Vacation Run Big Island Hawaii

Sorry for the long break. I just got back from nine days on the big island of Hawaii. We stayed just 25 minutes North of Kona. My goal for the trip was to get in quite a few runs. I packed a ton of work out clothes. It did not happen like I thought it would. Either running in Hawaii is hard, or running while pregnant in Hawaii is really hard. I think both is probably true. I ended up only doing two runs, a three mile run and a two mile run. I also did some lap swimming in the pool and a few short walks. I decided that was more than good enough for a vacation week.

Unlike my Maui trip, this time I made sure to get up right away and get going on my runs before the sun got too intense. I knew if I waiting until the afternoon I would never make it. The first run I did was along the coast line. It stretched from the house we were staying in to the Fairmont Orchid Hotel. The run was flat, but pretty difficult due to having to run through several sandy beach trails. Besides my normal slowness, I had to stop to walk quite a few times. I just got too tired. The run is posted at the bottom of this post.



View of one of the beaches I ran through

 The second run I did ran along the road inside the resort area. The view consisted mostly of lava rocks and the golf course. The miles of lava rocks reminded me of when I watch the Iron Man race in Hawaii and everyone looks hot and near death during the marathon portion. I ran a mile before I decided to just turn around. The baby was just too uncomfortable. I decided her or she was right about the run needing to end.

I will miss Hawaii. This time I do not know when I will be back. I know I will be though. Until then, I will dream of being able to run there again and getting a good nap in by the pool afterward. Here is to a warm Seattle summer. Fingers crossed.

Race (Spectator) Report: Kirkland Half Marathon

Just to start out, I did not run the Kirkland Half Marathon/5k. I might have had I had an easier time running the begining part of my pregnancy, but I didn't so that is that. The course does pass near my house, though. One of my good friends was running it too, so I decided to take part in the fun.

It was a dreary, cold, Pacific Northwest morning. The start time for the race was 7:30 am. Talia (my friend running) set a goal to run about ten minute miles, so I set my alarm for 7:40. I got up and looked out the window. The walkers were just walking along the main road. I got dressed and started a pot of coffee. Then I grabbed my neon green "go talia" sign and walked out to the course. By the time I made it out there, most of the elite runners had passed and it was still mostly walkers passing by. (I should explain, you can walk the half marathon too, the walkers start before the runners... just in case you hadn't figured that out yet.) I am not the best cheerleader. I am good at making signs, but not so good at the yelling. Talia became popular with the people walking by, so they were doing the cheering for me. One man even declared that he was Talia. I think the real Talia would argue that.

I had to start looking really hard once the crowd of runners started to pass. There were a lot of white hats like hers running by. Talia saw me first and smiled. She loved her sign. I wish it was later in the race she ran into me, but I am sure it helped boast her over some of the hills she still had to run the next three miles of the course.

I went back inside, where it was warm and dry for the next hour. That coffee I made tasted sooo good. At 8:45am I started to make the walk down to the finish line. I met up with the course at the mile 12 marker. I debated on waiting there for Talia or to keep going for a little while. I decided to walk and knowing she would catch up with me soon. About a half mile down she did. I think I was almost more excited to see her than she was to see the finish. I ran with her a little ways and when I got too hot from all my layers I told her to go pass these girls 10 yards in front of her. I caught up with her at the finish line. Her time? 2:13 and some change! I'm so impressed. The Kirkland half is no easy course. I'm sure the next simpler course she does she will get under two hours.

We walked around the vendor booths to check them out. I bought a running skirt and some compression socks. (I will post a review for them soon.) I said goodbye to Talia and her husband. Then I walked my way back home. I was sad I could not be part of the race, but at least I got to participate in the way I could. I also got my exercise for the morning with the long walk to the finish. Sorry I don't have any pictures. I really need to get better at that for you guys. Talia, I hope you don't mind being part of my blog this week. :)

Race Report: Spokane Bloomsday

Sunday was the 35th Annual Spokane Bloomsday Run. This year over 60,000 people signed up. I have not been able to find any data yet on how many finished. It doesn't matter any way. That is a lot of people. We made the trip over to the mountains in pretty good time. We made a stop at the Road House Grill for lunch in Ellensburg and our friend's mom made her annual home made lasagna for us to eat for our prerace dinner (yum!). All tired out from our journey, I went to bed at 9pm.

The weather was unseasonably cold for Spokane this time of year. The temperature at start time was 44 degrees. Knowing the forecast, I packed layers to wear, and my running gloves. I was really worried about, for lack of a better word, all my snot production due to my pregnancy. It is worse in the cold, which makes me more likely to gage and barf.

The next morning our wake up call was at 6:30am. I got up after an okay night's sleep and I had a major head ache. I forgot to pack my mouth guard and I had been grinding my teeth all night. My stomach also did not feel very good. I made sure to go upstairs and eat a small breakfast. I had oatmeal, a piece of toast, a banana, and some coffee. At that point I took some aspirin for my head ache. I went back downstairs to use the bathroom before we left. My stomach started doing flip flops. I barely made it to the bathroom when I lost my entire breakfast. I was so upset. I really needed the fuel for the morning. Not only that, I was really worried about how the race itself would go. On a normal day I probably would have gotten back in bed, but everyone was waiting for me to leave for the start line, so I collected myself and got in the car.

The entire car ride over I made sure to sip water. I contemplated the whole way whether or not I should run. It could be a really miserable 7.5 miles or it could be that my stomach would settle and all would be okay. I decided that I didn't go all the way to Spokane to just hang out and go home, so I kissed H good bye (he was sitting on the side lines due to his injury) and slowly walked to my green bib corral to wait for the start.

I love the race corals for large races. All the body heat kept me warm and the sun really helped too. It was amazing to look out to the sea of people in front and behind be. I made sure to line up at the end of the green pack, since I knew I would be much slower than the others in the corral. I was too stubborn to move back a corral from where I qualified last year. It turned out to be a really good choice to stay in the same corral. I think I must have just missed qualifying for yellow last year. Maybe next year I can "prove it" and move up a corral. :)

It was a long, cold, wait in my pin to cross the starting line, but 25 minutes later I finally did. It was hard to start out since I was so cold and stiff from waiting. I did a good job at staying at a slow and steady pace, despite the temptation to take off like all the others. I just laughed on the inside because I knew in about half a mile they would get tired from their sprint and I would start passing them.

Soon enough I did. I actually passed people! I also started to feel really good. I just took things slow and steady. I didn't have any problems with my stomach at all. I was feeling so good, It was hard to make myself stop from running the hills. The first three miles were awesome.

After that it felt like the baby woke up from what ever nap it was taking. It started to feel like I was getting poked. It didn't hurt, it was more like a "cut it out mom, I'm trying to chill out in here". It made me smile, and I kept on going. I knew as long as it didn't hurt the baby was fine. He or she needs to get used to running any way :)  We will be doing a lot of that together.

I got a lot of comments on my shirt. About five people taped me on the sholder and told me how awesome it was. One man said I was sending a really great message. I heard other people comment on it from behind me. A couple times even, when I passed guys, I heard them say common we need to get moving if she is passing us.

Doomsday Hill is right before the end of mile five. Last year that is what really tired me out. This year I knew better to even attempt to run it. As soon as I hit a decent incline I stopped to walk. It really helped me save my energy for the last two miles. I felt much better running them this year than the last. I was so thankful.

My finish time was 1:32:10, just a hair slower than my goal, but I really don't care. I finished the race, felt good, and didn't barf. Biggest thing of all, I had a blast! I love Bloomsday. It's so well organized it puts other larger races to shame. Race organizers should really mentor with the Bloomsday organizers. I can't wait until next year already. Below is my mile splits, if you are interested.

1         11:14
2         11:49
3         12:56
4         11:53
5         13:12
6         13:03
7         12:08
8         11:00

Spokane or Bust!

This weekend is the Spokane Bloomsday 12k! For those who are not from the area, it is an annual race held in Spokane, Washington. The website says it is in it's 35th year. It is currently averaging 50,000 runners a year. Last year, my first time running it, there over 55,000 people signed up, with just over 50k finishing. Seattle Rock and Roll limits their registration right now to about 30,000 people. The population of Spokane, Wa is estimated at only 205 thousand people. That is a lot of runners. You also have to finish the race to get your race shirt, which is a little different. Needless to say, I am really excited! It is hard not to when you see how much the whole town gets into this race. Last year my time was 1:19:36. I expect to be much slower than that this year. I think I am going to go for around 1:30 for a goal.

After passing so many people during my last race I felt inspired to purchase this shirt from Zazzle.com. On the front it reads "running for two" and on the back it says "you just got passed by a pregnant runner". I am excited to wear it and to see what kind of response I get during the race, although I don't think I will be passing a lot of people. I do not look pregnant either, so we will see if anyone really notices.

I was actually able to run four miles yesterday! That is the first time I have been able to since March 6th. It was hard and slow. My average pace was close to twelve minute miles and I have to stop to walk on hills because my heart rate gets too high (which makes me feel nauseous and dizzy). My average heart rate was still 150 with a max at 178. I feel pretty comfortable with that. I need to watch those 170s though.

H and I had an attempt on making onion soup out of my Best of Clean Eating Cook Book (my Amazon Associates Account isn't linking properly. I'll fix it later. Grrr). It did not turn out good at all. If we try to make it again we will skip adding the vanilla to it. When we were done it tasted a lot like water with onions floating in it. We ate the cheese croutons as a snack and ordered pizza. Better luck next time.

Staying Healthy in the First Trimester

Right now I am 14 weeks pregnant. There are not a lot of blogs out there talking about working out during pregnancy, so I figure I'll share my experience. Leave a comment if you want more detail about something or have a question. I am no doctor, but I am happy to share what I am going through.

Exercises
Pre-pregnancy (I'll use PP for short) I worked out five days a week. My off season work out routine looked something like this:

3 to 5 mile run
Cross training day (which for me was my gravity class and an elliptical warm up if I had time)
3 to 5 mile run with speed training or hills
3 to 5 mile run plus lifting
6 to 9 mile run

I tried to keep up the same schedule. My doctor told me to just listen to my body and do what feels comfortable. She promised to let me know when I had to stop doing certain things. I quickly discovered my current schedule no longer worked. I did pretty well the first month, but my long runs became impossible. I have only been able to complete two six miles runs since I became pregnant. On both those runs the last three miles I had to stop to dry heave multiple times (this was on my way home, so there wasn't a way to cut it short at that point).

Towards the end of the second month I started to have less energy (equalling to little motivation) and started to feel more nauseous. If I felt good I could get out for a three mile run. If I did not, I would hit the elliptical. For some reason running really made me sick. Most of the time I could manage the elliptical or lifting just fine. There were a couple occasions I set out to run, started to feel my stomach turn and just went back home to lift. My five day a week work outs have been cut to four days a week. I just feel too tired and felt the need to rest. For all you girls out there who run full and half marathons into your second trimester I don't know how you do it. Props to you for sure!

Now being at week 14 I feel a lot better. I am noticing right now when I get my heart rate too high I start to feel sicker, so I am having to hold myself back. It is really frustrating, but I know if my body responds by wanting to hurl it is the best thing to do for me and the baby. I can run more during the week, but I haven't been able to run farther than three miles at a time. My goals was four to five last weekend, but there was an unfortunate vomit incident that made me cut it back to two miles. No good. Below is what my schedule looks like currently:

3 mile run
Gravity
3 mile run and lifting
3 mile run (hopefully more one week sometime here)

I do not think I will be able to do Gravity much longer. It is making me really motion sick. I cannot lay on my stomach any more and I will not be able to do ab exercises soon. Luckily, my trainer is awesome and she is thinking about changing her class so I can still take it. We will see what happens.

Diet
It took me a little while to get a good system down with my eating. At work sometimes I would go with out eating from 7am to 3pm. I would try to eat a snack at noon if I knew I had to take a later lunch, but if I did not get a chance to eat it, it wasn't the end of the world. I was also really good at not eating something if I knew it was bad for me just because I was hungry, like french fries, chips, candy, really processed stuff, etc. Now if I skip a meal I WILL shove a whole pie down my throat because I am hungry. I also had no ideas how many calories I should be eating. I figured I was pregnant, so I should be eating more, but I had no idea how much. I made several mistakes, but now I have a schedule down. Here is what my day looks like:

7am Breakfast
11am Snack (usually whole natural almonds or a piece of fruit)
2pm Lunch
4 to 5pm Snack (what ever I didn't eat in my lunch or some more almonds)
5 to 6pm granola bar
8pm Dinner

That has kept me from eating a whole pie or a plate of french fries. To answer the calorie question, here is what I read: 1st trimester 100 calories more, 2nd trimester 300 calories more, 3rd trimester 500 calories more. I am still tempted to eat things that are bad for me, but oh well. I'm pregnant I am going to enjoy it and not stress over a few splurges. Everything in moderation. Luckily my cravings have been pretty healthy, eggs and pickles. On my eggs I will take out one of the yokes to make them a little healthier. Last time I went to the doctor I had only gained four pounds so far. I am not sure if that is normal or not, but the doctor has not said anything, so I am sure I am doing just fine.

Race Report: Seahawks 12/5k Renton Landing

First of all I must start off by announcing, yes I am pregnant. This blog will turn into how I am managing my work outs and not to stuff my face over the next six months. After the baby gets here I'll talk about how I am managing to get back into shape afterwards. I am not looking forward to how hard it is going to be, but I know the new addition to our family is worth it. I am currently 13 weeks along, due October 20th. My next post will be all about how I have managed thus far. It has been a struggle, let me tell you!

I originally signed up for the Seahawks 12k (7.5 miles), before I found out I was pregnant and had every intention of still doing it. Since then I have only been able to manage two six mile runs in month two and both of those I spent the last three miles having to pause to dry heave every half mile. Needless to say half way through my third month I decided attempting the 12k was not a good idea. Especially at Seahawks they don't allow walkers for the 12k (their permits don't allow road closures for long enough). Fortunately, the Seahawks also allow a 5k run/walk and I knew I could at least walk that.

Seahawks start and finish

There were A LOT more people this year! Last year maybe a thousand people lined up at the start. This year there was over 3,000. I think next year they need to split the start times for the 12k and the 5k runners. A lot of the 5k walkers clogged up the front of the line. It was really annoying and I wasn't even racing for time.

I felt really good at the start. I wanted to go faster, but knew I should hold back. I had not run a full three miles in almost a month. I felt great through mile two. Mile three is when I started to get tired and a little nauseous. I knew my legs weren't tired though so that is what prevented me from stopping and walking.

Here are my splits:
Mile 1     10:14
Mile 2     10:10
Mile 3     10:11
Mile 3.1  8:17

Me on the left at the finish. Recognize the jacket?

Overall it was a fun race. My finish tile was 31:42. I'll take it. I was not racing and it isn't too much slower from my last 5k. Looking at my Garmin it looks like my heart rate got way too high. I think it was picking up other monitors at the start. I do not think 223 beats per minute is right at all. I have noticed it having this problem at the start of other races. My average heart rate was 173, which seems closer to correct, but still a little higher than I would prefer given my current condition.

I liked the changes the race organizers made in the course. It was much more intuitive. The course for the 5k was not a challenge. It is all flat, so another good beginner 5k race. None of the players were there this year due to the lock out. I really enjoyed getting my water from Brandon Mebane last year. Blitz and the cheerleaders were still at the race though.

I'll use signing up for the 12k next year as my motivation to get my mileage back up and to get back in shape.

Product Review: Adidas Marathon 10 Jacket

April showers may bring May flowers, but they also bring a lot of rain. So I get wet when I run outside. I know people say you'll get wet anyway from sweating. The question for me is how wet do I really want to get? I prefer only slightly damp myself. To solve this dilemma, I asked for the Adidas Marathon 10 jacket for Christmas thinking it would keep me dry but also warm during the winter months. So far it has worked really well. My mom also chose to buy me the bright 90's colored one (the sleeves have hot pink stripes), so I can be well seen. H thought it was cool, so he looked for a version in the guys section. Adidas does sell the Marathon 10 for guys, but they don't have cool colors like teal and hot pink for the men.

Me in my Marathon 10 Jacket

I have worn it on several below freezing runs, 28 degrees, 32 degrees, etc. It kept me warm and cool at the same time. The jacket has a lot of breathing holes in it so air can circulate. I found on my longer runs I would open the zipper 3/4 the way down after I got warmed up. I never felt the need to take it off, though. The sleeves have thumb holes in them so they stay down. I can wear my gloves under then pretty easily. The hood has a hole for my pony tail, if I ever wanted to wear it. I think I would be just too uncomfortable. I'd rather wear a hat. I have to any way to keep the rain off my face. The fabric is light weight and comfortable. The jacket is also easy to wash. The length on it is good (I am 5'10"). That was another thing I was concerned about.

I thought I would be able to wear my running watch under the sleeve, but I can't. I have to wear it on top. It is still comfortable. H says I look like a dork, but it works. The sleeves are slightly short for my long arms. I have been able to stretch out the thumb holes so it is comfortable to wear, but it was touch and go for a while. I thought I might have to return it.

Like I said it only keeps me from getting really really wet. I still don't stay 100% dry. It is much more comfortable to wear than the alternative. If I didn't wear it I would have to ring out my clothes when I got home. Wearing this jacket I don't. If you live some where rainy and have the cash, I would recommend adding this jacket to your running wardrobe.