Non Sequitur Box

 I haven’t written a race recap since 2014! I have definitely raced since then, and I like to keep track of what I liked/didn’t like about specific races. 2015 Marine Corps 17.75k (1:15:20, 1st female overall) Pros: Beautiful trail course! Entering this race allowed me to get a “Golden Ticket” into the Marine Corps Marathon. Cons: Narrow registration window, limited race competition, reported race time in the paper was wrong (used clock time not chip time). Notes: This was a cold/windy race! I had a late dinner with wine, got drunk, and was dehydrated. I had to wait around a while for the awards ceremony. The trophy was ridiculously large for such a small race. Navy Air Force Half Marathon (1:26:32, 11th female overall) Pros: Predictable race after doing it a few times, easy registration. Cons: None. Notes: I remember not feeling well this year. Marine Corps Marathon (3:13:20, 31st female overall) Pros: Lots of road support, snacks after the race. Cons: This year was TERRIBLE for c...

Today I ran the 3rd annual Navy-Air Force Half Marathon in Washington, D.C. I met my three goals of negative splitting, running under 1:25:00, and placing in the top 10 for females. Preparation I've been training with Capital Area Runners for a few months now, and I've run new PRs at multiple distances (1 mile, 4 mile, 10k). I was already signed up for the Richmond Marathon in November, and I had set Newport (RI) Half as my tune-up race in October. Coach said I should run this race as a secondary tune-up. I'm easily convinced. My weekly mileage has been 40-60 miles for the past month. My last hard workout was last Tuesday (6x1200m). I ran easy 7.5, easy 5, easy 4 (last mile pick-up), and easy 2 miles for Tuesday through Saturday. Core work every day, of course. Pre-Race The race only offered one race pick-up day, at the Washington Nationals baseball stadium. I got there early, and it was already hectic/slow. I felt bad for those standing in the rain later in the day...

On Wednesday of this week, I ran a mile around a track (yes, a true mile, not a 1600m). I did the same thing this morning. I had a good race on Wednesday and a bad race today. I was really aiming to run faster today. Wednesday was a long day of hydrating at work and making it through traffic to a warm, overcast track mile race. DC Road Runners put on the race at T.C. Williams High School. Our coach uses the race day as the team photo day. I ran in the ladies' fast heat (under 6:00, over 5:15) with a few of my teammates from Capital Area Runners. It was okay. It felt good, even if I didn't negative split. Here are my splits: 1:22 2:44 4:09 5:29 I was happy with that, seeing as I ran a 5:28 at the Loudon Street Mile (downhill road mile), and this made the track mile official. On Thursday, I ran 3 miles and 10 miles, both relaxed and slow. On Friday I ran 6.5 miles. **This next paragraph has TOO MUCH INFORMATION. Stop reading if you can't handle female body cycle...

 I finally ran faster than my previous best 10k at the Lawyers Have Heart 10k this morning! My previous best 10k was 38:46, run on a track in 2008. I ran that race with Sarah Burns, one of my fellow Navy track/XC athletes. We ran at Towson, on a slightly drizzly spring morning, temperatures in the low 60's. We had teammates calling out our splits every 200m. I think we traded off every mile or every 5 laps and then let the engines loose on the final lap. I hadn't seen sub-39:00 since. While training on my own, I've gotten close recently--39:00 last fall at Race for the Parks 10k--but no banana, no cigar, almost doesn't count. Since training with Capital Area Runners, I've set PRs in the 4 mile and the 1 mile. It's nice that I continued in that fashion today. I would also like to thank Bancroft McGavin Horvath & Judkins, P.C. for allowing me to race with them, covering my entry fee, and giving me a great singlet to wear. Pre-Race: I went climbing/c...

Today I ran in Potomac River Running Store's Mother's Day 4 Miler. The race was held near Baron Cameron Park in Reston, VA. This was my first race on this course and my second four miler. My goal was to break 26:00 (my previous PR was 25:01 at Four Courts Four Miler). I knew I should break 25:41 (which is what I ran my "tempo" four mile last time). Prep: For the past two weeks, I've been training with Capital Area Runners under the coaching of Coach George Buckheit. I'm still lifting three days a week, but I'm not focusing too much on huge gains (I keep it heavy, but I don't push the volume or intensity unnecessarily). I also added planks/push-ups back into my core routine, as I have been doing more concentric/eccentric movements and neglecting isometric movements. On the downside, this past week I worked with some isocyanantes and accidentally got exposed (somehow I found chemical rashes on my arms, abs, chest, and nose even though I was wear...

Yesterday I ran my third race of the year at Pacers' Four Courts Four Miler in Arlington, VA. Race Prep I've slowly been adding a few more speed workouts, mostly just shorter intervals (I did my first 2x1600m this week), and bumping my long run up to 12 miles each weekend. For the most part, I'm eating healthier and sleeping in until 6:00AM. The night before, I ran 2 miles, picked up my race packet, climbed one route at the gym (what can I say? I didn't feel very energetic), and went to Shooter McGee's in Alexandria for a not-so-healthy dinner. I had 3/4ths of a beer (Kona Longboard) and a lobster crab cake sandwich with fries on the side (one of the few non-red meat items on the menu...no red meat on Fridays during Lent). After falling asleep at the dinner table, my boy finally agreed to go home. I was in bed by 11:30PM. Pre-Race The weather was perfect for racing--low 50's, slightly cloudy! The race didn't begin until 9AM, so I was able to sleep ...

Yesterday I ran the George Washington Birthday Classic 10k in Alexandria, VA. The race is put on by Pacers (local running store). Pre-Race 0630 - I woke up to a message from our fearless local Team Red White Blue leader Bill. He didn't ask if I had finally signed up or if I was going to bundle up and come cheer. He just said, "See you soon. You can zoom past all of us." The time stamp was 0553. He was probably already onsite, setting up the Team RWB tent. 0700 - I tried to go back to sleep. I was happy in the warmth of bed, but the thoughts of everyone else freezing and running a 10k before I even got out of bed bothered me. I pulled on some workout clothes and put a few layers of sweats and jackets and hats on and zombied out to my car. Before I realized what was happening, I was driving to Alexandria. 0735 - Parking was a breeze inside the free parking garage. This made me very happy. I met up with the group, said I didn't register and that race day regist...

Today I raced in Potomac River Running Store's (=PR=) New Year's Day 5k at Reston Town Center. I've been coming back to running from a knee issue (my left knee and foot were giving a lot of troubles). I've been doing a lot of active recovery geared toward strengthening, lengthening, and inhibiting certain muscles (one legged strengthening exercises, balancing, foam rolling, and yoga). Coming back, I've very slowly upped my mileage (from 8 miles a week slowly up to 20-ish miles), not run on consecutive days, tested my shoes with and without my orthotics, and focused on cross training and lifting. This also means I haven't been running too much with Jack lately (he is speedy!). Preparation: On Monday, I ran on the treadmill for four miles (increasing the speed every half mile, then every quarter mile, and finally every tenth of a mile) and did a short lift (squats, lunges, man-makers, pull-ups, and ab circuit). On Tuesday, I did a very light four mile jog o...

Me, looking a little curvy these days, courtesy of the =PR= race photos Today I ran the Run with Santa 5k, another race in the =PR= Race Series. The race started at the Reston Town Center, did a "B"-lying-on-its-back-shaped loop, and finished at the fountain at the Reston Town Center. Preparation: No preparation, other than taking a lot of recovery days. I ran 3.8 easy miles on Saturday, stretched, went to Panera for soup and a sandwich with chai tea, ate some sour gummy candies, went to the bookstore, and had soup and bread for dinner. I finished the night with watching White Collar (since I finished all the seasons of Dexter on Netflix). This race was a last minute decision, as I've taken a lot of time off this week. When I woke up, I told myself, "Anna, it's 6:30am. If you're going to run, you might as well do a run to count for points. You might as well run fast. You better run now, because the weather is just going to get worse later. No excuse...

On Sunday, 10 November, 2013, I ran the Veteran's Day 5k at Fairfax Corner, VA. The race was put on by Potomac River Running and proceeds went to Team Red White Blue, which I have recently started getting to know. I signed up for it the Friday before race day and ran the Nearly Naked Mile the day before the race. Preparation : No preparation for this race. I had Panera for dinner the day before, but I didn't have any breakfast food for the race day. Running on no race day fuel. Maybe a little water (?). Pre-race : I picked up my packet on race day (quick and easy). After getting everything situated (putting on my race bib and storing my race t-shirt and pin), I met up with Team Red White Blue for some pre-race photo and conversation. I was happy to see Melissa and Victor again (met them both at the Reston 10 Miler). With about 25 minutes before the race, I left for a warm-up. It was quite chilly that morning, so I ran about 2.5 miles in my sweats/gloves/headband. The cou...

  Race prep: I didn't really prepare for this race specifically. After the 10k last Sunday, I took Monday as a day for weight lifting and six short wind sprints (and climbing!). I ran 6 miles on Tuesday morning with Jack, as I was working late and went to the movies with my boyfriend that night. I ran 7 miles and lifted again on Wednesday (and some traversing, but my back was spasming that day, so no climbing). I jogged an easy 3.8 miles on Thursday. I jogged an easy 3 miles with Jack on Friday followed by some climbing. Friday night was Climb and Dine with Jack and Steph (and Kara, Novak, Mark, and others). There's something about the way Jack tells me to do things that I believe every word he says with confidence (95% of the time). On Friday night he told me to try leading a 5.9 (any feet), so I just tied in and gave it a try! I have never tried to lead anything, so this was a huge deal! I made it about halfway before I realized I couldn't make it through the arch, ...

Free photo from Potomac River Running Race Prep: I didn't do much preparation for this race. The week before I ran a quick 1600-1200-800-400 on Tuesday, and then I was sick through the rest of the week. I took Thursday and Friday completely off exercise. On Saturday morning, I went for a short 3.5 mile jog, completed a few errands, picked up my race packet in Tysons Corner (and had some delicioius Caribou Coffee sandwich and chai tea latte), went home briefly, and ate some chicken salad and Whole Foods salad bar for lunch. I continued my day by watching Dexter on Netflix and eating angel hair pasta with red sauce and cheese/herb blend (plus four pieces of spinach ravioli in pesto sauce). I also had some chocolate milk. I know, my food combinations are not ideal. Race Day: Pre-Race: I took my extra hour of sleep (after staying up until 10pm watching Dexter ), woke up at 6:15am to get ready, and ate a bowl of apple-cinnamon instant oatmeal (FINALLY finished the box I bought o...

A few weeks ago, at my friend Kristin's birthday party, I was invited to join a Ragnar Relay team! Having always wanted to do one, I agreed immediately! Little did I know what I was really getting into... Team JUGS! I joined the team Just Us Girls (JUGS)! Half of the team was from Miami, and the other half was from the DC-MD-VA area. Pre-Race After a lot of shuffling and an unexpected last minute drop-out, we had eleven runners. I was in van 1 with five other ladies coming from Miami. My friend Kristin was in van 2 with other locals I didn't know. We didn't get t-shirts or a theme or decorate our vans, but we still had fun! I met up with the Miami ladies on Thursday and drove up to Rocky Gap Resort, the start line (but not before a stop at the new Wegmans in Germantown!!). We stayed at the casino (I didn't have to camp outside after all!), had a few drinks, and got to know each other the night before the race. Relay Race Ragnar Relay D.C. is a relay o...

On Sunday, 29 September 2013, I raced in Potomac River Running's Perfect 10 Miler in Reston, VA. Participants can choose between 10 miles or 10 kilometers. I chose to run the 10 miler. It is the same course at the Reston 10 Miler (in March). Night Before the Race: Okay, so the evening before the race went not-according to plan. I had taken the entire day off working out, walked around Clarendon Day festivities, and had a delicious salad for lunch. Plans fell apart that evening when my boyfriend suggested we go to Nick's house to play games. Not sure what time we were going to be home or if we were going to eat with Nick, I ate half a serving of my dinner (salmon cakes, vegetables, and noodles) and a Gatorade. I only stayed for one round of Stone Age (one of my favorite games) before heading home around 11PM (late for me). I ate six pumpkin chocolate chip cookies (homemade by Rachel) and quite a few Snyder's jalapeno pretzels. I know, I'm so good at eating healthy. ...

That's me in second place for females 25-29 years old! I FINISHED! I completed my first half distance triathlon (1.2 mile swim, 58 mile bike, and 13.1 mile run) at Patriots Half in Williamsburg, VA, yesterday! Pre-Race: On Friday, my boy and I drove to Anniversary Park. We went to packet pick-up and one of the informational meetings. It was quick and well organized. I looked at the transitions, walked from the swim to the transition, found my bike rack, and skipped my planned 30 minute workout (10 min swim/bike/run). I felt confident. After that, we did a drive of the bike course, checked into our hotel (Greensprings Resort, which was actually cheaper than the regular hotels!) and ate at a Greek restaurant (salmon, rice, vegetables, bread, water). I drank Gatorade and water throughout the day, but I still felt a little low on hydration (from sweating in the car and at packet pick-up). My boy showed me how to change a flat tire and I went to bed at 9:50pm. Race Day: 5:15...