Thursday, October 29, 2015

Something New...

I'm testing out a new blog template design for a little while to see if I like it more than the one I was using before. It has more purple in it so there is a good great chance that I'm going to LOVE it more than the previous template. But... I'm open to feedback so let me know what you guys think ok?

In addition to sprucing up my blog template I've been thinking about checking out a local blogging community group that I heard about a few months ago...

I haven't been doing much running this week. I only did 1.5 miles on Monday...

Sunday, October 25, 2015

New Decor and *Random* Updates...

I decided to change my medal display and showcase my race bling a little better...
There are 5 medals that didn't "make the wall" because I didn't buy enough Keys. I need to get at least two more (and eventually run more races) so that all the medals can be displayed evenly on each side of the marathon plaque. The Chicago Marathon photo plaque came in the mail yesterday and that's kind of what sparked the whole medal redisplay project...

*I'm going to run another race in Chicago next year and keep that as an annual tradition. I already have 2 years of Chicago running in the books (2014 was the Zooma Chicago 1/2; 2015 was the Chicago full) so it just makes sense to continue. I was initially looking at doing a Spring or Fall half marathon, but then I came across this...

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Random Wednesday Thoughts...

My post-marathon rest week has officially turned into a 10 day rest session. I'm being lazy. There is nothing wrong with my legs except for the fact that my sleepy brain won't allow them to get out of bed to run or go to the gym in the morning (or in the evening for that matter)...

At the follow-up appointment with my orthopedic surgeon it was recommended that I take "4-6 weeks off running". Weeeell that kind of conflicts with the fact that I have two half marathons within that general timeframe. For the record, that has nothing to do with the fact that I have not worked out at all this week (apart from crunches and wall sits) I have really been feeling lazy. I'm not making a lot of promises about what the rest of the week will look like, but I will definitely workout or run this weekend. I'm 95% 87% sure that I will workout. Probably.

Monday, October 19, 2015

So What Happens Now?

A lot of things have changed recently. A lot. Including my plans for the rest of 2015 (and early 2016). I have mixed emotions about the changes. It's hard when you have your heart set on something and it doesn't exactly work out the way you want it to...
First... I'm definitely going to cancel the Naples Half Marathon next month :(
I contacted the race organizers to see if I could defer the race entry until 2016 but I haven't heard back from them yet. I really don't want to lose the race entry fees, but physical therapy co-payments will cost more so I'm trying not to get too distressed about it.

Second... I'm definitely going to change Miami from the full to the half marathon :(
I wanted to do the full marathon for soooo many reasons. It's such an epic event and I had such a great time "redefining amazing" when I did the half marathon in January this year (see race recap HERE). Sadly I just don't think my body will be ready for the full. I'm hoping I won't be too heart broken about it when January 2016 rolls around and will still make it to the start line for the half. It just won't be the same though.

Saturday, October 17, 2015

When You're NOT Running 26.2 Miles...

I managed to do other things a few other things in the Windy City besides run through the city streets. I tried really hard to post frequently while I was traveling but there were so many hiccups along the way (including Internet connectivity issues at the hotel....in 2015!!! I know right?!). I wanted to get the race recap posted (you can read that HERE if you haven't already), so now it's time to share some highlights from the rest of the trip.

I got to Chicago on the Friday before the race after a very long travel day. And on Saturday morning my parents (who also flew to Chicago on Friday), Kai and I made our way to the Chicago marathon race expo...

Thursday, October 15, 2015

What "Owning Chicago" Feels Like...{Chicago Marathon Race Recap}

It's hard to believe that the Chicago Marathon was four days ago! It's seems like it's been much longer than that, but every time I start to feel that way my sore leg muscles remind me that it's ONLY been 4 days!!!!

I finally had a moment to collect my thoughts and emotions about the marathon and put them together in a coherent manner. Well that's the goal anyway, you can judge for yourself as you read this post ;)

Marathon morning started really early (doesn't it always?) and I was up and out of bed by 4am. I didn't want to rush getting ready so I gave myself 2 hours to do all the pre-race stuff I normally need to take care of, and then I was off with my mom, dad and Kai, who were all decked out in the "Team Lee" shirts that they surprised me with the day before...

Sunday, October 11, 2015

Wish Me Luck!!!!

Today's the day!!!! 
Please send lots of positive thoughts and energy my way! 
I will update the blog as soon as I can :)
I will probably update Instagram first so keep checking my IG page @Thisismyfaster
See you at the finish line!!!

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

And Then There Were Three...

As the countdown to Chicago continues I, like the most of the other 45,000+ runners participating in the race, am getting more and more excited. We officially have three more days to go!!! I've been trying to do a lot to mentally prepare for the event, since physical preparation is as good as it's going to get at this point. The first step in mental preparation... Visualize the course...

I also spent a lot of time figuring out my "get to the race" strategy for Sunday. I have to go to the gate closest to my corral entrance so my goal is to get to Gate 4 or 5 with enough time to meet up with the Nike+ pace group and get settled for the start...

A lot of blog posts and articles from former Chicago finishers state that the first half of the race goes by pretty fast. Although "fast" is relative, apparently it has a lot to do with the fact that crowds tend to die down after miles 13-14 until around mile 21 when the route goes through Chinatown. I'm going to see how true that is on Sunday, but it's good to know how to mentally prepare for the different sections of the race.

My goal is to become friends with people in my pace group. Hopefully I'll meet someone that is super talkative and can distract me for the entire race; or someone who has done a bunch of marathons before and can give me mile-by-mile encouragement; or someone who is also running their first full marathon so we can encourage each other.

The Runner Tracking app is available (for all supporters and spectators that want to keep track of their runners), or you can sign up for runner tracking on the race website (HERE)...
You can also get live unofficial results HERE

Do you use the tracking apps to track yourself during your races?


How do you mentally prepare for your marathon?


Do you like to get to races really early or just in time to slip in before the corral closes?

Monday, October 5, 2015

Thursday, October 1, 2015

The Year Of The Full: Chapter 10- THIS IS IT!!!!!!!!!

There are no more long countdowns to go. In fact, after today the # of days until Chicago drops into the single digits. The time has come and I'm in full celebration mode...
(you can probably tell I'm going through a range of emotions by the number of exclamation points in the blog post title and the lack of any so far in this post...and by the .gif above ^^^). 

I'm getting excited it's just that my excitement also seems to be coming with a lot of nervousness ...and some nausea. But I'm going to do it, and I'm going to finish it, and I'm going to try and not die during the process...