June 26

Feeling sluglike this week. Ball hockey game tonight with only 2 shifts so lots of running then ran from rink to home (at 1030 at night) and was pretty stinkin tired. It was pretty neat tho, running through the dark with millions of fireflies lighting the way. Some of them were so incredibly bright the fields and sky and road were sparkling. I wish the kids had been awake to see them.!

Breakdown the Half

1671 calories
2:24:02
21.12 km

average 6:49 minutes/km
Max 4:45 minutes/km

8 km- 52:50 minutes; Average 6:36 min/km
10 km - 1:06:24 hours; Average 6:48 min/km
15 km - 1:40:58 hours; 34:34 minutes for the 5 km; 6:55 min/km;
20 km - 2:16:47 hours; 35:48 minutes for the 5 km; 7:06 min/km

Johnny Miles Finish Photos

The finish photos are finally up on the site :)



I searched all the Starting photos and Lavinia was the only person I could find :) she started and finished before anyone else came near lol!

Sarah looks very strong at the end of her Half Marathon!


Im actually really happy with these photos! They look like I am actually running! lol And I put on that sprint at the end to beat the fellow on the left who made a move...and beat the chicka in the red shirt who I had targetted early on lololol She did keep me moving!

June 24

Back on the running wagon after 2 days of complete rest. I figured I deserved them after that long run. Actually its just been busy :)

Hiked in the park with the kids this morning. That is never a fast walk but it was interesting on a neat trail that walked along the ridge of a cliff (OK not a really high cliff but someone falling off would have been severely harmed lol). We saw a deer in the river below and it actually came up the hill towards us, veering off ahead before the dog we were with chased it behind us. It was quite close.

That hike took about an hour.

After spending the afternoon at a kids party with lots of water we had supper then while Taylor was at soccer I ran a slow 5 km run in 35:11. Calves are still a little tight and because my good sneakers are still soaking wet, I used the New Balance sneakers which I gotta say still cause a lot of ankle pain. Ugh. I dont know why I even bother; I should wear my really old Asics instead.

It was hot. I mean Hot. its 25 C with humidity of 74% so feel like temperature is 33C. Muggy. Air like soup. Struggled to breath on some of the hills ;) Also found a nice trail over by the practice field that I am going to follow next week and see where it comes out :)

Nice to be back at it. Although the 2 day break was nice too.

Now showered and cleaned up and contem

Johnny Miles Half Marathon Day 84

The Big Day arrived after little sleep and following some emotional days before :( It is good to have a little distraction these days. If you can call running 21.1 km a distraction.

It was raining already when we left the house to go pick up friends. Mother stayed here with the kids to come over later and Scott and I went and picked up Lavinia, Tonya, and Sarah to head to the Johnny Miles Running Weekend Event in New Glasgow. We were running the 10 K, 5 K, and Half marathons.

Rained while we geared up. Rained while we waited in lines, had water, and peed 3 times. Felt very rushed...will certainly get there earlier next year even if we dont have to. Didnt have time to warm up!

Yes, did not warm up. Bad bad runner.
The start was crowded and chaotic again. lol

Oh and all the photos are blurry ;)

the route is a little hard to follow but there was a loop for half marathoners, another for full marathoners, and none for the 5 and 10 K runners. Then the large loop is for everyone; half of it for the 5K runners, full loop for 10 K runners, 2 times the loop for half runners, and 4 times the loop for full marathoners.

The small 1 km loop was kinda fun, up and around the sobeys complex, back down and through the start area again. This is on our way up the big hill right at the start. Scott totally missed us and snapped a blurry photo :)
Through that loop now and onto the big loop for the first time. :)
The loop goes all the way up the road past the highway and then turns onto the Albion Trail that goes along the water. VERY nice running, but the rain was POUNDING at this point, turning parts of the trail into swamps and slick mud. Stepped in more than my share of puddles but was still having fun there :)
The loop takes you back down the back side of the start/finish area on the trail. I was running with this lady for a while; never got her name tho, lost her a few km later. This was about 6 or so km in.
Through start/finish


Next is a loop from the other end of the trail around a street; this was a hilly spot that was pleasantly easy the first time around. Thank goodness for all those hills I had practiced! lol
Took time for a potty break here; it was quiet and quick and about half way finished.

Back through the start finish, and the loop starts again. I didnt see Scott after that point although I would have given my left arm for one of my yogurt drinks or even those Energy Beans lol he had vanished into thin air.
The second time around was a little more rough; raining heavily still, my feet were very heavy and wet and my feet were slipping around in the socks so there was friction and a lot of impact that isnt normally there. And besides, wet feet are very sensitive lol. It takes a lot more energy to plant a foot that is slipping all over the place than to just take dry steps. Right up to the next time through the start finish was ok; I found Scott and wanted a yogurt but he couldnt find one and I didnt want to stop in case I wouldnt get going again.
The last 3 km was tiresome. Back on the pavement, wet feet pounding, stride rough, guzzling gatorade. I had picked a lady in a red shirt to follow and pass Miles ago, and at about 3 km left I passed her and stayed in front of her. Nearing the end, found family again. Only a few feet to go; found some energy to sprint! There was this fellow who decided to pass me and I didnt just want to let him so I totally sprinted! LOL I dont know who actually passed over the finish first but it was close. See the chick in the red shirt?

After the run there was medal and chocolate milk (important things lol) and family and a free massage so I took that in :) While I was on the table in heaven with my aching legs being massaged to comfort, the fellow who won the full marathon came in....at 2:40 ish. 16 minutes after me. Twice the distance. Sigh.


Enjoying a little post-race moment :) the "we did it!" moment lol!

Day 83 of 84

Day before the Big One; the day that the past 83 have lead up to. And hot, muggy. Rested too many days lol so did a "cobweb run" as a friend suggested to get the cobwebs out :) 2 little miles (actually 3.4 km) just to loosen up and rehearse.
lol

Day 81/82 of 84

Rest, not really on purpose, just really quite busy doing other things. Need to get out the day before the BIG DAY thO!
Day 82 played a great ball hockey game with loads of running that I consider a sort of speedwork hehehehe it was a great game tho!

Day 80 of 84

Rest. Cold has moved south, settling in throat and upper chest. Not happy about that! Its not bad, just irritating and Im very tired. Ugh, more rest.

Day 79 of 84

OMG 5 days left to live. I mean, til the Half Marathon. SIGH.

Ran to Ann's house. I didnt feel like running today, so I cheated and ran to Ann's house and after she fed me, she brought me home. It was nice, relaxing. And hot. Practicing the hot running.


52:23 minutes. Good effort.

Day 78 of 84

Back on the running bandwagon!
only 6 short kms done in a brutal fashion lol dragging butt up the hill and back; didnt warm up for the first 4 km with tight calf muscles and tired. last 2 km were better.
41:20 minutes.
UGH.
But on a happy note I decide to run all the way up Wilson Mountain Road. Hell of a hill that is.

Some Tips for a Half Marathon

I need to post these here or I wont be able to find them later...hilarious!

A regular participant on another website (JakeKnight on the RunningAHEAD forums) posted the following in response to a question concerning tips for first timers:

Here’s a long and exhaustive (but not complete) list of some of the important stuff nobody ever told me (and that I later wished they had), in completely random order, provided for absolutely no reason at all:

1: Get there early. However early you were planning to get there, get there a half hour before that. Nothing sucks worse than getting there at the last minute. Add another 15 minutes if you haven't pre-registered. Get there early and you can meet people, scope the course, find the bathrooms, run a warm-up, etc. It's supposed to be fun - and stress ain't fun.

2: Take toilet paper. Seriously. If you don't need it, fine. If you do, you'll thank me. As a bonus, it can make you popular, once the TP runs out. No joke.

3: Speaking of which - get to the bathrooms/porta-a-potties early. As soon as you get your number. No guarantees you'll get the chance much later. Quit laughing. This bathroom stuff is probably the most valuable advice you can get. Ignore it and you'll learn the hard way. Having to poop for 5 miles is only funny when it happens to somebody else.

4: Start farther back in the pack than you think you need to (especially if they're using chip timing). It's way, way more fun to pass people than to be passed. (See the threads on the timing chips for a ridiculous amount of info on the subject).

5: If you care about your time, wear a watch, and time yourself. Remember to hit it once you reach the start, and when you cross the end. Seems obvious, right? Don't forget. If there aren't chips, it's the only way to guarantee an accurate time, at least for your own records. Have a rough idea how fast you want to be going at each mile marker. If you're way fast, slow down, etc. Again, it's more fun to be speeding up in the last mile than to be a participant in the ever popular Slow Trudge of Death. Then again, if you're slow but hurting, don't race to beat the watch. Have fun, and forget your time during the race - you can obsess about it later.

6: If you do wear a watch, make sure you're not looking down at it when you cross the finish line. Practice finding the button without looking. Trust me - everyone ruins their finish photo doing this. Look up and smile. Bonus points for triumphant hand raises and/or obscene gestures.

7: In case the above wasn't clear enough - start slow. No, even slower. Especially in your first race. There will be a lot of people around you who will set their own personal bests in the 800 meters once the race starts. These are the people you'll be smiling at in 4 or 5 miles as you pass them. Try not to laugh at them. It's mean. But if they’re puking and fainting, get video. Post it on You Tube. That’s always fun.

8: If there's a timing chip, secure it as much as you want. Plenty of loops. Two plastic thingies. If you've never seen one and have no clue what I'm babbling about, ask a volunteer to help you. They charge you money if those things fall off. Plus, it's always fun to make getting the chip a challenge for the volunteer at the end. They love that.

9: Run a warm-up mile or two. I know - you're thinking you're already running a long way, why run farther? Because you'll probably ignore the above and start out too fast, and you'll be glad you were warmed up ahead of time, especially if it’s cold out. At least jog a little.

10: While you're warming up - since you have plenty of time - play around with where you like to wear your race bib (the number they give you). Personally, I hate wearing it on my shirt, and it took me a while to figure that out. So I stick it on my thigh. No, not in the meat of my thigh, cuz that would hurt. On my shorts. Maybe you’ll like the opposite. I know it seems silly, but after an hour of running anything that annoys you at the start can become really irritating.

11: At the water stops, head for the last cups not the first – and if you’re walking while you drink, get over to the right before you start. So people don’t throw things at you.

12: Walk while you drink. Even if you weren’t planning on walking, the 20 (or, say, 17) seconds it takes is worth it to actually drink rather than wear the water. And you’ll run faster later. Passing the people too cool to walk is once again one of the more pleasurable moments in the race. (Ask Trent.)

13: Ditto to the above if you are intentionally taking walking breaks. Get to the right. Be polite. At the very least, don’t be yakking with your four friends all running shoulder-to-shoulder and then come to simultaneous stops. If you do this, people will throw heavier things. Sharp things, too.

14: If you listen to your iPod, keep it low enough so you can hear what’s going on around you. Or expect more heavy and sharp things to be tossed in your direction. Of course, it’s runners doing the throwing, and they’re generally weak and pasty … so don’t worry too much.

15: Figure out a good running “play list” for your iPod and use it. You do not want to be searching through Air Supply’s Greatest Hits for a song that actually has a beat you can run to. Trust me on this one. Grooving to “Making Love Out of Nothing at All” will not boost your adrenaline. Oh – and how do I know the name of an Air Supply song? Easy. I asked Trent and Scout. They’re fabulous.

16: If somebody else breaks rule 14, elbow them sharply if they won’t get out of your way. And curse them out, too. Don’t worry – they can’t hear you, remember?

17: Don’t listen to your iPod. Or at least consider not listening to it.

18: Do nothing new on race day. I mean nothing. No new shoes. No new clothes. No super duper new technique you read on a message board. And above all else, no new food. (But again, if you ignore this, get video when you’re heaving your guts out. Become a You Tube star. Be my hero.)

19: Don’t eat too much on race morning. Don’t eat nothing either. A banana and a bagel. Toast and one cup of coffee. Some orange juice. Stuff like that. But a double Grand Slam at Denny’s with a side of biscuits and gravy? Not so much. Well, unless you really want to be popular on You Tube. Because as everyone knows, if you can get it coming out of both ends, your legend will last for years – especially if it’s on film.

20: Bring some warm clothes you can strip off right before the race and put back on right after the race.

21: Bring a crew. Which usually means a spouse. Or a kid. Or a pal. Dogs are nice, but not as helpful. It’s always handy to be able to have someone to toss stuff to once you realize you don’t need it. Like a hat or gloves or sunglasses. Or your iPod.

22: If you take your cell phone with you on the race, people like me will be laughing at you. If you actually answer it, expect more of those sharp and heavy but weakly thrown object to come flying in your direction. (One exception: if you happen to be the race director of the race in which you’re currently running. Otherwise, you’re just an uber-dork who needs to have a cellphoneectomy).

23: If you have no crew (that’s your hubby), and no clue what you’re doing with extra stuff, either take cheap stuff, or at least put your name in it somewhere. Or just have a rich spouse. Both are fine. The point is that at mile 4.5, if you’re over-heated enough, you may be tossing that sweatshirt away, no matter how much you spent on it.

24: Do not wear the t-shirt you just got at registration. Don’t do it. Just say no. Don’t ask why. Just don’t. If you break both this rule and rule 22, you’ll be declared the largest geek in the universe, and the world will end. Who needs that?

25: Under dress on cold days. No, don’t be semi-nude – but be cold at the starting line. If you’re warm at the starting line, you’re wearing way too much. You’ll be plenty warm soon enough. If it’s above say 55 degrees, come as close to being naked as possible. I’d suggest nudity on warm days, but there are some support issues involved.

26: Bring beer.

27: Bring me a beer.

28. Have fun but run hard. It’s a race. Make it hurt. If you puke at the end, people will clap. Okay, I’ll clap. But puking is good. Runners dig all biological functions.

29: Try and go easy in the first half and run hard in the second. Races tend to be faster when your pace is even throughout or slightly faster in the second half. And as aforementioned, you’ll get a huge kick in mile 5 out of passing all the dorks who sprinted away from you at the starting line.

30: Even if you walked and jogged the whole way, sprint the last 100 yards. Why? Cuz it’s fun. And your race picture (assuming somebody takes one) will be much cooler. Then it can become a nice avatar to impress your online friends.

31: If the event is big enough for spectators, wear something with your name on your shirt, in very big letters. It gets you personalized cheers. No kidding. Remember this for your first marathon. Hearing “Go, Jake, you sexy stud!” is way, way better than “you can do it, unknown dude …”

32: If the race has a course map, check it out ahead of time. Know where the hills are. It can be really nice knowing what’s coming next. Rounding a corner and finding an unexpected steep hill is depressing. Also, for more bonus points, you can use the info to your advantage: when a big hill’s coming, tell the dork with the cell phone that he should sprint on ahead since there’s a big downhill around the next turn. Good times.

33: At the start of the race, if they’re organized enough to have a color guard and somebody sing the national anthem, stand still for a minute and enjoy the morning. Consider even taking your hat off. If you’re really radical, put your hand on your heart. But please don’t yak in a loud voice about what happened on American Idol last night. Sorry. Pet peeve. Don’t mind me.

34: At the end of the race – stick around. Cheer on the slower people. And no matter how slow you are, odds are somebody’s slower. Odds are a lot of people are slower. If you run sub-1:10, there maybe be hundreds of people slower than you. Hang out and support them. With beer in hand and video camera at the ready. It can be the best part.


There. That should get you started. I’m sure I’m forgetting plenty.

Oh – and the coolest of all possible things, at the start of the race, is to line up at the very start, and then when you hear the gun – sprint forward as fast as you can, and scream “I’m winning!” at the top of your lungs. It’s a classic. People love that.*


* Just Kidding. Don’t really do that. Or if you do – say it with me – make sure somebody gets it on film. Cuz that’d be really funny.

Day 75/76/77 of 84

Sick. Ugh. Resting.

Day 74 of 84

Half Marathon in 10 days. Sheeeit.

Ran this morning, 8.3 km in 53+ minutes. Time not reflecting the effort level put in.
No plan for tomorrow. Tried to get back on Schedule. Ha. Might just run a really easy 5 km.

Day 73 of 84

Nothing. Nada. Didnt even make myself go for a walk.

Committed

Signed up for the Johnny Miles Half Marathon next weekend. Nothing like waiting til the last minute ;)

Day 72 of 84

Long run on a Tuesday this week. Things are getting harder and harder to fit in. 16 km randomly chosen as the distance this week; 2 km further than last week.



Decided to run where I know what to expect; went out on the Cobequid trail to Old Barns and back again. Had some good company in Gillian who rode her bike and pulled a trailer with little Tucker in it and chatted away keeping my mind so completely off the running that I sometimes forgot that I was even doing it.

16 km; 1:51:57 time.
Feeling pretty good; Ive felt far worse after many shorter runs. And I Do believe today I could have gone further and not suffered more.
:) Signing up for the Half Marathon now.

Day 71 of 84

Bad on me again; didnt get any activity done due to commitments; Class trips, 4H meeting, soccer game, little recon for horse-boarding......just a busy day!

Day 70 of 84

in my adjusted schedule this is a cross train day but out of guilt I ran 8 km in the morning. Should have done the long run because it isnt looking good for Monday with all the commitments we have :) May readjust that to Tuesday. But no later.

So for day 70 there was an 8 km run to Old Barns in 54:18 which was slower due to small children on their bikes coming with me. Holly struggled on some hills. It was a pleasant run.

Ball Hockey game in the evening which was intense and we won :)

Day 69 of 84

Saturday; didn't manage a whole lot of anything. Shame on me. Feeling a lot of guilt over that.

Day 68 of 84

I was bad bad bad and took a day off. Didnt really have a choice, there was no one here to watch the kids for the time I needed and by the time there was a someone here, I was very tired and having some sort of weird eye thing. They would not stay open. And are crusting and weeping. Weird. Better vanish fast. LOL so no workout unless you include running a little girl learning to ride her bike around the driveway for 45 minutes! So cute!

Day 67 of 84

What was supposed to be a short, quick run became a long long day lol
After dropping 3 awesome kids off at school, I drove to the gym, parked, and went for my run.
While doing my 1 km warm up before 3 km of 400m speedy 100m rest, I ran into Tonya who said she might try to run with me this morning ;) I was SO glad because to be honest, ive been a little lonely lately. Running is a lonely sport. Im not complaining about my time to think and reflect (ya whatever) but some days I am just lonely.
So we ran a great loop just kinda wandering the streets, then we ran UP Young Street; that hill is awesome! hehehe and long! and perfectly situated in my run. Poor Tonya, it was the end of her run. But she did well and climbed the whole thing beside me! HILLS ARE YOUR FRIEND.
From there I left her and ran down and back to the gym where I did half hour of arms and back weights, then showered and headed to the kids school for Holly`s class trip; at the park we walked for like an hour through the trails.
Now Im rather sleepy. That is a lot of sun and fun for one person!

6.4 km in 44 minutes including one big ass hill.

Day 66 of 84

National Running Day - did you know there was such a thing...me neither.
Forum I am on had a challenge for at least 200 people to average about 5 miles a piece and track 1000 miles; I do believe they are still short at the moment. Same site is having a men vs women miles contest for June. Women...behind SIGH. Im doing my best to add those miles! ( www.runnersworld.com )

5 Miles on the schedule for the day; started from home and added a little jig through Springwater Place to bring the distance to 8.8 km in 59:18 minutes. It was a nice sunny but humid day. Good for a run :)

Day 65 of 84

A Strengthen and Stretch day - went to the gym for some weights (short) and some yoga (also short). covers the assignment lol

Day 64 of 84

20 days to Half Marathon. 20!!!!!

Long slow run today in less than perfect weather.
It was extremely windy and raining this morning with some pretty chilly temperatures and a wind chill! I waited (no get up and go) until the sun came out and the temperature came up a little, then headed out.
Lots of hills at the start, up Greenfield Road and onto Greg Road. Turning onto Old Greenfield Road gave some much needed downhill. But where it joined Valleydale Road, the wind kicked in.from there, all the way up Valley Road, and onto Pictou Rd. This was actually the absolute worst part. Straight, lot of long up hill, and wind straight in my face. I thought at some points, I was running backwards. It was the hardest 3.5 km ever.
After that it was hard to recover but running must go on so I made it back home for a nice 14 km finished. I actually Might have been able to go further.



1:36.51 time - pretty good considering!
4159 kJ burned. (1098 calories)
Avg 6:55 min/km Max 5:13 min/km
5km - 33:55
10 km - 1:08.22
13 km - 1:29.26