2018 Ultra Kick off: First Race Post Partum

Since this is my first post, I'll tell you a little about myself.  I was a single mom to three girls for many, many years (it seemed like, anyway).  I grew up riding horses and competing in patterned speed racing and barrel races.  I still have horses now, though little time for them, as much as I hate to admit it.  So, I've always enjoyed being athletic.  All through college I rode and also picked up running.  I ran through shin splints and slightly fractured ankle after being kicked at a rodeo.  Co-workers rolled their eyes at me and shook their fingers when they saw me out running.  I was obsessed.  I couldn't help myself.  I had to run.  It was an addiction.  Even then.  It became less so after I had my oldest.  After that, I ran here or there, in spurts, to stay in shape.  At some point in there, my mom had started running ultramarathons.  It took her years, but she finally convinced me to join the craze.....

2017 Sun Mountain 25k

Late 2017 through 2018 was my first year running trail marathons and ultra marathons.  I ran in Rainshadow Running's Sun Mountain 25k in May.  June, I found out I was pregnant.  I continued to train for my first 50k in August (Go Beyond's Volcanic50 at Mt. St. Helens), which I completed and went on to run at Cle Elum Ridge 50k and Baker Lake 50k.  My last race of 2018 was the Bellingham Trail Marathon in December.  It was brutal.  At 26 weeks pregnant, battling achilles tendonitis (an issue since Volcanic50), I barely made it across the finish line.  I ended up benched from running by the new year and in physical therapy.  They chased the problem for several weeks, but ultimately could not fix it and they figured pregnancy was hindering anything they were trying.  I continued to stay active through pregnancy with hiking and attempted trail running (waddling) and Samuel was born March 9th.   Since I had crazily signed up to return to Sun Mountain for the 50k in May, I knew I had some work to get back into shape.  At eight days post partum, I started in on the treadmill.  There were a few weeks at 20 miles, then 30, and finally up to 40.  Most of these miles were spent pushing a stroller.  I found time where I could, sometimes running two or three times a day.

So, to make a quick hop back, I met the man of my dreams last March.  He also had three children, ages 2, 3, and 4.  Two boys and one girl.  I had my three girls, ages 2, 4, and 8.  We quickly knew where our relationship was headed, blended our family into one big one, and we married in August of last year.  Then came Samuel.  Long story short, there are seven children in the house, four dogs, three horses, and recently, 28 chickens.  Life is busy!  Finding time to run is a challenge, but we make it work.  Hence, the unwanted treadmill miles, or three runs in a day.

I digress.  After Samuel was born, I knew I had less then three months to kick my booty back into shape.  Running post partum felt great!  At first, I was amazed at how quickly I started to come back, maybe even faster.  But by my second 40 mile week at maybe 6-8 weeks PP, and after my first long run, the achilles tendonitis was back.  I knew what that meant.  May 19th was quickly approaching and I was not ready.  I iced it.  I took more rest days.  I switched from my Altra Lonepeaks into Hoka Speedgoats.  Before I knew it, my training schedule was taper week.  And it still hurt.

10 week old Sammy

We packed  our camping gear and  the day before, we headed up to Big Twin Lakes campground to meet my mom and friend, Lois, who were also running the 50k.  The kids were jittering with excitement.  I was jittering with nervous anxiety as the countdown to my first race ticked down.  It seemed I had even forgotten how to pack.  What all went into my race vest besdies water?  How much food?  Maybe I still had/have pregnancy brain.

The night before the race, I sat down with my husband and we planned where and when he would meet me at aid stations. We had it down perfect so that hopefully 10 week old Samuel would not need a bottle.

Cam and I before start

The morning of the race, I pumped and nursed him several times.  Then I left and headed for the starting line with a fellow runner.  I nervously stood in line to pick up my bib.  I tried to tell myself it was just going to be a fun long run on the trails and there was nothing to worry about.  But then the countdown began (after the talk about bears, yes bears, and of course trail markers) and everyone was out the chute and blazing down the road towards the trail up to Mt. Patterson.  I was barely keeping up at an 8:30 min/mile pace!  The gentleman behind me had it right, comparing our 50k start to that scene in the movie Hidalgo - when all the riders galloped their horses at the start "for show."  Regardless, it was discouraging to watch all the folks pass me and I could already feel the muscle fatigue creep in.  Up and up we climbed.  I kept stepping off the trail to let faster people go by.  I got more discouraged. I powered up with borrowed poles, trying to take the load off my achilles.  On the downhill, I was able to cruise.  At least for a while.  Then, between miles 4 and 5, my legs were dead.  How could that be?  I still had 26-27 miles to go!  By this point, I started self doubting.  There was no way to the finish.  My body was tired and we had only just begun.  By the time I climbed up (again) to Sun Mountain Lodge, the first aid station, with 10 minutes to spare until the cut off, I almost dropped.  But, Terry and the kids were meeting me at mile 13.7, aid station 2.  If I could at least make it that far, I would feel better about myself and get a "long" training run in.  So I plodded along, all the while worrying about my heel, the miles, the rest of the season, training, and of course Sammy.  Was he hungry yet?  Was he crying? Did he need me?

Ten miles seemed to take forever.  It was 10:30am and I knew that's when Terry and the kids planned to be at Criss Cross (AS #2).  At the pace I was plodding along at, they would have to wait for another 45 minutes.  This was brutal.  It's not that I hadn't done any long runs.  No, I had just two weeks prior run 18 miles from Cle Elum to Thorp.  But, it was on the John Wayne Trail, a flat old railroad bed.  I had not touched a trail since last year.  Even pushing a stroller 8-15 miles at a time cannot prepare you for elevation gains/losses.

When I finally started recognizing trails, indicating that I was near Criss Cross, I felt better and caught a second wind.  There was the fleeting thought that I might push through.  At least to the next AS at Thompson road, mile 20.  I could do another seven miles.  But, when I came shuffling down the trail and saw my kids and even my Mom was there, I realized I really had already made up my mind.  I had to live to run another day.  Mom shouted, "woohoo!" as I came into view.  I looked at little Sammy and Terry and said that I was done.  After I told the officials, mom and I talked about cut off times.  Even if I'd decided to stay in, I would not have had time to nurse Sammy.

Feeling slightly defeated, we all walked back to the car (Mom took a DNF at the same aid station as me).  I drank a bit of wine that night.

I learned several things from this race.  One, at 10 weeks post partum, I shouldn't expect my body to do so much.  Two, I am still coming back from last year's overuse injury.  With those things together, I'm proud I made it as far as I did.  I know I could have kept going, but since it was the first race of the year, why risk further injury?

A few days later, I am really looking forward to continuing the training.  I plan to run Teanaway Half Trail marathon in a couple weeks.  July is Hood 50k (I"m in the lottery for the 50 miler, but that's a long shot), August is Volcanic 50k, September Cle Elum Ridge 50k, and October I think I might do Baker Lake 50k again.  Oh, and return for Bellingham Trail Marathon in December. There are lots of races this year.  It's time to take a step back, figure out my achilles, and dang, I need to work on that core!!

The UltraLadies: Me, Lois, Donna, Cam