travel

San Diego Half Marathon: Two Thumbs Up

(I’m posting from my phone in the car somewhere in Arizona, so I hope the format isn’t screwy.)

It’s pretty much the best feeling ever when you think back on a race and can’t help but smile. I feel SO good about yesterday’s San Diego Half Marathon (my fourth half). Going into it, I had no idea what to expect. I haven’t run much the past month, and my knee issues are not 100% gone. I decided I was going to take it easy and not put any pressure on myself, which I’m happy to report I did exactly that, and it made for such an enjoyable experience.

Since I had zero expectations (and sort of thought I might have to walk the whole thing), I wasn’t nervous at all. Instead, I just enjoyed all aspects of it, from the packet pick up to the post-race snacks.

I ventured down to the San Diego piers for the expo on Saturday with Jeremy and my grandma. There were tons of people, but it was a beautiful day and location, and I didn’t have to wait in any lines to get my shirt and bib. Since I ran this race last year too, I got a special race shirt that says Legacy on the sleeve with two stars. If I run next year (which I’m hoping to do), I’ll get a special jacket. I forgot to take a picture of the shirt and now it’s packed away in my suitcase in the trunk, so it’s a lost cause. It’s really great, and I can definitely see myself wearing it in the future. It’s an improvement from last year’s, along with many things that were improved. This was only the third year for the race, and they really paid attention to comments from last year and I’m sure every year will just get better and better. I’m so impressed with the organization and can’t wait to see what’s in store for it. I even had to make a correction to my registration and they responded to my email within a day and immediately resolved the issue, and were so nice. I appreciate things like that to no end.

At the expo, I decided to look for something to aid in my knee pain. I spoke to a guy working at a running store station, and he helped me decide on getting a compression band that helps with pain in the back of the knee. My issues aren’t always just in the back, but I took a chance and it actually paid off.

The Course
I really love this course, as it goes through many different areas of San Diego, so there’s always something to look at. It went by incredibly fast (as opposed to last month’s Mermaid Series half, which dragged on seemingly forever because it just went around a bay and was pretty boring now that I think about it). There wasn’t much elevation change the first 8 miles, then mile 9 was an almost-mile-long hill up to the Hillcrest area of downtown SD. It’s not too bad though, especially knowing that once you get to the top, it’s essentially just three more downhill miles to the finish line.

At the start, I was thinking about going back a few corrals since I knew I’d be running more slowly than originally planned. It worked out though, after I realized that when I registered for this race, my PR was still 2:15. It made a big difference to be able to run at an easy pace with everyone else, instead of being passed by a bunch of speedy people (which would have made me speed up, knowing my competitive nature).

To sum things up, I felt great the entire race. I never hit a wall (hallelujah) and my legs never felt super heavy. Because I was taking it easy, I was able to pick up the pace the last three miles, which I have to admit was fun, darting past people and sprinting to the finish line, passing runners left and right.

I did allow myself to walk if I felt like it, and that was a first for me. I ended up walking a bit uphill at mile 9 to eat a gel, then a little of mile 11 to drink some electrolyte drink. At the bottom of the hill, there was a man on the ground and someone was giving him CPR. There was a crowd of people around him, and everybody running by stopped to walk and it really was a shock to the system. People were crying or holding back tears (including me), and it took a while to breathe normally again. Ambulances and fire engines were screaming down the hill, and all I can do is hope that he is okay. I asked the race’s Twitter account if there was an update on him, but ~~haven’t heard back yet~~ (edit: they wrote me back and said he is okay! I’m so relieved). I honestly thought I was going to cry the entire way to the finish line, it was that scary. I immediately thought the worst, but after the race, Jeremy convinced me to think positively and hope for the best.

Fuel
Jeremy and I stayed in a hotel downtown this year (so much better than leaving an hour earlier to find parking like last year), and I had all my gear ready to go the night before. I ended up forgetting my gel in the room, though, so that was unfortunate. Luckily they handed out Clif gels at mile 8 and I grabbed a mocha one with caffeine in it, which I had had before on a long run. I also held a Nathan water bottle (that leaked the entirety of the bottle all
over the rug in my car overnight) that I just bought so I had water with me the whole race. Two of the drink stops weren’t prepared for the amount of people coming through, and I was unable to get any electrolyte drink until mile 11. I also grabbed a salt packet at the same mile as a spur of the moment decision. I’ve never had one before, but I have to say, my stomach issues ceased and it felt great the rest of the day! I think I may have discovered something great for my body. It was a hot day, but the amount
of water I drank seemed perfect, and I had no major issues.

Clumsiness
I don’t know what was going on with me yesterday (could have been sleep deprivation), but I felt like a klutz. Aside from forgetting my gel, I dropped my Chapstick cap at mile 11 and had to chase it without tripping anyone in the process. A runner stopped and picked it up for me, and I was so grateful. As I was bending down to try to grab it, I inadvertently squeezed a bunch of my gel all over my hand. It was a chocolate mocha gel, and you can just imagine what it looked like…

After that, I somehow got my headphones wrapped around my shirt (I put the cord under my shirt and sports bra to hold it in place), and it ended up getting so tangled that it lifted my shirt all the way just about to my bra, and I couldn’t get it back down! I was so flustered and unplugged my headphones and tried to play it off cool, but with my luck there will be pictures of it. I also stumbled in front of a large crowd and scared everyone because it looked like
I was about to eat it. Luckily I didn’t.

Firsts
I broke the cardinal rule of racing yesterday not three, but four times.

– I had only worn my Mizunos a few times, and never for more than four miles.

– I wore a compression band on my knee for the first time.

– I ate a salt packet for the first time.

– I had never used my hand-held water bottle before.

I feel very fortunate because nothing bad came from any of these decisions, and the whole thing went so smoothly (except for my moments of clumsiness)! Including running the whole thing pain-free, which makes me want to cry of happiness. I’m more pumped than ever to run another one now, and break two hours someday soon.

Overall, I’m really proud of myself for not pushing my body to the point of exhaustion, or worse, injury, and not putting any pressure on myself. I’m so competitive and every race I want to PR, but now I realize that it’s not the end of the world if I don’t, and there’s no shame in taking it easy. The San Diego Half is so great, and I would highly recommend it!

Road trip update: We entered Arizona not long ago, and are planning on making it to El Paso for dinner!

Road Trip USA

Well, Jeremy and I have officially left for the first leg of our adventure! This week has been absolutely crazy, but we finally got everything together, finished putting stuff in our storage unit, and packed our suitcases. We’re currently on our way to San Diego, and we may stop in Los Angeles for lunch. We’re staying in SD for the weekend, then leaving for our cross-country road trip Monday morning. Georgia here we come!

Santa Barbara -> San Diego -> El Paso -> New Orleans -> Charleston -> Athens -> Columbus -> Atlanta -> NYC -> Iceland

In Transition

Phew, Jeremy and I are all moved out of our apartment, I can use my right hand again, my knee is feeling good, and my neck is less painful. Things are definitely better than last week! I feel like I let myself feel a little too defeated, when I’m usually very optimistic. I guess moving is just always very stressful.

We are now living at my parents’ house until Friday, when we leave for San Diego. It’s really nice being back in the home I grew up in, and sleeping in my old room. There are always perks being home also, like my mom’s amazing cooking, being walking distance to my favorite beach, fine wine every night, etc. Not to mention spending time with my parents since we’re leaving so soon.

On Thursday, we rewarded ourselves with a moving break and walked down to our favorite neighborhood restaurant for breakfast.

Best breakfast.

We’ll miss this neighborhood.

After moving all day and taking many trips to our storage unit, our neighbors invited us to meet them for drinks for happy hour, and it was so needed.

On Friday, we finished moving and went out for a date night at a place in town called the Lucky Penny. After, we met up with two friends that did the same thing we are about to do, but with kids. They quit their jobs, packed up their house, and traveled the world. They came back after nine months, but are in the process of potentially doing it again. They blogged about it here, although the site is getting a revamp. They are pretty much the reason we had this idea in the first place, and we kept thinking, if they can do it with two kids, why can’t we do it, just the two of us? It was great to talk to them and hear stories, and for the first time I think ever, it hit me that we are leaving so soon and I started to get REALLY excited.

Dinner date.

Dinner at Lucky Penny.

On Saturday, the expected storm had started, and it ended up raining all weekend. It was great. Jeremy and I went down to the beach with my parents because we heard there were huge waves hitting the wall where we usually sit to eat lunch. There were tons of people watching the waves, and they were seriously gigantic. A video has been circulating around the internet from someone who was at a restaurant on Stearns Wharf here, when a big wave crashed through the window. You can see it here.

Stormy beach.

That evening, we headed up to Santa Ynez to have dinner with my brother and sister-in-law, their two kids, and a friend of ours. We ate at a delicious restaurant called Sides Hardware and Shoes. After dinner, Jeremy, our friend Trent, and my brother went to the casino to do a little gambling while my sister-in-law Jacqueline and I hung out at her house with my nephews. It’s hitting me hard that I won’t get to see them as much as I normally do, but we’ll just have to make up for it when we get back.

Yesterday, I helped my mom get ready for my parents’ annual Oscar party. They’ve been throwing them since I was a kid, and they are always a blast. It was more low-key this year, but my mom always goes all out with the food, and of course I overdid it at the snack table.

My mom’s a pro at making cheese platters.

Oscar party!

It was a really great weekend, and since it’s sunny today, Jeremy and I are going to walk to the beach and hopefully go hiking later. Happy Monday!

Never Two Without Three

It’s been a rough couple days for me over here in sunny SB. I’m still resting my knee (I seriously feel like I haven’t really run in forever), and hoping I can run the San Diego Half a week from Sunday. My knee started popping and cracking today (which is new), but for the most part it’s feeling better except some pain here and there. Jeremy and I have to be out of our apartment tomorrow night, so tonight is our last time sleeping here (which is so bittersweet). We’re going to open a nice bottle of wine we’ve been saving, and sit on the floor and have a picnic.

Moving break snack on the floor.

We’ve been moving stuff into our storage unit the last couple days, and yesterday as I was helping Jeremy unload something out of his truck, the window on the back of the camper shell swung down and crushed my right thumb. I slammed my left thumb in a car door last year, and I can’t believe I did it again. I couldn’t use my right hand at all for the rest of the day yesterday, and the pain woke me up a few times last night. Luckily it feels a little better today (it’s just all black and blue now), but of course there had to be one more injury to round out the trio. When I got up from bed this morning, all of a sudden I felt a shooting pain in my neck, and I have had a stiff neck all day and can’t turn my head at all. It’s so painful. It’s really a great combination: hurt knee, crushed thumb, and stiff neck. While moving. UGH. It’s also supposed to rain the next couple days (which is SO GREAT for Southern California), which makes everything a little more complicated when moving.

Constantly adding body parts to the list of things I need to ice.

I feel like I’ve been a debbie downer lately, and I let myself get pretty frustrated the past few days. But a couple good things have happened too. Jeremy and I went over to my parents’ house today and were surprised to see my brother, sister-in-law, and their two boys there (one’s almost 3, the other is 8 months), and it was so nice to see them. They used to live next door to my parents, but moved about 45 minutes away almost a year ago. I get to see them every couple weeks, and it’s always a bright spot in my day. I’m really going to miss them. Another thing is that I was reading the Cork Marathon FAQs the other day and saw that you are not able to transfer between the full and half marathon after you register. I pretty much panicked because I need to be able to have the option to do the half, after how my last month of training has been. I sent an email to the event manager, and she wrote me back quickly. She said that since my family was traveling so far to attend the race, they would make an exception for me if need be. I was so incredibly relieved, and I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I really really still want to do the full, but knowing that I have the option to switch to the half makes me feel a ton better. I just have to tell her sometime before the beginning of May.

Here are a few more highlights from the last few days:

Breakfast.

!!!

Got a couple decent pictures out of the Mermaid Series Half Marathon.

I ran! And Other Happenings

Happy Monday! Hope everyone had a nice weekend.

Well, I’m pretty thrilled because I went out for a nice and easy three-mile run earlier today to see how my knee felt, and it went better than I expected. I could feel the uncomfortableness occasionally (it’s not really sharp pains, just dull pains surrounding the kneecap), but for the most part it was smooth sailing. If I ran over a curb and used my left leg to jump up on it, I did experience some pain, but not too bad. This makes me SO happy. I knew I shouldn’t push it so I tried to go slowly (although it did seem like the slower I ran, the more pain I felt), but it was hard not to sprint since I was feelin so good. I did some strength training when I got done, and I’m going to ice and stretch tonight. I’ll probably rest again tomorrow, but I’m feeling hopeful that I can run my half in two weeks. Fingers crossed!

Color coordinating.

I’ve been reading about runner’s knee, and the symptoms sound the same as mine. I remembered recently that when I was growing up, if I crouched down and tried to stand back up quickly, sometimes one of my knees would dislocate and it was super painful. I’d have to sit down and kind of wiggle my leg back into place and stand up slowly. This pain could be stemming from that, or just that my kneecaps have some issues. Rainy Writer let me know that there was a series on runner’s knee being written on Run Oregon blog, which was really helpful. I’m remaining optimistic that this won’t be a huge issue for me going forward, and that with strength training and taking good care of my body, I’ll be able to run forever.

Moving Along

On Thursday, Jeremy and I went out to lunch with a few coworkers (one of which was my brother), and we went to a restaurant at the Santa Barbara Harbor, which is always a treat. The running path I use for 98% of my runs goes by the harbor, and I love looking at the sailboats with the mountains in the background. SB sure is pretty.

On Friday, Jeremy and I had to get ready for the garage sale we had with our neighbors. We live in a complex comprised of two duplexes, and we have become really close with our neighbors. It was a lot of fun (not just because of the mimosas we started drinking at 10am), and we had a dinner all together that night also. The sale went on both Saturday and Sunday, and Jeremy and I sold a TON of our stuff. It was definitely successful.

Best neighbors in the universe.

Garage saling.

After the sale was over on Saturday, Jeremy and I headed to the Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens for an event a coworker organized. It was a beer festival showcasing local breweries, and a specific beer was selected to complement each section of the gardens. It was really interesting, and a lot of the flowers were beginning to bloom so it was beautiful.

Learning about the redwoods.

Local beer + redwoods.

Magic hour at the Botanic Gardens.

Food was desperately needed, and fish tacos did the trick.

The packing up of our apartment is coming along nicely (we have to be out by Friday), and I feel like we are pretty far ahead of where I normally am when I move (I notoriously leave everything to the last minute… something about the pressure makes me work faster). We can start moving stuff into our storage unit tomorrow. Which means that this is all really happening. And it’s happening VERY SOON. It is insane. I haven’t really let myself realize that we’re leaving town a week from Friday for who knows how long. It could be six months, could be a year, could be longer. I’m going to miss Santa Barbara and my family so much (I always do), but I’m extremely excited to get some adventures in. It’s been way too long.

Lately, In Pictures

It rained recently and I got to wear my new rain boots. I was very excited.

Jeremy and I headed to the Patagonia headquarters in Ventura to scope out backpacks and rain jackets.

Jeremy found a backpack.

Downtown Ventura.

Trying on all my adventure gear.

We made tofu tostadas one night for dinner.

Recovering after my long run with compression socks, foam rolling and frozen corn.

Valentine’s Day consisted of this pizza and lots of red wine.

We took a picnic to the beach yesterday, and I got some serious reading done.

Sushi on the beach.

Walking around our neighborhood the other evening at magic hour.

This popcorn was delicious.

I love miniature things. These lemons were too much.

I’m in the middle of trying to get my French citizenship, so my mom, grandma and I drove to LA today to go to the French embassy. It was closed.

Crazy fog driving to LA this morning.

My second home.

I didn’t have a dog with me, but I appreciated this dog drinking fountain/treat dispenser all the same.

Fanciest Coffee Bean I’ve ever seen.

I took my mom and grandma to Real Food Daily in Santa Monica for lunch. I ordered the Mediterranean Bowl: Wild arugula, heirloom tomato and avocado in lemon herb Za’atar dressing with cucumber kalamata salsa, white bean basil salad, red quinoa tabouli, almond feta & whole wheat Za’atar flatbread. It was SO GOOD.

Driving through Malibu Canyon on our way home today.

Leaving Santa Monica.

Driving home on Highway 1.

Hope everyone’s week got off to a nice start!

Sisterhood of the Bloggers

So, I finally got an email back from Runner’s World Challenge after I emailed inquiring where my training plan was, since I was supposed to start on Monday. When I first registered in November, it asked me what plan I wanted and what the date of the race was, so that the emails could automatically start coming in four months before the race. I didn’t see anything in my inbox on Monday, so I emailed them. I finally got a response asking which marathon training plan I wanted to sign up for. Which is frustrating because I already chose one when I paid for the plan and told them in a separate email after that! I responded, and was sent the training plan I requested. I guess this is my mistake, but I could have sworn I read that it was one of those plans where they email you every day with details about training for that day. That’s honestly the only reason I paid so much for it. But this is one of those printed-out plans, which is okay. I’m resting up this week for my race this weekend, so I’ll start next week. Anyways, I hope it was worth it to buy the plan, fingers crossed.

Last night we were at work late and Chinese food was ordered. I just had a taste since I had already eaten soup for dinner, but I did eat two fortune cookies, and the fortunes inside were very appropriate:

On a side note, I don’t know if anyone has had either of these from Trader Joe’s, but they are SO GOOD. Especially together.

Sisterhood of the World Bloggers

Cori over at She’s Going the Distance was so sweet and nominated me for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers award! I have seen this one floating around, and am excited I get to fill it out now. You’ll find out that I’m super indecisive and can’t choose just one thing, hooray!

Questions:

1. What is your favorite color?

I don’t think I have a favorite color really, but when it comes to real people’s clothes, I pretty much wear charcoal/black/other dark colors. But when it comes to running clothes, I LOVE bright colors, and don’t have enough.

2. Favorite animal?

As a pet, a dog. Other than that, anything miniature, like a hummingbird for example. And these micro pigs:

(source)

Or anything on this list: 24 of the Smallest and Cutest Animals in the World.

3. Favorite non-alcoholic drink?

I’d have to say it’s a tie between coffee and the Greens and Ginger juice from Juice Ranch.

4. Facebook or Twitter?

Facebook is great for keeping up with old friends and posting pictures. I’m just now getting more involved with Twitter again, so maybe that’ll change.

5. Favorite pattern?

I love stripes and plaid, but like I said before, I pretty much only wear greys/charcoal/black.

Stripes and plaid all in one outfit! (Portland, 2013)

Fifty shades of grey.

6. What is your passion?

I have a terrible fear of looking back at my life when I’m old and realizing that I didn’t do everything I wanted to do (I think about it all the time, it’s really healthy). My passion is to not let that happen! Traveling is a huge part of that passion, and I’m so glad that Jeremy and I have made the time in our lives to make this dream come true. I can’t wait to experience new cultures, talk to people from other countries, get to know customs, etc. I think that it’s so important to experience things like that, and I can’t imagine how enriched we’ll feel throughout the process.

It’s a big ol world out there (Switzerland, 2009)

My nominees (my apologies if you’ve already done this!):

For Each Wind That Blows

A Breakthrough and Some Motivation

Well, I am quite proud of myself today. I got up this morning determined to have a good run after the past couple bad ones, and a good one was had for sure. Today was the first time in the history of my running that I had an average pace under 9 minutes!! I know that my fast pace is a million people’s real slow pace, but for me this is a huge victory. I guess taking it easy the last few days has helped. I had zero knee pain, and I was sort of uncomfortable at times since I was pushing more than I’m accustomed to, but for the most part it felt really good. At one point I had been running almost a mile at an 8:45 pace, and I thought to myself, this isn’t so bad. I will take this victory, and use it as confidence in myself during this weekend’s half, even though I’m going into it with no expectations, but just to enjoy it.

!!!!!

My reward this morning.

It was such a nice way to start the day.

In other news, I’m pretty sure I was supposed to start my Runner’s World Challenge marathon training yesterday (it’s a four-month plan), and I still haven’t received anything. They are supposed to send me an email with my daily training plan every morning. I wrote them an email and haven’t heard back yet, and they never responded to one I sent a couple months ago, so that’s a little frustrating. I paid good money for this plan! Hopefully I’ll hear something soon.

And now, some motivation for your Tuesday, from The Luthas Corporation blog:

19 Hard Things You Need To Do To Be Successful

You have to make the call you’re afraid to make.
You have to get up earlier than you want to get up.
You have to give more than you get in return right away.
You have to care more about others than they care about you.
You have to fight when you are already injured, bloody, and sore.
You have to feel unsure and insecure when playing it safe seems smarter.
You have to lead when no one else is following you yet.
You have to invest in yourself even though no one else is.
You have to look like a fool while you’re looking for answers you don’t have.
You have to grind out the details when it’s easier to shrug them off.
You have to deliver results when making excuses is an option.
You have to search for your own explanations even when you’re told to accept the “facts.”
You have to make mistakes and look like an idiot.
You have to try and fail and try again.
You have to run faster even though you’re out of breath.
You have to be kind to people who have been cruel to you.
You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that are unparalleled.
You have to be accountable for your actions even when things go wrong.
You have to keep moving towards where you want to be no matter what’s in front of you.

Stop… Taper Time

(I thought I was being really creative with this title, but with a quick Google search discovered I am not as original as I had hoped.)

Although my knee feels okay, I’m still being careful with it, since we all know pushing through a slight injury could lead to a more serious injury, which would lead to sadness and no more running for a bit. It’s also kind of good timing since it’s taper time before the Mermaid Series half marathon this Saturday. Now, it’s good to look back on past races and think about what worked and what didn’t, and I remember clearly that I felt like I tapered too much and carb-loaded too much before the Santa Barbara International Half Marathon in November. So hopefully this heavy taper won’t affect me as much since I feel like my mileage has been better this training period. But we shall see! I just know I won’t be stuffing my face with only carbs for the entire two days leading up to the race.

A few randoms:

– We ran out of coffee yesterday so I didn’t have any this morning before getting to work. This is probably why I accidentally drove to my parents’ house instead of work this morning. Oops.

– I was trying to clear out pictures that I didn’t use in my WordPress media bank and ended up deleting all my pictures, which looks like it deleted them from all my past entries as well. Hooray.

– This week is my and Jeremy’s last week at work. Pretty weird.

– Last night, Jeremy and I had our first Thai dinner together (somehow we went five years together without it). We went to TAP Thai here in town and it was SO GOOD. It will have to become a more frequent occurrence. It also really got us pumped up to visit Thailand, hopefully next year.

I JUST missed a double rainbow. There’s a slight rainbow though in the middle there… I swear.

Santa Barbara looked so pretty after a much-needed rain.

Happy Monday!

Weekend Update

This weekend has been pretty lazy, which is really nice sometimes. It’s actually raining at the moment (!!!), so it’s nice to sit at the desk and watch the rain fall outside. Friday night, Jeremy and I went to get a beer at Telegraph Brewing Company. It’s a local brewery that opened up a tasting room recently, and all the fresh beers are inexpensive and delicious. We talked to a guy from Amsterdam for about an hour, and it was fun to talk to him about all his favorite things about his hometown. Georgia’s Smokehouse food truck was out front, and it was really tempting. It’s not healthy food, and since I don’t eat meat there’s not much for me on the menu, but it smelled good nonetheless. I wanted to hire them to cater our rehearsal dinner because of our Southern connection, but it didn’t work out.

After our beers, we headed to Whole Foods to get stuff for dinner to bring back to the apartment. We then watched Your Sister’s Sister, which we really enjoyed.

On Saturday, in between doing laundry, I went for a six-mile run. It really sucked. I was proud of myself though, because after doing three miles and just telling myself I should keep going since I took two days off, I realized that no, this is supposed to be fun and I’m really not enjoying myself. So I turned around and just finished the six. That night, we watched another movie, this time Prince Avalanche.

This morning we met a friend at The Shop down the street, and had a delicious breakfast. Tonight I think we’re going to get some Thai food (we were inspired after doing research about traveling to Thailand), and meeting a coworker for a drink at our favorite bar. Nice and easy weekend, just like I like ’em.

Oh yeah, I’ve also been trying to learn how to say some Icelandic phrases to prepare for our trip… hjálp!

I also realized that I’m running a full marathon four months from today!!!! Which scares the crap out of me. Once again… hjálp!

Hope everyone had a nice weekend!

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Lily Runs the World

training while traveling