Hello, again!

Well, where did the month go? It is now mid June and my last post was the 1st of May? Oops! Well I have been traveling and having visitors these past few weeks which have kept me really busy. I went to SF for Bay to Breakers, KC for a wedding and ran a Half Marathon.

Bay to Breakers is a race in SF that they do every year. It was the 101st race which tells you how much of a tradition it is. On top of the race it has become more of a costume drinking spectacle throughout the route which is really neat since I love races and a drink or two. Every group has a theme and ours was Pamplona.  I had been wanting to attend this for years and finally got the chance too. My friends D,C and Y all dressed up and went to Alamo Square (which is also where the Full House is) and met up with our friends. It was a perfect sunny day with lots of weirdness and ridiculousness which is right up my alley. Hey, it's SF what else would you expect from the city.We day drinked and went to different bars throughout the city. I plan on attending B2B every year from now on, it is that much fun.

I went to Kansas City for my dear friend Danielle's wedding. It had been since 2009 since I had been back to KC and it was a trip down memory lane. I really missed life there and how simple things are. I even thought to myself I could live there but that thought was short lived when I realized the closest lululemon was 45 mins away. Just Kidding. I ventured around the Plaza and went to the old bars we used to go to in college. The Plaza is made to look like Sevilla, Spain  (KC is the sister city to Sevilla - where I also studied abroad) so there are fountains everywhere and the architecture is Spanish. It does feel like a little slice of heaven. It is full of bars, restaurants and shopping. I wouldn't mind living there for a year or two.

Danielle and Bjorn's wedding was absolutely beautiful. It was held at Danielle's house which was a perfect setting for it! Everything worked out perfectly and the bride was BEAUTIFUL. They had been dating since college so it was a really wonderful thing to see how they had grown together since Sr. year. Where did the time go and why are all my friends getting married? This was the big contrast I experienced going back to the Midwest because everyone was either engaged, married and or with kids (yes multiple). It almost made me want one of those shiny things you put on your left hand but then I realized my life is fun and that I get to do what I want when I want and I'm going to keep doing that a little while longer.

Time: 2:17:50.1

Half Marathon! Well this was a decision made 3 days before the race. Am I crazy? Perhaps but since I had already ran one earlier this year I knew what to expect. I ran it with my friend Joe who DOMINATED the race with a time of 1:40:00 and I PR'd at 2:17:00 which is 4 minutes faster than my last half. I hadn't even trained for this nor had I run more than 3 miles since my half.

The Ventura Beach Front Half Marathon was about 700 people total including the 5K which is a stark difference between the Surf City where there were thousands. This route wasn't roped off for the runners per say and at times I felt almost unsafe since the majority of it was along the PCH. There were only two porta potties throughout the entire race which was really shocking since the last one had them everywhere. Since the route started at the Ventura County Pier they had a great little set up before the race with a few booths. The race started at 7AM and at 8AM pending your designated time to finish. I was a lot more resilient this time around and my body wasn't as sore either. I had a runners high the ENTIRE day and didn't want to sit down as I was amped to run again. Again, CRAZY.

I am signed up for the Big Sur Half Marathon in November and want to run one sooner than that and actually train. Both of my past half experiences deal with me almost dying (see why here) and no training so I bet with training and a healthy body I know I can run it under 2:15 easily. Eventually my goal is to be under 2 hours and maybe even a Hail Mary?

All in all, it has been a great start to the summer and I can't wait for June gloom to die off and my parents to come this weekend. Also, my mid summer resolution is to take Ballet classes at least once a week starting today. I just can't decide to do a beginners with point shoes (read it has been since 2007 that my feet have been in those monsters) or advanced. I've been inspired as of late thanks to the new shows "Breaking Pointe" and "Bunheads." They are pretty cheesy but if you were once a dancer you would appreciate them.

The Color Run

SoCal Color Run 4.22.12

So they call it the happiest 5K on the planet.

 And if you like color then yes it is your running mecca. 

To recap, we left our friend's house on Sunday morning at 7:30AM and it should only take us an hour or so to get there especially on a Sunday. We didn't get there until around 9:45AM. The parking situation was hell in the self proclaimed happiest run ever. Yeah. Really? Not after you spend an hour in your car. It was at the OC County Fair grounds and looked desolate. We were freaking out because we thought we would miss the race that started at 9AM but when we realized that everyone in traffic was running as well I got excited because at least we weren't the only ones. Yup, I like to share misery. So after parking and hating life, we  realized the races were going on every hour from 9-12PM. Yes, I know - we can't read instructions. So YAY, happiest 5K on the planet! So Meg and I got into the 10AM heat and started running, it was hard to run since most people were walking. When we hit the first color (Yellow) it was clear to me that I should stop breathing during that time because breathing in the color was slightly painful. Smarty Meg had a bandana. After each color hit I kept feeling more and more like a running rainbow. It was awesome. At the very end of the race you throw a specific color that you are given at the packet pick up to have some sort of a "color bomb" it looks pretty cool from above but from below you are trying to breathe and not gag at the same time. Try it, it's fun.

Afterwards, we decided to grab some food in Marina Del Rey.  So walking around all colorful like you are bound to get stares which we naturally accepted once we stepped out of the car. What made it even better was when people asked "you know you are covered in color, right?" or "what's wrong, you should probably go see a doctor?" From those comments, it made it really hard to not question why people think American's are idiots. Just kidding, well kinda. Anyways, the race is going from city to city all throughout America and is getting sold out after a day or two. Really insane for a brand new race. Will I do it next year? Yes, Sir. 

Close up of all our colorful glory.

Nike's She Run's LA 80's Theme

This past weekend I ran Nike's 10K She Run's LA that started at Paramount Studios that ran through Melrose and back. My friend Libby had asked me to run and I thought, why not? I like neon, 80's, running, tutu's, Duran Duran and teasing my hair with aqua net. Perfect! My outfit consisted of neon splattered spandex shorts and a turquoise matching top. I looked REAL good. Trust me. There are no pictures needed. Just imagine workout video circa the 80's.

 While I didn't PR at this race and the excuses I am making for myself/ego are as follows:

 A. That running a Half Marathon allowed me to be running free for 2 months

 B. I hadn't ran more than 4 miles until the week of the race

 C. I've gotten pretty lazy since February

Ok, fine really bad excuses, but at least I got out there on a Saturday morning! Towards the second half of the race I got really exhausted and had to walk just a leeetle bit. The course wasn't bad but it was confusing when one of the signs had 5KM up and in my tired brain I read 5 miles and didn't realize it meant 5K. Yup, I'm a 'real' runner. I'm asking Santa for a Garmin this year. Anyways, once I saw Paramount I decided to sprint as I always like to save energy for the last .2 but clearly I didn't study the course very well and we had to run that .2 throughout Paramount Studios. I was in hell. The last part had so many sharp corners that I had no idea when it was going to end. So as you can see that my 5K split was a decent 8:56 I gained a minute + on the second half thanks to my exceptional ability to walk.

 At the end of the race I saw my gf Meg waiting for me at the finish line. Apparently, she had seen us running and decided to jump in. So we all three walked around the and listened to The Spazmatics and then quickly decided we were hungry and headed to grab brunch. We ate at Simplethings down the street on Third which was really delicious. Their salads are HUGE and at a good price. I recommend the spot for any of you eastsiders. Worth a visit for sure.

Also, instead of getting a t-shirt for running you got a leather bracelet that was intertwined with gold which was designed by the surfing brand, Hurley. It is pseudo cute in the 2003-2005 juicy couture fashion kinda way. MAYBE, I'll sport it some day. Yeah, probably not.

 What's next? The Color Run in Irvine on Sunday. I'm running it with my new running bud, Meg.  It is a 5K and you get sprayed with all sorts of fun colors. This is going to be one interesting run for sure.

Surf City Half Marathon 2:21:12!!!

The 'guts and glory' photos.
Does anyone look good running?

What a beautiful, glorious, bucket list checkin' terrifying weekend. 

So many emotions were experienced that it is going to be hard to put everything into words. The weekend started off with two gf's from Dallas flying in for a little vacation in SoCal and a Half Marathon. Katie and I had planned to run this over two months ago and after a lot of emails, miles, and encouraging txts the race weekend was finally here. 

Everything was going just as planned until Saturday. That day I decided to go for a little 3 miler before we set off for Huntington Beach to pick up our packets for the race the next day. Right before the run, I had nibbled on some left over sushi from the night before and during the first mile I was having trouble breathing, I was so confused because if I couldn't run one mile how the heck was I supposed to run 13.1! I kept on running through the pain and by mile 3 I had to walk home. I prayed that I would make it home without passing out because by then I was gasping for air. THANK GOD Katie and Meghan were at my apt. I immediately looked in the mirror saw that my entire face had swelled up beyond recognition and I looked like this. Not even kidding, my eyes were so swollen that they looked like slits. 

I was having an allergic reaction.

As my friends were asking me questions about what was going on I could barely even say anything, It took all my energy to muster a word as I felt as if I was suffocating. I had never been so afraid in my life but in this moment. My brain wasn't even working, I couldn't even think. All this happened in less then 30 minutes. My body felt like it had been poisoned and was being attacked inside and once I got everything out of my system  I felt a sense of relief and was able to breathe. They drove me to Urgent Care and I got two wonderful shots in my bum. I am now on steroids which are making it hard to sleep and making me nauseous. And the crazy part is that even though I went through all of that I still decided to run against what the doctor said. I didn't want to let anyone down. While it is not the smartest move I had ever made I would have been so upset if I didn't run it. I just had to. 

Thankfully we were staying at my friend Dylan's (who is an avid marathoner) and he said he would run along side me in the half to make sure nothing would happen to me. I am so grateful for him and for that. I started off the race super slow as you can tell that by my mile 3 avg was almost 11 minutes. I was scared to go any faster after what had happened during my last running session. By mile 6-7 I told myself  "I got this", I was feeling healthy and not nervous. My mile 8 avg was 11 minutes faster than my mile 3 so clearly I was feeling confident in running. I took my GU shot at mile 8 as well and I am thinking that helped me as I wasn't really feeling fatigued (I woke up 2 am the morning of the race!) and finished the race without walking at all. I sprinted and pretty much was leaping to the finish line at the end. I finished and beat my goal running the race under 2:30! I felt that I could at least run 2-3 more miles after it was over. A runners high. The best kind of high. 

The race was organized wonderfully and the weather was in it's 60-70's. Just perfect with the ocean breeze. There was plenty of water, port a potty's and people cheering you on. (They were even passing out M&M's!) Not the mention the course was relatively flat with one baby hill around mile 3 but hey it was along the ocean so there was no complaining at all. I don't think I will be able to ever run that long without the ocean by my side. That constant companionship definitely helped me and taking in gulps of fresh air was just fantastic. They had people running through out the race holding up what time you would finish which was really nice, I kept up with 2:10 guy for a bit but then faltered. No matter, I knew I was going to beat my goal and wasn't too worried. My goal for my next half will be to run it in 2:15. I strongly believe I can do that. 

All in all, it was a great weekend. One for the books. I'm so proud of myself for completing the race. I literally can't wait to map out the races I will be running in 2012. I know for sure I will be running the Big Sur Half with Katie (my Dad plans on running it with me as well, but I will believe it when he signs up) in November and I will run at least 4-5 more 10k's a few 5k's here and there. Katie is running a full marathon in Chicago this year which is really inspiring. While I am not sure if I will ever want to run 26.2,  it is something for my little running legs to think about in the future. 

One Mile At A Time.

{Also, check out Katie's recap of the race on her lovely little bloggy blog}

UPDATE:

Turns out my allergic reaction was indeed due to a shellfish allergy. WHAT THE WHAT. I feel as if my sushi loving days are over. On top of that I learned I have asthma. Again, WHAT?  I now am a proud owner a pretty blue fab inhaler. Oh yes and I am allergic to cockroaches, horses, feathers (I asked if wearing feathers would affect me, It doesn't. PHEW), peanuts (goodbye peanut butter), green peas, grass, and soy milk (threw that out the second I got home). It was a fun 27 years living like I had no allergies. Woops.  My poor poor body.

4 DAYS

Well lets say my training for my half has not been following the training weekly miles you are supposed to run but I have a feeling i will be just fine. My goal is to not walk at ALL and to run it in less than 2:30 hours. The thing that will hold me back from that is if I get blisters. I am so prone to getting them so I am praying the bioglide product (just like vasoline) will do the trick and of course my new running accessory the bondi band. I will have a giveaway for 2 bands next week. Stay tuned!!

Below is my new running song:

Freestylers // Cracks

Training starts TODAY

ok, ok I know I am way behind in my training since my first half is in less than a month and I haven't ran since  TX.I was sick this weekend and was not able to run AT ALL. So my plan so I don't kill myself during the half is run 6 miles this weekend, then 8, then 10 then 13.1. BOOM. I can do it. Just pray I don't get sick again.

Anyone have any other advice on what to do for conditioning before or after the race? As well as what to eat?What to wear?

On another running note, I have kept up with my daily mile widget. In fact, I absolutely love it because it keeps me accountable. Also, since my favorite running buddy lives in Texas it allows us to see what each other is running and chat about it with each other. I ended this year with running 68 miles (started counting 10/21) so if you do that math I technically ran 1.13 miles from October to December. In 2012, I want to average that to 2 or 2.5 (lofty goal) miles a day. I know I can do that especially since I have my two halfs this year on top of a few runs I will do locally. That is over 60 miles a month compared to my previous 68 spread over 2 months+. Eh. maybe 1.5 a day? :)

It's going to be a great running year. I just know it.

Happy Running Everyone!

Enjoying Life While Running

This weekend was very rewarding. I ran the Venice Christmas 10k and it was my 3rd 10k. I ran it in 58 minutes. This is by far my personal best so this means my mile avg is around 9:30 which isn't TERRIBLE. I ran it with 3 other gf's (Dana, Libbs and Linds H.!) although we didn't end together it was great to know that we were all in it together.

Additionally, Kansas basketball beat the #2 ranked team Ohio State on Saturday which even sweetened the day!

Venice Christmas Run: 10k

Venice, CA

Time: 58:01

Mile avg: 9:35

 

I ran a 5k last month. Next to my house. It was so wonderful just to wake up and walk to the start line. Pan Pacific Park. Ran it solo. I really enjoyed running through my neighborhood, down 3rd street and having people cheer you on. Next 5k I will go for 28:30. Goals Goals and Goals.

Run For Her: 5k

Los Angeles, CA

Time: 29:03

Saturday's Mantra

Run with Ellie Goulding

 

Run, Run and Shake It.  

"UK pop singer Ellie Goulding loves to run as much as she loves to sing. Nike Running collaborated with her to make a film about her music and her running while she was on tour in LA, NYC and London -- and training for a half marathon with Nike+. "

The film is set to the Jakwob remix of Ellie's hit song Under The Sheets, to get the track go to Ellie's iTunes page, here.

Race for the Rescues 2011

On Sunday I ran a 5K with my dear friend D. It was all the way in Pasadena and I hadn't been there in quite some time because I was pleasantly surprised of how beautiful it is over there. I made a mental note to go out there and 'hang' more often. The Race for the Rescues race was held at the Rose Bowl and it was to benefit 10 non-profit, no-kill, animal welfare organizations. While I don't own any animals (does a few succulents count?) I grew up with them my entire life. So when D asked me to help support and run I said sure! There were sponsored tents after the race and I ended up winning a spa doggy day for D's pup. Mr. P will have one fun day getting a blueberry facial. Lucky dog! I had a lot of fun wondering from booth to booth and might have even got my face painted..

Ever since I graduated I have signed up for quite a few races: The Santa Monica 5000, Venice Christmas Run, ThunderCloud's Turkey Trot and the Zilker Holiday Tree Run just to name a few.  I never was a talented runner by any means but I really enjoy the way you can just lose yourself. I consider myself more the tortoise than the hare but I finish the race. I am usually a 9-10 minute a mile girl currently. I will improve. I find that I have better times running outside than when I do on a treadmill. It is difficult for me to run outside in LA with all the smog that I inhale while running I just avoid busy streets (hard in LA, let me tell ya!)  I will be running in a Turkey Trot in Seattle (hopefully with my lovely sister!) that I am super excited for. I added a mileage widget to the site to monitor my running as I plan on running a half marathon sometime soon and want get my mileage up before it. So I will be adding my miles and times. Improving each time.

Race!

my little sister and I with our kitty Princess. I am rockin' that side pony tail like it is no ones business. thanks mom.