The Running Librarian

2007-10-02T11:30:00.000-05:00

[5 km]
I participated in the Run for the Cure run this past weekend. It was a gorgeous day for a run, and running with colleagues made the time go by quickly and the run seemed pretty easy. I hope to keep my running momentum going. Taking Wing Chun lessons twice a week has made it tricky to find time to run, but it's also helped to get me back into shape a bit.

2007-05-23T11:43:00.000-05:00

As I ease into jogging more regularly again, I've also resumed my weight training routine. I workout on a 2-day cycle that was developed for me years ago by an exercise-guru friend of mine. I find the simplicity of this system works for me - I don't have to have a sheet of paper to record all the muscles I need to work out, nor do I need to master every single machine at the gym. The key to this plan is remembering the muscle groups I need to work and I often change of the exercise to keep it interesting. So, for day 1, I do shoulders, back and biceps. Day 2 takes care of chest, legs and triceps. I think because there is a little rhyme there, I'm able to remember it. I always do sit-ups and I always stretch with this routine. Try it - it's fun.

2007-05-10T08:31:00.000-05:00

It's almost a year later...and here I go again trying to get back into blogging my running activity. I still haven't given up on the idea of running another marathon and maybe this Fall will be the time to do that. My running has been very sporadic and normally consisting of short 2-3 km runs. I just purchased a new gym membership, so this will help in my strength training. I had a rather restless night trying to adjust to new warm temperatures and birds chirping outside, so today I only ran for 15 min at 5.0 mph.

2006-05-13T10:21:00.000-05:00

[9.9 km]

This is the furthest distance that I've run with my running partner. We felt great. The weather was perfect - no wind, no sun, and slightly cooler (around 8 degrees). I am having a bit of knee pain - but maybe that is par for the course...I will stretch stretch stretch and maybe that will help. I'm anxiously awaiting a report from a friend who just ran the Mississauga Marathon. This will be extra motivation.

2006-05-10T10:19:00.000-05:00

[4.1 km]

This was our first tempo run. It felt good to up the pace a bit, but it might set us back with knee injuries...We'll only really know until we assess how we feel after Sunday's longer run.

2006-05-06T23:06:00.000-05:00

[9.1 km]

For this "long run" we did not do ten and ones (run 10 minutes, walk 1). We will probably do this once we get beyond 10 k. It was a nice day for a run and we took it very slowly - I was holding Dan back most of the way and feel a bit badly about that - except that he had absolutely no complaints about knee pain - and that is a good thing. So, we'll try for regular runs here on in. I'm hoping to get 4 runs in per week, but I will be happy with 3 as long as we continue to increase our mileage and remain pain free.

2006-05-04T11:46:00.000-05:00

[5 km]
We survived two back-to-back runs. Knees seem to be okay. My legs were really heavy for most of the run but I've decided this is because I was not hydrated enough. I'm going to try and run with my water for every run, even the short distances. It's a good way to get used to carrying the camel back, and it will also help on days that I haven't had enough water (or had too many beers the night before).

2006-05-03T21:15:00.000-05:00

[4 km]
22 minutes seemed really fast to me this morning. I hope this doesn't come back to bite the knee. We will test this out tomorrow with another run. We haven't done back to back runs yet, so this could be interesting (or painful).

2006-04-30T15:13:00.000-05:00

[7 km]
Ah, finally a warm day for a run. Unfortunately, all that I had with me were a pair of fleece pants for the run. I got to try out my new camel back for a second time, and I think it will work well. I like the fact that it has extra pockets - good for storing snacks. We ran to Columbia Lake, but weren't sure of the path, so took an unexpected hike over some rocks across the water. It was a bit of an adventure. We'll have to master the trails there, because I think there are some nice ones.

2006-04-28T12:30:00.000-05:00

[5 km]
The sky was the most brilliant blue today, but it was chilly at -1 and I had to dress in 3 layers for this run. I think it's giong to start to warm up from here on in though. We need to start getting out for at least 3 runs a week...so, hopefully you'll see more posts here. Sunday will be a longer run than we've done in a while, and I am interested to see how the bodies feel after that.

2006-04-22T06:13:00.000-05:00

[4.9 km]
There is a really neat web site called Gmaps Pedometer. It has been great for figuring out exact distances of runs. Last summer I came very close to dropping a couple of hundred dollars on a GIS guide just because I needed to know my mileage and also learn some routes in this city. Gmaps has been a great free solution for me.

Today was our first rainy run. Luckily there was virtually no wind, and it was a light rain, so it wasn't too burdensome. We should try and experience a hard rain, and some wind as well...but we are just getting back into this, so hopefully we'll have some sunny day runs before the heat creeps in.

2006-04-20T06:18:00.000-05:00

[4.1 km]
Haven't been out much...Just getting back into it after a two week break.

2006-04-05T07:52:00.000-05:00

[4.1 km]
Icey roads and sidewalks in April seems like a last ditch effort for Old Man Winter and so he had us running delicately - finishing in about 27 minutes. The 4k runs will soon be 5k, then 6k and these will be our "short runs". Tomorrow, we'll try a little for a "longer" run. We'll get in a pattern of a short run followed by a longer run, and then a third run (if possible) that is shorter and quicker paced.

This is the plan:
Mondays - off
Tuesdays - 6k slow and steady
Wednesdays - 10k steady
Thursdays - 5k tempo
Fridays - off
Saturdays - off
Sundays - 10-32k very slow (progressively longer)

2006-04-02T21:13:00.000-05:00

[6.8 km]
This post is actually for yesterday's run. We woke up early to get in the longest run I've done since last summer. It was quite cool and windy, but luckily the rain held off for our run. We ran along the Iron Horse Trail for part of our run. I love getting off the roads once in a while. Our IT bands were aching a bit today, so we'll hold off running tomorrow, but maybe try for three runs in a row this week. Stretching will be key.

2006-03-31T13:45:00.000-05:00

[4.5 km]
Completed this run in 30 minutes. Not a great time, but there was a bit of steep hill (the hill the Running Room uses for hill training, incidentally). Nonetheless, my legs and lungs felt great for the whole route, so I think I'm getting ready to start upping the mileage. We're going to try for a long run on Saturday - which at this point won't be that long -- I'm hoping to go more than 5km - maybe 6 or 7km...and I'll get to use my brand spankin' new camel back!

2006-03-29T08:07:00.000-05:00

[3.5 km]

It was another beautiful Spring morning with blue skies, no wind and some golden beams of sunshine leading our way. I love running first thing in the morning because I find it gives me a boost of energy that takes me through the working day. It was cold enough for a hat and gloves still, but it shouldn't be long now before we abandon jackets and double layers. Less bulk always makes me feel like I'm a better runner (delusions are good when it comes to running - especially marathon training).

2006-03-27T11:11:00.000-05:00

[2.8 km]
What a beautiful March morning for a run. Solid blue sky, no wind, yet still a nice refreshing chill to the air that made the run very enjoyable. It was a short run, but we're going to try for two days in a row to start to get our bodies into training mode.

2006-03-21T16:42:00.000-05:00

[3.1 km]
It was quite chilly this morning - about -8C, but at least there was no wind. This run seemed relatively easy to me since we had done 5km on Saturday (the furthest I've gone since last August). All body parts feel great, so I think there is something to be said about slow building. We could very well be on our way to some successful marathon training (the "we" is wishful but intentional...I'd like to be able to run a marathon with my running partner, but not sure he's interested...maybe he'll read this and let me know...)

2006-03-06T23:06:00.000-05:00

[3.5 km in 26 min]
Back running...going out easy. I'm going to try and do small, light runs for now, to ease myself back into running. Running another marathon is something I'd really like to do - but I'm not sure if my body is up for the task. I guess I'll try another go at it though. Maybe a running partner will help.

2005-08-25T20:12:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry to say that my heel pain was actually a stress fracture! I'm self-diagnosing, but I haven't run for 3 weeks and it still hurts (on the top of my foot now). Depressed? Yes, of course, but I'm not going to be one of the stubborn runners who pushes through the pain because I really love it and want to be able to continue doing it without serious problems. I know what I did wrong - I increased far too quickly. Jumping into a 21k run and hill training in the same week was not a good idea. Live and learn.

2005-08-03T22:21:00.000-05:00

[hill training ugh]
30 degrees...and hill training. I actually didn't mind the thoughts of this, as I enjoy pushing myself and feeling like I'm going to puke as I reach the top of a hill only to turn around, run down and do that same hill again. The new shoes are doing wonders for the knee, however...my new problem tonight is that I've got some foot pain - in the heel area. Ok, so there might be something to that 10% rule...Anyway, I ignored the heel pain, as most runner's do and ouch, it hurts now. I did ice it tonight, so I hope it feels better in the morning. If it doesn't, I might have to forget about my Thursday run. I wish I were 10 years younger and not so suseptible to injury :(

2005-08-02T12:29:00.000-05:00

[21.2 km]
Well, I was supposed to do 23 km on Sunday, but the group did 21.2, so I thought that would suffice for this week, given I was already breaking the 10% rule. I was proud of myself for being able to do this. I'm very sore today, so I'm skipping the 6k I'm supposed to do. I'll do some lengths in the pool instead. So far the knee seems okay, but because I'm really sore, I'm worried that it could still be injured and it just hasn't flared up yet (it could still be in shock). Anyway, Toronto in October is looking doable now, if the knee stays ok.

2005-07-31T06:20:00.000-05:00

[30 minutes, good pace]
It was a gorgeous blue-sky day yesterday and the air was dry. I did a short, tempo run since today is the long run...[19k, I believe]. I tried out my new Asics and they are great. It's the most money I've ever spent on a pair of running shoes (with the water proof spray, $193). I can't believe I spent that much money on shoes. Hopefully, this will help my knee. I read an article about IT band problems and it said that those who suffer from this injury often suponate which means, that their foot doesn't complete the roll inward that it should and so therefore, shoes allowing for more movement will help the problem...well the Sauconys that I had been wearing were very stable - so these Asics should help as they are very flexible. Let's hope this theory stands up.

2005-07-28T06:55:00.000-05:00

Well, if you think my posting here has been irregular - that's because my running has been too.

I just got back from spending 10 days in Ireland - 5 of them on a bicycle. I did a cycle tour of the county Kerry (beautiful - highly recommend) which averaged about 50km per day, so although I wasn't running, I was still conditioning.

I ran 10km yesterday - very slowly with Cynthia. We did it in about 1 hour 5 minutes. The week before I ran 8km with Stefan in 45 min. Quite a difference! I don't mind going slow, though, because I know that will help me avoid injury. This Sunday is going to be the true test of knee and the rest of my body as we are running 23 km. I'm completely breaking the 10% rule (don't increase more than 10% each week in mileage or speed). Oh well. Can't be helped, now that I have this slacker mentality when it comes to marathon training.

2005-06-30T11:07:00.000-05:00

[10k]
I ran 10 k last night in sweltering heat. Luckily, my apartment is a sauna, so running in the heat hasn't been too bad - it's just nice to get out into a breeze. The group I ran with took some nice paths north of the city. I ran with a woman who would like to run her first marathon in September. We chatted the whole way and I managed to fill her in on all the sordid events of my life in the past year. I warned her that when we get up to 25k, she's going to have to become pseudo-family since she will know me so well.

As for the run itself, I'm still not sure I'll be able to handle the training. My knee is definitely injured. I took Ibuprofen before the 10k run - and that's definintely not a good practise. I won't do it again because I know how important it is to listen to your body - and that the pain is there for a reason. I might double my dosage of Glucosamine however...

2005-06-26T10:01:00.000-05:00

[13 km]
Full steam ahead. It's a really hot day, and I think this is going to be a challenge for me since I'm used to training in cold temperatures. Actually, I love the heat, so maybe it won't be such a difficult challenge. I haven't learned the routes yet, however, so it's important for me to stick with the group. Luckily, the group I ran with today knows what slow actually means. It's good to be running regularly again. I haven't registered yet, but I've decided to train for the Toronto International Marathon instead of the Waterfront marathon. This gives me an extra month to train - which at this point I really need. The marathon is on October 16th.

2005-06-02T05:51:00.000-05:00

Well, I was in Ottawa on the weekend for the 2005 National Capital Marathon. No, I didn't run in it, but I did use it as motivation to get me back into running. It seems to have worked as I have signed up for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in September. Knees could be a key factor in putting a halt to the training, but only miles will tell...

2005-03-01T17:57:00.000-05:00

It's been 2 weeks since my last run. I guess I fell off the running wagon. I was in a bit of a funk due to Valentine's Day. Also, I was busy on the weekend moving my furniture...So, I just developed a bad attitude and said no, I don't want to run...I don't want to train for a marathon either. I'm trying to get out of this funk - and I did run today (6km) and it felt great. Hopefully, I'm back in action. I'm not sure that Ottawa is in my reach now, though. Actually, I'm not sure it would be a good idea to go back there - I think that might be one reason why training is easy to resist. A fall marathon is starting to sound like a better idea.

2005-02-15T06:31:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a rest day after the long run on Sunday. Today is a tempo 6k and I'm up early to get that done. I'm glad I'm running today. It's going to feel good to sweat and get my heart pounding fast. Yesterday was hard - being Valentine's Day and all.

The weather was horrid - freezing rain all day long - it reflected how I feel inside. He called me and we chatted for a while. I was glad to hear his voice even though I know it sets me back a bit towards missing him. This weekend is going to be realy tough. I'll have to get my long run out of the way on Saturday because I have a moving company meeting me in Guelph at 9am on Sunday.

2005-02-13T23:17:00.000-05:00

[13.6k outside]
I had a great run today. The weather was perfect, and the roads were dry. The birds were singing to me out on the county roads in Delaware. I did 10 and 1s and I felt strong for the whole distance. One thing I do need to start paying more attention to is my diet. I need to focus on meat. For me, getting enough iron has always been difficult, so if I try to sneak in as much meat as I can, I should be okay. Finding the time to cook a proper meal is another problem...but it's probably more of an excuse.

2005-02-10T18:15:00.000-05:00

[10k on treadmill at 10.4/h]
I had a good run today on the treadmill. I think 10k is probably the max I would ever try to do on a treadmill. It's almost mandatory to use the mp3 player AND to ensure the right songs are loaded up on it. Some people think treadmill running is torture. At the gym where I run, there are about 20 treadmills lined up and they are usually quite busy. Having this many people running at once like this, almost always guarantees for a humorous mishap here and there - good entertainment. I haven't fallen off yet, but shirts tied around my waist have gone flying.

The knee seems to be holding out so far. This weekend will be a bit of a test. I won't be running tomorrow, but I'm going to try to do 16k on the weekend. I would imagine that my knee will let me know after that run whether it wants to continue pushing through with this training.

2005-02-08T23:08:00.000-05:00

[6km on treadmill at 10.9 k/h]
A good run today. My knee feels good. Weight training yesterday must have helped strengthen it a bit. I'll keep up the weights. I'm getting more comfortable with a new running style that involves bringing my hips down and straightening my back. It's a bit tricky to run like this and I have to conciously think about it, but as I say, it's starting to feel a bit more natural. I'm hoping this will help the knee problems. Tomorrow is a 10k - but I might have to skip it as I haven't been sleeping well. The running is helping to keep the sadness at bay - but once in a while it wins out.

2005-02-06T22:17:00.000-05:00

My friend's fiancee had to cancel our ski plans on Saturday because she had to take her fiancee to the hospital where he had emergency surgery to remove his appendix. I decided to do my long run on Saturday - but this was only 10k. My knee is acting up again, I'm afraid. I don't know if it's going to be able to take me through this again. I'll try some weight training tomorrow to see if it just needs a little strengthening. I figure if it aches at 10k - I'm in trouble.

2005-02-04T19:33:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday I ran 6km faster than I intended to. That's the tricky thing about treadmill running - I tend to set it to a certain speed and try to keep steady for the whole distance. I ran this in 33 minutes. I know I was probaby running that fast last year, but I was also in a lot better shape last year! Maybe it's a good sign. I won't be running again until Sunday and I think I'll run with the Guelph group again. I'm not sure if it's 10k or 13k. I'm supposed to run 6k tomorrow but I'll be skiing tomorrow (if the snow has not completely melted), so that should suffice.

2005-02-01T18:27:00.000-05:00

I was supposed to run 6k today - but didn't. Sore legs made it easy to talk myself out of running - that and some tedious errands that I had to do. Hopefully, I'll have no excuses tomorrow. That's all I have to say today - just wanted to confess my sin.

2005-01-31T16:55:00.000-05:00

I ran 10k on Sunday with the Guelph group. It was good to be back in Guelph - although very emotional too. The group has been running regularly, so I lost them in the end - nonetheless, I'm glad I finally got outside for a run. The cold temperatures have been preventing me from getting out. With what's been going on with me personally - it helps so much to get out and run my guts out - I need to feel the aches and pain in my legs and lungs because it takes away from the pain in my heart.

2005-01-18T11:56:00.000-05:00

Hmm...A bit of a false start with my training program. It looks like this is going to be harder than I thought, in terms of getting motivated. I don't have the encouragement and support that I had last year from my number one fan, so training is going to be much more difficult. I did find out that an old high school friend who first inspired me to do a marathon is planning on running the Ottawa race this year - so that has got me picturing myself there again. Another "running librarian" who I work with is also planning on running this race, so hopefully the two of them will get me off my butt (I haven't run since my last post).

2005-01-04T16:21:00.000-05:00

[6k treadmill - 35 min]
A new year and a new marathon to focus on. My knees might not be able to withstand the training this time around, and if that is the case, then I might have to throw in the towel. I haven't maintained my running mainly due to the knee problem I developed after the 2004 marathon. It still twinges a bit, so I'll be taking it slowly with lots of hot tub remedies.

Instead of focusing on the end goal this time around (aka the marathon), I will be using my running as therapy (for some personal difficulties). I'll let you know if it helps. The marathon that I'm probably going to run this year is the Forest City Marathon on May8th, 2005.

2004-06-02T10:31:00.000-05:00

I did it!
You can read all the gory details here:
http://www.lib.uwaterloo.ca/~cbransto/marathon.html

This blog will be on hiatus until my next marathon...[hopefully in 2005 sometime]

2004-05-26T11:37:00.000-05:00

I got a really inspiring email from Caroline - a "go get 'em girl" type of message that has me completely excited now. This morning I ran 5 easy km on the treadmill at the YMCA. While I was running I lifted up my arm and a muscle in my back went into spasm. It hurts when I take deep breaths. Hopefully, this will go away by Sunday. Needless to say, I don't plan on doing anymore runs because I don't want anything else to go wrong. Our group leader sent out some bad news this morning telling us that Jim won't be running with us on Sunday. He broke two ribs in a fall while working on his boat this past weekend! Talk about bad luck. I feel really badly for him. He was one of our best runners and was planning on qualifying for Boston at the Ottawa race. He was also very encouraging and gave good advice to the not-so-good runners (that would be me). Of course, now I'm paranoid about injury too - so today was my last run before the marathon. I'll do some swimming, and maybe some cycling, but that's it. Here I go.

2004-05-24T07:34:00.000-05:00

I'm getting very nervous now. It's now 6 days away. I was feeling like I'm not prepared, but then I ran 16km on Saturday and that helped because it was really easy (I think I could have done the marathon that day). I'm focusing on carbo-loading - but have to watch that I don't just choose breads and pastas and starches. I bought a pineapple, oranges, apples and strawberries to tempt me to the healthy carbs. I also started packing my race bag (petroleum jelly, cliff shots, granola bars, vector bars, sunscreen...) I guess you could say I'm getting excited too! Hopefully there won't be tornadoes next weekend like there was this past weekend.

2004-05-19T12:06:00.000-05:00

I actually chose not to run yesterday (first missed Tuesday). I cycled instead. I think this is what is expected during the taper period. My body is feeling tired. I think I'm coming to the end of my training rope, so I'm going to listen to my body and take it easy. One more long run to go and that's the marathon. This Saturday it's 16km - which won't seem like much at all. I do feel a little like I'm getting out of shape, but I think that's because my body is feeling overworked - so the rest should actually revive me.

2004-05-14T09:02:00.000-05:00

[Easy run on a wooded path]
We've begun the taper full force and boy, does that feel good. For some reason, it makes me feel a little nervous, but I think that's normal. Most people worry about getting out of shape during the taper period, but I'm going by the book since it's worked for me so far.

I'm staying in Guelph this weekend, and Sunday's run is a nice easy 23k. I'm so glad the weather has warmed up, although, running in heat is not easy - in fact, it is more stressing on the body. May 30th in Ottawa could be hot or cool, I probably won't know until the day before :)

2004-05-09T15:52:00.000-05:00

[32 km in 3hrs 25min]
I completed the furthest distance of our training program and live to talk about it. It turned out that a few people from our group wanted to do the 32k today, so that made it really nice because they actually did it slow and ran with me today. Near the end Jennifer & Mike pulled away, but then they had 2 glasses of champagne waiting for Ken & me when we hobbled down the sidewalk to the store. It was a nice feeling finishing this run because it's all downhill from here as we begin to taper down our mileage. Hard to believe the race is 3 weekends away now. I'm going to treat myself to a massage this week for completing the 32k. I'm pretty exhausted right now and I'm not recovering as well as I did last week and my legs are very restless and achy. Ibuprofen is doing it's work on me right now and I feel very comfortable and sleepy now. I think I'm not recovering as well because we ran out in the country and I had nowhere to fill up my water jug half way through. I seem to need more water than most (I'm a sweater). The run itself was gorgeous. Quiet country roads and we were lucky enough to see 2 young eagles!

The people I ran with today discussed the possibility of going to Mississauga next weekend to cheer on some members of our clinic who have selected to run this marathon. We might hop in the race to run our 21km and then head to the finish line to cheer on the others. I told them I will go, but I guess I'll know by Thursday what the plan is.

2004-05-05T18:10:00.000-05:00

I had an ultrasound done on my knee today. I didn't really feel it was necessary, but since my doctor had asked me to do it, I did. The radiologists couldn't see any tears in the pictures, but they told me that I have a Baker's cyst at the back of my knee. I researched this on the internet and says that these can often be caused by "meniscal cartilage tears" in the knee. That doesen't sound good...but I'll wait to hear what my doctor has to say (if anything) when she sees the pictures.

Our group leader is also running 32km this weekend, so it looks like I'll have someone to run with. I'm not sure this is a good thing, considering how emotional I was from the pain of the 29km run...then again, maybe that wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been alone. Either way, I know I'll be thinking about my Grandpa a lot on this run who passed away yesterday, so I'm not going to worry if I get emotional - pain won't be the only reason for that.

2004-05-02T07:05:00.000-05:00

[26km on Saturday]
I did another long run on Saturday. My knee feels a little strange...not sore, though. I'm scheduled to have an ultrasound for it on Wednesday. I still have the crunching feeling when I touch the side of the knee and bend it, so that seems like it might be cartilage damage. As long as there is no pain...

Next weekend is going to be tough. It's my first 32k distance and only 10k off the marathon distance. This will be the furthest I have gone ever. I told Steve I'm going to need his support on this run, so I think I'll ask him to meet me halfway on his bike to finish the last 10-15km with me. Only 28 days away!

2004-04-27T12:53:00.000-05:00

[6km in 31 minutes]
Steve's parents bought me a copy of Hal Higdon's marathon book for my 30th birthday (very thoughtful of them). In Hal's training program he recommends only running 32km once through the 18 weeks of training and that's exactly what I was going to have to do on my adjusted plan, so I'm very relieved. I think I'm just going to follow Hal's plan now instead of the Running Room course. I'll keep going to the Thursday night sessions, but Hal doesn't recommend beginners do speed work, and that's what the group is doing now. I'll just do 80% of what everyone else does.

Another discovery I've made is...I really do notice when I've had crappy food to eat. What I mean is, my workouts suffer and I don't feel as good while running when I haven't eaten well. For instance, last night I ate a certain food that goes by the nickname "red hots" and tastes good with relish and sauerkraut...So, I've decided that the month of May is discipline time. No more beer, no more crappy food. I'm going to be low-key all month and try to get as much sleep as I can. All said, I'm sure this won't be as easy to pull off. Hal's book should help to keep me focused.

2004-04-25T13:45:00.000-05:00

I did it! 19km with no pain. Well - no "unsual" pain, that is. Yesterday was a perfect day. Full sun, perfect temperature. My knee seems to have strengthened and was able to carry me the distance. Stretching and weight training has become my number one priority during my training. My knee could easily succumb to injury again, so I have to be very careful.

Thursday night we had a very inspirational speaker - Lisa Bentley (Canadian triathlete - recently won the Austrailian Ironman). The things she said to us were exactly the things I needed to hear. She spoke of injury as being a good thing because it gave her the opportunity to try new & better training methods (cross-training). Lisa goes by a philosophy that attitude is more important than fact. I like that and I'm going to use it.

I'm a little worried about being behind in the training. I've made myself a modified plan. I've missed two of the longest runs (32k each) and I have yet to do a 32k run. I'm only going to be able to one of these long runs. Some people in my group are planning on going beyond 32 to get closer to 42 (the marathon distance). I just don't have time for this, unfortunately. I can't jump back into far distances because then I'll be sure to do damage. There is a 10 percent rule that says you shouldn't increase your distance more than this each week. I'm already going to have to break this rule on my modified plan.

2004-04-22T12:35:00.000-05:00

I ran 5.4 km on the treadmill with no pain! I'm still very cautious. Yesterday I was going to run 5km but I had this itchy feeling deep within my knee, so I immediately stopped and hopped on the stationary bike. I'm afraid I'm going to be very nervous when I run now. I've decided that this weekend will be the ultimatum run for my knee. If I can't do 15km without pain, then I won't be able to continue the marathon training...well, I can continue training, but it won't be for the marathon on May 30th - it will have to be for another marathon, perhaps in the Fall. If I don't experience pain this weekend, I'm going to move forward with the training schedule (and hope that the injury doesn't return). Of course, with 3 weeks lost, this means I'm probably going to feel absolutely awful during and after the marathon. [This is intentional negative thinking to prepare myself for the worst case scenario].

2004-04-20T10:32:00.000-05:00

Day 16 of my injury and I'm happy to tell you that I was able to run pain free this morning! I only ran 3 km on the treadmill but there was no pain. I felt great and finally got to experience that cardio workout that I've been missing. I wanted to keep on going, but I don't want to push myself prematurely and risk re-injuring myself.

Pain-free running aside, I still don't know if I'll be able to run in Ottawa. I'm going to take it slow this week and ease back into running. That leaves me with only 3 weeks to train for longer running. I'm not sure if that will be enough - but as long as I don't re-injure and feel fine on May 31st, I'm going to try to run it regardless of the fact that I haven't put in the mileage that the Running Room recommends. I'm sure I'm going to feel like hell, but it will just give me insentive to improve for my next marathon.

2004-04-15T12:04:00.000-05:00

It's day 11 of my injury and I'm still not able to run. I've been swimming a bit and lifting weights, but I am craving a good cardio workout where I soak my clothes with sweat. I see people running and I'm envious. I even had a dream that I was running barefoot and free of pain down our carpeted hallway at work. I tried jogging this morning on the treadmill but I had to stop when my knee screamed at me. It's depressing. As each day ticks by my anxiety level rises as it seems more likely I won't be able to run the marathon.

I had a message from Caroline from Sweden. She is doing well and has been very lonesome on her 30k runs. I told her that she should start up a Running Room in Sweden.

2004-04-10T08:26:00.000-05:00

My worst fears have come to be. I injured my knee last Sunday during the half marathon in London. I'm not exactly sure how I did this, but I think it was a combination of: 1) using new orthodics throughout the week but not on the run, 2) very cold temps and no warm-up, 3) pushing myself to go a bit faster, and 4) a trail I hadn't run before with a lot of small ups and downs. I've been icing the knee and haven't run at all. I'm feeling like I'm getting very out of shape since walking has even been painful and I haven't tried to do any other kind of exercise. This may prevent me from being able to do the Ottawa marathon...I'm hoping it will heal quickly, but my training is definitely going to be set back and I don't know if I'll be able to catch up. I think the injury I have is Illiotibial band syndrome (pain on the outside of knee and when I bend it). I'll talk to Dr. Murdie and maybe see my GP too.

2004-04-02T15:59:00.000-05:00

Ran hills in the dark in a cold misty rain last night. We did 8 hills. Our hill is a bit of a joke, though. It's not very steep - but do you think I'm going to complain to the others about this? Not on your life. I've been feeling guilty lately about missing runs...But then I heard others say they are going to drop down to 4 days of running now that we've launched into super-long runs.

At our Thursday meeting, I heard some interesting stories from the "Around the Bay" race that many of the group ran in. One poor girl ran in her new orthodics and developed a very serious blood-blister on the bottom of her foot. She also stepped in a pot hole with the same foot and broke her baby toe. Because she had been in so much pain from the blister, she just kept running with the broken toe and actually finished the 30km race! They took her to the hospital shortly afterward. She's off for a week but plans to get back at it after that. Somebody made the comment that "there is a difference between Rambo and Nimbo". Laura reported that after the 30km she developed severely swollen fingers. I found this interesting because I too experienced this. I think it's just a hydration issue and I'm going to work on avoiding this. We learned that sports gels might be the culprit since they require extra fluid for digestion (I had taken one and Laura had taken two).

I'm running a half marathon with Jen this Sunday in London. It's what she's been training for, so we probably won't actually run it together (she'll be striving for a good time and I'll just be striving). I'm nervous about the whole race environment -- but that's the reason I'm doing this so I won't be so naive when I go to Ottawa. I'm off to Kingston for work next week and I might consider running with the Running Room people there.

2004-03-28T15:52:00.000-05:00

I feel a little slammed today. The 29k alone was an adventure. I found it very enjoyable for the first 20k. I was well fueled - had gatorade and a power gel which I find really easy to eat while running. My timing for passing the McDonalds was perfect - not so I could grab a burger, but so that I could refuel my water jug and use the washroom. The last 9km were a completely different story. The last 3 were particularly painful and emotional. This is the first time I've let emotion play into this - and maybe if I hadn't been alone, that wouldn't have happened. My legs ached like crazy for the last 3 km, and for the first time I had the thought, "I might not be able to finish a marathon". If it had been today, I don't think I could have run an extra 13km. I guess that's why I found today a bit emotional. Since I'm working this afternoon, I was in a bit of a panic about the amount of pain I was in when I got home after the run, but I have now learned that Ibuprofen works like magic. Maybe it was the pill that took away the pain (maybe stretching helped), but I'll definitely be taking it with me on May 30th. I must say that I do feel very proud of how far I went today. That's a good feeling and hopefully it will be a good bargaining tool with myself next weekend when I have to run the same distance :) --I should mention that I did the run in 3hrs and 12 minutes (right on our club's goal pace).

2004-03-27T12:20:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is going to be a challenge. Not only will it be the furthest run yet, but I'm getting up extra early to do it and I'll be running the 29km alone. Most of our group is running in the "Around the Bay" race in Hamilton. I couldn't do this with them because I have to work in the afternoon - another reason that Sunday will be a challenge. My goal for today is to stay hydrated. I'm skipping my Saturday run. I walked Charity to work through the woods and that took about 45 minutes, so that should suffice. It's a wholesome pasta dinner tonight! I'll need that carb energy tomorrow.

2004-03-21T14:11:00.000-05:00

Just finished another long run. It was hell. The wind was ferocious. It made the run feel like it was all uphill. This was supposed to be our "easy" week since we've dropped back to 19km. My body feels very stiff and uncooperative. I guess that's why the program eases off at this point. I think everyone in the group is feeling beat up. Ah well, enough complaining... next Sunday it's 29km, so that should be fun.

A guy in our group was hit by a car today. He's okay (although he'll probably be feeling the pain of it tomorrow). The car was turning right and the driver was looking left as Mike came upon him and he turned right into Mike. The driver didn't stick around ...so it was kind of a hit and run. The lesson for today is... always make eye contact with drivers.

2004-03-17T15:36:00.000-05:00

The Sunday run is a bit of a blur. I am learning what "auto-pilot" feels like. In the afternoon following the 26k run, stairs made me angry. I also learned what "chaffing" means -- the hard way, unfortunately. I just got a few scrapes where my bra strap goes - didn't feel it at the time...I guess I'll have to invest in some petroleum jelly.

It was my last run with Caroline, so that was a bit sad. We exchanged email addresses and I told her I would keep her updated with what we learn and how the runs go from here on in. I told her I would not write to her immediately following the Ottawa marathon since the Stockholm marathon is a week later and I wouldn't want to scare her with any possible horror stories.

On Tuesday I was lucky enough to run a beautiful road in Bracebridge by the Muskoka river. Steve tried to come along since "it was just 6k"...and he lasted for 2 - but it was nice to have company in unknown territory.

2004-03-08T09:40:00.000-05:00

The hill training went well - but we add a hill each week...
Some jerks stole some clothes from members in our group. We figure they must have passed us in a car as we were sprinting up the hill and then just grabbed the stuff that people had left in the ditch. The nerve! I don't know why, but non-runners in this town seem to have a chip on their shoulder towards runners.

Sunday's run (23 km in 2:46) was huge. I think I have an inkling of how I'm going to feel on May 31st. My whole body is sore and exhausted. I slept for 10 hours yesterday. I probably shouldn't have washed the kitchen floor and cleaned the bathroom after running 23 km. Oh well. My pace partner, Caroline was back and I was glad. Unfortunately, next Sunday is her last Sunday as she will be moving back to Sweden! She's planning on doing the Stockholm marathon, so I told her we'll have to exchange email addresses to let each other know how we did. After she leaves, I suppose I'll have to pick up the pace and try to stay with the fast ones.

2004-03-04T11:49:00.000-05:00

I'm scared. Tonight we begin "hill training". I'll let you know how it goes. Wednesday's runs have become easier (8k) since now I switch the Wednesday with the Thursday (our guide book has hill training on Wednesdays, but our group wants to do these together on Thursdays).

Something odd is going on with my hip. It feels better and I don't know why. Dr. Murdie adjusted me a week or so ago, but I had my doubts about her diagnosis. I was certain I have bursitis, but she thinks it might be piriformis syndrome -- which involves a tiny muscle in the buttocks. Anyway, after her last adjustment I thought she was wrong because the pain didn't go away; however, I have been doing the chair stretch she showed me and today I think she is right because the pain is subsiding for some weird reason. Although, I suppose this could also be the calm before the storm...I hope not...Anyway, I've decided to trust my chiropractor. She is the professional, afterall.

2004-03-01T09:35:00.000-05:00

Well, Sunday's run was amazing. I ran the furthest I've ever run in my life - 20km. The weather was perfect - Spring-like. I think I actually had the "runner's high" after I finished. It lasted for quite a few hours on Sunday. Having that good feeling is definitely incentive for those long runs. Next Sunday is 23km...This is going to be a hell week because we are beginning hill training on Thursday and everyone says this is brutal. Looks like from here on in, I'll be breaking distance records each Sunday.

I found a quote from an ultramarathoner that explains that "schizoid" feeling I've been having with my body. My attitude has been: "body, if you just get me through these next 10km, I'll be kind to you and let you soak in the hot tub at the Y..." Here is Yiannis Kouros' take:

"Some may ask why I am running such long distances. There are reasons. During the ultras I come to a point where my body is almost dead. My mind has to take leadership. When it is very hard there is a war going on between the body and the mind. If my body wins, I will have to give up; if my mind wins, I will continue. At that time I feel that I stay outside of my body. It is as if I see my body in front of me; my mind commands and my body follows. This is a very special feeling, which I like very much. . . It is a very beautiful feeling and the only time I experience my personality separate from my body, as two different things."

I took this from : http://www.lehigh.edu/dmd1/public/www-data/sarah.html

2004-02-28T13:15:00.000-05:00

I'm visiting family & friends today in Delaware and wasn't able to do my normal 6k run. I did go for a nice long walk with Lisa though. Not having put in the mileage I was supposed to, I'm feeling a bit worried about tomorrow's 19km. Maybe it's good that I'm letting my hip rest a bit...although I do think it's going to take more than 2 days to heal properly. Hopefully, it will hold out for 12 more weeks. The weather has changed so the run tomorrow should be fun - it's going up to 6 degrees! Spring is coming!

2004-02-26T13:39:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was tough. I ran 10k on the treadmill and it was supposed to be at "tempo" pace. I don't really know what this means (although they have a very detailed description of it in the guide book - but I guess I'm dumb). I treat the "tempo" run as a pace that I wouldn't even attempt on marathon day. I guess I should call it the "as fast as I can go" pace. I wasn't able to run continuously for 10k at the 7.5mph pace I set for myself. This is my new goal - to do it straight with no walking breaks. It's becoming more difficult to run on a treadmill now that I know what it's like outside (more to distract you). The hip pain is getting a bit worse so I'm off to see Dr. Murdie tonight for an adjustment and some orthodics. Jen (who I see as my co-trainer) is in rough shape. I think she's getting down because of an injured ankle that has side-lined her for the past week. I know I'm going to feel the same way if this hip of mine forces me to take a break. One good (or bad depending how you look at it) thing that I discovered is that Ibuprofen seems to fix it temporarily...

2004-02-22T16:48:00.000-05:00

Sunday...the long run. Well, I was a bit worried about today's long run (16km) because Steve and I had been at a wedding in Toronto and didn't get to bed until 3am. So, I decided to experiment with food before the run. Today I had 3/4 of a banana, half a Vector energy bar and a cup of tea with a large helping of honey. This was great and I think it's going to be my marathon breakfast. My usual pace partner didn't show up today, so I decided to see how long I could stay with the others (aka the fast runners). I finished the 16km in 1 hour and 34 minutes - a big difference from last week's 1 hour and 41 minutes. I'll have to be very nice to my body tomorrow on my day off. The whole nutrition thing has been challenging. It's interesting how food has become fuel now and I'm discovering what fuels the machine works with best. This might be on the "too much information" side of things, but it's fascinating how "regular" running has made me. I think my slow metabolism is finally getting a kick in the butt (so to speak) - and moving into high gear.

2004-02-20T09:03:00.000-05:00

Ran 8 easy km with the group last night. The weather was nice (about -7 I think) and I felt great. I think my speed training on Tuesday and Wednesdays on the treadmill is really helping. Jen tells me that she has injured her ankle and has missed a couple of runs...This is my biggest fear - bigger than thinking about the actual marathon day (although that is still pretty far away and unreal-seeming) -- getting injured...I've got my on-going hip pain but it doesn't bother me yet while I run and I'm treating it nicely. I've been using the whirl pool at the Y religiously and I hope that my body thinks that is a fair trade-off -- I'll push it to the extreme and then I'll treat it with a hot tub soak and massage. So far my body has been happy. --Oh yeah, the group I run with gave me a new nick-name because of the psychodelic tights I wore last night - "Freddy Mercury"...How embarassing...

2004-02-17T15:49:00.000-05:00

February has been a difficult month to know what to wear...So bloody cold! It's supposed to warm up this week (-2 today), so I'll have figure out a new dress code. My very first outdoor run was pretty funny. I had 5 layers on top and 4 on bottom...It was -25 so I was scared I'd freeze to death...I almost boiled to death instead. I must have looked really silly. Luckily, I'm still mostly running on the treadmill (I did 6k today as fast as my stiff legs would take me which meant 6km in 32 minutes). My plan has been to stay indoors as much as possible. I think the others in my running group look down on treadmill running...as though it's not really running...I suppose running on the ground is more difficult, once the snow melts I'll try to do as much outdoor running as I can, but for now, I'm okay with being a wimp.

2004-02-14T22:57:00.000-05:00

Well, it is week 5 of my marathon training, so I thought I would begin a running journal to document the pain and agony. There will be laughter through the tears, I'm sure. I guess, to begin, I'll state my goal: to cross the finish line. Hopefully, this is not too unreasonable for a new runner and a first-time marathoner. We will see. Many of my friends and family think I am a little wacky to be taking this on. I just want to see how far this body of mine can go. The big day is May 30th in Ottawa...I will be just freshly turned 30 and how fitting, the Ottawa marathon is celebrating its 30th year.