Seahawks 12K

Sheila, Tami, and me at the finish of the race.

 

Okay, I am one of those people that so many real Seahawks fans have complained about. I didn't start cheering for the Seahawks until they won the Super Bowl in 2014. I did not cheer all of those years when they didn't win, so I don't deserve to call myself a real fan. I just jumped on the bandwagon when the home team was winning. To tell you the truth, I was not a football fan before 2014 nor did I ever watch football games including Super Bowls.

 

With that disclaimer out of the way, I ran the Seahawks 12K last weekend with my two good friends, Tami and Sheila. Tami had run the race before and loved it. Now I know why. It was an out and back course and at the turn around we ran around the Seahawks training facility. It was very cool! There was a water station at the turn around with some of the players handing out drinks! The players had just returned from spring training in Hawaii, those lucky clucks. I also enjoyed the race because I got to run with my friends and the weather was pleasant.

 

I should have taken a picture of the endless rows of port-a-potties at the start line. I felt like I was surround by an army of blue honey buckets! I've never seen so many in one place. There were 12,000 participants in the race and NO LINES for the bathrooms! Race Directors, please take note of how fabulous this was!

 

The proceeds of this race were given to A Better Seattle, an organization that helps at-risk youth in Seattle. I can't think of a better reason to run.



I love my Seahawks t-shirt, finisher's medal, and race bib.

While we were running, we talked about the Boston Marathon that would take place the next day. It got me thinking about how I've never qualified for Boston and maybe it is time to give it a try. After all, I am registered for the Tunnel Lite Marathon, a Boston qualifier (BQ), in September. That race was listed recently as one of the top 10 BQs in the country (click here). I am left pondering whether I can do it. My qualifying time must be 3hrs 55 minutes. Hmmmmm.

Vacaton workout routine

Sometimes, I wish I had all day every day just to train. Unfortunately, those days only come when I am on vacation. At home, I feel lucky if I run more than twice a week and do my three stretches twice a day.

Here is what I am doing while on vacation:
1) Run every other day. I got my long, weekend run in yesterday. I went out for two hours. My remaining runs while on vacation will be closer to 30 minutes with speed training. (I run every other day rather than every day to reduce the risk of stress fractures.)

I started my long run early in the morning when it was dark. I wanted to run during the coolest time of the day. I carried about 10 ounces of water with Nuun in it, and a Gu packet.



I took this bike path along the road.

 

After it got light and the road ended, I ran along this sand-packed path.
 



I finally popped out on the beach and ran back "home" on the beach.

2) Stretch for longer than the usual 3 minutes. I head to the pool in the morning and pick out lounge chairs for my family, and hang out there for about a half hour while the fam finishes eating breakfast. I spend this time stretching. In addition to my regular stretches of calves, hamstrings, and thighs; I am also stretching on my hips.

Stretching my left hip.

3) Strength training. Up to this point I haven't done any strength training, except for pelvic floor exercises daily in the shower. I began doing planks this week. I can barely hold the position for 30 seconds, and I am only doing three sets (for a total of 90 seconds). I can feel some sore core muscles--I have such a weak midsection! I am looking forward to seeing progress with the planks.

Planks. Working on my form and stamina.

I am also doing clamshells (hip external rotation). These were recommended to me years ago by a physical therapist. Their purpose is to strengthen the gluteus muscles, so the glutes can take some of the workload off of my hamstrings.

I use an elastic band to add resistance. This exercise can also be done without a band. Either way, you need to consciously contract your glutes while rising your knee. I put my hand on my hip to remind myself to rotate only at my hip and not my whole body.

4) Swim on the days I'm not running. There are three pools at this condo to choose from, and they are all pretty big. I like to swim because the underwater isolation makes me feel like I am in my own little world.

Pool for morning laps.

5) Relax. Need to give body time to recover and get stronger between workouts! I like to sit by the pool for an hour and do a little reading. Right now, I am going through Max Lucado's "Traveling Light." It is a great reminder of what Paul was trying to say in  Psalm 23.

 

 

The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside the still waters.

He restores my soul;

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

For His name's sake.

 

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

For You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil.

My cup runs over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord

Forever. (NKJV)

 

I hope you are having a fantastic spring break, too!

Spring Breakers!

This is the time of year that my family celebrates spring break and heads to Puerto Vallarta! However, my toenails have been looking barbarian and I wanted to do something to make them more presentable. My increased mileage has made a mess of them. Now, I have nails sluff off in the shower, and other nails that are a dark shade of purple, and the corner of my big toes are chipped off. I also have one nail that grows very thick. I’ll talk more about that later in this post.

Can you tell which one is just a nail bed?

I got a pedicure before heading south of the boarder. I usually don’t get pedis because I am afraid of catching someone else’s fungus. But, this time I went to a spa salon in West Seattle with a good reputation. I asked the pedicurist to trim my nails short, and not scrub off any calluses. I felt a little silly about my requests but that’s a runner’s life, I suppose. She noticed one nail was very loose and held it tight while she filed it. Yikes!

I think she did a terrific job. I love the color. It is very spring-like.

 

Toes relaxing in the pool!

Toes favorite place--in the sand.

 

As I become an ultra-runner, am I doomed to have ugly toe nails? What can I do for them? My podiatrist says I need to make sure my toes aren’t hitting the end of my shoes. I already buy shoes a half size larger to prevent that from happening. Well, he explained if the shoe isn’t laced on tight enough then I am just giving my feet more room to slide forward and slam into the end of the shoe.

So, I’ve tried lacing them up differently or pulling the laces tight at the last few holes. Those methods hurt my ankles when I ran. The podiatrist said to try tongue pads.  I had never heard of them, but I ordered them from Amazon.com. The pads stick to the tongue of the shoe and give just enough bulk to hold your foot back in your shoe. I did notice an improvement when I was running half-marathons last year.

 

Here is a different way to lace shoes at the top to tighten them to keep your foot from sliding forward.

This is a tongue pad in my left trial running shoe. I usually have the most problems with my left toenails.

The thickening of my one toenail is a response to pressure according to my podiatrist. Even the tongue pad hasn’t solved this problem. It may be the way I hold that toe when I run that is putting pressure on it. The podiatrist’s prescription is just to grind it down and make it thinner. I’ve purchased my own grinder and it works well.

I purchased this grinder on Amazon.com. I am now fully equipped to give manis and pedis!


My podiatrist said you can also relieve pressure by not lacing up through the eyeholes on your shoes near your toes. I like this tip. I feel very comfortable running like this.

These shoes don't have laces in the bottom holes. It doesn't seem to make a difference on the durability of the shoe. I've run a few hundred miles in my Asics like this without the shoe falling apart.

 

If you have any helpful hints for keeping toenails looking brand new, let me know!

Post Script: Two days after this blog post, I went for a 10-mile run and that loose nail decided to depart from my toe.

Just the nailbed remains.

 

Time for sleep?

I slept 11 hours last night.

I am so thankful because I only slept 4 hours the night before (due to juggling my roles as mom and business owner). I felt tired and sick all day yesterday. With so little sleep, I thought it was best not to do my speed workout last night. With my body struggling to function all day, I didn't want to risk taxing it more and getting injured.

The articles are out there. They say athletes need more sleep.

Here are the reasons why:
1. Lack of sleep leads to an increase in cortisol levels. That is a stress hormone, and it can interfere with tissue repair and growth.
2. Lack of sleep decreases the release of growth hormone. This hormone is released during sleep and stimulates muscle and bone growth and repair. Not getting enough sleep can limit your body's ability to recover from a hard workout.
3. Lack of sleep leads to lower storage of glycogen (that is the name for glucose that is stored in your body). Endurance athletes need more glycogen.

Yesterday was a reminder to me that resting is just as important in your training regimen as the actual workouts. In fact, I need to tell myself that I am getting stronger when I am resting. Workouts tear the body down, and rest builds the body up . . . STRONGER.

But my struggle is, "I don't have time for sleep!" Do you have the same struggle with getting enough sleep?