Spa Day at Spa Paradiso

After completing the Windermere Marathon, the Spokane Marathon Mamas decided to treat themselves to a well deserved Spa Day at Spa Paradiso located in the Davenport Hotel.

 After training for 16 weeks and running countless miles, our bodies and poor feet took a beating. So Ashley, Sarah, and Andrea enjoyed their massage, then Ashley and Andrea joined Mirna and Bethany for pedicures. Here are some highlights of our Spa Day.

Andrea enjoying the foot rub

Mirna enjoying the complimentary sparkling cider

Bethany and Ashley relaxing

Special thanks to Spa Paradiso who supported us via Facebook and provided excellent service for our Spa Day.

Final Product-beautiful toes!

Mirna's Marathon Experience

The Marathon That Almost BUSTED Me!

“Please don’t throw up, please don’t throw up…please just let me get through this”.

As Andrea stated, the day of the race already started warmer than any other long run we had trained for. I thought I had eaten and drank enough for 26.2 miles, and was ready to tackle the race! After taking a few pictures, a quick bathroom break, it was time for the race to begin…and we took off!

With adrenaline kicking in, we started running at a 9 min/mile pace ROOKIE MISTAKE #1 (never start a race too fast)-it was much faster than our training runs, but I felt excited and energetic and went with it…until Mile 6. Then I realized I would not be able to keep up that pace, so I slowed down a little bit. Fearful of dehydration I drank cups of water and HEED at every water station which was every 2 miles-ROOKIE MISTAKE #2 (never drink or eat anything you did not train with, such as HEED). I also had been used to wearing my water belt on the long runs and sipping along as we ran our distance-ROOKIE MISTAKE #3 (wear the same gear as your training runs, such as your running belt).

Around mile 10 I started to feel the water and HEED sitting in my belly. But I kept running. We were also given advice by marathon veterans to take GU’s about every hour, no matter what, even if we had to GAG it down. ROOKIE MISTAKE #4, (Don’t change your nutrition schedule from what you did on your training runs). I was used to taking GU after 90-100  minutes, not after every 60 minutes. So I ended up taking more than my training runs. Add that to the warm water and HEED sitting in my belly, it was a recipe for disaster. By Mile 12, I started to feel nauseaus. For the next four  miles I had to walk /run because I was feeling sick. A few times I started to see black spots and heard a “swooshing” sound in my ear. Looking back I probably should have stopped but I was so determined to finish even though I was literally overheating and dehydrated as the minutes ticked along. By Mile 16 it felt like I was walking more than running. I kept “ver-ping” which was vomit/burping, and I literally had to focus on not puking. But I kept going…I could not believe this was my marathon experience. IT SUCKED!

I thought about calling Chris and having him pick me up around mile 18. I was so sick of this trail, we had spent countless hours running up and down this very route –ROOKIE MISTAKE #5 (don’t overtrain so muych on the same trail that you become sick of it! Keep your runs  fresh and fun). Anyway, back to the race…around Mile 18 I heard Andrea! My marathon mama angel! I was so happy to see her, mainly because if I passed out at least I knew she would get help for me! Joking! (not really) It was so nice to have the distraction as well and have her motivate me, chat with me, anything to not think about throwing up!

Picture courtesy of MIM gal Debbie

Those last few miles were a blur. Although I remember being so happy to see some Moms in Motion ladies cheering us on (Kathy and Debbie) which just about brought tears to my eyes to see them support us along. Finally around mile 25 I saw my mother in law who so graciously agreed to run the last mile with me. I started to focus on all the support I was receiving and mustered all I could into running and finishing strong…Okay honestly I focused on staying upright.

FINALLY, the finish line

That last mile lasted FOREVER but finally, finally, FINALLY I saw my daughter, my family, and the other mamas family…and of course the FINISH LINE! Yahoo! I saw Sarah at the end, who had a great race. She totally kicked Booty! Go Sarah! I said a few words to her, trying not to pass out and vomit. I was so happy to be done. So my final time was 4:59:08…just shy of 5 hours..augh…

My #1 Supporter

 My first marathon experience was horrific. I can’t really say I enjoyed it. It was so heart breaking for me as I thought of all the Saturdays I gave up, long hours I put into my runs, the time away from my baby girl…ony to have such a tramautic experience.  This couldn’t be it!!! Could it???

I moped around the rest of that day and the next, disappointment in myself, even though I had just ran a MARATHON! It was no easy feat and rather than being proud and excited, all I felt was disappointment and frustration. Helllo!   Pity Party…reservation for ONE!

So what was my solution to my Pity Party??? Why, run another marathon of course! And to add more excitedment to it, why not run another one 3 weeks later!  (more to come on that)

Anyway, I am greatful for the support my friends and famiy throughout the past 6 months-it has been an exhausting but a very fulfilling journey. I’ve learned a lot about myself and about running. I’ve always grown closer to four amazing women who inspire and motivate me in very different ways.

Thank you ladies and looking forward to more future runs. WE DID IT!!!

Andrea's Marathon Experience!



Happy smile after my finish!

Ok...guess it's about time we posted about our marathon...someone needs to get the ball rolling so here goes! I'm going to post on just my experience as I think we'll get a different perspective from each person. Here was my marathon experience...

It was a beautiful  morning, though it was warm already. I remember seeing the temperature sign on my way to meet the SMM's and it was already in the 50's at 5:45am. Of course it was...we had trained in nothing but snow, ice, hail, wind, rain and cold so wouldn't you know it, it was going to be a sunny, warm, outstanding day! Murphy's Law...(I don't know if any of my fellow SMM's know, but my maiden name is Murphy!)

The start was optimistic and exciting. Nervous chatter with each other and we just wanted to get going. Bethany and Ashley asked me if I was going to run with Mirna and I said, yes, though it would be a risk as she is a faster runner than I am and I could end up running alone. I was prepared for that though...it is a race and we each have to know we are running at our own pace and I didn't want anyone to feel like they had to wait for me. We did all concur though that our goal was to finish and no one really wanted to run it all alone. We all started together and away we went! We started fast...about a 9 minute mile for the first mile, which is faster than I can maintain for much longer than about 4 miles. We were still in the 9's the first 4 miles and Mirna and Sarah were pulling away from me while Bethany and Ashley were just behind me. There I was, somewhere in the middle. Mirna came back to me and said she wanted to hang with me and didn't feel like she could keep up with Sarah but by mile 6, she was just fast enough to the point that I just couldn't keep up her pace. I looked at my watch and I was at 56 minutes. Too fast. Mirna high-fived the "6 mile sign" and we separated.

The next 12 miles or about 2 hours were at a much slower pace. I got back into my 10 minute mile or so rhythm and just kept telling myself to slow down. And I had to. Flash back to the weather - It was SO FREAKING HOT! I had to take 2-3 cups of water at every water station and gulp them down. I had a hard time cooling myself and was so frustrated that I was just too warm. I had to walk. A lot. Through every water station and anytime there was even a slight rise in elevation. Or long stretches of nothing but sunny trail...any excuse to walk for 20 seconds. I didn't walk for long stretches of time, just a few seconds even, but it helped to keep me going. I was running alone but had the same group of people around me and everyone was doing the same thing. I didn't feel so bad. And it was fun to chat along the way with others who were in the same boat as I was. Some new people would come from behind and I had lots of nice comments on our SMM shirts. The back of mine says "Run, Mommy, Run!" and I had a lot of people say it was cool or ask about my kids. I loved it - talking about my kids gives me great pride and it helped to pass the time. Others would say that they saw more of our shirts behind me and I would ask how far back the others (Bethany and Ashley) were. I was certain that they would catch me. I looked back for them a lot knowing that the slower I got and the more I walked I would surely see them soon. I was praying for it so I could have my SMM support. Instead, I found something else that I wasn't prepared to see. There, at mile 18, like a mirage in front of me, was Mirna. A sight for my sore eyes - I was ecstatic and woo hoo'd to her like you couldn't believe. However, she didn't appear to be in a woo hoo mood.

Mirna and I finished the last 8.2 miles of the marathon together. We ran, I chatted a little, she didn't say much. We walked, I chatted (a little less), she didn't say much. She wasn't feeling well at all. She told me she was nauseous, had been seeing spots, and was overheated. The heat had hit her hard and she wasn't well. I truly thought I should get a medic for her as I was so worried - I even asked her if she would honestly tell me if she needed medical help. She just wasn't her usual self - she is the one who pulls me along and motivates me to run faster and stronger. She gives me pep talks on long runs when I start to drag and is always encouraging. She pushes me and is right there for me. So we finished together. She told me several times to go ahead and go. Another flash back - to the goal - we just wanted to finish. (Yes, once the rubber hits the road you want to be done in a reasonable amount of time - we all wanted to finish in 4 1/2 to 5 hours - so that was hanging out there). It didn't matter anymore - we just wanted to finish.

We crossed the finish line together at 4:59:08. We looked strong and I am certain I felt better than Mirna, though the first words out of my mouth were "I am never doing that again!" My dad and step mom were there to witness my finish and those words. Hold that thought...

It was grueling but we did it! We had completed our first marathon!! Sarah was there to cheer us across the finish line - she had an amazing run and I am so proud of her! Just a few minutes later here came Bethany and Ashley - we ALL did it. The last year of consistent running together and the last 4 months of marathon-focused training all culminated in our success at all crossing the finish line, and for the most part, in one piece. I couldn't be more proud of my friends and running family, the Spokane Marathon Mamas!

We didn't talk much after the race, just some well-wishes to each other, some "that was totally awful" words and we went our separate ways. We checked in a little the week following and then we celebrated on Saturday, May 21 at Spa Paradiso! Check them out: http://www.spaparadiso.com/. Nothing like a little pampering of the muscles and a little polishing of the toes to help us recuperate! We also got to share all of our experiences from the race - it was so good to decompress and just let it all out to each other. It was mostly good and fun conversation and laughter - the pain from the marathon had already subsided. (Oh, and literally, I had very little pain. I decided to do my first ice bath after the run and was a little sore going down stairs on Sunday and by Monday was fine! Hooray!)

So ok...the happy marathon revisiting only made me more excited to do my next one! Yes, I know...I mentioned above that I would never do it again, but by Monday I said I could probably be talked into doing it again and then by Tuesday I was fully ready to go ahead and plan for another one. Very strange. The torture of it all disappears very soon - sooner than I thought! Not sure when I'll actually take the time to do it though...such a time commitment and hard on the family.

Final thoughts: It was tough to run in the warm weather, so that made me frustrated. I walked more than I wanted, so hit frustration there as well. I am proud of myself for setting a goal and accomplishing it. It's been nice to receive congrats and compliments on my achievement but I don't feel like a super woman or anything extra amazing for doing it. Maybe if I was faster, finished in the front of my age group or was competitive, I would feel like more of a star. I went out a did a long run with my friends, part of it great, part of it stinks and overall, am proud of myself for the length of time and distance I ran. I am glad I did it and finished and couldn't have picked better mamas to train with and finish with. I am proud of all of us and know I couldn't have done it without them. They are the best and I look forward to the next race we train for!

Week 16 Complete: MARATHON or BUST

We ALL survived our first marathon. However, some of us have been too traumatized to post our experience...okay just kidding, we are still recovering!

However, we promise to post our marathon soon! But thanks for checking us out!

-Spokane Marathon Mamas

Week 15 Complete-Total Weekly Miles=19

Our last weekend run and of course it has to rain!!! But it was nice to have the whole gang back together again one last time before the MARATHON!!! It was a misty, cool 8 mile loop beginning at Manito Duck Pond up to 57th off High Drive and back to Manito. It's amazing how 8 miles seemed so short compared to all our previous Saturday runs. Thanks for a great run ladies!

Mirna, Sarah, Ashley, Andrea, and Bethany

-Posted by Mirna

You Might Be A Runner...

You might be a runner if ...

1. Your shoes have more miles on them than your car does.

2. You run farther in a week than your car travels for work.
3. The dogs have to hurry to keep up.
4. Your calves are bigger than your biceps.
5. You schedule life around your long runs.
6. You spend more on work-out clothes than work clothes.
7. You wear those same work-out clothes on the weekends regularly.
8. You carry a water bottle with you everywhere you go.
9. You're running in your dreams.
10.You combine phrases like "8 miles"and "short run" in the same breath.


-posted by Mirna

Mid Week Run

"Some running is good, more is better, and too much is just enough." - Anonymous

We are down to the final weeks before M-Day! Andrea and Mirna made plans to run early Wednesday morning again at 5:30 to get through their long mid week run. After completing 8 miles in the beautiful morning weather, they felt ready to tackle the day.

However, it wasn't until later that evening that Mirna discovered that they were only supposed to do 5 miles that day! Oops, oh well, now time to enjoy the Taper!



-posted by Mirna

Spokane Marathon Mamas Shirt

Mirna realized after writing about Bloomsday that we hadn't had the opportunity to showcase our fun Spokane Marathon Mama Shirts!

Shortly after we began our marathon training, we decided we needed to get shirts to make our unofficial running group, well, official! We looked at different logos and even asked a local shirt vendor for possible ideas, which she kindly drafted. However, little did we know that Bethany was an artist at heart! She came up with our cute design for our shirt logo-a running mom. (See Shirt above)

We also decided to personalize our shirts with quotes to go on the back. Mirna decided to go with "Running...cheaper than therapy" since running has helped keep her somewhat "sane" LOL. Andrea decided to go with "Run Mommy Run" since her motivation is her two beautiful girls. Sarah decided to just leave the back side of her shirt blank.

Ashley and Bethany decided to go with some humor. Ashley's shirt says "twenty six point freakin' two" and Bethany chose "I thought you said it was only 2.62 miles?!" Ashley and Bethany running side by side created a few chuckles during Bloomsday.

We will post pictures of the back side of our shirts soon. But otherwise we will proudly wear our SMM shirts on Race Day!

-Posted by Mirna

Week 14 Complete! Total Weekly Miles=27 Miles

Let the Tapering Begin!!!

2011 Bloomsday 12K-Personal Best For All

Q: Know how you get a personal best for Bloomsday?
A: Train for a marathon! Then 12K seems just like another short mid week run!

Okay, well maybe not just another short run...but still, compared to our previous 20 mile long runs, completing 7.46 miles seemed much more do-able.

The days leading up to the race was terrible-we had rain, sleet, hailstones, and gusty wind. I guess it was typical Spokane spring weather! However, Sunday morning the weather was PERFECT-full of sunshine, but not too hot.

I had the opportunity to run for my company's Corporate Team: Gentiva Home Health. Talk about Royal Treatment! We received special dry wick corporate shirts, bags that we could check things in during the race, and free food after the race.

Ashely, Andrea, and Bethany were in the Yellow Section proudly wearing their Spokane Marathon Mama shirts. I was jealous that I couldn't wear mine, but since Gentiva paid for my entry fee and corporate opporunity, I wore my Gentiva shirt instead.

Mirna, Ashley, Andrea, and Bethany

Anyway we ran the course, settling into a comfortable pace. We had all the right elements to have a great race-motivating crowd, good food, familiar course, etc. We all finished strong, and although did not all finish together, we were able to meet up after the race to congratulate one another on a great run. Unfortunately, Ashley's D-Tag Timing Chip did not register so she was not able to get an "official" time, but since she ran with Andrea, we can estimate her final time close to Andrea's.

So here's our stats:

Bethany: 1:10:50 (PREVIOUS PR 1:14:46)
Overall Place: 7, 253 out of 50, 611
Ran with a pace of 9:29 per mile

Mirna: 1:03:19 (PREVIOUS PR 1:20:56)
Overall Place: 3, 749 out of 50, 611
Ran with a pace of 8:29 per mie

Andrea: 1:12:29 (PREVIOUS PR 1:16:41)
Overall Place: 8, 077 out of 50, 611
Ran with a pace of 9:42 per mile

Ashley: 1:12:29 (PREVIOUS PR 1:16:45)
Overall Place: 8, 078 out of 50, 611
Ran with a pace of 9:42 per mile

Post Race-Mirna, Ashley, Andrea & Bethany

Overall it was such a great race for all of us. It was a nice confidence boost to know we have improved even with "shorter" runs since beginning our marathon training.  I think it also helped to have used the Bloomsday route as one of our mid week runs, therefore we more or less had an idea how the course was set up, hills, etc. even though we have run the race before.

The dreaded "Doomsday" Hill



So another race in the books!

Looking forward to finally completing our Marathon in less than two weeks!!!



-posted by Mirna

Mid-Week 8-miler

Manito Duck Pond - 5:30 AM Anyone?

We met up again this week for our mid-week 8-miler. I was not able to meet the mamas for a 5:30pm run as I didn't have a babysitter for the girls. However, Mirna suggested we meet up at 5:30AM and get our 8 miles in before she headed off to work. We met at the Manito Duck Pond and it was a beautiful morning! Our 8+ mile run ended around 7am and it was a great way to start the day. Nothing like starting things off in a fabulous mood - really sets the tone for the rest of the day to get an early start like this one. I think we'll do it again next week. :)

~ posted by Andrea

Week 13 Complete - 38 miles!!!

Wrapping up our 13th week with a final double digit run!

Mirna and Andrea

We wrapped up our training this week with a 20 miler - the final of our double digit training runs. I can't tell you what relief I felt after completing this run! And for many reasons, this run was hard for both Mirna and I, so we were truly thankful to finish it.

First of all, Mirna was kind enough to run with me on Thursday afternoon instead of our normal Saturday morning time slot. I was leaving out of town with my girls to visit my mom for the Easter holiday weekend and knew I wouldn't get 20 miles in alone in Pendleton, Oregon. It was wonderful of Mirna to join me a couple of days early. However, we didn't know how challenging this run was going to be. We had completed the River Run on Sunday, which had been a grueling trail run for us (see previous post!) The weather was completely awful - wind, snow, rain, hail, sun at times...you name it, we pretty much had it. And just mentally running on a different day and completely different time probably messed up our heads a bit.

We started out on the Centennial Trail across the river from Spokane Community College. We ran a little over 6 miles to the Fish Lake Trail head. We were going to run out 4 miles and back and then head back to where we started but instead changed our minds and decided to just run out 7 miles and back and drive back to our starting location. We struggled to make it back to the trail head...we were just done! Thankfully, we were able to finish the run on our own two feet (and not crawling or on a stretcher!) I really felt like we accomplished something - however, it does play with your mind. With a couple more days of rest and better weather, might we have felt truly amazing after completing 20 miles, like our other mamas did on Saturday? Maybe so, but I guess we can chalk this one up as a learning experience and a good mental and physical test (that we passed!) for our upcoming "M" day!

Or...maybe we were so traumatized by it that neither of us even wanted to post about it! :) Notice, it's been awhile since we posted! :)

We heard that Sarah (who ran 20 miles with her husband at sub-10 minute miles), Bethany, and Ashley had great runs for their final double digit training - hope they post on here about it! We want to know all the details on why they felt so great after they completed theirs!

Finally, it seems like a long ways from the 20 miler to the marathon...I think we are on a 3 week taper plan. The two weekend runs between this one and the marathon are only 9 and 8 miles so the doubt starts to creep in...is this too long to go without a really long run? Can we really run 26.2 miles in a few weeks? And after feeling not so great about our 20 miler, we are really trying to build up our inspiration in the next few weeks. Thankfully, we still know that anything is possible!

~ posted by Andrea

Week 12 Complete: Total Weekly Miles=34

SATURDAY LONG RUN: 16 Miles

Great run today! We (Sarah, Ashley, and I) chose the Fish Lake trail and it was such a wonderful change in scenery. There was even a part at the very end of the trail(7.5 miles out) in which we continued running on that was a dirt road/trail. it reminded me how much I missed hiking and running on the trails. It was a nice day, so nice that I had my jacket off and just a short sleeve shirt for some of the run. And the best thing, although the weather report was bleak and promised rain all day long, IT DID NOT RAIN ON US!!!

Ashley and I were estatic(since both of us always seem to get the bad weather!). I think it sort of misted and sprayed, but this was nothing compared to the pouring rain, snow, and hail, that we had already encountered. Although my knees ached a bit, and Ashley's foot still hurt, everything seemed better with decent weather and the glimpse of spring on the horizon. And even though still challenging, 16 miles seemed so much shorter than 22!

-posted by Bethany

Spokane River Run 25K

Instead of running our 16 mile long run along the Fish Lake Trail, Andrea and I decided to sign up for the Spokane River Run. Sarah, Bethany, and Ashley ran their 16 miler the today before along the trail. Anway, the River Run is a 25K trail run throughout Riverside State Park. Unfortunately, we both opted not to run with our cell phones, so we were unable to take pictures of some breath taking views. However thanks to Google, I was able to find some images of the park we ran through today. It was perfect running weather (in the 50's), full of sunshine and a gentle breeze.



However nothing could have mentally prepared us for what the route really was like! We both agreed that running this 15.5 trail route was waaaaayyyy more difficult than last week's 22 miler! It was both physically and mentally exhausting. There were some killer hills, uneven terrains, giant mud puddles to avoid, and large rocks we had to hurdle over as we made our way through the challenging course.

Here is the course profile and as you can tell we were constantly going up and down hills throughout the course. We thought maybe we could recover with the down hills, but because of the steep grade and slippery rocks, we had to physically and mentally think about foot placement, stride length, and pace speed.

Often the "trail" was full of rocks

Although it was a difficult course, the time did fly by! We were grateful the course was clearly marked, and there was many water and nutrition stations, almost every 2-3 miles. Thank goodness for all those wonderful volunteers. Sadly, though, we did witness many people lose their footing, trip, and even one young lady fall down onto her knees. We checked on her and luckily she was okay. She ended up finishing the course without further injury but did confess to us that her knees were pretty sore towards the end.
 
Despite the varied terrain, I felt Andrea and I ran a good, hard race. We managed to maintain about an 11 minute/mile pace, depite the fact that we had to walk a few of the hills. It definitely was not conversation pace and often we had to run behind one another since the trail was not wide enough to run side by side. My overall time was 2:50:54 and Andrea's overall time was 2:53:58. We were exhausted when we finally reached the finish line, but proud to have completed the course. It was also a wonderful suprise to see Bethany and her cute son, Bryson, waiting for us at the end. Thanks for the encouragement B!!!

Anyway, I'm sure we'll be pretty sore tomorrow; trail running is definitely different than road running! However, this race made me even more confident that we will do great at our upcoming marathon! Thanks for a great run today Andrea! Marathon or Bust!

Mirna and Andrea

-posted by Mirna

Mid-Week Run with the Mamas!

Mirna, Andrea, and Bethany

As mentioned in recent posts, we have been trying to meet mid-week for our "long" 8-mile run. These runs are achievable when alone, but much more fun to do with others! This week I was able to meet up with Bethany and Mirna on Wednesday to knock this one out.

We met in Browne's Addition and linked in to the Bloomsday course. We decided that we would do the course tonight not only for our training run, but also as a reminder for this running event that we are doing in just a few weeks! Bloomsday is one of the highlights of Spring for me - I think this year is my 21st one - so it was fun to be with friends and run the course for practice. The rain stopped right after we started and it was a great training run! We figured we completed just under 8 miles total, which is fine given the hills we did. We did wonder where all the cheering, supportive people were though...it's completely different than running it on race day! :)

We are all looking forward to our 16 mile runs this weekend - yes, looking forward to them and grateful to take a step back from the 20's! Bethany, Ashley, and Sarah are going to hit the Fish Lake Trail while Mirna and I will participate in the River Run - a 25k trail run. Wishing us all good weather and pain-free stepping this weekend. Only one more big training to go after this one girls!!!!!!!!!

~ posted by Andrea

leap!

leap!
Into the unknown.
To conclusions
Leapfrog over doubt
Leap at the chance
Leap ahead.
Leap of faith
Leap in the dark.
But DON'T look before you leap.
Just leap.

by Missy Park, founder Title Nine (from Title Nine Summer 2011 catalog)http://www.titlenine.com/

~ posted by Andrea

22 Miler-Longest run yet!

Today Ashley and I ran our 22 miles.  We chose to run Sunday instead of Saturday due to a fundraising event for Autism that Ashley attended on Friday that went late into the evening.  We decided to meet later in the am, mostly because I thought it would give me more time with my family that am.  I quickly realized that this may have not been the best plan for me.  I waited all morning in anticipation and kept getting more nervous as the run drew nearer.  To me, this run would determine if I was truly ready and able to complete 26.2 miles.

The morning was gray and threatened rain; not encouraging. We ran the first leg and felt good. After a pit stop at Mirabeau, we met up with Ashley's husband and sister and were very entertained by them; Jonathan on roller blades being goofy and almost falling several times, and Carmen almost riding over the edge of the trail (wasn't hurt and was laughing afterwards, luckily). After we turned around it felt good to know that were halfway done, but then it hit me: WE STILL HAD 11 MILES LEFT!

I was beat from a rough work week and struggled with this run mentally. I was also getting very sick of the rain and bad weather ("bad" is not the first word I chose to write). I seem to always catch the bad weather; snow, rain, sleet, wind, hail, you name it, I have run in it! With this training I have run miles and miles soaking wet with cold and stiff muscles, and am so ready for spring and nice weather. Ashley and I tried to reflect postively; "This is going to make us stronger and tougher for race day!" and "We are going to have perfect weather on race day!"

So when Mirna showed up at the end to run the last three miles with us, it really saved us mentally-we would still be out there crawling home if she hadn't shown up! Seriously though, it was such an encouragement to us. While my knees and hips ached, I sucked it up and finished. And what an accomplishment! We did it! I now know that I will finish this marathon, that it IS really possible.

-posted by Bethany

Week 11 Complete=40 frickin' Miles!

IF WE CAN GET THROUGH 22 MILES, THEN WE CAN DO A MARATHON!

What a beautiful day in Spokane for our longest run in our training program-22 miles! We started at the "butt crack of dawn" 6 am in time to witness a beautiful sunset. It took us about 3:48 to complete the whole run so were pretty proud of ourselves, although tired and sore at the end. Today's run included Sarah, Andrea, and Mirna. Our other mamas, Bethany and Ashley, will be tackling their 22 miler tomorrow...Woo Hoo Week 11 is in the books!

Posing by the Dam after 22 miles

Wearing gloves and jackets, we began our run following Upriver Drive to Maringo Drive, where it eventually reconnected with the Centennial Trail. Our run continued on the Trail, and we enjoyed the beautiful scenery as we made our way to our first stop at Mirabeau Park around 7 miles, where Andrea had her car parked. We quickly completed "pit stop" #1 with GU, water, and bathroom break. Refueled, we continued another 4 miles along the Trial to the Parker Bridge around Mile 11, where we turned around and ran back to Andrea's car, at which point we had finished 15 miles.

After our turnaround at Barker Bridge (Mile 11)

We stopped at Andrea's car again for "pit stop" #2 and refueled, hydrated, and dropped off some of our extra layers. We were feeling good and excited to be running our final leg. This marathon business seemed more like a reality at this point. We continued along the Trail and noticed how many other people had also taken advantage of this gorgeous sunny day- we saw a plethora of runners, walkers, dog and owners, and bikers. Spokane people are so friendly, smiling, waving, and saying "hello" to us as we ran. Some even asked how far we were running. We even ran into a couple of different people that we knew-Small world! The people, the river, the sunshine, and our various conversations were much needed distractions as we finished the final leg. With less than half a mile left we mustered the last bit of energy and finished strong!

Here we are after we are all done! Looking strong and happy to be D-O-N-E! Thanks again for another lovely run with the Spokane Marathon Mamas!

GOOD LUCK TO OUR OTHER MAMAS TOMORROW (Ashley and Bethany)

-Posted by Mirna

Fish Lake Trail 8-Miler



Bethany and Ashley

Had a great 8 mile training run with Ashley and Bethany on Wednesday this week. It was a little cold out and we hit all kinds of weather - snow, hail, rain, wind, and a little sunshine even, but it was fun to get in a mid-week mama run!
Good luck to all this weekend as we crank out 22 miles!

~ posted by Andrea

My Spring Break Treadmill

GREETINGS FROM ISLAND PARK, IDAHO!

Note how big the snow berms are?!

For Spring Break, we are in Island Park, Idaho which is almost 30 miles southwest of West Yellowstone. Our good friend has a time share and invited us to come along. Eager for a get-away we are enjoying our time at the Island Park Village Resort.

So, where's the Island???!

However, again this week our training program requires three short runs (5 miles, 8 miles, and 5 miles). I thought I was done having to run in the snow this winter, but once again I donned on my winter running gear and hit the pavement...err...snow. I'm sure the locals thought I was insane as I ran alongside the state roads to complete the necessary mileage in 25 degree weather with snow falling. Thank goodness Spokane winters have prepared me for this! I didn't real see much traffic as I ran, the occasional pick up truck and a few snow mobiles.

I took a picture near my turnaround for my 8 miler; it was quiet and peaceful. It made me think of Robert Frost's poem "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference..."

Some days I know that if it weren't for my training program, I probably would have vegged out by the fireplace with a glass of wine and skipped my workout. But then again, if it weren't for my training program, I wouldn't get to truly "experience" Island Park, Idaho and enjoy the solitude of running, nor the beautiful scenery I observed during my runs. So instead I sit by the fireplace AFTER my workout with a hot cup of coffee and a good book. Hoping the other ladies have good runs this week as well!

-Posted by Mirna

Week 10 Complete - 36 Miles!

Centennial Trail heading west - near milepost 17 (I think!)

Week 10 is done and in the books as they say. We all completed our longest run to date, yet again. This week, it was 18 miles.
Mirna and I did this mere jaunt on Friday evening after work, taking us 3:04:34. We finished in total darkness. Mentally, very tough. Physically, also very tough. I was SO sore afterward and just plain tired and cold. We emailed our other mamas and gave them the scoop on the route. They were going to try and mimic what what we had done. To recap: we departed from Mission Park and headed out east on the Centennial Trail. When we had gone 6 miles, we reached Mirna's car at the Argonne Library and grabbed some water and nutrition. We then went another 3 miles east to Plantes Ferry Park and turned around and headed back to Mirna's car for more H2O, nutrition and some long sleeves. The final 6 miles were done heading west back to my car at Mission Park.

The next morning, Ashley, Bethany, and Sarah did the same route, though unfortunately, the dry weather we had Friday night had moved on and they were hit with some precip. From what we heard, not fun to run with sleet hitting you in the face. Drat! They did vary their route slightly from ours - we had ventured a little off the trail and ended up doing our turnaround at Plantes Ferry Park. They stayed right on the trail and missed quite a landmark!



It's a time capsule...so it says...














I don't know how everyone else REALLY felt after, but like I said, I was pretty darn worn out. We upped our long run from 15 last week to 18 and I could feel it. I was glad we were done in the evening so I could just eat and then go to bed. I did wake up at midnight for water and started to have a minor freak out session - wondering why in the heck I was attempting to do something so ludicrous as running a marathon - and giving myself complete doubt that I will be able to finish any runs longer than 18. After a full night of sleep though, I was over it.

Hopefully everyone got a lot of rest over the weekend as we'll have our longest training run coming up Saturday, April 9 - none too fun I am sure. Look out 22 miles, here we come!



Mirna and Andrea after our run

 ~ posted by Andrea

Saturday 15-Miler

Andrea and Ashley

Saturday, March 26 - the 15 miler was on the schedule - time to really psyche ourselves up! Last week was the longest distance any of us had run and now we were going further! YIKES!!

Mirna was going to be away in the Seattle area so that left 4 mamas for the run. Then my daughter ended up having ballet class photos scheduled for that morning - leaving me in quite a quandary (ok, a tizzy!) as to how I was going to get my run in alone. But Ashley stepped up and offered to run later in the morning with me and for that, I can't say how grateful I was! Bethany and Sarah kept on schedule and ran at 7am. When Ashley and I showed up at 10am to do the same route, Bethany was waiting there for us to give us some encouragement. We were so proud of her for having already gone the distance. (I have to say I think both Ashley and I were wishing that we were done too.) But off we went - starting at Shenanigan's in Riverfront Park and heading east on the Centennial Trail. A couple of miles in we received a text message from Sarah, also letting us know that their run went great and to also give us encouragement. I can't say enough about the wonderful support that we get from each other - I couldn't do it without them. On we went and soon after, we received another text - this time from Mirna. We were waiting for this one...Mirna signed up to do a half-marathon so she could also get her run in while out of town and we were waiting to hear the good news - knowing she was going to finish in under 2 hours. We were elated when she shared her time with us (***read her post below!) and it gave Ashley and I yet another shot in the arm to keep on moving!

We went out almost to Argonne, approximately 7.5 miles from Riverfront Park, and turned around to head back. I never dreamed in my life that I would literally run from downtown out to the valley - and then back again. We finished in a little over 2 1/2 hours - the watch shows 2:25:07 but we stopped it a couple of times when we walked - while taking in water or nutrition or just admiring the views along the Spokane River. It was a very nice, sunny morning full of good conversation and friendship and even the added bonus of a lengthy rest stop, oops I mean wait, at Mission Park while a train went by. Woo Hoo - thank you! And THANK YOU ASHLEY - for a wonderful Saturday run!

Here is the watch photo Ashley!

~ posted by Andrea

A "PR" for Mirna at the Lake Sammamish Half Marathon

 Back in February we found out that my dad had an outpatient procedure scheduled at Swedish Hospital in Seattle. Since my mom doesn't drive in Seattle traffic, I volunteered to drive them there this past weekend. However, after committing to this, I realized that my marathon training program required me to run 15 miles that weekend. After freaking out for a minute or two, I decided to go on the internet to find some Seattle running groups where maybe I could have some company for the 15 miler-I absolutely despise running by myself more than 9 miles, and I was stressed about getting through a looooong Saturday run without my marathon mamas....

I was happy to discover that the Lake Sammamish Half Marathon was occurring the same weekend! Put on by the Evergreen Trail Runs, it is a fun race with varried terrain best described by their website as the "half-marathon is very flat and fast, and follows the scenic East Lake Sammamish gravel trail along Lake Sammamish in Washington from Issaquah to Redmond, which is very popular with road runners and trail runners alike." The trail actually reminded me a lot of the Centennial Trail in Spokane, only this trail followed Lake Sammamish instead of the Spokane River.

Part of the Half Marathon Route

I had two goals in mind coming into the race:
1) I wanted to be able to run the entire race. I have done 3 other half marathons, but I always fizzled out around mile 10-11 and ended up run/walking the last few miles. I am able to run 10-14 miles with my marathon mamas but didn't know if I could do it at race pace.
2) I wanted to set a Personal Record. My best time was my Leavenworth Half Marathon race back in October, 2010 with a time of 2:10. Initially I thought it would be amazing if I could do it under 2 hours, but I didn't think it was possible...Also I didn't want to put too much pressure/disappointment on myself if I didn't do it. So I decided if I PR'd that would be a great accomplishment.

With my music in place, and my Garmin watch ready to go, we took off...I began running at a comfortable pace and looked at my watch-I was pacing at 8:40/mile. I prayed that I could maintain this pace and tried to focus on the beautiful scenery and the upbeat music. Long story short, when I hit the 10 mile marker around 1:26, I knew I would be able to beat 2 hours as long as I could keep my pace. I quickly took some GU gel and water and with a new found second-wind I kept going. I must admit the last mile was kind of rough, mainly because I was mentally ready to be done and I was getting tired. But I saw the finish line and sprinted ahead and saw that I was going to be under 1:55! I had SMASHED my previous record!

FINISH LINE

We received our medals at the finish line and cute tech shirts...


And I checked my Official time...1:54:08! I also ranked 12th in my age group/category...not too shabby for someone who less than two years ago ran her first 5K in over 43 minutes and couldn't run a mile without walking! I'm so greatful to have these wonderful Spokane Marathon Mamas who motivate and inspire me with every run. I missed running with them today though...

Anyway, today I felt like a runner, not necessarily because I PR'd (although that helped)...but because I was able to overcome mental obstacles, and I know that I ran the hardest, fastest, and strongest that I could!

Mirna at the finish line

P.S. My dad is doing well, recovery back at home. Overall it was a fun weekend visiting with friends and hanging out in Seattle with my parents and Isabella.