I did it! I got through my 21 miler. It was the most wonderful run I've had since I started training for Twin Cities back in July. I so needed to have an awesome run, both to convince myself that I could do another marathon physically speaking and mentally. I overslept, so I woke up rushed, at 6:11 to be exact. My run started at 6:30 and was 20 minutes away if I knew exactly where I was going and I didn't. I flung myself out of bed exclaiming not so nice words and tore around the bedroom and the house finding my clothes, various watches, Gu, socks, water, etc. I finally left the house, only to get lost thinking I knew more then mapqwest, and then finally arrived and Hidden Falls, amazingly only 15 minutes late and my group was just leaving. I wove through them as I drove in and smiled sheepishly.
I was actually sort of glad I was behind the big group. My plan was to do my own thing, run much slowe then I had been, to see if my knee and foot pain would subside. My long slow runs and lately become just long runs, not long SLOW runs. I was basically running race pace, and I knew I needed to go MUCH slower. The group of women I have been running with, most of them were new to marathons, and the veterans were a bit faster then me, so the pace was off for me I finally realized, after week upon week of crappy long runs with a wierd knew knee pain and bizarre foot twinges.
I started running and tried to avoid the bizarre feeling of my pants. They felt so strange. What was going on? I was wearing my favorite navy capris I bought at Walmart of all places when I was looking for last minute painting clothes when my husband inadvertantly brought home my painting clothes as we painted our new house before moving in. I love these pants. They are lose, not tight, nothing bulges unsightly, they have zippers on the bottoms so you can let your calves free, and they have awesome pockets. So, I was a bit unnerved that my favorite pants were failing me now, not even 1/84th of a mile into my run. I looked down at to my dismay saw that I had put my capri tights on backwards as I dressed frantically in the dark before bolting from my house. I looked right, noone but path, I looked left, and saw two other runners from my group. Behind me was a very thin patch of brush. I was wearing bright pink underwear. But, not wanting to delay my run anymore I took a deep breath and stripped of my pants, forgetting however that tights do not slip easily over running shoes and nearly cast myself down onto the moist ground with my pants down around my feet! I finally managed to get my pants off and then on again without flashing too many people. I suppose enough ski races in sub zero temperatures where you will do ANYTHING to get off your wet sports bra and underwear took away most of my natural modesty. However, each year when I do the Lake Loppet race in Minneapolis I am still startled when there are naked, tired skiers changing nonchalantly in the middle of Calhoun Square. Spandex doesn't hide much, so skiers in general are hardly shy about their bodies.
So, I finally start running and it doesn't feel great, but I'm running, nothing hurts. Hooray! The first 2.2 miles felt like the longest ever. I thought it was because I didn't have my Garmin (I'd forgotten it), but I've realized it just takes be a good 30-60 minutes to warm up. The first 4-5 miles always suck. I'd run and cross train more this past week though and I think that helped. I kept running and caught up to the group I typically run with. I run 4 minutes and walk 1 minute. The group does 5:1. For whatever reason I've discovered that 4:1 is the perfect combo for me. So I'm always a bit off the group if they're not following my lead. I kept moving ahead and behind the group which was a bit obnoxious. They kept asking me to join in and so finally I did and switched over to 5:1. Within two reps everything hurt. I realized that I had to do the combo that worked for me. I kept running and before I knew it I was 14 miled down. I still felt great. I ran with another woman in my runnin club for a bit at a faster clip and then slowed down again. I was starting to feel like this marathon could really happen! I got ahead of the group at one of the water stops. I have discovered I'm an in and out kind of person at the water stops, rather then a leisurely break person, particularly when I'm having a good run, and I was. I wanted to keep going and see what kind of time frame I could finish in. I kept running and felt strong. I passed a few other people from my club who did not look happy. I wondered if they'd ever tried walking a bit? It is amazing to me the resistance to running and walking. These people had years of experience on me but they looked pretty miserable. I felt lucky to know my body and to have figured out what worked well for me. When I got to the last turn around I was tired. My knee had flared up a mile back and I had walked it out, hoping I could finish. I picked up the pace the last mile as I imagined doing in this marathon, like I did in Grandmas and all of a sudden I could see myself at the finish line. The emotions, the adrenaline, it was all the same. I pushed myself, mentally affirming my goals and my body. I was strong, fit, I could do it. I finished in 3 hours 54 minutes. I was psyched. I was ready. Bring on the marathon. I was ready for taper. My knee was hella sore, I wondered how I'd feel tomorrow. I enjoyed a bagel and cream cheese, a rare treat for me and a banana and headed out. I felt overjoyed and so proud of myself. I can't wait for October 7th. I might actually be able to PR...I'd love to break 5 hours again, and to PR would be the icing on the cake. I really might be addicted to this marathon thing!!
I didn't sleep well that night, I was visiting my sister and never sleep well on new beds. I woke up and didnt' feel to bad. My knee was a little tender, but I took some advil and went on my day and eventually almost forgot I had run 21 miles! Now, 2 days later I feel great. I am so excited to run in this race. To top it all off I was down 1.6 lbs this week. Only 6.4 to go until I'm back to lifetime and 11.4 to go for my perosnal goal. I'd love to make that my new years so I feel good in my spandex ski suit, becaues like I said, it hides NOTHING. I've formed a team with some other skiing buddies to ski in a series of ski races this winter, and I don't want to let them down. So here's to a great fall of training! I definately found my inspiration and that amazing stubborness and drive that surfaced last June has bubbled to the surface again. I'm glad it's still in there. It's sort of neat to feel fierce once in a while.
Today I taught swim lesson and then swam for an hour afterwards for cross training. It felt great. I finally am feeling a bit more like myself. It's so nice.
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