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Here goes my usual all systems check:

1. Legs - you are strong, powerful, muscular and tough. Although at times I may put you down, I am mostly keeping your best interest at heart: I ice you, I strengthen you, I roll you, I get you into compression and recovery socks. We both know that you are going to get most of the beating on Monday, but you can handle it better than any other body part anyway! Legs, you rock!

2. R hip - you've given me signals that I push too much, that I am not running easy enough during easy days. I can come up with excuses, blame the brain and its addiction to endorphins, but I am not. I massaged you and the adductors, I rolled you, I iced you, and you've been quiet lately. I hope you'll cooperate on Monday. You don't want to be singled out do you? And, I won't pay attention to your whining anyway!

3. Arms - you tend to get lazy, and don't help out much. You sort of hang out while the rest of us do all the work. That needs to change on Monday. You are strong, defined, and ...shhhs, you are my best looking body part! I need you to work on Monday, help the legs out up the hills, arms!

4. Abdomen - you tend to bend forward when the legs get tired. You think you are helping out when you do that, but really you are not. You cut down the oxygen and make things harder for the other body part. I've worked you out with abs and planks and swimming. Look in the mirror if you don't believe, you are hard as a rock! You need to sit up straight like we've practice, and help us hold form throughout the marathon.

5. Toes - there is no way around it, you are going to lose a couple of toenails, get a couple of blisters, the usual. I got you new injinji socks and we'll lube up, but the truth is, you are too long and uneven...You have been such troupers and I promise you some love after the race. Maybe even a pedicure (gasp!).

6. Face - you can be serious when going up the hill, I know you get like that when the going gets hard. But remember Baystate and Quincy Half? Remember how smiling got all the body parts feeling better? When you smile, the brain finds it easier to relax and not concern itself with the pain.

7. Stomach - you are strong, you always manage to digest 4-6 gus, no problem. You do get a little upset toward the end of marathons, and give out signs of nausea. I am fine with that, I know you really do the best you can, and we've managed with that so far!

8. Brain and Mind - you guys are rocks! You really are! You never cease to amaze me! You really are my best assets and I would not change that! We've worked hard together to get you where you are! It's nice that I can always count on you, and so far you've always been there for me. I am counting on you on Monday once again. You know the drill - if something goes wrong, you need to keep all systems in check, you need to distract us if we need distraction, motivate us if we need motivation, help us stay flexible when something goes not according to plan. You need to generate thoughts that are going to help us, and turn everything around to benefit us!

That's it, folks! We'll be trying for even splits following the 3:20 pace tat! See you on the other side!

A word to BAA and what I am and I am not doing

Is BAA messing with our heads?
Yesterday I got an email with "tips for running in the heat", which freaked me out and made me think that they know something I don't; the forecast has been showing cool temps for April 19th for a while now, so why would they send something about hot temps?
Today they sent another email with "tips for running in the cold", which made me feel much better; they are only trying to cover their bases, I guess.
Still, why oh why BAA would you play with our already tormented psyches? Don't you know what we are already going through with the endorphin withdrawal?

Moving on....
I am not reading everything possible about the course (just 10 min daily:)
I am not checking the temps obsessively (just once or twice every day)
I am not carboloading.
I still have not picked out my outfit; I would like not to wear black again, but there is something so bad ass about wearing all black, so "I am all business and don't mess with me" that I might just go for that look again.

I am reading the Dara Torres biography. Oh, such beautiful writing! After being left sad by reading about Agassi's life, this is so refreshing. You'd think the book would motivate me to swim (and you'd be correct, it does - kick a$$ swim session today), but it motivates me to run. fast. fast!
I have ordered my pace tat. 3:20, I am going to chase you!
I am sleeping any chance I get!
I am going to wear my Nike Frees.

And what am I doing with the extra free time? Planning my training for Vermont Half Ironman!!!

Last long run and "passing" Ryan Hall on the Minuteman bike path

Yes, exciting run this morning.

The weather was gorgeous, the temps cool, and I was excited for the run. My plan was to run 13 miles with 12 at MP. I decided to go on the Minuteman bikepath which is 5 minutes from my house, mostly up toward Bedford, and then down back home. Lots of runners on the path, which is always nice.

The first couple miles were hard. My legs felt heavy and my calves hurt. WTF? I was running about 10 seconds over MP, and getting frustrated that the run seemed hard. A series of random pains came and went - ITband, check; R calf, check; L pubic bone, check. By mile 3 I got in a groove and was able to hold MP. I started to actually enjoy the run at mile 5, and got faster and faster while keeping a fairly low effort level. Nice! Around mile 8 I saw this woman with never ending legs in front of me, and behind her, a blond tanned guy. No way, but yup, they were Ryan Hall and his wife Sara. They've been in Boston for the past 2 weeks, running in Concord, Lincoln and on the Minuteman. I ran a little faster and literally stared at him while he smiled. In retrospect I should have said something, but I did not. They were both running on the bits of trail on the side of the path, at about a 7:25, I would say. With the stroll of adrenaline I ended up running the last miles way faster than planned. My R hip flexor complained a bit, but it is much better today thanks to lots of icing and stretching. No more running faster for me this training cycle, I promise!!!

Now the real taper begins. The dreaded days off of any exercise. I don't remember when I last had one of these. Last week I biked and I swam in addition to running, but this week there will be no biking and only a little swimming in addition to the (gasp) 15-18 miles of running!I am working on looking forward to the rest and visualizing it healing up all the wear and tear that I put my body through during this marathon cycle.

I am feeling very calm about this marathon, which is unusual. I feel ready to fight, and ready to embrace whatever the day will bring. This is my first Boston as a qualified runner, and I feel pretty proud to participate in this race along with other great runners. The temps are looking really good now with highs of 56 and lows of 43, perfect running weather. Hopefully the forecast will not change!

Getting the "sick" out of the way, taper and future marathoning

Yes, just a little cold with a sweat fest for the past couple of days. I always get some kind of a minor bug during taper, so I am not concerned. It's like my body is telling me to slow down. OK, I hear ya!

This week I am going from 54 mile (peak week) to 30, 5 running days to 4. Monday I had a kick a$$ track workout which got me thinking that I would love to race the mile sometime. Based on my track workouts, I could go under 6. Tuesday I ran easy on hills with my Nike Frees and I felt like flying. I love love love those shoes. Going uphill on your toes saves so much energy, but I can't do that with my regular shoes bc they are too inflexible. Yesterday I got my a$$ kicked by the hot temps again. I purposely ran at lunch in 90 degrees. I ran 6 with 3 miles at short tempo. I ran for less than 20 minutes for the tempo, but my heart was jumping out of my chest (sunt bine mama!).

I've been reading a lot on strategies to race Boston, and it is really interesting that the only consensus is to run the first few miles slow. Otherwise, everyone has a different opinion: run positive splits bc of the hills vs run negative splits bc of the downhill at the end (which DOES not feel like a downhill, by the way) vs run even splits to conserve energy; run even effort vs check your watch to stay on pace; carboload vs don't carboload; don't try to PR at Boston vs Boston is actually an easy race (this one gets to me a little bit, if Boston were an easy race, why the winning times for the elites are slower at Boston compared to other marathons?); etc, etc. I think ultimately everyone's plan should account for own strength and weaknesses. Last year I had a pace tat which I checked at every mile marker, and that is what I followed. I ended up running negative splits, I think, but by v little. I'll use the same strategy this year, though if the temps are over 70 I may run it as a training run and race the Vermont Marathon at the end of May. Will see.

So what did I do with the extra free time this week? Yup, I found a fall marathon. Since I missed the registration for New York, and Chicago is closed, I decided to stay local and find a marathon in the area. I am thinking of running the Green Mountain Marathon in Vermont, in October. Someone at the Derry race told me about how great of a marathon this is. Plus, I like to support local small races, where the entry fee is $25 and the race Tshirts are not covered with ads. But before that it is going to be a lot of bike time and figuring out if this triathlon thing is something I want to put a lot of time into. Triathletes do have the best bodies, so maybe there is something to the sport:)

Pity party over

I forgot that my mom reads this blog. I mean, I knew she knows about it, but I did not realize that she is reading every single post. Hm. I guess I would do the same thing if I lived an ocean away from my son. Anyway, I got an email from her yesterday, saying that she is worried about me after reading the last blog post. Mom, I am fine:)

OK, so I did have a mini pity party over the weekend about the weather and the possibility of hot temps at Boston. But I know better than to continue with it. I think pity parties are great for a day or so, but unhelpful thereafter. Plus, the average temps for Boston are 50s, even though everyone seems to remember only the years when the weather was terribly hot or terribly cold. But those were the exceptions!!!

This marathon training cycle has been amazing. I learned a lot. My body is stronger than I thought.
It handled:
1. 5 runs a week, 4 of which were quality.
2. Two weeks of over 50 miles.
3. 6 20-22 milers
4. Over 8 MP runs from 8 to 20 miles.
5. Weekly track workouts at a pace from 5:45-6:10.
7. Weekly tempos.
8. A kick ass half marathon.
9. Weekly hill training.

I have much more confidence as a runner.
I feel strong, very strong!

I also enjoyed this marathon training cycle, as much if not more than all the other training cycles. I loved running in all kinds of crazy weather. I enjoyed the looks I would get from people when running in the snow, on ice, in the rain, and dressed with a winter hat, jacket and gloves in 68 degrees, like I did today! So I am not going to obsess about the weather, or the fact that the Boston course is 300 meters long (based on something I recently read), or other things I can't control, but I am going to work hard on making sure I keep up with the taper schedule, continue to do a few runs in the heat, to prep my body for warmer temps, sleep a ton, get over this headcold, and get excited about racing one of the best marathons in the world! I want to enter this race knowing that I did everything I could to increase my chances of reaching my goal!

I'd rather have rain, snow, sleet and cold than run in 73 degrees at Boston

Darn, I had such a tough run today!

The plan called for 20 miles with 15 @ MP. Since this was a bonus 20 miler (nr 6, I usually do 5), I decided to warm up for .5 mile, than do the 15 @ MP, and then run 4.5 on hills at whatever pace felt comfortable. I left the house much later than expected and it was hot outside (73 degrees). I felt off from the beginning. My breathing was labored, my legs were heavy. I expected this to go away after the first few miles, but did not. At mile 5 I took 1/2 Jet Blackberry Gu, which I acquired last week while running on the Boston course. As soon as I took it I felt nauseous, but I plugged along. I took a rest at mile 10 and refilled my water bottles, while mentally preparing myself for 4 torturous hilly miles and 1 mile of steep downhill. And here it is where, my friends, I fell apart. I felt week, nauseous, dizzy, and I was completely out of breath. Now, this almost never happens to me. I don't even get out of breath during track workouts. I do get out of breath on hills, but I managed to control my breathing and return it to baseline quickly. Not this time. I got a little worried and tried to slow down, but of course my mind did not let that happen. I had these voices in my head going against each other: "This is great, this is a good reminder of how you are going to feel at the end of the marathon, you have not felt like this in a while, this is good, accept it and go through it" vs "I think you need to stop. I think something is wrong. I think you are going to pass out. Good thing you have your road ID on", vs "Stop catastrophizing, keep running", vs "Is this worth it"...and so on. I slowed down a bit, such that my average went from 7:34 for the first 10 miles, to 7:41 by mile 14. I hammered it downhill for the last mile and managed to get my average down to 7:37. A little slower than what I wanted and than my 20 miler last week, but I did it! The hardest 15 miles ever. I sat on the ground for a while, and than set out to finish the run. I ran 2 miles, and than I could not go any more. I told myself that 17.5 is pretty good. But I was not happy. I was v hungry and thirsty so I speed walked to a Dunkin' Donuts and got a coke and a raisin bagel, and walked home (1.5 miles). 19 miles (17.5 ran, instead of the planned 20? Nah, can't let that happen. So I went out in the afternoon and ran 3 miles on hills with Chris (who rarely runs outside a tennis or basketball court, but manages to kick my butt everytime we run together). NOW I feel ready to taper. Next week, 65% less mileage! These legs are in serious need for rest! I am chucking this run to the high temps and tired legs. In a way, I needed a bad run this training cycle, to humble me and help me realize that the weather is another element I need to account for when I plan my Boston race. Now I just need to be smart and taper! And what better celebration than hanging out at Lizard's Lounge in Cambridge with friends tonight!!!

March stats

March has been a great month!

I had a huge PR in the half marathon.
I swam my first continuous mile.
I did a little biking after a complete break since December 2009.

Here are the stats:
Running: 218 miles (mileage record for this low mileage gal)
Bike: 70 miles (better than 0)
Swim: 9.75 miles
Abs: 1000
Push-ups: 300
ITB/knee strength sessions: 10 (10 min each)
Pilates/core with weights sessions: 10 (20 min each)

Other fun stats:
Icebaths: 15
Rolling (with foam roller): 21 sessions.
Injuries: adductor pain during 1 run; hip pain during one easy run; abdominal pain (muscular), R side, for 3 days (probably swimming related); heel pain at the beginning of 3 runs. Weird, no? Maybe I am too much in tune with my body:)
Nr of pints of blueberries consumed (my new addiction): 19
Nr of gels: 5 (2 in the half marathon, one per each additional long run). I am tapering off of these and just eat a bigger meal the night before (I like real food way better, though the Chocolate Nr 9 gels are pretty tasty and much healthier than the regular Gu!)