Obtain The Prize

I'm a Christian, and one of my favorite passages in the entire Bible is 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

"Do you not know that those who run in a race all run , but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight:Not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified."

As someone who trains for races this has a special meaning to me, and I can relate so much to what Paul is saying.

However, after this last race it has more meaning to me, and really got my wheels turning. It's one thing to train our bodies physically, but how much our we spiritually training ourselves, or are we neglecting our walk with God for other things that aren't as important?

Also, I've mentioned before that one of my favorite feelings is crossing that finish line. I enjoy the race itself, but I look forward to the end and getting that hard earned medal. Life on this earth is short. Am I looking forward to, and  preparing for when I meet the Lord with the same diligence and dedication? Will He say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant"? I certainly hope so!

So, "Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race set before us." Hebrews 12:1

Have a terrific day!

Seattle Beast {Race Re-cap}

I finished a Spartan Beast.

Honestly, I'm still a little surprised, even though I knew I could do it. There's so much I want to say about my latest adventure I don't know where to start! So, I guess I'll just start.....

Friday night I hit the sack early, hoping for some extra sleep before the big day. As usual though, sleep did not come easily or quickly, and I got my usual pre-race three hours. 

When my alarm finally went off I rolled groggily out of bed and started getting ready.

Breakfast? Check. Dry shoes? Check. Hydration pack? Check. Comb? double check. Snacks? triple check.

We were rolling out of the driveway at 6:00. Right on time. The drive up felt like forever! Also, trying to find a bathroom in Seattle isn't always the easiest thing to do...

My excitement continued to grow as we started seeing the parking signs. Almost there! 

As we pulled into the venue, a pretty impressive sight met our eyes. There was a sea of cars, people trudging through marshy grass, you could see the Hercules hoist, walls, and other various obstacles. My first impression? "Ooh, it's so nice and flat! This should be easy." Haha.

We parked and headed up to begin the check-in process. With waivers signed, saying we understood we might possibly die today, (that spectator-ing stuff is hard, isn't it dad?), I began the process, of getting changed, we wandered a bit, took pictures, checked my bag, I got my hydration pack ready to go, and before I knew it, we were watching the heat before mine get sent off. I'm never really nervous before a race. Excited, yes, but I had been training for this, and figured the only way to find out if I was ready was to just do it.

11:45 came, and over the wall I went with my fellow Spartans! We were going to do this thing!

I love looking around to see who I'll be suffering with for the next however many miles. 

With  our "I AM SPARTAN! AROO! AROO! AROO!" Hanging in the air, we were off and on our way to do battle with the next 12.4 miles. None of us knew what was coming, but we were ready.

I kept a steady pace, telling myself to take it easy when I needed to, but already setting a goal in my head for a 4 hour finish..

We hit that first hill, and we all slowed down, making our way up the steep steady climb. Let me tell you, that first mile felt like it was all up hill in the mud. We got to a low crawl and I once again was thankful for my small frame. Even with a hydration pack I could crawl underneath without having to go on my stomach like many of the others, I know, I'm a cheater. ;)

I slogged, hopped, ran, and slid through more mud and came to the sandbag carry. It went down a hill, then came right back up the other side. I don't find the bags heavy, but when you're going uphill it definitely adds a challenge.

I picked up my pace as much as I could making my way up, down, over, and through the terrain.The mud was pretty hard on my ankles and trying to pick out the clearest path wasn't easy. About 40 minutes in I was feeling pretty tired when I saw my worst nightmare: The bucket brigade.

Sucking it up, I began the familiar process. Men on black, women on red. Grab your bucket, fill it to the line with rocks, and carry it to the end of the loop where you dump it and return your bucket to the stack.

This one was mostly downhill so it wasn't too bad. One of the guys was struggling with his, so I plodded alongside him, and encouraged him to just keep going. We tried to figure out how to breathe while winded with a bucket of rocks sitting on our chest. Haha.

 We finished and he thanked me for the encouragement. :)

The festival area had come back into view, and my dad waved as I came down the hill to the rope climb. He called out that I had made it to mile 2, and  couldn't believe that was all! I slowed down a bit, trying to catch my breath and sucked down some GU Strawberry lemonade electrolyte water.

I shimmied up the rope with no problem, then shook my hands off as I immediately headed to the Multi-Rig. I crossed this obstacle last time with no problem so I wasn't worried about it as I stepped up and grabbed the first ring.  swung my way to the long bar, grabbed onto it, and just about slipped off with my left hand. My right still had a ring, so I adjusted myself and tried again.

And Fell. -_-

Yay. Burpees. 30 of them. 

Feeling somewhat defeated I headed to the next obstacle, a new one called 'Olympus'.

I eyed it, and picked my lane. I chose to use the short chains to make my was across the wall.

                                       

photo courtesy of Spartan Race. Not my photo.

P

This one was much harder than it looked! still breathing heavily from my burpees, I got 3/4 of the way across,before my grip slipped, and I went sliding down with my pinkie finger stick in one of the chain links. I shook it off, and let out a groan as I once again paid my 30 burpees. Ugh. Those were painful!

With a half-hearted wave to dad, I took off at a jog over the next hill. 

Ah. The Z Wall.

 Now, rock climbing isn't my thing, and this resembles it, what with the hand and footholds, as you make your way across the wall, around the corner, more wall, and another corner.  I got up there, and made it some of the way without too much difficulty, then hit a patch of mud. One second I was sliding and the next I felt someones hand on my back, allowing me to regain my footing. Some very nice guy had seen my plight and stepped in to help, He stayed with me, helping me with just a hand on my back, when I needed it. I thanked him profusely, telling him I probably would have cried if I'd had to do more burpees. Glad that I got a break from burpees, I forged onward and forward only to be faced with "The Burpee Maker" AKA: Spear throw. I have yet to nail that one, and today was no different.

I threw that sucker, watched in hope as it almoooost stuck, then hit the ground. I let out a cry of agony and joined the others on the side.

More burpees. -_-

 I caught my breath briefly, and took advantage of the downhill terrain and picked up speed. We ended up going through a barn where they had set up the monkey  bars. 

"Hey, I'm good at these! Finally something I won't have to do burpees for!" or, so I thought....

Turns out, pride goeth before a fall, and halfway across, I fell. Standing there, hands shaking, and out of breath,  I wondered who's idea this was.  It took me a while to do 30 more burpees and I watched in envy as others sailed across the bars and continued on their way. I came out into the bright light of day, refilled my hydration pack, and trudged uphill. Out of all 12.4 miles, mile 2 was the toughest mentally. Here I was with 10.4 more miles to go, I was tired, had failed 4 obstacles, and done 120 burpees. At this point I was all alone, with everyone who I started with either way ahead or way behind.

I grabbed a GU packet from my pack, and with some trepidation started sucking the gel down. Man, that stuff is good! It's basically sticky pudding, with enough caffeine to give you a little kick, and helps keep cramping at bay. You start feeling the effects of it pretty quickly, and before too long I was ready to get going again, and determined to catch up to some of my fellow spartans.

The trail led me into the woods and once again I was dodging mud, and carefully picking my footing.

After about 10 minutes I finally caught up to a few people. And then quickly passed them, on my own once again.

From the winding trail I  started to hear lots of splashing, and.... laughter? What was that all about? I came around a bend, and below me was a line of people going through a waist deep creek. I saw a couple people lose their footing and get a face full of water. 

With a renewed sense of energy I pressed on, I went on, and on, and on, and pretty soon the creek was completely out of sight. -_- 

 This part of the race is pretty foggy to me. I just remember loads and loads and loads of deep mud, a second sandbag carry somewhere in there, and more mud. I did eventually get to the creek, and that water was a little bit chilly! I bumped into some logs here and there, and just about took a dunk. My legs were a bit on the numb side when I got out, but I couldn't move fast enough to get them warmed up because of the mud.

One of the most memorable parts was slogging through, trying to walk just right to keep my shoes on, when I just decided  I was done. I wanted to walk or run normally for a bit, so gritting my teeth, hulk noise in full effect, I plowed through, passing people left and right, almost managing to run through the muck. Oh, the comments as I went.....

"Oh, ****! Look at her go!" "What the ****?" "****! How is she doing that?" 

Haha. So long everybody! I'm out of here!

It was around here that I once again started to wonder how much farther I had to go when someone called out that they saw the 6 mile marker. Only halfway done.

Next up? The memorization test.

There we are, in the woods, looking at the sign matching up our BIB numbers to the corresponding code. We were supposed to memorize it, and at some point we would get asked to repeat it. Or owe 30 burpees. I didn't wear my bib, and couldn't remember my number, so I randomly picked a code.There were probably about 20 of us, muttering them under our breath, writing them in the air....anything to help cement it in our brains. I headed off chanting, "Echo-515-2943" over and over in my head.

 I got to the weighted sled drag, and forgot to keep chanting my code in my head.

Somewhere there was a 7' wall, which someone boosted me over, but  don't remember where.

A new to me obstacle was a "log flip". Imagine something that looks like a punching bag, that has water inside. you flip it one way, then turn around and come back with it. As I approached I heard the familiar, "Men on black, women on red." I walked past the women's, and the volunteer quickly piped up, "No, women on red." I told him I wanted to try the men's for fun. I got the same reaction from two other guys, and they smiled at me like, "Okay, knock yourself out". 

Apparently all my deadlifts have paid off, because I squatted down, and without too much effort had the log up and over, and then up and over. I came back with it as the guy next to me, who started at the same time, got his flipped for the first time.

Yeah guys.....don't judge a book by it's cover...... :)

the mile marker numbers were getting bigger and bigger, I still remembered my code, and my GU packs were doing their job. I was doing surprisingly well, despite the fact that I was beginning to feel really stiff, thanks to going through cold water, running, walking through mud, back into cold water, etc.... 

Spartan has a sick and twisted mind, so they threw in a second bucket carry. -_- That one hurt, even though it was flat.

I picked up a rock in my shoe somewhere around mile 8, and when it started to hurt I tried to remove it. when I finally got my mud caked shoe off, I didn't see a rock. I wriggled it back on, only to find whatever it was was still there, but most likely in my sock. Grrr... It had taken me too long to get my shoe back on, so I sucked it up and took off at a slow painful jog.

The order isn't clear in my head, but there was the 8' wall, which I once again had help with, the 'Stairway to Heaven' right after that, (I really don't like heights!), Then a bit after that, the Tyrolean Rope Traverse.

 My calf cramped on this one last time, and it was so painful, so I was a little anxious about this one.

with a deep breath I grabbed the rope, threw my legs over, and began my upside down traverse. I moved quickly, and hit that bell at the end with no cramping! Score!

At mile 9 my body was complaining. Every time my left foot hit the ground it rolled in, I was incredibly stiff, and felt like an old woman. I would run a couple hundred feet, then had to give my legs a break before running another couple hundred feet. I pushed through the farmers carry,the O-U-T walls,and something else that  can't remember. Haha.

I remember hitting mile 10, and cheering everyone on as we reached the final 2.4 miles. We were almost there!!!!

Oh my word, that was a long 2 miles! 

 I painfully made my way through the trail in the corn field, and looped around to the festival area. I got over the inverted wall, and was happy to see my dad there, still smiling. :)

 When I climbed down, he started running to the next obstacle, the A-Frame cargo net, so he could get pictures. I walked to give him time to get there..... ;)

I was at the final mile, and came up to the Hercules hoist. I planted my feet on the fence, and pulled on that rope with all my might! It came up 3 feet, and I readjusted, determined to get this thing up 20 feet, before slowly lowering int down.

Ummmm....that didn't happen. I got it about 5 feet up, before having a repeat of Sacramento. I had all my weight hanging from that thing, pulling with everything I had, and it wasn't budging. -_-

Luckily for me, another girl couldn't do it either, so we teamed up and got it done.

Almost. There.

Oddly enough, one of the most exhausting parts was the final low crawl through water. The water was cold, making my stiff muscles even stiffer, and crawling, and ducking under the wire was hard for my battered body. Unfortunately, those with hydration packs removed them on the sidelines before going into the water, so once you finished that, you had to go back to the beginning, staying on the side of the course, to get it, then pick back up where you left off. When you're one obstacle away from the finish, every step counts!
Hydration pack snapped on, it was time to take on the slip wall. I grabbed the rope, planted my feet firmly, leaned back, and hoped with all my might that my hands wouldn't slip, sending me down the wall, most likely breaking something. Lucky for me, that didn't happen and I slowly made my way down the beams on the opposite side.

I'm pretty sure Angels were singing as I ran to the fire jump at the finish! I could taste the victory!!! I strategically timed my pace to make sure no one photobombed my glorious finish, jumped as high as my creaking joints would allow me, and soared across the fire!
Well, it felt like I soared.....

The feeling of crossing the finish line will never, ever get old for me. I don't exactly remember what went through my head as the lady placed my medal over my neck, but I remember feelings of pride, exhaustion,, sadness that it was over, and happiness. But mostly pride.
{I may or may  not have almost cried.}



When I looked up, after finishing, there was my dad. Still smiling.

People are often amazed when I tell them I do this for fun. They tell me it looks so challenging, and that anyone who completes them should be extremely proud.
Yes, they're hard, yes, I'm always proud, but the family members who support us don't get nearly enough praise.

I remember at my first race my sister in law waited around for almost 3 hours in the rain with a baby, and cheered us on. She didn't get a medal, any cool recognition, not even a banana. But she was always there with a smile.

At my second race my sister and brother waited around for me for almost 2 hours. Again, no medal, no nothing.

At this one my dad drove 4 hours up, stood around for 4 hours, then drove 4 hours home, He took pictures, and videos that I love to look at and watch, he cheered, and smiled, and posted pictures of me laying face down on the ground to FB for friends and family to see. {Thanks dad!}

Maybe I should be the one to start the Spartan Spectator medal. They could even do a Trifecta for it.....


All in all, this was an amazing experience. As someone who runs maaaaaybe two miles here and there I knew the distance would be the most challenging. I also know I'm pretty strong, and very stubborn, so I was going to do this thing if it killed me! I have so many memories from that day, I could never even begin to share them all. I met amazing people from all over, and had great conversations while slogging through the mud.
This blog post feels a little scattered, but oh, well. I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into this latest adventure. :)



Oh, and there is nothing better post-race than IHOP, just so you know....

Up next? The Sacramento Super for my Trifecta in just a few weeks!!!!

AROO!

Those post-race blues

Today I want to talk real quick about something that I feel is not mentioned enough to people who are either: young aspiring athletes training alone, or just your average person training for a race or other physical event,.

Post-race depression

Yes, this is a real thing, and yes I've been through it too. Now, like regular depression there are different levels, and mine certainly wasn't bad, but I still wanted to share my thoughts on this issue.

After my first two races I was pumped to work on my weaknesses! I knew where I had failed and couldn't wait to see how I could improve before my next event. I trained hard, and before my first Battlefrog I followed a 6 week plan to a T, and put in everything  had during those workouts. It paid off, and I was pleased with my performance and finish time. 

I kept up my training since I was doing another Battlefrog just a few weeks after that, on June 23rd, I think. That one didn't go quite as well, but there were some other things going on with me that contributed to that.

That's probably when I started to notice the blues. My next race wasn't until August 6th, and it felt like forever away! Not to mention I was thinking I'd be doing it alone, and even though I was super excited to do it, I was feeling tired and run down. I kept training hard but would decide to take more rest days here and there. That is NOT a bad thing, don't get me wrong, but as I've said before, I love my training sessions so this was out of the norm for me.

Well, Race day came and and went, I ended up with two team members, and had an absolute BLAST! Even if I did feel like dying a few times.....

However.....that's when it hit. I had spent so much energy and time training and now it was over. The week after that I took a much needed week long recovery, only walking, and doing yoga when I felt like it. Then that week turned into almost another week. My usually very healthy diet pretty much went out the window too. I would start out the day good, but by the time lunch came, I would munch on the kids sandwich remains, snack on pretzels, bits of cookies, etc....I never all out binged, but just munched all day long. I would do a quick 15 ish minute HIIT workout here and there, but still just wasn't feeling it.

And then I signed up for the Spartan Beast.

For me, that's all it took to re-light the fire. I now had a goal and date for said goal. By the time I signed up, dooms race day wasn't far off. I had to get hustling! I've been running much more than usual, and working on grip strength like my life depends on it. 

I have exactly one week until go time. Then I'll race, and once again it will be over.

But,this time I have a plan for afterwards, and I think this will be a game changer for me.

If any of this sounds familiar to you, whether it be race related, or really any event, then let me give you one piece of advice....

Plan.

Before you even reach said event, or the end of a big project that you've been putting a lot of focus into determine your next course of action. Otherwise you'll lose all momentum, and unfortunately, objects at rest stay at rest. I'm working towards being a beachbody coach, and I bought the 21 Day Fix Challenge pack. That way I can have my nutrition still stay on target and hopefully not munch, and munch, and munch..... :) The workouts will be easier than what I'm used to but I can still make them challenging for myself by keeping my weights heavy, or even omit them if I need a break.. I think the most challenging part of the Beast will be the mental aspect, and having a game plan for after is a relief.

I think this might end up being my last race of the year, (sadly), and 21 will give me plenty of time to determine my next plan of action.

I'll be starting my 21 Day Fix on in a few weeks and hope to get a challenge group going. That way there will be accountability, some extra motivation, and the chance to encourage others who might be struggling in the same way as me. :) If this sounds like something you'd enjoy, shoot me a comment, and I can get you  more information. :)

2015 Sacramento Sprint {race re-cap}

I can't believe its been almost a year since my first OCR! I'd say time sure flies by, but that would make me sound old.....

With just over two weeks until my first Beast, I figured now was a good time to share about my first Spartan experience before I forget any more details.

For starters, I signed up for said race July 4th. That gave me four months to train, which, in hindsight, I didn't do a very god job at. I made a paper chain and on the inside of every link I had a motivational quote and what was on the schedule for my workout that day.

Pictured is half of my chain. I went through this, then tacked up the second half.

Every morning I would hit my alarm and lay there staring at it fighting with the part of me that kept whispering, "just stay in bed...." It hung just high enough from my bed that I had to stand up to tear one off, and by the time you're standing, you can much better convince yourself to go out in the cold for burpees, bear crawls, and box jumps,( i.e.....Death).

Fast forward four months......

Early the day before the race found me driving to the Airport Sacramento bound! I couldn't contain my excitement! I felt oddly tired, but pushed through. I was met by my sister-in-law and niece, and was so glad to get to hang out with them, despite the headache I felt coming on. Probably from dehydration, I thought, No biggie. 

 When my brother got home from work we chilled for a bit then headed to Walmart for diapers and Gatorade. You know.... the necessities of life. I started to feel a tiny bit queezy standing in line, but fought it off, afraid I was getting sick. I had waited to long for this! No way I was going to miss it!!!!

Our start time wasn't until 1:00 the next day, (Sunday), but we hit the sack somewhat early and I slept like the dead. We were up early to pack our gear, grab breakfast and head out since they like you to be there 1-2 hours before your start time, and I felt great! Ha. I knew I couldn't be getting sick.

That drive to the race venue felt like FOREVER!!! We pulled up and the first thing you see are people trudging up a big hill, people flipping tires, crossing monkey bars, with music cranked up in the festival area. To say I was excited at this point would be a gross understatement!

We checked in, then wandered for a bit. I heard them doing the Elite race winners and about had a heart attack when I heard Rose Wetzel's name called. I'm still bummed that I didn't get to meet her..... ;(

The weather was fairly decent, but a bit before our heat started the rain came. A nice drizzly rain that left you wishing it would either stop, or come down harder. I stood in line for almost an hour to get a hoodie only to find out they were out of my size. -_-  My brother came over and told me our heat was getting ready to go so we hurried over there and started to warm up . 

I was already starting to shiver in my shorts and short sleeve shirt. Whether it was from the cold, nerves, or both I'm not sure. 

The guy at the starting line got us all pumped up and we were off!!! 

The first obstacle was the OUT (over wall, under wall, through wall). A nice easy start to the next 5 miles. We were keeping a good pace, but were quickly slowing down due to the insane amounts of clay collecting on our shoes. It was like wearing moon boots.

We got to the 8ft wall where Chris pushed me over, and I waited for him to get over. Just so you know, the majority of the race went like this: Chris gets me where I need to be and I wait for him to do it all by himself. Lol. I'm so helpful

The order of the obstacles is super blurry in my head but I remember the dreaded bucket carry that was up a steep muddy hill, and down the other side of said steep muddy hill. My much weaker and tiny-er self hated that part. By the time I got to the end my forearms had seized up. Not fun.

I remember the A-frame cargo net where the guy climbing next to my started jumping around on the net. I jokingly glared at him and told him if he did that again I would not hesitate to push him off. He laughed and said, "Spartan women are the BEST!" We both made it safely to the other side and no pushing was necessary. 

I remember the multi rig, and telling Katie that I WOULD make it across that thing!

 I fell of the first bar.

It was so muddy, it felt like someone slathered it in grease. I paid my 30 burpees and moved on, determined to make it next time.

I remember the gray sludge pond that was so thick the tadpoles in there could barely move. I still remember the way it felt and smelled. You smelled it before you saw it.....

I remember the barbed wire crawl that went uphill in muddy clay and it shredded my knees. Once you got close to the top you would start to slide back down. There were finger marks in the mud that looked like something out of 'The Wolverine' Haha.

Luckily some nice guy took pity on me and pulled me to the top.

I remember the little 7ish foot incline that was so muddy we couldn't get up it. I got a running start thinking this would be easy peasy, and quickly slid backwards. I came to a stop halfway down thinking my foot had found a rock. I took a minute to get my bearings, and when I look behind me I realized I was standing on some random guys foot! with some pushing and prodding, a lot more sliding, and laughter we got up and helped each other haul our team members up. We must have looked utterly ridiculous..... :)

I remember walking up to the Hercules Hoist, (a sandbag on a pulley system that you raise 20 ft up), thinking, "Yeah, I got this". I grabbed that rope and pulled with all my might! It didn't budge. I literally hung from the rope and still nothing. It had been getting rained on all day long, and that wet sandbag wasn't going anywhere. It took Chris and myself together to get it up.

I remember hauling a tire up a muddy hill.

I remember a surprising amount of rolling hills. I didn't even know CA had hills!

I remember being so cold I couldn't run, but it was so muddy we couldn't have run anyway.

I remember wondering who's idea this was.

I remember carrying the "pancake" up a hill.

I remember wanting to nail my first Spear throw, and missing and having to join everyone else in what looked like a mud pit for my dose of death (aka: burpees)

I remember shivering at the water station while Chris took a breather and wanting get moving to warm up.

I remember being one mile out, waiting to go over a wall and a little boy who was watching pointed at me and said, "Look dad, that girl can't stop shivering" Haha! Yeah, it was bad....

i remember trying to hold onto the Z- Wall, but couldn't because of the mud so Chris held me on while I went across.

I remember sliding off the rope because of the darn mud.

I remember lots and lots of burpees. and mud.

And I remember seeing the finish line, with medals and bananas at the end, and thinking it was the most beautiful sight ever!!!

I remember being proud of what we just did together. Talk about quality sibling-bonding time!

I remember a few minutes after finishing discussing when we wanted to do our next one. Yeah, suckers for pain....

I remember trying to brush the dried clay off my legs before getting in the car but it was hopeless. We cranked up the heat in there and ooooohhh.....it was like heaven! I didn't bother to change and rode home in my muddy clothes, wrapped up in a warm towel.

(Katie, I'm still sorry you had to clean the tub out for me! Lol)

We showered, changed, then headed out for dinner at a Mongolian Grill. I loaded my bowl up with noodles and meat, and enjoyed every single bite. 

Besides my cuts and bruises I felt great!

Until after going to bed that night..... -_- I woke up shortly after midnight feeling AWFFUL, and wanting to be home. I took my temperature and had a fever of 103. Yuck.

I stumbled around the kitchen in search of medicine, shivering like crazy, found it and crawled back into bed after donning my Spartan hoodie and 4 blankets. I stumbled out the next morning took more medicine, and my very considerate family members turned on the tv for me.

Psyche to the rescue!!! I flew out the next day so I did my best just to chill and get better before getting back on the germ tube (aka: airplane)

Luckily I was okay the next day, and arrived home well enough to tell of my latest adventure.

So, there you have it..... My very first OCR. The beginning of my crazy addiction. Some people think I'm insane and ask me why I like it. I smile, shrug, and tell them:

You'll know at the finish line.