Week 3 Update - 2,982 Miles

After 3 weeks of mileage, we are now 168 miles into our journey. This brings us very near to the California / Nevada border. Hopefully we can make it to Vegas by next Monday! 

Packing for a Relay

Sounds intimidating, right? It definitely can be. But there is an art to it, and a few helpful tips that I will share to make it easier.

If you've never done a relay before, that aspect can be challenging in and of itself. Then you have to figure out what to take with you, and what you are going to need when you are running 3 times in 24 hours, sleeping in the car or on a gymnasium floor, and eating out of a cooler tied to the back of a van.

I just completed my 9th relay this past weekend, and thought that packing might be a good topic to share. This relay was different from all the others that I have done, though. My first 8 relays were Ragnar Relays, and this one is a Red Rock Relay. All of my Ragnars have been completed as part of a "regular", or 12 person team. For this Red Rock Relay in Zion, we will be participating as an Ultra team, meaning we only have 6 runners and will cover the same distance as the 12 person teams. More on that in another post after the relay, though. Back to packing!

I start making a list of the things I want to be sure to pack about a week to two weeks in advance. Having a complete list before I start shoving gear in my bag helps me make sure I don't forget anything, and also that I don't over pack. I put everything on this list. EVERYTHING. Even my running shoes.

A few things that may not be so obvious when you think about running, but may want to include in your bag:

• Baby Wipes (amazing what these can do in the absence of running water)
• Body Glide 
• Ear plugs
• Roll on Icy-Hot (this way you get the benefits of the Icy Hot, but don't have to worry about washing your hands immediately after application)
• Single Use Cold compresses - the kind you break to activate
• Cash - much of the food that is available at relays is through fundraisers, and it's best to have cash

One final tip that makes a huge difference is to put your running clothing and whatever you will need for each specific leg into a gallon size Ziploc bag and label it for each run. That way, if you are short on time, tired, or it's dark, you will be able to quickly grab exactly what you need without any trouble. 

After you are finished with a run, these bags also come in handy when you can drop your sweaty and stinky clothes right back into the bag, seal it up, and not subject your teammates to your festering running gear for the remainder of the relay. I also stick a couple of dryer sheets in my bag just to help keep any odors at bay.

Check back soon for a post about the relay I ran this past weekend! It was pretty epic!

Week 2 Update - 2,982 Miles

This week the four of us logged another 66.25 miles, bringing our total distance covered to about 119 miles. And officially taking us into the middle of nowhere, CA. We should be to Vegas in two weeks!

Week 1 Update - 2,982 Miles

After our first week, we completed 53.5 miles of our journey! That puts us almost to Barstow. Bring on Week 2! 

Why Stop Now? A Pregnant Runner's Journey

As you all know, running is my life. If you read this you've grasped that about me. As I sit here writing this, I am on the beach and watching my husband fish - one last trip as a two person family before Sweet P arrives. The point of this little narration is to give you an insight into my journey of running pregnant. I still cannot believe our little miracle will be arriving in 6 weeks.

I'm a pretty petite person; this is not me bragging just a statement of fact.  I hardly reach 5' 1" and stay pretty thin.  Probably because my lifestyle keeps me moving. I say this to tell you that giving my body to this sweet little babe has been hard for me to grasp. Not that every ounce isn't worth it because I wouldn't have it any other way, but to feel the weight literally slowing you down is an intriguing change to go through. I want you to know that these feelings are normal. It's true, most pregnant women feel a bit upset about the weight gain. Eating healthy and regular exercise is still going to be beneficial once your holding the baby in your arms.

Now...On to my point. I have continued to running from day one of finding out I was pregnant. My doctors have encouraged it. Though my husband says he thinks I should stop, he never really means it. In my first and second trimester I was running up to half marathon distances on the weekends. In fact I completed a Ragnar Trail race, and three offical half marathons. The first trimester pace began to slow, but nothing to be terribly upset over. As I began to show more and as summer came on fully the change in my pace really began to happen. My body also really started to feel the weight in my knees and my lower back. As a child I was diagnosed with asthma, so this began to be a concern I had to actually monitor closely. Entering into my third trimester the true change occurred; finding that I couldn't continually run and transitioning to a run/walk. We would run for three minutes and walk for one. It realistically is what kept me running. As I finish up this post, there are 5 weeks, 5 days left until my due date and my running has ceased entirely. Walking is now the name of my game. There was too much pain on my spine, which I can only assume is from the weight and the curving. Due to time constraints I have spilt my walks up throughout the day.  As my good friend told me "miles are miles." Most mornings I wake up and head to the gym EARLY, and do 2.5 miles, along with a light weight routine. Every day at work I take a 20 minute break and go for 1.5 mile walk and a few days a week when I take my nephew to his cross country practice, my sister (a new runner) and I will walk 2 miles. This division of my walks helps with keeping me from getting stiff and sore from sitting at my desk, in the car to and from work, on the couch at night and sleeping.

The intended purpose of this post is is to encourage pregnant runners, as long as you're not experiencing pain or problems and your doctors say it is OK to continue, is to keep going. Slow down when necessary and walk when needed.  Know that slowing down is not anything to worry about. Stay active. The benefits of a fit pregnancy will prove itself when all is said and done. The main benefit is you will stay healthy and so will the precious cargo you are carrying.

And finally ... Introducing Kristen

I have a confession.  Here, come closer and I'll tell you what it is.  Ready?

I am not a runner.

Now before you start to get all motivational on me and object with the, "If you run, then you are a runner" speech, let me clarify something.  

I'm ok with not being a runner.

I mean, running is ok - and don't get me wrong... I can certainly get pumped and engage in busting embarrassing- but- I- don't- care- dance moves when a good beat comes through my ear buds over the Pandora Katy Perry station.  But you guys, I am an exerciser.  Really what that means, is that in all my life of getting exercise through organized sports teams (mainly volleyball and softball), life these days has really put a limit on what is available to me for exercise.  I mean, is it just me, or are organized sports for adults harder to come by than it was in high school and college?  And sure, there's the membership fee you can pay to join a gym (which I've done), but in reality, when it comes to responsibly budgeting a family of four on one income, sometimes I'd rather buy a cute  babyGap outfit and find an alternative to exercise than paying the monthly membership to the gym (so sue me!).

Enter Linsey in 2010.  It was her and her Ragnar idea that sparked my interest running in the first place (because remember?  I had always chosen the most minimal run intensive team sports of volleyball and softball in the past).  I needed a goal to bounce back after having my first baby, and since Ragnar was 5 months away at that time, it became the perfect opportunity to train for and motivate myself.  No expensive gyms or organized sports teams needed.  Just a pair of running shoes and the right sports bra for this nursing mom (more on that later!)  Sure, I run the easiest legs of the relay, and yes - I'm appreciative that as team captain, Linsey graciously hasn't kicked me off the team yet for my under achieving goals of to simply being able to run (as opposed to walk) my 3 or 4 mile legs.  But running gives me the exercise that empowers me to be a better wife, mom, friend, and all around person.  And along the way, I've picked up some fun friends- as well as brought some old ones along.  

Let's Talk About Toenails

I was going to start this post with a picture of a gnarly toenail or something, but when I googled to find an image, I about lost my lunch. So we'll just go with this.

I have now considered myself to be a runner for about 5 years. In that time, I have never lost a toenail, knock on wood. I attribute that to the fact that my best friend and fellow Sweat Sister, Ami, took me to a local running store for my first pair of legitimate running shoes, and right from the get-go, I was wearing shoes that fit me properly. As a side note, if you haven't done that before, I highly recommend it. I'm sure I'll come back to shoes in a later post as well. 

Fast forward to this past Sunday when I was running down Big Cottonwood Canyon and I had a weird pain in a couple of my toes on my left foot starting around mile 6. I chalked it up to running on the sloping shoulder of the canyon road, and tried to relax and run closer to the white line when I could. I finished out the full 10 miles, and went home to stretch and shower. As I was getting in the shower, I peeled off my sock and saw blood. Crap. Not a lot, but enough to make me wonder what had happened. Apparently, I have been neglecting toenail maintenance in the last week or so, because I had one toenail that was just a smidgen too long and a little pointy on the corner, and had been piercing a small hole in the toe next to it during my entire run. Swell. To update you on the status of my injured toe, it's already healed and no longer causing me pain, but I immediately sat down and lopped off all my toenails right then and there. 

I have always kept my toenails pretty short for several reasons, but this just adds one more to the list. Not only do I not want them bashing into the front of my running shoes, or to be the weird lady with the freakishly long toenails, but I don't need them to slice open their neighboring piggies either. So the moral of this story is to keep your toenails a reasonable length, and make sure you don't have any sharp corners on them either. Happy running!