It Feels Good!

For the first time in a long, long while, I'm enjoying training runs. Did 9x400 today. Ran the pace laps at 8:34 with the recovery laps at 10:34. Last pace lap was actually at 8:00 and I finished strong. No pain in my legs AT ALL, which is not something I was able to say much last year. This last month of running has only been positive for me. I have to credit adding swimming, cycling, and yoga to my training schedule as it's the only thing I'm doing differently from since last year. I foresee a pleasant 2012 full running that feels good again.

I Don't Wanna!

Well, I am resting an injury, but boy am I taking full advantage of it! I'm lounging more than I should ever be allowed to. I'm realizing I'm like that after completing soccer tournaments, and it's extending to running goals. I just don't want to move after running, sprinting, jumping, and such 4-6 days a week for months. I'm pretty much rebelling, but it makes no sense. I actually enjoy all that physical activity.

Luckily it's been confirmed that friends and I will definitely be running a 42 mile relay race on the 30th of this month. This is forcing me to hit the road again starting today. Nothing like people relying on you to perform to motivate you. These people expect you perform too. Not a slackity slack bunch.

Back on track whether I want to or not, but as I log in the miles, I'm sure seeing the mile count climb towards my "1000 miles in 2011" goal will keep me going. It's getting started again that's the hardest part for me. 

Game on!

Working On My Fitness!

Yes, yes, I'm working on my marathon report, I promise. I better hurry up before I forget the details! Old fart memory and all.

I'm still recovering from it almost two weeks out. I stupidly played soccer only a week after that run. I was still feeling a bit of pain in the right calf, and I went and aggravated it to the point where it feels worse than it did while I was running. Now I'm unable to walk without pain, which means running again for at least another week it out. 

Instead I've picked up on my in home workouts again. I normally do quite a bit of work on the upper body and core muscles for the amount of pushing around I have to do on the soccer field. That was shelved during the marathon training simply because I was too tired to do anymore than run.  Man, starting back at square one was painful. Push ups on the knees, and quivering abs at number 10, hoi! The two videos I'm using are:

Jillian is such a bully that I am motivated by the sheer pleasure of meeting her challenges to get through the video. I have yet to feel confident enough to move to level 2 though. I'm still knocking myself around with the kettle bell. Once I feel like I control it instead of it controlling me, I'll stick to level 1.

Guillermo from the Hardcore Kickbox Circuit is so gangsta in the way he moves around, with his beautiful hair and the dip of a shoulder when he walks, he has my full attention. All that and his lovely Hispanic accent make working through this video tolerable. I kick and punch like a girl, but I definitely feel the burn with this workout.

So, as I mentioned in my previous post, Recovering & The Next Challenge, I'm getting myself fit for the rigors of P90X, which will be ordered here shortly (Dang, it's not cheap!). Hopefully I won't injure myself with the kettle bell, or round house myself in the head and get a concussion before it arrives.

Recovering & The Next Challenge!

6 days past the marathon and I'm still exhausted. I've only written a quarter of my race report, which I must do as it's my first marathon EVER. I've done some in home workouts, but haven't been out to run yet. The thought of it makes me do exactly like kitty up there. I just shut down and need a nap. I'm assuming it's at least a little normal? No? I'm just lazy? Anyway, I'll have to run tomorrow afternoon to play some football, so we'll see how much the legs have recovered then. 

On to my next challenge. I've decided to conquer another fear. I am a wuss when it comes lifting, swinging, pulling heavy objects, which includes my own body. Pullups, pushups, crunches, oh my! Dislike! I'd rather run 26.2 miles. So, I've decided to give the much talked about P90X a try. God help me. I will probably cry real tears, but I'm excited to see if I can get results like these:

Ok, ok. Not sure if I'll ever look that good, but I'd love to at least do the complete program. I talked my husband into doing this with me, but I have a strong feeling this will turn into a competition between us. That's not always a good thing, but at least I won't be doing it alone. Misery loves company!

At the moment though, I'm still fighting the urge to lay down and nap whenever I see a couch or bed. I'll strengthen up a bit with my lady friendly workout dvd's to prepare for the rigors of P90X. Probably for another week & slowly add in some running as I have committed to running a relay with my soccer teammates at the end of April. A little fun running with good friends. It's been a while since we've had those.

Whew! That was tiring. I need to go lay down now.

Go, JB!!

This video was actually meant for the family blog, but what the heck. Future Guam star right here (in my head, at least). He's #17, by the way.

4 Days Till THE Day.

I'm seriously trying not to freak out. I have a bit of anxiety going on when I focus on "the day", so I try not to, but it's coming down to prep time.

I have put in the miles. I didn't train to break any records, but I want to finish this marathon strong (no  crawling or stopping to lay in fetal position in the bushes). My 20 miler felt pretty steady. Did have a bit of fatigue, but I was finishing each mile on an incline. The marathon course looks to be flat for majority of the 2nd half, yay! One foot in front of the other.

The biggest reason for my anxiety is that I've been sick these last couple weeks before the race. I didn't run at all last week (except during a soccer game). I'm on antibiotics right now and these suckers are wrecking havoc on my gut. I don't know how I'm retaining any needed nutrients, and this run's going to be pretty bare minimum in support from race coordinators, which means that I may not have the luxury of a port-a-potty at every water stop. I'm tempted to stop taking them right now just to get my stomach settled.

As for prepping for the day, I have had offers from friends to be at certain stops to provide support in special fluids, shot bloks, and/or food. My husband will be home with the kids until the time I am expected to finish, which is when he'll be at the finish with the kids and  the camera. I'm terrible about accepting help from people, but it would help a ton to have a few bananas and bloks littered throughout the course. I dunno. Trying to get over my issue with receiving help just to ease the stress a little. I'll mull over that a for a couple more days.

Not as simple as showing up 10 minutes before a 5k on an empty stomach after a night a wine and heavy foods, for sure. Soon as I finish this up, I'll meditate a little, then pull up the race course to map out pit stops and research some tips for a quality marathon experience. A tiny little EEK right here. Just a tiny one.

As far as my 1000 mile goal, I'm going with my dailymile record of: 293. 707 more to go.

zzzzzzzz....

I'm SO tired. I'm 1/2 way through the marathon training, and I'm tired as a son of a gun! I'm like a zombie. I can't even calculate where I'm at in my 1000 miles in 2011 goal. I'm surprised I remember it's 2011.

Please tell me this is normal. I'll be doing the books at work, put my head down for a second wondering where those 2 cents went, then wake up in a puddle of drool 15 minutes later. Is this the life I chose, or could I use a better vitamin than Flintstones Children's Gummies?

Anyway, I'm struggling to stay awake till the kids' bedtime. 18 miler this weekend is heavy on my mind and legs. Tomorrow's my mid week long run, which I depend on as primer for the weekend "character builder", and Mr. C is working till 10pm. God loves to challenge and test me. I'll likely ask the 'Rents to assist since waking up early is just too much for me.

1000 mile goal calculation sometime later this week. Meanwhile, I run.

Esta gui!!

I'm still here, and I've been running my butt off, literally! Seriously. I need to get some new, smaller underwear, ha!

Last I updated I was at 50 miles down. I added 61 more miles since then with two of those runs surpassing my longest run of 13.1 miles. I'm totally amazed at myself. This past Sunday I ran 15. I never, ever before envisioned myself running a 1/2 marathon, let alone anything longer than that. Not only did I run it, I ran it in pain for the 1st 4 miles.

The course had a steep uphill climb about a 1/4 of a mile into it. I took it on hard and ended up setting fire to both achilles tendons, and my left ankle. That pain stuck with me for a full 2 miles. At the stop lights I took advantage of the wait by stretching. After hitting two miles, I thought I was in the clear until the arch in my left foot started to hurt and swelled making it feel like I was running with stuffing in my shoe. Then, it just went numb. It's the oddest feeling in the world running with a numb foot, I'll tell you. I was worried about striking the ground funny and taking a spill. Thankfully, that only lasted another couple of miles.

Aside from the 10 laps I had to do at a track, which nearly drove me insane (can't stand running in circles), the rest of the run was pretty comfortable. I actually felt encouraged about my possible success in the full marathon, which for me would be finishing it, running the full distance.

This weekend we've got a 16 miler. I don't fear it so much after the 15 miler since at the end of it I felt I could have run on a little longer. My only problem is I have been running the long runs at night and it's been taking away precious time from the family and home. My intention this weekend is to wake up super early Saturday morning and get it done before the family has time to miss me. I pray my will is strong enough to do that.  Today's the first run of the week of 4 miles. I remember when I used to groan at running 4 miles thinking it was soooo long. Now they feel like walks in the park.

111 miles down of 1000 mile goal. 889 left to go.

Yes, I am!

When I first told family and friends that I  wanted to run my first full marathon, they looked at me like I had a 3rd eye, or ask "why the hell would you WANT to do that?". Periodically since the announcement, if I mentioned getting a run in for "training" I usually get the "are you REALLY going to run that marathon?". I'd hear so much doubt, and sometimes disgust, that my answers were usually along the lines of, "yeah, I'd like to if I can", or "I think so". Started to second guess myself and abilities. I get little support beyond my husband and kids, so committing to the training was an effort for the first couple months. I messed with the schedule to work it around having fun, and missed a couple long runs. That hadn't helped my already weakening resolve to meet this goal.

This past week though has been impressive for me. I followed the schedule after a week off, and I found myself more committed than I was the very first week I had started this training. On Saturday's long run of 12 miles, the weather was crap, I got nervous not seeing many runners out, but I forged on. I shushed the whiny sloth within as I stomped to my starting spot and warmed up. As soon as I trotted off, I felt a surge in self confidence. At that moment, I knew that I had the discipline and determination to finish the 2nd half of this training, and eventually have a decent go at my first ever full marathon. Ask me now if I'm REALLY going to run it. I will tell you with confidence, "Yes, I am!".

50 miles down. 950 more to go of my 1000 mile goal.

Oh, let me tell you. I will not forget to use this product EVER again on any run longer than 10 miles. My chest is very angry that I did this past weekend. Also, will need to find new jog bras that fit better with less bulky seams around the edges where this product should have been applied. Lady runners, I know you feel me!

Back on it, doggonit!

Ok, I pinky promise I'll stick to the schedule this week. No more holiday indoor footy to cheat on it  with, and I officially turned down coaching my middle school soccer team to get focused, so no putzing around. I'll have to at least finish the marathon to justify that decision, and that won't happen at the rate I've been going. Well, I'll finish, but the truck that picks up the course cones after the last runner will be right behind me.

19 of 1000 miles down. 981 to go. Work it out, Blanda!

Break, break!

My first, and hopefully my last (I doubt this), week of zero miles in several months. I ran into a little bump on my road to marathon readiness. Having scheduled my 18 week training program a few weeks off mark,  and totally freaking out over it, I've decided to take a break. Yeah, a little late in the week, and due to silly issues when injured runners are chomping at the bit to hit the pavement, but I think it'll give my tired legs some time to repair. The runs of last week were tired and sore. Felt over all fatigued. I'm hoping this little break will have me feeling refreshed physically and mentally for a motivated restart next week.

1000 mile count on pause. Just this week, I promise.

Drama Queen

I can run with jacked up ankles and knees, but I have a hard time getting motivated to run if I'm sad. I'm quite the drama queen when my husband and I have disagreements. We were not on the same page yesterday, which is rare, and I let it slow my roll. Missed my mid-week long run. Now I'll have to make up for it today and the rest of the week's runs will be shifted closer together making recovery miserable AGAIN. 

1000 mile count temporarily stalled. Picked myself up and dusted my knees off. Game on!

Kill Your Coach!

 Jungle rules indoor soccer

Today I cheated. I switched up my usual Sunday cross training day with today's 4 mile run. It's ok, right? As long as I run the dreaded mid week UGH and Saturday OMG long runs?

As usual, everyone wanted to be on the team that played against the coaches so they could pelt us for two hours with very strong, bruise inducing shots and passes. Always a good time. A particularly fun moment was when I went out wide for a pass, but went a tad TOO wide and wrecked with the bleachers. That's definitely going to leave a mark.

8 miles tomorrow.

What was I thinking?

 Beautiful, but deadly on the night of January 2, 2011.

I have no idea what I was thinking. I ran 4 miles on Thursday after playing 1.5 hours of a crunching, bruising game of indoor "kill your football coach" (best friend and I being the coaches). Friday being new year's eve, I got swept away by the idea of closing out the year with a 5 miler on the most beautiful 5k course on Guam, which also happens to be uphill for at least half of it. New year's day I felt the need to start off the year on the right foot with a 6 mile run. That foot was sore and quite angry.

Come the long run of the week that should not be missed no matter what you do during the week of short runs, I'm thoroughly fatigued, and carrying a hangover that started Friday morning. What should have been 15 miles was shortened to 12 due to Mister being back late from watching UFC fights. Almost canceled it, but as I had my fanny pack of fluids and my recovery drink prepared, upon his return I quickly threw my gear on and headed out for the run.

From the second I took off I felt tightness in every muscle from tush to toe. To make it even more fun, it goes right into a 45 degree angled hill. My calves were pissed off! They seized up in "pre-cramp conditions" and didn't let up till 3 miles in. Throughout the run I watched ambulances and police vehicles fly up and down my course. It gave me a feeling of dread that I couldn't shake. I decided to reduce the run to 10 miles because of it. Little did I know that some silly woman running in the dark was not in danger that night, but Guam had lost two of her babies to the waters. The interesting thing was that I had run alongside a bay and noticed the water was unusually high and choppy. I wondered why there were people still in the water with their kids in the dark. Anyway, that was the reason I cut the run short. Not because I was slackity slackin'.

Thank goodness I decided to cut it short though because every step for the final three miles was excruciating. The one thing that I have a hard time doing is walking. The only time I've ever walked during a run was when I had children with me. Even when I was pregnant I at least made the motions of running. Having it beaten into my head for 10+ years by my football coaches that walking means you are not starting 11 material has traumatized me. Walking means quitting in my warped mind. I was THIS close to doing it, but gimped through. What did I achieve with that? Not a damn thing. There's no team to make, and I felt like crap afterward.

What did I learn from this past week of pain and torture? I'm not 20 anymore, holiday cheer and lack of sleep have a huge affect on recovery between runs, and if  I'm my only competition, I will always win, so walking to avoid injury and totally hating the experience isn't the horrible thing I make it out to be.

15 miles down. 985 to go.

Happy New Year!

Adios, 2010. Welcome, 2011.

Ah, the giddiness and fresh "new sheets" smell of a new year. Gives me hope where the end of the previous year leaves me despairing over accomplishments unachieved.

This will be the first time ever I will be putting another hobby before football. As I get older, I realize that the rigors of my beloved sport will not be kind to my aging joints. While football leaves me recovering for days after a match, running is always gentle and kind to me. I am at the point in my athletic life where gentle and kind are preferred.

My goals for the new year are to run my first full marathon and run 1000 quality miles. I have some doubters, and pshawers, but they just fuel my desire to accomplish them.

Today, 1/1/11, I ran the first 6 miles of my 1000 mile goal. Felt like shit, but got'er done. Bring on the remaining 994 miles. At this point, strong mentally and in the lungs, but the arches and achilles tendon in the left leg aren't at 100%. I'm hoping new, properly fitting shoes and losing about 10 more pounds will help.

Bring it, 2011.