Lulu's Challenge... rise from the ashes

Rest day. Hopefully Jeff is resting too.

Three miles today. This is a recovery week. But I can't record it! Jeff decided that we need to start on Sunday July 15th. So here is a little background on the situation:

I met Jeff on my first day of work over 8 years ago. He's been one of my best friends ever since. He showed up at my office pushing one of his colleagues in her office chair! They were so excited that someone close to their age had been hired. Jeff fixed my computer that day and invited me to lunch with some folks. We've been great friends ever since. He even traveled more than 1400 miles to attend my wedding. Jeff and I have many common interests. We spend time talking about good nutrition and anything related to that. We also spend a lot of time trying to figure out why people we know act the way they do, and then we end up in philisophical discussions on the nature of people. He also spends a lot of time telling me that I am addicted to chocolate! Yeah, but it is really GOOD chocolate.

Jeff thinks I am crazy. He doesn't see how anyone can run as much as I do. He and my husband spend some of  their time together discussing how crazy Lulu is! Jeff exercises, but not super consistently, I think. He needed some motivation. He needed a challenge. I needed to know that I had to complete my scheduled runs. I am training for Chicago marathon in October. I will also be cycling a metric century race the week before and the week after the marathon. I need to be fit!

So here's how the challenge went down. Jeff and I met for lunch last Friday. I handed him a postcard that read "You suck, Love, Lulu" on one side. On the other side, I wrote up the challenge. Whoever gets to 750 miles (probably around Jan 15, 2008) first wins. We haven't come up with a prize yet, but it will probably be dinner or a gift certificate to the local running apparel and shoes store. The catch is I have to run all the miles I log. Jeff can cover them by walking or cycling. My cycling won't count.

Jeff thought about the challenge over the weekend and has officially accepted. I've told him that he "sucks." He knows it. Actually, what he really needs is encouragement to beat me! So please get on the blog and comment to encourage him. He is supposed to set up his own blog, and we will figure out how to link them here.

Let the challenge begin July 15, 2007!

Ran 6.5 miles this morning (not in the mileage field because the challenge hasn't started yet). It was difficult to do the whole run, and it was not because it was 5am and hot and humid. I found out why when I got home and weighed myself. I lost more than 3 pounds during the run. I usually weigh myself before and after runs to determine how much I need to replenish. >3 pounds is excessive and accounts for how I felt. I will spend today rehydrating for tomorrow.

Jeff is getting excited about the challenge.

4 days until the challenge officially starts!

Ran 4 miles on a 4.3 mile course. The last 0.3 miles I often cool down and do plyometrics. This is a recovery week so it was an easy run. I lost about 2.5 pounds during this run, but felt ok. The water is just pouring off of me when I am out there and when I get home. This is what they mean when they say it is the dog days of summer.

I now have two things to think about when I run: the marathon I am training for (Chicago) and the Challenge. Today I spent most of the run thinking about the marathon which is less than three months away. I wonder how fit I will be as there are so many variables. I didn't think much about the challenge, even though it is less than 3 days away!

3 days until Lulu and Jeff's Friendly Fitness Challenge Starts!

Got my Nike + Ipod kit today. It is very cool all the stuff that little device will do. I also got a new camelbak. Jeff is going to feel like he has a mountain to climb when he starts seeing my mileage entries.

Today is a rest day. If Jeff does any walking or biking today, he will be ahead.

Ran 4.3 miles with some plyometrics (skipping, bounding etc). Last week's recovery schedule did the job for my legs. They feel good. It is good to start the challenge when my legs aren't "trashed"! Watch out Jeff!

Running plans for the rest of the week (so Jeff knows what to expect):

1 easy day: this week there is 4 miles scheduled. This day is fexible but probably will be Tuesday.

Wednesday: 8 miles with 6 Yassos. What are Yassos? Well, I love these things - maybe not when I am doing them, but the results are amazing. Bart Yasso came up with this idea a number of years ago that if you take your goal marathon time in hours and minutes (say 4 hours, no minutes - 4:00:00), and convert it directly to minutes and seconds (so it would be 4 minutes, no seconds - 4:00) and use that to run 800m intervals (so 1 800 in 4:00) and you do 10 of these with an equal rest interval (4:00) three weeks or so before your marathon, that it is a strong predictor of your actual marathon time. I have successfully used these in the past, and I say he is right! Incidentally, I ran my second fastest marathon (fastest in the last 18 years) at Houston in 2005 after doing these Yassos and the modified Higdon workouts described below. Yeah, so what you say? I had appendicitis during that marathon! I had emergency surgery soon after. Ok about the Yassos: I take it a bit further in that about two months ago, I started with 1 800m interval and have now built to six. These make for a tough workout, but the results are going to be there for me in Chicago in October. In mid September, I will be able to do ten 800m intervals with appropriate rest within a 10 mile run. This will predict my marathon finish time, very accurately.

Thursday: rest or cross train.

Friday: 8 mile pace run. A run at marathon pace.

Saturday: 14 miles with the first 10 about a minute slower than planned marathon pace and the last 4 miles close to marathon pace if I feel good. This long run following the "pace run" the day before is following methods set by Hal Higdon. I believe the idea is to get the body to run 20+ miles within 24 hours to properly teach the body to run when it is tired. It works!

I'll probably ride my bike in the hills on Sunday which provides me a great recovery but doesn't count for the challenge.

So I talked with Jeff on the phone today and he reported that he had biked 4.3 miles! I thought "Wow, what a coincidence! We did the same mileage today." Oh no, that was for yesterday. And, he had already done some biking today and would probably do some more tonight. This challenge has certainly ensured that I get out of bed in the morning and put in the miles. This morning I really thought about changing my alarm and running this evening. But, I thought, what happens if there is an afternoon storm with lightning? I'll run when it is pouring rain, but I don't run in lightning. So I dragged myself out of bed and ran. Thanks Jeff!

Ran 4.5 this morning. Calibrated my Nike+ shoe pod. This device is very cool. I won't have to wear a watch when I have my Ipod with me. The shoe doodad communicates with my Ipod and shows me how far I have gone and my pace. I was thinking about getting a GPS and now I don't have to. Best $30 my Mom has spent on running gear for me (B'day present).

I must be getting used to the heat and humidity finally. I am still losing a couple of pounds per run but not as bad. Also I am getting used to the TICKLE of all that sweat running off of all parts of me.

6 Yassos (800 m) within a 8 mile run. These 6 seemed easier than when I had to do 4. Last one was one of the fastest.

I almost put these off until the evening. I woke up and turned on the weather channel to see if I would be promised good weather later in the day. No promises of good weather so I dragged myself out there. I knew that Jeff was potentially ahead of me in mileage so I got it done. I am glad. 

Today is a rest day.

Ran a 6 mile pace run this morning. I was supposed to run 8 but I started too late. I had time run 7 but I chose to run 6. I will try to do two more tonight. I figured I had a higher chance of going out and running two miles tonight than one. That's why I ran 6 instead of 7. We'll see. Maybe I will decide six is good enough. Tomorrow is my long run -- 14 miles. My legs feel great. Recovery week last week did the job. It is amazing how much fitness I gain during a recovery week.

Ran 14 miles this morning. I felt great until the last half mile. It was a bit of a struggle but it wasn't anything that a little bit of concentration couldn't overcome. I am gaining fitness.

I never ran the last two from yesterday. I didn't feel that great.

Rode my bike about 38 miles in the hills today. This is a great way for me to recover from a long run. About 7 miles into the ride, I was ready to hammer, and I did! Legs feel great. Looking forward to this week's training. I know this mileage doesn't count for the challenge. But it is fun anyway!

I had 4 miles on my schedule, but this turned out to be a rest day. Bubbles (my daughter) was running a fever, and I had a major headache.

Ran 4.3. Well, I really ran 4 miles and did 0.3 miles of plyometrics. The plyometrics are getting easier. Tomorrow I am supposed to run 7 Yassos during an 8 mile run. I should feel good enough. I could not have done them this morning. By the end of today's run, my legs felt much better. I had some sore places. Friday is a pace run and Saturday I run 15 miles.

This morning's workout was supposed to be 8 miles with 7 Yassos (800m repeats). Obviously, that did not happen. In the first mile it was very apparent that the Yassos were not going to happen. I was very hungry. So I immediately abandoned the idea of the 800m repeats and thought I would do some "quality" miles and still run the full 8 miles. As the run continued, I got hungrier. I normally will eat something right before I run, but I was running a few minutes late this morning and wanted to get in all 7 Yassos and all 8 miles. Also, the speed of the Yassos tend to make me queasy if I eat too much before or eat between the repeats. For me, nutrition is a huge part of my running. My metabolism is so fast I have to eat before almost any run and also during any run over 6 or 7 miles. I should have known there was no way what I tried to do this morning was going to work.

At the 4 mile turn-around point I felt okay. By 5.2 miles I was suffering and dizzy. I had already figured out that I also probably did not eat enough yesterday (duh!). I ran to 6 miles and cut the course short and walked home. I drank a recovery drink and felt fine. I usually don't run without breakfast, much less 8 miles with speed work. Lesson learned.

I will probably move my pace run to tomorrow morning. I normally do it on Friday, the day before my long run. However, Friday I have to fast after 9:30pm Thursday for a nutrition study in which I am participating. I know that after today trying to run a pace run with no breakfast would be a disaster. Also afterward, without being able to refuel, I would probably take someone's head off! The 15 miler the next day would suffer. I really did learn something this morning!

BONK!

I don't have much to say. I need to eat more today and tomorrow. I was supposed to run 8. I had to cut the course short and walk home. I thought I ate well yesterday, but I realize now I should have eaten more. I was quite distracted as someone stole my bank card number and cleaned out my checking account yesterday. That made my adrenaline run all day.

Tomorrow is another day. I need to prepare carefully for 15 Saturday.

Ran four mile pace run this morning. Considering that I fasted for a nutrition study overnight (so no breakfast before the run) and my previous two days' bonks, I ran well. However, I am considering doing an eight mile pace run tomorrow and save the 15 miler for Sunday. Our church has a service Saturday evening so running Sunday morning, I won't miss anything. Several reasons for this change: I have to be home early tomorrow so my husband can leave the house by 8am, make sure my nutrient stores are right after bonking twice this week and then fasting for about 16 hours for the nutrition study, and this would give me the correct distance pace run before the 15 miler to maximize the training affect.

Finally back on track! Pace run today felt great. I was a bit thirsty at the end. Will run 15 tomorrow.

I was planning to run 15 this morning but didn't. Bubbles is still quite sick and needed her Mommy. Also, my throat felt a little funny early this morning and then fine a couple of hours later. I sat funny reading the paper last night, as my husband pointed out when I was doing it. He said "Honey, does your back hurt?" I said, "no, why?" Then he pointed out that he thought I was sitting like it hurt. Yeah, well my sciatic hurt when I got up. My piriformis was very tight and it affected my whole left leg. I used my electrostim machine and soaked in Epsom salts and felt better. It was still a little tingling this morning. All reasons not to run a big run. My body was talking to me and I listened.

I will adjust the schedule this week based on all the weird stuff that happened this last week. The changes and today's rest should make for a good week of training.

Ran 4.3 easy with Bubbles in her Chariot this evening. It is easy to run a nice mellow workout with her. It does require a bit of extra work on the part of my hamstrings, but her company is nice. No Ipod, no watch, just Bubbles, the Chariot, and me. Usually she falls asleep somewhere between the first and second mile and at some point I realize I have been chatting with a sleeping baby for the last half mile :-). Today, I finally bamboozled her at about 3 miles. She is still quite sick, but I think the fresh air was good for her. She was very happy when we finished. Tomorrow, we see the doc to make sure it is just a stomach virus that has been hanging on for more than a week.  Anyway, this run felt GREAT!

This week I have 7 Yassos, a five or six mile pace run and the 15 mile run I was suppposed to run last weekend. I hope it is enough to stay ahead of Jeff. He's really starting to put in the miles.

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.

Lesson for today: Lulu cannot run long distances on a nutritional deficit. 

Lesson for today: Two days of nutritional deficit cannot be made up in one day. See Saturday's entry.

No long run this weekend. I am having trouble eating enough. I lost two pounds this week -- which is entirely too much. At this point in my training I usually lose a little bit which puts me at "race weight" by race day. However, I cannot keep this up, as I am nearly there and have too much time before the race. In my efforts to try to hydrate properly, adequate stomach space for food has been limited. It sucks! I've had this problem before. I know a bunch of people would kill for this problem, but it is affecting my training.

Rest and eat (and hydrate).

Feeling good.

Pace run at Bubble's grandparents house. Finally some cooler weather! I feel like I can fly!

12 mile easy run at the beach. Wow, I wish I had a 20 miler scheduled this week! Cooler weather + low humidity = great run! This is a confidence booster that I needed. My husband has been telling me, "Honey, it really hot and humid. You'll be great on marathon day." I am starting to believe it. I did choose to train for a marathon from zero fitness (post baby) in the hottest summer on record in Louisiana. I feel pretty fit. I am still not sure what pace I will run on October 7th even though I have logged a lot of "marathon pace" miles. I will do 10 Yassos Tuesday to gauge my fitness. 

Cool weather = Good running! Even at 9:30 at night. Sometimes I have to fit the runs in when I can.

Late at night again!

Back to running in the hot weather. But it is ok. I'm getting fitter.

Pace run.

GOD SMILED ON ME TODAY! All last week I prayed that God would send a cold front for my 20 miler, and he did! Three days of predicted cool weather, yesterday, today and tomorrow morning. Today was to be the coolest of the three. I ran 20 high quality miles today. The only struggle was at the end, but I remained focused and concentrated, and I didn't even slow down. A couple of friends met me and ran the last five miles with me. That was unbelievably helpful. I have run all my long runs by myself (by choice) to make me mentally strong for marathon day. But today, I needed their company. They are just starting back to running so it was a good workout for them, and they were happy with the pace. I ran negative splits by minutes and finished the run more than 15 minutes faster than my last 18 mile run (in August). I really needed this solid run for my confidence. My wonderful, non-runner husband has been telling me that my training was going very well and that I needed to account for the heat and humidity. I spend a lot of time in my life telling him he is right about many things (and I don't mind). Again, he was right. I am very grateful for him and his support.

My legs felt great the entire run. I just felt a bit queasy the last five miles, but my form was good. I drank a large cup of water when I met my friends at mile 15. I was thirsty, and I thought I would only pay for it for a mile or so. In fact, I told them I would have a stomach ache for the next mile but that I can run with a stomach ache as I ran the last 18 miles of a marathon with appendicitis a couple of years ago. I stayed nauseous for most of the last few miles and for the next few hours after the run. I forced myself to drink my recovery drink and water. I couldn't eat for about 4.5 hours afterward. After a 50 minute nap and some stretching before and after, I now feel great! I don't even feel like I ran 20 miles this morning.

My 20 day taper begins now! I always celebrate the taper. So let the celebration begin!!

Ladder workout 400, 200 100 (x2) with equal recovery. Half in hills on streets, half on hills on golf course. We really worked the hills. Great shake out workout. I used different muscle fibers than yesterday so I felt great at the end of the workout. A couple of years ago I would have never tried to do any type of speed work the day after a long run.

Easy five miler. I couldn't help but feel like I was flying. Here's the problem. This was supposed to be an easy run. (I know, I know, Sasha is going to get after me for not running an easy run, easy. -- Well it seemed easy until I down loaded the data when I got home!). The last four miles were at a pace I would be happy with for my marathon. At this point, I am not even sure how fast I am going to run on October 7th. I have to talk to my coach and do a couple of tests to see what this body will let me do. I just want to run negative splits. Sigh.

Ran every other 200 hard and kept recovery hard enough so that the entrire miles' time under marathon pace.

Pace run. Felt good.

Nice, relatively easy run. Today was a run to get rid of this massive tension headache I have because of the garbage going on at work. Started slow and got faster. I got quite hot at the end and ran out of water so I slogged the last two miles.

Sick. Bubbles had it Friday night, and I got it last night. Joy. If she felt as bad as I do right now, she is one tough baby! Good news is that I know from her experience that it will only last 24 hours.

Had four miles on the schedule but for some reason I got it in my head I had to run five. Well I ran three with Bubbles. At mile 2.5 she decided we were done. I can't remember the last time she did that as she normally loves the stroller. Well, when she complains, which she rarely does about anything, I take it very seriously. Fortunately we were on a course that never takes me more than 0.5 miles from home. We went right home. She seemed fine when I got home, until later. Then I think she had a tummy ache. Thank God for gas drops!

Ran six tonight with Bubbles. Tonight she was quite content. I am happy with the run as I ran well and had negative splits and kept MP+15sec with the stroller with not much effort. I do love the taper, but am now realizing how much of my stress I was burning during my running. My stress levels have radically increased the last week and a half. Part of the reason is my "situation" at work is getting much worse. I really felt the stress tonight in my arms and shoulders. I left a lot of thoughts about the garbage at work on the road tonight. I just have to remember that is where it is, not in my brain anymore.

Someone else on the blog (or maybe the forum) mentioned that body parts start to hurt during the taper that never did before. Well that is happening to me. Soleus in my right calf decided to let me know it was there the past few days. I've been stretching. Lately, I've been cautious about peroneus tightness on the outside of that calf, but never soleus. The tightness is peroneus was discovered by the massage therapist, so I have been stretching and making sure I run on both sides of banked streets. I see the massage therapist tomorrow.

One of my dogs is very sick. I only had 4 miles on the schedule but I had to run 6 to process everything. I told myself I could cry during the first mile but after that it would not be productive. The rest of the run was very cathartic. Too bad I am tapering.

Today, life got in the way of running. The greyhound died today. He was 13.5 years old. It was bone cancer so we knew he wasn't going to make it and got to say goodbye. I draw a lot of comfort from the fact that we know he had a very good life the short time he was with us. He was a Hurricane Katrina evacuee who never left our home. He couldn't go home, as he was not well taken care of before the storm. We honestly didn't think he and his friend would survive the first night at our house, they were in such bad shape. We gave him just over two very good years of life. I will miss him. The other dogs (and there are three of them) are being very affectionate, so I am not sure what they think. One, I call The Comforter since he has been very comforting when I have been very, very sad. He seems to know when I need an extra nuzzle. He seems to know that now.

Metric century bike ride is tomorrow.

Bubbles decided last night that I wasn't going to my ride. Not really, but she had a tummy ache. At 1am when I realized I hadn't gotten any sleep and I was still up with her, I knew there would be no ride. It wasn't worth the physiological stress on my body and also the risk of driving before and after the race tired. I have gotten little sleep the last three nights.

4.15 miles. Negative splits. My body is going crazy from inactivity. My head is telling me to eat food that is bad for me. My body hurts in places it has never hurt. I feel a bit better after this morning's run. But, I am going to run some more tonight to see if I can get myself straightened out. Last week's mileage was pathetic even for a taper. Now I am just trying to see if I can get my body back on track. The fitness has been deposited and is in the bank. Now I need to remind my body that it is in shape to run a marathon. I am going to run a bit higher mileage than I planned until Thursday and then back off. I think that should fix the problem.

The weather in Chicago is predicted to go from a high of 85 on Saturday to a low in the 40's on Sunday (race day). Crazy. It seems like it will likely be windy. Fortunately, I am small enough to tuck in behind someone and draft (does that happen in running?). I am very good at drafting in cycling, so some of those skills should translate. I am not worried about it being warm on race day. I have trained in hot, humid conditions, so I am ready for that. I do very well running in cold weather, so I am ready for that too. I'll bring clothes for both scenarios.

Ran just over 4 tonight with the running group I have been running with for years. I didn't run with them this summer most of the time as I wanted to run alone and get more mentally strong for my marathon. I think my body is remembering it is marathon fit. Weird. This has never happened in a taper before. However, usually by this time, I really need to heal. This time, I started the taper with no aches or little pains. Yea!

Ran with Bubbles this evening. We had a great time. I love running with her even though it is more of an effort. I feel strong when I have to push her, and I know she enjoys the runs. She was climbing into the Chariot yesterday as I was getting ready to go.

I ran into my coach; so that was nice to see her. I actually ran with her yesterday, but anytime I get to talk to her, I enjoy it. Chiro had to pop my sacrum today and yesterday. I feel better tonight but I am about to hit the Jacuzzi tub and then ice it just to be sure.

Alright if anyone is reading this, I have an announcement to make:

I have created a special e-mail account so that I can communicate directly with anyone reading this blog. It is:

fastrunninglulu@gmail.com

Why? Because I feel like I may be perceived as a snot for not posting times and other potentially identifiable information. If you are active on the blog and send me an e-mail, I will reply and answer questions. I just ask that you never identify me, where I live, my times, or what I do for a living on this blog. I need to continue to have an anonymous presence here. I've posted this before but the reason is that I have someone in my life that pays an inordinate and inappropriate amount of attention to me, and I cannot underestimate his level of psychosis. Also, I don't need anyone else filling that role in my life either. 

I realized this morning that I am supposed to run a marathon in 2 days, 21 hours, 20 minutes!! I leave for Chicago tomorrow! I lost track of days this week and now it is Thursday. I'm off to get Bubbles packed and to pack for myself. Fortunately, my husband can pack his own stuff!

Both Bubbles and my husband have the Crud! I am praying I don't get it. Sasha has his garlic that he hits hard; I have my grapefruit seed extract!

I just received a weather advisory e-mail from the folks at Chicago marathon. It is going to be HOT and humid! I imagine that other entrants are in a dither. Well, this good ol' girl from Louisiana isn't sweating. I've been training in warm soup all summer. Their idea of hot and humid is relatively cool for me. I prefer it to be 40-50 at race start, but I only anticipate adjusting my pace 5 seconds per mile or so (if you want to know what that pace is email me at fastrunninglulu@gmail.com). I certainly know my hydration technique as I have practiced it over and over throughout this summer. Actually, I am almost giddy about how hot it is going to be because I know what to expect from my body.

Will post more about the run this afternoon with Bubbles.

Six miles with Bubbles and a friend who is running Chicago also. We didn't train together because I am faster than he is. We are going to meet at the start line hopefully. Ran with my running group and got lots of well-wishes. Several people have called tonight or emailed to wish me well. My plan is to run negative splits but not go for the gusto. I got into Houston for January so I will continue the training.

Good luck to all the folks running St. George! I will be thinking of you. Good luck to the few Bloggers who are doing Chicago! This is my last post until I come home. I expect to read race reports with many OT qualifying times!

Marathon pace. (Since I am writing this on Monday -- Yeah, RIGHT!)

CRAZINESS! I've done some crazy backwoods, disorganized races. This one takes the cake for survivorship mentality and overall unbelievableness (is that a word?). 

I am not even sure where to start on this story; I hope I can make it make sense. This is by far, the most bizarre marathon experience I have ever had! If you want to read the experience of other runners, check out the comments on www.marathonguide.com.

For my faithful readers, you know that I trained in super-hot, humid conditions this summer to get ready for the Chicago Marathon. I learned a lot through that training. It turns out what I thought I was learning, mental toughness etc, wasn’t as important as some very important knowledge of my own physiology that I gained when I wasn’t paying particularly close attention to those things.

A week before the marathon, the weather was predicted to be warm. The Thursday before the marathon we received an e-mail with a weather advisory. I was not particularly concerned about the weather and decided to adjust my pace to be 5-10 sec per mile slower than I had originally planned on running, especially since I planned to run slower than I believed my current fitness allowed.

I ran about a half mile to warm up and waited at the start line. It was warm and seemed warmer because of all the bodies. Within the first mile of the race, we ran through a long tunnel that felt like an oven! I really felt like I was running slowly, but was only 5 sec slower than revised pace. It turns out, that would be my fastest mile of the day. By mile two, I was completely soaked with sweat and listening to my body, I slowed down.

I skipped the first two water stops because I was wearing a Camel-Bak with Sustained Energy, a couple of Hammer Gels, and Endurolytes in it. I couldn’t figure out why people were leaving the course in Lincoln Park. I realized later that they were getting water from the fountains! There was no water at the water stations. After mile six, I had to start walking through the water stations because there were so many slippery, waxy cups on the ground. My pace slowed even more whenever we lost the shade from the buildings and were in full sunlight. The wonderful spectators had their hoses out spraying runners. I got the chills at mile 8 and started working on that problem by eating one Sport Bean and drinking more water. I stopped looking at my watch and the course clocks before mile 10. Just after mile 10, I saw a friend at a water station, and he and I ran walked together. We saw a bank (completely in the shade of buildings) that had a temp reading of 80 degrees and it wasn’t even 10 am yet! He and I ran and walked through the water stations so we didn’t slip. I let him go at the half marathon point because I slowed to call my husband who was to meet me at mile 23 with Bubbles, a cousin, and cousin’s wife. I told him it was going slow, very slow. I was listening to my body and consuming a lot of water (and Sport Beans). At this point, I stopped counting ambulances taking people from the course at 25 ambulances!

At the water stations after mile 14 and 16 the fun began! At first of these two water stations, there were two tables that still had water, each with one 2.5 gallon water container. Volunteers were pouring it into cups that runners had. There was not one clean cup in sight. I opened my bladder on my Camel-Bak for a little splash and came up to one of the tables. A woman was just standing there yelling at the two volunteers with the water “only half way, fill those cups only half way!!” The volunteers were not listening; they were filling cups as fast as they could. When I put the bladder over the table for a bit of water saying “just a couple splashes”, she said “no way!” I said, “Why don’t you SHUT UP and go find some more water” as the volunteers added some water to my pack! Shortly after this, I saw an American Red Cross Disaster Services vehicle. I thought, “Hhhmmm, I haven’t seen one of those since Katrina.” This was not boding well.

At mile 16, there was no water to be seen. The spectators had gotten cases of water and handing them out – they were getting mobbed by grateful runners. Spectators had also bought bags of ice and were handing those out. I grabbed some ice and stuffed it down my bra-top and showed a few other women what to do. It really helped cool my core as I was really over-heated at this point. Many of those women thanked me a couple of miles later, remarking how much better they felt. While the ice melted, I fished small pieces out and ate them. At some point, a woman was handing out cold apples. I took one and ate it! It tasted phenomenal! The spectators turned out to be the heroes of this marathon!

Every few miles, I was able to replenish my ice cache thanks to thoughtful spectators. At this point, I formed an alliance with a woman named Stacy. She and I helped each other procure water, ice, cold grapes etc. We also watched out for each other and made sure the other person was ok. At mile 18 Stacy and I were told by numerous police officers and race officials that we had to walk. We were mostly walking anyway, but we found that request bizarre! In fact, when we did start running, we got screamed at over the bullhorn by the cops.

Now what I am about to write, I would not believe if it didn’t happen to me! At mile 19, I began to hear announcements that the race had been CANCELLED! WHAT?!!? I laughed. I have never been part of an event where they just cancelled it in the middle of everything. Between 19 and 20, the scene was just too bizarre. A cop stood in front of us and told a big group of us that we had to stop. WHAT? We were all doing just fine (thanks to the spectators and a little teamwork). The cop said, “Go down this side road (pointing) and buses will pick you up.” I said, “Really? I don’t see any buses. Do you see any buses?” The people around me said “what buses?” The cop said “They will come and get you.” I told him “Sir, with all due respect, but this Louisiana Girl is not going down that street and getting on a bus that she can’t see!” He looked at me strangely. I said one word “Katrina.” He motioned in the direction of the course and said “onward.” We all moved forward on the course.

There were no buses at that point, but I was soon about to see a bus in a big way. I called my husband and told him that we had been told to walk and also what happened with the cop. He said, “Of course there are no buses there. They are all right here. They are lined up and drivers are in them.” I get off the phone with him to see a bus -- a bus pulling across the course blocking the road. I couldn’t believe it! They blocked the course with a yellow school bus! I decided I was not getting on that bus (which turned out to be a good decision – more later) and that I was going around it. Then the CFD turned on a water cannon. No lie. This was not a spray in an arch over the road as I saw on other parts of the course.  This was a very large stream of water about 2 or 3 feet off the ground designed to be a road block. If I had gone through that water I would have been knocked off my feet! I scurried around the water before it got going full blast and around the bus! Then I turned and saw that Stacy had followed me. I told her, “I am finishing this thing!” Really in my mind I was thinking “Louisiana runner gets arrested trying to finish Chicago Marathon.” I think this happened around mile 20. The next couple miles were relatively quiet except for the cops on the bullhorns telling us to walk and that the race was cancelled. I think I had been smiling for 3 or 4 miles – I was having a great time! What an adventure! However, it was sad to see all the people lying on the side of the road, cramping, vomiting, and crying. Also, when we did see buses again people were being stuffed into them and hanging out of the windows. Someone told me later they were on a bus where two people had seizures because it was so hot. You couldn’t have paid me to get on an un-air-conditioned bus with all those hot people.

I couldn’t wait to see my husband and Bubbles. He told me they were waiting (and waiting and waiting) at mile 23. It turns out he was in mile 24. He was on a portion of the course where it turned. I could see him in the distance holding Bubbles above his head. She was smiling and waving like crazy at all the runners! He had her onesie pulled down to her waist and the first thing I thought was “my child is naked in public!” I didn’t say anything – He’s an extremely good dad and he knew just what to do to keep her comfortable. I was so happy to see all of them. I was happy to see Bubbles having such a great time. I quickly kissed and hugged everyone (cousin, wife, husband and Bubbles), but Bubbles hugged me so hard she wouldn’t let go! I didn’t want to go.

When I left them, all I wanted to do was run and run fast. I was so pumped. Also, at this point it felt much better to run than to walk as I had trained to run the distance – not walk. Stacy and I found a HUGE chunk of ice in the road. I picked it up and gave it to her and she stuffed it in her shirt. She looked like she had a giant tumor. We decided to run for a bit. She had to hold the ice block while she ran. After a while she gave it to me and I stuffed it and held it. We traded this ice back and forth for a mile or so. We were a sight to see! We were able to run most of the last 2.2 miles. I finished the race more than 1.5 hours later than I had planned! It is a Personal Worst (PW), but one I will savor. I saw the city in a new light, and I believe the citizens of Chicago are some of the best people anywhere.

At the finish line people were still dropping like flies. AND, there was tons of WATER! No ice, but lots of water. The race director did not lie when he told the press that the race had plenty of water. It simply wasn’t distributed correctly. I walked through the finishing chute, found my husband, and we walked about 1 mile to the car where his cousin picked us up. Bubbles couldn’t stop touching me. I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing at the whole thing!

Some final thoughts:

Many of the “finishers” (24,000 of the original 45,000 signed up) were people who were brought back to the finish line but didn’t do the whole course. Somewhere around mile 22 race officials were telling people if they got on a bus, they would be brought to the finish and still get a medal. I wouldn’t have taken the medal, but do not fault the people who did.

Someone I know (who is faster than me) got taken off the course at the halfway point and told to make her way to the finish. She estimates she covered 20-22 miles because she never saw a bus and had to walk back to Grant Park. She DNFed. I am very sad for her.

I thought about DNFing at mile 10. At this point I still had the chills. I thought, “This isn’t worth the physiological stress and the wear on my legs.” Then I realized I could keep ignoring the clock and see the city, make the most of the situation, and be smart about it and maybe learn something. I got rid of the chills soon after and was set on finishing even though I knew it was going to be a PW. I learned a lot that day about managing my physiology and correcting those problems. I am proud to say that I “participated in” and completed the 2007 Chicago Marathon!

Shake out miles after my "little race" on Sunday. I intended to walk much of it, but running in the first mile hurt less than walking so I ran. Picked up the pace the last 3.5 miles and they were like a normal easy training run. Now I feel great. I am not surprised that it was easier to run than walk since I unintentionally walked so much on Sunday. That walking I was not trained for. Maybe I should have run yesterday too.

with Bubbles :-)

With Bubbles :-)

Needed to get some stress out from my job so I ran hard tonight. It felt great.

Tempo run with my running group. It is good to be back among friends.

Metric century bike ride today. My glutes definitely felt the hills. I am extremely tired. I was supposed to ride with a women's team but it got split up, and I ended up expending 30% more energy than planned as I didn't draft off anyone. Very tough ride, especially since I would have rather been home with Honey (my husband) and Bubbles. My heart wasn't in it today. I said I would show up so I did. Now I can go back to running!

with Bubbles.

I hate to write a goose egg in the miles square! I was set to go, and right before I went out the door, I called my sister-in-law about photos we had taken of Bubbles. It was good I called her. I found out she just went through her second miscarriage. We talked a long time. She and I have always been very close and have gotten closer since we have both had miscarriages. She draws a lot of comfort from me. We talked until after 10pm. There was NO WAY I was going to tell her I had to get off the phone so I could run. That, I don't feel guilty about.

We talked about how often when horrible stuff happens God has a reason but we often don't get to find out why. In her case, we don't know why. In mine, I know some of the reasons which is very comforting. One is that I have been able to comfort many people who have since had miscarriages. Another is I was driven to visit "my peeps" (family) afterwards, and I got to say goodbye to a terminally ill family member before they died. I also learned that people say really, really idiotic things to people when they are suffering. But I also learned to recognize that they don't realize it and that they really love and care for me and don't realize what they say hurts. Enough of this depressing stuff; I am going to bed.

Wow, these miles were hard. I am not sure if it is because I didn't run yesterday or residual from the marathon. This run sucked. I had to force myself to complete even those miles. I wanted to do more, but didn't have it in me. Tomorrow will be better. I called my sister-in-law to find out about her day. We had a great talk. She had a rough day; tomorrow will be better we decided.

With Bubbles. It took me 3.5 miles to get into my rhythm. It is hot again so I think that's why the running this week has been a struggle. It is supposed to cool down tomorrow.

Breakfast run at my house. About 50 runners descended on my house this morning. We ran then had breakfast afterward. I wonder what my neighbors thought when they woke up to a street full of cars and people spilling out of my house.

Nike+ Women's Virtual Half Marathon. 9:15 pace for the run. I am pretty happy with that since I ran it as a workout and it is two weeks post-Chicago debacle. In 6 weeks I hope to be running 45 sec faster pace.

Ran in the rain tonight. I had to wait until Bubbles was in bed to get outside. I LOVE to run in the rain. In the middle of the run it started raining very hard; the water was pouring off the front of my hat in a sheet. It hurt a bit when it hit my shoulders. The streets were flooded so my feet were soaked and heavy. My husband calls me a duck because sometimes I wait until it is really raining hard to go run. I had to run a bit faster tonight than I wanted as the wind came up about 2 miles into the run, and I ran faster so I wouldn't get cold. So I would call these miles somewhere between easy and marathon pace. After a couple of weeks of warm weather, this storm is supposed to bring in a cold front (low 47 deg on Friday, you people from the frozen Nawth don't laugh). I always get speedier when it cools down. I run much better in cold weather.

Windy, but fun.

AAAHHHH! Something is happening to me! It is Sasha's and the rest of you bloggers' fault. Including you, Jeff! I came home from today's run, and it was business as usual. EXCEPT normally I am single-minded about getting my recovery drink in me for any run over 6 miles. Today, I didn't even think about it until now, which is several hours later! Same thing happened with last night's 7+ mile run, and I didn't die today. Since when is an 8 mile run NO BIG DEAL?!?!? Apparently now. So I have achieved enough fitness that I can run long one day and run again the next. I can run 8 miles without thinking I am going to die after unless I have my carb/protein drink!!

Thank you, all.

With Bubbles. I dressed Bubbles as Tigger, and we ran over to a place where businesses and organizations were having a Trick or Treat. They close the road, and there are tons of kids. I thought she might like to see all the kids in their costumes; there were a lot of very cool ones. I had a course planned that was three miles there and then three home again. Well she slept through her first Trick or Treat. She was extremely tired. We didn't want any candy anyway since nobody in my house really eats it. It is definitely an event we will go to next year when this craziness means more to her.

It was extremely windy. This run was supposed to be an "easy" run but I was really struggling to push the Chariot at some points and then really struggling to stay with the Chariot when the wind was at my back.

Ran with my running group and Bubbles. I didn't have to push her the entire time as a couple of people tried pushing her. They quickly learned that it requires some hamstring strength! I have no idea what my pace was since I haven't downloaded the data yet. It felt easy.

with Bubbles.

Set out to do an easy six miles. Felt light on my feet and ran just over 7. Latest run I've done in a while. Bubbles went to bed pretty late so I started running at 9:30pm! I was tired when I started and just felt better and better.

Three mile warm up PMP+45sec. Three mile tempo run PMP-45sec. Two mile cool down. I am very happy with the run. I really had to push the last mile of the tempo. I was quite thirsty the last 1.5 miles. It is back in the 80s again.

Easy run at PMP +1:30. Got to go. Bubbles woke up.

Warm up 2 miles. 12 x 400m up and down a hill. We run 200 m up the hill and then down the otherside and turn around and do it again. Cool down 2 miles. With Bubbles! My coach saved me and did the last 6 quarters with Bubbles. So really it is only 5.62. miles with Bubbles. After the first 6 quarters I was wondering how I was going to do 6 more. I was thinking that I would just take them two at a time and try to get it done when she took Bubbles. It was interesting to watch her push the Chariot up the hills; she really looked like she was working! I guess that's what I look like all the time. Of course, I felt like I was flying after she took the stroller.

My coach was an elite runner in the 80s (OT participant) and she's still pretty speedy. She seemed pretty delighted with the workout she got in the hills today. I was so grateful she took her! Bubbles was sleeping but woke up in the middle of her ride with the coach. I'm sure she felt like she was going faster and wanted to see what was going on. We joked that the G-forces woke her up.

With the time change I am not sure how much I'll be able to run with my group. We run on some busy roads, and even though I light myself and the Chariot up like a Christmas tree, I still get uncomfortable with the traffic in the dark. I may have to only go with the group when they are in low traffic areas.

I've felt weird since I came home. There is really no other word for it. I got cold during dinner and couldn't get warm for more than an hour even though I was wrapped in a blanket and had Bubbles pouncing on me. My stomach doesn't feel exactly right and I am, of course, thirsty. I drank so much before and at dinner that I didn't get to eat much. Weird.

Certainly not what I had planned for today. I don't feel well and don't know why. Last night I was cold after my run and couldn't get warm. That would make sense if it was cold outside. It was probably 75 degrees when I ran last night. Something is not right.

Not what I had planned for today either. I planned to run early then help with a local race. I ran easy but didn't feel great. I ran for a while then cleaned up and changed my clothes (I can't hang around in sweating clothes) and ran over to the fun run. I worked registration and helped direct traffic during the race. Then I ran about 0.3 miles home. I thought I might run more later in the day.

I felt pretty cruddy the rest of the day. We took family pictures in the evening and went to dinner. I never really felt all right to run more.

Yes, I am officially sick. I spent most of the afternoon in bed. I finally feel better but not 100%.

Seven UGLY miles at PMP+1:15. I still don't feel right. I am now thinking it is because I ate something I am sensitive to. I weigh 8.6 pounds more than I did a few days ago. Very difficult to run with all this fluid I am carrying around.

Planned to run 7 but I only made it 5.9 at PMP+1:30. Still 8.6 pounds higher than normal and it has accumulated in my lower legs making them ugly and the skin tight. I am going to put my feet up more tomorrow and drink enough water to fill a lake. Last night I slept with my legs elevated; nothing changed. My head is hurting and I feel horrible. Yuck!

I woke up this morning at 4am with a splitting headache. I sat in my massage chair (anniversary gift years ago from Honey), and it gradually got better. I targeted the massage between my shoulder blades and just below my neck. My headache is from referred pain from my neck and upper back. The stress of my situation at work is getting to me, as it does periodically. As many of you know, I have someone at work that pays an inordinate and inappropriate amount of attention to me. The stress level went up, because quite randomly, I had two different people at work express concern for my safety yesterday. In fact they let me know that there are several people concerned about their own safety, because they feel like the "situation is going to blow." One of my wonderful, caring colleagues offered to walk me to my car. My coping mechanisms were working well until yesterday. There is so much tension amongst my colleagues right now. Before any of my wonderful readers get upset, I would like you to know, I am doing something about the situation. For 3.5 years I have followed the "chain of command" within the organization I work for and now have sought outside help. I have the right people in place whom I am confident are doing what they can to help me.

Even though I slept for most of the night with my feet elevated and drank plenty of water, I was 9(!) pounds up (total) this morning. I lost 6(!) of  it during the day today before my run. My ankles still look like cankles!! At least it was easier on my feet to run a bit lighter. I took Bubbles, and we had a nice run. It wasn't fast, but it was nice. I ran PMP+1:15. Originally I had 8 miles on my schedule, but I decided to play it safe after feeling the way I have the last few days. The scale registered no loss when I got home. This weird puffiness has me baffled. My ankles were literally bulging out and over my socks when I got home from the run! Got to love gravity and H₂O.

Thank you to the wonderful people on this blog who have wished me well. It made me feel better. Thank you ever so much!

Eight with Bubbles at PMP+0:45. Today I felt really great. I am finally back to my regular weight, and felt very strong during the run. I am still fighting the tension headaches because of my situation at work. I had "lunch therapy" with Jeff today. It was good to just chat with him, especially because he is very wise and can put things into perspective and at the same time commiserate with me.

Jeff and I also talked about our plans for Thanksgiving this year. We usually spend it with him so I was talking about our potential menu. This year we are thinking about doing cheese fondue about an hour or two before "the meal." The "meal" is usually very simple and very healthful. He has mentioned he likes coming to our house because we don't have a boatload of food, and we don't overeat. Maybe that will change this year if we do fondue. Of course, he and Honey get to talking about movies, and such and I can't get a word in edgeways.

I should mention that I get very nervous cooking for Jeff because he is an amazing cook. He is always extremely gracious about our cooking -- even when it doesn't go so well. In the past, he has worked as a chef at places where expectations are high. Sometimes he and Honey get going in the kitchen, and I just watch. It is like watching a cooking show on television, only better. If they do that this year, I am ready. I have this yellow caution tape that reads, "caution, men cooking." Perhaps it should read "caution, Lulu cooking."

I hesitate to put these miles in the "easy" box. I ran with Bubbles, and we had the stroller loaded down with her stuff. After the first few hills, I quickly altered the course to avoid more. I ran 9:15s with her last night for eight miles and this morning it was tough to run. I figured out why when I realized at 4 miles I was running 8:30 pace!! I am usually a good judge of pace, but today I was not! I knew this would make me hurt later and boy, did it! My hamstrings are pretty fried. I never really was able (?) to get it slower than 9:30 pace this morning.

I will try to run a few more as I was planning to run somewhere between 16 and 18 today. I hope my trashed hamstrings recover enough I can run more today. Tomorrow's run will have to be short. We are taking Bubbles to a wildlife park. She's going to love it. Guests get driven around in open air vehicles and of course the animals are fed alfalfa. I can't wait to see her expression when a giraffe sticks his head in her face!

I hang my head in shame.

I haven't run in a week. I am not going to run the Houston Marathon as originally planned. I will run tomorrow. This is the longest I have ever gone without running except during portions of my pregnancy and a couple weeks after delivery.

My body is extremely unhappy and rebelling right now. I have had a migraine for nearly 7 days. Lots of other parts hurt and my body is doing its crazy water retention/loss thing again. There is only one explanation. The toll of my training and more likely, the stress from my situation at work has me flattened. I am light headed when I stand up or sit up too quickly. I continue to have poor thermoregulation; my sleep patterns are a mess, and I can't seem to get rested. This is not allowing me to recover from my workouts.

However, the running helps me handle the stress. I am sure some doc could prescribe some sort of drug that would make all this go away, but I don't live my life like that. I need to push through difficult times on my own and know that they will eventually end. I need to feel my emotions even if it comes from the depth of my muscles. That said, I am looking into pharmaceutical grade herbs for some relief of the symptoms of stress, that would still allow me to have my head. I am considering having my cortisol levels tested before I take anything.

I talked with my attorney today about things getting worse before they get better. Things are moving along with my situation, but they are still far from tolerable (attorney agrees). Right now, the "higher ups" have the guy leaving in FEBRUARY (I don't even know when in February). Exactly what am I supposed to do between now and then? Everytime the "squeeze" has been put on him, the situation has escalated. It is pretty bad right now. I don't even want to think about it getting worse. I haven't been in my office since the 21st of September when I received a threat. The thought of going in there nearly sends me into the stratisphere.

I will get back to running. I probably won't run as much as I have, and that makes me somewhat sad. But that being said, my putting the marathon on hold right now has another driving reason behind it. Often my training is done late at night or very early in the morning when Bubbles is asleep or with Bubbles in the stroller. Long runs that require me to be away from the house for more than 2 hours inevitably overlap into her waking hours. Then, I spend a bunch of time during my run wishing I were with her and missing her and my husband. I simply don't want to be away from her right now if I don't have to. And, I don't HAVE to. We waited more than 8 years for her, and we cherish her. Right now while she is young, I want to be around her. She's eventually going to get very independent and I'll be able to run long again and not miss her.

Thanks Lybi for wondering where I was. Here I am!

Workout was planned for 8.25 miles with "stuff" as the coach calls it. Warmed up and then ran a tempo at marathon pace (I took it a bit slower because of my last week) for three miles. I paced a new guy to the group and he was happy for the company who could keep a steady pace. Then we ran a half mile and then did 8x200 with 200 rest between. I didn't record my splits as I never wear a watch. Then we ran back and in that run we ran a mile at tempo pace, but I didn't count it as fast because I didn't put in the effort. I am happy I ran. I still have my migraine.

Thanks for your commments on my post yesterday.

Six miles with Bubbles in the hills. 1.5 mile warm up. 3 miles at tempo with every other 1/4 hard. 1.5 mile cool down. I felt very strong today. I ran with my group and passed a lot of people in the last mile of the tempo. People sure hate it when someone with a stroller passes them! I still have my intense headache - I think it has been 9 days. I went to the doctor today, and they had to give me a shot of pain medicine to make me functional. If I hadn't had the doctor appointment, I would have had to go to the ER. The pain was so intense, I am not even sure how I got to the doctor. It was a struggle. I go back Tuesday for follow-up. We talked about stress vitamins so I am going to get some today.

The run helped today. Bubbles was exceptionally happy today and was cracking herself up! Thank God for her and Honey (my husband)! Also, thank you for your well-wishes. I feel somewhat pathetic that I need them, but they are felt.

Very, very easy miles. I ran late tonight and alone. My head was telling me to stop at mile 2; it was aching so bad. I have this deal with my body when I am running: If something hurts, I acknowledge it. Then I don't allow myself to think about it for a mile. By mile three it was still hurting but I knew I could finish the run. I spent a lot of time telling myself it wasn't permanent damage and that it would feel better if I did the entire run. I do feel a bit better. My head still feels like it is in a vice (ear to ear) and like some one is pressing my eyebrows in front of my eyes and the back of my head into my neck.

Ok, so I haven't posted in a while so here is the start of the catch up (written Dec 3).

Bringing Home the Bacon. This is what my husband calls these races. He loves it. He stays home in bed and I go run and bring home a bunch of meat! First place in every age division is a Turkey and second place is sausages! These are wonderful Louisiana sausages. So my goal is these races are to find someone in my age division and follow them to the finish line. The sausage is the goal. Yes, second place is the ultimate goal. So I came home with two turkeys and one box of sausages.

In the one mile race which I ran at a conversational pace, I won my age division (shucks!) and got turkey #1. In the 5K, I came in second in my age division as planned and got the box of sausages (yea!). Then I won a second turkey as a door prize.

BTW, I threw up 5 times during the 5K! Yes 5 times! A girl ran by me during my 5th upchuck in the gutter and said some pretty ugly things to me. As my friend and I passed her in the last 1/4 mile like she was standing still, my friend said some ugly things to her only some of which is repeatable ie, "Pucker is passing you!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

Chillin' miles at marathon pace.

So here is the beginning of another week off. The stress of my work situation has made it so that I can hardly eat or keep anything down. I am taking a week off to chill.

Easing back into it again. Bubbles has had a nasty ear infection from seasonal allergies. She's better. My new doc seems to be on top of things and is getting to the bottom of my health issues. My lawyer seems to be getting some results. Life is good. Life always has been good; it's just getting better for me right now.

Easy run. Just trying to ease back into the running.

Ran early this morning. Originally I was planning to do a half marathon today. My body wasn't going to let that happen, apparently. And, more importantly, Bubbles had a opportunity to meet Santa at Honey's work. So we went to breakfast with Santa. Sure beats running a half marathon! Bubbles wasn't too impressed by Santa. She wasn't afraid of him either. She did like the other decorations though.

Bubbles has been walking since she was just over 9 mo old. So after she saw Santa, she decided to try her newest skill, running. She fell and hit her mouth on a metal frame on a window. We hurriedly left Santa's breakfast with a child with a bloody mouth. She's fine. I think it traumatized her Mom and Dad more than her. In fact, she stopped crying in about 30 seconds. It took about 15 minutes to get her to stop bleeding.

easy  miles.

I've run easy all week. Each run has been negative splits.