Stubborn Luck

Over lunch today I had someone ask me how my recovery was going. People have been commenting on the fact that I'm in heels, or that I look good since the break, and that it's nice to see me without the walker. It's hard to believe that just a few months ago I was confined to my bed in a ridiculous amount of pain. With the exception of when I first wake up, my limp is almost nonexistent. With the exception of the one-inch scar on my thigh, you'd never know I have three freakishly large pins holding my femur together.

"You made it look so easy, you handled it so well."

Did I? I don't think I did. I think I threw a fit the first night I was home. I distinctly remember throwing a pillow while crying because I was in pain and couldn't sleep. I remember taking my first shower, sitting on a shower seat with my leg hanging out of the shower because it was too painful to get all the way in and just sobbing. And when I say sobbing, I mean the all the way from your gut ugly sob, the kind where you can't breathe, but you don't make a sound.

Those first two weeks I cried...a lot. Those first two weeks I swore...a lot. Those first two weeks I lost hope...a lot.

I threw countless pity parties for myself. Sometimes people would indulge me, more often than not they wouldn't. I appreciate the times they wouldn't.

Sure, it's fine to wallow in self-pity on occasion, because let's face it, the situation sucked...like really sucked. I went from running four days a week and hitting the gym at least two to three times a week to nothing. Zip, zero, zilch, nada, nyet, etc. I watched my leg muscles atrophy and it killed me. I worked for that calf, I worked for that quad and hammy. I put miles on those legs, they carried me through some of my toughest runs and helped me through some crazy shit, and they were disappearing before my eyes.

It was devastating.

I hated being helpless. I hated having people open doors, carry things for me, help me to my car. It drove me insane. Now, I would like to point out in a normal situation, I don't mind these things, but when I had a walker and physically could not do it myself, it enraged me.  Thank you to those that understood that and let me be stubborn, but finally stepped in when they knew I needed it and whispered words of encouragement so I wouldn't be defeated.

That helplessness humbled me though. The struggle of finding convenient parking (yes, I refused to get a temporary handicap parking tag...stubborn, remember?), the amount of time it took to get somewhere, the fact that I was exhausted from walking into a building, it humbled me. People do this on a daily basis and are not like me, they won't be getting better. I am so incredibly lucky.

It's cheesy to say that, but I am.

My recovery for all intents and purposes has been perfect. Everything is healing the right way to the point that I tend to forget I even broke it...well until I overdo it at the gym.

I'll repeat it, I am so incredibly lucky.

And maybe I did make it look easy, but I can promise you, it hasn't been easy, and it's not over yet. I still have a little more than a month before I can run and I just started reincorporating weights into my workout (cautiously of course). I had to laugh the other night because when I was leaving the gym I ran into my chiropractor. We were chatting on our way to our cars and he asked how I was doing. While catching up I mentioned that my surgeon humors me, he gets that I'm stubborn and that I want to push through and get to the finish line. My chiropractor laughed, tilted his head and said, "Yeah, I get that, in fact, I'm pretty sure I humored you, too."

I can see the finish line approaching and I know it's not the full finish. I know I'll have to work back to where I was and I know I'll still have to go at a turtles pace. But I can see it and I'm ready.

Therapy Running

This past year has been, by far, the most challenging year I have had as a wife, mother, and well, quite frankly, as a human being. I'm not even being a little dramatic, this past year just killed me mentally.

I honestly don't know how I coped with things prior to running because this past year that's the only way I coped. I cannot tell you how many miles ended in tears, moments of satisfaction or just moments that told me it was going to be okay.

A couple weeks ago I laced up my shoes after quite possibly one of the worst mornings of my life. I had to run it out. I had to get myself in a zone that focused on nothing but getting from point A to point B. I pushed myself, hard. And surprisingly, when my run was done, the worst morning of my life was the best day of my life. The hardship was behind me. The frustration was gone.

Find whatever it is that will give you that release, because to have that moment of bliss after pure shit is one of the best moments in the world.

Princess Weekend 2017 - 10k and Half

So it's been a while since the race...a long while...I know....

Here's a quick photo recap and some thoughts on the races.

For the past couple of years we have kept with our Alice in Wonderland theme. Lorren and I typically run this race together and usually at some point she curses me out. 

We had our own cheering section on the Boardwalk this year. The whole crew came down in their jammies to cheer us on. I cannot tell you how many friends of mine that were running the race said they saw my crew. 

It was a good race, we pushed but not too hard since the half would be the following morning. 

Now onto the half! For the past few years there has been a group of guys that run dressed as princesses. They are total studs and we have had our eyes set on finding them and taking a photo with them. I knew they were going to be in my corral so I would be able to sneak a photo, but they were hanging near the front when we first arrived. Lorren and I jumped at the chance to score a photo with our favorite, Jasman. 

I knew it was gonna be a good race.

The race started a little late because traffic was awful, but when it did, I was good to go. I took off nice and steady and kept the same pace for the first 10k of the race. 

Then it was game on. For the last half of the race I kicked it into high gear and pushed. I had a goal and I wanted to hit it. I wanted to be under 2:40 and my ultimate goal is 2:30. I came in at 2:37 and change. It was huge!

Best part of hitting your goal? Having those you love at the finish! Scott met me to give me my medals and my parents and kiddos were there too. After Lorren and Cathy finished we all had our celebratory beers. 

This is the first time my Dad was at the race and I loved having him there. Even though he was a little peeved about the shirt we picked out, I adore this photo. 

Next up is Star Wars this weekend. If you follow me on my Facebook page check in for photo updates! 

Find Your Tribe

Yet again I have failed in the world of blogging. I have not posted since the marathon and there has definitely been a lot of exciting things happening. I will post about my run streak as well as Princess weekend, but right now I want to write about finding your tribe.

Your what?

Your tribe.

Something I have learned throughout this crazy running experience is that you only get stronger when you surround yourself with strong and encouraging people. You need people around you that push you to be your best self. You need the challenge.

My tribe is pretty big and pretty kick ass if I do say so  myself. My Mamas from MRTT are always pushing me and always challenging me. It is so refreshing to have a group of women who constantly build each other up. 

My running buddies are equally amazing. Sometimes you just need a run with one other person. Sometimes those runs are filled with conversation (maybe more conversation that running) and sometimes they are quiet, but words are not needed. 

My family is fantastically supportive. My sister is constantly cheering for me, my niece is as well. My parents came out to cheer us on in their pj's for goodness sakes! It doesn't get much better than that!

My kiddos are so proud and honestly it means the world. They get excited when they see me on a course and they tell me how proud they are of me even after a weekend run. 

Of course I cannot talk about my tribe without mentioning the chief himself. I'll tell you what, I lucked out. Scott is one of the most supportive members of my tribe. He pushes me, supports me and keeps me going. This past race weekend when I knew I was close to a PR my phone was blowing up with texts from him telling me to "GOOOOOOOOO!" Not everyone gets this kind of support from a spouse. I mean, really, this distance running is a total time suck and kills most date nights (Oh you wanted to eat cajun food tonight, yeah I'm running 10 in the morning that won't end well), but he gets it. As he enters the world of duathlons and triathlons I can only hope that I am as much of a support system as he is for me. 

Everyone needs a tribe. Everyone needs a support system in this world. I will happily join your tribe and help cheer you along the way! 

WDW Marathon 2017: Non, Je ne regrette rien

Well another marathon weekend has come and gone. I was signed up for the Goofy Challenge which is where you run both the half marathon and the full marathon...back to back like a totally and completely insane person.

I'm gonna be honest, I was not ready. I got some miles in, but not nearly enough. I was sick to my stomach going into the weekend because 39.3 miles is a lot. My plan was to run the half with my friend Carrie because she was coming off an injury. I knew we would be slow and I was good with that. 26.2 after that though? Oooooh Lordy.

Then mother nature was like....

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The radar was tracking heavy storms with a ton of lightning for Saturday at race start. The decision was made by runDisney to cancel the half.

Cancel.The.Half.

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Yes. That happened.

Since the decision was made that night Cathy and I were able to sleep in, and by sleep in I mean I woke up at 6:30 and started tracking the weather to see when I could sneak in a run. I found a window and took my chances. I am so glad I went because what I saw was the most amazing thing I have ever witnessed.

Runners, running and cheering and celebrating. Disney may have canceled the half but these runners were out there earning their bling. They had on their bibs, they were in costumes, you name it. When I made my way to the main building of Riverside there was a group of people handing out water and Powerade. It was amazing.

I only ran 2 miles because I knew the rain was coming back and I really did not want to get stuck in it. Plus, Cathy and I were going for breakfast!

Heck yes we were matching, you wanna say something? 

After breakfast we headed back over to the expo because Cathy needed to pick her race reimbursement option (yes, they offered 4 options which is completely unheard of!) and I wanted to swap out my Goofy Challenge stuff for marathon gear. 

Literally everyone was doing the same thing as us. It took forever to get there, five seconds while we were there and a lifetime to leave. Seriously we waited longer on the bus than most people waited to get on the new Frozen ride. But did the people on the Frozen ride have this kid photobomb their selfie? No...no they did not.

The whole expo debacle really screwed up our day because by the time we were done it was time to head back for dinner and get some sleep.  There was no time for popcorn OR cotton candy. Ridiculous.

Before I knew it, it was upon me....

Marathon morning was cold. And I'm not just being a Florida wimp, it was 30 with a windchill in the 20's.  Thankfully I was layered to the high heavens and had some hand warmers. 

I was pretty okay going into the full since I saved my legs the day before, so my nerves were pretty good when I started. My only issue was that I was cold. I finally started to warm up around mile one and a half and decided to shed a layer. This was all fine and dandy until I turned the corner and hit a head wind. Yeah, that was awesome....NOT.

I had to just keep moving, it was the only way I was going to stay warm. I made it to Magic Kingdom not long after the sun came up and it was a much welcomed sunrise. I was still feeling pretty good and tracking to finish in under 6 hours (for reference last year I finished in 6:38). 

How fun is this security cast member? I went to take my selfie and saw him walking up to me, he asked if he could take the photo and I said, no you should be in it!

Have I mentioned I love running through Magic Kingdom? It's my favorite and one of my favorite parts is usually the mile 7 mark. Last year the mile marker was Bambi and I lost my mind (I LOVE Bambi and I love the song "Little April Showers" which was playing). This year I almost lost my mind because who was at mile 7?

Sam Motha Lovin Eagle.

I love Sam Eagle. You don't even know. If I could have scaled Hall of Presidents and kissed his beautiful blue beak, I would have and then run from my security friend.

Sam Eagle y'all! Ah!

Okay, I'm back...(SAM EAGLE)...

I was still clipping along coming out of Magic Kingdom and heading towards Animal Kingdom. This stretch was a little different as far as entertainment this year. For instance, they had this gem:

No, not the woman dressed as Dory, the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride vehicle. It is my brother Kevin's favorite ride. Okay, marathon detour...on one of the first trips to the World (maybe it was the first, I don't know, I wasn't there) my family waited some ungodly amount of time to ride this ride because Kevin wanted to ride it. Upon arrival at the front of the line my brother said he was not going on the ride because it looked stupid. My father being the calm cool and collected person that he is threw him into the submarine and the rest is history.

The course changed a little before heading into Animal Kingdom, which I anticipated because of the construction at Hollywood Studios. But LORD is it boring on that stretch of highway. Thankfully we had some entertainment in the form of barnyard animals when we entered the park.

I was still doing pretty well in Animal Kingdom as is evident by this photo:

Look at my jazz hand smiling face behind this poor woman. 

Once we left Animal Kingdom the stretch of highway I despise was upon me...Osceola Parkway. Snoooooooze fest with a head wind because that sounds amazing. 

After what felt like forever I made it into Wide World of Sports. Last year this is where my stomach gave me the middle finger and I had to do a lot of walking. This year I was doing pretty well and met up with the 6 hour pace group. 6 hours was still better than 6:38 in my book. 

Except I hit my wall. Mile 21 my body and mind were like, "Oh, this is cute." 

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Then I saw Shelly (MRTT ROCKS) around mile 22 or 23 and all was right in the world. We walked and talked our way through the final few miles. We even ran the last .2 and I didn't look like I was dying, so bonus.

I came in at 6:14 which was a 24 minute PR. That's huge and I should be insanely proud, but part of me thought if I trained a little better I could have been sub 6. But no matter what I had this waiting for me at the finish:

Something about getting my bling from him makes it that much sweeter.

This marathon went a lot better than I could have imagined and I am eager to actually complete Goofy next year.

A huge thank you to my sister who also braved the cold to cheer me on and who wrote encouragement signs in French, a language neither of us speak. This is our jam though and throughout my training Cathy constantly sent me this as encouragement:

I am thrilled this marathon is behind me and like I said, I cannot wait to really commit to next year. I pushed myself harder this year and it totally paid off. 

Now I will leave you with this...proof that no matter how old you are you will always be the baby sister that the older sister photobombs at Cinderella Castle.

So...Goofy 2018 training starts now, right?

2,017 in 2017!

2016 was my lax year for running (and for posting on this blog too, am I right?). I did so much in 2015 to get ready for my first full and then after completing both that and princess, I hit a wall. I thought signing up for Goofy would light my fire, and it did, until it was Shanghaied.

I can't blame the lack on miles on Scott's four months in Shanghai. I checked out, plain and simple. Thankfully, I did start running with my local Moms Run This Town (MRTT) and I have been conquering things I never thought possible.

I always knew I could run a little faster, but they made me do it.

I always knew I could up my intervals, but they (they meaning Tracy) made me do it.

I always knew I could conquer the hills and still keep going strong, but they made me do it.

I have some ambitious goals for 2017, but hey, why not? I have a team set to run 2,017 miles in 2017 (our team name is We Thought You Said Rum, because obviously...). I am personally challenging myself to run 1,000 miles this year. Yeah, I know, that's crazy, but I am running two marathons this year plus who knows what other races. The training will get me there, I'm sure of it.

I'm also streaking...

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Okay, not that kind of streaking. I'm doing a running streak. Basically I just need to run 1 mile a day for as long as I can. I was going to officially start today, but I've run every day since Thursday, so happy day 4 for me!

I will try to do a better job posting about my trainings on here. I wish all of you a very happy and healthy new year! 

The Great Chocolate 10 Miler

I am way behind on posting about this race (almost a full month, yikes!). My friend Carrie got me to sign up for the Great Chocolate 10 miler because...chocolate. Yes, they give you a box of Godiva at the finish, so of course I was in.

The course ran through downtown Orlando and I have to say, I love running through the city when it is still quiet and the sun is just rising. There is nothing prettier than running up South Street and seeing the sun peeking over City Hall. Nothing beats it. 

The race itself had a great course, but in all honesty that's where it ends. Water stops were never set up (I think we went almost 5 miles without water, which is why I always carry water). When we finished we were just handed our stuff, that was it. All of the advertised vendors and extras never happened. It was a big let down for sure. However, Carrie did bring me a bagel smothered in cream cheese, so that made up for the lack of vendors. 

I was pretty pleased with my time for this race. The weather was perfect and made for an easy run. I did start to lose some steam at the end and I know it's because my training has been less than stellar lately. With the kiddos activities on hiatus until after the new year (and after that Goofy Challenge I thought was a good idea at the time) I can focus on strengthening for the remaining races. 

More belated race updates coming! 

It Just Wasn't My Race....

Last weekend Scott and I got away to the coast for the Lighthouse Loop 5k and Half Marathon. We have not had a weekend away in...a very long time.

We spent our afternoon walking the beach. It was so peaceful. After some dinner it was early to bed because we had to be on the shuttle at 5:40.  

Scott was running the 5k and I was in for the half with some of my ladies from MRTT. The weather was smack you in the face humid and I was still experiencing some delicious post nasal drip. Recipe for success people.

We took off at a pretty fast pace, I knew we had to slow down and switch intervals. We switched to 2:1's and slowed down. By mile four I was dripping and chugging water. Why hello dehydration, welcome to the par-tay. 

Every once in a while we caught a nice breeze between the houses. Then we rounded a corner and there she was...the lighthouse...

I want to go back with the kiddos so they can see it and we can learn more about it. 

By this point the sun was beating down and there was minimal shade. The post nasal drip was very real and by mile 9 my stomach was sloshing. As we approached mile 10 I told my friend to run ahead, I was walking. This was not going to be my race, but I had to finish. So I walked....and walked...and walked.

I had one more giant obstacle ahead of me and that was the bridge at mile 12, because when designing a course a bridge at mile 12 sounds like fun.

As I hit the top of the bridge I pushed myself and ran down. Once I hit the bottom another one of my MRTT ladies saw me and yelled across the road. I needed that boost. I pushed forward and ran in the last little bit. 

I was not happy. I was not proud. I was defeated.

I am happy that I ran across the finish and I am happy that I can in just under the time on the clock. It has been a few years since I have completed a half in that time, but I finished. It wasn't my best, but it wasn't my worst.

Plus I had this guy waiting for me...

It was not my day...it was not my race. I spent the next few hours...okay days...letting this race mess with my head. I have the Goofy Challenge coming up in January and this was not what I needed mentally. Then on Monday I dropped a full can of cooking spray on my toe and bruised it pretty good. No, really, stuff like that happens to me.

I took the week off. I need to rehydrate. I needed to clear the cobwebs. I needed to refocus. 

I will return... I will make this course my bitch, maybe not the bridge, but the other 11.5 miles are so mine. 

Until next time Lighthouse Loop. 

Running Through the Weekend

Today was the first day I have slept past 6 am in I don't even know how long. 'Twas amazing. That being said, I've been pretty busy lately and have been spending most of my mornings running. 

Last weekend we celebrated my honey getting a promotion by running a 5k lakeside. 

We also went to dinner the night before. It's been a while since we have run together on this trail. I'm pretty pleased with how my time has been improving on this little stretch. 

The next day some of the MRTT ladies and I went to run the UCF U Can Finish 5 Miler Distance Dare. The race starts with a 2 mile run around the football field and then you jump right into a 5 mile run through campus. 

There were baseball, softball and ladies basketball teams cheering us on as well as the Glee Club. Running through the campus brought back so many memories and kind of made me miss spending 5 days a week there. 

The medal was pretty cool. The 5 mile medal was a shield and if you did the 2 mile portion you received the sword. I mean, does it get any better?

Again, I was pretty pleased with my times and love that these ladies push me on the course. The race started out fairly cool and then the humidity hit us, so that was not a fun battle to fight at all. Plus, I've been battling a head cold for the better part of 2 weeks and spent almost every walk break blowing my nose (don't you love my Rudolph look in the photo???).

This weekend was kind of a challenge. There was a huge triathlon going on in town and it was using up the majority of the running paths we run on. Michelle and I just decided to head out and see what the course would bring us. Well, the course brought us 8 miles of hills upon hills. You know the kind of hills that race directors will say are "rolling" in their course description. 

The great part about the run was that it was 55 when we left. Yes, 55, no humidity and did I say 55? It was only in the mid 60's by the time we finished. I ran with my jacket on for the first 2 miles. My jacket was also stuffed with tissues because again....head cold. 

My time was not great but I did get to spend some quality time with my friend in some absolutely gorgeous weather. 

Now it's time to get my head in the game for the half I am running this weekend. I haven't done that distance in a while and am actually pretty nervous. I'm fairly behind on my training and need this to be the kick in the pants that I so desperately need. 

I hope all of you have a fantastic week! 

A Hurricane You Say? Well, Alright, Alright, Alright.

What a week. I already had a crazy schedule for the week with work events, baseball games, basketball playoffs (say what?), and trying to find a way to squeeze training in there somehow. Then this happened...

Matthew, in fact, was not alright, alright, alright. One by one events began to cancel, then school, then work, then I basically kissed my husband goodbye and hunkered down with the kids. We went to bed on Thursday evening believing that we were going to wake up to a pretty serious storm. Thankfully, he shifted East and we would not feel the effects we originally thought. However, not knowing this, I woke up at 5 am because I'll be damned if I don't have a cup or five of coffee before this crap hits.

So I wake up (trying not to wake my bed bugs), get the dogs and let them out before the storm hits. Our one dog being the smart old girl that she is ran and peed at the same time. She is not about to get wet outside, I mean come on.  The other one...she ran to the back of the yard, ran from end to end and then power posed in the wind like this:

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She lost her footing at some point and decided it was best to come inside.

The storm as a whole was thankfully uneventful. We had a few strong gusts and pretty consistent rain, but nothing major. The kiddos did an awesome job riding it out, but after two days of being in the house, it was time to go. Thankfully, the local ice cream place had a BOGO deal to help all of us escape cabin fever.

Training obviously took a hit during the storm. I did manage to get a quick run in on Thursday, but Friday was mainly spent on my bum watching the storm progress. I made up for it this weekend though.

Saturday, Michelle and I went for 6 miles on the trail and boy were there some down branches.

I would like to point out how hard the run was with the branches down and how creepy it was with practically zero light. What do you think Michelle brought up in the middle of the woods?

Killer clowns.

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So that was fun. Thankfully our return trip through the woodlands was well lit and I was not as concerned about a clown jumping out at us. To add some spice to our run however, there were two dogs that probably got out from the storm. We definitely walked at that point.

Since I already knew I was behind on my training miles I met up with my MRTT ladies this morning and we went for 7 miles on one of the other trails. It again was at o-dark-thirty. Thank God for cell phone flashlights, am I right?

So all in all I got my miles in, survived a hurricane/tropical storm, and ate a ton of junk food. I am incredibly thankful the storm was not as bad as predicted for our side of town, but completely devastated by the damage it did in Haiti and the East coast of Florida. Praying relief gets to all effected soon. 

The Weekend of Two Races

I had a very ambitious weekend. I had the final race of the Lace it Up Series on Saturday and thankfully the clouds stayed and my MRTT friends kept me going. This race was a 10k in pretty much zero shade with a ton of hills (according to my FitBit, I climbed 29 flights of stairs).

The sun stayed away until right before the 6 mile mark. I'll be honest, if the sun was out the entire time we would not have finished as quickly as we did (1:19). The best part of this race series? Ice cold sponges! Yes! They hand out sponges at the turnaround and right before we hit mile 5. They are like gifts from the running gods. 

Another favorite from this race? I saw a police office run across the finish line with a fellow racer. We saw him several times on the course and he was a huge encourager along the route. To see him run in full gear to encourage a runner was awesome. 

Speaking of the finish line, I hardly ever have a photo unless it is from the race photographer, so I was beyond excited to see a fellow MRTTer standing at the finish line with her phone out.

How great is that?!

So after the race (and maybe a buttered biscuit from Chick Fil A... I mean, they were at the finish line), I had to take my little miss to switch out her running shoes, caught the second half of my dudes basketball game and then we were off to the races again, literally.

Yes. I ran two races in one day. The second race was a fundraiser for our police chief who is running for sheriff. 

My miss backed out the race at the last minute (it was realllllly hot) and decided to volunteer instead, so the dude and I ran. It was really nice, I've had a ton of one on one time with my little lady and hardly any one on one time with him. Considering he had two basketball games that day, he did amazing. We finished in 40:19.

It should also be mentioned that he asked me to stop running and then sprinted ahead of me. Yeah.

I didn't stop there. Today was all about strength and the official start of Goofy training. This was the first weekend with an additional walk added to the run.

Sh*t just got real y'all.

Not So Cool Summer Morning Series Completion: AKA My Face Didn't Actually Melt Off

Saturday was the final race in the Sommer Sports Summer Series. This year the series seemed a little harder, maybe because it was a whole lot hotter this summer. That is not an exaggeration by the way. July was insanely hot and August was not much better. Plus the last half mile of the race is in direct sunlight. It's almost like running directly into the sun. 

Again, not an exaggeration.

Thankfully, I had my MRTT ladies to push me through the series. 

My standings for the series was:

Race 1: 35:57

Race 2: 37:23 (Remember when every day in July was 106+, yeah that was fun)

Race 3: 37:19

Race 4: 35:33

The bonus of suffering through the heat and humidity? A fifth medal!

Thank you to all my MRTT ladies for pushing me through the series! I'm so looking forward to all of the upcoming races we have together!