Another 20 miler after a 25 mile bike ride!

Well, I survived my Saturday morning bike ride. I actually made it 25 miles. I did a bike trail close to home so it was an "out & back" ride for me. It's actually the course Angie and I just ran for our Full Moon 1/2 Marathon. It is quite hilly. While downhill is effortless on a bike, you have to get to the top of the hill first. The old saying "what goes up, must come down" is quite the opposite for runners or bikers . . . . . "what goes down, will go up, and it will feel worse!" I was at mile 10 and had 20 miles as my goal, but I also wanted to go for as close to 2 hours as possible, so since I was only at 45 minutes, I figured I'd go to 12. I went just beyond 12 so I could fill my water bottle where we started our 1/2 marathon.

While biking is obviously easier than running, it was still a challenge for two reasons. 1. It was a hilly route, so I did have to work hard to maintain the pace I wanted (which I didn't even know if it was good since I have less than 5 miles on my bike (which I have owned for close to 5 years I think). 2. My ass is not used to a bike. I do a spin class once a week when it fits into my schedule, but that hasn't happened for a couple weeks! You have to build up a tolerance to a bike seat and I'll just say a 25 mile ride isn't exactly "easing" your way into it.

I rested yesterday, which included dusting, vacuuming, mopping floors and laundry. It felt good to be productive, but it was pretty hot and I was sweating bullets. I should have just shut the windows and turned the AC on, but I prefer fresh air, so my stubborness just worked through it. I made sure to keep up on my water intake so I was hydrated for our 20 miler today!

I met Angie at 5 am at her house. Since we run in the country at her house, we had to spend the first 50 minutes running in town because it was pitch black out. She lives in a pretty small town, so squeezing 5 miles in isn't exactly simple. We made it 4.5 miles and then stopped at her house for a quick bathroom break and strapped on our fuel belts. It felt funny starting out from her house with the fuel belts on after running 4.5 without it. They felt heavy! I will say and I know Angie would agree that running that first stretch in town and having a bathroom break before heading out to the country made the 20 miles mentally easier! It really breaks up the run and 15 after that seems simple! (it wasn't, but mentally that helped some.

I'm a coffee drinker. I have one cup with some french vanilla creamer every morning. During the week I have it after my morning run and shower while I'm doing my makeup and watching crap tv that I've DVR'd. I honestly have my routine down to the first sip of coffee being after I put my eyeshadow on but before I curl my eyelashes. (Is that nuts?). Well, coffee works a number on my bladder, so I CANNOT have it before I run. I learned that the hard way. I'll spare you the details and my ego. --not one of my finest running moments!--

If I waited until I got home from my long runs for my morning caffeine fix, I'd get a headache & then my day would be shot. So, I buy Gu packs with Caffeine. The Jet Blackberry has 40MG of caffeine, so it starts me out with my fix. I then take it down to 20MG gu's after that.

My First Cup of Morning Jo!!!

Here is bathroom break Numero Dos. I had my cup o' Jo while Angie visited the Children of the Corn. Luckily she wore her bright orange shirt or I would have lost her! When you're running out in the country and can be at least 5 miles from the closest bathroom at any time, you just have to be brave.

Bathroom Break #2 . . . . Resourceful!

I always start my morning off with my Chobani Strawberry Yogurt. I know that dairy before a run can be detrimental, but for some reason, it just doesn't bother me. Today we stopped at the only gas station in a 10 mile radius (so it's obviously one of our regular stops) and rather than continue with our gu (chomps for Angie), we decided to try a granolla bar. If you're a runner and you've tried Gu, jelly beans, chomps, or any other type of fuel, you know they can result in some major gut rot! When you're going 20 miles and you have to use more than a couple, that can result in some unfavorable circumstances. We both grabbed this powerbar and they worked fantastic. It felt good to eat some actual food to curb the hunger (I was hungry by mile 6 which sucks!) and we ended up not needing any more fuel after that. It's not really something we can carry in our fuel belts, as they would melt and we'd then be a hot mess, but it's certainly something we can stash some extra cash for when we stop for a gatorrade & water refill.

Angie also brought up a very important fact. The day of Grandma's Marathon, I ended up eating her bagel with peanut butter. She had extra, so I tried it. I know I know. . . . you're never supposed to try something new on race day! Especially Full Marathon Race Day! -Risky Business. I ended up eating that and wearing new ear buds which can also be really dumb to try out for the first time on a 26.2 mile run! Lucky for me, both worked awesome and didn't affect my run negatively. Angie also brought her bagel with peanut butter to our Full Moon 1/2 Marathon. She never ended up eating it and I was hungry by our start, so she (being the amaze-balls running buddy that she is) offered it to me. Worked FAB! I PR'd and broke my 2 hour goal. I ran an 8:44 pace. . . . . . I'd call that success! My new pre-long-run breakfast will be a bagel with PB.

Trying something a little different.  Pretty good!

The rest of the run was fairly uneventful. I was super tired and I could tell my legs were fatigued from my bike ride. Angie was my "rock" today. I was a hurting unit. My ankles, knees, hips, low back and upper shoulders were all feeling the run today. I couldn't tell if I was tired out because I had just biked 25 miles 2 days prior. . . . or if 20 miles is just simply a LONG ASS run! I'm going with number 2. Angie felt great, so I'm happy for her (brat!) --only kidding. We both have good days and bad. Suffering through the pain with your buddy by your side can keep you from stopping 2 miles from your goal. We have both been on the receiving end of a good supportive running buddy, so we know what it's like to push each other and encourage each other. I do recall a run with Angie after I had gone to a pizza eating party where I indulged in about 12,000 calories of pizza as well as a little wine. The next day's run was virtually impossible and I'm pretty sure Angie wanted to slap my fat pizza-eating ass into running mode. Instead, she understood it was a bad day and we pressed on (in the freezing cold with icecycles on our eyelashes.

When I got home I stretched, foam rolled and showered! Ahhhh, the best thing after a long run is a hot shower. By then, it was lunch time. As I was warming up lunch, Jackson advised me he needed to take a time out! --I love honesty, just not the language prior to honesty.

"Mom, I have to take a time out, I sais SHIT"   -nice! not the most proud parent moment ever.

Rather than sitting on my recliner for the remainder of the day, which was totally tempting, I loaded up the kiddo & we headed to Target. I really wanted to pick up a mirror and I also wanted to drive through McD's for my McFlurry rather than walk and eat it there. It is a little chilly out and I wanted to eat it in the comfort of my warm house (pathetic, I know!).

I texted this to Angie & said "WTF am I doing here?"  Shopping with compression socks.  At least people did a good job of hiding their stares!

I finally took a break to relax. I reserve the right to be a less than energetic and activity filled mother once in a while. The day of a 20 mile run qualifies as one of those days! Jackson is totally capable of playing with his cars and entertaining himself for the afternoon. I'm also not giving him a nap so that I can put him to bed early and then in turn, I can go to bed early too. Is that mean? Nope, that's sanity after 3.5 hours of working out in one day!

What is better than an M&M McFlurry & some Guilianna & Bill with my feet up?   --The answer is: NOTHING!

The key to being a good parent is using consequences to bad behavior that benefit yourself! For example, I knew I wouldn't be up for running around the block a million times chasing Jackson on his bike today after my run. . . . . so when he got out of bed 17 times last night, I took away his bike privelages for the entire day today! (nice huh? -smart anyway!). I also bribed him to eat 2 good meals so I could get ice cream today! I knew damn well that I needed ice cream, so I let that be his reward. WIN-WIN situation! I must say though, that today is the first time I've EVER been disappointed in an M&M McFlurry. . . . Jackson opted for the Oreo McFlurry. . . . Holy SHIZ balls, I didn't know anything could be better than an M&M one.. .. . guess I have a new fav.

A match made in Heaven!!

As Jackson gets older, we continue to be amazed by his amazing personality and adorable good looks. He's one of the most talkative kids I know (not sure where he got that?), and he is so loving and interactive with everybody he comes in contact with. He is also a sneaky little stinker. He's on a time out as I finish up this Blog entry. Guess that's my queue to give him a little attention. I can't believe he is going to meet his first teacher this Friday! Is he really that old? Yikes!

Little Buddy's first Backpack!  3k starts a week from tomorrow!

What is your favorite post-long-run treat?

~Brooke~