I ran like a girl and loved it

“It’s the big day, holy cow I am gonna do it!”

Race day morning I woke up a very calm Jennifer at 4am, knowing I had a full 3 hours before the gun went off. Immediately I had my single cup of coffee, cinnamon & raisin bagel and cookies and cream power bar (nasty, I know… I always imagine eggs and French toast myself). Eating that early in the morning is hard enough, but mixing a bagel and power bar = really gross flavor combo. Anyway, I ate, had coffee, and started drinking my water. (I think because I was nervous I drank TOO much water and kept having to use the restroom, maybe it was just nerves though) I took a nice warm shower and really made sure to warm up my super stiff neck. By the end of the shower I could slightly turn my head. Then I started stretching and pacing my room. I decided I needed to go for a walk by myself around the halls to just think about what I was about to do, focus on my accomplishments, why I was doing this today, and really solidify my mental game plan for the race. I was meeting Chipper Sue downstairs at 6am. We needed to huddle at Geary + Stockton at 6:15 for Coach Al's words (which ended up being: “you’re ready ladies, now go do the damn thing!”). I was definitely feeling a little queasy simply because of nerves, but my legs felt great and I knew I was ready, knew what I was going to do, and had a plan to execute it. I wasn't worried about making it to 20, I was worried about the last 6.2 - well really the last 6. I figured it I made it to 26, the .2 would be my rocky at the top of the steps moment.

The gun shot off and it took us twenty whole minutes to get to the start line inching our way step by step in the middle of 20,000+ runners packed around Union Square. It was so crowded and I didn't get to start with my pace group. We just couldn't make it through the massive crowd. I ended up in the 11-12 minute group...and unfortunately a bunch of walkers.



When I passed the start line in front of Niketown I started running, but was stuck behind the mob of people and was kind of forced to go the crowd's pace until it thinned out (ah hem, at mile 11!! Note to self: run a slightly less packed marathon next time). Literally a mile into the run I saw people doing ridiculous things like tripping on a curb and checking out of the race. What? We weaved through downtown buildings until we hit embarcadero and ran along the piers. It's amazing how much that place stinks like sewage, both marine and human…eww. I think because I had so much to drink that morning mixed with how long we stood around, I had to pee already! Frustrated and trying to put off the pit stop, I passed the first bathroom stop at mile 2. Just to keep things interesting they rerouted the course the morning of the event and surprised all of us who had reviewed the course before hand by adding a pretty steep but short hill exiting embarcadero. As we were entering the Marina/Presidio area I was taking note of Marin County to the right and the golden gate bridge with rolling fog blanketing the peaks. There was a bathroom stop at mile 5 and I knew the big bad hill was 6-8, so I decided this would be my one stop. Of course I had to wait in a line for 10 people to go first and this probably took a good 10 minutes. (I ran in place the whole time) From that point I decided no more nervous fluid consumption. Stick to timed sips and alternate electrolytes with water stations. Back to running...at the bottom of the entrance to the famous presidio hill (which actually appears to be a mob of runners scaling a sea cliff wall and disappearing into the woods) Coach Al was waiting in his predictable tri-gear on his bike, ringing his little bike bell nonstop. Chipper Sue and I wave and he says "hey twins, you're ready for this one." fyi - Coach Al, as sweet as he is, wouldn't know me unless I was dressed in running clothes and standing right next to Chipper Sue. Then he wouldn't even know our names, he just calls us the twins. I don't know...he's has seen me three times a week for five months now. The most frustrating part about the hill was the walkers. They would line up like ten people across the hill and swing their arms and chit chat and laugh, literally cruising along in a wall formation. Also, there were so many runners that just flat out stopped running mid hill and walked. I have to add that in this moment of the race I thanked the universe that Coach Al made me run the Redwood Park hills and the killer track drills. Without warning, runners just stopped two feet in front of me and slowed to immediate walk pace. I felt like I was bobbing and weaving through the crowd telling myself to run "through" the hill, not up it, pretending all the walkers were little obstacle cones. We totally made it up the hill, it curved to the left and Chipper Sue wanted to stop at an aid station to tape the top of her foot. So, I jogged in place as she took her shoe off, taped her foot and put her shoe back on. The stop took probably about 5 minutes, but I was still “running” the whole time. Then we jumped back in to another hill through the residential marina area, where Robin Williams happens to live. At this point we were at about 7.5 miles. At 8.5 I saw Natalie waiting at the top of the hill sipping her starbucks and holding the camera ready to take a picture.


Seeing her made the hill quicker and I gave her a run-by hug and kiss and kept on...thinking I would see her again at mile 11 or 16, but I didn't end up seeing her again until the finish line. We finally rounded out of the residential area and came up to the top of Point Lobos (where the cool bathhouse remains are down the cliffs) at mile 10. Just before going down the big hill where Point Lobos turns into the Great Highway I saw my Mom, Steph and Hailey chilling in her stroller. I stopped for about a minute to say hi and give them a hug, then kept going, finishing out mile 10 on a major downhill. At 11, on the Great Highway before we entered Golden Gate Park, I saw a huge line of spectators cheering us on. All the sudden Colleen jumps out and gave me a hug and told me I looked good and said she'd see me later. She asked my pace and at that point I discovered I hadn't been paying attention to my time, but felt I was running at my usual 10 minute pace. I wanted to say 10-minute miles, but everything seemed to start off so slow! Miles 11-16 routed through Golden Gate Park and happened to also be where the halfers split from the fullers. All the sudden it got really quiet and we could just hear our feet, breath and birds. We ran past the bison area, the big duck pond, the water falls…really nice, but again, the whole freakin' park was a gradual climb to about 250 feet. So we looped GGP (the turn around point was at about mile 13), I saw my Dad and Lisa on their segways at mile 13-14, then exited out at 16 onto the Great Highway again. This is the part everyone hates but I love. At the exit point they were playing Tainted Love and there were tons of people so I felt pretty pumped, even though 16 is usually where I start feeling joint pain. I was actually feeling really strong and although in the end my pace turned out slower, I felt like the miles were flying by. The entire time I was running down the Great Highway stretch, I was watching all the early finishers running their last 3 miles of the race. It was cool to see them all really healthy and happy looking, and not all that tired even though they were finishing at what I felt like was warp speed. (So later I discovered some of these people were halfers, but the rest were super-human machine people who finish at around 3 hours. WHAT???) Anyway, I remember chilling out on the highway and reminding myself to just stay in my groove and maintain my comfortable pace, to just relax my shoulders and breathe deeply. I looked around, enjoyed the choppy ocean, the surfers bobbing on their boards, the music and drum circles set up along the course. Then all the sudden I saw mile 19 pass by.


Woah, during Nike Preview run I was literally falling apart at 18 and now I just happen to realize 19 mile marker – so cool! I commented to Chipper Sue how great I felt and how surprised I was. She said she was in a lull and was working on getting out of it at that point. Then we entered the dreaded Lake Merced. (the 4 mile up hill climb around the lake) I kept mentally applauding myself for making it to the twenties, telling myself to stick to the game plan: Start the countdown at 21, minimize the distance and recognize how far you have come...remember everyone says they have a hard time at the end with disorientation, fatigue, etc. I had already decided to dedicate the last mile to Bryan and run that in honor of his current battle. So that meant I only had to get myself from 21 to 25. At 20 is when my legs and glutes started burning. Also, all I could think about was food. My stomach felt so empty and was growling. I was completely out of energy and took my last GU (quick note: I did NOT train with gu, I do NOT like gu and it’s hair gel consistency and I am SO thankful my stomach agreed with my last minute change that day). Then decided that wasn't enough so I took a couple of pomegranate Luna Moons, or little gummies, from a Luna station. At 22 I couldn't feel my arms at all and it was impossible to move my fingers. At one point I reached for a water cup being held out as I ran by and when I tried to grip the cup my fingers didn’t work and I knocked it out of the poor volunteers hand onto the ground. I really think this is because I was so so so cold (approximately 40 degrees and windy the whole race) and the lake area had a constant freezing drizzle. I just told myself I was close enough to not stop, my #1 goal was to run the entire course, to never stop and walk. So…22 sucked. I was next to moving traffic, which just made me feel slower. No one was there cheering, seemed that everyone was giving up and walking. The only thing that kept me going was the anticipated Ghiradelli Chocolate booth posted at the 22 mile marker. I asked her for 2 chocolate squares and ate both of them right away. It was the best tasting chocolate square I have ever tasted. SO GOOD! (funny thing is they were milk chocolate with caramelized almond squares…I HATE caramelized almonds and would never eat them on an ordinary day) Then someone dropped their unopened chocolate on the ground. I picked it up and decided it would be useful at some point. Around 22.5 Chipper Sue told me to go ahead and finish and she would be right behind me. Her leg was cramping up and she didn't want to slow me down. I went ahead and told myself all that stood between me and the home stretch was a mini mountain at 23-24. This is where the extra chocolate came in handy. I never thought I was a girl to do this, but I flat out bribed myself with chocolate. I promised if I crested the hill I would let myself eat the chocolate square. At the beginning of that last hill I saw Coach Al on his bike again, this time by myself, and smiled at him...he looked right past me and totally didn't know who I was. Oh well, I decided to tell myself this was the last hill I would ever force myself to run and I should do it with power and appreciate the strength it takes to run up a hill. I basically dared to impress myself. My quads started quivering half way up the hill, but I was almost there so I kept at it with absolutely perfect form I might add. The correct lean, foot placement, arm swing...it was glorious and exhausting. I ended up not wanting the chocolate bribery after the hill but it worked like a charm for all intents and purposes. I saw the finish line less than 3 miles ahead of me like a target at the end of my good friend, the great highway once again. So for the next mile and a half from 23.5-25 I told myself the reasons I was doing this. "I run for the downhills, I run for the goal, I run for myself, I run simply because I am thankful to be able, I run for the empowerment, I run for self love, I run for my GI Jane moment, I run for the connection, I run for relation, I run for the finish, I run for the release, I run for the freedom…etc" I did this until I couldn't think of any more reasons for a while, so then I started singing the children's song "peanut, peanut butter...and jelly" (I guess because food sounded pretty satisfying.) When I passed the mile 25 mile mark I put my hands up and talked about Bryan and his strength and courage to battle his cancer, his positive approach to enduring his treatment, his recent reflections on mortality and just basically put all my energy and thoughts and feelings onto Bryan. I kept saying "this one's for you Bryan, mile 26 is yours." Mile 26 was the easiest. It wasn't about me and I removed myself from the equation. My legs got me to the 26 mile marker and then it was all me. I saw the pink finish line - although I never knew .2 miles is quite that long - and all the spectators were packed and lining the sides. Everyone was saying my name because it was on my singlet, so it really felt like I knew everyone there, very effective. People were screaming "you did it Jennifer, you are a marathoner" and I thought I might have been floating or levitating. It was quite surreal. Over the recent days I had thought about what I would do when crossing the finish line, Chipper Sue had said she would most likely raise her arms which seems most common. Previously I had thought this was a good idea, but when it came to it, I think I remember dropping my arms and looking up. I guess I will have to wait for the photographs to tell because I don't really remember.




There was a stretch limousine with fire fighters in tuxes holding silver trays stacked with little blue tiffany's boxes all tied up in ribbons, I grabbed my box of course! Then someone cut off my shoe tag. There was a banana shoved in my hand. A blanket wrapped around my shoulders. Then I saw Natalie holding little Hailey waiting for me at the end with hugs. Then Colleen jumped out again and gave me a hug. Then my mom, sister, Dad, Lisa, Chipper Sue's husband Warren, they all flooded me with attention. 15 minutes later Chipper Sue finished and she was crying.

I made my way to the changing area and, while changing into my dry clothes, discovered that my left foot was bleeding from blisters so I made a quick trip to the medic tent for some bandages. I wanted to get a massage but decided the winding lines of women waiting wasn’t worth standing still that long. The food options available at the finisher’s village was more luna (um, no thanks!) or some non-vegetarian selections. All I wanted was a shower… warm water to stop the chills from the salty sweat and drizzle and wind and my glorious victory meal with absolutely zero pasta involved. Because I am not a super human athlete machine, I wasn’t able to finish before we had to check out of our hotel, so I was able to borrow my dad’s hotel room shower and avoid the train ride back to our apartment. After my wonderful shower and quick taping of my foot, we headed to what is the best meal I have ever eaten at the Daily Grill around the corner in union square. I savored every bite of my sourdough grilled swiss and avocado sandwich, coleslaw, fruit cobbler with vanilla ice cream. Upon suggestion from many marathoners I’ve talked to I enjoyed a tall stout bitter dark local beer and of course, kept drinking my water as instructed. (Keep in mind I waited 2 long hours to eat after I finished, other than my immediate banana and chocolate chip cookie, so my stomach welcomed all the yumminess just fine) One of the tips I am most grateful for is to walk at least 2 miles after you finish, stretch your muscles and release the lactic acid with massage. I walked and walked and walked around Union Square that evening, attending the Team in Training victory party and all, and stretched in the shower with the warm water. Also, it is a little handy that I have some massage experience. I began applying my own sports massage to all my major leg muscles and, although tricky, even my hips and glutes as well. The next morning I followed up with the coldest ice bath I have ever endured. I am feeling healthy and ready to run again – maybe not for a week though.


I couldn’t be happier with my experience. It has been amazing. I will definitely do this again, only maybe a slightly flatter course. I finished about 30 minutes slower that I had hoped for (the race took me 5 hours, 15 minutes to complete and I was really hoping for under 5) The important part was that I finished running – the whole time, I feel strong and healthy and Nat even said I finished looking like I could have run a couple more. (I am pleased that I looked that way; however feeling it is a different story.) The support from Natalie through all 5 months, including race weekend, was absolutely crucial. Advice and love from all my family and friends was so very helpful. I will cherish this experience forever, and in the future who knows…I definitely left room for getting a better time on the next one. Far away that is…in the distant, distant future. And currently, I cannot wait to get back into working with athletes, especially endurance, and assisting with their training. It is really where I belong and I know that even more now.

Countdown

Tomorrow is the day. I woke up and the minute I stepped out of bed I felt my neck snap and what felt like electricity run down my spine. I have the mother of all neck cricks. Damn it! Immediately I apply white flower, massage, take aleive, and call the chiropractors I know of. No one is working today. I go by Le Foot to drop in on their pt, he isn't working today. Oh my god, I can't turn my head. So basically from this point, I have to just do what I can for my neck and move on. I start the day by dropping off the dogs at camp bow wow, then we go back and pack up everything we will need for tomorrow. On the way I stop to buy fuel packets...the only ones available are GU brand so I just buy 2 Plain flavor and 2 Vanilla flavor. Different yes, but hopefully I have a stomach for it with my new nuun. I packed my regular bagel for breakfast in the morning and threw in a power bar to eat with it too. Triple checked my race gear, socks, shoe tag, tape for my feet, blah blah blah. I had a whole checklist. Nat and I had to check in to the hotel between 3 and 4, pasta party at 5:30, ice bath before bed and sleep by 9. That was the plan at least. The train was half an hour behind, so we didn't check in until after 4, we raced to the pasta party to be on time, only to wait by the door to be let in, eat pasta (I have had so much pasta over the last few days, I'm DONE with pasta!) and then wait for an entire hour while all the late people filed in and ate also, then heard some wonderful speakers. It didn't end unitl 8pm. I walked back to the hotel and filled my trash can up with ice and made myself sit in an ice bath for ten minutes. It took me almost three hours to fall asleep! Then, I kept waking up every hour. I don't even know what I was so nervous about at that point. All my stuff was set out, my neck was in pain but I had decided I would make it work, and was tucked in a super comfy bed with iced joints and a tummy full of pasta. I was literally counting sheep until I fell asleep. I kept reviewing my memory of the nike preview run, reminding myself I have done everything I need to be prepared, taking really deep calming breaths. I must have done every meditation exercise I know, but it worked and I was really calm the next morning.

Why am I so nervous??

So today I ended up walking around about five miles. My training says to stay off my feet and elevate...hmm? Tonight before going to bed, I will do a ten minute ice bath to prevent any inflammation. The nerves are definitely starting to set in. My dad asked me "I know it's a big deal but you're ready, what exactly are you so nervous about?" Well, good question. I know I have trained, but I guess I am worried about psyching myself out, quitting in the middle, stopping and walking, getting sick - or even worse, injured, forgetting something important and not being able to find it on the course, hot weather...or rainy weather, sleeping past the start time - or worse, not sleeping at all. One thing the coaches have told me to never do is try something new the day of the race. Well...two things actually. I have trained with Gatorade b/c it saved my life that one day at Point Inspiration. When I was in sports basement getting my hand held water bottle holder (which is also a new thing!) the guy said gatorade is too much extra sugar - that it will make my energy inconsistent and could lead to crashing. He said I should do Nuun, which is also what mama lisa recommends, but it tastes like nothing. Opting for the all natural, I buy citrus ginger nuun tabs and fail to buy my lovely power gel double latte packets. This will be the last chance I ever see those again. So I am changing my gear, fuel and electrolytes...sounds like I'm the rule breaker.

Jog and a Massage

Didn't end up jogging on Tuesday, but always wanted to know how effective it felt to do a quick run before a massage...so here goes. I did about three miles, showered and got an hour massage. I definitley had her focus on my legs and hips and found some tension in my calves that she worked on as well. I'm on my way...yikes!

Monday Monday Go Away

Today when I walked into work I was "let go." No, I don't like the term let go, let's just say I was terminated. That sounds more appropriate to the emotions summoned when an encounter like this happens. Not really interested in blogging about it, however it is my race week and I will try to not let nerves or distraction build up and take away from my big day I've been training for. Silver Lining - just more time to prepare for my run. Short run on Tuesday, massage scheduled on Wednesday, ice baths on Friday and Saturday.

Last Run Pre RACE!

Mentor Led run at Lake Merrit...my favorite you know. Yay for goose droppings and crowded gray lake. We were told no more than 6 miles. So Chipper Sue and I lapped it twice, totalling 6.4 miles. Then, we walked to the local farmers market and I found amazing goat cheese tamales and garden fresh strawberries. Not a bad way to start my Saturday. And NO MORE lake merritt...double yay.

Today is Bryan's birthday - Happy Birthday Bryan!

Proof There is Room for Improvement....Later

Track was sad this morning...in the sense that it is my very last one. Coach Al one on one time I have found is something to be cherished. (when I say one on one, it's really like twelve on one time) He spent time telling us we are ready, then he had us partner up and split a mile. We could split either in half/half or flip flop between single laps around the track relay style. Chipper Sue and I chose 400 meter relay style and I went first. We projected our mile time being 10 minutes because this is the pace we trained at all season. Well I felt like I really pushed my pace, and I am not sure whether Chipper SUe felt she pushed, but we finished our mile at 8:30 pace. Which makes me ask myself...am I capable of running longer distances at a faster pace? Not sure, but nows not the time to explore. Maybe after the marathon I can work on speed. For now, I really just want to finish. :)

Tapered Run 2 - Back to San Leandro

The last time I ran this course I was pushing myself to run 7. Woah, that was like a month ago -how cool! Today we ran 10 miles on a relatively unattractive course with dreary weather. After we finished the 10 miles I picked up my team in training packet with my singlet, pre race week info and feel good inspiration from Sybil our honoree. She has officially been pronounced cured after 5 years in remission. YAY!

Buddy Run by Myself

I am actually liking the solo runs now. Bryan started his chemo yesterday. Transitioning back to work was more than uncomfortable. Final fundraising day is this Thursday and I am pretty short. UGH, the run was a cleanse and I found myself stopping at 5 miles and wanting to go more, but it was getting dark and I should stick to my training anyway.

Tapered Run 1

We met at Alameda Ferry Terminal to run 8 miles today. Flat as a pancake - the run was quick and to the point. Felt like piece of cake after twenty last weekend.

Mandeville Canyon Buddy Run with Dad

This week I am in LA while Natalie has come down to film in West Hollywood. For my buddy run I decided to invite Dad on one of our old runs through the canyon we used to do every Wednesday when I lived here. Also the dogs came along and I tried letting rhea off the leash in the canyon for the first time. SO CUTE! We hiked up the canyon about 30 minuts. Then I ran the fire roads, in the past I have struggled on these, and this time I totally kicked the canyons butt, or hills I should say. I really did feel pleased with my hill training after realizing how far I had come today. Poor little rhea quit on me halfway up the hill but jumped back in on my way down. It was so nice to run on soft dirt, be in warm weather and just be back in LA. The run wasn't necessarily a long one (like 3 miles or so) but the hike up and back down was about an hour and a pretty consistently intense incline/decline, so I felt the strength training aspect for the day also.

20 Seems Plenty

Last night we finally got in from the drive home around 10pm. By the time the dogs were walked and we had finally gotten to bed it was around 11. I think I would have been more nervous about 20 in the morning, but my mind was still in temporary shock from the day we were finishing. Chipper Sue had agreed to pick me up in the morning at 6am and we would carpool into the city to meet at Queen Willemena's Windmill where Golden Gate Park meets Ocean Beach. This would be our starting point. Starting time was set at 7am. That's great except that the directions were incorrect and we ended up being 20 minutes late. We began at 7:30. It was raining and pretty cold. After last week, I know I prefer cold over hot so I wasn't bothered. We left Golden Gate Park and started off our first 5 miles all uphill. Oh yay. We ran up around the Presidio into the Marina (past Robin William's house) and I discovered this really cool old bath house at the bottom of this sea cliff we were running over. Note to self: when not trying to run 5 miles uphill, I should really come leisurely check out these cool sites I am running past! We hit a random point marked on the side of the street we were running and were told to turn around and go back to start. Once we got back to GGP, we entered the park and ran along trails past the buffalos, the water falls, the silver pond, tons of Saturday league games going on, then we turned around at the end of the park and ran back the other side towards Ocean Beach again. When we reached the Ocean we turned left and started our shot down the Great Highway. Everyone seems to hate this part of the run because they say it is boring, but I LOVE running along the ocean. Granted, this one isn't warm and sandy, but jagged and rocky and pretty cold. I noticed all the surfers floating on their boards and they gave me a feeling of company out there other than all the runners in their own worlds. We took a left on sloat which directed us past the SF Zoo and down onto the trail around Lake Merced. This is the infamous four mile lake that is always uphill. Physically I don't understand how it can all be uphill, but it is. I thougt I would never find the end of Lake Merced, but finally I was running back past the zoo again and dumping out onto the Great Highway once more for the final two miles. I could see the giant windmill in the distance and it didn't look so far. But my feet felt like cinder blocks, my right knee was burning and Chipper Sue's back was getting really sore. So we reached this point where we looked at eachother and said "no more talking. let's just get it done." For miles 18-20 I looked down at my feet and watched one foot lap the next for two freakin' miles. It felt like forever. The minute I stopped running my body began registering pain. Hips, knees, feet...feet, and my lower back felt like I had been hit with a hammer. They wanted me to eat, but all I wanted to do was put on sweat pants, a jacket and use the restroom. It took us 4.5 hours to run 20 miles. Unfortunately at least half an hour of that was bathroom stops because there weren't port-o-potty's and with several teams training out there today, the few public restrooms through golden gate had huge lines each time. Also, Chipper Sue and I stopped to stretch at least four or five times. Perhaps I didn't prepare well for this run yesterday, with the road trip, not enough hydration, not ample sleep, etc. Also, this run told me I should strength train so much more than I have. Later when I was home and had taken my ice bath, consumed massive amounts of water, eaten almost an entire pizza and slept for a few hours, I took inventory of my body. Three of my toe nails were black and one was falling off, but most painful was my back. My water bottle resting in my fuel belt had created a huge welt on the right side of my spine and was the reason I felt a hammer had hit me in the back. So...nixing the fuel belt and opting for a handheld from now on. (later I discovered my running shoes are half a size too small when my feet swell on a long run, so I bought new shoes and hopefully - toe nail problem solved.)
Tomorrow I ride in a car all the way to LA for 6 hours; making sure to pack my ice packs on my hips/knees and elevating my legs on the dash board. Bring on sappy tunes of Delilah playing on the car radio for hours and too many drive through starbucks lattes! If anything I will distract myself from my current situation during my vacation this week.
Oh, and today is my dad's birthday - Happy Birthday Dad!

Perspective The Day before 20

This week has been a little tough. Timewise it's been difficult to get in training. Work has been really long and last Sunday my step dad Bryan went to the hospital with shallow breath and a very swollen leg. Evidently he has blood clots in his body, which is scary enough, but they discovered nodules in his lungs that seem to have an unfortunate connection with blood clots leading to a scary diagnosis. He has been there all week, going through scan after test after test...and repeat ten thousand times. They came back with results showing a large mass on his liver and several smaller ones in his lungs. Wednesday they performed a biopsy and today they came back with results. Natalie and I decided to drive out and be there for the results. Chipper Sue kindly offered to stop by our house and take the dogs on a couple of walks throughout the day. It's been a while since I've felt the feeling of having a friend there for times like this. The results turned out bleak with stage four colon cancer being his diagnosis. While I was there they removed the cancer from his colon, the mass on his liver is inoperable and chemo has been scheduled for the first of October. The road it seems he so suddenly turned down seems long and difficult with big monster hills scheduled every two weeks for the next six months. I cannot even imagine facing this and I am sad my family faces it now. Cancer is sudden and stealth and horrible and the ugliest thing I've seen. Today Bryan is given news of his diagnosis and chemo schedule, and he sits and talks to me about how I will run my 20 miles tomorrow. The new perspective is at the very least interesting.

YOYO at Marina Bay

Sue and I wanted to switch things up a bit and run a course we haven't yet for our yoyo run today. (your on your own)For some reason we decided to start our run at 1pm instead of earlier in the day, but it was on the water so the heat wasn't so bad. So we started at the Albany Bulb and went up through Pt. Isabel and through Marina Bay until we hit the end of the road, or pier rather, and turned around. Nice quick 10 mile run with beautiful views and refreshing breezes. I can't complain.

Track with ZERO slack

I guess track was so tough today because it's our last one before our big bad 20 mile long run pre race day. Coach Al told us not to worry about the hills on the Nike Preview run (oh, this run is staged for the race course, not exactly but really similar) and then he laughed and rubbed his hands together saying "not after today at least." He was kidding...only not. We ran hill repeats (no drills, only hills this time) in loops like we usually do, only he upped the sets and added in the unthinkable hill, the one my car literally putts up when I park for track. It's the hill that when you walk it to your car, you lean your whole body into a huge lunge to just sclep your body at a walking pace up the damn thing. Yes, he said we must add this hill to our rounds today. Let's just say that I did it of course, but at the expense of my poor right soleus. It worked so hard to get me up that last monster hill of each set that I actually strained the little sucker. For the rest of the day I massaged and iced it. It took a couple of days but was back to good after stretching and massage before the next big run. So this weekend is a run on our own. Next weeked is the big kahuna, well the big nike preview at least.

Chillin' with Patty on my solo run

Today Chipper Sue wasn't available for the buddy portion of the buddy run, so I *cheated* and threw on my ipod and ran solo. Well, with Patty Griffin actually. She wailed and I ran, and together we did 4 miles. It was great, and fit perfectly between leaving work and meeting Nat at Bart to go to dinner.

Not so Sweet Sixteen

SO here we are...the big one six! 40 miles away no less - needless to say my Chipper Sue and I decided to car pool to our run. The whole concept of schlepping in a car (so far that you resort to carpooling)just to run on foot seems foriegn to me. Surely (I thought) the course would be so worth the drive. Like the redwood park, I would have driven an hour just to kill myself on those ridiculous mountains. It was so beautiful! Chipper Sue and I found ourselves ending the driving directions in an oh so ordinary looking suburb neighborhood. Walking up, we found everyone meeting by a picnic table next to a giant port-o-potty. Nice. What was even better was another team joined us and the line for the giant, single hole I might add, was around the friggin' culdesac! Turns out our sixteen mile run was along a dry river bed...get this, on a cement sidewalk! Literally we ran in direct sunlight along an unforgiving hard slab of concrete for four miles out one direction, turned around and ran the same damn sidewalk we just ran (hitting the exact same water stops)for four miles back, pass our trusty port-o-potty, and then do the same thing out the opposite direction from starting point. I was bored, bored, bored. So was Chipper Sue. The concrete and direct sun were so draining and hard on our bodies. Not to mention I was highly menstral, cramping and cranky as hell. Actually, I thought I was IN hell. Both of us stayed strong and toughed it out with as much positivity as we could muster. The last mile and a half was achy on my hips and knees. (After this run entered the realm of taping down my iliotibial band, so genius)When we finished both of us were pretty over the lame course we drove 40 miles to experience, neither of us were hungry enough to eat the grub provided, and opted to not revisit the same gloomy port-o-potty with the neverending line. Big double thumbs down for San Leandro "Alameda Creek" course. Afterwards I discovered big fat blisters on my feet, jumped in a giant triple bagged ice bath (woah, scale back to two next time!) and bee lined it to the taco shack for some yummy fish taco protien. Cross my fingers that 20 miles is better!

Only one kind of push up in my book.

You know, as much as it sucks to wake up in the dark and drive yourself to an hour of hill repeats, this whole AM track thing is really starting to grow on me. No matter what bullshit comes along the rest of the day I know I have kicked some hill butt before 7am and nothing will be more challenging the rest of the day. (hopefully) So this morning we did our routine circuit drills and hill repeats. Just the regular 3 hills with drills in between, for a total of 5 complete sets. I am officially the only girl to do the "boy" pushups. I had a mentor ask why I do them, and I responded that I didn't like the gender specific distinction and I saw only one way to do a pushup; the other is simply a modification to make it easier. The comment wasn't as well recieved as I'd hoped...but they never are. She said "of course they are gender specific, that's why I do the girl ones...because I'm a girl." She didn't get it - or maybe I'm just a push up snob. Either way, I guess my pecs appreciate me in the end.

Good ole buddy runs...

My chipper sue and I met after work at my house and ran around Berkeley for an hour. It's always pretty nice to run out of my front door and finish at my front door. As an unexpected side note, I find I run out the stress of my day before starting my evening at home...good way to keep it separated. :) That, unfortunately, is becoming crucial.

Completing Part Dos

So today I decided an afternoon run at the Berkeley Marina, aka flat breezy run, sounded more my style. I started as Sea Breeze Cafe and ran over the pedestrian bridge, around the large pond, back over the bridge and down the Marina to Chevy's and turned around and ran back. Really simple run, but for some reason I find it so satisfying. This surprises me because I can see the finish line the whole time. Usually this is a little mentally draining, but I guess the salty air, the constant foot traffic, and the sounds of the bay make it soothing. Anyway, I loved it. Finished up slightly over 6 miles and ready to start the evening feeling rejuvenated. Ahhh.

Wildcat Canyon

Today was a YOYO run, so Chipper Sue and I decided to meet at her house and run Wildcat Canyon, which is pretty much her backyard. Little did we know she lives on the "mountainous" portion of Wildcat Canyon, so the hills were immediate and relentless. We also were dodging little snakes here and there basking in the warmth mid trail. Despite the insane heat we pursued, that is until we ran up to Kilimanjaro 3 miles into it. It only took a second for us to look at eachother and say..."not so much, let's turn around." We ended up only doing 6 out of the eleven miles intended. So tomorrow...I finish my run in part 2. :)

Morning Track with a Serenade

This morning I really thought about not waking up at 5:15 and skipping track, but due to my recent laziness I rolled out of bed and went to track instead. I was met with a birthday serenade (where everyone realized that they didn't know my name mid song where you are supposed to say "happy birthday to -insert name-, kinda awkward), and it was really sweet. Track was disappointingly easy. I was hoping for a kick my butt workout b/c I was feeling a little lethargic. Oh well, we ran a couple of miles and stretched. That's it.

Happy Birthday to me...

So this week I decided to turn 25 and be a big slacker. After Mill Valley run last Saturday I haven't done anything up to today (wednesday!);however, I will dutifully attend track tomorrow morning after eating all the mandarin orange birthday cake my stomach could handle. This should prove to be oh so helpful at track in the morning...I'm sure. :) Oh well, the cream cheese icing was so very worth whatever discomfort may come tomorrow.

Over Half Way There!

We ran Mill Valley today. 7:15 am start time. Figures I would be the one who didn't print out a map prior to driving somewhere I had never been at 6:30 in the morning on Saturday. My navigation wasn't working, no map, no one to call (Chipper Sue wasn't answering her phone) and big surprise: I left the house late! Anyway, I arrived and couldn't find a parking spot. Turns out I had to park almost a mile away. I jumped out of my car already running. As I was running up to the large mass of people in the distance already running I started to totally panic. I WILL NOT RUN THIS ALONE! Then I see my Chipper Sue, standing out of the group looking at me and laughing. I heard her say "I kept thinking you better show up!" Whew, Chipper Sue waited. She even hung out for a sec while I stretched my legs quickly. Then we were off, beginning at a middle school soccer field, running through an office park, neighborhood, freeway underpass, big duck pond, ridiculously expensive neighborhood, sparkling tennis courts on another lake, yuppy neighborhoods some more...houses with gigantic gates, around a smelly duck pond (a different one), more neighborhood, and then around a big marina with kids soccer games in session and finally hit the 7 mile turnaround. At the turn around I ate some lime gu (same hair gel consistency, only lime-ish instead of raztastic, I guess I prefer lime?) and Fundraiser Rockstar Stacey joined us for the second half. (She gets this nickname because she raised more than her minimum before kickoff even happened...what???) She is also a cyclist and mom of baby Eli.
The run ended well. My complaints: fuel belt bruised my waist for the first time, lacking arch support for my right foot, need insoles for my new shoes. My triumphs: I ran over half my marathon, I can still walk, I succeeded at a full 10-minute ice bath afterwards.
Good day, and done with it all by 11am! :)

A little stronger this time

This morning at track we revisited circuit drills again. Team blaze and Team fired up blended the drills today. We added an extra hill on for our time, and larger # of reps for each drill. Surprisingly (although still sweating buckets the whole time)I kicked the circuit drill's butt today. Really - I actually finished feeling triumphant over the hills, lunges weren't that bad, supermans were no big deal, situps have always been pretty ok, and pushups...well they still suck when you are doing 80 of them!
Overall, I finished my 4 reps of laps/drills in 34 minutes. Not bad at all, certainly an improvement from before. Best part: only soreness leftover was pec soreness, not even my legs, yay!

Lake Merritt - Stuck on some twisted repeat

Today was a mentor led run, which means no coaches. This also means we are not supposed to push our mileage at all, just maintain. Chipper Sue and I paired up to run Lake Merritt once again, but this time we had to run the 3.2 mile course around the lake 3 TIMES to get our 9+ mileage needed. OH GOD! I already don't appreciate this like and now I had to run it 3 times over. They suggested I run the opposite direction to "mix it up a bit." Excuse my obvious pessimism, but how many ways can you mix up gray skies, goose poop in excessive amounts, the geese herds themselves, and a Faith for the Cure race going on all at the same time on a 3 mile loop. Jeez! As I mentioned previously, everyone seems to love lake merritt, I do not share this enthusiasm. Good thing Chipper Sue was there to chat with me the whole time, we both agreed the last (and third) loop around the lake was pretty redundant. Not to mention the cyclist who kept coming up behind us with a bull horn 10 feet behind our ears, screaming "RUNNERS COMING!" He wanted us to make way for the fast pace runners coming through who were participating in the 5k race going on. That's cool and all except the path is so small you can barely double up anyway. I guess if all else failed he wanted us to jump in the lake? Afterwards Nat and I got to return to Lake Merritt (after I showered of course) and attended a Carnivorous Plant Show, and of course the weather was beautiful during that visit. Not a gray sky around, figures.

Winter Team joins us - I am suddenly a "Vet"

Today I noticed at AM track that there were significantly less parking spots at 5:30 in the morning...hmm. Turns out the winter team (running the San Antonio Rock n' Roll Marathon) began their training this week and joined us, thus taking all the parking spots for ontime/almost late folks like myself. I think Coach wanted to make an example out of us. We are "team blaz (on fire)" as I mentioned early in the training, and they are "team fired up" - obviously newcommers are scared into thinking running = fire? I don't know. Anyhow, he had us run two miles at race pace around the "million dollar view" clark kerr track. Then, for fun I guess, he had only team blaze (that would be the "vets") run 3 repeats of the largest hill in history, or at least this side of the bay. To give you a good idea...my little vw golf can hardly make it up this hill WHEN DRIVING, so I park at the bottom. Coach had us sprint up three times while newbies of team fired up stood at the bottom saying "woah." Woah is right, I kicked it's butt - and then almost fell on mine when I was done.

Buddy Run, for real

Turns out my Chipper Sue works two blocks from my new apartment. Hooray for ideal situations! I get off work, walk the dogs and Sue shows up at my door ready for our buddy run. This time we forgot to bring a watch so we decided to run and chat until we felt it was time to stop. Ended up running over the outlined max of 55 minutes and finished at 70 minutes instead. We looped through all the residential streets of Berkeley around my new hood. The architecture is really interesting, mostly brown shingles and row houses, and the trees are really great for shade in the afternoon. We decided this will be our buddy run each week. Yay.

(Almost) Half Way

Twelve miles today, we ran Alameda. The reason this was significant is not because the mileage, but the course was flat for the first time in over a month. I mean TOTALLY flat. I thought I might have been dreaming it was so unbelievable. We started out at the Alameda Ferry terminal and ran through the residential areas, ended up being spit out on the Alameda beach for the last couple of miles leading up to the six mile turn around and ran it all back. I think Chipper Sue and I were flying, and I still don't think my body believes I actually ran 12 today. When I finished, I felt I could have kept going. I heart flat courses!

I fought the hills and the...wait, I WON :)

During track Coach had us combine the "hood .5 mile hill loop" with the driveway hill portion of the circuit drills. We had only ever done one side at a time. Today he said (following his 63rd birthday over the weekend) that 3 is the number he was "feeling today" so we ran three repeats. First we rand the driveway circuit (one long gradual hill, one short steep hill, and up the long steep one) and followed through from there to running through the neighborhood. (somehow, defying the wellknown laws of physics, the whole loop is uphill only. you end up where you began, but still going uphill?) Each loop was about a mile, so I completed three miles of nonstop hills. I started out intimidated, and ended feeling surprised at how strong I am feeling. [patting myself on the back]

Appreciating my new hood

I decided today would be a good excuse to explore my new neighborhood and just run from my front door. I also followed the rules today and did not use my ipod during my solo run, thought maybe the interesting sight seeing/people watching would be entertaining enough. Left my apartment, ran up college ave, ran around some of Cal Berkeley campus, took Telegraph back down and ran through street vendors, yummy smelling pizza shops (it was about dinner time) and billows of pot smoke for sure. Before I knew it I was back at my new front door, loving my new hood just a little more.

Inspiration Point aka Jennifer's going to Die!

Today was a humbling, and unecessary experience. I have learned a valuable lesson of the importance of drinking electrolytes and bringing ample amounts of water. We met at Inspiration Point today for an 11 mile run. This is the first time I had been to Tilden Park and was SUPER excited - heard amazing things about it. After driving up a full mountain (thankfully NOT running this one) I arrived at Inspiration Point. It was beautiful, ideal weather. Completely clear views...and I didn't notice yet, but not really that many trees. We stretched, chatted, enjoyed the views and used the restrooms. This was a mentor led run, meaning there were not any water/fuel stops along the way. I had coffee, dry toast, honey and a bottle of water before starting that morning. I took a bottle of water and a packet of gu. It made sense to me....

So the ran began, first mile tall trees, small rolling hills, birds chirping - great. After that, no more happy Jennifer. Thank god I had Chipper Sue with me, she is the only reason I made it. It felt like I was running in a Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing commercial. Cows grazing everywhere, cattle guards every mile to make me stop and walk over the bars, coiled snakes in the middle of the path (b/c it was desert hot out there, did I mention that???) warming their little bodies, and absolutely not even one tree in sight. Blaring sun, heat radiating up from the earth, the breeze took a vacation for the morning b/c I don't know where it was, and I ran out of water at mile 5. Also, miles 4-6 were all mini-mountains. I mean ones that cows couldn't even climb! There was a loose bull in the middle of the running trail at one point, with huge horns and looking a little possessive of his space. I thought for sure he was going to charge me as we ran past him. In the midst of my almost coma I actually bursted into full sprint as I passed him, fueled by panic alone.

So basically I began suffering from dehydration and no more electrolytes left in my body. I was light headed, dizzy, nauseaus, and 100% fatigued. I didn't know if I would make it, but I had to keep going or I would bake to death in Hidden Valley commericial. I ended up walking about a mile of it spread out through the last half. I really thought I would die, and when I finished - I drank a bottle of gatorade and I felt ready to run again. Lesson - NEVER go anywhere without gatorade, I fell in love with it that day. I <3>

A reason to live in Northern California

I am in the double digits!!! Oh my god, I accomplished something I have never done before. And it wasn't just any 10 mile run...trail running - full blown Redwood Park trails through the woods, over creeks, up the freakin mountain!!! So I can safely say I kicked my own butt today, and reached 10 miles, and took my first ice bath...we'll get to that late, eh hem.
I have to just reflect on the run itself, pretty majestic. Actually, the entire run was pretty profound for me as far as experiences go in my lifetime. The scenery was incredible. I seriously felt like I was running through a fairy tale, a magical painting you wish you could escape to. I think it might have made the hills a little easier...eh, maybe not. But it was beautiful to look at! I was running on root knobbed earthy trails winding in and out of HUGE redwoods, some so old they had fallen across creek beds and formed picturesque bridges for little wildlife to scurry across. Shedding of trees softened the path beneath my feet and enormous branches of glowing evergreen fanned out over my head (like 100 feet in the air) and shaded the trails ahead. I listened to chirping birds and rustling squirrels the whole time. At the top of the treacherous 2 mile 'up the side of the mountain hike trail' climb I looked out and saw blue and green overlapping hills reach out accross my perspective and fall into the glistening bay and meet the horizon. It made me smile and feel small (although not so light weight at that point) and perfectly placed in this world at that moment. I was able to spend 2 hours in meditation using only the rhythym of my own breath, my foot steps on the earth and the most beautiful views you can imagine.
Now, let me explain why I was running my long Saturday run alone, in mediation, but definitely alone. I arrived 10 minutes late today. :( This put me about a mile behind everyone else. Normally, Coach Al is busy telling a story, doing the stretches, shout outs, the cheer, and so on. It isn't usally a big deal. And - I am usually early. So, this morning I arrive to see them gone. Only the food/water volunteers around. They told me where the start line was and said GO! So I ran, desperately hoping to catch up with the team, but not wanting to push my pace too hard and burn out. My worst fear about my 10 mile run was coming true - running it alone. I had to tell myself to chill out, appreciate my body, and do it right the way I have been trained to so far. Turns out around mile 2 I catch up to the run/walkers as they are walking the hills (not helpful to see everyone around you walking the hill you are convincing yourself is a minor little mound!) and eventually Mama Lisa found me with her cowbell. She ran up a hill next to me and told me I had perfect form. (this is actually a triumph from my run today) So I kept on, passing the walkers and never quite catching up to my runners until I saw them passing me after they had met the 4.5 mile turn around. I finally saw my Chipper Sue and that was exciting - for like 3 seconds until she was gone with her running buddies for the day. I did end up running the whole thing alone. I saw everyone finishing and then running one last mile to round up to 10, so I decided I couldn't be the only single digit girl, so I ran that last extra mile alone too. I finished feeling sore, but totally elated and rather energetic. (Maybe this was due to my tasty GU - yet another first for me today - I had at mile 6 which was sticky and raztastic)
On the way home I stopped at the store and bought myself a cup of extremely desired coffee and 3 bags of ice. Uh-huh. Going home to the ice bath. I ended up pouring out all the ice in the bath tub, running cold water until it was about 5 inches deep, and sitting in it, like a mad-crazy person...I screamed for most of it. My neighbor probably thought I was murdering someone with all the ice breaking and screaming. After all of the craziness, I am positive my body is less swollen, and after the initial red skin and chill bumps, my musles appreciate my sacrifice for sure. I am happy and will most likely spend the rest of the day watching movies on the sofa! Yay for 10 miles, beautiful hilly trails, and ice baths - well, maybe not ice baths.Oh, another perk to today is that I discovered where exactly I will need to start using body glide, oh yay.

Silly Hills - Why must you Hurt so Good?

Today we broke routine and did not do ciruit drills. At first I was excited, felt like I was getting off easy for today. Oh no, at the end I was wishing for the relief of "taking a break" during the drills themselves! Hill repeats got a little more intense today. I would say I enjoyed the run...mostly the last 10 seconds of it when I knew it was about to be over! Coach Al mapped a 1/2 mile loop through the Berkeley neighborhood near the track. Somehow this loop seemed to ONLY go uphill after each turn, although physics would suggest there would be a downhill at some point. I couldn't find that point. He had us run it 3 times, so 1.5 total miles of continuous uphill. I thought I was in a nightmare and wanted to wake up to downhill. Somehow I finished. Coach said this will get us ready for SF hills. What did I get myself into???

(No) Buddy Run to the Mirror again

I was supposed to do my buddy run yesterday (Tuesday), but we had an open house that threw everything off, so I ran today instead. Pressed for time once again, I ran at the gym on the treadmill, staring at myself run in a mirror for 47 minutes this time. I couldn't take the boredom any longer. Also, this run was particularly difficult today. Obviously, the course itself wasn't diffucult - being on a treadmill and all. I struggled for easy breathing the whole time, and just felt really exhausted. Maybe it has to do with poor lunch today (almost no lunch)and little sleep last night. Oh well, I finished 4.5 miles and learned to eat better before running. Bad run, good lesson. And...off to track at 5:50 am tomorrow!

No Triathlon any time soon

I thought I might mix it up a little today with my cross training and decided to swim. First, I didn't seem to realize how cold it actually was outside until I jumped in the pool. Suddenly the unheated pool was warmer than the breeze above the water and I was convinced I wouldn't be able to get out. Laps started off nicely for about, let's see...3 laps! I was totally winded, gasping for breath and pretty much flailing around with zero form at that point. I pushed on, taking a 10 second breather at the end of each lap, then decided I clearly wasn't a swimmer and started running water laps around the perimeter of the pool. That also became pretty difficult, so I tried switching 2 laps of swimming, 2 loops of water running. This silliness continued for the 45 minutes and I came to the realization that I am in NO way ready to take on a swim meet, or any form of tri any time soon. (Note to self)

The hard part was at the end, when I had to jump out of the pool - risking hypothermia - and run all the way back to my apartment dripping wet, freezing cold, and completely exhausted. Next time I think I'll stick to core secrets in my living room :).

Eight is SO Great!

Back to Berkeley Marina...where it all began. I think Berkeley is my favorite spot so far, but the wind is pretty intense and it gets really cold this early in the morning.

This particular morning Chipper Sue and I arrived at the same time, so we were able to start together and both committed to the 8 miles at the beginning of the run. I noticed it took me a couple of miles to get into my groove. My muscles felt super stiff and sore for the first 2, then I seemed to warm up and get over it. (Maybe I should stretch better to warm up before the run?? Or maybe ice more? I'll try both) We ran from Ceasar Chavez park at Berkeley Marina, traveled north along the 580, turned and passed the horse racing place and climed a nice big hill at that point, passed the Albany Bulb (a little dog beach) and continued on the little running trail until we reached the Albany Waterfront sign at the 580 freeway again. That was our 4 mile point to turn around and run it all back. I think I am starting to like the out and back route...I always get to run back the part I might have had a hard time with and run it better the second time around. Leaves me feeling a bit victorious over the hill that seemed big the first time, and not so bad the second.

On the 4 miles back, Candace the mentor joined us on our run. She started telling us the story of her runniing the SF Nike last year and how great it was. She also told us our training this year is pretty advanced comopared to last years schedule and we should be really prepared come race day. (this is good news...)

The run was fun. We finished 8 miles at 1:20, which means we totally averaged 10 min miles. It seems this is my comfortable pace, which I am starting to believe is completely acceptable for my level. I mean, I am no boston qualifier or anything, but one day I believe I will call myself a marathon finisher, which is about all I am able to bite off at this point. Go Jenn - the hopeful finisher!

By the way, tonight I will ice my knees for sure!

Buddy Run - But No Buddy

There just isn't enough time to get home after work, walk the dogs, race over to Berkeley Marina and run from 6:30-7:30, then come home, eat dinner at 8:30 and pretty much go right to bed. No thanks. So today I decided to do my buddy run when I got home from work at 5:30, at the gym in the apartments...only, with no buddy. Pretty freakin boring! I run on a treadmill, staring at myself in the mirror wall in front of me...for an entire hour. But I did it (shhh..I sneaked my ipod for this one) and ran for an hour, completing six miles for my buddy run (with no buddy).

I am noticing a bit of tension on the lateral side of my left knee. I am positive it is my iliotibial band pulling, but I definitely am feeling it more and more. This week I will focus on foam rolling my legs/hips/glutes. Oh yay.

Super Seven

Six Saturdays into my training...I completed seven miles, woo hoo! We met at San Leandro Marina. Overcast gloomy day - so run was nice and easy. Not too hot, pretty flat course, and breeze from the water the whole time. Chipper Sue and I ran together the whole time. I was actually able to participate in some of the chatting this time(not that she doesn't let me...it's that I usually can't breathe easy enough to even think about talking) so the conversation made the run pretty enjoyable. The course was set up as an out and back. we ran out three miles and turned around. Due to the set up, Sue and I decided we wouldn't commit to more than six miles until we were able to assess how we felt when coming back to the start. Well, upon crossing the initial start line, we decided to go for seven. On the last mile Odessa, a mentor, chatted with us. For some reason when she talks about running, she makes it seem really easy. I still haven't figured out why, but I always find her attitude about it all very relatable and refreshing.

Anyway, we finished feeling pretty good. I definitley felt a little left over soreness from the hills on Thursday, and some soleus pain from the run. Nothing alarming, just pretty usual. I did notice that I gained one pound during the run today, which isn't good. I don't want to be losing too much fluid, or taking in too much fluid. Hmm...I will work on this.

Good Morning Hill Repeats, Please kick my butt!

Today Coach introduced us to the beloved, and desperately needed hill repeats. I successfully arrived to track this morning, pleasantly surprised to find my Chipper Sue had decided to switch to AM track also. Yay, partner in pain! We were no longer setting up on the track. Coach had us gather in a winding drive area around the pool. He had mapped out a course of three hills, one long and gradual, then a quick steep one, and then a quick steeper one.:) we were replacing our 400 meter laps with the hill repeats this week. Woah. Our workouts will now consist of looping the three hill repeats, then doing our circuit drills...and of course, repeat 4-5 times. All done after that. Thank god for Chipper Sue! She kindly chatted through all of the hills each time, allowing me to huff and puff, heaving myself through the drills. One day...I will run hills like the wind itself. Just not today. (I did finish it all though, and the time was't even that bad: 36.27!)

Sunny Southern Cali for a change

This Saturday I was out of town for the fourth of July, so I did my long run solo and decided to run Santa Monica beach for my 5 miles. So glad I did, the sun was out, beach was packed (with tons of fun people to entertain my run by watching), nice breeze...it was a perfect easy run. Kinda made me miss living in LA :(

GI Jane experience # 2...Solo :(

I tried to make AM track today. Evidently it had been too long since I had tried to make a morning track because I was the crazy girl walking up for track an hour late! Yep, I arrived as everyone was leaving to their cars, ugh! So, I went home and did my track, all alone, in the gym at my apartment. I used the treadmill to run the 400 meter laps, jumped off in between to do the circuit drills, and successfully kicked my butt in 30:34 minutes. Then, jumped in the car and drove for eight hours to Los Angeles for fourth of July weekend....OUCH! Sore sore sore legs at the end of that drive!

Let's Give Em Something to Run About

Another Saturday, the long runs are slowly getting a little longer. Yesterday I was feeling a little soreness from being GI Jane the day before, but surprisingly not as much as I was expecting, or secretly hoping for. Just a little pec soreness from all the freakin pushups - I have to say incorporating those little suckers into my daily life wouldn't be a bad idea. (let's see if that actually ever happens...)

Anyhow, we met at Lake Merritt today. My first time to visit this lake in the middle of Oakland that EVERYONE raves about. My only comment: It aint no town lake, that's for sure! (correction regardless of how much I resist it: Lady Bird Lake) I am sure this lake has it's days, but it's basicaly a 3.2 mile loop around a generally cirucular lake - so you totally see where you are needing to get to, you know? The weather was gray, which means the water was gray, even the trees looked gray. Nevertheless, Sue and I joined forces and took off, intermittenly tagged by different mentors along the way. I mainly recall squashing lots of goose poop with my shoes for the majority of the run, not to mention the geese themselves refusing to move out of my way. Literally like 30 geese took over the path and honked and flapped and all the sudden the run turned into hopskotch. (I have to just note that as a child I was actually attached by a Mother Goose, really a mom protecting her babies) In the end I made it, letting the geese know I didn't want their lake and pleaded with them to let me through. I had to loop the lake almost 2 times, completing 5.5 miles in 53 minutes. Finishing: Gray.

Following the run, we had an Honoree Potluck with lots of yummy Starbucks coffee, scones, fritattas and fruit. Our honorees presented their stories, shared their battles with diagnosis, chemotherapy and for some, recovery. There were tears, laughs and definitely appreciation. As I was leaving, I realized the impact of my running, our fundraising, and the research I had the opportunity to hear about in action as a result. I left inspired by their strength, my strength, and the strength in numbers.

GI Jane experience #1

So I didn't quite make it to track in the morning today, so afternoon track once again. I schlepped down to San Leandro for track again. Knowing I would actually get to do circuit drills today, I made sure to load up on peanut butter pretzels for snacks pre-workout. (which turns out to be the best snack for me so far - pre track or pre run.) The afternoon was SO HOT on the track and smoke from the local fires was really thick in the air. They gave us the option of not participating for the day due to the smoke, but I thought, eh - I am breathing it anyway, right? Pleasant surprise, which ended up being a very useful surprise...my Chipper Sue attended. She is so very very good at distracting me from quitting. Really, she's a pro I think - secretly a 'quitting interventionist.' Anyway, there were large poster boards presented with lists of drills...15 squats, pushups, situps and more squats...then run, 15 supermans, then pushups again, then one legged squats on each leg...then run...then do it all over again. To begin the drills, we started off with an initial lap (not including our warm up lap) and also ended after the last drill with a "victory" lap as the last one. I finished my very first GI Jane experience overall in 21 minutes and 23 seconds. And I sweated buckets. :) I found it very worthy of my GI Jane experience #1. I left happy and sweaty and patting myself on the back.

Alameda ended hot and happy

So I am beginning to really enjoy waking up at 7am on Saturday mornings to run. No really, I am being serious. Especially following this morning. Despite handy navigation, I still got lost driving to the Alameda ferry terminal, but nevertheless, I arrived before start time. I notice as I walk up to the group that it is 7:45am and I was already sweating BEFORE I started running. Anyway, we do our stretching and shout outs, moment of silence, and of course...our team yell/cheer. And then we are off. Lisa, my mentor, stays with me the first half mile or so, encourages me to do 5 today, despite the heat, b/c we will be ramping up soon and I should push for it. (the suggested full marathoner distance today is 3-5) So I commit, and decide to enjoy my run one minute at a time instead of focusing on the opposite side of the island that I am running towards. (my 2.5 turaround point) I start to notice all the locals walking their dogs (and kids) on Sunday morning, I take notice of the smooth water surface in the bay. It was a perfect mirror surface for the dozens of birds swooping inches off the water. Really beautiful. Meanwhile...sweating buckets in the heat. I reach 2.5 and turn around feeling really great. Finished back the last half. I wished the 2nd half of the run wasn't me just running over what I had already done, but oh well. It was beautiful, so no big complaints. I finished with calm breath, relaxed shoulders and only minor chafing. (note to self, I am a 'run in short pants, no shorts' kinda girl) Drank some gatorade and ate some fresh garden fruits provided at the end, and went home. Great day, great run, and I am already looking forward to my next 5miler next weekend.

Track - No Good Morning, so let's try Good Afternoon

So, this morning was just not the kind of morning I was able to run. Good thing they have a PM track huh? Why yes, it was a good thing. I believe it was the hottest day on earth today. The pm track is in San Leandro, definitely not around the corner like Berkeley but oh well. Coach Al's nuggets of knowledge are priceless...or at least worth the 13 miles of driving at 5:30pm. So we go to the track, I am once again anticipating the GI Jane experience I did not receive last week. Ah, but to no avail...we run in circles again. This time he tells me to do 17 minutes. Ooh, 5 more minutes. I can do it. So we start running in circles...I am SO wishing I could put my ipod on and listen to Mika, but no. Biggest sin ever - I must not commit. It is so ridiculously hot! I am counting my laps again, as I have been instructed. Not really an eventful run, as I neared my last lap in the designated 17 minutes, Fireball Laur (I cannot pronounce her name, but she says it is like Laurie without the ie) comes running up next to me talking about how her 7 year old son is training for a tri. What??? Anyway, we start chatting as we run, and she tells me I am capable of one more lap. I tell her it is my 17 minute mark...and she says "no, let's go" and so I do. Who can argue with that? I ended up running 21:30 and racked up 8 laps in the time. I felt good the whole time, really thought my stride felt nice and smooth. Thanks Fireball Laur. She was as close as I got to my "give me 50" scenario.

My only complaint about today was the timing...in the mix of leaving work and allowing for the commute I didn't give myself time to properly eat. Low energy combined with extreme heat and emotional exhaustion from my job = crazy hungry monster driving home after track. (not good - eat more next time!)

Marathon University

We met at Millenium High School in Piedmont. Ended up also being anti climactic. I guess I need to crawl before I run, right? Crawl we did. The workout ended up being a 2 mile run around the super nice astro turf and rubber track. Afterwards we made sure to load onto the bleachers to take our very first team photo ("awww") and then got to the main reason of assembly: Marathon University. I have been looking forward to this for weeks now. Yay. Mama Lisa and Coach Al brought in all of their favorite docs and their nutritionist, personal trainer,podiatrist, etc. It was a schmorgasbord of food no's, shoe this, gu that, if you don't want to drink powder you're wrong, and foot chat. I found it fascinating and Nat did also. We ended up with swag including bio freeze, more coupons, and the newfound knowledge of even MORE nifty running gear things to buy. ca-ching.

Side note: I found out five times your body weight is the impact felt to your joints when running. (eh hem...I better make sure I run smooth then) Also, 60% of the impact goes to your ankles, 40% to your knees. Okay, so maybe I better drop a few pounds in this whole process?

First Track - Good Morning 6am, Please meet Running

Track was anti climactic for me today. I have heard all of this "circuit drill" hype and I totally pictured myself throwing myself into a GI Jane situation. (yes, I pictured myself with the ripped body and all of course) I woke up early, discovered I was out of coffee (this is never good, but worse at 5:15am) so I had to improvise and drink some black tea. Um, not at all the same. Grubbed on some plain oatmeal while driving to Clark Kerr track in Berkeley. Weather was coldish, foggy, and as I schlepped up the big hill to get to the track, I saw an absolutely beautiful view of the bay, the city and the early morning lights all tucked into a fuzzy blanket of white fog. Nice - but I am still there at 6am to run in circles.

Anyway, we ended up viewing Coach Al demonstrate the wrong ways and then the correct way to run. Did our cheer of course, agreed to do the damn thing, and then we were told to run 2 laps. After those laps, we stretched. He told us to run 13 minutes and count our laps. He said to focus on form, speed was promised to come later. Um, we'll see. I ran and ended up doing 5 laps in 13:30. And that was it, no Commando screaming give me 50 or anything. Oh well, maybe next time.

First Buddy Run - Introducing my "Chipper Sue"

My first buddy run was today. It was easier and shorter than expected. And hotter. Amy, the L.I.C. (lady in charge) tells us we will start by running 30 minutes, and with time progress. We all start out, me placing myself at the back because I was remembering my 11:10 pace. I start running, everything is fine and I expect to end up solo like Saturday. And then came along my new buddy... I am aware that I'm running VERY close to someone who has squeezed up next to me. She asks what event I am doing, I tell her, and then we introduce ourselves....her name is Sue. As I am talking/running with her, I realize she is my "chipper jen" character out of the non-runners guide to running a marathon book I recently finished. From this point on, she will be my Chipper Sue. I am so pleased. :) So....we are running, and she tells me her pace is about 9:30 minute miles, and last I checked, mine was like 11. hmmm. I told her I hope she is speeding me up and I am not slowing her down.Turns out, she sped me up and kept me talking the WHOLE time - about her 4 beagles, living in the bay area, her running the 1/2 last year at Nike, which led to her telling me about the actual mountains I will run through the Presidio. ugh. Anyway, it ended well:I ran 3 miles in 30 minutes. felt comfortable the whole time. I wouldn't mind it cooling off a little, but it wasn't bad.

As a side note: Our spirit captain Michelle had the cool ipod run tracker thingy on her shoe. She actually read our stats at the end, and I think I need one because they are SUPER cool. Although listening to your ipod is prohibited during the event, I am pretty sure Nike will allow peeps to use their Nike Plus thingy. I will just add this to my ever growing list of nifty running gear to buy.

Kick Off Run - "Do the damn thing"

So we began our training today. Run #1 at Berkeley Marina. I was really optimistic. Nat seemed excited, Lisa was welcoming, Coach Al was inspiring and seeing Sybil there was surprisingly more of a motivation than I expected.

I feel really lucky to have the coaches I that I do. Aside from totally trusting their track record (no pun intended) they just really make me BELIEVE I can do this. Really, I think that is the main hurdle. I have to just explain the team cheer, I understand why it exists...but I feel like the cheesiest of cheesiness participating. Perhaps down the line, I will feel differently. First, Coach Al is like a really skinny Morgan Freeman who has been appointed God of Running. He also makes me laugh, and laughing is the last thing I think of at 7:30 am on a Saturday morning anticipating running in a big circle.
So this is his cheer:
(Coach) Can I getta GO TEAM?
(us) Go Team!
(Coach) Can I getta NO WIMPS?
(us) No Wimps!
(Coach) East bay...
(us) Rocks!
(Coach) Team...
(us)Blaze...on fire!
(Coach)And the East Bay runs...
(us) Smoooooth!
(Coach) Ok, now let's do the damn thing!

Everytime Coach says his part, he moves his arms like he is conducting a full blown orchestra. Pretty entertaining. Anyway...back to the kick off run.

I haven't purchased a watch yet, but I believe my pace was around 11:10, or at least it was as I passed the first mile marker and Coach Al yelled out times. What can I say...I like to take my sweet time. I keep telling myself that I'm not doing this for competitive reasons, simply endurance - finishing would be great all by itself. Realizing this, I do want to finish the run in under 4 hours...I mean really, I don't even sit at a desk for four hours without eating a meal, so making lunch by noon would be nice.

So I ran until I approached the first water stand, which was the 2 mile marker, and ran back. Overall, I ran 4 miles, and finished with about a 41 minute time.

As far as pains, not very many so far. I don't believe I started the day with the correct food, and didn't really have dinner last night. Also, I need the super cute (and tight) spandex pants and evidently I need a watch. The only aggravating pain I began feeling (which wasn't that bad........yet) was around my greater trochanter on each side. It felt a little like the attaching muscles weren't warmed up enough maybe? Next time I need to spend a little extra time warming up my hips and also focusing on smoothing out my stride. I tried to remember my chi running checklist, and I noticed when I tried to imagine my feet moving as wheels below and behind me, my stride smoothed out and hips hurt less, so that makes me believe it is due to impact. Also, my shoes my be reaching that point of gel no more...boo. I have really loved them over the last year or so, I think they have worked well. It might just be time for a new pair.

Good thing I have 40,000 sports store coupons, looks like it is time to start cashing in soon. Bring on the cool running gear: fanny packs, sports watches, skin tight spandex and fancy holey caps! Oh yeah! Go team!