I can’t believe how much Yorvipath is making a difference. Not just in my running, but my day to day life as well.
While I love what this is doing for my running, I am not just taking this to be able to run. That is just a bonus. Living with untreated PTH loss (aka Hypoparathyroidism) was like living with one hand tied behind my back. Some days both.
As I told my family, I made it look easier than it actually was because what was the point otherwise. The constant worry if my calcium would crash. The self monitoring. The leg cramps. The cramping of hands.
So even if I wasn’t running, I would happily take it. The running is just a bonus.
Training has been going well. I even hit 20 miles for the week. Runs have felt good. Legs have felt good. To be honest, I am waiting for the shoe to drop it has been going so well.
I have also been working on controlling my pace. Thinking about which of the fall races will to be my goal race. Consistency will be the key.
My goal is not perfection, but to follow the plan as best I can.
Maybe the secret isn’t being the best of the best.
Maybe the secret isn’t running harder or faster.
Maybe the secret isn’t anything other than…..
Just to keep plugging along. To keep moving. To not give up. To just keep moving.
Down to 6 weeks till Brooklyn.
It’s not exciting or fancy, but I am plugging along.
That is what I’m doing.
It’s not bold or exciting, It’s just getting runs, biking and cross training.
It’s just not giving up.
Just plugging along. Doing my thing. I’ve been “following” a training plan, but I’ve been following my way. Maybe doing a indoor bike run instead of mid week run. Changing up runs, but getting them done.
Sunday, I went for my long run. Normally a long run would be done at a much slower pace, but I had a plan. I would walk the first mile. Then I would do 5 miles at what I might think of doing at the half and then slow for last mile. For the most part, I stuck to the plan.
Mission accomplished.
Here is the thing though, I needed to remind myself to control my pace…. And I did. I ran the paces that I wanted. The only change I made was was the last mile. Instead of walking it, I ran like it was the finish and then walked the last quarter mile.
The best part of this run is that I felt like I could keep going. So there is that.
It is so easy to get caught up in the numbers, the data, and if your garmin didn’t record it that it didn’t happen.
I am trying to let that go.
I have been doing my 20 minutes of daily wall pilates. I’ve been walking. I’ve been riding stationary bike and going on treadmill.
Many recorded.
Some not.
You know what if it isn’t documented, it still happened. It is making a difference. I am noticing less aches and pains. I am noticing feeling a little bit stronger. I am confident that this is the way to go.
I am not going from zero to sixty too fast. I am easing into these changes in a way that speaks to where I am and not was or want to be. I am matching my exercise routine with the reality of where my body is today and what it could do.
In my Crossfit days, I was a bad ass. I could lift and do WOD’s breaking into a sweat but get them done. I am not the same, but the determination is the same.
I am following a training plan to run on tired legs. Here’s the thing though…… My legs are always tired, sore and feel like I need to stretch which is why for Christmas I got a leg massager.
Sometimes you feel like your cup is filled.
Sometimes you feel like your cup is half filled.
And sometimes…..
Sometimes you feel like not only is your cup empty, but maybe it has a crack in it and is broken.
Today I had 5 miles on my training plan. I had every intention of running. The weather while rainy had cooled significantly. I was looking forward to it. Then I hit the wall.
As a runner, most of us know that feeling of hitting a wall. Usually this is on mile 20 of a marathon. I’ve done that and it’s not pretty. Sometimes though with Hypopara, you don’t need to be running a marathon to hit the wall.
Today was one of those day. I woke up, went to work as a preschool teacher, and come home with intention of running. I still had some things I needed to do at home and did them. I forgot to take my afternoon calcium which I normally take when I get home. Apparently that was enough to hit the wall.
What does my wall feel like….. It is intense fatigue. I have said to my family that it is not that I want to take a nap, but I NEED to take a nap. Like I can’t go another step. Luckily I don’t hit this as much as I used to, but when I do there is no ignoring it.
So I curled up on the couch and took a short nap. It was enough to get me going. Not to run, but to get other things done that needed to be done
So pushing a run back a day is better than trying to push through on a day like today.
There is something to be said about waiting until you are ready to do something to actually start. There was no dread today. There was no, “I’ve go to go out for a run today,” said with dread.
None of it.
Today was a “I am going to go out for my run as soon as I’m done with my coffee” kind of day.
I can tell it has been a hot minute since I’ve seriously run as I couldn’t find my Garmin. Still can’t. Still looking, but I also didn’t let that deter me or stop me from getting out the door.
I was excited. It was a perfect day for running. The not too hot. Not too cold kind of day. No jacket required. At least for me as I always run hot.
My NYC Half training plan stated with a 3 mile run and that’s what I did. I didn’t watch pace, but did keep it as a conversational pace which I 100% did as I was on the phone the whole time! I walked when I got out of breath, but for the most part stayed at a stead pace.
Not too shabby if I do say so myself!
In all seriousness….. Not too shabby. I have not been doing anything unless you count testing and eating Christmas cookies. I’ve done a few walks, but have not run since I really don’t know when. Hopefully this is the beginning of a good training cycle.
I’ve got a plan loaded into Training Peaks. I am doing the Hal Higdon Novice 1, because let’s face it…..I am starting from scratch.
One day at a time…. One run at a time…. One workout at a time.
This is what it feels like to have fire again:)
This is what it is like to remember to show up for yourself.
100 days is so far away, yet so close. 100 days till NYCM. 100 days to worry if my training is not enough. 100 days to doubt if my body can handle it. 100 days to worry about what is going on with the new Delta Covid Variant and how this will all play out.
On top of that…..
100 days to fundraise. 100 days to spend as much time fundraising as I do training. 100 days to continue to remind people of the good work that Sandy Hook Promise does that only happens with fundraising. 100 days to remind people that while I do love running this race is more than about running. 100 days to hit my goal.
Is there anyone who doesn’t take on this challenge who doesn’t question why they are doing it, if they should be doing it, and how you can do it better.
Now don’t get me wrong. Training is going good. Although I have already had some foot pain which is concerning. This are things that lead to doubt. These are things that make me realize that I need to go see my podiatrist. More just to make sure that there are no issues and to see if it is time for new inserts for my shoes. I just don’t want to deal with foot pain all through out training and I did have that pain after running only 8 miles. So there is concern.
One thing that I hate to admit as I’ve had issues with my feet 20 pounds ago…… The extra weight is not helping when it comes to my foot health. It’s not so much the weight but the weight combined with being prone to having issues with my feet is not a good combo. Although this time the pain was different. It was on the outside of my foot, so I wonder if something else is going on. And while I know the easy solution is to say….. I’m going to loose 20 pounds. That is much easier said than done.
So the reality is that I’m not going to loose the 20 pounds. Unless I plan to go on a very strict diet (which I won’t), I need to figure out some things out.
Should this be my last marathon (thats a hard one)
Do I need to see my podiatrist (yes)
Is it time for new insoles? (Not sure)
Do I need to focus on foot strike and form (maybe)
GRRRRRR
I really need to not bury my head in the sand like I’ve done in the past and takle this head on. Although I do like to ignore things till they blow up in my face. (Doesn’t everyone or is that just me?)
It annoys me too because this go around I am doing everything that I should be doing. But for now, it is not something that is bad enough to cause me to stop. Besides I already have some ideas – like to spend some of my “foundation runs” with biking. To make sure to spend stretching and just listening to my body.
Take 2! The first published before it saved changes. Those who I text regularly could recognize my crazy voice and fat finger typing without editing……. Plus, I hate when editing does not change:)
Anywho….
Consistency is key to anything. Repetition is what takes something and makes it learned behavior. Think when you learned your multiplication tables. Who remembers those drills, pop quizzes and all those practice, practice, practice. (yeah, maybe that was just me since math was never my forte). You didn’t learn them from osmosis or at least I didn’t. You’ll learned them because you continually worked on them. Practiced until it became instant recall. My son in college seems to be doing this with formula’s I couldn’t even begin to tell you what they are called, let alone their purpose. During the pandemic many took up baking bread. As a baker, I can attest the more you do so the better the end product. Baking bread to many was like a science experiment with many complicated but necessary steps. Over time it became easier to tell when kneading was done. When your dough had the the right texture,and eventually could just do it by feel. There was no second guessing, you just knew.
The same consistency is required with training and creating a workout routine. For most, we need to schedule time for your workout because it is not part of the routine nor necessarily something we are looking forward to (yet) . Eventually with consistency it becomes part of you and it feels strange if you miss it. I’ve mentioned before how my husband transformed himself with loosing weight through the tried and true method of diet and exercise. In the beginning, it was challenge but now he couldn’t imagine a day where he was not doing something physically active. It has become part of him and he looks forward to one of his daily workouts.
It takes bravery to step out and try something new. It takes bravery to commit to something. To put yourself out there no matter how far or near out there you may go. It takes bravery and commitment to say you are going to do something and then actually do it. Even if it isn’t working for you, it is so much easier to stay in the same place. There is comfort in the uncomfortableness of the known because while it may suck at least you know what you are dealing with. To stay with what is comfortable even if it is not where you want to be instead of tiptoeing into the unknown…… So no matter how hard it is to stay in one place, it is always so much harder to take the first step and then the second.
Consistency is needed in beginning of any plan. It is necessary until it becomes part of you.
Some will go far.
Some will go as far as they can.
Some will go fast.
Some will go as fast as they can.
Pace….. Distance…. Events…..
The most important thing is to be true to yourself. With that thought process, I’ve been plugging away on my half marathon training plan. I’ve been sticking to the program which I admit is much easier to do with a treadmill now. I used to hate treadmill running (and part of me still does), but since I’ve discovered watching shows on Netflix while running it isn’t bad. I also credit the treadmill with allowing me to reboot my training and keeping me in check with where I should be running for that reason alone I owe it some love. That being said, you can’t race from a treadmill which means you need to also do some training outside.
This week for the first time since I started following my Half Marathon training plan, I took the run outside. I didn’t watch my watch, but wanted to test myself and run by feel. I wanted to keep the run conversational for the most part, but also make it a worthwhile training run. So I chatted with myself. Tested how I felt and kept myself where I thought I should be running. Hours later I looked at my paces and info from my run and I surprised myself. I hit the paces that I should be hitting. I actually had surprisingly beautiful negative splits. Most of all and this is the best part…… I enjoyed the run. There was no beating myself up because I wasn’t hitting certain paces, that I was running too slow or any such thing. There was knowledge that I was doing what I should be doing and that was enough.
Sometimes that is more than enough. I know that if I pushed myself that I could hit faster paces, but for now this is not a tradeoff I am willing to make right now. I also realized that this was enough. It is always enough. I might actually be able to push myself faster and harder, but the cost to do so is one that I am no longer willing to pay. We all have to decide what we want. What we are willing to give up. What we are willing to trade off. What we are willing to work for and what is not worth the work. These are individual choices that no one can make for us. There is no one size fits all and that is ok.
What choices are you making today? Remember not making a choice is still a choice, so choose wisely my friend
I think that the training is just as demanding as running the actual marathon,
maybe even more so because you don’t tend to have cheering fans on a training run even if using Nike+
but
in a very different way.
Yes, Running a Marathon is VERY hard
as the saying goes,
It really is the truth.
Now, I’m not saying that everyone has to run a marathon if you don’t want to.
What I’m saying is that since I for some reason have said that I’m going to run a marathon, I need to train so that I can finish said marathon. Anyone who has read the last few posts, might know that I’ve been struggling. My struggles though have been more mental which has made my running suffer. I made the mistake of letting the doubts creep in. Yes, everyone has doubts time to time. The trick is to use your doubts to motivate you to push through not give you an excuse to fail. I needed to take a step back. A brief one as I’m running out of time to flub my training. I messed up a run. I missed some runs. I was becoming my own worst enemy. I needed to get out of my way and just run.
I went back and looked at my training runs realizing that I was able to do these runs that I was flubbing. I talked to Dawn. I talked with my coach. Both had very similar words of advice for me.
” You have done so well with this training and IT IS NOT EASY. “
NO it’s not easy. I never expected it to be easy, but even though I ran a marathon last year; this is my first time marathon training. I just did not take into account how hard it would be, but I’m realizing that is a good thing. I need it to be hard. I need to push myself. I want to do this and most of all I want to enjoy doing this.
Today, I went for a training run where I did not worry about my pace. I needed this run to get my head in the game. I only wanted to finish my 9 miles. I downloaded a mix on my Rock My Run App, put on my sun block, loaded up with water, and out the door I went. I used to run to think about why I started on this journey. I really just fell into running because of my first Sprint Triathlon. I hated it, but over time I realized what it brought into my life. That although not a “fast” runner, I could be a steady runner. It was something that I did for me. I also thought about how far of come, how much I’ve accomplished, and how much I can still accomplish if I just keep my head on straight.
Back to the run. I did it. I did what I set out to accomplish. Running just to run. Running for the joy I get out of it. Then when I looked at my splits, I realized that I wasn’t that far off pace from what my training plan called for 20-25 seconds. Average pace ended up being 11:06 in 1:37:12. My head is back in the game…. At least for today!
Before I started marathon training with Caolan, I would have been very happy with today’s run. On face value, my run looks good. The problem is I have been training and running long enough that I am very disappointing in it.
Yes, on face value this is a very nice run. The problem is that this is not the run I was supposed to do today. I was supposed to do what my coach calls a cut-down AKA as a tempo run. I was prepared for this run. I had the perfect route mapped out which was relatively flat. I had my paces written out, water bottles filled, and Garmin actually charged.
Yup, on paper it seemed like I was ready to go. The problem was that I needed to get out of my own head yet again. I’ve been hitting my paces on my normal runs but for some reason when it comes to my cut-downs I think I freak myself out. These paces just seem too fast for me and I think that I choke and stall on my run (yet again).
Today the heat came back and I should have gone out for my run early. The problem was that I have been getting out early a lot lately and I was still recovering from my early than earlier volunteer position. Then I had to take my son somewhere this morning at 8:30 not getting back and ready to run till 9:30. I should have scrubbed the run and done a blinkie run, but I thought I still had time to beat the heat. It really wasn’t that hot yet and I went for it.
I started off ok with the exception of my damn quads (yes, still). I stopped once I warmed up a little to stretch them and my hip flexors which also seemed to be in need of some stretching as well. Then it went down hill from there. I kept going, stopping, and going. Once I hit mile 5, I had a planned stop for a convenience store to get water. I opted for Gatorade hoping for a miracle.
At this point, my pace was better, but not on target which I had already given up on hitting. I stopped watching my watch and scrubbed the run as a cut-down. I had nothing to do but think about all the things that went wrong with this run, what I could do in the future, and wondering why I was doing this in the first place. My main conclusion was that I really just talked myself out of being able to hit the paces before I even gave myself a chance to hit them. I need to figure out how to not let these runs mess with my mind. It’s a work in progress.
I also thought about how even though I have run a marathon last year, this is the first time actually marathon training. I think that since I am not following a generic training plan but a plan designed for me; I know that I should be able to do the things assigned to me. I know that my coach knows what she’s doing. I know she wouldn’t be giving me these paces if she didn’t think I could hit them especially since I have hit them in the past. So I have to figure this out.
Tomorrow is another day.
Tomorrow is another run.
I won’t give up. I will roll my quads. I will stretch. I will do what I need to do. What I won’t do is give up.
So it appears Marathon training is in full swing! Somehow it snuck up on me and apparently I am in the thick of it already. I was looking at my miles for the Month of July as June I hit 100 and I wanted to see if I would this month too. Not a problem as I hit it today and we’ve still got a little more than a week to go. Not even sure how that happened. This is when I realized that I’m in marathon training. This past week I ran 30 miles alone!
The surprising thing even with the higher miles I’m feeling pretty good. I’m noticing that on my faster pace runs that is usually when my Plantar Fasciitis bothers me. I think between my orthotics, taping my foot, the stretching, and heating my foot it is all coming together. It’s a slow process and I wish it would just hurry up and go away, but it is better. I think this may just be something I will have to just realize is part of my running.
Boo Hoo!
Anyway, in looking at my training this last week, I’m realizing that really my runs have just been steadily getting longer. It’s not just that I went from zero to a hundred overnight. I’ve been adding a mile to most of my runs over the last couple of weeks. Very sneaky, Caolan, very sneaky. It’s good this gradual increase because first of all that is what your supposed to do and secondly I didn’t even notice.
I was also able to sneak in two group runs this past week. One was a group run that I intentionally let myself fall behind on as they were running at a 9:40 pace and I was supposed to run a little slower and I knew my faster cut-down was 2 days later. I ran faster than my pace called for but I did have the company of another mama runner who also didn’t want to keep up the faster pace. Then I was able to do my nice easy 5 with my girlfriend who didn’t mind that I was slowing her down to an easy 11 mile pace. I needed these group runs:)
Now as I’m in the thick of it, I am also preparing for our annual family vacation to Vermont. I’m working with my coach to make sure that I don’t loose steam on vacation. This will be the first vacation that I really try to continue with a training plan while there. It should be interesting. She is also going to make this a set back week which I need anyway. Hopefully this will help and the hills of Vermont will be kind to me.
How do you keep up with your training on Vacation.
The Accidentally Running Mama 