Always Try

60 minutes, elliptical. First day back since the biggest health scare of my life. Hopefully running resumes soon.

8 miles, treadmill. Tested the legs out today for the first time since last week, very tired and weak.

No running today, just went to work and then drove to see my Mom who is visiting.

7 miles, American Fork Canyon. When I'm healthy the AF Half seems like it would be a pretty fun race!

Downhill skiing all day today. Weak legs!

12 miles, 5am. Treadmill in my brother's basement, sleeping kids (that I was responsible for while he vacationed in Spain) upstairs.

am: 8.5 miles - easy warm-up, then 1 min at RP, 2 min at TH

pm: 4.5 miles - easy miles, just trying to get legs ready to run "tired"

6 miles. 10 min warm-up, then 1min at RP, 1 min at TH

pm: 10  miles; almost didn't get out the door today, still recovering from some health issues that I thought were going to take me out for the year. Hopefully I have time to get ready for this marathon!

10 miles; 10 min warm-up followed by 1 min at RP, 2 min at TH for 60 min, finished out the 10 miles at recovery pace.

16 miles. Hollow Road + curious farm dogs + furious canyon wind + extended Zollinger Park

am: 10 miles; threw in some 2 min bursts to try to remind my legs what it feels like to run fast.

lunch: 60 min - elliptical, 20 min core stability, 2 miles easy

am: 8 miles, kind of a low mileage day, sore legs from lifting yesterday.

lunch: 60 minutes - elliptical

am: 5 miles. 6 x Cemetery Hill repeats...in the dark; low miles this morning, had to get to work, hopefully the afternoon opens up for some more training time.

pm: 10 miles. 6 x 2min at 5k pace, easy pace for the rest, hopefully not too easy, don't like junk miles.

am: work threw me a loop so I had to put off running until evening

pm: 10 miles. Moderate intensity tempo for 7 miles. Getting on a plane at 3:45am tomorrow and then working all day in Huntington Beach, CA. Can't wait to run on the beach!

am: 3:45am wake-up call + get on a plane of Disneyland-going families + meet Mom at the airport + take Mom to work + go to work = hopefully I get a lunch break to run

lunch: 6 miles. Short lunch break, darn. Oh well, made me run faster.

pm: hang-out with Mom & Dad! 

8 miles. Brea, my old stomping grounds. Long day of work ahead, have to push the long run off until tomorrow.

18 miles. Angel Stadium to Newport Beach Pier - Santa Ana River Trail, oh how I missed you. Thank you for reminding me how much I love to train for marathons!

am: 6 miles. recovery - Brea HS Loop, felt good to run easy after yesterday.

lunch: 5 miles. Huntington Beach - wind, bees, gated communities, and a lady walking the entire four-legged cast of "Where the Red Fern Grows" 

pm: Golden Spoon with Mom. 

13 miles. Home to Dad's office...the long way.  Got a few miles in at race pace, still not sure if my goal for this upcoming race is logical.

12 miles. Being day 1 back from California and only having 4 hours of sleep, I treadmilled. Couldn't face the layers of clothing and cold wind. I know, wimpy. But I did get caught up on Biggest Loser while I ran my intervals. Have to watch that show when I'm working out, otherwise I just sit and eat the whole time it's on.

6 miles. 4am wake-up call before we were off to Europe for 13 days!

Is it tomorrow already? Arrived in Zurich at 7:30am, it was 11:30pm at home. This run got lost in transit. Good thing our luggage and the $5000 mountain bike made it!

8 miles. "Wanderweg" trail route 9 from the Alta Poste Hotel in Switzerland. I love this place!

12 miles. "Wanderweg" trail to Oey. Running at the base of the Alps, so amazingly gorgeous. Not to mention the dairy cows that run to the fence to greet you!

3 miles. Wengen, in a snow storm, straight up the side of the mountain in the Alps! We wimped out when the wind started pushing us backwards!

Mmmm....Swiss hot chocolate.

8 miles. Back to the "Wanderweg" trail in Weisemann from the Alta Poste. This place is amazing, there are running/biking trails everywhere! Not to mention people saying stuff to me I don't understand, so I just keep running. Went through a lumber yard, felt like I was running from the Gestapo!

6 miles. Only had time for a short one today, but got one more in on the "Wanderweg" trail. I'm going to miss this place! But on to Germany we go! Good bye Alta Poste and dear, sweet, Marian.

7 miles. Heidelberg. We stayed right on the Rhine River, this morning we ran along the river and up the mountain to the Heidelberg Castle. This place is amazing. We were the only ones up there and got to run around the gardens without dodging any tourists. Short tempo on the way back to make sure my legs still understand they are in "marathon-mode" and not "vacation-mode."

Early morning travel day from Marburg up to Denmark today. No time to fit a run in with daylight and running in the dark in unfamiliar Germany didn't seem like a great idea. I just tried to eat less bread today.

6  miles. Denmark coast in Sonderborg. Kind of a gloomy morning, but the wind wasn't as bad as it was when we arrived yesterday. Ran right on the coastline on, of course, another trail. Wound through some sea-side neighborhoods and a little forest. So awesome!

6 miles. Munich. Wanted to go longer, but didn't want to get separated from Kent. This place is huge and very easy to get lost. Plus it seemed like there were more questionable individuals roaming the streets, even at an early hour. Ran to a plaza where they were setting up a Sunday afternoon Beer Garden. We didn't stay.

Back in Zurich today, early morning shuttle ride to the airport took the place of running. Off to Paris for our last day. Arrived in Paris about 11am and finally figured out how to use the train/metro system. Walked from our hotel to the Arc de Triomphe, then to the Eiffel Tower, then down the Champs Elysees to the Louvre and back to the hotel. At least 10 miles, and no ice-cream, so it counts for something, I hope! 

Super early morning to catch the metro, then RER back to the Paris airport. Sat on a plane all day. Ugh, heavy legs!

12 miles. Back on U.S. soil, already missing the amazing network of trails all throughout Europe. They have it all figured out! Ran 4 of the twelve miles at RP minus 10-15 seconds to remind my legs that there is a race coming in just a few weeks!

pm: 45 minutes - core stability & stretching

10 miles. Easy pace, legs are heavy from weights last night. Or maybe from two weeks of vacation...

10 miles w/ 1 min @ 5k pace x 10. Still kind of sore for some reason, hopefully by tomorrow it is better so I have a good long run!

18 miles. Not a very adventurous run today, I was inside because the wind would have blown me to Idaho.

10 miles. 10 x 2min at 5k pace, followed by 45min of core & stretching. Now jumping in the car for an 11-hour drive to California for work. Yahoo.

8 miles. Kraemer Loop. Outside. Shorts. Tank-top. I love California.

am: 8 miles. Kraemer Loop. I love Brea. Today I was tired and almost gave in to the extra hour of sleep.

lunch: 6 miles. Glendale-Nestle Building Loop. Legs woke up, ran about marathon pace. Yay! Also, ran by a pretty bad accident that the firemen we were teaching today were cleaning up.

pm: Golden Spoon with Mom.

am: 8 miles. Kraemer Loop. It's always cold when I run by the cemetery...kind of eerie.

lunch: 6 miles. Glendale-Mountain Road neighborhood. No, Glendale residents, that was not the moon rolling down the street, that was me and my not-tan, Utah winter legs.

am: 6 miles. Brea High School Loop. Mega-slow, hopefully saving some energy for tomorrow's long run.

lunch: 3.5 miles. Downtown Glendale with co-worker who is training for a weight-lifting physique contest. Ultra-mega-slow but wanted the miles.

20 miles. Angel Stadium to Balboa Pier + Huntington Beach extension. I love running here! Perfect morning, only a slight ocean wind to battle the last 5 miles. Average 7:10 pace with some sub-7's thrown in during miles 16-20.

Quick question: Any tips or advice on how fast long runs should be run? I've read several articles and they all vary from 30-120 seconds off of race pace. To me that seems like a big range and I want to make sure my long runs are productive without being destructive.

am: 10 miles. Temple Loop - extended. Nice to be outside and not frozen or in a tornado. Hopefully I can get in a speed workout and core stability tonight after work.

am: 6 miles. 10 min easy warm-up then - Workout #16 (1 min hard, 1 min easy). Kept the "hard efforts" sub-6.

pm: 6 miles. TOU Mile 22 Loop. Easy/recovery pace. 45 min core & stretching.

Also, hurried to cook a healthy stir-fry meal to take for our "meal sampling night" with the youth at Church. Funny how the healthy food went untouched and the cheesy-potatoey-sausagey meal was a hit. My bad. Guess we'll be eating left-overs all week!

am: 12 miles. 8.5 miles with 12 x 200 w/200 jog at the USU track, average 41 sec, with last 4 sub-40.

Then, 60 minutes on the elliptical followed by 3.5 miles to finish out the cardio.

Hopefully I can sneak in a core workout this afternoon.

11 miles. Nibley Loop. Lots of fog & worm-covered sidewalks.

45 minutes core & stretching

9 miles. Airport Road loop from work. Tired legs.

16 miles. Blacksmith Fork Canyon. I ran 17 today but didn't count the last mile that gains 400 feet in elevation, that one always ruins my average pace - call it a cool-down.

Was close to goal marathon pace through 14 miles and then made a conscious decision to slow down and see if I could turn this into a longer run. About mile 15 I bonked (possibly could have needed a better dinner last night). Hopefully there was some physical progress made today, because I sure didn't gain any mental confidence.

am: head cold; Figures I'd get sick one day after I get my registration confirmation for the marathon.

pm: 10 miles. VERY EASY & SLOW. Just needed this more mentally than anything, only ran to not lose a day.

am: 10 miles. 4 x 1 mile at 5k pace, 400m jog. Didn't feel awesome, but it was a manageable pace. Still fighting off this silly cold.

Kent and I have gone through almost 20 pounds of oranges since he got sick last week.

am: 10 miles. Temple Loop; recovery pace. I was sore today for some reason.

pm: 4 miles. Short tempo workout with some 200's at the end.

45 minutes core strength & stretching.

am: 6 miles, easy recovery pace. I might have to move my long run to tomorrow...another canyon run? Need redemption from last week!

pm: 4 miles, easy. Just wanted the miles.

Does 4.5 hours of cleaning house for a visit from the parents count for anything?

11 miles. Stayed inside today, despite wanting to go play in the snow. If only I wasn't still trying to get rid of this silly cold.

Watched an episode of The Biggest Loser to distract myself from the quarantine of the basement.

18 miles. Freezing air + freezing wind + ice-chunked sidewalks + angry farm dog + the only hill in the city that's really a mountain = Tour de Rexburg.

Little Sis graduated college last night! Such a great night!

am: 10 miles. Valencia Loop. Back in Brea, I love this place! Felt better than I thought so I tempo'ed back the last 5 miles.

pm: 6 miles. Souplantation Loop with my little sister, who will be running the half when I run the full. So fun to have a training partner!

am: 8 miles. Kraemer Loop. Tired legs this morning, couldn't muster up a very fast pace, but at least I got some miles in.

pm: 4 miles. 10 min warm-up followed by 1 minute hard/1 minute easy for 20 minutes. Legs felt better than I expected.

am: 4 miles. Brea Blvd. Loop. Should have woken up earlier.

lunch: 6 miles. San Marcos hills & wind loop. Legs felt good, too bad the track was chained closed so I couldn't do my workout.

pm: 60 minutes. Elliptical in my parents room while watching "Off Their Rockers" with Betty White. Haha.

am: 4 miles. Santa Monica-Olympic Blvd. to the beach! Kind of a turbo-run this morning because I had to get back to work.

lunch: 8 miles. Brea High School track; 6 x 1200. Did this in my trainers because 1) my achilles is bothering me, 2) (and probably more of an issue) I left my "fast" shoes in Utah.

10 miles. Inside today, pretty crazy rainstorm here in CA! Sounds wimpy, I know, but it was good to stay in because it helped me control the pace for a real recovery day rather than running too fast to get out of the rain. I'd describe today's pace as a recovery² day.

22 miles. Angel Stadium-Huntington Beach-Balboa Pier-Newport Pier. I love running here! My brother came along on a bike and kept me company, such a great day for a run. Only had to battle the strong winds for few miles, pace range from 6:45-7:00 (7:25 in the headwind).

82 miles in 6 days is a PR for me. Oh the temptation to run 8 tomorrow to hit 90 in a week! Sundays are usually not running days though...

 Now I'm jumping in the car to make my way back to Utah. It will be fun to try to walk after 11 hours in the car! 

10 miles. Hollow Road out-and-back. Super easy pace, it was fun to just run and not worry about a workout.

92 miles this week if I count my miles from Monday-Sunday (which I have always done since I started keeping track of mileage). Not sure if I'll do that again anytime soon and I hope it was helpful, not detrimental, to my training.

I'm pretty nervous about my training and preparation for this marathon. I feel like I was floating along, auditing a class (running miles, but not with any training effect) but then 3/4 of the way into the semester I found out I had to take the final  in order to retain any knowledge of the class. Cramming for tests is not nearly as successful as studying all along the way. Hopefully my "cram-session" will be enough for a decent run in 3 weeks.

am: 6 miles. TOU mile 22 loop. Very tired legs today. I just ignored how slow I was running and enjoyed the fact that I could.

lunch: 6 miles. 6 x 200 w/200 jog at the USU track. Gorgeous day and my legs woke up after this morning. Splits: 35, 35, 36, 37, 36, 37. Felt pretty good!

Congrats to all the Boston-ers! What a brave effort for the conditions!

am: 4 miles. I treadmilled (super slow) today because it was still really dark outside and someone told me about a pride of mountain lions that live in the canyon and come down into the neighborhoods right before sunrise to eat deer for breakfast. Sometimes this scares me into my basement because I'm sure I'd appear as a lame deer. Kinda like a shark is attracted to a lame seal that turns out to be a surfer.

pm: 6 miles. TOU mile 22 marker loop, with Jeni. Nice to have company.

Had to use the shop vac to clean the kitchen after cooking dinner. Yep, I'm that good of a cook.

12 miles. 3 mile tempo at MP, 1600 breakdown track workout; pace range from 6:00 down to 5:00, followed by one more MP mile to see the pace difference. Felt better than I thought I would, but still unsure of where my fitness is at this point.

45 minutes core & stretching.

I have a feeling the rain will cancel my bike ride this afternoon. Bummer.

lunch: 45 minutes spin. 3 x 8min w/15 sec sprint-15 sec easy, 5 min rest. I don't love spin.

a.m.: 4.5 miles. Snail's pace.

p.m.: 6.5 miles. Logan River Trail. Luckily I came away with NO ankle sprains. Trails always make me so nervous! Ran with Jeni, Mandee and Mandee's pit bull...

Got my foot zoning done today. Interesting what she could tell me about what has been going on in my body!

am: 7 miles. 10 min warm-up then, 6 x 3 min hard-1 min easy-1 min hard-1 min easy. Put in a lot of "junk miles" yesterday so I wanted some quality today. Felt better than expected.

pm: 3 miles. Ran to the post office to drop off some letters.

16 miles. Tour of Logan. Had a hard time convincing my legs that today was a great day for a long run, had to work harder than I should have to achieve the pace I was running. Beautiful morning for a run anyway.

Congrats to all of you who were running around in Salt Lake City today!

**mileage disclaimer: this week was only 71 total miles because I counted Sunday's 10-miler as part of last week's mileage.

sunny afternoon = 20 mile bike ride up Hollow Road with my husband's racing club. They went 40. I could only keep up with their warm-up speed, I'm a wimp! However, I did get to work on my tan a little bit.

4 mile bike ride around the neighborhood; my legs are super-tired!

a.m.: 6.5 miles. River Heights Elementary Loop. Slog miles, feeling like I got hit by a train.

lunch: 4.5 miles. USU track, 6 x 200 w/200 jog; 33(!), 37, 35, 37, 37, 36. Firemen out walking on the track, in lane 1... they should know that WALKING in lane 1 is a FIRE HAZARD.

p.m.: 45 minutes, core & stretching. Feeling like a hippo.

a.m.: 8 miles. Mountain Lion (a.k.a. Basement) Loop, I let the rumors scare me today. Might be my first single-digit day in a while.

p.m.: 42 mile bike ride. Smithfield-Trenton-Benson with Holly and Carrie. Got in a little over my head with this one! I am not a fit biker and Holly and Carrie are 1/2 Ironman athletes.

Took a 15-minute ice bath. Still shivering...

12 miles. Hollow Road tempo. 1 mile warm-up then, 2 x 3 miles with 1 mile jog in between. Splits: 6:14, 6:22, 6:21 & 6:16, 6:22, 6:07. Originally planned on more miles in the tempo but was pretty worn-out after riding for 2.5 hours yesterday. Now I'm worried I should have slowed it down today and made it longer so it was more marathon specific. Hopefully there was some training benefit, I'm just not convinced my fitness is where it needs to be.

Off to get a deep-tissue massage now and I think I'm more nervous for that than the marathon!

8 miles. Super-easy recovery.

6 miles. Mile 22 Loop. Six miles seemed really long today, hopefully my legs get some life back in them soon. And I'd like the spring weather to come back.

Didn't really know what to expect today. I think the last time I ran a 5k was about 5 years ago. I have never done a marathon "tune-up" 5k the week before a race, so I was a little nervous about doing something dumb and hurting myself. Fortunately everything is still in tact and feeling good.

Mile 1 went out fast, as expected. A really fast girl was there so it was good for me to have someone to pace off of for a bit. A SUPER fast guy was there who would have helped me PR in the 400m! (I didn't pace off of him.) We started about 100 meters behind the 1 Mile fun run so we had to do some weaving through traffic while manipulating a gravel-covered turn. All skin stayed gravel free! Fast Girl took off past me at about 0.5 miles so I just hung back because my garmin was telling me I was running 5:43. A pace I was sure I wouldn't sustain through the race. At about mile 1 I passed Fast Girl with a huge concern that it would come back to haunt me.

We made a hair-pin turn at about mile 1.1 and I looked up to only see hill. Oh boy, mile 2 was going to be fun. And it was...not very much fun. Luckily there were some guys in front of me that I could focus on as we trudged up the hill. I just focused on one at a time as I was able to get by them. Tried to squeeze out a "Nice Work!" but I'm sure all they heard were huge gasps of air. This mile greatly discouraged me because I could hardly hold a 6:30 pace and it was a lot of work. I kinda want to call the hill a mountain to make myself feel better!

Finally at about mile 2 the hill gave us some relief as we turned on to only a slight incline now. That lasted another 0.2 or so and then we got some flat ground. I regained my composure and settled back into a manageable pace, but still not the pace I was hoping for. One more turn and then we were home free to the finish. This downhill was nice, but not as steep as the uphill-go figure! I felt really controlled and comfortable so I probably should have pushed the pace a little, but I just don't know how to race a 5k! Came through the finish in 18:32, which is a PR as far as I know. Not quite what I was thinking, but I can't be upset about it.

Splits: 5:49, 6:30, 5:50 (for last 1.1).

6 miles. Souplantation Loop. Made it to Brea last night after 12.5 hours in the car. My bum is still sore.

6 miles. Brea High School track - 2 mile warm-up then, 4x400 at MP. 96, 96, 99(trying to determine if I could run 100 more laps at this pace, made me nervous), 95. Probably too fast, but that's what the track does to me. Finished up with a modified Kraemer Loop. I think I felt okay today, but I suffer from the love/hate relationship with taper week.

4 miles. Central Loop. Pretty tired all day today. 11.5 hours of work. Ugh.

Planned day off today. Just some foam rolling and stretching. Everything feels like it hurts. Makes me dislike tapering even more. Super anxious for the run.

2 miles. Northwood extension, can't even call it a loop! Short and sweet, surprisingly my phantom hip flexor soreness did not bother me at all.

Foam rolling followed by an ice bath. Can't believe it will all be over in less than 48 hours!

2 miles. Central and back. Not sure how I feel but I don't feel bad! 21 hours till race time!

Had a pretty good day today, I will say I am pleased with the outcome. The race felt good, and it felt like I controlled my race the whole way. I didn't get ahead of myself and I didn't let other people get in my head. I had a couple goals that I didn't meet, but looking back at the reason I was even able to prepare for and run this race starting 11 weeks ago, I kind of have to let those goals be for another time. As I stood at the start line I knew I had done just about everything a normal, working human could do to be ready in the time I'd had to prepare.

So now for the report...

Didn't sleep very much, finally my alarm went off at 3:40am. Got to the start line at 4:35am, earlier than I needed but better than being rushed. That's the worst way to start race morning! Felt pretty good on my easy, 10 min warm-up. Actually, felt numb, but much better than last year when I was almost in tears at the start because I felt so unprepared! Ran a few strides, dodging picture-taking racers and other bystanders. Got on the start line at 10 minutes before race-time only to have the race delayed for almost 15 minutes before PCH was finally clear. So much for the warm-up! And, oh the characters that think they belong in Corral A! This year it was a 60 year-old lady in a sun-shade visor-hat with tennis shoes she's been gardening in since she was my age. But apparently she was going to run as fast as the two Kenyan men she toed the line with!

Finally we were off! To run a smart race, I told myself if I saw any miles under 6:30, I would slow down. I started next to four women, only one of which I knew (Ieng), but I had already decided that today was not a race for place, it was a race for time. I had no expectations for anything but a smart race from myself. So I sat in third-fourth for the first few miles, jockeying back and forth with a couple women. The girl who shot out in front was carrying her phone/ipod in her hand! I thought she wouldn't last long (more on her later)...

Mile 1 is a little uphill, followed by some pretty good downhill to mile 2. Phone-girl up by about 10 seconds, Ieng and Orange-tank-top girl hovering close. Mile 2 was along PCH, I enjoy running down here so much! Ran by some neat little shops, people out eating breakfast, personal training studio-goers onlooking in jealousy (at least that's what I told myself), ran by the Bruegger's Bagels Kent and I ate at on our second day of married life together, made the turn at See's Candies to head down to the beach, so fun! Feeling very relaxed and controlled. Funny how race pace seems so easy when it's race-time!

Mile 3 was along Ocean Blvd looking down onto Corona Del Mar beach where I've enjoyed numerous bonfires, gorgeous morning! Ieng was gone at this point, I think she wisened up about the pace she took off at. Orange girl was hanging tough, but running on her toes! Oh my dear, that will not last 26 miles! She would pass me and then slow down, and then I would realize that my pace was under 6:30 so I'd slow down and she'd pass me again. Did this until Mile 5 when we both took some water. Orange was behind me at this point and I noticed between songs (I only listen to my ipod when I run races so I can't hear myself breathe!) that she was gasping for air already. Poor thing, hope she didn't just PR in the 5k! I didn't see her again...

Mile 6 we hair-pin turned under PCH and headed up a hill to the Upper Back Bay trail. Still feeling good, and enjoying all the cheering spectators! Made it up the hill just fine and hopped on the trail, and then had to maneuver around some happy-go-lucky guy and his dog. Apparently he thought it was really fun to be in the middle of the race course.

Miles 7-10 were through the Newport neighborhoods, lots of people out cheering. So fun! Gave some head nods and thumbs-up but didn't want to waste too much energy! Saw my parents for the first time at almost mile 8, only to get a look from my Mom telling me to get Phone-girl. All in good time Mom, I'm running my race, not hers! Passed her about 400m later, didn't see her for a while. Parents again at mile 10, they were everywhere! Also at mile 10 my calves teased me with attempted cramping but I just ignored them so they would go away.

Mile 11 had a pretty big hill, but was countered by a downhill first so my pace evened out.

Mile 12 was where the Ellipti-Go leader guide picked me up. Still feeling good and keeping the pace controlled. Parents again!

Mile 13 had a row of little kids lined up cheering, gave them a fist pump and they went crazy!

Mile 14-17 felt good. Steep hill/overpass to get over the 405 freeway. Stomach cramp at mile 14.5, that was weird, I just thought, "come on body, work with me!" Went away soon after! Hairpin turn right before mile 15 showed me that Phone-girl was still hanging about 400m back. Made me kind of nervous, but I still felt very controlled so I didn't worry too much. Ellipti-Go man informed me, in a little bit of a warning tone, that I had just put three 6:30 miles together. "Yep, that's what I have too!" I told him! I was actually a little surprised myself. Parents again, and my little sister had emerged from her beauty sleep in the back of the suburban, she's an awesome cheerleader once you get her going!

About mile 17.5 we entered Segerstrom High School. It was at least a 400m loop around the campus and back out, in a tear-drop shape loop. When we came out of the loop, Phone-girl was in front of me about 100m. I was totally confused. How did she get there? She never passed me and we stayed on the course the whole way. It was clear she had come into the high school and instead of running through campus, she just crossed over to the other side of the course and skipped that whole loop. When Ellipti-Go went to tell her she needed to turn around she told him no and kept running. She said the cop told her to go that way. I was ticked. When I saw her and then saw the Ellpti-Go man go over to the other side of the course, I stopped running and asked what the heck was going on, well okay, more like yelled, and got more upset than I should have. After a 5-7 second pause I started running again, not sure I was even going the right way now because I had gotten so turned around. Ellipti-Go man assured me he had informed race officials and it would not affect the outcome of the race. So I regained my composure and passed Phone-girl again. She was only about 50 feet behind me when I saw my parents again and so they thought I was dying. I ran by and told them, with an angry face, that she had cut the course. Then I refocused and found my pace again. I'm such a brat!

Mile 20 I got on the river trail and finally saw Kent. Poor guy had gotten a sudden onset of food-poisoning right after the start and ended up getting really sick and needing to buy new clothes at Wal-Mart before being able to get back on his bike to find me! So sad! He gave me new life as now my quads were teasing me with cramping.

Mile 21 was hard. All I could think of was how long TOU feels from mile 21 to the finish (probably because TOU has never felt good for me)! The spectators had set up an "Area 21" water station with aliens and spaceships so that distracted me, but the smile was gone. Poor kids were trying so hard!

Mile 22 I came off the river trail onto a sidewalk where a guy was doubled-over puking. Nice. I was already feeling sorry for myself.

Mile 23-24 I am not proud of, I got wimpy and forgot all the motivating things I told myself to think of when I got to this point. Felt sorry for myself because even though a hill had been taken out with a new course, it was now a steady grade for a longer time. Needed a slap in the face.

When I hit the mile 24 marker I just told myself, "9 more laps around a track and you'll be done." So I tried my best to "suck it up" and finish.

Mile 25 got me out of the neighborhood and back onto the main streets. This year was a new finish so I couldn't start my last mile build-up where I usually do. That did a number on my mind-game. But I just kept marking off the laps. Got onto Fairview and focused on the stoplight where I would make the next turn and turn off my ipod for the finish.

Mile 26 Ipod off, final kick on! I felt better than I thought! I was so happy, just thrilled to be there, headed toward a PR and lots of people cheering. Made the turn to the finish and enjoyed the final stretch, looking around and smiling wide! Came across the line so happy! Kent was there, followed quickly by Jess, who also had a very successful day in her first half!

I am very happy with the way the race turned out. I ran by myself for most of the race and am pleased I was able to maintain the paces I did without falling apart too bad. I am thrilled with the chance I had to run!

Splits: 6:37, 6:29, 6:27, 6:37, 6:30, 6:34, 6:28, 6:34, 6:34, 6:32, 6:29, 6:27, 6:36, 6:34, 6:34, 6:32, 6:38, 6:39, 6:42, 6:37, 6:45, 6:42, 6:56, 6:57, 6:51, 6:49

First half: 1:25:30(ish), Second half: 1:27:30(ish)

Average pace: 6:37

Sorry for the lengthy report, but I wanted to remember today.

760 miles. Brea-Providence point-to-point at Mazda3 pace. Lots of course incidents out there today, fortunately we missed all of them!

By the way, not the ideal way to spend the day after a marathon. Legs are not working properly.

Hips and quads still torn to shreds. Love it though, makes me feel like I worked hard. Body tells me to wait to get back out there, but my mind can't wait to run another marathon! Such a fun training cycle and race to top it off. Trying to stay smart about recovery, and maybe enjoy some of the Swiss chocolate we have left over from our Europe trip!

Taught senior aerobics class at work today...it was hard for me. Our oldest attendee is an amazing 82 year-old woman. She rocked it, and me.

Ate cookies at my nephew's wedding...forgot how fun it is to eat those!

Gorgeous Cache Valley weather is beckoning but I am giving my hip one more day to recover. No rush = no injuries!

5 miles. Zollinger Park Loop. Felt like Jiggily-Puff out there. How I can be in the best shape of my life on Sunday and then feel like I've never run a day in my life on Friday is a mystery to me.

8 miles. Bear Lake bike path. Ran while Kent raced the Bear Lake Classic. Quads still not happy with me, but the pace was quicker than I expected. Hopefully not too much fitness is  gone after some zero days!

am: 10 miles. Hollow Road. Beautiful morning, I love running when pace doesn't matter!

Lunch: Rip60, day 1. So far so good, haven't missed a day!

pm: 12 mile bike ride with Kent. LOTS of hills, one flat tire (Kent), one tip-over/skinned knee (me)

6 miles. TOU mile 22 Loop. Super-slow because I am super-sore.

Rip60, day 2

12 miles. Hollow Road. Hardest part of the run was dodging the cotton blossoms meandering through the air, didn't swallow very many.

pm: Rip60, a.k.a. RippedHammies. It's as if I've never used my hamstrings or triceps. Please don't ask me to sit down.

8 miles. Providence Cemetery Loop, followed by Rip60, hamstrings are slowly forgiving me.

am: 5 miles. Fairly easy today, wanted to get a little in before work and before the rain.

lunch: Rip60 followed by 7 miles. Wimped out and ran inside, I just don't like soggy shoes and raisin-toes.

12.5 miles. Cache Valley Mall Loop. Achy knees today, might take some miles off next week to see if that will help...and get new shoes.

Rip60.

Congrats to all the Ogden-ers!

10 miles on the road bike with Kent, lots of hills-he seems to think I like climbing. No skinned knees, no flat tires-I see this as a successful training day, minus the spoonfuls of Nutella that snuck into my mouth.

13 miles. Logan Canyon river trail, gorgeous day, so glad I waited until after work to run!

Rip60, week 2. Still don't like the 3 minutes of jumping jacks variations, or burpees.

9 miles. 10 minute warm-up, then 14 x 2min @ 5k pace/1min easy rest; threw in some hill work too (1 mile hill run), haven't done that in a while!

Rip60

12 miles. Hollow Road. Less than stellar day, the pin-like hail didn't make me feel better, but at least it made me run faster.

Rip60

10 miles. 2 mile warm-up followed by 6 x 800 @ 5k pace w/ 400 rest, 4 x 400 @ 5k-15sec pace w/400 rest. Took a little longer rest than I probably needed, I was nervous being back on the track for the first time in a while.

Rip60

9 miles. Bernina Loop. Ate lunch with Kent before I ran, now I remember why I like running on an empty stomach.

10 miles with a sorry attempt at a 5k, so I am not making this a race report.

5k Fundraiser for Johnson & Draper Families. Heber City. Small event, went more for support than an actual race, which is how well I prepared all week for this. Didn't intend on racing because I thought it would be fun to run Kent and his buddies. We all know how that goes when you say you are just going to run for fun...

Didn't know the course, wasn't familiar with the area, so by mile 0.25 on the course I had already run about 0.55 miles. Played a bit of a game of catch-up after my wrong turn, or not-turn, (I did turn around to look at the two people behind me who signaled me to continue running straight when the course turned right; they realized it before I did...). Kent tried to yell at me apparently, but I didn't hear him. Caught back up to the front of the group, but the wind was a real bugger and stood all of us straight up/backward at one point and then the side-wind almost tangled up my feet (or I'm just a big clutz). I was lucky enough to get by everyone except for one. This was a sweet way for the race to end because the man who won is the father of the little girl who just got out of the hospital after a horrible accident that nearly took her life, and who the fundraiser was for.

Not so happy about my racing tactics or mind-set today. I had heavy legs and my mind was not willing to see past that. At the same time, I knew going into it that I did not prepare in any way for this to be a good race effort (except for skipping Rip60 last night after work).

pm: Rip60

10 miles. 5 miles outside, Maverick Loop, until the ominous storm chased me home.

Rip60 while Kent rode the rollers.

5 miles on the treadmill while Kent did Rip60.

Not our usual Sunday routine, but I am traveling all day tomorrow and Kent will be working the farm all day so we wanted to get in a "just-in-case-we-don't-have-time" workout today.

6 miles. Souplantation Loop, 6:45-7:10 pace. Felt better than I thought after 13 hours sitting in the car, plus I had to get home to my Dad's BBQ chicken!

am: 8 miles. Kraemer Loop. Tired legs.

lunch: 3 miles. Incline workout on the treadmill. Amazing how hard 6.0 mph feels at 12% grade!

I miss Rip60. Should have brought my strap!

am: 7 miles. Somerset Loop. I was only going to run 6 miles this morning but my high school coach drove past me on her way to the high school and gave me a shout-out. I would have turned around right in front of her but my ego got in the way and I ran a little farther so I wouldn't look like a slacker.

lunch: 3.34 miles. San Bernardino suicide attempt. Ran with a co-worker. We were planning on 4 miles, but when we realized the two dogs up the road were not labs, they were PITBULLS on the loose in a drug/prostitution laden neighborhood, we did a 180 and our "flight" mechanism of our "fight or flight" response was in full throttle. Luckily the dogs didn't notice us, otherwise, Robin is a true sprinter and I would have been dog food.

No more running in San Bernardino, it's just not a safe place, even the firefighters told us we were crazy for going out on the streets.

8 miles. Kraemer Loop. Super tired today, not really sure why.

pm: Rip60 (my version without the strap) with Jessica & Stephen. Glad my siblings will entertain my craziness!

10 miles. Valencia Loop. Ended up feeling better than I thought so I tempo'ed home from this out-and-back (plus I was worried I was going to be late for work). 6:23-6:34 for 4 miles. Last mile was uphill so it slowed down a bit, but still about a minute faster than I normally get up the hill.

12 miles. Tour de Brea. Felt pretty crummy so I just slowed down a bit. Haven't done a run around Brea like this for a while, so I wanted to get one in while I was here.

6 miles. Wildcat Way Loop. Sludgy Monday start, but ended up averaging 6:50's so it didn't turn out so bad. Good thing because I didn't have time for a ton of miles.

8 miles. Kraemer Loop. Garmin was a little groggy this morning, but he woke up after a while!

6 miles. Wildcat Way Loop. Early morning before one more Kids Run the OC Marathon awards assembly and then 750 miles in the car!

8 miles. Providence Cemetery Loop. Brrr! It's more summer-y in California. I was kindly welcomed back by the altitude this morning, I thought it was going to be more unfriendly but we got along just fine! Maybe it's just because my mileage is accidently low this week due to time constraints so my legs are more fresh than they've been for a month.

Rip60! Yay, I'm back!

12 miles. Cache Valley Mall Loop. Garmin-less, lots of green lights, and even the right-hand-turners stopped BEFORE the crosswalk so I didn't have to hurdle any hoods. Glorious day in the sun!

Rip60

16 miles. Spent the morning at Kent's bike race, then came home and was really sick...flat on my back for a couple hours. Didn't think I'd be able to run at all, but then got motivated by all the UVM race reports. Nice job everyone!

Weird day, took it off. Built an IKEA entertainment unit, didn't use one bad word.

9 miles. River Heights loop with Jeni.

Rip60

10 miles. Hollow Road. Felt great so I argued with myself the whole time about going longer or getting home in time to do a Rip60 workout.

Rip60 won, and I'm glad. Just wish Monday wasn't a big fat 0.

10 miles. Temple Loop. Yesterday 6:45's felt like I was floating on air, today 7:55's felt like I was running in water. I love schizophrenic running legs.

Rip60-rocked my world today.

And...I almost got recruited for a Ragnar Ultra-team. Kinda wish I could do it. Kinda.

10 miles. 8 miles on the Ragnar course through Providence, fun to see everyone out. Sad I'm not there now, I will be happy tonight when I am sleeping comfortably in my bed.

2 miles on the treadmill because I ended up having more time when I got home than I thought I would.

11 miles. Hollow Road.

Rip60

6 miles. TOU mile 22 loop.

Rip60

Debating my racing plans after missing out on all the Ragnar excitement!

8 miles. River Heights west loop. Keeping mileage low to help my body rebuild while I debate race plans.

35 mile bike ride in Smithfield/Benson/Trenton with my triathlete friends. Totally rocked my world, as always.

pm: Rip60 with Kent.

10 miles. Treadmilled today because I didn't have a chance to get going on a run until almost 9pm. I don't like wearing headlamps...

Leaving for girls camp tomorrow...never been before, hopefully the rumors are not all true.