Monthly Archives: April 2011

race report: happy runner half marathon challenge

i like to run.

Felice, who blogs at The Happy Runner, decided early this year that she would run her first half marathon.

And she wanted all her blogging friends to join her!

And the Happy Runner Half Marathon Challenge was born. (Well, her second son was also born  — just four months ago!)

Felice’s goal race was the 13.1 New York City Marathon on April 2 — but challenge participants would play along at home virtually. We could either run the half marathon distance, or break it up and cover 13.1 over the weekend, from April 1-3.

Since I already had a 10-mile race scheduled for April 3, I gladly joined the challenge. Surely I could add another 3.1! At first I thought I may add some mileage before or after my race, but plans changed. I was originally going to do a local race not far from my house. But then a friend who was registered for the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run became injured and unable to race. I couldn’t let her spot go to waste!

I decided I’d run my own 5K around my neighborhood on Saturday. I slept until I felt like waking up, and got ready to go! I did a slowish warm-up mile and then headed back home for a wardrobe change.  I’m trying to transition into my Newtons again. While I loved them, my foot did not. I don’t think the foot problem is gone, and I probably need new orthotics, but I still want to try to very, very slowly to ease into them again!

Anyway, I swapped out my shoes and changed shirts because it was a lot warmer out than I expected. Excellent! A few more loops through my neighborhood and I was done.  Not a particularly fast 5K, but I got it done in 31:12.

I had a very early wake-up call on Sunday so that I could meet my friends and travel into DC for the Cherry Blossom 10-miler. I decided I’d run this slow with my friends rather than try to race it.  My regular running partner’s sister was running her first race in about 10 years, and was very undertrained fro the distance. But she insisted on running the whole time (we tried to talk her into Galloway run/walk), only walking at water stops. She did great!

My finish time was 1:56:05. Not bad. It’s quite enjoyable taking your time to enjoy such a scenic course. I took some photos along the way, and was surprised that some of them came out OK! (They’re usually a blurry mess.)

Cherry Blossom 10-miler

Almost done!

I even managed to snap a self-portrait while running. I don’t do this a lot, and was surprised I didn’t cut off my head!

When we add my 5K and 10-miler together for my Happy Runner Half Marathon, my total time is 2:27:17.  Thanks to the Goofy Challenge last year, that’s not even my slowest half marathon!

Felice totally rocked her half marathon, beating her A goal by almost two minutes and finishing in a speedy 1:49:26.

Congratulations Felice and Happy Runner Challenge participants!

what’s wrong with your face?

life

OK, nobody has actually said that.

But I feel like that’s what people are thinking whenever I’m in a well-lit room.

It started with a little redness in early March, and kept getting more noticeable, at least to me (my husband said he never noticed anything until I pointed it out). Fortunately I already had a dermatologist appointment scheduled for a skin check. At that point, the rash was itchy and felt warm.

The doctor thought it looked like an allergic reaction, or possibly rosacea. She treated it as an allergy and prescribed an ointment for me to use for a week. I stopped using all but the gentlest hypoallergenic products on my face,  limited  to cleanser and moisturizer. No make-up, too!

During the week with the ointment, it still was red … but at least the itching stopped. By the time I got to my follow-up two weeks after the initial appointment, the redness had gone down, too.  The doctor gave me clearance to slowly add products back into my skincare regime.

I started with my night cream for a few days, and then added back my Olay SPF moisturizer, both of which I had been using for a while. Everything was fine … for a few days. But yesterday I started getting red again. And today it’s probably the brightest it’s been, warm and itchy again.

I’m not normally a rosy-cheeked person. I’m really pale! Unless I’m running, then I turn bright pink. But I haven’t worked out today …

Still leaning towards a reaction, I’m obviously laying off my old face creams. I’ve picked up another sensitive-skin cream meant for babies, and found hypoallergenic shampoo/conditioner (which has fragrance added?  That’s a possible irritant, too, but I couldn’t find anything better in stores.)

I have a history of skin sensitivity — I can only use natural sunscreen or Vanicream when using it for days at a time (like a week-long vacation) otherwise I break out in hives/rashes.

But until now, my face has never had a reaction.

Then again,  I read somewhere that sometimes rosacea can present like an allergic reaction. And can affect the eyes — yes, I’m still having eye trouble — so that’s a possibility to.

I’ll give it a few days to clear up, otherwise I’m headed back to the doctor.

Has anybody dealt with something like this before?