Zen and the Art of Running

Since I began running, I’ve learned a lot…about patience.

(But isn’t the point of running to get someplace fast?)

I’m not a natural athlete, and hadn’t run more than a few steps at a time since college. So when I took it up again two decades later, I tried to jump right in and be strong and fast, immediately.

That didn’t work out so well.

After a couple of mildly strained knees, I learned my lesson, or so I thought. And I slowly began to build up distance, and to a lesser amount, speed. And when I got to a certain point in my fitness, I tried to push it again. After all, I was over the beginner’s hump and was strong enough to handle it now, right?

Um, no.

My strained hip told me to back off again. At this point, I was a year into my running, and had to go back almost to where I started.

How humiliating.

But I did it, let myself heal up, and got to where I could train again. And I slowly eased into distance and speed again. Which was great, until my body started to respond to the training. Which meant I could do more…

…and injured my hamstring.

You seeing a pattern here? Good. Sad to say, it took me a year and a half to identify it.

Now, I think I have it. My hamstring has healed. I successfully (and slowly) ran a half marathon last month and felt great. I have two more races scheduled in the next three months. Life is good.

This time around, I’m keeping the speed work in check. It’s still difficult. I feel good and I’m ready to let loose. But I made it this far without hurting myself again, so I must be doing something right. I want to get faster, and want to someday finish a race mid-pack instead of in the back. And it will happen, someday. But for now, finishing injury free is enough.

I never thought it would take this long, but my journey from zero to marathon is going to take at least three years. If I had known that when I started running, I might not have kept going. But I’m glad I did. It was totally worth it.

What I’ve learned about patience from running has spilled over into other areas of my life. Everything… every task… every undertaking has its own pace. You have to respect that pace. It will happen in good time. In the meantime, enjoy the ride!

A (half) Marathon Undertaking

“Time to go for a run.”

Those are quite possibly my favorite words in the world.

The Spousal Unit and I had a great time at our half marathon two weeks ago. We picked the Space Coast Half Marathon for SU’s debut, and it was a wonderful race.

There’s a lot to do in Cocoa, FL. We took a couple of days and explored the area, including Kennedy Space Center (you get a discount coupon in your race packet, so there’s another bonus for signing up for that particular race).

The race itself was perfect: overcast, a bit breezy, and 68 degrees. I know, that’s a little warm for some (most?) runners. But for us weenies that don’t deal well with cold, it was exactly what we wanted.

before

The start of the race was a little rocky. But then, aren’t they all? Well, again, maybe that’s just me. The SU and I don’t do mornings that well, especially not early mornings, and the race had a 6:15 am start. That means up at 4:00 am, to make sure we were properly fed and caffeinated prior to running. Plus finding parking, which turned out to not be a huge deal. (Yet another bonus of the Space Coast Half Marathon.)

In addition to the early hour, my SU had given me a Garmin Forerunner 405 prior to the race. That’s a runner’s toy that I had been eyeing for nearly two years, and was very excited to have. Unfortunately, it is a very complex toy, and I didn’t have any clue how to use it, so it caused a bit of frustration the first mile. Okay, a lot of frustration. But once I got it working, things settled down.

Since this was the SU’s first race, and I wanted it to be a good experience, I hung back and let him set the pace. We did a nice, sloooow jog for the first four miles. Then, suddenly, magically, my SU discovered his inner competitive streak. “I’m tired of all these people passing us – let’s go!” You got it, baby.

halfway there

The rest of the race was a series of negative splits, meaning we ran nearly every mile faster than the previous one. Near the end, we had enough energy to flat out sprint. Not bad for a 13.1 mile run!

We crossed the finish line hand in hand, with a respectable time, and realized we still had energy to spare. And, most importantly, we had fun, and the SU is looking forward to running more races.

Mission accomplished!

afterglow!

Running is gluten-free

Well, I missed Wednesday's running post and Friday's gluten-free post, so why not combine them for a Sunday post?

The comeback trail from a hamstring injury is slow.  I still have tightness and some residual soreness in my hamstring, but I'm finding that if I just relax and don't push the pace when I run, it doesn't get any worse.  In fact, my hamstring feels better after a run, I guess because the muscle is all warmed up.  That's not the problem. I don't mind going slow, as long as I get to keep running.

The thing that has been bothering me since my injury is that my legs feel like lead on every run.  You may recall that I took a few weeks off and rested.  During that time, I also changed my diet.  I am now grain-free and sugar-free, and with that, my carb intake has naturally gone much lower. I didn't realize how much it would change my energy levels.  I feel great most of the time, but when I exercise, I'm dragging.

In the past I didn't think too much about carb-loading before exercise.  I mean, it just happened naturally.  I was eating grains like rice and corn at every meal and snack.  So I naturally had a lot of easily accessible fuel available for each run.

Fast forward to my new, grain-free existence.  Now I'm fueling my body with protein and fats, and let me tell you, it's hard!  Carbs are easy fuel for the body, but protein and fat take a lot of work to assimilate.  No wonder I'm dragging...

So I tried a little experiment before Saturday's four-mile run.  I ate carbs.  Not a lot, mind you.  But I made the effort to eat something for quick energy, which amounted to a grain-free biscuit with honey.  I know, right?  I went all out!  And here's what happened: I felt good. I had a great run. And I didn't feel like I was running through pudding.  It was, in a word, AWESOME.

Now I get to have some fun experimenting with paleo-friendly carbs before runs.  There are sweet potatoes and raisins in my future.  Maybe even some coconut flour breads. All gluten-free, grain-free, and (mostly) sugar-free. I must say, I'm looking forward to it!  I really didn't like running with lead legs...

The half marathon training plan

We are all registered for our half marathon.  The entrance fees have been paid, hotel reservations made, and training has begun.  Three months to go!

I'm a serious Run-Walk-Runner, and we're following Jeff Galloway's Half Marathon training plan.  It's the same one I used last winter for my first half marathon.  I even put it into a Word document, and added a column on the right for the date of my long runs, so I can update it every time I start training for a new race.  Yes, I'm that big of a geek... Anyhow, it's posted on the fridge, so we can tell at a glance what the long run is each weekend.

This Saturday we'll be doing a 6.5 mile run.  We actually did that last weekend, quite by accident.  Long story, but lets just say there was a little misunderstanding as to what I thought the map said, and what it actually said.  Oh well... This Saturday we'll be doing a familiar route, so it should be fine. And the beauty of run-walk-run is if you end up having to go longer than planned, the walk breaks will save you. Literally. 

By the way, if you are interested in running, but don't think you can, I can heartily recommend checking out Jeff Galloway's website.  The man has coached hundreds of thousands of runners, and I can personally say that I would not be running anything over 3 miles if it weren't for his help.

Ever so slowly

The half marathon that I'm planning to run in November is raising its price at the end of this month.  If I want to take advantage of the discount, I have to register in the next week.

I think I'm going to do it!

My hamstring is still an issue, but the gentle exercise I've been doing the last week hasn't hurt it.  In fact, I think my hammie has gotten stronger.  And I don't think I'm just imagining it...

I've been really careful not to push too hard, and when I have (like when sprinting across a busy road in between cars), it has reminded me to slow down.  For the most part, I've been really good about listening.  Each time I work out, I feel the tightness in the muscle, and some residual soreness the rest of the day, but the following day it feels stronger.

Maybe it's finally healing?

To recap what I did after I strained my hamstring: First, I tried tough love.  Then I babied it.  When neither of those did anything, I resorted to fooling it by walking a lot (which doesn't hurt), and mixing in small amounts of jogging (which does hurt a little).  I guess fooling it did the trick.

Whatever.  I'm just glad to be running again!

The big decision

I thought, I discussed, I agonized, I rationalized, then I came to my senses...

The marathon is off.

But the half marathon is still on!  My spousal unit is going to sign up before the entry fees raise at the end of the month.  I'm going to wait and see how training goes...or should I say, wait and see if I can ever run again?  I may be watching from the sidelines instead of participating.

Either way, race road trip!

I'm sad, but happy at the same time.  What a weird feeling...

Saw this coming...

On Saturday I went running.  My hamstring was still a little sore off and on, but I tried to do a good job of warming it up and taking it easy.  It really wasn't too bad.

So I ran an extra mile and a half.  And the hammy has been screaming at me ever since.

Can you say, "Stupid?"

Yeah, that's me.

So I've been icing and resting, and it's feeling much better.  As in, no pain today.

Yup, you guessed it.  I'm going to run tomorrow!

Ha!

No seriously, I'm running tomorrow.  But I'm going to only do a couple of easy miles.  Which will hopefully keep it from flaring up again.

And for those that are keeping track, I'm very close to cancelling the marathon.  I'd still like to do the race, because it looks like a lot of fun.  But I think I'm destined for the half, and not the full.  This year.  The hubby and I need to discuss it, and it also depend on how the next couple of weeks go.  But I'm trying to mentally prepare myself.

Cautiously optimistic

I went running on Sunday.  For the first time in weeks.

It went okay.

It was humid and about 150 degrees out.  (Well, maybe not quite that hot.  But above a certain point, does it matter?) Hubby and I went to a nearby park that has a one-mile paved loop, and ran laps.  The heat was brutal, and I was dead tired after just three miles.

And the hamstring?  Well, it's a little shaky, but it seemed to hold up. 

It's not 100% yet.  I've spent a lot of time icing it, and resting it again.  Another run this morning, and more ice today.  Did you know that a blue ice pack, the kind you use in coolers, works really well on a sore hamstring?  It's true...it's flat and easy to sit on.  Don't laugh, it's the easiest way to ice the back of your thigh and still get some work done!

So yes, it's still a bit sore.  I'm going to give it a few more days, then try it all again.  And again.  And again...

This morning, while I was slogging along in the early morning heat, trying to step gently and not jar my hips too much, I was thinking about my future.  Or at least, my future as a runner.  I was thinking about the marathon I have planned at the end of November, and what my chances are of being able to make it through the training, and the race itself.  I was wondering if I should just give up on the idea of a marathon this year, or even next year.  Maybe the distance is just too much. 

Then I thought, who cares?  I want to do the marathon.  So I'm going to continue to try and heal up, and keep training.  And I'll run the marathon.  That will be great.  Unless I can't do it; then I'll do the half marathon.  That would be okay, too. 

And if I can't do either in November, I'll still live. Because someday my hamstring will be okay.  And there are always more marathons.

The worst is over, I think

It's a dreary day today in south Florida, but my dark clouds have a silver lining - my hamstring is definitely on the mend. 

In case you remember last week's post, I was going to try to run last Sunday.  This would have been my first run in two weeks.  I say "would have been" because, you guessed it, it didn't happen. 

I woke up Saturday morning with a definite soreness in my hammy.  It has been coming and going a lot since I finally decided to lay off of it, but that morning it was definitely here.  I made the difficult decision to bag any exercise over the weekend, including a much needed and anticipated walk.  Oh, how I miss walking!  But I didn't do it.

Actually, I fudged there a bit.  I didn't go out for an organized walk.  I did, however, go visit a couple of furniture stores (we need a patio table and chairs).  Okay, I think there were 4 total stops.  There was much sitting going on (gotta test those chairs), as well as wandering around showroom floors, and walking to and from the car to the stores.  Not what you call a great amount of exercise...but it added up. 

By the end of the afternoon my hamstring was burning.  It felt so weird!  It also reminded me that this whole healing thing is a long process.  Since then, I've planted my tushy back down on the couch, and have continued to take it easy.

And it's finally paying off.  Since Saturday, it has gotten progressively better, to the point that I only notice some tightness when lifting heavy things (using my legs as stabilizers) and when twisting. 

So right now, my Saturday run is back on.  Tomorrow I'm planning a gentle outdoor walk, to loosen things up for the first time in three weeks.  No running, just some longer strides and feeling things out.  And if things go well, I'll be doing a gentle 3 mile run on Saturday.

I'm so excited about that I could just about squee...

Still waiting to heal...

Still not running.  The sore hamstring is getting better, albeit slowly, and I've been trying very hard not to do anything to aggravate it. 

I'm hoping for a tiny run/walk session on Sunday, but we'll see.  I have to let this heal now, or my November marathon debut will be cancelled.

I can hardly stand the wait!

In the meantime, I'm working on the 100 Pushup Challenge.  Because muscular arms are sexier than flabby ones.  Or so I hear...

"Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must move faster than the lion or it will not survive. Every morning a lion wakes up and it knows it must move faster than the slowest gazelle or it will starve. It doesn't matter if you are the lion or the gazelle, when the sun comes up, you better be moving." - Maurice Greene (attributed to Roger Bannister shortly after running the first sub-4 mile)

Wish I'd seen this two weeks ago...

"Being in a hurry is a sure fire way to injury. Slow down. Take your time. Do the work. The finish line will still be there."
~Slow Runners Club

Maybe I'll remember that before my next injury...

The good news is my hamstring is reacting favorably to walking.  So we're doing lots of that.  The bad news is it still isn't crazy about running, so this week's 9 miler was cancelled.  Oh well.  I have 10.5 miles to look forward to in a couple of weeks.

Slow is good

So I'm feeling pretty stupid today.

I think I mentioned before that I'm a slow runner.  By definition, most people refer to anyone who runs slower than 10 minute miles, or 6 miles per hour, as a slow runner.  A guy named John Bingham has capitalized on this, creating a name those of us "back of the pack" runners: penguins.

I'm proud to be a penguin!  Really, I am.

But I was hoping that someday I wouldn't be the slowest penguin out there.

This summer, with regular training and 18 months of base miles behind me, I decided to make my move.  I was going to go from the back of the back of the pack to the middle of the back of the pack.  Eventually, I would move to the front of the back of the pack.

No problem, right?  Just throw in a little speed work here and there, and start running a smidge faster.

And it worked for a couple of weeks.  I went from a 12 minute mile to an 11:45 min mile.  Then an 11:30 minute mile.  One day, on a shorter run, I pushed the whole way, and actually avereaged 10:59 minute per mile.

Oh, the joy!  I was speeding up!

And my legs were feeling it.  Did you know that going faster than you are used to, whether that means 5 min miles instead of 6 or 11:30 minute miles instead of 12, puts a lot of strain on your hamstrings?

Um, well, I didn't.  But now I know.  And I also know (now) not to run on a strained hamstring.  But I didn't know that a week ago.

So now I'm nursing an aching hammy, and am thoroughly cursing my own stupidity.  Plus, I'm in withrawal...no runner's high since Monday!  Not yesterday, not today, probably not tomorrow or Friday either.  I really need a fix...

But I also really need to heal this hammy.  I have a 9 mile run scheduled for Saturday, and my marathon training plan doesn't allow for a lot of wiggle room.  So I'm resting my leg now.  And going crazy.

Laughter helps - today someone shared this video.  What a riot!  Although, a couple of times, I wondered if someone had bugged my house.  Some of it hits a little close to home...



I am a runner!

Heat is good for you

Running in the heat can suck.  But according to a recent Running Times article, getting acclimated to the heat can improve your performance by an average of 7%.  Sorry I don't have a link to the article, but it's so recent that it's not online yet.  If you want to look for it in print, or just make a note to check for it online later, it's called Hot Myths and it's in the July/August 2011 issue.

Anyhow, I really hope that's true, because it's beastly hot here.  Not Las Vegas hot, which is a dry blast furnace, but Florida hot, which is more like a jacuzzi without the bubbles.

Now a jacuzzi, even sans bubbles, is a pleasant thing.  In January.  But not in June.

I've been trying to combat the heat by getting out early to work out.  Before the sun comes up, it's only 80 degrees F, and not too awful bad yet.  Plus there's no sun beating down yet.

But I've been thwarted by true love.  Let me explain...

My husband has decided he wants to run a marathon with me this fall. 

Awww!  How sweet!

Since we're going to run together, it makes sense to train together.  After all, neither one of us is going to sprint off and leave the other in the dust.  This is a joint venture, we'll run the entire 26.2 miles together, and cross the finish line hand in hand.

Couldn't you just die of the cute?

Now, please let me be perfectly clear about something here: I love running with my husband.  Not only is he the love of my life, but he's also my best friend, and someone I want to spend as much time with as possible.  So I look forward to our runs together, and cherish every moment of them.

So what's the issue?  Well, my hubby is not, shall we say, a morning person.  Neither am I really, but he really fights having to do anything before a decent hour of, oh, say, ten o'clock in the morning.  So he's not crazy about running in the morning.  Period.  He'd rather run in the afternoon.

But as I mentioned previously, it's bloody hot here right now.

So we worked out a truce where we run together in the morning. However, during the week, we get out of the house as late as possible, in order to get a run in before he has to be at work.  Which is about 7:15am.  And that means the sun has been up for almost an hour, and has had a chance to start toasting things.  I haven't pushed too hard to get out earlier, because I realize I'm lucky that we're going when it's only 82 degrees and not 94 degrees or higher.

The weekends are different.  For our longer runs (which, since they are longer distances, also keep us out in the sun for a longer amount of time), he would prefer to start running around, oh, 8:30 or 9:00am.  Or later.

Holy $%^&!

I've reasoned, and explained, and cajoled, and just about begged, but I haven't been able to convince him that running from 6:30 to 8:30am will be much more comfortable than running from 9:00 to 11:00am.  It just hasn't worked.

The only hope I have is that he is starting to lose his heat tolerance while running, just like I did last summer. Long sweaty runs will do that to you.  Last weekend, we had a 90 minute run, and got out of the house around 7:30.  Which was better than usual, but I suspected it was going to be brutal.  And it was.  And for the first time ever, my hubby said maybe we should head out earlier for our long Saturday runs.

Hallelujah...

Why do it at all?

I am a slow runner.  Very slow.  Extremely slow.  Tortoise slow.  Slow.

Really, I'm slow.

I am a back of the pack runner.  When I line up for a race, I go to my assigned corral, which is based on your expected finish time, and I go to the back of it.  If there are any corrals behind me, those people will pass me as we cross the start line.

But I'll pass them again around the halfway point.

What I lack in speed, I make up for in endurance and sheer determination.  I love my long runs.  So far my person record for distance is 14 miles, and it was a great experience.  I can't wait to get into the 20 mile (and longer) runs in my marathon training.

But, like I said earlier, I'm slow.  It's not so much a race for me, as a test of will.

Will I last the distance?  Will I be able to finish?  Will I be able to walk after?

I know I'm never going to win anything other than a finisher's medal.  And that's fine with me.  As long as I beat the closing of the course, I'm good.

My goal each time I toe the line at a race is to beat myself.  If I've never done that distance before, then I want to finish.  If I have, I'm running to set a new personal record (PR) in that distance. 

Since I'm relatively new to running and races, the PRs will be happening for a while.  It's only natural that I'll continue to get stronger and (relatively) faster for a while.  Well, we can hope, anyhow...

But no matter what, I'm going to continue to run and race.  Because to not do it would be the ultimate defeat.

National Running Day

Running changed my life.

I took up runnign during a time that nothing seemed to be going right.  It was something I could do where I was the one in control, and not something or someone else.  In spite of myriad chronic health issue that will plague me for the rest of my life, I could still run.

I had never liked running before, but that didn't matter.  I was going to conquer this.

My goal at first was a 5K.  3.1 miles.  That was all I wanted to do.  I did notice that I felt good on the days that I ran.  Better than I had in a long, long time.  But I was going to stop at 5K.  Anything else was excessive, right?

Then I started visiting online running forums.

A funny thing happened on the way to the forums...

I started reading about people running 10K (6.2 mile) races.  And half marathons - 13.1 miles.  And (gasp!) marathons!  26.2 miles, all at once!  Were they freaking nuts?

But I thought about it, and something clicked for me.  Even as I wondered about my new found cyber friends' sanity, I began to think about longer distances.  I can't pinpoint exactly when I came over to the dark side, but I think it was right around the time I became hopelessly, irrevocably addicted to the endorphins I was producing, otherwise known as runner's high.

Maybe I would do a 10K sometime.  Maybe...someday...after years of running...a half marathon.  Maybe...

Okay, now I'm freaking nuts.

Well, long story short:  6 months after I started running, I ran my first 5K.  Just before my 1 year running anniversary, I ran my first half marathon.  I'm planning to run my first marathon this November, less than 2 years into my running career.  And I'm looking forward to more endurance challenges, like ultra marathons (anything longer than 26.2 miles) and Disney's Goofy Challenge (a half marathon one day and a marathon the next day, sounds like fun!!).

And one of the best things about all of this is that my beloved has taken up running, too.  He ran the 5K by my side.  He couldn't do the half marathon because of shoulder surgery, but cheered me from the sidelines.  And we are now training together for our first marathon.  Now, that's true love!

To celebrate National Running Day, I went out for a quick run this morning.  My beloved and I normally run together on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so this was just a little symbolic, celebratory jaunt.  I went to a park close by our house, where there's a short looping path.  I often walk there, and so do many other people.  Today, one of the walkers flagged me down.  Being the courteous type, I stopped, to see what I could do for her.

She gave me a look that I think of as "grandmotherly."  You've seen it, that smug, condescending, "you're far too stupid to figure this out on your own, so I have to spell it out for you" look.  Like a grandmother looks.

"You know," she said, "it's better for your joints to walk briskly than to run."

Ha!  That made me laugh so hard, I could barely finish my run...

Happy National Running Day!

I never thought I'd say this...

I am going to run a marathon.

No, really.  Stop laughing.  I am going to run a marathon.

I'm not sure exactly when it's going to be.  There are two that I'm eyeing right now - one in November, and one in January.  I can't decide if I want to run my first full in November, or just run the half as a tune up race and save my first full for January. 

Both plans have their appeal.  November would mean that I would get to say I ran my first marathon in 2011, instead of 2012.  You know, a whole year earlier, lol!  But if I wait until January, I could run my first full on the anniversary of and on the same course that I ran my first half.  Plus, I could still say I ran my first marathon within 2 years of starting running at all.

Oh, the decisions - oh, the drama!  It's enough to give me the vapors...

Really, it's going to come down to how well my training goes this summer.  I'm following the Galloway method, and even bought a copy of his book, Marathon: You Can Do It! Inspirational, no?  Anyhow, I'm going to follow his plan to the letter, instead of trying to hybridize it with my own plan.  Not like I did last year for my half.  And this year, I'm not going to get injured ONE MONTH before my damn race (unlike last year). 

Did you know it can take MONTHS to fully get over a simple hip flexor strain?  Yeah, me neither.

So anyhow, right now, I have running on the brain.  Because, much like getting over an injury, it takes months to train for a marathon. 

Did I mention I'm going to run a marathon?

I'll shut up now...