gosh, the weeks are flying by, and it's time for an update again.

the first, exciting news is that i've started collecting donations for Team in Training. thank you, you awesome people who have already made contributions! all money goes to support research and treatments at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. my fundraising goal is $1400 - so far i'm collected $350, so i'm off to a good start but have a long way to go still.

this past sunday i ran in the Shamrock Shuffle, which is the largest 8k race in the country (in the world?). 30,000 runners swarmed into downtown chicago on sunday morning to run the race. my marathon coach had recommended that we do this race to get some experience with big races - like the chicago marathon, it starts and ends in grant park in downtown chicago, and it's HUGE. i'm glad i did the race for the experience with the crowds alone - i was pretty intimidated by the whole rigmarole - getting downtown on crowded sunday public transit, fighting the crowds for the gear check, the portapotty lines, getting into a starting corral, etc. now i feel much more confident about what i need to do and where i need to be when on marathon day for a stress-free start to the race. and i have months still to look forward to that!

i also felt pretty good about my race time. i ran the 8k in 43:29, averaging an 8:45 pace. not that long ago i was thinking of myself as a 10-minute miler, it's cool to realize that in my second season back to running i'm continuing to improve. and lately almost all of my "easy jogs" have been coming in around 9 or 9:30 in pace - i guess i'm actually getting stronger/faster.

the past 3 weeks i've been doing much better about hitting all or nearly all of my workouts. the weather has been easing up a bit, which helps - less time on the treadmill, more time out exploring (what pass for) nature (in chicago).

tag!

Ups and Downs - That's Life and Running

I'm inspired by reading Jen's posts. I'm reminded that all of us have challenges in life. We have ups and downs, but it is how we cope that really makes it an UP or a DOWN. I have had apparent phases in my life of extreme ups and extreme downs. I am now old enough and wise enough to recognize the onset of a downturn, and have developed skills to stop myself once in an arms-and-legs-flailing-as-I-skid-down-the-face-of-the-mountain fall. However, I am not always good enough to keep myself on track or pick myself up again once I have stumbled and stopped the downward slide. The metaphors between life's challenges and running have been explored extensively in literature and amongst running partners, but let's just say that running has become one of my greatest antidotes for curing "the downs" because I somehow have it in my head I'm always strong enough to finish the run, even when I'm not so sure I'm strong enough to cope with life's challenges. I will be putting that statement to the test over the next 7 months as I train and complete my first marathon. The challenge is really quite exciting.

It must be the season. I too have been challenged with trying to get out and run as I wait for the weather to break. I too have all the same excuse: work, personal life, weather... I did great for a week, getting in 6 workouts that week. Then I ignored the idea of running and going to the gym for a week. Now I'm back at it. The desire is to list all my excuses and all the going-ons of my life right now, but this week I've decided to toy with the idea of taking a positive approach to every excuse, complaint, and frustration. Skipping a whole lot of the details (I just hit the delete button) and focusing on the positive has made me realize and appreciate the amazing people in my life; my dearest husband, Shannon Brown, and Jen. My husband has a way of making me get out and do the things I love, when I'd rather stay curled-up in a dark corner. Shannon has become my personal life coach and counselor (which is not her profession), and boy what a weight that must be. Finally, I've recently had a dear friendship go through turmoil and it is currently not fairing well. I've let myself sleep at night by reminding myself that friendships do endure all, and that friends have a way of finding their way back into your life when you need that person most. Thanks Jen, for giving me the motivation to run and pursue what seems like a daunting (26.2 miles!!!) goal. (This is another one of those life-and-running metaphors.)

That being said, I'm home from work today (which is a gigantic story in and of itself), so I've got to get moving and take the dog out for a brisk jog in the present sunshine that has been rather allusive lately.

March already?!?

Yup, March already. This week marked my return to the full training schedule - I've been slacking, depressed by the winter, traveling, working too much - all good excuses, but excuses nonetheless. Anyway, this week I managed to hit all my planned workouts. Next week we'll work on getting that whole healthy-eating thing back on track (as I type I'm enjoying a post-run chocolate milkshake, so obviously, something's gotta change :)

It helped that the first signs of spring weather turned up in Chicago late this week. My marathon training group meets at the lakefront path at 8am on Saturdays, and the past few weeks, just getting out of our cars and not slipping on the ice has seemed like an endurance sport. Today the sun was shining and most of the snow had melted away, and the lake was blue blue blue, and I remembered why I like running out of doors so much - even in a city like Chicago, it makes me feel more connected to nature, just seeing the sun rise, the way the clouds recede over the lake, the color the water - very restorative.

Also, another great motivator is that this week I got my first TNT donation! Thank you very much to my brother and sister-in-law for their generous support. It was one thing when I had forked over my $50 registration fee and made it out to a few group runs, and I was pretty darn sure I was gonna do this marathon thing. Now, well, now I'm committed. And I'm really excited about that.

What's new in your world?

February Recap

February hasn't exactly gone as planned for me, either. I wish I could say I had good excuse like Callie's, that I've been deathly ill with the flu or something (well, I don't wish for that, exactly, but you know). Mostly I've been too busy, training with my new, second job, and without overwhelming you, dear supportive readers, with the gory detail, my personal life has been kind of a mess which always results in no sleep which in turns causes me to be so tired that I figure I can't justify exercise because I'm so rundown and tired already that I need to conserve energy. Golly, that was a long sentence. That's kinda how life has been lately. Long, incoherent sentences. But anyway, I've been doing well at two of my training goals, which was to get started and get comfortable going to my two cross-training activities, aikido and yoga. Running on the treadmill has been a chore and I've really only been managing it about once or twice a week.

But my biggest accomplishment for the month of February was that I picked a marathon training program, joined it, and today did my first run with the group. I decided to join Team in Training, which is the marathon-training program supported by the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. The fundraising component of this program is, admittedly, a little daunting for me. $1400! And I certainly could have joined a regular training group for about 1/10th of the cost. But for some reason I kept coming back to TNT. And I figure, hey, if fate is nudging me that way, then I should just listen. If I'm going to go to all this work to run the marathon, why not have some extra good come of it? I mean, running it will be good for me, but if it can be good for me AND good for others, that's even better. So I went to my first group run this morning. Already I can tell that having a group will be good motivation for me - this morning's windchill was 14 degrees - and I made it out for a run. Normally I say that my temperature threshold is 45! And it was bloody, awful cold. I would never had lasted on my own. But I had people to chat with, about cold and about running and those good general small-talk topics, and the 45 minute run went by like nothing. I was actually a little disappointed when we got back to the starting place so soon.

This weekend I hope to get my fundraising page up and running, so more about TNT here soon! (By the way, a proper acronym for Team In Training, it seems to me, would be TIT. But I guess it makes sense that they're using TNT instead. Maybe if we were raising money for breast cancers instead of blood cancers...? Or maybe my sense of humor wouldn't wouldn't exactly jive for a career in Public Relations...)

Hope you're feeling better quickly, Cal.

Back on Track

I had big plans for February. I had set career, personal and running goals. On February 9th I developed a minor cough in the later afternoon. I hit the gym that evening for a spectacular 45 minutes cardio session. By 9pm I was not feeling well. I woke-up incredibly sick on Friday morning and ran straight to the doctor's office to ward off another one of my usual sinus infections. Wrong. I was a statistic; one of the hundreds in the area that week that came down with the 2007 flu. The doctor told me there was nothing he could do. I would be sick for 7 to 10 days with a residual cough for 2-3 weeks. He sent me home with instructions to stay in bed and take Tylenol for the pain. Guess what? Doc was right.

Needless to say I've hit a bump in the marathon training. Two days ago I attempted my first workout since falling ill. I did 30 minutes of early morning yoga and am STILL sore! My cough was considerably better that day, however. The good that has come from being so sick; I will not be able to complain of sever muscle pain no matter the intensity of the long runs to come. The identifying characteristic of this flu is the accompanying sever muscle pain. For nearly 4 days I was in so much pain that I could not sleep and was unsteady on my feet. Once returning to work, I found out campus doctors were prescribing hydrocodon for the pain! (I see an off-campus doctor.) The statistics are astounding. Our department sadly lost one elderly professor to the flu this year.

So I have now had a week back at work and am trying to get my life put back together after not doing much for 7 days. I am starting to return to my prior habits and incorporate exercise again. I am going to ease into it, however. This is unlike me, but the residual cough and unseasonably wet weather makes me leery of developing an upper respiratory infection, common to distance runners. Today, its horseback riding. It will be nice for us both to stretch our legs after the cold winter we have had. Next week, it's back to the gym with the goal to get in 3-4 days of exercise.

the training plan

so, i wrote this up a few weeks ago, and i realize that i hadn't finished it or posted it yet, and suddenly the month of january is already gone. so, here's the rough sketch of my training plan:

January:
+join aikido dojo and yoga classes at the gym
+run 6-9 mi/week (3 days, 2-3 mi each)
+do at least 3 days/week of cardio (running or other)
+register for the marathon

February
+pick a marathon training program/group in chicago
+train 2 days/week at aikido
+yoga at least once per week
+up running mileage to 9-12 mi per week (3 days, 3-4 mi each)

March
+train 2 days/week at aikido
+yoga at least once per week
+maintain running mileage at 9-12 mi per week (3 days, 3-4 mi each)
+ease into some outdoor running as the weather gets milder

~March 25 – Shamrock Shuffle 8k
~March 2-17 (FW tech)


April
+maintain yoga and aikido cross training
+add some strength training (anything that aikido is missing)
+up running mileage to 12-15 mi per week (3 days, 4-5 mi each)

~April 29 – Ravenswood 5k
~April 27 – May 12 (arcadia tech)

May
+increase mileage to 15 mi/week
+build up to 6 mi long runs on weekends and running 4 days per week
+maintain yoga and aikido cross training

~April 27 – May 12 (arcadia tech)
~May 18 – Gala

June
+shift focus to marathon training program
+keep up with aikido and yoga as time and energy allow

~Plan running trip to Idaho?

July

~July 1- Race to the Taste 5k
~July 29 – Fleet Feet Women's 10k

~Running trip to Idaho if not in June?

August
~August 12 – Chicago Distance Classic Half Marathon

September
~September 9 – Chicago Half Marathon
~September 14-30 (thyestes tech, tentative)

October
~October 7 – Chicago Marathon!

obviously the first half is better planned out than the second half. but i can only think so far ahead. i'm not sure i can afford the entrance fees to all those races, either, but i'll wait and see which ones fit into my calendar and what i can afford to do.

Getting Started, Being Excited

Okay, so I finally decided to just make the time and write. Unlike Jen, I've completely abandoned the whole public posting of my thoughts over the Internet once I graduated from high school, 11 years ago. In a similar fashion to Jen's excuses, I found college an excuse to not write, then life just got in the way. You could say I let the pendulum seriously swing the other way after high school. I don't even own a computer! I'm doing this log on a computer a coworker loaned me over the holidays so I could work from home. I also have to mention that we don't have TV, so this computer is now our only form of entertainment besides a good book and the dog (whom I'm sure you'll hear more about later). There is a little more insight into just who I am, and a set-up as to how different Jen and I really are. The amazing part, when I need a friend, she is still there. (And, yes, our periods of complete disconnect have spanned more than a year at times.)

So about the running; I have continued to run nearly all these years. It has been my identity. Not because I am an outstanding runner, but because I have a serious endorphin addiction. I've noticed over the years that I exhibit all the normal withdrawal symptoms of a drug user or alcoholic when I don't get regular strenuous exercise. There have been some breaks in my running. For a while in college I played water polo, which is interesting because I'm "built like a runner" and I played on a co-ed team. Ever watched a water polo match? Good, then you know what the average player's build is. I also got lost while I was in graduate school and planning a wedding. It took LOTS of counselling and a year on Zoloft to recover from that little break in running. However, most notably I gave up running while I was living in South America in a large city that just wasn't easy to jog in (I believe drivers got points for hitting gringos). So I joined the university Tae Kwon Do club. Aerobics or basketball just weren't going to cut it for me. Anyone familiar with 1. living in a very different male-oriented society, 2. the average height of Hispanics, 3. TKD as a contact sport, and 4. learning a new language (Korean) from an already foreign and only moderately spoken second language, understands just how remarkable joining the team as a 5'8" athletically driven female with a limited sense of pain truly means. My Spanish improved as a I quickly learned to mimic body motions and the meaning of "eso." After about week 2 I was training 4 days a week with the competitive boys and learned to be more conservative when I was paired with the females for sparing or drills. I like to push myself. I like challenging sports.

So that brings me to today, sort of. I run semi-regularly. This past summer I ran several days a week at 5am and did at least two days of intervals or tempos. I joined the gym at work this fall and have been hitting the cardio machines a couple of days a week. (I've amused a few people at the gym, especially a former student of mine, with my complete lack of coordination. Did you know it doesn't work so well to actually lift your feet off the foot pads of the inclined elliptical machine?) I like to do circuits at home. I'm gaining courage to actually lift weights with an audience at the gym. My goal for the time being is to consistently get in 5 days a week of exercise, and lift (or circuit) at least once. I figure by April I really need to start focusing on running. I like to run outdoors and miss it. I'm hoping the craving will carry me through what will prove to be some very challengingly long runs. My mom, who was so not a runner as I grew up, has since become a runner and done a few marathons. She says it takes 6 months to train for your first marathon. I started looking at training schedules to get an idea of what I am in for. I'm excited, but fear the time factor. It will all depend on my job. (Sad but true.) However, once I set my mind to it, I seldom back down.

Tentatively I have a few things on the calendar. On April 1st is the Palouse 100K. The department (I work at WSU) is trying to put together a team for that. I'll run with them. Although my sister (a remarkable runner currently being recruited by colleges) and my brother (another outstanding runner) will be in town that weekend, so perhaps they'll run with me. In May is Bloomsday in Spokane, Washington. I ran it last year and got a terrible stitch with less than a mile to go. I have to go back this year and re-claim the race. I'm hoping a running partner and friend of mine from college who currently lives in Seattle and was there with me the first time I did Bloomsday and for my first 1/2 marathon, will come over to run it with me. It would be yet another reunion centered around running. Other than that, Jen and I have a not-yet-set training week this summer in Idaho. Finally, I would like to wrap up the year, post marathon, with a women's spa retreat weekend with friends and family. Even if they are not into marathons, everyone can benefit from setting fitness goals, and then sharing their stories. So that is my story, for now.

a little history to get us started...

so here it is. the chicago marathon blog. as of now, the team consists of me (res. chicago, il) and callie (res. moscow, id). we've been friends since the first day of 9th grade. a hell of a lot has happened in the 14 years since then. we ran together on high school track and cross country teams. we were part of the first graduating class of eagle high. went away to colleges in different states. i left idaho with plans to never look behind me. i lived in california, england, japan, new york, san francisco, buffalo, boston, and toured half the united states before settling down in chicago. i was callie's maid of honor when she married her sweetheart on a mountain top in idaho. my parents think of callie as their adopted daughter. we've grown into our adult selves, founded careers and relationships, endured successes and failures. but the amazing thing is that we're still friends, and that we're still running.

actually, i took about a 10 year break from running. there was college and all its distractions, then there was a ski accident that left me with an impaired sense of balance and dizzy spells that still linger six years later. there were long, cold winters and day jobs and night jobs and many many good reasons not to run. but somehow last year, i found my way back to running. and i discovered that my identity as a runner wasn't gone, just hibernating. running sustained me thru a very difficult period of my life recently, when i parted with someone very important to me. i really believe that it was divine providence that led me back to running not long before our relationship came to a sudden, staggering end. running gave me strength, physically and mentally at a time when i felt utterly emotionally destroyed.

at any rate, running a marathon has been in the back of my mind for almost all of my life. and something tells me that this is my year. so when the calendar rolled over to january 1, i wrote callie and asked her if she'd be interested in training for the chicago marathon. lucky for me, callie is crazy enough to have said yes.

we hope to plan some trips to train together, and to use this blog and email the rest of the time to trade training tips, thoughts, ideas, etc.

here we go! see you october 7...