Despite Eastern...

OK. So we all know how much I hate running on eastern. So I was not exactly ecstatic when for my 18 mile run this weekend 10 of those miles were on Eastern. Luckily, it was not very hot (since there is basically not a lot of shade). The next 8 miles of the run was around the Lunken Airport bike trail. I don’t know which one is worse!

Despite all of this, I was feeling pretty good when I woke up. I met up with my fellow Chicago group (there are about 5 of us in the group that are running Chicago and we are all around the same pace.) Saturday we were light, because of vacations…there were only 3 of us. Anyway, I felt like we were kind of taking it out a little fast. Especially since I REALLY have to get into a groove on Eastern since it is sooooooo BORING. I was a little worried.

Our first mile was 10:16. Our next was 10:11. This was not boding well because we all try to keep our splits between 10:30 and 11:00.
We got back on track with the next one, with a 10:23. I was starting to feel really great. Our first five we finished at 51:00.

After turning around at Montgomery Inn, I felt super powerful. Maybe it was the disgusting Gu that I gagged down.
I broke away from the group. I knew that I would probably poop out in the last few miles, but I wanted to test it. I figured, maybe I CAN run a 10-10:15 minute mile pace the whole time. No better time to test it in a long run. My splits were getting super fast (for me). 10:00. 9:50!!!

Then they started to drop back. I was back to my normal 10:22s and 10:39s. Even a 10:50.

BUT the slowest split I had was 12:00 (that was my 18th mile). So, I KNOW that I can’t really take all of my mileage at 10:00, because I would die at the end. But I do know that if I’m feeling good, its ok to do a few miles at sub 10:30. That made me feel pretty good about my training!

Upping the Mileage

This marathon training has gone so fast! I don't remember upping my mileage this much this quickly...but maybe that is because I was just so amazed I was running double digit mileage at the time.

Tomorrow is 15-16 miles for me. It starts at Newport on the Levee and is described as a "pretty flat run". I know exactly what that means: Eastern Avenue. Oh how I love Eastern avenue (see hereand here). I am obviously being sarcastic. That just means I have to get mentally pumped up tonight. AND load up my ipod with really great music. At least I can be guilt free when I go out with my friends tomorrow night to gorge on bad food. :)

I didn't get to run or workout at all last night because I ended up working really late. This is doubly bad because there is nothing open downtown for takeaways and I always end up eating really bad food, and then not being able work it off. It also sucks because running gets rid of all the cortisol I work up inside after a stressful day...and of course days where you have to work late are the most stressful. Oh well, I am going to try and get some good sleep tonight so I can have a kick-butt run tomorrow!

TAPER!

Yeah! Tomorrow is my first taper run! 12 miles. I looked at the route though, and I must say, I am getting pretty tired of running on Eastern. But, at the same time, Eastern doesn't seem to be such a mental block for me anymore.

This is also when I need to be REALLY careful about what I eat (I say, as I wolf down a huge slice of the cheesecake someone brought into work to share). I think my body is still adjusting to the 20 I did last Saturday. I am constantly hungry and eating all the time at my desk. Earlier this week my body was REALLY screwed up when I woke up at midnight with a growling stomach. I couldn't get back to sleep until I ate some trail mix. Taper is when my body is still really hungry, but I'm not actually doing as much mileage, so I probably shouldn't eat like I just ran a 20. Don't get me wrong, 12 miles is nothing to sneeze at in the big scheme of things, but wolfing down an entire stack of pancakes with an order of cheesey hashbrowns after my run probably shouldn't be in the cards. This is also easier said than done since this weekend is Oktoberfest and with my hedonistic friends I KNOW that I will be overindulging. Also tonight I have a class reunion. The invite said "heavy appetizers" and "wine", both of which I love for a meal.

I am going to try and follow the taper meal plan from my Runner's World book I got for joining the Roncker group. The fun part is the last week where you fat load. Well, it sounds fun, but when they say fat they don't mean french fries and donuts. They mean lean fats. Not saturated fats. Also, it said that during that last week you will feel extremely lethargic, but that's okay, because you will actually use the energy during the run. I am curious to see how this plan goes, since I am notorious for not being able to follow a diet.

Hurrah for Me!

I did it! I ran the entire 20 miles!
I felt like I wanted to wear a sticker the whole day that said "be nice to me, I ran 20 miles today"...you know, sort of like the ones they give you when you give blood.
The thing that was bad is that it was raining the ENTIRE time. I don't usually mind, but when my running clothes were soaked it started to make me cold. But not until mile 11, so I guess that is good.
I pretty much felt great the whole time. The first 11 was cake! We saw the runners from the Fleet Feet group, who I also think were doing their twenty (although I have heard that they have already done a few 20s). I smiled at all of them and said good job to some of them because I heard through the grapevine that they think the Roncker group is too serious and not nice. :) It is kind of like the Sharks and Jets of running. I am just joking of course. :)
Anyway, I stopped at the restrooms at the 11 mile, forgetting that pulling soaking wet running tights back on is kind of hard to do. That is when I started to get freezing. It probably didn't help that my soaking wet shirt that was under my jacket kept rolling up as well. I put my gloves back on, which I hardly ever use.
By mile 14 I was DEAD. I just kept thinking "all I have left is Eastern, and I am done".
I HATE Eastern. It is the longest, flattest street ever. I just kept thinking I would be faster if I walked. My legs were KILLING me. I did it though. I finished. Now I KNOW that I can do the 26.2. Hurrah!

Periodization

So, I first heard of this concept last Tuesday night at the running clinic we had about being mentally prepared for the race. Basically, it is the concept of breaking down the race in your mind into attainable pieces. I think it makes sense to do this and I have been doing this subconsciously since I have started running (even in high school cross country to some degree). I have no idea how you would get through a race otherwise. It is a little motivational thing for me ("if I can get past this hill...").
This REALLY helped me out when we did the 20. I broke it into
1. the part around downtown
2. the part in Newport (which I felt was already ingrained in me from the Thanksgiving Day Run...which always helps).
3. Downtown to Sawyer Point
4. Sawyer Point to the overlook at Eden Park
5. Eden Park to the Running Spot
6. The Running Spot to Delta UDF
7. Delta UDF to the purple people bridge
8. Done!

So, as I said before...Eastern was LOOOOOOOONG. I am familiar with it from driving to work sometimes, but not in a running way. So mentally, to get through it, I also had to break up Eastern, once I got there and my legs were screaming at me. So I did Delta to Schmidt Fields, Schmidt Fields to the overpass, the overpass to Montgomery Inn, and Montgomery Inn to the Bridge. I don't know why this is such a huge mental block for me. As I understand it is at the end of the race too, so I will really have to get over that.

Also I have been getting those day-by-day emails from the marathon.Every day breaks down one of the miles. I can't handle that. If I broke it down that much I would never finish the race! Nice idea though.

My ipod was mocking me

OK, so this is a long one.

So I don't really know if I had a good run or a bad run, but I guess I learned about running long distances.

My first four miles were great! They seemed more like two miles. I was at the end of the pack but I didn't really care. I had a great mix of music going and was really concentrating on the music and keeping a nice, easy pace. The next two miles weren't too bad either. The only weird thing is that since it was so windy I had to put my gloves back on. This is strange for me because even in zero degrees I have to take my gloves off because my hands get soooo hot. I am thinking that maybe this time I didn't get so hot because I was more hydrated? I usually am like a camel and drink maybe 2 glasses of water a day (I know, I know, this is bad). This time I had a glass of water before I left, two cones of water at the Spot and then 2 cones of Gatorade at the 4 mile mark. Maybe this is all psychosomatic, but I think it really made a huge difference. I didn't feel like peeling off all of my clothes after the first mile. OK, so I'm sold on drinking more. Water, of course.

The next two miles (mile 7 and 8) I was getting a little antsy. One reason is that my pants kept falling down below my gut so that they were like lo-rise pants. So my belly was REALLY REALLY cold. Another reason (I think) is because we were running on Eastern and it is all flat with no turns for like 4 miles. Boring. And really...is there a rule that on Eastern you don't take your Christmas decorations down ever?

The next water/gatorade stop I had to pump myself up. I was mentally finished and I still had a 5k all uphill. I was DRAGGING. It was horrible. My legs started to feel heavy. I looked at my watch and to keep the pace of a 10 min mile for the whole run I was completely on schedule. I had 30 minutes left to complete the run. The first runners in the A group (which is the fast group, who started a half hour later than us in the B group) started to pass me. Coach Joe started coming up on my right and asked how I felt. I shouted back "TIRED". He told me that I had less than two miles to go. Normally I would have thought 'wow, thats less than I thought' but today I was more like 'yeah, I guess that's about right". We finally hit the light at the top of Linwood. Now I felt like I was in reasonable distance to finish. When I hit the intersection at Edwards and Linwood a pain shot up the back of my left hamstring. I was now pacing with one of the guys who passed me up back at the beginning of Delta.
Stettinius Road...1 mile left. There was absolutely no second wind.

THEN my ipod starts playing "Push It". This just made me angry. Here I am, just concentrating on picking up my right foot and then my left and this stupid song comes on. I couldn't even keep pace with it. I was going SOOOOO SLOWLY.

But I made it back. And I realized that a good deal of the pack (well, maybe 8 people) that I started with was actually behind me. I have no idea how/where that happened. Two hours 10 minutes. That's an 11:29 pace. BLAH.

Late Posting

I have been bad, and not posting lately. It has been a bit crazy, and I haven't been doing so well on my running schedule this week due to work and travelling.

But on Valentine's Day, Bill and I DID start the morning with a nice, romantic, 15 mile run. Haha.

I was not looking forward to running nearly 3 loops of Central Park, so I decided that we should run the West Side Highway bike/jog trail. I forgot how much I hate running it until we were running. Ok. Ok. It wasn't as bad as it was in the summer, but it still is pretty boring.

Here is why I hate it:

1. It is flat the entire way (much like Eastern) with NO turns (much like Eastern) so it is BORING.
2. It is right next to the Hudson, so there is tons of exhaust from boats and helicopters.
3. It is right next to the West Side Highway so there is tons of exhaust from trucks and cars.
4. The sun beats down on you since there is no shade, so it's HOT.
5. Even though running down the west side of Manhattan sounds like it would be beautiful and scenic, it really isn't.

The cool this is that if you think about it, it is kind of cool to run all the way from the Upper West Side alllllll the way to the bottom tip of Manhattan. At least, that is how far Bill and I made it before we had to turn around.

I was so hitting the wall after we turned around. And it was agonizing, because you can tell EXACTLY where you are on the trail (because it is marked every mile and also because you see the streets going by..."We are only at 42nd!!!! We have 57 freaking blocks to go!!!").

Despite all of that, we finished our 15 miles with a 2:22 (about a 9:28 pace). I felt like I was dying at the end and doing like 11 minute miles, but apparently I wasn't.

I think I am getting fast.

I was aiming for a 9:50 pace, which is what the McMillan running calculator says is at the upper range of what I should be training at for my long runs. It FELT like a 9:50. So I guess that's good! We'll see about this week. I have a feeling I might be a little slower due to my less-than-stellar ability to stick to my workout plan this week. :)

Crap Run

This weekend the weather was beautiful!

Unfortunately we also hit record temps (over 90 on Sunday).

My first "hot" run of the season is always crap. This one was really bad though.

Bill and I set out to do an easy 6-mile loop of Central Park on Sunday morning. It was super crowded too because the More marathon was going on. (I have no idea how those ladies ran in that blistering heat, especially since, if they are like me, they are used to running in the 60s, max.) So everyone not running the race (including bikers and walkers) had to run in two lanes. I know this sounds like no big deal, but on a nice weekend day in New York, in the park, this is a disaster. I have no complaint about the bikers, they were actually on their best behavior. But it was still just way too crowded and way too hot.

I felt badly for Bill because I was in a grumpy mood, PLUS it was the kind of run that I just needed to finish mentally, so that I could be like "OK. I can run in the heat now." Not good for morale.

I also had to keep stopping for water about every mile.

When I got about halfway up the eastern side of the park I told Bill I needed to stop.

I freaked him out I think, because my face was bright red. I also needed to sit down (which I did, on the fence) and was dizzy. I also had a headache. I did not feel good at all. After much cajoling I promised Bill I would walk the bridal path back to 96th street while he ran the rest of the loop.

GRRRRRRR.

But YES. I'm GLAD I STOPPED. (In the long run.)

What I Did For Love

Chafing.

I know. I am an idiot, merely because this has happened to me before and I should know better by now. And I DID put Body Glide on. Not between my thighs though, because I was wearing bike shorts. (I have really only had problems when I wear the shorts that swish between my legs). Well, I hope I learned my lesson this time. If I didn’t there is something wrong with me.

Saturday we had a 12 mile run. Madison, Observatory, Linwood, Delta (MOLD…that’s how I remembered it) Eastern and then picking up the Pig Course all the way back to the store. I felt burning the entire time I was running, but really, I thought it was just the scabs rubbing against each other from last time. Plus, when I checked at the water stop, my thighs looked fine.

I finished my run (pretty painfully), went upstairs at the Spot, stretched, looked at my legs…GROSSSSSSSS!!!! Blood was running down my legs and I had these huge, raised gashes on both sides. Not cool. I actually for real screamed in the shower, and I was NOT being a drama queen. It really hurt that badly. And I have a high tolerance for pain.

They look a lot better now, but are still pretty gross. They have that gross scabbiness on them, where the scabs start to change colors. It hurts to wear jeans but it is even WORSE wearing a skirt. I am using a LOT of Neosporin.

Oh. And I think I know WHY I have to use BodyGlide there now. My thighs have never really had the girth that they have now. So I’ve never had a problem with them rubbing up against each other when I run. At least that is what I am telling myself so that I can feel good about something (muscle gain) instead of focusing on my awful pain and gross inner thighs.

I do some pretty idiotic things to my body as a marathon runner.

Less than Two Weeks to Go!

By this time in two weeks I will already have finished my marathon! This time my training has absolutely flown by. I don’t know if it is because I have already gone through this before, or if it was because my training period was shorter, or if it was just because I have been having a lot more fun with it. Anyway, I am so pumped and ready.

The only thing that I do worry about is the flat course. Flat courses seem 10x as long to me. My 5k in Mason a few weeks ago seemed like eternity. Imagine that for 26.2 miles!

However, Coach Joe F has been really good about having us train on the flat parts of Cincinnati (yes, there are flat parts). Even if it means running on Eastern every Saturday, I guess this is a good thing. I am definitely more used to running flat than I was in May.

This Saturday we did 12 miles. It wasn’t too bad except for feeling a little weird about running on the highway. It was only a little bit on 50 (a quarter of a mile?) and the shoulder was superwide, and there was hardly any traffic, but even so…

It didn’t seem like the run was that long. I think it’s actually because we were running a lot of the same territory we ran the week before with our 20, but almost half. It was nice mentally to start at CrossRoads and cover that same beginning territory (the week before we had started at the Running Spot…about 3 miles from where we were at CrossRoads). So already, I felt like I didn’t have as far to go. Plus, there was no Eden Park.

Don’t get me wrong, there WERE hills. Hills, like all the way from the bottom of Linwood to the top. (Why are these hills always at the END of our mileage)?

I also got a chance to try out my new Triks skirt. It is EXTREMELY lightweight. It almost made me feel like I wasn’t wearing anything. (This could also be because it has spankies instead of the little shorts underneath that I am accustomed to.) It took awhile to get used to, but I think I ended up liking it better than my Pearl Izumi skirt. I will definitely be taking this one to Chicago!

I am bummed because I am missing my group runs this week, so I will have to be super vigilant about running on my own. (I stink at this).

Today is also the day I start eating like a runner should. Which is too bad, since I’m having lunch for work at Palomino’s. ☹

A Little Help From My Friends

I must say, I never thought I would feel so great after a 20 mile run!

Don’t get me wrong…it was very very difficult. In fact, I was NOT in the mood and I really didn’t think I was going to make it.

Let me back up…

It is not a good sign when you don’t sleep very well because you are dreaming that you wake up an hour and a half late for your 20-miler. Stress. Plus, I just really really didn’t feel like doing 20 miles. I had carb loaded all day Friday, went to bed early, etc, but it just didn’t matter. Plus, I was stupid and wore my skirt without the pockets, so I had no place for my Gu. My running buddy, Lindsey suggested sticking them in my sports bra. Knowing my history of chafing, I made sure I used BodyGlide first. It ended up working out perfectly! So now I have a new trick.

We were off to a slow start, with a 13 minute first mile. Everyone I run with started freaking out because we were going too slow. I was like “No! No! I would rather go slow at first and have energy at the end!” We weaved our way through Hyde Park and then through Mariemont. It seemed to take forever. I couldn’t believe that our first water stop was only 3.5 miles in. I was already tired.

The way the run was set up was that it was 16.75 miles. If you wanted to add on, you could do the 1.7 mile loop in the middle of the run 2 more times, or you could add 4 miles on at the end. My group decided on the pretty, flat, 1.7 miles in Mariemont in the middle of the run rather than adding on at the end. Not only is it a mental block to end at the Running Spot and then know you have 4 miles to go, but those 4 miles happened to be in Eden Park which means HILLS. We were also like “Aww. It’s so cute here! I’m glad we’re doing our loops here!” But by the third loop we were like “AGH! Get me out of Mariemont!” As we ran out onto Wooster Pike Sarah even said “Wow! Civilization! I feel like I’m back out of 1940!”

By this time I was feeling like it was the longest run ever. Sarah felt like it was the shortest run ever and Lindsey said she felt in-between. That made me laugh.

Next came Wooster Road. Let me just say…I have a new appreciation for Eastern. I just canNOT run on industrial roads. They make me crazy. Not to mention the fact that some of it did not have sidewalks and I felt like I was going to be run over by a car. I was so glad I have driven that way to my friend’s, because I knew where I was going and didn’t second guess myself. All the girls kept asking “are you SURE we are going the right way?” Then Sarah and I saw a big group of people. I thought it was weird because there shouldn’t be another water stop for awhile. They were all wearing really bright colors. Like day-glo orange. Yes, they were a juvenile detention work crew. Bizarre, the things you see on your runs. ☺

By the time we made it to Lunken I really didn’t know if my legs could move anymore. Lindsey and I debated walking when we got to Delta. I was not looking forward to our home stretch. We only had 4.25 miles left, but it was all up hill.

I shot another Gu. I have to admit…they are awesome. Lindsey laughs at me because she says I ‘take them like a pro’ now. They keep my legs going when I swear there is no human way that my legs could still be moving.

I thought about walking even more as we finally hit Delta. But my legs just kept moving. I wasn’t going to stop them. But by this time my body was in robot mode. So much so, that when I could not go straight because a car was blocking a driveway in front of me it took TONS of effort (mental and physical) to go around it.

We stopped for water one last time with a little more than a mile to go. I walked two blocks to Stettinius, and started running again. I knew I had exactly one mile left. When we got to the O’Bryonville shops I even kicked it up a notch. I looked at my watch. 3:30!!!!

I have no idea how that is possible, but I was soooooooo pumped. I realized that if it wasn’t for the girls, I would not have done it. I so would have been walking for a lot of those 20. I was so impressed with us! Hurrah!

Out of Commission

So, I don’t know if I should have run Saturday or not. The thing is, I was feeling pain in my legs on Friday. So much so, that I had to ask my friends/husband during lunch ‘should I run tomorrow if my legs hurt like they do today?’…which is actually a sign to me that no, I should not run. I have been having a lot of pain in my shins and knees, right where the bone is. I have had issues with vitamin D deficiency before (which causes bone pain) so I was thinking that might be why.

So, against my better judgement, I went running on Saturday. I made it about a half of a mile when my lower leg started feeling really tight. So I stopped to stretch it out. Then I picked up running. It hurt more. I decided to make it across the bridge into Ohio before I stopped to stretch again. Now the pain was shooting up into my knee and right above my knee. I started walking. It felt better so I thought I could run again. Ran for about 2 minutes through really bad pain. Walked. Ran. Nope. More pain. Walked and felt fine.

This is when I ran into Coach Joe B and told him my predicament. His solution was to walk (since I felt okay when I walked) and then when I saw people turning back from the first group, to turn back as well. Also, I need to see someone from the clinic, which is on Saturday, at the latest. Pttt.

Walking sucks. Especially by yourself and especially on Eastern and especially when you want to run.

But I just called to get a referral for a sports medicine specialist. I really want to run this marathon and I KNOW that running injured is a bad idea but I can already tell that it is going to drive me absolutely crazy if I cannot run for more than like 2 days. I am already going nuts just thinking about it!

Oh, and the reason I think it was good that I went running? Because if I hadn't, I probably would have ignored the problem. Having a coach tell you to see someone about your problem actually makes you think that you should do it.

Easy Day

Tomorrow I have an easy day and I am so glad, because tonight is our company outing and I want to make sure I can stay out late. I just have to make sure that I watch what I eat so that I don't have problems like last time. Looks like we are hitting Eastern again for a nice 12 miles. I almost feel like, 'what's the point?'. Just kidding. But 12 miles does seem really really light. Especially since we usually do a 10 or 12 mile loop and then add on from there.

What I'm most excited about (runningwise) this weekend though, is the Race for the Cure. It will be a good, fun way to do a recovery run. Plus, the course is completely flat. Last year, my friend Jen and I ran it and it was a lot of fun. Plus, it was just a very very inspirational race. I had just read Why I Wore Lipstick to my Mastectomy for my bookclub, so felt like I had a better understanding of what breast cancer survivors go through. It was really moving when at the beginning of the race, they had all of the survivors march in. There were so many of them!

Plus, I coerced all of my non-running friends to run again. Of course, this includes big plans for IHOP afterwards.


Which is good, because my tapeworm is back and I am eating like crazy. This does not bode well for my parents, who are having a cookout this weekend, but IHOP can be sure it will sure be making money on me.

This time though, its weird, because I am so hungry all the time, but I can't eat that much. I mean, like I will eat a burger and be so full that I can't finish my fries. But then, less than an hour later I am starving like I haven't eaten in an entire day. So I've been grazing like crazy.

Bill thinks its because my metabolism is fast but my stomach is small. Well, and of course all the calories I am now burning on my long runs. At any rate, I am not complaining because I LOVE to eat.