"My foot hurts. No really it hurts. This sucks. #$*&@$^(*!!!! Yeah, right here. )*(#^)#&^@!!!! I can't believe this. This is going to be the worst run ever. I'm not running. $@^&$%(!!!!! OK, let's go."
So that's how our 21-mile run started this morning. This was the last long run before the marathon. I pretty much came to the conclusion that I needed to do this run or I'd have no chance at the marathon. So, off we went.
The plan was to run a 12-mile loop from the Bowdoin field house, stop to refuel and then head out for an additional 9. Simple plan. I wanted to make sure I got enough fuel as I think not getting enough was a major factor in the disaster of the 19-mile run.
First of all, it's hard to describe a long run. It's long. It's the same. Nothing really happens. A ton happens. There are ups and downs.
We started out, and my foot still hurt. It went away...rather it moved. To another part of my foot. It went away...rather it moved. To my other foot. It went away...rather it moved. To my calf. You get the picture, I had various pains moving from one part of my body to another throughout the run. By the last few miles pretty much all the distress had settled into my hamstrings. Not pain, but it was serious work with each step. Gee, running is so much fun!
Not much to report from the first loop. I had a Hammer Gel—Espresso with caffeine!!!!...just like sipping a morning coffee (not at all)—at about an hour in. The view at Maquoit Bay was beautiful, then we began the forever and ever uphill back towards town. It's not a particularly steep hill, but it just keeps going. Following the steep hill, there's a long straight stretch...long...straight...long...long. Can you tell I don't really like this section? Eventually, we made it back to Bowdoin, and the car. I dropped two of the bottles from my Fuel Belt, downed a couple Clif Shot Bloks, drank a fair bit of water, and we were off within 30 seconds.
The next few miles were the hardest part of the run for me. Part of it was clearly psychological. We had just finished what I used to consider a long run. 12 miles. It took us 1:46:30, and we were heading out again? That's not right. The other part was in my legs. They were tired. It was some point in this stretch that I realized that I was in the process of running 30 miles in 3 days...all on the roads. So, perhaps it was all psychological. Luckily for me, the road along this stretch had a smaller shoulder, so we couldn't run side by side. I dropped back a bit. I told D I was jsut "relaxing," but I was mostly just trying to hang on.
Eventually, we reached the dead end at Simpson's Point. The view from here is great. This is where D cheated. Well, she didn't actually cheat. I stopped for a couple seconds to look at the view and get out another gel. (GU, Lemon Sublime...quite tasty.) It took me a long time to catch up. She just kept chugging along as usual, and it took me at least a half mile to get back next to her. It felt like 40 miles.
At this point, we had been on the roads for about 18 miles, and we were both feeling pretty good. We'd been chatting and making jokes for most of the run. But, we'd been on the roads for about 18 miles. ugh. Another .5 mile later, I vurped. Hmmm...that's unfortunate. Then I vurped again. OK, I'm mad. Seriously, this kind of ticked me off. The road narrowed, and I jumped in front so we didn't get run over. The car didn't move over quite as much as I would have liked and that made me even madder. And that was the end of that. I dropped the pace down a bit, and D said, "OK, bye." "I'm just gonna run up front for a bit," I said. But, something happened. I just kept picking it up. I'd told D earlier in the run that if I felt good in last couple miles I was going to "see what was there." I was partially joking when I said it because I mentioned it shortly after we started the second loop. But, I was feeling good, and I just kept dropping it down. I think I ran the last mile somewhere around 7:30. I finished in 3:03:00.
So, yeah, I'm feeling pretty good. Maybe I can do this whole marathon thing. But without question this is the last road marathon I'm ever doing. Running on the roads is bad. My feet agree with me. Hopefully, they'll hold up for another 3 weeks. It's taper time!
Monday, September 29, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The Junk Run
That's not a very good way to describe my run this morning, but that's what I've come up with. D and I did 3 miles this morning on an unexciting loop. We only did 3 to serve as a transition between yesterday's mediumish run and tomorrow's long run. It'll add a couple miles to the week and keep things moving. It was meh. A junk run.
Felt fine, still a bot out of sorts, but it was so short I barely noticed.
Last night, we went out and saw Burn After Reading. It was hilarious. Dark, but hilarious. Brad Pitt was perfect. George Clooney was great. And John Malkovich drops the F-bomb about 50 times in the first 2 minutes. Classic.
Felt fine, still a bot out of sorts, but it was so short I barely noticed.
Last night, we went out and saw Burn After Reading. It was hilarious. Dark, but hilarious. Brad Pitt was perfect. George Clooney was great. And John Malkovich drops the F-bomb about 50 times in the first 2 minutes. Classic.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
The Strange Run and a Whole Pile of Random
This is going to be the most random post I've had yet...and that's saying a lot. What can I say? I was in the woods for over a week, so I had some catching up to do.
First stop on this tour was this afternoon's run. It was really strange. It started with a call to D. "Tell me I should go for a run...whine...whine...whine...whine..." She basically told me to stop being a baby and get out the door. It was raining, and I was running. Overall, I felt tight. I think the best description is not fluid. The plan was to just run 5, but I got to the turn around point and decided to run to the 3 mile point. At the 3 mile mark, I decided to just make it a full loop rather than an out and back. No one likes an out and back. We had driven this loop a long time ago, so I knew that it was about 8. I'm training for a marathon, what the hell is 2 more miles, so I went for it.
By the way, running on the roads is bad. First, it's pavement. Ouch. Second, there are cars, and they often try to hit you. Third, ego. This is perhaps the most dangerous as evidenced by my performance today. The loop ended up being 7.8. I finished in 1:01:45. That's 7:55's. Yeah, I have no idea. I do know that running down 196...sucked...and that I absolutely mashed the last hill. Oh well, I guess it's good that I could do that and have it feel pretty comfortable even when not feeling that great. Who knows? This running thing makes no sense.
So, while I was in the woods the American economy collapsed, which I guess is big news. But, did you hear that Steven Seagal has an energy drink? That's amazing. What's more amazing is that one of the "flavors" is called Asian Experience. I don't know where to begin. It sounds so horrible, I need to try it. Although, it can't be nearly as good as Powerthirst. (Not all language appropriate for all situations.)
(I could watch that over and over and over again...in fact, I have. Powerthirst 2 is pretty funny, too...but even more inappropriate. So, yeah, I highly recommend it.)
Moving on, I heard a great interview on NPR the other night. It really shed a lot of light on U.S. - Iranian relations. I was fascinated...and terrified. I highly recommend it, so here's the link.
Speaking of real stuff, I watched the debate last night. Obviously, I already knew for whom I'll be casting my vote, but I really wanted to hear the two of them squabble. And squabble they did. To me, McCain came off as a big grump. I did think Obama said, "John is right," far too often, but I was impressed with the way he carried himself. I really hope he wins. It would be nice to be proud of a President again. I can tell you that I am definitely watching the Vice Presidential debate. I can't imagine that Palin won't come off like a moron...well, because she is. This isn't particularly funny, because it's so close to the truth.
I told you this post was going to be random. And continue with that theme, I leave you with something hypnotic.
I believe that's what would happen if Brian Austin Green, Crispin Glover and Potsie Webber formed a really "flamboyant" synth pop band.
First stop on this tour was this afternoon's run. It was really strange. It started with a call to D. "Tell me I should go for a run...whine...whine...whine...whine..." She basically told me to stop being a baby and get out the door. It was raining, and I was running. Overall, I felt tight. I think the best description is not fluid. The plan was to just run 5, but I got to the turn around point and decided to run to the 3 mile point. At the 3 mile mark, I decided to just make it a full loop rather than an out and back. No one likes an out and back. We had driven this loop a long time ago, so I knew that it was about 8. I'm training for a marathon, what the hell is 2 more miles, so I went for it.
By the way, running on the roads is bad. First, it's pavement. Ouch. Second, there are cars, and they often try to hit you. Third, ego. This is perhaps the most dangerous as evidenced by my performance today. The loop ended up being 7.8. I finished in 1:01:45. That's 7:55's. Yeah, I have no idea. I do know that running down 196...sucked...and that I absolutely mashed the last hill. Oh well, I guess it's good that I could do that and have it feel pretty comfortable even when not feeling that great. Who knows? This running thing makes no sense.
So, while I was in the woods the American economy collapsed, which I guess is big news. But, did you hear that Steven Seagal has an energy drink? That's amazing. What's more amazing is that one of the "flavors" is called Asian Experience. I don't know where to begin. It sounds so horrible, I need to try it. Although, it can't be nearly as good as Powerthirst. (Not all language appropriate for all situations.)
(I could watch that over and over and over again...in fact, I have. Powerthirst 2 is pretty funny, too...but even more inappropriate. So, yeah, I highly recommend it.)
Moving on, I heard a great interview on NPR the other night. It really shed a lot of light on U.S. - Iranian relations. I was fascinated...and terrified. I highly recommend it, so here's the link.
Speaking of real stuff, I watched the debate last night. Obviously, I already knew for whom I'll be casting my vote, but I really wanted to hear the two of them squabble. And squabble they did. To me, McCain came off as a big grump. I did think Obama said, "John is right," far too often, but I was impressed with the way he carried himself. I really hope he wins. It would be nice to be proud of a President again. I can tell you that I am definitely watching the Vice Presidential debate. I can't imagine that Palin won't come off like a moron...well, because she is. This isn't particularly funny, because it's so close to the truth.
I told you this post was going to be random. And continue with that theme, I leave you with something hypnotic.
I believe that's what would happen if Brian Austin Green, Crispin Glover and Potsie Webber formed a really "flamboyant" synth pop band.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Chugging Along
First of all, I think I need to watch what I write here. I'm upsetting my grandmother. Grammie — I'm doing great. Don't worry. Thanks for the email.
Based on my last post, my grandmother sent me an awesome email. Why? Because my grandmother is awesome. Anyway, along with that email and my run yesterday at the trail running series, I'm feeling better. Still the big test is the long run, most likely Monday. But really whatever happens Monday, my grandmother thinks I'm going to do awesome in the marathon, so I'm going to do awesome. I wish I'd known this before all this training.
Plan for the trail running series was to run a 2-mile warm up and make a decision on whether to run or not and how hard to go. I felt pretty solid during the warm up, so I decided to give it a go. And, as anyone who has ever run a race before, as soon as you're being time, you go for it. But, you can also only kind of go for it. I only kind of went for it. In short, I felt pretty good, but my legs were really tight. My hamstrings especially. I'm not going to say I dogged it from mile 2 to 3, you know, because I was going for it, but I held back a touch. I didn't want anything to explode. I ended up about 30 seconds slower than my fastest and 30 seconds faster than my slowest. Overall, I'll take it.
I had a whole bunch of other stuff I was going to write about today, but I forgot about it. I bet it was hilarious.
Based on my last post, my grandmother sent me an awesome email. Why? Because my grandmother is awesome. Anyway, along with that email and my run yesterday at the trail running series, I'm feeling better. Still the big test is the long run, most likely Monday. But really whatever happens Monday, my grandmother thinks I'm going to do awesome in the marathon, so I'm going to do awesome. I wish I'd known this before all this training.
Plan for the trail running series was to run a 2-mile warm up and make a decision on whether to run or not and how hard to go. I felt pretty solid during the warm up, so I decided to give it a go. And, as anyone who has ever run a race before, as soon as you're being time, you go for it. But, you can also only kind of go for it. I only kind of went for it. In short, I felt pretty good, but my legs were really tight. My hamstrings especially. I'm not going to say I dogged it from mile 2 to 3, you know, because I was going for it, but I held back a touch. I didn't want anything to explode. I ended up about 30 seconds slower than my fastest and 30 seconds faster than my slowest. Overall, I'll take it.
I had a whole bunch of other stuff I was going to write about today, but I forgot about it. I bet it was hilarious.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Worst Run Ever
OK, so that's an exaggeration, but it wasn't far off. Plan was to run 5 miles today, and I had a nice 5.5 mile loop all planned out. From the first step, I felt bad. Nothing hurt. Nothing specific. The running motion just felt uncomfortable, as if I was asking my body to do something it had never done before. I had no energy. I ended up cutting it short and just running 3.5. I came inside and ate a bunch of Pringles.
Upon further review, I'm going to blame lack of fuel. I didn't eat anything less than I normally would today, but apparently, I'm still lacking calories after our hike. That's moderately shocking since all I did Sunday night and Monday was eat. Perhaps, I need to rebuild my ample fat stores. Or, maybe my nutrition sucks in general. I'm not really sure. Either way, I'm packing as much stuff in as I can tonight in hope of reversing this result. Plus, I'm supposed to run "fast" tomorrow in the trail running series. I may just take it easy, but I'll make that decision after my warm up.
Here's the real issue: I'm a runner and am, therefore, neurotic. This was only one run that in the grand scheme of things doesn't make much difference...BUT...the marathon is looming. This weekend, I'm going to do my final long run before the marathon. It needs to go well. It has to. If you remember, my last long run didn't go so well. If I bomb out again, I will have ZERO confidence for the marathon. I'm legitimately freaked out right now.
On a happier note, I need to report that the new Power Bar flavors are SO delicious! Back in the day, I was a huge fan of the wild berry flavor. Apparently, no one else was because I haven't seen it for years. The Berry Blast and Creamy Citrus flavors are awesome. Please send me some.
Upon further review, I'm going to blame lack of fuel. I didn't eat anything less than I normally would today, but apparently, I'm still lacking calories after our hike. That's moderately shocking since all I did Sunday night and Monday was eat. Perhaps, I need to rebuild my ample fat stores. Or, maybe my nutrition sucks in general. I'm not really sure. Either way, I'm packing as much stuff in as I can tonight in hope of reversing this result. Plus, I'm supposed to run "fast" tomorrow in the trail running series. I may just take it easy, but I'll make that decision after my warm up.
Here's the real issue: I'm a runner and am, therefore, neurotic. This was only one run that in the grand scheme of things doesn't make much difference...BUT...the marathon is looming. This weekend, I'm going to do my final long run before the marathon. It needs to go well. It has to. If you remember, my last long run didn't go so well. If I bomb out again, I will have ZERO confidence for the marathon. I'm legitimately freaked out right now.
On a happier note, I need to report that the new Power Bar flavors are SO delicious! Back in the day, I was a huge fan of the wild berry flavor. Apparently, no one else was because I haven't seen it for years. The Berry Blast and Creamy Citrus flavors are awesome. Please send me some.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Shaking Things Out
I had originally planned to take today off after our hiking trip, but I decided to go for a short run this afternoon. Everything was feeling good. It was a beautiful afternoon. And, I was itching to run, since I hadn't run since Saturday the 13th.
The run was pretty good. I ran the "usual" 3-mile loop in the Commons. I actually felt surprisingly springy. That being said, I was definitely tight. I could feel the effects of the hiking in my knees, calves and feet. Nothing serious and certainly nothing unexpected. What was unexpected was the strange feeling my right foot. I had a bit of tingling and slight numbness in a couple toes. I'm attributing it to the overall tightness in my foot. I'm not overly concerned about it, but I'm going to keep an eye on it. And, obviously, I'll will be stretching.
So, overall, I think it was good to get out get this run in. Good for my state of mind, and good to use some different muscles. I'm not surprised about the tightness, especially in my feet, since my boots were on their last legs. They had pretty much started to blow out by the end of the trip, but the hike up and down Katahdin killed them. My left boot was completely exploded on the side, and the right one wasn't far from my toes sticking out. So, I can't imagine that the midsoles were particularly supportive. Again, I'll be stretching, so I'm not concerned. It was a good shake out.
The run was pretty good. I ran the "usual" 3-mile loop in the Commons. I actually felt surprisingly springy. That being said, I was definitely tight. I could feel the effects of the hiking in my knees, calves and feet. Nothing serious and certainly nothing unexpected. What was unexpected was the strange feeling my right foot. I had a bit of tingling and slight numbness in a couple toes. I'm attributing it to the overall tightness in my foot. I'm not overly concerned about it, but I'm going to keep an eye on it. And, obviously, I'll will be stretching.
So, overall, I think it was good to get out get this run in. Good for my state of mind, and good to use some different muscles. I'm not surprised about the tightness, especially in my feet, since my boots were on their last legs. They had pretty much started to blow out by the end of the trip, but the hike up and down Katahdin killed them. My left boot was completely exploded on the side, and the right one wasn't far from my toes sticking out. So, I can't imagine that the midsoles were particularly supportive. Again, I'll be stretching, so I'm not concerned. It was a good shake out.
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