WELCOME TO MIAMI, BUENVENIDOS A MIAMI!

"Miami uh uh
South beach bringin the heat uh

Haha can yall feel that

Can yall feel that

Jig it out uh"

The race started with this song by Will Smith (Miami) with 10 400 runners jigging to it the atmosphere was pretty wild!! I was going into this race just wishing to have fun and not look at the time... ya right the competitive person I am won and I decided to try for even splits of 10:30 min/mile for the whole half.

As Laurel said in her last post, once you've done a marathon you kinda lose respect for the half or at least think this distance is not important considering you've doubled it and not died! So, I wasn't very nervous heading into the race, as I said many times to my mom: "It's only a half!" and she replied that it was still a big achievement nonetheless. I think she was right and I got a little emotional once I heard the gun start, I was happy to be able to run a half. That is something most of mortals won't do in their life and this was my 6th half-marathon =) I wasn't sure if my ankle would hold up but I didn't have any issues with it. It took me 7 mins to cross the starting line, there was definitely more runners than for Detroit.

Before the race with my parents:

The race was pretty much effortless until mile 9. I hadn't done a race at that pace in ages... like months! But I thought I could hold on to that pace for 13.1 miles?! What the heck was wrong with me? lol

I got new shoes over Christmas and should have updates my socks at the same time, they are solely responsible for my blisters (all on my bigger foot). I had to repeat and repeat to myself when it got hard that it was mental and not physical (even though I barely believed it!). I slowed down a little but tried to pick it up as soon as I noticed a slow down. In the end, I am pretty proud of the way I raced considering the training involved before this race.

I loved the race course, it was B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L!!! The first part running up the road near Biscane Bay with the Palm trees and we could hear the parrots in the trees were simply awesome. I thought it was kinda surreal with the helicopter from Homeland Security too. Once we were arrived in South beach the crowd support was fantastic and really pumped me up (might explain that 10:18 min/mile!). I just truly enjoyed this race, the weather, the crowd both on and off course and would definitely do it again. I know we got "lucky" since it was a cooler day and it barely rained for the half but I think I would have still loved it even if it had been warmer or raining (as crazy as last year's sounded with what Laurel told me!). Racing to the finish was frustrating and very motivating at the same time. You can hear the crowd and you think you're close but there are a lot of turns and I was giving a lot of speed and finally ran out for the final stretch!! My parents said it looked like I was having a hard time near the end and it was close to the truth!! But when I heard them shouting my name and waving big: "Go Sonia signs". I waved back and went for it!! =) What a boost seeing your family can do for you.

I was so touched to read her blog when I got back home. I think she put in words way better than I could do how our meeting went. It was definitely like meeting an old friend and we had a lot to say to each other. I was disappointed not to have more time and sit down for a drink. For sure next time =)

The facts:

13.1 miles in 2:21:44

Mile 1: 10:57 min/mile

Mile 2: 10:37 min/mile

Mile 3: 10:36 min/mile

Mile 4: 10:35 min/mile

Mile 5: 10:18 min/mile

Mile 6: 10:40 min/mile

Mile 7: 10:28 min/mile

Mile 8: 10:34 min/mile

Mile 9: 10:55 min/mile (Getting tired and blistered!)

Mile 10: 11:00 min/mile (only mile at 11 min!)11 min

Mile 11: 10:59 min/mile

Mile 12: 10:59 min/mile

Mile 13: 10:18 min/mile (pushing it hard! Crowd support and seeing my parents helped!)

0.24: 10:35 min/mile

The Best way to end the day: AT THE BEACH WITH MY DAD!!!

I'M IN LOVE!!!!

With Miami!!! I love the beach!! The race was great, the course is breathtaking. I loved it. Finished in 2:21:44 and had to give a big effort from Mile 9-13.1. But finished strong. I only had one mile with a pace of 11 min /mile. All the rest was 10:XX min/mile!

I also meet with Laurel! She's so great! I will put more details once I am back in Canada!

Hope you are all doing well

MY FAVORITE PLACE: THE BEACH

So, I'm off to Miami tonight! I cannot wait to be in the warm weather and sitting on the beach!! =) I think I brought all I need (sunblock, sunglasses, sundresses... etc. ;-) hahaha)

Today the weather is highly disgusting (-23 oC with windchill) sooooo I'm loving this little escape from winter! I ran 2.5 miles on Tuesday and kinda hurt my foot... it was like my ankle froze and then when I took the next step, I kinda heard a crack and it hurt. After running for a little bit it got better but not back to normal... After icing it that night and the next day, it felt a little better so I wanted to test it for a short run (3.1 miles) on Thursday. The ankle did not hurt but it didn't feel "normal" or like usual. sigh... I'm just hoping it won't bother me during the half-marathon. Anyhow! I'm leaving soon and I'll catch up with all of you bloggers when I come back!! Except for Laurel who I will meet during my Miami stay!!! =)

Happy Running!

ALIVE AND KICKING!

The stomach bug finally got away, I stopped the intense vitamins mix I was on and tried to lower my stress level. All of this combined was not good for my health!! But I had a good running week:

Tuesday 4 miles @ 11:25 min/mile
Thursday 3 miles @ 11:18 min/mile
Saturday 8 miles @ 11:38 min/mile

I had an interesting run on Thursday.... I am dog-sitting a 80 lbs golden retriver/husky for a friend. I didn't want to miss my run so I decided to try and run with both dogs with Rocky attached on my waist while I hold the other leash. I made my way to our Riverfront path as I decided it wouldn't be the best idea to run in the middle of the streets with 100 lbs of dogs! Fritz is the sweetest dog ever but he's also very nervous...he had diarrhea all over is bum-fur and I realised I had poppy-bags who had defects (meaning it wasn't a bag but a sheet of plastic!!) GRRR I was fuming. I decided that I would take care of "that" after the run and tried to get in a better mood... right then a pigeon shitted on my head! Seriously?! Does life get any better? I think not! At that point, I wanted to forget about the run, thought I had enough of this madness but we were at the beginning of the trail and I wanted to see if I could run with both dogs. The answer is yes, and it was a great run! Rocky was going faster to keep up with his buddy (male are so competitive!) and never pulled me from one side to the other like he usually do. =)
Today's run was insanely cold, we usually never get weather like that here, it was -20 with windchill, WTH is going on!! I kept thinking: "6 days and you're in Miami, 6 days and you're in Miami, ON THE BEACH!"

Happy running everyone!

STUCK IN A SICKNESS VORTEX!!!!

Well Ken couldn't have said it better :" You know what happens when we have plans... Something seems to creep in".

Yep it does. To make a long story short, I started having this stomach-intestinal bug for about a week now. I tried to get rid of it with pills but its not working. So, after I called the Healthline last night. The man-nurse told me to forget about sugar and fat for 2 days. I'm allowed to eat rice, potatoes, soup and chicken. Some easy digestible things like canned fruits and yogourt. Fun times.

So, I'm not so sure about that 12 miler anymore =( This sucks, so tired to be sick!!

I did run 4 miles last night in 45:06, it was pretty windy and I gave in a good effort. I'm thinking Sunday might be a better day for my run if I feel better by then. Who knows???

On the bright side, this is my fur-baby's birthday! He's 4 years old today and it's also the anniversary of his adoption by me, 2 full years of love =)

MIAMI IN 3 WEEKS!

I really can't wait to be on the beach... oh yeah and run the half too! =) We've been having some nice spring weather so I decided to run 3.1 miles yesterday even though I was pretty tired and finished in 34:50. I'm thinking about another 3 or 4 miles on Thursday and 12 miles on Saturday which will be the last long run before Miami. My week-end is already full of job applications I gotta do but there's always time for running! =)

RESOLUTION RUN (NOT REALLY A RACE!)

It was a first for me, to race in my hometown! And what a great day for it =) It started snowing the day before and it hadn't stopped until the race. It was a very informal race with 30-50 people only. I was kind of surprised considering the high turn-out in Toronto and Ottawa.

We started at 11 AM on January 1st and I was still feeling heavy from all the food I ate the previous night (and wine I drank ;-)). My personal chauffeur and photographer (Papa) drove me to the race and my mom was there as a cheerleader (with a bad back!)!

I really like the French sign (Coin des Coureurs in that one!)

I meet up with Arthur, a Runningmaniac friend, just before the race started and we ran together talking the whole way through. It was a nice run, it was snowing and very peaceful. The best part was when a drunken guy encouraged us from a moving bus, obviously still on the party at 11AM! We finished in 35:35, my dad made a video but I realised I didn't copy all of this on a memory stick so its on my Dad's computer!

That's the best way to start the year!

UNSTOPPABLE...

I am on vacation! It's great! I even forgot that I am stressed about finishing my Ph.D. and that I have no clue what I'm going to do and where I'm going to go after that! Life is a bliss ;-)

I've run 8 times since the 21st December for a total of 26.4 miles. I'm pretty happy with my mileage and the runs I did, I sure hope it prevented me from putting on a bazillion pounds from all the food and wine I had.

I'm doing the 5K Resolution Run in Montreal tomorrow. I was pretty excited to set a PR but it's been snowing (and still hasn't stopped) all morning so I'm not sure about that anymore! I forgot my Get-A-Grip for my shoes in Windsor... Oh well, a fun run will be great anyway!

I got my foot fitted at the Westmount Running Room yesterday, I should have done that 2 years ago... been running in Saucony's wide shoes while my feet are very narrow (AA).... The girl was not impressed and told me to throw my old shoes in the garbage! Well, at least I know =)

I hope everyone will have an amazing running 2008 year!

Thanks for always coming back to read my blog and leaving me comments =)

FREAKIN MONO GET OUT OF MY BODY!

So, my bloodwork shows that the mono is still active as there are enough antibodies in my blood to get a positive result back. The doctor said this was quite unusual as it has been 4 months since I was first diagnosed and it should be gone by now. But that explains why I am so tired all the time again. Also, my Iron, folic acid and Vitamin B12 are all very low. The Iron is about 5 time lower than normal, the folic acid 30X and the B12 about 3 times lower than average. She thinks that since I am still fighting the mono my body is using these ressources for that. At least, I know what I have and it should be easy to control with supplements. I will have to check back in January and see if it improved after the Holidays.

I need this vacation so bad right now!! I haven't run since last Thursday and wanted to go for a spin tonight but I ended up napping from 5-6... I think I'll have to cut a day of running. It's just too much right now. I am so tired of having these stepbacks. It's really frustrating to not being able to do more....

I CAN'T WAIT TILL SATURDAY AND GO BACK TO MONTREAL!!

(By the way, Fran, I am eligible for OHIP but since I wanted to move back to Quebec after I am done, I always kept my Quebec health card. Now, I'm not even sure I am going back there so I might switched, its a real dilemma!)

SNOWSTORM OF THE YEAR!

We rarely have lot of snow in Windsor. And we never really have snow on the ground before I leave for the Christmas vacation, let alone that much (15 cm)!! That's quite a big deal here! Rocky has snow up to his neck, he has to jump like a little Rabbit to move! It is so funny! =) At least we don't have as much as Montreal or Toronto (up to 50 cm!).

SICK =(

Yet again... 104$ of bloodwork might reveal something on Tuesday. Until then, rest and then more rest..

SPEEDWORK

Speedwork tonight, 3 miles at 5 K pace, or trying to get as close as possible to it!

3 miles @ 9:21 min/mile

with splits at:
Mile 1: 9:11 min/mile
Mile 2: 9:24 min/mile
Mile 3: 9:28 min/mile

My 5K PB is 27:33 which means 8:52 min/mile average... I pushed myslef tonight and got pretty close so, in my book, that's enough! The pooch took another injury break but his pad look better and he looked so sad when I left him! So, he's back on the road for the Fun-Run tomorrow!

Have a good night everyone!

BIG WEEK


It was the first week on the new training plan. Since I received my new hands-free leash, running with Rocky is a lot more fun! Here's pic of us getting ready for our run on Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Rocky and I headed to Malden Park for hill training. We found a hill about 250 m elevation and it was hard to climb. Since, I've never done that type of training I didn't know what to expect and its a LOT harder than it seems. Rocky totally tried to make me trip on the way down of the hills and I was getting pretty annoyed with him! lol Not that he knew what he was doing but I was still pretty mad! We did 6 hill repeat. The first 2 miles to go to Malden Park were done at 10K pace (10 min/mile), 2 miles of hill repeat and 2 miles back.
Tuesday: 6 miles @ 11:33 min/mile

On Wednesday, Rocky and I tried something new. My best friend and #1 Fan, Flashy, just loss tons of weight and started running 3 months ago (apprently someone inspired her... ;-) ). She can now run 5K 3-4 times a week without problems! So, I suggested to her that we do a Fun-Run together and see how it goes. We ran 3 miles and spoke the whole time! It was great and Rocky tremendously enjoyed the slower pace! It's going to become a weekly habit =) Wednesday: 3.1 miles @ 12:55 min/mile

On Thursday, I was suppose to do speedwork, 4 miles at half-marathon pace. As soon as I started running, I knew it was going to be bad. The ground was very icy, my foot was not feeling good and Rocky was like a 14 lbs bullet to my foot. The Dude was tired and he just didn't want to go fast. I didn't notice until I went back home and he was liking his paw that he had hurt his pads =( Poor little guy, now I felt all ashamed of pushing him to run... Thursday: 4 miles @ 10:52 min/mile

On Saturday, it was a beautiful day here. Only -2 °C and an awesome sun. I wasn't in the mood for running when I had woken up but I really wanted to take advantage of the weather. So, I went for a 10 miler even though only 8 was on the schedule, better run longer in great condition we don't know what kind of winter we're going to have! Since Rocky was on the disabled list, I went by myself which hasn't happen in ages! I forget how easy it is to run without a 14 lbs resistance! I finished the 10 miles in 1:46 and I tried to do 2 miles at marathon pace near the end (10:12 and 9:48 min/mile). Saturday: 10 miles @ 10:36 min/mile

Weekly total: 23.1 miles!

Have a good week everyone =)

MY DOG IS WINTER READY!

I present you: Rocky aka "The Pimp" (my brother found the nickname!)

I'm not sure I am that ready for winter running but no choice!!

I just made my short 8 weeks training schedule, which will have 2 hard runs, 1 easy run and 1 long run. I think this should get me to the finish line with a decent time and that's all I'm asking!

DISAPPOINTED... BUT OK WITH IT

I think I've made my decision on my run this morning. I had 14 miles plan and during the first half I could only think about the work that was ahead of me today for my thesis and I just realised that my heart wasn't into this training right now... I bailed after 7 miles and thought I had put a good effort (Rocky did well too!).

I want to finish my thesis and running has to take the backseat and you can't do that while training for a full. I am pretty disappointed, I feel like I am letting myself down but I registered on a rush (coup de tête in French...). I wanted to do this after I broke up with my boyfriend (yeah that Newfie guy) and thinking that I could manage it all but unfortunately it appears I am no super human so I have to deal that... I ran 2 marathons on 18 weeks training and they were both hard, not sure its a good idea to go along this journey on a 8 weeks training... anyway thanks for reading and I'll just switch to the half and be a happy runner again.

ANOTHER FAST ONE

I am kinda following the FIRST plan this week (not sure yet I'll stick with this... I'm undecided). Anyway, it called for 1 slow mile and 5 at tempo (10K +30s pace), I was aiming for 10:30 min/mile. Here are my splits:

Mile 1 @ 11:09 min/mile
Mile 2 @ 10:40 min/mile
Mile 3 @ 10:41 min/mile
Mile 4 @ 10:41 min/mile
Mile 5 @ 10:22 min/mile
Mile 6 @ 10:22 min/mile

Not the most interesting post! This was a hard run, there was strong winds again and I couldn't go faster than 10:40 with the wind in my face.... I am thinking about following the FIRST plan and add a Wedneday easy run starting with 3 miles and building up to 5 miles. I don'T think I can commit to more than 4 days of running right now... I am trying to finish this damn thesis after all!!

Thanks for stopping by everyone! Happy running! =)

SCRATCH THAT!

So, apparently I can do speedwork with my dog and in a wind advisory too! =)

Mile 1 @ 11:28 min/mile (Warm-up)
Mile 2 @ 10:28 min/mile (Close to 10K pace)
Mile 3 @ 9:40 min/mile (Close to 5K pace)
Mile 4 @ 11:08 min/mile (Cool down)

I'm pretty happy with the 9' min per mile as it was done with the wind in my face, close to 40 km/h! Somehow I thought I would avoid the wind for the 2 fast miles but it was right in my face oh well... wind resistance is good!

Have a good night all!

FULL FORCE MARATHON TRAINING!

I am still plan less, as I haven't decided which one to go with, but I am running! I run pain-free but the aftermath is not pretty... I have to ice my foot all night and the next morning is associated with intense pain and walking like an old lady for 20 mins. After that, the pain "kinda" goes away... I have my 2nd treatment of ESWT tomorrow night and I am confident this will be taken care of in a timely manner...

Rocky joined me on all my runs this week!
Tuesday 3 miles @ 10:58 min/mile
Thursday 5 miles @ 10:56 min/mile
Saturday 11 miles @ 11:15 min/mile (4.5 miles with the Dude)

I am so happy the mileage is getting to a decent level, I am planning on finding a marathon plan ASAP. It probably won't be the FIRST plan, since I want to run with my dog and he wants to smell a lot so I have to pull him a lot in the right direction! Speedwork with him is something to forget, running with a 14 lbs resistance is hard! I just ordered a stability belt to run with your dog on ebay so I should get that early next week and that'll make my runs with him much easier. =)

I've been tagged by Ken and Laurel to share 5 facts about myself on my blog, some random, some weird.

The Rules of the game: Link to your tagger, and post these rules on your blog. Share 5 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.Tag 5 people at the end of your post by their names and links to their blogs. Let them know they are TAGGED by leaving a comment on their blog.

FACT 1: I could live on a diet of chips, more chips and water =) Self control is not something that comes naturally to me! lol

FACT 2: I am not environmental friendly when it comes to kleenex... I must have some sort of nose issues because I use at least 20 kleenex per day! Let me tell you it's not pretty during my winter runs...

FACT 3: I've never taken a break from school, went from high school to cegep, then university with an undergrad in chemistry and a doctorate in environmental sciences. That's why I'll only be 27 and you will be able to call me Doctor! (Now I wish I enjoyed life a little more...)

FACT 4: I was voted Miss Analytical Chemistry the last year of my undergrad. Not it wasn't a pageant just voting for who was the most hardcore analytical chemist!

FACT 5: I refuse to use another bank than my bank to withdraw money. I know it'S only 2$ charges but it drives me insane to pay for nothing. So, I end up never carrying money on me and always paying credit... there is only 4 National Bank of Canada in Windsor!

Next up (yep I know how to count... but I tag 6 people!):

Francis

Kenny

Jelly

Shelley

Mark

Amanda

THINGS ARE LOOKING BRIGHTER

I ran 4 miles on Saturday with my dog in the misty rain. It was nice and the body hold on. I was in a lot of pain the morning after though. And could barely walk for the first 15 mins when I woke-up... On the good news side, I had an encouraging appointment at the chiropractor =) He has started some ESWT (extracorporeal shock-wave therapy) at low intensity on my heel. It's mostly not painful, unless he's hitting the spot where I have pain, which makes me cringe a little.

"Shock wave therapy is thought to work by inducing microtrauma to the tissue that is affected by plantar fasciitis. This microtrauma initiates a healing response by the body. This healing response causes blood vessel formation and increased delivery of nutrients to the affected area. The microtrauma is thought to stimulate a repair process and relieve the symptoms of plantar fasciitis." -http://orthopedics.about.com

I am going to have 5 treatments (once a week) before I leave for Christmas and that should be enough to totally heals it. That made me happy, I trust him 100%, he solved my shin splints problems in 3 treatments with Active Release Technique in the past. He said I probably won't see a full recovery until the treatment is all over but it should start feel better soon. Since I don't have any pain when I run (just the morning after) he told me I can still run =) And that I could probably do the marathon. I'll wait until we're closer to the date to decide what I am going to do.....

Ok, well that's the story of my road to recovery!!! Thanks for reading everyone and happy Running!

FIRST RUN IN 2 WEEKS!!!!!!!!


Yes a little 2 miler but oh god did it ever feel good! =) I ran with my dog and had a late start which means its pitch dark outside but the view ofthe Bridge all illuminated and Detroit skyline was really nice. I didn't have my camera but I found this picture on the web and it looks just like this (mavrinac.com).

I didn't really feel any discomfort from the heel and did my exercices when I came back + I'm icing it right as I type this. I'm going to go for a 4-5 miler this week-end and hopefully this means I can resume my training! YAY! I'm so happy!!!!!