the real story about bridget's toe.

this is actually what happened. sorry to out you bridget! but its time you stopped living in filth.

toe update!

i know, i know, you're all on the edge of your seats about the status of my sore toe....

so I mangled my toe this weekend with all my fabulous running.....and I haven't been able to wear shoes since Sunday, haha. I sported flip flops at work yesterday so that I could wear this giant rubber toe protector. Today its finally feeling better, still sore if i touch the top of the nail, but way better. It seems that the nail has separated from the nail bed, and there's a callous underneath it (ew, right?). according to lots of running websites, this is really common, and my nail might eventually fall off, which, apparently will make it feel way better.

i cant believe i'm actually HOPING for my toenail to fall off. running has made me into a weirdo.

in a related story- i tried to find a funny picture of a toe to post, but apparently, googling "cartoon toe" or "funny toe" doesnt come up with anything very good. so, note to self, make some cartoon toes and throw them out on the internet.

ok, now i'm losing it. going to try to run 3 after work and see how it goes!!

Weekend warrior

I had a great weekend of running!

Saturday, Kat, Diane, and I set out on a 14 mile run....along Kelly drive and through fairmount/forbidden drive. The weather was beautiful and crisp, a perfect fall day for sure. And Diane had cut up oranges for us as a snack- training is all about trying out what works and what first right? They were sooo refreshing and delicious when we cracked them open around mile 7ish....way better than those chemical filled goo packs!
So I biked home from our run (ugh it's like triathalon training when you don't have a car!) and then my bff matt called to say he'd be picking me up in 20 minutes for Oktoberfest at Brauhaus on south street. Sigh....no rest for the weary :-/ but there were German beers to be drank!
All I wanted was a nap but instead I found myself eating bratwurst and drinking giant mugs of beer! It was fun, but then I was off to meet my family for dinner! Soo tired! I don't think I've ever NOT taken a nap after a long run haha.

And to top it off, this morning was the Parkway run, a 5k for childrens hospital, with bff, grace, Dana, Lauren, Peter and the rest of the sig team. I had no idea how it'd go, how sore I'd be. But- Lauren and matt pushed me along...and then I got a burst of energy towards the end when I thought I'd finish in less than 30 minutes. I finished in 30:11!! That's one of my best times in....well....as long as I can remember. I've always finished 5ks in like 32-34! I was excited!

Then I had to run to the train to go babysit, play with kids all day, and now I'm completely zombified :)

also- my toe is KILLING me!! I keep hearing that you can lose nails from running, eek! I have a feeling it's comin soon! I hope I can run with the pain :-/

pacetats!

ok, i just want to say, i want one of these.....only because they are badass looking and make you look like a serious runner. not because i actually need to pace myself, haha. clearly not trying to break any records here, but how fun is this?

http://www.pacetat.com/PaceTat-Miles.html

cheerleaders wanted!!

one more thing.......while running the PDR yesterday, I got pretty sad about the fact that I didn't have any friends/family to look for along the sidelines. Everyone I knew there was running the race!

So- Calling all friends/family! All I want for my birthday/christmas is lots of people to come and make silly posters/signs for me at the Philly Marathon, on November 22nd! I'm DEFINITELY going to need it then!

and, of course, I still want Dave to be at mile 23ish with a beer for me. the way I see it, my friends can all tailgate the race in manayunk and cheer for me when i get there? haha. and, the more ridiculous the signs are, the better. but warning, i'll probably cry. I almost did yesterday a few times (not sure why, but I was feeling all sorts of waves of emotions during the race).

thats it, come out and cheer me on, thanks, i love you all :)

-b

Philly Distance Run!!

This weekend was a flurry of excitement. Saturday, 18 of us went white water rafting in the poconos.......it was a BLAST! and exhausting. and i knew I had the Philly Distance Run (half marathon) on sunday, so I was a little nervous!

So I had to be at the RWA shelter at 6am on Sunday, we had 5 guys from Back on my Feet running the PDR. We all walked together through Love Park, and up to the start near the Art Museum. I finally started realizing, "oh shit, am I ready to run a half marathon today? maybe I shouldve taken this more seriously this week?"

We get to the start, and Fred (one of the homeless guys) and I were planning to run together. It was an absolutely beautiful morning, minus the fact the race has you running directly into the sun for the first 2 miles, haha. So Fred had me running at like, a 9 minute mile pace........I was barely keeping up, and knew there was absolutely no way I was running 13 miles at that pace. Finally around the 2nd mile I had to slow down, and he just took off (thanks alot Fred, haha....just kidding). But after the next mile, I realized I was running just under 10 minute miles on my own. What? I almost always run 11+ minute miles, especially when I'm not keeping up with anyone else!

So I decided I was doing this for as many miles as I could keep it up. At mile 8 or 9, I decided, thats it, I'm running this pace the whoooole race if I can! I was so excited about completely shattering my time from last year's half marathon! I remembered being somewhere around 2:30 and figured maybe I could pull a 2:15 if I kicked my butt into gear.

I felt great, even at mile 11! So great, in fact, that I took advantage of a "Beer Stop" along the side of Kelly Drive. It was the most delicious beer I had ever tasted (probably a natty light or something gross, haha). I was so pumped about how well it was going that I just wanted to celebrate (a little early). I didn't start feeling sluggish and tired until after mile 12, but thankfully the sidelines were packed with people cheering me along.

I finished in 2:10!!! And when i got home, I looked up my time from last year- 2:40! I shaved 30 MINUTES off my time! It was really amazing to see how far I've come in just a year, and really motivated me to get through this marathon.

Plus, once I made my way through the crowds upon crowds of people, and back to the BOMF tent.....I almost cried at how proud I was of our guys. They not only finished their first race, but a half-marathon nonetheless! I dont think any of them really grasp what a major accomplishment that is yet, but I hope they realize that lots of runners never even get that far, let alone people who have only been running for 2-3 months. Absolutely amazing!

So here's some pictures of all of us, pre and post-race.

Up this week- (2) 5 milers, an 8 miler, and a 14 miler this weekend (mixed in with at LEAST a 30 mile bike ride somewhere). Less than 2 weeks until the MS 150, City to Shore bike ride. Starting to get nervous about that, since I've focused sooo much on running the past few months. YIKES!

yikes....

Last night, I had to get in an 8 mile run....and didnt get to leave work until 6:30. So I knew I had a long run ahead of me....and the rain was looming.

I found a little pouch made of crypton, from a fabric rep, that I was going to use to attempt to protect my iphone, and I set off running.

First of all, a long sleeved tshirt was a HORRIBLE choice, it was a weird combination of mugginess and cool and rainy, and humid. But it was too hot with the long sleeves. And second, my legs felt like lead weights. I couldnt get any sort of "speed" (which, again, is way slower than normal people), and one mile in I didnt see any way i'd make it through 8 miles. Also, my stomach had been bugging me all day (which is why I missed my morning BOMF run).

Anyways, 3 or so miles in, I realize...it is DEFINITELY going to be dark out for the better half of my run. And I'm running along kelly drive, alone.....and there's been so many rapes/attacks lately. So naturally, I spent most of my run scaring myself that someone was going to jump out of every single bush or corner. I was very jumpy, and just imagining the worst.

So much for a relaxing run, right?

And then it got worse....my stomach was KILLING me, and I knew I'd never make it back, 3 more miles to go, without a bathroom break. All I could think of was the picture that Dave posted awhile back, haha. It was dark, I was running a variety of options through my head........and finally, with one mile to go to Lloyd Hall (and bathrooms), a magical port-a-potty appeared. BUT.......it was scary, and dark, and i just saw shadows of giant spiders. It was awful....but it saved me life. And then I sprinted the last mile and a half home, because I was over it. I was over running, and just wanted to be home.

So I went to the grocery store, and made meatballs, and a bunch of healthy stuff....I'm determined to lose weight during this marathon training if it kills me!! And it just might!

So far today I had:
a screwed up smoothie (ice wouldnt crush, so it was like, strawberry soup)
4 mushrooms
1 roma tomato (my obsession)
healthy homemade meatballs, with some marinara, on a wheat bun.

sheesh......i just want to bury my head in a pizza and snickers feast. hehe.

Running 6 tonite, 6 tomorrow, 5k race saturday (plus 3), and biking 30 miles sunday. yikes...

long lonely road

Well this weekend I've been staying home in Paoli visiting my parents, and yesterday called for a 14 mile run. So I mapped out a run that would take me to Radnor, run the 5 mile Radnor Trail, then home. I wasnt sure how this was going to go, running so far by myself, but I was ready with my Fuel Belt, and carried some money, and a granola bar, just in case. I felt like the Bear Grylls of running. I set off along Sugartown Road, which was pretty much the only road I took all the way to the trail. WAY different than city running, in that there was no shoulder, no sidewalk, and cars were not used to seeing a runner along the side of the street. Some of the twists and turns I was actually scared that a car would zip around the corner and slam into me. So it wasnt the most relaxing of runs, but getting to the trail was nice, because its tree covered, and chock full of runners, walkers, bikers, etc. (think: smaller scale of kelly drive- and less Lance Armstrongs zipping along).

I was feeling REALLY great until about mile 11. I was just about out of water/gatorade, in all 4 bottles, and was trudging along at a 12 minute mile pace. A Michael Jackson song came up- Rock with You, and I actually started singing along and felt the urge to dance, haha. But it really motivated me to keep going, which i also found hilarious. At one point I took my headphones out, and realized that my "singing" after running 12+ miles, actually just sounded like squeaking and breathing, haha, but when I was blasting the music at least i felt like i was singing along. I mustve sounded absolutely crazy to anyone driving by who heard me. Also, the entire run, I pondered my marathon weight loss cookbook. I really want to make it happen and have a ton of great ideas. which, i should write down before i forget, haha. And a few ideas for other running related things that i've decided need to be invented. But i cant post them or you'll steal them! hehe.

oh, and my iphone died at 13.8 miles. WORST. that last little bit is when i really need some music pulling me along. that was tough. and then, i couldnt even cool down because my muscles were immediately seizing up after stopping.

And i'm supposed to be able to run 12 more???????????????

no freakin way. I barely wouldve had half a mile more in me. How am I going to be able to do this? Sometimes after runs, I know I have a few more in me, but am just following my training schedule. At this point, I don't see how in a few weeks I'm going to be able to run 16 or 18 or whatever, i really don't. Its almost like a religious feeling....I need to place my faith in this training plan, and trust that its leading me on the right path (literally), but I just cant forsee it. So i'm trying to remain optimistic, and know that if i follow all my runs, the mileage will come. but sheesh. i was really wiped out yesterday.

on that note- off to go bike 20 miles, since the MS 150 is quickly approaching as well!

remind me never to train for a marathon AND a 150 mile bike ride at the same time? k, thanks!

-bridge

Number crunching

So today I crunched some numbers....wrap your minds around this:

August- I ran a total of 85.8 miles, for a daily average of 2.7 miles a day. Not too shabby right?

BUT....I projected some numbers for September...

September's projected total mileage: 145.5 miles (plus there's some long bike rides scheduled for the MS150 training)

projected daily average of 4.85 miles.

Meep! That's alotta miles :)

I think if I can survive September, and get through the MS City to Shore, 150 mile bike ride, plus the Philly Distance Run, plus 2 smaller 5k races, then October will be a breeze, right?

Goodbye, Social Life, see you in November!

one month down!

so i realized this morning, when i flipped my training calendar to a new page, that i've been in "official" marathon training for a whole month. kinda crazy how fast its going, and how far i've gone so far already (literally)

it was a little sad to flip the page, because it was nice seeing all the checkboxes filled in, with all the runs i've completed.....to a new month, and a page of glaringly empty boxes. It was also daunting to see the mileage leap this month. I guess the first month got kind of comfortable, with my weeks filled with 3's, 4's, some 6's, and then the long runs. This month i'll be facing some 8's and 9's during the week, which is something i'm not used to, and a little intimidating!

a quick update, since i haven't posted lately: two weeks ago we ran a very rainy, and very inspirational 12 miles with some of the guys from BOMF and my friends Kat and Diane, and other BOMF volunteers. It was an amazing run, and really got me back in the groove of training since I had missed the long run the weekend before. Last saturday we did yet another rainy 10 miler, with the same group, which was awesome. Not quite as easy for me, since I was having some rumblings in my tummy, and I ended up being sick the rest of the day. But I survived!

So yesterday, we woke up to some nice cool fall-like weather.....and what did I do instead of running? Laid around on my couch watching DVDs of Madmen, haha. oops. I had a dr's appt in the morning (yes, the "tummy alien" drama is still on-going, no real updates yet), and thought i'd run at night. I thought wrong!

So I was determined to make up that 4-miler, and not miss a run. This morning I ran a nice, easy 3.5 miles around Rittenhouse, all the way down to about 7th & walnut, then back. Of course, when I get in to work this morning, I hear about a girl being attacked on 21st & Locust (um, RIGHT down the street from me!) which left me a little freaked out, since I ran by there this morning, and walk by there at night ALL the time going to the gym. I'll be going to the store to get mace/pepper spray sometime this week for sure.

Tonite I'm going to make it a double-header by running 7 miles after work. I'm looking forward to it!

However....as I weighed myself this morning, and wrote it on the calendar.....I looked back a month ago, and realized....i GAINED 1lb this month! what the hell???? I'm tracking all my calories, i've cut back drinking a ton, and i'm eating healthy. what gives???? Its like fat is permanently glued to my body. So my goal for this month is to do some research on what foods I should eat when, to best repair muscles after runs, prep for long runs, etc. In a dream world, I'd love to write a cookbook about how to eat AND lose weight during marathon training. But alas, I wouldn't be a very good test dummy for this, since I cant seem to figure it out myself.

although i'm sure my daily Snickers doesnt help ;) but- its got peanuts and protein! haha. i started tracking my measurements too, maybe that will help me feel better about this, at least if i'm losing inches and not pounds.

I've got a 14 miler coming up this weekend, that will be the longest i've EVER run in my life, i'm both excited AND nervous!