Still Training...

Summer training has been crazy, but Im excited that my hard work will be paying off very soon. My October race schedule is insane! I am most excited about my half marathon (Myrtle Beach repeat) and the Doggie Dash with Justus. I plan to run a 5k in Charlotte on the airport runway as well! Right now I am looking at the possibility of 5-6 races in October.  School has kept me crazy busy and Im just hoping I can hold it all together. My IT band started to give me problems a couple weeks ago so Im trying to make sure that I dont over do anything. This is the worst blog I have written, by far. I credit it to being overworked and exhausted. I will try again another day... Wait till I tell you about how Hurricane Irene messed up my training!

Catching Up.

I can't beleive I never posted anything about the marathon. Yes, I finished. Yes, it took forever. And yes, I would do it again. I raised over $1800.00 for JDRF! Tyler went with me for the weekend and my Dad met me at the finishline. I also met up with Ben and his family at the end. They gave me flowers and some pizza. I have decided that that's how every marathon should finish: pizza and flowers!

It's now July and I have recently started training for my next half marathon. I will be running in the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon (13.1 miles, and there's nothing "mini" about it!) on October 23rd, 2011. It is a special day because it marks the birthday of my first dog, Buddy. Im also excited because my Dad has signed up for the half marathon as well!! Also, on October 22nd, Justus and I will be running in the 1.5 mile Doggy Dash. I should get some good pics from both events. Who knows, maybe Justus will do a cartwheel over the finishline!

36 hours and counting

I cant believe it.


It seemed like so long ago that I began on this journey of the marathon. Im so afraid that this weekend will go by faster than I can ever imagine possible and that all the build up will be over and  lost forever. There is a part of me that already feels a great sadness.

Yes, Im excited. Scared. Sad.

I have raised $1500.00 and by the time the fundraising is complete I will come in at about $1800.00. I cant even begin to describe how that makes me feel. I think it's why I feel a little lost in everything. I feel like this isnt about me. And Im ok with that, that's what I wanted! I feel a great sense of pride and it has NOTHING to do with the mileage I am about to run. It has nothing to do with the fact that at the end of the weekend I will be able to slap the 26.2 sticker on my car and proudly say without a DOUBT that I AM A MARATHONER. I feel so honored to have my friends and family (and Ben's family) supporting me through this crazy adventure. I'm proud that I can continue to make an impact on Ben's future.

My nails are painted green. Well, sort of. More like they are paint chipped green. And honestly, it's more aqua than it is green. I've got shamrock spirit (how 'bout you?!)

My bags are packed. Well, sort of. More like I have a bunch of crap somewhat sorted into different piles. Umm, I mean in different bags.

My homework is as done as it's gonna get. I have been preparing for this moment for a long time. I have planned the last few months around this weekend. I don't want to feel any stress when it comes time to cross the start line. No stress. Just excitement. Huge difference.

I dont want to jinx myself, but I'm not going to hit "the wall." Why? Because I know that what I am doing is bigger than me. I know that I have a lot of goodness out there, and it's going to carry me HAPPILY across the finishline.

And yes, there may be some tears along the way.

Shamrock On,
RunnerGirl

My 1st 20 Miler

On Sunday I had the brilliant idea to finally run 20 miles. My original goal was 16, then I thought why not 18 now and then 2 later with Justus for a total of 20. (They magic number is 20 when training for a marathon, so I'm told) Then I said, ya know, why not knock it all out NOW for fun?

I met GoRun at 5am and ran an 8 mile loop with Gina and Megan. Then I ran the loop again by myself and then I ran around Arlington Blvd until I picked up my extra milage. I must admit that while it was difficult, it was very rewarding to see those miles just peel off like that. I had to stick with my "Run 1 mile, walk 1/2 mile" which felt like it took forever, but my knee seemed to think it was alright. In total I tan 20.02 miles in 4 hours and 16 minutes flat. Yes, that's correct: 4 hours. I even have picture proof.

This gave me confidence that I will be able to finish my marathon (in 16 days) in a time of about 5.5 hours. Monday I was sore as could be but I still managed to walk a mile. Tuesday I walked another mile with mild discomfort. Today Im feeling pretty good, minor aches and pains but no time to hit the pavement before going to work. Maybe I can hit the stationary bike tonight.

Until next time,
RunnerGirl

21

My marathon is in 21 days. And I'm scared.

"I Just Keep On Chasing Pavement...."

(I love that song...)

I am happy to say that last week I officially hit 30 miles! Now, granted this is where I should have been a while ago but I am giving myself somewhat of a break considering my knee.

Today was different. I should be at 20 miles for a long run but instead I was able to get 12.10 miles by running and walking. It took just over 2.5 hours which I am not proud of, but the mileage is there either way. Later, I took Justus to the dog park and then we walked another 2.40 miles so I have a total of 14.50 miles on my feet today. I have plans to hit the stationary bike once I post this. My knee gave me a little trouble today and I am incredibly frustrated with it. I look forward to getting this race over with so I can start over and add mileage the RIGHT way. Im sure if I look in my running logs I will find that I did too much too soon. I guess that's what happens when you procrastinate: shit gets deep and you gotta catch up to the competition. Oh well - lesson learned.

On the way home from the park Justus and I stopped at Starbucks. He rode shotgun which looked so goofy.  The day concluded with a cheap download of The Social Network soundtrack and an iced caramel macchiato. The girl at Starbucks messed up my drink the first time by making a latte instead of an iced drink. So I ended up getting two drinks for the price of one. And would you beleive I didnt finish either one? Too much sugar and I was starting to feel sick. I didnt feel bad with what I drank because I torched nearly 1500 calories in running.

Alright, thats enough for now - Gotta hit the bike!

Valentine's Day 5k

I am on the far left in pink.

Tyler and I started dating in January and on February 12th we ran our first 5k together. He's a fast runner and has been running for just over 3 times longer than I have been (and has lots of natural ability) and it was so much fun getting to do a race together. We finished in a time of 29:02, but I honestly think that my official time is closer to 28:59 because of the chip timing. Either way it is yet another PR for me and Im very proud of it. I even got a flower at the end :-) We placed 10th (of 30) in the couples race. I placed 103rd (of 281) overall, and 22nd (of 76) in my age group (ages 20-29).

We ran a great race together!

I am still dealing with pain in my left knee and I hope it can get sorted out before the marathon. This is getting to be a mental game and it's frustrating.

In fundraising terms I am doing well but far behind my goal of raising $2,000.00. I am around $400.00 and so I have a ways to go. My friend Natalie Norris sells Pampered Chef and has set up a fundraiser that will give 20% of total sales to Ben's Marathon. I am thankful to be surrounded by such nice people :-)

A month of Updates... In One Post

I have been bad at keeping this updated. So much has happened in the last month I dont know where to begin. I have experienced morning runs that are so cold that the Gatorade on my hip turns into a slushy within an hour or running. I have been having terrible knee pain that nearly stops me in my tracks. My boyfriend and I went to the American Tobacco Trail in Apex last weekend and I was able to run almost 4 miles before having to turn around and limp nearly 4.5 miles back to the car. It took me over 2 hours to walk that 4.5 miles. I cried... I swore... I cried some more. People stopped to ask me if I was ok and I told them I wasnt, but I knew there wasnt much they could do besides wish me luck on my walk back to the car. It was so painful. I have been dealing with this knee pain for the last 3 weeks and it is starting to wear on my confidence for the marathon. My marathon is in 40 days and I dont know how I am going to do. Maybe I will buy stock in Advil or something. Either way I have raised almost $400.00 for juvenile diabetes, and I expect to have much more before the marathon starts. I have been sick for the last couple of days and I feel better than I did yesterday. I dont know that I feel ready to attack the 12 miles I need today, so I may hit the stationary bike for 36 miles later (aerobic equivalency) and see how I feel about that. Im kinda ready for this training to be over and then I can go back to half marathon training.

After the Holidays

It was so nice to take a break from everything for a while. I will admit that my running slacked off a little bit, but I have quickly gotten back on track and I am hammering out the miles. On New Years Eve morning (5am) I went for a run with the team. It was 27 degrees when we started, and 28 degrees 2 hours later when we finished. After the run we celebrated the coach's birthday at Hibachi Grill in Greenville. I mostly ate Chinese food and it was sooooo good. I went home and tried to take a nap but my neighbor was playing his music so loud that I was just tossing and turning and getting frustrated so I decided I would just have to sleep later. The run was a total of 10 miles and you can check out the course here. I like to put it in "Bird's Eye" view which is pretty neat.

Justus and I discovered a park in Washington, NC that deserves to be noticed. It is called Goose Creek State Park. We went for the first time on December 30th and there was snow on the ground. We went again with TJ and 'James Bond' on January 2nd and the snow was gone and the sun was up. Then.... it rained and it rained HARD. We ended up hiking 5.65 miles and had a great time, even with the rain. TJ got a big branch of leaves and put it over his head and joked that it was his umbrella. Too funny....

December 30, 2010 - Snow!

Jan 2, 2011 - It's as if to say "Ah, life is good my friend."

January 2nd, 2011 - Before the rain

TJ makes an umbrella!