As soon as I hit the door home, I did ab ripper P90X & the "yoga for runners" dvd.
I thought that dvd would never end. I'm not good with slow, long poses but she made me hurt.
She found my crappy IT Band & she made me stretch it. I feel so much better now.
I've determined that I'm not used to gas heat, which is what we have...makes my sinuses dry & full of pressure. This morning I did feel a lot better than yesterday morning, though. I did Jillian Michael's yoga workout #2. I LOVE her workouts & as I've said before, it's just 30 minutes. No excuses!
This afternoon I hope to do around 5-6 miles....take a tour around the 'hood to look at the Christmas lights. Some people really do it up right. All I have on the door is a live wreath from the Boy Scouts. ;-(
Can ya believe it's nearly been a year since we stopped during the Las Vegas 1/2 to get married?! ha!
Don't think I haven't wondered what my time would have been had we not stopped for like 25-30 minutes in front of the Venetian to get married. (I'll never forget staring up at the David Spade bill board on the front of that place when I said "I do".) Too funny!
Goal: Get Faster!
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
4 miles & stretching....
Yep, that's all I had time for yesterday...it was slow going...9:58 pace.
When you start mile one on a cold afternoon going UP hills, you'll have that...
Not sure I ever warmed up that much but got it done...sure didn't want to get out this morning...
I'm still getting acclimated...doesn't help that Michigan was warmer than I thought it would be & now Tennessee has taken a cold snap (spitting snow right now as I type this...)
The "see/saw" temperatures always wreak havoc on my sinuses.
I woke up with a horrible sinus migraine, slowly got ready for work, while the "mac daddy" migraine pill took effect. I feel great right now, though.
I did some stretching last night after I shuffled through the little run.
I feel like my body was still in knots from Sunday's car ride.
(We will have an SUV this time next year!)
This morning I did nothing so this afternoon....P90X ab ripper & the yoga for runners dvd for me.
Wednesday, is up in the air...I'd like to join the NRC but hate that they start at 6:30pm, plus I don't know the routes, especially in the dark. I do know I need another run this week before I run Saturday morning.
We're heading out after lunch on Saturday via the GREAT deal I got on Southwest to New Orleans & flying back on Monday. (Happy anniversary to us & happy b-day to me!)
So GLAD I got a great deal on Southwest. (Glad Joe used up all his points on American...gesh!)
When you start mile one on a cold afternoon going UP hills, you'll have that...
Not sure I ever warmed up that much but got it done...sure didn't want to get out this morning...
I'm still getting acclimated...doesn't help that Michigan was warmer than I thought it would be & now Tennessee has taken a cold snap (spitting snow right now as I type this...)
The "see/saw" temperatures always wreak havoc on my sinuses.
I woke up with a horrible sinus migraine, slowly got ready for work, while the "mac daddy" migraine pill took effect. I feel great right now, though.
I did some stretching last night after I shuffled through the little run.
I feel like my body was still in knots from Sunday's car ride.
(We will have an SUV this time next year!)
This morning I did nothing so this afternoon....P90X ab ripper & the yoga for runners dvd for me.
Wednesday, is up in the air...I'd like to join the NRC but hate that they start at 6:30pm, plus I don't know the routes, especially in the dark. I do know I need another run this week before I run Saturday morning.
We're heading out after lunch on Saturday via the GREAT deal I got on Southwest to New Orleans & flying back on Monday. (Happy anniversary to us & happy b-day to me!)
So GLAD I got a great deal on Southwest. (Glad Joe used up all his points on American...gesh!)
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Detroit Turkey Trot 10k & 8 miles on the Paint Creek Trail
Detroit Turkey Trot 10k (55:09) Nobody is more surprised with this time than I am, seriously.
I've been running so slow lately but it was my favorite temp, COLD, & my favorite terrain, FLAT!
My garmin actually said 6:36 at an 8:42 pace. The bottle necking kept me slow the first two miles, which worked to my advantage, I guess....
Watched the parade afterwards.
Mile 1: 9:14
Mile 2: 9:02
Mile 3: 8:31
Mile 4: 8:26
Mile 5: 8:33
Mile 6: 8:33
.36: 8:24
Saturday: 8 miles on Paint Creek Trail (9:48 pace)
There's a hill going out & coming back as you can tell by my first & last mile.
This trail goes to Rochester, which is 7 miles. Joe ran an out & back once earlier in the year & loved it.
Word in our 'hood, is that we're getting a trail of some kind sometime next year.
I hope it's packed gravel & soft like this trail. I would be in heaven if I had a trail this close to my house like Joe's parents do!
Mile 1: 10:08
Mile 2: 9:41
Mile 3: 9:49
Mile 4: 9:27
Mile 5: 9:37
Mile 6: 9:33
Mile 7: 9:51
Mile 8: 10:21
Not sure what my week is looking like since there's tons of rain in the forecast, I'll be super busy at work, & we're going to New Orleans this coming weekend. I will find time for 10 miles on Saturday, though. ;-)
I've been running so slow lately but it was my favorite temp, COLD, & my favorite terrain, FLAT!
My garmin actually said 6:36 at an 8:42 pace. The bottle necking kept me slow the first two miles, which worked to my advantage, I guess....
Watched the parade afterwards.
Mile 1: 9:14
Mile 2: 9:02
Mile 3: 8:31
Mile 4: 8:26
Mile 5: 8:33
Mile 6: 8:33
.36: 8:24
Saturday: 8 miles on Paint Creek Trail (9:48 pace)
There's a hill going out & coming back as you can tell by my first & last mile.
This trail goes to Rochester, which is 7 miles. Joe ran an out & back once earlier in the year & loved it.
Word in our 'hood, is that we're getting a trail of some kind sometime next year.
I hope it's packed gravel & soft like this trail. I would be in heaven if I had a trail this close to my house like Joe's parents do!
Mile 1: 10:08
Mile 2: 9:41
Mile 3: 9:49
Mile 4: 9:27
Mile 5: 9:37
Mile 6: 9:33
Mile 7: 9:51
Mile 8: 10:21
Not sure what my week is looking like since there's tons of rain in the forecast, I'll be super busy at work, & we're going to New Orleans this coming weekend. I will find time for 10 miles on Saturday, though. ;-)
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Monday night 5 miler....
To avoid a rainy 5am run Tuesday, I did a somewhat dry, hilly 5 miler Monday at 5:17pm. (that's what the garmin said...). Lordy, the hills! I eeked out a 9:58 pace on them. This was the 4th run since NYC. I could feel my heart rate going all over the place on the hills.
Today, I did ab ripper & stretched....work & last minute packing had to happen. ;-P
There are two things I'm going to do after our holidays calm down a bit.
1) Get out my heart rate monitor and use it.
2) Put music on my new iPod shuffle.
Yes, I want to run with music again. ;-)
Happy Early Thanksgiving!
Today, I did ab ripper & stretched....work & last minute packing had to happen. ;-P
There are two things I'm going to do after our holidays calm down a bit.
1) Get out my heart rate monitor and use it.
2) Put music on my new iPod shuffle.
Yes, I want to run with music again. ;-)
Happy Early Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 21, 2011
MORE rain = flexibility
So, this morning I had to get to work super early...short weeks kill me!
I did find time to do the mat portion of the new "yoga for runners" dvd.
It's about 15-20 minutes long. Plus I stretched the IT Band.
If it's not raining when I get home, I'm going out for a run of some kind.
Tomorrow morning may be ab ripper P90X before work & I'll be doing last minute things after work.
On the road at 5:30am with Joe & the kids Wednesday morning....
(We leave out Sunday at 5:30am to get them back to their mom's in the afternoon)
We'll be stopping at Cobo for Turkey Trot packet pick up before heading to Joe's parents.
So many little things on our list but it's good.
I'm bringing plenty of clothes to run in so no excuses....
Saturday, I may try to do 8 miles with Joe since we have that hilly, Santa Hustle 1/2 coming up. ;-P
Looks like I'm flying to San Antonio on Jan 13th.
Flying on Friday the 13th!!!! (now that's sisterly love!)
I did find time to do the mat portion of the new "yoga for runners" dvd.
It's about 15-20 minutes long. Plus I stretched the IT Band.
If it's not raining when I get home, I'm going out for a run of some kind.
Tomorrow morning may be ab ripper P90X before work & I'll be doing last minute things after work.
On the road at 5:30am with Joe & the kids Wednesday morning....
(We leave out Sunday at 5:30am to get them back to their mom's in the afternoon)
We'll be stopping at Cobo for Turkey Trot packet pick up before heading to Joe's parents.
So many little things on our list but it's good.
I'm bringing plenty of clothes to run in so no excuses....
Saturday, I may try to do 8 miles with Joe since we have that hilly, Santa Hustle 1/2 coming up. ;-P
Looks like I'm flying to San Antonio on Jan 13th.
Flying on Friday the 13th!!!! (now that's sisterly love!)
Sunday, November 20, 2011
rain & a nap
I'm one who never takes naps but today was a good day for one with the rain & all. I think I may have fallen asleep for a little over an hour. Wow!
Getting deeper into the Steve Jobs book this weekend. I know it was the early 70s but what a nut job he was in his early 20s! It's amazing to me how polarizing he was to people early on in his career, yet he accomplished so much in his short life. Truly amazing!
During my little 4 miler this morning, I realized I had on my "rain" shoes. (The shoes I ran in during ALL the training runs where we got rained on this past summer, my pink saucony) So, it was appropriate that the rain moved in on me about mile 2 & progressively got worse. I finished a rather hilly 4 miles at a 9:49 pace soaked to the bone. (I did ab ripper before heading out the door)
I finished wrapping & packed for Michigan.
Now I'm stalking K.A. on her AZ Ironman.
Hope she does GREAT! ;-)
Getting deeper into the Steve Jobs book this weekend. I know it was the early 70s but what a nut job he was in his early 20s! It's amazing to me how polarizing he was to people early on in his career, yet he accomplished so much in his short life. Truly amazing!
During my little 4 miler this morning, I realized I had on my "rain" shoes. (The shoes I ran in during ALL the training runs where we got rained on this past summer, my pink saucony) So, it was appropriate that the rain moved in on me about mile 2 & progressively got worse. I finished a rather hilly 4 miles at a 9:49 pace soaked to the bone. (I did ab ripper before heading out the door)
I finished wrapping & packed for Michigan.
Now I'm stalking K.A. on her AZ Ironman.
Hope she does GREAT! ;-)
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Christmas shopping DONE!!!!!!
I have everything wrapped but three gifts but we'll need to get some tissue paper in the morning to finish that.
(All I have left to buy is Austin & Avery's gifts & thank goodness for amazon wish lists!)
There is a serious lack of customer service these days, especially in the mall. I had a 40% off coupon for Aeropostale. I realized this about 20-25 mins after I left the store so I went back & grabbed something else for Jessica. I went to the counter to return what I had bought earlier in order to "re-buy" it with the extra shirt & use the coupon. You would have thought I had asked for someone's first born. I will never go in there again. If it were not for amazon, I wouldn't be done with this shopping because I have no patience for rudeness in the mall. The Cool Springs area already makes me crazy as it is...hate driving over there, hate shopping over there, & I'm damn glad I don't work over there. ha!
On a positive note, my fabulous husband paid for me to get a 60 min reflexology massage at the Day Spa (near Five Guys & the theater). I had gone there back in June & I LOVED it. They can barely speak any english but those women know how to give a massage. Gesh, it was AWESOME! When she massaged my scalp, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I love that place!
Yesterday: P90X cardio after work (that short 43-44 min work out kicks my butt)
Today: Ran a somewhat hilly 6.2 miles in the 'hood. (9:36 pace)
The legs are coming around...just got to focus on the form, turn over, & some speed work will be forthcoming.
The foot strike on the video from the PT shows me turning the left leg inward.
My left foot strike shows me landing on the side of my foot too much, hence, the callous on the left side of my foot. When I get a little tired, apparently, my left hip gets weaker, my left foot strike gets all sloppy. The video doesn't lie.
Tomorrow: the plan is ab ripper & 4 miles
As I type this, I'm watching the UT - Vandy game. I have to say, I don't have a dog in the race but I totally love both Dooley & Franklin. What's not to like, really? Franklin is doing awesome things with Vandy. I stop what I'm doing when I hear Dooley's voice on TV just to hear him talk. ha! What a cutie!
Both teams have suffered some BAD luck this year but who cares. I love me some SEC football. ;-)
(All I have left to buy is Austin & Avery's gifts & thank goodness for amazon wish lists!)
There is a serious lack of customer service these days, especially in the mall. I had a 40% off coupon for Aeropostale. I realized this about 20-25 mins after I left the store so I went back & grabbed something else for Jessica. I went to the counter to return what I had bought earlier in order to "re-buy" it with the extra shirt & use the coupon. You would have thought I had asked for someone's first born. I will never go in there again. If it were not for amazon, I wouldn't be done with this shopping because I have no patience for rudeness in the mall. The Cool Springs area already makes me crazy as it is...hate driving over there, hate shopping over there, & I'm damn glad I don't work over there. ha!
On a positive note, my fabulous husband paid for me to get a 60 min reflexology massage at the Day Spa (near Five Guys & the theater). I had gone there back in June & I LOVED it. They can barely speak any english but those women know how to give a massage. Gesh, it was AWESOME! When she massaged my scalp, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I love that place!
Yesterday: P90X cardio after work (that short 43-44 min work out kicks my butt)
Today: Ran a somewhat hilly 6.2 miles in the 'hood. (9:36 pace)
The legs are coming around...just got to focus on the form, turn over, & some speed work will be forthcoming.
The foot strike on the video from the PT shows me turning the left leg inward.
My left foot strike shows me landing on the side of my foot too much, hence, the callous on the left side of my foot. When I get a little tired, apparently, my left hip gets weaker, my left foot strike gets all sloppy. The video doesn't lie.
Tomorrow: the plan is ab ripper & 4 miles
As I type this, I'm watching the UT - Vandy game. I have to say, I don't have a dog in the race but I totally love both Dooley & Franklin. What's not to like, really? Franklin is doing awesome things with Vandy. I stop what I'm doing when I hear Dooley's voice on TV just to hear him talk. ha! What a cutie!
Both teams have suffered some BAD luck this year but who cares. I love me some SEC football. ;-)
Friday, November 18, 2011
Testing-1, 2, & 3
After seeing that it would be in the high 20s this morning on the news yesterday, I finished up my jillian michael's yoga & ran out the door for 3 miles. I didn't realize really how cold it was at nearly 6:30pm.
(high 30s?) I was only really cold the first mile in shorts & long sleeve tech shirt but I should've worn gloves. I shivered for hours afterwards. Gesh, I am so NOT acclimated for temps below 40 right now. Sure, we had a few runs before NYC that were at 35 degrees but I'm very wimpy right now. ;-P
The pace was 9:29 for the 3 miles, but it had a few hills in it, too. Has it really been 11 days since I slogged through Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, & Manhattan?! November is flying!
Wednesday: all I did was P90X Stretch.
Yesterday: I did ab ripper in the AM, yoga, & the 3 miles in the PM
I went to the PT who showed me more exercises for the IT Band. I told her how many/how much I'm doing & she said to slow down on them. (?) Something about letting the muscles rest. I hope this isn't a ploy to keep me coming. I've about decided that by January, I'll probably stop going for a while. I'm only going every other week anyway. Supposedly, it takes up to 8 weeks to strengthen a muscle. Let's hope the left hip is strengthened by early January. ;-)
Today: I just couldn't get out of bed to do anything other than the hip exercises.
Thinking that after my errands, I'll do P90X Cardio.
Tomorrow: Going for 6.2 miles......that Detroit Turkey Trot won't "run" itself next Thursday morning.
What am I expecting from it? NO PR, of course. That hilly 52:43 from 2007 will sit for a good little while.
Let's just say, I hope to be at least somewhere near 58 minutes for pete's sake.
Happy Pre-Thanksgiving weekend! I hope to get a few more Christmas things done!
(high 30s?) I was only really cold the first mile in shorts & long sleeve tech shirt but I should've worn gloves. I shivered for hours afterwards. Gesh, I am so NOT acclimated for temps below 40 right now. Sure, we had a few runs before NYC that were at 35 degrees but I'm very wimpy right now. ;-P
The pace was 9:29 for the 3 miles, but it had a few hills in it, too. Has it really been 11 days since I slogged through Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, & Manhattan?! November is flying!
Wednesday: all I did was P90X Stretch.
Yesterday: I did ab ripper in the AM, yoga, & the 3 miles in the PM
I went to the PT who showed me more exercises for the IT Band. I told her how many/how much I'm doing & she said to slow down on them. (?) Something about letting the muscles rest. I hope this isn't a ploy to keep me coming. I've about decided that by January, I'll probably stop going for a while. I'm only going every other week anyway. Supposedly, it takes up to 8 weeks to strengthen a muscle. Let's hope the left hip is strengthened by early January. ;-)
Today: I just couldn't get out of bed to do anything other than the hip exercises.
Thinking that after my errands, I'll do P90X Cardio.
Tomorrow: Going for 6.2 miles......that Detroit Turkey Trot won't "run" itself next Thursday morning.
What am I expecting from it? NO PR, of course. That hilly 52:43 from 2007 will sit for a good little while.
Let's just say, I hope to be at least somewhere near 58 minutes for pete's sake.
Happy Pre-Thanksgiving weekend! I hope to get a few more Christmas things done!
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Debating....random thoughts...
Still debating on Winter/Spring races....
Definitely still going to sign up Dec 1st for the FF 1/2 marathon training series....
Really surprised at how my thighs feel after Monday's Plyometrics....gesh!
They weren't quite this sore after we got back from nyc!
Hoping that the PT at Pro Motion sees some "new" strength in the left hip/ITBand tomorrow...
I've been rehabbing it, I PROMISE!
So very tired of the rain...
Nashville doesn't know how to drive in rain, sleet, or snow....so dreading the winter here.
I'm really starting to get into the Steve Jobs book...
I think he would have driven me insane had I known him personallly....ha!
Definitely looking into buying a pre-parking pass for the Superdome in New Orleans...
Saints fans like to party & tailgate so this will be an "experience" on our anniversary/my b-day weekend....
I am so looking forward to a 2 day work week next week...
Michigan....here we come!
Definitely still going to sign up Dec 1st for the FF 1/2 marathon training series....
Really surprised at how my thighs feel after Monday's Plyometrics....gesh!
They weren't quite this sore after we got back from nyc!
Hoping that the PT at Pro Motion sees some "new" strength in the left hip/ITBand tomorrow...
I've been rehabbing it, I PROMISE!
So very tired of the rain...
Nashville doesn't know how to drive in rain, sleet, or snow....so dreading the winter here.
I'm really starting to get into the Steve Jobs book...
I think he would have driven me insane had I known him personallly....ha!
Definitely looking into buying a pre-parking pass for the Superdome in New Orleans...
Saints fans like to party & tailgate so this will be an "experience" on our anniversary/my b-day weekend....
I am so looking forward to a 2 day work week next week...
Michigan....here we come!
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
And your punishment is...P90X Plyometrics.
So, yes, I went home & slung sweat all over the living room. (Joe was not there, thank God.)
I was in nearly no clothes jumping around & at one point when I bent over my yoga mat, the sweat dripped all over it. Back in '08 I took a girl trip to NYC, we saw "Hairspray" on broadway. We were on the 2nd row & when the actors twirled real quick, you could see the sweat swing off their foreheads. Well, that's what I did to myself after work. It wasn't a pretty sight. ;-P
Hopefully, the soreness (feels like I was on a horse rounding up cattle for hours yesterday...that type of soreness where I need it most) is gone by Thursday's PT appointment at Pro Motion. We shall see.
I did ab ripper before work today & I plan to do Jillian's yoga workout #2 when I get home. (I miss running in the morning so much right now.) ;-(
The mission is clear: strengthen the IT Band & shake up the other muscles in the meantime.
I'm really looking forward to this race next week. ;-)
I was in nearly no clothes jumping around & at one point when I bent over my yoga mat, the sweat dripped all over it. Back in '08 I took a girl trip to NYC, we saw "Hairspray" on broadway. We were on the 2nd row & when the actors twirled real quick, you could see the sweat swing off their foreheads. Well, that's what I did to myself after work. It wasn't a pretty sight. ;-P
Hopefully, the soreness (feels like I was on a horse rounding up cattle for hours yesterday...that type of soreness where I need it most) is gone by Thursday's PT appointment at Pro Motion. We shall see.
I did ab ripper before work today & I plan to do Jillian's yoga workout #2 when I get home. (I miss running in the morning so much right now.) ;-(
The mission is clear: strengthen the IT Band & shake up the other muscles in the meantime.
I'm really looking forward to this race next week. ;-)
Monday, November 14, 2011
the non-running weekend, Christmas stuff, & P90X
Friday: P90X Ab Ripper in the AM & the P90X Cardio in the PM
I'm not going to lie, the cardio was a sweat fest for me friday afternoon.
It's less than 45 mins long & I've probably not done it since late Spring. Ouch!
I was still feeling some aches from the marathon but dang, this one sure pointed out the IT Band weakness.
That's what P90X does, it points out your weaknesses & puts RED flags all over them.
Saturday, I had a gazillion errands to run. All I did was the IT Band exercises & a little walking with the kids. About the only fun thing we did was check out the new coffee shop in our 'hood & we had lunch with the Heusers in the 'boro.
We are about 90% done with the kids Christmas shopping & I managed to wrap some of their presents Saturday night. I even made the executive decision to only drag out the small tree. Yes, we put up our tree on Nov 13th. After this coming weekend, we will be on the road 3 consecutive weekends. Plus one weekend "doing Christmas" with the kids & attending a Christmas party on my side of the family. Things won't slow down for us until right at Christmas. (I can't wait to really get into my Steve Jobs book then because I've only read about 30+ page right now. It's killing me to have NO reading time.)
Sunday: Ab Ripper & Core Synergistics P90X
I cannot do "prison" push ups. The leg will not stay up while I do a push up, sorry, it's just not going to happen. I had to modify a few of these push up moves. I can do about 12 boy push ups before falling out but adding the "leg move" just wasn't happening in that sequence. It was another sweatfest, though, & I needed it.
Today: I'm doing Jillian's yoga & working with my free weights.
Tomorrow, I'm about half way tempted to do Plyometrics P90X.
I'm sure since I've not done it in MANY months it will make me good n' sore before my Thursday PT appointment. ;-P (Maybe I should do it after work today! ha!)
Anyway, I'm doing what I said I'd do......taking it easy but throwing in the P90X & yoga.
On friday before work, I hope to get out for 3 easy miles....just shy by 2 days on the 2 weeks off but that's ok. I feel ok.
As for the IT Band exercises.....I'm doing them religiously 2 - 3 times a day. They have definitely made the knee & hip sore. Supposedly, it will take 8 weeks to strengthen the left hip/IT Band. Well, that's all fine & dandy. I'm still going to slug through a "10k Turkey Trot" Thanksgiving morning in Detroit & I still intend to "Santa my hustle 1/2" in Sevierville, TN. ;-P Just a couple of fun races to shut down my bittersweet year of marathon training. I have decided I will go back to NYC one day to nail that course. It may take 10 yrs to get back there but I will go back.
I'm not going to lie, the cardio was a sweat fest for me friday afternoon.
It's less than 45 mins long & I've probably not done it since late Spring. Ouch!
I was still feeling some aches from the marathon but dang, this one sure pointed out the IT Band weakness.
That's what P90X does, it points out your weaknesses & puts RED flags all over them.
Saturday, I had a gazillion errands to run. All I did was the IT Band exercises & a little walking with the kids. About the only fun thing we did was check out the new coffee shop in our 'hood & we had lunch with the Heusers in the 'boro.
We are about 90% done with the kids Christmas shopping & I managed to wrap some of their presents Saturday night. I even made the executive decision to only drag out the small tree. Yes, we put up our tree on Nov 13th. After this coming weekend, we will be on the road 3 consecutive weekends. Plus one weekend "doing Christmas" with the kids & attending a Christmas party on my side of the family. Things won't slow down for us until right at Christmas. (I can't wait to really get into my Steve Jobs book then because I've only read about 30+ page right now. It's killing me to have NO reading time.)
Sunday: Ab Ripper & Core Synergistics P90X
I cannot do "prison" push ups. The leg will not stay up while I do a push up, sorry, it's just not going to happen. I had to modify a few of these push up moves. I can do about 12 boy push ups before falling out but adding the "leg move" just wasn't happening in that sequence. It was another sweatfest, though, & I needed it.
Today: I'm doing Jillian's yoga & working with my free weights.
Tomorrow, I'm about half way tempted to do Plyometrics P90X.
I'm sure since I've not done it in MANY months it will make me good n' sore before my Thursday PT appointment. ;-P (Maybe I should do it after work today! ha!)
Anyway, I'm doing what I said I'd do......taking it easy but throwing in the P90X & yoga.
On friday before work, I hope to get out for 3 easy miles....just shy by 2 days on the 2 weeks off but that's ok. I feel ok.
As for the IT Band exercises.....I'm doing them religiously 2 - 3 times a day. They have definitely made the knee & hip sore. Supposedly, it will take 8 weeks to strengthen the left hip/IT Band. Well, that's all fine & dandy. I'm still going to slug through a "10k Turkey Trot" Thanksgiving morning in Detroit & I still intend to "Santa my hustle 1/2" in Sevierville, TN. ;-P Just a couple of fun races to shut down my bittersweet year of marathon training. I have decided I will go back to NYC one day to nail that course. It may take 10 yrs to get back there but I will go back.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Everyone likes a discount...
.....and yes, I took advantage of the $20 off registration for the "Rock n' Roll" series by registering Joe & I to do the CMM 1/2. (Yeah, been there, done that...& yes, I didn't run last year & really didn't miss it.)
The two times Joe has run the Country Music 1/2, he's never gone sub-2 & neither have I. I ran it for the first time in '04 & had a 2:01-something. So, we both agreed...we want to make an effort to both go sub-2 on that hot, hilly, crowded, course. I'm even considering signing up for the 1/2 marathon training through Brentwood Fleet Feet. Can I push myself to a sub-2 on that course by myself, yes! Do I want to try something new? YES! So, there ya have it. Our first "scheduled" race of 2012. (there will be more before it)
A little "funny" occurred to me on the elevator earlier today. The morning of the NYC marathon, we walked down 12 flights of stairs in our hotel. We (and a few others) didn't want to wait on the slow elevator, plus we thought we were cutting it close getting to the NYC Library. ha! There are things coming back to me that are making me smile about the whole trip. I still say the best sign I saw was the "Get the Hell out of Brooklyn" sign on the Brooklyn bridge. :-P
The two times Joe has run the Country Music 1/2, he's never gone sub-2 & neither have I. I ran it for the first time in '04 & had a 2:01-something. So, we both agreed...we want to make an effort to both go sub-2 on that hot, hilly, crowded, course. I'm even considering signing up for the 1/2 marathon training through Brentwood Fleet Feet. Can I push myself to a sub-2 on that course by myself, yes! Do I want to try something new? YES! So, there ya have it. Our first "scheduled" race of 2012. (there will be more before it)
A little "funny" occurred to me on the elevator earlier today. The morning of the NYC marathon, we walked down 12 flights of stairs in our hotel. We (and a few others) didn't want to wait on the slow elevator, plus we thought we were cutting it close getting to the NYC Library. ha! There are things coming back to me that are making me smile about the whole trip. I still say the best sign I saw was the "Get the Hell out of Brooklyn" sign on the Brooklyn bridge. :-P
Thursday, November 10, 2011
changing it up & moving on...
I'm moving on from the grumbling over my (S)*IT Band. I'm borrowing "shit" band from a gal who's blog I stalk read. A few years ago, she had a DNF at a marathon due to her (S)*IT Band giving her fits.
(so at least I finished)
This week, so far I've done almost nothing but work on the IT Band exercises. (I've been getting GOOD SLEEP this week!) We did walk a little last night with the NRC group. This weekend I'll be introducing a few of the P90X workouts back into my routine. All along I did keep ab ripper & XStretch in the schedule but it's time to include some of the others again that will will challenge me. I don't see me trying to run again until after next week's PT appointment & that's perfectly ok. If I show up to the Detroit turkey trot 10k with only a run or two post marathon then ok. I could care less about my time at that thing. It's crowded & it's Thanksgiving morning. I'm doing it for fun. Pretty much like the Dec Santa Hustle 1/2...just for fun. Come January, I hope to have no (S)*IT Band issues at all.
So, what are we looking at in January?
Possibly, this race. With it falling during MLK weekend, it's almost too tempting. Of course, we'd just do the half.
February?
Possibly, the Cedars 1/2 (part of the TN running tour)
It's hilly & cheap. ha!
March?
Always gotta go to the Tom King 1/2.
It's so close to us & such an easy course for most.
April?
Most definitely, I'll use the $20 "Rock n' Roll" discount tomorrow to register Joe & I for the CMM 1/2.
I plan to do some shorter races, of course, so we'll see how things pan out.
The (S)*IT Band will have to heal first. ;-)
Happy Thursday!!
(so at least I finished)
This week, so far I've done almost nothing but work on the IT Band exercises. (I've been getting GOOD SLEEP this week!) We did walk a little last night with the NRC group. This weekend I'll be introducing a few of the P90X workouts back into my routine. All along I did keep ab ripper & XStretch in the schedule but it's time to include some of the others again that will will challenge me. I don't see me trying to run again until after next week's PT appointment & that's perfectly ok. If I show up to the Detroit turkey trot 10k with only a run or two post marathon then ok. I could care less about my time at that thing. It's crowded & it's Thanksgiving morning. I'm doing it for fun. Pretty much like the Dec Santa Hustle 1/2...just for fun. Come January, I hope to have no (S)*IT Band issues at all.
So, what are we looking at in January?
Possibly, this race. With it falling during MLK weekend, it's almost too tempting. Of course, we'd just do the half.
February?
Possibly, the Cedars 1/2 (part of the TN running tour)
It's hilly & cheap. ha!
March?
Always gotta go to the Tom King 1/2.
It's so close to us & such an easy course for most.
April?
Most definitely, I'll use the $20 "Rock n' Roll" discount tomorrow to register Joe & I for the CMM 1/2.
I plan to do some shorter races, of course, so we'll see how things pan out.
The (S)*IT Band will have to heal first. ;-)
Happy Thursday!!
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
the after thoughts...
I have to admit yesterday was a bit rough...the quads were sore. Today, I feel ok. The left knee feels a little sore but in all honesty, if someone said, "You have to go jog 5 miles!", I could probably do it just fine in a 10:00-10:30 minute pace. ha! We are planning to join the NRC tonight for a 2-3 miles walk. The Nashville FF owner will be there doing door "door prizes". ha! There's nothing on TV worth watching tonight so I thought we'd go. CMAs are on...who cares....ha! Speaking of which, it still amazes me the people that come here for the country music stuff, go to all these concerts, award shows, etc... The $ that stuff brings in sure helps the downtown area. Did anyone read how much the NYC marathon generates for that city? If I read it right, 32 million! CRAZY!
After we finished the 26.2 jaunt around the New York area, we walked probably a good 3-4 miles. We had a nice late lunch/early dinner with Jillian & Cheryl in the Macy's cafe down in the basement. All I wanted was fries & water....Joe woofed down almost everyone elses fries & had a burger. We're so good, we only drank water. I had thought I'd treat myself to a martini but it never entered my mind at that point. If you're ever in THE Macy's, see the old wooden escalator. I noticed that they were working hard on the Christmas decorations. Hard to believe that the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade is just around the corner. We were in bed by 7:30pm Sunday night & up fairly early Monday to head to the marathon pavillion in Central park. Joe got his name & time engraved for $20. We picked up the NY Times. Both our names were in it despite me coming in nowhere near the 4:30 cut off. We took the subway down to the 9-11 memorial. I just can't find words to describe it, really so I'll leave it at that. After that we found "Kleinfeld Bridal".....my friday night not so secret obsession. Sorry, but it just cracks me up... The door was locked. They had double glass doors & you had to have an appointment to be buzzed in. I just wanted to stick my head in but who knows...they could've been filming, too. We then took the subway back to the hotel, caught a cab to the airport, & arrived back in Nashville for the afternoon drive time traffic. ha!
Some of the goofy stuff we did....
*Stood in front of "Kleinfeld Bridal".....snooty tootie place. ;-)
*Stood in front of "Serendipity" amazed at how long the line was to get in... :-(
*Went to the Dylan's Candy Bar...yes, I know they're in other locations but we don't have one in Middle TN. That place was super cool. We got the kids a few little things there.
*Last but not least, I picked up some of the Spiderman web that was shot from Spidey when he sailed over our heads & brought it back to TN. (Can't wait to show Joey. ha!)
*Took pics of some of the "Occupy Wall Street" folks who where near the 9-11 Memorial area.
What's next?
*Filling out the race forms for Joe & I for the Detroit Turkey Trot 10k Thanksgiving morning.
(He's in the Comet wave & I'll be in the Blitzen wave. ha!)
*We have the Santa Hustle 1/2 marathon Dec 11th. (I'm trying to figure out how to prepare for this one)
*I'm continuing the visits to Pro Motion but not going this week.
*And....trying to figure out if we want to use the 11-11-11 discount on friday & for what "Rock n' Roll" race to use it on.....(probably CMM 1/2 since Spring will be all about 1/2 mary's for me!)
What am I doing this week?
*So far only walking, stretching, & trying to get things back in order, washed, put away...
*Hopefully, do more Christmas shopping...
*Going to work on a run schedule to ease back into this "hobby".
After we finished the 26.2 jaunt around the New York area, we walked probably a good 3-4 miles. We had a nice late lunch/early dinner with Jillian & Cheryl in the Macy's cafe down in the basement. All I wanted was fries & water....Joe woofed down almost everyone elses fries & had a burger. We're so good, we only drank water. I had thought I'd treat myself to a martini but it never entered my mind at that point. If you're ever in THE Macy's, see the old wooden escalator. I noticed that they were working hard on the Christmas decorations. Hard to believe that the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade is just around the corner. We were in bed by 7:30pm Sunday night & up fairly early Monday to head to the marathon pavillion in Central park. Joe got his name & time engraved for $20. We picked up the NY Times. Both our names were in it despite me coming in nowhere near the 4:30 cut off. We took the subway down to the 9-11 memorial. I just can't find words to describe it, really so I'll leave it at that. After that we found "Kleinfeld Bridal".....my friday night not so secret obsession. Sorry, but it just cracks me up... The door was locked. They had double glass doors & you had to have an appointment to be buzzed in. I just wanted to stick my head in but who knows...they could've been filming, too. We then took the subway back to the hotel, caught a cab to the airport, & arrived back in Nashville for the afternoon drive time traffic. ha!
Some of the goofy stuff we did....
*Stood in front of "Kleinfeld Bridal".....snooty tootie place. ;-)
*Stood in front of "Serendipity" amazed at how long the line was to get in... :-(
*Went to the Dylan's Candy Bar...yes, I know they're in other locations but we don't have one in Middle TN. That place was super cool. We got the kids a few little things there.
*Last but not least, I picked up some of the Spiderman web that was shot from Spidey when he sailed over our heads & brought it back to TN. (Can't wait to show Joey. ha!)
*Took pics of some of the "Occupy Wall Street" folks who where near the 9-11 Memorial area.
What's next?
*Filling out the race forms for Joe & I for the Detroit Turkey Trot 10k Thanksgiving morning.
(He's in the Comet wave & I'll be in the Blitzen wave. ha!)
*We have the Santa Hustle 1/2 marathon Dec 11th. (I'm trying to figure out how to prepare for this one)
*I'm continuing the visits to Pro Motion but not going this week.
*And....trying to figure out if we want to use the 11-11-11 discount on friday & for what "Rock n' Roll" race to use it on.....(probably CMM 1/2 since Spring will be all about 1/2 mary's for me!)
What am I doing this week?
*So far only walking, stretching, & trying to get things back in order, washed, put away...
*Hopefully, do more Christmas shopping...
*Going to work on a run schedule to ease back into this "hobby".
Monday, November 7, 2011
NYC marathon race report: the revolt of my IT Band
Yeah, I know, it's a broken record...
I know this is going to sound incoherent & out of sequence but I really don’t have time to organize my thoughts on the whole entire weekend. So, here goes…in no particular order.
The organization is impeccable. If you’re a runner & your family has never seen NYC, throw your name in the hat. Plan to stay a few days AFTER the race to sight see, & just have fun. Book everything you want to do EARLY & do your research. I heard more than a few folks say they didn’t get to see the 9-11 memorial because they didn’t know they needed to get visitor passes ahead of time. I’ll spend some time here talking about the memorial first since it was the last major thing we did other than me trying to walk into “Kleinfeld Bridal” without an appointment. Ha! The memorial will make you think of just how lucky you are to be alive. It will probably bring tears to your eyes. I “teared” up just walking into it. We were not there very long since all they have open is a small gift shop, some items are encased that were saved in the rubble, & of course the fountains in the memorial park area. If you go all you really need is an hour to spend there until they have the entire thing completely done. I think we’ll probably take the kids before Jessica goes to college. Everyone needs to see it at some point in time….that & the Statue of Liberty…just sayin’…
The only gripe we have about the NYC marathon experience is the fact that the shuttles were nowhere to be found for the Expo on Friday. Supposedly, shuttles for runners only were picking up in certain spots around town & taking runners to the Expo. We read this online & it was in our booklets they sent us. We never saw one but we didn’t waste that much time looking either. That was our mission on Friday after we landed. Get checked into the hotel, get an late lunch, & get to the Expo. We ended up walking most of the way there & then hopping in a cab. The Expo was much like it was when we visited it back in Nov '09 when we were up for fun to watch the marathon. We talked to a guy at the Runner’s World table who has a brother who lives in Nashville (can’t remember the name) but the guy raved about how nice & friendly the Nashville striders are to him every time he visits & runs with them. ;-)
We really didn’t buy much at the Expo, except for the gloves that have the five boroughs on the fingers. I did get a decent deal on some zenzah socks . The Runners World guy told us about the 2 mile warm up on Saturday morning that might be led by Kristin Armstrong or Bart Yasso. Had I got enough sleep Friday night, we would have gone to it but I’ll gripe about that later in the post. That’s about all I remember from the Expo. (saw Bart Yasso, again, at the speakers area this year just like we did in '09)
The Expo was kind of uneventful….and again, great organization for so many runners coming through there…..something like 47,000 + ran on Sunday, which is supposedly the most ever.
Fast forward to Sunday morning…..
Again, the organization was amazing! Our 2nd hotel….yes, I wrote 2nd but that will come later in this post….was a 7 minute walk to the NYC public library. We walked there with many others, boarded immediately, & was in Wadsworth in about 35 minutes. I had to pee BAD when we got there. When we got there, there were no lines yet to the potties…NO LINES for anything really! I got right into a pottie & of course didn’t lock the door completely. It was opened on me by some guy. No big deal since it was dark anyway. I just let out a scream & the dude shut the door. Ha! That was the 2nd time I had a bathroom door opened on me. (The first time was on the airplane from Nashville.) Ha! We brought a roll of toilet paper with us to Ft. Wadsworth but never needed it. Kept it in the drop bag & took it back to the hotel. I was very glad we were bundled up because our phones read something like 36 degrees when we got there. About an hour before we started, it warmed up to around 43-44 degrees. We both felt tired from lack of sleep & sitting on our Preds blanket in the cold but overall we felt ok about starting. Joe was fired up but all I could think about was the IT Band. We didn’t really walk around a lot Friday or Saturday but I had had a few sharp pains in the left hip/side of the knee to remind me that there was a problem. What’s so sad about all this is that it wasn’t a problem like 3-4 weeks ago. Just makes me madder than hell. Anyway I won’t spend too much time bitching about it in this post. Like I said before, it is what it is…
As I write this at LaGuardia airport, it’s not bothering me much at all. (we walked a lot this morning, too!) All that’s sore right now is the quads. Anyway, Wadsworth was entertaining to say the least. We got a ton of free dunkin donuts hats as freebies that we stashed in our drop bag, tons of food everywhere…& NO big lines for any of it. Almost all the race reports I’ve read over the years mentioned lines there for everything & not enough toilet paper. Except for the waiting around in the cold, I have NO gripes about Wadsworth whatsoever. Full of amazing volunteers everywhere! Before we knew it we had to shed clothes, drop our bag, & head with all the Green runners to the Wave 2 area. It’s all a blurr now but when they played “New York, New York” by Sinatra, it gave me chills…then we were off. I started with Joe in his corral one behind me originally. I saw the back of his shirt as we started & he was gone like a flash. We’re pretty proud about his 3:38:06 finish. ;-)
I remember telling myself at this point, just stay comfortable, watch your form, & settle in…the garmin was reading crazy numbers in that lower level of the Verazzano Narrows Bridge so I chose to ignore it for a good little while. I honestly thought I was running 10:00 minute miles at that point because I felt like I was all but crawling. I wasn’t weaving around folks & I was feeling A OK. It was easy to ignore the garmin at this point when I had so much scenery to take in…. When I saw my early splits after the race, I was surprised to see they were not as slow as I hoped they’d be but whatever. Overall, the course seemed flat to me but this comes from someone who has been running hills all damn summer/fall. Overall, the only hill that seemed hard for me was the Willis bridge because at that point, the IT Band had already told me to screw myself & had shut down. Otherwise, I felt ok. I’m thinking it was about mile 18-19 that the IT Band/left knee area was shot. At about mile 21 both knees were starting to kill me. At about mile 23, the bottoms of my feet were killing me… I thought I was never going to see that right hand turn to the finish line, seriously. Miles 24 to the finish were my death march.
As for the tendonitis in the left ankle…it never once flared up one single little bit. I sure wish the voltaren cream would heal the IT Band like it’s healed the tendonitis!
But I’m fast forwarding a bit here….the neighborhoods were everything I had read about, Brooklyn is the one we spent most of our the time & the crowds were so much fun there. It got eerily quiet in the Hassidic neighborhood so I knew right where that was when we hit it. Aerobically, I feel like I still had a lot in me, which tells me I was trained for this but running with an injury will certainly slow you down even though your lungs & the rest of your body are telling you to pick it up. There have been three marathons out of the nine that I’ve gone into injured….this one, Chickamauga, & one of the Rocket City marathons. I’ve now run two with bad shin splints & one with an IT Band injury. What was I supposed to do, take a deferment with NYC? Nope, I wanted to do this with Joe, we had everything paid for, reserved, etc….I had to do it even if I just walked it. Maybe that is what I should have done, walked the whole friggin’ thing! I just don’t have the patience for walking 26.2 miles. I’m not programmed to walk a whole marathon & my hat goes off to those who can do it.
Overall, it’s a GREAT experience. We had GREAT weather but I would have loved it even more had we had some overcast skies to go along with the nice temps. The sun late in the race got on my nerves. I couldn’t see much at all. There was a woman who was crossing the street on 1st Avenue that ran into me…(a pedestrian NOT a runner in the race.) The policemen were doing their best with the crowds but when there’s that many spectators out there like 5-6 people deep & one runs across the street, there’s not a lot they can do but scream at them. I gave her an ear full when she ran into me, trust me! I had stopped to tighten the compression band on my IT Band & had started shuffling again & saw her coming at me out of the corner of my eye. Had I been mean, I would have shoved her hard but that’s not me. Screaming like a lunatic is more my style, apparently. (I yelled, “Get the HELL off the ROAD!!) ha!
After I did my death march across the finish line, I immediately turned on the phone & there were messages from Joe & Cheryl looking for me. It took probably 30-45 minutes for Joe to find me & another half an hour to find Cheryl & Jillian. All I wanted was a Starbucks in my hand & to wash the grime off my hands at that point.
What did I learn?
It pays to sign up for a marathon where there’s an option to downgrade to the half due to injury but NYC isn’t like that. Either you do the full or nothing that day. If I had to redo the day with this IT Band issue, I would have made myself do the walk/run Galloway method. Seriously, I don’t think my time would have been any worse if I had done that.
What did I gain from all this training?
A slow NYC marathon finish time but the journey here got me a sub – 2 hr flat half marathon time (on a long course…see ‘boro half race report). It got me a 2:05-ish half marathon time on a HORRIBLY hilly Nashville women’s half marathon course. I did have two pretty great 20-21 mile training runs. What I didn’t do was rest enough in between them. Lesson learned the hard way.
Will I do a marathon in 2012?
I’ll train for one but if I’m injured 2-3 weeks out then I’ll downgrade to the half course. So, the decision is made. Detroit Free Press Fall 2012, here we come. Chicago will have to wait another year or two for sure. My Spring will consist of NO marathons. It’s time for me to get reacquainted with “speed”. It’s time to heal & think about running fast again. Like I’ve mentioned before, my early 2012 goal will be to chase my old half marathon PR. If breaking 4:17:11 remains elusive for me (that certainly wasn’t the goal on Sunday in NYC) then maybe breaking 1:51:25 needs to be the new goal for now. ;-)
I’m a firm believer that you really need to get your half marathon times down before you set your goals on lowering your full marathon times. I certainly need to follow that rule.
The Cons of doing a marathon of this magnitude:
We both ran Sunday sleep deprived. (It’s hard to get a good night’s rest in NYC with the sounds of the city all around you.)
It’s hard getting up super early to go sit on a blanket outside for a few hours when it’s 36 degrees.
It can be expensive but that’s to be expected in NYC. (We pretty much planned & paid for this trip well in advance.)
It’s hard to get into this race unless you’re given a “free ride” or you do a charity. (I know folks who’ve done it all threw ways, given a free entry from a running store, did a charity, & or the lottery. I have met a few who qualified on time. Now that's hard to do with this race. I think it's worse than Boston!)
The Pros of doing a marathon of this magnitude:
The city is amazing. (It’s a historical race with so many stories.)
It’s a “cross off your list” marathon for nearly all the runners I’ve ever known.
It’s a huge “party” through 5 boroughs & you can’t get that anywhere else.
The city shuts down for you.
What I will remember the most about the NYC marathon...
Hitting the Queensboro Bridge at around mile 15 & thinking, “This hill isn’t that hard & these spectators here are CRAZY AWESOME!” I smiled all the way across that bridge.
Joe’s 3:38:06 for sure & he said he even took the time to “high five” people along the way.
He loved the Queensboro Bridge also. He loved the entire experience but he wasn’t going into it with a nagging 3 week old injury either, bless him & his neutral foot strike. Ha! I'm so happy one of us finished strong!
Filling in the holes to the story….
I started out by banging my head HARD on the overhead compartment in the plane. Not good.
Then I used the planes bathroom at the back. Some guy opens the door on me. Not good.
We get to the airport & we’re hailing a cab when Joe realizes he’s booked two different Fairfield Inns for the weekend. Not good.
Nagging hip/knee pains off and on in the afternoon. Not good.
That was Friday…
On Saturday....
Superman: Turn off the dark:
It was everything I thought it would be...the reviews did it justice. The cast was super. The place was packed with a lot of runners for the Saturday matinee. We totally enjoyed it & we got sprayed by spidey’s web. I even grabbed some of Spidey's web when he sprayed us. Ha!
As for the two hotels we stayed….Joe paid for two nights with points & then days later booked what he thought was the same hotel for the first night. He realized this fact when we were about to hail a cab from the airport. He pulled out two sheets of paper for two different Fairfield Inns. We can laugh about it now but what a pain in the ass that was…. The Fairfield on 37th street is a lot smaller & noisier than the one on 40th. The one of 40th had way more runners in it & we lucked up with a much quieter room for the last two nights. I don’t sleep that great in hotel rooms to begin with but stress causes me not to sleep well too. Changing rooms, some nagging hip/knee pains, logistics anxiety, race anxiety, etc…well, let’s just say it will be GREAT to be back in my own bed tonight knowing all I have to do is show up for work tomorrow. ;-) It will take me a while to catch up sleep this week. I’ve promised myself that I’ll not do any early morning workouts this week.
As for pictures, I loaded them all on facebook.... but here are a few...
The view of the start & two from the 9-11 Memorial.
I know this is going to sound incoherent & out of sequence but I really don’t have time to organize my thoughts on the whole entire weekend. So, here goes…in no particular order.
The organization is impeccable. If you’re a runner & your family has never seen NYC, throw your name in the hat. Plan to stay a few days AFTER the race to sight see, & just have fun. Book everything you want to do EARLY & do your research. I heard more than a few folks say they didn’t get to see the 9-11 memorial because they didn’t know they needed to get visitor passes ahead of time. I’ll spend some time here talking about the memorial first since it was the last major thing we did other than me trying to walk into “Kleinfeld Bridal” without an appointment. Ha! The memorial will make you think of just how lucky you are to be alive. It will probably bring tears to your eyes. I “teared” up just walking into it. We were not there very long since all they have open is a small gift shop, some items are encased that were saved in the rubble, & of course the fountains in the memorial park area. If you go all you really need is an hour to spend there until they have the entire thing completely done. I think we’ll probably take the kids before Jessica goes to college. Everyone needs to see it at some point in time….that & the Statue of Liberty…just sayin’…
The only gripe we have about the NYC marathon experience is the fact that the shuttles were nowhere to be found for the Expo on Friday. Supposedly, shuttles for runners only were picking up in certain spots around town & taking runners to the Expo. We read this online & it was in our booklets they sent us. We never saw one but we didn’t waste that much time looking either. That was our mission on Friday after we landed. Get checked into the hotel, get an late lunch, & get to the Expo. We ended up walking most of the way there & then hopping in a cab. The Expo was much like it was when we visited it back in Nov '09 when we were up for fun to watch the marathon. We talked to a guy at the Runner’s World table who has a brother who lives in Nashville (can’t remember the name) but the guy raved about how nice & friendly the Nashville striders are to him every time he visits & runs with them. ;-)
We really didn’t buy much at the Expo, except for the gloves that have the five boroughs on the fingers. I did get a decent deal on some zenzah socks . The Runners World guy told us about the 2 mile warm up on Saturday morning that might be led by Kristin Armstrong or Bart Yasso. Had I got enough sleep Friday night, we would have gone to it but I’ll gripe about that later in the post. That’s about all I remember from the Expo. (saw Bart Yasso, again, at the speakers area this year just like we did in '09)
The Expo was kind of uneventful….and again, great organization for so many runners coming through there…..something like 47,000 + ran on Sunday, which is supposedly the most ever.
Fast forward to Sunday morning…..
Again, the organization was amazing! Our 2nd hotel….yes, I wrote 2nd but that will come later in this post….was a 7 minute walk to the NYC public library. We walked there with many others, boarded immediately, & was in Wadsworth in about 35 minutes. I had to pee BAD when we got there. When we got there, there were no lines yet to the potties…NO LINES for anything really! I got right into a pottie & of course didn’t lock the door completely. It was opened on me by some guy. No big deal since it was dark anyway. I just let out a scream & the dude shut the door. Ha! That was the 2nd time I had a bathroom door opened on me. (The first time was on the airplane from Nashville.) Ha! We brought a roll of toilet paper with us to Ft. Wadsworth but never needed it. Kept it in the drop bag & took it back to the hotel. I was very glad we were bundled up because our phones read something like 36 degrees when we got there. About an hour before we started, it warmed up to around 43-44 degrees. We both felt tired from lack of sleep & sitting on our Preds blanket in the cold but overall we felt ok about starting. Joe was fired up but all I could think about was the IT Band. We didn’t really walk around a lot Friday or Saturday but I had had a few sharp pains in the left hip/side of the knee to remind me that there was a problem. What’s so sad about all this is that it wasn’t a problem like 3-4 weeks ago. Just makes me madder than hell. Anyway I won’t spend too much time bitching about it in this post. Like I said before, it is what it is…
As I write this at LaGuardia airport, it’s not bothering me much at all. (we walked a lot this morning, too!) All that’s sore right now is the quads. Anyway, Wadsworth was entertaining to say the least. We got a ton of free dunkin donuts hats as freebies that we stashed in our drop bag, tons of food everywhere…& NO big lines for any of it. Almost all the race reports I’ve read over the years mentioned lines there for everything & not enough toilet paper. Except for the waiting around in the cold, I have NO gripes about Wadsworth whatsoever. Full of amazing volunteers everywhere! Before we knew it we had to shed clothes, drop our bag, & head with all the Green runners to the Wave 2 area. It’s all a blurr now but when they played “New York, New York” by Sinatra, it gave me chills…then we were off. I started with Joe in his corral one behind me originally. I saw the back of his shirt as we started & he was gone like a flash. We’re pretty proud about his 3:38:06 finish. ;-)
I remember telling myself at this point, just stay comfortable, watch your form, & settle in…the garmin was reading crazy numbers in that lower level of the Verazzano Narrows Bridge so I chose to ignore it for a good little while. I honestly thought I was running 10:00 minute miles at that point because I felt like I was all but crawling. I wasn’t weaving around folks & I was feeling A OK. It was easy to ignore the garmin at this point when I had so much scenery to take in…. When I saw my early splits after the race, I was surprised to see they were not as slow as I hoped they’d be but whatever. Overall, the course seemed flat to me but this comes from someone who has been running hills all damn summer/fall. Overall, the only hill that seemed hard for me was the Willis bridge because at that point, the IT Band had already told me to screw myself & had shut down. Otherwise, I felt ok. I’m thinking it was about mile 18-19 that the IT Band/left knee area was shot. At about mile 21 both knees were starting to kill me. At about mile 23, the bottoms of my feet were killing me… I thought I was never going to see that right hand turn to the finish line, seriously. Miles 24 to the finish were my death march.
As for the tendonitis in the left ankle…it never once flared up one single little bit. I sure wish the voltaren cream would heal the IT Band like it’s healed the tendonitis!
But I’m fast forwarding a bit here….the neighborhoods were everything I had read about, Brooklyn is the one we spent most of our the time & the crowds were so much fun there. It got eerily quiet in the Hassidic neighborhood so I knew right where that was when we hit it. Aerobically, I feel like I still had a lot in me, which tells me I was trained for this but running with an injury will certainly slow you down even though your lungs & the rest of your body are telling you to pick it up. There have been three marathons out of the nine that I’ve gone into injured….this one, Chickamauga, & one of the Rocket City marathons. I’ve now run two with bad shin splints & one with an IT Band injury. What was I supposed to do, take a deferment with NYC? Nope, I wanted to do this with Joe, we had everything paid for, reserved, etc….I had to do it even if I just walked it. Maybe that is what I should have done, walked the whole friggin’ thing! I just don’t have the patience for walking 26.2 miles. I’m not programmed to walk a whole marathon & my hat goes off to those who can do it.
Overall, it’s a GREAT experience. We had GREAT weather but I would have loved it even more had we had some overcast skies to go along with the nice temps. The sun late in the race got on my nerves. I couldn’t see much at all. There was a woman who was crossing the street on 1st Avenue that ran into me…(a pedestrian NOT a runner in the race.) The policemen were doing their best with the crowds but when there’s that many spectators out there like 5-6 people deep & one runs across the street, there’s not a lot they can do but scream at them. I gave her an ear full when she ran into me, trust me! I had stopped to tighten the compression band on my IT Band & had started shuffling again & saw her coming at me out of the corner of my eye. Had I been mean, I would have shoved her hard but that’s not me. Screaming like a lunatic is more my style, apparently. (I yelled, “Get the HELL off the ROAD!!) ha!
After I did my death march across the finish line, I immediately turned on the phone & there were messages from Joe & Cheryl looking for me. It took probably 30-45 minutes for Joe to find me & another half an hour to find Cheryl & Jillian. All I wanted was a Starbucks in my hand & to wash the grime off my hands at that point.
What did I learn?
It pays to sign up for a marathon where there’s an option to downgrade to the half due to injury but NYC isn’t like that. Either you do the full or nothing that day. If I had to redo the day with this IT Band issue, I would have made myself do the walk/run Galloway method. Seriously, I don’t think my time would have been any worse if I had done that.
What did I gain from all this training?
A slow NYC marathon finish time but the journey here got me a sub – 2 hr flat half marathon time (on a long course…see ‘boro half race report). It got me a 2:05-ish half marathon time on a HORRIBLY hilly Nashville women’s half marathon course. I did have two pretty great 20-21 mile training runs. What I didn’t do was rest enough in between them. Lesson learned the hard way.
Will I do a marathon in 2012?
I’ll train for one but if I’m injured 2-3 weeks out then I’ll downgrade to the half course. So, the decision is made. Detroit Free Press Fall 2012, here we come. Chicago will have to wait another year or two for sure. My Spring will consist of NO marathons. It’s time for me to get reacquainted with “speed”. It’s time to heal & think about running fast again. Like I’ve mentioned before, my early 2012 goal will be to chase my old half marathon PR. If breaking 4:17:11 remains elusive for me (that certainly wasn’t the goal on Sunday in NYC) then maybe breaking 1:51:25 needs to be the new goal for now. ;-)
I’m a firm believer that you really need to get your half marathon times down before you set your goals on lowering your full marathon times. I certainly need to follow that rule.
The Cons of doing a marathon of this magnitude:
We both ran Sunday sleep deprived. (It’s hard to get a good night’s rest in NYC with the sounds of the city all around you.)
It’s hard getting up super early to go sit on a blanket outside for a few hours when it’s 36 degrees.
It can be expensive but that’s to be expected in NYC. (We pretty much planned & paid for this trip well in advance.)
It’s hard to get into this race unless you’re given a “free ride” or you do a charity. (I know folks who’ve done it all threw ways, given a free entry from a running store, did a charity, & or the lottery. I have met a few who qualified on time. Now that's hard to do with this race. I think it's worse than Boston!)
The Pros of doing a marathon of this magnitude:
The city is amazing. (It’s a historical race with so many stories.)
It’s a “cross off your list” marathon for nearly all the runners I’ve ever known.
It’s a huge “party” through 5 boroughs & you can’t get that anywhere else.
The city shuts down for you.
What I will remember the most about the NYC marathon...
Hitting the Queensboro Bridge at around mile 15 & thinking, “This hill isn’t that hard & these spectators here are CRAZY AWESOME!” I smiled all the way across that bridge.
Joe’s 3:38:06 for sure & he said he even took the time to “high five” people along the way.
He loved the Queensboro Bridge also. He loved the entire experience but he wasn’t going into it with a nagging 3 week old injury either, bless him & his neutral foot strike. Ha! I'm so happy one of us finished strong!
Filling in the holes to the story….
I started out by banging my head HARD on the overhead compartment in the plane. Not good.
Then I used the planes bathroom at the back. Some guy opens the door on me. Not good.
We get to the airport & we’re hailing a cab when Joe realizes he’s booked two different Fairfield Inns for the weekend. Not good.
Nagging hip/knee pains off and on in the afternoon. Not good.
That was Friday…
On Saturday....
Superman: Turn off the dark:
It was everything I thought it would be...the reviews did it justice. The cast was super. The place was packed with a lot of runners for the Saturday matinee. We totally enjoyed it & we got sprayed by spidey’s web. I even grabbed some of Spidey's web when he sprayed us. Ha!
As for the two hotels we stayed….Joe paid for two nights with points & then days later booked what he thought was the same hotel for the first night. He realized this fact when we were about to hail a cab from the airport. He pulled out two sheets of paper for two different Fairfield Inns. We can laugh about it now but what a pain in the ass that was…. The Fairfield on 37th street is a lot smaller & noisier than the one on 40th. The one of 40th had way more runners in it & we lucked up with a much quieter room for the last two nights. I don’t sleep that great in hotel rooms to begin with but stress causes me not to sleep well too. Changing rooms, some nagging hip/knee pains, logistics anxiety, race anxiety, etc…well, let’s just say it will be GREAT to be back in my own bed tonight knowing all I have to do is show up for work tomorrow. ;-) It will take me a while to catch up sleep this week. I’ve promised myself that I’ll not do any early morning workouts this week.
As for pictures, I loaded them all on facebook.... but here are a few...
The view of the start & two from the 9-11 Memorial.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Joe did GREAT & I sucked...
Me: 4:50:44
Joe: 3:38:06
By about 19-20 miles, the IT Band decided to take an early plane back to Tennessee.
Honestly, I felt pretty decent up until that point. I thought I hydrated well enough but around mile 22, I actually felt my left toes cramping up. WTH? I had chewed on shot bloks, drank water & gatorade at nearly every single mile. There were several water stops I walked through.
Lord knows I didn't expect much since it started acting up about 3 weeks or so weeks ago but damn, 4:50?!
The worst I expect was around 4:40, but I didn't know what to expect to be perfectly honest. I had a 21 miler at a 9:55 pace & a 20 miler at a 10:07 pace & then the IT Band issues slowed me...to a screaching halt, apparently. When I hit the half way mark, I thought to myself, this is ok, it's where I need to be but guess I should have dialed it back. One thing's for sure, I sure didn't mean to run the sub-10 minute miles early on. The garmin wasn't reading those. I thought I was running around a 9:50-10:10 pace early on but apparently that wasn't the case looking at the splits. I felt like I was crawling early on....
Oh and don't get me started on the sun in my eyes the last 6 miles straight. I had on sunglasses but couldn't see much of squat going on around me. Eh well, that damn 4:17:11 from that hot ass, hilly ass Country Music Marathon from 2006 is going to haunt me like a bad dream forever. ha!
I'll give a better race report when I'm in a better mood.... ;-P
Joe: 3:38:06
By about 19-20 miles, the IT Band decided to take an early plane back to Tennessee.
Honestly, I felt pretty decent up until that point. I thought I hydrated well enough but around mile 22, I actually felt my left toes cramping up. WTH? I had chewed on shot bloks, drank water & gatorade at nearly every single mile. There were several water stops I walked through.
Lord knows I didn't expect much since it started acting up about 3 weeks or so weeks ago but damn, 4:50?!
The worst I expect was around 4:40, but I didn't know what to expect to be perfectly honest. I had a 21 miler at a 9:55 pace & a 20 miler at a 10:07 pace & then the IT Band issues slowed me...to a screaching halt, apparently. When I hit the half way mark, I thought to myself, this is ok, it's where I need to be but guess I should have dialed it back. One thing's for sure, I sure didn't mean to run the sub-10 minute miles early on. The garmin wasn't reading those. I thought I was running around a 9:50-10:10 pace early on but apparently that wasn't the case looking at the splits. I felt like I was crawling early on....
Oh and don't get me started on the sun in my eyes the last 6 miles straight. I had on sunglasses but couldn't see much of squat going on around me. Eh well, that damn 4:17:11 from that hot ass, hilly ass Country Music Marathon from 2006 is going to haunt me like a bad dream forever. ha!
I'll give a better race report when I'm in a better mood.... ;-P
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
taped during the last week of taper.....
Went to my 2nd appt at Pro Motion yesterday....got taped.
It's supposed to last 3 days....stay on in the shower, etc...
Uh, no, it didn't last 3 days...mine came completely off in the shower.
Anyway, there's different kinds of tapes to use.
Mine is two layers with white on the bottom & brown on the top.
You don't want the brown to touch the skin because it can be irritating.
Anyway, I was given a little bit to tape myself Sat night or Sun morning.
I ran 4 miles with it and couldn't tell I had tape on my foot/calf at all.
The key is to get it taped just right so it's pulling just ever so slightly.
It's EXPENSIVE & I was told they special order it for their office but was given the names of it to order online. I'm too busy to dig in my purse for that right now but I might order some....or I might not.
What I HAVE to do is watch how I land my left foot Sunday.
I'm to phase in the "pawing" method to reduce the impact on the IT Band.
Of course this isn't happening overnight but I will try my best not to be sloppy Sunday.
(Head up, don't scrunch down like a little old lady when I'm tired. Lean forward like the dang "Chi Running" book said to do!) Incidentally, I did all this yesterday on a 4 mile run after work & my pace was 9:05. The run was "easy"....not quite tempo but when I lean, I run faster. So, just make yourself think of the "Smooth Criminal" video of Michael Jacksons....lean in a little & viola your turn over picks up so gravity doesn't pull you down. I'll have to watch that Sunday so I don't go out too fast. I do not want a 9:05 first mile.
As for Joe.....he has SO got a sub 4 hour in him. It will totally surprise me if his finish time is more than a 4:05. My guess is that he'll be anywhere between 3:50-4:05. That's what long legs & a natural foot strike will get you. Grrrr......
It's supposed to last 3 days....stay on in the shower, etc...
Uh, no, it didn't last 3 days...mine came completely off in the shower.
Anyway, there's different kinds of tapes to use.
Mine is two layers with white on the bottom & brown on the top.
You don't want the brown to touch the skin because it can be irritating.
Anyway, I was given a little bit to tape myself Sat night or Sun morning.
I ran 4 miles with it and couldn't tell I had tape on my foot/calf at all.
The key is to get it taped just right so it's pulling just ever so slightly.
It's EXPENSIVE & I was told they special order it for their office but was given the names of it to order online. I'm too busy to dig in my purse for that right now but I might order some....or I might not.
What I HAVE to do is watch how I land my left foot Sunday.
I'm to phase in the "pawing" method to reduce the impact on the IT Band.
Of course this isn't happening overnight but I will try my best not to be sloppy Sunday.
(Head up, don't scrunch down like a little old lady when I'm tired. Lean forward like the dang "Chi Running" book said to do!) Incidentally, I did all this yesterday on a 4 mile run after work & my pace was 9:05. The run was "easy"....not quite tempo but when I lean, I run faster. So, just make yourself think of the "Smooth Criminal" video of Michael Jacksons....lean in a little & viola your turn over picks up so gravity doesn't pull you down. I'll have to watch that Sunday so I don't go out too fast. I do not want a 9:05 first mile.
As for Joe.....he has SO got a sub 4 hour in him. It will totally surprise me if his finish time is more than a 4:05. My guess is that he'll be anywhere between 3:50-4:05. That's what long legs & a natural foot strike will get you. Grrrr......
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
dang it!
Apolo Ohno and Jared Fogle will be appearing at the ING Speaker Series:
Friday, 1:00 p.m. (our plane lands at 1:30pm friday & we won't get to Javits Center till about 3:00pm. I seriously doubt he'll still be there.) :-(
List of celebs running
• Stephanie Abrams, meteorologist for The Weather Channel
• Gbenga Akinnagbe, actor – The Wire, The Taking of Pelham 123
• Nate Appleman, chef/TV personality – Chopped All-Stars
• Joe Bastianich, restaurateur, winemaker, and judge on MasterChef
• Dr. Andy Baldwin, reality star – The Bachelorette
• Richard Blais, chef/TV personality – Top Chef All-Stars
• Jennie Finch, U.S. Olympian/Softball
• Mya, Grammy Award-winning singer
• Apolo Ohno, U.S. Olympian/short-track speed skating
• Shonda Schilling, New York Times bestselling author
• Paul Sparks, actor – Boardwalk Empire
• Ivy Stark, Corporate Executive Chef of Dos Caminos
• Ryan Sutter, reality star –The Bachelorette
• Christy Turlington Burns, model/founder, Every Mother Counts
• Michael K. Williams, actor – The Wire, Boardwalk Empire
• Edwin van der Sar, retired Manchester United goalie
• Veronica Webb, model/actress
• Ethan Zohn, reality star – Survivor
Friday, 1:00 p.m. (our plane lands at 1:30pm friday & we won't get to Javits Center till about 3:00pm. I seriously doubt he'll still be there.) :-(
List of celebs running
• Stephanie Abrams, meteorologist for The Weather Channel
• Gbenga Akinnagbe, actor – The Wire, The Taking of Pelham 123
• Nate Appleman, chef/TV personality – Chopped All-Stars
• Joe Bastianich, restaurateur, winemaker, and judge on MasterChef
• Dr. Andy Baldwin, reality star – The Bachelorette
• Richard Blais, chef/TV personality – Top Chef All-Stars
• Jennie Finch, U.S. Olympian/Softball
• Mya, Grammy Award-winning singer
• Apolo Ohno, U.S. Olympian/short-track speed skating
• Shonda Schilling, New York Times bestselling author
• Paul Sparks, actor – Boardwalk Empire
• Ivy Stark, Corporate Executive Chef of Dos Caminos
• Ryan Sutter, reality star –The Bachelorette
• Christy Turlington Burns, model/founder, Every Mother Counts
• Michael K. Williams, actor – The Wire, Boardwalk Empire
• Edwin van der Sar, retired Manchester United goalie
• Veronica Webb, model/actress
• Ethan Zohn, reality star – Survivor
weather....
I will not have the weather to blame if I bonk.
Check it out!
http://www.weather.com/weather/weekend/USNY0996
Check it out!
http://www.weather.com/weather/weekend/USNY0996