Run it Back Challenge

Signed up for the Run It Back Challenge!  Not sure what I was thinking, this is going to be a lot of work!!!  I needed something to motivate me to get back in to shape. Hope this is it!

 

Description: The World Champion Kansas City Chiefs have begun their defense of their NFL Championship and runners and walkers in Chiefs Nation can take on the challenge of the 2020 season through the Run It Back Challenge!  The challenge works like this - Challenge participants will try to run or walk a kilometer for every point the Chiefs score in each game during the week following the game.  For example, the Chiefs scored 34 points against the Houston Texans in Week 1 on September 10, so Challenge participants will need to run or walk a total of 34 kilometers (approximately 20 miles) between the end of that game and the kickoff of the next game.  Those Challenge participants who are able to do this each week of the regular season will receive a cool finishers medal at the end of the season.  Now we realize we have gotten off to a late start so we want to offer you a make up week during the Chiefs bye week from 11/15 to 11/22 that you can use to get in the week one kilometers or, if you were able to get your week one kilometers in during the week leading up to the second game, you can use the bye week to make up for another week prior to the bye week that you were not able to reach your goal.  You will be able to enter your total number of kilometers into the registration system each week to show how you are doing.  The kilometers from the last game will need to be completed by noon on January 10, 2021. THIS IS NOT A RACE TO SEE WHO CAN REACH THEIR WEEKLY GOAL FIRST, OR WHO CAN GET THE MOST KILOMETERS IN EACH WEEK, it is just a fun challenge where everyone who participates is accomplishing the goal of staying active!  Think how much fun you will be able to have at the championship game party at the end of the season if you have been staying active all season!  Participants will also receive a great Challenge shirt that they will be able to pick up in early October to show off their commitment to Run it Back!

 

Week 1 - 34 points. Need to run or walk 21.1 miles. Can use bye week to complete this since I registered after week 1.

Week 2 - 23 points. Need to run or walk 14.26 miles this week.  

Week 3 - 34 points. Need to run or walk 21.1 miles. 

Week 4 - 26 points. Need to run or walk 16.1 miles.

Week 5 - 32 points. Need to run or walk 19.84 miles. 

Running the Marine Corps Marathon to Raise Awareness for Suicide Prevention in First Responders

Hi all! I am running the Marine Corps Marathon in October to raise awareness for suicide prevention for first responders.

Why do I want to raise awareness for suicide prevention? Because one suicide is one too many!

Why do I want to focus on raising awareness for suicide prevention for first responders? Because they are the helpers. Who are they supposed to call when they need help?

The stigma for suicide is very real. People are afraid to ask for help because they don't know how others will view them when they say they need help. Having been there I know this issue all too well. People don't want to talk about suicide because of the stigma associated with it. It's time to start a conversation worth having.

What makes suicide so difficult to prevent is that it is not a condition or disorder, but rather an outcome that may result from the presence (or accumulation) of many risk factors. What makes suicide in first responders even more difficult to prevent is that they are the helpers. Those who work in Fire/EMS/Law Enforcement face the risk of my behavioral concerns such as anxiety, depression, burnout, ptsd to name a few. But the problem is that they don't talk about behavioral health when it comes to each other. The often mentioned mantra in first responders is "We help others but never ourselves." 

Why is it so difficult for someone in Fire/EMS/Law Enforcement to ask for help? Risk of losing their peer’s respect, fear of being viewed as weak and unable to perform their jobs, fear of confidentiality, fear of losing their career? It’s no wonder so many of the helpers suffer in silence. Why do I want to raise awareness for suicide prevention for first responders? For Nico and TJ and all other first responders who ended their life too soon because they couldn’t ask for help.

Nicholas “Nico” Cruz passed away on July 27, 2014. He was a firefighter with more than 20 years on the job. He received numerous accolades for saving lives. When he wasn’t at work he gave his time to many charitable organizations including MDA, BACA and Brotherhood for Children. Nico was a firefighter, a husband, a father and so much more. What might have been the greatest hurdle for Nico was the loss of his wife to suicide nearly a year prior to his suicide. After her death Nico made it a mission to educate others about suicide prevention. Those of us who knew Nico knew the anniversary of Carli’s death was difficult and may have been too much for him to endure. Someone who ends their life by suicide doesn’t necessarily want to die; they just want their pain to end. Nico was struggling with the loss of Carli and didn’t know how to make the pain end.

Timothy J. “TJ” Shavers passed away December 8, 2012. TJ was a detective who spent a good portion of his career in cyber-crimes investigating online sexual predators, identity theft, email scams, internet theft, etc. He was trained specifically to focus on investigate crimes against children and spent nearly the last 7 years of his career catching these predators. TJ was a law enforcement officer, a husband and a father. He, like many law enforcement officers, struggled with the pressures of undercover work vs personal life balance. 

Was it the constant exposure to horror at work or something going on at home that proved too much for Nico or TJ to handle? We may never know. All we do know is they wanted the pain to end. For whatever reason, neither reached out for help. I can’t say I know what it’s like to walk in the shoes of first responders but I have many friends who do and if I can help even one of them get help when they need it, it is worth the effort. Asking for help is hard. I should know; it was the bravest thing I ever did!

I am running the Marine Corps Marathon to support the groundbreaking collaboration of The Sweeney Alliance and Rethink The Conversation to develop national programs to educate first responders about suicide prevention and coping with the aftermath of a suicide.

Will you support my cause? Here's a link to my campaign:  http://www.gofundme.com/suicidehelp
Thank you for taking the time to read this blog entry! This cause has my heart, I hope it has yours too!

If you or someone you know is struggling please ask for help. Where there is help, there is hope!

Ward Parkway Thanksgiving Day 5k

On Thursday November 27, 2014 I ran the Ward Parkway Thanksgiving Day 5k Run. There are actually several Turkey Day runs to choose from in the KC area. I chose this one because I have run it many times before although it's been a few years... But also I chose it because the course is along Ward Parkway. I always loved running along Ward Parkway when I ran cross country and track in high school. I will never run close to my PR 5k time that I ran in high school (20:45) but I still enjoy running and especially when it's along a route that brings up some good memories.

I was pretty slow in this run. My official time was 35 minutes which works out to be about a 11:17 minute mile (62/131 in Age Group and 1448/2688 Overall).  That seems to be my normal pace these days. If I try to pick up the pace I can get in to the high 9s or low 10s but most the time I am in the 11 minute range. I suppose I could improve if I tried to... hill training, interval training, etc... but to be honest I run mostly for my mental health these days. Running is a great anti-depressant! I had fun despite my slow time. And it was great to run in to a fellow runner, Red Cross volunteer and friend - Sherri. She ran a PR in this race! So happy for her! Oh and another reason why I chose this run over the others in the area... Pie! We got a pie for finishing instead of a medal. I thought that was pretty cool! 

All finishers got a 6 inch Tippins pie.

Here are some pics from the run:

Can't have a turkey trot without a turkey!

This was the participant shirt. It's a  long sleeve tech shirt.

The Starting line.......

It was cold and I actually overdressed... I need to invest in some more appropriate cold weather gear!

Friend Sherri crossing the finish line after running a PR!

Me, Sherri, one of her kiddos and her husband after the race getting our pie!

Cliff Hanger 8k

I completed the Cliff Hanger 8k yesterday. I decided to run in it about a week ago. I am pretty certain the only way I am going to be able to convince myself to run through the winter and not get lazy like I do every winter is to run in some of the local races. I have actually wanted to do this one for quite some time. It's been around for 29 years and I remember hearing about it as a local high school runner years ago but I never got around to entering it until this year. The weather forecast almost scared me out of doing it (cold front was moving in) but it turned out to not be a bad day to run. Temps were in the 40s and it was partly cloudy. It was really windy but once the race got going it wasn't too bad. It felt as if we were protected from the wind somewhat because Cliff Drive is along a Cliff (hence the name). There were a few sections where a gust got through but over all not a bad day.

I didn't tell anyone I was doing this run so it was a surprise when I ran in to friend Anna and her friend Sara at the start. We chatted for a bit until the race started and then caught up with each other at the finish to go partake in the pancake breakfast.

Sara, me and Anna before the race start.

After race pancake breakfast.

My goal for the race was to run around 55 minutes if possible and at the very least finish under an hour. Other than a tight hamstring I felt pretty good. I saw the first mile split was 10:40ish and so I tried to maintain that pace since it felt good. To my surprise I managed to keep the pace to the turnaround. I was feeling good and decided to just go with it. As I got close to the finish line I could see the clock and realized I was going to be in under 55 minutes. I was happy with that considering I haven't run much since the Chicago Marathon. I know I am slow but I think if I can run through the winter and not lose my mileage base, I can get my times down in the 10 minute range. That's my goal anyway.... we'll see if I can stay motivated through the winter.

Below are my results and some pics from the race:

My results:
53:37 = 10:43 pace
Overall 241/341; Female 133/216; AG 16/28