What up! The Waiting Place

So it has been so long since I wrote something and this is a long overdue entry into my blog.

I was just sitting staring at my laptop trying to think of what to write about but what is weird is I really do not know where I am training wise. Sort of lost boat afloat.

Recovery post Grandmas went well but I started really experiencing heavy legs when I tried to resume training. I took a full week off and that started back with easy runs than I did a workout and a steady run which left me feeling gassed and trying to recover and feel good for the half marathon I ran last weekend.

Just days before my half, I got blood work from my check-up that would add insight to my not feeling great in marathon as well as why I was feeling gassed post Grandmas. My thyroid function was off but importantly I had developed a condition called hemochromatosis. My blood tested review my Iron levels were way off in a bad way but the opposite of anemia. This condition is when your body starts Iron Overloading and I had too my Iron circulating in my blood stream which essential can cause the same feeling of Anemia. Weakness, shortness of breath and muscle heaviness and aches which sums of the last 4 to 8 weeks.

The only solution for this is donating blood. You can to get rid of the Iron overload and the only was to literally bleed it out of you.

I knew going into the half marathon that I might not be feeling great and to give it my best effort and I seriously was hoping for the best enough my legs were heavy and weak just going up the stairs.

Fingerscrossed! I showed to the race with a couple of girlfriends and enjoyed the pre-race excitement.
The half is in the mountains and had some steep downhills and a couple long a grinding uphills but overall net elevation loss so I was excited to see how my legs faired on the long downhill sections.

Once the race started, I fought the heavy legs for first 3 miles and kept telling myself I would feel better on the downhills. And I did but than came the uphills and I felt gassed. Than the final mile in was uphill to flat but was a dirt road that turned into a very slippery surface in the last mile due to heavy rains. I really struggled to hang on in that mile and sure I lost a minute or more. I felt like I was barely moving.

I finished in 1:37:46 which was good for a 1st in age group and I think a 8-10 sec PR. Yes, I totally wanted more but considering I felt so bad during the race I will take it.

I took my butt to the donation center on Monday to donate blood and now will have a 4 to 6 week period of sub optimal training as it takes that long for the blood to recovery the blood cells. So my training will be mostly be easy miles with some strides through this time.

This week I have been in 100% recovery mode again though as my legs were really fried from the steep downhill sections.

At least when I start training again, I will be free of all that built up iron and hope that I got rid enough that I will not have to do that again in 6 weeks.

I am in that place between places where it feels weird and uncomfortable. Where you just do not know what direction to take and hope it comes to you when the timing is right.

Definitely like the waiting place in Dr. Suess's Oh that places will go....

Grandmas Marathon Race Report

Not sure why it has taken me so long to write this race report but part of me was still processing how I felt about the race and also enjoying the days disconnected from running and being focused on training.

I have taken this week off, sleeping in, enjoying my children, chatting with friends, enjoying the Carolina heat and just soaking up the non running life. It has been refreshing in a way I didn't really think it could be. I keep saying wow I am so relaxed and happy. It has been the perfect recharging week.

I, of course, have mixed feeling about this race. I know I am much fitter than what I been running my last couple of marathons. Why my fitness has not translated into race day results? I do not know but I have a few ideas. One being that I had an especially intense training segment both in mileage and work out load and my body was just not ready to translate into a breakthough race.

I do know that both Boston and Bayshore, I had some thyroid issues leading up to race day that played into how I felt during the race but that as not the case at Grandmas. I was perfectly healthy thyroid wise. Why didn't I race well? Another 3:32 :-)

I think it was fatigue. I felt super good through mile 11-13 and than bamb I didn't feel good at all and by 16 mile I turned to someone I was running and said "Okay, this just got real!" from there on I was fighting for every step. My legs felt heavy in a way I had never experienced before and it was taking tremendous energy to get them to move. Lemon Drop hill at mile 22 just about killed me. I was fighting the voice that said walk and my glutes where like bitch we are not pushing you up this hill. Someone I made it though but it took about 30 seconds out of that miles and 10-15 seconds from my next mile trying to recover from that hill.

I know it was this was mostly due to the fact that I didn't take anytime off from my last marathon and rolled into some hard work outs and a hard long run. In retrospect, I should just been running easy between marathon or maybe just one workout. If I had one more week to taper I also think I would have felt even better. I have done multiple marathons before and always did well in subsequent marathons but I rested a ton between the events. Those races were also 5-7 weeks apart whereas these marathons were 4 weeks which I really think is 1-2 weeks too short.

I did not at all regret going for it another marathon at all. It was a phenomenal race and day! It was a great experience and I loved every minute of it. Well maybe not that last 6 miles :-) but I proud of myself for fighting and not letting negative voices win on that day. I walked away proud of my effort. I felt a peaceful and happy acceptance at the results.

I also know that I just have to keep going, never giving up and staying in faith that I will accomplish what I set out to do.

I recently was listening to a talk where they asked a famous entrepreneur if he knew it was going to be as tough as it was when he set out - he laughed and shook his head probably not.

Knowing that anything really worth doing is going to be really hard sometimes and you have to have passion and love for what you are doing to get you through the bumps. You have to be willing to keep trying and keep moving forward no matter what appears to the contrary.

In the words of Jim Carey, I would rather fail at something I love than fail at something I do not love because I wanted to play it safe.

I will be recovering and enjoying the summer and the moving on in my training for an awesome Fall season!! Life is pretty darn awesome.

Week in Review: Shaking off the Funk

Not sure why but I have been feeling sort of funky. Loving my runs they have been such a great stress reliever for life right now but generally I haven't felt like over top jazzed about anything which so not like me. I usually super stoked about life and just anything...

I think it is lack of a groove of training and getting excited about the next big workout or run. I am in a place of maintenance where I am not trying to push myself body over the edge with big runs or big miles in prep for my next marathon in 2 weeks. Additionally I always get the taper blues, missing the big miles and workouts and the generally happy groove of training.

Plus I know after Grandmas I need to go into recovery which is so not my favorite part of training but necessary if I want to have a strong fall training season. I have a few projects I will be working on after the marathon so I am hoping the mental engagement will help me not get the post marathon blues and I can just enjoy the recovery.

Here is my week

Monday 10.25 easy
Tuesday 3 w/u, 2 X 5K miles with 3 minutes jog rest - Rep# 1 6:42, Rep#1 6:35 1.5 C/D + Pilates Class
Wednesday 7 recovery
Thursday 9.5 easy
Friday 11 miles - Fartlek - 2 minutes ON @ 6:22 4 minutes OFF @ 7:24 x 6
Saturday Rest Day
Sunday 12.6 easy

Total miles - 61

Feeling good overall and energy level has been high. I think that I maybe a tad hyper (thyroid) right now and I am fingers crossed settles down in 2 weeks. Although I have been feeling good running fast so I pray that continues.

Back to Training: Week in Review

So I did take 2 days off after Bayshore as I was surprised at how recovered I felt both with my body and energy levels. I had planned to take 3-4 days off but energy was high and I was ready to go.

All week I feel good but kept it easy and mileage light.

Monday OFF
Tuesday 5 easy
Wednesday 6 Easy & Pilates Class
Thursday 7 with 7 X 90 second fartleks @ 6:30 pace
Friday 5 Easy
Saturday YOGA
Sunday 10 easy

Mileage total - 33 miles

Body feels good overall. Just the calves a bit tight and massage next week should help me work through that.

Looking forward to running more next week! I am excited about the next step in my journey.

Bayshore Race Report

So I am literally forcing myself to write this as I need to get out what I am feeling and writing always helps me to do so.

I felt very hopeful in the days leading up to Bayshore that I would feel as good on race day as I had felt in some of my awesome workout days. I had a slight glitch about 4 days out from the marathon that I tried to say positive about and not worry about.

Here is it, so if you read this blog for any period of time you know that I an autoimmune disorder called Hashimotos. It can make my swing from hyper-thyroid to hypo-thyroid states and for periods of time I can be normal. I manage the disorder with diet and other natural ways. I do not take hormone meds as they always makes things worse. So anyway I monitor my metabolic (thyroid) health by taking my rising temps everyday. If they are higher than normal, I know that my body is in a hyper state and if lower than I am hypo and normal is normal.

So long story short, I had been normal for weeks and about 4 days before I noticed a 1 degree increase but luckily I wasn't experiencing the rapid heart rate and breathlessness that I usually feel when I am hyperthyroid. So I was staying positive that even if I was hyper at the moment that it was a mild swing and it would be good on race day. I felt great in most all way so I was staying super positive that all would be fine on race day

At the start of the race and in the first few miles, I never felt good but kept hoping I would feel better as the miles clicked by. That can happen to me when the first couple miles of a workout feel difficult and than it turns and I feel great. So I was hoping for that but it just never happened. I feel like I was working really hard and difficult to get air.

I also wonder if the allergy/pollen level had anything to do with that as it was bloom season in Traverse City as they were just starting to get their spring.

Either way thyroid or allergy season, I just did not feel good.

I did make a pacing error in the first 6 miles. I had planned to go out about 10-15 seconds slower than I actually did go out. My garmin wasn't working in the first couple of miles so I relied on my speedy friend to pace us through the first few miles and I let the pace get quicker than planned. As soon as I realized that I was going too fast, I let my friend go and try to resettle into my race plan. I do not think my fade at the end would have been as bad if those first miles didn't go out so quick.

I was grinding these miles away on mental will not to let another marathon end up in a DNF. I really thought crap what the heck at mile 16. I felt so relieved when I saw the 20 mile sign know I would finish this one. I finished with a time of 3:32:18 - yup that ties my PR exactly to the second :-) and my 3rd 3:32.

I have so mixed emotions on this race. I was very happy and relieved that I was able to finish and not fall completely apart. I was satisfied with how I performed mentally but part of me is questioning why it wasn't there. I gave it my best shot and know that it is just a step in my journey.

I have another marathon on the horizon, so we shall see if I can get lucky :-) I can shake this one off and set my mind and focus on the whats to come. Keep moving forward!

And at the end of the day, I know I am beyond blessed to be pursing my passion and crossing finish lines at all. Bayshore marked my 16th marathon in 5 years.

For now it is a bit of recovery..........

Week in Review: Less than a week...

With one week to go to Bayshore. I am trying to rest and get excited. These last couple of weeks with life have been busy and leaving me very little mental and emotional energy to focus on this goal. So my goal for this week it is stay centered and relaxed and get focused on accomplishing my goal.

Last week was a pretty good week running-wise. I tapered and tapering much more smartly :-)

Monday 6.5 Easy
Tuesday 14 with 8 @ 7;03
Wednesday 6 Easy
Thursday 7.25 Easy
Friday Off
Saturday 10 with 8 (maybe 9 - lost count) x 1 minute Fartlek @ 6:15-6:25 with 4-5 minutes easy running @ 8:00-8:16 pace
Sunday Off

I wasn't planning on taking Sunday off but I was wiped out in many ways from a busy week last week. So I rested.

Looking forward to a week where I place priority on relaxing a bit and not letting life get to me so much.

1. 

Week in Review - 2 weeks till Bayshore Marathon

Wow..2 weeks till my goal marathon that I feel like I have been working towards for a year especially after having a great fall training season that climaxed into a dismal early Winter marathon yuck at Kiawah and a DNF at Charleston Marathon.

I had worked hard in the fall on my speed and getting my thyroid issues in order. Only to have a hyper-thyroid swing right before Kiawah that stuck with me and got worse at Charleston. (I had no business being on that course in Charleston but I couldn't let go of the hope that I might feel good on race day).

After these 2 marathons gone bust, I did what I always do, I moved on! I started my next training cycle. For 90% training, I have felt great. I have had a few minor hypo and hyper swings but mostly I have felt great.

I have high hopes for Bayshore. I will not lie and say I don't. I have dreamed of times that I could run if my ducks line up. I have run 3 20 milers, 1 26.2, countless speed and tempo workouts, 14 weeks of solid mileage all behind me. I know I have done the work, prepared my body the best I can for this marathon. I have prepared by mind for the grind of the last 10K. I have controlled what I can control. The rest I leave up to the higher powers that will determine race day weather and all those things you just can not foresee or control. I will go in with a flexible mind and be ready to adapt to whatever happens.

If it is meant to be my day, I will be in the perfect place mind, body and soul to seize the opportunity.

 

Week in Review

Monday - 17 Miles @ 7:37 - 12 miles @7:05 pace
Tuesday - 7 Miles Recovery
Wednesday - 9 Miles Recovery @9:08
Thursday - 10 miles with 3 X 2 miles @ 6:28-6:31 with 2 minutes recovery jog - Treadmill
Friday - 12 @8:48
Saturday OFF
Sunday - 9 Miles

Total - 64 miles