one week to go!

One week left til the race.... I am still having some knee problems, but at this point it can hurt all it wants--we're still going, so it might as well settle down.

Everything I try to do aggravates it... so I guess by process of elimination, the only thing left to do is hope. Hope IS a strategy! Running even a little bit makes it hurt so much afterward that I think it's doing more harm than good. So we'll just give it a few days (Advil, ice, stretch, repeat), test it out on Wednesday, and if it hurts I'll just stop, let it chill out and then go for it on Sunday. Thus far we *think* no real damage is going to happen by running the race... we think it's my IT band, but if that's the problem, it should be loose by now, so who knows. Let's just hope for 2 - 2 1/2 hours of painlessness next Sunday between the hours of 8 and 10-10:30. :0)

On a lighter note, I'm wondering what I should wear to the race. I know--seems like a dumb question. But really, it is kind of important. It's probably going to be very cold in the morning, but once we get going and the morning goes on, I'll be very warm, so I gotta plan accordingly.

I'm sure there will be more updates this week, and definitely some after the race!

The Deal

(I was going to call this one "The Plan," but plans never seem to work out the way you "planned," so "The Deal" it is.)

For the next 6 weeks (42 days):
1. ice.
2. hydrate.
3. rest.
4. run.
5. repeat.

Then: DALLAS HALF MARATHON

For following 3 months:
1. celebrate & drink heavily. enjoy being "hot, half-marathon-runner girl."
2. hydrate.
3. rest.
4. recover.
5. train for marathon.

Then: FORT WORTH COWTOWN MARATHON

Forever thereafter:
1. celebrate & drink heavily. enjoy being "hot, marathon-runner girl."
2. hydrate.
3. rest.
4. recover.
5. keep celebrating... and running.

10 miles (too tired for a witty title)

Just finished 10 miles, and it was wonderful. I ran by myself the entire way, which is a first! I think I got my foot issues figured out--the shoe inserts seem to be helping, but my arches are still a bit sore.

The weather has been so nice! It's great not to be bogged down by all the humidity. We started on the trail this morning, and the sun coming up over the river was just beautiful! A very nice way to start the day!

I still need help with fundraising. I'm tired of asking nicely, so--DONATE PLEASE!!!!!!!!! I'm doing all the work, all you gotta do is enter your credit card number, get out some cash or write a check. It's for a great cause, and I bet that if you had cancer you'd want people to donate to help you and to help find a cure, so do the same for them. Didn't someone teach us all about that in kindergarten?

Morning mid-week runs have recommenced...

The two mid-week runs I have done this week have been awesome. When you are lying in bed, you're like "Oh! The wonders one more hour of sleep would do for me!" but then when you wake up an hour later you're like "That's it??? That's all?" (that's what she said, right?) But when you actually get up and go running, you have more energy than when you sleep for that extra hour--and you just feel like a badass. However, it's hard to remember that when you've been taking that extra hour of sleep for the past, oh, month and a half :0)

It is definitely easier to live the "runner's lifestyle" when you are actually running! I enjoy a few drinks as much as anyone (and maybe more), but I enjoy it a lot more after I've run. I like staying out late...but I also like not feeling like shit in the morning. Going to sleep early is hard sometimes (like on Friday nights), but it beats feeling like crap when the alarm goes off (like at 4:15 on Saturday mornings).

Anyway, so the race is a little more than 2 months away, and I feel like my running is strong. My fundraising, however, could use a bit of help. I am going to send out another email soon, so maybe people will realize that they will keep getting those emails until they support me!

4 miles yesterday, 4 miles today and rest (and moving) until Saturday's group run.

I still got it!

8 miles with the Team today! It was awesome. I was really nervous because I haven't been that diligent with my mid-week runs, but I don't think I've ever had a stronger run. On the 8th mile, I wasn't out of breath, I wasn't aching (okay, maybe just a little bit... but no "pain")--I was just tired and hungry! But hey, it will be really awesome to tell people that I ran 8 miles this morning (especially if those people happen to be good-looking males)!

I literally just took an ice bath, and I can't tell you how good it felt! It is supposed to aid in recovery, so I gave it a try.

So--FUNDRAISING! I need help! I have $655, but I need to get to $1800 by Oct. 8! If you haven't donated yet, please do so! Every little bit helps. I am out there bustin' my perkier and firmer behind, and I could really use some support--and so could all the people trying to fight cancer. Think about it--you'd want people to give money to help find a cure if you had cancer, right? It is a disease that affects everyone, so everyone should do their part in finding a cure.

What's $25 to you? A couple of drinks at the bar, plus a tip? A dinner out? A movie plus popcorn and a drink? Tell you what--donate that money, skip the bar, the restaurant or the movie for one night and come run with me instead. Just once. Your body will thank you, and so will everyone battling cancer and all the people like the Team who are fighting for them. Or, just donate the money and forget the run :0)

new shoes, new inspiration!

So it's been a while since my last update... things this month have been a bit slow due to that nasty bug I got at the beginning of July and now a sinus issue (but I think it's going away!). Anyway, I've been training when I can and can't wait to step it up once I am 100%.

I got new shoes last week, and I am newly inspired! I am also going to get some new shirts (the ones that keep you cool), which really help with the heat. I am looking forward to getting back into my running schedule and keeping it consistently, which has been a problem this month.

So far I have raised $580!!! That is awesome, but I still need about $1,220 more to make my fundraising minimum. Most people are going somewhere cool to run their marathons and are raising money to go there, but I'm raising almost $2k to go to DALLAS--Dallas, people. Come on! I'm raising that much money to drive 45 minutes to run half a marathon. But because it is in Dallas, everyone can (and should!) come see me finish the race!

6 miles before breakfast!

This morning I woke up at 4:15. My alarm wasn't set until 4:45, but I guess I was just so excited to start running at 6 a.m. with the Team. Actually, I wanted to go back to sleep. But alas, I put on my running shoes and workout clothes and headed out into the still-dark morning. I felt a little better when I saw some people with bikes getting into their cars while I was driving (yes, there are people out being active at 5:45 in the morning! In fact, the only people I see out that early are active. It's kinda nice. If you know how I feel about people at malls, you know what I'm talking about.)

Anyway, six miles was pretty good. I must admit that for the past two weeks I've been able to get by during the Team workouts without having to do that much during the week...I think that's about to stop. Six was fine, but it would have been even easier if I had done a long run during the week.

Sometime this week (I would say today, but that might be a little too productive for a Saturday), I need to go to the Fort Worth Running Company and have myself videotaped while I run to see what kind of shoes I should be wearing. The inside of my left knee has started feeling tight (or like it's being pulled) right around mile 3 for a couple of runs now, and Coach Manuel thinks I might just need different shoes. (I wonder if anyone is reading this?)

P.S. The new Harry Potter movie is awesome but definitely not as good as the book. For sho.

P.P.S. One week til the seventh Harry Potter book arrives!

P.P.P.S Is anyone really reading this?

If it was easy, everyone would do it...

Still no training yet this week... I know, I know. But I wasn't feeling 100% yesterday, so I figured that I could hurt myself by running today more so than I could possibly help myself, even if I had the best run ever. But I do have fundraising news!

If you look on my TNT donation page, it appears that I only have $25 (given so graciously by Miss Taylor Mayad!), but that's because any checks that I receive in the mail are not included on the website total because they go directly to the Society instead of through the Internet. So, I actually have a total of $145, thanks to a very generous check from Matt's brother and sister-in-law and one from my step-mom's sister. (Would that be my step-aunt? Do we have those?)

So, here are a few things everyone should know about these cancers:

• Blood-related cancers are the leading fatal malignant diseases in young men and women under the age of 35 in the U.S.
• EVERY 5 MINUTES, SOMEONE NEW IS DIAGNOSED. Every 10 minutes, someone will lose the fight.
• Leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma are cancers that originate in the bone marrow or lymphatic tissue as a result of an acquired genetic injury to the DNA of a single cell, which becomes malignant and multiplies continuously. This abnormal accumulation interferes with the production of healthy blood cells.

These facts are scary, but with the help of the Society, every member of the TEAM and those who support us with donations, positive thoughts and prayers...

• ... the survival rate for Leukemia has tripled from 14% in 1960 to 46.3% today.
• ... the 5-year survival rate for children with Acute Lymphatic Leukemia was 4% in 1960 and is 85% today.
• ... radiation-induced cures are now possible for patients with early-stage Hodgkin's disease.
• ... the 5-year survival rate for Hodgkin Lymphoma in people under 20 years of age is now 96%.

This is what the TEAM is all about. Not getting in shape or meeting new friends and running buddies--those are just the perks. It's about fighting for all the people fighting blood cancers, because they shouldn't have to do it alone.

"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light."

Health = Wonderful

What a long weekend! Unfortunately no training took place, but I had a physical feat just as tough and painful--fighting a stomach virus. Besides missing seeing my sister, brother-in-law and nieces, I felt like I had been hit with a bulldozer. I was reduced to crawling (walking made me nauseated), sprawling about my apartment, drinking ginger ale and eating ice chips.

After the first round (around 4 a.m. on Saturday morning) I thought, "I sure hope this passes before my run this morning!" Ha! Yah, right! It quickly became evident that I wasn't going anywhere. Matt brought me some Pepto-Bismol caplets with the instructions, "My mom said to take these until your ears ring." The instructions should have read, "Take until it makes you sick, then drink ginger ale and eat cubes of ice." The second set of instructions is what worked for me. So anyway, I didn't leave my apartment from Friday night until Monday night. I couldn't even stand on Saturday, and Sunday was just painful and achey. Yesterday I did dishes for about 10 minutes and had to take a 2.5-hour nap to recover.

But the thing is, as bad as I felt, I couldn't help but think, "At least this is temporary. At least after this passes I will be healthy again and able to do the things I want to do and enjoy life." It made me very grateful for my health and for the fact that I don't have to endure painful treatments for cancer or fight for my health daily.

My team coach said to take it easy this week and not try to run until Thursday. I will be on lower mileage next week, but hopefully I will be able to pick it up later. Recovering fully and taking it slow will hopefully result in fewer setbacks later on. The half marathon is 4 months from tomorrow!

Finally, I must give kudos to Matt. He was a wonderful caregiver all weekend, and he never even bitched about it (although there were a few times I could tell he was getting annoyed!).

4 miles & just a little bit of rain

This morning I ran about 4 miles with Elizabeth, a friend from my TNT group. It was nice to get out there, but it was harder than I remember it being on Saturday (probably because I hadn't done much running this week). I feel great now and I'm glad we went. The hills were a little tough at the end, but I know they are good for me! It's nice to get home at 7 and already have run 4 miles while everyone else is still sleeping!

It started raining when we were on the "home stretch," but it was glorious, cool rain--the next best thing to a nice cool breeze! It felt so good and really helped to cool me off. It was so humid, I think I was soaked after the first mile!

Now I am sitting at the office... waiting for the 2nd of two early-morning meetings this week that have yet to happen. I must say I am less grumpy about it today because I already got my run in. But yesterday--oh I was pissed--I was like "I could have been running! Why didn't anyone say the meeting was canceled???" Just wait 'til it happens to them... Grrrrr.

floods + running = not good

I love the rain, I really do. But not when there are torrential down pours every time I want to run! I am looking forward to running with another girl from my TNT team in the morning. I am excited to get back out there, rain or shine, and I am looking forward to Saturday's run too. Tomorrow we'll run 4 or 5 and Saturday we'll run 6. I'm so glad it is Wednesday--the weekend is coming!

1st TNT group run

Saturday was my first run with the TNT group. It was SO amazing! Five miles couldn't have seemed easier (well, that probably wasn't my thought at the time...). I didn't feel too bad walking part of the last .5 mile or so because I'd never run that far at one time in my life anyway, especially outside in the summer! My mentor ran the second part of our run with me, which I thought was so cool. It was really awesome to be able to run with a group of people who were all running for the same reason. It wasn't about us--it was about the people and the cause we were running for. On Saturday we ran specifically for Kaitlyn and Chad, two of our honored heroes who are fighting blood cancers.

When I got home after the run, I was totally exhausted. I was just so tired! I felt great though. I left that run already looking forward to the next group run. It was also really fun to get to know the people on the Fort Worth TNT marathon team as we were running.

So, in summary: TNT group run = amazing & totally awesome.

Next weekend I'll try to update my blog during that time period after the run when I am sprawled out on my living room floor trying to stop sweating... I should have some better details then because all I remember right now is how cool the run was.

I sent out my first round of fundraising letters on Friday evening, and I'm going to set up my email campaign this afternoon, so I am looking forward to getting some responses and donations!

Go TEAM!

pictures from the 5k!

This is us with about .3 miles left to go. The guy and little girl behind us became Susan's prime competition at the end. I thought she was going to start throwing elbows! No comments on the lady by the stop sign...

In the picture, everyone is looking slightly to the left... I think we were looking over to see where the music was coming from. I was like "I hear music... the finish line must be close... but I can't see it... Where is the finish line??? Where???" (on a side note... if it is possible for just your mid-section to be in a photo without the rest of your body... yah...)

This picture really shows the beautiful course we were on... like the building behind us to the right with "Leroy's Cars" painted on it... and no cars near it.

If you look closely, Susan is turned toward me because I am saying, "He's taking a picture of us from behind, I just know it." I was right.


Susan is nowhere in sight because she is sprinting ahead of me trying to beat the guy behind us in the first picture. This is literally right before the finish line, and if you can't tell, I was tired!

the tortoise & the hare...

This morning Matt and I ran together, and I think we both learned a few things.

First, he learned that I do have reasons for getting up and running "incredibly early" in the morning--it is so hot in Fort Worth in the summer, even at 8 a.m. It's not that I'm terrible and mean (well... not entirely), it's that I would rather wake up earlier and run in cooler, less humid weather without the sun beating down on me, even if that means running at 7 or 7:30.

Second, he learned that I was right when I said take it slow. Sure, he kicked my butt on the first mile (but only by about 30 seconds), but who finished the run without walking, hmmmm???

Third, and most important (in my mind), I learned that I could do it on my own! This was the first time that I didn't have Susan to "coach" me and encourage me on my run. I ran 2 miles (we'll go for 3 tomorrow), but it seemed hotter and more humid than any other run we have yet to go on. The point is, I did it, on my own, and I even was there to encourage (okay, talk crap to) Matt. At the end, Matt was like "You call that talking crap? No wonder you say I hurt your feelings when we work out together!"

All in all, it was truly a great run--gravel, humidity, sun and heat included. (Although, if some rain, wind or cloudiness wants to come our way for the next 2 days, that would be wonderful too!)

I have compiled about 55 names and addresses for my fundraising, so I am going to write my emails and letters tonight and probably address some envelopes. I know I haven't put any pictures up from the 5k, but I will ASAP (meaning tonight, hopefully!).

1st 5k = success

On Saturday Susan and I ran the Run for Dad 5k. It went really well! The day started out rainy, and the race was postponed about 15 minutes because the finish line was under water. The weather ended up great--overcast and not too hot, which is good because if the sun had come out it would have been really humid and bright.

We ran the entire way, with NO STOPS! I was amazed. It felt like the last .2 mile took forever! We didn't stick around for the pancake feed after the race, but it looked like everyone had fun. (I don't see how anyone could have eaten anything right after finishing that run!)

Our Team In Training (TNT) coach emailed us this morning and said he saw our names and results on the Internet. It turns out that I finished #5 in the female 20 to 24 category and 115 overall with a time of 31:52.9, which means my pace was 10:17 per mile. Susan finished #5 in the female 25 to 29 category and 113 overall with a time of 31:40.4 (a 10:13-per-mile pace). You can check out all the results at
http://www.clinesrunningcorner.com/runfordad_07.pdf.

Susan wasn't kidding about her competitive streak! When we rounded the corner of the last .1 mile before the finish line, she started sprinting and trying to take out this dad and his daughter (who, in our defense, had been sprinting/walking the entire time, so I guess she didn't feel like they deserved to beat us)! When she said "Let's pick it up," I thought she meant pick up the pace and finish strong, which I did, but my legs just weren't into the whole sprinting thing.

I have some pictures from the race that I will post soon. They are from the last .2 mile of the race, so I think you can actually see me thinking, "Where is the finish line???"

Runnin' down a dream...

Ran 2 miles again today. Soon we are going to have to map out a new route to get 2.5 and 3 miles in. I am hoping that after we get 3 miles down easily, we'll be able to start adding full miles rather than half miles.

Apparently my steps are getting lighter, which is good because it means my body is getting used to running. We made even fewer stops than Tuesday, and the only hard part has been the mental part--telling myself to keep going when I'm tired. I've done it, so I know I physically can, it's just hard to convince my mind that I can! It is getting easier. I am no longer out of breath to the point that I have to stop to catch my breath. I am really excited because I am starting to see some progress. I wish I could train more often (read: run more often), but I have been told that it is wise to force yourself to slow down and take it easy in order to stay healthy and injury-free. I am looking into joining this gym nearby that I've heard has great spin classes (in order to be able to work out while taking pressure off my heels and feet). I am still doing pilates, which I love, so that is a plus as well.

I'm looking forward to the 5k on Saturday (and the manicure I promised myself as my reward!), training with the team the following Saturday and going on the Pub Crawl that night.

I really need to get started on fundraising. I am going to write my letters soon and get them mailed out. If you are reading this and you want to donate, go to
http://www.active.com/donate/tntntx/tntntxJHuddle. You can donate online there and track my fundraising progress.

I will be sure to take some pictures at the 5k and put them up here, so check back for those.

Getting ready for the 5k

This morning I can honestly say that I RAN 2 miles. The few stops I made couldn't even be considered stops... more like pauses, really. (Hey, I even pushed on through a red light--a RED light--red means stop, and I kept running.) It felt good to not feel like I couldn't breathe or like I was going to collapse. I dare say that we had an almost leisurely run. I enjoyed it more so than any other run we've done so far (all, what, six of them?). But anyway, we're pretty much spot-on 10-minute miles, which is good enough for me for now. It would be nice to get it down to 9 or so, but right now distance and endurance are more important than speed. Very pleased.

"Everywhere I went I was run-ning..."

End of the 2nd Week

It's Friday, which means that it's the end of the 2nd week of training. This morning before our run I signed up for a 5k that Susan and I are going to run together next Saturday morning. We ran 2 miles out and back this morning, and this time we had shorter (one-block) stops, although we were almost stopped permanently--some idiot wasn't watching where he was driving his Christmas-tree-air-freshener-colored car and almost hit Susan and me. But it's ok, 2 guys were standing outside Paris Cafe and saw it, so they preceded to cheer us on by yelling "Train it girls! Train it!" It gave me the encouragement I needed for a good burst of energy. I have heard that the crowds at half-marathons and marathons are pretty loud, so hopefully that will be the case and will provide some inspiration. It helps and changes your thinking from "Why the hell am I doing this?" to "Hell yah, I am a badass!"

It was very humid (although not sunny, thank goodness), so it was a little harder to get going. The first mile went well, and Susan assures me that the first half mile is always hard. We are getting tired of feeling sweaty and stinky all day at the office, so we are trying to figure out a new time to go running. Some of the guys training for their triathlon run at night, but I am more of a morning worker-outter, so we'll see how that goes. Susan and I want to run early enough that we can shower again before work. I am just trusting the tidbit of information that I read on a running site that said the earlier and more you sweat during your run, the more "in shape" you are and the more quickly your body becomes accustomed to the heat and other factors. Considering how gross I look when I am finished running, I should be in pretty damn good shape!

I am still doing pilates, which is good because I love it, and according to Runner's World, doing exercises like pilates that strengthen your core muscles is supposed to help you during your training. My pilates instructor worked me out really hard yesterday, so I'm a little sore today, but I'm looking forward to a lake weekend. In an ideal world, once I get more into the rhythm of running I will be able to run at the lake, but for now I am just going to relax and "recover."

The Third Run

Ah, the second week and third run of training.

We set up "meetings" on our calendars for our runs to ensure that they don't get pushed into the afternoon (remember, heat = bad), so at 9 this morning Susan and I started off on our 2-mile run. We ran 1 mile out, then I had to have a block or two to catch my breath and "re-group" (if you will). An attempt was made to run all the way back (we had an actual work meeting at 9:30), but alas, I had to stop a few times. We returned at 9:29, and my face continued to glow and remained an interesting shade of fuscia until about 10:30.

All in all, 2 miles were completed, even if I had to make a few short stops. I must say, red lights are my new favorite thing. I was delighted to see that we were approaching a red light on our way back, and I was relishing the idea of "having" to stop and wait for the light to turn green just as I saw it change colors--right as we were arriving at the end of the sidewalk. Blast!

I must give Susan props here--besides never being out of breath and in way better shape than I, she is so good about letting me stop when I need to (like when I can't breathe... or think I might throw up on passersby or, worse, my co-workers when we get back to the office). She never makes me feel bad, which is exactly what works for me. If she were to make me feel bad, then in my running/hot/sweaty/stinky state, I would likely get angry and want to quit, but as she doesn't, I feel encouraged to really push myself and make it that last block (or couple of blocks...)

My achilles are definitely sore right now! I am anticipating more soreness tomorrow, but hopefully all the stretching will help.

I need to get my fundraising going, so we started out by taking a few pictures (thanks, Dan Mc., for your photography skills). Above is one of the pics. (I'm the one on the left, Susan is on the right.)

The First & Second Run

After a few weeks of everyone at the office trying to talk me into doing an event with Team In Training, I finally decided to do the Dallas Half Marathon in November with my co-worker, Susan. My goals are to run 13.1 miles without stopping and to raise at least $1,800 by the beginning of November.

Last Wednesday Susan and I completed our first run at lunch, and overall, it went pretty well. We ran about 1.5 miles total, running 1 mile without stopping (which was a big deal for me!)

The run was short and sweet, and the next day I was feeling it in my legs! We decided to take it easy for the rest of the week and promised to pick it up on Monday. Another goal is to stay healthy and injury-free, so we didn't want to push it too hard at first.

So Monday (yesterday), Susan and I brought our running clothes to work and set off on another running adventure. This time, however, work duties had pushed our run into the afternoon. We set off at 4 p.m., and about half a mile into it, I thought I was going to pass out. We only made it about 1.2 miles, but Susan encouragingly said it was 1.5. Apparently the heat, sun and humidity add to the joys of running. So, from now on we are going to run in the mornings, much to the chagrin of our co-workers. It's ok, we embrace our post-run stinkiness.