Wineglass Marathon 2018: Week 12

Total Mileage: 48.6

After getting back to NY on monday night, I was ready to relax and recuperate for the rest of tonight, and when Tuesday morning rolled around, it felt like the world’s biggest Monday.

Monday was prime day, and I did fall victim to one runner deal - a nox gear vest. I am a nerd for visibility gear, and was excited to add this to the lineup. The benefit of prime day - it was on sale AND it would get to me in just a few days.

Lucky for me, I had a full crew ready to run on Tuesday morning, and Dad, Kasey and I hit the roads bright and early, and even got our first taste of sunrise running for the season. After the pleasant air in california all weekend, being back in the humidity was a bit of a rude awakening, but I stuck it out to get 7.5 miles in before work. I treated myself to yoga on Tuesday night instead of a gym session, and it was exactly what I needed to get out of the Monday-on-a-Tuesday funk.

We had another full showing on Wednesday morning, and I got through 8 miles before work. I also accidentally nearly took a sprinkler to the face. I run without my glasses, and somehow sprinklers sneak up on me pretty often…. I can usually hear them, but occasionally I get a surprise shower. On strava, I named this run “new world record for sweat,” as everything I was wearing was entirely sweat through by the time I made it back to the apartment. It was the kind of morning when the post run shower was a huge reward.

Thursday I got to bust out my new vest for the first time, so you know I made sure to get out the door before the sun was up. Kasey’s reaction to my new gear? A cross between “I don’t know if I can be seen running with you while you’re wearing THAT,” and “I would rather be hit by a car than wear a light up vest.”

So, she’s not a huge fan of my safety gear, I can’t win them all. I can’t say I was shocked. This run was a doozy either way, and when Kasey had finished her leg of the morning, Dad asked if we wanted to take a jumpshot before we parted ways - our reaction? Opting to promptly lay down on the sidewalk in despair, as it seemed more fitting for how we both felt that morning. Major burn-out feelings, and sadly for me, I had to get up and keep running afterwards. But I did get up, to complete a total of 7.6 miles that morning. I had a standard Thursday night at the gym, and got another hour of strength training under my belt.

I was gearing up to get in my last long run before the marathon that weekend - the big 22 miler! So Friday I focused on recovery, and got in a yoga class after work.

Saturday was the big run day of the week, and Dad was in it for the long haul with me, as bike support, stocked up with everything I could need over the miles. We headed to the sunrise highway entrance of the bethpage bike trail, where we met up with my MBTT teammate, Tara. The weather was drizzly and cooler than it had been all week, so it was perfect for a run.

She was on board for 12 miles, and we got going on the trail, chatting as we went. We were going to head out and back, 6 miles out and 6 miles back. Of course, Tara is known as a distance bully (and well, I may be too…). As we approached 6 miles, she threw out the possibility that maybe she could run 14 instead of 12, and I latched on to that immediately, happy to have her company for an extra two miles. The miles just slipped by, with the three of us chatting as we went, and sometimes I got to just listen to Dad and Tara chat, and just letting the distance rack up. Before I knew it we were back at the parking lot, and it was time for us to part ways, and time for me and Dad to head out for another eight miles.

My friend Desi wanted to get a few miles in, and was heading to the parking lot to meet us, but was still about 20 minutes out. So Dad and I looped out once more, this time just for two miles, and were back at the parking lot in what felt like half a second, and Desi was there and ready to get running. She is still a fairly new runner, so I had to slow down the pace a little for her, but I am generally content to trade pace for company. Of course, those last six miles were the longest 6 of the day. I could feel myself dragging, and had Dad pull out the emergency bottle of Gu roctane powder drink mix, or as I like to call it, Go Go Juice - and it did just the trick, and gave me the boost I needed to finish up those last few miles.

Dad and I upheld our post long-run diner tradition, refueling with over easy eggs and buttered rye toast. I was freezing by the time we left the diner, and when I got home took a good long shower before changing into comfy pants and putting my legs up. I did reward myself for a job well done with some new compression socks - what can I say, I am a sucker for a good ProCompression sale!

But alas, that was not the end of my running week - I had one more mile to get in! The New Balance 5th Avenue mile, to be specific! Mike and I had signed up to race on Sunday morning, and while I wasn’t sure how running was going to feel the day after a 22 mile run, I was excited to race a mile for the first time.

MIke agreed to do the driving this time, and we headed into the city on that rainy Sunday morning. My legs were tired, but all in all I was feeling good. After a few loops of city streets near central park, we managed to find parking and headed towards race day central. We were able to pick up our bibs on race morning, as NYRR weekly races usually allow, and this time the race giveaway was a hat. We threw our hats on, and then headed into central park to run a half mile warm-up, half to prepare ourselves for the race and half to keep warm, as it was drizzly and a little bit chilly that morning - good running weather, but not great standing around waiting to start running weather. We ran into central park, saw some doggos, mike caught a few pokemon, and my legs acted like slugs, outraged that I dare make them run the day after a 22 miler.

The waves of the race were separated by age and gender, and my wave was the one right before Mike, the 3rd and 4th groups to go. So when we saw the high school age waves going, we made our way over to the start area. Soon enough it was time for me to get into my corral, and I was more nervous than I had expected to be - I had never raced a mile before! I really wanted to finish in under 7 minutes. I hadn’t run a timed mile in over a year, and my old record was 7:14, so at the very least I wanted to beat that.

The race began, and runners chased the pace car down 5th avenue. I hit a pace that felt fast, trying not to get too caught up in the excitement of the start. I settled in, and the pace was hard, but I reminded myself it was only for a mile. The first half of the mile was a gradual uphill too, which was particularly unforgiving. When the road evened out, I let loose, checking the pace on my watch, right around a 7 min/mi. I buckled down, and held strong, even picking up the pace as the finish line came into sight, a 6 still leading the time - official time? 6:53. Heck Yeah!

I headed through the finishers chute, and walked back towards the finish line, and found a good spot to watch out for Mike. A few minutes later I spotted him approaching, looking strong as he came into the finish line - and pulling off a sub 8 minute mile! We munched on our post run bagels, and made our way into central park to get a few more miles in before heading home. My legs were heavy, but I never pass up an opportunity to run with friends.

All in all, it was a great week for mileage. My 22 miler went well, and I felt strong and ready to race, despite my training cycle not going exactly to plan.

Wineglass Marathon 2018: Week 11

Wineglass marathon week 11

Total Mileage: 41.2

Come Monday morning, I was a bundle of nerves. Was I going to be cleared to run? Was this podiatrist going to tell me I needed to take a month off? Of course, my appointment wasn’t until after work, so it was naturally the longest work day ever. When I finally got to the doctors office, I was full on stress sweating as I filled out the intake forms.

They put me in a patient room, and when the doctor came in she checked out my foot, which was clearly swollen. I was lead to the x-ray machine, and half held my breath as they ran it. The results popped up on the screen instantaneously -

“Yes, that is definitely broken,” the doctor said with a smile on her face.

“But, it’s not a bad break. You can run on that.”

YES! Instantly rejoicing in my head began, as she set up to take one more x-ray from a slightly different angle. From the second angle, you couldn’t even see the break - it was that minor.

She lead me back to the exam room and showed my how to buddy tape it, and I felt the need to clarify the running thing with her, so she would understand just how much I wanted to run on it - stating that I would be doing a 22-mile run in the coming weeks - and she gave me the full go ahead, and just made sure that I had all the supplied I needed to tape it for the next few weeks. She said running on it was probably going to hurt, but I wasn’t going to do any more damage, and it would heal in about the same amount of time either way.

I was so relieved that I was still in the game for this marathon, and headed right to the pool after the appointment to get in a swim, which I had planned beforehand in case I wasn’t allowed to run, that way I would have something to take my mind off things…. And then right to a yoga class with Mike and Emily. It was a busy Monday night, and I had a big week ahead of me.

This week was a lot of “running by effort” and trying to just let go of my paces, because between my foot sometimes screaming at me and thick, humid, summer air I wasn’t keeping up with my usual paces. And you know what? That was okay, because I was still out there, and I was just so happy to be able to be running.

Tuesday morning I dragged myself out of bed earlier than usual, intending to make up for some of the miles that I missed over the weekend. I managed to get outside before Dad made it to my apartment on his bike, and we met along the road. Soon after we found Kasey as well, and the three of us fell into our regular groove. It was a particularly humid summer morning in NY, and boy was i feeling it. I employed every bit of positive thinking I could, and recited mantras to myself as I pushed to move forward. My pace slowed a little as the miles ticked on, but I managed to get through 8.4 miles that morning, which is a solid morning for me. But I was miserable at the end of that run, and made sure to immediately re-hydrate. I rounded out my day with an hour of strength training after work, despite really just wanting to go home and crash - I knew that in the coming weeks like was going to get crazy, and I needed to make the time while I could.

Since I was feeling defeated after Tuesday’s run, I promised myself I would take my run super easy on Wednesday, and just focus on getting the miles under foot. Dad and I chatted throughout the run/ride, and I made sure that my pace was conversational that way. We got to see a really pretty sunrise, one of the first of the season, and even though the miles were hard, and i melted a little, I felt great when I was through them. A quality run in terms of feel, even if it was slow as molasses. Seven miles closer to the race. I also may have totally made my fastpasses for my October disney trip during this run. And by may have I mean I totally did. But at least I moved onto a scarcely populated track instead of running in the road while doing so - and it was worth it because I got TWO coveted slinky dog dash fast passes!

Thursday morning the humidity calmed down marginally, and Dad and I got in another 8 morning miles. We looped through the neighborhood, and stopped at a track again. This time so that he could get some walking in, rather than time on the bike, and I even threw in a few pushes on the straights. Overall it was still a slower paced run, but with a few faster miles sprinkled in. After my successful morning run, I followed up with a successful night at the gym, focusing largely on core strength this time.

The sweet relief of Friday rolled in at last, and I got up to run to make up for some missed mileage the previous weekend, and Dad joined me once again. We kept it a little shorter this time, logging just over 5 miles that morning, as I had to do some last minute packing before work - Den and I were heading right from work to the airport, as we were traveling to San Francisco to visit his sister that weekend.

Despite traveling across the country, you better believe that I packed my running shoes! This would only be my second trip ever to California, and as Greg is always bragging about their superior running weather, I knew that I needed to experience it first hand.

The trip started off smoothly, with Den’s best friend, Alfred, giving us a ride to the airport. I was nervous leaving as late as we did, as everyone had panicked for me when I told them that I was flying out on the Friday night of labor day weekend, to the point where I was half expecting to miss my flight. But despite a little traffic, we got to JFK without a hitch, and even had time to have a sit down dinner at the airport. I even had a glass of wine with dinner, as we would be visiting Napa on our trip, and I figured that was an appropriate start to the weekend.

When it was about time to board the plane we headed over to our terminal, and were able to get our seats changed so that we would be able to sit next to each other on the flight, score! We usually fly southwest, but this time were on American Airlines, and hadn’t wanted to dole out the extra cash for adjacent seats when we were booking, and our gamble paid off. We even would up in a row with an empty third seat, so I was able to stretch out a little during the flight. I watched a movie, and then promptly passed out, and managed to be somewhat asleep for the rest of the flight. When we landed it was almost midnight California time, and Rachel and Greg picked us up from the airport and drove us to their apartment, where we were staying for the weekend. I promptly passed out, happy as a clam on the pull out couch.

Greg and I agreed on a Saturday morning run, and when my alarm went off at 6 am, it was lovely that it felt like 9 am to me. Now technically, I was supposed to be running 20-22 miles this weekend, but had booked this trip to CA before signing up for the wineglass marathon. Since we were only in town for the weekend, and the plan was to spend the day walking around the city, it would have been unwise of me to commit 4 hours to a run, especially when so much of the days plan was walking around and exploring. So, Greg and I decided to head out for 10 miles at a comfortable pace. They have a running path right by their apartment, and we headed out with the sunrise.

I warned Greg as we began that this was not going to be the speediest of runs, as Greg is a speedy person. Like, super tall with long legs, former high school cross country team member fast. So, I was a little worried I would spend the whole time trying to catch up to him. But we managed to settle into a pace around 9:30, and the weather was perfect for running, with no nagging humidity bearing down on my being. The first few miles were a little tough, but then I just settled in, and it turned into one of those blissful runs, where everything just kind of clicks. When we hit five miles we turned around, and the magic continued. The pace dropped, and it just worked. The pace kept dropping, and by the time we were in that last mile, we were just under an 8 min/mi. When we got back to the apartment, we had managed 10 miles, at an average pace of 8:53, and I was really pleased with that.

Dennis and Rachel were up and getting ready for the day, and once we were all fed and clean, we walked to the BART (local train system) station. We had the rotten luck of juuust missing a train, as it pulled out of the station while we waited to buy our tickets, but at least we got to check out some mountain top views while we waited for out ride. BART eventually trucked us from Walnut Creek To San Francisco, and began our day of adventure, that included ramen, walking the golden gate bridge, exploring the bay area, seeing the sea lions on pier 39, and making so many memories. We were all utterly exhausted by the time the day was through, and we had walked 14 miles! So that was a total of 24 miles on our feet for Greg and I, and I think we well deserved the In-and-out that we all scarfed down for dinner! It was my first time ever trying the fast food chain, as it does not exist in NY, and it was just about as good as the hype that everyone attaches to it.

Despite our super long day on Saturday, Greg and I dragged our feet out the door on Sunday morning, as I was so close to my goal of 40 miles for the week, so we just needed to get a few miles in. We headed in the opposite direction than we had the day before, and ran a total of 2.6 miles, the highlight of which was a bridge that we got to run over. We both felt the effect of the high mileage the day before, but were glad to sneak a few more miles in. The plans for our second day in Cali? Rachel and Greg were bringing us to Napa, where we went to Mumm and Miner to do some tastings and to take in some views of the valley. After plenty of tastings, we went to a pizza place for lunch, and while it was nothing like NY pizza, I am happy to report that it was still delicious, as carbs usually are. Our final stop in Napa, before heading back to walnut creek, was at Greg’s family vineyard, where his parents gave us a tour, and showed us how they check the sugar levels in the grapes. All in all it was an adventure filled weekend, and I was ready for many naps, which was exactly what I did once we were back in the car. We kept the rest of the night easy, having pasta for dinner and watching a little TV before calling it a night.

All in all, it was a successful week of running, and an amazing weekend trip to California.

Wineglass Marathon 2018: Week 10

Total Mileage: 26.2

I spent far more time discussing my feet than any normal person should after the whisper run 10k that Sunday. I sent my parents photos, asking if a foot should like “THAT,” I texted my friends and some training buddies spiraling into full resignation that I would not be running a marathon, and I elevated, buddy taped, and iced excessively.

And you know what happened? It started to feel better. I know, I am dramatic. But we all knew that, realistically. I mean, would a non-dramatic person spend several hours every week sitting in front of a computer a week just to tell stories about her runs? Probably not.

Anyway, after having Dad evaluate my foot, he insisted that if it even was a break, it wasn't a bad one. That was all I needed to hear to lace up again on Monday, and try to make up for some of the miles that I felt like I had missed the day before. Dad biked to my apartment, and we headed out for our morning miles. I still don't have a standard running loop established near the apartment like I had by my parent's house, so we just looped up and down various blocks, and I tried to avoid hills as much as possible. I found that the shoes I chose that morning – my New Balance 880 V8s- were not as comfortable for my foot as the Nike Zoom Pegasuses that I had opted for the day before. We kept it to 5 easy miles, and it was huge relief to take off my shoes at the end of the run. I then proceeded to wear my largest sneakers to work, despite their pink color, which is what usually keeps them from being “office shoes.”

I somehow managed to squeak in 7 miles before work on Tuesday, despite the fact that we did not start running until 6:30. Usually to get in that kind of mileage I have to be out the door closer to 6 – I assume that I must have hit some kind of time warp, as I managed to get to work on time and everything. It was another morning of Dad and I making loops of Levittown, this time with him choosing the slightly hillier roads – that's what always happens somehow when Dad takes the directional lead. It's almost like he has gears on his bike or something.....

Anyway, I learned that the larger toe box in my Brooks ghost 10 running shoes made for a slightly more comfortable morning run, but I still kept the pace easy, just grateful that I was getting out there and running, regardless of potentially broken toes.

What happened on Tuesday night? Strength Training! Aren't you all so proud of me for picking things up and putting them down? It is hard to be consistent with cross training, but I feel like it has really helped to keep me strong for running, even if sometimes dragging myself to the gym after work feels like the biggest chore ever, and I contemplate going home and doing real chores instead. If that's not a ridiculous excuse, I don't know what is. Stupidly, I decided to put some planks into our end-of-workout core block. This isn't anything out of the ordinary, but it didn't occur to me that planks may hurt my toe, until I tried to get into plank position, and felt a sharp pain run through my foot. Damn it. We finished up some crunches, I avoided any further activity that meant weight on my toes, and we ended the workout soon after.

Of course, my when I got home after the gym my foot had swollen back up a bit. Splendid foot. Thanks for playing it cool. More ice, more feet up.

Wednesday morning I had no company for my morning run, but still managed to get myself out the door, and even settled into a pretty good pace. I opted for the re-laced Zoom Pegasus 33s that I had work for the whisper run, and used the first mile to take it easy and warm-up. I just kept moving through mile 2, and was surprised when my watch beeped and showed my a 9:06, sweet! My foot felt okay, despite the swelling, and I just tried to keep it consistent. I wound up totaling 5 miles, with an average pace of 9:13. I sometimes surprise myself on morning runs, and this was one of those days where running actually felt natural.

I did something that I probably should of done on Monday that day – made a podiatrist appointment. The resurgence of swelling did not sit well with me, and I just needed to have it checked out, so that I could stop stressing about the damn thing! The doctor scheduled me for the following Monday, and I took to buddy taping my toes for the rest of the week.

On Thursday Desi and I shook up our gym routine, and instead of lifting we opted to get an after work run in. My friend Mike met up with us, and the three of us headed north on the old bethpage trail to get some hills in. Mike and I chatted as we ran, and I was so impressed with how far Mike has come with his running game lately - he has seriously stepped up his game since deciding to run the 2019 NYC marathon, and has officially started his training for the Disney World half in January. He’s come from having to take walk breaks, as we all sometimes do, to being able to hold a full conversation with me while running (and playing pokemon go). The trail runs along the highway, and as we were on the return trip of our out and back run, Mike shouted “CAR!” as we were running. In my split section reaction to his shout, I almost pitched myself into the bushes on the side of the path…. before I realized that he meant “BIKE!” and was just alerting us that a bike was gonna pass us soon, whoops! We got a good laugh out of it at least. Naturally, we ended our run with a jumpshot. What better way to celebrate five miles with friends?

Friday night Mom and I headed out on a roadtrip to Maryland to visit with my cousins for the weekend, and Saturday morning I dragged myself out of bed to get on the hotel treadmill, which turned out to be an awful idea. I got through 4 miles before calling it quits, mainly because my foot was THROBBING! I finished the run and immediately iced it, but man, it was unhappy with me all day! We spent most of the day shopping for a flower girl dress for my little cousin to wear at my wedding, so I was on my feet, and I was limping by the end of the day. Not a great sign.

My intention for Sunday morning was to get a long run in on the treadmill, but since I woke up with my foot still in pain, I decided to hold off on running until after my doctor’s appointment the following day.

It had been a good week at least, even if the weekend runs didn’t go exactly to plan.

Wineglass Marathon 2018: Week 8

Total Mileage: 41.6

Once I get into the higher mileage weeks in my training cycle, my mental goal starts to become "I just need to hit 40 miles this week."

May not seem like much to some, but to me it is a goal that is attainable, so long as I stay on top of my weekday mileage, and don't get lazy about it. After my long run on Sunday, I was feeling successful and ready to start another week.

Monday means no running most of the time, to allow for recovery post long run, so I got in the pool instead. The workout was mostly kicking drills this week, with some 250 m repeats, and boy did my legs thank me for that. I felt so much better after swim, as I usually do when recovering from long runs. More often than not I struggle to get myself to the pool, and when I successfully get there, the feeling of accomplishment is great. 

The next morning I had my eye on getting my quality run in, and set the alarm for a little earlier than usual. My training plan called for a warmup and then 70 minutes at an 8:41 pace, and because of the summer heat and humidity, I planned to do this run on a treadmill knowing that the controlled air in the gym would make the paces more attainable. I got to the gym around 6:30 and hopped on the treadmill, and took care of a mile warmup before getting into the meat of the workout. I ran out of time on the treadmill after 50 minutes at 8:41, but was still really happy with myself for holding that pace for so long - I always surprise myself when I pull off sub-9 paces.

Of course, I had set my goal at 70 minutes at that pace, and after work got on the treadmill again to get those last few miles in, and brought my daily mileage total to 10 miles. Once the treadmill work was done, I got in my cross-training with some weights. I am happy that I am finally committing to consistent strength training, and getting to the gym for it twice a week.

Wednesday morning I got my butt to the gym again, and this time aimed for progressive miles, getting a little faster as each mile passed by.  I had time for five before it was time to head home and get ready for work, which I deemed "good enough" after managing 10 the day before. I took it easy that night, planning for another 7 the next morning. Plus, it was my and Dennis' 6 year anniversary, so we were heading to the melting pot for a fancy pants dinner. 

I ventured outside again on Thursday, and headed into the less hilly part of my neighborhood. If I was going to be dealing with heat and humidity, I at least wanted to not also be dying with the up and down of hills. Kasey and I found each other on the main road, and stuck together for a few miles, until she was out of time for the morning. I kept it easy, at around a 10 min/mi, just running by feel and trying to ignore my pace. Very many loops later, I ran back up to my apartment, with so much sweat on my person that I had a full on sweat stache. Dewey beads of sweat on my face and all.

Friday morning, I tried out the beach body on demand craze, and was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the workout. I hadn't done an at home workout since we got the cats, and they were VERY CONCERNED about what in the world I was doing - Binx even made off with my resistance bands several times. 

Friday night my cousin Jen came into town from Atlanta for her annual summer visit, and we spent the night with Emily and Kasey, drinking wine, and eating fondue. Not the best thing to do while marathon training, but I would never miss the chance to spend a night hanging out with those three - we even had a lazy Saturday morning. When I got up on Saturday I figured I would squeeze in a few easy miles at some point, but to my surprise, by bridal shower was happening that day! So no run, but hours spent with so many of my people, who traveled into town from all over the country. My mom also went above and beyond with this shower, secretly collecting teapots for the last year, and throwing the most spectacular wonderland themed bridal tea party.

When I walked into the hall I had worked out that something was up, and we were not going to brunch like I had been lead to believe. So, my look of surprise was more in reaction to the over the top decorations - from mis-matched tea pots and cups at every setting, handmade giant paper flowers hanging atop a custom bridal shower backdrop, playing cards pasted to the ceiling, and three tier tea towers with piles of scones and finger sandwiches. After I changed into the dress that Mom had brought with her and made my rounds around the room, I got a moment to sample the delicious foods before being taken to the middle of the room to start the festivities. We played the standard games, from bridal shower bingo as the gifts were opened to "who knows the bride best?" (Kasey won, in case you were wondering. Her prize? Tea of course!), and even had a fun twist on one game. My bridesmaid Minal had asked Dennis to fill out a survey about our relationship, and then put me to the task of answering the same questions. The twist? When I got one right my maid of honor, Jen, had to eat a marshmallow. If I was wrong, the marshmallow was for me to eat. We both quickly became chubby bunnies with cheeks full of marshmallows - which was way harder to deal with than I anticipated. 

It was a long day, capped off with dinner out with some of my bridesmaids, and needless to say that short run never happened.

Sadly, the weather forecast was much better for Saturday than it was for Sunday, and by the time I headed out for my run thunderstorms were looming on the horizon. I needed to get through 19.5 miles, so I headed out anyway, that way it would not have to all be done on the treadmill.

The air was heavy through the first two miles, and in the third the rain began. I was prepared though- with pre-applied body glide and a running hat. The rain actually felt amazing, and as the sky opened up the humidity lifted, and I could breathe. I kept at it as the storm picked up, the roads became rivers, and every bit of clothing I had soaked entirely through. Just as I hit mile six, I started to hear thunder and knew that my rainy run had to come to an end. When I got back to the apartment I dried off, and waited a few minutes to see if the storm would pass before resigning myself to over 13 miles on a treadmill. But alas, the storm did not lift and off to planet fitness I went.

Was I once again that weird girl at the gym who is eating while on the treadmill? You know it! At first the miles felt like there were never going to end, but eventually I found my groove, picked a playlist, and settled in to get the miles done. One treadmill half marathon later my long run was complete. I was a little disappointed with having to split the distance two weekends in a row, but thankful that I got the whole distance in at least.

Another week closer to the Wineglass marathon, and I find myself questioning my ability every day. But at least I know that with each day passing i have a few more freckles from the summer sun, and my legs are a little more prepared to toe the start line.

Kelly, where have you been for the last 5 weeks?

Remember that time I said weekly blog posts were coming back?

Yeah, me too.

I wrote out a whole post for week two, but it just felt like a lot of complaining – my asthma flared up again that week, and it just put a big old negative vibe over how I felt about the whole training cycle at that point. I try to share the ups and the downs of training, but there’s a difference between a “down” and a long winded complaint about not being able to breathe.

And then there’s the whole laptop issue – as in mine decided, after five plus years of loyal service, to throw up a blue screen of death. Cool computer, cool. I guess I really should have invested in that external hard drive, considering the amount of turmoil my heart was in at the idea of losing years of photos.

After Dennis and Tommy both deemed the computer situation too precarious for them to be comfortable trying to risk it (both feared death at my hands if the photos were lost), I called in backup: My co-worker and friend, Ben, who has basically been my computer lifeline for the last 8 years. And after a bit of what I assume was wizardry, he managed to pull the contents of my hard drive off the computer, and onto a newly-purchased external drive – hallelujah! I then had to sort through the contents of the drive, and make sure that everything I needed was there, before he could wipe the computer and restore it to proper functioning.

That seemingly little task, checking the files, I somehow managed to avoid for weeks – it was one of those little things that nags at the back of your mind, but you somehow forget until you’re passing out or half way through a long run, and have no means of getting it done at that exact moment.

Me and My co-worker turned friend Desi, at the planet fitness where we do our strength training. 

So, laptop-less, the blog sat stagnant for the last month. Now that Dennis and I are living together, I did have his desktop as an option (which is where this post is coming to you from), but it somehow doesn’t feel the same as my laptop, which I have written all my other posts on. I suppose I am just somehow sentimental about the computer that helped me put my thoughts out there to the world.

Now, lets get to the good stuff – the running!

The good news is, after week two of training the ability to breathe returned to me, and I finally found a combo of allergy meds that work well enough to make me a functional human again. Instead of going through all of the runs and workouts that I have done over the last month, I’m going to talk about my training schedule, and some of my favorite sessions that I have gotten in so far during this training cycle, and update you about some of my running friends!

This time around, the heavier hitting weeks have me logging about 40 miles, with 3-5 cross training sessions weekly. My ideal week, where I hit every workout that I would like to, looks something like this:

Monday: AM- Swim, PM - yoga

Tuesday: AM- run (easy), PM – Strength training

Wednesday: AM – Run (quality, speed work or tempo)

Thursday: AM- run (easy), PM – Strength training

Friday: AM- Swim

Saturday: Optional run – easy if recovery feels necessary, quality if I have the strength

Sunday: Long Run, with a possibility of yoga if the energy is available

As I have gotten deeper into the training cycle, I have started to shift the “Quality” run days to Tuesday/Thursday mornings, rather than Wednesday/Saturday, as it makes me feel more prepared going into my long run. The last time I tried to do any sort of quality work on a Saturday, I felt drained on Sunday, and it impacted my long run for sure. I have also tried to get to yoga twice a week, when possible.

July came in as my second highest mileage month ever, at 158.6 miles. Second only to April of 2017, when I was training for the Long Island marathon, which was the first week of May 2017. I also added more bike mileage, and kept on swimming.

At the end of June, I did a big thing (for me) – my first ever open water swim! Excel, the masters swim program that I participate in, offers weekly open water workouts, and as I was able to borrow a wetsuit from one of the coaches I committed to joining one of the first sessions. I was super nervous when I arrived – growing up on long island I have been swimming in the ocean my whole life, but more in a “run at the waves!” sort of swimming. This felt more serious, and exponentially harder. But the had two people watching out for us as we swam, one in a kayak and one on a paddle board. When the whole group had arrived we waded in the water and began the swim, which was an out and back towards a tiny island with the last lap being different than the first three, such that we would swim parallel to the shore. Despite the wetsuit the water was cold, and I felt panic in my chest as I started swimming. It was a very different feeling than swimming in a pool, where I am used to being able to see the bottom. All I could see when my face went into the water at the bay was murky and non-specific. I paused to float and take a few deep breaths. Then practiced some positive self talk, reminding myself that I COULD do this, and then adopted the policy of just closing my eyes when my face was in the water, which worked much better than I had expected it to. Fourty-five minutes later I was back on the shore, and on top of the world. I felt so accomplished at completing my first open water swim, and even committed to buying a wetsuit that night. It was harder mentally than it was physically, and today I am still not 100% comfortable in open water, but it was the first step in the right direction.

Dad also hit a big milestone in June – He participated in the “great american cycle challenge,” where he pledged to bike 200 miles and raise $500 to fight kids’ cancer. By the end of the month he had logged over 300 miles, and raised more than $600 (thanks to the donations of the Family, Friends, and the ever generous members of the Merrick Bicycles Tri team!).

On the fourth of July, my family once again took on the role of “one those families that run on holidays,” as Kevin, Ryan, Kasey and I ran the bellmore strider’s fourth of July 4-miler. Kasey even broke her rule of “no runs longer than 3 miles,” which she established after her second half marathon back in April, and completed the full distance. My brother Kevin, while not a runner, is in generally good shape and recently had to be timed running 1.5 miles as a part of a physical exam, so he was ready for this race. When Kev, Ryan and I ran this race in 2016, Kevin finished with an average pace of 7:40, something I am still a little bitter about to this day (mainly because I wish I could run that fast for any stretch of time). His goal for this year was to beat that time, and my goal was to keep up with him for as long as possible. How long did I last? Just over one mile. How fast was that mile? 7:18. A near- puke pace for me. As Kevin disappeared to the distance, I mentally shook my fist at him, whishing I had that speed, but maybe a little bit enjoying the knowledge that he would slow down too – he usually doesn’t run more than 2 miles, so his pacing isn’t very practiced. He was still super speedy, finishing with an average pace of 7:30/mi. When I came through the finish line he was cheering on the side lines, so that made up a little bit for him kicking my butt. My average pace wound up being an 8:12, just a little faster than my 10k PR pace… so maybe I can dream of a new PR on the horizon. Kasey and Ryan stuck together for the whole race, and rolled through the finish a few minutes later, followed soon after by my friend Desi, who was running her first race ever. All in all, it was a fun day, as the race was followed by kayaking with Dennis and friends, and then a BBQ.

In July, the most challenging week to get workouts in was the week that I spent a float on the Norwegian Escape with my extended paternal family. There was a gym on the ship, but it was often a struggle to get myself onto the treadmill when there was so much to do, so much to eat, so many books I could be reading while relaxing. Thankfully, Kasey and I were sharing a room, and together we made getting to the gym a priority. I got in a total of 4 runs that week, some of which even had an awesome view of Bermuda while we were docked. Although, the amount of food that I ate may have cancelled out some of the effectiveness of those miles. It was certainly easier to run while the ship was docked, as when the boat was moving the rocking made the narrow treadmills somewhat hazardous to run on. The ship did have a small outdoor “jogging deck,” but it was near a pool (so the floor was always slippery) and it was right near the exit of a restaurant, so there was always heavy foot traffic. Plus, it took 8 laps of the small track to get to a mile, a prospect that was less than appealing. We had a great vacation, visiting beaches, caves, and zoos while in Bermuda, and spending lots of time relaxing while on the ship.

While I had managed to keep my weekday mileage close to where it needed to be during the cruise, I had too much to do the day we got off the ship, and time slipped away from me without ever getting my long run in. But the following weekend I rallied and managed to get longer distances done on both Saturday and Sunday, so I felt a little better about missing the mileage. One of my friends on the Tri Team, Tara, was looking for a running buddy for an early morning Saturday long run. Tara kept me company for so many of my winter long runs leading up to my first marathon in 2017 and it had been far too long since we last trained together, so I quickly agreed to meet up with her. She had 12 miles on her schedule, and my plan told me I needed a 16 mile long run for the weekend. I lied to myself and said that I would totally do the extra four once we finished the 12 together – spoiler alert: I have poor time management skills related to running, and I indeed, did not run the additional 4 miles.

We agreed to meet at the Bethpage state park parking lot at 6:15, but in my infinite lack of navigation abilities, I picked the wrong parking lot on google maps. This lead to a slightly later than planned start, but by 6:30 we were on the road. Tara had a prescribed pace of 9:30-10 min/mi, which was right where I wanted to be as well. We headed north on the path, deciding that was the hillier direction to travel in, and ran all the way to the northern end, having to do a few loops of the last quarter mile to ensure that we wouldn’t be running loops around the parking lot. We chatted throughout the run, and Tara let me rant about anything and everything, but mostly about how much I hate wedding planning. Before I knew it the 12 miles were over, and I did not have enough time to get in any extra distance, because I had made plans to go bike riding at jones beach with some co-workers.

Biking?! Yes, you read that right. After two years of running with the Tri Team, I am now in possession of an actual road bike! Remember the friend that I mentioned before, who saved my computer, Ben? Well he recently upgraded his road bike, and he offered me a loan of his old one, as we are about the same height. I happily accepted his offer and am so excited to add more biking into my weekly routine.

Dennis and I loaded the new road bike into my car, and the drove around the neighborhood picking up bikes for the ride – first one at my parent’s house for my friend Desi to ride, and then his bike from his parent’s house for him to use. We met another co-worker at the bike path and were ready to ride after some quick adjustments. As we hit the path, I did not realize just how different a road bike would feel from the mountain bikes that I had rode my whole life, and wow. Why did I wait so long to try a bike like this! We rode a total of 17 miles, encountering a fierce head wind from miles 6-10. But when the wind was at our backs, it felt like I was flying!

When Sunday came around, I had all but decided 12 miles of running + 17 miles of biking was good enough for a long run. I slept in Sunday morning and was feeling great, considering all the mileage that I had logged the day before. After a lazy morning that included standard Sunday chores, I was starting to worry that the 12 miles I had logged the day before just wasn’t enough. I consulted my running schedule – the following weekend had a 14 mile long run. So if I ran 14 this weekend and 16 next, I could be be guilt free. I sat on this for a while, until I got a text from Kasey, asking if I was still planning on doing a long run that day – she wanted to get outside, and offered to come along on her bike. And thus, a plan was devised. I would run the 2 miles from my apartment to her house, and then we would do the 1.1 mile loop near my parents house until I was satisfied with the distance. When we got on the road we started chatting, and the miles slipped away. We stopped at my parents a few times to refill the water bottles with water and ice, and on the last stop I may have even stolen an orange. Once I finished the loop that meant 12 miles was complete, Kasey and I parted ways and I headed back to the apartment, in search of food and rest. It wasn’t as fast as the day before, but I had gotten the mileage done and was happy for it.

The last weekend in July I carved out the time for a 16 mile long run, and got through it with the help of Dennis and my college roommate, Minal. She was in town for the weekend, and the two of them agreed to bike along with me as I ran on Sunday morning. Since the sun was bright, we opted for the Bethpage trail again, since there is a good amount of cloud coverage. There were laughs, there were hills, there were songs sang, and then it was done. A 16-miler that was gone in the blink of the eye, even if I did get a little grumpy around mile 14, where for a moment it felt never ending. My solution when I felt like I was dragging? To race myself for mile 15, and to my own astonishment I actually managed to pull off an 8:23 pace that far into a long run. The sweet victory was rewarded with scones at Robinsons, our favorite not-so-local tea shop – it’s a 40 minute drive but so worth it.

Now that I have regaled you with tales of my long runs, lets take a moment to touch upon upcoming race plans!

Next big race is the Wineglass marathon, but if you have made it this far into the post, you probably already know that. I’ll be running that race solo, with a goal of coming closer to the 4 hour mark.

After that I have three RunDisney weekends on the schedule. First up is the two course challenge, as a part of the food and wine half marathon weekend. Dennis and I will be on our honeymoon in Disney that week, and since we were going to be there anyway, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to get a race in. I’ll be racing the 10k solo, and then running the half with my cousin Kristen, who lives in Florida not too far from Disney.

Then in January it will be marathon time again, and I will be heading to Florida with Jennie and my long time friend Mike. Mike has done a handfill of NYRR weekly races with me, and will be taking on his first half marathon that weekend! I will be doing the Goofy challenge, so after we run the half together I will be (hopefully) completing my 5th marathon the following day. Lots of celebratory snacks and park adventures will be had.

Sidenote: Jen is back in commission guys. After a long battle with ITB syndrome, her PT has cleared her to start running again, and along with her fiancé Will she has started to up her weekly mileage again. The marathon weekend falls on the weekend of her birthday, so I should probably start a formal petition for her to come and join in on the running fun, right?

Anyway, since I had such a good time with my parents during the princess half weekend in 2018, we have decided to repeat the trip in 2018, and Kasey’s family (which is headed by my Dad’s sister, my Aunt Karen and her husband, my Uncle Tom) have decided to join in on the fun this year! Mom, Aunt Karen and Hallie all agreed to participate in the 5k with me, but with Kasey’s new found “no more than three miles” rule, in conjunction with her dismay for the 3 am wakeups that she experienced during the star wars half marathon, I was convinced she would be sitting this weekend out and laughing at us from the sidelines as we took bus naps. But I am happy to report that she has signed on not only for the 5k, but for the main event, the DISNEY PRINCESS HALF MARATHON!!!!

My running buddy is back guys! Kasey, I am so glad that I will have you joining me in the misery of long runs, and I look forward to listening to you as you pretend to hate running. But don’t worry, we know the truth….. Plus, like you said – we will be having the good Disney eats guilt free, all trip.

So, that pretty much gets you up to date. As of today, I am feeling strong with my training. Hopefully you have made it to the end of this long-winded post, and it makes up a little bit for the weeks of radio silence. I will be back here soon, to talk more about the races that have been going on this year, and the progression of my training. So until next time, Happy Running!

Wineglass Marathon 2018: Week 1

Total Mileage: 33.8

As I begin this new marathon training cycle, I feel like I have to start by saying I am sorry for every time I complained about the cold weather on my winter runs…. As I run into the summer, I miss the days of being layered up, back when there was no humidity. These days I am happiest when the weather blesses me with a light breeze and breathable air.

I often take Monday as a recovery day, either resting completely or doing a yoga class, and after a weekend full of travel I opted to take it as a complete rest day. Not the strongest start to a training plan, but rest is an important part of training, and I need to take care of myself if I want to make it through this whole training cycle injury free. Plus, the travel was so worth it – I had gone to Atlanta to be a part of my cousin Jen’s surprise engagement!

When Dad and I met up for a Run/Ride on Tuesday morning, my training mileage officially began. I recently moved out of my parent’s house, but the move only took me one town over so we can still meet up for our morning miles. When I stepped outside the morning chill was nice enough that I pulled on a long sleeve running top for the beginning of the run, which I eventually removed once I warmed up. We got in 6 miles, with some little hills throughout the run. I mean, its still the south shore of Long Island, but it’s more hills than my usual route near my parent’s house has. Dad loves to pick a route that makes me run in circles around the hills, directing me to turn one way or the other as we reach the end of a block.

After work on Tuesday I headed to planet fitness with a few co-workers to get in some strength training. We focused on arm and core workouts, with a routine that took us a little over an hour. We have been going to the gym together for about two months now, getting there twice a week after work. It has been really great to have the structure of going right from work to the gym, and having a workout partner makes it so that I can’t bail just because I am feeling a little tired after work – an excuse that I often find myself using when I rely on my own motivation to do strength training.

The first swim of the week was on Wednesday morning, since I was too exhausted to get there on Monday. This called for a 5:30 AM wakeup, and a half-asleep trek to the aquatic center. The pool was set up in a long course configuration, which means that the lanes are set to 50 m per lap. Usually I dread long course configuration, as I find it more challenging, but I really hit a groove with it during this workout. Feeling good after the swim, I decided to ask the head coach, Lisa, about the open water swims that the team has now that the weather is nicer. When I told her that I had never done an open water swim, she insisted that I try one, and even offered to loan me her wetsuit. Well, that was exactly the motivation that I needed to bite the bullet, and agreed that I would attend one the following Wednesday night. Dad had taken his bike to the park, so he rode by as swim ended for a quick selfie. 

On Wednesday night, I flowed right from one workout into another. I headed into the neighborhood around work with my co-worker, making sure to run by the school that Dad works security at to say hello – just a quick fly by as we continued into some hills. To avoid busy roads, we eventually dipped into an area that was more residential, but equally hilly. My morning runs typically are about 12 ft of elevation. This run? 218 ft of elevation gain. Once we finished a three mile loop, we parted ways and I headed to the next event of the night: A Merrick Bicycles Tri Team track workout.

MBTT track night are lead by the team coach, Jackie, and she always has a challenging workout ready for us. Being a generally competitive person, I really push myself at these workouts, as I am always chasing after a faster runner. She kept us doing 5k and 10k pace repeats varying in distance, with a body weight exercise waiting for us between laps. Once my legs had been thoroughly thrashed by these repeats, she revealed the last workout of the night would be full on sprints, between the goal posts at the center of the track. By the time we were done, I was exhausted in the best pace, and super pleased with my moving pace – an average of 7:44 min/miles over the 5 miles we had logged.

While I was super pleased with myself on Wednesday night, my legs were dead when it came time to roll out of bed for my Thursday morning run with Dad. I may have overdone it just a little the day before with a swim and 8 miles of running – more than half of those being quality miles, but I was willing to pay the piper, in the form of a slightly torturous morning run. I only made it through 3 miles, each one progressively slower, before I declared that it was time for breakfast, and thus the run needed to come to an end before I passed out as a result of fatigue… yes, on a three-mile run. It was just one of those days.

But a slow run and sore legs didn’t keep me from heading to they gym after work. It was Thursday and I had a commitment to fulfill with my accountability buddies. We did a quick core routing consisting of hanging leg raises and dynamic movements like jumping squats, followed by a dumbbell arm circuit.

The night was not yet over – the last activity of the day was a spin class with Jennie! We met up for a class at iSpin studio, and got in a great hour of spin.

Now, as I was going through all of these activities, did I feel like I was overdoing it? No. I felt like I was socializing and enjoying time with my friends, all while getting my workouts in. Looking back at it though, I feel like I was bound to hit the ground after putting in so much so fast – sometimes I forget that I’m not in peak condition at present, and workout as though I am at the pinnacle of marathon season, pushing through 20-milers on the weekend. As I write it all down though, I want a little bit to shake week one Kelly and tell her to chill – but being me, I of course pushed on, the calm before the storm.

Finally, it was Friday. The end of the week, and one more early morning between me and the weekend (not that I would get to sleep in on the weekend, but that’s a whole other can of worms). I groggily made my way to swim again, and was rewarded with a short course pool configuration. After a handful of various distance laps, we switched over to kicking drills to bring us through the second half of class. As we neared the end of the session Lisa arrived, with a wet-suit in tow for me to borrow. She had me try to get it on, but as I was soaking wet and had never worn a wetsuit before, I was less than successful. I put the wet-suit back onto its hanger after the two of us spent a few minutes struggling, and hoped that it would be less difficult next time.

At this point, I honestly can’t remember the last time I got to sleep in on a Saturday. I think it has been at least three months, and this Saturday would not be my day of reprieve. I like to start my training cycles off with a race, so that I can see where I am, and have something to compare to over as I put more work into my training. So, this Saturday I was heading to Flushing Meadows Corona park with Dad to participate in the New York Road Runner’s Queens 10k. I ran this race in 2017 as well, and was hoping to beat my time from last year. I got to my parent’s house around 6 am, and Dad and I got on the road to head to queens. We were at the park by 7, and headed to race day central to pick up my bib. We had gotten there early enough that it was easy to find parking, and Dad broke out his foldable bike so he could explore the park while I was running. Once I had my bib I took plenty of time to stretch out, feeling a little bit stiff from the week’s activities. At 8:30 I headed into my corral, and took a few minutes to make a race playlist on Spotify – not something I usually do, but I felt like I would need the extra push, remembering how hard this race has been for me the previous year. The announcers started to release the runners, I quickly took a GU, and we were off! Dad managed to find me at four points on the course, even if I did only see him three times – part of why I usually don’t wear headphones while races, it makes it tough to find m:y people! I felt good starting this race, and settled into a fast-for-me pace, logging the first mile at a 8:20 pace. I was wearing a new pair of sunglasses – Goodr ones – and I was having a lot of trouble with my peripheral vision. The glasses were so reflective, that I was second guessing every time I tried to weave through runners, and I reminded myself that this is why people say “nothing new on race day.”

I pushed on, being careful in the field of runners as I brought my pace closer to an 8:00 min/mi. Ideally I wanted to be at an average of 8:14 or better, as that would allow me to PR the race. I was able to hang on to the pace through mile 4, but at some point as I put one foot in front of the other, telling myself “DON’T STOP,” I realized that I was starting to get light headed, and that my arm was going a little but numb, so I allowed myself to back off the pace a little, and pulled into the next water stop to grab a drink. While my goal pace quickly slipped away, I was still moving forward, and managing to keep my pace below a 9:00 min/mi. By the time we were circling around the Unisphere I was so ready to be crossing the finish line, but I tried to smile as Dad grabbed a pic of me running by. Then the final descent through the park, the finish line in sight, and a final push to get through the end of the race. I crossed the finish line, slowing to a walk, keeping moving through the finishers chute, collecting my medal and recovery bag – which I immediately opened to get at the Gatorade.

Now that the race was done, I went and collected my t-shirt and then found a shady spot to wait for Dad, who arrived a few minutes later. From there we headed to the car and made our way home. My average pace for the race wound up being an 8:25 min/mi, which was faster than the year before, even if it wasn’t quite a PR.

I had one run left for week one after the Queens 10k – the first long run of this cycle. Sunday was Father’s day, so naturally Dad and I made plans to go on an outing together. I had 10 miles on my schedule, and we headed to Bethpage state park to get the miles in. We stuck to a three mile loop of the trail that was half paved path and half in the woods, so it was nice to have some variation on the run. Plus, the part of the path that was in the woods was so serene that I looked forward to getting back to it every time I was on the pavement. It was a nice day, but I was grateful that most of the trail was in the shade, since every time I stepped into the sun I could feel the temperature rise and the air get thicker. As the miles went on my legs got heavier, reminding me of just how much I had asked from them throughout the week, slowing down a little as the run progressed. But honestly, I didn’t even mind the pace – I was just so happy to be starting this journey again. As I reached the end of the final loop Dad reminded me (several times) to pick up my feet more, find my stride. At long last, we came back to the car and packed up, heading home for the rest of the father’s day festivities, which for my family meant heading to Forrest Hills Stadium to see Roger Daultry perform The Who’s Tommy. It was a late night, full of less-than-healthy food choices, but I had such a great time taking it all in with my family.

Oh, and since this week was fathers day, I want to leave you with the following photos: My dad running the Long Island Half around 1989, and me running it in 2018.