10 Miles: Frustration Rears Its Ugly Head

Another mentally tough week for me, although it was nice to see the scale go down three pounds. I earned my five pound loss badge from FitBit.

Monday's two mile run was a full on disaster. I walked it all and was insanely slow. I stopped my Garmin at thirty-five minutes. I iced a lot more this week and was looking forward to my long run.

I woke up on Saturday and things were already going to crap. My water bottle tasted how my dogs smell, I forgot to defrost my Uncrustable and had to microwave it (helpful tip...don't do it) and I forgot to Body Glide a few lower body parts.

I got to Umstead and was in pretty foul mood. My husband and I had a argument about running injuries the other night and it was stuck in my head. I was distracted by that and the fact a woman about seventy passed me.......walking. WALKING. I slowed down to a walk because when I run angry, I push too hard and then I actually do get injured. I didn't want to risk it, so I slowed down. I got a second wind at six miles and put on my music. Stone Temple Pilots, Foo Fighters and Stevie Wonder got me thru the last few miles. At eight miles, I realized that I miscalculated and had to run out another half mile and back. I wasn't pleased at all. When I finally finished, I looked at my Garmin and it read 2:28:16. My goal was 2:15, I drove home frustrated and pissed off.

This weekend I thought about my running and how frustrated I got. Everyone has bad runs, but I have felt lately, that I've had more bad runs than good. My goal of a 2:30 half marathon is fading further away every week. I'm really going to focus on relaxing and enjoying running and be out in the cooler weather. I still have the dream of at 2:30 half marathon, but I think anything under 2:53 will make me happy as well. I just want to do better than my best time. I'm definitely going to have to work on relaxing and enjoying the run....a lot. I'm going to try really hard, but c'mon. Let's be real-haha!

I checked out a video of the Manchester City Marathon half marathon course and it's hilly. Hills are tough, but luckily they are rolling hills. I can handle those. I'm a bit concerned about the River Road section, but I'm happy that the last part is downhill.  I'm excited because the course runs behind my parent's house, which is pretty cool.

Last week's interview with Kasie was my highest viewed blog ever! I want to thank Kasie again for the great interview. In honor of the Carolina Hurricanes Opening Night, I have a interview with Pete Friesen, the Hurricanes Head Athletic Trainer/ Strength and Conditioning Coach coming up on Wednesday. 

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Interview with Kasie Wallace Enman

When I first thought about contacting runners for interviews, Kasie was the first person I thought of. Kasie and I went to Manchester Central High Scool together (CHS) and graduated in 1997. I don't know how she has time for all she does, but she is so inspiring.  I have been following her on Facebook and her racing career is impressive:

• 2 Time Olympic Trials Women's Marathon Qualifier 2008 & 2012, PR of 2:37:14
• Runner-Up in the 2014 SkyRunner Ultra Series (1st place at Trofeo Kima 50k, 2nd place at Speedgoat 50k, 2nd place at The Rut 50k)
• Winner of the 2012 Vermont City Marathon (1st Vermont woman to get the title there)
• 2011 World Mountain Running Champion
• All-American and NCAA team champion while at Middlebury College

She is preparing for the NYC Marathon on November 2nd and hoping to clinch her third Olympic qualifier. I hope you enjoy my interview with her!

What are you currently training for now and what are your goals?

I just finished up a season of long distance SkyRunning (high altitude, technical mountain racing) and am turning my focus to the New York City Marathon.  It will be a short training block, but I have a huge training base behind me so my hope is that with enough rest and a little tuning up, I'll be able to get in an Olympic Trials qualifier there.  If it's a really good day and everything lines up perfectly I'd love to give a PR a try.  It's kind of a big experiment as I've never entered a marathon off of so much endurance and so little speed.

How do you balance training, rest, friends, family etc?

How to find balance is a constantly evolving question for me.  I have two young children now, age 1 and 4, plus a pile of other commitments so it's all too easy to get run down with too little sleep, too much stress, or just lack of ability to focus.  My personal athletic goals are more easily lost in the fray than they used to be.  My current strategy is to stay in the moment as much as possible and remember that, while everything I'm trying to do can seem overwhelming, it's all good.  

Do you have a philosophy on diet and nutrition?

Eat the food that's healthy for you first, then whatever else you want after that.  I eat lots and often.  Of course, I've been either pregnant or breast feeding continuously for the past 5 years on top of lots of running, so my metabolism is through the roof.  Oh, and I also have a major addiction to chocolate.  Ghiradelli's 60% Cacao chocolate chips to be specific.

What was your lowest point in running and how did you learn from it?

This is an interesting question because what comes to mind is actually the lull that came after each of my biggest highs.  The focus is always on setting a goal and striving toward that goal, but we sometimes forget to think about what comes next when you actually meet that big lofty pie in the sky goal.  It can been a bit disorienting.  I associate as being the underdog or always the bridesmaid never the bride, so the few times when I've come out on top I've had to go through a period of feeling lost and unmotivated before getting my bearing back.  It all evens out in the end, I guess!

What is your favorite cross country memory from CHS?

After my last race at Derryfield Park, I remember getting together with the other Seniors on the team, laying down, and rolling down the hill from the finish line to the starting line.  I was go happy to never have to run up that again!  It's funny, I actually ended up coming back to Derryfield quite a few times with the high school team that I coached from Vermont and have finally gotten to a point where I think it would be fun to race there again, just to see how fast I could run there now.  I heard there is a new citizens race on the course.  Maybe I'll put it on my race schedule for next year!

Favorites:

Race: Loon Mountain Race in Lincoln, NH

Running shoe: Salomon Sense 

Running store: Ski Rack in Burlington, VT

Way to relax: jumping in a lake or river on a hot summer day

Athlete: That's a hard one.  I get a little bit of inspiration from a ton of different athletes, plus all my runner friends and teammates.  

Recovery meal:  A burger

TV show: The Voice

Movie: A Christmas Story

Book: Unbroken

Singer/Band: Brett Dennen

Places in Manchester: Dorrs Pond

Places in Vermont: Sleepy Hollow Ski & Bike Center (full disclosure - I live there & it's my husband's business)

Mantra: Hmmm.  Depends on the circumstance.  

Guilty pleasure: Chocolate.

You can follow Kasie on Twitter and Facebook. 

Thanks again to Kasie for letting my interview her, I know she is busy and I appreciate her time. Good Luck in New York, we are all rooting for you! 

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Weak in the Knees

This week was a bit crazy. My bad knee (I had surgery on my right knee twice) has been flaring up all week and I didn't have high hopes for my long run yesterday. I had a tough time deciding whether or not to run this week, but I ended up deciding it playing it safe and not running.

I got up yesterday and drank my usual my tea and an Uncrustable and immediately felt nauseous. As I drove to Umstead, my stomach starting hurting. I was a little nervous because Umstead doesn't have any bathrooms. Miles 1-3 were tough between my knee and my stomach, but as I continued on my stomach felt better but I was still nauseous. My knee was very painful from 6-9 and I even had to stop at 6.89 miles and rest. I was planning on running the last mile again like last week, but I was in a lot of pain and decided not to push it. My goal time was two hours, and I finished in 2:03:14. Not bad with "broken knees".

On Thursday, we dropped Jager off for his cataract surgery. I was on pins and needles all day waiting for an update on him and finally I got a call staying everything went well. Jager was able to see well immediately according to the surgeon. He was pretty excited.  His vision will get better in the next five to seven days. He is already going up and down the stairs better, catching treats and wagging his tail more. We are so happy for him.

My cousin, Julia, who is also running the Manchester Marathon half, wrote an amazing blog that you should check out. She tackles eating disorders and her honesty is refreshing and is all too familiar with me. I have mentioned in previous blogs that I would one day write about my experience, but I'm still not ready. It is going to be tough, but I will one day. The courage that Julia has displayed in her blog, makes me think I can share my story too.

I forgot to mention in last week's blog that I got my cholesterol rechecked and it dropped twenty points and my triglycerides dropped firty seven points in three months! I'm pretty proud of that.

Wednesday's interview is with Kasie Wallace Enman. I went to Manchester Central High School with Kasie where she was part of the cross country team. Since high school, she has been busy. Not only has she been raising a family, but she is also a two time Olympic Trials Women's Marathon Qualifier (2008 and 2012). She is running the NYC marathon on November 2nd and will be running with Med Keflezighi, Wilson Kipsang, Kara Goucher, Desi Linden and many others. So, make sure you check it out on Wednesday!

Only five weeks until the Manchester Marathon half! Time is flying!

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