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.

2018 Recap and Plans for 2019

Part of me is surprised that it is 2019, and then the other part of me is like OMG finally! 2018 was kind of a really long year, is it just me?

2018 had its share of challenges for me, but it also had a ton of milestones. I completed my first (and only?) Goofy Challenge. Yes, that's 39.3 miles in two days...back to back...because I'm clearly Goofy. It was some of the coldest conditions I've run in for the half and then for the full, we had a 20-degree temperature swing from race start to finish. It was disgusting! But you know what? I did it, and I bet my previous marathon time. And it did it all with my squad beside me.

I also crushed the Princess Half Marathon. I have been chasing a finishing time of 2:30 for a long time and this year I wanted it more than I've ever wanted anything in my life. I ran with two members of my squad and they got me to mile 7.5 ish before telling me to run and if they caught me they'd kick my ass. It was when I hit the fountain in EPCOT after the turnaround that I knew I could do it. It was within my reach. I dug as deep as I could and when I passed the 2:30 pacer that I had lost around mile 5 I started to tear up. I did it. I did it with seconds to spare, but dammit I did it.

Oh, and I did this little thing called the Chicago Marathon. My niece and I signed up through ALZ Stars and planned to run together. Somehow I got a 43 minute and change PR. While that was awesome, nothing, and I mean nothing, beats running those 26.2 miles with my niece. To see how far she has come in her running and to
have her right there with me was the best thing I could have ever asked for.

I do not have any big races planned for 2019. Right now my focus is to run races I've never done before. I want to explore. I want to work on speed. I want to work on stamina. Basically, I want to be the best version of me, both running and personally, that I can be. I cannot wait to see what 2019 brings me. Thank you 2018 for serving me a giant slice of humble pie, now watch in 2019.

I Just Felt Like Runnin': 200 Days Streaking

I did it. I completed my run streak. Going into this challenge I was hoping to make it 100 days because let's be honest, life gets in the way, a lot. I learned so much about myself during these past 200 days and it is hard to believe this challenge is done.


via GIPHY

In 200 days I...

• Have run 611.24 miles
• Have wanted to quit more times that I want to admit
• Have said the phrase "It's only 11 minutes, you can do 11 minutes" every time I wanted to give up
• Have blown through 2, almost 3 pairs of running shoes
• Have pushed my own limits and learned when it was enough
• Still love running

A huge shout out to everyone who has supported me throughout this and put up with my constant #runstreak posts. Now I'm ready to focus on Chicago and push through to Goofy.

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.

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! 

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...

via GIPHY

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. 

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!

Thanksgiving Thursday

For those of you that don't know what Thanksgiving Thursday is, it is the one time during the week where you stop and basically count your blessings. Even if you've had one of those weeks, I promise you can find at least one thing to be thankful for, no matter how big or small.

This week I am thankful for...

• Scott who holds down the fort while I train, He's also pretty amazing at foam rolling my calves.

• My little dude who is kicking butt at school and in sports.

• My little miss who is going to be my new running buddy. I had such a great day with her on Saturday getting her fitted for her first pair of running shoes.

• Family all around us.

• Friends that willingly wake up before dawn to run 11 miles with you.

• Friends who make you feel so at home you don't realize the time until the sun goes down.

• Three day weekends.

• Starbucks pumpkin spice latte k-cups (yes they make those!).

What are you thankful for this week?

Goofy Training - Week 10: The One With the Clown and Frog

We are in full on marathon training at this point and for some reason I remember it being easy last year. Maybe it was because I was scared of how hard it was and worried I wouldn't be able to do. Now that I know I can do it I may not be trying as hard.

Anyway, we were in a holding pattern last night because we weren't totally sure what the weather was going to do. After having Scott consult all of the weather sources the decision was made that we were good to go for the morning (even though sleeping in sounded way more appealing).

It was literally pitch black out this morning and I remember it being brighter the last time we met that early. So what does Michelle bring us as we are running in the dark? Oh, just that clown that has been hiding in the woods in South Carolina....

via GIPHY

So now I'm running in the dark worrying about a creepy clown jumping out of the woods. Then we hear people talking and we don't see anyone. 

It's got to be a clown... a creepy going to murder us clown...

Nope, just some ROTC guys running cadences and showing off that they can do this and not sound totally out of breath. 

Can I be real with you? When I first heard them I had that crazy pivot move ready to run the other way. Then when I realized what it was I was all, "Yeah, I think that was a run interval..."

Let's see what else happened...I almost stepped on a frog, I'm pretty sure we both spilled 60% of our water down the front of our shirts (okay, maybe that was just me) and I'm sure there were other things that I just can't remember right now.

While it was not our fastest or best run (hey cramping at mile 9.5, great to see you too), we got our miles in and are pushing forward.

Week 10 of training is in the books...Goofy here we come!

Thanksgiving Thursday

For those of you that don't know what Thanksgiving Thursday is, it is the one time during the week where you stop and basically count your blessings. Even if you've had one of those weeks, I promise you can find at least one thing to be thankful for, no matter how big or small.

This week I am thankful for...

• Scott who has always supported my running and this crazy blog.

• My little dude who is killing it with sports this year.

• My little miss who is joining her school running club.

• Family near and far.

• The great group of ladies I have met through running.

• Weekend runs with my bestie.

• A tropical storm that is sure to keep the temperatures cool this weekend for our long run. 

What are you thankful for this week?

Like Mother, Like Daughter

I'm marathon training...again. Oh, and by marathon, I mean Goofy. Yes, I am running a half marathon and full marathon back to back. 

I have lost my damn mind.

How did I decide to do this challenge? Well...I looked at the training schedule and said, "Oh, it's only a couple of extra walk days, this is totally doable!" 

Sure...

I should also point out I have decided to train for Goofy during the hottest summer ever. I didn't think this through. But I have to say it has been going really well and I'm looking forward to tackling another challenge. 

On top of this training my little Miss has decided to join a running club. She will be training for a 5k this winter and I am so proud of her! She has run several, including one this weekend, and I know she will be amazing (I mean, look at her!). 

So now with the Miss running I'm going to have to bump up my training even more so I can stay close to her during races. 

Challenge accepted my dear, challenge accepted.