Chapter 2 page 309 - TR 108 & 109 First Timers

Can I just say that it's good to have blogger back up and running!

On Thursday, "L" joined "C" and I to do a 3 miler.  We started with a long warm up which actually seemed to make all the difference in how my legs felt.  Now, we'll have to map out a race strategy for next weekend that might include a longer warm up - hmmm.  It was just like old times having the 3 musketeers back together.  We talked about a LOT of things including our upcoming "outtings".  The 3 of us are going to the Ladies' Night Out sale at our local running store tonight, and "L" is going to come with us to cheer us on for our Half next Saturday, and possible join us for a weekend in St. Louis in October.  We also discussed the possibility of "L" doing the F4F half with us again - she didn't say no . . . that's a good sign!

After our 3 miler, we had to head over for the weekly session of "Spring Into Training."  I broke the group of 40 into 3 smaller groups.  There was a running group - I gave them a route and encouraged them to be careful because it was nearly 90 degrees.  Reminded them to walk as they needed to and to include a warm up, cool down, and post activity stretching.  They headed out for a 4 miler.  They all did FABULOUS!!!!

I took the rest of the particiapnts and broke them into 2 groups - fast walkers and slower walkers.  Fast walkers were like 15-16 m/m and the slower walkers were like 20-25 m/m walkers.  The fast walkers were led by my running partner "C" who had set her interval timer to run 45 seconds and walk 2:15 (2 weeks ago these never before runners went :30 & 2:30).  It was not a fast pace, but it was about doing it.  "C" said they all did pretty well.  When the group returned from their 3 mile, I asked them on a scale of 1-10 (10 being awesomely great, something they wish they could do again soon) -they all said 8-9 . . .that's really a great (they didn't hate it - yay!).

I chose to spend the session leading the slower walkers group.  These people for the most part are new to walking or walk slowly or have other issues limiting their fitness (hip or back issues).  I mapped out a 2 mile route for us and after a warm up we did "fixed point" intervals (pick a landmark and speed up to there then return to a normal pace).  The first mile was super challenging for the participants.  They didn't really seem to go as quickly as I had thought they would be able to.  At one point we stopped to stretch because they were all having shin splints.  They said they felt better after the stretching - in fact, there was a 180 degree change in their performance.  I reminded them that if they do a 5K, they are "allowed' to stop and stretch - they seemed excited to learn that.  During the second mile, almost everyone started to run during the speedy intervals.  It was REALLY awesome!  These are people who would have told you they aren't runners, they're never going to be runners, and they want nothing to do with running (sounds a LOT like what I said during my first training program!!!!).  Now, one of the ladies is moving up to the middle group that does the longer intervals and another one, "M",  and I are going to do intervals after work at least once a week (after my the Spring Into Training Program is over).

I'm sooooo proud of every participant- they really pushed themselves past what they thought they were capable of and found something amazing within themselves!!!!

Chapter 2 page 308 - Not just a sale - an EVENT

 LADIES' NIGHT OUT -
As I learned the other day while I was out on my run, I have many more local/area readers than I ever knew (shout out to "A" and her training partner "T" - woot woot!).  This post is for all you Northeastern Indiana walkers/runners.  This Saturday, May 14th from 6-8:00 p.m. is Ladies Night at 3 Rivers Running Company.  This is not just a sale - it's a MUST ATTEND EVENT!!!  Besides getting a rare discount on EVERYTHING at 3 Rivers Running Company, it's an awesome chance to meet other area women of EVERY running/walking ability.  It's a great way to ask 100's of women what works for them, what they think of this, learn about cool races, and just generally "integrate" into the NEIN running community.  This really is awesome.  To learn more, click HERE.  "C", "L", and I will be there promptly at 6:00 p.m. (it's sure to be BUSY!).  Hope to see you there!!!!

Chapter 2 page 307 - get it over with already

I signed up for my upcoming half marathon, The Geist, back in October.  It's been looming over my head for 8 months - that's a long time to be thinking about it - having life revolve around it - and I'm now just READY to get it over with!!  Don't get me wrong, I'm super excited about it.  Because of it's hills, it will surely be the MOST challenging course I've ever done.  I'm so excited to be doing it with "C" and having "L" come along to be our cheerleader!!! I'm also looking forward to meeting 2 bloggers (Kelly from Thisisahorribleidea; and Lisa from TrainwithLisa).  And as if all of that wasn't enough to look forward to, "C's" sister, "R" is going to be doing this race - I.CAN'T.WAIT.TO.MEET.HER!!!!  Serious, "C's" sister - how FUN will that be?!?!?!  Despite all the things to look forward to, I'm just ready to get this race done so I can be focusing on the fall halfs.

T minus 11 days until The Geist.

Do you ever get this way - antsy might be a way of describing it?  Having a race "looming" on your radar too long?

Chapter 2 page 306 - TR 107 & shout out

Today was our last "long"run before our half - it was 6.5 miles and the first 2.5 miles felt SOOOO hard.  No worries -  it's a DONE on the training schedule.  We completed it in 1:37:47.  Not a speedy time by a long shot - but mileage accomplished nonetheless!

I'm beginning to sound like a negative Nelly who whines all the time and for that I'm really sorry - I promise to try to not share all my problems with you.  As you all know, I'm pretty prone to aches and pains.  Running is QUITE painful for me.  It's not like I ever run and feel awesome afterward.  I usually hurt in numerous places for several days.  The last few weeks I've really been struggling with shin splints on my left leg and the past week my right knee has been hurting . . . and you know, there's "THE HEEL" (insert suspense music).  Today, my shin and knee were killing me - no idea why other than fat girls probably should sit on the couch and not run.  We stopped at about the 2.5 mile mark and stretched - that seemed to REALLY help.  The next 1.5 miles didn't seem so bad.  We then stopped for a quick water break (it was nearly 80 degrees here today - BEAUTIFUL!) and I stretched some more.  The next 2 miles felt pretty good and we finished by walking the last bit.

Nothing about today felt easy - except LOVING the weather.  I certainly hope that next Saturday when race day comes, things will be easier!!!!

 Quick shout out to the 4 peeps I saw while we were out there.  Thanks "B" for coming out of your office to say "hey!"  What a great way to start our run.  Then, how awesome was it to see my SBFF "M" out walking (something she hates, but is part of the Spring Into Training program and has really committed to it - soooooo proud of her!).  At the end we saw "A" and  her training partner (dude, totally forget her name. . . ummm, I suck -sorry!).  So fantastic to see you two girls - way to go completing 3 weeks of training for your very first half.  AND - thanks for being readers of my blog!!!!!  All 4 of you are fabulous women and I'm soooo proud of the efforts they are each making in their own walking/running journey!  Great job ladies!!!!!!!!

Chapter 2 page 305- TR 106 Race Recap

Today's 5K was actually 3.35 miles . . . and when "C" mentioned it to the event coordinator after we crossed the finish line, the coordinator said she knew it was a .25 miles too long.  "C" and I are familiar with the route since it's also part of the Fort 4 Fitness half marathon route - it's a shady scenic path along the river.

 the "official" map of the course

This race wasn't chip timed but our 3.35 mile time was 43:40 - based on "C's" garmin (our unofficial 5K time was 41:49-my 6th fastest 5K and faster than 7 other 5K's).  I'm not sure I believe the Garmin, but at times it said we were doing 11:30 m/m and often we were doing between 12:15-13:30 m/m . . . that was REALLY fast for me.  I sucked air like there wasn't enough on the planet.  It felt extremely challenging.  I just couldn't go any faster.  I swear I thought we were flying at different parts of the race.  I truly wanted to slow down (which we did the second half) and even encouraged "C" to go ahead of me (but she refused).  I was breathing so hard there wasn't a lot of talking coming from me - thanks "C" for handling the conversation.

After the race

It was a good race - some of the people were very friendly, the weather held out and was perfect, the course is flat and on a paved path surrounded by BEAUTIFUL flowers and trees, there were 2 water stations during the race and one at the end, post race amenities were nice - milk (choc & regular), massages (for fee), and usual snacks - fruit, granola bars, cookie, bottled water.  The cotton race shirts were nice - certainly not ugly (though, I'm not a black t-shirt fan) and we got a sports bottle at the end of the race. 

Heading to the starting line

A rainbow of "May Flower" colors - beautiful!

"C" got low to take this photo - the beautifully bold colors against the gray sky was stunning

 

I guess all the "April Showers" did indeed bring the "May Flowers"

Stunning, don't you think?

Entrance to the park - doesn't it just beg you to go for a run there?

Chapter 2 page 304 - massage take me away

All week, my right knee has been bothering me (again).  I opted to make an appointment with MGA (my girl Ashely, a certified massage therapist - more info on her at the bottom of my sidebar) since she has been able to fix my last 2 knee issues.  Yep - once again, my knee pain is a result of tight muscles surrounding my knee.  60 minute massage + a chiropractic adjustment = feeling a little better!!!!  Tomorrow "C" and I are doing a 5K, fingers crossed my knee and heel feel pretty good. 

Chapter 2 page 303 - heel scraping - photo edition

Here's the photo from today's heel scraping session . . . .

That's a stress ball (well, star really not a ball).  I got it in 2006.  It's lasted through all kinds of pounding . . . but today's scraping session resulted in a complete split in half!!!!!!!!!!

I thought today was my last PT session, but I was told that the therapist has the "power" to wait a little while (like a month) and then "activate" more PT sessions (I'm sure I didn't explain that right-  but you get the idea . . . .I'm not completely off the hook - there might be more scraping after my half marathon if my heel gets worse.  Hmmmm, not sure how I'm feeling about that!!!!

It's been a VERY painful journey (not just the 12 rehab sessions, but the 11 years since this PF started), but I am for sure at least 50% better and for that, I'm super grateful for the efforts of my 2 physical therapists (who are both my friends).

Chapter 2 page 302 - TR 105 8 miles of EASY

AMAZING NEWS - 

No, it's not that my heel is completely pain free, but it's about 50% better.  Nope, this amazing news is that we have officially entered TAPER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Can I get a WOOT WOOT?!?!

source

Oh yeah, 8 miles feels OH SO SWEET compared to this past Friday's 13 miles of torture!!!!  Yeah, I REALLY LIKE 8 miles!  I could run 8 miles and like it!!!!  We have a simple out and back route with a fast food restaurant at the midway point. We stop to get water and take a quick potty break if needed.  Today, I tried Vanilla Bean (or something like that) gu - WAY more tasty than chocolate mint.  That said, I won't be using Gu during a race anytime soon.  I'll keep practicing.  I really prefer watermelon chomps or tropical punch bloks so I'll stick with that for now - they work flawlessly for me . . .and they're delicious!  Anyway, tonight's 8 miler was done in 1:58 which included a 12 minute walking warm up and a 6 minute walking cool down - that seems like a pretty fast pace (for me) then for the middle miles. 

On Sunday my right knee started hurting.  No idea why - can't remember doing anything.  It really bothered me during Monday's short 2.5 miler ad hurt a lot at times during today's run - but not enough for me to stop.  I'm RICEing it and will double up on Aleve for a couple of days.  It's the same knee that hurt back in February and is on the same leg as my heel issue so who knows.  Since my last time of "running to the doctor" for knee pain was completely pointless - I thought I would start with MGA who has cured me of my last 2 knee issues (turns out they were just tight muscles).  I will call and see if I can get an appointment yet this week or early next week at the latest. 

What is your favorite training run distance?

Chapter 2 page 301 - heel update (not quite the last one, but getting close)

I've had 11 physical therapy sessions.  8 of them with "L" and 3 of them with "M".  As I said in an earlier post, "M" is way more aggressive with his scraping and it has caused me to leap off the treatment table and scream out in pain.  So knowing I had to turn over my foot to his scraping tool today led me to some serious anxiety.  But, he discussed his "plan of attack" for today's treatment.  20 scrapes - 1" or so long all in the single most painful spot.  Hmmm- show of hands who think this sounds better or worse than the previous 10 scraping sessions?????  I too wasn't sure what the verdict would be.  Unlike "L" who just scrapes pretty much non-stop, "M" scrapes 5 times then we take a little rest - mostly he uses this time to make fun of how immediately sweaty I get (my autonomic nervous system is fully operational - ha!).  Then he does 5 more scrapes in the same exact area but going the opposite direction (i.e. the first 5 might be scraping away from my toes, the next 5 would be scraping toward my toes) and so on.  He said that some of his patients get 30 scrapes (THANK YOU I'M NOT ONE OF THEM!!!!! I SERIOUSLY COULDN'T HANDLE IT!)

The end the arrow is pointing to is the end M holds - the pointy other end is the scraping end - 4" plastic = hours of party fun!

 Today . . . today was not so bad.  It was probably my second least painful scraping out of the 10 so far.  Hope all this helps, it would be a SHAME to endure all of this for nothing!!!!  I will say that I noticed a HUGE improvement after last Friday's 13 miles . . . fingers crossed!!!!

One more PT session remaining - Thursday afternoon!!! Thanks for hanging in there with me.

Chapter 2 page 300 - SEAL full circle

This post is NOT meant to be controversial.  I completely understand that Bin Laden's death is not the end of the story - but it is a closure of a painful chapter.   This post is about a quick acknowledgment to the level of physical and mental strength and courage that most humans cannot even fathom and the deepest appreciation of one former soldier and patriotic American!

It is with great pride to hear that it was the Navy SEALs who took the life of  Bin Laden.  Most of you know that I was an army reservist stationed at Fort Story and was activated on 9/12/01. Most of you don't know that one of my active duty responsibilities which brought me a deep sense of pride was early in the Afghanistan war when I assisted with the memorial service for the 1st Navy SEAL killed during Operation Enduring Freedom.  It is beyond satisfying to hear that this small group of servicemen who have given so much and lost so greatly and are primarily unknown by most were responsible for closing this chapter.  Hooah Frogmen!  Thank you!

With love for God and Country,
A grateful American

Chapter 2 page 299 - TR 104 - short easy recovery walk/run

Today "C" and I did 2.5 miles in Happyville.  Nothing too hard - just pretty easy . . . a welcomed break from our 13 miler on Friday and our upcoming 10 on Wednesday.  Hope you had fun during your run today!

Chapter 2 page 298 - gratitude

God bless our Troops!

Thank you for the work you do, the sacrifices you make, and the bravery you display!

Our freedom is not FREE - thank you!

Hooah soldiers, sailors, marines, & airmen!

Chapter 2 page 297 - heel update: morning after 13 miles

Well - this morning at 4:30 when I got up to take a quick potty break, my heel hurt so bad.   Before I actually got out of bed for good at 10:00 I stretched and stretched and stretched - and it didn't hurt very much.  The bad news is that it isn't completely pain free (boo!), but it is about 50% improved - - - but I don't know if it warrants enduring a few more scraping PT sessions (very difficult decision). 

Sorry to bore you with one heel update after another, but thanks for your encouragement and advice - always appreciated!  Have a great day!

Chapter 2 page 296 - TR 103 the whole thing & heel update

Here's what you need to know  - 

13 miles - DONE!
hill training - DONE!

The part that's not important - 

It wasn't pretty!
It wasn't easy!
It wasn't fast (my watch accidentally got reset at mile 9- huge bummer).
We went backwards (by accident) on one part of route and changed the last 4 miles of our route like 3 times. 

Heel update - this is an important update!

I have had a busy week and not had a chance to post about my heel (I know you were ALL waiting eagerly for a progress note-sorry to keep you on the hook!).  Well, this week my "normal" therapist has been on vacation so I've had the other therapist.  The very first scrape on Tuesday I broke out in a full body sweat.  I screamed out loud (there was absolutely no holding it in).  It was 100% more painful than what the other therapist had done.  Oh my friends- there is NO way to describe it.  I thought it had been a horrible experience these past 5 weeks - nope, that seemed like a day spa treatment compared to what this other therapist was doing.  The ONLY upside is that he only scraped 5 times (instead of 20) in each direction and usually did only 30 scrapes TOTAL (as opposed to more than 200).  He decided that after 20 - I was done for the first treatment - ummmm, that's because I was no longer laying down - I was standing up screaming (though my foot was still in his hands - think stork stance)!!  No chance I had any sort of containment or maturity or dignity.  Later, he stopped by my office and said "It's good it wasn't your left foot because I would have used my right hand and I could have really dug in but using my left hand I don't get very good force."  He was dumbfounded when I explained OVER AND OVER that he was pressing sooooooooooo much harder than the other therapist.  I swear he didn't believe me.  Well - he actually has another patient he has treated this week who also confirmed he is day/night from the other therapist (vindication - not nuts after all!!!).  Yesterday was my 2nd session with him.  My reaction was the exact same - out loud screaming (the department director later said it sounded like the orgasm scene in the movie "When Harry Met Sally" - I was yelling "OH M - Sweet God, M!!! OHHHH M STOP! . . . M did say that he was glad that no other patients were around - yep!).  After the appointment I was in so much pain - I totally knew that I was NOT going to go through another session of this!  I guess that's good because he put me back on the other therapist's schedule and told me that "He was done with me!"  (Nice! - the feeling was mutual buddy- ha!). 
Well - guess what . . . . after my 2.3 miler last night my heel didn't hurt at all!  And now, tonight, after my 13 miler - it hurts only like a 2-3 (instead of a 50 out of 10) . . . .even after I stand up after sitting for awhile.  "C" said that she has never seen me walk so well.  While typing this post I've gotten up a couple of times to let my dog in/out PAIN FREE (well, other things hurt, but not my heel) - I would have NEVER volunteered to let the dog out before - just too painful. 
Now what????  More sessions of the absolute WORST PAIN imaginable?  I think it looks that way (HUGE SIGH!!!!!!).  Stay tuned for how I do tomorrow morning -that will be the official test of my progress though I definitely notice a HUGE IMPROVEMENT right now (God is good!!!)

Chapter 2 page 295 - TR 102 S.I.T. new runners

This post is just a little note about the awesome accomplishments of tonight's Spring Into Training participants.  This 10 week program has 42 people involved and is a program I lead/coordinate as part of my job.  Tonight we broke the 15 people who were willing to brave the rain, cold, and wind into 3 groups - runners, fast walkers who were interested in starting to run a little, and recreational walkers.  I marked off a 3 mile route for the runners and sent them on their way.  The fast walkers and I started off on a 2.3 mile route with my devil beeper interval timer set to do a 30 second run interval and a 2:30 minute walk interval.  As we started out, I reminded them about posture and breathing and rules of the road (they were forever on the incorrect side of the road).  We walked the first 5 minutes and then began with the first slow run for 30 seconds.  Initially I think everyone thought the 30 seconds was a long time, but as they got more used to the beeping and changing paces - they seemed to like it a little more. They all commented on how fast it seemed to be compared to staring at 2.3 miles on a treadmill.  At various parts along the route, we passed the other groups of runners and walkers.  Everyone was talking, meeting new people, and having fun - something that a lot of them didn't already associate with walking/running.  Mission accomplished!!!!

Chapter 2 page 294 - "You asked" Part 3: sign language

As part of my 300th post, I did a "ASK ME ANYTHING" session . . .tonight's question comes from Zaneta at Runnersluck.  Have you read her blog - she's adorable.  Check out the cake creation she made HERE.  How perfect is she??? She's a runner and cake maker/decorator - SWEET!!!!!!

Zaneta asked, "Am I still fluent in sign language?"  Zaneta also asked some other things similar to other people, so I'll address them in the very near future (stay tuned, America . . . and my international friends).

 Well, Z (can I call you that?) - the quick answer is not exactly.  That said, let me back up just a little for everyone who is reading this and saying "What, she knows sign language and how did Zaneta know and I didn't?"  Hate to have jealously rolling through the blogosphere.  Plus, if you all read through this whole post, you might learn some interesting things that probably aren't common knowledge.

Back in 1993 (dang that really sounds like A.LONG.TIME.AGO) - I went to college.  I was forced to learn sign language quickly for reasons I don't really want to expound, but it involved intensive tutoring.  I joined the sign language club which was AWESOME (probably sounds geeky now, but it was super awesome back in the day - can I share a small world story about this sign language club  . . . too bad, here it comes . . . skip ahead 10 years and I was making contact with a sign language professor at a Northern Indiana college- sorry can't remember which small private school it was - and bang, suddenly found myself emailing the old president of the sign language club when I was in it. She had gotten married and had a different last name so I was like, aren't you Angela that lived above the bookstore and gave me my sign name and . . . and she was like "YEAH!"  Cool - small world.

Back to the question at hand.  During college I excelled at sign language and was blessed with the opportunity to be a pre-school teacher at the Indiana School for the Deaf for a year (in case you don't know - it's HUGE for a non-born deaf person to be a teacher at the Deaf school AND to teach pre-school which is reserved for only the best signers because this is where language developement occurs).  I also coached at ISD and led after school activities for the elementary school and middle school. I joined the Deaf club in Indianapolis which is sort of like the VFW or the Elks but it's only for Deaf people (by the way - those of you reading, do you know the difference between "deaf" and "Deaf" - the capital letter in the Deaf refers not only to the inability to hear, but describes a person who identifies with a specific type of culture - the Deaf culture.  Deaf people are strong supporters of residential Deaf schools, use American Sign Language, despise the use of cochlear implants, and generally advocate for Deaf (president) power now (in all aspects of life not just in the Gallaudet revolt of 1988/89). The opposite end of the hearing inability spectrum are deaf people (not capitalized) who are generally integrated public school students, who more often than not learn Signed Exact English or use Cued Speech or may use an interpreter and who generally come from hearing families and relate more to the hearing culture, and support the use of cochlear implants.  These, of course, are generalizations of the two extremes and there are, of course, exceptions.

After about a month after graduating college and moving to Virginia in 1997, I no longer had access to signing with other people.  One of my biggest regrets is that I wasn't able to volunteer at the Deaf School and be involved in the Deaf community while in VA. 

So, like lots of things in life, if you don't use it - you loose it.  I have a running friend who has a deaf son so I get to break out some sign language every now and then when I see him.  I can carry on a conversation with him (he's an elementary school kid - ha, so it's not overly advanced).  I do have to say that words like "cell phone, internet, email, texting - those were not commonly used English words at the time because those things weren't really around much (please don't stop reading my blog and calling me old - I'm 35 . . . soon to be 36), so . . . I actually never learned those signs (pretty sure they didn't have them - though I seem to remember the "e" hand shaking side to side kind of like the sign for "emergency" then the "mail" sign- thumb on lip then put on palm as the sign for e-mail, but it was used VERY rarely  . .  who emailed people back in 1994?  

So, I hope that answers your question and teaches people a few things as well.  Sign language, interpretation, Deaf education, Deaf culture - it's all so close to my heart.  Got questions - fire away!

Chapter 2 page 293 - TR 101 "easy" 4 miler

After several of our last training runs being done on very (relative since I live in flat-ol' Indiana) hilly routes in the cold and rain, I thought today's FLAT 4 miler in the warm sun would be EASY . . . but it wasn't.  HUGE SIGH!  What?  Why not?  It just felt as if I hadn't spent one second training at all in the last 6 months.  I had a super hard time breathing.  We did get a quicker pace during mile 3, but the first 2 just felt as if I was dragging a 1000 pound weight behind me (ohh, wait, that's my booty - never mind).  The last few "easy short runs" have been anything but easy!  The big swing in weather from 47 degrees to 70 degrees may play a factor, but I also think running mostly 2 times a week instead of 3 (I avoid 4 day run weeks because of all of my tendency toward overuse injuries).  Last year for my first half I almost always ran at least 3 days a week, but with the horrible weather we had all winter and so far this spring - I have only been putting in 2 days a week (a long run, and a 3-6 miler).  Hmmm, definitely going to have to do more this summer in prep for my 3 (and possibly 4) half marathons!!!!!

How was your last run?  Do you find the weather change impacts your breathing or your comfort with a run?

Chapter 2 page 292 - "You asked" part 2 - food edition

Recently, in celebration of my 300th post, I offered up an "Ask me anything" opportunity.  This post will answer 2 questions about food.

First,
Christina from Mommaof3ontherun (who, by the way, is a GEM - if you ever get the chance to meet her in "real life" you will totally see what I mean !!!).  I had the pleasure of meeting her when "C" and I ran the Women's Half last November in St. Petersburg.  Hey Christina - I'm so coming back in November 2012 - would you consider doing it again? I digress, back to the point of this post . . .

Christina asked:
" Maybe something about how you manage to keep to a weight loss plan while getting enough nutrients for running...I'd love to hear how you reach that balance".

Well, regretfully, I'm pathetic when it comes to weight loss and eating.  One of the best pieces of advice I have ever heard was "be the role model - that person at work that everyone looks at and thinks "wow he/she is such a healthy eater" or says "wow, he/she really takes good care of herself."  As part of my job, I am a wellness coach so at work and when I'm in public, I do make an effort to make good/healthy food choices.  If I'm out of town, alone, or at home - well, decisions don't always go so well.  I will say that since my high triglyceride diagnosis at the end of January, I've done a LOT better.  I've never been a follower of weight watchers or anything, though I have no doubt that can be extremely effective - but in the end, it comes down to choices. . . what to eat, how much to eat, when to eat, etc.  All that said, since January when I undertook my "lifestyle revolution" I have noticed that eating more fruits and veggies and whole grains has kept my blood sugar more regulated (no more of those ups and downs - unless I make poor choices, which with the Easter candy that was in the stores for what surely was MONTHS, definitely happened) and to my surprise, it has given me all the energy I have needed to get in those long runs.  Being mindful of portion size, protein/carbs and really aiming for 7-9 produce servings seems to keep me on the right track.  My big failure comes in the form of failure to plan (failure plan my menu for the week, failure to grocery shop for the week, failure to pack my snacks, etc).

Next, Molly from Imasleeperbaker asked . . .
"My question is related to food, and I want to make it fun....what would your last meal be???" 

What a great question -totally a tough one!!  And given my answer to the above question, I feel quite hypocritical, but you asked . . .  I would definitely start with dessert and it would definitely be a multi-layered cake - probably chocolate and vanilla with tons of frosting.  I think then I would have the main course . . .
Filet mignon - well done and bacon wrapped (it's my last meal, right? why not), maybe even topped with sauteed onions and mushrooms and a delicious sauce or blue cheese crumbles
Crab cake - jumbo lump
Greek salad - extra Feta & olives
Fruity flavored martinis and margaritas - keep 'em coming

What would you choose for your last meal?

Chapter 2 page 291 - have you heard of this?

Have you heard of Active Release Technique (click HERE for more info)?

Everyone reading my blog knows I'm dealing with a severe case of plantar fasciitis.  It's been 11 years and has really gotten unbearable in the last year.  Although I still have 4 more PT sessions, I think we've reached the max benefit from that (HUGE SIGH!).  I have been looking into other options and came across this thing called Active Release Technique as a possible treatment option.  Since I have never heard of it, I thought I would ask you if you have heard of it, experienced it, or know of anyone who has?

Thanks!

Chapter 2 page 290 - giving back

Today, "C" and I gave back to the running community which has given so much to us.

photo source

Just a random photo from the web, not a photo of today's event!

 

 

 Today our small local running club hosted an event called "Spring Training 5 & 10 Miler".  It's always a small intimate race (usually under 50 racers) and is intended for area runners who are training for the Flying Pig or Indy Mini or other major spring race.  Although the actual race was extremely well organized (no surprise, a veteran race director was in charge) - details about the event in the weeks leading up to today were a little uncertain.  Without having the event specifics (time, location, etc), "C" and I did our long run yesterday but that left us without plans for this morning.  So, late last night we decided to be race volunteers.  "C" and I were put in charge of the 2 water stations (which served as 4 water stations for the runners in the out and back course).  It was so rewarding to cheer on the 40 runners (including some of FW's fastest like Eric Ade and 4 other 3 Rivers Running Company elite runners) and help them feel encouraged (and hydrated) along the route.

Have you volunteered for a race?  What did you do and what was your experience like?
 

Chapter 2 page 289 - TR 100 a dress rehersal

First - let me hold a quick celebration of our 100th training run (that's what the TR stands for in the title in case you forgot).  100 - wow, 51 weeks ago, I would have NEVER dreamed this would be my reality.  A special thanks to "C" and "L" and MGA who have made all of this possible.  No chance this would be my current situation without you girls!  A special heartfelt message to all my readers - thank you!  Thank you for hanging in there with me!  Thank you for your willingness to reach out a hand of support and cheer.  Thank you for so freely and generously offering advice - girls, I seriously couldn't have done this without you!!!!  My heart sings in appreciation for you all! ((hugs))

Second, let me tell you all about today since it was, in fact, my 100th training run.  "C" and I are doing the Geist Half Marathon in exactly one month.  Although "C" has some experience with the area, neither of us knew very much.  So what are 2 gals to do when they have the day off and an upcoming race . . . load up the car and make it a road trip of the ages!!!  We met up at 9:00 and headed down to the Geist reservoir.  Our first mission was to drive the route. . . TWICE.  I'm a bit type A plus having a good understanding of the intricacies of the race will definitely help me on race day (I know most of you aren't like that - it's okay, can't we still be friends? SMILE).  We then opted to do 10 of the 13 miles of the race (the 10 miles were in a loop, but the other 3 were a straight path out of the loop so it would have been 6 miles to go out and back then do the loop = 16 miles . . . .definitely more than we were ready to do).  Click HERE to see the map course. 

Here's how our "dress rehearsal" went:

The good - 

1.  We did it!  We have a great feel for the challenge this course will give us come race day.
2.  We went 2:2 for the entire time NEVER walking through any intervals despite several huge hills (Kelly @ Thisisahorribleidea was right - mile 8 is a hill to remember!.  We did walk the first 4 minutes, ran the last 6 minutes, then walked .5 cool down back to the car.
3.  It is doable. 
4.  The temperature was about 50 degrees, mild winds (5 mph), windchill 47, and overcast.  Pretty ideal in that respect.
5.  Although the run was a challenge, we had a a lot of fun.
6.  Our time - we did 10.06 miles in 2:34.44 (remember we walked SLOWLY the last 1/2 mile + 4 min. warm up walk) and this was very hilly!
7.  I ate a half of a PB sandwich right before we started and had no low blood sugar moments during the run.

The bad - 

1.  It is certainly challenging - seriously!  Our race day time will not be that fast, but we're not going to need to be picked up by the sag wagon either.
2.  My heel KILLED ME!!!!!!  That's seriously disappointing.  I will be seeing a different PT next week, we'll see if he has any other ideas.  While we're on the subject of pain, my right knee (possibly the down hills) and my who ha (also on the right side) hurt.  Terribly disappointing.  I KNOW I would LOVE running if it didn't hurt so much. 
3.  We didn't get to eat our chews at mile 3 and 6 as planned due to traffic (see ugly).  We ended up eating some at a little after mile 4 and that's it.  I tried my very first Gu - mint chocolate . . . okay, but definitely not going to be my future fuel of choice.

The ugly - 

1.  Well, we ran 10 miles of the actual race route today so . . . the roads were open to regular traffic.  Although a significant amount of the route had paths and sidewalks or were on quiet neighborhood streets, there was a total of about a mile (4 different parts of the route) that we ran on a very thin shoulder (or directly on the busy road).  Parts of it were a little dangerous - but fear not . . . I wore my THIS.  Plus, I wore a red firefly on my sun visor that I won in a give-away from Rustbeltrunner back in October.  Completely sexy - sorry no pix!
2.  THE.WEATHER!  With about 4 miles left, it started to rain - every step seemed to bring more and more rain.  It could have been worse, but it got much colder and we ended up soaked!  We were determined to do this no matter what the weather, but the lightening and thunder got bit extreme.

All-in-all, today's dress rehearsal was completely a worth while experience.  Super glad we made the trip!  You'll have to wait a month to hear how the official race turns out . . . fingers crossed!

Chapter 2 page 288 - some questions

Question #1:
I live in IN, but I'm pretty sure based on national news, we're not alone . . .
Show of hands who is SICK of the cold, damp, cloudy, rainy, windy weather??????



Question #2:
My second question is aimed at anyone who has followed a training schedule with increasing long runs -
have you ever been fearful of the upcoming long run?  A week and a half ago we ran 12 miles - and did pretty well (the last mile was hard), and this Friday we're planning on 13 miles (actually running the full course for our half marathon next month).  I'm very much looking forward to seeing what we're in for, but very much frightened that I won't be able to make it.  I'm not a "real" runner, but I've done the long runs in this training cycle of 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 miles.  Do you ever worry about an upcoming long run or is that unique to me? And the event you also get nervous or worried, what suggestions/advice do you have to "get over it"?

Question3:

What is the piece of gear/equipment you absolutely LOVE the most (related to running)?

Thanks everyone for your answers - I'll put them to good use!

Chapter 2 page 287 - heel update 5 (of several more)

source

Readers of my recent "Heel Update" posts know that I've been hovering at the "11" according to the scale above (no offense to my religious readers - the graphic was just too funny to not include).
BUT NOT TODAY!!!  Today's rehab was FAR LESS painful than it has been the last 7 times!  I asked the therapist if she had quit pressing hard (you know, maybe because she was tired of my crying and screaming) and she said she was actually pressing harder- say what?!?.  There were no tears, no screams, and no red face.  (Please don't read this as "it felt awesome and I wished I could have another hour . . . because THAT'S DEFINITELY NOT THE CASE!).  Although the overall PF hasn't really improved too much - I think some progress has to be being made if the scraping hurting less . . . right?  So glad I can finally report some better news!

Stay tuned - 4 miler tomorrow, 2 miler Thursday, and 13 miles on Friday . . . that'll be the real test!

Chapter 2 page 286 - "You asked" part 1: husband

As part of my 300th post, I did a "ASK ME ANYTHING" session . . .

I'm going to start with answering the request of Holly @ Rustbeltrunner and Christina @ Mommaof3ontherun who both wanted to see a photo of my husband. 

Well, he's NOT thrilled I'm posting a photo, but after arguing about it - he gave in and agreed that I could show you this photo  . . .

He's a HUGE outdoorsy guy.  He enjoys fishing, hunting, and camping.  This is a photo of him helping me get my first fish off the hook.

But I think that photo just wouldn't satisfy your interest, so . . . I'm sneaking in one more photo. I before I reveal that photo I want to share with you a little bit about my husband.  Before I really "met" him, I had known "of" him because he works in my office building - though, he always looked like he was 55 years old - he started balding and turned gray early in his 20's (poor guy).  When I first started working in the building there were SEVERAL employees trying to get us together.  I was like, "UMM, no he's OOOOOLLLLLLDDDDDDD".  Come to find out - back then - he was only like 37 . . . poor guy, seriously looked 55!  My husband is super quiet and doesn't often speak or cause any attention to be called to him (those of you know me in "real life" know I'm 100% the opposite!).  Eventually, I had worked in the building for about 3 years and one day he came to my office (strictly for business), we started talking (slightly less officially) and I discovered he has the BEST sense of humor - I laughed my butt off (problem is he is so quiet at work that NO ONE believes me that he's so funny!!!!).  We have been married almost 3.5 years.  I digress, the photo below is on our honeymoon, we were getting ready to eat at Ruth's Chris. 

Chapter 2 page 285 - heel update 4 (of many) lots of photos

I'm calling this update "Tears from the Torture" -Today was my 5th rehab visit.  During my previous appointment (on Tuesday), it was so painful that my hands got all sweaty and I honestly thought I might throw up.  Today, I brought my camera in order to document the torture (Thanks "L" for taking the photos) and share it with all of you - these photos are NOT staged . . . they were taken during the actual treatment and capture my authentic reaction.  I can say, that all of this pain, may be worth it - my heel still hurts so there is still along way to go, but I can say there has been some improvement.

Pointing to the painful area so the therapist hits "the spot" (mental note - next time point to some place that doesn't hurt! HA!)

Large scraper - scrapes the instep/arch area

Small scraper - scrapes deep and in a more pinpointed area

sweet love of all that is holy - this really hurts - PLEASE make this stop!!!

Scraping the calf . . . doesn't the therapist's hand look like it's pressing hard?  She swears she isn't pressing very hard . . .whatever!!!!

After getting told to "hold it down" during my previous PT session when I let out a rather loud OUCH, this is me, "holding it down" - Look at how tightly my hand is squeezing and the dark red face - pain scale 1-10 . . . this is about a 50!!!! 

Last chance to join the "ASK ME ANYTHING" party in celebration of my 300th post.  Click HERE to check it out!!