend Bob joined me.  We did a mile warmup and then busted out 3 miles of intervals.   6:57, 7:02 and 7:00!  I was ecstatic!  

Friday

Rest!  

Saturday 

The week was going great, and today was the icing on the cake.  Did a 16 miler with the last six miles at my marathon goal pace.  Did the first 10 all within my easy pace requirements, and then the last six came in.  I was starting to get mentally beat and was nervous I wouldn’t be able to get pace.   But I overcame and did it.  Ran my last 6 in 8:04, 8:03, 7:57, 7:47, 7:49, and 7:54.   My goal pace is 8:00 so this was fantastic!  I ran all 16 miles in a total time of 2 hours and 12 minutes.  And most importantly, I felt strong at the finish.

I have six weeks left until I put it all out there in Vancouver and attempt my Boston Qualifying run.  I am feeling stronger and faster than ever before.  I cannot wait to!