The Month I Became Too Busy to Blog: Training for Philadelphia {Weeks7-11}

Well hello there. Nice to see you again, blog. It's been a while.

The end of August and the entire month of September just disappeared in a complete blur.  Whether it is because it was the beginning of the semester, or the fact that I over committed myself, it doesn't matter. I was just plain busy.  While I may not have stuck to the training plan word for word, I did do a decent job.  Instead of typing out 5 weeks of extensive training recaps, here is the highlight reel:

I returned from Europe the day before our fall semester began at work.  Nothing like returning to campus with thousands of students who don't know how to drive or get to class on time.  San Diego also decided this would be prime time to push up the heat and bring in a good old fashioned August heat wave.  I was not thankful.  I spent the majority of this week running on the beach after dinner to escape the heat. Labor Day weekend typically signals the end of summer for most people.  Unless you live in southern California. For us, it usually means summer is just getting started, as September can sometimes be the hottest month.

Mission Bay long run: otherwise known as the day Fiesta Island stole my soul.

Weekly Highlights:
That time I figured it would be "fun" to do my long run around the Fiesta Island.  This was the worst idea I had ever had.  Not only was it 80 degrees with 80 percent humidity by 8 a.m., but every cyclist in San Diego decided it would be a good time to ruin my self esteem and pass me 20 times while I jogged as slow as humanly possible the 6 miles around the island. Never again. 

Total Planned Mileage: 24 
Total Actual Mileage: 20

The first week of September was hot. My long run that Saturday was supposed to be 13 miles.  Already growing tired of my normal running routes, I decided to be creative. I looked up the course for the America's Finest City Half Marathon, which takes place in August every year in San Diego.  I haven't been able to run this race because I've been traveling for work the past 2 years when it occurs, so I was excited to run it solo.  I modified the course a bit, and started in Ocean Beach.  The course runs through Point Loma, into downtown via the airport and then up the hill into Balboa Park.  Something about running from the beach to Balboa made me feel like a bad ass.

Midweek run in Mission Bay: Before and after sunset. Autumn is coming!

Started at the beach & ended at the park.

Weekly Highlights:
One of my best friends in San Diego just had a baby in August. I spent Labor Day visiting with this cutie and her mom.  I officially hold the title of Auntie, which makes me feel special since I'm an only child and this is as close as I might get to being an Aunt.  I'm obsessed with her and can't wait to watch her grow up. 

Isn't she adorable?? The baby, not me. Obviously.

Total Planned Mileage: 25
Total Actual Mileage: 21

One of my roommates from college got married during Week 9 of training. I was determined for it to not throw me off too much.  The wedding took place in Chico, where I went to college.  I was so excited to get up to Chico for a long weekend. Not only because of the wedding, but also to relive those college days.  I did a great job of keeping up with weekly mileage early in the week just in case I wasn't able to get my long run in on Saturday (the day of the wedding).  Because I knew I would not be able to run on Thursday, as my plan called for, I doubled up on Wednesday.  4 miles in the morning and 7 in the evening.  This was perfect, since I was going to be running the Ragnar Relay (spoiler alert) the following week.  I figured it would be good to get my legs ready for running longer distances back to back.  While I wasn't able to get in my 10 miler on Saturday, I did however get in 2 shorter runs with the bride on Friday and Saturday.  They were just what the doctor ordered for keeping her low stress.  And I loved being able to run in Chico.  Bidwell Park is one of the best places to run, I've decided. So beautiful, calm and quiet early in the morning.

Bidwell Park: early morning shakeout run

Reliving college days

Rehearsal dinner: pizza & beer. Best combination.

Weekly Highlights:
One of my best friends got married and I was privileged enough to be in the wedding.  Her wedding was beautiful and I may or may not copy every detail if and when I get married.

Getting ready: Beautiful bride!

Photobooth: Every wedding needs one. 

Total Planned Mileage: 24
Total Actual Mileage: 20

Week 10, otherwise known as the week I wasn't feeling it.  The Chico Wedding Weekend knocked me out. I went to fit camp twice this week, but running just wasn't on my agenda. I did a mile on Monday before I decided I was done and walked back to the car.  I was a repeat offender on Wednesday when I went out to Mission Bay for a 7 miler around the bay and made it 2 miles before I decided I walk back while catching up with my mom on the phone. And I didn't even pretend to attempt running on Thursday, as I was driving 10 hours up to San Francisco that night right after work.  I did, however, succeed in completing my first Ragnar Relay experience.  Along with 12 other runners (only 1 of which I knew before that Friday morning) I successfully ran 200 miles from Golden Gate Park in San Francisco to Calistoga through wine country.  Running through the rain at midnight in Santa Rosa is one of those things I'll never forget.  I will, hopefully, soon forget how horrible it is to sleep in the front seat of a van. I finished on Saturday afternoon asking "when can we do this again?".

Start line in Golden Gate Park. Complete with San Francisco Fog.

Finish line in Calistoga. We made it!

Weekly Highlights:
RAGNAR RELAY! I will do a full recap of this race soon, I promise. No really.  This was such an amazing experience and everyone should do one, regardless of your running abilities.  

Total Planned Mileage: 29
Total Actual Mileage: 18 (ouch)

Week 11: Whoops. One of my favorite bands came to town this week. I'll go ahead and throw away my reputation now, and tell you that this band's name is Hanson.  Moving on.  Anyway, they were playing in San Diego and Los Angeles throughout the week and I wanted to see them every chance I could. They put on a great live show.  Because of this, I only ran on Monday night. And then again on Saturday for my long run.  I saw this week as my last hoorah before my training plan pumped up the intensity.  I hope I don't regret it later.  BUT, if you're ever wondering how to tire out your legs to simulate a week full of running, just stand on your feet at a general admission standing room only concert 3 nights in a row.  Trust me, it works.

Looking tired but happy. Concert day 3 of 3.

Weekly Highlights:
Lack of sleep and driving to and from Los Angeles twice in 2 days.  But really, it was hanging out with friends I haven't seen in months and listening to some of my favorite music.

Total Planned Mileage: 32
Total Actual Mileage: 16 (double ouch)

So the moral of the story is: Don't over plan your life. Think about what it really means to travel between southern and northern California two weekends in a row. And register for the next available Ragnar Relay. 

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Programming.....: Training for Philadelphia {Weeks 5 & 6}

I love to travel. How cliche is that sentence? Well it's true.  And for my job, I have found myself traveling internationally 3 times in the past year. India, Germany and this time France.  While it may sound exotic and wonderful, there are some strings attached, in the form of 25 undergraduate university students. During weeks 5 and 6 of my training cycle, I traveled to Paris for 9 days with 25 students. While I had lofty goals of getting up every morning before our 8-10 hour days and running the prescribed miles on my training schedule, I didn't quite make it.  I did, however, successfully walk my way around Paris over and over and over again. And at the end of week 6, I did the same thing in Madrid while visiting a friend from my year living in Germany.  Here's a quick visual recap of "what I saw on my summer non-vacation".

On Tuesday, I knew I would be sitting on a plane for 10+ hours for the rest of the day, so I woke up early before my flight and got in 3 quick miles.  Nothing fancy, nowhere fancy. Just 3 miles.

I arrived in Paris on Wednesday morning.  Due to thunderstorms in Dallas, I arrived 2 hours late. Thanks, Texas.  A few of my students waited for me at Charles de Gaulle airport to take the RER train into the city.  If you ever fly into that airport, get ready to walk a few miles to find anything (the train station, a taxi, your terminal, a bathroom).  At this point, I was low on energy due to a lack of sleep and food.  After dropping our bags at our hostel, the last thing I wanted to do was go running.  Instead, I wandered with my students to a local cafe.

Then, I went here:

Please ignore the "I just flew 6000 miles" hair.

On Thursday morning, I left our hotel in the early morning and wandered through the streets of Paris for about 3.5 miles. It was such an awesome time to be out on the streets.  Apparently it was also a national holiday, so everything was particularly quiet.  I ran down to the Seine river and looked to my right. Why, Hello Notre Dame. Such a beautiful city.  I ran back towards our hotel and happened upon the Luxembourg Gardens, running for about half a mile inside the gates. The view of the Eiffel Tower in the background was pretty amazing.  I felt so accomplished when I got back to the hotel.  All before breakfast:

View of the Eiffel tour in the background, NBD.

Our first day, we were scheduled to go on a bus tour through the city. With it being a holiday, there was no traffic and we were able to see so many of the sites.

On Friday, we found ourselves on a guided tour of the Louvre. For anyone who doesn't know, you could spend a few years wandering through this museum and still not see every part of the collection.  We saw of the few highlights, including this older women:

Mona, behind bullet proof glass.

We then headed over to Pont Neuf for a boat tour on the Seine River. This was my 3rd time in Paris, but my first time with the opportunity to take one of these tours. It presents a different view of the city. If you find yourself in Paris for more than a few days, I would recommend adding it to your itinerary.

Saturday morning we visited with a representative from the French Red Cross. I have to say that I have learned more about health systems throughout the world in the three years I have been in this position than I ever thought I would learn in my lifetime. I feel like I almost take more away from these visits than my students.  After our tour, we headed over to Montmartre for a walking tour through the neighborhood.  I love this area of Paris. I also really love guided tours.  This was our 3rd tour of the week and I love how detailed they are. Montmartre has the feel of a small village nestled in the city.  Artists and musicians are everywhere.

On Sunday, we took a tour of the palace at Versailles.  Talk about tourists.  Thousands of people from all over the world were swarming the front gates of the palace when we arrived.  I was so thankful for our tour guide.  After a quick but thorough tour, we were left to our own devices in the gardens. Or should I say forest.  We saw runners in the gardens as we explored. I thought about how amazing it would be to run through the gardens at Versailles for a training run. Walking would have to do for now.

Optical illusion: objections in front of gates may seem skinnier

Monday afternoon after our activities, a few students and I hopped on the RER train to Disneyland Paris! We had to check it out! Considering my love for Disneyland here in California, I was excited to see the park. We took so many pictures! It was almost surreal to be in a Disney environment in Europe. Completely different from all my previous travels.

Our hostel was right around the corner from the famous Catacombs.  Tip: If you're planning to visit the Catacombs, go early! They open at 10am, and only let in about 200 visitors at a time.  Since it's an approximately 2km path underground, the line moves slow.  Our group showed up about 8:30am and there were about 30 people in line ahead of us.  By the time 10am rolled around, the line wrapped around the traffic circle. Unbelievable. The visit was really interesting. Pictures don't even do it justice, but I'll give it a try:

On Wednesday, I was determined to get in at least 1 more run, since I'd obviously been failing. With a "free day" scheduled for the students, I had more time to myself.  I ran down a different boulevard, Tobiac, to the Seine. Note to self: the road on the map is longer than it seems. I started my run about 8am.  A little bit too late, unless you want to be running in amongst commuters briskly walking to work.  Even still, Paris is such a great city for runners.  The Seine offers literally miles of running paths along the river with beautiful views.
We finished off our day with an adventure to the Garnier Opera House, which is now hope to the Paris Opera Ballet.  I wish we had had the opportunity to see a performance.

In the late afternoon, we did as Parisians do, and sat on the grass in the Luxembourg gardens with a snack.  People watching at its best.  A great way to end a solid week in a beautiful city.

The students left me on Thursday and I was off to my next adventure: Madrid.  I've only been to Spain once previously, so I was excited to explore a new city.  I was especially excited because one of my best friends from my year abroad lives in Madrid.  It's always fun to see a city as one of the locals.  The weekend was filled with tapas and tinto de verano. Exactly what I needed after a jam-packed week with students.

Afternoon perfection.

Jamon, anyone?

On Sunday morning before I headed to the airport, my friend Ben assured me we would get out and run some miles.  I was so excited to run in a new city.  While most Madrilenos are flooding out of clubs at 6 in the morning, we were out the door headed to the Buen Retiro Park.  We ran down to the park and did a full loop before heading back home.  Now, I may not be the fastest runner. I'm the first to admit it.  But, these miles were killing me.  I could barely keep a 12 minute mile pace.  Horrible, considering I was keeping about 10:30's the week before I left for Paris.  My confidence was thrashed, until I remember Ben saying that Madrid is one of the highest cities in Europe at 2,200 feet above sea level.  That may not seem too high to some people, but to me that's crazy.  San Diego sits at sea level, especially where I typically run.  So, basically, I should work on that.

After our run, I packed my things and made my way to the airport for my 24 hour journey home.  I was so excited to see my bed when I got home on Sunday morning.  And truthfully, I was extremely excited to get back into my normal training cycle.