Check In

If I would update this blog more regularly, I wouldn't have to sit here trying to figure out which topic to discuss, what update to report, or which thought to post.  There are just too many, and I don't know where to start!

Isla is driving Dave and I around on her "bus"

Boston is 8 weeks away.  Running miles have been super low for me.  I am running about 38-44 miles a week at this point, which for me just doesn't seem like enough.  Plus, I have ZERO long runs.  As in 13 miles is my max at this point.  (can you smell the fear oozing out of my pores?) I do have a coach helping me, and I do want to buy into the process, so I am not sneaking extra miles faster miles, although I want to.   I am also not doing ANY speed work, tempo runs...anything!  It is scaring the bejesus out of me.   I am just trusting the process while keeping the following in perspective:  I am a mom, I work a job outside of the home, I love to swim/bike/run/triathlon, I want to be with my husband and my family, and I want to be healthy.  So, this means that maybe I just don't need to pile on miles, even though it is my instinct to do so.  After all, I had good success with 50 mile weeks, speedwork, tempo work, and marathon paced runs in the fall.  It is hard to try something different.  But, I am up for the challenge, and I love to learn.

Insert random picture with Billy Simpson, ultra running legend, and I don't say that lightly.  I forget how many Hard Rock 100s he has done- doing the ultra thing back when it was just a bunch of backpackers that liked to run.  Ran some miles with him the other day and just always enjoy his perspective.  I think it is so powerful to spend time with people that have done your sport much longer than you.  Wisdom is so precious.  And his reminder for all of us is to remember it is ALL about the journey.  And for the record, this guy just digs running 9-10 minute miles with me.  In his words, we better all be jogging and taking it easy more often if we want to be doing this later in life.  Enjoy some easy miles!

I have been dealing with some small injuries.  Last year, I had foot pain in every single triathlon, culminating in my first ever triathlon walk at the last race of the season, with pain so intense I thought I would never do a triathlon again.  It only got worse from that point on, even after seeing a podiatrist, and I finally realize that I do have some inflamed nerve issues that are not just bike related, but very run related.  So, it is back to the drawing board with management.  Maybe I will possibly need some injections...who knows?  We are working through it now so that I can do Boston.  The point of this is, the pain is not new, I just didn't address it in a timely manner.  Part of the issue is I don't do a lot of injury management because I am not injured much.  I have never sat out for a stress fracture, PF, or anything like that, so I don't expect it.  But HELLO!  I am getting older.  My body is changing.  Injuries and changes are just part of the game.  So, I am trying to be more on top of managing niggles now.

Having said that, I had hip pain from a dumb trail race in November.  (new shoes, feet hurting terribly with nerve pain, hip started to hurt, should have dropped out.  Instead I ran 18 miles on the trail, thinking "I don't DNF."  Idiot.)  So, I barely treated it, thinking it was bursitis and would resolve. I took some good time off of running, but didn't really get aggressive about treating it. Sure enough, mid February and the hip pain is still here.  X-ray last week showed it probably was not a stress fracture, and that is great.  So, now I just have to work it out.

All of that said to say this-  training through the years requires adjustments and changes in the way I approach the management of new issues.  I really can't just wait for things to just resolve, and I have to really be more on top of fit, equipment, seeing PT/doc in timely manner, etc.   I'll try to do better.

What else?

- I am building up a new bike.  Thank you Cannonade and Wattie Ink!  I'll post more when I get it up and going.

- I swam a mile TT and was 1 minute slower than my previous trials in the past year.  I hit the wall, heard my time, and thought...WTF?  Then shrugged it off as part of the process.  You move forward...you move backward.  All you can do is show up to swim class the next day :)

- Isla experienced her first Mardi Gras parade, complete with a ladder seat on St. Charles.  Of course she absolutely loved it; she is my kid, after all.

 Hanging out with Mary and Landon, my Wattie Ink crew in Nola.  :)

My shiny pants/tutu twin :)

  I think every Mardi Gras I have experienced has been with this guy...since 1997!

- Oh, and Laura is moving to Austin.  I am so happy for her.  I am sad to lose such close proximity to a good friend, but you know what?  When she moved to California and Washington DC, she was just amazing about staying in touch with me.  There are friends of convenience and location and then life-long friends that you will keep in your life even when you no longer live near each other.  Laura is definitely part of the latter group.

That night we showed up for Girls' Night, and we each brought 2 bottles of wine to share.  As if we needed 8 bottles.... ha ha!!!

A Consistent Month

Training was consistent for the month of January.  After spending Nov-Dec battling some sort of bronchitis/atypical pneumonia stuff, I was feeling super frustrated.  I was constantly coughing up yellow and could not turn a corner, even after weeks and weeks of chilling out.  But, it finally went away, and and January ended up being a good month for me as far as getting in daily training.

And it is funny because I always stress when I get sick.  Sinus infections like me a lot, and every couple of years I get some sort of bronchitis that I can't shake.  I get so frustrated, and it always takes more time than I want to clear it.  But then I get through it and wonder why I even stress it.  It just is what it is, especially this time of year for me.

The upside is I actually do rest and take a good off season.  The downside is I feel bummed that I lose all of the consistent run miles that I built up over the summer and fall.  I went from 45-50 a week to 10.  I went from setting PRs, to being super slow.  AHHHH!!!  That wasn't really how I wanted to start my training for my next marathon.

But, by just logging something every day, keeping everything low key, and making sure I had no zeros, I feel like I am heading in the right direction.  Swimming is super consistent for me, and my arms are falling off.  I am enjoying my bike again.  Running is steady.  I am really reminding myself daily that it makes no sense to try to build back to where I was in the fall overnight.  It is not smart, and it is not necessary.  A little at a time will go a long way when done consistently.

Olympic Marathon Trials- February 13, 2016- 2 weeks away.

So, who else is sad that Ryan Hall retired?  Me.  Super sad.  He is absolutely one of my favorites.  I learn so much from him every time I listen to him speak.  Check out Bob Babbitt's latest podcast on him.

Well, at least the announcement of Galen Rupp toeing the line at the Olympic Marathon Trials is  helping to ease my disappointment with Ryan Hall withdrawing.  This is sure to be a great race!

I thought I would post some fun reads on OTQ women, if you are inclined to read about marathons.  These are some interesting women that are elite, but maybe not world class.  Some are moms, some used to run 4:30 marathons, etc.  One of the great things about running is that there is such an opportunity for the average person to improve, at any age, especially at longer distance.  Check some of these women out for inspiration:

Amber Green- Runner's World Interview

Salty Running:  Olympic Trial Coverage:  scroll through here and read all kinds of interviews with different women running the trials

Amanda Nurse:  Running on Om Podcast

Of course I really want to see Angela on that line, and I can't help but feel hopeful that she will attack it again in a couple of years after putting some cycling and swimming into the routine again.  I have a good feeling about her :)

Enjoy your week!!!

My Boston Floor

I just had to google the date of the Boston Marathon:  April 18.  Yup, that is how on top of it I am.  Just recently, I realized there was a decent chance I would be able to run the marathon.  I didn't think it was in the cards for me as Dave and I had been focusing on family expansion, and here I am towards the end of January with my same family of 3 (6 if you count the animals).  So, it looks like maybe I will be able to run Boston after all.

So, I booked my spot on the floor of a friend's hotel room this morning.  I promised to split the costs, and a floor is fine with me.  I love that I can roll like that, and thankful that I have friends that let me crash.  

I am now 12 weeks out.  It is really time to get my butt in gear.  I am out of shape.  I am up 10 pounds, and it is not coming off.  Actually, it just keeps climbing up.  I just texted my neighbor to see if I could bring my king cake to him.  I have to really start to buckle down here, and it always seems harder in the winter.  My mileage is barely in the 30s.  I feel kind of screwed, but not beating myself up about it.  

And it is interesting because I thought I was totally fine- like 100% fine- if I didn't run the Boston Marathon.  Maybe it is because the majority of the people I know have run the marathon, so I forget how special it is.  But my husband and mother-in-law both told me they don't know a single person that has run the Boston Marathon, and I would be the only person they actually knew.  It made it feel slightly more special, even though it is just a marathon per se. 

So with that in mind, I am going to see if I can go and use it as a celebration of all of my hard work and the decades of running that have brought me so many friends, travel, and opportunities.  I am not completely sure I will get to run it, but I do have my Boston floor reservation booked just in case!  And honestly, I really hope I do make it there!

My morning run with Bill, a perennial Boston runner.  Everyone bailed on us because of the impending "winter storm," which gave us a slight dusting of snow and perfectly good roads.  I was ready to sleep in too, but Bill wouldn't let me.  I feel the silent push from my friends to get my mileage up.