4 on the 4th & Monday Miles

The Corpus Christi Road Runners put on the 4 on the 4th every year and this was my 2nd year to participate! The route was a little different but as always, I enjoy running along the bayfront of Corpus Christi. 

Dotted along the bayfront are these little pergolas that you can hang out in and people watch, that is what I do atleast. We have one that is dedicated to the memory of Tejano star Selena so if you haven't found it yet, it is along there somewhere. 

Our little city doesn't have a whole host of things to do but when they built the splash park I thought it was such a neat idea. The concrete running path is right along side this. Normally in the early morning when we run it isn't up and running but if you are ever in the downtown Corpus Christi area, you should check it out! It is near the visitors information stand.

Just as last year, my Nike GPS fouled up and I didn't get a super accurate reading from it so I went off the race clock to sync my run. If you lock your phone before the run begins it won't really start tracking your run. Slower than last year but I am OK with that. I have decided I am running for mileage not speed. Either way, I had fun, enjoyed the scenery as well as the company of other runners. 

Monday miles in full force today. After sleeping on and off for almost 14 hours Saturday night my body was recharged for this morning. Living in a small town that I am not from means not too many friends and my only close one here just moved to Montana Saturday. 4 miles is the minimum for runs this week. The 15K trail run will be here before I know it so I have got to get my mileage up.  

I did a little run/walk scenario this morning which made the run much easier. Burned over 600 calories which was a bonus too! Looking forward to my tempo run tomorrow with this mileage. 

When nature calls

The second half of 2015 was celebrated with roasted eggplant veggie mix and slow raosted chicken with homemade gravy! All of this for just little ol' me since Dave is out on hitch. It was delish! 

I wish I could be as positive about my first fun for the second half of the year. Plan was 4 mile hill series however between my shin splints flaring up and the call of nature my run was cut in half. Very disappointing. But I still have tomorrow and my 4 on the 4th run on Saturday with the Corpus Christi Road Runners so there is still redemption for the week! 

And Pinterest provided for some good laughs after my morning disaster. This one was my favorite by far. 

No matter how my runs went, I am glad I completed something. I will not reach my goals by giving up, keeping a negative attitude, or not enjoying the journey that is my life. Today is my Friday and I am looking forward to a three day weekend....even though it will consist of laundry and cleaning the house. 

Will run for food

Saturday was the Pancake Run that Corpus Christi Road Runners put on and Becky & I decided to go. It was only a three miler but running next to the Oso and much closer to the bay, the humidity was an ass kicker!

And breakfast was delish! Blueberry pancakes, bacon, and sausage!  

Becky is one of my favorite people to run with. We have relayed a few runs and run solo together. We are registered for the 15K trail run at the Oso in August together. After our run Saturday I realized we might need to run more often around Oso to get used to the weather. 

Saturday was canning all day for the fair on Sunday. So fuel for the day was a salmon burger on a bed of spring mix lettuce, an avocado, cherry toms from the garden, grilled okra, and blue cheese crumbles! 

Sundays are usually rest days and since I had the craft fair I kept it that way. 

 My Monday Miles - a 5K hill series on the treadmill with abs afterwards. This is week 2 of transitioning AM workouts and it is going good so far. I didn't even snooze my alarm this morning!

So some friends gave me two duck eggs to try. He said that he mixes a duck egg with a chicken egg because he thinks the duck eggs are more rich. So I took his advice when I made myself breakfast this morning and mixed one of each. 

The end result of my breakfast but I will be honest, I was not a huge fan of the duck egg and how it mixed with my chicken egg. Are there any different recipes to do with duck eggs? I still have one more. I am thinking of hard boiling it to see what the difference there is between the two. 

Beach To Bay 2015

 This was my third Beach to Bay Relay to participate in and I have run a different leg each time. This year I took the 4th leg...the base leg. It runs through the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station.

Becky had our shirts made and I love them! This is the back. The front says WTF!

We ran in honor of a guy named Christopher Harlan who our first leg runner served with in Afghanistan. He was a machine gunner and a purple heart recipient but he took his own life. I researched how often that happens and the numbers are so high. According to the stats, 22 soldiers take their own life each day. If you want to help stop that you can go to stopsoldiersuicide.org  and donate. 

Waiting in line with Becky for the bus to her leg. The sweet girl that took this picture actually just found me in Instagram so that was pretty cool! Unfortunately she is headed back to California this summer otherwise I might have had a new running buddy! But I have heard the bay area is nice and maybe I will just have to find a run out there to do!

My race day outfit! I pulled out the flag capris that I usually wear on the 4 on the 4th run since I was running on base. I tried to say thank to every military person who was working our run on the base. I got pretty close to accomplishing that. 

Chute selfie! Finished my 4.83 miles...not as fast as I wanted but the humidity had to be in the 80 something percent. Overall we finished with a 4:33 times for the relay. 626th place overall out of 2046 teams. In our division of odds and ends we placed 225th. 

Until next year Beach to Bay!

American Bank Half Marathon Relay

Team Two of a Kind

I was so nervous for this race and I am not sure why. I think I get nervous for the 10k's because they are the challenging races for me right now. The rain finally stopped but it was in the mid 40's the whole race. We started on Shoreline and went down to Palmetto Park on Ocean and then headed back. I ran the second the leg. 

Results:

My leg time - 1:08:11.9

Total team time - 2:19:16.2

Average team pace - 10:53 (however I was more on track at 10:30 for the most part of the race)

My partner Becky coming in for the hand off

Finish strong!!

Team Two of a Kind!
I met Becky a year or so ago now I guess at an IronMan competition a local fitness guy put on.
I switched over to her CrossFit box until it closed last May.
Now she is one of my fave running buddies!

I didn't PR like I was hoping but overall I am very pleased with how I ran. I didn't walk near as much as my Carrera Race last fall.....Maybe .15 of a mile up a hill this time around. The new New Balances held up well and I think the sleeves helped too. I have been battling shin splints so I think both were needed by now. 

Breakfast because I was HANGRY! Whole30 compliant - potato hash, two eggs, cherry tomatoes, sauteed greens, and leftover fruit from my drive to Corpus for the run. I ate everything on my plate!

Corpus Christi Road Runners 33rd Annual Turkey Chase in Pictures

Early mornings....Love when I can start my days with my Asics!

It is about 45 minutes one way to get to Corpus Christi which is where most of my runs are so my drives usually consist of watching the sunrise over farm roads

Ainsley's Angels! 

There is a special place in Heaven for these folks. And if I could run while pushing a stroller I would volunteer.
However I was passed by people with dogs and strollers on this run! 

I had fun and I finished...that is all that matters in my book!

OFFICIAL RESULTS:

FINISHED IN 40:31
AVERAGE PACE - 10:08

FIRST 2 MILES: 19:53

LAST 2 MILES: 20:38

FEMALE AGED 30 - 34 - 16th

OVERALL PLACE - 303rd

OVERALL FEMALE - 119th

Why are you looking at me like that?

I seriously never thought of dressing my doxie's up like this...wish I would have!
It is hilarious!

Now you know where stuffing comes from! LOL

Rain or Shine...And God chose rain!

This morning was another Corpus Christi Road Runner Runner of the Year race - the Bill Dodge Memorial Run down by the SEA District. I love running around that area because the route is usually up and down the bayfront! However I weather here in South Texas has been very wet and I was hoping we would be spared but the good Lord said we needed rain! I estimated my time off a girl I was pacing since I didn't have my phone. Unofficially I ran around a 10:16 average which isn't bad. 

My first 5K in a few months...gotta love putting your life on semi hold for a wedding!

Just a few of the puddles we ran through

Downtown Corpus Christi.
If you have never been here the Hooks Baseball team plays at Whataburger Field on the left
and to the right (not pictured) is the famous Brewster Street Ice House

I left my phone in the truck, otherwise it would have been a very expensive run! I do not usually run without music but listening to the rain and thunder wasn't so bad. 

After the almost hour drive home I was cold and hungry! Egg nog in my coffee and yes....3 eggs! 

IAAP posted the race results!!

Finished in 31:12 (average mile split 10:02)

     2nd place in my category of 30 - 34 Female

Training for the American Bank Half Marathon (relay of course!)

Its been a few weeks since I have been running since I was so preoccupied with the wedding, friends, and family and such. But I am around 7 weeks out from the American Bank Half Marathon and Relay that will be taking place here in Corpus. I have a buddy who is going to run it with me who has a few halfs under her belt solo. I am really looking forward to reconditioning my body and spending my little bit of free time doing something good for me again.  

As always I use my Nike+ coach app on my phone to help me with my training program and send me reminders. It helps me if I get little nudges like that of how much I need to run. Plus I can always check out the weeks and prepare my schedule around how much mileage I need to get in.