Another Stress Fracture Means NO Marathon

My left foot has hurt the last few weeks. I've been ignoring it as best as I could.

But I finally went to the doctor on Wednesday and had what I already knew confirmed.

another stress fracture.

This time it's my #2 toe.

You can't see in the picture, but the bone is "fuzzy" all the way down on both sides. Not good.

So I'm out for six weeks.

which means that all of the crazy hard training, getting up at 4:10am and so forth will not be used for the Fort Worth Marathon.

It's frustrating.

Doctor's orders are NOTHING running related for 2 weeks, then I can run 1 mile IF there is no pain. I go back in 4 weeks for an evaluation.

The goal is to be able to run a 10k in December, a 1/2 in January and a full in February. UGH.

But what can I say, I did this to myself. I upped my training and as I had been saying, IF I could remain healthy, it was going to be great. I'm stronger and faster. But I knew that I was playing a gambling game running 6 days a week and logging a ton of miles.

So I'm going back to the Galloway method. I used Jeff Galloway's method and ran half a dozen or more half marathons plus a full marathon injury free. I changed plans to run for a time goal thinking I needed something more ambitious and ended up with a stress fracture on the left foot after Austin. And here I am 8 months later with another stress fracture on the same foot, different toe.

So, I'm telling myself to STOP IT! Galloway's plan is for injury free running. That should be my goal. That is my goal. Cause I have to say, going into the holidays not being able to run off stress and food is hard!

But I am determined to get my foot pain free and I'll them be back on my training plan. this time I'll just be smarter with it and use Galloway!

Running Shoe problems and an AH HA moment

My left foot hurts.

No big deal. Unless you are training for a marathon and need to run around 60 miles this week. So yeah. big deal.

Sadly, I think it's from my running shoes.

I have a closet full of running shoes. And none of them feel right.

One of my first "real" pairs of running shoes are still my favorites. but alas, they were model 10's and now the company is making 13's and there is not much of the 10 left in these shoes even though they are the same model.

(Anyone out there have a new pair of size 9 Brooks Glycerin model 10's?) I'd pay good money about now for a pair! Here I am in my brand new pair in 2012!!

Wow. Look at me in 2012. It's weird to look at pictures like this. In this picture I was wearing my first smaller/weight loss outfit and my new running shoes. I was in Chicago with Doug and running and feeling great.

And now I look at it and am reminded of how far I have come!

Maybe I need to look at a different pair of shoes?

Since the above me is wearing a size 10 pants and weighing at least 15 pounds more than I weigh now, it seems a little odd that the cushion and support of the running shoe that I would need would be the same that I need now.

Hmm.

This is a picture of me a couple of weeks ago. I'm wearing a size petite small skirt.

Maybe it's time to go get a new gait analysis and look at some new running shoes!

Commemorating Cowtown in a watercolor

We had ANOTHER snow/ice day Thursday. I'm really tired of this weather, but an extra day stuck at home meant I might as well paint.  

My painting studio is not heated. So my acrylic and oil paints were not in any condition to use.  

So I decided to use one of my canvases and commemorate last weekends race.  

Kylie and Lexi "helped" by offering lots of suggestions and feedback. They let me use their pencils and erasers..

Here is my drawing.  

It's a compilation of Libby running here and the picture that I took of the course the night before the race... with a few artistic changes. :)

I used watercolor pencils and laid down the first layer of color on the canvas.  Watercolor pencils on canvas is weird because the pigment flakes off the canvas as you work.  

I then painted the watercolor on with water and brushes. 

I was planning to go back in with tube watercolors and maybe even a black pen to push details, but I really like the painting as it is. 

So is it finished? 

What do you think?

Austin 3M Half Marathon. Done!

For the last couple of months I have been getting up EARLY and training for the 3M Half Marathon in Austin, Texas. It was advertised as a great course to get a PR (personal record) on because it had a net downhill elevation. So some of my running friends and I decided to take a stab at it.

Last night I met my running buddies down in Austin and we strategized running intervals and game plans for the day.   

My plan was to run 3 minutes steady, run 1 minute fast and walk 1 minute... over and over for 13.1 miles!

Here we are at the start of the race. Actually, here we are waiting at the never-ending port-a-potty line!  We were in this line for the national anthem.. for the start of the race... and for an additional few minutes!

Here I am at the start of the race! I decided that I was going to ENJOY this race! Yes, I had a time goal, but this race was about the enjoyment of running.

The crowd of runners, even starting almost 8 minutes after the gun was crazy. 6000 runners starting at the same time makes things tight.

And the road stayed congested with runners the ENTIRE  RACE!

I realized 4 minutes into the race that in the course of turning down my audio cues so that they weren't constantly going off in runkeeper, I accidentally turned off ALL cues. Ugh. So I had to watch for my friend Alisa that was trying to hear her cues in the crowd or just go on my own.  I did both. Thankfully I was wearing my Garmin, so I took a 1 minute walk break every 1/2 mile.

After dodging in and out trying to not get hemmed in, I gave up pushing for the elusive goal at mile 3 and just decided to try to get a personal best, but to have FUN! 

Which meant that Alisa and I after passing this cool pirate, we turned around and WENT BACK and got a picture.  His sign said Run Yer Booty Off!

Along the way I tried to say thanks to all of the volunteers and police officers working the course. I stopped and got a raw carrot to gnaw on from a little girl's goodie plate that she had out for runners. I took a grapefruit from another neighbor close to mile 12 and was so thankful for that burst of fresh fruit!

Below is from mile 10.5  It was that crowded the entire race! I was amazed.

As we started on the last mile of the race we turned into the University of Texas campus. Here is a mariachi group playing for us!

And here is the final few hundred yards of the race. It was fun running towards the state capitol to finish the race off!

Done.

My official time today was 2:09:44.  My goal was 2:05, but I am very happy with this!  That's a 6 minute PR off my fastest official race time.

So the question asked is will we run it again? YES!

But.. I'll go in better prepared.

It was a net downhill with only a couple of big hills... BUT... it was really a rolling hill course. As one would expect from Austin, Texas. Knowing that, I'll train for rolling hills, not downhills.  That is a big difference.

And, I'll have a better idea as to where to start the race and how to run it. The crowd was soo thick. Apparently there are a lot of 2:10 runners in Austin.  I got hemmed in and stuck behind groups of runners repeatedly. Not sure how my strategy is going to change for next year, but I'll be thinking about it.

And what about the "swag bag?" It was GREAT! But would you expect any less from a 3M sponsored race?  I was disappointed that the 3M Half reusable bag was missing from my bag. boo. But other than that, I'll be using the gifts for sure.

What's next on the running horizon? COWTOWN!!!  

Soccer, Painting and Weight Loss

Kylie's first soccer game was Saturday. In typical Texas weather, it was 90+ degrees and it had to be 100% humidity. The little girls did awesome in their very first 5 and under soccer game, but man were they tired! 

Here she is before the game. She was READY!

And here are some stills from the game...

  

 

 

 

The games aren't really that long, four 10 minute quarters, with a number of breaks, but it was sooo hot! Not sure who won, they don't keep score, but thankfully our team made enough goals that it could have been us. (probably not)

Anyway.

We are ready for fall!

Next up... My newest painting. 

I love seeing my paintings ready for prints! It is fun!!

I haven't had much time to paint lately, but I need it. It keeps my stress in check! Lately we are so busy and stressed that I can feel it taking a toll on my body. not good.

And last, I'm back trying to lose these pesky last 12 pounds.  Well, to be honest, as of September 1st, it was 17 pounds, but I've already shed the five that I had put on those last weeks of summer. So now I'd like to get to my goal. 

In fact, if I can do it, I'll be smaller than I was when I was in college. I haven't decided if it's realistic yet. I currently wear a size 6 and am the size I was when I met Doug many moons ago. 

So why do I feel the need to lose more weight? It's that I am solid muscle from running long distance and training hard... UNDER a LOT of fat! This fat is that fat gained from eating fast food... for the last 15+ years. 

I want it gone.

I've even stopped eating donuts.

and I'm eating quinoa for lunch.

I mean business and tracking it all through My Fitness Pal (free app!)

More than all of that, I desperately want to run a under 2 hour half marathon. My best time is 2 hours and 13ish minutes. If I can get my eating under control and lose the top layer of fat, I think I could do it!

My times are improving and I feel ready.

Not sure when it will happen. Life is so busy right now that I'm not even competing in this weekend's triathlon that is happening in my town! ouch. 

But we have colorguard, ballet, volleyball and soccer .. oh and yeah, we work full time jobs. Needlesstosay, my desire to compete on Saturdays has to take a back seat to my children's Saturday games. Especially when I am the volleyball coach. (Go Crush!)

Anyway, I'll keep you posted on the goals. Hope to report next week that Kylie has made a goal and that I've lost more weight!

Does the Jeff Galloway method really work?

I love running the Jeff Galloway method. Why? Because I'm faster, stronger and injury-free. That's why!

The Jeff Galloway Run,Walk, Run method is about balance. Or maybe in today's fitness terms, it's a HIIT workout that just doesn't quit. (HIIT: High Intensity Interval Training)

For all of you non-runners and non-Galloway people out there... the Galloway Method gives you a starting point, helps you to find your path to fitness and keeps you going. Galloway says, okay, you can run for 30 seconds? Great! Do that and then walk for a minute. Then run for 30 seconds and then walk for 60 seconds and repeat.  In fact, this is his plan for the 16 minute per mile group. If you can run faster than that, well, then run longer and walk less. But DON'T stop the walk breaks.

For more information, check out his pace chart here.

In fact, for people thinking about running, I think Galloway's plan is ideal because it keeps you moving longer. Sure, many of us at our most unfit state could push through a mile. But without a plan, we are going to HURT later and have to take off days to recover before we try again. Galloway says, stop doing that to yourself! Just get out there and move.

Two years ago when I started running, I didn't know what to do, so I tried the couch to 5k plan to start, but it was hard and the expectation that within seven weeks I'd be able to run for 30 minutes straight was disheartening! Instead, I'd run as far as I could, then walk and then run till I couldn't breathe and so forth. My mile pace was an average of 14 minutes per mile. I can't imagine how much more successful I would have felt if I had been doing a 30 sec run/ 30 sec walk pattern from the start!

But thankfully, just three months into my new running lifestyle, I made some incredible friends with ladies who run using Galloway. They did a 3 min run/1 min walk. I was SCARED TO DEATH to try to run with them. And at first is was tough. But I did it and quickly was able to keep up! .

What I learned from the group was that by having the consistent breaks, I could push harder during the 3 minutes of running because I knew I'd get a walk break! My pace got better and I have to say, looking back at my stats, I am so proud of myself because truly, just three months into running, I logged a 5 mile run at a 10:54 pace!

What I have found over the last two years is that I'm confident in who I am enough to say that YES, I am interval runner. That I can and do take consistent walk breaks so that I can run stronger and faster. And most importantly, to those people out there that believe and say that if I take a walk break, I'm not a runner... the proof is at the finish line! Sure, I can run an entire 5k or 10k and probably even a 1/2 marathon. But why should I do that to my body when I can take a short walk break, catch my breath, run faster, finish stronger and not have the horrible recovery?

Don't believe me? These are a few of my real life stats from May. I didn't include all of it, cause remember I did a 1/2 marathon a couple of weeks ago and was training and tapering for that.

 

The important thing to notice here is that the slowest time I have for this distance.. was when I DIDN'T take the consistent walk breaks! 

Nothing like feeling like a REAL runner and have a SLOWER time!

So for all of you fence-sitters out there who are wondering when I will "work up to running all the time" I can tell you that I'm not planning on it!  Jeff Galloway has qualified for the Boston Marathon multiple times using his run/walk/run plan and while I'm not trying to get my times down to Boston times, I do consider myself a "real" runner even with the walk breaks!

In two years I've gone from being a 14 minute miler to an consistent 9 minute miler and even more importantly, I haven't been hurt!

I'm excited about the future... in another 2 years could I be a 7 minute miler?  hmm.. for my age group to qualify for Boston, I'd have to run a 3:45 marathon. That's an 8:34 pace. My lone marathon time is a 12:05 pace.. guess I better get to work if I want to go to Boston! :)

The Cowtown Marathon Weekend 2014

The Cowtown Marathon Weekend is truly a running highlight of our year! There is just something incredible about the Cowtown Marathon (located in Fort Worth, Texas)

I think even if we were not runners, we would still feel this way. 

The energy and excitement is palpable from the time you pull up at the expo on Friday until you cross the finish line on Sunday morning. But given that Doug and I are both runners, and this is a "local" race, we take full advantage of the entire weekend experience!

 

For those of you who do not know about the Cowtown Marathon, it is the oldest and largest multi-race, multi-day event in Texas. Around 30 THOUSAND total runners compete in the races on Saturday and Sunday. The city doesn't come to a complete halt, but almost! The streets are closed and people stand for miles and miles cheering and offering support to the runners. 

It is truly and incredible event! (wow.. nice unpaid commercial..)

Anyway, on Saturday morning my sister Libby, my friend Crystal and I joined about 8 thousand other runners and ran the 10k. It was jam packed, but fun! Don't you love the pictures from marathonfoto! No, I don't mind pasting the proofs in as I will be purchasing all of the photos! 

As the 10k is finishing up, the Adult 5k starts with another 6 thousand runners or so... Here is Doug with some of my friends from the run club I run with. 

 

All of us ran on Saturday so that we could qualify for the Cowtown Challenge: running both days and getting an extra medal! :)

 

Once the morning races are over, we putter around the rest of the day, using our "fueling" needs to excuse our eating habits! We had lunch at In and Out Burgers. Yummy!! We had never had them before, won't be the last time.

 

Doug and I enjoyed walking around a shopping area and just hanging out. Something we rarely get to do!! For dinner, we went to Chuy's and enjoyed mexican food.

 

Sunday morning brought the half marathon, full marathon and the ultra runners. We ALL started at the same time. I don't know how many runners, but I'm thinking at least 15 THOUSAND runners starting at the SAME TIME. It is craziness.

Here we are in the corrals waiting for the start. Way off in the distance you can see the starting line.

Here are Crystal and I on the course. We were sllloooowww, but we had fun!

 

Here I am at the finish line. Yes, I was pumped to be finished!

My time was way off from what I know I can do, but it reflected my training of late. I finished strong and happy, so in the end, I can't be upset with my sad time. I just have to be honest with my self and my expectations. If I want to run faster, I have to train faster and more consistently. I've been in a post marathon slump for a few months, I feel like I have finally come out of it and am ready to train!

Here I am with Doug after the race. He ran a strong 1/2 marathon for his second 1/2 ever. He is already talking about training for his next one!

And here Crystal and I are. We are absolutely 2 peas in a pod. We have the same mindset and are the same level of crazy and motivated. We scare our husbands. :) Good thing they are friends too!

And finally, a close up of the weekend bling! Love the spur finisher medal! Can't wait to get another oen next year!

The not-so Polar Dash

The 14mile Polar Dash. 

 

Race Recap.

 

The race was about an hour and a half away from my house and it didn't start until 9am, so that meant that I actually slept in on a race day! Woohoo!

 

When I started out the morning, it was cold. In fact, about 45 minutes into the drive the thermometer on my car read 25 degrees. By the time the race started it was about 38 or so. It was beautiful race weather. However, it ended up being not-so polar!! I think by the time I finished running it was close to 70 degrees. I was burning up in my winter gear!

 

Here we are before the race.

 

Don't you love my skirt! :) I made skirts for me and Courtney. Then Courtney found us winter tshirts (from the children's section...) and fun socks. Yes, we were "adorable."

 

So how was the race? Well, it was hard. I am learning that for every "easy" race, you have a dozen hard ones! I'm still so new at this that I thought every race would get easier and I'd get faster. Not the case. There are so many intangibles that go into racing.

 

Back to the race...

Here we are about a 1/2 mile into the race. There were a LOT of people running. They started the 10k and 14mile people at the same time. On the divided road it was fine. But by mile 2 we were on a sidewalk on a bridge close to a turnaround, so we were all crammed on the same section of side walk! It was very frustrating.

 

 

 

 

The route was a 6 mile loop that covered a number of small ups and downs, a couple of bridges and lots of winding trail.

 

No spectators.

 

I didn't realize how much Cowtown ruined me for other races! I need crowd energy! There were NO spectators on this course. For 14 miles the only cheers you got were the people at the water stations.

 

The volunteers were nice and we got some great comments about our skirts. But running the same section of the route three times was hard. Passing mile marker 4 and seeing the 10 and 13 markers was demoralizing. It was a tough section (at least for me) and knowing that I had to do it two more times, then one more time was hard mentally.

 

I am also learning that I need to plan better for the road conditions. Wearing my older running shoes was probably not the best choice. I was great till mile 5. Then my foot started hurting a little. By mile 7 my hip was hurting. I wore my older shoes because my newer shoes had hurt my foot the week before on a long run.  I think I'm going to have to upgrade to some Hoka's for long concrete races!

 

In the end, I did the 14 miles in 2:31 (that includes a 3 minute stop at mile 8 for pottying and a gel). I had hoped for a better time, but I am reminding myself that I am still learning. I took gels and chews and then only at one gel at mile 8 and bummed a chew off of Courtney at mile 11. That's not enough food. And I totally skipped the water stop at mile 6. One of these days I am going to learn. My best races I eat a jelly bean or a chew at every mile marker. It gives me something to do, and that little calorie jolt is important.  I forget this. Then later when I process the race and wonder why I went from feeling strong and great at mile 9 to hurting and tired at mile 11 I remember the lack of food and water and that at that point I had been running for two hours!

 

But I made it to the end. Here I am coming in to the park.

 

 

 

 

And here we are with our medals!

 

 

 

And because running 14 miles wasn't enough....

 

Yes, this was AFTER the race.
(and it took multiple jumps to get a picture!)

 

And what will I take with me from this race? The knowledge that I am not good at a looped course and that I need spectators.

 

hmm.... this might change up some of my race plans for this year....