Category: ultrarunning

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Training Week 1/1

I am getting crunk again on my feet! However, I’m adding in a lot of rest- because 2011 brought me over 6000 miles of running!! Ouch! Periodization training is the new over-training.
This will be my log this week updated on the reg with pics! Keep me in check blog stalkers;)

SAT- 4:50a 2mi warmup, 2mi threshold, 2 min rest, repeat, run 1 hr easy, 1 mi threshold, 10min easy, 3 hill sprints. Core. & I ran past the titanic. what? yeah-see below for proof via me saying I’ll never let go jack! I’m too freakin stubborn and disciplined!!!!!

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Continue reading “Training Week 1/1”

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Therapy.

You want to talk so bad right now, that you think you might choke due to the lack of words being able to escape your throat.

There is just so much to say; but nobody wants to hear it, and nobody really cares anyway.

So you stash it deep down in your gut and let it simmer.. Let it burn.. Let is suck the life out of you.. Until the tension slowly builds. It rises up and heats your entire core until it finally hits your brain and your head is pounding.

You need an escape- need to run!

Then the cravings start attacking for trail time, because you know the pounding in your brain won’t stop until you either speak your mind or get to that freakin’ trail.

And since you can’t speak your mind..
You run.

You strike the ground with everything you’ve got in your body because you’re so sick of holding all of it in. You can cry, you can scream, you can yell, you can run faster, and you can run farther. You can speak your mind to the trees, or shout out to God above. Do whatever you want to do because when you run- you’re you.

After a few hours-
The pounding stops.
The pressure is gone.

Nothing is solved, no.
Yet everything feels good
….if only for a millisecond.

And that’s why you do it again, and again:

Running is your therapy.

*ps – Don’t freak out- I don’t really need therapy, I just write when I’m frustrated because I love how it flows.;)

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a beth presten kinda night

My in-laws gave me a gift card. The gift card bought me some awesome fleece gear. The fleece gear told me the trails were calling & then my phone actually rang– and no it wasn’t the trails….( I was shocked too).. it was Beth Presten! One of my favorite people on earth! For real!

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Beth Presten was calling to see if I’d like to have a little outdoor adventure tonight. “yup. harbins? Holla.” (we tend to act/talk like 15 year old hood chicks when we get together).

this adventure was going to be a bit different for us.
A. Beth is pretty frickn pregnant.
B. I am healing from a fractured hip.
C. Normally when we train together we are hitting 7 minute miles, and pushing each other past our cardiac barriers. Or running from Sasquatch..

Presten and I have trained together for about 2 years. We have had countless adventures, as both of us are pretty ridiculous in our training styles-Aka we thoroughly enjoy running for hours, in dangerous places, like the woods, at 4 in the morning. We both are extremely competitive, and we really just have always had this cool training partner thing going on for quite some time. So with our competitiveness & heavy mileage pushed to the side, I was excited to see how our evening of “aggressive hiking” would go.

We headed out to one of our favorite training routes. We hadn’t seen each other in a couple of months, and we had a ton to talk about, laugh about, vent about.. You know, typical runner bond mixed with bff for life type chick stuff. Time slipped away and before we knew it, we were on a dark trail with no exit in sight.

This always happens to us.

Last time this happened to us, we were freaking out. Beth had watched a documentary on Sasquatch prior to our evening run, and determined that Sasquatch does indeed exist. She pleaded her case to me during that run, and I too, became a believer. Towards the end of that run, we heard a branch snap, and started to get skittish. We got all quiet, and eventually started running like there was no tomorrow back toward the trail head shouting things about Sasquatches and what have you. I think we finished that run with a good 5 minute mile. Yeah, I guess looking back it could have been a squirrel…. Maybe..

Another time we found ourselves trapped in the dark, we were hiding in a ditch en route home during a very long run. Beth and I had been discussing, quite in depth actually, women going missing, kidnappers, molesters, etc. Typical stuff unarmed women talk about when they run together at night. Anyway, there was a dude in the park that night that seemed a little out of place. And we were convinced he was following us home. Every truck we saw for the next few miles resulted in a ditch dive, duck & cover until we felt it safe to run….. I still think that man was out to get us. He just couldn’t find us bc we were too freakin awesome at camouflaging ourselves amongst the roadside shrubs- even in highly reflective running gear.

So back to tonight. We found ourselves on the dark trail, and whadya know, some moron with a headlamp was out on the trails too! Beats me as to why, because I really don’t understand why anyone would tackle Harbins in the dark, but nonetheless, dude was there. Dude was coming towards us. Beth and I immediately assumed it was the Unabomber- a sketchy looking guy we had passed and nicknamed earlier during the hike. Really Unabomber was probably just a man in a sweatshirt trying to get some exercise, but you never know. So we started to get all freaked out- as usual. We thought it would be best if we just stood still and thought of our plan of attack. Then we decided that I should whip out my trusty knife (though I’ve never had to use it :-/) and we would confidently walk towards Unabomber’s light. We needed to show him “we ain’t skurrd”. But then- his light went out! Totally caught us off guard. We started flipping out & ran away fast [yes the pregnant girl and the broken hip girl ran]. I pulled out my phone and called Dan to explain we were “probably being attacked” *again because we are always being attacked* but he was nice enough to play his usual I’ll talk to you guys until the bad guy leaves game.. We put him on speaker and asked him to shout intimidating things about being a trained sniper, and what not, until we made it back to the parking lot. We never saw the Unabomber! So basically, our plan of attack worked- the run, wield weapon, and have Dan talk loudly on speaker phone thing really scared him off, I think. There’s always the possibility that he flipped his lamp off to pee, or something, but I seriously doubt it.

Ahhh… What a night.:)
Good weather. Great friend.
(Nice fleece gear too!)
So regardless of the lack of awesomely insane & legit running skill, it was a typical Beth Presten night. I was happy to find that we can still have a blast together even when we aren’t training [like fierce warrior running beast]. I’m so happy she called me, & that I got to try out my new fleece gear! (Worked pretty good! Thanks in-laws!)

I love my running friends.:) They are so special to me. I love that we can act like little kids, play in the woods, run from bad guys, and just forget about the craziness of real life for a bit. It’s such a sweet thing. I’ll never take it for granted.

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Preggers Beth is cute!

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Ultra Food for Thought

Ultrarunners love to talk food. And believe us, we all know the best and right way to eat.

(All of us!)

There’s one end of the spectrum, and they are the super healthy eating elite. In this category you’ll find: paleo peeps, uber organic yuppies, naturalists, vegans, non-processed, whole foods addicts, “the earth is greater green” runners.

Across the other side resides a whole different breed of runners: jellybean popping, gu sucking, coke drinking, beer guzzling, pizza scarfing (and OFTEN) fast freakin’ runnermothers.

Of course there are always people on the fence. A lot of us go back and forth between the opposite ends, or a lot of times stay somewhere smack dab in the middle. Race food is different than every day food, after all. Have your cake and eat it, too! Right?

No wonder the food topic fascinates us ultra geeks. So many options for our crazy little strong-willed minds to grasp hold of and run with.

So.. Which way of eating works best?

I know what works best for me..

Continue reading “Ultra Food for Thought”

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Wanna talk toughness?

I’ve quit 3 ultras.
THREE

1.) bethel hill moonlight boogie, my 2nd attempt at running 50 miles. (my first finish was a solo run a couple weeks prior, also in extremely high temps, and on the toughest hilliest roads around. 10 hour self supported finish.) @BHMB, I threw up – nonstop- for 6 miles straight. It was 100 degrees in the middle of summer. I was so dehydrated from puking, and hallucinating badly, that I eventually curled up in a car and fell asleep. I woke up after a couple hours (still feeling like crap) and gutted out another 10 miles before sunrise. I finished 36 miles that day.

2.)FORT CLINCH 100, my 3rd 100 mile attempt. HOTTER THAN HADES in Florida trails with humidity so thick you felt like you were swimming. mid summer. I literally passed out @67 miles and was ambulanced to the ICU/comatose ward and was in a coma for 11 hrs. My Body ate itself- rhabdomyolosis- and started to eat my heart. The cardiac enzymes invaded my blood stream and shut down my kidneys. I woke up the next morning and asked to go back out to finish my run, ha. I wasn’t even allowed to MOVE for 4 weeks- i was supposed to be on bed rest. But 2 weeks later, i got up and started back with a 100 mile week. (read “refined by fire in the fort clinch furnace” for that one.)

3.) Hinson lake 24 hr. I quit at 1:30am after dealing with massive pain in my hip for the entire day. A urinary tract infection forced me to stop every other loop to hit the bathroom, so I had to double up my pace to make up for the stops. I felt great other than both of those incredibly painful things- I eventually stopped running after trying EVERYTHING. Come to find out I WAS RUNNING WITH A FRACTURED HIP. BUT I STILL MANAGED ABOUT 80 miles that day. I would have kept going if my leg would’ve moved.

Those are the only ultra races I have ever quit.

Most all of my ultra training runs were done BY MYSELF. In the middle of the freaking night, on technical trails. I woke up at (or before) 4am almost every single week day to get in my mileage, so it wouldn’t disrupt my family’s flow, or interfere with my ability to be a good mom and wife.

What about you? What ya got? I really want to know.
Because, sure I may have had a few brushes with bad luck. But I guaran-freakin-tee you that I can outlast you on any given day. I actually REALLY enjoy feeling pain. I thirst for it.

NOW TELL ME ONE MORE TIME YOU THINK I NEED TO TOUGHEN UP. I DARE YOU.

-Ashley;)

“Tighten up on your reigns, you’re runnin’ wild..runnin’ wild..it’s true.”

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Till I Collapse

A collection of thoughts:

All I want right now is to run until my body can’t take it anymore.

Till I collapse.

It’s how I do it.

ALL OR NOTHING.

Forget political correctness.

Forget what YOU think I should do.

I’m not always concerned with “proper training and tapering”.

Regardless of if I’m training or racing: I simply want to push myself until I can’t push anymore.

I don’t care WHEN that happens, WHERE that happens, or WHY that happens.

I know the consequences of my actions.

I know it’s not smart.

I know it “gets you nowhere”.

Do you think I can’t feel the burning sensation from the break in my hip?

Do you think I don’t cringe every time the strained muscles scream at me when I move?

It is what it is.

I run for a different sort of satisfaction.

I crave the morning after a full day of running, when everything is so tight, I literally can’t move.

Maybe I run to feel pain.

Maybe I run because the pain is too much.

Maybe I run because I’m addicted.

Maybe you have no idea what it feels like to push past your limits..and then some.

I don’t care what it needs to be, or what it should be.

I push harder because I hate the things you say about me.

I will push until I can’t.

I won’t stop unless my body forces me to.

I will always work to push that point farther away.

Whatever it is. Whatever it isn’t.

I will run because I can.

I will run the way I want to.

Till I collapse.

I know what I'm made of.
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I crave running like he craves what??

Am I even allowed to write “SEX” on a blog about running? Hmm. Not sure about that one, but I promise you I can tie it all together.

My dear friend and former client, Ashley C, sent a package my way last week. I’m certain it was in hopes of cheering me up during this hip-broken-miserable-without-a-run period of awfulness, and God knows I needed it! Inside of the package was a very thoughtful and sweet card, and behind that, a book titled “FOR WOMEN ONLY”. The title alone had me ready and willing to drop everything, and do some serious reading. I thumbed through the first few pages, and before I knew it I was halfway through the book!

Continue reading “I crave running like he craves what??”

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No Surgery? PTL!

 

See, I'm excited.
See, I'm excited.

Yup, no surgery! Surprised everyone, I think! All I will require is some physical therapy and rehabilitation to help me walk again, and eventually run again. I’m very thankful for this news, as I’ve always had this idea that surgery is the “kiss of death” for endurance athletes.

The doctor must know me better than I think, because she won’t set a date for my return to training. My guess is she doesn’t want me to get focused on a date, and get out there well before my hip is ready, which I totally would do. I know it won’t be until 2012 though:-/. She laughed when I asked if I could swim or bike..or pretty much do anything period. She looked at me with this piercing look, as if to say, “ARE YOU SERIOUS?” but instead offered, “You don’t realize how serious this is. You can’t do anything but rest.”
Doc mentioned that I also damaged a few muscles. I don’t remember their names, except for one: gluteus minimus.. I remember that one, because I thought to myself, “There is NOTHING minimus about MY gluteus!” Ha!
But yeah, walking could be more likely to actually happen when those muscles and tendons start to heal in the next few weeks.

The doctor also told my mom something else, “Nobody in their right mind would ever run 140 weekly miles.”
…….
Guess doc never met an ultrarunner.

And guess what else.. The instant I’ve got the green light to run, I’ll be SLOWLY and CAREFULLY making my way right back to the same level of training I love to run at. I disagree that running SO much broke my hip. I think I injured it with the insane amount of speed training I did in the last month of training. I hit a sub 5 mile in august, for crying out loud! I know there must have been a tiny ounce of pain in that hip before the start, and I tuned it out. It got horrendous, yet I still tuned it out.. for almost 80 miles. That’s what I do. Thats what I TRAIN myself to do. Ignore pain.  I took a gamble on it being muscle related, and held hope that it would fade out so I could finish my race.  That’s what usually happens.  This time it didn’t.  I’m not a moron, and had I known it was my hip bone, I would have stopped way sooner than I did. Regardless of how it happened, I’m not going to be used as “an example”. Nope. I run….Hard. I get hurt. It’s ultrarunning, not safetyrunning. Sure, I crave longevity. But I also have no interest in settling for mediocrity (thanks Mccurdy for reminding me of that) and I have no plans to change my love for high mileage because a doctor thinks it’s ludicrous. Welcome to my world, doc, it’s twisted!

Don’t take it personally, doc. I have trouble listening to anyone’s advice..just ask my husband. Shoot, he even wrote a whole post inspired by my lack of trainability.daniel’s rant

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Growl.

I’ve been right,
I’ve been left,
I’ve been wrong,
I’ve been left
behind,
I’ve been up,
But mostly down.
-(middle class rut “new low”)

Sunshine. Trails. Rain. Trails. Trails. [TRAILS.] Earth between toes. Wind against face. No plan. No reason.

Someone PLEASE get me out of this box and drop me in the middle of the woods. I’ll have to bear crawl my way home, but that will suffice. As long as I’m not stuck in this bed!

I tried to walk without crutches today and I fell. It was not cool. My mind is getting warped and it’s only been a couple of days. Humans weren’t made to be caged. I feel caged.
I don’t wanna know what mr orthopedic has to say tmrw. I know it’s bad news. Grr. Sean says I can take up wheelchair ultras. Ha. Thx nag.

Everyone else says “chin up!” But everyone else doesn’t know the kind of pain a girl feels when she’s detached from her world- Her place. Her LAND.

“You always learn and grow.” I know…
You know. But does that mean anything really changes? Or do we learn, grow, and suppress? Maybe both.
Sad.
I want to run. Fast. Hard. Up and down the highest mountains and the toughest climbs. I want to hurt. I want to feel and move.

I just don’t want to be stuck!

Growl. Fun to talk to myself!!!!!! Ha

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New Direction

So after a day of sulking in pain, being stuck in bed watching old movies, THINKING, and PRAYING, and finally just sitting still for a few hours.. My wheels started turning.

WHY would racing ultras not be in the works for me right now?
I know why. Because it’s self-serving.

WHY is something self-serving not in the works for me right now?
That’s easy. Just reread that sentence.

Too much focus on “me” is way toxic, and dangerous. Especially if I don’t realize it’s happening. When it starts to happen, even subconsciously, God smacks me down like a 4 year old in Kmart.

I learned a lot about life training to race Hinson and other races this fall. I definitely became a better runner and athlete, and (in my opinion though it doesn’t really count) a stronger person.
But that doesn’t mean a thing unless I put all of those life lessons I learned this year to good use.

Am I really making a positive and meaningful difference in the lives of others if I’m chasing my own dreams down? Nah.

So how can I remedy this? How can I bring my passion for running, racing, training, family, trails and LIFE all together in a way that pleases the God I live my life for?

Well.. I prayed about it while I sat here on my hurtin’ triple marathon+ injured and sore booty today, lol, and here’s what’s been flowing through my brain since:

It’s time for me to GIVE way more of myself instead of doing way more for myself.

I want to create some VERY low key, yet competitive, ultra races with 100% of proceeds going to various homeless shelters and food pantries in the Atlanta area. I have a few in mind.
I’m thinking maybe donations, and things like blankets, jackets, food, etc. as entry fees.

We have amazing trail systems here, like Yargo and Harbins, and all of us local runners have put together some crazy challenging routes to train on. I’d love to invite others to try their luck on some of our toughest training courses.

I have a huge amount of resources I can pull from to make it work. I also have some direct links to people in critical need, and ways to help them.

I’m going to keep moving in this direction and see where God takes it. Maybe it’s what He is wanting out of me. Maybe not. Only one way to find out. I’ll send out some emails today and go from there!

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