Confessions of a Cursed Runner

Week 4: Hurts So Good

2012-01-30T18:56:00.000-08:00

One word: "Ouch!" I CANNOT believe how different I feel from one week to the next. This week (hopefully just today), I am a HOT MESS. Turns out that running doesn't just stress your legs... I guess a strong back and core helps too. What happens when you have no such strength? Pain. Extreme pain.

Last night was spent tossing and turning. Even a heavy dose of ibuprofen was no match for my sore body. Poor body. The only relief? Sitting in my car on the way to work this morning. Why? Heated seats! It was like sitting on a heating pad for a solid 30 minutes. Everything felt better, from the top of my back, all the way down to my hamstrings. The only bad thing... I'm not allowed to work in my car, so my blessed heat therapy was limited only to my commute.

Fighting Through the Pain

While it's hard to see the good side of running when you feel like you've fallen down a flight of stairs, runners always seem to be willing to fight through the pain. I figure it's bittersweet—when you're hurting, it must mean that your body is getting stronger... right? Please tell me I'm right, or I might as well just lie down right now and take a nap.

Plus, it's not just getting through the physical pain. Learning to deal with it mentally is just as important. Let's face it—there is nothing calming or glamorous about running 26.2 miles. I should prepare myself now, because I've been at that finish line before, and there's not much pretty about it, except the medal.

Theme of Today—Hurts So Good

A wise man, we'll, a man, once sang:
"Hurt so good
Come on baby, make it hurt so good
Sometimes love don't feel like it should
You make it hurt so good"

I wonder if John Mellencamp was a runner?

Daily Miles: 0.00
Monthly Miles: 77.00
Yearly Miles: 77.00

Week 3.5: Holding Myself Accountable

2012-01-25T14:20:00.000-08:00

Ifany first-time marathoner were to ask for my advice, I would emphasize onething—

TELL EVERYONE. The fact is that when making the choice to take on such anenormous endeavor, it’s all too easy to start out with the best of intentions,but slowly fade back into extreme couch-potatoeness (sure it’s a word).

The Power of aBlog

Asyou, a reader of this blog, can obviously see, I practice what I preach. Quite frankly,I’ll tell anyone who’ll listen about my marathon training. Actually, let mepause to formally apologize to those people that know me personally. I do infact realize that I never shut up about running, but I just can’t help myself.All I ask is that you nod a little now and then, just so I know you’re at leastattempting to listen. I assure you that you will not be quizzed on my trainingat a later date.

Confessionsof a Cursed Runner has offered me an outlet in which to share my feelings andopinions on everything from my training program to what’s going on in mypersonal life. Through my previous training, I know that as my mileage getsheavier, and running takes up more and more of my time, both my running lifeand personal life will eventually become completely coexistent. Myintention of this blog is to share my journey with as many people as possible,allowing myself to remain focused and goal driven, without ambushing mycoworkers with tales of weekend long runs, which may or may not have been plaguedby blistered feet and/or chafed armpits.

Myhope is that if for any reason I bailed on this whole marathon thing, thatsomeone would eventually ask me why I haven’t blogged lately. There isabsolutely no way in hell, that after telling the amount of people I have aboutrunning the Wisconsin Marathon that I would EVER say “I quit.” THAT is thisblog’s way of keeping me accountable. Not to mention the links to my completetraining schedule and exercise diary.

Finding aRunning Buddy is Key

Runningalone can be… well, lonely. By enlisting a training buddy, or being enlisted,it ensures accountability between all parties. Basically, every time you feellike quitting, you can envision a tiny little version of that person (angel ordevil style—your choice) sitting on your shoulder, giving you a proverbial lookof disappointment.

Trustme, when you’re out at mile 7 of a 14 mile run, and you have to run through 20feet of 2-foot deep water because your trail is flooded out, followed byblistered feet and sore hips from trying not to run on said blisters, there’snothing more reassuring than knowing you’re not alone. Whetheryour training buddy is by your side, or with you in spirit, there’s justsomething in knowing that someone else is putting in work of equal difficulty,and that your ultimate goal is to get across the finish line… together.

Allof this being said, let me introduce you to my running buddy for the WisconsinMarathon, and hopefully thereafter, Stina. Stina is an accomplished halfmarathoner in my eyes, managing to take approximatly 30 minutes off of her PR in less than 2 year. To put it bluntly, she used to be slow, and now she's middle of the pack. And don't get mad, I’m allowed to call her previous times slow, because I am still slow. Plodder’sprivilege.

AlthoughI’ve never run a half marathon quicker than 2:41:52, and she’s never run a fullmarathon, well… ever, I think we’re the perfect pair to help each other achieveour goals. If I can push her mentally, and she can push me physically, therewill be no need for the Heelys I suggested in our early discussions revolving around race strategy.

Hopefullybetween Stina’s camaraderie, this blog, and my desire to not utter the word“six” at the beginning of my marathon time, I’ll be able to hold myself accountable, and finish mymarathon in under 6 hours.

Daily Miles: 0.00

Monthly Miles (Jan.): 60.00

Yearly Miles (2012): 60.00

Week 2: Finding Balance

2012-01-17T12:31:00.000-08:00

Firstand foremost, I’m finally feeling good in my training.

Now that that’s out ofthe way, let me just say that week 2 was one hell of a week. Not just inmarathon training, but in life. This week was a fine example of finding thebalance in all aspects of my life, including family, friends, work, running…and me. It’s so easy to forget that last one.

Tuesday’srun went as planned, an easy 4-miler on my treadmill, where I was motivated bywatching The Biggest Loser. Cheesy I know, but it always makes me feel a littlebetter to see someone else working harder than me. It’s all about perceivedeffort. Good thing that run went well, because it was about to go downhill very quick.

UnforeseenCircumstances

Mid-dayWednesday, I received a call that someone very close to me had to behospitalized. Out of respect for their privacy, I won’t go into details, but itwas someone I care for very much, so the whole thing definitely knocked me off mygame. Thankfully, that person was okay, and was able to be released from thehospital late Thursday. By that night, they were back to feeling physicallynormal. As for me however, my mental state would take a few days to catch up. The situation scared the hell out of me to say the least.

So…no run on Wednesday, no run on Thursday… and Friday is my normal rest day. I’mnot gonna’ lie. When Friday afternoon hit, I had very little motivation foranything, let alone a 4-mile run. I had been worn into the ground. THIS is whyI normally rest on Fridays. I don’t think I’ve ever left work thinking, “What along week. I think I’ll go running to exert what little energy I have left!”It’s usually more like, “What a long week. I wonder if I already have a bottleof wine open at home, or if I’ll have to exert what little energy I have left trying to open a new bottle.”

Getting Back onTrack

Eventhough I knew it was going to suck (because I was exhausted), I laced up andran, bitching and moaning to myself the entire time. I’ve found that while mosttimes, a positive mantra will get you through tough times, sometimes a littleself deprecation is in order. I think I needed that time for me.

Saturdaygot me back on track. I was feeling better emotionally, and feeling betterphysically after my run the previous night. The only thing that could make mefeel better? Watching the Olympic marathon trials while running my required 7miler. BEST PLAN EVER! I spent 1:36:00 watching the top runners in the U.S.battle it out for 6 spots on the Olympic team. The race was great, with verydifferent race dynamics between the men and women. And who managed to take oneof the top spots? My favorite runner, Kara Goucher. I was ecstatic! I don’tthink I’ve ever smiled on my treadmill half as much as I did that day.

Allin all, I took a wildly emotional ride this week, but things have now leveledout. I’m feeling positive and healthy, although a few extra hours of sleepstill couldn’t hurt. It’s time to shift the balance back into my life. Week 3is looking up… way up.

DailyMiles: 3.00

MonthlyMiles (Jan.): 39.00

YearlyMiles (2012): 39.00

Week 1: In the Books

2012-01-09T10:56:00.000-08:00

I’m proud to say that I have successfully completed my firstweek of marathon training. By “successful”, I should clarify that this did notinclude throwing up and/or passing out. Yay me!

Week 1 in Review

Wow. I really should have been working out these past fewmonths. I’m pretty sure that I shouldn’t be gasping for breath while running a13:20 mile. With every step of every run, I just kept reciting my new mantra (thatI stole from someone, but can’t remember whom), “Progressive forward motion.One foot in front of the other.”

In my training past, I’d always managed to catch my beststride anywhere from miles 2-4. My mood would slowly roll up and down fromthere, just like this hills I was running, eventually ending up somewhere onthe exhausted end if I’d done my job well. This time around, I’m experiencingmood levels across the spectrum… and all in no particular order. “I’m so gladI’m doing this,” “Ugh, my legs are killing me,” “It’s going to feel so good to getthat finisher’s medal,” “Why can’t I feel my face?”… and so on. To all of the runnersout there, you know what this feels like, but my problem was that this happenedon a 3-mile run. Looks like I’ve got a long way to go.

Looking ahead

This week was really tough, but I know that the longer Itrain, the easier my pace goals will become. I have a history of slacking on mytraining, but this time around, I NEED to make sure I’m following through. If Ican just stick with it, my training will get me to the finish line. It’scomforting knowing that.

Daily Miles: 0.00

Monthly Miles (Jan.): 19.00

Yearly Miles (2012): 19.00

Off and Running

2012-01-04T12:32:00.000-08:00

January 3^rd, 2012 marked the official kickoff ofmy marathon training. By blending the Hal Higdon Intermediate 1 Schedule withthe personalized Runner’s World SmartCoach (the free one of course), I managedto Frankenstein together a plan that’s tailored beautifully to MY schedule andMY goals. Not bad if I do say so myself.

My weekly schedule works like this:

2Easy Runs @ 13:20 min/mile (4.5 mph)
1Race Pace Run @ 12:36 min/mile (4.76 mph)
1Long Run @ 13:52 min/mile (4.33 mph)
1Day of Cross Training

Week 1 (this week) starts out relatively slow, although itfeels more difficult than I’d like to admit. How difficult you ask? Difficultenough for me to swap this week’s pace run for an additional “easy” run. Ifigure that for the first couple of weeks, I can adjust my pace slightly, aslong as I’m getting in the mileage on my scheduled days. If anyone out therewould like to endorse this change of plan in the comments section below, I’dgreatly appreciate it. A little validation wouldn’t hurt.

I figure I can ramp it up a little bit each week. It’s notas though I'm shooting for unattainable paces. I’m only training for sub-6 after all. I think thatby the end of January, I should be right on target. As for this week, it’sthree 3-mile runs, a 4-mile run, and a 6-mile run.

Wish me luck on my first long run of the season!

Daily Miles: 3.00

Monthly Miles (Jan.): 6.00

Yearly Miles (2012): 6.00

Starting Over

2011-12-28T08:43:00.000-08:00

With 2012 on the horizon, it’s time to leave my cursedrunning past in the dust, and focus on bigger and better things… completing asuccessful marathon. Historically, I’ve been plagued by a slue of unfortunatecircumstances in my races, including everything from inclement weather tonagging injuries, but I’ll leave those stories for another day. Today I’mfocusing on the future, the success that 2012 will bring, and the good health thatrunning will ensure for the rest of my life.

When setting my running goals for 2012, I knew I had to be realistic.I needed to select a race that would ensure my highest chance for success. Andso the research began.

For my chosen marathon, I had many criteria that needed tobe met.

1. No earlier than April 30^th. Anythingearlier than this would not allow me enough time to train.

2. No later than May 13^th. Although springin the Midwest is typically mild, unseasonably hot days can begin to pop up inMay, and that was a risk I wasn’t willing to take. As a side note, I’ve takenthat risk before, and it did not end well.

3. Not too hilly. Some hills are okay, but I’m notup for killing my knees on terrain I’m not used to.

4. Close to home. Something in a 2-hour radius wasideal.

5. Cheap. Well, maybe not cheap, but preferablysomething that didn’t cost $150 (cough… Chicago Marathon).

After a month of research, and many hours spent on runningwebsites, I had pretty much made my decision, but I was still a little up inthe air. Through the beauty of Facebook, I was able to ask some fellowlisteners of my favorite running podcast “Two Gomers,” their opinion, and theWisconsin Marathon was the hands-down favorite. Everyone said it’s impeccablyrun, the weather is nice and cool, and that the scenery is beyond gorgeous makingits way up and down the shore of Lake Michigan. Plus, they’re “Serving up theCheesiest Marathon Ever,” with giant cheese-shaped medals… and for only $68.Sold!

So its official—I will be running the WisconsinMarathon on May 5^th, 2012 in Kenosha, WI. I will run it, I willenjoy it, and I will finish it in less than 6 hours… even if it kills me. Wisconsin here I come!

Daily Miles: 0.00

Monthly Miles (Dec.): 0.00

Yearly Miles (2011): ~200.00