Chasing My Joy

My journey to becoming an Ultra Runner and Ironman

Archives for February 2017

Weekly Rundown – Marathon Training Week 9

Week 9 was a bit of a mix and a challenge to get my workouts in. Cory had to travel for work mid-week so I was on my own with Cannon and the pups. I also agreed to teach a class for a coworker in the evening and we had an ice storm that made running outside impossible. All in all, I am happy with what I was able to get in given the obstacles. As always I am hoping to do better this week!

As usual, I am linking up with Jessie at The Right Fits and Jess Runs ATL to recap last weeks training.

———–

Monday: Quick 2 mile shake out to get rid of the stiffness from last Sunday’s 16 mile run

Tuesday: Jumped on the treadmill for 5 miles with intervals.

Wednesday: Normally I get out early for a mid-week longish run before Cory leaves for work, but he was on travel for work so I decided to try to get out for a mid-day run with Cannon. It was a beautiful day and normally Cannon does fine in the stroller but on this particular day he was not having it. We made it .75 miles from home when he started to complain so we turned around. Any Mamas out there have tips on how you got your little one to love the jogging stroller?

baby, BoB Stroller, Running
I was at least able to get in a strength training session during a short nap time.

Thursday: Cory was back (yay!) so I was up and out early to get 7 miles in around the neighborhood. It’s so nice that I am able to get out earlier and earlier as the days get longer. I would have liked to have gotten a strength session in but I agreed to cover a coworkers class in the evening so that was out for the day.

Friday: I wasn’t able to get out until late in the evening, I actually love running in the dark with my headlamp. 4 miles on trails felt amazing.

Saturday: Up and out with the sun to get 6 miles in before the day got going. It was 12 degrees and I didn’t see any other runners.

Sunday: I had an 18 mile run on the schedule and I didn’t want to be away from Cannon for too long so I decided to run loops around our house. About half way through the run I stopped back home to nurse Cannon. When I got back out on the run my legs were stiff and it took a few miles to get back into the groove. All worth it to see my little man. Any other moms out there doing loops so they can feed their little ones?

Totals:

Running: 43.7 miles

Strength: 1 session…sigh

Weekly Rundown – Marathon Training Week 8

I finally signed up for the Desert Rats Trail Festival marathon, so I guess it’s official now. Marathon training is feeling real now with just 8 more weeks to go, half way there!

As usual, I am linking up with Jessie at The Right Fits and Jess Runs ATL to recap last weeks training.

———–

Monday: Evening 3 mile run, chasing the sunset after Cannon went to bed, my legs felt heavy after my long run the day before so I took it nice and easy.

run, sunset, Colorado

Tuesday: Tuesday was Valentine’s Day, Cory came home a little early so we could all go out for a run together. It has been so warm here lately, we have been spoiled. We got in just under 4 miles before it was time to get Cannon his dinner.

Sweethearts Run ❤

Wednesday: Early morning 7 mile run in the hood and full body strength in the evening.


Thursday: Just another quick evening 3 mile run, trying to get in as many hills as possible and full body strength in the evening.

Friday: First double run day of this training cycle! 5.6 miles in the morning, focusing on hills and 3 miles in the evening, just easy miles with Cory and Cannon.

Saturday: Saturday was a busy day so I got out early for a few miles.

Up with the sun ☀️

Sunday: The warm weather has led to dry trails so I drove to Boulder for 16 miles on the trails. It was a gorgeous day but my legs were thrashed!

Just another Sunday Runday

Totals:

Running: 45 miles

Strength: 2 sessions

Cannon // 8 Month Check In

I can’t believe Cannon is already 8 months old, he looks more and more like a little boy and less like a baby.

8 months old, baby, baby

He is now 18 lbs 10 oz (42%) and 28.1 in (63%)

Cannon is still eating like a champ, his current favorites are bananas, golden beets, carrots and apples. Even though he does not have any teeth he feeds himself and chews all his food.

We enjoyed making crafts 

and celebrating Valentine’s Day

 

We have spent many miles in the BoB stroller enjoying this sunny February.

Past Monthly Updates:

1 Month

2 Months

3 Months

4 Months 

5 Months

6 Months

7 Months

Weekly Rundown – Marathon Training Week 7

Week 7 flew by, and after this week I will be half way to Desert Rats Trail Marathon. It was the start of exams last week so things were a bit crazy, there was not enough strength training but I hit the minimum goal of 30 miles for the week.

I am linking up with Jessie at The Right Fits and Jess Runs ATL to recap last weeks training.

———–

Monday: Just a quick 2 mile run on the treadmill to shake off the dust.

Tuesday: My legs were still feeling heavy and stiff so I did a little interval run on the treadmill. After a 5 minute warm up I ran 1 min hard 1 minute easy for a total of 20 minutes, then cooled down. It did the trick and my legs felt much better after.

Wednesday: Early morning 7 mile run in the hood.

Thursday: 3.2 mile evening run, I would really like to get in some longer runs mid week, but I am just glad to be getting out after Cannon goes to bed.

Friday: Friday got away from me quickly, so I decided to jump on the treadmill for a climbing workout before heading to bed.

Saturday: I moved my long run to Saturday since there was snow in the forecast for Saturday night/Sunday morning. I decided to keep it simple and just do laps in the neighborhood. Cory and Cannon joined me for the first 5 miles then I completed 10 more on my own.

Sunday: I squeezed in 3.75 miles before swim class for Cannon

 

Totals:

Running: 35.13 miles

Strength: None (boo)

 

Currently // February 2017

The last couple months have been a blur, with the holidays, lots of new adventures and trying to soak in every moment with my little man. Here is what’s been up the last couple of months.

Excited About // My new role teaching at a small local college.  I had moved more into administrative role over the last few years and I LOVED my job at the University. Honestly I really miss my old job and my coworkers, it really was an amazing group of people and students to work with. But after returning after having Cannon, it just didn’t feel right to me. I hated spending so much time away from him when he was so small, it broke my heart and I didn’t feel like I was my best at work or at home. So I resigned from my job without a real plan on what I would do next, it was scary but I believed that something would come up that would be a better fit. In December I applied for a teaching job where I would only have to be on campus twice a week and could do the rest of my work remotely from home. I interviewed and was offered the job right at the begining of the year. While I loved being home full time with Cannon, this for me feels like the best fit, I love that I am with him most days but I still get to teach and interact with adults. It’s not always easy, and there is VERY little free time, but it’s so worth it.

Training For // Marathon training for an April trail marathon. It feels so good to be training for an event, like getting a little piece of myself back.

Focusing On // Little victories. As I have gotten back into training and eating well to fuel my runs I am having little victories like being able to run all the hills on the seven mile loop around my house. Being able to zip up my old favorite running jacket, this is a big win in my book. And fitting back into more and more of my work wardrobe. I hit my pre-pregnancy weight a while ago but after having a baby and (still) nursing things are a little different. I was training for an Ironman before getting pregnant so even if the scale is the same or less body composition is still a work in progress.

Struggling With // Nursing.  You may recall that I had a hard time establishing my milk supply right after having Cannon. I had to work really hard to get enough milk to feed him. It was going along but I always had to work at it. I woke up every night for months to pump extra, sometimes multiple times. Now that I am back at work again my supply seems to be going down again and I feel like I am hanging on by a thread to keep up. It’s stressful and I have a lot of mom guilt about it, like I am not doing the right things if I am not able to make enough milk for my baby. I know it’s fine if he has formula, and that I even have a frozen milk stash but I am struggling with accepting that this has been such a struggle.

Loving // Playing with my little man, he is so much fun!

Cannon loves his toys but of course his favorite right now is my water bottle

2017 Races

One of my favorite things to do is to plan races for the year. I love to think about the fun adventures to be had, especially when we are in the grips of winter. It took me a long time to settle on races for the year and I am still not 100% sure on some of them. Life is a little more unpredictable now with a little one so I don’t want to commit to too much. I am also leery of getting injured this year, coming back from no running for a year to a 50 mile ultra marathon is a lot to ask of my body. So I want to be gentle and forgiving of my body while pushing to see what it can do. Here is the tentative plan for 2017:

Run Through Time Half Marathon – March 18

This race is a big maybe for me, I would really like to run it and it would be nice to run a half before my marathon in April. The question is the condition of the trails, the trails in Salida in March can be beautiful, ankle deep mud or covered in snow. I don’t want to travel to this race (especially if Cannon is coming along) on treacherous roads. So I will make the call when we get closer to race day.

Desert RATS Trail Marathon – April 15th

This is the race I am using as base training for the rest of the year. I am excited to head out to Fruita for a spring trail marathon. It will be challenging to train on trails during the winter so I am sure all the climbing in this race will be hard. I am doing my best to get out when the trails are dry and climbing as much as possible.

Collegiate Peaks 25 Mile Trail Race – May 6th

I have wanted to do this race for a long time, it looks so beautiful!

North Fork 50K – June 3rd

Another race close to home that looks BEAUTIFUL, this would be the first ultra for the year.

Mueller Trail Marathon – June 24th

Cory and I are planning on running this race together. June 24th is our anniversary (11 years!) and we love to do races together to celebrate.

I will likely add some races over the summer, but I am not ready to commit just yet….

Run Rabbit Run 50 Miler – September 9th

This is the big goal for the year! RRR is a beautiful and challenging run up in Steamboat Springs.

Weekly Rundown – Marathon Training Week 6

I can’t believe it’s already been 6 weeks of marathon training already. Things have been going pretty well so far, I am steadily working on building up my weekly milage and weekend long runs.

I am linking up with Jessie at The Right Fits and Jess Runs ATL to recap last weeks training.

———–

Monday: Complete rest day, I had a lot of work to do and my legs felt thrashed from the weekend anyway.

Tuesday: Quick 2.15 mile run with Cannon, it’s been pretty warm lately so it’s nice to get outside to run with my little sidekick.

Wednesday: Early morning 5.6 mile run, my legs still felt heavy but it was nice to get a slightly longer mid-week run in. In the evening I got in 30 minutes of strength training.

Sunrise, Run, Morning Run

Thursday: 30 minutes climbing workout. Thursday was a busy day at work so all I could fit in was a quick treadmill workout. After a quick warmup I set the treadmill at 15% incline and marched away, this is good training for the hilly marathon I have in April.

Friday: Cory had the day off so I was able to get out for a 7 mile run in the afternoon, without having to push a stroller. I love having Cannon with me for runs, but I live in a hilly neighborhood so it can make running with a jogging stroller challenging. In the evening I also did 40 minutes of strength and core work.

Saturday: Cory, Cannon and I got out for an early run before a busy Saturday. I love when we all get to run together.

Sunday: Sunday (long)run day! It’s been warm and dry here so the Boulder trails opened back up. I headed to the trails early so there would be plenty of time to get to our afternoon swim lessons and kick my feet up to watch the Super Bowl.

Totals:

Running: 33.3 miles

Strength: 2 sessions

Overall it was a good week, just 10 weeks to go!

February Goals 

Oh heyo February!

I am kind of glad January is done for the year. This happens to be my least favorite time of year. The days are short, winter is in full swing, the holidays are long over and spring seems forever away. But this year more than ever I am not wishing the months away. Cannon is growing up so fast, sometimes I just want to press pause to really soak in who he is now, he is so sweet and fun and precious.


But since I don’t have control over time I guess I will just move along with goals for February.

I always like setting goals for a month, the time is long enough to really get things accomplished but not so long that it’s overwhelming.

For February my goals are:

1. To run 120 miles. This may not seem like much, especially since I am in the thick of marathon training but I am determined to build up slowly so I don’t get injured. I set a goal of running 100 miles in January and just made it with 102 miles.

2. Run everyday in February. I don’t think that a “run streak” is necessary but for me I like the idea of not thinking about when to run and just setting up really good habits of running everyday. It doesn’t have to be long, just 20 minutes to count in my book. This is a fun goal but one I will give up on if I feel that I am going to get injured.

3. Strength train at least twice a week

4. Try to post on the blog at least twice a week, three would be better but I want to be realistic. I really want to remember this time in my life and documenting it here means a lot to me. I would like to include marathon training updates for my first big race back after baby.

5. Continue to prioritize and put family first. January was pretty crazy with some life changes (more on that later) but I was happy that I was still able to be present and prioritize time with my family. This one is a bit intangible but I think I will know if I have been successful.