At the beginning of 2016, a friend told me about a race she did last year called Ragnar with some other Tone it Up girls. It sounded fun since it was team based running. Socializing and running all in one sounded pretty fun to me. Throw in some alcohol and it’ll be a party. Lo and behold, I had no idea what I was getting into. A little Google search told me that Ragnar was a 200ish mile relay race with a team of 12 people, split into two vans, over two days. This sounded insane because as a recreational runner, the longest I had done was 4.5 miles. This race would call for some serious training and dedication. I wasn’t going to do it at first, but the more I thought about testing my limits and achieving a goal, the more I wanted to do this crazy race. So I splurged and bought a spot on my friend’s team called the Sole Sisters.
The 200ish miles isn’t split evenly between the 12 runners. I wanted to choose the Legs (running distances) that would be challenging but not too challenging where I would set myself up for failure. I ended up picking Runner 6 in Van 1. My Legs were originally 6.9 miles, 4 miles, and 3.5 miles. Not too bad. I could definitely work up to 7 miles within 3 months. 4 miles isn’t bad at all, but running all these back to back within two days? That was the challenge.
Training in itself was difficult. Hill training and intervals were actually one of my favorite things to do. They were short and intense and felt like I got in a decent run. Log runs were definitely the worst. Trying to balance early morning classes in college with training was the hardest part. Saturdays were my long run days and it was so hard to get up early in the morning to run 7 miles when all I wanted was to sleep. Training got even harder the closer it got to race day. My last Leg had been increased to 5 miles and it was gradually getting closer to 80 degree mornings, no matter how early I woke up.
The day before the race, half the team, Van 1 decided to stay the night in a hotel in Logan, Utah, where the start line was since our start time was 4:15AM. All 6 of us live in the Salt Lake Valley and definitely did not want to wake up at 1AM in the morning to gather everyone and drive 1.5 hours. The day before the race, we found out the hotel had overbooked and we ended up having no place to stay. Luckily, we ended up staying at a friend’s of a friends house overnight and it worked out so much better since we were much closer to the start line than the hotel.
As runners on my team started, I estimated that my longest Leg of 6.9 miles would be dead set in the middle of the afternoon with the sun blazing behind me as I ran down a mountain. Yup. I totally forgot about the incline and decline of my Leg. It was a 3000 level decline. Literally from the top of the mountain to the bottom. This wasn’t something I trained for, so I knew this run would be heavy on my knees. The location of my exchange at the top of the mountain was gorgeous. The top was a beautiful field of yellow wild flowers. Of course this exchange was on the side of a road and had absolutely no Honey Buckets for miles. So the most reasonable thing everyone had to do was pop a squat. At least the view of yellow flowers was nice. The run was difficult. The road was so rocky and the the vans were kicking up so much dust it was hard to breath. The rocks were big enough that when I stepped on them, I could’ve easily twisted an ankle. I ended up having to walk the first two miles because it was so hard to run on the rocks. The bad thing about this course was, Ragnar didn’t provide water stations at all. They stated that any run over 4 miles, a water station would be available. I saw this happen to numerous of my teammates. Luckily, I had full van support on my run. After finally getting down the mountain, the moment I started running on even pavement, it was much more difficult. My legs had taken a beating going down the mountain and I still had 2-3 miles to go. At this point, it was already 1PM and getting hot. I decided to push myself and ended up doing my faster 7 miles even with walking the first 2 miles.
About 8-9 hours later, I started my second Leg, my 4 mile run. My start time was around 10PM, but I didn’t finish until 11PM. The night run was through some farm houses and the whole time it smelled like cow manure. I passed by some goats and it scared me just a little since their eyes glowed in the dark. This run was in the middle of nowhere with no street lights at all. I solely relied on my headlamp. At the start of this run, I thought it would be an easy 4 miles. This was nothing compared to the first one I did. I was so wrong because a mile unto the run, my Achilles tendons started to hurt from slamming my feet down the hill on my first run. I was the last runner in my van to finish, so we could finally go to sleep and wait for Van 2 to finish. Dinner was spaghetti at a high school cafeteria. I remember in high school, how much I hated school lunches. And that spaghetti was that, but after a 4 mile run, it was the most delicious thing I had ever tasted. Our sleeping spot ended up being the auditorium of that same high school. Showers were available, but we’re $2. Baby wipes were used instead and I crashed for 4 hours in my sleeping bag. Our team woke up at 4AM to see off Runner 1.
My third and final 5 mile leg was at noon, unfortunately. At first, I wasn’t too worried, I had taped both my legs, had a cool cloth, and decided to carry a water bottle. 5 minutes in, my cool cloth wasn’t wet anymore and my water so warm. This wasn’t the worst part because the majority of the run was up a mountain this time. None of the runners knew that this leg had rolling hills. These were legit hills and majority of runners, including myself were walking up the hills. This part of the race wasn’t listed on the app or the description of the leg, a fail on Ragners fault because at the finish line, a lot of runners were complaining. Being Runner 6 was the best decision I made since it was the last leg for Van 1, all 6 of us ran across the finish line to meet with Van 2. We had a celebratory photo before we headed towards the finish line.Â
The finish line was a party. Each van got a free pizza from Little Ceasers and lots of swag from multiple sponsors such as Nuun, Half Pops, Jay Bird, Muscle Milk, etc. The medals were so adorable since each medal connected to made picture. All in all, Ragnar was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had and to date, the greatest running accomplishment I’ve made. Running on 3 hours of sleep is not joke. Looking back, I honestly don’t know how I did it. I highly recommend doing Ragnar once in your lifetime whether or not you’re a seasoned runner or not. I honestly cannot wait to do it again next year.Â
Super windy 7 mile run today. Dust kept getting in my eyes and it started to rain. But that didn't stop me from completing the longest run I've ever done!
Rainy 6.67 run today. It started to get really windy near the end of my run. Thank god I finished in time! With yesterday's 5K in the pouring rain, so done with running in the rain.
2 mile run today that consisted of a 1 mile jog and then sprinting 100 meters, walking 100 meters eight times. Felt good to go out and run today since I pulled hamstring on Saturday.Â
6 Weeks until I run the 200 Mile relay race with 11 other people! Training so far has been great! My legs are 6.9 miles, 4.2 miles, and 3.6 miles. Getting nervous, but I know it’ll be so much fun! Right now I can comfortably run 5 miles. My training has been running 3-4 times a week, weight training 3 times a week, and Yoga/Foam Roll once a week.Â
My morning workout was a Total Body Workout from Tone it Up's Beach Babe 4 Collection. Later that afternoon , I went to my Girls on the Run session and ran 3.7 miles with my girls!
8 weeks until summer! Woke up today and completed Tone it Up's Beach Babe 4 Beach Booty Workout and their 5 Daily Moves. Today was also the last day of class! First semester of grad school done!
It's the first day of the Tone it Up Bikini Series! Woke up with a major headache, but still hit it off hard with a 4 mile run like a boss. Gotta get that 150 miles by summer goal!
Quote of the Day: Believe in yourself and you will be unstoppable.
Good Things that Happened: Pumpkin cinnamon rolls <3
Workout: Cardio Barre
Water: 62 oz
Meals:
M1: Soy Sauce Noodles
M2: Korean Short Ribs from yesterday
M3: Pineapple Bun
M4: Rice, Squid, Peanut Soup
M5: Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll
Miles:
Today’s Miles: 0
Yesterday’s Miles: 35.5
Total Miles: 35.5
Remaining Miles: 114.5
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when I finished all the items on my to do list! Today, I accomplished doing homework all day...pretty boring actually :(. Something I did for someone, agreed to study with my friend for a quiz on Tuesday! Today, I went back to do Cardio Barre because I had a free class pass and the instructor was late so I got another free class pass! Woohoo! It’s not as intense as Pure Barre...but it makes me feel like a ballerina <3 I wore Blogilates Peplum top and boy did it look good on me when I looked in the mirror during the workout.
Quote of the Day: Don’t give up what you want most, for what you want now.
Good Things that Happened: Went to a Korean restaurant with my friend.
Workout: 30 Minute Cardio Videos. Tone it Up Booty. Foam Roller.
Water: 80 oz.Â
Meals:
M1: Brazilian Cheese Ball. Protein Shake.
M2: Korean Short Ribs
M3: Cheerio Bar
M4: Beef Noodle Soup
Miles:
Today’s Miles: 1.5
Yesterday Miles: 34
Total Miles: 35.5
Remaining Miles: 114.5
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when I got 80% on a Quiz! Today, I accomplished, getting to the restaurant early! Something I did for someone...let my sister borrow my curling iron!
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when I finished my homework! Today I accomplished so much homework...Something I did for someone, made Brazilian Cheese Bread for my sister.
Good Things that Happened: Passed my Pass/Fail Quizzes in my Tax Classes!
Workout: Tone it Up’s Body Bliss and Total Body Mermaid Workout
Water: 68 oz.
Meals:
M1: Coffee with Protein Powder. 2 Danish Pancakes
M2: Granola Bar
M3: Cajun Chicken Wrap
M4: Banana
M5: Cheese PIzza
M6: Soup with Char Siu and Bok Choy
Miles:
Today’s Miles: 0
Yesterday’s Miles: 32
Remaining Miles: 118
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when I jumped right out of bed! 4:45 AM is no joke especially when it’s COLD and DARK. Today, I accomplished...everything and nothing it seems like. Something I did for someone...listened to my sister talk. Today was the release of Cassey Ho’s new active wear line! And it was GORGEOUS! I wasn’t planning on buying anything...until I saw the prices for what it was worth. Her BodyPop Line is to die for and I LOVE my Peplum Top and Peplum Jacket I got over Black Friday. Highly recommend!
On a more depressing note, I found out Alan Rickman lost his battle to cancer. The Wizarding World has had such a large impact on my life and I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the books and movies. I found out during class and I cried. I later read the letter he wrote to Harry Potter fans and cried again. May he rest in piece. Always.
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when I woke up at 7AM and did some homework before hitting by boxing class. Today, I accomplished, studying for my tax quiz tomorrow! Who has a quiz the second day class...an evil professor that’s who. Something I did for someone, told my friend that she has no classes on Monday! She was sooo stressed about homework and studying due Monday, but I reminded her it was MLK day. She was so happy.
Quote of the Day: Ain’t nobody got time for fat.
Good things that happened: Got out of bed right away! Swiss roll for dessert!
Workout: Total Body Tone Up and Kettlebooty.
Water: 70 oz.
Meals:
M1: Coffee Protein. Danish Pancakes. Vitamin.
M2: Apple. Baked Lays Chips.
M3: Rice, Chicken, Snow Peas..
M4: Banana
M5: Rice. Beef Stew. Chinese Broccoli
M6: Swiss Roll
Miles:
Today’s Miles: 0
Yesterday’s Miles: 26
Total Miles: 26
Remaining Miles: 124
Daily Reflection: I felt proud today when I got out of bed right away instead of laying there playing with my phone! Today I accomplished finishing my Tax Videos! Something I did for someone...gave my friend some tea bags to try! Today was the first official day in my master’s program...I spent all day going to classes and doing homework >.<
Quote of the Day: Today, CRUSH the Workout! (AND I DID)
Good Things that Happened: Finished all the items on my to do list!
Workout: 1 Hour Kickboxing and I KILLED IT!
Water: 70 oz
Meals:
M1: Protein Shake, Vitamin
M2: Swiss Roll
M3: Chicken with Cajun Spices, Spinach Cranberry Salad
M4: Fig Bag
M5: Rice, Pork, Cauliflower
M6: Bread, Apple
Miles:
Today’s Miles: 6
Yesterday’s Miles: 20
Total Miles: 26
Remaining Miles: 124
Daily Reflection: I felt proud when, I punched the punching bag and it FLEW! Today I accomplished...finished watching the 4 HOUR lecture in my audit class. That was brutal...Something I did for someone, washed the dishes for my dad!
