I ran 10 miles yesterday on pavement and neglected my post run accessories. So I made sure to wear them today:

Yup, those are bags of cheap frozen peas saranwrapped around my knees. They make FABULOUS ice packs because they’re little and don’t have sharp edges like the ice from my icemaker. The good news is they’re cheap and easy to find. They’re also reusable you just want to try to keep them separate from the bags you actually eat because the peas tend to get mushy after many sessions of freezing, wrapping, thawing and re-freezing.  Don’t ask me how I know that.

It could be worse right? I could be in traction!

So I have one of

to add to

And the race course? The one they originally described as

Changed considerably without notice. My previous blog map was the updated trail but reality looked like:

One disclaimer.

The race course was something like 13.3 according to my GPS watch. I forgot to mark my location at the finish line so 14.67 includes all post-race walking until I got to my car. That didn’t include the extra 2 miles I walked in the morning going from my car to the race, then back to my car and back to the race which would make it 16.67 miles overall.

All in all not a bad day. My feet are fine. My muscles are pleasantly sore but it’s not excruciating and I think I’m finally getting the hang of this race thing! Next step? Solve the shin splint problem!

See these?

I got them free.

And we all know how I feel about free right?

Too bad they taste like Pine Sol smells.

Incidentally this is a very important lesson. I picked two of these up for free at the race expo and thought I’d use them during my LA County Half Marathon. I decided to try them at 9pm the night before the race and thank goodness I did because I had to race for peanut butter to get rid of the after taste.

Race time is never a good time to try new things.

*shudder*

And yes, the race recaps are coming but they take forever to write!

I know, I know you’re all excited now. Would you be more excited or less excited if I told you “Lube Saved my Ass” was my backup title?

And no, for the guy googling “Easy Fat Chicks in Ohio” I don’t mean lube for:

I mean lube for:

I know, you’d never guess from my day-glo white legs that I live in SoCal would you?

Still, call it what you will, my blister problem appears solved (or at least greatly diminished) by lube.

First you cover your feet with Petroleum Jelly (if you don’t mind a mess) or Body Glide (if you don’t like messes).

Then you find some damn sexy socks. The sexiest damn socks ever. Something like

They also come in can’t-be-bleached-because-you’ll-ruin-them-white, and just plain ugly army green. 

If you get bored while building your collection you could try sock art

 Then you need shoes. Amazing shoes.

Perhaps you started with Saucony Hurricaine XIs

They’re pretty. But they’re not exactly loose and you’ve forgotten you come from the Ronald McDonald house of clown feet.

So you might switch to:

They’re pretty and blue right? but wait what’s that dayglo green?

Fabulous arch support for the high arched runner. There are dozens of insole brands on the market so do some research if you’re interested.

But at the end of the day the result (for me) is jogging blister free. I haven’t raced in these babies yet so I’m hoping the LA County race will keep me blister free and happy but we’ll see.

Here is what I’ve learned about fat chicks and blisters:

1) They’re preventable if you do your research. Some people love thick socks, some like thin, some use double socks. Figure out what works for you.

2) No matter what you choose make sure your socks are not cotton. Spandex, nylon is okay but cotton absorbs and holds moisture and that is bad news for hours of racing.

3) All joking aside, lube will save you.

4) Once you have them they’re treatable and they don’t have to derail your workouts entirely. That, however, is a post for another day.

In the meantime tomorrow is December 1st. Don’t ask me how that happened.

For those of us who generally dislike spandex as standalone pants I have an easy (and obvious to everyone but me) solution.

1) Put on the spandex pants and put a running skirt over it. Check those out HERE

2) Buy a pair of these which is a skirt/pant combo* and is totally cute. More importantly if you buy one now you can get one free so you’ll basically get two for the price of one.

*note- the free offer is added automatically when you put items totally $75 or more into your shopping cart like the example. This deal is only available while supplies last and please read all fine print before purchasing!

I think it’s a great way to stay warm and cute but still be active in the winter!

This time, though, I felt MUCH more prepared. Not physically, of course, I’ve been doing nothing but stationary bike workouts for weeks. Gear-wise though, my race bag was packed with all relevant staples:

My Blister kit included:

I should also probably mention that I’m one of those poor fools that just seems destined to keep using the wrong damn socks. 95% of people seem to cross the finish line with no ill effects to their little feetsies. Since I could feel blisters forming at the four mile mark I can say for certain this post-race ritual was an absolute blessing.

Clif Shots and PowerBar Gel Packs. Mmmmm…
I took these little gems with me in my fanny pack (yep, wore it a second time). Some people swear by one brand or the other, I think they’re both better then nothing and together they saved me. Big time. They taste like a weird oozing candy you haven’t had since you were seven but they do the trick. I had one every hour and I think it’s what got me through the race.

There are those, of course, who prefer race snacks. I can’t really imagine actually eating solid foods on the course so I usually just throw these things in my bag in case they run out of food at the finish-line (never underestimate the eating powers of anorexic-looking runners).

Then, of course, there is BodyGlide to reduce friction from movement. (Personally I haven’t had any problems there yet but I’m also walking and typically wear pants to prevent rubbing).

My heart rate monitor so I could be suitably impressed by my caloric expenditure.

Advil, the breakfast (lunch and dinner) of champions.

Hand sanitizer. I am a BIG BIG fan. (see yesterday’s picture of the line for the porta potties).

I also highly recommend:

I have yet to start bringing alcohol to races with me but after Sunday’s blister’s I’m considering it. Doesn’t rum have medicinal uses?

I scratched my race this weekend. At last I think that’s what you’re supposed to call a no-show. I started out, of course, with the best of intentions. I knew I couldn’t finish the race, my ankle is still sore, but I wanted to do the first 5 miles. The first 4 miles or so of the Disneyland half marathon takes you through the park. Let’s be honest, I’m shallow. I wanted the Mickey medal and I wanted to invade the Mouse’s home turf before before the park opened.

Just because goal #1 (the medal) was highly unlikely didn’t mean I could go big on #2. Particularly since the race officials wouldn’t allow me to change my race entry to the 5K.

Every plan, however, has its challenges and mine was no exception. To fully allow you to understand the situation let me give you some numbers:

Half marathon entry fee- $120 (absurd)
Parking to pick up race packet- $8 (I really wanted the damn tshirt)
Race day parking for participants-$12

So really the whole race basically costs $140 and that’s assuming you don’t buy anything to prepare for it (gatorade, clif bars, whatever).

Now what do I get for my $140? Shuttle service. On race day from 3AM until 4:30am, shuttles are available to transport runners to the starting area. The race starts hours later but if you don’t make it by 4:30am you are out of luck according to all race literature. I woke up at 3am (after finally falling asleep around 1am). Closed my eyes and woke up again at 8am. So I missed it. And in doing so saved myself a $12 parking fee. On the other hand it means my shirt cost me $128.

In a moment like this I should probably say next time I’m just buying Armani shirt or something like that. But mostly, I want revenge.

Someone warn the mouse because come 2010 I will be avenged. Probably.

I went out and bought a brand-spanking-new pair of running shoes again. The old ones were several months old (as in Feb) and I’d said I’d buy another but I haven’t. Yesterday I realized my foot problem was unlikely to get better with shoes that were beaten within an inch of their tread.

Enter $200 bill.

It turns out there are three things that will motivate me to hand over my credit card with minimal complaint.

1) Pants that will make my butt look awesome.

2) Adult beverages (with or without paper umbrella).

3) Shoes, socks and random sticky substances that promise to take care of my foot problem.

I haven’t found the awesome butt pants in a long time so that hasn’t been an issue.

My current diet commitment in prep for the two half marathons prevents me from item #2.

Which apparently gives #3 room to grow and multiply. Remember back in October when I was whimpering about $119.95? Apparently I’ve moved into the $125 bracket thanks to these little gems.

See those little red things at the bottom? They’re supposed to make me bionic. Since I’ve always secretly wanted to be bionic I figured $125 was a good deal.

The sides aren’t too bad either.

Yes, I’m still firmly committed to guys shoes, mostly because I have boat feet. They work for me.

So where did the other $75 come from? I bought blister prevention bandages and a big pack of double socks, both of which I’ll have to blog later because I forgot to take pictures of them.

In the meantime I’d like to announce that I went walking today with the snazzy new shoes and my left foot seemed okay. My right foot also seemed okay. I wish I could go jog to test this miracle further but I have late meetings tonight for work so that’s unlikely.

But I’m pretty excited about the possibilies. And I’m delighted enough at the moment to give the designer of my Saucony runnings shoes (I have NO freaking clue how to pronounce that) a big high five.

Stay tuned!

I joined an online group of running nuts. What makes a running nut? One woman’s goal is to run 50 marathons. Insane right? Now when you realize a number of other people on the board are nearly there. I figure now I have a built in Q&A group of people who are guaranteed to know more then me.

This is a good thing.

The downside is they know LOTS more then I do. They know where to get the best Disney merchandise. They know what stuff to get. And they’ve also tipped me off about gadgets (Oh Lord, how I love gadgets).

Like this nifty little thing:

The Champion Chip

This is the Champion Chip. It was created for runners at the Walt Disney World resort (particularly the marathoners). It has a special chip number and you lace it into your shoe. Then when you pass certain mile markers it texts your family and friends to let you know what your times are and how you’re doing on the course.

Is it necessary for a half marathoner? No. And more importantly would my family or friends really give enough of a crap for me to spend $35 on notifying them? Hell no!

But it seems so official.

Professional even.

*sigh*

Okay I’m sure you’re all tired of this by now, I’ve been writing loooong posts and they’re mostly un-funny but one last post I swear!