Running

Trying Differently

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I have beat myself up trying to figure out what is wrong with my hip, why it hurts when it does and what I might have done to cause the most current flare up. Maybe I should have taken more rest days after Robie? Maybe I did too many runs on hard surfaces? Maybe I should have done a better job listening too my body on that long run when my hip was hurting? As my counseling professor would say, I am “shoulding all over myself.”  And that is not a good thing.

Last week someone suggested to me that my body is telling me that it is time to hang up my running shoes and find another sport or fitness activity.  My immediate reaction was to become angry and dismissive of the comment, but deep down inside I started to wonder if maybe she was right. What if I am getting too old to run? What if my body can no longer handle the miles I attempt to log every week? My heart ached as I began to imagine a life without my running goals and dreams, a life without my running friends, a life without running. A life without running is totally unacceptable to me.

I am a runner. For the longest time I had difficulty owning that statement.  “I run sometimes,” I would say.  I thought I had to be a certain kind of runner to actually be able to call myself a runner.  Like one who ran track in high school, one who consistently runs races or one who runs at a certain pace.  But now I will call myself a runner instead of just saying “I run”, and this is how running enriches my life: Running brings calm and sanity to my otherwise chaotic mind and life in a way that no other sport or physical activity ever has. Yes, it can be hard, painful and brutal, but as with life, that is also part of its beauty. Running is both my time to be social and my time to be with my own thoughts. I have met some of my closest friends through running. I have seen the beauty of nature and the beauty of humanity through running. And I intend to run for as long as I possibly can.

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I have struggled with several bouts of depression in my life.  When I have been in the depths of depression trying with all of my might to climb out I have sometimes felt that perhaps I was not trying hard enough.  That maybe if I worked just a little bit harder I could beat depression. But that was not always the case. I did not always need to try harder. Sometimes I just needed to try differently. A different approach, a different medication, a different therapist, an alternative type of treatment.

So I am applying this approach to my hip ailment. Try differently. It is easy for me to feel frustrated that I am injured in spite of the fact that I do an inordinate amount of hip strengthening exercises, core exercises, cross training, and increase my mileage slowly. However, the negative energy and negative thoughts do no good. I am here now searching for answers and trying the next thing. And keep trying I will until I find some answers and find something that works. Because giving up is just not an option.

Trusting the Process Part II: Uncoordinated Runner Attempts Mountain Biking

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I am not coordinated.  I fall while running, while walking, while going up stairs, you name the activity and I’ll find a way to injure myself.  My daughter’s name means “one who walks with a strong proud gait.”  It is my hope that by bestowing such a name on her she will be more graceful than her poor mom.  But I digress…

My husband wants to do a long bike ride for his upcoming 40th birthday and was sweet enough to buy me a nice mountain bike so that I could join him.  The first time I took it out I crashed within 15 minutes.  Today I rode with my husband in lieu of doing my long run.  We were on a beautiful trail in the mountains in McCall, Idaho.  I don’t think this trail would be considered difficult or technical by any standards.  Nice and wide with some ruts, not too steep.  About three miles in I somehow popped my chain off of the gears and got it stuck.  While my husband was patiently trying to fix my bike for me, I was repeating to myself, “This moment is exactly as it should be. This moment is exactly as it should be.”  But although my head was saying that and my eyes were looking around and trying to appreciate the beautiful scenery and the peace and quiet of being along in the mountains with my husband, my heart was screaming the following:

“This moment is NOT as it should be!  I should be on a long run!  Or with my running team at the Famous Potato Races trying to get a PR! What is wrong with me? Why am I always injured? I don’t like mountain biking.  I should sell this bike.”  I almost burst into tears.

But I got back on my bike. Repeating, “This moment is exactly how it should be.”  My encouraging husband kept telling me what a great job I was doing even though he had to slow his pace and frequently wait for me while I walked my bike around ruts that I was too timid to ride around.  I felt like my heart rate was getting higher more from the adrenaline pumping through my body due to my fear of crashing rather than anything my legs were doing to power me up the hills.  My hands were getting tired from white knuckling the handlebars.  I knew there was so much beauty around me, yet I was afraid if I took my eyes off of the trail in front of me, I would miss a rut, rock, or stick and crash.  At one point my husband asked me if I was having fun and I just smiled.  Fear and frustration had been the more dominant emotions, and I didn’t want to lie.  As I rode along I thought also about a passage I read earlier this week in a book called “How Champions Think” by Bob Rotella.  In it he says that “Failure is only final when you stop striving.”

So even though I was slow, clumsy and awkward on the mountain bike, even though I was missing running something fierce, I was no failure.  I was out there.  I was only a failure if I stopped trying. This moment is exactly as it should be.

As my husband and I got to our halfway point and turned around, the most amazing thing happened.  I started to relax and bike a little faster.  I was able to take my eyes off the bike for long enough to enjoy the amazing views around me.  I was able to chat with my husband some and enjoy his company.  A luxury that we don’t get very often with three small kids in the house!  I was actually enjoying myself and having fun!  I returned home from that ride happy, refreshed and with a feeling of accomplishment.  And when I got on the bike again a couple of hours later to ride with my kids I realized that my legs had gotten much more of a workout than I thought.

I will get back on that bike and ride again with my husband tomorrow.  And I will probably be scared.  And I will probably get off of the bike and walk around the ruts.  But I will do it.  And I will keep going.

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Trying to keep up!

Trusting the Process

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This moment is exactly as is should be. Words spoken to me this week by my friend and coach, who also happens to be a very well rounded and smart woman who I admire and respect.  So I’ve taken these words to heart and tried to make them my mantra with respect to my hip injury, which was the topic of our conversation, and life in general. Easier said than done.

I have no idea what is wrong with my hip.  I have had hip problems since we were blessed with child #3 with the large and non-molding head.  My hips will often get tight and sore along the iliac crest.  I’ve been to multiple physical therapists and do a litany of hip strengthening exercises on a regular basis, yet the problem persists.  On this most recent flare up, which involves my right hip, it seems to have gone up into my side as well.  I feel like maybe I have strained an oblique?  I have an appointment with a doctor next week.  I have not been able to run for about a week and a half now (read: the situation is getting dire!), so I’ve made appointments with various specialists in an attempt to get to the root of this problem.  I made an appointment with an orthopedic doctor, a pelvic floor therapist (doesn’t that sound fun?! I thought so.), and an osteopath. To my surprise, I was able to get in to see the doctor first, the therapist second, and the osteopath a distant third.  Go figure.

Anyway, the forced break from running has made me slightly grumpy.  If you ask my husband he might say it’s more than slightly, but whatever.  The last marathon I ran was the Marine Corps Marathon in 2006.  Against my better judgment, I attempted it on an IT band injury ended up hobbling across the finish line in around six hours.  It was ugly.  I was on crutches for a week afterwards.  Nine years and three kids later, I finally feel ready to attempt another marathon.  I registered for St. George this year and no sooner does the payment clear than my hip thing rears its ugly head to the point that I cannot run without pain.  This moment is exactly as it should be.

Yes, it’s true.  I am doing things I would not otherwise be doing if I did not have the forced break from running.  I am doing more cross training, different types of cross training, I tried a new swim workout, and I am learning new strengthening exercises.  All while listening to some new podcasts and learning some new things.  But I also miss running and my running group.  I fully intend to come back to both with a renewed mind, body and spirit and ready to train.  And meanwhile I repeat (often while gritting teeth). This moment is exactly as it should be.

I am trying to make this my mantra in daily life too.  In the moments that are not so pleasant.  Like when I finally sit down to eat after having driven three hours and having fed all of the little people and then the littlest one crawls up on my lap having pooped in this pants. This moment is exactly as it should be?

Or when all three kids are yelling and screaming at each other in the back seat and I am trying to drive.  This moment is exactly as it should be?

Or when it’s 10:00pm and the kids are still running around like mice on crack and all I want is to watch a TV show or curl up with a book.  This moment is exactly as it should be?

Ok, so this is going to take some time and practice.  I have never been accused of being the most patient person in the world.  Perhaps the universe is trying to teach me patience.  And to trust and enjoy the process.  For it is not the end result that makes the journey worthwhile, but the journey itself.  Yes indeed, perhaps this moment, these moments, are exactly as they should be. 

How Many Runners Does it Take to Decode a Swim Workout?

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Four.  The answer is four.  With one of them being a high school swimmer, another a college swimmer, the third a 70.3 IronWoman, and the fourth who sometimes fancies herself a sprint distance triathlete but has minimal knowledge of swim lingo (that would be me!).

So I’ve had this nagging/reoccurring/annoying/difficult to diagnose hip soreness issue since I had my third child (he’s three and a half now so I’m ready to be done with the hip thing) and it has been really sore this week so I used this as my motivation to check out a Swim Fit workout at my local YMCA.  I looked online to find out more information beforehand.  It is advertised as a coached workout for any level swimmer looking to improve speed, stroke, and/or endurance.  Sounds good!  I also tried to find someone at the Y to talk to about the workouts, but no one seemed to know anything, so I just showed up on Friday morning at 6:30 am with my suit, cap and goggles.

The Masters swimmers were finishing up their workout and I asked the lifeguard who would be coaching the Swim Fit workout.  She said the coach wasn’t there yet and gave me a nice speech about listening to my body during the workout and told me if I needed help I could always call out for a lifeguard.  Good to know! 6:30 rolls around, still no coach, the Masters swimmers are getting out of the pool and other swimmers are getting in, so I ask a nice lady how the Swim Fit workouts work and she tells me just to follow the instructions on the white board.  Like so:

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Um, okay then.  Another guy gets in the lane with me and tells me he’s just going to swim freestyle the whole time.  I think he has the right idea, but I am going to give the workout a try since that’s why I came.  400 swim: okay, 200 kick: got that, 4×50: makes sense, 4×75 build: say what?! And what are those times there? Is that how long it is supposed to take me? And why only three times? 1:10? That’s about how long it takes me to swim 50 yards, not 75. Wow, I’ve got some work to do.  Okay, nevermind.  I’ll just do 4×75. The bottom half of the board also confused me and by the time I got there I had already swam a mile, so I called it good.  Again, maybe the guy next to me swimming freestyle had the right idea!

I went home, posted the workout photo on the Boise Betties running group page, and my swimmer pals came to my rescue.  Together we (read: they) decoded this workout (for my amateur self).  That, my friends, is teamwork!  The next question is, how many runners does it take to fix my hip so I can get back to the track and the trails where I really want to be?!

2015 Race to Robie Creek Race Report: I Fought the Hill and the Hill Won!

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Or maybe it should be called “I fought the heat and the heat won!” And what is the point of being half Egyptian if I can’t run in the heat, anyway?!?!

I started the day with high expectations.  I was hoping to beat my time from last year (which was 2:09 something) or maybe even do as well as 2:05.  I felt like I had trained well.  I had trained harder and more for this Robie than any other Robie: more mileage, more speedwork, more hill repeats, more time on the course, more weights, more core work, more cross training.  I think my fitness level is in a better place than last year, so I didn’t think I’d have an issue beating my time.  Plus, on my long runs, I actually *ran* to the summit.  It was a slow run, but I was “running.”  And that’s something I had never done before.  So I hoped to be able to do that in the race too.

I covered my watch hoping I’d be able to go off of effort and not be distracted or discouraged by pace as it slowed towards the summit, as I had in previous years.  I felt okay the first couple of miles.  On the first hill I told myself I would not pass anybody.  That would my way of keeping my pace in check.  However there were some people that stopped to walk and others that were just running at a slower pace than I felt I wanted to be running so I did pass some people.  When I got to the 3 mile marker I saw it and thought something along these lines: “Oh s@#$!.  Only 3 miles and I feel like I am running out of gas already. I must have run the first 5k too fast.  I effed up.  I am totally screwed.  I want to quit.  I am never going to make it to the top.  I am not even at the dirt yet and I am hot.  And I feel sick.  This sucks.”  Totally self defeating thoughts.  Not exactly what you want at mile three of a half marathon.  Or any race really.  I thought when I looked at my splits for the first 3 miles I was going to see that I had run them ridiculously fast or something.  When I saw the splits I don’t think I had run them too fast.  I think it was just the heat that got me.  The heat got me last year too.  I got too hot too fast.

After that point I started walking through each water station.  I’d grab two cups of water and drink one and pour the other one over my head.  Once I got to the dirt I felt a little better.  I like the dirt better than the pavement.  And by a little, I mean just a little.  I was still pretty miserable and feeling sick.  I saw Ashley pretty early on in the dirt passed her and told her good job.  It made me so happy to see another Bettie!  I was pretty sure she’d be passing me soon because I didn’t have much in the tank.  At the next water stop Sarah came by me and patted me on the back and told me good job.  Again, another Bettie encouraging me along the way!  We leapfrogged with each other over the next water stop or two and then I couldn’t keep up anymore.  I felt that each time I stopped and walked at a water stop it got harder and harder for me to start running again.  And I really wanted to quit.  More than I’ve ever wanted to quit any other race I’ve done.  I started thinking of ways I could get to James’ car and get to the people I’d promised rides home, but I couldn’t figure out a way.  There was no option but to run over the hill! GRR! I also felt really hot and sick (nauseated).  At around mile 4 or 5 I forced myself to have a gel even though I didn’t want it.  I kept thinking of my kids and that I didn’t want to have a stroke or pass out or something and that’s another reason why I kept walking through the water stations. I also kept noticing that I had goosebumps all over my arms.  I tried not to look at them because I didn’t want to think about the heat exhaustion.  I just kept telling myself to put one foot in front of the other.  I hated that I was not enjoying the race.  One of the purposes of covering up my watch was to make the race more enjoyable!

That last steep mile to the summit I did a run/walk.  I just wanted to be done.  I kept thinking of who might be behind me.  “Maybe Claire is behind me?,” I thought.  “I know!” I can stop at the top, wait and cheer for her, and then we can run down together!” Then I saw Gretchen in the distance.  I know I didn’t SOUND* very excited when I saw her, but I was SUPER excited to see her.  “GRETCHEN!” I thought. “IS THAT GRETCHEN?!? How did she get up here? Maybe SHE can get me out of here!” That was the perfect spot for her to be cheering at too.  Just a half mile before the summit, right where we all needed encouragement the most.  THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. For everything that you do for us.  We all love and appreciate you so much!

Once I got over the summit, I started to feel MUCH better.  I felt pretty strong on the back, actually.  I saw that my time at the summit was 1:32 something.  That’s what it was last year.  I was disappointed, but not surprised.  At that point I knew I would be either right at or over my time from last year and I decided I wasn’t going to kill myself for a 2 second PR or something, especially since I felt so miserable and had bombed the front side.  So I pushed it coming down, but didn’t red line it or anything.  At mile 10 I still felt pretty strong somehow.  By mile 12 I was ready to be done again and so happy to see the finish.  When I heard the announcer say my name, I heard “Josh Jackman” right along with it and looked and he was right there with me at the finish!  I told him congrats and he said he’d been following me for awhile and thanked me for pacing him and carrying him along.  Glad I was helpful to someone in spite of my misery!

I felt better than last year at the finish (last year I felt a little sick for awhile) but still didn’t want to eat for awhile.  Had a recovery drink and some fruit and a power bar on the way home and then ate more later. Like I said before I thought initially it was going out too fast that killed me, but once I looked at my splits I think it was the heat.  And maybe too much caffeine, but probably mostly the heat.  I guess maybe I should be doing long runs in the middle of the day if I am going to do this race?

I feel frustrated because I feel like I am at a better place fitness wise than I was a year ago, but I wasn’t able to perform better.  At least not on April 18, 2015.  I also feel disappointed because I feel like maybe 2:05 is too lofty of a Robie goal for me and I’d like to break 2 hours one day.  It is a hard race.  And I am not getting any younger.  I am feeling a little defeated, old and humbled after that race.  But I also feel motivated to get back to work so that I can hopefully have a better race later this year. More than anything I don’t like all of the negative thoughts I was having during the race and the fact that I wanted to quit.  I want to stay strong when I am hurting and to be able to reach deep in my mental toolbox and pull through.  Even though it was a tough run for me, I am proud that I finished, I had a great day with my friends, and I am so thankful to have such an amazing coach and a wonderful group of women to run with.  You all keep me going day after day after day! Thank you!


*I ran up to her, dropped the f-bomb, told her that my run was a disaster and that if I weren’t giving people rides I’d have the medical cart take me down the hill.  Of course, she cheerfully encouraged me to keep going.  And I apologized for my outburst later.  And thanks to everyone who needed rides for keeping me on that hill!

Fueling Your Runs with Positive Thoughts

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Ever heard the phrase running is 90% mental and 10% physical? We spend lots of time working on fine tuning the physical, but how often do we work on strengthening the mental. For me, the mental aspect is key, especially when the race or workout gets difficult. And let’s face it, as much as we all love running, running is hard sometimes. That is part of what makes it so rewarding. Nevertheless, there are times during workouts and races when inevitably those negative thoughts creep into our heads. This should not be surprising, as we often push our body to its limits, especially when racing.  I have told Coach G on more than one occasion that the mental aspects of training can at times feel just as tough for me as the physical aspects. I feel too slow, too injured, too old, too tired, too something. I am not alone in my negative thinking. A recent study showed that pessimism is the number one mental roadblock among runners. Negative thinking patterns can have a detrimental impact on our training. From staying in bed to cutting working shorts to considering dropping out of a race, if we are not thinking positive thoughts we are not getting the most out of our hard work.

 

Overcoming negativity is a personal and ongoing process for me, as it is for most runners, but one that can be largely assisted by my coach and teammates. Before joining the Betties I had Coach G confirm on more than one occasion that she would actually coach me. Having read and heard all about her impressive running resume I was not sure I was qualified. “Are you sure you’ll coach me?” I asked. “But you know what pace I run!” To which she always laughed and responded with a kind, “Yes, of course.” and “I’m looking to coach the most committed runners.” Committed I can do!

 

So I showed up, practice after practice, often affectionately and sometimes not so affectionately referring to myself in my head as “The Caboose” because I was always last. But you know what? This was me telling me these things, not my teammates and not my coach. Day after day and week after week my coach and teammates were there to encourage and support me and others no matter what pace we were running. And they’ve been the ones helping me silence the negative thoughts that try to sabotage my workouts and racing. Here are some specific strategies that have helped me keep the negative thoughts at bay and fuel my runs with more positivity. Try a few and maybe you will find one or two that will work for you.

 

Show Up.  It takes courage to show up to practices consistently so don’t discount that. Do not worry about your pace, worry about running effort based workouts that are right for your body on any given day. Somebody has to run in the back and if it is you, congratulations, you are well ahead of all of the people that didn’t show up!

 

Find a Mantra.  When negative thoughts creep in, it is often helpful to find a positive mantra to repeat in your head. Practice during training runs and find something that works for you to have in your pocket for race day. I personally have repeated the phrases “Tight makes light” and “Strong, powerful, beautiful” in my head during races and tough workouts to distract myself from other thoughts. I am not sure where they came from, but I have found the rhythmic nature of those phrases helpful for some reason. Other examples could be: fast, tall, go, swift, this mile, or breathe.  And while you are at it, remember to practice some positive self talk. Congratulate yourself for making it to practice and remind yourself that you are doing something positive for your body. When you are climbing that hill, tell yourself, “I am great at climbing hills” or “I know how to do this,” and remember to smile!

 

Visualize.  Sometimes when I start to think negatively during a run I will visualize a stop sign in front of me. As in “Stop the negative thinking!  It’s not helpful!”  Often just that is enough to help redirect my thoughts. Focusing on breathing and footfalls can also help as well as visualizing yourself running in perfect form. And remember that fatigue can be highly subjective.  A 2012 study tested cyclists against a computerized competitor in two trials. In one test, the cyclists were told that the computerized opponent was riding at the cyclists’ personal best, when in reality, the opponent was riding faster.  In the second test, they were told the competitor was speedier. When the cyclists knew their opponent was faster, they could not keep up, but when they thought they were evenly matched (even though the opponent was in reality riding faster) they rode faster. Our minds are very powerful!

 

Break the race or run up into smaller pieces.  The last mile of the last 5k I ran was difficult. I started to berate myself with thoughts like “I’m not fast enough” and “I should just jog it in.” When I looked up at the street sign and saw I was at 17th Street and knew I had to make it all the way back to 8th, I felt particularly deflated. I pictured the red Stop sign and tried to focus on making it one block at a time. Breaking the race into smaller chunks helped make the remainder of the race more manageable, and I was at the finish line before I knew it.

 

Reframe your Thoughts.  Instead of thinking “What could go wrong?”, think “What could go right?”  Instead of thinking, “What if I fail?”, try thinking, “What if I exceed my expectations today?” Take your negative thought and try to rephrase it to something positive. Think of the obstacles you might face, how you would approach them, and what you might learn from them even if things do not work out the way you want them to. I trained for a half marathon all summer and found out just a few days before the race that they changed the course due to construction, thereby making it 13.4 miles instead of 13.1 miles. My initial reaction was negative. “Why wouldn’t they cut the course somewhere else? How would I possibly get a PR on a long course?” Then I realized I would not have a good run or good race if I went into it with that much negativity. So I revised my goal time accordingly and arrived at the start line ready to have fun and enjoy a nice fall run through the heart of my beautiful city.

 

Run with Awesome People.  I knew I had found something special in The Betties when mere weeks after I had joined the team I ran The Race to Robie Creek and my teammates postponed their post-race trip to the beer table in order to wait at the finish line and cheer me on. Although we all come from different walks of life and many of us are in different stages of life, our love of running brings us together. Some of us run fast and some of us run slow, but we are all committed to running, to the team and to supporting each other, which makes it a wonderful and encouraging environment.

 

Hire a Fantastic Coach.  A great running coach is like a therapist and personal trainer combined. On Tuesday and Thursday mornings Coach G pushes us physically while shouting encouraging words into our ears and the results are phenomenal. I’ve told Coach G before that she is like the little angel on my shoulder with the positive thoughts to combat the devilish thoughts that my brain so readily provides.  And I can tell you from experience that on race day even when Coach G is not there running alongside you, you’ll still hear her shouting in your ear, “You are strong! You trained hard to race easy!” And the best part is that you will know in your heart it is true.

Run Naked and Tune In to Your Internal GPS

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Earlier this fall I promised myself (and Coach G for accountability) that I would run the Turkey Day 5k “naked.” Don’t worry, no need to keep the kids inside (I left my streaking days behind in college) — I’m not talking about taking my clothes off, I’m talking about running sans GPS watch. Scary, right? How would I pace myself without technology? How would I do without knowing anything about my time? I’d heard some positive things about running without a GPS watch and was curious about trying it, but my type A personality is quite attached to glancing at my watch every so often while training and racing so I was not sure how I would do without it.

Coach Jenny Hadfield suggests that runners practice running without GPS devices so that we can tune into our own bodies and run at the pace our bodies are ready to run on any given day rather than becoming hyper focused on the number on the watch. While GPS watches are a valuable training tool, when overused they can prevent us from finding our internal GPS.  Hadfield created three “effort-based” zones that we can try to visualize when running:

  • Yellow Zone (Easy): You should be able to have a conversation and talk in full sentences.
  • Orange Zone (Moderate): You should still be able to talk, but only in one or two word responses.
  • Red Zone (Hard): You do not feel like talking when running in this zone. You need all of the oxygen you can get and do not want to use any of it for speaking. This is the anaerobic zone.

Coach Hadfield recommends that when racing a 5k experienced runners warm up in the yellow zone and split the race evenly between the orange and red zone. So with that in mind, I put painters tape over my Bia GPS sports watch and prepared to give running naked a try.  I pressed start on my watch, peeked under the tape to make sure it was running, put the tape down again and crossed over the start mat. I tried to find someone who seemed like he or she was running about my pace to pace myself off of, but that proved to be a difficult strategy. This might work in a longer race like a half or full marathon, but in a crowded turkey day 5k, it was just not possible.  I was surrounded by all types of runners. Fast runners, slow runners, families running together, a runner in jeans, and runners in costume. I tried to just run in a straight line as best I could and find some sort of groove without doing too much weaving in and out of other people.

The urge to peek underneath the tape was strongest during the first half mile or so.  I kept looking down at my watch only to see blue painters tape with the message “Run Happy!” written on top.  But how far had I gone? What was my average pace? My inquiring mind wanted to know! After glancing down at my wrist at least 27 times in the first 3 minutes of the race, my brain finally got the message that it was not going to get any answers there and I began to focus on other things like my footfalls and my breath. Ah, perhaps THIS is how you tune in to your body! I was breathing hard, but not too hard — Like I could speak in two or three word sentences. I was in the orange zone! Exactly where I should be. I focused on my breath and tried to pick up my pace ever so slightly every time I passed a mile or half mile marker.

The last mile, and particularly the last half mile, felt very intense. I did not want to talk at all, but when a teammate passed me I did use a little bit of my precious oxygen to cheer her on.  (Nice work, Emily!!) I was certainly in the red zone. I felt like I was slowing down and had to dig deep mentally to maintain my pace to the finish. I crossed the finish, stopped my watch, and looked around for my teammates. I did not see a timing clock at the finish line so I still did not know my race time. When I finally did peek underneath that painters tape, what did I see?  A 2 ½ minute PR!

Not only did I run my best 5k without looking at my GPS watch, but I also ran faster than I thought I was capable of running on that day. Had I looked at my watch and seen the pace I was running, I likely would have panicked, thinking thoughts like “Slow down! That’s too fast! You won’t be able to keep that up for the whole 5k!”  But by using the Coach Hadifield’s zone method I was able to go by feel and run the pace that my body was ready for on that day. And I surprised myself. So try running naked sometime. You might surprise yourself too!