RSD292

Haven't posted since August?!?  I must be slacking. If you're reading this then I apologize for my lack of consistency on the blog. Although I am still running!  

Finished my second ever full marathon with friends down in Portland. Amazing event. The results weren't exactly what I would have liked but I finished!  Considering the minimal training I'm surprised at how well I did. Got some cramps around mile 17 and struggled through the rest of the race dealing with that. I ran in my Adidas supernova boost. Super lightweight and comfy for about 15 miles. I began thinking my Pegasus would have been a better idea for cushioning and a plush ride. Oh well. We live and learn!  

Looking forward to booking this trip to Peru this week to visit my brother. I hadn't really considered how the heck I'm going to run while away.  the town of Cusco which has an elevation of 12000 feet is where we'll be for a few days before heading to Machu Picchu. Here's to buying bottles of oxygen!!!!  

Cheers!  

Getting Marathon Ready!!!

Ran a little over 12 miles today in preparation of the Portland City Marathon Oct 4th.  A good friend and running buddy of mine talked my into doing it a few weeks ago so here it goes! Didn't run quite as fast as I would have liked today however given the circumstance (75 degree weather and running through 5 mile drive trails in Pt defiance park) I'm happy with it.  I felt like I was running uphill the entire way!  

This weekend was a busy one.  helping my dad paint the house while squeezing in a long run was not an easy task none the less I was able to get it done!

hope everyone has a great week!  shout out to my boy Sam for working on his first half marathon for Oct 4th as well!  Looking at places to stay on airbnb as I write this!  :)

Worst Blogger Ever....

Good Morning!

I have got to be the worst blogger ever!  over 100 days since my last post?!?!?  Shout out to my boy Chris for calling me out on my blog asking for another post.

Here we are.  As I wake up on #RSD194 (still going strong even though my blogging has been non-existent!) which also happens to be my 33rd birthday, I can't help be feel overwhelmed.  Overwhelmed with support.  Overwhelmed with love.  Overwhelmed with joy.  Completely and utterly blessed.  Thankful for the ability to come out everyday and run.  No matter how far, or how fast, the ability in and of itself is truly a blessing.

Just before I began the month and reached my halfway point I had a conversation with my neighbor who was moving out.  His wife had been diagnosed with a condition called cerebellar ataxia.  This condition has caused her to lose coordination and most of her physical functions have been reduced to that of an 85 yr old woman.  This really put things into perspective for me.  I have had several conversations with Ken over the year or so we've been neighbors however I had only met his wife once as her condition kept her mainly indoors.  Over quite some time trying to assess her condition Ken had decided to purchase a 30 foot RV to call home so they can go and visit family in different parts of the country on their journey to an resort that they will call home until they decide their next move.  Ken's unwavering commitment to his wife is truly inspiring and letting go of everything including your career to make way for greener pastures is beyond amazing.  After hearing all of this I vowed that the month of July would be dedicated to Jacquie.  Everyday that I feel like relaxing or I'm "too tired" or my legs feel weak or "I don't have enough time".  I will remember the strength that Jacquie requires to fight her condition.  the strength it takes to overcome such adversity.  The strength that Ken has shown in everything he has done and will continue to do for his wife.  I will tap into that strength and continue my streak.  Each day I come back from a run a little piece of me wonders where they are on their journey now.....

With all that said Thanks everyone for the birthday wishes and a special thanks to my GF for making me take today off and spend time with her.  I can't remember the last time I took a day off just because and it feels amazing.  Now only if I can truly ignore my work email.....

So with 194 days down it's too late to turn back now!  171 more days to go!  I really have to find some races to sign up for and get some more competitive running in!

Here's to not letting another 100 days pass before my next post!

#RSD74

This week was a very busy and full of anxiety between running and my professional life.  I just accepted a new role with our Microsoft solutions specialist team for the North West territory.  This role brings along with it financial benefits as well as added responsibility and visibility.  I am definitely both very excited and nervous to begin this new journey.

As far running goes, just 10 days ago I signed up for my first half marathon of the year!.... which was yesterday.  Definitely had some doubts throughout the past week and a half so I went for a 10 mile run last Saturday morning.  This was all before heading to Leavenworth for a friends bday.  (mental note.  Never run 10 miles before sitting in a care driving 3 hours over the pass again)  My previous long run of the year was just over 5 miles as I had been primarily running 1 and 2 miles/day.  I would have liked to have planned a little better and trained for this one but none the less I finished in a decent time.  2:12:52 with 10:08 pace.  The course itself was much less flat than I expected!  looked like a basic out and back along the waterfront with a little neighborhood running in there as well but I did not anticipate all the hills that were mixed int between the 6 and 9 mile marks!  After coming back down all the hills we ran up it seemed like it would be smooth sailing on the way back along the straight flat waterfront road.  We had another thing coming.  Running into wind and rain the entire way back that seemed fitting for a damn episode of "The Deadliest Catch" was not what I had in mind!  (Okay maybe I'm embellishing a bit but it wasn't fun)  It seems that the running gods did not get a chance to reserve some time with the weather goods to make sure everything was in order.

During the pre-race shenanigans I ran into an old friend in the starting corral that had since moved to Portland and happened to be there running with her husband and father-in-law (who btw came in second place in masters!)  I also met some amazing people during the run around the 11.5 mile point and we pushed each other up the final hill in the wind and rain to the finish.  Shout out to my new running friends Eric and Mary!  Also shout out to my boy Patrick for coming out and to Nate for bringing out another first timer and good friend Shantel.  Last but not least I want to thank my wonderful GF for catching an uber early in the morning to come out and cheer me on to finish the race.  Your support means the world to me.  Thank you.

And now for todays RSD.  Heavy rain (worse than yesterday).  Around the same level of wind.  Sore legs. And a warm bed.  Definitely a recipe for staying home and catching up on some Netflix.  Today was not the most fun of all runs this year, and as many obstacles there were against me there was only one thing that mattered.  Getting in another mile for another day and continuing this streak. Yesterday was the first step in earning the "Crown of the Sound" half marathon series medal and today was another step towards my #run365 goal.  So happy early St. Patrick's Day and here's to another day in the books and raising a glass of Guinness with friends over a delicious Irish meal.

run streak day 55 in the books! First day of the year that I've run indoors on a treadmill. I hate treadmills! Lol. Decided to mix in a resistance workout with my run today since I'm leveraging the hotel fitness room while traveling for work. I've discovered along the way that no matter how challenging something is if its made a priority it can be completed. The runs themselves are the easy part. Its the mental aspect that is the challenge everyday. When your work days become 14 hours due to travel and coworkers want to grab dinner and drinks afterwards. These things make it difficult to stay focused and keep your eyes on the prize. Its so much easier to go with the flow and and convince yourself that you've done a good job. 55 days is better than you've ever done. Truth is if the goal is 365 then although 55 is great, it isn't good enough. In order to reach your goals sacrifices will need to be made no matter the nature of the goal. Given the determination anything can be accomplished. If Jordan stopped after getting 1 ring then Kobe wouldn't be the player he is today trying to get 6 rings after 20 years in the league. Its that hunger that drives individuals to reach and exceeds goals. With that said im going to eat dinner now because im starving!!!! #rsd365 #cantstopwontstop

#RSD46

Happy Valentines and Presidents weekend everyone!  #RSD46 and still going strong!  Was an amazing weekend as I was able to enjoy some amazing weather while spending the weekend in Ocean Shores with my wonderful lady. I planned to get one of my runs in on the beach but decided I would just knock it out as soon as I got home.

Hope all the run streakers and fellow runners are out there still going strong no matter the weather.  Tonight's run just at dusk allowed me to enjoy an amazing fire red sky from the afterglow of the sunset over the water near Chambers.  I've got a work trip coming up pretty soon here and I'm Starting to wonder where and how I'll be running.  Guess I'll figure it out when the time comes!  until next time....

#Run365 #RuntoLive #LivetoRun

He's Back!

I'm back!  I have been completely slacking on this blog haven't I!?!?  Well I guess as long as I keep running that's what's important.

Last I left this blog was before I went Skiing (attempted to) up at Crystal Mt.  That day was a struggle.  drove all the way up there testing out my new ski rack and the weather took a turn for the worst and it was raining and windy as hell.  We got there and the top half of the mt was on wind hold which meant there was really only one run and tickets were still selling for full price.  This was way too much money to me for one run in the pouring rain.  They had a big demo sale going on so I decided to shop and kill some time in case they decided to open up the mt or discount the lift tickets, of which they did neither.  Ironically enough they had a pair of skis that I had checked out at REI and Sturtevants a few weeks before and they were brand new demo skis with bindings.  And to me $65 for a lift ticket on a rainy day was too much money but I ended up spending $500 on new skis that day!  Ended up just having a beer and heading home for the day but I was super stoked to get new skis and I was able to get home early and get my run in!

The past couple weeks I've had my fair share of challenges and remained committed to #run365.  This past Friday was our annual work banquet which alot of coworkers call it our "prom".  It's a fun night to dress up and attend the annual awards ceremony with partner and company hosted dinner and drinks.  All of this sounds awesome but since I had to work early that day I forgot to set my alarm early enough to attempt a morning run.  Not being prepared for such I didn't bring any clothes to run during my lunch break either.  Leaving directly from work to the banquet gave me little time to do anything other than change into my formal attire and head out.  Shout out to my man D Groll for getting the after party started!  You'll have to give the new cats dance lessons in the yoga studio at work!  haha After deciding to go out for drinks with the guys post banquet the only option I had was to run when I got home.  Several drinks later I made it home for that late night run fueled with vodka tonics and Cab Sav, annnnnnd there might have been a shot or two of fireball in there as well.

So with an almost 2 week blogging hiatus, a new pair of skis and a drunken late night run in the books I'm as committed as ever to making this work.  I've got my eyeball on my first event of the year for Feb 8th and it's something I've never done!  Trail duathalon consisting of a 10k trail run and 15 mile trail bike ride.  Sounds right up my alley!  They've split the runs into two 5k's one being before the bike leg and one after.  This will be a great time to break out that underused Mt bike I have sitting on it's rack and put it to use.

With that said I'm signing off.    #run365