This week is the OFFICIAL first week of our regimented training. After a lot of back and forth up to the last minute, we have decided on different versions of Hal Higdon Novice plans.
Rich is doing Novice 1; I'm doing Novice 2
It's midweek and I'm happy to say, so far so good. Rich convinced me that any plan having us run both weekend days was just too unrealistic for our first marathon...and the fact that it's summertime.... oh, right and we just bought our first boat. 
I resisted at first - really wanted to push myself with the Intermediate I plan but decided he's right - it's better to aim a bit "realistic" and run more if we need to - vs. aiming high and feeling guilt that I'm not keeping up. I have enough pressure in life!
So far this week we've met our goals:
Monday: cross train (Rich did "carry water liter" - don't ask; I did kettle ball and Abs of Steel.)
Tuesday: Rich 3; Chris 4.5
Wednesday: Rich 3; Chris 5 @ pace
Questions of the week:
1) What are the top 3 items you carry with you on long runs?
2) Do you listen to music when you run the actual race?
3) How many miles do you get out of a pair of shoes?
Okay, it's ON
Ah, It's Sinking in Now
Just about three weeks until we start the "official" Hal Higdon 18 week training program. We're getting better at our "pre-training" training program (we're following weeks 26-18, then switching), and have been running every other day or so. In doing so, it's finally starting to sink in...
We can go out and run 8-10 miles after taking 5 or 7 days off. No problem. However, after running more often - even at smaller distances - we can certainly feel the difference. With sore legs, running is harder - doh! And it's clear that we are building strength.
In doing so, we're also discovering new challenges - and receiving great advice from readers and other runners (including my awesome brother Ken, 2x marathon vet). From Gu to Body Glide, sock types to eating plans, we've discovered a whole new world. Thanks for all your support.
We're actually on track with our schedule this week so let's see how we do now through Sunday!
* By the way that's not me but damn if that isn't inspiration to run farther and faster, eat less and build more strength! :-)
Fighting blisters, stomach and mental battles
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thur | Fri | Sat | Sun | Total | |
| Chris | 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 19.5 |
| Rich | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 14 |
We're getting better at running more days although we still need to work on spreading the runs out. I actually ran both days this weekend, which was nice - but hard! Today's 10 miler was tough - my legs were sore from Saturday and at about 8 miles my mind started to go ... questioning how I was ever going to run a freakin' marathon! I had to push negative thoughts out of my mind and just concentrate on the 10 for today.
I overcame it, stuck to the 10 miles that I had planned, and am happy - but sore. My legs hurt the entire run, although I do feel them getting stronger. Also, every time I run 10 miles I seem to get blisters. On Saturday I had a different issue, with a bit of an upset stomach on the run. I overcame that as well and was able to finish with no major incident to report. :-)
That being said, I also spent the last 4 miles today wondering what in the world I'm going to do on longer runs about bathroom breaks. I'm too afraid (of poison ivy and boogie men) to go into the woods. I don't seem to pass any outhouses. And there seem to be houses all around on most runs.
So what do you guys do? I need some tips!
Thanks for continuing to read - things should start to get more interesting as we increase our training in June.
GU-ross
On my long run this weekend (self imposed of 10 miles), I decided to try GU energy gel - the package said to take one 15 minutes before the run and then every 45. So I took one before the run and literally - it gagged me. Gagged me. Ugh. All that gooey, thick paste stuck on the top of my mouth while I tried to quickly wash it down with water... are you kidding me? If I tried to pop one of those 45 minutes into my run I would seriously puke.
Luckily, I had a backup to try. I had previously purchased one (sadly, only one) package of Luna Sport Moons energy chews. I was hesitant 
because they look like like fruit snacks and that could get complicated while running - all that chewing - and I wasn't sure if they'd really give me an energy boost. Sometimes things are gross for a reason, ya know?
I am happy to report that these lovely little bites seemed to work and they tasted great. Unless I find something better I am going to keep running with these (as long as I can find them - that's not been easy so far).
Have you tried anything besides GU? What about PowerBar Gel Blasts? Have any other recommendations based on your own experiences?
The 30 Mile Marathon
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Total | |
| Chris | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 10 |
| Rich | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
Yeah, yeah... we were supposed to run 17-22 this week. Is anyone else starting to worry if we're going to actually be able to DO this thing?!
So the good news about my brother Ken is that he finished the Traverse City State Bank Bayshore Marathon this weekend. The bad news is that he ran about 30 miles instead of 26.2.
No, he didn't get lost and he didn't run past the finish line. His running partner, Karen, was injured mid-race and they had a pact to run the race together. As he put it, "At mile 16 she told me to go on ahead and finish the run, as she knew our pace had been strong and I had a chance at finishing under 4 hours. I continued my pace and ran from mile 16 to 19 without her and then realized that it was more important to make sure she was okay and to try and finish together than to finish on my own."
So he turned around and ran back two miles to try and find her (I told you he was a nice guy) and then he had to make up those two miles again, obviously. Needless to say, adding four or so miles makes it tough to reach your personal best time. "The next 5 miles were painful and not a lot of fun as I was worried about what had happened to Karen, knew my chance at bettering my marathon time was shot, and when my watch showed my I had already done 26.2 miles, mentally it was tough to continue."
He did continue, of course - he's not a quitter - and he finished. Afterwards, in a conversation with him, he said he was reconsidering his interest in ultra marathons. However, like having children, he'll probably forget the pain after a while and do it anyway!
Congratulations on finishing your second marathon, Ken! It may not have been your personal best but it was an impressive feat nonetheless.
Maybe we'll get you to join us for your third in Ireland. :-) (And to Karen, who was attempting to finish her fourth (!!) marathon, we hope you recover soon and can surpass that personal best time, next time.)
My Brother, My Inspiration - Good Luck Ken!
Yes I'm avoiding last week's stats... 4.5 miles total. Bleh. Same old excuses: work, travel, parenting and general lack of time to get out and run.
Moving on ... here's someone who hasn't been slacking in his marathon training and who inspires me, always - my brother, Ken. He's the fellow on the right, below. (The other fellow is my oldest brother, Brian - another intriguing subject for another post/blog that has nothing to do with running.)
Ken is an amazing guy. He ran his first Marathon in Detroit in October 2005. I should mention that he trained for that Marathon while deployed in the Iraq war. (And I'm whining about training?!)
Yes, he trained in the worst conditions you could imagine - hot, dangerous, loud - running in circles in the small section of "safety" that he could capture each day amid gunfire, bombs and other chaos. He's long been my hero and this is just another reason why I admire him so. This weekend he will be running his second marathon in Traverse City, MI. The 26th Annual Traverse City State Bank Bayshore Marathon.
If you read this, and would wish him luck in the comments section, I would appreciate it. He's found running to be good, necessary therapy from what have been some very difficult personal years after his return home from the war. Details are not important - but I know he'd appreciate any and all words of support. You can also write on his Facebook wall if so inspired.
Rich and I only hope we can be as disciplined as Ken has been in his training... you know, once we "officially" start a plan. We wish him all the luck in the world at reaching his personal best this weekend.
Go Ken!
It was something
Managed to sneak out today for 4.5 miles; 8:34 pace. Trying to get used to getting out even if just for 40-60 minutes.
On my way I saw a bunny. It made me smile and took my mind off of the run for a minute.
I've also been taking my iPod earphones off lately. My day is so noisy with clients, employees, meetings, kids and general craziness that it has been nice to just listen to the birds and well, nothing, lately.
Short and sweet today - here and on the road.
Officially Bad at Official Phase I Training...
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Total | |
| Chris | 0 | 5.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.5 |
| Rich | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Work has been getting crazier and I still fear, "How Will I Find Time To Do This?" I really wish I could get up and run at 5 a.m. I will continue to strive for this goal but it is - to me - practically as difficult as lifting a car with my bare hands. Therefore, I have decided that I am likely going to log on to Sitter City and try to get a sitter who can come three nights a week so I can run after work. (That kicks in all kinds of Mommy guilt but that's another story for my Mommy blog...)
We definitely have a good base built - we've been running semi-regularly even before all this marathon craziness started - and it may be the reason we've been a little lax in following Phase I - which we really picked just to keep our eye on building a base before jumping into Hal's schedule 18 weeks prior to race day. So, although Phase I provides daily mileage, it says to just be sure and hit so many miles per week, and we've been hitting that mileage thus far in less days than recommended.
In any event, we took another look at our Phase II training and have decided to move from "beginner" to "Novice I." We are at a point already where we can run the long runs - and have been running long runs of 7-8 miles - so we're going to go for it. Are we nuts? Has anyone ever run either of these Novice plans before and have an opinion for us?
Let's hope this time next week we have a much more impressive chart to report!
One pound hot dogs not recommended
I'm happy that Rich and I both logged a pretty good week last week. It was probably the best so far in terms of mileage over multiple days in a week since we started this venture. Tomorrow marks the start of following our official plan, although the first 10 weeks really just calls for running 10-20 miles per week - and I think we've been doing that for a couple of months right now, so hopefully we are in good shape.
Yesterday we made the mistake of thinking our huge lunch would give us the energy to run later in the afternoon. I can report that it had quite the opposite effect. Perhaps that's because we tried the oh-my-gawd-what-were-we-thinking one pound "Safari Dog" from the Halfway Cafe. I blame the Phantom Gourmet because "he" christened it and it made me want to try it.
I regretted it the whole tortorous, slow 5 mile run on Saturday as I felt it sitting like a brick in my stomach the entire time. I think that is the last time I will be ordering a one pound hot dog, ever. (And no, I did not eat it all ... not even all of my half.)
Week of April 20 - last week before official training begins!
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Total | |
| Chris | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 4.25 | 0 | 5 | 19.25 |
| Rich | 0 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 4.5 | 0 | 5 | 18.5 |
New Shoe = New Motivation
Rich - Daily Miles: 5.0
Since I have been so incredibly lazy the last few (6) weeks and have not been running regularly (at all), I resorted to a six year old tactic of buying new running shoes hoping they would motivate me to get back to a regular running schedule and perhaps run a little faster.
I bought into the hype of the Newton Running Shoes and purchased a pair for a redonkulous amount of money hoping that they would help me run more efficiently with less heel impact and recovery time. I took 'em for a five mile run today and they felt a little strange at first but I quickly got used to them and really enjoyed my run. Yesterday, Chris and I ran four miles together (which was great) and I ran with my old Nike running shoes. I ran a 10 second/mile faster pace with the Newton shoes today.
I'm sure this has nothing to do with my new shoes and that it's all in my head just like it was when I got a new pair of Zips when I was six years old and was convinced they made me faster. But like I said - if it gets me re-motivated - I've got no complaints.
Countdown begins...
Rich and I decided to sneak away for an extended weekend because the in-laws took the children for a few days. Today we got out to run together (a beautiful oceanside route in Kennebunkport, Maine), which was very nice. In addition, we stopped into Runner's Alley in Portsmouth, NH on Sunday and bought ourselves some more "gear," which is always motivating (at least in the short term).
We picked up some Gu, some new Luna bite thingies (for me), new running socks and these cool new hand held water bottles. They rock because they are a perfect size and easy to carry while running. We both have the full belts where you carry 3-4 bottle
s at time but they are so uncomfortable that we only want to take them on longer runs where we really need to have water. However, these new ones make it easy to take water on shorter runs as well, which is nice - especially in the summertime heat.
Running with Rich made me realize it would be nice if we could train together. I don't know if we'll be able to swing that but we do start an official training program on 4/28 that I found in the archives of the Houston Chronicle. It's for beginners and although I think we've already been running the weekly mileage recommended, it will be helpful to be "committed" to something official. (We're doing the first 10 weeks only, then switching over to a 16-week Hal Higdon plan.)
Here's what the first week looks like:
Weekly Mileage: 10-20 miles.
Performance goal: Make it to the finish line.
Monday -- Cross-train or walk 20 minutes at RPE-L.
Tuesday -- 2-3 miles at RPE-L.
Wednesday -- Cross-train or walk 25 minutes at RPE-L.
Thursday -- 2-4 miles at RPE-L (includes 3 x 100 yard strides).
Friday -- Rest.
Saturday -- 2-3 miles at RPE-L.
Sunday -- 4-6 miles L.S.D.
This seems doable... but with work and family and summertime activities...well, wish us luck! We've got four miles down already this week - so that's a good start, right!?
Balancing Act - Got Tips?
Chris Week 14 = 16.25
So at least I was able to run three days last week. I'm still not as consistent during the week as I would like to be, and I still struggle with how I'm going to find the time with all the work/family pressures. I tend to run two days on the weekend and then maybe once during the week.
I have been considering alternating between early morning treadmill runs (very difficult for me as I am a night owl and I dread the treadmill) and hiring a night babysitter 2-3 nights a week so I can run outdoors after work. I can't possibly train on a treadmill for the entire spring and summer but I'm not able to get out before work because my husband leaves the house so early and it would be wrong to leave the children in the house alone so I've heard. :-) My husband also comes home late so I can't run outdoors after work without a sitter.
In any event, I'm working on some solutions in my head before I start the first phase of two in my training plan on April 28. I'm going to follow the first 10 weeks of a 26 week plan which is about building up endurance, and then at 16 weeks to go I am going to switch over to Hal Higdon's more intense plan.
If you have any unique approaches to balancing the time it takes to train for a marathon with the time it takes to live your life as a wife and mom, please do share.
I stil hate the treadmill
Two measly miles tonight, on the dreaded treadmill in aforementioned cold, dreary basement. In case you forgot, I despise the treadmill (the one at home, anyway...the one in Aruba, where I was staring at the ocean while under a shaded cabana with the ocean breeze on me, seemed *so much* nicer for some reason...
At least I did something. I should have gone 2.5 to get the week's total thus far to 10. That would have been great for me for a Monday.
As a side note, I've decided to try and follow the first 10 weeks of a 26-week marathon training plan before I start my previously-chosen 16-week intense training plan. The 26-week one will help me mentally feel more committed to following a schedule earlier - something I obviously need to make time to run. I thrive on guilt and pressure - running a business and being a wife and mom just isn't fulfilling that sick need. :-)
I'll post the plan later this week and see if any of you have ever followed it.
A heightened sense of smell
Okay so the last two weeks have not been great. I only ran 5 miles last week (and some TaeBo/cross training/weight work) and 7 the week prior. Today I started off the week with 7.5 miles so that's good. I'm already ahead of myself. :-)
While running today I took a few new routes down by the beach. It was helpful to look at some new scenery. Most of it was comprised of small beach homes that sit very close together but are quaint and inviting all the same. I was wearing new headphones that really drowned out the noises around me, and perhaps that is the reason why my sense of smell was heightened. While running through these neighborhoods I really noticed the different smells (weird, I know, but it took my mind off of how long I was running!). On just one on of these adorable Humarock Beach roads, I noticed the smells of: burning wood, a woman's perfume, a cigar, pine trees, wet dog and the beautiful scent of the sea air. It was strange but for some reason I really took note of these elements today. I can't imagine what my mind is going to zone in on when I start those really long runs!
In any event I'm hoping I can make it out at least three other days this week to run (or nights, whatever - you know what I mean). The weather is getting nicer (slowly but surely) and the days are getting longer (so after work runs are possible again!) so there's hope.
A step closer...
Chris Week 11 = 0
While I pulled myself together enough on vacation to run two days, I wasn't able 
to run any days the week we returned. In addition to traveling almost every day for work meetings, I caught a horrible cold on the airplane on the way home. So, sadly, instead of being refreshed and energized -for work and for running - after a nice vacation, I was knocked on my behind with a wicked cold and had no energy for running what-so-ever. I know some people are good at running or exercising even when they are sick - but I'm just not at that level of commitment yet!
That being said, I got outside (despite light snow/rain) for a nice 7 mile run today. It felt great and I'm excited to get back into the groove. In addition, I think we nailed down our training program - so we are one step closer to officially starting our marathon training!
If anyone out there reading has tried this 18 week Novice I by Hal Higdon, please let us know how it worked out or if you'd make any changes. We will start the program in June! Until then, I hope to keep up a good practice training of running 3-4 days per week... let's see if I can do it!
Vacation in Aruba
Chris Week 9 = 7.25; Week 10 = 8
February was a lost cause as I mentioned, with a lot of personal and work crisis during the month that ate it all away quickly. I managed to squeeze in a few runs but nothing too consistent. We were on vacation last week, and while the fruity drinks and sandy beaches called my name for the most part, I actually did squeeze in two short runs for a total of 8 miles for the week.
Luckily we still aren't in official training mode - it seems like Rich picked a great time for the marathon, as the spring and summer are sure to afford less illness and chaos and more outdoor running time before the marathon hits in the fall. We talked about our training choices when we were on vacation. I'm thinking a 20 week plan, although Rich had been looking at a 16 week plan. Any advice from experienced marathoners out there?
Now, back to the real world - sadly - and hopefully with some renewed energy and focus after a much needed winter break.
No, We Haven't Given Up
We are still here - and yes we do still plan to train. I was completely unable to do anything for two weeks due to caring for two very sick children with flu/bacterial ickiness/croup for a week each; then trying to make up for lost time at work - very brutal and the stress took out all the energy I could muster.
So weeks 6 & 7 = 0 miles each. *sigh*
Week 8... well, honestly it's not looking great although I did kick it off with 7.25 on Sunday and there's hope for something on Saturday. In between I will be flying to NYC for work and then off to the West for a funeral....
Hoping the spring brings renewal all around, just in time for the real training to start.
Short and Sweet
Rich - Tuesday Miles - 6.0
We've been bogged down here with sick kids...but NO EXCUSES (bruce) so I logged 6 miles (and my best pace this year) during an outdoor run on my lunch break at work.
Back into the Groove
Rich - Saturday Miles: 5.0
Rich - Sunday Miles: 6.0
I definitely think Chris and I are getting back into our running grooves that we had established a few years ago before LIFE took over and shook everything up (LIFE being defined as two crazy boys and crazy careers.)
I logged 5 miles on the treadmill in the basement on Saturday and had no aches on Sunday so I got outside and ran another 6 miles. I wanted to run more on Sunday (8.5) but ran out of time/sunlight. I'm happy with the 6 miles because I ran them at a very good pace. I've cut my average pace by about 30 seconds/mile since the beginning of January and that's a great accomplishment.
