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10 Easy Steps to Becoming a 100-Mile Champion

10/24/2015

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PictureThe coaches that made this possible-Coach Ed and Coach Andy
Until I have time to write my actual race report blog, I thought I would share these gems of advice that came to me in my sleep the night after running 30+ hours on my journey to my 100-mile ultra marathon finish. Understand that these are tongue-in-cheek sprinkled in with a dose of the reality of training and completing a race of this challenge.  I hope you enjoy!



HOW TO BECOME A 100-MILE CHAMPION
  1. ​Enter an online contest to not only be trained by veteran ultra marathoners but agree that if you win you will be connected to so much technology for 200 days that you begin to wonder if you have become a cyborg.
  2. Cross your fingers behind your back as you tell your husband you probably won't win the contest anyway.
  3. Once you are chosen as one of the "winners" of said contest, you sell your soul to a crazy looking guy in a jester outfit in exchange for training. After all, only good can come from putting six months of your life in the hands of a man that wears tights, a skirt, and a fancy hat, right?
  4. Promise your family that if they can just manage EVERYTHING in the household for the next six months you will make it up to them once you completely recover from the race (fingers still crossed behind back because recovery may take another six months at which time you are hoping to sign up for some other crazy adventure).
  5. Persuade your running buddies that consistently waking up at 3 am so they can run by 4 am is going to make them stronger runners. And once they are so brain addled from sleep deprivation that they can't think straight, you next make them see how beginning our long runs between midnight and 3 am is an even better idea.
  6. Convince all your friends that crewing and pacing you for over 24-hours is going to be like a big party that they really don't want to miss!
  7. Avoid building up callouses on your feet so your friends can practice their foot-care skills on a real life victim.  Popping someone else's blisters is fun, agreed?
  8. It is imperative that you follow every step of the coach's diabolical plan to break down every muscle in your body and every brain cell in your head so that come race day you have so completely surrendered your will that you can't possibly think rationally about the fact that you are running a farther distance than most people care to even drive their cars.
  9. Become so desensitized that in desperation you will find no shame in discovering a nice bush to squat behind to do your business. You will also need to become immune to the smells emanating from your body due to the mixture of such urban potty break remnants and eye-watering sweat stench. And believe it or not port-o-potties will seem like Ritz Carlton accommodations at some point in the race, so get used to those as well.
  10. To keep your running buddies motivated to continue running with you, taut the monetary benefits of running by posting consistent pictures of the small bills and change encountered on your runs. At the same time fail to inform them of the fact that in six months of running you collected just $8.72, which comes nowhere near the money you spent on the race entry fee, the four pairs of $100+ shoes you wore through in 1,800 miles of training distance, the $200 Garmin you had to purchase to document your actual training (if it isn't on Strava it didn't happen), and the numerous other gadgets, nutrition, hydration, etc necessary to make your ultra marathon status a reality.

Do all these things and you will be assured that you, too, can be a 100-mile champion who is now awarded with a beautiful, shiny, new belt buckle.  And despite the fact that you may have never worn a belt a day in your life, this piece of metal will be worth more to you than all your other race bling combined!

Picture
Me, Gabby, and our amazing race crew Emily and Britney.
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Two Weeks and Counting

10/4/2015

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PictureWe did it!
​​I have never had so much difficulty writing my blog. For some reason this blog does not seem to want to be written. Is it because I am sad to see this process come to an end, or is it that I am so completely exhausted that my fingers just keep pushing the wrong buttons?  I have been writing this blog for an hour and I keep losing my work, I can't find the pictures I want to include, and all the while the time is ticking toward my 8 pm bedtime.

To avoid letting the frustration get to me, I will make this blog short and sweet...

Yesterday, it finally hit me that we are really doing this thing.  We are really running 100 miles from Norco, CA to the Santa Monica Pier.  And what was it that finally had me facing reality?  My Zero to 100 Mile Hero Teammates (and all our other adopted teammates) finished the final leg of the EC100, miles 75-100, from Palos Verdes to the Santa Monica Pier. As we ran through the actual finish line, two palm trees at the bottom of the pier, we all realized that in two weeks we were doing this for real.  No more 25 mile legs, no more training for the event---in exactly two weeks it will be go time. 

I know that with Coach Ed's guidance he has prepared us for just about any situation.  He trained our minds, he trained our bodies, and now it is time for us to take that training and apply all we have learned on race day. Looking forward to October 17th and 18th when we can take our dream to be 100 Mile Heroes and make that dream a reality!

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    After yo-yo dieting for 30 years I finally feel like I am on the right track. 
    Join me on my journey from flabby to FLABulous!

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