Sunday, June 30, 2019

June Books

I can't believe my goal of reading 17 books in 2017 (ha, I ended up with 88 in 2017 and 77 in 2018!) has morphed into this passion for books. Let's be real, not having cable TV to keep me "entertained" also gives me more free time to dive into a great book or seven ;) {PS One of my goals for 2019 is to read 19 books, let's see how many times over I can do that.}

There were THIRTY-ONE books in the first five month, so when I add June's TWO that brings my total for 2019 to THIRTY-THREE thus far! If you're interested in what I read (or how I'd rate them and whether I'd recommend you giving them a read), check out my recaps! {January's Books, February's Books, March's Books, April's Books, May's Books}


  • Outlandish by Morgan SjogrenRemember last month when VeloPress sent me Running Outside the Comfort Zone by Susan Lacke?! Well, they hooked it up again this month with another great read. I hadn't heard of Morgan before, but you better believe I am following her on social media now! She's an awesome (dirtbag) runner who lives out of her bright yellow Jeep and shares about her adventures. If you don't know already, I would absolutely be fine living in an AdventureMobile and exploring as a full time job... but apparently you need money to fund trips like that and for the time being we are tied down to North County San Diego. Anywho, reading about her experiences (and delicious recipes) got me amped up to go on our next trip (we have a camping trip scheduled for September, but we want to put a few more on the schedule for this summer once our home renovations are done). I am definitely not as skilled as Morgan (not only is she speedy, but she also is versed in climbing, mountaineering, etc), but maybe one day I can go on some similarly epic adventures! Also, I'm stoked to give some of the recipes a try (once I vegan-ize them of course). (FYI - I've been making peanut butter and banana wraps for a while now, but love that she calls them "Monkey-ritos" or "Monkey Dogs" if you use bread.) I would give it a 9 out of 10.


  • Reborn On The Run by Catra Corbett - I have been following Catra (aka Dirt Diva) and her trusty wiener dog sidekick TruMan on social media for almost as long as I’ve been on social media. She is a ROCKSTAR! When I saw she wrote a book about her story (a journey from addiction to ultramarathons) I added it to my Amazon wish list almost immediately. Although no one bought it for me for Christmas, I decided to treat myself and order it a few days ago - and I’m so glad I did. Although I know much of her story, I was enthralled from the start and couldn’t put the book down. Catra has gone through some crazy stuff and has lived to tell about it (not only that, but she has come out stronger on the other side). I won’t give away all of the details, but trust me when I say her story is one worth reading. I am hopeful that the next time the hubby and I are in Yosemite or Bishop that we will be able to get in some miles with her and TruMan! I would give it a 9 out of 10.


With that, June has come to a close. My reading may not be going gang-busters like it has in the past (thanks to our condo renovations taking over our life a bit recently), but I hope it never completely stops. If you have any suggestions, let me know! I'm always willing to add them to my library wait list!

PS I created an Amazon list that includes all of the books I've read and would recommend to others. Check it out!

What was the best book you read this year?

Monday, June 24, 2019

Workout Recap - Week 25

Sunday, June 16th – 10 mile run with the hubby, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Monday, June 17th – 90 minutes on the stationary bike, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Tuesday, June 18th – 4 mile progression run


Wednesday, June 19th – 12 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Thursday, June 20th – 6.43 mile run {1 mile warm-up, 6 x .25 mile repeats with .1 mile rests between, 3.33 mile cool-down}, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Friday, June 21st  Rest day, Stretched & Foam Rolled

Saturday, June 22nd – 10 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Although my workout didn't go quite as planned on Thursday (went in thinking I would do 1 mile warm-up, 12 x .25 mile repeats with .1 mile rest and a 1 mile cooldown, but by repeat number 4 I knew that wasn't going to happen so cut it to 1 mile warm-up, 6 x .25 mile repeats with .1 mile rest and extended my cooldown to 3.33 miles), I am still proud of how my longer hard effort run on Wednesday went (which could have definitely been a contributing factor as why my legs didn't have the gas in them the following morning for my speed work). I am technically in a mini taper since I have a 50K on Saturday, so I will enjoy the fewer miles for the time being before I ramp up one last time for my 50-miler in July.

How were your workouts this past week?

Monday, June 17, 2019

Workout Recap - Week 24

Sunday, June 9th – 10.33 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Monday, June 10th – 90 minutes on the stationary bike, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Tuesday, June 11th – 4 mile progressive run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Wednesday, June 12th – 10.25 mile run {2.5 mile warm-up, 7 x half mile repeats with quarter mile rests between, 2.5 mile cool-down}, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Thursday, June 13th – 6.2 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Friday, June 14th  Rest day, Stretched & Foam Rolled

Saturday, June 15th – 24.44 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Between renovating the condo (which seems to be a full time job from morning to night) to getting in my first speed workout in forever and a decent long run, my body is spent! I definitely need to focus on prioritizing sleep this upcoming week - especially since I have a 50K race in about twelve days! At least the June Gloom will keep the house dark when I want to go to bed by 7:30pm ;) {okay, okay, maybe not 7:30, but I'd be happy with 9:30 after this last week of late nights...}

How were your workouts this past week?

Thursday, June 13, 2019

Rock 'N' Roll San Diego Half Marathon Race Recap

Two weekends ago I had yet another two race weekend. I ran the Into The Wild Fremont Canyon 28K on Saturday and then the Rock 'N' Roll San Diego Half Marathon on Sunday. If you haven't checked out my recap on my trail race, make sure you do it now... Don't worry, we will wait for you ;)


As you know, I'm currently training for my second 50-Miler, the San Francisco Ultra, at the end of July. I had a 22-miler on my calendar for Saturday and a 10-miler on Sunday, so decided 17ish miles on Saturday and 13ish miles on Sunday would net me about the same distance and figured I'd rather do them with friends (and aid stations), so pulled the trigger.

Source

Saturday morning's race was AWESOME (and hopefully you know that by now because you read my recap ;)). After I drove home (weekend traffic in Southern California is NOT my jam, but you gotta do whatcha gotta do...), the hubby and I worked on priming our condo (FYI - we're in the middle of a major renovation, hence the lack of blog posts outside workout and race recaps). Eventually it was time to shower and head down to San Diego for the #WeRunSocial meet-up.

Source: @werunsocial's Instagram Feed

It was a blast getting to see so many runner friends (both new and old). I love that #RnRSD turns into a major reunion! We had a great turn out for the meet-up and I was stoked the hubby and I were able to make it work with our busy schedule.


Look at how BIG the crew was! 

This was the SIXTH year I have run Rock 'N' Roll San Diego. In 2013, I ran the half marathon (my first Rock 'N' Roll event) and the hubby and I took the train down from Oceanside to San Diego. In 2015, I ran the 5K and half marathon and rode the train to and from the race on Sunday. In 2016, I ran the Fontana Half Marathon on Saturday morning and then rode the train to San Diego for the half marathon (hubby met me down in San Diego afterward so he could join us at the WRS meet-up and drive us home). In 2017, I ran the Fontana Half Marathon on Saturday morning and then was talked into upgrading my half marathon registration to the full because Fontana didn't go as well as I would have liked (was shooting for a PR but it wasn't my day). The hubby and I stayed the night in a hotel down in San Diego so I didn't have to worry about the train situation (and extra-extra early morning wake up). In 2018, I was back to running the RnRSD 5K on Saturday and half marathon on Sunday. Since staying in a hotel down in San Diego obviously made the weekend a lot more convenient (we live about 45 minutes north of the city with no traffic), we did it again last year. This year, however, since we are in the middle of the house upgrades, we are trying to save our pennies wherever we can. With that being said, I decided to stay in Oceanside Saturday night and drive down for the race Sunday morning. I knew two mornings of extra early wake-up calls would be rough, but shoot, saving the $250 on a hotel and parking is like 5 gallons of paint ;)

And, of course, my body had me up before 2:30am...

Thankfully I had laid out my #FlatCarlee before the weekend arrived and put everything together so I wouldn't have to hunt around at 2am to find something I might be missing. This wasn't my first rodeo, but I wouldn't put it past myself to forget something important like running shoes... (cough cough.... like I did on one of my #Ragnar4Rett relay legs!).

When PRO Compression gives the ambassadors the June sock of the month you plan your race outfit around them!
Cotton Candy PRO Compression socks, magenta Sparkle Athletic skirt, Do Good, Be Kind trucker, white Handful sports
bra
, tank from TJ Maxx, elite Road IDpink and white QALO silicone wedding bands, Nathan Speedmax Plus Flask
handheld
, PROBAR BOLT chewspink Momentum Jewelry wrap, COROS APEX Multisport Watch, and Brooks Ghost 11.

My game plan was to leave by 3:45am so I could get to San Diego by 4:30am (thankfully at that hour there's no traffic). I had reserved a parking spot at a lot between the start and finish, but because street parking is free in San Diego on Sundays I thought I'd see if I could find something when I got down there. Lucky for me there was a spot near the parking lot I had reserved so I was able to cancel my reservation, save $8 and set myself up for an easy getaway after the race.

When in doubt, take a selfie while sitting in the car... 

The #WeRunSocial crew was meeting up (yes, just hours after our meet-up Saturday night ;)) for a pre-race photo at 5:30am. I didn't make it to the Expo on Saturday so needed to get to the starting area a few minutes early so I could grab my bib. Thankfully there was zero wait and I was able to grab everything without any issues. {FYI: Race day pick-up is not an advertised option, but because I was on the #RockNBlog team for the last few years I knew it was possible. Some Rock 'N' Roll races, like Las Vegas, charge you for same-day pick-up, but thankfully San Diego isn't one of them... yet.}

The Solutions Tent had ZERO line when I arrived!

Once I had acquired my bib it was time to use the restroom (seeing as I was there with plenty of time to spare there were zero lines - the early bird does get the worm... or at least the never-been-used port-o-potty... which is better than a worm ;)) and then off to find friends. I also grabbed a banana from the refreshment tent - thanks for the breakfast, Rock 'N' Roll!

I knew my "fueling" wasn't going to be amazing for this race, so
I figured I should probably at least start with something healthy ;)

I arrived to the meet-up a few minutes early, so walked over to the start line to snap a couple quick pictures because I knew it would be hectic once race time actually came around (we normally roll with a BIG crew, which can take a bit of coordinating and finagling to keep us all together, so if I wanted a photo I better do it early or risk missing the opportunity).


The meet-up was a blast, even if it is always a little too short because we have a race to run (ha, obviously the race is the "main event" but seeing everyone is so fun that it's hard to break up the party). I tend to keep my phone away during the meet-up so I can soak up the people and conversations, so most of the photos below are ones I had sent to me afterward.


Look at all of those cotton candy PRO socks

Eventually it was time to jump in the starting corral and get the show on the road. San Diego is where the Rock 'N' Roll events kicked off, not to mention the weather and scenery is near perfect, so it always draws a huge crowd. I think I remember hearing there were going to be like 33 corrals when I was listening to Monica's pre-race podcast.

Source

If you've read any of my previous five recaps for Rock 'N' Roll San Diego [2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018] or have run the race before, you know that this race (specifically the half marathon distance - because, let's be real, the 5K is only fun because of friends and the full, well, just no!) is a party for just about all 13.1 miles! The neighborhoods all come out and treat the runners like royalty. It's nothing like Boston or LA, but San Diego still holds it down and does a runner good.

Source

We had a fairly large group from the get-go (I think we were rolling probably 20+ deep at points), but settled in around a crew of between 10-15 (some people hoping in and out depending on pace, stops along the course, etc). There was really no game plan to be had - other than FUN and PHOTO OPS! Seeing as I had run a trail race the day before (with almost 3,300 feet of elevation gain) I was totally in for #PartyPace! And, let's be honest, I never pass up a good character stop ;)

Some of the fun San Diego walls!

A few of the "characters" I found along the way!

You know I love me a library and the streets of San Diego did not disappoint!

95% of the races I run I hydrate with water (I tend to only switch to an electrolyte if it is super warm or humid) and my PROBAR BOLT chews, but, as you know, RnRSD is a party so I hydrated with Fireball and fueled with Donuts (I wasn't sure if I should put the Jell-O shot in hydration or fuel, so you can decide ;)). [Don't worry, I ran with my Nathan handheld so could have some regular H2O every once in a while as well... I mean, I wasn't totally irresponsible ;)]

Mile 4.5 Bar in Normal Heights (right around the corner from where I first lived when I moved to California) is
a MUST STOP! This crew is AMAZEBALLS and does their best to keep the runners "hydrated". 

Left: Sobriety checkpoint?! Don't worry, I passed... / Middle: DONUTS / Right: The watermelon jell-o shot
was delicious but the Tajín spice they put on top of it was NOT my jam... 

In case you didn't follow along on my Instagram stories (with the crappy algorithm I'm not sure how many people even see my stuff any longer...), let me just reiterate that we had a BLAST! We ran when we wanted, walked when we needed and made memories all along the route. We thanked spectators and volunteers, gave out high fives and pet the puppies.

I will rarely ever pass up a Fireball shot or puppy kisses...

I know some people may think it's silly, but I got a little sad in the final few miles because I knew the shenanigans were coming to an end. Don't get me wrong, I'm lucky enough to see some of these running friends multiple times a year, but it's always bittersweet to have our time together come to a close. But don't you worry your pretty little head, I kept a smile on my face and didn't let the impending finish damper our fun. (We always have something on the calendar to look forward to... like Rock 'N' Roll Las Vegas... will you be joining us?! Please tell me you're in! If not, register NOW!)

I am loving the "Sasquatch" much more than the RunHappy Rocker from past races!

Left: Spectators rock / Middle: Pet rock / Right: A sign that said "Carol Lee Rocks My World" but I thought if I stood
in front of the "ol" part it'd look like it said "Carlee Rocks My World"... We tried ;) 

Spectator signs rock my socks!

And, just like that, (okay, maybe not "just like that" seeing as it took almost 3 hours to finish, ha) the finish line was in sight!

Everyone needs a finish line selfie, right?!

The extra distance is probably from crossing back and forth on the course all
morning for all of the photo ops I saw along the way ;) 

Most races (at least for me) aren't about the time on the clock, but the time spent on the course, and this was definitely one of those races. Memories were made, laughs were genuine, drinks were drunk, smiles were real, fun was had by all.

WE DID IT!

After snapping a few photos it was off to the car to head home and get back to the house renovations with the hubby. (One nice thing about a 6:15am race start is you can be home by 10am to start your day!) #RealTalk - after "fueling" with only donuts on the course, I couldn't wait to get to the car and slam my PROBAR BASE bar that was calling my name!

Not sure if you noticed, but they have new packaging AND I LOVE IT!

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, I'm already signed up for 2020... and this time the hubby will be joining in on the fun! Pre-sale prices have already ended for next year (normally I would've loved to have gotten this recap up earlier so you could have registered at the lowest prices but #adulting got in the way), but if you want in, I'd highly recommend watching out for sales (like Black Friday) or grabbing a Tour Pass if you plan to run more than two Rock 'N' Roll races.

Source

How early do you normally register for a race?

Sunday, June 9, 2019

Workout Recap - Week 23

Sunday, June 2nd – Rock 'N' Roll San Diego Half Marathon, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Monday, June 3rd – 90 minutes on the stationary bike, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Tuesday, June 4th – 4 mile progression run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Wednesday, June 5th – 10.61 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Thursday, June 6th – 8.88 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Friday, June 7th  5 miles with the hubby, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Saturday, June 8th – 24 mile run, Stretched & Foam Rolled


Over 65 miles for the week - BOOM! Technically Friday was supposed to be a rest day, but I have a hard time turning the hubby down when he asks me to run with him... I was planning to start incorporating at least one speed workout a week starting this week, but by Thursday my legs felt like led and the humidity definitely wasn't helping the situation (it zaps my energy...) so I just ended up getting in the miles. I will start doing a speedwork workout a week - I promise!

How were your workouts this past week?