Cold...rain...sleet...hail....I said it would be a wintery mix.....everyone made fun of me, but I was right!

I can't believe that I haven't posted for almost a month..I cannot possibly recap the events of the past 3 weeks and weekend runs, however, I hope to be a little more diligent in the coming weeks up to the race and post-race. Last weekend was my 20 miler!! I actually finished and I couldn't believe it! Apparently all the weather that we have "luckily" dodged, caught up with us this past weekend in the form of cold, rain, sleet, hail, and thunder and lightning...and looks to be headed our way again for another long run on Saturday....This weekend is the dreaded Murray Park, which I'm sure involves the all-too-common River trail that I have come to dread. I am hoping, against hope, that it will at least stay dry until we are done, despite the cold and wind that are expected as well.

This past weekend was, as I said, WET. Thankfully, we stayed dry for about the first 6.5 miles before it started to pour on us. We started at the Capitol and headed through downtown. It was almost exactly last week's run plus more, but I didn't care as long as it was NOT that damn River trail. My feet felt amazingly good the whole run, a little sore, but not too bad. I think I started out a bit too fast, trying to keep up with Kim and Cheryl, and my hip flexors and/or IT band quickly let me know I needed to slow down!! After that it was a decent pace, with a few walk breaks thrown in. The past couple of weeks I have been doing the run/walk thing..usually running 4-5 miles and then walking 0.5 as I nourish/drink. That was a bit shot to hell as the rain picked up. Kim said she was "not about to walk" with it raining that hard! It did slow down to a sprinkle here and there and I got a few small walks in, but not what I planned. We stopped at 12 miles, Cheryl needed to change her socks and I needed to refill my water bottles. Kim decided at that point to leave..she was getting blisters and was a little worried about getting sick before her Ultra this weekend. So...me and Cheryl took off for the last 8 miles. It rained the whole time, but not too hard. At mile 17, the Marathon chicks had a station set up for us with snacks and water. It was nice! The last 3 miles seemed long and my left hip was bothering me, so I had to do a walk/jog combo for the last mile or so...Cheryl did her usual supportive "you can do it" shpiel, of which I was VERY grateful and we made it to the end. Tom was there to great us and showed me another good stretch for my IT Band. We were sooo glad it was over! I do feel like I had another 6.2 miles in me if I HAD to and that made me finally feel somewhat ready...

Of course, our run was followed by the usual Starbuck's visit, and we headed back to Cheryl's. We didn't hang long, since we were both cold and wet....maybe we'll have a repeat of that this weekend. I hope not!!

Update to come!

Blog update to come...need to post on last week's 18 miler and tomorrow's Valentine's day fun! Write more soon!

Rhaling Rd..Part Deaux...

Man.....it's been a while since I've blogged! I didn't even post about last week's run at Murray park! Needless to say...I need to start posting fairly soon afterward, or I forget...Anyhoo, all I remember about last weekend's run was that it was COLD, COLD, COLD and I am learning to hate the River trail...My right foot was bothering me and I had to put my ChoPat strap on about mile 8 or 9 (?)...the IT band stuff is back, but hopefully I can nip that with some more stretching...Cheryl and I were SOOOO glad that run was over.

This past week was not inspiring in terms of my runs and I only did 3 days, not including yesterday's long run with the LRM group...Monday I got a 4 miler in before the "bad weather" was supposed to arrive...It was all I could do to get my butt out there...I was glad that I did it, but man, it was a mental exercise just to go...I have always loved winter running, but maybe I'm just getting old...or sick of the cold....or both...cause the thought of running outside anymore just makes me cringe!! Wednsday I was SO dreading the cold, that I ran on the indoor track at NLRAC. Yes, I am crazy, I did 75 laps around that sucker to get my 6.25 miles...Kim and Cheryl both said "Ugh!" to that, but it really wasn't that bad. My foot felt pretty good that day and the softer surface helps once in while. BonJovi and Guns N' Roses kept me company...I know I'm "old-school", but for some reason, if I have the "Big Hair Bands" to listen to, I can persevere. Now....only to persuade the organizers of the LR Marathon to pump some tunes throughout the whole marathon, I would make it just fine....Friday was a low-key 3-miler. I had to really psych myself up for that one...but I was glad when it was done.

Now...for Saturday...a 16 miler on Rhaling Rd. It started out pretty cold...WHEN we started!! We met Kim at O"Looney's parking lot and ended up getting there just as every one was starting. We tried to start, but Cheryl's tummy had other ideas. Since the nearest bathroom was a questionable 6 miles away, we headed back to the truck and drove to the gas station so she could do the dirty deed. When we got back...there was pretty much no one in sight, but not too long into it, we passed Hobbitt and her walking entourage..The first 8 miles or so weren't too bad, but it was like my foot KNEW we were halfway and really started bothering me. Cheryl had been having foot problems too (hasn't gotten new shoes yet) and was hating every step. The hills didn't seem as bad (cardio wise), but they weren't too great on the foot. I had to put the ChoPat strap on about mile 12 or 13. That hill wasn't as bad as anticipated, but we were ready for the finish!! Blueberry Nutrigrain bars greeted us at the end...and of course, Starbuck's....

Uneventful can be good....

This week has been pretty uneventful as far as running goes...and that's the way I like it! I did Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, 4 miles each day. The weather was glorious, and somehow I managed to comfortably do less than 10 minute miles every time. Where that came from, I don't know...It has been weird getting used to my ipod again, which I never thought I would say, since I've been running by myself a lot...The shoes are working out a bit better and no It Band or hip flexor issues. I've cut back on hills a little and a bit more stretching. Monday and Tuesday, I ran in Lakewood and yesterday I ran in my neighborhood. Plan on getting out there in a few minutes to enjoy this last bout of warmer weather to do about 4 miles, but I am dreading that cold weather in the morning! I'm not exactly sure HOW cold, but I think it's supposed to be in the 30's or low 40's for a 14 miler at Murray Park with the LRM group. I got my PF night splint today in the mail, so I'm excited to see if it helps. Even if I can't stand to sleep in it, I've heard that it still helps to wear it a couple of hours each evening. So....we'll see...

Went to the LRM training meeting this week and the topic was nutrition. I was a bit disappointed in the content, it was more like 'Nutrition 101'. I was hoping it would be more race related, but it was pretty general. I could have done without it, oh well....Happy weekend!

A sucky running week.....

Nothing spectacular about this blog...more of an update, record-keeping kind of thing...my blogging love has faded with the resurgence of my numerous injuries running... It's kind of depressing to chronicle it, but once I finish the marathon in March and move onto other goals (or another marathon if I'm crazy enough)...I can look back and see all I've gone through and appreciate it. I am so close to wanting to quit running, but then all these stupid injuries would be in vain! It has been a LAME running week, if I do say so myself...

The last long run did me in for a few days...when I ran on Monday...all I could do was 3.9 miles....followed by an equally lame Tuesday of 3 miles. I tried my new shoes and insoles out on Tuesday and got shin splints, so that was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back...Took Wednesday off...

Went to Podiatrist appt. #2 yesterday:

1. I am not stretching enough..."once a day isn't going to cut it" he says....I concur, whip me with a wet noodle...I'm a bad girl...

2 .I need to stick to slower speed and less hills for a while, adding them back in GRADUALLY...note to self...oh, and I'll memo the LRM training group and make sure that they take that into account when they are planning the Saturday runs....geez....

3. MD adjusted my custom insoles that were redone by New Balance, adding some heel cushioning and a felt strip to raise the arch...it felt better in the office at least....He told me to hang onto the shoes for a while and see how they work out. He felt like the main problem was the insoles...

4. I am allowed to get the night splints, but he recommended that I buy them online, since my insurance deductible is so high....Oh, insurance...how useless you really are....

5. I am to follow up for worsening symptoms and/or recurring shin splints...

In any event, I did my run yesterday at the NLRAC track (it was just too damn cold to be outside), 5 miles in my new shoes and insoles. It went better than expected and no shin splints. We'll see...Today I did about 3 miles on the track and I had mixed results with the shoes...Not sure what to do about tomorrow morning's long run...

And on a totally unrelated separate tangent...does anyone know of anyone looking for a roommate? I have got to get out of the PSYCHO ZONE here at home!!!!?????

DAMN! DAMN! DAMN!

Well, I just tried out my new shoes on a short run and am annoyed as hell....I did the first 1.5 miles with my insoles I bought in Memphis and the second 2.5 miles with my remade custom orthotics...I don't know what to think. I hope to God that I have not just wasted $167 for nothing and that it is just the normal adjustment period. The Memphis insoles made my heels feel better, but I think they may have added too much cushion...while the orthotics seemed a little low on the arch. On top of that, I think the 1224 is a bulkier shoe....AGHHHH! I feel like I have mild shin splints and that always happens when I don't have good arch suport. Hopefully in a few runs, I'll work the kinks out...I would hate to have spent all that money on a shoe I can't wear.....

Feed me....

This has been a pretty rough running week in general and it all started with our run on Monday morning....Cheryl had left town for Florida and it was me and Kim for the 6 mile loop. It was cold as usual...but about mile 4 it started sleeting on us! It was too far to turn around, but still over 2 miles to get home, so we had to stick it out...it sucked! It was SO COLD!!! My hands got the worst of it. I had worn Cheryl's mittens and they got super soaked, so as the wind blew on them..it was EXCRUCIATING!! It just felt like 10,000 needles were poking me and I couldn't move my fingers at all...We finally got home, Kim had to open the door and she turned the warm water on for me for my hands..However, it took me a million years to get my gloves off and I couldn't stand for the water to touch my hands. I started to feel nauseated and I thought it was because of the pain. Not long after that, my legs started to feel weak and I started to see black...I knew then it was my blood sugar and I stumbled to the living room to lie down. I tried to tell Kim to get my Luna bar out for me and when she asked "Where is it?" I said, "In my sweater...", although I didn't have a sweater! I finally got across that it was in my fleece pullover that I was wearing, and she got it out and had to feed me a couple of bites, since I still couldn't move my hands! She took my shoes off so I could put my legs up, and within a minute or so..I was feeling better. Scary....it really hit me quickly this time. I've only had one other episode that was that bad, but it has been several years since then....On a good note, we joked, we got our 6.2 miles....

Thursday was a rather uneventful running day...I had a HORRIBLE day at work and the traffic was bad, so I didn't get home until around 5pm..didn't have much time before dark, so only ended up doing 2.5 miles...Friday, I ran the 6 mile loop with Cheryl and Kim...it was a pretty slow pace, but I really felt like I needed it...the run seemed to last forever and my hip flexors and left heel were killing me. I'm pretty sure that I have PF in my left foot now...I have a Podiatrist appt this week and he's going to be so thrilled that I didn't follow his advice and cut back on the hills. Last week I really overdid it with too many hills and going faster than I should have...

Saturday's run with the LR marathon group was at Maumelle...a 16 miler...The weather started out fairly warm and threatened rain, but somehow we dodged that bullet again this week...It was windy and that got worse as the run went on. Annette went with us this week and Michelle met us about 3 miles into the route. I wish that I could say it was easier than last week, but honestly, I hurt from the get-go...First my hip flexors (I think I jacked those up last Friday doing squat-thrusts and mountain climbers), then my heels (my left one now), then my knees, finally to top off the fun with my IT Bands acting up....Geez...I just kept thinking..."How am I going to do this in a couple of months, plus 10 more miles?"...The course was relatively flat, compared to the last several weekends, but got more hilly towards the end. That wind was crazy and it got really COLD that last hour. I was afraid Cheryl would blow away, right into the lake!! My only consolation was Starbuck's...and that my friend Jenni was making me some Golden Grahams Smores treats as a reward for the torture!! We all went to Starbuck's to enjoy a hot drink and that was the best Venti coffee with Hazelnut syrup I have had in a while! Spent some time getting to know Annette and Michelle some...it's so fun meeting new running friends! They talked about the "Women can run" clinic coming up in February and I am thinking about doing it.. It sounds fun! I may need to make some additional running pals...since Kim is always in Texarkana now and Cheryl is traveling somewhere different every week! Don't worry guys...you are still my "running family"....Next week the long run is "only" (strange to say that) 10 miles...and I am looking forward to that...My doctor may just restrict me for being a bad girl anyway..I'm hoping to ask about that PF sock or shoe to wear at night...

On a fun note, I did get to go see "Bride Wars" this weekend with my good friends Jenni and Sabrina, it was cute...some mushy, some funny girl friend stuff...Somewhat predictable, but still a feel-good flick. I am watching "Everest" from Netflix and it is really good...I've had this thing for Discovery shows and documentaries lately...Anyhoo, updates on MD appt to come...Oh, and I got my insoles remade at New Balance and they are much lighter and more comfortable. I haven't tried them running yet though...just walking around in them. Saturday me and Cheryl went to the New Balance Store and I got a new pair of New Balance 1224's, they are pink! I'm thinking that maybe some of this foot pain resurfacing is because I needed new shoes. I figured it was the best time to get them, since the marathon is 2 months away!