My one token picture taken after I finished my run =) I’m still standing…..
Hey boys and girls…
Have ya missed me ? I’ve had a busy weekend…. and as you know… my Saturday was kinda hogged by my 50K run. Half the day running, the rest of it, dragging my carcass home, getting cleaned up ( I never thought the act of showering and washing my hair was an athletic event, but it felt like it) and allowing my body some much need rest time. Oh yeah, and a lil food to replace the 4,037 calories my Nike+ watch told me I burned off.
You gotta drop 3500 calories to lose a pound of fat…. so… that’s interesting….did I accomplish that too ? Multi-tasking in a new way 😉
I was….so….very…. tired.
Wow… it’s not …usual…. for me to run a half marathon, a full, and an ultra distance all in one morning 😉
Holy mackerel Batman……I’m now an UltraGirl!…
(So you know, if you don’t, anything over the full marathon distance of 26.2 miles is considered “ultra”) a 50K is 31.7 miles although by the time I got to my “finish” I was close to 32.
Yes, the weather was amazing, but that wind was a blessing and curse. I seemed to always be running into it, which dries out my head in the worst way, not to mention, it’s so hard to run into the wind! I am now however, sporting a really good start on my tan 🙂
The best way (for me) to tackle this distance, or any really long run, is not to focus on the miles in front of me, just take them one at a time, otherwise, I might run kicking and screaming the other way……..
All was well and good, miles were going by, overall feeling good. I had left the parking lot at Starbucks ( my turn around point to start going….back… the way I had just run) and a mile down was the big hill I had just run down.
My legs were begging for mercy. I was almost at full marathon distance at this point. By the time I crawled to the top my “support team” came zipping up.
I will be honest…. I wanted to get in. I begged hubby to tell me to keep going. I was hot. My quads were threatening to leave my body after the hill not to mention almost 26 miles on them.
I cried a little on the side of the car.
Those voices were talking. Those horrible, damn voices.
I know them. They’ve showed up when I’ve run both marathons about mile 21-23. Those voices talk to you and try and convince you that you can’t do it, maybe you should quit, give up, take the easy way out. You must use every bit of mental muscle to stomp them down….sometimes you have to stomp hard.
I had already given myself the pep talk that I was counting down single digits to finish. I wasn’t gonna quit. I don’t quit.
Besides… he locked the doors on me 😉
The other crazy thing? In both marathons, and today, I started craving a Coke in the….worst… kind of way. Crazy ’cause I never was a big soda drinker, and haven’t even had one in… I don’t know how long. That simple sugar your body runs on… when you’re in the midst of long distance running… you aren’t focused on being all healthy… you just need energy. During the marathon I have to let the feeling pass and when I’m done I don’t want it anymore. Today though… I sent my support team off to get one….
talk about a shot in the arm … it was…helpful 😉
Anyway, I was having to double back on my run route to get all my miles in and decided to run a side road which was a mile back and forth and off the main busy road. I knew I had a little over a mile back once I got on main road again.
I won’t lie… those last miles were brutal…. hard and brutal. Seriously, I was praying for strength to finish what I started. Those legs….. were seriously protesting further movement… I know I took them to a whole new level of exertion…
Oh, and this side road I was on, in the beginning, hills, and then running back down… the quads were crying…legs were starting to feel fully trashed.
Finally… my watch hit 30 miles… which seemed surreal ’cause I’ve never seen that before… I would’ve done a happy dance if I could’ve moved my legs better…. it was finally time to head to my finish line..my mind was pushing my body at this point….
Although, it wasn’t the “race” I had originally planned out and there weren’t the crowds, and spectators with signs, or a time chip on me, my body didn’t know that… it still ran/crawled haha almost 32 miles…
My 50K in the books. A huge personal goal for this year. My official virtual race form has been submitted to the race committee and in a few weeks I’ll get my ultra medal and t shirt =)
Will I do another next year ? I’m not sure. It’s hard to not always want to take things to the next level, know you could do it a little better.
The challenge of running…..
I will tell you… I got home…and crawled onto my bed in the fetal position, not sure if I had the energy to get in the shower.
I’ve never….been so tired….ever.
My son came in and offered to carry me to the shower… nice try kid… I’m a package to pack… 😉 I assured him I could crawl in on my own when he grabbed me and said…
“Why are you so white and gritty feeling??”
Salt. Dried salt all over me. Crazy. A human salt block.
So I’ve had some rest time, been good friends with my foam roller, made dinner ( actually movement really is good for recovery, you have to push back against the desire to do…absolutely….. nothing the rest of day :-P) and managed to get cleaned up without calling 911 to rescue me haha
I slept well…. can you imagine ? I think you could’ve moved the house from under me….
And now… I’m plotting and planning what’s next….but first… the body definitely gets a little down time to recover…. the hardest part for me. I read an article suggesting you take one day off for each mile of your race you ran.
Yikes… I don’t know about that….
Overall, a pretty productive running month with two half marathons and now this 50K under me. I know some down time is essential, but mentally, I will admit to struggling with it.
What about you? Do you like having time off ? When you do a big run, is the recovery time easy ? or frustrating for you? What are some things you do to help the process along ? Share with me.
8 years ago I began what I now refer to as my "journey into lifestyle fitness". After a yearly check in with my Dr he said I looked "really good on paper, but I might consider losing a few pounds" I wasn't offended... I knew I needed to but it seemed like to much work at the time. In that year we had adopted 2 girls out of foster care, plus caring for my 3 sons & husband sort of left me on the back burner taking care of "me". I told him I "used to" walk & he encouraged me to at least get back to that. I left his office that day, started, & never quit. As time moved on my walks increased in length & speed. I started mingling some jogging into it...then after more time some short sprints. One day I realized I was doing more running than anything else. I learned to run longer and farther. I constantly challenged myself to do more. I realized I had turned into a runner & was loving it. I have since run 6 half marathons, 2 full marathons, and my first 50K scheduled for March 1,2015. Not bad for a girl who just started off walking not quite 2 miles! My body was now beginning to show the results of my work as weight & inches dropped off. I began to add in boxing & weights on days I wasn't running. Over time as the fat left, my new muscles were waiting underneath =)
Obviously, I also made some food changes. Nothing drastic..just started eating less and trying to eat better.. I hated diets and how they made me feel....deprived & left out of all the fun...so adjusting & eating less of what I liked and moving more.. I found myself getting in decent physical shape. It began my thinking of lifestyle and not "dieting". As I got stronger,healthier & more fit it was an easier process to "let go" of some of the foods I had enjoyed. I had more energy, strength and confidence in what I could do. It was empowering. It made me realize that I probably wasn't the only one who wanted to lose weight, be healthy & strong but not always be on some sort of "diet". Maybe my journey & what I had learned & been doing might possibly help others to success in their lives...
I consider myself to be rather normal and ordinary ( meaning I haven't always been into fitness and healthy eating) it has been a steady, daily, learned process with good days and bad days and my hope is that you too, will see the greatness in you, and that you have the ability and power to change and do anything you put your mind to. If you want change, you can make it happen. It's just one day at a time, making smart moves and better choices, and before you know it, things are happening.
Get started on your journey, really, what do you have to lose ? And yet, so much to gain =)
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2 thoughts on “I’m An Ultra Girl!”
Let’s just start by saying how proud and inspired I am by you!!! 😉 And secondly, I told you that you’d crush it!!! 😉 As far as time off after a hard race or long distance, the time off used to drive me crazy but I have come to embrace them with age. I know they are necessary and allow me to keep running and keeping getting faster despite age. They allow me to recharge my batteries. And I never take off 100% I just implement cross training, and stretching/foam rolling to keep myself busy. Again, you did amazing!!! xoxo 😉
Thank you so much… and thank you for the encouragement =) Yes, my “off” time will def involve stretching and rollers and light activity… I can’t be still for to long. I’m going to use this time also to set some new goals and other adventures 😛
sassyfitnesschick 
Let’s just start by saying how proud and inspired I am by you!!! 😉 And secondly, I told you that you’d crush it!!! 😉 As far as time off after a hard race or long distance, the time off used to drive me crazy but I have come to embrace them with age. I know they are necessary and allow me to keep running and keeping getting faster despite age. They allow me to recharge my batteries. And I never take off 100% I just implement cross training, and stretching/foam rolling to keep myself busy. Again, you did amazing!!! xoxo 😉
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Thank you so much… and thank you for the encouragement =) Yes, my “off” time will def involve stretching and rollers and light activity… I can’t be still for to long. I’m going to use this time also to set some new goals and other adventures 😛
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