Training Week 4

Monday Weight lifting, full body
Tuesday 9 miles
Wednesday Weight lifting, full body
Thursday 3.1 miles
Friday 1.5 hour hike/run + weight lifting, chest
Saturday 5.67 miles
Sunday 8.65 miles

Weekly Total 26.42 miles (it was a little more than that, but I didn't track my hike/run on Friday)
Training Total 100.35 miles

Rest Day

Naw.  Just kidding.  Sunday I had the chance to run with Meghan and Rob, so I couldn't pass it up!  We did a bit of the trail system near their house in Sandy and a bit of the neighborhood.  It was super fun to run with this crew again!  It had been too long!

Thanks for taking all these photos, Rob!

I told you I was always serious when I run.  No fun.  Just work, work, work!

Thanks to this girl, I am the runner I am today.  One day, long ago, she said to me, "Hey, do you want to run a marathon with me?"  The rest is history!

Something about running long distances with someone makes your friendship special.

8.65 miles

1:42

11:48 average pace

Party Running

I joined in the annual birthday run for Ryan, my friend Lindsay's husband.  We met up at the Wild Rose trailhead in North Salt Lake and headed up into the mountains.  It was a gorgeous day, but very windy. There was a pretty good group of us, but three of us ladies ended up trailing behind and enjoyed a leisurely run and chat.  I enjoyed getting to know some folks that I have only known peripherally.  Despite the beauty of the mountains and the wonderful company, I went home with a headache from the crazy wind blowing in my ears, nose and eyes.  

Perfection.

I love this girl!

Good morning Wasatch!

At the end of our run we ended up in the neighborhood.  The guest house in the back of this mansion is the size of my house!  Must be a hard life.

Because we're rad like that.  Twins.

The birthday king with his noble steed.  Happy Birthday, Ryan!

5.67 miles

1:26

15:11 average pace

Daily Mile & Lift

Friday morning I met up with Jennilyn Eaton, a super nice local trail runner who I recently met through other trail friends.  Jennilyn and I learned that we live very near one another and decided to go out for a hike.  It would've been a run (and we did actually end up doing some running) but Jennilyn just won and set a course record for the Buffalo Run 100 miler.  Yeah, she's pretty badass, however she is so humble that I doubt you'd here her brag it.  So, I'll brag for her.  Jennilyn, you are a badass!  We headed up Bells Canyon after getting kids in school and hiked for about and hour and a half or so.  There was a lot of new snow and I was reminded of how much I love dirt.  I really do love dirt.

Merry Christmas!  In March.  I wonder how long that has been up?

I don't know what our mileage was, but it was a very nice mellow hike/run and I really enjoyed getting to know this lady!  I'm looking forward to more trail adventures with her in the future.

After getting home I headed to the gym with Jeff for some chest work.  We really pushed hard and had a great time.  We did an incline bench press drop set that had me shaking like a leaf!  Plus, I always love it when the guy next to me is lifting lights weights than me.  Makes me feel extra badass!

Daily Mile

Ultramarathon training can be hard.  Getting in miles and weight lifting can be hard.  But, I was reminded today of something that I'd forgotten.  Running the day after squatting heavy is hard. Really hard.  So, I took it slow and easy.  I enjoyed the day with my pup and didn't push distance or speed.  Tonight, my legs are really mad at me.  In fact, I'm going to go foam roll and go to bed.  But, running on tired and sore legs is excellent training for ultras, so I'll take it as a win!

Ozzy and I enjoy the view of the Wasatch from our neighborhood park.

3.1 miles

38:01

12:15 average pace

Daily Lift: Push Up & Pull Up PRs

A couple awesome things have happened this month.  I now can do 26 real push ups in a row! *Gasp* Right!?  Isn't that awesome?  Aaaand... are you ready for it?  THREE (3) pull ups!  (Go ahead and give the person nearest you a high five for me, okay?)  I'm feeling really strong and loving it!  So, at the gym yesterday I went ahead and killed it.  

10 min elliptical warm up

Squats (Got to use my new lifting belt for the first time!  LOVE!)

Wide lat cable pull downs

Wide grip upright rows

Barbell bicep curls

Military press

Hanging leg raises

Hanging twist oblique raises

And, now the moment you've all been waiting for... Shameless gym selfie time!!!

Trail Run Tuesday

After the Buffalo Run on Saturday I was feeling like I wanted to run forever.  I might have been a little over enthusiastic.  My legs were actually pretty tired from Saturday and somewhere around mile seven (with two miles left until I was back at my car) I realized a shorter run may or may not have been the wiser choice.  Despite the tired legs, I had a glorious day in the mountains.  The Pipeline trail was just perfect and the weather, divine!

How could you have a bad time on a trail like this?

Signs of Spring!  Green peeking through the brown!

My new Buffalo Run shirt.  Pastels aren't really my thing, but my youngest daughter was thrilled with the color!

Flowers!

9 miles 

1:47

11:53 average pace

Training Week 3

Monday HIIT
Tuesday HIIT
Wednesday 4 road miles
Thursday 3.75 road miles
Friday Yoga
Saturday 16.5 miles Buffalo Run 25k
Sunday REST

Weekly Total 24.25 miles
Training Total 73.93

Daily Hike & Lift

This morning I went to the gym for a bit of a full body workout.  Then, after picking up Clarissa from school we went on a hike with some friends.  I thought I'd share some of the photos since I run there frequently.

Bonneville Shoreline Trail in Draper

 This one is my future peak bagger and trail runner!  She loves it!

Life's a mountain not a beach.

This year the Buffalo run was perfection!  I actually got plenty of sleep on race night, the sun was shining and the temperature was perfect!  I really couldn't have asked for a better start to race day.  Plus, my awesome friend Lindsay wrote this amazing blog post that I read the night before that really motivated me.  It made me realize that I could really push myself and even if I burned out, so what?  I'd have to walk?  I was okay with that.  Lindsay was also doing the 25k distance although she started at 8am with the 50 mile runners.  She had wagered a friendly bet that I'd beat her time.  Well, this only fueled my desire to run fast even more!  

Race morning I got to the island early and chatted with some friends, including some who had just completed the 100 mile distance!  Then at the race briefing I met up with a gal named Kristyan who I know through Facebook and Instagram.  I felt like we had been friends for ages, she's a really cool lady and fellow slow, mom runner!  Plus, I met a couple other local gals.  So fun!

When it was go time I stuck to my usual, slow start.  I did as much running as possible on the first 2(ish) mile climb, which was much more than I've ever been able to run before.  We weren't more than a mile into the run when a gal came up along next to me and asked if I was Renee.  Turns out she had come across my blog and recognized my compression socks and pack (What?!  Not every runner comes out in hot pink and florescent colors!?) so that was really cool.

Then when the first downhill came I was warmed up and decided to open it up.  Passing people on the downhill is so fun.  I love that "OH.MY.GAWD!  I'm going to crash and die!" feeling of flying downhill!  I ran mostly by myself, but did chat with a few runners here and there.  It's always fun to get to know people a little when you're out there.  

I passed both Lindsay and my friend Laurie, who were going the opposite direction and we gave each other cheers of support.  I ran along with a gal named Jenny who had never done the Buffalo Run before and I warned her that the toughest part was coming up.  We chatted and joked and when we arrived at the switchbacks I knew I had to own them.  The last time I was there I was in tears, hated the world, and was ready to give up running forever!  I took off on my own and this time, I owned that hill!  I ran as much as I could without puking up a lung.  When I wasn't running, I did the power hike.  At one point, and this is the best thing anyone has ever said to me during a race, a gal told me she was staying behind me, "Because you seriously have the best legs I've ever seen in my whole life!  Perfection."  Wow!  What a compliment!  If that doesn't make a girl run faster, I don't know what will!

The whole race was just fantastic!  Running the course where I earned the title "ultrarunner" was powerful.  Plus, I just felt wonderful out there doing what I love.   And I can't lie.  I wanted to beat Lindsay's time.  And, guess what?  I did!  But only by four minutes!  Girlfriend is getting faster too! 

At the end of the race I stayed to cheer other runners on, like Kristyan and Jenny and many more.  I hung out with friends who had completed the 100 miler (I know, amazing, right!?) and were huddled in sleeping bags.  The atmosphere there at the finish is so wonderful.  This is a really fantastic group of people.  Plus, the day couldn't end poorly, I finished in 3:07!  That's an 11:18 average pace!  For a course with 1,950' of vertical gain I say, not bad.  Not bad at all!

Katherine texted me this picture before the race.  I thought it highly appropriate.

Race morning tea in my Antelope Island 50k mug!

Ready to rumble!

New friends, from left: Natalie, Kristyan, Me!

Kristyan took this photo after we had run together for a bit and I took off.  I'm the pink and orange speck near the front of the line.

Post race hang out time!  

This is Craig.  Craig just ran 100 miles in 22 hours.  Yes, twenty two hours of running and he is smiling!  Mind blown?

And this awesome lady is Jennilyn.  Jennilyn won the women's hundred mile race in 20 (and some change) hours and set a new course record!  

Lindsay and I hanging out and celebrating our awesome finish times!

Official race results: 3:07:12 59th out of 144 females!  24th out of 57 in my age division!  I wasn't even near the back of the pack!  WOO HOO!