One final dose of school stress

I don't think I've mentioned it on my blog yet, but I'm officially a THIRD YEAR student now (and have been since school started in August)! This semester is supposed to be "easy". I only have 3 classes and a case study presentation. What I'm realizing is that easy doesn't necessarily mean stress-free. This week I started to get overwhelmed by all the things I need to get done in the next two weeks.
It may not seem like a lot, but I have to complete:

• Group presentation
• Case study presentation
• Portfolio (a final project that includes quite a few papers)
• Paperwork for my upcoming clinical

The first 3 items are huge. Each one accounts for 75%-100% of my grade for the class. I feel like my head is swimming with articles and research studies. Ugh. Luckily my group presentation is tomorrow; once I get that out of the way, I'll be so relieved! I'm so ready to be done with all these projects.

Somewhere in there, I also have to take the PEAT (Practice Exam and Assessment Tool for PT) which I'm really nervous about because it's basically a practice test for the boards. I also have to make sure I get a background check, flu shot, and parking pass for my clinical.

The good news is that these next two weeks are the final weeks of classes for me forever! (Unless I decide to get a PhD. I need to remind myself NEVER to do that!) After these next two weeks, I have three clinical rotations, and then I graduate in May. I'm a little scared to get a "real" job, but I'm going to be SO GLAD when I'm FINALLY done with school. I just feel like I've been in school forever and I'm ready to move on to the next stage in life. I love learning but I'm tired of doing it within the structure of school. It'll be interesting  to see where this next year takes me. Probably once I'm out of school I'll miss all the free time I had!

My first 20-miler

So, today was the day of my first 20 mile run. I was already nervous about it, and then to make it worse, a few days ago I developed a head cold and runny nose. And then I got my period (TMI? ok, sorry). And then I checked the weather and realized it was going to get up to 85 degrees on Saturday. And then the morning of the run I forgot to check the route and had to blindly follow everyone else because I didn't really know where we were going.

And, and..... and none of that mattered! I had a great run today despite all my misgivings. In fact, during the last few miles I couldn't believe that I was almost done. I kept thinking Was that really 20 miles? I had anticipated taking longer to finish based on my previous runs in the heat (plus stopping for 2-3 minutes at every SAG).

Even with the heat and the stops, I ran 20 miles in just over 3.5 hours. I'm really excited about that because it means I have a good chance of running the marathon in 4:30! Of course my goal is just to finish, but I don't want to be out there running for an excessive amount of time either. My target time is around 4.5 hours based on my pace and my times for half marathons.

I really hope the marathon goes as well as my run did today. I can't even tell you what I was thinking about, really, or what I felt like at each mile. I guess I was zoning. I love it when the miles just keep rolling and I'm not even fully aware of it. It's not that it's any easier physically - I got a headache at one point, I remember sweat was dripping into my eyes a lot, and some of the hills were tough. However, it's definitely easier mentally when I let my mind wander and just run.

After having a not-so-good 18 mile run two weekends ago, this was nice. It was a confirmation that I can do this. My legs can handle the miles. I can maintain proper hydration and energy (I've had some trouble with this before). I am mentally tough. I am finally to the point in my training where I feel like I can handle this - all the miles, the early mornings, and the tough runs have led to this moment, where I know, deep down inside, that I will be able to run 26.2 miles. Bring on the marathon.

Pen Pals

I love getting mail. Not bills and junk mail, but handwritten letters and cards. In this day and age, it's easy to send someone a message through Facebook, texting, or e-mail, but there's something so personal about snail mail. Handwritten notes are usually so much more thoughtful. It means a lot to me when someone takes the time and effort to think of me and write a letter.

I have a couple friends who live far away, so I rarely get to see them. My friend Dan lives in Hawaii and my friend Julia lives in Pennsylvania. These two are my current pen pals. I haven't seen either of them in the past two years, but we've kept in touch through letters.

I also like to write little notes for friends sometimes. I have a box of pretty cards that are blank inside. They're perfect for writing thank you notes or a great way to make a personalized card for a bridal shower or baby shower (I've been to lots of both recently!)

I got my cards at Ross, but I'm sure you could find something similar at another discount store (Marshalls, TJ Maxx). I got a pack of 50 cards for $7 (a great deal considering one card at Hallmark is about $3). There are 10 different designs, and all the patterns are so pretty. Like I said, the inside is blank, so you can write whatever you want. I used some stickers that I had to make personalized cards for Julia and Dan. Simple but cute, and so easy and cheap to do!

Songs that make me smile

There are a few songs that put me in a good mood no matter how many times I've heard them!
Here are three of my faves:

1. Selena Gomez- Who Says
Makes me feel better when I'm having a bad day.

2. Nicki Minaj- Superbass
This song pumps me up!
I also love this cute version by Sophia Grace: Superbass cover

3. Hot Chelle Rae- I Like It Like That
Upbeat and funny.

Have a listen and see if these jams don't put a smile on your face! :)

On second thought

I've already mentioned that the Virginia Beach race was a tough one for me. I didn't exactly meet all my goals. I did however, manage to achieve a pretty significant goal that I didn't even know I had: I wasn't as sore after the race! Normally, I'm pretty darn sore for a few days after a race. It takes me a full day of rest before I'm able to walk up stairs normally and about 2-3 days before I'm able to walk down stairs normally.

This time, I had some quad soreness, but not nearly as much as usual. The day after the race, Tristan and I walked around Short Pump. By Wednesday, I was ready to run again. Not just a short run, but 10 miles! This was really important for my marathon training. I needed to be able to bounce back from the race and return to my normal running regimen. And I did. Wooooo-hoooooo!

Come to think of it, the race weekend was a pretty good time (besides the actual race itself, haha). We had a great road trip jamming out to Miley Cyrus and Jana Kramer,

we made it to the beach,

we drove through a strange city on a nearly empty tank of gas (and when we made it to a gas station, they were out of regular gas, so we had to drive to the next gas station)!

We chilled in a nifty little hotel (and even found a surprise bra that someone left behind a chair)

and I got to spend the weekend with one of my very best friends! That made it worth it, despite anything else that happened or didn't happen.

Half marathon PR's: definitely not.
Quality friend time: check!

(Sorry for the poor quality phone photos).

Virginia Beach Rock N' Roll

On Sunday, I ran the Virginia Beach Rock N' Roll half marathon. I had several goals for my race.

Well, the race sucked. The humidity was TERRIBLE that weekend. I was sweating before I even started running. I can say that I met my first goal- I definitely started out slow.

It was the other two goals that were problems. I had trouble finding a rhythm. I started out at a decent pace, but as the humidity got worse and worse, my pace got slower and slower. Tristan was going to try to break 2 hours, so she started out ahead of me. I caught up to her around mile 7 and we were both struggling. She decided that her time goal wasn't worth it on such a hot, humid day. We ran a few miles together.

Then I started really struggling. I had been pouring water on my head to help me cool off, but that idea backfired. By mile 9, my clothes were totally waterlogged from water and sweat. I was probably carrying around an extra three pounds! Then I started to feel really weird. I was getting chills and felt cold even though I was still sweating a ton. I was also feeling kind of emotional, like on the verge of tears. I don't know what exactly was wrong, but the heat and exertion was definitely getting to me. I decided to walk.

I walked for about 3-4 minutes, until I felt "normal" again- aka the chills stopped, I got a hold of myself, and I felt able to run again. I'm glad I listened to my body. I think those three minutes of walking were worth it. After that I ran the rest of the way, although it was slowly! I was still struggling a bit to finish those last few miles. I didn't really pick up speed at the end. It was all I could do just to keep running. So needless to say, I didn't have the strong finish I wanted.

After the race, I had to sit down for awhile to recover. I drank a lot of water and gatorade and put a cold towel on my neck to help me cool off. Then I got my bag from bag check because I couldn't wait to change out of my waterlogged clothes and put on a dry shirt. That alone made me feel about ten times better!

Tristan and I spent the next few hours resting at the hotel and watching TV. We were such bums after that race; we didn't feel like doing anything! We both had a race that didn't meet our expectations. It was a tough one. But, we made it all 13.1 miles, no matter how long it took us, no matter how painful it was. I think that's an accomplishment in itself. The fact that we are out there testing our limits while some people choose to live comfortably, never challenging themselves. The fact that we have goals that are difficult and exhausting to achieve. The fact that we can look at each race and say "I can do better." There are other races that will be cooler and easier and I'll run faster. But you can never guarantee a perfect race day or perfect conditions. So for this one, I'm just happy that I finished (and got a really cool medal!)

My time. 2:11:41 (a personal worst!)
My stats:
5K 29:28 / 9:29 pace
10K 59:02 / 9:32 pace
10M 1:38:06 / 10:20 pace
Average pace overall: 10:03