Getting back into it

Because of the holiday yesterday, I was able to sleep in and still run outside without the stroller!  Yeah!  I ran about 3 miles and then stopped at a park and did tricep dips off the bench, pushups off the bench, step ups on the bench and then lunges.  I only did 2 sets of each to ease myself back into it.  Then I finished with another 1 1/2 miles.  It felt really good and it was perfect weather.  I missed most of the rain and it was cool out.

I woke up today pretty sore in the inner thighs from yesterday.  I knew I would since it's been a while since I've trained the lower half.  I can't wait to get back to weight training a little more.  I started out with a walk (child 3 forgot her lunch again) and then ran 5 1/2 miles today.  I really took it easy today and didn't push it at all.  I had to take the stroller so I really didn't push it.  My legs feel a little looser after the run and I'm sure it helped.

Signs

Check out all the fun signs here that Angi (tall girl running) and her family put together for the Ogden Marathon that kept us all amused!  One of my favorites that I didn't even see is "Friends Don't Let Friends Run Marathons!"  Too funny!

I need therapy...oh wait, that's why I run!

This week's been interesting.  I think the mental and spiritual part of this journey has been more exhausting than the physical part.  I don't know if I lost more liquid out of my body by crying or fromsweating.  Honestly, I am fine now.  It was just a hard couple of days.  It's funny, once I wrote it all out, in all it's brutal details, I felt better.  Like I had been to therapy.  

I went for my massage on Monday.  It was great.  I was surprised that I didn't feel worse.  I guess your body doesn't hate you as much if you don't run as fast.  I walked with Janzen about a mile on Saturday night and then Sunday night.  I spent the rest of the week stretching and walking.  Then yesterday, Janzen was home from work all day and we went to get new tires put on his car.  I talked him into running with me while they worked on it.  We loaded up the jogging stroller and went about 2 miles.  It was fun to be out with Janz and it was nice to run again.  I really wanted to go farther once we got home, but decided I'd be good and not push it.  I ran 4 1/2 miles this morning to return some videos and pick up some cream cheese for some cookies I made today.  I'm sure I looked pretty funny running with a packet of cream cheese in my hands, but it was all softened by the time I got home.  I didn't even take my watch so that I wouldn't be tempted to time myself.  

Thanks to George Bush and his unwise ways, I did my part to "strengthen" the economy and I ordered myself a Garmin gps watch.  I'm pretty excited to get it and try it out.  I think it will be pretty fun and will be a good training tool.  All things considered, it was a good week.

Ogden Marathon 2008: It takes a special kind of idiot!

Friday morning Jodi and I ran down to the expo center to get our numbers and timing chips and shirts.  It wasn't really crowded yet and the stacks of t-shirts told of how many more people would be coming to get their stuff.  It was fun!  We talked to one of the race officials and told her of our plans for Jodi to wait at the half point until I got there, which would mean she would be starting over 2 hours later than all the other half marathoners.  There was some confusion, but they told us it would be o.k. and that her timing chip would start when she crossed the pad.  (Which later turned out to be not true and poor Jodi's time looked really bad for a while.)

  

We saw Jeff Galloway, who was speaking all afternoon on different subjects.  We listened for a bit about his walk/run theories and then he gave tips on carbo loading that night and hydration for the next day.  He and his wife would both be running the full marathon the next day.

We then went to Jamba Juice to have lunch!  Yum!  That is THE place to go when carbo loading!  I had a really yummy blueberry oatmeal muffin type thing that I would eat every day if they were already made for me!

The night before we went to the Temple again with Heather (who I ran with last year who is VERY pregnant this year!) and Rob, Jodi and Dave, and Marilyn and Mont.  It was so good!  I ordered a mozzarella and tomato sandwich that came with a salmon pasta salad!  The salad was so good and so big that I didn't even touch the sandwich and couldn't finish the pasta.  I drank plenty of water and was pretty excited and not so nervous as before!  When I got home I still had to get everything ready for the morning.  I had boughten a disposable camera (since I ruined my new digital camera last year!) and got my Accellerade drink ready in those little plastic bags.  That was one of the hardest decisions that I made.  I really don't like Powerade (which is what they were using in the marathon) and I have trained with Accellerade, which I love.  But what a pain carrying all those little baggies with me.  I had my sunscreen, chapstick, knee band, timing chip, phone and watch all ready to go.  The only real problem would be if I got pulled over driving to the marathon and having to explain to the cops what the powdery stuff in the little bags was for!

The morning of the marathon was beautiful!  I loved running up the street to catch the line of busses going up the canyon!  I sat by a really nice lady that talked to me pretty much the whole time.  She had run Ogden last year too and we talked about similar problems we both had.  It was fun hearing about her other marathons and her experiences running.  The running community is so great about sharing and helping each other out!  

Once we got off the buses, it was COLD!  I got in the porta potty line so that I could go through twice and it probably looked like I was doing a potty dance I learned from Logan, but I was really just trying to stay warm.  That was a long line of potties!

There were fire pits to keep people warm.  Everyone was doing something different to occupy the time.  Some were running up and down the road trying to warm up.  Some were getting stretched out on the table, other were eating, but it was so fun to just see what everyone was doing.  

When we finally got started, I was once again just amazed by the amount of people there!  It's interesting to see what everyone is carrying on them and what they're wearing.  Maybe Janzen is right, it's just a big fashion show.  

The canyon was very cold, but so beautiful!  It really is one of the most gorgeous runs I've ever been on!  The river was sure running!  Guess all that snow is finally starting to melt!  I left my i pod out for the first 5 miles or so and just took in all the scenery and tried to pace myself.  I really didn't want to go out hard and regret it later.  I still ended up doing the first mile in about 9:40, so I slowed down.  It took about 4 miles, but I settled in and did between 10:15 and 10:20 miles up until the halfway point.  I had certain phrases in my mind that I repeated over and over from the temple the night before and I planned on them getting me through.  

Really, does it get much better than this?  It was so beautiful and the temperature finally warmed up so that my hands weren't frozen!  There was a cool breeze going that constantly kept me feeling good.  Just before the halfway point, there was a nice little crowd and cute little girls giving high fives as we ran by.  There were also some cute signs.  My favorite was "Any idiot can run, it takes a special kind of idiot to run a marathon!" and "Toenails are overrated!"

I also saw a policeman get hit by a big truck and a trailer as he was directing traffic.  He was really lucky and could have been killed.  Luckily, he was able to catch himself from being hit twice and was o.k.

Right before the halfway point I got a jolt of adrenaline and had to really control myself because I knew I'd be seeing Jodi soon!  In fact as soon as I could spot her I screamed out her name before she could even hear me and the runner in front of me laughed.  I just couldn't help it!  I was waving my arms and it was fun to see her spot me!  Julie had brought her up to the start line and waited there with her.  What a great friend especially since it was on her birthday!!!

It was so fun running together.  We were doing a conservative pace especially on the big hill and it was fun to talk and enjoy the beautiful scenery.  About mile 18 my stomach started to not feel so good.  I just pushed on through but felt very off.  As we progressed my stomach just got worse and I was feeling very nauseous.  It had started to heat up, but it didn't feel like it was overwhelmingly hot.  I had been drinking at every drink stop, but didn't do any gels.  That may have been a mistake, but I figured as long as I was still drinking my Accellerade I'd be fine.  The worse my stomach got the less I wanted to drink.  I got double side aches which made it really hard to run through and then I started getting the chills.  

By about mile 21 or 22 (I really lost track of where we were) I got big goosebumps and the chills and then started feeling lightheaded.  Jodi kept encouraging me and kept me going.  But the last few miles I couldn't do anything by walk and even then I had to just stop a few times and crouch down to try to relieve my stomach pain.  I thought if I could just throw up I'd feel better.  Good thing I didn't because I would really have gotten dehydrated.  I could feel despair creeping in.  I didn't want to go back to the place I was in Salt Lake.  So I tried using my phrases that I used at the beginning.  But as my brain was not functioning, I couldn't string together the words to make the sentence, "Run and not be weary, walk and not faint."  It just wouldn't come no matter how many times I tried rephrasing it.  I knew I was ruining Jodi's first 1/2 marathon and that was overtaking my thoughts more than thinking about my time.  I was really doubting myself and my faith and had decided that I just wasn't made to run a marathon.  Jodi kept talking me through, taking me to happy places, like the beach and kept reminding me to do Lamaze breathing.  I was having trouble breathing the last 3 miles.  I felt short of breath and was in so much pain.  There were times that the only thought I had in my mind was that with every step I took, I was that much closer to the finish line.  At the last aid station a really nice volunteer came to help me.  She could see I was not doing well and had me lean over and she poured cold water all over my neck.  It felt so good.  I had a couple of orange slices and felt a tiny bit better.  We ran the last couple of blocks to finish and it was very bittersweet.  I was so glad to be done, but so disappointed that I had done poorly again.    

Reflecting back, I am just so glad I was able to finish.  I am so glad Jodi was there to help me.  I really don't know what would have happened if she wouldn't have been there to help me.  There was a beautiful spot of grass in the park during the last few miles that was begging me to go lay down on it and just never get up.  If she wouldn't have been there I just may have taken it up on the offer.  My doc (Jodi's hubby) was there at the finish line and thought I may have been going into shock.  I really think I had a bad case of heat stroke and just didn't catch it in time before I started feeling really bad.  I should have been dumping cold water all over myself when I first felt it starting to warm up.  After that point I didn't feel hot at all and felt like I had the flu.  I think I got past the point of feeling it.  We really haven't had any hot days of training and I think it was a shock to my body.  It was 85 degrees, the hottest day of the year so far.  

So the question is:  Now what?  At the time I was ready to give up on running a marathon ever again, thinking that I was just not made to do it.  It's been kind of a cry fest over here the past few days.  Mostly feeling bad about Jodi.  I should never try and run with someone in a race.  I need to just do my own race and let them do their own.  I also think that running a marathon 4 weeks before as part of training wasn't so good.  I need to stick to the training schedule and not do over 20 miles.  Maybe after the full training is in then it would be possible to do another one close together.  But I probably need to do more long runs to get my body used to the distance more.  I also need to take it easy when I'm supposed to.  In reflecting, I don't think I do very many easy runs.  I like to push it, but I don't think it's good for me or makes me a better runner.  Maybe I shouldn't have done 16 miles the Saturday before.  Or maybe none of that really makes that much of a difference.  Maybe I just need to accept my limitations and realize that everyone has limitations and can't do everything they would like to do.  I don't know.  It's been a hard couple of days and I'm sure it will work itself out.  For now, I've been walking a mile or two each night.  There is one good thing:  I'm just barely sore.  I can't believe how GOOD I feel.  And I'm still excited to run.  That in itself is a miracle.  So who knows, there may be another marathon for me after all.  Like they say, "It takes a special kind of idiot!"  Maybe that idiot is me!

Last one before Saturday!

I can't believe that it's almost here!  Every time I check the weather though, I'm disappointed because it's going to be about 86 degrees.  Just like last year.  It got really hot and hard during the last 6 miles and I'm sure it will be about the same this year!  Oh well.  At least it will be a good comparison for the two years.  I had a really bad day yesterday and wasn't excited at all and my stomach was aching again with nerves.  I didn't get any sleep the night before either and I'm sure that didn't help.  But while running today, I could just see us finishing.  I could see the finish line and our families there and it was a great scene!  It got me really excited and it's going to be a great run no matter what my time is or what happens.  I did my 3 miles today with the 3 minutes towards the end almost in a sprint to get ready for carbo loading.  Yes, that starts today too.  It's gonna be great!  

My friend Julie brought over a marathon survival kit.  She is so sweet and it was very thoughtful of her.  She's got all the essentials packed in there, including the victory chocolate!  I will admit that I didn't think that chocolate would make it to the end, but it's still here, calling my name and I will save it for the finish line!  Thanks, Julie!

Taper Week!

This week is always weird!  You train so hard and so long and then the week before...BAM, you do just about nothing!  Well nothing like you've been doing.  It seems weird and plays mental games with you but there must be wisdom in it!  I'm sure my body needs to continue to heal and get ready for more torture but it does seem weird!  I ran 3 miles today and felt like going farther, but didn't.  I was a little sore after Saturday's run and want to be completely ready for Saturday.  I lifted for my upper body and abs and stretched really good!  I need to make my appointment for my post marathon massage sometime soon or she'll be booked up like last time.  I want the whole hour this time!  It's coming!!!

Last long run before Ogden!

Today's run was perhaps one of the best runs I've ever been on.  I took it easy at the beginning and the great thing was that I was able to keep it up, feeling great, and end feeling really good.  I didn't think it was going to be that way since the first thing I read this morning was Jodi's blog where I found out that she was in a wreck and totaled her car!  She was sore and I didn't think there was anyway she was going to be able to run today or possibly even the marathon.  I couldn't get a hold of her and I just knew she wouldn't be running today so I took off on my own.  I was pretty sad that she wouldn't be able to finish her goal after all the hard work she's put in and that I'd be alone again on another marathon.  I know pretty selfish, huh!  But I really love having her as my running buddy, she makes it so fun and the time goes by so fast.  

But as the run progressed, I couldn't help but be in a good mood.  The sun was out, it was the perfect temperature, the wind was just a slight breeze that kept me cool, and there were baby animals all around.  I even saw a goat in the middle of the road.  O.k., it's a dirt road, but still!  Everything is so green from all the rain we just got and the mountains looked so purple against the sky.  I really wished I had my camera with me because there was this pool of water in a field that was reflecting the mountains in it.  It was gorgeous!  I got to pass by those sweet smelling blossoms again.  I'll never be sick of those!  It was a 10 mile run and I felt great!  

When I got home the kids told me Jodi had called.  I called her and she was getting ready to go on a run!  She was feeling good and I was so glad!  I couldn't pass it up and went 5 miles with her.  I had drank 16 oz. right before she came so I started out kind of sluggish and we slowed the pace for me.  We ran by the same farm and saw the same goat and some cute puppies and a swan and her babies.  (Too lazy to look up what baby swans are called!)  I was relieved she was doing good.  I hope we didn't overdo it and that she'll still feel good tomorrow!  I'm getting really excited for next Saturday!  Oh and I wore the peach shirt today and I can tell it's going to be my new favorite shirt!

One other bummer...I didn't get into the St. George Marathon.  So now I need to decide what I'm going to do.  I will probably do the Top of Utah one in Logan, but I'm considering doing Park City which is one month before Top of Utah.  Park City would be a hard one because of the altitude difference, part of it is on trails, and the fact that the first 16 miles are all uphill.  But the plus side would be that the last 8 are downhill and by the time I'm done training for that one I'd be much stronger than I am now.  And if I do those two more, I might as well do the Grand Slam which includes those 3 marathons plus it includes automatic entry into St. George.  I think what I will do is wait until after Ogden is over with and see how I feel.  I can still sign up until the end of May, so I think that is the plan.  Then when St. George is over with I can rest!  It sounds crazy, but I like the challenge and the learning that's involved!

Why I Run...To Endure

Enduring to the End:

I've been thinking about the upcoming marathon and there are times when I'm so excited and then there are times when all I can think about is that last marathon.  It just depresses and scares me to think I could ever have a repeat performance.  During that marathon I experienced muscle cramps that made me just want to quit. I was only halfway through when they started and it just got progressively worse.  There were times all I could do is walk.  However, there's always a lesson to be learned in running.  I learned things to help me become a better runner and I also learned about enduring in life.  Sometimes life is not fun and it's painful.  Sometimes it's very discouraging to not be able to do what we think we should be able to do.  It's hard when you don't know if you can take another step or possibly even finish.  I found that in those dark moments, and they are dark and despairing, you find out what you're made of.  You find inner strength, determination, and fight that you didn't know you had inside.  It's where you realize that NOT finishing is where the true despair would come in.  In those deepest, darkest moments is where reaching out to our Heavenly Father usually comes in and we find that we are not alone and will always be given the support and strength we need.  Whether it be through inspiring words or lyrics to a song that come to our mind, or another person's help, it will be there always.  The power to endure is within all of us.  Sometimes we just have to feel the despair to find the strength within us.  It's the opposition that helps us to see the good.  See, I love the lessons I learn while running!

5 miler

I ran 5 miles today without the stroller and I can't say how much easier it was!  It was nice to not have sore shoulders from pushing the stroller up hills not to mention the calves!  My legs felt kind of tight today and they just started to loosen up as I finished.  Crazy!  Maybe I didn't start off slow enough.  Oh well, there plenty of time for that tomorrow!  I wore my new red shirt today and the only disappointment was that there was a lot of bouncing with the pocket.  There's no zipper on it so I was afraid my phone would fall out.  I may need to do some velcro magic on it to make it a real viable option.  But it was real cute and I was totally comfortable in it.  I love the length!  

It's here!

Well my shirts got here yesterday!  Talk about fast shipping!  I totally love both of them.  I'll wear one in the Ogden marathon and save the other one for the marathon I want to do in the fall. (Hopefully St. George!  I find out tonight if I made it through the lottery!)   The red one is a bit longer and has two BIG pockets in the back that will carry anything I need!  

The peachy one is pretty cool.  It's not as long as the other one, but it's longer than my other running shirts so woo hoo!  It's also got this cute little kangaroo pocket in the front that will be good to put chap stick or Advil or just one gel in.  I love the sleeves that are puckered a little at the top.  It gives it a real feminine look without being too tight.  It also has a big zip pocket in the back for storing other stuff.  I'll have to experiment to see which pocket will be best to put my phone in.  The back is almost cuter than the front with the Argyle print.  They're both comfy and the only thing I don't like in both of them is the neck line.  I wish it were more like a t-shirt, but the upside is it will protect me from the sun more.  I just don't like all the crazy tan lines I get running.  Oh well.  I'm excited that I found some cute clothes that will function well too.  Like Janzen says, running would be cheap if it wasn't a big fashion show!  He just doesn't understand that you're getting your picture taken that immortalizes forever that look of pain and misery and it's only faded a bit by that totally cute outfit you get to sport that day!

Short one

I only had time to fit in a 4 miler this morning and I didn't even have time to get Logan ready so I just jumped on the treadmill and did an interval of hills and slower speed.  I didn't do anything faster than 10 miles per minute.  It was fun and went by very quickly.  I did weights for upper body and abs and stretched really good. 

 I'm getting a big excited for the big day.  Jodi got into the half marathon for sure and is planning to wait there for me so that we can finish together.  The full marathon, half, and relay are all sold out!  I really can't believe it!  Last year the full sold out, but wow!  Are there that many crazies out there!  I'm really excited because I know the course and I think I've learned a lot in the last year that should help me to do better this year.  Plus, I'll have Jodi there with me to finish!  I now know that I need to plan for my expectations not to be met and be able to deal with them.  I also know that whatever happens, I will finish and try again some other day.  I really love running and what it teaches me about myself!  

I ordered a new shirt that I hope gets here before Saturday so I can try it out on a longer run to see where I might need any Body Glide.  I am having a hard time finding a shirt with sleeves AND pockets in the back for storage.  I ended up looking on a biking website and ordered a jersey.  They all seem to have pockets and a variety of sleeve lengths and a really good selection of styles.  They can't be any worse than the shirts I've found for running that are usually too short in the torso for me and make my hips look even worse than they already do.  I'm sure those tights don't help either, but they're so comfy!  I'll update when it gets here! 

Another beautiful day!

Logan saw me getting dressed to go running this morning and said, "don't get on the treadmill, mom."  I think he enjoyed our run as much as I did yesterday.  We got all ready and headed out, this time with the camera.  That is one good thing about taking the stroller, there's a handy dandy pocket in the back so that I can take extra stuff with me that I wouldn't normally take.  Like my big camera.  I took Logan by the tractors and some construction that I knew of and by all the horses.  We saw a steamroller that he wanted me to drive and back down to the trains.

Once again it was a beautiful day and I realized that I may go slower when I go with Logan, but I enjoy my surroundings more and see the world through different eyes.  

We went by some blossoming trees again but because of the slight breeze, the blossoms were blowing off and these beautiful pink petals were flying over us.  It was the closest I'll get to someone throwing flowers as I run by!  Pretty cool!  We went about 5 miles and enjoyed every bit of it!

It's Spring!

It was such a nice day that I simply couldn't run on the treadmill.  So I got my little Logan all ready, we put on our sunglasses and headed out in the jogging stroller.  I just took it easy again, well as much as you can pushing a stroller while running.  I took Logan down by the trains and it's a much different run with him along.  I notice, with his help, all the different trucks that go by.  We saw beverage trucks, mail trucks, diesel trucks, horse trucks, and trailer trucks. We saw busses, and garbage trucks, and the best part of all was that when we got to the train crossing, a train came along and blew its whistle at us.  Logan loved it!  I loved the sun being out and even felt slightly hot towards the end!  It's close to 70 degrees and I feel a little guilty writing this as I just read Michael's blog this morning and all the snow they had yesterday!  The trees along the streets are in full blossom and smell heavenly!  It finally feels like spring!  If only every spring day felt like today!  We went 6.5 miles.  

Long Run?

Well I woke up not feeling very good this morning and had a busy day ahead of me.  So after our busy morning, and after being kind of grouchy, I decided to take a nap and when I got up I only had about an hour and a half to do my "long run" before the night's activities.  I don't do well on lack of sleep.  So the nap helped but didn't leave me time for as long of a run as I planned on.  I ran a little over 9 miles and did it all at a pretty easy pace.  It was nice again to not have to stop and walk to recover and I even ran up a really big long hill and it didn't wind me.  I ran the last 3 1/2 miles that were mostly downhill a little faster.  It felt good and though it was a shorter long run, I hope it will be good enough.  I figured that wearing out my body wouldn't be good at this point and maybe the nap was more important today.  It was good being outside in the nice weather and improved my mood greatly.  Now hopefully this not feeling good thing won't last too long.

Ummmmmm....change of plans!

After having a good conversation with Michael about my training and doing some more research (o.k. so google searches might not really count as research) I have decided to not speed train during this in-between marathon period.  But now that means I really don't know what I'm doing for the next two weeks as far as my training goes.  I really don't know how far to go each day.  I know that Saturdays will still be my long runs and I guess I'm going to try alternating walking and swimming and easy running days.  Today I did an easy, slow run of 6 1/2 miles.  It was actually nice to not have to stop and walk.  I thought it would go by really slowly compared to speed workouts, but it didn't.  I really think the speed work is good for me mentally more than anything else.  My hip flexors were getting tight towards the end I think because of all the walking I've been doing.  I was not meant to be a speed walker.  It hurts my body more than running!  I finished up with weight training for my upper body and abs, then stretched really good.  Janz and I walked about 3 miles last night and I'm going to see about swimming tonight since I'll be gone all day tomorrow.    I keep telling myself that it's only a few more weeks.