Oh my aching Plantar!

I tried to pretend that it wasn't there, but yes, my plantar issue has returned, particularly in my right foot. I know what I need to do, and now I finally need to do it!

Since being freed from the shackles of physical therapy on my calf muscle, I have reverted to my old familiar routine of getting up in the morning and running. I have not improved my cross training, strength training OR even my stretching. My plantar is making me pay!!!

So, time to rethink and replan the training. I need to find a way to MAKE TIME to hit the gym and get that cross training in along with some strength training. I also need to get some of the exercises into my routine that I learned in my plantar and calf PT experiences. It is so much easier to run out the front door in the morning. This will be tricky - it is looking like an after work stop at the gym.

On the "kill two birds" front, I am looking for an app or tool that will read .pdf files to me so I can listen while I run. Something that doesn't sound like a robot reading. If I can listen while I am working out I can make progress on the research and regain that time back at home.

Another 8 miler this week - heel was already sore from all the standing I was doing at my daughter's robotic event yesterday. Even massaging the foot last night didn't make it feel any better post run today. Still, a good run! Pushing it up to 10 miles next weekend :-). I am targeting the Swamphouse Half with an eye on the Winter Park Road Race (10K).

Killing Two Birds....

For years I have been juggling a lot of things - parenting, career, running and school. The first two items are given as the most important. I am not willing to compromise on quality of time I spend on those activities. The last two, though further down on the list, have shaped my life in many ways. I like to set bold goals and then go for them - all while maintaining some semblance of balance with the things on the top of my list.

As I was running my 8 miler today, I spent the time listening to this week's UCF class lecture. I am taking a course on Research Methods which is preparing me for embarking on my dissertation research. And it dawned on me (as it has before): How much of my school work (lectures, topic research, etc.) can I accomplish while I am out running? Even while training for half marathon distances, I am averaging around 20-25 miles of running a week. For slow me, that translates into 5-6 hours on the road. I am hunting for a decent .pdf reader so I can listen to research papers. I can use some of my devices to record thoughts that come to mind while running. I have started to implement "cloud" based tools for capturing and organizing my information (apps like Evernote, Springpad, RefWorks, and the Google suite of tools) and making them accessible from a variety of devices and connections.

And I must say, running helps me to engage the right side of my brain - which seems to help me develop some new ideas that can elude me when implementing my left brained study at my desk.



So, can I begin increasing my research activity AND increase my running activity and build my PhD while on the road? Stay tuned :-)

It's Already 2012....

Hello blog, my old running adventures friend! I write more on Facebook than I do here, but I have such fond memories within the pages of this blog. And the adventures continue. So, perhaps I can come visit a little more often.

The picture above is after the 2012 Walt Disney World Marathon weekend. This year I ran the Inaugural Marathon Relay with my sister Tammy. A very different race indeed! Neither of us was really trained up for this one. After 6 weeks of physical therapy for a pulled calf muscle from back in October, I had just a 10 miler under my belt going into this one. The goal was to take it easy, enjoy the race, run 2 min and walk 1 min the entire way. We also had race retreat packages which made the time there very enjoyable. We had an incredible time! My time for the first half was 2:49. Our team time was 6:30. A marathon relay PR! :-)

Next year is the 20th Disney World Marathon - an event I am sure will be a big deal. As much as I enjoyed the relay, I think I might have to run the full. We shall see how well I can train for that! :-)

In the meanwhile, lots of running planned for this year. My "target" races will likely be the Winter Park Road Race and the OUC Half Marathon in terms of working on time. Jim and I will run the Wine and Dine for the third year in a row - this year in November. I hope to run a 5K race with my 12 year old daughter AND I am not sure but I would like to find a nice race to run for my 50th birthday this year. I am not sure it will be a full marathon, but I would like it to be at least a half or a relay with family!

So here is to 2012 - 5 years since I ran my first marathon, 10 years since I ran that first 5K, and the beginning of a lifetime of running adventures.

The 100 Days Challenge

It started out innocently enough. I started running on New Year's Eve - then started running with my husband, who decided he wanted to run every day to get back into shape. I wanted to join him mostly because I like running together and, as I found in those first couple of weeks, it was a great time to touch base and catch up on what was going on.

But I had never run more than 3 or 4 days in a row without a rest day. This would be a new challenge! I would start with running shorter runs and see where it goes from there.

A few days into our challenge I saw a Facebook post by John Bingham of the 100 Days Challenge. That sounded like a fun challenge to join - a goal to see just how far I could take my everyday running. After a week or so, my husband became ill and had to stop running - but I kept going. I even replaced 2 runs with 2 mile power walks on days when I was too tired or my husband's legs hurt too much - but outside of those two days - I have RUN every day in January. I have completed day 30 of the 100 Day Challenge - with my New Year's Eve run I have run 31 days in a row.

So, 1/3 into this challenge I have learned a few things:

- miles accumulate quickly when running every day. Even though my runs are shorter, and my long runs have been under 10 miles (except the Disney Half) I will break 120 miles for January. I usually never break 100 miles in a month unless I am in the height of training for a marathon with 20+ milers built in to the mix.

- it is VERY hard to miss a day. There were a few days I would have quickly bagged a run because of schedule conflicts - but I have stuck to these runs even if my run took place at 9 pm and I did it by running 3 laps around the block. I feel determined not to miss any runs until I complete the challenge.

- the best part of my run is logging it and crossing off another day in the challenge.



Next race

My next race is the Winter Park Road Race, a 10K race run toward the end of March. Last year I ran a PR, completing the race in 1:01:25. At this time last year I was running faster than I am now, but I am hoping to use February to begin to build my speed back up. Who knows, maybe I can PR again this year! :-)

The Disney World Marathon Weekend - From the Other Side

Since 2004 I have participated at some level with the Disney World Marathon weekend, with the exception of 2006 when I was too late to sign up for the half (and not ready to run a full). In 2010, after running my second Goofy (my first Dopey) I decided I would only run the full marathon for 2011, but I waited to sign up. As summer passed and a busy fall season took shape, I realized I didn't have the time to train for a full marathon. I signed up for the half marathon since I couldn't bring myself to completely skip the event. Then, after running the half yesterday, I talked my daughter into getting up at 2 am and driving down to Disney to watch our friends run the full marathon. And that is how I got to see the other side. But first, my race.

Day 1: The Half Marathon



Rather than a long narrative, here is a summmary with a few pics of my half marathon day:



Never saw anyone wear a tarp to the starting area before - it just struck me as different.









Waiting in my starting corral. I was in Corral C - which was Wave 3.






As is typical Disney, there were plenty of characters to see along the course. Maddy was the first just before mile 4. Since I was just taking it easy and having fun, I stopped, got a hug and a picture before moving on. Later I saw Maddy again at mile 7 or so after exiting the Magic Kingdom. Loved the sign.... #nocandyasses.

The race itself was sufficiently hard for my level of training. Having the "I am not trying for a PR" mentality really helped me keep it reasonable and enjoy the run.



Finished the race and met back up with Maddy. Got a quick picture with my Geneva College Tornado towel and headed home.


Day 2: The Full Marathon


I had the chance to meet quite a few runners who were heading out for the full 26.2 this morning. It was about 10 deg F colder than yesterday so everyone was bundled up. As a spectator, I had plenty of layers I knew I could keep along with a small thermos of hot cocoa. Maddy brought me the infamous sign to use for the day. At 4:45 am, most of the runners headed for the starting area, with the last couple heading over at 5 am.

Now the adventure begins....here are my observations as a spectator:

Observation 1: Lots of runners wait until the last second to head to the start. I always headed over at 4:30 like a good little runner. Lots of runners were still arriving at 5:30. One came up to me to find out where the starting area was.

Observation 2: The medals for the finishers come individually wrapped in plastic. At 5:30 am, volunteers are unwrapping each medal and putting it on the hooks to be awarded after the race.

Observation 3: The finish line area is quiet but there are a few folks who stake out their spot right next to the runner's path near the finishline - at 5:30am.

We got on the monorail at Epcot and headed to the Transportation Center outside of the Magic Kingdom. We were right before the mile 9 marker. Places up on the rail were going fast so we staked our place at about 5:45 am. We expected Maddy to run by around 7:30 am - now we wait....in the cold.

Observation 4: Seeing the first runners come through is very cool! We first saw the first wheel chair, then the first man, and a bit later the first woman runners! You could tell a runner was coming when the folks up ahead of us started to cheer.

Observation 5: Pace groups make it easier to find your runner. I knew Maddy was going for a 4:45 pace / finish, so I knew that she wouldn't show until after the 4:00 or 4:15 pace groups. I was able to spot her in the crowd and get some video of her running by.




Observation 6: Waiting for 2 hours to watch a friend run by in their best marathon ever.....priceless!

After catching Maddy again after mile 12, my daughter and I headed to IHOP for breakfast.


It was odd being the spectator and not the runner - but I got to see a very different side of a race. I saw dedicated family members waiting in the cold to watch for a loved one or friend - hours before they would come - to watch their 15 sec of glory running by. I saw race volunteers helping late runners get to the start, unwrapping thousands of medals for the runners, and setting up water stops in the dark. I saw volunteer band members beating their drums to warm up in the cold before the runners arrive and Disney cast members pointing the way to a lone vendor with coffee and hot cocoa.

As a runner - I have so appreciate these folks - and today I appreciate them so much more!