Marathon #2 training is officially underway. This time around I feel like I know what I’m in for and I know what I’m doing. I’m actually looking forward to the aches and pains, the sweat, and that great “I-just-finished-a-sixteen-mile-run” feeling. I understand the importance of stretching, foam rolling, and compression socks. I know that if the worst happens, well, I survived it in San Diego.
I’m also making a conscious effort to eat healthier this time around. Not that I didn’t before, but there’s something about running that makes me hungry. Like really HUNGRY. And I tend to think “I ran ten miles this morning, so I can eat animal style fries and a chocolate shake for lunch”, which probably doesn’t help too much. I am trying to get better about eating healthier foods like fruits and veggies for snacks and trail mix instead of candy. So far, so good. I’ll definitely enjoy my In-N-Out, but I’m trying to make it more of a treat than a regular occurrence. I’ve also given up most caffeine. I have a love-hate relationship with Diet Coke and have completely stopped drinking it – all that I have is my one white mocha in the morning.
Honestly, I’ve started feeling so much better – I have more energy throughout the day and I’m sleeping better at night! Here’s to being healthier!
That title reads true for many different reasons, but today it’s because he completed all five passes of the 2013 Death Ride. In case you’re wondering, it’s a 129 mile bike ride over five mountain passes with 15,000 feet of climbing. Yeah, definitely a stud.
He and our friend Mark (also a stud) have ridden it together for the last few years and this year was no exception. I headed up to Carson Pass to be the photographer and cheerleader extraordinaire.
Before I get to the pictures of the studs, here’s a little gem… no way on earth Mike would pull my slow butt up five mountain passes…
No Way
Ok, on to the serious pics. This is Mike on his way up the last pass. He looks like he’s smiling, but I think it’s actually a grimace. Although this could have been when I yelled “You look just like Lance Armstrong. On steroids.”
My Stud
Here’s us when he was done:
Love This Boy!
And, finally, the two studs together:
Two Billy Goats
We stopped on the way home for burgers at this little place across the street from Kirkwood… they were delicious! Now that we’re back home it’s time to catch up on the Tour!
This weekend we were invited to join our good friends the Waters’ and the DeBenedets at a beautiful cabin in the Sequoia National Park. We drove down on Friday morning and spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out, enjoying some drinks, and cooking some of those awesome street tacos my hubby makes. I felt terrible that everyone had to put up with my post-Alcatraz cold all weekend – I alternated between Dayquil and Nyquil as appropriate and tried to contain myself.
On Saturday, armed with Dayquil, we headed out for a little hike. The view at Panoramic Point was stunning – you could see the whole valley, including Hume Lake:
Hume Lake
I loved the cabin – it’s a real log cabin, with all of the amenities, with the exception of WiFi and cell service. It was kind of nice to be disconnected from the world for a little bit! My favorite part was the gigantic fireplace – we made s’mores every night!
LOVE This Fireplace!
Click on over to my Facebook page to see more pictures!
Finally, I want to reflect on the reason for having today off… it’s not just another day off work and a chance to spend time with family and friends. We need to remember all those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that we have the wonderful freedoms that many of us take for granted every day. So thank you to all of our service members who gave their lives, to all those who have served or are currently serving, and to their families, who also sacrifice. Happy Memorial Day!
Well, today was the big Sharkfest Alcatraz swim… I’m proud to say I not only completed it, but did it in 36 minutes and 42 seconds, much faster than I was anticipating! For those of you who don’t know, this is a 1.5 mile swim that starts at the Alcatraz Island, crosses the San Francisco Bay, and ends at the Aquatic Park.
Yesterday before we left town, I headed over to get a mani/pedi and decided to go with a shark theme. I think it turned out really cute, especially considering I had to explain what a shark was to the nail lady. I did get some compliments on the ferry this morning, so I consider them a hit!
Shark!!!
After that, we dropped Shadow at the kennel and headed for the Bay. Little did we know until about a week ago, but today San Francisco hosted the Amgen Tour of California, Sharkfest, AND Bay To Breakers. No wonder we had a really hard time finding a hotel! We ended up at a shady place out in Alameda, but it was clean and we got there late, so all we did was sleep.
This morning started with a 4:30am wakeup. Those of you that know me know that I get really nervous before races. I normally have an upset stomach, a hard time eating, and sometimes a headache. This morning actually felt pretty good… honestly, the best I’ve felt in a long time about any race. We headed over the Bay Bridge (note to self: they don’t take credit cards, so if you don’t have the cash, you get a $30 toll violation) and into the city. One thing I have to give the race organizers credit for was being very clear on what roads were closed – they gave fantastic directions into the city and listed out the times that the different roads would close.
Once we got to the Bay and parked, it was time to walk in. We had about a mile walk to the check in, but it was along the shore and was really nice. The weather could not have been more beautiful today… clear (no fog at all!), warm, and calm. We stood in line to get our hands marked (you had to have your numbers on both), get our mandatory yellow swim caps, get our timing chips, and pick up the very important t-shirts. My favorite part of any race is the t-shirt/medal!
Swim Shirt
After that was the inevitable wait… the sucky part. We hit the porta-potties and then did what I’ve now termed as “the wetsuit wiggle”. Those of you who have ever watched someone try to put on a wetsuit know that there is generally a lot of wiggling, sweating, and pulling. Now imagine ~800 people doing that. It was pretty hilarious. We had the pre-race briefing and then it was time for what the organizers called the race “parade”, which basically consisted of all 800 people walking about a mile to get on the ferries (there were 2).
Once we got on board, we headed out to the Bay. Everyone was excited and talking – either asking questions about where to sight (you have to pick a point to swim at and stick to it – if you’re not careful you can get caught in this funky current that sweeps you towards the Golden Gate Bridge) or sharing past Sharkfest experiences. At this point, I still wasn’t that nervous. Once we got out to the island we had to wait for about 20 minutes and then they opened the doors. This was where shit got real – you made the jump from ferry to water. Mike and I were some of the first swimmers in the water. It was not nearly as cold as I had expected… my hands and feet were a little cold, but I had been expecting to feel like I had hypothermia.
We waited about 10-15 minutes for the rest of the people to jump and then the ferry horn blew. Everyone started cheering and screaming and swimming. The beginning was a little scary only because everyone was all bunched together and swimming over the top of each other. Once I got into my own space and my rhythm it felt pretty good! I even made a point to stop about halfway across to look back at the island and to look over at the Golden Gate – how many people get to see those things from the water in the middle of the Bay?
My sighting was almost dead on – I came in pretty darned close to where I wanted. The problem was that I was about 100 yards off and right in the really strong current, so for a minute I had to swim like hell to get away from it. I actually had the conscious thought “this is how people drown in the ocean!”. After that it was smooth sailing in… the finish was lined with people cheering and a bunch of guys dressed like prisoners (get it? Alcatraz?). I headed over to the refreshment area where I had the best cup of water and trail mix of my life! Then I met up with Mike (who finished about 2 minutes after me).
Post-Swim Car Shot
This race was so much fun! I’m so glad I did it and I might even do it again next year!
Last weekend I noticed a weird pain in the side/bottom of my ankle. Me being me, I continued to run, garden, etc… and by Wednesday it hurt like heck to even walk. I headed into the doctor who immediately sent me in for x-rays and “the boot”:
The Boot
Nice photobomb, Shadow. Anyways, the verdict came back – no break or stress fracture, but rather a torn ligament. One that’s not bad enough for surgery, but that I need to take care of. So it’s two weeks of the boot, ice, and elevation. The last few days of the week were rough… the boot is hot, itchy, and I hate not being able to do the things I want to do. Poor Mike has put up with cranky Anna for the last couple of days.
The doctor said I could swim, as long as it didn’t cause me any pain… I may or may not test that today. In case you forgot, in about three weeks I’m slated to swim from Alcatraz back to shore at Sharkfest. Fingers crossed that this doesn’t impact my swimming too much… I may take it easy the next few days and just do pull workouts. Think healing thoughts!
Today I tried a class at the work gym. I’m not a huge class person and normally don’t really like working out with other people.
I think I’m hooked on CrossFit. For those of you who don’t know what it is, CrossFit is a core and strength training program, consisting of varying exercises that change every time.
It was hard. I was red-faced and sweaty before we even finished warm ups (seriously, when was the last time you jumped rope!?) but I loved every minute of it. I have a feeling I’m going to hate it tomorrow morning when I get up to swim, but it’s a great hurt!
Thanks to “Auntie M” for convincing me to go and for teaching me the exercises!
Today we decided that since a decent storm went through this week we’d give snowshoeing another try. At the last minute I told Mike that I wanted to take Shadow along with us. The only snow that he’s really ever seen is the couple of inches we get once or twice a year. I thought it’d be fun for him to come out and hike around a bit. We had the best time! I’m so proud of him… he hiked along with Mark, Mike, and I like he’s been doing it for years. He did get a little tired at the end, but figured out that if he walked in Mark’s tracks, it was a lot less work.
The weather was beautiful – it actually started snowing on the drive up, stopped for the beginning of the hike and then started again right at the end. We ended up hiking 3.24 miles in a couple of hours (there was some pretty good uphill chunks this week).
Shadow & I In The SnowRunning In The Snow
We are both pooped. It was a great hike and if we had our way both of us would still be napping. I can’t wait to take him on another grand adventure!
Today I went on an adventure with my husband and our friend Mark. Let me start with the fact that these two are crazy when put together – they do things like the Death Ride, climb mountains, etc. Sometimes I tag along and sometimes I can’t hang. Today’s adventure was to go snowshoeing. Mike and Mark have been doing it for years, but I decided to borrow a friends (thanks Kassie!) and give it a try. It was seriously fun. We ended up hiking almost six miles in right around two and a half hours… having a blast the whole time.
Mike & I Snowshoeing
We haven’t had a very good winter this year, so the snow was not as fresh as we would have liked it, but this really was a blast. And, it was great exercise!
Mike & Mark Hiking
We hiked in a little along a road that runs between our neck of the woods and Placerville (it’s closed in the winter because they don’t clear the snow). We then detoured off into the fresh, untouched snow. It was so beautiful… every now and then we would stop and there was nothing but silence or the wind in the trees. The weather was absolutely beautiful – we almost didn’t need gloves (and at the hardest parts I thought about taking off my top layer). The wind picked up a little at the end, but it wasn’t too bad. It was a beautiful day!
The View From The TopMike & I At The TopMike & Mark At The Top
Down The Road I Go 