See Jo Run

I did my first brick workout of the 2009 season this morning.  Brick = bike+run done back to back.  So far the tendinitis appears to appreciate the warm up on the bike, no swelling as of yet.  14 miles on a loop up to Granville and down Rt 57, a very popular bike route.  Then home to change shoes and run a 5k.  I cannot even relate how great it felt to be back out there running.  I took it slow, so the 5k took 30 minutes on the dot, but it felt wonderful!

I had no idea what a mental toll a running injury would take, but that’s for another post.  For now I’m just going to bliss out!

I just got home from the PT evaluation. Good news all around I think. He ruled out any kind of tear because of the way he could manipulate the foot with no pain. And he checked my knees, hips and back… again no problems. He is thinking that it is tendinitis, but that it is almost resolved. BUT he also thinks there may be a calcification bout 3cm up from the heel- all the pain is there, and it’s only when you press on it at this point. then we looked at my shoes, my beloved Kayano’s, which have been so great for me- a fab match for my pronation. But the heel cup was raised with the switch to the 14’s. And I ran 90% of my training and the marathon itself in the 14’s. And the spot of pain is EXACTLY where the outside rim of the heel cup hits.  I just measured the heel depth and it’s almost 3 inches, which seems pretty deep.

So, I’m needing a trip to shop for shoe that still offers stbility, but has a shallower heel cup. In the mean time he gave me a heel lift orthotic and I tried running about 200 yds. The lift gets that painful spot up past the heel cup completely. NO PAIN!!  But I’m leary of running with my heel all jacked up like that.  Over the long term, my tendon will shorten and my gastro will be tighter.  Neither of those is good.  More research needed for sure.

I’m going to have an xray done to see if there is calcification, he said that they can treat that with a dissolving method (which I still need to research). Anyone had that done?

So my scrip from him was to go shoe shopping- he actually wrote that down and it completely cracks me up!
Then to start running 5k or less beginning next week, if no pain then just continue to build very slowly back up to my base milage of 20-30 miles per week. He didn’t see any reason that I can’t train for Hartford if the pain continues to decrease, just said to take it slow and decide on that closer to June.

All in all, I am very happy to find that it wasn’t bio-mechanical issue… I should be back in the game again soon!

I don’t know much bout Pose at all, but my husband is a Crossfit devotee and he has been talking bout finding a Pose running coach.  Since I’m nursing an injury I’m left with a lot of time to read about, think about and talk about running… all without actually running.  So, I just bought the Pose running book and DVD, I’ll review when I’ve had a chance to view and then at least give it a try.

I’ve already read Chi Running, but I need more instruction.  I also have a pair of Vibram Five Fingers, received as a holiday gift, so I can also give the almost-barefoot style a try.

One advantage of being out of the running game for a month is that I have to take it slow starting up so I’m feeling like it’s a good time to try some stuff out.  The PT cleared me for up to  5k next week, so a few hundred yards will be my goal this week, trying out some different shoes/methods.

I’d love to hear what your experiences have been with the “learned running methods” like Pose, Chi, Evolution, Free, etc.

1. Sit ups. I highly recommend the 200 Sit up challenge, but instead of crunches do full sit ups.  How to do a great situp? Try the abmat situps.

2. Push ups. Again, you can’t do better than following the 100 Push up challenge.  There are iphone apps for both of these challenges as well, and they make it super simple to track your progress.

3. Upper body weight lifting. Tons of upper body weights can be done in a sitting position if your Achille’s is too injured to be doing a lot of weight bearing. My personal favorites are free weights for Shoulder Press,  Skull Crusher, Curl, and if you can stand Bentover Rows.

4. Hula Hooping. I thought this might stress the heel but if you hoop correctly you are really just rocking your hips and the foot stays stationary, so it worked well.  Build up to an hour, try in front of the TV if you are bored! If you haven’t tried a hoop since you were 8, give it a try again.  You just need an adult size hoop, which you can buy or make yourself. The DVDs from these folks make it fun to learn tricks later too.

5. Swimming. Depending on the injury, swimming may be an option.  Try using a pull buoy,  small float that you carry between your thighs, to keep the work focused on the upper body until the foot is healed enough to endure the flexing motion of swimming.

6. Exercises for the lower back.  I recommend Back Rx, it has a nice workout that can be done for the most part in 15 minutes but provides a lot of core strengthening.

7. Pull ups. They make pull up bars that fit onto a door jam now, so you don’t even need to go to the gym.  If you re new to pull ups, start with just one adding one more  every other day.

8. Handstands. These things build upper body strength, but also a huge amount of core control and balance.  Begin by using wall to to walk up (see link) then to kick up to, when ready try using a partner to catch your feet.  When you’ve mastered this and can hold the handstand for a minute, try out these Handstand push ups! I recommend using a mat to take some of the fear out of flying into that upside down position.

Obviously, you need to use common sense and check with your doctor or physical therapist while establishing an exercise routine during your recovery.  These are the exercises that have been serving me well while I recouperate from Achille’s tendonitis after my first marathon.  After just three weeks I have  1 inch difference in my waist measurement and increased musclature in my abs and arms… thank goodness, because as much as I love running it just was not getting my pre-baby body back!

2008 sucked.  No sugar coating here.  My mom almost died three times, I spent hundreds of hours in hospitals with her, had her living here for a while, one of our businesses completely tanked and then to cap it all B was in a very serious bicycle accident in September.  When January 1st rolled around this year we gave 2008 a serious kick in the rear out the door.  Good bye and good ridance!

2009 has already proven itself a fantastic improvement.  Mom’s doing really well, B is completely healed, all of the kids are happy and healthy.   The whole winter was intensely filled with training, which suited me perfectly.  I loved the challenge of running through all the horrid conditions, and the accolades as well.  I’m not above flattery- nope, not me.  Then the marathon… what more can I say.  I’ve reaped a further benefit- I truly consider myself  runner now and I actually called myself one in public recently.  It felt great. But I’ve hit a lull here trying to recover from the injury to my Achille’s tendon.  No running for 3 whole weeks already, and I have had some pretty low moments about it.  I don’t want to register for the races I had my sights set on, in case the injury takes longer to heal than I would like.  And I’ve just had some low times.

I always need the big challenge, the lofty goal, so I decided to get serious about my diet and also about my upper body strength starting April 1st.  I recently read Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes at the suggestion of my husband (who is a Crossfitter- this is a big book in their world).  I’ve only read about half of it, but I do feel like my eyes are quite opened.  I then picked up Protein Power Lifeplan by the Dr’s Eades and read that cover to cover.  The kicker was seeing the movie Fat Head which was both entertaining and interesting.

I’ve had a clean diet for almost a decade now: whole foods, no HFCS, no dyes, no preservatives, no fried foods and a limit to empty calories like sugar and alcohol.  I always thought that was enough.  But sometimes good is good enough… this might not be one of those times.   I feel the same way right now that I did after reading John Taylor Gatto’s Dumbing Us Down.  After reading that I knew that I’d be blazing a trail of indepent schooling for my children.  Now I’m feeling the fire again.   I’ve read enough so far to find that no fewer than 6 of the dietary ‘truths’ which I had based my life choices on, truths that I was fed from my childhood right up to now are actually HYPOTHESIS.   That’s right- they are not much more than educated guesses based on observational studies.

So how would you feel if fat were your friend?  What about if you realized that the body doesn’t need carbohydrates?  What about if your body has been protein starved for years?

I’ve had my blood numbers run and I’m doing well already.  But I’m only 32, I run or exercise at least 7 hours per week and I eat clean.  What if I have been missing a link that could have me doing better than alright? I’ve had systemic yeast problems for years.  They are well controlled by a diet that cuts out flours/sugars/grains, but then I have trouble keeping muscle on my body, because I can’t find enough calories to keep up my rigorous exercise.  It never occurred to me to eat fat to replace those calories.  I thought fat = heart disease.  What if that was wrong?

I’ve been eating a new lifestyle for two weeks.  I feel fantastic in that regard but I’ll check in as it unfolds and when I rerun my blood tests too. I have had to actually find ways to sneak the fat in because I’ve never really cared much for it.   I have to answer some of the questions running through mymind with my own experience now.  What if FAT is atually my friend?

I tried out swimming on Thursday, it felt fantastic!  10 laps, got into the groove, very nice.  The heel felt great the whole time.

But then the next morning it was swollen and painful again.  DAMN!

This was after trying rowing out on Tuesday with the same results… so it seems my options right now are seriously limited.  I know that time is going to be my healer, so I have to have patients, regarless of the intense level of frustration.  I have two triathlons and  marathon that I really would like to be training for, but healing first…yada yada.

Today I did the pushup and sit up challenges, day one for both.  Then freeweights for upper body.  That didn’t cut it for my aerobic fitness though, so I was frustrated.  Then I grabbed my newly made hulahoop!  Here’s how to make your own hoop. I dropped the hoop a few times in the 30 minutes, but I did 30 solid minutes :)  yahoo!  It only got my HR to about 130 but that’s better than nothing, so I’ll take it.

PMS, baaaad cosmic April Fool prank and not being able to run = cranky mama!

I decided I need a PLAN til the heel is healed, it was a bitch figuring out what won’t stress the achilles.  Cross off running, jump roping, nautalis, leg weight lifting, biking until I get an answer about wether it’s safe to wear my clips…

I have some ideas though and I’m going to make an effort to build up my upper body and core.  My arms are spgetti noodles these days since I’ve been so focussed on just running and some cardio-cross.

Mon/Wed/Fri:
100 Pushup Challenge
200 Situp Challenge (real situps though, not pansy-crunches )
a free weight routine focussed on bicept/tricept area- I love my adjustable weight set
Rowing machine, till the heel says to stop

Sun/Thurs/Sat:
Back Rx yoga and pilates routine

Swim laps

Rest on Tuesdays… I always rest on Tuesdays.

This will probably feel like the longest race report ever.

Short version:  B and I went to DC, he ran the half, I ran the full.  My chip time 4:53.  My achille’s tendon is pretty messed up.   But I finished my first marathon.

The rest of the story…

The story of me completing a marathon really begins with the story of me beginning to run in August 2007.  After the birth of my fourth child in May 2007, I wanted to get in shape.  Friends of mine were competing in a sprint distance triathlon, and I thought that sounded very cool but so outside my own abilities that I honestly just said NO WAY.  I don’t even think I was particularly supportive, and I was super jealous.  But, Mac was only a tiny baby and I couldn’t train yet, and I don’t run.  Swim, nope don’t do that either!   But their race came and went, and they were all so happy they completed it.  I secretly wanted to do a triathlon with them the following year, but I’ve been saying for my entire life that I can’t/won’t/shouldn’t run.  EVER.  No, really, like not even as a preteen.  I had a million excuses at the ready, but that summer none of them was strong enough to make me feel justified in my statement that I couldn’t do the triathlon.

I knew that the biking was possible, and figured I’d worry about the swim in the spring.  That left only my nemesis… running.  Maybe they’d have a hippo handy to chase me?

Online, a group of forum-friends was encouraging people who had never run to try out the couch to 5k.  I downloaded the podcasts, put on some terribly regrettable shorts and hid behind my sunglasses.  But, I finished the couch to 5k without any of my friends or family knowing.  3 weeks later I ran my first 5k in 10 degree weather… my first race ever.  I loved it!

After that I became addicted to setting a series of seemingly unattainable goals for myself:  bike up the steep side to Granville, train for a half marathon road race, complete a sprint distance triathlon, and a century cycle.  By September 2008 I had completed all but one of these.  The century ended at mile 48 with a horrible head injury to my husband.  We were going strong then though, and I know we would have finished had it not been for that.

During the recovery period from B’s accident I missed  my last race of the season, another all-women’s triathlon.  I had to take some time off because of lack of childcare, and I spent a lot of September choosing my next goal.  The marathon was calling to me.  But I truly had no idea if I could complete something of that magnitude.  The marathon has always been mythic for me.  Even before I ran my first step I knew how long that race was, and the only people I knew who had completed one were not like me.  They were special.  They were truly dedicated to physical endeavors.  They were athletes.  Athlete?  Not me!  Even after completing the other races, and training consistently for over a year, nope I did not consider myself an athlete.

But the month of September was so quiet, and I felt so lost without a big goal.  I started surfing the net looking for a marathon in the spring. First I found a local marathon in Holyoke, but it has only about 100 participants every year.  It made me nervous that I would be the last finisher and also that I might get lost without a crowd to run with. I found the National in DC and checked its size: 2,000 full (and 5,000 half) marathoners… perfect.  And the start line was just 3 miles from my cousin’s house in DC!  I thought about it for a few weeks, read 4 books on marathon training.  I talked it over with B, called my cousin to ask if he would host us.  Everything fell into place, and I began training October 5^th.

Training in the winter is a totally different animal.  Massachusetts this year boasted sub 10F temps on dozens of days.  Wind chill, icy roads, huge snow storms.  I ran 14 miles one day in 8 inches of unplowed snow.  Another day I ran in wind so hard it felt like I was being pushed backward even going downhill.  The subzero days I prayed for a run shorter than one hour!  I put sheet metal screws into the soles of my running shoes so I could run on hard pack.  I got a face mask so I wouldn’t get ice crystals in my lungs.

I ran 604 miles to train for running 26.2 miles in DC.

Friday morning, March 20^thI, we set out for the RFK stadium in DC.   It was a 7 hour drive, but B and I don’t usually get to travel alone so other than the nerves about race day being the next day, it was quite a pleasant trip.  I had a mild cold and some loss of my voice  all day, so I kept chugging GSE in water and taking zinc.  We picked up our race packets as soon as we got into town and then went to my cousin Collin’s house.  He and his partner Todd have the absolute cutest house in DC.  They made us a perfect pre-race dinner and we talked till about 10pm.  B and I hit the futon and actually slept pretty well considering the nerves, but I did wake up with  scratchy throat and stuffy nose several times.  Finally at 5am the alarm went off.  I was SO GLAD the race was set to start at 7am!! Read the rest of this entry »

This race mattered to me. Last year in in early days of September I took on the couch to 5k program, and I wanted a goal race to look forward to as I worked my way up to running for 35 minutes. Being in the beginning of December, the Hot Chocolate Run to benefit Safe Passage a made perfect sense. So, I raced it last year and totally loved it, despite 15 degree temps and windy conditions! My time last year was 29:32.

But, on to this year. I just raced a 6 miler last weekend and did better than I had expected but I still wasn’tsure what goal to commit to. Do I shoot for my pie in the sky goal? Or choose something more realistic to ensure that I don’t cross the finish line disappointed? Then, do I go out fast, or pace evenly? Oh, the complete OCD of it all

I consulted my absolute favorite source of running guru-ness, the other InTraining Mamas at AmityMama. We’re a small group, but they have watched my progress over the last 16 months and have always cheered me fiercely. After much kabitzing on all the details I made a game plan, strapped on my shoes this morning and ran like ^amp;%!

I’ll cut to the chase now and say YAHOOOOO!!! I am over the moon THRILLED with my performance.

Gun Time: 25:26 Chip Time: 24:54

I have wanted to go after a sub 25 for months, but really didn’t even want to say it outloud because I felt like a fraud saying I could do that. So, with my goal set at 25:30 I went out strong, but finished even stronger.

Splits:8:10 8:10 7:47  (and that pesky .12) 45 sec

The best, very best part is that I feel like I gave a 99% effort, but not 100%. I still had a tiny, bitty bit in the tank and my legs/feet feel great. I’m hopeful that this is a sign of more good things to come