Saturday's training was 13 miles. OK, well it's not exactly half seeing as the marathon is actually 26.2 miles but it's close enough for me.
My knees hurt, my ankles hurt, my feet hurt... Saturday... Hurt. Yanno, sometimes I think I'm the only one who's hurting out there. I know some of my teammates have had some injuries. Although I've been hurting at times, I'm not injured. Hopefully I can keep it that way!
I still struggle with the mental game. I've found that picking a visual goal and then picking another and then another, etc. makes the time go by. When I have a day like Saturday, it's difficult to ignore the pain- Difficult but not impossible- More like choosing not to give in. Dean Karnazes (50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days among other fairly crazy endeavors.) has a great quote: "Run when you can, walk when you have to, crawl if you must; Just never give up." I haven't crawled yet. Yet.
Only a few weeks until the breast cancer half-marathon in Jacksonville, FL~ Our long runs will be over 15 miles by then- The half will be like a break!
No long run for me this weekend- I'll be in Las Vegas at a trade show. Hopefully missing a long training won't be a set-back. I won't be doing any running in Vegas but I won't be there all that long. I'll be on a red-eye Sunday night to work at the police academy Monday morning. That should be a real treat. Back to running on Tuesday though!
That's all for now. Gotta go pack! Have a great week and weekend everyone!
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Heartbreak.
Hill that is.
Saturday was a 12 mile excursion including the famous Heartbreak Hill. I was underdressed and under-confident. I swear it got colder during the run. Also, much of the return leg was into the wind. At my speed the wind doesn't really change much- I just continue to be slow! But it was a cold wind. Cold wind + sweat + no hat = big freezy head. No calf cramps though. I think between plenty of water during the week, electrolyte replacement, "The Stick" and enough bananas to make a monkey jealous, that problem is behind me. It's time to start thinking about nutrition during the runs. I was really hungry during the last mile. Gels... Mmmmmmm!
I've been having trouble with the mental game. I spent a good part of the 'run' wishing that it was over. I realize it's a big TNT no-no, but I may start bringing my MP3 player to training runs. I end up by myself a lot because I'm so damn slow! :o) Tunes really help on my weekday runs and the treadmill. I'm still brutally attentive to the clock so time really crawls sometimes. I need to find 'the zone.' On my weekday outdoor runs, I'm not a clock watcher. I don't know why. On the treadmill, my eyes are glued to the clock. Maybe that's because it's right in front of my face. I'd love to be able to close my eyes on the treadmill. If I closed my eyes on the treadmill, I suspect I'd become the day's entertainment pretty quickly.
Speaking of the treadmill. (7 miles on it today) I've noticed that I pay much more attention to my form on the treadmill. Maybe that's because if you screw up badly enough, it will spit you out like a cartoon character. I'm still not completely sold on the treadmill idea but it's a good workout and there's no snow. I've heard of people doing full marathon training on a treadmill. Interesting concept but I don't think that would be ideal for me.
One of the big differences between cycling and running for me is that the cycling is much more social. Cycling tends to be more of a group thing where there really isn't alot of competition (Except for Keith! OK, and Anna too.) Runners seem more competitive even if only with themselves. Don't get me wrong- The marathon team is great- Everyone has been very supportive. (Even if they're thinking something else in their heads!!) It's not a complaint about runners- No no no! -Just an observation!
Saturday's run made me realize that I need to crank it up a notch during the week. I think I'm going to stick with two runs during the week and a long run on Saturdays, but I'm going to jack up the intensity. I'm going to work some more cross-training in with the runds as well.
This week's photo kinds of sums up my attitude!
See you soon!
Saturday was a 12 mile excursion including the famous Heartbreak Hill. I was underdressed and under-confident. I swear it got colder during the run. Also, much of the return leg was into the wind. At my speed the wind doesn't really change much- I just continue to be slow! But it was a cold wind. Cold wind + sweat + no hat = big freezy head. No calf cramps though. I think between plenty of water during the week, electrolyte replacement, "The Stick" and enough bananas to make a monkey jealous, that problem is behind me. It's time to start thinking about nutrition during the runs. I was really hungry during the last mile. Gels... Mmmmmmm!
I've been having trouble with the mental game. I spent a good part of the 'run' wishing that it was over. I realize it's a big TNT no-no, but I may start bringing my MP3 player to training runs. I end up by myself a lot because I'm so damn slow! :o) Tunes really help on my weekday runs and the treadmill. I'm still brutally attentive to the clock so time really crawls sometimes. I need to find 'the zone.' On my weekday outdoor runs, I'm not a clock watcher. I don't know why. On the treadmill, my eyes are glued to the clock. Maybe that's because it's right in front of my face. I'd love to be able to close my eyes on the treadmill. If I closed my eyes on the treadmill, I suspect I'd become the day's entertainment pretty quickly.
Speaking of the treadmill. (7 miles on it today) I've noticed that I pay much more attention to my form on the treadmill. Maybe that's because if you screw up badly enough, it will spit you out like a cartoon character. I'm still not completely sold on the treadmill idea but it's a good workout and there's no snow. I've heard of people doing full marathon training on a treadmill. Interesting concept but I don't think that would be ideal for me.
One of the big differences between cycling and running for me is that the cycling is much more social. Cycling tends to be more of a group thing where there really isn't alot of competition (Except for Keith! OK, and Anna too.) Runners seem more competitive even if only with themselves. Don't get me wrong- The marathon team is great- Everyone has been very supportive. (Even if they're thinking something else in their heads!!) It's not a complaint about runners- No no no! -Just an observation!
Saturday's run made me realize that I need to crank it up a notch during the week. I think I'm going to stick with two runs during the week and a long run on Saturdays, but I'm going to jack up the intensity. I'm going to work some more cross-training in with the runds as well.
This week's photo kinds of sums up my attitude!
See you soon!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
De Plane...
Who remembers Herve Villechaize? Tattoo from the Fantasy Island TV show? If you do, your age is showing...
Actually, it's "De Pain." It's been a tough couple weeks. I've had some kind of simmering upper respiratory thing going on. I finally got to see the doc on Thursday Jan. 10. I have myself some amoxicillin now so hopefully this illness will soon be gone.
Being sick made running entirely un-fun. I was tired all the time and wasn't running during the week- Only at the Saturday team runs. 9+ miles in Grafton. Nothing is flat in Grafton. It's all either up or down. I only managed 5.5 or so miles at last weeks team run and then this past week, work and being sick kept me off the road. Yesterday's team run was 11 miles. I can honestly say that yesterday was the single worst training day I've ever had for any sport at any time. (Well, I broke my right femur on Dec. 26, 1976 at wrestling practice- But I got morphine for that...) I had bad cramps in my right calf, because of the cramps, my stride changed hurting my right knee. Blech. At least training probably can't get much worse. Not enough water during the week I think. Maybe not enough potassium and electrolytes either. I'm going to be a chimp with gills this week. Which means a lot of bananas and water like a fish. Which reminds me of a joke:
What do you call a fish with no eyes?... A fsh.
Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all week. Don't forget to tip your waitresses.
John Engdahl, one of our honorees came to training yesterday to talk to the team before the run. John is a cancer survivor, former TNT marathoner and all-around great guy. John is pretty funny and he always motivates me. I probably owe the fact that I finished the training run (Walk?) yesterday to John!
We're solidly into double-digit team runs now so I have to make training during the week a higher priority. I think the next couple days are going to be a wash for outdoor running so I will hit the gym. I'm not a big fan of the treadmill but it's better than sitting at home eating donuts.
No new photo this week because: A) I am lazy and B) I have no new photos to post. So instead I'm posting a couple links. One is to make your own Southpark character and the other is to make your own Simpsons character. What do these have to do with leukemia or marathons? Nothing. But you need a laugh every once in a while. Those of you who enjoy making cop and donut jokes will appreciate the Simpson's loading icon- I know who you are.
http://www.sp-studio.de/
http://www.simpsonsmovie.com/main.html
Have a great week everyone!
Actually, it's "De Pain." It's been a tough couple weeks. I've had some kind of simmering upper respiratory thing going on. I finally got to see the doc on Thursday Jan. 10. I have myself some amoxicillin now so hopefully this illness will soon be gone.
Being sick made running entirely un-fun. I was tired all the time and wasn't running during the week- Only at the Saturday team runs. 9+ miles in Grafton. Nothing is flat in Grafton. It's all either up or down. I only managed 5.5 or so miles at last weeks team run and then this past week, work and being sick kept me off the road. Yesterday's team run was 11 miles. I can honestly say that yesterday was the single worst training day I've ever had for any sport at any time. (Well, I broke my right femur on Dec. 26, 1976 at wrestling practice- But I got morphine for that...) I had bad cramps in my right calf, because of the cramps, my stride changed hurting my right knee. Blech. At least training probably can't get much worse. Not enough water during the week I think. Maybe not enough potassium and electrolytes either. I'm going to be a chimp with gills this week. Which means a lot of bananas and water like a fish. Which reminds me of a joke:
What do you call a fish with no eyes?... A fsh.
Thank you, thank you. I'll be here all week. Don't forget to tip your waitresses.
John Engdahl, one of our honorees came to training yesterday to talk to the team before the run. John is a cancer survivor, former TNT marathoner and all-around great guy. John is pretty funny and he always motivates me. I probably owe the fact that I finished the training run (Walk?) yesterday to John!
We're solidly into double-digit team runs now so I have to make training during the week a higher priority. I think the next couple days are going to be a wash for outdoor running so I will hit the gym. I'm not a big fan of the treadmill but it's better than sitting at home eating donuts.
No new photo this week because: A) I am lazy and B) I have no new photos to post. So instead I'm posting a couple links. One is to make your own Southpark character and the other is to make your own Simpsons character. What do these have to do with leukemia or marathons? Nothing. But you need a laugh every once in a while. Those of you who enjoy making cop and donut jokes will appreciate the Simpson's loading icon- I know who you are.
http://www.sp-studio.de/
http://www.simpsonsmovie.com/main.html
Have a great week everyone!
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