Hills, snow and training partners

Survived the windy trip back to VT pretty well and after a day of getting ourselves settled in got myself back up the hill running. The wind has stuck with us and, along with a few inches of snow, made these last two runs cold ones, but I had lots of company. My college friend, Celeste, came up for two days with her two dogs and so it was a crowd of humans and doggies who went out Tuesday am for 5 miles. I will admit, it was a partial walk run, since pushing Brynny in her baby jogger over snow covered roads still turns any run into a power workout, especially going up hill, but the run parts were good, easier than in October, and it was so nice to run with Celeste again.

Today we did a 4 mile tempo run without Bryn - starting at the other side of the hill (Nate dropped us off), warming up for a mile, going up the "heartbreak hill" training hill (one mile of steep - perfect for training for that 3/4mile of torture!), and then kicking it down to home. Windy and wicked, wicked cold.

Celeste was my training partner when I'd get home to Durham every weekend the summer of 1995. It was such a joy to get out with her on long runs through all of Durham, following trails she knew from mountain biking and skiing, taking a mental and physical break from Brian's treatments, the obvious pain he was in, and the stress it was having on all of us. Those runs always brought me back to home with the strength and spirit to continue whatever support I could offer and is likely part of the reason I've returned to running this year and why the DFMC is such a fit.

I ran my first half marathon, the one I was training for that summer, two days after Brian passed. He ran with me that day...until I hit the wall at 11 miles, then we just laughed as I walked/ran, got some fuel in me, and still manged to run fast enough to take 3rd place in my age group, taking home a yummy apple pie.

Flat

Yup, that's what Minnesota is, flat, at least in comparison to my neighborhood and typical running routes. This is not to disparage any MN athletes either - no way! I know way too many folks from MN who kick my butt! Instead it just allowed me to get in two good runs while we are visiting here over Christmas. There is a nice 5 mile loop on bike paths that I did once on Christmas and then twice yesterday. Yup, did my ten miles - managed to run slow enough for the first 5 to negative split by nearly three minutes the second 5 miles. It was a good run. Now I'm a little tight around the quads and calves, but a few yoga series seems to help and we'll get in another walk this afternoon to make sure I get some blood running through those legs before the flights back to VT.

Hopefully there will be snow still in VT when we get back so we can enjoy some nordic and tele time. It will be a balancing act (what's new?) to get in the ski time and still keep up with the long runs. I'm not really concerned about the fitness part of things - beleive me, nordic skiing will keep me in shape, but yesterday's run confirmed to me that nothing else will do but running for these long runs.

Training and sleep....

November was a month of working out how to work out....I didn't manage a lot of long runs, but did manage to get to the gym or go for a 4-5 miles run at least three times a week. That seems to be doing the trick of getting my base fitness down. I attended my first nordic ski training session last week and I actually felt like I was semi in shape...unlike the last three years.

So I tested the theory that if I went slow enough the base would carry me through a 8 mile run, and it did! Last Sunday I went up and over the hill and back, with just a 4 minute walk up the last 1/3rd of the mile hill on the other side. It felt great, I stretched, took a little vit I, and drank lots of water and I was still walking well come Monday and Tuesday. Hmmmm, this training thing does work. :-)

Alas, this has not continued this week, which started out so well - 35 minutes on the erg Monday, 60 minutes on the elliptical on Tuesday...then the Wed day off extended into Thursday, into Friday, Sat, and now Sun. The reason: no sleep. Somehow Bryn and I have to figure out how to stop getting so dried out every night. We wake up at midnight, mouths dry, Bryn gets a boob, Mom gets more dried out...this goes on every two hours until a final boob at 4 and sleep until 7. Mom wakes up like a zoombie for most of the week and this weekend has been dealing with migraines.

So the plan for this week:
Today - get out for some sort of run 3 to 6 miles or erg 30-45 mintes
M - run/erg 30 minutes, yoga at noon
T - ski training two hours
W - off or erg 30 minutes
R - gym training 60-90 minutes
F - run 45 minutes/Ski training 2 hours
S - downhill ski/off
S - try for 8-10 miles - GMAA run?

Oh boy...and get ready for xmas and bake lots and lots of cookies...chase after Brynna and Hailey too!

Delinquent...

I was reminded today that I had not posted in a while...that same person also kicked me out of my office on Monday and got me back on track running, or at least working out, again. Thank you. I've been hitting my famous 14 day slump...start training for two weeks and then it all goes down hill...that can't happen this time. Too much is on the line.

My long runs are up to 60 minutes and this week I have forced myself to leave work for the gym at 4. A quick 30-40 minutes at the gym and then off to pick up the munchkin...a good deal, I always feel much better coming out of the gym than going in...but it's still hard to remember that when I'm pulling myself away from just "one more thing to do" at the office.

Brynny and I are headed south this weekend. First to NH and then I'll head to Boston for a first timers meeting and run, while Grammy Jane takes care of the bean. It will be a contest to see who is the most tired after that morning! I'm looking forward to meeting folks and getting pumped for a winter's worth of training!

Ugh.

Note to self: a huge plate of salad, pasta, and chicken, as well as two lemon bars and a cider donut to top it off do not a good pre-run meal make. Blah - I just felt sluggish, sore, and out of breath. Too much sugar? My stomach isn't bothered, but my energy levels are just shot. Oh well, I did 30 minutes up and down the hill with a couple of minute long walks to catch my breath. Do feel a bit better though!

Cold and clear right now. The mountain is going to be beautiful as the sun sets on the snow. Gorgeous larches in full fall gold. They nearly sparkle, even when the sun isn't out. I'll try and get a picture before the needles all drop.

The erg...

...is a heck of a lot easier when you have been doing other exercise! 30 minutes today in between the furnace cleaning and getting myself to work. We have 2-3 inches of snow on the ground, but the roads are clear and the electricity went back on at 1am last night in spite of the wind and the trees looking like a winter wonderland. Brynna is fascinated with it. She would not stop looking out the window at all this "white stuff".

It's funny how certain type of workouts bring out the thought process. I've got a good sense now how I'm going to approach the fund raising side of things and manage my seemingly long list of folks to contact. Bits and pieces of my funding raising letter are coming together as well....hmm, maybe I should keep erging?!?

Snow....

So as I'm writing this the first real storm of the season is snowing down on us. Hopefully we won't lose our electricity this time - these October storms are notorious for that - leaves still on the trees, heavy wet snow and hard winds make a perfect mix to take down power lines!

Not exactly weather for running, but I'm at home tomorrow to wait for the boiler guy to do his annual cleaning of our furnace and I'll try and get out for a run then. It's yet again been a busy, crazy week and in spite of best efforts, I still have not put my work down and gone for a run at work. This has to change, if only to give me a bit of variety in the running loop!

Back to the weekend where Sunday my long run was 50 minutes - likely a little over 5 miles. The hill is getting easier and easier...or maybe I'm just getting better at pacing myself. It was a glorious day and I was baby and dog free - a bit of alone time, me and the road.

Typical week...

Lots of meetings, family time, and just plain not making the time for running Tuesday through Friday. Did though bring this up with my two bosses (two runners, one a DFMC alum) and have their permission to run during the day...so there is really no excuse, just my workaholic attitude and making time for it no matter how busy I am that day.

With that said, the running so far is making in roads. Today's 30 minute run up the road (aka hill) was paced better and I made it to the top feeling strong and ready to go further. That will be tomorrow's run....if the hill isn't blown away by this wind. We are getting our usual October storm, just this time, there is no snow and ice, just wind and rain, clearing out tomorrow.

Off to plan the week running-wise....

Training so far...

After a week of minimal running (one run on Tuesday pm) I finally got my shoes back on and have run every day since Sat. Tuesday's (10/14) run was a quick 2 mile jaunt up the hill and back with Hailey-dog just before it got dark. Then I did core work and/or yoga every night until I finally got out Sat (10/18) am for 3o+ minutes of what was basically strength training: pushing Bryn in her jogging stroller up and down our hill. I'll admit it, it wasn't all running, only about 23 minutes was, but for those who don't know our VT house and seen our hill...it's a pretty big hill...we pretty much run up hill in various grades for almost a mile and a quarter before it levels out. So up and down pretty much sums up any run under 2 and a half miles....and then when I get out beyond 5 miles we hit the "BIG" hill....it's a mile long and steep!

Sunday's (10/19) run was nearly three laps of a 1.4-1.6 mile loop - the difference was the addition, or not, of a detour to a steep little hill of about 0.2 in length...I ran for 38 minutes before walking probably about 0.4 of the last lap. Good, but I really need to start out slower and then when I tell myself to slow down, I need to slow down...not run faster for the second lap! I completely pooped out on the third lap around....

Today (10/20) I started out aching from a sore throat, stuffy nose, and Sunday's run....it did not forebode a good run, but we (Nate and I) started out slow and I was pretty well warmed up by the time we hit the half way mark and by the last half mile was being told "you're speeding up, you're speeding up"....some miles just have a knack for getting you to run fast!

I'm thinking this cold is getting kicked, so I'm off to start another work week - crazy as usual and I'm afraid it's going to turn into another week of no runs. Not that the core work and yoga aren't good for me, but I do need to get on my feet a couple of times during the week, it's just a matter of finding the time, scheduling the run in, and then doing it. I'm also hoping to extend the training into a few erg workouts to cross train...yet another place where I'm going to have to slow down.

The next steps...

So I've spent the past few days trying to figure out what exactly I'd like this blog to consist of and have come to the conclusion that it's mostly going to be a training log, but as the training goes on and more folks get involved, I'd like it also to be a place of inspiration, and although it's going to be tough, my training is not likely to fit that bill...

I've noticed already that thoughts of folks who have fought their cancer battle, are fighting it now, or have left us have been starting to come around as I run. I've always used my rowing and running as a sort of moving meditation and I think it's these moments that I was hoping to find when I signed up for the DFMC. Too often they get lost in the day to day craziness, no time to sit back with them, with my grief, with my love. With each mile I find a bit of peace, a bit of them, a smile, a few tears.

I hope to try and jot these moments down as they come back to me, but I also hope to have friends and family send me their own too. Long or short, about them or about their fight against this disease, they will be my inspiration and will keep me taking one step after another towards this goal.

Thank you.

So it begins...

Well, it actually began on Friday when I got my acceptance letter from the Dana Farber Marathon Challenge director welcoming me on the 2009 team, continued through the weekend on my first two runs, and solidified itself with a red tailed hawk fly-by as I came down the hill on Sunday's run...I'm training for the 2009 Boston Marathon, my first marathon, and raising as much money as I can for the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Here's the email:

Greetings from the DFMC office,

We are pleased to tell you that you have been accepted to the DFMC 2009 team! Your official acceptance e-mail with additional information will be arriving in the next few days.

Congratulations and many thanks for your enthusiastic participation!

Kind regards,

So the truth is that at the time I got this I was totally torn...I desperately wanted to jump up and cheer, tell everyone about it, but I was also in the midst of a slight pregnancy scare and having visions of an 8 month pregnant Kerry waddling up Heartbreak Hill...that was not going to happen! Thank goodness it isn't - test was neg on Sunday and I went out for my first "long" run...4 miles...oh boy, do I have a ways to go!

Enough for tonight, getting peeps from the support team (DH, DD, and Hailey-dog) and have to get lunch ready for the morning so I can erg.