Use These 3 Tips To Have Your Best First Race Ever

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

It’s easy to get freaked out when you are running your first race ever (or first race distance ever). All these questions rolling around in your head:

Am I prepared enough?
Will I be the last person to cross the finish line?
Do I have everything I need?
and the list can go on and on IF you let it…..

So my quick advice for you, whether it’s your first race ever, or your first distance ever is to follow these three tips (works for me every time!)

Don’t stress out! Getting a bit nervous about the unknown is normal, trust me! But don’t let that bit of nervousness get you so worked up that it consumes you so you don’t sleep the night before and you use up so much unnecessary mental energy you won’t have any for the race. There is no need to get yourself worked up!
Don’t go out too fast! One of the most common mistakes for a first time race is to get excited that you start out way faster than you should. Your adrenaline is pumping and so is everyone else’s and it’s easy to get caught up and rush out too soon. Let everyone go because you will see most of them later. One of my other tricks is to start nose breathing as it immediately slows me down or just start in a nice warm up pace. Once you are half way through the distance, you can check in and if you are feeling good, then you can speed it up. Trust me, it feels worse to go out too fast and then get half way through and feel like shi*t…your mind will start playing tricks on you and the negative self talk will start. I’ve learned this the hard way!
Be present! You only get your first time once! Enjoy every single moment and stay as present as possible. You are going to PR it (have a personal record) so make it a point to have fun and enjoy it! Thank the volunteers and the people cheering on the side line, meet people on the course, and take pictures to capture your first time experience.

More than likely if you are reading this, you are not an elite athlete, an Olympian or someone who is going to win the race. So just go out and have FUN! You want to have a great experience so you can do it again!

This video pretty much says the same thing 😉

Race Report

Monument Valley 50K: Race Report

Posted on March 28, 2017 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Wow! Where to even begin? I know I have to keep this succinct but very hard to do, especially for those of you that want to get a detailed report about the race and what to expect if you plan on doing it. Continue Reading →

Race Report

Black Canyon Race Report: 2017 Mud Run

Posted on February 21, 2017 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Where to even begin? One of the recent facebook posts about this event was something like “people will be talking about the 2017 Black Canyon Ultras for years to come.” And the memories will probably not be pleasant for most of us.

First of all, I want to give a huge congratulations to everyone who participated. Whether you finished, dropped from the 100K to the 60K, or DNF’d (Did Not Finish). The weather conditions were ridiculous and just being out there was an amazing feat! Also a huge thank you to all the volunteers and Aravaipa staff who were out there taking care of all the runners!

This was supposed to be my first 100K race. I blogged last week about some of the changes that happened to the race course due to the upcoming weather conditions. I was pretty bummed that everything was not going as planned with the weather but I finally got over it….

4:30 am: Alarm was set to go off but I woke up about an hour earlier and couldn’t fall back asleep. I checked weather.com one more time hoping that a miracle might happen and the rain would not be in the forecast. No such luck. (I had weather.com up on my computer all week and had been checking it at least 5x a day!)

6:20am: I arrived, picked up my packet, chit chatted with some friends and waited impatiently to just “get this party started!” (I say this almost every morning when I start my day).

Before race start. Had to go visit the Altra booth. Love my Altra shoes!

Quick selfie before race start…it was raining at the start..see below for note on yellow colored glasses 😉

7:00am: We are off! I always stay towards the end as I’m never in a hurry, especially with that many miles to go. We did one loop around the high school track, ran through part of the town of Mayer and on the road to get us to the trail. And here is where the “fun” began…

Jeep road portions of the trail were a muddy mess!

This is what were dealing with on the jeep road portions of the race…Photo credit: Jennifer Berry

It might’ve been at mile 2 or 3 or so that we encountered this and my first thought was doing this again on the way back at mile 60 in the middle of the night with my pacer. Yikes!

Then we hit the Black Canyon trail (I really do love this trail). It was better on the single track and things were starting to look just a little brighter! On a side note, I highly recommend wearing yellow colored lenses in this type of weather (I have them in the start photo above). Knowing there would be wind, and it would be too dark for sunglasses, I brought them and was so happy I did. All of the sudden I was seeing the world through yellow colored glasses and it was so much brighter! Every once in awhile I would remove them from my face and then the world was all dreary again (literally and figuratively). Highly recommend them for running when it’s not sunny out.

I had created a race day strategy with my crew/pacers. My plan was to skip the first aid station (although had to stop to give a quick hug to my friend Dan Pena who was volunteering). The rain had stopped and the trail was getting better. The downhill portions were a blast to run down and there was no mud on this part of the trail. Hallelujah! I was having a blast and happy that things seem to be going better than I expected with the weather…..until….

I’m almost at the 3rd aid station and was tracking exactly as I planned. I see my friend Senovia, who was also doing the 100K and she was heading back towards the start. I asked her if she was injured and she told me that the at the next aid station, they were recommending that the 100K people turn around (which is where the 60K turn around was) due to upcoming bad weather. Whhhhaaaat?? Although you could see black clouds all around the area, the weather seemed to have backed off. I had about a half a mile to get there and now was trying to figure out what do with this information. So many thoughts started rushing through my head…”I am not a quitter”, “I trained months for this race”, “this was supposed to be my first 100K”, etc, etc…

I arrive to the aid station and check in. Sure enough, they said that the race directors were recommending that 100K people turn around as the storm would be getting worse after 4pm. They also said they would allow us to drop down so we could get credit for the 60K. Dang it! I was feeling really good at this point (mile 20) and was not ready to make this split second decision! I called my very supportive boyfriend first...poor guy, why I am calling him and adding this pressure on him? He doesn’t know what to say other than “I’ll support you in whatever you decide.” I know several of my friends decided to keep going and I kept thinking, if they can do it, so can I….something in my gut was not feeling right though…I called my pacer/friend/trail wife Elaine because she is my rock when it comes to this stuff. She’s a great athlete, mentor, friend and I knew she would give me objective advice. Sure enough, she knew all the right questions to ask me. Within a few minutes, I knew what I had to do. This was one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make in that short of time. Elaine gave me my sanity check and I know I needed to respond logically to this situation rather than react emotionally. As much as I really wanted to do the race I had trained for, I needed to trust the race directors advice. I also had to take into consideration that there was a chance that my pacers could not get to me for the last 20ish miles due to the weather conditions. I could be on that trail, in cold, wet, dark, muddy conditions all alone. One of the things she said to me was: “you can have a good 60K race or a bad 100K”. All of the sudden, everything was in perspective and I knew that I had to make the decision for my safety more than anything. Do I think I could’ve finished the 100K? At that point I believed I could but after being in the horrible weather after 4pm, I believe I would’ve DNFd this race had I continued on. So I did a quick facebook live video on my business page, told them I was choosing to drop to the 60K and back to Mayer High School I went.

One other important thing I took into consideration is that even though this was MY race (not coaching anyone else for it but me), as a running coach, I am setting an example for others. My client and friend, Sharon, said it best in a text I received while still at the aid station “I know it must’ve been hard for you, but your decision gives other permission to make good decisions.” This really stuck with me and helped me feel better about the decision.

I ran into a few of my friends doing the 60K on the way back and shared the news. It was so weird because the weather seemed to be cooperating…as a matter of fact there were a few moments where a few sun rays came out. But you could clearly see the black clouds surrounding us. I was second guessing and feeling disappointed in myself. Did I make the right decision? I knew I had to let those thoughts go as I couldn’t go back now. So I got refocused and reminded myself that a 60K is still an amazing distance! and this was still my 2nd longest distance ever…and it was my first 60K (I still have to keep reminding myself of these things as my ego can’t help but get in the way).

I knew I would be power hiking quite a bit as now we are going up all those hills. I met a new friend, Pancho, from AK at about mile 28 or so. We ended up staying together the rest of the way to keep ourselves motivated. We also ran into Lara who was from Canada and leap frogged with her a bit. As if the uphills weren’t bad enough, the weather took the turn they were expecting it to. It started raining harder (almost felt like hail at one point), the wind started blowing and it started getting colder. I am glad I switched my shirt out and the second to the last aid station as it helped keep me warm, although I was freezing a few miles after that. We know what was coming…we had to get back through all that mud on the jeep road portion of the race. Pancho helped me find the best paths to take on the mud so it wouldn’t be so bad. At one point I realized that running where the water had pooled, was the easiest place as the mud had been compacted down. Unfortunately I couldn’t feel my feet already because they were so cold. It was either struggle through the mud slower or get through this faster by running in the cold water puddles.

More mud…(photo credit Jennifer Berry)

And more mud…photo credit Melissa Ruse from Sweet M Images http://www.sweetmimages.com/

The last 5 miles were just ridiculously brutal between the rain, cold and mud. I was so ready for it be over at this point. I don’t like road running but I remember telling Pancho I couldn’t wait to get to the road. I kept thinking about how awful it would’ve been to be doing this segment after 20 more miles and way later at night with worse weather and reassured myself that dropping to the 60K was the right decision. We finally got to the road and knew we only had a few more miles to go…felt like forever! We turned at the high school and all of the sudden I could hear my name being yelled out. I could barely see and realized, there was my crew: Elaine, Lori and my honey! So happy to see them and know that we were finally done with this! Best cheering section ever!

Elaine & Greg hanging while waiting for us!

We crossed the finish line, high fived each other and I needed to get warmed up. I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. So grateful that Mayer High school opened up their gym to us so we were able to get into the locker rooms. My clothes were soaked and stuck on me already but I barely recall getting into the hot shower with Lori and Elaine helping take my cold, wet clothes off while I heated up my body…warm broth and hot chocolate helped too! My first thing when I cross most finish lines is having a beer..but I was too cold for one!

This was a blur of a moment!

We waited for our other friends to come to repeat the hot shower process for everyone. Everyone was hanging in the warm cafeteria. Mayer Fire Department and the race EMTs were working like crazy…so many people with hypothermia.

Post race reflections

Outside of the crazy weather, I was ready for this race and have no doubts I would’ve finished it. I have no regrets about making the decision to drop to the 60K as I don’t know I would’ve been able to finish it under the circumstances. And yes, I’m human so of course I’m disappointed that I didn’t do the 100K…after all the training and anticipation up to that day, it’s a bummer that I couldn’t get my first buckle. However it was the right decision for me and I’m glad that I did.
Not going to lie, I am disappointed. Three days have past and it feels very weird…like it’s all behind me and it’s over. I remember the amazing high I had after my first 50K and 50 miler for days! Even though this was my first 60K, I don’t have the same feelings. I had such high expectations for this race and the day didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to. Was this race an amazing character builder? Hell, yes! Do I run to build character? Sure, one of the reasons I love ultra running is because it allows me to push a little bit further out of my comfort zone. This race made me a stronger runner and person for sure….but the reason I love ultra and trail running is because I love being out in nature for hours, taking pictures and soaking in the beautiful weather (this is why I live in AZ for crying out loud! 😉 ). This race did not provide most of this for me this time. I could hardly take pictures because my phone was wrapped up so it wouldn’t get wet. I will admit the desert was still beautiful but once the weather turned, I was ready to be done.
Always thankful for Brooke, my nutritionist from Fuel To The Finish, because I never have issues and always feel great all day!
So grateful for ChiRunning and all that it has taught me. From a technique perspective, I stayed focused on what my body was doing and how I could move my body to meet what nature and elements were presenting to me moment by moment. Not surprised that very different body parts were sore the next day. Hip flexors and ankles from peeling my shoes out of the mud and wiggling around trying not to fall in the slippery mud. My neck was sorer than normal because I normally keep my head neutral on my body so my eyes are looking at the horizon and the trail. Due to the amount of mud, I had to keep my gaze down to my shoes which added pressure on my neck and upper back muscles. My core is always sore which is great because I know I’m using it!

Sooooo no buckle for me this time. People have asked me: what now? I am trained for a 100K so why not find one and do it? Well, I have the Monument Valley 50K on 3/25 and on the following weekend, Crown King 50K (I am one of the coaches for this race via Aravaipa’s Women’s Ultra Training Program and can’t wait to see them cross the finish line! For several of them, it will be their first one!). I have not made any decisions at this point but my gut feeling is that I’ll want to take revenge on this course next year. It’s around my birthday and I love this trail.

I’ll leave you with this quote…never knew this about the lotus flower!

“Whenever you should doubt your self-worth, remember the lotus flower. Even though it plunges to life from beneath the mud, it does not allow the dirt that surrounds it to affect its growth or beauty.” Suzy Kassem

lotus

Pancho, Lara and I after finally warming up after our finish.

Only took one photo of the views…just love this course..better with sunshine though! 😉

Thanks to AZ Traileggers Aid station where I stopped for awhile on my way out and back! Great motivational signs!

More good signs!

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Cloudy with a Chance of Mudballs

Posted on February 16, 2017 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Well, I was planning on writing a blog about my week of tapering before my 100K in 2 days…..but since there has been a major change in the weather forecast, and I hate running in the rain, I decided to share the learning lessons I’ve already had in the last few days about this situation. Continue Reading →

50 Miles of Gratitude: (12) Training & XTERRA Events

Posted on January 9, 2017 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Yesterday, I did the XTERRA White Tank 20K “race”. I put race in parenthesis as you know I normally use races as training runs for my bigger races (first 100K in 6 weeks!). I already blogged about Aravaipa races awhile back.

This race is no joke from an elevation profile. Their website describes it as:

“For those who prefer a course with pain and punishment, the long course is 20k of grueling single track with over 1500 feet of climbing. Starting from the group campground, runners wind their way up Ironwood to the Waddell trail. Once you reach the first aid station be prepared to go up, the next three miles are all climbing….” You can see my Tom Tom results here.

Cheryl Miller from Miller Endurance Coaching is one of their sponsors and she hosted a preview run a few weeks ago that I was able to attend. I actually did this race back in 2012 when I was training for my first marathon but I can’t find my results anywhere. At any rate, I knew what I was getting myself into…

Which is why I wanted to do it! Hills are part of most trail races and I love to train on them to keep improving my ChiRunning technique. White Tanks are also a great change of scenery for me so I was excited to do this one.

First I want to thank XTERRA because a portion of their race proceeds go to my favorite local charity Girls On The Run Maricopa County (GOTR-I’m currently on their board of directors serving as Secretary). If I’m not racing their events, I’m volunteering because I really appreciate their support!

Now on to my learning lessons from this race!

The more running story develops year after year, I have found that I prefer to preview runs if I have a chance. This gives me a chance to get familiar with the course and know what to expect vs the element of surprise that I used to like more before. Even though I did part of the course backwards on the preview run, I knew what I was getting into!

Even though this was a “training” run, I wanted to race it…my version of racing it 😉 My race strategy was:

Bring my hydration pack so I wouldn’t need to stop at any of the aid stations.
Power hike the uphills and run as much of the runnable part as possible
Focus/improve upon on my ChiRunning hill technique (runnable/non runnable hills, uphill and downhill. I just taught a ChiHills class yesterday so it was all fresh)
Continue to get more out of my comfort zone on rockier trails and improve my technique there
Get myself mentally psyched up and excited for this race no matter what (this has become a regular strategy for me. Why got all worked up and nervous? I start thinking about the friends I will see, that I’m getting to spend a “few” hours in nature, getting some ME time, burning some calories, etc. Literally think of as many positive things as I can to get pumped up for the race to get positive energy flowing)
Last but not least, as much as I don’t like always setting time goals for races, since I did the preview run in 3:17 and I wasn’t as racing, I was shooting for a 3 hour finish.

It was a beautiful day! I got there in plenty of time to pick up my packet and run into many friends including GOTR volunteers/board members.

Holly is our Vice President and was racing as well!

I started running right away knowing that the grueling part would be around Mile 2. I had to stop momentarily at the first aid station to get this selfie with Bob and Cindy Hansen who are huge supporters of GOTR and I love seeing their smiling faces!

Bob & Cindy Hansen, GOTR volunteer superstars! Love the rays of sun shining on us!

Then it was all uphill so I started power hiking and using my arms, core and obliques more (which are all sorer than my legs are today!) I knew I was at the back of the pack already but OK with that. Every time there was a wee bit of level terrain or not too many rocks, I ran a bit…however if I know I can power hike it faster and use less energy, that is my strategy. (one of the many things I love about trail running as it’s more “acceptable” to walk due to the hills.) I had several more friends at aid stations that called my name out as I ran by which is always motivating!

We are pretty high up there! Pictures don’t do it justice for sure!

If you look closely, you can see the trail on the other mountain going down hill…

It was finally time to come downhill! Was cruising in several locations but the trail was rocky so this slowed me down more than I wanted. I was really trying to focus on relaxing as much as possible as I know any tension mentally or physically slows me down (which is why I get pumped up before a race too…to keep from having mental stress!). I almost tripped a few times but never fell.

I hate looking at my watch to reach a time goal (again more mental tension) but at this point I could tell that I was close to my time goal. I had conserved my energy so I knew the last 2 miles should be pretty easy. I didn’t realize mile 11 was a wee bit of an uphill and I started walking a bit. I knew I was cutting it close on the time goal so I decided to put my playlist on speaker just to change up my energy and get some motivation. Funniest thing was that I turned it off in less than 2 minutes! The music was too distracting. I was in a really good zone (had been for the entire race between my ChiRunning/ChiWalking form focusing, being present and truly enjoying the beauty of the trail.) On a side note, I find it interesting that as my running story continues to develop, I used to only be a social runner. I couldn’t run unless I had company and someone to talk to. Now, my solo runs hold a special place. I can’t describe it but there is something to be said about being alone with yourself for hours in nature, running on a trail. Time flies by somehow…Mile 11 was my hardest mile of the entire race and I started thinking I wanted it to be over with. With 1.5 miles to go, I got it together and started really focusing more on my form and breathing. Before I knew it, I could see the finish line and was getting excited. I was at 2:52 and knew I would make it on time if I kept my pace…..and I did! My official time was a 2:57:37! (and my fastest mile was my last one!)

I felt amazing and was so dang proud of myself when I finished!….

Thanks to my friend Diane for taking this awesome photo of me finishing! It truly describes how I felt!

The GOTR Executive Team..2 of us running and 2 volunteering!

…..Until I started comparing myself to other runner friends….that is another blog post…for now, you can watch my 5 minute facebook live video from yesterday here.

All in all, this was one of my best races from strategy to how amazing I felt at the end.

Do you use races as training runs? Share your comments below!

My badass friend Diane who is an Ironman and did her first 8K trail race!

Selfie with Terry who is an amazing athlete who will be 60 this year and placed first in her age group and 13th woman overall!

You know it’s going to be a great day with this sunrise!

Click here: 50 Miles of Gratitude: 50 Posts about my first 50 Miler

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Across The Years: Race Report & 6th 50K

Image

….and My Story Runs On….

Where do I even begin? First I have to try and explain how this type of event works. Across The Years is described on the Aravaipa website as:

“the original fixed-time multiday running event celebrating the New Year. Runners have 24, 48, 72 hours or 6 days to cover as much distance as possible. Each runner is free to walk, stop, eat, and sleep whenever they wish, but the clock is always running!”

What does this mean? It’s basically you against the clock. You can sign up for minimum of 24 hours to a maximum of 6 days and log as many miles as you want or your body/mind will allow you.

I’ll be honest, I have very mixed feelings about this event. In 2014, my boyfriend and I volunteered during the midnight shift at New Year’s Eve and we had a blast! We decided to do it again this year and The Running University sponsored two volunteer shifts on New Year’s Eve so I received a free entry for filling those spots.

I was excited to have the opportunity to try this type of event out. The course is a 1.04 mile loop at Camelback Ranch and you basically go around the loop as many times as you want or your body/mind will allow you. I’ve done an event before that was looped but it was a 4 mile course so this was a first experience for me. Every 4 hours they change the direction so you go around the opposite way.

I can’t wait to get my official bib number. It’s yours for the lifetime of the event. Apparently once you get to 1,000 miles you get a jacket! not sure I’ll ever shoot for this goal!

I ran this mostly with my friend Heather and we decided that we were “just” going to follow our training plan for the weekend and our plan was to do a 50K (31.1 miles). I also had dinner plans that night so I was on a bit of time crunch. We started at 9am (the 24 hour clock is from 9am-9am). The first several loops felt great…actually most of it wasn’t bad at all..as a matter of fact at one point I was thinking, maybe I can do 48 hours next year and do my first 100 miles…break it up in four 25 miles segments over 48 hours…that sounds doable, right? Well…..by the time I was done, I was done with those loops. Heather and I spent most of the time chatting together and with other people on the course. At one point she needed to make a stop so I kept going knowing we find each other on that loop at some point. I started listening to one of my new favorite Running Deep playlists that I purchased awhile ago and had not had chance to get into (guided meditation for runners). It was perfect timing to be zoned out and zoned in at the same time. I was also hoping to PR my 50K time. Doesn’t really mean a whole lot as this type of event is much different than running a 50K on a trail with an actual elevation profile. But still, I was running a lot more than I would’ve on a trail so that had to count for something. I did set another PR and I found my results from my Tom Tom amusing. Mostly the elevation profile and the map of my run. 😉

It might be easiest to break this up to pros and cons (of course just my opinion!). Would love to hear comments from anyone who has done these events!

Pros:

The course is a 1.04 mile loop so there is no way to get lost. It’s probably one of the safest ways to get rack up mileage.
You set your own goals and it’s just you against the clock. This will also be a Con. For me, I liked that my plan was to stick to my training plan and I purposely scheduled dinner plans later because I knew that I could be convinced to keep going since I technically had many more hours to go. But if someone was “afraid” to do a marathon because there are normally cut offs, you can sign up for 24 hours here and finish a marathon no problem in 24 hours…you could crawl it!
I’ve never eaten so much at a race! LOL There is a main aid station with lots of goodies. We purposely skipped it many times. I’ve taught my body to go for longer periods of time with little fueling but it’s so hard not to stop by and visit at the aid station…and maybe grab a few M & M’s or piece of pizza or peanut butter pretzels (my main trail staple). I’ve heard people say they actually gain weight on this event.

Should’ve got a better picture but this is the main aid station…lots of goodies here!

No need to carry anything. There is also another water station half way through which means you really don’t have to worry about carrying anything with you on this race as you have it all right there.
Seeing lots of friends! It was fun to see so many people I knew. Unfortunately because I was on a mission to get done by a certain time, I couldn’t stop and slow down much to talk with them as most of them were going longer so moving slower that I wanted to at that point. But there are a lot of local runners along with people who come internationally for this event so a great place to listen to people’s running stories and goals.

Heather and I at the start line getting ready for the 9am start 😉

Had to get a selfie with the pretty “lake” behind us. There were some scenic spots on this loop!

Hanging with Ed The Jester. I found out today that he placed 1st with 451 miles completed in 6 days! Just google “ed the jester” and you’ll find out some amazing things about this guy!

Sharill! Her and her husband used to own Solemates which was a racing company that only did these type of timed events but shorter starting with 6 miles up to 24 hours.

Ron! I see this guy volunteering everywhere! And you can’t help but love that shirt!

Ila! Still waiting to hear on her finish as of right now. She is an inspiration and I blogged about her too: https://myownrunningstory.wordpress.com/2016/09/22/running-marathons-at-70/

We reached our goal of a 50K! 31.8 miles on my watch 😉

Relaxed atmosphere. People are all just doing the same thing going around this loop…some running, some walking, some talking, some listening to music or whatever. There didn’t seem to be much “race” pressure that you can normally feel in a race. You get to do whatever you want when you want.
Strategy. You basically create your own race strategy. I met people who were planning X amount miles in X amount of hours, some people were just going with the flow and people like me were using it as a training run. Your time, your strategy.

My strategy was to complete a 50K but my mantra is the same thing I have on the back of my The Running University shirts 😉

Cons

The course is a 1.04 mile loop and all you do all day and night is go around in the same circle for hours even though they change the direction every 4 hours. One of the things I love most about ultra running is being out on a trail and seeing places I’ve never seen before. I don’t know how people do 6 days of this but all power to them!
You set your own goals and it’s just you against the clock. As a running coach, this type of race can really push people to a level that I believe is not healthy. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for people pushing outside their comfort zone mentally and physically! However, to be smart about doing that, training your mind and body really helps too. I know several ultra runners that were out there and used to do this kind of mileage…however this race brings some people out that have not been spending the time training and it’s an injury or many waiting to happen. It’s easy to get wrapped up in your goal and I can’t tell you the number of times I heard people complaining about body parts hurting (there is a difference in knowing when you can push through “hurt” or “injury”) and when you are mentally exhausted, you are not always making the wisest decisions. It was painful for me to watch some of these people limping along (there is a medical tent on site and they do an amazing job…but I know people who wouldn’t go in there in fear of hearing they needed to stop). As much as it’s an inspiration to watch an 82 year old with a walking stick or a 10 year old achieve a 100 mile goal, it’s still begs the questions, when is too much too much?

So, 4 days later, do I still want to do 100 miles in 48 hours next year?

WonderWoman

Will I do the event again next year? Hell yes! My plan would be sign up for the same 24 hours with friends, hopefully convince some people to do their first marathon, and have a walking/running party and just have fun with it!

Have you ever done a timed event? What’s your experience? Would love to hear your opinion!

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Pass Mountain 25K Race or training run?

Posted on November 12, 2016 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

This morning, I did Aravaipa Running’s Pass Mountain 25K (15.5 miles).
I picked it for a few reasons:

I needed mileage as I train for my next big race (another blog on that later)
I happened to be available on this Saturday to do it
Most importantly, this race was my inaugural debut into trail races back on 11/19/2011 and I haven’t done it since.

I remember back in 2011 how scared I was to do it. I was training for my first marathon (Lost Dutchman, it fell on 41st birthday 5 years ago) but I had also just come back from my first ever ChiRunning Instructor weekend. It was my first time meeting Danny & Katherine Dreyer and the first time I got to meet a bunch of other ChiRunning instructors from all over the world. Needless to say, I was geeked out on ChiRunning and was excited/nervous about my first trail race. (I honestly can’t remember if I did any training on trails at this point. I want to say I had but I was not as experienced as a runner or coach at this point so not sure!) I remember how hard it was…but my favorite part was getting to the last 1/2 mile that was on road and seeing my Dad there with his bike as he rode by my side for that last little bit!

My Daddy and I!

Fast forward to this year. Not sure why I haven’t done this more often since 2011 but this year was my first time back. The course was slightly different (it was a 26K in 2011) but most of it was the same.

So my first dilemma was: do I go and preview the course in advance or not? I decided to do it and here is a quick 2 min video about that experience:

I am so glad that I did it now!

I didn’t preview the first half of the course because I knew it would be easier but grateful that I did the 2nd half as it proved to help me a lot today. Not so much physically but mentally.

I knew when the hard parts would be so I conserved my energy on those by ChiWalking more. (yes, I have no problem walking in races either!)
I knew one of my bigger challenges would be part of the end of the course because the single track trail was very close to the edge and I am afraid of heights.
I also knew that the last 2-3 miles were runnable downhill miles and I was ready to crank on those as soon as I could. Ironically, my fastest mile was my last one!

As a running coach, I hear people get nervous about races all the time. I remember I used to do this a lot more…I’m sure some of it comes with experience. For me it was my frame of mind….I never felt I was actually racing when I did this run today.

I was hanging out with my friend Heather, got to chit chat with a few other people along the way, took some pics (see below) and we just took our time knowing we had plenty of it before the cutoff.

The great thing about treating a race like a training run is that there is no pressure. I also love races as training runs because there are other people out on the course (instead of running alone), they are supported so I know I will have aid stations with water and food (best aid stations ever!) and I get a shirt and pint glass! (50 Miles of Gratitude: (9) Training & Aravaipa Running) I didn’t have to pay for this race because I volunteer with Aravaipa quite a bit so I get race credits…so for me, it was a win-win for sure today.

I didn’t go back to see how I performed in 2011 because it was a different course and really didn’t care.

So my lesson for this race was that I was glad that I choose to do it as a training run rather than race it. This may not always be my choice but I’m really glad that I did because I had a blast …AND I felt amazing at the end which is always one of my goals: to finish strong and feeling good!

Do you race or use them as training runs? Would love to read your comments below!

Gorgeous views on this course!

Heather and I before we started. Running with friends is always a good way to go!

Cholla forest!

This was one of the steep uphill parts (I took the pic looking down after I got up it)

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

“That’s our running coach!”

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

Yep, first time ever lying in a cot getting help from the medics…..

Not my typical post race beer photo opp!

Clearly not doing too bad as I’m smiling here but never had this experience before. Of course, I need to share my learning lessons. I wish I could’ve taken the picture of my peeps all hovering over me, teasing me, “this is our running coach!.” It was a pretty comical moment…but grateful that I can have these moments so I can be a better runner and coach. There is always a lesson to learn!

This (Aravaipa’s Javelina Jangover) was my best race last year, I had a great blog/vlog about it too. I hadn’t really been training for this race but I was definitely prepared to do the mileage. What I didn’t prepare for though, was the plan to PR (personal record) my time from last year. My little sister, who is a great athlete, decided to switch from the 7K to the 25K to pace me and help me (this was her first 25K trail race!)

It was her first 25K race and at night too!

My plan for longer distances is to always take it easier for the first half so I conserve energy…then kick it up during the 2nd half which on this course tends to be downhill. I was mentally prepared to follow this plan but I always know that when I’m trying to keep a specific pace (to PR), I tend to be slave to my watch (some of my best runs happen when I’m not doing this...) and keep checking my pace. I still ChiWalked on the uphills because I conserve more energy and can do it just as fast so might as well be walking.

I did notice that I was thirstier than normal so I kept drinking. We got to the aid station at mile 8.5 and put more water in my hydration pack. Had a few pieces of potato/salt and a shot of coke and ginger ale (this usually helps with a bit of energy/caffeine boost). A lot of Team RWB peeps were there volunteering so it’s always great to see your friends and get some energy from them!

The course was now mainly downhill so I started trying to get my average pace up as I monitored my watch. I was averaging an 11:40 for a bit. One thing I know about myself is that I don’t like being uncomfortable when I run…I know I could probably push myself more (I prefer to use my ChiRunning technique to improve my performance not muscling through it). And I was very focused on my form: I continued to use the mantra Align & Relax, use by arms for the uphills as well as to counterbalance my forward lean and did as much active and passive pelvic rotation as possible to keep my legs from working harder. This was working great until…..

I started realizing I just couldn’t drink enough water to quench my thirst. My poor sister kept saying “come on, we only have a 5K left” “you can push harder” and all of the sudden my legs weren’t feeling it anymore and my stomach starting bugging me. I felt like I needed to throw up but couldn’t do it. When I realized there was no way I was beating my time, I decided I needed to stop running. At this point I just wanted it to be over. I was grateful to have my sister there with me and we walked the last mile.

Those of you that know me, know that one of the things I enjoy most after a run/race is a nice cold beer. You know I wasn’t not myself when the thought of a beer made me want to throw up!

We got to the medics who were amazing. Checked my pulse and my blood pressure (all good there!)…they lay me down on a cot and elevated my legs so the blood could flow back to my stomach. Thanks to all my friends that came by to check in on me…at least I wasn’t one of the runners getting an IV and being taken away with an ambulance.

So, what happened? I had to think about my last few days and here is my assessment:

In retrospect, I didn’t hydrate the way I normally do a few days before a race. I was at a Toastmaster contest from 8am-1pm yesterday and only drank half a bottle of water but drank double the amount of coffee that I normally do. The night before, I was hanging with some friends, had a few beers (not a big deal but probably didn’t help with the hydration issue) and ate a lot of salty foods.
I tried pushing too much at the beginning. My fastest mile was the 2nd one and I remember not being able to get my heart rate down until we stopped at the aid station for awhile. (I also had a double espresso a few hours before the race which probably didn’t help either). It was also hotter than I was expecting.
Basically I pushed my body more than I should’ve and wasn’t prepared for it physically.

I have no regrets….running is always a way to learn more about your body and yourself and last night was just another learning lesson for next time! I finished with a 3:32 (last year was a 3:16).

1st half of the race..didn't realize until I looked at this as I'm writing that my 2nd mile was my fastest

1st half of the race..didn’t realize until I looked at this that my 2nd mile was my fastest

2nd half or the race..clearly faster than the first..except the last mile!

Any big learning lessons you’ve had from a run recently?

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

50 Miles of Gratitude: (11) My Celebratory Tattoo

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Lisa Pozzoni by Lisa Pozzoni

….and My Story Runs On….

After several years (at least 4) of thinking about my next tattoo, I finally did it today!

I’ve been wanting another one for a long time now but I couldn’t figure out what I wanted and where to put it. A tattoo is a big commitment and I wanted it to mean something special to me. I started itching even more after my first 50 miler. I wanted something that would commemorate my longest and hardest race to date…but nothing was doing it for me.

I have one on my tailbone of a yin yang surrounded by 2 dolphins (I love the beach, dolphins and used to teach scuba diving in a previous life!)

The yin yang is an important symbol for me. It represents balance which is something I’m always striving for. I had some ideas with a yin yang but nothing was feeling quite right yet. In my googling, I found an infinity symbol with the word RUN in the middle but that still wasn’t doing it for me…..

I figured I would trust in the process and it would come to me when the time was right…..and it did. On my last trip to Capitol Reef for my 4th 50K (my hardest race ever!), we stopped in Monument Valley. There is something about that location that drew me in. We didn’t stay for long but I am looking forward to going back to explore it more. Something about the sacredness of this place and the Native American culture was inspiring me….the gift shop was full of magnets, kachina dolls, and items with Native American Symbols. I started googling “Native American symbols” and found the symbol for happiness. I also found out this is the symbol for the sun. (Today I found out it’s on the New Mexico Flag!). I LOVE the sun and I LOVE being HAPPY, helping people be HAPPY, HAPPINESS in general (and I know I get on some people’s nerves because of my love for HAPPINESS and I’m OK with that 😉 ).

Then, I realized that this symbol was embedded in the logo for Ultra Adventures (the racing company that put on my 1st 50 miler and my last 50K)
I wanted to represent my run somehow and the middle of their logo there is a “boulder”-man running. Very earthy and a great reminder of the trails I love so much. So far these 2 races (and more importantly, my journey to complete them) had the biggest impact on my mind, body and soul. Not to be cheesy but I did things I never thought possible, bonded with so many different people, and learned things about myself I never knew.

So my new tattoo is Ultra Adventure’s logo:

My new tattoo. It’s right below my wrist on my right arm. I love it!

On a funny side note, when Jayare with Idle Hands Tattoo (the awesome tattoo artist that was recommended by my sister… who was with me when I did it) asked about the orange G and the yellow C in the logo. Ironically I had noticed those lines but didn’t realize they were initials. I thought Grand Canyon? (this is one of their race locations)…but no…duh, my sister googled it and it stands for Grand Circle Trail series (I’ve completed 2 of the 7 runs in the series and now my bucket list includes completing at least the 50K of the other 5. These races are set in the most beautiful locations in the southwest area of our country and are breathtaking). The yellow and orange colors remind me of happiness and the sun so it was perfect either way. The funny part was before we realized what it stood for, Jayere said Get Crackin’….so on the next tough moment I have in a race, and I’m crying for my mommy, I can look at my tattoo and tell myself: “Get Crackin’ Pozzoni”!

I would love to see any of your tattoos (running related or not!). Not sure if you can post them in the comments. If not, post them here on my facebook page! (click this link) I’d love to see them and tell me your story behind it!

Click here: 50 Miles of Gratitude: 50 Posts about my first 50 Miler

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

Race Report: Capitol Reef 50K with Ultra Adventures

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….and My Story Runs On….

On Saturday, I completed my hardest race to date…The choice words for the day were FUCKING BRUTAL (there are a few more swear words in this blog)…..it was also the most humbling race experience I had and one of the most gorgeous courses I’ve been on. It was Ultra Adventures’ Capitol Reef 50K. Now I get why they are called “Adventures”. You may remember that I did my first 50 miler with them at Antelope Canyon. This was the highest elevation I’ve ever ran in with the steepest uphills and downhills I’ve ever done in my life. Based on my standards, mostly an unrunnable course as you’ll read and see my pics below. Before I break this down, I found this photo online yesterday as I was googling “mental toughness” and dang it, it pretty much summarizes my event!

I was invited by a friend to do this race awhile back and I read some blogs and some info about it so I knew it was not going to be an easy one. Click here to see the map and elevation profile. Looked like a great opportunity to visit a new place I’ve never been to (one of the main reasons I love ultra/trail running is that it brings me to places I would not visit otherwise). I was ready for the day to finally be here as you may remember my last blog post on Burning Out.

Our road trip up to Capitol Reef included a quick stop at Monument Valley which I had never seen before. It was absolutely stunning and I am sure I’ll be doing that race at some point as well.

We went and grabbed our packets on Friday and had the honor of meeting Arnulfo Quimare, the famous Tarahumara Indian from the Born To Run book. I already had Caballo Blanco’s autograph in my book so I added his as well.

On race day, we arrived at the finish line where we would be bused up to the start line for this point to point race. This is the 2nd time that my friend/trail wife, Elaine and I ended up wearing the same shirt…which fit well with this race #RunSteepGetHigh. Matt Gunn, the race director, gave a briefing at the beginning and I tried not to worry about some of the words he was using like “bushwacking” and “boulder mountain”.

Run Steep Get High 😉

Obligatory selfie with Elaine and Lori (this was her idea in the first place)

Matt Gunn, race director giving the briefing.

The three of us agreed ahead of time that it was each woman for herself and if we ended up together that would be fine but we were “running” our own race. My goal was to finish and not got lost (this is their 2nd annual and blog reports from last year mentioned people getting lost. Matt does a great job in taking feedback from his post race surveys as the course was marked very well in my opinion. Actually looking for those pink flags helped keep me focus and made it “funner” by seeming like a bit of a scavenger hunt.) The 50K course had an 11 hour cutoff (my average has been a little over 8 hours) and Ultrasignup forecasted that I would end at 11:45 (not sure what their algorithms are based on) and I was determined to prove them wrong.

I knew the first 8 miles were going to be an uphill climb so my plan was to hike this entire part to save energy so I could “run” later. These pictures don’t do it justice. I will say that I could feel the elevation change but it didn’t effect as much as I thought (giving some credit to some exercises I’ve been working on from The Oxygen Advantage book).

The scenery was breathtaking and such a different experience from running in the desert which is my usual trail running play ground. The first half of the course was a combination of beautiful meadows (mainly single track but fairly runnable although you couldn’t see the terrain under the grass sometimes so you had to be careful for rocks); rocky trails; and boulders:

Cow bones?? Dead trail runners??

more nonrunnable terrain…for me anyways!

Caught Arnulfo with some amazing running form in his sandals!

Seriously??

Channeling my Spiderman skills again..

Boulder Mountain…this seemed like at least a mile of this type of terrain.

Lori and I “ran” together up to about Mile 14. We were bumming a bit as we had done some good training and really just wanted to run. We would find a good runnable trail but then 50 feet later it became unrunnable again (although clearly runnable for the many other experienced runners that are used to this type of terrain). She got ahead of me and at this point I was comfortable being alone as I knew the course was marked well and I was not worried about getting lost.

More beautiful water scenery on this course with lakes and creeks…I used to be “afraid” of crossing creeks and we had several of those. When it worked out, I would use rocks or logs to cross but I got over that fear after some of our Black Canyon trail runs so when it didn’t work out, I would just walk right through them. The cold water felt good on my feet and I knew I wouldn’t get blisters as I’ve done this several times in my shoes before.

I finally got to the Donkey Reservoir Mile 19 Aid Station. A lady said that my friend Lori was about 2 minutes ahead of me but I was ready to take a little break here. There was a 4pm time cutoff at this aid station and I got there around 2:30pm so all was good at this point. I had been following my nutrition plan and was feeling great (outside of being bummed that I wasn’t running as much as I wanted to). The volunteers were great. I ate some quesadillas and had a little Coke (I only drink Coke on trail aid stations and it always hits the spot!). Got my water pack filled up and off I went. The next aid station was going to be 10 miles away so I was prepared for that…or so I thought…

I noticed the battery in my Tom Tom was close to dying. I wasn’t too worried about it at this point as I was comfortable finding the course markers. It died at about mile 21 and I was fine for a bit. This is when my mind started playing tricks on me. It was really hard to gauge how long it would take me to get to the next aid station. I wasn’t doing my normal pace for sure and it’s so hard to do math at this point on the trail. I started doing one of my favorite ChiRunning meditations on the 5 senses to keep me present and distracted. I focused on all my senses:
Eyes: I had to keep my eyes on the trail a lot since it was pretty technical but I loved to see the pretty flowers, the views, the pink markers that were guiding my way…
Ears: I could hear the birds chirping, the wind in the trees, the water flowing through creeks..my heart rate going up on the uphills (at points it sounded like it would jump out of my chest!)..at one point I played music on my Iphone via the speaker so I could still be part of nature..I kept it low but needed some more distraction to get through it…I could hear footsteps behind me once in awhile as runners were passing me (this messed with my head a bit too as 50 mile people who started an hour before me and had completed more mileage were actually running this course…I knew they had more experience running in this terrain but still!!…)…I could hear my breath as I was focusing on my cadence and breathing together..
Smell: I could smell cow patties but never saw any cows which was weird (I heard some too) and my favorite was going through a few patches of pink flowers (which could be easily mistaken as the pink course markers) and the smell of them was overwhelming yet soothing.
Touch: sometimes the wind would pick up and I could feel it on my skin…the sun on my skin…being brushed by the bushes on the side (wait for the bushwhacking part in a few)
Not much to do with Taste outside of the ginger candy I picked up at the last aid station.
Even though this worked for periods of time, the non runnable parts seemed to never end…and the steep uphills and downhills continued…THEN we got into the bushwhacking part Matt had mentioned in the briefing…

Can you see the pink marker in the top left hand side of the photo? You can barely see the trail but we were literally going through shrubs..so hard to see the ground and run this part too..

Do you see the pink marker in the top left hand side of the photo again? Yes, I crawled over logs and this was not the only place..

I kept wandering when the heck I would get to the aid station at Mile 29. There were several times that I could feel a lump in my throat and I just wanted to cry. Mentally I can usually get through races by working on the meditation above or just enjoying nature and knowing that I am doing what I love to do most: run around in nature….but by this point, I was so freaking ready for it to be over…a few times I just wanted to sit down and have a helicopter come and get me..I’m not a religious person but I prayed to God, Jesus, and Mother Mary several times..and then there was Rikki (bottom line, my friend Lori M bought these for our adventure..there is more to that story but I’ll save that for another blog post)
rikki

A few times (and yes, I realized I was talking out loud) I said “I just want my Mommy”..or I would think about my boyfriend and how bad I just wanted to be in his arms…I’ve never felt like I wanted something to be over so bad before…Every time I turned a corner, I kept hoping for that dang aid station…I had to be close….
Finally I reached it….it was 6pm and I had been on my feet for 10 hours. The volunteer said that there was only 3.8 more miles to go…yeah! but were they runnable miles? He said yes but again, I couldn’t rely on his idea of runnable as clearly my definition is a bit different. I had Coke and M+Ms and took off. If it were truly runnable, no matter how tired I was, I could do this! I know I can run 4 miles in an hour! And thankfully it was mostly runnable! Heck, all of the sudden there was sand and I was so happy to run in it!
These were some of the views from the last part of the race:

Since my Tom Tom died, I was using my phone for time…I kept pulling it out to check and see how I was doing..I am sure if I had the info, my last 4 miles were the fastest in this race…I still had to walk a few times and at this point, my goal was to finish within the 11 hour cutoff…that’s all I kept thinking about…I finally saw the road that we would be crossing before the finish line..my phone time was 7pm so I’m thinking it’s too late…I wasn’t going to have the same epic finish as my 50 miler…but I kept running as fast as my legs could take me as I was SOOOOOO ready for this to be done! I couldn’t wait to see my friends at the end…I finally see the finish line and the clock…the clock is at 10:59:55 and I’m running as fast as I could…the seconds were counting down…I crossed the finish line at 11:00:01 (unofficial time)…and then there I was standing there, finally done with this darn race and no one was there to greet me! Where the heck were my friends? Lori M came up right after and was so bummed she missed my finish..apparently Lori C had told them I was about an hour behind her so they figured they had time (it was a long day for all of us so I think we were all confused by this point!)…..it didn’t matter…I WAS FINALLY DONE WITH IT!

I realize this is a long blog post but here are my Thorns, Roses and Learning Lessons (in addition to what was already mentioned)
Thorns:

I would train more on technical trails (not that I plan on doing this one over again), read more blog posts about the race and be better prepared in general
I didn’t get much sleep before the race..I had a total of 14 hours the 3 nights before the race and I know that effected me.

Roses:

ChiRunning: I worked on my form as much as I could and I know that helped me mentally and physically! Used lots of the hill technique, arm swing and lots of work with my breathing/cadence especially when I could get into a running groove. Lots of form work with my walking as well.
Nutrition: I followed the same plan I did for my 50 miler and never bonked. Felt good all the way!
Scenery: even though it was tough terrain, it was amazing scenery!

Learning lessons:

Running is always a metaphor for life. I learned that when I put my mind to something, no matter how hard I can do it. This race.pushed my mental limits like no other race has before. This will certainly prepare me for any hard life experiences!
Being alone was hard but knowing what to do helped me. Make sure you have a plan on what to do if you get close to a break down. I’d love to hear what other ultra runners (or anyone doing long events) does when they know they are so close to that point.
I overcame a lot of fears and mental breakdowns…during this race I became my own inspiration! I don’t mean to brag but every time I made it through another mental mind fuck, I was cheering myself on. When it’s just you out there, you need to dig deep (like the photo above) so you can call yourself a bad ass! I am so proud of myself for getting through that….even though my official time was an 11:03:03 and I was 2nd to last..I FUCKING FINISHED!!

Would I ever do this one again? HELL NO! As a matter of fact, if someone told me I had to redo the Antelope Canyon 50 miler in sand or Capitol Reef 50K, hands down I would be doing Antelope! But this race had a huge impact on my character..sounds cheesy but I’ve been feeling like my soul was shaken up a bit …I know that during those 11 hours, my mind/body/spirit grew a little bit more…isn’t that why we do these things? To reach out of our comfort zone and stretch ourselves? To see how far we can push our body, mind and spirit and conquer things we never thought possible?

I absolutely love the Grand Circle Trail series. Matt and his crew do an amazing job. My goal is to do all of them at some point since they are all strategically placed in amazing locations…who knows which one will be next?

I tweaked this quote: “A mind, body and spirit that are stretched by new experiences, can never go back to their old dimensions.”

Finishers! 3 of us did the 50K and the other 2 did the half marathon (which was brutal too!)

seriously gorgeous views!

Yes! Not only did I inspire myself but love to hear that I can inspire other people to do epic shit too!

From My Running Story to Yours….
(if you feel inspired to share your comments, do so below…I want to hear your story too!)

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Click here: 50 Miles of Gratitude: 50 Posts about my first 50 Miler

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Click here: 50 Miles of Gratitude: 50 Posts about my first 50 Miler

Race Report: Capitol Reef 50K with Ultra Adventures

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