The Finish Line

The beginning of my big day started at 2:30 am.  I think I got about 4.5 hours of sleep.  I know that seems really early but I had to meet my running partner at 4 am and I had to allow enough time for my system to wake up.  I actually needed every one of those minutes.  I had to check the weather, Facebook to see what was going on with the running group and if there were any last minute changes amongst other things that needed to be done.

As usual I was out the door late but we got to downtown Sacramento in plenty of time.  We had coffee, we ate our yummy breakfast...Honey Stinger Waffles and then we waited in line to get on the school buses that were waiting for us.  We then drove to Folsom and the start line.  It was in the mid 40's on Sunday morning.
I had on arm warmers, shorts, running shirt, sweatpants, sweatshirt, gloves, socks and compression calf sleeves.  We waited on the bus until 15 minutes before the race started then hit the porta-potties.  We found some of our friends and then waited for it all to begin.

We were told that there were 8000 running the marathon and 4000 participating in the relay which had four legs to it.  The race started at 7 and we were off.  Of course it took us about 5 minutes or so to cross the start line.  Everywhere you looked there were clothes strewn on the ground...pants, sweatshirts, garbage bags, blankets.  These were to be donated to the homeless later.

The course starts in Folsom and continues through Orangevale, Fair Oaks, Carmichael and then Sacramento.  In the old town section of Fair Oaks there are hundreds of wild chickens and we saw a couple
as we ran by.  We were so lucky to have such good weather for the race.  Somewhere in the Fair Oaks area I shed my sweatshirt, sweatpants, and gloves as I got too warm. 

Never having run in any other kind of big long race like this, I was surprised at the level of crowd support.  There were people out on their front lawns drinking their coffee, waving and cheering us on as we ran by.   We saw lots of spectators with dogs which was fun.  We saw so many different breeds which broke up some of the monotony.  Our running group was out in force on the course.  We saw them early on and then at the half way point and then at around mile 26.1.  They were all there with signs and cheers.  I can't imagine doing this alone with no support.  It is such a big undertaking.  I ran over 700 miles so I could run 26.2 miles on a Sunday in December. 

It was worth it though.  You really find out what you are made of.  It is as much a mental exercise as it is a physical one.  I had a few tough runs prior to the CIM.  When I cruised through mile 18 with no problems it was a great relief.  At that point I felt confident that I could finish the race without having to walk any more than the 1 minute I walked after 3 minutes of running.  In the end I ran most of the last 2 miles or so just because I was afraid if I stopped I wouldn't be able to run again.  I finished the race in 5 hours 28 minutes and 54 seconds.  I hope that someday I can try and run another marathon and run the entire thing.  I have a lot of issues to work on before that happens.

In the end, I accomplished my goal of raising $1000 for The Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.  In fact I raised $1050.  A big thanks to everyone that contributed.  An even bigger thanks to my running friend Terry Tokutomi who ran with me the last 2 months of my training.  She kept me positive and motivated when I was feeling very down.  You have no idea what that means to me.  My running a marathon journey is over, but what I do next is yet to be determined.  I need to get my running form corrected so that I don't have these ITB problems.  I am so tired of my knee hurting me.  I hope that 2012 will be as great a year as 2011.

CIM-Three Weeks Out

So for those of you not from the Sacramento area, the above picture is the course that I will be running on December 4th.  We start in Folsom and run 26.2 miles to the Capital in downtown Sacramento.  I will also be running very near my house.  It is maybe a mile away from Fair Oaks Blvd. and Oak Street which is around mile 5 or 6 of the race. 

Tomorrow, November 12th, we are running the last 15 miles or so of the race.  We will be starting at Fair Oaks and Sunrise Blvd.  Should be interesting as there are no sidewalks on parts of Fair Oaks.  Guess I better wear something bright so the crazy drivers on this road can see me.  I can say crazy drivers because I lived in that neighborhood for 6 years.  I once missed hitting a deer by about 10 feet on Fair Oaks between Sunrise and San Juan. 

At this point, physically, I feel like I am being held together by string and sheer will.  I have my I Phone timer working everyday at work.  It alerts me every hour and a half to get up and stretch.  I go through a regular routine of stretching calves, quads, hamstrings, hip flexors and glutes.  I had to bring my yoga mat to work so my knees wouldn't hurt.  I have a glass panel next to my door.  It's kind of embarrassing to have your boss walk by while you're in the middle of a glute stretch. 

Not many people understand why I am doing this.  The people I work with think I'm a crazy person.  My boss told me yesterday that he is happy with 29 minutes of cardio a day and that nothing could convince him that what I was doing was "fun".  I don't know if it is fun either.  Challenging, pushing me beyond my capabilities, setting and achieving a goal, it is all of those.  Truly if a 53 year old woman with a bad knee can do this, anyone can too with proper preparation and motivation.  I am motivated, very motivated.  I haven't raised the money I would like to with the fundraising.  My job situation became tenuous and I didn't want to threaten any professional contacts with a personal issue.  Still, money is needed to continue research into the cure for spinal cord paralysis and I am glad to raise whatever I can towards that end. 

Five Weeks To gO!!!

Can't believe that I have been training for the CIM for 47 weeks!!  Officially the CIM training for my group started the first Sunday in July, but mentally I have been preparing for this since January 1st.  Tomorrow my goal is to run 18 miles.  This will be the furthest I have ever run.  I'm slightly intimidated by it because two weeks ago on my 17 mile run I had to walk in the last mile or so because my left calf felt like it was ready to give out.  It felt like it wouldn't hold me up if I took another running step.

I haven't posted in awhile.  Weekends are mainly the time I write and they have been filled with running.  I did run in the Urban Cow Half Marathon the first Sunday in October.  That race was a lot of run.  They had a new course which I like a lot.  I did the run/walk method with intervals of 3 minutes running, 1 minute walking.  I was 5-6 minutes slower than my time last year but that is to be expected since I was walking some. 

I did buy calf compression sleeves this week to help my calves with this long run looming tomorrow.  I tried one out on Thursday during our regular run.  It wasn't too constricting which was good.  When I used to play soccer, I had to wear 2 pairs of socks and sometimes it felt like they were just too tight and constricting since they also had to go over my shin guards.  They would bother me the entire 90 minute game.  I think I will probably wear both of them since I am also having trouble with my right tibial tendon which is on the inside of the Achilles tendon.  Hopefully it will give the tibial tendon some additional support. 

From now on I will be wearing my Team Reeve running shirt on every long run.  I love the words written on the back.  It says:  "For everyone who thought I couldn't do it, for everyone who thought I shouldn't do it, for everyone who said I didn't have it in me, see you at the finish line."

The Reeve Foundation is doing such great work.  They are not only doing cutting edge research on a cure for spinal cord paralysis, they also assist people with purchases of items that can make the newly paralyzed lives more comfortable.  They are a fantastic organization.

Running Book Geek

As proud as I am to say that I am a Runner, I used to be proud to say I read books, lots and lots of books.  Over the years with a child and 90 minute commutes and jobs that consumed my time, reading took a back seat to all of that.  I have read a little in that time, mainly 2 or 3 books in a month and then nothing for 6 months or a year.

Recently I have read so many books on running that it officially makes me a running book geek and I can put that right next to my running podcast geekdom.  The reason for the book reading on running is the current state of my physical health.  I'm not ill or anything just dealing with a chronic problem with my IT Band which really is the symptom of my problem with patellafemoral syndrome or chondromalacia syndrome.

I took a break from the technical books to read a book called Mile Markers by Kristin Armstrong.  She is the ex-wife of a guy named Lance.  She lives in Austin Texas.  The book has 26.2 chapters with running topics like endurance, passion, and clarity.  I have really enjoyed the book because some of it really hits home.  I will never be the runner she is but I can understand her affection for the women she runs with whom she calls her sweat sisters.  I run with a mixed group of people, men and women, who make it fun to run and add another dimension to my life. 

 I want to quote a passage from her book, but it is really a quote within a quote.  She quotes a trail runner friend of hers who came down ALS. This was written while climbing  Machu Picchu.

  "I am a seeker.  I am a wanderer. I am who I am.  Nothing more.  Nothing less.
   Life is a series of great paradoxes.  To find ourselves, we get lost.  To gain, we lose.  To know the light, we plunge into the dark.  To succeed, we fail.  Opposites seem forever linked.  Without one, we cannot define the other.
   Blessings to all who share these mountains, who share journeys---both guide and traveler.  Blessings to all of those who seek, knowing they may never find.  May you breathe in every moment and with it know that you are truly loved."   ...Dano Keitz

In Kristin's book I finally found the words to why I started this journey to run a marathon.  I was truly inspired by the people in my group who ran the CIM last year, both the veterans and the first timers; although that wasn't quite enough for me.  The greatest inspiration to run this marathon is still my brother Brett.  I can't cure him of his paralysis, but I can stand for something when I run.  Here is what Kristin wrote "Running for someone else makes me less willing to give up and more able to understand the pain and the fatigue, knowing that someone else is drawing power from my effort.  I look at it as an opportunity to carry a portion of someone else's burden, to cover some ground on that person's behalf, to try to lighten the load by shouldering some of it on my own back.  That's endurance.  That's what moves me to move."

She wrote what I felt but could not find the words for.  I highly recommend this book.  There are hidden jewels within it that as a runner you will recognize and feel not so alone.