The first double digit run finally happened this past Sunday. I’ve ran plenty of double digits in the past, but I haven’t ran one since October 15th of this year. So, it was my first in a while. It was strange, but I had a few revelations that I wanted to share and thought I’d break it down the way it happened through the miles.

I was super stoked at first, it was almost 70 degrees out, wet but not raining, and I got to break out a pair of shorts. I was ready to go. I had 3 days off from doing any running, the iPod was charged, Garmin was ready, I had a Vanilla (not my fave) GU packet and Lemon-Lime Nuun to equip me.

Miles 0-3 (8:37, 8:17, 8:24):  I started with a quarter mile warm up which is basically walking fast, high knees, butt kicks and light jogging until i hit the run path. I kept having to slow down and tell myself this was a “long run” and I still had a ways to go. At mile 2.4 I stopped to stretch and check out the 4 deer hanging around nearby… thus began the 1st of about 5 stops during my run to stretch and shake out my tight legs.

Miles 4-5 (8:30, 8:29): Once I hit mile 4 I wanted to turn around. Even though I had a decent pace, I was having a hard time because of the weather. It was warm, wet and humid. And after being used to cold & dry it’s a shock to the body, but probably more so to the mental game. My head just wasn’t into the run AT ALL. I kept second guessing being ready for a 10 mile run, my quads wouldn’t loosen up so I stopped completely at mile 4.2 to take my GU & Nuun & give myself a pep talk. (Also, I spotted another 7 deer!)

3 things that snapped me back into the Run.

1) Lately I’ve been channeling this quote from Tom Hanks’ character in A League of Their Own. I always repeat “The hard is what makes it great.”

2) Long runs are for practice. Sometimes it’s practice for your pacing, sometimes it’s for the distance and time on your feet and other times it’s practice for your mental game. Today I chose to focus on the mental practice.

3) Then I thought “Am I going to finish this run complaining and walking or am I going to finish strong?” Isn’t that what a race is like? It breaks you down and it’s hard but you have a choice. You can give in and slug through or you can finish the best you can.

Miles 6-8 (8:04, 7:54, 7:50) I chose to finish strong–>at the least, mentally strong. The easy runs aren’t the ones that drive you to run a PR. It’s the hard ones you fight for. This will be a training run I’ll remember during the end miles of my next race. These kinds of runs are the ammo I pull out when I need the “you can do this, because you’ve done this” pick me up. And holy Santa balls, as soon as mile 6 kicked in my legs loosened up and running became a lot easier and fun. It’s amazing how your mental & emotional side of running really affect you. You can see by my pace that something clicked.

Miles 9-10 (7:32, 7:38 + quarter mile cool down): The last miles were in fact the easiest ones. I was proud I didn’t give up and even more proud that I actually got excited toward the end because I knew the following week I’d hit 11 or 12 miles in my long run. <— sick I know. Runners are nuts. But I, as many of you runners out there, really like to see what the body can do. And now more than ever I’m ready to challenge my head to stay positive throughout those long miles.

When I got back to the apartment Cameron was already back from his 3 mile loop 🙂 This washed away all the stress from my long run. I was ridiculously happy he went out on his own. We ended up at Mark’s Kitchen for a late lunch. We eat there almost every weekend for breakfast or lunch cause it’s AMAZING! I had a chicken/avocado/bacon club on rye with sweet potatoes!

What are your tips for muscling through those mental barriers in the long run?

Monday: 2.1m with Laura + 2.5m, 15 min chest/biceps

Friday Cameron and I got to dress up all fancy and head downtown DC to the Park at 14th for Gold’s Gym holiday party. The food they had for us was excellent, i picked at Cameron’s salad & chicken, but ended up mostly eating the crab cake balls, mini cupcakes and cocktails.

As soon as we walked in and checked out coats we noticed the tv’s were playing the Capitals game, so it kept us entertained until we met up with friends.

Over the weekend Laura sent me a “wanna run” text. My answer is 99.9% of the time YES so we ended up doing a couple miles together yesterday. She hasn’t gone on a run since her half marathon in October so she’s trying to ease back into it a few miles at a time.

One of my favorite places to run through..

Our only complaint was the cold. It was 30 degrees and with wind of course it felt colder. My hands just wouldn’t warm up, but we had a fun time spotting deer and taking pictures. Laura did well with her first run back. Her pace was pretty normal and we took several walk breaks which is also normal for a comeback run.

another one of my favorite spots

Randomness–> Cause you know I can’t go one post without being all over the place. Runner’s World is having a giveaway until Christmas! Fill out one entry per day Here!

Also a new episode of Rick And Morty is on tonight at 10:30 EST. If you didn’t see my post on it, my future brother-in-law created the show, does the main character’s voices and is a funny dude. Sarah Chalke is the voice for the mother on the show and apparently is a sweetheart in real life.

Sarah Chalke, my sister Abbie & Spencer Grammer

Last week’s work…

Monday: 4.2m treadmill 8:17/pace

Tuesday: 7.7m easy 8:31/pace treadmill with 1-2% incline

Wednesday: 30 min chest/shoulders, 160 lunges, 10 min abs

Thursday: 5.5m treadmill progressive run 8:30, 7:53, 7:43, 7:30, 7:18 (half mile cool down)

Friday: Rest

Saturday: Rest

Sunday: 8 miles easy 8:06/pace

Total Miles: 24.5 

What’s your favorite temps to run in?

50-75 degrees

Are you traveling for xmas or is xmas coming to you?

We are staying put this year

Wednesday: 30 min chest/shoulders, 160 lunges, 10 min abs

Thursday: 5.5m treadmill progressive run 8:30, 7:53, 7:43, 7:30, 7:18 (half mile cool down)

I know i broke my “only run easy in December” rule, but my legs felt amazing and I knew my next day was a day off from running, so i went with it. It felt good, I felt good and now i’m excited to include speedwork into my life again this January.

Going to work, then a Christmas party tonight so enjoy some random pics!

fall day in the car

The Great 8 practicing a few years ago

painting i’m working on (don’t worry i’ll show you finished works in another post!)

Jamaica on the boardwalk

Photobooth at a Christmas party = best. idea. ever.

yep, i had short hair 2 years ago

Have a great weekend!

Tuesday: 7.7m easy 8:31/pace treadmill with 1-2% incline

I’m pretty sure everyone at the gym yesterday thought i was nuts because i finished my run (to the tenth of a mile) pressed stop, threw my hands in the air like Rocky and said “ONE THOUSAND!” I’ve never hit an annual mileage this high before. I made it a goal this year to hit 1000 and I’m so happy xmas came early for me. To give you an idea of how my annual mileage stacks up, i found a piece of paper with the tallies.

2009: 368 2010: 695 2011:840 2012: 860 2013: 1000 and counting!

I’ve had a few big milestones this year in running: Three consecutive half marathon PR’s in March, September then October. These 3 races also helped with a more fun, long term goal of running a race in all 50 states. DC, PA & MD. Three new places done!

I also dealt with a hip injury immediately after the USA 1/2 marathon in March. It was a process and a half to get my hip back to normal so I could run pain free. My friends and Cameron can totally tell you I had my days of being a depressed brat, but I did put my energy into strength training the heck out of my hips. When injuries happen, the best thing to do is learn from them, strengthen the weak areas and train smarter. I’ll take my 2013 injury as a positive, because I’m a much happier, healthier runner than i’ve ever been and my stats are reflecting it. yay!

Every year I write down a goals list to set out and accomplish, instead of just a New Year’s Resolution. Everyone does this, I know, but I toss in random easy goals because I like crossing things off a list and it keeps the list encouraging and fun. The list is also posted right by our door so i see it multiple times a day.

I still have a few I could finish before the end of the year, but whatever doesn’t get completed just rolls over onto next year’s list. I like having a variety of goals on my list that way i don’t take myself too seriously and have fun. The list has also come in handy on days where there’s nothing to do.  We would go to the list and pick out a goal just to get us out of the house. Usually this would be a place to visit or eat, but hey–how many times do you drive past a place and say, “we should eat there one day, we should totally go there!” Write it down and make it a goal 🙂

Goal #5, Santa Monica with my Mom last January

I’m going to get working on my 2014 goal list and I’ll share it with you soon. I hope this changes your idea of “New Year’s Resolutions” or as everyone knows it as,  the goal that no one keeps past the first week of January. Make a big ol’ list of goals, all different kinds, big/small, easy and hard and fun, running and non-running related and give yourself the full year to accomplish as much as you can.

The winner of the shirt giveaway is… Sarah! Congrats and send me an email @ iroc815@yahoo.com

What goals did you accomplish this year?