Perfect Day

Today was the expo for the marathon. I picked up my race number and t-shirt, but not timing chip. I'll be at water station #17, which is located at mile 23.5, right where people water or encouragement most. I was able to meet with Dori, and it was wonderful to see her once again. I'm hoping to see her as she runs by... I'm actually pretty excited about tomorrow, since I get to watch most of the runners go by, including the elites. I rarely see the elite runners, since they're probably finished and back at their hotel by the time I'm done with any race. We also attended the pasta dinner. It's funny how different everyone looks in regular clothes. We ususally know people by how they look in their running gear. I'll update about the marathon in a day or two.

Yesterday's song:

Have A Nice Day - Bon Jovi - Simply Pink

PEACE

Have A Nice Day

There was some relief today. The staples came out! The nurse said that the incision is healing beautifully, and if I take care of myself, there should be minimal scaring. She also said that I looked like I was getting around well for being only two weeks post op. She also reminded me to not limp, and to make every effort to walk as normally as possible, even if it is slow at first. After that appointment, two of my coworkers took me out to lunch. This was the first time in a while I was able to actually style my hair and put on make-up. That doesn't sound like a big deal, but I'm sure I've looked like death warmed over for the past two weeks.

My husband and I are attending the marathon expo tomorrow. He just now called and asked about going to it, but by the time we get there and find parking, it will be over. There's no need to rush since we still have another day.

It looks like we're going to have a nice day for the marathon, with predicted highs in the 60's - and that will be nice for the runners.

Yesterday's song:
Brand New Sidewalk - Nickel Creek

PEACE

Brand New Sidewalk

Evan and me, a couple of months ago, walking to a birthday party.

Yesterday's song:
Rock And Roll - Led Zeppelin

PEACE

Rock And Roll

The marathon is just a few days away. I realized that I still have the counter on the side bar for the marathon. I figured I'd just leave it up there because I'm still attending the marathon, I just won't be running in it, and once the day is over I'll move the San Diego Rock N Roll Marathon over to the 2008 Events section and put a DNS next to it. It's OK. I sort of figured that if I were to particiape running events for the long haul, there would be events that I've signed up for that I would not be able to attend due to illness, injury, or circumstances beyond my control. It happens to all long-time runners. I guess it's my turn at not running in something I had signed up for.

Pictured on the right are the banners that have been posted all along the marathon route. They went up all over town about a month ago. I always get that rush of anticipation when those banners go up.

Recouping from surgery is amazingly exhausting. I never realized how tired the recouperation process can make a person. I do believe that keeping the right positive mental attitude is everything, and will help with the healing, however, being at home and attempting to do even some of the simplest things can wear me out. I'm good until the late afternoon, then I just want to crash, and that' s without needing pain medications. It's not like I'm trying to do much of anything, I'm just trying to walk around the house, do my PT exercises, get a little sun in the backyard, perhaps make the bed, get the mail, and check e-mails.

Yesterday's song:
Legs - ZZ Top - Diary of an Aspiring Loser

PEACE

Legs

Here's this year's group photo of this year's San Diego Track Club! Not everyone is in this picture, as several have been sidelined with injury or could not be there for the picture. Bonus points if you can find me! LOL. Hint: I'm holding my sunlgasses in my right hand. Double click on the picture to enlarge.



Last night, as I was getting ready for bed, I noticed (in my full length mirror) how swollen my legs really are. I realized this is from the surgery and will take time to go down, but last night my legs looked like they were from 30 pounds ago! My legs looked like tree trunks, and not of runner's legs. *sigh* I have't gained any weight. Swelling is a normal part of this process, but it is still a shock to see absolutely no definition in my legs, just straigh up and down, and pudgey. I know I'll get everything back, it's just a matter of time -- time and patience.

Yesterday's song:
Work In Progress - Mary J Blige - Barbie2be

PEACE

Work In Progress

I had a chance to sit in my sunny backyard and actually read an entire magazine article without drifting off to sleep! Woohoo! Progress! My next feat is to read an entire chapter of a book my boss brought to me while I was in the hospital. I also made an attempt at using a cane today. The walker is cumbersome, but it does offer support when I am super tired. I did OK with the cane and I hope I can slowly ditch the walker. Besides, the cane belonged to my grandfather. It's a bamboo cane and has a lot of character, and is way more cool than the walker.

On Saturday, there was an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune about a mime class at Grossmont College. It turns out my daughter is in that class and was quoted for the article. She didn't say anything thought provoking, but she had her 2 cents in the local paper. Her quote was "Mime is a lot of hard work." My daughter is a dance education major, and this past year she has ventured into different territory such as costume design and mime class to fill in the gaps of credits she needs.

Yesterday's song:
Rest Stop - Matchbox Twenty

PEACE

Rest Stop

My niece graduated from college this weekend. She worked full time while attending college, so earning her degree took some time, but she did it. I didn't attend the ceremony or the party, but I think she'll understand why I'm not there.

My good friends came by to visit today with their 1 year old daughter. They haven't been to the house in a while and we had a present for their little girl for her first birthday, which was a few weeks ago. I am always amazed how quickly babies change. They all visited me when I was in the hospital and the baby was barely walking, just holding on to everything as she stepped. Today, a week later, she was walking everywhere.

Not a lot going on, really, just more rest and fitting in some PT when I can.

Yesterday's song:
American Television - Ben Lee

PEACE

American Television

I guess if there is a bonus to having some down time is that I've been able to catch up on a little DVD watching. I watched 27 Dresses and Meet the Fockers. As far as regular/cable TV goes, I'm finally all caught up on this season's Top Chef. I'm not a big TV watcher, so this was a lot for me. Reading a book is a little more complicated because my mind isn't quite all there yet, especially with the meds. I'll start to read and find my eyelids getting heavy. Even magazines put me to sleep.

Today would have been the last track club run before the marathon. My husband went. He mentioned that it was a bit on the chilly side for just standing around, but perfect for running. The group even encountered a little bit of rain towards the end of the run. I had mixed feellings about not being at the last long run, but I was better off staying at home.

This afternoon Anne stopped by for a visit. We compared notes, as she had gone through a similar injury. She was forunate to not have to go through surgery. Just seeing how Anne is doing now gives me hope about my own running, as she has recently returned to running in events. Both my husband and I enjoyed Anne's visit today. We always enjoy seeing Anne. It was great for me to see a running friend, and it was a good time for my husband to take a break in his busy day.

Yesterday's song:
I'm Walkin' - Fats Domino - Barbie2be

PEACE

I'm Walkin'

I've finished one round of PT exercises this morning, which was 5 leg extensions, 5 pelvic tilts, being up and walking for about a 15 minutes with the walker - which is also good for the arms, and hip abductors/aductors - I can only do a couple. I'll do another round tonight. It really doesn't sound like much but I'm still super sore, even with pain meds.

For the next 4 weeks I need to have my blood checked at the lab because I'm on a blood thinner. I went in to the lab yesterday. When I was called to the cubicle, the tech had this perplexed look on his face when he saw me. He said "What's wrong with this picture?" "You have a great body but you're using a walker?" "Old people use walkers, and you're not old." Nice compliment, though, but I have a feeling I'm going to be doing a lot of explaining having the walker. It's really hard to be under 80 years old and make a walker look cool. My son's friend suggested that we trick out the walker with racing fins. I expect to be using the walker for a short time, and I can deal with it.

Since I won't be running in the marathon, I offered to volunteer at the 23.5 mile track club tent. I can do something as long as I have a place to sit. I'm taking my son with me.

Yesterday's song:
Down But Not Out - J.J. Jackson

PEACE

Down But Not Out

Sorry I've been out of the loop here, but here's what's been going on:

Over a couple of weeks ago I had posted about feeling a bad cramp in the hip while I was running with the track club. That was on a Saturday. The following Monday is when I went into my primary care doc. The doc I was assigned to seemed nice, and he felt my issue was muscular, but he didn't feel the need to do x-rays, which is probably when we would have known about the start of a the fracture. The following week we took a trip to Disneyland and did other things that required spending time on my feet. Last Friday, I was going about my morning, showered, had breakfast, watered the plants and was just doing some light housework, nothing hard. I was walking between where my bedroom is and where we keep the computer, which is a step up, and suddenly something popped in my hip and I felt extreme pain. Luckily I was just a couple of feet from the computer chair and a telephone, otherwise I would have been stuck. I couldn't put weight on the right leg at all. I called my husband at work to come take me to emergency. His office is not that far from home, but there was a snag... He was pulled over by the CHP because he has an expired license plate. (We've had problems with mail from the DMV being forwarded to our new address.) The cop was a newbie, didn't know the codes and had to look them up, and even though my husband told him he had an emergency the cop was a jerk and told him to call 911. His car was impounded on the spot! My husband called one of his employees to come pick him up to drive him home. Meanwhile, at home, I'm trying to yell for my son, who is sleeping way at the other end of the house and can't hear me. Funny enough, the cats came running...

Eventually, my son does wake up (after 15 minutes of yelling for him.) Once my son gets his bearings, he tries to pick me up out of the chair but it's too painful. DH comes home, and between him and my son, they're able to lift me from under the arms and carefully get me to the car.

At the hospital it's unusually busy. It takes a while but I'm finally seen. The one thing they keep asking me is how come the doctor I saw two weeks ago didn't order x-rays. They asked how the injury happened and I explained training for the marathon. The running and marathon training comment must have gone on the first page because, after that, most every doctor or staff who came in to see me was an endurance athlete. The conversations often drifted to local running events, shoes and which events are next...

The x-rays are taken and come back, and there's no question that the bone is fractured from one side to the other. It's the femoral neck that broke, which is in the hip. Since it broke all the way through, it required surgery. Had this been diagnosed with an x-ray two weeks ago, I might have not been going through surgery. Well, it is what it is. I have a plate and a few screws holding the bone together now, and they say that this bone area is now stronger than it was before, plus I have 20 stitches, well, staples, that come out it a couple of weeks. One thing I wasn't expecting the docs to say is that I should be running with in 6 to 8 months, maybe less.

I was in the hospital for 4 days. They had me on a metered morphine drip that I could control with a button. They called it the "happy button." They had me up and walking in the halls of the hospital the day after surgery. I'm now back at home and getting around with a walker. It feels weird to use a walker but I couldn't get around without it. I'm on a generic version of coumadin (a blood thinner to prevent blood clots after surgery) and another form of vicodin. I have very little appetite right now, but I'm feeling fluffy from being out of commission. My therapy is just walking around the house, some easy pelvic tilts, unweighted leg extensions, unweighted hip abductor/adductors, and just making sure I move my feet around a little while I'm I bed.

Being at home and not being able to do much is kind of annoying, especially since I have time to be still and notice every little thing that is dirty in the house. The house really isn't dirty, but I'm noticing every little piece of dust and dog hair, and my nit-picky side is coming out, especially since I really can't do anything about it. My cat, Lumpy, has been by my side since I've been home. My husband said Lumpy was nowhere to be seen while I was in the hospital. This isn't the best picture, it's taken with my cell phone:

I have to make sure I have that ice pack on my lap, over the right hip/leg, or he'll want to plant himself right where it hurts.

Thank you, blogger friends, for all of your well wishes. It really does mean a lot to me - you have no idea how much.

Song from Thursday, May 15, 2008:
The Space Between - The Dave Matthews Band - Run DMZ

Song from Saturday, May 17, 2008:
Too Legit To Quit - MC Hammer

PEACE

Too legit to quit

This is Renee, Irene's daughter. She has a hip fracture and is having surgery today. She is fine and will be home in a few days. My mom is in great spirits and would like to thank you all for being such great blogger buddies.

Peace

The Space Between

From Evan's perspective

Yesterday's Song:
Time Is On My Side - The Rolling Stones - Barbie2be

PEACE

Time Is On My Side

I haven't written much about running or the marathon lately. I suppose not running and shifting my thought process to salvage marathon day has changed my thoughts about everything running at the moment.

Because I've had no choice but to be somewhat sedentary this past week, I've had time to really reflect on my fitness goals. Here's what's been RUNNING though my mind:

1) Weight training goals. I've really slacked off of weight training this year, and that slacking surely has something to do with not feeling as strong over all. I've had tendinitis issues which have prevented me from going all out, but it really isn't an excuse to slack. Before running became my passion, I was so into the weight training and gym thing. I was a gym rat and was there as soon as the doors opened so that I could get in my workout before going to work. There was actually a point where I could have taken the weight training a step further than for just my own fitness, but running entered the equasion and it did something for my pshche, sort of like thereapy. Running won out. I know I can become a better, more efficient runner if I work more appropriate weight training into the mix.

2) Running goals. Is it so far fetched that I, a C+/B- runner, could possibly qualify to run in the Boston Marathon? It's not as far fetched as I once thought it was. In theroy, being a female and in the 50 to 55 age group next year, and running in a USTAF certified marathon in 4 :05 hours or less, I could qualify. This year I was runing with the 4:30 people in our track club and easily kept up. That's about 30 minutes off any time I did last year. In theory, if I kept up that kind of progress, I could see a BQ in about 2 years or less. Could my new goal for the 50's decade, starting June 9, 2009 - my 50th birthday, be my decade to run in the Boston Marathon? The answer is yes. Could I do it before I turn 60? Perhaps. Did I just write 60? *gasp* I haven't even had my 49th birthday yet.

Both weight training and running goals will only work when I'm completely healed, and I hope I'm not sidelined for too much longer. I am working out, though, with VERY light weights and my body weight exercises, just so my body doesn't get surprised when I do get back into more intense activity.

First things first. Heal, already.

Yesterday's Song:
Pretty and the Fair - Jessie Colon-Young & the Youngbloods

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Pretty and the Fair

In a post last year, I had discussed losing my mother to cancer when she was only 57 years old, about 22 years ago. Mother's Day is a bittersweet day for me in that I am a mother, but my mother is no longer around and she missed things like meeting my son, my grandson, and just being here. Yeah... Time does heals the wounds, as they say, but there's still that void of her just not being here, ya know?

I have friend I've know from high school who also lost her mother to cancer way too early. Every now and then we'll e-mail each other around Mother's Day just to say something simple like "thinking of you." I wrote the first e-mail this time, just saying that I was thinking of my friend and how much I know she misses her mother, and I'm right there with her. She e-mailed me back and made a comment that really surprised me. My friend is single, never married, never had kids. She insinuated that because I'm married and have kids I couldn't possibly miss my mother as much. WTF??? I don't care if you're married, single, man, woman, have kids, don't have kids, employed, unemployed, 25 years old or 85 years old, but when you lose someone close to you it stings. Who is to judge which person feels their loss the worst, or misses their loved one the most??? That's stupid. Even after 22 years I think it sucks that I just can't call up my mom to see what she thought of some silly TV show or if she knew some weird remedy for hiccups. I can't turn to her after a bad day for a little slap in the face reality check and piece of homemade coffee cake that she was known for. Damn it.

I just had to get that off my chest.

Yesterday's song:
When You Wish Upon A Star - Jimney Cricket (Cliff Edwards) - Run-DMZ
PEACE

When You Wish Upon A Star

PICTURES FROM OUR DISNEYLAND TRIP

Michael channeling his inner Captain Jack Sparrow...

Evan and his Mommy in a fast car on the Autopia ride

Erik and his friend (who is not his girlfriend, by the way) on the Autopia ride.

Meeting a celebrity!

Erik, Evan and Renee at the Blue Bayou Restaurant.

See what happens when you tell your husband to just pick out some sort of souveneer because you're just too tired to care? You end up with fuzzy mouse ears...

Yesterday's song:
Mama - Genesis

PEACE

Mama

My son e-mailed me this for Mother's Day...



Happy Mother's Day!

Yesterday's song:
Family - Dreamgirls (Music from the motion picture)

PEACE

Family

Friday

We finally had our family trip to Disneyland! My husband wanted to go to Disneyland for his birthday last month, but with everyone schedules we couldn't just pack everyone into a car and go. It took about a month to put in for time off, but we all took yesterday off from school and work, and made our way north to the magic kingdom. It was fun to watch 4 1/2 year old Evan experience Disneyland for the first time. The concept of waiting in line for a turn on a ride was new to him, and he was slightly antsy at first, but once he understood that the ride is fun and there OTHER rides just as fun, he quickly adjusted. He's just tall enough, at 40 inches high, to go on most of the rides. Favorite rides for Evan were the Pirates of the Caribbean and The Matterhorn. Autopia was also a winner. We have not been to Disneyland as a family in probably 12 years, and we did enjoy ourselves. My husband even treated us all to dinner at the Blue Bayou, the restaurant inside the Pirates of the Caribbean ride... It was a pricey meal, the food was actually very good, but the day was priceless... (Sorry, that sounded like one of those credit card commercials!) We opted to return back home last night instead of staying up there. It is only about an hour and a half drive for us, and my husband and I had a track club run the next morning. Disney pictures later, when my husband can retrieve the USB cable from the office. Oh yeah, I did OK hobbling around Disneyland on my gimpy leg.

Saturday
We woke up early with just enough time to pick oranges off one of our trees, have some coffee, wolf down a little cereal and make it to the track club run just in time for the group picture. Since I'm still nursing my sore hip, I stayed back with one of the water stations and welcoming group/pot luck. It was a different perspective seeing the runners come in and cheering them on after their quick hydration stop. I was able to see many of the people I have run with, and how well they were doing. Today's run was 20 to 22 miles, and it was a big accomplishment for all of those who ran. It was also equally fun to cheer the runners in as they ran in for the finish. I'll post pictures when I get them from the track club site. I was also hooked up with a free pair of test running shoes. I guess Runner's World does a thing with our track club to test new shoes. When I went down to the table to inquire about a test pair of shoes, all the shoes were spoken for, EXCEPT for one pair, that just happened to be in my size and they're the type of shoe for my food. Score! They're Reebok Smoothfit Cushion. I've never worn Reebok running shoes before, so we'll see how they wear and ride! I also get to fill out a questionnaire to report on how I like the shoe for fit, wear, and performance. Cool!

However...
There was an accident on the run, which shook up everyone in our running club family. One of our runners had a head on collision with a cyclist. It's not quite clear how it happened, but both the cyclist and our runner had to be taken to the hospital by ambulance. They say the cyclist had to be going about 25 mph, right into our runner. Some say our runner darted out, others say the cyclist was going too fast and should have been more mindful of the runner. I'm not sure who gets the right of way in this instance, but it was so unfortunate for this to happen. I'm not going to say the should have, would have, could have thing. It was an unfortunate accident that dropped all of our hearts into our stomachs when it happened. I hope our runner AND the cyclist will be OK.

Yesterday's song:
Mickey - Toni Basil

PEACE

Mickey

Guess where we went today? Details later. I'm sore and tired!!!! Oh, and I did have a good time.

Yesterday's song:
Limp - Finoa Apple

PEACE

Limp

Gimpy is my new nick name at work. 'Nuf said.


Yesterday's song:
Get Your Number - Mariah Carey and Jermaine Dupree



PEACE

Get Your Number

We've received our marathon numbers in the mail today -- not the actual number that's pinned to the shirt but just the number, sort of like a final confirmation. I got a good number and corral assignment. I'm about 6 starting corrals up than I was last time. I know I can't speed the healing process, and I'd doing everything the doctor and my chiropractor has suggested, but, damn, this is one of the best corrals I've been assigned to. It's still way up there but it's better than year's past. I have #14. Oh well. Michael is in the corral I was in last year, which is #20. Non runners, are you confused? At larger run events such as the Rock 'N' Roll events, you're assigned a corral number based on your estimated finish time. It theoretically puts you in an area with runners who run about your pace, that way you're not having to weave in an out of slower runners or worry about getting trampled by faster runners. The race officials aren't too strict about where you start, as I see several numbers mixed in all the time, but I would guess it matters if you're an elite runner or have a much faster pace than the average Joe. It's also a matter of race etiquette to be in the correct corral, but I've never seen anyone make a big deal if you're supposed to be in corral #22, but you just happen to be in corral #19, just so you can start the race with your friends. Any how, I finally get a decent placement but have to back off my estimated finish time. I've said I was OK with backing off or going for a DNS, but the placement number just sort of slapped me in the face today. It was a major reality check for me.



Yesterday's song:
How Deep It Goes - Heart

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How Deep It Goes

I went to ugent care last night since all the day appointments were taken. I actually ended up with a very nice doc who took the time to listen to my concerns. My issues are muscular, not bone. He prescribed me a week's worth of a somewhat agressive prednisone treatment to help with the healing process and adjusted my asthma meds. While I'm on the pred, he suggested no analgesics, but to use ice instead and gave me an Rx for vicodin, along with a heating pad if I need it at night.

It looks like my 4:45/sub 5 hour marathon is not going to happen this time, that's if I'm able to particpate at all. If it comes to a DNS I'm OK with it. If that's the case, I'll volunteer at the track club tent at mile 23 or something. Michael is still good to go and there's no reason why he can't go. Heh, if I participate we might finish together, which we've never done before... I ususally have about an hour lead on him. There will be other marathons this year and the bulk of the big events are in the fall, such as the Chicago Marathon or the California International Marathon. As of right now I'm planning to participate on June 1, however I'm not going to kill myself trying. Right now the workouts are all about yoga and stretching per the doctor's suggestions. Cardio for the next two weeks is out, even swimming. I really need to be careful with my nutrition right now. I got used to all that carb loading, and now I have to back off. Nutrition shouldn't be too hard, though, as long as I track it on fitday.

A friend of mine asked me if I was upset getting injured with only a few weeks left to the marathon, and I said I actually was not upset. ( I was upset about not being selected for the Nike HM.) I really am OK with not running in it, if it comes down to that. If I do run in it, I'm OK with chucking my 4:45 goal and bring a camera to take pictures along the way -- turn it into a different day for myself -- make it more of a photo-journailism thing instead of a personal record thing. You know, the whole "when life gives you lemons" thing. As Tom (Tom's New Ballpark) always says "PMA." (Positive Mental Attitude.)

Yesterday's song:
The Nurse - White Stripes - Barbie2be

PEACE

The Nurse

WELL...

I did call into primary care today and spoke with a nurse about my pains. The cool thing is that the nurse they gave me is also running in the marathon. She seemed to to think my issues are muscle strain, but the only way to be sure is to get an x-ray and take it from there. I have an appointment with an urgent care doctor this evening. She affirmed that what I've been doing (rest, ice, compression, elevation, and analgeiscs) was what I should be doing. She also asked if I had plans to do one more long run before the marathon, but I told her that it depends on this injury. There is a 22 miler scheduled for this Saturday, but I'm probably going to volunteer at that instead.

Yesterday's song:
Moving For The Sake Of Motion - Underoath



PEACE

Moving For The Sake Of Motion

After a couple of vicodin and a lot of sleep, I'm feeling better. I'm still sore but I don't need to walk with the help of walls and chairs. I feel exactly how I felt the day after I ran my very first marathon, which was stiff and every bodily movement was with great effort. The trick is to keep moving, because the minute I sit or lay down, the thigh/hip muscles get tight again. I've been icing my hips when I can, and that's helping. The mentally hard part is that I WAS listening to my body and how I felt when I was running on Saturday morning. I actually felt good until the muscles in the right thigh/hip cramped up, and it came on fast. I was paying attention to my electrolytes and water. As they say, hind sight is 20/20, and I probably should not have run at all on Saturday. I was tight, but not in pain. I thought the tightness would go away once I had warmed up. I digress. I'm one of those stubborn runners who's not going down without a fight.

Yesterday's song:
Twisted - Carrie Underwood



PEACE

Twisted

Activity: Run
Date: 05/03/08 06:51 AM
Distance: 11.60 miles
Time: 2:03:11
Speed: 5.7 mph
Pace: 10' 37 min/mile
Calories: 1091

Today's run was supposed to be a 16 mile out and back. I was feeling a little stiff at the start, but nothing unusual. Once I arrived at the turn around point, at mile 8, I felt good. Nothing really hurt or felt uncomfortable. Around mile 10 the right upper thigh began to cramp something awful. I stretched, but stretching didn't help. I made my way to the next water station and got a ride back to the start with one of the guys who was volunteering at the water station. He's a long time runner and suggested seeing a sports massage therapist. Sounds like a plan to me! I'm hobbling around the house and holding onto walls to get from room to room. Good times.

Yesterday's song:
Maybe Tomorrow - Steriophonics

PEACE

Maybe Tomorrow

I'm planning to run with the track club tomorrow. It's a 16 mile out and back run, and if I feel fatigued I can always turn around before the 8 mile point. The hips are sore but not like they were on Tuesday night.

Yesterday's song:
Made Up My Mind - Doris Day

PEACE

Made Up My Mind

Wednesday I had my usual chiropractic appointment. My chiropractor didn't find anything unusual with me, my Q angle was off but other than that, it was all the usual adjustments. I talked to him about how I was training and that it's different this year. Last year (and years prior) I ran all my distances close to or at marathon pace, whether if it were 2 miles or 20 miles. Perhaps the 2 milers were a little faster, but not my much. This year we're backing off the distance in our taper but we're also doing more speed work at the Tuesday night workouts. It's beating me up. Blogger Jeremy (Keeping It Surreal) sort of reaffirmed what I'm going through in a swimming analogy he had, since that's what he knows:

"I know for swimming that our workouts were a lot more grueling than the other races. Also before a championship meet we would start a taper about 4 weeks before the meet which was a reduced amount of yardage to give our muscles time to rest and repair which had the effect of making us go faster. Not sure if that helps but the different style and "stop and go" parts of your track workout maybe something you're not used to in longer runs and therefore you might be adjusting your stride differently for relatively shorter distances versus the longer runs? Again just putting out my swimming analogy :)"

When you go from longer distances at a slower pace to shorter distances doing speed training, it can beat you up if you're not used to it. The mechanics of how I run changes when I go faster. I'm still feeling beat up. I'm not sure if I'm going to do the 16 miler this Saturday. I'll wait and see.

It's now exactly one month until the marathon.

I've decided not to go with TNT to run in the Nike Women's Half Marathon. There were many reasons, but the big reason was the fundraising. The corporate folks I was thinking about talking to are having problems raising funds for their own charities this year, plus everyone is cutting back on their charitable donations this year. HOWEVER, I do think it is a good cause, and I am going to give my support to Juls (Keeping Pace) in her TNT endeavour for the Nike event.

Yesterday's song:
Ready Made - Beck