I did it!

3:00 am was the time I chose to get up.  I did not sleep well the night before but I hear that's normal for your first marathon (and for some, every marathon).  I managed to get myself out of bed and have my normal pre-run meal of oatmeal with blueberries and peanut butter.  Got myself to the buses where it was pure chaos.  People were trying to meet their friends, I was trying to find my running buddies... I never found them and wound up getting on the bus late for my 5:00 am start.  Thanks to the lovely race director, he let me on the course with tears in my eyes to start at 5:05.
Sue took off like a banshee and Maggie and I were left to contemplate the hell we were about to endure.  We had smiles on our faces until about mile 10, when we realized the heat and the pace we started with probably were going to be our demise.  We kept truckin... Walked the majority of Big Flat road (which is NOT flat) and headed into town where my family met us and I had my first tearful breakdown at mile 17.  They left me energized, however, and Mom made sure I got my sunscreen and we headed into town!
Maggie and I then had to make the decision to slow down and walk again.  We were fighting nausea because of the heat and our fuel was making us sick.  We decided right there that we might have to walk the rest of the course.
I think mile 24 was when I really started to lose it.  I know it sounds crazy so close to the finish, and it's not something I've been able to figure out yet.  I just wanted to stop.  My mind didn't want to go anymore.  Thankfully about this time, Kevin came by on his bike... and then a pace-group leader (also named Kevin) came to walk with us... and then my family.  I was still losing it, but they helped me cross the finish line and Maggie and I even finished it running (and most certainly crying).  We finished in 8 hours.

It's taken me awhile to process the on-slot of emotions that has come at me since the finish of the Missoula Marathon on July 8th.  I'm still processing a lot and the whole experience is still bringing tears to my eyes but I will share with you what I have been able to process.
I am proud of myself for starting something and completing it.  The race itself was brutal and I am still uncertain if I will ever do that again.  Maggie somehow convinced me to cross the finish line even though I wanted to quit with only 1/2 mile left (and many times before that)... I can't even tell you how those thoughts crossed my mind or why I thought it was okay, they just did.
Many people have compared this experience to child-birth, knowing that I joined this program to get my ready for baby... but I'm seeing a MAJOR difference here and that is that after child birth, I will have a beautiful child that will bring me joy and happiness for the rest of my life.  Right now, all I have from the marathon is awful blisters on the bottoms of my feet and a couple of brutal chaff-age marks on my sides and arms... oh and pride, pride in knowing that I can do it and that I finished.
Maybe what I'm feeling now is like postpartum... because I don't really feel good about Sunday.  Yeah, I finished.  I crossed the finish line and completed a 6 month program and did 26.2 miles.  But I'm a little sad when I look at the pictures of the race online and know that I didn't get the crowds of people and I didn't finish with a picture.  They took down the majority of the course before I finished and it's a little defeating.  No, I didn't give up and I conquered a huge goal, but I can't help but feel a little sad about the whole thing.  I really wanted to do better.
I posted on my Facebook about the courage it takes to stay on the course for that long.  8 hours.  8 hours of moving forward toward a finish line.  THIS is what I am most proud of.  My courage to finish and complete something I started.  It's almost embarrassing to be the last couple of people across... ALMOST!  But then you think about how much that person had to overcome to be the last person across: we're not just talking embarrassment, but physical pain, mental pain, emotional pain, endurance, heat, sweat, tears, you name it, that person has probably gone through it in those 8 hours on the course.  And I've suddenly realized that I have started using the word "you" instead of "me" because maybe that makes it easier for me to write about but maybe I'm not ready yet.

Maybe that's just it... Maybe, I'm not ready yet.

12 days and counting down!

Here I am... 12 days away from my goal date! I'm wavering between the last three steps.  "Can" and "Will" are my challenges and I have 12 days to figure them out.  I figure I've been through all the other steps in the past 6 months, I can make it up the last couple!

The day after the frigid 26 miler that turned into an 18 miler for me, I went to a talk put on by Run Wild Missoula about "The Wall." Our lovely speaker was Dr. Charlie Palmer, a psychologist in the Department of Health and Human Development at the University of Montana.  I really wish I had the courage to go and talk with him personally because I really feel as though exercise and health in general is more of a psychological issue than a physical one... at least for me.
Anyway, Dr. Palmer talked a lot about the physical issues involved with hitting the wall. This is what they've really been able to study: our body's reaction when hitting "The Wall", carbohydrate depletion and dehydration causes the body to react... but I've trained for those. I know my body can do this.  I know what I'm going to eat and drink on the run and I know how I'm going to conquer my physical issues on the run.  I know that if I have any problems in this marathon it will be with my mind somehow thinking that I can not finish.  So I'm going in with a plan.
Dr. Palmer also talked about making sure you have goals.  Yes, I have a goal to finish but he talked specifically of tiered goals and more specifically PACE: Primary, Alternate, Contingency, and Emergency.
Soooooooo....
Primary: Finish the marathon in 7 hours. For the majority of you, that seems SLOW but it's about a 16 min. mile-ish.  That'll put me across the finish line before they take down the balloons!!!
Alternate: Finish continuing my Galloway run/walk/run but at a slower pace.
Contingency: Walk across the finish line.
Emergency: Drop out.  THIS will only be happening in an emergency.  I might even ask them to wheel me across the finish line.  HA!

I also have asked Kevin to meet me at certain spots on my route and have also learned that an awesome friend of mine is doing a water station at mile 10! My family and future sister-in-law will also be there and I'm hoping their smiling cheering faces will help carry me through! Maybe I can even get them to run the last couple with me to distract me from the pain! I've studied the map and I've run the majority of it.  I'm ready to get this DONE!!!

*BIG SIGH*

Well, this was it folks, the BIG weekend.  The practice run for the 26.2 mile race.  We even planned it so that we would be out at the start of our 26.2 mile run at the same time that we would start the real marathon on July 8th.  I left the house with my in-laws with my head held high, ready to take on the challenge.  I had dreamed about the run... making it over Blue Mountain, running through the streets of Missoula, running over the Higgins St. Bridge without stopping, picturing the crowd as I crossed the finish line.
And the proverbial and literal storm hit.
I got frustrated with my glasses getting clouded over and the rain making my vision blurry so I took them off.  I figured, if it's going to be blurry, it might as well be blurry without rain drops right?
I was drenched by mile 6 but Maggie and I joked our way through... "We are marathoners." "We are f*ing crazy!"
I would say mile 10 is about where I really started to lose it.  I couldn't see, I was soaked to the bone, the rain wasn't letting up, I was cold... there was so much I was fighting.   And to be quite honest with you, because I couldn't see very well, I could not get out of my head! There was no scenery I could look at and we had exhausted our highly interesting conversation topics already... Maggie was trying to get me to sing "Baby Got Back" and various other classics... But I couldn't get out.  I fought with my head for a good 10 miles (because I started to lose it before mile 10) before I finally broke down in tears and said "I'm done."
Sue called Kevin and he came and got me.  I cried for the next 45 minutes.  I cried while he got me into a hot bath and I cried when I realized how fast my bath water lost it's heat because of my freezing body.  I cried when I realized I didn't make it and I cried when I realized how completely awesome and loving my husband is. And I tearing up now, thinking about the whole experience....   And then I put my fleece pants on, two long-sleeved shirts, and my snuggie, wrapped up in a warm blanket and slept for the next two hours while my body and mind recovered.

Am I disappointed? HELL YES! I'm still questioning whether or not I could've pushed through... whether or not I crapped out because I'm weak.  I HATE those questions... but I will never know, and I cannot dwell on them.

And I'm going to have to hold my head up and get back out there because I will be finishing the race on July 8th.

WHOA 23 MILES!!!

The last couple of weeks of school are crazy busy so I haven't had a lot of time to type out my experience on our 23 mile run.  It is now the last Saturday before I'm officially a free woman for the summer, however, and I'm free of commitments for the rest of the 3 day weekend (except for our run tomorrow morning) so I better sit down and blog this out!

My experience on the 23 mile run was quite amazing.  It's obviously the furthest I've ever run before and my body and mind experienced things I've never felt before.  I've taken to mentally breaking up my runs and I didn't even really realize that I was doing it until Momma Sue pointed it out on our make-up run a couple of weeks ago.  She said "Isn't it amazing that we just ran out to Bonner and all the way back to your house?" Mentally, I had broken that run into a run out to Bonner and back and then a run in town to my house! 

So my first run on the 23 miler was awesome! We went up the Rattlesnake area and around some of the trails up there.  It was cool and beautiful and a nice run! 

My second run was a little tougher! We ran on the Kim Williams trail for awhile and then veered onto the Bitterroot trail and then up to 39th street... this is where I started to struggle.  My mind was having issues earlier than this but my savior Carol starting telling me about a trip of her's and my mind was distracted until my stomach started to cramp up on 39th street.  It was TERRIBLE! My other savior Donna fed me a peanut butter sandwich and I felt better but it was starting to get hot and we'd been at this for a good 4+ hours! 

It's quite miraculous what your body can do.  The 18 mile mark was where I really figured this out! I hit a wall at mile 18 and fought with that wall... mentally, physically, my body went through waves of nausea that I thought would take me out...  you name it, I struggled through it. By mile 20, I was ready to give up.  And then, out of the corner of my mind, came a little voice that said "But there's only 3 more miles!" and then it got louder "ONLY 3 MORE MILES!" and it got louder with every mile "TWO MORE MILES!!!!" and relief when that last mile came into my mind " ONE LAST MILE!!!!! YOU'VE GOT IT!" 

I didn't run across the bridge as I had planned because I was still fighting those waves of nausea but I didn't give up and I finished my 23 miles!!!! 

And the best part is... we only have 3 more miles until I've run a full marathon!!!! 

Gearing up...again

okay, so I run instead of swim... and to be honest, I'd love to be swimming instead... I love to swim.  Maybe my next adventure will be triathlon. I'd have to fix my bike.  ANYWAY! (I guess I'm a little like Dori right now).

So um... last Sunday... Sue and I ran to Bonner and back and then all the way out to my house on the other side of town... yeah, it was just like that.  It was kinda cool!
This Sunday, was crazy busy and I missed the magic mile.  I've missed the magic mile with the group every time since the first one but I haven't had to miss a long run yet! So I did my own magic mile tonight and figured out that a) I probably shouldn't run after dinner and b) there's an adorable family of foxes by the fort that messed up my time a bit! I shaved 20 seconds off my MM though.

I'm getting burned out.  I'm pretty sure it's because school is getting so close to being out.  I'm ready for a change in pace and I'm excited to change up my running times to when I'm not exhausted from tracking down kiddos.  I'm just plain exhausted and I feel like I'm forcing myself to run at this point.  I'm also ready for the process to be over... more because I'm excited to see how this whole thing is going to turn out! I want to see the end result of 6 months of training! For now though I guess I'll "just keep running, running, running. just keep running"

20...er.. nope

Sunday's 20 miler was eventful! I learned some lessons through someone else this week (names unmentioned... but you'll probably figure things out... HA) and have the same person to thank for REPEATING the run next Sunday!
We'll just say... 11.5 miles, hospital for a loved one, babysit- soccer game, pictures, playing, CRAZY! When my head hit the pillow Sunday, I felt like I had run 20 miles even though we ended early.

I will say that I am playing serious mental games with myself this week... going to the hospital was a lose/lose situation.  My mind is now playing tricks on me saying that I used my friend going to the hospital as an excuse to get out of the rest of the run.  My mind is telling me that I knew Mags would be fine.
My heart is telling me that I would have kicked myself for finishing the run too.  My heart is telling me that my nephews needed me and Mags needed me and I did a good thing. AND if something had been seriously wrong, I really would have regretted the run.
It's a good thing Sue and I will be making up the run next Sunday so I can shut my mind up!!!!

Okay so here's the lesson.  The run itself on Sunday was extremely relaxing for me.  I was just in it for the jog and I was even mentally prepared to do it myself.  I'm starting to love my solo runs on Tuesday and Thursday more and more.  This is a stress reducer for me.  Last week was HELL for me at work and this time of the year doesn't exactly make it any easier.  Friday afternoon I went for a run and was able to completely leave my week behind me and enjoy my weekend.  While this whole experience is new and different and at times stressful, it is, overall, my stress reducer.
That being said... I yelled with JOY yesterday when I walked up the stairs after a long run (yes 11.5 is still a long run) and DIDN'T HAVE TO USE THE RAILING!!!!!! WHOOP WHOOP!!!!

Amazing...

Apparently I made this my mantra this week and I didn't even know it!!!  I'm gonna say that not only did I kick booty in my running (which is what this blog is about) but I also kicked booty in my job! April isn't usually the time that I feel like this... actually it's usually around October/November and it goes downhill from there! Usually around April is about the time I'm ready to get on to the next batch of students... NOT this week! We're savin' kiddos, one grade at a time in my classroom!!!

Anyway, enough of that.  So last weekend we ran a smaller 4 mile run.  I have to tell you, and this has nothing to do with my running partner and sister in law, but that 4 miler felt longer to me that my 4 miler that I do around my house.  (yes, I know that my 4 miler is 4 miles because I used my Nike+ ipod AND I mapped it on myrun.com) One of the things that Mags and I talked about on our run on Sunday, though, was what others think about this process.  

Now, know this about me, I have ALWAYS worried about what other people think.  It's a long ingrained issue that I have had since grade school (again, I'll explore it in therapy). So on this run, Mags and I started talking about what others think... I told her that I was very careful about who I told I was "running" a marathon and who I told I was "walk/running" a marathon.  I know that there are doubters out there that would tell me that I did not run an entire marathon if I Galloway-ed it.  And you know what Mags said to me? "WHO CARES?" 

I've thought about this all week.  I've come to the conclusion that I really don't.  I've heard several comments: "I find it very hard to believe that you can run/walk faster than you can run." (it's true, I can) "Can you call it running if you don't run the entire thing?" (I do) "Oh, so you don't run the entire thing (with that look and smile)" (no) But the conclusion I've really come to is the same thing Maggie said... "WHO CARES?!?!" Who cares if I'm running it or walking it or both? Why does it matter? 26.2 is 26.2 whether you run, walk, swim, hike, bike, or freaking drive (okay so driving isn't as impressive... well unless you're new to it!).  So this is the new one that's going up on my wall. 

17.5 miles!

17.5 miles... 17 and a half.  I gotta tell ya ladies and gents, it was a lot better than the 15 mile run.
I'm gonna say right now that I love my mother-in-law.  She stuck with me the entire time.  I slowed her down... A LOT... but she stuck with me and helped me through it.  LOVE HER!!!!
There were a lot of things that were different with this run.  One of them was that I hadn't run for a week.  I got sick this week and couldn't run so I was completely wingin' it!!! NOT going to do that again.  But I think the biggest difference, and what helped me through the run, was that Kevin and I didn't do anything on Saturday... I mean, yeah, I cleaned windows and he pulled a bush out of the yard but we didn't travel anywhere, or do anything that wasn't in outside of our normal routine.  That played a big role in my mental state the day of the run, I think! I also slowed it down quite a bit... and for being sick the week before I'm gonna say that I think 16 minute miles wasn't bad!!! Maybe I'll shoot for faster next time... but maybe not....

So, I got to thinking on this run about what really got me inspired to try and Galloway a marathon.  There again comes my wonderful mother-in-law who introduced me to the Galloway method and The Back of the Pack.  When she decided to run in the Missoula marathon over a year ago, she started posting things on Facebook from Pam Gardiner who is the co-director of the Galloway group for Run Wild Missoula.  Pam and Sue talked a lot about the Back of the Pack mentality of being proud of finishing and doing it for the health of it, not for the time of it.  Her blog a while back here literally brought tears to my eyes as she described who I could find at the Back of the Pack.  THIS is what I wanted from exercise and running... I don't care how fast I am.  I don't care if I'm the last one crossing the finish line.  I don't have a beef with anyone that calls me slow and I don't feel like I have anything to prove to anyone about how fast I am (I do have something to prove with whether or not I can do this but that's another blog).  So I decided to go for it.  I'm gonna Galloway a marathon because I can.

Clarification...

The title has multiple meanings (as I tell my 5th graders) today because I came to some clarity this week but I also need to clarify something to my readers.

1st I need to clarify that while I was seriously jilted and shaken up by my 15 mile run, there is no way in HELL I'm giving up on running the marathon on July 8th.  The only thing that is going to keep me from it is a serious injury (from throwing myself in front of a bus on the next long run?jk).  I have too much to prove and I have too much to gain, mostly for myself, from this accomplishment so I CAN NOT give up on it.

2nd I needed that hard run.  I admitted to my wonderful in-laws that the 15 miler was my first really hard run.  I needed that humbling experience and I needed to remember that this isn't supposed to be an easy experience.  Only .13% of the world (http://askville.amazon.com/percentage-Americans-run-marathon-life/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=15442237) does this (yes that was thirteen hundredths... not thirteen percent). If it were easy, everyone would become a marathoner! I also need to remember that I am one of a hand full of the Galloway group that has NEVER done this before.  Most of them have some experience running... and yeah, I'm probably completely crazy for going from a non-runner (okay so I did one 5K last year) to a marathoner in 6 months, but I need to remember that I am a complete NEWB at this!!!
The hardest part of this journey will always be my mind battles.  There is a very loud voice in my head that tells me I won't follow through with this, that it will be like every other thing in my life that I've attempted to keep myself healthy with.  I can see doubt in other people's eyes too and I know that they're waiting for day when I say "oh yeah, I'm not doing that anymore" with some lame excuse of how it didn't work for me.  I can't let my mind or those eyes win.  I need to prove them wrong! 


So what I did this week was try and collect sayings and pictures that I've posted next to my bed that will help me through my next biggie (17.5 on April 15th).  This is one:

and this is another (stolen from my mother-in-laws Facebook today)

The goal of posting these pictures is to get a mantra of sorts into my head before I go to sleep every night.  To get subconscious thoughts of "I can do this" flowing throughout my body, beating in every part of me.  These are just a few of the pictures but the gist is the same... Helen is worth it! 

15 miles = OMG!!!

So last time I wrote, I said I was sick... I don't know if that had a part in my struggling so much today.  I struggled physically but more importantly... I struggled mentally.  This was the closest I've come to giving up. No... I need to rephrase that.  This was the closest I've come to dropping back to the half marathon training group.
It's no one's fault but my own... but I saw it coming in the beginning.  As a group we decided to up our training intervals from 60 seconds walking/ 20 seconds running to 60 seconds walking/ 30 seconds running.  I LOVED this idea.  I felt like 20 seconds was just a little too short... but I didn't realize that we, as a group, would be upping our speed as well as our intervals.  In the beginning, when I realized this today, I should have slowed down and did my own thing.  But, as a newbie runner, I pushed myself and mentally I kept telling myself if they can do it so can I!
I was fine all the way out to Bonner... I was even fine coming back some of the way.  But I really started to struggle in East Missoula... and I REALLY started to struggle on the road back in from East Missoula.  My AWESOME mother-in-law helped me all the way through but the battle in my head was RAGING.  "You should give up." "What were you thinking trying to run this far?" "You're going to injure yourself and it's going to be bad" "Why are you torturing yourself?" "Your car is the OTHER way." "What the hell are you doing?!?!"
So what did I learn from my run today? 1) Bring your own beeper. 2) Go at your own pace.  3) Bring headphones for those mind battles.


Before I close out my blog today I want to say that my intentions with this blog are only to possibly inspire others who might feel like running isn't their thing.  I NEVER EVER in 1 million years, thought that I would be a marathoner.  There will be times that I struggle and times that I rant and rave... but my blog is not intended for people to criticize and I'm not really looking for help through this blog.  That's what I have my running group for.  AND THEY'RE THE BEST EVER!!!

Running when you're sick...

I knew it was coming.  I always get a cold sore right BEFORE I get sick.  So I've been coughing and hacking all week.  Thursday, I joined some of our BOPers for a run, knowing it might not be very much fun for me with this darn cold.
I was pleasantly wrong! When I got done, my throat felt like it was on fire and my tonsils swelled to the size of Cadbury eggs but I was happy, I felt healthy (aside from the throat) and I grew more love for the people I run with.

I have to tell you that I expected to find some sort of social life and new friends from this running group but I never expected the SUPPORT.  The ladies of the Back of the Pack have shown nothing but love for running and have helped several people learn to love this sport... and we're only half way through! They've given advice when needed and let me be when needed. They've checked up on me, made sure I was still loving it, and I AM!!! AND I'm still injury free and have been very lucky to love each and every one of my runs!

12.5

Sunday was my longest run ever.  We ran for 12.5 miles in and around Missoula's streets. I've been asked to blog about it, but to be quite honest, I don't really want to because I was, and still sort-of am, a negative Nelly about the whole thing.  I was frustrated with the fact that we were running in town and had to cross busy streets but I was more frustrated with the amount of bathroom breaks my group took! We ran for 3.5 hours and took 3 bathroom breaks!!!! It was really hard to get into any kind of rhythm with that many breaks.  And the whole idea of the pace group is to stick with the group, build off each other, and get the camaraderie of being in a group... but seriously when we were on our 3rd bathroom break with only 5 (or so) miles left to go, I wanted to leave their asses and just get the damn run OVER!
My attitude has sucked lately.  Tuesday's run was nice, but short, and I've been incredibly pissy and tired.  I was really thankful for tonight's run so that I could get into my center again and remind myself why I was doing this.  I did a four mile loop around my "neighborhood" and enjoyed running around the countryside.  I even saw horses, ran on some dirt road, and smelled a little poop! There was only one little issue when I almost threw my beeper at a chick who almost hit me because she was texting while driving.  I was pleasantly surprised when I got home and my ipod told me I was running at a 14.1 mile pace! That's really fast for me!

I'm going to try running with my brother this weekend... it'll be interesting to see how things go as he and I are more competitive but I want to show him what's up with this whole Galloway way!

Run for the Luck of It!

Here I am ladies and gents! I ran in my first Run Wild Missoula race this weekend and I had a BLAST! It was a St. Patty's day run, Run for the Luck of it.  I ran a 5K in 39:09 which is a 12.44 min pace... that's pretty fast for me!

I'm working very hard on learning to be proud of myself for these things.  Yesterday was a big hurdle for me because it was a run that I really felt good about.  Even after the 10 mile run last weekend, I couldn't, somehow, feel proud of it, even though I know it's a big feat and that not many people can do it.  I'm slowly starting to get there...

#$#(@%&#@O)($#!@)(

Yeah, that's right. I said it. Tonight's run sucked my @$$.  So before I go on there are a couple of things you need to know about me...

1. I am NOT a competitive person.  Seriously, at the slightest sniff of competition, I lay down and pout.  Literally cross my arms and nearly throw a temper tantrum.  I just don't do it.  Call it a fear of failure or whatever you want but Competition and me don't get along.
2.  I don't like to be pushed, ESPECIALLY in athletics.
3. I don't like to hold other people back from their goals and I don't like other people relying on me to complete their goals.
4. I'm slow.  I know I'm slow.  I've always been slow.  I don't feel the need, right now, to be fast.

These are probably all inter-related and I promise I will seek out a therapist and talk about the relationship between these things and my weight and my father and blah blah blah later on in life okay? But until then, I run. And tonight.  I sucked.
I didn't realize that I was the only one with a gymboss beeper when we left the Runner's Edge... actually, I didn't realize it until we got on the trail and the people behind Maggie and I wouldn't pass us and were on the same time as us.  I looked back and realized it was my fellow BOPers! Ahhh Back of the Pack.  We're fine.
These BOPers weren't so BOP!!!!! We were doing a 30/35 second interval and the 30 seconds of jogging was actually a sprint (for me anyway)! But I can't back off because I'm the one with the beeper! So I pushed my butt through it but at the end wound up with a stitch in my side and a scowl on my face.
Then I got home and Kevin accidentally chopped all my celery. GEEZ!!!!

I should say, however, that the 10 mile run on Sunday was pretty awesome.  I struggled on 39th street with the hills but wound up really enjoying myself and the BEAUTIFUL weather.  The Run for the Luck of it is on Saturday and a short 4 miler on Sunday.  Looking forward to redeeming myself (and myself only) this weekend.

Beer run and long runs

Tonight was my first BEER RUN!!!! Whooooo hoooooo!!!! Carol and I ran together and did about a 4 mile run (we didn't follow the trail!) and did a 30/35 interval... we broke ALL the rules tonight! HA! But it was fun! And believe me, going running tonight was really the last thing I wanted to do.  February has been extremely busy and I'm relishing every chance I get to get home before 5:00 and not leave... but I left tonight and I had a blast! BTW Buffalo burgers and a Cold Smoke for $9 at Al and Vics!!! YUM!!!

This week was a "small" run week... we ran 3 miles on Sunday and 2.5 on Tuesday and I gotta tell you, I'm starting to crave the longer runs!!! I almost feel like I can't get into my run enough by 3 miles, I need longer to really get in the groove.  And as an official BOP (Back of the Pack) runner, we're running 20/60 intervals which makes it even harder to get into the groove by only 3 miles.  It's been weird and nice to think of my running experience this way.  

Sunday's run will be a 10 mile run.  I'm still waiting to hit my wall.  Hopefully it won't be this weekend!!!

Run, Recover, Run

I was incredibly nervous for my run on Sunday.  I hadn't run my extra 30 minutes, I had a cold, and I wasn't mentally prepared.  

It rocked!!! I'm really loving the Galloway program.  Sunday's run was a walk 60 run 20 interval and it was perfect for the way I was feeling.  By the end of the 20 seconds, I needed to walk because my head cold was taking over and it was harder to breathe.  On a better day, I may have gotten frustrated with the slower pace, thought I could do better, and my ego may have gotten the better of me.  Yesterday, I was grateful for the slower pace, the allowance to recover, and the lack of ego.  I now know that if I can do 7.5 miles with a cold and a little run down from a busy week, I'll absolutely be able to do the 26.2 it takes to complete a marathon!  

I have another busy week ahead of me, but I know that I'll keep on truckin' and making it through! 

Busy week - New Shoes!

It's been a very busy week and the busiest yet in my running career! HA! And because of this busyness, for the first week, I didn't follow the program. I didn't get home before 6:00 this entire week and by Thursday, I came down with a head cold.  Combining these two things (not training and the cold) and I'm suddenly extremely nervous about tomorrow's 7.5 mile run.  This week has left me feeling weak and un-relaxed... a feeling I haven't yet felt while preparing for a run.

Tuesday's run was fast.  15.5 mile pace including the 5 minute walking warm-up.  I think it's the shoes.  HA HA!!! My mom and brother are both being especially supportive and both sent me money to get new shoes. So I went in to the Runner's Edge and got fitted for new runners! I got some gray and teal Nike Zooms.  LOVE THEM!

This week coming up proves to be just as busy.  My school is hiring a new Superintendent and they are involving the teachers in the interviews and the decision which is why I wasn't even home until 10:00 on Thursday and won't be home until a similar time next Wednesday.  I'm hoping these runs will help me calm down after these busy weeks and I will be able to use running as a destresser.  I'm already seeing the camaraderie with my in-laws as a huge help in these stressful times.

Big one!

Whew! Sunday was a biggie!!! 5.5 miles! I texted my lovely brother (yes the trainer) before I ran on Sunday and he said "good luck! My goal is to eat 3 times as many calories as you burn!" HA HA! I think that was his own way of supporting me... and saying it was Super Bowl (a holiday in his house).
We also did our miracle mile on Sunday! You take your time for running one mile and multiply it by 1.3. That will be your projected marathon pace.  Then I'll train 2 minutes slower than that.  I ran at a 12:50 pace! That's the fastest I've ever done a mile before! It was kinda fun! AND it was my first MM of the season so I'll probably get faster from there... not that that is my goal.  My goal is to finish!

So this week marks the 3rd week I'm at this.  My other goals (mentioned in the first blog) are in my brain, nagging at the fact that I haven't lost any weight yet.  Nagging at my conscience of "I should be happier." Nagging at many many other things that I thought would happen a bit faster when I started this program.  I do have a bit more of a social life, but I'm also much more busy.  I have afterschool program on Mondays and Wednesdays, running club on Sundays and Tuesdays, which means that over half my week is taken up with commitments.  Do I call this a social life? No.  Maggie and I both dashed off after running tonight to come home and do some homework.
I know things will come with time but it's the being patient part that I've always struggled with.  I am, by nature, a very patient person with other people and other things, but with myself; I want things to happen now.  Am I disappointed with the the Galloway Marathon training? NO, I'm not done yet... but the fear is started to settle in and the thoughts of failure are sneaking in when I least expect it.  I will complete this, but the other goals are the ones I'm scared will not be completed.

WHOOT WHOOT!

Sorry I did not blog on Sunday... I got a wonderful burst of energy that allowed me to clean my house like a mad-woman after the 4 mile run!
Sunday's run was wonderful... yes, there was black-ice, no, my tracks didn't work 100% BUT I was out there at 8:00am on a Sunday, running.  And when I could look up and take in the scenery, it was a beautiful morning! 4 miles is the farthest I've ever ran.   We did 20 second runs, 60 second walks on this run.  It was a brisk 30 degrees and I wore a long sleeved shirt with a t-shirt over top (I promised myself I would log that so I could remember what to wear in the future).

Tonight's run was AWESOME! It was about 40 degrees, no ice, and comfortable! It was our 30 minute maintenance run and it felt really good! My wonderful sister in law and I get to talk education and kids and family life while we run and it's a really great time to just relax and just run/walk/run! Gallaway-it-up BABY!

So Maggie suggested I write about the smell going up to the meeting room above the Runner's Edge.  It reminds me of a little babydoll I once had.  When I was little, there was a fire at the clinic my dad worked at and all of the toys in the waiting room came to live with us while they cleaned up the clinic.  One toy was a little babydoll that I loved! Since the store next to the Runner's Edge just witnessed a fire as well, the smell going up to the meeting room reminds me of that babydoll and it's strangely comforting!

Doubt

So Tuesday we went out and had our 2nd run... 30 minutes, warm up your muscles, play with your walk/run intervals... just run.  It was a little icy, a little cold, but I got out there and I ran.  And to be quite honest with myself, I had fun!

Wednesday I got up and got ready for work.  I knelt on the couch to pick something up under the couch and TWANG! OUCH! Hamstring pain like no other.  I remembered my brother's basketball injuries in high school were treated with a 30 minute ice, 30 minute heat rotation, so I did that on Wednesday night and did not do any running on Wednesday... but it scared me a little bit.  So I went out gingerly today and did another 30 minutes and then I called that old basketball player turned trainer...

My brother the trainer talked to me about my shoes... yep, that's right.  He knew I got ShapeUps for Christmas and he asked me if I had been running in them.  Yes I have.  He said there have been numerous injuries connected to the ShapeUps and there are even lawsuits connected to them...Thanks Mom and Dad for the wonderful present :P.

Alrighty, I'll change my shoes! So I talked with my husband today about the "shoe" issue and he said "Well isn't there someone that can help you, ya know, find a pair of shoes" and I said "Yes of course! I can go to the Runner's Edge but it will probably be expensive if I go there" He says "Well I'm sure if you tell them you're a beginner and you... might not... I mean you haven't done a whole lot... I mean maybe they can help you find a cheaper pair so that if you don't..." 

LIGHT BULB! He doesn't think I will stick with this! He doesn't think that I can do it! HE DOESN'T THINK THAT HIS WIFE WILL RUN/WALK A MARATHON! I don't want to tell my dad for this reason, but my husband? 

And a-waaaaay we go!

So this morning was the first morning of the marathon training group.  Turns out, since I have been running a bit and doing interval training anyway, I pushed myself a bit and ran with the marathon trainers on a 3 mile run.  The half marathoners ran a 1 mile run this morning.  

This morning I decided that I'll go with the marathoners until I feel like I can't do it anymore... I had fun this morning.  I can't lie.  We did 30 second intervals (30 seconds walking/30 second running) and they really stressed with this class that you are to go at your own pace, do not push yourself because those are the times when you get hurt.  This is much more my philosophy in life.  I really like to do things at my own pace and they really stressed that even if you are running a 15 minute mile but you're having fun and liking it, then GO FOR IT! Who cares how fast you're running?!?! LOVE THAT!!!!!

I heard all kinds of stories this morning.  My inlaws are "pace group leaders" and so I've heard all about the rubbing and the chaifing... Things I didn't even know, like it's not a good idea to wear cotton socks on long runs?!?! I've got so much to learn but I'm so willing to do it! It's going to be a great experience! 

Written on January 19th

Yeah, that's right.  I am going to go out there and make the goal of "running" the half marathon in July.  I say "running" because I'll be doing the Jeff Galloway (www.jeffgalloway.com) method where you run walk at intervals based on your projected race times.  There are a number of reasons why I decided to do this and I thought I should probably write them down for those times when I am really struggling to get out there.  

#1 Get ready for baby weight!

~Yeah, that's right, we're getting ready for a little one... but those of you that know me, know I'm a planner and so we will continue practicing for a little while. You can look for pregnancy posts in the future but NOT NOW! So I joined the marathon group to help me lose some extra weight.    

#2 Some sort of Social Life!

~ My inlaws are the ones who really inspired me to do this.  They're both in their 60's and did this program last year.  They have had a run every week since they signed up and enjoy all the benefits of working out AND have a social life to go with it.  It's amazing the amount of people they have met and have connected with.  Plus, the beer runs on Wednesday nights sound like A LOT of fun.  

#3 To accomplish something big!

~ How many people can say that they have run a half marathon (okay so the numbers are growing but still)? Now is the time for me to really put some effort into this before life gets really busy and things get in the way.  I can put aside my Sundays and a couple evenings a week right now, and I don't know how long I'll be able to say that.   

#4 To "test" the benefits...

~I know this one probably sounds a little strange, but many of my reasons for running this HM is because of all the benefits I've heard. 
boost confidence
eleminate depression
relieve stress
 it's a life-long exercise... 
ETC!
And I want to test them out.  It's also been said, in many of the talks I've heard, that if you do this with a group you are more likely to stick with it and have better results, which is what I'll be doing.  

So ladies and gents, these are the reasons I'm committing myself to run a Half Marathon in July.  Please join me soon for updates on this process.  BTW the first run is on Sunday... and we just got 14 inches of snow!