40 Lbs Later: On Running, Pregnancy Weight Gain and Accepting Limitations..........

Ohhhhhh......The befores and afters of pregnancy weight gain. The bodily changes are really such a strange thing. Seriously. Up until October, I was training with the LA Roadrunners for the Marathon and I obviously did not run this past March. For various reasons (which I will not get into detail in this post) I did not realize I was pregnant until about 8 weeks into the game. Around what I now estimate to be about 5 weeks into the pregnancy, I was still running a considerable amount. The second week of October I vividly remember a 10 miler through the streets of Santa Monica and Venice in a soft drizzle. It is funny to think back and realize that I was running the little one around unknowingly. Shortly after that, my energy went from good to slim to absolutely none which was a huge red flag that something was amiss. Once I found out that it was pregnancy and not anemia, chronic fatigue or some other energy sucking illness I made the decision to stop training based on some suggestions from the doctor. It wasn't too difficult a decision as I got very sick soon after with a respiratory infection and then really had zero energy. 

Here begins the weight shifts. I started off the pregnancy at around 144. I assume some of that was muscle from running pretty consistently all year. I had a couple half marathons under my belt as well as a handful of 5 and 10ks. When the running stopped in the first trimester (combined with the illness and lack of food intake) I dropped down to 135.  

In a matter of 5 months, I am now up to 174. It is strange to have gained so much even though I know it is pretty par for the course. It is not so much the number of pounds that I am preoccupied with but rather how much physically my body has changed and the limitations that coincide. It is hard to think back to being able to breeze through 13 miles enjoyably when today I struggled to make it across one side of my work building to the other. I cringe when I have to leave the office and waddle my way to do one of my many daily responsibilities. And dont get me started about taking off my boots, picking up a dropped pencil or getting into the boxes under my office desk! 

I know that many runners continue throughout pregnancy but this wasn't the case for me. When I finally got some energy back to be able to run (probably around the 5 month mark), I found that each step I took while running made me one step closer to needing a restroom! It just was not comfortable. I did a couple 2 milers, and then my body just said "no more!" I had to listen to my body and agree to this running hiatus. 

At my work shower in the beginning of May. 8 months and a week or so. 

December 2012 in AZ with my friends. Holding my Frito! A little over 3 months pregnant. 

If all goes well, I will be delivering a healthy baby girl in 2 weeks. I am thrilled and excited to meet her and begin this new journey. I would be lying if I said I was not also looking forward to gaining a bit more control of this strange new body of mine as well.......

LA Marathon 2013

Today I rode the Gold Line to Little Tokyo to catch a front row view of the 2013 LA Marathon. Just because I was under orders not to run, didn't mean I wanted to miss the event! The Metro was a perfect way to get to mile three without having to deal with the massive road closures causing motorists throughout the city some major frustrations. I was pretty proud of myself timing wise. I got off the Gold Line round 7:14 and by the time I walked up to Central, I was just in time to catch a couple of the wheelchair racers and the Women's Elite group as they came racing through around 7:27 or so. The Elite Men were shorty after followed by the general public who were completely filling the streets from about 7:45 to 8:45. And when I say filling, I mean it. A poor Asian couple suitcases in tow were literally stranded at the crosswalk for over 30 minutes until they dared to cross the sea of runners tripping one man while doing so. Here are some highlights:

Hopefully I will be in the sea of madness next year! Looking forward to training with a jogging stroller after lil' girl arrives! ;)

LA Roadrunners: 2012

I decided that this year would be the year. However, until I hit "submit" on the La Roadrunners/LA Marathon website I must admit.....there was doubt about following through with the training necessary to complete a full marathon. I had hopes the past year of registering and running LA, but to be honest....self training is difficult. I did not have the motivation to run more than 11 miles by myself. Sure, I ran a couple halfs last year, but even as a solo runner, there was some sort of immediate camaraderie that happens as a result of running in a crowd.  The individual runs never surpassed 11 miles. Anyone familiar with marathon training knows that 11 miles is not going to cut it.

With that fail under my belt, I decided that if I was going to ever run LA, I needed to do it proper. Thats where the LA Roadrunners came in. After reading up and thinking hard, I shelled out the money (very reasonable now that I am seeing the perks) and joined the group. Since training began, I had to really evaluate my past runs and realistically choose a pace group. The 10:30 race pace group was the one *i think* that will be the best fit. We do our long runs at 11:30 with the anticipation of racing at a faster pace.

Today was our second group run out in Venice. We meet bright and early at 6:40AM to walk over to the Strand. Today we ran 4miles, next week 5, then 6 then 8 and on up. The midweek is all up to us. I have been training on a treadmill lately due to the unusual heat here in SoCal. Hopefully I can change that in the next few weeks and get some nice outdoor runs before daylight savings takes our evening light away.

Will be posting weekly about the training and progress........

Running Songs: Part Deux

With marathon training officially beginning in a couple of weeks (just joined the LA ROADRUNNERS), I have been thinking about revamping my running songs playlist. I have been searching some running blogs for inspiration and have to agree with the masses that Eminem's "Lose Yourself" would make a pretty good addition.......damn catchy beat with a good build up for those inclines!!!

Here are some of my faves from the past couple months which will indeed remain on my list.:

LUPE FIASCO-Around My Way

This song kills it. Lupe has made the playlist at least 7 times with gems from 'The Cool', "Food and Liquor" and well, a couple from "LASERS' (was a sucker for that Trey Songs jam). Around My Way has me running fast and wanting more....cant wait til 'Food and Liquor 2' comes out at the end of September!!!!!!

JJAMZ-Heartbeat

Dreamy indie-pop that is perfect for taking things down a notch.

ST. VINCENT- Cruel

Fun, funky and at times mildly awkward but has a steady under beat that is good for maintaining consistent pace.

All those and more will be on my playlist for the 80's run over Labor Day. As I type, I realized I should add some 80's jams on the list in honor of the race theme!

Any favorite jams?

Pasadena Marathon Race Report

Today I ran the Pasadena Half Marathon. There was the good, the bad and well, nothing too ugly! With wedding hoopla and the run of the mill work stress, I admit I was kind of lax in my training the past two weeks. That factored into the bad, but more on that later. I got to the start roughly 10 minutes before they blew the horn. There was just enough time to visit a port-a-jon before the race began. Surprisingly, I was able to cross the start within 2 minutes of the front runners. The first segment of the half was incredible. We raced by Caltech, to old town, by city hall and then back out to a beautiful downhill on Colorado (to which The Pixes "Debaser" just added to that burst of speed!). The real gem was getting to run out and back on the Colorado Street bridge. Gorgeous views of the hills and greenery. From the bridge, we headed down Orange Grove through some neighborhoods to the Rose Bowl. It was about this time, round the seventh mile water station, that the warm weather AND the lull in training hit. While endurance wise, I felt ok, my knees and legs and right foot were al starting to bother. There was a general soreness that was just not going to let up. The final 6 miles were completed with an alternating walk and run. And may I add, each additional mile I began to linger just a little more at those water stations......

The Good:
Receiving water from a volunteer that was balanced on her head
The gummi bears and pretzels from the Pasadena Pacers station at mile 12
The bridge
Running Miles 1-7 in 1:10 minutes
Crossing the finish

The Bad:
Blisters
Bum Knee
Foot cramping during run (more bananas!!)
Crossing the finish line at 2:30

And PS...I am a total fan of these CX-W running tights. No back soreness as compared to the last half I ran. The tights have a pretty high and tight waistline that provide a considerable amount of support.

Coconut Water and Runners

I have been a hater when it comes to all things coconut since a very young age. My earliest memory dates back to Halloween when I bit into an Almond Joy or Mounds thinking it would taste more like a Milky Way or Snickers. Nay. The taste and texture of the coconut warranted a spit back into the wrapper. Since then, I have given it a chance....in baked goods, raw, smoothies etc but the verdict has always been the same with the exception of curries. Perhaps the flavor for me meshes more with savory items. Who knows? Either way, when it was suggested by both Amy and David that I drink coconut water after runs I immediately scoffed at the idea. Both did have a point though....coco water is fresh, full of electrolytes and considerably more natural of an item than the neon, fructose laden sports drinks that are so common these days. After picking some waters up at David's request, I decided to give one of the flavored ones a shot. I ran through DTLA today...short run....only 4.5 miles but it was warmer than usual. It was my first run post the Hollywood Half last weekend. I felt awesome, but towards the end, the heat was hitting me. I was very thirsty. When I came home, I saw the little Mango Coco water staring me down from the fridge. What the hell. I have it a shot. Surprisingly, I didn't want to spit it out. In fact, I wanted to keep drinking! The coco flavor is definitely hidden by the mango puree added to the juice. Definitely looking forward to trying some of the other fruit flavors in the future!

La Jolla Canyon Race Report

Today I completed my second trail race with Coastal Trail Runs. I first ran a 10k race of theirs back in November at Malibu Canyon. This time, I went for the 11 mile run through La Jolla Canyon which is technically still in Malibu but it might as well be in Oxnard! The drive from Eagle Rock took over an hour...and that is Sunday morning 6:30 AM with zero traffic! ;)

When I arrived, there were several folks getting ready to run the 30k, marathon and 50k. The longer runs all followed a similar course and began promptly at 8:00. The 11 mile race was to start next at 8:10 with the 5 mile race having the last start time of 8:20. The races began right on the money...well I'm assuming the 5 miler started promptly as well! My race started off with an immediate uphill on a single track. I think i ran for about a mile or so and then began alternating run/walk for the remainder of the steep uphill. Around mile 3 or so I hit the top of my first incline and was delighted to see fog breezing by! From this point, there was a glorious downhill on fireroad until the first aid station at mile 5.2. Like before, the station was totally well equipped for being in the middle of a canyon.....cliff shots, GU gels, pretzels, water. While drinking my quick dixie cup of sports drink, the staff at the tent offered to fill my handheld bottle up in an effort to expedite my stop! In race world, this is the best customer service a runner could expect! I continued down the road for a little less than a mile and was overwhelmed at my first turn.....a mega incline! Ugh. I started off running, but honestly, had to walk for a considerable amount of time due to the steepness! I eventually began to run/walk alternate as soon as the worst of it had passed. By this time, marathoners were running our way so there was a need to be mindful on the narrow parts of the trail. I did see one marathoner coming my way with a bloody knee.....probably one of the falls I heard about at the aid station...but it didn't seem to be slowing him down! The last 2.6 miles were downhill, but single track so I was unable to get the speed like I did on the fireroad.

I crossed the finish line at 2:25 which I was satisfied with. That gave me a 13:08 mile pace which while considerably slower than my PR, I had to take into consideration that this race was considerably harder than any road race! At the finish line, Coastal had any and everything we could want! Cokes, water, electrolyte drink, chips, fruit, pb and J, cinnamon rolls and candy! I look forward to running an event with them again! Until then, I am doing the Hollywood Half in April! ;)