5:01:10

Five Hours. One Minute. Ten Seconds.

I won.

Twas the Night Before Marathon...

In 11 hrs I will be starting my first marathon, and my god have I been a roller coaster of emotion all day!

I set my alarm for 6am this morning so when I wake up at 5am tomorrow it won't be SUCH shock (yeah, I don't think it's going to do anything either). It was difficult to get up at 6am when I don't really NEED to, but I was saved when "Animal House" was just starting on tv!

Animal House: the Zaniest movie ever with a splash of "Wacky"

I LOVE that movie. It is HILARIOUS, crude, old, entertaining, and just plain funny (which is starting to become hard to come by these days in modern cinema...but I digress). Point being, thank god it was on or else I most likely would have gone back to sleep. I waited until about 8am to actually be productive (although taking in some late 1970's comedy starring Wolfgang Amadeus himself ain't too bad), and left for the first Farmer's Market of the year. I got some mushrooms and spinach for tonight's pre-race pasta meal. There was a new specialty pie bakery there this year and I wanted EVERYTHING ON THE TABLE but I figured I could wait a week, until after I actually ran. It took willpower, my friends.

A little later in the morning I ran some errands for work which included a lot of driving on a perfect sunny day. I had my shades on, my music up, my windows rolled down, and I started thinking about the race (big surprise), and for the first time, I didn't feel immense panic, I felt pride and excitement. I've mentally divided up the course into 5 miles, 9 miles, 6 miles, and 6.2 miles, and picturing each separate route doesn't seem overwhelming! I was so immersed in thought that I actually teared up a little thinking about crossing the finish line. Then I realized I was about to pick up my friend (Lindsey) to help me with said errands, and I'd rather not be made fun of for my liquid eye-pride.

Later in the aternoon I headed down to the Radisson for the runner's expo to pick up my race packet (bib, chip, shirt, etc) and SNAP it was PACKED! It was kind of insane. It was tough finding a parking spot to begin with, but that was nothing compared to what was inside. This is the only marathon in the US to be happening tomorrow (for Mother's Day) so it did attract a lot of out-of-town die hard marathoners.

I stopped by Gazelle to pick up some Shot Bloks for the race last night around 4:30 since I knew they'd be busy all weekend, and I wanted to make sure they didn't run out of my flavor (orange!). To my dismay they had all the same running goodies at the expo...ON SALE! How dare they. They also had a sock sale going on (buy 3, get one free) but I couldn't bring myself to spend 3 socks worth of money. I also got a free copy of "Eat This, Not That" which is actually pre-tty cool. All in all I got some pretty nice SWAG (there was more to take, but as I get older I find myself being able to weed out the crap from the awesome swag).

On the bottom: Black mesh-ish Kalamazoo Marathon pull string backpack; Moisture-wick (awesome) white short sleeved Kalamazoo Marathon t-shirt; 410 bib number (for those of you who want to keep track of my splits and time); A bottle of sunscreen with handy carabiner A copy of "Eat This, Not That" 100% awesome

I'd say it's one of my most successful restraint-showing-in-front-of-free-things outing to date. I then spent time updating my SEVEN HOUR long playlist for the run (which I've been worried about alll week, but thanks to John, I have these new tasty licks to add to the collection:

• Dan Hartman-I Can Dream About You
• Sandstorm (do we really need artist identification?)
• Cheap Trick-Dream Police
• Steve Winwood-Higher Love
• Bruce Springsteen-Born to Run
• Billy Idol-Dancing with Myself
• ABBA-Gold (yes, the album. The whole album)
• George Harrison-Got my mind set on you
• Hall and Oates (need I say more?)
• Loverboy-Working for the weekend
• and more...much more...(like 5 more hours of music more...)
  

Now, these songs don't necessarily reflect the type of music I normally listen to, but when you realize you're going to be running for FIVE HOURS straight, you need some fluff, and some fun. I, for one, am JAZZED to listen to this compilation.

Packet: check. Music: check. Outfit picked out: check. Now what is left: dinner.

So I've been thinking about my "last meal" so to speak all week, and especially all day. I've been so worried about my carb and water intake that everytime I had a pause in thoughts I'd immediately shoot a glass of water. And let me just say the trips to the bathroom have been plentiful and frequent. As a snack I also decided to eat toast with hummus since it's a nice protein/carb mix. But what for dinner...

I decided to make a nice mushroom/red onion/spinach/tomato/pasta/chicken dish, with a side of home-made sweet potato fries:

That plate of fries was for John and I. Hence the large portion.

A close up of the pasta, for those of you who were interested

And let me just say that it was....well, not that great actually. The sweet potato fries were good (although a little burned, but that's my 70 year old oven's fault). The pasta wasn't bad, it just didn't really have much flavor. But hey, I ate, I hydrated, I jammed to the 80s, and now I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for the 5am wake up, breakfast, gear up, 6:30am pick up, and the 7:30am start time. (I think my stomach just flipped into my right lung)

My half marathon time from 2009 was 2 hours 12 min. If I keep that pace (which is 2 min over 10 min miles) I'll get in at 4hours 24min. I don't think that will be happening. My goal is within 5 hours, but really, anytime I get in will be achieving a goal. I just hope there is actual picture evidence this year! (no one brought a camera to my half marathon...not that anyone's counting...)

(for some reason 26.2 miles seems a lot less intimidating compared to 5 hours of running)

Ok, heart, stop pounding. And stomach, get back to your location of residence. I'm planning on TRYING to get to sleep at 10-10:30ish, so...we'll see what happens.

It's time to sign out, because my nerves are starting to come out through my fingertips on the keyboard, so I bid you adieu, and I'll talk to you after I've completed a marathon. Wow.

Runner's Guilt!

I've been meaning to post this since the beginning of this blog, but now that the actual running aspect of the training is winding down, it is time!

Now I'm going to ask you to really stretch here, and remember back. Waay back, to the good old days of 2008. Obama was "Yes We Can"ing all over the country, Tina Fey was playing Sarah Palin, Hollywood ended their 100-day writers strike, Sex and the City premiered a movie (which I saw the first 30 min of the second one yesterday....yeesh. terrible. just terrible.), and Madona turned 50. It was a good year for most, and sandwiched in all these pop culture/political happenings was a new ad campaign. A NEW ad campaign from NEW Balance (clever?).

These came at a time when I was still in college, and my "workout" routine was going to the gym (that I was paying about $42/month) 3 times a month, on average. I had dabbled in running a little--which is to say I ran 2 miles every 5 or 6 days. The first time I saw this commercial, it shot me in my emotions like those SEALs shot Osama Bin Laden in the head (too much?). This overwhemling guilt came over me and then I realized: Runner's Guilt. Once you've been at a point in your life when you're in great shape (it doesn't have to be just running, any kind of athletic accomplishment really), any reminder of that lifestyle can shoot feelings if guilt through you and your sedentary lifestyle.

Without further ado, I give you: the most successful ad campaign to provoke emotion from me:







Snap.

T Minus 1 Week

Well well well, 10 days and no call? I know, I'm ashamed. And especially so close to the race?! So last we talked I had embarked on my morning run and was feeling good. And I still do, I just need to stay out of my head!

Now you finally know, I'm actually a feline. With DYNAMITE green eyes!

So here are the things I have pledged to start doing with t-minus 2 weeks to go for the race, and then the way I have actually handled them.

• I will start doing all my runs in the morning either before work, or when I get up on the weekend to get used to running early. I happened to get up early once this week before work and thought "what the hell" and went for a run. It was only 3 miles. And that was 3 non-morning runs ago.
• NO MORE DRINKING until after the race. I want pure liquids! I was 4 days strong (saturday, sunday, monday, tuesday) and John and I decided to go to one of my beer-specializing restaurants or dinner on Wednesday. They had Short's Bloody Beer on tap (which is SUPER limited release) that I LOVE so what choice did I have?! And since I had one I might as well have another...right!? And then I had an event to go to the next night at our Wine Bar (mmm Cabernet)...and then Friday called for a mixed 6-pack of "fancy beers" followed by the Red Wings game at my friendly neighborhood watering hole (read: cheap food/drink specials during wings games...$5.50 pitchers...I was defenseless). And my last "long run" today (8 miles) called for a celebratory beer, plus it was sunny and warm. But hey, I have a week to "purify" my system! RIGHT?!
• My diet will be immaculate. I will cook more out of my "Athlete's Palate Cookbook" and eat "superfoods" that will help with endurance, oxygen delivery to cells, protein, iron, and the like. Ehhhhhhh. My diet isn't all that bad, I cook well and make good meals, but when I'm out I eat fried everything with a big ol'slab of aioli (read: flavored mayo). I'm not TOO worried about this aspect, but I still have room for improvement.
• I will mentally prepare myself. Work in progress.

So I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty freaked out about actually doing this. I know I can do it, but I'm not going to be "okay" until I cross that finish line. But enough about my shortcommings (HEY-o, I'm 5'1, everything is a shortcoming!), let's get into the nitty gritty.

Saturday, 3pm, 10.5 miles, sunny/hot
So this was going to be my last REAL long run until the race (tapering). I had conquered 17 miles, and I was ready to get to that unreachable 20 miles. If I could hit 20 miles, I knew I could mentally get to 26.2. So my friend Zach (who I ran into here) agreed to come with me for a portion of my run for his long run as well. I was doing 20, he was doing 15, I'd do 5 before we met up, and then quickly knocked out a 15 together (HA quickly knock out 15...). So I went out, feelin good, but snap it was really hot out that day. And when I stopped to think about it, it was really the hottest day I'd run in since last year (in SF the 2 times I ran it was later in the day, so it was warm, but not overpoweringly sunny or particularly hot). And that made it TOUGH. It was only 45 min of running, but I was a little afraid how the next 15 miles were going to go, but HEY I was going to be running with someone.

When I got back Zach was there waiting for me, so I quickly ran inside, grabbed my running belt, and a swig of Gatorade, and we hit the road. He listened to his headphones while I opted to not use mine (which I've been doing more lately. I'm actually surprised at how much I've been enjoying the sans-music...maybe this will influence how I run the race...we shall see). Well right off the bat my face was RED

I was about 10,000 times less glamorous than this and 100 times more red.

I felt ok though. And what's funny is that by mile 3 (with Zach, so mile 8 overall) I started to get my stride and was feeling in the "groove." Quick swig of water here, pop a Shot Blok of energy there, boom, I was ready to dominate this 20. Then we hit the 5.5 mile mark and the heat was getting to Zach. It's ok, I've run 10.5 miles, it's ok if I take a little walk with him, right?! We walked for a bit and when we tried to start back up again his knee had tightened up in a painful way. We were at the furthest part of our loop (we had 4 miles back to my place) and the truth started setting in: we were going to walk the rest of the way home. He kept apologizing for the interruption in the run and told me I could keep going, but the thing was it didn't really bother me at the time (and plus, I wasn't going to leave him. I'd want someone to stay with me if the roles were reversed). We walked the 4 miles back, with the whole thing taking almost 3 hours. I was going to try to run another 6 miles or so when we got back, but I was so tired of being outside, I just came home and slept. I had even purchased new Shot Bloks and 2 Gu packs for the run. I didn't get to try my new running treats (I actually tried a Gu for the first time today for my 8 mile run...AND I DON'T LIKE THEM! It is gross and unsettling, and I won't have another one...unless it's free, then I'll eat it by the free-truck load!).

Paid for: ehhh. Free: Delicious!

As the day went on, I started getting really worried about this missed mileage. This was my last long run to train myself mentally to go through the pain. I know physically I'll be able to do the run, but it's a question of mental preparation at this point. I'm still worried about it to tell you the truth.

(Sidenote that has nothing to do with running: the day after this my sister and I cooked Easter dinner for my parents and John, and we actually did a great job! Homemade Gnocchi, Marsala chicken, roasted Asparagus, brussel sprout/red onion salad, matzo ball soup, and almond coated matzo for dessert. Yes, our jewish roots were coming out in Eater, but technically the Pope did pardon us from the actual crucifixion of Christ, so hey, we're in the clear).

I've had 4, 3 (the morning run!), 6, and 8 mile runs this week and feel good about those distances, but am still worried about the 26.2! I have 2 short runs this week with a 2 mile walk, and then it's racetime! I can't believe I haven't lost any toenails! Although I did have bloody snot after my run today...I literally have no idea where that came from (and it was a shock! It was shockingly gross).

I know I still have a week, but I've been doing a lot of reflecting as the big day gets closer. I'm so proud of myself that I've gotten this far, I actually trained and stuck with it during those AWFUL months of Michigan winter, ran (albeit only twice) during my vacation, forced myself to hit the mileage I needed (for the mostpart), and actually kept up this blog. Although I'm sure I'm my biggest fan, this outlet has really proved to be a great tracking devise for staying accountable. "I can't skip this run, what will I tell the blog!?" I'll try to stay posted more frequently this week, since I won't be spending my night running long distances or going out drinking.

I have 7 days. I can do this.

17 Again!

Well, no, this is technically the first time I've ever run 17 miles (longest run ever!), but I'm just a big fan of Zac Efron.

Who wouldn't want to go to high school with this Adonis?

So all my fears are put to rest (well, not all, not until this $#%@ing marathon is behind me), but I manned up, and ran my first REAL long run since March when I ran with Clarke that 15 miles. I was a little afraid, but that 10 mile run I did last Wednesday really puffed up my ego enough to feel like I could do it. Now I'm at a point where I SHOULD technically be tapering off my distance until the marathon (which is less than 3 weeks away!), but I feel like I need to get one more long run in before I start that. 2 runs longer than 13 miles spaced out over a 2 month period does not a marathon-training make. But enough about that, onto the runs! (WARNING: snot references below)

Sunday, 3pm, 17 miles. WINDY, overcast/sunny mix, chilly
Well holy F I did it (as I had mentioned before). This run was comprised of 2 x 8 miles loops, with an extra mile thrown in the first loop, bringing us to that fun little total of 17 miles. If the amount of miles I ran was an age, I'd be able to drive past midnight with my Driver's License! I suited up with my runner's belt (which I still feel stupid putting on, but my god I really do love that thing and swear by it. Best (almost) $50 spent...the "real" best would be on either food or beer), and put a half pack of Cliff Shot Bloks and a full pack of Jelly Bean Sport Beans and tried to forget I was running for 3 hours. 3 hours. Of running. Oh yeah, and it's still 9.2 miles shorter than the distance I'm training for. Yeah, that's what a sane person should do. AH see how easy it is to slip into negative thinking!? And that was nothing.

So along with my mental hurdles to tackle, it was windy. And I mean WINDY. Which, as an avid snot-rocketer, is not the best condition. Right in the beginning at 1.5 miles I did what I always do: peel back my gloves, ready my fingers around my nose, make sure my headphone cord isn't in the way, and then go to town. Well, when you have a rogue element (hint: WIND) you can't control where your...fluids...land. Now this wind was going so hard and so fast, I didn't even see where it went. It was like it was there...then POOF, nothing. I was so freaked out that it went in my hair or something I stopped, walked back a few steps, and diligently looked around the ground to see if I could spot where it landed. It. Had. Disappeared. I swear. I then tore off my gloves and feverishly felt along my hair, face, pants, shirt...etc for any semblance of snot or bodily fluid. To my dismay (really? I wanted my bare fingers to touch that?) I found nothing. Where that snot landed, we may never know, I still feel that it was somewhere on my person, out of my sight, gleaming like a newly appointed badge for the unwitting passing cars to see and gawk at. "Look at that girl, she has snot all over her pants. hahaha. Let's enjoy the rest of our day NOT running for 3 hours" zoooooom.

So fast forward to the 5 mile mark, where I'm at the furthest part of my loop and turning down a road to complete the second half of the first loop (still with me?). Well, I was feeling fine, good pace, adequate candy-like fuel in me thanks to the handy pouch in my runner's belt, the wind wasn't even getting me down (too much). The I started thinking about the fact that "hey, I'm going to be back here after another 8 miles. Hey street sign, see you in an hour and a half!" And that's when I had to talk myself from an early psych-out. This run wasn't so much physically challenging as it was mentally. After that point every 5 min or so that thought would creep into my head and I literally had to REALLY try to stop those thoughts and put my mind on something else...ANYTHING ELSE.

Besides the wind and snot, the next 4 miles were pretty uneventful.

Fast forward to the end of my first loop. 9 miles down, 8 to go. At least I could stop psyching myself out about the double-loop thing. At this point it was all about that grand prize: 17 miles. I started ascending the Oakland hill for the second time, and up in the distance I saw a man running ahead of me in a red running outfit. I wonder how far he's going? Is he training for the marathon too? Look at those back pockets he has in his shirt! How clever. As I started looking closer, he had the same stride and form as my friend Zach (who had originally signed up for the marathon, and due to workload has cut down to the half marathon).

Side story about Zach and running:
This actually happened about 2 weeks before I started this blog. I may have hinted at the fact that I'm not very balance-and-or-grace gifted, and have had some serious injuries involving falling from running. This is one of those stories. So it's a Wednesday night in Michigan in January, so that means SNOW and it's dark. But we decided to do an easy 4 mile run, the first time we had run together EVER. The run was fun, we talked about people, places, things, the usual, and I almost forgot how cold and miserable my surroundings were since I had great company (man, thinking about running outside in the winter makes me SHUDDER, I know the weather now in April hasn't been ideal--afterall, it DID snow 2 days ago, seriously--but sweet christ I wouldn't want to go back to that time). We were in the last .5 miles of the run going down that hill on Oakland, and we were running next to each other rather than staggered. Well, unfortunately for me I was on the outside. And when it's snowy, you can't always see the curb, and where the sidewalk ends and drops off. Somehow I strayed too close to this edge, and half my foot caught curb, half my foot caught air. 100% of my ankle rolled. 100% of my person fell into the snow...hard. I wish I could have seen it, it was no less than a "comical fall" as in arms flailing, terrified look on the face, complete with a slight cracking sound from my ankle. Zach, of course, was horrified and worried. I jumped up (as people so when they're embarrassed) and just started bumbling "ha HA wow, how about that, let's finish the run, h-ha, man, what a fool I am..blahblahblah." He kept asking if I should run the rest of the way, but I was determined to prove I was fine (I don't know why). By the time we got back to my house and started our walking cool-down, I could feel something wasn't right. I fought through it until he left, then went to a full out limp. OH MY GOD IT HURT SO MUCH. I could barely stand on it. But the thing is, it didn't swell or bruise up. I stayed off it for like 4 days, and then it was fine. But still, yikes.

Anyhoo, after 1/2 mile I caught up to this unknown red running man, and sure enough, it was Zach! I must have scared him half to death with my arm slap coupled with "OHMYGODITHOUGHTTHATWASYOU!" since I had a good 5 minutes of build up trying to catch up with this guy. Turns out he was on a 10 mile run and he had 1 more mile to go. It happened to be in my route, so we ran that mile together. I can't tell you how much that 1 mile changed my feelings. I was a little overwhelmed thinking about doing the same route again, and having that extra mile with him, talking about nothing, took my mind off everything. By the time I dropped him off, I had 5.5 miles left to go. This is do-able.

I got to that same point at the the furthest part of the loop and it just hit me all at once. I. Am. Tired. And. My. Knees. Hurt. Ok, I can push through this, if I can get through this, I can run a marathon (right?). I pushed and pushed until I felt like I was running fumes. I kept checking my watch because I wanted to run at least 2:30 before I let myself walk (that was how long Clarke and I went for our 15 miles). I got to 2:23 and said screw it. I let myself walk for about a minute (maybe less, maybe more, we'll never know). The thing about letting yourself walk, or even being stopped at cross streets is that your body takes this time to tell you "HEY THIS PART OF YOUR BODY HURTS." And my knees were not quiet about their struggle. After pumping myself back up, I ran the rest and finished at 2:57. 17 miles. Booya.

When I finished my run on my ipod/nike program, Lance Armstrong came through my headphones saying "congratulations! This is your longest run yet!" and I don't know if it was how tired/hungry/battered I was, but I almost started crying when I heard that. I could feel a flood of tears rush to my eyes and I just felt so proud of myself. And then I got REALLY excited for the race itself. I am actually going to run it.

Then about 2 minutes later an older man stopped me and said he wanted to give me one of his poems. Now John always gets on me about how I can't not talk to someone like this. I didn't even try to talk to him, I was just too tired to say anything. This man then proceeded to talk to me about god and sinners for at least 6 minutes. He even said these words to me "I know times are changing, and I know that only God can judge you for wearing those tight pants." WHAT?! I was wearing running pants. I kept trying to leave but I didn't have the energy or strength to be polite. Finally I just walked away and said something about my muscles tensing up. I had to fight back tears, I was so upset about this encounter, and I'm sure it had to do with, again, RUNNING FOR 3 HOURS, and just being generally drained. I'm upset because I let this a%^hole get to me and interrupt my post-run euphoric walk. Next time, I'll just pretend my music is up too loud.

And then my knees hurt for 2 days, and I walked a little funny.

Wednesday, 6:30am, 5 miles. Overcast/rainy, chilly
I hate running in the morning. Hate it. But we have been having wine tastings with Michigan Wineries at one of our restaurants every Wednesday for the past few weeks, which I never make it to due to the running. The wine rep (Jenny Parker!) for this week's tasting--who is also training for the marathon--asked me if I'd be able to make it this week since, as I mentioned, I have yet to attend.

I mentioned the running to her, and then of course we went on a training-for-the-marathon-running-tips-tricks-stories route for a while, and she explained how she HAS to run in the mornings, or else it'd never get done. And let me just say, she is like Superwoman! She has so many events going on throughout Kalamazoo all the time involving beer and wine (DREAM JOB), and she's always there 100% and does amazing work. And she's training for the marathon. She is my idol. So I decided I would wake up early this morning, run a quick 5 miles before work, and make it to the tasting. If anything I'll at least complaining rights all day that "I woke up early and ran in crappy weather."

When was I going to bed I didn't really expect myself to go out, I was banking on my alarm going off, and me just setting it for later. But when I went off, it wasn't raining outside, my clothes were all laid out for me, and I was even a little chipper (confession: I think I went to bed at like 10:30 last night). Screw it, I'm running! And I did, and I was lovely (except for overdressing and being WAAY too hot, and being slightly misted by not-quite rain the entire time).

I got home and it was only 7:30am. I had time to leisurely get ready, and even made it in to work 30 min early. I will be at the Wine Tasting. Booya.

Playing Catch Up

Wow, it has been far too long dear friends.

Well I went to San Francisco, and snap was it fun. The weather was perfect, we went to Alcatraz and Napa, ate some amazing food (and drank some tasty drinks) and I even got a few runs in! And by a few I mean 2. Only 2. Over a full week. A month before my marathon. After 2 weeks of being sick and barely running. I know what you're thinking: yikes. (and you're right)

But before I get into that, some pretty pictures from San Francisco! (hope you like food pictures)

There are like 500 pictures, I edited myself for your benefit
(and anyways, this is a running blog, not a Erica-frolicking-about blog)

So the first day I got to San Francisco (well, second day really, Lindsey—my traveling chum—and I got hit with a bout of food poisoning the first day. The culprit: hot dogs from hockey-themed "SlapShotz Cafe" in the Detroit airport) the first thing I noticed were ALL THE RUNNERS EVERYWHERE. Immediately I had runners guilt (with an extra splash of unrealistic Erica expectation). I originally set this trip up in my mind to be my "cheat" week, only doing 3 runs (one of them being a 16 miler). That was before I got STREP and lost 2 weeks of training.

Here's the difficult thing about running while being on vacation: drinking. It's not so easy to do morning runs (to get it out of the way) when you've been drinking the previous night...and when you're terrified of getting lost in a city you've never been in before (and look like you're 14). So morning running is out. After a full day of tourist-ing about town (FULL HOUSE house), I decided to go for a quick 5 mile run. At this point it had been 4 days since my last run, and I was itching to get back on the road.

Saturday: 5 miles. 6pm. Sunny!
I did an easy (geographic-wise) 2.5 mile out and back, so as not to get lost. As soon as I started running I felt great! It was so surreal running in a backdrop like this, and I even had a route that was flat. I ran past AT&T ballpark and along the water. It took me 19 minutes to run to the Bay Bridge and then I ran just past the Ferry Building (which is where the Farmer's Market is held...and where Hog Island Oysters are..mmm), and then turned around and came back. It was a great run and I felt so accomplished (because I was just honestly surprised I actually ran...that took precious time away from being a tourist, or eating...or drinking). Here are the following modes of transportation I saw while on this run:

• Walking
• Running
• Biking
• Roller Blading
• Roller Skating
• Heely-ing
• Rickshaw
• Unicycle (seriously)
• Tandem Biking
• Dog "walking" (no leash necessary)

Sunday: 8 miles. 6:30pm. Still Sunny!
Today is the day I decided against running 16 miles since I didn't want to devote 3 hours of my vacation day to running. If only I knew how much that thinking would seep into the rest of my week. I did the same route, just 4 miles out and back (to about Fisherman's Wharf). There were dogs EVERYWHERE, and not only were there dogs, but none of them had leashes! There were Charles as far as the eye could see: and they were walking themselves. My people, I have seen the future, and it is tethered dog and bark-free! Who knew? The highlight of this run was at about mile 7 I heard a little boy yelling "run! run! run!" in the most adorable way imaginable. So I smiled over at him and waved. He looked starstruck. I felt like ZZ Top (you know..famous people?). But what really struck me was how easy this run was. I had barely run in weeks, and 8 miles was nothing. Not only that, but it went by really quickly! Mostlikely because I was running along the coast of San Francisco...a little more interesting scenery than Kalamazoo, Michigan. But it really made me realize I need to change up my routes. I may like knowing exactly where all my mile markers are, but maybe it's not the best way for me to run and train long distances? Only time will tell...

And then I just didn't run at all for the rest of the trip. F.

I got back and spent a full day sleeping and watching tv (obviously) and then was ready to hit the road the 2 days I had left before I had to go back to work.

Saturday: 8 miles (kind of). 2pm. Sunny!
So I wanted to get 16 miles in today. That didn't happen. I got to my 1.5 mile mark and had to walk for about 4 minutes. I ran another .5 mile, and then walked 6 minutes. What. Is. Going. On. I had two really great runs on vacation....oh yeah, that was a full week ago. And I've done no training since then. I walked/ran the 8 mile route (I was planning on doing this route 2 times...*sigh*...wishful thinking). I tried to stay positive during the 1.5 hours it took me to get through the route, but I was starting to get nervous. The marathon is a month away. I can't even run 2 straight miles.

Sunday: 8 miles (barely). 1pm. 80 DEGREES!
Oh snap was it sunny outside!!! I think I got more of a tan (read: freckles) during this "run" than I did in my entire week in California. And that was the highlight of my run, getting bronzed like a greek sun goddess (if you have ever seen me in real life you would realize the enormity of that joke). I set out for that unattainable 16 miles again, and did worse than the day before. It took me 20 more minutes this time to get through the 8 miles of walking/running. If only you could hear the negative and awful things I was thinking in my head. I didn't even attempt to run the last 1.5 miles. It was the king of all "Walk of Shame"s. How am I ever going to be ready for a marathon? Why did I let myself waste all my months of training when I'm so close? IT'S BEEN A MONTH SINCE I DID A LONG RUN! But when I break down my non-runnings, they're not terrible reasons. I didn't actively try not to run. I was sick, and then I was on (a much needed) vacation. It's just really hard to swallow that at a month until the race, I physically can't do the runs I need to be doing.

Monday: 5 miles. 6pm. Overcast.
I was not encouraged to go out on this run, but I got John to come on the road with me for an "easy" 4 miles. We set out and right off the bat he was way ahead of me. I felt awful, but kept pushing myself to keep going. Thoughts of "I've been training for months and he never does anything and he's doing better than I am" kept seeping into my head, and making me not only frustrated, but sad. Then around 1.5 miles I started thinking about what if I didn't run the marathon. What if I downgraded to the half marathon? After months of talking (and blogging) about my EVERYTHING having to do with running, I would let everyone down and not get close to my goal. I'd never be able to run in the first ever Kalamazoo Marathon. I could literally feel my eyes start to moisten, and I'd have to snap out of it...only to see John 20 feet ahead of me...slowing down every once in the while for me to catch up to him. We got to the 2 mile mark and John said "let's go to Whites Road" (which would be adding a mile onto our run, making it 5 miles). I wanted to kill him. After acting like a child we ran out to Whites, turned around, and started back. Around mile 3 I started to get a wind in me. I picked up my pace, and started feeling better. By mile 4 I was 1/2 a step in front of John. Stupid John making me run a mile more than I wanted to, making me feel better about myself. Stupid. I left the run feeling a *little* encouraged. Just a little.

Wednesday: 10 miles. 5pm. Sunny!
At work we've recently put "Good Form Dining" menus in all of our restaurants, so I've been talking Marathon alllllll day. Needless to say this made me a bit "pumped" for a run, y'know, to see if I still suck. Well long story short, I'M BACK. I tricked John into running the first 6 miles with me (it was officially the longest he's ever run. I think he NEEDS to run the half marathon if he can run 5 and 6 miles back to back with no training....jerk. His calves are killing him, so that makes me feel a little better, I suppose). After I dropped him off I set out for my last 4 miles. I decided against the iPod for the remaining distance...which I NEVER do. It was so nice out, and I felt so great from that first 6 miles I thought it was too perfect to change. I surprised myself with drifting off into my thoughts, and then realizing how fast I was going. I didn't want to overthink it so I could keep this surprising pace, so I drifted off again. What am I going to wear on the day of the race? Did I just step in dog poop or my own snot? Is that frozen pizza I got from Meijer going to be good? Which Girl Scout Cookie box do I get into first: Thin Mints or Samoas? Am I really going this fast? It was the first time since my vacation I was actually excited about running. I got back and my legs were a bit fatigued but I didn't feel as tired as I thought I was going to. I can't wait for this weekend when I try 17 miles. I know I can do it.

On a slightly different note, I think my middle toenail on my right foot is in the process of falling off (it's already getting pretty black). My feet are really gross.

It's crunchtime people. Less than a month!

SF

I'm in San Francisco, and it is SO much warmer than Michigan, oh snap.

I have yet to go on a run, but I'm planning on going out later today. Tomorrow my 16 mile run-to-the-bridge-and-back, so I'm excited to see more of the city...but not the actual running aspect. That's 3 hours I could be spending shopping, or eating (or napping...old habits die hard).

Stay tuned for better SF stories (and pictures...oh, and I'm going to the "Full House" house today, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited out of my mind)

Atrophy?

Well, from the brink of death, to the top of the cough-filled mountain, I have experienced the depths of Strep Throat. Once I was starting to feel like a human being again, I couldn't shake the residual coughing from the birthday surprise strep throat (which I still have, I sound like I've been smoking for 80 years). And from that coughing came a bruised rib on my right side. When you haven't run for over a week and you have just over a month before a marathon that you're already feeling shaky about running....having a bruised rib doesn't exactly instill confidence in hitting that road again. Needless to say...I. Freaked. Out. Thursday I thought I was ready to get back on the road...slowly and easy, but I couldn't stop coughing and my rib was KILLING me. So then the guilt set in and all I could do was think about how far behind this sickness fiasco has set me back. I'm leaving for San Francisco on Thursday (!!!!!) and had originally budgeted my runs so I could skip the long run that week, and get by with 3 runs during my vacation...but now that I took 8 days off, I don't think I can afford to cut any more corners. Again, I may just be being dramatic (say-whaa), but as I said before, I've spent so much time over the past few months training, I'd hate for any of it to be wasted.

With that being said, let's see how I did when I got back on the road:

Friday, 7pm, 3 miles
It is SO nice having the sun out until 8:30. I don't have to rush to go on my run after work in order to catch the light. And I've completely acclimated myself to running during the day again (I can never go back into the dark running!!! Well, at least until next year when there's no choice..of course). Well, I was actually EXCITED to run. It had been over a week, and wanted to see how much atrophy my muscles had suffered (see....dramatic). I was also NERVOUS to run because of my bruised rib, I didn't want to aggravate it and set back my training even further. Well regardless of how I was feeling, I hit the road, knowing I was going to run 3 miles. I started out on my normal route, with the 1/3 mile uphill. Yikes. It. Was. HARD.

When I got to the top of the hill I had to stop, cough my brains out, snot rocket about 60000 times, and then walk for a good 3 minutes until I could catch my breath. This was not encouraging. I started running again, and kept telling myself "c'mon, this is only 3 miles. You ran 15 miles 2 weeks ago, this is nothing" and that kept me going until 1.5miles, when I had to stop/cough/walk/snot rocket again. I made it back home, completing the 3 miles, and having to walk 3 times. WALK 3 TIMES FOR 3 MILES?! I was not encouraged.

Saturday, 2pm, 5 miles
When I knew I could run on Friday (as in it didn't hurt my rib...well, only when I had to take my cough breaks) I set the goal of 3miles, 5miles, 8miles for the weekend. So I started my Saturday knowing that I was going to run 5 miles. I figured I was just warming up yesterday, so this 5 miles would be no biggie, and I'd be back on track! Well this 5 mile run was about the same thing as the 3mile run, just with an added 2 miles. I walked about 4 times (for multiple minutes each time), and thought I was going to have a hernia from coughing. Again, not encouraged.

Sunday, 3pm, 8 miles
BOOYA I'm back. I was TERRIFIED of this run after my 2...less-than-successful previous runs, but I knew I had to push myself to do at least 8 miles. I got to the top of the hill in the beginning (where I had to walk IMMEDIATELY) and I flew right past it. I was feeling good (OH also, I should mention I broke out my running belt. This makes it time #2 of wearing it, and I'll be a son-of-a-bitch but I love that thing! I feel kind of stupid wearing it, but it makes things SO convenient and easy).

Around 3 mile mark I wasn't getting cocky, since I was still nervous from my past 2 runs. I was taking it easy, but my body kept going faster. I realized I was almost at the halfway point, and I was feeling good...GREAT even. I popped a goo block (orange flavored...and that statement sounds kind of obscene), and kept making my way through the 8 mile run. When I reached mile 5 I was flying. I was SO happy I was feeling good I knew I could push it until the end, which I did. I also accidentally snot rocketed all over my face. Like...ALL over it. And I didn't want to soil my awesome running gloves, so I took them off EXPOSING MY OWN FLESH to wipe myself off myself. It was really gross, and I think it got in my eye (and by think I mean I'm positive it got in my eye, and possibly my hair).

I'm back (I think) but I wonder if I should have pushed myself further, and hit the 16 mile mark I should have last weekend (and this weekend too...that's 2 long runs I've missed). I thought I might try it for today (monday) but as I was driving home from work at 5:30, I realized that's a 3 hr(ish) commitment, and I didn't want to run from 6pm-9pm tonight (I know, call me crazy). So I figured I'd do the same thing as yesterday, 8 miles. It's enough distance where it's substantial, but still considered a "short" run (wow, never thought I'd be at a point where 8 miles is a short run...go team?).

Well I strapped on my running belt and about 7 minutes into my run I had to stop and hobble back home because my left Achilles was KILLING me. This has been happening to me on and off over the past few weeks, but usually I can just run through it and it stops hurting. It's almost like a tendon or nerve gets off track, and if I keep moving it eventually gets back in the right spot and stops hurting. Well it was not the case during my 7 minute run. I came home and iced it immediately.

I'm not too discouraged (believe it or not) by this. I'm just taking this as a sign that I had 8 days off, pushed myself 3 days in a row, and I shouldn't push too hard...you know, on account of all the atrophy to my muscles.

Also, while starting to pack for SF (I know, I'm packing DAYS in advance) I was watching The Critic episode where Jay runs the NY Marathon. It. Was. Awesome. (I love that show)

Strepped of my Medals

Forgive me Father, for it has been 8 days since my last blog entry. DISASTER HAS STRUCK! NOT only did I get Strep Throat, but I got Strep Throat on my Birthday. 24, I'm not too fond of you yet.

So not only did this COMPLETELY ruin my Birthday (I didn't get any type of celebration, I couldn't think or even eat. Over the entire weekend I took in MAYBE 500 calories worth of food because all the coughing made my too nauseous to eat), but this also has pushed me back 1 long run (16 miles) and 1 short run (4 miles). I'm due for an 8 mile run tomorrow, but I seriously doubt I'll be able to muster the strength. I had to take Monday off of work (which was a stretch since I'm up to my eyes in stuff to get done) and I had to leave after the morning today since I literally couldn't stop coughing (although I kept reassuring everyone I was no longer contagious).

This sickness literally derailed my entire life. Missing my own birthday was one thing (don't let me play it down, I'm so sad I missed my birthday, but John did do a great job trying to make it up to me..like giving me my presents of A NEW CAMERA, RUNNING SOCKS, and AN ARMBAND IPOD HOLDER THINGY), but now I'm terrified this sickness is going to get in the way of my training. I am going on vacation in just over a week, and I tweaked my training schedule to allow for possible "missed" runs (aka too drunk/lazy/shopping/hungover), but the fact that the vacation is so close to this week of sick terribleness it's like a big 3 week hole in my training, with about a month to go until the marathon. I've worked too hard not to reach my goal, but I really am worried. And to add insult to injury, the weather has taken a harrowing turn for the worse. All week it's supposed to be 40 or under...and rainy. You're right, that does sound like great weather for someone whose immune system has been under attack to go run around for a few hours in.

Interjection: For those who have never had strep throat (or haven't had it in a while) this is what it looks like

No no no, that's a Red Pepper, not a throat (it was shocking, wasn't it), but it looks pretty close. Your tonsils get all inflamed and white-spotted. It starts with a simple cough (I thought it was from "yell-talking" at The Union on St. Patrick's Day which I was NOT even drunk for), then the rest of your body starts to feel achy (this set in as someone in my office mentioned "you know, Strep throat is going around Kalamazoo") and then your head feels like your brain is trying to escape your skull through your temples. And then it's all downhill from there. I finally went to the doctor ON MY BIRTHDAY where I spent 3.5 hours in a waiting room, later to find out I had a temperature of 102. Yikes. Ah, this was the day I was supposed to run 16 miles.

Yeah, this guy knows what's up

Anyhoo, I was on the brink of death but now I'm back to...well, still subpar, but I can sit upright, and type coherent sentences, so...Happy Birthday to me?

We'll see how the rest of this week goes, but I'm extremely unnerved by this whole thing (obviously). Everyone keeps telling me not to worry too much about it, and I'm sure they're right (or are they!?!!), but I can't help it, I worry about everything.

Quick story about one of my runs last week: John went on a 4 mile run with me on St. Patrick's Day and at around mile 1 we saw a middle aged—scruffy and haggard—looking man wearing a tight, bright pink hoodie, passed out, FACE DOWN in a lawn that belonged to a house full of college kids. Middle Aged. Pink Hoodie. Face Dirt. Ouch. At least that man made the most of this holiday, right?! I bet he doesn't have Strep Throat right now. I bet he's the picture of health, AND he made his 16 mile run. Pshht, he would.

Getting Riled Up

I HAD AN EXCITING WEEKEND running wise. Shopping spree, long distances, and a fun surprise. This may need 2 posts. We'll see where my stream-of-consciousness takes me!

Friday night, I got out of work and was a mixture of emotions to hit the store for some new duds. I was apprehensive about the trip because I'm trying REEALLY hard not to spend any extra money because of my trip to San Fransisco (!!) in the beginning of April, and as I've mentioned before, the life of a runner is not peppered with cheap accessories. But on the other hand, I do enjoy shopping, and anything that could give me a hint of relief when it comes to my foot blisters. A tornado of emotions, if you will.

After meeting up with some fellow full and half marathon trainees (with some "normy" friends mixed in) we went to Gazelle to load up on shoes and check out the newest socks with the trained eye of our friend Clarke (hi Clarke!), who also happens to work there. I loaded up my camera, my old shoes, and those heat-in-the-oven insoles I've never used into my purse, and frankly looked crazy walking around downtown with that stuff spilling out. I also hoped no one thought I was trying to steal. First thing's first, shoe time.

A girl named Chelsey helped me in the shoe department. I explained my history with foot blisters (fascinating, I'm sure), told her about how I used to pronate outward (I can never remember the correct term), and how far along with my training I was. I then showed her my old shoes like I was pulling out a well crafted portfolio. The worn treading on my old shoes was like an expertly crafted cover letter for a potential employer. Until she had me walk for her, and she told me I pronated THE NORMAL WAY! WHaaaa? And when I looked at the worn treading on my old shoes....by god she was right! Apparently my feet have lying to me for a few years...how bout it! So on to the shoe selection:

Nikes: Similar to the ones I have now, but these are a FULL size larger than my normal shoe (bringing it up to a 7.5). I've always gone by the rule of 1/2, but apparently the rule of 1 full size works better (less black toenails...and bloody socks).

Look at that action shot of my tying the laces! Why does my hand look veiny?

It came down to the Nikes (left) and some Asics (right). The Asics felt like clouds...really. They were super fluffy. But I was used to the feel of the Nikes since it was similar to what I've been wearing for over 2 years. What to do...what to do...

Buy the Nikes!!! Here is the right shoe of my new pair! At 7.5, these are officially the biggest shoes I've ever owned.

Aaaand shoe shopping done. But it didn't end there.

BELT TIME. I was trying all I could not to buy one of those belts. Honestly, who wants to run (an activity where you're bouncing up and down, and getting SWEATY) with weight and extra stuff around your person. But after my past few long runs, I realized I needed to buy one. And everyone who is training for this marathon only sings their praises. So I suck it up...and went belting.

It looks so great with my coat! I can take it out to the bar and stay hydrated all night. Or smuggle booze out. Either way, win-win?

I chose the belt in this picture because it was the highest quality (according to Clarke...he sure knew a lot about expensive running belts...and socks...a lot of information about socks) and it was only 2 bottles v 4 bottles. I'm a relatively small person, I think 2 bottles will be sufficient, complete with kangaroo pouch in front.

Lastly, a quick trip to the "energy-snack" aisle, and we were good to go.

So many colors!

I went with the Cliff Shot Bloks

mmmm Orange!

And Jelly Belly Sport Beans (I used to make fun of this product because really, Jelly Bellies?! for running)

oooo Berry!

So new gear in hand, I headed to the cash register and Carrie rang me up.

I had a good shot of both our faces, but I had a wild and crazy smile, so you get to see the (very staged) hand off of goods.

Fast forward to Sunday, the day of the 15 mile run. (deep breath). Clarke offered to run with me (the guy with the belt and sock knowledge), and I was REALLY apprehensive to accept because

1. He is MUCH faster than I am (for starters he's more than a foot taller than me)
2. He's further in his distances than I am
3. The last time I ran with someone I fell and sprained my ankle and had to stay off it for like 3 days (it's kind of a funny story, I have enough material for an entire "falling and hurting myself seriously" blog entry)
4. I didn't know if I could honestly run the full 15 miles, the longest I've ever run was the half marathon (13.1 miles) 2 years ago.
5. Any excuse not to run

But I said yes. I'm sure I could use the motivation.

Sunday, 15 miles, warm-chilly, clear clear sidewalks
I got ready to "Sharp Dressed Man" while putting on all my new duds (which I got a little too riled up doing, that guitar riff...you just can't beat that) and then strapped on my belt. I felt like a tool. I put water in it and then kept swishing my hips furiously, asking John if he could hear the water (I assume I'm a handful). Clarke showed up and he too was wearing a belt (the 4 bottle version...he's bigger than I am). We both had belts and were about to run for over 2 hours together. I could hear it now "hey belt buddies!! Nice belts!" But regardless (not irregardless), we hit the road. We were doing 2 loops: 8 and 7 miles.

We started out, and after the first 3 minutes I thought there was no way I was going to keep up with him the entire time. I knew he had scaled his pace waay back for me, so I didn't want to say anything. I was breathing harder than I normally do, and I kept trying to hide it from him (runner's ettiquette?). But by mile 4, I didn't even notice we were running faster than my pace. And now that I think about it, hey, we were at mile 4 already! That NEVER happens during my solitary runs. We even talked the entire time (in the beginning I tried to time my sentences with my gasping breath so I sounded NOT out of shape and ridiculous). At 45 minutes, I popped out my Orange flavored Shot Bloks, and Clarke and I partook in some gooey energy blasting. It was STICKY. I felt like a dog with a mouth full of peanut butter. But I could easily wash it down with my handy-dandy water bottles strapped to my belt! Huzzah!

We were closing in on the end of our first 8 mile loop, and Clarke dodged death. We were running down a "busy" street in downtown Kalamazoo, and as we ran past an alleyway, a car ZOOMED out. My heart burst into 1000 pieces with fright, and Clarke jumped up into an air-born Hiesmen pose to avoid broken legs and shattered sockets (he was closer to the car). We had side-stepped death, but like the great Devin Sawa before us, we must now cheat death on a daily basis.

Unlike this franchise, we'll only bore you with one installment

But seriously, it was really close. Stupid alleyway-drivers.

Other highlights of the run:

• We saw a guy "tight rope walking" down loooong stair railings and debated about what to do if we saw him fall
• Had an actual Charles sighting (we could tell because as we passed, he didn't even flinch)
• Debated whether or not snot was just brain run off (in that case, we're both REALLY smart)
• Discussed all the times in life where your body feels the need to throw up. We came up with a lot of different scenarios
  

I did hit a serious lull around mile 11. I. Felt. Dead. I wanted to walk (or stop) SO badly. I kept going over all the different ways I could bring up "hey, mind if I walk for a while" or "why don't you keep going, I'll catch up with you...at the bar tomorrow" but I never grew the balls to say it, and I'm glad I didn't. A mere mile later I felt great. Honestly. It was crazy, I got a wind like I've never felt, and knew I had the rest of this run in the bag. My ankles and knees WERE KILLING ME but everything else felt great. In the last mile we had to stop at 2 lights, and it isn't until you stop you really notice where your body is really feeling it. Yikes. I felt like I needed oil in my joints.

I ended at the 15 mile mark and Clarke went on for another 5 miles (using mathematics, that beings the total to...5+15....20!). This is the longest distance I've ever run in my life, and I only stopped for maybe a combined 75 seconds due to traffic lights. Wow. And another thing I WILL EAT MY WORDS!!! I love my running belt. My god do I love that thing. I told Clarke at the end of the run I felt cool with it since it's like a runner's badge or status "oh hey, look at that runner WITHOUT the belt, he must be running sub 10 miles....wuss."

My big surprise: NO BLISTERS!!! I didn't even put any type of bandage on my foot! The ENTIRE run happened, and my foot stayed intact. Thank you new shoes (and speaking of blisters, remember those pictures I took of my gross foot and never posted...well I accidentally came upon them today and THE ARE SO GROSS and there are so many of them! Why, why did I spend so much time and effort toward those pictures?). Hopefully this is the end of my nonstop complaining of blisters!

Well here I am the next day, my knees are still a little rickety, and my left Achilles hurts a little (ICE TIME), and I had to wear the biggest work shoes I could find because my feet were a little swollen (not painful though), but it was tight fit into my "normy" shoes. Booya.

I also made the Bison meatloaf and it was TASTY. Although I used half bison ($8/lb?!) and half pork ($3/lb!!) since Bison is SO lean (read: dry). My oven is terrible, so it took like 2 hours instead of 45 minutes, which for someone who spent 2.5 hours running (roughly 1500 calories burned) is NOT a great thing. I. Was. Starving. I was on the verge of nauseous hunger (and by on the verge I mean entered into). It was tasty and even though the pork mostlikely negated the benefits of the bison, who doesn't love a good meatloaf?!

Looks like I did it all in one post! I'm sure you need a Gatorade after all the time you've spent reading this (ha ha...get it? Fueling up in a runner's type of way...ha..ha?)

Pinching Pennies

I've made the decision. Tomorrow is the day. New shoes and running belt. As much as the idea of having a belt full of nourishment bouncing around for hours on my person isn't appealing, I think it needs to happen. And being the penny pinching person I am (I'm jewish, it's just in my blood) this most likely means I'll continue long running after the race since I invested money that would have gone to some type of beer and/or beer related issues. This is some serious business. The current shoes I have I got at the Nike outlet store in Michigan City which I feel was a mistake. They were the same shoes I had been running in for the past year, but they didn't have the size I needed...they were also on sale for about $65 less than I originally paid, so I got the 1/2 size smaller (because $65?! HOW could I ever pass that up??). I don't want to attribute ALL of my blister problems on this, but you know what, I'm sure it's not helping. But hey, a new leaf tomorrow where I'll go to Gazelle and scare some poor salesperson with my strange questions and gross hamburgery feet.

One last thing before I get into my runs. I've been giving the marathon a lot of thought this week professionally and I want to get my chefs/restaurants more involved in Marathonmania. I spent a good portion of the morning making an "at a glance" runner's nutrition guide to get the creative juices flowing and I. Learned. Who knew Bison meat was a great source of protein AND LEAN?! Beet juice can help you build your endurance by drinking it (I know this will be a product I buy, try once, forget about it, and throw out 5 months later when I see it in the back of my fridge BUT I'M STILL GOING TO BUY IT NEXT TIME I'M AT THE STORE). Eggs, uh hello, protein! And one of the biggest mistakes runners make is not having enough protein intake on a daily basis. Food, who knew?! So my goal for this weekend is to make a Bison Meatloaf with some homemade Gnocchi (potatoes are also a great source of carbohydrates with vitamins and whatnot). I may or may not be stealing a Bison meatloaf recipe from one of my restaurants (hint: I am). If I am successful, you'll get to hear all about it. If I'm not, I'll say I opted not to make it. Ahhh the wonder of the internet and it's capacity to aide in lying.

Wednesday, 4 miles, 4pm, rainy-warm (HUMID), sidewalks clear
I've had a BUSY week. I'm truly surprised and proud of myself that I actually made the time to get this run in. I had meetings every 1-2 hours from 8am-3ish. I had a "socializy" meeting at 6pm. I don't wake up any earlier than I need to, so I wasn't going to get up and run/shower before 8. I RUSHED and got home around 4:30 and was on the road by 4:43. 4 miles. Boom. Now in my quickness to get ready for this run, I grossly overdressed. It was rainy outside, and even though it wasn't very cold (at all) there was still a chill that stuck to me from the walk to my house from my car. My heat was also still in "cold" mode (from 9am-5pm the heat drops..save them $$$). I wore both my fleece headband and super cool neon orange running gloves. At about minute 3 I came to the sobering realization of my mistake. And yes, I am definitely one of those people who's faces get RED. Very red. The culmination of my run came in the last 1/2 mile. The route I take for (basically) every distance starts at the bottom of a 1/3 mile hill, so I start by going up it, and end with a nice downhill (I'm a genius). When I start the descent no matter how tired I am or how many miles I've put in, I always get a last "oomph" and sail down. Well I was about to batten down the hatches and raise the sails (?) when I saw a young gentleman making his way up the same hill...he was also grossly overdressed. It was like looking into a mirror—a mirror that changed stride, gender, and form. He looked up at me, cheeks ablaze, sweat glistening beneath his headband. I looked down at him, with my fiery hue, and we locked eyes. We both knew. We gave each other an understanding headnod, and as quickly as we were connected, we passed each other, much likes the sands of time. These truly are the days of our lives.

Brace yourselves: I HAVE NEWS. Now as you all may know I'm a big fan of the Smartwool sock (which I KNOW I still need to go into more detail, but perhaps an all sock post is in order)(my GOD does that sound boring), but I forgot about my first love. We've been together since high school, and I had all but cast him aside as I frolicked the streets with Mr. Smartwool. Wrightsock, I'm truly sorry. When I was getting ready for this run I was low on what you may call "clean clothes" and all my smartwool socks were dirty (some even 2 time use dirty...don't judge). I dug around my sock drawer HOPING I could find a stray Smartwool somewhere, but alas, nothing. I saw a pair of wrightsocks catching my eye and I just thought "what the hell." Well, really I thought "YOU HAVE NO TIME! GO GO GO GO!" So I put them on—sans bandages—and worried endlessly as I was running. I got to the first mile and realized I had no pain (awesome). I got to the 2nd mile and still nothing (holy crap). 3rd mile I was soaring in the clouds with happiness, but still cautious because I knew if I thought nothing would happen, it would definitely start hurting. I am happy to say I finished my run, all 4 miles IN WET WEATHER, with nary a hint of a blister. This is the first time I've experienced this in months. I was so hung up on the SW (Smartwools, this is just easier and I'm sick of the word already) because last year when I was "training" for the half marathon (I did the 5k, around March I decided I'd rather causally run then keep training. I'm a real go-getter), I had my same blister problem, and after a trip to Gazelle, I was prescribed SWs, and they definitely did the trick.

So how do I proceed? SWs? WSs (wrightsocks....get it?)? A new expensive type of sock I don't know about?! I'm just getting so frustrated with my blisters, and every week all I think about is my long run, and whether or not I'm going to be in pain. Let's hope some new shoes cure my woes...or at least minimize them?

Thursday, 6 miles, 5pm, light rain/snow, chilly, sidewalks clear
I don't want to get ahead of myself, but I may have to stop giving the sidewalk updates because SPRING IS IN MY SIGHTS. But I've learned no smart Michigan resident ever EVER banks on any type of nice weather in March. (but still...exciting!). I had ALMOST as much blister success during this run as yesterday's run, but around mile 4 I could start to feel it a little. I ended the run with minor pain, but blister nonetheless.

There wasn't really too much to this run honestly. I mentioned this before, but it's really nice to be able to knock out a 6 mile run in the middle of the week like it's nothing. It was just a few months ago when I had to pump myself up for a LONG 6 mile run for the week. Something that did stand out is while out, I noticed it's fashion season for the runners apparently? The weather is starting to warm up, and I think everyone is just ready to wear their new duds. But it's all neon and fluorescent. Oranges and yellows that hurt the corneas, strange greens that jump out. It certainly was eye catching.

On a different note, I came across 2 fun running blogs that may be of some interest:

• Confessions of a Drive Thru Runner Think of it as "Super Size Me" + Training for a Marathon. Actually, that is EXACTLY what it is!
  

• Borgess Run Camp This is the run camp in town that I'm not participating in because my love of sleep...and solitude? Anyhoo, it's fun, funny, and informative (and there's less talk of blood, poop, and blisters)
  

Note to Self

Do not snot rocket while in a non-running capacity. It is not socially acceptable. Even in the parking lot of the gym.

I Don't Wanna Wait, For Our Lives to be Over

So I'm feeling a bit torn at this point. I've been sticking to my training schedule, hitting all the long runs I need to—and even throwing in some weight training in there, you know, to keep these shredded muscles of mine glistening—but I don't feel like I'm at the place I should be. A lot of Kalamazoo has Marathon-Fever, and it's just fun to swap stories, run distances, and (for me) complaints. Apparently most people are all on the same training schedule where they've all run at least 2 15 mile runs already, and here I am, at 12. Once. I know I should be up to 26.2 miles by the time I get to the actual race, my training is gradual and never steps back. This other training schedule goes like 12, 15, 13, 16, blah, blah, blah (so it goes long, steps it back, then goes forward again...mine just goes forward, but in small increments). I know I made the decision not to run with anyone, but I can't help but be worried that all this running I'm doing won't pay off in the end, lord knows I don't live for running. Think of all those wasted hours that could have been spent napping or watching tv! (at this point I think I spend about 4.5 hours a week running, that's 5 Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations...without commercials).

Sunday, 12 miles, windy, 1pm, sidewalks mostly clear or slushy
I took 3 days off from running after my last run which yielded awful blister results. My foot was so painful I opted not to go to the grocery store that night because it literally hurt to just have a shoe on the skin. I had to carefully choose my work clothes too since I probably would have blacked out if I tried wearing high heels (I'm 5'1, so most of my pants I need high shoes or else it looks like I'm melting into the ground). I knew I wasn't going to run Thursday (the day right after the run), and Friday I tried talking myself into it, but they were still to painful. Saturday I was in Indiana where I was literally snowing sideways, so I opted for Sunday for my long run. My foot started itching Saturday night, so HEY at least it was healing...right?

I'm trying to stop depending on John to feed me my sustenance during my long runs (oh, and I wasn't interrupting "River Monsters" last week, it was "Extreme Boats"), so we took a trip to the store (Big Lots) to see what type of running-energy-bar-type-situation we could find. I grabbed 2 Luna bars (conveniently priced at 0.70 each) and some Garotaide (and a 20 pack of toilet paper because wow those prices are low). I recently read an article about how it doesn't matter a TON what you're taking in during your long runs, but carbohydrates are important, and try to eat about every 45 minutes (in this article a woman said she took a handful of snickers minis with her and ate one every 45 min..something about that just doesn't feel right to me). I opted for the most protein, less sugar combination I could find (energy-power-running-bar-at-big-lots-wise). I have a mini pocket in my running pants that is for your keys and/or knick nacks (read: pennies and other coins you find on the road while running), so I figured I could pop my Luna bar in it. I also tuck my iPod into my waistband because I really don't like those arm bands. So after I pull my shirt down over my pants, I have 2 strange vertical lumps in my midsection. Not only did it look weird, it felt weird. It didn't help that with every step I took the wrapper to the Luna bar crinkled ever so slightly.

Regardless of my...accessories, I hit the road excited for my 12 mile run (I hadn't run in 3 days, and John and I mapped out this path online, then drove it before I set out to see how the sidewalks where...seriously, I have to scope out the sidewalks). I was about 25 minutes into my run and I felt great. I wasn't going too fast and knew I had quite some distance ahead of me. I kept checking the time because I was so excited to try eating during my run. I finally got to 45 min and I cracked open that bad boy. Well the chocolate outside layer that was closest to my body had melted a little (oh wow really Erica? go figure), but I wasn't too worried. I took 2 small bites, and slowed down so I could chew and get it all down. You know what happens when you've been running for 45 min? You get thirsty, and when you're thirsty, often times your mouth gets dry. Well eating a chocolate-peanut butter Luna bar in this state doesn't really help your thirst issue. I worked my tongue around my mouth enough to get the saliva going and finally got all the 2 bites swallowed. I won't lie here, I felt really cool being able to eat my "power" bar and then continue running. I can't really tell you if those bites helped my energy level or not, because all I could think of was that dry chocolate/peanut taste in my mouth, and how I wished it was replaced with that of water.

I hit 1hr, my foot starts to hurt in my blister spot. Awesome. I decide to walk a few times (about 45sec each) through an uneven terrain since I can feel my shoe slide around and irritate my blister(s). I'm at 1hr 30min (time for my next eating stint) and my mouth is dRRrrrry! I still decided to eat since I was TIRED and took any excuse to walk. I ate the same 2 little bites, and felt like I was going to cough talcum powder. I had this weird powdery/thick gooey feeling in my mouth, and thought "well, not having liquid on this little jaunt wasn't the best idea...don't you think?"

Funny sighting interjection: Crunchy Sighting. He wasn't barking his head off at me, but he did have his head HANGING out the car window while his master was driving down the street. Now what made him an undeniable Crunchy was that he was chomping furiously at the wind that rushed over his golden main as they zoomed past. It. Was. Adorable.

I started running again and knew street-wise where I still had to run, but I wasn't sure how far it was because I wasn't paying enough attention during our drive-through, so this didn't aide my tired self in motivation. I was on a long stretch and suddenly realized how much my knees had been hurting me for the past few miles. I was thirsty, my foot blister was KILLING me, and my knees felt like they had been ground to a pulp. It was also cold outside. I. Wanted. To. Quit. I got to the end of the stretch and realized where I was. I had to turn to the right at the end of the street and do an out-and-back stretch to make up 2 miles and then it was done. I also knew that I could turn to the left and have less than 1/4 mile and be done. Over the course of 3 minutes I went back and forth between "you deserve to stop, you're only making your injuries worse, YOU'RE DEHYDRATING YOURSELF! YOU'RE KILLING ERICA!" and "no! you need to get that 12 miles in! everyone else is at 15, you can't afford to be further behind." I could see the end of the street getting closer and closer, and finally I knew what I had to do. I finally thought to myself "I know you're tired, but you're so close! You can do this. This is just a minor hiccup on the way to Marathon" and so I turned to the right. I was so proud of myself, and that's basically what kept me going for the next mile. I stopped and walked for about 5 minutes because I thought my knees were going to explode, but then finished the last 1/2 mile strong. I did it, but I don't know why it was so hard.

I was listening to a podcast (and by podcast I mean 2003 recording of Loveline with Dr. Drew and Adam Carolla) centered around Dawson's Creek (remember that show?!). So my 12 mile run will forever been reminiscent of being down at the 'Creek.

Monday, 2.5 miles, chilly, sidewalks clear
I really went back and forth whether or not to run tonight since I had just done my long run yesterday, and my knees were still really painful. Then I thought about how busy the rest of my week is going to be, and how this was my only free night for a couple days (aka fitting in a run will be difficult). I went out aiming for an easy 3 miles, but I got a little over a mile and my foot started hurting, so I turned around and came back. It was long enough to get my heart rate up and start a little bit of a sweat, so there's no shame in my little effort, I think.

I'm really torn about what to do with my ever-worsening arch blisters, because no one really knows what to do in the arch (since NO ONE gets blisters there). When I trained for my half marathon they just kind of went away after a few months and I just developed callouses. This time around it is not the case. I'll be going in this weekend to get new shoes (don't worry, you'll hear alllll about it, I'm sure) so maybe they'll be able to shed some more light on my predicament? I also need to take a trip to Goodwill and get my makeshift running belt so I don't cough chocolaty sand anymore.

Also, my birthday is is less than 2 weeks (lots of drinking), and then I'm going to SAN FRANSISCO 2 weeks after that (obscene amount of drinking), and I'm planning on not drinking until the marathon once I get back (April 8). What a roller coaster for my liver!

Every Girl's Crazy For A Sharp Dressed Man

Well, readers, I think you owe me a "Thank You" because I have made the executive decision to NOT show some really explicit and gross blister photos I spent 8 minutes of my life taking. And let me tell you it is NOT EASY to take a picture of the bottom of your own foot. Especially when you're working on using angles that don't have your toes in the frame because of a certain crooked toe that—YES I know it's weird, I have a crooked toe! I can't wear those socks that have the individual toe portions, or Vibram Five Fingers (barefoot shoes), so I have to come to terms that my feet will never been one with the ground, and in the same vein, people won't give me weird looks because wow, those shoes are just offensive to the eyes.

Vibram Five Finger Shoes: Making people go "what the F@&%" since...whenever Muammar Gaddafi invented them. Topical and political.

I am happy to say I have 3 runs to talk about, one with some ups and downs, one that's just kind of boring, and one that is...gross. But get ready, because in the next week I think I am going to be getting new running shoes, and UNFORTUNATELY I think I have to get one of those running belts (that are really just glorified fanny packs...wait, maybe I'll just try a fanny pack! I smell a trip to Goodwill) because with all the miles I'll be logging in I need to be able to take in water and foods (read: energy boosting and glorious calories) (and now that I'm re-reading the previous parenthetical sidenote, "smelling" a trip to Goodwill sounds...gross).

Saturday, 11 miles, rain/snow with overcast sky, sidewalks awful
So I set up this run in my last post about what route I would take: one long out and back, or 2 loops of 5.5miles. I choose the long out and back, which meant John had to meet me out at the halfway point with water and Gatorade (stupid future fanny pack), which I'm sure was SO excited about doing—it cut into his "River Monsters" watching. But MAN this run was terrible. The past 2 long runs I've done have been great because

1. the 8 mile run I did 2 weeks ago was my first "real" long distance run, so I was proud of myself and
2. the 10 mile run I did a week ago was on a beautiful warm sunny day, so I had no reason but to enjoy myself!

At least that's what I'm trying to chalk this past run up to. It was this awful rain/snow mixture, and thank Jah I washed my face before I went out (case and point, this photo post-run during the same weather, and all I had on makeup-wise was some mascara leftover from the night before)

I cropped the picture because the face I was making was kind of hilarious, but when it's all close up on just the eyes it takes some of the "oomph" out of it. Oh well.

Actually, funny story about this picture, at the end of this particular run (early January I think) I was doing my normal 3-block cool down walk to my house, and this guy in a jeep drove past me and gave me some EYES. He was craning his neck like crazy as he drove past me, and of course all I can think is "of course he's looking at me! Even though I've got 3 layers of clothes on I STILL look geud." Now I understand he drove past thinking "that poor girl, walking around in the snow in tights and 2 black eyes, maybe she needs a ride somewhere, or some non-perishable food."

But back to the current 11 mile run. I could never really get into this run. The weather was terrible out, my foot REALLY hurt from the blister (on my arch, of course), and it was just really difficult for me. I DRAGGED myself the first 5.5 miles to the halfway point to meet john with my refreshments, and it took me over an hour. He was waiting for me for like 20 min (yikes). All I wanted to do was get in the back of his car, sprawl out across the seat, and silently sob. When the water was in my hand, I practically collapsed into the side of his car, and stayed that way for a good 5 minutes. After he drove off, I literally thought to myself "there is no way I can run the rest of the way back. No way." This is what you NEVER want to do as a runner (or as anything you're trying to accomplish, really). You can never get down on yourself, because once you do, it's allll over. I walked for about 5 minutes until I FORCED myself to start running again. With the weather, my blister, and my bad attitude, I was (sorry for the girl term) emotionally fragile. Everytime I stepped into a puddle with one foot, the water would not only soak into my shoe, but it would also splash my other shoe. And everytime I did this, I was about .005% away from crying, so I would let out a little painful and anguished sob/sigh. For some reason by the time I was at 2 miles to go (so after 9 miles under my belt) I was feeling much better, and was even ready to gun it to the end. I. Don't. Get It. I wanted to die during the majority of this run, yet I felt good enough to pick it up during the last 2 miles, and I wasn't even dying at that point. Ugh, whatever. I finished, I felt good that I ran the 11 miles, and I could finally enjoy some Robert the Bruce.

Monday, 4 miles, sidewalks just ok
This run was BORING. It was nice considering that at this point in my training a 4 mile run is really nothing (ew, I think I am turning into one of "those" runners). I did make a conscious effort to go faster than I normally do during this run because hey! just 4 miles.

Wednesday, 6 miles, sidewalks complicated
And complicated they were. Remember that ice storm we had last week? Well that not only added lots of snow and ice to the roads, but it also made most people say "well I'm not going to go out of my way to shovel my sidewalks, what with all the ice and all." So I encountered a mixture of sidewalks today. We have the OVER salted sidewalks in front of the WMU buildings and professional buildings, which was nice because I could at least see the cement, but there was not a square inch of sidewalk that wasn't covered in these gross clumps of brown/yellowish giant salt crystals. I almost rolled my ankle on those damn things. We also have the un-shoveled sidewalks that have a solid 4 inches of pure ice that is IMPOSSIBLE to run over. It was originally about a foot of snow and ice, that due to the sunny days we've had has caused the snow to melt down, freeze at night, melt down more the next day, and then freeze more at night. Pure Ice.

So before we get to my gross feet, I encountered something I haven't experienced since my days in high school cross country. I had to use the facilities about 1 mile into my run, but it wasn't in the pee sort of way...if you catch my drift. What makes it terrible is as you run, you're bouncing up and down with each step, and when you're in a state of...near evacuation, that jossling around is NOT what the doctor ordered. It was looming the ENTIRE run and it was uncomfortable and it's all I could think about. Of course by the time I got back to my house the feeling had passed, and I didn't even get the satisfaction of sending it to hell. Now, back to my gross feet.

During the last 2 miles of this run I started feeling a sharp pain on my right foot, but I wasn't too alarmed, because it was the normal blister feeling I was used to, and on the same foot I'm used to. It took a few minutes for me to realize that the feeling was further to the right than I'm used to. It almost felt like it was in the middle of the bottom of my foot. By the time I got to my "cool down" walk, I was walking on the outside of my right foot because it hurt so much to have the skin move at all. I couldn't even stretch my calves because I could feel the blister liquid move around on my foot which is SUCH an unsettling feeling. I got inside and immediately took off my shoe and sock to see what was going on. The original blister I had in my arch had been callousing up the past few weeks, but still had the old white dead-skinned blister on top, which apparently had ripped during the run. This rip had caused a weird pull on the skin which started some type of chain reaction where the rightmost part of the original blister starting moving around and therefore started to develop a blister. It's hard to explain, so that's why I started in with the 8 minutes of pictures. But really, you don't get enough out of them for being subjected to the horror, so I'll just keep the 30 (yes 30) pictures on my camera, and hope I delete them before someone accidentally scrolls through them.

Also, another big part of the past week has been ZZ Top's hit single "Sharp Dressed Man" because for some reason I think that song is hilarious, and has been rightfully stuck in my head.

I'm thinking of dedicating some time soon to actually making this look less template-y and more personal blog-y. I DO do Graphic Design as most of my job, afterall (believe it or not). If you have any ideas, tips, or requests, let me know!