Any idea what my dream means?

The alarm woke me this morning from a terrible dream I was having about being late and unprepared for the NYC marathon. For some reason, my dad was with me in the dream and we were racing (ha) to get to the starting line in the last bus allowed across the bridge. In my dream, I didn't have my number or my watch and I was panicking because, as far as I know, it is not possible to do intervals without a watch. Then I woke up. I don't know if we made it to the start or not.

Dreams about being late and unprepared are supposed to mean something, but I don't know what. Add the marathon in there and I'm just confused. I don't usually remember my dreams, but this one stuck.

The choices we make for the things we love

Running, like most things in life, is about choices for me. It often causes me pain and a lot of people have told me that I should consider not doing it. But it's important to me. I can't really explain why, and a lot of people don't get it. I'm lucky that my physical therapist understands and hasn't told me to stop flat out. However, she has mentioned the dilemma a few times. We've talked quite a bit about the anti-inflammatories, one of many tools in my 'toolbox'. The thing is, I don't want to be on medication forever. There's no particular reason other than I don't like medication. But it does make a huge difference. So much so, in fact, that I decided to go back up to 2 doses a day. I've been really uncomfortable for the past few weeks since tapering down to once a day, so I consulted with the doctor and with my dad, and I had to make a choice: do the activity I love with the help of medication, or stop doing the activity that I love.

It seems like an easy decision when I write it that way, but it wasn't. Anyway, I decided to go back up to 2x a day, but I was still concerned about tackling 18 miles yesterday. I've been feeling really achy, plus tired and stressed from work, which didn't help. (I do have a vacation coming up, which I am confident will do wonders). The renegade group ran Friday morning, but I was too busy planning a farewell for a dear co-worker to join them. So I went to bed at 8:30pm and got up at 4am for a 6:15am meeting time on Saturday morning. I felt better after a good night's sleep, but I really had to fight to shake off the nerves I felt.

We started with a 5 mile loop in CP, then exited the park at 72nd street and ran to Park Avenue, which was closed to traffic as part of Summer Streets. It was so awesome to see all of Park stretching out ahead of us, full of runners and bikers and all kinds of cool booths alongside us. I love seeing the city from another angle. We ran past the doorman buildings, through midtown (through the tunnel at GCT), down to Union Square to 4th Avenue to Lafayette Street, all closed to cars. I almost felt like I was running down First Ave on marathon Sunday, minus the gazillion spectators. We ran past the Brooklyn Bridge to Park Row, to Broadway, past the bull statue by Bowling Green, where De was parked with a car stocked full of Gatorade and snacks. I made a beeline for the fig newtons before we took off back up the West Side Highway. We took a few extra walk breaks towards the end, but eventually we ended up back at 72nd Street. It took us 5 hours of 1/1 intervals, but we did the 18! The end on the West Side felt particularly long because we could see every block as we passed, but we made it. I am a true believer in the power of anti-inflammatories. My knee hurt a little by the end, but all in all, I felt much better than I thought I would. I took an ice bath and a nap when I got home, but I've been up and about today and was able to go to yoga in the park this morning, which felt fabulous.

Here are a few other cool/random things that we saw yesterday:
1) Al Roker riding his bike on the WSH.
2) A girl in a sparkly ensemble hula-hooping alongside the foot path.
3) Two Asian gentlemen in full business attire out for a jog along Park Avenue.
4) A water station in SoHo providing NYC tap water (supposedly the best in the world) to runners passing by. There was even a little dog dish underneath.

I hope I made the right decision, increasing the medication. Every day is different. Next week is a shorter week, and then we're up to 20 miles in two Saturdays. We'll see. The marathon is getting closer and closer!

Sometimes you just have to sleep in

Today was one of those days. It was a long week, and when De's email came on Wednesday with the details of this morning's run, the idea of hauling it uptown for a 6:45am 6-8 miler was just not appealing. I figured I could handle the distance on my own and that I would sleep in a little. This morning I rolled out of bed at 8:30 and headed out to Prospect Park. It was gorgeous out. Not too hot, much drier than the past few days. I took it easy: two loops of the park for a total of 7 miles in 1/1 intervals. Still haven't been feeling 100%, but my visits to PT last week helped a lot. To cap off my run, I visited the farmers' market and picked up some local peaches. Yum! All in all, it was a good morning.

In other news, I signed up for the Hartford marathon on 10/9/10. We're scheduled to run 26 miles that day. The Galloway folks like to say that if we're running 26 miles, we'd better get a medal for it. The course time limit is 6 hours. I'll use all that time and just get the mileage in before I start tapering for NYC on 11/7/10.

Next week: 18 miles. Yikes.

Another medal, courtesy of Michael C.

16 Miler (aka The Run That Would Not End)

Yesterday was our 16 miler. It was an absolutely gorgeous day: cool with a breeze. We met on the UWS. I decided to do 1/1 with Mary, George and some other folks. I figured it was better to take it easy. I haven't been feeling well the past few days, and I've been a little achy since tapering the medication. I stayed home Friday night to ice my knees in anticipation of Saturday morning, but I was still a little concerned about how it would go.

Anyway, we did five miles in the park before heading up the West Side. I never knew about the greenway when I lived in that neighborhood. Only now do I realize what I was missing! A great path, beautiful views of the water and the bridge. Just gorgeous. Right around mile 7, we started to get a little antsy for the aid stop at the halfway point (the Fairway parking lot). I was very happy to see our volunteers with a van fully stocked with water, Gatorade, fig newtons, and other goodies. We took a quick bathroom break at Fairway. The weird looks we got were pretty funny. Was it our beeping watches or our fuel belts, I wonder?

We set off after Fairway up the greenway to the Little Red Lighthouse by the GWB. This is where the run started to feel really long. According to our route, the lighthouse was 3 miles past the Fairway stop, but it felt like 10 miles. Mary and I said that the lighthouse fairies were moving it. My hip and knee were really starting to ache. We finally arrived at the lighthouse at mile 11 and turned around. Our next landmark was Fairway (again), where we stopped briefly for water and Gatorade. After that, we kept going downtown along the water. This time, the breeze was at our backs. It was pretty crowded with cyclists and we were looking at every turnoff wondering if it was ours. By the time we arrived at 88th street, we were psychologically spent. We passed the group ahead of us at 86th street and Riverside Drive, heading west, back to our stopping point at the park. According to Mary's GPS, the run was more like 17 or 17.5 miles. I can't tell if it felt longer because the mileage was off or because my legs hurt and my mind was elsewhere.

I grabbed a sandwich and a banana before getting on the train back to Brooklyn. By then, I was in no mood for the ride back. Crowded, hot subway, 25 minute wait for the 2 train at Times Square, screaming children. I finally got home and laid around like a slug all afternoon. It was awesome, except for the knee pain. Is it possible to wrap up completely in ice packs?

I'm so glad 16 is over. Only 14 more weeks left to go until 11/7. I can't believe it. We drop down to 6-8 miles next week and then tackle 18 after that. I hope it goes more smoothly than yesterday did.

Heat wave!

It is unbearably hot in NYC. It has been for several weeks. I don't remember last summer being this bad. Then again, I wasn't training for a marathon last summer. Anyway, Saturday morning was a shorter run after last week's trek down the west side. We met at 6:45 in Central Park and did five miles. We had the option to add the "magic mile", but nobody wanted to do that. I feel like I sweat off at least 10 lbs! (Oh, if only that were true, right?)

One of the suggestions Andrea Moss made when we met is that I switch my Gatorade for coconut water because coconut water doesn't have artificial sweetners. Yesterday, the coconut water I carried with me didn't last very long. I'm experimenting with different flavors. So far, I like the plain and the peach mango. Yum.

After the run, we had a clinic on running form with Mary from Jack Rabbit. She gave us some exercises to do, so if you see me skipping in the park, don't be alarmed. She talked about balance, arm carriage, and foot positioning, too. I'll have to talk to my physical therapist about everything she said, because I'm sure my issues with running form have to do with what we're already working on. Mary also said that we should work on getting our strides up to 90/minute in order to maximize efficiency when we run. I've never counted strides and have no idea where I am, so I'm curious to try it. It has nothing to do with speed, but will allow me to conserve energy during races.

Lastly, I'm tapering off the medication. I'm down to once a day from twice. We'll see how I feel. Hoping for the best!

Settling in

I'm finally settling into my new place and loving it. Just got online at home, so I am a bit overdue on the update from last week's 14 miler. I met up with the breakaway group at 6am Friday morning (my parents were coming to town, so Saturday morning wouldn't have worked). The 6am start (at Columbus Circle) meant an insanely early departure from Brooklyn, but I was grateful once we got going that we were on the road before the heat of the day. And it was HOT. By 7:30am, I was already dragging, and we had quite a few miles to go. Lynn, super pace group leader, planned out our route along the West Side Highway because it has Gatorade vending machines, bathrooms, a breeze...and it's flat. Way to go, Lynn! It was beautiful along the water, and the group was great company. I couldn't have asked for better running companions!

By the end of the run, we were all pretty tired but feeling proud of our accomplishments. Later on the day, Michael, a first-time marathoner, designed a medal for us.



That's Sargent Friday with a 14. Very clever! Thank you, Michael, for the medal! It was a hot day, but we did it. The Jamba Juice I had afterward tasted delicious!

Christmas in July

Seriously, I am so excited this weekend is finally here. I can hardly stand it. I feel like a five- year- old on Christmas morning. Two friends have said, separately, that I look happier than I have in a year. I can't wait for a fresh start in the new place. Lots to do to get organized, but I think it will be fun.

I think it was all the excitement that got me out of bed this morning. I got up earlier than past Saturdays (4:45) in order to be on the Upper East Side by 6:45. As the runs get longer and the weather hotter, we meet earlier. It was pretty painful, I have to say. Everyone else in the world, it seems, is going to be at that hour! I made it uptown while still half asleep and ran a loop of the reservoir with Mary before the group arrived. We had the option to do extra mileage today, and I was glad to do it before the group run because it was so disgustingly humid outside. The reservoir is beautiful and the lap around it woke me up enough to finish five miles with the team. In total, I guess I did about 6.6 miles today. I felt pretty good afterwards, and spent all afternoon moving stuff over to the new place and dodging runaway shopping carts at Target.

This week I have my nutrition consultation with Andrea Moss from Spark! Wellness. I have a lot of questions for her about how I can get enough energy during the day, especially during the training season. I don't eat a lot of meat, so getting enough protein is always a concern. I'm hoping she has some creative ideas, and I will be sure to report back.

Parents are coming to town next weekend to help me settle in, and Dad wants to run with the team on Saturday morning. We'll see what he decides. We're doing 14 miles. Stay tuned...

happy 4th weekend!

I was dragging this morning (it was a very long week), but I was happy when I got to the park for our run. It was gorgeous out and the park was almost deserted. It is a holiday after all, and everyone leaves town. The rest of the week is supposed to be really hot, so we lucked out this morning. There was a cool breeze and it wasn't too humid. Anyway, we did 4 miles plus a "Magic Mile" around the oval. I shaved two minutes off my MM time! It's supposed to be a tool to predict finishing time for longer races. I did today's in 10:30, which is a little bit slower than my fastest 10k pace. About right, considering we ran 2 miles before it and 2 miles afterwards. At that pace, I am poised to break 6 hours at the marathon, and I'm hoping to get a little faster as the season progresses. I'd like to match (or beat) my time from 2006, if I can.

I'm feeling much better than I have in a long time. Part of that is the medication, the other part is my improved mood because of my upcoming move. Also, as much as I dread getting up early, I feel a sense of accomplishment by running with a team again. I really missed it during my rather long hiatus!

Brooklyn run!

This morning's run was in my neighborhood, so I got to serve as a tour guide of sorts for all the folks who never cross the river from Manhattan. We met at City Hall at 6:45am (an earlier start than usual because of the distance and the heat). We started at 7: ran over the Brooklyn Bridge (my favorite spot in the city; I will never get tired of the beauty of the bridge and the view from it), to Cadman Plaza, to Tillary Street, through Cobble Hill, over the Gowanus Canal (which smells when it is 80 degrees out, by the way) to Prospect Park and back to Manhattan. Our whole run, including one loop of Prospect Park, was 12 miles. We started at 2 and 1 intervals and dropped down to 1 and 1 at the halfway mark because it was just too hot. I showed the group my new apartment (!) and suggested that we run clockwise around Prospect Park to avoid the big hill. Everyone was very willing to go along with that idea. George said he would put me in his will in appreciation, and Christine, a former estate lawyer, said she could make that happen. Hilarious.

Road ID

I got a Road ID recently, and I thought it warranted a post. I also got my dad one for Father's Day. (Happy Father's Day, Dad!) These are cool little wrist or shoe tags that you can get that have your name, town, and emergency contact information on them. I put my friend Sarah on there so I'd have somebody local along with immediate family. She is prepared to sit by the phone on Saturday mornings, right Sarah?

We all need to run safely, so definitely check out the Road ID: www.roadid.com

10 miles and "energy cookies"

I have to start every post, of course, with a comment on how early the alarm went off and how hot it was by the start of the run. With that out of the way, today was a gorgeous day for a 10 miler in central park. We did the outer loop, followed by the inner loop. By mile 8, I wanted to stop running, but I kept at it thanks to the group. I think it's time for new shoes; the bottoms of my feet were definitely feeling it by the end!

We had a clinic with a nutritionist after the 10 miler. She had some great suggestions on foods that give us eneregy: coconut water instead of gatorade (no artificial sweetner), greens, proteins. It was food for thought. (Teehee). We had awesome "energy cookies" waiting for us at the clinic. The recipe is below, thanks to Andrea Moss of Spark! Wellness. They were delicious! I signed up for a 45 minute consultation with her through the team. I will be sure to report back.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Energy Cookies (these were delicious!)
3 large ripe bananas, well mashed (about 1.5 cups)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 c coconut oil--barely warm, so it isn't solid (or you can use olive oil)
2 cups rolled oats
2/3 cup almond meal (you can make your own by pulsing almonds in a blender until they are the texture of sand)
1/3 c coconut, finely shredded and unsweetened.
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp fine grained sea salt
1 tsp baking powder
6-7 ounces dark chocolate chips or dark chocolate bar chopped.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, racks on top third.

In a large bowl, combine bananas, vanilla extract and coconut oil. Set aside. In another bowl, whisk together oats, almond meal, shredded coconut, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. The dough is a bit looser than regular cookie dough, but don't worry. Drop dollops of dough, each about 2 tsp in size, an inch apart onto parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 15-25 minutes, depending on your oven, until cookie bottoms turn golden. Be careful not to burn them.

Makes about 3 dozen bite sized cookies.

What a fantastic weekend!

The family was down in DC this weekend to celebrate John's 80th birthday. It was great, a wonderful gathering in honor of a wonderful man. I arrived Friday night and Dad and I got up early Saturday morning to tackle 4 miles before it got TOO hot. (It was already 75 degrees at 7am). We ran out and back on the trail near the hotel (too many of us to stay at John's!), which was pretty good. It was an old railroad bed, so it was perfectly flat. I felt MUCH better than I have in weeks. The doctor put me on a time-released anti- inflammatory, and I am moving with much less pain. I almost forgot what it's like not to hurt. (Terrible, isn't it? I have so much respect for people with physical limitations). Anyway, Dad and I had a great run (well, run/walk). I love that he is out there with me!

The rest of the day was really awesome, too. Not about running, but worth sharing anyway. We went over to Arlington to wish Pop-pop a happy father's day. It was the first time I'd seen the marker since the burial. Arlington is such a confusing place, moving and heartbreaking at the same time. I am grateful to the armed forces, but I just wish everyone there died of old age like Pop-pop. We paid our respects and then went over to the Korean War memorial and had lunch near the GW campus (my old 'hood--for just a year). Chris was with us, and he said that we walked about 5 miles, so Saturday ended up being a longer mileage day than I planned. Still, by the end of all that, much less pain!

The party was amazing. John was so touched by everyone's presence. We ate, laughed, played music, and told stories. Lots of people shared memories of Mimi, too, which is always great for us. All the grandparents were with us this weekend!

feels like summer!

It's early June, but it felt like August during this morning's run. Sticky, sticky! We met in front of Jack Rabbit on the upper east side (which meant another very early departure from Brooklyn) for 8 miles. The course was cool: over to the park, north to 111th street, east to the FDR drive, over to the footpath, down to 60th street, and back to 84th/Jack Rabbit. It was so cool to run down the east side--I never go over there--and to see the Queensboro Bridge in the distance. I was remembering miles 14 and 15 of the marathon over that bridge. There are no spectators, so all you can hear are the feet of fellow runners. Very powerful, especially since the bridge is almost completely dark. Anyway, the lovely people at Jack Rabbit had a shoe clinic for us after the run, before the store opened. They had bagels for us (yum!) and gave us a discount on everything in the store. I stocked up on some gear, for sure.

8 miles felt pretty good! I was very happy, especially given all the aches and pains I've been feeling, which has also caused a fair amount of anxiety. I'm going to the doctor this week, so hopefully I'm going to get some answers and possible solutions. I'm optimistic that I'll be able to keep running. Talking to De last week and having a good run today made me feel better. I came home, stretched, iced, and spent a lovely afternoon walking around with minimal discomfort, so that's an improvement.

Next weekend, 3-5 with Dad in DC while we're all there for a family gathering.

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!

Onward and upward

I got the all clear from my physical therapist to go for a run over the weekend! I'd been going through withdrawal symptoms and couldn't wait to get out there. I felt pretty good a loop of the park, in much less pain than I imagined. The 2x per week PT seems to be working! I feel like I am taking small steps toward achieving balance after a very difficult few weeks.