Kristy Maute

Batter Up

Baseball season is coming to an end in our household. The regular season has ended, and the playoffs have begun. Final rankings were emailed out over the weekend. Cole’s team, the Mets, is ranked 8th out of 8 teams. Tonight was game 1 of the playoffs. The #1 ranked team played the #8 ranked team.

All day I have dreaded this game. It started to rain, and I crossed my fingers that the entire game would get rained out. I did not feel like sitting at the ball field watching Cole’s team get clobbered by the As.

Shame on me.

Cole’s team showed up to the ball field tonight ready to play baseball. They played with everything they had tonight. They hit base hits, RBIs, and home runs. They caught pop flies. They held them to zero runs for several innings. They didn’t care about numbers or stats or rankings. Cole’s little team of misfits (who have been slowly gaining momentum as the season has progressed) gave the As a run for their money tonight.

Final score 13 – 12. As win.

As I watched Cole’s team come together on the field, I became more and more embarrassed about my own attitude about going to the game. Shame on me for counting them out before the game even began. I know better. These boys play baseball because they love the game. Their coach has done a great job of keeping the game fun all season long. When you show up to play, to do your best, and to have fun, sometimes everything just works. Sometimes all the ingredients work, and the team (or the runner) does make the perfect cookie.

They didn’t win tonight, but they sure did play good baseball. Every single one of them.

I’m going to miss baseball.

Elizabeth River Run 10k

Let’s just call this race report:

How the cookie crumbled!

and boy did it crumble on my run. Even the best cookies crumble sometimes. The best bakers make a bad batch. The cookies needed an extra pinch of sugar. The extra egg was forgotten. Even if your intentions are the best and your heart wants to make the best possible cookie, if you don’t have all the ingredients it just won’t happen.

Today I did not have all the ingredients to make the best possible cookie:

Since May 1st, I have run 10 miles. Today I attempted to run 6.2.

Since having Chet, my longest run was 6 miles on April 14th.

I am nursing a not always happy leg.

It was HOT! (my phone said 94% humidity when I left my house)

I was never able to find a comfortable stride. I was trying to run slower so I could run further. It wasn’t comfortable for me.

I ran in my trusty favorite shorts, and I still chafed.

I ran in my favorite socks and shoes, and my feet still blistered.

I started my period right after the race (TMI, Sorry!)

I started to feel dehydrated a half mile into the run.

I decided to break the run into 2 5ks mentally. I set a few goals for myself, and I was off and running.

Goal 1 – Finish (done!)

Goal 2 – Listen to my body (done!)

Goal 3 – Run the whole thing (not so much!)

Goal 4 – Maintain a pace in the 10s (not so much!)

After running the first 5k, I knew I shouldn’t push it. I’m trying to run smarter this year. Around the 3 mile marker, I felt my left leg getting irritated. I felt it buckle a few times. Buckling between your hip and knee never feels normal.

Let the cookie crumbling begin. I ran/walked the rest of the race. It really wasn’t my day. I will spare you all the ugly details, but lets just say it wasn’t pretty. After all the ugly, I finally found the finish line and my friends that were waiting for me. I crossed the finish line smiling and laughing. “That was awful” was all I could think. By far my worst race ever both mentally and physically. It really was comical. I just didn’t have it in me. (and of course my legs finally started to feel awake at mile 5.75).

Mile 1 – 10:29

Mile 2 – 10:48

Mile 3 – 11:17

Mile 4 – 13:12

Mile 5 – 12:47

Mile 6 – 13:57

Final Stretch – 10:10 pace

Elizabeth River Run 10k: 1:16:51 (12:22 min/miles) … in all honesty, that is better than I thought I did while I was running. I really expected to see a 13 pace.

(Yes! that is a PR – I’ve only run one other 10k last year when I was 31 weeks pregnant)

But that is really okay. I woke up with no pain in my leg today. I’m beginning to set a foundation for summer running and fall races. And I finally knew people after the race so I hung out with my friends and had a beer. Hooray for friends who run.

Bring on the dreaded summer running. Bring on the cookies. I’m okay watching the cookie crumble right now because I know I will find the perfect ingredients at some point. I’m already looking forward to fall races (and proper training)!

Course review: Beautiful course. Wonderfully organized. Perfect size race. Not enough water stops.

What’s the Verdict?

While the verdict is still out on my self-diagnosis of my leg woes, I can say that I didn’t feel any pain today. I did feel a lot of tightness but no pain. To further test my leg today, I added a new element to my running routine. It goes by the name of BOB!

my favorite spot looks even better with a baby in a bob

I finally, finally, FINALLY ran with my jogging stroller. I think it whispered a thank you to me as I pushed it around my neighborhood. Thank you for using me for something other than carting your baby to the baseball field. Thank you for putting some sweat on the handle bar. Thank you for putting (a little) speed under my wheels. Or maybe the thank you I thought I heard was really just an echo from the cries that were coming from the stroller every time I faced the sun.

The verdict on running with the jogging stroller? I LOVE IT!

Mile 1: 11:30

Mile 2: 11:13

Final .1: 10:01 pace

2.1 miles in 23:41 (pace of 11:17)

1 minute 10 seconds slower than my run yesterday BUT I had 7 pacifier stops along the way that lasted almost 2 minutes total. Not too shabby! (Got to Love the charts on endomondo!)

It was hard. I have never sweat so much on a 2 mile run. I have no doubt that it will make me faster when I run without the stroller. Once Chet settled into our route and we found a shady stretch, he really seemed to enjoy it. It was also easier to manage than I expected. I think running with Alex over the past year trained my body and my hands for running with a stroller. Running with one arm moving didn’t feel unnatural since I’ve been holding a leash in one hand for a while now.

I really really enjoyed it, and I can’t wait to find more opportunities to run with Chet. Why did I wait so long?

The added bonus to my run – I was so focused on running with the stroller and keeping Chet happy that I forgot to think about my leg. Another run completed with no leg pain!

Maybe, just maybe, I will survive my run this weekend.

(I just noticed that my average moving pace was 10:34 according to endomondo. I’ll take it!)

Test 1, 2

It has been two weeks and one day since my last run. That nagging pain in my left leg (femur) was lingering a little too long for my comfort level. Like a good student of stress fractures, I listened to my body. I took a break. (and I didn’t call the doctor. Maybe I’m not a good student.) My gut instinct is that I caught it just in time, but I really don’t want to push my luck. My leg wasn’t happy.

With no pain since this weekend, I decided to do a test run today. After work, I set out to run 2 easy miles at the oceanfront.

Last empty boardwalk run before the summer season begins

Why a test run? I am supposed to run a 10k this weekend. I do not want to be the dumb runner who runs on an almost-injury just because I have a race scheduled. If my leg isn’t going to be happy after running 6.2 miles, I will stay home. I do not want to miss out on another 12 weeks of running this summer.

560102_10150807381007038_317268647037_9992267_663667841_n — So True

Mile 1: 9:59 (good job going easy!)

Mile 2: 10:19 (I made myself slow down!)

Extra .25 (because after 15 days of no running, I selfishly wanted more): 9:58 pace

What’s the verdict?

I’m not sure.

I know I was paying a lot of attention to my leg. I may be hypersensitive about any small twinge or pain. After 15 days of no running, things are going to hurt. Right? I did have some brief sharp pains after the first mile in my left upper leg/butt (Yes! Right in the crease). My actual leg never hurt. I am just more aware of that leg than my right. It just feels different. And I have no idea how much of that is mental and how much of that is physical.

So I will wait and see. If it aches at all in the morning, I will take a pass on my run this weekend. If it feels okay, I plan on running another 2 miles tomorrow. If my crossed fingers and toes work and I have no pain after two runs, I think I will be okay running the 10k this weekend (without any time expectations or goals).

Cross your fingers and toes for me.

I am Home.

After a delayed flight, I got home last night shortly after 9:30pm. I was met at the airport by a smiling husband and a huge embrace. We picked Cole up from his Dad (who was in town to watch Cole play baseball). As soon as I walked in the door, I tiptoed up the stairs to peak at sleeping Chet. I then quickly curled up on the couch with Cole and Christian to watch the Cardinals play baseball.

I am home.

While I enjoyed my three days of sunning, reading, drinking wine (and beer), puzzling, and conversing with my good friend, I missed home. While it was nice to shed the routine of my day (what do you mean I don’t have to be home at 5:30 to start dinner? No one needs to be in bed by 8?), I missed the things that outline my life. While it was nice to read a book cover to cover, I missed the pages that belong to my own story. I missed the sounds of my house. I missed my bubble. I missed seeing Cole play baseball. I missed nursing my baby to sleep. I missed the comfortable quiet Christian and I find each night after the boys go to bed.

Detaching for three days and living in the shadows of a friend’s life allowed me to relax, to unwind, to step back, and to come back to my life renewed. I had so many thoughts this weekend (and I will hopefully find the words to share them in the next few weeks). I had so many moments that made me say “my life is good”.

I am home.

As life evolves and I let go, I continue to fall in love with the world that Christian and I are creating for ourselves and our family. All the right pieces seem to be finding their way to our life puzzle. We have quit trying to live life and instead our letting life come to us. Our family patterns are evolving to embrace all the things we value. I’m creating and further developing friendships with people who add new layers of happiness and fulfillment to my life. The more I quit worrying and over thinking and forcing life, the more life is providing me everything I need. In the book I devoured this weekend, and I shall have some peace there by Margaret Roach, Margaret says that her garden tells her what to have for dinner. I think life is telling me how to live.

The more I slow down, the more I observe and notice all the small wonderful tiny miracles in my life, the more I am trusting that this is my life to live.

I am home.