Ouch.

Totally felt unprepared for my race last weekend. The Berkeley Half Marathon was a lot of fun after the fact. All I remember is running and forcing myself to focus on the finish line. It was difficult because the past couple weeks I haven’t been able to train. The last time I ran before my race, was 3 weeks before.

When I first started running, I could already feel that I wasn’t properly hydrated but at least the sun wasn’t shining so it wasn’t too bad. Then about 3 miles in, I was ready to give up. But, I don’t know why or what came over me, I just couldn’t allow myself to stop running. I was running and already fatigued when I kept hitting some mild Berkeley hills, and while everyone around me was walking, I pushed myself to run faster. I would get to the top of the hill, and feel my heart pounding out of my chest, and trying to convince myself to slow down and walk but I just kept going.

Around mile 8, it started pouring rain, it was exhilarating, felt so refreshing. As soon I was soaked, it started to get difficult. I was completely soaked down to my underwear, haha. It was incredibly uncomfortable but it made for such a unique race experience. Everyone was either really smiley or really miserable. I just kept smiling at people hoping it would help them if they were miserable.

Eventually I found myself at the finish line without stopping once to walk. And I kept thinking finally! but also, how did that happen, how did I just run 13 miles?

I finished the race in 2:48:52. It wasn’t my best time, but it was an improvement from my last half marathon in San Francisco, which was SO much hillier than this one.

After the race, it took me about 2 days to recover. My calves were in so much pain, which is really unusual for me. But makes a lot of sense since I didn’t train. Ahh well.

Overall, it was a unique experience, and I’m happy I didn’t decide to quit. This race made me realize though that I really should be more consistent with running. I had really wanted to significantly improve my time for this race and there really wasn’t a valid excuse as to why I didn’t train properly. I think for a while I’m not gonna signing up for races and work on making running part of my routine. For a long time now, I’ve been wanting to just wake up early and run 1-3 miles every morning. I’ll need to adjust my schedule to sleep early but I think it’ll be worth it. We’ll see how it goes.

Until next time, happy running!

Choose Courage

I started training for my 5th half marathon last week. It’s been an amazing journey so far. The first run I did was excruciating on the treadmill. It was a mix of running indoors and trying to force/motivate myself to get back into the routine that made it such an awful run. The bright side is though that I found my motivation by going through that run. I ran twice after and each run was more exhilarating than the next.

As always the first couple min were blah but after I found my groove I just got lost in thought and ran. The best thing was that I’m getting faster, on Sunday I ran a 11min average for 5 miles which is such a huge improvement for me seeing as I haven’t been really running seriously.

I went to Re:Make last week, it’s put on by Brit+Co. It’s a summit for creativity. I didn’t know what I was getting myself into when I signed up. Surprisingly, the summit motivated me to be more creative in all aspects of my life. It encouraged me to want to create outside of the office but most importantly it motivated me to run. It sounds silly to say a creative conference encouraged me to continue on my running journey but one of the main messages from the summit was to “have courage”.

The summit had so much positive energy, and I was so happy that I took time out of my schedule to focus on myself. I find myself repeating to myself “have courage, you can do this” many times throughout the day. I’m a firm believer in positive energy especially when you’re out on the asphalt and it’s just you and that road. The mind starts playing tricks to try to sideline you from your goals. The important thing is to keep that negative energy at bay and not let it seep through your pores.

Step outside of your comfort zone because you can find your courage in the most unlikely events and conversations. Never stop exploring and looking for motivation. Staying motivated is a constant struggle, and just because you’re not in a routine now, doesn’t mean it’s impossible. All you need is a little bit of enCOURAGEment and faith in yourself.

Photo by ‘Letter It‘

Progress Report: I finally started BBG last night. I made it a priority and got it done. Afterwards I felt so accomplished and motivated. *Always* make time for yourself!

Song of the week: The Greatest by Sia

Happy running! -A

Don’t Give Up. I Won’t Give Up.

I’ve had a bit of writer’s block the past couple months, it could also be attributed to the fact that I haven’t really been running. In the past couple months, i’ve been thinking a lot about my relationship to running. I’ve been struggling a lot since my last post about asthma. When I started training for my marathon about a year ago, running became an integral part of my life. It became a part of me, I felt it every where I went, from the sores in my feet to the strength of my muscles. It kept me sane, it really did, and gosh I miss it so much.

San Francisco Marathon -First Half 2016

I haven’t been running that seriously due to my asthma. But around mid July I started to feel better, so I began testing myself here and there. Ran between 3-5 miles every week or so. After successfully being able to run, I decided not to give up my slot in the San Francisco Marathon, plus I really wanted that half it all challenge medal (run the first and second half consecutively in two years)! It went well, it wasn’t a terrible experience, I didn’t improve my time but I didn’t run at a slower pace, so i’m happy that I was able to do it even without having really trained sufficiently beforehand. It was a lot of fun running across the Golden Gate Bridge. The energy from the race is invigorating.

I plan to sign up for the Berkeley Half Marathon on November 20. Training starts in the last week of September, the training plan is 6/7 days a week for 8 weeks. Since my training plans are usually only 4 times a week, i’m trying to mentally and physically prepare myself for training. I started yesterday by running 3 miles, and my body is really sore this morning but I feel like I rekindled my relationship with running. I also plan to start BBG this weekend, really want to beat my time for this half marathon.

Inspire someone: On one of my random runs I was halfway through and debating whether or not to give up, a lovely woman who was running towards me grabbed my attention by waving and smiling at me excitedly. I grinned back, and all of a sudden began to fly. I ran those next 2 miles with a huge smile on my face. I wish I could go back to that woman to thank her and tell her that she was the reason I pushed myself that day.

Running with asthma

It’s been 2 weeks since my last run, on Tuesday, I made a mental note to not skip my run. I finished work, and got right into my work out clothes, and walked out the door. I began to run, and not so very far into my run a very heavy weight came over my chest and lungs. I couldn’t breathe. I kept running, and began doing my breathing exercises, long inhale through my nose, and long exhales from my mouth.

Nothing changed.

The weight on my lungs felt heavier and heavier. I hadn’t even finished a mile, and my mind was racing with thoughts of stopping to turn around. I quickly shook the negative thoughts, and forced myself to keep going.

I ran.

One mile done, my lungs still feeling extremely constricted. “Keep going, Asmaa, you’ll regret it if you stop, just keep going.” Somehow I got to mile 2, feeling a little less constricted but not by much.

I ran.

I was wishing more than anything that I could get away from all the plants. I literally felt overwhelming heat coming from the shrubbery around me, and they seemed to be creeping all over the trail.

I ran.

Finally, I got to my turn around point at 2.5 miles. A small sense of victory in my head, but still going through my breathing exercise. Usually by now, I am not even focusing on breathing, and just getting lost in thought.

I ran.

I finally finished my 4 miles of running, and walked a mile home. Finishing that run was such a relief. As soon as I stopped running, and was able to catch my breath, I started wheezing. I don’t know what was going on that day, but asthma got the better of me. I didn’t stop running so I was feeling accomplished, but terrified for my run on Thursday. I wasn’t sure that my legs would always win the battle with my mind and now seemingly my lungs.

My asthma hasn’t been an issue for a long time. In fact, for a few years, I thought it had completely disappeared. But alas, the weird weather, and pollen levels in the air this spring has been incredibly difficult on my running. Thankfully, my run on Thursday was more merciful on my lungs. I started out a little terrified that i’d feel constriction but as I got into my stride, I knew it was going to be ok.

I suspect maybe my body just forgot how it feels to run since I haven’t run seriously since my marathon, although, I ran a few times here and there, and didn’t have any issues before I started training. Not sure what’s going on 🙂 but praying for smooth training from here on out.

Progress Report: I joined HRC (Hogwarts Running Club) and it’s awesome. Participated in 2 virtual races so far, and looking forward to the next one. Feels good to feed 2 loves at once, running and Harry Potter 😉

Song of the Week: Too Good by Drake feat. Rihanna

Back at it…

It’s been almost 2 months since my marathon. Up until last week, I only ran twice, both being races that I signed up for a long time ago. It was nice to get back into the groove of running but I didn’t really start a dedicated plan until last week. I ran a total of 14 miles over the course of the week. I’m really trying not to skip any training days even when i’m traveling next week.

On Sunday, I signed up for the 1st half of the San Francisco Marathon. Last year I did the 2nd half, so yay i’ll get a challenge medal. I’m training to run sub 2:30. Currently I run 13 miles in about 2:50, so shaving off 20 minutes is a big feat but i’m really confident because i’ve been running faster. But also ever since my marathon, I have a new found feeling of confidence, and am excited to surpass my goals. That being said, i’m training for 2:30, but will be super content if I run 2:40. Although, I must say if this weird humid weather keeps up it will limit me. This weekend, every time I would run, for the first mile or so, i’d breath really heavily. Sunday’s 5 mile run was probably the worse, I couldn’t breathe in the beginning, but was feeling better at mile 3, and then started having trouble breathing again in the last half mile. On top of that, i’ve been waking up wheezing the past couple days, hopefully the humid weather won’t last much longer. The good news is that yesterday’s run proved to be much better.

All the running feels as told by a tv addict

About an hour before my marathon, I was really curious about what was going on in people’s minds. Everyone seemed to be stretching, hydrating, or just trying to stay warm. There I was sitting outside of Dodger’s Stadium at 5:30 in the morning and people watched, and this quote came to mind: “No one knows what they are doing, deep down, everyone is just faking it until they figure it out. And you will too because you’re awesome..” – April Ludgate (Parks & Rec). I thought it’d be pretty funny to describe what it feels like to be a runner through characters in my favorite tv shows.

After you run your first full mile

Deciding to sign up for a race

Michael Scott (The Office)

“I am ready to face any challenges that might be foolish enough to face me.” – Dwight Schrute (The Office)

Advice you get

Meredith Grey (Grey’s Anatomy)

Ron Swanson (Parks & Rec)

“It’s not gonna be all sunshine and roses. But I can promise it’s gonna be a hell of a ride.” – Chris Hermann (Chicago Fire)

“Just be careful and wear sensible shoes.” – Spencer Hastings (Pretty Little Liars)

“Now, when you do this without getting punched in the chest, you’ll have more fun.” – Gob Bleuth (Arrested Development)

Finding your confidence

Andy Dwyer (Parks & Rec)

Dean Winchester (Supernatural)

When you tell people that you’ve signed up for a marathon

Emily Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)

Jessica Jones (Jessica Jones)

In the middle of a run

Gob Bleuth (Arrested Development)

Dean Winchester (Supernatural)

Michael Scott (The Office)

“Maybe if we concentrate really hard, our combined psychic powers will move it [Finish Line] closer.” – Lorelei Gilmore (Gilmore Girls)

Running your last mile

“I am a Jedi! I am a Jedi!” – Tracy Jordan (30 Rock)

Carol (The Walking Dead)

Mind Over Matter

I think we’ve all heard the phrase mind over matter. I never really indulged in it’s meaning until I fully understood what it meant. Our minds are so intricate, from such a young age, we take in all kinds of experiences around us that shape the person we become. And those thoughts that our mind forms engage in every aspect of our past, present, and future.

I never thought i’d be a fit person. I used to doubt so much about myself, and I can’t even begin to explain how much running brought me so much confidence and happiness. I am generally a positive person, but I didn’t realize how positive until these last few weeks of marathon training.

There comes a time, usually during my interval runs, where i’ll sprint, and I always surprise myself how much I can tolerate it. I pride myself on being a ‘slow but steady’ runner, but I often wonder if it’s stopping me from increasing my speed. My average pace is between 12 and 12.30 minutes per mile, depends on the type of run it is and how fatigued I am. Because that annoying thought kept creeping in my mind, last weekend, I tried to push myself. I ended up running 8 miles with an average pace of 11.15. Which was amazing for me, I clocked in at 22min at mile 2, and wanted to keep the momentum going, so I kept shooting for the same pace. I was really happy when I finished 8mi in 90min. I felt okay, I didn’t feel extremely exhausted. And I couldn’t believe that my pace was increasing. I’ve heard a million times before that once you train for a long run, your short run pace eventually starts to increase.

This past week, I didn’t really run as much as I should have. I got to the gym on Wednesday to try to get a few miles in. I ran about 2 miles but I just couldn’t run anymore on the dreadmill. I ended up walking the rest of my intended run. I was super bummed going home that day. But thinking back, I know it was all about my attitude, I was basically forcing myself to go to the gym to move my bum. And I should have really pushed through and not allowed my brain to think I couldn’t continue. And as much as I felt so refreshed after, I was still disappointed that I didn’t get to actually run 4 miles.

On Sunday, I wasn’t going to allow myself to miss another run. I laced up and left the house with a very real intent to have a great run. With my 8 mi run in the back of my mind, I started my run without pushing myself, and I found myself clocking in the first mile under 11 minutes (which was better than last week). I was really happy because I didn’t even feel like I was pushing myself more than usual. For every mile after that I tried not to slow down and I kept trying to run a little faster or at the same steady pace. Around mile 4, my mind was trying to quit on me, I changed my mindset, and kept my eye on the prize. It was simple as that. I wanted it, so I got it. I ended up running 10 miles in 1 hour 52 min which is awesome for me. A few weeks ago when I ran 10mi, I ran it in 2 hours and 5 minutes. I couldn’t believe how much time I shaved off and I wasn’t even particularly trying. I have to admit after finishing 10 miles, I started wheezing but to be fair for a huge part of the run, I was running against the wind, so I was pushing myself more than I usually would to get through.

My marathon is in less than 2 weeks now, and i’m nervous but fairly confident that I can do it. Last Sunday when I ran 20mi, I was so happy. I couldn’t believe it, especially because instead of dragging my feet the last few miles, I actually was enjoying it and flying by. It was a much better run than my 18mi run, and I was glad that it was because even though it did get difficult and I had to walk sporadically around mile 12-15, it made me really positive that I can run 26 miles. It’s going to be tough, I know that, but since it will be a route i’ve never run before, along with the energy of running with people, I am confident that it’ll be really great. For the past couple weeks, I have been training my mind to think positively about my marathon, and I hope it’ll pay off in the end. 🙂

Long runs and positive vibes

I’m proud to say that i’m officially registered for my first marathon. This weekend, I mustered up the courage to sign up for the LA Marathon. I’m still nervous about it but more excited to challenge my mind and body.

My training for my marathon started a few weeks back, but for some reason or other, I haven’t been able to catch my Sunday long runs. This week I was determined to run my long run, mostly because I needed to stop being lazy, but also because I needed to know that I could do it before the Berkeley Half Marathon this upcoming Sunday.

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing — that’s why we recommend it daily.” – Zig Ziglar

Friday night, I decided to move my long run from Sunday to Saturday, because of scheduling conflicts. I woke up on Saturday, drank my coffee, and ate my oatmeal, and mentally prepared myself for my run. Around 3pm, I left the house for my 11mi run. I haven’t run that long of a distance since the SF Marathon 3 months ago. I was highly motivated to run mostly because I just kept my thoughts in a positive mindset. If I hadn’t, there’s a good chance I would have given up around mile 6 or 7, which is around the mileage i’ve been running lately. With each mile I ran, I pushed myself a little harder, as well as keeping in mind that I’ve done this before and not to let any sort of fatigue bring me down. I kept thinking about signing up for my marathon, and remembering how good it feels to cross that finish line.

Song of the Week: Hell Nos and Headphones by Hailee Steinfeld

13.1 again!

I did it! I completed my 2nd half marathon! It was brutal and incredibly tiresome but when I think back, it makes me smile. There were a few tears, a lot of sweat, and 100% determination. I started off knowing that I wanted to try to beat my time from my first half marathon which was 2:55. I was determined to shave off at least 5 min, and since my training has been relatively faster, I was really pushing for 10 min.

I began running at 8:35 am – I was part of the 5th wave of the 2nd Half Marathon which started in Golden Gate Park. It was relatively cool with no sign of sunshine. It was really amazing to run with all types of people with a wide range of run experience. Started off strong, didn’t run too fast, just kept a steady pace, and tried to just enjoy the experience.

About 3/4 of the way through mile 2, I was feeling a little funny, so decided to stop to use the bathroom, I wish I didn’t because it totally wasted 5 min of my time, but oh well!

Continued running solidly until about mile 9.5. I was pleasantly surprised by the downhill running. Most of the uphill was really subtle so it was manageable but the downhill was quite steep, and it really took a toll on my body. At this point, the sun was out and beaming and I got a side stitch that just wasn’t going away. I tried really hard to try to ignore the pain because I didn’t want to stop running to walk but eventually I had to take a break, I walked for about .10 of a mile, and picked back up again. Ran until about mile 10, and at that point the pain was excruciating, nothing I did was helping. I tried to adjust my breathing, and taking in longer breaths, I tried to drink more water, but it just didn’t work. I had to walk, so I did.

I started walking, and tears started welling up in my eyes. The pain was really difficult to deal with but I wanted to run the whole race. I texted my family, and my brother just told me to walk for a little bit, and then try to pick back up. I did exactly that, after half a mile of walking and deep breathing, I began running again. The pain was still there but very lightly. It kept trying to creep back but I wasn’t about to stop again, so as soon as I started to feel the pain again, I would flex my core, and surprisingly it worked. I kept doing this for the last 2.5 miles. It was a struggle, but I just couldn’t wait to see that finish line. I knew that the race ended after the Bay Bridge, and I just kept my eye on the bridge. Once I passed AT&T Park, it was just a mile left. There happened to be a Giants game that day, so the area around AT&T Park was vibrant, and that last mile was filled with cheers and “you got this!” It was really humbling to run that last mile. I ran the whole time with my eye on that finish line, and as soon as it was in reach, my legs picked up speed and I booked it. I was not expecting to beat any of my time because of the few stops I had to make, and even though that kind of bummed me out, I decided to not let it deter me from celebrating that I just ran in the SF Marathon, and that I had a lot of fun. I stopped my runkeeper and was pleasantly surprised to find that I beat my time by 8 min! I finished in 2 hours and 47 min! I was so excited to see that, not only did I beat my time but had I not stopped two times, I would have beat my time by more than 10 min!

All in all, it was such a humbling experience to participate in this race. I ran alongside marathoners, who were well into their run at mile 15 when I was barely on mile 1. Every single runner I ran alongside inspired me, and I kept thinking what a great community to be a part of.

Progress Report: I found a Marathon training plan that starts in September which might be difficult because of travel plans but I like the pace of the plan, so we’ll see – still looking for a marathon to participate in.

Song of the week: Cool for the Summer – Demi Lovato

Morning runner

Yesterday I set up my alarm for 7:30am to run after I discovered it was going to be a 90 degree day. I happened to be getting up around 5am, and I responded to a friend’s message and we ended up talking for an hour. I was awake and decided to go for my run an hour earlier and ended up finsihing my run by the time my alarm went off. It went great – the streets were empty and the trails were filled with morning runners. I really felt like I was part of a community – so many people of all ages, types, sizes, with or without friends were out running. I was so pumped, I said morning to everyone I crossed paths with, and I ran with a little more spring in my step than usual. The whole day, I felt so accomplished, refreshed, and grateful.

For the longest time, I have had an article from Women’s Running open on my computer browser; in fact it’s still there. The subject is “How I Learned To Love Morning Workouts”. The writer also references PopSugar Fitness article that I have also read and bookmarked called “A 5-Step Plan to Becoming a Morning Workout Person”. I have always wanted to be a morning person but my biggest problem is that i’m a night owl. It’s so hard to balance both lives. After my run yesterday, I am seriously considering leaving my night owl life behind, and entering a new chapter in my ever-changing lifestyle.

Both articles present tips on becoming a morning runner, here are the ones that I found the most beneficial and hope to start implementing on a regular basis:

Start small:

If walking up early is difficult for you, start with a shorter timed workout so that you ease your way into it!

Set Multiple Alarms/Make sleep a priority:

Self explanatory, but basically sleep early and set multiple alarms if that’s what it takes to wake you up.

Lay out everything the night before:

This is my favorite, because the organizational part of my brain (that exists only sometimes), loves to organize next day outfits – it saves so much time and makes it really hard to talk yourself out of working out.

Make it a date/Have a plan:

This is probably the most important one. Before you go to sleep, make it an intention to wake up early to workout and if you have a mileage in mind, mentally prepare yourself to run that distance. This is so important because it makes you prioritize your work outs otherwise known as a date for your mental, physical, and spiritual self. Don’t flake on you!

I really hope I can start forming a morning routine, it would truly change my life and help me to prioritize my fitness.

Happy Running!