i did it!

I didn't tell many people that I had registered for the Blue Ridge Marathon for fear of another failed attempt. I had a very bad experience in Wilmington, NC in March for what was supposed to be my 3rd marathon. I feared that I would get sick again on race day or something else would go wrong so I kept this marathon a secret in case I failed here too. But that backfired a little... as close friends/family found out, they were upset that I hadn't told them beforehand, but then said they understood why I hadn't broadcasted it. I was sick last week which flowed over into this week. However, I was well enough to run my proudest marathon on Saturday. The following chronicles my week.

Monday:  Rest Day

Tuesday:  Walked 1.35 miles in 37:31 minutes. I traveled to Fort Lauderdale, FL today for a business trip. I was supposed to run 5 miles today, but am still feeling sick. I opted to go for a much needed, peaceful, zen, walk on the beach in the light rain after an amazing dinner.

Wednesday:  I was supposed to go swimming today, but I'm way too congested still and my ear is still quite painful. Took a rest/travel-home-from-business-trip day instead.

Thursday:  Jogged 3.81 miles in 45:24 minutes; average pace 11:55. Still congested with an ear ache, but did an easy jog through the new subdivision nearby. I've been sick for over a week. Hope I get over this soon!

Friday:  Rest day. Drove to Roanoke, VA for my marathon tomorrow!  Picked up my daughter from school at lunch and we drove to Virginia. Her dad, step-mom and half sister are going to be in Virginia this weekend too. We met her step-mom outside of Greensboro, NC and I handed her off, then drove the rest of the way to Roanoke alone. Glad she was with me for most of the drive! I arrived too late to go to the race Expo. As I was driving into town I noticed an amazing man-made star on a mountain; what a beautiful sight! Checked into the Rose Hill Bed and Breakfast around 8:45 p.m. What an amazing little B&B! LOVED the water and few pieces of fudge in my room!

Saturday:  Blue Ridge marathon!  I wrote a separate blog post about this marathon.  It was an AMAZING experience! Click here to read about my experience. After the race, I enjoyed a long soak in the deep claw-footed tub associated with my room at the B&B. Later, I asked for dinner recommendations and the owner of the B&B (Wendy) suggested I go to Wildflour.  It's a local bakery/restaurant that is just a few blocks from the B&B. Other guests at the B&B had dined there last night and highly recommended it as well. Wendy walked with me out onto the porch and pointed me in the right direction. She said it was within walking distance and I thought my legs would benefit from an easy walk, so I that's what I did. The food was AMAZING! I ordered a side salad with sour ginger dressing which was awesome! I had the maple soy glazed salmon as my entree' which was served with asparagus and black beans and rice. SO DELICIOUS!!!  I would highly recommend this restaurant if you're in the Roanoke, VA area.

Sunday:  Rest day. Before leaving Roanoke, I picked up a newspaper. The marathon filled the front page and was extended to another section of the paper. My name was in print! One woman was quoted to say that this race was harder than the ironman triathlons that she had completed.  Then I drove to the top of the mountains that I ran yesterday. Good thing I didn't driven the course beforehand or I probably would have panicked. Wow those roads are steep!  I took several photos for my race blog entry. After spending time amazed at the beauty and reveling in my accomplishment, I had mexican for lunch and then drove home. The ride seemed much longer alone. I hope my daughter had fun with her dad this weekend.

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week: 2
• Miles run this week: 30.1
• Highlight of the week: slowest but most amazing marathon
• Goal for next week: recover

Blue Ridge Marathon

I'm staying at the amazing Rose Hill Bed & Breakfast in Roanoke, VA. The owner, Wendy, was so kind to serve fruit, muffins and tea/coffee at 5:30 a.m., earlier than the normal breakfast schedule, to accomodate the guests that were running the race. The B&B has three guest rooms, all of which are occupied by runners: me, a newlywed couple (wife is running the half), and another charming couple (wife is running the half).

After eating a small muffin, some fruit and drinking a cup of tea, I drove down to the packet pick-up location. I picked up my bag and race chip and returned to the car. Somehow, I made a wrong turn and the walk to the car took much longer than it should have. It was a good thing because I realized I would be way too warm in this rain jacket, so I decided to just leave it in the car. The weather forecast was 55-65 degrees with 50% chance of rain. Back at the car, I put on my chip and number and then realized that I had left my iPod earphones back at the B&B. Oh no! But rather than get upset, I decided that I would just enjoy the sounds of nature instead. I can do this!

Just before the race started, the announcer said this is one of the most challenging marathon courses in the country. Uh oh... He said at mile 6 would be the steepest climb (15% slope). He said runner's goals shouldn't be for a specific finishing time, but to simply enjoy the scenery and finish. He emphasized that walking would be advisable during portions of the race. It's funny, but before I got there, my goal was not based on time, but simply to enjoy the scenery.

The race began at 7:30 a.m. The first mile was easy and I clicked it off in 10:45. And then the challenge began... We began our ascent to the TOP of Roanoke Mountain (I took this picture the next day). A few miles into it, I caught up with someone and we walked/jogged together and chatted for a while. He's an ultra runner and feels no guilt in walking up the steeper sections. I enjoyed listening to the birds and really soaking in the gorgeous views of nature. My goal for today is to just totally enjoy this experience, even if it takes me all day.

And up, up, up, up we continued to climb. I walked up a lot of the hills, but knew I couldn't walk up all and finish within the 7 hour cut-off time limit, so I picked markers to run to (fallen tree, sign, light post, cone, etc.), then walk a little and repeat. The announcer at the start of the race wasn't kidding. Mile 6 was STEEP uphill. I knew the highest elevation of the marathon was at about mile 7.5. As I approached that point, I noticed runners coming down with smiles on their faces and encouraging us that we were truly almost to the top. A volunteer was at the top and as soon as I was within his sight, he encouragingly yelled that I only had about 300 feet to go. I was walking. I said, "really?" He said "yes", so I laughed and started sprinting a few yards. We both laughed. It was fun. This is my day to have fun.

I took a moment at the top overlook aid station to admire the view. I asked if this was the mountain with the star on it that I had seen when driving into town last night. The volunteer said no, that mountain will be the second one we climb, and she just heard that the leading male just arrived at the top of that mountain (Mill mountain). WHAT? There are TWO MOUNTAINS in this marathon? You're kidding, right? Guess I should have done a little more homework before registering for this event... Not going to let it bother me, though, because I'm feeling good and enjoying the views.

The descent was steep. I ran as fast as I felt I could safely; I could imagine tripping and rolling down the mountain. I passed an Asian man running barefoot and carrying flip flops in his hands. Wow! My feet hurt in shoes... I can't imagine... Another woman and I passed each other back and forth. I passed her on downhills, she passed me on uphills. Ultimately, I finished before her.

After coming down Roanoke Mountain the course went back down Blue Ridge Parkway then up for several miles to the top of Mill Mountain. (I took this photo of Mill Mountain the following day.) Roanoke Mountain was steep, but the climb up Mill Mountain seemed longer. In hindsight, I don't really think it was longer, I was just tired. For those that ran the half-marathon, Mill Mountain was the only mountain they had to climb. A few miles after the marathon began, half-marathoners were sent up Mill Mountain while marathoners were directed to conquer Roanoke Mountain.

I enjoyed the view from the Star overlook, then sped as fast as I thought I could safely do back down the steep road down the mountain.

Now I'm at 16 miles. This marathon is kicking my butt, but I'm loving every minute of it!!! The rest of the course meandered through neighborhoods, greenway, parks, Hwy 220, etc. The worst stretch for me was along Hwy 220. I was tired, the road was busy, and there weren't many volunteers/spectators/other runners here. I was tired of going up hill. Then I focused again on mini-goals: run to the next fire hydrant, mailbox, cone, etc. At about mile 18 the fun had worn off. Why did I sign up for this??? I'm never going to run another marathon again!!! I can't do another hill... I recognized this as a mental low, ate a Clif Shot block and focused on one foot in front of the other. Before I'd overcome this mental funk, a volunteer said: "just past that speed limit sign is a downhill." I can't remember what I said, but he must have sensed that I wasn't at the top of my game. He said he would walk with me to it. We chatted about random things and after we made it to the speed limit sign, I started running downhill in a happier mood. THANK YOU, MR. AWESOME VOLUNTEER!!!

This simple gesture made such a huge impact on my outlook and got me through the rest of the marathon. The ENTIRE course was either mountainous or hilly. At mile 19 I looked at my watch and thought: I can walk 7 miles in 2.5 hours (course closing); I can do this. I ran/walked. Mostly walking up hills and running down. At mile 23 the course passed the B&B that I'm staying in. I waved to the newlywed husband whose wife ran the half. He was on the porch. I asked how she did and he said good. They're getting ready to go to lunch. If I didn't want this medal so bad, I could have quit at the B&B and enjoyed a nice bath. But I kept going. 3 more miles... 3 miles is easy. Anyone can go 3 miles...

I fought back tears as I neared the finish. I can't believe I did this! I'm SO HAPPY!!! Official chip time: 6 hours, 16 minutes, 29 seconds. This was my slowest marathon, but who cares? I don't. It was the hardest, most challenging run that I have ever done, which makes it the most rewarding. Every muscle in my body is sore. Not injured, just sore/tired from the hard effort. Life is good! Feeling proud! I hung around the finish area for a while, hoping to see a few people finish that I had passed along the way. I cheered for each person that crossed the line, knowing what an amazing accomplishment this was.

I exceeded my goals for this race: finish within the 7 hour time-limit and enjoy the scenery. And you may be asking how did I exceed the goal? Well, because I didn't listen to my iPod by a fluke mistake of forgetting my headphones, so I was forced to enjoy the sounds of nature and interact with fellow runners and volunteers. MUCH better entertainment!!! MUCH more elevating! And I think I observed more by focusing on the next target to run to. Pretty flowers, lovely views, fallen trees, steep grades, sweet birds, old bridges... I didn't finish last, and I passed a barefoot runner who was wearing socks and flip-flops on his hands (plus a few more people) in the later miles. It was my slowest marathon, but one I can honestly say I'm most proud of completing. WHAT A CHALLENGE!!! TWO MOUNTAINS plus rolling hills for the entire race! Good thing I didn't drive the course before the marathon or I would have been totally freaked out before the race. Those roads were STEEP!

the cooties

Well, this week didn't go as planned...  Monday and Tuesday were completed per Coach Josh's instructions, but the rest of the week wasn't. Last Saturday I woke with a sore throat and headache, but completed my long run. Last Sunday I started sniffling. Monday I began coughing. I pushed through my speedwork on Tuesday, but later that day I totally lost my voice. I woke in the middle of the night, in the wee hours of Wednesday with a wicked ear ache. This was the final straw. After taking my daughter to school, I went to the doctor in pain and unable to speak above a whisper. He said I have "the cooties"; I kid you not! What a comedian! I always wondered what "the cooties" really were...  In my case, he translated it into strep throat, sinus infection and ear infection. The sinus gunk is draining into my lungs causing the cough. Oh joy! He gave me two shots and prescriptions for antibiotics and decongestant. I still felt horrible throughout the week, so no more running for me... Hoping for next week :-)  On Friday, I read Holisticguru's post about mindfully eating fruit. So Saturday morning, I mindfully ate my breakfast and took this photo. I sent her a tweet with the photo saying "mindful eating = silly face". To my surprise, she posted it on her blog!

Monday:  Rest Day

Tuesday:  Speed work.  Ran 5.6 miles in 58:10.  Did the run as Coach Josh planned, but it was less mileage than he predicted. 1 mile warm-up at 10:45 (coughed up lung congestion and then felt much better). [I'm not sick, I'm not sick, I'm sick...] Then 3 x 1 mile at 9:40 pace with 0.2 mile jog at 12 minutes/mile pace after each. Followed by 1 mile at 10:45.

Wednesday: Unfortunately, my prayers and proclamations from yesterday of not being sick were ineffective. Woke in the middle of the night with a wicked ear ache on top of the sinus congestion, sore throat, cough, and loss of voice. See intro paragraph for diagnosis.

Thursday - Sunday:  No running. Hope I feel better next week.

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week: 1
• Miles run this week: 5.6
• Highlight of the week: nailed that speedwork session on Tuesday despite waking up coughing
• Goal for next week: feel better and psych myself up for 4/24 marathon

good girl

I was a good girl this week and ran all the miles that Coach Josh had planned for me!!!  I think it's been a month since I've done that. His pep-talk on Monday helped tremendously. I'm so glad that I have the most amazing running coach on the planet! I got in all the hard miles he had planned and turned my "recovery run" on Sunday into a fun/scenic one. Read below for daily adventures as well as a weekly summary, highlight of the week, and goal for next week.

Monday:  Rest Day. Received a phone call from Coach Josh. He's concerned after reading my posts about my runs. He said I'm not the only one in a funk and that this weekend would be the last "long run" scheduled before my marathon. He's confident that I can complete the marathon as long as I get this last long run accomplished. I can do it. I told him it's been a challenge juggling child-care and getting motivated to run long, but my daughter will be with her dad next weekend, and I'm thinking of doing an out-and-back route that will force me to complete the distance. He encouraged me to call him any time, for reassurance, etc., and that I'm not the only one going through this "change of season" phase. I felt better after talking to him.

Tuesday: Ran 5 miles in 53:16 minutes, 10:39 minutes/mile average pace. Coach Josh prescribed 5 minutes in 54 minutes; done. I got up early and did the run. Kyra's ill (and was still asleep), so I did the run on the treadmill in the basement. I increased my pace slightly on each mile. Felt good to get it done early. Noticed that Coach Josh only had my activities posted for today and tomorrow. He usually posts a week at a time. I wonder if he's holding out to keep me from stressing over future runs. He has swimming on the agenda for tomorrow; yay!

Wednesday: Kyra was supposed to go to her dad's house tonight, which was when I had planned to swim. But due to circumstances beyond our control, she's staying with me tonight instead. She's been sick for the past week and she did not want to go to the pool. I don't blame her. I stayed home with her instead of getting my swim in. She fell asleep on the floor, cuddling on her puppy. She only naps when she's sick. Hope she feels better soon.

Thursday: Ran 5 miles in 53:00 minutes, 10:36 minutes/mile average pace. Coach Josh prescribed 5 minutes in 54 minutes; did it 16 seconds faster than Tuesday. I arrived at the office late this morning; I wanted to let Kyra sleep as late as she would in hopes that would help her cold. So, I worked late to make up my missed time. By the time I got home, it was dark so I opted to run on the treadmill again. Wasn't necessarily trying to beat my pace from Tuesday, but just tried to have it be slightly less than 54 minutes.

Friday:  Rest day. Psyched myself up for tomorrow's long run.

Saturday:  Ran 18 miles in 3:54:01, 13:00 minutes/mile average pace. Wasn't exactly how it should have been, but done.  Started out at Stone Mountain with the intention of completing all 18 miles there. I ran by heart rate rather than trying to maintain a certain pace. I kept my heart rate under 75%. The first 5 miles were easy. The next 5 miles felt "easy", but I noticed I had to walk a lot more to keep my heart rate below 75%. I knew that I would be better off running rather than so much walking, so I decided to finish that lap and then go home and run the rest of the miles on the treadmill in the coolness of the basement. When I took off my camelbak at the car, I was amazed at how heavy it seamed. As soon as I got home, I stepped on the scale with it, then without, and calcuated it weighed 8 pounds! And this is after I had drank about half the water! I'm guessing it was probably 12 pounds when I started. No wonder I had to go so slow to keep my heart rate in check! After weighing, I went straight to the treadmill, not wanting to put too much rest time into the run. I set the pace at 12:00 minutes/mile and easily clicked off the next 5 miles. But then, something weird happened. I started having cramps on my right side at the base of my rib cage. I stopped to walk for a few seconds and it disappeared. Then it would start again a few minutes after I started running again. So for the last few miles I did run/walk intervals at approximately 0.2 to 0.4 miles run with a 0.025 to 0.05 mile walk break. (As I'm typing this on Sunday, I notice that my right rib cage is still tender to the touch. Bizarre.) I almost quit at mile 17 because of the pain and told myself that I would take the dogs for a mile walk later to get the total miles in. Then I told myself that just wasn't acceptable; suck it up and push through that last mile. I did. 18 miles done... The ice bath afterwards felt oh-so-good!

Sunday:  Ran/walk 3 miles in 44:51 minutes, 14:57 minutes/mile average pace. This was supposed to be an easy "recovery run" so I decided to explore a new-to-me trail. I went to Yellow River Park.  The trails that were marked as pedestrian weren't very long, so I did multiple loops. I think the bike trails are longer, but decided not to risk getting hit by a biker. I enjoyed the view, just wish the trail was longer. I walked up the steep hills and stopped to step off the trail a few times to allow bikes to pass. My right rib cage is still tender and my legs are still sore from yesterday. Since this was supposed to be a recovery run, I didn't focus on pace, just enjoyed the new scenary.

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week:  4
• Miles run this week: 31
• Highlight of the week: ran all the miles Coach Josh planned
• Goal for next week: taper and psych myself up for 4/24 marathon 

another one bites the dust

This week totally sucked for running. It was a busy week; I had to get tax info to my accountant, lawn mowed, bills paid, work done, buy stuff for Easter, take care of my sick daugther, etc. I only ran three days, and didn't complete the long run as scheduled; I opted to "run for fun" instead. I ended up getting sunburned so it's a good thing I didn't run for an hour longer and get 3rd degree burns...  I think we skipped spring and went straight from winter to summer.  Read below for daily adventures as well as a weekly summary, highlight of the week, and goal for next week.

Monday:  Rest Day

Tuesday:  didn't run; compiled tax info for my accountant instead.

Wednesday:  Intervals (that were scheduled for Tuesday). I got up early and ran 4.9 miles in 52 minutes; 10:37 minutes/mile avereage pace.  1 mile in 10:53 minutes, 6x3 minutes at 9:40 pace with 2 minutes at 12:00 minutes/mile pace jog after each. 1 mile in 10:41 minutes. Then I showered and went to Kyra's Junior Beta Club induction. She had the leading role by reading the introduction. So proud!

Thursday:  didn't run

Friday:  Rest Day (mowed the grass)

Saturday:  Long Run.  Ran 9.35 miles in 2:03:10; average 13:10 minutes/mile pace; at Alexander Park while Kyra was with Bryn at their lake house.  80 degrees and sunny.  At some point during the past month or so I lost sight of my motto, run for fun. I need to get back to that place. Was scheduled for 16 miles but decided to run as long as it was fun, and walk when I felt the need. Should have worn sunscreen... 80 degrees in the sun ended the fun early. But I felt good when I stopped and have no regrets about not meeting mileage plan. May downgrade to the half marathon on 4/24 if next week is similar to this week. But who knows... maybe next week the long run may be much more fun :-)

Sunday:  Happy Easter! And Happy Birthday to my brother and Zoe (Kyra is dog-sitting for her pups this weekend and is pictured here with Roger giving her a kiss). Ran 5.38 miles in 1:03:53; average 11:52 minutes/mile pace; in neighborhood. It was 83 degrees and sunny. I wore sleeves to cover my sunburned shoulders from yesterday.  After first mile, I decided to try to keep heart rate in Garmin Zone 2 (60-70%) during run since can't hit usual paces because of heat. 70%=148 bpm. When I hit zone 3.1, I walked until heart rate came down to 2.8, then resumed jog. Think this was a much better strategy than pushing too hard to keep an 11 minute pace or simply walking up hills and jogging in between. Not sure if this is the correct range for longer runs, but was a good trial; should probably keep it lower for longer runs because was tired towards end.

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week:  3
• Miles run this week:  19.63
• Highlight of the week:  Ran for Fun this weekend
• Goal for next week:  COMPLETE LONG RUN and get back in the mental game for marathon on 4/24

post failed marathon blues

I started the week recovering from extreme illness before/during/after the Wrightsville Beach marathon. Then felt extremely motivated to redeem myself by succeeding in the next marathon. I kicked butt on the paces prescribed for Wednesday and Thursday. But then had no motivation to complete the long run on the weekend. I turned 42 years young on Saturday.  Read below for details on each day of this week, a summary of accomplishments, highlight of the week, and goal for next week.

Monday:  Rest Day. Thankfully my tummy felt a little better this morning and my sister and I were able to drive home from Wrightsville Beach, NC, without me having to stop for emergency bathroom breaks. I was still quite weak, and depressed, though.

Tuesday:  Rest Day.  Still feeling weak, but a little better than yesterday.

Wednesday:  Ran 4 miles in 43:39; 10:54 average pace.  Coach Josh planned 4 miles at an average of 11 minutes/mile pace.  I ran to the Bonfield's house and returned home, which is exactly 4 miles. These hilly miles kicked my butt! There's no way I can maintain this pace for a hilly marathon... unless I have a miraculous transformation in the next 31 days...  My mile splits were:  10:52, 10:40, 10:47, 11:20.

Thursday:  Ran 5 miles in 52:32; 10:30 average pace.  Since I'm training for my next marathon, which is a hilly course, I knew that most of my runs from now on need to be on hilly paths rather than flat. Earlier this week when I looked at the runs Josh prescribed, I doubted I could hit those paces on hills. As usual, he was right and I was wrong! Today's run was supposed to be 5 miles in 54 minutes. I pushed the pace early on thinking that I would need to bank time for the later miles. I was wrong again. I think this is the first time I've run at Mountain Park without walking up at least one hill per lap. Go me! Mile splits (total surprise and probably a record pace for me at this location): 10:30, 10:23, 10:31, 10:33, 10:35.

Friday:  Swim 1000 meters.

Saturday:  HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!  I was supposed to run 4 miles, but didn't have the time. Kyra and Bryn sang Happy Birthday to me first thing; how sweet!  (Bryn spent the night with us last night.)  Most of the day was spent running errands. We ate breakfast and then went for emissions test, paid taxes for car tag, went shopping for Zoe's birthday present, bought a perfect tea maker for my birthday present, etc. We walked several miles, I think, in the mall. We came home to find that our dog Riley (golden retriever), had eaten two of Kyra's brand new shoes (pictured at the top of this blog post)!  ARGH!!! I was so mad!!! How many times have I told her to keep her shoes out of his reach???  After dropping Bryn off at her house, Kyra wanted to take our dogs to the park. So we did, and walked two miles (two loops) around the park. It was so cool to see the baby ducklings!!! If you look closely, you can see them in the background with their mom in this photo (Kyra is the human pictured).

Sunday:  Long run fail...  Ran 4 miles in 50:18; 12:34 average pace. I was supposed to run 18 miles, but that just didn't happen. I had to squeeze in my long run while Kyra was at Zoe's birthday party. I had 3 hours. I dropped her off and then started my run. My plan was to run for 2.5 hours on the street, then return home and finish on the treadmill so I would be home after the party/when she got home. But... the wind was strong and dark clouds loomed overhead. I just wasn't into it. I returned home after only 4 miles and thought about finishing the run on the treadmill as it began pouring rain outside, but I just wasn't into it. questioning my decision to run marathon in a month. hoping motivation will return next week. Splits: 11:45, 12:13, 12:34, 13:46 (lot of walking up hill).

Weekly summary:

• Days run this week:  3
• Miles run this week:  13
• Highlight of the week:  Wednesday and Thursday runs, hitting/exceeding the planned paces despite the hills. Total surprise to me!
• Goal for next week: complete the long run

Wrightsville Beach Marathon week

I had such high hopes for this race week. It started out great with another donation. I had created an awesome iPod playlist from song suggestions of friends, donors, and my own favorites. I was totally excited about vacationing with my sister. We had a great easy jog and then a walk on the beach the day before the marathon. I started the marathon at the pace my coach prescribed and it felt "easy". I was totally going to set a marathon personal record. But then the dream faded away...  The following paragraphs describe each day of this week leading up to and including the Wrightsville Beach marathon.

Monday:  Rest Day.  I received one more donation for the Cystic Fibrosis charity that I am running my marathon for. Sydney was so sweet to make a generous cash donation! My daughter proclaimed that Bryce's mom (Sydney) is a cool mom because she wrote Kyra's name on the envelope and "4 UR Mom". Bryce and Kyra have been in the same class for several years; kindergarten, 3rd grade, 5th grade (and maybe a few others but my memory isn't the greatest). Bryce is a sweet boy that also is a Georgia Tech fan. I graduated from Georgia Tech in 1990. Most of the people that we know are UGA fans, so GT fans are top rated in my heart. Go Jackets! In addition to her cash contribution, Sydney also gave me great suggestions for my marathon iPod play list. And oddly, several were also Kyra's suggestions as well. Which of course, made Sydney an even cooler mom because she has similar tastes in music to Kyra.

Tuesday:  Intervals.  Ran 4 miles in 43:15, average pace 10:48. Coach Josh prescribed 1 mile warm-up at 11:00, then intervals of 4x3 minutes at 9:50 pace with 2 minute jogging recovery after each, followed by 1 mile cool down at 11:00.  I ran exactly as he prescribed with the exception of doing a 1.1 mile cool down to get to the total of 4 miles since I wasn't sure if I should go by the mileage or the work-out plan, and since it was only 0.1 mile difference, I decided to go the distance. If I didn't have a marathon in 5 days, I probably would have pushed the interval pace harder because I found it easy. But decided to be a good girl and followed the plan prescribed by my coach. It is taper week, after all...

Wednesday:  Swim 800 meters in 25 minutes.  Coach Josh originally planned for me to stationary bike today, but on Monday, when I looked at my weekly schedule, I asked him if I could swim instead. I LOVE swimming (and I bought a new swimsuit on Sunday). He said yes, and readjusted my schedule. I was supposed to swim 1000 yds, but only had 25 minutes between getting Kyra to school and the time I needed to be in the shower to make it to my follow-up sports medicine doctor's appointment, so just swam 25 minutes which ended up at 800 meters. Took it nice and easy; didn't sleep much last night and just didn't have the energy/motivation to push it hard. Nice relaxing swim. My heel still hurts, but is a little better than it was 4 weeks ago. Dr. Gary Levengood gave me another cortisone shot and his physician's assistant showed me more stretches to try. Dr. Levengood said I was his 3rd marathon patient of the day; two other people planning on running the ING Georgia marathon on Sunday were also there worried about whether they would be able to run their marathon. Gary said I was good to go. He's looking forward to our return trip to Chicago in October!  (I ran Chicago last year with his wife and another of our friends and we plan to do it again together in 2010.)

Thursday:  I was supposed to run 5 miles today, but I just didn't have time. Too much to do before leaving town tomorrow. I stayed up way past midnight trying to get everything accomplished. Now what did I forget to pack...

Friday:  Rest/Travel day.  I only slept about 4 hours and am totally exhausted.  My sister arrived at my house around 11 a.m. We took the dogs to Funnybones, picked up lunch from Chik-fil-a, returned home to pack the car and then began our drive to Wrightsville Beach, NC. We arrived around 7 p.m. and stopped at Szechuan 132 for chinese dinner before checking into the Hilton Garden Inn.

Saturday:  My sister and I went to "The Loop" at Wrightsville Beach and ran 2 miles in 23:07 minutes, average pace 11:32. Coach Josh prescribed a mellow prep run of 25 minutes.  We ran two sides of the triangle of "The Loop", then walked the third side on the beach. Great, relaxing run followed by an even more relaxing walk along the beach. We went shopping afterwards, then returned to the hotel for showers. Then we went to lunch at Elijah's and while we were waiting for a table, Coach Josh called. He thinks I can run this race in less than 5 hours, told me the paces that I should run and when to consume gels and said he would send me a text message with the info. I was surprised that he thought I could run it at a 10:45 pace, but knew he's been right in the past when I doubted him. I was excited/nervous and picked at my crabcake lunch. Afterwards, we headed to the race Expo. The Expo was cramped into a tiny space, with lots of people, and I felt a little claustrophobic. I couldn't stay in there long. My sister bought me a small purse (that I picked out) for my early birthday present (my birthday is next week). Then we went to the beach for about an hour. It was warm this morning, but was cool this afternoon. We had our bathing suits on under our clothes, but I was too cold to remove my shirt and shorts. I was very tempted to return to the car and get my jacket. But I was too lazy and laid on the beach reading a magazine instead. After about an hour, we were both too cold to stay any longer and returned to the hotel for dinner. The hotel had a pasta buffet, especially for the marathon. It tasted marvelous! But immediately after eating, I had to return to the room to use the restroom. Unfortunately, I had an upset tummy the rest of the evening and prayed that it would be all out of my system by morning. Between trips to the bathroom, I laid out my clothes, pinned my race number to my shirt, tied the timing chip to my shoe, painted my nails to match my Team 65ROSES shirt, and mentally prepared for the race.

Sunday:  Wrightsville Beach marathon...  Ran 16 miles in 3:26:11, average pace 12:53 (thanks to illness).  I should be writing 26.2 miles in less than 5 hours, average pace of 11:xx, but that just didn't happen. I woke up feeling well, but took an imodium just in case since my tummy had been upset the night before. I showered, dressed, ate a peanut butter clif bar, drank some tart cherry juice, and off we headed to the trolley pick-up. The trolley pick up was just a few tenths of a mile from the hotel. The trolley dropped us off about a half-mile from the start. We waited in line for the bathroom at the trolley drop for quite a while, but then I feared we wouldn't make it to the start in time, so we left the line. We dropped our bags off at the baggage bus, consumed a Hammer Gel and small gatorade fifteen minutes before the race was supposed to start, and then got in line for the porta-potties. Thankfully, they decided to delay the race start by 10 minutes because of trolley delays. I exited the porta potty just as they announced the start, but didn't see my sister anywhere in the pre-dawn darkness. For the first few miles, I kept my eye out of her, but maintained the pace Josh prescribed (11:00 pace for the first 3 miles). About 2 miles into the race, I spotted her about a block ahead of me. I could have sprinted to catch up with her, but decided to run my own race. At mile 3, I increased the pace to 10:49. I consumed another hammer gel at mile 5, just like Josh had told me. I focused my thoughts on Nathaniel during mile 5 to 6, since he's a 5-and-a-half year old with Cystic Fibrosis and his aunt so generously donated to the CF charity that I'm running for.  The first 7 miles ranged from 10:49 to 11:06.  I was so happy and predicting a personal record (PR). I was smiling and mentally rehearsing my victory statement of a sub-5 hour marathon.  But then... the wheels fell off... During mile 8, my stomach started cramping. I was gaining on my sister, but at mile 9 I started desperately looking for a porta-potty.  At mile 9.5, I spotted a porta-potty and got in line, praying I could hold it. Made it into the porta-potty and had my first round of diahrea for the day. That mile took over 20 minutes thanks to having to wait so long. But I had visions of making up some of the lost time. A mile later I was again desperately scanning the landscape for another porta potty. The next one was at a First Aid station. I asked for imodium and they had none. But a spectator overheard the request and caught up to me after I exited the porta-potty and handed me one; she just happened to have it in her purse. I felt for sure this was a sign that things would improve! I took the pill and knew that I would feel better soon. I was wrong. I barely contained myself between porta potties and slowed down drastically. At mile 14, I began to vomit. Then, for the first time, I added walking into the running, and prayed to contain until the next porta potty. I stumbled into the mile 16 aid station and the volunteers asked if I was okay. I said no and they asked what I needed. I said "bathroom" and they pointed me towards the porta potty. After using it, I stumbled out and collapsed. When I came to, I was told my race was over. I was so disappointed. I had simply lost more fluids than I could take in and had become too dehydrated. I really wanted to finish the race, but was just too sick. An aid station worker told me that there are hundreds of marathons around the country so I should just think of this as a 16 mile training run and register for another race. It made sense, but I still was very sad and disappointed. I kept thinking of Nathaniel, Tony and Susan (the three people with Cystic Fibrosis that I was running for), and felt horrible for letting them down, but vowed to make it up by completing a marathon in April, instead of now. They called a van to pick me and another woman up, who had to drop out too. She also wasn't feeling well, but looked better than me. The van took us to the medical tent at the finish area/bag pick-up. After receiving sufficient fluids, I got my bag, put on my fleece jacket and headed straight to the porta potty. I went back and forth between the spectator/finish area and the porta potty. I wanted to see my sister finish, but didn't know if I would be able. Josh called after he saw my texts/tweets; thankfully I was sitting on the curb watching finishers at that point, rather than in the porta potty. I fought back the tears as I talked to him. I felt like I let so many people down, especially him. He said the most important thing was that I was/would be okay and I just need to focus on feeling better. Easier said than done. Fortunately, I got to see my sister round the corner and finish in 5:27:45. I was so proud of her! She asked how I finished so much faster than her and I explained that I didn't. Then I had to run to the porta potty again while she grabbed her bag. We started walking back to the hotel and I wasn't sure I would make it without ruining my outfit. I told her I would leave the room door ajar and then I ran to the hotel; I made it just in time. I spent the rest of the afternoon bouncing back and forth between the bed and the toilet. We bought more imodium and went out for a late lunch as soon as my stomach had slowed a little. I took the imodium and ate some soup. I hoped for the best, but by the time we returned to the hotel, I was back in the bathroom. Unfortunately, I was very ill the rest of the day. I prayed I would be over it by morning since we had planned to drive back home tomorrow. So disappointed...

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week:  3
• Miles run this week:  22
• Highlight of the week:  spending time with my sister at the beach and watching her finish her first marathon.
• Goals for next week:  feel better

this doesn't feel like taper...

Hmmm...  So the two to three weeks before a marathon is supposed to be a "taper" period...  It's not feeling like it...  Maybe because in the past I tapered too much? and I'm working with a running coach this time? and I moved my long run from Sunday of last week to Monday of this week?

For most people training for a marathon, this would be a "taper" week, but since I postponed my 19-mile run from last week (Sunday) to Monday, it's not feeling like a taper week. My 19 mile long run was horrible (it's a girl thing)!  But my run in the rain on Wednesday was refreshing; I totally LOVED my track work out on Thursday; I hit my fastest pace for a non-race run this year on Saturday; and Sunday's run is done.  This week was my highest mileage week of the year (41.81 miles), and I'm excited about my fastest pace run of the year (10:33) as well.

I received three more donations for the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) charity that I'm running my third marathon for. My friends Erin and Karolin generously donated in support of me and our mutual friend Susan (who has CF). And my Uncle Virgil's family graciously donated as well. This brings my total donations received up to $250. Thanks so much!

If you want to read more about each of my runs this week, my daily details follow:

Monday:  Long Run.  19 miles in 3:47:27, 11:58 minutes/mile average pace.  I worked late and started the run at 8 p.m. feeling very tired and crappy/crampy. I just wasn't into it, which is exactly why I carefully plan my marathons for a day that I'm pretty sure will not be impacted by female monthly challenges...

Tuesday:  Rest Day

Wednesday:  Recovery Run.  Ran 4.28 miles in 49:21, 11:31 minutes/mile average pace. Coach Josh prescribed 4 easy miles. I worked from home today and decided to run to the Bonfield's house and back (a 4 mile loop) after dropping Kyra off at school.  It was raining lightly.  It's been a while since I've run this route and couldn't remember if I should turn on Arrowhead or Warrior, early in the route. I decided to go on to Warrior, knowing I could get to the next road/turn from there if it was too far. And guess what? I should have turned on Arrowhead! Oh well, it only added a quarter mile to the total. It was 45 degrees and lightly raining. I wore tights, a long sleeved shirt, a light rain running jacket, a hat and sunglasses (to keep the rain out of my eyes).  I was too warm!  I had forgotten how hilly this route is. I wore my Garmin 405, but didn't pay attention to it while running since this was supposed to be a recovery run. I just ran by perceived exersion rather than based on trying to hit a certain pace. I was completely soaked by the end of the run. In the afternoon, I noticed that my heel was hurting a little more than it has been. Guess it's from the hilly route. Iced and stretched it.

Thursday:  Speed Work.  Ran 5.53 miles in 1:01:04, 11:02 minutes/mile average pace.  Coach Josh prescribed 1 mile warm-up at 11:00 minutes/mile, then three 1-mile repeats at 10:15 minutes per mile pace with a 2 minute jogging recovery between, and then a 1 mile cool-down at 11:00 minutes/mile.  Kyra's with her dad tonight, so I worked late, came home and changed/fed the dogs/cat, and then went to the high school track. I was glad a few lights were on. A soccer team was practicing in the parking lot because the football/soccer field had signs to stay off the grass (due to rain). I was happy that it wasn't raining when I managed to fit my run in! I nailed the paces:  11:01, 2 min recovery, 10:13, 2 min recov, 10:12, 2 min recov, 10:09, 2 min recov, 11:00.  It was a GREAT workout!  I was a little too warm in long sleeves and tights (55 degrees, overcast/humid).  I fine-tuned my marathon iPod play list today. I started listening to it at work, and continued through my run tonight. I decided to delete a couple of songs that were suggested by friends (who don't run), and added a few others. Coach Josh sent me "Free/Zulu" by VAST. I like the tempo, and can relate to being "free" from what other's tell me to do, but hope he doesn't mean that I consider myself "free" from obeying to his advice at the conclusion of this marathon. My running has improved significantly, even with injuries, since he became my running coach. There is still tons of room for improvement, so I don't plan to set him "free" anytime soon. He's an awesome coach!

Friday:  Rest Day

Saturday:  Tempo Run. Ran 5 miles in 52:46, 10:33 minutes/mile average pace!  My scheduled run for today was supposed to be 5 miles in a sub-11:00 minute/mile pace. I was feeling exceptionally speedy today so started out at 10:57 and pushed the pace progressively until the end. I was nervous about running too fast too soon, so mile 2 was 10:42, mile 3 was 10:37, mile 4 was 10:32, and then I ran as fast as I could for that final mile which was 9:58. This makes this run the fastest pace for a non-race run that I've done all year! (My fastest race pace this year was 10:24 in the Peachtree City 10K on 1/16.)  I received my Team 65ROSES race shirt today; love the blue color!

Sunday:  Long Slow Distance.  Ran 8 miles in 1:31:00, 11:22 minutes/mile average pace.  Perplexed at how I ended on an exact minute... My legs were tight/tired before I started, and mentally I was tired at mile 6, but still managed to progressively increase my pace. Primarily because I was just ready to get it over with! This has been a long week.  My pace for each mile was:  11:52, 11:47, 11:40, 11:36, 11:27, 11:18, 10:53, 10:27.

Weekly Summary:

• Days run this week:  5
• Miles run this week:  41.81
• Highlight of the week:  fastest average pace (for a non-race run) of 2010, highest mileage week of 2010, running in the rain, great track work-out
• Goals for next week:  Run an AWESOME marathon with my sister!

2 weeks until marathon #3

Yay!  I've received 6 donations for the Cystic Fibrosis (CF) charity that I will be running my marathon for!  I sent out an e-mail to most of my address book, posted on my Facebook page, and sent out a few tweets on Twitter soliciting donations.  My first donation came from Erika (my twitter friend that I've never met but we have running in common).  She told me that her nephew, Nathaniel, has CF.  He's 5 and a half years old and is such a cutie (pictured with Erika)!  When I first created a Twitter account, I had no idea how many amazing people I would meet!  The Burroughs family provided the second donation; Susan has CF and is the reason I'm running for this charity.  She founded the Reaching Out Foundation which provides financial assistance to familes who have a family member with CF.  My cousin Teresa was third to donate and is just proud to have an athletic relative.  My friend, Helen, who also is a friend of Susan, provided a generous donation.  And Amber, another dear friend who is the mother of my daugher's favorite baby-sitter, contributed as well.  My aunt forwarded my email to her friend, Pam, whose cousin has CF; she made a generous donation too. Thanks Aunt Cathy for forwarding my e-mail!  As of the end of this week, $135 has been contributed in my name to the John S. Pickering Foundation.

John Spencer Pinkering ("John John") was diagnosed with CF at age 2 and a half in 1995, and his parents were devastated. Once they became educated about CF, they knew that he could live a good life with the help of aggressive daily medical intervention, and we were determined to see him thrive. When he was four, they founded the John S. Pickering Foundation in his honor. Created out of their love for their son, and their dedication to the CF community, the foundation provides financial assistance to numerous CF causes. The primary goal of the John S. Pickering Foundation is to help provide quality of life to all CF patients while researchers are working to find a cure. They also support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, whose only mission is to fund CF research.

If you'd like to make a donation, please click here to get to my donation page.  I will be running an inaugural marathon in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, on March 21, 2010, to support this worthy cause.

Now on to my week in running summary... I had a great run on Thursday, surprising myself of actually being able to achieve the pace that my running coach had prescribed!  I enjoyed running in the warm weather on Saturday as well.  I was supposed to run 19 miles on Sunday, but talked my coach into postponing that until Monday (it's a girl thing).  I managed to drop my yearly average pace, yet again!  I'm still behind on mileage/days run goals for 2010, but am pretty sure I'll catch up.  Read below for more info...

Monday:  Rest Day

Tuesday:  Ran 6 miles in 1:08:34, 11:26 minutes/mile average pace.  My legs are still very sore from Sunday's 17 mile run.  If I didn't have a coach to report too (or a marathon soon), I would have taken another rest day. But decided to be an athlete and Just do it!  I normally push miles 4 and 5, but did the minimum asked today since my legs are so sore.

Wednesday:  Was supposed to ride the stationary bike today, but worked late and had no desire to drive 30 minutes to the gym.

Thursday:  Ran 5 miles in 52:57, 10:35 minutes/mile average pace. Coach Josh originally prescribed the run to be at a 10:40 pace. Earlier in the week I complained that I doubted that was possible due to lingering leg soreness. So he changed my plan to sub-11:00 minutes per mile. This afternoon, my legs were feeling better and I decided to go for the 10:40 pace.  I was surprised that I was actually capable of doing it!

Friday:  Rest Day

Saturday:  Ran 3.05 miles in 35:08, 11:31 minutes/mile average pace (after jogging/walking 1.03 miles with Riley).  Coach Josh prescribed an easy 3 mile run. It was a gorgeous 60 degree, sunny afternoon!  I took the dogs to the vet this morning for vaccinations.  I didn't think much about it and decided to take Riley with me for my first mile. He slowed to a slow walk at less than a half-mile and I felt guilty; he did receive 3 shots a few hours ago (one in each of three legs). So I walked with him back home and then re-started my 3-mile run.  I was low on energy, but pushed my way through it.

Sunday:  Today was supposed to be a 19 mile run. But it's that-time-of-the-month and I just couldn't do it today. I'll do it tomorrow, instead.

Weekly summary:

• Days run this week:  3
• Miles run this week:  14.05
• Highlight of the week:  5 miles at 10:35 average pace
• Goal for next week:  do the 19 miles that I didn't do this week

Running for Cystic Fibrosis

Well I finally get to check an item off of my To Do List that I've been transferring over day to day to day for weeks now.  I've registered for the Miles Everywhere program for fundraising for Cystic Fibrosis.  The past two years I've run the ING Georgia half marathon for Team 65ROSES to support my friend, Susan. The picture in this blog post is of us (I'm on the left) at the pre-race pasta dinner/silent auction in March 2009.  Susan has Cystic Fibrosis and is the founder of the Reaching Out Foundation.  She had a double lung transplant a decade ago and although she's had challenges along the way, she still inspires me by her active lifestyle which includes playing tennis regularly.  She was one of the first people to welcome my daughter and me into the neighborhood and made us feel that without a doubt, moving here was the right decision. She's been a great friend over the past 6 years and I'm honored to help fund-raise for her.

Like I said earlier, I've run the ING Georgia event for the past two years.  But several months ago, a friend suggested an inaugural marathon in Wrightsville Beach, NC, which would be held on the same date as the ING Georgia. I was torn, but ultimately decided I would prefer to run the Wrightsville Beach marathon this year.  I've spent a lot of time there on business trips over the past two decades, love the area, have run on most of the course, and just want to do something different, especially to support an inaugural event in a town that I consider my "home away from home". I sadly broke the news to Susan that I wouldn't be running ING, but told her that if there was any other way that I could help support the cause to please let me know.  In February she told me about the "Miles Everywhere" option, in which athletes could chose an endurance event other than the ING and still be a part of the 65ROSES team.  SCORE!!!

Click here for my fundraising page.  I'd greatly appreciate any donation that you're able to make.  And if you, or someone you know, has Cystic Fibrosis, let me know and I'll dedicate at least a mile of happy, healing thoughts to you/your friend.  Mile 5-6 is reserved for Nathaniel, the nephew of one of my twitter friends, who is 5 and a half years old and has Cystic Fibrosis.  His aunt made a generous contribution today.  I hope you'll also help support this very worthy cause!