My Inspriation

Today marks 3 years to the day that my Aunt Mary Anne Beecher, more affectionately known to me as Aunt Goofy, passed away from from lymphoma. She was one of my closest friends in the world and I looked to her often in hope that her quirkiness and outrageously positive outlook on life would rub off on me a bit. When she was diagnosed with cancer, I was devastated because I couldn't even bear the thought of her not being in my life. I couldn't believe that there was a chance that she wouldn't be at my college graduation yelling "Go Dawnie-poo" as she had years earlier during my high school graduation. I couldn't grasp the fact that I wouldn't be able to see what crazy fun items she came up with to make part of my wedding, or that she wouldn't be here to teach my kids the "dump truck", "waterfall" or the perfect art of flinging peas at the dinner table as she had done with me when I was younger. Most importantly, I didn't even want to think about the fact that there would be a day where I couldn't hear her voice tell me that I would always be her #1.


But unfortunately, as you can tell by the first sentence of this post, after an unbelievable fight with the dreaded cancer, she lost her battle on July 29, 2006. Three years ago to the day. The past three years have been a roller coaster of emotions but her not being here in body has been the reason and my motivation for training for this half marathon with Team in Training. The great memories I have of her and the time we've spent together continue to push me to raise the funds needed so that there can be advancements made in cancer research to prevent more people from having to go through what she did. I have a hope, one that I know Aunt Goofy would have shared with me, that no one would have to go though losing a loved one from cancer - a hope that people can continue to make memories together instead of relying on the great memories of the past. I know that I'm going to continue to use my positive memories of her to fuel my runs, to get me to keep running despite how tired I may be. I know that taking on, and eventually overcoming, this challenge is something that is making her proud and I want to make sure that I remain her #1.


I have spent the last two years on July 29th being sad and morning the loss of one of my favorite people in the world. Today, while still sad from missing her and wishing that she could be here with me, I'm going to celebrate her life. I'm proud of myself for taking on this challenge in her honor and hope that others can recognize that. She's my inspiration.

Today's Miles: 2.5
Total Miles: 108.5

Happy 100!!

Tonight required two postings because I hit another great milestone in my running experience ... 100 miles!! I can't believe it. Despite the challenges I've had in the last month and 5 days, I still managed to add another 50 miles to my count and I'm at 100! Just think, I'm 1/3 of the way to needing to switch to a second pair of running shoes. Who thought that I would ever get to that .. not me. But I am and I'm super proud of myself.

Finally .. WHOO!!

WHOO!! I FINALLY had a great night of running. On my way to track practice, I was feeling totally defeated from last night's running debacle and was totally exhausted and looking for any reason to not go to track practice tonight. It was a crummy, cloudy, rainy day and a few of us were just waiting for the skies to open up so we could end track practice. Well, the skies sure opened and it rained for a good 30 minutes. It honestly felt so refreshing and I loved it :) The best part of it all was the unbelievable rainbows ... a complete rainbow next to a second. God must have known that I needed something positive tonight to encourage me to keep going. It sure worked because this was the best night I've had running wise. I kept up with my fellow runners without struggling and was completely on my paces. I even ran faster during my first two 1200 meters, and was within 2 seconds of my pace for the third 1200. It felt so amazing. I successfully completed 150 lunges back and forth across a soccer field, followed by a mile run to complete the night. I normally walk the cool down (800m) but we were told to do a mile tonight and I ran the whole thing. I felt totally amazing! I totally needed tonight to boost my excitement. I left practice feeling so good about myself and feeling completely refreshed about what I'm doing and why. I just wish that I could have more nights like this because I'm on such a runners high. I love it :)

Today's Miles: 6.5
Total Miles: 106.0

I Thought I Was Over This ...

It's official, I'm freaking frustrated with my knee and the pain. It's been bothering me for a few weeks now. Sometimes I can run 2-4 miles before it starts to hurt, sometimes (like tonight), I can't run at all. I hopped on the treadmill and was in immediate pain all through my knee and my calf. I couldn't even get a whole mile in because I was almost in tears. It's just so frustrating. I thought that I was over the knee pain and that I would be able to do this half marathon. I try so hard some nights and it's so frustrating during nights like tonight where I can't do anything. I couldn't even do my leg extensions to try and strengthen my quad because I was in so much pain. Honestly, I can't even do 1 mile or extensions with 10 pound weights?!? UGH!! And the more pain that I'm in, the more scared I am for my knee doctor appointment next week. I'm so scared that the doctor is going to tell me something is wrong and that I can't run this race. I've come too far for this and I'm way to excited and have so many great things that I'm looking forward to with it. I have friends from CT and my mom coming out to watch me run, which is so unbelievable that they're giving me so much support! I can't imagine being told that I can't run the race because of my knee. I hate the fact that there's a chance my knee can once again hold me back from doing what I want to do. I thought I was over it...

Today's Miles: 0.5
Total Miles: 99.5

12:30pm High Sun!

Since I still don't do well with early Saturday morning runs, it was really awesome when Becky wanted to run with my on Saturday morning. I was super excited to still get a great long run in with someone that runs at my pace. Due to some things out of our control, our 9am run got pushed back to 12:30pm. It was HOT! The sun was beating right down on us without a cloud in the sky. Normally, I would love this weather but it's tough to run in. I even got a bit of a sun burn. Despite how hot it was, it was an awesome run. We ran south for 3 miles on a trail that had markers every 1/2 mile - a huge perk. We turned around, walked a mile, ran a mile (past the construction workers), and then walked our last mile. I got my 6 miles in and still felt great, despite the fact that my knee was definitely getting pretty sore. I was a bit disappointed I didn't run the 10k with the team in the morning so I could judge my time and my progression but the run with Becky totally made up for it. All in all, it was a pretty day of running!

Today's Miles: 6.0
Thursday's Miles: 3.0
Total Miles: 99.0

When in doubt ... run!

Tonight's track practice was slightly different than most track practices, leading to an interesting night :) We were unable to use the track because of lacrosse practice on the infield - apparently Colorado College is concerned about us getting hit by balls. Rather than bagging practice, Coach Mitch modified our workout so that it could be done on the trail that we normally warm-up on. Rather than running in circles, we ran back and forth on the trail, which is quite narrow compared to the track. We were doing a new workout, followed by some speed workouts (ahh!) and it was quite challenging to run back and forth over the same 400m path. Due to limited space, we often missed instructions because we couldn't hear Coach and were often confused as to what we should have been doing. The group of ladies that I normally run with declared our motto for the night to be "when in doubt, run"! We figured that running would always be a safe bet when you're in a running group training for a marathon :) The night went a bit long but concluded right before the skies opened up and started raining and lightning ... perfect timing!

Today's Miles: 4.5
Total Miles: 90.0

My Indoor Home

I have been spending a lot of time inside the gym at my apartment complex on the treadmills. I still am not able to get up in the morning before work to run (despite the fact my alarm has been going off at 6am for almost a week now). By the time I come home from work, I want to eat dinner and then give my body a break before I start running. I often end up running too late to run outside because of the lack of sun, so I've been spending some time in the gym. I like the treadmill to the right - it's closest to the TV - and I still like being able to set a pace and just go with it for as long as I need to. I still haven't heard any bad criticism about running on a treadmill so I'm going to keep it as a back up as long as necessary until I can get in a better routine and get outside more often.

PS - I know the picture of me running may not be pretty but you get the point :)

Today's Miles: 2.5
Total Miles: 85.5

Only 12 more weeks

AHHH!! Today marks the 3-month away mark to the marathon and I'm terrified. Training hasn't been going nearly as well as I would like it to be going, even though I'm still doing more than I thought I would. I've actually realized today that I will only be running the half-marathon in 12 weeks. I think I bit off a bit more than I should have with my marathon goal and I know that I will do much better by starting off with the half marathon. 13.1 miles is still a GREAT accomplishment, despite my slight disappointment. All I know is that I truly have to get my body in gear and become a lot more disciplined because I only have 12 weeks!! It's time to stop screwing around and truly get going so I can meet this amazing goal of mine!!

End of Week Update

I thought I would provide a little update of my week ...

I took a break from running on Wednesday to go for a hike with Becky and Lisa after work. It was a beautiful night and it was great to be outside and in a different environment. And, we got through the entire hour hike just as it started to lightning/thunder - perfect timing! Getting struck by lightning would have really put a damper on my training.

I ran yesterday on the treadmill, which was a little disappointing since I should have taken advantage of another beautiful night without rain, something that's very rare in Colorado in the summer! While eating dinner, I got caught up in the "Raising Sextuplets" marathon and couldn't tear myself away from it ... so ridiculous. I figured I could give in a little bit and go to the fitness center and watch it there while running. Anything to get myself running a bit. Unfortunately, my left calf and knee were at it again and were a bit sore. I really thought I was over this whole five knee surgery pain thing. I did have to shorten my run a bit but I'm not going to stop running in general. I'm determined to push through it!!

And today is Friday ... aka ... REST DAY!! Whoo!! It's going to be a nice day off before tomorrow's long run to give my body a day to recover a bit.

PS - Thanks to the Two Gomers for the shout out to my blog on their Facebook page and the great comment to my earlier post when I introduced them to my blog. Super sweet :)

Wednesday's miles: 2.5
Thursday miles: 2.5
Total miles: 83.00

Hot, hot, hot!!

Holy moly, tonight was hot!! By the time we made it to the track at 6:30pm, it was still 85* and the sun was beating down on the black track. I knew the second I walked out the door of work that it was going to be hot but wow, it was super hot. I tried to stay as hydrated as possible, which included every few laps around the track. The heat truly affected me and wiped me out pretty quick and I felt myself becoming tired more quickly than normal. I am proud of the fact that despite how tired I was and how hot it was outside, I never stopped running. I even kept a consistent pace the entire run, which is so important. I was very proud of myself tonight to persevere and push through my body being tired and hot. Even though I ran well, it doesn't mean that I wasn't exhausted when I walked off the track ...

Today's Miles: 5.5
Total Miles:78.0

Santa Fe Trail Run

After pushing it off for weeks, I finally went across the road and went for a run on the Santa Fe Trail. It was a great change from the track and the treadmill, and even the roads sometimes. While it was more hilly than any of my other running terrains, it was great to run through some of Colorado's beautiful trails. It almost made running a bit more enjoyable to have a pretty view :) And not knowing how far I had run (which is a huge reason I need a GPS watch) but just spending quality time with the trails was a nice change of pace. Enjoy some of the photos I took while running below ...





Today's Miles: 3.0
Total Miles: 72.5

Marathon Madness

The average runner will go through 2 pairs of sneakers while training for a marathon.

The age range of the majority of female marathon runners in the US is 25 - 29.

Less than one tenth of 1% of all Americans will complete a marathon in their lifetime.

Over 400,000 people in the US will run a marathon in 2009.

The average number of steps it takes the average woman to complete a marathon is 51,214.

The average woman burns 2,880 calories while running in a marathon.

Just Keep Running

I don't think I have anything truly exciting or insightful to say today. I've been running/walking the last two days per my schedule. And yes, I had to say walking a tiny bit because my knee has been flaring up a bit right around the 35 minute mark which excellent. I've been trying to run through the pain but I just don't handle knee pain very well, or at all. Anyways, I'm just going to keep running and see what happens ...

Today's Miles: 4.0
Yesterday's Miles: 1.0
Total Miles: 69.5

Whiny McWhinerson

It's official, I struggled tonight and came up with every single excuse possible to explain why I was running like crap. I named myself "Whiny McWinerson", which is slightly funny, but still very frustrating for the day. It was too hot, I haven't been running while I was at home so I'm out of shape (but I ran last night and was okay), I had a cut on my pinkie toe that was bothering me (which is almost as lame as pulling my big toe to start off the season), I ran out of water, I'm frustrated that our fundraiser isn't working out the way it should, etc., etc. etc. The worst part of the whole thing was that (legitimately) my knee started to hurt, REALLY bad. This is the first time since I've started running that my knee has hurt and I honestly couldn't handle it. I had to walk the last two runs because I couldn't physically run because it was swollen. I blamed it on the heat but honestly, I don't know what the problem was. I just hope that doesn't happen again any time soon, or at all!! All I know, is that at the end of the night, I realized how much I had complained and whined about my performance and it really sucked. I can only imagine how frustrated my teammates were that I was so negative. The whole thing was really bad. Despite my crummy night, which ended a serious pain in my lower back (no idea how/why that started) I decided to treat myself to a bath to improve my mood and give my body a little treat. Tomorrow will be better and I will improve my attitude because I absolutely refuse to call myself "Whiny McWhinerson" again.

Today's Miles: 4.5
Total Miles: 64.5

Two Gomers

My running buddy, Denise, introduced me to "Two Gomers Running a Half Marathon" (http://www.twogomers.com/). The premise of the website/podcasts is that these two guys are couch potatoes and start training for a half marathon and document their thoughts, advice, songs to run to, etc. along the way. For two people that are in the same position (Denise and I), this website has been invaluable. The guys are HYSTERICAL and I feel like I can truly relate to them and their struggles along the way as I struggle through my own trainings.

While running today, which was the first time I've ran in almost a week, I decided to listen to their first two podcasts. I was so busy listening and laughing that I didn't even realize I had run 3 miles. So spectacular. I'm normally a loud music while running kind of person but listening to the podcast was great. With music, I know about how long each song is so I can constantly think about how long I have been running but I have no idea with the podcast and it's really a great perk. All I know is that I look forward to listening to their podcasts and taking their advice, as well as reflecting on some of their points, such as their "Tip of the Week".

Gomer's Tip of the Week: "Don't eat more than an hour before you run." True story, it's miserable!

Today's Miles: 3.0

Total Mileage: 60.0

Dare You to Move

While trying to add more music to my running play list, I came across one of my favorite songs and felt the need to reflect on it since it's truly inspiring to me ...

"Dare You to Move" - Switchfoot

I dare you to move,
I dare you to move,
I dare you to life yourself up off the floor.
I dare you to move,
I dare you to move,
Like today never happened,
Today never happened before.

Welcome to the fallout,
Welcome to resistance,
The tension is here,
Tension is here,
Between who you are and who you could be,
Between how it is and how it should be.

So, not only is this song great from a musical stand point but I find myself frequently getting this song stuck in my head when I'm running. I love the lyrics that push you to move, to not give up, to keep going, despite resistance. It reminds me so much of my struggle with running and preparing for this marathon. However, this song pushes me to go just that little bit further because I know that I don't want to sit on the couch, to not run ... I want to push myself to get going and to prepare myself for my goal and accomplish this goal. I am daring myself to move ...

Beach

Well, unfortunately, I never did my long run at the beach. After two more days of excuses and other things I wanted to do instead of run, it's now my last day at home. I hate to glorify the fact that I didn't run at the beach, but instead, had a huge 4th of July Fireworks picnic and spent a great night with 20 or so of my closest friends and family - it was the BEST way to end a week in CT before coming back to Colorado. I had truly planned on posting a great picture of the beach and the ocean from my run, but since that didn't happen, I'll post one of me from our picnic instead.



Happy 4th of July!!

Sea Level vs. Altitude

When I was starting to run and start preparing for this marathon in Denver, everybody told me that I was crazy for running at altitude. Why would I willingly run at 6,500 feet with no oxygen in Denver when I could run the race at sea level in San Francisco. My explanation has always been that I've never run at sea level (trust me, I didn't run when I lived on the East Coast) so all I'm going to know is what it's like to run at altitude. The silver lining to my trip to CT this week was that I would be able to see what it's like to run at sea level after training at altitude and hopefully kick some butt! Well, I went for my first run today and it kicked my butt. I wish I could say that I was a superstar running crazy miles and not having any trouble breathing but I think that taking a week off from running before this really took away those perks. Damn. We'll see if tomorrow's long run by the beach is any better ...

Today's Miles: 2.0
Total Mileage: 57.0

Struggling

I'm really struggling with running when I'm out of my schedule. I (unfortunately) am in CT for a week to celebrate the life and say goodbye to the best second mother in the world, Mrs. Loux. After an amazing 3 1/2 year battle, cancer finally took this amazing woman from us and needless to say, I rushed home and wanted to spend as much time here as I could to be with Cara and the rest of the Loux family and my friends. As important as it is for me to be here and to have this time to grieve and have comfort, I was really hoping that I would be able to run as well. The problem is that everything else that is going on continues to take precedence over my running. I'll plan on going out for a run and then next thing I know, it's too late and I have to do something else or I don't even bother trying to fit it in because I'm so busy with other things. I want to run, I want to make it a priority but everything else just seems to be more important at times. It's frustrating for me because I haven't run in days and I know that I need to, especially since I know I'm falling behind in training. I love the comfort of a schedule and knowing that I can go after work and not worry about other things being taking the front seat to running. I just need to get out there and run ...

... and unfortunately, I was all set to go today and we're having wonderful downpours and thunder/lightning storms ... probably not the best time to run ... crap ...