Training, day 1. We're here again. The race is Saturday, January 12, and it is time to get back on the running program.
Alison and I went out for a 24 minute run, we ended up going about 2.4 miles, I have completely decided to throw pace out the window, at least for the first few weeks.
Nothing to report, really. Knees felt okay, shins hurt a bit, I just have to keep up on stretching and we'll see how we do. We have a new training program, I'm excited to see how it all turns out!
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Race Day.
This is probably going to be a long post, b/c I feel like I got a lot to say! First, let us go back to my 11 mile run, which was difficult, as you can read in previous blogs. I ran that, and things were hard, but I got through it. Actually, I don't want to bore you.
Bottom line, this is what happened. About 12 weeks into the 17 weeks of training, i got sick for 2 weeks. I didn't really run at all, I felt really tired, took a few days off of work and felt like I just couldn't get into it at all. Our 12 mile run came up, and I hadn't run in 2 weeks. I decided to run 1/2 of that, a 6 miler, and it was hard, but felt great to be back out.
After the run, I sorta felt like my right knee, but actually both knees, were hurting. It was a soreness I had never felt before. I didn't run for the next few days b/c I simply felt like I was doing more harm than good.
A few weeks later, the plan was to go out and run 3 miles or so in Arizona, nothing, right? WRONG! about 1.5 miles in my right knee KILLED! This was about 1.5 weeks before the race, what was I going to do? I was scared, to be honest.
That afternoon, while golfing, i could barely walk. The pain was pretty severe, I remember after taking some advil and easing off of the knee, I realized that I hadn't been breathing much at all b/c of the pain, it was very severe and awkward.
I got back to work after Arizona and went to see a massage therapist/sports medicine'r at work. She beat the shit out of my knee, told me it was going to be okay, said it was b/c my muscles were tight, and i was good to run 13.1. Well, that was awesome, but in the back of my mind I was scared b/c I hadn't run over 10 miles in probably 1.5 months...barely run at all in the last 30 days. How could I go out and run 13.1?
Well - race day arrived. I'll get into details now.
We had to wake up at 3.00 AM for our race. Alison was SO SICK the night before, heck 7 hours before, we had to wake up. I didn't htink she'd be able to walk, let alone run. But at 3, we awoke and Al felt okay, my knees felt good, Grum and Andy were doing great...Watch out for those two, they are a feisty little duo.
We got out of our hotel and walked over to our bus..very well run, but what do you expect. We were at the race by 3.40 or so, ready to roll. Problem was, race didn't kick off til 6ish...We got int our own corrals...Grum was A-1, me and Al were B-1 and Andy was C, for whatever reason. They filed us into our places around 5ish, I believe, it was incredible. The # of people was amazing, everyone was so excited and in a great mood, it was a really huge rush.
At 5:58, there were fireworks to kick off the wheelchair division, then again at 6 there were some more to start the A runners, there goes GRUM!!!!
Me and Alison ended up taking off around 6:25 or so, and we were off. Still dark, there was a massive horde of people around us, it was a fun feeling, figuring out ways to pass people, staying out of the way, etc...
Mile marker 1 came and went really fast, we both felt good, but b/c of crowds we were probably running a 12 minute mile pace, so it wasn't speedy.
Mile market 2 ...At this point, the Arizona knee pain kicked in in full gear...we stopped at the port-o-potty which was nearly tipped over, and I really didn't think I could run anymore. But I did.
Mile markers 3 - 6 were pretty fun. It was at this point that we entered the Magic Kingdom parking area, ran by the contemporary and into the Magic Kingdom. It was an awesome experience, the sun was up at this point, people were all over, we were alone in the park, it was a really terrific feeling of achievement. I said to Alison that no knee pain would prevent me from getting through the Magic Kingdom. At mile marker 6, we were behind Splash Mountain, mixed in with attractions being refurbished and Jungle Cruise hippos, we had some orange, banana, water and Gu....it was a good stop.
The 6th mile was torture... My knees felt okay at this point, they hurt, but not like Mile marker 2...and both and and I felt completely fine otherwise, legs and cardio weren't an issue at all...ever, really. But mile 6 was on a desolate road behind the Magic Kingdom, where nobody ever goes. Nothing to see, nothing to look at...coming out of the Magic Kingdom, it was abummer.
But we came around the bend around 6.8 or so back towards the Golf Courses and the Grand Floridian...and things started to get real weird.
Mile Marker 7 was painful, plain and simple. I really was hurting, the pain in my knees was sharp and intense, at times it literally took my breath away how much it hurt, I had to skip steps and do things to avoid falling over...it sucked. Alison stretched me out, we ate more Gu and drank a ton of water, we were both really happy with that portion, the beverage intake...
We walked a bit through Mile 7, probably around 1/4 of the mile...starting back up running was painful, the walking was fine, running hurt.
(this is when things start to get fuzzy)....
Mile Markers 8 and 9 were a painful blurry mess. I ran most of that, very slowly, but we ran it. Just moving hurt like hell. It was so frustrating to know that we trained all this time, that 1 month prior I could have run the whole thing, with pain and with discomfort, but with relative ease. It was a painful event for me and it could have been more than that...it was a bummer.
I went to the medical tent a few times, but just to get some kind of muscle rub that i lathered on my hamstrings and knees...a few people asked if I was okay b/c I was visibly in pain - I'm not going to lie, I had some moments when the pain was so bad that tears blasted out of my eyes...it wasn't like I was voluntarily holding back crying or letting it go...just once every 5 minutes a step would hurt to a point that it made me cry. Ooops. Whimp.
Mile Markers 10 and 11 i experienced walking. I didn't think I could run/jog at all anymore. Alison walked with me, and I cannot describe to those of you who are still reading how amazing she was during this entire thing. Not just the training, not just helping me through the pain, but just being with me for this race was a really emotional and rewarding experience. She kept me going, no doubt...if she wasn't there, I really think I would have quit at mile 2. That says somehting about me and my character, but it also says something great about hers, and I am really lucky to have her around.
Mile Marker 12 was really an emotional highpoint for me in the race. I was furious - mad at my knees, mad I couldn't run, mad I was holding Al back from running the end of the race...we passed the marker just before Epcot and there were hundreds of cheering onlookers, it was intense, I felt like I was disappointing them by not running, and they were all strangers. At about 12.1 or 12.2 I started the jog. I think thats about right.
I am trying to be as honest here as I can, and I am not trying to sound heroic. If you saw the way I finished this race, the last thing you'd think is that I was heroic, trust me. But I started to jog, with any amount of speed and grace I coudl muster, which wasn't much. Again, I can't stress enough how annoying it is to have my knees, which have never given me any trouble, be the thing that stopped me from blasting through this race. But as mile 12 developed, we entered Epcot and run by Spaceship earth, towards World Showcase - stopped short of the lagoon, then ran back towards the finish line in the Epcot parking lot.
The pain was unbearable - nothing I have ever felt before, acute pain only in my knees - no soreness anywhere else, no tired arms or dead legs, no headache, no stress besides my knees. I was audibly grunting and whincing, I couldn't control the noises, but I didn't want Alison to have to walk through the finish line and I didn't either.
Mile Marker 13 slowly crept up and by me and we entered teh home stretch. We saw the finish line, Al and I joined hands and held them up high, right around 3 damn hours after we started...On a good day, I'd have hoped for 2:18 - 2:20...the walking nearly 3 miles in this really hurt us - the slow start b/c of crowds hurt too...
So we finished - my first stop was immediately the medical tent before I even picked up my donald duck medal. I had my knees taped up with ice on them, they were in incredible pain...i didn't even know what was happening. We found Grum and Andy, found Al's mom and Grandparents and sat around, talking about how awesome the feeling was. It was truly memorable.
So right now I sit around and wonder if I ran a half marathon. Alison would probably kill me for saying that, it is the wrong way of thinking. I did it. I know for a fact that my goal was accomplished. I wanted to be in a place, this past summer, where I could physically go out and achieve that goal of a 1/2 marathon, 13.1 miles....
I feel like there is no question I got to that place. And for the minutes/hours after the race I said I'd never do that again, but I was wrong. I am doing it again, probably January of '08, and I am going to jog/run the whole thing. I now see that you don't need 17 weeks of training, you dont need to be so intense, you just gotta go out and run. Stretch, hydrate, run, stretch, hydrate. Thats not hard.
This year, 2007, is going to be awesome, and its simply b/c I have a new passion. I still will golf, I still will hang out, I still will eat fun food, but running is going to matter more to me, b/c I felt, while running the disney half, how much passion, energy and emotion it truly can evoke.
I am so pumped, slightly angry, still very sore, but mostly, I'm excited to run again.
It was an amazing weekend - but it was also an amazing 17 week journey too.
So there.
Bottom line, this is what happened. About 12 weeks into the 17 weeks of training, i got sick for 2 weeks. I didn't really run at all, I felt really tired, took a few days off of work and felt like I just couldn't get into it at all. Our 12 mile run came up, and I hadn't run in 2 weeks. I decided to run 1/2 of that, a 6 miler, and it was hard, but felt great to be back out.
After the run, I sorta felt like my right knee, but actually both knees, were hurting. It was a soreness I had never felt before. I didn't run for the next few days b/c I simply felt like I was doing more harm than good.
A few weeks later, the plan was to go out and run 3 miles or so in Arizona, nothing, right? WRONG! about 1.5 miles in my right knee KILLED! This was about 1.5 weeks before the race, what was I going to do? I was scared, to be honest.
That afternoon, while golfing, i could barely walk. The pain was pretty severe, I remember after taking some advil and easing off of the knee, I realized that I hadn't been breathing much at all b/c of the pain, it was very severe and awkward.
I got back to work after Arizona and went to see a massage therapist/sports medicine'r at work. She beat the shit out of my knee, told me it was going to be okay, said it was b/c my muscles were tight, and i was good to run 13.1. Well, that was awesome, but in the back of my mind I was scared b/c I hadn't run over 10 miles in probably 1.5 months...barely run at all in the last 30 days. How could I go out and run 13.1?
Well - race day arrived. I'll get into details now.
We had to wake up at 3.00 AM for our race. Alison was SO SICK the night before, heck 7 hours before, we had to wake up. I didn't htink she'd be able to walk, let alone run. But at 3, we awoke and Al felt okay, my knees felt good, Grum and Andy were doing great...Watch out for those two, they are a feisty little duo.
We got out of our hotel and walked over to our bus..very well run, but what do you expect. We were at the race by 3.40 or so, ready to roll. Problem was, race didn't kick off til 6ish...We got int our own corrals...Grum was A-1, me and Al were B-1 and Andy was C, for whatever reason. They filed us into our places around 5ish, I believe, it was incredible. The # of people was amazing, everyone was so excited and in a great mood, it was a really huge rush.
At 5:58, there were fireworks to kick off the wheelchair division, then again at 6 there were some more to start the A runners, there goes GRUM!!!!
Me and Alison ended up taking off around 6:25 or so, and we were off. Still dark, there was a massive horde of people around us, it was a fun feeling, figuring out ways to pass people, staying out of the way, etc...
Mile marker 1 came and went really fast, we both felt good, but b/c of crowds we were probably running a 12 minute mile pace, so it wasn't speedy.
Mile market 2 ...At this point, the Arizona knee pain kicked in in full gear...we stopped at the port-o-potty which was nearly tipped over, and I really didn't think I could run anymore. But I did.
Mile markers 3 - 6 were pretty fun. It was at this point that we entered the Magic Kingdom parking area, ran by the contemporary and into the Magic Kingdom. It was an awesome experience, the sun was up at this point, people were all over, we were alone in the park, it was a really terrific feeling of achievement. I said to Alison that no knee pain would prevent me from getting through the Magic Kingdom. At mile marker 6, we were behind Splash Mountain, mixed in with attractions being refurbished and Jungle Cruise hippos, we had some orange, banana, water and Gu....it was a good stop.
The 6th mile was torture... My knees felt okay at this point, they hurt, but not like Mile marker 2...and both and and I felt completely fine otherwise, legs and cardio weren't an issue at all...ever, really. But mile 6 was on a desolate road behind the Magic Kingdom, where nobody ever goes. Nothing to see, nothing to look at...coming out of the Magic Kingdom, it was abummer.
But we came around the bend around 6.8 or so back towards the Golf Courses and the Grand Floridian...and things started to get real weird.
Mile Marker 7 was painful, plain and simple. I really was hurting, the pain in my knees was sharp and intense, at times it literally took my breath away how much it hurt, I had to skip steps and do things to avoid falling over...it sucked. Alison stretched me out, we ate more Gu and drank a ton of water, we were both really happy with that portion, the beverage intake...
We walked a bit through Mile 7, probably around 1/4 of the mile...starting back up running was painful, the walking was fine, running hurt.
(this is when things start to get fuzzy)....
Mile Markers 8 and 9 were a painful blurry mess. I ran most of that, very slowly, but we ran it. Just moving hurt like hell. It was so frustrating to know that we trained all this time, that 1 month prior I could have run the whole thing, with pain and with discomfort, but with relative ease. It was a painful event for me and it could have been more than that...it was a bummer.
I went to the medical tent a few times, but just to get some kind of muscle rub that i lathered on my hamstrings and knees...a few people asked if I was okay b/c I was visibly in pain - I'm not going to lie, I had some moments when the pain was so bad that tears blasted out of my eyes...it wasn't like I was voluntarily holding back crying or letting it go...just once every 5 minutes a step would hurt to a point that it made me cry. Ooops. Whimp.
Mile Markers 10 and 11 i experienced walking. I didn't think I could run/jog at all anymore. Alison walked with me, and I cannot describe to those of you who are still reading how amazing she was during this entire thing. Not just the training, not just helping me through the pain, but just being with me for this race was a really emotional and rewarding experience. She kept me going, no doubt...if she wasn't there, I really think I would have quit at mile 2. That says somehting about me and my character, but it also says something great about hers, and I am really lucky to have her around.
Mile Marker 12 was really an emotional highpoint for me in the race. I was furious - mad at my knees, mad I couldn't run, mad I was holding Al back from running the end of the race...we passed the marker just before Epcot and there were hundreds of cheering onlookers, it was intense, I felt like I was disappointing them by not running, and they were all strangers. At about 12.1 or 12.2 I started the jog. I think thats about right.
I am trying to be as honest here as I can, and I am not trying to sound heroic. If you saw the way I finished this race, the last thing you'd think is that I was heroic, trust me. But I started to jog, with any amount of speed and grace I coudl muster, which wasn't much. Again, I can't stress enough how annoying it is to have my knees, which have never given me any trouble, be the thing that stopped me from blasting through this race. But as mile 12 developed, we entered Epcot and run by Spaceship earth, towards World Showcase - stopped short of the lagoon, then ran back towards the finish line in the Epcot parking lot.
The pain was unbearable - nothing I have ever felt before, acute pain only in my knees - no soreness anywhere else, no tired arms or dead legs, no headache, no stress besides my knees. I was audibly grunting and whincing, I couldn't control the noises, but I didn't want Alison to have to walk through the finish line and I didn't either.
Mile Marker 13 slowly crept up and by me and we entered teh home stretch. We saw the finish line, Al and I joined hands and held them up high, right around 3 damn hours after we started...On a good day, I'd have hoped for 2:18 - 2:20...the walking nearly 3 miles in this really hurt us - the slow start b/c of crowds hurt too...
So we finished - my first stop was immediately the medical tent before I even picked up my donald duck medal. I had my knees taped up with ice on them, they were in incredible pain...i didn't even know what was happening. We found Grum and Andy, found Al's mom and Grandparents and sat around, talking about how awesome the feeling was. It was truly memorable.
So right now I sit around and wonder if I ran a half marathon. Alison would probably kill me for saying that, it is the wrong way of thinking. I did it. I know for a fact that my goal was accomplished. I wanted to be in a place, this past summer, where I could physically go out and achieve that goal of a 1/2 marathon, 13.1 miles....
I feel like there is no question I got to that place. And for the minutes/hours after the race I said I'd never do that again, but I was wrong. I am doing it again, probably January of '08, and I am going to jog/run the whole thing. I now see that you don't need 17 weeks of training, you dont need to be so intense, you just gotta go out and run. Stretch, hydrate, run, stretch, hydrate. Thats not hard.
This year, 2007, is going to be awesome, and its simply b/c I have a new passion. I still will golf, I still will hang out, I still will eat fun food, but running is going to matter more to me, b/c I felt, while running the disney half, how much passion, energy and emotion it truly can evoke.
I am so pumped, slightly angry, still very sore, but mostly, I'm excited to run again.
It was an amazing weekend - but it was also an amazing 17 week journey too.
So there.
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