Saturday, March 26, 2011

A New Role

This week commenced with a 14 mile run and picked up a dog...again. Bill had stayed up most of the night with his job so he stayed in bed and didn't join us. It was extremely cold and windy, straight out of the north. We did an extended Ethanol Loop with an extra mile west and an extra 3 miles north. Rachael was having yet another bad run. Later that day Bill wanted to get out for 8 miles so I took the bike out and road alongside him. The winds were sooo strong I didn't think I could do it. It was a lot of work to keep the bike moving forward, especially going north back into town. My thighs were really getting a workout, not to mention I was on Rachael's bike with low tires and a bad seat.

I have found myself catapulted into the role of not only parent, but also mentor and coach. Rachael has had some really difficult runs lately that she just wants to quit. I find myself encouraging her and giving her strategies to use during the runs to feel better and get through the mental game of the endurance. This becomes challenging for me as a parent because I see her hurting and wanting more than anything to stop. I question her about her pain to be sure she isn't getting an injury rather than just endurance pain from the long run. She always feels awesome at the end of the runs and can get herself together again for the last half or so of the run. Side aches have been her biggest physical obstacle.

Her mental obstacles are the normal ones that the book is helping her get through and reinforced with what I have been telling her. She has reached the point where she is in awe over how far she can really run and I think that keeps her going. She is so proud at the end of the run to say, "I ran FOURTEEN miles today!" She even mentioned toward the beginning of the run that she is only 4 miles from her longest training run. This is exciting to her!

During the week I completed another 4 and 7 miles. Rachael ran with me for the 4 miles, but school work got her too busy to do the last run. I always told her that school comes first! My shins have really been getting to me lately so I start out going really slow and then get into my "groove" to complete it. I always figure if I can't get my groove and am hurting too much, I'll just stop and take a few days off. So far, I have been able to keep my minimum 2 weekly runs and the long weekend run. That was my goal from the start so I'm feeling pretty good about that. My other goal was not to drug myself before a run. I only did this once because I was getting a nasty cold and didn't want to come home with a snotty shirt. I also had a nasty headache so took some Tylenol for that. The 7 mile run I actually thought I had 8 miles, as originally planned, but when I mapped it out, it was only 7. Dang! Oh well, it was probably better in the end.

I mapped out the calendar through the marathon the other day. It's a week later than I originally thought it would be and I intentionally started earlier in case I had to take some time off. Our training will be "done", including the taper, and we'll have about a month left before the marathon. I'm thinking about doing a couple 20 mile runs. Seems like I was mentally devastated when I reached 18 miles. I crossed that line in the road and mentally shut down. I knew that was the longest I had ever run and I still had about 50% more to complete. Last summer I ran a 20 mile run a week before I got hurt and somehow being able to get into the 20s was a big mental jump for me. So, even if Rachael doesn't go that far, I may do it anyway just for the mental hurdle.

This week we watched "The Long Green Line". Vardotrichic, this is another good, inspirational movie to watch! http://www.hulu.com/watch/125305/the-long-green-line

Total weekly training mileage: 25 miles + 8 miles cross training :)

Friday, March 18, 2011

Spirit of the Marathon

The train is moving again. We did 13 miles last Sunday and then a 6 mile and a 4 mile run. I feel like I am finally moving forward with training and not being stalled out because of pain or injury.

The big run was in strong winds (15-20 mph) and cold with wind chills in the single digits. Rachael really wanted to give up, but I got her to plow through it. She was glad she finished her run. As Vardotrichic says, "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger!" We did the puppy loop first with Bill, dropped him off, ran the Ethanol loop, and then finished 3 miles in town. Bill drove some mittens out to us on the Ethanol loop because we didn't realize how cold it was out there. Our fingers were going numb! The headwinds going north made our eyes water and our face freeze. I felt great all the way, other than really having to push into the headwinds.

The medium and short runs went ok. I never seem to enjoy the shorter, mid-week runs like I do the longer ones. I just get warmed up and have to quit. My shin bone ached a bit after the short run this week so when I got home I iced them and had a good day. I didn't feel too achy through the day so that was good.

This afternoon Rachael and I watched, "The Spirit of the Marathon". It is such a great movie to get some inspiration and end our Spring Break.

Total weekly training mileage: 23 miles

Saturday, March 12, 2011

On the road again


Monday I went to the doctor for weird bumps on my foot. They didn't hurt, were hard like bone, but didn't match the other foot. This one even looked very slightly bruised just under the skin for a few days, too. I had never noticed them before this past week. Once he looked at my foot he said I had a hyperextended foot bone, probably caused from childbirth. Hmm, ok, well I have had a few babies. I am glad there is nothing wrong with my foot, however!

After the doctor appt I took Rachael on an Ethanol Loop. It felt great! There was no pain, lots of energy, and great conversation. :) After talking to J this week, she sent me her schedule and we ran a couple mornings. Thursday I got up at 4:00 and we ran another 5 miles. Friday I got up at 4:30 and we ran 4 miles. It was a great week! My calf muscles are killing me and the foam roller doesn't seem to be working out the hard, achy areas. I'm going to try to run a bigger run with Rachael in the morning. Overall I do feel strong.

Total weekly mileage: 14 miles

Friday, March 4, 2011

2-week hiatus

Well, I haven't run 2 full weeks now. I am going to the doctor on Monday to see what's happening. :(
15 weeks to the start gun...

Total mileage for February = 42 miles