Next Time I Walk Into My House I Will Be A MARATHONER!

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.  Psalm 91:11


Leaving bright and early in the morning for California, with a fun stop along the way in Las Vegas (nothing like a little hot weather and pool therapy to stay loose!). I couldn't be happier with the weather forecast in San Diego on race day:

Today was a light 3 mile run, with a quick 2 miler in the morning before we leave (which equates to 4 AM). I feel good, I think taper has been a positive thing. A few twinges/aches here and there, but nothing alarming. At this point I am more worried about race day logistics of finding/getting to the starting line, and finding my family at the finish line! And, of course, just GETTING to the finish line is a pretty big priority.


Time to finish packing, I can hardly believe it!

Toenails are for Sissies!

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. Matthew 16:24

This being the weekend, it was time for my weekly long run. "Long" being relative, my 13.1 mile run today would have seemed exhausting just a few months ago. But today it felt like a break compared to last Saturday's 21 miles. Next weekend is only 8 miles, as my legs continue to rest up and rejuvenate during this taper period leading up to my marathon. My marathon, which happens to be two weeks from today!

My feet felt awesome since having replaced my old worn out shoes ("old" also being a relative word, got them in January....ran in them for four months, put over 500 miles on them).

Oh how I would love a pedicure, but alas, I have at least three toenails that are partially lifting and look like they would like to fall off (a dirty little marathon training secret). Not all people training for marathons lose toenails, but some are doomed. I appear to be in that group, I have done literally everything and tried every trick to maintain my pretty toes. Oh well, my bruised and damaged toenails are nothing compared to the pain and suffering Jesus endured for me. He has assured me He will NEVER leave me during this journey, but He never promised it would be easy.

Now it is time to focus on a much greater joy, and source of pride. My son Joshua is graduating from high school May 25, and will be headed to college this fall to study Mechanical Engineering. I am so very proud of him, and all of my children.

And who am I kidding? I'm looking forward to the upcoming two weeks of majorly decreased mileage. Maybe my toenails will cheer up, too!

Let the Taper Madness Begin!

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

Indeed, 3 weeks from today my feet will cross the starting line of my first marathon. I can hardly believe it.

To date I have had two 18 mile runs, a 20 miler and my final long run of 21.22 miles yesterday. Yes, my training plan stopped at 20 miles. But my brain just had to know I could go further. Crazy how mental running is.

I ran the 20 miler two weeks ago with friends from my running group. Four hours of talking, laughing, encouraging, sharing and holding back tears on the killer 12% incline we hit during mile 19 helped pass the time. And once we got to the top of that hill, we all three cheered for Jesus, the One Who deserves all credit and glory.

Yesterday, though, I had to do my 21.22 mile run alone. It took me exactly 4 hours, and I felt pretty good when I was done. Today I feel great, even managed a 5 mile recovery run just to loosen up a little. Truthfully, I don't know which is harder. Running that distance, or staying with it for 4 hours. A little of both, but it was good mental preparation for the marathon I am about to run by myself (well, me and 50,000 other runners!).

Today is Mother's Day, my beloved family gave me what I asked for....new shoes and a sun visor. My Brooks Adrenalines have not failed me, and I replaced the outgoing pair with the exact same model.  This is my third pair of Adrenalines. I was happy to get over 500 miles out the outgoing pair, especially considering how many of those miles were on concrete and rough terrain.

So bring on taper. Crazy woman that I am, I'm already concocting my plan to run another marathon on September 22 here in Denver...16 weeks from my June 3rd marathon. Which means I have to do the standard 4 week recovery running, then slide back into a marathon plan at the midway point. CRAZINESS! I am so hooked.

In the spirit of my tired and achy feet, which were very glad to see the old shoes retire:

Now to stay steadfast and not start doubting myself. I have trained hard, and trained smart. My training WILL see me through. Most of all, Jesus will be with me, so I can't go wrong.

Race Report: Platte River Half Marathon

Fear not, for I am with you;  be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you,  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10

All week the weather reports for today, April 15th have been a conflicted jumble of rain/snow/thunder/lightning/zombie apocalypse. Seriously, I went to bed last night unsure of whether I would be running this race. My deciding factor would be accumulating snow. With 7 weeks till my full marathon, I have no desire to suffer a klutz-injury from falling (and I've been prone this winter). After listening to howling wind and snow pellets hitting the bedroom window most of the night, I was very surprised to see clearing skies and snow covered grassy areas, yet clear pavement in my neighborhood. So the race was on!

I had been debating for weeks how to run this race. Conservative as a training run, or race pace. The debate being whether it would be wise to actually "race" this race, with a marathon in 7 weeks, and risk a race related injury. So I asked Hal Higdon himself, whose plan I am following, and he advised me to race it just to test my fitness level leading up to my marathon. My previous fastest half marathon was 2:11:00, which was just about a 10:00 minute mile average, so I decided to try to do a bit better than that this race.
 

Lining up at the starting line, I saw some members of my running group, which was awesome and inspiring! It was a chilly but sunny morning, so spirits were high. As the race began, I started with a pretty solid 9:45 pace, and was able to stick between 9:30 and 9:45 until mile two...the first major bottle neck. And I do mean major. The trail squeezed down to the width of a city side walk, with rails on each side, as we passed under a major road and began to wind along the river. This lasted for at least a half a mile, during one point we slowed down to a 12 minute pace at best. Finally, it loosened up, and we began to spread back out.

About mile 5 the wind began to really pick up, to a full-on head wind for the rest of the race. By mile 6 the clouds came back, and it began sleeting/snowing. It remained cold and windy for the remainder.

For the first time ever, I raced without carrying my own water, the goal being to practice my marathon strategy of using the water stations. The best part was the friendly faces of members of my running group who were volunteering!

I was able to maintain a 9:30 to 9:45 or so pace throughout, until mile 13 when the wind really began to howl, to the point I was holding my hat on! This, coupled with running over the only truly big hill of the race, in the form of the 8th avenue viaduct which crosses over I 25,  slowed me down a bit in the end. At one point while on the bridge, two other runners jokingly asked if I wanted to hold hands with them so we would not blow over the rail, the wind was so strong. Finally after crossing the bridge and turning the corner, the finish line was visible. I finished at 2:08, with an average pace of 9:48 per mile.


I am quite happy with how I did. I am sure that minus the bottle necks and head wind I would have been faster, but improving my time by 3 minutes was good enough (this time).

Based on the McMillan pace calculator, a 2:08 half marathon should equate to a 4:30 full marathon. We'll see, I'll be happy just finishing!

I'm glad I ran the race, even though I wouldn't describe it as enjoyable, nor is this a race I plan to do again. But for a formally fair weather runner, I have seriously toughened up this year. I think God is showing me that my hard training is paying off, and that I am stronger than I think I am, because HE is with me.

First 18 Mile Run!

They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha. John 19:17

Yesterday marked my longest run to date: 18 miles! To say it was tough is an understatement, but honestly, much of that is the mental aspect of running for over 3 hours. Thankfully a friend from my running group was able to join me for 13 of the miles, and it was a beautiful day.

Considering I had to do this run on Thursday, just 4 days after my usual Saturday long run day (last week was 16 miles), it went well. My legs were a bit fatigued, but not as bad as I feared they would be. The hard cold truth is my schedule is not my own, I have a family and obligations that dictate when I can run. With Easter weekend at hand, it just made sense to get the long run checked off the list early this week.

I LOVE my hydration pack! It seems impossible I can sip my way through 2 liters of water and not have to stop to pee along the way, but that's what happens when you live and run at altitude, in such a dry climate.

The front has two really nice pockets, one holds my I phone, one holds my gels and shot blocks:

The back is pretty compact, and is comfortable for a small woman (well, this small woman...but other small women say the same thing):

As for the run itself, I took it relatively easy with few brisk walk breaks to eat my shot blocks and drink water.  Hopefully race day adrenaline and running at sea level will help!

My next long run is actually a half marathon on April 15, it seems odd that 13.1 miles is considered a 'cutback' distance in my marathon training. Then it's back to 18 miles, and my first of two 20 milers. Marathon Day is 8 weeks from Sunday!

When I was running the last 5 miles alone, I tried to remember Jesus, and the walk He endured up that hill, bearing MY cross and MY sins. Suddenly my 18 mile run through beautiful trails on a 65 degree day didn't seem so tough.

Redirecting

You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them... Exodus 20:4

Perspective is a funny thing. To my non-runner friends, my training schedule sounds monumental. However, compared to my veteran marathoner friends, it's pretty fledgling as far as marathon training goes.

But for me, reaching the point in training during which I have two long runs per week is a big deal. Wednesday has always been a 'sorta long run,' flanked by two shorter runs on Tuesday and Thursday.  From this point on, Wednesday's runs are anywhere from 8 to 10 miles long, with Tuesday and Thursday being 5 miles. This Saturday is a 16 mile long run, which I will be increasing by two miles per week from here on out (with a cutback weekend every 3 weeks). This will allow for two 20 mile runs before I enter the taper phase of training plan. My weekly mileage will peak somewhere around 40 to 45 miles, assuming I don't need to miss any weekday runs for extra rest.

I am reminded this Lenten Season that first and foremost in my life must be God. Period. No debate. However, it is so easy to try to check Jesus at the curb with the rest of the cheering crowd. It's so easy to make this all about ME. Running becomes a false idol.

Well, it's NOT all about me. It's all about HIM. My Lord and Savior Jesus, who by His very grace I am blessed to have two legs, two feet, and the strength to do this. Without Him I am nothing. Without Him, I can't do this. He is my Running Coach, plain and simple. He will give me one more breath, one more step, one more mile, until I reach the finish line. I rely solely upon Him.

I love this prayer:


Run by my side, live in my heartbeat. Give strength to my steps. As the cold surrounds me, as the wind pushes me, I know you surround me, as the rain cleanses me, I know you are touching me, challenging me, loving me. And so I give you this run. Thank you for matching my stride. Amen

Marathon Under 12 Weeks Away!

Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God." Mark 10:27

I can hardly believe it, the San Diego Rock n Roll Marathon is just under 12 weeks away! I have that bizzare feeling of "I can't wait!!" mixed with "What am I DOING??"

My training is going very well (thanks Hal Higdon!) and I have met my new best friend, the 'calf compression sleeve.' I am currently running in black sleeves:

But in true Rock n Roll Marathon spirit think I will go a bit wild in neon pink!

Seriously, with people dressed like Elvis and Joan Jett at these races, how bad they can look?

The calf sleeve provides just enough compression to really feel good and supportive during my long runs, and for recovery after. My calves feel great, and I like that they aren't an actual sock.

I ran a beautiful and relaxing 12 miles last Saturday early morning, with an experienced marathoner from my group (thanks Pat!). I asked her a hundred questions as we wound through historic neighborhoods in downtown Denver (Cheesman Park area). Gorgeous tree-lined streets and beautiful mansions make for some nice scenary.

Now that I am under the 12 week mark, the miles are really picking up each week. I continually pray that Jesus will keep me strong and injury free, and that I will trust my training plan and stay with it.