13.1 miles on October 13, 2013!!
Can’t believe I signed up for this? (I haven’t even completed my 5th yet?)
It sells out quickly. (And it did – in 6 days!!)
It’s nearby so I should do it, right?
Happy Running! Do you ever impulsively sign up for a race?
1. If you remember, the ankle that I broke started to hurt for the first time during my long 12 mile run on Sunday. It didn’t even hurt the first time I ran on it and it didn’t hurt during the 10 & 11 mile runs. So this was pretty scary. Things from stress fracture & bent screws to OMG, I can’t do this half marathon went through my head.
So my cure: ice, ibuprofen, recovery sock, prayers… then last night, I wore an ankle brace to play tennis. It was fine.
Today, at lunch I wore the brace and ran 3 miles on the treadmill… the ankle felt fine so after work, I ran 3 miles outside (the sun was finally out!!!)
The ankle was stiff but not painful! The real test will be on Sunday when I run 8 miles….
2. I am taking the day off and going to NYC.
Eileen & I with Anna in 2006…7 years ago!!
here we are again
Tomorrow the 3 of us will be re-united!!!
I get walk my poor ankle and foot around New York City. The forecast is for rain/snow…hope they are wrong.
Happy Running!
Week 10 Update:
next to last long run in the COLD
Week 11:
Happy Running! How do you Taper?
Long and Slow Distance run…12 miles to be exact.
As they say: “If it were easy, everyone would be doing it!”
And it wasn’t easy!
I always seem to struggle with What is the weather going to do? and Where should I run for a good 12 miles? And of course, Will my foot hurt worse? and Will my ankle be more stiff?
I thought running was supposed to be enjoyable!!
And it is when the weather is nice & I have no pain. Unfortunately, this half marathon training period has not gone as hoped.
So the positive is that the half marathon will be so much more fun!!! I can’t wait!!
I want to run here!
not here…
Of course, it was cloudy & cold and windy…like every LSD I have done this winter. The forecast was for snow showers. Fun fun.
So to mix things up, I wanted do run the route that I used when I was training for my other half marathons (running from my house into town and back I did not discover the bike trails until Nov 2011.)
When I got up it was in the 20’s, the teens with the wind chill and snowing! My hubby convinced that it would be too dangerous to run in the road with the snow so I drove to the Corning bike trail.
Though the snow wasn’t sticking to the roads, it was sticking to the trail and it was snow-covered and very slippery.
So Plan B: back to Delmar and run in the roads.
not too thrilled with this weather
I ran on the roads for 3 miles and turned around.
pretty dreary – the road was wet but clear of snow
I usually run shorter distances in these neighborhoods so this run took me to roads I had never been on.
saw farms
who knew?
After 6 miles, I was half done but felt totally done. I stopped at my car for water & fuel and then headed out for 6 more. This time I ran in the other direction for 3 miles before turning around.
I must say that the first 6 miles were painless but now my right foot started to hurt. As always, it was bearable and the pain would come and go. But at mile 9 (my turn around point), my ankle started to hurt… a lot. It hurt in the front and was getting stiff so it was hard to run without limping. Yes, I should have walked at this point but somehow I made my way back to my car.
12 painful slow miles done!!! It took me 2:26:xx and the 2nd half was a lot slower than the first.
This long run made me wonder whether I was capable of doing a half marathon. Was I in lala land about my ankle??? Could I really run long races ever again??
I went home, took ibuprofen and iced it… it was still sore.
To take my mind off of it, I went to the movies with my running friend Mary (she is running the same half). She tried to boost my confidence. And she did. If my ankle hurts, I’ll rest until the half and then the for the race, I will walk as much of it as I have to. I will get that medal!!
we saw it because we love French movies but it was SOOO depressing!
On a shopping note – look what I picked up yesterday:
…I was supposedly stopping at Hannaford’s to buy dinner! They came in handy today (a change from my GU) I liked the cliff shots gel but the powerbar energy busts made me nauseous.
and a new shirt…it was on sale at Olympia Sports & I had a coupon…at least I didn’t buy another pair of running shoes
Happy Running! Did you do LSD this weekend?
March is supposed to be the windy month but it seemed to me that it was February this year!
February Update:
AJH got 2nd place…and I got 3rd!!
so what if it took almost a year…
in Jan, I was worried about my foot & only running every other day
Nisky Bike Trail – one of my favorite places to run
love mandarin oranges & craisins in my salad
ipad & water required
Hope we have nicer weather in March (and an early spring!!!)
Happy Running! How was your February running? Anything new planned for March?
Reverse the roles: my hubby is the women & I am the guy
1. The forecast again was for snow yesterday and rain today so although I had worked 11 boring hours at the bar exam on Tuesday, I dragged myself to the bike trail (it was nearby) and ran (sorta) 6 miles. It was late and I was extremely tired but I just had to do it.
It was getting dark when I arrived so I brought a flash light. Then it got really dark (there are no lights) and kinda creepy to be alone on this trail.
So after 3 miles, I got back in the car and finished my run under the street lights of Delmar. I am so glad that I did it. On Wednesday, I woke up to snow.
It quickly turned to rain and my run turned into 3 ugly miles on the treadmill after work.
2. In the theme of healthy eating, my work had a Salad Bowl Potluck lunch yesterday. Everyone brought a salad ingredient and you just added what you wanted to make a big salad. It was fun.
so yummy!
It would have been even more healthy if I didn’t have this snack before lunch.
I was happy until I read that it had 480 calories and didn’t really taste that good.
And I went out to dinner with friends…at a Lebanese restaurant. The food was great, too. (The waiter took a liking to us and gave us free appetizers and free coffee.)
I had Mixed Schawarma (and took 1/2 home)
3. Anna from Russia is Back in the USA for a short vacation. She arrived in NYC on Tuesday. She is going to DC and then returning to NYC. I plan to see her next Wednesday. Can’t wait!!
here we are last May at the NY Botanical Gardens
Happy Running! Are you as ready for spring as I am? Are you a healthy eater?
This is the 2013 finisher’s medal – largest in Florida! Can’t wait to wear it!
And if that doesn’t motivate me to drag myself 13.1 painful miles…
A girl can dream.
All joking aside, my motivation is the feeling of “pride, satisfication and just plain awesomeness” in completing 13.1 miles.
Happy Running! What motivates you to finish a long race?
THREE MORE WEEKS = 2 MORE LONG RUNS!
Week 9 Update:
twice in one coldy windy week
Week 10:
toe spacer & bunion pad didn’t work…tried skipping the top eyes when lacing
Happy Running! Anyone training for a big race?
My plan was:
However, another winter storm was predicted for Saturday night into Sunday…not a lot of snow, just a wintry mix which I would not want to run in.
So I decided to change my plan and do my long run on Saturday which meant 4 miles on Thursday and REST on Friday.
Since I didn’t plan on running Thursday, I did not have my outdoor running stuff. Luckily, I do keep sneakers, shorts & a shirt at work. 4 miserable miles on the treadmill was done…and my 3rd day in a row of running which makes TIRED legs.
taken on the treadmill
Friday, of course, was the only non-windy and sunny day of the week and I was RESTING!!
So today would be my long run. I checked the weather and it wasn’t supposed to start raining until 2 pm (if you can believe the Weather Channel app.)
It was windy, of course, but not too cold…in the 30’s.
Although the long path was icy several weeks ago, I thought it might be clear so I headed for the Nisky bike path. I planned to run toward Colonie for 3.5 miles and turn around and refuel. Then go 2 miles toward Schenectady and back.
The path was clear & I was happy. My legs were tired right from the start. My foot ached. I knew this would a tough one.
clear so far
At this sign, I wanted to quit. Not a good sign (forgive the pun.)
must be used for the Marathon
I am not a quitter and I knew that I had to run 11 miles today so I continued. And then came the ice.
ice…ice..and black ice
I walked for awhile and tried to find dry spots. Eventually I realized that I had to find a detour. It was too slippery. There was no way that I was risking breaking an ankle!!
another view from the trail
So I went off the trail and continued to run on the road. My legs were even more tired but the wind had died down and my foot stopped hurting!!
Finally I had run 3.5 miles and came to the end of a road.
I turned around and returned to the trail to head back.
With 4 miles still to go, I stopped at my car for some GU and water. I didn’t get inside this time. I wasn’t really cold and my legs wanted to quit but I wasn’t going to let them… even if I had to walk the 4 miles.
The weather wasn’t getting any better. It looked like rain so I rushed back out on the trail.
dreary looking day…where is the sunshine?
I headed in the other direction which I knew was totally dry. I dragged myself 2 miles and turned around. I ran and walked and walked and ran. The wind picked up so did my foot pain and then it started to rain…just light rain.
But I FINISHED 11 MILES!!!!! It took me about 2 hours 10 minutes and it’s done.
When I looked at my pace, I realized there were more mile splits under 12 min than last week and my fastest was next to last. (The walking on the icy trail slowed me down!)
Believe it or not, I didn’t go to Target or Starbucks. I went to Shoprite to do grocery shopping and refueled with all the free food samples.
Happy Running! Do you schedule your long runs based on the weather?
I just got my medal for completing the Sandy Hook Memorial Virtual 5k. (But more importantly was that the money went to a great cause!!)
Of course, I don’t run races for the bling but it is fun getting it!! Each of my medals tell a story.
This is the 2012 Sarasota Half medal – supposed to be the largest in Florida! I wonder what 2013 will look like? It will the one from my 1st half after a year of injuries.
My most precious:
it’s from my FIRST half marathon…you can never have another FIRST
Here’s a few more:
from my 1st race 5 months after ankle surgery…they said I could NOT run for 6-9 mos.
from my 1st 10K…I had not run more than a 5k since ankle surgery
I ran this one for a friend’s charity and my Russian friend was there to watch me run
I ran this 5K with a stress fracture and my BFF in PA watched me cross the fnish line
my 2nd half marathon where I almost did a DNS…30 degrees, sleet & freezing rain in April…poured for all 13.1 miles
my 3rd half but untrained due to an achilles injury…was a great race due to so many friends running it
was supposed to be a PR half however it wasn’t…it rained for 1/2…but got to race in CA with my BFF’s sister
Happy Running! Does the bling figure in your decision to run a race?
My First 5K and More... 