My First Book is Published

Like many women, I started running to lose weight. I didn’t get far initially because I was out of shape. I never intended to Become A Runner. But I did, though it took me several years and a couple of marathons before I considered myself one.

I kept running because it made me feel good. It is now, as one of the 53 women interviewed for this book puts it, an unquestioned part of my life. I run for many reasons but mostly because it makes me feel confident and capable.

This is a book about women who run. It is intended to encourage those who already do to keep running and to inspire those thinking about it to head out the door today. There is never a perfect time to start.

You simply need to take that first step and keep going. In this, it is all about you. You may not get far the first time. But that’s OK. It's the journey that matters most.

The stories of these 53 women explain how running has become an integral part of their lives. As varied as they are and ranging in age from their early 20s to their late 50s, what they describe is a shared experience. It's one of empowerment.

For these women, running has evolved from a simple form of physical exercise to the catalyst for taking charge of their health and giving them peace of mind from otherwise hectic daily lives.

Some run for the simple pleasure it brings, while others race for finish lines. Some run with friends, while others run alone. Most of them run because they can.

As coaches Pat Carroll and Susan Griffith say, running is about the sense of achievement and wellbeing that it gives to those who take up the sport. All it takes is one step at a time.


To buy my book Running Shoes Are a Girl's Best Friend, click here

A Writer's High

That's certainly what I am on right now: I have finished the book about female runners that I have been working on since January 2008. It was a huge project which has transformed me as a writer, not unlike a runner is by finishing their first marathon.

Now I need to get the 89,000-word manuscript published and have submitted it to a company I believe is a good fit. Word either way should come within five business days.

A PB by 19 seconds

At the James Cunningham Seawall 9.5km this past Sunday I finished in 38:15, placing second in my age group and 8th female. This race attracts some swift runners.

The course around Stanley Park is - naturally - stunning. It's also flat.

My finish time is a 19-second improvement on my performance there in 2007, which is fantastic - especially because that 2007 race was followed by a couple of major 10km PBs including breaking the 40-minute barrier twice.

The organisation of this race is fantastic and very personable. As I crossed the finishline, the MC told the crowd that I was in the top 10 for the third year in a row. Pretty impressive that they are so prepared to have this information at their fingertips. There are much bigger races who could learn a thing or two from these guys.

As I hung on to a fence just across the finish to catch my breath the organiser came over to me and thanked me for supporting the race. You can bet I'll be back there to race again next year!

Planning Race Season

I love race planning. Usually I plan four to six months ahead. In the past four years my goal events have been marathons. While I never stop training, aside from about a two-week break after a marathon (typically I do two of those per year), I make sure that I allow for unstructured training if my mind needs a break.

As mentioned in previous posts that is what I did this summer. After racing two marathons close together, finishing both in 3hrs 10mins, I needed a physical and mental rest from my training routine.

With a book and articles to write, starting a new part-time job, a puppy to train, two art shows to coordinate and a few more to participate in, overseas visitors for three months straight and a partner who was training for Ironman on top of working full time, I knew I didn't have enough time in my schedule to prepare for a fall marathon.

Instead, I just ran as I pleased for two months before setting this Sunday's 9.5km race as my goal event and asking my coach Pat Carroll for a training program focused on this.

I really enjoyed having a program again, as much as I enjoyed not having one for a few weeks too. I want to know that my training is focused, that I am training as efficiently as I can and that I am not overtraining and risking injury (never any guarantees).

The best thing about having a training program designed for me specifically by someone I respect and trust completely is that it takes all the guess work and thinking out of it. All I need to do every day is to open up my spreadsheet to see what session he wants me to do - then I do it.

If he wants me to run as hard as I can I do. If he wants me to take a rest day I do so too. If there is only an easy run then I do that. I have wondered whether it is time to change coaches, just for variety and because I have been with Pat for 4 1/2 years. But so far I haven't.

He always manages to put enough variety in my training programs - I love hem. He challenges me but also provides enough recovery so that I do not feel stressed, mentally or physically. While training for a marathon is tiring, I have been able to cope with his sessions and been able to stay healthy - that is the most important thing of all.

All the above means that I trust my coach completely. And each time I wonder if I should check if the grass is greener on the other side, I realize that my side is probably as green as it gets.

With my goal race only a few days away Pat doesn't like me to think about the day, let alone weeks and months after. And I will not think about anything else in the next few days. But in the last few weeks the thought of running another marathon kept crossing my mind.

To have a solid and focused marathon preparation I like to start at least five months out. With the Vancouver Marathon, my logical `home-town' race, on the first weekend of May it was time to consider my options.

For the past couple of years I have toyed with the idea of running a marathon in The Netherlands where I was born and raised. While I have raced everything from 5k's to half marathons as well as triathlons ranging from Olympic distance to 3/4 Ironman distances in The Netherlands, I have yet to race my first marathon there.

Perhaps I could combine a family visit with a marathon. I found a great flight, direct, in early April - perfect timing for the Rotterdam Marathon, which bills itself as the second-fast marathon in the world.

Having lived in Rotterdam for a while in the early 90s, I would love to revisit this city and see it in a different way. Registration only starts at the end of the month. I haven't been able to find any details on their site, such as what time the race starts or how much it costs. But if all goes well I think the Rotterdam Marathon 2010 will be my next goal race.

That will determine my training from next week until the end of April (including recovery). I will probably try to find a 10km and half marathon in between - in consultation with Pat of course.

For now, I need to focus on Sunday. Today's session is a speed session, alternating two minutes of hard running with 30 seconds easy (six repeats).

Long Time No Blog...

It has been a while since I posted on this blog. That doesn't mean I stopped writing, running or painting. On the contrary, it's because I have been very busy with those and a few other things that I haven't made the time to write new posts.

Today is Wednesday - a few days to go until my next race, the 9.5km in Stanley Park. This is a special race to me. It was the first race I did when Tim and I arrived back in Canada two years ago with the intention to stay. After an exciting tussle with a final sprint to the line, I just finished third female in a time that I was quite happy with.

This result also handed me my first invitation to race in the event the following year. That I did, but after finishing the Victoria Marathon in a PB two weeks prior I had to take it easy. This year I am back to race hard and I am looking forward to it!

Iron Man cover story for IMPACT Magazine

IMPACT Magazine's editor asked me to write the cover story for the current issue, a profile on Ironman World Champion Craig Alexander. Assignments like these sum up why I truly love being a journalist and a writer.

Here's the result, as published on their website (there's also a print version).

Runner's Block

As I am working towards finishing my first book - as always I am a little ambitious so I am working on three books simultaneously - I have sought the support of other writers by reading their books.

Six weeks ago I happened upon a book by Julia Cameron, The Sound of Paper: Starting from Scratch. Coincidence that my eye caught that book at the time and place that it did? I doubt it - I had been looking a long time for what I found, which is what I realized when I came home and started reading her book.

Cameron is the author of The Artist's Way, one of the bestsellers she wrote and one that I am now reading. But it was the Sound of Paper that I truly fell in love with. I started reading it on July 2.

One of her three main recommendations for artists is that you write three pages longhand as soon as you wake up, every single day. She calls them Morning Pages. You can write anything, as long as you write those three pages. It could be, "I feel tired and don't have any ideas for writing today. I need to walk the dog."

The idea is that, in Julia's words:
"Morning Pages prioritize our day. ... Morning Pages are a potent form of meditation for hyperactive Westerners. They amplify what spiritual seekers call "the still small voice". Work with the Morning Pages awakens our intuition. Synchronicity becomes a daily fact. We are more and more often in the right place at the right time. We know how to handle situations that baffled us. In a very real sense, we become our own friend and witness. Morning pages are the gateway to the inner and higher self. They bring us guidance and resilience. They make us farseeing."

Following her advice immediately I began writing three pages of longhand on July 3 the first thing in the morning, and I have been doing so every day since. It has helped me in my `true' writing.

In fact I have been far more consistent in my writing than I have been in my running. Partly it has been because I had mentally agreed with myself that running had to take a backseat, because of some other things I had to do including coordinating two art exhibitions and exhibiting my own paintings in three but also because I felt the need to lay low in my running for a few more weeks after my two recent marathons.

On Sunday August 2, I ran a certified 10km race here in Squamish. My plan had been to go out hard, and to hold on to that pace as long as I could. My first kilometer was 3:50, my second 3:55 and my third 4:00. I reached the 5km mark at 20:11, before finishing in 41:39.

I received a beautiful trophy, a carving by Neil Baker, for being the first local female runner to cross the finish line. I had not raced too smart, pushing myself hard in the first half and struggling to hold on to a slowing pace in the second. It was hot and humid, close to 30 degrees and I felt extremely tired in the two following days.

So I didn't run. And soon it was Friday - I hadn't run for five days. Now that's fine after a marathon but you do not need to recover five days after a 10km. I knew it was time to get back on a structured training program.

I decided to keep it simple and set myself one goal, the 9.5km race in Stanley Park, Vancouver, at the end of October. I emailed my coach with that goal and he responded with a 12-week training program. I did my first session today, a speed workout.

It feels great to be back into my running habit!