Three weeks 'til Tough Mudder. Crazy. That's exactly what people are telling me I am. I am sort of letting that sink in and beginning to think that myself.
Despite the negativity I am being fed, thus far I am trudging on. This week has been particularly strong. I am beginning to see a difference in how far I've come in sessions compared to when I started at bodyco, or even just since this winter. I can now last through a whole class without feeling like i'm going to pass out or throw up and for the first time, asked Jody this week to give me all she had. If I was going to make the time to go to the gym and better myself I want to be all in during that time. I realized this week that many times I wasn't. I was moving through the motions, but mentally not there. Months ago, if I had the opportunity to cut corners, skip reps, or go light with weights I would do so without hesitation. In my mind, if was there, I was doing what I was supposed to. It wasn't until last week, when I really wanted to focus on TM training and another confirmation Wednesday morning that the light truly turned on.
I haven't been to many 5:30am classes lately (and in doing so these last 2 weeks i'm not sure how I did it on a consistent basis), but since going back have found that it is quite the packed place! Our workout Wednesday morning consisted of various 20 rep exercises (burpees, jump squats, stair runs, etc) with a lap around the plaza in between. About 1/4 of the way through the class it seemed as if one of the ladies was racing me. I figured I was crazy, and still being half asleep brushed it off, but by halfway through she had made it pretty clear. My competitive side turned on and it was game on! At one point I had a full lap on her, but she skipped one of the runs, doubled up on a rep and caught up. I was fired up, but again just stood in my own zone. The only person she had to answer to was herself and if that was going to make her feel better, then go for it. Our last exercise was 5 stair runs, then finishing with a lap. At this point she was behind me, so as long as I could out run her, I was good. After 4 runs, she headed out for the lap. At this point I was completely fired up, bolted up and down the stairs and sprinted outside. I was able to catch up to her at the final straightaway at which point she glared at me and took off. For a few quick seconds I debated on whether to empty my tank and blow ahead, but then thought- what if she really is not racing me...I always hate when people show off. Just finish as you would.
After panting my way back into the gym I wanted to say something, but realized that I used to do exactly that. If I was not being watched, i'd stop working out. If I was told to do 50 of something i'd end at 45. The only person I was cheating was myself, and I hated it. Deep down, I was (and sort of still am) scared to fail. I wanted to keep with the exercises I knew I could finish and excel at. If I even had a thought about not being able to complete it, I would go right into modification mode, stop halfway or just skip it all together.
She was in fact racing me, as she came up to me a few minutes later to let me know I kept her on her toes the whole class. She followed it up by saying the first person she wanted to keep up with ended up starting too fast for her, but I really did appreciate the challenge. I was in the zone for the entire 45 minutes and probably worked out harder in class that morning than I have in a class in a while. I promised myself that every time I walked into the gym I'd give 100%.
Walking into training on Friday, I feel like I did exactly that. I asked Jody to not let up on me. I wanted to go hard. And I wasn't going to half ass anything she gave me. I left there with a bit more confidence & maybe a bit of pride that I got through unscathed. We will see what the next three weeks bring, but i'm pretty certain that if I get my orange headband I will also shed a tear or two.
Saturday, May 16, 2015
Thursday, May 7, 2015
5k PR's x2!
Up until a few weeks ago I hadn't done any 5k races since last summer some time. At that time I was averaging about a 34-35 minute race time. Though I wasn't training consistently for them, I have since completed 5 half marathons from September to April and was looking forward to enjoying the shorter distance. I'm not sure if I was overzealous by not having to run for 13.1 miles, or just felt good on the Saturday of the BAA 5k, but was able to knock off a solid 5 minutes, completing the race in 29:34! I spent the first mile or so weaving around people, but once I got into a groove, didn't struggle until the final straightaway where I was beginning to lose steam. I wasn't paying attention to my watch, just letting my body move as it felt comfortable doing, and was super excited when I found to be under 30 minutes! :-)
Just when I thought I couldn't break that time, I went down to Disney last week and did just that. This race was far more painful to run than the BAA, not because the course was difficult, but because I need to start planning my vacation races with the race at the beginning, as opposed to the end...or be more diligent about not drinking before a race.
Going to Disney with Mike, a big part of the trip consisted of a lot of theme park adventures and drinking. Day drinking, night drinking, breakfast drinking (Mike, not I). Luckily Disney is so big that we were literally walking 8-10 miles a day, so "sort of" walked of some of the excess calories. With that came my Expedition Everest race struggle (which turned into a PR). Mike and I spent a portion of the day in Animal Kingdom, which in the past has been our "drink through the park" day. That day was sort of consistent with that and by race time I was four margaritas and a beer in. By the start I had thought I rehydrated well and was ready to race. The gun went off and I headed out full speed ahead. Caitlin lagged behind for a bit and yelled at me for starting too quick. We needed to back off if we were going to do well. By mile 2 she was flying and at that point I had lost all steam in the tank. I wasn't sure if I was going to vomit or pass out, but knew I needed it to be done. I was beginning to fall behind, but she kept pushing me and we crossed the 5k mark in 27:46! We had passed a good amount of people, so I knew we were in a good spot going into the scavenger hunt. We decided to take this part a little slower with the running at first, but it took us so long to figure out the first clue, that I was completely recovered and ready to continue running.
The scavenger hunt was pretty hard. I knew if we were going to do well in the total race, we needed to get ahead in the 5k, because I am terrible at puzzles. Our overall time ended up being 1:03:50, which is pretty crazy considering it took more than double to cover less than 2 miles when we completed 3.1 in 27:46. We still finished in 49th place out of 634 female teams, so was pretty psyched. It was a ton of fun though and so glad I got to participate with Cait. It was the last year of Expedition Everest and we got a pretty sweet medal that is actually a working compass. I can't find my way out of a paper bag, so that will not help me much, but it looks good on my wall. :-) They said they are making a "bigger and better" race to replace it, so I'm thinking Spartan! Who's coming with me?!?!? :-)
Side note- this was the first question/clue. I will buy you a coffee if you can tell me the answer to this question without googling it (I am a trust worthy person ;))... "You are climbing a mountain for 24 hours and wearing an analog watch. How many times will your watch display three of the same numbers in a row during that period not using military time?"
I have realized that I am not a fast runner, but a slow and steady consistent runner. My goal is to train all summer in an attempt to PR the Philly Half on Halloween (an extra bonus if I can also PR Virginia Beach Labor Day weekend), so I am hoping to do a few more 5k's to use as speed workouts. I have also learned that when running alone, I tend to go at a much slower pace, so hoping "competition" will do me good.
My next stop is Tough Mudder on June 6th at Mount Snow. To think I had 2.5 months to train, I really can't believe it is so close. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous, because I very much am terrified, but am looking forward to seeing how much of it I can actually do. I am really going to focus over the next month to get in whatever training I can. I have trail shoes and a camelback now, so really have no excuses to get out there and work. Shooting to get in about 3 classes and 1-2 trainings a week for the next several and see where that takes me. I feel like I am beginning to be able to do more lately than I could in the past (i.e. a whole set of assisted pull ups this week!) but still know I have a long way to go. With that, I'll be doing my work and updating soon!
Just when I thought I couldn't break that time, I went down to Disney last week and did just that. This race was far more painful to run than the BAA, not because the course was difficult, but because I need to start planning my vacation races with the race at the beginning, as opposed to the end...or be more diligent about not drinking before a race.
Going to Disney with Mike, a big part of the trip consisted of a lot of theme park adventures and drinking. Day drinking, night drinking, breakfast drinking (Mike, not I). Luckily Disney is so big that we were literally walking 8-10 miles a day, so "sort of" walked of some of the excess calories. With that came my Expedition Everest race struggle (which turned into a PR). Mike and I spent a portion of the day in Animal Kingdom, which in the past has been our "drink through the park" day. That day was sort of consistent with that and by race time I was four margaritas and a beer in. By the start I had thought I rehydrated well and was ready to race. The gun went off and I headed out full speed ahead. Caitlin lagged behind for a bit and yelled at me for starting too quick. We needed to back off if we were going to do well. By mile 2 she was flying and at that point I had lost all steam in the tank. I wasn't sure if I was going to vomit or pass out, but knew I needed it to be done. I was beginning to fall behind, but she kept pushing me and we crossed the 5k mark in 27:46! We had passed a good amount of people, so I knew we were in a good spot going into the scavenger hunt. We decided to take this part a little slower with the running at first, but it took us so long to figure out the first clue, that I was completely recovered and ready to continue running.
The scavenger hunt was pretty hard. I knew if we were going to do well in the total race, we needed to get ahead in the 5k, because I am terrible at puzzles. Our overall time ended up being 1:03:50, which is pretty crazy considering it took more than double to cover less than 2 miles when we completed 3.1 in 27:46. We still finished in 49th place out of 634 female teams, so was pretty psyched. It was a ton of fun though and so glad I got to participate with Cait. It was the last year of Expedition Everest and we got a pretty sweet medal that is actually a working compass. I can't find my way out of a paper bag, so that will not help me much, but it looks good on my wall. :-) They said they are making a "bigger and better" race to replace it, so I'm thinking Spartan! Who's coming with me?!?!? :-)
Side note- this was the first question/clue. I will buy you a coffee if you can tell me the answer to this question without googling it (I am a trust worthy person ;))... "You are climbing a mountain for 24 hours and wearing an analog watch. How many times will your watch display three of the same numbers in a row during that period not using military time?"
I have realized that I am not a fast runner, but a slow and steady consistent runner. My goal is to train all summer in an attempt to PR the Philly Half on Halloween (an extra bonus if I can also PR Virginia Beach Labor Day weekend), so I am hoping to do a few more 5k's to use as speed workouts. I have also learned that when running alone, I tend to go at a much slower pace, so hoping "competition" will do me good.
My next stop is Tough Mudder on June 6th at Mount Snow. To think I had 2.5 months to train, I really can't believe it is so close. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous, because I very much am terrified, but am looking forward to seeing how much of it I can actually do. I am really going to focus over the next month to get in whatever training I can. I have trail shoes and a camelback now, so really have no excuses to get out there and work. Shooting to get in about 3 classes and 1-2 trainings a week for the next several and see where that takes me. I feel like I am beginning to be able to do more lately than I could in the past (i.e. a whole set of assisted pull ups this week!) but still know I have a long way to go. With that, I'll be doing my work and updating soon!
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