Monday, June 15, 2015

Year 3 is in the books! A "10 Things" list to celebrate!

Happy run-iversary to me, happy run-iversary to me...

Three years ago today, I laced up my brand-spanking-new pair of Asics that I'd spent a cool $50 on at Kohl's and headed out for Week 1, Day 1 of Couch-to-5K (this was a 5 minute warm-up walk, then 60 seconds of running alternating with 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes).  I felt so awesome to actually be out and DOING something!  True to form for me, just six weeks later I was sidelined with my first running injury, a stress fracture in my left fibula.  I restarted the program at week 1, day 1 in early September after letting the fracture fully heal, but I will always consider June 15th my official "run-iversary," the day I decided to give this running thing a try.  Obviously, the rest is history when it comes to me and running.  I've ran in five 5K's, one 4-miler, one quarter-marathon, seven half-marathons (including the one when I blacked out and collapsed at mile 11--a DNF but I count it nonetheless), two 15-mile races, and two full marathons.  





I could spend this blog entry talking about many things--what running means to me, the friends I've made, the races I've ran.  Instead, I came up with a fun idea--10 things that most people do not know about me as a runner.  So, drum roll please...



10 Things You May (or May Not!) Know 
about Runner-Marcie!

1) I simply must have gum in my mouth when I'm running.  I started chewing gum about a year ago, when a few friends chided me for carrying water during a 5K race.  "You don't need to do that!" they said.  "It's only just over 20 minutes, you'll be fine!"  My handheld Nathan bottle was my security blanket, though.  When I tried to run without it, I would find my mouth to be incredibly dry.  To alleviate this, I tried running with gum one day, and now I feel extremely weird (and suffer from an awful dry mouth!) if I run without gum.  If you're interested, my gum of choice is Orbit sweet mint :)

I do not blow bubbles, however :)

2) My most favorite piece of running equipment is my pink FlipBelt.  Not my Garmin watch, not my shoes, not my BondiBands (headbands).  I bought my FlipBelt shortly after I started running as a way to carry my ginormous Samsung Galaxy phone.  I love that it holds my phone, my gels, Biofreeze packets, extra gum (see #1), chapstick, etc.  It is comfy and doesn't ever bother me.  I wear it around my hips and it seriously is super comfy.  I let my friend Jess borrow it for her most recent race and I missed it so much for the week that she had it!  I now use it on my bike rides too :)


3) My first race after finishing the Couch-to-5K program was the Hot Chocolate 5K in November 2012.  My best friend Elizabeth and I ran this race together.  I started out too fast and died, and she blew by me at the finish and promptly retired her racing shoes.  I always tell people that you can go in two directions once you run a race--you can be one and done, or you can continue racing and perhaps follow the path to half marathons and full marathons.  My chosen path is pretty obvious ;)


Elizabeth and me, post-race!

4) I actually ran in a race once before the Hot Chocolate 5K.  When I was in the 8th grade at St. Paul, the Catholic diocese of Columbus had a middle school cross-country race.  None of the schools had a team or anything, so it was really just anyone who felt like running could show up and run in the 2-mile event.  I was a swimmer and a soccer player, and I enjoyed running when we would do it during P.E. class, so I figured, why not?  I still have the 3rd-place overall female medal that I won.  


5) I am on an eternal quest to find the perfect shoe for me.  I started out with Saucony ProGrid.  My right foot would fall asleep on my runs, so it was recommended that I try the Mizuno Wave Inspire 9, as the toe box is wider.  The problem never truly went away for good, and when Mizuno released its newest version last year, I was not a fan and had to find a new shoe. I turned to the Brooks Adrenaline.  I do like my Brooks, but I know that my Cinderella shoe is somewhere out there.  The shoe that will feel like I'm walking (running) on air when I put it on.  


6) I'm a Balega lover.  Balegas are one of several different brands of running socks. I've ran in a few other types, and I will use them if I'm in a pinch, but I always smile when I slide on my Balegas.  Specifically, I adore the Hidden Dry low-cut socks.  They are super-thin and I barely feel like I have socks on when I'm wearing them.  I will say that in the winter, I love my thicker Feetures socks, or if it's REALLY cold, my Smartwool socks.  


7) I'm a stalker of sorts.  When I meet a new runner (either online, in person on a training run, or at a race), I check them out on Athlinks, which is a time compilation website where the races that a person has done are listed (it's pretty inclusive, although not every race seems to show up).  I honestly just do this so I can see if the person is possibly a good training partner for me.  If our race times match up, then maybe we can meet for a run.  I love meeting up with people for runs, and I'm always on the lookout for a new running friend.  My friends find it hilarious that I stalk others... I don't apologize for it; it's just me!


8) I used to be an evening runner!  This will come as a shock to most of my running partners, as 90% of our runs start between 4:30-5:00 AM.  When I first started running, I would do my runs at around 7:30 PM, after dinner was finished but before the twins would go down for the night.  I only became a morning runner during my second year of running when I started to meet other crazy mamas who like to get their runs out of the way.  Now, I can't even imagine running in the evenings!


An all-too-familiar sight for me

9) I do a pre-running dynamic stretching routine before every single run.  I wake up about 10 minutes before I actually need to wake up and do this routine (called the Myrtl routine) in my family room.  It opens up my hips and gets my body ready to run.  I started doing it last summer at the recommendation of my friend Erin to help with my IT band issues, and I've never stopped. 

10) I'm doing the Market-to-Market relay this fall!  I've been reading more about the Ragnar relays, and while those are overwhelming to me, Market-to-Market is more low-key as it only takes place over one day and the mileage is much lower.  So excited to join six of my favorite running friends on September 5 for this fun race!

Blogging friends, I encourage you to do a "10 Things" list as well; this was fun to come up with.  I tried hard to think of things that even my closest running friends may not know about me--not easy!

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