Spring 2k15 racing season has come to a successful close with a decent full, a decent 50k and my first 100k – I feel pretty good about how it all turned out.
Today was the first training session in pursuit of BQ.
It was good. I did 16 – 200 meter sprints (and 16 jog backs).
The goal was 72 seconds per sprint. I averaged around a minute and change with my best time 47 seconds (6 min/mile) and my worst 1:07 (closer to 8.5).
I finished strong with .55 after 12 at or slight above one minute (6 at sub 60).
Eventually Joey will teach me how to do pace cycles and that will be the key in Oct in NY. He said we’re not ready for that yet though, we’re getting a feel for my speed capability – and who knows when Ive been all about the ultra for a few years now.
I am confident that if qualifying for Boston is a possibility for me, I’m going to do it w this guy training me – and not because he’s cute – because he doesn’t mess around (I only told him a hate him once or twice).
If youre looking for a trainer and live in the NoVA area, this guy is the bomb.
GREAT session!!!
Weekly training =
1 hr spin X 3
1 hr personal trainer (whatever he tells me to do)
On the off days – do whatever I want to include walk, jog, weights, core and bike for anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes or up to a few hrs if I have the time for the trail.
Hope everyone’s doing awesome.
Xo – be well,
~K
Tag: ultra (Page 2 of 2)
I have no idea why I registered for the Diva race in Sept – impulsivity I guess. Everything about [the race] annoys me and/or does not appeal to me. I don’t want to wear a tutu or a tiara. Not that Ive never pretended to be a girly-girl, but that is not who I am and not the sort of crowd I even want to be around.
I guess if someone were doing it w me I could enjoy it w that person, but, I don’t think I will enjoy the experience. Honestly, I don’t really see myself doing any street races anymore. Something will really have to twist my arm to compel me to run a non-trail race again.
I just want to be on the trail – yes, the place where I cut my knee open – its where I am happy.
I want to be around people like the BadToTheBone and NorthFace and AthleticEquation crowds.
Theyre my kind of people.
So – I just registered for the AE 12-Hour Race in Sept (the week after the Diva that I likely wont do) *does anyone see a pattern here ie not doing Zooma the week before NF 😉
And yes, I plan to do the AE 24 Hour again next Spring.
Beyond that, I get my stitches out tomorrow – and I’m gonna fix the tires on my bike and start riding in addition to strength/core, that’s how I plan to spend my summer. See you in Sept along the Quantico River 😀
First, I am neither a scientist nor a medical professional. I will mess up terminology and my theories will be unfounded & nonsensical perhaps.
I also am not passing judgment on anyone else or suggesting what anyone else should do in any situation – as we are all individuals and each situation is unique. And for the record not only did I get a morphine drip for a second yesterday, they also tried to get me to take Percocet and wrote me an Rx for Vicodin (I didn’t take the pills and didn’t fill the script – but I did have a glass of wine when I got home).
Now that that is out of the way lets talk about me and pain medication and what not.
Some of you know that I suffered a traumatic head injury about 15 yrs ago. This has caused my natural pain-gauge to go off kilter and I find it difficult to provide accurate measurements to what I’m experiencing at times. This can be useful and a bit of a curse, depending on how you look at it.
I have a notion that I’m just going to throw out there. I don’t think pain medications work on me – at all – period. Like I am mostly immune to them, if that is a thing.
Twelve yrs ago when I was having my second son (post tbi) I don’t think the epidural worked. I ended up with some permanent numbness (in my legs) but that is the only thing I can tell you that epidural did to me. It was the only sensation I was aware of.
I usually refuse pain meds, not because I am cool or tough, I have my own reasons that are personal and about me and no one else – but yesterday they gave me a morphine drip prior to cleaning out the wound. It made my arm itch like crazy – but as soon as I realized what was going on, I unplugged the syringe that had the dope in it. I don’t know how much of it got in me – but I know it had zero affect on my leg (I did start to giggle and the room got very bright & blurry for a few mins).
THEN the doctor started shooting lidocaine directly into the open wound and under the flaps of skin. Not only did I feel every injection, I then felt EVERTHING she did to me. I watched the whole time and it was not in my head, I did not imagine it. I felt when she cut my skin off, I felt when she scraped the rocks out, I felt when she flushed and scrubbed and I felt the needle and thread going in and out. Not the nudge of it, the very stinging, burning sensation of it. I was screaming like a maniac and my poor husband said, “She doesn’t cry like that it hurts her”.
She told me to look away and that it was ‘impossible’ for me to ‘metabolize to the drugs’ [and feel the pain].
What she doesn’t know is that my brain works different. I BELIEVE that the way opiates work are by hindering or obstructing a signal in your brain that tells you youre in pain and that somewhere among what I imagine to be a spider web or highway of connections in my brain that carries those signals, there is a road block.
In the same way that I have complete numbness in some parts of my body, and an inability to experience pain at other times, narcotics just don’t work for me.
When the impact occurred many years ago, leaving my skull fractured and me in a coma, it shook things up and left the ‘synapse roadmap’ askew in my head, and for that reason, the little neurons or electrons or whatever the fuck they are, don’t make it to their intended destination.
That is my theory. So yeah, by all means, if you get a tooth extracted or strain your back or whatever and the medication does its job and provides you with relief, good, that’s what it is supposed to do but for me, it just doesn’t work – and I don’t like feeling loopy in my head, especially when it doesn’t take the pain away any how.
So please, if you made it this far in my silly little post, pray that my cut heals and does not get infected – because I don’t want them to have to open it up and reclose it. ((unless it is a lesson for me to experience the pain to be more sensitive to others who have pain))
Thank you – be well,
Luv K
If you didn’t read it on my facebook page, I have accessory bones and that means, excessive trauma (like an ultra) can cause sprain-like condition. This would make certain post-race injuries make more sense looking back, but it isn’t consistent as Ive done plenty of ultras and marathons w no injury.
Now that I know my ankle is neither broken nor sprained, I really want to do the rest of my races for the year. I know that I would have kept running for 7 more hours if my feet/ankles didn’t hurt so bad and I don’t know if it will happen again, particularly the half next weekend.
Honestly, even if Im all healed, my toenails are terribly bruised and falling off. Its very sore.
In all likelihood, I won’t do the Annapolis Half, but I’m very fond of North Face Endurance and want to do something there. Maybe I’ll down grade to a shorter distance.
Well lets face it. I wont be ready for another 50 Miler so soon after the last one. So I want to do either 50k or a ½. Why? Why not consider a full?
Because a full is a lot of work and a 50k isn’t that much more – so, if Im feeling like I can put the time in, Im doing a 50k, if not, I think I can do a half. I’ll have to decide soon.
Anyone want my Annapolis Half bib??
It was hard to wrap 17+ hrs up in one little blog post. I skipped a ton of stuff that I will try to capture/highlight here, if only for myself. It was also pointed out to me how convoluted my previous post was – haha – Im not going to go back and fix it tho, it is just where my head was – after no sleep for three days and a little bit of pain killers (well RX anti-inflammatory that probably expired four yrs ago but whatevs).
The race story really starts Friday night just after the pre-race dinner/meeting. I called my friend, Harmony who didn’t live too far from the course and we were to meet up and spend a little time together. But I had little to no cell coverage and could hardly call, text or use gps. I started to have a full-on breakdown. I screamed, I cried, I was lost, I felt like everything was caving in on me. This was: taper + biggest race ever + Ive been sick and still don’t know why + where am I + Im starving + I have no technology to help me – all wrapped up in one. She was so sweet, so patient. A long while later we were finally connected. She took me to REI and helped me find what I needed then treated me to a fantastic dinner and gave me a beautiful sparkly bracelet that said BELIEVE. I really don’t know how much better of a friend she could have been to me in that moment.
Now we skip to the part where my husband drives 2 hrs in the middle of the night, just to get no sleep at all w me then drive back home at the crack of dawn to take on two kids and a basketball tournament….
*Now back to the race*
I talked previously about the moment of deciding if I could go any further and then the last bits (9 hrs) and the people who helped me – but I didn’t say much about the first 8 hours which I spent with two amazing people who I couldn’t have done it without – Rachel and Cori. We bonded and chatted and devised plans and methodologies on various parts of the course ie where to run and where to walk and where to turn….reminding each other to drink etc. It was a lollipop course that you could choose to run in either direction. Different people chose different directions for different reasons. It came down to choosing between steeper inclines for longer stretches of downward motion verses short steep inclines and longer upwards with a gradual slope. After trying both the three of us agreed we preferred to tough out short steep inclines as the declines we more painful in the extreme, and conversely, we could literally run super fast on the long downs. Either way, there were narrow rocky parts that were unrunable regardless.
I hope to find their contact info because we lost touch in the second half (they kept going when I took my icing-the-ankle-break). I do know that Rachel finished 8 loops and Cori finished 7.
Some highlights overall include:
– Again, the food & support crew
– There was a waterfall, and whenever I heard it up in the distance, it was a signal to me that the final turn was just ahead
– Even though the bridge caused an optical illusion that made us all dizzy, it was really pretty
– There were REAL bathrooms, it was quite a treat
– The sound of the water all around us was soothing
– The stars were so bright through the trees
– None of the animals attacked us 😉 they just provided ambiance
– Every person I met and encountered was helpful and kind and it was very cool to watch everyone helping each other in ways big and small
– A few of us saw a bridge washed away by the storm during Lap 1 and stopped to fix it – we all worked together as a team, it was very motivating and positive
And finally:
– We logged over 200 miles and $2,000 for Jodi 😉
Overall it was a non-stop myriad of blessings and pleasant surprises. So much goodness in people and nature. An experience I wouldn’t trade for anything and look forward to doing again!!!
Let me start by saying 17 hours and 11 minutes later, I am sure that was the best racing experience of my life. Having accomplished 50 miles previously in less than 12 hours on a fairly technical course, you can imagine how technical this course was to have taken me that long.
After the 6th lap I was at about the time I’d finished JFK, I had another 2 laps to go to get to 50, and although still on track for accomplishing 100k w time to spare, it was very much not a priority as much as a fleeting idea or matter of fact that I was completely ready to ignoring entirely.
I made a lot of promises to people who care about me and matter to me, and most of all to myself about listening to my body and just enjoying the experience – nothing more.
First of all – the folks at Athletic Equation put on a second to none organized event with the best support crew and food I have ever experienced – with round the clock cooks providing a terrific spread to a support staff that knows you and takes care of you every minutes. I had nothing to worry about. I cant say enough about all of them.
At the pre-race dinner-meeting a lady got up and told a story. I couldn’t hold back the tears. You know I went into this having been sick for many weeks with three different doctors having no idea why – and subsequently being insufficiently trained to say the least. And her words touched me deep to my core, they were just what I needed to hear and they reaffirmed that I’d made the right decision showing up despite all of the suggestion that I shouldn’t. This lady understood – I hoped we’d get a chance to talk, and little did I know, we would…
So I had no big expectations. I was happy just to be there. From minute I arrived it was a great experience (minus the camping which just isn’t my cup of tea). I knew the area and had enjoyed the trail on a few recent occasions, and was happy to just walk it. I got NO sleep the night before (note the camping comment) and ended up calling my poor husband at 11pm and begging him to drive two hrs and come lay w me to help me try to rest. He did show up which is so nice but needless to say we were both too uncomfortable to sleep. Lesson learned – next year (YES I PLAN TO DO IT AGAIN) , I’ll stay in the bunk dorm not a private cabin – OR a nearby hotel.
Anyways, up at the crack of dawn welcomed by a nice breakfast but no appetite. This [state of no desire to eat] maintains for the next 20 hours – I don’t want to eat anything and if you know me, you know that I normally have an INSATIABLE appetite all day every day. But nothing appealed to me (not that it didn’t look and taste and smell great and I just had no urge to eat anything. I think my focus was mostly on drinking enough, but for some reason I can never really judge my intake on my own.
This is a good time to start talking about the importance of a crew. I remember in my first ultra (50k) I’d separated from my team and was in such a groove I had no desire to do anything but run – I felt great and ran past aid stations w out even stopping – although achieving a PR that has never been even close to broken – I became severely dehydrated and could have killed myself (but felt great ).
Then in my first 50 Miler Steve kept bringing me food all day – then in the last 15 or so miles, I had zero sense of anything – pain, distance, time, depth perception – and of course thirst and hunger – My trainer just kept asking me questions and telling me what to eat and drink.
Last night was very much like this. The crew would check my bag and tell me what I need and I just listened (well mostly I did).
Around 50k Jean showed up. She brought me a gluten free pizza (which ultimately was one of the only things I would eat the whole time) and the most mouth watering brownies I have ever eaten that she fixed for me.
She also brought me things I’d never even thought of like a reflective belt, extra batteries, a hand-held flashlight (that was very bright and ended up being my main light source rather than the headlamp) and so much more. She took over the role of monitoring my intake and telling me what to do and I tried to listen. ((she also joined the race crew and helped many other people))
At first I told her “Sorry you came all this way but I’m done, my race is over”. After 30 miles of running strong and happy and painfree (averaging a sub 2 hr loop each time), I’d landed wrong on a rock and twisted my ankle badly. She took off my shoe and iced me and started talking to me.
She asked me where my ‘enjoyment level’ was – she got me to really look at what I was doing and why and how did I feel.
We decided to do a loop together and take it one step at a time and reevaluate after. But first, we iced it and wrapped it and did a little stretching.
The loop went well – not even much slower than the last 5. More importantly, we ran into Felecia, the girl who spoke the night before. The three of us became an item 😉
For the first several hours of the race Felicia was in the top 10, and on the road to at least 100k if not 75, with time to spare. But she’d just landed wrong like I did, and aggravated her IT band, and if you check out her blog I posted on my page, you’ll see that she has too much planned to risk anything now.
So there we both were – reassessing what we were shooting for and why, moment by moment, evaluating risk and deciding accordingly. We both felt like we could go again and we did – slowly. We talked and talked!
The moon was a sliver and the stars were twinkling high above the towering treetops in the cool spring night air. The sound of the water ever in the background like white noise. Animals were shifting around in the leaves in the dark. We saw everything from snakes to moles and lizards – and well, my peripherals played tricks on me and made tree stumps look like black bears.
For lap 8 Charlie showed up. We really couldn’t have done this lap w out him. This was 8 for me and 9 for Felecia. The track had gone through a lot w/ all the crazy recent storms we just had and even knocked out bridges and creating a few hazards and spots that you literally had to leap over to get by. At this point when we reached rocks and slopes that we’d previously sailed through, Charlie stood and gave us a hand one by one as we came around the loop one last time in roughly three and a half hours – more than twice as long as it took earlier in the morning.
When the clock struck 12 we all cheered in the night. We’d made it to the next day. We discussed it and agreed that neither of us felt the need to go any further and that we were pleased with what we had done. We knew people would say “But Felecia, only one more loop to 100k” and “Kirsten, you have two more in you” – and we both knew those things were true, but it didn’t matter, we were happy and at peace w our decision to cross the lap finish one more time and no more. We will use prudence, she said. And we agreed.
I was happy the whole time. No regrets, no stress – just happy – even when I had pain at the very end. Thats just it – you’ll need bravery, tenacity, loyalty, strength – you’ll need so many things – then mix in PRUDENCE, and proceed.
And when we got back to my cabin to clean and pack, I found a beautiful big banner decorated by Jean with loving messages all over it. All I could do was cry joyfully.
I have a half at the end of the month and another 50 miler one month away, neither of which I currently think are going to happen and I’m ok with that. I’m very much ok with everything turning out however it is supposed to – almost Zen-like peace – and I don’t even need to know or plan – I can just BE.
Psalm 46:10
In response to some twitter posts recently, let me start by saying I do what works for me and feels right. You have to do what works for you as well. I hope that the successes and failures I share will help you, but by no means do I think there is one way to do things that will work for everyone. We all have to do our own thing.
People often ask about what is the big differentiation in terms of training for an ultra, rather than a marathon. There are a few things I had to learn, to include bricking, pacing-down and ‘learning to walk’, but today I’ll start with nutrition. If youre running for 8 or more hours, you’re going to have to consume more than just a sports drink or energy gel to keep going.
While you are doing your long training runs (and hopefully you’re doing back-to-back longs, but not more than 20 miles imo) – bring food. Try one thing at a time, so you can test how you will react to it. This doesn’t mean that you’ll react the exact same way every time, or that the same things will always appeal to you – every run can be different – but just try one thing at a time.
Aid stations are going to have things like fruit, cookies, crackers and chips etc. Since I am gluten free, I can not always indulge in what is being provided. So I have to bring my own stuff, by way of drop bags, backpack and/or crew. Examples of things I have eaten are pretzels, nut butter sandwiches, doubleshots (this is probably not good advice because coffee is a dietetic but I crave it during runs), roasted salty potatoes (omg yes); and crispy turkey bacon (don’t judge me).
I also water down sports drinks – I don’t drink them straight – they irritate me. I water them at least half and half or even one part electrolytes and two parts water. Salt is important – it can take cramps away, as can bananas ie potassium. Some people like fruit and candy etc, but I usually cant stomach anything sweet.
Anyways – when youre out training for 3 or 4 hours, bring a little food. Youll be glad on race day when you have made a habit out of eating-on-the-run.
<3 K
We are all naturally self-interested. I particularly demand success from myself at the exceptional level. I notice a new generation of our youth so enabled, disabled and entitled. I am part of the creation of this new breed of youth, described lovingly by our first-lady as knuckleheads. People are mad at her but sadly I agree.
I want to let them go play outside but I cant (for fear for their safety), I want to leave them at home alone but I shouldn’t (because they’ll blow something up). It doesnt matter that much younger than them I could come home alone after school, WALK from the busstop, cook my dinner and do my homework…. I had a house and a husband and a kid at 25, and now 25 yr olds can be on their parents health-insurance. The world is different.
How do I demand the same level of accountability and achievement from my children? How do I make them want and try and care?
And as I sit here and analyze a lifetime of passion to do great things – things that make me feel good, I examine my endeavors. Would I be just as happy to do good deeds if it didn’t bring me the sense of fulfillment and satisfaction? This is a debate as old as time, Are all good deeds inherently selfish?
From acts of heroism to picking up litter off the ground, you either get off on it or you don’t. I do.
Just like a runners’ high, which although somewhat chemical, it is also a physiological. I think the key is to find your thing, be faithful in your ability to accomplish it and defeat any forms of doubt that attempt to stand in your way – not just the voices on the street, but the ones in your head too.
I keep thinking what I’m attempting cant be done. The 24-Hours of running & the raising of $ for my cause – AND later down the road, really helping to change the way people live and care for themselves. I don’t want to fail – but what does that even mean?
When God appeared to Moses in a burning bush – Moses doubted himself. He heard God’s assignment to him and it not only sounded outrageous, he explained to God why he was NOT qualified for the job.
Who is Moses to question what God has called him to do? And what better crew chief could Moses ask for than God.
And guess what, if the latest form of doubt/resistance I face is the questioning of my intent, I reject this. I’ve got this!!!!
I am happy to find a way to weave meaning into my purpose and if that joy is selfish, so be it (amen). I wish for everyone to have the same – especially my boys. Hear your calling and follow.
luv K
May 3rd & 4th I’m attempting my first 24-Hour-Ultra
I’m recruiting people to a) donate or b) register to run w/ me virtually for any distance for a minimum donation of $20
All runners will get a medal and I’m working with designer to make it special.
My cause is a fellow-runner, mom and friend named Jodi who is fighting cancer and has a stack of unpaid medical bills that keeps getting taller. I’m sure you agree I think fighting for your life is enough to worry about w/out adding unpaid medical bills to the list.
You can click on the link to learn more – please help
Thank you
<3 K
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