marathon

My year of running. #runchat #run

| cheriarmour

I cannot believe that we’re approaching the end of the year. I don’t know where the year went, but I feel so hashtag blessed that I’m still here.  It has been an absolutely beautiful year.  I’ve experienced a ton – good and bad, but I’m excited to see what 2014 in store for me and my family.

yearofrunning 225x300 How was your year of running?

I stole this fun idea to sum up my year of running from Miss Zippy, and I encourage you guys to go ahead and steal it from me now!  I’m nosy as hell, so I’d really like to know about your year – and I’ll post this to my Facebook status so some of you guys can play, and I’ll pull some of your comments into my blog.

What was your:

  • Best race experience?  Hands down, my best race experience this year was the Nike Women’s Half Marathon, which I blogged about back in April.  The race itself was awesome.  The weather was beautiful, the terrain was flat, and it was just incredibly well-organized, and I feel super lucky, because for the second year in a row, I won my lottery entrance into the race.  Eep!  Additionally, I am so enamored of Washington, D.C., and spending the weekend there with good friends made the weekend super duper enjoyable.  Now I hope this year my ENTIRE name makes it onto the wall of race participant names they plaster the street with in Georgetown.  ‘Member this?

Billboard

  • Best run? I need to choose a few.  One of my best runs was in Asheville, the weekend of Alexa’s bacherlorette party up in Asheville….

cabin 4

And this view of the river we stayed along…
Cabin 3
And I’d have to say my second favorite best run was a run I did with my brother the day after Thanksgiving a few weeks ago.   It was just fun to work out with a member of my family who kicked my butt.  It’s also so nice to talk to that kid, who’s really impressed me with how he’s matured in the past year.  Kid gets up at 3:45 to go to swim practice, and still manages to make it to school each day.  Like – bye.  Amazing.

  • Best new piece of gear?  Geez, that’s hard.  I have a lot of good stuff.  But I think my favorite piece that I’ve acquired this year would either be my Glycerin 11s, cause that shoe update was so  sweet, or this purple Moving Comfort full-zip that work gave us at the company holiday party.  I have a problem staying warm, so the fact this jacket can stand up to some of the ungodly temps we’ve had lately around here in the mornings says a lot to me.

Moving Comfort

  • Best piece of running advice you received?  Put one foot in front of the other.  A co-worker told me this as I was training for Shamrock in March, and that’s really all you can do, in racing, and in life.  When a race becomes challenging or miserable, you have to tell yourself to place one foot in front of the other.  There’s simply not another option.
  • Most inspirational runner?  I cannot pick just one, because working with runners, I am so inspired by my coworkers.  Jenny, who I ran Shamrock with, was a mother, a wife, and still found time to run that full with me.  Kerri teachers a full yoga course load, works, and trained hard and well enough to qualify for Boston.  Kerry runs a big race a month.  Fast.  Shelly is pregnant and still running.  I could go on and on and on, but you get it.  My coworkers rock, and when I don’t feel like working at my running, I think of them, and I usually can muster up enough to get moving.
  • If you could sum up your year in a couple of words, what would they be? Be present.  Don’t let worry or anxiety steal your happiness.

Now it’s your turn – fill me in in the comments, on your blog, on my Facebook, or Tweet me little tidbits!

New reads! #runchat

| cheriarmour

I swore, after my last marathon, during which I sobbed and vomited miles 18-26.2, that I would not run another marathon until after we got married.  One, because of the sheer volume of time I had to dedicate to training (most Sundays were dedicated to running), and two, because of the misery that vomiting during a race could potentially bring.  I really wanted to focus on wedding stuff and wedding planning (which is a total blast, ps, and I’ll fill you guys in as I do more stuff).

So anyways, fast forward to December, where everyone is talking about their spring races.  And I literally have this disease called FOMO (fear of missing out), and I almost can’t stand not running a race during spring race season when everyone else is running around having their fun.

Also, I think I’m addicted to the feeling when you finally cross the finish line.  I’ve only crossed a marathon finish line twice, and I’m not sure I’m ready to hang the shoes up until after I become a Mrs.

Basically, I’m seriously toying with the idea of doing Rock n’ Roll in Raleigh.  

If I do this, and that’s a big friggin’ IF, I need to do this right.  Like I absolutely refuse to get sick and cry though another race.  Not gonna happen.

Hanson

 

Insert new reads here.  A friend PR’d at Chicago using this method.  I’m not sure that I’m going with this method – there are a TON of miles a week as opposed to regular marathon training, and it is definitely something I need to fully commit to.  But I’m very interested in the book in general, and super excited to tell you guys what I learn.

What do you guys think?  I’m getting married in August, should leave plenty of time to profusely apologize to my spouse for neglecting him between January and April.  What do you think – can this marathon be done? 

Chad Stafko, you are obnoxious.

| cheriarmour

Chad Stafko wrote this delightful little gem of an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal, entitled, “Ok, You’re a Runner. Get Over It”.

And by delightful, I mean totally obnoxious.

He expressed his irritation in the rise of people participating in the sport of running, and most specifically, with those 26.2 stickers you see on folks’ cars, which you affix to the bumper once you’ve completed a full marathon.

He theorizes that runners run only for attention, they run for the selfies, they run for the glory, and they don their gear so that people in society can identify them as runners.

There are folks that do everything for the attention that it will get them.  They like attention.  And there’s nothing the matter with that.

But to suggest that runners, and more specifically, marathoners do it for the attention, is just ludicrous.  I began running after I lost the almost 30 pounds that had crept on throughout college, and after I’d exhausted every other machine in the gym, taken every class there was to take, and I was looking for a means to maintain a healthy weight without boring myself to tears.

I’d read an article in Fitness Magazine, where Jillian Michaels was asked this question.

“What one thing do you never skip in your workout?

This is ironic. As much as I hate it, I run every time, like three miles. It makes you skinny, that’s why. It works.”

So I set out to run at least three miles a day to maintain my weight and the muscle I’d begun to build.

And then I ran a little further.

And next thing I knew, I’d signed up for a marathon, and was chugging along in the wind, wondering what in god’s name I’d been thinking of when I’d signed up.

I run because:

  • It helps me maintain a healthy weight. 
  • It’s cheap (relatively speaking).   It’s a little cheaper for me because I work in the best place ever, a Fleet Feet, where I have a lot of resources at my disposal.
  • You never “master” running.  It’s always a challenge.  There’s always something you can do better, you can always run a little faster or a little harder.  One day you’ll have a crappy run, another you’ll have a great one.  That’s cool.
  • The friendships that you form.  At last week’s Jingle Ball, a Raleigh event, the room was full of runners, people from my run club, good people who care about others.
  • It makes me feel pretty.  It makes me feel strong, pretty, and tall.

No nowhere on that list did I mention that I like to be seen.  Like I love the bragging rights.  That I wear the bright colors for the attention (I just happen to like bright colors, and they keep me from getting hit by a car especially during the winter months, when it’s dark for half the day).  I’ve purchased a 26.2 sticker, but I bought a new car soon after I finished my first marathon, so it never made it to my car.  I talk about fitness a lot because it changed my life.  But because I can be seen?  Because of the bragging rights?  Nope, I worked.  WE work for that sticker.  And if we do put it on our cars, it’s not a bragging thing, it’s to identify our brother’s and sisters in 26.2. 

Okay dolls, rant completely over.  I love you.

Check out my new running threads that I wear for attention!

Moving Comfort

 

This was our holiday gift we received from our lovely bosses form Fleet Feet, the Moving Comfort Foxie full-zip.  It’s gorgeous, has HUGE pockets, they got them embroidered for us, and I ran in it on Saturday – it’s toasty too!

So whenever I’m seeking my much-needed attention and validation from others, I’ll pop this bad boy on, and hit a public venue, where people can ooh and ahh over me.  Right, Chad Stafko?

Never in my life have I been so excited to see a charge on my bank statement.

| cheriarmour

Yesterday, I was scrambling to find a dress for Thursday night’s Jingle Ball, a Ball in Raleigh where the requirements to enter are an unwrapped toy and your black tie finest.   I ended up ordering one on ModCloth, and when I went to check my bank statement, I nioticed a charge from Nike, for the low low price of $180 some-odd dollars, which only means one thing!

Nike Women's Half

 

For the second year in a row, I have been accepted to the Nike Women’s Half!  And this year, I’m hoping to be well under 2 hours.  Yay for some motivation to actually run in this frigid weather!

I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling…

| cheriarmour

26.

26 has never looked so good.

Okay sike kinda.  Today is my 26th birthday, and I write to you, not from my fancy vacation, but from my desk on my way to work.  Since I’ve absolutely sucked at doing my 30 days of thanks, I’m gonna hit you with 26 incredible things that happened in the past year, and that I’m thankful for.  Here goes (in no particular order)!

  1. I ran two marathons in my 25th year.  Right before I turned 25, I ran my first half, and I guess I caught the bug.  More specifically, I ran two half marathons, 2 fulls, and I think one really fun 5k.
  2. I got engaged!  I was telling my mom yesterday, that I never would have thought that I’d meet someone I’d love enough to marry just 4 years after I graduated.  After I broke up with my college boyfriend, I really thought that was it for me, and I was content to live with my animals.  Seriously, before Austin I’d fallen into this dorky routine of working out, watching Dancing with the Stars, and getting into to bed before midnight most Fridays.  What a difference a few years makes, right?
  3. I learned about the power of networking.  They always say it’s not what you know but who you know.  And I’ll be gosh darned, they were right.  And I credit that with this next one.
  4. I got a social work job. After searching for what felt like 50 years.
  5. But I also worked full-time for Fleet Feet, a running specialty store, and I have to be honest with you, I’m still in love with the company, and I’d consider opening a store with my husband.  Bob and Kathy, my bosses, and my coworkers, are such amazing, good people, and working there really pushed me to be a better athlete.   I think that speaks for the company.  When your job creates a better and more competitive athlete out of you, that’s something special.
  6. I got my cat, Martin.  He is the worst behaved cat I’ve ever met.
  7. My grandmother passed away.  That is not the good part, obviously.  The good part, and the part that warmed my heart was the fact that all of us, all 3 of my siblings, and both of my parents were able to coordinate enough to get on planes and make it to her services on short notice. 
  8. I got to go to my second home, camp. It was just as beautiful as I remembered.  After my first summer there, I literally thought I’d never see the place again, and I would dream about coming back there at night.  I made it.  And I love those kids.
  9. I bought my first car.  When my ’99 Taurus died on me (transmission issue), I laid down and bawled, not sure what I was going to do.  Austin helped me through the process of buying a car, and I made my first real adult purchase, a little Lancer, with an equally little payment.  It’s perfect for me.
  10. I went through some interviews with some not-satisfactory results.  But you know what?  Every “failed” job prospect was a great learning opportunity, and I think I emerged from each experience a little stronger.  At the time, I was shaking my first and gnashing my teeth, if you will, but it was all for the best.
  11. My mom is still with us.  The same weekend I bought my new car I was actually signing the paperwork for my new car, when my mom called me.  “Hey.  What are you doing.  You sound kinda weird,” I’d said kinda causally.  “Oh, I just…well I’m in the hospital.  But everything’s okay!”  and the way the universe takes care of me is the minute I’d signed the paperwork on that new car, I was able to drive down and spend what would turn out to be a couple of weeks with my mom, who’d, as it turned out, had a small stroke at some point.  She’s doing better and better each day.
  12. My bank account is looking a little bit better than it was, this time last year.  Praise.  Let’s keep that thing on the rise.
  13. I got a library card.  Maybe now I can stop pouring money into my Kindle.
  14. I chose a wedding venue!  Kinda superficial, but I had a rough go of it for a while!
  15. My siblings are all successful, productive members of society.  Not everyone can say that.  Armours. Bettah. Werk.
  16. I attended my 4th Elon University Homecoming (nearly didn’t make it out alive, as you’ll remember last weekend), and now I’m considering become even more involved with my alma mater, and not just offering my meager financial support.  I really don’t mind giving back to the school that literally taught me how to become a grown up.
  17. I have great friends.  I worked at Fleet Feet the other night, and fell right back into an old pattern like no time had passed.   The same of Elon Homecoming, it truly felt like no time had passed.
  18. I got closer with my friends.  And this year, I vow to be an even better friend if it kills me.  More coffee dates, more phone calls, more visits.  I’ve let it get a leetle too far in between some friend dates.  My sincere apologies, ladies and gents.
  19. I participated in one FANTASTIC wedding, which was fun from start to finish.  My good friend Alexa got married in May, and since I was a bridesmaid, I got to participate as far as getting a cute dress, contributing to her bachelorette weekend in Asheville (which meant I got to run in some crisp mountain air), and I got to celebrate her wedding….
  20. And I attended the wedding of another good friend in Cincinnati.  And it was like an Elon reunion all over again.  All this to say, guys, I’m sorry, if you notice a few similarities between your wedding and mine – but they both were so different and so beautiful, that I’d love to try and recreate these moments all over again.
  21. I started doing yoga.  Actually on January 1st, I started, and I credit that with singlehandedly allowing me to get through my first marathon without hurting anything.
  22. My home.  Admittedly, I miss my old condo, the one I lived in when I started this blog.  I had to move because the owner sold it (or is trying to sell it for way more than it’s worth, but that’s just my two cents).  But as I strolled through my apartment this morning, freshly vacuumed and smelling nice, I was thankful for my toasty little nook in the woods.  Often, when I run, I look under bridges that I pass, and I’ll often see vestiges off a little home there.  Foodstuffs, blankets, sometimes and old mattress.  And I thank God that I have a warm place to lay my head at night.
  23. This blog.  I raised some money last year, and I really appreciate for people to tell me when they’ve been following along.  I mean, I love to hear myself talk, so I’d prolly continue writing even if I suspected that only cats are reading my blog, but man, I’m happy and grateful that this blog “happened,” so to speak.
  24. This country.  Things are a hot mess.  But we live in the best nation in the world.  Run and tell dat.
  25. My health.  I continue to be amazed at where I can push my body.  Part of the reason for the tears at the finish of each marathon is to thank heavens that my body is able to hold up for that long, and recover quickly.  Not everyone can say that.  I hope they can, eventually.
  26. Real Housewives of Atlanta is back on.  And I really don’t need to say much more about that.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for reading, and thank goodness for another year.  Here’s to 26 being another good one!

Greensboro Marathon – DONE

| cheriarmour

I have never been so glad to be done with a race in my entire life.

Following the conclusion of the race, I kept running, and ran directly into the medical tent, where I calmly informed the EMT that I needed fluids.

Here’s how it went down. 

Saturday morning, I woke up around 5 with a stomachache.  SHOOT!  So I ran down to the car, grabbed some Tums and a Prilosec, and waited for them to kick in.  They kinda seemed to, and by the time we’d made our way to a very chilly start line, I decided that I felt okay.  And off we went.

It was cold, but not unbearably so.  I’d dressed perfectly. A thin, long-sleeved Brooks top, a Brooks Nightlife Vest, stuffed to the gills with goodies, gloves, and 3/4ths tights.  On the feet were the Glycerin 11 (an excellent choice of a shoe), and some Smartwool socks.  When it felt like my hands were going to fall off, I palmed my boobs under the vest, and as silly as it seems, the warmth made the ride really comfortable.

I stuck to the plan.  About 6.5 miles in, I started with my first bit of nutrition, and the nagging tummy ache that had been bothering me started to flare up.  I tried everything to push it away.  I breathed the cool, fresh fall air.  I house shopped.  I focused on music.  But it wouldn’t leave.  By the time another 6 had passed, and it was time for more nutrition, I couldn’t do it.  I nibbled at another piece of Clif Shot Bloks, and the stomachache started up, worse than before.

15 Miles.

The stomachache was too real.  Katy Perry came on with ‘Roar’.  And I dissolved into tears.  I’m not sure if I’ve ever shared this, but I get hyper-emotional during races.  It’s an introspective period of time, and the thought of the message of the song, the stomach pain, and the fact that I was over halfway in the race got to me.  Get it together, Cheri.  Someone is going to see you crying and think something is really wrong. 

18.1 Miles.

I literally pulled over in a field, and the stomachache was just too much.  I barfed in a field.  Everything I’d eaten, all the water, and all the nutrition was gone.  A cop looked on, sorrowfully.  But I couldn’t give it up, I was only like 8 miles from the finish!

So I knew that I’d lost all my nutrition and all my water.  And the thought of eating was producing more vomit.  So I kept up with my water, and trudged through the last bit of the marathon.

I did it. 

It was abysmally slow.  I was a little sunburned.  But I did it, run-walking that last 8 miles or so.  Once I finished, I med-tented, explained to them what had happened, and let them check my levels.  I was fine, understandably a little dehydrated, and not feeling like eating ever again.

I finished.  I’m a two-time marathoner!! And upon an appointment with a gastro, I am totally ready for the next running adventure.

Marathon Couple

Time to have some fun! #runchat

| cheriarmour

In the comments below, on Facebook, or on Twitter answer me this.

What should I think about on tomorrows long beautiful run? I’ll do my best do think about it and address it in a little post next week.  

The first order of thinking business will be about food.  That’s all I’ve got so far. 

Weather Obsession

| cheriarmour

Marathons are very much like weddings in that you do this…thing.

You check the weather incessantly, smiling when it looks good (about 10 days out), and progressively getting more anxious as you realize that things aren’t going to go the way you planned. That’s so life right?

You have to understand where I’m coming from here though. There was a point during training where I was running, in the mountains of Pennsylvania on a 94-degree day with like 77% humidity. I never dried off that day, btws. Never for a second did I think that I’d be crossing the start line in Greensboro with a starting temp of 32 degrees.

Weather

Of course, there are a few conflicting reports on what temp we’re starting in, but the truth is, it’s gonna be effing cold.

No matter, it’s off to the running store I go tonight. Objective? A better pair of gloves that actually fit my limbs, and those little hot hands thingies to stick in my gloves while we’re just chilling and waiting around for the gun to go off. And it’s time (now two days away) to plan a good outfit.

3 Days. (Question for my running buds.)

| cheriarmour

3 days until the Greensboro marathon.  I suppose it’s time to start making my list, my pyscho list of all the things I need.

But before then, I have a serious question.

It’s really quite horrid.

But last marathon, I wasted almost 10 minutes looking for a bathroom, and then executing the bidness, because port-a-potties horrify me in all sorts of ways.

There are a few precautions I can take to make sure this doesn’t happen. Like caffeine-free gels and Gus, or saving the caffeine for the very end so it barely matters.  But I saw a tip a few issues of Runner’s World back that recommended pounding a shot of Imodium before the big day.

imodium-coupon

For some reason, this really concerns me.  I don’t want to like, stop my body’s natural reaction to all the jostling, the nerves and the nutrition, but is it worth it to spare me a trip to the gross bathrooms and shave a little bit off my time?