Thursday, October 20, 2011

Goals


Even though I haven't run in 13 days, I know that I will be running soon. And this sideline will make me even stronger!
2012 goals:
  • BQ!!
  • 1/2 IronMan
I know I can accomplish both.

A friend once gave me the card below~ So true!!


Monday, October 17, 2011

pool day 10

Today was day 10 of swimming.
Really. wish. I. could. RUN.
Don't get me wrong, there are definitely days that I enjoy the pool, especially in the morning when it is peaceful and dark out still. But, I really need a run. And I CANT. My foot/ankle still hurts- worse in the nighttime after being on my feet all day....I am terrified this is a stress fracture... there really aren't any signs of a sprained ankle. No swelling and no bruising.
Life has been complicated this past week...and nothing cures that like a good run. I could be miserable and go for a run and everything is automatically better. I miss pounding the pavement, running through the wooded area, hills, breathing the fresh air in and listening to my techo/hip hop/top40/old school music. There is nothing like it. Tomorrow I will go to the sports clinic if I still don't feel better. Who am I kidding.? This isn't going to be magically better tomorrow. I am very grateful that I am healthy- I know it could be way worse...it's just I already spent half of this year recovering from an injury- I can't possibly have another injury.


Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Pooltime

Well, again I am being taught the lesson of patience. Since I took a few days off of running after Wineglass I decided I would go into FleetFeet and ended up leaving with an awesomely light pair of Pure Flow Brooks minimalist shoes....and silly me- pushed the limits too soon after wineglass and ended up rolling my ankle Friday in my new shoes. SO it has been nothing but the pool, ice, ibuprofen, and elevation for my poor ankle. Swimming is definitely a good workout, but an hour of swimming laps seems like ten hours compared to an hour of running. Slowly my ankle is getting better but its driving me crazy not running- but THIS time- no pushing it- I am not putting a single mile in until it is better.
On the positive side, I do have to say that it is incredibly relaxing to get in the pool in the AM before the sun rises and before the gym gets crazy. And it is probably a great thing for my body to be cross training- I am sure my IT band agrees.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Patience and Never stop Believing!

Sunday I ran my second marathon- Wineglass Marathon in Corning, NY. I had no idea what I was capable of running, as I have been battling hip flexor and IT Band injuries all year. Running has certainly taught me several lessons this year 1.) Patience 2.) Never stop believing in yourself and what you are capable of doing.
1.) Patience- I started the year off unable to run at all (or as my physical therapist would say I could lightly "jog" on the treadmill for .12 miles and then walk for .12 miles and repeat for a total of ohhh about 1 mile max.) I still had IT and hip flexor pain when I graduated from physical therapy at the end of January- It was in the Dominican Republic- late January/early February that I ran my first 3 mile run of the year- but still with some aching. I gradually increased my mileage over the next month-and by increase I mean I ran roughly 9 miles a week. I had gotten into the NYC half marathon and had to cancel because I still couldn't run more than 4 miles at a time- definitely a low point of the year. I continued to do yoga, spin and try running still with pain- Finally in May I learned of ART- active release therapy. I remember the day exactly because it was my 30th birthday. I got up early to go see this chiropractor who I expected would probably be "full of crap". But shockingly he was able to pinpoint my pain and stretch my muscles exactly how they needed to be. Slowly I started to recover- I ran a 5k and a 10k in the month of May- still with some pain, but much better than the past 8 months. I then increased my mileage to over 25 miles a week, with strength training, biking, swimming and yoga included and BAM my hip and knee hated me again. I was told I may need to find another sport-this was unacceptable to me. I learned to back off the mileage, listen to my body and ICE ICE ICE. After several bumps over the summer I have finally seemed to learn: Patience. Listen to your body. And ART when you need it.

9.11.11- First Sprint Triathlon- was incredibly tight the week before but had 2 sessions of ART that week and finished 4th in my age group!!!!

9.18.11 Rochester Half Marathon- PR'd my Half marathon time- finishing at 1:45

10.2.11 Wineglass Marathon- This past sunday I not only ran 26.2 miles, but I ROCKED it. 3:51- after a year of injuries and being told I should find a new sport. Never, ever give up. People ask me how I can run this far - "are you crazy??!!" they ask. Nope. I am not crazy. Half of it is mental- we all can do what we put our minds to- so never stop dreaming and believing that you can. And Never let anyone tell you that you cant!!!
The alarm went off at 5:30am and after hitting snooze a few times I got up and immediately looked outside- damp, 40 degrees but not raining. I wasn't very hungry and was starting to get nervous- but forced myself to eat my Wegmans blueberry bagel (the exact thing I had before my tri and half marathon the month before). As we were checking out I looked outside and it was an absolute downpour. As we approached the parking lot for the start line the rain stopped- great!!! However, just after lining up at the start- downpour again- and continued for 18 miles! I ran at a 8:35 pace the first 18-19 miles with a pace group- then slowly backed off the pace. These miles flew by as I listened to our pacer throw out motivating quotes and tips. Mile 20-21 I really started to feel the ache in my legs- and was reminded of a quote from my first marathon that still gives me shivers- "When your feet hurt, run with your heart". I thought of the patient I had run for, my uncle who had passed last year and felt so lucky to be able to be running this race- that got me through those last 6 miles- No music - just the silence of my shoes slapping the wet ground and the spectators shouting motivating things my way. As I turned down Market St and saw the blow up finish line I picked up the pace- somehow crossing at a pace somewhere between 7:50 and 8:20, I believe, although my garmin was difficult to read with all the beads of rain on it. Even with the rain this race was amazing- excellent organization, caring volunteers, great medical personnel at the finish line, great expo, YMCA that offered showers post race.