Adrienne Langelier Racing

Yesterday was a couple of firsts for me: my first organized bike ride and my first time to don a bib number of any sort since August! Given my now moderate cycling base I thought I'd moonlight a bit and give the Spring Breakaway Ride around the Katy, TX region a try. Out of 3 available distances, I was most comfortable with the 37 mile route; this proved to be a wise decision due to some ugly winds.

Before the ride and the first few miles were spent fumbling around a bit and getting a feel for the cycling ettiquite and remembering when to clip in and out. I have to admit, it felt weird to be wearing spandex and a helmet for hitting the roads. I started the route with Stacy, who was getting miles in for the upcoming Ironman Texas race. We were able to get into a nice rhythm after the first 10 miles or so, after we had to deal with a derailer malfunction and a subsequent spill on my behalf-yes, those dang clips again!! One thing different on a bike course, besides the noncompetitive nature of the event is the rest stops. Given that is it was hot and I was hydrating quite a bit, I welcomed a little break. This is where the biggest issue of the ride cropped up. Of course the 30-mile head and crosswinds came and went; presenting a challenge, but I made a terrible sunscreen choice rendering me  a one-eyed rider at some points. Sweat + Eucerin sunscreen = Ouch!

In between stations we traversed across farming communities, many familiar with the Texas Independence Relay routes (good times!) that I ran a few years back. Blinking and squinting, we all took turns drafting and fighting the wind, although I felt pretty strong despite few long rides in the past month or so. I entertained going the full 57 miles, but decided to play it smart and part from IronStacy in Simonton veering towards the medium route. I enjoyed a nice flat and windless stretch where I averaged about 23 mph without really trying, that was fun-until taking a turn and back into the wind-and ouch, my eye!! I felt like a bug wuss as the left side of my face felt as if it were melting, but I'll take a sore eye any day over anything else.

Pic. Courtesy of Mary Kershbaum.

I ran into Mary, a fellow TWRC'er at the second rest area, took some pics, stretched the hamstrings (see above) and made a b-line to the sink to wash my face. Ahh, cool water! After looking in the mirror and seeing nothing but crimson, I stuffed my jersey pocket with paper towels and proceeded with Mary and her husband for the final, VERY windy stretch. I had a lot of fun on this ride except for the last haul back to Katy, where the winds were relentless. I was lucky to average 15 mph on this part and I felt as if my face were melting. What I did do was finish strong and get a good low-impact workout in. I forgot to start and stop my watch a few times, but the total time was about 2 and a half hours, including rest stops and headwinds. A couple guys comments on my PowerBar clothes and assisted me in handing out GelBlasts and Energy Bites samples.

My overall evaluation of organized cycling based in this experience is positive. Everyone seemed friendly enough and the event was definitely low key. I learned that my body is getting stronger and that my skin and eyes are not! I will make sure and take Mary's advice, use baby sunscreen next time!!

Note to self: when you have absolutely NO sense of direction, refrain from running alone on new trails-seriously!

So here we have it-an awesome 4ish mile run paired with an unplanned hike at the end. Before visiting as a guest speaker at Tri On The Run today, I took advantage of an open morning and indulged my curiosity/previous recommendations and ran the trails at Jones State Forest. What I found there was very well manicured pathways of combined leg-saving dirt and sand with plenty of room to just get lost and run. Fifteen minutes into it, I thought about just being predictable and doing an out and back but I was having too much fun playing "explorer" and figured any given trail would go back to the wetland area where the car was. Turns out I was a tad mistaken.

When my run time "allowance" was up, I noticed an apartment complex to the right that was considerably far from my entry point. Dang it! Laughing at myself, I started hiking back to the car along FM 1488 (ok, probably not the safest thing to do, but it worked). About a half mile down, I spotted the entrance-only to be told by a park ranger that the parking lot was still a mile and a half down the road! If I wasn't coming off a major case of trash tendons, I would have just ran back. Being the smarter runner that I am now, I sheepishly requested a lift from John the Park Ranger. I even learned a few things about this particular park:

1. Jones Forest is managed by Texas A&M's Rangeland Ecology program-Whoop!.
2. It contains an endangered bird species. Not being a big birdwatcher, however, I never inquired what bird! 
3. It has been a sanctioned area since the 1930's.
4. There is little wildlife to be seen besides birds.

Okay, nothing really magical to take away here, but it helped me shake some of the stupidity I was feeling. I think I need to go back to pinning maps on me for the time being!  I will definitely keep this place in my route rotation from now on.

...ok, this may not be a true statement across the board, but it appears to me that most endurance athletes struggle with taking rest days. I personally don't know too many runners who leap for joy when taking a day off.  Funny how the absence of vigorous activity sends many of us into quite a tizzy- one wracked with feelings of guilt, laziness, fear of losing fitness, or perhaps the most annoying of them all (at least for us girls): "a scheduled fat day".

I will admit-I have experienced each of these feelings and sentiments many times over and perhaps may have a history of being one of the worst at resting. This of course has lead to many a useless workout, unnecessary tiredness, overtraining syndrome, and of course, my good frenemy injury.

If we look at this concept rationally, none of the above catastrophies has ever come true, at least not for me. That is good news. Actually, many athletes need a day of little to no activity (the staple "scheduled rest day") to absorb the "damages" while becoming more resistant to them. It's like pouring plaster of concrete. For best results, you have to leave it to harden for 24 hours It can be considered a regular part of training. .Do more work, let it form and harden, get even better and stronger.  Cool concept, huh?!

So cool it has taken me years to start to accept it. I am beginning to realize that I am not one of those athletes, at least not at this stage, who can withstand big number mileage 7 days per week. I have tried in the past, and have yet to be able to tolerate it. And that is okay. There are many runners who have been productive on lower mileage. After recently taking a few weeks off from running, and making it through (gasp!) some consecutive rest days, a funny thing happened, I didn't balloon out (at least I don't think so;)), my head didn't explode, and I just may be beginning feel a little stronger and supple. Don't get me wrong, total rest days are still tough, but I keep using the image of the body being "under construction" as a way to get through it, telling myself to embrace resting.


It's getting easier. I know that at least one day off a week is necessary, and maybe in the future I just may grow to actually like it. An added bonus: a cleaner apartment on those mornings I don't head out for a workout! I guess most things have their upsides.

When I was in school, I used to train on trails weekly.  I often ran twice a week at least on Huntsville State Park's pathways and did the majority of my long runs on the rolling pine-covered pathways. Actually, this monster I created actually started with me randomly accepting a professor's invite to run trails one afternoon and it went on from there. Yesterday, while it did not feel fast, I had fun getting off the beaten path. I can get lost for hours out there in the woods.

Did I mention how much I love these shoes? The pink KT tape is also a nice accessory!

I found myself thinking the other day, why did I stop doing soft surface running? I suppose time issues and travel to parks, but mostly habit of daily pavement pounding. Since moving to the new place, I'm fortunate that now  the Mitchell Nature Trail just 5ish minutes away. It's just a 3-mile loop, but winding and wooded enough to be interesting. I got up fairly early yesterday waited for it to warm up a bit, and hit the path. I was sporting my latest greatest Brooks Gear and my trusted Glycerin 8's. These are like my "truck tires" of trainers-dependable and adaptable, especially when I am  in 'truck' shape currently -LOL! I did a really easy 3.5 or so and enjoyed every minute. The sun was shining, it was brisk but comfortable out, and I felt in my element. One of the local track teams was working out on the trails as well, making it fun to run around with them (although I refrained from chicking some poor teenage boy this time!). As I passed, I got a "hey Adrienne!" shout out from one of the runners-I wish I knew who it was! :).

From a more functional perspective, soft surface running is definitely in vogue in my training plans. The benefits are many: reduced impact on the legs and feet, improved lower leg and core stability, improved strength, and raster recovery .Funny how the only injuries I recall from regular soft-surface running were minor and were result of me tripping on rogue tree roots as I grooved along through God's creation.  Plus, if it's good enough for the Kenyans, it's good enough for me! Rumor has it that you also feel much faster when taking to the roads afterward as well. ;) 

Luckily, I'm less sore than I imagined this morning. I'm happy to have found a go-to pathway right in the middle of my community.

Looks like it's in with the old and into the new!

Good luck to my peeps running Rock N Roll New Orleans this weekend!

Running PR's, setting and achieving goals, and racing til we drop are just some of the reasons us serious runners do the thing we do. Yesterday I had yet another- perhaps even sweeter than the last- non-race experience that reinforces the intangibles of running. In a small way, I found it almost healing: healing from the post fracture complications, personal challenges, and frustrating return-to-training hiccups I have been experiencing. When the finish line is crossed, there's still a whole lot more to running....

In 26 degree temps (yeah, it was COLD!) I headed to a 5k benefiting the MD Anderson Cancer Center a fellow Brooks ID member/Lymphoma Survivor Bill Crews and manned an aid station. This is a special event where the race takes a backseat and it is more so a celebration of life and remission from cancer.  I have some personal investment in the cause as my cousin is a lymphoma survivor. Even though I could not feel my feet, I cheered the participants on and handed some really cold water out at the halfway point aid statioon. There were several survivors running and the race direction and crew were spot-on. Quite the way to make the best of a frigid morning! Last I heard, in excess of $16,000 was raised.

After the race, we headed up the highway a bit to check up on Karen F. and a few clubmates who were running the Rock Raccoon 50 and 100 milers. After being at a high-profile road race last week, I was reminded how different the trail scene is: laid back, low fanfare, and just about the running (with lots cookies and cokes and Camelbaks thrown in!). Walking up to the turnaround, we saw Scott Jurek casually chatting it up with some of the other runners and spectators, to put the low-keyness into perspective. As it turned out, he dropped at 60 miles (wuss!! j/k;)). Who did not drop at the 60 mark was Karen-one inspirational lady whom I had the pleasure of pacing for just a short few minutes as I did a little out and back on the trails I used to run weekly. She was looking awesome 40 miles in! This was actually my first run in a couple weeks-I kept it off the blog mostly, but I was on a break to deal with some soft-tissue problems and anemia-and I couldn't help but thank God for each pain-free step on such a beautiful day.

Last night I crashed early and woke up today with a sense of gratitude. Tomorrow, perhaps, I may go hit the local nature trail.

Oh, and go Chris K. and  Green Bay;)!!

One of the biggest running weekends of the year here in the Houston area came to a close with something fairly low-key but perhaps even more exciting for yours truly. In our world, I spent 3 days hangin with rockstars!:) As if talking racing with Jen Rhines and company at the championships was not enough, we had some more fast company visit just down the street from my place here on Market Street on Monday night: Ryan and Sara Hall!

The Halls were here to promote their Steps Foundation, which is one of the key sponsors for March 2012's launch of The Woodlands Marathon. I am excited about this race for several reasons. First, I would like to put a lot of my training energies to finally blowing the doors off my half marathon time. It is flat and fast down here and the weather could be favorable this time of the year. I also, always seem to do well in "hometown" races where familiar faces are everywhere. Call me an attention hoochie, but it works for me!

I had a moment to congratulate both of them on their performances and thank them for coming to our relatively small community. They both seem like very gracious (and busy!) individuals. As I rebuild my body and spirit over this next year, I hope to make this one of my first A races in a while. If you guys aren't busy Next March 3rd, I encourage you to come out and test out this flat, fast, and friendly course!

Here's me (in regular clothes!) with our "helpers"-please forgive the bad lighting! :