All it takes is all you've got

First run back since the marathon.  I felt better than I thought I would, actually.  An entire week of rest doesn't hurt.  My legs were still pretty fatigued, but at least there weren't any nagging pains anywhere.

7 miles, 7:54 ave. 

8 miles out and back on the big dry creek trail.  7:53 average.  My legs are feeling a little bit better.  My right heel is still a little sore, but it warmed up and felt better after 3-4 miles.  The Fall smells are SO yummy right now. One of the houses that backs to the open space must have a wood burning stove because there was this strong campfire smell around mile 2.  Then the sagebrush was especially fragrant around mile 3.  And the mist coming off the creek was so beautiful too.  OH, I'm glad to be back running again.  I LOVE running in the fall.

Dropped my kids off at my good friend, Erin's house and drove to Denver to run and chat with Maureen Roben, Park to Park 10 miler race director, former elite marathoner, and running coach.  I wanted to bounce some ideas off her and get a little input on my training since she has "been there" and run in the Olympic Trials in the Marathon 4 times.  I REALLY enjoyed chatting with her and getting some good suggestions and recommendations.  She is very easy to get along with and SO encouraging and friendly.  She has a very similar running philosophy as me; family comes first, then running, Sunday is a great recovery day, its important to recover well and not overdo it on the weekly mileage; just because Deena Kastor is doing 140 miles a week doesn't mean I should.  She also thought that running the St. Jude Marathon on December 5 is not the best idea for me as it is not enough time to recover and then train hard again and try to match or exceed the all out effort I gave at TOU.  So I'm considering doing the half there instead.  After all, I would REALLY like to run some FAST half-marathons and bring my PR down at that distance, which I think will bring my marathon PR down too.  So I'm going to re-evaluate my 3 month plan and maybe just run some fast half-marathons and shorter races between now and Grandma's marathon in June, 2010.  I also want to get my weekly mileage up to 70-80 by adding a few PM runs per week and/or cross-training and see how my body responds to that.  

So while I was there, I did a little workout to see how resilient my legs are after the marathon. 

2 mile warm up

1 mile at goal 10K race pace - 5:37

1 lap jog

400M fast - 76

200 M. jog

400 M. fast - 79

 My legs are really starting to feel a lot better.  Yesterday after Abe got home from school I went to the gym and lifted weights for a bit and spent a lot of time stretching and on the foam roller and exercise ball stretching some more.  I think that really loosened up a lot of the fatigue in my legs and gave me back a little spring in my step.  Thank goodness!

Ran 5.5 miles at 8:00 pace at 11:00 a.m. after returning from taking the kids to the dentist because Aaron was dead to the world when I tried to wake him up at 8:00 so I could run before the kids' dentist appointment.  He hadn't gone to sleep until 4:00 a.m. because he had a super busy night researching 12 properties that were going to sale the next morning, needless to say, he was wasted.  And the stinky part is that he didn't even win anything at the auction.  But at least he got a really good property the day before at the Adams County auction.  I just feel bad for him when he stays up SO late working under the time crunch to bid on properties the next morning and then he just gets outbid.  I suspect our Tuesday and Wednesdays (the days before all the Denver area County auctions) are going to be super hectic for about a month because he just sold a bunch of houses and now has 500K of his own investment capital, plus another 500K of his auction partner's money back in the account ready to be spent again.  

For lunch, we had an appointment with one of his investors, Cindy Liu (sp?).  She treated us to the International Buffet.  I don't normally choose Buffet style cuisine, but since it was Cindy's treat and Cindy's suggestion, we obliged.  The food was pretty good, but the company was even better.  It was Aaron, our assistant, Shawna, Cindy, Breanne, and Ali (Abe missed out because he was at school).  Cindy is a very nice woman and I really enjoyed chatting with her.  She is originally from Singapore but moved to CO to start her own business.  She owns an antique shop and invests in Real Estate.

8 miles around Standley Lake at 8:00 pace again.

The little germs that have been scaling my body trying to get in as my immune system is still a little supressed from the marathon have officially set up camp in my lungs.  I have this nasty phlegm cough and lightheadedness that started setting in yesterday and is running its course.  At least I don't have any fever or body ache.  Just fatigue and an aggravating cough.  I'm pounding the vitamin C and trying to get extra rest so that those little germ dudes will break down camp and take a hike soon.

I also went to the gym this morning for pilates, stretching, and lifting.  Felt good. 

Easy 9.5 around Countryside at Noon.  Aaron went Mt. Biking early so I went running after the morning session of Conference.  It was such a BEAUTIFUL day here in Denver!  Cool Fall air, sunny skies, and gorgeous Fall colors.  I felt pretty good on the run, minus some stomach issues that caused me to have to visit the trees 4 times.  Must have been those 4 chocolate chip cookies and bowl of ice cream I ate at my friends house last night.  My body is not used to that much sugar at one time.  It tasted good in the moment, I just payed for it today on the run.  And now I need to refresh my intestines with a big yummy spinach salad for dinner.  Yes, I'm still chipping away at the Costco spinach bag.  Its not quite wilting yet.  Anybody want some?