Not my best photos...

I really thought it was cool that the Get Lucky race posted photos of the participants to their Facebook page. Unfortunately, my photos are not too frame worthy... *they aren't the best,(from RnR Chicago) but are certainly no where near the worst.


I look puffed up and about 15lbs heavier here than I do in other photos...


Thankfully not so puffed up here.

You can probably tell what I'm thinking through the grimace. In case you can't, (the PG version) would go something like "wow running into the wind/sleet sucks. This is soooo fun. Can't wait to do this again. Yay running."

By Monday I felt so emotionally drained. I couldn't find my key before work and by the time I got to work realized I left my lunch at home on the kitchen counter. I almost broke down into tears. Found my key in my purse (figured it was there) and went back home to get my lunch. Luckily I live a mile from work. CB was so distraught when he saw me come home early, I almost considered not going back to work. But I did, and it was a busy day. Thankfully things have gotten better this week.

Maybe the time change/ weather had something to do with my depressive state. I am now a firm believer in Seasonal Affective Disorder.

Do the season changes/ time changes affect you?

-I never believed or even heard of  S.A.D. while living in California or Florida- but then again, we really only had 2 seasons there and they weren't too different.




- xaar

Get Lucky Triple 7k (half marathon)

1:49:30 4th fastest half for me.

I positive splitted the shit out of this race! LoL

3 words to describe it: flying, freezing, frozen

I usually take loads of photos at races. This time I took 1 and it wasn't even near the race.


When I got a few blocks from my apartment, I felt the wind. It was cold and ferocious, not unlike anything I haven't encountered before, but as I was making my way to soldier field, I knew it was going to be one of "those" kind of days. I love you Chicago, but really!?!


Got to meet the speedy Pete B. before the race. I took this photo from his post ;)

Pete was kind enough to stick with me for 10 miles because he is coming back from an ankle injury otherwise I would have been eating his dust!

The first half flew by due to the tailwind and chatting with Pete. Sorry if my speech was slurred, my face was frozen. Is this how Botox feels? I felt really good running a bit faster than planned (and thought I could "bank" some time in the first half) I was wrong!?


If the race just kept going south on the path, I knew I would have kept the 7:50ish pace through to the end. But instead the race turned us back north into 20+mph headwinds and sleet-rain type stuff which stung my eyes and felt like sand or shards of glass.

I really don't know if the wind/sleet defeated me mentally or if I could have pushed more. It was much more difficult running into the wind regardless.

I got a 10k PR!! *ok not really because that kind of stuff doesnt count. Ever.. :)


My pace for the first 10k was 7:53, my pace for the rest of the race slowed to 8:48 in the wind. Ugh. If it weren't for Pete, I would have slowed even more from 7-10. It was really nice to run with someone new & super speedy. Very motivating for sure.


My L came to the finish to cheer me on. He took a video of me for the last 10 yards and I gave him a big thumbs down. Haha *I really couldn't smile. I was freaking frozen to the core and shaking.

Final race thoughts
Bag check was a cluster. If Pete and I had waited 5 more minutes to check our bags, we probably would have missed the start (we checked them about 30 minutes prior)

I brought my own water, but it seemed the aid stations were spread out further than I would have liked had I not brought water.

The volunteers were smiling and energetic despite being in awful conditions for a few hours.

Housekeeping
•woke up 4 hours before the race to eat a cinnamon crumpet. Fueling win! (Thank you Kim!)

•took a Gatorade prime + salt stix pre race

•gu at mile 5.5

•wore Nike hyper warm long sleeve, UA tiger print tights, Nike bears windbreaker, Nike headband & gloves, owl head hat, swiftwick socks & my brooks pure cadence 2's.

•no music which I enjoyed.

What's next?

I have no idea. Might consider the Chitown half or 10k next weekend only if conditions are *perfect* otherwise I'll just keep training, for what I don't know. Still debating between a spring full or focusing on shorter distances to get speedier.

I loving being injury free right now, and am enjoying every step. I don't want that to change.

Happy St Patricks day!



- xaar

What to wear?

This Saturday is the Get Lucky half marathon. For me, it's the culmination of 6 weeks of consistent training, and also the spring board for a possible Spring Full...


As of today, the forecast is looking a little on the chilly side- "feels like" 26!?! I'm really hoping the forecast improves over the next few days- read: warmer, less wind.

The dilemma I'm facing is what the heck to wear!?!

Do I go with a tank top, arm warmers, and shorts?


Or do I go with a long sleeve tech shirt and shorts?


I'll also wear gloves and my owl head hat.


I'm really stuck. I hate being too hot while running (with a jacket), but I also HATE being too cold pre race. If it was shorter than a half marathon, i'd wear a jacket for sure. Maybe I'll just have to suck it up (HTFU) for this one.


obligatory Churro Bear pic

also worth mentioning, if you're running or spectating this race, we will have a meet up by the bag check at 8:15

What would you wear for these conditions?


- xaar