Addiction, or just plain NUTZ?

So, winter is here, I am back in the gym, but am desperately seeking a goal. I can't just work out and be "ok" with that, I need something to work for! Some of my training partners have decided to do the inaugural Illinois Marathon in April.....yes, that's right, a marathon. What's one more in less than a year? I am craving a goal to work for, and this just seems to fall or shall I say "fit" right into what I need right now. The last few months have been stressful, and I need an outlet to displace my insignificant mental blocks. This should be perfect. Marathon trainings starts next week, perfect timing! It should keep the holiday weight off, keep my mind focused, and give me something to work for before next years Triathlon season starts. So, stay tuned...I'm off on another adventure - cold weather and all - because we are training OUTSIDE!!!!

Chicago Marathon Madness

Today is bittersweet. I am officially marking the end of the racing season for this year. I happy to not have to train for a while, and just work out for the fun of it, but I will definitely miss the thrill of the race. On Sunday, I went to the Chicago Marathon with hopes of simply finishing. I have been suffering from Morton's Neuroma, a painful nerve condition, in my left foot. I had all but given up on even running the marathon because of the amount of pain I have been suffering during this last month of training. I missed 2 long runs, and several weekly training runs. But, I knew I had to at least lace up, and show up in that starting corral that I worked so hard to earn. So, on Sunday, October 12, 2008, I made my way to starting corral C, and started running. The thrill of the spectators made the first 4 miles fly by. I got to five, my heart rate was still a little higher than it should be, but I started to settle into a nice rhythm. At mile six, my foot began to ache. Not a lot, just a little. All I could think was, "Please just let me get through at least half". Oddly, by 7, the pain had started to go away, and I was thrilled!! I stayed pain-free for the next 14 miles! The heat began to rise, and my legs began to tighted around 18, but I was still running! I made it to 20, and my foot began to ache again. I assumed it would do the same thing it had before, and go away. By mile 23, I was in full inflammation, almost in tears. I had to talk myself through the next 5K of the marathon, doing a walk-run sequence to get me to the end. Although my pace was slow, I was making my way to the end. Joe was on his bike, riding next to me, encouraging me all the way. At mile 25 I made up my mind, that no matter how bad I was hurting, or how slow I had to run, I would run the last mile. I stayed strong, listened to the cheering crowd, thought about my brother, my kids, my husband, and my impending victory for finishing the marathon. Just as I was about to round the last corner on Roosevelt up to the Mile 26 marker, I saw MJ. She ran out, ran a few steps with me, cheered me on, then sent me up my final stretch to finish. I completed the marathon in 4 hours, 19 minutes and 3 seconds, in a lot of pain, but with a smile from ear to ear.

To Marathon or Not To Marathon....that is the question....

I am faced with a dilemma. I have a foot problem that doesn't look like it's going to go away anytime soon, much to my dismay. So, they call it "Morton's Neuroma" and apparently, it's not all that uncommon - I just wish I wasn't the "common" part of this equation. So, this lovely thing causes a great deal of pain in my toes when I am running longer distances. I have been able to tolerate it up to now, but I had to finally break down and seek medical advice. As of right now, I am getting alcohol injections in my foot, directly into the nerve, to attempt to shrink the neuroma. Unfortunately for me, my pain threshold is rather high, because the size of this sucker indicates that I have had it for a minimum of three years. In the past, every time I have felt this stinging pain in my foot, I go out and buy new shoes. I have a lot of shoes. The pain usually goes away, and I am off and logging my miles. This time, when I bought new shoes, the pain didn't go away. I'm trying everything to get through this issue, through tears and frustration, and hopefully I will. I'm taking MJ's advice, and biking instead during this taper time before the marathon.

On October 12, I will lace up, go to my starting corral (that I earned, by the way...) and do what I can to finish the marathon this year. I am hoping I will get through this, but in the mean time, the question remains, do I marathon this year? or do I call it a season and look ahead to next year.....

A Training Glitch

I don't have a race to write about today, but in a way, it will directly impact any races I do. I have discovered the trials and tribulations of marathon training. The more miles you log, the more aches and pains you get. In the last two weeks, the pain in my left foot has gone from "deal with it" to "unbearable" while I am running. On my 18 mile training run this past weekend, I had on my brand-spankin' new shoes, was totally psyched to get going, and convinced 100% that the shoes I had worn down to nothing were the culprit of my toes burning so bad they feel like they are on fire, around mile 8.

So, there I went through scenic, hilly, Waterfall Glen with my CARA pace group for our Saturday morning long run. I felt a little sluggish at first, just needed to get the old legs warmed up, get the blood flowing, and get going. We hit our 8:30 pace right on, then sped up a bit, then got back on pace. This followed suit for the first several miles, and I was fine with it. I like to vary my speed a bit on my training runs, just to get my legs used to the tempo changes. Around mile 6, I started to feel the slightest hint of a pain in my left toes. I disregarded it because it was minor, but, it didn't go away. We stopped at our water stop, and my toes immediately felt better. Good news. Once back on the trail, about 1/2 mile in, there were the toes again. This time, they were in full force inflammation. I decided that I needed to be tough and learn to "run through" this pain. By the last two miles of this run, yes, 16-18, I was in a tremendous amount of pain. I couldn't wait to get back to the trail head because I knew we had a physical therapist on site that day. Once we stopped at 18, my legs almost instantly cramped up, my toes were killing me, and all I could think about was....GEEZ! How am I going to make it to 26.2 with everything falling apart at 18!

Once back at the trail head, I talked to the physical therapist, and he immediately knew what the problem most likely was - Morton's Neuroma. A tightening of the nerves in the metatarsal arch. It causes pain up into the toes, and can require surgery to correct. He gave me some pointers, and this week, I am going to concentrate on keeping my feet healthy. I ran my 5 mile training run today, had some discomfort, but finally went out and bought the metatarsal inserts for my shoes. Tomorrow will be a big deal. If my toes still hurt, it's off to the podiatrist I go...but one thing is for SURE. I WILL FINISH THIS MARATHON!!! (And do it in under 4 hours......)

A Weekend Of Racing...or Just Running

Ahh.....Labor Day weekend. A wonderful specimen of weather conditions, and an OK weekend of racing, or was I just running?? Saturday morning at 7:00 am, I decided to run (or drive) over to McCullum Park in Downers Grove to run the St. Mary's 5K. This is the second year for this race, and I run it because the two little girls across the street go to this school, and it is the easiest way for me to do something to help their school raise money. So, I filled out my form, wrote my check, and headed over. I arrived in plenty of time, and to my surprise the folks from Runners Grove (my favorite running store) were there. Sat and chatted with them, then went to the race start. I had no intention of running a PR today, as I was still recovering from Accenture the weekend before. I started off fine, just felt so sluggish and tired. This was my first 5K since June! I have been running those crazy endurance races... Anyway, I was well on my way, and felt not too bad through the race. I almost forgot my 5K race strategy that I have used in the past, and even on this particular course. I finished the race at 23:54, not my best, but definitely not my worst. I guess it's time to get back to the speed workouts....might help me improve that time. I really want a 22 something by the end of this running season.

Then, Monday came. I rested by the pool all day on Sunday, but had decided the Thursday before Labor Day weekend to run the Oak Brook Half Marathon. Crazy, I know. But, I needed a 13 mile long run this past weekend, anyway, so why not just run a half? I wasn't going to race, I know I need to save my legs for the marathon, so I was using this run as a training tool. The day was gorgeous, and the run was fun. A little hillier than I expected for Oak Brook, and the paths we ran on were pretty narrow, considering the number of runners. I fell into a great 1/2 marathon pace, and just kept running. I got my nutrition dead on, and was on pace for a 1:45 finish time. Then, around mile 6, my left foot started to really hurt. I tried to ignore it and run through it, because this happens from time to time. By mile 9, though, I had to stop running. I actually considered, for the first time EVER, dropping out of the race. My toes had cramped up so bad, and my foot hurt so bad, I didn't know how I would go 4 more miles. I knew I needed new shoes, but the fact that there is absolutely nothing left in the forefoot of my shoes tells me to get shoes before I run another mile. I did manage to walk for a few minutes to let the throbbing subside, then I began running again. I actually got my pace back to where it was, but the time I lost threw off my finish time a considerable amount. I finished at 1:53:04, not bad considering I stopped and walked, but I will probably get new shoes....this week. I have an 18 mile run this weekend, and I know I can't make it through on what I have. Plus, I'll get those new bad boys nice and broken in before the Chicago Marathon! Now, all I have to do is decide what to buy....go back to Nike or move on......I think I might actually move on.

Accenture Chicago Triathlon

I DID IT!!! I DID IT!!!! Sunday was the Accenture Chicago Triathlon that I trained for this summer. Didn't think I was going to be able to do this, but, I DID!! And, it was AWESOME!!! I am so hooked! So, here's how it went.....

I woke up bright and early, after not sleeping at all Saturday night, at 3:15 am. Got dressed, had some coffee (yes, I drink coffee before my races. It wakes me up and makes me feel warm and fuzzy), grabbed my gear that I had so diligently packed the night before, and hopped in the car. Joe was wonderful to get up with me and not only drive me down, but my friend, Julie, too. We arrived downtown in record time, about 4:30 am. Traffic is a breeze at 4 in the morning! Joe dropped us off at Monroe and LSD, we shuffled off to transition, set up our gear, and all I could hear in my head was MJ going over my set up. Made some adjustments based on the advice she gave me at Naperville, then found Lori - who, thankfully, was in the same wave with me. We walked through transition to find our Swim In route, Bike Out/Bike In, then Run Out. All seems pretty simple from our transition location. Then, we grabbed Julie, and waited.....and waited....and waited!! We sat and ate breakfast, chatted, watched the Sprint go off, and finish, then finally at 8:00, we started getting on our wetsuits for our 8:49 am wave start. So, I should have taken a few more lessons in getting this thing on, because - man, it was so hard to do!!!! We lubed up with Suit Juice, helpful, but not entirely, and thankfully Joe was there because he had to help me! After finally suiting up, we were ready to go! YES!!!! I was so excited, not nervous like I was at Naperville. Best part of this - it was my first open water swim, in a wetsuit, nonetheless, and I felt great!!! Weird......

8:49, we are in the water, ready to go!!! Water temp for the day was 72, which to me was just perfect! It felt great! Air temp was in the 70's, so the day couldn't have been more perfect for this! The swim started, coed wave, but oddly, all the men were in the back? I was about 2 rows from the front, Lori was dead front - she was the smart one. I didn't feel that my swimming was as strong as those who would be in front of me, so I held back a little. Shouldn't have done that. my swimming is fine, as I learned once the wave spread out a little. I made it smoothly to the first buoy, and started heading to the Swim Out - which was quite a ways down! I got into a great rhythm, and just swam. The water, surprisingly, was so calming - and quiet. I didn't realize how peaceful the swim can actually be. Joe ran along side the entire swim, and kept yelling to me, and I heard him every time I turned for air or to sight. It was great!! My biggest fan!! I finally reached the Swim Out, and made my first small mistake. I took off my goggles and swim cap before unzipping my wetsuit - totally rookie error. At least I know better for next time!!! Got into T1 splendidly, found my spot easily, and started to change out of my wetsuit, which was already down to my hips, changed to bike gear, and off!!!

The bike....was great when there wasn't a pothole in the road. LSD was in horrible condition. There were a ton of potholes, rough patches, and debris everywhere. Lots of flats on the course, lots of water bottles flying when people hit a hole, and a lot of people riding in the middle of the road - instead of the left - who were on bikes that my grandma could ride. That was a little frustrating. So, I used my voice, and yelled at them to get out of the way!!! Going north, the wind was a little cumbersome, but going south, with a tailwind, my average speed skyrocketed! It was so much fun!!! But, I had an incident that really screwed me up for the rest of the race. I went to do my first gel at the 1st turn around, hit a bump, and it went flying out of my hand. Now, I only had one more gel on my bike. With the condition of the road, and coming up on stuff so fast, I was almost afraid to take my hands off the handlebars, and my nutrition plan went out the window. I was so afraid that if I took my last gel too soon, that I would have nothing for the run. So, when I finished the bike, at at nice 19.4 average speed (good for me, especially since I was playing Frogger the whole ride), I changed my gear, and grabbed the gel off my bike as I started the 6.2 mile run.

I felt HORRIBLE on my run. As a matter of fact, this was usually my strongest event, was most definitely my worst. My stomach started cramping up so bad that I had to grab water at every water stop and walk. I would drink my water, then run to the next stop, grab water, and walk. I didn't realize it until it was over that I probably should have been taking the Gatorade to replenish the electrolytes that I didn't replace on my bike. I made it through the run, my slowest run in years, but I did finish, and I felt a great sense of accomplishment, just with a horrible stomach cramp!

So, I have done my first Olympic Distance Triathlon, and I learned a ton from this experience. The most important thing I will take from this race is that 1) I can do better on the swim 2) I need to put a better nutrition plan in place 3) I can't wait for next year!!!!!!

Chicago Distance Classic Half Marathon

Sunday morning brought woke me at 4:00 am to get downtown in plenty of time for the 6:30 am race start time. I prepared coffee the night before (because I can NOT do anything without at least one cup of morning joe...and I am not talking about my husband....) and made my PB & J to eat later in the morning. I geared up, and left the house with Joe around 4:45. We arrived downtown and parked around 5:30. The sun was coming up and the temperature, well, seeing as it was August 10th, was AMAZING!!! Beautiful light breeze coming off the lake, and 60 degrees!!! It was a beautiful morning to run! We walked over to the race start, I changed into my shoes, stretched a bit, and waited for the start. My friend Lori came to cheer me on, which totally made my day! Having two fans there really got my motivation going! All I had left to do was exactly what I came here to do - qualify for a starting corral for the Chicago Marathon....

At 6:30 the first wave went off. I thought I was in that wave, but much to my dismay, I was just about 10 feet too short. So, I waited for wave to to leave the start. Off we went, packed in like sardines! The first mile was fast then slow, then fast, then slow. I was going nutz. All I wanted was to get around those in front of me holding hands, and cheering to the crowd along the way. I thought I had started up far enough in front to avoid these types, but, I didn't. Anyway, we hit the McCormick place tunnel, ran along LSD, then finally, around mile 3, we were thinning out, and I really hit a great pace! So, off I went. I kept my pace going, and kept with my plan to gel at mile 4. When I finally hit the split, I was disappointed to find that those first two-three miles of slower paces were just slow enough to really throw off my goal end time. I was still in contention for a starting corral, but I had to keep my pace for the next 6.5 miles. I was determined! At mile 8 I did my next gel, just to carry my through on my pace to the end. I was feeling really good, but the wind coming off the lake was making things a little more difficult than I had hoped! So much for the "light breeze", it was definitely more like wind.

At about mile 9, I noticed that my left quad started to get a little sore. All I kept telling myself was to run through it - only 4 miles to go. I kept pushing my pace, trying to concentrate on staying steady, rather than the ache in my leg. At mile 12, I started to slow a little, and starting thinking more about my quad. CONCENTRATE!!! So, push, push, push, just a little further, 1.5 to go...I finally rounded the corner with about .5 to go to the start, and there are Joe and Lori cheering me on! And Lori, what a godsend - she wore her running shoes! She jumped into the race with me and paced me until about 100 yards to go, talking me through the last portion of the race! I swear, I can't thank her enough!!! She dropped to the side, and off through the finish chute I went!! And, looking at my time, slower than I hoped for, but qualified me for the corral I had hoped for! YAHOO!! Collected my finishers medal, grabbed some water and grub, and there was Lori waiting to congratulate me! She took me to Joe where there was more congrats!! I am really glad this one is behind me. Now I can concentrate on Accenture in two weeks, then just the marathon after that!

Now, from what I have read on the Internet, many are saying the course was approximately .4-.5 too long....hmmm....if that's the case, then maybe my time would have been faster! Oh well. I can't dwell on this. Moving forward.......

Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10

So....argh. Saturday morning was the Waterfall Glen Xtreme 10 trail race. I really didn't prepare too terribly much for this particular event, mostly because I figured that all the miles I am logging for the marathon, doing long runs at Waterfall Glen and all the triathlon cross training have to account for something along the way, right? Yea....right.

I woke up, wanting to hit the alarm and go back to sleep, but I dragged my butt out of bed and went directly for coffee. Morning ritual. Nothing gets done with out at least one cup of coffee. Made my peanut butter and jelly toast on wheat, went upstairs, got dressed, and headed out for the race. Once I got there, I found parking easy, and went to pick up my packet. It was pretty cloudy, humid, but not hot....yet. This year they decided to do a pace group wave start, so I was in the "yellow" group, which went out third. once we started across the grass, I realized how uneven the ground was, and took it fairly slow until I reached the trail. Once on the trail, I felt good, and felt like I needed to get around the pack of people in front of me, or I would not get anywhere. Well, this feat proved more difficult than I anticipated it to be because of all of the OTHER people on the trail that day NOT participating in the race. So, I had to deal with runners coming in the opposite direction, bikes in front and behind us, plus the 800 people out for the race.

After the first hill, I was finally able to pull away from the larger pack of runners and get some breathing room on the trail. I kept a pretty steady pace, but the clouds started to clear, and the sun was coming down. It was starting to get pretty warm, actually. About three miles into the race there is a hill nicknamed "Big Bertha" due to its slope and length. I knew that this hill would really stretch out the racers, and once I was at the top, and "conquered" this hill, that the rest would be a little easier. Not so fast. The hill stunk. It was longer than I had remembered, probably because I always run down this hill. (I like it better this way.) So, up the hill, steady and kinda slow, I went. I knew that I needed to conserve energy for the remaining 7 miles of hilly terrain, and blasting sun. My pace became relatively steady, and around mile 4 I met up with Noriko, a very strong runner. She said, "c'mon, let's go, don't let those men pass you". So, I stayed with her for the next 4 miles. She kept me going, pacing me, and encouraging me. She is coming off a knee injury, so our pace was probably much slower than she is used to. Nonetheless, she was killer help. Around mile 8, she needed to take it easy and sent me on my way with a "Don't stop running. Just keep going". And off I went. I'm not sure if staying with her helped or hurt, but in all honestly, I was just really happy to have someone with me. By now, the temperature was really starting to slow me down, and make me feel crappy. But, I knew I only had two miles to go, and cold water and food were not far away. I went on, thinking only about water....

I finally reached the .5 mile to go, and went back into the grassy starting field. There were sticks and other debris on the ground. I almost rolled an ankle a couple of times. In this field, there was no relief from the shade, and I was dripping wet. All I could do was search for the finish. I finished at 1:25:34, a lot slower than I had hoped, but I finished!! Felt like I was hit by a truck later in the day, and the heat really effected me for the afternoon, but, what doesn't kill us will make us stronger, right? I must be getting really strong.......

What did I sign up for??

Well, here I am in my first year of Triathlon, how I got here, I'm not quite sure. I started running to lose baby weight, that led to numerous 5K's, which then let to strength training, and just plain ol' "working out". BORING! So, upped my anty to longer distances, and set some goals to train for. Jumped into 1/2 Marathon's, and we all know where that led......the almighty Marathon. Well, that's just too boring. Bought a bike - a nice bike. Love my bike. So, why not train for a Triathlon? Cool! Here I am a year later - joined a triathlon team, the "Luna Chix" - love them!! An awesome group of women getting ouside to play. The perfect compliment to my life, actually. So, with outfurther ado, did my first Tri in Naperville a few weeks ago, now I'm really hooked. Leads me to this -

So, a friend of mine convinced me to sign up for the Accenture Triathlon downtown. No, not just the sprint distance, the international distance. Why not just go for it my first year? So I ask myself, what did I just sign up for?? I know I can do the bike, I know I can do the run, but that swim, man!!! Not so sure about that! Everyone keeps telling me I'll be fine (the same enouraging words I heard before Naperville - and they were right - but that was basically a pool - this is Lake Michigan...) I am working hard to train for this, and oh by the way, the Marathon in October, too, and a 1/2 Marathon in August. Maybe I'm crazy, or maybe I'm just addicted to adrenaline. Who knows. All I know this that this damn swim is going to make me crazy, and a nervous wreck. Suppose some open water swim practice might just come in handy. Anyone out there have a wetsuit?? Maybe that's what I should get for my birthday.......