Dear Monday...

want to join in? link up!

Dear Monday, You're providing the worst weekend hangover ever.

Dear Ragnar Teammates, Thanks for the best running adventure of my life! Though I really only got to hang out LOTS with my Van 2 (aw, Abe!) crew the most, you all contributed to an amazing adventure that I'm really glad I got to be a part of. Ragnar again, anyone? (Awesome 4-part recap, coming soon!)

At the Ragnar start line! Team 4 Score & 7 Miles Ago.

Dear body, while I understand I put you through a lot this weekend, I really don't appreciate the wide-awake status at 3 am this morning. Doing that the last two weeks was fine, but after minimal amounts of sleep this weekend, I really could have used that hour and a half I didn't get back. Work with me, here, huh?

Dear Washington, D.C., you seem like an awesome city and I'm definitely adding you to my cities-to-come-back-and-visit-for-longer-than-12-hours list. DC's the only one on the list. ;)

Typical tourist. Jeez.

Dear self, you're capable of more than you thought. Ragnar just taught you that. Rock it.

Short Monday post today. I've got lots to write about -- training recap week and at least 3 posts on Ragnar adventures alone. More coming tonight, get excited!

Ragnar DC: It's HERE!

It's here.

If you're still not sure what Ragnar is, watch the following video. Wasatch Back looks like a stunning race, so maybe I'll run it one day. But you'll get the idea this way!

And oh-emm-gee I am so freaking excited! It's Thursday morning, and our team is slowly gathering around the vicinity of Pittsburgh before we caravan our way down to Cumberland, Maryland, where we'll camp out like sardines in our hotel room before we start at 8:30 am (EST) Friday morning. 

Me? I'm on a plane, somewhere between Atlanta and Pittsburgh, a bundle of nerves, excitement and energy for this adventure. We've been talking about this since June, I've been packing since last Thursday (or at least thinking about packing), finished packing on Tuesday, and after work on Wednesday, drove down to Atlanta, camped out at HP's, and got to the airport at the freaking break of dawn this morning. Needless to say, I'm tired -- but tired is pretty much the only way I can preemptively describe the adventure that is about to come!  

All my stuff, pre-packing. This fit into the duffle and tote bag you see on the right. Impressive, no?

Every coworker, friend, dog parker, family member I've talked about this to probably thinks I am legitimately and certifiably crazzzzzzy. Runners think it's awesome. Duh. Here's the low-down of things you need to know:

I am Runner 9 for Team 4 Score and 7 Miles Ago. My legs are as follows:

So over the course of about 30 hours (we're currently estimated to finish in 30:00:07!), I'll run 13.9 miles. Not terrible and totally do-able. I didn't train doing double runs as much as I should have, but my legs feel really strong lately and I feel ready to go. My Leg 2 is currently estimated to start somewhere around 2 am, which I am positively terrified about -- I hate running at night! So this will be a mental and personal challenge of all challenges. Can you say excitement? I am hoping the sheer adrenaline will get me going and I can run a personal best 10K. ;)

You can also follow our team along on Twitter at #4score7mi for all the shenanigans, fun, updates and exciting news from Cumberland to DC. Sunday I'll be playing in DC for a few hours (since I've never been!) and will return to Atlanta Sunday evening. So so so excited about this -- please feel free to follow along on Twitter for our adventures! If you're running Ragnar DC, see you on the road!

Have you ever done a relay, Ragnar or not? Advice, things to know?

Wine & Dine: Week 4

Tough week is over -- felt pretty off this week, even on the days I did run. I'm glad that for the most part, I stuck with it and got the miles in, but I just didn't feel like my head was in the game. It happens, I just that it happened so early in this training plan!

Sunday: Cross-Train
1.54 mi/14:26/9:22 pace
Since I was still in California until Sunday afternoon, I didn't have access to my gym. Being that I was sitting on a plane all afternoon, I figured it'd be better to get some road time in since cross-training wasn't in my cards for the day. Set off on a super quick, albeit short, tempo run around my neighborhood. Felt good -- beautiful morning in Southern California. Can't wait to run my marathon here in February! Nothing like running on your own turf -- in non-humid weather.

Leaving on a jet plane ... my favorite part of flying out of LAX.

Monday: 3.5 miles
Rest
Super tired from Sunday and feeling generally blah. Considering changing up my schedule so Mondays are rest days intentionally, because I feel like the last few weeks have been, but not on purpose. We'll see how this goes.


Tuesday: 35 min tempo
1.68 mi / 15:27 / 9:13 pace

I feel like I barely made this run count. I did run in the evening, so knowing me, I probably did it right after work, wasn't feeling super hot... and regretted that decision! Ah well, at least I got out for a little bit, right?

Look what came in today! Sporting my tank as we speak & planning on rocking it at Ragnar this upcoming week. Who's excited? Meeeeeeeeeeee!

The card is my favorite: Kicking Ass is Best Done in Pretty Shoes.

 Wednesday: 3 miles + strength
2.22 mi / 20:26 / 9:14 pace
Well, I guess the good thing about this run (and Tuesday's) is building up that consistency in my running paces. Now I just need to work on building endurance over long distances so I can bust out a 9:13 for a 10K or something, because that would just be amazing. I guess my upcoming second leg on Ragnar will be a great test for that! *wink*

And todayyyyy I got

These are my new babies, the Brooks PureConnects. I  love my Saucony Kinvaras, and am saving to get an other pair that I can rotate with these guys, but I wanted to also try a new shoe as well to see what fit was like. They're kinda funky, as they have more of an arch compared to the Kinvaras, but so far they've contributed to some decent runs. Trying to break them in prior to Ragnar!

Thursday:  Rest
Rest
Again, being that my head just wasn't in the game this week, I was totally okay with it. Such is life.


Friday: 3 miles
2.62 mi / 24:42 / 9:25 pace
Happy way to start my Friday - and I think the kick-start I needed ... you know, to end the week. Better late than never, and at least I got those miles in. Hoping this rough week is almost over and I can move on to a better, happier week!

Oh, and these came in on Friday! Thanks so much Sparkly Soul! I am so excited to represent next week at Ragnar... and forever. <3

Saturday: 3 miles am + 4 miles pm (Ragnar training)
5.57 mi/ 57:37 / 10:20 pace
First off, I was not mentally prepared for this run, whether I did it in two parts or one. I set out to do one 7-miler. I'm realizing more and more how much the mental game really plays into how you do on a run. Really. I felt alright until mile 2.5 or so -- when the dreaded runner tummy issues kicked in. I walked to try and calm my body down, and from there went downhill. Ran to RiteAid (thank you for being open at 8 am on a Saturday) and then tried to get back into it but just couldn't. Check out those lousy paces... I'm glad this running week is over and I can move on!

So overall, a rough week. Hoping the excitement of Ragnar can get me pumped for next week and get in the mindset of getting in some quality runs! Here's to hoping!

Do you have anything getting you pumped soon? What's upcoming on your race calendar? How do you deal with difficult weeks?

Ragnar DC: Packing List

Hey, wanna get in a van with five strangers, on a team with eleven total strangers, sleep a handful of hours in a 36-hour span, sleep and eat while being confined in a van, run a 4-mile race at 2 am, cover a distance of 198.9 miles throughout this adventure... and do it for fun? I thought so. Ragnar was meant for you.

Per the Ragnar website, “During the relay, each team member runs three legs, each leg ranging between three to eight miles and varying in difficulty. Each team is responsible for providing two support vehicles, with six runners in each vehicle. The first vehicle will drop off the first runner, drive ahead a few miles, cheer the runner on, and provide them with water, snacks, and plenty of love. That vehicle will then drive ahead to the first exchange point to drop off the second runner, and pick up the first runner when that leg is complete. They will repeat this pattern for six legs until they hand off to their second vehicle. This leapfrogging pattern will continue all the way to the finish line.” Sounds like a great time - count me IN (because it's too late to bail now).

I am so excited this is finally here, and really... can't believe it's already here. Considering I've been on this team since June and really cannot believe summer flew by that quickly, I'm in shock that this time next week, I'll be venturing into Maryland and gearing up for a running adventure of a lifetime. I'm already thinking about my packing list, so putting it out here so you experienced Ragnarians can help fill in the gaps as needed.

You can never get too organized for something like this!

Personal

I've seen lots of advice about packing each running ensemble into a 1-gallon Ziploc bag; that way, a) your stuff is already sorted for you and b) you can put your stinkky stuff right back in the bag! Brilliant. Each bag will contain:

• Top 
• Sports bra
• Socks
• Headband
• Shorts
• Underwear

Additionally, I'll have some extra personal stuff on hand:

• Hat
• Running jacket
• Running tights 
• Yoga pants for van-time lounging
• Extra shirts for lounging
• Fleece jacket
• Sunglasses
• Cash monies
• Camera
• iPhone (use it as my iPod)
• Garmin watch
• Armband
• Headphones
• Sleeping bag
• Hoodie
• Flip-flops
• Chapstick
• IcyHot stick
• Deoderant... lots of it. 
• Power adapter/power strip (you know, we've got like 8 things charging at once!)
• Hand-held water bottle
• Sweat towel
• Spare running shoes (?)

Team Stuff

Our captains have done an amazing job of getting team food stuffs in order, along with team-oriented supplies, including, but not limited to:

• Raisins 
• Nature Valley bars
• Quaker chewy bars
• Clif Bar Variety Pack
• Animal crackers
• Ibuprofen
• IcyHot patches
• Tums
• Goldfish
• Pudding packs
• Pretzels
• Pop Tarts
• Cereal
• Gatorade 
• Yoohoo
• Additional water bottles
• Bagels
• Batteries
• Bananas
• Starbucks doubleshots (caffeine is necessary, duh)
• Tissue boxes/packs
• Vaseline
• Bandaids
• Apples/other fresh fruit 
• Babywipes/wet wipes (for "showers")
• Cookies

I realize this looks like SO much food, but even looking at it, I'm pretty confident that over 36 hours, 12 of us can polish this ish off. Right? Right. We decided, given that everyone's refueling tastes are so different, that we were each individually responsible for bringing our own refueling items of choice. Mine? Jelly Belly Sport Chews and Gu Chews, of which I'll bring an awesome variety, given that I don't want to OD on any particular flavor in such a short time-frame!

Race Essentials

• Race bibles (1 per van)
• Reflective vests (6 per van) 
• Runner lights 
• First-aid kit
• Maps/Course maps/Exchange locations 
• Van decorating supplies! Duh!

Anything else we need to be sure to bring? Anything I'm personally missing? 

Wine & Dine: Week 3

Week 3 in the books, and unfortunately I have to say it was a fairly rough week. Between a crazy work week making up our Fall Activities Fair that had been cancelled the week prior thanks to Hurricane Isaac storms that were expected (and never came, mind you), and getting ready for my weekend galavant to LA, it was a crazy one.

Let's see how it really went, hmmm?
Sunday: Cross-Train
Cycle - 6.46 miles / 30:17 min + strength

Monday: 3.5 miles
Rest

Tuesday: 3 miles
3.2 miles / 33:41 / 10:31 pace
I got in my miles today! Felt like a slacker after (albeit, being productive) not running on Monday, my day off! Such is life. Tuesday morning was great. Beautiful morning, beautiful run... such a perfect (almost) fall day.

Tuesday was also awesome for some different reasons -- as you know, I was accepted as a Sweat Pink ambassador -- still super pumped, still excited to  be a part of such a great community. And, as you'll see below, I also won some sweet stuff from Sparkly Soul! They held a contest via their Pinterest page, where you had to post a photo of you sportin' one of their awesome sparkly bands. To my excitement and surprise, I found out via Instagram that I won! Talk about a great day! Cannot wait to get some new bands in the mail for an extra little bit of colorful, sparkly fun.

Wednesday: 3 miles + strength
Rest
Wednesday was the finally arriving Fall Activities Fair. Like I said, it was supposed to be the week before but due to projected storms (that never came), we postponed it until this week. Being on campus from 6 am to 4 pm is not conducive to having any desire to run. The end.

The 2012 Fall Activities Fair!

Thursday:  Rest
Rest
Exhausted from Wednesday, and very happy to have not run either of the two days. Felt like such a slacker this week, but knew that after my 12-day on Wednesday, I really needed the break. I knew it was justified at least, even if I felt terrible for not getting it done.


Friday: 3 miles
4.05 miles / 42:36 / 10:31
Before I headed to LA for the weekend, I wanted to get in a few miles to "make up" for missing out on Wednesday... and Monday... and blerg. There's a route that involves a hill straight up pretty much the last mile, and I've been eye-balling it forever, and finally had the courage to push myself to the hill. Nothing like a hill to give you a little motivation, huh? The hill was tough, but the run was pretty great overall.

I also won a pizza for lunch! The awesome team at Crowdrise does a series of trivia, random questions and the like via their Twitter account -- and, well, I had happened to win on Thursday! Many thanks to Crowdrise for the delish lunch! Just what I needed before a flight.

Los Angeles, brought to you by seat 35A.

Saturday: 6 miles
5.01 miles / 51:05 / 10:12 pace
Didn't get in the full 6, but had an awesome 5 miles around my hometown. I was honestly looking most forward to not running in humidity -- what a concept! Woke up at the crack of dawn (thank you, Eastern Standard Time) and was out the door before 7 am and before anyone else in my house had even blinked. The morning was perfect -- Southern California sun, no humidity, and low 70s. Talk about a heavenly run! Got to run down near my high school, all the way around near some old friends' housing tracks, and back home through my neighborhood. Looking forward to a few more runs like that when I go home for Christmas. No humidity is a beautiful thing.

How was your week? Do you try and "make up" miles, or call them a loss? Do you run while traveling, even for a quick weekend?