On the Road Again

Well hello my long lost readers! I am back at last. You may have been wondering (okay, probably not) why I haven't posted in ages or what happened to my marathon. Never fear! I will put your curious minds to rest.

My original goal was to run the Seattle Marathon back in November. It was very cute because I would be running 26.2 miles at 26.2 years of age. I was on track to do just that (well...I was a little behind on my training) when in early October I had a change of employer. With starting a new job I was unable to ask for the time off to run the marathon that was just over a month away. I was devastated at that I wouldn't become a marathoner by my appointed deadline but at the same time I felt overwhelming relief that I wouldn't have to run the marathon (yet). 

Four months later, I am beginning my training again. I have new drive and determination, the will to succeed, and a boyfriend who ran the marathon last year to go on runs with me and keep me encouraged. Today I reset the count down to 233 days until the marathon. This year I will not fail!

Actions (or lack of) and Consequences

I have a confession to make. Today is the first time I've trained in about 6 weeks. It is embarrassing that I let one or two missed workouts turn into 25 or so missed workouts. On the other hand I am quite proud of myself that I got back on the road and am continuing towards my goal. I am easily excited about different endeavors that come along. I am passionate about new interests but once the newness wears off or it becomes challenging I tend to give up.

The past month and a half I have been battling the urge to call it quits on this marathon. I came up with so many excuses that were good enough for me. But then you all came to my rescue. Several of my friends, family, and co-workers asked me how my training was going. Each of these encounters reminded me of the commitment I made to my supporters and more importantly to myself. Even if I have to crawl across the finish line three hours after they've re-opened the course to vehicle traffic, I am going to finish this!

Since it's been soooo long since my last run I started my training program over. Being out of practice I didn't want to be too overwhelmed by trying to pick up where I should be at. It would also be impossible to make up the sessions I missed by adding extra workouts each week. I missed too many. So I went online, entered my deadline and how many workouts/week I can manage, and Adidas pops out a training schedule for me. Today's session, my first in 6 weeks, couldn't have been a nice 30 or 45 minute jog...it was a 2 hour 30 minute long jog. That's an hour longer than anything I've done before. I wanted to give up all over again, but my excuses weren't good enough this time. Besides, that ridiculously long workout was a result of missing so many others. With just over 3 months until the marathon I've got to start with longer distances because there isn't much time left to train.

I got up and did it. I went 11 miles (mostly power walking) in that 2.5 hours. Not the pace I need to be at, but the important thing is I did it. Along the way I enjoyed the sights and smells of summer. I stepped in hidden mud puddle about 6 miles along. I was shocked that my initial reaction wasn't being upset that one of my new shoes was entirely covered in mud. I was more overcome with the relief of the mud soaking through my shoe and sock and cooling my extremely overheated feet. Experience is always the most efficient teacher. Today I learned I should have run the route in the other direction. It really stinks being stuck with a 300 ft elevation rise (that's about the equivalent of a 30 story building's height) in the last two miles when you've already gone nine. This afternoon I definitely hurt. Tomorrow I will surely hurt more. But that's part of the fun of a marathon isn't it?

Too Old For This (Or Too Young?)

My last run, 5 miles in one hour, felt even more challenging than the 90 minute run I went on last week. I wouldn't describe myself as sickly, but I do have several common and minor health challenges. It would seem I can't ignore them and still expect to challenge my body with strenuous exercise. I am finally giving in and trying to maintain the medicine/supplement regiments prescribed by my physician.  I find myself wondering if I'm really a 90 year old lady, in which case I might be too old to run a marathon. On the other hand, if I really am 25 years old I think I'm too young to require this much maintenance. I will lay out my daily schedule and you will see why I have been reluctant to hop on the medicine train.

Let's begin in the morning. After breakfast I must take the following:

For my Asthma, I must take one puff of Advair in the morning and immediately rinse my mouth out afterwords. I'm not sure why it is so important to rinse your mouth, but it says to on every scrap of paper in and on the package. I shudder to think what could be so harmful to my mouth that I am supposed to be putting in my lungs.

Two Glucosamine supplements to aid in joint health

Seasonal allergies are a bummer and make my asthma much worse, so a Claritin in the morning.

Claritin doesn't  help my eyes with their allergy issues, so I put a drop of this in each eye.

To help me breath easier I must use this prescription nasal allergy spray. It smells like roses, which isn't necessarily pleasant to have stuck in in your nose all day.

Sticking with the "A" for Affliction theme, my Asthma and Allergies are accompanied by Anemia. This iron supplement cannot be taken with whole grains, dairy, fruits or vegetables. I shouldn't eat anything for two hours before taking until two hours after I take it. I also can't lay down for 1/2 an hour after I've taken it. I basically feel like these are impossible requirements.

Prescription strength iron supplements require additional fiber to aid in digestion .

In the afternoon (before a run) or as needed, I use my albuterol:

After a run I usually take some Aleve for my sore knees:

Bed time brings round two of my morning meds with a few small changes:

More allergy eye drops

Another round of inhaling mysterious powder

Hooray for iron...at least 2 hours after dinner and 30 minutes before I go to bed

An evening dose of fiber

Eye goop is the most fun! It's about the consistency of Neosporin and I put it on my eyeballs to keep my eyelids from sticking to them during the night. This apparently is a problem I have and leads to painful consequences if left unattended.

Running Form & Life Lessons

Back in high school I was on the track team. I wasn't very fond of running so I stuck to field events that only required running 50 ft tops before jumping or throwing something. During my brief career as a hurdler (my darn knees ended that) I picked up on the concept that running is almost as much about form as it is about strength/innate ability. Sprints require a different form than distance races, so I have been learning how to properly run long distances. There are two main reasons to run with proper form. Most importantly, when you run correctly you reduce impact on your joints and reduce the risk of injury. Secondly, running with incorrect form uses your energy inefficiently so you end up running more slowly and you wear out faster.

While learning proper distance running form, I couldn't help but notice some universal truths/life lessons. So, here I will endeavor to share with you these nuggets of wisdom I've learned over the past 35 miles.

1. Run Tall: Keep your head up and your eyes on the horizon. Be sure to keep your eyes on where you're headed, not where you're at. When your head and eyes are looking at the ground immediately in front of you it brings your spine out of alignment and puts more stress on your whole body. In other words, if you focus on where you are instead of where you're going you will cause yourself unnecessary stress.

2. Take Smaller Steps: It seems counter intuitive, but to run faster you should take more frequent shorter strides. Taking few longer strides to cover the same distance uses more energy and increases the impact on your joints. Lesson to be learned; Doctor Leo Marvin was right about the baby steps. If you try to reach your goals more quickly by taking bigger steps you will just burn out faster.

3. Run in the Grass: I admit, this one really isn't about form. It is recommended that you spend some time training on a soft surface like grass or sand. The squishy-ness of the ground absorbs the impact of your stride instead of returning that energy to your body. Basically, it makes it more challenging to run. While your efforts during these workouts are slower and more difficult, you end up increasing your speed in the long run when you return to a harder surface like pavement. That is to say, when you feel like you're working hard and not moving very fast you are really building strength (character?) that will prove beneficial when you really need it.

So It Begins...

Hello there! I'd like to welcome you to my latest attempt at blogging. I read in a book about running marathons that keeping a journal/blog is essential so I can look back at my past pain and suffering and think to myself, "Those were the good old days!" By reading this you have inadvertently agreed to become part of my support system, something else the marathon book said is important. There will days when the training doesn't feel worth it (like when I have to run for 3 hours in the rain) and knowing I will be letting all my supporters down, or proving any nay-sayers right, will help me suit up and get on the road. Since I've found myself wondering why on Earth I've decided to run a marathon, I imagine you might be wondering too. I will detail for you all of the mysterious circumstances and coincidences that have led me to believe that God wants me to do this. It all started about two years ago...

*Queue slightly out of focus flashback*

A couple years ago I became hooked on the television show The Biggest Loser. I was amazed to see how the contestants had made such amazing transformations in such a short time. That particular season was the first time ever that the finalists had to run a marathon. I thought, "If they weighed over 300 pounds just 4 months ago and are now running a marathon, I should also be able to!" This scenario repeated itself the next two seasons and though I was inspired, I wasn't motivated to do anything.

 Fast forward to about a month ago. I got a new smart phone, complete with Apps! Among my first downloads were an Amazon Kindle app and a nutrition app. Using the nutrition app I had a revelation! If I exercise then I can eat more calories!!! I guess I've known this for quite some time, but having the numbers in front of you makes it easier to grasp. I promptly got myself the Adidas MiCoach app that trains you for different fitness goals. One of the programs available is marathon training...I ignored that one. While looking through the summer sale books for Kindle I came across The Nonrunner's Marathon Guide for Women by Dawn Dais. It was only 99 cents and the reviews said it was funny, so I picked it up for some light reading. After reading, and thoroughly enjoying, that book my motivation increased enough to put me in research mode. The next marathon in Seattle that I could register for takes place November 27th. Checking the marathon training plan on the MiCoach app lead me to discover that the training would line up exactly with the  Seattle Marathon. Further calculations revealed that I would be 26.2 years old when running the 26.2 mile marathon. And if all those signs weren't enough, I got a $100 pair of running shoes on sale for $30! We all know money talks.

Here I am, one week into my training. I've got hundreds of miles ahead of me and that feels overwhelming. If I  take it just one workout at a time I know I will be able to check one more item off my bucket list...If I don't kick the bucket in the process.