Clare is Running

Setting goals is one of my favorite things to do:). It's a time to imagine the future, dream of what's possible, celebrate past accomplishments and put failures behind you and move forward:). So with that in mind, here are the not-so-spectacular results from 2013...

Goals for 2013:

1. Run more often. This one was an epic fail:(. I ran less often in 2013 than during the previous two years. I'd love to make it all better by saying that I fell in love with another activity but that would be a lie. I fell in love with laziness:(
2. Do at least 12 in-person events, and one each month. I completed 16 in-person events in 2013 but missed an event for two months of the year :(
3. Complete two Half Marathons. This time I mean it :). Apparently I didn't. I completed one Half and a 10-miler
4. PR at two different distances - existing ones. I PR'd at the Tower of Terror:)
5. Lose 15 pounds. Ruh roh. I weigh exactly the same today as at the beginning of 2013:(

So what happened??? There were some really bright spots to the year but part of the problem with hitting the goals was simple lack of motivation. I fell out of love with running during some of the year and didn't switch successfully to something else to stay active. I need to build that flexibility into my goals for next year for sure. June was tough - with more focus on proper sleeping habits I would have had a better chance at getting up to run more easily which is key when it super hot. I also wasn't very organized which would have helped me bike and swim when I didn't feel like running. Eating has been a bit of a hot mess this year. Too much sugar and mindless overeating.

So, here are my goals for 2014...drumroll please...

1. Work out more often (3 times a week at least)
2 14 in-person events in 2014 (one each month and a couple of extras)
3. Any three of the following: 10K, sprint tri, bike 25 miles
4. Either PR or complete a 5K in under 30 minutes during an event
5. Lose 15 lbs!

How am I going to do all of these? Firstly, I'm making the commitment by writing these goals down! I've already signed up for Janathon (which means I need to work out every day for a month) to start out the year on track:). I've also signed up for '14 in 2014' which gives me access to a group of people on Facebook doing the same to keep me inspired and motivated. Planning is going to be really important so my next job is to make a race/training plan for the year, to include some speed work. On the weight loss front, I'm wearing a new Fitbit and tracking calories on myfitnesspal. To help manage the sugar cravings I'm going to be relying on my new, trusty Yonanas machine which is a great alternative to ice cream which is frankly the devil's spawn. I've also signed up for yoga with a friend so that will help me stay accountable and keep the stress levels down which has been a major driver in recent overeating episodes. On the motivation front - I'm also going to try and align my activity with good causes. I've signed up for www.weightlessproject.org to help fight malnutrition through activity and I'm going to pick some races with worthy beneficiaries. In 2014, my mantra is going to be "Running for a Reason"!!! I'm excited...

Last year we did the Tower of Terror 10-Miler and I think it was my least favorite race ever (link here). Several things went wrong for me that night but heat was probably the single biggest factor. I was determined to do it again this year and make peace with the terrible experience to put it behind me!

For our training we added a mile each week, ran in the heat, and didn't miss a single long run:). Lu came back from her cruise in the morning where she had done some hypnosis too so we convinced ourselves that we would PR and focused on the power of positive thinking...

We did the expo in the morning and showed up after a day of carb-loading not too early this time. And we didn't make the mistake of wearing the terrible, fugly shirts that last year didn't help one bit with the heat...



We had to wait for over an hour in the corrals but had a nice time with the other runners :)

On Saturday night, Team Daaaaaamnnnnn!! showed up for Disney's Inaugural Tower of Terror 10-Miler! The Expo was fantastic as ever and our old friend Jeff Galloway was there offering words of wisdom. We bought matching team headbands and I bought a ridiculously expensive new running skirt. The race started at 10pm so we got there at 7pm to get on the bus nice and early...




Life has been incredibly hectic lately and I haven't been getting my minimum three runs a week in regularly enough. I have been able to kind of stay in with weekly long runs though, so we decided to: shoot for 5:1 intervals, start in the last corral, stay together as a team and just focus on having a great time :). At about 10:20pm we were off!


There was a beautiful full moon and I started out really well. At about Mile 4 however, it all started to fall apart :(. Firstly it was really hot and humid which always makes me miserable. Then, I made the silly mistake of wearing clothes that I had never run in before for the first time. My skirt was weighed down by my camera and gu chomps and once it was completely soaked with sweat, it kept falling down which was very annoying. Then my ipod died. Then, for some reason, I completely lost all confidence and just wanted it to end. My "I love running, I hate running" headband came true:(. Lu was a fantastic coach, however, and really helped me to refocus, and Mike ran behind me for moral support (and he said he liked the view ;)). And just over 2 hrs after we had started, thankfully we were done!

The medals were adorable!!

I think today is one of the proudest days of my life :). This morning I completed my first Half Marathon, the Women's Running Magazine's Women's Half in St. Petersburg to Benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society! Back in February, several of my girlfriends completed their first Half Marathons. When I was approached by another friend to join her team for this race I thought it was about time that I gave it a shot (they later bailed so I actually ended up running alone :(). I registered online and got a free 12-week training program so I decided to follow it as closely as I could and only run on raceday if I had completed the training. For me, I found it easier to commit to doing a training program rather than the actual race which felt like a mountain to climb at that time. Anyway, the training went really well - one of the biggest challenges was learning to do long runs alone since I knew Mike wouldn't be joining me on the day :( - until about week 9 when I injured my ankle. I had already started to exceed the mileage on the long runs a bit so I think it was a case of too much, too soon. Anyway, after a particularly bad run one night, I actually passed out from the pain in my ankle! I took this as a sign to take a week off and instead of giving up altogether I decided to substitute the training runs for the crosstrainer at the gym and be a lot more careful, particularly on long runs. I was very nervous when it came time for the only 10-miler during training (the program only went up to 10 miles based on the assumption that adrenaline would get you to 13 on the day:)) but I managed to do it without too much trouble at all! That was the point at which I decided that I would go for it and do the race itself :).

There were about 7,000 registrants so the bib pick up is all handled the day before. We booked a hotel in St. Pete for Saturday night and drove over earlier in the day to get the fancy bag of goodies and T-shirt.






I planned on taking millions of photos during the race but very quickly decided to just focus on being present with the whole experience. The course route went past several landmarks in St. Pete and there were 7 live bands. I barely even used my ipod, the spectators were just incredible and I also met several fantastic ladies throughout the race! I did get a picture of the pier at mile 8...



Mike was so very proud of me!

I've been working really hard with my biking lately so I was thrilled to hit my goal tonight of 15 miles within an hour! I did it on Mike's mountain bike and actually beat the goal by nearly 4 minutes although I was a major sweat monster when I got back home :)


I also managed to run a full 2 miles without any major knee problems this week too (which was a major relief) so I'm going to try adding distance now so that I can get back to running more regularly again. For now though I have to say the bike is challenging for me and more importantly fun!

There are just tons of 'virtual' races on various running blogs to sign up for. Some are designed to raise money for different causes and some, like this one, are just for fun! In general, for these types of races awards are given based on drawings from all participants and some offer some really cool prizes too! This one looked like fun so me and Mike signed up for the Jelly Bean virtual 10K...


Mike did his first and ran an extra mile too - show off...


I did mine in the morning and it was hot, hot hot :)


A new 10K PR for me and I won a prize too! (Winners Announcement). How cool is this? I love it!

I completed my very first 15K today at the gorgeous JB Starkey Wilderness Park in New Port Richey (JB Starkey Park website) at the Earth Day Relay For Life which benefits the American Cancer Society.  We dedicated this race to Mike's Dad who tragically loss his battle with cancer in 2005.


To prepare for this race, I have been doing my long runs at the same time each week (and the same time that the race was scheduled to start) to get better used to the Florida temperatures. Whenever I see that blood stain on my running shoe I remember how hard I've trained - gross I know but I'm so proud of that stain...


I felt ready but very nervous the night before and couldn't sleep until about 2 a.m. We got ready and hit the road at 6 a.m.


It was a really small and informal race which did wonders to calm me down :).


Great T-Shirts too!


I started out feeling prepared and strong :)


The race itself was really pretty with lots of wildlife to enjoy, but really hot! At the turnaround point they had left a cooler so I loaded up my sports bra with ice which really helped for the next mile or so! I had added some new tunes to my ipod and we chatted with some of the other runners on the course which was also a great distraction. I didn't really struggle too much until about mile 8 to be honest and at that point only a mad person stops running, right? I finished my 9.3 miles at 1:45:27 which I was totally thrilled with!


I love my new race bling and may wear it for the rest of my life...


I never thought I was capable of running a 15K and I may not have been if Mike hadn't been right by my side not only for today's race but for all of the long training runs (thank you Mike - you have no idea how much I love you...) And today...I really felt like PopPop was with us too...we miss you and we love you...