One foot in front of the other...

It's been a tough few weeks. Briefly: fantastic physical therapist suggested that I have a physical because she wondered if I had something else going on other than running-related injuries. I'm in pain a lot and not healing as quickly as I'd like. I went to the doctor and am in the process of exploring my options and collecting information. Nothing concrete yet, but I feel like I'm on track toward getting some answers. My PT said that the doctors may tell me that I shouldn't be running, which was very upsetting. She told me to prepare me for the possibility, but I didn't want to hear it. I don't know that for sure yet, so I'm going to do what I can until I have a definitive directive. Of course, I see the bigger picture, and if I have to choose between running right now and feeling good in the long term, I will go with long term. I go back and forth between being terrified by the unknown and hopeful that it's nothing serious and/or nothing I can't manage.

I got a little bit of hope today when I talked to our program director after our 6 mile run. (We were supposed to do 5, but our pace leader led us the wrong way and we added a mile). She told me that she has similar issues to what the doctors think I may have, and that she still manages to run marathons. It was great to make that connection with her, to get some support, and to know what questions to ask when I go for appointments. I'll definitely be asking about diet and vitamins, etc. I'm certainly feeling a little less freaked out than I did earlier in the week.

Today's run included a "magic mile", which is supposed to be a predictor of marathon pace. We did it in the middle of our 6 mile run, and I took it easy. According to the chart, my marathon time will be about an hour and a half slower than my 2006 time. I don't think that's quite accurate, but on the other hand, I'm just trying to make it to the start. Having a time goal at this point just doesn't make any sense.

One foot in front of the other...

More gear

There's a rumor going around that you only need sneakers to run. Whoever started that rumor is obviously lying. I have accumulated more gear since I started running longer distances than I ever thought possible (or necessary, until I started using all of it). Shoes, shorts with pockets, fuel belts (to carry water and gels), SPI belts (to carry all my stuff), ipod holders, gu/gel, ID tags, body glide, hats, wicking clothes, special socks... you get the idea. The latest acquisition: a Timex watch with two interval timers so I can do the run/walk thing this year. I took it out for a little spin on Friday in Maine and I like it so far. But who knows, I may be hearing beeping in my sleep by the time November 7th arrives!

week 2!

5:30am felt extra early this morning after I didn't sleep well last night. But I made it up to the Upper East Side for our 4 mile run in Central Park at 7:45am. I saw some familiar faces from last week, and met some new people. I think the pace groups will be pretty well formulated soon, but there is flexibility to speed up or slow down depending on how we're feeling on a particular day. I ran with the 13s again today (comfortable mile pace +2 minutes, the Galloway rule). It was perfect out, sunny and breezy, and I felt much better than last week. (Amen to that!)

After the run, I took the time to stretch the way Gopi (super physical therapist) has been showing me. She has different thoughts on stretching than some of the Galloway folks do. I trust her and stretching makes me feel better, so I'm sticking with what I know. I'm reminded of Coach Adam's refrain, "Don't do anything different during the marathon than you did during your long runs!" So, stretching it is. And coffee (and water!) immediately following!

Next week, 5 miles in Maine, since I'll be there to celebrate B's "graduation" (in quotes because he has an internship until July) from UNH. Maybe I can get Dad to run/walk with me!

Run #1 = fun

I got up at 5:30am this morning to make it to Central Park for our first training run, an easy 3 miles. I was cursing the early hour a little bit, and wondering if I really wanted to give up all Friday night plans between now and November 7th, but I think it'll be worth it. Truthfully, there is no way I am making it to the start without a team and a structure to get me there. The goal of this morning's run was to see if this run/walk method would even work for me. Everybody on the Galloway team swears by it, and for someone as injury prone as I am, it seems like a good approach.

I arrived at our meeting place and was immediately surrounded by what seems to be a very friendly, supportive, and diverse group. It is so inspiring to see runners of all ages and paces working toward a goal together! I felt pretty good as we got underway. I was surprised, actually, at how nice it felt to be back out there. Those walk breaks were a great recharge. My legs appreciated them! I felt a couple tweaks in my knees by the end, but with some stretching and some ice, I'll be ok. (If Fred Lebow could run the NYC marathon after having brain cancer, I can run it again despite all of my issues!) Now I'm off to brunch with one of my favorite people in the entire world. It feels great to accomplish so much before 10am. That nap I'm going to take this afternoon will be excellent, too.

Run for Your Life

Watching a documentary on Fred Lebow, founder of the NYC marathon, tonight to get inspired for tomorrow's kickoff with the Galloway program. It's been a loooong time since I've run with any regularity, so I'm a little nervous about getting back out there. But I 'm optimistic that the Galloway run/walk/run approach will work. We'll see if I can run/walk my way, injury free, to 26.2 on 11/7/10!