Thus begins the big week

Feeling ok this morning. Just a bit stiff, but that should improve as I move around a bit more. Nothing hurts, so that's good.

This Saturday is the big TWENTY. This week I will need to mentally prepare almost, if not more, than physically prepare. It worked well yesterday with my thoughts and music and distractions. I *have* to keep the messages from the left brain contained. There's lots of good info on ways to do that outlined in the marathon book I'm reading. So much of this running stuff is mental. It's crazy.

Yet another thing I can think about while I run...my form. George & Julie pointed out a problem yesterday that they saw with my arms and upper body. I was twisting my upper body and almost crossing my arms in front of my chest. Need to keep my arms tighter at my side, parallel with my body. I need to use that energy to move me forward. Julie said a high school track coach said to pretend there are ropes along your sides and you are grabbing them and pulling yourself forward. I have grown to recognize when I am holding my shoulders up too high or when I can lower my hips a bit. All that form stuff - it does make a difference. And every bit of energy I have needs to be directed forward. FORWARD MOVEMENT!

Even though it is Sunday, I am a bit concerned about the weather for Saturday. The week looks to be a warm one with highs in the 80s by the end of the week. Of course, that can change several times by Saturday. But if it is that warm, I'll need to think about wearing my hydration belt. I got so hot yesterday and was ready for the water way before we got to it. Can't let that happen.

My plan for the week: I will do lots of stretches and maybe some Pilates today to loosen everything back up. I've got a set of strengthening exercises that I've been doing - I can do those every day too. I'll probably walk on Monday and Wednesday and run on Tuesday and Thursday. Rest on Friday. RUN ON SATURDAY!!

So, we begin the week of the 20! THINK TWENTY!!!!

Fab Fourteen

I had a pretty good run today. Fourteen miles! Yippee! For the most part, Mr. Right Brain did a good job. There were a few times starting at about mile 9 or 10 that Mr. Left Brain started telling me how tired I was. I did choose to believe him sometimes. It was very warm this morning. Probably one of the warmest long runs we've had.

Our route was the long side of the lake, up the gravel road to Raleigh Lagrange, back the long side of the lake to the Shell. Then back to the Visitor's Center, around the Chickasaw Trail and one loop of the lake. I had mapped it online and figured it to be 14 miles. Or close to it...

For the first 7 miles, Lindy and I ran alone together (if that makes sense) while George & Julie headed on. I had eaten a gel at about mile 5 without water. Probably a mistake. My stomach was thinking about cramping up a bit. But I made it to the Shell where we had some water, Accelerade (disgusting, but apparently necessary) and some yummy oranges. It was so hot and I was already dripping with sweat. The last half, Julie stuck with Lindy and George hung with me. Lindy's IT band was giving her some fits today. I hate that. She walked more than she usually does but kept saying she was ok. I know she was hurting.

When we got back to the Visitor's Center, we already had run a little over 10 miles, so we just needed to hit the Chickasaw Trail to total our 14. Small mental victory there to find out I was closer to finishing than I had originally thought.

At one point on the trail, a guy was running toward me and said "GO TEAM!" (I had on my TNT shirt) Just the encouragement I needed at mile 12 to end my walk break and start running again. Thank you Mr. Bandana Head Tattoo Arm Man.

During one walk break I passed George, who was also walking. He said "You walk faster than I do." I turned around and said "You RUN faster than I do." Sure enough, he passed me later.

Before I knew it, we were back at the Visitor's Center. 14 miles completed. And I felt good.

Shelby Farms was pretty today. Saw several families of baby geese today and also 4 turtles sitting on a log. Enjoyed the scenery. The sun was extra shiny after our day of stormy weather yesterday.

I was quite proud of the way Mr. Right Brain put the kibosh on Mr. Left Brain. I thought about a lot of different things today. My dad, of course. Some other thoughts that kept my brain busy. Anything to keep my mind off my tired legs and how hot I was.

I had some great music today including:

• Pretender by The Foo Fighters
• These Are the Days by 10,000 Maniacs (good running song)
• Lovesong by The Cure (great song)
• List of Demands by Saul Williams (from the Nike commercial)
• Tempted by Squeeze
• Abracadabra by Steve Miller Band
• Brandy by Looking Glass (she's a fine girl....what a good wife she would be....*love* that song)

I got this little belt thing last week. It's like a teeny little fanny pack. Isn't he cute? It's called a SPIbelt (small personal items belt). Holds my gels, key, chapstick. Can also fit a camera or phone. It's small but kind of stretches. I didn't want to put anything in my shorts pocket since I got that ouchy chafed blister spot last week. Anyway, this little thing did the trick. I'll use that for sure in San Diego.

A cool bath when I got home - yowie! One of my PT friends told me it helps to keep some of the soreness away. Lunch (which I enhaled) a hot shower, and then a little nap. I'm moving a bit slow this afternoon. But I feel pretty good. My body is definitely getting used to the longer runs. Well, maybe not getting used to it. Just not having as much difficulty as before.

Hard to believe we are almost done with this whole thing. Next week is 20 miles. I'm definitely going to need to get psyched up for that. That's the peak of all this training. Then 2 little runs of 12 & 8. Then the marathon. Can't believe it. The end is in sight.

This week's message from Coach George

OK ladies, it's official - it's us for the San Diego Rock 'N Roll marathon, and we are at T minus 30 days and counting!

As you know from the schedule, this is a step back week, backing down to 14 miles, in prep for our 20 miler next week! And after that, we TAPER! You will come to cherish that word, by the way.

So, it is important from now on out that you try out exactly what you plan to use in the RNR on June 1. Shoes, socks, shorts, shirts, hats and other paraphernalia if used. You want to break in everything, be sure all of it fits well, and none of it rubs you the wrong way. Nothing worse than a raw spot developing midway thru the race and having to bear with it for the remainder.

Same with the use of vaseline or bodyglide on your toes or other body parts. You want NO CHAFING! So experiment with these for all of the upcoming runs, even your shorter mid week runs. You don't want to do anything new on race day that you have not experimented with previously.

And, same for beverages and gels. I will bring Accelerade (the brand provided at RNR) tomorrow and the remaining weeks, so if you plan to drink it during the race, which I recommend, need to get used to it now. And remember, the temps in San Diego are projected to be in the mid sixties, so hydration will be even more important than when we have run in cooler temps.

Same with pre race nutrition. Heavy on the carbohydrates, especially of the pasta variety for the days leading up to the race. And something like a bagel before the run works well for me. Don't get out there hungry due to concerns about food not agreeing with you - you need the nutrition and need to see what works well in the hours before the race.

See you at 7 am tomorrow. Shelby Farms lower level parking lot. Angie has mapped out the course.

On the radar today

This picture really has nothing to do with anything. I just thought it was sweet.

On the radar for the next 24 hours.....


1. Rain. Of course. It's Memphis in May Music Fest. It always rains at least one day. Supposed to be pretty severe this afternoon. However, I have been assured that tomorrow morning at 7am, "the rain will be gone and we'll have temps in the mid 50s to lower 60s." (Thanks Ron. Only 3 more personalized forecasts for me and then you're done.)


2. 14 miles. George asked me to put together a route for us for tomorrow. I gave him my attempt. He suggested the Hills of Walnut Grove Lake. I personally hate hills. So does my IT band. So I didn't include that in the route. As coach, he has veto power. We'll see.....

I am certain that the 14 miles is doable. I read more last night about Left Brain and Right Brain and lots of 'mental mantras'. So I will work on that again tomorrow. Right Brain got me through 16 miles last Saturday. And this is only 14. (Did I just say "ONLY 14" ?!?)



3. Carbo loading, hydrating, stretching, and rolling. Just need to do all I can today to make tomorrow's run a good one. Need to get a good night's rest. Tricky since everybody wants to stay up late on Friday night.

4. Gear. I bought some more gel yesterday, so I'm set. I also ordered some new running shorts and they are expected to arrive today. That could be a nice mental boost for me tomorrow - my new little shorts. My iPod. I heart that thing. I added some more songs last night and I am really diggin' my current playlist. He's all charged up and ready to go.

That's all for now. THINK FOURTEEN!!!! Enjoy your Friday!

Fired Up or Burned Out

Details first. Then whining.

Apparently my Nike iPod isn't quite callibrated yet. Nike Voice Man said 3 miles. I think it came in closer to 2.5 or 2.75. But that's better than it was on Saturday when he excitedly told me "half way point!" at about mile 5 (when I had set it for 18).... Oh well, I'll try to recallibrate that tonight or tomorrow.

Temps were *very* warm this morning. 67 when I got back inside. I had originally grabbed a long sleeved running shirt, but changed my mind and opted for the tshirt because I thought I would rather be cold than hot. Who was I kidding. I was hot WITH the tshirt. And it was very windy too. The first mile and a half were brutal. Just dreadful. The last mile was moderately decent.

Now, bear with me while I vent for a while.

First, the burned out...

I just don't want to run anymore. Well, it's not that I want to QUIT. I'm just tired of it and experiencing some burnout. I'm ready to be DONE. I'm sick of running. Sick. Of. Running. I'm ready for June 1 to be here. I want to just do the marathon. Although I know I'm probably not ready to do the marathon. I'm just sick of training for it. I didn't want to run this morning. I don't want to run Saturday morning. I'm tired of my entire Saturday morning being taken up by running. I've been running for 14 weeks. And it's been hard. And some times it's just not fun. I'm sick of hurting and aching and icing and stretching and rolling. I'm sick of sports bras and gels and wheat bagels and advil and icy hot.

And I know the burn-out will go away. I'm so close to the end of this journey. Only four more long runs. That's all! I can do it and I will totally do it. But today I just don't want to.

Now the fired up...

I have seen the importance of the support and encouragement of others while I attempt to take on this challenge. I am surrounded by friends and family who are continually cheering me on. People who are just as excited as I am that I accomplished - and survived - a long run. Or ran an official Half Marathon. Or can walk down the hall without limping. I have a friend who has been saying "Run Angie Run!" since January. I have a huge cheering section of friends at church who are keeping up with my progress. Last night I had just told Jodi "I'm sick of running." and a minute later, two family friends said "Look how far you've come! You're doing great!" I have friends here at work who send me home on Fridays with good luck wishes for Saturday's long run. And, of course, my family and extended family. Huge cheerleaders! My biggest fan club. Especially Jodi -- who has probably had it worse than me on Saturdays since he's the one who is home alone with the kids every Saturday morning. Big thanks to him for doing that so I can do this. (I heart you Captain!) My examples of things you all say to me could go on and on.

So, all of your support and encouragement gets me through this -- even when my own excitement isn't all there.

There's a song on my iPod that I love. It's by the All American Rejects. Sums it up nicely.
"When all you got to keep is strong, move along, move along like I know ya do. And even when your hope is gone, move along, move along just to make it through. Move along. Go on, go on, go on go on."

OK, I think I'm done now. I'm feeling better already.....

So much of this is mental

Wanted to share my motivational poster with you. I've got it on the inside of my bathroom linen closet. I made it back in December. I originally had it by my treadmill, but moved it when I officially broke up with him. (Altho we've still been known to occasionally hang out.) Anyway, it may be silly, but it works for me. It's just lots of inspirational phrases, a picture of Daddy, and a course map. On Saturdays after the long runs, I look at the marathon route to see how far I went.

Today was a scheduled off day, but I got up at lovely 4am and did the lower body stability ball DVD. Aren't you impressed? It felt good and I'm glad I did it.

What happened to my feet?

Thought I would share a picture of my feet for you this morning.

Hit the treadmill since it was chilly outside. It was just a tough one this morning. My feet felt so heavy. I only got in 1.5 miles. Pitiful. I used the rest of my time to do some exercises on the ball and some upper body stuff with small handweights. I don't feel sore and am still not hurting or anything (hooray! small victory there!) But my feet were just dead today.

The marathon's post-race concert headliner was announced yesterday. Pat Benatar and her guitar playin' husband. Heartbreaker, Love is a Battlefield, Treat Me Right, You Better Run, Shadows of the Night. All those good rockin' 80's songs. The venue is a 13,000 outdoor concert arena on the former practice field of the San Diego Chargers. Could be a fun night. If I'm still alive. And can walk. I need to check into wheelchair accessibility....