I Survived!

Well I did it! I ran 20 miles yesterday. I'm so glad that its over but at the same time I am nervous--finishing this run means the marathon is coming fast--and there is NO turning back now!
I'm glad I called my playlist "Dirty 20" because I was pretty disgusting after running for 4 freaking hours. But it went okay...it was mostly, well...BORING. I'm so glad that I had 2 podcasts to listen to, they really do make the time fly by. The last 4 miles were the hardest--my left knee started to hurt at the end, which is weird because I usually never have knee pain so that freaked me out a little. (Okay it continues to freak me out.) But I am SOOOO glad its over and now I can "relax" a little and rest up during the next few weeks.
I think this run was a little less climactic than the 19 mile run. After running 19 miles I knew in my heart that I could definitely do 20. But I am a little worried that I didn't make my 20 mile run as much of a true "dress rehearsal" for the marathon as I should have.
Technically you are supposed to pretend like your 20 mile run IS the marathon--from your dinner the night before, to breakfast, to the shorts, socks, shirt you will wear to the ways you will fuel during the run.
I had everything down except for the fueling part--I've been so nervous to eat gels and drink Gatorade that I've tried to use them as little as possible. But it became TERRIFYINGLY obvious during this 20 miler that I need to fuel more. I ate 1 gel during the whole run. Huh. Just to give comparison---when Stacey ran the marathon a few years ago she had 4. Soooo yeah, I need to figure something out and just bit the bullet. Yes I may have to use the bathroom more, but its better than hitting the wall. Okay yes, the wall is inevitable, but I can at least do what I can to put it off or get through it.
So 20 miles DONE! Still quite a bit more to go but I am actually getting really EXCITED for CHICAGO!!!!!!!

Dirty 20

Tomorrow I am running 20 miles. I've just spent the last hour putting together a play list for my ipod titled "Dirty 20" because its 20 miles and its gonna be dirty. No seriously, after running for that long you are really just a hot, sweaty, dirty, tranny MESS. I fully expect that all of the above (hot, sweat, dirt...possibly a tranny?) and probably even more will happen tomorrow.

My play list starts with one of my all-time favorite songs: BAD by U2. Its the perfect song to start my journey. It reminds me of my time in Chicago--appropriate since that is where my marathon will be. Plus its a slower paced song so it will ensure that I ease into this ultra-long run. The rest of the play list is inner mixed with podcasts--This American Life and All Songs Considered, some INXS, New Order, Heart, Weezer, Cake, Rolling Stones, Violent Femmes, Bob Marley, Ryan Adams, Tom Petty and yes, Miley Cyrus.
Most of the songs I put on this play list are new---new as in--I haven't worn myself out listening to them on every run I've done in the last 3 months. Some are old favorites like "American Music" by Violent Femmes--I love that song and it reminds me of High School. Bob Marley will hopefully chill me out during miles 12,13,14 when I'm just beginning to get tired and my form gets sloppy. I hope to pretend to be on a beach with a cocktail...oh whatever, yes I hope that his songs make me feel high for a least a mile so I forget all the pain I'm in.
And yes, I added Cake's "The Distance"--totally a race/runner song. I don't really like it that much, but if I'm going anything tomorrow its sure as hell DISTANCE...but not so much speed.
And then Miley Cyrus, Rhianna, Nelly Furtado will just keep my spirits up and keep me going. Sadly I have to admit that I really love Miley's song "Party in the U.S.A." I know, its so sad. But I can't help it! Its super-sugar pop at its best and honestly when that song is playing I picture myself at a dance club in super high heels surrounded by thousands of gorgeous gay men. (Don't judge: running that far your brain does strange things...it conjures up images of me dancing with hot gay men. It could be worse.)
Well that is all for now. I have lots more to update, but I was supposed to be in bed an hour ago. I must sleep so that I can get up and run 20 F-ING MILES while my husband and dog sleep. I will give all the dirty details after the run is over. Maybe I'll give the top 20 Dirty things about running 20 miles. I'll have plenty of time to make my list....!

A new injury & a REALLY long run

So in my last post I talked about my 18 mile run. A HUGE milestone for me and a run that went really well. I felt pretty good during the run and after.
WELL.....then I took the next day off (Monday)--which, by the way--one good thing I can say about these long runs: they allow me to actually LOOK FORWARD to Mondays. I usually hate Mondays. But since I've been training I love knowing that all I have to do the next day is get up, go to work, then come home and do NOTHING! And I usually allow myself to also enjoy a bowl of ice cream on Monday nights too! Okay lets be honest--the ice cream is the thing I look forward to the most! But I digress....

Anyway, so I took Monday off and Tuesday morning decided to run on the treadmill. Yes, I hate the treadmill, but it was still dark when I got up and honestly, I just wanted to zone out and watch TV while I ran. The first 3 miles felt fine, then suddenly I felt a pinch above my left ankle just below my calf muscle. I decided to just run through the pain to see if it would go away...well it got worse and didn't go away. In fact, after my run was over my calf was REALLY sore. OH GREAT.

So I took some Advil (Advil by the way is becoming a part of my daily routine--I take a multivitamin and then Advil...and then later more Advil. I know it can hurt my stomach but I don't care. My whole body hurts and it helps so there. I swear Advil is what keeps me going most days. Is this addiction? Can you get addicted to Advil? Hmmm...)

Advil sort of worked but just to be safe I decided to skip my run the next day. Thursday I ran with Stacey, who has just returned to running after quite a hiatus due to plantar fasciitis, and I was really looking forward to running with her again. I made it 2 miles before the pinch returned and had to stop and walk for most of our run! At that point I was getting really frustrated and really scared too. I took another break the next day and STUPID ME---wanted to still go ahead and try to do my long run that Sunday--13 miles. Surprisingly I made it 8 miles--and felt great! Then just into mile 9--the pinching came back. But instead of stopping, I wanted to see if I could go just a little further. I barely made it 10 miles. Which, looking back was probably pretty stupid.

Finally, I got in to see a Physical Therapist. She is a runner too--in fact she's run 30 marathons and almost qualified for the Olympics! She made me feel a LOT better--I was afraid she would just tell me to quit whining and take a week off, but she didn't! She actually wasn't too concerned about my calf. She it is likely just an overuse injury and that from here on out I can expect that every time I run SOMETHING will probably hurt. She advised me to keep running, but to STOP as soon as the muscle starts to cramp. (Oh Stopping...huh...what a concept!) Then go to the gym and finish the run on a bike or elliptical machine. YUCK. But at least I don't have to quit running altogether. (and yes its weird that I didn't want to be told to stop running. Hey...I've made it this far--why quit now!) She said that at this point in the training I'm essentially ready (HUH? Ready? I don't feel ready!) but that the important thing is to keep up my endurance, heal this injury and prevent any further injuries.

Thankfully each run this week got a little better. I was able to go a little further each time without cramping and I did cross train one day on the elliptical and the bike, which was boring but seemed to help.

Sunday was my longest run yet---19 miles. Anthony had to run 20 and I figured "Hey what's one more mile?" So I decided that I would aim for 20 and if I had to stop at 19, well then I did what I was supposed to do. We ran the Big Papio trail again--we started around 7:15 AM and finished around 11:00 AM. I felt pretty good most of the way. The hardest part of long runs is that they are boring. Yes I was with Anthony, but after 3 hours of running, you start to run out of things to say! But we soldiered on--we met another runner along the way who was training for the Dublin marathon! And I am happy to report that I was able to eat a Powergel without any...uh...stomach/bowel trouble. (Gross, I know, but hey there is NO bathroom on the papio trail!) I actually think that the gel is what got me through the last 6 miles. So I'll be trying that again during my 20 mile run.

At about 18.5 miles my calf muscle started hurting again. I was mad, but also thankful that I had made it that far without any trouble. I pushed myself to go to 19 and stopped and walked the rest of the way....okay, okay so I ran a LITTLE more, but I didn't get all the way to 20. Oh well! I did what the schedule said!

After the run I was sore, of course. My calf muscle hurt, but not nearly as bad as it had the past week, but I do have a new sore spot on my left shin. I'm icing it as I write this. My new best friends: ICE & ADVIL...oh yeah, and Ice Cream!

So this week--its 5,8,5 and 12 miles...then the following week will be my highest mileage week yet culminating with my longest long run of 20 miles and then its time to taper! I can't believe I'm already at this point! 18 weeks ago, October 11th seemed so far away and now its just over 4 weeks away. If I survive this training I think I can survive the marathon. But I still have a ways to go.....117 miles to be exact.

18 MILES!!!!!!!

Yesterday I ran 18 miles. 1-8 Miles.
When I told my cousin Kelli that I was running this distance this weekend her response was "Geez why don't you just run to Gretna!"
Hmmm....
To give you an idea of how incredibly far this is---I went ahead and mapquested the distance from my house to Gretna. Surely that can't be 18 miles. Gretna is at least a 25 if not 30 minute drive from my house. Gretna has got to be MUCH further than 18 miles.
Nope! Apparently the route that Mapquest chose (which we all know is probably unnecessarily long) Gretna is 18.6 miles from my house!
For those reading this that are familiar with Omaha and the surrounding areas this might be impressive. For those of you not familiar with this area--just go ahead and be impressed that I ran this far...
Thankfully Anthony ran with me again. I seriously don't know what I would do without him on these runs--it would be sooooo boring! Its not that Anthony dances, sings, or provides any other form of entertainment while I run, but we can at least talk and take comfort in the fact that we are not alone in this running millions of miles thing.
That and he has a Garmin so I don't have to think about where I'm going. I just run till he tells me to stop and turn around! Its nice. It would be even nicer if I had my own Garmin. But I digress...
Anyway--Anthony and I met at 7am at Peak Performance on 78th & Cass to run the keystone trail. We ran north to Fort street and then ran back to our cars to catch a drink. As we were getting our drinks I told Anthony that I didn't want to know how far we'd gone. In fact I decided that I didn't want to know any distance till we turned around again to head back to the car.
In my mind I thought "we've probably gone at least 5 miles." So even though I didn't want to know our distance the entire rest of the run I tried to estimate where we were in mileage. BAD IDEA.
After this pit stop we ran south on the trail.....and we kept running...and running...and running. I kept saying "are we there yet?" and "Okay so have we gone further than 10 miles? Yes or no?" Anthony would NOT give in till we stopped. But I started to get more and more worried as we passed certain "landmarks" along the way. Again for those of you familiar with Omaha--here are some "landmarks we passed" Pacific Street...ok no problem. Still feeling pretty strong. L street--piece of cake. Q street. hmm. Fun Plex--ok...shouldn't we be turning around by now? And then I said to Anthony "we don't have to run all the way to Seymour Smith ballpark, do we?" And he was like "NO! No way. We'll be done before we hit that."
LIAR.
Just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, Anthony stops. "We can turn around now!" he says. "Oh and by the way...there is Seymour Smith ballpark. I guess I was wrong!"
Yeah I GUESS!
So then I think to myself--we've probably done at least 13 miles. Only 5 more to the car. NO. We had only gone 12 miles. (I know "only" 12 miles! But when you are running 18 and you still have another 6 miles to go...hello! I was pissed!)
But I knew it would be ok because I didn't have to wonder anymore--"when will we turn around? When will this be over..." blah blah blah--because I knew where the end point was.
So we turned around and ran...and ran...and ran. And at about mile 14--there was no more talking. We were both just really ready to be done.
We finished the run in 3 hours 12 minutes! Whew! And I can't tell you how incredibly happy I was to stop running! Overall I felt pretty good. Sore and tired, but hey, that's normal, right? Its not every day one runs 18 miles.
THANK GOD.
But I have to say I am proud that I finished the run and that I felt good. Even though my last week of training sucked and my runs didn't go so well, this long run went well and that is the important thing. I consider 18 miles to be a HUGE milestone in my training. One step closer to being ready for 26.2!
This weekend is a "break" in the long runs. We only have to do 13. HA! Just a half-marathon--no biggie!

This kind of sucks

WARNING: (this is mostly for Jeremy) THIS POST WILL BE VERY NEGATIVE. I KNOW THIS WAS MY DECISION TO DO THIS F-ING MARATHON THING, BUT I REALLY NEED TO WHINE RIGHT NOW.

Yeah. There. I said it. This kind of sucks. Training for a marathon actually kind of sucks. Its a roller coaster! A running roller coaster! Everything is up and down--one day you run 5 miles, the next day you run 8...in the middle of the week! One day you feel great...the next day you feel like your legs weigh 500 pounds each and 5 miles seems like 10. One day you feel thin...the next day you eat everything in sight and gain 5 pounds even though you just ran 17 miles!
WTF people?
Ok. To be fair I should not be surprised. I've read the magazines, the books, have friends that have been through this and they all say that this is normal. But its hard to manage! The training takes up lots of time, energy and battery power on my ipod. I feel as if I only ever think about running. Sitting in a meeting at work I think "Man, I can't believe that I have to go home and run." or going to sleep at night "Ok I MUST get up at 6 am when the alarm goes off and run." eating dinner "I shouldn't be eating this because it might hurt my stomach during my run." I'm becoming one of those people who is obsessed with running--only I STILL KIND OF HATE IT!
I seriously have to schedule meetings, time with friends, meals, and sleep around my running. And most Saturday nights I am in bed by 10:00. Its not too fun. True story: Last week I was actually LATE TO WORK because I got up too late and forgot that it would take me MUCH longer than 30 minutes to run 4 miles (because--REMEMBER--I'm SLOW). Yes this could cost me my job!
Also...this may sound crazy...but I have seriously (no, really-SERIOUSLY) GAINED WEIGHT. You would think that the god of running or whatever would at least let me lose some weight after all I go through. Running is NOT a pretty sport. You sweat in places you didn't know had sweat glands, you STINK more than you ever thought you could, your nose runs, you chafe anywhere on your body that clothing touches you (yes that's right--go ahead...picture it) you run in rain, in extreme heat & humidity (poor Kim!), you run even when your ipod stops working, when you run out of Gatorade...hey...you have to drink Gatorade! (Yes you really have to--otherwise you'll die...or you'll feel like you want to die). And you go through all this 4 days a week and...STILL the jeans don't quite fit!
So I could eat less....but hello I'm STARVING! If I'm not thinking about running...I'm thinking about food! See? ROLLER COASTER!
And the really great part? One of those 4 days running--you get up horrifyingly early--usually on a SUNDAY while everyone else in the universe is in bed, or reading the paper or hell--even going to church--to run...A LOT. For example:
Last weekend I was scheduled to run 17 miles. You don't just walk out the door and start running 17 miles. You have to plan. So I got online to figure out how many miles the nearest trail was. Then got in my car and drove to the trail to see how far it was from my house (some of us don't own a Garmin, ok?) then had to calculate how many times I would have to run the trail, turn around and run it again. THEN I had to schedule Jeremy to come bring me water which required me to estimate my pace (which again..hard to do when you don't have a Garmin) so to be safe I overestimated how long 8.5 miles would take me--I figured 1 1/2 hours would be PLENTY of time. But I was WRONG. It took me almost 2 hours and THEN after that I had to run ANOTHER 8 MILES!!!!!!!!
But I did it.
OK....well....I almost did it. I think I was very close...Jeremy's friend Jake who is training for the Omaha Marathon was running on the trail and I begged him to PLEASE run with me because after 12 miles I was really tired of my ipod. So he ran with me and we talked and I totally lost track of where I was in my miles. Anyway--if I didn't do 17 I know I did at least 16 and at that point it was O-V-E-R, I was done and 16 was going to have to be good enough Hal Higdon!

But I have to say in all honesty...that run wasn't THAT bad. The first 8 miles...Wait for it...

I actually felt pretty good! But by 14, 15 I really started to get tired. Which is ok and totally normal and the exact reason you do long runs--to build up your endurance. But at one point when I was still in the first 8 miles I actually--now this was VERY brief--I actually forgot I was running. It was so weird, yet so wonderful! For a brief, shining moment I wasn't thinking "this is boring. this is boring. my legs hurt. i hate this." I actually don't know what I was thinking about, but before I knew it 1/2 a mile had gone by. It was awesome! Who can I pay to make that happen this weekend...for 18 miles? Is that a runner's high? Or maybe that's just my runner's high--temporary amnesia or something.

Ok now on the bright side: I'm getting excited for the race! I watched "Spirit of the Marathon" last weekend about the 2005 Chicago Marathon and I almost cried like 5 times. I haven't been that sore after my long runs, and its kind of fun to be able to say "Yeah last Sunday I ran 17 miles" (shush, it was CLOSE ENOUGH ok) Yes its technically bragging, something I normally despise, but hello--after all the sweating, chafing, Gatorade, time away from my husband and T.V. AND my jeans not fitting...I think I've earned some bragging rights.

Loooong Runs

So the last two weekends my long runs have surpassed the furthest distance I've ever run--which is 13.1 miles. I've trained for and completed 5 Half-Marathons so you'd think that one or two extra miles wouldn't be that big of a deal. BUT IT IS.
You see there is a big difference between training for 13.1 miles and just running that distance as part of a training program. The furthest I've run while training for a half is 10 miles. So I wasn't really looking forward to getting up SUPER early last Saturday to essentially run a half-marathon...by myself.
When I'm getting ready for a race its much easier to prepare--I've tapered my mileage for the week before and gotten lots of rest. But since this is just another week of training I wasn't tapering...during the week I ran 15 miles...and I wasn't feeling all that rested! I was sore and I was really crabby that I had to get up at 5:30 to get the long run out of the way. From now on these long runs are going to take well over 2 1/2 hours...yikes! So I'll have to go to bed early on a Friday or Saturday night, stay away from alcohol, eat only healthy food, and not make plans to go out or put myself in any situation where I might injure myself....which for me means walking down stairs in high heels...Sigh.
But I DID IT!!! I got up early on Saturday...well not as early as I wanted...the alarm was set for 5:30 but...well...come on its SATURDAY! But I wanted to be done with the 14 miles by 9:30 because we were leaving to go camping with friends at 11:00.
The run didn't start too well. I was feeling really tired, lethargic and bored. I brought my ipod but decided to leave it in the car for some reason. After about 10 minutes I regretted that decision but there was no way I was going back for it. But after the 4th mile, I started to feel better! I've officially decided that it takes me 4 miles to warm up. After that I get into my groove and feel pretty good. I wouldn't exactly call it a "runners high" or anything, but I feel like I really settle into my stride, my breathing...its almost peaceful. ALMOST. Don't get me wrong--if someone came up to me at mile 7 and said "I will pay you $25 to stop running now." I would seriously consider it.
After I had gone 11 miles I stopped to get a drink. Which wasn't the best move. You'd think that after 11 miles another three wouldn't seem too bad. But while it might hurt to run, it hurts even worse to start up again. I was really getting sore and tired and, YES--bored so I decided to put on my ipod. DUH. I guess all I needed was a little Rhianna and Black Eyed Peas to get me going because those next three miles flew by! And before I knew it--I had run "the furthest I've ever run!" Woo hoo! I'll be saying this a lot from now on....its exciting! Especially when its over!
Today I ran with Anthony which made things MUCH easier. We definitely ran faster than if I had been by myself but he had his SUPER COOL Garmin GPS/robot/personal trainer thing with him (which I REALLY want and NEED by the way.) so it was fun to be able to accurately track how far we'd gone, our pace and the best part...how many calories we burned!
Anthony is one week ahead of me in his training schedule so he only had to run 11 today. But at least I had someone to run with for the majority of the time which was great. According to his Garmin we did 11.6 miles together. So after he left I did the rest of my run--about 3.5 miles....ok...truth be told it was probably just under 15 miles but I really didn't care at that point. The point is its done.
And next week I only have to run 11 miles! Ha! That is so funny to me...ONLY 11 miles.

I told you so....

Well as per usual I have done a really terrible job of keeping this blog up to date. But things have been busy these past few weeks! The first two weekends in July Jeremy and I were in Iowa--first for his cousin's wedding then for his 10 year High School reunion (oh he's such a youngin'!) Then I went to Colorado for a week and just got back yesterday.
But this blog isn't about the fabulous jet-set life of Jeremy and Erin Stoll--its about running so I guess I should start talking about my marathon training progress....or...er...lack of progress I should say. You see I hit a little bump...well...a big bump actually. Here's the story:

If you have ever been to our little bungalow of a house, you know that it was built in 1950 and that houses built in 1950 have attic space or as its sometimes called "dormer" rooms upstairs. Well this is where our bedroom is. Anyone that has been to our home has commented on how steep and narrow the stairs leading up to our bedroom are.(see picture) "wow you should really be careful!" or "Wow when you are pregnant there is no way you should be going up and down those stairs" ok, fine. Yes we know--they are steep, the steps themselves are pretty shallow and they aren't carpeted so yes...we need to use caution going up and down the stairs. But we've lived in this house for over 2 years now. I've been up and down those stairs a million times--in the dark, with laundry, carrying the dog, barefoot, with socks, hell I even managed to carry an extremely large and heavy suitcase down the stairs in the dark at 4:30 in the morning when I surprised Jeremy last year on his birthday with a trip to Washington DC. All of these treks up and down stairs were incident and injury free. In fact, up until this point the only Stoll family member who hasn't fared so well is Gus. Sometimes he overestimates how many steps he can jump down before he lands face first in the hallway.
But three weeks ago this all changed.Jeremy and I were getting ready to go to our friend Brandon's going away party at The Max--a super-duper gay dance club. So of COURSE I HAD to wear my most fabulous, high heeled, knockout shoes to this event. Here comes the "I told you so" part of the story. So lately Jeremy has been asking, telling, begging and insisting that I NOT wear my shoes (which 99% of the time are of the high heel variety) down the stairs. He claims that this is a safety precaution, of course, but he's also quite concerned with the state of our wood floors. Upon close inspection of our treacherous staircase you will see....um...hundreds? No---dozens of pockmarks on the stairs....yes these are from my high heels. Ok I admit--no one to blame but myself here. I understand his concern for our stairs, but really I've become quite good at making it down our stairs in heels just fine, so for weeks--I've been ignoring my husband's request.
HOWEVER....the night of the party at The Max we were running late (of course) so I was hurrying about upstairs trying to build an outfit around my silver snakeskin, four inch, Michael Kors shoes that I love, love LOVE. (Look, when you love a pair of shoes that much--yes, you build the outfit around them. Just look at the picture...hello.) As usual, Jeremy is yelling at me from the sofa "Hon, we are supposed to be there now!" So I get myself together and hurry down the stairs and then....

I slipped.

I slipped and slid...yes SLID down 4 stairs before finally stopping just before the hallway. My left butt cheek hit the edge of one of the stairs as did my left elbow and the outside of my left ankle scraped along the side of one of the stairs as well. OUCH.
I think I screamed a little, but of course Jeremy heard the entire thing and probably felt the whole house shake, lets be honest. But I heard him yelling "Ohmygodbabyohmygod" and he reached the staircase in time to see me land...if you want to call it that. It hurt so bad that the pain didn't really even register till a few minutes later. Sort of like when you stub your toe and it takes a few seconds for the pain signal to really reach your brain. Why does that happen anyway? Well the pain was like that times 10.
We assessed the damage. My butt was sore for sure but only red at that point. Same thing on my elbow and the ankle was fine which was surprising considering I've sprained it like 17 times just walking down the street...in completely sensible shoes I might add.
So what could I do? Get up and go to the Max of course! I was sore, but not overly so and since the ankle was fine, no need to change the shoes! In fact immediately after the fall the staircase looked worse than I did. There is a 3 inch long groove or as Jeremy likes to say "skid mark" that my heel made in two of the stairs from when I slipped and another stair has a hole--yes HOLE, from my right high heel when I finally landed. Sigh.
So the next day I reassessed the damage to my body...mainly my er...bum...and oh dear god was it bad. I didn't take any pictures because, well, there are just things that you don't need to see, my bum bruise being one of them. So I'll just paint you a picture: The bruise, which Jeremy lovingly referred to as "The License Plate" was nearly 7 inches long, 3 inches wide and roughly the shape of Madagascar. And it was black, yes BLACK in the middle (where the cheek first hit the edge of the stair) and then various shades of blue, purple, green and yellow around the edges. And oh did it HURT.
But have no fear--I figured that since it only hurt when I was sitting and not walking that running should be fine too. Oh dear god was I wrong. Two days later (on 4th of July) we were planning to leave for Iowa at 9am. I was scheduled to run 11 miles that day so I got up at 6:30, got ready and headed out for a quick 11 miles.(hee hee--I'm totally joking of course. This distance would take me at LEAST 2 hours, who am I kidding?) From the very first running step I knew that the damage on my butt went way beyond an external, Madagascar shaped bruise. With every step it felt like someone was stabbing me with a knife in my left butt cheek. I thought maybe if I kept running it would feel better...not really. Going up hill, running on a flat street and downhill--it didn't matter. The stabbing pain was intense and there was no way I would be able to keep going for 11 miles. So I had to go home and walk on the effing treadmill. I've never been so mad and so frustrated! Its not that running 11 miles is great fun, but when you are training for a marathon, its important that you do the long runs--this is how you build endurance and they are the most important runs you will do in your training. I sent a quick text to my virtual running partner in Houston, Kim with my dilemma. "You'll be fine!" She said. "We've still got 14 weeks of training to go. Don't keep trying to run because you'll overcompensate with your other leg and end up in worse shape." She had a point.
So needless to say--running took a back seat (no pun intended) for the better part of 2 weeks. I had to skip my 11 and 12 mile long runs. During the week I walked, biked and swam (which was HARD let me tell you! I've never been so tired than after 45 minutes of swimming! No wonder Dara Torres looks so amazing!) But slowly, I've been able to run a little more.
This past week I was in Colorado, so slightly out of shape and in extremely high altitude I decided to try and run anyway! WTF? The most I ran all week was (I'm hoping) 3 miles. But I was S-L-O-W and felt like I was working really hard due to the thin air. But I noticed that as I ran, my bum would actually start to feel better and toward the end of the runs the pain had almost completely gone away.
I'm reading "Marathoning for Mortals" and it says that if you miss a workout, to just keep going and don't try to make it up. So I was scheduled to run 9 today, but tried to eek out 10 miles just for the hell of it. It was not easy. I'm guessing that I did closer to 9 just by the time, but I'm thankful to be able to run again--although I'm slow as hell.
So did I learn my lesson? Hell yes I did. And I'll let Jeremy keep this "I told you so". But will I stop wearing heels? NEVER.

Running Tunes

I thought I would share my latest running mix. Its definitely...um...eclectic, and yes there is a lot of Kelly Clarkson (shut up, they are great songs to run to!) but these songs have a great tempo and I know if I run through the whole thing, I will have done close to 3.5 miles. Enjoy!

Love Sex Magic--Ciara (feat. Justin Timberlake)
No You Girls--Franz Ferdinand
I Do Not Hook Up--Kelly Clarkson
Since U Been Gone--Kelly Clarkson Dance Vault Mixes
My Life Would Suck--Kelly Clarkson
Never Again--Kelly Clarkson
Supernatural Superserious--R.E.M.
Don't Stop the Music--Rihanna
Breakin' Dishes--Rihanna
Don't Stop Believin'--Journey
Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin--Journey

56 miles....Soooo many more to go!

So I've completed three full weeks of marathon training and I am surprised to say that I feel great! The last few weeks have been strange weather wise--super hot, then really nice, then hot again. But I've been doing shorter runs on the treadmill on the days that are too hot to run outside and getting up early enough for my long runs to beat the heat. But other than the strange summer weather, the runs have gone well and without problems. My hip hasn't hurt nearly as bad as I thought it would (I think the new shoes are really helping) and I've been incorporating speed work into my training too, which I've never done before but I can already tell that it is helping.
Speaking of speed, last week I did my long run (9 miles) with my friend Anthony--who completed the Lincoln 1/2 Marathon in 1:40 (I think...) Well at least a good 40 minutes faster than me! So I was nervous to run with him for a long run since his usual pace is quite a bit faster than mine--even if he slows down! But I think it was really good to run with Anthony--he helped me keep my pace up and we did 9 miles in 1:27! That is probably the fastest I have ever run 9 miles! So thank you Anthony for keeping me going!
All in all the first 3 weeks have been great, but I'm honestly worried about the next three weeks. I have a few "vacations" coming up--4th of July we will go to Iowa for Jeremy's cousin Liza's wedding, then the next weekend we go back to Iowa for Jeremy's 10 year reunion, THEN I leave for Colorado for a week. So when am I going to get my long runs in? This weekend I'm supposed to do 11, 12 the next and then 9. I think I can squeeze my 11 miles in this Saturday before we leave for Iowa, but I'll have to get up SUPER early. Ok, so that's part of training. Ok I think I can live with that. But the next weekend I honestly don't know how I'm going to fit 12 miles in--the weekend is packed with reunion activities and a lot of eating and drinking...hmmm...anyone have suggestions? Should I do it early on Friday? Wait till Monday? Try to run as long as I can on Saturday or Sunday and call it good?

Then there is Colorado. The good news--I'll have lots of time to run. The bad news: Altitude. I'm not sure I'm "elite athlete" enough to start high altitude training yet! I remember trying to run last year when I was in Colorado and I wanted to die after about 5 minutes! I might just try to keep up with my runs during the week and take more walk breaks? I think I can do the long run on the Sunday after I get back--and after my high altitude training week 9 miles should be a breeze, right?

I'm proud of the 56 miles I've accomplished so far and that I have felt good. I am getting nervous for the upcoming weeks of vacation and increased mileage, but as long as I'm consistent I should be fine, right? Right? Well we will see!

3,5,3,8

So this week officially kicks off my marathon training program. As I was looking for training programs I consulted a variety of sources: friends, Runners World.com, Women's Running magazine, books, blogs...the list goes on. And I realized that there is a LOT of conflicting and confusing information about the best way to train for a marathon. So I decided to go with a plan from Hal Higdon, which is what my marathon running partner/brother's girlfriend/pen pal in Texas did when she trained for Chicago a few years ago--and she survived and is even doing it again so it must work! Its an 18 week schedule which will take us right up to the day of the marathon. Our longest run will be 20 miles in week 15 and I am already dreading it!

My friend Anthony, who will also be running Chicago says that his plan includes SEVERAL 20 mile runs during the 18 week training. This makes me nervous and makes me want to throw up. I'm not so sure that is a good plan for me, but Anthony is in great shape and can totally handle it. If anyone thinks that I am way off by not doing a run before the marathon that is longer than 20 miles, speak now or forever hold your peace....

I was hoping to post the training schedule here on my blog for you all to see, but I am stupid and can't figure out how to do it...so if you really want to see it then please help me figure out how to post it somewhere.

Anyway, 3, 5, 3, 8 are the distances we are supposed to run this week. I did 3 miles yesterday, I'll do 5 tomorrow, 3 Thursday and 8 Saturday. Normally I will probably do my long runs on Sunday, but this Saturday my friend Julie is getting married and there is a good chance I will be out late that night...drinking, dancing and cake eating. The last thing I will want to do on Sunday is run 8 miles.

So there you go... 3 miles down...hundreds more to go!

New Shoes!

I FINALLY got new running shoes! I'm pretty sure I was well overdue for a new pair. I got these a few weeks ago and they have been great so far. These are Asics Gel Nimbus...which I have had before...and the name always makes me laugh--wasn't this the name of the broom or something in Harry Potter? Anyway, they feel great! You don't realize how badly you need new shoes until you get a new pair. Its like running on pillows or something. I'm not too crazy about how SHOCKING pink they are, but I think they will serve me well these next few months of training and in the marathon too!

Bondi Band

Here is my new favorite running accessory (no, not Gus...he is DEFINITELY not a good running accessory) Its my headband--its called a The Bondi Band! It is a really cute fabric headband that comes in all kinds of fun colors and patterns. Here is a picture of my favorite Bondi Band. I got one for Kim and Kayla too! I think Kim and I should get matching ones for the Chicago Marathon! Sorry the picture isn't very good--I downloaded it from my blackberry. But you get the idea....

Running Updates

Okay, woah I REALLY suck at blogging. Well in my defense the last few weeks have been completely CRAZY!
SOO much has happened since I last blogged: Fat Girlfriend: The Musical opened and ran with great success and I completed my 4th Lincoln National Guard Half-Marathon 2 weeks ago...with success!
I will say that between work, rehearsal for the show and training for the marathon, I did get worn out. So much so, that I got pretty sick the week before the half-marathon. So needless to say I missed my long run. I was supposed to do 10 miles and it SO did NOT happen. But I needed to rest and of course we had shows that whole weekend too, which only made it harder to really completely rest up.
So as race day approached I really felt nervous. I have to say that even though this was my 5th time running a half-marathon, I didn't feel very prepared or confident going into it this time. I know that I had been really busy, and for the most part I did a good job of getting runs in and Stacey and I did great long runs together, but the fact that I got sick really threw me for a loop, not to mention the fact that we had a cabaret show the night before the race and I got to bed late. Ay yi yi.

So I did the show that night, came home, ate some pasta, went to bed--and when the alarm went off I knew it was going to be a very looooooong day. Not only did we have to wake up at 4:30 am to leave by 5am to get to Lincoln by 6am--we had to run 13.1 miles and then hurry right back to Omaha because I....had not 1, but 2 shows that same day. One at 2:00 and one at 6:00! YIKES!

I didn't realize that this would be the case when I signed up for the race and when I agreed to be in the show. But looking back, I wouldn't change it. Was it a long day? HELL to the YES, but after a few minor "bumps" I felt pretty good and the shows went very well!

So--the race. Okay so per usual--Stacey & Jeff came to our house at 5am and this year it was the Stoll's turn to drive to Lincoln. So we fueled Jeremy with TONS of coffee and headed to Lincoln. I should also mention that I did manage to eat breakfast--oatmeal and yes I had some coffee too--I really am to the point where I can't function unless I have coffee--so I had a small amount. But I decided this year to avoid Gatorade all together and just drink water during the race. Hmm............

One exciting thing I forgot to mention is that my beautiful cousin Kayla also ran the race with Stacey and I! Kayla has gone through an amazing transformation in the last few years and running has been a big part of that. I know from experience that it is a HUGE accomplishment when once you couldn't even run a mile to having the drive, discipline and determination to train and complete a half-marathon. Its amazing and I am SO Proud of her and honored to share her first half-marathon experience.

So Stacey, Kayla and I all looked super cute, I must say. Kayla had on a super sassy tank, Stacey of course had on one of her cute and running tops and shorts--she always has the best running gear AND Nike baseball hat. And as a surprise Stacey bought me a Nike running hat too! I was SO excited because I have been wanting one to wear this summer when I train. So THANK YOU Stacey! I wore a pink Nike running top that I've worn before but oh well, and my ugly, but tried-and-true black running shorts. They are the old-fashioned "biker" short ones that don't ride up, which is good, but they are ugly. If anyone has any suggestions on what brand of shorts I can buy that aren't the biker style and won't ride up--PLEASE let me know.

Okay, enough about fashion--on to THE RACE. Overall, we did VERY well. Our pace was pretty consistent the whole time. We maintained about a 10:30 pace, which for me is really good. I'm sure Stacey could have gone faster, but for me this pace was great. If I can maintain that for the Chicago Marathon I will be EXTREMELY happy. But from the very beginning I could tell that I was tired and I was feeling pretty sluggish. So right away I was kicking myself. Maybe I should've also had a banana this morning...hopefully the oatmeal will kick in soon? But I just tried to focus and keep talking to Stacey and Kayla and stay positive.

But when we got to mile 6--where we get on the trail by Hwy 2 I was really feeling tired. I knew there was a water stop coming up so that kept me going. I thought about getting some Gatorade at the 8 mile stop, but changed my mind. In the past every time I drink Gatorade or try a sports gel--at mile 10 I ALWAYS have to stop and go to the bathroom. This year I was DETERMINED to NOT STOP! So I drank the water, felt a little better and managed to get up the hill at Mile 9 without too much complaining....

At Mile 10 we saw Jeremy and Jeff! Yay! That is always something to look forward to and for me signals that we are almost done! "I can do 3 more miles" I kept telling myself. 11 & 12 are by far the longest stretches I think. Here I could feel my energy slumping and at one point I said to Stacey "Okay if I feel bad now, there is NO WAY I could go another 13 miles!" Negative thoughts started racing through my brain "How will I ever even TRAIN for a marathon, let alone complete one?" But Stacey assured me that I will train and be ready for the marathon and that the way I was feeling right then is how I will feel at mile 23. "YES you will want to stop, but you've come this far and its only 3 more miles. You'll be able to push past it."

So we kept on trucking--really ready to be done, but of course the last part of the race looping around to the finish line is really exciting. So you forget momentarily about how sore and tired you are and just GUN IT! We picked up the pace and crossed the finish line at 2:19! YAY US!

We stopped, got our medals and got a picture taken and that's when I started to feel sick. Almost immediately after stopping my legs felt like lead, my head hurt, my stomach hurt, I felt weak--this has never happened to me before. So I forced down a bagel and some water but that didn't help. The drive home was no better. I was so weak and felt like I had been hit by a truck. I made Jeremy pull over at a gas station and Jeff and Stacey insisted that I drink some Gatorade or something with electrolytes. So I got a vitamin water. I still don't like the ultra sweet taste of sport drinks, but I know that I really need to suck it up and drink them if I want to survive these long runs.
Magically (okay not magically) the vitamin water helped! In about 5 minutes I was feeling better! Okay, okay so I need to drink sports drinks. I got it. FINE.

After I got home and showered, ate something and drank more vitamin water I felt MUCH more like myself and decided on my way to the show that I would treat myself to a cheeseburger and milkshake! It was the perfect way to celebrate my 5th Half-Marathon and just what I needed to endure 2 performances of Fat Girlfriend!
The day was great--a great run (except for after the race) and 2 great performances. AND....the next day I didn't have to work!

So now that another Half-Marathon was complete, I took it easy for a few weeks. Still ran, just really cut back on my mileage. Now next week I officially start my training program for the CHICAGO MARATHON! Stay tuned!

Running in Circles

It is the beginning of April and it is now less than a month away from the Lincoln Half-Marathon! So as expected, the long weekend runs are gettting...well...longer. This week I was scheduled to run 8 miles on Sunday. No problem, right?! WRONG.

First if I could just complain for a brief moment about my busy schedule:

DISCLAIMER: Erin Stoll understands that all events and scheduled appointments mentioned below were brought upon herself. However, she still feels the need to complain, whine, and request sympathy from her husband, family, co-workers, friends and others who are reading this blog. She is simply trying to gain support and understanding from the aforementioned groups listed above.

So Saturday my schedule was crazy--I had to squeeze in a hair appointment and eyebrow wax first thing in the morning before going to set up for the All About Omaha Torchlight Ball later that evening. And of course, in between setting up for the Ball and actually getting there, I had rehearsal. So Saturday was shot.

Then Sunday I of course wanted to sleep in...but alas...the 8 MILES. Sigh. So I get up and it turns out the weather man was right. It DID SNOW...and it was STILL SNOWING! My dear friend and running partner, Stacey called me diligently at 9:30 am--(even though she had been up WAY later than me the night before. She's so dedicated) For a brief, shining moment I thought she would say "Let's just forget it! Its snowing, and I'm tired. We deserve a day off!" But she said just the complete opposite:

"Let's do it! Yes, its snowing but its not sticking to the ground. We'll be fine!"

DAMN! But do I retreat? No. I say "Okay! Let's do it!"

But then.....poor Stacey, while walking to her car, nearly gets blown over by the 25 mile per hour winds that are whipping the snow around. (Weird...It doesn't look THAT bad from my living room window) She calls me back and says, "There is "NO WAY we are running outside...Plan B?"
So what's "Plan B", you ask? Plan B is this: Call Stacey's dad who is retired Air Force....have him meet us at the post office in Bellevue, drive us to Offut Air Force Base and drop us off at the Field house so we can run on the indoor track.
All this for 8 lousy miles? YES! And do I want to do it...HELL NO! But do I? YES!

So Mac drops us off, we put our stuff away and walk out to the track. "At least there are no hills" I think to myself. (A welcome change from the usual hilly route I endure.) Stacey thinks that once around the track is 2 miles. Boy were we wrong! It turns out one time around the track is .4 miles! So 5 times around is 2 miles....so yes...we need to run around that F***ing track 20 times! Ay yi yi.

But...it wasn't too bad. It was flat, it wasn't crowded, no snow or wind to slow us down...in fact, we kept a really great pace! We did about a 10 minute mile for the majority of the run, which is especially good for me!

So needless to say, after all my whining, complaining, tiredness and lack of motivation--I am SO glad we did the run despite all the hoops we had to jump through to get there. This is why I love my dear friend Stacey so much! She doesn't let me give up even though I want to and she keeps me motivated. Thanks Stacey for keeping me on track this week...literally!

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I forgot to talk about my new favorite thing: Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. No ordinary cookies---cookies that are healthy and SO SO SO GOOD!
Last week I read "Naturally Thin: Unleash your Skinny Girl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting" by Bethenny Frankel. (Yes, for all of you Bravo! fans, Bethenny from "Real Housewives of New York City"!) I love that show and I seriously LOVE this book. After reading it I feel like a weight has been lifted! Bethenny's book takes a unique approach to food and eating and basically it says NEVER diet again and never deprive yourself of the foods you really like to eat! There is a lot more to it--she has 10 rules to follow and gives examples of how she eats, etc. Its interesting to read and by no means a "diet" or "food plan" but just a simple and freeing way to eat that focuses on eating in a healthy way, of course but without beating yourself up if you eat a cookie or cheeseburger. I could go on about the book, but really you should just read it because I'm not doing it justice!
Okay, but my FAVORITE part of the book is this recipe! If you know me, you know I love sweets. You know that I even tried to give them up for lent again this year...which only lasted about 3 weeks...okay 2 weeks, but whatever, I tried. But since I read this book I now know that that was a really stupid way to think so imagine how happy I was when I saw this healthy and yummy cookie recipe!
THEY.ARE.AWESOME. But the true test was Jeremy. He LOVES my regular chocolate chip cookies (and really anything I bake because he is just that sweet) but after trying one of these I believe he said "Holy Shit. These are awesome. If you only ever make one thing again, make it these cookies!"
And the best part? They are GOOD FOR YOU! The recipe is below--I hope I don't get in trouble for posting this, but since its in her book it should be okay. I hope you like them as much as Jeremy and I do! I can't take ANY credit except for sharing the recipe with you. THANK YOU Bethenny Frankel....just in case she reads this! :)

Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
1 1/2 Cups Oat Flour (I take regular Quaker Oats and blend them in a blender or food processor or your coffee grinder will work too! It takes almost 2 cups of oatmeal to make 1 1/2 cups Oat Flour)
3/4 Cup rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 Cup Raw Sugar (You can find this in the baking isle or organic section of the store)
1/3 Cup Chocolate Chips (I used mini-chips, but regular will work great too)
1 tsp canola oil
1/3 Cup soy milk
1/2 cup mashed banana (1 medium-size banana)
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375. Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Combine all the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together, until well combined.
2. Use a large spoon to scoop batter onto a cookie sheet covered with wax paper. Bake for 10-12 minutes rotating the pan halfway through cooking, or bake until the edges of the cookies are light brown.

Running with Friends

Okay, so I obviously haven't kept my promise with blog posting. I wanted to post once a week, but...um...well yeah that hasn't happened! Between work, running, and rehearsals for "Fat Girlfriend: The Musical" I haven't really had time to blog. But here I am sitting at home ALONE on a Friday night and now I have time!
Again....not too much new to report on the running front. Yes, the runs are getting somewhat longer. This week I was supposed to do 19 miles. Well....so far I've done 6.5! Whoops! But I will do my long run of 7 miles on Sunday so hopefully I can get back on track next week. (Did I say that last time? Oh God.)
But I'm not too worried yet...I still have a few weeks before the Lincoln 1/2. YES I KNOW I need to kick it into high gear, but I will, I will....I swear.
Okay, so last weekend Kim and David came to Omaha for a visit! I LOVE them and I miss them SO MUCH! So Kim and I are running the Chicago Marathon together, so we planned to do our long run together last Sunday. I should also mention that last weekend was also my good friend Beth's surprise bridal shower--and our other good friend Laura Stevenson (sorry Laura! You will always be Laura Stevenson to me! ) came into town for the shower! Laura is a hard core runner too (aren't we all?!) and we tried to convince her to run with us on Sunday, but she made some excuse about not being able to keep up...WHATEVER Laura--even though she is training for a race herself...any-whooo....
So Stacey came over on Sunday morning and we ran about 5 miles and it was great! Earlier in the week I tried to map out a flat route since Kim has the luxury of NO HILLS in Houston. For anyone not from or familiar with Omaha--a surprising fact: Omaha=HILLS. Seriously.
So I said that I "tried" to find a flat route...but the truth is, where I live you will come across a hill eventually--you either have to start with one or end with one. I won't lie...we sort of had to do both. But for a girl who swears she can't run hills, Kim rocked it! AND she tried to tell me that she couldn't run and talk at the same time too...well...I just couldn't let that one go! We made her talk a LOT! Stacey and I talk the ENTIRE time we run and it makes the runs go waaay faster. So Kim if you still don't want to talk by the time the marathon rolls around then just be warned: you are going to get REALLY sick of my voice for 5 hours and 26.2 miles! :)
But seriously, we all did great and of course after it was over we pigged out on breakfast casserole and blueberry muffins. TOTALLY WORTH IT.
Here is a picture of the three of us before our run--Stacey and Kim weren't too happy that we took this, but at least we didn't take one AFTER the run! Check out Kim's cute pink jacket--LOVE it! I've also posted a picture of my high school friends--Laura is the tall beautiful gal next to me in pink!
So this week my goal is to follow my training plan exactly, which should be interesting....but that is the goal...its good to have goals...right?

Sick & Tired

So this week me and running haven't been too close. I got some crappy cold at the end of last week and didn't do my long run last Sunday. I was supposed to do 5 miles, but instead I met with some friends for brunch at Upstream and decided to eat my weight in bacon and beer bread french toast. (I know it sounds weird but its super good!) So took Monday off too (of course!) and did a wimpy 2 miles on the treadmill on Tuesday. I seriously wanted to die! Yes I know I was sick but I didn't think 2 miles would hurt, but it did. Sigh. Wednesday I did 3.5 and Friday I did 3 and then I did 5 today. Today was better, my hip didn't start hurting till the end of my run which is good, but it is still bothering me. Okay should I stop complaining now??? The only saving grace is that it seems to FINALLY be getting warmer! And with the time change it doesn't get dark at 4:30 so I can run outside after work! Yay! I also got a new magazine this week: Women's Running. Its pretty good--they have great articles about sports bras, cute running accessories like headbands and stuff and recipes, but the best part is that they also sent me this super cute T-shirt (see picture) I'm very excited about it as you can tell!
So this week I am going to stay positive that my runs will go better since I am feeling TONS better than I did last week and my rehearsal schedule isn't as busy as last week either so I should have more time to run. But the BEST part is that David and Kim are coming to visit next weekend and Kim and I are going to run together! I'm excited to run with her! It will be good practice for when we do the Chicago Marathon together in October! Get ready Kim....Omaha isn't as flat as you think it is! :)

Training

So I'm into my 4th week of training for the Lincoln Half-Marathon on May 3rd. I decided to start completely over since I hardly ran at all over the holidays...okay and after the holidays too! But I'm back on track and despite having to run on the treadmill more than I'd like because of the crap weather, I feel pretty good. I became a "fan" of the Lincoln Half-Marathon on facebook and every week they send me training schedules! So last week I ran 4 days--3 miles on Tuesday, 2 miles on Wednesday, 3 on Friday and 5 today--ALL on the stinkin' treadmill except for Tuesday.

Have I mentioned that I HATE my treadmill? Yes, it is nice to have and yes its convenient, but its SO boring! I watch TV and its still boring. In treadmill time--5 minutes feels like 30. I don't mind running outside when its cold, but I don't really care to run on snow, so needless to say it looks like this week is another date with Mr. Treadmill. Maybe I should name him....what would be a good name for a machine that is stupid, makes time move slowly, and inflicts pain? ...Hmmm....George Bush! Okay bad idea...that will definitely not motivate me. Maybe I should try and give it a more positive spin so that I look forward to jumping on and running in place for 45-60 minutes 4 times a week....Justin Timberlake? Jon Hamm??? "I have to go get on Jon Hamm" That sounds MUCH better than George Bush! :)

Okay, back to actual running talk...if anyone reading this has a way for me to change my negative attitude about my treadmill or has some suggestions on how I can make my runs on that thing more....fun (if humanly possible) then I would LOVE to hear them!
I haven't received the schedule for next week yet, but I imagine it will be similar to this week. All I know is tomorrow is my day off and I'm very excited about that! I am worried about one thing--my hip. I am only 31 years old and I am experiencing hip pain. This is not a new running pain for me. When I started running a few years ago I had the same problem. I saw a physical therapist and it got better, but never really went away. So I've been trying to stretch a LOT and do the exercises he gave me, but it still hurts. So I went to google (my on-line doctor) and typed in "hip pain after running" Apparently this is a common pain that women experience due to poor posture while running. Well I guess if I were an actual "RUNNER" I would have better posture or know the "right" way to run, but....as you know from reading my first entry "I am not a runner" so....do I need a running coach? Maybe I'll have Jeremy video tape me while I run and then post it on this blog and if any of you are actual "runners" you could critique my running style....but please be kind because again...not. a. runner. I just want to get the hip pain to stop so that I can get through training and the marathon. Then if it comes to "you can never run again" at least I can say that I did a marathon! Isn't that why people do it anyway? Just to brag about it? Well...that's at least in the Top 3 reasons I'm doing it.
Well--gotta run!

I am not a Runner.

I run. But I'm not "a runner"

This is what I always say when I hear: "Oh Erin I saw you running in Memorial Park yesterday. I didn't know you were a runner!" "I'm not!" I reply. Yes, technically you did see me in the act of running, but I AM NOT A RUNNER....I'm just a girl who happens to run.

If you've known me for longer than 4 years, you know that I was never a runner and that I never spoke of any desire to do anything that required physical movement Period. (Okay, yes I was in show choir, but that doesn't count.) But here I am starting a blog about...running. Weird! See most people might expect me to write about shoes, or lip gloss, or my love of ABBA, but running? ERIN? Hell-to-the-NO.
But this year I have committed to doing something that I never, ever in my life thought I would do:

Run the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 11, 2009.

4 years ago I started running. I'm not sure why, really. Walking was my exercise of choice and when I moved to the Benson neighborhood in spring of 2005 I would walk to Memorial Park and back. And one day I just decided to run. I could only run to the end of my block. The next week I tried to make it 2 blocks...then 3...then 4 and before I knew it I could run a mile without stopping. It was a really big deal for girl who hated sports, sweating, and who lacked any sort of athletic ability of any kind. Then I was running almost every day, usually about 4 miles. I was constantly amazed that I could do it! My friend Stacey was training at that same time for the Chicago Marathon so we would run together. I was lucky enough to go to Chicago that October and run with her in the race from mile 23 to 25. It was amazing! I was so proud of her! But even after witnessing her amazing accomplishment I still didn't have the desire to run one myself, or even think I could.
After that she convinced me to run the Lincoln Half-Marathon with her. Run 13.1 miles? Whatever sister! The first time I ran 5 miles I thought I would die! How would I make it 8.1 more miles beyond that? But, I signed up and we trained together and in May of 2006 we crossed the finish line together in 2:36.48. (Hey--I just wanted to finish the damn thing so I was VERY happy we did it in just over 2 1/2 hours!....had I not stopped to pee, it would've been under 2 1/2 hours! I'm convinced!)
Since then Stacey and have have vowed to run the Lincoln Half-Marathon together every year! This year will be our 4th time running that race and my 5th Half-Marathon. (I did the Omaha half in 2006....NEVER again. Let me just say--Omaha Nebraska is not as flat as you think it is!)

So in May after I complete the Lincoln Half, I will continue to train for the Chicago marathon. I've also convinced my good friend Anthony to run it, as well as my brother's girlfriend Kim! AND I hear that David might do it too! Anyone else?

So I've decided to write this blog for a few reasons:
1) If I make it through this whole training and the actual marathon, I will want some sort of proof and answer to the "What was I thinking?" question.
2) Motivation--perhaps keeping track of my progress and having an outlet for my ups and downs throughout the training process will keep me on track and motivated to keep going. Yes, I am anticipating that I will really want to quit at times.
3) ...well....maybe my stories and struggles will motivate and inspire someone else like me--The girl who would stand still during dodgeball so that I would get hit and could go sit down in gym class, the girl who was excited when it rained in elementary school so that we couldn't go outside for recess, the girl who "played" volleyball in third grade and never made actual contact with the ball till the final game of the season, the girl who prayed in the outfield during softball "Please don't hit the ball over here. Please don't hit the ball over here."

Am I uncoordinated? YES. Did I flinch and cover my face when a ball came toward me in right field? (which, by the way, I had been told was "hardly ever going to happen") YES. Do I think of every excuse I can to skip cycling, yoga and body pump class on a daily basis. HELL YES.

But I'm also the girl who at one time couldn't run a block without stopping and is now training for a marathon. So maybe somewhere behind the high heels, the lip gloss and undying love of ABBA tunes--is a runner. A runner who will keep going despite losing toenails, her mind and (from what I hear from Stacey), my free time!

So when its all said and done and I've run the damn thing maybe then I will actually be able to call myself "a runner" till then, I'm just a crazy girl who will one day wake up at 5 AM to run 20 miles....what have I gotten myself into?!

We will find out!


P.S. I know that the title of my blog "Gotta Run Gal" doesn't really seem to fit considering I've just spent all this time telling you that "I'm not a runner." But "Gotta Run" is on my favorite Life is Good T-shirt so I thought it would be a good name. Plus, now that I've signed up for the Chicago Marathon--I have no excuse. Even if I don't consider myself "a runner"...I've gotta run!