running on a bummed hip

Yesterday I ran the CA Classic Half Marathon. The CA Classic Weekend held in Fresno is a two day event. Saturday starts off with a bike ride (three different distances 35 miles, 60 miles or 100 miles) and Sunday is the run (5k, Half, Kids run). It's a great weekend for Fresno. I really want to learn how to ride and hopefully race once day. 

My day started off at 5 am. It took me a while to wake up. Coffee and oatmeal helped. It's about a 30 minute drive from Dinuba to Fresno. My parents drove with me and we got to Chukchansi Park (baseball stadium for the local Fresno Grizzlies) at 6:15. Parking was super easy, we found a spot about a block away from the stadium.

I like races that start at a venue because they have real bathrooms. They also had port-a-potties set up and it looked like there were plenty and the wait wasn't long. 

The race started a little after 7:00. It was already a little warm outside. 

I have been dealing with a little injury. My hip has been bugging me and so has the back of my knee. I was worried about the pain during this race and had told myself that I was just going to take it easy. 

Of course, once the race started and every one took off, I followed. I had to tell myself to slow down multiple times. i started off to fast and slowed down to an 8 min/mile pace. I also kept checking in with myself, making sure to ask "is this pace comfortable".. "is it too fast". I tried to keep an 8:30 min/mile for the first few miles. The first 5 miles were through downtown and some residential areas, as we made our way to the zoo. 

The course was great. I really enjoyed the zoo and wished I had a camera. We ran past sea lions, giraffe and zebras. Did you know it would take a giraffe 25 minutes to run a half marathon. 

After the zoo, I started to feel hot and dehydrated. I grabbed water at the aid station; drank half the cup and dumped one on my head. That helped but my pace started to slow down, 8:30-8:40 min/mile. 

After mile 10, my hip and thigh was cramping. I knew that I wasn't going to be able to keep moving as fast as I wanted to. It was really disheartening because the race was almost over, I had felt so great earlier and I couldn't keep it up. 

The last two miles were a 9:50 min/ mile. I couldn't lift my left leg high enough for a good stride. I felt like I was taking little bitty steps. 

AHHHHH! I was so upset with myself, and my leg. 

I told myself not to stop. It didn't matter if it took me an hour to run those last two mile, I was not going to walk. It was a conscience effort to put one leg in front of the other. But, I finally got there. When I saw the finish line, I tried to sprint but it was more like a painful jog. 

The good news is that I finished. And that I ran a lot of the race at a decent pace. I was really worried that I would be in pain after 3 miles. 

Scandal and an article

This week I've been taking it easy with just a few runs and hopefully I won't be in a lot of pain for the half marathon on Sunday. 

My only goal for this race is to run conservatively, listen to my body and stop if it starts to hurt. 

This morning I worked out on the stationary bike for an hour and then worked on my arms. I watched an episode of Scandal on my laptop during my workout. 

I know you have heard how great this show is, but in case you haven't…. it's so zoo sooo good. It's like "gasp!! oh my"- shocker all the time. I can't get enough. 

----------------

I was reading this article on line about 'Fat Talkers' and I thought it was really interesting and relevant. Fat talking is making comments about your self about being fat. I am totally guilty of doing this. Some days I feel a little bloated and I make comments about being fat. It's not that I AM fat, I just feel like I have put on a little weight or feel bad about myself. Doing this, however, does not make me feel better or the person who has to listen to me ramble on and on. On the contrary, I feel WORSE about myself and I'm sure the person who has to listen to me probably like me a whole lot less. 

cinco de mayo

Feliz cinco de mayo! Did you do anything special? I didn't, wooohooo!

Saturday morning long run was a hot 13 miles. I left my place at 7 am and was feeling the sun by 8. Summer in the central valley is not fun.

I kept the pace slow. It actually felt slow motion slow. I looked down at my watch a few times and was running a 9:30 min/mile pace. I felt slow, I wanted to run faster but my hip was hurting and I really don't want to hurt myself any more.

The pain began towards the end of the run (around mile 9) but was worse during the day. If I sit for too long, I feel a cramp on my hip and my leg tingles and hurts. I need to do some googling and try to find out what the problem could be.

May Day + Workout Wednesday

Welcome to May!

Were getting closer to summer and to the dreaded bikini season. In honor of that (and to keep myself consistent) I am going to start "Workout Wednesday" posts.  Each week I will post something and keep adding every week.

My favorite body part are my abs so….. Workout Wednesday #1 is all about the tummy

I am by no means an expert. I like to work out and I'm just posting some of those workouts in case anyone is interested.

Running update ****
I ran the same 3 miles again. I didn't feel any pain (!!!) I didn't want to do more than that and I will be keeping the miles low until I feel comfortable with adding miles.

3 miles and pain returns

I took a week off from running because my left leg was hurting (hip and back of knee area).  This morning I went for a 3 mile run and then worked out on the stationary bike for half an hour, followed by a short weight training session.

After the second mile, the pain in the back of my knee started up again. Not bad or painful, just uncomfortable. My hip feels fine. I'm not sure what could be wrong with my knee or what to do to speed up the healing process.

It's very frustrating because I really want to race and attempt a PR. I'm mentally ready to start training hard again and have already been planning a few races I want to run.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do next. Run less? Ice? Rest?

I have a race on May 19 (I really wanted to run hard for this race) and I'm not sure what's going to happen.

I guess in the mean time, I'll run less and ice/ stretch …. sad face

Real Salt Lake Roadtrip

I sent this last weekend in Utah. We were there for the LA Galaxy game against Real Salt Lake. 

One of my goals in life is to run a race in all 50 state. This trip was really last minute and I didn't have any time to look up anything. Saturday I noticed that there was a local half marathon that morning. I wish I could have known that a little earlier and could have checked utah off my list. Oh well, I guess I'll have to go back. 

Back to the trip: 

* Got to see a little of the beehive state

* And spend some time with my bf :)

* Catch up with friends I haven't seen in a few weeks and friends I haven't seen in more than a year

*Plus watch my boys in blue in gold

* LA wins 2-0. 

Last minute road trip

I am not a spontaneous person at all.

I am more of a planner, list maker,  and list checker (X5) type. Doing things last minute really stresses me out and makes me really nervous.

Last night, I had the opportunity to join Anthony and friends in Salt Lake City for the RSL vs. LA Galaxy game. Really, there isn't a lot of pans to be made, but I still feel very uncomfortable with the short notice.

I'm taking the Amtrak from Hanford to LA tonight. And tomorrow, I'll be in a car for more than 10 hours on the way to Salt Lake. I packed a bag, mostly with comfy clothes for the long drive. Also, a few long sleeves in case it's cold and a running outfit, in case my legs feel up for a run.

I've missed the last few games so I'm excited to catch a Galaxy game. Plus, I've never been to Utah and I'm looking forward to a the adventure.