Random thing to tell you today: At some point during the majority of my races (if I am pushing it), I make a promise to myself. I tell myself I can sit down just as soon as I get to the finish line. It probably looks dramatic when I do it but I don’t care, it helps me to not give up during my race just knowing I have that reward up ahead. I’ll never stop making this promise to myself because it works for me and I sit down pretty much every time.
Another promise I make to myself that I’ve made many times during races—> I’m never going to do this again.
And then this happens:
A few more random things to tell you before I cover what we’ve been up to lately!
*Quick rewind to my first marathon…I wore a brand new pair of shoes that were VERY different than my normal training shoes that were also a bit too snug on me with a Costco pair of cotton socks. The bottoms and heels of my feet were wrecked during that race, hence afterwards I could no longer wear my left shoe.
*Took in the girls for a wellness check-up the other day:
*I think Skye sees me put these on so often that she now tries to figure out how to put them on her own legs.
*I’m going to try something new… Does anyone else use this?
*The race also gave out these reusable straws at the expo… I am loving it!
*One last cool thing about the race I did last weekend: When you look up the results from your race you can click on a link that shows you the video of you finishing your race. It’s fun to watch the last 15 seconds of your race.
——————————————————————————————————
Let’s catch up on a few things from the last few days!
Maddie and I went on a trail run Monday morning. We crossed this stream that is not normally there but because we have had so much snow/rain this year, it has appeared.
10 miles @ 9:24 average pace with about 1300 ft of climbing. My legs felt better than I thought they would after the race!
We made it over to the pool.
Skye spent most of her time at the splash pad which is by far her favorite place to be now.
On Tuesday I took the girls out with me for my run. We did 7.5 miles at an 8:26 average and I’m telling ya… the electric scooter makes it so easy for me to run with them. This will be my view probably one time a week!
PS jogging stroller people… do you push with your right or left hand? I try to switch it up but my left hand feels so much more natural.
The rest of our day was spent getting ready to leave on a little trip to the beach. Andrew and I were looking at our week and realized that he has 5 days off from work and we have both of the big kids for 5 days. We aren’t sure how often that is going to happen this summer so we decided to take a mini trip together. We aren’t telling the kids so we will tell them when we get to the airport.
PS our roses are so so big right now.
—————————————————————————————-
Do you make any promises to yourself during a race?
Jogging stroller users—> push with your left or your right hand?
Have any trips planned this summer? Where?
Any big mistakes that you made during one of your first races?
24 comments
Mollie
Hahaha! I love the race promises. I always promise myself I never have to run EVER again if I just get to the finish line. lol. Runners are so ridiculous. I think I commented on here before about the Maurten, but it made me super sick. I need to start looking for something that works asap, marathon training starts soon! :) Have so much fun on your beach trip!!!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Hahahah I’ve made that promise too! Such a bummer it made you so sick! Have you tried UCAN? It’s amazing!
Jenny
I usually promise myself that I’m going to get a big cheeseburger but then I’m never hungry for one afterwards!
I’m the same: pushing with my left feels right. The majority of my runs are stroller runs so then I feel so fast and smooth when I run without it!
We just got back from a little beach called Fort Morgan in AL. The kids loved it- manageable waves and warm water :). My son was snorkeling and on the boogie board and just nonstop having fun and my daughter, who is a little older than Skye, was a total beach baby and loved the ocean! It was a lot of fun to watch them play :) Unfortunately while we were there a tornado hit our hometown. Unreal. We always get warnings but never actually get the tornado. The house next door has a tree fall on the roof above their bedroom. So many houses were damaged or destroyed so we were very lucky to just lose a lot of trees and power for a week. Surreal to come back to that.
I hope you have a great time on vacation!! I already miss the beach- it’s the best :)
The Hungry Runner Girl
Jenny, I am so so sorry about what happened to your town. That is so so scary. I am so thankful that you guys are okay.
I’m glad you had such a great time with your family at the beach. That beach sounds perfect! I hope you get to go back at some point soon:)
Oh I totally make that promise too! It’s amazing what a cheeseburger does for us!
Lindsey
I used to alternate hands but now my daughter is almost 5 and I have to push with both ?.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Maurten drink; I usually use the 320 rather than the 160. Once it’s all mixed up properly, it looks and tastes almost like plain water. I drink it before a race and it gives me tons of energy. The Maurten gels are really good too.
We are going to Sweden ?? this summer and I can’t wait ?…
Hillary
In my last marathon I kept telling myself in x minutes/hours from now you will be showered and cozy and fed and DONE. I think that got me through the unexpected heat and humidity. Us Michigan runners were not ready for that weather and the race was BRUTAL. Everyone my husband and I know did not do as well as they hoped (including ourselves) :/ I guess we have to do another one!
We are taking our girls (ages 9 and 7) to Disney World and Universal Studios in two weeks. We can’t wait! Hello Star Wars and Harry Potter! So excited!
Have a wonderful trip!
The Hungry Runner Girl
Ahhhh that is going to be so much fun! We are dying to go to Harry Potter Land (is that what it’s called haha)!
Oh that is a fabulous thing to tell yourself and I’m going to try that! I can’t imagine running a marathon in heat and humidity… you are strong! Your next marathon is going to feel amazing after doing one in those conditions. Have a beautiful day Hilary!
Eleanor (@smileygirlrunning)
Happy Global Running day!
My promise during a race is normally….as soon as we get to the end we can stop!! During one of the first 5ks I tried to race, I made the mistake of thinking that since it was only 3 miles I could push to the max from the start and finish fine with no speed training;) Boy was I wrong. I basically walked the last half of the race, hahaha!
My fiancé and I are taking a mini trip to Atlanta, GA for the AJC Peachtree 10k on July 4 and we’re staying for a couple nights! That’s our only planned vacation so far. I hope you guys have an amazing time on your trip and so glad you get to go with all of you!!
Jenny|Running On Life
Oh my gosh take me with you haha! I grew up going boating all summer. My parents sold their boat a few years ago and I never knew how much I missed the water until we went to California this year. I felt like Moana haha. You’re going to have so much fun!
I should try running while my kids bike sometime.
Corey
I’ve never seen so much great swag from one race! They really know what they’re doing :)
I mostly just promise myself that I’ll feel better if I just get it over with & stopping to “rest” before the finish would only make it take longer to get there.
It’s been a long time, but I’m pretty sure I was a left-handed stroller pusher, leaving my right arm free to swing.
Leaving tomorrow evening to drive from Maryland to Kentucky for a family wedding, possibly heading to southern Indiana to visit relatives before returning home. Also, I NEED to get to the beach sometime this summer, just not sure whether Delaware, Maryland, or North Carolina/Outer Banks.
Not understanding fueling and hydration led to some pretty terrible stomach issues in my first several races. I figured I was running, in part, to control my weight, so taking in calories didn’t make sense to me. After I figured out that calories and electrolytes are fuel that get me to my goals, it has worked out much better!
Hope you have a fabulous beach getaway!
Erica
I did a race around a lake once, and I told myself quitting was fine as long as it was to jump in the lake and swim.
Jen W
Promises to myself during a race—no matter WHAT the training calendar says, you don’t have to run again tomorrow if you don’t want to!!!! Or even, “You don’t ever have to run again after this!” ha ha when it’s realllllly tough!
Mistakes during early races–probably using Sport Beans for fuel. Then, the first time I traveled to KW to run the KW half, I “had” to eat this certain yogurt pre-race. So, I took one with me from home and tried to keep it cold through the traveling. Pretty unsuccessfully. I ate it anyway pre-race and had some interesting GI effects. Oh my. Now I eat bagels pre-race that travel WAY easier. ha ha
Trips this summer—we’re going to—surprise—Key West for a week in July. I really can’t wait. Next summer I REALLY want to go to Antelope Canyon in Arizona though—-soooooo beautiful and NOTHING like we have anything here on the east coast!!!
https://antelopecanyon.az/
Have a GREAT day, Janae!!!!!! :) OH, and have FUN at the beach!!!!!!!
Alyssa
I promise myself some sort of treat after :) Or that I can take a break in one mile, and then after that mile i tell myself, you can go another half mile at least then you can take a break. Most of the time I can keep myself going after each time without a break, but just making the distance into manageable chunks makes a difference for me.
I alternate arms every couple minutes with my stroller. My sister just told me about a stroller called JogAlong (https://jogalong.com/ergonomic-design/) it lets you push while both your arms are moving!! It’s not available yet, but I’m highly debating one once it is.
Our new pediatrician has no toys in the waiting room which is genius! They have a large fish tank and a bunch of “carnival” type mirrors on the walls that make you look tall, or really wide, or wavy. Nothing to touch, but the kids are still entertained. I wish more places would do that!
Victoria
Ahaha I make myself the exact same promise during races and almost always sit down at the finish. The volunteers are always like “are you ok?” and I’m like “yeah yeah, just DONE”
Your roses are beautiful!
Stacey
Instead of promising myself things, I tend to daydream about how good it will feel when___ happens. The “blank” can be just finishing, hitting my goal, hugging my son, or even winning a medal, if I’m in contention to do so.
I alternate hands with the stroller, but my left also feels more natural.
Not to get heavy, but I had anorexia and bulimia in my teens and 20s (fully recovered now), so mistakes I made generally involved overtraining and underfueling. That wasn’t so much “mistakes” as it was “mental disorder,” though, honestly. My brain didn’t allow me to do the right thing when it came to training and fueling.
I do remember my first race being a 10k, and I wore brand new keds (yikes), and a big cotton t-shirt. I didn’ do too bad, considering I didn’t even know how long a 10k was :)
Marissa @ Run With Riss
Ha, I make lots of promises to myself while racing/running. One thing I do is just tell myself to get to the next bush, corner, etc and I can slow down. But then I don’t :)
When I used the jogging stroller, I tried really hard to switch off between hands.
This summer we are taking our kids to TX to visit my BFF and then we’ll be in Dallas for 2 days with just our kids and they are begging to stay at a nice hotel and hang out at the pool and nothing else. I like that plan!
My biggest mistake on my first race was just not training appropriately. I basically thought if I could run 9 miles with little to no training, I would be fine. I was fine, but I could barely walk for about a week ;)
Kristin
When I’m running and I want to stop and walk, I tell myself, “You can walk after!” I love the feeling of a good walk so I think my brain likes telling me I should just be doing that instead of running. I usually end up with a longer cool down walk.
Not a mistake during a race, per se, but after my first half marathon, my friend who I ran with had brought her birkenstocks to put on after . . . never in my life have I been so jealous of a pair of shoes.
Your roses are BEAUTIFUL!
Lisa P.
I always plan out my food for after hard runs or races. What all can I indulge in?! When I run with the stroller I usually use my right arm to push because my left arm won’t count my steps if I use it and I need to hit my steps lol
Bobbie
I love the look of pure joy of Skye’s face. Great picture :-)
Bethany Thompson
Sounds like such a fun little get-away! Have a blast!
I like to think about how good sitting will feel during each race too and also how an iced latte (after about 50 cups of water) will taste too!
Another recent motivation for me was picturing a giant bowl of popcorn (topped with nutritional yeast – it tastes like cheese!!) + a movie that night. haha.
Loribeth
Have fun at the beach!! It isn’t technically summer, but we are road tripping to Texas in September…..it is all i can think about! SO. EXCITED.
The Hungry Runner Girl
That will be so fun and I have a feeling that your trip will get here fast. I hope your Thursday is a great one!
Tonya Hancock
Alternate hands for sure! Balance those arm muscles.
Jennifer
I always tell myself I’ll never do this again. And within 24 hours I’m looking for my next race.
My first half was so similar. I can think of so many things I did wrong. I just didn’t know, I wasn’t educated enough. But I learned a lot so that’s something.