Inspire.

Glen Rock GOTR Fall 2013 Team

Never thought I'd someday be coaching someone else to run - seems like an oxymoron but it's true.  Well, not exactly true - I'm not coaching at the Olympic Training Center but I am "Head Coach" for my chapter of Girls on the Run.  Now technically Girls on the Run is NOT a running program but I am a coach, none the less.

Girls on the Run is Designed to allow every girl to recognize her inner strength, the Girls on the Run curriculum inspires girls to define their lives on their own terms.  Running is secondary to the lessons helping them to have positive emotional, social, mental and physical development.  Participants explore and discuss their own beliefs around experiences and challenges girls face at this age.  They also develop important strategies and skills to help them navigate life experiences.  

There are no words for the amount of joy coaching brings me =)

This was the first season for GOTR in Glen Rock and it exceeded my expectation beyond belief.  The best part is that no girl is ever turned away if they cannot afford the $165 registration fee to be apart of the program. This is why SoleMates was started .  SoleMates is a program to raise scholarship money for every girl to be able to participate and become a Girl on the Run.  No girl is ever turned away if they cannot afford it because of SoleMates.

My goal is to inspire as many girls as possible to believe in themselves. I know from first-hand knowledge that Girls on the Run is an amazing program to get girls to do just that - believe in themselves.  Running the NYC Half Marathon as a SoleMate and your donations will help us to inspire many NYC girls that so desperately need it!  Here are some stats:

$35 can sponsor a pair of running shoes for one girl.

$50 can fun a pair of running shoes and program snack for one girl.

$140 can fund running shoes for four girls.

$250 can support a full season scholarship for one girl.

$1,000 can support full season scholarships for four girls.

DONATE HERE

BEST RUNNING SIGN EVER!

dare i say it...

dare i say it...(i think i like running) but don't tell anyone.  Today might have been the straw that broke the camels back - I've been growing to like it a little more with each passing week but today, today was the day I felt like I really like it.  Perhaps even loved it.  Maybe it was the track - there is something about the sound of the track.  Maybe bc my foot hitting the track is louder than my panting or the pounding of my heart.  For some reason today just felt good.  Perhaps the real reason is bc I'm getting better - I never thought I'd get faster and now I am...everyday it seems I get a little bit faster and I like it.  I can admit it - I'm shallow like that.  Getting better at something makes me feel better.  Everyday I say to my Girls on the Run, "it's not about how fast you go or about winning it's just about moving forward - just like in life, just keep moving forward".  However, after 4 years of being in this triathlon game - just moving forward is not enough for me (don't tell my girls).  I've been so frustrated that I wasn't getting faster and then finally something clicked and I AM getting faster.  Hot damn - it's true: you get out of it what you put into it...who knew?

I started out in triathlon already loving cycling, now the running has come...oh swimming, my swimming - when will you come around??

Speed (blog loaded with boring stats).

When I first joined Team  Lipstick in 2010, I never, ever, ever thought the day would come that I would not only enjoy running (enjoy might be a little strong but go with it) but that I would also see results in my own performance.  I assure you, you've never met a slower, run-hating, complaining miserable member of a triathlon team in all of your life.  But finally something clicked last year and continues to click this year - the only way to get better is to work harder.  This year I've been working hard on endurance and speed - both are getting better and I look forward to continue to crush my PRs with each race.  

This morning at practice we did 1 mile repeats - we do these once a month.  Each month I am completely nervous that there is just no way I can improve.  Yet each month I shock myself and get faster - I keep wondering at what point is that the pinnacle of speed for me?  Thankfully I haven't gotten there yet.  I'm now on a mission to continue to crush my times and going further.

Here are some run results from the past 4 years of my races:

Diamond Girl Triathlon (4 mile run) - August 2010

 Dottie's House Triathlon (5K run) - October 2010

Bassman Triathlon (5k run) - May 2011

Opt-In 5K April 2012

Cupid's Chase 5K March 2013

Arboretum 5K - September 2013

Here are the results from the 1 Mile repeats - one from last month, the other from this morning.  It's amazing what you can do when you set your mind to it.  Now if I could set my mind to folding the mass amounts of laundry piled up in this house, I'd be perfect!

Goal Crushing!

"Goals that are not written down are just wishes"

I've had these 2 goals for a few months and finally hit them this week after a lot of hard work.  One was weight/nutrition based and one was speed/performance based.

It's been 6 weeks since I read "Fitness Confidential" and completely changed the way I eat and think about food/nutrition/fueling.  Today marks 6 weeks of NO COKE which I never thought was possible (do you know how hard it is to eat a hamburger without a coke??).  I still crave it but it's getting progressively easier with each passing week.  I've eaten more than I ever have, all great food not crap (for the first time in my life!) and feel great but the day finally came when the scale hit a number I didn't think was possible.  I didn't change my eating to lose weight - I changed it to fuel better and recover better for triathlon and to get off of the sugar roller coaster I've been on my entire life.  Weight loss was just a nice little perk!  Hitting my goal weight was #1 crushed goal of the week.

Then there's the speed/performance goal.  I never feel like I'm getting any faster in triathlon, no matter how hard I work. I finally put that thought aside and have been pushing myself (more like being pushed by my coach and team!).  Today was the day to put my money where my mouth is.  For most runners a 5k is a piece of cake and breaking thirty minutes is mindless but for me it's been a struggle. It might even seem silly to most that this is even a goal for someone.  I did it once last year and have not been able to accomplish it again.  It's the goal that keeps eluding me and I know the reason is all in my head.  Clearly my body is capable but it never seems to happen.  The past few 5K's that I've run have all been so close 30:55 or 31:02 but never UNDER that 30:00 mark.  At the last race when I watched the clock tick over to read "30:00" I screamed a very bad profanity very loud in front of many children.  I felt bad when I got home but I was so damn frustrated at the time so if it was you and/or your children - I apologize.  My truck driver mouth gets me in trouble often.  Today was the day I've been working for all year - mile repeats, hill repeats, getting up at 4am, driving to NYC to train - today was the day to make that all worth it.  And it worked!  I somehow convinced my friend, Jess, to join me for the run.  For the first 1.5 miles she paced me, unbeknownst to her - which kept me moving at my goal pace. The first mile came and my time was 9:07 - right on track for a PR, just couldn't let up.  I was laser focused, didn't really say hi to anyone, hardly spoke, eyes straight ahead - this had to be my day and it was!  Finish time was 28:20 with a pace of 9:07 - I am over the moon and ready to get it under 27 minutes next time.  When I remember where I started and where I am now I'm shocked, amazed, proud, humbled and just so damn happy!  IT CAN BE DONE!

 Deihdra Miller 39 F  28:20.36  9:07  F30-39:14/32     53.65 

Don't Stop. Won't Stop. 

Happy Race @ West Point

I LOVE race morning sunrise!

This might be the first time I finished a race and was really content - I had a great time racing and didn't beat myself up at the end for doing poorly. Perhaps I've grown....let's not get ahead of ourselves here.  West Point is a sprint triathlon.  But hell hath no fury like a race run by the Army that people call "just a sprint".  This race is not easy - there isn't one flat surface in the entire race, except the swim but even that  had a curve to it!  The swim was beautiful - I had the lovely but very fast Lesley in my wave so we got to hang in the corral while waiting for the start of our wave.  The water was calm and beautiful but the bike was hills, hills and more hills - at least some of them went down.  The downhills were awesome and a great way to pick up some time that I lost on the damn uphills.  Then saw the beloved Coach Beth at the bottom of the steepest hill, just in time to climb, climb, climb to transition.  Once out on the run you go straight up hill but I just chugged along.  Half way through this guy ran with me - no idea why, I think he was bored.  We chatted the entire time (no one tell Matt that I was able to talk during the run - I really was doing my best!).  At least with someone to chat with and keep me laughing it kept me from walking and I was able to move along, not fast but still moving.  The highlight of being in the second wave is that only Lesley finished before me and we got to watch the rest of the team finish.  Even though everyone races with a timing chip and they all beat my time it's still nice to not be the last athlete out on the course!  And even more fun to watch everyone else finish.

Custom Team Lipstick rainbow loom bracelets!

Being on a team makes a huge differene while racing - you see all of your friends that you normally see at the butt ass crack of dawn 2-3 times a week.  These are the peeps you see at your worst and yet they keep coming back. I'm not sure I know what these women look like outside of bike shorts and a hat - I might pass them on the street if I saw them in "real" clothes but on the course they are the best thing to see!  Thank you all for racing with me and making my race so much fun - I can't imagine racing without you!

Note the sign in the back "WITH HONOR WE LEAD"

Team Bonding in the City of Brotherly Love

Contrary to my review of the race on Travelete, I had a great time at this race!  The difference between this and that review is this one is about me and that one is about the race.  Any race, all races are always amazing when you are with a group of people that you love being with on a daily basis at the butt ass crack of dawn!  TriRocks Philadelphia was this past weekend and the first Team Lipstick race of the season - there is simply nothing better than racing with a team or training with a team.  If you aren't on a team, I advise you find one and get on it.  My goal for this race was to "Do Well" - I usually want to have fun and finish but I really wanted to push it and see how fast I could finish.  My goal was a 2:00 finish.

Race morning I showed up to a sea of orange - the team had a few first timers which is awesome.  I'm almost jealous of them as you never have your first race again and it's so fun, you'll always remember it - the nerves, the excitement - it was great to be apart of and enjoy their experience with them (see my first race here).  The swim was spectacular, calm, warm - at the end I was a little too warm which has never happened to me.  It is amazing how every time in the swim I think to myself, "I need to get in the pool more, I need to do more swim training - I swear I'll do more before the next race".  Does that happened to everyone or does everyone else actually train?

The bike was a little harder than I expected but still nice - it was a little boring but was way more exciting by looking for other teammates.  I found Roni but of course she was on her 2nd lap and then she sped right past me - seeing her speed is simply inspiring.  I love that she's older than I am as that gives me great hope that I can work hard to become her!  Kevin gave me a bike goal to maintain 17 MPH for the race - my watch read 16.9 average at the end, so damn close!

I've been working on my run for awhile - trying harder and harder to get faster, it's certainly not easy but when I started with a 12:00/mile pace there is really no choice but to get faster.  I can't possibly get slower.  I was hoping for a 30:00 5k but off the bike I knew that wouldn't be easy.  Since the run was out and back I was able to see every single teammate either going or coming with each hand slap it gives you a little extra pep in your step.  A little ice would have also given me a little more pep as hot water on a hot day doesn't make me all that happy.

The night before we decided Kevin would stay at his brother's house with the kids - the parking and walking to the race is such a hassle with the kids, they complain the whole time, it was hot, yadda, yadda, yadda.  I figured since the entire team was there this would be the race for the kids to stay home.  As I ran through the finish shoot (which was awesome!) I heard Charlotte screaming for me and I turned to see my whole family!  They are so damn cute (5 minutes after I finished they were whining to leave, they were hungry and then complained the entire walk back to the car...but as I finished it was cute for a whole 2 minutes!) and I have a picture to prove it:

As for my goals: finish under 2:00, actual finish time 1:55!  Goal run time was 30:00, actual was 31:38 - you win some, you lose some!  I was really happy with my overall time and can finally see that work in training it starting to show - finally.  

Can't wait for New Jersey State Triathlon in 4 weeks - time to get in the pool and do those training swims I promised myself!

Faster? Easier? Funner? Ever?

Do other people ask these questions about triathlon:

• will I ever get faster:
• will it ever get easier;
• will it ever be fun so I don't mentally quit the sport every step of the way?

I feel like I train pretty hard but I guess I really don't and I just think I do.  I'm soooo sick of being so damn slow but in today's race there was no way I could have gone any faster - just wasn't possible.  I left everything out there. So back to the question, "will I ever get faster?".  Saturday was the day of one of my favorite races Rev3 Quassy - it was an Olympic distance (.9mile swim, 25 mile bike, 10k run) and this distance is not my favorite - it's sadly too far for me.  I figured by this time in my triathlon "career" I'd love an Olympic distance - I thought this was going to be "my distance" but no such luck.  I'm going back to Sprints and once I master that distance I'll reconsider coming back up to the big boy table.  

My attitude should, in no way, take away from this race - Rev3 only does things top notch.  No detail is overlooked from check in, to transition right down to the course signs and the course itself.  The volunteers are like no other and the logistics are awesome.  The swim was spectacular, the bike and run extremely hilly.  It's just me that needs work.

Beautiful Lake Quassapaug Race Morning

I've ridden this course 3 times before yet each time I seem to be shocked by the climbing involved.  Last year this race was held during a monsoon which made the ride extremely difficult and dangerous.  This year the weather was perfect and the scenery is beautiful in Middlebury CT.  It was just hard - if it were easy everyone would do it - right??  I suppose but I'm always so hopeful it will be a little easier at some point.  I was able to take off 10:00 from last year and add 1.31 average mph but I was expecting more, aren't I always?  I was excited to see my max speed hit 40.2 - so far that's my personal high and I'm always trying to beat that, of course without trying to kill myself.

2013

1:50:07

1:50:07

13.99 mph

2012

2:01:32

2:01:32

12.68 mph

THE END of the bike!!

This run course I've never done before - in year's past I've done a relay with my sister-in-law who this year decided closing on her new house was more important than racing with me.  I figured I was ready for this 10k as I ran a 13.1 about a month ago, I did massive hill repeats with Matt his past week - how hard could it be?  Famous last words - it was beyond hard.  The only saving grace was that EVERYONE in front of me and behind me were walking and walking quite slowly.  Finally past mile 4 it was downhill so I was able to move but it was such a steep downhill that it wasn't as easy as I'd have liked it.  Of course at mile 5 we were going back up again but then I heard the announcer - the finish line was near.  After hitting mile 6 I saw my sweet Dylan and Kevin waiting for me.  They ran to the finish line with me to cross and the damn race was over!  I finished it.  They gave me the largest, heaviest finisher medal ever, a long sleeve tshirt and an ice cold, soaking wet towel.  Ahhhh I did it!  

Dylan finishing up with me

Past the finish shoot I went right to the NormaTec booth to sit in the boots for some recovery - I really need to get a pair of those.  To top off the race, the post meal is fab - hamburgers (my favorite meal of all time), hot dogs, mac and cheese, salad bar and a Pepsi machine!  

Love!

While the tempature was quite warm, the entire course was shaded so the heat wasn't a terrible issue.  The ice water and ice at the aid stations were awesome - just the landscape and the athlete that need some work.

Very large finisher medal!

Bring on Wyckoff - thankfully we're doing a relay and I"m only running but then the following week is Philadelphia Tri where I'm doing the whole thing.  But it's a Sprint - since now I'm a Sprint Kind of Girl.

Longest...to date.

Today was the day to prove to myself to myself- either you have it in you or you don't.  With the Nike Women's Half Marathon a very close 27 days away I had to see if I could go the distance, literally.  My goal was to run 9 miles today.  It's a lofty goal for me. The furthest I've ever run at one time is 8 miles.  However, that 8 miles was over a year ago and it was very slow and if I remember correctly, extremely difficult.  So today was the day - I was dressed to go straight from dropping the kids off at school, no excuses - just go.  As always the first mile sucked, the second mile sucked a little more.  Then I seemed to get into a rhythm - today I did 6:00/running-2:00/walking for the first 9 miles.  It turns out that I mapped my route wrong and went too far - something that never, ever happens.  I always underestimate and end up running less than my intended goal.  In order to hit my "must do" goal of the day I ended up going out too far which left me at my 9 mile goal, still 2 miles from home.  

4weeks to work on speed!!!

I was feeling good from mile 3-7 and then everything started to hurt: feet, knees, hips, glutes and I was starving - the ducks on the pond were starting to look appetizing and the sport beans I packed weren't cutting it.  Finally hit mile 9 and was so happy but still was 2 miles from home so I had to walk home and did it very slow.  The last 2 miles took a full 30 minutes and they were the worst of the miles.  I was so hopeful someone would drive by and pick me up - no such luck.  When I got to my front door my watch said 10.75 miles so I took another lap around the block to make it an official 11 miles.  

Now I know a few things:

1. I can finish a half marathon;
2. I won't be picked up by the sweep bus;
3. I can earn that Tiffany necklace;
4. I need to work on speed and pick up my pace;
5. I can run my own pace, my own race and feel great about it;
6. I need a new goal since my goal up until today was to finish before sweep bus picked me up and earn the necklace!

What will this year's necklace look like?

This isn't a feeling I have often but I'm so proud of myself - me, non-athletic-lots-of-lame-excuses-me, ran 11 miles at one time.  I walked a lot of it but I was out there for over 2:30 hours pounding the pavement and didn't stop or give up once and all that with no music or no friends to talk to - just me and the millions of dead trees of Bergen County (we have Sandy to blame for the massive amount of dead trees).  I DID IT. GO ME.

27 days until THE BIG DAY!

ATTITUDE is everything

The year of 2013 is off to a great start.  We rang in the new year with our amazing 3 kids and wonderful friends.  This morning I was able to kick off the  year with the 1st Day 5K.  I was not have been able to attend this race without the help of my friends as I was able to farm out my kids to avoid trying to find a sitter (and saving me quite a few bucks in the process!).  Today was the perfect day  for excuses: it was freezing, there was no sun, I had no friends to run with (actually went all alone - so lame) and I had no sitter.  But I'm determined to get   faster, get fitter and to keep improving athletically (I love  saying "athletically" in a sentence about myself!).  

Last year I bought the shirt on the left - I saw it on some guy at a race and went on a search for it.  I thought it was the most perfect shirt for me but then many people pointed out that a bad attitude is never going to help me reach my goals.  The old saying is, "Attitude is Everything" - that was the last time I  wore that shirt.  I vowed to change my thinking and to stop hating it.  The shirt on the right in my new shirt for 2013 and forward.  Based on my times between years - I'd say changing my attitude has made a great difference in  my pace.  Still not where I want it to be but going in the right direction.  

2012 T-Shirt vs. 2013 T-Shirt


2012 Total time-34:06 DEIHDRA MILLER Pace-11:00 (Official results)

(2012 Garmin watch results)



2013 Total time-30:11 DEIHDRA MILLER Pace-09:44 (Official results)

(2013 Garmin watch results)

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 MoonJoggers Countdown: 3.1 Miles Run/996.9 To Go