Adventures In Marathon Training

Ok so yes after running the LA Marathon in March I have dropped off the running scene. I stopped running with TNT when I moved to SF and have yet to join a running group up here.

I have however, just signed up for the Sacramento Cow Town Half Marathon in October and will be running that with Amy. Pretty excited, just need to start running again!

Well as you should have figured by now, I did run the LA marathon in March. Overall it was not a very pleasant marathon. The course wasn't very attractive and it was HOT! But I just wanted to do it and say I had run a big city marathon.

I've yet to choose my next marathon, but I'm sure I'll run another one at some point.

So if you read my general blog then you already know that since completing the Napa Valley Marathon I went on to rejoin TNT and went into training for the Nike Women's Marathon. That marathon took place on Oct. 21, 2007 and was a fantastic run. My time was slower but I had fun running with my buddy Shannon the whole way and overall just enjoyed myself on the run. It was not however, without it's down points mostly the part around lake mercead. However, I made it and am really glad I did that run, and not just because I received a Tiffany's necklace as my finishers medal. But the race was beautiful and overall just really fun; Nike really knows how to put on an event!

Immediately after that marathon I went right back into training with TNT for the Los Angeles marathon which will be on March 2, 2008. I've done the last two seasons as a mentor in which I help the new participants get through their training which has been a lot of fun and really great meeting all these new people. Right now we're about half way through our training and I'm really looking forward to the upcoming run.

Aside from these full marathons I also completed the following half marathons: America's Finest City Half Marathon in San Diego in August, Disneyland Half Marathon in September, Big Sur Half Marathon in November.

Next up is the Surf City Half Marathon in Huntington Beach along the PCH (HWY 1) in Febuarary. After that comes the LA full Marathon at which point I think I'll take a bit of a break from races for a while. At least I say that now, but we'll see.

I'll try to keep this better updated with my runs/progress. For now things are great, and I'm still enjoying my runs, even the long ones!

Well last weekend (March 4) was the marathon and I'm very very proud to say, I finished!!! On top of that, I'm even more excited to say I finished injury free!

I have to say I was getting fairly nervous in the coming days before the marathon, I was worried about not making the 5 1/2 hour time cut off, having my IT band flare up again, worried I'd get some random injury, worried about hitting "the wall", worried about blisters, or my toe nails coming off, or having to run in hail (as it was hailing earlier in the week up there), and well worried about anything random thing that might have come up that would have put a damper on my marathon that I had trained and focused on for 4 months.

I barely slept the night before, or even two nights before, which they say is actually more important, so I was a little worried about that. I woke up however at 4:30 a.m. on Sunday morning with no hesitation and immediately went into preparation mode, taking a hot shower in an attempt to raise my body temp then immediately putting on my running clothes followed by a few layers of sweats to keep in my body temp. I put body glide anywhere I thought I could potentially be chaffed, so basically anywhere fabric was touching me , put my blister sheild all over my feet, put my thick cushiony socks on and put on my trusty running shoes which I had come to love.

I grabbed my running belt that I had packed up the night before, grabbed my drinks I had mixed the night before and headed out the door with my breakfast in hand. I met Shari, my running buddy in the lobby and together we took the Team in Training bus 26 miles to Calistoga. It was kind of a strange ride knowing we'd be spending the next 4+ hours running back to Napa.

It was said to 44 degrees that morning, thankfully it didn't feel that cold and Shari and I were well prepared since we had had several mornings during training that were just as cold if not colder. We did however, stay on the bus until about 20 mins till start time which was great.

Napa was limited to only 2,300 participants which is rather small compared to the 35,000+ that ran in the LA marathon on the same day. This was nice because there wasn't too much of a crowd at the start line and we were actually able to start just seconds after the gun blow and there wasn't too much pushing or anything at the start.

I started off slow, never have been one to start off strong since I prefer to keep my energy till the end. People kept passing me, I tried to not let it bother me, telling myself not to worry that I'd probably be passing them all half way through.

The weather was great and very comfortable, we couldn't have asked for better weather. At around mile 3 my mom, Jim, and sister were there waiting for me and cheering me on, perfect timing for me to drop my gloves and ear wrap. It was great seeing them, but it was still early so I quickly dropped my stuff off and kept going not needing a break at that point.

I saw them a few more times along the route, which was great, especially considering there weren't too many spectators out there nor were there many areas for spectators to come and cheer us on.

What seemed like no time at all I was passing the half way point, it barely phased me as I was still feeling great and certainly didn't feel like I had just come half way. Hard to believe that just 3 months earlier I had run the LA half which was quite the effort and now this half seemed like nothing.

I had my special drink waiting for me at mile 13.9, I had been looking forward to it the whole time, merely for the sake of looking forward to something. I made an effort to drink it quickly and was finished before mile 16 where I again was greeted by my family. I dumped the drink container and jacket and continued on, feeling strong.

Two miles up I was greeted by my Uncle David and cousin Emily, it was great seeing them and I took a minute to say hello before continuing on. I was still feeling strong and feared stopping for too long since I didn't want my muscles to start stiffening.

I left them at mile 18, feeling great. By mile 19 I hit about the closest thing I would come to my "wall" and really it wasn't even a wall. My stomach had started to hurt a little at that point so I walked a bit to calm it down, it started feeling a little better and I was sure I could just run through it, but I just couldnt' seem to stay running every time I started up again. Didn't help that there was a minor hill all through mile 19 as well. I had to keep talking to myself and pointing out how far I had come and how lucky I was to not be in any real pain. My the end of Mile 19 I started running again and came across a fellow Team in Training member I had been running with previously but had lost once I stopped to use the restroom. I had been running alone since then so I was happy to come back across some company. I ran up beside him and asked how he was doing and he mentioned how mile 19 had been a little rough for him, was glad to see I wasn't the only one struggling there :)

We ran together again for a while, but eventually I carried on as he was having trouble with his IT band and I just wasn't in the mood for going that slow since I was feeling so much better. I ran off on my own for a bit and came upon some more Team in Training people, again I was happy for the company. Before I knew it we were at mile 22, I was enjoying the company and we were all having a great time and even stopped for a few photos along the way. Paul, the previous Team in Training guy caught up with us and posed for a few of the pictures. I was really enjoying the company, but by mile 23 I was feeling great, and feeling even better once I realized I was definitelly making the time cut off and was only 3.2 miles away from finishing what I had set out to do. 3.2 miles, that's just a 5k, I've done a ton of 5k runs, piece of cake!

I was fortunate to get my runners high right there at mile 23, I was estatic and filled with energy. I took the last of my shot blocks, finished my fuel and took off. My pace was strong, I felt great and finally there were more spectators along the way.

I did start getting a little anxious around mile 25 when it seemed like these last 3.2 miles were taking longer than they should have and I just couldn't see the finish line, nor could I hear the cheering. But then alas, more and more people were along the route, the cheering was getting louder, I knew I was getting closer. We began winding through a neighborhood, people were shouting that the finish line was just around the corner, but which corner?!? Then there it was mile 26 marker, only .2 miles left! One more corner turned and I saw the finish line; within seconds I was crossing the finish line, I had done it, I had run 26.2 miles! I felt fantastic still, I felt like I could have kept running, I didn't feel like I was about to pass out and there were no sharp shooting pains in my knees as I thought there would have been. I ran through that finish line in under 5 1/2 hours and ran across looking strong.

I was funneled through and handed my medal, it was over. I was directed back and to the right, but now what. Where was my family? I had heard them calling my name as I passed the finish line but the crowds were a blur. Was it really over, did I seriously just run 26.2 miles?

Then I heard my name and looked over to see my Uncle David, he congratulated me and then quickly called my family on his cell so they could come and find me as well. There were the typical pictures taken and much talk. I then walked over to the Team in Training tent and received my 26.2 mile pin. It was fun to start seeing people I had befriended along the route finishing as well and wearing their medals.

All in all I had a great run, I felt great, I didn't have any injuries, I refueled constantly throughout the race and always listened to my body. I never once got bored for I made tons of friends along the way. I may never see them again, but it was still great meeting them for the run and hearing everyones story as to why they had chosen to run 26.2 miles, or how many other marathons they had previously done and which ones were their favorites.

Well so now that's it's over, what's next? Well I'm already planning on my next marathon; I think at this point I'll probably do the San Diego Rock 'n Roll in June. So for now I will continue to run and maintain the point I've built up to.

I'm also planning on running the Nike Women's Marathon in San Franciso in Oct, however, this one is already sold out, so if anyone knows of someone who is wanting to sell their bib entry, do let me know!

Well I hope you've all enjoyed following me throughout my training and I hope you'll continue to check back periodically as I'll continue to update this for as long as I'm running.

Thanks to everyone who sent me well wishes throughout all this, honestly I think that was what kept me going throughout the run.

Pictures that were taken along the way can be found here, http://www.marathonfoto.com/index.cfm?RaceOID=32502007W1&LastName=DALTON&BibNumber=130&Mailing=3146

Will hopefully post some soon that were taken by my family.

So yesterday we started our tapper and only ran 13 miles, which I know is still a lot, but after our 20 miles 13 seemed like almost nothing. However, around mid way my knees started hurting and by mile 10 I couldn't really even run anymore. This is now really worrying me. Being so close to the marathon I wasn't about to push through the pain, so I wound up walking the last few miles yesterday to ensure I wasn't further hurting myself. I guess I did more damage to my knees last week than I realized, and well I guess it's my fault for having slacked off the self massage with the basket ball my coach told me I should be doing to prevent the knee injuries :(

So while it is pretty close and my knees really were hurting, I'm still not too worried. I'm hoping to get a massage this week, if not today, take it easy and probably not run too much, and do my basketball massage everyday.

Well it's now just under two weeks away, almost there!

Ok so this last Sunday we ran our 20 mile run! This would be our longest run of the season and afterward would start tappering off till Marathon day. Naturally I was worried about running 20 miles, but I was also excited to see how it was going to feel and to get it out of the way. I had exchanged my shoes for a 1/2 size larger, cleaned up my blisters, loaded up on carbs during the week and was pretty much ready for the run. However, I did stay out rather late the night before for a friend's going away party. But despite that I got up and got to our starting place, somewhat on time.

Our run was a great run, mostly down along the beach, warm temperatures, but not too warm and the best part was that the rain that had been there all weekend and a little in the morning had left us shortly after the start of our run! It still had left a lot of puddles and had flooded some of our course leaving me to run through the large puddles or climb through trees and bushes, but aside from all of that I was happy to see the clear skies.

I wound up running probably a little slower than I should have but I had good company that I was enjoying getting to know since I don't usually run with these two girls and so I decided to stay at their pace instead of taking off and being alone.

Overall the run was great, around mile 17 or 18 I was getting rather achy and my feet were really hurting, but I was determined to finish and nothing was that bad. So I kept it up and finished the 20 miles which I actually later found out was closer to 21 miles! I finished in just over 4 hours which I believe leaves me more than enough time to finish the remaining 6 miles for the marathon knowing that on race day I'll have a quicker pace and shorter stops at the water stations.

My knees were hurting after the run but it wasn't anything like they had previously been so I wasn't too worried.

Now it's just a matter of staying injury free and maintaining what I've built up to till marathon day!

Ok so I my next two posts are rather delayed, but every time I try to post something on here my computer freezes and I lose all that I have written and get too annoyed to come back and try again.

Anyway, so two weeks ago we went out for our 16 mile run. Prior to this the longest I had run was 13 miles, so I was a little worried. However, the run turned out great! I was full of energy, running at a much quicker pace and just in great spirits the whole time. I came in just under three hours leaving me to believe I really could make the 5 1/2 hour cut off in the marathon. I decided it was probably due to my good nights rest and my new shoes I had just purchased the day before but had not yet run in.

While I was feeling great about the run I was saddened to find out my feet were covered in blisters upon taking my shoes off, thus telling me my new shoes that I was so excited about were too small and I'd have to go exchange them :(

My feet were gross but I felt great and I had run 16 miles! Next week, we up the antie to 20!

That's right, only 35 more days until the big day! I'm starting to get a little worried that I won't make the time cut off, but at the same time am thinking this will be great motivation for me to not slack off during the race. I read online last night that once 5 1/2 hours have passed, they close down the course and a truck comes around to pick up the remaining runners or if you wish to not be picked up then they take your bib away :( That just seems like the most depressing thing ever, to have worked so hard to get that far only to have your bib taken from you, not even to be kept as a souvenir. I just can't let that happen to me, so I'm going to do everything I can to make sure I come in before the cut off time.

Well training has been going well, the knee is still doing great which has been an enormous relief. However, now it's the bottom of my right foot that has been giving me trouble. It feels just like a strained muscle so hopefully it'll just go away soon once I rest it a little bit. Otherwise, all goes well. Today we did a 13 mile run with quite a few hills worked into it so we could be sure to have hill training since there will be hills at the marathon. Actually the point was to practice going down hill since most of the marathon (as well as the LA marathon) will be downhill and our coach wants to be sure we don't injure ourselves in the marathon by pounding too hard going down hill or not controling our steps enough and blowing out our quads. However, to practice going downhill we had to go up hill :( I hate running on hills, and I was worried about having the hill practice with a 13 mile run, but it actually wasn't that bad. It's always exciting once I finish and realize that hey I just ran 13 miles, I still feel great, and that really wasn't that bad.

My approximate time from the run was a little slower than I'd like, because as I see it, if I maintain that same speed for another 13 miles that puts me at right around 5 hours. While that is 30 mins. earlier than the cut off time, I'd still like a little more cushion just in case I can't maintain that speed for 26 miles. However, I did probably spend a little too much time at the first water station since I was rather hungry and thirsty, not to mention pooped from the hills. Just need to make sure I'm keeping my breaks shorter in the marathon!

Well that's about it for now, just running longer distances, and still maintaining my yoga.

Oh in other good news, a member of our team who has been in remission just found out that she's still in remission bringing her to 3 years in remission, which is great news! She's been a great motivation for me considering she's just younger than me and listening to all that she's had to go through and yet still keeps such an optimistic outlook on life.

So I'm happy to say that today I completed a 12 mile run and walked away with my knee feeling just fine. Maybe not 100% perfect, but I was able to walk just fine after finishing and it actually didn't hurt! It never really bothered me during the run and I ran the whole 12 miles at a fairly decent pace.

I was a little nervous at the start of the run that my knee would start acting up again but I was so happy when I completed the run and it hadn't acted up at all. Really gave me my spirit back as I had been getting worried that perhaps my knee wouldn't allow me to successfully complete the marathon. I just hope now that I can keep it in good condition and that it doesn't get injured again.

Aside from the painless run, today's run was a great run as a large part of it was along the beach and it was such a sunny and mild weather day. Really makes me happy doing this training in Santa Monica.

Thanks again to everyone out there who has been giving me support, I really appreciate it!

Well I went for my first run in about two weeks on Thursday night. I was a little worried to start running again since the last time I had run my knee was just killing me. But I figured since the marathon is only two months away it was time for me to get back in there and get to work. Well I'm happy to report that I did about a 6 mile run and came out with no knee pain. Now it isn't completely better as I could tell that had I kept running it would have started hurting but at least it seems better for now and I'm going longer distances before it starts hurting. Hopefully this means that my muscle in that leg is finally getting stronger and that everything I'm doing to make it better is working.

I think I'll still have to take it easy on Sunday's run but we'll see.

Well that's about it for now.

Happy New Year to you all!