Summer time, fun time

It seemed to take too long for my Colophony allergy from surgery to go away. Someone told me "you had wrist surgery, not foot surgery". Alas, I need the wrist and hand to move for sports bra, for tying the shoes, for pulling on the exercise clothing. I was going for some walks with my slide in shoes, but it isn't the same as being laced up and going OUT!

Beautiful view of the Corn Gold fields of Iowa. 
(drat, you can see the dashboard reflection in the window ;) )
The fields where I live aren't looking like this yet, thanks to a wet spring that delayed planting. 

My Salsa Fargo got out this year! I haven't ridden much (at all) the last years since I had my wrist injury in the car collision. Putting weight on the wrist was painful and difficult.  I am happy to say that while I still have the scar tissue inside that needs to break up, that riding the bike for an hour is something I can do again (happy dance) and I could probably have gone longer, but without actual bike shorts on it wasn't that comfortable!  I know I need to get back to yoga, but hand planting at home has been painful with the scar tissue, so I keep delaying it. 

Then I had to face facts and that I had a double race coming up in August (the end of August) and I needed to get miles in on my feet which meant I needed new shoes. I bumped up to these Saucony in the hopes that I would not need the separate Plantar Fasciitis insert. So far, so good!  The local store also started carrying Injinji toe socks, which is probably not good for feeding my habit of toe socks.  I so far am sticking with the same color for the duration. I finally tossed my first blue ones, and now have dusty rose/lavender ones in my stash, and these new orange and navy blue--I love that color combo!  Maybe I'm not a true exercising person if I don't stick to black socks :P  

Aren't they beautiful?  Purple too!  

They'll go great with my purple race attire for #pancreaticcancer awareness

At a race in June I got a bottle of this BodyArmor. I had been putting off trying it, since sometimes things don't agree with my body.  One hot and exercise sweaty day, I finally pulled it out of the refrigerator one day and had it. The last time I had coconut water was not a good experience for me; although it was plain coconut water.  This Fruit Punch flavor is really good!  I tracked down more at the store, and am happy to that during the back to back race in August, I can have this at the finish line in the car (thankfully I can drive rather than fly)

I worked up the courage to go tackle the Hill Repeat hill, and managed to bungle my audio cord on my Maui Jim sunglasses. The sunglasses fell from my tank top to the ground. I've dropped them (ahem, many) times before with no issue except for the freaking out that I was dropping them.  This time, probably because it was an asphalt road versus other materials, one of the lenses broke top frame to bottom frame. I didn't realize it at first, and a couple miles later when I went to put them on for a sunny area, I realized what had happened. Thankful for Maui Jim's replacement policy, I was able to get new lenses, rather than have to buy a new frame! 

Sometimes the light isn't just right, or the graffiti has been erased and it isn't as colorful, or the ground is just ground underneath the bridge.  This day the light showed the layout of the road a bit further, and the giant washout /whirlpool area that had occurred during the flooding earlier this year. So much water came down river, at different times, that a couple of the trails in my area were eroded to the point that they are closed.  Still, this is better than the Missouri River flood plain in western Iowa, which has left fields unplantable, and roads destroyed.

After a great day out and about with The Mike, we stopped at a different HyVee grocer and found Marie Antoinette's Gluten-Free Baking Co goodies in the freezer section. Since it was my birthday, I picked cherry pie over some of the other delicious looking treats!

So flavorful, and great to have without having to have baked it myself!  :D 

 

Upon the recommendation of a local trail runner who has completed the race(s) I will be doing, I bought some trail shoes for the race. In talking with the running store guy, I decided it was probably a good thing to have. I can have these for the longer first day, and if I feel the traction is too much, I can wear my regular shoes the next day. These saucony have deeper traction that may help on sandy areas. I am so nervous for this race!  I have only done one trail race, and it was a beautiful area in California made among the evergreens of a forest.
Did you notice they're purple as well? I hope I don't grab one of each type of shoe to go out for a run!

To new events, and a beautiful summer that is just half started. 

Treasure each day, regardless of season. Each day has more to offer. 

Marathon, Maniac Level, Plantar Fasciitis OUCH

I kept meaning to blog and I kept getting caught up in other things. . . and then I was feeling sorry for myself with my Plantar Fasciitis, and that is how neglecting to post about marathons, plantar fasciitis, and becoming a Marathon Maniac/Double Agent happened. 
Marathon 1 of 2018: (7th Marathon)

This April I did a new marathon. I won't name it because I felt it was awful, not well marked, and more elevation change that I was expecting!  The road was open to traffic (not a big deal). We ran WITH traffic (big deal) since it meant that we were on the road and drivers were weaving in and out of us, or riding our heels).  Those are my views.  Yes, we all know that new races are hard. Yes, we all know that elevation is sometimes hard to gauge on info maps. Maybe I'm the only one that gets car sick watching some of those "we drove the course" videos. I was having some problems with my feet already. I didn't know that it was early Plantar Fasciitis. I had slipped out of my Birkenstocks as I backed up from the car earlier in April. My heel hit the ground and it felt like I had landed with the heel on the sharpest possible rock I could have found in a parking lot. I didn't realize then, but that is a classic PF sign. UGH!

Thank you litter runners, for guiding my way!

A few more aid stations, a slower pace with a hurt foot/sore heel, and I had to ****walk past my car in the parking lot*** to get to the finish line area around a couple curves. I actually stopped and stared and my car and asked myself if the last .75 miles was worth it, or if I should just throw in the towel.  I obviously chose to finish, but it was a hard choice to make.  This somehow surprised the people at the finish line when I mentioned it.

 
End of the worst race I’ve ever done. Not quite the worst on time, but the worst on emotions, morale, signage, etc. I got a golf cart ride back to my car, took off the bloody shoes from the heel blisters, stripped off the socks, re-bandaged the blisters, grabbed my Mexican Coca Cola and headed home.  I might come back to volunteer at this race, but I won't be running it again.  Everyone's opinions of a race are their own, but this is why I won't name this race. 

One on each foot, with another marathon in 7 days!

A few days later I was at the running store to buy one of those socks for PF, and to ask for help. The one guy had it last year and gave me several pointers. . . I just wasn’t going to go to the doctor before the next race, for fear of him saying “stop exercising!” No one wants to hear that when they have Marathon Maniacs on the line!  :P 

I also had to research how to cover up blisters to go again, because there was no way these were going to be healed in a week.  Enter Leuko Tape.   
I actually didn't have Leuko tape at home, and was trying to figure out how to order some (a huge roll is EXPENSIVE). I wondered who would have some, and I called on the place I did my wrist Physical Therapy at last year. They had a small roll left, and she gave me the roll for the trip. I didn't want to take the whole roll with me, so I wrapped some around an old gift card in several layers that I could peel off, cut, and use, and then returned the roll to the PT office.  This stuff worked! 

Marathon 2 of 2018 (8th Marathon):  The Flying Pig. Awesome race. I’d do this again. Okay, I would do the half again, not sure about doing another full ;-) 

The worst part of this was getting to the town/hotel room. Indiana: Drive interstate speed for one mile, slow down to fortyfive miles an hour for five miles, repeat across the entire width of the state. UGH. Hotel. High star hotel. I have my luggage, no carts available, so roller bag, food bag, purse, and small cooler. I tell the check in desk that I am checking in, my friend is already in the hotel. He verifies my name, checks my id and gives me room keys. I go up to the room, walk in and wonder when my friend got knew luggage. . .and why she has so many pink feather boas all over the room, and wonder why she has Krispy Kreme, because she flew so she won’t be able to easily take those to her husband. OH! He gave me a key to the wrong room!!!. Pick all my stuff up again, go downstairs, have another person help me—who asked “but was anyone in the room?” “No? Okay” “here’s your key”.
**reason to have your room completely locked down tight when you’re in your hotel room!**
**reason to never leave purses or wallets in a hotel room, even if you’re not in there!** 

YIKES!

Flying Pig expo was smaller than I was expecting, but it was awesome. Swag bag was awesome –this year with a picnic blanket with the logo on it, posters (with a box!) and technical shirts. If/when I come back for this race, I’ll do the ‘three way’, but this year I decided against the 1 mile Fri night, the 5k/10k on Saturday, with the half full on Sunday. When I signed up for the race I still wasn’t running much from the back pain/car collision of a couple years ago. Combined with the unexpected PF issue, I was glad I had not. However, I did go and cheer on my friend at the 5k/10k, and enjoyed the riverfront of Cincinnati. I highly recommend it! Beautiful with swings looking out to the river, a flying pig/play equipment, and a giant piano keyboard with the pipes being reclaimed/repurposed church chime bells!

The flying pig play equipment. It's wings move up and down! 

Race shirt, Swag blanket,  Purchased pig and glass, won the Route 66 neck gaiter thing,
and the Melanoma Know More magnet and suncreen

 Race day was energetic! Back up pair of shoes! Not those bloody ones from the last week, but the same style, same size, and same make. 

Leuko Tape with 2Toms SportShield over it, to prevent the sock from sticking. 

The first part of the race was exciting, and fun. Running across the bridge to Kentucky, and back to the Ohio:   The only reference I saw to the tv show WKRP in Cincinnati. 

It definitely kept one moving along, as well as the many other runners on the course as well! Then we made it up to the conservatory area, with a **Beautiful** look out over the Ohio River, if you went from the road to the sidewalk (obviously I did). 

Overlook, worth the run!

The next half of the race was okay. I was feeling okay, but then energy started to drain, and the Plantar Fasciitis was aching. I can remember the area perfectly where my run attempt was rejected with a “hell no” from my right foot!

I actually got to see a pig on the race course. He was heading home from his walk

Music on the corner. Beautiful music

It was also getting very hot, with no clouds for coverage. I was glad I had a package of sliced pickles with me, and the little bit of juice, but wished I had a couple of them! As I was on the highway, they were taking down the aid stations and I was shocked. I can’t remember how many miles we still had, but I was shocked they’d take down the tents while there were competitors still on the course! Maybe the people I was with were at the cut off point? Then I started worrying about race cutoffs! I walked past the wet towel station. I rejected one of those because I didn’t want to wash off my sunblock! There were a couple sunblock stations on this course, towards the last ten miles or so—this Melanoma Warrior was happy to see that! 

I was walking the course well, and met up with a woman whom I ended up finishing the race with. Either I came upon, or she came upon me, I do not recall. We were on the roadway, and directed to the sidewalk, and then the fire dept in a little golf cart came around with bags of ice for us because it was SO hot. They ran out for the people right behind us, so I took some and put it in my water bottle, and passed on half a bag of ice. A couple people told me not to do that, but I didn’t need a quart of ice! We picked up our pace and kept powerwalking, she told me that her husband finishes ahead of her, always, and that she knows he’s at the finish line for her. We actually saw him, as he came back along part of the way to find her. He directed us to turn at one point, where we would have gone straight because we saw barricades that way.

After finishing, I hobbled to the bus to get my checked bag, and stripped off those shoes and socks! I was DONE with this brand of shoe. They changed their sizing last year and these two pairs of shoes were my shoes after that size change. They were out! I put on my birkenstocks and hobbled back past the finish line to the “finish jacket line”. I chatted with the woman I finished with, and her husband. I was still there when I got a phone call from my friend, who was at the table behind me, having finished shortly after I did.  

My friend's story on the course is that the aid stations were taken down, but they weren’t directed off the course or anything. She took the money she always carries, gave it to a guy on the street, and asked him to go buy some water at the local corner store for other racers to make their day.

Since I finished both marathons in less than 16 days, I am qualified to become a Marathon Maniac, and thereby a Double Agent! 

WOO HOO!

We went back to the hotel to go to the pool and hot tub. .. ohhh, a hot tub feels great against sore muscles.  Imagine our shock when we arrived and it was a pool only. . .  and you could see the hot tub had recently been removed and another seating area was placed there with new tile/grout/ and placement that just didn't flow. 

With the race in the books, I headed home. Driving with flaring Plantar Fasciitis is hard as the flexing of the foot annoys the PF area. It was time, I took myself to the doctor and asked for help on my plantar fasciitis. 

The doctor gave me Ibuprofen cream, as I have contraindications for ingesting it, and exercises. I went to the running store and tried on SO many shoes, and fell in love with a Saucony style, and I have proceeded to rest my foot since then.

No extreme walking/ no competitive events, no running. Just resting, just doing my exercises, and just doing yoga.  In June I went to DC for Pancreatic Cancer Action Network Advocacy Day and I limited the walking I did because of my foot!  I had graduation for a family member to attend, and I were "sensible shoes". 

Post 5k (by a couple weeks!) and more traction

April 3 was the 5k  April Fools event.  This is one of the funnest and best races I've participated in. First, this race director has plenty of emails and Facebook notices about an event (but not too many, you know what I mean?).  He also has a great staging area of the Start, food/tents, and Finish lines.

Let's take the Start line.  He has it set up with a nice inflatable banner, plenty of "minute" corral areas and, this is to me one of the best things, speakers all the way back down the corral area. This means, if you're a walker or a 13 minute runner, you can still hear what's being announced and hear the national anthem too!

I got out to the race site about 45 minutes early. The day was still chilly, but not near as windy as Saturday, the original event day, was.  Saturday had wind gusts up to 50mph, and I think a few may have been faster than that.  The race director was able to work with the venue (state park), food venues and portapotty people to have the event on Sunday instead. This in and of itself is a huge feat. Not many cities or race directors would be able to arrange that!  I got a parking spot about midway between the start and finish/staging area.  My main reason in getting there early was to get a good parking spot, and to be able to get a race shirt at 8:30, when those of us who registered too late could get a t-shirt.  HOT PINK :-)    There were a few hundred people I guess, who weren't able to make the race on Sunday, but there were over seven hundred people who were happy it got rescheduled!  The race director is awesome. Any other city/race probably would have resulted in a flat out cancellation.

I started walking back to the Starting area about 8:45.  I didn't want to stand out in the breeze any more than necessary, even though I had on a Mizuno thermal shirt, a loose winter Adidas over that, and my Saucony running jacket. On the bottom half I messed up and wore Athleta knee pants, with Nike winter run pants over that.  I should have worn full length tights and then the Nike over it.  My calves were ccccold!  

Not these type of calves!  

I stayed on the side of the corral until the near end and then tucked in to cross the start line.  I was sure I was going to have the same issue as I do with running--going out too fast in "turbo" fashion.  I think I was doing well for the start and then did pick it up a little to stay with a couple other walkers who were near me. My back was a little 'ick' from the twisting of the hips as I walked, but it wasn't too bad. I was walking faster than I do on the treadmill and could tell that.  About three-fourths of a mile in the right lower back was a sore spot. This had happened before, since the accident, on the treadmill and was a "knock it down" signal to me.  I tried to slow up the walking but it didn't seem to help on this day.  I took my thumb and pushed it into that area to try and loosen it up.

The course is sort of an out and back with a side loop about a mile in.  While I usually see the lead racers on the side loop, today walking this course, I saw them much earlier on the course and it freaked me out! Made me think I must be reallllllly slow and then I realized, 'yeah, I am slow today. I am a walker!'  One of the up and coming runners is a young thing, and it was great to see him out there keeping pace with the leaders. (He's 8).  Some people are shocked to see someone 'so young' out there, but it's really about finding an interest that the person like and loves and he loves running and being fast.

That side loop is almost another mile as well, so it's not a straight line out and back and there is some scenic change to enjoy as well!   On this side loop is where I slowed down and was massaging the right mid back several times.  I got to where I walked with it just barely making its presence known, so it wasn't painful, but wasn't gone either.  Just 'noticeable'.  

The rest of the event, last mile or so, I slowed down a bit more too.  I was loving the beautiful day, with the chilly breeze, even though I'd rather have been running the event. I tried not to let the need to walk get me down, but it was definitely frustrating not to go faster, and having to slow a walk.

I finished with a little over 55 minutes, so definitely faster than I have been on the treadmill, but with the low back twitching and hurting, I just don't know how I could go any faster. [I thought it was funny that we always run in races faster than in training and the same held true for walking--even though I didn't expect it to happen].  I wanted to hang out for the finish, but the cool breeze was at work cooling me down too much. I got my results sheet, chocolate milk, banana and popcorn and headed back to the car.  I was trying to remember if this is the race where the race director has a door prize drawing and I couldn't remember, then I decided it didn't matter. I wanted to get warm!


I had my second traction therapy last week on Wednesday and didn't notice any difference, unlike the first one the prior week.  I hurt going into it and I still hurt after the traction and heat + stim.

Friday I felt a lot better. I got on the treadmill and did another 5K.... at my slower pace 57 minutes.  A couple miles into walking I decided to bump the treadmill up to 5mph and try running. I did get further until the pain kicked in, and then cut it back to walking speed.  A whole 30 seconds I ran.  WOW. I **should** be impressed with myself.  

This week I missed traction.  Essentially, I got a whole two hours of sleep on Tuesday night, waking up at midnight "wide awake" for the day. I grabbed the kindle and read on the couch for a bit.  Later in the morning we had our new bed and couch delivered. I feel like a princess having to climb up into the giant bed (with memory foam padding!).  Last night I slept solidly (probably because I realllly needed the sleep) and today I got busy with closet cleaning and laundry.  My wrist pain shot up with all the activity and back pain was steady. About 11am I get a call from the car dealer that I missed my brake appointment. Thankfully I was still able to take my car in. Unfortunately, it meant I also missed my therapy (traction) appointment this morning.  I called to reschedule and they were surprised to realize they had missed me not checking in and rescheduled for the first available on Monday.  I was surprised that they hadn't called me after missing my 9am appointment.

In cleaning out the closet today, I found my bright pair of Brooks Ravenna 6 shoes that I won at last year's Marine Corps Marathon. I'm 'saving' those for when I'm able to get back to running!  I have three old pairs of running shoes I can use for walking and therapy.

Here's to a beautiful weather week ahead!  

Winter race, not so bad!

Weekend race 1/20/2013
Entries for biking, running or skiing. This year skiing was canceled due to lack of snow. 

The winter race weekend turned out better than expected. The really  cold weather didn't appear until late on Sunday/early Monday (it was -5ºF Monday morning as we started the car!).  Sunday's weather for the races was a brisk 5ºF with a 10mph wind from the north/northwest.  For the cyclist, marathoners and ultramarathoners this might not have been a good thing. For the half marathoners, it was okay. 

Our course ran on an old railroad bed, now a limestone trail.  We were lucky in that there was limestone rocks/cliffs blocking the wind from us for most of the race. We had a few open areas to cross where the wind might have been horrible at the start of the race, but by the time we were to those points the weather wasn't bothering us as we were heated and just wanting to finish.  

I wish I had taken photos, but I didn't want to take my cell phone out at the start for pics and have trouble getting it back in the holder in the brisk weather.  There were a few moments in the race I thought about taking photos, but the desire to keep the hands covered overruled any desire to capture the photos. 

We had snow before Christmas and most of the snow is gone, having been melted by warmer weather. Saturday we experienced highs near the 50ºF mark. Obviously this was going to be a big change to Sunday's 5º!  The center of the trail changed from being ice packed to being run bare by snowmobile machines. 

At the start, the volunteer said the buses would wait twenty minutes if any of us decided to give up on the race. Turns out the first mile and a half had very little trail showing and were mostly ice covered with up to four inches of opaque stuff on the trail.  Some of us might have wished to turn around, but we'd have to tell our loved ones we bailed on the race, and, since they were out doing the longer distance bike race, we couldn't fathom doing that.

The ice covered path gave way to the center being clear, or the sides being clear, but never was the whole width clear at the same time.  The tree that last year (on a sunny day) held two bald eagles only had their nest visible this year. Even they weren't interested in the cold weather.   

I discovered that running on packed snow is still easy--the dimples in the snow crust covering allow some traction.  I discovered that when running on terrain as this that I don't pick up my legs and instead do a shuffle--which has made for the quads hurting more than I've had in a while.  

I also discovered that even deer like to walk on the snow.  I assume they made their tracks Friday night or Saturday sometime.  For quite a ways on the trail in the snow packed right side, there were many deer tracks frozen into the snow. Again, thought about taking a photo, but was more concerned with the hands staying covered. 

Photo of race conditions.
This is a  good section of trail, since the center is covered in ice.

I started out wearing my Mizuno breath thermal shirt, topped with an UnderArmour short sleeve t-shirt and my brand new Saucony wind protection jacket (I know, not suppose to wear new gear during a race, but this was needed!)  

New jacket--it's a periwinkle blue/purple

For my head, I wore my balaclava and then a wool buff, as well as taking along my Smartwool ear band.  About an hour into the I took off the balaclava and used just the ear band part on my ears/forehead and then my wool buff as a neck gaiter and I would bring that up to cover my head when I got into the breezy sections.  It worked out well and with my iFitness belt I was able to hook the balaclava onto it for keeping.

I wore two Nike pants, one fuzzy lined tights and one of the heavy and thick winter running pants. I acquired these after a winter race in 2011.

My hands normally get quite warm when I run. I start out wearing gloves and then tuck the palm down and have just the fingers covered, I usually take the gloves off after half an hour.  This time, I wasn't able to do that. I started out with a thin cotton pair of Nike's covered with a freebie pair I got at a race.  After half an hour, I put the freebie pair in the pockets and ran with just the thin Nikes. This worked until about mile 8 or so when I realized the fingers of the gloves were just soaking wet; however, they weren't frozen due to my fingers' heat!  I switched gloves to the freebie pair and finished with those.  The wind pretty much went through them, so I put my hands into fists inside the gloves and ran with the fingertips just flopping all over. I thought that'd probably look pretty hilarious to a bypasser! 

All in all, it was a better than expected race. I knew the muscles would remember how to work and that even though I hadn't run in a few weeks, that the fitness I had would still be there in some form.  I came in 15 minutes or so slower than last year, but considering everything, I thought I did a good job.  (and it's hard to run on ice!)

The Mike finished right on the dot at 5pm.  He had anticipated "around 5pm" for his finish.  Tired and hungry, he got some of the after-race hot wings and then a double bacon cheeseburger with fries I ordered from the hotel's restaurant (that thing was HUGE and no, he was not able to finish the burger).  

1/22/2013 dinner:   

Quick salad -mixed greens, shaved carrot, blue cheese crumbles, tomatoes and 
quick balsamic vinegar salad dressing

Cranberry salsa and curried turkey breasts with baked potato

Core of the recipe is from The 150 Healthiest 15-Minute Recipes on Earth by Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., and Jeannette Bessinger, C.H.H.C 

*Disclaimer 1: I picked this cookbook up at yoga last year, and this is the first month I'm actually using it.  *Disclaimer 2: I tweaked the recipe, so I didn't quite follow the recipe precisely. I am listing what I did and then what I left out and the directions are my own. 

Ingredients: 

2T Honey Mustard (I didn't use)

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp allspice

1 T orange zest (I didn't use)

salt/pepper to taste

1 boneless skinless turkey tenderloin (2 pounds or 900g) 

      (I used turkey breasts from the grocery store, two per package, I'm not sure of the weight, but it would have been two very large chicken breasts in size.  I think it would have been about one thanksgiving turkey breast total)

Salsa: 

2 c (200g) fresh cranberries (or 1 bag 8ounce frozen, unsweetened, thawed).  I used half a bag of fresh

1 large navel orange, peeled & halved

1 small jalapeno, stemmed, roughly chopped, optional (I used half a small can of diced chilies) 

1/4 cup (85g) raw honey, or to taste 

Directions (mine) 

Preheat oven to 400ºF. I put 1/2 T of olive oil in the bottom of a roasting pan, then added the turkey breasts. I mixed the turkey seasoning in a small bowl (cumin, curry, allspice, salt/pepper) and rubbed it on the turkey breasts. I covered the pan in foil, then put the lid on the pan and baked for 40 minutes.  (Turkey should registere 160ºF.  I took the pan out of the oven, uncovered the turkey and let it rest while prepping the salad. 

While the turkey was in the oven, in a food processor mix the "salsa" ingredients. I pulsed until pretty much just small pieces were visible.  Slice or shred the turkey, serve the salsa on the side.