Queens Half..almost almost broke me.

Why do I do this to myself?! I ran a half marathon on the hottest day of the year and on the craziest course!

Let's start with how scared I was to do this half. I have to say, I was more scared then I was for my first Marathon last year. I got up at 4:30 Saturday morning, wiping the sleepiness out of my eyes. I turned on the TV to see what the weather was....I thought to myself maybe the weather dropped like 15 degrees overnight. It did rain, right? That would have been heaven. The outcome...uhmmm yeah a whopping 83 degrees. I had to make sure I wasn't seeing things, but I wasn't. It was 83 and it was only going to get hotter!
As Blondie and I walked to meet Vane, I was getting more and more nervous. I thought to myself - "Will I walk? Can I even run in this heat?" All these questions were coming at me and then I stopped and thought - it's mind over matter. No matter what, I have to go into this run knowing it will be hard, but I can do this. I know I can. I am stronger then I think I am. As we meet Vane we noticed her OCD self was out of wack…The girl did not wake up two hours before to eat her bagel, so she too was a hot mess. This is not good, as she is the one that keeps our group calm and collected. This time that was not the case. The drive to Queens was filled with laughter and fears and maybe some tears. As we got to the course we found our coach, Skinny Vinny, who told us to tack on at least 15 minutes to our normal time. It was way too hot to try to be a hero on Saturday.

Now the course... I must say, it SUCKED. There is no other way to say it. See the attached picture so you can understand. Anyway, I stuck with Vane as we ran these 13.1 miles in some of the worst weather conditions ever.

Lets move to the positive sides of the race. There are not many so we will do those first:
1. Sprinklers at every other mile were my salvation. There was a point when I stood there and just let the water fall on me.
2. So many HOT men!! Funny enough, usually when I see a hot guy, I am rather shy (shocking I know), but on Saturday I was engaging in a lot of yelling, whistling and shouting. Listen, before you go ahead and judge me, it was super hot that day and I needed something to get me through that run. Plus what man does not enjoy a little cheering to get him through that run especially. :)

3. NO WALKING!! We did not walk. WHOOT WHOOT! That was a major accomplishment.
4. I finished the run, which was my goal for this race.

Yes, I think that was it on the positives of the race. Now we shall move on to the negatives:
1. I chaffed between mile 1 and 3!! Man did I ever! I had applied so much body glide on my body, but it was so hot and I kept getting soaked with water. I somehow managed to lower my shorts to where I was able to run the last 10.1 miles.
2. No PR, but I am ok with this as I know sometimes you cannot beat the elements.
3. Did I mention the course sucked?
4. Had some pain in my hamstring.

All in all I ran the race. I didn't run it but I ran it. I completed another half marathon on the hottest day of the year, but I did it! I could have easily said no way I am not going and stayed in my nice, cold bedroom, but I didn't. There was only a little over 4000 runners which is not a lot for a half marathon. I congratulate everyone who crossed that finish line, whether you walked or ran. You are still a great runner for coming out in the heat and completing 13.1 miles.


After that, we went to a local diner in Queens and I enjoyed a nice, cold, chocolate milkshake. The best recovery drink ever.

I want to give a shout out to my girls Vane and Blondie. I really don't know what I would do without those two in my life. We go through so much together and that's what makes it so much fun and better to deal with. Thank you for being there for me when I needed you the most and to be that shoulder I cry on, lean on and sometimes pull on.

One last thing last night I recieved my New York Running Magazine and guess who made it twice? Yes, me along with Blondie and Vane. I guess you can say we are the new unoffical faces of TKF check it out!


Till the next run.

Happy Running.

Yep, its still hot!!

Man has it been hot these last couple of days in New York City. We are experiencing one of the worst heat spells and it does not seem to be letting up at all. This is not a good thing especially since I will be taking part in the Queens Half this Saturday (7/24). Have I told you guys how much I dislike running in the heat? I must have because I think about it all the time so I figure I must be blogging about it too..lol.


This Saturday goal is to keep my PR of 2:14 or better. My only concern is this darn heat! On the positive side we will be starting at 7:00 a.m. and I am excited and lucky because Coach Skinny Vinny will also be running the half so we will get a great stretch before and after the run.

There has been so much that has been going on these last couple of weeks. Let me give you a quick recap:
World Cup has ended (insert sad face), Spain beat the Netherlands...which I still don't understand how that happened but, oh well, such is life. My favorite moment is still when my dream team of Germany beat, slaughtered Argentina 4 to 0 (insert Happy Go Lucky Face)


World Cup 2014 fund has started!! I along with other die hard fans have started a saving fund. We started with $25 dollars a week. We figure (by we I mean Vane and I) that we need to save around $5,000 to attend a two week session of the world cup. The problem now is trying to figure out which two weeks we can attend. If only we can go for the whole month...auhh to wishful thinking.

I had my first trip to the Catskills. The weekend of the 23rd I, along with Blondie, Vane, Mattie, Ren and Kelsey, went to Ren's house and I have to tell you...it was amazing. I had never been up there and it was unbelievable. There was no humidity, it was quiet and Ren's parents are amazing. We went for a nice, but hard 5.1 mile run while we were up there and then jumped into the lake which was amazing!! The rest of the weekend consisted of putting together Ren's grill which was done by Blondie and Mattie (we later cooked Alaskan Salmon YUMS), napping in a hammock and tubing for the first time. This was awesome. I even have the bruises to prove how awesome I was. My favorite part of the weekend had to be Ren's mom making her famous Blueberry pancakes...man do they live up to the hype.


Now its back to training and I mean hard. Our mileage is going up for sure and with this heat I really need to buckle down and get my act together. I need to start doing more cross training....I have been saying that for about a month now...maybe putting myself on full blast will push me to make it happen.



Last but not least I found the 53 Runner's Commandments by Joe Kelly, check them out..
1. Don’t be a whiner. Nobody likes a whiner, not even other whiners.
2. Walking out the door is often the toughest part of a run.
3. Don’t make running your life. Make it part of your life.
4. During group training runs, don’t let anyone run alone.
5. Keep promises, especially ones made to yourself.
6. When doing group runs, start on time no matter who’s missing.
7. The faster you are the less you should talk about your times.
8. Keep a quarter in your pocket. One day you’ll need to call for a ride.
9. Don’t compare yourself to other runners.
10. All runners are equal, some are just faster than others.
11. Keep in mind that the later in the day it gets, the more likely it is that you won’t run.
12. For a change of pace, get driven out and then run back.
13. If it was easy, everybody would be a runner.
14. When standing in starting lines, remind yourself how fortunate you are to be there.
15. Getting out of shape is much easier than getting into shape.
16. A bad day of running still beats a good day at work.
17. Talk like a runner. “Singlets” are worn on warm days. “Tank tops” are worn to the beach.
18. Don’t talk about your running injuries. People don’t want to hear about your sore knee or black toe.
19. Don’t always run alone.
20. Don’t always run with people.
21. Approach running as if the quality of your life depended on it.
22. No matter how slow you run it is still faster than someone sitting on a couch.
23. Keep in mind that the harder you run during training, the luckier you’ll get during racing.
24. Races aren’t just for those who can run fast.
25. There are no shortcuts to running excellence.
26. The best runs sometimes come on days when you didn’t feel like running.
27. Be modest after a race, especially if you have reason to brag.
28. If you say, “Let’s run this race together,” then you must stay with that person no matter how slow.
29. Think twice before agreeing to run with someone during a race.
30. There is nothing boring about running. There are, however, boring people who run.
31. Look at hills as opportunities to pass people.
32. Distance running is like cod liver oil. At first it makes you feel awful, then it makes you feel better.
33. Never throw away the instructions to your running watch.
34. Don’t try to outrun dogs.
35. Don’t trust runners who show up at races claiming to be tired, out of shape, or not feeling well.
36. Don’t wait for perfect weather. If you do, you won’t run very often.
37. When tempted to stop being a runner, make a list of the reasons you started.
38. Never run alongside very old or very young racers. They get all of the applause.
39. Without goals, training has no purpose.
40. During training runs, let the slowest runner in the group set the pace.
41. The first year in a new age group offers the best opportunity for trophies.
42. Go for broke, but be prepared to be broken.
43. Spend more time running on the roads than sitting on the couch.
44. Make progress in your training, but progress at your own rate.
45. “Winning” means different things to different people.
46. Unless you make your living as a runner, don’t take running too seriously.
47. Runners who never fail are runners who never try anything great.
48. Never tell a runner that he or she doesn’t look good in tights.
49. Never confuse the Ben-Gay tube with the toothpaste tube.
50. Never apologize for doing the best you can.
51. Preventing running injuries is easier than curing them.
52. Running is simple. Don’t make it complicated.
53. Running is always enjoyable. Sometimes, though, the joy doesn’t come until the end of the run!

10 Miles....no, no just 9 (pancakes still were needed) :)

This past weekend our TFK team (DONATE DONATE DONATE http://www.runwithtfk.org/Member/PublicPage/74) went up to Van Cortland park in the Bronx. I remember this run from last year and it was amazing. Thinking back I was so excited about the run, the hills were tough but it was such a great run and its a lot of fun to get out of the Central Park every now and again. We arrived via Blondie's chariot the train ride alone is reason not to make the trip out there but after each run we get Carrot Cake so totally makes it worth the trip.

Yummy right?

Any who we arrived just in time with Vane, LD and Mags we warmed up and split up into our groups. Vane, Mags and I were in the 9:30 to 10:30 group and Blondie and LD went to the 8:30 group (yes, they are a lot faster).

As we started Mags, Vane and I felt great. It was super humid and as we started off on the back trails I felt the sweat in places I didn't think I could sweat. But I was prepared and ready to go. I think that I start to block out bad memories because man were those hills a lot harder than I thought. The hills were a total of 3.1 miles long and these were a lot harder this time around. I have to remember that I do NOT like running in this heat. It wears me down both physically and mentally on this past run I kept telling myself "you can do this keep going". Which I did, I did it at my own pace it was so humid that I didn't want to push it so hard I would pass out...ok that might be a little dramatic..lol. Once the hills were done we had another 6 miles to go but this was on flat land and I was looking forward to that as we ran to get some water our coaches said not to do 10 miles only 8 it was too hot. i thought to myself "they are right, but lets see what my body can do".
I ran and I was feeling good when I got to the where Coach B was I took my GU and asked him if I should keep going, he said "do what your body tells you, do 9". So I did I ran a to the 9 mile marker and I was feeling great. I had a bottle of water in my hand which I kept throwing on my head and chest to keep cool. As I turned around running alone it was nice. Although I love running with Vane sometimes it nice to run alone and take it all in. I paid close attention to my body, breathing and form which I have realized I have the marathon shuffle..workin on it workin on it. This is what I see when I run in Van Cortland

Let me know if you ever want to run up there..happy to take any virgin's :)...lol.

As I was running I saw Coach Sid, who told me that my partner in crime got hurt...she is suppose to update her blog so make sure you bug her so she will send her a note @ http://vanerunsnyc.blogspot.com/

Till next time..or a funny life experience happens...keep it moving.
<3 MM

Holy Canolie is it HOT!

Guys its been so super hot outside and I just don't want to run. Who would? Only the crazy nuts that do not realize its CRAZY to run in this weather. As I see people running in this heat, all I can remember is last year's NYC Half Marathon, and if you read my blog, you know it was a killer. This heat is brutal but I have to put on my big girl panties and get it done. I will be running with my team tonight and doing speed workouts (insert crabby face). I know I have to, especially if I want to hit my target time for the NYC Marathon this November. I really need to get it together and work it out. With that said, I think this posting says it best.


I also have the Queens half marathon coming up and as my lovely sotto coach Vane reminded me yesterday, we have not run more than 5 miles. Yes, that is a huge problem. A half marathon is 13.1 miles so just doing 5 miles is kind of a road block in my training. And I really want to either keep my BK half time of 2:14 (So proud of my PR, once again Gracias Vane) or beat it by at least a couple of minutes.

It has been a record heat here in NYC and with everything going on, I have a lot on my plate and on my mind (lol) with that being said life keeps moving along. Time does not stop for anyone. I, along with Blondie and Vane, went to visit Nortie in Bmore this past 4th of July weekend and her Birthday Happy Bday Nortie. Being there made us all open up our eyes to what we really want out of life. I think I realized that as much as I love NYC, I don't think I want to be here forever. I know... Shocking, but it is true. I am not sure where I will be going or when, but I have realized that a change needs to be made. With that being said, I am doing a lot of soul searching and trying to find out what I love, or at least something I like, and also locations. Here is what is at the top of my list and in no particular order:
B-More
Dallas
San Fran, still need to visit to confirm so this is a MAYBE
Spain
ATL, man this might be heaven for me...maybe I can find Slim or Q from 112 and one of them can finally fall in love with me and sing in my ear all night...lol wishful thinking.

Places I would not go, also in no particular order:
L.A
Florida - Only because of the weather. Otherwise it's perfect and is home to the greatest football team EVER! Go Miami Dolphins!! :)
Houston


This weekend is the last weekend of World Cup and it's a little sad. Our crew will be getting together to watch the championship on Sunday and then I will be putting my drinking cup away. This last month has been a killer on my liver.

With love in running,
MM

Picture from BK Half

Here we are Vane and I running the BK half...when I hit my PR!!

THANK YOU VANE!!! ;)

Rock it out!! :)