Things to do before I turn 30: Finish a Marathon...Check!

On May 16th 2010 I crossed the finish line in Wilmington DE and now I can truly call myself a MARATHONER!  I definitely had my doubts about my ability to do this and now that I've crossed that initial barrier I feel as though I can do anything.  It is truly an amazing feeling. 

During the race the fellow runners were supportive and upbeat (most of them at least).  I found myself cheering on others which in turn made me feel optimistic and uplifted.  There were not nearly as many onlookers as I anticipated, but they made a huge difference.  One guy sat on the sidewalk with his drum set playing for what must have been hours.  Little kids handed out water and watched from their yards.  At one point a little boy yelled "Run faster!" at us which brought a smile to all of our faces.  My Uncle John and his wife Donna were near the finish line cheering for us.  It was fantastic to see their smiling faces!

The race was a social event in itself.  We met Maniacs, 50 Staters like my dad and THE original 50 Stater, Steve Boone.  The runners were so diverse.  There was a 70 year old man that started along side us that had a slow shuffling run but never stopped moving.  There were elite runners striving for their personal best time.  And the winner, one onlooker pointed out that we were only a few yards behind the leader (plus the 45 minute head start!).  But my favorite runners were the ones just like us, normal folks that wanted to do something extraordinary.

As I crossed the finish line it was exhilarating!  My dad was just in front of me and Sam just behind me.  The feeling of pride was overwhelming.  My body was happy to be done as well.  My feet were covered in the largest most disgusting blisters I've ever seen and my body ached.  But it doesn't matter...I'm a MARATHONER!

Now that I've reached my goal of running a marathon everyone asks if I planning on running 50 like my dad.  I'm not sure that I am interested in doing that many but I think I would like to run one or two a year.  The next goal that I want to accomplish is to qualify for the Boston Marathon.  In order to do that I will need to finish a race in 3 hours and 40 minutes.  I have given myself until my 34th birthday to complete this goal.  In the meantime I would like to enter the big marathons with lots of spectators like New York, Chicago, San Diego, Philadelphia, Miami and of course Columbus.

I plan to continue my blog but now the purpose will be to chronicle my journey to Boston.  First stop...a 4 hour marathon.  Columbus is on October 17th...so the training begins.

Ready...Set...

I'm pretty embarrassed that I started this blog thinking it would help me stay accountable for my training and I haven't updated it in over a month.  The good news is that the training is on schedule.  I've had a few challenges but I've overcome them and now I am feeling great about my accomplishments.

In my last post I talked about working around other people's schedules and how difficult it was on my 16 mile run in Baltimore.  A few weeks later I was planning to visit my friend Amy in College Park, Maryland over the weekend.  This meant that I would have to do an 18 miler while I was there, without Sam.  My mom recommended that I skip the trip, but it had been so long since I'd seen my friends that I decided to go.

The night before my run Amy made me a lovely whole wheat pasta meal with all kinds of veggies.  I had two glasses of wine and resisted the requests to do shots with the group.  My plan was to get up early and do the run and get back when everyone was waking up.  I mapped out where I would run on the University of Maryland's campus and hit the hay.

The next morning I woke up before the sun came up, got dressed, grabbed my Gatorade and I was off.  Approximately 15 minutes later I called my sleeping friends to inform them that someone had stolen my Gatorade.  Who steals Gatorade?  Opened Gatorade at that!  I realize that the economy is bad, but I had no idea it was effecting the sports drink market so much.

Amy was so sweet and brought me two replacement bottles and even picked a hiding place so they wouldn't be stolen.  The remainder of the run went off without a hitch. 

At about mile 15 a man in a minivan drove by and shouted "Keep it up!" This really got me moving.  I started to think about what the atmosphere would be like in Wilmington on race day.  I could imagine people shouting from the sidelines "You're a marathoner!  You can do this!"  Then I started imagining myself on those sidelines cheering on other marathoners.  I was sweaty and red faced, indicating that I didn't finish last and I wanted to inspire others to the finish.  But even if I finish last I will be OK with that.   

One of the mental techniques my training guide teaches me is to imagine myself crossing the finish line.  I don't use this technique too often because just imagining it is so overwhelming emotionally that it actually uses up more energy than I can spare on a long run.  I can't wait to really experience it though. 

The race is Sunday and I'm ready.

Other People's Business

As if it is not challenging enough to find the time to run in my busy life, I ran into a hurdle that someone else created. Last weekend Sam's best friend George got married to his longtime girlfriend Becca at 11am on Saturday. I couldn't think of better time to demolish the hopes of a 16 mile run. Luckily, I took advantage of one of my unused vacation days (to my boss' horror) and completed the run on Friday.


Figuring out when to run was the easy part. Locating a suitable place in Baltimore to run was a challenge. As an infrequent visitor of the charm city I am unfamiliar with the neighborhoods and parks in the city. And Sam and I learned that even people that are familiar with the city don't have a clue as to a good place for a long run. So on a cold rainy Friday morning we tried to navigate our way to a park near our friends' home. Once we arrived we struggled finding an appropriate loop that we need for rehydration purposes. After trudging around the park for about 1.5 miles arguing the second .75 miles we decided to head back to our hotel and run on the treadmills.

I must say that I appreciated the four star workout room and thanked my stars that I was not back at the grungy South Branch Inn. With the TVs in front of the treadmill I was able to reminisce with a few episodes of 90210...that Brandon, he's always getting himself into some kind of trouble!

I am a Marathoner

To inspire positive behavior I have decided to start telling a new person everyday that I am a marathoner.  It is kind of a hard thing to say right now, because I don't really see myself this way.  But I'm going to continue to say it so eventually it will be a fact.

A woman from the plant has offered to run with me tomorrow.  I really hope she decides to do it, and stay with it.  I worry it will be short lived because she doesn't currently run and she is a smoker.  I've decided to share the book with her and suggest that she follow the pre-training to get her in shape to start running.  I think that is what a marathoner would do to help someone get motivated.  And you guessed it...I am a marathoner!

lazy

This week has been a very bad week for my training.  I missed a run and this morning I shorted myself a mile.  I think my surroundings are having a bad effect on me this week, so next week I am changing where I am staying and I've made a plan to run outside everyday.

I really need to get my motivation back up if I am going to see this through.

My dogs are barking

No, no...Kaiser and Jesus didn't spot the FedEx man.  I was referring to my feet.  Oh my Lord they are sore and battered and blistered!  I have been taking every action possible to relieve the pain and discomfort.  I've popped them, lubricated them, massaged them and bought fancy new socks.  I hope the mercy will come soon!

I've made a huge mistake in my training.  I started putting my long run off until Sunday and it is totally throwing me off.  This week I promise and pledge I will get back on track.  Saturday I'll hit the pavement at 11 miles.

On a positive note I can for the first time in my life say that I ran 10 miles! I may just become a marathoner after all!

Snowed in

It's been a few weeks since my last post and I must admit I have been thinking about what I want to put up, but haven't found the time to put it down "on paper".  There have been a few hurdles to overcome the last few weeks.  I've started a new position and while I try to learn what I am supposed to be doing I have been working very long days.  I am happy to report that I have done a good job of staying on my training schedule, for the most part.  In addition to the stress and time restraints there has been an obscene amount of snow and cold weather.  But I have been living the mantra "but it doesn't matter", because I've got a race to get ready for.  See below...

It may appear that I have aged twenty-five years but the white around my face is frost that formed in my hair!

In the last few weeks I have not had any injuries or aches and pains.  My knees, shins, calves and toes feel great.  I haven't even needed to take ibuprofen, with the exception of my long runs.  Unfortunately, Sam aquired an overuse injury on his knee.  He has missed a whole week of training and I don't think he is going to be ready for the May 16th race.  I am really disappointed that I won't have him to run with, but I don't want him to be hurt even more than I want to run with him.  He promised to run with me whenever we are together.

The last few days I have been running at the wellness center in Moorefield.  I have learned quickly not to run next to the women on the other treadmills if I can avoid it.  No, I'm not being snobbish!  I had two days in a row where the woman next to me had on very strong perfume.  Trust me it is the longest thirty minutes of your life when you are running and don't want to breathe!

This weekend is an eight miler...I'm actually looking forward to it.

Rocky IV

I'm not much of a Rocky fan, but I know that in Rocky IV Rocky Balboa trained in the snowy countryside of Russia for his fight with Ivan Drago. My run this week reminded me of this scene. I ran at Brighton Park in Moorefield. It is a very quaint park with a mile track encircling it. When I arrived the path had been cleared off but was lightly covered with snow. By the time I left my original footprints had disappeared and I was kicking snow onto my back.

I honestly thought I was living the "but it doesn't matter" mantra by running outside despite the snowy weather. I've learned that if there is a smarter way to finish my training, I should opt for that. What I mean is that day I was contemplating hitting the gym and doing my four mile run on a treadmill, but I guess I wanted to prove how tough I am. And it turns out I'm not so tough after all.

The cold temperature and snow blowing in my face were the least of my worries. What really slowed me down and hindered my movements was the snow accumulating on the path. It was difficult to find my footing and after each 1/4 mile the snow would pack on the heel of my shoe making it difficult to keep my balance. I must have looked like a fool...not just that I was running is a snow storm at night, but that I had to keep stopping to stomp my feet and clear off my shoes.

Today I shared my folly with some folks from work and I think I have my co-worker Robin about 35% convinced that she should start training for her first marathon. At first she was skeptical, saying she is too old to start training. After I scoffed at her remark I told her about my dad, my inspiration.

It wasn't until long after our conversation I thought about the runner that inspired my dad to run a marathon in every state. At his first marathon my dad met a runner in his 70s that had set a goal to run a marathon in all fifty states. And this guy wasn't on his fiftieth race either! He was someone that recognized that he needed to do something extraordinary in his life and he wasn't going to let something like how old he was get in his way. He was going to do it, even if it was at his seventy-year-old pace.

I'm sure it could appear to an outsider that I am being selfish by trying to recruit Robin as a running buddy. Even if this has a shimmer of truth to it I really think that Robin has a desire to accomplish something extraordinary too. I hope she chooses to join the growing masses.

Another possible recruit is our good friend James, who is thinking about training too. He bought the book at least. I think the real commitment comes when the runner chooses their race. I'm excited to hear which race Robin and James will be running in.

The forecast doesn't call for snow again until Friday, so I think I'll give Brighton Park another shot for my three mile run. I'm going to try and run without my headphones which could lead to an interesting next post. I hope it goes well!

King of the Road

This week is the first official week of the sixteen week training. I started Monday with a three mile run. There is a mile long service road near the plant where I am doing training this week. I used this as my route. The scenery was breathtaking. There is a golden field just adjacent to the road with cattails and bails of hay along its borders and there are rolling hills surrounding it. The gray clouds lay low in the sky with the sun just peeking through. I couldn't have asked for a better setting to run.

The service road is blocked off at one end so there isn't really any traffic. I took full advantage of this fact and ran in the center of the road. I didn't start in the center but I noticed a slight slope in the road and the training guide warns that running on a slope can lead to injury. As I ran down the center line of the road I looking out at the beautiful scenery I couldn't help but think that I rule that road. My kingdom may be small, but it is mighty!

I've noticed that my body is starting to have small reactions to actually moving for extended periods of time. Again, I had issues with my right foot. This time the whole foot went numb and didn't ease up until long after my stretches. Another notable quirk is the build up of phlem in my throat. Dispite my internal protests I have resorted to spitting. On Monday I realized one of the reasons why I don't like to spit. While running down hill with the wind in my face I tried to clear my throat and accidently spit on my jacket. Ugh! But it doesn't matter, I'm training for a marathon.

Off the Juicer

About three years ago I heard of a diet that was recommended by Robin Quivers. Robin had lost something outrageous like sixty pounds on the 21 pounds in 21 days detox diet. I was convinced that this was my ticket out of the extra twenty pounds I've been carrying around. So at a time when Sam and I didn't really have any extra money to spend I convinced him that we should buy a high tech juicer. We splurged the $160 and got a really nice juicer. For the first few days we were juicing everything. Tomatoes, carrots, celery, grapefruit, apples, you name it. But the diet never really got off the ground. The problem...there was no actual food for 21 days! At the end of the day I simply didn't have the will power to even start the detox.

The juicer is one of many gimmicks that I've started and never finished in my quest to become thinner or healthier. They range from belly dancing classes to the Wii fit that I haven't used in six months to the bike that I bought when I first moved back to Columbus. Sadly, the bike was stolen from my back porch. The upsetting part was that I have no idea when the bike was actually stolen because it sat unused on my back porch for so long.

My point is that even though I have a good track record of sticking with and achieving things in my personal and professional life, something stalls when it comes to following through on my health. So I have decided to approach my marathon in a different way. Completing a marathon is a momentous event for someone like me. I'm doing this not because I want my giggly bits to quit giggling, but because I want to know that I have the ability to prepare my self both mentally and physically for a marathon. On Saturday, Sam and I ran at Franklin Park again and I felt a sense of accomplishment when we finished our run. If I felt that great after completing a thirty minute run what will it be like to cross the finish line after 26.2 miles? I can't wait to find out.

This week I start distance training. Sixteen miles total this week.

P.S. No cramps or numb toes since my last post!

Aches and Pains

On Saturday I bumped up my training again. This time I ran fifteen minutes, walked five and repeated. Sam and I ran at Franklin Park on Saturday and even though the weather was damp, gray and cold the run was great and I felt fantastic after. It was really nice to have a running buddy.

This week I am in West Virginia and the hotel I am staying at surprised me when they said they have a work out room. The facility is...well let's just say it is not state of the art. But who am I kidding I don't need anything fancy so I dove right in. I am really disappointed with my run though, my calf cramped up in the second half of the run and I couldn't finish. Frustrated, I limped off to my room.

I could use some advice from my runner friends. How can I avoid this in the future? Are there stretches I should do? Drink more water? Or Gatorade?

spandex is my new plaid

If you know me very well, you are aware of the fact that after eight years of Catholic school I melted my plaid skirt in a fire pit behind my parents house when I was fourteen. Yes, I said melted. That is what happens to polyester in fire. Nearly fifteen years later I am finally exiting my "plaid makes me mad" phase and I've added a plaid top to my wardrobe.

Today I realized that spandex is my new fashion enemy.


As I mentioned in my previous blogs I have been running in the workout room at the hotel I'm staying in this week. Today was particularly crowded. When a young kid moved the weight bench directly behind me I decided to sneak a look at the mirror and was terrified! I caught a glimpse of myself...running...from behind. At the risk of humiliating myself I will simply say it isn't a pretty sight.


To make matters worse, a slim middle aged man was running like a gazelle in glorious royal blue spandex shorts to my right. I have to admit that my confidence was in the crapper. But who am I kidding? I'm sure Constantina Dita didn't start out as a hard bodied Olympian. Well maybe that wasn't a good example, but my point is that I can't expect to be in marathoner shape in the first week of my training. With that thought in my head I pushed through the pain in my thighs, convincing myself that the pain was a sign that I was getting stronger and finished twenty minutes of running.


Still, I haven't thought of a clever catch phrase to describe my new found disdain for spandex.

Pre-Training

I started my training this week. In order to begin the 16 week program I need to be able to jog thirty minutes continuously. When I decided to take on this challenge I was unsure of how much running I would be able to do without stopping. In an attempt to start slow I began at step five of the pre-training program. At this step I had to run for five minutes, walk for five minutes and repeat two times. I am happy to report that I was able to run this with very little trouble, so this evening I decided to jump to step six. Step six is to jog for ten minutes, walk for five and repeat.

The running hasn't been the challenge, yet.

The challenge has come from being forced to train inside due to the cold temperatures. There is an unspoken etiquette that goes with running in a gym or work out room. For example, singing along with my iPod didn't seem to impress the other occupants. I've suppressed my urge to belt out The Arcade Fire by substituting it with peppy songs sung in Spanish by Shakira and Celia Cruz. Who knows...learning Spanish could be a fantastic side effect!

Sam started the pre-training as well. He creatively avoided training in the cold by running the stairs and jogging laps. The dogs hated it.

The Starting Line

I once heard that you are 70% more likely to accomplish a goal when you write it down and I've tried this practice for the last several years with some success. It wasn't until last year that I decided to set deadlines on achieving my goals. One of those deadlines is to finish a marathon by May 11, 2011, my 30th birthday.

Why now?

It seems as more and more marathoners have been entering my life recently. Most influential is my father. To date he has run ten marathons in his quest to run a race in every state. I started feeling a bit ashamed that someone that was almost twice as old as me was able to achieve a goal that to this point I've only talked about.

If I was going to reach this goal I wanted two of the most inspirational people in my life to be there with me. Sam, my amazing and supportive husband, has agreed to take on this challenge with me. And of course my dad will be next to me at the starting when the gun fires.

Running in a marathon with my dad has actually created the first of what I'm sure to be many challenges. Since my dad has decided to run fifty marathons he understandably does not want to add another just for the sake of running alongside his willful daughter. Because of this I need to find a race that will give us enough time to train will not be cost prohibitive to travel to and is in a state that my dad has not run yet.

The result? On May 16th we will be running the Delaware Marathon in Wilmington, DE.

It's just shy of twenty weeks to the race and I plan to use the training guide provided by The Non-Runner's Marathon Trainer by Whitsett, Dolgener and Kole. This blog will be a record of the challenges and accomplishments of this journey.