Dropping down, but not out

I love my countdown app on my iPhone. Though I remember dates and my mental calendar is insane, I like to track important dates where every day leading up to it matters. Like in marathon training. The DC Marathon (National SunTrust Marathon. Whatever, I hate corporate titles, so it will remain as the DC Marathon to me.) is 23 freaking days away. That’s THREE WEEKS!!! As you can see, have a bit more time to prepare for DE and I’ll totally rock NYC. DC…not so much. And yes, I have a countdown to when school ends because it can’t come soon enough because I miss sleeping, drinking, and social time. Disney probably won’t happen anymore, but it’s in there just for kicks. I need more exciting big events to look forward to!

Laurie and I both signed up for the whole marathon the day it opened up in July. We were going to be badasses and train like mad and totally rock the 26.2 miles around our nation’s capitol. So not happening. The longest distance that I’ve run since the Philly Marathon was 8 miles. My training calendar looks very bare.

Life got in the way… it was cold, school has been intense, work has been crazy, the whole packing and moving thing…there has just been no time. After consulting with Laurie, we both decided we’d drop down to the half marathon. 13.1 with minimal training, sure bring it on. 26.2 without proper runs under my Mizunos? Oh hell no.

So now that we’ve dropped down (Brit was always going to run the half because she has her wits about her), we’re starting to plan our DC adventure. Unlike last year where we stayed in Arlington, we’re in the heart of the city and are only a few stops away from the start of the race and walking distance to coffee, restaurants, bars, and the metro. I think I’m looking mow forward to the food and drinks than I am about the race! All of us (the runners plus Jen and Hillary) are all scattered about the east coast so this is a tri-annual meeting of awesomeness.

I’m still kind of freaking out about 23 days, but at least I know I won’t cry or get injured over 13.1 miles. Plus, I’ll get to eat finish line cookies about 2 hours sooner.

Laurie and me after the race last year, where I hurt my knees and she dominated the half. RAWR!

And so it begins…

As of Monday, I’m in fall marathon training mode. I had an extreme internal battle between starting on a Monday or starting on the first of the month. Monday won. Technically I’m doing 3 weeks of pre-training to re-establish my mileage and get back into the swing of running regularly and early.

If you don’t know, I’m running three marathons this fall. As well as working. And school. And everything else that makes for a happy life. Bring it on.

I think I’ve explained previously, but the reason I’m running three is because NYC is a BEAST and I know I’ll be mentally discouraged if I have a low time. Plus with 40,000+ other runners, it’s more about the experience that it is time. I wanted a flat and local marathon and Hartford is a month prior and is considered the greenest race in the US. I also signed up for Philly on November 21 because I loved that race and have friends running it this year. Also, if you run three marathons within three months, you’re considered a “marathon maniac”. The prize is a bright yellow shirt. Hartford and Philly also host halves so if I’m injured, tired, or not prepared, I can drop down in distance. And maybe I’ll qualify for Boston at one of the races…?!?!

I must give a shout out to Miss Brit who is not only becoming a runner, she also signed up for her first race – the Philadelphia Half! I’m so proud of her! Between Laurie and I keeping her on track by virtually training with her, I’m confident she’ll smash her expectations.

I started off this training cycle with an easy 4 miler around the reservoir. I took it slow, didn’t experience any pain, and was surprised when I kicked off my shoes and saw something missing… Ignore my veiny feet, I’m gross and dirty. Perfectly fitting that on day one I experience a running mishap. Whatevs, toenails are unnecessary.

And if you want to check out my training plan and keep me in line, here’s a PDF of my weeks. The days with the red triangle indicate either a race or a specific speed workout.

Miranda’s Marathon Plan

SunTrust National Marathon recap

Well this is days overdue. I’ve been calling this the DC Marathon because that’s much easier and an exact location, but the title is the official name. It was everywhere. Also, this post in true Mir-fashion is hasty and poorly written. It’s either post now, or wait another week and I’m impatient. Here’s a link to the photo album.

Miss Laurie picked me up at Union Station and we headed straight to the expo so we could stock up before they packed up. And stock up we did! Aside from the goody bag that included our shirt, number, and sponsor gifts, I bought a Garmin Forerunner 405 and Laurie bought a Spibelt. We caught Muscle Milk as they were breaking down their post and the literally handed us armfuls of bottles in assorted flavors. I’ve never had it but I know that Mal lives off it so if its gross, at least it has a home and won’t go to waste. Aside from our bounty, the expo left something to be desired. Not as many vendors as expected and there weren’t as many informative booths as I’m used to seeing at race expos.

We carb loaded in Georgetown with Jen, Hillary, and Amy then Jen drove us around as we searched for a whole wheat bagel at 9:30 pm. Note to self, this happened in Philly as well. BYOB – Bring Your Own Bagel. Victory was had at Dunkin Donuts and I think I confused the cashier when I asked her to slice it, don’t toast, no butter, no anything. She was certain I was wrong.

Surprisingly Laurie and I managed to be under the covers by 10:30 pm, but I certainly didn’t sleep well. WHen I finally did fall asleep, I woke up in the middle of the night repeatedly. 4:45 am arrived way too soon but we groggily hopped out of bed and gathered our things.

Our cab was late. Then we waited about 15 minutes for the metro. My eyes burned. EVERYONE got out at The Armory and the escalators were broken which caused a massive bottle neck and it probably look us longer to leave the metro station than our entire trip to get there. When we emerged from the underground, JM was playing on the stereo. Of course he was, because that is my life.

The start area was total chaos and the race was to begin about 5 minutes after we arrived (along with a few thousand other runners) and we still had to check our bag, go to the restroom, and stretch. Bag check was actually painless and efficient. The bathroom lines were long, but not out of control. At this point I think everyone understood “pee and flee”. While in line, Laurie realized she forgot her anvil and conveniently the woman in front of us had a baggie of about 15 pills. Laurie asked if she could have one. “I’d rather you didn’t.” Wicked! I understand if she had one, but she had enough for every mile!! Whatevs, Laurie ended up passing her and was fairly pain-free during and after the race.

We were able to wiggle our way into the parade of people heading to the start and managed to cross the line about 5 minutes after the gun went off. The race was a blur, so below are some highlights.

Miles 1-3
People people everywhere! Hazy morning past the monuments. A runner was taking pics during the race… Mile markers were hidden. I was so tired.

Miles 4-7
Um, this course isn’t flat. Crowd support was crazy, especially when the race started at 7 am. Starting to get tired and I still have about 20 miles to go, eeeek.

Mile 8
Someone was handing out beer.

Mile 9
My knee is beginning to really hurt. Every step resonated pain.

Mile 10
Beyond painful, I keep on trucking hoping to just run it out. I try to focus on everything else like when I’d take gels, music, the crowds, picking people off, everything. Boy, the sun is BRIGHT today.

Mile 11
I contemplate just finishing the half marathon since the pain is getting worse. I’m pretty sure I’m limping at this point. I start contemplating how I’ll tuck into the halters since we have different colored bibs.

Mile 13
What the hell, they’re separating us! Full marathoners have to go AROUND the stadium…there’s no slipping away from this. There are A LOT of people running the half, and not that many people running the full.

Mile 13.1
There’s a water station for the fulls which also looked like a graveyard. Race day was the first really nice day and many don’t look prepared. Plus, the first have was HILLY! Runners hung around the fluid station and stretched, walked, and weeped. Time to keep trucking.

Mile 15
Saw a woman with a sign that read “I’m chubby and lazy but YOU are awesome for running a marathon!”. Loved it!

Mile 16
ONLY TEN MORE MILES TO GO!! I’m really tired at this point. And it’s REALLY lonely out there. Barely any runners. 90% of the people at the start probably ran the half. Assholes.

Mile 17
I’m being passed by old ladies. I have no idea where we are but it’s near a major road and it smells like exhaust, also, there isn’t many people cheering along the road. There are quite a number of people in cars quite upset that they cannot drive down their planned route. There is still a lot of race left.

Mile 18
I saw a woman with a hot dog hat and two kids dressed up at ketchup and mustard.

Mile 19
WTF IS THIS BRIDGE?!?! I start to walk, F this. I was convinced that I didn’t have a kneecap or tendons any more. Serves me right for being stubborn. I walked with another wounded warrior. until the top of the bridge then I left him and soared to the fluid station. You know what I want right now? A bag of ice.

Mile 20
6.2 is still a long way to go. It’s still lonely but at least it’s a straight away so I can see other runners ahead.

Mile 20-23
This is a very boring course. I want to die with each step but at least this area is grassy. I hop off the course road and run in the grass since there’s less impact and it hurts just slightly less. I turned around at one point and saw that a few others followed my lead. Misery loves company. Springsteen’s “Born to Run” came on around then and I smiled through the pain. I wanted to scream and sing along, but I did not. That would waste energy. The 4:00 pace group passes me at this point. What? I honestly thought I was running much slower than that. I would be content with anything under 5 hours. Again, I wasn’t really “racing this” since I screwed up training, more like considering this as a long run for the NJ Marathon. Regardless, 26.2 is nothing to mess with whether it’s a training run or a goal race for a PR. 26.2 is a fucking bitch. I’ve walked a bit during this part. I don’t care, my legs were like lead.

Mile 24
This is the longest race ever and now we are running through the undesirable part of town. A woman next to me is crying and the cop manning the course yells at her like a drill sergeant. Not sure how it made her feel but his yelling sure made me pick up the pace. And there was a long gradual hill practically slapping us in the face. I start to cry a little. I’m just TIRED. This isn’t fun anymore. My knee aches. I’m done, I’m absolutely wiped out.

Mile 25
HOORAY!! Last Mile Party!! The volunteers working the fluid station knew what was up. Longest mile ever. And it was on a stretch of highway that was never-ending. I ran with a guy who had bloody nips. I tried to pick it up, but my legs simply did not want to go. It took every once of effort to lift them and propel forward.

Mile 26
The last .2 were uphill. Jerks. The finish line cheers were amazing and I was delirious. I cried a little at the end too, just an emotional run, I was spent, it was quite the mental race.

4:25:39, I’m actually surprised at that time, much better than I thought it would be!!

As soon as I stopped running I could feel my knee screaming at me. Coincidently I found Laurie at the finish and I told her I’d meet her at the end of the sectioned off area I was currently holed up in. I went immediately to the medical tent and got ice. I couldn’t speak properly and I’m pretty sure I may have been crying and drooling.

Ice packs in hand, I grabbed post race water, power ade, a banana, and the best motherfucking chocolate chip cookie i’ve ever eaten in my life. No joke, it was soft and massive and gooey and delicious. I had my arms full and couldn’t walk anymore so I stood in my space cape clutching my cookie looking for Laurie like a lost little girl. I just wanted to whimper and sit.

I found Hillary first (yay!) followed by Brit and Laurie. Brit and Hil didn’t run, they just came for moral support. We found some grass on and exchanged battle stories from during the race and Brit’s driving adventure from Baltimore.

While in the bag pickup area I ran into a girl from my gym, small world. We hobbled to the metro to make our way to brunch. The escalators were still not working and stairs are a bitch after 26.2.

Brunch was the second best part of the morning, the first being the cookie. I totally housed chocolate chip pancakes and home fries with no regrets. Went back to our hotel to nap and then rallied at the bars.

Aside from my knee I was feeling fine following the race. The next day I was minimally sore and wasn’t wiped out like I was after Philly. Though the marathon was a struggle, I didn’t hesitate to walk when I needed to, which probably helped with the lack of soreness. Next up, NJ Marathon on May 2nd. Time to make these next few weeks count!

ouch.

I ran one mile tonight. Seriously, I can’t tell you the last time I ran just one mile…

I took yesterday off and though I felt a bit of pain today, a bit of soreness doesn’t surprise me anymore. Because of the sensitivity, I was only going to run 4 easy miles and about 20 minutes of the elliptical but that obviously changed.

I barely finished one easy mile. The inside of my left knee felt tight and sore and really weak. I gave up because I don’t want to cause further injury and opted for low impact and low resistance elliptical. I belted out 30 minutes and felt fine.

The walk home was excruciating, I couldn’t barely bend it. I winced with every step and could barely continue conversing on the phone. WTF.

Through the magic of google, and reliable running sites, my pain could be caused by running the slopes in CP over the weekend. This is so not what I need right now.

So now I’m home, leg propped, with a bag of frozen blueberries resting on my knee. At least I can catch up on the past two weeks of “Lost” since I won’t be waking up early to run…

18 miles in the bank

I’ll admit it, I have not trained properly for the DC Marathon which is less than two weeks away. I have plenty excuses: I’ve been really busy with work, school apps, the weather, etc. I know I should have gone to the gym or run around CP more, but I just…didn’t.

Granted, I’ve still worked out consistently, just not as much as I should have. The only double digit runs I’ve done since the Philly Marathon was a half marathon at the end of January, a 15 miler, and this past weekend’s 18 miler. I highly doubt I’ll PR, but at least I’ll be in DC with my friends and running with Laurie, so a finishing time doesn’t really matter. I’ll get redemption at the NJ Marathon in a weeks.

Despite being exhausted, I had a decent run on Sunday. I added some new songs to my running playlist and off I went to enjoy the bout of decent weather. The park was PACKED with runners, walkers, roller bladers, bikers, dogs, horses, etc. Unfortunately by my third loop of the park, the roads were dark and empty.

I felt confident during the miles and learned that I should have brought more water. Only a few more weeks until the fountains are turned back on, sigh. Unfortunately my knee started aching around mile 15, but I shook it off. Came home, went grocery shopping, did laundry, putzed around THEN I felt shooting pains around me knee. I iced and bengayed and barely slept because every position was awkward or painful. Ugh, this is NOT what I need.

I was on my feet most of the day yesterday and the pain was excruciating at times. Sigh. Today it feels better and instead of running tonight I’ll hop on the bike to get a decent cardio work out and continue to ice. It’s nothing serious, just annoying.

Philly Marathon RECAP

So here’s my best attempt at a marathon recap:

I woke up at 4:40 am after a few hours of sleep, but surprisingly felt rested. Ate a massive breakfast so I wouldn’t get hungry during the run and set off for the Eakins Circle, with Wawa coffee in hand notch, while it was still dark out. Got there early enough to stretch out and wake up. Randomly saw Marissa, Laura, and Dave, so that was a pleasant surprise. Everything at the start area was well organized, clearly marked, and there were plenty of bathrooms… all of which are a rarity in smaller races!

They had a wave start, which helped with congestion. I fell into a great rhythm the first few miles and felt awake, energetic, and happy to finally be running the marathon. Around mile 2 I had to go to the bathroom again, but figured I’d wait until further down the course where hopefully the lines weren’t as long (which I never did and remembered around mile 25…). I gave Gumby a high five around mile 3.

I loved running through the city in the beginning of the race, especially down South St. where the crowd support was thick and I breezed past my former usual haunts. Aw. Miles 0-7 were a breeze. I had a gel at mile 5 and planned on taking a gel every 5ish miles so I wouldn’t be hungry or feel lagging. CB’s tip helped.

Miles 8-12 were lonely through the park and it wasn’t as flat as I expected it to be. I was running a bit faster than I thought I would be, but still felt completely fine and I had plenty of gas left in me. Though I was being conservative with speed, I was pushing it enough to have minutes in the bank if I faltered later, but also slow enough where I wasn’t going all out.

Then around mile 12 my problematic right ankle started hurting but i shook it off. Though it has been in a constant state of pain for the past few weeks while running, I figured 14 more wouldn’t cause any more harm than was already done and just kept moving and trying to keep on even pavement. I was a little sad when others who were running the half approached their finish line and I realized I still had 13+ miles to go, but at least the runners thinned out immensely. Miles 13-14.5 were rolling and I talked a bit with an older guy who had kept with me since the beginning.

Miles 15-19 were along the Schuylkill and were desolate and quiet. There was beer around mile 19 and I happily obliged. And a brownie a mile later. I was tired. I wasn’t out of breathe, my legs were heavy and slightly angry at me. Crowds happened again at Manayunk, as did the slight inclines. Mile 20 was a nice welcome, especially since that was at a turn around and the last 6 were in a fairly straight line.

Right around mile 22 I felt a sharp, shooting pain in my right knee. I’ve never felt pain like that before, it seemed unprovoked as I didn’t have nagging knee pain, and it was so intense it made me nauseous. I couldn’t bend it. Well, I could bend it, but when I did I felt lightning bolts to my toes. This was not good at all. But I trucked on. I had to make it to the finish, I was just in a state of shock because I literally couldn’t bend my right knee. I hobbled and fought back tears. Luckily I was running strong and was almost to the finish, I could do this. If there was a medic tent, I would have stopped and iced for a few minutes, but there wasn’t. I was on my own. I ran, though very slowly. Every step was excruciating and I was so confused. I stopped once during the race – I grabbed some gatorade and went to the side to stretch for a few seconds and make sure there was no swelling.

Once I limped to mile 24 I sped up a bit. The 4:00 pace group was near me so I figured I wasn’t too far off from my pace, just a bit discouraged that I may have badly injured myself. I figured in less than 20 minutes I’ll be done and can sit and ice and sleep. Then I passed mile 25 and figured in less than 9 miles, I’ll be DONE. So I ran like a freaking banshee. BP saw me from the side and jumped out into the course screaming my name. It was exactly what I needed to list my spirits, time to hustle.

I got a little teary eyed as I crossed the finish – I did it!! I also think that I was beaming the whole race aside from when I was hurting towards the end, it was such a great experience and I couldn’t believe it was over. 4:01:13, whew. I got my space blanket, food bag, then found my mom and we went to get waffles and ice cream. I was in a slight state of panic because I couldn’t bend my knee, but so relieved that the journey was over. I’m extremely grateful to have had the constant support of my friends and family during training and the actual race, and especially the tips from T, DK, and CB. To be honest, it wasn’t as intimidating as I thought it would be, just seemed like another long run…with crowds. But 26.2 is definitely a beast to be reckoned with and a distance to be respected.

But not completely over… I signed up for the DC Marathon on March 20! Eeeeek! Mostly it’s an excuse to hang out with friends and run a race in the middle of the weekend.

Here are some photos: http://gallery.me.com/mirandahafford#100467

ONE!

Tomorrow is the marathon!! Eeeek!

Going out for a two mile jog around the city with Katie then out to dinner to stuff my face.

Goals for tomorrow:
1) To finish. That’s my primary goal, to have a good time and finish my first marathon
2) Getting in under 5 hours would be grand, I’ll worry about time for the second race.
3) Based on my half marathon times, I could pace myself the same and finish under 4 hours. I would be ecstatic if I finish under 4, but I’ve never ran 26.2 and there are 19,999 other runners with me so I just don’t know……

Below is a photo of everything I’ll have on my person tomorrow (plus some Philly Marathon swag that I on’t be wearing)…

3 days: soreness & excel

3 days left!!

I am so sore. I had a 105 minute deep tissue massage last night and my shoulders and neck are BURNING. I guess that means it was was good…

Mr. A Grubman gave me a gift certificate for Bliss for my birthday, so it was a good excuse to save money before the marathon. Bliss Spa is full of bells and whistles. Personal lockers, beverages and snacks in every room, and complimentary toiletries in the “locker room” galore. There was so much to see and do before your appointment that I even got lost.

My masseuse definitely pulled and prodded me in all the good ways. Some times I winced and sometimes I felt pain magically disappear. Though I definitely realized my problem areas: my calves, shoulders, and upper back. Though they’re all extremely sore this morning, i’s a good sore and I feel loser instead of the perpetually tight feeling.

Also – here is a tracking and pacing chart:
http://files.me.com/mirandahafford/upktco

It downloads as an .xls file (mac) but if you have a PC and it won’t open, let me know…

It’s pretty awesome, you put in your anticipated time (4 hours for me) and on the added pages, it shows anticipated pace and times I’ll cross certain areas.

Alright, off to Philly…SD tonight at the Tower then staying in town until after the race. Here we go…!

5 days left: what to pack

I need to pack tonight since I’ll be in Philly from Thursday on, which means this is race getting close to being real.

Friends who are also running keep asking me what I’m bringing and of course I’ve made mental notes from others who ran the Marine Corp, Richmond, and NYC Marathons recently and what they wish they had with them. Here’s my list, so far. Of course this is only running related things, not the normal stuff.

- Running tights
- Shorts in case it’s 60 degrees or warmer…
- Bright pink sports bra in case I feel like ripping off my shirt in a fit of glory or rage. JK.
- Short sleeved shirt (purple, duh). I find it odd that I’m an Asics girl, though all of my running clothing is Nike…
- Tried and true (purple) Asics socks. And an extra pair. Just in case.
- Running shoes obviously, and my spares just in case. You never know if the sole will magically fly off. I’m still torn on if I’m going to run with my new ones or not… I’ve put about a week’s worth of running on them, but I don’t know if they’re still too new… I’m still debating on which is better, too new or too old.
- Depending on the weather , throwaway clothes to wear at the start while it’s dark and chilly. This includes: a fleecy jacket, tear away pants, arm warmers, and a hat.
- iPod nano (purple, duh)
- iPhone (obviously, but the same playlist will be on that JUST IN CASE my ipod dies)
- Hair ties. And extra hair ties to carry with me around my wrist. Nothing ruins a run quite like a broken hair tie and hair flying everywhere. I’ve learned that lesson and cut a run short because of it, no fun.
- A headband. And an extra.
- 5 Gus (not Gus, plural of Gu) – 4 to be carried with me, one to be held by my mom in case I need it (you never know when you may lose one, or drop one…). All five are either the vanilla or espresso flavor which surprisingly doesn’t make me gag). They should have 3 stations of Gus along the course, but it may be crowded, or they may run out, or I may drop it. Or it could be orange flavored with is a fake flavor that always makes me sick, and that wouldn’t be pleasant at all.
- 2 six ounce water bottles to carry during the run – one at the start of the race, and one my mom will have in case I need it.
- 3 salt packets, one for before the race, 2 for during.
- Aquaphor and vaseline – I have a small tube of Aquaphor that I can run with and will use the vaseline to lather up problematic chafing areas in the morning. For me this includes my feet and under my boobs where my sports bra lies.
- Tylenol…obviously.
- Icy hot and bandaids for after the run.
- My usual vitamins.
- SPI belt to carry said gel, salt, Aquaphor, Tylenol, etc…
- Food staples: peanut butter, oatmeal, bananas. All of my meals will probably be takeout (though there is a Trader Joe’s near the hotel…) but you can’t mess with race breakfast. I’ll also probably pick up a bagel the day before since I’m usually STARVING during runs longer than 15 miles…

Hope this list helps…and hopefully I didn’t forget anything!

6 days, music & waffles!

OMG SIX DAYS. SIX!!!!

So I need to make my running playlist, email me with any suggestions, especially since my current long run lists are stale. I need to make about a 6 hour playlist since after 2-3 minutes I get mired and skip to the next song. I probably won’t listen to my ipod to whole time due to the crowds, but still… I’m so bad at picking running playlists since I usually listen to indie or way melodic stuff that doesn’t lend well to running fast. My iTunes is full of sad sad slow songs. Heh, I recently told Morgan that my running playlist compromises of songs that a 15 year old girl listens to. It’s almost embarrassing, though it’s heavy on the Jay-Z, Kanye, Common, Kelly Clarkson, and Switchfoot. I’m not posting it…half of it’s credible though, so no fear.

I think I’m still full from last night. So so so good. But first, I love NYC:

I ran 10 easy miles in Central Park around dusk. It’s been a while since I’ve ran at that time in the park and I’ve missed it. The sky was an amazing kaleidoscope of blues, purples, oranges, and pinks while broken with the buildings and their lights. The park streetlights started to come on and everything was picturesque. While meandering through the park, I felt so lucky to be able to see this, to experience it. I know I’ve been complaining about a lot lately, how barely anything I’m involved with is going well, but those solitary moments made me feel special that this was mine. That I get to be apart of this, this city, this atmosphere, this mystery, all of it and it’s all exciting.

Everything will work out just fine…no matter how many situations can fall apart, The Lake will always be there. Friedsam Carousel will still spin. The CNN building will tell me the time and temperature overtime I approach 65th Street. The Guggenheim will peek between the trees whenever I feel like I’m lost in the woods. And the Still Hunt statue will be there for me perched on top of Cat Hill when my quads are screaming. I will be fine. when all else fails, this city, this park will always be there for me when I need the support and reaffirmation that everything will turn out the way it should.

After the breezy run, I quickly changed and was scooped up by Dan and Emily for an evening of feasting at Melba’s. IT WAS AMAZING. Good conversation was had and we gorged ourselves on delicious food. Both Dan and Emily had the southern fried chicken entrees and I had the mac and cheese and eggnog waffles with strawberry butter and syrup. My two favorite things in one dish? Yes, please. And we topped the meal off with red velvet cake (another favorite) and triple chocolate mousse cake. A food coma was had shortly after. Highly recommended.