Week 10: trials and triumphs

What a week! It was full of ups and downs. Sitting here and reflecting now, I can say that the ups out weight the downs, but there were moments when I was ready to throw in the towel. I'm hoping that I can learn from my moments of weakness and move forward. They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, correct?!? 

Monday I got in a great 4 mile run through downtown Canton. Even though my hips were a little tight, I was able to push my pace. After my run, it was time to check in with my chiro. I told him that I had made some rookie mistakes, and I had a little bit of work that needed done. He looked at me with a smile and agreed. I felt like a brand new woman when I walked out of his office. If you're a runner and don't see a chiro, I suggest you find one if you are having any type of pain. 

Tuesday was a rest day before my eight mile run on Wednesday. I was excited for my run because I was going to run with Monica and Kristin. This was the first time that I was getting to run with Monica in weeks. We picked a route from Kristin's house that would have a hill at the finish. I was a little nervous about finishing with a hill because of my hips. When we got to the hill at the end, I owned it! I was able to push my pace up the hill and to the finish. This made me very happy. I got to run with two great ladies, and my hips cooperated. It was a good day! 

For cross training this week,

I jumped on the stationary bike in my basement. I rode at medium tension for five minutes then at high tension for three. I did this four times. Needless to say, my legs felt it at the end. After I finished, I got in some upper body strength and abs. 

Friday was another rest day before racing on Saturday. Kevin and I headed to Warren to do a Breast Cancer 5k with his family. I didn't want to push my pace because I knew I had 17 miles on Sunday. I got caught up in the racing atmosphere and went faster than I expected. It was worth it because I finished as the third female finisher. I finally earned a medal. Kevin and two of his aunts also earned medals! It was a great day of racing. 

When I woke up Sunday morning, I was tired from a long day on Saturday and an emotionally exhausting day on Friday. I really just wanted to crawl back into bed, but I knew that wasn't an option. I ate my banana and peanut butter, rolled my legs and hips, applied my body glide, laced up my shoes, and headed out the door. The run started off good, but my hips started fatiguing around mile four. This made me nervous because I had 13 miles to go. At mile 5, I saw Kevin jogging towards me, so I knew that would help. When we were passing his house, I had him stop to stretch my hips. I was hoping this would help. It did loosen them up for the next 6 miles. We stopped to refill water bottles at the park, and I had him stretch them again. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to get back up off of the bench. I decided to try and eat some animal crackers because I knew my body needed some fuel. Bad choice. My stomach started cramping up, and we still had over 4 miles to go. With a little over three miles to go, I looked at Kevin and told him I needed to walk. I was hoping this would help my stomach give me legs a breather. The last 1.27 miles were tough. I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to finish! I had to dig deep in order to make it to 17. There were moments of doubt and moments I wanted to quit. I even started questioning if I should continue training. I knew that I needed to make sure that I did everything after my run to help my body recover: hot bath, rehydrating, refueling, and recovery socks. Hoping I can walk in the morning. 

It wasn't the runs that were tough this week besides my long run. It's the tiredness and being emotionally raw that got to me. I had a really rough Friday and cried multiple times. I didn't realize that training would effect me in this way. It really wore me down. Now that I am aware of these issues; I know that I will be better prepared. Luckily, I have some awesome people in my life that are there for me in my times of need! So blessed to have them in my corner. I'm praying that I am stronger next week! I'm praying my body can get some rest. I'm praying that my head and heart are back in the game. 

Week 9: halfway there

What a week! This week almost tainted my view on running. Three of my four runs were tough, and my body is definitely feeling it. Hoping cooler temperatures and trip to the chiropractor will get me out of this funk! 

Monday's run was tough after a long run on Saturday and racing on Sunday. Definitely a rookie mistake that will not happen again. The route I chose had a few hills, so that didn't help my struggling hip flexors. I was supposed to do seven but ended up doing five because of time constraints and sore hip flexors. I wasn't too concerned because I figured I could make up for those miles on Tuesday.

Tuesday rolled around, and I had every intention of running five miles. I got out there, and my body wasn't having it! I ended up getting in three painful miles! My hips were cussing at me the whole time, and I knew that I was going to have to take a rest day on Wednesday before Thursday's seven mile run. Listening to my body is not always for me when I have a plan to follow. 

After resting on Wednesday, my hips were ready for Thursday's run. I was a little crunched for time, so I know I was going to have to push my pace a little bit faster than I really had planned. Luckily, the weather and my body cooperated. I was able to get in a good run and felt like things just might be turning around. 

On Friday, I got in my cross training day during work since I had an extended lunch. My teaching partner and I got in a two mile walk! 

When I woke up Saturday morning, I was tired and the humidity level and dew point were high. I knew these factors were going to make for a tough run. I met Kristin at her house for our run. This would be a new route for me, so I didn't know what to expect. When we started the run, there we a few hills within the first three miles. This started to irritate my hip flexors, and I knew it was going to be a long run. By mile five, I was dripping with sweat. There wasn't a dry spot on my shirt or shorts. The last six miles was full of hills. By then, my hips were on fire, and it was tough to keep going at some points. There were two hills that I walked up in hopes of saving my legs to finish strong. There wasn't a strong finish like I hoped for, but we did finish. Besides sore hip flexors, I ended up chaffing even though I used body glide. #thestrugglewasreal

It was a tough week. I'm praying that the next nine weeks go smoother, so I don't regret signing up! I know that tough runs happen, but this week was a lot to handle mentally and physically. Here's to taking it one run a time and trying to make the best of it. I know that I need to keep my eyes on the prize and the feeling I will have when I cross the finish line. I will be stronger for this!

Week 8: racing again

One thing that I'm learning about marathon training is that you will always be exhausted. No matter how much sleep I get or how much I stay off my feet; I'm always tired. Hoping my body and mind can endure the next ten weeks. I just keep telling myself that crossing that finish line is worth all of the pain and agony I am feeling now. 

Started off the week doing my first race since April. I had no idea what to expect because my focus has been on endurance and not speed. The race started at 11:00, and it was supposed to be 90 degrees! YIKES! I suck in the heat. Kevin, Melissa, and I did a warm up run and got in a good stretch. We headed to the start line, and I said a quick prayer. I asked God to allow me to stay within myself and survive the heat. I felt good and was surprised that I ran the first mile in 8:36. Maybe, just maybe, I could still run fast. I decided to not look at my watch anymore after the first mile and run how my body felt. I was surprised with my time and pace at the finish. I guess my body is capable of much more than I think! 

The next day was just as warm, and Kristin and I took on another seven mile run. We both felt great on the way out but struggled on the way back in. After walking twice to get in a drink break, we finished the last mile strong. We beat our pace from the previous week by a minute. The little things that make you feel better after a long, tiring run. 

Since I had another race scheduled for Sunday, I got in two days of Insanity Max 30. These workouts kicked my butt and left my muscles sore. I did enjoy my time with Shaun T and my colleagues. There's nothing better than getting sweaty with Shaun and these two. 

Friday was a rest day before tackling 15 miles on Saturday morning. When I woke up, it was raining. Kristin and I were supposed to meet to do the first ten of my fifteen together. I sent her a quick text letting her know I understood if she wanted to cancel. She quickly texted back and said "we are doing this". So blessed to have this girl as my running buddy. We started off in the rain but luckily it stopped after about fifteen minutes. It's amazing how quickly the miles were passing by while we were lost in conversation and cooler temps. There were a couple of times we looked down and couldn't believe how fast we were going. We finished our ten miles, and Kevin joined me for the last five. I never realized how much I would treasure the miles that we log together. We're doing something we love with someone we love. The only thing I don't like is the fact that sometimes he pushes the pace without knowing it. I just do my best to keep up! At some points, we were running at a 9:36 pace. We finished our five miles at a 10:07 pace! I was impressed that I was able to do that after running ten miles. 

I wasn't sure how Sunday's 5k was going to go after running 15 on Saturday. I wore my recovery socks for most of the day and took a nice long soak in the bathtub. I was hoping that would be enough to allow me to finish the race at a decent pace. The only thing I had going for me was the fact that it was 50 degrees when I woke up. It's amazing how much of a difference 40 degrees can make. My friend, Monica, asked what my goal was for the race. I told her that I had no idea; I was just going to run how my body felt. Kristin, her friend, and I jogged a mile to the start line. My legs felt ok, so I was hoping to stay under a 9:00 pace. Once the cannon shot to get us started, I got lost in the music and crowd. My hamstrings tightened up around mile 2 as I was going up a small high. Once I started the downhill, they loosened up a little bit, and I was determined to stay under 9:00. I crossed the finished line a little bit faster than Monday. Not sure how I did it, but I did. Kevin was excited to be a cheerleader for the day and made signs  for me and my friends. After the race, we had a small tailgate party with food and mimosas. Perfect end to a great training week. 

Lesson learned this week: never underestimate yourself. Your body is able to accomplish so much more than you think! 

Week seven: a small victory

Man- I was getting spoiled by the cooler temperatures and lower humidity. This week about killed me! Each day that I finished my run, I think I could've wrung at least a gallon of sweat from my clothes! I can only hope that the Fall like temperatures return in the next few weeks. I'm not sure that my body can keep enduring the heat and humidity at the time of day that I have to run. I guess all that I endure now will only make me stronger come race day. 

Kristin and I started off the week with a four mile run on Monday. It was extremely hot and humid. Half way through the run, we stopped to get a drink. It was so hot that my drink was luke warm. Although it was miserable out, we were able to finish our last two miles faster than our first two. I will count that as small victory number one.

Tuesday was a seven mile run. Kristin and I decided to run by my house because the route provided a little bit more shade than our other option. Even though the route provided spurts of shade, it did nothing for my body. As we were making our way back to my house, each step got harder and harder. I tried taking sips of my water, but that didn't help. I knew that I would have to walk at some point in order to finish strong. We walked .25 miles, and this allowed me to finish the last mile strong. I didn't think I was going to be able to cool my body off once I finished. I knew that I had to get some salts in my body, or I would end up with a killer headache. I know this run took a toll on my body because I went to bed at 8:30.

 For strength training this week, I decided to mix it up. I joined my teaching partner for an Insanity Max 30 workout. We did a Tabata strength workout; I forgot about my love/hate relationship with this workout. It definitely worked my muscles and left me dripping with sweat. 

Thursday was my rest day this week because I decided to do my long run on Friday, so Kevin could join me. I ran the first 6.5 miles by myself from my house to Kevin's. I was drenched with sweat when I arrived and caught a few sprinkles along the way. Once I got there, Kevin and Ashton joined me for the last 7.5 miles. Luckily, they were both willing to run at my pace. I was really nervous about this part of the run because they are both way faster than me. When we were running, it started to sprinkle again. With about two miles to go, it started to rain harder. I think that was part of the reason that I was able to run the last mile at a 9:39 pace. I just wanted to be done and get out of the rain. This was definitely small victory number two since I wasn't sure if I would be able to survive a 14 mile run! 

I decided that I would try a four mile recovery run on Saturday morning since I still had four miles to get in for the week. My legs were tired from Friday's run and standing for two hours at the football game. I got up and rolled my legs before meeting Monica for our run. My legs felt like rubber, but I was able to get in all four miles without walking. Small victory number three. 

For cross training this week, Jadynn and I got in a Cize workout. It was 43 minutes of laughs and sweat. I couldn't believe how much I was sweating, and I forgot how much fun it was to do a dance workout with Jadynn. We kept trying to tell Shaun T that we were not ready for the next move. A couple of times I told her I needed to embrace my inner white girl, and she gave me a look. She reminded me that finding my inner white girl would not help me. By the time we Cized It Up, we were both laughing hysterically. Neither of us could get the moves or keep up with Shaun T.  

What a week! The heat about killed me but somehow I survived! I cannot believe that after next week I will be half way through my training. Time is flying by! I know that it will be race day before I know it. Here's hoping that temperature drops and the miles continue to fly by.