Category: The Long Run

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Prepping for a long run

A couple months ago I signed up for a six-hour Brazen endurance run thinking to myself “six hours doesn’t sound so bad.” That was before the horrible marathon in San Diego. That was also before I started hitting my stride a couple weeks ago and ran nearly 40 miles in one week. Some good. Some bad. All running.

Saturday is the day. The six-hour endurance run begins at 7 a.m. My brother will run a 5K at noon as part of it. I’m hoping for over 20 miles. Each pass around is 3.37 miles, which means I need to at least do that six times (for a little over 20 miles). My second goal is to, maybe, go the marathon distance again. I’m not completely sure I’ll get there, but I am going to try.

Today, Matt from the Mountain House Runners was nice enough to pick up my race packet for me. I was super stoked to get it early since we always tend to run late on race day. I’ll say, it’s a pretty sweet deal for the entry fee that I was given an awesome zip up hoodie with this year’s logo and all.

The back has the clock that made up last year’s medal. I ran the 10K last year as part of this event because it was at 11 a.m., which meant I could sleep in and go. So I have one of last year’s 10K medals, but I also saw the endurance medal, which was pretty awesome. That’s not what made me sign up. I haven’t run a Brazen race in awhile. I wanted to do something with them again.

The endurance run seemed like a good idea. (I laugh now.)

The front has the logo that’s on the Brazen website for this specific run. The zip up is high quality too. I think I’ll get a lot of use out of it.

As I gather my race items, though, I’m trying to think about all I need to get me through six hours of running. I know some things for sure.

There will be two aid stations, each stocked with all the conveniences that I’m accustomed to at Brazen races. That means fruit, gummy bears, oranges, water and, likely, a sport drink. I know the stations will be well manned, if only because there will be people out running a 12-hour race too. I also know there are bathrooms along the course. I remember last year there being three, one near the start, one about a mile in and one closer to the end.

So there’s not a lot of questions about that.

But I wonder, too, what I’ll need to make it through.

I’ve started gathering items to pack away for my husband and brother to provide to me while they “crew.”

The first is sunscreen. A second is body lubricant/glide.

I’ll likely need to reapply the sunscreen numerous times. The spray bottles are great because you don’t have to worry about missing certain areas. I can just have someone spray me all over. It will be quick too.

The lube/glide will be for those areas that need reapplying after awhile. This includes my fat little right arm, which always seems to chafe. I don’t need anything for my legs because I’ll be wearing capris. I also have some powdered Glide for in between my toes.

I don’t typically run in a hat, but I figured I’d pack my visor that I picked up at the Big Sur Half Marathon last year so I wouldn’t be too hot. This is also about sun protection. Most of the trail is covered and nice, but we do hit the sun here and there.

I’m also planning on taking a stock pile of my Gu supply.

True story: I usually keep that much Gu in a bag in my closest. I once realized I ran out of Gu the night before a run. That run happened to be the Big Sur Half. It was too late to go buy any new Gu. I had no options. So I ran without. And it was a horrible, horrible run. I was miserable the entire time. And hungry. Finally, at about mile seven, the volunteers were handing out Gu on the course. But they didn’t seem to have any Vanilla Bean, which is kind of my favorite.

So I stock up. All the time.

I know, though, that Gu wouldn’t get me through six hours.

I’m also bringing something more substantial. I’ll pack some natural fruit rolls. Some chocolate covered raisins. And my favorite type of Luna bar.

Love those.

I’m nervous about this run, but excited at the same time. I think it will be a nice, low key way to get in some distance. I also think it will be a fun time.

Six hours seems like a really long time, though.

I hope I can make it.

 

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Running free

Today is Independence Day. It’s a day when the country celebrates the freedom granted to those living in the United States. It’s also a requisite day off for most people, myself included.

But I’m not running today. I did an eight miler on Tuesday and am preparing for a six-hour endurance run this weekend. I’m thinking less time on my legs would be good. But I want to run. I really do.

Because something changed a couple weeks ago.

I was heading out to Mountain House for a run with Jennie and kind of running behind. I grabbed my water bottle and headed out the door. I was less than a mile from the park when I looked down and realized I forgot my Garmin.

Crap, I thought.

This can’t be good.

I’ve run races upon races, ever since my first half marathon, with my Garmin. Every outdoor run I do, it comes with me.

I nearly called Jennie and cancelled. I didn’t know how we’d run without knowing how far along on our six miler we were. But I decided we’d figure something out. I did text her to warn her.

She was right. I knew the route. In fact, I made I route. We weave through one area where the houses are still being built, then we hit the community’s perimeter. I don’t know the exact locations of the mile markers, but I know approximations.

So we set off and just started running. I was anticipating the same leg aches I’ve been getting recently, specifically tightening of my calves. We got nearly a mile in and a pace that was comfortable, but not fast. No pain.

We kept running, picking up speed here and there. We chatted and ran. It was breezy afternoon.

And I suddenly felt so free.

Six miles later, the sun was setting and instead of paying attention to my Garmin I was paying attention to what a nice day it was. There’s something to be said about running just to run. On that day, it didn’t matter how long we took or what our splits were, we just ran. It felt amazing.

I’ve picked my Garmin back up several times since then, but I’ve maintained the same kind of feeling. I don’t know if it’s the new shoes (though those are amazing too, enough I may buy a new pair to horde this weekend because East Bay has a sale), or something else, but I’m a different runner.

So I’m leaving my Garmin home a little more now. It sits on my desk at 100 percent charged.

And I’m adding up a higher mileage count too. Last week I ran 38.5 miles. That’s the highest number I’ve ever run in a week. It felt amazing. I logged a total of 117 miles for June, including the not-so-great marathon.

So today I’m celebrating a little. By not running. But also by knowing that I’ve had the two best running weeks I’ve had in six or seven months in recent weeks.

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About that heat

It’s been a tad warm lately. And by warm I mean, “it’s not hot enough to not run outside from time to time but let’s be real and stay on the treadmill.”

I know my limitations. The hooter temperatures make me not want to run. I get cranky. I want to quit. I basically start out hoping for seven to 10 miles and then stop at four.

On the treadmill, I know I get the distance. And, lately, I’ve been upping the resistance to simulate outdoor running.

The problem with treadmill running is the monotony. I’ve let my mind wander enough times and nearly fell off the deck to figure out some time back that I needed to do something to keep my mind occupied.

I started with music on my iPod.

Then, last summer, I got an iPad for teaching. And we got Netflix. And Hulu Plus.

And now, I spend most of my treadmill runs watching videos. Usually two, which gets me anywhere from eight to 10 miles.

My latest obsession as the mercury rises is The Walking Dead. Netflix has the first season available on instant streaming. I got through the first six episodes pretty quickly during my runs this past week. Having something I’m interested in to watch even helps with mileage, which stands at 33 miles this week, though I’m hoping to hop on for some more after I’m finished cleaning my house and blogging.

Plus, I’m waiting for season two to download onto my iPad.

Believe me, the distraction makes the runs go by faster. It also helps me keep pace. I know I’m at my goal pace if I can finish a certain number of miles before the episode is over.

Of course, the treamill makes Netflix a little wonky from time to time. That means the first four minutes of my run I’m trying to get Netflix to reconnect to the Internet, despite the fact that I’m only 40 feet from the router.

The mill runs are also helping me train for the event I’m doing this weekend: the Brazen six-hour endurance run.

I logged 117 miles for June, which I figure is a good base to run six-hours straight. I’m looking forward to it, to test my endurance, but to also see how far I can get. If I can run a marathon in around 5:20-5:30, I’m hoping the event will be my first ultra. That’s pretty exciting to me, considering I’m using it as a “training run” for the San Francisco 1st Half Marathon later in the month. (I’m not nearly crazy enough for the 12-hour race.)

So I’m beating the heat, staying indoors and keeping cool on the treadmill, with a little help from The Walking Dead.

My hope is that those three words aren’t needed to describe me during my six-hour run on Saturday. After the disaster in San Diego, I need a good run.

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A better fit

A couple weeks ago, I blogged about my second marathon slump in San Diego. There were a lot of reasons it all went bad, but one of them was shoes. Before I could even write my race recap, I went to my local Fleet Feet store. I’ve purchased my last three pairs of shoes from a great sales associate who takes her time with me, answers all my questions and understands my needs when it comes to shoes.

It was because of all this I was hoping the Saucony Hurricane 14s that I purchases earlier this year would be the new shoes for me. Instead, I realized more than 100 miles in that they weren’t. I was still getting blisters. I was in pain. I was trying to make them work.

They. Weren’t. Working.

So I went back to Fleet Feet, shoes in hand, and admitted what I had known, probably, since before the marathon: The Hurricane 14s were hurting my feet.

The sales associate shared my pain. Only weeks before, I had posted that they were totally working for me on the store’s Facebook group.

Then they weren’t.

She could see it in my thrashed feet. The shoes were making both fleet arch slightly, meaning my baby toe was pushed under my other toes and the inner side of each of my feet was being rubbed raw. My feet looked like a disaster.

I tried on three more pairs of shoes. Another pair of Sauconys. And a pair of Brooks.

Finally, another pair of Nikes.

The LunarEclipse +2.

I don’t want to say it was love at first site. It wasn’t. I had spent so much time in shoes that were consider more functional than pleasing that I’d never had a pair of “pretty” running shoes before.

These were definitely pretty.

I was worried. I think I had ever right to be after the Saucony disaster.

Then I went on my first run. No pain. No rubbing. No “breaking in.”

They fit me in a way that was comfortable, yet functional. I felt fully supported, but they weren’t bulky like my Equalon +4’s had been. The pair was also much, much lighter than any of my previous running shoes. But I was still cautious. I kept running, already putting more tan 40 miles on them and I haven’t had one issue.

I did a hot day outdoor run in them and they didn’t slip and slide. I remember at mile 3 looking at my running buddy Jennie and saying: “I’m sorry I ever cheated on Nike.”

And I am.

The LunarEclipse +2’s are stability shoes. But they are also slightly wider than the Sauconys. They also seem a tad bit longer. The biggest difference, though, is in the upper on the area near my baby toe.

The Hurricane 14s had a hard, yet flexible plastic. My Nike Equalon +4’s had a “bunion control” area. That area would expand based on my foot movement. The Sauconys wouldn’t expand. In fact, they would push my toes in. The inner side would push my feet in even more.

The new shoes, though, have a much more flexible upper.

That is the specific area in question. Even though that thin detail band goes across the area where my little toes go, it doesn’t bind them in. It lets them be much more flexible and move with greater ease.

Even better? I’ve had multiple pain free runs with these shoes. I seem to be able to go and go and go.

I’m hoping this means I found my “new” running shoes. These definitely are a better fit.

I’ve passed my Saucony’s with 100-plus miles on them, still in very good shape, to my mom. She has a job that requires her to be on her feet a lot, so they’ll likely be a good fit for her. She has much more narrow feet than I do. (I have flat little feet that don’t bother me all that much but are apparently bad for running.)

I’m considering this a costly mistake. The Sauconys were $140. The Nikes were $135.

But I’d rather trade in the shoes that were making running hard and unbearable for a pair that makes me enjoy it again. It’s made all the difference.

 

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Time is on my side

I now, thanks to the timing company, have a time for the Sirena 18 run this past weekend.

Officially: 3:32:13

I can’t explain how stoked I am about this. I kept having moments where I felt guilty about not being listed in the results. I would, obviously, be an incredibly bad race bandit.

I feel legitimate now.

Over the past three days, I’ve felt as if every Gatorade I drank was a fraud. Hyperbole? Yes. But I felt incredibly guilty.

I worked a nice, long 12-hour day today, so I’ll be light about this post outside of saying I’m incredibly happy. No longer, as I told my husband, bummed.

The timing company representative asked that I send the D-Tag in. It’s ready to go into the mail tomorrow. I may never get to the bottom of what exactly happened (I don’t expect them to report back to me or anything, there are other events and hundreds, even thousands, of other runners), but I think anything to help out on my part is useful.

I’ll come back with another post later this week on the subject.

Right now I’m finally laying down for the day. I’m hoping to wake up and run five miles tomorrow before work. We’ll see if that happens or if fatigue rears its ugly head again.

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Leaving it all on the course

I have to admit, this past week was a tough one. Without getting into too many details, I’ll say work was hard. Both jobs were hard.

My students were finishing their last issue of the year. And I worked more than 50 hours at my full-time job. It made for a week of work somewhere in the 70-hour range. I lost count after 60+. So when I got home from work, around 8:45 p.m. on Friday, I was seriously considering not running the Mermaid Series Sirena 18 in Fremont.

But I needed the 18-miler after my longest run of the training cycle at the Big Sur 21-miler a couple weeks ago. It’s not because I thought Big Sur was a disaster, not at all. But the 18-miler was going to be a better proving ground for how the Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego Marathon might go on June 3.

So I set my alarm clock for 4:30 a.m. I hopped into bed at about 10:30 p.m.

Sleep came quick, but my body didn’t want to wake up. I knew it would be hotter than usual so I grabbed my only Dri-Fit tank top and a longer pair of capris. This would also be the first venture out for my Saucony Hurricane 14s.

I loaded my iFitness belt with Vanilla Bean Gu. And I slathered sunscreen all over myself.

The start was at 7:30 a.m. I made it to the Quarry Lakes site in Fremont by 6:45 a.m. Thomas opted to go to work, so he dropped me off.

It was a beautiful morning.

Too bad I hit a bump nearly immediately. I went to bib pickup and was handed an awesome shirt. I asked where bag check in was. I was told there was none, despite it being on the event’s Facebook page.

I quickly ran away and called Thomas to come back and get my bag. Only after he was on his way did a volunteer track me down and tell me there would be bag check up, but she didn’t know where. By then, Thomas was already making his way back to the park.

Ten minutes later and still with no sign of bag pickup, Thomas was back at the park. I handed him the race shirt and my bag, including my sunscreen.

The only bathroom lines in site were at the “real” toilets. I used the portable ones. At a certain point, and after so many races, I’ve gotten over my fear of portable toilets. So I didn’t have to wait for the bathrooms at all.

The 60 or so people doing the Sirena 18, the longest of all four distances, lined up near the start. After some pumping up from an organizer, we were off.

The first four miles of the run were through the actual park. The first out and back was a nice, mostly fire path road. It definitely wasn’t hard on the legs or knees. I was pacing pretty well through the first miles.

Mile 1: 10:13

Mile 2: 10:49

Mile 3: 11:32 — I took a quick walk break here. I noticed I was pacing out too fast. Way too fast. It was only about 45 seconds at most.

Mile 4: 11:07 — For the first time in a race, I ran and ate my Gu at the same time. I usually stop. I also didn’t walk through the first couple aid stations, I sort of walked/run and tried not to spill water all over me. I did end up spilling water all over me.

Mile 5: 10:57 — Must have been the Gu.

Mile 6: 11:14

Mile 7: 11:56

Mile 8: 11:13

Mile 9: 12:29

Mile 10: 11:39 — Finally reached the double digits, still on the out and back here.

Mile 11: 12:00 — The 11-mile marker was right after the turnaround. Has anyone else ever noticed how awkward turnarounds are? The race field was so small I kind of shuffled around the sign and volunteers.

Mile 12: 13:09 — I stopped to fill up my water bottle at the aid stop.

Mile 13: 11:54

Mile 14: 13:22 — This was kind of my “wall” in this run. This is also where I noticed a difference in the heat. The entire “out” part we ran away from the sun. The “back” part was all in the sun. And while some was covered, not all was.

Mile 15: 11:56 — I’m starting to get tired. It was then I decided NOT to do my last Gu at mile 16 and just see how I did.

Mile 16: 13:09 — Thought to myself: “Maybe I should have done the Gu.”

Mile 17: 13:17 — Second thought: “Definitely should have done the Gu.” Back in Quarry Lakes park, there was no shade. None at all.

Mile 18: 11:03 — I crossed the finish line and thought I hit my Garmin. It read 3:32:51. Then, after being handed my Mermaid Series necklace and a water bottle, I realized the Garmin was still running. It turned off officially at 3:33:07. I was annoyed because the two women who finished in front of me had pacers leading them in. Pacers who took up the entire sidewalk. When I tried to get around them, one of the women sped up.

And also, my Garmin had me at 17.90, which means I ran those tangents a little too well.

So, my unofficial time was 3:32:51.

I waited until Sunday to track down my “official time” only to find a huge problem. I’m not at all listed in the results.

Nowhere.

I’m assuming, after running nearly 30 races, that my timing chip likely failed.

I can’t help but be more than a little upset. I once saw a really nasty battle play out on a Facebook page where a woman wasn’t getting her time fixed and kept asking for it to be remedied. I didn’t understand why she was so upset. Her Garmin had the time.

Now I understand. I spent more than three hours out on that course. I braved the long out and back that nearly took me to Coyote Hills Regional Park (it was in sight at the turnaround).

And I had no time.

On my right foot, above, is the offending D-Tag. I’ve never had a D-Tag fail before. I’ve sent an email to the race organizers. Two girls finished exactly before. I literally came in immediately after.

I know I showed up and I know I did the race. But I want my results too.

I’ll say, that kind of soured a really good experience.

I left every emotion I had out there. I ran consistent. (The slower miles were from filling up my water bottle, adjusting my new shoes, etc.) And I suddenly feel so much better prepared for the upcoming marathon.

I nearly cried when I got to the finish line. It was an emotional 18-mile journey.

My husband caught me coming through the finish, floppy arms and all.

Just as quickly as it started more than three hours and thirty minutes earlier, I was done. I sat down on the grass near the finish. I wasn’t hungry thanks to the Gu. I wasn’t even all that tired. I had a couple blisters from shoes that hadn’t been field tested too much, but that’s to be expected.

And I tweeted about my excitement in my finish:

After an exhausting 60+ hour work week, I just ran the most consistent race of my life. I left everything I had in those 18 miles.

My husband was trying out his new camera lens, so we stuck around for a little bit.

He got a fairly nice one of me too.

I would caution readers that I don’t look that horrid in real life all the time. I clean up pretty well when not covered with sweat and when my hair is done. I promise.

We stopped at a nearby nursery to pick up some Mother’s Day gifts since we were expecting my mom and grandmother’s for dinner in a dual birthday/Mother’s Day celebration. When I started to clean up I noticed a nice sun burn/tan line from my Garmin and my Road ID.

Overall, the Mermaid Series East Bay Run was fairly organized and fun. There were aid stations every couple miles. The volunteers cheered everyone on. And instead of a medal at the end, we got cute little necklaces. On one site it said “motivate” on the other was the run’s logo. Super cute and functional. I can wear this on Monday. I couldn’t do that with a medal.

In the evening, I kicked up my feet and watched some Netflix for a short amount of time before the day finally caught up with me. Early-morning wake-ups for races are to be expected, but nonetheless are fatigue-inducing later in the day.

I feel more ready for this marathon than I was in December. I don’t know if it’s because I have done a second long run or because I’m a better runner now than in December, but I think I’m definitely feeling my stride better.

And I didn’t walk away from this run feeling horrible (outside of the bummer of not being recorded in race results or listed on the site). With another Gu, I probably could have kept going. I know I could have kept going.

There’s something to be said about feeling comfortable in the long run.

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A tough training 21: Part II

My alarm clock at the motel hit close to 3 a.m. and i knew it was time to wake up.

I knew if I fell back asleep I’d wake up tired. I knew if I tried to even hit snooze at 3 a.m. I would make it to the bus. So I rolled out of bed and headed to shower. I’m one of those strange runners who actually showers in the morning before my runs. Just a quick one. And I usually don’t do my hair or anything.

I went to the bathroom. I hit the shower. And I got dressed.

I’m going to be real for a minute: I hate not knowing when I can next go to the bathroom. It’s likely a side effect of taking medication for high blood sugar for three years, but I don’t like not knowing where the closest bathroom is. That makes this next part important.

I ALWAYS get really nervous before my runs. To the point that I have to go. ALL THE TIME. And I was worried, severely worried, about the 45-minute bus ride up the coast. I didn’t know what kind of bus I’d be on. I didn’t know if we’d be stopping anywhere (we weren’t). I was extremely worried.

I know this might be TMI, but this is a real issue for runners.

By the time Thomas dropped me off at the Monterey Marriott at about 4:20 a.m., the buses were lined up.

The volunteers were all really, really helpful. The marathoners were still boarding there buses, so we waited until the 21-milers were allowed to load. I headed into the Monterey Marriott and there was a bathroom right in the lobby. (WOOOOOO!)

Then I realized that we’d be boarding the tour buses, which also have bathrooms on board.

I was THRILLED. It’s hard to explain how thrilled I was. My husband swears up and down I have issues with going to the bathroom too much. He’s also become quite accustomed to it. Others don’t understand though.

I briefly chatted with the woman next to me. Really just to ask her if I could turn off the light. And we were off.

Into the night.

It looked all black.

Seriously. Everything.

We drove quietly up Highway 1. I wanted to sleep, but I couldn’t. All I could see were taillights of the buses in front of us. I vaguely could make out the waves off the coast. It was eerie.

I read somewhere that the bus ride is disorienting. It is. Very much so. And you think the entire way as you are driving: “I have to run all this to get back to where I started.” It’s kind of daunting.

We made it to the staging area and there weren’t a ton of people there.

And it was still dark.

I opened my bag and pulled out an apple and part of a Luna bar. That was my breakfast. I jumped in a portable toilet right when I got there too. (Never did have to use the one of the bus, which made me really glad.)

And I got some stretching done too.

So I’m actually on a rock. Apparently it was a really popular rock. People kept walking all over me. I wasn’t even in the way.

There were bananas, apples and other fruits. And coffee and water. I don’t drink coffee, but I took down a couple cups of water. I felt a little dehydrated.

As it began to get lighter, a yoga session started. I didn’t partake, instead doing my own stretches. A lot of people did.

At about 6:40 a.m. we were lined up near the bottom of the driveway at Andrew Molera State Park. The road in front of us was 21 miles to Carmel.

The timing mat was actually at the top of the hill. I power walked up it instead of running.

Then things started moving. We took off right at 6:45 a.m.

And just as quickly as I started, I realized this wasn’t going to be easy. I wasn’t doing it for time as much as experience. And it wasn’t an easy path.

All uphill at the beginning, a nice downhill, a huge uphill and rolling hills (and banked streets) the rest of the way. Wow. A nice, easy Sunday run? I think not.

And then there were the headwinds. Yes, headwinds. On Hurricane Point (the tallest peak on the elevation chart) I was battered back and forth across the road. It sucked. My glasses were covered in dew. My long-sleeve shirt was wet at one point. I didn’t even bother taking if off until about three miles before the finish.

I battled. In certain places it looked, in my Garmin data, like I was moving very, very slowly. But I kept going.

Because I was treating it like a training run, I stopped and went to the bathroom whenever I need to. That added more than 10 minutes on to my time.

But it was cold. Damp. Windy. And my head was raging the first eight miles.

Raging. I couldn’t shake the headache.

I just kept moving, hoping it would go away. And it did after about my second Vanilla Bean Gu.

By the way, my savior of the day was the Gu. I wouldn’t have made it without the Gu.

My overall average was 13:14 miles.

The steepest hills were the longest miles. I’m not proud that I took that long. But it happened. I’ll own it.

Thomas was expecting me about the 4:30 time mark.

I came in at 4:42 and he was yelling for me nonetheless. My feet had blisters. My ankles, after running through the banked road in the Carmel Highlands, were now cankles. I’m not even kidding, my ankles were so inflamed I can still not bend them properly.

And my IT band, which seemed to hold out pretty good during the run, started throbbing the moment I stopped. It was kind of like it just knew. It knew I was over. It was pissed. Two days later I’m still dealing with the aftermath of that.

Big Sur isn’t an easy run. And it’s definitely not a true “training run.” But it was beautiful. I didn’t take a lot of photos, obviously, because I was too enraptured in enjoying the beauty in general.

The finish line was crazy busy. I sat down for a good twenty minutes and then realized if I didn’t start walking around, I likely wouldn’t be able to. So I got up and lost Thomas. I realized suddenly that  I had checked a bag with a sweater. I went and grabbed that too. And then Thomas and I decided it was time to leave. I come for the run. I don’t often stay after.

So we started walking off, but not before he shot a last photo of me near the finish.

And I was happy with how it all came together. Sure, I didn’t have the best time. But I got through a very tough training run. I knew that the only way out was through. That’s what I focused on. The good thing about living close to Monterey, only within three hours, is that we hopped back in the car and made our way home after the race.

By 3:30 p.m., I was home on the couch resting my legs with ice.

When it comes down to it, there were likely better ways to get my longest run of the training cycle in. I know that. But I think Big Sur offered a nice challenge. I faced nearly every weather condition on the run and still came out OK. And stronger for it.

Next up? An 18-miler closer to home on May 12. Then Bay to Breakers before the end of this marathon training cycle.

I’m not 100 percent confident in my marathon conditioning so far, but I’m feeling a little more prepared after the Big Sur 21-miler.

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21 on the California coast

After a night without sleep thanks to my insomnia kicking back up, a 3 a.m. wake up alarm, an hour-plus bus ride down the California coast in the dark, a Golden delicious apple and two bathroom stops, I was off this morning at 6:45 a.m.

The Big Sur 21-miler was the most challenging run I’ve ever done (hills, inclement and ever changing weather and  a constantly banked surface), but it was beautiful and memorable. And my legs didn’t give out. Not once. It was only after I walked across the finish line that I started to experience some illiotibial band issues in my left leg.

Total time: 4:42:23

And I kept moving, even when the bottoms of my feet were on fire and blisters were for certain.

My longest training run on my San Diego marathon path is now done.

Full race report coming when I can get my bearings back and my leg doesn’t need constant ice.

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Big Sur 21-miler prep

We made it!

I have my bib and my bus ticket! I know what time at ‘o dark thirty I’m waking up! I’m ready, I think, to go!

I’m still more than a little scared, though.

This isn’t an easy marathon. It’s not flat. Crossing my fingers for a good run tomorrow!

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The will without the energy

Ever felt this way? All you want to do is go home and run five miles. Then you come home and look at the time and say: “There’s just no way.”

That’s kind of my life over the past four or five weeks. Between my full time job and my part time job, I work about 10 hours a day, sometimes 12. On days when news breaks or big things happen, it sometimes stretches into the evening.

I’m fatigued. And my legs are giving me problems now.

For the past three days, my legs have been so heavy I haven’t wanted to do anything. Yesterday, I wanted to run five miles. Instead I pulled out my Reebok step and did 30 minutes of step aerobics. Just so I could move. Just so I could feel like I did something. (Now, on second thought, this would have been a good chance for me to mount the bike I’ve been sorely neglecting.)

I forgot how much step can make me sweat.

That’s an “after” shot. You can’t really see all the sweat, but it’s there.

I took two Ibuprofens last night. Then I spent about 45 minutes to an hour massaging my legs. I slept in compression socks. I woke up feeling better, but by the end of my lab with my students, I knew my legs weren’t 100 percent. And they wouldn’t be. Unless I took action.

I called Massage Envy, where I have a membership, and scheduled a hot/cold massage for my body, with particular attention to my legs. It will cost me $60 because it’s outside of my membership time. But my legs need it.

Especially because the 21 miler in Big Sur this weekend is now seeming very, very scary. I’m really worried about how this is all going to go. I’m worried about my training. I’m worried about nutrition. I’m worried about whether or not I can make it.

I have the will. I don’t have the energy. I’m not sure I can make it through.

Hopefully the rub out will do the trick. It kind of has to. I can’t show up to the start line with legs that just say no. It’s not a 10K. It’s 21 miles.