24 weeks pregnant= 16 week training plan!?!

After a hiatus from blogging about fitness, running, and wellness goals, I am tempted to get back on course (pun intended) as I have been feeling lonely and pregnant out here in the blog-sphere of fit mom blogs.  Where are the pregnant ladies who are trying their darnedest to stay fit while their middles grow?  If you are out there, let it be known!  Additionally, I need to power myself through the fog that is February in Minnesota + pregnancy, and writing about positive choices helps me to stay upbeat and motivated.  

To backtrack a bit, my first trimester closely matched that of my first pregnancy.  I felt great until about week 8 and then terrible until about week 13.  During the five weeks of nausea and exhaustion, I cut myself slack and set a goal to simply move my body in some way, shape, or form almost every day.  Around Thanksgiving, I began feeling energized again and slowly worked back up to seven miles of running.  On Thanksgiving morning, my mom and I participated in the local turkey trot around Lake Harriet.  Mom ran the 5k, and I finished the 10k in just under an hour, with faster splits in the second 5k.  The weather was totally gross with sleet and wind, but I finished with a big smile on my face.

As the sidewalks became icy, I switched to treadmill running.  Unfortunately, the more miles I logged on the treadmill, the more my lower right back pain flared up.  Martin Luther King's day brought piercing pain from just ordinary movement.  It was a major reality check.  I had been ignoring the pain and now I couldn't even get out of the car.  Thanks to a friend's recommendation and good timing, I found a chiropractor specializing in maternity care.  I had my first appointment on MLK day, and I am now hooked.  The adjustments she made worked wonders, and I began to feel like my old self a few days later.

That said, I have been hesitant to get back into running.  I can help but think that the treadmill running had a big role in the pain.  My body has never responded well to consistent treadmill running, especially when I compare treadmill running to trails and roads.  I also want to give my hips and lower back some time to heal after the adjustments.  

So, it is time to rethink fitness during pregnancy.  One thing that I've learned is that it does not make sense to set long term goals- beyond the goal of listening to my body every day and responding accordingly.  If I really listened to my body, I think it would tell me to be active in some capacity on a daily basis.  The mode of movement and the degree of rigor, however, would vary.  Since my wake up call in January, I have been trying to listen to my body more closely.  It is a challenge because the competitor in me wants to perform and my winter blues need the endorphins badly.  

In some respects, fitness during pregnancy is a mind game.  Some days, I take the micro approach- What is going to feel good right now?  One hour of exercise=12 hours of a better attitude.  Other days, I think macro: What can I do today that will help me get back into shape faster post-pregnancy?  How can I stay healthy now so that I can run this summer?  

Last week, I hit the pool three times and I felt great after each workout.  This week, after two missed workouts and overeating on Monday and Tuesday, I managed to get myself back to the gym with the promise that I could use the elliptical (something about getting in a bathing suit turned me off!).  I think I am ready to get back in the pool tomorrow morning though.  Today, I did 45 minutes on the elliptical, listening to Caroline Smith and reading runner's world.  I worked up a little sweat and definitely felt better than I would've if I hadn't worked out.  We'll see what tomorrow brings!

Oh, and one more thing, I was joking with the blog title.  I am obviously not going to make a true training plan for the next 16 weeks, but I do think it is a clever way of thinking about pregnancy and birth from this point on.  I am not going to get any fitter or any faster, but I think I can develop some skills and life/body insight as I approach the race (otherwise known as labor and birth!).  I will use this blog to chronicle this 16 week race journey.

TC 10 mile Race Report: October 6, 2013

Waiting for the start.  All the photos in this post are credit of my running buddy, Rose.

Pre-race smiles in the middle of the pack.

Morning sunlight pouring down Summit Ave.

Another late race report following another satisfying race!  To my good fortune, I was selected to run in the TC 10 mile, the little sister race to the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon.  Runners are chosen through a lottery system for the TC 10 mile so I always feel pretty lucky when my number gets pulled!
This year, I started the race with a speedy running buddy of mine (and talented photographer as you can see from this photos!).  After a summer of hardcore hiking and training, Rose was ready to PR.  I didn't know what to expect although I hoped to beat my time from Women Run The Cities 10 mile race without overdoing it.  (I still had a half marathon trail race and the Monster Dash Half marathon ahead of me!)
Some of the most memorable moments of this race were before we even arrived at the start line.  The TC 10 mile starts at a very early 7 am in order to clear the line and set up for the marathon's 8 am start.  This is pretty early for a road race, and too early to expect a ride from my dear husband (especially with a six month old to tote along!).  So, Rose (who is an avid biker and major fan of public transportation) encouraged me to rent a "Nice Ride" and bike with her to the Metrodome (which I mistakenly call the "metronome" almost exclusively).  Even though I had never rode a "Nice Ride" before, I thought, "Well, why not!?  It's a good warm up!"
So, with the sky still full of stars, I headed to the nearest nice ride station.  Trouble was...the station wasn't where I remembered.  After a little run up and down Lake Street, I finally found a station, hopped on a bike, and headed to the greenway to meet my buddy.  I could see her light flashing in the distance so I started singing the flying monkey song from Wizard of Oz as I headed towards her.  It felt very surreal!
We arrived at the start line with plenty of time to spare (and just enough time to make it through port-a-pot line...the setting of a second funny pre-race moment...a huge suburban attempted to get out of a parking structure blocked by runners waiting for the port-a-pot...and those runners weren't moving for fear of losing their place in line!  I don't think the driver was prepared for such a hold up!)

At last, the horn sounded, and Rose and I cruised through the first few miles together.  At around mile three, we spotted her husband on the top of the Franklin Bridge.  We waved and yelled at him but he missed us.  Luckily, we ran up the ramp to the bridge itself and caught his attention thanks to Rose's impressive amplification of his last name.  He waved at us and then headed (according to Rose) back to bed.  After crossing Franklin Bridge, I checked in with myself and decided I better pick up the pace if I wanted to PR.  I knew I had more speed in me than I was exerting so I might as well give it a try.  I wished Rose luck and powered on.

The next few miles, I listened to music, tried to catch fit women, and focused on the next mile marker.  Strong.  Steady.  Relaxed.  I told myself.  I breathed, and moved between phases of feeling tired and heavy legged to phases of relaxed strength.  That's the thing with running distance races- I find that the tired phases don't necessarily last the whole race; I just need to hold tight and the tiredness cycles into a steady run again.  Refusing to look at my Garmin, I ran by effort, a strategy that's worked well for me in the past.

As I passed the Cathedral and headed downhill to the Capitol, I saw Mike and Misha waving from the sidelines!  I crossed the finish line and immediately checked my watch- a new 10 mile PR! Mike, Misha and I found each other and headed to the capitol steps to meet Rose.  Not long after, she strolled our direction with a big smile on her face- a PR too!  We were happy campers!

Race Report: Women Run The Cities 10 Mile

I am going to keep this race report brief as it is already overdue and I am running another 10 mile race this Sunday!

I signed up for Women Run The Cities for four reasons.
1. One of my favorite local trail races, the surley loppet half marathon, was already full.
2. I love all female events.
3. The start and finish line is only two miles from my house (perfect distance for an easy warm up).
4. Breaking up a training cycle with local distance races keeps me motivated.

I didn't have a concrete race plan, but I approached the race as a training run.  This means no PR-ing (unless I feel downright incredible and a PR pace feels like floating on air which is highly unlikely).  That said, I wanted to feel tired at the end of the race to mimic the fatigue I should feel during the last stretches of a goal race.  To accomplish this, I left home extra earlier and jogged over to the start line, a nice and easy two mile warm up.  I always love running and biking through the neighborhoods early in the morning.  There is something so peaceful about households waking up, turning on the coffee, and taking in the brisk autumn air as they go out to collect the paper.

Oh right...I said this report was going to brief.  Oh dear.

I wore my garmin but I decided to run by feel and resisted looking at my pace.  I took the first few miles nice and easy (by the time the race started, I had cooled down from my "warm up" so I had to warm up all over again...ah, the benefits of old age).  I passed a few pace groups but I resisted checking out the pace.  I just wanted to listen to my body.  Coming up to the turn around beneath the overpass (around mile 4), I saw a running friend of mine on the other side.  I decided I would catch up to her and stick with her for a while so I wouldn't be pressured into pushing my pace.  This was a good goal since I would have to tackle a long gradual hill in order to reach her.  It gave me something to think about!  I caught up to my friend and paced her through mile 8.5.  It was wonderful to catch up because she is something like a running mom mentor.  She is just turned 50 and she is in great shape!  We talked runner mom philosophy and then parted ways so I could kick it in a bit during the last mile and half.

I felt pretty strong as I was cruising toward the finish.  There were a couple other women striding in so I tried to stick with them.  It helped to remind myself that I ran a speedy 5k at the end of triathlon only a month or so before so I had a kick in me.

Race results: 18/108 in my division.

Not a PR- but that's a good thing.  :)

YWCA Women's Triathlon Race Report- 8/18/13

Preface: I wanted to write this race report while it was all still fresh, but with a four month old and my return to work, this post quickly dropped its priority status.  Luckily, I jotted down some key memories immediately after the race to stimulate my writing later.  Those anecdotes are included here!

***

Almost two weeks ago, I crossed the YWCA Women's Sprint Triathlon finish line for third year in a row.  As I raised my hands in the air, the announcer cheered me on, "Molly of Minneapolis- This is her first triathlon post baby Misha!  She just had a baby and triathlon!"

This shot truly captures the thrill of the finish line.  

Last year, Misha completed the race with me and my mom in the "buddy heat."  Only a few weeks pregnant, I kept my mom company as she worked her way through her first 500 yard open water swim, 15 mile bike ride, and 5k run.  This year, we signed up as a "mother-daughter team" with each of us competing in our own age group.

Posing for a post race mother-daughter team photo...with grandson/son Misha Man!  Still in his pajamas...

After a summer of moderate training to regain fitness postpartum, I approached this tri with a range of goals.  First, I hoped my overall time matched or approached my 2011 finishing time. Second, I wanted to beat my times in each of the events including the transitions.  And third, I hoped to place in the top ten of the women of my age group.  These seem like big goals even in hindsight, but I also told myself that if it wasn't my day, no big deal.  I would just go with the flow and blame a slow race on a recovering post-baby body.  For some, this kind of self talk might have provided an excuse for wimping out on race day.  But during my years of training, I've discovered that giving myself permission to "go with the flow" works well as a pre-race calming mechanism. Then, most of the time, my competitiveness kicks in when I need it to.  This is part of the mental game.

The morning of the tri, my whole family woke up in darkness- Mike, Misha, mom, dad, and me.  Misha didn't really know what was going on and fell back asleep in the midst of the excitement.  The rest of us ate bagels with peanut butter and bananas and I chugged a cup of coffee before hitting the road.

Misha waiting for his mom to cross the finish line.

Before I get into the race details, I must acknowledge my SUPPORT CREW!  I could not have done the tri without my husband and my dad!  They were such troopers!  Not only did I see (and hear) them on the course three times, but they positioned Misha so he could see his mama cruise by.  They were willing to deal with the hassle of a giant orange stroller and bottles of milk so they cheer me on with Misha Man.  I don't think many husbands and dads (grandpas!) are so accommodating.  I am one lucky triathlete.

So, the race.  As I gathered myself in the hour before my start, I selected specific inspiration for each leg.  During the swim, I decided to picture my dad watching for me from the shore.  The same guy who  taught me to swim and yelled my name every time I took a breath during my swim team days.  I also thought about river otters as they are, decidedly, one of my spirit animals.  (What's the other one, you ask?  Perhaps a reveal for the future, my friend.)

Swim: From a physical standpoint, I positioned myself to the right and front of my heat.  I wanted to get out there fast so that I could avoid the swimmers who start fast but quickly peter out.  I also wanted to be as close to the booeys as possible so to avoid adding distance to my swim.  The first 100 yards were ridiculous- lots of flaying arms and legs.  By the first turn, however, I was free from the pack and able to relax into a suitable pace.  Looking around, there didn't seem to be many pink caps around (age group marker)- a good sign!  By the second turn, I noticed that someone was drafting me- in a pink cap, no less!  I tried my best to free myself but I have no open water training so I wasn't successful.  The two of us ran out of the water and into the transition area.

I am in the blue one piece bathing suit in the middle of the photo...adjusting my goggles.  I am pretty sure that the girl who beat me is in the black and turquoise tri suit in the far right of the photo.

Transition 1: My drafter came in handy because it was clear she had a mental map of the fastest route to our bikes (they are organized by age heat).  I followed her lead.  Transition 1 took me forever because I wasted more than a minute putting on tri shorts and t-shirt over my one piece bathing suit. A tri suit or outfit is essential for my next race.

Bike: During the bike, I thought about Misha.  I often think about him when I am training.  Sometimes, I picture him as a teenager, training for his own sports and encouraging me to keep up with him.  The first mile was a bit of a mind game as I changed gears (rah rah) from swimming to biking.  Once I got some gatorade and half a luna bar in my system, I felt reenergized and concentrated on passing people.  I watched out for women in my age group (our ages were written on the back of our calves) and aimed to keep a fast but manageable pace.  There was one age grouper that caught me around 7 miles and we switched back and forth until I out-biked her in the last mile.  As I headed towards the transition area, I saw my mom heading out on her bike!  She yelled my name in passing and I sent her good vibes!

Transition 2: Something ridiculous like 27 seconds.  I was out of there!

Run: As for the run leg, I turned to two of my favorite mantras: "smooth and strong," and "I am here now" (from Another Mother Runner blog).  I didn't have my garmin watch on so I didn't know what pace I was going.  The thing about the bike to run transition is that it is hard to tell how fast I'm going because my legs just feel so weird.  However, as I headed out of the transition area and onto the run course, I heard my dad say, "She's so fast."  This gave me confidence.  If I looked fast, I must be starting at a solid pace.  During the first mile, I reminded myself "I am here now."  Forget about the swim and the bike, and just be present in the moment, in this case a 3.1 mile run- a distance that I usually view as a warm up.  I shook off the bike by the end of the first mile.  With two miles left, I repeated "smooth and strong" in my head and looked to pass people.  There were some girls who looked about my age less than a quarter mile ahead.  When I approached, I realized that they were from an earlier heat (thus, not my age group) but it felt good to pass the youngsters anyway.  Folks cheered me on as I headed towards the finish line.  There weren't many racers around me but I still wasn't certain about my pace, time, or place.  I was pretty tired as I headed into the finishing zone but I heard Mike and my dad once more.  They told me to pick it up!  So I did!  (Even though I didn't want to!)


I was pretty excited when I saw these results:

It was hard for me to believe that I actually got second place in my age group, but there it was!  I beat all of my times from two years ago except for the swim.  Perhaps most exciting was my run time- 7:14 pace!  My best 5k in college was 21:00 minutes and that was without swimming or biking before the race! This just goes to show that sometimes not knowing my pace can be a blessing.  If I knew I was running a 7 minute pace in the first mile, I might have backed down.  I will definitely do more runs/races by feel instead of by pace in the future.

Next year, I will be in a different and more competitive age group.  One of the great things about triathlons is that women usually get better as they get older.  As I reflect on my race and training, there are so many things that I could do differently to help improve my time, but I will save this reflection for a future post.  For now, I want to celebrate this victory and take in this moment!!!!

With the first and third place winners AND OLYMPIAN MARATHONER- Carrie Tollefson!  

Race Report: Afton Trail Race 25k

After completing my fair share of road races and a handful of trail races, I know where my heart is when it comes to running- in the woods.  There is not a doubt in my mind.  I love the single track; my eye is on the path as I leap over roots and slide down mossy rocks.  My heart sings when the trail opens into an endless field of wildflowers and long grasses.  As my friend Rebecca put it yesterday at Afton, it is like we're kids playing again.

Yesterday, my running buddy Rebecca and I completed the Afton 25k Trail Race.  Rebecca wrote a wonderfully descriptive post (with photos!) about the event here: Miles and Laurel: Afton Trail Run race report.  It's definitely worth a read if you're interested in learning about the joys of this particular event (and how much fun we have on the trails together!).

As soon as I finished this race, I was ready for another.  Additionally, I am interested in the 50k option. I couldn't believe the amount of energy I still had at the finish line.  As a runner, it has always taken me a while to warm up (and the older I get, I fear this will just get worse).  Yet, once I get going, I could keep going forever with adequate hydration and fuel.  This ability opens the door to some new racing possibilities!

YWCA Women's Triathlon 2011 race report

I now have a triathlon under my belt and I am ready for another! Tomorrow! (No need for concern, I don't actually have another triathlon tomorrow, but I would totally do one if I did.)



Here's how it went (Skip ahead to the last paragraph if you don't want the nitty gritty details):

I woke up at 5am, hit snooze, and then rolled out of bed five minutes later. I had my race breakfast- coffee, oatmeal, banana. I prepped all my stuff Saturday night so I didn't really have much to worry about in the morning. I checked the weather- high of 80 but not until later in the afternoon. Perfect.







I drove myself to Lake Nokomis, biked over to the transition area, pumped my tires and set up my gear in my assigned transition spot. Luckily, my transition area was easy to identify and I was there early enough to get a prime location. My gear included a small towel to place my stuff on, running shoes, tri shorts (with gummies and a mini cliff in the pockets), tank top with number pinned on, sunglasses, running hat, and water bottle. I put my number on my bike and my helmet. I headed over to get marked up: my race number (#101), my age (27), and my wave (heat 3).

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

I had about an hour to toodle around so I walked around the transition area and noted all the entrances and exits for the different legs of the race. I also spied on the elites and checked out their gear and transition set up. They had some cool equipment that maybe one day I will splurge for (if I get more serious about training). I drank half a cup of coffee, used the bathroom a few times, and then dropped a bag of dry clothes off at the bag drop. Unknowingly, I made a good decision bringing a colorful hippie bag. Since everyone else used the same blue backpack that they gave us at packet pickup, the volunteers were able to find my "hippie" bag in record time!



As the fog lifted off of Lake Nokomis, we lined up in our waves (I was in wave 3, mostly 25-30 year-olds). Mike's mom, Carol yelled out my name and cheered! She made it to the start! Here is a view of my heat getting ready:

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

Swim leg:

Ready...Go! I ran a few strides into the water and then started swimming as soon as I could. The water was a delightful temperature: 76 degrees. Wet-suit legal but very few athletes had wetsuits (even the elites). I definitely did not need it in terms of temperature.

Without planning to, I ended up staying on the outside edges of the pack, making it easy to pass people. But, this strategy also added some distance (thus slowing down my time). The swim parameters were big and orange so my only vision issue was due to the sun was reflecting brightly off the water! And we off we go!

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

The swim was over fast and I definitely could've gone faster/longer. I tried to stay swimming in the water as long as possible. When I started to scrape the bottom, I put my feet down and ran out to the transition area.

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

Transition 1: Swim to Bike

I ran on the grass to get the sand off my feet. The transition area was pretty empty at first but I took longer than I would've liked as I put on my shorts, shoes, and tank top. The tank top in particular was a total hassle. I struggled to get it over my head and in the process, I lost a safety pin for my number. (The fact that I put my helmet on first was the likely culprit). Oh well, no big deal in the grand scheme of things. I walked/jogged my bike out of the transition area because I couldn't remember if it was legal to run with the bike. This probably caused me a little extra time too.



Bike:

I hopped on my bike and took off! I was so glad that I used my friend's Claire's racing bike. This baby was fast and super comfortable thanks to Grand Performance Bike Shop. They put on new gears, breaks, chain, handlebar tape, and a new seat. I was rocking and socking.



I ate the cliff bar immediately and tried to drink some water. Now this is where I ran into TOTAL ERROR! I brought along the dorkiest water bottles possible!!!! One was just a plain gatorade bottle with a screw top (Stupid! As if I know how to ride this racing bike without hands!) and the other was this funky pop top bottle from the 1990's. I went with the pop top bottle and just slowed down and swiveled when attempting to chug water from it. Lots of time lost here. Why I didn't buy two simple bike water bottles is beyond me.



The course went by quickly. I kept on the lookout for folks in my age group. When a couple of 30-35 year olds crept up on my at the end of the race, I made a break for it and passed the pack before they could block me out at the transition area.



Transition 2: Bike to Run.

This was a mighty quick transition since I didn't have to change anything except take off my helmet. One woman actually forgot to do this and ran with hers. At least, I hope that was an accident.

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

Run:

The hardest part of the race was shifting from biking into running. My heart rate was up and I was breathing hard. My legs also felt like bricks, as I expected. I spent the first mile focusing on my slowing heart rate, controlling my breathing, and thinking about my form. I told myself "nice and easy" and "save it for the end." At the 1 mile mark, I drank a sip of water and poured the rest on my head. I wasn't really thirsty and I only had two miles left. Not worth the time.



After the water stop, I kicked it up a gear and started to pick up my pace but still hold back a little. Then, at the 2 mile mark, I started to really bring it up a notch in order to pass the women that had kept an edge on me throughout the rest of the race. The last quarter mile was a little of showdown between myself and two other younger triathletes. We all sprinted it in to the finish line...pushing each other down the chute.

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

I saw Mike, Carol, and Milt immediately as headed through the flags. They were so proud! I was glad the run was done, but I recovered quickly and immediately wanted to do the whole race again!



Here are my results/paces:

place overall: 55/958

age/division:

swim: 9:00, 70th place in swim

average per 100 yds: 1:48

transition 1: 2:54

bike: 49:03, 140th place in bike

rate: 19.0

transition 2: 0:54

run: 23:16, 30th place

pace: 7:30

overall time: 1:25:06



Analyzing the results is pretty interesting because I can really tell my weak spots by comparing the different legs among the athletes. Clearly, my sore spot is the bike. I felt amazing on the bike...maybe I wasn't working hard enough! My run time surprised me (I didn't wear a watch so I didn't know my pace until afterwards); running feels very different after biking so I really didn't know what I was averaging.



Full results:

http://www.onlineraceresults.com/race/view_plain_text.php?race_id=20478



Anyway, I am totally thrilled with the results, and I think triathloning just may become my newest passion!

From Square Lake, YWCA tri, aug 12-14 2011

Gearing Up!

It's the morning before the Madison Marathon. Rachel woke me up early and we headed out for an easy 3 mile, a loosening the legs and stretching kind of run. I started "carbo loading" yesterday (including sharing a piece of peanut butter cup cake with Mike!) and I am trying to eat mostly carbs and supplement that with recovery drinks today (plus the coffee I am having now!).

Tomorrow, at this time, I will be 1 hour into the race! Unbelievable! Last night, I tallied the number of miles I have logged over the last 17 weeks in training for this marathon. Guesses?

Okay, I will tell you. Approximately 689 miles, an average of 40 miles a week for 17 weeks. I gotta say, no matter what happens tomorrow morning, I feel proud and ready to race. Looking back on my training, there are many memorable runs- many with amazing runner friends (and dogs!) and some with just me testing my limits, endurance, and spirit.

Tomorrow morning, I plan to wake up with a smile on my face, fresh legs, and an open heart. Somewhere I picked up this mantra and I will use it tomorrow: 1st 10 miles: brain, 2nd 10 miles: body, last 6 miles: heart. Those last 6 are the miles I look forward to the most!