Training x2

Yesterday I did the Terrifying Ten Miler as a long training run for my two half marathons coming up (the first is in 2 weeks, then the next is about a week after that! Coming up so soon and so close together!). The race was at Salt Creek Beach, which is not far from where I live (close enough that I have been there and vaguely knew where it was but further than I ever personally drive to go to the beach). As I don't typically go there & I'm pretty sure I've never driven there myself, I will admit to having to Google the directions. Then, race day, I'm there maybe 30 minutes before my race was to start and I was feeling pretty ahead of the game until I went to the Pay Station (the beach's parking lot is a paid lot). I am used to my San Clemente spots like the pier & the Metrolink station area, both of which take AmEx. So, I get to the Pay Station at Salt Creek  and it takes only Visa, Mastercard and $1 bills. What do I have with me? An AmEx card and a $20 bill. I searched my card for any rogue $1 bills or coins - nothing. After a brief frustrated panic, I decided to drive around nearby to find any free parking, or even paid parking as long as it took one of the 2 things I had. The Ritz is across the street and I figured they probably would have parking, but I decided to chance it in the neighborhood. Fortunately, there was some free street parking near the library kind of up the hill.

So, then I get down to the race start area with still not a bad amount of time, and stretch & all. Soon to the race start, I begin to open up my various running apps and the heart rate monitor is no longer communicating with my app. It does this a lot, and usually I just have to un-pair and then re-pair it (it works via bluetooth) but occasionally I have to re-moisten the sensors. Which happened to me race day? Yep -- I had to remoisten the sensors like right as the arc was about to start. AND I had to use my drinking water to do so. So, I was one of the last people to cross the start line because I was dealing with all of that. Then, I start my run and it takes a few times to adjust my armband to a good spot (I have the iPhone 6 in an Otterbox in an armband, so the whole thing is nearly as big as my arm and heavy, so it takes a bit of adjusting). I'm going along lalalalala and then someone calls me. This throws off my workout because I'm not sure if that pauses my interval timer or not (I do a walk/run thing) and it stops my music of course. I have to stop to "decline." Then I get called again. Same thing. Then again, so I figure I may as well answer it. It's a coworker friend trying to get into the office building but no, I do not have the master key and no, I don't know where one is. I will admit to putting my phone on "Do Not Disturb" at this time for an uninterrupted workout after basically stopping for quite a while rather early into my run.

Then I get to focus on my run, but it's HILLY! While I had been to the beach,  I had never  been to the trail, seen the trail, or even known that it existed really. I had heard reference to a trail, but I guess I assumed it was an easy, friendly one like the San Clemente Beach trail, which is mainly flat and full of normal pedestrians. Not this trail. Up, down, up, down, for a long time. At first I try to run up hills, but as I do no hill training ever, really, so I gave up and would walk, but I was NOT ALONE in that. Pretty much everyone in my general vicinity/training level would walk up. Then I pass about mile 4 and am feeling pretty good when I turn a bend and see a BIG HILL. Of course, I walk the entire incline. The return was not so bad because I knew I was on the home stretch. At that point, I was just trying to not be last and to not lose sight of the few runners who had become my pacers. I finished in not bad time considering all of this. My treadmill 5-mile time is around 58 minutes or so, and my final time for the 10 Miler was not that far behind that.

My Official Time & Stats from the Race Officials

The race T-Shirt. I wish it said 10 Miles as well though...

My Terrifying Ten Halloween-inspired outfit

The ocean view at the start of the race before we went into the hilly valley

 The start line. Also the finish line in reverse.

Me post run. I think this medal is actually the 10K/5K medal. Before the race, they announced that the correct medals for our races did not arrive in time, so we would get medals, but from the incorrect races, and that they would mail us the correct ones when they came in today (yep, 1 day late). Some people got Turkey Trot medals and others got Santa Run ones, and I guess us ten milers got the 10K ones. At first I thought maybe the medal was like the shirt and it wouldn't say 10 miles at all, but I got an email saying that the correct medal would be mailed to me and there was an image of the 10 miler medal, so that's good.

This is my app's timing/stats.

The mile markers all had little messages along the bottom, but this is really the first & main one that I really noticed because it says Mile 11 and obviously one should not see this mile marker on a 10 mile race. At first I thought maybe the wrong things was put out (as if they maybe used to have a half marathon or something), but there in small print it says "Ha Ha, We tricked you. It's really 7" Awesome.




The blog title is "Training x2" because I am currently also working on graduate school applications and so I have personal statements & essays to write, and I'm hoping writing my personal blog again will help me to get the writing & creative process flowing again too.  I write a blog for work, but it's different - not full reign to write how I think because I try to keep it more informational and professional rather than personal. So after a long hiatus I am going to try blogging at least somewhat more regularly again. It's also quite fun & relaxing for me too, strangely, just to write for myself. This weekend I did start my "main" personal statement to use as a base for the individual ones. I wrote too much, in fact. I have about 4 pages that need to be trimmed down to less than 2. Still, even if I scrap most of what I wrote, I feel less concerned/stressed now that I have something on paper (well, in Microsoft Word actually).

What a day at the gym

Most visits to the gym are very uneventful, but not today. There were a few unusual occurrences....

#1: For the first time in my 12 years as a gym rat, I saw someone sort of fall off the treadmill. I was on an elliptical behind him (the row of ellipticals is behind the treadmills) when I suddenly saw this guy basically half off of the treadmill and (seemingly) trying to climb back on despite the fact that the treadmill was still going at a pretty fast pace. So a whole group of us were kind of stopped in shock for the first moments as we all started to notice that something was going on -- all of us on the ellipticals and people on neighboring treadmills. At some point he let go, essentially, and then got up and jogged to the end of the row like "I meant to do that" which of course, none of us bought. The lady on the treadmill next to him pressed the pause or stop button close to the time he "got off" the treadmill and was very concerned for him. But when he finished his jog to the end of the row he came back smiling, at which point the rest of us relaxed because he was ok. In the end he got back on and finished his run, but that's seriously the first time EVER I've seen that in real life. I mean, we've all seen youtube videos of that (I love the one where the guy sort of falls off but then starts doing pushups like that was his intended circuit training), but IRL? Knowing that he was smiling and running 7mph within about 3 minutes time, I think I can safely say it was HILARIOUS.

#2: I saw two (yes, TWO) people working out in/near the weights/TRX section BAREFOOT. I had also never really seen that before. I have seen the "barefoot" shoes. I have maybe once seen someone in socks with the personal trainer guiding them. But completely barefoot? Nope. And TWO people on the SAME NIGHT at the SAMT TIME who are NOT together? Never. I must say I find that strange. First, I do believe that the official gym rules require closed-toe shoes on the "floor" (read: cardio & weights are + probably the basketball court). Second, even if they didn't that seems risky, as people may accidentally bump you & make you drop your weights or may drop heavy weights or medicine balls that can land or roll onto your foot. Plus, people sweat all over the gym floors and I've seen people (read: men) spit on the floor before (yes, in the gym. That's SO gross, guys. Swallow like a normal person when you're inside please), and you're just going to hang out barefoot on it? Yuck. Seems to me that that is how foot fungus spreads. Yes, I suppose on that note many people will put their hands on the floor to do push-ups & things, but I personally don't much like to do that.  I use a mat (& am typically wearing weight training gloves too). Somehow using the mat makes me feel better. And I wash my hands immediately after I work out too. I may be a junior germaphobe...