MCM Training – Week 4 (8 mile epic fail to hill repeats redemption)

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The two week visit of my family really through a wrench into my training and my blogging. Lugging 12+ people around the what seems to be the entire Mid-Atlantic region was very taxing. I posted on my personal FB page that it was the equivalent of herding cats. From Baltimore to NY and to DC, I herded cats everywhere – and I wasn’t too good at it either. It seemed that the only time I had the entire group together was in the 15-passenger van that I had to quickly learn how to drive. I’m now a van driving fool. Anyway, the sight seeing gave me plenty of time on my feet, but left little time for proper nutrition, sleep, and of course training. Continue reading →

Runners Inspiring Runners – Conor Joyce Peak Ultra 100

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During the last 18 months of my running career, I have met some of the most amazing people who just so happens to share the same passion in running. One of them is Conor Joyce. A friend of mine and I joined a Florida Keys Ragnar team at the last minute this past January and that where I met him, in his hot pink hot pants (I kid you not). The Florida Keys Ragnar is a 197 mile relay race from Miami, FL to Key West, FL (if you ever have a chance to do this race, DO IT!). Conor volunteered to run with me during my night run and help pace me. He was great company and actually helped do a personal best!

When I heard that that Conor was running the Peak Ultra 100 marathon in Vermont, I just HAD to include him in my Runners Inspiring Runners series. Below is our interview: Continue reading →

MCM Training – Week 3 (12 miles)

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I’m not sure if it’s the heat or if it’s the distraction of entertaining my visiting family, but it’s been hard getting my butt in front of the laptop to blog.

Yesterday we decided to get a head start and began at 6am. The temperature in Baltimore at 6am was 79 degrees with the humidity at 82%. The air was definitely thick and it felt like you were running through and breathing in mud. Needless to say, hydration was going to be the key for a successful 12 miles. Continue reading →

When life gets in the way of training.

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It’s inevitable that life is going to get in the way of training for a marathon. A lot can happen during those 18 weeks and it’s not a bad thing, but it can be a challenge.

This week, my family is visiting from Taiwan….TWELVE OF THEM for two weeks! Oh, in case you didn’t know, I’m half Taiwanese and half Caucasian. I actually just almost typed “half American,” but that would be an incorrect statement. I’m 100% American no matter what my national origins are. I always get comments like, “you don’t look mixed” or “you look like you are something,” and I sometimes tilt my head and think…”I look like I’m something? What is that supposed to mean?” My picture in on the About page if you’re curious as to what “something” looks like. Anyways, I digress. Continue reading →

Runners Inspiring Runners – Becky C.

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Today’s recovery run at Loch Raven was just ridiculously humid. So humid, that even my camera couldn’t focus on the picture I took below. If this is a sign of what kind of summer we have to look forward to, I may just have to move to Connecticut. I’m dreading the 15 – 20 mile training runs in the city. Guess we’ll have to start at 5am soon <sigh>.

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MCM Training – Week 2 long run (11 miles)

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FINALLY! A great training run! Things are starting to look up. I met with my group of running friends, we call ourselves The Six Pack, at the NCR trail at around 6:30AM. It’s been a while since the Six Pack ran as a whole, so it was great to have most of us together again. The only thing that kept this run from being perfect was our missing sole sister, Sunny. So, I guess today we were more of the Fab Five instead of the Six Pack. Hopefully we’ll all run together next week… GO SIX PACK! Continue reading →

Baltimore Women’s Classic 5K 2013 – Meghan & Team Fancy Nancy

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This past Sunday I had the honor of running the Baltimore Women’s Classic on team Fancy Nancy with a dear friend of mine, Meghan. The team was formed in honor of her mother, Nancy, who is a 5 year cancer survivor. Initially, I wanted to find out how she got involved with the BWC, but I ended up finding out more about how she became a runner. Below is my interview with her. Continue reading →

MCM Training – Week 1 Tempo Run

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Thursdays are my tempo run days. What is a tempo run? I couldn’t have defined it better than the link below:

“Definition: Tempo runs are an excellent way for runners to build speed and strength. They’re runs that are done at a steady effort level, usually just a little slower than your 10K race pace. Tempo runs help you develop your anaerobic or lactate threshold, which is critical for running faster. (http://running.about.com/od/runnersglossary/g/whatisatemporun.htm)”

Today our group was supposed to do a 4 mile tempo run for beginners and 5 – 6 for intermediates. Having had a crappy track workout on Tuesday, I decided to go with the 4 mile run on the “dreadmill.” It was obvious to me that I needed to get back to basics and work on my form and pace consistency. I’d let the treadmill take care of my pace while I concentrated on my form. Continue reading →

MCM Training – Week 1 Track Workout

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First track workout of the season and it sucked. Not only did it suck, but it sucked cheese balls. It was 93 degrees with bad air quality and I, of course, forgot my inhaler. Yesterday’s drill was partner 800’s, which I typically love…except for yesterday. I knew I was in trouble when I started to feel my knee ache during the warm up jog to the track and my legs were feeling like they were a bazillion pounds. Continue reading →

Get Them Started Early!

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I LOVE that my friends encourage their children to run. Too often I see overweight children and it saddens me. I’ve had conversations with parents who tell me their children are “big boned” or just “husky” and I bite my tongue because there’s not sense in fighting a losing battle with a parent who’s in denial. Continue reading →