It's cold. It's freezing and it will be cold until the end of time. The new ice age is upon us.
Ok, ok, it's just winter here in the district.
But it feels like it's been winter FOREVER already and I am so cold that I am completely unmotivated to run. However, I know that if I do not run, the marathon in March will seem like a HUGE mistake and I certainly don't want to feel like running is a mistake. So I must force myself to get out of bed and into my spandex.
I should buy some new spandex.
This morning I got up at 5 and went down to the Washington Monument and back. It was cold. COLD! I was disappointed to see that the National Tree does not in fact stay on all night for people like me who are up at crazy times. We would like to see some holiday cheer! In reality, December is a great time to run outside even in the cold, because of all the holiday lights that people have up. It's very cheerful and festive, even at 5am. No, really, I'm not joking.
So now all I have to do is convince everyone to leave it up until March...
Last weekend, I did a Jingle All the Way 10k. During that run, I saw a guy with a vest on that said "blind athlete." I realized that he had his wrist tied to a woman who was pacing with him, making sure he stayed on course, and making sure that he didn't trip on anything.
I was so impressed by this! Perhaps one day I will be a blind runner's guide! Perhaps one day I will NEED a guide! So who will sign up for this task now? I want to have this lined up, I have very poor eyesight already, so if the day should ever come that contacts don't fix it anymore, I need someone to be willing to go my pace and tie themselves to me for 4 hours.
Who's in?
Friday, December 18, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
A visit to the podiatrist
Because I am 50, I went to the podiatrist today.
Ok, not really. I went to the podiatrist because I've still been having some ankle pain from the Nike marathon. I finally scheduled an appointment last week because I was TERRIFIED of being sidelined now that I signed up to do another marathon.
Because I am a hypochondriac, there probably was no real reason for worry.
That statement is more true than the first one I made, but actually I think it was a good thing that I went. The podiatrist I randomly selected from Google Maps turned out to be a runner, which is always good in my book. I like it when someone in their profession can actually have some insight in the activities of their patients. (However, that is not the sort of thing I discuss in great detail with my gynecologist, although I suppose you could)
Basically, I have strained my Peroneus, which is a big muscle in my ankle. If I had done too much after the marathon, I could have seriously screwed it up, but luckily I am a cautious, somewhat sane individual (with somewhat sane-er friends who forbid me from running) and I did not do that.
The solution?
Stretching.
Oh, the irony...
Ok, not really. I went to the podiatrist because I've still been having some ankle pain from the Nike marathon. I finally scheduled an appointment last week because I was TERRIFIED of being sidelined now that I signed up to do another marathon.
Because I am a hypochondriac, there probably was no real reason for worry.
That statement is more true than the first one I made, but actually I think it was a good thing that I went. The podiatrist I randomly selected from Google Maps turned out to be a runner, which is always good in my book. I like it when someone in their profession can actually have some insight in the activities of their patients. (However, that is not the sort of thing I discuss in great detail with my gynecologist, although I suppose you could)
Basically, I have strained my Peroneus, which is a big muscle in my ankle. If I had done too much after the marathon, I could have seriously screwed it up, but luckily I am a cautious, somewhat sane individual (with somewhat sane-er friends who forbid me from running) and I did not do that.
The solution?
Stretching.
Oh, the irony...
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
4 months to marathon?
HAHAHAHA! I have signed up for my next marathon!!! Gales of laughter are hiding my nerves. I signed up for the Nation’s Marathon on March 20, 2010. This will definitely give me an incentive to run throughout winter and focus on bringing my time down. My goal is to finish this one in 4 hours or less. Then the next one I’ll cut off the next 20 minutes and qualify for Boston. If all goes accordingly.
What a thrill it is to sign up for a marathon. There’s the initial hesitation – you might go to the site several times, enter your name and contact info, and then when it comes to payment, you chicken out. You might tell people that you’re thinking of it and then laugh, to try to gauge their reaction to your insane idea. Or you might secretly hide it so that you don’t have to hear THEIR laughter. Then when you actually register, there’s a flood of relief followed by imminent panic. Panic then succumbs to reason – you can do this. It’s just 26.2 miles. Then reason dies an instant death to JOY! Another marathon! HUZZAH!
Well…perhaps you were with me until the joy part.
Anyway…the main point here is that next year I will be doing multiple marathons and now I’m well on my way. I will not let cold weather or lack of training time or swollen ankles or black toenails or the swine flu or the bird flu or anything else stand in my way to Boston!
What a thrill it is to sign up for a marathon. There’s the initial hesitation – you might go to the site several times, enter your name and contact info, and then when it comes to payment, you chicken out. You might tell people that you’re thinking of it and then laugh, to try to gauge their reaction to your insane idea. Or you might secretly hide it so that you don’t have to hear THEIR laughter. Then when you actually register, there’s a flood of relief followed by imminent panic. Panic then succumbs to reason – you can do this. It’s just 26.2 miles. Then reason dies an instant death to JOY! Another marathon! HUZZAH!
Well…perhaps you were with me until the joy part.
Anyway…the main point here is that next year I will be doing multiple marathons and now I’m well on my way. I will not let cold weather or lack of training time or swollen ankles or black toenails or the swine flu or the bird flu or anything else stand in my way to Boston!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Always reaching for the next challenge
If anyone is truly an avid reader, you will notice that the top of my blog no longer reads: 2009: The Year of the Triathlon. Now it reads: Goal: Boston 2011.
Yes, my friends. I have decided that my new challenge will be to learn a new skill - how to run fast. In order to qualify for Boston, I must complete a marathon in 3:40:00. This means I have to cut off 43 minutes from my best marathon time and basically run 26.2 miles at a 9.16 pace. That's the maximum I can do in order to reach this time.
How is this going to happen? I'm not really sure yet. I know that I will have to learn how to do 7 miles in an hour consistently. I know that I will have to do speed drills. It's possible that I will have to talk to a coach. But I think this is a good challenge. I'm hoping to complete this at the Marine Corps marathon 2010, which is in general a flat, easy course with lots of cheerleaders!
In the meantime, I will need to find multiple races to run between now and then. I'm not giving myself a lot of time here - the 2011 race is less than 2 years away. This is going to take some dedicated running and I will actually have to focus on my time now - not my favorite thing to do.
Away we go!
Yes, my friends. I have decided that my new challenge will be to learn a new skill - how to run fast. In order to qualify for Boston, I must complete a marathon in 3:40:00. This means I have to cut off 43 minutes from my best marathon time and basically run 26.2 miles at a 9.16 pace. That's the maximum I can do in order to reach this time.
How is this going to happen? I'm not really sure yet. I know that I will have to learn how to do 7 miles in an hour consistently. I know that I will have to do speed drills. It's possible that I will have to talk to a coach. But I think this is a good challenge. I'm hoping to complete this at the Marine Corps marathon 2010, which is in general a flat, easy course with lots of cheerleaders!
In the meantime, I will need to find multiple races to run between now and then. I'm not giving myself a lot of time here - the 2011 race is less than 2 years away. This is going to take some dedicated running and I will actually have to focus on my time now - not my favorite thing to do.
Away we go!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Why I Love the NY Times
Why do I love the NY Times? Because they print articles like this!!
What's the moral of the story? Running is not only good for you, but human beings are MADE TO RUN! We are born for it! When God created Adam and Eve, He was like, go, move your gluteus maximus (butt) as I have made it ONLY FOR RUNNING!!!!!
Are you not inspired!? How can you not be? What a fantastic article, New York Times. I applaud you for your efforts in the fight against American Obesity.
Also...I found out today that my birthday is on WORLD RUN DAY! Was I born under a lucky star or WHAT.
Details here
(Please note my advanced use of hyperlinks in this post.)
What's the moral of the story? Running is not only good for you, but human beings are MADE TO RUN! We are born for it! When God created Adam and Eve, He was like, go, move your gluteus maximus (butt) as I have made it ONLY FOR RUNNING!!!!!
Are you not inspired!? How can you not be? What a fantastic article, New York Times. I applaud you for your efforts in the fight against American Obesity.
Also...I found out today that my birthday is on WORLD RUN DAY! Was I born under a lucky star or WHAT.
Details here
(Please note my advanced use of hyperlinks in this post.)
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
And so I run another marathon
On Sunday, October 18th, I was in San Francisco. I was surrounded by friends and family. The weather was perfect. My sneakers were set.
And I was NERVOUS.
We arrived on Friday around noon. Our hotel was the St Francis at Union Square, which was right where the race started. Nike had TAKEN OVER Union Square for the expo and I knew that I wouldn't be comfortable until I went to get my bib number. After checking into the hotel, my parents, sister and brother-in-law went with me to get the goods.
The expo was...chaotic. They didn't assign you a number based on your time and they actually were letting people pick their corrals. Bad. Idea. As much as it hurts your self-esteem to be in the lower corrals, they work for a reason. The start line is crazy enough without people running in front of you at a madly slow pace. The rest of the expo had smoothies from Safeway, manicures from JetBlue (I declined), and some samples of Kashi, Ghiradelli, and Luna moons. However...there was no where to buy GU. No where to pick up last minute supplies. I couldn't believe that a destination marathon, with people coming from all over, wouldn't have more amenities. We went to the nearby Nike store (my name was on the wall!!!) but they didn't have any either. They didn't even know what it was!!
We went on to do some touristy things in San Fran...my dad took us all out to a really nice restaurant on Friday night and we watched the sun set over Alcatraz. On Saturday, I got to see a very good friend of mine who moved out there! She and her boyfriend took my bf and me around and even took me to a sporting goods store to get my GU. RELIEF! No GU = bad racing for me.
That night, I was all nerves. I made my boyfriend turn down a fancy dinner that my dad (and the rest of my family) got invited to, and he stayed in the hotel room with me and ordered room service. Meal of choice? Spaghetti of course. Still, I felt extremely nervous, almost like it was my first race. My parents stopped by and gave me a new arm band for my ipod, which cheered me up a little. Mostly, I was just ready to run.
Sunday morning came quickly and I was up at 5am. By 6, I was dressed, ready, and waiting! I had my race day Clif bar and went over to my parents' room. they were also ready and a little nervous about finding me. We went down to meet my friend who had braved the nerves and decided to do this feat with me.
The starting line was SO disorganized. Hoards of insane women hungry for Ghiradelli and Tiffany's crowded Union Square. My friend pulled me close to the start and we awaited the starting gun. My boyfriend, who was not there, said that he heard every word of the announcer, he was so loud, and with a burst of Beyonce's "Single Ladies," we were sent forth into San Francisco.
The race, of course, is something of a blur by now. The weather was insanely perfect and the views were absolutely amazing! I was impressed by how many people were out to cheer us on. We went through several neighborhoods where people had come outside to cheer. Nike had set up some pretty cool signs along the course to remind us to have fun.
The hills were brutal. I can't lie and say they weren't. The uphill was ok, especially since I had practiced it. But the downhill was treacherous and by mile 16, I could feel it in my ankles. It was an intense pain, something I hadn't ever really felt before. I also hadn't found my family yet. I didn't find them until mile 19 - after running by the beach, the Golden Gate Park, and the piers. My parents suddenly appeared and my mom ran out to run a mile with me! She carried the sign she made for me with her and got everyone to cheer for me! That was definitely the high point of my race! :)
But at this point, my ankles in severe pain. They felt like they were grinding. Several times I felt like I was going to cry and I could only remember my mother's words, "only 6 miles to go! you're going to finish it!" as I moved forward. Each step was painful and I had to stop to try to stretch them out. Nothing helped. I passed the Ghiradelli stop and couldn't even eat the chocolate. The view stopped being so beautiful...all I wanted was to finish.
And then...I did. In a blur, I was done. I hardly remember it. I passed the firefighters, who looked dapper in their tuxedos. They handed me a Tiffany's box. I took my timing chip off my shoe and turned it in. I found my sister and her husband at the finish line, where they hugged me in spite of my stinkiness.
All I wanted to do was sit down.
Slowly, everyone found us. My parents, my boyfriend, my friend who had braved the roads to come see me. I opened my Tiffany's box to reveal an adorable necklace that says, Run like a Girl. And then my boyfriend and my mother walked with me behind everyone else as I tried to make it to my friend's car. My ankles and the arches of my feet screamed every time I put pressure down on them.
Now, a week later, they still hurt. I'm not really sure why, I think it's because of the downhills. They hurt less now, more of an ache than a grinding pain...but in general I was still pretty happy. I finish in 4 hours and 42 minutes...about 20 minutes more than the Marine Corps. With the hills, I'm happy I finished in under 5 hours! I reached the half point in just over 2 hours. This one is not a good one to try to hit Boston for!!
Yesterday was the Marine Corps here in DC...I went to watch and cheered my brains out! It is really fun to cheer, especially when you know what people need to hear. But it's also really hard to watch and not be able to participate. I wanted to be one of the runners so badly! The looks of agony, the grins at a good cheer, the limping, the bloody spots on shirts where nipple rub had gone too far....oh man, I was jealous.
Somewhere in my race on the 18th, I thought to myself, "I need a new hobby." And at the time...yeah. I thought I did. But this is really what I love to do. I really love running. And I can't wait for the next one!
And I was NERVOUS.
We arrived on Friday around noon. Our hotel was the St Francis at Union Square, which was right where the race started. Nike had TAKEN OVER Union Square for the expo and I knew that I wouldn't be comfortable until I went to get my bib number. After checking into the hotel, my parents, sister and brother-in-law went with me to get the goods.
The expo was...chaotic. They didn't assign you a number based on your time and they actually were letting people pick their corrals. Bad. Idea. As much as it hurts your self-esteem to be in the lower corrals, they work for a reason. The start line is crazy enough without people running in front of you at a madly slow pace. The rest of the expo had smoothies from Safeway, manicures from JetBlue (I declined), and some samples of Kashi, Ghiradelli, and Luna moons. However...there was no where to buy GU. No where to pick up last minute supplies. I couldn't believe that a destination marathon, with people coming from all over, wouldn't have more amenities. We went to the nearby Nike store (my name was on the wall!!!) but they didn't have any either. They didn't even know what it was!!
We went on to do some touristy things in San Fran...my dad took us all out to a really nice restaurant on Friday night and we watched the sun set over Alcatraz. On Saturday, I got to see a very good friend of mine who moved out there! She and her boyfriend took my bf and me around and even took me to a sporting goods store to get my GU. RELIEF! No GU = bad racing for me.
That night, I was all nerves. I made my boyfriend turn down a fancy dinner that my dad (and the rest of my family) got invited to, and he stayed in the hotel room with me and ordered room service. Meal of choice? Spaghetti of course. Still, I felt extremely nervous, almost like it was my first race. My parents stopped by and gave me a new arm band for my ipod, which cheered me up a little. Mostly, I was just ready to run.
Sunday morning came quickly and I was up at 5am. By 6, I was dressed, ready, and waiting! I had my race day Clif bar and went over to my parents' room. they were also ready and a little nervous about finding me. We went down to meet my friend who had braved the nerves and decided to do this feat with me.
The starting line was SO disorganized. Hoards of insane women hungry for Ghiradelli and Tiffany's crowded Union Square. My friend pulled me close to the start and we awaited the starting gun. My boyfriend, who was not there, said that he heard every word of the announcer, he was so loud, and with a burst of Beyonce's "Single Ladies," we were sent forth into San Francisco.
The race, of course, is something of a blur by now. The weather was insanely perfect and the views were absolutely amazing! I was impressed by how many people were out to cheer us on. We went through several neighborhoods where people had come outside to cheer. Nike had set up some pretty cool signs along the course to remind us to have fun.
The hills were brutal. I can't lie and say they weren't. The uphill was ok, especially since I had practiced it. But the downhill was treacherous and by mile 16, I could feel it in my ankles. It was an intense pain, something I hadn't ever really felt before. I also hadn't found my family yet. I didn't find them until mile 19 - after running by the beach, the Golden Gate Park, and the piers. My parents suddenly appeared and my mom ran out to run a mile with me! She carried the sign she made for me with her and got everyone to cheer for me! That was definitely the high point of my race! :)
But at this point, my ankles in severe pain. They felt like they were grinding. Several times I felt like I was going to cry and I could only remember my mother's words, "only 6 miles to go! you're going to finish it!" as I moved forward. Each step was painful and I had to stop to try to stretch them out. Nothing helped. I passed the Ghiradelli stop and couldn't even eat the chocolate. The view stopped being so beautiful...all I wanted was to finish.
And then...I did. In a blur, I was done. I hardly remember it. I passed the firefighters, who looked dapper in their tuxedos. They handed me a Tiffany's box. I took my timing chip off my shoe and turned it in. I found my sister and her husband at the finish line, where they hugged me in spite of my stinkiness.
All I wanted to do was sit down.
Slowly, everyone found us. My parents, my boyfriend, my friend who had braved the roads to come see me. I opened my Tiffany's box to reveal an adorable necklace that says, Run like a Girl. And then my boyfriend and my mother walked with me behind everyone else as I tried to make it to my friend's car. My ankles and the arches of my feet screamed every time I put pressure down on them.
Now, a week later, they still hurt. I'm not really sure why, I think it's because of the downhills. They hurt less now, more of an ache than a grinding pain...but in general I was still pretty happy. I finish in 4 hours and 42 minutes...about 20 minutes more than the Marine Corps. With the hills, I'm happy I finished in under 5 hours! I reached the half point in just over 2 hours. This one is not a good one to try to hit Boston for!!
Yesterday was the Marine Corps here in DC...I went to watch and cheered my brains out! It is really fun to cheer, especially when you know what people need to hear. But it's also really hard to watch and not be able to participate. I wanted to be one of the runners so badly! The looks of agony, the grins at a good cheer, the limping, the bloody spots on shirts where nipple rub had gone too far....oh man, I was jealous.
Somewhere in my race on the 18th, I thought to myself, "I need a new hobby." And at the time...yeah. I thought I did. But this is really what I love to do. I really love running. And I can't wait for the next one!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
19 days till Marathon
It seems like my triathlon was already a long time ago. If you just read my last post, you never would think that I did one. I expected it to kind of be this life changing event. And while I do think that I learned a lot from it, I think that like every "life event," the lessons are just added to the ball of knowledge that you've been accumulating since birth.
It will make a good essay in case I ever apply to grad school though.
Now, it is time for the Nike Women's Marathon! In only 19 days, I will be in lovely California! Running a marathon! To get a Tiffany's necklace! OMG I AM SO EXCITED! I'm trying not to think too much about it, since I will stress myself out if I do. Basically, I know that I can finish it. I'm aware that it will be painful and that my training for this was not as good as for the one I did last year. But I've also decided that this one is for fun.
I might already be planning for next year. I want to do one of the Big 5: Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London and New York City. At least one. It would be fun to do all in one year, wouldn't it? Too bad I have to qualify for most of them...
It will make a good essay in case I ever apply to grad school though.
Now, it is time for the Nike Women's Marathon! In only 19 days, I will be in lovely California! Running a marathon! To get a Tiffany's necklace! OMG I AM SO EXCITED! I'm trying not to think too much about it, since I will stress myself out if I do. Basically, I know that I can finish it. I'm aware that it will be painful and that my training for this was not as good as for the one I did last year. But I've also decided that this one is for fun.
I might already be planning for next year. I want to do one of the Big 5: Berlin, Boston, Chicago, London and New York City. At least one. It would be fun to do all in one year, wouldn't it? Too bad I have to qualify for most of them...
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