Lulu's Challenge... rise from the ashes

Ran 5.5 easy miles with Bubbles in the Chariot. She finally seems to be getting better. With her being sick and me not sleeping much, I haven't run much this week. Good thing it is scheduled as a recovery week.

I got a deep tissue massage today. It made tonight's run seem like a breeze. I will be ready for 15 on Saturday. The next few weeks are going to be tough with lots of miles and some travel for work thrown in.

TREADMILL = DESPERATION. Yes, I actually ran on the treadmill today. I went to bed too late last night and wasn't going to try to get up early, and I wanted to get my run in early enough today to go to bed EARLY tonight. I haven't run on the treadmill in a year. The last time was when I was pregnant, and it was hot outside. Needless to say it wasn't pretty this morning but I tried to make the most of it.

I used the opportunity to calibrate my Nike + Ipod again. It turns out that it has been slightly underreporting my mileage. Bad for me, good for Jeff. It was about 1/10 of a mile off. It is not too bad when you think of it, but at 30-40 miles a week, it adds up. Now it is accurate.

I ran marathon pace for this run, and the pace felt good. The song my Ipod was on when I finished the workout: Springsteen: O Mary Don't You Weep (from the Seegar Collection). It is going through my head now.

Periodically, I am going to rate some of the running gear I use, especially if I get something new. I already seem to be doing this since I have already posted a review of the Chariot and the Nike+.

Men, if you aren't interested in sports bras, read no further.

As you might have read, I had a baby a while ago and that radically changes your body during and after pregnancy. Needless to say, I had to buy new sports bras recently. I researched it, and I found one and bought it to try it. It is the Hind Motion Sensor Bra. This bra is like crack. What I mean is, you buy one and try it. Then you buy another, and another, and another. I now have it in four colors. It is interesting, because Runner's World Magazine just rated bras and this one wasn't even in the list. They missed the boat!

As you can see 5.5 miles is not 15. The ever-ellusive 15 miler seems to be the theme for the week. Life and Lulu seem to be getting in the way.

To someone reading this, this may seem funny. Go ahead and laugh if you want. After my pace run Friday, I didn't post everything that happened. I didn't want to complain or make excuses. Soon after I came home, I stubbed my left big toe. This was on the new tile I laid down about a week ago (isn't that a theme to these blogs? I've read at least two blogs where people have recently laid tile. We must be fast running tile-layers.). So what about this toe? Well after I cleaned off the blood, and there was a lot of it, I saw that I had several layers of skin missing from the end of my toe. Basically, the end of my toe is missing, and it was looking quite ugly. My first thought was "there goes my 15 mile run." So since I have a pretty good knowledge of first aid and great supplies, I doctored it up. I sterilized it and placed Second Skin on the end and wrapped it up nicely with athletic tape. It looked beautiful, and the pain was much less. "Ah, 15 miles is doable now!" As you can read it was not to be. But not because of the toe.

After about 4 hours of sleep because I was wound up and also my toe hurt in every position I put it in, I got up at 4am. I went out at 4:45am to run 15 miles in the cool of the day, about 80 degrees and 95 percent humidity. I ran the first mile and was feeling great. It turns out too great because I was running much faster that I should have been -- but this was not my undoing. After each mile, I normally take 2-3 gulps from my Camelbak which is filled with my concoction of energy drink (Hammer Nutrition Products). After mile 1, I drank and thought "hhhhmmmmm, that tastes funny." I talked myself into believing it was because I had just had a buckwheat waffle drowned in maple syrup for breakfast. Since the drink does not have simple sugars, I talked myself into believing the slightly sour taste was because of my sweet breakfast. By mile 2, it still tasted funny, and I was burping and a bit more awake. The contents of my Camelbak had been in the freezer and then refrigerator for a week since I didn't make my last long run. I don't like to waste things, and I thought it would be ok. I need to stop thinking and just throw it out next time. It turns out, it was slightly fermented. I could have run the 15 and trashed my body and ended up slightly drunk (I drink socially extremely rarely). I decided to run 5 or 6 and call it a day. I found out later, I was running about 30-40 seconds per mile faster than I should have been anyway. I could have come home and made more and started again, but it was not to be. It was pure torture to run home with 3 pounds of water on my back and not able to drink it. I was pretty dehydrated when I got home. Wildbull posted about old water in his Camelbak a couple of weeks ago -- perhaps I should have paid closer attention and learn from his mistake.

Toe feels fine as long as I have it wrapped. The plan is to run 15 tomorrow, Sunday morning.

Yes, you read that correctly 4. Four does not equal 15. This 15 mile run is not going to happen. I figure I spent yesterday limping slightly because of my toe, and I spent some time at a going away party at a home where people are requested not to wear shoes. My arch was cramping this morning before I started. I stretch it out and headed out the door with fresh nutrition in my Camelbak (see Saturday's post). I decided to re-evaluate the arch issue at mile 6 and maybe turn around there and run home. Then, maybe run three more right near my house as insurance. Mile one was great. Mile two and my arch started cramping again. That is the only way I can describe it. It would contract, and the pain would be excruciating. Then it would release and be ok -- but only when I was not running. I turned around and went home. By the time I got home, the cramping feeling was creeping up my ankle into my shin and calf. The pain was on the bottom of  my foot under the highest point of my arch. Anyone know what this is? (I know what plantar faciaitis is and it is not that). I iced my foot after my shower. I also have a massage ball from Trigger Point Technologies that I used to massage my foot. It feels fine now.

Redeeming points about all this mess: (1) I actually ran 15.4 miles two weeks ago when I thought I ran 14, so the mileage has been there and an increase in mileage won't be too drastic for my mind or body, (2) I will be well rested this week for the upcoming 17 miler, and (3) I've been through this before and know that missing one long run does not ruin a marathon. I simply cannot miss many more. Jeff surely has posted more miles than I have this week.

This week I travel for work so the mileage and the posts might be intermittent. Hopefully, Bubbles doesn't miss me too much and that I don't miss her too much. I plan to run the 17 miler on my trip as it will be in a much cooler climate. That will let me know what my body can do when it is cooler -- hopefully run faster!

Ran with Bubbles in the Chariot. It was great! I feel great.

Rest day.

Today's workout was 9 miles with 7 Yassos. Today's theme was run until you (almost) puke. By the 5th Yasso really  I thought I was going to lose it. But then, 6 and 7 were good and strong.

Jeff tried a new tactic today, he tried to distract me and keep me from finishing the last three miles of the workout. Nice try, but it didn't work. He's doing really well with the challenge. He's feeling fitter and able to ramp up his workouts. I am really proud of him. But I am also scared. He's really starting to put in the miles, and I have struggled the last couple of weeks.

I have a great sense of accomplishment for today's work. The Yassos are coming along nicely. In the beginning when 1 or 2 were hard, I couldn't imagine 7 or 10. In a couple of weeks, I'll be able to do 10 and predict my pace for Chicago. I started from pregnancy, and it is interesting watching the body get whipped back into shape.

The next few weeks are hugely important in the training for Chicago. It is important to train smart and stay tough, but not overtrain. I have to be patient and focus on the goal. Gradually, I will be come very fit again. The question is will it be in time for Chicago? If not, there are other races to attend in the future. That's the fun of it!

Pace run. Felt good. Long run tomorrow.

Ran 17. I ran strong even the last few miles. Mentally, it was a very tough run. I got started later than I wanted to but still in the cool of the morning (80 when I started and 89 when I finished with a heat index of 98). I was very thirsty from mile 6 forward. Thank God for the golf course I run around in miles 6.5-9.5. They have water set out for the golfers in coolers. I could have emptied one of those coolers (but didn't). I also had to stop by the fridge behind our local running store for more cold water. I drank 1.5 liters of water from my Camelbak with Sustained Energy in it (Hammer Nutrition), but it wasn't nearly enough. My shorts were soaked and dripping by mile two. My shoes were soaked and the water was spashing out the toes (and no I didn't run through any puddles or sprinklers) as I ran the last few miles. After drinking all that and a huge glass of ice water when I got home I was still down more than 2 pounds when I checked.

At mile 13, I saw a friend of mine, Swifty. She and I talked about how dehydrated I was. I told her next time I talked about doing a fall marathon to smack me in the head! It is simply too hot and too humid for me to put in this mileage. I don't know what I am going to do next week. I've got 18 on the schedule for my long run.

Rest

Rode 58 miles in the hills on my bike. My legs feel good. This ride really stretched my legs out. I need it for a big mileage week (for me) this week.

I was planning to run 5 but my husband and I decided it would not be a good idea for either of us to exercise. One of the air conditioners in the house went out so our house is about 83-85 degrees. Needless to say, it might be difficult to cool down after a workout.

Ran five on the treadmill today. Might run some more tonight after dark. We still only have one decrepit air conditioner. We are getting two new ones, one tomorrow and one as soon as they can schedule it. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!! We are having extreme heat here and breaking all the heat records. I picked a fine time to train for a marathon after my pregnancy! I have to focus on the goal -- finish Chicago!

Threshold run. Considering the heat, it was an amazing run. I am very happy with my progress. I spend a lot of time during these miles thinking about how grateful I am for people in my life. I am particularly grateful for the unwaivering support of my husband who puts up with all this running and makes sure my daughter has his undivided attention while I am running.

Our house was robbed yesterday, and I spent half the night talking to the police. Then we had a fit-full night sleep (<4hrs). I simply could not run this morning. All day I was planning to run tonight. Yeah, well right after dinner the adrenelin wore off. I am exhausted. Today was originally scheduled as a rest day but since I missed one earlier in the week I thought I might get it a quality run today. But I know at this stage, recovery and sleep are often as important as a quality run. Tomorrow is another day and Saturday is a long run.

I got up late and put in 4 miles. I am just happy I could run some today.

Pace run. I put off the 18 miler until tomorrow. I did a "proper" pace run today. I had less sleep than I wanted. Bubbles has a fever. We are taking her to her pediatrician today. He has Saturday hours, which is wonderful. Hopefully, we'll all be able to sleep tonight.

Thank God! After being up and down all night with Bubbles, I ran 18 and it went ok. Today's run was about determination. I was determined to run the entire run, even though I was tired and ran into a few problems. It was a bit cooler today than my 17 mile run last week, but still very hot and very humid. I started earlier for one thing. This caused my camelpak to stay frozen longer so I ran out of available water at mile 7 (I still had a frozen brick in the pack). Thank God for the golf course and our local running store. I refilled my pack twice during the run. Even if it had melted properly, I would have run out of water.

When I started running at 5am it didn't look like I was going to even make it a mile. Like I said, this run was about determination. I started running down my street and could feel that my lower back was very tight and hurt. It felt like it was about to go into spasm. My socks that I wear all the time were sliding off my heels (I have very small feet and the socks usually hang out the backs of my shoes, they are so big). They just didn't feel right. I took the time to try to reposition them and took that opportunity to stretch my back. It began to feel better after about 2 miles but hurt the entire run. At the end, it really seemed on the verge of a spasm. I ran very, very carefully the last few miles. The last few miles were strong, but the last miles those stupid socks were wrinkling at my heel. After so many miles I could hardly bend over to fix them. I am going to have to go back to the other socks I wore before, as these are not working right now.

I did 18! Now I have a recovery week and a long run of 20 the next week. Hopefully, it will continue to cool down. I am pleased that I hit over 40 miles again this week (Monday to Sunday so the blog calendar won't show the total).

Easy week. Fighting allergies.

With Bubbles. She was very happy!

Ran 5 and it felt good while I was running, then I got dizzy afterward. I have been sidelined with a sinus infection. What was allergies a couple of weeks ago sat in my sinuses and got infected. After the run this morning I took the antibiotic and got too busy to eat. BIG mistake. I have been horizontal all day except when I was praying to the porcelain god. Hopefully a good night's sleep will fix everything.

Pace run. Not as long as I wanted, but it will do. I wish I had read the comments on my blog before running. I might have taken the advice I was given!

Ran 3 by myself then did a ladder workout in the hills with Bubbles. That was a pretty killer workout. I ran with some friends. Since I have been training all summer by myself, it has been hard to gauge my fitness. It turns out I am fitter than I thought!

Pace run. Felt great when I started and then it deteriorated from there. I thought I might be hungry so I downed a gel at mile 3. I usually don't eat a gel on a 6 mile run, but I had a gut feeling (get it?) this morning that I might need it and tucked it under my shoulder strap before I left. I had trouble eating yesterday. Mostly, I was full of water and juice from rehydrating after my run so I was pretty full at dinner and didn't eat much. But I think the real issue this morning was I was still dehydrated from last evening's run. Anyway, I got it in.

Six miles feels like nothing now. I remember earlier this year when I was wondering how I was going to run 15 miles much less 20. Now on my low weeks 12 or 15 miles seems like a walk in the park! Isn't the human body amazing?!? I've got a long run this weekend. 20 miles.