A Look Back on 2015 and Seasons

Truth time. I have a really, really poor memory when it comes to running. Here’s the thing: I tend to get injured often, which I am working on fixing by gaining some weight, but I will share more about that in another post. I would say that I tend to get injured about 3-4 times per year, and these are not just fall and hurt my knee injuries, though those do happen quite often during our trail running seasons. No, these are “I really shouldn’t be running on this because it is causing me to limp/change my running form injuries. Here is where my poor memory comes in. During these times, I tend to think “Well, that’s it! I will never be fast again, I will not run long distances, my ultra dreams have ended!” Yep, dooms day, the roof is caving in type of melodrama. The pattern is that I stop running to try to fix the injury, do absolutely no workouts, and get super down on myself. I quickly forget about all the accomplishments I have in running and life and just think that I am a worthless lazy blob. Well, no more. I am using this post to reflect on 2015 and the cool things we did as a result of running during the year.

 In May, we did the Thunder Rock 100 near Chattanooga.  It was crazy technical and mountainous and I fell about 15 times. HARD. No exaggerations. My knee was about the size of a basketball by the time we crossed the finish. But, we did it! Then, we proceeded to get right into the car and drive back home for 4 hours. 

Night before at Thunder Rock 100 in May. From the outside, I look happy and carefree, but on the inside, I am a bundle of nerves

 

In June, we ran the Hell Hole 100 in Charleston, South Carolina. It was literally in a swamp and it had flooded and there were snakes and alligators. We finished.  We also got to spend quality time with two of the best people in the world, Matt and Lindsey.

I am so relaxed right now.  I am not even thinking about the swamp, snakes, and alligators.  This should be fun.

My ankles took quite the beating in the swamp.

 

To celebrate our nation’s independence, we ran the Merrill’s Mile 24 Hour in Georgia over the 4th of July weekend.  It was a blast, though it rained a few dogs and cats on us, to state it mildly. We drove back to my mom’s in Kentucky where I did a lot of this:

A few weeks later, we ran the 8-Hour Dream Endurance Race in Carmel, Indiana.   It was very HOT! We did super well, despite the heat and blaring sun. I won a trophy that was half the size of me and Todd and I had a dance party on the car ride home while chowing down on Burger King Chicken nuggets.

In August, we ran the Holston River 24 Hour Endurance Challenge in Bristol, TN. We set our PR of getting to 100 miles in 20 hours and 20 minutes. It was also SO.MUCH.FUN.   

In November, we set our 50 mile PR at the Nashville Ultra, proving that, though, I turned 30 this year, I can still do better!

We are ready to break our 50-mile PR.

Post race hug and checking my watch to make sure we broke our record.

In December, we toughed out the hills and ice at the Jackson 50/50. Again, we did way better than we expected and also had a great time.  

Okay, I say all this to point out to myself more than anything that I face injuries but I do come back. This hamstring/quad/hip flexor thing that has got me temporarily down and likely elliptical-focused for the next few weeks will not define me. I will overcome. I hope this helps you if/when you also experience injuries or even just times when you cannot put as much time/effort into your training. Seasons people (preaching to myself here). And, if there are any seasons out there to not be running, I would say that this is probably the best time to take it inside!

 Tell me what you are proud of today! Or, just tell me why you rock your life on January 12, 2016 (because I know you do, even if you don’t think so)!