mileage – Page 13 – The Celiathlete

September 9, 2012

The road to recovery and reaching 700 miles

This has not been an easy road for me. I started off my year strong with a goal of running 500 miles by December. Well, that happened back in June. With that being said, I decided just to keep going…see what all I could manage beyond that. Tentative goal…perhaps 1000 miles this year.

And then…the great plantar fascia tear happened and I had the three week set-back that included no form of running at all. When I should have been increasing my distance and miles for an upcoming half marathon (at that point…only 4 weeks away), I was sitting on the couch, doing foot exercises given to me by my podiatrist and physician, praying with all my might that the pain would go away and that I would make the Indianapolis Women’s Half Marathon.

I got fitted for orthodics…which I hate. I hate them like death. I have only run in them once, but I am going to put some more mileage in on them this coming week. Why? Because that is what my podiatrist wants. My feet are adjusting to them when I walk around in them, so it is time to see what I can do in them on my runs. But not the longer ones yet. I’m not prepared for that. I can tell you…my feet aren’t either.

Slowly…I got back out to the roads. Barely at first. A couple miles here. A couple miles there. I was afraid to run. Here I am doing one thing that has always brought me joy…and I have this almost paralyzing fear to do it. And when I would go out, I would run painfully slow…afraid that if I pushed more or harder, I’d hurt myself again.

This went on for weeks…and then, just before the Indianapolis Women’s Half Marathon…I decided to just face my fear…and go out for a run. Just find a good pace. Stick with it. The problem was…the summer has been brutal so pushing would expend way too much of my energy and by the end of my run, I would be ready to collapse. But, I pressed on, even if it wasn’t the level I had hoped for. And my speed, very slowly, began to return.

And then, with the permission of my podiatrist, an amazing tape job on my feet, and a promise to take it easy…I made it to the start of the Indianapolis Women’s Half Marathon. The weather was, as it had been, brutal. More so with Hurricane Isaac on the brink of making it to Indianapolis. The humidity was at 90% and the race started out under a red flag. This half marathon almost did me in. It took me days to recover from it. I was dehydrated, despite having water with me and keeping a slower half marathon pace. I wilted more and more as the race went on and just prayed to reach the finish line. Which I did…sooner than I even anticipated. No new PR…but I wasn’t there to set one. I was there to return to running and face my fears.

And with all that done, my next half marathon was only a month and a half away. So, I jumped immediately back into training (again). I know that recovery time is important, and due to the strain of that half marathon on my body, I really did listen and slow down until I felt back up to par. In addition, I started doing circuit training workouts to help build up some core strength, and perhaps strengthen some muscles. I’ve almost done it for a full week now and I’m already feeling stronger. My runs…are feeling better.

Or maybe that’s the break in the hot weather.

This morning, I’m heading out for my long run. I don’t know how far I’ll go, but I’m going to run over at Seneca Park in Louisville, Kentucky for the first time. Why? It’s a chilly 57 degrees out this morning…and I just need a change of scenery. I’ve run everywhere in New Albany. I know where the hills are, where the flat areas are, where it’s difficult to run due to traffic lights, etc. I need to just go out there…to run. No worries. Just focus on starting slow, and then building into it. That’s the only way to properly prepare for a half marathon…and I want to work on that.

With the Hershey Half Marathon only weeks away, I’m already looking forward to it. September has arrived and the weather is starting to cool down. Humidity…going down. And I find myself more eager than ever to go out for my runs.

Here’s to staying strong, to staying injury-free, and to the next 100 miles…

July 20, 2012

Just over 600 miles and already striking out

Anyone who knows me and has seen me this past week will know that I am not a happy girl. How could I not be happy, you might wonder. I mean, on Saturday I purchased brand new running shoes. That would make any runner happy, yes?

Well…normally…yes.

But not me. Not right now.

Why, you might inquire, am I miserable? Because I haven’t been able to run.

It happened…again. My roommate followed me too close and when I had to stop as someone stepped in front of me, her foot came down on the back of my shoe and tugged my Achilles again. AGAIN!!! At first I tried to lessen my speed and intensity…but the pain wasn’t getting any better. So, I had to make a conscious, and difficult decision, to rest.

Yeah…I’m moody now. My runs mean more to me than anything. I’m hard at training and now…for the second time…for the same reason as before…I’m sitting on the bench. And here I sit with weekends of races ahead of me, including a 4-miler this Saturday. I’ve been taking Ibuprofen like it’s crack and icing my foot whenever possible…but it just won’t get better. My mornings at the gym have been delegated to the weights and the elliptical. UGH!! Let me run!!

I hate it. I hate every moment of not being able to run. Every synapse in my brain tells me to just do it…and then the logical part kicks in and tells me…if I rest it…it will get better…faster. Well, I’ve been resting it and while the pain has subsided some, I feel like every muscle from my left calf down to the bottom of my heel (and sometimes through the arch) is tight now because I’ve been trying to compensate for the soreness in the heel. UGH. So, I’m now making an even bigger conscious effort to not limp and not baby my foot. The problem is…it still hurts. And the longer the pain lasts, the more concerned I get about Saturday’s race and the unhappier I become.

I’m not in a good place right now. The elliptical machine does not make me happy. My 35 minutes are better spent running than gliding back and forth on a machine. It’s not the same. It’s fantastic cross training…but it’s not the same. It doesn’t feel the same. It’s not…the run.

The Grand Slam 4 Miler is taking place downtown this weekend…and I’ll be there. I just hope I can put forth some effort in this run. I ran one hell of a 4 mile race this past winter and I was hoping to see how this compared. I’m thinking my pace will be slow…my effort easy…and I’ll just have to wait until the next one.

And yes…this once again…makes me unhappy. It literally pisses me off. I hate being injured. Yes…it was an accident, but being sidelined again for being stepped on again is not an easy pill for me to swallow. I want my run. I want to get out there and do what I love to do more than anything in this world. And when I can’t…when I have to sit here with my foot on an ice pack, praying that the running gods will have mercy on me and get me back into form by Saturday morning…it’s hard to feel confident. I want to train. I want to be out on that road, feeling that pavement under my feet, or…hell…finally properly seeing what my new running shoes can do.

Frustrated doesn’t begin to explain how I feel. I’m upset. I’m sad. I’m missing my run.

I just need to run.

So…another day of rest, more ice, and a shot of Ibuprofen in the morning, noon, and at dinner. Maybe, at least, by Saturday, I can walk without a limp. Or better yet…make some attempt at a lope…if not a jog. But a run? Would that be asking too much?

I hope not. Because the call of the road is constant…and my running shoes are begging for some pavement to beat.

I guess we’ll just see how it goes…

June 14, 2012

And so I ran 500 miles…

Today pretty much marks the halfway point of the year. And what did I accomplish on my three mile hard training run this morning? 500 miles this year. Exactly.

500 MILES!

I hit my goal. Already!

I really wanted to make the last three miles count. Seriously. So I was very glad that it fell on a training day when a hard run was required. This meant more speed, more inclines, more power. And it meant that these last 3 miles toward my goal of 500 for the year would mean a little more at the end of it.

So I really worked it. I made every moment of this run count. I ran at a harder rate, getting my heart pumping, working for each mile. And in the end I couldn’t be happier with the results. Yes…inclines and speed work are tough. But hitting that goal made it all worth it.

I am in a steady training schedule for my next half marathon, which hits in September. So, I’m back to a strict schedule on my runs. And after that, I have one more half marathon in mid-October to run. I’ve been contemplating a fifth one this year and have it narrowed down to two. One is up in Indianapolis (again), while the other one is closer to home…here in Louisville.

Additionally, I have a bunch of races I haven’t signed up for which I need to. Perhaps that’s how I’ll spend my break today at the office.

With races in the works, looks like downtime isn’t in my future. But that’s okay. I like it like that. Hell, I’m the girl who goes on vacation and keeps on training. This is how you know you love to run. I don’t have to convince myself to lace up my shoes. I don’t have to talk all bad ass about my running (because I am not a bad ass runner). I don’t have to comment about how great a run feels. I just run for the love of it. I finally found something in this life that I love. And the best part is…I don’t have to be good at it. I just have to keep my passion for it. The key is to run smart. If I hurt or ache…I take a day off or run slow. If it’s hot…I run early or late. If it’s hot on a workday, I keep the run short and I listen to my body. That’s the key to any run…listen to your body. If you go out too hard, too fast, do too much when your body isn’t ready for it…you get injured.

I know. It happened to me last year in the race I’m running on Saturday in Frankfort, Kentucky. Trust me…no runner wants to be sidelined for months with a stress fracture in the foot and runners knee that just won’t get better. But it happened. And I limped and hobbled my way through June, July, and August before I was able to get back into running. And it sucked. Far better to run smart than to do yourself damage. It saves on medical bills…and a lot of unhappiness.

I’ve learned a lot in the time I’ve been running and I’ve learned to set feasible, reasonable goals. With that said, my goal on Saturday is to run a good race. Am I aiming for a specific time? Yep. I came in last year (on injury!) at 45 minutes. I want to beat that. But, it’s going to be warmer this Saturday, so we’ll see how it goes. The most important thing is that I go out there and have a good run…and more importantly…have fun doing it.

So…with these 500 miles behind me…time to set a new goal.

I’m open for suggestions.

May 31, 2012

450 miles covered and a half marathon on the horizon

450 MILES!!

Can you believe it? I hardly can…but it’s all been possible because of the hard work I’ve been pouring into each run I take.

I’m in training. Again. Actually, it seems like I never really stopped training. I went from a half marathon in Indianapolis at the beginning of May to another one, this time in Minneapolis, on Sunday, June 3. It wasn’t the best planning, I know, but it was how the cards were dealt. Imagine my surprise when I plugged the new race info into my iPod app and already was up to having to run 8 miles on a long run. Craziness. But…the life of a runner is never boring.

As my training has progressed to this, the second of four…maybe five, half marathons for the year, I’ve covered a lot of road. I’ve dealt with minor set-backs (injuries) and I’ve struggled with finding things that I can handle eating while running (I still have yet to master that!). On top of that, maintaining a healthy and balanced diet to fit my restrictive dietary needs (I’m a gluten-free vegetarian!) and not dropping pounds has been an even more epic battle. Making sure I get enough protein…an even bigger battle.

But that’s a different story.

Yesterday, I was out on my last easy training run before the half marathon on Sunday. And in those short 2 miles I covered, I rolled over the 450 mile mark. This leaves me with less than 50 more miles to cover until I reach the goal I set in January. Hmmm…I think it’s time to up the mileage! I can’t believe I’ve reached the goal so quickly. Considering that in January I was bummed out for getting a slow start, my training schedule has certainly made up for it. I am so happy my feet can still carry me miles down the road at whatever pace I feel I want to maintain.

Today, I head to the airport to fly to Minneapolis, Minnesota. I’m running in the Minneapolis Half Marathon on Sunday, June 3. The weather looks like it will be perfect for running. Ideal. And…even better…my grandpa is going to be there. He’s the one who inspired me to put on running shoes and hit the road and the fact that he will be at the race means so much to me. I look forward to crossing that finish line and giving my family and friends hugs and just reveling in the moment that he was there to see it happen.

I’ve been so ready to make this trip. And now that it’s here…I’m ready to get running.

Perhaps that’s the taper talking…but this race on Saturday means the world to me. I’m ready to run it the best I can.

May 24, 2012

Troubleshooting and tears

I know, it seems a bit weird to mention troubleshooting in a blog about running. But, like most things in life these days, even our running schedules hit snags and need a good system reboot every now and again.

I’m in the homestretch of my half marathon training for my second half marathon of the year. This one is up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and runs on June 3rd.

This race is so important to me. I chose to run this one for one specific reason.

My grandpa.

He lives up in Minneapolis and is quite the seasoned veteran of their road races in the area and beyond. I really wanted to run a distance race that he could come out and watch, cheer me on to the finish, and celebrate with me. He understands. He gets it. He used to be a runner. At the age of 90, he can still walk a (surprisingly) hilly 5K in less than an hour. I can listen to his tales of marathons, half marathon’s and shorter races all day. He’s a great story teller. But he was also a great runner.

And while I have been fantastic about making sure I get my runs in according to my training app on my iPhone, this week…I have done very little running. This week and next week are the two most important weeks when it comes to the training program. This week, the mileage is high, and next week…the taper. So getting these runs in and getting those miles in are very important.

And on Monday, when I was to run 5 miles…I did nothing. My legs were tired from running two races over the weekend and doing a 9 mile run on Sunday for my long run. So…I took the day off. Not something I like doing, but rain was moving in so going out to Louisville for my fun run was not looking like an option. Tuesday was three miles and I ticked those off in good fashion. Yesterday was to be my yoga for cross-training. I have started running to and from my class now that it is light out and the weather is awesome. But…I’ve had a bad week…so…I didn’t go. I wasn’t feeling it. I got overheated at the office and just felt drained and under-the-weather. So…I nixed not only a run, but my cross-training as well.

And then I got mad at myself for it. Really angry. I started to cry, and when my roommate asked me what was wrong, I told her I felt like I wasn’t giving my all to this. Here is one of the most important half marathons that I’ve been training for…and I’m failing on my training! It made me really upset. I should be at 13 miles of running by the end of today. I’ll probably have 6 miles. Which leaves me 7 miles short for the week when all is said and done. I don’t like that. I don’t like that sort of deficit.

But…it happens, yes? We all have bad days. And, let’s face it…this has just been a bad, bad week. Am I a failure for not getting in those miles? No. Do I feel like one? Yes.

It’s all mental. It’s all in my head. I just have it in my heart to run the hell out of this race. I just want to do something brilliantly for once. And since I’ve read how hilly this course is…I really want to be prepared to take on this hills and do it without slowing down…too much. I want this…for myself…and for my grandpa.

And I think that’s why I’ve been so hard on myself about this. And that’s why it upsets me to no end that I’ve come short on my training runs this week. Will it affect my run overall? Probably not. But I’ve put a lot of time and energy into training and I just want to do it to the best of my ability.

So…this week I’m coming up a little short. It happens, right? It’s hard to tell a passionate runner that it happens when they look around and see people logging those miles despite what may be going on in their life. I’m not a failure by any sense of the word. I’m just having a hard time dealing with the fact that I’ve become so blasé about training right for this race.

I guess the fact that it has upset me so much doesn’t mean that I don’t care. Crying about missed runs doesn’t solve anything. Getting out there and running does. So…next time I’ll lace up instead of curling up on my bed and having a cry-fest.

The culmination of a horrible week has pretty much been the reason for this. I can pinpoint it. But…damn…it’s hard to bounce back from that. But I’m going to. And in the end, I’m going to run that half marathon strong and make my family proud…no matter when I cross that finish line.

May 18, 2012

400 miles later…

Yep…you read that right. I am 100 miles away from my goal for the year.

400 miles!

I can’t believe how quickly these miles have just ticked off. There hasn’t been a day where I thought…”I just don’t want to run today.” I’ve been very diligent about following my half marathon training schedule. I’ve lightened up runs when my body has suggested it might be the best option to do so. I’ve run hard on hills, pushed myself in races, and sometimes have just had to stop and catch my breath for a moment.

But this is the life of a road runner.

And 500 miles is creeping up fast. The goal is going to have to be expanded. I don’t know what I’ll strive for in the end. Perhaps I’ll just add another 100 miles…and see what comes from it. Or perhaps I’ll add another 500 to the count. I just don’t know. It’s something to think about. The fact of the matter is, on Monday evening, upon arriving late to my group fun run and having to set out on my own…I hit that 400 mile mark.

I didn’t even realize it at the time, but it happened. Probably somewhere when my paced slowed to a crawl as I hit the hardest hill in Cherokee Park over in Louisville, Kentucky. One day I will conquer that hill without feeling like I’ve just pushed myself up a mountain. With each run, with each session at the gym, I am getting stronger. I can feel it in my running. I can feel it every day.

But this is where it stands today…over 400 miles of road covered and quite a bit more already planned as far as future races go.

I’m not burned out on it at all. I crave more of it. And that, my friends, is only a good thing.

Last 100 miles. Let’s make them count!

April 28, 2012

Hitting 350 miles

I’ve put a lot of time, energy, strength, sweat, tears, and bruises into my half marathon training. I’ve continued to run races around the area and…in Colorado (because I am crazy!)…while maintaining my training program and keeping up with the mileage that is required on certain days. And I have had a blast doing it.

Well, today was my last long run before I kick off my first (of four, so far) half marathon of the year. I’m totally excited to be doing another half marathon. This will only be the second one that I have run, but I have trained smart for it…really listened to my body…and have found my runs improving. It makes me feel really good.

But today, something else happened on my last long run. Well, I discovered my water bottle was leaking…but that’s beside the point. As I rounded up my 10 mile run today, after an easy 5 miles followed by the last 5 miles with hills (I’m apparently a masochist when it comes to my training runs), I hit the 350 mile mark on my journey to run 500 miles this year. I couldn’t be more proud of this achievement either. This hasn’t been an easy road. I’ve even had to run on a sore Achilles tendon (I slowed down and didn’t push it on hills or for speed). I’ve worried about injuries, endured minor ones, one major one, and kept on going despite it. Why? Because I have a half marathon next weekend and I want to be ready for it.

When I ran my first half marathon last year in Chicago, I wasn’t prepared for it. I was straight off of a stress fracture to my foot and horrible runner’s knee in my right knee. Training wasn’t an option…I could barely run a mile on a treadmill at a slow speed. So, it was a miracle I finished. I didn’t eat right for it. I didn’t train. And yet…I got to that finish line in a respectable time.

My goal…to only improve on that.

So, having 350 miles behind me already feels great. I feel great. I couldn’t be more excited about hitting the road in Indianapolis next Saturday for the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini Marathon. I think it will be a good race. I think I will run a good race. And, I have 350 miles of training to thank for that.

Only 150 more to go. Looks like I might have to increase my goal for the year.

And that, my dearest friends, is how you can tell that I run for the love of it. I don’t make myself go out and run. I willingly go and put in the miles. It makes me feel better about life when I do it because I run because I love to run. And there is no better reason to run than because you love it. If you don’t love doing it…you’ll stop doing it. And I hope to be doing this for a very long time.

April 16, 2012

300 miles of road behind me

It feels like just the other day I was touting my accomplishment of hitting the halfway mark to my goal of 500 miles this year. It seems that the mileage ramp-up to my first half marathon has been inching me further and further up the mileage chart.

It only seems fitting then that I struck my 300 mile mark during my long run on Sunday morning. In fact, I hit 300 miles in mile 6 of my long run. I just wasn’t aware of it at the time. I was focusing on my breathing, my footfall, and taking it easy on a tight, sore Achilles tendon that has been giving me some grief over the past week.

It’s the middle of April and in a couple of weeks the taper starts as the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon will be kicking off. It’s the largest mini-marathon in the United States and it runs up in Indianapolis. I am thrilled to be a part of it. I’ve trained hard for this race. I’m still working on proper fueling on long runs, but I’m getting the endurance part down. I think I’ll do better here than in Chicago, where I ran my first half marathon last September, completely untrained and completely lacking the knowledge of how to properly fuel and prepare for 13.1 miles of constant running.

This is my hope anyway.

A lot of my ability to work toward my mileage goal for the year just happens to be a direct result of my half marathon training. I honestly hope it pays off in the end.

That being said, I’m still looking ahead. Any one thing can derail a streak like this. And while you try not to dwell on it, accidents happen. Injuries happen. I hope that I can continue to run safe and smart.

300 miles down…200 more to go. Every mile closer feels so good!

April 1, 2012

Halfway to 500 miles!

A milestone was set during the race I ran yesterday. Yes. At Mile Marker 8, as I turned into a very strong wind and was nearing the final two miles of the Papa John’s 10 Miler in Louisville, Kentucky…

250 MILES!!

It’s just now heading into April, and here I am at the halfway mark to my goal of running 500 miles this year. Let me tell you, I’m happy with where I stand on that…and extremely proud of the hard work, and runs, that have gotten me here. Whether these miles were clocked on the dreadmill, the road, or a race, they have led me to a fantastic halfway mark.

Here’s what I have gotten out of this so far…several races, new PRs, and that fantastic feeling I get when I lace up my shoes and just head on out to hit the road. Nothing in life makes me happier than the feeling I get when I’m running. I am not the fastest person out there. I don’t aim to be fast. I just aim to meet my goals. And every time I head out, I set one. It doesn’t matter how short or how long the run, how hard or how easy, whether I do hill repeats or just take to the flat lands, I find joy in every run.

After such a fantastic race yesterday, hitting that 250 mile mark is just the icing on my gluten-free cake! I am really doing this. I am really making some great progress and headway. And I’m loving every footfall, every breath, and, yes, even every hill. Because what this all is doing is just…making me better. I can see it when I finish strong. I can see it when I set a new PR. And even when I don’t, I can feel it in my stride, my breathing, everything about how I run.

So, here I sit…halfway there…and I couldn’t be prouder.

For all of you who set your own goals this year…I hope you find your hard work paying off as well.

March 22, 2012

Surpassing 200 miles

It happened on Saturday as I was making my way through the first two miles of the Rodes City Run 10K. I hit 200 miles officially logged and run for the year. That leaves me with a grand total of just under 300 to go.

Ever since taking up a proper half marathon training regimen, I’ve been off my run a little every day kick. So now, I do my easy runs, I do my long runs, I cross-train with some yoga, I (started to & need to get back into) work on strength training, and yes…I take a rest day. I am now making sure I get my long runs in as specified. It’s funny what a goal will do to your outlook.

So, this journey started in January and by March 22, I’m sitting at 217 miles for the year. I’m loving this. My excitement is still there. I love each run, yes…even the hard ones. And with the weather being so great right now, running outside has sparked my enjoyment, brought my smile back, and challenged me with pollen, allergens, hills, and all that fun stuff that runners contend with. But, in the end it only makes me better at running, so I push through all of it, give myself pep talks as I go, pump up the tunes, and try to pay attention to my breathing, posture, and footfalls.

I’m not saying I love every run, or that getting out for those long runs is what really makes my day. But the fact of the matter is…I’m out there running. And nothing quite makes me feel as free or as alive as when I’m hitting the paths, the streets, the sidewalks with my trusty running shoes and adding some well-deserved, much needed miles to my day. Rest days are the days where I’m edgy. I hate having to rest. I understand the necessity for it, but…it’s so hard to turn off that part of my brain that makes me want to go, go, go…and run.

I’ve been enjoying my little journey toward 500 miles and can’t wait to get to that halfway mark. My speed in doing so may have slowed, but my drive hasn’t. So I’m going to keep this going and keep on pushing it. Almost halfway there…