5 weeks to go until Chicago. AKA blog fail

I am a terrible blogger this season. I'm pretty sure I said that the last time I posted, too--in June (!). Gah. It's late August, and we're just over a month out from the Chicago marathon on 10/7. Hard to believe that the summer has gone by so fast. I'm at the point in training when I don't really want to do it anymore. I just want to get to race day and get going. Then I want to sleep in for a couple of months and get back to running in the spring. Last Saturday, I completed a very hot, very hilly 23 miles in Central Park with my Gallowayans. The thinking behind the route was that if we could run the 23 miler in CP, we could do it anywhere, since most races are flatter than the park. Also, we were able to pass an aid stop several times, easily get to bathrooms, water, etc. Brilliant. The routes this season have been fairly new, since our leadership team (ahem, one member of our leadership team) has decided that this is the season for new routes that preferably include bridges. Don't get me wrong, I love exploring the city, but it can be a bit complicated to do a new route on a long run, especially when it's really hot. People get grumpy. Anyway, Saturday's 23 miler went pretty well. It was much better than our 20 miler two weeks prior, when we ran from Columbus Circle all the way up to Inwood and back. The aid stop was at mile 10, which would've been ok, I think, had it not been so hot and humid. Many in our group ran out of water before we hit the aid stop and we couldn't find water fountains or anything along the route. (We did, however, find a hilarious street sign in Inwood, located at the intersection of Seaman St and Cumming St. In our maturity, we had a little giggle and took some photos). Needless to say, the 20 miler felt ridiculously long, and many people dropped out at the aid stop due to the heat. I came home afterward and spent the rest of the day watching movies in bed. I was wiped. After the 23 miler, however, I went to my birthday party and was festive despite being tired. I felt pretty good, except for a nasty leg cramp that wouldn't go away after mile 18 or so. I've never had those before, but it seemed to get a little better as I upped my salt intake. I commented to someone that I was really glad I didn't have to run as many miles as my age. 23 was quite enough. Plus, I had to cut my celebration on the actual day short in order to go to bed early and get up at 4 on Saturday morning. In any case, my birthday was lovely and I felt a great sense of accomplishment to be done with the 23 miler. We have one long run left in September before Chicago, and then I'll be tapering. Can't believe it's almost here!

2012 training is well underway.

Oops. Shame on me for neglecting my blog so far this season. My apologies to the four people who read it. You know who you are. :) Things have been busy this spring/summer, leaving little time for writing, but I'll do my best to summarize. Galloway started a week earlier this year because we have a new leadership team that is really focused on sticking more faithfully to the Galloway model. Not that we weren't doing so before, but Jeff G. really encourages running longer than 26 miles before a marathon. He says it prepares us mentally and often results in better times. Regardless, because I'm running Chicago this fall, I am not doing a 26+ mile run. That's just the way the schedule worked out. Fine with me. 26.2 is plenty! So we're a few weeks into the season, and next weekend is a 13 miler. We've had some interesting new routes so far, including over the Williamsburg Bridge (complete with really snarky graffiti, appropriate for the neighborhood). My "magic mile" times have improved significantly since last spring, which is amazing. The first time we did the MM (a timed mile, and predictor for marathon pace/finish time), I finished it in 9:50. I haven't run that fast since middle school. (Oh, horrible flashbacks to the Presidential Fitness Challenge). The second time we did it, I finished a few seconds faster, like 9:30 or something like that. My goal for Chicago is to break 6 hours. I missed that by 17 seconds at the Marine Corps Marathon, which still bugs me. Chicago is flat, but it can be really hot there, so we'll have to see. Luckily, there is a great group of Gallos running Chicago this year, so I'll have people to pace with. The hardest part of the season so far has been getting up on Saturday mornings. I'm working so much (much more than in my previous job) and I'm completely spent by the end of the week. That's especially true now because we're in budget season (only for two more weeks, thankfully). It's been really challenging to get enough sleep during the week, and I definitely feel the effects during my workouts. This past Saturday, we did a 6 miler over the Queensborough Bridge and back and up the UES, and my feet and legs fought me the whole time. I just didn't want to run at all. When I came home, I had my usual snack and took an epic nap. That's becoming part of my routine too! All things considered, I've been feeling pretty well. I've been keeping up a regular yoga practice, as well as other cross training, and I definitely feel like I've gotten stronger. Soreness/stiffness varies day to day, but the medication continues to help. I've also gotten better about icing and using my foam roller/stick regularly. I could probably stand to pay a bit more attention to what I'm eating, especially as the runs get longer. It's hard to find time and energy to cook when I'm so tired after work. I really should make it a goal to cook more, at least one new recipe a week or something like that. I'll think about it. Sorry again for disappearing for the past couple of months. Thank you to everyone for being patient as I figure out how to balance the demands of my job with the rest of my life. I appreciate all of you for asking how the training is going. Your questions hold me accountable! Happy running, and happy (almost) summer!

Spring training

I've been on a bit of a hiatus from running this winter. The longest I've gone is 5 miles, and I've only done that a few times over the past three months. Mostly, I've traded in my morning runs for trips to the gym and to yoga. My fellow Galloway teammates (meaning the ones who've also taken the winter off, not the crazy ones who've kept up their ultras all winter) and I have committed to starting again as a group in March, before the season formally starts in May. I failed last weekend when I completely overslept and woke up in Brooklyn at the time I was supposed to be meeting folks in Manhattan. Oops. Too bad time travel doesn't work. Tomorrow is a new day, and I'm fully planning to be there. Hold me accountable, people.

I didn't really plan on running a marathon this fall (sound familiar? I had the same thought last fall, and we know how that turned out)-- but I totally caved to peer pressure when the flurry of emails about registering for Chicago flooded my inbox. I knew that there was a chance I wouldn't get into the NYCM through the lottery, and the idea of not running a race made me feel left out. I put aside my concern about cost of entry, flight, hotel, etc and went for it.

So, Chicago, here I come! This makes marathon #5. Hard to believe. I'm looking forward to running in a different city and to seeing friends along the way. That part will be especially great, since I don't get to see my Midwesterners very often. I'm not as excited about getting up early on Saturday mornings all summer, but it would feel strange not to after doing so for two years.

Thus begins another pre-season. Time for some real motivation.

Happy New Year!

Welcome, 2012! Here's to a year full of health, happiness, peace, and running for fun!