Square One
I refuse to go into Savannah untrained as I did with Nashville. This weekend I resolved to get back in the swing of things so that is what I did this morning.
The last time I ran over 2 miles was June 6th. According to my Garmin, that run was labeled post-injury test run, so it was me testing out my feet and ankle after all that mess I dealt with a while back. We have run at CrossFit but that has been the extent of it. While my feet were jacked up I focused on strength, and just kept focusing on it even when I should have been easing back into cardio. This morning it was a wake up call. The 70 squats and additional work on Saturday left me super sore, but I am tired of making excuses. For too long I have cut out cardio and that is why this morning was so tough.
I took my wife’s advice and just went out for 30 minutes. Nothing too crazy, just get out and run and see how things felt. Despite the fact that I feel like I am back at square one, everything else felt great. Focusing on strength for the past few months I have certainly lost a lot in the cardio department. However, it is nothing that I cannot overcome. I plan to swap out a CrossFit day and run instead, so that I can be prepared for Savannah as I should be.
The bright side is that nothing hurts right now. My feet, ankle, knees, and legs feel fine. And as much as running sucks, I still love it. It is this odd love hate relationship. I love how I feel when I am done. I feel really good about the direction moving forward and am excited about the results.
2011, what a year…
If you would have told me that at the end of this year I would have finished these races, I would have laughed at you. When we started off, I was really trying to drop about 40 pounds. I did not expect to do much more than that. But to be here, to look back, its hard not to get choked up. This year I ended up finishing seven 5Ks, two 10Ks, Warrior Dash, my first official half-marathon, my first full marathon, Tough Mudder, and more training miles in between than I ever imagined. I am not patting myself on the back, please don’t misunderstand me. I still have plenty left to travel down this road I am on , however, I have a huge sense of accomplishment looking at this.
My First Marathon Experience
I am going to do my best to put my thoughts down about my first marathon and hope that it does not turn into a glob of random information about the day. This post is most likely going to be longer than Kim Kardashian’s marriage. Well, that really isn’t a stretch. Regardless, I will put all of the details and photos after the jump.
I have so much to write about this experience and its been difficult to wrap my mind around it. In the meantime, I thought I would share this. My family was waiting on me to finish and all I really wanted was to see them and celebrate the accomplishment. I heard my name from the side and saw my wife, wrapped in her Rock N Roll blanket from the race and she just had the best expression on her face. I could only describe it as tearful joy. Nothing more at that moment mattered more than a hug from my wife. My mom was standing next to her and caught it on video.
All that is left is to do it…
Look Sunday, you dont want to mess with me
Look Sunday, you dont want to mess with me! I done tole you!
Sunday mornings are my long runs and I really look forward to them. It always feel good to be out running, alone with my thoughts. It is therapy. This week was my longest run to date and despite that fact, I was only a tad bit nervous. More excited than anything else. So here is how it went down:
I did great with fueling during the run. Fuel belt with plenty of water and I also stashed a water bottle toward the end of my run. I took a Hammer Gel every 4 miles and after mile 10, I randomly mixed in some GU Chomps as well. It was the coldest weather I had run in, and thankfully yesterday I snagged some compression pants and sleeves to run in. Overall, I felt great during the run. The hardest part was mile 16 to 17 but after hitting 17 I knew I only had a mile left so that made it much easier to keep going. I was fully planning on being absolutely drained by the time I got home, but I’m not. I actually feel pretty good.
Look, plenty of people run faster and further than me. I am not setting any records here. So I am not posting this stuff to brag. Not at all. It is not even about that. What I want people to see from this is that back in February, I couldn’t run outside of my subdivision without feeling like I would pass out. It was only 1.6 miles and it took me about 28 minutes. To be able to run 18 miles without stopping is a major accomplishment for me. If I can do it, anyone can.
10 weeks of training for this bad-boy are done and in the books. November 5th will be here before I know it!
Training Week #2: Stick a fork in it…
..because its done.
Saturday morning started off really great. Not only are Saturday’s my long run, but my wife’s as well. On top of that, I go to CrossFit where the trainer on Saturday’s pushes us like no other. She is tough, kicks our butts, and I freaking love her for it. I love that my wife is running and training for the half-marathon as well. When I know she is on her long runs, I get excited about seeing her when she comes in, because I know how awesome it feels. So being on the same sheet of music is great. Her training is a little different in mine, in that her long runs go for time and mine I go for distance. So this morning she ran 70 minutes straight (her longest to date) and logged a little over 6 miles. I was so proud. Once she got back it was off to CrossFit.
First Half & Nerves
November will be another first for me: my first half-marathon. My wife’s, too. We will be running the Rock N’ Roll Half-Marathon in Savannah. Honestly, I have been nervous about it. My longest run (though not fast) was 12.5 miles so I know I can run 13.1. But for some reason, the mental aspect of this has crept in and really been beating me up. Not sure why I let it. This should be fun, right?
Last night, one of my buds Peto setup this awesome workshop were the Director of Communications & Community Regions for Big Peach Running Co. came to talk about everything relating to a half & full marathon. It put my mind at ease about a lot, stuff I will write about closer to the event. I know now that I need to change up my training to prepare for it. I do not want to just finish. I want more than that. I want to stand at that finish line proud for not only having accomplished something that I never would have been able to do, but know that I pushed myself even further than I thought I could.
Half-Marathon? Why Not?
A friend of mine had been looking at my running posts on Facebook and threw the idea of a half-marathon out on the table. I thought he was crazy (Part of me still thinks he is) because I only have three 5Ks under my belt and I am not the fastest at those. So why make the leap from a 5K to a half-marathon? Well, as I continue progressing, to me the question isn’t “why” but “why not”.
It has changed my mindset for my running now, and I actually like the fact that I have something like this on the horizon. A half-marathon has always seemed like something so unattainable to me. But I am tired of the unattainable. I am tired of never trying to reach. It is time to do it. So I signed up. In November, my amazing wife and I will be running our first half-marathon in Savannah, Georgia.
