Common Ground

My running friends from my old neighborhood

Running is a nearly universal language. It breaks the ice and brings people together. If two strangers are runners, they can usually find something to talk about. Being a running mother gives us even more in common.

This past weekend I found this to be true. Twice.

We went camping with a group from Fort Collins and spent all day Saturday on a pontoon boat out on a lake. I was the newbie of the group and I spent a lot of time getting to know everyone. One of the women approached me and said, "I hear you are a runner." We got to talking (and talked on and off most of the day) and I found out that she runs half marathons. I did a little happy dance inside. Perhaps a new long run partner?  I practically begged her to invite me along to a long run. I cyber-stalked her and found her on Facebook and I am hopeful that we will run sometime soon.

That morning, I had noticed a woman going off for a run. She was carrying water, so I knew it was going to be a long one. Other than feeling a bit guilty for skipping a long run that day, I was curious where she was going to go. So enamored am I with other running moms that I snapped a picture of this anonymous woman leaving her children for some peaceful time in the mountains.

Later that afternoon, I walked into her campsite and asked her where she ran.  She and I started talking about running and races (she is a marathoner and training for a 50K). We both lamented that we hadn't spoken the day before and we could have run together. Later, she walked into our campsite with a map and showed me some places to run. On Sunday, I set off on my solo run (which was fabulous, by the way). She asked about it afterward and we chatted some more. As both of our families were leaving, we exchanged information. She doesn't live particularly close to me, but we both thought we might run into each other at a Colorado or Utah race sometime.

With women, running opens the door and gives us an opportunity to become friends with people we wouldn't necessarily get to know in any other way. Last weekend reminded me again what a wonderful community I belong to. Runners are great and runners who are moms are awesome.  It gives me hope that I will find common ground with some local running moms in my neighborhood.  It is only a matter of time.

Happy Running...

Keeping it real

I noticed something about myself today that concerned me a little bit.  Not a lot, but I know if I post it here, it will keep me accountable and ensure that these feelings don't go further.  I know that there are several of my friends out in blogland that have struggled with eating disorders, so I know that you will make sure I don't head down that road.

Today I went to a podiatrist to make sure that my foot is ok.*  The nurse was getting all my vitals and weighed me.  A small wave of disappointment went over me after seeing 123 pounds.  I thought after all the marathon training that I would weigh a little less than that.  Then she asked me my height.  I am between 5'5" and 5'6".  She put 5'5" and my BMI came up on the computer as a somewhere around 20.5.  I was hoping to see it in the 19's.  I actually thought about asking her to change my height to 5'6".

WHAT???!!!!  

I am on the lower end of normal for BMI.  WHY would I want to be even lower?  It is not right for me to think that way.   My logical self knows that.  I know what is healthy.

The other day, I was reluctant posting this picture on Facebook because it shows a little post-baby pooch in my belly hanging over my hydration belt.  I thought to myself that after months of marathon training, I shouldn't have a tummy pooch.  I posted the pictures that showed it the least.  I told myself that I had carbo loaded.  The truth is, I have a little pooch that will never go away.**

I actually didn't post this one because I was vain about the belly shot.

I have a lot of crap going on in my life right now.  I am feeling a little victimized and definitely not in control of what is going on around us.  I know that these kinds of feelings can lead to behavior that seeks to find control.  

I have been lucky enough to have never been on a diet.  The only scale we own has been out of batteries for months.  I don't obsess about my weight.  I am sure that I don't have an eating disorder.  In fact, I don't think a lot about what I eat***.  However, I would hate to think about wanting to lose weight when I am right where I need to be.

So here I am, post-baby belly pooch and all.  When my three-year-old asks me if I have a belly in my tummy, I will smile and tell her that she is the last baby I will ever need.  I will be proud of my strong abdominal muscles, even if they don't form a six-pack.  I just need to focus on staying strong and running, running, running.  Not because it is good for my tummy, because it is good for my soul.

Happy Running.

*Thank goodness there is no stress fracture.  He recommended custom orthotics and a bone density scan.  He thinks that my bones are starting to get weaker (which might explain my pain), so I need to start adding calcium.
**I have never a completely flat tummy, even at my thinnest.
***I do want to think a little more about what I eat.  I recently had some bloodwork done and my HDL (good cholesterol) was not as high as I would have liked.  Results also show that I might be borderline anemic.  Time to add some more iron.

New Chapter

I'm Back, Baby!!

We are finally somewhat settled. We are living among a sea of endless boxes that seem impossible to empty with a three and six year old around. However, we are here and starting to figure out the area and feel at home.

I have run a few times. Unfortunately, I have slept through my alarm more than I have woken to it. I think the stress of moving has taken its toll and I crash at night. The running has been good, however. It isn't super easy since we moved to an area called Anaheim HILLS*. The name rings true. But just outside our neighborhood is a nice park with a quarter mile loop around it. About a mile from our house is the Santa Ana River. That is definitely my favorite place to run so far.

I ran at the river this morning. It was a beautiful morning. It was clear and much dryer and warmer than it has been (although there was still a lingering mist). Once I got to the river, I headed east**. The sun was coming up and the moon was brand new with Venus off to the side. It was so peaceful running at dawn like that. The river is actually really pretty. There were plenty of herons, egrets and ducks. It is actually an odd sight to see a teeming estuary and then mere yards away from the other side is the 91 freeway, full of traffic heading into Los Angeles. I can't believe how busy that freeway is at 6:30 in the morning!

I think that life is going to start seeming pretty darn normal soon. Today I met a mom at the school who runs with a small group. She invited me to join them! I am very excited about that. All in all, things are working out well.

I will start getting back to commenting on your blogs. I don't spend a lot of time on the computer these days. Can Google Reader explode with too many unread posts? I am nearing 1000 unread posts. YIKES! Please don't hate me if I don't get a chance to read some of your old posts. I have read some of them here and there, but haven't really done any commenting.


*For those of you familiar with Southern California or Disneyland, we do live in the city of Mickey Mouse. Since we are in the hills of Anaheim, we are close enough to hear the fireworks from the Magical Kingdom. We'd have to climb out on the roof to see them, but it is nice to know it is relatively close by. We haven't gone yet, but I think a Disney pass is in my future. Yippee!!
**If you head west on the river path and run twenty miles, you hit the ocean.

Seven miles from Mexico

Sound hot? It was. I ran near our friend's house in Chula Vista, which is seven miles (as the crow flies*) from the Mexican border,** which was the distance of my run***. I ran at 1:30 in the afternoon. It sounds like a recipe for disaster, but it wasn't.

I was thrilled to get out and run. My chest is not hurting nearly as much and I discovered that chasing around a three- and a five-year-old bothers it as much as running does. I have found that running is my "me" time; my solace. It is time alone when I don't feel guilty for not doing something. If I take some time for myself at home by reading a book or watching a movie, I end up feeling like I should be doing something more productive. When I am running, I don't feel that way. If I tell my kids or my husband that I am going out for a run, they say, "have a nice run." If I were to say I was going to go shopping or go for a walk or hang by myself for a while, someone would want something or want to come along. Three-year-olds don't really understand the concept of "mommy time," but they do understand "going for a run."

I was prepared for a warm run. I brought my hydration belt (or "tool" belt as marathonman calls it). I think I am definitely going to get the twenty ounce handheld bottle because I went through two ten ounce bottles on my run today. Not only did I have plenty of fluids, but there was a little bit of a breeze that helped cool me off. I think I am acclimating to the heat pretty well. I sweat way more than I used to. By the end of the summer, I should be able to give Terri a run for her money. I had a bit of my own puddle in my wake today.

I didn't feel super speedy or strong, but I felt fine. I did a couple short fartleks just to see if my feet could move faster. They can. I am looking forward to my sharpening phase of this training coming up in a few weeks, when I can do a few miles at race pace or faster. I think for a seven mile run after taking an entire week off, I didn't do half bad.

After my run, I joined my family at our friend's house to swim. I feel a little bad for not showering before getting in the pool. Sweat isn't bad for pools is it? I figure that my husband and his buddies use that hot tub every week after basketball, so one little runner girl isn't going to make a difference.

Happy Running, everyone!

*according to Google Earth.
** actually, I write this for dramatic effect. Where I live is right around eleven miles from the border and I can see Mexico from my house. However, even those few miles further south seem to make a difference of a few degrees.
***no, I didn't run to Mexico. I ran around a nice little lake and some neighborhoods.

Race Report Part III (...the bad and the ugly. Here is where some of the TMI comes in)

*Mile 14-17-- After seeing my family, I was feeling good. Although it didn't take long for fatigue to hit me like a ton of bricks. As we turned into the neighborhood around Clairmont/Mission Bay. People at one of the houses were handing out orange quarters. That sounded YUMMY. I grabbed a couple... sticky, but good.

Never in any of my training runs did I feel the need to stop and walk. In fact, when Jen or Lisa wanted to stop, I often did it reluctantly or not at all. On the eighteen and twenty mile runs, I ran alone for the last couple of miles because Lisa wanted to walk. I am one of those people whose legs feel super heavy when I stop and I find it difficult to get back into my rhythm. Well.... as anyone will tell you, you throw everything out the window during a marathon. In the end, I was looking forward to the water stops just for an excuse to walk. I think that Lisa could have skipped a couple of the water stops, but she stopped because we were in it together. I can't begin to thank her for that. Luckily, I never walked for long because I knew that the longer I walked, the greater the chance I would walk all the way to the finish line.

*Mile 17.6 The Powerbar Gel station-- I had gone through all three of my gels and I think most or all of my Clif Shot Blocs. Why something different, you may ask? I need variety. If you have ever tasted Gu or Powerbar Gel, you know that you don't eat it for the taste. The Shot Blocs are kind of like big gummy bears and I like them. Gels are faster, so I try to bring those too.

I knew I needed at least one more gel, maybe more. I grabbed a vanilla, but then I saw my favorite-plain! It is just slightly sweet and after hours of running, the last thing you need is a mouthful of sickly sweet goop. The guy actually handed me two. To be honest, I think I only ate one of them... but I really don't remember. I think that if they are going to give away gel, they should locate the station early. I saw on the website for the National Breast Cancer Marathon that Gu was handing it out starting at mile 7 and having it available every three miles. That would have put Laura in good shape when she missed her hubby at mile 12.

Lisa wanted to stop and stretch a bit at the water station following the Powerbar Gel. I was all for it. I must have looked bad, because when I was using one of the water tables as support to stretch, one of the volunteers handed me another water. I took a couple of Tylenol (which, in retrospect, I should have taken much earlier). It kicked in around mile 19 or 20 and really helped alleviate some pain in my legs.

*Mile 18 (here is where we get into the TMI portion of the report)-- Men and women who have never had children will not relate to this next issue at all (and can skip it if you want). I have found out in the past year or so that it is a "dirty little secret" among more women than you would think. I have rarely read accounts during my recent blog obsession, but once I became more comfortable talking about it, I found quite a few women who suffer from the same thing. We all have stress incontinence. My friend, Karen, candidly said when we had the conversation at Stroller Strides one day, "oh, you're a pee-er?" Yikes. I never thought about it that way, but yes, I am *blush*

What it means is basically my bladder leaks a little bit when I run, jump, cough, sneeze etc. What caused it? Hormones. Age. Oh... and the fact that I delivered two 9 1/2 pound babies vaginally. My doctor tells me to do Kegels. I haven't met a woman who suffers from this who benefited that much from Kegels. Kegels only do so much. I just wear a pad every time I go out to run.

OK... back to the race. As I left the water station, my pad (which was saturated by now due to proper hydration) started rubbing. If you have ever had chafing, you know it is not pleasant. I didn't want to find out how much worse it would be down in the nether region. D'oh! I had to dump this thing fast. I must have looked odd trying to adjust my underwear. We were now in a neighborhood filled with fans. I couldn't just duck behind a bush and discard my trash. I had to find a bathroom. It was about that time that I started getting stomach cramps. Now I had two reasons to find a bathroom.

We found one right as we turned onto Crown Point Drive. There were a couple people, but not a serious line. Lisa stopped with me and decided to go herself. We probably stopped for two or three minutes. I took off the offending pad and replaced it with a new one conveniently stashed in my fanny pack. I also eliminated my loose bowels with relief and thought..."third poop of the day, that should do it." Hmmmm....

*Mile 19-- Damn iPod stopped playing. Ironically, Kenny's iPod did that to me during my very first race last summer. Since then, I have learned how to reset it. I know I should be able to find it in me to run without it so that I can run races that don't allow headphones, but 3 hours and 33 minutes into it, I was really getting into a music groove. The bands didn't come often enough and frankly, I like my music better.

So I had to reset my iPod. Normally, this wouldn't be such a big deal. However, I have been logging my miles with my Nike+ and I REALLY wanted to log the marathon. I was pretty sure that resetting the iPod would erase the Nike+ data. I was right. I was bummed when I didn't have my sensor on the 18 miler, you can only imagine my disappointment during the race. I was really looking forward to my split times and one of the famous people saying, "congratulations, you just ran your longest run." Well, I couldn't dwell. So I moved on and by mile 20 or so I had found the right playlist and was feeling good.

*Somewhere between mile 20 and 21, along the bike path near SeaWorld Drive-- Well... the stomach cramps started again. 'You've got to be kidding me!' I thought. I mean, I am not a very regular type of gal and for me to go four times before noon is unheard of. I can deal with the cramps... it's mind over matter, right? But then (and this is when I am getting into the serious TMI zone) I had to clench my butt cheeks. Kenny calls it prairie dogging *blush* I couldn't run that way for another 6 miles! I was seriously afraid that I would be "that poop girl" that people would go home telling stories about. I HAD to find a toilet.

There were two porta potties, but there were people waiting. I couldn't chance that there wouldn't be another one for several miles. I am pretty sure I wasn't the only one suffering from the runners trots. A few of the racers in line were men. I doubt a man would wait in line to pee when there was a perfectly acceptable bush nearby. Did I mention that one of the possible contributing factors to this ailment is high doses of vitamin C? Hmmmm...what do you think was the main ingredient that I had been pounding for days to make it so I could get to the finish line? Irony.

This is where Lisa really earned her major kudos for the day. I could tell, she didn't want to stop. I told her to go on. Nope, she came this far with me, she said that she wanted to finish with me. Awwww.... that meant so much. She was having the run of her life and she waited for me. She told me that she was going to walk and for me to catch up with her. I finally got my turn, was able to go AGAIN and the tummy cramps stopped and I was good to go. In fact, I was feeling pretty good FINALLY.

A half mile down the path, there were about six porta potties with NO LINES. DAMN. Ah, more irony. Oh well....

*Mile 21-- Check out these pictures. Lisa and I saw the cameras and decided to smile for the them. I think at this point we knew that we were going to make it to the end. I am SO glad that I look that happy that far into the race.


Me crossing the 21 mile point (click on the links for better pictures)


Lisa and I

*Mile 22-- This was a funky turn-around before getting onto Pacific Highway. This was a key point in my race for me. The band was talking to the runners and I'm not sure what else the guy said, but what stuck in my mind was, "hey runners! You're still on pace to do sub-five!" That was all I needed. My 4:30 goal was long gone, but I could still run my first marathon in less than five hours. I was renewed, if only a little bit. It was enough.

*Miles 24-25 or so-- Lisa's husband, Alex, found us on his bike with little Olivia in the toddler seat. It was just the thing we needed to give us a little boost. We waved at little Olivia who was serious as always (that girl is going to be a judge someday). At this point, we just kept on running. I think he caught up to us around the water stop at 23.5 miles. He tried to tell us something, but neither one of us heard him. Apparently, he was telling us to look to the left at the finish line at the tv camera for the live finish as her parents were watching from Texas online.

*Mile 25-- We ran right through the water stop. We just looked at each other and knew. Both of us had done well with hydration. Now was time to finish this thing! We ran that last mile hard. My breathing felt pretty labored for the first time. I know I was pushing myself. Right before we turned into the gates of MCRD, we saw three of our Stroller Strides buddies- Pam, Cassie and Yvette. What a great final boost before the home stretch!!

*Mile 25.7, 1/2 mile to go-- This is when mental toughness really played a part. I was having a really hard time catching my breath. But I knew that I needed to run that last mile and leave everything out there. Lisa asked, "is that the finish line??" No. It was a Rock-n-Roll Marathon Sign informing us that we had a 1/2 mile to go. I think it was there to encourage, but I had to dig deep and tell myself "yes... you can run this hard for another 1/2 mile!"

And then, there was the stretch. We could see the finish line and the crowds cheering. This was it! As we ran next to each other, I knew that we would finish exactly together. I reached over and grabbed Lisa's hand. We were going to finish in style. The announcer was cheering everyone on to hurry because the clock was about to hit the five hour mark! Luckily, we knew that we had crossed the starting line six minute later than the gun. We did it... we finished in under five hours!!!!!!

Here is a link to us crossing the finish line. Fast forward to 5:00:12 and we are on the upper part of the screen. http://video.nbcsandiego.com/player/?id=257805

Don't we look happy? (clidk on links for bigger pictures)
Here we are!

I totally thought that I would be crying big ugly crocodile tears when I crossed. But they didn't come right away. I started to sob when the woman placed the finisher's medal around my neck. The tears came and I was so happy. Later, when I was waiting for Lisa to get her chip cut off her shoe, another wave of emotion hit me. I must have looked pretty bad, because a medic came up and asked if I needed help. LOL. No... I'm just emotional.


Here we are after all is said and done.

Here are some pictures from after the race:

One of my biggest fans is also a fan of the medal.

Another one of my biggest fans




Here are three out of four of us. Unfortunately, since Laura finished quite a bit ahead of us, her kids were getting antsy and they had to leave.


Here are Jen and I under the Rock-n-Roll Sign:


And here I am in all my glory! Hmmm... maybe it was time to take off that visor! :-D